Free Agency Notes: Braves, Turner, Folty, Jays, Red Sox
The Braves are one of the teams that have checked in on free-agent third baseman Justin Turner, according to Jon Heyman of MLB Network. It’s unclear whether the Braves are among the reported four finalists for Turner, whom the Dodgers, Blue Jays and Brewers have also courted. Turner, 36, spent 2014-20 as a Dodger and was one of the majors’ most valuable third basemen in that span. There’s a clear need at the position for the Braves, who received awful production there from Austin Riley, Adeiny Hechavarría and Johan Camargo in 2020. They’ve done nothing to upgrade the spot this winter.
- Free agent right-hander Mike Foltynewicz held a showcase for interested teams Friday, Heyman reports. Foltynewicz threw between 90 and 92 mph, which checks in well below the 95.5 mph average he posted in Atlanta from 2014-20. The Braves cut Foltynewicz from their 40-man roster last July after he put up terrible results in his lone outing and averaged less than 91 mph on his fastball. But he does own a 4.33 ERA/4.26 SIERA in 686 big league innings, so there’s reason to expect a bounce-back effort in the future. The Cubs were one of the teams at his showcase, Bruce Levine of 670 The Score tweets.
- The Blue Jays are looking to continue their active offseason by adding another pitcher, reports Robert Murray of FanSided. That could take the form of a high-leverage reliever or an additional starter. Among the players under consideration, per Murray, is right-handed reliever Trevor Rosenthal. The hard-throwing Rosenthal had a fantastic rebound campaign in 2020, tossing 23.2 innings of 1.90 ERA/2.31 SIERA ball with the Royals and Padres.
- The Red Sox have interest in reuniting with corner infielder Travis Shaw and right-handed reliever Brandon Workman, Rob Bradford of WEEI.com and Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com report. Shaw was last with the Red Sox in 2016, after which they traded him to the Brewers. He was a member of the Blue Jays in 2020, and though Shaw was a solid hitter earlier in his career, he has been less productive of late. The 30-year-old slashed .239/.306/.411 in 180 plate appearances with the Blue Jays last season. As for Workman, he has spent most of his career with the Red Sox, but they dealt him to the Phillies prior to last year’s trade deadline. Workman was excellent at times in Boston bullpen in parts of 2013-19, but he could only muster a 5.95 ERA in 19 2/3 innings between the two clubs a year ago.
Red Sox, Matt Carasiti Agree To Minors Deal
The Red Sox have agreed to a minor league deal with right-hander Matt Carasiti, per WEEI’s Rob Bradford. He’ll be invited to Major League Spring Training.
Carasiti, 29, last pitched in the Majors with the Mariners in 2019, when he tossed 9 2/3 innings and yielded five runs on 11 hits and five walks with 10 strikeouts. He’s also spent time in the big leagues with the Rockies, who drafted him in the sixth round back in 2012. The right-hander may have been in the mix for some innings with the Giants last year had he not required Tommy John surgery after a handful of Spring Training appearances.
Carasiti is a Connecticut native who brings to the Red Sox a career 3.15 ERA in 100 Triple-A innings, where he’s punched out 26.2 percent of the hitters he’s faced against a 9.9 percent walk rate. The righty also spent a year with Nippon Professional Baseball’s Yakult Swallows in Japan, working to a 4.18 ERA in 94 2/3 frames. Given the timing of his Tommy John surgery, he probably won’t be ready to pitch come Spring Training, but he’ll give the Sox some Triple-A depth with a bit of big league experience once he’s ready to take the mound.
Red Sox Notes: Ottavino, Luxury Tax, Bradley Jr.
