David Price earned his 100th win as a starter over the weekend, and although outfielder Kevin Pillar threw the memorable game ball into the stands after the victory, it's possible Price still wants to stay with the Toronto Blue Jays beyond 2015.
Rumors have engulfed Price for over a year now because he's poised to hit free agency for the first time in his career after this season. He's expected to command a contract in excess of $200 million, especially since he's kept up his stellar play thanks to a 14-5 record with a 2.43 ERA, 1.08 WHIP and 196 strikeouts in 28 starts (196 1/3 innings) this season.
Can the Blue Jays a) convince Price to stay and b) give him that immense contract?
"Word from team sources is that Price really likes it in Toronto. If new Jays president Mark Shapiro gets the go-ahead from ownership he will likely do all he can to keep him," writes Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe.
However, they'll have fierce competition.
"The Dodgers, Cubs, Yankees, Nationals, and Red Sox are teams that could come after him hard. This one could be north of seven years/$210 million."
Last month Price spoke to Bob Nightengale of USA Today Sports and acknowledged how he loves the city's energy and the Blue Jays' chances of making a deep postseason run. Perhaps such factors could sway the left-hander.
But what about the man who acquired Price before the MLB's non-waiver deadline? General manager Alex Anthopoulos is in the final year of his contract and the Blue Jays recently hired Mark Shapiro to succeed team president Paul Beeston after the season.
Offseason rumors also focused on Anthopoulos' status beyond 2015 because Toronto desperately needs to break the MLB's longest postseason drought and it was unclear if the team would do that in his final season as GM. Now they're the favorites to win the World Series.
"We're assuming Shapiro will keep Alex Anthopoulos in place for the time being after he pulled some major deals that have thrust the Jays into first place," Cafardo adds.
Anthopoulos took over as general manager in 2009, but the Blue Jays have experienced only two winning seasons over that span and never finished higher than third place in the AL East. Well, the 38-year-old recently acknowledged - after his wildly successful set of move before the trade deadline - that he has grown as a GM.
"Three or four years ago, in his early years as a general manager, 'I was mostly focused on production,' Anthopoulos admits," ESPN's Jayson Stark writes. "But then he began to notice something. Not all of the players he acquired seemed to fit. His most talented teams didn't always play the way they were built to play."
"So I'm probably a little more balanced now, between production and fit," Anthopoulos added. "But I still feel like, if a guy is not productive, it doesn't matter about fit."
We'll see if Shapiro finds that to be the case once the 2015 MLB season comes to an end.
