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Rangers Sign Andrew Cashner

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MONDAY: The deal is now official, per a club announcement.

FRIDAY: The Rangers are nearing a deal with free agent righty Andrew Cashner, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (via Twitter). It’s expected to be for a one-year term at $10MM, per MLB.com’s T.R. Sullivan (Twitter links), who says the deal appears to be done.

If a pact is completed, it would make Cashner the fourth rather significant starter to reach agreement already this winter. Charlie Morton, Bartolo Colon, and R.A. Dickey all previously agreed to short-term pacts.

Texas was one of the organizations that made the clearest sense for Cashner, as MLBTR’s Tim Dierkes noted in his breakdown of the top fifty free agents — which placed Cashner 28th in earning power but predicted he’d pursue a one-year deal with hopes of rebuilding his stock for next winter. While we ultimately guessed that he’d head instead to the Pirates with an $8MM guarantee, this result certainly lands within range of expectations.

Sep 23, 2016; Miami, FL, USA; Miami Marlins starting pitcher Andrew Cashner (48) delivers a pitch during the first inning against the Atlanta Braves at Marlins Park. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports

Cashner, 30, will look to get his career back on track in his native Texas. He delivers a big-time fastball and has long been seen as a premium talent. It’s important to remember, too, that he has been a quality big league starter before: over 2013-14, he worked to a 2.87 ERA in nearly 300 innings. But he hasn’t been able to sustain that, and the last two seasons have been rough.

Since the start of 2015, Cashner has compiled 316 2/3 innings with an ugly 4.72 ERA. His strikeouts did tick up to 7.9 per nine, but he has also walked 3.6 batters and surrendered more than a home run per regulation game. Things only got worse after a mid-season trade to the Marlins last year.

That being said, there are signs of hope. Cashner still induces grounders on nearly half of the balls put in play against him, and has been a victim of both high BABIPs (.330 and .315 in 2016 and 2017, respectively) and low strand rates (65.6% and 69.1%). Of course, this past year in particular, the quality of contact against him may have been more of a driving factor than poor fortune or bad defense. He generated just 12.5% soft contact in 2016 — worst in all of baseball among pitchers who logged at least 100 frames.

[RELATED: Updated Rangers Depth Chart]

It’s a calculated risk for the Rangers, who evidently felt that Cashner offered more promise than did Derek Holland. The club declined its option over the lefty, choosing to reallocate those funds to Cashner. Texas will surely hope that he’ll make good on the trust, as the organization still has a rather uncertain outlook in its rotation after top two hurlers Cole Hamels and Yu Darvish. At a minimum, the team needs Cashner to soak up some of the innings departing with Colby Lewis.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Photos.

Blue Jays Offered Roughly $80MM To Edwin Encarnacion

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The Blue Jays made a four-year contract offer to Edwin Encarnacion that was worth “about” $80MM before agreeing to a three-year, $33MM deal with Kendrys Morales, reports Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports. Sportsnet’s Shi Davidi first noted that the Jays’ offer to Encarnacion was “likely” in that vicinity. However, despite the addition of Morales, Toronto is still interested in re-signing Encarnacion and remains in the mix for his services, according to Heyman. The Jays feel that Encarnacion can play first base competently enough to coexist on the roster with Morales.

The $80MM offer to Encarnacion is a sizable step up from the team’s reported two-year offer back in Spring Training, though Encarnacion’s robust market seems likely to lead to greater offers. Heyman lists the Astros, Yankees, Rangers and Red Sox as other teams that have at least reached out to Encarnacion, and agent Paul Kinzer tells him that a couple of National League clubs have reached out as well. Certainly, there will be some who are scared off by the notion of playing Encarnacion at first base on an everyday basis, especially as he advances into his late 30s over the life of a four- or five-year deal, but it’s worth noting that Encarnacion has at least graded out as a roughly average defender at first in fairly limited action with the Jays over the past two seasons (0 DRS, +3.3 UZR in 1117 innings).

