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Archives for January 2023

D-backs Sign Austin Adams, Jesse Biddle To Minor League Deals

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The Diamondbacks have signed righties Austin Adams and Eric Yardley and left-hander Jesse Biddle to minor league contracts, per Baseball America’s Chris Hilburn-Trenkle.

Adams, 31, has spent the past three seasons with the division-rival Padres, at times looking like a potential late-inning weapon. Injuries and command issues, however, have undercut the righty’s enormous strikeout numbers. Adams has appeared in 108 games and tallied 97 innings at the MLB level (mostly with the Padres), working to a solid 3.90 ERA along the way. He’s punched out a massive 34.2% of his opponents in the big leagues, walked 15.5% of them and, remarkably, plunked 6% of his opponents as well.

Troubling as that lack of command is, Adams misses bats at an elite rate, and when opponents do make contact, it’s rarely high-quality contact. He’s held opposing batters to a dismal 86.2 mph average exit velocity in his career, yielded just a 29.7% hard-hit rate and allowed only six home runs in 97 innings (433 batters faced).

Adams has been intriguing enough for the Mariners to trade for him and for the Padres to push for his inclusion alongside Austin Nola in the trade that sent Ty France and Andres Munoz to Seattle. There’s some obvious talent, thanks in no small part to a wipeout slider, but in addition to being his difficulties locating the ball, he’s endured a torn ACL in 2020 and a flexor strain that required surgery in 2022, limiting him to just two innings. Because of that latter procedure, which was performed in August, it’s possible Adams will be delayed to begin his season. If he makes it back to the big leagues, the D-backs will have at least two years of club control over him.

Yardley, 32, has pitched in parts of three big league seasons, spending time with the 2019 Padres and 2020-21 Brewers. He’s notched a tidy 3.52 ERA in that time, although fielding-independent metrics are far more bearish than his ERA — due largely to a tiny 13% strikeout rate and a slightly elevated 9.7% walk rate.

Yardley has offset that lack of punchouts in part with a massive 60.8% ground-ball rate and a solid 1.01 HR/9 mark. The righty’s submarine delivery has helped him to keep the ball on the ground and in the yard, although as is often the case, it’s also given him a notable platoon split; lefties have clobbered Yardley at a .312/.382/.468 clip in his big league career.

As for the 31-year-old Biddle, he’s returning from a one-year stint with the Orix Buffaloes in Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball, where he pitched to a 4.02 ERA with a 24.4% strikeout rate and 10.9% walk rate out of the bullpen. The former first-round pick (27th overall by the Phillies in 2010) has appeared in parts of four Major League seasons, working to a 5.07 ERA in 103 frames. Biddle has fanned 22.2% of his opponents, issued walks at a bloated 13.1% clip and also recorded a hefty 52.8% ground-ball rate in that time.

Back in 2018, the Braves looked like they might’ve benefited from a shrewd waiver claim of Biddle, who pitched 63 2/3 innings of 3.11 ERA ball for them as a rookie that season. Since that solid debut, however, Biddle has been tagged for an 8.24 ERA in 39 1/3 big league innings.

Both pitchers will have the chance to factor into the Arizona bullpen at some point during the 2023 season. The Snakes have a handful of veterans on guaranteed contracts, including Mark Melancon, Miguel Castro and Scott McGough. They also enjoyed a breakout year from lefty Joe Mantiply and a strong 30-game run from 28-year-old Kevin Ginkel in the season’s second half. There are still multiple spots up for grabs, however, and injuries throughout the year will of course create additional opportunities for veterans of this ilk.

The Opener: DFAs, Twins, Player Chat

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As the offseason continues to plug along toward the start of Spring Training in a few weeks, here are three things we’ll be keeping an eye on around the baseball world throughout the day today:

1. Unresolved DFAs come due

A pair of lefties who were designated for assignment last week are due for a conclusion today. Daniel Castano was DFA’d last week by the Marlins to make room for Johnny Cueto on the 40-man roster, while Justus Sheffield was designated by the Mariners to open a spot for Tommy La Stella. Castano has pitched to a 3.89 ERA (4.86 FIP) in 85 2/3 innings across 27 games (22 starts) with the Marlins spanning 2020-2022, making him an intriguing option for clubs looking to add starting depth.

Sheffield, on the other hand, has struggled mightily to this point in the big leagues and recently at Triple-A as well, with a career 5.47 ERA (4.77 FIP) in 186 big league innings for his career. As a former top prospect, however, it wouldn’t be a surprise if another organization wanted to try their hand at righting the ship for Sheffield. Unlike Castano, Sheffield also has a minor league option remaining, making him easier for interested clubs to stash in the minors.

