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Twins, Luis Arraez Avoid Arbitration

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7:21PM: Arraez will earn $2.125MM this season, Jon Heyman of The New York Post reports (Twitter link).  This is the exact midpoint between each side’s submitted figure.

7:03PM: The Twins and utilityman Luis Arraez have agreed to a one-year contract for the 2022 season, according to The Athletic’s Dan Hayes and Katie Woo (Twitter link).  The two sides will avoid an arbitration hearing, as a deal wasn’t reached between Arraez and the Twins prior to the deadline for filing arb figures.

Terms of the deal aren’t yet known, but Arraez filed for a $2.4MM salary, while the Twins countered with $1.85MM.  (MLBTR’s Matt Swartz projected Arraez for a $2MM salary.)  This is the first of four arbitration-eligible years for the 25-year-old, who gained an extra arb year as a Super Two player.

As per the usual “file or trial” tactic, teams usually don’t agree to one-year contracts with players after the filing deadline, preferring to head to a hearing unless a multi-year extension could be struck.  However, the unusual nature of this year’s baseball calendar (due to the lockout) might have made the Twins more open to just a one-year pact with Arraez, perhaps simply to avoid the extra awkwardness of a hearing over a month into the season.

Since making his big league debut in 2019, Arraez has been an extremely valuable member of the Minnesota roster due to both his production at the plate and his versatility in the field.  While playing mostly as a second baseman, Arraez has bounced around to fill in at third base and left field, plus a handful of appearances as a shortstop and first baseman (much of Arraez’s first base time has come this very week, as he has stepped in for the injured Miguel Sano).

At the plate, Arraez is arguably baseball’s best contact hitter, with only an 8.9% strikeout rate over his first 1036 career plate appearances.  This strikeout rate is less than his 9.1% walk rate, and this extreme contact rate has translated to a very solid .313/.375/.403 career slash line (114 wRC+, 115 OPS+).  Arraez doesn’t offer much power or even hard contact, yet the sheer volume of contact has allowed him to become a productive offensive player.

Gary Sanchez is now the Twins’ only remaining arbitration-eligible player whose case has yet to be settled.  As per MLBTR’s Arbitration Tracker, there are 23 players around baseball who are still headed for in-season arb hearings unless a deal can be worked out before the meeting with the arbiters.

Orioles’ Alexander Wells To Miss 8-12 Weeks Due To UCL Strain

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Alexander Wells was placed on the Orioles’ 10-day injured list on Friday due to elbow inflammation, but the left-hander is now unfortunately set to miss quite a bit more time.  Orioles manager Brandon Hyde told reporters (including Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com) today that Wells had suffered a Grade 1 UCL strain, and will miss the next 8-12 weeks while recovering.  In some positive news, a Grade 1 is the least serious type of strain, and Hyde said that surgery isn’t being considered for now.

Wells will do his rehab work at the Orioles’ Spring Training facility, and look to get himself back on track in his second Major League season.  The Australian made his MLB debut in 2021 and appeared in 11 games for Baltimore, making eight starts and posting a 6.75 ERA.  Never a big strikeout pitcher even in the minors, Wells had only a 13.2% strikeout rate in his rookie year, and he allowed 10 homers over his 42 2/3 innings of work.

For a rebuilding team that is desperate for pitching, Wells represents a viable arm for the O’s, especially since he delivered some solid numbers while working his way up Baltimore’s minor league ladder.  Despite that lack of missed bats (a 19.63% strikeout rate) over 533 2/3 minor league innings, Wells still delivered a 2.85 ERA, starting 97 of 100 games.  While a long-term starting role may not be in the cards, Wells could operate as a spot starter or swingman, or perhaps a bulk pitcher behind an opener.

Giants Activate Alex Cobb From 10-Day Injured List

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May 1: The Giants announced Cobb’s activation to reporters, including Susan Slusser of The San Francisco Chronicle, with Kervin Castro being optioned in a corresponding move.

Apr. 30: The Giants will activate right-hander Alex Cobb from the 10-day injured list prior to Sunday’s game against the Nationals, San Francisco manager Gabe Kapler told reporters (including MLB.com’s Maria I. Guardado).  Cobb is scheduled to make his third start of the season.

Returning Sunday will put Cobb’s IL stint slightly beyond the 10-day minimum, as his placement came in between games of the Giants’ doubleheader with the Mets on April 19.  Cobb started the first game and lasted 4 1/3 innings before being removed after a mound visit from the team trainer.

