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Rockies Focused On Pitching Help, Bench Upgrades

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The Rockies’ 59-103 record in 2023 was third-worst in baseball, leaving general manager Bill Schmidt no shortage of paths to explore when searching for upgrades. However, although the Rockies were somewhat surprisingly one of MLB’s lightest-hitting clubs in ’23 — 17th in batting average, 25th in on-base percentage, 20th in slugging percentage and 30th in wRC+ — Schmidt said at this week’s Winter Meetings that pursuing a power bat isn’t high on his list of priorities (via Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post). Upgrading the pitching staff and deepening manager Bud Black’s bench will be the greater focus, per Schmidt. Specifically, he’d like to add a veteran backup catcher behind Elias Diaz (via DNVR’s Patrick Lyons).

Both areas could clearly use augmentation. The pitching staff, in particular, was dreadful — due in no small part to injuries. An already shaky Rockies staff lost both German Marquez and Antonio Senzatela to Tommy John surgery last year. Each of Kyle Freeland, Austin Gomber, Ryan Feltner, Connor Seabold, Chase Anderson, Ty Blach, Peter Lambert and Chris Flexen started at least 10 games for the Rox. None did so with an ERA lower than Freeland’s 5.03. Colorado starters posted an MLB-worst 5.91 ERA, and things weren’t any better in the bullpen, where the Rockies sported an MLB-worst 5.41 ERA and a 29th-ranked 20.4% strikeout rate.

Schmidt has already added one arm to the rotation mix, buying low on Guardians righty Cal Quantrill following a down season. Coors Field isn’t exactly an ideal spot for a pitcher to try to rebuild his value, but Quantrill did post a 3.08 ERA in 368 innings from 2020-22. Shoulder inflammation limited him to 19 starts in 2023 (and perhaps contributed to an ugly 5.24 ERA), but Quantrill took the ball 32 times as recently as 2022. He was a perfectly sensible addition for a Rockies team that’s desperate for arms but lacking in high-end prospects needed to acquire difference-making pitchers. Most available high-end trade targets are controllable for two or even just one year anyhow, and a Rockies team that’s at best an extreme long-shot to contend probably doesn’t want to sacrifice too much long-term value for short-term upgrades.

Because of their long odds at playoff contention, it seems the Rockies are intent on taking a look at a series of young players rather than displacing them with more expensive free agents. Shortstop Ezequiel Tovar will get another opportunity to provide some value with his bat after a brilliant defensive showing in his rookie season but a lackluster offensive performance (.253/.287/.408). The 2024 season will be something of a mulligan for second baseman Brendan Rodgers, who missed much of the 2023 season on the injured list. Nolan Jones will look to build on an impressive rookie showing, likely in right field.

Schmidt indicated that first base will likely belong to Kris Bryant, though occasional right field work is also on the table (link via Lyons). Ryan McMahon, signed through 2027, is locked in at the hot corner. The Rox re-signed veteran Charlie Blackmon to serve as their primary DH before the season even opened, guaranteeing him a surprisingly strong $13MM salary in the process.

Saunders writes that the Rockies also have higher hopes for outfielders Sean Bouchard and Brenton Doyle. The former suffered a ruptured biceps tendon prior to the season and missed most of the year, but he’s produced a massive .304/.429/.563 slash in 140 plate appearances between 2022-23. Doyle was perhaps baseball’s least-productive hitter in 2023, batting .203/.250/.343 with a 35% strikeout rate in 431 plate appearances. He also posted flat-out elite defensive grades, however, drawing enormous positives from Defensive Runs Saved (19), Ultimate Zone Rating (24.5) and Outs Above Average (16) in well south of a full season’s worth of innings. With that type of defensive wizardry, he only needs to clear a low bar at the plate to be a valuable everyday player, but last year’s output wasn’t enough.

