Orioles Rumors

Orioles Outright Eric Hanhold

By Jeff Todd | January 13, 2020 at 8:56pm CDT

The Orioles announced today that righty Eric Hanhold was outrighted to Triple-A after clearing waivers. He had recently been designated for assignment but did not draw interest from other organizations.

Hanhold already moved once via the waiver wire in recent months, when the Baltimore org claimed him last fall from the Mets. No doubt the O’s knew all along there may be a need for the roster spot, but felt there’d be a chance of stashing Hanhold if he cleared waivers.

Now, the 26-year-old University of Florida product will head to camp with a tougher path to the active roster. But he should have his chances in a wide-open Orioles pen situation.

Hanhold has only three big league appearances under his belt. The reliever has pitched to a 2.25 ERA in forty frames at the Double-A level but has not found as much success at the highest level of the minors. In 67 2/3 innings at Triple-A over the past two seasons, he carries a 5.32 ERA with 7.4 K/9 and 3.7 BB/9.

Orioles, Bryan Holaday Agree To Minor League Deal

By Steve Adams | January 13, 2020 at 9:20am CDT

9:20am: The Orioles have announced the signing.

9:12am: The Orioles have agreed to a minor league pact with veteran catcher Bryan Holaday, Craig Mish of FNTSY Radio reports (via Twitter). The Lagardere Sports client will presumably head to Major League Spring Training as a non-roster invitee in hopes of landing a backup job in Baltimore.

Holaday, 32, spent the past two seasons in the Marlins organization and saw action at the MLB level in each campaign, hitting a combined .237/.297/.335 with five homers and 11 doubles in 295 trips to the plate. He threw out 34.9 percent of attempted thieves on the bases in his two years with Miami (22-for-63) and rated solidly in terms of pitch blocking, per Baseball Prospectus. After turning a corner in the framing department in 2018, his numbers backed up toward their (below-average) career norms in 2019.

At present, it seems likely that the Orioles will rely on Chance Sisco and Pedro Severino as their primary options behind the dish, but it’s possible that the club could want Sisco to log everyday at-bats in Triple-A Norfolk if he doesn’t show well in Spring Training.

Sisco, a second-round pick in 2013, has long rated as one of the Orioles’ best prospects (and one of baseball’s best catching prospects), but he’s yet to find much success in the Majors. Injuries limited him to a combined 394 plate appearances between Triple-A and the big leagues in 2019, which surely didn’t help his cause. He has one minor league option year remaining, so the O’s could still send the 24-year-old to Triple-A for refinement if they wish. Severino, on the other hand, is out of minor league options.

Elsewhere on the 40-man roster is 29-year-old Austin Wynns. He’s regarded as a solid defender but hasn’t hit much in the upper minors or in the Majors. Like Sisco, he has a minor league option remaining. Holaday will have to beat out both Sisco and Wynns to get a look out of camp. If not, he could head to Triple-A and give the organization an eight-year MLB veteran to provide depth in Norfolk.

Orioles Notes: Urena, Catching

By Mark Polishuk | January 12, 2020 at 11:22am CDT

Richard Urena was recently acquired by the Orioles on a waiver claim, though the infielder could have theoretically ended up in the black and orange five years ago, MASNsports.com’s Roch Kubatko writes. When the Blue Jays considered the possibility of trading prospects to Baltimore as compensation for hiring Dan Duquette out of his contract as the O’s executive VP of baseball operations, Kubatko notes that Urena was one of the names the Jays offered. Talks never went anywhere, however, and Toronto instead hired Mark Shapiro as its new president and CEO in mid-2015. As for Urena, he stands a good chance at winning a bench job in Baltimore, as the Orioles were in need of a backup shortstop option behind Jose Iglesias.
Another Orioles move could also be on the way, as Kubatko reports that the team is close to adding an experienced catcher. It’s probably safe to assume that this will be a minor league signing, as the Orioles already have a fair amount of catching depth with Chance Sisco, Pedro Severino, and Austin Wynns lined up behind the plate.

