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Archives for October 2023

Sean Casey Won’t Return As Yankees’ Hitting Coach

By Darragh McDonald | October 25, 2023 at 11:00am CDT

Yankees’ hitting coach Sean Casey will not be returning for the 2024 season due to family reasons, as he himself announced on his podcast. Joel Sherman of The New York Post was among those to relay the news. “I’m not gonna be able to come back next year,” Casey said, per Chris Kirschner of The Athletic, “because I have my two daughters at home. I think getting divorced a few years ago — I have those girls 50 percent of the time. I just can’t imagine being away for 8 months.” He also said, per Greg Joyce of The New York Post, “There was no offer made, but I do think I could have come back had I wanted to. That time right now is not perfect for me. We’ll see what happens in the next few years here.”

The Yankees began 2023 with Dillon Lawson as their hitting coach and struggled offensively, producing a team-wide batting line of .227/.304/.397 for the year. That amounts to a wRC+ of 94, indicating they were 6% worse than league average. It’s always tough to figure out how much credit or blame should go to a hitting coach or the players themselves. The 2023 Yankees had one of the best hitters in the world in Aaron Judge but also gave plenty of plate appearances to less-heralded journeymen like Isiah Kiner-Falefa, Jake Bauers, Willie Calhoun and Billy McKinney, as well as rookies like Anthony Volpe.

Whether Lawson had any hand in those struggles is difficult to tell but Yanks evidently felt a change was necessary, as Lawson was fired in July and replaced by Casey. The team had a wRC+ of 96 prior to that move and a 92 wRC+ after, but again, it’s tough to reach conclusions about the impact of the hitting coach in such numbers. The Yankees faded from contention and gave a lot of their late-season playing time to unproven younger players.

The Yankees will now have to find a new hitting coach for the 2024 season. As for Casey, it seems he is leaving the door open for future coaching gigs as his family situation evolves. He played in the big leagues from 1997 to 2008 but his stint with the Yankees this year was his first coaching job.

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New York Yankees Sean Casey

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Mets To Interview Craig Counsell For Managerial Vacancy

By Darragh McDonald | October 25, 2023 at 10:30am CDT

The Mets have received permission from the Brewers to interview Craig Counsell, reports Andy Martino of SNY, and will interview him soon.

Counsell, 53, has been the manager of the Brewers since 2015 but has been a speculative fit for the Mets for a while now. David Stearns had been general manager/president of baseball operations in Milwaukee for roughly the same period of time that Counsell was manager and recently made the move to the Mets. Upon joining his new club, he almost immediately fired Buck Showalter and opened the manager position in Queens.

Given the longstanding relationship between Stearns and Counsell, many made the logical conclusion that Stearns would bring Counsell to the Mets with him. But that assumed reunion has been on hold recently, as Counsell is still technically the manager of the Brewers. It was previously reported that his contract runs through the end of October, which seemed like it was going to push any interviews with the Mets or other clubs until November, though it now appears the Brewers will let him talk to the Mets about a week early.

The Brewers have generally been successful during the Stearns-Counsell period, making the playoffs in five of the past six seasons despite not running up huge payrolls. That has naturally led to interest from other clubs, wondering what they could do with more resources. Stearns is already aboard with the Mets but it’s not a guarantee Counsell will follow him. As Martino adds, Counsell is expected to pursue other openings just as the Mets are expected to consider other candidates.

The Guardians, Angels and Padres also have managerial vacancies and would presumably have some level of interest in Counsell. It’s been reported that Dusty Baker may step away from managing as well, which would add the Astros to that list. It also can’t really be ruled out that Counsell stays with the Brewers. While he may be tempted by a bigger market and a presumably larger salary, he grew up in Wisconsin and has long-standing ties to the region. His father worked for the Brewers and Craig spent part of his playing career with the club before his managerial career began.

