Thread: Major League Baseball 2023 Season

Predictions for top MLB free agents

Where will the biggest free agents sign this offseason? Let's see what the experts think.

MLB.com polled 50 of its reporters and analysts on where 11 free-agent stars will end up for the 2023 season. These are the consensus picks for each one -- Aaron Judge, Jacob deGrom, Trea Turner, Carlos Correa and more.

Here are MLB.com's predictions on where the top free agents will sign.

Cy Young Award winners 2022

It's unanimous! Verlander, Alcantara sweep Cy vote

Their arms were outliers. Justin Verlander's surgically repaired, 39-year-old right arm was responsible for a season that was both statistically and scientifically significant. Sandy Alcantara's previously underrated, remarkably durable right arm delivered a workload that, by modern standards, rated as an unusual extreme.

So it came as no surprise Wednesday night on MLB Network when the Baseball Writers' Association of America rewarded Verlander's incredible comeback and Alcantara's old-school output by naming them the unanimous Cy Young Award winners in the American League and National League, respectively.

That made them outliers of a different sort. This marked just the second time in history that both winners were unanimous. The only other was in the Year of the Pitcher, when the AL's Denny McLain and the NL's Bob Gibson captured all the votes in 1968.

On the MLB Network broadcast, a clearly touched Verlander, who won this award for the third time, reflected on what this achievement meant to him after overcoming surgery at a later stage of his career.

Yankees' Aaron Judge tops Angels' Shohei Ohtani for 2022 American League MVP award

New York Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge has been named American League Most Valuable Player for 2022, Major League Baseball and the voting body for the award – the BBWAA – announced on Thursday evening. Judge, presently a free agent, prevailed over fellow finalists Shohei Ohtani of the Los Angeles Angels and Yordan Álvarez of the Houston Astros.

Here are the final voting tallies, with first-place votes in parentheses:

1. Aaron Judge, Yankees: 410 (28)

2. Shohei Ohtani, Angels: 280 (2)

3. Yordan Álvarez, Astros: 232

4. José Ramírez, Guardians: 186

5. Jose Altuve, Astros: 142

6. Andrés Giménez, Guardians: 141

7. Julio Rodríguez, Mariners: 108

8. Mike Trout, Angels: 90

9. Xander Bogaerts, Red Sox: 50

10. Justin Verlander, Astros: 44

11. Bo Bichette, Blue Jays: 16

12. Adley Rutschman, Orioles: 14

13. Luis Arreaz, Twins: 12

14. Rafael Devers, Red Sox: 10

15. Kyle Tucker, Astros: 8

16. Vladimir Guerrero, Jr., Blue Jays: 7

17. José Abreu, White Sox: 5

18. Alek Manoah, Blue Jays: 5

19. Yandy Díaz, Rays: 2

20. Framber Valdez, Astros: 2

21. Sean Murphy, A's: 1

22. Dylan Cease, White Sox: 1

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Cardinals' Paul Goldschmidt named National League MVP for 2022

St. Louis Cardinals first baseman Paul Goldschmidt has won the National League Most Valuable Player Award for 2022, Major League Baseball and the voting body for the award, the BBWAA, announced on Thursday evening. Goldschmidt prevailed in the balloting over third baseman and teammate Nolan Arenado and third baseman Manny Machado of the San Diego Padres.

This season for the NL Central-champion Cardinals, Goldschmidt batted .317/.404/.578 (180 OPS+) with 35 home runs, 41 doubles, 115 RBI, and 106 runs scored. He led the NL in slugging percentage, OPS, and OPS+, and until late in the season appeared poised to make a run at the Triple Crown. Goldschmidt also won the Hank Aaron Award in the NL and was a finalist for the Gold Glove award at first base.

This marks the first time that Goldschmidt has won the award in his 12-year MLB career. He previously notched top-five finishes in the balloting as a member of the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2013, 2015, and 2017. Winning the award at last will likely be a boost to Goldschmidt's eventual Hall of Fame case.

Goldschmidt's is the 21st MVP award in Cardinals franchise history and first since Albert Pujols took the hardware in 2009.

