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Richard Bleier Announces Retirement

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Left-hander Richard Bleier announced his retirement earlier this week, as the 37-year-old Bleier wrote on his Instagram page that he is hanging up his cleats after eight Major League seasons.

“It’s been an incredible journey with plenty of highs and lows that ranged from spending six years in Double A to pitching in the playoffs with the Marlins, the team I grew up watching,” Bleier wrote.  “Looking back on my career I don’t think I would have done anything differently.  I’m incredibly proud of what I accomplished.  I tried to go into every day remembering my childhood memories of interactions with players and recalling how special those times were for me at such an impressionable age.  I hope I also positively impacted fans throughout the country and paid forward what was shown to me.”

The Miami Beach native began his pro career as a sixth-round pick for the Rangers back in the 2008 draft, though he didn’t make his MLB debut until just after his 29th birthday, breaking into the Show as a member of the Yankees in 2016.  That first season in the Bronx and his 2023 season with the Red Sox were sandwiched around longer runs with the Baltimore and Miami, in almost equal fashion — Bleier appeared in 143 games with the Orioles from 2017-20 and then 142 games with his hometown Marlins from 2020 until the end of the 2022 season.

Besides a pair of pseudo-starts working as an opener, Bleier came out of the bullpen for almost all of his 335 career games in the majors, and delivered a very solid 3.27 ERA over 330 1/3 innings.  This success was powered by outstanding control (3.9% career walk rate) and a knack for keeping the ball on the ground, as Bleier had a 60.9% grounder rate.  Among all pitchers with at least 300 innings pitched between the 2016-23 seasons, only T.J. McFarland and Framber Valdez had a better grounder rate.

Like most groundball specialists, Bleier’s success was somewhat dependent on batted-ball luck, though he finished his career with roughly average .298 BABIP.  The bigger issue was a lack of missed bats (13.6% strikeout rate) and velocity, which kept Bleier in something of a specialist role despite his good bottom-line numbers.  Bleier also did a very good job of avoiding the long ball, but that changed in his final MLB season, when he allowed five homers in 30 2/3 innings with the Red Sox en route to a 5.28 ERA in 2023.  Boston released Bleier in August of that season, and subsequent minor league deals with the Cubs and Nationals didn’t result in a return to the Show.

We at MLB Trade Rumors congratulate Bleier on a fine career, and we wish him all the best in his post-playing endeavors.

Twins Sign Erasmo Ramirez To Minor League Deal

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The Twins have signed right-hander Erasmo Ramirez to a minor league contract, the Minneapolis Star Tribune’s Bobby Nightengale reports.  Ramirez’s deal includes an invitation to Minnesota’s big league spring camp.

Ramirez has played for six different teams at the MLB level over his 12 seasons in the Show, with two different stints with the Rays accounting for 377 1/3 of his 849 career innings.  The second of those stints ended when Ramirez elected free agency last October, following a season that saw him post a 4.35 ERA over 20 2/3 innings.  Tampa Bay twice designated Ramirez for assignment and outrighted him off its 40-man roster over the course of the 2024 campaign, with Ramirez both times choosing to remain in the organization rather than testing free agency.

A starter and a swingman earlier in his career, the 34-year-old Ramirez has now settled into a role as a multi-inning reliever, though with plenty of ups and downs in his performance.  He seemingly got his career back on track with a 2.92 ERA in 86 1/3 innings with the Nationals in 2022, only to follow that year up with an ugly 6.41 ERA in 60 1/3 frames with Washington and Tampa in 2023.  His 2024 numbers represent something of a middle ground between those previous two seasons, but Ramirez benefited from a tiny .136 BABIP, and he allowed five homers in that small sample size of 20 2/3 innings.

Ramirez brings plenty of experience and innings-eating capability to the table, so he could be a useful pitcher for the Twins to keep around as a Triple-A depth option.  The Twins have a fair number of in-house bullpen options ahead of him on the depth chart, however, and Ramirez could possibly exercise his contract’s opt-out clause before Opening Day if he doesn’t feel he’ll get a clear opportunity for playing time in Minnesota.

