Top News:
Bob Nightengale / USA Today:
Dodgers admit meeting with free agent Shohei Ohtani while Cubs look out of contention — NASHVILLE, Tenn. — The Los Angeles Dodgers are cautiously optimistic they will sign free agent Shohei Ohtani, but the Toronto Blue Jays, Los Angeles Angels and San Francisco Giants still remain firmly in the running for baseball's biggest star.
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The Athletic:
Whatever Shohei Ohtani decides, Cubs still moving in other directions — NASHVILLE, Tenn. — The Chicago Cubs appear to be pivoting in different directions while Shohei Ohtani continues with his clandestine process. The Cubs aren't going to put this message on the Wrigley Field marquee: “We're out on Ohtani.”
Ken Rosenthal / The Athletic:
Shohei Ohtani, Blue Jays believed to have met Monday at team's Florida complex — NASHVILLE, Tenn. — In the clearest sign yet of the Blue Jays' interest in Shohei Ohtani, club officials are believed to have met Monday with the Japanese superstar at the team's spring-training complex in Dunedin, Fla.
J.J. Cooper / Baseball America:
Inside The MLB Draft Lottery: How The Cleveland Guardians Scored No. 1 Pick In 2024 — NASHVILLE, Tenn. - The Cleveland Guardians have never picked at the top of the MLB draft. Cleveland had picked second on four occasions, most recently when they selected righthander Paul Shuey second overall in 1992.
Discussion:
Into The Fountains, Plain Dealer, ESPN, Yahoo Sports, New York Post and MLB Trade Rumors
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MLB.com:
Draft experts make the first 10 picks of 2024 — The second annual MLB Draft Lottery took place at the Winter Meetings on Tuesday, with 17 teams having varying odds of landing the first pick in the 2024 Draft. The Guardians came away with the No. 1 overall pick for the first time in franchise history …
Discussion:
Plain Dealer, The Athletic, South Side Sox, Denver Post, Royals Review, Athletics Nation and Battery Power
Jonathan Mayo / MLB.com:
Guardians win Draft Lottery, securing next year's top pick — NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Cleveland is on the clock. — The Guardians were the big winners of Major League Baseball's Draft Lottery on Tuesday, held at the Winter Meetings for the second straight season, winning the No. 1 pick in the 2024 Draft.
Jon Heyman / New York Post:
Shohei Ohtani sweepstakes may force Juan Soto to wait for trade — NASHVILLE, Tenn. — One tipoff that Juan Soto will likely be traded is the Padres have yet to make the multiyear offer they originally suggested they would make. — If pressed, Padres people will only admit it's better …
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Kevin Acee / San Diego Union-Tribune:
At Winter Meetings, Padres wait for movement, right offer for Juan Soto — A.J. Preller continues to maintain possibility of keeping star outfielder, but the Padres have much to do and not that much money with which to do it — The Padres have a lot of work to do.
Discussion:
New York Post, MLB.com, ClutchPoints, Bleacher Nation, MLB Trade Rumors and The Athletic
Jeff Passan / ESPN:
Red Sox trade Alex Verdugo to Yankees for three pitchers — NASHVILLE, Tenn. — The Yankees acquired outfielder Alex Verdugo from the Boston Red Sox on Tuesday night, with New York turning to the 27-year-old to improve its offense in just the eighth trade between the rivals since the start of the Divisional Era in 1969.
Jon Heyman / New York Post:
Mets could target Blake Snell as a Yoshinobu Yamamoto fallback plan — While rival teams were suggesting they viewed the Mets as a big player for Japanese ace Yoshinobu Yamamoto, many believe that is far from a certainty with every big-spending team in the mix.
Bradford Doolittle / ESPN:
Hall of Fame to honor Negro League's East-West All-Star Game — NASHVILLE, Tenn. — The traditional format of the Negro Leagues' East-West All-Star Game will be revived in the spring when the National Baseball Hall of Fame hosts a tribute to the one-time fixture with a legends exhibition in Cooperstown, New York.
Discussion:
Los Angeles Times, Plain Dealer, Associated Press and Yahoo Sports
Bob Klapisch / New Jersey Online:
Yankees have a secret weapon to put Yoshinobu Yamamoto in pinstripes — NASHVILLE - I ran into an American League executive on Monday. Like all conversations at the Winter Meetings, the exchange quickly turned into a bargaining session. Here you trade in news updates. — “What are you hearing?” he began.
Discussion:
SNY, Pinstripe Alley, Boston.com, ClutchPoints, Dodger Blue, IT IS HIGH! IT IS FAR! and CBSSports.com
