The Opener: Signings, FA Market, Astros
With football season now in the rear-view mirror, it’s finally time for baseball season! Here are three things we’ll be keeping an eye on around the baseball world throughout the day today:
1. Signings to be made official:
A flurry of signings were reported over the weekend that have yet to be made official: Michael Fulmer signed with the Cubs, David Peralta and Alex Reyes both landed with the Dodgers, while Andrew Chafin returned to the Diamondbacks. As with any not-yet official signings, a 40-man roster move will be necessary to accommodate each of these players. The Cubs and Dodgers both have a handful of players who could move to the 60-day IL once Spring Training gets underway this week, thus clearing 40-man spots for Fulmer, Peralta, and Reyes, but the Diamondbacks lack a clear candidate for such a roster move, meaning they’ll like need to clear roster space some other way.
2. FA market heating back up:
The free agent market had entered a bit of a lull in recent weeks, with signings becoming increasingly sparing despite several strong players left on the market clearly deserving of big league deals. That dam seems to have finally broken over the weekend with the signings of Fulmer, Peralta, Reyes, and Chafin. Could more deals be on the way, with Spring Training just around the corner? There’s a variety of quality free agents still available who could impact a club: Jurickson Profar and Michael Wacha, the last remaining of free agents from MLBTR’s Top 50 earlier this offseason, highlight the group, but others such as Luke Voit, Gary Sanchez, Elvis Andrus, and Matt Moore are all interesting players who should be able to find a big league job somewhere before Opening Day as well.
3. Will the Astros keep going with Javier extended?
Over the weekend, the Astros managed to extend starting pitcher and 2022 World Series hero Cristian Javier on a five-year deal that covered three arbitration years and bought out a pair of free agent years. This came as no surprise, seeing as newly-installed GM Dana Brown stated publicly that he was focused on extending members of the core that just brought last year’s World Series trophy to Houston. In addition to Javier, Brown name-dropped Kyle Tucker, Jose Altuve, and Alex Bregman as players he’s hoping to have extension conversations with. Recently, Tucker lost his arbitration case against the Astros for his 2023 salary, leaving him with a lower platform salary than he was hoping for as he proceeds through the rest of his arbitration years. An extension, of course, could change that situation entirely, and it’s possible the baseline for Tucker’s arb years being set could make extension talks go a little easier. Altuve and Bregman are both under team control through 2024, but Brown and agent Scott Boras have reportedly been in contact about extensions nonetheless.
Which Starters Should The Cardinals Extend?
The mass exodus facing the Cardinals rotation at the end of the 2023 season is well-documented at this point. Longtime rotation stalwart Adam Wainwright is set to follow in the footsteps of his longtime battery-mate Yadier Molina and retire following the end of the 2023 season, while each of Miles Mikolas, Jack Flaherty, and Jordan Montgomery are set to depart the club as free agents. If none of that group is extended, right-hander Dakota Hudson will be the only pitcher to make more than ten starts with the Cardinals in 2022 and remain with the club in 2024, though lefty Steven Matz is also under contract through the 2025 season and youngster Andre Pallante impressed in ten starts last season.
The 2023-2024 free agent class figures to be exceptional deep in quality rotation options, even for clubs who won’t be part of the Shohei Ohtani sweepstakes. Still, it seems reasonable to expect extensions, such as the one Yu Darvish signed with the Padres last week, to continue thinning the herd throughout Spring Training and into the regular season. For a Cardinals club that’s attempting to make the most of the remaining prime years for superstars Nolan Arenado and Paul Goldschmidt, going into the offseason with three or more slots in the rotation to fill would put an enormous amount of pressure on the front office. As such, it’s no wonder that the organization is reportedly planning to have extension conversations with at least two of their starting pitchers this spring.
