The MLB trade rumors and free agency hype continue to intrigue baseball fans, however, the “Hot Stove” offseason hasn’t been that hot - at least not yet. While the deals may be off to a snail's pace, you can bet that it will start to pick up at a fast and furious pace as the Christmas holiday draws near. Two players that are being watched on a daily basis are Kansas City’s Eric Hosmer and Chicago Cubs Jake Arrieta.

Hosmer heading to crosstown Cardinals?

Eric Hosmer is high on several teams’ radar this offseason, and for good reason. Hosmer can hit and field with the best of them in the game today.

The Royals are interested in keeping him in Kansas City, but the other team, which resides in Missouri, is also interested in Hosmer.

According to CBS Sports, via the St. Louis Dispatch, the Cardinals are very interested in Hosmer.

“There is a strong market for first baseman Eric Hosmer, and yes the teams that have at least expressed interest includes the Cardinals. He was described by a source as "a good fit" for what the Cardinals want to do for their lineup.”

The Cardinals are also reportedly interested in free agent Jake Arrieta as well. While they may be a dark horse in the Arrieta sweepstakes, St. Louis reportedly has a few options they want to explore, and Arrieta is one of them. It would be odd to see Arrieta in a Cardinals uniform in 2018, but don't forget, John Lackey made the jump from the Cardinals to the rival Cubbies back in 2016.

Giants make formal offer for Stanton, Red Sox to follow

The San Francisco Giants are proving that they are serious players when it comes to trading for star Giancarlo Stanton.

Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic indicates that the San Francisco Giants have made a proposal to the Miami Marlins for Stanton. While the Giants are first in line for the Stanton sweepstakes, the Marlins also expect to receive bids from the St.

Louis Cardinals and Boston Red Sox as well, according to major league sources.

Truthfully, you could put 10 different teams on that list, because unless the Giants offered a ton of great players and prospects, you can expect that Derek Jeter and the Marlins front office are going to listen to what many teams have to offer before jumping in.

While Boston has yet to put in a formal offer for Stanton, you can bet they will. In fact, the only way they won’t is if they land JD Martinez first. GM Dave Dombrowski has made it clear that the Red Sox are determined to add some punch to their lineup this offseason, and Dombrowski has the reputation for always getting big name players during free agency.
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