Players Avoiding Arbitration: American League

By Steve Adams and Jeff Todd | January 10, 2020 at 7:00pm CDT

Entering the day, there were more than 150 players on the clock to exchange arbitration figures with their respective teams prior to a noon ET deadline. As one would expect, there’ll be an utter landslide of arbitration agreements in advance of that deadline. We already ran through some key facts and reminders on the arbitration process earlier this morning for those who are unfamiliar or simply need a refresher on one of MLB’s most complex idiosyncrasies, which will hopefully clear up many questions readers might have.

We’ll track the majority of the American League’s settlements in this post and split off a separate one for NL settlements as well. Note that all projections referenced come courtesy of MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz:

Newly acquired Angels righty Dylan Bundy receives a $5MM salary, per Jon Heyman of MLB Network (Twitter links). He had projected at a $5.7MM price tag. Teammate Hansel Robles gets $3.85MM, per Heyman, just shy of his $4MM projection.
The Yankees have worked out deals with all of their eligible players. The team has a hefty $8.5MM pact with Aaron Judge, per MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand (via Twitter). Backstop Gary Sanchez settled for $5MM, per Feinsand (via Twitter). The New York org will pay righty Luis Cessa $895K and Jonathan Holder $750K, Murray reports (Twitter links). Fellow reliever Tommy Kahnle will earn $2.65MM, per Jon Heyman of MLB Network (via Twitter). And star lefty James Paxton has settled at $12.5MM, Heyman adds via Twitter. Chad Green and Jordan Montgomery have also agreed to terms, the former at $1.275MM and the latter at $805K, per Heyman (Twitter links).
The Twins announced that they struck deals with Trevor May, Taylor Rogers, Eddie Rosario and Byron Buxton. Jon Heyman of MLB Network followed up with salary terms (all links to Twitter). May earns $2,205,000; Rogers takes home $4.45MM; Rosario lands at $7.75MM; and Buxton receives $3.075MM. While the first and last of those land rather close to the projected amount, Rogers got $550K more and Rosario got $1.15MM less than the calculators predicted.
Shortstop Carlos Correa settled with the Astros for $8MM, per MLB.com’s Brian McTaggart (via Twitter). Righty Brad Peacock lands at a $3.9MM salary, per Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle (Twitter link). The former went for more than his $7.4MM projection, while the latter ended up shy of the $4.6MM mark produced by the computers. The ’Stros also have agreed with closer Roberto Osuna as well, per an announcement. It’s a $10MM deal, slotting in just $200K shy of his projection, per Rome (via Twitter).
The Orioles have a deal with outfielder/first baseman Trey Mancini, Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com tweets. It’s for $4.75MM, per Dan Connolly of The Athletic (via Twitter), well south of the $5.7MM projection.
Outfielder Jorge Soler has agreed to a $7.3MM deal with the Royals, MLB.com’s Jeffrey Flanagan tweets. That’s well off of the $11.2MM that MLBTR’s model projected, though it is likely that the cause of the gulf lies in the interpretation of the correct baseline to start from in building Soler’s salary. He’s in the 4+ service class but had been playing on the original deal he signed out of Cuba.
The Tigers have a deal in place with southpaw Matthew Boyd, per Anthony Fenech of the Detroit Free Press (via Twitter). It’ll pay him $5.3MM, per Chris McCosky of the Detroit News (Twitter link). That falls comfortably below the $6.4MM, suggesting that Boyd’s camp was concerned with the way his suboptimal ERA would play in the arb process. Fellow lefty starter Daniel Norris will earn $2.96MM, McCosky tweets.

