Free agent lefty C.J. Wilson, who missed the entire 2016 season due to shoulder surgery that repaired fraying in his labrum and rotator cuff, began a throwing program last month, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. The longtime Rangers and Angels hurler could work out for big league clubs at some point in February, Rosenthal adds.
Certainly, there’s cause for teams to express concern about a 36-year-old pitcher that has undergone not only the aforementioned shoulder surgery but also surgery to remove bone spurs from his pitching elbow since last setting foot on a Major League mound. However, Wilson has a lengthy track record of quality results in the American League West, and most recently pitched to a 3.89 ERA across 132 innings with the 2015 Halos.
Though he’s battled injuries in recent years, Wilson was a durable workhorse in Texas and Anaheim from 2010-14, averaging 33 starts and 204 innings per season while compiling a 3.56 earned run average with 7.9 K/9 against 3.8 BB/9. He’s traditionally displayed strong ground-ball tendencies, and while he’s long carried some degree of platoon split, he’s held right-handed batters in check well enough to maintain a rotation role since 2010. At worst, Wilson’s excellent track record against lefties (career .199/.284/.286 slash line) would seem to suggest that he could function as a bullpen piece if he’s able to prove healthy enough to return to the Majors this season. However, while Wilson is no stranger to the bullpen, having spent the first five years of his career working primarily in relief, I’d imagine a number of clubs will want to first give him a shot to return to the rotation.
It’s unlikely that any interested club would simply pencil Wilson into a rotation spot, but if he’s healthy enough to showcase for interested clubs next month, he should have the opportunity to audition for a team in Spring Training. Wilson has been linked to the Marlins on multiple occasions this winter, but while they still need a southpaw in the bullpen, they’ve since added Edinson Volquez and Jeff Locke to their rotation picture.
Wilson makes sense for most any team. Good buy low candidate. If he looks anything like the pitcher of old he could be flipped at the deadline if his team is out of contention.
Not the White Sox! His shoulder problems look a lot like those that ruined John Danks career and Wilson is much older.
He makes a lot of sense for the whitesox if he’s healthy. They can guarantee him innings and trade him if he doesn’t suck
The White Sox just signed Derek Holland to do that. Reportedly he is in a much better place physically than Wilson who sounds like a huge question mark by opening day or even by the summer trade deadline.
Unless Jose Quintana gets traded before the season commences, the White Sox rotation is pretty much set with veteran flip candidates like Miguel Gonzalez and James Shields, in addition to Holland. Carlos Rodon is the only long term core piece guaranteed a rotation spot on the opening day roster while near-ready prospects like Lucas Giolito, Reynaldo Lopez and Carson Fulmer gain additional experience at AAA Charlotte without accruing precious MLB service time before likely mid-summer promotions. Odds are also good that the White Sox will have other cheaper and healthier depth options available to them before spring training including veterans who can be inked to minor league deals with a spring training invite.
As a rebuilding team with a lot of near ready MLB prospect depth in the pitching ranks, the White Sox don’t need the risk associated with Wilson.
Their starting rotation consists of Q, Rodon, Gonzalez, and then Holland coming off injuries, James Shield’s corpse, and ?. Yeah, they have enough innings to try out a cj wilson or enough room to add him to their pen if he can’t start. And that’s even if they don’t trade Q. I’m not sure what you think they are going to get from Holland/Shields (innings wise, not even referring to talent), but that seems like a prime location to add another quesionable starter on the cheap
Why not White Sox? This is different than Danks who just got injured after a multi-year contract. Sox are a perfect fit, presuming Quintana is moved, for him. Give him a 1-year “prove-it” deal with the understanding that if he does prove he can still pitch he will be moved to a contender in July.
As I have already commented, Wilson offers too much health risk for a rebuilding White Sox team. They also don’t need the additional negative P.R. that will come from a fan base who have been down on the organization over the past several years and still rue the Danks signing, albeit with great hindsight.
Negative pr? He’s a short low risk signing type, he’s not getting a lengthy or expensive contract. If that’s what he wants, then yeah, no point for the WS to sign him, but I just don’t see that being a realistic option for him.
A rebuilding team should be trying to get low risk high reward injury risks. It makes a lot more sense for them than it does for a competing team.
With Wilson’s injury history including his recent surgeries, I have my doubts he will be ready to pitch in any rotation by opening day or even by the trade deadline when a rebuilding team would want to “flip” him. Therefore, at least in my mind, he has no value to a White Sox club that would likely be looking to promote some of their MLB ready pitching prospects by mid-summer.
However, I can envision a contending club signing a pitcher such as Wilson. He is a veteran with a good track record in the past and might provide depth to such a team’s rotation in the coming season.
The Cubs and Rangers, two obvious contenders, are both said to be finalists for Tyson Ross who is coming off of his own injury issues in 2016. The rebuilding Padres cut him loose prior to the December 2nd contract tender date because they apparently didn’t feel he was worth the risk to them in 2017. Unlike Wison, Ross will almost certainly receive a short term MLB contract. With the Cubs, Ross would provide rotation depth to a high quality staff that is short on MLB ready starting pitchers in their farm system. An older pitcher like Wilson could provide similar insurance for a contender. We are not talking about a pitcher here who would likely enter any team’s rotation at the outset of the season. He could be a low cost insurance policy for a contender but fairly worthless as a “flip” candidate for a rebuilding club.
When the White Sox signed veteran but injury prone Derek Holland to a short term MLB contract recently it was only because he passed the requisite physical given to him. The White Sox believe he will be able to step into their rotation by opening day. They view him as a potential Rich Hill in the coming season. I don’t think Wilson’s physical condition is anywhere near that of Holland or Ross at this point in time or even comparable to Hill’s last offseason heading into spring training. Wilson just began a throwing program last month and we should find out in the coming weeks or month his exact physical condition. I’m not at all optimistic about that outcome.
I’m smelling Billy over here, because of decreased market drop…lol
Except the A’s can’t guarantee him a spot. The rotation is already set for next year with lots of young and cost-controlled, high-upside arms. They couldn’t even guarantee CJ a spot in Nashville what with all the arms Brad Pitt has acquired over the last couple years.
and you guys seem too habe forgotten what he said about oakland that caused him to be booed so much…
Ok but let me know when he draws rave reviews
Remember when everyone complained about BigPapi4Ever ruining the comments section?
‘Rave reviews’ is the 2017 version.
Very much this
You got that right.
So it’s safe to say that BigPapi4ever’s comments did not draw rave reviews from you guys?
Lol oh god, the commenters on this site are the most uptight, old men.
Baseball talk is serious business
preach
Clearly some people have nothing better to do. Stop acknowledging it!
Bigpapi4evr was entertainment at its finest.
But you just acknowledged not acknowledging it
Pirates
This was my first thought too.
Cardinals pls
Wilson doesn’t get rave reviews at C or OF. clearly he can only pitch
He does get rave reviews on his hair though.
Hahah.
Absolutely stunning hair
Lol
No way the Rangers take this head case back. Tell Arte Moreno to pony up $200 mil and resign “The Edge”
The “Edge” will be too busy in 2017 with a new album and tour slated for 2017. He would never leave his pal “Bono” for any amount money which will surely exceed $200mm anyway.
Wasn’t he showing diminished velocity too? Before the injuries?
I wouldn’t mind if he would sign as a reliever. He could be useful there
This has Braves 1-year deal written all over it.
No it doesn’t
Yeah I have to think that the Braves are done with giving 1 year MLB contracts out to starting pitchers because they do also have some young pups that need a spot to develop…maybe a MiLB contract to see how he progresses but still doubtful IMO