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Nick Hagadone, Indians Resolve Grievance

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11:43am: Bastian tweets some clarification, noting that Hagadone didn't "win" his grievance, but rather the involved parties worked out an agreement to resolve the pending grievance.

9:57am: Indians left-hander Nick Hagadone has won the grievance filed on his behalf by the Major League Baseball Players Association, reports MLB.com's Jordan Bastian. The deal is highly significant for both sides, as Hagadone gains a hefty 94 days of service time (jumping from 1.033 to 1.127), and the Indians will gain another option on Hagadone. He'd previously been out of options but can now be sent to the minor leagues in 2014 (All links to Twitter).

The source of Hagadone's grievance was a self-inflicted hand injury following a poor outing back in July 2012. Hagadone was subsequently optioned to the minor leagues and placed on the disqualified list rather than placed on the Major League disabled list with his injury. In doing so, the Indians assured that he would not be paid while missing time due to his injury and also would not accumulate service time. As Bastian reports above, he will now be compensated for that time on the DQ list after winning the grievance.

As Bastian further notes (on Twitter), Hagadone is one of six left-handers vying for a spot in Cleveland's bullpen. A quick glance at the most recent Super Two cutoff shows that this additional service time is crucial to Hagadone. The 28-year-old can now potentially qualify as a Super Two player and be eligible for arbitration following the season, should he make the Opening Day roster and stick in the Majors all year.

Hagadone was excellent for the Indians in Triple-A last season, posting a 2.51 ERA with 12.8 K/9 and 4.7 BB/9 in 32 1/3 innings. However, his control problems were magnified in the Majors (6.0 BB/9), and his strikeout rate dropped (8.6 K/9), and the result was an unsightly 5.46 ERA in 31 1/3 innings for Cleveland. Those trends aren't exactly new for the lefty, who has a 5.59 ERA in 67 2/3 Major League innings despite excellent minor league numbers.

Hagadone was originally acquired by the Indians along with Justin Masterson and Bryan Price in the trade that sent Victor Martinez to the Red Sox. Boston picked Hagadone 55th overall in the 2007 draft as compensation for the loss of free agent Alex Gonzalez.

Arbitration Notes: Indians, Braves

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As MLBTR's Arbitration Tracker shows, there are 22 remaining arbitration cases that have yet to settle. Among those, some of the most likely to go to hearings are those of the Indians and Braves. GM Chris Antonetti of Cleveland says that his club is highly likely to see at least one hearing, while Atlanta counterpart Frank Wren has insisted that all three of his team's cases will not be negotiated further. Here is the latest on those arbitration situations:

  • The Indians are at a standstill with reliever Vinnie Pestano, tweets MLB.com's Jordan Bastian. With the sides' positions standing at $975K and $1.45MM, respectively, a hearing set for this coming Friday could be needed to provide resolution.
  • Meanwhile, progress has been slow in talks with fellow Cleveland reliever Josh Tomlin, Bastian tweets. Though the sides are positioned across a seemingly minor gap ($800K vs. $975K), they would go to hearing on February 14th if resolution cannot be reached.
  • For starter Justin Masterson, both he and the team will be closely watching the still-unresolved arbitration case between Homer Bailey and the Reds, Bastian writes. The two have had similar production levels and face similar spreads in their filing figures. Additionally, either could look to the other as a comp in extension negotiations. Bastian previously reported that Masterson and the Indians were set for hearing on February 20th. 
  • If nothing changes the position of the Braves, then the team is headed to three hearings in one week over mid-February. As David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports via Twitter, Freddie Freeman ($5.75MM vs. $4.5MM) is scheduled for February 11th, Jason Heyward ($5.5MM vs. $5.2MM) for February 13th, and Craig Kimbrel ($9MM vs. $6.55MM) for February 17th. 

