Prince Fielder Rumors: Rangers Still Favored
We’ve now passed the Christmas season, but there are still several intriguing free agents remaining on the market. Prince Fielder tops this list, and many teams figure to continue their holiday shopping as long as the slugger remains available. Several clubs have been linked to Fielder this offseason, and Nick Carfado of the Boston Globe hears that the Texas Rangers are the favorites to land the hefty first baseman. Jon Paul Morosi of Fox Sports also has several notes to add regarding Fielder’s future, including reports on the Blue Jays, Orioles, Mariners, Cubs and Nationals. Let’s take a look at all of the latest Prince Fielder rumors.
Morosi reports that no one is sure what types of offers Fielder’s agent Scott Boras has received this offseason. Whatever the case, Boras has not fielded an offer that has blown him or Fielder away, so you’d have to figure that no team has matched the 10-year, $254 million that the Angels handed to Albert Pujols earlier this month.
With this being the case, Morosi says that Fielder may have to “choose between the biggest offer and best opportunity to win”. Morosi goes over the usual suspects; the Mariners, Orioles, Cubs, Blue Jays, Rangers and Nationals.
If the market for Fielder remains quiet, Morosi says Boras and his Prince may have to take a “short-term, huge-dollar deal”. This figures to attract more suitors to the Fielder market.
Meanwhile, Carfado hears that the Rangers are still believed to be the favorites to land Fielder, though they’ve denied having interest in the first baseman multiple times. Carfado notes that the Cubs and Mariners have denied interest in Fielder, and that the Nationals seem very active and willing to spend. According to Carfado, the only way the Orioles will be able to get in the mix for Fielder is if new general manager Dan Duquette can convince owner Peter Angelos to open up his wallet.
You can check out all of the available free agents by position below.