Nationals Win Arbitration Hearing Against Nathaniel Lowe

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The Nationals have won their arbitration hearing with Nathaniel Lowe, the TalkNats website reports.  Lowe will receive a $10.3MM salary for the 2025 season, rather than the $11.1MM salary he was hoping to land by going to a hearing.

First base was a major target area for D.C. this offseason, and the Nats addressed this need by acquiring Lowe from the Rangers for reliever Robert Garcia back in December.  Lowe hit .274/.359/.432 over 2576 plate appearances (123 wRC+) in his four seasons in Texas, with a resume that includes a Silver Slugger Award in 2022, and both a Gold Glove and a World Series ring in 2023.  Since the Rangers were looking to create room in their lineup and bolster their pen, the Garcia-for-Lowe trade helped both Texas and Washington check some boxes on their winter to-do lists.

Money was also a factor, as the Rangers were able to re-allocate Lowe’s projected salary towards other needs.  MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projected Lowe to earn $10.7MM, with that predicted salary falling right in between Lowe’s desired $11.1MM payday and the Rangers’ figure of $10.3MM.

An arbitration hearing is something of an awkward way for a player and a team to kick off a new partnership, yet even in defeat, Lowe’s $10.3MM salary is still a nice raise over the $7.5MM he earned in 2024.  He’ll have another year of arbitration eligibility before becoming eligible for free agency following the 2026 season.

Lowe’s hearing officially wraps up the 2024-25 arbitration class.  Of the 17 players who didn’t reach an agreement before the January 9 figure-filing deadline, nine went to hearings, with teams winning five of those nine cases.

Christian Yelich Says He’s “Ready For Opening Day” Following Back Surgery

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Christian Yelich’s 2024 season was prematurely ended by a back surgery in mid-August, and at the time, the Brewers outfielder said he hoped he’d be fully recovered for the coming 2025 campaign.  It appears that best-case scenario looks to be in play, as Yelich told MLB.com’s Adam McCalvy and other reporters today that “I don’t see any reason why I wouldn’t be ready for Opening Day….Unless something crazy happens here, I don’t see why I wouldn’t be ready.”

It was a busy winter for Yelich, who said he didn’t get “really any break period” in between his rehab work and then his usual ramp-up work in advance of spring camp.  “If anything, I probably did more baseball stuff this offseason than I would in a typical offseason just out of necessity and having to check those boxes.  I feel good and wasn’t really delayed in any preparation for Spring Training,” the former NL MVP said.

Back problems have plagued Yelich for several years, so hopefully last year’s procedure might finally allow Yelich some longer-term relief as he enters his 13th Major League season.  Even before the surgery, Yelich was looking like he’d turned a corner and returned to his past MVP-level form.  After hitting a decent but unspectacular .254/.362/.407 over 2025 plate appearances during the 2020-23 seasons, Yelich broke out to a .315/.406/.504 slash line and 11 home runs over 315 PA in 2024 (translating to a 151 wRC+).  A .366 BABIP certainly contributed to that success, but several above-average secondary metrics indicated that Yelich’s big year was no fluke.

Yelich, the Brewers, and Milwaukee fans might wonder forever how a healthy Yelich might’ve changed the club’s postseason fortunes, as the Brew Crew were eliminated in heartbreaking fashion during the NL Wild Card Series.  The Brewers have made the playoffs in six of the last seven seasons, but haven’t won a postseason round since 2018, Yelich’s first season in the organization.

Missing out on this playoff run was painful both physically and emotionally for Yelich, but he was left with no choice since “my body stopped working, basically, so I had to have surgery.  It wasn’t like I could finish the season or not, or get surgery….If I could’ve finished the year I would’ve loved to have tried to finish the year, but the silver lining in having to get surgery then was like I’d for sure be ready for Opening Day.  So that was a good thing, and fortunately there weren’t many setbacks in the rehab process or anything like that.”