The clearest choice for the Cardinals to pursue an extension with would be Mikolas, who reportedly is open to extending with the club this spring. Even entering his age-34 season, there’s every reason to expect Mikolas to be durable going forward; though he missed the entirety of the 2020 season and much of the 2021 season due to surgery, since joining the Cardinals ahead of the 2018 season he has pitched more than 180 innings in each of his three seasons unaffected by that surgery, including inning counts over 200 innings in 2018 and 2022. On top of that, Mikolas has proven to be an effective mid-rotation option whenever he is on the mound, with a 3.46 ERA (114 ERA+) and a 3.84 FIP in 631 2/3 innings as a member of the Cardinals.
Furthermore, despite his age and workhorse tendencies, the mileage on his arm is still fairly low: Mikolas has just 1,561 professional innings under his belt between the majors, minors, and his time overseas. That’s more than a thousand innings less than similarly aged hurlers such as Yu Darvish and Clayton Kershaw, and just a tad under the 1,746 1/3 professional innings Aaron Nola has under his belt headed into his age-30 season. Given Mikolas’s combination of effectiveness, durability, low mileage on his arm, and comfort with the club (he already extended with the team once, ahead of the 2019 season), it’s no wonder that Mikolas appears to be one of the starters the Cardinals are seeking to continue their partnership with.
What of the other options, though? Surely, if Wainwright changes his mind and decides to continue pitching in 2024, the lifelong Cardinal would be continuing his career in St. Louis. All signs point to him hanging them up this fall after the conclusion of his age-41 season, however, leaving two pending free agents in the Cardinals rotation for them to consider extending: Flaherty and Montgomery. Flaherty is the younger of the two, set to pitch in 2023 at age 27 while Montgomery celebrated his 30th birthday earlier this offseason. Both players have dealt with injury woes in their careers, though Flaherty’s are more recent, having spanned the 2020-2022 seasons. Montgomery’s struggles from 2018-2020, by contrast, have since been followed up by a pair of quality, healthy seasons.
Montgomery has also shown more consistency throughout his career; when healthy, he has reliably been good for around 150 innings of 10-15% better than league average baseball. Flaherty, on the other hand, has two exceptional seasons under his belt in 2018 and 2019 where he combined for a 3.01 ERA, 35% better than league average, while finishing top 5 in Rookie of the Year voting in 2018 and Cy Young award voting in 2019. Outside of those two seasons, however, he has just 176 career innings at the major league level under his belt, and the results of those innings leave much to be desired: a 4.19 ERA and more than a strikeout less per nine innings than his peak years.
One can rightfully argue that Flaherty, so long as he can get healthy, projects to be better than Montgomery going forward. Montgomery’s fastball velocity in 2022 clocked in just below that of Flaherty despite the fact that Montgomery was enjoying a career high while Flaherty’s velocity was at an all-time low. Flaherty’s camp will surely make that argument, and with such a considerable gap between Flaherty’s potential and his current results, it’s fair to wonder how feasible it is for the two sides to come together on an extension they both find mutually agreeable, particularly when a big season from Flaherty in 2023 could cement him among the top starters on next offseason’s free agent market. Flaherty seems, perhaps, particularly unlikely to take much of a discount given he forced St. Louis to renew his contract ahead of both the 2019 and 2020 seasons rather than agree to a pre-arbitration salary, calling it a matter of “principle.”
The Cardinals have no such contentious history of negotiations with Montgomery, whom they acquired at the trade deadline last season in a deal that sent center fielder Harrison Bader to the Yankees. Montgomery pitched extremely well down the stretch for St. Louis last season, racking up 63 2/3 innings that were good for a 3.11 ERA (123 ERA+) and a 3.08 FIP. While Montgomery’s potential is far from that of Flaherty, that dominant stretch to end the 2022 season could indicate that there is still upside yet to be tapped into for the left-hander. Furthermore, despite not being a member of the organization for very long, that hasn’t stopped this Cardinals front office in the past. After all, president of baseball operations John Mozeliak is the one who signed Goldschmidt to an extension prior to the 2019 season before the slugger had ever played a regular season game in a Cardinals uniform.
