Willson Contreras Discusses Trade Rumors, Future
With the Cubs fresh off a letdown of a season and perhaps seeking to shake up their core, catcher Willson Contreras was the subject of trade speculation at the beginning of the winter. Contreras hasn’t gone anywhere, though, and now looks likely to begin the 2020 campaign as a member of the Cubs – the only organization he has known since signing out of Venezuela in 2009.
The 27-year-old Contreras discussed trade buzz centering on him Monday, saying (via Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times): “This past winter, the trade rumors were more consistent than the year before, and I was aware of it. I was trying to not pay attention to it, but it was impossible. Every time I was on social media, a new article was coming out about me being traded. Now that I’m here, I feel blessed once again. I’m happy to be here. I love this organization and my teammates. I’m really excited to have another great 2020 season with all my team.”
At last check, the Cubs weren’t pleased with the offers they’d gotten for Contreras. He’s one of the most valuable catchers in the game, and there weren’t many high-end backstops available in free agency, so they understandably held out for a sizable return. To this point, though, no club has presented a proposal acceptable enough for the Cubs.
Now, it appears Contreras will at least start the upcoming campaign as a Cub. And despite the rumors that have surrounded him, Contreras is open to remaining a Cub for the long haul. Contereras, who batted .272/.355/.533 with 24 home runs in 409 plate appearances last season, is willing to discuss a long-term deal with the team. He said Monday that he’s “always going to be open about talking to the Cubs about an extension.”
There haven’t been any extension talks between Contreras and the Cubs this offseason, according to Wittenmyer. However, Chicago’s not under immediate pressure to lock up the two-time All-Star. Contreras is under control via arbitration for the next three seasons, and he’ll make $4.5MM in 2020. That salary’s a bargain relative to what he brings to the table.
Taijuan Walker Auditioning For Cubs
While he’s already said to be considering multiple offers from other organizations, righty Taijuan Walker is going to throw for at least one team in hopes of boosting interest. He’s in Cubs camp readying to audition, ESPNChicago.com’s Jesse Rogers reports on Twitter.
It might be tempting to wonder if there’s some kind of agreement in place, but Rogers says that’s not the case. It does seem fair to assume there’s serious interest, though.
Given that Walker already seems to have at least one solid opportunity with the Mariners, his former team, it’s notable that he’s willing to go put on an in-person showing at this point. If he lands with the Cubs, he’d presumably be given a shot to duel with Tyler Chatwood in camp for the fifth starter’s job.
The Cubs have pursued low-cost, reasonably high upside opportunities wherever possible this winter. Just what kind of money the team could promise Walker — in an up-front guarantee or through incentives — isn’t really clear. But it seems unlikely the Chicago organization will make a significant commitment at this point given the obvious, self-imposed constraints it has operated under this offseason.
NL Notes: Dodgers, Cubs, Giants
The Mookie Betts trade is in the books, but now that Joc Pederson is no longer headed to the Angels, the Dodgers will have to sort out their 40-man roster, tweets Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register. The Dodgers have 42 players on their 40-man roster at present. Finding a new trade partner for Pederson and/or Ross Stripling might be the most obvious answer, but the Dodgers may prefer not to rush a transaction of that magnitude. Speculatively speaking, Tyler White could find himself on the chopping block, with Kyle Garlick, Zach McKinstry and Edwin Rios other non-established big leaguers whom the Dodgers may need to consider moving or exposing to waivers. While we wait for the final confirmation of this deal to go through, let’s check in elsewhere around the National League…
- Theo Epstein saw the writing was on the wall long before the Cubs’ current financial strictures so severely limited their transactional flexibility, per Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun Times. Epstein references a pattern – the Cubs, Astros, Red Sox – of teams reckoning with their young stars graduating into the arbitration process. After years of supporting homegrown cores with free agent additions in efforts to win a World Series, the Red Sox, Astros and Cubs, for differing reasons, have entered new phases. Sure enough, the Astros had to let Gerrit Cole walk in free agency, the Red Sox just shipped Mookie Betts to the Dodgers, and the Cubs are said to have been shopping Kris Bryant for most of the winter. Of course, the Cubs haven’t yet moved their young stars, but their value has declined. Epstein and company are stuck choosing between trading the stars from the cursebreaking Cubs at lower than peak value and watching them depreciate into a mediocre ballclub. Of course, there’s always the possibility of a bounceback for this Cubs core, but even a return to prominence in the NL Central would not provide the answers Epstein needs when it comes to the futures of Anthony Rizzo, Kris Bryant, Javier Baez, Willson Contreras, Kyle Schwarber and company.
