Episode Details

HS 896

HOT STOVE LATEST

• KEN ROSENTHAL LATEST ON FREE AGENTS
• Five bidders for Juan Soto are: Blue Jays, Dodgers, Red Sox, Mets and Yankees (no surprises)
• He predicts if the Dogers don’t get Soto, Teoscar Hernandez returns to the Dodgers or Blue Jays, his former teams
• Jon Morosi says we’ll know where Soto is going to sign within the next 10 days (Winter Meetings)... Soto is starting to narrow down ideas this week
• He also had this non-newsy note on Alec Bohm
• The Philadelphia Phillies’ Alec Bohm, an obvious target, faded after a monster April, batting only .258 with a .713 OPS. Teams view him as a good but not great player. Plus, Bohm stands to earn a projected $8.1 million in arbitration, with only one more year of club control remaining after that.
• Potential trade options
• MLB.com listed one player from each team that could be traded and a couple made sense for the Phillies
• A’s OF JJ Bleday:
• Bleday (27) had the best season of his young career in 2024, hitting 20 home runs with 60 RBIs and a .762 OPS (120 OPS+) in 159 games. He can play all three outfield spots and won’t be arbitration-eligible for another year, two appealing factors that might help the Athletics swap him for a third baseman or pitching help. Three of the Athletics’ Top 10 prospects are outfielders (No. 5 Henry Bolte, No. 7 Colby Thomas and No. 10 Denzel Clarke), giving them plenty of young depth. (2.2 WAR, 120 OPS+)
• 65th percentile in K%, 77th in BB%, 41% in whiff%, 75% in chase%
• Diamondbacks OJ Jake McCarthy
• Arizona has a surplus in the outfield, with Corbin Carroll, Lourdes Gurriel Jr., Alek Thomas and McCarthy, giving the D-backs an area from which they can trade. McCarthy posted a .749 OPS with 25 stolen bases last season, ranking in the top 20 percent of the NL in strikeout and whiff percentage. He’s also a strong defender -- his 6 Outs Above Average

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