Esteury Ruiz Undergoes Arthroscopic Knee Surgery
A’s speedster Esteury Ruiz underwent arthroscopic surgery to fix the patellar tendon in his right knee this afternoon. The team announced that Ruiz “will complete post-surgical rehabilitation in the offseason to prepare for 2025 Spring Training,” suggesting this shouldn’t impact his availability next season.
This was essentially a lost season for the 25-year-old outfielder. The A’s demoted Ruiz to Triple-A a few days into the season. While they recalled him a couple weeks later, he worked mostly in a bench role before suffering a left wrist injury that sent him to the injured list. Ruiz never made it back, as he battled renewed soreness in the wrist when he tried to ramp up on a rehab stint. The timing of the knee injury is unclear.
Ruiz was limited to 29 MLB contests — all of which came before the end of May. He hit .200 with 20 strikeouts in 65 plate appearances. It certainly wasn’t the step forward which the A’s had envisioned after Ruiz paced the American League with 67 stolen bases in 2023. That came with a middling .254/.309/.345 batting line and poor defensive grades in center field. Ruiz has yet to demonstrate he’s an especially effective all-around player, even if his speed makes him an elite baserunner.
The A’s built their return in the three-team Sean Murphy trade around Ruiz. Oakland looped in the Brewers as part of the deal, indicating they valued Ruiz more highly at the time than they did catcher William Contreras (who went from Atlanta to Milwaukee). Even with Shea Langeliers in the fold, that was an odd decision, since the A’s could have flipped Contreras elsewhere. It looks even worse in hindsight, as Contreras has developed into one of the game’s top catchers.
JJ Bleday has stepped up as the A’s primary center fielder. There should still be time for Ruiz to play his way back into center field work while pushing Bleday into a corner opposite Lawrence Butler. He’ll need to take steps forward on both sides of the ball to avoid falling into fourth or fifth outfielder territory.
Eugenio Suarez’s Dramatic Resurgence
Three months ago, it was in doubt whether Eugenio Suárez would finish the season with the Diamondbacks. Arizona's offseason acquisition of the veteran third baseman from the Mariners seemed like a bust. Suárez started the season horribly. He hit .241/.310/.357 through the end of April and fell into an even worse slump over the next two months. From the start of May through the end of June, Suárez posted a .165/.259/.280 line while striking out more than 30% of the time.
By the middle of June, the D-Backs were contemplating a change. On June 9, USA Today's Bob Nightengale wrote that the D-Backs were willing to consider what would've been a salary dump trade. Nightengale indicated that Suárez's hold on the third base job was tenuous and manager Torey Lovullo said a few days later that the Snakes would give more third base reps to rookie Blaze Alexander. That never really transpired, as Alexander scuffled in the limited playing time he did receive.
At the same time, Suárez began to find his footing. He reached base at a .391 clip between the time of Lovullo's comments and the end of the month. Once the calendar flipped to July, he transformed into an elite power threat.
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Rangers Select Matt Duffy, Promote Dustin Harris
The Rangers made a handful of moves before tonight’s series opener in Oakland. Texas selected veteran infielder Matt Duffy onto the roster and recalled outfielder/infielder Dustin Harris for what’ll be his big league debut. The Rangers also activated reliever Josh Sborz from the 15-day injured list.
Texas placed third baseman Josh Jung on the 10-day IL, optioned lefty reliever Walter Pennington and put utilityman Ezequiel Duran on the paternity list. Tyler Mahle moved from the 15-day to the 60-day IL in a procedural move to open a 40-man roster spot for Duffy. Texas had already shut Mahle down on account of shoulder soreness.
The 33-year-old Duffy gets a brief opportunity to return to the majors. Duffy has been in Triple-A since signing a minor league deal in Spring Training. The veteran infielder hasn’t produced much offensively, turning in a .218/.296/.280 slash across 216 plate appearances in the Pacific Coast League. Texas was out of healthy infielders on the 40-man roster, though, so they’ll give Duffy a shot to play in the big leagues for a ninth season. He’ll back up Marcus Semien, Josh Smith and Jonathan Ornelas for the final six games of the year. Duffy will be a free agent at the start of the offseason and will be in line for another minor league contract somewhere.
Harris, 25, has a bit of third base experience himself. He has started 12 games there with Triple-A Round Rock this season. He’s primarily an outfielder, logging more than 900 frames between left and center field. The left-handed hitter carries a .272/.358/.391 slash with 10 longballs across 564 trips to the plate. That’s minimal power production for the hitter-friendly PCL, but Harris has stolen 35 bases and has strong plate discipline numbers over his minor league career.