Red Sox’ Chief Baseball Officer Chaim Bloom addressed a number of questions about the offseason moves they have (and haven’t) made so far this winter, per the reporters present, including Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com, Alex Speier of the Boston Globe, and the Athletic’s Jen McCaffrey. The call was prompted by the club’s recent (and rare) transaction with their chief rival. Bloom noted that they looked “under the hood” at Adam Ottavino‘s 2020 numbers and believe the assumption of his poor performance in 2020 may be misguided. In particular, he notes one particularly poor outing against the Blue Jays in which he surrendered six earned runs without recording an out. Take out that September 7th appearance, and Ottavino’s ERA drops from 5.89 to 2.95. Of course, that outing did happen. Even so, there’s a positive read in Ottavino’s 2020 stat line: 3.52 FIP, 3.62 SIERA, 29.4 percent strikeout rate, and 10.6 percent walk rate suggest the right-hander was close to the same guy he ‘d been in 2019, when he formed an important part of the Yankees’ bullpen. Ottavino figures to play a heavy role in the back-end of Boston’s bullpen, though the dispersal of responsibilities between Ottavino and incumbent closer Matt Barnes is TBD. More from Bloom…
- The Yankees moved Ottavino to trim enough salary to duck the $210MM luxury tax line, but according to Bloom, it’s not a foregone conclusion that the Red Sox will do the same. With Ottavino in the fold, the Red Sox luxury tax payroll appears to be around $206MM, which certainly doesn’t leave very much room to spare. While the plan is to avoid the tax, that’s not a firm mandate, Bloom notes.
- Even taking Bloom at his word, it’s hard to imagine the Red Sox going over the luxury tax when so many teams these days work so diligently to avoid it – especially in a season where the Red Sox are largely projected to be an afterthought to the Rays, Yankees, and Blue Jays in the AL East. The Red Sox aren’t probably quite as quick to write off their 2021 season, of course. Still, it’s fair to wonder if they have the funds remaining to bring back Jackie Bradley Jr. The team remains in contact with Bradley, however, and plans to do so “until his free agency resolves.” Though your read may differ, Bloom’s passive word choice doesn’t project the picture of an aggressive forthcoming attempt to woo Bradley back to Fenway, despite his point here being that a reunion remains possible.
Yankees Trade Adam Ottavino To Red Sox
1:15pm: The teams have announced the trade.
11:45am: In an ultra-rare swap between AL East rivals, the Yankees have reportedly traded right-hander Adam Ottavino to the Red Sox in exchange for cash or a player to be named later. Boston will receive Ottavino and minor league right-hander Frank German from the Yankees in a move that amounts to a salary dump for the Yanks and the purchase of pitching prospect and a bullpen rebound candidate for the Red Sox.
After acquiring Jameson Taillon from the Pirates and agreeing to terms with DJ LeMahieu and Corey Kluber, the Yankees found themselves with roughly one million dollars separating them from the tax threshold, per Roster Resource’s Jason Martinez. Ottavino came with a $9MM luxury hit by virtue of the three-year, $27MM free-agent deal he signed two years ago, and the Yankees will now shave the bulk of that sum from their luxury obligations. ESPN’s Buster Olney reports that they’re sending $850K to the Red Sox as part of the deal, so the Yankees are freeing up $8.15MM of luxury breathing room.
That space will prove vital, given ownership’s apparent mandate that the front office stay under the tax threshold. The Yankees have recently spoken to Brett Gardner‘s camp about a reunion, and the club could yet be in the hunt for affordable rotation depth even after adding Kluber and Taillon. Both are coming off injury-ruined 2020 seasons, after all, and the rest of the team’s rotation comes with similar workload concerns.
The trade between the two teams is the first in six and a half years, when they swapped Stephen Drew and Kelly Johnson in 2014. MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand points out that this is only the second trade that Yankees GM Brian Cashman has ever made with his organization’s top rival.
While finances are the clear driving factor in this trade, it’s unlikely the Yankees would’ve made the move had Ottavino not struggled through a dismal showing in last year’s shortened season. The 35-year-old appeared in 24 games but totaled just 18 1/3 innings of work, yielding a dozen runs on 20 hits and nine walks with 25 punchouts in that time. Ottavino’s 5.89 ERA was his highest since debuting as a rookie with the Cardinals back in 2010, although fielding-independent metrics were more bullish on his work (3.52 FIP, 3.62 SIERA).
