Latest On Edwin Encarnacion’s Market
The Blue Jays’ four-year, $80MM offer to Edwin Encarnacion has been taken off the table, FOX Sports’ Ken Rosenthal reports (Twitter link). Though that initial offer — made before Toronto signed Kendrys Morales — no longer stands, the Jays are reportedly still interested in Encarnacion’s services, according to FanRag Sports’ Jon Heyman (Twitter link). Encarnacion is still “in play” for the Jays, Rangers and potentially two National League teams, who have called about the slugger with an eye towards using him as an everyday first baseman.
It probably isn’t a surprise that the Jays withdrew their offer in the wake of the Morales signing, as according to Encarnacion’s agent Paul Kinzer earlier this week, the two sides hadn’t talked numbers since that initial offer. Other teams had made offers, though Toronto was “showing Edwin the most love,” in Kinzer’s words. As Rosenthal notes in another tweet, however, the Blue Jays are also still exploring the outfield market, and they could forego re-signing Encarnacion if they land a big-ticket outfielder like Dexter Fowler.
Kinzer has also indicated that he and his client could be looking for five years and as much as a $25MM average annual value, though those comments are now almost a month old. Five years in the $125MM range may have been a high target anyway (MLBTR’s Tim Dierkes projected Encarnacion to land four years and $92MM) and it could be an even longer shot given that Encarnacion’s market seems to have shrunk in recent days. The Red Sox don’t seem to be in hot pursuit given their reluctance to surpass the luxury tax threshold again, while the Astros and Yankees have addressed their DH needs with less-costly one-year deals with Carlos Beltran and Matt Holliday, respectively.
In regards to the Rangers, GM Jon Daniels told reporters (including the Fort Worth Star-Telegram’s Jeff Wilson) today that the team was more likely to use internal options like Jurickson Profar, Joey Gallo or Ryan Rua to handle first base than a free agent. This could, of course, be some negotiating gamesmanship on Daniels’ part, as entrusting both the first base and DH spots to those inexperienced players would seem like an odd move for a contender, notwithstanding Profar and Gallo’s blue-chip prospect status.
As I noted in my Encarnacion free agent profile, the Orioles, White Sox, Rockies and Marlins make some sense as speculative fits for the slugger, though it isn’t known whether any of those teams are willing or financially able to make such a big splash. Among NL teams, even Miami is something of a longshot since the Fish are more apt to be looking for a right-handed complement to Justin Bour (who had quite a solid season) rather than an outright replacement. Unless a first base job opens up due to an injury or another trade, there doesn’t seem to be much room for Encarnacion within the National League.
Dodgers, Rich Hill Nearing Agreement
SUNDAY, 7:09pm: An official announcement from the Dodgers about a Hill agreement isn’t likely to happen tonight, Andy McCullough tweets.
SATURDAY, 6:48pm: The Dodgers and Hill are “closing in” on a contract, tweets Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register. They’re unlikely to reach an agreement today, per Andy McCullough of the Los Angeles Times, though he corroborates Plunkett’s report that a deal is forthcoming (Twitter link). The Dodgers aren’t facing much of any competition from Hill’s previously reported suitors – the Astros, Rangers or Yankees – according to FanRag’s Jon Heyman.
4:02pm: Another team who tried to negotiate a deal with free agent starter Rich Hill believes the lefty has a three-year contract worth $40MM or more in place with the Dodgers, Peter Gammons tweets. Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe tells a similar story, saying the Dodgers might already have a deal in place for Hill for three years and $46MM-$48MM. Cafardo, though, emphasizes the possibility that one of a number of East Coast teams could still sign him. No move has been confirmed by Hill or the Dodgers at this point, however.
The latest rumors about Hill had the Dodgers as one of four teams bidding for his services, along with the Yankees, Rangers and Astros. The Red Sox and Orioles were also believed to be interested. Hill, of course, is coming off an outstanding age-36 season with the Athletics and Dodgers during which he posted a 2.12 ERA, 10.5 K/9 and 2.7 BB/9 in 110 1/3 innings, including a start in which he was pulled a perfect game after seven innings. His performance in 2016 landed him the No. 14 spot on MLBTR’s list of the top 50 free agents, making him one of the top starters available.