Texas added Harris to their 40-man roster over the 2022-23 offseason. They’ve remained intrigued enough by his physical tools to keep him on the roster even while he was on optional assignment in the minors. Baseball America ranked Harris as the #11 prospect in the system on its midseason update. He could make his MLB debut against the organization that drafted him. Harris was an 11th-round pick by the A’s in 2019. Oakland traded him to the Rangers the following summer in a deadline deal for lefty Mike Minor.
Jung’s season comes to a close because of right wrist discomfort. The All-Star third baseman broke his wrist on a hit-by-pitch in the first week of the season. He underwent surgery that sidelined him until the end of July. Jung hasn’t played up to his 2023 level since returning and he’ll finish the year with a .264/.298/.421 slash in 46 games. Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News wrote this week that Jung will visit a specialist on Thursday to determine the source of his ongoing discomfort. He’ll hope for a mostly healthy offseason.
Previewing The 2024-25 MLB Free Agent Class: Shortstop
MLBTR’s positional preview of the upcoming free agent class continues with a look at shortstop. There’s more talent than was available last winter, though it’s still down relative to some of the star-studded classes of the preceding offseasons.
Player ages are for the 2025 season. Stats are through play on September 23. Only players who have appeared in the majors this year are included.
Top of the Class
- Willy Adames (29)
Adames has rebounded from a slightly down 2023 to turn in arguably the best season of his career. He has established a new personal high with 32 longballs while running a .250/.330/.468 slash over 663 plate appearances. Adames has swiped 19 bases — well above his previous career-high of eight — while driving in 110 runs. His strikeout rate has jumped in the second half, but he’s hitting for more power to compensate.
The other side of the ball hasn’t been as consistent. Adames, typically a plus defender, has had some uncharacteristic errors. Statcast still has him as a league average defender this year, but Defensive Runs Saved has been much more bearish (-14 runs). There’ll probably be teams that view this as an anomaly as opposed to a sign of physical decline at age 29. Adames has rare offensive upside for a shortstop and gets effusive praise for his leadership. He’ll decline a qualifying offer, so the Brewers will receive draft compensation in the likely event that he walks. Adames could look for six or seven years on a deal that approaches the $177MM Dansby Swanson guarantee.
Everyday Player
- Ha-Seong Kim (29)
Kim’s deal with the Padres contains a $10MM mutual option. His camp has an easy call to decline its end in search of a multi-year contract. While the South Korea native struggled in his first MLB season, he has been a key part of the San Diego infield over the past three years. Kim plays above-average to plus defense at any spot. He has been such a good defender that the Padres flipped Xander Bogaerts to second base in the second season of Bogaerts’ $280MM free agent deal.
Kim is a plus runner who stole 38 bases a year ago. He’s difficult to strike out and works plenty of walks. He doesn’t have overwhelming power but could put up 10-15 homers annually. A right shoulder injury sustained diving into the first base bag has kept him off the field for the past month. There’s no indication anything is structurally wrong, so the IL stint shouldn’t tank his market despite the inopportune timing. Kim figures to decline a QO and pursue a four-plus year deal that could land in the $75-100MM range.
Utility Options
- Nick Ahmed (35)
Ahmed has seemingly been on a quest to tour the NL West. The longtime Diamondback has played for the Giants, Dodgers and Padres this year. He’s on San Diego’s roster as a bench player going into the postseason. Ahmed hasn’t provided any kind of offense — he’s hitting .232/.271/.300 across 221 plate appearances — but he remains a sure-handed defender. Aside from 11 innings at second base in 2014, Ahmed has played exclusively shortstop in the big leagues. There’s little doubt he could handle second or third base if needed, but he’s an all-glove option.
- Paul DeJong (31)
DeJong has logged upwards of 700 innings at shortstop while getting his first MLB work at third base. Defensive Runs Saved has soured on his shortstop work, rating him eight runs below average, though Statcast thinks he’s closer to par. The latter aligns with DeJong’s generally solid defensive track record. Offensively, DeJong strikes out a ton and doesn’t get on base consistently. He’s hitting .230 with a .277 on-base percentage this year and has a .269 OBP in more than 1500 plate appearances since the start of 2021. That won’t cut it as an everyday player, but he’s just one home run shy of the third 25-homer season of his career. The righty power and ability to defend throughout the infield play well in a utility role.
- Kyle Farmer (34)
Farmer is a righty-hitting utilityman who has provided roughly league average offense in four straight seasons. This year’s .229/.308/.378 slash with five homers is a little below his typical standard, though that’s weighed down heavily by a terrible start. Farmer has a strong .286/.346/.473 career slash against left-handed pitching compared to a .236/.296/.357 mark without the platoon advantage. He has graded as a solid if unexceptional defender throughout his career, though that could drop off as he enters his age-34 season. Farmer’s deal with Minnesota contains a $6.25MM mutual option or a $250K buyout; the team is likely to decline its end.
