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Archives for March 2023

Rays Grant Charlie Culberson His Release

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The Rays announced Friday that they’ve granted infielder/outfielder Charlie Culberson his release. He’s now a free agent. Culberson had an out clause in his contract this weekend and had likely been informed he would not make the club.

It’s been a tough spring for the veteran utilityman, as Culberson has gone just 4-for-24 without an extra base hit. He’s walked three times but also fanned in nine of his 28 plate appearances. Overall, he’s hitting .167/.286/.167 in this spring’s tiny sample of work.

Culberson, 34 in a few weeks, has spent the past two seasons with the Rangers, hitting a combined .246/.292/.373 in 395 trips to the plate. He’s the quintessential “jack of all trades, master of none,” having appeared at every position on the diamond other than center field and catcher over the course of a decade-long career in the Majors. That includes 7 1/3 innings on the mound, during which time he’s rather shockingly allowed just one earned run (albeit with three walks and only one strikeout).

While a career .248/.293/.386 batting line isn’t much to look at, Culberson has more impressive platoon splits. Through 582 plate appearances versus southpaws, he’s a .285/.313/.431 hitter with 11 homers, 37 doubles and five triples.

D-backs To Release Jeurys Familia

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The Diamondbacks are set to release veteran reliever Jeurys Familia, reports Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic (Twitter link). Familia is one of a few dozen veterans with an opt-out in his contract tomorrow but had been informed by the club that he would not make the Opening Day roster. They’ll cut him loose a day early and give him some extra time to latch on with a new organization.

Familia, 33, had a strong spring showing with Arizona, pitching six innings of one-run ball with just three hits and one walk against four strikeouts. Those sharp results apparently weren’t enough to sway the Snakes into putting him on the Opening Day roster, so he’ll instead return to the free-agent market in search of an opportunity with another club in need of some bullpen help.

Solid as Familia was this spring, he’s coming off the worst season of his career. In 44 1/3 innings between the Phillies and Red Sox, Familia was tagged for an ugly 6.09 ERA. His 20.1% strikeout rate was the second-lowest mark he’s posted in a full season, as was his 10.7% swinging-strike rate. Familia’s 10.8% walk rate was well north of the league average, and his 95.6 mph average fastball velocity was a personal-low for the former Mets closer.

Familia did have a nice season as recently as 2021 (3.94 ERA, 27.5% strikeout rate, 10.2% walk rate in 59 1/3 innings), and his broader track record at the MLB level is impressive overall. The 2016 All-Star boasts a 3.51 ERA, 125 saves, 70 holds and a 24.4% strikeout rate in 543 big league frames.

Kevin Plawecki Will Not Make Pirates’ Roster

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Veteran catcher Kevin Plawecki, who’s been in camp with the Pirates this spring as a non-roster invitee, has been informed he won’t make the club, Rob Biertempfel of The Athletic tweets. The catcher’s locker has been emptied out, and John Perrotto of Pittsburgh Baseball Now writes that Plawecki will exercise the opt-out clause in his contract. Plawecki has an opt-out afforded to him as an Article XX(B) free agent (that is, a player with six-plus years of service who ended the preceding season on a Major League roster or injured list). The formal date for that opt-out is tomorrow, but it’s possible the Bucs gave him the courtesy of allowing him to step away sooner in order to have more time to search for a new opportunity.

Plawecki, 32, went 4-for-17 with a pair of doubles, no walks and two strikeouts in limited time with the Pirates this spring. He’s coming off a 2022 season in which he batted .220/.286/.286 with eight doubles in 186 plate appearances between the Red Sox and Rangers.

A veteran of eight big league seasons, Plawecki is a lifetime .235/.313/.341 hitter in the Majors. He’s primarily operated as a backup throughout his career. Plawecki drew plus grades for his defense and framing early in his career, but his framing has been closer to average over the past couple years and Statcast has dinged his blocking skills as below-average in that time. Plawecki has a strong reputation both in the clubhouse and for his work with pitchers; both Nathan Eovaldi and Rich Hill expressed frustration and disappointment to WEEI’s Rob Bradford last year following the Red Sox’ decision to release Plawecki late in the year.

