MLB winter meetings trade and free-agency buzz

— -- The MLB winter meetings are on in our nation's capital, and rumors are swirling across baseball. Here is what our writers are hearing:?

Monday's buzz

Jesse Rogers' take:?If Kenley Jansen falls into their lap, the Cubs would be interested in adding him, but a trade for a closer, either this winter or midseason as they did last year, is more likely. They have internal candidates who can at least start the year pitching the ninth inning, giving the Cubs time to reevaluate.

David Schoenfield's take:?In other words, the glut of the 1B/DH types won't ALL be paid what they may expect to get paid. I'll throw out one more team: The Royals could use a DH to replace Kendrys Morales (who signed with the Blue Jays), although they paid Morales just $9 million in 2016. Given all the free agents they'll have after 2017, the Royals want to make one final push, but they'll probably look for a DH on a one-year deal, maybe somebody like Pedro Alvarez or Chris Carter.

David Schoenfield's take:?I love the idea of Billy Hamilton on the Rangers. While he hasn't won a Gold Glove, he's an elite center fielder with his blazing speed. Ian Desmond held his own transitioning from shortstop to center field, but Rangers center fielders combined for minus-4 Defensive Runs Saved, while Hamilton was plus-15 in just 119 games. He also had a .369 OBP in the second half, and while I'm not completely buying into that improvement, at a minimum he'd slot in as a nice No. 9 hitter in the AL.

Jayson Stark's take:?The Marlins have concluded that the tragic death of Jose Fernandez leaves such a hole in their rotation that their best path to contention is to build a dominant bullpen. So while they've mulled all three of the prominent free-agent closers, sources say Kenley Jansen is their top choice, with Mark Melancon as Plan B and Aroldis Chapman as a distant Plan C.

Signing Jansen would cost them a first-round pick, which would be the 14th overall choice in the first round. But owner Jeffrey Loria is said to be contemplating whether to sign off on sacrificing that pick and making a potentially record-setting five-year offer to Jansen, who pitched for manager Don Mattingly in Los Angeles. One friend said Mattingly was pushing hard for Jansen.

Jim Bowden's take:?The Texas Rangers are the team to watch on Edwin Encarnacion, as team president Jon Daniels is always opportunistic during market changes like he was last July, when the Indians deal with Jonathan Lucroy fell apart and he swooped in to land him. The Indians are also a sleeper team if the market falls further. Encarnacion's smartest option might be to do what Yoenis Cespedes did last year -- take a three-year deal with an opt out after Year 1 so he can go back on the market next offseason.?