2. Are more moves on the horizon for the Twins?

The Twins have been active on the trade market recently, adding Pablo Lopez and two prospects in a blockbuster that sent Luis Arraez to the Marlins while also landing Michael A. Taylor in a separate deal with the Royals. That’s already a considerable amount of action over the past week, but it seems possible Minnesota is still not quite done. Earlier this offseason, rumors frequently percolated regarding outfielder Max Kepler, and the Taylor trade gives Derek Falvey’s front office even more outfield depth. The Twins are particularly deep in lefty-hitting corner outfielders, with Kepler, offseason signee Joey Gallo, Trevor Larnach, Nick Gordon and Matt Wallner all on the roster. Righty Gilberto Celestino, meanwhile, is pushed further down the depth chart by the Taylor acquisition.

Furthermore, with Alex Kirilloff (another lefty-hitting corner outfield option) now primed to take on the lion’s share of playing time at first base, the Twins have looked into veteran complements for the former top prospect. The rumor mill has linked Yuli Gurriel to Minnesota recently, and Miami’s decision to step back from their pursuit of Gurriel could help the odds of a deal getting done.

3. MLBTR Player Chat Today

For our final player chat of the week, MLBTR is excited to welcome former Dodgers and Yankees reliever Cory Wade. Wade’s best season with the Dodgers came in 2008, when he posted a 2.27 ERA (3.78 FIP), good for a 184 ERA+ in 71 1/3 innings. With the Yankees, Wade had is best year in 2011, when he posted a 2.04 ERA (3.76 FIP), good for a 212 ERA+ in 39 2/3 innings. For his career, Wade finished with a 3.65 ERA (115 ERA+) with a 4.03 FIP in 177 2/3 innings of work in the majors. You can tune in at 10am CST today to participate in the live chat, and if you missed yesterday’s live chat with former Rockies and Pirates catcher (and current Pirates TV analyst) Michael McKenry, you can find the transcript here.

Rays Extend Jeffrey Springs

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The Rays announced they’ve signed left-hander Jeffrey Springs to a four-year contract extension. Springs, who’s represented by Ryan Ware of Alliance Sports Management, will be guaranteed $31MM over the course of the deal but there’s also incentives and a $15MM club option for 2027 with a $750K buyout. If Springs hits all the incentives and Cy Young award escalators and the club picks up the option, he’ll earn $65.75MM over five years.

The exact details of those incentives and escalators aren’t known. Springs will earn a salary of $4MM this year, $5.25MM next year, followed by $10.5MM in each of the following two seasons. Springs was set to reach free agency after 2024, so this could allow the Rays to secure him for three additional seasons, if they end up triggering that option.

Springs, 30, has had a unique baseball journey. A 30th round draft pick of the Rangers, he drew little fanfare from prospect evaluators in his first few professional seasons. Though he got some rotation work for a few years, the Rangers used him exclusively in relief in 2018 to good results. He tossed 56 2/3 innings between Double-A and Triple-A that year. The 4.13 ERA might not seem very impressive, but it was surely inflated by a .438 batting average on balls in play. He kept his walks down to a reasonable 8.1% level while striking out an incredible 41.7% of batters faced. He got to make his MLB debut that year, throwing 32 innings over 18 appearances with a 3.38 ERA.

He took a step back in 2019, missing a few months with left biceps tendinitis and posting a 6.40 ERA. Texas designated him for assignment going into 2020 and then traded him to the Red Sox for Sam Travis. The change of scenery didn’t help Springs get back on track, as he posted a 7.08 ERA in the shortened 2020 campaign. He was designated for assignment again and then flipped to the Rays alongside Chris Mazza for prospects Ronaldo Hernández and Nick Sogard.

The move to Tampa appears to have been the one Springs needed, as his results have completely turned around since then. He registered a 3.43 ERA over 43 appearances in 2021, striking out 35.2% of batters faced while walking just 7.8% of them. In 2022, he started in the bullpen but the club began stretching him into a starter as the season went along. He responded well to the change, eventually throwing 135 1/3 innings with a 2.46 ERA, 26.2% strikeout rate, 5.6% walk rate and 40.9% ground ball rate.

After a few years of floundering and struggling, it’s not a huge surprise that Springs would jump at the chance to lock in some life-changing money here. He reached arbitration for the first time going into 2022 but only made $947.5K, a slight bump over the $700K league minimum. He was projected by MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz for a jump to $3MM this year, though he and the club didn’t come to an agreement prior to the filing deadline earlier this month. He submitted a $3.55MM figure while the Rays filed at $2.7MM. Instead, he’ll make $4MM and lock in some eight-figure salaries for the future.