Earlier Settlements

Carlos Rodon ($4.45MM) and Nomar Mazara ($5.56MM) each have deals with the White Sox, per Robert Murray (Twitter links). The former was projected at $4.5MM after an injury limited season, making for an expectedly light raise on his $4.2MM salary from the prior campaign. The latter, recently acquired from the Rangers, comes in just under the $5.7MM the MLBTR model projected. The Chicago organization also announced that it has agreed to terms with infielder Leury Garcia for $3.25MM and righty Evan Marshall for $1.1MM.
The Angels have a $900K deal in place with righty Noe Ramirez, per Maria Torres of the Los Angeles Times (via Twitter).
Recently acquired Indians outfielder Delino DeShields Jr. will play for $1.875MM, per Paul Hoynes of the Plain Dealer (via Twitter).
Tigers outfielder JaCoby Jones will play for $1.575MM, per Anthony Fenech of the Detroit Free Press (via Twitter).
Righty Buck Farmer will earn $1.15MM from the Tigers, Robert Murray reports on Twitter.

The Rays will pay righty Oliver Drake $1.025MM, according to Murray (via Twitter). Infielder Daniel Robertson will play for the same rate, per John Romano of the Tampa Bay Times (via Twitter).
The White Sox signed closer Alex Colome to a one-year deal worth $10.5325MM, tweets Jesse Sanchez of MLB.com. A free agent next winter, Colome had been projected to earn $10.3MM. Chicago also settled at $1.1MM with righty Evan Marshall, per Robert Murray. He was projected at $1.3MM.
Infielder Gio Urshela and the Yankees agreed to a $2.475MM that tops his $2.2MM projection, tweets Murray.
The Rangers agreed to deals with Joey Gallo ($4.4MM) and Danny Santana ($3.6MM), Jon Heyman of MLB Network reports (Twitter links). Murray adds that righty Rafael Montero gets $785K from Texas. Gallo bested his $4MM projection, while Santana fell shy of his $3.9MM projection and Montero cam in south of his $900K number.
Right-hander Nick Wittgren and the Indians are in agreement on a one-year, $1.125MM deal that checks in a bit south of his $1.3MM projection, per Murray.
The Mariners agreed to terms with outfielders Mitch Haniger ($3.01MM) and Mallex Smith ($2.35MM), tweets Murray. Haniger’s salary is a near-exact match with his $3MM projection, though Smith clocks in a bit south of his $2.7MM figure.
Right-hander Chris Devenski and the Astros settled on a $2MM salary that aligns perfectly with his $2MM projected salary, tweets Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle.
The Angels and infielder Tommy La Stella agreed to a $3.25MM deal that tops his $2.9MM projection, per MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand.
Orioles infielder Hanser Alberto will be paid $1.65MM in 2020, tweets Joe Trezza of MLB.com. He was projected at $1.9MM.
The Twins and right-hander Tyler Duffey agreed to a $1.2MM deal, tweets Darren Wolfson of 1500 SKOR North radio. That’s $100K north of his $1.1MM projection in the first of three trips through arbitration.
Southpaw Andrew Heaney and the Angels agreed on a $4.3MM salary, tweets Mark Feinsand of MLB.com. That’s quite a bit shy of the flat $5MM he was projected to earn on the heels of an injury-shortened campaign. A Super Two player, Heaney will be arb-eligible once more next winter.
Infielder/outfielder Chad Pinder and the Athletics settled on a one-year, $2.025MM deal, tweets Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle. That tops the $1.8MM at which he was projected in his first year of eligibility.
The Orioles and righty Mychal Givens settled at $3.225MM, tweets USA Today’s Bob Nightengale. It’s nearly a dead match with the $3.2MM projection of Givens, who’ll be arbitration-eligible once more next winter before hitting free agency after the 2021 season.
Outfielder Hunter Renfroe and the Rays agreed to a $3.3MM deal, tweets Nightengale. That checks in $100K south of the $3.4MM projection for Renfroe, who’ll be arb-eligible three more times.
Nightengale also tweets that the Blue Jays and Matt Shoemaker agreed to a $4.2MM contract, topping his $3.8MM projection by a sum of $400K. He’ll be a free agent next winter.
The Indians and outfielder Tyler Naquin settled at $1.45MM, tweets Mark Feinsand of MLB.com. He falls shy of his $1.8MM projection in the first of three trips through arb.
Righty Matt Barnes and the Red Sox have agreed to a $3.1MM deal, also via Feinsand. He was projected to earn $3MM as a second-time-eligible player. Nightengale adds that right-hander Heath Hembree and the Sox agreed to a $1.6125MM deal, which nearly matches his $1.6MM projection.
The Rays and righty Tyler Glasnow agreed to a $2.05MM salary for the upcoming season, MLBTR has learned. That salary clocks in north of his $1.9MM projection. As a Super Two player, Glasnow will be eligible for arbitration thrice more.
The Angels have agreed to a one-year pact with right-hander Keynan Middleton that’ll pay him $800K, tweets Robert Murray. That’s an exact match with the projection for Middleton, who underwent Tommy John surgery in 2018 but returned to the mound in 2019.
Righty Sam Tuivailala and the Mariners agreed to an $800K salary for the upcoming season, tweets Murray. He was projected to earn $900K after returning from 2018 surgery to repair a tear in his Achilles tendon.

