Who's Going Where

Given the pace of last year's offseason and how long it took for marquee free agents like Manny Machado and Bryce Harper to sign their respective contracts, I probably don't have to write my 2019-20 offseason predictions so soon after the World Series came to an end.

Following Nick Markakis' decision to re-up with the Braves on a 1-year $4 million contract, I realized that any of the free agents, however unlikely it may be, could resign in the following days.

In what has become a tradition for me to write about each year, I figured I'd make my free agency predictions before it's too late. Even if they turn out as blatantly incorrect as last year's, at least I'll have my picks in writing before anything major happens.

This year, I'm hoping to get at least one prediction right, something I failed to accomplish last time around. Given the unpredictability of the game, however, particularly free agency, I don't know how feasible this is.

Gerrit Cole to the Los Angeles Angels

Last year, I made a couple of unconventional picks (Harper to the Cardinals: seriously, what was I thinking?) to go against some of the more widespread trade rumors. Well, you saw where that got me, so I've decided to go with some more expected choices this time around.

During what will likely prove to be his final press conference as a member of the Houston Astros, Gerrit Cole wore a Scott Boras hat, visibly upset by manager A.J. Hinch's refusal to put him in the game towards the end of the Fall Classic against the Nationals.

Given his ties to California and the management's desire to build a talented team around Mike Trout, Cole to the Angels makes a ton of sense.

Stephen Strasburg back to the Washington Nationals

You're probably thinking, rightfully so, that no one resigns with their previous team anymore, so it doesn't make sense for Strasburg to opt-out of his contract with the Nationals only to stay in D.C. Personally, I don't think the city/team is an issue for the 31-year old; rather, it was the 4-year $100 million remaining on his contract. 

Following a World Series in which he was the MVP, Strasburg can earn more than ~$25 million a year, and I firmly believe that Washington, to keep the team together, will give it to him.

Anthony Rendon back to the Washington Nationals

I'm sure the Nationals want nothing more than to sign Anthony Rendon to a max extension, ensuring that he plays most if not all of his career in D.C. 

However, it remains to be determined whether they can bring back the MVP candidate in addition to Stephen Strasburg given their current contracts for guys like Scherzer and Corbin. 

If it comes down to Rendon or Strasburg, I maintain that Washington will bring back the former, causing the 31-year old to sign elsewhere.

Jose Abreu back to the Chicago White Sox

The Chicago White Sox is the only team that Jose Abreu has ever known since he made his MLB debut back in 2014. Though he's exceeded expectations in terms of his consistency and serves as a leader in the clubhouse, there isn't all that high of a demand for the 32-year old.

With young stars like Eloy Jimenez and top prospect Luis Robert ushering in a new era for the South Siders, something that Abreu most likely won't want to miss out on. Barring any reluctance from ownership, Abreu should be back with the White Sox by Opening Day in 2020.

Josh Donaldson to the St. Louis Cardinals

Donaldson was able to reinvent himself as a member of the Atlanta Braves in 2019, but will a team led by young stars like Ronald Acuña Jr and Ozzie Albies be willing to resign a 33-year old (almost 34) who is past his prime?

The Cardinals, on the other hand, surprised everyone in 2019 by beating Atlanta in the NLDS, including a 13-1 showing that catapulted St. Louis into the next round. If the Cardinals are looking for one piece to complete their championship-contending team, Donaldson could be their guy.

Marcell Ozuna back to the St. Louis Cardinals

Although Ozuna hasn't been able to replicate the breakout 2017 season that he had with Miami, he's been open about how much he loves St. Louis and his willingness to remain a member of the St. Louis Cardinals.

He was one of the players who received a $17.8 million qualifying offer, and given the fact that he didn't have the greatest 2019 season, it makes sense for the 28-year old to accept the offer and remain a Cardinal for one more year. That way, if he bounces back in 2020, he'll make more money in the following offseason.

Didi Gregorius back to the New York Yankees

In spite of all the injuries that plagued the New York Yankees this season, and there were a lot of them, the team persevered and finished with one of the best records in Baseball.

Though players like Gio Urshela and Mike Tauchman were able to shine in the absence of guys like Andujar and Gregorius, there's not much doubt in my mind that those two stars will get their groove back and make their way back into the starting lineup.

I simply don't foresee the Yankees letting a talented player like Gregorius walk, particularly if they could sign him for less than, say, they would've 2 years ago. Simply put, they're too smart to let him go.

Madison Bumgarner to the Atlanta Braves

Despite obtaining more success than any other team this decade, the San Francisco Giants are going in a very different direction this offseason than they have in the past. Long-time manager Bruce Bochy has retired, and the club's ace, Madison Bumgarner, has virtually no chance of returning.

Instead, Bumgarner would be an excellent fit for a team that needs help with pitching as well as a veteran presence in the rotation. If Atlanta doesn't work out, Bumgarner could end up with the Angels if Cole decides to sign elsewhere. 

One thing's for sure, the 3 aces on the market (Cole, Bumgarner, Strasburg) will make for an interesting free agency.

