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Indians’ Recent Struggles Lead To Difficult Deadline Decisions

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A couple weeks ago, the Indians season seemed to hit a crossroads. The team was in a good place in the standings. As recently as June 26, Cleveland was sporting a 41-32 record, sitting only a game and a half behind the AL Central-leading White Sox. They were the only real threat to Chicago in an otherwise bad division.

The state of the roster, though, told a different story. Cleveland’s offense has underwhelmed all year, with the team’s strong run prevention keeping them in the race. The Indians were dealt a series of injuries to their top three starters — Zach Plesac, Shane Bieber and Aaron Civale — in fairly rapid succession, though. That left an unproven, inexperienced group taking the bump without the benefit of a high-powered lineup to back them up.

Not surprisingly, it’s been tough sledding for Cleveland in recent weeks. The Indians have gone just 4-10 over their last fourteen games, falling 7.5 back of the White Sox. They’re a more manageable four games back in the Wild Card race, but their skid has raised some questions about the team’s ability to stay in contention. Plesac returned from the IL this week, but the Indians are still without Bieber and Civale and continue to have questions about the lineup. FanGraphs gives the Indians just a 7.1% chance of reaching the postseason at this point, with their odds of winning the division down to 3.5%.

The front office is no doubt aware of those dwindling playoff odds. Indeed, Jon Heyman of MLB Network hears from rival executives that Cleveland has made some players on the big league roster available to other clubs in advance of the July 30 trade deadline.

It’s not clear specifically which players are on the market, but there’s no indication the Indians are planning any sort of full-on teardown. Bieber and José Ramírez would be the top two players on the trade market were they made available, but it seems highly unlikely the Indians would market those kinds of controllable stars in response to two weeks of poor play. The Cleveland front office would probably figure to listen to offers on players with less club control. There aren’t many players on the Indians roster who stand out as obvious trade chips at first glance, though.

Second baseman César Hernández looks like the team’s most plausible trade candidate. He’s hitting .226/.305/.413 and has already tied his career high in home runs (15) this season. It’s a nontraditional shape of production for Hernández, who typically hits for strong averages and reaches base at a high clip without hitting for much power. While Hernández’s profile has changed in 2021, he’s been similarly valuable as before. His 95 wRC+ this year isn’t far off his career mark (99) and is essentially unchanged from his 2019-20 production (97). Hernández is making an affordable $5MM this season and comes with a $6MM club option (no buyout) for 2022.

Cleveland would figure to welcome interest in corner outfielder Eddie Rosario. He’s making $8MM, though, and wasn’t having a particularly good year even before landing on the 10-day injured list with an abdominal strain this week. The Indians have a handful of young relievers (James Karinchak, Emmanuel Clase, Nick Sandlin) who would figure to draw plenty of attention, but it’s not clear the team would consider moving any of them. Veteran relievers Nick Wittgren and Bryan Shaw would probably be more attainable but wouldn’t bring back franchise-altering returns.

More broadly, the Indians are facing an interesting few months as an organization. The controllable core of Ramírez, Bieber, Civale, Plesac and Franmil Reyes looks good enough to anchor a contender. They would obviously love for Andrés Giménez and Amed Rosario to produce enough to supplement that group. The farm system is regarded as one of the league’s best. It’s not inconceivable to see the Indians as a threat in the division in the coming years, even if the front office moves a couple veterans before the deadline in an acknowledgment of their increasingly slim playoff chances in 2021.

As the past few weeks have shown, though, there’s still plenty of work to be done to make the current roster a legitimate contender. The rotation is very strong at the top but the recent injury woes have exposed its lack of depth. The outfield has been a weak point for years. The catching duo of Roberto Pérez and Austin Hedges is a well-regarded defensive grouping but has offered virtually nothing at the plate, and the team’s first basemen have been the worst offensively in MLB this year. Giménez also struggled in his first crack at locking down shortstop.

There’s still a few weeks for president of baseball operations Chris Antonetti and the rest of the front office to settle on a pre-deadline plan. Even if they stand pat or serve as minor sellers, the upcoming offseason will be a pivotal one to determining the franchise’s long-term direction.

The Best Minor League Deals Of 2021 (So Far): Pitchers

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We took a look last week at some of the minor league pacts that have paid the most dividends, focusing in on position players in both leagues. Unsurprisingly, given the lack of offense throughout baseball as a whole at the moment, there are even more success stories on the pitching side of the coin. Some of these are products of small sample size, particularly for the many relievers on the list, but at least for our initial check-in on this subject, the early returns have been strong.

