The market is shaping up for Carlos Santana, as the New York Mets, Los Angeles Angels, and Philadelphia Phillies are among up to 10 teams interested in the former Cleveland Indians first baseman, according to a report from Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports.
The Boston Red Sox were scheduled to sit down with Santana during the general manager meetings, which got underway on Monday, while the Seattle Mariners and incumbent Indians remain interested as well, Heyman adds.
Santana is seen as more of a bargain first base addition, with Eric Hosmer likely to entertain nine-figure overtures. That being said, the 31-year-old Santana is still an elite on-base option and should generate more interest than Logan Morrison, Yonder Alonso, or the other first base possibilities.
In 154 games last year, Santana posted a .259/.363/.455 slash line. Since his first full season in 2011, Santana has the ninth-best on-base percentage among qualified first basemen.
The Mets traded away Lucas Duda to the Tampa Bay Rays this past season, but replaced him with 22-year-old prospect Dominic Smith. Meanwhile, the Angels relied on a combination of Luis Valbuena and C.J. Cron at first base, both of whom hit below the league average during the 2017 season.