NEWSLETTER
Brothers and Sisters, have you heard the good news?
According to Jon Morosi (MLB.com), the Chicago Cubs are “among the favorites” to sign free agent shortstop Carlos Correa, and that’s reason enough to rejoice on a Friday. But that’s also not quite good enough for our hungry souls. We also want to know when Correa will make his decision. It’s been hours, already. Months, if you include the lockout. We’re antsy, and spring training is starting in earnest this weekend.
Well, unfortunately, it may take a minute. Or, more accurately, at least a few days, if Jon Heyman’s reporting is correct (via 670 The Score):
QUESTION: So when does the first free agent sign and commit? …. You’ve got 139 free agents, all of whom want to get to camp ASAP.
Heyman: The biggest [free agents] they couldn’t go last night and I doubt they go today or tomorrow. Obviously, we assume everyone was following the rules and there weren’t discussions [during the lockout] …. For the biggest guys it’s going to take a little while. There are a ton of relief pitchers, we’re going to see them sign probably early and it’s going to be a steady stream of them.
But I’m assuming it takes more than a day or two for Correa, Freeman, Bryant, and the other big stars.
Rats!
That’s just one early opinion on the potential timeline — and for the transaction junkies out there, note that Heyman does believe there will be other, lesser deals out sooner — but it’s also not totally inconceivable. And that’s especially true for Correa, who switched representation mid-lockout, likely reducing the impact of any work that was done before December. Indeed, Correa switched *to* super agent Scott Boras, who is notorious for taking things down to the wire to squeeze out every last dollar available. Still, you can’t imagine these players will want to hold out for too long. Having just two weeks or so with your new team before the start of the regular season doesn’t sound like a recipe for success. Alas. For some, it may be necessary.
In the meantime, I suspect we’ll see some activity today and especially tomorrow as we approach the mandatory reporting day for Spring Training this Sunday.
Oh, a final note: Kris Bryant is also represented by Scott Boras. By contrast, Freddie Freeman is *not* represented by Scott Boras and is expected to be the first major free agent to sign. So, well, there ya go.