About a week ago, Jon Heyman of The New York Post reported that the Brewers felt he would stay in Milwaukee if he was paid “what he believes is fair.” He reportedly made $3.5MM in 2023, though it’s unknown what level of compensation he would consider a reasonable bump. Given the free-spending ways of the Mets, they would likely be able to offer him a higher salary than the Brewers, though it’s unknown whether that would be enough to pry Counsell away from the club where he has those aforementioned connections.

Some might interpret the Brewers giving him permission to talk to the Mets as a sign they aren’t committed to Counsell, though another explanation would just be about timing. Teams generally prefer to have a manager in place when the offseason begins and they start talking to potential free agents. Therefore the Brewers could have it in their best interest to have Counsell start assessing his options so that they can get clarity on whether he may come back or if they themselves need to start interviewing new candidates.

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Milwaukee Brewers New York Mets Newsstand Craig Counsell

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Offseason Chat Transcript: Houston Astros

By Anthony Franco | October 25, 2023 at 9:28am CDT

In conjunction with their offseason outlook, Anthony Franco held an Astros-specific chat. Click here to view the transcript.

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2023-24 Offseason Outlook Houston Astros MLBTR Chats

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Orioles Claim Tucker Davidson From Royals

By Darragh McDonald | October 25, 2023 at 9:25am CDT

The Orioles announced that they have claimed left-hander Tucker Davidson off waivers from the Royals. The O’s already had an open roster spot and won’t need to make a corresponding move.

Davidson, 28 in March, was once a notable prospect in Atlanta’s system but hasn’t quite delivered on that hype just yet. That has led to a fairly nomadic couple of years, starting with a trade to the Angels as part of the Raisel Iglesias deal in 2022. But he was designated for assignment by that club a year later and was flipped to the Royals for cash. Now it appears the Royals tried to pass him through waivers but the O’s have swooped in and grabbed him.

The lefty was a starter as a prospect but worked primarily in relief in 2023, likely due to the fact that he was out of options and couldn’t be easily sent to the minors. The results in the bullpen were mixed. On the negative side, he finished the year with an ERA of 5.96 between the Angels and Royals, with a subpar 19.5% strikeout rate.

On the positive side, his 8.1% walk rate and 44.2% ground ball rate were both close to league average and he was in the 81st percentile in terms of limiting hard contact. His FIP and SIERA both came in at 4.27, suggesting his .358 batting average on balls in play and 63.1% strand rate both made his ERA look worse than he perhaps deserved.

The Orioles have a few left-handed options for their bullpen already, with Cionel Pérez, DL Hall, Danny Coulombe, Nick Vespi and Keegan Akin on the roster. But some of those guys have options or could perhaps still be considered for starting gigs. Adding Davidson gives them another option to add into the mix, though the O’s have also been known to claim players and then attempt to pass them through waivers later.

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Baltimore Orioles Kansas City Royals Transactions Tucker Davidson

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Giants Hire Bob Melvin As Manager

By Mark Polishuk | October 25, 2023 at 9:05am CDT

October 25: The Giants have made it official, announcing today that Bob Melvin is now their manager.

October 24: The Giants “are poised to announce” that Bob Melvin has been hired as the team’s new manager, The Athletic’s Andrew Baggarly reports.  It isn’t known when the official announcement could be made, though the league prefers that teams save major news for between postseason rounds, so the Giants may wait until for the two days between the end of the NLCS and the start of the World Series on Friday.

Between the late-season firing of Gabe Kapler as manager and the reports of discord between Melvin and Padres president of baseball operations A.J. Preller, there has been plenty of speculation over the last month that Melvin might find himself on the move from San Diego to San Francisco.  Padres chairman Peter Seidler’s stated preference was that both Melvin and Preller remain with the organization in 2024, and Preller even said in a post-season wrapup press conference that “Bob is our manager, and he’s going to be our manager going forward.”