  1. Ian Kennedy, RHP, Rangers: We’re nearing Memorial Day weekend, and Kennedy is tied for the American League lead in saves — just as everyone expected! The 36-year-old righty isn’t just scraping by and narrowly escaping in a bunch of three-run leads, though. He’s tallied 19 1/3 innings and allowed just four runs, all while recording a terrific 31.1 percent strikeout rate and a tiny 5.4 percent walk rate. If Texas remains near the bottom of the AL West standings, he’ll be an appealing trade target for bullpen-needy clubs.
  2. Drew Steckenrider, RHP, Mariners: A quality setup man with the 2017-18 Marlins, Steckenrider’s time in Miami was derailed by injuries — most notably a 2019 flexor strain. He looks to be back on track in his new surroundings, however, having tossed 18 1/3 innings of 2.45 ERA ball with a 29.2 percent strikeout rate and an 11.1 percent walk rate. The walks are a bit elevated, but he’s helped to combat that with a career-best 54 percent ground-ball mark. The Mariners (or another club) could control Steckenrider through 2023 via arbitration as well, which only adds to the value.
  3. Jimmy Nelson, RHP, Dodgers:  The Dodgers just placed Nelson on the injured list due to a forearm issue, so there are (once again) some obvious health question marks with Nelson. There’s no ignoring how effective he’s been thus far, however. Nelson’s 39.1 percent strikeout rate is the ninth-best among all MLB relievers, and he’s paired that with a pristine 2.41 ERA. Like Shaw, he’s walked too many batters (13 percent), but the former Brewers ace has shown high-leverage, late-inning potential with L.A.
  4. Bryan Shaw, RHP, Indians: Shaw was an iron man in the Cleveland ’pen but flopped in Colorado after signing a three-year, $27MM contract going into 2018. Back in his old stomping grounds, he’s tallied 19 innings with a pristine 1.42 ERA. The 33-year-old has issued 13 walks, so he’ll need to cut back on the free passes if he hopes to continue this success, but Shaw’s strikeout and ground-ball percentages are among the best of his career (29.3 percent, 57.5 percent, respectively).
  5. Lucas Luetge, LHP, Yankees: Luetge’s last MLB appearance prior to his Yankees debut came with the 2015 Mariners. The now-34-year-old southpaw signed minor league deals with five organizations before making it back to the show, which is remarkable in and of itself. That he’s been one of the Yankees’ best relievers, however, makes his story all the more incredible. Luetge, who entered 2021 with all of 89 MLB frames under his belt, has a 2.95 ERA and a 19-to-3 K/BB ratio in 21 1/3 innings for the Yankees thus far. Considering the injuries to Zack Britton and Darren O’Day, Luetge’s unexpected contributions have been a godsend. If he can keep this up, he’ll be arbitration-eligible this winter and controllable through the 2024 season.
  6. Hyeon-jong Yang, LHP, Rangers: Yang, a former KBO MVP, could’ve returned to that league on a guaranteed deal but refused to give up on his aspirations of playing in the Majors, even if it meant taking a non-guaranteed pact. He’s 21 1/3 innings into the realization of that lifelong goal, and the Rangers are no doubt pleased with their decision. Yang, 33, opened the season with the Rangers’ alternate site group but had his contract selected in late April. He now owns a 3.38 ERA, and while his pedestrian strikeout and walk rates might point to some possible regression, he’s induced plenty of weak contact (average 87.4 mph exit velocity, just a 13.1 percent line-drive rate). An 11.2 percent swinging-strike rate suggests there could be more K’s to come, as well.
  7. Chi Chi Gonzalez, RHP, Rockies: Gonzalez’s numbers don’t stand out that much, but he’s eating innings and delivering roughly league-average run-prevention numbers when adjusting for his home park (102 ERA+, 99 ERA-). Through nine appearances, seven of them starts, Gonzalez is carrying a 4.54 ERA. He’s totaled 41 2/3 innings for a Rockies club that has gone the whole season without lefty Kyle Freeland. Gonzalez has rattled off consecutive quality starts and helped the Rox get through the first two months of the season. The secondary marks aren’t great, but average innings have value — especially in 2021 when teams are so conscientious about their pitchers’ workloads.
