Click here to read the transcript of tonight’s live baseball chat
Archives for 2024
NL West Notes: Walker, D’Backs, Winn, Matsui, Amador, Rockies
There hasn’t been “too much” talk between Christian Walker’s representatives and the Diamondbacks about a contract extension, though the first baseman told Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic that he “loves” playing for the team. However, Walker is also interested in the idea of testing free agency next winter after the humble beginnings of his career, as he bounced around to multiple teams and didn’t become a real big league regular until 2019, his third season in Arizona. “To look back, it’s a sense of accomplishment. Like, wow, we’ve created this leverage; it’s a thing now,” Walker said. “We have the ball in our court. It hasn’t always felt that way….I think it’s motivating to keep wanting to head in that direction.”
Walker will be 34 on Opening Day 2025, so hitting the market at something of an advanced age is likely to limit his chances at an overly lengthy contract. He is a first base-only player, yet with the benefit of being baseball’s best defensive first baseman, as the winner of the last two Fielding Bible Awards and Gold Gloves at the position. To go along with his superb glove, Walker has also hit .253/.332/.463 with 115 homers over 2619 plate appearances since the start of the 2019 season, translating to a 112 wRC+. (Over the last two seasons in particular, Walker has 69 homers and a 112 wRC+.)
It will be interesting to see if the D’Backs could work out a way to re-sign Walker, as the team is projected for a club record $143MM payroll heading into 2024, but a decent chunk of money is coming off the books next offseason. This could provide an opening for a reunion between the D’Backs and the underrated first baseman, if an extension isn’t reached before Walker even gets to free agency.
More from around the NL West…
- Keaton Winn’s sore right elbow has “calmed down” after a bout of nerve irritation, the Giants rookie told reporters (including Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle). Winn didn’t need a cortisone shot and has been cleared to start throwing again, so he believes he’ll have plenty of time to ramp up in time for Opening Day. The 26-year-old right-hander made his MLB debut in 2023, and is one of several young starters the Giants are counting on through at least the early part of the season before Alex Cobb and Robbie Ray are slated to return from the injured list.
- Newly-signed Padres reliever Yuki Matsui is day-to-day with back spasms, manager Mike Shildt told reporters from 97.3 The Fan (X link) and other media outlets. The problem doesn’t appear to be too serious, but Shildt said the team is just taking a precautionary measure this early in camp. After an outstanding career in Japan, Matsui made the jump to the majors this winter, signing with the Padres to an interestingly structured five-year deal that will pay the left-hander $28MM in guaranteed money.
- Top Rockies prospect Adael Amador had an injury-shortened 2023 season and has only played 10 games at the Double-A level, so it might still be a while before we see Amador in the Show. However, his development this season will not only hasten his own potential path to the majors, but if Amador plays well, Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post feels it might make the Rox more open to trading Brendan Rodgers to clear room at second base. It wasn’t long ago that Rodgers was also seen as something of a building block in Colorado, though Rodgers played in only 46 games last season due to shoulder surgery and didn’t hit well after returning to action. Since Rodgers is only under team control through the 2025 season, there has been some sense that Amador is already viewed as the long-term replacement, and the Rockies have explored dealing Rodgers in the past. Of course, this all might hinge on how well Rodgers plays in the early part of the 2024 campaign and whether or not he can rebuild his stock either as a trade chip or as part of Colorado’s future plans.
Kodai Senga Diagnosed With Posterior Capsule Strain In Right Shoulder, Will Open Season On IL
TODAY: Senga received a PRP injection in his right shoulder and won’t throw for at least three weeks, the Mets told Anthony DiComo and other reporters. This creates a rough timeline of late April/early May for Senga’s return if he returns from his shutdown period and is then able to ramp up as per usual, though things are still very fluid for a recovery plan. “We’ve got to be careful, but we’ll be flexible, as well,” Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said. “Senga knows his body well. He knows he’s going to be pretty honest, and this is the conversation I’m having with him — making sure he voices his opinion, so we will have to adjust as we get going with his throwing program.”