Bowden’s Latest: Free Agency, Scherzer, Drew, Lobaton

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Jim Bowden of ESPN and MLB Network Radio spoke with multiple agents and executives over the weekend and got contradictory takes on the reasons for so many top free agents remaining unsigned (ESPN Insider required and recommended). Agents told Bowden that they (and the MLBPA) feel that the heightened media coverage resulting from social networking has damaged players' market values. Reports from media members about how teams value players and whether or not they've made offers to players could be violations of the CBA, those parties told Bowden. Meanwhile, executives said to Bowden that the market is simply full of players with baggage (draft pick compensation, PED usage, inconsistent performance) and added that agents entered the offseason with unnatural expectations for their clients.

Here are just some of the highlights from a jam-packed column from the former Nationals and Reds GM…

  • Max Scherzer and Jon Lester are the two most likely candidates from next year's crop of free agent starting pitchers to sign an extension, Bowden writes. Despite the fact that Scherzer is a Scott Boras client (Boras prefers his clients to test the open market), Scherzer seems to want to remain loyal to the Tigers. However, Bowden notes that an extension would still need to be somewhere close to Scherzer's market value, which Bowden pegs at a whopping $196MM over seven years.
  • The Red Sox have made a two-year offer to Stephen Drew, one source told Bowden. The value of that reported offer is unclear, as is the date on which it was made.
  • The Nationals have discussed Jose Lobaton trades with the Rays as they look to add a backup catcher for Wilson Ramos. Lobaton figures to be expendable for the Rays, as they project to have a strong defensive tandem of Ryan Hanigan and Jose Molina behind the dish. Shedding Lobaton's $950K salary would seem to be more beneficial to the tight-budgeted Rays than most teams, particularly if they don't have a roster spot for him.
  • The Dodgers are pushing for an infielder over another starting pitcher and hope to have a deal done within the next 48 hours. Los Angeles isn't likely to bid on any of the remaining free agent starters unless they're willing to take a short-term deal, as Dan Haren did to play near his hometown.
  • Kendrys Morales is the most likely free agent to be this year's version of Kyle Lohse, writes Bowden. He notes that the Orioles — who still have about $15MM to spend — and Mariners remain interested in the switch-hitting Scott Boras client. Both are still in on Nelson Cruz as well. MLBTR readers seem to agree with the Morales/Lohse comparison; in the poll I conducted earlier this morning asking which Top 50 free agent would be the next to sign, he drew the fewest votes.
  • The Royals and Indians are both highly unlikely to be able to lure back their respective free agent pitchers, Ervin Santana and Ubaldo Jimenez. The Blue Jays are a likely landing spot for both pitchers.

Quick Hits: Free Agents, Braves, Ortiz, Lester, Rays

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The MLBPA has spoken to Major League Baseball COO Rob Manfred about their concerns over team executives talking about whether or not they're negotiating with free agents, which is a violation of the collective bargaining agreement, FOX Sports' Ken Rosenthal reports.  Some players are also upset at the slow pace of the free agent pitching market, and while Rosenthal says the union could consider filing a grievance, such an action would be hard to prove given that teams have already spent close to $2 billion on free agents this offseason.

