Typically the zone between Christmas and New Years Day is pretty slow as far as Major League Baseball transactions go, but we got a Christmas Day signing this year (Edwin Encarnacion to the White Sox) and rumors are always going to persist. With that in mind, let's cobble together some of the latest rumblings on the rumor mill.
Here is the latest from the hot stove.
Braves asked about Arenado
The Rockies are known to be shopping a good portion of the veterans on their roster and that starts with superstar third baseman Nolan Arenado. It's hard to see a deal coming together before Josh Donaldson signs somewhere -- and let's also keep an eye on Kris Bryant -- but talks will obviously be ongoing. Some of the teams known to be seeking third base help are the Rangers, Phillies, Nationals and Braves. In the case of the latter, the Braves have "inquired" on Arenado, Jon Morosi of MLB.com reports. Morosi adds that talks haven't been active recently, though, so this is a bit of a retroactive rumor.
Again, expect Donaldson to sign, Bryant's grievance on service time manipulation to be resolved and then any Bryant/Arenado trade talks to heat up. For now, we're just waiting on the next third base domino to fall.
White Sox want bullpen help
One of the more active teams this offseason has been the White Sox as they look to turn the corner from rebuild to contention. They aren't involved in any free agent discussions with outfielders like Yasiel Puig or Nicholas Castellanos, reports Bob Nightengale of USA Today. Instead, they're focused on bullpen help, he reports.
The obvious top reliever remaining is Will Harris and there are some other quality pieces available, such as Daniel Hudson, Tommy Hunter, Collin McHugh and more.
Tillman on the comeback trail
Former All-Star starting pitcher Chris Tillman is planning on pitching for teams in spring training with the hope of making a comeback, reports Joel Sherman of the New York Post. Tillman had surgery to repair some labrum damage in his shoulder and hasn't pitched in the majors since 2018. He was terrible in 2017-18, but in 2016 he was 16-6 with a 3.77 ERA, 1.29 WHIP and 140 strikeouts in 172 innings. He's had two seasons of near-4 WAR (3.8 in 2013 and 3.7 in 2016) and is heading to his age-32 season, so it's possible he catches on somewhere.