LAS VEGAS — Nearly 16 months after its formal notice of withdrawal from the ACC, Florida State has taken a new and odd public stance as its acrimonious lawsuit against the conference continues to play out. 

Who said we ever wanted to leave the ACC?

“We’re in the league the last time I looked,” FSU athletic director Mike Alford told USA TODAY Sports during the Sports Business Journal Intercollegiate Forum. “We never said we wanted to leave the league.”

Actually, they did.

In Florida State’s August 2023 lawsuit against the ACC, on page 32 of the 38-page complaint, item 151 states: “Florida State be deemed to have issued its formal notice of withdrawal from the ACC under Section 1.4.5 of the ACC Constitution, effective August 14, 2023.”

At issue is the school’s media rights deal with the ACC through 2036, which according to Florida State officials tops out at $42 million annually — nearly $30 million behind the annual payout to neighboring SEC schools. 

During an August 2023 meeting, the Florida State Board of Trustees said it wanted an exit plan from the ACC by August of 2024. 

“It’s not a matter of if we leave,” former Seminoles quarterback and Board member Drew Weatherford said during the 2023 meeting. “But when and how.”

When asked yesterday, Weatherford – at the SBJ Forum as the founding partner of Weatherford Capital, which is seeking to partner with universities in the unsettling financial climate for college athletics – softened his stance from 2023. 

“There’s a lot of potential answers to the problem,” Weatherford said. “Long term, it’s going to be hard to be hard to compete if you’re at that financial disadvantage.”

When asked if Florida State was still positioned to leave the ACC, Weatherford said, “We just have to solve for (the financial disadvantage). If we can do that where we are (with the ACC), that’s great. If we can’t, I’m still open to the option that we need to find another conference.”

ACC commissioner Jim Phillips declined comment for this story.

The ACC is arguing that it owns Florida State’s media rights under a Grant of Rights deal that every team in the conference signed. To leave the league, FSU would owe the ACC an exit fee (estimated at $125 million), and future media rights through 2036 (estimated at nearly $500 million).

While those numbers could be mitigated through legal action, the underlying problem for Florida State moving forward is it has no alternative to the ACC. Three people told USA TODAY earlier this spring that the Seminoles landing in the Big Ten or SEC wasn’t realistic. The sources spoke on the condition of anonymity to protect the sensitivity of the discussions.

The Big Ten, the people said, had reservations about Florida State’s ability to be a strong “partner” moving forward. 

It now appears the reality that the Seminoles have nowhere to go is settling in.

“We’ve always questioned the revenue distribution,” Alford said. “Go back in history, you will never see the president or myself say we want out of the league. We have great peer institutions, we’re a lot alike. We’ve always had great communication. Jim (Phillips) and I from day 1. We’re trying to solve the problems.”

When asked if FSU and the ACC were any closer to reaching a resolution, Alford said, “Who knows? That’s not for me to decide. I’m not on that side of the wall. We’ll see. They know where we stand.”

Matt Hayes is the senior national college football writer for USA TODAY Sports Network. Follow him on X at @MattHayesCFB.

Fantasy football season continues, but only for the fortunate few. So if you’re reading this, congratulations on making it to the playoffs in your league.

Now comes the hard part: winning a championship. The first step is surviving Week 15, so let’s see which players can help you do just that.

Fantasy football rankings are based on the point-per-reception (PPR) scoring used in most seasonal and daily fantasy football formats. One point is awarded for every 10 rushing and receiving yards and one point for every 20 passing yards. Six points are awarded for touchdowns scored, four points for passing TDs and one point for receptions.

Rankings are compiled by Daniel Dobish, TheHuddle.com. 

(*-check status before kickoff)

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Fantasy football Week 15 quarterback rankings

Derek Carr is considered week-to-week with a fracture in his left (non-throwing) hand. He’s also going through the concussion protocol. Spencer Rattler would be in line to start if Carr is out.