Here's some more from around baseball on Super Bowl Sunday…

  • The Braves will have to make some tough decisions about which of their young core players they want to extend while keeping their payroll in check, Mark Bradley of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution writes (subscription required).  The experience of many of Atlanta's best young players is another issue, Baseball Prospectus' Ben Lindbergh tells Bradley, since "most of them have established themselves. (The Braves) possibly might have already missed the window of getting a good deal.” 
  • The Red Sox are wary about making too long a commitment to 38-year-old David Ortiz given how aging designated hitters can so quickly decline, Scott Lauber of the Boston Herald writes.  Ortiz is under contract through 2014 and recently said he would like another year added to his contract.  While Ortiz's age is a concern, Lauber notes that if the Red Sox don't extend Ortiz and he has another big season, the Sox will then be forced to sign him through at least 2016 to keep him in Boston.
  • Jon Lester is another Red Sox player mentioned in extension rumors, and John Tomase of the Boston Herald looks at the somewhat shaky history of left-handed starters who sign expensive contracts into their 30's.  Since Lester has said he would give the Red Sox a hometown discount, Tomase thinks a five-year, $100MM extension could work for both sides.
  • The Rays are still having talks about trading catcher Jose Lobaton, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.  Lobaton looks like the odd man out behind Ryan Hanigan and Jose Molina, though Topkin notes that the team could still bring Lobaton to Spring Training in case one of their regulars gets injured.  If another team develops a catching need later in the spring, as well, the Rays can explore moving Lobaton then.
  • Also from Topkin's piece, the Rays have focused on adding depth this offseason to give themselves plenty of roster flexibility and options heading into Spring Training.
  • The Indians believe that Joe Smith was their biggest bullpen loss this winter, Terry Pluto of the Cleveland Plain Dealer writes, not former closer Chris Perez.  The Tribe rebuilt their bullpen and hope that John Axford can cinch the closing job, Vinnie Pestano returns to his old form and that young arms Bryan Shaw and Cody Allen continue to deliver quality relief innings.  Pluto notes that the Indians hope Shaw turns into a new Smith, and the club sees Allen as a future closer.
  • Baseball America's Matt Eddy recaps the week's minor league transactions.

AL Central Links: Martinez, Yoon, Royals

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Here's the latest from around the AL Central…

  • Victor Martinez wants to remain with the Tigers beyond this season, the veteran slugger told reporters (including Tom Gage of the Detroit News), though he realizes the club may have other payroll priorities to be addressed, such as new deals for Max Scherzer and Miguel Cabrera.  Martinez, who turned 35 last month, is entering the final year of his four-year, $50MM deal with the Tigers.  After missing all of 2012 with a torn ACL, Martinez returned to hit .301/.355/.430 with 14 home runs in 668 PA in 2013.
  • The Indians looked at Korean right-hander Suk-min Yoon earlier this offseason but weren't willing to meet Yoon's price, Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer reports (Twitter link).  Yoon has reportedly received offers from four MLB teams and he is in talking to two of them.  The Twins have long been linked to Yoon and they continue to "monitor" him, though there haven't been any meetings between the two sides. 
  • The Royals' wealth of upcoming minor league talent is cited by Fangraphs' Jeff Sullivan as a counter to the oft-stated belief that the club's only "window of contention" is only open for as long as James Shields is in Kansas City.  Shields is entering his last year under contract and since it is believed the Royals won't be able to afford him, the team has been criticized for acquiring Shields in the deal that sent Wil Myers and others to Tampa Bay.
  • In AL Central news from earlier today, the Twins signed righty Matt Guerrier to a minor league deal and the Royals both acquired outfielder Carlos Peguero from the Mariners for cash and designated southpaw Everett Teaford for assignment. 

Quick Hits: Prospects, Cruz, Yoon, Madson, Baker

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MLB.com's Jim Callis has an interesting breakdown of the dollars committed to the game's top prospects. Over $228MM has already been committed by teams to the prospects listed among MLB.com's top 100. Meanwhile, ESPN.com's Keith Law has released his own prospect rankings (Insider links), naming the Astros' system as the game's best and tabbing Byron Buxton of the Twins as the best overall prospect. In his own top 101 prospects list, Jason Parks of Baseball Prospectus agrees with Buxton as the top choice, which certainly appears to be the consensus. And Baseball America has completed its listing of the ten best prospects by team.

