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Diamondbacks Extend Torey Lovullo Through 2024

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According to The Arizona Republic’s Nick Piecoro, the Diamondbacks and manager Torey Lovullo have agreed to a one-year contract extension, leaving Lovullo poised to return for an eighth season as Arizona’s manager in 2024. As Piecoro notes, this marks the third consecutive one-year deal for Lovullo. The vote of confidence in Lovullo comes after a hot start to the 2023 campaign where the Diamondbacks have surpassed preseason expectations, posting a 35-24 record that leaves them tied with the Dodgers for first place in the NL West.

Lovullo’s managerial career began with the Diamondbacks in 2017, when the club made the playoffs with a solid 93-69 record that earned him the NL Manager of the Year award. Over the years since then, Arizona has seen the veteran core of that club, which included Paul Goldschmidt, Zack Greinke, Patrick Corbin, and AJ Pollock, depart through trades and free agency. While Lovullo managed to lead the team through the 2018 and 2019 seasons without falling below .500, the club finished the shortened 2020 season with a 25-35 record that left them in last place in the NL West.

Arizona’s struggles would grow even more pronounced in 2021, as injuries and under-performance plagued virtually every player on the team en route to a brutal 110 loss season. GM Mike Hazen’s front office stood by Lovullo through that brutal season, however, and awarded him a contract extension in September of 2021. That decision began to pay off in 2022 as the club slowly began to improve, playing to a record near .500 (34-36) after the All Star break. That improvement was brought about in part by the emergence of young players like Corbin Carroll and Jake McCarthy, along with right-hander Zac Gallen establishing himself as one of the best young starters in the game.

Despite the club beginning to lay groundwork for a bright future at the end of last season, few expected Arizona to be as successful as they have been over the first two months of the 2023 season. An offseason swap that saw Daulton Varsho sent to Toronto in exchange for Lourdes Gurriel Jr. and Gabriel Moreno has already paid dividends, Ketel Marte has rebounded from a difficult season in 2022, and strong performances from young players like Carroll, Geraldo Perdomo, and Emmanuel Rivera have combined to produce an offense that ranks top 5 in the majors in runs scored. On the pitching side, Gallen and Merrill Kelly have formed an enviable top of the rotation, the club’s offseason commitment to Andrew Chafin has paid dividends in the bullpen, and young arms like Drey Jameson and Tommy Henry have begun to contribute as well.

Overall, Lovullo has a 446-483 record as manager of the Diamondbacks with just one playoff appearance. Nonetheless, as Arizona’s future appears to have arrived ahead of schedule the club’s front office has made the decision to assure Lovullo of his role in guiding the up-and-coming club back to the playoffs for the first time since his managerial debut in 2017.

Diamondbacks Outright Peter Solomon

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The Diamondbacks have sent right-hander Peter Solomon outright to the Triple-A Reno Aces, per his transactions tracker at MLB.com. That indicates he cleared waivers after being designated for assignment earlier this week.

Solomon, 26, was once an intriguing prospect in the Astros’ system, having been drafted by that club in the fourth round in 2017. However, he required Tommy John surgery in 2019 and then the minor leagues were canceled by the pandemic in 2020, leading to a significant gap in his development. He seemed to get back on track in 2021, posting a 4.70 ERA for Triple-A Sugar Land in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League. He also made his major league debut with a 1.29 ERA in six relief appearances.

In 2022, the Astros kept him in the minors and his results took a step back. His ERA ticked up to 5.20 and his peripherals went in the wrong direction at Triple-A as well. His 26.3% strikeout rate from 2021 dropped to 20.5% and his walk rate went from 9.9% to 10.2%. He was put on waivers in September and was claimed by the Pirates. He made four appearances for their Triple-A club as the season was winding down but was outrighted at season’s end.

He came to the Diamondbacks this winter via the minor league phase of the Rule 5 draft. He was selected to the big league roster in early April but was shelled for a 12.15 ERA in five long relief outings. He got optioned back to Triple-A Reno but has posted a 9.69 ERA for that club. The club needed a roster spot when prospect Kristian Robinson was coming off the restricted list and Solomon was the casualty.

Since Solomon has a previous career outright, he has the right to reject this assignment and elect free agency, though it’s not publicly known if he has chosen to do so.