The downsides with Hill are his age and his lengthy injury history — even in his 2016 breakout campaign, he dealt with blister problems and a groin injury. As Andy McCullough of the Los Angeles Times points out via Twitter, though, the Dodgers’ depth puts them in position to take advantage of Hill’s upside while minimizing their risk if he’s not available to pitch. Particularly given Hill’s vanishingly low 2016 home run rate of 0.33 per nine innings, there’s reason to be somewhat skeptical of his ability to repeat his incredible performance last season. He could regress a fair amount in the next couple years and still be a vital contributor, however, and if he does return to the Dodgers, he should provide their rotation with a healthy boost if he’s able to stay healthy.
For Hill, a $40MM-plus contract would represent an enormous financial windfall — he has spent most of his career as a journeyman and has never had a long-term deal. He’s also never made more in a season than the $6MM he made last year.
The Dodgers are currently dealing with debt issues, but those issues seem unlikely to prevent them from pursuing a free agent of Hill’s stature, and the team has not been required to reduce its payroll. In addition to Hill, the team has also been fleetingly linked to other potentially expensive or relatively expensive players like Aroldis Chapman and Andrew McCutchen.
Latest On Chris Sale’s Trade Market
5:45pm: Rangers GM Jon Daniels told reporters (including Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram) that his team isn’t looking at the trades like the blockbuster that brought Cole Hamels to Texas in 2015, which would seem to confirm that the Rangers indeed aren’t in on Sale right now.
SUNDAY, 1:40pm: Mark Bowman of MLB.com joins Heyman in reporting that the Braves aren’t willing to give up Swanson, whom the White Sox covet. Discussions between the two teams aren’t leading anywhere as a result (Twitter link). While it won’t surrender Swanson, Atlanta would consider parting with Albies, per Joel Sherman of the New York Post (via Twitter).
10:51am: The Braves have deemed Swanson untouchable in trade talks, while the Nationals have likely done the same with shortstop/center fielder Trea Turner, reports Heyman.
SATURDAY: The Braves have already added three starting pitchers in Bartolo Colon, R.A. Dickey and Jaime Garcia early this offseason, and they’re now trying to swing a trade with the White Sox for ace Chris Sale, according to Fanrag’s Jon Heyman. However, there’s competition in the form of the Astros, Nationals, Red Sox, Rangers and Dodgers, writes Heyman, who notes that Los Angeles is lagging behind because it’s hesitant to deal any of its top prospects.
The Dodgers are more focused on bolstering their rotation through free agency than trades, tweets FOX Sports’ Ken Rosenthal, which aligns with a report from earlier Saturday that they have a deal in place to re-sign left-hander Rich Hill. Contrary to Heyman, Rosenthal relays that the Astros and Rangers are out on Sale at the White Sox’s current asking price. And while the Red Sox are involved, they’re also reluctant to meet Chicago’s demands (Twitter link).
After agreeing to sign outfielder/designated hitter Carlos Beltran on Saturday, Astros owner Jim Crane told Mark Berman of FOX 26 that the team will go into the winter meetings seeking pitching, but it’s unlikely to make any “big moves” (Twitter link). That would seem to rule out a Sale acquisition for Houston.
Based on reports from Heyman and Rosenthal, both the Braves and National League East rival Nats – who are continuing their discussions with the Pirates regarding center fielder Andrew McCutchen, per Rosenthal – are among the front-runners for Sale.
It’s unlikely the Braves would include prized young shortstop Dansby Swanson in a trade, Heyman suggests, but the belief is that they have the pieces to make a deal happen. Atlanta has major league trade chips in center fielder Ender Inciarte and right-hander Mike Foltynewicz, not to mention a well-regarded prospect pool that features the likes of middle infielder Ozzie Albies, southpaws Sean Newcomb and Kolby Allard, and righties Mike Soroka and Touki Toussaint. Baseball America included all five of those players in its Midseason Top 100 prospects list.