Here are some more links from around the game:

  • The Twins are keeping tabs on free agent outfielder Nelson Cruz, tweets Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN, but are a long shot to land him. Minnesota is probably only interested if Cruz drops his price fairly significantly, Wolfson adds, guessing that the club would probably only be involved at two years with an average annual value at or below the $10MM mark.
  • Likewise, the Twins are waiting for the price to fall on South Korean hurler Suk-min Yoon, Wolfson reports (Twitter links). When Wolfson floated the number of two years and $10MM total to his source, he was told that cost was likely too steep for Minnesota.
  • Free agent reliever Ryan Madson plans to hold a full public workout on February 7th, reports Jerry Crasnick of ESPN.com (Twitter links). The 33-year-old threw yesterday for an unknown club that is reportedly a leading candidate to land him, Crasnick adds. 
  • Starter Scott Baker chose the Mariners over offers from the Indians, Rangers, and Royals, reports Wolfson (via Twitter). The Twins never had interest in a reunion, Wolfson adds.
  • Clayton Kershaw and the Dodgers were discussing a deal in the range of $200MM to $205MM over the summer, tweets Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com. By waiting until he wrapped up a Cy Young campaign, Kershaw was able to secure a deal with a $215MM guarantee.

Rosenthal’s Latest: M’s, Cruz, Rodney, Reds, Drew

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The Mariners are "back in business, showing strong interest" in Nelson Cruz and Fernando Rodney again, reports Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports in his latest column. The Mariners, who are said to have some financial leeway by new team president Kevin Mather, is also looking at the trade market for starting pitchers, though they're not currently focused on David Price or Jeff Samardzija. Rosenthal also notes that the Indians aren't having any conversations on Justin Masterson, nor are the Reds inclined to move any of their starters, further limiting the list of trade targets. More highlights below…

  • Cruz could be a fallback option for the Rangers, but probably only if he's willing to sign a one-year deal. Bringing Cruz back would allow the Rangers to deal Mitch Moreland.
  • Rosenthal wonders if the Reds should be thinking about dealing a starter. While they're trying to extend Homer Bailey, that seems to be a tall order as he's just one year from free agency. Mat Latos, Mike Leake and Johnny Cueto are all only controlled through 2015, and as Rosenthal notes, not all can be long-term pieces.
  • The Athletics aren't considering making a run at Stephen Drew and shifting Jed Lowrie from short to second base. The A's are comfortable platooning Eric Sogard and Nick Punto.
  • A rival executive wondered to Rosenthal if the Braves would match up with the Mariners on a Dustin Ackley trade, but Rosenthal hears that the Braves aren't looking for a second baseman. They currently have Dan Uggla, who is owed $26MM through 2015, and three fallback options in Ramiro Pena, Tommy La Stella and Tyler Pastornicky.
  • Braves GM Frank Wren said he doesn't hold any ill will toward players who go to arbitration hearings — such as the ones he could face with Jason Heyward, Craig Kimbrel and Freddie Freeman: "We don’t look at it as an antagonistic process. We look at it as a solution to a disagreement on a player’s salary."

Heyman On Free Agents: Drew, Morales, Jimenez

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CBSSports.com's Jon Heyman covered a series of free agent topics in an MLB Network appearance last night (hat tip to Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet.ca). Among them:

  • The Blue Jays are "in the mix" for shortstop Stephen Drew, presumably viewing him as a second base option. Nevertheless, the Red Sox remain the favorites to land him, as they prefer to play Xander Bogaerts at third and appear willing to give Drew multiple years. Boston could dangle an opt-out clause of some kind to sweeten things for Drew, Heyman adds. There was a competing report last night on the Yankees' interest, but Heyman says that the club "seem[s] more interested in Drew than ever" after landing Masahiro Tanaka.
  • Toronto, says Heyman, figures to be a major threat to land any of the prominent remaining free agents. As he explained further today, the Jays — armed with two protected first-round draft picks — may have made the strategic decision to wait out the market for players that are burdened with draft pick compensation. Likewise, as Heyman wrote today, the Mariners could still figure in on the top of the remaining free agent crop.
  • Kendrys Morales is among the players who Heyman says could land with either of those clubs. The Jays like Morales, but presumably would need to deal first baseman/DH Adam Lind to bring him on board. Likewise, the Rangers could potentially be involved, but would likely have to flip Mitch Moreland for a Morales signing to fit. If one of those clubs did land Morales, the Pirates might be a club that could swoop in on the trade market, says Heyman.
  • The market for Nelson Cruz is looking thin, Heyman says. Cruz may not want to play in Safeco Field, and other possible landing spots like the Orioles and Rangers are focused on pitching.
  • Turning to the mound, Heyman said that Ubaldo Jimenez may now be willing to drop his salary demands and could ultimately land in the three-year, $39MM range. The Blue Jays and Orioles are the most likely clubs to sign Jimenez, according to Heyman, with the O's still concerned about burning a draft pick. Meanwhile, the Indians could still get involved if the price on Jimenez falls even further.

