Though the common belief is that the Rays wouldn’t make an expensive splash to add Craig Kimbrel, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times tweets that there’s somewhat of a “never say never” sentiment within the organization as Kimbrel continues to linger (and as his price likely drops in corresponding fashion). The right-hander doesn’t appear likely to cash in on the mega contract he sought early in the offseason, and it’s not clear at this point how many clubs would even have interest on a multi-year pact. I ran through some potential landing spots for Kimbrel on shorter-term deals (with a significant annual value) last Friday and largely glossed over the Rays due to their historic reluctance to spend at that level and due to the fact that Kimbrel would require forfeiture of a draft pick (another prior sticking point for Tampa Bay). However, with a projected Opening Day payroll of just $60MM and only $27MM on the books in 2020 (per Roster Resource’s Jason Martinez), the Rays certainly have the payroll space to add Kimbrel if they look to break character for a second time this winter after already inking Charlie Morton (two years, $30MM). The Rays opened the 2018 season with a $76MM payroll.
Here’s more from the AL East…
- The Orioles would trade any of their starters who are “making significant money,” Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic writes in his latest notes column (subscription required). It’s hardly surprising that Baltimore would jump at the opportunity to shed the remaining $43MM (over three years) on Alex Cobb’s contract or the $8MM owed to Andrew Cashner this season, but Rosenthal also lists right-hander Dylan Bundy (earning $2.8MM) among the group. Moving Bundy would be more surprising given his affordable salary and remaining three seasons of control, though it seems unlikely they’d sell low on the former No. 4 overall pick after he led the Majors with 41 homers allowed last season. Bundy, 26, has demonstrated very appealing K/BB numbers over the past two seasons, but home runs have continually been a problem for him at the MLB level. A trade of any of the three seems extraordinarily unlikely to happen before Opening Day, but if any of that trio is performing well early in the year, he’ll emerge as a trade candidate this summer.
- Red Sox right-hander Brandon Workman opened Spring Training with a fastball that was sitting 92 to 93 mph, writes Jason Mastrodonato of the Boston Herald, but his velocity has dipped substantially in recent outings. Workman has averaged 87 to 89 mph on his fastball in his past two outings, and manager Alex Cora spoke to Mastrodonato about the current “dead arm” Workman is attempting to overcome. As Mastrodonato points out, the majority of Boston’s candidates for the bullpen have struggled this spring, which at least has the potential to open the door for a prospect like Darwinzon Hernandez to get a look.
Kimbrel probably would not fit well with Tampa’s relief strategy unless they really feel the need to splurge (in their standards) on one.
Would love to see Kimbrel as an opener.
Given how bad he struggled anytime outside the 9th inning, I couldn’t even imagine the box score on a 1st inning appearance.
8h, 15bb, 21 r, something to that effect I’d guess… ok, maybe that’s a teeny exaggeration, but, it wouldn’t be pretty.
I dont think it would be that bad. But Kimbrel has a 9th inning closer mentality, doesnt fare well in set up situations, imo.
Kimbrel on Milwaukee would be crazy. Hader Knebel Jeffress Kimbrel.
Still nothing on Betances, Otto, Chapman and Britton
Give me a break… Betances is great. But Chapman is extremely wild, Britton is over the hill, Ottavino is a clear step back from Robertson … Hader is the most dominant lefty reliever in the game, knebel is a solid closer on most teams and would be pitching in the 7th and 8th inning, jeffress aside from a half a season has dominated in recent years, and Kimbrel is the greatest closer of the past decade.
Both of you are way off, but keep plugging away.
If you wouldn’t want the Yankees four horse in the Sox pen over what they have you’re not a Sox fan.
Horses
Ottavino is a step back from Robertson? what!?
Ottavino is a small step back from Robertson. Very small. Nearly a lateral move and I was surprised to see they chose him over Robertson. They signed for similar AAV. But, Robertson has clearly shown he can dominate in Yankee stadium and Otto has had 1 very good year. Maybe Robertson chose Philly over New York to have a better chance a closing but idk. If it was a Yankees team choice I am baffled as to why.
Judge Judy is not a Yankee fan. He only posts on here to troll and is very good at it. He gets at least one of you to lash out every time.
Truth @thecoffin Thank you!
Yanks pen is regular season impressive for sure. Betances is only electric arm. Chapman blew isWS Game 7. Robertson was playoff stud Ottavino is NOT playoff star at all. Yankee rotation is huge ? Mark
That’s BS, they wouldn’t have even been in a game 7 if it wasn’t for Chapman.
I don’t see what ring u guys have won???
Kimbrel one year deal? lol
If Kimbrel ends up going for one year the Red Sox would be stupid not to resign him. A championship last year isn’t a good enough excuse to be too cheap to pay Kimbrel for a year.
How about 50% tax on the contract, loss of your 1st round pick, loss of the comp pick he’d bring, and a hit to your bonus money? Are those excuses enough?
Well, hope you’re satisfied with those things when Boston is a wildcard team this year and if he ends up with the Rays, a team that poses a serious threat to both the Red Sox and Yankees this year.