Fantasy football Week 15 running back rankings

Isaac Guerendo (foot) did not participate in Tuesday’s walk-through. He’ll have a tight window to get ready this week with the Niners playing Thursday night, but he plans to give it a go.
The Jets aren’t optimistic Breece Hall (knee) will return this week. Team officials say they aren’t planning on shutting him down for the season.
Bucky Irving left last week’s game early with back spasms. The Bucs travel to Los Angeles for this week’s game against the Chargers so he could be a game-time decision.
Kenneth Walker recently underwent testing on his injured calf, but the results aren’t yet known. He missed Week 14 while backup Zach Charbonnet racked up 193 total yards and two scores.

Fantasy football Week 15 wide receiver rankings

Ladd McConkey (knee), who was inactive on Sunday night, is expected to practice on a limited basis on Wednesday.
George Pickens (hamstring) appears doubtful for Sunday’s game in Philadelphia. He was listed as questionable last week before being declared inactive following pregame warmups. Mike Williams and Van Jefferson would seem to be the main beneficiaries if Pickens is out.
Josh Downs (shoulder) missed Week 13 and is coming off a bye week. He’s expected to return to practice Wednesday.

Fantasy football Week 15 tight end rankings

Will Dissly (shoulder) left Sunday’s game early and is expected to miss multiple weeks. Stone Smartt would be the next man up for the Chargers and a deep sleeper in fantasy.

Fantasy football Week 15 kicker rankings

Fantasy football Week 15 defense/special teams rankings

It’s finals week at many colleges and universities across the country, which means the pickings for great games are slim during the week because coaches try to let their athletes focus mostly on the classroom. 

Then again, the one notable weekday game is so good, this entire column could be just about it. 

Thursday night we’ll get the latest chapter of Connecticut-Notre Dame, the single best rivalry in women’s hoops over the last two decades. These programs do not like each other and aren’t shy about saying it out loud, which makes every matchup more fun. 

There’s also a new chapter of one of the oldest rivalries in college hoops to look forward to. 

On second thought, it’s a better week than we realized — good games and soon, no school for at least a few weeks. Maybe we’ll even get to see someone throw down again, like South Carolina’s Ashlyn Watkins did last week. 

No. 2 Connecticut at No. 9 Notre Dame 

Thursday, 7 p.m. ET on ESPN

This one lost a little of its luster with the news that UConn guard Azzi Fudd suffered a minor knee sprain and is likely to miss the game, but that just means there’s more spotlight for UConn’s Paige Bueckers (18.9 ppg, 4.8 apg), the projected No. 1 pick in the 2025 WNBA draft. Husky freshman Sarah Strong (16.3 ppg, 7.6 rpg) will get her first taste of this rivalry and do so against the best backcourt duo in the country in Notre Dame’s Hannah Hidalgo (24.6 ppg, 4.1 spg) and Olivia Miles (17.2 ppg, 6.6 apg). Irish guard Sonia Citron (14.9 ppg, 6.4 rpg) can’t be overlooked, either. 

Stanford at California

Friday, 10 p.m. ET on ACC Extra

Here’s a fun bit of trivia: According to the history books, the first women’s college basketball game ever recorded took place in the Bay Area between Stanford and Cal. That was back in 1896 and Stanford won, 2-1; the 2024 version is likely to have considerably more scoring as these two fringe top 25 teams look to establish themselves in a new conference. Stanford has long dominated this Bay Area rivalry, but this will be the most even matchup in years. Nunu Agara (18.8 ppg, 7.0 rpg) and Stanford will have to slow a balanced Cal scoring attack that features five players averaging 11 points or more, led by Lulu Twidale (16.1 ppg 3.6 rpg). 

No. 24 Iowa at No. 19 Michigan State

Sunday, noon ET on Big Ten Network

Calling it now: The Spartans are going to do some damage in March. Michigan State’s defense is downright scary when the Spartans turn it on, holding opponents to less than 34% from the field and turning them over more than 25 times per game. Plus they’ve got two players in Julia Ayrault (16.4 ppg, 8.5 rpg) and Grace VanSlooten (15.5 ppg, 8.4 rpg) who love to work in and outside of the paint. Meanwhile, Iowa is still trying to find its footing without Caitlin Clark — especially when it’s being pressed — but Hannah Stuelke (13.5 ppg, 7.6 rpg) establishing herself inside early always helps. 