For the Pirates, subtracting Plawecki from camp likely means either Tyler Heineman or Jason Delay will be the backup to starter Austin Hedges. Neither has hit particularly well this spring — Heineman is 1-for-17, Delay is 2-for-12 — but both appeared in at least 52 games with Pittsburgh last season and are already familiar with the pitching staff. Neither player is currently on the 40-man roster.

Mariners Release Leonys Martin

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The Mariners announced last night that outfielder Leonys Martin, who’d been in camp on a minor league deal, has been released. He’s once again a free agent.

Martin, 35, hasn’t played in the Majors since 2019, spending the past three and a half seasons with the Chiba Lotte Marines of Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball. He returned to the Mariners organization, for whom he played in 2016-17, in hopes of securing a roster spot this spring. The veteran center fielder had a decent showing in a limited sample of 24 plate appearances, going 5-for-19 with a double, three walks and nine strikeouts in 24 plate appearances (.263/.375/.316).

Through his first two and a half seasons in NPB, Martin hit for a low average but got on base at a high clip and hit for plenty of power, evidenced by a .233/.363/.494 batting line in 1175 plate appearances. His production cratered in his age-34 campaign this past season, however, as Martin batted just .163/.293/.317 in 266 trips to the plate.

Martin’s most recent productive Major League season came back in 2018, so it’s fair to wonder whether another opportunity with a new organization will present itself. That said, he was solid for much of his time in Japan and has a long track record as a premium outfield defender and baserunner. Those skills have helped him offset the tepid .244/.301/.367 batting line (81 wRC+) he’s put together through 2792 plate appearances across parts of nine MLB seasons.

The Opener: Opt-Outs, Phillies, Lynch

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Headed into the final weekend before Opening Day, here are three things we’ll be keeping an eye on around the baseball world throughout the day today:

1. Article XX(B) veterans on minor league deals have opt-out opportunity tomorrow:

Tomorrow is the first date that Article XX(B) free agents (i.e. six-plus years of MLB service, finished the 2022 season on a Major League roster or injured list) who settled for minor league deals will have that opportunity to opt out of those contracts. A few dozen players qualify for this distinction. With the looming opt-out date on the horizon, clubs will need to make decisions on whether or not to add members of this group to their 40-man roster soon. As such, certain camp battles and Opening Day roster decisions will come into focus over the next day, in addition to the free agent market potentially receiving an influx of veteran players looking for a new opportunity. Article XX(B) free agents who do not opt out tomorrow will also have opt-out opportunities on May 1 and June 1.

2. External options for the Phillies following Hoskins’s injury:

Yesterday, first baseman Rhys Hoskins tore his ACL, requiring surgery that puts his season in danger before it even begins. The Phillies have enough depth to weather the injury, with Darick Hall standing as a suitable first baseman while Alec Bohm or Nick Castellanos could slide over to first against southpaws if the lefty-swinging Hall is utilized as a platoon player. That said, it would certainly make sense if the Phillies were interested in adding a veteran right-handed first baseman to complement Hall, who has just 41 games of MLB experience.

Currently, Miguel Sano is the only free agent that fits that profile, but tomorrow players like Yuli Gurriel and Hanser Alberto could join the free agent market as XX(B) veterans with opt outs, providing the Phillies with additional options. Perhaps the most interesting potential addition the Phillies could make, however, would be Luke Voit, the slugging first baseman who’s been in camp with the Brewers on a non-roster invite. Voit had an out clause in his contract originally scheduled for last week but agreed to push that date back until today. If the Brewers don’t add him to the 40-man roster by the end of the day, he’ll have the opportunity to opt out and could be a fit for the Phillies if he does.