The Giants have had to deal with several absences in the early going, due to both injuries and a minor COVID-19 outbreak on the roster.  The position player side has been hardest hit, though both Cobb and Anthony DeSclafani (right ankle inflammation) have missed time, and DeSclafani isn’t expected to return for at least a few more weeks.  Fortunately for San Francisco, the rest of the rotation has picked up the slack, with Logan Webb, Carlos Rodon, and Alex Wood all ranging from good to great thus far in 2022.  The Giants have also gotten good results from the opener/bulk pitcher combo of Sam Long and Jakob Junis.

Cobb is in his first season in San Francisco, signing a two-year, $20MM free agent deal with the Giants just prior to the lockout.  Injuries have hampered Cobb over the last three seasons, though he pitched well when healthy last year with the Angels, delivering a 3.76 ERA and some solid secondary numbers over 93 1/3 innings.

Mariners Place Mitch Haniger On 10-Day Injured List

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10:34PM: Haniger suffered a Grade 2 sprain, manager Scott Servais told MLB.com’s George Richards and other reporters.  There isn’t yet a timeline on Haniger’s recovery, as Servais said “we’ll have to wait to see how he responds to treatments and get the swelling down, get range of motion back and see where it takes us.”

3:52PM: Just a day after being reinstated from the COVID-related injured list, Mitch Haniger has been again placed back onto the 10-day IL.  This time, Haniger has been sidelined by a right high ankle sprain.  In the corresponding roster move, outfielder Stuart Fairchild has been called up from Triple-A.

Haniger suffered the injury in his first at-bat last night, rolling his ankle after fouling a pitch.  After hitting a single, Haniger had to be replaced on the basepaths by pinch-runner Abraham Toro.  An MRI was scheduled for today on Haniger’s ankle, but an IL stint seemed likely even if the injury was relatively mild.

If the MRI reveals a more serious injury, Haniger could miss quite a bit of time, which would be a serious setback for both the outfielder and the Mariners as a whole.  Between this ankle sprain and two missed weeks recovering from COVID-19, Haniger has only 36 plate appearances thus far in 2022, so the Mariners have largely been without one of their best hitters.

Another lengthy injury absence also wouldn’t help Haniger’s future market value, as he is slated to hit free agency after the season.  Haniger has been at times mentioned as a possible extension or trade candidate for the M’s, though the possibility of a trade would seemingly diminish if this high ankle sprain keeps him sidelined for most or all of the pre-deadline period.  Haniger is unfortunately no stranger to the IL, having missed over half of the 2019 season due to a ruptured testicle, and then all of the 2020 season due to surgeries related to a torn adductor muscle.

The Mariners have Jesse Winker, Julio Rodriguez, and Jarred Kelenic lined up as the starting outfield, but all three have struggled badly to begin the 2022 season.  Kyle Lewis is still working his way back from knee surgery, and was expected to see mostly DH duty until his knee is fully back up to strength.  Between Lewis’ health and the fact that neither Rodriguez or Kelenic have done much of anything at the MLB level, Haniger’s veteran bat was seen as a big stabilizing force in Seattle’s outfield.

Utilityman Dylan Moore figures to get more playing time with Haniger out, plus the Mariners could use Adam Frazier in left field rather than at second base.  Billy Hamilton and Steven Souza Jr. are two familiar veteran names at Triple-A, but most immediately, Fairchild will now get another look at the big league level.  Fairchild made his Major League debut by playing 12 games with the Diamondbacks in 2021, and the Mariners acquired Fairchild earlier this week after the D’Backs designated Fairchild for assignment.

Minor MLB Transactions: 4/30/22

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Today’s minor moves from around baseball…

  • Alex Dickerson cleared waivers and accepted an outright assignment to the Braves’ Triple-A affiliate.  Dickerson was designated for assignment on Thursday, and as a veteran with more than five years of Major League service time, he had the right to reject an outright assignment to the minors.  Instead, Dickerson has opted to remain in Atlanta’s organization and try to get on track in Gwinnett after a dismal start to the season — the outfielder has only four hits and a .407 OPS over his first 36 plate appearances.  In making the big league roster, Dickerson locked in a $1MM guaranteed salary on the minor league contract he signed with Atlanta in March.

Padres To Start Mike Clevinger On Tuesday

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Mike Clevinger is set to pitch for the first time since the 2020 season, as Padres manager Bob Melvin told reporters (including MLB.com’s AJ Cassavell) that Clevinger is scheduled to start on Tuesday.  Ironically, San Diego is playing the Guardians, Clevinger’s team for the first four-plus years of his Major League career.

