AP sources: Bellinger to Cubs, Bell to Clev; M’s get Haniger
SAN DIEGO — Cole Kuiper saw a report on Twitter: Aaron Judge was nearing a deal with the San Francisco Giants. Cole called his father, Giants broadcaster Duane Kuiper, to share the good news.
Then the report was scrubbed, and Cole had to get back to his vacationing dad.
“I called him to tell him Judge is a Giant, but now I can’t get ahold of him to update him on the retraction,” Cole Kuiper posted on Twitter on Tuesday.
Ah, baseball’s winter meetings in the social media age.
While much of the majors awaited the resolution of Judge’s free agency, Mitch Haniger, Cody Bellinger, Josh Bell, Tommy Kahnle and Andrew Heaney all found new homes. Negotiations continued for a couple of baseball’s top free agents, including shortstops Carlos Correa, Xander Bogaerts and Dansby Swanson, along with catcher Willson Contreras and lefthander Carlos Rodón.
“This marketplace is very aggressive, particularly aggressive for elite players,” super agent Scott Boras said.
St. Louis president John Mozeliak and manager Oliver Marmol recently spent time with Contreras and his agents. The Cardinals have an opening behind the plate after Yadier Molina retired.
“This is a guy that loves to win, who wakes up thinking about it, goes to sleep thinking about it,” Marmol said of Contreras, who began his big league career with the Cubs. “And we’ve seen quite a bit across the way. And it’s a guy you don’t want to compete against because you know he’s pretty good.”
Bell agreed to a $33 million, two-year contract with Cleveland, and Bellinger, another Boras client, reached a $17.5 million, one-year deal with the Chicago Cubs.
Haniger got a $43.5 million, three-year deal with San Francisco.
Bell played for Washington and San Diego last season, batting .266 with 17 homers and 71 RBIs in 156 games.
Cleveland is coming off a surprising 2022 season, going 92-70 and winning the AL Central for the first time since 2018. The addition of Bell gives the Guardians more power for their lineup after they hit just 127 homers this year — the second-lowest total in the majors.
The switch-hitting Bell also is expected to benefit from restrictions on defensive positioning coming to the game next year.
A person familiar with the negotiations confirmed the Bell contract on condition of anonymity because the deal was pending a review of medical records.
Bellinger, the 2019 NL MVP, was cut by the Los Angeles
Dodgers on Nov. 18 after the 27-year-old outfielder hit .210 with 19 homers, 150 strikeouts and a .654 OPS in 144 games.
“Got a track record of a lot of success and dynamic defense,” Cubs manager David Ross said. “I remember when he first got in the league — first base, smooth hands, dynamic center fielder, great outfielder. Hadn’t had the success he had early on, but definitely a lot of potential for a great player.”