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Archives for March 2015

Octagon Adds Agents Jay Alou, Brian Mejia, Ulises Cabrera

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Octagon Baseball has added a trio of veteran MLB agents with extensive experience in the Dominican Republic, the agency announced. Jay Alou Jr., Brian Mejia, and Ulises Cabrera will join a group led by Alan Nero.

The already-impressive Octagon client list will now feature some notable additional names. Between them, the newly-added agents will bring clients such as Jose Bautista, Ervin Santana, Carlos Martinez, and Yasmany Tomas into the fold. Those players will bolster an international presence that is fronted by Felix Hernandez and also includes Jose Altuve, Victor Martinez, and (most recently) Jung-ho Kang.

2014-15 Free Agent Market: Overall Spending Declines, AAV Rises

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Last year, I compiled a whole lot of data on free agent spending to assess overall spending trends over the 2007-08 to 2013-14 time period. That post was the culmination of a lot of research, and includes plenty of observations about the broader period in question which I will not repeat here.

At the time, the 2013-14 spending season was not quite wrapped up. It was apparent that it would blow the prior years out of the water in most respects, and indeed that proved to be the case. After performing a complete update, the final tab is a shade over $2.043B in overall outlay.

So, how does the current (2014-15) market stack up? Though we may see a few more MLB deals, it seems a reasonable time to assess. I broke out spending by team yesterday, but that only shows us strategic choices across a single market. Now, we’ll look at the market as a whole against prior years.

The first thing you’ll notice is that the total spend has declined for the first time since the 2009-10 period. But as a glance further down the table reveals, that is almost certainly the result of the number of players available (among other factors) than it is some pull-back in spending.

2014-15 FA spending tableAs the graph shows more visually, overall spending rate increases have continued, while the total outlay this season falls in line with a general upward curve.

2014-15 FA spending graph

Here are the annual increases and decreases; as you can see, last year’s market pushed a ton of total money over the prior season, but AAV actually grew more year-over-year this time around.

2014-15 FA spending annual change

We’ll take a closer look at different classes of players (as I did with regard to the broader time period) in a separate post. But for now, take a look at the overall spending numbers isolated for multi-year contracts only. The total commitment per player and years per player both rose for those free agents who were marketable enough to secure pacts of two or more years in duration.

2014-15 FA spending multiyear table

Minor Moves: Brandon Snyder

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Here are the day’s minor moves:

  • Former first-round pick Brandon Snyder has inked a deal with the Atlantic League’s Southern Maryland Blue Crabs, the team announced. The 28-year-old has spent parts of four years in the big leagues, never taking more than 69 plate appearances in a season and compiling a .243/.287/.399 slash over 158 lifetime turns at bat. At Triple-A last year with the Red Sox, Snyder put up a .206/.284/.444 line with eight home runs in 141 plate appearances. He spent most of his professional time at first base, though he also appeared at third base in the big leagues.

Rangers To Return Edgar Olmos To Mariners

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The Rangers are reversing the team’s waiver claim on lefty Edgar Olmos in order to return him to the Mariners, Anthony Andro of FOX Sports Southwest reports on Twitter. Olmos was claimed about ten days ago after Seattle designated him for assignment.

Olmos had been shut down upon reporting to camp with a shoulder impingement. That injury situation would appear to be the basis for Texas’s attempt to use this rare procedural mechanism.

The 24-year-old southpaw came to Seattle via a waiver claim from the Marlins. He has minimal big league experience, but had frequently been rated among the top thirty organizational prospects in Miami and dominated left-handed batters last year in the upper minors. In total, over 77 2/3 frames between Double-A and Triple-A last year, Olmos registered a 4.06 EAR with 7.0 K/9 against 3.5 BB/9.

Joel Hanrahan To Undergo Tommy John Surgery, Released By Tigers

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8:01am: Detroit has released Hanrahan, Anthony Fenech of the Detroit Free Press tweets.

7:35am: Tigers reliever Joel Hanrahan will undergo his second Tommy John procedure after failing to progress in his rehab, Jason Beck of MLB.com reports (Twitter links). Hanrahan indicated that he is not yet sure whether he will be able to mount another comeback effort.

The 33-year-old originally had his UCL replaced in May of 2013. He signed with Detroit last year in hopes of returning to the bigs, and re-signed with the club on a minor league deal this season to continue his rehab. He has yet to throw a competitive pitch for the organization.

Hanrahan had looked like a nice bounceback option for a team that has struggled to achieve consistent results from its relief corps, but reports yesterday indicated that he was experiencing problems with his elbow again after already taking additional time to deal with a lack of rehab progress. His most recent consultation appears to have set the course.

During his time with the Pirates over the 2009-12 seasons, Hanrahan was good for 229 1/3 innings of 2.59 ERA ball, logging 10.4 K/9 and 3.8 BB/9 in 229 1/3 innings. That led to a trade to the Red Sox in advance of 2013, Hanrahan’s final season of arbitration eligibility, but things turned south quickly in Boston as poor results were followed in short order by the season-ending surgery.

Poll: Wisest $60MM To $70MM Offseason Spend

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We just looked at the offseason’s free agent spending by team. One of the more interesting sets of comparisons suggested, I think, involves the middle-class spenders, specifically those in the $60MM to $70MM range. Let’s consider the different strategies employed:

Veteran Bat: The Mariners and Tigers both made four-year investments in older, established bats (Nelson Cruz and Victor Martinez, respectively). Otherwise, they basically only added supplemental pieces through free agency, with Seattle adding platoon man Rickie Weeks and Detroit bolstering its pen with Joba Chamberlain and Tom Gorzelanny.