Financially speaking, the Cardinals have plenty of room to maneuver under the luxury tax going forward. The club’s estimated luxury tax payroll for 2024 according to Roster Resource is just over $106MM, down from $199MM in 2023. Granted, that 2024 figure does not include arbitration salaries for 2024. In 2023, arbitration salaries are adding $36.5MM to the luxury tax ledger in St. Louis- even if that figure repeats, the club would have nearly $60MM to play with before reaching their 2023 payroll level, and over $90MM before reaching the first luxury tax threshold. That should leave them Mozeliak’s front office plenty of room to add or extend starters ahead of the 2024 season.
For players between five and six years of service time, as Flaherty and Montgomery both are, three recent extensions have taken place: the seven-year, $131MM deal Jose Berrios signed with the Blue Jays last offseason, the five-year, $100MM deal Joe Musgrove signed with the Padres last summer, and the five-year, $85MM deal Lance McCullers Jr. signed with the Astros ahead of the 2021 season. Berrios stands as something of a clear outlier among the other two, while Joe Musgrove has been a more effective starter than Montgomery and a more consistent starter than Flaherty. As such, McCullers seems to be the most appropriate comp for our purposes.
McCullers and Montgomery both are solid mid-rotation starters when healthy, and though McCullers was just about to begin his age-27 season when he signed his extension, making him three years younger than Montgomery is now, he was coming off far more recent injury troubles than Montgomery was while having never pitched even 130 innings in a season of his career. The $85MM figure also compares reasonably to the mid-rotation market this past offseason, which each of Chris Bassitt, Jameson Taillon, and Taijuan Walker securing between $63MM and $72MM and Montgomery having an argument as a safer bet than any of them.
Flaherty, on the other hand, seems less likely to find that sort of deal appropriate. Following an offseason that saw the likes of Carlos Rodon and Jacob deGrom secure well over $100MM despite injury concerns, it’s reasonable to think that Flaherty could do the same with relative ease should he have a bounceback year in 2023, particularly given his youth. Additionally, the market was rather kind to even oft-injured bounceback types such as Andrew Heaney this offseason. Even if Flaherty struggles again in 2023, he could search for a two-year deal with an opt-out as Heaney did to rebuild his value and hit the market a second time before his age-30 season.
Given all of this, it seems unlikely he would settle for much less than the $100MM Musgrove received, and it seems even more unlikely the Cardinals would make such a risky investment at this point, even with their significant concerns about the future of their rotation. Taken together, it seems that if the Cardinals are going to look to lock up some of the members of their rotation before season’s end, they’d be better off looking toward Mikolas and Montgomery than Flaherty, even despite all the tantalizing talent he brings to the table.
NL Notes: Cardinals, Doolittle, Colome
The Cardinals are receiving positive signs about their rotation for 2023, as Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports that the club has “rising optimism” regarding the health of right-hander Jack Flaherty ahead of Spring Training.
Flaherty was once among the brightest talents on the St. Louis roster, as he placed in the top 4 of Cy Young voting in 2019 after a campaign that saw him post a 2.75 ERA (152 ERA+) over 196 1/3 innings, while also leading the NL in WHIP. Since then, however, Flaherty has struggled with injuries and ineffectiveness; he struggled badly in the shortened 2020 season to the tune of a 4.91 ERA (86 ERA+) in 40 1/3 innings, and his battles with shoulder injuries in recent years have led him to make just 12 starts from the second half of the 2021 season onward.
If Flaherty is indeed healthy, Goold notes that he could transform the look of a Cardinals rotation that’s full of solid arms but lacking in terms of ace-caliber talent. When he’s taken the mound in recent years, Flaherty has lost a tick of velocity on his pitches across the board, though it’s possible that better health could see him get back up to averaging just over 94 mph on his fastball as he did in 2019.
