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It's rare that a player with the combination of talent and youth of Justin Upton hits free agency. And yet, no one seems to care that he's right there, available to be signed. Upton's 2016 will be his age-28 season. From ages 21 through 27, he's hit .275/.354/.478 for a 124 OPS+, and has gained the consistency some felt he was missing from his game over the past three years. If Upton signed a five-year deal, he'd be the same age when it ended as Alex Gordon will be for the first year of his new deal, signed days ago. So, what's the hold up?
Well, that's kind of the thing. No one is sure! It's understandable that Upton had to wait until after Jason Heyward signed -- Heyward is younger and better than Upton -- but Heyward signed in mid-December. The holidays delayed things a little, as did the market deciding every major pitcher needed to sign before any hitter did, but it's January 8. Why aren't there even many whispers about Upton destinations?
The Orioles keep coming up as a potential landing spot, but only in the event they fail to re-sign Chris Davis. The Giants were interested in Upton, but they went with Denard Span instead. The Rangers would like him, but only on a one-year deal, which seems unlikely for a player coming off a strong season who also received a qualifying offer. Maybe we're getting to the point where Upton is going to be a bargain for whoever does sign him, because their offer is less embarrassing than what others are making. All we do know is that this is all very strange, considering the amount of money in the game and Upton's qualifications.
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