Mets Notes: Rosario, Conforto, D’Arnaud, Bullpen
By re-signing Yoenis Cespedes, the Mets have already accomplished their primary offseason goal before the Winter Meetings have even begun, Joel Sherman of the New York Post writes. That doesn’t mean, of course, that the Amazins will be sitting back for the rest of the winter, though a team executive tells Sherman that without a long list of needs, the Mets have added flexibility to explore more creative upgrades. Here’s some more from Citi Field…
- In that spirit of creativity, that same Mets executive tells Sherman that the team is open to discussing trades for any of their young players, except for top prospect Amed Rosario. This doesn’t mean the Mets will necessarily shop any minor league or controllable talent, though they’re at least willing to hear what other clubs have to offer. The Mets will even listen to offers about Michael Conforto, if for no other reason than to gauge his value, even if Conforto is considered to be close to untouchable. Dealing Conforto would be another way the Mets could solve their outfield logjam, and Conforto would net a much larger return than either Jay Bruce or Curtis Granderson.
- The Mets’ plan to stick with Travis d’Arnaud as their primary catcher in 2017, and those plans haven’t been changed by other catchers (such as Welington Castillo) coming onto the market, ESPN New York’s Adam Rubin reports. The injury-plagued d’Arnaud was limited to just 75 games last season, and he was reportedly included in trade talks the Mets held with the Brewers last summer involving Jonathan Lucroy.
- In another item from Rubin, the Mets are looking to sign middle relievers to one-year deals, as GM Sandy Alderson has said that the team isn’t looking for closers. If or when Jeurys Familia is suspended, New York already has Addison Reed to step in as the ninth-inning man. If the Mets aren’t willing to commit to more a single year, however, it could limit their list of choices on the open market to second- or even third-tier options.
- The Mets could also turn to internal choices for the bullpen, as Alderson told reporters (including Newsday’s David Lennon) that the club would “definitely” thinking about using Zack Wheeler, Robert Gsellman or Seth Lugo as relievers for the start of the season.
Market Notes: EE, Braves, Archer, Tigers, Royals, Mets, Ziegler
Free agent designated hitter/first baseman Edwin Encarnacion will probably agree to a deal during the winter meetings, agent Paul Kinzer told Joel Sherman of the New York Post on Sunday (Twitter link). Negotiations between Encarnacion and interested teams have intensified since Major League Baseball and the players’ union reached a new collective bargaining agreement Wednesday, Kinzer revealed. Given that the Astros are signing Carlos Beltran and the Red Sox are reportedly falling out of contention for Encarnacion, it seems the slugger’s group of suitors has shrunk this weekend.
More on the free agent and trade markets:
- If the Braves acquire an ace, it’s more likely to be the Rays’ Chris Archer than the White Sox’s Chris Sale, tweets Mark Bowman of MLB.com. However, the Rays’ current asking price “far exceeds” what Atlanta is willing to pay, Bowman adds. The Braves have run into a similar problem with the White Sox regarding Sale.
- Although Detroit general manager Al Avila stated in October that the team has been spending “above its means,” the Tigers aren’t necessarily in payroll-slashing mode, one of their executives informed Sherman (Twitter link). Rather, they only intend to trade high-priced veterans if the right deals come along. The Tigers are currently planning on contending in 2017, per the executive. That makes sense considering they’re part of a division which already includes one rebuilding team, the Twins, and could feature two more if the Royals and White Sox decide their windows have closed.
- The new CBA is a negative for the Royals, opines Sherman, who reports (via Twitter) that their executives will meet Sunday night to discuss which path to take this offseason. The club has several integral contributors entering contract years, namely left-hander Danny Duffy, closer Wade Davis, outfielders Lorenzo Cain and Jarrod Dyson, first baseman Eric Hosmer, third baseman Mike Moustakas and shortstop Alcides Escobar. It stands to reason the 2015 World Series champions could part with at least some of those players in the coming months.
