The Astros announced that they’ve declined their $15MM option on catcher Brian McCann and sent right-hander Jandel Gustave outright to Triple-A after he cleared waivers. Both players will become free agents. Their 40-man roster currently has seven open spots.
McCann, 34, gave the Astros a much-needed quality option behind the plate in 2017 following an offseason trade from the Yankees. But after hitting .241/.323/.436 with 18 home runs in his first season with Houston, his production fell off in 2018. This past season saw the seven-time All-Star and 14-year veteran bat just .212/.301/.339 with seven homers in 216 trips to the dish. McCann spent significant time on the disabled list in ’18 as well, logging more than two months on the shelf due to knee issues that required surgical repair.
Gustave, 26, missed the 2018 season recovering from Tommy John surgery performed back in late June of 2017. Certainly, the Astros were hoping that he’d be able to return to the club late in the 2018 campaign — hence rostering him all last offseason — but he’ll now hit free agency and have the ability to sign with any team of his choosing. Of course, he could very well opt to re-sign a minor league deal in Houston, which is the only organization he’s known outside of brief spells with the Royals and Padres following his selection in the 2014 Rule 5 Draft.
The hard-throwing Gustave has a 3.98 ERA in 20 1/3 big league innings and worked to a 3.79 ERA with a 55-to-23 K/BB ratio as a 23-year-old in his lone Triple-A campaign (2016).
Brian McCann wants to retire a Brave
I hate to say it, but I think McCann is finished as a productive player. Not sure who the Braves have at catcher in the minors, but if they don’t re-sign Suzuki, maybe McCann does return to Atlanta in a platoon with Flowers.. However, given the choice, if I were the GM of the Braves I’d opt for Suzuki over McCann if the decision came down to choosing between one of those two.
he may want to retire a Brave, but it would prolly be a one day contract type of thing.
and he is only 34 and was injured last year. he could still step in as a DH or bench bat role for several clubs
As much as I like Austin Romine, I think the Yankees resign McCann and have him serve as a lefty backup to Gary Sanchez. McCann can mentor and assist with the backstop issues Sanchez is having. Romine has shown he can be more than a capable p/t catcher and fetch some decent pieces in return.
2 year deal with braves. Reunion with him and kimbrel would be great. Closer in check and a fan favorite to retire a brave
He’s not getting a 2 year deal
He really struggled for the Astros this year. Wishing him all the best, but it may be time to hang em up for good.
Im not saying hed be the primary backstop. I understand hes not mccann of old. I just want him to come home and retire. And i think a 2 year pact would get it done.
If they sign him it’s not going to be for more than a 3-4 M annual. They have Flowers already and they need to prioritize pitching more imo
Actually he couldn’t have, he signed a long term deal with the Yankees and then was traded to the Astros, so this is the first time he could return to Atlanta since leaving.
Meant to reply to Tenn Braves
It’s a new era, Sentimentality it would look nice, but not in their best interest.
Braves should only make McCann an offer if they miss out on the better FA/available catchers in the market. A team on the rise should resist the nostalgia.
It would be a feel good story, but I’d rather have a younger, more productive catcher. He could have come back to Atlanta long before now. No need to do him any favors.
I would like him on the braves to warm my heart. But he’s no good anymore, so as far as legit skill, he’s not the guy
Curious they didn’t announce whether or not they picked up Harris’ option. Wonder if they’re trying to trade him?
As an Astros fan, would love to see him (McCann) go back and retire as a Brave. Great player and deserves all praise for what he brought to the Stros over his time here. A class act!
McCann a $15m option. Easy decision braves.
I believe Harris still has another year of arbitration. So even if the Astros decline his option they would maintain control of him.
Liked McCann, but it doesn’t look like he can hit above league average anymore. His BABIP is low the last few seasons, but probably that’s too large a sample to ignore. He could probably still platoon against righthanded pitching and be useful somewhere.
McCann back to the braves, 1 or 2 year deal maybe to finish off the career
Wouldn’t be a bad pickup for the Yankees let him catch 35-45 games and teach Sanchez a bit more about the tools of the trade
Always loved BMac, but the only way he’s retiring a Brave, is symbolically on a one day deal when he retires officially. The Braves are looking to upgrade at catcher, and where he is now, can’t be described as an upgrade.
“The Astros announced that they’ve declined their $15MM option on catcher Brian McCann and sent right-hander Jandel Gustave outright to Triple-A after he cleared waivers. Both players will become free agents.”
If Gustave cleared waivers & got sent to Triple-A, why did he then become a free agent? That seems mechanically weird, like too many steps in that process.
I think due to service time once they out righted him off the 40 man roster, he got to reject his assignment, making him a free agent. It’s just worded funny. He was outrighted to AAA and then rejected it.
Ah OK, that makes more sense. It’s worded similarly weirdly on the Astros site, so it was hard to figure out what was going on. On there it just says he “elected free agency” in the transactions section, but the story from Brian McTaggart mentions the outright assignment, so what you said is the only way that combo makes sense.
Angels might make some sense on a 1 year deal if they don’t land Ramos, Grandal, or JTR.