FEBRUARY 22: The Mets were dealt some difficult injury news on Thursday morning. New York president of baseball operations David Stearns announced that staff ace Kodai Senga was diagnosed with a moderate posterior capsule strain in his throwing shoulder (relayed by Anthony DiComo of MLB.com). Senga is being shut down until his symptoms subside. He’s out indefinitely and will open the year on the injured list.
Senga sat out the team’s workout yesterday after reporting arm fatigue. The Mets sent him for testing yesterday. That evidently revealed the shoulder strain. It subtracts the team’s best starter from the Opening Day rotation mix, although Stearns downplayed the urgency to go outside the organization for additional help (video link via the New York Post).
Senga, 31, signed a five-year, $75MM deal with the Mets last offseason after an 11-year run in Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball. The former Softbank Hawks ace outperformed even some of the more optimistic expectations for his MLB debut, pitching 166 1/3 innings of 2.98 ERA ball with a 29.1% strikeout rate and 11.1% walk rate. Senga made the NL All-Star team, finished second in NL Rookie of the Year voting and even landed seventh on the NL Cy Young ballot.
Following last summer’s trades of Max Scherzer and Justin Verlander, Senga stood as the presumptive favorite to take the ball for the Mets on Opening Day. He’d have been followed, in some order, by Jose Quintana and offseason acquisitions Adrian Houser, Sean Manaea and Luis Severino. Instead, with Senga sidelined, one of those four (Quintana, most likely) will take the ball on Opening Day, while a battle for the fifth spot among in-house options like Tylor Megill, Joey Lucchesi and Jose Butto plays out during spring training. Many Mets fans will surely hope that the Senga injuries spurs further activity on either the trade or free agent front, but that seems quite unlikely.
“I don’t thinks so,” Stearns replied when asked whether Senga’s injury increases the likelihood of adding someone from outside the organization. “We’re always going to be opportunistic and hear what’s out there, but I don’t think it really changes our thought process.”
The free agent market still features several notable names; each of Blake Snell, Jordan Montgomery, Michael Lorenzen and Mike Clevinger remains unsigned. Presumably, the agents for all of those arms will be reaching out to the Mets in the wake of an ominous injury to their top starter.
However, the team’s mindset throughout the offseason has been to avoid long-term investments ahead of what looks like a largely transitional season. (Yoshinobu Yamamoto was the lone exception to that thinking, due to the 25-year-old’s atypical youth relative to other free agents.) That aversion to long-term deals will surely rule out a run at Snell or Montgomery, barring a change of heart from owner Steve Cohen, and the Mets’ luxury-tax status might make them reluctant to spend further on back-of-the-rotation arms like Lorenzen and Clevinger. Any spending for the Mets at this point comes with a 110% tax, so they’d effectively be paying double for any rotation additions.
Tigers Outright TJ Hopkins
TODAY: Hopkins cleared waivers and was outrighted to Triple-A, the Tigers announced.
FEBRUARY 22: The Tigers announced that outfielder TJ Hopkins has been designated for assignment as the corresponding move for infielder Gio Urshela, who was signed to a one-year deal earlier today.
Hopkins, 27, was with the Reds last year but has been bouncing around the league in recent months. He was designated for assignment in December when Cincy signed Austin Wynns, later getting flipped to the Giants in a cash deal. He lasted a couple of months on the Giants’ roster but was designated assignment again in mid-February when that club acquired Otto López. The Tigers claimed him off waivers two days ago but he’s now received his third DFA of the offseason.
He made his major league debut last year but hit just .171/.227/.171 in 25 games. His 94-game showing in Triple-A was much more impressive as he drew walks at a 14% clip and hit 16 home runs, leading to a slash of .308/.411/.514 and a 134 wRC+. He’s mostly played left field but has experience at all three outfield slots.
He’s never really been a highly-touted prospect but it seems last year’s strong Triple-A showing is intriguing enough for several clubs to have acquired him. He still has two option years and could be a nice depth piece somewhere. The Tigers will now have one week to trade him or pass him through waivers. Based on the way his offseason has gone so far, it wouldn’t be a surprise if he landed on another roster. If he were to pass through waivers unclaimed, he would stick with the Tigers as non-roster depth.
Mets Claim Kolton Ingram
The Mets have claimed left-hander Kolton Ingram off waivers from the Tigers. Left-hander David Peterson was moved to New York’s 60-day injured list to create roster space.
