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Steven Souza Jr. Reportedly Recovered From Knee Surgery, Generating Interest

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Former Rays and Diamondbacks outfielder Steven Souza Jr. is running at 100 percent and drawing interest from a handful of teams as he looks to bounce back from a devastating knee injury, MLB.com’s Jon Morosi tweets. Souza underwent surgery in April after tearing the ACL, LCL, PCL and posterolateral capsule in his left knee in a gruesome and gut-wrenching injury at home plate at the end of Spring Training. Per Morosi, the Rays, Giants, Cubs and Rangers are among the teams who’ve shown interest.

That report paints a fair bit of overlap between the markets for Souza and Nicholas Castellanos — he’s reported to be interested in signing with the Giants, Cubs or Rangers — though it’s doubtful that any club has Souza ranked ahead of Castellanos (beyond teams whose payroll simply won’t accommodate Castellanos). That said, Souza could certainly be a fallback option for a team that misses out on Castellanos and/or fellow right-handed-hitting corner outfielder Marcell Ozuna.

Looking at the teams listed, the budget-conscious Rays are reportedly hoping to reel in a right-handed bat and assuredly won’t spend at the level required for Castellanos or Ozuna. But they’re plenty familiar with Souza, his makeup, clubhouse presence and on-field upside. Souza spent three seasons in Tampa Bay before being traded to Arizona, but it’s fair to wonder whether he’d be amenable to playing his first season post-surgery on the artificial surface at Tropicana Field.

The Cubs, operating in a decidedly non-Cubs manner over the past two winters, are reportedly looking to shed payroll to avoid a second slap on the wrist for luxury tax purposes. They paid out $7.6MM in luxury fees this year but seem motivated to avoid a second year of taxation despite the fact that a second-year offense would only see their penalty level increase from 20 percent to 30 percent. Nearly every report out of Chicago this offseason has signaled that a Castellanos reunion is far-fetched, but Souza would represent a more affordable option with some upside.

Meanwhile, Giants president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi said prior to the offseason that adding power to a lineup that was largely devoid of home run threats would be a priority this winter. A healthy Souza fits that description and also fits with the slate of short-term signings the Giants have made under Zaidi.

The Rangers moved on from Nomar Mazara during the Winter Meetings and traded Delino DeShields this past weekend, creating some space in the outfield. They’re a largely left-handed club, so Souza’s right-handed bat could hold some appeal if other options (Castellanos in particular) don’t pan out.

Souza, 31 in April, was worth about four wins above replacement in 2017 when he hit .239/.351/.459 with 30 home runs, 21 doubles, two triples and 16 stolen bases (in 20 tries). He’s graded out as a strong defender in right field, per metrics like Defensive Runs Saved and Outs Above Average, although coming off such a major knee reconstruction, there’ll surely be some skepticism about his mobility and how well he’ll be able to track down fly balls.

Brewers To Sign Justin Smoak

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9:38am: Smoak will earn $4MM in 2020 and has a $1MM buyout on a $5.5MM option for the 2021 season, Passan tweets.

9:27am: The two sides are in agreement on a one-year, $5MM contract, ESPN’s Jeff Passan reports. There’s also a club option for the 2021 season, per The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal. The deal is pending a physical.

9:09am: The Brewers are closing in on a contract with free agent first baseman Justin Smoak, per Jon Heyman of MLB Network (via Twitter). Smoak is represented by the Bledsoe Agency.

Justin Smoak | im Klement-USA TODAY SportsThis is the latest in a string of short-term acquisitions for the Milwaukee organization, which has almost completely turned over its infield over the past six weeks. The club has installed Eric Sogard and Luis Urias in the middle infield mix while picking up Ryon Healy and now Smoak to help cover the corners. Keston Hiura, of course, will factor prominently into the mix as well after impressing with the bat in his rookie season.

