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2021 Draft Order Will Be Based On 2020 Records

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Thanks to the pandemic-shortened regular season, it was unclear before Monday how Major League Baseball would handle the 2021 amateur draft. It’s now known that the league plans on going the traditional route and determining the order according to teams’ 2020 records, per Alex Speier of the Boston Globe. Jeff Passan of ESPN previously reported that MLB was likely to take this path.

This news means the Pirates, who finished with the game’s worst mark at 19-41, will pick No. 1 overall for the first time since they selected Gerrit Cole in 2011. As of now, Vanderbilt right-handers Kumar Rocker and Jack Leiter are among the favorites to come off the board at the top of the draft, so either could wind up as the Pirates’ next prized prospect.

Here’s how the top five’s slated to look next summer:

  • 1. Pirates
  • 2. Rangers
  • 3. Tigers
  • 4. Red Sox
  • 5. Orioles

Giants Notes: Gausman, Moronta, Baragar

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The Giants are facing a great deal of uncertainty in their rotation as they head into free agency. Right-hander Kevin Gausman, by far their most effective starter in 2020, is slated to return to the open market in the coming weeks. The Giants bought relatively low on the former Oriole, Brave and Red last offseason on a $9MM pact, and he then proceeded to post a 3.62 ERA/3.09 FIP with 11.92 K/9 against 2.41 BB/9 in 59 2/3 innings. Gausman may now be the second-best pending free-agent starter in the game, trailing only the Reds’ Trevor Bauer, and looks like a lock for a lucrative deal. In the meantime, the Giants will have to decide whether to issue a qualifying offer worth $18.9MM to the 29-year-old Gausman, though it seems “unlikely” they’ll do that, Maria Guardado of MLB.com writes. The Gausman case is one we at MLBTR have discussed at length in recent days, and we do expect him to receive a qualifying offer, in part because free agency will feature so few starters with front-of-the-rotation potential after Bauer. But in the event Gausman’s not tied to a QO, it would only make him and his 95 mph fastball more appealing on the market.

Here’s more from San Francisco…

  • Guardado’s piece also includes a look at potential non-tender candidates for the Giants. Left-hander Tyler Anderson, outfielder Joey Rickard and infielder Daniel Robertson comprise the group. Anderson seems the likeliest for the starter-needy Giants to retain, as he turned in a useful 4.37 ERA/4.36 FIP over 59 2/3 innings this year; moreover, he shouldn’t be in line for a substantial raise over his $1.78MM salary. On the other hand, Rickard and Robertson didn’t play significant roles for the Giants, combining for just 30 plate appearances, so the team could go in another direction.
  • Right-hander Reyes Moronta was one of the Giants’ go-to relievers from 2017-19, but he missed all of this year after undergoing shoulder surgery at the end of last season. Moronta was working his way back this past summer, but the Giants never brought him up. President of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi explained why, saying (via Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area): “He was throwing at the alternate site and we just didn’t see him really getting over the hump and showing the kind of stuff that we saw from him last year. It was really as much a medical assessment as a performance assessment.” Still, Zaidi noted that San Francisco has “high hopes” when it comes to the soon-to-be 28-year-old Moronta, who averaged 97.2 mph on his fastball in 2019. Zaidi hasn’t ruled out Moronta evolving into the Giants’ answer at closer, which is something they lacked during a 2020 effort that fell just shy of a playoff berth, as John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle observes.
  • Reliever Caleb Baragar has hired Wasserman for representation, MLBTR has learned. The left-handed Baragar, a 2016 ninth-round pick who’s now 26 years old, made his major league debut this season. He concluded the campaign with 22 1/3 innings of 4.03 ERA/4.04 FIP pitching and 7.66 K/9 against 2.01 BB/9.

Javy Guerra, Sam Freeman Elect Free Agency

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The Nationals announced that relievers Javy Guerra and Sam Freeman have cleared outright waivers and elected free agency.

After signing minor league contracts with the Nationals over the winter, neither the 34-year-old Guerra nor Freeman, 33, saw a ton of action with the club. Guerra threw 15 2/3 innings of 4.02 ERA/4.53 FIP ball and posted 7.47 K/9 against 4.02 BB/9. The left-handed Freeman allowed just two hits and one run over five innings, but he also issued seven walks and then underwent Tommy John surgery in September.

