Author: Passion MLB

Categories
Uncategorized

Don’t be too quick to dismiss the Yankees’ Kyle Tucker case

Kyle Tucker is the big name of the off-season.

Right now, it feels like the Dodgers, Giants, Phillies, Blue Jays and Yankees are possibly the teams most likely to sign the outfielder.

Could this change? Yes. But with Tucker expected to sign for over $300 million, clubs like the A’s and Twins won’t be there, you know.

Because the Dodgers don’t necessarily want to sign him long-term, the Giants can’t seem to sign guys in recent years and Tucker comes from Tampa Bay, the chances of the other three teams (who practice in Tampa’s corner), in my eyes, are better.

Many people don’t necessarily believe that Tucker has a real chance of signing in New York. But according to Ben Nicholson-Smith, who covers the Blue Jays for Sportsnet, the Bronx Bombers shouldn’t be counted out too quickly.

According to Nicholson-Smith, who has spoken to a number of Tucker insiders, the Yankees would be far more likely to impress the Tucker clan than the Blue Jays.

Warning: impressing a player doesn’t necessarily mean signing him. It also depends on the monetary value of a potential offer from the Yankees, who are looking to trim their fat this winter.

Remember that Tucker could sign before Cody Bellinger (a Scott Boras client) this winter… and that Bellinger is the Yankees’ priority.

If I had to make up my mind right now, I have a feeling that the Phillies and Blue Jays might be the two teams most likely to sign Tucker this winter.

And I also think that the Phillies need Tucker a lot more than the Blue Jays, who are probably less desperate this winter than the Pennsylvania club on the position player market.

This content was created with the help of AI.

Categories
Uncategorized

What’s behind Shane Bieber’s decision to stay in Toronto?

When Shane Bieber exercised the $16 million option in his contract to stay with the Toronto Blue Jays, I almost fell out of my chair.

And it seems I’m not the only one. Indeed, as Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reports, Bieber’s decision surprised many MLB executives across North America.

Across the industry, executives remain baffled by right-hander Shane Bieber’s decision to exercise his sixteen-million-dollar player option with the Blue Jays, calling it one of the most bizarre in recent memory.

The reason why Bieber’s decision baffled Major League Baseball executives is that he could have made a lot more money had he made himself available on the free agent market.

Bieber had a $4 million buyout, so he effectively took a one-year, $12 million contract. And while he was enthusiastic about his time with the Jays, he certainly would have done better on the open market.

That’s not untrue, since Matt Boyd landed a two-year, $29 million contract with the Chicago Cubs last December after making just eleven starts (the same number as Bieber) with the Cleveland Guardians, including in the playoffs, following Tommy John-type surgery.

Incidentally, Bieber was expected to sign a three-year deal for around $63 million this winter.

Which raises questions about the 30-year-old’s alleged loyalty to the Blue Jays. When Bieber exercised his option, people thought it was great that he took less money to stay at a place he loved. But that may be hiding something, as Rosenthal points out.

He could have stayed in that place he loved and probably made more money. And he certainly could have made a lot more money elsewhere, assuming he was healthy. So, as much as we’d all like to portray this as an altruistic act of loyalty, and maybe it is, I’m not so sure it is. It just seems like there could be other things going on here.

Certainly, this is a very beneficial move for the Blue Jays, but free agents very rarely sacrifice money, even from their favorite clubs. So it’s still something no one expected, and leaves a lot of questions unanswered, including one about his health.

Was he afraid of failing a physical test by signing a new contract? It’s a question that’s been circulating.

This content was created with the help of AI.

Categories
Uncategorized

Scott Boras put the pressure on the Blue Jays

Scott Boras likes owners who spend money on their customers.

In the past, when the Blue Jays were rebuilding, they didn’t necessarily spend money. Boras declared that the club had the blue flu.

In other words, he wanted Rogers to get his money out.

In recent years, this has been done. And now, let’s just say that the powerful agent has figured out how to put pressure on the Blue Jays to do it again this year.

In his press briefing at the GM meeting, he talked about the Blue Jays. He said that Toronto was one of the five biggest markets in the league… before adding that he expected financial commitments from the club.

In short, he praised the way things are going in Toronto.

Of course, it’s easy to see why Boras would benefit from the Blue Jays getting their money out the door. Why? Because the club has a very large budget for its players.

But above all, this winter, the Blue Jays are in every race. Like last year and the year before… and the year before that.

Blue Jays want top pitchers and good hitters. The 2025 players loved playing in Toronto, the club has money and is eager to spend it. Ah: Vladdy’s also in town to stay.

What more could an agent ask for?

