MLB Predictions: Josh Donaldson To Sign With Nationals, Madison Bumgarner to Dodgers, Dallas Keuchel To Minnesota

With the top three MLB free agents - Gerrit Cole, Stephen Strasburg and Anthony Rendon - signed up this week, the speculation game has shifted to Josh Donaldson, Madison Bumgarner and Dallas Keuchel. Where will they land this offseason?

After Rendon and Mike Moustakas signed with the Los Angeles Angels and Cincinnati Reds respectively, Donaldson became the undisputed best third baseman, and possibly best position player, still available on the market.

He was red-hot for the Atlanta Braves this past season and slugged 37 home runs. That has set the stage for the veteran to get one last big-time contract before his career begins to wind down. A few clubs who missed out on Rendon will try to sign Donaldson.

That list includes the Los Angeles Dodgers, Washington Nationals, Texas Rangers, Braves and Minnesota Twins. However, recent reports from the Lone Star state indicate that the Rangers might not be able to afford Donaldson.

Then again, the Braves have also spent big in free agency and are unlikely to increase payroll. So, unless they shed some salary, Atlanta also seems out of the running. Meanwhile, of the three teams left, the Twins seem the most distant from competing for a World Series.

That leaves Dodgers or Nationals as the best bets for Donaldson. The Dodgers have a few other issues to resolve, such as a starting pitcher after losing out on Cole and Strasburg and seeing both Rich Hill and Hyun-Jin Ryu leave via free agency.

That means that the Dodgers will be big players in the market for one name further down on this list. The Nationals, however, missed out on re-signing Rendon and have relatively few areas of need at the hot corner.

Due to the club’s needs and therefore their willingness to spend plus the player’s want to play for a contender, Donaldson will sign for the Washington Nationals.

The Dodgers will get one player on this list though. According to Ken Rosenthal of the Athletic, Los Angeles are in serious pursuit of the southpaw and long-time rival. After missing out on both Cole and Strasburg, they need starting pitching.

Reports indicate there are a plethora of teams interested in Bumgarner. The San Francisco Giants, Twins, Reds, Los Angeles Angels, Arizona Diamondbacks, Chicago White Sox and St. Louis Cardinals will also rival the Dodgers for the 30-year-old.

While all have their upsides for the player, none holds quite the same combination of a lucrative contract (as the Dodgers are a big-market club with money to spend) and the ability to play for a contender as Los Angeles. Madison Bumgarner will, therefore, sign for the Los Angeles Dodgers.

How about his fellow lefty Dallas Keuchel? He has had to wait patiently as the Cole and Strasburg sweepstakes wrapped up but will likely have to wait to see where Bumgarner and Ryu land to see the offers starting to roll in.

However, by then most of the aforementioned clubs with an interest in starting pitching will have gotten at least one name in this pitcher-heavy free agent class. That means his market is a bit more difficult to guess.

Most any of the clubs above could make a move such as the Rangers, Reds, Cardinals and White Sox. However, none of them have quite the same need or opportunity to compete next season as the Twins.

Minnesota plays in the perennially weak A.L. Central and already look like one of the main contenders for the crown. They also have a need at starting pitcher after Martin Perez signed for the Boston Red Sox while Michael Pineda remains a free agent.

They have the payroll to make a move for Keuchel and, assuming they are out-bided for Bumgarner and Ryu, Dallas Keuchel would make an excellent consolation prize. Expect to see Keuchel at Target Field next season.