3. Lynch undergoing tests:

Royals lefty Daniel Lynch exited yesterday’s game with discomfort in his left shoulder, and manager Matt Quatraro told reporters, including MLB.com’s Anne Rogers, that Lynch would undergo testing to determine the nature of the discomfort. Lynch made 27 starts for the Royals last year, posting a 5.13 ERA in 131 2/3 innings of work. With the offseason additions of Jordan Lyles and Ryan Yarbrough, Lynch did not figure to be a member of the Opening Day rotation. However, an early-spring injury to Yarbrough opened the door for Lynch to recapture a rotation spot, with Yarbrough seemingly ticketed for multi-inning relief. Should Lynch be forced to miss time, that could open the door for Yarbrough to return to the rotation, or allow fellow southpaw Kris Bubic to claim the spot rather than head to Triple-A to open the season.

Rhys Hoskins Diagnosed With Torn ACL, Will Undergo Surgery

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The Phillies have lost Rhys Hoskins for almost certainly the entire season. Philadelphia announced Thursday evening the veteran first baseman tore the ACL in his left knee. He’ll undergo surgery at an unspecified date. President of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski will meet with the media to discuss the situation tomorrow morning.

Hoskins was injured during this morning’s Spring Training action against the Tigers. He retreated to field an Austin Meadows chopper that pushed him just into the outfield grass. After the ball kicked off his glove, Hoskins scrambled to retrieve it but immediately went down in pain (video provided on Twitter by Chris Brown of the Woodward Sports Network). The club had to call for a cart to take him off the field. While manager Rob Thomson later indicated that Hoskins was able to walk in the clubhouse, imaging revealed the devastating injury.

It’s a horrible development for team and player alike. Hoskins had been set to occupy his typical middle-of-the-order lineup spot for the defending National League champions. A paragon of offensive consistency, he’s hit between 27 and 34 home runs in all four of his full MLB seasons. Hoskins pairs that power with plus walk totals to more than compensate for slightly higher than average strikeout rates. Even after accounting for Philadelphia’s hitter-friendly home park, he’s been a well above-average offensive player throughout his career.

Hoskins is coming off his typical season. He connected on 30 homers with a .246/.332/.462 line while suiting up in 156 regular season games. While he only hit .159 with a .205 on-base percentage in the playoffs, he popped six homers in 73 postseason PA’s.

That kind of power production would have been of particular import for the Phils early in the 2023 campaign. Bryce Harper is recovering from Tommy John surgery and will open the year on the injured list. While Philadelphia doesn’t have any imminent plans to put the two-time MVP on the 60-day IL, the club has only specified they expect him back around the All-Star Break. They’ll now be down two of their best hitters early in the year and, in Hoskins’ case, likely for the entire season.

The Phils added another star position player this offseason, signing Trea Turner to a $300MM deal. The Phils have a pair of more traditional sluggers in last winter’s signees Kyle Schwarber and Nick Castellanos. Schwarber is coming off a 46-homer season in his first year with the club. Castellanos, on the other hand, struggled to a .263/.305/.389 line in the initial season of a five-year deal. With Hoskins out, there’s more pressure on Castellanos to return to peak form alongside Turner, Schwarber, J.T. Realmuto and eventually Harper in the lineup.

In the immediate future, the Phils will have to sort out how to divvy up first base playing time. The most straightforward decision would be to give the job to 27-year-old Darick Hall. A left-handed power bat, Hall got into his first 42 MLB games last season. He connected on nine longballs and slugged .522 in 142 plate appearances. That’s a promising start but a meager 3.5% walk rate and elevated 31% strikeout percentage contributed to a .282 OBP. Hall had hit .254/.330/.528 with 28 homers, a 9.5% walk percentage and a 22.6% strikeout rate in 101 games with Triple-A Lehigh Valley.