However, Melvin remained on the Giants’ radar, and a parting between Melvin and the Padres seemed inevitable once San Diego granted Melvin permission to interview with the Giants this past weekend.  As Baggarly reports, that interview took place on Monday, and involved several members of San Francisco’s ownership group and baseball operations staff, not to mention franchise icon Buster Posey.  It seems as though the interview was enough to confirm Melvin’s status as the favorite for the job, and the veteran skipper will now get a new job as an early birthday present, as he turns 62 on Saturday.

Melvin’s resume includes three Manager of the Year Awards, eight postseason appearances, and a 1517-1425 record over 20 seasons with the Padres, Athletics, Diamondbacks, and Mariners.  The hiring in San Francisco is also something of a homecoming for the Palo Alto native, and a continuation of Melvin’s linkage of the Bay Area and his baseball career.  Melvin played with the Giants for three of his 10 seasons as a big league catcher, and had an 11-year stint managing the A’s from 2011-21.

As it happens, this is the second time in almost exactly two years that Melvin take a new managerial job while leaving another job with one year remaining on his contract.  The A’s had contractual control over Melvin for the 2022 season but chose to let him walk to the Padres without compensation, with reports stating that Melvin’s $4MM salary was seen as onerous for an Oakland club that was about to embark on a major teardown.  It is also fair to assume that the Athletics front office was open to letting Melvin make a graceful exit to a better situation, rather than keep him as manager for at least one season of what looks like it will be a lengthy rebuild process.

This past weekend’s reports from Baggarly and Dennis Lin suggest that Melvin’s current salary (also $4MM for 2024, the last year of his Padres contract) might have been a factor in San Diego’s decision, as the organization is planning to reduce expenditures in a number of different areas.  With a mounting debt that could be in conflict with MLB regulations and some broadcasting uncertainty due to the Diamond Sports Group’s bankruptcy proceedings, the Padres look to be cutting back on the high-spending ways, including a reported reduction in player payroll to around $200MM for next season.

Finances aside, the simpler answer is probably just that the Giants’ interest allowed for the Padres to part ways with Melvin in relatively smooth fashion, without the awkwardness of a firing.  Preller has already fired three different managers (Bud Black, Andy Green, Jayce Tingler) during his nine-plus years in charge of San Diego’s front office, and three other men (Dave Roberts, Pat Murphy, Rod Barajas) have also worked as interim managers.  Of course, whether it was a firing or a “parting of the ways,” the bottom line is that the Padres have had another manager come and go while Preller remains.

Lin and Ken Rosenthal examined how the Preller/Melvin relationship soured in a piece for The Athletic last month, and the criticisms of Preller’s management style also predated Melvin’s arrival in San Diego.  In fact, Melvin’s hiring was seen as a stabilizing element after the clubhouse turmoil that marked the end of Tingler’s managerial stint, yet it seems as though the ship was only steadied through the success of the 2022 season.  This year, the Padres underachieved despite their massive payroll, with a very poor record in one-run (9-23) and extra-inning (2-12) games undermining a team that, by all other statistical measurements, should’ve won a lot more than 82 games.

With even more pressure on Preller to get the Friars on track, the next managerial hire will be one of the most crucial decisions of his tenure.  Two internal candidates (Mike Shildt and bench coach Ryan Flaherty) have already emerged as leading contenders for the job, and it might be that the Padres wanted to start lining up some candidates before officially green-lighting Melvin’s interview with San Francisco.  San Diego will surely interview some other people out of due diligence, though it wouldn’t be a shock if the job does end up going to either first-time manager Flaherty, or former Cardinals skipper Shildt.

As for Melvin, he’ll now take over another team in need of a culture change.  After winning 107 games in 2021, the Giants are 159-163 over the last two seasons, and Kapler’s hands-off managerial style was starting to seem more like a detriment than a plus.  Several Giants players, either on or off the record, felt the club was somewhat directionless, with Logan Webb outright stating he felt “we have to make some big changes in here to create that winning culture.”