Toronto general manager Ross Atkins said this weekend that the door is still open for a new deal with Encarnacion, stating that the signing of Morales only “slightly” lessens the chances of a big splash for Encarnacion. However, Atkins also said the team would be aggressive in pursuing one, if not two outfield pieces to add to the mix, and the Jays are also known to be interested in adding left-handed relief help (especially now that Brett Cecil has signed in St. Louis). With so many needs across the board and a number of other clubs interested in Encarnacion’s bat, it’s not clear that the Jays will feel comfortable beating the market in order to retain their star slugger, especially considering the fact that the Morales deal brings another potential 30-homer bat to the table at a considerably more affordable rate.

Rosenthal’s Latest: Yanks, Cubs, Rays, Padres, Cardinals, Rangers

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With their payroll flexibility increasing, their farm system among the majors’ elite and their attendance down, the Yankees could be in position to make major splashes, observes FOX Sports’ Ken Rosenthal. Even if New York signs closer Aroldis Chapman and designated hitter/outfielder Carlos Beltran, which it’s interested in doing, general manager Brian Cashman might not stop there. Picking up another reliever to team with Chapman and Dellin Betances would become possible, writes Rosenthal, who adds that the Yankees could also improve their pitching by using their prospect pool to acquire a top-tier starter via trade. The Yankees do have Tyler Clippard on hand as an accomplished option capable of setting up Betances and Chapman, though, and Rosenthal concedes that the Bombers could decide this offseason is too early to surrender a haul for a starter.

More from Rosenthal:

  • The Cubs have done background work on Kenley Jansen, arguably the top free agent closer, but it doesn’t appear they’re seriously pursuing him, major league sources told Rosenthal. The World Series champions don’t want to overspend on a closer because it could preclude them from making a big signing in the near future (Japanese superstar Shohei Otani, for instance), notes Rosenthal. That would seemingly rule out the Cubs re-signing Chapman, who joins Jansen as one of the two best relievers available. MLBTR projects record contracts for both Jansen and Chapman, and Cubs general manager Jed Hoyer has already indicated that the team isn’t necessarily looking to splurge on a reliever.
  • The Rays are primed to base their 2017 approach on which starting pitcher they trade, writes Rosenthal. If the Rays deal right-hander Alex Cobb or southpaw Drew Smyly, both of whom have two or fewer years of team control remaining, they’re likely to make an attempt at competing next season. On the other hand, shipping righties Chris Archer (five years of team control) or Jake Odorizzi (three) out would signal a rebuild. Even if Tampa Bay chooses the latter route, it’s still unlikely to move third baseman Evan Longoria, the longtime face of the franchise. Longoria has demonstrated remarkable durability since 2013, missing just six games, and has Rays officials convinced he could be part of winning Tampa Bay teams down the line. The 31-year-old is controllable through the 2023 season.
  • The Padres are high on first baseman Wil Myers and won’t trade him unless they’re “blown away” by an offer, sources informed Rosenthal. San Diego and Myers are in the early stages of long-term extension talks, so the plan is to retain the soon-to-be 26-year-old for the long haul. Myers, a 2016 All-Star who slashed .259/.336/.461 with 28 home runs and 28 steals in 676 plate appearances, is set to make his first of as many as three arbitration trips.
  • The Cardinals have floated right-hander Michael Wacha’s name in trade talks, according to Rosenthal, who’s skeptical that the club would receive much in return for the 25-year-old because of his injury issues. Wacha threw 181 1/3 innings in 2015, but he missed significant time each of the two seasons in between because of shoulder troubles. He was terrific from 2013-15, recording a 3.21 ERA, 7.95 K/9, 2.8 BB/9 in 353 frames, though he posted a bloated ERA (5.09) in 138 innings this past season. While Wacha’s strikeout and walk rates of 7.43 and 2.93 per nine were close to previous norms (he also registered a career-high ground-ball rate of 46.6 percent), it’s possible the Cardinals will move him to the bullpen next season in his first of three arb-eligible campaigns.
  • The Rangers had interest in right-hander Edinson Volquez before reaching an agreement Friday with fellow righty Andrew Cashner, per Rosenthal. Volquez began his career with the Rangers, who signed him as an international free agent in 2001, and went to Cincinnati in 2007 in the trade that brought outfielder and eventual five-time All-Star/2010 American League MVP Josh Hamilton to Texas.