Ingram was designated for assignment by Detroit earlier this week, and he’ll now be joining his third organization in under a month. The Angels DFA’ed Ingram when they signed Aaron Hicks at the end of January, and the Tigers moved to claim Ingram off waivers. The southpaw was initially a 37th-round Tigers draft pick back in 2019, but his second stint in the Motor City will last only a few weeks, as he now becomes the latest in a long line of Mets bullpen acquisitions this winter.
After first being cut loose by Detroit in 2020, Ingram caught on with the Angels prior to the 2021 season and posted some very solid numbers during his three seasons in the Los Angeles farm system. The work paid off in the form of Ingram’s MLB debut last season, when he pitched in five big league games over a pair of call-ups during the course of the year. For his first 5 1/3 frames in the Show, Ingram struggled to an 8.44 ERA with five walks and two homers allowed over 30 batters faced.
Control has been an issue throughout Ingram’s minor league career, though his 10.73% walk rate has been somewhat countered by a 30.21% strikeout rate. This ability to miss bats has been developed despite the lack of a big fastball, though Ingram has worked to increase his velocity and also develop a sweeper as a plus pitch. Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press recently profiled Ingram, detailing his steps to continually retool his mechanics and approach in the aftermath of getting released in 2020.
Mets president of baseball operations David Stearns built a reputation for finding hidden-gem relief pitching during his time with the Brewers, and Stearns has been aggressive in a semi-overhaul of the bullpen during his first offseason in change of New York’s front office. Over a dozen relievers or swingmen with past Major League experienced have been acquired on either guaranteed or non-guaranteed deals this winter, as Stearns and the Mets’ pitching development staff will get to judge from a plethora of options this spring.
Peterson’s placement on the 60-day IL was expected, as he underwent hip surgery back in November. The left-hander’s recovery timeline is 6-7 months, so if all goes well, he should be back with the Mets in May or June.
Red Sox Notes: Crawford, Mata, Yoshida
While the Red Sox indicated early in the offseason that addressing the starting rotation would be a priority for the club this winter, it seems they’ll go into the 2024 season having only swapped out Chris Sale for Lucas Giolito, at least barring a late bid for Jordan Montgomery. Should the club stick with its internal options for the rotation mix, Sean McAdam of MassLive relayed comments from manager Alex Cora regarding the state of the rotation yesterday. Per McAdam, Cora suggested that right-handers Lucas Giolito, Brayan Bello, and Nick Pivetta are all locked into the rotation to open the season. Meanwhile, McAdam adds that Cora indicated Kutter Crawford would have a “leg up” over each of Garrett Whitlock, Tanner Houck, and Josh Winckowski in the battle for the final two rotation spots.
That Giolito and Bello are locked into rotation spots entering the season is hardly a surprise, given the pair are the only two hurlers on the club’s staff to make at least 25 starts last year. Likewise, it’s hardly a surprise to hear that Whitlock, Houck, and Winckowski are under consideration for a role at the back of the club’s rotation. Each righty made at least one start for the club last year and the trio of young hurlers all figure to be key pieces of the club’s pitching plans this season, whether in starting roles or in relief.
That being said, it’s something of a surprise that Cora indicated Pivetta has a more firm grasp on a rotation spot than Crawford. The 31-year-old Pivetta was dominant for the Red Sox in a multi-inning relief last year with a 3.05 ERA in 55 2/3 innings of work, while he pitched to a far more pedestrian 4.66 ERA in sixteen starts in 2023. Crawford, by contrast, Made 23 starts for the Red Sox last year and pitched to a 4.20 ERA with an excellent 3.64 FIP after joining the rotation full time in early June. Cora’s characterization of Crawford’s position in the rotation mix also represent a slight departure from comments chief baseball officer Craig Breslow made last month, where he suggested that Giolito, Bello, Pivetta, and Crawford all were set to enter camp as members of the rotation.