These criticisms extended not only to Kapler but to president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi, whose contract is believed to run only through the end of the 2024 season.  As such, Zaidi is also certainly feeling the pressure to build a contending roster, and the Giants are expected to be aggressive shoppers this winter after missing out on both Aaron Judge and Carlos Correa as a big-ticket addition last offseason.  Faced with what might be a make-or-break scenario, it probably isn’t surprising that Zaidi has turned to a familiar face as manager — Zaidi previously worked as the Athletics’ assistant GM during Melvin’s tenure in Oakland.

The terms of Melvin’s contract aren’t yet known, though Baggarly suggests it could be a relatively short-term deal, should Melvin view the San Francisco job “as a fitting place to round out” his career.  There has been some buzz about possible coaching changes coming to the Giants’ staff, though Baggarly suggests that the majority of San Francisco’s 13-person staff could be retained.  That perhaps puts a different spin on the Giants’ managerial search, as the focus on internal candidates and others with past Giants ties (i.e. Stephen Vogt) might have been a way of gauging how any of these candidates might have been willing to mesh with Melvin, if he was Zaidi’s preferred choice all along.

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Newsstand San Diego Padres San Francisco Giants Transactions Bob Melvin

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The Opener: Diamondbacks, Melvin, Astros Chat

By Darragh McDonald | October 25, 2023 at 7:56am CDT

With the World Series matchup now set, here are three things to keep an eye on today…

1. Diamondbacks’ wild run goes into the World Series:

The Diamondbacks knocked off the Phillies in the NLCS and are now headed to Texas to face the Rangers in the World Series. The D’Backs only won 84 games in the regular season and actually had a run differential of -15, but none of that matters now. They knocked off the Brewers, Dodgers and Phillies to put them in the final showdown, which begins Friday night.

2. Melvin moving on:

It was reported yesterday that the Giants are going to hire Bob Melvin as their manager, after the Padres gave him permission to pursue the gig. The Giants have a press conference scheduled for today and it seems fair to expect that the Melvin move will be made official. That will leave the Padres looking for a new bench boss, joining the Angels, Mets and Guardians as clubs without a manager. The Astros and Brewers could join that list soon with Dusty Baker and Craig Counsell each on expiring contracts.

3. Astros chat:

Yesterday, MLBTR’s Anthony Franco took a look at what could be ahead for the Astros as part of our Offseason Outlook series. Each entry of that series comes with its own team-centric chat where readers can ask questions focused on the club. If you want to chop it up about the Astros, it gets going at 9:30 am Central but you can click here to ask a question in advance.

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The Opener

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Eric Lauer Elects Free Agency

By Anthony Franco | October 24, 2023 at 10:07pm CDT

Starting pitcher Eric Lauer has elected minor league free agency, according to the transaction log at MLB.com. That was the anticipated outcome when Milwaukee sent the left-hander outright from the 40-man roster last week.

Lauer pitched four seasons in Milwaukee. The Brewers acquired the former first-round draftee alongside Luis Urías in a 2019-20 offseason deal that sent Trent Grisham and Zach Davies to the Padres. He was a non-factor during the shortened season but rebounded with consecutive solid years in 2021 and ’22. Lauer combined for a 3.47 ERA with a slightly above-average 23.8% strikeout percentage in 277 1/3 innings over that stretch.

The 28-year-old didn’t replicate anything near that kind of production this past season. He struggled to a 5.48 ERA in his first nine outings. An impingement in his non-throwing shoulder sent him to the injured list in late May. While he returned within a few weeks, the Brewers had decided not to keep him on the big league staff. They optioned him to Triple-A upon his reinstatement from the IL.

Lauer started nine of 12 appearances at Triple-A Nashville, posting a 5.15 ERA in 43 2/3 innings in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League. He punched out a strong 31.1% of minor league opponents while walking over 11% of batters faced. He didn’t get another MLB look until the final weekend, when the Brewers had already clinched the NL Central and were keeping their top starters in reserve for the playoffs. Lauer was tagged for eight runs on nine hits (including three homers) in four innings against the Cubs in what turned out to be his final start with Milwaukee.