Free Agent/Trade Rumblings: Beltran, McCutchen, Guerra, Moreland

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Quite a bit of competition is lining up for Carlos Beltran, who is now being pursued by both the Red Sox and Yankees, as Evan Drellich of the Boston Herald writes. The Blue Jays, too, have reached out, and the Astros seemingly remain a possibility, providing yet more evidence that multiple organizations currently have more interest in a limited commitment to Beltran than they do a lengthier pact with Edwin Encarnacion. While Toronto’s addition of Kendrys Morales has started the movement on sluggers, there are a wide variety still available, and it promises to remain an area of intrigue for much of the offseason.

A few more late-night notes from around the league…

  • Pirates skipper Clint Hurdle certainly didn’t sound like he’s convinced center fielder Andrew McCutchen will remain with the organization when the 2017 season begins, as Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reports. “I’ll take it one day at a time,” said Hurdle when asked about the possibility of a McCutchen trade. “I think any general manager that’s in a market similar to the one we’re in has to explore the possibility of (trading) players who have one or two years left on their contracts. You have to see what value is there to keep or to move.” While McCutchen is hopeful of spending his career in Pittsburgh, Biertempfel writes that the Pirates haven’t approached him about extending his current six-year, $51.5MM contract, which has one more guaranteed year (2017) and an affordable club option (2018).
  • The Brewers are getting trade inquiries on right-hander Junior Guerra, reports Jon Morosi of the MLB Network (via Twitter). That Milwaukee would receive interest isn’t necessarily a shock, given Guerra’s controllable nature and the strong debut season he had in Milwaukee. It’ll be interesting to see if further reports emerge about GM David Stearns seriously entertaining offers on Guerra, whose 2016 success was certainly unique in nature. This past year marked Guerra’s rookie season, but unlike most first-year success stories, Guerra is a 31-year-old (32 in January) that was plucked off waivers by Stearns last offseason and enjoyed a terrific but somewhat out-of-the-blue debut. The former Braves, Mets and White Sox farmhand made 20 starts for Milwaukee and quietly pitched to a 2.81 ERA with 7.4 K/9, 3.2 BB/9 and a 45.3 percent ground-ball rate while averaging a tick over 93 mph on his fastball. Guerra still holds tremendous appeal for the the 2017 season, but it seems likely that the Brewers will at least listen to offers on him, as Milwaukee may not contend until 2018 or even 2019, at which point Guerra will be in his age-33 or age-34 season.
  • First baseman Mitch Moreland is a free agent for the first time in his career, but he said in an appearance on MLB Network Radio on SiriusXM yesterday (Twitter link) that if things go his way, he’d be back with the Rangers in 2017 and beyond. “Texas would be my first choice,” said the 31-year-old. “I love it there.” Whether the Rangers reciprocate that interest isn’t yet known, but the team does have a need at first base and DH with Moreland hitting the open market and Prince Fielder’s sudden retirement. Texas does have the option of letting the much-ballyhooed Joey Gallo take some of those at-bats in 2017, though there have been indications that the organization feels he’d benefit from opening next year in the minors. Texas has presently been focused on other matters and is reportedly on the verge of completing a one-year deal with righty Andrew Cashner. Moreland, meanwhile, turned in another 20-homer season in 2016 but saw his OBP dip as well. Overall, he hit .233/.298/.422 with 22 big flies in 503 trips to the plate.

