No Way The Padres Outbid The White Sox For Manny Machado...Right?

White Sox GM Rick Hahn first talked about the eventual rebuild during the 2016 season. Chris Sale was traded to the Red Sox that offseason, Adam Eaton was shipped off to the Nationals and then Jose Quintana was dealt to the Cubs. As many as six prospects are ranked in the top-100, and the front office has been aggressive this offseason. Manny Machado appears to be their top target and at this point there's just no way they get outbid for him after preparing for two plus years and coming this far along in the process.

Hmm, OK. Still no need to panic. We know the Padres did in fact meet with Machado in person in Miami, but we haven't even seen any actual offers coming from San Diego.

All right fine, the Padres have a serious offer here, but California nearly has a state income tax three times higher than Illinois. Jeff Passan has reported the White Sox offered Machado an eight-year contract, while Hector Gomez has not backed off his report that the offer from the White Sox is worth $250 million. So, if the two offers are similar, then the White Sox still have the edge because Machado will still earn more playing in Chicago than San Diego. But, what if the Padres are actually offering way more than $250 million?

Bob Nightengale has also reported that the White Sox have only offered Machado $175 million. Kevin Acee, Padres beat writer out in San Diego, was the first to break the team's interest in Machado and according to him the Padres have offered more than $250 million to Machado.

But if you're White Sox fan you're probably skeptical about the Padres. It took them until January to finally become interested in Machado and have come in offering the biggest reported offer out there? Maybe Machado's camp is still trying to get the bidding war going, as the free agent reportedly is seeking a $300 million deal. Yet, what if the Padres are in fact a serious threat to the White Sox for Machado. Just last year they jumped into the free agent market in February and signed Eric Hosmer to the biggest contract of the offseason. Would it really be that surprising if they do it again?

Sure, the Padres can get creative, but the White Sox can make this very easy for Machado. It was reported that Jerry Reinsdorf didn't want to get into a bidding war this offseason, so it's time to make Machado an offer he can't refuse. Write the check, Jerry. Stop fucking around and get this deal done with Machado, before some other team comes in and takes him away.