The Diamondbacks have “considered” a reunion with Justin Upton, The New York Post’s Jon Heyman writes, though it isn’t yet clear what the 34-year-old outfielder is himself planning for his next step. Upton has given some thought to retiring altogether after the Angels released the veteran last week.
If Upton does continue his career, a return to the D’Backs would represent a nice full-circle moment. Arizona selected Upton with the first overall pick of the 2005 draft, and Upton spent his first six Major League seasons with the Diamondbacks. That tenure included two All-Star appearances for Upton and arguably the finest year of his entire career, as he hit .289/.369/.529 with 31 home runs in 2011 and finished fourth in NL MVP voting.
Upton has been roughly a replacement-level player over his last three seasons with the Angels, but since signing him would cost the Diamondbacks only a prorated minimum salary, it might be a worthwhile flier for a team that has gotten off to a brutal start at the plate. The right-handed hitting Upton represents some lineup balance since many of Arizona’s top outfield choices (David Peralta, Daulton Varsho, Pavin Smith, Jake McCarthy) are all left-handed, plus DH Seth Beer is also a lefty bat.
More from around the NL West…
- Kyle Freeland’s arbitration hearing is set for May 24, and Freeland tells The Athletic’s Nick Groke that the Rockies hasn’t yet discussed a long-term extension. The left-hander is scheduled to reach free agency after the 2023 season, and while Freeland has battled his share of injuries and inconsistency, he has been a generally solid pitcher over his five-plus MLB seasons — a career 4.28 ERA and 48.7% grounder rate over 663 innings, all with Colorado. Rockies GM Bill Schmidt sounded open to the idea of eventually discussing an extension, saying “Nothing’s out of the question but we need to see what happens. We love [Freeland] and we hope he’s here for a long time.”
- Dodgers manager Dave Roberts updated reporters (including MLB.com’s Juan Toribio) on the health status of some injured pitchers. Tommy Kahnle may be the closest to a return, as after missing the entire 2021 season rehabbing from Tommy John surgery, Kahnle is on a rehab assignment in the minors and might be able to join the Dodgers before the end of April. Caleb Ferguson is also recovering from TJ surgery and is tentatively slated for a return in the middle of May, as Ferguson had some elbow soreness during Spring Training. Victor Gonzalez developed inflammation in his throwing elbow at the end of spring camp and has a tentative recovery timetable of 3-4 weeks.
Dbacks have one player batting over .200 so anybody would help
Every time I look at their box scores, I question my decision on becoming a Diamondbacks fan. Then again, I suffered through the 60’s, 70’s, and 80’s as an Indians fan, so why not.
Yeah if you made it through those decades rooting for the Indians you have my deepest respect, and sympathy.
@sufferfortribe It’s the sports fan’s equivalency of “what doesn’t kill you, makes you stronger.”
If Jordan Luplow could break away from his recent penchant for taking trips to the IL I think they’d have somebody who could help on both sides of a platoon. His bat was getting better vs RHP
the D-Backs have too many young OF for Upton to be worth taking starts from them.
Agreed. Why not bring up Alek Thomas?
The above article makes the case that they should sign him because they have a lot of LH batters, and he’s right handed. Not much of an argument.
I’m black. This is not racist…but I was watching Andrew Mccutchen the other day, he’s not young but he’s not 50 years old. Upton is 34, again not young, but not 50. Why are these “athletic” African American players seemingly all falling apart by the age of 30 and not good anymore?
It happens to players who are Black or Caucasian. Some players continue to be productive into their 30s, but many begin to trend down in their 30s, often done by 35.
So this “aging” condition is real, not another hoax cooked up by the people who fabricated the whole “viral infection” idea?
Shoot, maybe aging is why my parents died, if it really causes people to lose quality of their health and playing career. So how come almost all of the people in government are really old, if it’s likely the case they could do much less than younger counterparts?
@ neo
Cuz the American voter is stupid, and uninformed.
Old folks are in power all over the world, so by your reasoning most of the world is stupid. Amiright?
While he can’t hit, JBJ has remained healthy and plays a mean CF. Hopefully, Mookie will do the same as he ages. I just think you are taking too small of a sample. Marcus Stroman is still going strong and is about to turn 31. Lots of productive African Americans in the league including some past the age of 30. Lo Cain has slowed a bit but he’s 37 or 38 now and he can still run and play D quite well for his age.
Michael Brantley of The Astros is 34 and still playing strong. Productive at the plate and plays good defense
It’s a fair question. I don’t think the fact that Black players make up <10% of the League population helps that perception.
