With Spring Training fast approaching, the top two free agents in baseball still don't have a team. But both Manny Machado and Bryce Harper have drastically narrowed down their list of suitors.
According to MLB insider Bob Nightengale, it's more of a matter of when the pair will sign than where they will end up, as Manny Machado is likely to land with the Chicago White Sox and Bryce Harper is most likely destined to sign with the Philadelphia Phillies.
Three weeks remain until position players report to spring training and little has changed the last month. The #Phillies still are the heavy favorites for Harper and the #Whitesox for Machado while everyone awaits to see who blinks first on the final pricetag. — Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) January 28, 2019
At this point, it seems like MLB free agency has turned into a game of financial chicken, as each player and their agent look to be waiting for the other to sign first so that they can use the other's deal as leverage to improve their own contract.