Mike Moustakas to the Tampa Bay Rays

I made this prediction last offseason as well before Moustakas decided to sign a 1-year deal with the Milwaukee Brewers. However, I don't know how dedicated the Brewers are to keeping him around, but I firmly believe that he will still attract a couple of clubs.

Granted, the market hasn't been kind to 30+-year old sluggers over the past few offseasons, but Moustakas is more of a low-risk, high-reward type of guy, perfect for a young team like Tampa Bay without a ton of money to spend over the next few months.

Best Insert of the Year?

A set that I usually skip out on upon its release each year, Topps Chrome Update takes most of the rookie and All-Star game cards from the base Update set and prints them on gorgeous chrome card stock. Then, they add a couple of insert sets, refractors, and autographs to the mix, releasing the product as a retail-exclusive.

The promise of adding chrome rookie cards from this year's class to my collection intrigued me to test the waters with this release, but the 150 Years of Baseball inserts captivated my attention, even more as quite possibly my favorite part of this set.

Though they weren't the only inserts to be featured in Chrome Update, both the checklist and photography behind this simple set give it a ton of appeal. In Series 1, 2, and Update, I didn't think much of these inserts other than the fact that they'd be great additions to my player collections.

The chrome design, however, elevates these cards to the point where they rank as some of my favorite cards of 2019. The refractor finish on these beautiful cards looks terrific, even more so in-hand rather than in a scanned image.

Just like the standard inserts, the chrome cards pay homage to the greatest players, moments, and seasons in Baseball history with a checklist of ~25 cards. The insert sets from Series 1, 2, and Update, on the other hand, featured much larger checklist sizes, some as high as 150 cards.

The Chrome Update set, however, consists primarily of retired players so that the most noteworthy aspects of Baseball history are showcased. Whereas Update featured players like Alex Bregman and Dwight Gooden, Chrome Update sticks to HOF legends like Cal Ripken Jr and Rickey Henderson.

Another benefit of having the checklist be mostly retired players is that I can add these gorgeous cards to my player collections, though I might want to build the insert set and keep them all together instead.

From gold tier PCs like George Brett to recently-created ones like Tony Gwynn, the set features a wide range of Baseball's brightest stars. I have not, however, found a checklist for 2019 Topps Chrome Update, so I have no clue who's in this set aside from the handful of players whose cards I pulled.

The beauty of this set, moreover, is that the images could be from present-day, the early decades of the 20th century, or any year in-between. Simply put, Topps did an excellent job with this entire set, so much so that I was able to justify the $20 per mega box of 28 cards.

Hank Aaron's card, for instance, looks like something you'd see out of Stadium Club. The background, on the other hand, features a player wearing the #4, though I can't tell if there's another number after it that the photo cropped out.

Assuming that the player does wear #4, it's probably Danny O'Connell or Red Schoendienst, for they were the only Milwaukee Braves players to wear #4 during Aaron's career before the team relocated to Atlanta in 1966.

One of the first 150 Years chrome inserts that I pulled was Mike Trout, presumably the only active player on the checklist. For a while, it was his card that captivated me more so than any of the others. 

There's just something so special about how this refractor looks in person and how the rainbow shines and pairs with his red home uniform. 

At this point, given his accomplishments and stat line, it's far from a hot take to declare Trout one of the game's greatest players, though he has more work to do if he wants to keep climbing the list.

As much as I absolutely love the Mike Trout card, Babe Ruth's greatest moments insert may go down as my favorite card of 2019. The black and white photo, in person, with the chrome refractor finish, is truly indescribable. I almost have to take a picture of the card to showcase just how beautiful it is.

I'm not sure whether Topps has used this photo of Ruth in the past, but even if they have, they did an excellent job of repurposing the image for this card. 

Upon pulling this card out of one of the packs, I concluded that the 150 Years of Baseball insert from 2019 Topps Chrome Update can sufficiently rank as one of the greatest insert sets of the year.

The Ruth insert, moreover, might just be my pick for the card of the year.

A 1-Card Red Sox PC Pickup

Today's post is going to be a quick one, but it definitely holds true to the idea of quality over quantity.

This post could've been a card show recap featuring a huge stack of dime cards or a blaster box from a recently-released product. However, while he was visiting the cape over the weekend, it was my Dad who picked up this '64 Topps Tony Conigliaro rookie card, a fabulous addition to the Red Sox PC.

Though I worked diligently over the summer to enhance the Cubs and Red Sox collections for additions just like the one above, I typically refrain from purchasing more expensive individual cards that won't go towards one of my player collections.

I can't exactly pinpoint why, but purchasing cards for either of my 2 team PC's isn't really ingrained into my head. Typically, if I am to spend >$5 on a single card, it'll go towards one of my player collections or a set on my want list.

Part of what makes the Conigliaro rookie card special, however, is that I likely wouldn't have bought it if I was visiting the card shop on the cape over the weekend.

One of the most talented young players in the game throughout the mid-1960s, Conigliaro was vital to the Red Sox's success, particularly in the first half of his All-Star 1967 season until he hit by a pitch in the eye and, unfortunately, was never the same.