Orioles Claim Richard Urena, Designate Pat Valaika

By Jeff Todd | January 10, 2020 at 4:11pm CDT

The Orioles have claimed infielder Richard Urena off waivers from the Blue Jays, per a club announcement. Fellow infielder Pat Valaika was designated for assignment to create roster space.

Urena becomes the latest young infielder to earn a look in Baltimore. Of course, the same would’ve been said of Valaika, who was claimed earlier in the offseason but now ends up back in DFA limbo. He could still get a shot in camp if he clears waivers and remains with the Baltimore organization.

The O’s will hope that there’s still some development left for Urena, who hasn’t quite grown into the promise he has shown at times. He’s still over a month shy of his 24th birthday and hasn’t received consistent opportunities in the majors, though he has struggled about as much at the plate in the upper minors as he has at the MLB level.

Urena has turned in a .367 OBP through 159 plate appearances in the Dominican Winter League. But that’s driven by a lofty batting average (.292) and hasn’t come with much power (2 home runs, .365 slugging percentage). Perhaps he can squeak onto the roster as a utility player even if he doesn’t show an uptick with the bat. Otherwise, the out-of-options Urena could end up being exposed to waivers once again.

Orioles Avoid Arbitration With Miguel Castro

By Mark Polishuk | January 9, 2020 at 3:38pm CDT

The Orioles have avoided arbitration with right-hander Miguel Castro, MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand reports (via Twitter). The two sides agreed to a one-year, $1.05MM deal with the right-hander, which falls just below the $1.2MM salary projected by MLBTR’s Matt Swartz.

A first-time arbitration-eligible player, Castro is coming off a season that saw him post a 4.66 ERA, 8.7 K/9, and 1.73 K/BB rate over 73 1/3 IP out of Baltimore’s pen. The hard-throwing righty enjoyed a big boost in strikeouts over the 5.6 K/9 he posted over the 2017-18 seasons, though control continued to be an issue for Castro, as he hit the 5.0 BB/9 plateau for the second consecutive year. On the plus side, Statcast’s xwOBA metric indicated that Castro did a much better job of limiting hard contact in 2019 (.294 xwOBA) than he did in 2018 (.353), even though Castro’s ERA jumped from 3.96 in 2018 to his 4.66 figure last year.

With contracts for Castro and Richard Bleier now settled, the Orioles have three arbitration-eligible players remaining, as per MLBTR’s Arb Tracker — Trey Mancini ($5.7MM projected salary), Mychal Givens ($3.2MM), and Hanser Alberto ($1.9MM). Teams have until 11am CT tomorrow to exchange figures with their arb-eligible players.

