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Archives for December 2021

Rockies Name Clint Hurdle Special Assistant To GM

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The Rockies are bringing former manager Clint Hurdle back to the organization as a special assistant to general manager Bill Schmidt, as Tracy Ringolsby first reported at Inside The Seams. He’ll start his new role Jan. 1, per Ringolsby. MLB.com’s Thomas Harding adds that Hurdle will focus, in particular, on player development.

As is so often the case with Rockies, their latest front-office hire is a key figure who is well known by owner Dick Monfort. Hurdle managed the Rockies from 2002-09, during which time Colorado appeared in its lone World Series (2007). Prior to that, he’d served as the team’s Major League hitting coach and a minor league hitting instructor.

Hurdle’s Rockies couldn’t recapture that 2007 form in 2008, finishing the season with a 74-88 record as they tried to weather injuries to both Todd Helton and Troy Tulowitzki. After an 18-28 start to the ’09 season, Hurdle was dismissed as the team’s skipper and offered a new role elsewhere in the organization. Ultimately, however, the two sides parted ways. Just two seasons later, Hurdle was managing the Pirates, where he’d serve as skipper from 2011-19 — an even lengthier run than the one he enjoyed in Colorado.

The Athletic’s Nick Groke chatted with Hurdle back in June, gauging the former skipper’s interest to returning to a Rockies organization that was now in transition. Hurdle wouldn’t directly confirm interest from the team or a willingness to return, though he alluded to both in calling Denver a “special place” and noting that there were “only a couple places that I would leave my family and my home to embark on something new.”

Ringolsby notes that Hurdle’s new role will still allow the now-64-year-old former skipper to spend time with his family in addition to his role with the team. He’ll still bring an experienced voice — it’s been more than 45 years since the Royals drafted Hurdle with the No. 9 overall pick in 1975 — to a Rockies front office that has seen a good bit of turnover in recent months.

Jeff Bridich was ousted as general manager early in the season, and assistant GMs Zach Wilson and Jon Weil left the organization not long after. Schmidt, the longtime scouting director in Colorado, was elevated to interim GM and then formally named GM on the penultimate day of the regular season — before the Rockies even had the opportunity to talk with candidates from other organizations.

D-backs Hire Jason McLeod As Special Assistant

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The Diamondbacks have named former Cubs, Padres and Red Sox executive Jason McLeod a special assistant to general manager Mike Hazen, reports Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic (via Twitter). McLeod’s contract with the Cubs expired at the end of the 2021 season.

A move to Arizona for McLeod is in some ways natural, as both he and Hazen have roots in the Red Sox organization. McLeod and Hazen worked together in Boston from 2006-09, when Hazen was the team’s director of player development. However, McLeod jumped to the Padres in 2009 when Jed Hoyer was named GM in San Diego, and he reunited with Hoyer and president Theo Epstein (formerly the GM in Boston) when the Epstein/Hoyer regime took the reins in the Cubs’ front office.

With the Cubs, McLeod served as a vice president overseeing player development, amateur scouting and player personnel at various points (though not all simultaneously). In addition to Hazen, McLeod is no stranger to D-backs assistant general manager Amiel Sawdaye, who was Boston’s assistant director of amateur scouting from 2005-09.

McLeod has previously been seen as a candidate for various general manager vacancies, interviewing with the Twins in 2016, with Mets in 2018, with the Giants in 2018 and with the Angels in 2020. McLeod was reportedly a finalist for that Halos vacancy, though the Angels eventually went with Perry Minasian as their new baseball ops leader. McLeod’s role with the D-backs is somewhat nebulous — as is often the case with special assistants of this nature; Rosenthal suggests he’ll contribute “in a variety of areas,” although as a special assistant, McLeod won’t oversee any one specific department like he did in Chicago.

Brewers Sign Three To Minor League Deals

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The Brewers announced Thursday morning that they’ve signed catcher Jakson Reetz, outfielder Garrett Whitley and right-hander Moises Gomez to minor league contracts. All three received invitations to Major League Spring Training as well.