Masterson, Indians Put Extension Talks On Hold

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Pitcher Justin Masterson and the Indians appear to have "shelved" discussions of a long-term contract extension, reports Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer. For the time being, at least, the sides will instead focus on dealing with Masterson's arbitration case.

Hoynes reported about two weeks back that player and club were set to negotiate a long-term deal. While both sides are said to be interested in a new contract, Hoynes says that "talks have gained little, if any, traction." Today's news echoes another recent report, from MLB.com's Jordan Bastian, that discussions to date have failed to produce momentum.

Of course, the two parties still have plenty of work left to do on reaching a salary for 2014. Masterson filed at $11.8MM, with the team countering at $8.05MM. The resulting $3.75MM gap is the largest in absolute terms of any of the year's arbitration cases, leaving both sides facing a high-stakes hearing if a settlement cannot be hammered out. Spanning that gulf could be tricky, and GM Chris Antonetti has indicated that Masterson's case (or that of one of his teammates) could go to a hearing. Masterson's hearing is scheduled for February 20th, Bastian tweets, which does leave plenty of time to find a compromise.

Masterson, a 6'6" righty who turns 29 in March, has logged four straight seasons of at least 180 innings for Cleveland. Though he has posted middling earned run averages over two of those campaigns (4.70 in 2010 and 4.93 in 2012), his other two tallies are those of a top-of-the-rotation starter (3.21 in 2011 and 3.45 in 2013). In the aggregate, he was worth 11.7 fWAR in the 2010-13 span, placing him among the top thirty starters in the game during that stretch. MLBTR's Tim Dierkes has pegged Masterson's extension value in the range of $65MM to $85MM over a five year term.

Indians Sign Elliot Johnson

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The Indians have signed infielder Elliot Johnson to a minor league deal with an invitation to Spring Training, according to Jordan Bastian of MLB.com (Twitter link). Chris Cotillo of MLB Daily Dish first connected the Indians to the ACES client yesterday (also on Twitter).

Johnson, 29, was acquired by the Royals as a player to be named later in the blockbuster James Shields-for-Wil Myers trade last offseason. He batted just .179/.218/.241 in 173 plate appearances with Kansas City before finding himself designated for assignment and claimed off waivers by the Braves. Johnson improved at the plate in Atlanta, hitting a more respectable .261/.317/.359 in 102 PAs. He also offers plus speed, as evidenced by his 22 stolen bases in 24 attempts in 2013.

Johnson's best asset is his ability to handle both up-the-middle positions. Ultimate Zone Rating thinks highly of his glove at second base (+7.9 UZR/150), while grading his shortstop defense as passable, though slightly below average (-2.7). Defensive Runs Saved pegs him at +13 in 602 innings at second base and +3 in 1079 innings at short.

While Ryan Raburn is one option to occasionally back up second baseman Jason Kipnis, he saw just 17 innings there last season and is better suited to play right field. Mike Aviles presents another option to back up Kipnis as well as shortstop Asdrubal Cabrera, but Johnson could fight his way into the mix for a utility spot.

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