Dec
Phillies Rumors Tracker: Jameson Taillon heads to the Cubs
The 2022 Baseball Winter Meetings in San Diego opened Sunday, December 4 and run through Wednesday.
With industry experts expecting a flurry of activity in the coming days, we’ll be tracking all the rumors that pertain to the Philadelphia Phillies.
Wednesday, December 7 at 1:04 a.m. ET: Jameson Taillon to the Cubs
The Phillies had been identified as a “team to watch” in Jameson Taillon’s reportedly deep market on Monday (see below).
While the Taijuan Walker signing probably took their name out of the sweepstakes anyway, the wee hours of Wednesday morning saw Taillon’s name officially come off the board: He reportedly agreed to a deal with the Chicago Cubs (another “team to watch”), for the same length and $1 million in AAV less than Walker’s contract.
The Cubs are in agreement on a contract with free agent pitcher Jameson Taillon on a 4 year, $68 million deal sources tell @JeffPassan and me.
— Jesse Rogers (@JesseRogersESPN) December 7, 2022
Tuesday, December 6 at 6:10 p.m. ET: Cody Bellinger to the Cubs
In a perfect world, the Phillies may have taken a shot on Cody Bellinger as a possible replacement for Bryce Harper for a half season.
He’s going to Chicago instead on a one-year contract:
Outfielder Cody Bellinger and the Chicago Cubs are in agreement on a one-year, $17.5 million contract, sources familiar with the deal tell ESPN.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) December 6, 2022
Tuesday, December 6 at 4:43 p.m. ET: Starter Andrew Heaney signs with Texas Rangers
A possible Phillies starting pitching target is off the board. Heaney was not heavily connected to the Phillies, but still, that’s one less target for the team to go after as they aim to fill a vacancy in the rotation.
Heaney 2 years $25M with Rangers. Chance to get to $40M-ish with bonuses. Can opt out after 2023
— Joel Sherman (@Joelsherman1) December 6, 2022
Tuesday, December 6 at 12:51 p.m. ET: OF Masataka Yoshida, a huge Bryce Harper fan, has officially been posted
Could the Phillies be in on 29-year-old Japanese star outfielder Masataka Yoshida? Probably not, but he has been officially posted by Orix Buffaloes and is available to be signed as a free agent.
Why Phils? I mean that’s cool, but just wondering.
— mrchris (@cligatti) October 31, 2022
Star Japanese outfielder Masataka Yoshida has officially been posted, sources tell ESPN. He’ll have 30 days to sign a deal with an MLB team. There is significant interest in the 29-year-old, who this year hit .335/.447/.551 with 80 walks and 41 strikeouts for the Orix Buffaloes.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) December 6, 2022
Tuesday, December 6 at 11:48 a.m. ET: Trea Turner rejects monstrous offer from Padres
Here’s another interesting development in the Trea Turner saga.
Buster Olney on the offer the Padres made to Trea Turner.
Of course, Turner went on to sign with the Phillies for 11 years and $300 million.
Padres offer was $342M https://t.co/MaUSorf9SC
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) December 6, 2022
Monday, December 5 at 10:16 p.m. ET: Turner rejects higher offer from Padres to go to Philadelphia
The Phillies signed Trea Turner, but according to Matt Gelb on the Phillies Therapy podcast, the Phillies were not confident in their chances of landing the star shortstop as of Monday morning. That’s because the Padres, the Phillies believed, had the highest offer on the table for Turner.
San Diego did offer Turner enough money to both top Philadelphia’s total guarantee and offset money lost from California’s higher state taxes. It’s the reason why Turner’s market resolved quicker than expected. According to Gelb, Turner’s agent, Jeff Berry of CAA, called teams asking for offers as the Padres’ interest intensified:
Matt Gelb of The Athletic on how the Phillies landed Trea Turner
Monday, December 5 at 1:26 p.m ET: Rosenthal: Phillies see Xander Bogaerts as ‘reasonable alternative’ to Trea Turner
In Ken Rosenthal’s daily “What I’m hearing” column in The Athletic, the veteran MLB insider writes that the Phillies are considering former Red Sox shortstop Xander Bogaerts as a viable alternative to Trea Turner, who is their top target according to multiple reports.
Rosenthal also mentions that the San Diego Padres maintain interest in Turner. He is still “believed to prefer the East Coast.” Turner is from Florida and his wife Kristen is from New Jersey.
Ken Rosenthal on Xander Bogaerts
Monday, December 5 at 11:08 a.m. ET: An update on the Phillies pursuit of starter Jameson Taillon
The Jameson Taillon market is deep, but sources tab the Mets, Phillies, Cubs and Orioles among the teams to watch.
— Mark Feinsand (@Feinsand) December 5, 2022