Aside from Hall, the Phils could give occasional first base reps to either of Schwarber or Castellanos. Utility players like Josh Harrison or Kody Clemens could take some at-bats but aren’t likely to hit enough to play there regularly. The Phillies could also slide third baseman Alec Bohm across the diamond — particularly if they want the right-handed Bohm to take some reps from Hall against lefty pitching — while plugging Harrison or Edmundo Sosa at the hot corner for defensive purposes. Realmuto also seems likely to pick up a few starts on days when the Phils want to get him some time off from behind the dish.

If Philadelphia were to go outside the organization, Miguel Sanó stands as the top unsigned first baseman. Other players should come available as teams make roster cuts. The Brewers may wind up having to decide between minor league signee Luke Voit and the out-of-options Keston Hiura. The Marlins could soon have to decide whether to keep non-roster invitee Yuli Gurriel or allow him to retest the market. Phillies brass figures to provide insight into the plans over the coming days.

In addition to the difficulty of losing an entire season on a championship contender, it’s hard to draw up a worse time for an injury of this nature for Hoskins personally. The 30-year-old will be a free agent for the first time next offseason. One of the top bats in what looks to be a shallow free agent position player class, he looked like an obvious choice to reject a qualifying offer and sign a lucrative multi-year deal. Instead, he might have to take a pillow contract to reestablish himself before testing the market again over the 2024-25 offseason. Josh Bell and Trey Mancini, who can each opt out of the deals they signed this winter, now look like the top impending free agents at first base.

Rangers Notes: Dunning, Ragans, Smith, Foscue

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The Rangers could carry righty Dane Dunning and left-hander Cole Ragans in the big league bullpen to open the season, writes Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News. Both pitchers were squeezed out of the initial rotation mix by Texas’ busy offseason. Jacob deGrom, Andrew Heaney and Nathan Eovaldi were all brought in to join Martín Pérez and Jon Gray in the starting five. Even with trade pickup Jake Odorizzi headed to the injured list, there’s no room in the season-opening five for Dunning or Ragans.

Rather than option either to Triple-A Round Rock to start the year, the Rangers might prefer to keep them stretched out as multi-inning options at the MLB level. The Rangers plan to be cautious with early-season workloads for deGrom and Eovaldi after each had minor soreness that slightly delayed them in camp. Dunning and Ragans could handle bulk work in relief. The former was second on the team with 153 1/3 innings over 29 starts last year; the latter worked 40 frames over nine big league starts after tallying 94 2/3 innings in the upper minors.

There are also some roster questions on the position player side, perhaps none bigger than in center field. Adolis García and Robbie Grossman are ticketed for most of the corner outfield work. Leody Taveras should get first crack up the middle if healthy, but his status for Opening Day is still up in the air owing to an oblique strain earlier this month.

Perhaps not coincidentally, Texas has begun to get Josh Smith some work in center field, as Grant writes in a separate piece. The 25-year-old didn’t see any big league time there last year, instead splitting his rookie campaign between third base, shortstop and left field. Texas gave Smith 131 innings in center in Triple-A. They were apparently sufficiently impressed to consider him a potential part-time option there at the highest level. He’s a slightly above-average runner who has plenty of experience in the middle infield, so it’s not out of the question he’s athletic enough to handle the outfield’s toughest position.

Smith doesn’t have a path to everyday playing time at any one spot after hitting .197/.307/.249 over his first 253 MLB plate appearances. An ability to take on tough defensive assignments would increase his utility off the bench. The Rangers have Bubba Thompson and non-roster invitee Travis Jankowski — neither of whom is hitting this spring — as the most straightforward center field replacements for Taveras. Smith might have the most offensive upside of that trio in spite of his slow start against big league pitching. He’d hit .290/.395/.466 in 55 games in Triple-A.

The efforts to broaden versatility aren’t limited to the MLB level. As part of a reader mailbag earlier this week, The Athletic’s Jamey Newberg noted that Texas is planning to get prospect Justin Foscue more work on the corner infield this year in Round Rock. Texas’ first-round draftee in 2020, Foscue has mostly played second base as a professional. He logged 106 innings at the hot corner with Double-A Frisco last year and played there regularly during his first couple collegiate seasons at Mississippi State. He has virtually no experience at first base.