More from around Red Sox camp…
- Right-hander Bryan Mata has been shut down due to a pulled hamstring, Alex Cora told reporters (including MassLive’s Chris Cotillo) this morning. A timetable for Mata’s return is not yet clear. The 24-year-old right-hander has not yet made his big league debut but figured to enter Spring Training with a strong chance to earn a job in the club’s bullpen this spring. Mata does not have options remaining, meaning that he must be carried on the club’s active roster or else designated for assignment and exposed to waivers, running the risk that a rival club would claim him. If Mata’s absence proves to be a lengthy one, of course, he could open the season on the 15- or 60-day injured list, thereby delaying the need for Boston to make a decision regarding his future.
- WEEI’s Rob Bradford spoke to outfielder Masataka Yoshida today, and Yoshida revealed that he underwent surgery on his jaw shortly after the 2023 season. According to Yoshida, the issue didn’t “necessarily” impact him from a baseball perspective during the 2023 season, though he noted that the surgery alleviated discomfort that nagged him during everyday use of his jaw. Yoshida appeared in 140 games for Boston during his first MLB season last year, slashing a respectable .289/.338/.445 in the first year of his five-year, $90MM pact with the Red Sox. Yoshida figures to look to improve on his 2023 campaign this season after he slowed down a bit in the second half last year, slashing just .254/.278/.386 over his final 62 games after entering the All Star break with an excellent .316/.382/.492 slash line.
Astros Notes: Verlander, Whitley, McCormick
Astros ace Justin Verlander discussed his ongoing shoulder issues with reporters (including Chandler Rome of The Athletic) today, and his comments shed little light on whether the veteran righty will be able to take the mound on Opening Day next month.
“We still got some time, obviously it’s tight, but things are progressing,” Verlander told reporters, as relayed by Rome. “…We’re not even looking a week out or two weeks out, so it’s kind of hard to forecast anything past that.”
Verlander went on to make clear that he’s feeling no discomfort in his shoulder, adding that “Every day I touch the mound has been progression.” While the veteran ace has yet to face live hitting this spring, Rome adds that manager Joe Espada indicated Verlander could start to face live hitting “at some point” after his next bullpen session, adding that said bullpen would likely “determine” Verlander’s readiness for Opening Day.
Verlander, who celebrated his 41st birthday last week, followed up his AL Cy Young award winning campaign in 2022 with a solid 2023 split between the Mets and Astros. In 27 starts between the two clubs, the right-hander pitched to a strong 3.22 ERA in 162 1/3 innings of work. That being said, his 21.5% strikeout rate last year was the lowest he had posted since 2015, leaving him with a 3.85 FIP that puts him closer to “solid mid-rotation arm” than “surefire ace.” Even if Verlander isn’t the dominant pitcher he was in his late 30s now that he’s entered his 40s, however, the right-hander figures to be a key piece of the Astros rotation alongside Framber Valdez and Cristian Javier. Should Verlander miss time to start the season, that would likely leave Houston to lean more heavily on their back-of-the-rotation arms such as Jose Urquidy and Hunter Brown.
More from out of Houston…
- Espada also provided an update regarding the status of right-hander Forrest Whitley, who Rome relays has been dealing with inflammation in his middle finger. Espada indicated that while that inflammation has now subsided, Whitley will be sat down for the next week on a no-throw program. Once a consensus top-10 prospect in the sport, the Astros’ first-round pick in the 2016 draft has not yet made his big league debut despite being on the 40-man roster since 2020 due to a lengthy injury history and a 50-game suspension for violating the league’s drug policy. Whitley has struggled badly as a started at the Triple-A level, with an 8.04 ERA in 87 1/3 career innings at the level, but figures to work exclusively out of the bullpen going forward and entered camp with a chance to compete for a spot in the club’s bullpen this spring.
- Outfielder Chas McCormick is expected to step into a larger role with Houston in 2024, as MLB.com’s Brian McTaggart notes that both Espada and GM Dana Brown have indicated that McCormick will be an everyday player this season. The 28-year-old slashed an impressive .273/.353/.489 (133 wRC+) last year but appeared in only 115 games while making 457 trips to the plate. The retirement of veteran left fielder Michael Brantley has opened up additional playing time in the club’s outfield mix, however, and it appears that McCormick could be a major beneficiary of that playing time. With Jake Meyers as the club’s likely starting center fielder, that figures to push McCormick to left for the most part, though McTaggart indicates that McCormick could see time in center on days where Yainer Diaz moves from behind the plate to DH, pushing superstar slugger Yordan Alvarez into left field.
