MLBTR Originals

A look back at the original reporting and analysis found on MLBTR the last seven days:

• In the early stages of the offseason, free agents David Price, Johnny Cueto, and Jason Heyward all inked lucrative deals which included opt-out clauses.  In January, Matt Swartz wrote an article for MLBTR to approximate the value of those clauses.  Days ago, he offered his analysis of the opt-outs given to Yoenis Cespedes, Justin Upton, Scott Kazmir, Ian Kennedy, and Wei-Yin Chen.  While many in baseball criticize teams for giving opt-out clauses, Swartz estimates that in these five deals, teams would have had to fork over about 10 to 15 percent more in a straight forward deal.
• In part one of his interview with Dave Stewart, Brett Ballantini spoke with the D’Backs GM about his eventful offseason.  In Part II of the interview, Ballantini spoke with Stewart about his unusual path from player to powerful agent to general manager.
• The MLBTR Podcast last Thursday included play-by-play man Len Kasper on the Cubs and Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet.ca on the Blue Jays and the extension market.
• Speaking of Chen, the Marlins laid out big bucks to land the left-hander.  MLBTR’s Jeff Todd looked back on Miami’s offseason moves, including the Chen deal and Dee Gordon’s extension.
• To kickstart MLBTR’s brand new College Series, Chuck Wasserstrom interviewed Reds Senior Vice President/General Manager Dick Williams about his days at the University of Virginia.
• Charlie Wilmoth reflected on the Cardinals’ offseason including the loss of Heyward and John Lackey to a division rival. Will additions to rotation and bullpen be enough?
• Mark Polishuk analyzed the Yankees’ unlikely offseason. The infamous big spenders committed $0 to major league free agents. They did make a number of notable trades, acquiring Aroldis Chapman, Aaron Hicks, and Starlin Castro in three separate moves.
• Mark also offered his take on the Blue Jays offseason which began with an unexpected need to replace former GM Alex Anthopoulos after their most successful season in over two decades.
• On Saturday, MLBTR was the first to report that Alex Presley would not make the Brewers and has a 48-hour window to be signed elsewhere.
• On Sunday, MLBTR was the first to report on the deal sending Chris Leroux from the Phillies to the Blue Jays.
• MLBTR was also the first to report the Dodgers signing of reliever Dale Thayer to a minor league contract. Earlier in the week Thayer had opted out of a minors deal with the Orioles.