Foscue will continue to get time at second base as well, though finding comfort at multiple positions could aid him in getting to the majors as a bat-first utility player. Marcus Semien should have the keystone secure for years to come. Foscue isn’t far off the majors from an offensive perspective after hitting .288/.367/.483 with 15 homers and a meager 14.3% strikeout rate in Round Rock last year.

Red Sox Notes: Crawford, Mills, Wong, Tapia

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Right-hander Kutter Crawford will begin the season in the Red Sox’s rotation, manager Alex Cora confirmed (link via Alex Speier of the Boston Globe). He’s expected to take the ball for the fourth game of the season, the opener of a series against the Pirates.

It’s not likely to be a long-term stint. Crawford steps in with Garrett Whitlock and Brayan Bello both opening the year on the 15-day injured list. Whitlock, in particular, is expected back midway through the season’s first month. Assuming each of Corey Kluber, Chris Sale, Tanner Houck and Nick Pivetta remain healthy by that point, Crawford could find himself in long relief or optioned back to Triple-A Worcester. Potential returns from Bello and James Paxton later on would push him further down the depth chart.

Crawford, 27 next month, started 12 of 21 outings for the Sox last season. He pitched to a 5.47 ERA in 77 1/3 innings overall, though his 23.1% strikeout percentage and 8.7% walk rate were both solid. He predictably missed more bats in relief than he did as a starter but threw more strikes when working from the rotation.

In other news out of Boston:

  • Reliever Wyatt Mills has been shut down from throwing after experiencing elbow inflammation, Speier writes. Fortunately, the issue is believed to be muscular rather than structural. Mills still seems likely to open the season on the 15-day IL but there doesn’t appear to be concern about a long-term absence in spite of the ominous-sounding diagnosis. Boston acquired the righty from the Royals over the winter, sending minor league reliever Jacob Wallace back to Kansas City. Mills split the 2022 campaign between Seattle and K.C., throwing 29 1/3 frames of 4.60 ERA ball. He still has a minor league option year remaining and wasn’t a lock to crack the season-opening bullpen.
  • Catcher Connor Wong was hampered by a left hamstring strain early in camp. While the issue initially seemed as if it could lead to a season-opening IL stint, Wong now looks on track to be ready for Opening Day. Cora told reporters yesterday the 26-year-old backstop was a “full go” at this point (relayed by Ian Browne of MLB.com). With a week left until the start of the regular season, he should be in position to open the year on the roster. Wong and Reese McGuire are the two backstops on the 40-man. The catching outlook is one area the Sox will have to sort out in the coming days, as Boston could lose minor league signee Jorge Alfaro to an upward mobility clause in his contract if they’re not willing to put him on the MLB club. Alfaro has been on a tear in Spring Training, collecting 11 hits (including two homers) in 21 at-bats.
  • Like Alfaro, Raimel Tapia is a veteran in camp on a minor league deal. The lefty-hitting outfielder is battling for a depth role behind the presumptive starting outfield of Masataka Yoshida, Adam Duvall and Alex Verdugo. Righty-swinging Rob Refsnyder is a virtual lock to secure a bench role, as is a backup catcher. That’d leave two spots, one of which seems likely to go to an infielder. Tapia brings plus contact skills and speed, though he’s not a prototypical fourth outfielder considering he’s spent the bulk of his career in left field. Chad Jennings of the Athletic writes that Boston is increasingly open to using Tapia in center field, where he played a career-high 249 2/3 innings for Toronto last season. That would increase his chances of making the roster, particularly since his skillset would be complementary to that of Duvall. Tapia is 13-40 with two walks, six strikeouts and a pair of homers this spring.

Offseason In Review: Miami Marlins

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After two seasons of lackluster hitting, the Marlins made several moves in the hopes of finally turning around their offense.  The question now becomes if those offensive additions will provide enough help, and whether or not the club’s pitching and defense might take a step backwards.

