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Giants Sign Nick Tropeano

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9:02pm: The Giants have announced the move, Maria Guardado of MLB.com was among those to report.

8:17pm: It’s a minor league deal that features a $1.1MM base salary, and it could end up around $2MM if Tropeano reaches the incentives included, per Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle.

8:03pm: The Giants are signing free-agent right-hander Nick Tropeano, Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com tweets. Details of the contract are unknown as of now.

Tropeano began his career with the Astros in 2014 and then went to the division-rival Angels in a trade before 2015, though he dealt with several injuries in his time with the Halos. As an Angel, Tropeano logged a 4.51 ERA/4.48 SIERA in 195 2/3 innings, most of which came as a starter.

Tropeano, 30, joined the Pirates before last season and held his own as a reliever, recording a 1.15 ERA/3.32 SIERA with his best-ever strikeout and walk percentages (28.8 and 6.1, respectively) in 15 2/3 innings and seven appearances. But the Pirates let Tropeano go on waivers in October to the Mets, who later non-tendered him. He’s not eligible to become a free agent again until after 2022, so whether as a starter or reliever, Tropeano could help the Giants for more than one season if he’s able to carry over his 2020 success going forward.

Brewers To Sign Travis Shaw

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8:02pm: Shaw will make $1.5MM with another potential $1.5MM in incentives if he earns a roster spot, Mark Feinsand of MLB.com relays. There’s a March 15 opt-out date in the pact.

7:14pm: Shaw will get a non-guaranteed deal, per Bradford.

6:48pm: A Shaw signing “is imminent” for the Brewers, Rob Bradford of WEEI.com tweets.

6:19pm: Free-agent corner infielder Travis Shaw and the Brewers are “in serious talks” on a contract, Robert Murray of FanSided tweets. It’s “likely” they’ll reach a deal, per Jon Heyman of MLB Network. Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com reported earlier Tuesday that Shaw could come off the board soon.

There is plenty of familiarity between the Brewers and Shaw, who spent 2017-19 with the team after it acquired him from the Red Sox in December 2016. Shaw was an offensive standout as a Brewer in his first two years, in which he hit .258/.347/.497 with 63 home runs in 1,193 plate appearances, but his numbers have dropped off significantly since then. He batted a horrific .157/.281/.270 with seven homers over 270 PA in his final year with the team, and the Brewers non-tendered him after that.

Shaw joined the Blue Jays on a $4MM guarantee heading into last season, and though he did post better numbers, he still wasn’t a major threat. The 30-year-old slashed .239/.306/.411 with six HRs across 180 PA. If he goes back to Milwaukee, though, Shaw could compete for at-bats at both first and third. The Brewers are slated to start Keston Hiura and Luis Urias at those two positions, while Daniel Vogelbach and Daniel Robertson are on their 40-man roster as potential bench options.

Dodgers, Matt Davidson Agree To Minor League Deal

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6:55pm: First baseman/outfielder Rangel Ravelo is also among the Dodgers’ non-roster invitees to camp, Kyle Glaser of Baseball America tweets. The 28-year-old batted .189/.250/.351 in 84 PA as a Cardinal from 2019-20. Ravelo has hit a much more productive .293/.369/.452 over 1,652 trips to the plate at the Triple-A level.

6:41pm: The Dodgers have reached a minor league agreement with corner infielder Matt Davidson, according to J.P. Hoornstra of the Southern California News Group. The deal includes an invitation to major league spring training.

Davidson, the 35th overall pick of the Diamondbacks in 2009 and a well-regarded prospect in the ensuing years, debuted in the bigs with the club in 2013. The Diamondbacks traded Davidson to the White Sox prior to 2014 for reliever Addison Reed, however. Davidson didn’t make his White Sox debut until 2016, but the now-29-year-old owns a lifetime .223/.292/.433 line with 52 home runs in 1,075 plate appearances. He was a 20-home run hitter in both 2017 and ’18.

Davidson spent last year as a member of the Reds, with whom he struggled to a .163/.264/.395 mark at the plate with three HRs in 47 PA. He also appeared in three games as a pitcher, tossing 3 1/3 innings of two-earned run ball. Davidson threw three scoreless innings while with the White Sox in 2018.

In all likelihood, Davidson won’t help the Dodgers’ pitching staff. But he’ll at least try to earn a backup role as an infielder behind third baseman Justin Turner, whom the Dodgers just agreed to re-sign, and first baseman Max Muncy.

