Archives for January 2021

Giants Interested In Eddie Rosario, Jackie Bradley Jr.

By Mark Polishuk | January 24, 2021 at 1:56pm CDT

The Giants are looking to add outfield help, and Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports that Eddie Rosario and Jackie Bradley Jr. are two of the names under consideration. Both players are also left-handed hitters, “which ticks off another box on the Giants’ wish list,” Slusser writes.

Considering that Bradley and Rosario have very different skillsets, the Giants are clearly keeping their options open as they explore how to best construct their outfield. The current mix consists of Mike Yastrzemski as the only true everyday option in right field, Mauricio Dubon getting the bulk of center field playing time, and Alex Dickerson and Darin Ruf platooning in left field. Austin Slater, Steven Duggar, Luis Alexander Basabe, and Jaylin Davis provide further depth on the bench and in the upper minors.

Signing Bradley would bring one of the game’s top defensive players to the spacious Oracle Park outfield, and he would immediately slide into the everyday center field job. Dubon would still get some playing time in center field when a left-handed starter was on the mound, but the Giants could perhaps bounce Dubon around the diamond to second base, shortstop, or possibly other positions in a super-utility role. Signing Rosario to take over in left field would perhaps make Dickerson a little superfluous, though since Yastrzemski has looked okay in limited center field action, the Giants could opt for an all left-handed array of Rosario/Yastrzemski/Dickerson in the outfield against some right-handed pitching.

Bradley offers excellent glovework and something of an inconsistent bat, though he is coming off a season that saw him hit .283/.364/.450 with seven home runs over 217 plate appearances for the Red Sox. He also posted some strong numbers in 2015-16, but a slash line of only .234/.318/.409 in 1643 PA during the 2017-19 seasons seemingly lowered Bradley’s potential ceiling as a hitter. Bradley turns 31 in April, but a change of scenery could revive his bat after eight seasons in Boston.

As something of the opposite of Bradley, Rosario is a bat-first player who is perhaps a little underrated on defense, considering that Rosario has been above-average (+9 Defensive Runs Saved, +2.9 UZR/150) over 4848 career innings as a left fielder. Rosario also delivered plenty of pop during his six years with the Twins, hitting .277/.310/.478 with 119 homers in 2830 PA.

In December, however, Rosario wasn’t tendered a contract. Minnesota opted to let Rosario go due to his escalating arbitration price tag (projected to land between $8.6MM and $12.9MM) and because top prospects Alex Kirilloff and Trevor Larnach are both waiting in the wings for regular Major League duty. The 29-year-old Rosario also posts a lot of strikeouts and doesn’t reach base often, which limits his offensive production.

Bradley has drawn more public interest than Rosario this winter, as Rosario has been linked to only the Marlins and Red Sox on the rumor mill. Boston has also been known to have interest in a reunion with Bradley, and at least five other teams have also been connected to Bradley’s market. Of course, that list has likely seen some alterations as the offseason has rolled on — the Blue Jays, for instance, are almost certainly out on Bradley after signing George Springer.

Braves Re-Sign Pablo Sandoval To Minors Deal

By Mark Polishuk | January 24, 2021 at 12:27pm CDT

The Braves have signed infielder Pablo Sandoval to a minor league contract, MLB Network’s Jon Heyman reports (via Twitter). Sandoval will earn $1MM if he makes Atlanta’s active roster.

Sandoval is back in Atlanta after first joining the Braves on a minors deal in September. The team brought the Panda aboard to add depth given the Braves’ lack of third base production, and Sandoval ended up appearing in one regular-season game and then three NLCS games (as a pinch-hitter or defensive replacement) in an Atlanta uniform. Since the Braves are still hoping for a breakout from Austin Riley and a rebound from Johan Camargo, it makes sense that Sandoval would again be brought back as a depth option.