Latest On Giants’ Past Negotiations With J.D. Martinez
Reports yesterday indicated that veteran slugger J.D. Martinez had turned down a contract offer from the Giants earlier this offseason, before the club ultimately landed Jorge Soler on a three-year deal. There have been conflicting reports regarding the nature of the sides breaking off negotiations, with the New York Post’s Jon Heyman suggesting that Martinez simply “didn’t want to go” to San Francisco while Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area reported that Martinez made a counteroffer to the Giants that club brass “weren’t comfortable with.”
This morning, USA Today’s Bob Nightengale and MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand shed additional light on the situation, reporting that the Giants’ initial offer to Martinez was a one-year deal worth $14MM. The two reports diverge from there, however, with Nightengale indicating that Martinez rejected the contract in pursuit of a two-year deal while Feinsand reports that Martinez was seeking $20MM and declined San Francisco’s offer despite potentially being open to accepting “a little less” than his preferred salary figure.
Of course, it’s possible there’s elements of truth to both reports. Speculatively speaking, it could be the case that Martinez’s preference would be a two-year deal in the range of $20MM annually, though he may be willing to accept a one-year deal at the higher end of that range or a two-year pact for a slightly lower AAV. That would fall in line would fall roughly in line with MLBTR’s prediction for Martinez’s contract, which sat at two years and $40MM. It remains to be seen whether or not Martinez will actually be able to earn that sum, of course. The offseason’s top offensive free agent behind Shohei Ohtani, outfielder Cody Bellinger, settled for a three-year, $80MM deal earlier this morning. It’s possible that Bellinger’s deal clocking in below expectations is a concerning signal for Martinez, though with him off the board Martinez’s biggest rival on the positional market is third baseman Matt Chapman, who figures to have a different set of suitors than the veteran slugger.
Martinez figures to be an impact bat for the club that eventually lands him, even as he enters his age-36 season. After slashing an excellent .292/.363/.526 across 637 games in a Red Sox uniform from 2018 to 2022 en route to four All Star appearances and a top-four finish in AL MVP voting, Martinez took a one-year deal with the Dodgers last winter and revamped his approach in L.A. to generate more power. The changes worked as intended, as he slashed a fantastic .271/.321/.572 with 33 home runs in just 479 trips to the plate after hitting just 16 homers in 596 plate appearances the previous season. That incredible power came at the expense of a significant jump in strikeouts, as his 31.1% strikeout rate last year marked the first time he was punched out at a clip over 30% in his career.
With the Giants now assuredly out of the running for Martinez’s services after signing Soler, the veteran slugger could still make sense for a handful of clubs. The Angels and Mets have both been connected to the veteran at various points this offseason, though public indications are that neither team prefers to add a full time DH to its mix. A team like the Cubs or Twins that lacks a full-time DH could at least theoretically accommodate Martinez at the position, though each club sports a crowded positional mix and figures to benefit considerably from having the DH spot available to rest players or work in more playing time for youngsters forcing their way into the lineup. If none of the aforementioned teams are interested to committing to Martinez on a high-dollar or multi-year deal, that could leave the veteran slugger forced to lower his asking price. At that point, any of the aforementioned clubs or even a low-budget club with a clear need for offense such as the Guardians could jump into the mix for Martinez’s services.
Angels Release Francisco Mejia From Minor League Deal
The Angels released catcher Francisco Mejia from his minor league deal today, as noted by Sam Blum of The Athletic. Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register adds that, according to manager Ron Washington, the club decided to part ways with Mejia after deciding they want to offer their young catchers additional at-bats and hoped to allow Mejia the opportunity to catch on with another club by releasing him early in Spring Training.
Mejia, 28, was once a consensus top-30 prospect in the game and was a key piece in two major trade deals in recent memory: the deadline swap that shipped relievers Brad Hand and Adam Cimber from San Diego to Cleveland and the more famous blockbuster that saw the Padres acquire Blake Snell from the Rays just months after the club secured the 2020 AL pennant. At the time of his arrival in Tampa, Mejia had made just 362 trips to the plate throughout his four years in the majors, slashing just .225/.282/.386 during that time. That unimpressive slash line didn’t stop the Rays from installing Mejia as their primary catcher, however.