Improving the bench shouldn’t be a difficult proposition. Brian Serven is the current favorite for backup catching work but carries just a .195/.248/.314 line in 228 MLB plate appearances. Bouchard and/or 24-year-old Hunter Goodman could get regular work in right field or carve out a bench role, but both have minor league options remaining. Utility infielder Alan Trejo has hit .243/.292/.367 in 402 MLB plate appearances over the past three seasons. He’s versatile but also out of options, and a more productive utility infielder should be available.

The main question for the Rockies’ bench could pertain to former top prospect Elehuris Montero, who’s yet to cement himself at either infield corner. The presence of McMahon, Bryant and Blackmon leaves the 26-year-old Montero, who’s hit just .239/.283/.428 in 492 MLB plate appearances, without a path to regular playing time. But Montero is also out of minor league options, so he’ll have to crack the big league roster or else be either traded or exposed to waivers. Montero was a notable piece of the Rockies’ Nolan Arenado return from the Cardinals, but he’s something of an odd man out with regard to the current allotment of playing time. Then again, Bryant has spent ample time on the injured list in recent seasons, and Montero could be the first man up should he again need time on the shelf.

The Rockies currently project for a payroll of about $142MM, per Roster Resource, which is around $30MM shy of last year’s franchise-record Opening Day payroll (a bit more than $172MM). There’s room for the club to spend, but convincing free agent pitchers to sign on the dotted line and call Coors Field home is no small feat. And the Rockies’ farm system generally isn’t well regarded, which makes adding arms on the trade market difficult, too (hence the buy-low pickup of Quantrill).

Jim Leyland Elected To Baseball Hall Of Fame

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Former Pirates, Marlins, Rockies, and Tigers manager Jim Leyland was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame, the only person elected out of the eight nominees under consideration by the 16-person Contemporary Baseball Era Committee.  Leyland received 15 of 16 votes, surpassing the 12-vote threshold with room to spare.

Of the other seven nominees, Lou Piniella came closest with 11 votes, representing another tough near miss for Piniella after previously falling one vote shy on his previous appearance on the ballot in 2019.  Former National League president Bill White received 10 votes, and the other five nominees (Cito Gaston, Davey Johnson, Ed Montague, Hank Peters, and Joe West) all received fewer than five votes.

Leyland managed 22 seasons in the majors, beginning his Cooperstown-worthy run with the Pirates in 1986.  His 11 seasons in Pittsburgh was highlighted by three straight AL East titles for the Bucs from 1990-92, as well as the personal achievements of Manager Of The Year awards for Leyland in 1990 and 1992.  Unfortunately for the Pirates, they couldn’t get over the hump and into the World Series, falling to the Reds in six games in the 1990 NLCS and then losing a pair of seven-game nailbiters to the Braves in both 1991 and 1992.

After Francisco Cabrera broke the Pirates’ hearts in Game 7, Pittsburgh didn’t have a winning record again until 2013.  Leyland had long departed the team by that point, as he moved on following the 1996 season to become the Marlins’ new skipper.

This new job finally brought Leyland his long-desired World Series ring.  The Marlins were the team delivering some October heartbreak this time, as the Fish triumphed over the Indians in seven games to bring the organization its first championship in only its fifth year of existence.  Unfortunately for Leyland and the Marlins players and fans, the club went into fire sale mode immediately afterwards, resulting in Leyland’s resignation after a 108-loss season in 1998.

Leyland quickly caught on as Colorado’s manager for the 1999 season, but his frustration at working and trying to manage pitchers in the thin-air environment led to his resignation after just a single year.  Leyland became a scout for the Cardinals, and it appeared as though his managerial career might’ve come to an end.

However, a major final act then developed in Detroit.  Leyland was hired as the Tigers’ new manager prior to the 2006 season, just as the team was emerging from a rough rebuilding period.  Undoubtedly hiring Leyland was itself a major reason why the Tigers finally got on track, and the results were immediately impressive — the 2006 Tigers reached the playoffs as a wild card team and then reached the World Series before falling to the Cardinals.