For the 20 year period from 1975-1994 the average percentage of Black players was roughly 18%. There’s been a steady decline since then to 7% where it stands today. Meanwhile, the Latino population has grown from 10% in 1975 to almost 30% today while the White population has hovered between 60-70%.
The oft-injured Byron Buxton (28) and Giancarlo Stanton (32) don’t figure to age particularly well. Cubs fans probably hope Jason Heyward (32) doesn’t age well.
We’ll see where Tim Anderson (28), Mookie Betts (29), Aaron Judge (29), Marcus Semien (31) and George Springer (32) end up. Springer and Judge have both already shown concerning injury patterns.
18% is roughly the African-American size of the population, those were “appropriate” years.
Interesting though that we only talk about some races being proportionate in mostly this sport. Other sports are wildly out of range for some groups, but crickets.
I am sure someone is already losing their mind reading this…I could care less about race or these percentages, simply pointing out it is interesting how selective folks are when analyzing the numbers.
I think most of it is just random. But conditioning could be another factor.
In terms of random, players like Carl Crawford fit that description. The dude was peak physical shape and just fell apart.
But examples go back further than that, the biggest of which is easily Ken Griffey Jr. But includes other notable players of their time like Albert Belle, Mo Vaughn and going even further back, Eric Davis.
I 100% believe that Griffey, Belle and Vaughn were due to poor conditioning. But two of those three were big dudes, and they often times break down quicker. The ones that don’t usually end up in the HOF like Frank Thomas Jim Thome. But even they broke down in the end as Thomas constantly had foot issues and Thome back issues.
I also think that people tend to think of baseball as a less athletic game. And in the MLB, I don’t think that’s truthful at all. 162 games is a grind. And in my mind, that grind often leads to more chronic life long injury for many of them and causes players to wear down faster.
Lou Phillips Bonds Willie Mays Lee Smith Fergie Jenkins Joe Carter Bob Gibson Rod Carew Ozzie Smith Eddie Murray Joe Morgan all aged pretty well
I guess what I’m saying is “super star” level talent that is done by 30 is not common but for my African American brothers they seem spent by 30. Your list has lots of long ago players except Bonds…which we know he was just in great condition and that’s why he stayed great. Nothing else. Just seems odd to me that these very Athletic superstar level talents are done so quickly.
Super star talent that is done by 30 is VERY common. (Depending of course on our definitions of “super star” and “done”). That is where the misconception lies.
Because almost all players start decline and have nagging injuries at that age.
The use of steroids extended a lot of careers and probably taints our perception of the normal aging curve now. Dudes were killing it in their 30s and 40s because they were juiced.
With better testing, we’re seeing the age curve go back to normal for guys, especially US based players. Dominican guys tend to age slower in many cases, but there’s obvious help involved with Papi, Cruz, etc.
It’s the same pattern for all players. There is no preponderance of African-American players getting injured or declining early. All players begin to break down at about 30, fans just think otherwise. Nothing unusual about Griffey’s age curve for example. And Davis? He fought battles off the field that would humble the best of us.
Red Sox are going to melt down fast without a right-handed RF bat. Upton is a no-brainer for them to have signed yesterday… Especially at league minimum!
I’m still irate that Chaim didn’t outbid the Cubs for Suzuki. He is going to be a star in this league for years to come and he would have solved their RHH outfield issue seamlessly.
Expect a breakout season for Verdugo this year and Kiké is fine in CF. Hopefully Duran can figure things out in the minors and join the club soon.
That’s quite the assumption @dorothy. I know he chose to sign with the Cubs, but I have not heard about the losing bidders. Bloom doesn’t make the decisions for Suzuki. Suzuki may have decided that he wanted to play full time, rather than be a short side platoon in Beantown.
While your post is accurate in the sense the Red Sox could use a RH bat, I don’t think Upton will move the needle at all for them.
It takes two to tango. I’d be surprised if Upton is interested in signing with anyone.
Upton is getting paid $28M this year, regardless. He should pick a team that can best showcase his current skillset to set him up for an additional contract in 2023. If I was in his shoes, I’d look for a contender who needs a productive bat against lefty pitching. He can showcase that skill and he has a chance at a postseason run, which would also bring him postseason money. I’d pass if a second-division club offered me a full-time OF spot. He won’t make additional money (he’d actually make less without a chance at the postseason) and he wouldn’t enhance his chances at a new deal in 2023, unless he still believes he can turn back the clock to 2018.
Great post, my thoughts almost exactly but you probably said it better than I would have.
