Playing Fact or Fiction with All of MLB's Latest Offseason Rumors

For some baseball fans, the most exciting part of the game has absolutely nothing to do with how things unfold on the field. It's the offseason, chock-full of rumors, speculation and "what if' scenarios, that gets their hearts racing and works them into a frenzy.

You can't really blame them, for there's only one hot-stove league—and it's almost always a perfect mix of excitement and entertainment.

While we've seen some big names change teams already—Jason Heyward, Hanley Ramirez and Pablo Sandoval the most notable—we've only scratched the surface when it comes to player movement in America's pastime this winter.

The rumor mill is spinning furiously, and separating the truth from the tall tales is becoming increasingly difficult with each passing hour, much less day. What better time for us to play one of our favorite games, "Fact or Fiction"?

Rumor: Boston Is Looking to Deal Yoenis Cespedes

Joe Robbins/Getty Images

The big news in the baseball world on Thanksgiving Eve wasn't news at all, as a bogus rumor that had the Boston Red Sox trading Yoenis Cespedes to the Cincinnati Reds was summarily dismissed as nonsense by multiple industry veterans.

Still, the fact remains that with the team's recent addition of Hanley Ramirez to play left field, the Red Sox have at least nine outfielders (10 if you include prospect Bryce Brentz) and only three spots in which to play them.

Rumors about the team's displeasure with Cespedes—and his reluctance to move out of left field—made the rounds earlier this offseason. Despite manager John Farrell's claims to the contrary, keeping Cespedes in the mix doesn't seem like it would be in the best interests of all parties involved.

Something's got to give, right?

The answer of course, is yes, but if you count yourself among the Boston faithful, the offensive potential of an outfield comprised of Cespedes, Ramirez and Rusney Castillo would sure be exciting to watch play out over the course of a 162-game schedule.

If the fans realize that, you can bet that Boston's front office has as well.

Verdict: Fact, because he's the only one of the team's outfielders who, by himself, could bring back the starting pitcher that Boston desperately needs in a trade.

Rumor: Philadelphia's Asking Price for Cole Hamels Has Come Down

Rich Schultz/Getty Images

Nobody disputes that Cole Hamels is one of the premier pitchers in baseball, a fact that Philadelphia Phillies general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. reasserted to ESPN's Jayson Stark recently:

"

This is one of the best starting pitchers in baseball. He's at a level with the [Clayton] Kershaws and [Jon] Lesters and [David] Prices. And some of the metrics say he's even better in some respects. So like I've said, he's one of the best pitchers in baseball, and we don't have to trade him. And if we do decide to move him, it will be for something we think is appropriate.

"

That the Phillies would have an incredibly high asking price when it comes to the ace of their rotation—three or four of a team's top prospects and all of the $96 million left on Hamels' deal, per The Philadelphia Inquirer's Matt Gelb when trade rumors were floating around in August, makes a lot of sense.

While there is a lot of pitching available this winter, that the Phillies would lower their asking price seems highly unlikely. But a team source tells Stark that the Phillies haven't asked inquiring teams for any specific package, instead telling clubs to simply make offers.

According to Stark's source, only one team—not one that has been publicized, apparently—has actually presented the Phillies with an offer, one that was deemed "good but not good enough."

Verdict: Fiction, because between Amaro's comments to Stark about Hamels and his subsequent remarks about Jimmy Rollins, whom he called "one of the best shortstops in baseball," it's clear that he still has an incredibly high opinion of the veteran trade chips that he has to play.

Rumor: San Francisco Wants to Add a Front-Line Starting Pitcher

Ed Zurga/Getty Images

While finding a replacement for Pablo Sandoval remains a priority, could San Francisco look to spend the money it allocated to re-sign its longtime third baseman on a starting pitcher instead?

The defending World Series champions have been linked to the top free-agent starters available: Jon Lester (pictured) and Max Scherzer.

Fox Sports' Ken Rosenthal reported that the Giants were interested in Lester even before the Sandoval saga had finished playing out, and ESPN's Jim Bowden tweets that the southpaw is heading to the Bay Area next week to meet with the Giants in person.

Some will point to Boston's poaching of the Panda as a reason why San Francisco has interest in the southpaw, as if general manager Brian Sabean is trying to exact some crazy revenge plot against his counterpart in Beantown, Ben Cherington.

