Baseball executives are no strangers to responding to trade and free agency rumors. Detroit Tigers president of baseball operations Scott Harris just had the pleasure of doing it on live television, immediately after hearing said rumor.
The hilarious incident happened Monday night when Harris joined the MLB Network crew for a live interview during the Winter Meetings. The broadcast shared a social media post from MLB Network’s Jon Morosi that said the Tigers were “showing interest” in first base free agent Paul Goldschmidt.
Harris smiled briefly when asked for his reaction, then shook his head.
“Oh man, if I gotta respond to every tweet, we’re gonna be up here all night,” he said as the other members at the table shared in a laugh.
Despite his age, the 37-year-old Goldschmidt could be a smart pick-up for the Tigers, who are looking for help at first base. Just two years removed from winning the National League MVP award, Goldschmidt hit 22 home runs last year, though his offensive numbers overall took a dip.
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He’s still a seven-time All-Star and five-time Silver Slugger, and Detroit could get him on a discount based on last season, in which he hit for a 98 OPS+.
Goldschmidt just finished the five-year, $130 million contract he had with the St. Louis Cardinals, which earned him $26 million last year alone. Spotrac projects his market value to be around $12.3 million, which is more than reasonable for a Tigers team that seems intent on contending in 2025.
Detroit signed Alex Cobb to a one-year deal on Monday. Reports have also linked the Tigers to Walker Buehler, Ha-Seong Kim and ex-Tiger Jack Flaherty. The Tigers are also interested in Christian Walker to play first base. That would make Goldschmidt a solid backup if Walker goes elsewhere. Morosi reported on Tuesday that the New York Yankees are “in dialogue with Walker’s reps.’
Russell Steinberg covers Major League Baseball and the New York Liberty for ClutchPoints. A baseball and basketball lifer, he has written for Boardroom, SLAM, SB Nation, The Next, and more. He graduated from NYU in 2012 and still returns to serve as PA announcer and occasional broadcaster for the school’s basketball and volleyball teams.