Major League Signings

2023 spending: $12.5MM
Total spending: $25.5MM

Option Decisions

  • Declined $6.3MM mutual option on IF Joey Wendle, $75K buyout (Marlins retained Wendle via arbitration)

Trades & Claims

Notable Minor League Signings

Extensions

  • Jon Berti, IF/OF: One year, $2.125MM (includes $25K buyout of $3.5MM club option for 2024; if option is declined, Marlins still hold arbitration control over Berti)

Notable Losses

The first step in the Marlins’ offseason was the hiring of a new manager, as Skip Schumaker was brought on board as Don Mattingly’s replacement.  Schumaker is a first-time manager who has a strong resume as a coach with the Cardinals and Padres. He and a mostly new coaching staff will be fresh voices within an organization in need of a shakeup after a 136-188 record over the last two seasons.

Hiring Schumaker and the coaching staff was basically the biggest Marlins news for the first two months of the offseason, though Kim Ng’s front office was undoubtedly very busy in laying the groundwork for future moves.  Heading into the winter, Miami’s gameplan seemed pretty apparent — trade from its surplus of young pitching to land at least one quality hitter who could upgrade the club’s stagnant lineup.  It isn’t surprising that it took the Marlins until January to finally swing that big pitching-for-hitting trade, as most rotation-needy teams opted to add pitching in free agency rather than meet Miami’s significant asking price.

Such teams as the Rockies, Cardinals, Red Sox, Mets, and Diamondbacks were all linked to the Marlins in trade talks, with players like Brendan Rodgers, Brett Baty, and Triston Casas reportedly on Miami’s target list.  But, it was the Twins who finally found common ground with the Marlins, resulting in the four-player trade that brought Luis Arraez to Miami in exchange for Pablo Lopez and two notable prospects (Jose Salas, Byron Chourio).

The prospect element of the deal shouldn’t be overlooked, as the Marlins’ willingness to part with minor league talent in addition to Lopez indicates just how much they coveted Arraez.  The reigning AL batting champ is exactly the type of high-contact hitter the Fish were seeking as the offseason began, and Arraez’s left-handed bat also helps balance a righty-heavy lineup.  Arraez’s relative lack of power isn’t as important to the Marlins as his ability to put the ball into play and avoid strikeouts, and his three remaining years of arbitration control make him more of a longer-term solution for Miami.

By the time of the Minnesota trade, Arraez’s addition further shook up a Marlins infield that underwent some other changes earlier in January.  Miami traded longtime shortstop Miguel Rojas to the Dodgers in exchange for shortstop prospect Jacob Amaya, and dipped into the free agent market to sign Jean Segura to a two-year, $17MM contract.  The infield changes weren’t done there, as after Spring Training began, the Fish inked veterans Yuli Gurriel and Jose Iglesias to minor league contracts.

The end result is a rather unexpected infield alignment.  Segura will be Miami’s starting third baseman, though his career experience at the position consists of 179 2/3 innings in 2020 with the Phillies.  Arraez will play second base, despite some relatively mixed reviews on his glovework from public defensive metrics and how Arraez’s knees (which have been an injury concern in the past) will hold up at a more difficult position than first base.  Joey Wendle will get the bulk of the work at shortstop, with Iglesias (if he makes the team) and utilitymen Jon Berti and Garrett Hampson providing some support since Wendle has played only 647 2/3 innings at short over his seven MLB seasons.  Gurriel could pair with Garrett Cooper for first base duty, with Cooper also likely to see some corner outfield work on occasion.

The name not listed within the infield mix is Jazz Chisholm Jr., as the former second baseman will now move into center field for the first time in his professional career.  Center field has been a longstanding target area for the Marlins, so if Chisholm is able to be even a passable option on the grass without losing any of his hitting stroke, that might be a win for the team.  Of course, there’s plenty of risk involved in Chisholm adopting an entirely new position, perhaps both health-wise (he played only 60 games last season due to a stress fracture in his back and a torn meniscus) and defensively.  “Passable” glovework might not be enough for a center fielder in the spacious loanDepot Park outfield, especially since Avisail Garcia and projected left fielder Jesus Sanchez are average defenders at best in the corners.