- The idea of the Mets trading both Curtis Granderson and Jay Bruce came up Saturday, but the team is “unlikely” to deal multiple outfielders, GM Sandy Alderson said Sunday. The likelihood is that Bruce will end up on the move, relays Anthony DiComo of MLB.com, as Alderson noted Granderson’s importance to the Mets (Twitter links). New York isn’t progressing toward jettisoning an outfielder yet, according to Buster Olney of ESPN (Twitter link). In a perfect world, the Mets would acquire bullpen help in return for Granderson or Bruce. Their best reliever, closer Jeurys Familia, could face a domestic violence suspension in 2017, and top southpaw Jerry Blevins is a free agent.
- Thirteen teams have checked in on free agent reliever Brad Ziegler, reports Olney (Twitter link). One of those clubs is Arizona, Ziegler’s longtime employer. When it comes to available relievers, the lion’s share of attention has understandably gone to Aroldis Chapman, Kenley Jansen and Mark Melancon. Ziegler has more than held his own since debuting in 2008, though, with a 2.44 ERA and 66.3 percent ground-ball rate across 596 2/3 innings. The 37-year-old ended 2016 as a setup man with Boston, but he was previously the D-backs’ closer and combined for 48 saves from 2015 through the midway point of last season.
Latest On Big Three Free Agent Relievers
SUNDAY: The Marlins might be the mystery team vying for Melancon, writes FanRag’s Jon Heyman. Despite its payroll limitations, Miami is committed to building an elite bullpen and is also chasing Jansen, as Heyman first reported last month, and Chapman. As of a couple weeks ago, the Marlins were “highly unlikely” to land Chapman, per one of his associates.
SATURDAY, 9:49pm: Melancon has four-year offers worth upward of $60MM from the Giants, Nationals and perhaps one other team, reports Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. The Giants have likely made the strongest offer, tweets Rosenthal.
2:17pm: The Giants are still on the lookout for a closer, and are more likely to find one via the free agent market rather than a trade, ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick writes (all Twitter links). Giants GM Bobby Evans says the team likes all of the so-called Big Three options, which include Aroldis Chapman, Kenley Jansen and Mark Melancon.
Crasnick further notes that Melancon might make the most sense of the bunch since they pursued him last summer and since he should cost less than Chapman or Jansen. (Also, unlike Jansen, Melancon would not require the loss of a draft pick.) The Giants met last month with the agents of all three players.
Melancon is coming off a terrific season with the Pirates and Nationals in which he posted a 1.64 ERA, 8.2 K/9 and 1.5 BB/9 with a strong 54.2 ground ball percentage. He doesn’t have the dominating strikeout totals of Chapman or Jansen, but his results speak for themselves. The Nationals have also reportedly pursued him this winter, and his market has been surprisingly robust, with guesses about what he might be able to get trending upward to the four-year/$60-million range.
Red Sox Interested In Pedro Alvarez
In the wake of David Ortiz‘s retirement, the Red Sox have cast a wide net in their search for a designated hitter and now have interest in free agent DH/corner infielder Pedro Alvarez, reports FanRag’s Jon Heyman.
Boston is familiar with Alvarez, who spent the 2016 season with the AL East rival Orioles. The powerful Alvarez hit .249/.322/.504 with 22 home runs in 376 plate appearances with Baltimore, and recorded the majors’ 20th-highest ISO (.255) among those with at least 350 PAs.
Before joining the Orioles on a $5.75MM deal last winter, Alvarez spent the first six years of his career in Pittsburgh, but he only became a Pirate after electing against signing with the Red Sox in 2005. Back then, Boston used a 14th-round draft pick on Alvarez, who instead chose to play college baseball at Vanderbilt. That proved to be a wise move, as Alvarez ended up going second overall in the 2008 draft on the heels of a stellar college career.