No. 20 North Carolina State at Louisville 

Sunday, 1 p.m. ET on ABC/ESPN+

This is a matchup of two talented teams still trying to figure it out. Louisville got punched in the mouth by UConn last week but the advantage of having a freshman as a key piece of your roster is that rookies typically have a short memory. So don’t be surprised if freshman guard Tajianna Roberts (11.4 ppg, 1.4 spg) goes off in this women’s Jimmy V Classic showcase. On the other end, NC State needs veteran guards Aziaha James (16.2 ppg, 2.7 apg) and Saniya Rivers (10.3 ppg, 5.2 rpg) to be more consistent on the offensive end, especially early. 

Georgia Tech at No. 14 North Carolina

Sunday, 2 p.m. ET on ACC Network 

Alyssa Ustby (11.6 ppg, 9.2 rpg, 3.1 apg) can do everything for the Tar Heels but she’s going to need help, probably from guard Lexi Donarski (9.4 ppg) in order to keep Kara Dunn (13.4 ppg, 6.9 rpg) and Georgia Tech at bay. Georgia Tech has been flirting with jumping into the USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll Top 25 and a win over a ranked team would help solidify its place among the best in women’s hoops. 

What an ugly day for the beautiful game.

By awarding the 2034 men’s World Cup to Saudi Arabia, a country with an abysmal record on human rights, treatment of women, the LGBTQ community and migrant workers, FIFA sold its soul. What was left of it, anyway.

“Everyone gave up something for the benefit of all, for the greater good. These are precisely the values at the heart of FIFA,” FIFA president Gianni Infantino said Wednesday, not realizing, or caring, he was giving the game away as he opened the Extraordinary FIFA Congress that rubber stamped the hosts for the men’s World Cups in 2030 and 2034.

Infantino and his minions have abandoned all pretense of doing the right thing or keeping the World Cup from being anything but a shameless money grab. All that matters is the gazillions of dollars Saudi Arabia is putting in their pockets, and FIFA members have fallen obediently in line.

They ignored their own bidding rules, strong-arming South America into giving up its hopes of hosting the 100th anniversary of the World Cup and instead accepting a non-sensical arrangement that will see the first three games in 2030 played in Uruguay, Argentina and Paraguay before the tournament moves to Spain, Portugal and Morocco.

They ensured that Saudi Arabia would be the only candidate in 2034, icing out Australia with a procedural maneuver that would have made it impossible to mount a comprehensive bid. They “sportswashed” Saudi Arabia’s documented record of migrant worker abuses and deaths, punishment of opposition — anyone remember Jamal Khashoggi, the Washington Post journalist who was butchered at the command of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman? — and intolerance of LGBTQ people in an evaluation report released last month, rating human rights concerns at only a ‘medium.’

And in case any country decided to get cute and mount a protest campaign, Infantino decreed that the votes Wednesday would be by acclimation. Via Zoom. If a country is registering its dissent by refusing to clap, can it even be noticed in a panel of 200-plus screens?

Oh, Norway tried to object, submitting a letter criticizing FIFA for ignoring human rights concerns and subverting its own processes. Switzerland asked for an independent human rights monitor, as well as oversight by the International Labor Organization on World Cup-related projects.

Bless their hearts. Infantino moved heaven and earth to get that Saudi cash. He wasn’t about to be deterred now.

“We are, of course, aware of critics and fears. And I fully trust our hosts to address all open points from this process and deliver a FIFA World Cup that meets the world’s expectations. That is exactly why we went through this bidding procedure and why we have a transparency that will shape real and lasting change,” Infantino said.

“Social improvements, positive human rights impacts — that is one of the responsibilities of hosting a World Cup.”

Tell that to the families of the migrant workers who died building the palaces for the World Cup in Qatar two years ago. Or the women in Qatar still under the thumbs of their male guardians. Or the members of the LGBTQ community in Qatar who’ve been subjected to harassment and abuse.

Tell that to the fans and sponsors who got suckered into thinking Qatar would abide by its promise not to impose Islamic restrictions on a global event only to do as it pleased.

Infantino and FIFA don’t give a damn what their hosts do so long as the checks keep coming. And everybody, Saudi Arabia included, knows it.

“FIFA has once again turned a blind eye to basic human rights in favor of profit,” Mandeep Tiwana, co-secretary general of CIVICUS, an umbrella organization of human rights groups including Amnesty International and the Gulf Centre for Human Rights.

