Good morning, Mets fans! Here’s today’s hot stove rumor roundup.

Phillies, Padres Still in on Realmuto

Though little progress seems to have been made in their pursuit of either Bryce Harper or Manny Machado, the Philadelphia Phillies remain engaged in the market for Miami Marlins catcher J.T. Realmuto. Ken Rosenthal of the Athletic first reported that they had “recently checked in” on a potential trade, citing the team’s general interest given the star backstop’s “continued availability.”

Jon Heyman of Fancred adds that while the Marlins are certainly interested in the prospects Philadelphia has to offer (potentially including big-league catcher Jorge Alfaro), they remain open to offers from such interested teams as the Los Angeles Dodgers, Atlanta Braves, Cincinnati Reds, Tampa Bay Rays, and San Diego Padres. Per MLB Network‘s own Jon Morosi, the Padres’ discussions with the Marlins have followed those of the Phillies into the present week.

Though a member of the organization since he was first drafted in 2010, Realmuto has played in South Beach against his will for well over a year to this point – having requested a trade as long ago as December 2017. The Marlins’ quickness to part with such studs as Giancarlo Stanton, Christian Yelich, and Marcell Ozuna has not translated in nearly the same way, despite Realmuto’s value as a catcher sitting in a class of its own. Just this past year, the 27-year old accomplished career-highs in OPS (.825), bWAR (4.3), home runs (21), RBI (74), and caught-stealing percentage (38%). The Marlins clearly do not want to come away as emptyhanded as they may have in the prior three hauls, though they have practically cornered the market of available catchers at this point in the offseason.

Romo, Hellickson Nearing Deals?

Despite the current trend of more suddenly-announced minors deals across the past week, two right-handed arms seem well on their way to contracts of their own.

The first such name brought into the mix is right-handed reliever and former Tampa Bay Rays’ “opener” Sergio Romo (courtesy of Heyman). Though no explicit team or financial details are mentioned, whoever is in fact behind the rumored one-year deal is apparently closing on a deal. As a matter of fact, no team has been tied to Romo since the offseason first kicked off, though it’s still fathomable that the soon-to-be 36-year old would have value to a team. Romo set career-highs in appearances (73) and innings pitched (67.1) while bringing his K/BB ratio back to a more familiar 3.75 (10.0 to 2.7).

Also rumored to be inching towards a contract is starter Jeremy Hellickson, whom Craig Mish of Sirius XM reports is “in talks about a potential reunion” with the Washington Nationals. The 31-year old righty and 2011 American League Rookie of the Year impressed in 19 starts this past year, holding a 3.45 ERA and 1.073 WHIP while muzzling left-handed hitters to a .204/.279/.365 line.

Washington’s additions of Patrick Corbin and Aníbal Sánchez, coupled with the stock put into young stopgaps in Joe Ross and Erick Fedde, would almost certainly push Hellickson into a long-relief role of some kind, though he could no doubt earn starts by replicating his success in 2018.

Two More Players Win Arbitration Deals

Both Tommy Pham and Carlos Correa have won their arbitration cases, according to Jeff Passan of ESPN. This news brings the players to an encouraging 3-1 tally over their respective organizations, with Blake Treinen having netted his requested $6.4MM earlier last week.

Pham and Correa, each GSE clients, will be paid $4.1MM and $5MM this coming season from the Tampa Bay Rays and Houston Astros, respectively. Having hit .343/.448/.622 in 39 games with Tampa, Pham almost certainly deserved a raise, though Correa will be harder-pressed to prove his worth following a less inspiring .239/.323/.405 performance across 109 games as he battled back issues.

In light of what has transpired (or perhaps yet to transpire) this offseason regarding player salaries and unsigned free agents, it should come as a consolation of sorts for players entrenched in a typically grueling financial process that pits them directly against team advisors. Nonetheless, the tide can still turn, with the likes of Luis Severino, Trevor Bauer, Gerrit Cole, and Michael Fulmer all awaiting results from arbitration panels prior to Spring Training.

Depth Additions Around the League

The Chicago White Sox have signed outfielder Brandon Guyer to a minor-league deal (first reported by Stadium writer Dave Ross). Guyer has hit just .220/.312/.351 over his last two seasons as a platoon outfielder with the Cleveland Indians, though his .278/.384/.447 line against lefties since 2014 could render him a useful option off the bench.

Former Mets farmhand Drew Butera has agreed to a minor-league deal with the Philadelphia Phillies (also per Heyman), with $1.3MM on the ledger should he make it to the major leagues. The 35-year old catcher has served as a backup for six teams across his entire career, hitting just .201/.258/.299 in over 1300 plate appearances while combining for over ten framing runs below average since 2017. He was one of two prospects dealt to the Minnesota Twins in exchange for Luis Castillo at the 2007 trade deadline.

David Carpenter has signed a minors pact with the Texas Rangers, as first reported by Driveline Baseball‘s Kyle Boddy. At one time a successful setup man with the Braves, the now-33-year old Carpenter has spent the past year conditioning his way back into scouting notebooks, inventing a splitter while bringing his velocity back to the mid-90s. He last pitched in the big leagues in 2015 with the Nationals.

Additionally, MMO contributor and former Met utilityman Ty Kelly has agreed to a minor-league deal with the Los Angeles Angels (not including an invitation to spring training), as first reported by Robert Murray of The Athletic. Kelly went 1-for-11 in his second stint with the organization in 2018, with the bulk of his playing time coming in 2016, posting a .697 OPS and scratching off one of the team’s four hits off Madison Bumgarner in their Wild Card loss to the San Francisco Giants.

“Handful of Teams” Involved on Gio Gonzalez

Bob Nightengale of USA Today reports that there are at least a “handful of teams” still involved in the Gio Gonzalez sweepstakes including the Milwaukee Brewers, Oakland Athletics, San Francisco Giants, and San Diego Padres.

It was reported last week that the Mets were also among the teams interested in signing the left-handed starter to potentially replace Jason Vargas in the rotation.