AL East Notes: Walker, Rays, Red Sox
Neil Walker tells Billy Witz of the New York Times that his camp held fairly extensive talks with the Yankees before they acquired Brandon Drury (all links to Twitter). Walker said he and his agents felt that they were “fairly close” to hammering out a deal with the Yanks, who instead swung a trade to bring in Drury for added infield depth. The 32-year-old switch-hitter felt the Yankees were a strong fit, as he knows the rigors of playing in the New York media market and was “certainly willing” to bounce around the infield and play multiple positions. Walker was hoping for a multi-year deal with the Yankees, though, and suggests that the team ultimately “decided to hang onto money for midseason,” when they could be in the market for adding veterans via trade.
More from the division…
- The Rays have taken plenty of heat for their offseason moves, though Travis Sawchick of Fangraphs observes one common thread among the hitters they’ve let go: a susceptibility to whiffs against four-seam fastballs. Corey Dickerson swung through more four-seamers than anyone in Major League Baseball last season by a wide margin, Sawchik notes, while Steven Souza was third on that list and Logan Morrison tied for seventh. Sawchik also notes that each of the three had declines in the season’s second half (though Morrison maintained above-average production). Replacements such as Carlos Gomez and especially C.J. Cron had fewer struggles against the fastball, he adds. Sawchik has written in the past about how the Tampa Bay organization emphasizes utilizing elevated fastballs as a weapon more than most other clubs, so perhaps that trend applies to both sides of the ball.
- The Boston Globe’s Alex Speier runs through some troubling numbers for the Red Sox‘ offense from 2017, observing that the team’s lineup was startlingly ineffective in hitters’ counts. Boston took an abnormally passive approach at the plate last season, per Speier, and while they were among the game’s more productive clubs in 0-2, 1-2 and 2-2 counts, they ranked in the bottom third of baseball in 3-1, 2-0, 2-1, 1-0, 0-0, 1-1 and 0-1 counts (by measure of OPS). The Red Sox ranked last in the American League in batting average, on-base percentage and slugging percentage in 0-0 counts, he adds. Speier spoke at length with principal owner John Henry about the trends, which did not go unnoticed by ownership or the front office and may have played a notable role in the organization’s coaching overhaul. Notably, Speier adds that new skipper Alex Cora saw his Astros pounce on the first pitch with regularity and with great success in 2017.
AL East Notes: Rays, Pedroia, JDM, Lee
Rays owner Stuart Sternberg weighed in on the MLBPA’s grievance against the Rays and three other clubs regarding concerns over the reallocation of revenue-sharing funds, as Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times writes. The Rays, according to Sternberg, are “beyond” compliant with the rules. “We’re very judicious in how we spend our money, but it’s spent in a lot of forms, and payroll is one of them,” said Sternberg, going on to point out that the Rays’ Opening Day payroll in 2018 will be higher than it was in 2017. Of course, the Rays still rank near the bottom of the league in that regard, as they do every year. Chris Archer, the Rays’ union representative, also spoke with Topkin on the matter. “I have no clue what it costs to run the Dominican academy,” said Archer. “I know just from my perspective, not a whole lot has changed with the spring training facility, not a whole lot has changed at the Trop, and our payroll has not increased significantly.”
- Veteran Red Sox star Dustin Pedroia had a bit more done to his knee than had previous been known, Pete Abraham of the Boston Globe reports on Twitter. In addition to cartilage restoration work, Pedroia underwent a microfracture procedure to his tibia. Regardless, it seems that the hard-nosed veteran is progressing well given that he has now advanced to taking batting practice. Meanwhile, fellow infielder Marco Hernandez is still six weeks away from resuming baseball activities, Rob Bradford of WEEI.com tweets. Hernandez underwent shoulder surgery last May and only just had screws removed, but at least he now seems to be in sight of returning to the field.
- In other Red Sox coverage, Bradford discusses new signee J.D. Martinez‘s unique relationship with his personal hitting coach. As it turns out, new Boston hitting coach Tim Hyers is well acquainted with Martinez’s guru Robert Van Scoyoc, who’ll be allowed to continue consulting with Martinez even though he has been hired by the Diamondbacks. It’s a deep and interesting look at how Martinez’s unique approach will fit with the organization.