Guerra will now return to free agency as the owner of a 3.73 ERA/3.99 FIP with 7.31 K/9 and 3.58 BB/9 in 296 2/3 innings. Freeman has amassed 233 2/3 major league frames and recorded a 3.58 ERA/4.01 FIP and 8.94 K/9 against 5.24 BB/9, but he’s unlikely to pitch next year in light of his procedure.

Astros To Start Jose Urquidy In Game 3 Of ALCS

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Astros right-hander Jose Urquidy will start Game 3 of the American League Championship Series against the Rays, manager Dusty Baker told Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle and other reporters Monday. Urquidy will follow Lance McCullers Jr., who will get the ball in this afternoon’s second game.

Zack Greinke, the Astros’ ace, seems likely to be their choice in Game 4, but Baker’s not quite willing to make that commitment yet, as Mark Berman of Fox 26 tweets. Greinke last pitched Oct. 8, and though he struggled in that game against the Athletics, the Astros still won to close out the ALDS. Greinke battled arm troubles leading up to that contest, but he’s not dealing with any structural damage. With Greinke unavailable Sunday, the Astros turned to Framber Valdez, who pitched well in a 2-1 loss.

Regardless of Monday’s outcome, the Astros will soon lean on the 25-year-old Urquidy, who has been effective during a 14-appearance, 12-start career that began in 2019. While Urquidy missed the first month-plus of this season because of COVID-19, he returned in early September to make five starts and put up 29 2/3 innings of 2.73 ERA/4.71 FIP ball. Urquidy had a difficult outing against the A’s last Wednesday, though, as he yielded four earned runs in 4 1/3 innings.

Jorge Polanco Undergoes Ankle Surgery

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OCT. 12: Polanco had surgery last week to remove “a mild bone spur and small bone chip on his right ankle,” Betsy Helfand of the St. Paul Pioneer Press tweets. The Twins expect Polanco to be fine for spring training.

OCT. 1: The Twins’ season came to an unceremonious end Wednesday with a two-game elimination against the Astros. The back-to-back AL Central champions could now see one of their key players go under the knife, as president of baseball operations Derek Falvey said Thursday that shortstop Jorge Polanco may need surgery as a result of right ankle problems, Aaron Gleeman of The Athletic and Phil Miller of the Star Tribune were among those to report.

“He battled every day, but he was not playing at full strength for a good chunk of the year,” Falvey said of Polanco, who missed just five of the Twins’ 60 regular-season games.

It was only a year ago that Polanco broke out as one of the majors’ finest infielders, slashing .295/.356/.485 with 22 home runs and 4.0 fWAR in 704 plate appearances. This year wasn’t nearly as successful – Polanco, 27, hit .258/.304/.354 with four HRs over 226 PA – but it appears his health (or lack thereof) played a role in his statistical decline.

Notably, Polanco underwent arthroscopic surgery on his right ankle last November, though it doesn’t appear that procedure erased his issues. Falvey said the Twins “need to assess whether or not there is something else going on there that we need to address.”

Latest On Garrett Crochet, Nick Madrigal

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White Sox left-hander Garrett Crochet left the team’s Game 3 wild-card round loss to the Athletics on Oct. 1, though it wasn’t clear why his season came to a premature end. It turns out that Crochet suffered a flexor strain, general manager Rick Hahn revealed Monday (via James Fegan of The Athletic). While flexor strains often lead to Tommy John surgery, Crochet avoided damage to his ulnar collateral ligament, per Hahn. Chicago expects him to be ready for spring training.

Meanwhile, second baseman Nick Madrigal – another of Chicago’s key young players – underwent surgery on his left shoulder, Scott Merkin of MLB.com relays. Madrigal will require five to six months to recover, which could jeopardize his chances of being at full strength when the spring comes.

This news is a mixed bag for the White Sox, though it’s clearly a relief that Crochet seems to have dodged an especially serious injury. The 21-year-old was the 11th overall pick in this year’s draft, and he wasted little time making a significant impact in the bigs. After the White Sox promoted him in September, Crochet used his blazing fastball to throw six scoreless regular-season innings with eight strikeouts and no walks. Crochet then struck out both batters he faced in his playoff debut before walking off the mound in what proved to be a season-ending defeat for the White Sox.

The 23-year-old Madrigal had a highly effective rookie campaign in his own right, as he slashed .340/.376/.369 in 109 plate appearances. But Madrigal’s shoulder, which he separated Aug. 5, shelved him for almost a month. The hope now is that he’ll be ready when the 2021 season opens.

