MLB RUMORS โย Jon Heyman did his rumor roundup thing on Bleacher Report this afternoon, and he once again reiterated his belief that the Chicago Cubs are among the possible landing spots for Alex Bregman: “I’m thinking it’s the Red Sox, Tigers, Jays, or Cubs … anyone else, I’m going to be surprised.” He seemed to believe the Tigers and Red Sox were the two most likely landing spots, with the Blue Jays and Cubs sort of in a secondary tier, but he mentioned the Cubs a few times during that portion of the conversation.
That said, this entire (unbelievable, to us) rumor is so far based solely on reports/theories from Jon Heyman and then Bruce Levine. And while it’s nice to see a little national and a little local reporting on it, I simply refuse to bite until someone else confirms what we’ve heard.
Nonetheless, I took a broader look at Alex Bregman’s potential value to the Cubs this morning. Juuuuuuust in case.
And here was yesterday’s article on the newest Cubs/Bregman rumor.
Mets Chasing Vladdy? Maybe, but …
The “hot” new rumor of the day is the Mets reported interest in trading for Vladimir Guerrero Jr. Indeed, according to Andy Martino (SNY), they’ve even spoken to the Blue Jays about such a deal, though it remains “in the realm of fantasy baseball” for the time being (some other, less established “reporters” out there are trying to push it as something more than it is, but I tend to think Martino is right on this one).
Instead, I think this is really all about Pete Alonso, also a first baseman (and one trying desperately to get the deal HE wants from the Mets.
From the same article, via Martino:
According to league sources, Stearns and the Mets are holding the line on both the length and dollars of their short-term offer, which includes an opt-out after the first year. The exact dollar figure is not known. Ownerย Steve Cohenย is fully supportive of Stearnsโ approach, according to sources with direct knowledge of his thinking.
So, yeah, I’m going to guess that this is largely about the Mets’ efforts to pressure Alonso as anything else. At the same time, the Blue Jays still haven’t made up any ground in trying to extend Vladimir Guerrero Jr., so who knows? I do wonder, however, how Toronto’s efforts will change if they do wind up landing Roki Sasaki (they are one of his three finalists). Getting a potential ace like that for so cheap could help them divert some future dollars toward a Guerrero re-up. If not, maybe they finally get more serious about trading him. And maybe the Mets do get more serious.
Jack Flaherty’s Medicals
According to Steve Phillips, free agent starter Jack Flaherty came into the offseason looking for a five-year deal, but hasn’t been able to find one because of general concern over his medicals (back issue).
Phillips calls back a story I had forgotten about, which is that the Yankees and Tigers (Flaherty’s team at the time) actually had the framework of a trade done at the deadline, before the Yankees backed out because of his medicals.
Obviously, that was a mistake on the part of the Yankees, who wound up losing to the team that did trade for Flaherty, the Dodgers, in the World Series. In any case, Phillips guesses that Flaherty could re-up again with the Tigers on a short-term deal.