Orioles Outright Marcos Diplan To Triple-A

By Mark Polishuk | January 9, 2020 at 3:21pm CDT

The Orioles have outrighted right-hander Marcos Diplan to Triple-A Norfolk, the team announced. Diplan cleared waivers after being designated for assignment last week to create roster space for the newly-signed Kohl Stewart. Diplan has a 3.88 ERA, 9.1 K/9, and 1.85 K/BB rate over 540 2/3 career minor league innings, working mostly as a reliever (starting seven of 38 total appearances) in 2019, pitching for the Double-A affiliates of the Twins and Brewers. It has been a busy transactional stretch for Diplan, who was claimed off Minnesota’s waiver wire by the Tigers in September, and then claimed again by the Orioles in December.

Orioles Designate Eric Hanhold

By Jeff Todd | January 7, 2020 at 12:42pm CDT

The Orioles have designated righty Eric Hanhold for assignment, the club announced. His roster spot goes to infielder Jose Iglesias, whose signing is now official.

Hanhold never made it into an O’s uniform before he lost his 40-man spot, though it’s still possible he’ll end up with the organization if he clears waivers. He was claimed from the Mets in September.

Outside of a three-game MLB stint in 2018, Hanhold has plied his trade in the top reaches of the New York farm since coming over as the player to be named later in the trade that sent Neil Walker to the Brewers. Hanhold pitched to a 3.84 ERA with 7.7 K/9 and 3.7 BB/9 in 63 1/3 upper-minors innings in 2019.

Orioles To Sign Jose Iglesias

By Connor Byrne | January 6, 2020 at 2:08pm CDT

The Orioles have reached a one-year, $3MM deal with shortstop Jose Iglesias, Mark Feinsand of MLB.com tweets. It includes a $2.5MM salary for 2020 along with a $500K buyout of a $3.5MM club option, Dan Connolly of The Athletic tweets. Iglesias is a client of MVP Sports Group.

The 30-year-old Iglesias has done much better this offseason than last, when he sat on the market until the Reds added him on a minor league agreement in late February. Iglesias, who had been a member of the Red Sox and Tigers to that point, had established himself as a slick-fielding, light-hitting shortstop before the Reds picked him up. That remained the case in Iglesias’ lone season in Cincinnati, but Iglesias nonetheless proved to be a nice bargain pickup for the club. He totaled 1.6 fWAR across 530 plate appearances last year, in which he slashed .288/.318/.407 with a career-high 11 home runs (he hadn’t hit more than six in prior seasons) across 530 plate appearances.

Now a member of the Orioles, a rebuilding, non-contending club that’s coming off back-to-back 100-loss seasons, Iglesias will take the reins at short for a team that used Richie Martin and Jonathan Villar at the position throughout 2019. Martin, a Rule 5 addition, was in over his head and now figures to spend a large portion of the upcoming season at the Triple-A level. And the Orioles traded Villar, now a Marlin, in the wake of a productive season.

Fredi Gonzalez Ready To Help Brandon Hyde On The Bench

By TC Zencka | January 5, 2020 at 10:42am CDT

Second-year Orioles’ manager Brandon Hyde will have a veteran voice in his ear this season now that Fredi Gonzalez has joined his staff. Gonzalez is listed as a general Major League Coach, but the veteran manager looks forward to being freed up to contribute in a lot of different areas, per MASN’s Roch Kubatko. Gonzalez will team with Major League Field Coordinator Tim Cossins to fill the duties traditionally assigned to a bench coach – but the important thing for the Orioles is that Hyde has another influence that he trusts as he looks to build on the development of a very young Orioles’ squad. Gonzalez certainly knows the terrain, having spent the last few seasons as the third base coach for the Miami Marlins. When the 2019 season came to a close, Gonzalez didn’t know exactly what would await him, but he decided it was time to move on from Miami and make himself a free agent. Hyde, meanwhile, managed the High-A and Double-A affiliates in Florida during Gonzalez’ managerial tenure from 2007 to 2010, and he didn’t wait long to add Gonzalez to his staff.

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