Nationals To Sign T.J. McFarland To Minors Deal

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The Nationals are signing free-agent reliever T.J. McFarland to a minor league contract, Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com tweets.

The 31-year-old McFarland spent last season as a member of the Athletics, with whom he logged a 4.35 ERA/4.56 SIERA in 20 2/3 innings. McFarland didn’t have control problems, as he issued walks to just 5.4 percent of batters, but he struck out a mere 9.8 percent of hitters. That’s not atypical for McFarland, who has combined for a 13.6 percent strikeout rate and a 7.6 percent walk rate in 401 innings divided among the Orioles, Diamondbacks and A’s. He owns a 4.08 ERA/3.83 SIERA since his career started in 2013, and has thrown 50-plus innings in five seasons.

McFarland will now compete for a spot in the Washington bullpen, which lost fellow lefty Sean Doolittle to the Reds in free agency. Before signing McFarland, though, the Nationals added southpaw Brad Hand on a guaranteed contract and LHP Luis Avilan on a minor league pact. It’s worth noting that McFarland has been much better versus lefties (.295 weighted on-base average) than righties (.352).

Braves Win Arbitration Case Against Dansby Swanson

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The Braves have won their arbitration case against shortstop Dansby Swanson, Jon Heyman of MLB Network reports. Swanson will earn $6MM, not the $6.7MM he requested, according to Heyman.

The 2021 campaign will be the penultimate season of arbitration control for Swanson, whom the Braves acquired from the Diamondbacks in a December 2015 blockbuster. Swanson was the first overall pick in the draft during the previous summer, but he never played for the D-backs. Since debuting with Atlanta in 2016, Swanson has put together a .249/.321/.396 line with 50 home runs and 31 stolen bases in 2,038 plate appearances. The 27-year-old has been a mixed bag at short, where he has totaled 18 Defensive Runs Saved and recorded a minus-4.4 Ultimate Zone Rating.

Last season was likely the best yet for Swanson, who batted .274/.345/.464 with 10 homers and five steals in 264 PA. He complemented his above-average offensive performance with 10 DRS and a 0.2 UZR.

Yankees To Sign Robinson Chirinos To Minors Deal

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Feb. 16: The Chirinos deal comes with a $1MM base salary in the big leagues plus another $500K of attainable incentives, tweets MLB Network’s Jon Heyman. He’ll also be provided multiple opt-out dates in the event that he’s not added to the Major League roster.

Feb. 15: The Yankees have reached a minor league agreement with free-agent catcher Robinson Chirinos, according to Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic.

The 36-year-old Chirinos has been a very good offensive catcher since he earned a regular role with the Rangers in 2014, but he hit free agency at an inopportune time this winter after a rough campaign divided between Texas and the Mets. Chirinos only put up a .162/.232/.243 line with one home run and an ISO of .081 82 plate appearances in 82 plate appearances. Those numbers paled in comparison to the .235/.331/.445 mark with 85 HRs that Chirinos managed in 1,953 PA between the Rangers and Astros in the previous six seasons.

Chirinos has never been known as a major defensive asset, but if the Yankees are confident he’ll rebound at the plate, he could push Kyle Higashioka for their backup role behind starter Gary Sanchez. Higashioka is ace Gerrit Cole’s personal catcher, though Chirinos did catch Cole in 2019 when they were members of the Astros.

Latest On Edwin Encarnacion

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Although free-agent designated hitter Edwin Encarnacion is one of baseball’s most prolific sluggers over the past several years, there is no guarantee he will suit up in the majors again. Encarnacion wants to play two more seasons, but as a defensively limited 38-year-old coming off a brutal campaign with the White Sox, it’s possible no team will sign him this year. If there’s no universal DH in 2021, it would further hurt Encarnacion’s cause, as he acknowledged to Hector Gomez of Z Sports 101 in the Dominican Republic.

“The decision that there will be no universal DH in the 2021 season has greatly affected my chances of signing,” Encarnacion said. “I want a team to give me the opportunity to play daily to show that I can still produce.”

Indeed, the lack of a DH in the NL would lead to fewer potential suitors for Encarnacion. Either way, considering how his 2020 went, it would be difficult to imagine any team guaranteeing an everyday role to Encarnacion. He hit a career-worst .157/.250/.377 in 181 plate appearances, though Encarnacion did continue to show off above-average power (10 home runs, .220 ISO). He’s also just two years removed from recording a line of .244/.344/.531 with 34 homers and a .287 ISO in 486 PA between the Mariners and Yankees. That was Encarnacion’s eighth straight season with both 30-plus homers and terrific overall offensive production.

