Avisail Garcia Declines Mutual Option, Becomes Free Agent
Brewers outfielder Avisail Garcia has declined his half of a $12MM mutual option for the 2022 season, reports MLB Network’s Jon Heyman (Twitter link). He’ll instead receive a $2MM buyout and head out into the free agent market in search of another multi-year deal.
Garcia, 31 next June, struggled through the 2020 season in Milwaukee but enjoyed one of the finest seasons of his career in a rebound 2021 showing. The former Tigers, White Sox and Rays slugger swatted a career-best 29 home runs this season while posting a strong .262/.330/.490 batting line — about 15 percent better than league-average production, by measure of wRC+. His original two-year, $20MM deal with the Brewers came with a $12MM club option that the team could very well have exercised. However, the contract also contained a provision that converted that option into a mutual option with enough plate appearances, and Garcia reached that threshold back in September, earning the right to return to the free-agent market.
This will be the second foray into the free-agent market for Garcia, who posted a similar 113 wRC+ mark in his last platform year (2019). However, Garcia hit for more power in ’21 than he did in ’19 and also drew better defensive grades for his outfield work this year (in part because the 2019 Rays occasionally deployed him in center, to sub-par results).
Another multi-year deal for Garcia seems quite likely, as he’s wrapped up a strong season and further solidified the notion that he’s capable of being a team’s everyday right fielder. Garcia crushed lefties in 2021 (.279/.406/.529), as he is wont to do, and delivered league-average output against right-handed opponents. The question for him in free agency will be the extent by which he can eclipse his prior contract.
The improved power output and defensive ratings are obvious points in Garcia’s favor, but he’s now also two years older than last time around. His 2021 Statcast profile is quite appealing, as Garcia ranked in the 73rd percentile of MLB hitters in average exit velocity and had strong percentile showings in hard-hit rate (78th), expected batting average (83rd), expected slugging (87th), expected wOBA (85th) and sprint speed (88th). Then again, much of that was true in 2019 (albeit not quite to this extent).
Garcia has long shown a knack for hard contact and far more speed than one would expect from a player listed at 6’4″ and 250 pounds. The 2021 season, however, is the first that he’s delivered truly high-end power output with the type of plus defensive ratings that align with his tantalizing tool set. The Brewers technically have the right to make him an $18.4MM qualifying offer, but that’d register as something of a surprise given the typically tight payroll in Milwaukee.
Athletics Decline Jake Diekman’s Option
The Athletics have declined their 2022 option on left-hander Jake Diekman, per an announcement from the MLBPA that lists Diekman as an official free agent. The A’s held a $4MM team option on Diekman but will instead pay him a $750K buyout. Opting against a net $3.25MM price on Diekman only further adds to the expectation that the A’s will pare back their payroll this winter.
Set to turn 35 in January, Diekman wasn’t as sharp in 2021 as he was in 2020, when he notched a sub-1.00 ERA through 20 innings in the shortened season. However, he still pitched to a respectable 3.86 ERA with a huge 31.9% strikeout rate and a heater that averaged 95.6 mph (up from last year’s 95.3 mph). Diekman walked an ugly 13% of his opponents in 2021, but that level of shaky command is nothing new for the lefty. He’s walked 12.7% of his career opponents, and the A’s (like every other team that acquires Diekman) knew what they were getting when they signed Diekman to a two-year, $7MM deal in the 2019-20 offseason.
It’d have been more surprising to see Diekman bought out had the Athletics not already stunningly allowed longtime manager Bob Melvin depart to manage the Padres — a move largely believed to be financially motivated. Spending $3.25MM on a 36-year-old reliever, even a pretty good one, wasn’t in the cards for a club looking to scale back its expenditures.
That said, Diekman is a hard-throwing lefty who has posted a combined 2.96 ERA and a 32.9% strikeout rate across the past two seasons out of the Oakland bullpen. He averaged 1.48 home runs per nine innings this year, a rather alarming uptick from the career 0.55 mark he carried into 2021, but Diekman still throws hard and racks up strikeouts in droves. He was also harder on righties than on lefties this season — a trend throughout his career — which should reduce any potential platoon concerns.
Another multi-year deal can’t be ruled out in free agency, although given Diekman’s age and this year’s home run surge, a one-year pact still could be more likely. Still, it’s a thin crop of left-handed relievers this winter, so he ought to find another club willing to guarantee him a few million dollars on a one-year pact, at the least. It’s possible that he comes out ahead in the ordeal, topping a $3.25MM guarantee, although one would imagine that the A’s looked around for potential trade matches before simply declining the option.
