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AL Notes: Sale, Mariners, Gordon

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Let’s check in on a few notes from the American League:

  • Red Sox ace Chris Sale finished the 2019 season on the injured list with inflammation in his throwing elbow. However, there’s “no doubt” he’ll be ready for spring training, he told reporters (including Adam Fisher of the Fort Myers News-Press). Sale was cleared to begin throwing last week, and he offered a few details on his offseason program yesterday. Currently, Sale is throwing three times a week, he said, and he plans to up his workload soon before moving to long-toss and, eventually, mound work. Sale’s peripherals were dominant again last season, but his 147.1 innings of 4.40 ERA ball no doubt made for some disappointing results. The Sox will be hoping for more typical bottom line numbers from the star southpaw in 2020.
  • The Mariners don’t plan on making any noteworthy additions on the position player side in free agency, GM Jerry Dipoto indicated to reporters (including Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times). “We have very likely the position player club you are looking at right now, barring the potential for a trade, which is always possible,” Dipoto said. While Dipoto didn’t mention any specific trade possibilities, Divish notes the organization would like to find a taker for Dee Gordon to open second base up full-time for Shed Long. Doing so, though, would be a difficult task, with Gordon due $13.8MM in 2020 and coming off back-to-back disappointing seasons.
  • Nevertheless, the Mariners could be in line for some modest upgrades on the pitching staff, Dipoto suggested to Divish in the same piece. “We do have some ongoing conversations with potential free-agent additions,” Dipoto said, presumably referring to pitching upgrades given his declaration that the position player grouping was largely set. Dipoto added that any acquisitions are likely to be flyers on bounceback players, in a similar vein to the club’s earlier signings of Carl Edwards, Jr. and Kendall Graveman. Speculatively speaking, players like Michael Wacha, Blake Treinen, or Pedro Strop all have strong track records but are coming off disappointing 2019 seasons. All three figure to command a higher guarantee than was necessary to bring in Edwards ($950K) or Graveman ($2MM), though.

Market Chatter: Rangers/Rendon, Nats Spending, Betts, Hill, Maldonado

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The Rangers feel like they’re in solid position on star third baseman Anthony Rendon, MLB.com’s T.R. Sullivan writes. It appears as if the possibility of a shorter deal at a premium AAV might hold some appeal to the Rangers as well as Rendon. But it’s tough to gauge the likelihood that he’ll land in Texas. Per Sullivan, the sides have yet to launch “serious negotiations” on the price tag. You can be sure that Scott Boras will not rush into a signing if he feels competition can drive the price up yet further, so there’s likely some market development yet to come.

More recent chatter …

  • Agent Scott Boras expressed skepticism regarding the Nationals’ recent declaration that they can’t afford both Rendon and Stephen Strasburg. The super-agent tells Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic (subscription link) that he sees ample capacity for the D.C. organization, which has done quite a lot of business with Boras over the years (to mutual satisfaction, for the most part). Britt Ghiroli provides further assessment of the situation in another Athletic piece, proffering a sensible distinction between what the club can do and what it prefers. As she points out, too, it’s also possible that owner Mark Lerner made the comments to buttress his bargaining position. And it’s probably fair to add that the Nats have generally not shied from carrying big payrolls and making large commitments in the recent past.
  • Also skeptical? Rival executives, regarding the likelihood of the Red Sox trading Mookie Betts, according to Bob Nightengale of USA Today (via Twitter). That’s really not surprising to hear, though the reasoning offered by Nightengale’s sources is a bit confounding. The issue, he says, is that rival clubs won’t offer all that much for the outstanding outfielder. They “can simply wait until he’s a free agent next winter” rather than taking on a big salary and giving up valuable prospects. That seems to miss the point in large part, as a team acquiring Betts now would be doing so specifically to pick up his highly valuable age-27 season. Renting one of the game’s best players would obviously alter a team’s outlook for the coming season rather drastically; it stands to reason it’d cost something to do so.
  • Lefty Rich Hill has not only drawn wide interest despite major elbow surgery … it seems he’s open to considering offers from all teams, so long as they have hopes of winning in 2020. In an appearance on MLB Network Radio on Sirius XM (Twitter link), Hill says he’s not focused solely on his two preferred landing spots (the Dodgers and Red Sox). While it seems that he’d still rather end up in one of those two places, the veteran says that they “might not work out.” He’s open to considering other contenders. And Hill left no doubt that he anticipates playing a big role in the 2020 season, saying he hopes to be ready to roll by June.
  • The Angels are planning to sit down with backstop Martin Maldonado at the Winter Meetings, per Jeff Fletcher of the Southern California News Group (via Twitter). That’s not especially portentous news, as Fletcher points out, as teams hold many such meetings this time of year. Still, it’s a notable connection, particularly since the catching market has developed on a relatively rapid timetable. The 33-year-old Maldonado spent on the Halos roster in 2017 and 2018, so the organization is plenty familiar with him.

