Ervin Santana still remains on the free agent market as the MLB is in spring training and reports say the former Royals pitcher is seeking a $50 million deal and teams like the Toronto Blue Jays, Colorado Rockies, Baltimore Orioles, Seattle Mariners, Texas Rangers and Boston Red Sox could be interested.
Santana remains on the market due to the fact that he has been asking for a ton of money and because he has draft pick compensation attached to him and that could continue through the spring if teams aren't willing to give up that pick. That reason has been cited as why Stephen Drew, Santana and Kendrys Morales are still on the market this late in the offseason and it also was given as the reason why Nelson Cruz ultimately had to take a one year deal with the Orioles at $8 million instead of the more money and years he was looking for.
Santana had a solid season in 2013 with over 200 innings pitched and he could be a reliable starter for a number of teams, including the Blue Jays, who were thought to be chasing both Santana and Ubaldo Jimenez in free agency along with a possible David Price trade. The team missed out on those and while ESPN.com has connected the team to Santana, they have not met his price either and do not want to overpay for him.
Last season Santana finished with a 9-10 record and a 3.24 ERA and 161 strikeouts and now reports say that Santana, Drew and Morales could remain on the market past Opening Day and into the summer. According to Fox Sports and Hardball Talk, the three players may wait until the draft compensation lapses to sign, as teams could be more willing to meet their demands and if they sign before that, they at least can go to next year knowing no qualifying offers come, as they stayed free all year until the season started, meaning no team could give qualifying offers because they weren't on one when the year started.
The Blue Jays have been connected most frequently with Santana, while the Orioles remain in the mix as well despite signing Cruz and Jimenez. SI.com reports that the team could live with giving up their later draft pick now that the other players are signed and that could be a move the O's make in the coming weeks. The Blue Jays interest appears to be waning, as they do not want to give up picks and they also appear to have a solid rotation coming together, as they have RA Dickey and Brandon Morrow to go along with young stars in Drew Hutchison and Kyle Drabek.
Santana continues to remain on the free agent market and the Rockies could get into the mix now that Jhoulys Chacin has been shut down with shoulder issues. The Denver Post reported the interest first and that could come up again in the coming weeks.