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NJ.com | Mike Rosenstein: Manny Machado reportedly wants a contract that exceeds the amount current Yankee Giancarlo Stanton got from the Marlins. The only problem is that the three teams in the running for him at the moment don’t appear to be offering anything close to those numbers. In particular, the Yankees have yet to make an official offer. The Yankees played this game earlier in the winter with Patrick Corbin, and it remains to be seen if it will work with Machado.
NJ.com | Brendan Kuty: Following that report was another that the White Sox, one of the teams that has put forward an offer and is in the Machado race, is seen as the favorite to land the superstar now. Chicago added to their familiarity approach recently by signing outfielder Jon Jay, who is a longtime friend of Machado. There is also word that a Machado decision could come within a week.
NY Post | Dan Martin: Much has been made about Machado’s recent Johnny Hustle comments and his general play in the postseason. Another key part of his past is the two knee surgeries that he underwent in 2013 and 2014. Machado has missed only 11 games in the last four seasons, though, signaling to doctors that his knees have stabilized and are not a significant concern. The possibility of re-injuring his knees on a collision play is still there, but it is likely that the prior injuries will stay in the past for the remainder of his career.
FanGraphs | Craig Edwards: Over the past year, plenty of discussion has come up about the Yankees’ avoidance of the luxury tax and their reluctance to pay shares to other teams. Due to the way the CBA is currently structured, money that the Yankees traditionally paid into revenue sharing will soon be unavailable to clubs repeatedly gaining from the share, such as the A’s, and the Yankees will get to pocket some of that cash. Give Edwards’ piece a read for a more in-depth explanation.