Giants To Hire Brian Bannister

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The Giants are set to hire Red Sox vice president of pitching development away to join their own front office, reports Jon Morosi of MLB.com (via Twitter). Bannister’s title with his new organization will be director of pitching, Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area tweets. As Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe points out (via Twitter), the new position allows Bannister to live closer to his Bay Area home and spend additional time with his wife and two children.

Bannister himself confirmed that he’s moving on from the Sox, offering his gratitude to the organization (Twitter links):

Thank you to John Henry, Tom Werner, Sam Kennedy, and all the amazingly talented people in Baseball Ops for the opportunity to be a part of the Red Sox family for the last 5 years. It was a dream to call Fenway my office, and to be a very small part of a historic run in Boston. I want to specifically thank [chief baseball officer] Chaim Bloom and [general manager] Brian O’Halloran — they are incredible leaders and the Red Sox will be in good hands for a very long time. Thank you to the coaches and support staff, it was a privilege winning a World Series with you in 2018 and all the best in 2020.

Bannister, 39 in February, pitched parts of five Major League seasons from 2006-10 and joined the Red Sox as a pro scout after concluding his playing career. The Boston organization elevated him to director of pitching analysis and development in 2015 before naming him vice president of pitching development and assistant bullpen coach following the 2016 season. The Red Sox had announced after the 2019 season that they’d be going in a different direction with their pitching coach roles, though Bannister was still expected to remain in the organization prior to today’s news.

Red Sox Re-Sign Marco Hernandez, Josh Osich

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The Red Sox announced today that they have re-signed infielder Marco Hernandez and lefty Josh Osich. Both had been non-tendered in advance of Monday’s deadline.

Both players are headed back onto the 40-man roster. The reason for this approach, as Alex Speier of the Boston Globe explains on Twitter, was to enable the sides to agree to a different contract structure than would have been possible in the arbitration context.

Osich gets a split contract with a $850K MLB salary, according to Speier (Twitter link). He had projected to earn $1MM via arbitration after being claimed by the Red Sox from the White Sox in October. The 31-year-old worked to a 4.66 ERA in 67 2/3 MLB innings last year, recording 8.1 K/9 against 2.0 BB/9 but coughing up 15 home runs.

As for Hernandez, whose re-signing was reported yesterday, he’ll have a split deal with a MLB rate of $650K MLB (also via Speier, on Twitter). He hasn’t done much damage with the bat in limited opportunities at the game’s highest level, but the organization obviously still thinks the versatile defender could be a valuable roster piece. Hernandez, who hopes to put his shoulder issues behind him in 2020, had projected to earn $700K via arbitration.

Red Sox, Marco Hernandez Agree To New Deal

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The Red Sox and infielder Marco Hernandez are in agreement on a new contract, Robert Murray reports (via Twitter). Boston non-tendered the 27-year-old yesterday.

Presumably, the two sides have struck up a minor league pact and an invite to Spring Training, as Hernandez was only projected to earn $700K in arbitration prior to being non-tendered — just $136K north of the league minimum. Hernandez has been up and down with the Red Sox over the past few seasons, seeing time at second base, third base and shortstop but struggling to produce much at the plate. In 271 plate appearances at the MLB level, Hernandez is a .265/.300/.342 hitter — including a .250/.279/.338 this past season in a career-high 155 plate appearances.

Indians Acquire Sandy Leon, Designate James Hoyt

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9:18pm: Leon’s deal with the Indians comes with a $2MM salary with performance bonuses of $25K each for 75 and 100 games started at catcher, Zack Meisel of The Athletic tweets.

7:20pm: The Indians announced Monday that they’ve acquired catcher Sandy Leon from the Red Sox in exchange for minor league right-hander Adenys Bautista. In order to open a spot for Leon on the 40-man roster, Cleveland has designated right-hander James Hoyt for assignment.

Leon, 30, would’ve likely been non-tendered by the Red Sox but now seems likely to be tendered a contract by his new organization. The swap doesn’t exactly bode well for Kevin Plawecki, who’d previously been in line to serve as the primary backup to 2019 breakout catcher Roberto Perez. Leon is projected by MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz to earn $2.8MM in 2020, whereas Plawecki is projected to earn $1.5MM.