Yeah because the 4th round pick he will bring will be a huge help
They would lose the first round pick since he played for them last year (same deal with the Moose contract with the Royals in 2018).
Why would the Red Doc lose a 1st Rd. pick if they sign Kimbrel?
Crap, I meant WOULDN’T lose the pick for the reason I mentioned. Too late to edit my comment :/
For triggering the highest level of the CBT. Theoretically if the team REALLY stunk the 10 slots they drop would only push them to the bottom of the 1st round.
However, given the number of rebuilding teams, and the amount of talent on this squad, the odds of them not posting one of the 10 best records in mlb is so slim as to pretty much be certain not to happen
@ Randy Red Sox – Since you’re sooo smart, bet you knew that the Sox drafted MOOKIE BETTS in the FIFTH round.
So yes, a 4th round pick CAN be valuable
Because if he signs elsewhere, the Red Sox get a first round pick as compensation since Kimbrel turned down their qualifying offer.
You don’t lose a first round pick if you sign your own player. Do you?
And they won’t get a comp pick if Limbrel remains unsigned beyond the draft.
They would deal with all of the tax penalties.
Exactly, because Albert Pujols, one of the greatest players of all time was a 13th round selection back in 1999.
Ignorant… Durbin Feltman, a third rounder was and is still considered the most major League ready player in last year’s draft class and the future sox closer…. Thinking a 3rd, 4th, 5th etc. round pick is useless is 100% ignorant
Kimbrel sucks.
Plus they do not have a single reliever right now that is or has been a full time closer.
Yes.. Thornburg
If the main thing stopping the Red Sox from signing him at this point is the Luxury Tax penalty, can’t they just give him all of it up front in a “signing bonus” to skirt the tax implications? I’m sure at this point he’d be open to 2/$30M and if the Sox put half that in an up front bonus than they can stay under thax threshold. Kimbrel can’t be all that concerned with HOW he gets the money as we approach mid-March, right?
can’t do it. any bonuses (whether upfront or performance bonuses), deferring the money, etc… counts towards the tax (i.e. doesn’t matter how you pay him $20 million, it all counts the same).
the only way you can reduce the tax amount it’ll be (besides trading players to shed salaries) is to make the deal over several years instead (and i’m pretty sure the league would step in if sox did, say, 6 years, 25 million, with an opt out after 1st year, year one paying like 20 million, in an effort to skirt the tax).
He is on a downward spiral Forget Kimbrel
Me thinks xabials’ yankees should snag him on a 1yr deal. They’ve got a thing for high end relievers, and are only a 1st yr tax payer.
Imagine that bullpen. Starters? Who needs a starter, innings 5-9 are covered
The Rays will sign Kimbrel then tell him afterwards that he will be the ‘opener’ on any day where Snell or Morton are not starting.
He will get “creamed” in the first.
I guess Marc Tomkin has a “special” line from Tampa directly to Kimbrel when he says he’s knowing that his asking price is likely dropping! Just another beat writer floating a story that has little t no basis….unless he’s Kimbrel’s brother in law!
Don”t think he’ll take a dollar less than he’s asked for….he’ll wait and possibly take a pillow contract for a year with incentives and try again next year for a multi year pact.
I think it is mutually beneficial for him to sign a 2-3 year deal with Boston with a healthy AAV.
Git er done White Sox.
White Sox need to wipe that egg off of their face.
It’s crazy the Red Sox don’t see a need for Kimbrel. Was it because of his playoff volatility? Wasn’t he tipping his pitches?
If not the Red Sox, maybe Phillies? Twins? Angels? Braves? Cardinals? All these teams *might* contend and/or they could use the help. 2 year deal with an option for a third?
Sox have no need for Kimbrel. Their BP is stellar.
Hopefully sarcasm.
As the fellas here at mlbtr have made note of numerous times over the offseason, the Sox would need to pay an exorbitant penalty on every dollar they spend on Kimbrel due to their luxury tax situation. They absolutely see a need for Kimbrel; they know their bullpen is questionable. It’s just not viable from a money standpoint.
And I feel that once they figure out if they do have a need in the bullpen during the season, they’ll fill it through a trade
That would effect their payroll as well.
effect it for the lower, probably.
The hope is they she’d a little clearing the catcher logjam, pocket what little they’re under the tax now.
The one thing I haven’t seen or heard much of, but WOULD help the tax situation slightly, is if Pedey comes back healthy and they extend him a couple more years on a new low dollar deal, lowering his AAV. That could pick up a few million right there.
Say rework the last couple years by adding a pair of 5 million options. AAV drops once by shedding the expired contract years and just using these last couple regressive salary ones, then dropping it further by adding a new pair of years at even less cost.
It’s have to be like 2 years 5 million total. Guy is nearly 36 and has bum knees. I’d be surprised if he was even able to find a deal after this one expires.
But it won’t affect their payroll as much as a Kimbrel signing.
Because he was bad from the all star break on.