Players Added To The 40-Man

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We’ll use this post to keep track of the players being added to their teams’ respective 40-man rosters today, which is the deadline to protect players from the Rule 5 draft. Players must be added to the big league roster within either four years (if they were 19 or older at the time of their original signing) or five years (if 18 or younger) of their signing year in order to be shielded from selection.

MLB.com’s Jonathan Mayo took a look at some of the biggest names who face roster decisions, though most of those won’t be much in question. At the fringes, teams must also consider the major league readiness of the player, since that factors heavily into whether they’ll be taken and kept. Any drafting team, of course, must keep a player on its active MLB roster for the full season (with certain exceptions relating to the DL) in order for their control rights to vest. Adding a player to the 40-man too early can have its own risks, because it limits flexibility and could require a team to expose that player to waivers if a need arises. With 26-man rosters reportedly under consideration, the Rule 5 draft could be quite intriguing this year, and that may bleed into today’s decisions as well.

Below is a division-by-division rundown of the names that were added to each team’s 40-man roster (plus the various waiver claims that spawned from teams trying to outright players to protect Rule 5-eligible prospects). We won’t delve into each player’s background, but if you’re looking to a little more about the names that were added, I’d highly recommend this tremendous, in-depth examination of each team’s additions by Baseball America’s J.J. Cooper. If you want to see how the moves look in the context of a team’s roster, head over to Roster Resource for your club’s depth chart.

Onto the moves…

American League West

American League Central

American League East

National League West

National League Central

National League East

Rangers Claim Tyler Wagner, Outright Adrian Sampson

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The Rangers have claimed righty Tyler Wagner off waivers from the Diamondbacks, per a club announcement. Texas outrighted righty Adrian Sampson and also added first bagger Ronald Guzman to its 40-man, leaving the club’s roster at 38 players.

The 25-year-old Wagner has worked at the major league level in each of the past two seasons, and has generally posted strong results in the minors as a starter. He only saw limited duty last year, though, presumably due to some injury (though that’s not apparent from public reports). Wagner went to Arizona from the Brewers as part of the Jean Segura deal.

Sampson, 25, was claimed from the Mariners about two weeks back. He’s coming off of elbow surgery that figures to limit him in the early going in 2017. As for the 22-year-old Guzman, he’ll likely be ticketed for a lengthier stint at Triple-A after reaching that level late in 2016. He struggled there in just 25 games, but posted strong results (.288/.348/.477) over 416 plate appearances on the year at Double-A.

Minor MLB Transactions: 11/17/16

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Here are the day’s minor moves from around the league…

  • The Cardinals have signed right-hander Kendry Flores and outfielder Todd Cunningham to minor league deals with invitations to Major League Spring Training, tweets MLB.com’s Jen Langosch. Flores, 25 next week, made one appearance with the Marlins in 2016 and has totaled 15 1/3 innings in Miami over the past two seasons, logging a 4.02 ERA with 10 strikeouts against seven walks (one intentional). He has a career 3.78 ERA with 7.0 K/9 against 3.2 BB/9 in 150 innings at the Triple-A level and has made 124 minor league starts, so he can give St. Louis some rotation depth with a bit of MLB experience. Cunningham, meanwhile, spent the 2016 season with the Angels but posted just a .438 OPS in 29 MLB plate appearances. The former Braves prospect, who will turn 28 in March, hasn’t hit much in the Majors but is a .274/.349/.368 hitter in parts of four Triple-A seasons and can play all three outfield positions.
  • The Rangers announced this week that they’ve signed right-hander Allen Webster to a minors deal and invited him to Spring Training. Webster, 27 in February, was a big-time prospect with the Dodgers and Red Sox but never found his footing in the Majors. He went from L.A. to Boston in the Adrian Gonzalez/Carl Crawford blockbuster and then from Boston to Arizona alongside Rubby De La Rosa in exchange for Wade Miley. Through 120 1/3 Major League innings, Webster has a 6.13 ERA and a 76-to-66 K/BB ratio. He spent last season with Samsung Lions in the Korea Baseball Organization and didn’t fare much better, posting a 5.70 ERA in 12 starts.
  • Left-hander Evan Grills has agreed to a minor league deal with the Rockies, reports Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet (on Twitter). The Canadian-born southpaw has spent his entire career in the Astros organization to date and pitched at three levels in 2016 (Class-A Advanced, Double-A and Triple-A), working to a combined 3.71 ERA with 6.6 K/9 against 1.5 BB/9 in 135 2/3 innings.