Looking Ahead To Upcoming Club Options: NL West

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We’re roughly a third of the way through the 2023 season. Players have had a couple months to build something of a performance track record that’ll play a role in their future contracts. With that in mind, MLBTR will take a look over the coming days at players whose contracts contain team or mutual options to gauge the early trajectory for those upcoming decisions.

We’ll go division by division and open things in the National League West:

Arizona Diamondbacks

Chafin lingered in free agency over the winter after opting out of his deal with the Tigers. The seeming lack of market interest was perplexing given the lefty reliever’s consistent effectiveness over the past few seasons. He’s carried that over into his second stint in the desert. Through 20 1/3 innings, Chafin owns a 3.10 ERA. He’s punched out 36% of opposing hitters on a huge 16.2% swinging strike percentage, both of which would be career-high marks. He’s not a prototypical fireballing reliever but he’s demonstrated he’s capable of missing bats and thriving in high-leverage situations for the past few years. The $6.5MM net decision on next year’s option looks more than reasonable if he keeps this up.

  • Zach Davies: $5.5MM mutual option ($300K buyout, rises to $500K with 16+ starts)

Davies has been limited to three starts by a left oblique strain. He has allowed eight runs with a modest 10:8 strikeout-to-walk ratio over 12 2/3 innings. There’s not much to go on yet in terms of 2023 performance but Davies looked like a borderline fifth starter the previous two years. The Diamondbacks have enough young pitching they seem likelier to buy him out unless the soft-tossing righty rediscovers his 2019-20 form for the stretch run.

  • Miguel Castro: $5MM option vests with 60+ appearances; would become $6MM player option with 40+ games finished (no buyout)

Castro has already pitched 26 times since signing with Arizona over the winter. He’s on pace to easily surpass the 60-appearance threshold needed to vest next year’s $5MM option if he can avoid the injured list. It could be a closer call as to whether he can turn that guaranteed $5MM salary into a $6MM player option; Castro has finished 12 games thus far, putting him just off the 40-game pace he’d need to do so. (He’s on pace for 36 games finished). Castro has been effective — a 2.22 ERA with roughly average strikeout, walk and swinging strike numbers through 24 1/3 innings — so vesting the player option and retesting the market isn’t out of the question.

Melancon struggled to a 4.66 ERA in 56 innings during his first season in Arizona. He hasn’t pitched this year on account of a Spring Training shoulder strain. Melancon might return in the second half but this is trending towards the team buying him out.

Colorado Rockies

Márquez underwent Tommy John surgery earlier this month. He’ll miss the majority of next season as he rehabs. A healthy Márquez would’ve made this an easy call for the Rockies to exercise but the procedure means they’ll buy him out. It wouldn’t be a surprise if the Rox try to bring him back on a lesser salary or a multi-year deal with an eye towards 2025.

Hand’s peripherals had fallen back between 2021-22 from his All-Star peak. He’s continued to keep runs off the board and seen a notable bounceback in his strikeout rate since a Spring Training deal with Colorado. Hand owns a 3.20 ERA through 19 2/3 frames while striking out 33.7% of batters faced on a decent 11.6% swinging strike percentage. The veteran southpaw has dominated left-handed hitters and is yet to allow a home run this season. If he maintains this form, he’ll be one of the top reliever trade candidates this summer. If Colorado hangs onto him, they could be faced with an interesting decision as to whether to keep him around for an extra $6.5MM next winter.

Los Angeles Dodgers

The Dodgers signed Muncy to a $13.5MM deal last summer even as he was amidst his worst season since landing in L.A. They’ve been rewarded with a massive bounceback showing. Muncy is tied for second in the majors with 17 home runs. He’s only hitting .208 but carrying a strong .340 on-base percentage thanks to an elite 15.8% walk rate. The $10MM price point would be an easy decision for the Dodgers if Muncy keeps up anything approaching this pace.

Los Angeles brought Hudson back last summer on the heels of a season-ending ACL tear. The veteran reliever hasn’t recovered as quickly from that procedure as he’d hoped. Hudson hasn’t pitched yet this season. He told reporters last night he’ll throw a bullpen session this week but is without a timeline for a return to game action (via Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times). It remains to be seen how he’ll look when he takes the mound.

  • Alex Reyes: $3MM team option with escalators ($100K buyout)

The Dodgers took a $1.1MM flier on Reyes after he lost the 2022 season to shoulder surgery. He’s on the 60-day injured list and not expected to be a factor until around the All-Star Break. This one remains to be determined based on his post-rehab form.

