Lukewarm Stove: Rays Want Catcher(s), Snell and Kiermaier Available, a Hot SP Market, Trading Darvish, More

Brett stole my intro for his morning Cubs Bullets. So, now you get nothing. You can thank Brett. Here are some rumors.

The Rays Want Willson Contreras a Catcher

Marc Topkin is the go-to guy for all things Rays in Tampa Bay, so when he started his latest on the (virtual) Winter Meetings with news that the Rays top priority is adding catchers (plural) “with the team needing to sign or trade for a couple,” it obviously caught our attention.

As we know, the Cubs are reportedly “very open” to trading Willson Contreras, and also have Victor Caratini sitting in the wings as a plausible starting-caliber (albeit not Contreras-caliber) catcher. But before you go down this route, remember one thing: Trading Willson Contreras, unlike some of his teammates, would NOT be about money.

Given his control, price tag, position, defensive improvements, and overall offensive ability, Willson Contreras, 28, probably has the most trade value on the Cubs right now. But he’s also fairly cheap and still quite young, so even though the Cubs are very open to trading him, that’s only because they are at a transition and could probably net a HAUL in any such deal.

Put simply: Trading Contreras is a whole different animal than trading Kris Bryant, for example, and I see it as a lot less likely, too. So, sure, it’s great to see that the Rays (and their never-ending parade of top prospects) are looking for a catcher – the Cubs probably should pick up the phone to see what’s up – but this is one deal Chicago should NOT feel like they have to force.

Trading Blake Snell, Kevin Kiermaier

For what it’s worth (and I don’t think this is necessarily related to Willson Contreras, but it’s good to note nonetheless), the Rays are seemingly quite interested in trading Blake Snell and/or center fielder Kevin Kiermaier because of their salaries.

Obviously, that’s not the type of center piece return you exactly envision in a trade for Contreras, but given the Cubs’ glaring needs in center field and in the rotation, I just thought it was worth mentioning. Kiermaier, in particular, could be an interesting piece if the prospect/young player return was enormous and there were financial considerations in the deal. And obviously Snell is a former Cy Young award winner.

Starters Are All the Rage

Starting pitchers have emerged as the most aggressively-targeted players on the market this year, to the point that even non-tendered guys like Jose Urena and Trevor Williams are drawing half a dozen suitors (via Jon Heyman). The Rangers already took advantage (re: Lance Lynn), but before they landed the Texas southpaw, they were reportedly in discussion with the Reds on Sonny Gray:

And that brings me back to a point we made last night … if the going price of ONE YEAR of Lynn, 33, was nearly full rookie control of Dane Dunning plus another pitching prospect, you have to imagine the return for someone like, say, Yu Darvish, 34, would be enormous.

He’s a year older than Lynn, but he has a much better and longer track record, is throwing harder than he ever has before, is coming off one of his best performances of his career, and is under contract at a reasonable rate for three more years. I don’t want the Cubs to trade Darvish, but if they’re going to start shifting pieces away from 2021, then it is probably worthy considering trading him at an all-time high (in terms of value on the market).

And, who knows? Maybe trading Darvish and his salary, alone, might provide a path to extending someone like Javy Báez. I know it sucks, but we’ve (as fans) got to be mentally open to everything. And this could be a case where peak individual value meets a hot market at just the right time. I’m just sayin’. Don’t crush me.

Mel Rojas Jr. Planning a Return?

Outfielder Mel Rojas Jr., 30, made his way over to the KBO in 2017 after fizzling out as a Pirates and Braves prospect, but he’s exploded offensively in his time across the pond, slashing .349/.417/.680 with 47 homers in 2020.

The KBO is intermittently a hitter-friendly league, but those are still impressive numbers and he was a legit draft prospect (3rd round) once upon a time. It’s possible he’s learned/tweaked/improved and could come back to be an above average hitter in the Major Leagues. And although he hasn’t decided yet …

The Miami Marlins are reportedly interested.

What Are the Blue Jays Hiding?

We know the Blue Jays will be very active this offseason, at the top of the free agent market, and even in trade, but this is one very weird answer:

First of all, even though all he said was “We think the world of Frankie,” it is extremely uncommon (and a borderline tampering) to say anything publicly touching on a future desire to land a player under contract with another team. But that notwithstanding, what a strange response. Was Atkins just making a joke because he’s asked about it so often? Because he used to be with the Indians? Is he hiding the ball a bit? Just a weird exchange all around.

Matt Wisler to the Giants

The Giants are another team we know to be looking to spend this offseason. After retaining Kevin Gausman on a qualifying offer, they’ve now signed reliever Matt Wisler.

Wisler, 28, had been pretty awful in the results and peripherals department before 2020, but hey, he’s young and had a 1.07 ERA, so this is a steal, right?

Eh … maybe not so much:

This is a pretty low-cost deal, so whatever but some of these numbers are … well, they are what they are:

 

written by

Michael Cerami began covering the Chicago Cubs for Bleacher Nation as a part-time contributor in 2015. One year later, he joined Bleacher Nation full-time, covering the Chicago Cubs and Major League Baseball. Today, Michael runs Bleacher Nation, contributing as a writer (Cubs, MLB) and an editor for all sections of the site, including the Chicago Bears, Bulls, and Blackhawks, as well as MLB, NBA, NHL, and NFL. In 2019, Michael was the co-host of NBC Sports Chicago's Cubs Post-Game Show Outside the Ivy. You can find him on Twitter/X @Michael_Cerami

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