Latest On Carlos Beltran’s Market

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The Red Sox, Astros, Yankees and Blue Jays are the four teams that are showing the most interest in free-agent designated hitter/right fielder Carlos Beltran, reports WEEI.com’s Rob Bradford. According to Bradford, the Rangers aren’t involved in the talks for Beltran at this point.

Boston has an obvious opening at DH following the retirement of David Ortiz, although the team seemingly has enough internal options to cover the position. Hanley Ramirez could be shifted from first base to DH (or at least see occasional time there), while the Sox could also give Pablo Sandoval a look there after he returns from 2016 shoulder surgery. With Travis Shaw, Brock Holt and Sam Travis all representing possible options at the infield corners (Shaw at both, Holt at third, Travis at first), there are enough names to cobble together an effective corner rotation (especially if Yoan Moncada can prove capable of handling the hot corner at some point in 2017).

It’s been a dozen years since Beltran’s historic postseason run with the Astros back in 2004, but his bat remains potent enough to have him on the front office’s radar. The ’Stros could use Beltran as their primary DH and an occasional outfielder (George Springer could slide over to center field when Beltran is in the field), though that would seemingly push Evan Gattis from part-time catcher and DH to the team’s primary catcher.

The Yankees, of course, are the most familiar of the bunch with Beltran, as he played there from 2014-16 before his August trade to Texas. The Yankees will have more opportunities to get Beltran at-bats with both Alex Rodriguez (released) and Mark Teixeira (retired) off the roster, and he could see occasional action in right field, particularly if younger options like Aaron Hicks and Aaron Judge continue to struggle. Beltran is a known commodity to the New York coaching staff and in the Yankees’ clubhouse, which one would think could foster mutual interest.

As for Toronto, they’d have made more sense as a fit just one week ago, but the addition of Kendrys Morales on a three-year deal makes Beltran a tougher fit for the Jays. While Beltran’s switch-hitting bat would help to create more of the lineup balance in which GM Ross Atkins has openly expressed interest, signing Beltran would mean that the Jays would have to play either Beltran or Morales in the field regularly (Beltran in right field or Morales at first base). The Blue Jays would have to place a very heavy emphasis on the bats of both Beltran and Morales, as Beltran hasn’t graded out as even an average defender in right field since 2012, whereas Morales played just 128 total innings at first base over the life of his recent two-year deal with Kansas City. In fact, he hasn’t played more than 300 innings in the field since 2010 with the Angels. All of that makes the Blue Jays fit difficult to envision, though

It’s also certainly worth noting that the Rangers appear to be bowing out of the running for Beltran right now. That’s notable for a number of reasons, as Texas could use help in the outfield corners and at designated hitter but will apparently address those needs by other means. The team thought highly enough of Beltran’s bat to surrender young right-handers Dillon Tate, Erik Swanson and Nick Green in a deadline deal, but Beltran’s time with the Rangers, for now, looks as if it’ll be even more brief than his stay with Texas’ other team back in ’04.

Ian Desmond To Reject Qualifying Offer

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Rangers outfielder Ian Desmond will reject his one-year, $17.2MM qualifying offer, per reports from FanRag’s Jon Heyman and Joel Sherman of the New York Post (Twitter link). As Sherman notes, Desmond figures to be in considerably more demand this time around than he was after rejecting the QO last winter.