Yelich’s spectacular 2018-19 seasons led the team to lock him up on a new contract in advance of the 2020 campaign.  With seven years and $188.5MM in new money added in that extension, it was the biggest contract in Brewers history, and a sizable vote of confidence from an organization not known for big spending.  The outfielder’s modest production in the four seasons following the extension raised some concerns, but Yelich’s 2024 performance renews some hope that the 33-year-old can still reach an elite level.

Yelich spent 402 1/3 innings in left field last season but also got a good chunk of DH time.  Milwaukee has enough outfield depth that Yelich should again receive plenty of work as a designated hitter, in order to give him a partial rest day while still keeping his bat in the lineup.

Dodgers Sign Eddie Rosario To Minors Contract

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The Dodgers have signed outfielder Eddie Rosario to a minor league deal, according to Ari Alexander of KPRC2.  Rosario has been looking for a new team since he was released from a previous minors deal with the Mets back in August.

A veteran of 10 MLB seasons, Rosario’s career highlight ironically came against the Dodgers back in 2021, when Rosario posted an absurd 1.647 OPS over 28 plate appearances in the Braves’ NLCS triumph over Los Angeles.  That incredible performance earned Rosario NLCS MVP honors, and he then earned a championship ring when Atlanta topped the Astros in the World Series.

The Braves re-signed Rosario to a two-year, $18MM free agent deal in the aftermath of that title, though the last three seasons have been much more of a struggle for the veteran.  Rosario didn’t hit well in 2022 before rebounding for a solid 21-homer campaign in 2023, but it wasn’t enough for Atlanta to exercise its $9MM club option on Rosario for the 2024 season.

He instead landed in Washington, where Rosario’s production tailed off so badly that the Nationals released him in July, and a return to the Braves also didn’t restore any of the old magic to Rosario’s bat.  Rosario’s brief stint with the Mets didn’t lead to any MLB playing time, and so his overall 2024 slash line finished at a lackluster .175/.215/.316 over 319 combined PA with the Nationals and Braves.

There’s no risk for the Dodgers in taking a flier on Rosario to see if the 33-year-old has anything left after multiple inconsistent seasons.  Rosario’s chances of breaking camp with arguably the most loaded roster in baseball aren’t great on paper, yet the situation could yet change in the event of an injury, or if Rosario forces the issue with some big Cactus League numbers.  Even if he doesn’t win a spot in Los Angeles, an impressive spring might help Rosario’s chances of landing with another team if he opts out of his minors deal before the end of camp.

Yankees Move Clayton Beeter To Relief Pitching

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Clayton Beeter has started 83 of his 92 career minor league games, but going forward, the right-hander will be used as a relief pitcher, Yankees pitching coach Matt Blake told the New York Post’s Joel Sherman.  “As we got through last year, [Beeter’s] fastball-slider mix is super powerful and is best suited for relief,” Blake said.  “We decided to lean into the swing-and-miss of the fastball at the top of the zone and the slider at the bottom.  We thought it might even play up in short bursts.”

The news isn’t too surprising, as ever since Beeter was a second-round selection for the Dodgers in the 2020 draft, some pundits have felt he would ultimately end up as a reliever at the big league level.  Baseball America placed Beeter 21st on its most recent ranking of the Yankees’ top 30 prospects, and described the righty as a potential candidate for multi-inning relief work.  The 26-year-old Beeter has actually only pitched in the majors as a reliever, as all three of his MLB appearances (3 2/3 total innings) came out of New York’s bullpen last season.

As Blake noted, Beeter relies heavily on a two-pitch arsenal, with a changeup and curveball used sparingly at the Triple-A level.  Beeter’s fastball generally sits in the low 90’s but has topped out at 96mph, according to BA’s scouting report, and more velocity could be unlocked with this move to the bullpen.  Beeter’s 60-grade slider is his most effective pitch, helping fuel much of the strikeout ability he has exhibited over his minor league career.  Across an even 300 innings in the minors, Beeter has a very impressive 33.1% strikeout rate.