That was the first of seven .500 or better seasons Leyland would enjoy over his eight years managing in Motown.  The Tigers made the postseason three more times, including a World Series appearance in 2012 that saw Detroit swept by the Giants.  After another narrow six-game loss to the Red Sox in the 2013 ALCS, Leyland decided to retire from managing at the MLB level, though he did return to the dugout to guide the United States to victory in the 2017 World Baseball Classic.

Leyland’s career resume consists of a 1769-1728 record, eight playoff appearances, three league pennants, and that 1997 World Series championship.  He ranks 18th on the all-time managerial wins list, and 17th on the all-time list of total games managed.  He was also a three-time winner of the Manager Of The Year Award, as Leyland added the 2006 trophy to his two awards from his Pittsburgh days.

While the numbers paved Leyland’s path into the Hall of Fame, he is also a beloved figure around the sport, highly respected by peers, coaches, and the many players he managed over the years.  Just about everyone who encountered Leyland seemed to immediately have an anecdote about the quick wit and big heart of the longtime baseball man, which was somewhat obscured by his hard-nosed reputation.  “What others saw as a gruff, chain-smoking caricature of an old-school manager, those in baseball considered brilliant for how he connected with everyone from the superstar to the last man on the roster to the least-tenured coach on his staff,” the Athletic’s Stephen J. Nesbitt and Cody Stavenhagen wrote in a chronicle of Leyland stories published today.  (Stavenhagen and Rob Biertempfel had another collection of Leyland anecdotes three years ago, well worth a read for some more chuckles.)

The “veterans committee” is the catch-all name for an annual panel of rotating membership, organized by the Hall Of Fame every year to gauge the cases of players who weren’t elected or considered by the writers, or non-playing personnel who aren’t a part of the writers’ ballot.  Candidates are considered from the “Contemporary Baseball” (1980-present) and “Classic Baseball” (1980 and earlier) time periods, and broken down into a three-year rotation…

  • Classic Baseball, all candidates: 2024, 2027, 2030, etc.
  • Contemporary Baseball, players: 2025, 2028, 2031, etc.
  • Contemporary Baseball, managers/executives/umpires: 2026, 2029, 2032, etc.

Leyland will be inducted into Cooperstown on July 13.  He’ll be joined by any players elected via the writers’ ballot, and those results will be announced on January 23.

This year’s 16-person Contemporary Baseball committee was comprised of HOF members Jeff Bagwell, Tom Glavine, Chipper Jones, Bud Selig, Ted Simmons, Jim Thome, and Joe Torre; MLB owners and executives Sandy Alderson, Bill DeWitt, Michael Hill, Ken Kendrick, Andy MacPhail, and Phyllis Merhige; media members/historians Sean Forman, Jack O’Connell and Jesus Ortiz.

Rockies Acquire Cal Quantrill

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The Rockies announced that right-hander Cal Quantrill has been acquired in a trade with the Guardians.  Cleveland will receive minor league catcher Kody Huff in return, and Colorado has designated right-hander Tommy Doyle to create room on the 40-man roster.

Some kind of move seemed imminent when the Guardians designated Quantrill for assignment earlier this week, whether or not that move was a trade or the Guards just releasing Quantrill as an early non-tender.  The righty is projected to earn $6.6MM in the second of three arbitration-eligible years, which was perhaps a bit steep for a Cleveland team that traditionally has modest payrolls, and considering the fact that Quantrill struggled in 2023.

However, it was an acceptable price for a Rox team in dire need of starting pitching.  Denver’s thin air has always put an extra burden on Rockies pitchers, but things went particularly sideways in 2023 when the club was hit with a long list of injuries to pitchers at the both the Major League and minor league levels.  Colorado’s rotation wasn’t thought to be a strong group even going into the season, yet with injuries depleting the ranks, the Rockies’ pitching staff (both starters and relievers) finished at or near the bottom of the league in most statistical categories.

Health was a problem for Quantrill as well last year, as some nagging shoulder inflammation sent him to the injured list twice and limited him to 99 2/3 innings.  This was a big drop from the 168 frames he averaged over the 2021-22 seasons, as well as a slide from his quality numbers in those previous two years.  Quantrill posted a 3.16 ERA for Cleveland in 2021-22, but that number ballooned to 5.24 in 2023.