He received 22 first place votes, while Machado scored seven and Arenado got one. Here are the totals:

1. Paul Goldschmidt, Cardinals: 380

2. Manny Machado, Padres: 291

3. Nolan Arenado, Cardinals: 232

4. Freddie Freeman, Dodgers: 220

5. Mookie Betts, Dodgers: 154

6. Austin Riley, Braves: 116

7. J.T. Realmuto, Phillies: 98

8. Pete Alonso, Mets: 81

9. Francisco Lindor, Mets: 77

10. Sandy Alcantara, Marlins: 39

11. Trea Turner, Dodgers: 29

12. Dansby Swanson, Braves: 23

13. Michael Harris, Braves: 9

14. Julio Urías, Dodgers: 8

15. Jeff McNeil, Mets: 6

16. Daniel Bard, Rockies: 2

17. Kyle Schwarber, Phillies: 2

18. Edwin Díaz, Mets: 2

19. Starling Marte, Mets: 1

MLB free agents after non-tender deadline

10 intriguing new free agents after non-tender deadline

As the 8 p.m. ET deadline for tendering arbitration-eligible players contracts passed Friday night, it quickly became apparent that among those players who were not tendered a contract are some notable and intriguing names.

1. Cody Bellinger, CF (non-tendered by the Dodgers)

2. Dominic Smith, 1B (Mets)

3. Luke Voit, 1B/DH (Nationals)

4. Franchy Cordero, OF (Red Sox)

5. Alex Reyes, RHP (Cardinals)

6. Jeimer Candelario, 3B (Tigers)

7. Adam Engel, CF (White Sox)

8. Aristides Aquino, OF (Reds)

9. Edwin Rios, INF (Dodgers)

10. Brian Anderson, 3B (Marlins)

Aaron Judge to meet with Giants

Outfielder Aaron Judge has arrived in San Francisco and is expected to meet with the Giants this week, according to MLB Network's Jon Morosi. Judge, of course, was ranked by CBS Sports as the top free agent available this offseason.

2022 Comeback Player of the Year Award winners

Pujols, Verlander add to legend with Comeback Player of the Year Award

Justin Verlander and Albert Pujols are two of the most decorated superstars in baseball history -- and each added one more honor to his name on Tuesday night.

Verlander and Pujols were named the 2022 Comeback Player of the Year Award winners in the American League and National League, respectively, by Major League Baseball.

Aaron Judge rumors

Giants get assist from Steph Curry in FA pitch to Judge

The Giants had an opportunity to give their free-agent pitch to Judge the past two days, and they reportedly looked to Golden State Warriors superstar Stephen Curry for an assist.

NBC Sports Bay Area reports that Judge and his agent had dinner with president/CEO Larry Baer, president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi, manager Gabe Kapler and other members of the organization on Monday and continued to meet with the team on Tuesday.

The Giants also put Judge in touch with Curry's camp, with the hope that “the two superstars could connect as Judge weighs his decision.” Curry, who has spent his entire career with the Warriors, can offer the unique perspective on what it's like to be a star athlete in the Bay Area.

MLB.com’s Jon Paul Morosi expects the Giants to make a formal offer to Judge within the week, perhaps setting up the slugger to make his decision sooner rather than later.

“I believe that once Aaron Judge knows where at least the initial Giants offer comes in -- and I do believe one is forthcoming -- that there will be a fairly robust conversation here to where we could see Aaron Judge signing with a team within the next two weeks, by the end of the Winter Meetings,” Morosi said Wednesday on MLB Network. “So I think that’s kind of where we stand here, where this is not going to be a February decision. I would expect this to be a December decision, and it could even happen before the end of the Winter Meetings in his home state of California.”

MLB rumors: Twins like Carlos Rodon to fill rotation; Mets want Adam Ottavino back, but only on short deal

Mets hope to retain Ottavino

The Mets hope to retain setup man Adam Ottavino, reports the New York Post. The 37-year-old Brooklyn native is said to be seeking a multi-year contract while the Mets prefer to keep it to a one-year deal. The Mets had seven relievers become free agents after the season, though they did quickly re-sign closer Edwin Díaz to a reliever record five-year, $102 million contract.

Rangers infielders drawing interest

Rangers youngsters Ezequiel Duran and Josh Smith are drawing trade interest, according to the Dallas Morning News. Both players came over from the Yankees in the Joey Gallo trade and made their MLB debuts in 2022. Duran, 23, is primarily a second and third baseman, while the 25-year-old Smith has played all over the infield and some left field as well.

