Matt Diaz Will Not Pursue New Contract
Longtime Braves outfielder Matt Diaz has announced via Twitter that he will not pursue a new contract (hat tip to David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution). Though he stopped short of saying he will file retirement papers, Diaz made clear in a post on his blog (well worth a read) that he expects his playing career to be over.
Diaz saw only minimal time with the Marlins last year at age 35. He did, however, put up a promising .341/.385/.459 triple-slash in his 91 Triple-A plate appearances for Miami. Surely, Diaz would have had to settle for a minor league deal and a depth assignment in the upper minors had he decided to play.
The 11-year MLB veteran was most productive in 2006, 2007, and 2009 for Atlanta. In each of those three seasons, he posted over 300 plate appearances, registered an OPS of .839 or better, and was worth at least 1.7 rWAR/1.9 fWAR. Diaz also spent time with the Rays, Royals, Pirates, and Marlins organizations, but will unquestionably be remembered as a ballplayer for his work with the Braves.
Cory Luebke To Miss 2014 Season With Torn UCL
Padres southpaw starter Cory Luebke will not be a rotation option for San Diego after an MRI found a tear in his ulnar collateral ligament, reports MLB.com's Corey Brock. After missing most of 2012 and all of last year as he rehabbed from a prior Tommy John surgery, Luebke appears headed for a second procedure.
Luebke had been expected to play a major role in the team's rotation plans for the coming season. GM Josh Byrnes expressed dismay at the "mystery" of Luebke's elbow issues. Though the Friars still have plenty of options to take the ball every fifth day, the injury certainly takes away one layer of security (and one possible source of some upside for the club). Though the club's depth means that an immediate addition is not an obvious necessity, the injury certainly has an impact on San Diego's current and future rotation plans.
Through 55 career appearances, 25 of them starts, Luebke has recorded 188 1/3 innings of 3.25 ERA ball, including 9.3 K/9 and 2.8 BB/9. Luebke is still under contract for this season and next under the three-year, $12MM extension he signed before the 2012 year. The Padres hold club options for the 2016-17 season, though it is premature to consider what the decision will look like on those at this point.
Latest On Suk-Min Yoon
TUESDAY, 5:38pm: The Cubs joined the Rangers in watching Yoon throw 30 pitches today, reports T.R. Sullivan of MLB.com (via Twitter). He will hold similar, short bullpen sessions for other clubs in the next few days, tweets Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News.
Yoon's health remains the major issue for clubs considering Yoon's request for multiple years, Sullivan adds. The South Korean is not close to signing, says Sullivan, contrary to statements made yesterday by agent Scott Boras.
MONDAY, 11:30pm: The Rangers will watch Yoon throw a bullpen session on Tuesday in Arizona, reports Drew Davison of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram (hat tip to Dan Kurtz of MyKBO, via Twitter).
7:30pm: The Orioles are one of several clubs to have made an offer to Yoon, according to Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun.
(In case you missed the intervening update, Yoon's agent, Scott Boras, said that six or seven teams were still interested in the South Korean.)
11:41am: As many as five teams are still showing interest in Korean right-hander Suk-Min Yoon, according to Sang-Soo Kwon of Korean news outlet JoongAng Daily (hat tip: MyKBO.net's Dan Kurtz). According to Kwon, the Orioles are the front-runners to sign Yoon at this point, but the Rangers, Cubs, Twins and Giants have interest as well. The Orioles and Giants reportedly attended a workout held by Yoon at the UC-Irvine campus over the weekend.
The Rangers' interest is a new wrinkle in the Yoon saga, but Kwon cites an official from the Boras Coporation (which represents Yoon) in saying that Texas has scouted Yoon for more than two years. Interest on the Rangers' side picked up after Derek Holland's injury, the official said.
Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com reports (on Twitter) that Orioles executive vice president Dan Duquette wouldn't confirm the team's interest in Yoon when asked on Saturday, but he also didn't deny any of the reports. The Orioles have added a pair of notable Asian players in recent years, inking Tsuyoshi Wada and Wei-Yin Chen to multi-year deals. Kwon also points out Duquette's history of Korean additions from his days as GM of the Red Sox; Boston inked lefty Sang-Hoon Lee, right-hander Sun-woo Kim, right-hander Seung-Joon Song, and infielder Tae-in Chae.
Yoon, 27, was considered Korea's second-best starting pitcher behind Hyun-jin Ryu following the 2012 season. A shoulder injury in 2013 prompted a move the the closer's role with the Kia TIgers last season, but from 2011-12 Yoon posted a 2.77 ERA with 8.7 K/9 and 2.1 BB/9 in 325 1/3 innings as a starter. As MLBTR's Tim Dierkes noted in Yoon's free agent profile, his fastball sits in the 91 to 93 mph range, and he won the KBO's MVP Award in 2011 for his outstanding work in the Kia Tigers' rotation.
Jeff Todd contributed to this post.
NL East Notes: Braves, Kimbrel, Nationals, Mets
Despite their "file and trial" stance with respect to the arbitration process, the Braves made clear today that the club did not extend its refusal to negotiate after exchanging figures to multi-year talks. After inking a two-year pact with Jason Heyward that did not extend club control, Atlanta promptly locked up Freddie Freeman to a long-term deal. The Heyward deal, in particular, reveals another benefit of the file-and-trial approach, writes Eno Sarris of Fangraphs. By holding out on seemingly inconsequential portion of Heyward's salary, Atlanta obtained sufficient leverage to add another year (and attendant cost-certainty) to Heyward's contract. Here's more on the Braves' interesting arbitration season and the rest of the NL East:
- Of course, Heyward's deal also provides security for the oft-DL'ed 24-year-old, though with his talent it is somewhat difficult to imagine any scenario where he would not have been tendered a contract next year. Joel Sherman of the New York Post reports (Twitter links) that Heyward's representatives at Excel Sports Management approached the front office about a multi-year deal after exchanging figures. Though his spate of injuries (and correspondingly limited statistical production) hindered discussions, says Sherman, the gap was spanned and agreement reached on the value of Heyward's remaining arb-eligible years.
- In spite of the deals with Heyward and Freeman, Atlanta remains all but certain to face a hearing with closer Craig Kimbrel, reports Jeff Passon of Yahoo Sports (via Twitter). With a substantial gap between Kimbrel's $9MM figure and the club's $6.55MM counter in Kimbrel's first year of arbitration eligibility, the outcome of that hearing (scheduled for February 17th) could go a long way toward determining the outstanding closer's future salary — and, potentially, even what uniform he will wear for the long haul.
- After losing out on bench bat Jeff Baker, the Nationals are still on the hunt for late-off-season value, writes James Wagner of the Washington Post. In particular, says Wagner, the Nats remain very interested in southpaw reliever Oliver Perez, who is reportedly close to choosing a team.
- The Mets are still saying that a Stephen Drew signing remains a "long shot" for the club, tweets Mike Puma of the New York Post. We heard earlier today that New York had not made an offer to the free agent shortstop.
Mariners, Logan Morrison Avoid Arbitration
5:15pm: Morrison can earn $75K for reaching 450 plate appearances, $100K each for notching 500 and 550, and then another $75K if he takes his 600th turn at bat, according to Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports (via Twitter).
1:48pm: Jon Heyman of CBS Sports reports (via Twitter) that the Mariners and Logan Morrison have avoided arbitration by settling on a one-year, $1.75MM contract that contains an additional $350K worth of incentives. Morrison is a client of Octagon.
As MLBTR's Jeff Todd wrote on the night that filing figures were exchanged, Morrison and the Mariners were further apart on a relative basis ($2.5MM vs. $1.1MM, 127.3%) than were any other player and team. Morrison's 2014 salary ultimately falls just under the mid-way point between those numbers, but narrowly beats the $1.7MM projection of MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz.