  • Blake Treinen (option value between $1-7MM dependent on time spent on IL)

Treinen underwent surgery to repair the rotator cuff and labrum in his throwing shoulder last November. He won’t pitch much, if at all, this season. Treinen’s contract contains an option with a floating value between $1MM and $7MM depending on how much time he spends on the injured list and the issue that puts him on the shelf. Its precise value is yet to be determined, but MLBTR has confirmed it’ll land towards the lower end of that range given Treinen’s surgery.

San Diego Padres

  • Nick Martinez: team has two-year, $32MM option; if declined, Martinez has two-year, $16MM player option

Martinez has taken on a similar swing role as he served during his first year in San Diego. The right-hander started his first four outings and pitched reasonably well. He was nevertheless bumped back into relief thereafter. For the second consecutive season, Martinez has proven a key multi-inning arm out of the bullpen. He’s posted a 1.35 ERA with a quality 20:4 strikeout-to-walk ratio over 20 relief innings, holding opponents to a pitiful .240/.278/.267 batting line.

There’s little question of Martinez’s effectiveness in a relief role, though a $16MM average annual value could be pricy if the organization isn’t planning on giving him another look out of the rotation. Perhaps Martinez’s production over the final four months makes this a clearer decision for San Diego by season’s end. As of now, it looks like a borderline call — not too dissimilar from Martinez’s question of whether to opt out of three years and $18MM last winter. The Padres liked him enough to subsequently re-sign him to a $26MM guarantee with the complex option structure.

  • Michael Wacha: team has two-year, $32MM option; if declined, Wacha has $6.5MM player option (with successive player options for 2025-26)

Wacha lingered in free agency last winter. Clubs seemed reluctant to buy into his solid results for the Red Sox, a reflection of middling strikeout and ground-ball numbers. Since landing in San Diego, he’s basically repeating last year’s script. The run prevention is excellent; he’s allowed a 3.45 ERA through 57 1/3 innings over ten starts. Wacha is again throwing strikes and keeping runs off the board despite roughly average strikeout and swinging strike rates.

Maintaining a mid-3.00s ERA for a second straight season might build confidence in his ability to outperform ERA estimators that suggest he’s more of a solid #4 starter than a mid-rotation arm. That said, Wacha doesn’t look all that different now than he did three months ago, when he signed a four-year guarantee with a $6.5MM average annual value. A jump to the $16MM per-year range could be a tougher sell for San Diego, although there’s little doubt Wacha would opt out of the final three years and $18.5MM on his contract if he keeps pitching like this and the Padres decline their end.

San Francisco Giants

Cobb has pitched well since signing a two-year deal with San Francisco over the 2021-22 offseason. He carries a 3.05 ERA through his first 11 starts this year. Cobb’s 60.6% ground-ball rate is stellar and he’s posted average strikeout and walk numbers (21.3% and 6.7%, respectively). An $8MM net decision would be an easy call for the Giants to exercise if Cobb maintains this pace. He’s dealt with injuries in the past but managed 149 2/3 innings over 28 starts last year and has avoided the IL in 2023.

All stats through play Monday.

Diamondbacks Reinstate Kristian Robinson, Designate Peter Solomon

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The D-Backs announced this afternoon they’ve designated reliever Peter Solomon for assignment. The move clears a spot on the 40-man roster for outfield prospect Kristian Robinson, who has been officially reinstated from the restricted list and optioned to Low-A Visalia.

Robinson has been on the restricted list for the better part of three years. A high-profile amateur signee out of the Bahamas, he quickly became one of the sport’s most promising low minors talents. Robinson appeared among Baseball America’s top 100 prospects entering both the 2020 and ’21 seasons and was regarded as a potential franchise building block.

His career has been in limbo for the past few years for legal reasons. Robinson pled guilty to what was initially a felony assault charge stemming from an April 2020 incident with a law enforcement officer. (Zach Buchanan of the Athletic wrote in 2021 that Robinson said he’d been amidst a mental health crisis at the time.) As part of the plea agreement, Robinson’s charge was to be reduced to a misdemeanor if he successfully completed 18 months of probation without incident. In the interim, having a felony on his record prevented him from renewing a work visa that would allow him to continue to participate in minor league games. Robinson had been permitted to partake in extended Spring Training workouts but could not play in official games.