  8. Nabil Crismatt, RHP, Padres: Crismatt had just 8 1/3 innings of MLB experience (all with the 2020 Cardinals) when he arrived in Padres camp this spring. He’s more than doubled that total in 2021 already, pitching 17 2/3 innings of 2.55 ERA ball with a hefty 52.2 percent grounder rate. Crismatt is an oddity in today’s game, sitting under 89 mph with a fastball that is only seldom used due to the fact that he throws his changeup at a whopping 46.5 percent clip. It’s weird, but so far — it’s worked.
  9. Anthony Bender, RHP, Marlins: A 26-year-old rookie who never pitched above Double-A with the Royals or Brewers before joining the Marlins on a minor league deal this winter, Bender is sitting 97.4 mph with his heater and has tossed 8 2/3 shutout innings to open his career. He’s whiffed 36.7 percent of his opponents against a 3.3 percent walk rate. Small sample? Sure, but Bender also rattled off 8 1/3 shutout frames during Spring Training, too. Not bad for a guy who posted a 5.48 ERA with the independent American Association’s Milwaukee Milkmen in 2020.
  10. Heath Hembree, RHP, Reds:  After a rough 2020 season, Hembree has bounced back early in 2021. His 4.15 ERA through 13 frames is nothing special, but his strikeout rate is sitting at a career-high 33.3 percent after plummeting in 2020. His 6.3 percent walk rate is a career-best, and his 13.1 percent swinging-strike rate isn’t far off from his peak years in Boston. Hembree’s velocity is also up to 95.2 mph after dipping to 93.9 mph in 2019-20. It’s early, but those are some encouraging indicators.
  11. Zack Littell, RHP, Giants: Littell hasn’t spent much time with the Giants yet, but he’s chucked 10 2/3 innings and held opponents to just one run on eight hits and three walks with nine punchouts. His 94.8 mph average fastball velocity is a career-high, as is his 48.3 percent grounder rate. The former Twins righty only has a year of big league service and could be controllable for several years if he figures it out in San Francisco.
  12. Deolis Guerra, RHP, Athletics: It’s hard to believe Guerra just turned 32, given that he was one of the pieces traded from the Mets to the Twins way back in 2008’s Johan Santana trade. He’s bounced around the league in journeyman style but is enjoying a nice run with the A’s to kick off the ’21 season. In 20 2/3 frames, Guerra has a 3.92 ERA with a pedestrian K-BB% but intriguing levels of weak contact induced.
  13. JT Chargois, RHP, Mariners: Like Littell, Chargois hasn’t seen much time in the bigs yet, but he’s sporting a 9-to-1 K/BB ratio in 8 2/3 innings for Seattle. He’s had multiple chances with the Twins and Dodgers in recent years but never found much consistency. Chargois also mustered only a 5.81 ERA pitching for Japan’s Rakuten Golden Eagles in 2020. Still, it’s a nice start to his 2021 season.
  14. Brad Boxberger, RHP, Brewers: The right-hander, who’ll turn 33 this week, has hurled 17 1/3 innings so far in Milwaukee and pitched to a 4.15 ERA but with a more impressive 17-to-3 K/BB mark. As with many relievers early in a given season, the bulk of the damage against Boxberger came in one appearance (against the Cardinals). He’s been unscored upon in 16 of his 19 outings so far in 2021.
  15. Ervin Santana, RHP, Royals: The Royals love their reunions more than any team in baseball, and Santana is somewhat improbably back to “smelling baseball,” as he likes to say, for a second stint in Kansas City. He’s only allowed four runs in 15 1/3 innings (2.35 ERA), but he’s also only picked up eight strikeouts against four walks. His fastball is sitting 93 mph again after living at 89-90 in 2018-19, but the red flags are plentiful: 13.1 percent strikeout rate, 91 percent strand rate, .213 BABIP, 45 percent opponents’ hard-hit rate.
  16. Paolo Espino, RHP, Nationals: The Nats quietly re-signed the now 34-year-old Espino before the calendar even flipped to November last year. So far, it’s been a worthwhile reunion, as he’s held opponents to four runs on nine hits and a walk with eight strikeouts in 14 innings (2.57 ERA). Espino won’t keep this up if he can’t miss some more bats and/or induce far more grounders, however. He’s currently benefiting from a .175 BABIP and an 83.3 percent strand rate, while his 26.6 percent grounder rate will make it to limit home runs. Still, the Nats have 14 innings of decent results to show for the deal.