Beyond that, president of baseball ops David Stearns said after this week’s signing of Avisail Garcia that Ryan Braun will likely see some time at first base in 2020 as well (Twitter link via Andrew Wagner of the Wisconsin State Journal). It’s a layered collection of veterans and young upside hitters, and  the precise manner in which playing time will be sorted remains to be determined in Spring Training.

Smoak made a long-awaited break-out at the plate in 2017 and followed that up with a strong ’18 effort. In combination, he slashed .256/.353/.495 with 63 home runs in 1,231 turns with the bat in those campaigns. Unfortunately, he hit the skids a bit in the just-completed season. The switch-hitting 33-year-old is coming off of a .208/.342/.406 effort, but the underlying metrics on his season are far more interesting than his surface-level .208 batting average.

In fact, there’s some evidence to suggest that the Brewers could hit gold with this signing. As explored here at MLBTR back in September, Smoak’s .323 wOBA lagged the .366 xwOBA he registered with Statcast, indicating there could be some positive regression in the batted-ball department. He also drew walks at an exceptionally healthy 15.8% rate while striking out just 21.2% of the time.

As highlighted in that September exploration of his odd season, Smoak chased pitches outside the strike zone less than nearly any hitter in MLB, and he ranked among the game’s best in terms of pitches per plate appearance. He’s an extremely disciplined hitter who should make opposing pitchers work even if he continues to hit for a low batting average. And, supposing Smoak can turn balls in play into base hits at an increased rate — his .223 BABIP was certainly an outlier — he could bounce right back into being a productive hitter.

Milwaukee undeniably lost some key pieces this winter, with Yasmani Grandal and Mike Moustakas departing for four-year deals with the White Sox and Reds, respectively. Eric Thames, meanwhile, was bought out and sent into the free-agent market. Smoak will in many ways replace Thames at a slightly reduced cost — likely bringing better glovework to the table but lesser production against right-handed pitching.

Smoak will come in at $1.5MM less than Thames would’ve earned — a slight savings that exemplifies the Brewers’ risk-averse mentality and focus on the margins when building out a roster. This depth-forward approach both safeguards against injury and allows for slightly reduced workloads that, in theory, lessen the overall risk of injury and keeps their position players fresher. It also leads to a great deal of turnover, which can be frustrating for fans at times but has resulted in three straight winning seasons and two consecutive postseason appearances.

List Of Current MLBPA Player Representatives

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The Major League Baseball Players Association came into existence in 1966 with the hiring of Marvin Miller as its first executive director.  Currently, former player Tony Clark serves in that role.  In addition to the people employed by the union under Clark, each of the 30 teams has a player representative and as many as 3-4 alternate player reps.  According to the MLBPA, this is a constantly-changing list “due to trades, retirements, minor-league assignments and require new clubhouse elections fairly frequently.”

The union was able to share the names of the eight-member Executive Sub-Committee:

With the current Collective Bargaining Agreement set to expire in less than two years, I feel it’s important for MLBTR readers to know which players will be more actively involved in the bargaining process with ownership.  So while the overall list of player reps might be constantly changing, we’ll do our best to keep this post updated with the correct information.  If you notice an error or omission, please reach out to us through our contact form.

Updated 12-19-19

Many thanks to the following reporters for their help in compiling this list: Nick Piecoro, Ben Nicholson-Smith, Jeff Fletcher, Marc Topkin, Jen McCaffrey, Corey Brock, Jon Meoli, Adam McCalvy, Paul Hoynes, Corey Brock, AJ Cassavell, Andre Fernandez, Adam Berry, Todd Zolecki, Anthony DiComo, Ken Gurnick, Mark Bowman, Mark Sheldon, Alex Pavlovic, Jeffrey Flanagan, and Anthony Fenech.

Reds Reportedly Exploring Francisco Lindor Trade Scenarios

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The Reds have “engage[d]” with the Indians in talks regarding shortstop Francisco Lindor, according to MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand (via Twitter). There’s no indication to this point that the discussions are anything but exploratory in nature.

