MLB Trade Rumors and News: J.T. Realmuto finally has a new team and the world loses a legend

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• While many fans have focused on the fates of its current players of late, nearly all of them mourned the passing of Frank Robinson who died yesterday at the age of 83. Frank Robinson was one of the absolute best to ever play the game and was also the league’s first African-American manager. We at MLB Daily Dish send our heartfelt condolences to his family, friends, and fans. The world lost a giant yesterday.
• The Marlins finally parted ways with their star catcher J.T. Realmuto as they traded him to the Phillies in a deal that was highlighted by flamethrowing pitching prospect Sixto Sanchez. The Phillies were late entrants into the Realmuto sweepstakes, but they closed the deal and the National League playoff race next year continues to look very, very interesting.
• Bryce Harper is still a free agent, but the star outfielder has recently met with the Giants about possibly signing with them.
• The Nationals brought back Jeremy Hellickson to a one-year deal.
• Beloved veteran outfielder Curtis Granderson will look to play another season in the big leagues, as he’s inked a minor-league deal with the Marlins and will try to win a job this spring. If he does end up making Miami’s roster, it’ll be interesting to see if he’s flipped to a contender down the stretch for a third straight year; he seems to be somewhat of a good luck charm, as he’s played on nine playoff teams in 15 seasons, including three that have advanced to the World Series.
• Our Andersen Pickard broke down the offseason moves in the NL West, which have been few and far between with just about a week before pitchers and catchers report.
• While Bryce Harper and Manny Machado continue to mull their options in free agency, the biggest name on the trade market continues to be J.T. Realmuto. The Marlins continue to play their hand very, very slowly and now that their price has dropped, there appears to be a number of teams vying for Realmuto’s services including the Braves, Rays, Padres, Reds, and Dodgers.
• Andersen Pickard continued his look at the first half of this offseason (with the second half seemingly looking like it will extend into the last week of spring training) with a look at how well the NL Central has done for itself so far.
• Nolan Arenado and the Rockies made history as they agreed on a one year, $26 million contract to avoid arbitration. That $26 million is a most given to an arbitration eligible player and frankly, Arenado deserves it.
• The Astros bolstered the back-end of their rotation when they signed Wade Miley to a one-year deal. Miley was one of the bigger surprises performance-wise last season and should help the Astros (at least a bit) in offsetting the losses of Charlie Morton and (very likely) Dallas Keuchel.
• The Padres have made a bit of a surprise entrance to the top of the free-agent market, as they are showing interest in some of the top names including Bryce Harper and Manny Machado. San Diego may not look the part of a contender right now, but they have one of the league’s best farm systems and could become good in a hurry.
• The Angels owe it to Mike Trout to at least make an effort to be better.
• The Diamondbacks are taking a chance on reliever Greg Holland after signing the three-time All-Star closer to a one-year, $3.5 million deal.
• A modest proposal: the Twins should sign Dallas Keuchel and Craig Kimbrel. Just bear with us here.
• Do free agents lose value when they remain on the market deep into the offseason? We took a look at the data, and let’s just say it usually helps them to sign sooner than later.
• What if Bryce Harper ditched the commitment and signed a one-year deal somewhere?
• While the Rangers likely won’t be very good next year, they aren’t standing idle, as they went out and signed free agent reliever Shawn Kelley to a one-year deal. Not exactly a sexy move, but at least it’s something.
• The Royals and Whit Merrifield have finalized a four-year extension. This will keep him under contract through his arbitration years — and potentially what was set to be his first free-agent year, depending on if they pick up his club option — and keeps Kansas City a forced to be reckoned with on the basepaths.
• The Dodgers have the money and prospects to basically go and get whoever they really want to, and they made their biggest move of the offseason when they snatched up A.J. Pollock on a five-year deal. While some thought that the Dodgers moves earlier this offseason signaled that they were going to make a run at Bryce Harper, it looks like this move takes them out of the running for his services.
• Our Stephen Tolbert took an in-depth look at how the qualifying offer system has affected players’ value in free agency.
• If you’re sick of sick the two-player circus that has been ensuing all offseason, here are 10 storylines to follow throughout the rest of the winter.