“It is condemning migrant workers in Saudi Arabia to suffer … placing lives on the line to make spectator sport a reality.” 

The saddest part of all this is that it didn’t have to be this way.

It wasn’t even a decade ago that a series of raids by U.S. and Swiss authorities threw FIFA’s leadership into chaos and laid bare the graft and greed that had become the governing body’s defining feature. Change was promised, with a detailed bid process designed to ensure transparency and prevent the corruption that had tainted the awarding of so many recent World Cups. The bids would be evaluated by FIFA, and qualified ones would be put to a vote by the Congress.

As he campaigned for the FIFA presidency, Infantino endorsed these new procedures that were supposed to ensure the World Cup, FIFA’s crown jewel, went to the host that was most worthy, not just the most wealthy.

And yet, a year ago, after back-room deals that still haven’t been explained and accelerated timelines that blocked any competition for Saudi Arabia, FIFA announced there would be just one bid each for the 2030 and 2034 World Cups. The Congress would ‘vote’ on them, but Wednesday’s session was the definition of performative.

Human rights weren’t the only thing deemed to be an inconvenience by FIFA in this process. Its pledge to protect the environment is laughable, with one tournament spread across six countries on three different continents while the other requires the building or refurbishment of 11 stadiums and construction of 185,000 hotel rooms.

‘We are not equal. We know that,’ Infantino said. ‘But we are learning to accept each other with our differences, as part of this one global community.’

Infantino would have you believe that our differences are simply matters of opinion. But it’s greater than that. There are people who care about doing what is right and treating others with dignity and respect. And there are people who only care about how much money they can get, the true cost of their riches be damned. This sham of a bidding process has left little doubt in which category Infantino and FIFA belong.

Follow USA TODAY Sports columnist Nancy Armour on social media @nrarmour.

North Carolina has forever been college football’s biggest mystery.

It’s the flagship university in a big state that produces a good amount of talent. It’s one of the most prominent brands in all of sports thanks to an alumnus named Michael Jeffrey Jordan, who almost singlehandedly changed how athletes were marketed around the world. (He also won a few basketball games along the way.) And most of all, North Carolina wins in pretty much everything with national championships in men’s basketball, field hockey, men’s lacrosse and women’s lacrosse, women’s soccer, and men’s and women’s tennis just in the last 10 years alone.

But Carolina football is the sleeping giant that can’t stop swallowing Ambien by the handful. Decade after decade, coach after coach, it never wakes up.

Now here comes Bill Belichick, arguably the best NFL coach of all time, 72 years old and desperate for a last shot that no professional franchise seems to want to give him. In his possession is a 400-page manifesto on how to win in modern college football, a staff of familiar names from his New England Patriots days and an aura that even Nick Saban couldn’t live up to.

It’s wild to say it, but it’s true: Belichick is next up to try his hand at turning this perpetually tantalizing job into a winner. He’s going to be the Tar Heels football coach, the school announced Wednesday night. After 467 regular season games coached in the NFL, 44 more in the playoffs and six Super Bowl titles, Belichick and North Carolina are about to consummate perhaps the most unlikely marriage in the history of college football.

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Do either one of them know what they’re getting into?

For a lot of people who have long observed or coached in college football, the immediate reaction to Belichick’s arrival will be skeptical or even dismissive. In a coaching career that stretches back to 1975, he’s never worked a day on a college campus. His last couple years in New England, after the dynasty he created with Tom Brady crumbled, were not a masterpiece of coaching or roster-building. When you read accounts of how he ruled Foxborough with unrelenting, cold-blooded intimidation and fear, the notion of him connecting with undeveloped 18-year-olds and their impatient parents seems impossible.

For goodness sakes, North Carolina just fired 73-year-old Mack Brown because the game had passed him by. And the rest of Brown’s contemporaries have either retired or fled to the NFL, where they don’t have to deal with the headaches of 365-days-per-year recruiting in the era of revenue sharing and name, image and likeness.

It’s fair to wonder how this can possibly work. On the other hand, what do the Tar Heels really have to lose?

