Latest MLB rumors on Bellinger, Snell and more free agent and trade updates

With both Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto off the table, MLB free agency is down to its last few stars. The biggest names still available are reigning National League Cy Young Award winner Blake Snell and former MVP Cody Bellinger.

After the Los Angeles Dodgers spent over a billion dollars on Ohtani and Yamamoto, several teams considered to be big players coming into free agency still have a lot of money to spend. That means there's a good chance guys like Snell, Matt Chapman, and Josh Hader all get more than what they are expected to receive. These upcoming weeks could be very hectic as teams who missed out on their top priorities scramble to grab their second and third options, throwing everything at their new targets in the hopes of salvaging something from this offseason.

Here are the latest rumors surrounding MLB's top remaining free agents.

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Josh Hader looking for over $100 million

Josh Hader remains the biggest reliever on the free agent market. He's a five-time All-Star and just came off one of the best seasons of his career. At just 30 years old, there's a chance that Hader maintains his elite status as a closer for years to come. Any team would be thrilled to have him, but he will cost a pretty penny. Reports indicate that Hader wants to set the new market standard for closers. He wants more money than Edwin Diaz got prior to the 2023 season.

Is Hader worth it? Maybe. Despite being one of the best closers in baseball for years, he has seen his ball control dwindle recently. In 2023, Hader posted the worst strikeout-to-walk ratio of his career, and allowed more walks per nine innings (4.8) than he had in any other season. Of course, that doesn't matter if Hader can avoid contact, but Hader also posted his lowest strikeouts per nine innings (13.6) since 2017. In 2022, his fastball sat at 97.4 mph. In 2023, it dropped over a whole mile to 96.1 mph.

On the bright side, Hader did generate more weak contact than he has in recent years. However, if you're going to pay big money for a closer known for his ability to make hitters whiff, opting for someone who has seen their velocity decline so drastically in one season is a bit of a risk. Hader is absolutely talented enough to overcome that dip in velocity though.

Currently, the Yankees are one of the favorites to sign Josh Hader, per Jon Morosi. Other teams in the running include the Los Angeles Dodgers and Texas Rangers.

Cody Bellinger drawing interest from multiple clubs

Former National League MVP Cody Bellinger remains arguably the biggest free agent hitter on the market. After subpar 2021 and 2022 campaigns, Bellinger rebounded in 2023 to finish top-ten in NL MVP voting.

Reports indicate that the Toronto Blue Jays and Chicago Cubs are heavily invested in landing Bellinger.

Bellinger obviously provided tremendous value for the Cubs in his first season with the team. The Cubs are young and looking to return to relevancy after disbanding their entire 2016 World Series core a few years ago.

The Blue Jays arguably need Bellinger more. After trading away Teoscar Hernandez ahead of the 2023 season, the Blue Jays outfield recorded a mediocre 8.0 fWAR last season, ranking 15th in MLB. And most of that value came on defense, where the Blue Jays recorded 13.7 runs above average. On offense, they were 12.1 runs below average. While there is hope that George Springer and Daulton Varsho can rebound after underwhelming seasons, Toronto would almost certainly prefer having Bellinger as another option in case things do not improve.

The Keirmaier signing does not mean the Blue Jays are out on Bellinger. If anything, Kiermaier's signing is just good baseball. The defensive-minded veteran was one of the best nine hole hitters in MLB. Moving Bellinger away from center field to a corner outfield position could potentially give Bellinger more time to focus on his swing as well. Plus, having two high-end defensive outfielders never hurt anyone. It would also give the Blue Jays the opportunity to move Varsho to the bench after he put up a sub-.300 OBP in 2023.

Giants may have interest in Bellinger as well

Giants beat writer Susan Slusser told MLB Network this morning that the Giants should go after Bellinger if they do not sign both Snell and Chapman.

Bellinger is the only top-tier outfielder in the free agent pool. The Giants desperately need to improve their offensive production from those outfield spots. Bellinger would be a massive help with MVP-caliber upside. His poor exit velocity in 2023 is a sign for concern though, and may be why some teams are hesitating on giving him $300 million.

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Giants may have competition for Blake Snell

The San Francisco Giants came into the offseason with a lot of money burning a hole in their pockets. After missing out on both Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto though, the team has reportedly set their eyes on reigning Cy Young Award winner Blake Snell.

The Giants' Logan Webb finished second in NL Cy Young voting in 2023 to Snell, so theoretically, pairing the two of them up would give the Giants a rotation among the best in the National League. However, the Giants are pretty thin outside of those two. 2023 All-Star Alex Cobb is set to miss the beginning of the season, meaning outside of Cobb, the Giants have Anthony DeSclafani and Ross Stripling. Even with Snell, the Giants would not have a full rotation, but they do have money to spend on another arm if need be.

The Giants' top competition for Snell appears to be the Los Angeles Angels. Ken Rosenthal reports that the Angels have checked in on the two-time Cy Young winner and have spoken with Snell as recently as Dec. 19.

The Padres and Red Sox are likely in the running for Snell as well.

The Mets showing strong interest in Lucas Giolito?

After failing to acquire any of the biggest arms on the free agent market, the Mets are turning to their next best options, and have reportedly shown interest in former White Sox starter Lucas Giolito, the NY Post reports.

Giolito spent 2023 with three different teams, recording an 8-15 record and 4.88 ERA. In the second half of the season, Giolito fell off tremendously, posting a 7.13 ERA across 72 innings.

Giolito was considered one of the best pitchers in the American League between 2019 and 2021, finishing top-11 in Cy Young voting each of those three seasons. The former All-Star has posted two consecutive seasons with ERAs over 4.80 since then, though there is hope that he can regain his form from three years ago.

Dodgers not done dealing?

After acquiring Ohtani, Yamamoto, Tyler Glasnow, and Manuel Margot, the Dodgers are not done making the rest of the league cry in terror.

According to The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal, the Dodgers are still looking to bolster what is quickly turning into a fearsome rotation.

Here is what the reporter wrote regarding Clayton Kershaw's future: "The other option for Kershaw is a return to the Dodgers, who, even after acquiring Tyler Glasnow and Yoshinobu Yamamoto, want to add depth to their rotation."

Teoscar Hernandez market heating up

Outside of Bellinger, the free agent outfield options are thin, yet the market seems to be heating up for former Seattle Mariner Teoscar Hernandez. The Boston Red Sox, Dodgers, and Angels appear to be the favorites.

No official offers have been made but Hernandez has been in contact with at least the Red Sox and Angels as of late according to Ken Rosenthal. Hernandez even liked a recent tweet that had a picture of him photoshopped in a Red Sox uniform.

The Dodgers are also supposedly "monitoring" the Hernandez market. The team is not considered the favorites to land Hernandez just yet though.

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: MLB rumors: Latest on Bellinger, Snell, Dodgers and more