All those missed bats have come with a 12.7% walk rate, and the lack of control is another reason why the Yankees feel Beeter might benefit most from relief work.  There’s also the health factor — Beeter was limited to 39 innings over 12 appearances in 2024 after shoulder problems cost him close to four months of the Triple-A season.  Yankees manager Aaron Boone told reporters (including The Athletic’s Brendan Kuty) earlier this week that Beeter was dealing with another “shoulder issue” during the offseason but is back throwing side sessions.

Shifting Beeter to the pen makes sense as a bigger-picture move in the pitcher’s career, and the Yankees have enough rotation options on hand that they can probably afford to remove a starter from the depth chart.  The club has six starting candidates on the active roster alone depending on Marcus Stroman’s status as either a reliever or possible trade chip, and such pitchers as Will Warren, Yoendrys Gomez, and Brent Headrick are available at Triple-A.  New York also brought in Allan Winans on a waiver claim, and signed longtime veteran Carlos Carrasco to a minor league contract.

Since Beeter has two minor league options remaining, Sherman suggests that the right-hander will probably begin the 2025 season in Triple-A.  This will also allow Beeter to more fully ramp up after his injury-plagued 2024 campaign, and get used to his new bullpen role.  If all goes well, Beeter should receive a call-up at some point next season once injuries or a need for a fresh arm inevitably arises, and he’ll then get a chance to carve out a spot for himself as a regular member of the Yankees’ relief corps.

Scott Harris Discusses Tigers’ Pursuit Of Alex Bregman

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The Tigers were linked to Alex Bregman for much of the offseason, and reports indicated that they were one of the finalists for the infielder’s services before Bregman signed a three-year, $120MM deal with the Red Sox earlier this week.  It would appear that Detroit might have been the top bidder in terms of pure dollars — Bregman was offered a six-year, $171.5MM contract that included an opt-out clause after the 2026 season, but he instead took the shorter-term deal from Boston that includes opt-outs after both the 2025 and 2026 campaigns.

Tigers president of baseball operations Scott Harris told reporters (including Chris McCosky of the Detroit News) that he wasn’t disappointed by Bregman’s decision to head to Boston.  “We made a compelling offer to Alex Bregman but he chose to sign somewhere else.  That’s fine.  We knew that was a possibility throughout the process, and we planned for that outcome,” Harris said.

The fact that the Tigers made such a push for Bregman was itself notable, as it represented the first time since Harris was hired in September 2022 that Detroit truly appeared willing to stretch the budget on a long-term free agent commitment.  Jack Flaherty (whose deal contains a player option for 2026) and Kenta Maeda are the only free agents to receive even a two-year contract during Harris’ relatively brief tenure.  Harris praised team owner Chris Illitch for giving “us the flexibility to chase some key free agents,” so the strategy is apparently less about money than it is about Harris’ oft-stated desire to build primarily around the Tigers’ young core.

“We don’t want to be that organization that is desperate to sign a specific free agent or hinging on our current plan or our future plans on a certain free agent,” Harris said.  “We have to be dependent on the young talent we’re acquiring and developing….I will say we feel like what we did this offseason, we made the moves we needed to make. We supplemented this young, emerging group with guys who can make the team better without blocking our young players.”

“It didn’t make sense for us, before or after Alex, to pivot to someone who would just take our money.  In recent winters, we’ve seen teams continuing to pivot until someone takes their money.  It may win a press release, but it may not actually push your organization forward.  We were very conscious of that throughout the winter and we were very targeted about the players we wanted to add to this group.”

Beyond the reunion with Flaherty, the Tigers also signed Alex Cobb to further bolster the rotation, and added veteran relievers Tommy Kahnle and John Brebbia on one-year deals.  On the position-player side, Gleyber Torres was signed to a one-year, $14MM contract to step in as the new everyday second baseman, pushing Colt Keith into a first base role.

