Thursday marks the final day of the General Manager meetings in Las Vegas. Though we haven't seen any major moves this offseason, we have seen an uptick in rumors in the past few days and that isn't a coincidence. Put a bunch of reporters and front-office execs in the same area for three or four days and chatter picks up, even if there isn't a ton of actual substance behind it.
Rumors are always fun, so let's round up the latest right here. The Mariners have shown interest in free agent left fielder Ian Happ, per MLB Network. Happ, 32, has spent his entire 10-year MLB career with the Cubs, who drafted him in the first round all the way back in 2015.
He was pretty consistent from 2022-25, averaging 3.9 WAR with a .251/.347/.433 (118 OPS+) line and winning four Gold Gloves. Last season, though, he dipped to .218/.326/.412 (103 OPS+) with 2.7 WAR. He still topped 20 home runs for the fifth time in the last six years.
The Mariners have a vacancy in left field with Randy Arozarena having hit free agency and a need to upgrade their offense. Yesterday's big news was the Yankees' interest in free agent first/third baseman Alec Bohm and The Athletic reports that we can now add the Mets to the list of suitors. Bohm hit .249/.315/.383 (87 OPS+) with 15 home runs, 88 RBI and -0.2 WAR last season.
It might be surprising to see him garnering such interest on the open market, but there isn't much right-handed power out there and Bohm finished last season strong (.318/.402/.453 in his last 42 games). The Mets, meanwhile, are desperate for help at the cold corner after last year's disastrous Jorge Polanco experiment. Jared Young did provide a glimmer of hope at first base before suffering a concussion in September while colliding with a teammate on a play.
Free agent catcher Ryan Jeffers has been extended the qualifying offer from the Twins, meaning he has to decide by net Tuesday whether to accept the one-year, $23.15 million contract or hit free agency. There's nothing that says a team can't re-sign a player after he declines their qualifying offer, of course, and it sounds like that path is possible in this case. Jeffers will decline the QO and the Twins are interested in reaching a multi-year deal to bring him back, reports the Minnesota Star-Tribune.
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