And we're off and running

 The free agent frenzy is off and running.  

• Teams are massaging their 40-man roster in preparation for Tuesday's deadline.  
• Fringe players/prospects are changing hands, some through trades but most through the waiver wire.
• Options are being executed or refused
• General managers are meeting and, at the very least, setting the groundwork for trades at the upcoming winter meetings next month.
• Starting today free agents and all teams can start having financial discussions and exchanging figures.
• MLB Trade Rumors suggests that JD Martinez may end up with the Guardians, acknowledging that it is not really a good fit.
• MLB Trade Rumors also suggests that Jose Abreu might be had for 2 years, $30 million.   I am thinking we get him for 3 years + 2 option years ($18, $16, $14, with options for $12 million and $10 million with $1 million buyouts for each option year).  Total of $50 million guaranteed).  Expensive but I think he is a major key to our success. He fits so well at 1B, which he wants, as a right handed power hitter, as a professional hitter and as a clubhouse guy.   I think you overpay for him somewhat and hope his power comes back which, to me, is where he becomes a bargain. He also takes the pressure off of Naylor playing every day.
• MLBTR also says Mitch Haniger may get 3 years at $39 million.   I would give him 3 years (($14,13, 13) with two option years at $12 million with $1 million buyouts) for a total of $42 million guaranteed.
• Obviously the Cardinals will be in the market for catching (Molina retired) so Sean Murphy could be in play for them.  Just hope the Guardians jump on that deal.  The only way they don't make that deal is if they are willing to commit to Bo Naylor for the entire year next year.   The roster doesn't work with placeholders for when Naylor is ready and his history shows that he would need anohter 1/2 at AAA to be minimally ready for the majors.
• Wow, the Edwin Diaz and Robert Suarez (and maybe an upcoming Nick Martinez) deals shows what a great bargain we got with Clase.  No amount of rationalization of us paying him excess in his pre-arbitration years makes up for his performance vs those of these two (three) and what they are being paid, relievers being so up and down with year-to-year performance.  I don't get these cotracts but I want to say that while these contracts may make us feel better about the bargain for Clase, they can cause the Guardians nothing but grief going forward, both in our relatonship with Clase and in our upcoming (this year and next) arbitrations with Karinchak, Hentges, Stephan, etc.  I fail to remember enough that good, young, cheap players too soon become good, young, expensive players and that you really can't have a WS-competitive team full of arbitration/long-term contracts unless you are willing to go to a payroll at least $120 million.
• Hard to believe that Franmil Reyes was DFA'd again and that Bobby Bradley doesn't have a job for next year.   Shows again tenuous nature of young position player performance, not even mentioning young pitching/performance/injuries