The Kent State product has between four and five years of major league service. MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projected him for a $5.2MM arbitration salary, which no team was prepared to offer. Now that he’s a free agent, Lauer will at least draw minor league interest and may well find a low-cost MLB deal.

He’s only a season removed from looking like a viable #3/4 starter, although this year’s rough production came in tandem with a drop in velocity. His four-seam fastball averaged 90.8 MPH during his major league work, more than two ticks below last summer’s 93.3 MPH average. He lost three MPH on both his cutter and curveball. As the season was winding down, Lauer told Curt Hogg of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel that he’d battled inflammation in his throwing elbow and shoulder in addition to the right shoulder injury, contributing to the Brewers keeping him out of minor league action between June 12 and July 28.

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Milwaukee Brewers Transactions Eric Lauer

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Offseason Outlook: Houston Astros

By Anthony Franco | October 24, 2023 at 7:37pm CDT

The Astros made a seventh straight appearance in the American League Championship Series. It ended on a sour note, as consecutive home losses to their in-state rivals left them a game shy of another pennant. Houston can bring back much the same roster in hope of returning to the Fall Classic in 2024. They may have a new voice leading the clubhouse.

Guaranteed Contracts

  • Yordan Alvarez, DH: $103MM through 2028
  • Cristian Javier, RHP: $59MM through 2027
  • Lance McCullers Jr., RHP: $51MM through 2026
  • José Abreu, 1B: $39MM through 2025
  • Alex Bregman, 3B: $28.5MM through 2024
  • Jose Altuve, 2B: $26MM through 2024
  • Rafael Montero, RHP: $23MM through 2025
  • Ryan Pressly, RHP: $16MM through 2024 (including buyout of ’25 vesting option)
  • Justin Verlander, RHP: $12.033MM through 2024 (deal includes vesting player option for ’25)*
  • Hector Neris, RHP: $8.5MM player option ($1MM buyout)
  • Kendall Graveman, RHP: $8MM through 2024

Option Decisions

  • RHP Hector Neris holds $8.5MM player option with $1MM buyout**

2024 financial commitments (assuming Neris opts out): $154.533MM
Total future commitments (assuming Neris opts out): $366.533MM

* Mets are responsible for $31.3MM of Verlander’s $43.333MM salary for 2024
** Player option is conditional on Neris passing end-of-season physical

Arbitration-Eligible Players

  • Framber Valdez (4.163): $12.1MM
  • Kyle Tucker (4.079): $12.6MM
  • José Urquidy (4.049): $3.5MM
  • Mauricio Dubón (3.162): $3.1MM
  • Luis Garcia (3.083): $2.1MM
  • Bryan Abreu (3.022): $2MM
  • Chas McCormick (3.000): $3.1MM

Non-tender candidates: None

Free Agents

  • Martín Maldonado, Phil Maton, Ryne Stanek, Michael Brantley

The Astros claimed a third consecutive division title on the final day of the regular season. They handled the Twins to move to another ALCS. They fell just shy of the World Series, dropping their fourth home game in the ALCS against their intra-state rivals last night.

Dusty Baker was unwilling to speculate about his future in the immediate aftermath of that loss. Britt Ghiroli and Chandler Rome of the Athletic reported that the veteran skipper has been telling people both within and outside the organization that he anticipated stepping away from managing after this year. Baker won’t technically have to resign — he was on a one-year contract anyhow — but the effect would be the same. If he moves on, Houston will need to kick off a managerial search for the first time in four years.

It’s far too early to identify any kind of favorites for that (potential) opening. Bench coach Joe Espada would presumably get a long look after interviewing for various jobs elsewhere. Houston checked in on the likes of Brad Ausmus, Buck Showalter and Jeff Banister during their surprising 2020 search that ultimately landed on Baker. Much has changed in the last four seasons, of course, and it’s unclear if ownership and second-year GM Dana Brown would prioritize previous managerial experience the same way the organization had in the immediate fallout of the sign-stealing punishment.

