According to Jerry Crasnick of ESPN, the Mariners, Reds, Blue Jays, and Mets are among the teams that are "keeping tabs" on free agent starting pitcher Jeff Francis.

Rumors on the Francis front have been mostly quiet of late, but we heard back in early December that the Pirates were interested as well; however, that's most likely no longer the case.

Francis, 31, spent 2011 with the Kansas City Royals, where he posted an 85 ERA+ in 183 innings. To date, he has a career 98 ERA+ in just over 1000 innings, and he's proved to be a solid pitcher at the back of a rotation. In fact, he was pegged by our own Adam Bernacchio as a free agent buy-low candidate for teams in need of a starter.

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  "The #Mariners, #Reds, #BlueJays and #Mets are among the clubs believed to be keeping tabs on Francis."