I am really surprised at Kimbrel’s market because so many teams prioritize good bullpen’s. Hard to say what kind of offers he has turned down, but seems highly likely him and his agent overplayed his market too much.
If he pitches like he did in the second half I think it’s entirely possible to do so by the trade deadline. The orioles aren’t going to get anything but if the goal is just to clear the salary I’d say there’s a pretty decent chance that could happen by July. The deal isn’t a problem either way honestly. We have two players on the books for 2020 and beyond and that’s Davis and Cobb. We aren’t going to competitive and that’s certainly not going to cripple our payroll. Our payroll figures to be pretty significantly under 100 million barring an unexpected FA splurge next offseason.
Not surprised the Orioles would want to dump Cobb. Good luck with shedding that stupid money contract.
If you believe Marc Topkin, the Rays came up just short on Harper….about 330M short.
With Alvarado looking like he can “close”, the addition of Keuchel might very well propel the Rays into playoff contention, if that’s what they want to do. It would extend the starting rotation, and leave some decent pitchers to be “bulk” guys for their openers.
Snell/Morton/ Keuchel (even in a watered down version) would be interesting. And it would bring them to about 75M, which will at least keep the union off their backs.
Snell/Morton/Keuchel/Glasnow. That’s a pretty formidable front 4. I might actually give them a shot at the big boys in the division with that in place.
As a Rays fan, I would like to see the team make a move for either Keuchel or Kimbrel on a shorter term deal and see if they can get a relative bargain. I would offer both players 2-3 year deals in the $15-17 million AAV range and see if you can get one of them to drop their demands. The majority of the Rays roster is currently pre-arb and Snell is the only prominent player set to begin arbitration over the next two offseasons. The Rays can add another $15 million/year over the next couple of seasons and still have opening day payrolls in the same range as the past 5 years. Running out a Snell/Morton/Keuchel/Glasnow rotation or Kimbrel/Alvarado/Castillo back end bullpen would be a huge boost to a young club set to compete for a playoff spot. Both players are veterans that have the added bonus of playing on World Series winning teams. I wouldn’t pay a huge premium for this experience, but have to believe either player’s veteran presence and winning history would be valuable to an up-and-coming young team like the Rays. Obviously it takes two to tango, but if the Rays haven’t reached out to both players, they are potentially missing out on a great opportunity.
Can anyone explain Bundy’s service time? I thought he signed a ML contract out of High School, got the bigs in 2012 and got hurt. Wasn’t he accruing ML service time while on the IL?
m.mlb.com/glossary/transactions/service-time
By signing a major league deal he was added to the 40 man roster. You don’t start accruing MLB service time until you are added to the 25 man roster.
Also you need 172 days to get a year of service so his brief stint in 2012 didn’t do it for him. So his first year of MLB service wasn’t until 2016 as in the prior years he was on the minor league disabled list.
Rays are perfect example of why a salary floor is necessary. Just an absolute joke, as are the Marlins.
Giants spent 205 million and won 73 games. Rays spent 68m and won 90 games. Winning 90 games with that payroll and playing in the AL east with the Yankees and Red Sox is impressive.
To nickel and dime Blake Snell and then sign Kimbrel, not a good look. But the Rays don’t operate like other teams. .
Something seems fishy! Boston’s bullpen is pretty bad this Spring. Kimbrel still doesn’t have a job within weeks of the opener. Do these guys just don’t like each other anymore?? Has Boston seen something in Kimbrel to indicate he’s declining?? With a novice like me noticing this, no wonder few teams would be interested in Kimbrel or his over valued asking price.
The Boston fans could see that there is no gas left in his tank.
Boston is planning long term who the core of this team is and 15M+ at closer doesnt fit with contracts they need to give to their future.
I will say it for you… “never”.
The Rays do not spend big on any player. Especially in the closer role. They take pitchers that are not doing well and get them back to being solid relievers. They have done it numerous times…Hunter, Cishek, Rodney, Farnsworth…
The amount of dollars the rays are receiving in revenue sharing is almost enough to cover their entire payroll. That’s really f’d up. There’s already been a grievance filed against the Rays. Wouldn’t surprise me to see them make the expenditure. If for no other reason than to get the monkey off their back.
The Red Sox don’t need Kimbrel or Workman. They have rubber arm Eovaldi …. LOL
A Gumby that can be made to fit all occasions and all roles.
How about adding Tony Watson RP from SFG and trade Jackie Bradley Jr. to SFG?
They also have Betts, JDM and Benintendi.
Benintendi can move to CF. JDM can play LF..
The Red Sox have plenty of OF backup ( JDM, Pearce, Swihart, Holt, Nunez ).
SFG needs OF help.
Hate to lose JBJ but Tony Watson makes sense for the Red Sox.
Tony is a LHP with a great ERA and WHIP and can close if necessary.
Tony is also great in post season play.
The Red Sox can also use another LHP RP in the pen.
This can also free up some payroll space.
That way they can keep all 3 catchers as Swihart can play 1B and OF..
Leon and Vazquez are great defensively behind the plate.
Let’s not screw that up.
Pitchers love catchers that can get pitches in the dirt.