More from the National League…
- Sticking with the Cardinals, Goold also reports that right-hander Miles Mikolas is open to an extension with the club. Mikolas, a free agent at season’s end, put up an excellent season in 2022 where he pitched the third most innings in all of baseball (202 1/3) while posting a solidly above average 3.29 ERA (116 ERA+). That said, it’s not especially surprising that Mikolas would be interested in negotiating an extension. Mikolas is entering his age-34 season in 2023, and his sixth as a member of the Cardinals organization (though he did not pitch during the shortened 2020 season), having already extended with the club once back in 2019.
- Nationals lefty Sean Doolittle, who returned to the club on a minor-league deal this offseason, appears to be healthy and has been throwing off a mound with “no issues” for the past several weeks, according to Mark Zuckerman of MASN. Zuckerman adds that, if he can maintain his health throughout Spring Training, Doolittle is a favorite among non-roster invitees to make the Nationals Opening Day roster given their lack of depth in terms of left-handed bullpen options. Doolittle has spent parts of five seasons as a member of the Nationals bullpen and racked up 75 saves as a member of the team from 2017-2019. During those years, he was among the best lefty relievers in the game, sporting an impressive 2.94 ERA (150 ERA+) across 156 1/3 innings. The past three seasons have been filled with injury woes for Doolittle, however, and now entering his age-36 season, he’ll need to earn his way onto the Nationals roster this spring.
- Another experienced reliever who Zuckerman suggests could have a leg up on the competition to make the Nationals Opening Day bullpen is right-hander Alex Colome. Zuckerman notes that Washington GM Mike Rizzo has long been intrigued by Colome, who he discussed trading for at the 2016 trade deadline when Colome was a member of the Rays. Since then, Colome has bounced around the league, picking up saves as a member of the Mariners, White Sox, Twins, and Rockies. He remained an effective reliever until last season, when he struggled badly in Colorado to the tune of a 5.74 ERA (82 ERA+). Still, Colome would bring a veteran presence to the Nationals bullpen, and it’s fair to wonder if getting away from Coors Field could help him regain his previous form as he prepares for his age-34 season.
The Opener: Extensions, Press Conferences, Marlins
With Spring Training now a matter of days away, here are three things we’ll be keeping an eye on around the baseball world throughout the day today:
1. Are more extensions on the way?
The Padres once again surprised the baseball world yesterday, this time by extending Yu Darvish on a deal that guarantees the right-hander $90MM in new money over five additional years. There’s plenty of reason to believe more extensions could be on the way, both around baseball and, perhaps, even in San Diego. Two weeks after becoming GM of the Astros, Dana Brown told reporters that he has interest in extending a variety of players from Houston’s 2022 World Series core; not just Kyle Tucker, as previously reported, but also Cristian Javier, Alex Bregman, and Jose Altuve. Broadly speaking, Brown made clear he hopes to follow a similar trajectory to his now-former Braves club, aggressively pursuing long-term deals with key young players. As for the Padres, they might not be done after extending Darvish, with the club expected to pursue an extension with superstar third baseman Manny Machado ahead of Opening Day. Machado has an opt-out clause in his contract following the 2023 season. Spring Training — and the days leading up to it — has long been a time where clubs talk about extensions with their players, so expect plenty of chatter about teams looking to hammer out some long-term contracts.
2. Padres, Blue Jays set to hold press conferences today
A pair of press conferences are expected to take place today, with Blue Jays GM Ross Atkins set to speak to the media at noon CT regarding the clubs three-year deal with star shortstop Bo Bichette to buy out the 24-year-old’s remaining arbitration years. Elsewhere in baseball, Padres president of baseball operations AJ Preller will also be speaking to the media today, in his case regarding yesterday’s extension with Darvish. With Spring Training just around the corner, both top decision-makers are likely to get into a variety of other topics regarding the futures of their respective clubs, as well.
