The possible reunion

New Red Sox POBO (that's president of baseball operations) Dave Dombrowski made his intentions clear when he traded four prospects, including highly regarded outfielder Manuel Margot, to acquire closer  from the Padres: The mandate is to win now, no matter the cost, as everyone thought the Red Sox paid a steep price in talent for Kimbrel. Dombrowski then said he'd sign an ace pitcher rather than further gut the Red Sox system. That has all arrows pointing to Price coming to Boston.

The big advantage is Price has spent his entire career in the American League. As good as Greinke has been with the Dodgers, that's been in the National League and in a pitcher-friendly home parks late fade with the Royals and his tender elbow earlier in the year have to be concerning, and  is more of a No. 2 who has thrived against the bad offenses of the NL East. Price is the guy the Red Sox most likely want. And for what it's worth: In 11 career starts at Fenway Park, he has a 1.95 ERA.

With a young lineup to build around, all signs point to the Cubs spending their offseason cash on pitching. That, of course, has led to speculation about Price joining forces again with Joe Maddon, his manager in Tampa Bay. So why aren't the Cubs the favorite? They're just heading into the second year of $155 million contract, so committing over $300 million to just two pitches is a risky proposition, even for a big-market team like the Cubs that just announced a and may be gearing up for its .

Aside from that, however, the Cubs may prefer to eventually give the big money (he has two more seasons until free agency). Also, signing an ace is less valuable when you already have one or two (depending on how you evaluate Lester). An ace is the guy you line up for two starts in the Division Series; for the Cubs, that guy may be Arrieta or even Lester, not Price. The Cubs may also want to spread the money around, maybe going after Cueto or Zimmermann or and a relief pitcher to help add depth to the bullpen.