The right-handed hitting Torres also gives Detroit a bit more balance within a lineup that still pretty heavy with left-handed bats.  Acquiring a marquee righty-swinger like Bregman would have further helped with that balance and naturally boosted the offense as a whole, and Harris hasn’t closed the door on still addressing this need.

“There hasn’t been a ton of options for us to add a second right-handed bat,” the PBO said.  “We don’t think there is going to be one coming through free agency.  We’re going to explore trade options but we feel really good about the group we have, and we think it is a group that’s going to continue to get better.”

With this internal focus in mind, Harris cited Jace Jung, Matt Vierling, and Andy Ibanez as the chief in-house candidates for third base work.  “It’s going to be a competition in Spring Training” to decide exactly how the playing time might be divvied up, and Harris noted that “we have a really talented manager [A.J. Hinch] who is going to find the right matchup for those guys.”

Blue Jays, Bo Bichette Haven’t Discussed Extension

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Bo Bichette will become a free agent at the end of the 2025 season, but the shortstop has yet to discuss a long-term deal with the Blue Jays, Bichette told MLB.com’s Keegan Matheson and other reporters.  “We haven’t had any talks, but from my perspective, we all grow up wanting to be one of those guys that has an opportunity to stay with an organization for their entire career,” Bichette said.  “I’m just focused on what I’ve got to do this year to help the team win and be the best version of myself.  Whatever happens will happen.”

While negotiations could still begin later in Spring Training, the lack of activity between Bichette and the Jays isn’t too surprising.  For one, Toronto is facing a more pressing deadline in extension talks with Vladimir Guerrero Jr., as the first baseman said he isn’t willing to continue discussions beyond February 18, which is the Blue Jays’ first full day of spring camp.  Since a Guerrero extension would surely represent both the largest deal in Jays history and one of the larger deals in baseball history, such a big-ticket negotiation is naturally the team’s priority before turning to any other contractual matters.

There’s also the simple fact that it isn’t clear whether or not Bichette is even still in the Blue Jays’ long-term plans, coming off a surprisingly poor 2024 campaign.  Bichette hit only .225/.277/.322 over 336 plate appearances, and played just once after July 19 due to a lengthy recovery from a right calf strain.  A previous IL placement due to another calf strain sidelined Bichette earlier in the season, plus he also had surgery on a fractured right middle finger in late September.

Plenty of other Toronto players struggled and/or battled injuries during an overall dismal year for the franchise, but getting virtually nothing from a cornerstone player like Bichette was a particularly harsh blow to the lineup.  Bichette more or less hit the ground running from the start of his MLB career in 2019, with a strong .299/.340/.487 slash line and 89 home runs over 2328 PA from 2019-23.  Bichette received down-ballot MVP support in each of the last three of those seasons, and twice received All-Star nods while also leading the American League in hits in both 2021 and 2022.

At this time last year, in fact, there was plenty of debate about whether Bichette or Guerrero was the better long-term investment for the Blue Jays, as Guerrero was coming off a relatively modest 118 wRC+ season in 2023 before returning to superstar form in 2024.  It should be noted that Bichette’s own 2023 campaign wasn’t without its warts, as knee and quad problems greatly reduced his production over the final two months of that season.

With all this recent history in mind, “it feels very difficult to find a middle ground both sides would agree on” in extension talks, Matheson observes.  Bichette surely feels like a big rebound year is coming, and so he isn’t going to sell himself short on an asking price.  From Toronto’s perspective, it is only natural that the team wants to see how (or if) Bichette bounces back before considering him for a hefty multi-year pact.

It isn’t too often that star players sign extensions once they get too deep into their final season prior to free agency, so even if Bichette does return to form, it feels like he is essentially a lock to test the market next winter.  Some trade speculation has circled around Bichette over the last couple of years, and while GM Ross Atkins has been steadfast in his refusal to deal Bichette, a trade might become more possible at the deadline if the Blue Jays are struggling again.