Veteran Arm: Most of the cash put onto the market by the Dodgers and Twins went into established starters coming off of good seasons but carrying some questions. Los Angeles went with Brandon McCarthy (supplemented by Brett Anderson, Brandy Beachy, and Dustin McGowan), while Minnesota spent big on Ervin Santana in addition to picking up Torii Hunter and Tim Stauffer.

Spread the Love: The Astros and Royals each invested in at least four players, with each club touching the $20MM mark only once apiece (Jed Lowrie and Edinson Volquez, respectively). Each filled needs with veterans (Luke Gregerson/Pat Neshek vs. Alex Rios/Kendrys Morales/Jason Frasor) and took upside risks (Colby Rasmus for Houston and Kris Medlen/Luke Hochevar for K.C.).

Upside Play: For the Diamondbacks, this season’s open market was all about one man: Cuban slugger Yasmany Tomas. The rebuilding club jumped on the chance to put all of its free agent spending into a young player who could deliver huge value at the right time — if he can reach his ceiling.

Each of these clubs committed to sums within the same $10MM range. Which allocated its funds most intelligently, given its particular needs?

AL Notes: Victorino, McBryde, Twins

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According to the current pre-season projected standings and playoff probabilities from Fangraphs, the National League may be expected to be rather top-heavy next season. But the American League appears wide open, with nine teams projected to have .500 records but none projected at more than 87 wins. (And that doesn’t include the Royals, Orioles, or White Sox, all of which rate as sub-.500 teams in the eyes of the model.)

Here are some notes from that tightly-bunched side of the game:

  • As today’s spring opener showed, Red Sox outfielder Shane Victorino is in store for a busy run as he tries to convince the team — and the team tries to convince others — of his health and productivity, as Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe writes. Victorino is back to hitting from both sides of the plate and is being presented as the club’s top option in right, but a trade certainly still appears to be a plausible option.
  • The increasing signing of career minor leaguers to major league deals in free agency is an interesting recent trend, as MLBTR’s Tim Dierkes explored last year. Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register takes a look at one of this year’s examples, Jeremy McBryde of the Angels. “For me, he was one of the most intriguing bullpen guys in the minor leagues,” said GM Jerry Dipoto said. “… All the boxes you’d have for a prospect, he seems to check off those boxes.” As Dipoto further explained, McBryde’s lack of big league service and 40-man time also means that he comes with three option years remaining.
  • Twins GM Terry Ryan says he is receptive to the idea of mentoring Torii Hunter in the ways of the front office, as MLB.com’s Spencer Fordin reports. “He’s thought about his career after his playing days, like most players should,” said Ryan. “He’s got a good baseball mind and I’m happy to hear he wants to be a GM. That’s good.”

2014-15 Free Agent Spending By Team

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This year’s free agent market is all but over, with only a few players still available who could be candidates for major league deals. Let’s take a look at the overall spending on the year by team to see how it breaks down, using the MLBTR Free Agent Tracker (which I filtered to remove minor league deals, extensions, options, and foreign contracts).

We did the same thing last year, you may recall, and the results are rather different. For one thing, no team came anywhere near the Yankees’ spending (just shy of $500MM). For another, the total spend actually declined by about 13%. As recent historical results show, this year’s overall outlay is still a significant increase over other recent seasons, and differences in the player market may represent the primary explanation. Nevertheless, that fact suggests that further exploration is in order, which I will endeavor to do in the coming weeks.

Without further ado, here are the numbers, in table and chart form:

2014-15 FA spending by team teable

2014-15 FA spending by team graphic

To view the table and graph from the app, use these links.

Minor Moves: Pedro Beato

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Here are the day’s minor moves:

  • The Orioles have agreed to a minor league deal with righty Pedro Beato, Steve Melewski of MASNsports.com reports (Twitter links). Beato will not receive an invitation to big league camp. The 28-year-old looks to be another depth piece for a Baltimore organization that is fond of drawing from its entire system at the major league level. Originally a first-round pick of the O’s back in 2006, Beato has thrown 93 1/3 MLB innings over four seasons, working to a 4.34 ERA with 5.7 K/9 and 3.6 BB/9. He saw only scant MLB action last year wit the Braves, but did throw 48 1/3 Triple-A frames of 4.10 ERA ball.

NL Notes: Brewers, Mets, Banuelos

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Big league spring matchups started today, which means that the sights and sounds of game action are officially back. It also provided a first look at Jung-ho Kang of the Pirates, who showed that his raw power is real in swatting a home run to center field. He still has a ways to go in earning playing time and proving his value, of course, but it was a nice start for the Korean ballplayer. Earlier today, MLBTR’s Charlie Wilmoth broke down the Bucs’ winter in the first installment of this year’s Offseason in Review series.

  • Though the Brewers are still in the process of finalizing their deal with Francisco Rodriguez, the team found now a good opportunity to outright righty Brooks Hall, as MLB.com’s Adam McCalvy reports. “This was strategically calculated,” explained assistant GM Gord Ash, “because [Hall] has not pitched that much, he’s been injured on and off. We hoped we could sneak him through, and that’s exactly what was able to happen.”
  • Mets GM Sandy Alderson indicated to reporters today that trade talks regarding the team’s starting pitching have been very quiet of late, as Anthony DiComo of MLB.com tweets. New York has an oft-discussed glut of rotation candidates, but seems content waiting for a good offer to come in or for an internal need to arise before deciding upon a course of action.
  • The Braves seem to be angling towards using recently-acquired youngster Manny Banuelos as a reliever to start the year before shifting him to the rotation, MLB.com’s Mark Bowman reports (Twitter links). Whether or not that action comes at Triple-A or with the big league club remains to be seen, but Atlanta is hoping to mix and match his roles in order to build his innings in a manageable way while allowing him to compete all season. Once considered one of the game’s best prospects, Banuelos will look to turn things around in Atlanta, which gave up reliever David Carpenter to acquire him.

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