Not all Boras players are logical targets for the Blue Jays. That said, I’d be really surprised if the bosses of the Queen City club didn’t discuss Max Scherzer, Dylan Cease or Cody Bellinger with Scott Vorace.

To be continued.

This content was created with the help of AI.

Categories
Uncategorized

Paul Skenes forced himself to have a more normal reaction by winning the Cy Young

Yesterday, Tarik Skubal and Paul Skenes won the Cy Young trophy. No surprises here.

What we wanted to watch was whether Paul Skenes would have a better reaction than last year, when he was named Rookie of the Year. There was a lot of talk about that, because he looked like a guy who’d just been told some very ordinary news.

But this year, clearly, he’s been told to try a little harder.

His reaction to being named National Pitcher of the Year seemed a little forced. But he didn’t look like a robot, and that’s the most important thing for many people.

Of course, a Cy Young-winning pitcher is bound to talk to the media. And since the rumor that he’d like to play for the Yankees had circulated during the day, it was a topic of conversation with the Pirates star.

The main man said he wanted to win and that Pittsburgh was where he wanted to do it. Of course, he couldn’t do anything but release the tape and say publicly that he wanted to win in Pittsburgh.

The Skenes quote I liked the most was the one where he said he liked the fact that if the club loses, the fans don’t show up at the stadium as much. He understands that it takes wins to bring people to PNC Park.

He wants to be part of the group that makes that happen.

Why do I like this quote? Because it sends a big message to his bosses: we want a winning team on the field, and we need management to release the budget to make that happen.

Skenes has never been afraid to get his message out when the time was right.

PMLB
  • Good listening.

  • Tarik Skubal wants to make an impact a la Justin Verlander.

  • Tatsuya Imai is a player the Blue Jays are keeping an eye on.

  • Nick Anderson with the A’s.

  • Here are the big pitchers on the market.

This content was created with the help of AI.

Categories
Uncategorized

Passion MLB – The Podcast, Episode 89

Rumor season is in full swing in Major League Baseball. On the heels of the GM meeting in Las Vegas, Charles-Alexis Brisebois and Sébastien Berrouard take a look at the latest rumors.

Enjoy.

We remind you that people who want to listen to us live can do so every Wednesday at 8 p.m. on Facebook, on X and on YouTube. We record live to answer everyone’s questions.

However, those who want to listen to us in a more traditional podcast format can also do so by visiting all the good podcast platforms at any time.

SpotifyYouTubeApple PodcastAmazon Music

This content was created with the help of AI.

Categories
Uncategorized

Paul Skenes and Tarik Skubal are the pitchers of the year

The Cy Young winners in both leagues were announced this evening.

Not surprisingly, in the Nationals, Paul Skenes won the first title of his career. It won’t be the only time we see him win Pitcher of the Year.

Skenes, who is at the heart of rumors involving the New York Yankees, could win Cy Youngs somewhere other than Pittsburgh in his career. But right now, he’s with the Pirates.

And that’s what needs to be emphasized tonight.

Skenes, who won Rookie of the Year in 2024, finished third in the Cy Young in his rookie season. But this year, he clearly deserved to win it all.

In 187.2 innings, he retired 216 guys on strikes and maintained a 1.97 ERA. Incredible…

In the American, there wasn’t much suspense either. Tarik Skubal, who won the title in 2024, is again the recipient in 2025 for the Tigers.

He’s currently the best pitcher in the world.

His 2.21 ERA and 241 strikeouts in 195.1 innings helped the Tigers qualify for the playoffs for the second year in a row. Although the club missed out on the division title, it was a good year in Michigan.

And it’s all thanks to Skubal.

Like Skenes, Skubal’s contract is the talk of the town. The pitcher, who turns 29 next year, will be in his last year of control in 2026 before becoming a free agent. And it’s clear that Scott Boras – his agent – and the Tigers won’t get along.

Where will he pitch in March 2026? In August 2026? How about 2027? We’ll see.

This content was created with the help of AI.

Categories
Uncategorized

Best quotes of the day by Scott Boras

Scott Boras spoke at today’s GM meeting. And as is the case every year, his press conference was eagerly awaited by all.

Naturally, we were waiting to see what empty phrases, hidden by puns, would be uttered by the powerful agent to boost his clients’ candidacy.

It started with a bang when he mentioned Alex Bregman. After saying that the Red Sox had had a rough couple of years, he mentioned that the fan base in Boston didn’t want 2025 to be “just a cup of coffee” for Bregman in Boston.

No one wants a Breg-xit, he said.

He also praised Cody Bellinger, the only outfielder with all five tools currently on the market. He touted his ability to produce in big baseball markets, among others.