As with the position players, some of these strong starts will fade. There are a few at the back of the list that look particularly difficult to sustain, but there also look to be some genuine bargains unearthed among this group. Some will likely result in trades (Kennedy), but it’d make for a fun story to follow should any of the controllable arms (e.g. Bender, Crismatt) ultimately emerge as long-term pieces for the clubs who gave them their best career opportunities to date.

Bryan Shaw Makes Indians’ Opening Day Roster

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Right-handed reliever Bryan Shaw has made the Indians’ season-opening roster, Zack Meisel of The Athletic was among those to tweet. The team will have to add Shaw to its 40-man roster, which is full, and make a corresponding move to clear space for him.

This will be the second major league stint in Cleveland for the 33-year-old Shaw, who pitched with the club from 2013-17 and produced outstanding results. Shaw was part of two playoff teams, including an American League pennant winner in 2016, and logged a 3.11 ERA/3.54 SIERA with a 22.5 percent strikeout rate and an 8.0 percent walk rate during his first run in Cleveland. He also ate up 358 2/3 innings during that span and never finished with fewer than 64 frames in a season.

Shaw’s success with the Indians convinced the Rockies to sign him to a three-year, $27MM guarantee before 2018, but his career has fallen off a cliff since then. After Shaw put up a bloated 5.61 ERA in 126 2/3 innings from 2018-19, the Rockies cut him loose. He then caught on with the Mariners, but he allowed a whopping 12 earned runs over six frames last year. Unsurprisingly, Shaw was only able to score a minor league contract during the offseason, though he has shown encouraging signs this spring, having allowed three earned runs and totaled 13 strikeouts against five walks over 9 2/3 innings.

Indians To Sign Bryan Shaw, Heath Hembree To Minors Deals

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Former Indians reliever Bryan Shaw is returning to the team on a minor league contract with an invitation to major league spring training, Zack Meisel of The Athletic tweets. The Indians have also added fellow righty reliever Heath Hembree on a minors pact, per MLB Network’s Jon Heyman. Hembree will earn a $1.25MM salary and could also make incentives if he gets back to the majors.

Now 33 years old, Shaw enjoyed his best seasons as an Indian from 2013-17. He was good for 60-plus innings per season then, totaling 358 2/3 in 378 appearances, and logged a 3.11 ERA/3.41 SIERA with a 22.5 percent strikeout rate and an 8.0 percent walk rate. Shaw parlayed that success into a three-year, $27MM guarantee with the Rockies, but his career has gone off the rails since then. He struggled mightily with the Rox and Mariners from 2018-20 and had been on the open market since October.

Hembree did well to prevent runs with the Red Sox from 204-19, but they traded him to the Phillies last August amid what was a rough season for the 32-year-old. He ended the campaign with 19 innings and a horrid 9.00 ERA (albeit with a much better 4.47 SIERA), after which the Phillies let him go.

Mallex Smith, Bryan Shaw, Jimmy Yacabonis Elect Free Agency

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Mariners outfielder Mallex Smith and right-handers Bryan Shaw and Jimmy Yacabonis have elected free agency, Greg Johns of MLB.com tweets. The Mariners outrighted all three players in September.

Seattle had high hopes for Smith when it acquired him from Tampa Bay before 2019 in a deal that also involved catcher Mike Zunino, among others. The Mariners seemed right to be bullish on Smith, who was coming off a 3.5-fWAR, 40-steal season at the time. Smith has continued as a stolen base threat since then (he swiped 40 bags in 2019), but the 27-year-old has otherwise struggled. He finished his M’s tenure with 613 plate appearances of .220/.290/.323 hitting and six home runs.

It was also an awful 2020 for Shaw, continuing a downward trend for the once-effective Cleveland reliever. After a woeful two-year stint in Colorado, Shaw joined the Mariners on a big league contract in July, but the deal didn’t work out for either side. The 32-year-old wound up tossing six frames, yielding 12 earned runs on 13 hits and issuing six walks in Seattle.

Yacabonis joined the Mariners in a minor trade with the Padres in August, but he also didn’t establish himself in the M’s bullpen. The 28-year-old gave up one earned runs on two hits and three walks in 2 1/3 innings.

Mariners Designate Bryan Shaw, Place Nestor Cortes On 10-Day IL

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The Mariners announced a series of roster moves today, including the news that right-hander Bryan Shaw has been designated for assignment and left-hander Nestor Cortes Jr. is going to the 10-day injured list due to an elbow impingement.  Replacing the two hurlers are southpaw Taylor Guilbeau and righty Ljay Newsome, with Newsome making his first appearance on a Major League roster after his contract was selected.