Control has never been a strong point for Ottavino, but he dropped his walk rate from 13.8 percent in 2017-19 to 10.6 percent last year. It’s easy to call his ERA a result of a sky-high .375 average on ball in play, but Ottavino’s struggles appeared to be more than a function of simple bad luck. In spite of his improved control, the right-hander’s strikeout rate dipped a bit (31.5 percent to 29.4 percent), and Ottavino yielded hard contact at a career-high rate (90.6 mph average exit velocity; 50 percent hard-hit rate). Ottavino was a high-quality reliever as recently as 2018-19 between the Rockies and Yankees, however, when he logged a combined 2.19 ERA and 33.8 percent strikeout rate through 144 innings of work.
Boston surely hopes that Ottavino will return to form, but the Sox are also using available payroll flexibility to add a pitcher who isn’t viewed as being too far from MLB-ready. The 23-year-old German was a fourth-round pick out of college and a late riser on draft boards in 2018, as Eric Longenhagen wrote last year at FanGraphs. German added muscle to a projectable frame between his junior and senior years of college and saw his velocity spike late in the 2018 NCAA season. He’s continued to add velocity in pro ball, per Longenhagen, though there are concerns about his secondary offerings. MLB.com previously ranked German 24th among Yankees prospects, so he’ll settle somewhere into the middle tiers of the Red Sox’ rankings now.
In many ways underscores, this unexpected trade speaks to how both clubs view Boston’s chances of competing in 2021. If the Red Sox genuinely expected to compete for a division title, would they help the Yankees by giving them further payroll space to operate underneath the tax threshold? And if the Yankees viewed the Red Sox as a threat, would they risk sending a talented reliever — albeit one in need of a rebound — to their nemesis? The optics of a revitalized Ottavino playing a key role in a Red Sox bullpen that marches to the postseason would be brutal for the Yankees.
That’s not to write off the Red Sox entirely, of course. There’s still a very talented core group of players in Boston, but the team’s chances of contending in 2021 are largely dependent on a number of unknown elements breaking their way. The Sox don’t yet know how Chris Sale will look in his return from Tommy John surgery, for instance, nor are they certain what they can expect from Eduardo Rodriguez after he missed the 2020 season due to Covid-19 and a subsequent myocarditis diagnosis. Key lineup pieces like J.D. Martinez and Andrew Benintendi are in search of their own rebounds after downturns in 2020, and the Sox lack proven options at first base, in the back of the rotation and the back of the bullpen. Ottavino merely adds another question mark to that lengthy list.
Lindsey Adler of The Athletic first reported (via Twitter) that Ottavino had been traded to Boston. The New York Post’s Joel Sherman added details on the other elements of the swap.
Free Agency Notes: Mets, Richards, Red Sox, Profar, Bench Bat
The Mets made a play for Garrett Richards before the veteran righty signed with the Red Sox, notes MLB Insider Jon Heyman (via Twitter). The Mets have made their rotation a project this offseason. They are seemingly in a good place even without Richards, however. Jacob deGrom, Carlos Carrasco, and Marcus Stroman make for a very strong top three, and hopes remain high that David Peterson will maintain a spot behind them. Noah Syndergaard plans to join that group at some point, and even if Seth Lugo returns to the bullpen, the Mets have no shortage of depth options – foremost of which might be the recently-acquired Joey Lucchesi. Beyond the ex-Padre, Steven Matz, Robert Gsellman, Franklyn Kilome, Corey Oswalt, and Jerad Eickhoff surely have eyes for the rotation. In other news…
- The Red Sox themselves were runners-up in an attempt to sign Jurickson Profar, per the San Diego Union-Tribune. Boston, of course, ended up with Kiké Hernández on a similar, but shorter contract. It’s not clear if the Red Sox preferred Profar to Hernandez, though Hernández signing merely hours after Profar re-upped with San Diego is notable. Still, one does not necessarily follow the other. All we can say for certain is that Profar’s returning to San Diego thinned Boston’s market for versatile utility types. That the Red Sox engaged in parallel negotiations with similar players doesn’t actually speak to their priorities where those players are concerned.