Reetz, 26 next month, made his big league debut with the Nationals in 2021, appearing in two games and collecting a double for his first (and, to date, only) Major League hit. A third-round pick by the Nats back in 2014, Reetz ranked among Washington’s top 30 prospects at Baseball America each year from 2015-21, topping out at No. 14 (2015-16) and ranking No. 25 heading into the 2021 season.

While he’s regarded as a solid defender thanks to his receiving and pitch-blocking skills, Reetz has yet to hit much in pro ball. He posted a combined .189/.297/.317 slash in 300 plate appearances between Double-A and Triple-A this past season and carries a career .230/.347/.355 batting line through 472 minor league games in total. Reetz showed some promise with a .253/.370/.441 and 13 homers in High-A back in 2019, but his return to competitive play and debuts in Double-A and Triple-A this past season didn’t go well from an offensive standpoint.

Whitley, 25 in March, has an even loftier draft status. Selected with the No. 13 overall pick by the Rays back in 2015, Whitley ranked among the top-10 farmhands (per BA) in a perennially loaded Rays system each year from 2016-18. Whitley hit .255/.370/.510 and walked at a 12.6% clip in 237 Double-A plate appearances this past season, but he also whiffed in 28% of his trips to the plate at that level. He struggled mightily upon a bump to Triple-A, where he hit just .172/.269/.301 and fanned in a third of his 108 plate appearances (against a diminished 8.3% walk rate).

Like Reetz, Whitley has drawn positive reviews for his defensive skills. He’s a center fielder touted for 60- or even 70-grade speed (on the 20-80 scale) with an above-average throwing arm. Large strikeout rates have plagued him throughout his minor league tenure, even as he’s generally walked at a strong clip. In all, Whitley is a .234/.343/.407 career hitter in pro ball.

Gomez, who’ll turn 25 in February, split the 2021 season between the Mariners’ Double-A and Triple-A affiliates, pitching well for the former but being hit hard with the latter. The gap between Gomez’s 1.23 ERA in 29 1/3 Double-A frames and 5.94 ERA in 16 1/3 Triple-A innings might not be as great as one would expect, however.

Gomez actually posted better strikeout and walk percentages in Triple-A (23.7% and 5.3%, respectively) than in Double-A (21.2%, 5.9%). However, the righty was blown up for a sky-high .392 average on balls in play during his brief run with Triple-A Tacoma, and his left-on-base percentage fell from 87% to 57.9%. A drop of that magnitude in strand rate is only natural when so many balls in play are falling for hits. The results in Triple-A certainly don’t look appealing, but Gomez has an upper-90s heater and has never posted an ERA north of 3.30 at any minor league level outside of last year’s 13-game cup of coffee in Triple-A.

Free Agent Danny Duffy Targeting June Return Following Flexor Surgery

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Although veteran left-hander Danny Duffy was a fairly notable deadline pickup by the Dodgers back in July, the soon-to-be 33-year-old didn’t throw a pitch in Los Angeles following the trade. Acquired while on the injured list due to a forearm strain, Duffy suffered a setback while rehabbing with L.A. and never made it back to a big league mound.

The Dodgers and Duffy were both rather quiet on his outlook. The left-hander now reveals to Andy McCullough of The Athletic that after initially fearing what would’ve been his second career Tommy John surgery, he instead required surgery to repair the flexor tendon in his left arm. That procedure, performed in October, comes with a months-long rehabilitation process. Duffy is targeting June for a return to a big league mound and expects to pitch out of the bullpen in 2022 before hopefully moving back into a rotation thereafter.

Of course, the team for which Duffy will throw remains entirely uncertain. The left-hander hit free agency for the first time in his career at season’s end and did not agree to terms with a club prior to the expiration of the 2016-21 collective bargaining agreement. It stands to reason that either the Dodgers, who traded for him, or the Royals, who drafted and developed him, would have interest in bringing him back.

Then again, Duffy has a lengthy track record of big league success and ought to be of interest to a variety of contenders and non-contenders alike on a short-term deal. Most clubs figure to be interested on a one-year deal, though as we saw with Kirby Yates earlier in the offseason, its feasible that a team could try to lure Duffy on a heavily backloaded two-year arrangement.