- Orioles hurler Chris Lee will miss at least a month with an oblique injury, Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com was among those to tweet. The southpaw had been viewed as one of a variety of hurlers competing for one rotation spot, a long-relief role in the pen, and/or a place in the organizational depth chart. Instead, he’ll have to work back to health before he’s able to begin pressing for his first MLB opportunity. The 25-year-old reached Triple-A for the first time last year, pitching to a 5.11 ERA with 6.4 K/9 and 4.2 BB/9 over 116 1/3 innings.
Injury Notes: Gurriel, Frazier, Gausman, Stroman, Thornburg, Eaton
The Astros have shipped first baseman Yuli Gurriel to Houston so his injured hand can be evaluated, Jake Kaplan of The Athletic reports (Twitter link). At this point, the situation is more or less a mystery, with no real indication how the issue arose or just what the club is concerned about. Clearly, though, the team’s training staff has found cause to get a closer look from a specialist.
Here’s more on some injury situations from around the game:
- Yankees outfielder Clint Frazier has been diagnosed with a concussion, tweets MLB.com’s Bryan Hoch. Frazier made a leaping catch in yesterday’s Grapefruit League game against the Pirates and stumbled a bit before falling backwards and hitting his head against the base of the left-field wall (video link). Manager Aaron Boone said Frazier will be down for “a few days” and acknowledged the seemingly optimistic nature of that timeline. Frazier is far from a lock to make the Opening Day roster in New York with Brett Gardner, Aaron Hicks, Giancarlo Stanton, Aaron Judge and Jacoby Ellsbury all on the roster, but he remains a key potential long-term piece for the Yanks.
- It seems that Orioles righty Kevin Gausman has largely shaken off a home-plate collision yesterday, Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com writes. The young starter, who is a key factor in the team’s hopes for the coming season, says he “feel[s] pretty good” on the whole despite slamming into Tigers youngster Jeimer Candelario. For the time being, at least, Gausman is expected to take the ball for his next scheduled spring outing.
- The outlook is at least a bit more worrisome for Blue Jays righty Marcus Stroman. Per MLB.com’s Gregor Chisholm, shoulder inflammation is holding Stroman back. Though he has already been cleared by an MRI of structural concerns, Stroman will rest up in hopes of moving past a problem that has evidently been going on for a few weeks. The key Jays hurler says he’s hoping to be fully ramped up for “the very beginning of the start of the season,” even if it’s not Opening Day, though surely the organization will proceed with caution.
- The Red Sox will welcome reliever Tyler Thornburg back to the hill for the first time since he underwent surgery to address thoracic outlet syndrome, Pete Abraham of the Boston Globe reports on Twitter. A bullpen session is just one of many steps back, of course, and Thornburg still has some hurdles to clear. He has yet to pitch competitively for the Boston organization (excepting brief spring action last year) since coming over in a trade in advance of the 2017 season.
- Indications are that Nationals outfielder Adam Eaton is largely progressing well after a long layoff for a torn ACL. As Mark Zuckerman of MASNsports.com writes, though, Eaton has yet to appear in game action. That appears to be less a reflection of Eaton’s surgically repaired joint than it is a planned effort to build him up deliberately. “We’re going to take it and be methodical and do it right for the first time and make sure I’m overcooked, so to speak, before I go out there.” While it’s surely tempting to max out Eaton’s reps after a lost season, skipper Davey Martinez emphasized the primary goal is to have Eaton at full speed come Opening Day.
- The rival Mets are reporting shoulder and back soreness for Yoenis Cespedes and Jacob deGrom, respectively, but those don’t seem to be real concerns at this point, as MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo reports. However, the New York organization is likely to hold back first baseman Dominic Smith for a while after he was diagnosed with a strained quad. He already seemed to face a difficult task of cracking the Opening Day roster, so this setback is not likely to help the cause. (New reliever Anthony Swarzak just left his relief appearance with an apparent calf injury, as Mike Puma of the New York Post was among those to tweet, though details are sparse at this time.)
J.D. Martinez Contract Includes Medical Protection For Red Sox, Third Opt-Out For Martinez
After a week of medical reviews and some reported alterations to the language in his five-year, $110MM contract, J.D. Martinez was introduced by the Red Sox at a press conference this morning (video link via MLB.com). Seemingly, the Lisfranc foot injury that hampered Martinez early in the 2017 season served as enough of a red flag for the Sox that further work needed to be done to sort the matter out.
