Following the conclusion of the MLB Lockout, teams are now eligible to make trades and sign free agent players, and it has been nothing short of a frenzy.
Arguably the biggest trade that has occurred this offseason thus far was the Matt Olson trade. This trade saw All-Star first baseman Matt Olson being traded from the Oakland Athletics to the Atlanta Braves in exchange for a number of Atlanta’s top prospects. This comes after former Braves All-Star first baseman Freddie Freeman rejected Atlanta’s qualifying offer, and officially became a free agent.
Surprisingly, he still has not been signed by a team, although that is most certainly due to change soon. Multiple teams are pursuing the All-Star, including the Dodgers, Red Sox and Rays. The Yankees and Blue Jays were rumored to be in on him as well, but it appears those flames have been extinguished.
Red Sox remain very much in the mix for superstar 1B Freddie Freeman as Yankees and Jays fall out of the bidding with other acquisitions. Rays and Dodgers are interested as well.
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) March 16, 2022
Speaking of the Yankees, they performed a blockbuster trade on Sunday, March 13, which saw them send catcher Gary Sánchez and third baseman Gio Urshela to the Minnesota Twins in exchange for third baseman Josh Donaldson, shortstop Isiah Kiner-Falefa, and rookie catcher Ben Rortvedt.
Donaldson is an intriguing move as he is already 36 years old, and is owed $50 million over the next two years. However, as evident with the Kiner-Falefa and Rortvedt acquisitions, the Yankees appear to be favoring defense over offense this year. Last night, they also re-signed first baseman Anthony Rizzo to a 2 year, $32 million contract, further mirroring this mindset.
Source confirms: Anthony Rizzo in agreement with Yankees on two-year, $32M contract. First with agreement: @JesseRogersESPN
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) March 16, 2022
On Saturday, March 12, the Mets acquired Oakland A’s pitcher Chris Bassitt, and today, the Blue Jays acquired A’s third baseman Matt Chapman. The A’s are notably having a fire sale in which all of their top players are being put on the chopping block in exchange for prospects and young talent, signaling yet another rebuild for the team.
Other trades that occurred today include the Phillies signing outfielder Kyle Schwarber to a 4-year, $79 million deal, and the Cubs signing Japanese outfielder Seiya Suzuki to a 5-year, $85 million deal. Notable free agents that have yet to be signed by a team as of this article’s writing include shortstop Carlos Correa, third baseman Kris Bryant, shortstop Trevor Story, and the aforementioned Freddie Freeman.
What do you think of the MLB trade and free agent frenzy? Where do you think the remaining players will end up? Let us know, by either leaving a reaction below or by sending us a tweet at @celebsecrets.