It makes for something of a roll of the dice for Miami, though it is possible some adjustments could be made.  Due to their minor league contracts, it isn’t even a guarantee yet that Gurriel or Iglesias will make the roster, so Arraez might end up being the player sharing time with Cooper at first time.  That would open up second base for either Chisholm or Segura if one of the two are struggling in their new positions, with Berti, Hampson, or (in center field) Sanchez or Bryan De La Cruz able to fill some of the gaps.  Amaya might also get the call for his MLB debut if he hits well at Triple-A, since his glove is already considered to be big league-ready.

If the defense does start springing too many holes, it will be easy to second-guess Miami’s strategy in picking which hitters to target.  Arraez and Segura are above-average hitters who fit the Marlins’ desire for players who can get on base and put the ball into play, putting pressure on opponents to try and defend at loanDepot Park.  Yet, if their offensive contributions are blunted by subpar defense, it will call into question why the Marlins couldn’t have found hitters who were cleaner fits into their lineup without all of the position-juggling.

This isn’t to say the Marlins didn’t look into other options, as they pursued free agents such as Jose Abreu and Justin Turner but were outbid.  Names like Josh Bell, Michael Conforto, Jurickson Profar, Cody Bellinger, and even Willson Contreras also drew at least cursory interest from the Marlins before signing elsewhere.  On the trade front, Miami certainly discussed so many of their pitchers (besides Sandy Alcantara and Eury Perez) with so many other teams about a wide variety of hitters that only time will tell if there was ever a better deal out there than the Lopez/Arraez trade.

A questionable defense can also surely lessen the impact of a quality pitching staff.  It is a testament to the Marlins’ pitching depth that the rotation still looks like the team’s strength even without Lopez.  Alcantara is a top-tier ace, Jesus Luzardo showed plenty of promise when healthy, Edward Cabrera could be on the verge of a breakout, and Trevor Rogers’ solid 2021 season isn’t a distant memory, even if Rogers has to rebound after a disappointing 2022.  Braxton Garrett is the top depth option, but given Garrett’s inexperience and Sixto Sanchez’s uncertain health status, Miami added to this mix with a new face in veteran Johnny Cueto.

After a few injury-riddled and only moderately effective seasons with the Giants, Cueto bounced back with a solid year with the White Sox, posting a 3.35 ERA over 158 1/3 innings.  Despite a lack of velocity and one of the lowest strikeout rates in the league, Cueto finessed his way to success by mostly limiting hard contact and still posting an outstanding walk rate.  Even if Cueto has moved into the “crafty veteran” stage of his career, he still looks like he has something to offer in his age-37 season if he can stay off the injured list.

The bullpen was a lot less effective than the rotation last year, so the Fish bolstered the relief corps with a trio of interesting deals.  Grounder specialist Richard Bleier was sent to the Red Sox in exchange for former closer Matt Barnes, J.T. Chargois (and former top-100 infield prospect Xavier Edwards) were picked up from the Rays in a four-player trade, and former fourth overall pick JJ Bleday was moved to the A’s in exchange for A.J. Puk.

It seemed as though Boston wanted to turn the page on Barnes after two seasons of highly volatile performance, as Barnes sandwiched a brutal four months of pitching (August/September 2021 and April/May of 2022) between otherwise very impressive work.  The upside is there for the Marlins, and with the Red Sox offsetting the cost between Barnes and Bleier’s salaries, the price was right for the Fish to acquire a reliever with possible closer potential.  It could also be noted that a grounder-heavy pitcher like Bleier might’ve been seen as less effective for 2023, given the new rules limiting shifts, and the fact that Miami might have a much shakier infield defense.