Maybe there's some truth to that, but it sure sounds more like something you'd see in a movie than a scenario that would play out in real life.

CBS Sports' Jon Heyman, who first broke the news of San Francisco's interest in Scherzer, makes a whole lot of sense when he says not to dismiss the possibility:

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The Scherzer market has been almost exclusively under the radar to this point, as the Giants become only the second team seriously connected to Scherzer (and the deep-pocketed Yankees are a definite maybe at this point). In any case, the Giants shouldn't be discounted here. While the Giants wouldn't be pegged as the obvious landing spot for Scherzer since they have a bona fide ace in Madison Bumgarner and another one returning in Matt Cain, they have been known to think outside the box.

"

After Bumgarner, San Francisco's rotation isn't exactly set in stone.

Cain is returning from elbow surgery, and while he's expected to be back at 100 percent, nobody knows for sure what to expect when he steps on the mound. Tim Hudson will be 40 years old, Tim Lincecum is mediocre at best and neither Jake Peavy nor Ryan Vogelsong is expected back.

Verdict: Fact, because unlike what we saw in the playoffs, Bumgarner can't do it all by himself during the regular season.

Rumor: Cincinnati Has Put Jay Bruce on the Trade Block

Jamie Sabau/Getty Images

It's true that the Cincinnati Reds were one of baseball's bigger disappointments in 2014, finishing the season 10 games below .500 (76-86) and missing the playoffs for only the second time since 2010. The premise that the team would look to shake things up this offseason is certainly a reasonable one.

It's also true that power—especially from the left side of the plate—is the most sought-after commodity in the game.

Based on that, it makes sense that the Reds would be open to listening to offers on right fielder Jay Bruce, as Rosenthal reported.

But if we stop and think about it for a second, it makes no sense at all.

Bruce isn't set to hit the open market anytime soon, under team control through the 2017 season at a total cost of $37.5 million. Sure, he turned down a pair of extension offers from the club last season, as noted by ESPN's Jerry Crasnick, but he had good reason to do so.

The 27-year-old had the worst season of his career in 2014, hitting .217 with 18 home runs, 66 RBI and a .654 OPS. Clearly, he was bothered by a balky right knee that required surgery in May and never seemed to heal completely throughout the course of the year.

Lest we forget, this is the same player who, from 2011 to 2013, averaged .257 with 70 extra-base hits (32 home runs), 102 RBI and a .820 OPS a year.

It's because teams believe that Bruce can still be that player—not the one that we saw in 2014—that they'd be calling Cincinnati about a potential deal. But when it comes to negotiations, they aren't going to offer full value, pointing to his miserable 2014 as a reason why.

Verdict: Fiction, because Cincinnati general manager Walt Jocketty is no fool, and he knows that you don't trade a player, in the prime of his career, when his value is at its absolute lowest point.

Rumor: Atlanta Will Trade Justin Upton

Scott Halleran/Getty Images

Having already traded Jason Heyward to the St. Louis Cardinals, you'd think that the Atlanta Braves would be looking to add to their outfield mix, not continue to subtract from it.

But that's exactly what the Braves are doing, according to Joel Sherman of the New York Post, who says that the club is "very much shopping Justin Upton." In fact, an executive from another team went as far as to proclaim to Sherman that "Justin Upton will be moved."

While he's never quite lived up to the expectations that he'd become a perennial MVP candidate, the 27-year-old is coming off a productive season in Atlanta.

He cracked the 100-RBI plateau for the first time in his career, driving in 102 runs, and his 29 home runs ranked 12th in baseball. When it comes to right-handed batters, Upton's 29 bombs were second in the National League to only Giancarlo Stanton's 37, the eighth-highest total across both leagues.

Entering the final year of his contract, Upton figures to be set on testing free agency, especially with right-handed power in such demand. Asking the Braves to come out on top in a bidding war against clubs with deeper pockets may be asking too much.

Verdict: Fact, as the Braves are clearly trying to rebuild on the fly as they prepare to move into a new stadium in 2017.

Unless otherwise linked/noted, all statistics courtesy of Baseball-Reference and FanGraphs. All contract information courtesy of Cot's Contracts.

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