Anthony Santander, Jack Flaherty Reportedly Open to Short-Term Offers
With the offseason’s free agent market in full swing and with Spring Training almost upon us next month, a report from Ken Rosenthal and Will Sammon of The Athletic tonight suggests that some major free agents are still considering the possibility of turning to the Athletics. the short term concerns the high average values of the year, such as the so-called “Boras Four” of Blake Snell, Cody Bellinger, Matt Chapmanagain Jordan Montgomery they did last winter after not getting the long-term deals they expected in free agency.
Per Rosenthal and Samson, outsider Anthony Santander and the right hand Jack Flaherty both are now open to considering that kind of deal. Samson also confirmed previous reports that pointed to the first baseman’s camp Pete Alonso has made a three-year offer to the Mets that includes multiple exits, though it’s unclear whether he would be open to similar short-term offers from other clubs right now.
A remarkable update on the market for all three players. Both Santander and Flaherty were reportedly looking for five-year deals that could reach the ninth grade. Santander in particular reportedly had a contract on the table from the Blue Jays as of last week, although given the fact that he is now open to exploring short-term deals it looks like that offer may not have been a hit. interested in receiving. It’s easy to imagine that the possibility of acquiring a high-quality free agent on a short-term deal opens up the market for these players, or perhaps convincing teams already in contact with the players to focus more on what they want.
As one example, Flaherty has been linked to the Cubs but there has been a suggestion that Chicago (which signed Bellinger to a tough short-term, opt-out deal last winter) has reservations about the right-hander’s asking price. The Tigers, meanwhile, have been linked to both Flaherty and Santander but remain opportunistic in free agency, closing in on one-year deals. Gleyber Torres again Alex Cobb to develop their program without making long-term commitments. Any of these clubs could be tempted to step up their efforts if their target is now open to consideration for a temporary deal.
While short-term deals can be attractive to teams as a way to reduce the risk associated with a particular free agent, they can still come with problems. While the contracts Snell and Chapman signed in San Francisco last winter were successful for both sides, as Snell held a Giants uniform before signing a big-money deal in LA in November while Chapman had a resurgent and extended season with the club. In the long run, not all deals of this type work very well. Montgomery’s deal with Arizona quickly turned into a disaster as the left-hander endured the worst season of his career, was demoted to the bullpen, and was acquired by the Diamondbacks as a salary dump this winter. Bellinger, meanwhile, posted a strong but underwhelming season in Chicago that led the Cubs to shed his salary in a trade with the Yankees last month to make room for the addition of a more powerful bat. Kyle Tucker.
Even with those potential downsides, it’s easy to see why clubs would prefer a short-term deal over one that puts them on the wall of the player’s relegation zone. After all, the Cubs could still spend most of the money owed to Bellinger in a trade even after a pedestrian 2024 season, and the Diamondbacks could end up doing the same even after Montgomery’s terrible campaign. Swapping those deals would be more difficult if another player had longer deals and bigger guarantees overall, even though the AAV of those deals might be lower.
For players, this type of approach comes with both pros and cons. There is a risk that injuries or poor performance lead to them hitting the market at a lower price than they had in their first trip through free agency. In the case of Flaherty, who is currently without a Qualifying Offer, taking a short-term deal comes with more risk given that even a successful season could end up not leading to the kind of lucrative long-term contract. hopefully given the fact that he may be QO marked in the near future. For an already QO-tagged player like Santander, however, signing a short-term deal and hitting free agency after another strong season could provide a significant boost to his value by allowing him to re-enter unrestricted free agency in the future.
While the willingness to consider short-term, high AAV offers should open up the market for these players to some extent, that should not be taken to mean that a major move is guaranteed. Those high annual salaries can be a hindrance for clubs in or in the luxury tax zone and for those facing budget deficits. As one example, Rosenthal and Sammon suggested that Alonso could look to seek a deal that offers an average annual value of $31.1MM to earn AAV’s record first baseman. While that appears to be speculation on the couple’s part and they continue to suggest a deferred fee that will lower the current amount involved, even an AAV in the $25MM to $30MM range is kind of the majority figure. small-market clubs and big spenders deep in the luxury tax zone may be less willing than a long-term deal with a lower annual salary.
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