Braves Keep Same 28-Man Roster For NLCS

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The Braves are sticking with what works as they head into the NLCS showdown with the Dodgers. They’ll stick with the same 28-man roster that they took into the NLDS. Here’s a refresher:

Right-Handed Pitchers

Left-Handed Pitchers

Catchers

Infielders

Outfielders

The Braves will ride again with a 15-man pitching staff. They may very well need every arm if this 7-game, 7-day series goes the distance. In terms of their starters, they are sticking with the same guys for the first three games of the series, with Fried, Anderson, and Wright going on consecutive days, per the Athletic’s David O’Brien (via Twitter). They survived the first two rounds of the postseason without having to name a fourth starter, but that’s certain to change against the Dodgers. No word yet on who will start that game four, with Ynoa, Wilson, and Tomlin being the most capable of providing length.

Dodgers Announce NLCS Roster

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The Dodgers have made a couple of changes to their 28-man roster ahead of the NLCS, per the team. Let’s check it out:

Right-Handed Pitchers

Left-Handed Pitchers

Catchers

Infielders

Outfielders

The most notable changes here include dropping Terrance Gore and Gavin Lux from the roster. Gore’s role is limited to pinch-running, but he had not been used in the first two rounds of the postseason. Lux, meanwhile, is one of the organization’s most talented young players. He played a key role in last year’s playoffs, when he started three games of the NLDS against the Nationals. He had just one at-bat this postseason, however, after slashing .175/.246/.349 across 69 plate appearances in the regular season.

Lux himself had been a replacement for Rios, who missed the ALDS due to a hamstring injury. He is apparently healthy enough to return to the roster.

The other addition is Wood, who becomes the 15th member of the pitching staff. It will be surprising to see Wood start a game, except perhaps in an opener capacity. At the very least, he should be able to provide length out of the bullpen. Wood’s best years have come with the Dodgers, but he’s struggled to get himself on track the last two seasons. He made two starts and nine total appearances for the Dodgers this year, going 0-1 with a 6.39 ERA/5.01 FIP across 12 2/3 innings.

Don Cooper Will Not Return As White Sox Pitching Coach

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After agreeing to part ways with manager Rick Renteria this morning, GM Rick Hahn spoke to the media, announcing further changes. The White Sox have made the decision to move on from long-time pitching coach Don Cooper, per MLB.com’s Scott Merkin and others (via Twitter). Cooper has been the pitching coach for parts of 19 seasons with the White Sox, beginning in July of 2002.

Cooper first joined the White Sox in 1988, giving him a remarkable 32 years with the organization. He was one of the longest-tenured pitching coaches in the major leagues. He was not only the pitching coach for 4 different White Sox skippers, but he actually became the manager himself for a short time at the end of the 2011 season when Ozzie Guillen was let go. Cooper then went back to his pitching coach responsibilities when Robin Ventura took over starting the 2012 season.

In recent years, Cooper has overseen the development of ace Lucas Giolito, as well as the ushering of many young arms to the major leagues. As a staff, the White Sox ranked 6th in the majors with a 3.81 ERA in 2020, but just 18th with a 8.93 K/9, and 17th with 3.71 BB/9. The change may be as much about allowing a new manager to weigh in on coaching decisions as it is about anything particular with Cooper, especially given comments from Hahn suggesting they are looking for new voices from outside the organization.

Changes Made To Red Sox Coaching Staff

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The Boston Red Sox announced a couple of changes to their coaching staff. Bench coach Jerry Narron and bullpen coach Craig Bjornson will not be returning in 2021, per WEEI’s Rob Bradford and others (via Twitter).

The Red Sox will bring in a new manager at some point this winter after announcing the dismissal of Ron Roenicke in September. Roenicke was promoted from bench coach when Alex Cora was fired following MLB’s investigation into the Astros’ sign-stealing scandal. There have been rumblings that Cora could come back to resume his role as Red Sox manager, with MLB Insider Jon Heyman going so far as to say he is the favorite for the role.

In the meantime, many other members of the coaching staff appear to be returning in 2021 regardless of who takes the top job. Hitting coach Tim Hyers, assistant hitting coach Peter Fatse, pitching coach Dave Bush, assistant pitching coach Kevin Walker, third-base coach Carlos Febles, first-base coach Tom Goodwin, and coach Ramon Vazquez are all said to be returning, per Alex Speier of the Boston Globe (via Twitter). It’s still certainly possible that more changes could come whenever the manager role is filled.

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