- After all, they may very well have been interested in signing both players, as Boston remains on the hunt for a lefty bench bat. In a perfect world, the Red Sox would find someone who could complement Bobby Dalbec at first, per Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com (via Twitter). Cotillo floats Marwin Gonzalez, Brad Miller, and Mitch Moreland as some players that might fit the bill. Boston’s bench leans heavily to the right at present, with Jonathan Arauz as one of very few organizational options as a lefty bat off the bench unless Jarren Duran makes the team out of spring training.
Free Agent Notes: Ozuna, Semien, Simmons, Miller, Moreland, Richards
The latest buzz from the free agent market…
- The Dodgers, Brewers, Yankees, and Red Sox are among the teams interested in Marcell Ozuna, according to Hector Gomez of Deportivo Z 101 (via Twitter). These four clubs are new additions to Ozuna’s market, while the Twins and Mets (also mentioned by Gomez) were linked to the slugger earlier this winter. Ozuna is looking for at least a four-year contract, Gomez writes. While financial demands weren’t mentioned, it can be assumed that Ozuna is looking for enough money to put the Dodgers and Yankees well over the $210MM luxury tax threshold, so it’s possible their interest is somewhat limited. Such a signing would also put Boston close to the threshold, and while the Brewers are nowhere near the tax line, it would represent a very bold move by a Milwaukee team that wasn’t expected to spend much this winter. It has been a relatively quiet offseason for Ozuna on the rumor mill, as his market may be dependent on whether or not the NL has a designated hitter spot available in 2021 and beyond.
- Didi Gregorius, Marcus Semien, and Andrelton Simmons “are viewed within the industry as similar enough that no team is compelled to set the market with a contract,” according to Matt Gelb and C. Trent Rosecrans of The Athletic, This has created a lot of uncertainty about when any of the shortstop trio might sign, what their next deals might be worth, or what teams will eventually make the leap. Gelb and Rosecrans discussed the three shortstops with nine evaluators, who broke down the pros and cons of each player and ranked them 1-2-3 on a ballot.
- In other news about the shortstops, the Red Sox are likely no longer a fit for Semien now that Enrique Hernandez is heading to Boston. The Sox were reported to have interest in Semien as a second baseman, but MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo (Twitter links) hears from a source who believes “Semien still wants to sign as a shortstop,” despite interest from teams at other infield positions. Boston is still looking to add a left-handed hitter to the bench mix, with Cotillo reporting that Brad Miller and Mitch Moreland are possibilities.
- The Blue Jays were known to have interest in Simmons back in November and in the leadup to the trade deadline, and MLB Network’s Jon Heyman tweets that Simmons is still on Toronto’s radar.
- Garrett Richards is one player who seems to no longer to be under consideration for the Blue Jays, as Cotillo reports that the Jays aren’t one of the teams still looking to sign the free agent righty. “At least other teams” besides the Red Sox are still vying for Richards, Cotillo writes, though Boston seems to be relatively far along in discussions with Richards’ camp.
AL News & Rumors: G. Richards, BoSox, Twins, Cruz, Angels, Astros
The Red Sox and free-agent right-hander Garrett Richards “are in active discussions,” Jon Morosi of MLB.com writes. However, there has been more than one team talking with Richards as of Friday, Morosi adds. The starter-needy Red Sox were rumored to be pursuing Richards as of a week ago. Richards was once at the front end of the Angels’ rotation, but a series of injuries limited him from 2016-19. The 32-year-old stayed healthy and produced decent results with the Padres last season, though, throwing 51 1/3 innings of 4.03 ERA/4.55 SIERA ball and averaging 95 mph on his fastball. [UPDATE: Talks between the Red Sox and Richards “are active and evolving,” according to Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com.]
- The Twins have increased the value of their one-year offer to free-agent designated hitter Nelson Cruz, Jon Heyman of MLB Network tweets, though Darren Wolfson of 5 Eyewitness News reports that actually happened earlier in the offseason. Cruz was looking for a two-year contract at the beginning of the winter, but even for someone who’s as dominant as he is at the plate, that could be difficult to obtain for a 40-year-old. Of course, with no official announcement on whether the universal DH will remain in place in 2021, Cruz probably isn’t in a hurry to sign anywhere.