Robert Suarez “Most Probable” Padres Trade Chip To Be Moved?

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While the Padres are intent on returning to the postseason in 2025, much of the buzz surrounding the team this winter has been about the possibility of higher-paid veteran players being dealt in order to help the team both address roster needs, and shave some money off the payroll.  Rumors have swirled around several of the Padres’ more expensive players, but as Spring Training nears, Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune hears from two sources that dealing Robert Suarez seems to be “the move that appears most probable.”

This doesn’t indicate that Suarez will actually be dealt, of course, or that the Padres have any particular inclination to move the All-Star closer.  But, Suarez’s trade status might be elevated due to the simple fact that San Diego might be able to more easily replace him within the bullpen, and because the Padres’ other trade chips are comparatively trickier to deal away.

Among players mentioned in trade speculation this winter, Xander Bogaerts and Jake Cronenworth are owed too much in future salary to hold much appeal to other teams.  Dylan Cease and Luis Arraez are slated to become free agents next winter, and Michael King is in the same boat, as his contract’s $15MM mutual option for 2026 will surely be declined by either King himself or by the Padres.  Reports have indicated that if San Diego does trade a starter, Cease is likelier to be moved than King, due to the perception that King is the likelier of the two to be open to extension talks.  As for Arraez, the Padres reportedly have a particular interest in keeping him for at least 2025.

It all leaves Suarez as something of the odd man out, though plenty of obstacles exist on that front as well.  Suarez turns 34 month, and is owed $26MM over the remaining three years of the five-year, $46MM pact he signed with San Diego in November 2022.  That $26MM breaks down as $10MM in 2025, and then Suarez has the option of deciding whether or not to opt out of the deal to test free agency, or simultaneously exercise a pair of $8MM player options covering the 2026 and 2027 seasons.

Just two months ago, this contract structure was seemingly an obstacle towards a deal, as The Athletic’s Dennis Lin wrote that “for now” the Padres weren’t looking to trade Suarez.  Last month, however, the team’s stance seemed to change, as the Padres were thought to be more open to the idea of moving Suarez due to some interest on the trade market.

While many teams could use a high-leverage reliever, working out an acceptable trade return will be tricky for both sides.  Another team might only view Suarez as a one-year investment due to the possibility of an opt-out, while the Padres might view such a trade return as too slight for a pitcher who could end up providing his new club with three years of control.

Beginning his career pitching in the Mexican League and then a long stint in Nippon Professional Baseball, Suarez didn’t make his debut in affiliated baseball until 2022, when he made his MLB debut at age 31.  The Padres were impressed enough by Suarez’s NPB production to sign him to a one-year, $11MM deal during the 2021-22 offseason, and the team’s belief has paid off.  While his season was marred by injuries and a 10-game sticky-stuff suspension, Suarez was excellent in both 2022 and this past season, when he succeeded Josh Hader as San Diego’s closer.

Suarez posted a 2.77 ERA in 65 innings while closing out 36 of 42 save opportunities during the 2024 regular season, and added 3 1/3 scoreless innings during three playoff appearances.  One of baseball’s hardest-throwing pitchers, Suarez paired that velocity with an above-average walk rate, though other metrics (like his strikeout, barrel, and grounder rates) were all slightly below the league average.

Between Suarez’s age, his .256 BABIP last year, and a 3.53 SIERA that was significantly higher than his 2.77 ERA, a case can be made that the Padres could be making a wise move in selling high on Suarez in advance of any regression.  On the other hand, moving your closer puts more pressure on the rest of the relief corps, and thins out a bullpen that has already lost Tanner Scott to free agency.  Jason Adam or Adrian Morejon might be the most logical save candidates if Suarez is dealt, assuming that the Padres would stick with a full-time closer rather than a committee approach.

