The Ervin Santana rumors are starting to pick up this week now that spring training is weeks away and the Toronto Blue Jays and Baltimore Orioles are the favorites to snag him, while the As Seattle Mariners, LA Dodgers, Chicago Cubs and Yankees like Santana along with Ubaldo Jimenez as the top free agent pitchers.
Santana and Jimenez have been on the market all season just waiting for players like Matt Garza and Masahiro Tanaka to sign so the market would be set, but things have not developed as quickly as they would have liked. ESPN.com reported earlier in the offseason that Santana wanted a $100 million long-term deal, but his demands have now gone down significantly with the way the market has turned out and now he is likely to get a deal like Garza's which was for over $50 million for four years and the closer he gets to the start of camp, the less money he will end up getting.
Santana had a solid season with the Royals last season and now the 31 year old could be close to signing, as Fox Sports reports that the Blue Jays and the Orioles are now the favorites to snag him. Ken Rosenthal writes that the Blue Jays would like to sign another pitcher and since they have protected draft picks in the first round, they will not have to give that up to sign Santana after he got a qualifying offer, a luxury that the Orioles do not have. The report says that the team would have to give up their number 17 pick for Santana or Jimenez, and that could keep Baltimore from making that move.
Santana reportedly wanted a $112 million deal after going 9-10 last season with 161 Ks and a 3.24 ERA and that mark was his best in his career. The Mariners have been interested in adding another pitcher and the Cubs also could be in the mix after they chased Tanaka. The Diamondbacks signed Bronson Arroyo so they are out of it, while the Yankees will not overpay after the money they spent this offseason.
Santana had a strong finish to the season and so did Jimenez after being poor to start, as he had nearly 200 strikeouts over his final 30 starts and now those two names are the best on the market. The Mariners signed Robinson Cano and could be looking to add more and they are still connected to Nelson Cruz as well and they may have another move in their back pockets. The Yankees are likely out of it after signing Tanaka and with the Brian McCann, Carlos Beltran and Jacoby Ellsbury deals already done, they should be set for the season. Santana likely is the next domino to fall.