Cardinals Decline Options On Matt Carpenter, Carlos Martinez
The Cardinals have declined their 2022 options on infielder Matt Carpenter and right-hander Carlos Martinez, the MLBPA announced. Carpenter had an $18.5MM club option with a $2MM buyout, whereas Martinez’s contract included a $17MM option with a $500K buyout. It was a foregone conclusion that the pair of options would be bought out after poor 2021 showings for both longtime Cardinals, who are now free agents for the first time in their careers.
Carpenter, 36 in three weeks, still draws plenty of walks (11.4%) and makes a lot of hard contact — but much of that hard contact is pulled on the ground into an eagerly awaiting shift. Just shy of 75% of Carpenter’s ground-balls were pulled this season, so it’s hardly a surprise that he batted .143 on ground-balls despite a leaguewide average of .236 on grounders. It’s a similar story on line-drives; Carpenter pulled exactly two-thirds of his liners this season and hit .536 — whereas the league average on line drives was a much larger .689.
Prior to his recent decline, Carpenter was a fixture in the St. Louis batting order who made a trio of All-Star teams and thrice drew MVP votes in the National League — including a fourth-place finish in 2013. Since Opening Day 2020, however, he’s managed just a .176/.313/.291 batting line with a 29.9% strikeout rate. Carpenter has made clear he wants to play in 2022, but it’ll almost certainly require him signing on with a new team, as the Cardinals’ infield is quite crowded. Even if the DH comes to the National League, Carpenter’s 2020-21 swoon probably wouldn’t make him a top consideration for the Cards.
Martinez’s decline was even swifter and was far less expected. Still just 30 years old, the righty was limited to 48 2/3 innings by a shoulder strain in 2019 but remained highly effective when he did take the mound that year. From 2015-19, he looked like a rotation building block — hence his $51MM contract extension — as he logged 747 innings of 3.22 ERA ball with a strong 23.7% strikeout rate and a 9.0% walk rate.
However, in 2020, Martinez was blown up for a 9.90 ERA in 20 innings, and after a strong run in mid-April and May this season, his season took a catastrophic nose dive. Martinez served up 10 runs against the Dodgers on June 2 and was tagged for five runs in three of his next four starts. His season ultimately ended with a 6.23 ERA through 82 1/3 innings and a torn ligament on his thumb that landed him on the 60-day IL. Dating back to Opening Day 2020, Martinez owns a 6.95 ERA and a woeful 6.0 K-BB% that would’ve seemed unfathomable just a few years ago.
Rockies Decline Option On Ian Desmond
The Rockies have declined their 2022 club option on infielder/outfielder Ian Desmond, tweets MLB Network’s Jon Heyman. It’d have paid him $15MM, but he’ll instead receive a $2MM buyout.
It’s wholly unsurprising news after Desmond forwent his salary and opted out of both the 2020 and 2021 seasons. The former Nationals star signed a five-year, $70MM contract with the Rockies during the 2016 Winter Meetings. It was an unexpected fit, and the Rockies’ attempts to install Desmond as their primary first baseman proved to be a sizable misstep, as Desmond never really found his footing despite the hitter-friendly nature of his home park.
Desmond posted just a .274/.326/.375 batting line (70 wRC+) in his first season with the Rockies and never seemed to gain comfort playing at first base. By 2019, he was back in the outfield full-time and was a bit more productive at the plate, although still nowhere near his previous standard. Ultimately, Desmond suited up for three years with the Rockies and turned in a combined .252/.313/.429 batting line (81 wRC+).
It’s not clear at this time whether Desmond will return to baseball. In announcing his decision to opt out of the season back in February, Desmond used the phrase “for now” and indicated a strong desire to be with his family following a trying year in 2020. As Anna Katherine Clemmons of the New York Times wrote in an April profile of Desmond, he and his wife had recently welcomed their fifth child and he’d recently established the Newtown Connection nonprofit in Sarasota, Fla. — a program that “allows youth to participate in modified, inclusive, and fast-paced baseball activities, drills, and games to develop their skills” and “uses competitive baseball and softball experiences to promote character development and an active lifestyle, instilling the values of leadership, accountability, teamwork, and the pursuit of excellence,” per the program’s web site.
Now 36 years old, Desmond is a two-time All-Star and three-time Silver Slugger Award winner who carries a career .263/.315/.427 batting line with matching totals of 181 home runs and 181 stolen bases.
Latest Mets’ Front Office Rumblings
As names continue to be bandied about in the Mets’ front office search, MLB Network’s Jon Heyman reports that Twins assistant general manager Daniel Adler will be staying put. It’s not clear whether Adler had a formal interview. He was previously reported to be “on the Mets’ radar,” but both Heyman and SNY’s Andy Martino suggest that Adler prefers to remain in Minnesota rather than pursue outside opportunities — be it with the Mets or another club.