3. Marlins FanFest this weekend
This offseason has been one with a considerable amount of change for the Miami Marlins, as the club has swapped out long-time players like Pablo Lopez, Miguel Rojas, and Brian Anderson while picking up new faces such as Luis Arraez, Johnny Cueto, and Jean Segura. This new-look Marlins team is set to welcome fans back to the ballpark tomorrow for Marlins FanFest, a free event that will run from 1pm to 6pm local time. A variety of Marlins players are expected to be in attendance, with player interviews highlighting the festivities.
The Opener: WBC Rosters, NBA Deadline, Player Chat
With the return of baseball just around the corner, here are three things we’ll be keeping an eye on around the sports world throughout the day today:
1. WBC Rosters Announcement
The World Baseball Classic is set to return for its fifth installment next month, and tonight, WBC rosters will be announced. Coverage of the announcement will begin at 5pm CT on MLB Network. As per usual, the WBC is expected to feature star-studded rosters; for example, both Mike Trout and Mookie Betts are already confirmed for the Team USA roster, while the Dominican Republic is expected to include stars like Rafael Devers, Juan Soto and Julio Rodriguez. Meanwhile, Shohei Ohtani will headline Japan’s roster. With the tournament running from March 8-21, players who participate in the WBC will be away from their team’s Spring Training camp to participate. As such, tonight’s roster reveal could have implications not just for the WBC itself but throughout all of MLB, as the absence of those stars will create some additional playing time for others during Cactus League and Grapefruit League play this spring.
2. NBA Trade Deadline
Typically, The Opener (and MLBTR in general) focuses purely on baseball. Today, however, we’re making a rare pivot to the larger sports world, as the NBA has its trade deadline this afternoon, at 2pm CT. Our sister site, Hoops Rumors, is set to provide the same type of coverage we at MLBTR provide during baseball’s own trade deadline. Just yesterday, a three-team deal sent Russell Westbrook to the Jazz and D’Angelo Russell to the Lakers, while superstar Kevin Durant was dealt to the Suns in a separate blockbuster late last night. With more sure to come in advance of this afternoon’s deadline, basketball fans who enjoy MLBTR’s content should check in at Hoops Rumors for up-to-the-minute coverage and analysis of the trade deadline throughout the day.
3. MLBTR Player Chat
Yesterday, MLBTR had the opportunity to host a live chat with former MLB starting pitcher Brandon Beachy, the transcript of which you can find here. Today, we’re excited to welcome current A’s outfielder Brent Rooker, who’ll host a live chat with our readers at noon CT. Rooker, the No. 35 overall pick in 2017, has consistently raked in the minor leagues, though since his MLB debut with the Twins in 2020, he’s struggled to make the jump to the big leagues. In 2022, Rooker changed uniforms three times: he started the year as a Twin before being sent to the Padres just before the start of the season in the Taylor Rogers trade, then was traded from San Diego to Kansas City in early August in exchange for catcher Cam Gallagher. Finally, a November waiver claim sent him from the Royals to the A’s, where he remains on the 40-man roster and will compete for an Opening Day spot during Spring Training. Brent’s chat will kick off at today at noon CT, so check back then to participate live!
The Opener: Giles, Arb Updates, Player Chat
With Opening Day just 50 days away, here are three things we’ll be keeping an eye on around the baseball world throughout the day today:
1. Giles to hold workout for interested teams:
Right-hander Ken Giles is set to hold a showcase for interested teams this morning. If the workout goes well, Giles could join the likes of Michael Fulmer and Corey Knebel at the top of the pile of right-handed relief options remaining on the free agent market. Giles has pitched just eight innings since the start of the 2020 season thanks to Tommy John surgery and a tendon injury in his finger, but prior to those woes he was one of the best late-inning options in the game; in 2019, he posted a sterling 1.87 ERA, good for a 244 ERA+ and backed by a FIP of 2.27.
