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Archives for February 2016

AL East Notes: Bautista, Donaldson, Chavez, Gallardo, Betts

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Blue Jays slugger Jose Bautista indicated that he’s very open to holding contract talks before reaching free agency after the season, as Gregory Strong of the Canadian Press reports. Bautista said it would be an honor to end his career in Toronto, though obviously there’s a long way to go to make that happen. He noted that he had recently sat down with new club president Mark Shapiro and GM Ross Atkins, but also suggested that true negotiations haven’t occurred. “I have to have something to consider at some point if I’m going to make that decision, which hasn’t happened yet,” said Bautista. “So I’m going to continue to go about my business just like any other year and any other day because I don’t really have a decision to make right now.”

Here’s more out of the AL East, including a few other notable possible extension scenarios — a topic that Steve Adams and I tackled on today’s MLBTR Podcast.

  • Shapiro and Atkins are addressing their fanbase as we speak, and quotes continue to be reported. Josh Donaldson’s contract situation came up, as it appears he’s headed for a second arb hearing unless a multi-year agreement can be reached. (The club employs a file-and-trial approach.) Atkins indicated that there is real interest in a multi-year scenario, as Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet.ca reports (Twitter links), though it could well be an arb-only agreement. Nevertheless, the newly-minted general manager suggested that something more could at least be contemplated. “We want him here as long as humanly possible,” he said.
  • The team seemingly already went to an arb hearing with righty Jesse Chavez, Nicholson-Smith tweets. There’s only a $400K difference between the sides’ filings — $4MM vs. $3.6MM — so there isn’t a ton of money at stake. It’s certainly possible that both preferred to take their chances to bridging the gap. Either way, Chavez will fall shy of his $4.7MM projection.
  • Meanwhile, Shapiro says that it’s unlikely the team will make another major move before hitting camp, as Nicholson-Smith tweets. But the team has had “substantive conversations as recently as just a few days ago,” per Shapiro.
  • We’ve heard a lot of back-and-forth on the Orioles’ interest in signing free agent righty Yovani Gallardo — and giving up the 14th overall pick — and Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports says that the O’s are still monitoring things. If Gallardo’s asking price falls far enough, the team could be willing to punt the pick.
  • The Red Sox don’t have much reason to pursue an extension with blooming star Mookie Betts, Brian MacPherson of the Providence Journal argues. Boston already has five years of control over Betts, isn’t really in need of cost certainty, and may prefer to avoid shifting forward salary for purposes of luxury tax calculations.

NL East Notes: Mets’ Payroll/Rotation, Nationals, Marlins

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Mets GM Sandy Alderson said at yesterday’s Yoenis Cespedes press conference that the significant signing illustrates that the team is working without payroll limitations, as MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo writes. Alderson was asked if it’s possible that he can retain his entire rotation for the long haul, and while the GM unsurprisingly didn’t want to commit to anything, he did note that the increased payroll flexibility creates the possibility for some long-term deals. “I don’t want to foreclose any possibility,” said Alderson. “…I think maybe if the Cespedes signing says anything, it’s that there are no possibilities that will be dismissed out of hand strictly for financial reasons.” Alderson said the team will get a better feel for any mutual interest in extensions over the next several weeks as Spring Training looms and eventually kicks off. Of the team’s excellent rotation core, Matt Harvey is the only one that has already reached arbitration eligibility, although as a Scott Boras client, he’s perhaps an unlikely candidate to sign long-term in the first place. Next winter will see Jacob deGrom and Zack Wheeler reach arbitration. (MLBTR’s Jeff Todd and I discussed extensions — and not just for the Mets’ rotation — at length on today’s MLBTR Podcast, for those interested in the matter.) Perhaps most notable of all of Alderson’s payroll comments, however, is the fact that he said he doesn’t anticipate returning to the club’s previous payroll levels even if Cespedes opts out after this season. New York’s payroll will be in the $140MM vicinity for the 2016 season.