Nevertheless, he would’ve been eligible for selection in the Rule 5 draft over the 2021-22 offseason. The D-Backs added him to their 40-man roster in a procedural move to keep him out of that process but immediately placed him back on the restricted list, temporarily clearing that spot. Robinson fulfilled his probation requirements this spring; as a result, his conviction was reduced to a misdemeanor and he was granted his work visa at the end of April. That opened a 30-day rehab window before which the Diamondbacks had to decide whether to activate him onto the 40-man roster or make him available to other clubs via DFA.

They’ll go with the former course of action to ensure Robinson remains in the organization. He hasn’t played any minor league games over the past month — Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic reported a few weeks back that he’s been bothered by a minor hamstring injury — but he’s now in position to get back into game action once healthy. Robinson still hasn’t advanced past Low-A and surely won’t be under consideration for a major league look in 2023.

Solomon, 26, landed with Arizona over the offseason in the Triple-A phase of the Rule 5 draft. His MLB experience at the time consisted of six outings for the 2021 Astros. Solomon eventually bounced to the Pirates via waivers before clearing waivers at the end of last year. The D-Backs selected his contract in April and have used him five times in a multi-inning relief capacity.

The righty has been hit hard over his 13 1/3 frames for the Snakes. He’s surrendered 18 runs on 17 hits and 11 walks while striking out six. Solomon has also allowed 15 runs in 13 innings with Triple-A Reno, struggling with home runs in one of the game’s toughest home ballparks for pitchers. He’s likely to land on waivers within the next week.

Injured List Activations: Davies, Whitlock

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Updates on some prominent players returning from the injured list…

  • The Diamondbacks reinstated Zach Davies from the 15-day IL, while also calling up Drey Jameson from Triple-A and optioning right-handers Brandon Pfaadt and Luis Frias.  Davies made just two starts and threw 9 1/3 innings before going on the IL in early April due to a strained left oblique, but he’ll now return to Arizona’s rotation, beginning with tonight’s game against the Red Sox.  Between Davies’ injury and Madison Bumgarner’s release, the D’Backs have turned to several of their younger pitchers to try and stabilize the rotation, but none of Ryne Nelson, Tommy Henry, Pfaadt, or Jameson have done particularly well in starting duty.
  • Garrett Whitlock will be the opposing starter against Davies tonight, as the Red Sox have activated the right-hander from the 15-day IL.  The corresponding move took place yesterday, as Boston optioned left-hander Brennan Bernardino to Triple-A following Friday’s 7-2 win over the D’Backs.  Whitlock has missed a month due to ulnar neuritis, or essentially inflammation of the funny bone near his right elbow.  Whitlock has a 6.19 ERA over three starts and 16 innings this season, and while his results as a starter have been middling over the last two seasons, the Red Sox will continue to give Whitlock looks in the rotation.  Struggling veteran Corey Kluber will be moved to the bullpen to accommodate Whitlock’s return to the starting five.

Diamondbacks Call Up Jake McCarthy, Option Dominic Fletcher

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  • The Diamondbacks optioned outfielder Dominic Fletcher to Triple-A Reno today, and Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic reports that the Snakes are calling Jake McCarthy back up to the majors.  It was exactly a month ago that the D’Backs optioned McCarthy to Triple-A after a very slow start to the season, but McCarthy has started to find himself in the minors, hitting .333/.419/.533 over 105 PA (albeit in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League).  With both McCarthy and Alek Thomas sent to the minors, Fletcher was one of the players the D’Backs called upon to pick up the slack in the outfield, and Fletcher delivered a very solid .308/.349/.474 in his first 85 career PA in the big leagues.  It stands to reason that Fletcher will be back with the Diamondbacks sooner or later, unless McCarthy really gets on track at the plate.

MLB Trade Rumors Podcast: Mets’ Catching Conundrum, Mariners, Diamondbacks

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Episode 8 of the MLB Trade Rumors Podcast is now live on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and wherever you get your podcasts! Make sure you subscribe as well! You can also use the player at this link to listen, if you don’t use Spotify or Apple for podcasts.

This week, host Simon Hampton is joined by Will Sammon of The Athletic to discuss:

  • The Mets’ start to the season (1:44)
  • What they’ll do with Francisco Alvarez and Gary Sanchez once Tomas Nido and Omar Narvaez return from the IL (5:31)
  • Where they could look to improve at the trade deadline (10:18)
  • The mood in their clubhouse as they overcome a slow start to the season (14:24)

Then, Simon is joined by Darragh McDonald of MLB Trade Rumors to discuss:

  • What’s going on with the Mariners lineup, and could they move on from Kolten Wong and AJ Pollock? (19:41)
  • Can the Marlins maintain their solid start to the season, and would they consider buying at the deadline? (24:54)
  • What makes the Diamondbacks such a strong team this year? (29:25)

Check out our past episodes!