Twins interested in Rodón

Count the Twins among the teams with interest in free agent southpaw Carlos Rodón, according to The Athletic. At this point just about every team in the league has checked in on Rodón, though some are more likely to sign him than others for a variety of reasons (payroll, competitive window, etc.). Our R.J. Anderson ranked Rodón the eighth best free agent this winter.

Rays have interest in Murphy

Many teams have interest in Athletics catcher Sean Murphy, including the Rays, reports MLB.com. Murphy is our No. 1 trade candidate this offseason. The A's are in a deep rebuild and Murphy's salary is projected to climb into the $4 million range through arbitration in 2023. He has three seasons of control remaining and should fetch a significant prospect package.

White Sox interested in Clevinger

The White Sox have strong interest in free agent right-hander Mike Clevinger, reports The Athletic. Chicago needs a No. 5 starter behind Cy Young finalist Dylan Cease and fellow righties Lucas Giolito, Michael Kopech, and Lance Lynn. Johnny Cueto filled that role admirably in 2022 after signing a minor league contract in April.

Tigers' Miguel Cabrera Confirms He Will Retire After 2023 MLB Season

Miguel Cabrera's curtain call will come in the 2023 campaign.

The longtime slugger announced on Monday that he plans to retire after the upcoming season:

His looming retirement doesn't come as a surprise—Cabrera was a full-time designated hitter last season, and injuries and the realities of aging have seen the once fearsome hitter manage just 45 homers in total over the past five seasons. To put that level of decline in perspective, he once hit 88 homers in a two-year stretch between 2012 and 2013.

But he will undoubtedly be a first-ballot Hall of Famer after he retires.

The 39-year-old is a 12-time All-Star, two-time MVP, seven-time Silver Slugger, four-time batting champion, one-time World Series champion and in 2012 became the first triple crown winner—leading the American League in batting average (.330), homers (44) and RBI (139)—since Carl Yastrzemski pulled off the feat in 1967.

For his career he's a .308 hitter with a .908 OPS who has 507 homers, 1,847 RBI, 3,088 hits and 1,530 runs. He's one of just seven players in MLB history to accumulate at least 500 homers and 3,000 hits, joining Hank Aaron, Willie Mays, Eddie Murray, Rafael Palmeiro, Albert Pujols and Alex Rodriguez.

It's one of the most exclusive clubs in baseball history, notwithstanding the questionable legitimacy of Palmeiro's and Rodriguez's accomplishments due to their steroid use.

Such questions have not been asked about Cabrera, who like Pujols came through the tail end of the steroid era in baseball without blemish. Both players make a strong argument for being the best hitters of their era.

Pujols, who retired after the 2022 season, will likewise be a first-ballot Hall of Fame inductee after a career that spanned 22 years. He'll just be inducted one year before Cabrera.

Yankees' current offer for Aaron Judge 'in neighborhood' of $300 million, per report

The New York Yankees have made it no secret that want to re-sign franchise player Aaron Judge, and word of their current offer has arrived. According to ESPN, the Yankees are offering a contract "in the neighborhood of eight years and $300 million and could increase it." The belief is Judge could sign by the end of the MLB Winter Meetings next week in San Diego.

Judge rejected a seven-year extension worth $213.5 million in spring training, then went out and had a historic season that saw him hit an American League record 62 home runs. The two sides did not discuss an extension during the season -- Judge set an Opening Day deadline for talks -- though chairman Hal Steinbrenner has made it clear he wants Judge to return.

"I just want him to know how I felt. In case there was any lack of clarity or ambiguity," Steinbrenner told NJ.com earlier this month about his recent face-to-face meeting with Judge. "We have plenty of ability to -- and Aaron and I talked about this -- to make this happen and still have money to make other things happen ... My budget for Judge is going to be what I feel we can do. It's not limitless, obviously. But am I going to make moves before we're able to -- in my opinion, we're going to be able to sign Aaron. That's not going to stop me from signing other people."

Judge met with the San Francisco Giants, his hometown-ish team, last week. They are said to be serious with their pursuit and, at this point, it feels like eight years and $300 million is what it'll take just to get your foot in the door. It's likely Judge will land a deal north of that, perhaps upward of nine years. That would take him through his age-39 season.

Gerrit Cole holds the Yankees' franchise records for total contract value ($324 million) and average annual value ($36 million). Those are two benchmarks Judge's camp may want to top. Judge could try to break Max Scherzer's average annual value record ($43.3 million), though topping Mike Trout's total contract value record ($426.5 million) won't happen.

