Until some player actually signs a deal with a new team, we won’t know for sure if a player was placed on waivers by his original team. That doesn’t mean that names won’t be leaked and fans and the media won’t be making guesses as to where some players will end up.

In some cases, the waived player will find out accidentally and play the wounded warrior, others realize it’s part of the business. Notwithstanding people are essentially getting canned, it’s fun time of the season for fans like me who love to surmise who will make the winning claims and who will sit tight. None of the players waived are losing any money so I wouldn’t worry about that.

Teams essentially can back out and pull their players back-but it’s more fun predicting who will end up where. When Reynoldo Lopez, Lucas Giolito, and Matt Moore were supposedly put on waivers by the Angels, Cub fans and the media discussed which of the three the Cubs should pursue. Having a better record than the Giants, Reds, and Marlins, the Cubs won’t have first choice.

Necessarily, there are already surprises among those being waived. In principle, nobody is supposed to know about the waivees until they are signed, but word usually gets out. The Mets, unsurprisingly, are in the news because apparently Carlos Carrasco is one of the guys out there.

Who will be bidding against the Cubs for any of the prizes out there? It seems that nobody has much to lose in taking a shot at any of these guys.