With spring training nearly over and the regular season fast approaching, the MLB host stove is heating up. While there are a few trade rumors circulating around the league, most of the news centers around the status of a few star pitchers. Here are all the latest MLB rumors you need to know from Chat Sports:
Lindor discussing 7-year extension with Indians
The Cleveland Indians are reportedly working on a seven-year extension with superstar shortstop Francisco Lindor. Brody Chernoff, the son of Indians general manager Mike Chernoff, spilled the news in the Indians broadcast booth, saying that they are "trying to get Lindor to play for seven more years.”
Lindor had a .301 batting average with 15 home runs and 78 RBIs last season.
White Sox in "no rush" to deal Quintana
The Chicago White Sox have had pitcher Jose Quintana on the trade block all offseason, but will only part with him "for the right price." As such, they are in no rush to trade him, as general manager Rick Hahn told MLB.com.
"We've had conversations even this spring where if our asks are met, we'd make a move," Hahn said. "We would love to move this thing along based strictly on our desire, but it's too important we do it right than to force the issue based on impatience."
Quintana, 28, went 13-12 with a 3.20 ERA and 181 strikeouts in 32 appearances last season.
MLB not going to expand to Vegas
With the NFL joining the NHL with franchises in Las Vegas, some are thinking that the MLB may join them there. However, Mike Axisa of CBS Sports writes why that's not going to happen.
Needless to say, Las Vegas is a tourist town. There are roughly 620,000 residents in the city per the United States Census Bureau’s 2015 estimate, making it the 28th-largest city in the country. There are more residents in non-MLB cities like Austin, Texas, (930,000), Jacksonville, Florida, (868,000) and Charlotte, North Carolina, (827,000), among others. Is Vegas large enough to support a big league fan base? The success of the Raiders and Golden Knights will lend some clues these next few years. There are many larger available cities -- 12 cities with a larger population than Las Vegas do not have an MLB franchise -- the league figures to explore first.
The Las Vegas 51s, in fact. Triple-A affiliate of the New York Mets. Putting a big-league franchise and a Triple-A franchise in the same city isn’t going to work. Putting an MLB team in Las Vegas means the 51s, who have played in the city since 1983, would have to relocate, which further complicates things. A new ballpark would also have to be built -- Cashman Field, home of the 51s, seats fewer than 9,500 fans -- which adds another layer of complication.
Moving to Las Vegas would essentially give MLB two Coors Field situations, and hey, maybe that’s not a problem. I do love home runs and offense, personally. That said, the Rockies have had a difficult time building a sustained contender in their quarter-century of existence, largely because it’s so difficult to develop pitching in that environment. Does MLB want to create another situation in which a franchise struggles to build a contender because it plays in such a hitter-friendly environment?
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