Duffy appeared in 13 games for the Royals this past season, all but one of them as a starting pitcher. In 61 frames he notched a tidy 2.51 ERA, albeit with less-favorable reviews from fielding-independent marks like FIP (3.40) and SIERA (4.14). This season’s 93.8 mph average heater was his best mark since 2016, while his 25.8% strikeout rate was a narrow career-high mark over 2016’s rate of 25.7%.

Pair Of Pirates’ Relievers Should Attract Trade Interest Once The Transactions Freeze Is Lifted

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Coming off their third consecutive last-place season, the Pirates remain mired in a massive rebuild. Contending in 2022 looks far-fetched, and it remains to be seen if there’s enough internal talent to be competitive by 2023. Aside from perhaps Bryan Reynolds and Ke’Bryan Hayes, Pittsburgh figures to at least be willing to entertain offers for anyone on the current big league club. Once the lockout concludes, it seems likely they’ll draw calls from rivals on a pair of their top relievers: David Bednar and Chris Stratton.

Bednar’s a fairly recent trade acquisition, one of five young players Pittsburgh added last offseason in the deal that sent Joe Musgrove to the Padres. That proved to be an adept pickup for general manager Ben Cherington and his staff, as Bednar was rather quietly one of the league’s better relievers in 2021.

Over 60 2/3 innings, the now 27-year-old Bednar pitched to a 2.23 ERA. That was buoyed a bit by both a strand rate (84.9%) and opponents’ batting average on balls in play (.259) that might be tough to maintain. Yet it’s not as if Bednar’s success was a complete fluke. He struck out 32.5% of batters faced while walking only 8%. That’s a strong combination of punch outs and control, as the 24.5 point gap between his strikeout and walk percentages ranked 15th among the 138 relievers with 50+ innings pitched. His ERA checked in 17th among that group, while his 2.92 SIERA ranked 19th.

In addition to those strong results, Bednar boasts the kind of power stuff teams love in the late innings. His fastball averaged just shy of 97 MPH, according to Statcast, a personal high over his three MLB seasons. He backed that up with a solid splitter and a curveball against which batters made contact only a bit more than half the time they swung. Behind that three-pitch arsenal, Bednar generated whiffs on 15.5% of his offerings. That’s nearly four points higher than the 11.7% league average for bullpen arms, ranking 18th among those with 50 or more frames.

The Pirates certainly don’t have to trade Bednar this winter. The 2021 campaign was his first full season as a big leaguer, and he remains under team control through 2026. That includes the next two seasons at pre-arbitration salaries, making the right-hander an affordable option for the Bucs’ relief corps. (Alterations to the service time structure in the next collective bargaining agreement could affect that timeline, of course, although he’d come with at least two years of remaining control under any system that has thus far been reported to be under consideration in CBA talks).

That said, relief pitching can be volatile. Because Bednar didn’t settle into a big league bullpen until he was already 26, he’ll likely be 28 or 29 years old by the time the Pirates can reasonably expect to contend. Even if they don’t need to actively shop Bednar, the front office could be willing to pull the trigger on a deal if another team put enough young talent on the table.

There’s comparatively more urgency for the Bucs to trade Stratton. The righty is already 31 years old and has four-plus years of service under his belt. Without changes to the service time setup, he’d be controllable another two seasons via arbitration. MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projects Stratton for a salary in the $2.2MM range for the upcoming season.

Stratton wouldn’t bring back as strong a return as Bednar could. Not only does he come with less remaining club control, he’s not as dominant. Yet Stratton is coming off a nice season of his own, his second straight solid year. He absorbed 79 1/3 innings of 3.63 ERA ball in 2021, posting capable strikeout and walk numbers (25.5% and 9.8%, respectively). That came on the back of a 12.4% swinging strike rate, his second consecutive season with better than average swing-and-miss numbers.

Going back to the start of 2020, Stratton owns a 3.70 ERA/3.61 FIP over 109 1/3 frames of relief. That’s come with above-average strikeout and swinging strike rates and roughly league average control. Opposing hitters own a .232/.306/.363 line against him in that time. Stratton isn’t an impact piece, but he’s a solid reliever who’d upgrade the middle or late innings for plenty of more immediate contenders around the league. Pittsburgh wouldn’t bring back a franchise-altering return, but his solid two-year run should allow the front office to recoup a mid-tier prospect on the trade market.