For the Rays, they clearly believe Springs is capable of continuing as an effective starter, though there’s some risk here. Springs had excellent results in 2022 but it’s still just one season, and it wasn’t even a full one. As mentioned, Springs began the year in the bullpen and wasn’t stretched out until the end of May. He also went on the injured list for a couple of weeks in July due to right lower leg tightness. Concerns aside, the Rays are confident enough in the lefty that they’re willing to take a gamble on him.

For a low-spending team like the Rays, extensions are an important part of having talent on the roster. Since they don’t usually shop at the top of the free agent market, they need to keep guys around by locking them up before they get closer to the open market and increase their earning power. In recent years, they’ve given extensions to players like Kevin Kiermaier, Blake Snell, Brandon Lowe, Wander Franco, Manuel Margot and Tyler Glasnow, with Springs now joining them on that list.

This won’t have a huge impact on the club’s 2023 payroll but will add some decent commitments to 2025 and 2026. The club now has three players locked into the former season with Franco and Zach Eflin on the books there, along with a club option for Lowe. In exchange for putting that money on the table, the Rays now have arguably the most rotation stability they’ve had in years. Recent seasons have seen them rely on bullpen games and openers to get through a season but they now have Springs, Glasnow, Eflin, Drew Rasmussen and Shane McClanahan, with depth options like Yonny Chirinos, Luis Patiño and Josh Fleming. Most of that group are still in their pre-arbitration years, giving the club years of affordable control. None of them are slated for free agency after this year and Glasnow is now the only one set to hit the open market after 2024. The club also has one of the top pitching prospects in the sport in Taj Bradley, who finished last year at Triple-A and could make his debut this year.

Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times first reported the deal and many of the details. Joel Sherman of the New York Post was the first with the year-to-year salary breakdown.

Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.

Red Sox Remain Open To Middle Infield Acquisitions

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The Red Sox have finalized a pair of up-the-middle pickups this week, formally adding Adam Duvall on a one-year free agent deal to play center field and acquiring infielder Adalberto Mondesi from the Royals yesterday. Chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom met with reporters after announcing the trade with Kansas City and suggested the team was still open to acquiring middle infield help.

“We’d still love to add if the opportunities are there,” Bloom said (via Chris Cotillo of MassLive). That’s not too surprising, as the Boston baseball operations leader had previously indicated the club was open to three-plus additions after losing Trevor Story for most of the season after he underwent an internal brace procedure on his throwing elbow.

Mondesi himself is far from a sure thing. The switch-hitting infielder has spent time on the injured list in four of the last five seasons, and he’s coming off an ACL tear that ended his 2022 campaign 15 games in. That injury — which required surgery — occurred roughly nine months ago. Bloom noted that Mondesi’s rehab “still has a ways to go” and suggested it’s possible he’s behind schedule heading into the season. The 27-year-old infielder might yet be ready for Opening Day but that doesn’t seem a certainty.

Even once Mondesi is healthy, it seems he might have a clearer path to reps at second base than at shortstop. Bloom indicated that Enrique Hernández remains the club’s top in-house shortstop (relayed by Ian Browne of MLB.com). That’d presumably leave Mondesi at the keystone on most days, which would push Christian Arroyo into a utility capacity.

Hernández only has 618 innings at shortstop over parts of nine big league campaigns. Public defensive metrics have mostly rated him as a solid or better gloveman in that look. He’s typically registered plus defensive grades at second base and in center field over more extended bodies of work, and Boston brass is clearly confident he’s athletic enough to shoulder a heavier shortstop workload.

If the Sox were to go outside the organization for help, they’d likely be looking at depth pickups. Elvis Andrus remains the top unsigned shortstop. Josh Harrison is probably the next-best free agent middle infielder, with José Iglesias, Jonathan Villar and Rougned Odor also in the mix. Players like Tony Kemp, Nick Madrigal or Nicky Lopez might still be attainable on the trade front, though it’s possible the Boston front office doesn’t find anyone in that group enough of an upgrade over the in-house possibilities to open discussions.

Astros Have Not Requested Permission To Interview David Stearns

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The Astros remain without a general manager less than a month from the start of Spring Training. Owner Jim Crane dismissed former GM James Click at the start of the offseason once Click declined a one-year extension offer on the heels of a World Series win. That came after months of reported friction between owner and GM, leaving Houston’s front office in a state of uncertainty.

Crane doesn’t appear to be in a rush to tab a new baseball ops leader. Speaking with reporters this evening at the Houston Sports Awards, the owner indicated he’s not feeling pressure to make a move (link via Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle). “We’re still searching,” Crane said. “We’re scanning the crowd right now. No, look, we’re still working on it. We’ll take our time and get it right.”

