Freddie Freeman returning to the Atlanta Braves still feels like the most likely outcome for the free agent first baseman, but it sounds like he'll have quite a market once the Major League Baseball lockout ends.
Freeman has all the leverage in the world when MLB finally gets back to business. He is the face of the Braves, and the last time we saw him, the All-Star first baseman was leading the only team he's ever known to a World Series title.
The baseball world expected Atlanta to make easy work of re-signing him, but his market is wide open after the Braves failed to re-sign him before the lockout. The latest report from longtime MLB insider Jon Heyman illustrates just how robust the market should be for Freeman when business resumes.
Heyman on Monday reported the Tampa Bay Rays made an offer to Freeman before the lockout began. That's notable for a multitude of reasons, the biggest being Tampa Bay's standing as a small-market team that very rarely makes notable free agent pushes.
Just getting in the conversation is a significant change for the Rays, who are well-positioned to make another run. Tampa Bay has one of the most innovative front offices in the sport, and the abundance of talent is obvious, led by Wander Franco, who might be the best young player in baseball. The Rays already have him in the fold, too, for a very affordable 11-year, $182 million contract.
However, signing Freeman won't be easy regardless of the Rays' financial standing. According to Heyman, two American League East rivals -- the Toronto Blue Jays and New York Yankees -- also have interest in Freeman, as do the Los Angeles Dodgers. Freeman, it's worth noting, is an Orange County native. He'd also be a perfect, albeit expensive, fit for the Boston Red Sox.
All of those teams have either historically and/or recently shown a desire to spend whatever it takes to acquire talent, so Tampa Bay -- or Atlanta, for that matter -- would have its work cut out for it to get Freeman's name on the dotted line.
Of course, this is all basically fantasy land stuff until MLB owners and the players' union agree on a new deal.