Stratton looks likelier of the Pirates’ top two relievers to wind up elsewhere over the next few months, but a Bednar move would involve a more significant return. It stands to reason teams will call the Pirates to gauge the asking price on both hurlers. Moving one or both of Bednar and Stratton could serve as the Bucs’ next step in their continued efforts to strengthen the farm system in anticipation of a contention window a few years down the road.

Images courtesy of USA Today Sports.

KBO’s Kiwoom Heroes Sign Yasiel Puig

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Free agent outfielder Yasiel Puig is in agreement with the Kiwoom Heroes of the Korea Baseball Organization, reports Yonhap News (h/t to Yonhap’s Jeeho Yoo). It’ll be a one-year, $1MM contract, the maximum amount allowed under KBO rules for first-year foreign players. (Francys Romero of Las Mayores reported yesterday that Puig was nearing agreement with a KBO team).

Puig, who turned 31 years old yesterday, hasn’t appeared in the majors since 2019. After a league average offensive showing between the Reds and Indians that year, he lingered on the free agent market for the entire offseason. Puig looked as if he’d lined up a deal with the Braves coming out of the pandemic-driven transactions freeze last July, but his potential agreement with Atlanta was scuttled after he tested positive for COVID-19.

Puig didn’t wind up playing in 2020. During the ensuing offseason, a woman filed a civil action against him, alleging that he had sexually assaulted her in 2018. In March, John Barr of ESPN detailed the allegations, which Puig and his representatives denied. Criminal charges were never filed, and the parties settled the civil case out of court this past October.

While Puig continued to express interest in a return to Major League Baseball, he spent the 2021 season in the Mexican League. The right-handed hitter signed with El Águila de Veracruz. He hit .312/.409/.517 across 247 plate appearances and 62 games. He’ll now reportedly head to South Korea for his first career action outside of North America.

Puig has appeared in seven big league seasons, including star-level showings in each of his first two years with the Dodgers. He appeared on MVP balloting in both 2013 and 2014, earning an All-Star selection in the latter of those seasons. From 2015 onwards, Puig settled in as a solid but not elite offensive player, posting slightly above-average marks until his average 2019 showing. For his career, he’s a .277/.348/.475 hitter.

Mets Interview Joe Espada In Managerial Search; Don Kelly Withdraws From Consideration

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The Mets have interviewed Astros’ bench coach Joe Espada as part of their ongoing managerial search, reports Andy Martino of SNY (Twitter link). He becomes the fifth known interviewee, joining Matt Quatraro, Buck Showalter, Brad Ausmus and Bob Geren.

Espada, 46, has spent the past four seasons as the Houston bench coach. His first two years were under A.J. Hinch, and he retained that position even after the club moved on to Dusty Baker in the wake of Hinch’s firing for his role the 2017 sign-stealing scandal. Before his time with the Astros, Espada spent four seasons in the Yankees’ organization, the latter three of which came on Joe Girardi’s coaching staff. Espada’s time in the Bronx partially overlapped with that of current Mets’ general manager Billy Eppler, who worked as an AGM with the Yankees from 2012-15.

To date, Espada has no big league managing experience. He’s long been regarded as a viable candidate to land a top position at some point, though. Over the 2018-19 offseason, he reportedly interviewed for managerial positions with the Twins, Angels and Rangers, and he was reported to be a finalist for the Blue Jays’ job that eventually went to Charlie Montoyo. The following winter, he met with the Cubs and Giants — making a strong enough impression with the latter organization that he was once reported to be the front-runner for a position that ultimately went to Gabe Kapler.

Espada has also drawn interest from the other club with a current vacancy in the dugout. Britt Ghiroli and Ken Rosenthal of the Athletic reported earlier this week that he’s expected to sit down with A’s brass as part of their efforts to find a replacement for Bob Melvin.

Of the six known candidates for the Mets’ position, five have now interviewed. The other — Pirates’ bench coach Don Kelly — appears to be out of the running. Joel Sherman of the New York Post reported this evening (on Twitter) that Kelly has pulled his name from consideration for personal reasons. Presumably, that means he’ll reprise his role as Derek Shelton’s top lieutenant in Pittsburgh in 2022.