Clubs that want him need Belli proceed, which is his way of saying: get in on the action to get my client, who wants to play for a major league contender.

But my favorite is clearly the one about Dylan Cease. Boras said that unlike the other Dylan (Bob Dylan), the pitcher’s stuff was 100% electric.

That made me laugh.

He also said that Tatsuya Imai will be officially available on November 19, that the Tigers aren’t the same without Tarik Skubal, that Gerrit Cole is getting better, that Pete Alonso is ready to play DH a little more often and that Hunter Brown is among the elite.

What a Scott.

PMLB
  • Are the Yankees using advanced stats too much?

  • Ketel Marte in demand.

This content was created with the help of AI.

Categories
Uncategorized

MLB en bref : John Gibbons à Anaheim | Le marché de Devin Williams

John Gibbons à Anaheim

Il devient l’entraîneur de banc des Angels.

Kristian Campbell dans le champ à temps plein?

Ça semble être le plan.

Willson Contreras veut rester à Saint-Louis

Ça limite ses chances d’être échangé cet hiver.

Le marché de Devin Williams

Les Red Sox, les Dodgers et les Reds sont du lot.

Hunter Mense, entraîneur des frappeurs à San Francisco

Il quitte les Blue Jays, où il aidait l’entraîneur des frappeurs.

Ryan Yarbrough et les Yankees

Il y a de l’intérêt.

Categories
Uncategorized

Here’s how the Japanese assignment system works

In the past, several players who played in Japan exploited loopholes in a previous agreement between NPB and MLB to play in Major League Baseball, leaving their Japanese teams empty-handed after their departure. Hideo Nomo, Hideki Irabu and Alfonso Soriano spring to mind.

This is why the current assignment system was created. In this way, Japanese teams can receive compensation when one of their players wishes to cross the Pacific Ocean.

Here’s how it all works.

Initially, the NPB player informs his team’s management of his desire to play in MLB and asks to be made available to Major League Baseball organizations during the next posting period. The assignment period runs from November 1 to December 5, which means that announcements can be made at any time between these dates.

Players with no more than nine years’ experience can be posted, though the player and his team must agree before the process begins.

The thirty MLB clubs then have 45 days to negotiate the terms of a contract with the player in question after he has been posted. Once a pact is reached, the Major League Baseball team must pay a release fee (a certain percentage of the contract) to the NPB team.

If no contract is agreed between the player and an MLB organization within 45 days, the player will return to his Japanese team for the following season and cannot be assigned again until the following off-season.

We’ll see this process in action in the coming days with Munetaka Murakami and Tatsuya Imai, among others.

This content was created with the help of AI.

Categories
Uncategorized

Rumor mill: Red Sox love Kyle Schwarber

Red Sox love Kyle Schwarber

In 2021, Kyle Schwarber finished the season in Boston. The Red Sox loved what he brought to the club… and even though they haven’t agreed on a new contract, the Red Sox love him.

And clearly, the change in management hasn’t changed that.

According to Robert Murray, should Schwarber not return to Philadelphia (which would be surprising, at the time of writing), the Red Sox will be big players in the matter.

And no one should be surprised to read that.

Byron Buxton may change his mind

After swearing that he didn’t want to leave the Twins and that there was no point in thinking about a deal involving him, Byron Buxton may change his mind in the next few years.

Why might that be?

Because even if he didn’t mind destroying the club at the trade deadline, rumors involving Joe Ryan and Pablo Lopez could change all that.

Buxton can’t be traded against his will. But if things continue to go badly, he could weigh up his options to give himself a chance of winning one day.

Cody Bellinger and the Mets

We know that the Yankees want to retain the services of Cody Bellinger. It’s a priority for the veteran, who enjoyed playing in New York last season.

But will Scott Boras’ client get a good offer?

It’s possible that the Mets, who need help in the outfield and at first base, will decide to offer him a nice contract. he’d fill a need and we know he can perform in New York.

Even if he’s a left-handed hitter, he’s a good candidate for the Mets.

Edwin Diaz wants the same contract

Three years ago, Edwin Diaz agreed to a $102 million contract with the Mets, or $20.4 million per year for five years. But he had an exit option after the 2025 season.

Obviously, he took advantage of it.

According to Will Sammon and Ken Rosenthal, Diaz is looking for the same kind of contract after that: five years at around $20 million a year.

Will he go for it again?

PMLB
  • Collective bargaining agreement: discussions have begun.

  • Sports betting: Guardians pitching case dealt with by MLB in spring?

  • Yankees scouting director at the door.

This content was created with the help of AI.