A glance at the secondary numbers is necessary, as Quantrill’s 4.50 SIERA in 2021-22 indicates that he was in some sense fortunate to deliver such a solid bottom-line ERA.  Quantrill has always been a below-average strikeout pitcher who nevertheless had strong chase rates, yet his chase rate dropped off significantly to 26.5% last season, and his 13.1% strikeout rate in 2023 was almost the worst in baseball.  The righty also allowed much more hard contact in 2023 than in past years.

Coors Field isn’t exactly the best ballpark for a pitcher in need of a rebound year, so Quantrill will face a difficult challenge on his new club.  Simply staying healthy and eating some innings would be a decent outcome for both Quantrill and the Rockies, and Colorado’s ever-present need for pitching probably means that barring injury or a drastic downturn in performance, Quantrill stand a good chance of being tendered a contract for his final arbitration year.

Doyle made his MLB debut in the form of 2 1/3 innings over three appearances with Colorado in 2020, and then didn’t make it back to the Show until he posted a 6.85 ERA over 23 2/3 innings for the Rox this past season.  The 27-year-old Doyle dealt with some injury problems in between those two Major League stints, and he had a 3.41 ERA in 37 frames with Triple-A Colorado Springs this season, with a 26.6% strikeout rate and 48.9% grounder rate helping paper over some less-flattering secondary metrics.

It wasn’t enough for the Rockies to keep him on the 40-man roster, though Doyle could stick around in the organization if he clears waivers and opts to accept an outright assignment to Triple-A.  Doyle has been previously outrighted in his career, so he has the ability to reject future outright assignments in favor of free agency.

Cleveland’s ability to draft and develop young pitching has been the organization’s backbone for years, and this strength was on display again in 2023 when Tanner Bibee, Gavin Williams, and Logan Allen all looked good in their rookie seasons.  This isn’t to say that the Guardians are completely set in the rotation — the rookies could hit some setbacks now that the league has a book on them, and Triston McKenzie and Shane Bieber both had injury problems last year.  Bieber is a free agent next winter and has been widely seen as a trade candidate this offseason, but even with Bieber’s departure potentially looming, it’s a sign of how far Quantrill’s stock fell that the Guardians were willing to move on.

Rather than non-tender Quantrill for nothing, the Guards did get some return back in Huff, a Stanford product who was a seventh-round pick for the Rockies in the 2022 draft.  He spent the 2023 season at the Rockies’ A-ball affiliate in Fresno, hitting .262/.357/.374 over 340 plate appearances.  Baseball America’s scouting report on Huff describes him as a “baseball rat” type, and “his well-rounded game and advanced instincts give him a chance to be a backup catcher.”  Cleveland has long prioritized defense from the catching position, and that stance doesn’t appear to be changing especially now that an ex-catcher in Stephen Vogt is the Guardians’ new manager.

Players Avoiding Arbitration: 11/17/23

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Tonight marks the deadline for teams to tender contracts to players who are eligible for arbitration. This evening should also see a handful of arb-eligible players agree to terms with their clubs to avoid a hearing.

These so-called “pre-tender deals” usually, although not always, involve players who were borderline non-tender candidates. Rather than run the risk of being cut loose, they can look to sign in the lead-up to the deadline. Those salaries often come in a little below projections, since these players tend to have less leverage because of the uncertainty about whether they’ll be offered a contract at all.

Under the 2022 collective bargaining agreement, players who sign to avoid an arbitration hearing are guaranteed full termination pay. That’s a change from prior CBAs, when teams could release an arb-eligible player before the season began and would only owe a prorated portion of the contract. This was done to incentivize teams and players to get deals done without going to a hearing.

All salary projections referenced are courtesy of MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz. This post will be updated throughout the night as deals are reported.