Here’s more from the NL East…

  • Every contract the Nationals offered to a free agent this winter contained significant deferrals due to uncertainty over the team’s MASN television dispute, writes Barry Svrluga of the Washington Post. The issue came to light most prominently after the team’s failed pursuit of Cespedes. While the Nats technically offered $110MM over five years, Svrluga spoke to sources on both sides of the negotiation who felt the Mets’ offer was clearly better. As he notes, there’s perhaps no need to look further than the first year of the deal; Cespedes landed a $10MM signing bonus and a $17.5MM salary for the 2016 season — $27.5MM up front, with the possibility to max out at $75MM over three years — but would’ve received just $7MM in 2016 with the Nationals’ offer, which contained a decade’s worth of deferrals. One person that spoke to Svrluga called the team’s $200MM offer to Jason Heyward “the most complicated deferral” that person has ever encountered, noting that it contained 16 years worth of deferred monies. Even the players they’ve managed to sign over the past two years — Max Scherzer and Daniel Murphy — come with notable deferrals. Svrluga points out that Scherzer will be owed $15MM in the first year after his deal ends, and while delaying that payment drives down the value of those funds, Svrluga is correct to note that said line item on the team’s budget could interfere with the Nats’ ability to add some secondary pieces six years down the line.
  • The Marlins continue to search for veteran rotation options, but president of baseball operations Michael Hill has very little to work with remaining in the budget that was given to him by owner Jeffrey Loria, Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald writes. Jackson notes many of the same names that he and Jon Heyman connected to the Marlins a couple of weeks ago: Kyle Lohse, Tim Lincecum, Alfredo Simon and Cliff Lee (though based on the picture Jackson painted in referencing the tight budget, Lee seems somewhat unlikely).

Orioles Avoid Arbitration With Brian Matusz

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We’ll track the day’s arb deals here:

  • The Orioles have avoided arbitration with southpaw Brian Matusz for $3.9MM, according to Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com (via Twitter). Matusz had filed at $4.4MM, with the team countering at $3.5MM, so he’ll fall just on the low side of the midpoint. MLBTR had projected him to earn just $3.4MM in his final trip through the arb process, so he’ll do a fair bit better than that. The 28-year-old posted career-best results last year, working to a 2.94 ERA with 10.3 K/9 against 3.7 BB/9 over 49 frames. Certainly, a repeat would put him in rather high demand on the open market.

MLBTR Podcast: Happy Extension Season!

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After running through the week’s quick hits, Jeff welcomes back MLBTR’s Steve Adams to talk about the upcoming extension season. Chatter on new deals tends to reach a high point over the months of February and March, with all kinds of players — from pending free agents to exciting youngsters — fielding offers from their teams.

What kinds of deals could come together this year? Are there any trends to keep an eye on? What are some intriguing names to watch? Who are the likeliest players to re-up early in 2016? Those questions and more are covered in this week’s episode, which includes discussion of Bryce Harper, J.D. Martinez, Adrian Beltre, and many more. Tune in below:

Click here to subscribe to the podcast on iTunes, and please leave a review! The podcast is also available via Stitcher at this link.

The MLB Trade Rumors Podcast runs weekly on Thursday afternoons.

Padres Trade Despaigne To Orioles, Announce Rodney Deal

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The Orioles and Padres are in agreement on a trade that will send right-hander Odrisamer Despaigne to Baltimore in exchange for minor league right-hander Jean Cosme, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com had first reported that Cosme was headed to the O’s in exchange for a pitcher off San Diego’s Major League roster.

San Diego also announced the previously-reported signing of reliever Fernando Rodney. The veteran, late-inning righty needed a 40-man spot, and he’ll take over for the departing Despaigne.

Despaigne, 28, is coming off a tough season with the Padres in which he posted a sky-high 5.80 ERA with 4.9 K/9, 2.3 BB.9 and a 50.5 percent ground-ball rate in 125 1/3 innings. While the ERA is certainly uninspiring, metrics such as FIP, xFIP and SIERA all pegged Despaigne more in the mid-4.00 range, with some of the ERA spike being attributed to an abnormally low number of runners stranded and a spike in his homer-to-flyball ratio. A year prior, Despaigne tossed 96 1/3 innings in his rookie season, compiling a considerably better 3.36 ERA with 6.1 K/9, 3.0 BB/9 and a 52.5 percent ground-ball rate. Despaigne has experience both in the rotation and the bullpen and will give Baltimore another arm for its rotation mix or serve as a candidate to compete for a swingman job out of the bullpen. As Kubatko noted, Despaigne also has minor league options remaining (three of them, to be exact), so he can be sent down to Triple-A and stored at Norfolk as a depth piece in the event that an injury arises.

From the Padres’ vantage point, Despaigne probably became expendable when the team added Carlos Villanueva to serve as a swingman/long reliever. Dennis Lin of the San Diego Union-Tribune points out (on Twitter) that the trade also frees up a spot on the 40-man roster for Fernando Rodney, whose one-year deal with San Diego has yet to be announced. Cosme is a 19-year-old out of Puerto Rico that Baltimore selected in the 17th round of the 2014 draft. He’s posted a 4.73 ERA with 8.7 K/9 against 3.2 BB/9 in 72 1/3 professional innings but did not rank among Baltimore’s Top 10 prospects this offseason, per Baseball America.