- Enrique Hernández (33)
Hernández has made a career off his defensive flexibility, clubhouse reputation and double-digit home run power. The Dodgers have used him most frequently at third base this season, though he’s picked up 59 2/3 innings at shortstop. Hernández isn’t a regular there but can moonlight at shortstop while playing more frequently at second base, third base and in center field. The right-handed hitter has a very poor average (.219) and on-base percentage (.272), but he’s got 11 homers in 373 plate appearances.
- Jose Iglesias (35)
Iglesias spent all of 2023 in Triple-A. The former All-Star shortstop has had a resurgent return to the majors with the Mets since being called up at the end of May. Iglesias is hitting .337/.381/.459 over 265 plate appearances while splitting most of his time between second and third base. That huge offensive output is buoyed by a .380 average on balls in play that he’s unlikely to maintain over a larger sample. That said, he remains a gifted pure contact hitter. He’s still a strong defender — he’d have gotten more opportunity at shortstop if not for Francisco Lindor — and has been a spark plug for the Mets’ clubhouse as part of their second half playoff push. He has certainly earned himself a major league deal during this trip to free agency.
- Kevin Newman (31)
This has been a quietly solid year for Newman. The former Pittsburgh first-rounder signed a minor league deal with the Diamondbacks over the winter. An early-season injury to Geraldo Perdomo opened the door for Newman in April. He’s held the roster spot all year while hitting .279/.313/.376 through 310 plate appearances. Newman is backing up Perdomo and Ketel Marte in the middle infield, logging more than 700 combined innings off Torey Lovullo’s bench. He has strong defensive marks at both spots and offense that isn’t far below league average. Newman isn’t going to provide any kind of power, but he makes enough contact to hit for a respectable average. He has probably earned himself a big league deal worth a couple million dollars.
- Amed Rosario (29)
Rosario has moved from an everyday shortstop role into a utility capacity. He was hitting .307/.331/.417 in 76 games with the Rays through the trade deadline. Tampa Bay flipped him to the Dodgers and things have gone downhill. Los Angeles surprisingly moved on from Rosario after just five games. He landed with the Reds on a waiver claim. In 21 games with Cincinnati, Rosario is hitting .161 with 23 strikeouts and just one walk over 58 plate appearances. His season batting line — .281/.307/.381 with three homers across 345 PAs — is now league average. Rosario graded as one of the worst defensive shortstops in the majors when he was playing there regularly and the market should view him as a utility type who handles left-handed pitching well.
Depth Players
- Tim Anderson (32)
The Marlins took a $5MM rebound flier on Anderson last offseason. It didn’t work. The two-time All-Star hit .214/.237/.226 over 65 games. Miami released him in July. Anderson has hit .235/.271/.274 since the start of last season. He’ll be looking at minor league offers.
- Brandon Crawford (38)
Crawford signed with the Cardinals after the Giants moved on. St. Louis only got him into 28 games behind Rookie of the Year candidate Masyn Winn. Crawford hit .169/.263/.282 over 80 plate appearances and was released in August. He’d need to accept a minor league contract if he wants to continue playing. If this is it, the four-time Gold Glover and two-time World Series champ had an excellent career.
- Aledmys Díaz (34)
Díaz spent most of the season on the injured list due to a calf strain. He appeared in 14 games between the A’s and Astros, hitting .091 over 34 plate appearances. Díaz slumped to a .229/.280/.337 slash over a much larger sample with Oakland last year.
Club Options
- Miguel Rojas (36)
The Dodgers hold a $5MM option on Rojas that comes with a $1MM buyout. The $4MM net call is a drop in the bucket for the Dodgers. Rojas is a sure-handed defender and respected clubhouse presence who has hit .287/.337/.416 in 101 games. He has played well enough to earn L.A.’s starting shortstop job going into October. Even as he enters his age-36 season, this is an easy call for the Dodgers to pick up.
Previous installments: catcher, first base, second base, third base
Charlie Blackmon To Retire At Season’s End
Charlie Blackmon is calling it a career. The four-time All-Star announced this evening (on X) that he is retiring at the end of the season.
“As a kid you play the game because you love it, like nothing else matters,” Blackmon wrote. “I still play the game that way, but I don’t feel like a kid anymore. My perspective has changed. I have been blessed to call the city of Denver and The Colorado Rockies my baseball home for the entirety of my career. I am grateful for the support of this organization, my teammates, and most of all Rockies fans. It is with a thankful heart and a career’s worth of memories that I choose a new path.” Blackmon went on to thank his family as part of a longer statement.
Blackmon spent parts of 14 seasons in the majors and played 17 years professionally. That entire run came with the Rockies. Colorado drafted the lefty-hitting outfielder out of Georgia Tech in the second round in 2008. Blackmon reached the big leagues three years later and broke out among the best outfielders in the National League in the middle of the decade.