Latest Moves

  • The Orioles agreed to deals with outfielders Sam Hilliard and Ryan McKenna, reliever Keegan Akin and shortstop Jorge Mateo, as announced by the team. Mateo will make $2.7MM, as first reported by Mark Feinsand of MLB.com (X link). Jon Heyman of the New York Post has terms (on X) for Akin and Hilliard: $825K for the former, $800K for the latter.
  • Giants outfielder Mike Yastrzemski has a deal for $7.9MM, Heyman reports. That’s a little above his $7.3MM projection. Yastrzemski has one additional arbitration year remaining.
  • Reliever Yency Almonte and the Dodgers have agreed to a $1.9MM salary, per Heyman. That matches his projection.
  • Lefty reliever Ryan Borucki agreed to a contract with the Pirates, the team announced. Feinsand reports it as a $1.6MM deal. He was projected at $1.3MM.
  • The Rockies have a deal with lefty reliever Jalen Beeks, Heyman reports. He’ll make $1.675MM. Recently claimed off waivers from Tampa Bay, Beeks was projected at $1.8MM.
  • The Cubs announced a deal with third baseman Patrick Wisdom. Jesse Rogers of ESPN reports that the power-hitting infielder will make $2.725MM. That’s narrowly above a $2.6MM projection.
  • Outfielder DJ Stewart agreed to a deal with the Mets, per a club announcement. Joel Sherman of the New York Post reports it’ll be for $1.38MM. Stewart had been projected at $1.5MM as an early qualifier via Super Two.
  • The Phillies announced deals with right-hander Dylan Covey, catcher Garrett Stubbs and outfielder Jake Cave. Terms were not disclosed.
  • The White Sox announced agreement with reliever Matt Foster on a deal for $750K, narrowly above the league minimum. The right-hander underwent Tommy John surgery in April.

Earlier Tonight

  • The Royals announced agreement with lefty reliever Josh Taylor. He’ll make $1.1MM, tweets Anne Rogers of MLB.com. Acquired from the Red Sox last winter, Taylor allowed an 8.15 ERA over 17 2/3 innings before undergoing season-ending back surgery. He was projected for a $1.3MM salary.
  • The Athletics announced today that they have agreed to one-year deals with infielders Miguel Andujar and Abraham Toro. The club claimed Andujar off waivers from Pittsburgh earlier this month and swung a deal to acquire Toro from the Brewers earlier this week. Andujar hit .250/.300/.476 in 90 trips to the plate in the majors this year while Toro appeared in just nine games at the big league level but slashed .444/.524/.778 in that extremely limited action. Andujar will make $1.7MM (Heyman link); Toro is set for a $1.275MM salary.
  • The Giants have a deal with outfielder Austin Slater for $4MM, reports Craig Mish of SportsGrid (X link). That’s a little north of his $3.6MM projected salary. Slater has over five years of service time and will be a free agent next offseason. The right-handed hitter is coming off a .270/.348/.400 showing over 89 games. He’s a career .285/.374/.463 batter against left-handed pitching but owns a .227/.314/.333 mark versus righties.

National League Non-Tenders: 11/17/23

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The deadline to tender a contract to arbitration-eligible players is tonight at 7:00pm CT. Here’s a rundown of fairly minor players on National League teams who have been non-tendered today. This post will be updated as more decisions are revealed. MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projected salaries for all players eligible for arbitration last month.

All players who are non-tendered before this evening’s deadline go directly into free agency without being placed on waivers. They’ll be eligible to sign with any of the league’s 30 teams. It’s not uncommon to see non-tendered players almost immediately return to their previous organization on a minor league deal.

