The Thanksgiving holiday is upon us but that doesn’t mean hot stove activity will slow to a crawl. Plenty of signings and trades have been finalized during the long holiday weekend over the years and this offseason figures to be no different. Here are Wednesday’s hot stove rumors as you await Turkey Day.
Judge meets with Giants
Aaron Judge, the No. 1 available free agentmet with Giants representatives in San Francisco on Tuesday, including members of ownership, reports MLB Network’s Jon Morosi. Morosi anticipates a formal offer could come later this week and that Judge could sign by the end of the Winter Meetings in two weeks. To date Judge has only met with the Giants and, of course, the Yankees.
For what it’s worth, Giants outfielder Joc Pederson is doing his part to recruit the reigning AL MVP:
Let it be known the Giants will open the 2023 regular season in New York against the Yankees. Pretty good chance Judge will be at Yankee Stadium on Opening Day next season. Which uniform will he be wearing? We’ll find out soon enough.
Yankees looking for bullpen help
In addition to trying to retain Judge, the Yankees are also seeking bullpen help, GM Brian Cashman told NJ.com. “I’m looking to improve our bullpen, but yeah, I believe we have a closer. That doesn’t mean we can’t play on someone who is a quote-unquote closer because ultimately the more the merrier. You want as many high-leverage guys that you can collect as you possibly can,” Cashman said.
The closer Cashman is referring to is All-Star Clay Holmes, who struggled in August and September and missed the end of the regular season with a shoulder injury. He returned in October and was lights out, although he was used carefully. This is New York’s bullpen at the moment:
King could be ready in time for spring training and, if he is, it likely pushes Abreu off the roster or Schmidt to Triple-A. The Yankees have a steady high-leverage group — Holmes, Loáisiga, and Peralta were all great in October — but there’s no such thing as too many quality relievers. With King’s status uncertain and Effross set to miss 2023, looking for more bullpen help is sensible.