Cole, Rendon are now free agents
Business season begins, and it may take months |to play out
NEW YORK — Washington third baseman Anthony Rendon became a free agent Thursday, a day after homering to spark Washington’s seventh-inning comeback in Game 7 of the World Series.
Houston pitcher Gerrit Cole also went free after warming up in the bullpen but never getting into the season finale.
And Nationals pitcher Stephen Strasburg, the World Series MVP, could be joining them in the next few days. He has the right to opt out of his contract, which has $100 million over four years remaining.
Baseball’s business season starts shortly after the final out.
“I think it’s hard to kind of fastforward,” Astros manager AJ Hinch said. “Seasons end really fast. I don’t care if you get all the way to the seventh game of the World Series. It’s all of a sudden — boom! — it’s over.”
Cole, Rendon and Strasburg all are represented by Scott Boras, known for slow, methodical negotiations. Last winter, he reached outfielder Bryce Harper’s $330 million, 13-year contract with Philadelphia on Feb. 28.
Cole, a 29-year-old right-hander who went 20-5 this year, is expected to get a record contract for a pitcher, topping David Price’s $217 million, seven-year deal with
Boston before the 2016 season and Justin Verlander’s $31.33 million average salary under a three-year deal with the Astros that started in 2019.
Minutes after his team’s loss in Game 7, Cole was already describing that team in the past tense.
“I mean, I’m not employed,” Cole said to an Astros public relations official in the home clubhouse.
The official was asking Cole, a free agent this offseason who is just about guaranteed to become one of the game’s highest-paid players, to address the group of reporters wanting to talk to him.
The righthander, sporting not an Astros cap but one with the logo of Boras Corp – founded and run by Cole’s agent, Scott Boras – eventually gave in.
“All right,” Cole said, “as an affiliate of myself.”
Strasburg, a 31-year-old righthander, just finished the third season of a $175 million deal and at 18-6 also is coming off his best season. Rendon led the major leagues with 126 RBIs while hitting .319 with 34 homers.
A total of 131 players became free agents Thursday, and 53 more potentially are eligible pending decisions on team, player and mutual options during the next few days.
Among the pitchers available are major league ERA leader HyunJin Ryu, Zack Wheeler, Madison Bumgarner, Rick Porcello, Cole Hamels, Jake Odorizzi and Dallas Keuchel, who went free after the 2018 season and waited until June to reach a one-year deal with Atlanta.
Others eligible include shortstop Didi Gregorius, third baseman Josh Donaldson and outfielders Yasiel Puig, Marcell Ozuna and José Abreu — the AL RBIs leader.
Yankees closer Aroldis Chapman and Boston slugger J.D. Martinez also have the right to opt out, and catcher Yasmani Grandal has a mutual option with Milwaukee.
Teams must decide by Monday whether to make $17.8 million qualifying offers to their former players who became free agents.
ROYALS: Mike Matheny was hired as the 17th manager in franchise history Thursday. Matheny, 49, a former major league manager with the St. Louis Cardinals, takes over for Ned Yost, who retired after the 2019 season.
TRADE: The Chicago White Sox have traded catcher Welington Castillo to the Texas Rangers, who might not exercise an $8 million option for next season and allow him to become a free agent.
D-BACKS: Matt Herges has been hired as the new pitching coach. He replaces Mike Butcher, who was not retained after four seasons with the team. Herges, an Albuqerque Duke for parts of four seasons (1996-99), has been the San Francisco Giants bullpen coach for the past two seasons.