We’ve heard ongoing chatter regarding the Cleveland superstar. Lindor, who recently turned 26, is entering his second-to-last season of arbitration control and projects to earn $16.7MM. Having recently shipped out high-dollar hurlers Trevor Bauer (over the summer, to Cincinnati) and Corey Kluber (more recently, to the Rangers), the Indians are seemingly willing to listen on Lindor. But indication is that the club isn’t especially anxious to deal him.

While it’s still unclear whether there’s any significant likelihood of a swap coming together, it’s interesting to hear of ongoing talks from multiple quarters. The Padres and Dodgers are among the other organizations tied recently to Lindor, though in all cases we’ve yet to hear of anything approaching a concerted effort to pry loose the star shortstop.

No doubt it’d take a massive array of talent to coax the Indians into moving Lindor. Though it’s now quite difficult to imagine he will be retained for the long haul with an extension, he’s also still a reasonably priced young star on a team that is still in an open competitive window. The Indians can plausibly hope to cover the outgoing pitching from within, though they undoubtedly sacrificed quite a lot of near-term upside in the form of Bauer and Kluber. But there’s really no replacing Lindor.

Whether there’s a path to a deal remains to be seen, but the involvement of the Reds could help spur movement on the market. It is especially notable that the Cincinnati organization has recently hammered out complicated, multi-player deals with the Indians — as well as the Padres and the Dodgers, who could consider moving Corey Seager as part of or in a follow-up to a Lindor acquisition. Hypothetical possibilities abound. At minimum, the report makes clear that the Reds are still scanning the market in search of major improvements.

Trade Rumblings: Lindor, Padres, Dodgers, Betts, Yanks, Schwarber

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The Padres have at least kicked around the idea of attempting to swing a deal for Indians shortstop Francisco Lindor, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reports (subscription link). However, Rosenthal cautions that the superstar probably won’t end up in San Diego, which already has an enviable left side of the infield between shortstop Fernando Tatis Jr. and third baseman Manny Machado. In the unlikely event the Padres do wind up with Lindor, it seems they’d try to turn Tatis into a multi-position player (primarily a center fielder), though Rosenthal notes doing so could displease the 20-year-old and would likely receive pushback from his representatives. That’s important considering San Diego’s desire to extend the phenom.

On the plus side, in addition to picking up an elite player in Lindor, the Padres would keep him away from the division-rival Dodgers, who have been connected to him this winter. But the Lindor-related talks between LA and Cleveland have only been “preliminary” to this point, per Buster Olney of ESPN (subscription). The Indians, for their part, aren’t necessarily under pressure to trade Lindor right now – he still has two years’ control left and remains the best player on a team that has been a consistent playoff contender in recent seasons. That said, the Indians don’t appear to have much of a chance to extend Lindor, so perhaps they’ll be open to parting with him this winter.

Let’s check in on a couple more of baseball’s highest-profile trade candidates…

  • Bob Nightengale of USA Today reported earlier this week that the Red Sox and Dodgers have had “exploratory trade talks” in regards to Boston outfielder Mookie Betts. The Dodgers have even included shortstop Corey Seager in discussions centering on Lindor and Betts, Nightengale relays. However, even though Betts only has a year of control left (in which he should make almost $30MM via arbitration), and even though the Red Sox are working to get under the $208MM luxury tax, it doesn’t look as if there’s any hurry to part with the former AL MVP. Instead, it seems the Red Sox’s preference is to trade from their starting staff, tweets the Boston Globe’s Alex Speier, who hears that they and the Dodgers “had virtually no engagement” in regards to Betts at last week’s Winter Meetings.
  • More from Rosenthal, who writes that the Yankees’ years-long interest in Cubs outfielder Kyle Schwarber has continued. Nevertheless, there’s no momentum toward a deal as of now, Rosenthal adds. Schwarber has been a favorite of the Cubs’ front office, though trading him could be part of an offseason shakeup for a club that fell apart late in 2019. The 26-year-old slugger still has two seasons of arbitration eligibility remaining, and he’s coming off a pair of above-average campaigns, so he’d likely be difficult for the Yankees or anyone else to acquire.