Colorado traded Dexter Fowler to Houston over the 2013-14 offseason. That paved the way for Blackmon, who’d been a part-time player over the previous couple years, to take over in center field. Then-manager Walt Weiss penciled him into the Opening Day lineup in ’14. That kicked off a stretch of 11 straight years (including this season) in which Blackmon was part of Colorado’s season-opening lineup.
Blackmon ran with the opportunity, hitting .288 with 27 doubles and 19 home runs to earn his first All-Star nod. He had similar numbers the following year before really emerging as an offensive force in 2016. Blackmon hit .324/.381/.552 with 29 longballs to earn his first of consecutive Silver Slugger awards. He returned to the All-Star Game amidst a career year the following season.
During his age-30 campaign, Blackmon raked at a .331/.399/.601 clip while leading the majors with 725 plate appearances. He drilled 37 home runs, 35 doubles and an MLB-best 14 triples. Blackmon won the NL batting title while leading the majors with 213 hits and 137 runs scored. That’s incredible production even at Coors Field and deservedly earned him his second straight Silver Slugger award. Blackmon finished fifth in NL MVP balloting and helped the Rox to their first playoff berth in eight years.
Colorado was bounced by the Diamondbacks in the NL Wild Card game. They’d return to the postseason the following year, with Blackmon again playing a central role. He hit .291/.358/.502 with 29 homers and an NL-leading 119 runs. The Rox knocked off the Cubs in the Wild Card contest that time around, though they were swept by the Brewers in the Division Series (in which Blackmon went 1-12).
Early in that 2018 season, Blackmon and the Rockies agreed to a $94MM extension. The deal paid him $21MM annually in 2019-21 and came with player options covering the 2022 and ’23 campaigns. That locked Blackmon up through his 30s and more or less ensured he’d spend his entire career in Denver.
Blackmon had one more excellent season, connecting on 32 homers while hitting .314 to earn another All-Star nod. Yet the team dropped to 71-91 in 2019. They went 26-34 during the shortened schedule while Nolan Arenado’s relationship with the front office deteriorated. Colorado traded Arenado the following winter and have essentially been mired in a rebuild ever since — even though the front office has been reluctant to acknowledge it as such.
That has coincided with Blackmon’s decline as he’s gotten into his mid-30s. He continued to hit for solid averages until this season and remained one of the tougher players in MLB to strike out. Blackmon hasn’t hit for the same kind of power he did during his 2016-19 peak, though, and he had to move off center field at the end of the 2018 season. Blackmon has spent more time at designated hitter than in right field for the past three years.
Despite the drop in production, Blackmon’s status within the organization hasn’t wavered. The Rockies re-signed him last September on a $13MM deal for what’ll be his final season. Blackmon has unlocked another $1.5MM in incentives and could secure $500K more if he logs 25 plate appearances over the last week.
The 38-year-old announced his retirement with a career .292/.352/.479 slash to his name. He has played in more than 1600 games and tallied over 6800 plate appearances. Blackmon is three hits shy of 1800 and has 991 runs scored, 797 driven in, and 226 home runs. Both Baseball Reference and FanGraphs credited him with roughly 20 wins above replacement. It’s fair to wonder if that’s artificially driven down somewhat by his home park, as Blackmon never graded well by public defensive metrics with so much ground to cover in MLB’s largest outfield.
Blackmon has six more games to add to those totals. Whatever the precise numbers, he’ll walk away as one of the best players in franchise history. He’s second behind Hall of Famer Todd Helton in hits, runs scored and plate appearances with the Rockies. Blackmon is sixth in Colorado history in home runs and would tie longtime teammate Carlos González for fifth if he connects on one this week. He’s seventh among position players in franchise history by measure of Baseball Reference WAR.
The Rockies finish the season with a pair of home series. They’ll host the Cardinals for three before wrapping things with a weekend set against the Dodgers. That’ll afford the Colorado fanbase an opportunity for a proper farewell. MLBTR congratulates Blackmon on an excellent run and wishes him the best in retirement.
Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.
Diamondbacks Outright Luis Guillorme
The Diamondbacks sent infielder Luis Guillorme outright to Triple-A Reno, according to the MLB.com transaction log. Arizona designated the defensive specialist for assignment last week when Lourdes Gurriel Jr. returned from the injured list.
Arizona signed Guillorme to a big league deal a month ago. He appeared in 18 games with the Diamondbacks and logged 47 trips to the plate. Guillorme drew 11 walks while only striking out eight times, but he hit .162 with two extra-base hits (both doubles). The Snakes were his third team of the season, as Guillorme made nine appearances with the Braves and suited up 50 times for the Angels. He’s hitting .205/.301/.273 over 187 trips to the plate.
