Bad News on top bad news: St. Louis Cardinals announce

Then-surplus of Gabriel Moreno (later traded to the Diamondbacks), Alejandro Kirk, and Danny Jansen.

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch’s Derrick Goold gave some light on those previous negotiations between the Jays and Cards, saying that Toronto was interested in Lars Nootbaar and Brendan Donovan.

With Goold stating earlier this week that Dylan Carlson was on the Jays’ radar this winter, there’s plenty of reason to believe that Toronto and St. Louis may work out a deal this winter. Nootbaar could fill the Blue Jays’ left field void nicely, while Donovan’s versatility to play practically any position would give Toronto a lot of options in determining how to address its various needs across the diamond.

Of course, numerous teams have made inquiries about Nootbaar, Donovan, and Carlson, and it remains to be seen whether the Jays can outbid the competition, or if the Jays have the available pitching that the Cardinals are looking for this winter.

More from the American League East:

According to Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times, the Rays hired Tony Watson for a position in their player development department. Watson will report to Winston Doom, the pitching director. Watson, a veteran of 11 major league seasons from 2011 to 2021, retired in 2022 owing to shoulder issues, and the 38-year-old is now entering a new phase of his baseball career. Watson, best known for his seven seasons with the Pirates, was a former All-Star relief with a 2.90 ERA over 648 1/3 career innings. He is also the all-time leader in holds (246) since the league began officially recording the statistic in 1999.

It’s no surprise that Aaron Judge has a strong voice within the Yankees organization, and according to The Athletic’s Chris Kirschner, Judge and owner Hal Steinbrenner “have already met this offseason on multiple occasions.” Judge’s influence may extend to the job security of manager Aaron Boone and director of player health and performance Eric Cressey, as both are liked by Judge (and possibly the rest of the Yankees clubhouse). Kirschner notes the interesting dynamic this creates, writing that “Judge is seemingly on the second level of the team’s organizational ladder alongside” GM Brian Cashman, despite Cashman himself saying earlier this week that he didn’t mind star players like Judge or Gerrit Cole providing input.