It’s been quite the MLB offseason.
There’s been nearly zero movement on the hot stove besides Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto signing megadeals with the Los Angeles Dodgers. On top of that, the media coverage (or lack thereof) has left a lot to be desired. USA Today’s Bob Nightengale said just a few weeks ago that baseball writers had become an embarrassment to the journalism community.
Nightengale played a vital role in the Ohtani reporting, pushing back on Jon Morosi’s report that Ohtani was “en route” to sign with the Toronto Blue Jays with “Ohtani is NOT on a flight to Toronto” and “Ohtani is at home in Southern California.” And Nightengale’s pushback proved to be correct. Morosi later recanted his report and ate a ton of crow for his erroneous reporting.
That’s not all, though. Ty Schmit of The Pat McAfee Show tried his hand at being a reporter and flubbed a scoop on Yoshinobu Yamamoto. Coincidentally, that was when MLB insiders refuted a report that Yamamoto would be at last Thursday’s Los Angeles Rams-New Orleans Saints game.
Needless to say, it hasn’t been a good offseason from a reporting standpoint. That’s especially true when someone named “KingSarcasm” on X is breaking news.
A close source has indicated that Isiah Kiner-Falefa has signed a contract with the Jays at 2 years 15M. This source is very confident that this is pending and news will break shortly pending physicals.
I am also going to be 90% certain that this has happened.
Thoughts on this pic.twitter.com/KWA6Q49ASc
— KingSarcasm (@HavokAndrew) December 27, 2023
“A close source had indicated that Isiah Kiner-Falefa has signed a contract with the Jays at 2 years 15M,” wrote @HavokAndrew on X. “This source is very confident that this is pending, and news will break shortly pending physicals. I am also going to be 90% certain that this has happened.”
“KingSarcasm,” also the owner of a successful Facebook sports group called Sports Shockwave, saw his “reporting” be confirmed by Robert Murray, FanSided’s MLB Insider. It took nearly 40 minutes after “KingSarcasm” shared his scoop. Still, his original reporting was seemingly confirmed by Murray, and the exact figures as well, in addition to the deal, included $1 million in incentives.
Free-agent infielder Isiah Kiner-Falefa and the Toronto Blue Jays are in agreement on a two-year, $15 million contract, pending physical, according to sources familiar with the deal. The deal includes $1 million in incentives.
— Robert Murray (@ByRobertMurray) December 27, 2023
While other MLB insiders have yet to credit our newfound baseball reporter for his scoop, it shows how ridiculous this offseason has been. And yet, this isn’t the first time this offseason that KingSarcasm has been right about the Blue Jays signing a free agent. A day and a half before the club re-signed outfielder Kevin Kiermaier to a one-year deal; there was KingSarcasm with the exact figures.
https://twitter.com/HavokAndrew/status/1738966481952505934?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1738966481952505934%7Ctwgr%5E11951be73bd61743d951679b8adab1339ac358e2%7Ctwcon%5Es1_c10&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fpublish.twitter.com%2F%3Furl%3Dhttps%3A%2F%2Ftwitter.com%2FHavokAndrew%2Fstatus%2F1738966481952505934
And, oh yeah, he hinted at the IKF signing on Tuesday night.
Going back to the Pending signing. It is official per physical. We will hear about it quicker than I think….
— KingSarcasm (@HavokAndrew) December 27, 2023
So, you might as well brace yourselves for a long winter because this hot stove isn’t getting any hotter anytime soon. Unless, of course, KingSarcasm tweets something else.
About Sam Neumann
Since the beginning of 2023, Sam has been a staff writer for Awful Announcing and The Comeback. A 2021 graduate of Temple University, Sam is a Charlotte native, who currently calls Greenville, South Carolina his home. He also has a love/hate relationship with the New York Mets and Jets.