It may be too soon to write Encarnacion off as a result of the struggles he endured over a small sample of work in 2020, though it’s worth pointing out he also had an awful year by Statcast’s standards as well. For instance, Encarnacion posted a .372 expected weighted on-base average in 2019, but that figure plummeted to .268 last year as his exit velocity fell to near the bottom of the league (85.4 mph) and his strikeout rate soared to 29.8 percent.

It may take a spring rebound as a non-roster invitee to earn his way back for a 17th big league season, although injuries in camp could always open a more solid opportunity. Speculatively speaking, the A’s at least represent an on-paper fit for a low-cost roll of the dice after dealing Khris Davis earlier this month.

Brewers Acquire Derek Fisher From Blue Jays

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The Brewers have acquired outfielder Derek Fisher from the Blue Jays for cash and a player to be named later, per Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet.

Milwaukee is the third organization for Fisher, who began as the 37th overall pick of the Astros in 2014. Houston sent him to Toronto five years later in a 2019 trade that delivered right-handers Aaron Sanchez and Joe Biagini to the Astros.

Fisher didn’t have much major league success with either the Astros or Jays, as evidenced by his .194/.286/.376 line with 17 home runs and 10 stolen bases in 458 plate appearances. He does, however, own a much more imposing triple-slash of .289/.379/.520 with 50 homers in 1,053 PA at the Triple-A level. Because Fisher is out of options, though, he’ll have to earn a spot on the Brewers’ 40-man roster this spring or potentially go back to the waiver wire. Christian Yelich, Avisail Garcia, Lorenzo Cain, Daniel Robertson, Tyrone Taylor, Billy McKinney, Corey Ray and Tim Lopes represent the other outfield-capable players on the Brewers’ 40-man.

Indians To Sign Blake Parker

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Free-agent reliever Blake Parker is signing a non-guaranteed deal with the Indians, Jon Heyman of MLB Network reports. Parker could earn around $2.5MM if he hits the incentives on the contract.

Based on the production the 35-year-old right-hander has put up throughout his career, he seems like a solid bet to earn a season-opening spot in Cleveland’s bullpen. Dating back to his 2012 debut, Parker has pitched for six major league teams (Cubs, Yankees, Mariners, Angels, Twins and Phillies), with which he has combined for a 3.52 ERA/3.25 SIERA across 301 2/3 innings. While Parker doesn’t throw especially hard – his fastball has typically clocked in around 92 mph – he has managed above-average strikeout and walk percentages of 27.7 and 7.9, respectively.

Parker only threw 16 innings with the Phillies last year, but he made them count, as he registered an impressive 2.81 ERA/3.39 SIERA. He did issue an alarming amount of walks (13.0 percent), but Parker somewhat offset his control issues with a lofty strikeout percentage (36.2).

Twins To Sign Matt Shoemaker

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The Twins and free-agent right-hander Matt Shoemaker have reached a one-year, $2MM agreement, pending a physical, Jeff Passan of ESPN tweets. The deal includes up to $250K in performance bonuses. Shoemaker is a client of ISE Baseball.

Shoemaker began his career as a member of the Angels, with whom he pitched from 2013-18 and typically provided respectable production as a mid- to back-end type of starter. But Shoemaker had some injury issues then, throwing just 108 2/3 innings in his final two seasons as an Angel, before moving on to the Blue Jays prior to 2019.

Shoemaker was also unable to stay healthy during his two years as a Blue Jay, as a torn ACL limited him to 28 2/3 innings in 2019, while shoulder problems held him to a matching 28 2/3 frames last season. That said, Shoemaker mostly did a decent job in Toronto when he was able to take the mound. The 34-year-old now owns a 3.86 ERA/3.88 SIERA with above-average strikeout and walk percentages of 21.8 and 5.9, respectively, in 602 1/3 major league innings.

Shoemaker will be the second free-agent signing this offseason for the Twins’ rotation, which added J.A. Happ earlier in the winter. Those two are in line to complement Kenta Maeda, Jose Berrios and Michael Pineda at the beginning of the season, though Randy Dobnak could also push for a starting spot. It’s unclear if the Shoemaker addition will affect whether the Twins re-sign Jake Odorizzi, arguably the No. 1 starter left in free agency.

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