Chargois has pitched well over the last two seasons in Tampa’s bullpen, and Puk’s first full Major League season was a success, as he was one of only a few highlights in an otherwise rough season for Oakland.  Though the Athletics spoke of stretching Puk out as a starter this spring, his injury history and Miami’s starter depth probably means he’ll remain as a reliever, and he has already shown signs of being a very effective weapon out of the pen.

The Puk trade is also notable for Bleday’s inclusion, as it was one of a few instances this winter of Miami opting to move on from players who seemed like potential building blocks not long ago.  In addition to Bleday heading to Oakland, the Marlins traded Elieser Hernandez to the Mets, put Lewin Diaz and Cole Sulser on waivers to be claimed away, and non-tendered Brian Anderson and Nick Neidert.  Though salary and a preference for other positional options factored into some of these moves, the most obvious common element is that none of these players performed particularly well in 2022.

The Marlins are clearly getting impatient with losing, especially after last winter’s steps to acquire Garcia, Wendle, Jorge Soler, and Jacob Stallings didn’t pan out.  Miami’s ceiling in 2023 may hinge in large part on whether or not any of these players can get back on track, and the Fish have to hope that this offseason’s moves have at the very least elevated the talent floor on the roster.  The defensive re-alignment will be a major storyline to watch in the early days of the season, but if the experimentation with the gloves and the bats work out, the Marlins could be a sneaky team to watch in the NL wild card race.

How would you grade the Marlins’ offseason? (poll link for app users)

Reds’ Luke Weaver, Lucas Sims Expected To Open Season On Injured List

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The Reds are likely to be without two important pitchers early in the season. Manager David Bell informed the media yesterday that fourth starter Luke Weaver and presumptive high-leverage reliever Lucas Sims are each likely to open the year on the 15-day injured list (via Mark Sheldon of MLB.com).

Weaver experienced some forearm discomfort last week. The Reds don’t seem overly concerned — he’s already progressed to throwing a bullpen session after a brief rest period — but the issue has thrown his Spring Training off enough he’ll require some time during the season to build up. Weaver has pitched three times this spring but only made it through 5 2/3 combined innings.

Signed to a one-year, $2MM deal this offseason after being non-tendered by the Mariners, Weaver entered camp as the #4 rotation option behind Hunter Greene, Nick Lodolo and Graham Ashcraft. The righty worked almost exclusively out of relief last season, tossing 35 1/3 frames in 26 appearances. He’d been a starter throughout his career until then. The Reds will give him a chance in his initial role after his season-opening IL stay. Considering he hasn’t topped 100 innings in a year since 2018, the injury could naturally manage workload concerns that might’ve arisen later in the season anyhow.

In the short term, it’ll vacate a second rotation spot for a handful of pitchers still battling for MLB jobs. The final two spots figure to go to some combination of Luis Cessa, Connor Overton, prospect Brandon Williamson, or a non-roster veteran like Chase Anderson. Overton and Williamson have gotten hit hard in Spring Training, while Cessa and Anderson haven’t logged many innings in camp. Anderson initially began in minor league camp and was only added to the MLB side a couple weeks ago. Cessa left the club for a few weeks to represent Mexico in the World Baseball Classic. The Reds could have to make the decision on Anderson’s role in the next 48 hours; he’s one of a handful of veterans who has an automatic opt-out chance this Saturday if he’s not added to the big league roster.

Sims, meanwhile, is dealing with back spasms that necessitated a temporary shutdown. He’s also back throwing again. The right-hander has had a tough Spring Training, surrendering ten runs in five innings. That’s on the heels of a 2022 campaign almost completely lost to a disc herniation in his back that required surgery. Between his on-field rust and the injury history, there’s obvious reason for the Reds to be cautious.

Two seasons ago, Sims emerged as a high-leverage reliever with a massive 39% strikeout rate over 47 innings. He’s among the higher-upside options in a thin bullpen if he can get healthy. Sims has two remaining seasons of arbitration control and could be one of the Reds’ more interesting deadline trade candidates should he find his pre-surgery form.

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