As a member of the Pirates, Alvarez batted .236/.309/.441 in 2,784 trips to the plate in parts of six seasons and finished with at least 25 homers in three different campaigns. The lefty-swinging Alvarez had serious trouble with southpaw pitchers in Pittsburgh, though, which was also the case last season. Since he cracked the majors in 2010, lefties have held the 29-year-old Alvarez to a .205/.271/.334 line in 605 PAs. Notably, in-house Red Sox DH candidate Pablo Sandoval has also fared poorly against lefties during his career. However, Boston does have southpaw-mashing outfielder Chris Young on hand as a potential platoon partner for either.
Aside from Alvarez, other available DH types who have drawn Boston’s interest this offseason include Edwin Encarnacion, Matt Holliday and Mike Napoli. The Red Sox are likely out of the Encarnacion sweepstakes because of a reluctance to spend past the $195MM luxury-tax threshold, though.
Trade/FA Notes: Cards, Hudson, Bucs, Red Sox, Mets, Ross
Opposing teams bring up right-handers Carlos Martinez and Alex Reyes more than any other Cardinals in trade talks, general manager John Mozeliak told Rick Hummel of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Unsurprisingly, though, the Redbirds are “extremely unlikely” to deal either, said Mozeliak. The Cardinals were interested in extending Martinez as of October. For now, Martinez is arbitration eligible for the first time, with MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projecting a $5.3MM award. The 22-year-old Reyes, on the other hand, won’t hit arbitration until after the 2019 season. Mozeliak is focusing on helping Martinez, Reyes and the rest of the Cardinals’ pitchers by improving the team’s defense this offseason, which he realizes “took a step backwards” in 2016. “We put a lot of stress on our pitchers this past year. Our whole staff is defined by ground balls. It’s a pretty simple leap to say that if we play better defense, we’re going to win more games,” he commented.
More rumblings:
- Sixteen teams have shown interest in free agent reliever Daniel Hudson, tweets Jon Heyman of FanRag. One of those clubs is the Diamondbacks, with whom the right-hander pitched from 2010-16. With a 5.22 ERA in 60 1/3 innings, the two-time Tommy John surgery recipient struggled to prevent runs last season, but he did show impressive velocity and post respectable strikeout (8.65) and walk (3.28) rates per nine.
- The Pirates are willing to pay some of left-handed reliever Antonio Bastardo‘s $6.5MM salary for 2017 in order to trade him, per Bill Brink of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Bastardo’s coming off a disappointing year spent with the Mets and Bucs, as he logged a 4.52 ERA in 67 2/3 innings and allowed a .253/.321/.495 line to lefty hitters. He’s currently one of four southpaws in Pittsburgh’s bullpen, joining Tony Watson, Felipe Rivero and Wade LeBlanc.
- In the event the Red Sox prefer a left-handed hitter to take over their vacant designated hitter job, they could attempt to acquire Jay Bruce or Curtis Granderson from the Mets, writes Scott Lauber of ESPN.com. The Mets look likely to trade at least one of the two outfielders this offseason, perhaps as early as the winter meetings.
- Free agent righty Tyson Ross will take his time signing with a team, tweets Peter Gammons, who notes that the 29-year-old should recover from October surgery for thoracic outlet syndrome between February and April. The Padres non-tendered Ross on Friday after he missed nearly all of last season with shoulder troubles.
Minor MLB Transactions: 12/4/16
Sunday’s minor moves from around baseball:
- The Braves have announced a one-year major league agreement with left-handed reliever Jacob Lindgren, whom the Yankees non-tendered Friday. The 2014 second-round pick briefly cracked the majors in 2015, but elbow issues limited him both that year and this past season. Lindgren threw just seven innings in 2016 – all with the Yankees’ High-A affiliate – before undergoing Tommy John surgery in August. The 23-year-old could miss all of next season while recovering from the procedure, but the Braves will retain his rights beyond then if he’s on their 40-man roster, as ESPN’s Keith Law notes (via Twitter).
