[ayaghmour2]

November 26th, 2022: Free Agents file today, with the top 10 as follows:

1. LHP Zach Britton
2. RHP Jadel Gustave
3. 3B Manny Machado
4. SS Carlos Correa
5. 2B Trea Turner
6. 26 Chris Taylor
7. RHP Matt Bowman
8. RHP Taijuan Walker
9. RHP Edwin Diaz
10. RHP Carlos Martienz

As usual, don't expect any of these guys to wear a Marlins uniform...

Especially Correa, who wasnt $57,000,000 a yaer...

I did make a few offers to lower level players, but don't expect any giant moves.

December 1st, 2022: The Ryas traded C Shea Langeliers to the Yankees for 1B Kevin Wuasney and RHP Jorge Remon. This looks like a steal for the Yanks...

I made a steal of my own in a swap of 3 CF's: I sent the Phillies Ernesto Arambula and D.J. Wilson in exchanged for former 1st Overall pick Mickey Moniak. The 24-year-old Moniak is rated as a 3.5/4 with great speed, solid defense, and amazing contact. He's a career .268/.351/.362 hitter with 42 steals, 9 homers, and 52 RBI's.

December 4th, 2022: Two majors names signed early in free agency. First, the Giants added 3B Manny Machado. He's under contract for 6-years and a total of $127,000,000. Now 30, he's a career .281/.338/.478 hitter with 288 homers and 880 RBI's with Baltimore and Detroit.

Next, the Padres looked to bolster their lineup for a playoff run, adding SS Carlos Correa to a massive 7-year, $328,000,000 contract with an opt out after year 4, with the first year at $48,500,000 and every other year at $48 million. He's a career .300/.373/.527 hitter with 237 homers and 807 RBI's. The Padres now have a high powered lineup consisting of young 23-year-old stars 2B Xaiver Edwards, 3B Fernando Tatis Jr., and CF Jeison Rosario and the new addition of Correa. They're definitely a team to watch.

Next is my Hall of Fame ballot:
1. CF Carlos Beltran
2. SP Mark Buehrle
3. 1B Jason Giambi
4. SP Tim Hudson
5. CL Joe Nathan
6. CF Juan Pierre
7. CL Francisco Rodriguez
8. SS Jimmy Rollins
9. CL Billy Wagner
10. SS Michael Young

I think this class might not send anyone to Cooperstown, but Wagner definitely deserves it...

December 7th, 2022: I added an arm to my rotation by acquiring RHP Jace Vines from the Royals for RF Brandon Marsh, 2B Jeremy Eierman, and RHP Jairo Solis.

The fan favorite Vines (like Monaik) is rated as a 3.5* and will slot into the #4 spot in the rotation. He can eat innings, and has a great slider, and was under utilized in KC. He appeared in 69 games with just 6 starrts, but had a 2.80 ERA and 1.14 WHIP. He struck out 103 batters in 103 innings and was worth a total of 2.8 wins above reaplcement. The 28-year-old will be unleashed in our rotation, and I expect him to flourish.

This also makes room for the recently acquired Ben Popkin on the 40-man Roster. I didn't have too many more guys to protect, but I wanted to make sure I could either protect or trade 3B Nolan Gorman, so more moves will be made.

December 8th, 2022: The Rangers bolstered their pen by signing RHP Carl Edwards Jr. to a 1-year, $11,100,000 contract. The 31-year-old had 34 saves and a 1.83 ERA for the World Champion Cubs.

December 9th, 2022: To free up room for Gorman, I sent 2B Garrett Hampson to the Mets for CF Christian Franklin.

Franklin, a former 15th rounder from 2018, is rated a 1.5/4 and will be eligible for selection in the Rule-5 draft. He's got elite speed and defense, as well as a solid contact bat. Considering he's never reached AA, I think most teams will pass on him.

December 11th, 2022: The Indians signed SP Taijuan Walker to a 4-year, $13.9 million per year contract. In 248 games (245 starts) he's 89-75 with a 4.25 ERA and 1,160 strikeouts. The last 8 years he's been extremely dependable, 25 or more starts in each season .

December 13th, 2022: Today marks the start of the Winter Meetings.

The openeing salvo was fired when the Red Sox signed RHP Matt Bowman to a 3-year, $47,300,000 contract. They're attempting to pitch him out of the starting rotation, despite the fact he's only had 2 big league starts.

I solved my shortstop issue by sending 1B Keston Hiura, SS Jeremy Arocho, SP Jeremy Kuhlman and RP Joe LaBrie to the Twins for SS Nick Gordon and 100% of his contract covered.

It's a hefty price to pay, but I get an elite defensive shortstop who's a solid hitter with decent speed. He's a career .288/.368/.425 hitter with 31 homers and 226 RBI's in 3+ seasons. My lineup is almost complete, as the only other possible upgrades I can make is C, 3B and RF, although my options there are still quality.

