Justin Verlander doesn’t plan on shutting it down any time soon, it seems. Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle quotes Verlander in a tweet: “I’m going to play until the wheels fall off.” In 2018, Verlander surpassed 200 innings and 200 strikeouts for the third straight season while accumulating 6.8 fWAR and achieving a career-best 3.03 xFIP. In other words, the wheels are secure. Verlander’s current deal runs one more season in Houston at $28MM, after which he will become a free agent in advance of his age-37 season.
More from around the American League…
- In another quote posted by Rome (via Twitter), starter Lance McCullers Jr. suggests that he and the Astros will be examining the state of his current health in the next couple of weeks. With rumblings about his arm health, McCullers addressed a potential injury by admitting that he’s “been pitching through some stuff.” The 25-year-old McCullers has never started more than 22 games in a season, but nevertheless he’s been a valuable swingman for Houston’s recent playoff runs, starting three postseason games while pitching in relief seven times over the past two Octobers. McCullers is arbitration eligible for the second time this offseason, though as a Super Two player, he is not due to be a free agent until after the 2021 season.
- It’s not the sexiest of front office work, but the Orioles face a significant challenge in shaping their 40-man roster in advance of the Nov. 30 non-tender deadline. Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com notes (via Twitter) that the 40-man roster, currently full, will require some finagling to open a minimum of four spots for pitchers Dillon Tate, Luis Gonzalez, Branden Kline, and catcher Martin Cervenka. Additionally, there are five other players currently on the O’s 60-day DL who will need to be added back to the 40-man if Baltimore wants to keep them. Those players – Richard Bleier, Pedro Araujo, Gabriel Ynoa, Mark Trumbo, and Austin Hays – figure to make the roster, with Ynoa being the most likely of the group to be let go. One spot should open when Adam Jones files for free agency, but that still leaves eight players Baltimore will need to non-tender, trade, or waive prior to December’s Rule 5 draft.
When you have a rebuild as big as the one Baltimore is about to go on there has to be more open 40 man spots. What a mess
A lot of obvious waiver guys, just filling spots for the season on there tho. Corban Joseph, Jace Peterson, Renato Nunez, Engelb Vielma, John Andreoli
When you have a year as bad as the O’s did I feel like having to clear eight roster spots is a blessing and not a curse.
Jace Peterson and Caleb Joseph will be non tendered. Tim Beckham will likely be non tendered. There’s 3 more. We have 4A players like John andreoli, Engelb vielma , and even Joey Rickard who can be let go. We have a slew of DFA candidates at pitcher. Mike wright, Araujo, Gilmartin, Donnie hart. Shouldn’t be hard to whittle it down.
Beckam…good utility guy with some pop, that was slowed by injuries this year? I don’t think so
Definitely shouldn’t cut Beckham. You need infield depth plus he’s a starter for the O’s right now
Don’t be shocked when it happens. I think it’s more likely than not. He’ll need to be replaced obviously but I think we want to go in a different direction at short. Nor will we pay a utility man 5 mil on a non contender. There’s a shot he stays but a very real chance he goes.
Beckham was a disappointment for O’s this year. Versatile (could even play outfield down the road) and has some
pop but poor defensively.
Not exactly on the same level as the Padres, e.g. face……But every fan base goes through this every November, not appreciating that MOST 40-mans have about 5 guys that can be jettisoned, and ignored.
I really hope Verlander doesn’t play until “the wheels fall off.” It’s never fun to watch a former star struggle in their old age. Don’t get me wrong, he clearly still has something in the tank and has a few solid years ahead of him but I hope he goes out on his own terms as a star rather than waiting for teams to only offer him a minor league deal. I remember a while ago Mussina ended his career on a solid year and I’m still left with a good deal of respect for the guy.
You said “I hope he goes out on his own terms” but then you don’t want him to do that very thing. If his terms are when the wheels fall off, then so be it.
At his age he doesn’t know what he’ll have from one year to the next. Next year he could implode or be lights out. He isn’t going to just hang them up because of what might happen. But when Father Time catches up he’ll finish that season and walk away. I think that’s all he means by that
JV will be just like Smoltz and be effective in the bullpen towards then end of his career.
Saw this: Verlander loves the number 3 so much, he gave up a 3 run homer to a 3rd baseman in the 3rd home game of the ALCS in his 3rd time pitching this post season.
Ken M: It was clearly set up by the Illuminati!
Ok, so the Orioles are the new Astros right? In a tough division, will probably get a top 5 pick for 5-6 years. If they have a good scouting dept they could be good in 8-9 years and become the next super team, but a lot of things have to go right.
Hopefully
Bizarre as it sounds, it may take 8-9 years. The Sox and Yanks both have young cores, with the Yanks having more coming. The Jays have at least 2 impact type talents coming, along with some secondary pieces. The Rays have some decent pieces coming, and real impact types at low-A and below; Wander Franco is for real (Vlad Jr.-type), and guys like Brujan, Gomez, Hernandez are Libertore are really good.
The O’s have some OK, high floor-low ceiling types, which is at least a beginning; better than it was. But they need some real impact types. Altho the O’s system is chronically under-rated, they really have suffered from some ho-hum drafting, and their complete disregard for the international market.
It actually should be fun to see how they navigate through.