Another interesting part of not only Conigliaro's rookie stars card but that of every player is researching the player(s) featured alongside the perennial All-Star/Hall of Famer. In this case, that guy is Bill Spanswick who pitched 65 innings with a 6.89 ERA in '64, his sole MLB season.

Back to Conigliaro, it can be easy to forget just how essential and talented of a player he was for several years with the Red Sox. He set records at 20 years of age that paralleled Ted Williams, franchise records that, I believe, Rafael Devers achieved this season.

Now that I have the Red Sox PC organized in a manner that allows me to find any card quickly, I'm more likely to purchase singles for the team collection when visiting a card show or LCS.

It might not have caught my eye had I visited the card shop, but this Tony C rookie is, nonetheless, an excellent addition.

Frankenset Page #69

I plan on getting into the Washington Nationals' historic World Series victory in a blog post later this weekend. For now, however, I'll stick to how impressed I am that in the first year without Bryce Harper, this team made history.

Like I said, there's a lot to get into with the Nationals, and a performance like this is worthy and deserving of its own blog post. Thus, I'll get to them on Saturday or Sunday, and I'll stick to frankenset page #69 today.

Featuring cards #613-621, this page spans 5 decades (the 1970s-2010s) of Baseball history. Without any further adieu, let's begin with #613, a card from earlier this decade.

#613 2011 Topps Dexter Fowler

In hindsight, perhaps giving Dexter Fowler a 5-year $83 million deal wasn't the brightest move that the St. Louis Cardinals could've made following a campaign in which they went 86-76 but missed the playoffs.

Now 33 years old, Fowler's been relegated to a bench role; his 3 seasons in St. Louis thus far have been marred with injuries and an overall decrease in production since making the All-Star team with the Cubs back in 2016.

#614 1990 Fleer Jeff Robinson

Seeing a Tigers logo alone reminds me of how much this team has slipped since the early part of the 2010s when they were one of the most feared teams in the game. Detroit won 90 games 5 years ago in 2014 before losing to the Orioles in the ALDS.

Flashforward to the 2019 MLB season. The Tigers are the worst team in Baseball at 47-114. That's a huge statement, considering that there were 4 teams with 100+ losses this season.

#615 1983 Topps Garry Maddox

For some reason, a ton of Garry Maddox cards come to mind when I think of my favorites from the 80s, and it's not even like he's one of my player collections. First, there's his 1985 Donruss card, now '83 Topps.

Granted, there are a million cards from the '83 set of hitters wearing powder blue uniforms, but there's something about Maddox's that's extra special.

#616 2006 Topps Kenji Johjima

In other news, the Red Sox hired Chaim Bloom, the former Rays senior vice president of baseball operations, to be their new chief Baseball officer, an expansion of the job previously held by Dave Dombrowski.

Bloom will jump directly into a challenging situation with J.D. Martinez and Mookie Betts' respective futures in Boston unsure. Dombrowski, on the other hand, likely won't find a job as high up in an organization as president of baseball ops given how he left Boston.

#617 1980 Topps Joaquin Andujar

Long before they moved to the American League and won a World Series, the Houston Astros had some incredibly talented teams towards the end of the 1970s and early 1980s.

Led by guys like Cesar Cedeno, J.R. Richard, and Joaquin Andujar, the teams, in one way or another, are reminiscent of the perennial championship-contending squad of the late 2010s. However, they weren't able to capture the Fall Classic title until many decades later.

#618 1983 Topps LaMarr Hoyt

In last week's frankenset post, I remember mentioning the White Sox uniforms, introduced during the mid-1980s, with "SOX" spelled in large letters on the front of the jersey.

More so than most MLB teams, the White Sox have had a surplus of different uniforms, so I never know what to expect when I stumble upon one of their cards from the 70s or 80s. Along with the red stripes, I'd rank this uniform as one of my favorites in the team's history.

#619 2008 Topps Heritage Blake DeWitt

Though Topps Heritage, for me, isn't as impressive or desirable as it once was, the on-point recreations of iconic Flagship designs have remained impressive, from 2001 all the way to 2019.

The 2008 Heritage design paid homage to the 1959 Topps set, one of my top 15 favorites of all-time. It was refreshing to see Topps utilize the design once again in 2019 Topps Archives with new names and better photography.

#620 1971 Topps Frank Howard

It's very fitting that, following the Nationals' World Series win, my frankenset page features a card of Frank Howard, a member of the Washington Senators, the last team to play in the nation's capital before the Expos became the Nats in 2005.

Aside from Walter Johnson, Howard may just be the most recognizable player in Senators' history. He made 4 All-Star game appearances in Washington and finished top 5 in MVP voting twice before the team relocated to Texas.

#621 1988 Donruss Donnie Moore

Last up, an alright card from 1988 Donruss which, given the set design, is as good as you can hope for. I love the Angels uniform above as it reminds me of guys like Rod Carew from the early and mid-1980s.

If only it was accompanied by a better base set design, this card could emerge as one of my favorites of the page.