Unsurprisingly, Crane didn’t offer many specifics about the ongoing search. He noted that he’s considering candidates from both within and outside the organization. Perhaps most notably, Crane said he has not reached out to the Brewers about the possibility of interviewing former Milwaukee president of baseball operations David Stearns for a front office position.

Ken Rosenthal of the Athletic reported earlier this week that Houston was eyeing Stearns, who’d worked for the Astros before landing the top gig with the Brewers in 2015. Stearns held that post for seven years until resigning at the start of this offseason. General manager Matt Arnold, his longtime top lieutenant, took control of the baseball ops department. Stearns, who is under contract with the Brewers through the end of the 2023 campaign, has remained on hand as an advisor to Arnold and owner Mark Attanasio. For any club to hire or even interview Stearns before the end of the upcoming season, they’d need Attanasio to sign off.

While Crane said he hasn’t contacted the Brewers thus far, he didn’t specify whether he planned to do so at any point in the process. Of course, it’s not clear whether the 37-year-old Stearns would have any interest even if the Astros did reach out. When he announced he was stepping down in October, the Harvard graduate firmly stated he “not going anywhere” other than Milwaukee in the short term and stressed he was embracing an opportunity to spend more time with his family with his lightened workload.

A few people are known to be under consideration for the Houston job. Braves vice president of scouting Dana Brown, former Giants general manager Bobby Evans, Guardians assistant GM James Harris and longtime Astros catcher and former Tigers/Angels skipper Brad Ausmus have all been linked to the search in recent days. A report from USA Today over the weekend pained Brown as the frontrunner, but Rome hears from a source that it’s still too early in the process for any individual to have pulled firmly ahead of the pack.

Marlins Sign Enrique Burgos To Minor League Deal

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The Marlins announced that reliever Enrique Burgos has signed a minor league contract with a non-roster Spring Training invitation. The 32-year-old makes it back to the affiliated ranks for the first time since he was released by the Tigers in March 2018.

Burgos, a Panama native, has some previous MLB experience. He was a frequent middle relief option for the Diamondbacks from 2015-16, combining for 73 appearances. Through 68 1/3 innings, the righty posted a 5.27 ERA with a strong 27.4% strikeout rate offset by a 12.7% walk percentage. While Burgos averaged north of 96 MPH on his fastball and missed plenty of bats, his inconsistent control and an elevated .339 batting average on balls in play pushed him off the roster.

A brief stint in the Atlanta organization was spent entirely at Triple-A in 2017. After failing to crack the Detroit roster out of spring camp the following season, Burgos has worked mostly in the Mexican League and winter ball over the past few years (along with a brief stay in the Atlantic League). He struck out 17 against five walks through 15 innings in the Dominican Winter League this offseason, apparently piquing the interest of Marlins’ scouts in the process.

Miami has mostly stood pat with its bullpen this winter. Cole Sulser was lost on waivers to Arizona, while JT Chargois was brought in from the Rays. Rule 5 selection Nic Enright will have to hold a spot or be placed on waivers and subsequently sent back to the Guardians. Dylan Floro, Tanner Scott, Steven Okert and Richard Bleier should have season-opening spots secured. Tommy Nance, Andrew Nardi, Eli Villalobos and Huascar Brazobán could battle for middle relief spots.

Burgos joins Chi Chi González, Geoff Hartlieb and Bryan Hoeing as non-roster invitees with some big league time. Given his lack of recent affiliated experience, the 32-year-old Burgos figures to open the season at Triple-A Jacksonville and will try to earn an MLB call during the season.

Rays, Jaime Schultz Agree To Minor League Deal

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The Rays are signing reliever Jaime Schultz to a minor league deal, tweets Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. He’ll be in big league camp as a non-roster invitee.

Schultz has plenty of familiarity with the Tampa Bay organization. He began his professional career as a Rays draftee in 2013. Within a few seasons, he garnered some prospect attention as a potential high-leverage bullpen arm. That hasn’t materialized, as Schultz has battled scattershot command and injuries that have kept him from establishing himself in an MLB relief unit.

The High Point product pitched at the highest level in 2018-19, with the first of those seasons spent in Tampa Bay. He made 22 appearances for the Rays and four more as a Dodger the following season. Between the two clubs, he’s posted a 5.86 ERA across 35 1/3 MLB innings. Schultz struck out roughly 26% of opponents while averaging around 95 MPH on his fastball. That came with an alarming 13.6% walk percentage, leading Los Angeles to outright him off their roster towards the end of the 2019 season.

