MLB Rumors: 2 Surprising Teams Enter Freddie Freeman Sweepstakes

Things we know: Freddie Freeman isn't going back to Atlanta, while the Toronto Blue Jays, New York Yankees and Los Angeles Dodgers have all shown significant interest these past 48 hours and numbers are starting to be discussed. We also found out today, the San Diego Padres and Boston Red Sox have entered the chat.

Baseball insider Bob Nightengale confirmed the reports out of southern California as the Padres are engaged in contract talks with certainly the hottest commodity on the free agent market:

The small-market Padres, who had the second-largest payroll in baseball last year, just may double down. The Padres have jumped into the bidding war for free-agent All-Star first baseman Freddie Freeman, a person with direct knowledge of the talks told USA TODAY Sports. The person spoke on the condition of anonymity because they weren't authorized to speak publicly about negotiations. It may be a defensive mechanism considering the rival Los Angeles Dodgers are heavily involved in the talks, offering what is believed to be a four-year deal with a high average salary, but the Padres are quite serious in their intentions. They still would like to trade first baseman Eric Hosmer, who has four years and $59 million remaining on his contact, but considering that the National League is adopting the DH, there is room for both players.

Meanwhile the Boston Red Sox could be doing the exact same, trying to drive up the price on AL East rival Blue Jays and Yankees. The Red Sox don't have a ton of depth at first base or DH and could use Freeman and his sweet swing in the heart of their order.

Red Sox have joined the Freddie Freeman sweepstakes as things get more interesting. Teams known to be in now: the Dodgers plus 4 from AL East: Yankees, Rays and Jays, too
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) March 15, 2022

One thing we do know, Braves management had a hard time swallowing the reality that Freeman is on the move and now it appears to be a five-headed race for landing some pen to paper.

Oh man. This one definitely hits hard. Braves GM Alex Anthopoulos was on the verge of tears talking about moving on from Freddie Freeman. (via @RICGARNI) pic.twitter.com/TZG0U9HBtf
— Jared Carrabis (@Jared_Carrabis) March 14, 2022