The Venezuela native had played parts of six seasons with the Mets before this year. Guillorme provided versatility and solid defense off the bench but never hit enough to be a regular. He ran a .261/.344/.333 slash in a little more than 800 plate appearances before being non-tendered last winter.
Guillorme has the ability to decline an outright assignment in favor of free agency. It seems likelier he’ll stick around as non-roster depth in case Arizona deals with injuries in the infield during the postseason. Reno will play for the Pacific Coast League championship this week, so Guillorme could elect to report and log a few games while awaiting the big league team’s hopeful playoff run. He’ll be eligible for minor league free agency at the start of the offseason if he accepts the outright assignment.
Previewing The 2024-25 Free Agent Class: Third Base
MLBTR’s positional look at the upcoming free agent class continues with the hot corner. Last month, there looked to be a clear top two. The Matt Chapman extension leaves one player well above the rest. Teams that aren’t interested in dropping nine figures on the position may need to turn to the trade or non-tender markets for help.
Player ages are for the 2025 season. Stats are through play on September 22. Only players who have appeared in the majors this year are included.
Top of the Class
- Alex Bregman (31)
Bregman stands head and shoulders above the rest of the third base class. He’s arguably the #2 position player available (albeit way behind Juan Soto). The two-time All-Star has overcome a frigid start to run a .257/.313/.435 slash with 25 homers over 619 plate appearances. That includes a robust .266/.320/.479 line in more than 500 trips since the start of May. Bregman’s walk rate has fallen off sharply, but he’s still an excellent contact hitter with 20-30 homer pop who plays strong defense.
The Astros will make a qualifying offer, which he’ll decline. Houston GM Dana Brown has indicated the team will stay in touch with Bregman’s camp at the Boras Corporation. It’ll be tough to get a deal done. The Astros’ franchise-record contract was the five-year, $151MM extension in 2018 for Jose Altuve. That’s also the amount which the Giants paid (albeit over six years) to extend Chapman a few weeks ago. Bregman is a year younger and a more consistent offensive performer than Chapman is. That feels like the floor, and he’ll probably look for something nearer to or exceeding $200MM over seven-plus years.
Utility Types/Bench Bats
- Paul DeJong (31)
A career-long middle infielder, DeJong had never played third base before this season. He has logged more than 300 innings over 36 starts at the hot corner. Most of that has come since a deadline deal to the Royals in deference to Bobby Witt Jr. Public defensive metrics have rated him well in that tiny sample, little surprise for a player who has been a reliable defensive shortstop throughout his career. DeJong strikes out a ton and doesn’t get on base consistently. He’s hitting .230 with a .277 on-base percentage this year and has a .269 OBP in more than 1500 plate appearances since the start of 2021. That won’t cut it as an everyday player, but he’s just one home run shy of the third 25-homer season of his career. The righty power and ability to defend throughout the infield play well in a utility role.
- Brandon Drury (32)
Drury topped 25 home runs in both 2022 and ’23. He looked like one of the better power-hitting infielders in the game entering this season. This year has been a disaster. He’s hitting .167/.242/.230 with all of four longballs over 92 games. Drury’s hard contact rate has plummeted and his power completely evaporated. He can play any infield spot aside from shortstop but isn’t a great defender. The disappointing walk year might put him in minor league deal territory.
- Kyle Farmer (34)
Farmer is a righty-hitting utilityman who has provided roughly league average offense in four straight seasons. This year’s .229/.308/.378 slash with five homers is a little below his typical standard, though that’s weighed down heavily by a terrible start. Farmer has a strong .286/.346/.473 career slash against left-handed pitching compared to a .236/.296/.357 mark without the platoon advantage. He has graded as a solid if unexceptional defender throughout his career, though that could drop off as he enters his age-34 season. Farmer’s deal with Minnesota contains a $6.25MM mutual option or a $250K buyout; the team is likely to decline its end.
- Enrique Hernández (33)
Hernández has made a career off his defensive flexibility, clubhouse reputation and double-digit home run power. The Dodgers have used him most frequently at third base this season. Hernández entered the season with a little more than 250 MLB innings at the position. He has played 529 frames over 60 starts there in 2024. The right-handed hitter has a very poor average (.219) and on-base percentage (.272), but he’s got 11 homers in 373 plate appearances.
- Jose Iglesias (35)
Iglesias spent all of 2023 in Triple-A. The former All-Star shortstop has had a resurgent return to the majors with the Mets since being called up at the end of May. Iglesias is hitting .337/.381/.459 over 265 plate appearances while splitting most of his time between second and third base. That huge offensive output is buoyed by a .380 average on balls in play that he’s unlikely to maintain over a larger sample. That said, he remains one of the more gifted pure contact hitters. He’s still a strong defender — he’d have gotten more opportunity at shortstop if not for Francisco Lindor — and has been a spark plug for the Mets’ clubhouse as part of their second half playoff push. He has certainly earned himself a major league deal during this trip to free agency.