The transactions:

Latest Moves

Earlier

  • The Reds have non-tendered relievers Derek Law and Reiver Sanmartin. Cincinnati also confirmed the previously reported non-tender of Nick Senzel.
  • In addition to Rowdy Tellez and Brandon Woodruff, the Brewers have non-tendered right-hander J.C. Mejía. He failed a PED test in September, the second such result of his career, and was suspended for 162 games.
  • Former Rookie of the Year winner Kyle Lewis was non-tendered by the Diamondbacks. He played in only 16 games after being acquired from the Mariners last offseason.
  • The Cubs non-tendered relievers Ethan Roberts, Brandon Hughes and Codi Heuer. All three are recovering from surgeries.
  • Right-hander Tommy Doyle was non-tendered by the Rockies. Colorado designated him for assignment when acquiring Cal Quantrill this morning.
  • The Cardinals have non-tendered catcher Andrew Knizner, first baseman Juan Yepez and starting pitchers Jake Woodford and Dakota Hudson. St. Louis reportedly tried to deal Hudson this afternoon but evidently did not find a taker.
  • The Mets have non-tendered relievers Jeff Brigham, Sam Coonrod and Trevor Gott. New York also cut loose infielder Luis Guillorme and confirmed the reported non-tender of Dan Vogelbach.
  • Left-hander Josh Fleming was non-tendered by the Phillies, the team announced. Philadelphia just snagged the southpaw off waivers from the Rays a few weeks ago.
  • The Marlins have non-tendered catcher Jacob Stallings and infielder Garrett Hampson, per a club announcement. Stallings spent two seasons as the primary catcher after being acquired from the Pirates at the 2021-22 offseason. Hampson signed a minor league deal with the Fish last season.
  • The Pirates non-tendered Osvaldo Bido and Hunter Stratton, tweets Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Neither had yet been eligible for arbitration. Both right-handers made their big league debuts in 2023; Mackey suggests the Bucs will try to bring them back on minor league pacts.
  • The Nationals announced they’ve non-tendered first baseman Dominic Smith and right-hander Cory Abbott. Both players were designated for assignment earlier in the week, making this an inevitability.

Rockies, Geoff Hartlieb Agree To Minor League Deal

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The Rockies have agreed to a minor league contract with free-agent righty Geoff Hartlieb, per the team’s transaction log at MLB.com. The former Pirates and Mets reliever, a client of Paragon Sports International, will presumably head to spring training as a non-roster invitee.

Hartlieb, 29, spent the 2023 season in the Marlins organization and tossed four innings of one-run ball in the Majors. The rest of his season was spent in Triple-A Jacksonville, where he notched a solid 3.63 ERA with a 23.8% strikeout rate, 9.3% walk rate and 47.6% ground-ball rate in 44 2/3 innings of bullpen work.

Through parts of four Major League seasons, Hartlieb has been tagged for a 7.17 ERA in 70 1/3 innings, due largely to lackluster command. He’s averaged better than 96 mph on his four-seamer and better than 94 mph on his sinker, generating grounders at a healthy 49% rate and missing enough bats (20.4% strikeout rate) to get by if he could pare down the free passes. Hartlieb, however, has walked 15.1% of his opponents in the Majors, which has unsurprisingly proven untenable.

The Rockies have minimal certainty in their bullpen and figure to have multiple spots up for grabs heading into the 2024 season. It stands to reason that Hartlieb will be one of many experienced bullpen options brought in on minimal or no-commitment deals such as this one. He’s out of minor league options, so if he cracks the big league roster at any point, he’ll have to stick in the Majors or else be designated for assignment and exposed to waivers.

Rockies Select Four Players To 40-Man Roster

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The Rockies announced their 40-man roster moves in advance of today’s Rule 5 deadline, bringing their allotment back up to a full 40 players.  Colorado selected the contracts of infielder Adael Amador, outfielder Yanquiel Fernandez, and right-handers Juan Mejia and Angel Chivilli.

There wasn’t much suspense over the first two moves, as Amador and Fernandez are two of the better prospects in all of baseball.  Baseball America and MLB Pipeline each rank Amador as the 21st-best minor leaguer in the game, while Fernandez is ranked 47th by BA and 49th by Pipeline.  The duo each reached the Double-A level in 2023 but didn’t perform particularly well, though Amador missed a lot of time with a broken right hamate bone.  It seems likely that Colorado will start both back at Double-A Hartford to begin the 2024 campaign, but it wouldn’t be a shock if either Amador or Fernandez got a cup of coffee in the majors before the year is out.