Agent Scott Boras met with reporters following Martinez’s introduction today, revealing that the new contract language includes the addition of a third player opt-out (after the fourth season of the contract) in exchange for some medical protection for the Red Sox (Twitter links via Evan Drellich of NBC Sports Boston and Mark Feinsand of MLB.com). Specifically, Drellich further reports, the Red Sox can convert both years four and five of the contract into mutual options, pursuant to the newly drawn-up language. In essence, then, the Sox have negotiated their own means of walking away from the final two years of the contract in the event that Martinez’s foot proves to be a chronic condition.
Per Drellich, should Martinez spend 60 consecutive days on the DL in year three of the contract (2020) with an injury related to his prior Lisfranc injury, the fourth year can be converted into a mutual option. Boston could also convert the fourth year to a mutual option should an injury pertaining to the prior Lisfranc issue prompt Martinez miss a combined 120 days between the second and third years of the deal (2019-20), with at least 10 of those days coming in year three. (The Boston Globe’s Nick Cafardo first tweeted that the team could render the fourth year a mutual option.)
Boston is similarly protected in the fifth season of the contract. If an injury pertaining to his previous Lisfranc issue causes Martinez to miss 60 consecutive days in the fourth year of the deal (2021) or a combined 120 days in 2020-21 (with at least 10 in year four), then the 2022 season can be converted to a mutual option. All determinations about whether a new Lisfranc injury for Martinez is related to the 2017 injury would be made by a panel of three doctors.
In the end, the week of back-and-forth does little to change the immediate bottom line for the Sox or Martinez. Red Sox evaluators were satisfied enough with Martinez’s health that they didn’t see fit to alter the length of the contract or the total guarantee. By all accounts, the involved parties all expect Martinez to be healthy in 2018 and serve as a potent weapon in the middle of the Boston lineup. Viewed through that lens, the medical hoops through which both sides have been jumping over the past week could all be rendered moot. If Martinez’s offense in his first two seasons with Boston mirrors his productivity over the past four seasons, he’s quite likely to exercise the first of three contractual opt-out clauses.
At that point, in order to come out ahead, Martinez would need only to top the three-year, $60MM contract which Edwin Encarnacion received last offseason when he was two years older than Martinez will be in that 2019-20 offseason. Boston would be able to make Martinez a qualifying offer, should he decide to opt out of the remaining three years of the deal. He did not receive one this offseason by virtue of being traded from the Tigers to the Diamondbacks in July.
Photo courtesy of Getty Images.
Red Sox Sign J.D. Martinez
After months of negotiations, and another weak of final tweaking, the Red Sox have officially signed slugger J.D. Martinez. ESPN.com’s Pedro Gomez first tweeted that a deal was in place; Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports had tweeted that the sides were close. Martinez is represented by the Boras Corporation.
The contract is for five years and $110MM, per reports. Notably, it includes three opt-out opportunities — after the second, third, and fourth seasons of the deal. As Evan Drellich of NBC Sports Boston tweets, Martinez will receive $23.75MM annual salaries for the first two years and is promised a $2.5MM buyout if he opts out of the remainder of the deal. He’ll also earn $23.75MM for the third season of the contract. At that point, he’ll choose between a return to the open market (with no buyout) and $19.35MM salaries for 2021 and 2022.
But that’s not all. The original deal only included two opt-outs and did not protect the Red Sox in the event of injury. After a physical and ensuing additional negotiations, the pact now contains not only a third opt-out but also some language allowing Boston to avoid certain obligations if Martinez’s prior Lisfranc injury recurs, as we detailed here. There’ll also be some limited no-trade protection, as Heyman tweeted originally. Martnez can designate a “small” number of teams to which he cannot be moved without his consent.
Boston has been the primary suitor connected to Martinez for virtually all of the offseason — especially since their decision to re-sign Mitch Moreland effectively took them out of the Eric Hosmer sweepstakes. Martinez figures to slot in as the primary DH for the Sox but should see some occasional time in the outfield when any of Andrew Benintendi, Jackie Bradley or Mookie Betts needs a breather. His addition calls the role of Hanley Ramirez with the Red Sox into question, as Ramirez now appears to be, at best, a backup DH and a part-time first baseman that is on the short side of the platoon.
