The hot stove is sizzling.

The MLB annual Winter Meetings are fast approaching, and if you didn't know that by the calendar, you might be able to tell just by the flurry of rumor-mill rumblings.

We're digging into the latest free-agency buzz here and predicting what it means for the players involved.

Yankees Courting Multiple Starting Pitchers?

With Juan Soto's status very much up in the air, the New York Yankees are seemingly piecing together their backup plan should the 26-year-old slugger take his talents elsewhere this offseason.

The Yankees recently spoke with two of the top starting pitchers on the market in Corbin Burnes and Max Fried, per Mike Puma of the New York Post.

Burnes, a former Cy Young, reportedly had a "very good" meeting with the Yankees and is "open to playing in a big market after spending the first seven seasons of his major league career in Milwaukee and Baltimore," per Puma. Fried, an All-Star in two of the past three seasons, has interest from nearly the entire AL East, as "the Red Sox, Blue Jays and Orioles are also in on him," per Puma.

The idea of adding a front-line hurler to pair with Gerrit Cole is admittedly an exciting one and speaks to the kind of impact additions the Yankees could make if they don't wind up forking over $600-plus million to Soto. Still, that's Plan B for a reason, as New York would presumably prefer to give Soto a fortune and keep him in the heart of its lineup for years to come.

Prediction: If Soto leaves, the Yankees sign one of Burnes or Fried.

Juan Soto Thinning His List of Landing Spots?

It sounds like we're nearing decision time for Juan Soto.

His agent, Scott Boras, relayed to reporters that Soto has "begun the process of eliminating teams." While Boras added that, "I don't think anything is imminent in the near future," an industry source told ESPN's Alden Gonzalez that Soto "is widely expected" to sign a contract before the Winter Meetings are over "and could do so before they even arrive."

Whenever Soto puts pen to paper, it'll involve an astronomic sum. Ken Rosenthal, Even Drellich and Brendan Kuty of The Athletic reported that "the bidding for [Soto] has surpassed [$600 million]."

The Athletic reporters named the Yankees, New York Mets, Boston Red Sox, Toronto Blue Jays and Los Angeles Dodgers as "the clubs publicly known to be most serious about Soto." They added that "all remaining contenders have made offers above $600 million."

Any one of the five feels like a realistic landing spot, although this has often seemed like it will come down to a battle of the Big Apple. The Yankees just made one heck of a recruiting pitch to Soto—winning 94 games and reaching the World Series during his first season there—but the Mets have "many in the industry believing...[they] will top any rival bid."

Prediction: Soto signs with the Mets.

Giants, Yankees Eyeing Willy Adames?

Free agency arrived at the perfect time for Willy Adames, who essentially turned his stat sheet into a host of career highs this past season. Among the personal-bests were 32 home runs, 21 stolen bases, 93 runs scored and 112 RBI.

Clearly the baseball world noticed everything he did.

Adames has emerged as "one of the options being considered" by the New York Yankees should Juan Soto depart, per MLB.com's Mark Feinsand. The San Francisco Giants also have "serious interest" in Adames.

There are surely a number of other suitors, too, but these might be the most significant. The Yankees will have plenty to spend if they lose Soto, and the Giants have gone public with their plans of upgrading at shortstop. So, while there might be a half-dozen other teams in the mix, these feel like the favorites for now.

Prediction: Yankees sign Adames; Giants sign Ha-Seong Kim.