@LordD
Considering he is getting paid $28MM for this year, whether he signs or not, playoff money is not a motivator. He will consider the where, as he seems to prefer west coast teams, and he will look for the team willing to play him. Playing well will get him the most opportunity. Sitting on the bench does not pay as well, as playing does.
I don’t see a downside to the Dbacks signing Upton. Most important is the fact that the Dbacks are extremely vulnerable to left-handed pitching, and the OF is where a right handed bat is most needed. Even a replacement level right-handed bat, especially at a league minimum salary, would help. Upton wouldn’t take at-bats away from any young, right-handed OF, because there aren’t any. All the top OF prospects are left-handed bats. Jordan Luplow isn’t a certain answer when he returns from injury.
BTW The Dbacks are not bringing back the McCarthyism of the anti-communism era, the Dbacks OF’s first name is Jake, not Joe McCarthy.
Upton thinking to himself, “I’ve earned $200M and have a full pension, I’ll be fishing from now on”
Dbacks obviously don’t need Upton since they already score one run a game …. They wouldn’t even have to pay him more than the league minimum.
That’s shouldn’t stop them. They could sign Upton and still score one run a game!
Is it a coincidence that him and his brother both stopped hitting soon after signing their big contracts? For some reason I don’t expect him to sign with another team and that this is it for him.
Yes, and it’s not just them. Quite a few have dropped off once they hit the lottery.
Insinuations against players’ character need more evidence than idle speculation.
Upton’s been below league average (90 OPS+) for the past 3 years. He offers nothing on the basepaths, less than nothing in the field.
You’re better off with any of 50 players now in AAA. Even Rob Refsnyder.
Any player that is capable of playing OF or 3B and carrying an above average line against LHP is an upgrade over what’s currently in house. Upton happens to meet those criteria.
There are so many LHH OF on the DBacks currently (Peralta, Varsho, Smith, McCarthy, w/ Thomas expected) that there is no reason for Upton to bat against a RHP and no reason for him to bat as DH with Beer around. McCarthy is already being used as a defensive replacement.
There’s a logical fit for the DBacks on multiple fronts because they’re so bad and he’s so cheap, but the only thing that matters is whether Upton has a willingness. Why would he go back to a franchise where the higher-ups essentially ran him out of town to be strictly a shortside platoon that’s lifted late and a bench bat?
I personally loved Upton and would be happy to have him back at the league minimum (particularly in light of current circumstances), but I can also understand if he’d rather retire than ever come back.
Once TB comes back, the Dodgers can put Gonsolin back in the pen as a long man where he is better suited in my opinion.
Not going to happen, and you can take that to the bank.
I’m gonna take you to the bank. The blood bank.
Had to do it.
I was worried that the Padres might be in on Upton..thank you AJ for having the common sense not to be.
If a player does not endeavor to improve himself via the new coaching techniques and data available now, there’s no point in trying to ressurect his career. He’s making 28mil this year and has little incentive to improve.
Even if he hits .280 with 20 home runs this year he’s looking at a 5mil one year contract next year.. The only reason he would buy in to all the new coaching techniques is if he wants to advance his legacy.
Upton is one of the last of the old school who has been able to get by the last 3 years on his reputation as a good hitter, which now is a distant memory.
Just another another horrible contract by the Angels.
Any word on Dustin May’s return?
After the All – Star break sometime
Sometime after the All Star break.
I would love to see baseball, and many other sports get to a point where pay is based on performance over a period of time (whether that be annually, semi-annually, monthly, weekly, or even on a game by game basis). Think how much more intense games would become if the players got ranked every game and their paycheck reflected their performance.
This is generally how the real world works in the “sales” community. People that perform get paid well every time they close a deal, and those that don’t, get paid less.
All the data and technology is there to “stack rank” players and the best would get paid the most and the worst would still make a great living. This would stop the crazy contracts and the aging fall-off of players. It would allow for younger players to get paid for being studs and encourage aging players to stay fit and compete on the daily.
And it would put personal achievements above team success.
Just say NO to Justin. D-Backs fan but let’s don’t waste plate appearances on him when he have younger guys who need to play. He isn’t going to make a difference between 95-100 losses again.
Dbacks should be going all in on the #1 draft pick. They effed it up in the last week of the season last year & will miss out on Druw Jones. Peralta will be moved at the deadline and there is no hope of flipping Upton at the deadline, so don’t waste your time. Lovello will be canned after the worst 2 seasons in franchise history. Snakes should be focusing on bringing up Thomas and Co. late in the summer. The Diamondbacks fans deserve better than Ken Kendrick.