[RELATED: Updated Red Sox Depth Chart]
Though the Sox have a substantial commitment to Ramirez already in place, that didn’t stop them from making a sizable offer to bring Martinez into the fold, and it’s not difficult to see why they felt he was a key piece to pushing into World Series contention. Martinez slashed a Herculean .303/.376/.690 with 45 home runs and 26 doubles in just 489 plate appearances last offseason. In all, an out-of-the-blue breakout with the 2014 Tigers, Martinez has been one of the game’s most feared hitters — as evidenced by the .300/.362/.574 batting line he’s logged in that four-year period.
Context-neutral metrics like OPS+ (149) and wRC+ (148) feel that the 30-year-old Martinez has been nearly 50 percent better than the league-average hitter in that time, when adjusting for park and league. That 148 wRC+ ties him with Bryce Harper and now-former teammate Paul Goldschmidt for fourth in all of baseball over the past four years; only Mike Trout, Joey Votto and Giancarlo Stanton have posted better wRC+ marks in that time.
The Red Sox ranked 10th in the Majors in runs scored last season as it was, though their combined .258/.329/.407 batting line was below-average on a rate basis, and they ranked 27th in the Majors with 168 homers. Martinez will serve as a particularly potent upgrade in the DH department, as Boston designated hitters combined to hit just .244/.327/.419 last year.
Clearly, the contract isn’t quite as massive as many had anticipated coming into the season. Martinez’s camp was said to be seeking over $200MM at the outset of free agency; MLBTR predicted that Martinez could reach $150MM in guaranteed money. As things developed, there just wasn’t sufficient demand around the game to drive a real bidding war. The Diamondbacks reportedly made a real run to keep Martinez, but never figured to have a war chest large enough to really push Boston’s offer up.
Martinez’s new deal also reflects a broad devaluation of one-dimensional sluggers. For instance, Edwin Encarnacion — an equally gifted hitter who became a free agent last year at a more advanced age — did not earn as large or long a deal as had been expected.
To be fair, Martinez offers more function on defense than does Encarnacion, as he’s still capable of lining up in the corner outfield. But metrics have soured on his glovework. Though both UZR and DRS viewed Martinez as an above-average presence in 2015, they graded him as one of the game’s worst fielders in the ensuing campaign. He bounced back last year, but still drew below-average marks in right field. Fangraphs’ BsR measure also values Martinez as an exceedingly poor baserunner.
Those aspects of Martinez’s game created some drag on his market value. But the Sox surely aren’t that concerned with how good Martinez will be in the outfield. Presumably, he’ll stay fresh by limiting his exposure to the grass, which may boost his output when he is asked to take the field. Regardless, the contract values Martinez for his anticipated contributions with the bat.
Contract details were reported by Alex Speier of the Boston Globe (contract length; Twitter link), ESPN.com’s Pedro Gomez (opt-out clause, on Twitter), Jon Morosi of MLB Network (total guarantee, via Twitter), Jon Heyman of Fan Rag (salary in first two years & second opt-out, via Twitter), Jason Mastrodonato of the Boston Herald (second opt-out details), and Evan Drellich of NBC Sports Boston (second opt-out details; Twitter link).
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Latest on J.D. Martinez, Red Sox
SUNDAY, 4:29pm: There is indeed a Martinez press conference scheduled for Monday, Drellich tweets. It’s “very fair” to say a deal is near, Boras told Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe (Twitter link).
4:14pm: There could be a press conference announcing the Martinez signing as early as Monday, per both Jared Carrabis of Barstool Sports and Ian Browne of MLB.com. The Red Sox and Boras “had a productive weekend adjusting contract language,” according to Browne.
10:50am: The two sides “have continued to work though contract language,” tweets Heyman, who notes that there’s a “high probability” they’ll complete the agreement.
SATURDAY, 1:28pm: Both sides are being cautious, but the Red Sox and Martinez’ camp still expect to finalize the deal, Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports reassures. He adds that the delay mainly stems from “a desire to make sure the exact language of the contract is right in light of these potential red flags.”
10:01am: The Red Sox and slugger J.D. Martinez recently agreed to terms on a five-year, $110MM pact, but an official announcement has yet to come from the team, even though a press conference was expected as far back as Thursday. Evan Drellich of NBC Sports Boston shed some light on the situation today, reporting that the two sides are sorting through a “medical matter” following Martinez’ physical.
There’s a belief that the matter will not have any effect on the outfielder’s ability to take the field in the immediate future. At this time, there’s no further clarity as to what the issue is, but Drellich writes that “a better understanding between the parties” could come at some point today. There are apparently some additional medical experts involved, including a few consultants referred by agent Scott Boras.