Mejia had a combined 5.06 ERA over 58 2/3 combined innings with High-A Spokane and Double-A Hartford in 2023, but as MLB.com’s Thomas Harding wrote this week, Mejia looked quite impressive in Arizona Fall League action.  Though Mejia had nine walks over his 8 1/3 innings in the AFL, he also struck out 17 batters, highlighting in rather extreme fashion his career-long trend towards both missing bats and battling control problems.  The Rockies felt Mejia’s live arm is worth the protection, so the 23-year-old will now make a 40-man roster for the first time.

The 21-year-old Chivilli ran into some home run issues in Spokane this season, contributing to the 5.61 ERA he posted over 61 combined innings (57 in High-A ball, four at Double-A).  Like Mejia, Chivilli has saved some of his best work for the offseason, pitching well in Dominican Winter League action.

Rockies Claim Jalen Beeks Off Waviers From Rays

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The Rockies announced this afternoon that they have claimed left-hander Jalen Beeks off waivers from the Rays. The club’s 40-man roster now stands at 36.

Beeks, 30, made his big league debut in 2018 as a member of the Red Sox, but made just two appearances with Boston before being shipped to the Rays in the Nathan Eovaldi trade. Upon joining the Rays for the stretch run, Beeks pitched to a 4.47 ERA and 4.45 FIP in 44 1/3 innings of work, before largely repeating that performance over a full season in 2019 with a 4.31 ERA and 4.41 FIP across 104 1/3 innings. Beeks took something of a step forward with the Rays in the shortened 2020 season, pitching to a solid 3.26 ERA with a sterling 1.76 FIP bolstered by a 32.1% strikeout rate. Unfortunately, his 2020 season would be halted prematurely by Tommy John surgery, which wiped out his 2021 campaign as well.

Upon returning in 2022, Beeks posted the best full season of his career with a 2.80 ERA and 3.49 FIP in 61 innings of work. Things took a turn for the worse in 2023, however, as the southpaw struggled badly to a 5.95 ERA in 42 1/3 innings despite a solid 3.82 FIP that was reminiscent of his standout campaign the year before. Beeks is projected for a $1.8MM salary this season by MLBTR’s Matt Swartz, a level at which the Rays clearly weren’t comfortable committing to the lefty after his tough 2023.

That being said, it’s easy to see why the Rockies would take a chance on Beeks. The lefty has posted a 27.3% strikeout rate against a 9% walk rate in 122 2/3 innings of work since the start of the 2020 season, and Colorado is in desperate need of addition pitching depth headed into next season. Beeks has had most of his success in short-inning relief throughout his career, but has been stretched out for long relief in the past, giving the Rockies a flexible left-handed option out of the bullpen for 2024, particularly valuable for a club that’s losing left-hander Brent Suter to free agency this offseason.

NL West Notes: Bogaerts, Haselman, Rockies

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While Manny Machado’s recovery from elbow surgery will cloud the Padres’ infield picture for the start of the 2024 season, it is possible the Friars might explore moving Xander Bogaerts off of shortstop as soon as next year, The Athletic’s Dennis Lin writes.  The public defensive metrics were pretty mixed on Bogaerts’ glovework last season, as he received +3 Outs Above Average, -4 Defensive Runs Saved, and an exactly even 0.0 UZR/150 over 1285 2/3 innings at shortstop.  “Team officials have talked among themselves about the possibility of asking Bogaerts to move to the right side of the infield,” Lin writes, with perhaps even first base being an ideal destination from a defensive standpoint, setting up an infield of Bogaerts at first base, Jake Cronenworth at second base, Ha-Seong Kim at shortstop, and Machado at third base.

For his part, Bogaerts would prefer second base over first base if a position change did happen.  When talking to Lin and other reporters last month, Bogaerts said “we’ll cross that bridge when we get there” in terms of changing his defensive role, and he had “no idea” if the Padres were going to broach the subject in the coming months.  Depending on Machado’s injury rehab, Kim is expected to handle third base until Machado is ready to return to fielding duty, though naturally any of the Padres’ plans could be altered by upcoming offseason moves.