- The Giants have extended a non-roster spring training invitation to catcher Ricardo Genoves, per Kerry Crowley of the Bay Area News Group. Given the timing, it’s safe to assume Genoves inclusion in the spring cohort comes as a result of the injury that will keep Aramis Garcia out for most of next season. That said, his inclusion is more about gaining a learning experience, and he’s not actually in the running for the Giants’ backup catching spot, per The Athletic’s Andrew Baggarly. Still, it seems a good opportunity for the 20-year-old Venezuelan backstop, and perhaps one that will put him on the radar of league officials league-wide. He was signed by the Giants at the open of the international signing period in 2015, but he tapped into real power at the dish for the first time this past season. Genoves managed a .265/.335/.469 line with 9 home runs in 51 games with Salem-Keizer of the Northwest League and Augusta in Low-A.
Latest On Kris Bryant
Kris Bryant‘s long-running service-time grievance against the Cubs finally came to an end last week. Bryant lost the hearing, meaning he’ll remain under team control for two more years instead of one. As you’d expect, the players’ association isn’t enamored of the results. MLBPA executive director Tony Clark issued a statement on the matter Tuesday:
“The Players Association disagrees with the decision issued today in the Kris Bryant service-time grievance. While we respect the finality of that decision, we will continue to pursue any and all measures that incentivize competition, discourage service-time manipulation and ensure clubs field their best players. We applaud Kris’ courage and determination in challenging the Cubs’ actions and seeing the grievance through to the end.”
Although Bryant understandably fought the Cubs over team control after they delayed his rookie promotion, he said last week he harbors no ill will against the club. While there doesn’t seem to be bad blood between the two sides, that doesn’t mean Bryant will be a Cub for much longer. The Cubs have had a modest offseason after last year’s dud of a finish, and if they’re as focused as getting under the luxury tax as, say, the similarly deep-pocketed Red Sox (who traded Mookie Betts and David Price on Tuesday), Bryant might not stick around for much longer. Bryant has been the subject of trade speculation for months, after all, and the fact that the $18.6MM man is controllable for two years instead of one should only help his value on the market.
A 28-year-old former NL MVP, Bryant has a pair of suitors in the Nationals and Phillies, who have shown “at least exploratory interest” in him, per Bob Nightengale of USA Today. This isn’t the first time either team has been connected to the 28-year-old Bryant this offseason, though, and it’s unclear whether they’re more inclined to trade for him now that the third base market has all but emptied out in free agency. The Nationals re-signed Asdrubal Cabrera, who figures to hold the position down until prospect Carter Kieboom‘s set to take the reins, while the Phillies have the versatile Scott Kingery as their projected starter and Alec Bohm waiting in the wings.
The Braves, yet another NL East team, are in questionable shape at the hot corner, where they look prepared to roll with Johan Camargo and Austin Riley in the wake of Josh Donaldson‘s exit in free agency. Nevertheless, the Braves have not been discussing Bryant with the Cubs, according to Jon Heyman of MLB Network, so it continues to look unlikely that he’ll end up in Atlanta.
Cubs Have Shown Interest In Jason Kipnis
The Cubs have been in contact with free-agent second baseman Jason Kipnis, tweets MLB.com’s Jordan Bastian. The Chicago organization was also tied to Scooter Gennet recently, and Bastian notes that they’re considering left-handed options at second base to pair with right-handed-hitting options like Nico Hoerner and David Bote.
Kipnis has spent his entire career to date in the Indians organization. But while he was once a star-caliber second baseman whom Cleveland rewarded with a $52.5MM extension, the former second-round pick has seen his stock tumble in recent seasons. Kipnis was brilliant both in 2013 and 2015, making a pair of All-Star teams and garnering MVP votes in each of those seasons. On the whole, from the time he debuted through the completion of the 2016 season, he batted a combined .272/.345/.423 while averaging 17 homers, 38 doubles and 25 steals per 162 games played.