That’s not to say the group of five known to have interviewed are the finalists for the position. Mike Puma of the New York Post tweets that the Mets have an interview with an additional unknown candidate scheduled for tomorrow morning.

2021 Minor League Rule 5 Draft Results

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Although the Major League portion of the 2021 Rule 5 Draft was postponed indefinitely due to the ongoing MLB lockout, the minor league portion of the Rule 5 Draft carried on as planned. Fifty-one players were selected in the Triple-A phase of the event, which allows teams to select players who were not protected on a 38-man Triple-A roster (similar to the MLB 40-man roster). Minor League Rule 5 selections cost $24,500 apiece, and that sum is paid from the drafting team to the player’s former organization.

It’s rare, but not unprecedented, to see players from the Minor League Rule 5 Draft ultimately make an impact at the MLB level. Names like Justin Bour and Alexi Ogando are recent examples of big leaguers to emerge from this process, and as you’ll see in the list of names selected today, there were a handful of draftees who already have some MLB experience (but have since been outrighted off the roster). As with the Major League Rule 5 Draft, not all teams will make selections, and some will make multiple picks. Teams with full 38-man Triple-A rosters weren’t eligible to make selections.

Here’s a quick breakdown of the draft, with a handful of notes on some of the recognizable names to follow (* denotes prior Major League experience)…

Round 1

  1. Orioles select RHP Nolan Hoffman from Mariners
  2. Pirates select LHP Zach Matson from Rockies
  3. Nationals select 2B Andrew Young* from Diamondbacks
  4. Marlins select INF Charles Leblanc from Rangers
  5. Cubs select LHP Conner Menez* from Giants
  6. Rockies select LHP Gabriel Rodriguez from Braves
  7. Tigers select RHP Elvis Alvarado from Mariners
  8. Angels select LHP Kenny Rosenberg from Rays
  9. Mets select RHP Alex Valverde from Rays
  10. Padres select RHP Grant Gavin from Royals
  11. Guardians select LHP Erik Sabrowski from Padres
  12. Phillies select RHP Matt Seelinger from Giants
  13. Reds select OF Ronnie Dawson* from Astros
  14. Athletics select OF Gabriel Maciel from Twins
  15. Braves select 1B John Nogowski* from Giants
  16. Mariners select OF Tanner Kirwer from Blue Jays
  17. Cardinals select OF Ben DeLuzio from Diamondbacks
  18. Blue Jays select RHP Abdiel Mendoza from Rangers
  19. Red Sox select LHP Austin Lambright from Royals
  20. Yankees select RHP Steven Jennings from Pirates
  21. White Sox select INF Moises Castillo from Cardinals
  22. Brewers select RHP Caleb Boushley from Padres
  23. Astros select RHP Ruben Garcia from Tigers
  24. Dodgers select C Kekai Rios from Brewers
  25. Giants select OF Michael Gigliotti from Rays

Round 2

  1. Orioles select RHP Cole Uvila from Rangers
  2. Pirates select RHP Nic Laio from Rangers
  3. Nationals select RHP Curtis Taylor from Blue Jays
  4. Marlins select LHP Robert Garcia from Royals
  5. Tigers select RHP Nick Kuzia from Padres
  6. Mets select RHP Carlos Ocampo from Cubs
  7. Guardians select RHP Brett Daniels from Astros
  8. Athletics select OF Vince Fernandez from Giants
  9. Braves select LHP Luis De Avila from Royals
  10. Mariners select OF Walking Cabrera from Rockies
  11. Cardinals select RHP Carlos Guarate from Padres
  12. Red Sox select RHP Brian Keller from Yankees
  13. Yankees select RHP Manny Ramirez from Astros
  14. Dodgers select RHP Carson Fulmer* from Reds

Round 3

  1. Pirates select 3B/1B Jacob Gonzalez from Giants
  2. Nationals select RHP Matt Brill from Diamondbacks
  3. Marlins select INF Cobie Vance from Athletics
  4. Braves select RHP Allan Winans from Mets
  5. Mariners select RHP Tommy Wilson from Mets (later traded to Orioles for cash considerations)
  6. Cardinals select OF Jonah Davis from Pirates
  7. Dodgers select RHP Jon Duplantier* from Giants