With Morrison's signing, the Mariners need only resolve one more arbitration case: that of Justin Smoak.
Athletics To Sign Sam Fuld
The Athletics have agreed to terms with outfielder Sam Fuld on a minor league deal with a Spring Training invite, reports Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (Twitter links). Fuld is a client of Munsey Sports Management.
The will 32-year-old left-hander will earn $800K if he is on the MLB roster and has $100K in incentives based upon games played. He can opt out in late March or on June 1, if he has not been added to the active roster.
Fuld has spent his last three seasons with the Rays, serving as a reserve outfielder, but was non-tendered after a rough year. Over 2011-13, Fuld saw 653 plate appearances and posted a .230/.301/.326 triple-slash. He stole 35 bases, but was caught 12 times in that stretch. Last season, Fuld saw his numbers dip to a .199/.270/.267 line in an even 200 trips to the plate over parts of 119 games. Though he does not generally impress with the bat, Fuld is regarded as an excellent defender at the corners who also can be trusted in center.
For the A's, Fuld comes with less than four years of service time, so could potentially be controlled for three more seasons. Fuld will look to crack the roster and join an outfield mix that includes Yoenis Cespedes, Josh Reddick, Coco Crisp, and Craig Gentry.
Free Agent Notes: Drew, Santana, Garza
Let's take a quick look at a few brief-but-relevant notes on some high-profile free agents, the first two of whom remain unsigned:
- The Mets do not have an offer on the table for free agent shortstop Stephen Drew, reports Kristie Ackert of the New York Daily News (via Twitter). Indeed, New York has made no offers to Drew, tweets Rob Bradford of WEEI.com.
- It has long been clear that Ervin Santana's asking price has dropped from its one-time nine-figure level. But his market value has now dropped so far that Santana may only be asking for three years at present, tweets Buster Olney of ESPN.com.
- The Angels offered Matt Garza a four-year deal for about the same money he ultimately received from the Brewers, tweets Olney. Los Angeles pulled the deal when Garza did not act upon it, however.
Marlins, Jeff Baker Agree To Two-Year Deal
1:35pm: Chris Cotillo of MLB Daily Dish tweets that Baker will earn $1.6MM in 2014 and $2.1MM in 2015.
1:16pm: The Marlins and Jeff Baker have agreed to a two-year deal, according to Jon Heyman of CBS Sports (on Twitter). The New York Post's Joel Sherman tweets that Baker is guaranteed $3.7MM and has an additional $500K of incentives built into each year of the deal. Baker's agent, Scott Boras, said last night that he was nearing agreements for four of his clients, including Baker.
The 32-year-old Baker slashed .279/.360/.545 in 2013 thanks in large part to his Herculean numbers against left-handed pitching. Baker has never been one to handle same-handed pitching well, and he showed that last season with a .204/.250/.286 line against righties in just 52 plate appearances. However, in his 123 PAs against southpaws, Baker mashed at a .314/.407/.667 clip. In his career, he's a .298/.353/.522 hitter against lefties.
Baker's splits make him a natural platoon partner at first base for Garrett Jones, who the Marlins also signed to a two-year deal earlier this offseason. Baker also comes with experience at second base, third base and both outfield corners, making him a valuable bench piece whose versatility should serve sophomore manager Mike Remond well.
Baker also drew interest from the Giants, Nationals and Rangers at varying points this offseason. The Marlins' willingness to guarantee a second year seems likely to have pushed them to the front of the pack, though that's just my speculation.
Nick Hagadone, Indians Resolve Grievance
11:43am: Bastian tweets some clarification, noting that Hagadone didn't "win" his grievance, but rather the involved parties worked out an agreement to resolve the pending grievance.
9:57am: Indians left-hander Nick Hagadone has won the grievance filed on his behalf by the Major League Baseball Players Association, reports MLB.com's Jordan Bastian. The deal is highly significant for both sides, as Hagadone gains a hefty 94 days of service time (jumping from 1.033 to 1.127), and the Indians will gain another option on Hagadone. He'd previously been out of options but can now be sent to the minor leagues in 2014 (All links to Twitter).