While the coaching situation is in a state of uncertainty, the front office can keep the roster mostly intact. None of their core players are headed to free agency. Houston will see middle relievers Phil Maton and Ryne Stanek hit the market. Hector Neris could join them by declining an $8.5MM player option — assuming he passes a postseason physical, as expected — in search of another two-year deal.

Maton and Neris were solid pieces in a typically strong bullpen, which finished sixth in the majors in ERA and led MLB with a 26.3% strikeout rate. Stanek didn’t have a great 2023 campaign, although the hard-throwing righty combined for a 2.41 ERA in 123 innings between 2021-22. Their impending free agencies put some pressure on the front office to replenish the bullpen depth.

That could come by simply re-signing one or two of those pitchers. While each has a shot at a multi-year pact, none figures to land an exorbitant annual salary. If they let all three walk, they could identify a target or two in the lower tiers of free agency. Reacquiring Kendall Graveman at the deadline served as preemptive fortification of the 2024 setup core. The veteran joins Rafael Montero and Bryan Abreu as bridges to Ryan Pressly in the ninth inning.

The bullpen is light on left-handed options. That has been true for multiple seasons, though, with the Astros seemingly never placing much stock in building a relief corps they can leverage with traditional platoons. Given how effective the unit has been, they may again not care much about adding a lefty arm. If they did want to add a southpaw, someone like Andrew Chafin, Scott Alexander or Matt Moore could be available on a one-year deal.

Despite a few injuries, Houston doesn’t need to do a whole lot in the starting rotation. Justin Verlander is under contract for another season, with the Mets paying almost three-quarters of the salary to land Drew Gilbert and Ryan Clifford in the deadline blockbuster. Framber Valdez and Cristian Javier are locked into the second and third spots. Hunter Brown flashed big strikeout potential as a rookie. J.P. France tailed off in the second half but had a good enough rookie showing to compete for a spot at the back end.

This year was a complete loss for Lance McCullers Jr., who never made it past nagging forearm issues. He underwent a season-ending flexor tendon repair in June. The organization will have more clarity about McCullers’ status as the offseason progresses. When announcing the surgery, Dana Brown said the club envisioned the All-Star hurler returning in 2024, although he didn’t specify if McCullers is expected to be ready by Opening Day.

Luis Garcia underwent a Tommy John procedure in May. He’s unlikely to be a factor until the All-Star Break at the earliest. José Urquidy had some injury troubles of his own, missing a couple months with a shoulder strain. The righty didn’t require surgery and finished the season healthy. He had the worst numbers of his career, posting a 5.29 ERA in 63 innings after a sub-4.00 showing in each of his first four campaigns.

Perhaps the Astros are discouraged enough by Urquidy’s performance to put him on the trade market. His projected $3.5MM salary is relatively modest, so they’d find some interest. It may not be compelling enough to subtract a potential back-end arm given the uncertainties regarding Garcia and McCullers. If they deal Urquidy, they could look for a lower-variance veteran free agent in the Kyle Gibson mold to lock in a few innings.

The position player group is mostly established. Martín Maldonado and Michael Brantley are the only free agents. Multiple front office groups and coaching staffs have stuck by Maldonado despite consistently poor offense, pointing to his game-calling ability and work handling the pitching staff. It seems time for the organization to move on, however, as they have a talented younger backstop ready to take a larger role.

Yainer Diaz connected on 23 home runs while hitting .282/.308/.538 in 104 games as a rookie. The 25-year-old had been an excellent offensive player in the minors as well. Prospect evaluators have questioned how effective he’ll be defensively, but he already looks like one of the better bat-first catchers in the majors. Giving him the majority of the reps deepens the lineup.