Just look at their coaching history in the 21 century. John Bunting, a beloved alum with NFL coordinator bona fides, was a disaster. They hired a proven college winner in Butch Davis, who not only failed to push the program past mediocrity, he was fired after a raft of NCAA violations. They tried the up-and-comer with Larry Fedora, who had one pretty good year and then burned out completely. And after that, they brought Brown back for a second stint at the school that never yielded a season better than 9-5.

North Carolina has tried pretty much everything. Since 1997, they have finished in the Top 25 just twice. It’s no surprise that the moment Belichick started lobbying for the job that school officials and boosters began to talk themselves into it. If nothing else, merely hiring Belichick and agreeing to his demands on resources, staffing and player compensation will inspire a level of seriousness and commitment that North Carolina has never put into its football program.

So why not?

The better question here is why does Belichick want anything to do with this?

After decades of scouting college players for the NFL draft and building relationships with coaches, maybe Belichick thinks he can X-and-O circles around these guys. Perhaps that’s true.

But as any college coach will tell you, even at a time when the top college programs structurally resemble NFL franchises more than ever, their on-field responsibilities are only a fraction of what goes into winning. Belichick may feel familiarity working in an environment where he has to decide how to allocate money on player acquisition and retention, but connecting with and teaching and motivating college players is a far more volatile and difficult job than the fully-developed adult professionals you draft into NFL locker rooms.

Belichick may just be so good that he can make it work. But there are a hundred ways it can go wrong, and there’s at least some risk to his legacy if it does.

Keep in mind: There were seven NFL franchises that could have hired Belichick last year and did not, including the Atlanta Falcons who got fairly far down the road with him during the interview process. There are going to be at least that many jobs open this year, and it’s hard to believe Belichick would take North Carolina if he thought he had a good chance at any of them.

That isn’t just a reflection of his age but the fact that the NFL collectively determined that he had lost his touch both on the coaching and player evaluation side after the breakup with Brady. And, perhaps, because teams were skeptical that Belichick just wanted to coach football and not have control of the entire organization the way he did in New England.

The fact Belichick entertained college jobs supports that theory. At North Carolina, he will be the most powerful person on campus. He’ll rarely be told no. Of all the schools willing to make that deal, it’s surprising that North Carolina – a famously staid athletic department that treasures its reputation for coloring inside the lines – is willing to turn the whole place over to a guy who has never spent even a minute coaching in college.

Nobody can ever take Belichick’s accomplishments away from him. Six Super Bowls is six Super Bowls. But if he flames out at North Carolina, it will be an unceremonious and uncomfortable end to a career that has had many opportunities to finish on a graceful, winning note.

But even as an old man whose best coaching years are almost certainly behind him, Belichick is chasing one last high in Chapel Hill. If he can wake North Carolina from its decades-long slumber, it may solidify his reputation as the sport’s greatest-ever football coach – regardless of level – even without the NFL all-time wins record that he once hoped would be his.

Nobody could have seen this coming even a few weeks ago, but now it’s real. It may work, or it may blow up spectacularly. But it’s going to be fascinating for however long it lasts.

This story was updated with new information.

Major League Baseball’s annual Winter Meetings wrapped up in Dallas, with the Boston Red Sox pulling off a blockbuster trade to acquire an ace from the Chicago White Sox.

Boston had to part ways with four of its top prospects to land the 25-year-old Crochet.

“We feel like we got a legitimate No. 1 starter in Garrett,’ Red Sox GM Craig Breslow told reporters. “Left-handed, ton of swing and miss, massive strikeouts and feel like the best is still in front of him. So we’re excited about what he brings. And obviously, we needed to trade really good players in order to be able to do this.’

Elsewhere, Juan Soto’s 15-year, $765 million deal with the New York Mets become official and a press conference is set for Thursday at Citi Field.

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With a few of the top players signed at the Winter Meetings, all eyes will be on Corbin Burnes, Alex Bregman, Pete Alonso and Rōki Sasaki in the days and weeks to come.

What are Mets’ pitching plans with Crochet off the board?

DALLAS — As Major League Baseball’s Winter Meetings wound down on Wednesday afternoon, the Red Sox completed a trade with the White Sox to acquire left-handed ace Garrett Crochet. It took a massive haul to land the 25-year-old southpaw, with the Red Sox shipping out a pair of top 100 prospects in catcher Kyle Teel and outfielder Braden Montgomery, who were the team’s last two first-round picks.