The source of Hagadone's grievance was a self-inflicted hand injury following a poor outing back in July 2012. Hagadone was subsequently optioned to the minor leagues and placed on the disqualified list rather than placed on the Major League disabled list with his injury. In doing so, the Indians assured that he would not be paid while missing time due to his injury and also would not accumulate service time. As Bastian reports above, he will now be compensated for that time on the DQ list after winning the grievance.
As Bastian further notes (on Twitter), Hagadone is one of six left-handers vying for a spot in Cleveland's bullpen. A quick glance at the most recent Super Two cutoff shows that this additional service time is crucial to Hagadone. The 28-year-old can now potentially qualify as a Super Two player and be eligible for arbitration following the season, should he make the Opening Day roster and stick in the Majors all year.
Hagadone was excellent for the Indians in Triple-A last season, posting a 2.51 ERA with 12.8 K/9 and 4.7 BB/9 in 32 1/3 innings. However, his control problems were magnified in the Majors (6.0 BB/9), and his strikeout rate dropped (8.6 K/9), and the result was an unsightly 5.46 ERA in 31 1/3 innings for Cleveland. Those trends aren't exactly new for the lefty, who has a 5.59 ERA in 67 2/3 Major League innings despite excellent minor league numbers.
Hagadone was originally acquired by the Indians along with Justin Masterson and Bryan Price in the trade that sent Victor Martinez to the Red Sox. Boston picked Hagadone 55th overall in the 2007 draft as compensation for the loss of free agent Alex Gonzalez.
Braves Sign Jason Heyward To Two-Year Deal
11:35am: Heyman tweets the financial breakdown of the contract: Heyward receives a $1MM signing bonus, a $4.5MM salary in 2014 and a $7.8MM salary in 2015.
10:34am: David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports (via Twitter) that Heyward's deal also contains performance escalators that could boost the value of his contract's second year.
Meanwhile, Wren tells MLB.com's Mark Bowman that the club still has a strict "file and trial" policy, but it doesn't apply to multi-year deals (Twitter link). In other words, they won't continue to negotiate one-year deals with Freeman or Kimbrel from this point forward, but extensions could still be reached. That approach is typical of many file and trial clubs.
10:08am: Jon Heyman of CBS Sports tweets that Heyward's deal will pay him $13.3MM over the next two seasons.
10:00am: The Braves have issued a press release to announce the signing of right fielder Jason Heyward to a two-year contract. The contract, which covers the 2014-15 seasons, prevents Heyward and the Braves from going to an arbitration hearing. Terms of the deal were not disclosed by the Braves.
Heyward, a client of Excel Sports Management, exchanged arbitration figures with the Braves last month. The 24-year-old former All-Star filed for a $5.5MM salary, while the Braves countered at $5.2MM. The gap between the two sides may seem small, but this is extension serves as a reminder that "file and trial" teams such as the Braves may still be open to negotiating multi-year deals after exchanging figures. This gives the Braves and their fans hope that the potential hearings for closer Craig Kimbrel and first baseman Freddie Freeman can be similarly avoided.
"Jason is an important part of our organization and we’re glad that we were able to agree on a multi-year contract," said general manager Frank Wren within the release.
Though Heyward has never matched the on-base skills he displayed in his outstanding rookie season (.277/.393/.456), and his power dipped from 2012 to 2013 (27 homers/.210 ISO vs. 14 homers/.173 ISO), Heyward consistently turns in solid offensive contributions and elite defense in the outfield.
This new contract buys out his final two years of arbitration eligibility, meaning he's on track to become a free agent heading into his age-26 season. Cases such as that are so rare in today's world of extensions, that Heyward is poised to be one of the most coveted free agents in recent history should he stay healthy and not sign a further extension.