It is that time of year again. The offseason is here and the hot stove is just now getting, well hot. Pablo Sandoval is the man on the radar of three teams and he is expected to make a decision by Thanksgiving or even before that this upcoming week. The teams that are interested in Pablo, according to sources, or the ones that he has listed as "interested to go to" are the Boston Red Sox, San Diego Padres, and San Francisco Giants. It is unclear on if the Padres or Giants can compete with those clubs when it comes to years and money, but anything can happen. Just ask the Chicago Cubs. Remember they were a lock and considered a front-runner for catcher Russell Martin, but the Toronto Blue Jays came out of nowhere and snatched him up, and brought the Canadian born player home.

The thing is this, Pablo is asking for a six-year, $100 million contract and it looks like he is going to get just that. It was reported by Ken Rosenthal of http://foxsports.com that the Chicago White Sox and Blue Jays were interested in Sandoval but the chance of them signing, or even competing with the other three teams is very unlikely. Not only have the Red Sox been thinking about Sandoval this offseason they have been scouting him all season long. So there is absolutely no surprise that they are showing the highest interest out there. However, the Padres, according to multiple reports are stating that the Padres offered Sandoval a "extremely good" offer.

Even if the rumors are true that his decision has been marked down to just the Giants and Red Sox, you can't help but notice the rumors swirling around about the Padres possibly sneaking in there to snatch him up. Again, as mentioned earlier, the Jays' did it with Martin, so why couldn't the Padres do it for Sandoval. What we do know at this point is that Sandoval has all three teams offers in hand is going to review them and make his decision very soon.

Sandoval hit .279 with 16 home runs, 73 RBI and an OPS of .739 for the Giants this past season leading them to a World Series Championship. Boston's third baseman didn't even see those numbers combined at all. They combined a .211 average which was dead last in the majors. It is obvious, the Red Sox don't want to miss the playoffs anymore and they believe in their opinion they won't if they sign Sandoval.

Then you have the Giants, they don't want to lose out to the Red Sox, and they surely do not want to lose Sandoval to a division rival, San Diego. The Giants are confident in believing they will re-sign Sandoval this offseason and make another run for a division title and World Series trophy as well. Obviously, if we go by history, the Giants take care of their costless agents and usually bring them back home. In this case bringing back Sandoval will surely take care of their business.

http://ESPNBoston.com 's Gordon Edes reported that Sandoval received all kinds of offers and was considering them all. Pablo's brother, and co-agent Michael Sandoval would not confirm or decline what teams were in the running for his brother.

Welcome to the MLB Hot Stove ladies and gentlemen. Things will only get crazier from here.

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About the author
JW Gravley
I cover breaking news and stories happening in the MLB and I also cover the Appalachian League in the MiLB for VAVEL USA. I am also a member of Internet Baseball Writers Association of America.