- Amed Rosario (29)
Rosario has moved from an everyday shortstop role into a utility capacity. He was hitting .307/.331/.417 in 76 games with the Rays through the trade deadline. Tampa Bay flipped him to the Dodgers and things have gone downhill. Los Angeles surprisingly moved on from Rosario after just five games. He landed with the Reds on a waiver claim. In 21 games with Cincinnati, Rosario is hitting .161 with 23 strikeouts and just one walk over 58 plate appearances. His season batting line — .281/.307/.381 with three homers across 345 PAs — is now league average. Rosario has exactly 100 innings of third base work in his first season with MLB action at the hot corner. As is the case in the middle infield, he hasn’t graded highly in that minuscule sample.
- Donovan Solano (37)
Late-career Solano just hits. The righty-swinging infielder has been an average or better hitter in six straight seasons. Solano has carried that over in stints between the Giants, Reds, Twins and Padres. He’s sporting a .287/.342/.414 slash with seven homers through 292 plate appearances for San Diego this season. The market doesn’t value Solano’s skillset highly — he had to settle for a minor league deal last offseason — but he’s a nice player to have in a bat-first role off the bench. He has started 28 games and played more than 250 innings at the hot corner for San Diego.
- Gio Urshela (33)
Urshela was a productive everyday player for the Yankees for a few seasons. He didn’t hit for much power with the Angels last year and hasn’t made an offensive impact between the Tigers and Braves this season. He’s hitting .251/.287/.358 in a little more than 400 plate appearances. Urshela has been better with Atlanta than he was in Detroit. He should land a big league deal but is probably better suited for a utility role than everyday third base work as he enters his age-33 season.
Depth Players
- Brian Anderson (32)
A former regular with the Marlins, Anderson only had five plate appearances in three MLB games with Atlanta this year. He hit .237/.326/.365 through 84 contests in Triple-A.
- J.D. Davis (32)
Davis is in Triple-A with the Orioles, his fourth organization of the year. After being cut loose by the Giants in a late spring cost-saving move, he has slumped to a career-worst .218/.293/.338 line between the A’s and Yankees. Davis hasn’t hit at all in the minors either, striking out at a 44.5% clip while batting .147 in 30 games. He was a solid regular for San Francisco just last season and should be able to find a minor league deal somewhere.
- Jace Peterson (35)
Peterson started the season 1-22 with the Diamondbacks. He was released in April and has been a free agent for months. The lefty hitter turned in a .211/.304/.307 slash between the A’s and D-Backs a year ago.
- Miguel Sanó (32)
Sanó was out of baseball in 2023 but returned on a minor league deal with the Angels last winter. He broke camp and appeared in 28 games, hitting .205 with two homers and a 37.9% strikeout rate in 95 plate appearances. The Halos released him around the All-Star Break.
- Nick Senzel (29)
The rebuilding Nationals and White Sox both took shots on Senzel. The former #2 overall draft pick continued to struggle, though, combining for a .195/.283/.331 slash across 267 plate appearances. Senzel is at 450+ games and more than 1600 plate appearances with production below replacement level in his career. He’s firmly in minor league deal territory.
Club Options
- Yoán Moncada (30)
The White Sox are going to buy Moncada out for $5MM. He’ll be a free agent for the first time in his career. The switch-hitting infielder looked like he was making good on the immense prospect hype when he hit .315/.367/.548 and garnered down ballot MVP votes in 2019. His production dipped during the shortened season, rebounded with a strong ’21 campaign, and has fallen off sharply since then. Moncada combined for a .234/.288/.386 slash from 2022-23. He lost most of this season to an adductor strain and has been limited to a bench role with the Sox looking toward the future. Moncada only has 12 appearances on the season.
- Eugenio Suárez (33)
Suárez’s deal contains a $15MM option or a $2MM buyout. Three months ago, it looked like a lock to be bought out. Suárez was striking out at a near-30% clip and hitting .196/.279/.312 through the end of June. Arizona manager Torey Lovullo briefly planned to turn third base over to rookie Blaze Alexander and the D-Backs reportedly considered trading the veteran in what would’ve amounted to a salary dump.