Round 4

  1. Nationals select RHP Dakody Clemmer from Guardians
  2. Marlins select RHP Luarbert Arias from Padres
  3. Braves select RHP Tanner Andrews from Marlins
  4. Cardinals select LHP Nelfri Contreras from Dodgers

Round 5

  1. Marlins select INF Carlos Santiago from Dodgers

Some largely anecdotal observations…

Phillies Notes: Schwarber, Knebel, Bullpen

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The Phillies, like most teams around the league, have plenty of work to do once the lockout is resolved and a new collective bargaining agreement is in place. With that in mind, it’s worth noting that NBC Sports Philadelphia’s Corey Seidman writes the Phils “pursued [Kyle] Schwarber hard” prior to the lockout but weren’t able to finalize an agreement.

The 28-year-old Schwarber (29 in March) shook off a slow couple months to begin the 2021 season, ripping through MLB pitching at a Herculean clip throughout the summer and into the postseason. The longtime Cubs slugger inked a one-year deal with the Nats last winter, found himself traded to the Red Sox despite being on the injured list due to a hamstring injury, and finished the regular season with a combined .266/.374/.554 batting line and 32 home runs in just 471 plate appearances. Schwarber added three more homers in the playoffs, though he closed out October with an 0-for-15 skid following an epic grand slam in Game 3 of the ALCS.

When finished, the new collective bargaining agreement is expected to include a universal designated hitter, which would make it easier for the Phillies (or another team) to slide the defensively challenged Schwarber into the lineup. He could still see some reps in left field or even at first base, of course, but Schwarber would be viewed largely as a much-needed bat to pair with reigning MVP Bryce Harper in Philadelphia.

Schwarber ought to have plenty of other suitors, as he’s been linked to the Red Sox, Nationals, Marlins and others since the offseason began. Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald reported not long ago that Schwarber is seeking a deal of at least three years and $20MM annually, though with enough competition the asking price could obviously further increase.

While supplementing the lineup with some help for Harper is a major goal, it wasn’t the top priority for Philadelphia this winter. President of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski made clear that solidifying the ninth inning was one of his top needs this winter, and the Phils look to have checked that box already.

Corey Knebel and the Phillies got their one-year, $10MM contract in just hours before the expiration of the 2016-21 CBA, and he’s expected to serve as the team’s closer in 2022, writes Matt Gelb of The Athletic. Dombrowski noted that he did not promise that role to Knebel (link viaNBC Philly’s Jim Salisbury), but he strongly suggested as much, telling reporters that Knebel opted for a one-year deal in order “to show people that he’s a dominant closer again” now that he’s healthier.

Knebel, who had Tommy John surgery in 2019, saw his fastball velocity jump two miles per hour from the 94.6 mph he averaged in his abbreviated return to the mound in 2020. While his 29.7% strikeout rate didn’t match the ridiculous 40.2% mark he posted in Milwaukee from 2017-18, it was nevertheless a strong mark and a reminder that Knebel can be as  dominant as any reliever in the game when at his best.

Gelb suggests that a subsequent acquisition of Craig Kimbrel is unlikely to be in the cards, as the Phils aren’t likely to want to commit $26.5MM to a pair of relievers. Still, Knebel certainly won’t be the only addition to the ’pen. Said Dombrowski: “We’ve got a guy that we think will close games for us, and that’s a big start. Then we can kind of build the rest of the bullpen.”

The addition of Knebel and the Phillies’ one-year, $1.4MM deal with utilityman Johan Camargo pushed the team’s payroll to a bit more than $181MM — with a near-identical tally in terms of luxury obligations, per Roster Resource’s Jason Martinez. That’s well shy of last year’s $197MM end-of-season payroll and the even-larger $206.5MM in luxury obligations the team carried. Assuming the $210MM luxury-tax threshold is ultimately increased in a new CBA, the Phils could have quite a bit more luxury breathing room than the $29MM they already possess at the moment.

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