It doesn’t seem as though the contract itself is in any real jeopardy. The process of ironing out the issue is reportedly “thorough and cooperative”. Yesterday, in a more speculative piece on the subject, Drellich suggested that a collapse of the contract at this point would be a “wildly unexpected scenario”. It’s entirely possible that the agreement will proceed untouched or be revised in only a slight way. Nevertheless, whatever snag the two camps have hit regarding Martinez’ physical only serves to delay the slugger’s spring training debut.
There are more questions than answers surrounding the situation at the moment, but we’ll be sure to provide updates as they come.
East Notes: Red Sox, Phillies, Mets
A “medical matter” has prevented the Red Sox from finalizing the five-year, $110MM agreement they reached with free agent J.D. Martinez on Monday. Former big leaguer J.D. Drew can relate, having agreed to a five-year, $70MM deal with the BoSox in 2007 that took seven weeks to become official because they had concerns with his right shoulder. Drew – who, like Martinez, had agent Scott Boras as representation – looked back on the experience with Rob Bradford of WEEI. “My first words were, ‘There’s nothing wrong with my shoulder.’ I was like you can put whatever you want in there,” Drew recalled. “But [Boras] said, ‘I have to protect you.’ From that point on I gave him complete freedom to do whatever he needed to do.” Eleven years later, Drew remains a believer in Boras’ tactics, and he expects the agent’s expertise to benefit Martinez. “I guarantee Scott and J.D. are on a page where they know what’s happening, he’s completely assured by Scott that they know what they have to do,” he said. “He’s going to fight, he’s going to fight, he’s going to fight and get the best he can and make sure it’s fine with him.”
More from Boston and a couple other East Coast cities:
- Phillies third baseman Will Middlebrooks suffered a fractured left fibula and a potential ankle injury during the team’s game Saturday, per Todd Zolecki of MLB.com. It’s obviously an awful development for Middlebrooks, who joined the Phillies on a minors deal in January in hopes of earning a major league roster spot. Although Middlebrooks is likely to need surgery, he’s optimistic he’ll be able to play this season. Still, the 29-year-old admitted Sunday that he’s somewhat concerned about his future in baseball. “The game is getting younger every day,” Middlebrooks noted. “I’ll be 30 this year. Unfortunately, that’s not prime anymore. You look in this clubhouse and everybody is 23, 24 years old. I’d be lying if I said it didn’t cross my mind. But the small window of time I’ve spent here with this staff and training staff, I think I’ll be just fine. If it takes two months, if it takes four or five months, I don’t know how long it’s going to take yet. I’m not counting myself out. I plan on playing this year.”
- The Red Sox expect to begin the year without either left-hander Eduardo Rodriguez or righty Steven Wright, manager Alex Cora told reporters, including Jen McCaffrey of MassLive.com, on Sunday (Twitter link). Rodriguez is working back from the right knee surgery he underwent in October, and Wright had a season-ending procedure on his left knee last May. With those two on the shelf, the Red Sox will choose among Hector Velazquez, Roenis Elias and the out-of-options Brian Johnson to serve as their season-opening fifth starter.
- As of December, the league office was investigating Wright in the wake of a domestic incident that occurred early in the winter. However, MLB officials still haven’t interviewed Wright, Sean McAdam of BostonSportsJournal.com tweets.
- Mets first baseman Dominic Smith suffered a strained quad and will undergo an MRI on Monday, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com writes. Smith isn’t worried, though, as he said Sunday “there’s no real concern” that it’s a major problem (Twitter link via DiComo). Meanwhile, outfielder Jay Bruce downplayed the plantar fasciitis in his left foot, calling it a “non-issue” (via David Lennon of Newsday, on Twitter).
Indians Claim Ben Taylor
The Indians have claimed right-hander Ben Taylor off waivers from the Red Sox, Christopher Smith of MassLive.com tweets. Taylor had been in limbo since Boston designated him for assignment last weekend. To make room for Taylor, the Indians placed righty Cody Anderson on the 60-day disabled list, per a team announcement. Anderson is still recovering from a March 2017 Tommy John procedure.