Where MLB labor issues stand one year after owners' lockout caused first work stoppage since 1994

The 2023 Major League Baseball Season is poised to be the first "normal" one in what feels like a very long time.

The 2020 season was abbreviated to just 60 regular-season contests and was forced to conduct the playoffs in a bubble setting, all because of the global COVID-19 pandemic. In 2021, in-person attendance was drastically limited for much of the year – also because of the pandemic. This past season, the entire thing seemed imperiled because of the owner-driven lockout, and once an accord was finally reached for a new collective bargaining agreement (CBA), the start of the season was pushed back to April 7 and the schedule was compressed to make room for the later Opening Day and the expanded playoffs.

That later cause of baseball upheaval brings us to the here and now. One year ago – just after midnight on Dec. 2, 2022 – the owners locked out the players and began the sport's first labor stoppage since 1994. It would be 99 days before players and owners were able to agree to a new CBA. That agreement runs through the 2026 season, which means five years of uninterrupted play starting with the recently completed 2022 season.

Given that we're just, oh, shin-deep or so into the current CBA, it's premature to say in any definitive fashion what the key issues will be. So to mark the unfortunate one-year anniversary of the lockout, let's take a (very early) look at the current issues that might imperil some – or, perish the thought, all – of the 2027 season should negotiations on the next CBA prove too contentious.

Much more in the link

Jacob deGrom leaves Mets, signs five-year, $185 million deal with Rangers, per report

Right-handed starter Jacob deGrom has agreed to a five-year contract with the Texas Rangers, the club announced on Friday night. No financial terms were disclosed by the organization, but MLB.com's Kennedi Landry reports that the deal is worth $185 million.

deGrom, 34, was ranked by CBS Sports as the second best free agent available this winter.

This marks the second consecutive offseason the Rangers have made a splash, following last winter's signings of two of the top position players available in Marcus Semien and Corey Seager. Texas made waves earlier in the winter, albeit on a small magnitude, by hiring three-time World Series champion Bruce Bochy as manager.

"We are thrilled that Jacob deGrom has decided to become a Texas Ranger," Rangers Executive Vice President and General Manager Chris Young said in a press release. "Over a number of seasons, Jacob has been a standout Major League pitcher, and he gives us a dominant performer at the top of our rotation. One of our primary goals this offseason is to strengthen our starting pitching, and we are adding one of the best. I also want to recognize our ownership group, led by Ray Davis, for continuing to provide the resources to build a winning culture here in Arlington. On behalf of the entire organization, I welcome Jacob, his wife Stacey, and the entire deGrom family to the Rangers."

MLB Rumors, Trades and Signings

Ace market heating up; both NY clubs involved

Dec. 3: Mets, Yankees eyeing FA aces (report)

Jacob deGrom’s shocking five-year, $185 million deal with the Rangers could have a domino effect on the rest of the starting pitching market.

The Mets have been hoping to come away with one of deGrom, Justin Verlander and Carlos Rodón, but with deGrom off the market, the competition for the other two could heat up. The Mets have a competitor for both hurlers in their own backyard, with the Yankees reportedly showing interest in Verlander and Rodón.

That said, MLB Network insider Jon Heyman reports that the Mets “seem more intrigued” by Verlander, while the Yanks are “more focused” on Rodón.

Re-signing Aaron Judge remains the Yankees’ No. 1 priority this offseason and could cost the team $300 million or more, but Heyman noted Friday that signing Judge might not preclude the Bronx Bombers from adding a top-flight starting pitcher.

The Mets, meanwhile, are hoping to sign another starting pitcher in addition to Verlander or Rodón. They've been linked to Kodai Senga, and SNY's Andy Martino reports that they are in active discussions with Jameson Taillon and Andrew Heaney, among others.

Phillies, Trea Turner agree to 11-year deal

The Phillies got their star shortstop, agreeing to an 11-year, $300 million deal with Trea Turner on Monday, a source told MLB.com's Mark Feinsand. The team has not confirmed the deal, which per Feinsand includes a full no-trade clause.

The free-agent shortstop market was loaded this offseason, but it’s difficult to find a player at the premier position who has accomplished more than Turner over the past few seasons.

Since becoming a full-time starter with the Nationals in 2018, Turner has established himself as one of the top hitting shortstops in the Majors. During that span, Turner is the only player in baseball with more than 90 homers and 140 stolen bases. He helped the Nationals win their first World Series in franchise history in ‘19.