- The Angels are “very active” in their pursuit of starting pitching, general manager Perry Minasian told Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic and other reporters Friday. While Minasian did sign veteran left-hander Jose Quintana to a one-year, $8MM contract this week, adding him to a group led by Dylan Bundy, Andrew Heaney, Griffin Canning and perhaps Shohei Ohtani, there still appears to be room for improvement. In light of Minasian’s comment, it’s worth noting that the Angels reportedly remain in the mix for two of the best starters on the market in Trevor Bauer and Jake Odorizzi.
- Speaking with reporters Friday, Astros GM James Click suggested the team doesn’t expect to be that aggressive for the rest of the offseason, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com tweets. The Astros agreed to re-sign outfielder Michael Brantley and reunited with catcher Jason Castro this week, but their roster took a hit with the loss of outfielder George Springer to the Blue Jays. Otherwise, the bullpen has come up as a potential area of the need for the team (it did address it by signing Ryne Stanek and Pedro Baez in free agency), but the Astros don’t necessarily feel a sense of urgency to address it further. It’s possible they will enter 2021 without someone who has extensive experience as a closer, per Click (via McTaggart).
Starting Pitching Rumors: Odorizzi, Paxton, Arrieta, Walker
Right-hander Jake Odorizzi‘s current market includes the Angels, Giants, Blue Jays, Twins and Red Sox, tweets MLB.com’s Jon Morosi. Most of those clubs have been at least speculatively linked to Odorizzi at some point this winter, although it’s of at least some note that there’s still interest after those teams have added other pieces to their rotation already. The Angels agreed to a deal with Jose Quintana earlier this week, and the Twins inked J.A. Happ on a matching one-year deal. The Red Sox have brought back Martin Perez, while the Giants have brought in Anthony DeSclafani and Alex Wood. Odorizzi is still seeking a three-year deal, tweets MLB Network’s Jon Heyman. He and the Twins are still not seeing eye to eye in terms of the length of a potential contract or the total guarantee, Heyman adds.
A few more notes on the market for starting pitchers…
- Lefty James Paxton is among the rotation targets the Blue Jays are taking a look at, tweets Heyman. A link between the two sides seemed almost inevitable given that the Jays have been tied to most free agents as they cast a wide net amid an aggressive offseason and given that Toronto is regularly at least speculated upon as a landing spot for Canadian-born free agents. Paxton, who threw for teams late last month, missed the bulk of the 2020 season due to February back surgery and then a forearm strain this past summer. Beyond being limited to 20 1/3 ineffective frames while battling those injuries, Paxton saw a drop of more than three miles per hour in his average heater last year. Of course, if he’s healthy, the 32-year-old would rank among the most impactful arms on the open market. From 2017-19, “Big Maple” tossed 447 innings of 3.54 ERA ball with a near-identical 3.45 SIERA. He also posted an outstanding 30.1 percent strikeout rate and a 7.3 percent walk rate that sat comfortably south of the league average. At his best, he’s a playoff-caliber starter, so it wouldn’t be a surprise to see hopeful contenders pursuing short-term deals with Paxton in weeks to come.
- From one Scott Boras client to another, right-hander Jake Arrieta is planning to throw for interested teams a week from today, Heyman tweets. Arrieta missed his final few starts of the season due to a hamstring injury — his second straight year truncated by injury. The former Cy Young winner underwent arthroscopic surgery near the end of the 2019 campaign after attempting to pitch through bone spurs in his elbow for much of the season. Overall, Arrieta’s three-year, $75MM deal with the Phillies didn’t pay dividends. After a solid first year in Philly, he logged just 180 innings of 4.75 ERA/4.82 SIERA ball with an 18.1 percent strikeout rate that was nowhere near his 27 percent peak with the Cubs. The Twins plan to watch Arrieta’s bullpen session next week, tweets SKOR North’s Darren Wolfson, although he adds that Minnesota is represented at nearly all showcases of this nature, so this is perhaps more due diligence than it is keen interest in Arrieta specifically.
