"This is one of those headlines that even I roll my eyes at because of course one of the better relievers on the market is drawing interest from a lot of teams. Jon Morosi added the Tigers to a list that already included at least the Marlins, Blue Jays, and Dodgers. There are two pretty clear leaders there if Fairbanks prioritizes winning, but he might also be looking to get paid in what might be his last shot at a multiyear deal."
"The 31-year-old righty appeared in 61 games last season, but that was the first time he'd ever surpassed 49 appearances in parts of seven seasons. His strikeout rate has hovered around 24% over the last two seasons, down almost 16 percentage points from the two previous campaigns, and his fastball has lost a couple ticks as well. That's why MLB Trade Rumors had him at a relatively modest two-year, $18 million projection."
"ESPN's Kiley McDaniel didn't even have Fairbanks listed among 40 right-handed relievers who didn't make the cut for his top 50 free agent projections, which has to have been an error of omission. Either way, it seems like the recent run on relievers could have Fairbanks extracting a little more than expected. Initially viewed as the kind of under-the-radar option who might have fallen to the Cubs, it's looking like the former Rays closer could get more than Jed Hoyer is comfortable paying."
Multiple teams including the Marlins, Blue Jays, Dodgers and Tigers are showing interest in Fairbanks. Two teams appear to be frontrunners if Fairbanks prioritizes winning, but Fairbanks may instead seek a multiyear, higher-paying contract. The 31-year-old right-hander appeared in 61 games last season, the first time he surpassed 49 appearances in parts of seven seasons. His strikeout rate has been about 24% over the last two seasons, down roughly 16 percentage points from the prior campaigns, and his fastball velocity has fallen a couple of ticks. MLB Trade Rumors projects a two-year, $18 million deal, and rising reliever demand could push his market beyond earlier expectations.
Read at Cubsinsider
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]