If he breaks camp, the 34-year-old Sandoval will appear in his 14th Major League season and continue a career that has already delivered plenty of memorable moments. Best known for his long tenure in San Francisco, Sandoval was part of three World Series championship teams, and won Series MVP honors in 2012. He hasn’t been a true everyday player since 2014 (the final year of his initial tenure with the Giants), but Sandoval has at times been a productive part-timer and bench bat. As recently as 2019, Sandoval hit .268/.313/.507 with 14 home runs over 296 plate appearances for the Giants.

MLBTR Chat Transcript

By Mark Polishuk | January 24, 2021 at 11:23am CDT

Click here to read the transcript of today’s live baseball chat.

Braves Notes: Aaron, Hendriks, Springer

By Mark Polishuk and TC Zencka | January 24, 2021 at 9:20am CDT

The idea of Henry Aaron and Willie Mays in the same outfield is the stuff of “all-time team” discussions, yet the two legends came close to beginning their careers as teammates. MLB.com’s Anthony Castrovince looks back at an Aaron quote given to author Donald Honig for an essay published close to 20 years ago, as Aaron stated that the Boston Braves and Mays’ New York Giants were among the teams looking to sign Aaron away from the Indianapolis Clowns of the Negro Leagues.

“I had the Giants’ contract in my hand, but the Braves offered $50 a month more. That’s the only thing that kept Willie Mays and me from being teammates — $50,” Aaron said.

If it’s any consolation to old-school Giants fans, Castrovince notes that this story could be somewhat apocryphal. Plus, Aaron might not have gotten as immediate a chance to regularly play if he had signed with the Giants, considering New York had a stacked team that won the 1954 World Series. However, one can only imagine the alternate version of baseball history that would have grown from a Mays/Aaron tandem in the Giants’ outfield, whether it results in more championships for the Giants, how it would have impacted Aaron’s home run totals, or perhaps whether the Giants would have remained in New York rather than moved to San Francisco.

Jameson Taillon Could Be Next Pirates Player To Be Traded

By TC Zencka | January 23, 2021 at 10:45pm CDT

10:45 pm: A trade does appear to be on the horizon, potentially as soon as tomorrow, per Jason Mackey (via Twitter). By all accounts, nothing has been finalized. The Pirates are said to be looking for high-ceiling prospects, even if that means taking players who are further away from reaching the Majors.

8:45 pm: The Yankees are indeed one of the teams talking to the Pirates about Taillon, tweets MLB Insider Jon Heyman. MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand (via Twitter) goes as far as to say they “appear to be emerging as the frontrunner.” The Yankees are not the only team involved, however, as the Pirates have offers from multiple teams, adds Jason Mackey of PGSportsNow. Taillon has two years of control remaining.

2:23 pm: Joe Musgrove now gets his paychecks from the San Diego Padres, and Josh Bell his from the Washington Nationals, so it’s only natural that someone step into the void as the “next Pirates player to be traded.” According to MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand (via Twitter), right-hander Jameson Taillon is in the proverbial on-deck circle. Feinsand and MLB.com’s Adam Berry hear that Jameson could be moved as soon as this weekend.

When Taillon made his debut as a 24-year-old in 2016, he and then-rotation-mate Gerrit Cole represented a promising core that was meant to build on the success of a 98-win 2015 team. That future never quite came to be, of course, as the Pirates fell back to the basement of the NL Central and now face yet another organizational rebuild. From that perspective, trades of the roster’s veterans are borderline inevitable. Still, a Taillon trade at this juncture is not without its complications, given his uncertain status returning from Tommy John surgery. Taillon went under the knife in August 2019, missing the entire 2020 season. It was the second Tommy John surgery of his career.

Taillon’s one full season came in 2018 when he made 32 starts and logged 191 innings with a 3.20 ERA/3.46 FIP, 22.8 percent strikeout rate, 5.9 percent walk rate, and 46.2 percent walk rate. That’s the version of Taillon that will stick in the heads of opposing teams as they consider acquiring the 29-year-old. Generally speaking, Taillon brings better-than-average strikeout rates, near-elite walk rates, and a career-average 85 FIP-. Though expectations should be tempered to reflect his injury status, it’s fair to hope that Taillon might again provide mid-rotation-or-better production for a contender.