Details On Luxury Tax Bills For Red Sox, Cubs, Yankees

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The luxury tax bills for the Red Sox, Cubs and Yankees – the three teams that exceeded the $206MM threshold in 2019 – are now public knowledge. The Red Sox owe $13.4MM, the Cubs will pay $7.6MM and the Yankees must surrender $6.7MM, according to Ronald Blum of The Associated Press. As far as actual payrolls go, Boston checked in at $228MM, the Yankees put a $226MM roster on the field and the Cubs spent $220MM, Blum notes.

Neither the Red Sox nor the Cubs made the playoffs in 2019 despite their elite-level spending, while the Yankees lost to the Astros in the ALCS. Now, with the exception of the Yankees (who’ve already made history this offseason with the nine-year, $324MM contract they awarded right-hander Gerrit Cole), those clubs look as if they’re in salary-cutting mode. The tax limit will climb to $208MM next season, and the Yankees will blow past it in the wake of the Cole signing. Moreover, there’s a decent chance the Yankees will outspend the $208MM mark by $40MM or more, which would lead to a 42.5 percent overage tax next year and would cause their highest draft pick to drop 10 spots.

It seems the Red Sox and Cubs would like to avoid the tax, but it remains to be seen whether either will pull off that feat. As things stand, next year’s Red Sox are projected to go beyond $208MM by almost $30MM, while the Cubs will do so by about $6MM, per Jason Martinez of Roster Resource.

It will be easier for Boston and Chicago to duck the tax 12 months from now if they sell off an expensive star or two, which seems possible. The clubs have former MVPs (outfielder Mookie Betts for the Red Sox and third baseman/outfielder Kris Bryant for the Cubs) who have come up in trade rumors. Betts and Bryant aside, there are other well-compensated potential trade chips in both cases. Left-hander David Price and center fielder Jackie Bradley Jr. come to the fore for the Red Sox, while righty Yu Darvish and first baseman Anthony Rizzo join Bryant among high-priced Cubs who may not be untouchable.

Latest On Nicholas Castellanos

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We’re still a couple weeks from the new year, but the majority of Major League Baseball’s premier free agents have already left the board since the market opened at the beginning of November. Outfielder Nicholas Castellanos stands out as one of the few still-unsigned players with significant earning power, as MLBTR predicted he’d receive a four-year, $58MM guarantee when free agency started.

Considering the high-spending nature of free agency thus far, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see Castellanos outdo projections on his forthcoming deal. Regardless, the soon-to-be 28-year-old has reportedly identified a few teams that have impressed him during his first-ever trip to the market. Castellanos regards the Cubs, with whom he finished last season, as well as the Giants and Rangers as clubs “who value him for more than just his offense and that treat “clubhouse culture” as more than just T-shirts and talking points,” Sahadev Sharma of The Athletic writes (subscription link).

It’s not clear how high any of the above teams are willing to bid for Castellanos, but there is at least interest in a reunion on the Cubs’ part, per Sharma. Although the team itself fell apart late in the year and wound up outside the playoff picture, Castellanos was brilliant after coming over in a July trade with Detroit. He slashed .321/.356/.646 with 16 home runs in 225 plate appearances as a Cub during a season-ending hot streak that came at an opportune time on the cusp of free agency.

Thanks in large part to his production in Chicago, 2019 went down as Castellanos’ fourth straight above-average offensive season by measure of wRC+ and OPS+. On the other hand, often regarded as defensively challenged (first as a third baseman and now in the grass), Castellanos combined for a less-than-stellar minus-9 Defensive Runs Saved and a minus-5.2 Ultimate Zone Rating as a corner outfielder between the two teams. Castellanos’ well-documented limitations in the field have likely upset his market, and they could help prevent a team in the NL – where there’s no designated hitter option – from breaking the bank for him.