Ian Desmond

Last year’s decision seemed logical at the time but ultimately proved to be a misstep, as Desmond settled for a one-year, $8MM deal with the Rangers that required him to switch positions. While that was certainly a disappointing outcome, it may have been a blessing in disguise, as Desmond showed well in the outfield and enjoyed a considerably stronger year at the plate in 2016, prompting him for a larger payday than he’d have otherwise received on a more modest multi-year commitment last winter. In 156 games with the Rangers, Desmond hit .285/.335/.446 with 22 homers and 21 stolen bases while playing above-average defense in left field and passable, albeit below-average defense in center. Considering that the 2016 season marked his first professional exposure to both positions, it’s perhaps not surprising that Desmond struggled in center. He could conceivably improve there if asked to reprise his role as a center fielder, though, now that he has more experience under his belt. And it’s certainly possible that he returns to the infield as well, or at the very least operates as a hybrid infielder/outfielder and moves around the diamond with regularity, as Ben Zobrist and others have done in recent years.

Desmond, though, isn’t without his red flags. He did slump to finish out the year, falling off the table with a .249/.297/.305 batting line over his final 229 plate appearances. Strikeouts have also long been an issue for Desmond, and though he improved in that regard in 2016, his 23.6 percent strikeout rate was still three percent worse than the league average, while his 6.5 percent walk rate was about two percent below average.

It seems likely that with the Rangers set to lose both Desmond and Carlos Gomez to free agency, they’ll at least talk to Desmond’s new representatives at CAA about a reunion, and if he elects to sign elsewhere, Texas will receive a compensatory draft pick at the end of the first round of the 2017 draft. To this point, the Orioles have already been rumored to have interest in Desmond, though comments from GM Dan Duquette call into question whether Desmond will fit into Baltimore’s price range. MLBTR ranked Desmond ninth on our Top 50 free agent list and pegged him for a four-year, $60MM pact on the open market.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Derek Holland Hopes To Re-Sign With Rangers

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Michael Martini, the representative for free agent left-hander Derek Holland, said Saturday that his client would like a guaranteed rotation spot somewhere and is open to accepting a one-year deal. The Pirates are among the teams in the hunt for the 30-year-old, per Martini, but Holland told 105.3 The Fan that his ideal scenario is to re-sign with the Rangers (via the Dallas Morning News).

“I told (Rangers president and general manager) [Jon Daniels] when I get offered something, I want to throw that to them and see if they want to compete with it or whatnot,” Holland said. “I want to give the Rangers a chance, no matter what. I’m always going to leave that door open. I’m not closing that door. If they close the door, then fine, I guess I have to close the door. But as far as I know it’s still open and I’m leaving it open for them as well.”

The Rangers chose last week to decline Holland’s $11MM club option for 2017 in favor of a $1.5MM buyout, though Holland is pleased with the way Daniels handled it.

“We sat down and we talked about everything. He was class-act with me,” Holland explained. “Super nice, told me what was going on. Just told me straight up, he’s loved everything I’ve done and been a part of for this organization and helped out. Just told, ’It’s that time, I think we’re gonna decline the option and we’ll see what happens next, kinda go from there.”’

While the Rangers have obvious holes in their rotation behind Yu Darvish, Cole Hamels and Martin Perez, bringing back Holland still doesn’t seem particularly likely. Holland was a dependable option from 2011-13, a period in which he combined for a 3.98 ERA, 7.61 K/9 and 2.61 BB/9 over 586 1/3 innings, but Texas wasn’t able to count on him over the previous three seasons. After injuries sidelined Holland for most of the 2014 and ’15 campaigns, he threw 107 1/3 frames this past season and notched an uninspiring 4.95 ERA to go with a 5.62 K/9, 2.93 BB/9 and 38.3 percent ground-ball rate. Holland also experienced a dip in velocity and lost his spot in Texas’ rotation late in the season. The Rangers then left him off their roster for their American League Division Series loss to Toronto.

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