The Yankees were linked to Taillon earlier this offseason and could still be a potential landing spot. Of course, it would not be hard to find a team in need of a starting pitcher – even one coming off his second TJ surgery. Given the caution with which most teams are approaching increasing workloads for 2021, a rehabbing hurler like Taillon may benefit from a smoother transition back to action, as he would not be expected to post a 200-inning season out of the blocks.

Quick Hits: Alex Wood, Giants, Twins, Ehire Adrianza

By TC Zencka | January 23, 2021 at 8:33pm CDT

Alex Wood’s one-year contract with the Giants pays out $3MM with another $3MM in incentives, but it’s the structure of those incentives that makes the contract unique, writes Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports.com. Wood’s deal will reward the southpaw for consistency working deep into games. He’ll make $150K after 12 games of 10-plus outs, and another $150K after 14 such games. He’d then get $250K for each of 16, 18, 22, and 24 10-out games, and $500K for 26, 28, or 30 10-out outings. Given the 3 1/3 inning threshold, Wood should have a decent chance of reaching those benchmarks if he’s in the rotation, but the structure leaves open the possibility of earning his incentives even if he works as an opener or follower.

Speaking of Wood, he almost signed with the Giants last season, but he chose to return to the Dodgers instead to take his best shot at winning a World Series ring, per John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle. That worked out about as well as possible, but now Wood hopes to return to the rotation on a regular basis. Wood made just two starts with the Dodgers in 2020, working a total of 12 2/3 innings (which included seven relief appearances). He spent more than a month on the injured list suffering from shoulder inflammation. With the Giants, he’ll have an opportunity to pitch his way back into the rotation. That said, after bringing back Kevin Gausman and signing Anthony DeSclafani, Wood is not without competition for those starting spots. He’ll have to stay healthy as well, which has not been a given for Wood in recent seasons.
Ehire Adrianza signaled an end to his time in Minnesota with a post on instagram thanking the fans in Minnesota for his four years there. As of now, however, it’s not readily apparent if Adrianza has a new team lined up for 2021, per Chris Miller of the Star Tribune. The versatile switch-hitter has played everywhere on the diamond except for centerfield over his eight-year career. He spent four seasons with the Giants and the last four with the Twins, compiling a career triple slash line of .244/.310/.360, good for an 82 wRC+. The 31-year-old doesn’t offer a lot of pop, but he generally puts the ball in play and walked at a 10.9 percent clip in 2020. He may be a value option for a team that had interest in but missed out on either Jurickson Profar or Enrique Hernández.

Minor Transactions: 1/23/21

By TC Zencka | January 23, 2021 at 6:52pm CDT

The latest minor moves from around the game…

Former Nationals farmhand Drew Ward has signed a minor league deal with the Tigers, per Jesse Dougherty of the Washington Post (via Twitter). The 26-year-old was a third round pick by the Nats back in 2013. He posted a 105 wRC+ in Triple-A and 139 wRC+ in Double-A during the 2019 season for the Nats. He consistently posted solid offensive numbers on his march through the Nats’ system, though his walk rate fell below average in 2019 as his strikeout rate shot up close to an unsightly 40 percent. The lefty bat can play both infield corners and serve as depth in that regard for the Tigers. It should be noted that while Ward’s walk rate and strikeout rate worsened in 2019, Ward’s isolated power numbers proved the best of his young career. If an approach shift resulted in selling out for power more often than not, Ward at least registered a .232 ISO across 205 plate appearances in Double-A and .270 ISO in 117 Triple-A plate appearances. Not to mention, Ward slashed a robust .335/.407/.633 with a 25.6 percent strikeout rate and 9.3 percent walk rate while playing Indy ball in 2020.