  • The Cardinals’ U-Turn on Willson Contreras, Mitch Keller’s breakout, and the state of the Padres – listen here
  • Willson Contreras, the Rays’ success, what’s happening with the Astros – listen here
  • White Sox trade candidates, Red Sox options for improvements, managers on the hot seat – listen here

Diamondbacks Release Jandel Gustave

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Right-hander Jandel Gustave has been released by the Diamondbacks, reports Chris Hilburn-Trenkle of Baseball America.

Gustave, 30, was with the Brewers last year but was non-tendered at season’s end and signed a minor league deal with the Diamondbacks in the winter. He made nine appearances with the Triple-A Reno Aces this year with an unfortunate 16.43 ERA before landing on the minor league injured list about a month ago. It’s not publicly known what his injury is, but it’s possible it contributed to his poor results this year.

Prior to this season, he’s been able to produce quality results in the big leagues. He has a 3.56 ERA in his career over 91 innings, dating back to 2016. He spent 2021 and 2022 with the Brewers, tossing 46 1/3 innings over 41 appearances with a 3.69 ERA. He struck out 20.1% of batters faced while walking 8% and got grounders at a 48.2% clip.

Gustave will now be free to sign with any club, though his unknown injury situation will undoubtedly be a factor in how much interest he draws on the open market. If he’s healthy, he should intrigue clubs based on his track record of effective big league work. Should he eventually find his way back onto a major league roster, he still has an option year remaining and a service time count of 4.027.

Diamondbacks Select Austin Adams, Place Anthony Misiewicz On 15-Day IL, Carson Kelly On 60-Day IL

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Prior to today’s 4-3 win over the Pirates, the Diamondbacks selected the contract of right-hander Austin Adams from Triple-A Reno.  In corresponding moves, Arizona placed southpaw Anthony Misiewicz on the 15-day injured list due to a strained right calf, and moved catcher Carson Kelly to the 60-day IL.

Adams tossed two-thirds of an inning and earned a hold in today’s game, marking his first action of the 2023 campaign and making it seven straight MLB seasons with at least one appearance.  Most of Adams’ Major League resume has been pretty sporadic, as he only threw 2 1/3 innings with the Padres in 2022 due to a forearm strain and then flexor tendon surgery.  San Diego outrighted Adams off their roster at the end of the season and he chose to become a free agent, basically acting as an early non-tender.

Between injuries and a lack of control, Adams has yet to live up to his potential as he enters his age-32 season.  That said, the idea of Adams working with heralded pitching coach Brent Strom is intriguing, as Adams has a whopping 34.2% strikeout rate over his 97 career innings.  Even his 3.90 ERA is pretty respectable considering that Adams has issued free passes to the tune of a 15.5% walk rate.  Over 12 2/3 innings with Reno, the results have been encouraging, as Adams posted a 2.84 ERA over 12 2/3 innings while striking out 37% of batters and at least slightly decreasing his walks (11.1BB%).

The D’Backs acquired Misiewicz in a trade with the Cardinals at the start of the season, and he has since been shuttled back and forth a couple of times between Triple-A and the big leagues.  His latest stint in the majors will unfortunately be extended in painful fashion, as the left-hander strained his calf while covering first base during Friday’s game.  Misiewicz had a 2.70 ERA over 6 2/3 innings with Arizona this season, but that number rose to 5.63 after he was charged with three earned runs over 1 1/3 IP in Friday’s 13-3 loss to Pittsburgh.

Kelly has yet to play this season after his right forearm was fractured by a pitch late in Spring Training.  A move to the 60-day IL seemed inevitable, since between recovery time, ramp-up time, and a minor league rehab assignment, it doesn’t like Kelly will be back any time before July.

D-Backs’ Offseason Trade Pickup Off To Excellent Start

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In an offseason light on impact trade activity, the Diamondbacks and Blue Jays pulled off one of the biggest swaps. Arizona’s left-handed hitting outfield surplus and Toronto’s catching depth materialized in the deal that sent Gold Glove caliber outfielder Daulton Varsho to Toronto for rookie backstop Gabriel Moreno. That duo were the main players involved, but Arizona also added right-handed balance to the lineup with the inclusion of veteran left fielder Lourdes Gurriel Jr.