Of course, the broader move also ties in with the Rodney signing. He’ll join the Pads on an incentive-laden deal and look to rebound from a tough 2015 season. Soon to turn 39, Rodney’s ratios and results suffered last year. But he may have been somewhat unlucky in the volume of home runs he surrendered, and still brings a 95+ mph heater.

Orioles Designate C.J. Riefenhauser For Assignment

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The Orioles announced that they have designated left-handed reliever C.J. Riefenhauser for assignment in order to clear a spot on the 40-man roster for right-hander Odrisamer Despaigne, who was acquired from the Padres in a trade.

Riefenhauser has had an active offseason, initially going from the Rays to the Mariners in the Nate Karns/Brad Miller swap but spending less than a month as a member of the Rays before heading to the Orioles alongside Mark Trumbo in a trade that netted Seattle catcher Steve Clevenger (and saved about $9MM). He’ll now hit DFA limbo for the first time this offseason, during which time Baltimore can explore trades for the still-promising left-hander or attempt to sneak him through outright waivers (although there’s certainly a chance that Riefenhauser would be claimed by another organization).

The 26-year-old Riefenhauser has struggled in his brief exposure to the Majors, to be sure, having logged a 6.30 ERA in a limited sample of 20 innings. However, he’s also excelled at the minor league level, where he’s authored an outstanding 2.15 ERA with 8.7 K/9 against 3.2 BB/9 in parts of three seasons, totaling 113 innings of relief. Riefenhauser doesn’t light up the radar gun by any means, sitting around 89 mph, but that’s passable velocity for a southpaw, and there’s no denying that he dominated lefties between Triple-A and the Majors before a rocky 2015 season, holding them to a .430 OPS in what was a strong season. Scouting reports from Fangraphs, MLB.com and Baseball America have given Riefenhauser credit for at least an average fastball and average slider with a slightly below-average third offering in the form of his changeup. If he’s a two-pitch reliever, he could still carve out a role as a lefty specialist, one would think, though as MLB.com’s most recent scouting report on him indicated, he could take on a bigger bullpen role with some improvement in his changeup. Prior to the 2014 season, BA credited him with a plus heater/slider combo, though his velocity in the Majors has sat below the 91-93 mph mentioned in that scouting report.

Dodgers Announce Howie Kendrick Deal

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The Dodgers have announced the re-signing of infielder Howie Kendrick to a two-year contract. Reports suggested the deal will pay the veteran $20MM.

New details on the payout have been reported today by Jon Heyman (Twitter links). Kendrick will receive $10MM annually in each year of the contract, half of which will be deferred. But Heyman suggests that the deferrals won’t significantly reduce the contract’s value.

The 32-year-old Kendrick will also cost the Dodgers the opportunity to add another draft pick. He previously declined a $15.8MM qualifying offer, which obviously did not pay off in the end. But it’s hard to fault Kendrick and his reps for that decision, as he seemed to be in line for a much bigger payday; MLBTR’s Tim Dierkes, for instance, predicted that Kendrick could land $50MM over four years.. (And it isn’t as if the downside scenario is all that bad.)

Bringing back Kendrick not only plugs in a talented veteran, but effectively adds to the Dodgers’ already impressive depth. Going back to 2010, Kendrick owns an excellent.289/.332/.418 slash. His steady contributions at the plate have been accompanied by good-enough work in the field and on the bases, making him an above-average regular.

While Kendrick says he’s “thankful” to be returning to L.A., he also tells Bob Nightengale of USA Today that he was shocked at how his market played out. Interest was minimal despite his long track record of sturdy production, said Kendrick, with the QO-driven draft compensation seemingly proving a significant impediment.

“I figured there would be quite a few suitors for me, and nobody was really calling,” said Kendrick. “Here it is, getting close to spring training, and you keep hearing the same thing over and over. Nobody wanted to give up that draft pick. It was a shocker.’’

Indeed, while market peculiarities probably also played a role — including relatively low demand and several trade candidates — it is hard to deny the impact of the qualifying offer. Ben Zobrist was heavily pursued and earned a $56MM guarantee, while a lesser (albeit shortstop-capable) player in Asdrubal Cabrera earned nearly as much as Kendrick. While fellow QO recipient Daniel Murphy fared better, his own $37.5MM deal also came in shy of expectations.