Free Agency Notes: Mets, Richards, Red Sox, Profar, Bench Bat

By TC Zencka | January 23, 2021 at 6:12pm CDT

The Mets made a play for Garrett Richards before the veteran righty signed with the Red Sox, notes MLB Insider Jon Heyman (via Twitter). The Mets have made their rotation a project this offseason. They are seemingly in a good place even without Richards, however. Jacob deGrom, Carlos Carrasco, and Marcus Stroman make for a very strong top three, and hopes remain high that David Peterson will maintain a spot behind them. Noah Syndergaard plans to join that group at some point, and even if Seth Lugo returns to the bullpen, the Mets have no shortage of depth options – foremost of which might be the recently-acquired Joey Lucchesi. Beyond the ex-Padre, Steven Matz, Robert Gsellman, Franklyn Kilome, Corey Oswalt, and Jerad Eickhoff surely have eyes for the rotation. In other news…

The Red Sox themselves were runners-up in an attempt to sign Jurickson Profar, per the San Diego Union-Tribune. Boston, of course, ended up with Kiké Hernández on a similar, but shorter contract. It’s not clear if the Red Sox preferred Profar to Hernandez, though Hernández signing merely hours after Profar re-upped with San Diego is notable. Still, one does not necessarily follow the other. All we can say for certain is that Profar’s returning to San Diego thinned Boston’s market for versatile utility types. That the Red Sox engaged in parallel negotiations with similar players doesn’t actually speak to their priorities where those players are concerned.
After all, they may very well have been interested in signing both players, as Boston remains on the hunt for a lefty bench bat. In a perfect world, the Red Sox would find someone who could complement Bobby Dalbec at first, per Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com (via Twitter). Cotillo floats Marwin Gonzalez, Brad Miller, and Mitch Moreland as some players that might fit the bill. Boston’s bench leans heavily to the right at present, with Jonathan Arauz as one of very few organizational options as a lefty bat off the bench unless Jarren Duran makes the team out of spring training.

Latest On Brad Hand

By Connor Byrne and TC Zencka | January 23, 2021 at 4:04pm CDT

TODAY: The market for Hand seems to be shaping up. Hand could decide on his new team as early as this weekend, as MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand (Twitter link) hears from several teams who “have been told that Hand wants to make a decision soon.”

Specifically, the Angels, Dodgers, Mets, and Jays are all at least in the conversation for Hand, per MLB Insider Jon Heyman (via Twitter). Heyman also adds the Nationals as the newest team to emerge as a potential suitor. If the Nationals can find the money for Hand, he could serve as a replacement for free-agent Sean Doolittle. As things stand now, the Nats are without a proven southpaw in the pen, with non-roster invitee Luis Avilan as the only lefty on the 40-man roster besides rookies Sam Clay, Seth Romero, and Ben Braymer.

JANUARY 20: Free-agent reliever Brad Hand has received interest from several teams since Cleveland unexpectedly cut ties with him in late October. The Blue Jays are among the clubs that have been linked to Hand, and Jon Heyman of MLB Network reports that “they’ve had an offer out to” the three-time All-Star.

Hand would be the third noteworthy addition of the offseason for the Blue Jays’ bullpen, which has already landed Kirby Yates (one of Hand’s ex-Padres teammates) and Tyler Chatwood this week. Yates looks like a candidate to close for the Blue Jays in 2021, but that job could go to Hand if the team signs him. Despite losing almost 2 mph on his fastball, Hand posted his latest in a long line of productive seasons in 2020, as the 30-year-old registered a sparkling 2.05 ERA/2.80 SIERA in 22 innings. Hand also converted all 16 of his save opportunities and ranked 13th among relievers in K-BB percentage (29.1).

Toronto and others have new competition for Hand in the Angels, who “have emerged as a possibility” to sign him, Robert Murray of FanSided tweets. He would be another major late-game acquisition for a Halos club that swung a trade with the Reds earlier this offseason for right-hander Raisel Iglesias and picked up southpaw Alex Claudio in free agency. The Angels could still use another lefty for their righty-heavy relief corps, though, and Hand may be their answer.