In the Cubs’ case, they already have Kris Bryant, Kyle Schwarber and Jason Heyward as prominent corner OF-capable players. Barring a major trade (Bryant? Schwarber?), which does seem to be a distinct possibility, it may be hard to fit Castellanos on their roster in 2020. Plus, while it seems they’d welcome Castellanos back in an ideal world, the Cubs have clear payroll concerns that could help stop a reunion from coming to fruition. Even though the Cubs haven’t been active in upgrading their roster this winter, Jason Martinez of Roster Resource projects them for a $214MM luxury-tax payroll next year. If that holds, they’ll outspend the $208MM threshold by more than $6MM. So, barring salary-cutting trades or a willingness on Chicago’s part to pay the tax, it’s difficult to envision Castellanos in its uniform again.

Conversely, neither the Giants nor Rangers should come close to the tax in 2020. However, at least for San Francisco, it’s up in the air whether it’ll be aggressive in attempting to boost its playoff odds for next season. The Giants don’t figure to contend then, after all, and pouring money into free agency hasn’t been president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi’s M.O. since he assumed the reins last year.

Meantime, this has been a fairly active offseason for the Rangers, who have spent a solid chunk of cash on a few acquisitions (pitchers Corey Kluber, Kyle Gibson, Jordan Lyles and Joely Rodriguez). The Rangers also just freed up an outfield spot by trading Nomar Mazara and could next try to reel in a big hitter in an effort to generate excitement as they get ready to open a new ballpark.

Pitching Notes: Ryu, Keuchel, Ray, King Felix

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Hyun-Jin Ryu is very arguably the top starter remaining on the free-agent market, though his injury history is a clear red flag despite the southpaw’s dominant showing over the past couple of seasons. The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal reported earlier this week that Ryu was “expected” to top four years and $80MM on his next contract, but on this morning’s appearance on MLB Network’s Hot Stove show (video link), Rosenthal indicated that multiple teams have since told him they were immediately skeptical of that price point: “I heard from a couple of clubs yesterday that said ’That’s not going to happen — not with that medical history.'”

Certainly, that doesn’t rule out the possibility of a four-year pact for Ryu, but the pushback serves to underscore what makes Ryu such a polarizing free agent. The 32-year-old (33 in March) has a 2.21 ERA over his past 265 innings and a 2.71 ERA in 391 2/3 innings dating back to 2017. On a per-inning basis, he’s among the market’s elite options, but Ryu’s age and injury history likely have some teams steering clear of him on any type of notable multi-year arrangement. It only takes one team to push to four years, but to this point, his realistic price tag is hard to pin down.