Gurriel has a longer MLB track record than either of Varsho or Moreno but was by far the tertiary player in terms of trade value. He’d been a good but not elite hitter throughout his time with the Jays. In 2022, the Cuban-born outfielder put up a .291/.343/.400 batting line with five home runs over 493 plate appearances. That offensive output checked in 14 percentage points above league average by measure of wRC+. Paired with average defensive marks in a corner outfield spot, Gurriel has been worth between one and two wins above replacement in every season of his career (although he would’ve been on a better pace in 2020 if that schedule hadn’t been truncated).

There was no question Gurriel was a viable major league player. He’d been a near average regular for the entirety of his career. Due roughly $5.4MM in his final season before free agency — a clause in the contract he signed with Toronto after defecting from Cuba allows him to reach the open market next winter even though he’ll be a little shy of six years of MLB service — he had trade value but not an overwhelming amount.

Arizona anticipated an immediate downgrade in their outfield from Varsho to Gurriel, a tradeoff they were willing to make to install Moreno behind the plate for the next six seasons. While that could still play out, Gurriel has somewhat surprisingly been the far more productive of the two outfielders through the first couple months of the year. Varsho has started his Toronto tenure with a .217/.294/.382 showing through 42 contests. Over his first 39 games in the desert, Gurriel is off to a career-best .310/.373/.552 pace. His seven homers in 161 plate appearances already tops last year’s mark and puts him on pace to beat his career-best 21 longballs from two years ago.

As MLBTR’s Mark Polishuk explored before this season, injuries could certainly have played a role in Gurriel’s up-and-down results from 2022. He’d bookended a very strong run between June and July with dismal numbers in May and August. A hamstring strain cut his season short in early September and, likely of greater import on his production, he underwent surgery on the hamate bone in his left hand following the season. Hand and wrist injuries can sap a hitter’s strength; if Gurriel were playing through that issue for a while, it’d be understandable why his power production was at a career-worst level.

Better health is a plausible explanation for some of Gurriel’s improved production but doesn’t account for all of it. He’s also working with a more dialed-in plate approach than he has in years past. Through play Wednesday, he’s sitting on a personal-low 14.9% strikeout rate and drawing walks at a career-best 8.1% clip.

While Gurriel has always had good bat-t0-ball skills, he has taken things to a new level in the early going by being more selective. He has offered at 45.8% of the pitches he’s seen, the lowest rate of his career by three percentage points. Gurriel is translating that approach into consistent contact. He has gotten the bat on the ball on an excellent 85.8% of his swings, almost six points better than last year’s personal-high mark. Pitchers have been unable to beat him in the zone, with Gurriel making contact nearly 92% of the time he goes after a would-be strike. He’s putting the ball in play more consistently without sacrificing any of his contact authority.

That’s an ideal combination for a hitter. Gurriel is 29th among 171 qualified batters in on-base percentage and 10th in slugging. That plays even without elite defense in the outfield. It’s among the reasons Arizona sits at 25-19 with a +16 run differential and looks like a legitimate contender for a Wild Card spot in an uncertain National League playoff picture.

A career showing couldn’t be timed better for Gurriel personally. He’s headed to the open market for the first time since he was a 23-year-old amateur signee. He’ll do so in advance of his age-30 season and as part of a free agent class that looks very thin on position player talent. Among potential impending free agents with 100+ plate appearances, only Matt Chapman, Kevin Kiermaier and Max Muncy (who’s controllable for 2024 via $10MM club option) have a higher wRC+ than Gurriel’s 148.

Gurriel isn’t going to be the #3 free agent position player in the class but he has a chance to hit his way into a solid multi-year deal. Mitch Haniger and Michael Conforto topped $35MM on contracts with opt-out possibilities as bat-first corner outfielders. Both players had durability concerns that aren’t there with Gurriel. The five years and $75MM secured by Andrew Benintendi feels lofty given Benintendi’s defensive advantage and youth (he signed going into his age-28 season), but Gurriel looks like the superior hitter.

At the very least, Arizona’s new acquisition has a chance to position himself as an interesting mid-tier free agent. It remains to be seen if he can keep up his present pace over six months but he looks healthier than he had last season and is making excellent swing decisions. It’s a better start than the D-Backs could’ve expected and a key development in the club’s strong start to the year.

Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.

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