The 2022 Winter Meetings kick off Sunday in San Diego. Once the baseball world gets settled in, it'll be four days of nonstop rumors, trades, and free agent signings. Here are Sunday's hot stove rumblings.
Yankees in on Reynolds
On Saturday, it was revealed that outfielder Bryan Reynolds had requested a trade from the Pirates. On Sunday, Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported that the Yankees are "in" on Reynolds.
It's unclear if the Yankees view Reynolds as a priority, or as a fallback plan in case Aaron Judge signs elsewhere. Either way, Reynolds is sure to continue to attract interest from New York and other clubs. Over the last two seasons, he's posted a 136 OPS+ with 51 home runs in 304 games.
Reynolds is under team control through the 2025 season.
Marlins won't trade Alcantara
No surprise here, but the Marlins will not trade reigning trade NL Cy Young winner Sandy Alcantara, reports the New York Post. They will listen on just about anyone else, however. Righty Pablo López has frequently popped up in trade rumors the last 12 months or so, and other hurlers like Dylan Floro, Jesús Luzardo, Trevor Rogers, and Tanner Scott will pique interest as well.
López ranked fifth on our offseason trade candidates list and the Yankees and Marlins came close to a deal involving López and Gleyber Torres as the principal pieces at the trade deadline. Bottom line, the Marlins ranked 28th in runs and 24th in home runs this past season. They have some pitching spare and appear willing to use it to upgrade an offense that isn't good enough to contend as currently constituted.
Cubs have interest in Kluber and Carpenter
The Cubs have interest in righty Corey Kluber and slugger Matt Carpenter, according to The Athletic. Kluber played with Cubs catcher Yan Gomes in Cleveland and the two are said to be close friends. Carpenter, a longtime nemesis with the rival Cardinals, remade his swing last offseason and had a resurgence with the Yankees in 2022 before a foul ball broke his foot.
Our R.J. Anderson did not rank Carpenter or Kluber among his top 50 free agents, though he noted Carpenter's revival is supported by strong underlying data. Kluber, 37 in April, and Carpenter, who just turned 37 last month, are both looking at one-year contracts. They are sensible veteran targets for a Cubs teams with needs up and down the roster. They should be complementary moves rather than Chicago's big strikes this offseason.