December 14th, 2022: The Nats signed LF Christian Yelich to a 4-year, $47,900,000 contract. Now 31, he's spent 10 years in the bigs with us and Milwaukee. He's a career .284/.363/.450 hitter with 154 homers and 603 RBI's.

The Red Sox signed Cuban Free Agent Alfredo Rivera to a 5-year, $69,900,000 contract. He's no Luis Marrero or Jorge Flores, but he's still a really good pitcher.

Devember 15th, 2022: The Indians sent RHP Connor Van Scoyoc to the Athletics for LHP Carlos Caminero. It's one of those deals that isn't lopsided, but just doesn't make sense.

December 16th, 2022: To finish the Winter Meetings, I sent RP Victor Arano, LF Larry Ernesto, and RF Danny Blair to the Brewers for C Thomas Dillard and SS Juan Sagarra. I was negotiating this one for a while, but finally got a deal I liked.

Starting with Dillard, I get a stud Ctacher who is rated a 3.5/4.5 and I can dump Caratini's salary. The former 2nd Rounder hit .261/.382/.479 in his rookie year, but Milwaukee already has another really good, and former 2nd Rounder, Cal Raleigh, making Dillard expandable.

Segarra, 19, can play all around the diamond, including 2B, 3B, SS, LF, and RF, and has 3* potential. With more expereince, he can become a really good defender at all five of his positions. He strikes out a lot, but he'll record a lot of extra base hits.

The team looks better and better by the day!

December 20th, 2022: Washington sent LF D.J. Peters and RHP Geroge Soriano to the Padres for 2B Ford Proctor. It's a steal for the Nats.

December 21st, 2022: Okay, here's a big one! I sent C Victor Caratini, CF Dustin Fowler, C Zach Humphreys, 3B Jack Filby and RHP Art Warren to the Indians for 3B Jose Ramirez and 2B Eddie Machl.

Yep, Jose Ramirez is still a star, and add the still youthful age of 30, he's a career .294/.352/.501 hitter with 180 homers and 739 RBI's in 1,194 games for the Indians. The switch hitter really completes our lineup and will hit third in a significantly upgraded offense that will hopefully give us a well-rounded team.

Eddie Mancel isn't the greatest prospect ever, but the 21-year-old is still a 3* potential who could develop into a great infielder defensively. He's got a great bat, despite his lack of power, and has a bight future.

Okay, I'm actually confident in our offensive, especially with the addition of Ramirez and a full year of Seth Beer. Ramirez hit .290 with 25 homers and 105 RBI's last year, which is a lot more then most of my guys can say. Even Gordon drove in 79 runs and hit 11 homers while still hitting .304. It took a lot of shuffling, but the offense looks complete. I could use a lefty in the pen, but the roster is shaping out well.

December 24th, 2022: Today marks the Rule-5 Draft!

But first, the Twins singed SS Trea Turner to a 6-year, $19,200,000 per year contract. The former National will move to 2B for the Twins, pushing Royce Lewis to SS as the Twins make up for the trade of Gordon.

I think I found a gem in LF Cole Roederer from the Rays organization. He's rated a 3/4.5 and is an elite defender in LF with elite speed, contact, and eye. He'll function as a great 4th OF. The former 8th Rounder hit .351/.418/.510 in 78 games in AA Montgomery, so he should be ready enough for the Majors.

I also didn't lose anyone, so that's a major plus.

December 27th, 2022: I made three free agent signings of pitchers.

First is LHP Felipe Rivero, who agreed to a 2-year, $7,000,000 cotract, a bargain for someone of his talent. He can hit triple digits with his fastball and has 4 plus pitches.

Next is another lefty and familiar face in Luiz Gohara, who was non-tendered by the Braves. He'll make $1,300,000 this year and will go through arbitration next season. He's got three pitches, including two plus plus pitches in his fastball and curve. He'll most likely serves as a long man out of the pen.

Lastly is a righty from Jacksonville, Florida, Mike Clevinger. He's got a four pitch arsenal and two plus plus pitches in a curve and change. He's generally a starter, and could work himself into the rotation.

This now fills up my 40-Man Roster.

The Atheltics signed Zach Britton to a 3-year, $48,400,000 contract as he finally doesn't have to settle for 1 year deals. The 35-year-old was 7-0 with 35 saves and a 1.43 ERA with the Rockies. This will be his 6th organization in 6 years.

December 28th, 2022: The Red Sox signed Nick Vincent to a 1-year, $4,160,000 contract to bolster their pen. He's bounced around a lot, as Boston marks his 6th organization.

December 31st, 2022: LHP Wandy Peralta agreed to a 1-year, $7,900,000 deal with Atlatnta after spending his major league career with the Reds. He earned 29 saves and was 6-1 with a 3.38 ERA last season.

We'll pick this up next time in 2023!