The 26-year-old Taylor is the second reliever the Indians have added on Sunday, joining minor league free agent signing Matt Belisle. Taylor, who had been with the Red Sox since they selected him in the seventh round of the 2015 draft, got his first taste of major league action last season. Over a 17 1/3-inning span, Taylor logged a 5.19 ERA with 9.35 K/9, 4.67 BB/9 and a paltry 26.4 percent groundball rate. He was more successful in his first Triple-A experience, albeit over just 13 1/3 frames, with a 2.70 ERA, 8.1 K/9, 3.38 BB/9 and a 45.5 percent grounder mark.
Taylor has a pair of minor league options remaining, which means he could serve as Triple-A depth for the Indians if he doesn’t make their season-opening bullpen.
AL East Notes: Bautista, Rays, Orioles, Red Sox
Although the Rays have picked up a pair of right-handed hitters in Carlos Gomez and C.J. Cron since last weekend, they could add another outfield-capable righty-swinger, per Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. One free agent who might draw their attention is Jose Bautista, who’s “keenly interested in playing for the Rays, presumably knowing it would be for a low salary,” Topkin writes. The 37-year-old Tampa Bay resident has long been a rival of the Rays, having played with the Blue Jays from 2009-17. While Bautista was a terror for opposing pitchers for the majority of that run, he’s now coming off his worst year in nearly a decade, which helps explain why he remains on the market. Bautista took 686 trips to the plate in 2017 and batted a subpar .203/.308/.366, albeit with 23 home runs.
More on Tampa Bay and two of its AL East rivals:
- The Rays have recently parted with several notable veterans, including Evan Longoria, Steven Souza Jr., Corey Dickerson and Jake Odorizzi, but their front office insists they’re not tanking and never have, as Topkin details in a separate piece. Rather, according to general manager Erik Neander: “This is a season, as things stand now, where on paper we’re somewhere in that middle territory yet again. But what’s been building underneath is getting awfully close to colliding with what’s a middle-of-the-pack team. And when those things come together, you’ve got a chance for something special.” And even though the Rays finished under .500 in each season from 2014-17, Neander believes there was serious progress behind the scenes. “As our teams have been kind of treading water, there’s been that wave that’s really building, really coming together, probably even better than I think we expect it,” Neander said. “It’s about there.”
- In-house issues prevented the Orioles from signing free agent infielders Ryan Flaherty and Ryan Goins during the offseason, Eduardo A. Encina of the Baltimore Sun reports. Flaherty was with the Orioles from 2012-17 and wanted to re-sign with the club, even showing a willingness to take less money than he did to join the Phillies. Philadelphia made Flaherty an offer with a three-week deadline to accept it, but he wanted to hear from the Orioles before taking it. The O’s then submitted a counteroffer, though it “didn’t get club-wide approval in time to meet the Phillies’ deadline,” Encina writes. As a result, he said yes to the Phillies’ minor league proposal. Given that Flaherty has a late-March opt-out in his deal, it’s possible he’ll hit the market again and rejoin the Orioles before the season, Encina notes. Like Flaherty, Goins also settled for a minor league pact (with the Royals). However, he actually was set to sign a major league contract with the Orioles beforehand, according to Encina. Orioles ownership didn’t approve it in time, though, leading the former Toronto utilityman to head to Kansas City.
- Red Sox reliever Robby Scott has changed representation and is now a client of Meister Sports Management, Rob Bradford of WEEI tweets. The 28-year-old, who’s currently vying to open the season as Boston’s top left-handed bullpen option, tossed 35 innings of 3.79 ERA ball and notched 7.82 K/9, 3.28 BB/9 and a 42.6 percent groundball rate in 2017. He won’t be eligible for arbitration until after the 2019 campaign.
Minor MLB Transactions: 2/24/18
Here are today’s minor moves from around the league…
- The Red Sox have signed left-hander Tommy Layne to a minors pact; he’d been playing in the MLBPA camp. Brian MacPherson (formerly of the Providence Journal) was first with the news; Sean McAdam of the Boston Sports Journal has since confirmed the report. Pete Abraham of the Boston Globe tweets that the deal does not include an invite to spring training. This’ll be the 33-year-old’s second stint with the Red Sox, for whom he pitched 95 1/3 innings and earned 20 holds from 2014-2016. He put up a 3.30 ERA during that span, but with an unsettling walk rate (4.63 BB/9). Originally a late-round pick by the Diamondbacks, Layne has also spent time with the Padres, Yankees and Dodgers organizations. He’ll compete for a spot on a Boston roster that has plenty of high-end lefty starters but little in the way of lefty relief options.