It was another wild day at the MLB Winter Meeting. Starlin Castro was traded to the New York Yankees, Ben Zobrist signed with the Chicago Cubs and Shelby Miller reportedly was traded to the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Check out a full recap of the day’s news below.
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8:45 p.m.: Starlin Castro to the Yankees is a done deal.
8:20 p.m.: Talk about going all in. It looks like the Diamondbacks have ended the Shelby Miller sweepstakes.
Arizona is still rumored to be the favorites to sign pitcher Mike Leake.
7:56 p.m.: It’s been a wild few minutes for the Cubs. They’ve reportedly agreed to a trade with the Yankees involving shortstop Starlin Castro.
7:53 p.m.: The Cubs reportedly have won the Ben Zobrist sweepstakes.
7:33 p.m.: The Diamondbacks apparently aren’t satisfied with signing just Zack Greinke. Arizona could push all of its chips into the middle of the table this season.
7:31 p.m.: It’s reportedly a two-horse race for Ben Zobrist.
6:05 p.m.: Sounds like the Giants are keeping tabs on the outfield market.
5:59 p.m.: A couple of big market teams reportedly are discussing a deal.
Castro, who signed a seven-year, $60 million contract extension with the Cubs in August 2012, has been mentioned in trade chatter before. The Cubs have shortstop Addison Russell, as well as up-and-coming infielder Javier Baez, so it makes sense that they’d field offers for Castro.
Chicago also has been linked to free agent Ben Zobrist, so a move could open a spot for him.
5:25 p.m.: All of you Ben Zobrist enthusiasts might want to stick around.
5:23 p.m.: FOX Sports’ Ken Rosenthal passed along some more notes regarding Marlins ace Jose Fernandez. Clearly, it’s an evolving situation that’s difficult to gauge.
4:32 p.m.: The Rangers reportedly have their sights set on pitching.
4:29 p.m.: The Angels’ search for an outfielder reportedly includes Justin Upton.
…and Jason Heyward.
4:26 p.m.: Remember that rumor earlier about the Rangers “surveying” teams about Prince Fielder? Yeah, forget that.
3:32 p.m.: Hanley Ramirez’s name has been mentioned in trade speculation despite the Red Sox’s insistence that he’ll enter spring training as their starting first baseman. If Boston does deal Ramirez, it could have one less potential suitor than originally anticipated.
A major league source told WEEI.com’s Rob Bradford the Orioles aren’t interested in trading for Ramirez even if the Red Sox picked up part of the three-time All-Star’s remaining salary.
The Orioles were thought to be a potential fit because first baseman Chris Davis is a free agent and it’s unclear whether Baltimore, which never has given a player a $100 million contract, will be able to re-sign him.
The O’s traded for Mark Trumbo last week, however, so he could become Baltimore’s first baseman if Davis departs in free agency.
2:58 p.m.: The Red Sox’s level of interest in Shelby Miller is unclear, though this report suggests they might be involved in the bidding for the Braves pitcher.
2:22 p.m.: So, who penciled in Ben Zobrist for an $80 million contract? Anyone?
This tidbit from USA TODAY’s Bob Nightengale suggests it’s a possibility.
This tidbit suggests otherwise.
Either way, the Ben Zobrist sweepstakes is weird.
2:14 p.m.: Prince Fielder had an excellent bounce-back season, but the Rangers still owe the 31-year-old slugger $90 million — the Tigers owe him $30 million — through 2020. As such, they’re testing the waters, even though an $18 million average annual salary for a player of his caliber is a reasonable deal.
1:59 p.m.: Marlins owner Jeffrey Loria has chimed in on the Jose Fernandez rumors.
1:32 p.m.: The Orioles plan to meet Tuesday with Chris Davis’ agent, Scott Boras, according to CBS Sports’ Jon Heyman.
Baltimore never has signed a player to a $100 million contract. That’ll need to change if the club plans to re-sign Davis, as the slugger is said to be seeking close to $200 million, according to Heyman.
1:25 p.m.: There is a belief the Braves could trade Shelby Miller in the coming days, perhaps by the end of the winter meetings, according to CBS Sports’ Jon Heyman. Atlanta reportedly was talking late into Monday night with an unidentified team about the 25-year-old starter.
The Orioles, Cubs, Dodgers, Giants, Diamondbacks, Marlins, Yankees and others reportedly are among the teams involved in the Miller sweepstakes, though other reports suggest the field isn’t quite so deep.
The Braves figure to be asking for a lot in exchange for the talented right-hander.
1:13 p.m.: It’s pretty much impossible at this point to figure out whether Jose Fernandez is untouchable or if the Marlins are willing to trade the 23-year-old right-hander. It sounds like they’re somewhere in the middle based on various reports.
“Things appear to be percolating a bit with the Dodgers and perhaps one or two more teams,” wrote CBS Sports’ Jon Heyman, who also notes that the Diamondbacks and Giants have been talking to the Marlins about Fernandez.
According to Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald, the Marlins could be gauging the market to assess Fernandez’s trade value for when they’re actually ready to deal him — the trade deadline, next offseason, whatever.
1:06 p.m.: Ben Zobrist in the Big Apple? The Mets reportedly like their chances.
12:23 p.m.: Maybe the Astros aren’t the mystery team in on Jose Fernandez after all.
11:49 a.m.: The Jose Fernandez rumors aren’t going anywhere despite Marlins president of baseball operations Michael Hill saying publicly Monday night that the right-hander wasn’t available.