Rockies Considering Extension For Brenton Doyle

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The Rockies have had “internal discussions” about the possibility of signing center fielder Brenton Doyle to a contract extension, according to Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post.  There isn’t any indication that these considerations have led to any actual negotiations with Doyle’s representatives at the Ballengee Group, and given the normal rhythm of spring extension talks, in-depth talks or an official agreement aren’t likely to take place until closer to Opening Day.

Colorado has been pretty proactive over the years about locking up what the franchise views as its cornerstone players, most prominently past mega-deals for such stars as Todd Helton, Troy Tulowitzki, and Nolan Arenado.  The extension trend has continued since Bill Schmidt was officially named as the Rockies GM in October 2021, as the Rox have extended 10 players during Schmidt’s tenure.  The most recent of these pacts came last March, when Ezequiel Tovar was inked to a seven-year extension that will pay the shortstop at least $63.5MM.

Entering his third MLB season, Doyle has already established himself as arguably the game’s best defensive fielder.  Doyle has won the last two NL Gold Glove Awards and he added a Fielding Bible Award to his trophy case in 2024.  An elite throwing arm and elite speed adds to Doyle’s defensive prowess, and he took some important steps towards being a true five-tool talent when he hit .260/.317/.446 with 23 home runs over 603 plate appearances last season.

Factoring in Coors Field’s hitter-friendly nature, Doyle’s offense still checked in at below the league average, with a 97 wRC+.  Still, this was a drastic improvement over the 45 wRC+ he posted over 431 PA during his 2023 rookie season, with Doyle hitting the ball with much more authority in 2024 than he did the previous year.  His 7.6% walk rate and 25.4% strikeout rates remain below average, but the latter number in particular is a quantum leap from Doyle’s 35% strikeout rate in 2023, which was the worst in baseball among any player with at least 400 PA.

The underlying metrics point to substantive year-to-year improvement for Doyle, without too much luck entering the equation — his wOBA and xwOBA were virtually identical in 2024, and his .316 BABIP this year wasn’t far beyond his .295 BABIP in 2023.  A player with Doyle’s speed is likely to have higher BABIPs anyway, and that speed also manifested itself in the form of 30 stolen bases in 35 chances.

Doyle’s glovework is alone enough to merit a spot on a Major League roster, but providing even league-average offense raises his ceiling considerably as a lineup regular.  Since an everyday center fielder is among the rarer commodities in the game, it makes sense that Colorado would be thinking about a long-term commitment relatively early into Doyle’s career.

A fourth-round pick in the 2019 draft, Doyle is a bit of a late bloomer, as he was just a bit shy of his 25th birthday when he made his MLB debut.  With a year and 161 days of big league service time already amassed, Doyle is on pace to achieve Super Two status and an extra year of arbitration eligibility.  This doesn’t change the Rockies’ team control that runs through the 2029 season, but it does line Doyle (who turns 27 in May) up to start earning larger salaries earlier in his career.

An extension would therefore give the Rox some cost certainty on Doyle through those arbitration years, rather than deal with an escalating price tag.  On the other hand, since Doyle is already controlled through his age-31 season, the Rockies might not view an extension as a pressing priority.  Schmidt and his front office might also want a bit more evidence of Doyle’s improvement at the plate before making a multi-year commitment.

From Doyle’s perspective, it would stand to reason that he’d be open to extension talks.  Between his $500K draft signing bonus and minimum salaries in his first two MLB seasons, Doyle might view an extension as a great way to lock in the first fortune of his pro career.  There’s an argument for waiting from Doyle’s side as well, as he’d cash in to an even greater degree on an extension next winter if he can match or top his 2024 offensive numbers in 2025, since surely the Rockies would then be just as eager to solidify his place as a building block on their roster.

A Doyle extension would stand out the biggest transaction of a pretty quiet Rockies offseason, as Colorado hasn’t done much to improve a roster that has lost 204 games over the last two seasons.  While not exactly in a rebuild mode, the Rockies are clearly focusing on their young talent and on better health from several veterans (i.e. Kris Bryant, Antonio Senzatela, German Marquez) in order to make some type of forward progress in 2025.

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