Turner, who led the Majors in hits in 2020 and ‘21, has made the National League All-Star team each of the past two seasons. He finished fifth in NL MVP voting in ‘21 after leading the league with 195 hits and won his first batting title with a .328 batting average

Guardians’ Emmanuel Clase receives Mariano Rivera award as AL’s top reliever

The Guardians 2022 season ended in a Game 5 loss to the Yankees in the American League Division Series, but the awards keep coming closer Emmanuel Clase’s way.

Clase on Tuesday received the 2022 Mariano Rivera Award for being the top reliever in the AL. He is the first Cleveland reliever to receive the award, which was established in 2014.

Edwin Diaz of the Mets received the Trevor Hoffman award as the National’s top reliever.

As a young pitcher in the Dominican Republic, and as a minor leaguer, Clase’s favorite pitcher was Rivera, baseball’s all-time leader in saves.

“I’m excited to receive this award,” said Clase, with Anna Bolton of the Guardians acting as interpreter. “It’s an honor.”

The Rivera award was worth a $100,000 bonus for Clase. He signed a five-year, $20 million deal just before the start of last season.

Aaron Judge re-signs with Yankees for nine years

Major League Baseball's 2022 Winter Meetings saw their biggest signing Wednesday morning when Aaron Judge re-upped with the Yankees on a nine-year, $360 million deal. Judge, coming off a 62-home run season, was the top prize on the free agent market, but plenty of other All-Stars are still available, including Carlos Correa, Xander Bogaerts and Carlos Rodón. Judge agreed to the $40 million-per-year deal with the Yankees after reportedly seeing strong competition from the Giants and Padres in free agency.

The MLB offseason is now a month old, and while the first few weeks were slow, things have picked up in recent days with Jacob deGrom (Rangers), Justin Verlander (Mets) and Trea Turner (Phillies) all landing with new teams. H

Xander Bogaerts lands with Padres on 11-year, $280 million deal

The All-Star shortstop has agreed to an 11-year, $280 million deal, according to ESPN's Jeff Passan, ending a tenure with the Boston Red Sox going back 10 seasons and giving San Diego yet another mega-deal on its books.

Bogaerts, 30, hit the open market after opting out of the final three years of the six-year, $120 million contract extension he signed in 2019 and rejecting a qualifying offer from the Red Sox, attaching draft pick compensation to his signing.

Bogaerts earned his money with a strong walk year, taking Silver Slugger honors with a .307/.377/.456 line at the plate. His free agency loomed large in Boston the past few years, thanks to the team's tenuous status as a long-term contender and the departure of Mookie Betts, who was traded after the Red Sox failed to agree on a contract extension.

The Red Sox made an attempt to keep Bogaerts but didn't even break $200 million with their final contract offer, per the Boston Globe's Alex Speier.

Brandon Nimmo returns to Mets on eight-year, $162 million deal

The outfielder has agreed to an eight-year, $162 million contract to return the Mets, according to ESPN's Jeff Passan.

Nimmo confirmed that he was returning to Citi Field an hour later on Twitter.

The deal rewards a walk year in which Nimmo hit .274/.367/.433 with 16 homers and a team-leading 102 runs. His seven triples were the most in the National League.

It also moves the Mets further toward the status of MLB true financial juggernaut. With the addition of Nimmo and reliever David Robertson, who agreed to a one-year, $10 million deal around the same time, the Mets are projected to have a $322 million payroll for 2023, easily the highest in the league.

Age Is Just a Number as M.L.B. Teams Drop $2 Billion on Free Agents

Baseball was in a spending mood at the winter meetings, where the Mets added Justin Verlander, the Yankees kept Aaron Judge and San Diego splurged on Xander Bogaerts.

SAN DIEGO — Money was flying and the clock was spinning when Mets General Manager Billy Eppler emerged from his suite late Wednesday afternoon on the final day of the winter meetings to announce that Justin Verlander indeed had signed a two-year, $86.6 million deal with the club.

There was still plenty of work to be done, roster holes to fill, championship aspirations to chase. Would the Verlander deal leave enough in the owner Steven A. Cohen’s budget for Eppler to address some of those gaps in impactful ways?

“I think the biggest takeaway here is that Steve’s committed to winning,” Eppler said, and barely 24 hours later the club was in agreement to bring back outfielder Brandon Nimmo on an eight-year, $162 million contract. “He talked about that in his introductory news conference. He talked about that again last year when we were going in shortly after I got hired, and we made some of those signings.