2. Arbitration Update
Arbitration hearings continue rolling in, with the Associated Press reporting that Rays reliever Colin Poche had his hearing yesterday. As is the case with Angels outfielder Hunter Renfroe, the result of that case is being held rather than immediately announced so as not to serve as a data point in pending cases for comparable players in the same service bracket. The AP notes that hearings are scheduled out through Feb. 17, with 17 cases yet unresolved. Some of those will likely result in multi-year deals — the Astros have had discussions with Kyle Tucker, new GM Dana Brown said this week — but many will go to trial. Among the most notable remaining names are Corbin Burnes, Teoscar Hernandez and Gio Urshela. A full list of the 33 players who exchanged figures with teams can be seen here.
3. Player Chat and MLBTR Chat today
MLBTR’s Player Chat series is set to continue today. Earlier this week, we hosted a chat with former MLB pitcher and longtime scout Tim Fortugno, the transcript of which you can read here. Today, we’re excited to welcome former starting pitcher Brandon Beachy. Beachy pitched for the Braves and Dodgers in his MLB career, which spanned from the 2010 season until the 2015 season. The best seasons of Beachy’s career were 2011-2012. Across those two seasons, he made 38 starts and threw 222 2/3 innings to solid results, posting a 3.07 ERA (127 ERA+) and 3.30 FIP. Beachy’s 2012 season in particular was highlighted by a May 17th complete game shutout against a Marlins lineup that featured Giancarlo Stanton and Hanley Ramirez. Overall for his career, Beachy posted a 3.36 ERA (116 ERA+) with a 3.41 FIP across 48 starts and 275 2/3 innings. Be sure to tune in today 10am CST for Beachy’s live chat!
Meanwhile, MLBTR’s Anthony Franco will be hosting his weekly chat today at 5pm CT. You can submit a question in advance here, and you can use the same link to check back in this evening and participate live once the chat begins. Readers who missed yesterday’s chat with Steve Adams can also check out that transcript here in the meantime.
The Opener: Arbitration Hearings, 1B Market, MLBTR Chat
With the start of Spring Training just one week away, here are three things we’ll be keeping an eye on around the baseball world throughout the day today:
1. Decisions on recent arbitration hearings loom:
According to the Associated Press, two arbitration hearings have been completed, with decisions pending: the case between the Rays and right-hander Ryan Thompson, and the case between the Angels and outfielder Hunter Renfroe. While Thompson’s hearing was just yesterday, Renfroe’s hearing was over a week ago, with no decision announced as of yet despite more recent hearings having decisions handed down. Thompson followed up an excellent 2021 campaign where he posted a 2.38 ERA (3.11 FIP) with a more pedestrian 2022 where he posted a roughly league average ERA of 3.80 (3.42 FIP). His career mark is a 3.50 ERA with a nearly identical 3.55 FIP across 103 innings. Thompson’s camp filed for arbitration at a figure of $1.2MM, while the Rays countered with a figure of $1MM. Colin Poche, Jason Adam, and Harold Ramirez all also have unsettled arbitration salaries with the Rays.
As for Renfroe, he was traded in November by the Brewers to the Angels, who become his fifth club in as many seasons. Renfroe’s .255/.315/.492 (124 wRC+) line in 2022 was his best in any full season. Following the trade, Renfroe’s camp filed at a figure of $11.9MM, while the Angels countered at $11.25MM.
2. Sano working out for teams today
Today, former Twins first baseman Miguel Sano is set to participate in a showcase for clubs after an injury-plagued season where he struggled to a line of just .083/.211/.133 (9 wRC+) in 20 games before a knee injury ended his season. If the showcase goes well, Sano represents an interesting alternative to Luke Voit and Yuli Gurriel for clubs looking for a right-handed hitter to man first base. Voit’s 102 wRC+ was the only above average season line among the trio last year, making him perhaps the safest bet for any club looking to make an addition, while Sano and Gurriel both come with their own separate risks; Sano’s prodigious power has frequently been undercut by his staggering penchant for strikeouts, while Gurriel is looking for a rebound from one of his worst seasons as he heads into his age-39 campaign.