Shaw signed a big league contract with Seattle just prior to their season opener, and he has an ugly 18.00 ERA over six innings pitched.  He was briefly sent down to the Mariners’ alternate training site last week but Shaw had another rough outing last night, giving up two earned runs over 1 2/3 innings.

Given these results, it’s fair to wonder if the M’s could potentially release Shaw if he isn’t claimed off waivers.  There wouldn’t be much of a cost associated with a release, as the Mariners are only paying Shaw a prorated league minimum salary.  The Rockies are paying the rest of the prorated $9MM salary Shaw was guaranteed this season, as Colorado released the veteran reliever in mid-July.

Cortes has also begun his season in disastrous fashion, allowing runs in all five of his appearances en route to a 15.26 ERA over 7 2/3 innings.  The lowlight came last night, as Cortes had to make an emergency start after Yusei Kikuchi was a late scratch, and Cortes proceeded to allow seven earned runs in just one-third of an inning against the Astros.  The 25-year-old has yet to break out at the big league level, having posted a 5.80 ERA over 71 1/3 IP with the Orioles and Yankees in 2018-19.  Seattle acquired him in a trade with New York last November.

Newsome, 23, was a 26th-round pick for the Mariners in the 2015 draft, and is ranked by MLB.com as the 29th-best prospect in Seattle’s farm system.  Newsome has started 91 of his 99 career games in the minors, with a 4.11 ERA, 8.5 K/9, and a very impressive 7.63 K/BB rate over 499 2/3 innings — with only a 1.1 BB/9, Newsome has displayed excellent control.

Pitching Notes: Hamels, Quintana, M’s, Tigers

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Left-hander Cole Hamels, whom the Braves placed on the 45-day injured list July 23, still has not thrown off a mound during his recovery from a triceps problem, Mark Bowman of MLB.com tweets. The Braves remain hopeful Hamels will pitch this year, though, per manager Brian Snitker. Of course, Hamels isn’t eligible to return until early September, so the Braves will get a very limited season from him at best. That wasn’t the outcome either side expected when the Braves signed the longtime workhorse to a one-year deal worth $18MM deal during the offseason. The Hamels injury is one of many issues the Braves’ rotation has encountered since then (most recently, they optioned lefty Sean Newcomb on Monday in the wake of a horrid performance), but the back-to-back NL East champions are still off to a solid start at 11-7.

  • Cubs southpaw Jose Quintana will throw a three-inning sim game Tuesday, Bruce Levine of 670 The Score reports. However, there’s still no word on when Quintana will make his 2020 debut after suffering a left thumb injury over a month ago. Even without Quintana, though, the Cubs’ rotation has come storming out of the gates. Entering Monday’s action, the Yu Darvish–Kyle Hendricks–Jon Lester–Tyler Chatwood–Alec Mills quintet was second in the game in FIP (2.76) and fourth in ERA (2.83)
  • The Mariners placed right-hander Carl Edwards Jr. on the injured list with a flexor mass strain in his forearm and recalled fellow righty Bryan Shaw from their alternate site, Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times relays. Edwards’ injury sounds worrisome, though manager Scott Servais said it’s “not that serious.” But as Servais noted, even a couple weeks lost in a 60-game season is a significant amount of time. It’s unfortunate for the M’s and Edwards, who combined for an awful run in Chicago and San Diego from 2018-19 but who has come back nicely this year. He yielded one earned run on two hits and one walk (six strikeouts) across 4 2/3 innings before landing on the IL.
  • The Tigers placed righty Buck Farmer on the IL on Monday with a left groin strain and recalled righty Beau Burrows, per Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press. Farmer was a bright spot on a bottom-feeding Tigers team a year ago and has kept runs off the board at an even better clip this season, having allowed just two ER on four hits and three walks in 6 2/3 innings. On the negative side, Farmer has struck out only one hitter after fanning almost 10 per nine in 2019.

Mariners Option Bryan Shaw, Jose Marmolejos

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The Mariners have optioned veteran righty Bryan Shaw and infielder/outfielder Jose Marmolejos, the club announced. Both will go to the team’s alternate training site.

It isn’t entirely clear whether Shaw has consented to the assignment. With more than five years of MLB service, he has the right instead to reject it in favor of free agency.