More on Ryu and the rest of the pitching market…

  • Ryu’s agent Scott Boras, who also represents lefty Dallas Keuchel, chatted with MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand about the two free-agent southpaws and (unsurprisingly) offered optimism that a deal could come together in the near future. “Clubs are identifying their needs, and we’re certainly narrowing the corridor of finality,” Boras said with characteristic idiosyncrasy. “It could happen soon.” Meanwhile, Bruce Levine of 670AM The Score/CBS Chicago writes that the White Sox are interested in both Boras lefties, also implying that the team might find it preferable to add a free-agent of that ilk rather than for a one-year rental (e.g. Robbie Ray). The ChiSox are still hopeful of reeling in a rotation upgrade but are wary of surrendering notable young talent for a one-year upgrade.
  • The Diamondbacks’ decision to sign Madison Bumgarner wasn’t made as a precursor to a Robbie Ray trade, GM Mike Hazen tells Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic. Of course, it wouldn’t behoove any general manager to proclaim otherwise, and as Piecoro observes, nothing in Hazen’s comments expressly rules out the possibility of trading Ray, who’ll be a free agent next winter. Arizona moved Paul Goldschmidt under similar circumstances, when he had a year of control remaining and was set to be their second-highest-paid player. (Ray will actually be Arizona’s highest-paid player, given the backloaded nature of Bumgarner’s deal.) The strong demand for pitching and dwindling supply in free agency should make Ray a popular target and could position the D-backs to again pick up a controllable piece or two that’s near the big league level, as was the case in recent trades of Goldschmidt (Luke Weaver, Carson Kelly) and Zack Greinke (Corbin Martin, J.B. Bukauskas, Josh Rojas).
  • Former Mariners ace Felix Hernandez has already made clear he won’t be hanging up his spikes. He’s “receiving interest” from teams, Jon Heyman of MLB Network reports on Twitter, although the extent of that interest isn’t clear. Hernandez may be a former Cy Young winner who sat atop the hierarchy of baseball’s very best pitchers from 2009-14, but his decline into a back-of-the-rotation arm and, more recently, a liability on the mound was rather swift. Over the past two seasons, Hernandez has limped to a dismal 5.82 ERA / 5.44 FIP in 227 1/3 innings. The scintillating heater that averaged nearly 96 mph and scraped triple digits when he debuted as a babyfaced 19-year-old in 2005 has faded to an 89.5 mph average dating back to Opening Day 2018. A pitcher with Hernandez’s preternatural talent shouldn’t be totally counted out, particularly given that he won’t even turn 34 until April, but he’s purely a rebound candidate at this point.

Cubs Sign Ian Miller To Minors Deal

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The Cubs have signed outfielder Ian Miller to a minor league contract, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic tweets.

Now 27 years old, Miller entered the pro ranks as a 14th-round pick of the Mariners in 2013. He stuck with the franchise until it traded him to Minnesota for cash considerations last August. Miller never appeared in the majors as a Mariner, but he did get a cup of coffee as a member of the Twins, with whom he totaled three hits (two singles and a double) over 17 plate appearances.

While Miller doesn’t bring much experience in the bigs, he has been a mainstay in Triple-A ball dating back to 2017. The speedy Miller owns a .263/.334/.370 line with 81 stolen bases across 1,169 trips to the plate at the minors’ highest level.

MLBTR Poll: Who’s The Best Starter In Baseball?

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The Yankees officially introduced just-signed right-handed ace Gerrit Cole on Wednesday. The club agreed last week to ink the former Pirate and Astro to a history-making nine-year, $324MM deal that ranks No. 1 all-time among pitchers in both length and contract value. Led by general manager Brian Cashman, the Yankees pursued Cole on multiple occasions in the past, but they finally reeled him in 11 years after drafting (and failing to sign) the flamethrower in 2008. Now, the Yankees’ hope is that Cole will help deliver the franchise its first World Series title since 2009 next season and serve a key role in another Bronx dynasty.

Yankees manager Aaron Boone said Wednesday (via Dan Federico of Bronx to Bushville) that the team landed “arguably the game’s best pitcher” in the 29-year-old Cole. There’s certainly a case that Boone is correct, especially considering Cole struck out 326 batters and recorded a stingy 2.50 ERA/2.64 FIP across 212 1/3 innings last season. At the same time, though, there are a few other starters who could hold the honor over Cole.

There may not be a stronger candidate than another New York hurler, Mets righty Jacob deGrom, who has won the past two NL Cy Young Awards. The 31-year-old owns an eye-popping 2.62 ERA/2.78 FIP with 10.25 K/9 against 2.17 BB/9 since he debuted in 2014. Fellow 2019 Cy Young winner Justin Verlander, Cole’s teammate in Houston each of the previous two seasons, has a case as well. So does the Nationals’ Max Scherzer, a three-time Cy Young recipient who turned in another fantastic (but injury-limited) showing this year.

Of course, beyond Cole, deGrom, Verlander and Scherzer, there are plenty of other outstanding starters you may prefer. At this point, though, it seems difficult to go outside that group to choose the preeminent starter in baseball. So, who’s your pick?

(Poll link for app users)

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