3. MLBTR Chat Today
Do you have any questions regarding your favorite team or the larger baseball world as the 30 clubs gear up for Spring Training and make their last minute offseason moves? MLBTR’s Steve Adams will be fielding questions from readers today during a live chat at 1pm CT. If you would like to ask questions in advance, you can do so here. That same link will also take you to the chat when it begins if you would like to participate live.
The Opener: DFA, Extensions, Player Chat
With Spring Training set to begin next week, here are three things we’ll be keeping an eye on around the baseball world throughout the day today:
1. Coonrod DFA to be resolved:
The Phillies decision to designate right-hander Sam Coonrod for assignment last week will reach a conclusion today. Coonrod, who was designated in order to make room for Josh Harrison on the 40-man roster, struggled to the tune of a 7.82 ERA (4.61 FIP) over 12 2/3 innings in a 2022 season that was mostly wiped out by a shoulder strain. That said, Coonrod was a useful middle reliever as recently as 2021, when he posted a 4.04 ERA (3.71 FIP) over 42 1/3 innings. If he goes through waivers unclaimed, Coonrod does have enough service time to reject an outright assignment. However, given his $775K arbitration salary for 2023 would be lost in doing so, it’s possible he could accept the outright assignment anyway rather than test free agency.
2. Are more extensions on the way?
The run-up to Spring Training is frequently seen as a time for teams and players to discuss extensions, with most of the heavy lifting done in terms of transactions and baseball activities not yet started up. This past weekend saw the Dodgers announce an extension with shortstop Miguel Rojas that will keep him in L.A. through at least the 2024 season, with a club option for 2025 as well. Rojas joins a handful of players such as Jeff McNeil and Yandy Diaz who have inked extensions recently, and it’s possible more deals could be on the way. Giants ace Logan Webb has reportedly discussed an extension with San Francisco’s front office. It was also recently reported that the Royals front office is looking into extensions for the team’s young core as well.
3. Player Chat today at 10am CT:
MLBTR’s Player Chat series will continue this week, and we’re excited to welcome former big league right-hander and longtime MLB scout Tim Fortugno to host a chat with readers today. Fortugno pitched in parts of three MLB seasons from 1992-95, suiting up for the Angels, Reds and White Sox along the way. He pitched a total of 12 seasons in the minors, three in the majors and another in Taiwan’s Chinese Professional Baseball League. Fortugno has since spent more than 20 years in Major League scouting departments, working for the Rangers, Mets and Rays, who’ve employed him since 2019. Tune in at 10am CT today to ask any questions you have and to read about Fortugno’s wide array of experiences in baseball!
The Opener: Dodgers, Arbitration, Greinke
As the return of baseball continues to grow closer, here are three things we’ll be keeping an eye on around the baseball world throughout the day:
1. Dodgers FanFest is tomorrow
For the first time since the the Dodgers won the World Series in 2020, Dodgers FanFest is set to return to Dodger Stadium. The free fan event will take place from 10am to 4pm local time on Saturday. In addition to interviews with players, president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman and manager Dave Roberts both typically make themselves available to media at the event. The FanFest returns after an unusually quiet offseason for the Dodgers, who spent most of the offseason appearing to operate with the goal of ducking under the luxury tax this year to reset their penalties. The club weathered losses such as Trea Turner, Justin Turner, and Tyler Anderson, but Trevor Bauer‘s reinstatement from suspension threw a wrench in those tax-reset plans, with Friedman saying he doesn’t expect to deal salaried players to get back under the tax for 2023.