- Two days after the Reds non-tendered Gabby Guerrero, the club has re-signed the outfielder to a minor league deal, according to Zach Buchanan of the Cincinnati Enquirer (Twitter link). The Reds claimed the nephew of former major league star Vladimir Guerrero off waivers from the Diamondbacks last week. The soon-to-be 23-year-old was a well-regarded prospect with the Mariners at one time, but he struggled with the Seattle and Arizona organizations over the past two seasons. Guerrero posted a .223/.258/.346 line in 488 Double-A plate appearances in 2015, when he was part of a trade involving Mark Trumbo and Welington Castillo, and stumbled to a combined .234/.281/.383 showing with the D-backs’ Double-A and Triple-A affiliates last season.
Cafardo’s Latest: Holliday, Turner, Astros, Royals, Tigers
The Red Sox have reached out to agent Scott Boras regarding free agent Matt Holliday, reports Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe. The soon-to-be 37-year-old has played the outfield almost exclusively in his career as a member of the Rockies, Athletics and Cardinals, but it’s likely he’d serve as a designated hitter for the David Ortiz-less Red Sox. Holliday would be a reasonably priced option for a Boston team that’s reluctant to spend past the $195MM luxury-tax threshold, though his numbers fell off last year in St. Louis. The career .303/.382/.515 hitter dealt with injuries and batted a so-so .246/.322/.461 in 426 plate appearances. He did swat at least 20 home runs for the 10th time, however.
More from Cafardo:
- Third baseman Justin Turner, arguably the best player left on the market, is likely to re-sign with the Dodgers, according to Cafardo. Aside from the Cardinals showing some degree of interest in Turner, there hasn’t been much chatter regarding the 32-year-old to this point. MLBTR’s Tim Dierkes predicts Turner will return to the Dodgers on a five-year, $85MM deal after a season in which he slashed .275/.339/.493, totaled 5.6 fWAR, and set career highs in plate appearances (622) and home runs (27).
- The Astros are willing to listen to offers for catcher/designated hitter Evan Gattis and right-hander Collin McHugh, per Cafardo. Gattis, who has two years of team control left and will make $5.2MM in 2017, has perhaps become movable with the Astros having added catcher Brian McCann and DH/outfielder Carlos Beltran this offseason. The Astros don’t seem as well off in their rotation, even after signing Charlie Morton, and the 29-year-old McHugh led the team in innings pitched (184 1/3) this past season and posted decent numbers (4.34 ERA, 8.63 K/9, 2.63 BB/9). MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projects a $4.6MM salary in 2017 for McHugh, who will make his first of three trips through arbitration.
- The Royals could trade both star closer Wade Davis and outfielder Jarrod Dyson within the next week, writes Cafardo. From a financial standpoint, Davis would certainly represent a cheaper option than top-tier free agent closers Aroldis Chapman, Kenley Jansen and Mark Melancon, as he’s due a reasonable $10MM next season – the final year of his contract. Teams have expressed interest in Davis since the summer, while the speedy, defensively adept Dyson is also on clubs’ radars. Like Davis, Dyson is set to become a free agent after next season. Swartz projects a $2.5MM salary for him in 2017.
- Roughly 10 teams have contacted free agent right-hander Jason Hammel‘s representative, Alan Nero, according to Cafardo. Although the 34-year-old Hammel is fresh off three straight solid seasons, the Cubs declined his 2017 option last month. That came at an opportune time for Hammel, who should be in line for a multiyear deal as one of the top starters in a weak free agent class.
- Given that they’re aiming to slash payroll and get younger, the Tigers are willing to deal closer Francisco Rodriguez, relays Cafardo. K-Rod is due $6MM next year, his age-35 season, after converting 44 of 49 save chances and logging a 3.24 ERA, 8.02 K/9, 3.24 BB/9 and career-high 54.7 percent ground-ball rate in 58 1/3 innings in 2016.