Good morning, Mets fans! In today’s edition of the hot stove rumor roundup, we have a few results on qualifying offers, as well as a few developments on the trading block.

Ryu Accepts Dodgers’ Qualifying Offer

First reported by Fancred Sports‘ Jon Heyman yesterday afternoon, starting pitcher Hyun-Jin Ryu has accepted his qualifying offer, and will return to the Los Angeles Dodgers for the 2019 season. Ryu, 31, has missed time the last two seasons with groin and knee issues, but has still put up palatable numbers, highlighted by a career 3.20 ERA and 40-28 record. In 2018, Ryu went 7-3 with a 1.97 ERA/3.00 FIP and 5.93 K/BB ratio over 15 starts.

The Dodgers will owe Ryu $17.9MM next season, an awful lot for somebody who hasn’t turned in a 30-start season since 2013 – the first year in a six-year, $36MM contract that first introduced him to Major League Baseball. If he can stay healthy, however, the South Korean lefty won’t have too hard a time finding a big contract in an easier 2020 market.

Tigers Looking to Move Castellanos

As the Detroit Tigers look to pick up speed in their rebuilding transition, one piece that seems likely to yield a worthwhile return is outfielder Nicholas Castellanos. As Anthony Fenech of the Detroit Free Press details, Castellanos is almost a guarantee to be moved by the end of the 2019 season, though given the Tigers’ failure to bring in a sufficient package for J.D. Martinez in 2017 after they balked at a window to either extend or trade him, there’s also a good chance Castellanos is shipped out this winter, as the two sides have reportedly made zero progress towards a possible extension.

A 2010 first-round pick who initially struggled to establish himself as a third base, Castellanos once came up as a possible trade target for the Mets last offseason before they eventually settled for a deal with Todd Frazier, raking an impressive .285/.336/.495 line with 67 homers and 248 RBI since 2016. His inability to field, as evidenced by a -2.4 dWAR last year in right and -1.9 mark at third the year before, has been a cause for concern, though evidently not enough, as the Astros have apparently been in touch about a possible deal.

Yankees Running Background Check on Machado 

It’s no secret that Manny Machado‘s behavior on and off the field during the 2018 Postseason has raised red flags for a few organizations that would otherwise be more than happy to throw a nine-figure deal his way. However, it’s also completely meaningless to cast judgment about Machado’s natural abilities as an All-Star caliber player on such a basis, and the New York Yankees have warily operated this way over the past few days.

The Athletic’s own Jayson Stark has reported that the Yankees are taking specific measures to ensure they are pursuing somebody who will represent the team well. A team source tells Stark that manager Aaron Boone, scouts, and front office executives in the Yankees’ organization have all been in touch with mutual friends to gauge Machado’s personality off the field. Results so far have been positive, and Machado’s interest in playing for the Yankees (as a New York native) would definitely limit the possibility that his “Johnny Hustle” comments – among other controversies – prove to be an aberration.

Phillies Shopping Santana

For those who want the verbatim report (and/or lack access to this subscription-only piece from Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic), the Phillies are “shopping the hell” out of first baseman Carlos Santana. After signing a three-year, $60MM deal this past offseason and hitting just .229/.352/.414, the 32-year old is already on the hot seat.

Under different circumstances, this line would probably fly in an everyday lineup, especially considering the 24 bombs and 86 RBI he brought to the table in 2018, and perhaps it turns into a selling point at the winter meetings. The unfortunate reality here is that – especially given Philadelphia’s interest in this year’s treasure trove of big-ticket infielders – Santana is no longer fits in. The organization seems intent on moving franchise bat and ungainly left fielder Rhys Hoskins back to first base, and with all sorts of chips being pushed in on younger third base options like Maikel Franco, J.P. Crawford, and Scott Kingery, moving Santana’s contract out of the shuffle seems to be the ideal solution.

It’s unclear as to how much interest there actually is in Santana, especially with respect to the salary obligations, but the Mets would indirectly win here, as Santana’s .930 OPS against the team last season wouldn’t be missed.

Six Qualifying Offers Declined

With the deadline striking at 5 PM Eastern yesterday, every potential free agent aside from Hyun-Jin Ryu officially entered the free agent pool. Their former clubs will win compensatory draft picks and their signing teams will have to fork over a piece of international slot money as a result of the offers being rejected. The (unsurprising) list reads as follows:

A.J. Pollock – Pollock hit .257/.316/.484 in 112 games with the Diamondbacks last season, but stole 39 bases just three years ago, set a career-high with 21 homers, and finished sixth among big-league center fielders with 6 DRS (Heyman). At just 30 years of age (turning 31 in a month), Pollock should be the most appealing center fielder on the market.

Patrick Corbin – Fourth-highest fWAR among starters in the majors, and easily projected to be the most expensive starter this offseason, with the Yankees already expressing interest. The 29-year old posted the second-lowest xFIP in baseball last year with 2.61… just a single point behind Jacob deGrom (Heyman).

Craig Kimbrel – First reported by Chris Cotillo of MassLive. The third-worst ground-ball rate among qualified relievers (28.2%) and 4.5 BB/9 could scare a few teams away from Kimbrel, especially given the increased skepticism towards using a traditional closer. But at 30 years of age with eight years of big-league experience, there’s a lot of potential.

Dallas Keuchel – Per Mark Feinsand of MLB.com, Keuchel, 30, will test the open market, but is by no means a foregone conclusion in Houston’s rotation should he get the right offer. His K/9 fell to 6.7, but a career 3.66 ERA/3.72 FIP is owed to his consistent ability to induce weak contact.

Yasmani Grandal – Grandal headlines a less-than-stellar lineup of free agent catchers, but will earn every penny given his value on both sides of the ball. The 30-year old and Wilson Ramos lead the current set of catchers in nearly offensive category. ESPN‘s Alden Gonzalez first reported Grandal’s decision.

Bryce Harper – Mark Zuckerman from MASN Sports first broke the news. Like your average athlete, Harper would rather make $20-30 million a year than $17.9 million for one year. We can only hope the 2015 NL MVP and six-time All-Star finds a home outside the division.