Adler has spent the past four-plus years in the Twins’ front office. Initially hired as the team’s director of baseball operations, he was bumped up to assistant general manager over the 2019-20 offseason. Prior to being hired by Minnesota, the now 34-year-old Adler spent a few seasons working in research and development with the NFL’s Jacksonville Jaguars.
Apparently, Adler has decided to spend at least one more season with the Twins, although it wouldn’t be a surprise if his name comes up in other executive searches in future offseasons. For now, his decision to stay put removes another candidate for the Mets, whose search for a new baseball operations leader has already seen numerous targets either take themselves out of consideration or not receive permission from their current clubs to interview with New York.
While Adler’s no longer in the running for the position, another candidate has emerged. The Mets are considering Orioles assistant GM Sig Mejdal as part of their ongoing search, report Dan Connolly and Britt Ghiroli of the Athletic (Twitter link), although they caution it’s unclear as of yet whether Mejdal has interest in the position.
Mejdal has spent the past three seasons as an AGM with Baltimore, serving as a top lieutenant for baseball ops leader Mike Elias. Mejdal, 55, followed Elias to the O’s after six years working together in the Astros’ front office. A former NASA biomathematician, Mejdal has been a key member of Elias’ analytics staff in Baltimore.
MLBTR Chat Transcript
Click here to read a transcript of Tuesday’s chat with MLBTR’s Steve Adams.
Nationals To Name Gary DiSarcina Third Base Coach
The Nationals are bringing veteran big league coach Gary DiSarcina aboard as their new third base coach, reports Jesse Dougherty of the Washington Post (Twitter thread). They’re also bringing assistant hitting coach Pat Roessler back in that same role.
The 53-year-old DiSarcina had a 12-year playing career as a shortstop with the Angels, appearing in the big leagues each season from 1989-2000. He spent time in the Halos’ front office and then as a minor league manager in the years following his retirement, but his past eight seasons have been spent on big league coaching staffs.
DiSarcina spent three years as a base coach with the Angels organization before heading to the Red Sox — where he’d previously managed in Triple-A — to serve as bench coach. His next stop came with the Mets, again as a bench coach in 2018, and then as third base coach fort he past three seasons.
Roessler, 61, has been the Nats’ assistant hitting coach in each of the past two seasons. Like DiSarcina, he’d been with the Mets prior to his time in D.C. After a lengthy stint in the Yankees’ player development department (including a run as their farm director), he joined the Mets’ coaching staff in 2015: first as an assistant hitting coach and, by 2018, as their lead hitting coach.
There’s been a fair bit of turnover on the Nationals’ staff already this offseason. Hitting coach Kevin Long departed to take the same job with the division-rival Phillies, prompting the Nats to bring Darnell Coles back to the organization to join the Major League staff in that role. Recently retired outfielder Eric Young Jr. is lined up to serve as the Nationals’ new first base coach, replacing Randy Knorr. DiSarcina will be replacing Bob Henley. Both Knorr and Henley were reassigned to player development roles earlier in the offseason.
Rotation Market Rumors: Kershaw, Gausman, Giants, DeSclafani
Clayton Kershaw’s 2021 season didn’t go as hoped. The Dodgers icon was sharp when healthy and posted his best K-BB% (25.3) since 2017, ultimately logging a 3.55 ERA in 121 1/3 innings with even better fielding-independent marks. That said, Kershaw also missed more than two months due to a forearm injury and was only able to briefly return before a recurrence of that same issue wiped him out for the postseason. Asked at his end-of-season press conference whether Kershaw would be viewed differently than other free agents because of his history with the club, president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman told reporters that’s likely to be the case (Twitter link via MLB.com’s Juan Toribio):
“Yeah, I think that’s fair,” said Friedman. “Obviously what he’s meant to this organization, to the city — from his standpoint, I think it’s all about what makes sense for him and Ellen and their family. … “I think, taking off my president of baseball operations hat, there’s something nostalgic and great about Kersh playing with one team and being able to win another championship and having a parade.”
Friedman noted that Kershaw has earned the right to do what’s best for his family but spoke glowingly of the lefty’s legacy and implied a desire to continue the relationship. Kershaw reportedly won’t require surgery, and the Dodgers will have the option of making a qualifying offer to the veteran southpaw.
More notes on the looming free-agent market for starting pitchers…
- There’s a “strong” chance that the Giants will push to work out a multi-year deal to keep Kevin Gausman atop their rotation, per Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle. The Giants value the chemistry that was developed during this year’s postseason push and have interest in maintaining some continuity, which could lead them to explore reunions with any of Gausman, Anthony DeSclafani and Alex Wood. San Francisco president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi has already gone on record to call the rotation the team’s “number one priority” this offseason, no surprise given the impending free agencies of Gausman, DeSclafani, Wood and Johnny Cueto (whose $22MM club option will assuredly be bought out for $5MM). The Giants have about as much payroll flexibility as any team in baseball, giving Zaidi and his staff myriad options in rebuilding the rotation over the coming months. It certainly stands to reason they’ll be active in the market for Gausman, who has an even 3.00 ERA with stellar strikeout and walk numbers (30% and 6.5%, respectively) over 251 2/3 innings in black and orange since the start of 2020.