Drew Smyly Wins Arbitration Hearing Over Rays

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Left-hander Drew Smyly and his agents at Frontline Athlete Management have won their arbitration hearing against the Rays, reports Jon Heyman (on Twitter). Because of the arbitration panel’s ruling, Smyly will earn $3.75MM in 2016 as opposed to the $3.2MM figure that had been submitted by the team.

This will be Smyly’s second trip through the arbitration process. As a Super Two player, he landed a $2.65MM salary last offseason and will be eligible for arbitration twice more before qualifying for free agency. Because his future salaries will be based off of his 2016 salary, that fact that he received the higher of the two possible sums in this hearing means that not only will he receive a greater salary in 2016, but his future salaries, too, will be based on a considerably more favorable launching point.

The sum in question at the hearing may seem relatively trivial to onlookers, although as several GMs and assistant GMs explained to MLBTR last year at this time, teams feel a responsibility to manage the arbitration market, as it is shared by all 30 clubs. Because all arbitration cases are built on recent historical comparables, the slight increases would eventually compound and become more significant were every team simply to give in to what appear, on the surface, to be relatively trivial amounts.

Orioles, Padres On Verge Of Trade; Cashner Not Involved

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The Orioles have traded minor league right-hander J.C. Cosme to the Padres in exchange for a pitcher on San Diego’s Major League roster, reports MASNsports.com’s Roch Kubatko (via Twitter), although he notes that Andrew Cashner is not in this deal. Kubatko has previously reported that the Orioles have some interest in Cashner.

While the details of the transaction in question are certainly open-ended, it seems safe to say that the deal won’t necessarily net the Orioles a major rotation component, unless other pieces are involved in the deal. Cosme is a 19-year-old out of Puerto Rico that Baltimore selected in the 17th round of the 2014 draft. He’s posted a 4.73 ERA with 8.7 K/9 against 3.2 BB/9 in 72 1/3 professional innings but did not rank among Baltimore’s Top 10 prospects this offseason, per Baseball America. Additionally, Cosme didn’t crack MLB.com’s most recent list of Top 30 Orioles prospects, although that list is due to be updated later this month.

The pitcher coming back to the Orioles has a minor league option remaining, Kubatko further tweets, suggesting that it may not be an arm that will definitively crack Baltimore’s Opening Day roster.

Orioles, Hideki Okajima Agree To Minor League Deal

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FEB. 4: Okajima can earn $1MM+ if he makes the roster and meets incentives in his contract, reports ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick (on Twitter).

FEB. 3: The Orioles and left-handed reliever Hideki Okajima have agreed to a minor league contract, reports Eduardo A. Encina of the Baltimore Sun. Okajima’s deal does not include an invite to Major League Spring Training, per Encina, so he’ll look to earn a spot in the bullpen at Triple-A Norfolk and eventually work his way back into the Major Leagues. Back in December, during the Winter Meetings, it was reported that Okajima was seeking a return to the Majors.

The 40-year-old Okajima’s deal marks his return to American baseball after spending the past two seasons in Japan. Were he to make the Orioles’ roster, it’d be Okajima’s first appearance in the Majors since a brief stint with the Athletics in 2013. Of course, Okajima is known much better for his time with the Red Sox, for whom he pitched from 2007-11. In parts of those five seasons, Okajima worked to a 3.11 ERA with 7.9 K/9 against 3.1 BB/9 to go along with a 36.8 percent ground-ball rate. Okajima was lethal against left-handed batters, holding them to a paltry .216/.277/.323 batting line in his time with the Red Sox. While right-handed batters fared better against Okajima, their collective .246/.323/.397 batting line wasn’t exactly impressive in its own right.

Okajima returned to Japan following the 2013 season and posted outstanding numbers with the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks — a 2.11 ERA with 36 strikeouts against 14 walks (four of which were intentional) in 42 1/3 innings. This past season, though, he threw just 7 1/3 innings with the Yokohama Bay Stars and surrendered seven runs.

It may take a particularly strong showing in Norfolk and/or some injuries around the organization to get Okajima a shot at the Major Leagues, as the Orioles have no shortage of lefties available. Southpaw Zach Britton has emerged as one of the game’s most effective closers, and the O’s have a number of left-handed options to bridge the gap from rotation to Britton in the form of Brian Matusz, T.J. McFarland and C.J. Riefenhauser. Beyond that, left-handers Chris Lee and Chris Jones are both already on the 40-man roster, and while each is a starter, it’s possible that Baltimore could bring either up and use them in the ’pen, temporarily, should the need arise throughout the year. Doing so would prevent them from having to make a 40-man roster move to add Okajima.

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