MLB Rumors: Pete Alonso truth, Astros Kyle Tucker replacement, Mets-Braves do battle

We've reached perhaps the most boring point of the MLB offseason. Most of the big-name free agents like Juan Soto, Corbin Burnes, and Max Fried are off the board. The two biggest trade candidates in Garrett Crochet and Kyle Tucker have already been moved.

There are still some interesting players available on both fronts, but there's been little movement lately. The hope, is with Roki Sasaki expected to sign with a team sooner rather than later, that more moves will follow.

For now, let's take a look at the latest MLB rumors from around the league on this fine Thursday evening.

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MLB Rumors: Mets and Braves could battle for Tanner Scott

The best position player and starting pitcher available in free agency have signed, but the best reliever on the open market, Tanner Scott, is still free for the taking.

The southpaw is coming off an unbelievable year which saw him post a 1.75 ERA in 72 appearances and 72 innings pitched split between the Miami Marlins and the San Diego Padres. He did not allow a run in any of his five postseason appearances either, and struck out Shohei Ohtani all four times he faced him in October.

This kind of a season following up what Scott did in 2023 has him established as one of, if not the best reliever in all of baseball. With that in mind, several of MLB's best teams, including the Los Angeles Dodgers, Atlanta Braves, and New York Mets have expressed interest in signing him.

At this point, it would not be surprising to see Scott come down to a battle between the two NL East rivals. The Dodgers could use a reliever, but their bullpen is stout with or without him. The same can be said about the Braves, but with A.J. Minter being a free agent, they could use another left-hander. The Mets are the team that could use Scott the most of the three teams, but will they be willing to pay what he's going to make, especially with how much money Edwin Diaz is making?

The winner of the Scott sweepstakes could easily wind up winning the NL Pennant. That's how impactful of an addition he'd be.

MLB Rumors: Astros express interest in underwhelming Kyle Tucker replacement

The Houston Astros made the incredibly difficult decision to trade Kyle Tucker away to the Chicago Cubs earlier this offseason, receiving Isaac Paredes, Hayden Wesneski, and Cam Smith in return. Trading an MVP-caliber player like Tucker is never ideal, but the Astros knew he was going to depart in the 2025 offseason as a free agent. Rather than allow him to walk for no compensation, the Astros took what they could for him, and honestly, did pretty well with the return.

The big issue with this, though, is that they have to find a Tucker replacement. They won't be adding anyone nearly as good as Tucker, but considering the fact that Mauricio Dubon would probably start in right field if Opening Day was today, finding someone to play the outfield is a must.

Unfortunately, the Astros have expressed interest in an outfielder, Alex Verdugo, who is far from a difference-maker.

How interested the Astros are in signing Verdugo is unclear, but the fact that they even checked in is a bit worrisome.

Verdugo was at one point regarded highly enough to be the centerpiece of the trade that sent Mookie Betts to the Los Angeles Dodgers, but he has never come close to living up to the hype. He was a productive player with the Boston Red Sox but is coming off an extremely underwhelming season with the New York Yankees.

In 149 games, Verdugo slashed .233/.291/.356 with 13 home runs and 61 RBI. He had an 83 OPS+ and was worth 0.8 bWAR. He's a solid defender, but his bat leaves a lot to be desired. Even if he has a better year than he did in 2024, his career-high in home runs is 13. His ceiling as an offensive player isn't particularly high, which is not what Astros fans want to hear after watching Tucker and Alex Bregman depart.

At the end of the day, the Astros have to find a better option than Verdugo if they want to be seen as true contenders in the American League.

MLB Rumors: Pete Alonso's contract truth is what MLB fans want to hear

Just days ago, a report surfaced suggesting that Pete Alonso was looking for a contract comparable to the nine-year deal worth $214 million that Prince Fielder signed with the Detroit Tigers ahead of the 2012 season. That, according to Jon Heyman of the NY Post, is not the case.

"The rumor going around was that Pete Alonso is viewing Prince Fielder’s famous $214 million, nine-year deal as a comp. Not sure where that got started, but it has not a shred of truth to it," Heyman wrote.

On one hand, Alonso might be the best position player left on the free agency market. Since debuting in 2019, he's been one of the most prolific power hitters in the game, smashing 226 home runs in six seasons with the Mets. That total ranks second, behind only Aaron Judge, in the majors in that span. He has hit at least 34 home runs with at least 88 RBI in each of his five full seasons (excluding 2020).

The problem, though, is that Alonso hit his career lows of 34 home runs and 88 RBI this past season. He also set career lows with 2.6 bWAR and a .788 OPS. This was, by any measure, the worst season of his career.

Factoring that in with the fact that first basemen aren't valued nearly as highly as they once were, Alonso was never going to get anything remotely close to what Fielder received in 2012.

The fact that Alonso is not searching for anything comparable to the Fielder deal is good news for MLB fans who want to see him sign somewhere. His ask is still too rich for interested teams, clearly, but it presumably is more of a realistic ask, suggesting that a deal might not be incredibly far away from being reached.