Why does any of that matter for the Mets? David Stearns said on Wednesday afternoon that the Mets were engaged in talks with White Sox general manager Chris Getz about potentially adding Crochet to the top of their rotation.

‘That’s the balancing act in all of this is how much future value and how much prospect value to give up for the near term, and that’s always going to be a lot of judgment as part of that,’ Stearns said. ‘Certainly there have been times when we have done it and we’ll continue to do it, and there are times when the price just gets too steep for us and we choose to keep our prospect value.’

– Andrew Tredennick, NorthJersey.com

Diamondbacks not looking to trade pieces

DALLAS — A year ago, the Milwaukee Brewers were fresh off their fifth postseason appearance in six seasons when they decided to trade their best pitcher. Right-hander Corbin Burnes had one year to go before free agency, but the Brewers opted to take what they could get in young talent and forge ahead without him.

Though they are in a similar situation with their two best pitchers, the Diamondbacks, as they mull their options on Day 2 at the winter meetings, do not seem to be considering trading right-handers Zac Gallen or Merrill Kelly. They want to keep them.

They will worry about 2026 and beyond later. The chance to win, as general manager Mike Hazen sees it, is too precious to put in jeopardy.

“My priority is to put the best 2025 team out there as possible,” Hazen said. “I’ve always wanted to push — not all of our chips into the middle of the table, but to go for it. (I’ll take) any chance we have to go for it without sacrificing long-term (or giving us) some chance of having the bottom fall out on us again.”

– Nick Piecoro, Arizona Republic

Juan Soto contract is official

Juan Soto is officially a New York Met, with the club announcing the 15-year deal on Wednesday night.

“This is a seminal moment in franchise history,” Mets Owners Steve and Alex Cohen said in a release. “Juan Soto is a generational talent. He is not only bringing staggering historical statistics with him but also a championship pedigree.’

Said Mets president of baseball operations Davis Stearns: “Today’s signing further solidifies our organizational commitment to consistent championship competitiveness. Not only does Juan provide historic levels of on field production, but his joy, intensity, and passion for the game mirror our budding culture. We are thrilled to add him to our team and look forward to watching his excellence for years to come.”

Rule 5 draft: Reds take speedy outfielder

DALLAS – The Cincinnati Reds didn’t leave the winter meetings Wednesday looking any closer to making a trade or signing a free agent than they did when they got to town Sunday.

But just before they left the Hilton Anatole at the conclusion of the meetings, they did nab a speedy Triple-A player with a good glove and defensive versatility who might contribute to Terry Francona’s playoff-minded team in 2025 as a utility player.

Cooper Bowman, 24, who played at the University of Louisville before the Yankees drafted him in the fourth round in 2021, was acquired by the Reds from the Oakland Athletics’ system in the major-league phase of Wednesday’s Rule 5 draft.

“He’s someone we’ve liked since he was an amateur,” said Rob Coughlin, the Reds’ director of pro scouting. “We’ve consistently had quality scouting reports on him from his amateur days all the way through the minor leagues.“He’s got tremendous intangibles, baseball instincts. We think he can handle a lot of different positions.”

– Gordon Wittenmyer, Cincinnati Enquirer

Red Sox acquire Garrett Crochet in trade

DALLAS − It was eight years ago nearly to the day when the Chicago White Sox traded away their ace and future Cy Young award winner to the Boston Red Sox for four of their top prospects.

Well, history just repeated itself Wednesday when the White Sox sent ace Garrett Crochet to the Red Sox for four of their top-ranked 15 prospects, including two of the top 60-ranked prospects in baseball.

The Red Sox sent catcher Kyle Teel (the Red Sox’s 4th-best prospect), outfielder Braden Montgomery (5th-best), infielder Chase Meidroth (11th) and Wikelman Gonzalez (14th) to the White Sox in the five-player deal. Teel was ranked as baseball’s 25th-best prospect, according to MLB Pipeline, while Montgomery is ranked 54th.