- The Mariners have yet to approach right-hander Taijuan Walker with a serious offer to bring him back to the organization, Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times reports. At the time of Walker’s trade to the Blue Jays over the summer, Seattle GM Jerry Dipoto suggested that he might look to bring the righty back to the team in the near future (Twitter link via Jessamyn McIntyre). That has yet to happen, it seems, although it’s also worth noting that Divish reported earlier in the week that Mariners ownership has limited the front office’s payroll flexibility “more than expected” this winter. The Mariners may yet add another arm to the rotation mix, but depending on the extent to which spending is limited, a multi-year deal candidate like Walker might be out of reach.
AL Notes: Correa, Tigers, Red Sox
The Astros suffered a major loss in free agency this week with the departure of outfielder George Springer, who agreed to sign with the Blue Jays. Next winter, they could see shortstop Carlos Correa follow Springer in exiting on the open market, though the 26-year-old told Astroline Radio (h/t: Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle) that he prefers to stick with the franchise for the long haul. “I love this organization. I love the Astros. I would love to be an Astro for life,” the one-time All-Star and former AL Rookie of the Year said. “I hope they’re on the same side I am. If they’re on the same side, I would love to be an Astro for the rest of my life.” For now, Correa and the Astros are gearing up for an arbitration hearing (he filed for a $12.5MM salary; they filed for $9.75MM), but he understands “it’s a business and you have to leave your feelings out of it.”
- The Tigers have shown interest in free-agent utilityman Marwin Gonzalez, Jon Morosi of MLB.com tweets. Signing with Detroit would reunite Gonzalez with new manager A.J. Hinch, who was the Astros’ skipper during part of Gonzalez’s time in Houston. Gonzalez had his best year in 2017 under Hinch, which was also a World Series-winning campaign for the Astros. The success Gonzalez had as an Astro led the Twins to sign him to a two-year, $21MM contract going into 2019, but the club didn’t get great value from that investment. The switch-hitting 31-year-old batted an underwhelming .248/.311/.387 in 662 plate appearances with Minnesota, though he did continue to provide defensive versatility. He saw at least some action at first, second, third, short and both outfield positions as a Twin.
- Along with Gonzalez, the Tigers are interested in first baseman Mitch Moreland, per Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press. Moreland has been on the market since the Padres declined his $3MM option at the start of the offseason. The 35-year-old divided last season between San Diego and Boston, with which he combined for a strong .265/.342/.551 line and 10 home runs in 152 plate appearances. Moreland’s production did plummet as the year progressed, though.
- The Red Sox continue to have interest in utility player Enrique Hernandez, as Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com reports that the two sides have held talks “in recent days.” However, Cotillo adds that it’s unknown if the Red Sox and Hernandez are nearing an agreement. In Boston, the former Dodger would be a candidate to rack up plenty of reps at second base, where he has played frequently. The Sox currently have Christian Arroyo, Michael Chavis and Yairo Munoz as in-house candidates to handle the keystone.
Minor MLB Transactions: 1/20/2021
Let’s check in on the latest minor moves from around the game …
- The Red Sox have a deal of the minor-league variety with right-hander Zac Grotz, per Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com (via Twitter). Grotz receives an invitation to MLB Spring Training in the agreement. He’ll be looking to reach the majors for the third-straight year after reaching the professional ranks as a 28th-round pick. The former Mariner has surrendered twenty earned runs with a 22:19 K/BB ratio through 24 2/3 MLB innings.
- The Winnipeg Goldeyes of the indy ball American Association have announced the addition of a pair of former big league hurlers. 31-year-old Ryan Dull will seek to earn his way back into the affiliated ranks after a series of tough campaigns. He excelled for the Athletics in 2016 but has struggled with injuries and performance lapses since. Also coming aboard is righty Josh Lucas, who has thrown 37 1/3 innings of 5.54 ERA ball at the game’s highest level (including a brief stint alongside Dull with the Athletics in 2018). Additionally, former Phillies farmhand Kyle Martin will be back to reprise his role as a top slugger for the Goldeyes.