In Leon, the Indians are acquiring a switch-hitting veteran, although his value lies in his glove as opposed to his bat. Leon did have one standout season at the plate back in 2016, when he hit .310/.369/.476 in 283 plate appearances, but that output looks like an anomaly; in three years since that strong showing, he’s managed only a .199/.259/.312 batting line in 780 trips to the plate.

Leon has generally rated as an above-average framer and, with the exception of a 21 percent caught-stealing rate in 2019, has been excellent at controlling the running game throughout his MLB tenure (career 34 percent caught-stealing rate). Still, it’s at least somewhat of a surprise to see the Indians ostensibly swap out Plawecki for Leon, as Plawecki rated as the better defender in 2019, hit better than Leon over the past several seasons and was the cheaper option with two additional seasons of club control. Leon will be a free agent at season’s end.

Boston’s return isn’t particularly exciting — as one would expect when trading a backup catcher who was in line to be non-tendered. The 21-year-old Bautista has yet to advance beyond the Rookie-level Arizona League and has only pitched 43 2/3 innings of pro ball in total. He’s posted an ugly 5.98 ERA with nearly as many walks (31) as strikeouts (32) in that time and has demonstrated below-average ground-ball tendencies.

Hoyt, 33, has displayed huge strikeout numbers and passable control in his limited MLB chances. Through 80 innings between the Astros and Indians, he’s worked to a 4.16 ERA with 11.7 K/9, 2.9 BB/9 and a 45.5 percent ground-ball rate. He’s been quite homer-prone, however, which has limited his results a bit. Still, a pitcher with those strikeout totals, a 16.8 percent swinging-strike rate, a 36.8 percent opponents’ chase rate and a fastball that has averaged 93.9 mph feels like he should be a more interesting commodity than he’s been to either the Houston or the Cleveland organization. Hoyt still has a minor league option remaining, which should only enhance his appeal to another club.

Teams Announce Final Non-Tenders

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We’ve been tracking the day’s arbitration decisions in the run-up to tonight’s deadline, which has produced a bevy of last-minute calls. In addition to those already covered elsewhere (with all projected salary figures from MLBTR/Matt Swartz projections) …

  • The Padres announced they have non-tendered Miguel Diaz and Pedro Avila. Neither hurler had yet been eligible for arbitration, so this amounts to no more than a roster cleanup. Avila had already been designated for assignment. Diaz, meanwhile, saw extensive action as a Rule V pick in 2017 but has only sporadically logged MLB time since.
  • Relievers Javy Guerra and Koda Glover were non-tendered by the Nationals, per a club announcement. Guerra would have cost a projected $1.3MM. Glover announced earlier today that he would retire.
  • The Red Sox non-tendered infielder Marco Hernandez and reliever Josh Osich, per a team announcement. Neither projected at big dollars — $700K and $1.0MM, respectively — but obviously the club felt it could put the roster spots to better use on other players.
  • The Blue Jays have non-tendered relievers Derek Law and Jason Adam, along with backstop Luke Maile. Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca (via Twitter) and Scott Mitchell of TSN (on Twitter) were on the news. Law projected at $1.3MM, while Maile was in line for a $800K payday. Adam is still pre-arb eligible.
  • The Giants announced today that they have non-tendered outfielder Joey Rickard ($1.1MM projection), southpaw Tyler Anderson ($2.625MM), and righty Rico Garcia (pre-arb). Both Anderson and Garcia were claimed from the division-rival Rockies after the end of the 2019 season.
  • In addition to other moves earlier today, the Braves have non-tendered catcher John Ryan Murphy and outfielder Rafael Ortega. Each provided depth down the stretch in 2019 for the Atlanta organization. Murphy would’ve been owed a projected $1.2MM, while Ortega remains shy of arbitration eligibility.
  • A host of players were non-tendered by the Royals, per a club announcement. Righty Jesse Hahn was cut loose along with infielders Humberto Arteaga, Cheslor Cuthbert and Erick Mejia. Among these players, Hahn (projected $900K) and Cuthbert ($1.8MM) have the most MLB experience. With these 40-man trimmings, the K.C. org should be able to place some claims and/or make Rule 5 selections in the coming weeks.
  • Righties Ian Gibaut and Wei-Chieh Huang are each heading to free agency after being non-tendered by the Rangers. Neither is anywhere near the service time needed for arbitration eligibility, so this was just an opportune time for the Texas org to drop them from the MLB roster.

Phillies Claim Trevor Kelley

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The Phillies announced that they have claimed righty Trevor Kelley off waivers from the Red Sox. He had been selected to the Boston roster in July.

Kelley, 26, didn’t exactly stake a claim to a permanent job in his brief action last year at the game’s highest level. He didn’t get many swings and misses and surrendered eight earned runs in his first 8 1/3 big league innings.