Since 2017, though, Kipnis’ bat has wilted. In the past three years he’s combined for a .236/.305/.403 slash (86 OPS+) in 1485 plate appearances. That downturn prompted the Indians to pay a $2.5MM buyout on what once looked to be a reasonable $16.5MM club option for the 2021 season, sending Kipnis out into the open market for the first time.
It’s been largely silent on Kipnis all winter, as teams in need of second base help have had a deep pool of both free agents and trade options from which to draw. Regardless of how many teams to which he’s spoken, one would imagine that the Cubs are a highly appealing option for Kipnis, a Chicago-area native who attended high school at Glenbrook North — just 19 miles from Wrigley Field.
Quick Hits: Hoyer, Cubs, Moreland, Jays, Phillies
“The activity of our offseason isn’t indicative of how much we’ve been on the phone and have been working,” Cubs general manager Jed Hoyer told ESPN Chicago’s Jesse Rogers as part of a Q&A session. It has been a quiet winter in Wrigleyville, as the Cubs have been limited to minor league signings and a couple of low-cost MLB contracts as the club is seemingly operating with a very limited amount of available payroll. The Cubs have yet to make any major acquisitions or trade away any big in-house contracts to free up more luxury tax space, though while Hoyer admitted “this is obviously likely to be one of our less active offseasons,” more transactions could be on the horizon. “We’ve been incredibly active making calls and exploring options,” the GM said, adding that he expects “the trade market will continue to be an active place well into February.”
Here are some more notes to kick off both Groundhog Day and Super Bowl Sunday….
- Before re-signing with the Red Sox, Mitch Moreland received offers from at least two other clubs, the Boston Globe’s Peter Abraham writes. “The biggest thing for me was I’ve enjoyed my time in Boston. It feels like home for us and there’s a good group of guys. I’m comfortable there,” said Moreland, who has played the last three seasons with the Sox. “It’s a good family atmosphere, too, and that means a lot to me.” Moreland was eager enough to return to Fenway Park that he re-signed despite the fact that the Sox don’t yet have a manager in place in the wake of Alex Cora‘s firing.
- Blue Jays bullpen coach Matt Buschmann has been named as director of pitching development, the team announced. Buschmann will work in both roles for the 2020 season. A veteran of 11 pro seasons (including a brief stint of 4 1/3 innings with the Diamondbacks in 2016), Buschmann retired after the 2017 campaign to take on an assistant director post with the Giants before joining the Jays for the 2019 season.
- The Phillies‘ lack of starting pitching upgrades have left David Murphy of the Philadelphia Inquirer pessimistic about the club’s chances of competing in 2020. Though the Phils landed one of the winter’s biggest free agent arms in Zack Wheeler, Murphy feels much more rotation help was necessary given how Jake Arrieta, Vince Velasquez, and Zach Eflin posted middling numbers last year, and even Aaron Nola‘s solid year was a step back from an outstanding 2018 season. The shortage of pitching especially stands out in the NL East, where the Nationals, Braves, and Mets are all deep in rotation options.
Cubs To Sign Jeremy Jeffress
FEBRUARY 1: The signing is now official.
JANUARY 28: The Cubs have agreed to terms with righty Jeremy Jeffress on a one-year MLB deal, per ESPN.com’s Jeff Passan (via Twitter). It’ll pay him $850K and includes $200K in available incentives based upon appearances.
Jeffress will hope to regain his form in Chicago after falling flat last year with the Brewers. The sinkerballer was lights-out in 2018 but lost about 1.5 ticks of velocity in the ensuing campaign. He was dropped by the Milwaukee organization after throwing 52 innings of 5.02 ERA ball with 8.0 K/9, 2.9 BB/9, and a 48.4% groundball rate.
It has been a bit of a rollercoaster ride over the years for Jeffress. At his best, he has gobbled up grounders and limited the long ball and even on occasion recorded a decent number of strikeouts. The history of home run suppression (0.67 per nine for his career) is of particular interest in the era of the aerodynamic baseball. But Jeffress hasn’t always been consistent and had a worrisome DWI incident back in 2016.
For the Cubs, it’s a low-cost signing that has some relative upside. There’s really no reason to think Jeffress can replicate that ’18 outburst — his sparkling 1.29 ERA was certainly the result of good pitching, but there was some good fortune mixed in as well — but he doesn’t need to reach those heights to pay dividends. If he can regain some lost velo or learn to live without it, Jeffress could end up pitching a lot of high-leverage innings at Wrigley.