It was on Dec. 6, 2016, when the White Sox traded Chris Sale to the Red Sox for Yoan Moncada, Michael Kopech, Luis Alexander Basabe and Victor Diaz. It turned out to be a colossal bust for the White Sox, with Sale helping the Red Sox win the 2018 World Series and none of the prospects ever becoming a star for the White Sox. − Bob Nightengale

Cubs, Yankees interested in trading for Kyle Tucker

The buzz surrounding Kyle Tucker about a possible trade has increased since Juan Soto agreed to a 15-year, $765 million deal. Earlier this week, Houston Astros GM Dana Brown acknowledged that the club is listening to offers for their All-Star outfielder, who becomes a free agent next winter. The Chicago Cubs have joined the New York Yankees as possible trade candidates for Tucker.

Tigers ‘interested’ in Japanese phenom Roki Sasaki

DALLAS — The San Diego Padres and the Los Angeles Dodgers are believed to be the favorites to sign Japanese right-hander Roki Sasaki, one of the most talented pitchers in the world.

But the Detroit Tigers are throwing their hat into the ring.

And they have a chance.

‘Every team in baseball wants Sasaki,’ Tigers president of baseball operations Scott Harris said Tuesday at MLB’s Winter Meetings, located at the Hilton Anatole in Dallas. ‘We do, too. We’re hard at work on a presentation to position this organization as appealing to Roki and his agent. It’s going to be pretty fierce competition, and we’re hard at work to make our case, and we’ll see how it goes.’

Expect Sasaki to sign around Jan. 15.

‘My understanding is they haven’t gotten to the stage where they’re arranging meetings,’ Harris said. ‘They have a process whereby we submit our case, so to speak. After we submit, we’re going to wait to hear what the next steps are.’ − Evan Petzold

Yankees showing interest in Christian Walker

With Juan Soto out of the picture, the New York Yankees have shown interest in free agent first baseman Christian Walker. Walker, who turns 34 in March, is an elite defenseman − winner of the past three Gold Gloves in the NL − with a plus bat. Over the past three seasons, Walker has 95 homers and a 123 OPS-plus compared to New York Mets 1B Pete Alonso, who has 120 homers and 131 OPS-plus. Walker has spent the last eight seasons with the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Rangers land slugger in late-night trade with Marlins

In a late move Tuesday night, the Texas Rangers acquired 1B/3B Jake Burger from the Miami Marlins. In exchange, the Marlins received infield prospects Echedry Vargas, Max Acosta and pitching prospect Brayan Mendoza. Burger, who is under control for the next four years, will give the Rangers a slugger in the lineup, either as a corner infielder or, perhaps as the designated hitter. Burger last year hit 29 homers and drove in 76 runs, following up a breakout 2023 season in which he knocked 34 homers.

Top MLB free agents remaining

Max Fried and Nathan Eovaldi, two of baseball’s top starting pitchers in USA TODAY Sports’ 2024-25 free agent rankings, are now off the board but there’s elite talent remaining on the market expected to fetch big deals.

Here are the top 10 players still on the market:

SP Corbin Burnes
3B Alex Bregman
1B Pete Alonso
OF Teoscar Hernández
OF Anthony Santander
INF Gleyber Torres
SP Jack Flaherty
RP Tanner Scott
1B Christian Walker
RHP Walker Buehler

MLB draft lottery results

The Washington Nationals won the MLB draft lottery on Tuesday in Dallas and will have the first overall pick in the July 2025 draft.

It’s the first time Washington will have the No. 1 pick since they took Bryce Harper in 2010, a year after selecting Stephen Strasburg first overall in 2009.

The Rockies and Marlins entered the lottery tied for the highest odds of getting the No. 1 pick (22.45%), but were disappointed to end up with the fourth and seventh selections, respectively. The Nationals had a 10.2% chance, the fourth-best of any team.

MLB draft lottery results:

1. Washington Nationals

2. Los Angeles Angels

3. Seattle Mariners

4. Colorado Rockies

5. St. Louis Cardinals

6. Pittsburgh Pirates

7. Miami Marlins

8. Toronto Blue Jays

9. Cincinnati Reds

10. Chicago White Sox

11. Athletics

12. Texas Rangers

13. San Francisco Giants

14. Tampa Bay Rays

15. Boston Red Sox

16. Minnesota Twins

17. Chicago Cubs

18. Arizona Diamondbacks

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