Korey Lee was sent out in the Graveman deal, leaving the club without much catching depth beyond Diaz. Adding a veteran backup via free agency or small trade seems likely. Maldonado is a solid fit for this kind of role in isolation, although it may be tough for Houston to sell him on a true #2 job after years as their starter. If they want to go in another direction, Yasmani Grandal and Austin Hedges are impending free agents. Jacob Stallings and Christian Bethancourt could be available for a minimal trade return or non-tendered altogether.

Giving Diaz more time behind the plate clears a few at-bats in the designated hitter mix. The Astros have resisted making Yordan Alvarez a full-time DH, continuing to get him some left field reps. With Brantley heading back to free agency, they could bring in a Tommy Pham or Robbie Grossman type to play a rotational role.

Kyle Tucker is locked into right field. Chas McCormick, Jake Meyers and Mauricio Dubón are options in center field. Houston has kicked around the idea of upgrading in center field in the past, potentially moving McCormick to left while using Alvarez more heavily at DH. If they again consider that kind of move, Kevin Kiermaier and Michael A. Taylor are among the free agent options.

The infield is set. José Abreu, Jose Altuve, Jeremy Peña and Alex Bregman are locked in around the dirt. Abreu had a tough start to his three-year free agent deal, as he was one of the game’s worst players in the first two months. The veteran slugger showed signs of life in the second half and had an excellent postseason. While it wasn’t the year that Houston had envisioned, Abreu likely did enough from June onward to solidify his hold on the first base job going into 2024. Dubón and Grae Kessinger are on hand as utility options.

There doesn’t appear to be a ton of short-term payroll room for a marquee free agent pickup. If Neris opts out, Houston still has nearly $155MM in guaranteed commitments for next season. The arbitration class is projected for a combined $38.5MM salary. Aside from arguably Urquidy, everyone in that group is a key part of the roster. That puts them at roughly $193MM before considering outside additions.

That already projects as a franchise-record Opening Day outlay. According to Cot’s Baseball Contracts, Houston has never opened the season with a player payroll higher than $188MM; they entered this year in the $180MM range.

Barring a major spending hike, Houston probably isn’t going to make many headline-grabbing acquisitions. That’s not the worst thing in the world. They’re returning all the main contributors to what was arguably a top five roster. With just modest additions to the bullpen and at catcher, they should project alongside or above the Rangers and Mariners for the lead in the AL West.

The organization has greater longer-term payroll flexibility. Houston has only $75MM on the books for the 2025 season; if Verlander (140 innings) and Pressly (50 appearances) each hit vesting provisions next year, that could tack on another $29.5MM.

That could be important this offseason, as it seems likely the front office will engage key players on extension talks. Altuve is entering the final season of his most recent five-year deal. USA Today’s Bob Nightengale suggested over the weekend that a new contract for the star second baseman was a priority. Agreeing to a four- or five-year pact running from his age-35 season wouldn’t be without risk but would more or less ensure he spends his entire career in Houston.

Bregman is one year from the open market as well. Tucker and Valdez have two more seasons of arbitration eligibility. Shortly after his hiring, Dana Brown went on record about his desire to get long-term deals done with much of the core. Thus far, only Javier has put pen to paper. There’s likely to be more conversations with all those players, although none of the deals would be cheap. Each should command nine figures, with Tucker and Bregman likely to beat Altuve’s $151MM extension that stands as the largest contract in franchise history.

The course of extension talks is probably more notable than any players the Astros will add this winter. There’s not going to be much turnover outside the manager’s office in the coming months. They’ll get another run with this core group. How much of this team remains after 2024 and ’25 is less certain. The front office should try to continue locking in their top players as they prepare for the second half of the decade.

In conjunction with this post, Anthony Franco held an Astros-centric chat. Click here to view the transcript.

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2023-24 Offseason Outlook Houston Astros MLBTR Originals

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Red Sox Have Offered Top Baseball Operations Job To Craig Breslow

By Anthony Franco | October 24, 2023 at 6:15pm CDT

The Red Sox’s search for a new baseball operations leader is accelerating, with one candidate pulling ahead of the pack. Alex Speier of the Boston Globe and Chris Cotillo of MassLive each indicate that Cubs assistant general manager Craig Breslow is the favorite.