Some other items from around the NL West….

  • Angels third base coach Bill Haselman “has been talked about” in regards to the Giants’ managerial job, a source tells John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle.  Haselman played in parts of 13 MLB seasons from 1990-2003, and has five years of coaching experience on Major League staffs — as a bullpen coach and first base coach for the Red Sox in 2004-06, and as a catching instructor and third base coach in Anaheim over the last two seasons.  Haselman also has a lot of experience as a minor league coach and manager in the Angels’ and Dodgers’ minor league systems, and his time with the Dodgers overlapped with Farhan Zaidi’s tenure as Los Angeles’ general manager from 2014-18.  It remains to be seen if Haselman is more than a speculative candidate to be the Giants’ next skipper, though Zaidi (San Francisco’s president of baseball operations) appears to be expanding his search beyond internal candidates.
  • The Rockies and Mariners discussed a trade last offseason that would’ve brought some pitching to Colorado, according to Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post.  The specifics of the trade talks weren’t revealed, though it makes sense that the pitching-needy Rockies would’ve at least checked in with Seattle, given how rumors swirled last winter that the M’s were open to moving one of Marco Gonzales or Chris Flexen.  Given how the Rox ended up signing Flexen as a free agent back in July, it is fair to wonder if he was perhaps the particular name under discussion.  Purely speculatively, the Rockies also might’ve aimed higher in their pitching goals, perhaps dangling Brendan Rodgers to the Mariners (who needed second base help) as part of a trade package involving George Kirby or Logan Gilbert.  Colorado had some degree of talks with the Marlins last offseason about a Rodgers-for-Edward Cabrera swap, and Saunders suggest that Rodgers “might be a trade candidate again” in the coming months.  It would be something of a sell-low move for the Rockies at this point with Rodgers, as while he has two remaining years of arbitration control, he only played 46 games last season due to a dislocated shoulder.

Ty Blach, Matt Koch Elect Free Agency

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TODAY: Koch and Blach have elected to become free agents, according to the MILB.com transactions tracker.

OCTOBER 18: The Rockies have outrighted three players off the 40-man roster, per their transactions tracker at MLB.com. Right-handers Karl Kauffmann and Matt Koch and southpaw Ty Blach all went unclaimed. The latter two will have the opportunity to test free agency. Kauffmann will remain in the organization without holding a 40-man spot.

Blach is the most well-known of the three. The former Giants starter has pitched parts of two seasons with his hometown club in Colorado. He threw 44 1/3 innings of 5.89 ERA ball a year ago and logged 78 innings across 20 appearances (including 13 starts) while allowing 5.54 earned runs per nine this year. The strike-throwing southpaw kept his walks to a modest 6.8% clip but struck out a below-average 14.2% of opponents.

With between three and four years of service, Blach would have been eligible for arbitration this winter. A projected $1.8MM salary always made a non-tender seem likely. The outright serves as an early equivalent. It’s possible the Rox could try to re-sign him on a minor league pact.

Koch inked a non-roster deal over the winter. Colorado selected him onto the major league team in June. The 32-year-old (33 next month) wound up logging 38 2/3 innings over 39 appearances down the stretch. He pitched to a 5.12 ERA with a modest 16.6% strikeout rate but an excellent 5.5% walk percentage. The former third-round pick has pitched in parts of six major league campaigns. This was his longest stint since he started 14 games for the 2018 Diamondbacks.

The Rockies selected Kauffmann with the 77th pick in the 2019 draft. The Michigan product made his debut this year, pitching 35 innings over 11 appearances. His initial look at big league hitters didn’t go well, as he allowed an 8.23 ERA with matching 10.1% strikeout and walk rates. Kauffmann spent the majority of the season at Triple-A Albuquerque. He started 19 games in that extremely hitter-friendly setting, posting a 6.43 ERA over 92 1/3 innings.

Colorado has taken six players off the roster since the regular season concluded. Barring additional changes in the next few weeks, their 40-man count will sit at 36 at the start of the offseason.

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