MLB Bullets would rather be in Philadelphia

Not to start your day off with a bummer, but Jen Mac Ramos, a writer who has written about baseball for a few publications including us here at SB Nation, is in critical condition after being hit by an alleged drunk driver this past weekend. Their husband was killed in the same accident. I’ve linked to some of Ramos’ pieces in Bullets before. There is a GoFundMe page for Ramos.

• Another major free agent is off the board as right-handed pitcher Zack Wheeler signed with the Phillies for five-years and $108 million.
• Dan Szymborski writes about what this deal means for the Phillies, the rest of the NL East and the White Sox, who missed out on Wheeler.
• Keith Law likes the deal for the Phillies, but he thinks there’s a lot of risk there. (ESPN+ sub. req.) He also thinks the Phillies need to do more, as does Szymborski.
• Michael Baumann thinks Baumann is too risky for the Phillies and that his salary could hamper the team’s efforts to upgrade elsewhere.
• Tom Verducci has some suggestions for the Phillies to get the most out of Wheeler.
• Sarah Langs explains why Wheeler’s deal is unprecedented.
• You may not have heard this yet since the news broke late last night, but the Rays have traded outfielder Tommy Pham to the Padres for outfielder Hunter Renfroe and minor league prospect Xavier Edwards.
• Rays pitcher Blake Snell was streaming on Twitch when the news broke and he had some choice words about the deal.
• You probably did hear that the Orioles sent pitcher Dylan Bundy to the Angels for four minor leaguers.
• Eric Longenhagen thinks the Orioles got quantity over quality for Bundy, but he actually thinks that makes sense for them.
• The Brewers picked up catcher Omar Narvarez from the Mariners for a minor leaguer and a draft pick.
• Jake Mailhot likes Narvarez for the Brewers as a replacement for the departed Yasmani Grandal.
• The Astros have sent outfielder Jake Marisnick to the Mets for two prospects.
• The Twins have re-signed pitcher Michael Pineda to a two-year, $20 million deal.
• Jeff Passan reports that the Yankees have made signing free agent pitcher Gerrit Cole their top priority this winter.
• Mike Lupica explains why the Yankees need Cole so much.
• Michael Clair says that if he was a free agent, there’s no way in the world he’d sit through a four-hour meeting with a team who was trying to sign him like Cole just did with the Yankees.
• Nationals owner Mark Lerner says the team cannot afford to re-sign both Anthony Rendon and Stephen Strasburg.
• Mike Petriello explains why teams should be cautious in signing free agent pitcher Madison Bumgarner.
• Grant Brisbee writes that Bumgarner’s time in San Francisco is probably over and that everyone is surprisingly calm about this. (The Athletic sub. req.)
• Gabe Lacques has five “burning” questions for the Winter Meetings. Like how will the snow not melt with all those questions on fire?
• Big news in Queens as billionaire Steve Cohen is set to buy 80% of the Mets.
• Buster Olney says that Cohen could turn the Mets into the financial powerhouse that everyone thinks they should be in the first place. (ESPN+ sub. req.)
• Matt Ehalt writes that with Cohen, the Mets might actually start spending money like they play in New York.
• Chris Cwik notes that there are some details in this deal that should keep Mets fans from celebrating too much.
• Michael Powell also notes that Cohen made his money through some questionable means.
• The Angels have a deal to buy their stadium and parking lot for $325 million. Cheaper than one Mike Trout! Bill Shaikin explains what this deal means.
• The Rays are going to play in St. Petersburg until their lease runs out in 2027, which means that the proposal to play half their games in Montreal is dead.
• Players Association head Tony Clark said that MLB and the MLBPA is on the verge of agreeing to an opioid policy that would focus on treatment and not punishment. That would be good news if it happens.
• We’ve all been told that starting in 2020, pitchers will now have to face three batters (or end an inning) before being relieved but apparently no one knows if the new rule is going to happen or not.
• Bob Nightengale is “disgusted” by the poor number of minority hirings in MLB front offices and as coaches and managers in recent years. I don’t agree with Bob on much, but there’s a first time for everything.
• Sam Miller uses one play to help explain how WAR gets calculated. This looks like a very good piece that I haven’t had time to read in depth yet. But I promise you I’ll be reading it alongside you today. So don’t let me down by not doing your homework.
• Will Leitch has ten stories from the past decade that if you could go back in time to 2010 to tell your younger self, you’d be shocked.
• Mike Oz thinks that the induction of Harold Baines into Cooperstown last year is creating a whole pile of headaches for the Hall of Fame.
• Former reliever Bobby Jenks tells about the sad end of his career, the botched surgery and the addiction that followed. You should read this one. It’s not an easy story, but it has a relatively positive ending and a call for action.
• And finally, because I want to send you out on something positive today, Michael Clair applauds the recent trend among baseball players to show their socks again.

And tomorrow will be a better day than today, Buster.