Speier reports that the Sox have already offered the position to Breslow, although there’s no indication he has yet accepted. Cotillo suggested this evening that the hiring process was gaining steam and the job could be filled imminently.

Breslow, 43, is a Yale graduate who spent 12 seasons in the majors as a reliever. While he spread that across seven organizations, he’s best known for his time with the Sox. The New Haven native pitched 211 innings across five campaigns with Boston, turning in a 1.81 ERA for the 2013 World Series club.

After concluding his playing career in 2018, Breslow signed on with the Cubs as their director of strategic initiatives for baseball operations. He shed that wordy title when he was named director of pitching one season later. The following year, the Cubs bumped him to AGM in Jed Hoyer’s front office, a title he has held for the last three years.

Boston fired chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom as the season was winding down. They haven’t announced the specific title of the person they’re planning to bring in as head of baseball operations. Since Breslow holds the AGM title, the Red Sox could offer him a bump to general manager — either as the leader of the front office (as seems increasingly likely), or as the second-in-command under a newly minted president of baseball operations.

Cotillo suggests the Sox could still bring in two new front office hires, utilizing the president/GM structure that has become commonplace around the league. They don’t need to make both additions simultaneously. The Tigers, for instance, left the GM role vacant for an entire season to afford incoming president of baseball operations Scott Harris time to choose his top lieutenant.

Even if there’s agreement on a hire in the next few hours, the Red Sox aren’t likely to make a formal announcement tonight. MLB dissuades teams from releasing noteworthy news on the day of postseason games. With two scheduled off days between tonight’s NLCS Game 7 and the first contest of the World Series, it’s possible a hire is finalized tomorrow or Thursday.

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Boston Red Sox Chicago Cubs Craig Breslow

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Five Mets Elect Free Agency

By Anthony Franco | October 24, 2023 at 5:00pm CDT

The Mets announced this afternoon that five players — infielders Jonathan Araúz and Danny Mendick, outfielder Rafael Ortega, catcher Michael Pérez and right-hander Vinny Nittoli — went unclaimed on outright waivers. All five players declared minor league free agency. The Mets had waived that group along with left-hander Anthony Kay, claimed by Oakland, last week.

It’s not surprising to see any of the others go unclaimed. Only Mendick held a spot on the 40-man roster for the entire season. The righty-hitting utilityman had signed a $1MM free agent deal after being non-tendered by the White Sox. He spent the bulk of the season on optional assignment to Triple-A Syracuse, where he had a decent .282/.369/.424 batting line. Mendick didn’t produce much in a limited MLB look, hitting .185/.232/.277 in 35 games.

Ortega has the most MLB experience of the group. The lefty-swinging outfielder has appeared for six teams over a seven-season big league run. He topped 100 games with the Cubs in both 2021 and ’22, operating as their starting center fielder and leadoff man for a time. The 32-year-old played most of this past season in Triple-A, hitting .228/.352/.388. He got into 47 games for New York late in the year, running a .219/.341/.272 line over 136 trips.

Pérez has played in nine games for the Mets over the last two seasons. The depth catcher owns a .179/.248/.306 line in 599 career plate appearances between the Rays, Pirates and Mets. Araúz has played parts of four seasons between the Red Sox, Orioles and Mets. The switch-hitting infielder owns a .184/.253/.308 slash in 95 games, including a .136/.203/.288 showing this past season.

Nittoli made three MLB appearances after coming over from the Cubs in a minor trade. He turns 33 next month and has six big league outings between three teams. The Xavier product posted a 4.64 ERA over 42 2/3 innings in Triple-A this year.

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New York Mets Transactions Danny Mendick Jonathan Arauz Michael Perez Rafael Ortega Vinny Nittoli

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