2. Could more arbitration results be on the way?
Both of the past two days, we’ve heard the results of an arbitration hearing. Diego Castillo lost his case against the Mariners on Wednesday, while yesterday Luis Arraez won his case against the Marlins. More arbitration case results will trickle in throughout the next few days, including such big names like Bo Bichette and Max Fried, still waiting to finalize their 2023 contracts. Up until the last minute, teams and players are always free to agree to a deal to avoid arbitration, whether it’s on a one-year contract or on a multi-year extension — we’ve also seen such players as Jeff McNeil, Dylan Moore, and Yandy Diaz all sign extensions in recent days.
3. Will the Greinke deal be made official at last?
Ever since Zack Greinke re-signed with the Royals on a one-year deal, the wait has been on for the contract to become official. MLB.com’s Anne Rogers has said the signing can be expected to be made official this week, and whenever the move is made, the Royals will need to make a corresponding transaction to clear 40-man roster space. The Royals hope Greinke will help stabilize the rotation, as the veteran returns to pitch his ninth season in Kansas City and the 20th overall season of his excellent career. Though durability is a concern at Greinke’s age (39) and over 3247 innings of mileage on his arm, the right-hander has still delivered solid production. He posted ERA+ of 111 in 2022, marking his seventeenth consecutive season with an above-average mark in that metric.
The Opener: Darwinzon, Mariners, Player Chat
With less than eight weeks remaining until Opening Day, here are three things we’ll be keeping an eye on around the baseball world throughout the day today:
1. Hernandez DFA comes due:
Lefty reliever Darwinzon Hernandez was designated for assignment by the Orioles last week, and the conclusion to that is expected sometime today. Hernandez was DFA’d to make room for Cole Irvin on the 40-man roster following his acquisition by Baltimore from the A’s. Hernandez was a rather successful reliever for the Red Sox from 2019-2021, posting a 3.66 ERA (131 ERA+) and 3.85 FIP over 78 2/3 innings, despite walking 17% of his opponents along the way. The lack of command caught up to him in 2022, however, as he walked 18% of his opponents, yielded four long balls and served up 16 runs in just 6 2/3 innings (21.60 ERA).
Those struggles led to the Red Sox DFA Hernandez earlier this offseason, at which point he was claimed off waivers by the Orioles, who now hope to pass Hernandez through waivers themselves. If Hernandez makes it through waivers, Baltimore will be able to assign him outright to Triple-A, where he can serve as bullpen depth for them in 2023.
2. Arbitration for Mariners, Hernandez looms:
Yesterday, the Mariners sorted out two of their three outstanding arbitration cases, with the club winning its arbitration case against righty reliever Diego Castillo in the afternoon before going on to ink utilityman Dylan Moore to a three-year extension in the evening. That leaves one unresolved arbitration case for Seattle, and it’s perhaps the most important one: right fielder Teoscar Hernandez, whom the Mariners acquired from the Blue Jays via trade earlier this offseason. Of players and clubs who exchanged arbitration figures this offseason, Hernandez and Seattle have the largest gap between their asks: $2MM, with Hernandez filing for $16MM and the Mariners countering at $14MM. Hernandez is set to become a free agent following the 2023 season.
3. MLBTR Player Chat today:
MLBTR is excited to continue our player live chat series by welcoming right-hander Scott Feldman, who pitched in 13 MLB seasons. The best years of his career came from 2013-2015, when he pitched to a 3.83 ERA (4.13 FIP) across 77 starts and 470 1/3 innings for the Cubs, Orioles, and Astros. In swapping uniforms from the Cubs to the Orioles ahead of the 2013 trade deadline, Feldman was packaged with Steve Clevenger in exchange for Pedro Strop and future NL Cy Young award winner Jake Arrieta. Overall, Feldman pitched to a 4.43 ERA with an identical 4.43 FIP across 1386 1/3 innings and suited up for the Rangers, Cubs, Orioles, Astros, and Reds throughout his time in the big leagues. Be sure to tune in at noon CST** today for Feldman’s live chat, where he will field questions from MLBTR readers!
**We initially mistakenly listed Scott’s chat at 10am CST. It will be held at noon CST. Apologies for the error.