MLB Rumors: Dodgers out of Yoshinobu Yamamoto race, NY teams battling

One of the most coveted free agents of the 2023-24 offseason has now officially been posted with Yoshinobu Yamamoto now on the market. The 25-year-old Japanese star pitcher can begin negotiations with teams on Tuesday, Nov. 21 and MLB teams have 45 days to agree to terms with the multi-time Triple Crown winner in Japan.

But who is going to sign the right-handed sensation that posted a 1.21 ERA last season with the Orix Buffaloes?

Many of the familiar faces in baseball that you'd expect to see in the mix for Yamamoto are there. The Mets and Yankees figure to be in the mix, as do the Red Sox and Dodgers. The Cubs have been floated as a possibility, and the Phillies recently appeared to enter the fray. According to one insider, though, this is only a two-team race.

Bob Nightengale of USA Today reported that Yamamoto landing with either New York team is the most likely option for the Japanese star as he comes available on the market. Executives believe that he wants to pitch in a big market, per Nightengale, and predicted that New York, either the Mets or the Yankees would win out.

While teams like the Phillies, Red Sox, Cubs and some others have hoped for Yamamoto, the chances of landing the starting pitcher seemed a bit long from the start for those clubs. This is perhaps the biggest hit to the Dodgers, an organization that largely stayed quiet last offseason to gear up for a monster offseason this winter. Not being in the mix for Yamamoto would put a slight damper on that (one that could certainly be quelled by landing Shohei Ohtani, but still).

As for the Mets and Yankees, both clubs are in dire need of starting pitching, have the resources, and are expected to make a big push. Now we'll have to see how this pseudo-Subway Series in free agency will play out and which side of the Big Apple Yamamoto wants to end up on: Queens or the Bronx.

MLB Rumors: Red Sox trade package proposal for Juan Soto

With the arrival of Craig Breslow, most Boston Red Sox fans are expecting the new Chief Baseball Officer and Chaim Bloom replacement to make some big waves in his first offseason with the club. Much of that is tied to two items on fans' wishlist: Upgrading the pitching staff and making a serious run at Shohei Ohtani.

But the Red Sox could also be in the mix to trade for one of baseball's brightest young stars: Juan Soto.

Soto is entering the final year of his current contract with the Padres and, given the organization's recently revealed financial woes, bloated payroll, and underperformance, Soto has been floated for some time as a top-tier trade candidate. And any contender or aggressive team would be in that market, which the Red Sox certainly qualify as.

Kerry Miller of Bleacher Report ranked the Top 10 trade destinations for Soto and put the Red Sox at No. 3 on that list behind the Seattle Mariners and rival New York Yankees. More importantly, though, he put together a trade package that Boston could start with by sending to San Diego. Here's what the deal could look like according to Miller's proposal.

While I question whether or not this would be enough to get a Soto trade done -- Yorke is the No. 6 prospect for Boston while Drohan is No. 18; neither is in the MLB Top 100 -- it gives you and idea of the framework as the Padres try to get cheaper, younger, and still compete. The Red Sox have the farm system to offer that.

Particularly with the Red Sox possibly eyeing trading away Alex Verdugo and other outfielders on expiring deals, Soto would start to make even more sense this offseason. However, the question would then become if the team could ink an extension with the slugger or if this would be a one-year rental, which would factor heavily into trade negotiations.

As Miller noted, though, even the prospect of Soto joining Rafael Devers, Masataka Yoshida, Jarren Duran, Triston Casas and Trevor Story for just one year could still be enough to get Breslow and the Red Sox to make the deal.

MLB Rumors: Cubs preparing big offer as favorite to sign Shohei Ohtani

Over the weekend came a report that the Shohei Ohtani sweepstakes that is set to dominate MLB free agency until the two-way superstar signs might already be down to two teams. Bruce Levine of 670 The Score reported that it was essentially down to the always-expected Los Angeles Dodgers and the Chicago Cubs as the two favorites to get a deal done with Ohtani.

Former Cubs Spanish-language analyst and insider Mike Rodriguez added to that late last week by reporting that Chicago was planning to present a "very lucrative offer" to Ohtani in order to try and sway him toward joining the Cubs.

All of this is shaping up like the Cubs could seriously be one of the leading contenders for Ohtani. Of course, that's not without some complications.

For one, with the likely loss of Marcus Stroman in free agency, the Cubs will need to re-bolster their starting rotation. Ohtani would've helped to address that, but his UCL injury and subsequent surgery will keep him off of the mound for the 2024 season. Thus, they would have to spend elsewhere to fill any holes in the rotation for Craig Counsell's team.

Beyond that, the Cubs are also still reportedly interested in re-signing Cody Bellinger this offseason, which is not a guarantee by any stretch. However, that's another potentially costly free agency contract that the organization would have to pony up for. Moreover, if Bellinger were to leave, it would necessitate filling his spot in centerfield.

Of course, these are all just talking points. Nothing should stop a team from signing Shohei Ohtani if they have the means to do so given his prodigious talent. And as of right now, all signs point to the Cubs not only having the means, but also having the strong desire and aggressive mentality to make signing the two-way sensation potentially a reality.