Cleveland dealt Clevinger to the Padres in August 2020 as part of a huge nine-player trade, and Clevinger proceeded to post a 2.84 ERA in four starts down the stretch for San Diego.  However, an elbow impingement limited Clevinger to just a single postseason inning, and that elbow problem soon proved to be dire, as Clevinger had to undergo Tommy John surgery in November 2020.  After missing all of last season recovering, Clevinger then had some knee soreness during Spring Training that further delayed his return to the mound.

One of the many success stories out of the Guardians’ pitching development system in recent years, Clevinger had a 2.96 ERA, 28% strikeout rate, and nine percent walk rate over 489 1/3 innings with Cleveland from 2017-20.  His emergence as a front-of-the-rotation arm made him a major get for the Padres, even if the TJ surgery wiped out one of the two full seasons of team control that remained at the time of the trade.

It appears as though Clevinger’s return won’t result in an odd man out for San Diego’s rotation, as Melvin said that MacKenzie Gore and Nick Martinez was still lined up for Wednesday and Thursday.  That would imply the Padres are going to deploy a six-man rotation for the time being, though that plan could soon be shaken up since Blake Snell is also nearing readiness after a groin strain sent him to the IL on April 10.

Since Yu Darvish, Sean Manaea, and Joe Musgrove aren’t going anywhere in the rotation, the Padres could continue to use a six-man rotation once Snell is back, and then either end Gore to the minors or move Martinez into a relief role.  While all of the injury concerns created plenty of uncertainty, this glut of pitching gave San Diego some flexibility with their pitching depth, as evidenced by their trade of Chris Paddack to the Twins and their willingness to discuss Dinelson Lamet in trade talks with other clubs.

Giants Acquire Isan Diaz From Marlins

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The Giants have acquired infielder Isan Diaz from the Marlins in exchange for cash considerations or a player to be named later, The Miami Herald’s Jordan McPherson reports (Twitter link).  The Fish designated Diaz for assignment last week.

This is the third time Diaz has been dealt in his career, though this particular trade is far and away the lowest-profile of the three swaps.  Originally selected by the Diamondbacks in the second round of the 2014 draft, Diaz was part of the five-player deal between the D’Backs and Brewers in January 2016 that brought Jean Segura to Arizona.  In January 2018, Milwaukee then included Diaz as one of the four prospects sent to Miami in the Christian Yelich blockbuster.

Diaz drew some top-100 prospect attention during his time in the minors, so it wasn’t surprising that multiple teams were interested in his services.  However, Diaz wasn’t able to translate his minor league production into success in the majors, as he has hit only .185/.275/.287 over 501 career plate appearances over the 2019-21 seasons (he also opted out of much of the 2020 season due to COVID-19 concerns).  Diaz hasn’t seen any big league action this year, or even much action at all due to injuries — he has thus far appeared in two rehab games at A-ball, and two Triple-A games.

Originally drafted as a shortstop, Diaz was moved off the position but then surpassed by Jazz Chisholm as the Marlins’ second baseman of the future.  Defensive metrics aren’t impressed with Diaz’s work at second base or third base, though as technically a multi-position capable player, he does fit the versatile profile that the Giants often covet.  Diaz also doesn’t turn 26 until next month, so the Giants may feel he might be a late bloomer who could break out in a new environment.  Considering San Francisco’s success at reclamation projects in recent years, it might not be surprising if Diaz should blossom with his new club.

Royals Place Jake Brentz On 10-Day Injured List

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Prior to tonight’s game, the Royals placed left-hander Jake Brentz on the 10-day injured list due to a left flexor strain.  Righty Matt Peacock was called up from Triple-A Omaha to take Brentz’s spot on the active roster.

The injury adds to what has been a thoroughly disastrous start to Brentz’s 2022 season.  The southpaw has allowed multiple runs in four of his eight outings, and he has been charged with a whopping 10 runs over his last 1 1/3 innings.  Brentz’s most recent appearance on Friday saw him pitch to six Yankees batters without recording an out, leaving the game after allowing five runs (four earned).  For the year, Brentz has a ghastly 23.63 ERA in 5 1/3 total frames.

As per MLB.com, Brentz underwent an MRI Friday that didn’t reveal any structural damage.  Royals manager Mike Matheny told reporters that Brentz had been dealing with the sore arm for some time, which would explain Brentz’s lack of success.

Pitching in his second Major League season, Brentz was looking to build on a successful rookie year that saw him post a 3.66 ERA, 49% grounder rate, and 27.3% strikeout rate in 64 innings out of the Kansas City bullpen.  This was despite some middling hard-contact numbers, and a 13.3% walk rate that ranked among the worst in the league.  Brentz was ticketed for a setup role or possibly even some save opportunities heading into the season, but he’ll likely now be put into low-leverage situations once he returns from the IL and re-establishes his effectiveness.