They’re certainly glad they didn’t. Suárez has hit 23 home runs since July 1, tied with Brent Rooker for third in the majors behind Aaron Judge and Shohei Ohtani. The veteran infielder is hitting .319/.362/.637 with an improved 24.9% strikeout rate over his past 301 plate appearances. Since the start of July, Suárez is 10th among qualified hitters in wRC+ and fifth in FanGraphs WAR — trailing only Witt, Judge, Lindor and Ohtani. The D-Backs presumably don’t expect him to continue playing like an MVP, but three months of elite play should make the option a relatively easy call to exercise. Even if the Diamondbacks are concerned about regression and/or want to turn third base over to prospect Jordan Lawlar next season, Suárez’s excellent run should give him surplus trade value on a $15MM salary.
Previous installments: catcher, first base, second base
Cody Bellinger Remains Undecided On Opt-Out
Cody Bellinger has one of the more significant opt-out decisions of the offseason. The Cubs center fielder/first baseman needs to decide whether to bypass the remaining two years and $50MM on the three-year, $80MM contract he signed late last winter. If he foregoes this year’s opt-out, he’d have another out clause during the 2025-26 offseason (when there’ll be $20MM left on the deal).
Last weekend, Bob Nightengale of USA Today wrote that Bellinger was “fully expected” to bypass this winter’s opt-out. That doesn’t seem to be set in stone, however. Patrick Mooney of the Athletic reported this evening that Bellinger has yet to decide whether he’ll test the market.
Bellinger is wrapping up a solid if slightly disappointing year. He’s hitting .268/.328/.432 with 18 home runs over 545 plate appearances. He has essentially maintained the career-best pure contact ability that he showed in 2023. Bellinger has fanned in 15.8% of his trips this year, marginally higher than the 15.6% strikeout rate he managed during his first season on the North Side.
The downturn has been in his power output. Bellinger had eight more home runs and 13 additional extra-base hits a year ago. He has another week to add to this season’s totals but isn’t going to make up that much ground. His slugging percentage is down more than .090 points from last year’s excellent .525 mark. The sustainability of last year’s power production was always the biggest question. Bellinger got to his impressive 2023 output despite a below-average 31.4% hard contact rate and 87.9 MPH average exit velocity. This year’s batted ball metrics are similarly middling and the results have indeed regressed.
There’s nevertheless still a lot to like in the profile. Bellinger has proven to be an above-average contact hitter. He’s another season removed from the dismal 2021-22 run that led the Dodgers to non-tender him before his final arbitration year. It’s safe to say that his 47-homer MVP form isn’t coming back, but Bellinger is a productive hitter. He’s still capable of playing center field, although the Cubs have used him increasingly in right field and at first base.
Bellinger has graded as an average defender in a little more than 400 center field innings. He has posted similar marks in more than 350 innings in right. The Cubs’ best outfield has defensive wunderkind Pete Crow-Armstrong in center. Another team could give Bellinger more consistent reps up the middle for at least a season or two.
The two-time All-Star remains one of the younger possible free agents in the class. Bellinger turned 29 in July. He’s more than a year younger than Harrison Bader, who’d probably be the top center fielder if Bellinger stays in Chicago. He’s nearly a year younger than Anthony Santander and about the same age as Tyler O’Neill. While there’s a decent amount of corner outfield talent — headlined, of course, by Juan Soto — the center field class is not strong. Bellinger declined a qualifying offer last winter and is no longer eligible to receive one, so there’d be no draft pick forfeiture this time around.
That’d work in Bellinger’s favor if he opted out. Between his age and decent all-around production, he’d have a decent argument for a four- or even five-year deal. If he simply wanted to maximize the guarantee, he shouldn’t have an issue beating the $50MM remaining on his current contract. That’d require taking a paycut next season though. Bellinger wouldn’t match next year’s $27.5MM salary on an annual basis over four or five years.
If Bellinger and his camp at the Boras Corporation expect his power to rebound, bypassing the opt-out would be the likely decision. He’d have another chance to retest the market in advance of his age-30 campaign in 12 months. Staying in Chicago may require playing right field for a full season in deference to Crow-Armstrong, though, potentially raising questions among other teams about his long-term viability in center field.
From the Cubs’ perspective, an opt-out would probably be the better outcome. That’d enable them to play Seiya Suzuki more frequently in right field instead of limiting him to designated hitter — where he’d need to play with Bellinger and Ian Happ flanking Crow-Armstrong. Michael Busch’s strong year lessens the need to have Bellinger around as a fallback at first base. The Cubs have questions at catcher, in the bullpen and at the back of the rotation.
How does the MLBTR readership expect things to play out?
Will Cody Bellinger Opt Out This Offseason?
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No. 61% (1,934)
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Yes. 39% (1,252)
Total votes: 3,186
NL Injury Notes: Glasnow, Hicks, Wicks, Kinley
The Dodgers moved Tyler Glasnow to the 60-day injured list on Wednesday, all but officially ruling him out for the rest of the season. The lanky right-hander spoke with reporters (including Jack Harris and Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times) and essentially confirmed he won’t be back in the playoffs. Glasnow called it “extremely frustrating” to be dealing with an elbow sprain, though he indicated he’s confident he will not require any kind of surgical repair.