But there was a reason that the Red Sox called upon the sidearming, sinkerballing newcomer. In his 65 1/3 Triple-A innings, Kelley carried a 1.79 ERA that stood out in the hitter-friendly International League. While his peripherals — 8.7 K/9, 2.9 BB/9, 1.10 HR/9, 33.5% groundball rate — weren’t exactly eye-popping, Kelley showed enough to make the Phils believe he can at least serve as worthwhile pen depth.

Red Sox Will Tender Contract To Jackie Bradley Jr.

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Despite some recent speculation that the Red Sox could non-tender Jackie Bradley Jr. prior to tonight’s 8pm ET deadline, the organization will tender him a contract for the 2020 season, Alex Speier of the Boston Globe reports (Twitter link).

The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal suggested last night that a non-tender of Bradley could be possible (subscription required), pointing out that the $11MM that MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projects Bradley to earn in his final season of club control may be steeper than the team prefers. But Bradley’s strong defensive track record, extra-base pop and speed are seemingly enough that the Boston organization feels he’ll at least be valued at that rate elsewhere. The dearth of useful center fielders in free agency certainly makes that likely.

It stands to reason that Bradley is still a candidate to change hands between now and Opening Day 2020. Boston’s payroll is already in the $230MM neighborhood (including arbitration projections and pre-arbitration salaries to round out the roster), and there are notable holes to address on the roster. Moving Bradley would be the second of what could be several moves designed to scale back on the 2020 payroll; the Red Sox also traded catcher Sandy Leon to the Indians earlier this morning, shedding a projected $2.8MM salary in the process.

The 29-year-old Bradley hit .225/.317/.421 with 21 long balls, 28 doubles and three triples in 567 plate appearances with the Sox this past season. However, he hasn’t had an above-average year at the plate (by measure of OPS+ or wRC+) since his All-Star 2016 season, and his typically brilliant defensive ratings slid in 2019 as well. Bradley drew ratings of -1 Defensive Runs Saved and a -1.2 Ultimate Zone Rating, although Statcast’s Outs Above Average still pegged him as a quality defender (+6). The 2018 Gold Glover has long been considered to be one of the game’s better defensive outfielders.

Looking around the league, several teams (Cubs, Mets, D-backs, Braves, Phillies, Reds, White Sox) could be in the market for a short-term addition in center field. The D-backs, in particular, seem like a plausible fit given the presence of former Boston execs Mike Hazen, Amiel Sawdaye and Jared Porter in the front office and given the team’s history of acquiring former Red Sox players (Clay Buchholz, Blake Swihart, Robby Scott, Deven Marrero, Henry Owens). Arizona “would have interest” in acquiring Bradley, Rosenthal wrote last night, which would allow them to play Ketel Marte at second base rather than in center field.

Chris Sale Cleared To Begin Throwing

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Red Sox ace Chris Sale has been cleared to begin throwing again after a visit with Dr. James Andrews, according to Rob Bradford of WEEI Radio. The goal is for Sale to be a full go for Spring Training in a few short months. Sale’s latest visit to the physician comes as a follow-up to an August appointment in which Sale received a platelet-rich plasma injection.

The Red Sox had originally expected to have their star lefty re-evaluated six weeks after the fact, but their early departure from the playoff picture allowed them to play it slow when it became apparent that Sale wouldn’t be needed in October. So the prolonged timeline is not reflective of Sale’s progress; assistant GM Brian O’Halloran said that “the rehab has gone very well and Chris is exactly where we want him to be.”

Sale missed all of September and much of August after encountering problems with his throwing elbow, landing on the injured list after experiencing inflammation in the wake of an August 13 start.

Even when he was healthy, Sale wasn’t himself, finishing the season with a 4.40 ERA, the worst mark of his career. His peripheral numbers were more in line with his career norms, but that did little to mitigate concerns about diminished fastball velocity. Luckily, it seems that Sale’s early-season dip in velocity was unconnected to the elbow injury, which is believed to have surfaced in August.

Still, any unanswered questions will be magnified by Sale’s hefty price tag, with a five-year contract extension worth $145MM taking effect in 2020, when Sale will earn $30MM. He’ll earn similar salaries through his age-35 season. From a financial perspective, Sale’s injury concerns could hardly have come at a worse time, but it seems there’s hope that Sale’s 2019 injuries won’t linger into the offseason and beyond. He didn’t suffer any ligament damage, and today’s update should inspire some optimism that Sale will once again be a stalwart in the Boston rotation and return to the Cy Young form that he maintained for the better part of a decade.

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