Astros Sign Jason Castro

By Steve Adams | January 23, 2021 at 2:48pm CDT

TODAY: The contract breaks down as a $2MM signing bonus, then $2.5MM salaries in both 2021 and 2022, Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle reports (Twitter link). For every 10 games played as a catcher next season, Castro will add another $250K to his 2022 salary.

JAN. 22: The Astros have announced the signing.

JAN. 21, 8:42am: USA Today’s Bob Nightengale tweets that the contract will guarantee Castro a total of $7MM. Castro can earn up to an additional $2MM based on time spent behind the plate in 2021, tweets ESPN’s Jeff Passan.

8:25am: Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle reports that Castro’s contract is actually a two-year deal.

8:01am: The Astros have agreed to a one-year contract with free-agent backstop Jason Castro, Ken Rosenthal and Jake Kaplan of The Athletic report (via Twitter). The ISE Baseball client’s contract is pending a physical.

The two sides were originally reported to be in talks late in December, but those negotiations slowed as Castro continued to survey the market. Along the way, the Cubs and the Tigers (managed by Castro’s former skipper, A.J. Hinch) emerged as potential alternatives. Now, however, a physical is all that stands in the way between Castro and a return to the organization that originally selected him with the No. 10 overall draft pick out of Stanford back in 2008.

Castro, 33, has been away from the Astros for four seasons — most of that time spent with the Twins organization. Minnesota signed Castro to a three-year, $24.5MM contract after the 2017 season due largely to his superlative pitch-framing skills and his knack for drawing walks at the plate. He had a solid 2017 season as the Twins’ primary backstop but missed nearly all of the 2018 campaign due to meniscus surgery. He returned in 2019 to have another productive year while splitting time evenly with breakout catcher Mitch Garver.

That strong showing from Garver in ’19 likely convinced the Twins they could move on, and Castro landed in Anaheim on a one-year deal with the Angels. He struggled at the plate in a tiny sample of 92 plate appearances between the Angels and the Padres, who acquired him prior to the Aug. 31 trade deadline this past summer.

All in all, Castro has batted .224/.322/.389 in 848 plate appearances since leaving the Astros — numbers that fall roughly in line with his career .230/.312/.390 batting line. He’s unlikely to ever hit for a high average due to his strikeout tendencies, but Castro has a career 10.1 percent walk rate (11.7 percent over the past four years) and has a bit of pop in his bat (.164 ISO, 26 homers, 43 doubles from 2017-20).

Defensive aptitude has been the driving factor behind Castro’s value in the market, though he’s been closer to average with the glove as he’s moved into his mid-30s and had to deal with the effects of that 2018 knee surgery. Castro has been just about average in terms of throwing out base thieves in the four years since leaving Houston, but his framing numbers have dropped off a bit, more recently, he’s struggled with regard to blocking pitches in the dirt. Of course, it’s also possible that as he further distances himself from that knee operation, he’ll regain some of his prior form.

In his return to Houston, Castro figures to pair with the right-handed-hitting Martin Maldonado behind the dish, giving manager Dusty Baker the opportunity to play matchups with a pair of solid defenders. Kaplan tweets that a straight platoon isn’t likely — Maldonado will start more often — although at least from an offensive standpoint, such an idea wouldn’t be a bad one. Castro is a career .195/.262/.291 hitter against lefties but a much-improved .242/.328/.421 hitter against righties. Maldonado, meanwhile, carries a 33-point gap in his OPS against lefties over righties (and a nine-point gap in his wRC+). He’s just a .213/.288/.353 career hitter against righties.

Houston may not generate huge offensive output from its pair of backstops. That’s true of most clubs throughout the league, however, and most pairings don’t have the sound defensive track records that both Castro and Maldonado possess. Besides — catchers, on the whole, have been about 10 to 15 percent worse than a league-average hitter over the past four years, so the ’Stros can certainly live with the level of offense provided by Castro and Maldonado if both play defense at their typically steady levels.

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