The Sox don’t have a farm system anymore. They traded them away for sale and Kimbrel. After this year they will start to trend downward. Paying high$ for players and releases them. 230mm payroll is going to handcuff them Will be avg at best in 2 yrs. their window is closing. DD is a TERRIBLE GM. Did it Detroit. Bos will be fighting for 4th place w/ Balt in3 yrs
Nice try. All those moves, even if DD made 3 more of them, are worth a trip to the WS, where they’ll be favored. DD now brings his third different team to the WS, a feat accomplished only by him and the sainted Branch Rickey.
Bogaerts is 26, Betts is 26, Benetendi is 24, Devers is 21 (younger than 80% of PROSPECTS other teams have). They’re not going anywhere soon.
Ya, they’ve got a lot of revenue that they reinvest into the team; there are fans everywhere who wish their FOs made those kind of investments. The Spanks, who have FAR more revenue, have buffaloed their fans into worrying about Luxury Tax; a nice dodge, profitable, but doesn’t show half the commitment the Sox do to produce a winner.
Betts may very well leave; JD may very well far off rapidly. But they’ll adjust. All you can ask for.
They have a very real chance of losing some combination of Betts, Bogaerts, and Sale over the next couple of years. They need to win now because they won’t be able to adjust after so many key departures.
And I’ll take that anyway over being a playoff team that can’t get to the WS because they chose to keep a couple prospects over getting a guy like sale. And honestly to date the prospects they’ve shipped out haven’t amounted to much of anything at all. There’s plenty of time for that to change but I’ll take Sale anyday. Margot and Guerra for Kimbrel was certainy a huge win for the Sox. They’d probably like to have the Pomeranz deal back but that’ll happen.
I’m sure DD would like to have the Pomerantz deal back….along with the Thornburg one. And probably a few others that skip my mind right now.
Does that mean we repeat the litany of disasters Theo has presided over? They’re both excellent GMs. When you do a lot of things, sometimes you do them wrong. It happens. The only “perfect” GMs will all be sitting home next week.
Ya I do Sale, Kimbrell (yeeech!) every day of the week….as John Maddon used to say, “Load the wagon; don’t worry about the horse being blind”. Or as Wimpy would say, “I’d gladly pay you tomorow for a hamburger today” (a cookie for those who get the reference).
Whatever’s coming down the pike, they’ll adjust. John Henry has shown a commitment to winning like few others. And that’s step #1. Or would you rather worry about whether George Steinbrenner XVI has to get his baby rattle at Wal-Mart instead of “Les Enfant Unique”.
The last few years it was the rebuilding teams that won the series, this year it could be the big market teams in the series. Bottom line is you need great players and some luck. The playoffs are outlier!
There’s also a real chance the Red Sox aren’t in as good of a spot as the stros or Yankees because they don’t have a pipeline of talent to deal from or reap the rewards from. Doesn’t mean the deals they made weren’t the right moves it’s just reality. Few teams can be WS contenders every single year. Their bullpen needs work. They need to find a long term 2B and they’ll need to find one more starter for the long term. They’ll have to do a lot of things right in the coming years but they have a strong foundation.
Out of those first four pitchers the only one I am really attached to is Tate. The other guys I wouldn’t mind losing.
Can’t let Kline go. Legitimate chance to be a quality reliever. Let mike wright go well before that.
What type of contract do you think Justin Verlander-Upton will be looking for if he continues to pitch at his 2018 level? It would be starting his age-38 season, but would you give him three years if he continues to pitch at an elite level?
He’d take one year contracts at that age. Maybe a 2 year. Prob $20 mil+ per if he pitches the way he has been
Someone on here compared what the O’s are about to get into to what the Astros did leading up to this run they are on. The big difference is, the Astros weren’t in a division with teams like the Yankees and Sax. 8-9 years is feasible for contention, if they hit on a large number of draft picks. They also will have to reverse their view(s) on the international signing structure.
Well actually, leading up to it, the Astros were with the Cubs, Cardinals, and Reds. Reds and Cardinals were prominent at the time, with the Cubs in a rebuild (but are still a large market team) Astros caught a break by switching divisions and going to a division with no real “large market” teams other than Texas and to an extent, Anaheim.
Don’t despair, O’s fans. And it may not take (shouldn’t take) 8-9 years to be competitive. There’s more than one way to “rebuild” and become competitive. Even in that division.
History seems to show more last place teams continuing to languish, than last place teams picking well enough with their draft picks to rebound to the playoffs in a timely fashion. As long as first round picks barely have a 50% success rate of becoming regulars (not stars), I won’t understand the logic of the “tank” rebuild.
The “tanking thing” is just creative marketing and corporate BS. If it wasn’t, then the owner would say, “Hey, we’re gonna be good in three years. So you get a 66% discount on all tickets this year, and 33% next year”. Let me know when you hear that.
And you’re 100% correct; having high draft choices doesn’t mean you’re going to hit on them. Granted, the Rays and Reds have financial limitations, but (until PERHAPS recently), their respective draft histories and forays into the international markets have been terrible.
Things haven’t changed much; it’s still matter of scouting, signing and development. These days, with Draft bonus “slotting’ and International “capping”, it boils down to those organizations that can do those things.
It’s still about scouting and development. Always has been; always will be.
Makes the Gausman trade look worse as the international money was going to be used to sign these guys.