- Gausman received a qualifying offer last winter, making him ineligible for another in his career. The Giants will have to decide whether to offer an $18.4MM QO to one or both of DeSclafani and Wood in the coming days, though. Grant Brisbee of the Athletic opines the club should offer a QO to DeSclafani based on the aforementioned rotation uncertainty and payroll flexibility. Signed to a bounceback deal last offseason following a poor 2020 with the Reds, DeSclafani made 31 starts and worked 167 2/3 innings of 3.17 ERA/4.11 SIERA ball this past season. Brisbee doesn’t expect San Francisco to risk that lofty one-year sum on a QO for Wood, however. Also a low-cost flier last winter, Wood impressed with 138 2/3 frames with a 3.83 ERA/3.60 SIERA. Injuries limited the veteran southpaw to just 48 1/3 combined innings from 2019-20, though, and it remains to be seen how much of an effect durability concerns could have on Wood’s free agent market this time around.
Cardinals Assistant Hitting Coach Jobel Jimenez Won’t Return In 2022
Cardinals assistant hitting coach Jobel Jimenez won’t return to the club in 2022, reports Jeff Jones of the Belleville News-Democrat (Twitter links). Jimenez was offered a position as a roving instructor on the minor league side of the organization but turned down the reassignment.
The departure of Jimenez is the first notable change to newly tabbed manager Oliver Marmol’s 2022 staff. The Cardinals stunned onlookers by abruptly parting ways with former skipper Mike Shildt and quickly elevated Marmol to the manager’s chair just over a week after firing Shildt.
Jimenez, like Shildt is a longtime Cardinals fixture who first joined the organization back in 2007 (as profiled in this 2019 piece by Anne Rogers of MLB.com). Initially hired as the hitting instructor of the Cardinals’ affiliate in the Venezuelan Summer League, he steadily rose through the Cardinals’ system and served as a hitting coach at various minor league stops before being added to the big league staff, under Shildt, in 2019. Rogers notes that Jimenez has previously worked as a scout and and instructor in the Mariners and Dodgers organizations as well.
After being bounced by the Dodgers in the National League Wild Card game, the Cardinals were reportedly mulling an extension for Shildt and leaning toward retaining the entire coaching staff. Shildt’s firing and the attempted reassignment of Jimenez represent a rapid about-face from that direction. It’s not clear whether additional changes to the staff can be anticipated, though they’ll obviously need to hire a new bench coach now that Marmol has been elevated from that position to manager. The Cards have yet to formally announce Marmol’s coaching group for the upcoming season.
Royals Release Ryan McBroom To Sign With Team In Asia
The Royals on Monday announced that they’ve requested unconditional release waivers on first baseman/outfielder Ryan McBroom. The move, according to the Royals, was made in order to allow McBroom to sign with a professional club in Asia. Kansas City did not divulge whether McBroom will be signing with a team in Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball, the Korea Baseball Organization or the Chinese Professional Baseball League in Taiwan. Wherever McBroom lands, the Royals will likely receive some minor financial compensation for facilitating the move.
McBroom, 29, has been up and down between Triple-A and the big leagues for the past three seasons, posting a .268/.322/.427 slash with six home runs and eight doubles through 177 Major League plate appearances. He’s punched out at an alarming 34.5% clip during that time and walked in 6.8% of his plate appearances.
With top prospect Nick Pratto looming and likely to debut early next season, plus the likes of Carlos Santana, Hunter Dozier and several outfielders ahead of him on the depth chart, McBroom wasn’t likely to see an uptick in playing time moving forward. A jump to an Asian club, whether it’s NPB, the KBO or the CPBL, will afford him more regular playing time and quite likely a notable increase in pay over what he’d have made splitting his time between Triple-A Omaha and the occasional big league promotion.
While McBroom has yet to piece things together in limited big league experience, he’ll head overseas with a strong track record in the upper minors. McBroom has appeared in parts of three Triple-A seasons and turned in a much heartier .290/.361/.517 batting line through 1363 plate appearances with the Triple-A affiliates for both the Yankees and the Royals. He’ll turn 30 next April, but with a good few seasons of play in a foreign professional league, he could eventually follow a Darin Ruf-esque path to the big leagues if that’s his eventual goal.
The Royals’ 40-man roster was already at 38 players, and McBroom’s departure will drop that total to 37 players.