“The commitment remains very evident to this day that he and Alex are making to the community, the fan base, the City of New York. It’s showing.”

Like the Mets, teams throughout the industry were in a spending mood this week. Freed from the constraints of the owner-induced, 99-day lockout a year ago that brought the business of baseball to an icy winter halt, many clubs saw nothing but green lights and blank checks this week amid the palm trees at the Manchester Grand Hyatt.

Major League Baseball teams so far this winter have guaranteed more than $2 billion in salaries to Verlander, Nimmo, Aaron Judge (nine years, $360 million, Yankees), Trea Turner (11 years, $300 million, Phillies), Xander Bogaerts (11 years, $280 million, Padres), Jacob deGrom (five years, $185 million, Rangers), Masataka Yoshida (five years, $90 million, Red Sox), Willson Contreras (five years, $87.5 million, Cardinals) and Taijuan Walker (four years, $72 million, Phillies), among others.

The money has gone to pitchers and outfielders, sluggers and speedsters, young players and — especially eye catching — older players.

Midterm MLB offseason grades for all 30 teams: Bowden on signings, trades and what’s next

Examples........

Miami Marlins
Grade: B
Trades: Acquired INF Xavier Edwards and RHP JT Chargois from Rays for RHP Santiago Suarez and RHP Marcus Johnson; traded RHP Elieser Hernandez and RHP Jeff Brigham to Mets for RHP Franklin Sanchez and a player to be named (Jake Mangum); traded C Payton Henry to Brewers for OF Reminton Batista.

New York Mets
Grade: A
Trades: Acquired LHP Brooks Raley from Rays for LHP Keyshawn Askew; acquired RHP Elieser Hernandez and RHP Jeff Brigham from Marlins for RHP Franklin Sanchez and a player to be named (Jake Mangum).
Free agents: RHP Edwin Díaz, 5 years/$102 million; RHP Justin Verlander, 2 years/$86.66 million; LHP José Quintana, 2 years/$26 million; CF Brandon Nimmo, 8 years/$162 million; RHP David Robertson, 1 year/$10 million.

San Francisco Giants
Grade: C
Trades: Acquired INF Brett Wisely from Rays for OF Tristan Peters; traded OF Steele Walker to Tigers for cash.
Free agents: OF Joc Pederson, 1 year/$19.65 million; OF Mitch Haniger, 3 years/$43.5 million.

New York Yankees
Grade: A
Free agents: OF Aaron Judge, 9 years/$360 million; 1B Anthony Rizzo, 2 years/$40 million; RHP Tommy Kahnle, 2 years/$11.5 million.

The rest in the link above

Mets, Japanese Star Kodai Senga Agree on Five-Year Deal, per Reports

Kodai Senga and the Mets have reportedly agreed to a five-year, $75 million deal, according to multiple reports. SNY's Andy Martino was first to report the news.

Senga’s contract is reportedly pending until he completes a physical.

During his time in Japan, Senga has posted a career record of 104–51, a 2.42 ERA, 1.10 WHIP and 2.92 strikeout to walk ratio through 1,340.2 innings and 275 games. In 2022, the 29-year-old righthander recorded a 1.89 ERA through 148 innings.

The 29-year-old possesses a dangerous fastball and splitter. In the last 11 seasons, Senga has played for the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks in Nippon Professional Baseball in Japan.

The deal with the Mets provides Senga does not have a full no-trade clause, but it does reportedly come with an opt-out provision that would allow him to become a free agent after the 2025 season, per MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand.

In this link

Below you'll find our tracker, complete with the player, their rank, their last team, and their new team. We'll keep this updated throughout the offseason.

Top 10 of 50 players

Former MLB Pitcher T.J. House Comes Out as Gay, Announces Engagement: 'Love Has Finally Set Me Free'

Former Major League Baseball Pitcher T.J. House came out as gay as he announced his engagement to partner, Ryan Neitzel, on Facebook last Thursday.

House, a pitcher who played for the Cleveland Guardians and the Toronto Blue Jays in the 2014-2017 seasons, is only the third MLB player to come out as gay publicly.

The other two players are Glenn Burke who played for the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Oakland Athletics in the 1980s, and Billy Bean who played for the Detroit Tigers, Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres in the 1990s.