On Pirates’ Recent Moves
The Pirates’ GM Ben Cherington emerged from his new office this week with the first batch of transactions since he took over in Pittsburgh. The Starling Marte trade to Arizona was the headline-grabbiest of the bunch, wherein Cherington added two high-ceiling, but far-away prospects to Pittsburgh system.
A flurry of low-key pickups followed for Cherington as the Pirates bought in bulk: Charlie Tilson, Andrew Susac, JT Riddle, Robbie Erlin and Derek Holland signed minor league deals this week. Cherington gives Erlin a decent shot of joining the bullpen, which is otherwise without a lefty except for rotation candidate Steven Brault, per The Athletic’s Rob Biertempfel.
Holland, too, could end up in the bullpen, but like Brault, he’ll be given a shot at the rotation. Holland’s glory days as a Texas Ranger are long in the rearview, but his 2018 with the Giants at least gives the perception of a raised ceiling for Holland after otherwise forgettable stints with each Chicago team. It was just two seasons ago that Holland put up 171 1/3 innings with an impressive 3.57 ERA/3.87 FIP across 36 games for the Giants.
Holland’s shoe game remained on-point in 2019, but he struggled on the hill, both for the Giants and then for the Cubs. He only got 7 turns through the rotation to start the season, but 26 earned runs in 34 1/3 innings earned a demotion to the bullpen, where he stayed until the deadline trade to the Cubs. The Cubs relied on him as a lefty reliever out of the pen, but he struggled there, too, marking a 10.50 ERA in September, contributing to the Cubs’ tailspin.
Still, he’ll come into camp representing a veteran floor for the Pittsburgh rotation as Brault and Mitch Keller try to earn their spot. If the young Pirate arms aren’t ready to take the ball every five days, Holland could find himself back in a big league rotation in 2020.
Orioles Claim Travis Lakins, Designate Stevie Wilkerson
The Orioles announced Friday that they’ve claimed righty Travis Lakins off waivers from the Cubs. Infielder/outfielder Stevie Wilkerson was designated for assignment in a corresponding roster move.
Lakins, 25, was designated for assignment by the Red Sox earlier this winter and subsequently traded to Chicago for cash. Although he’d consistently ranked in the No. 15-25 range of a thin Boston farm system, the Ohio State product has yet to put together a particularly strong showing in the Majors or in the upper minors. Lakins made his big league debut this past season, yielding a 3.86 ERA with a lackluster 18-to-10 K/BB ratio in 23 2/3 innings for Boston. His work in Triple-A has been rather similar, as he’s compiled a 3.82 ERA with 8.4 K/9, 4.1 BB/9 and slightly below-average grounder rates in parts of two seasons there. Lakins worked as a starter earlier in his career but has pitched primarily out of the bullpen the past couple of seasons.
Wilkerson, 28, is a career .219/.279/.365 hitter in 410 plate appearances — most of which came this past season in Baltimore. He’s spent time at all three outfield positions with the O’s in addition to second base and third base, although he’s most likely remembered by many for his absurd home run robbery against Jackie Bradley Jr. at Fenway Park this past season (video link). He also holds the distinction of being the first position player to earn a save, which he did when pitching the 16th inning of a marathon win over the Angels on July 25 of this past season.
The switch-hitting Wilkerson hasn’t spent much time in Triple-A but has had some success there, hitting .294/.340/.478 through 153 trips to the plate. Wilkerson has generally been a versatile defender with respectable batting average/on-base percentage marks but limited power in the minors; since being drafted out of Clemson in the eighth round back in 2014, he’s hit .268/.342/.371 in six minor league seasons.
Cubs, Corban Joseph Agree To Minor League Deal
The Cubs have agreed to a minor league contract with infielder Corban Joseph, tweets Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com. The PSI Sports Management client will be in Major League camp this spring.
Joseph, 31, has appeared in the big leagues in each of the past two seasons — albeit on a very limited basis. He’s played in just 44 MLB games, tallying 94 plate appearances and posting a tepid .170/.213/.261 batting line with a homer and five doubles.
That said, Joseph is a fairly accomplished Triple-A hitter with some defensive versatility. In parts of six Triple-A seasons, he’s a .294/.362/.457 hitter, and he has experience at second base, third base and first base over the course of a 12-year professional career.