Glasnow tossed 134 innings across 22 starts in his first season with the Dodgers. He established new career marks in both categories, though the season-ending elbow injury isn’t going to quiet concerns about his durability. Glasnow remained effective as ever before the injury, turning in a 3.49 ERA with a 32.2% strikeout rate.
A few more Senior Circuit injury notes as noncompetitive teams shut some players down:
- Shoulder inflammation sent Jordan Hicks to the injured list, ending his season. The Giants recalled Austin Warren to take his spot in the bullpen. Shayna Rubin of the San Francisco Chronicle writes that Hicks will go for an MRI tomorrow. The first season of his four-year, $44MM free agent deal was a mixed bag. Hicks moved to the rotation for the first extended stretch of his career. The sinkerballer pitched well early, carrying a 2.70 ERA in 12 appearances through the end of May. He seemed to wear down quickly thereafter, allowing a 6.37 ERA over his next eight starts. The Giants moved him back to the bullpen at the end of July, but he continued to struggle in relief. Hicks allowed nearly five earned runs per nine with six strikeouts and walks apiece over 11 frames out of the ‘pen.
- The Cubs placed left-hander Jordan Wicks on the injured list with a right oblique strain. Trey Wingenter is up from Triple-A Iowa in a corresponding move. Wicks had returned from a stint on the 60-day IL at the start of September. That was also on account of a right oblique strain, while the southpaw also missed time with an early-season forearm problem. It’s a frustrating second season for the former first-round pick. Wicks struggled when healthy enough to take the mound, allowing a 5.48 ERA across 46 innings in 11 appearances (10 starts).
- Rockies closer Tyler Kinley landed on the shelf with elbow inflammation. Colorado recalled Jake Bird to take the open bullpen spot. It’s his second elbow-related IL stint in as many months. Kinley missed the second half of 2022 and most of last season after undergoing elbow surgery. He was healthy for most of this year but hasn’t found anything close to the success he enjoyed before the surgery two years ago. Kinley allowed a 6.19 ERA over 64 innings. He fanned a quarter of batters faced but walked more than 11% of opponents while struggling with the home run ball.
Guardians Outright Carlos Carrasco
Carlos Carrasco is sticking with the Guardians. Cleveland announced this evening that the veteran right-hander accepted an outright assignment to Triple-A Columbus. The Guards had designated Carrasco for assignment on Tuesday when they needed a 40-man roster spot to add Myles Straw as a replacement for injured left fielder Steven Kwan.
Carrasco was on the injured list at the time of his DFA. He last pitched in the majors on August 7. A left hip strain sent him to the 15-day IL. Injured players cannot go on outright waivers, but Carrasco was on a minor league rehab stint at the time of his designation. That the Guards were permitted to outright him suggests he’s back to full strength. Cleveland announced that he’ll start tomorrow for Columbus.
This has been a tough year for the 37-year-old. Carrasco broke camp with the Guardians after returning to the organization on an offseason minor league deal. He’s taken the ball 21 times and is third on the team (behind Tanner Bibee and Ben Lively) with 103 2/3 innings. The results haven’t been great, as he’s allowed 5.64 earned runs per nine. Carrasco’s strikeout rate is a bit south of 20% and he has been far too prone to the home run ball (1.65 HR/9). The longball has been an issue for the past few seasons, the main reason Carrasco has allowed an ERA north of 5.00 in four of the last six years.
Carrasco has more than enough service time to decline a minor league assignment while collecting what remains of his $2MM base salary. He and the Guardians clearly have a strong relationship, so he’ll instead head to Columbus and hang around as depth for Cleveland’s playoff run. Carrasco wouldn’t have been eligible for postseason play elsewhere, meaning he’d have simply sat out the rest of the year had he elected free agency.
While Carrasco has clearly fallen down the organizational depth chart, the Guardians have one of the weaker rotations among playoff teams. Bibee, Gavin Williams and midseason pickup Matthew Boyd (2.52 ERA with a 27.2% strikeout rate in seven starts) project as Stephen Vogt’s top three starters. Deadline acquisition Alex Cobb landed on the IL last week with blister issues. He’d be in that mix if he’s healthy by the start of the playoffs. According to the MLB.com injury tracker, he was scratched from a scheduled simulated game yesterday as the blister lingers.
Lively would probably be the option right now if Vogt needs a fourth starter, but there’s very little depth after that. Carrasco and rookie Joey Cantillo project as the top depth options if any of the Guards’ top four starters were to suffer an injury. Vogt will look to get into his elite bullpen early and often once October rolls around.