Schultz has signed minor league deals with the A’s and Mariners in recent years but been limited to five combined Triple-A outings since 2020. He didn’t sign with any team for 2022 but returns to the affiliated ranks this year. He’ll add a live arm to the upper levels of the Rays’ minor league system. Schultz figures to open the season with Triple-A Durham. He’s out of option years, so he’d have to stick on the active roster or be made available to other teams if he earns a call-up at any point.

Diamondbacks Sign Jeurys Familia To Minor League Deal

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5:22pm: Familia will make $1.5MM if he makes it to the majors with $500K in performance bonuses also available, per Joel Sherman of The New York Post.

4:55pm: The Diamondbacks have signed right-hander Jeurys Familia to a minor league deal, reports Bob Nightengale of USA Today. The ACES client will receive an invitation to major league Spring Training.

Familia, 33, has had many good years in the big leagues but is coming off a terrible campaign in 2022. From 2014 to 2021, he made 482 appearances, mostly with the Mets, with a 3.20 ERA in that time. His 10.5% walk rate was a bit on the high side but he struck out 25.2% of batters faced in that time and got grounders on 55.5% of balls in play.

Last year, however, was a completely different story. He signed a $6MM deal with the Phillies and made 38 appearances for them but posted a 6.09 ERA in that time while his strikeout rate fell to 20.9%. He was released in August and latched on with the Red Sox for a while but posted a 6.10 ERA in 10 appearances for them. A .386 batting average on balls in play could have made things look worse than they really were, but it’s not like everything can be explained away by bad luck. Familia’s Statcast page is an icy blue, since he was in the third percentile in terms of hard hit rate, fourth percentile for average exit velocity and eighth percentile in barrel rate.

The Diamondbacks had a rough showing from their bullpen last year. Their relievers posted a collective 4.58 ERA for the year, a mark that bested just five other teams in the majors. They’ve made a few moves to address the relief corps for the upcoming season, including signing Miguel Castro and Scott McGough, grabbing Cole Sulser off waivers and trading for Carlos Vargas. By signing Familia, they’ve essentially taken a no-risk flier on a veteran with a lengthy track record of success. He’ll give them some extra depth without taking up a roster spot for the time being.

Health Notes: King, Antone, Sewald

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Yankees righty Michael King, who missed the final two and a half months of the 2022 season due to a fractured right elbow, tells The Athletic’s Brendan Kuty that he expects to be ready for Opening Day and anticipates being deployed as a multi-inning reliever in 2023. The 27-year-old King was in the midst of a breakout season when he suffered his ill-timed injury. Prior to landing on the IL, he’d pitched to an outstanding 2.29 ERA and whiffed 33.2% of his opponents against a tidy 8% walk rate. The righty was also touting a career-high 47% grounder rate and career-low 0.53 HR/9 mark.  His 96.5 mph average fastball was the best of his career. Just three weeks ago, Opening Day was reported to be a slightly optimistic target for King, so his firmer confidence in his ability to be ready for the season is a welcome development for the Yankees and their fans.

A few more health/injury updates of note from around the league…

  • Reds reliever Tejay Antone’s offseason throwing program has been slowed by a forearm issue, reports Mark Sheldon of MLB.com, though it’s not believed to be related to the right-hander’s surgically repaired elbow. Antone was having one of the best seasons of any reliever in baseball before undergoing Tommy John surgery in 2021. The former fifth-rounder turned in an outstanding 2.14 ERA with a gaudy 32.8% strikeout rate against a 10.2% walk rate while holding opponents to a comically inept .152/.258/.250 batting line through 128 plate appearances. If healthy, he could quickly ascend the bullpen hierarchy and return to high-leverage work in 2022. Antone has another three seasons of club control remaining and is set to earn just $770K this season. As such, he’ll quite likely garner plenty of summer trade interest if he’s back to form, given the state of the Reds’ rebuild.
  • Mariners reliever Paul Sewald might not be ready for the beginning of Spring Training, as Corey Brock of The Athletic reports that the righty underwent a “minor clean-up of his heel and elbow.” The exact timeline of the procedure or recovery aren’t known, though Brock suggests Sewald should still be ready to go by Opening Day. Turning 33 in May, Sewald is enjoying a late-career bloom. After posting underwhelming numbers over the 2017 to 2020 stretch, he has a 2.87 ERA in 127 appearances over the past two campaigns, striking out 34.8% of batters in faced in that time against an 8.1% walk rate. He and the club agreed to a $4.1MM salary for the upcoming campaign and he’ll have one further arbitration season in 2024 before he’s slated for free agency.

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