Shaw, 32, is still being paid by the Rockies under his free agent contract. He landed with the Seattle organization after being cut loose. After one initial scoreless appearance, the once-excellent setup man has surrendered three or more runs in each of his past three outings.

Mariners Sign Bryan Shaw, Place Tom Murphy On Injured List

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The Mariners announced this morning that they’ve signed veteran right-hander Bryan Shaw to a Major League deal. It was reported earlier this week that Shaw, who was recently released by the Rockies, was expected to sign in Seattle. He’ll go right onto the 30-man roster for the Mariners. Seattle also placed catcher Tom Murphy on the 10-day IL with a fractured metatarsal in his left foot and added catcher Joe Odom to the 60-man player pool.

Shaw, 32, was an absolute workhorse out of the Indians’ bullpen for the better part of a decade but struggled immediately upon joining the Rockies on a three-year deal prior to the 2018 season. He’s earning $9MM on that pact, but the Mariners will only be responsible for the prorated league minimum for any time he spends on the roster. The Rockies are on the hook for the rest.

Over the past two seasons in Colorado, Shaw has been hammered for a 5.61 ERA as his HR/9 rate more than doubled from his Cleveland days. It might be easy to assume that’s attributable to Coors Field and Denver’s altitude, but Shaw wasn’t demonstrably better on the road as a Rockie than he was at home; in fact, he pitched much better at Coors Field in 2019 than he did away from Colorado.

That said, prior to his ugly tenure with the Rox, Shaw was a prominent setup man who’d rattled off a a 3.13 ERA and 3.52 FIP in 446 1/3 MLB frames between the D-backs and Indians. With a track record like that and plenty of uncertainty in the Seattle ’pen, it’s not hard to see why Mariners GM Jerry Dipoto felt it worth taking a look. Shaw could have some high-leverage work early in the year even, particularly with Austin Adams opening the year on the injured list.

As for Murphy, it’s a tough blow for the former Rockies top prospect who enjoyed a breakout with the Mariners in 2019. He’d been expected to begin the year as the team’s starting catcher — his first-ever Opening Day as a primary backstop — but that role will now go to Austin Nola. The converted infielder turned heads in the upper minors with the Marlins after his position change and eventually broke through in the big leagues last year with a .269/.342/.454 showing in 79 games as a 29-year-old rookie.

Latest On Mariners’ Roster

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9:24pm: Dipoto announced that Murphy has a broken bone in his foot, Jen Mueller of ROOT Sports reports. The team’s optimistic it won’t take long for Murphy to heal, but he’ll start the season on the injured list.

7:15pm: The Mariners are in the process of finalizing their 30-man roster for their season opener, but it appears they’ll begin without a couple notable players, Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times reports (Twitter links: 1, 2, 3).

Reliever Austin Adams won’t be available when the Mariners’ season kicks off Friday, as he’s still working back from the right knee surgery he underwent last September. Meanwhile, catcher Tom Murphy is battling a left ankle problem that hasn’t responded well to treatment, and the Mariners won’t know until Thursday morning whether he or reliever Bryan Shaw (whom they agreed to sign this week) will be immediately available. As Divish writes, Shaw has to pass coronavirus intake requirements before he’s able to join the team.

Both Adams and Murphy proved to be worthwhile scrapheap pickups for the Mariners last year. The club landed the right-handed Adams in a minor trade with the Nationals, and as MLBTR’s Steve Adams explained in April, it paid dividends. In his first season in Seattle, Adams posted a 3.77 ERA/2.96 FIP with 14.8 K/9 and 4.1 BB/9 in 31 innings.

Murphy, acquired from the Giants heading into last season, also emerged as a shrewd addition, as MLBTR’s Anthony Franco noted this past spring. He slashed an impressive .273/.324/.535 with 18 home runs and 3.2 fWAR in just 76 games and 281 plate appearances while backing up Omar Narvaez. Now that Narvaez is a member of the Brewers, Murphy’s in line to get the lion’s share of playing time at catcher, but that will obviously depend on his health.

If Murphy’s unable to start the season, the Mariners are likely to turn to Austin Nola and Joe Hudson behind the plate, but Divish reports that general manager Jerry Dipoto is keeping an eye on the free-agent and waiver markets for outside help. Russell Martin is easily the best free-agent backstop available, but there’s no word on whether the M’s are interested in him or if the 37-year-old wants to play this season.

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