Upon getting playing time behind the plate in Tampa, Mejia took a step forward to become a roughly league average hitter behind the plate, slashing .251/.292/.397 in 576 trips to the plate between the 2021 and ’22 seasons, though that 95 wRC+ combined with generally negative reviews for his glove work behind the plate made him more of an average regular than the potential star his prospect pedigree once suggested. Even that level of production proved unsustainable for Mejia in 2023, however. Mejia split time with Christian Bethancourt behind the plate throughout the first half last year, though he struggled to a .227/.258/.400 slash line in 50 games before his time with the big league Rays came to an abrupt end in late July due to an MCL sprain.
While Mejia managed to return in mid-July, by that point his role on the Rays had been taken over by youngster Rene Pinto, leaving the Rays to outright Mejia off the 40-man roster. He finished out the season at the Triple-A level, hitting a solid .293/.324/.525 in 105 trips to the plate at the level before electing free agency at the start of the offseason. His first trip through free agency brought him to the Angels, where he entered camp as the likely third catcher on the club’s depth chart behind Logan O’Hoppe and Matt Thaiss. Based on Washington’s recent comments, however, it appears the Halos are comfortable with fellow non-roster invitee Chad Wallach as a veteran depth option behind the plate and hope to offer the likes of Caleb Hamilton and Zach Humphreys opportunities during camp.
That’s left Mejia in search of a job for the second time this offseason, though it’s unlikely he’ll remain on the open market for long. Teams are always looking for veteran catching depth on minor league deals given the unique demands of the position, and Mejia’s previous prospect pedigree and past success as a regular with the Rays figure to make him one of the more attractive depth options at the position available in free agency at this stage of the winter.
Phillies Sign Cam Gallagher To Minor League Deal
The Phillies and catcher Cam Gallagher are in agreement on a minor league deal, according to Matt Gelb of The Athletic. The deal includes an invitation to big league Spring Training, and Gelb indicates that Gallagher is already in camp with the team.
The 31-year-old Gallagher has participated in parts of seven big league seasons, the first six of which were spent in the Royals organization. That included a stretch from 2019-21 where Gallagher served as the primary backup to franchise face Salvador Perez. During that time, Gallagher hit .251/.315/.364 across 118 games, good for an 82 wRC+ that, while below average, was fairly in line with expectations for a glove-first back-up catcher. On defense, Gallagher boasted strong framing numbers with an impressive +11 Defensive Runs Saved during his time with the Royals.
Kansas City dealt Gallagher to the Padres just before the 2022 trade deadline, though he did not appear in a big league game before being designated for assignment and claimed off waivers by the Orioles in September. Gallagher was then outrighted off the club’s 40-man roster after the season without having made an appearance in Baltimore, allowing him to test free agency for the first time in his career. That led him to sign a minor league deal with the Guardians last January, with whom he made the Opening Day roster as one of two back-up options to Mike Zunino on the club’s bench.
Gallagher’s time in Cleveland saw him continue to flash defensive excellence behind the plate, with +5 Framing Runs per Statcast and +7 DRS. That quality work with the glove was unfortunately overshadowed by dismal production at the plate, where Gallagher hit just .126/.154/.168 in 149 trips to the plate with the Guardians last year. That production translated to a -17 wRC+, the worst figure among all hitters with at least 100 plate appearances last year. Those brutal numbers at the plate led the Guardians to designate Gallagher for assignment back in November, returning him to free agency.
Now with the Phillies, Gallagher figures to offer the club a quality, glove-first depth option behind the club’s established duo of J.T. Realmuto and Garrett Stubbs. The only other catcher currently on Phildelphia’s 40-man roster, switch-hitting youngster Rafael Marchan, has been sidelined this spring with a back injury according to Gelb. By adding Gallagher, the Phillies protect themselves from further injuries during camp thinning out their depth behind the plate entering the 2024 campaign as they look to return to the playoffs for the third consecutive season.