Peacock joins the Royals just six days after being acquired in a trade from the Diamondbacks, who designated the right-hander last week.  Peacock is also in his second MLB season, debuting with a 4.90 ERA over 86 1/3 innings (starting eight of 35 games) in 2021.  This year, Peacock had only a 6.75 ERA in 2 2/3 frames of work out of Arizona’s relief corps.  As a low-strikeout grounder specialist, Peacock represents an interesting contrast to Brentz’s hard-throwing repertoire, and his past starting experience could allow Kansas City to use him in something of a swingman role.

Dodgers Select Carson Fulmer, Place Mitch White On COVID-IL

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The Dodgers have some roster moves prior to tonight’s game, including the selection of Carson Fulmer’s minor league contract.  Los Angeles also called up utilityman Zach McKinstry from Triple-A.  In corresponding moves, right-hander Mitch White was placed on the COVID-related injury list, and righty Andre Jackson was sent down to Triple-A.

Assuming he makes an appearance for the Dodgers, Fulmer will pitch for his fifth different team in the last four seasons.  All told, Fulmer has a 6.41 ERA over 130 2/3 career big league innings from 2016-21, pitching most recently with the Reds last season.  Cincinnati claimed Fulmer off waivers from the Pirates during Spring Training, and the righty had a 6.66 ERA in 25 2/3 frames of work before the Reds outrighted him off their 40-man roster in May.

The eighth overall pick of the 2015 draft, Fulmer has yet to live up to the promise of his high selection, struggling in both the majors and at Triple-A.  Fulmer has looked generally good with the Dodgers’ Triple-A affiliate this year, posting a 2.31 ERA with a 25% strikeout rate over 11 2/3 relief innings.  However, Fulmer also has a 16.7% walk rate, continuing to display the control problems that have plagued much of his pro career.

Bonus Pools, Slot Prices Set For 2022 Draft

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Major League Baseball has established the bonus pools for all 30 teams and the slot values for every pick in the first 10 rounds of the 2022 amateur draft, MLB Pipeline’s Jim Callis reports.  This year’s draft is set to take place July 17-19, coinciding with All-Star week in Los Angeles.

While the new collective bargaining agreement made some changes to the draft’s operations (most notably the lottery that begins in 2023), the basic structure of the bonus pools and slotting system remains intact.  As a refresher, each team receives a bonus pool to cover selections from the draft’s first 10 rounds, and each draft placement within those ten rounds has an assigned price attached to it.  Teams are free to sign players for above or below those assigned slot prices, as long as the total price tag of those signings doesn’t exceed the value of their bonus pool.

The bonus pool limit isn’t a hard cap, as teams are allowed to exceed their bonus pool, but with increasingly punitive costs.  A club must pay a 75 percent tax on any overage of between 0-5 percent of a draft pool, and many teams routinely pay this relatively minor penalty.  However, since the institution of the bonus pool system, no team has overspent its pool by more than five percent, as doing so would require a 100 percent overage tax and (of far more import) the loss of a future first-round pick.  Spending beyond the 10 and 15 percent thresholds lead to the loss of multiple picks, and it seems hard to fathom any club would ever absorb such a steep penalty.

The 2022 draft marks the first time in three years that slot prices have risen, as due to the pandemic, the league and the MLB Players Association agreed to freeze slot prices for the 2020 and 2021 drafts.  The first overall spot of this year’s draft (held by the Orioles) has an $8,842,200 slot price, a bump above the $8,415,300 assigned price for the first pick in the 2021 draft.

Here are the bonus pools for all 30 teams…

  • Orioles: $16,924,000
  • Diamondbacks: $15,112,100
  • Mets: $13,955,700
  • Pirates: $13,733,900
  • Rockies: $13,660,700
  • Royals: $11,668,300
  • Nationals: $11,007,900
  • Reds: $10,794,100
  • Marlins: $10.486MM
  • Cubs: $10,092,700
  • Padres: $10,088,900
  • Twins: $10.036MM
  • Guardians: $9,980,900
  • Rangers: $9,640,700
  • Blue Jays: $8,367,700
  • Athletics: $8,315,800
  • Red Sox: $8,078,300
  • Tigers: $8,024,900
  • Braves: $8,022,200
  • Rays: $7,795,100
  • Mariners: $7,254,400
  • Brewers: $7,070,900
  • Angels: $7,024,300
  • Cardinals: $6,842,300
  • Astros: $6.837MM
  • Yankees: $6,425,100
  • Phillies: $6.307MM
  • White Sox: $6,289,100
  • Giants: $5,793,200
  • Dodgers: $4,221,400

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