Sources told ESPN that an unidentified fourth team is making a “very strong” bid to trade for Fernandez. According to ESPN’s Jayson Stark, other clubs say they believe the mystery team is the Astros, though neither Houston nor Miami would confirm such Tuesday morning.
Sources who previously considered a Fernandez trade unlikely no longer were willing to say that Tuesday morning, according to Stark.
The Dodgers, Yankees and Diamondbacks reportedly have discussed Fernandez with the Marlins.
11:41 a.m.: The Dodgers’ pursuit of Aroldis Chapman — or landing Chapman, depending on how this domestic violence thing shakes out — could blow up in Los Angeles’ face.
11:37 a.m.: Cliff Lee. Johan Santana. Hideki Okajima. Joe Nathan. A lot of old dudes aren’t content on riding off into the sunset.
11:35 a.m.: Okie dokie.
11:33 a.m.: Want more wheeling and dealing? Blame the Cardinals.
11:31 a.m.: Cliff Lee isn’t the only aging left-hander eyeing a return.
11:25 a.m.: With the Cubs signing John Lackey to a two-year, $32 million contract rather than signing a high-priced starter, like David Price or Zack Greinke, they now have money to play with.
Sources told Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times that the Cubs plan to use that money to pursue top free-agent outfielder Jason Heyward. Heyward reportedly is seeking at least an eight-year deal with an average annual salary perhaps north of $20 million.
11:16 a.m.: Shelby Miller might be traded Tuesday, but the number of potential dance partners for the Atlanta Braves reportedly has dwindled.
11:03 a.m.: The Colorado Rockies have bolstered their bullpen, signing both Jason Motte and Chad Qualls.
Motte posted a 3.91 ERA and a 1.22 WHIP in 57 relief appearances spanning 48 1/3 innings with the Chicago Cubs in 2015. Qualls had a 4.38 ERA and a 1.12 WHIP in 60 appearances spanning 49 1/3 innings with the Houston Astros last season.
10:27 a.m.: The Padres reportedly are going to get Jon Jay from the Cardinals in the trade for Jedd Gyorko, per ESPN’s Keith Law.
10:25 a.m.: Reports are surfacing of a minor trade between the St. Louis Cardinals and San Diego Padres.
FOX Sports’ Jon Morosi reported the Cardinals will acquire second baseman Jedd Gyorko from the Cardinals. It’s unclear at this point what the Padres will get in return.
10:20 a.m.: Even more on Zobrist from Jon Heyman at CBS.
9:55 a.m.: There were reports Monday indicating the outfield market hinged on what happened with Ben Zobrist. It sounds like we might know soon where Zobrist lands and more importantly, how much money he gets.
9:30 a.m.: Remember Hideki Okajima? He’s looking to make a comeback, per ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick.
8:15 a.m.: We’re still sorting through some of the overnight news and rumors, and here’s the latest on a couple of fronts.
The Chicago White Sox look like they’re gearing up to land an impact bat. In order to do that, though, they might need to shed salary and that could come in a trade of first baseman Adam LaRoche, per USA TODAY’s Bob Nightengale.
It’s looking more and more likely that Shelby Miller will be moved before the Braves leave Nashville, and it could happen as early as Tuesday, CBS Sports’ Jon Heyman reports.
The Diamondbacks remain incredibly active and could be in on Miller, Nightengale says.
There’s no shortage of potential suitors for Miller, according to New York Post writer Joel Sherman.
8:10 a.m.: Here’s what’s known about the obviously very situation surrounding Aroldis Chapman.
The Boston Globe cited multiple industry sources who indicated the Red Sox backed off on a trade for Chapman in November after doing a background check and discovering the domestic dispute.
While Chapman’s lawyer “vehemently” denied the allegations to Yahoo! Sports, it was obviously enough to scare off a team like the Red Sox, who instead opted for Craig Kimbrel in a trade with the San Diego Padres.
7:45 a.m.: Monday at the Major League Baseball winter meetings was a bit chaotic.
Sure, there were deals done, like the Boston Red Sox sending Wade Miley to the Seattle Mariners for Carson Smith and Roenis Elias. But Monday was more about the uncertainty and downright confusion surrounding other players.
First and foremost was Cincinnati Reds closer Aroldis Chapman. As early as Sunday night it looked like a trade to the Los Angeles Dodgers was all but imminent. Throughout the day Monday, talks oddly seemed to hit a standstill. Then, it was reported Monday night that the flame-throwing right-hander was involved in an alleged domestic dispute with his wife, leaving the deal in a weird place.
A lot of Monday’s talks also centered around Miami Marlins ace Jose Fernandez. The Marlins reportedly were looking for a ton in return for the right-hander, to the point where opposing teams reportedly were convinced there was very little chance he’d be moved. As the day went on, though, the reported percentages of a move began to climb. The day then culminated with Marlins general manager Michael Hill proclaiming the pitcher was not available.
Weird.
That all sets the stage for Tuesday, which should be another wild day in Nashville. Not only do those situations need to be ironed out, there are still plenty of free-agent scenarios that need solving with players like Johnny Cueto, Jason Heyward, Ben Zobrist and Chris Davis watching and waiting.
We’ll be watching and waiting all day, too, with plenty of updates as the day goes on, so be sure to keep it right here for all the latest.
Thumbnail photo via Jason Getz/USA TODAY Sports Images
