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Daniel Bard To Begin Season On Injured List

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Rockies right-hander Daniel Bard is going to begin the season on the injured list due to anxiety, reports Danielle Allentuck of the Denver Gazette (Twitter links). Righty Jake Bird has been recalled to take Bard’s place on the active roster. Allentuck adds that outfielder Jurickson Profar is not yet with the team in San Diego, though he can’t be replaced on the active roster.

“It’s a hard thing to admit,” Bard tells Allentuck. “But I’ve been through this before. I have enough going on outside the game to realize what’s important … I’m extremely grateful to be in an organization that understands these things and is accepting.”

Bard, 38 in June, pitched for the Red Sox from 2009 to 2013 but a case of “the yips” caused him to struggle in the latter parts of that span. His walk rate shot up to 15.5% in 2012 and then was even worse the year after. He only made a couple of appearances at the big league level in 2013 before getting sent to the minors, eventually walking a third of opponents down on the farm the rest of the way.

He didn’t pitch in the majors for many years but resurfaced with the Rockies in 2020. He posted a 3.65 ERA in 23 appearances that season, striking out 25.5% of batters faced, walking 9.4% of them and getting grounders at a 48.5% clip. He took a bit of a step back in 2021, with his walk rate jumping to 11.8% and his ERA spiking to 5.21%. But he got back on track tremendously in 2022, with a 1.79 ERA and 10.2% walk rate. He also struck out 28.2% of batters faced, got grounders on 51.7% of balls in play and racked up 34 saves on the year. His name popped up in some trade rumors as he was set to his free agency after last year, but he and the Rockies agreed to a two-year, $19MM extension.

Though the Rockies surely don’t want to be without their closer, Bard’s comments indicate that they’re prioritizing his health now that his anxiety has reoccured. Thomas Harding of MLB.com relays that Bard is still with the team and doing his normal throwing. That means it’s possible he’ll return whenever he feels he has his anxiety managed. MLBTR wishes him the best in that process.

Quickly turning to Profar, he didn’t have much of a spring because he was playing with Team Netherlands during the World Baseball Classic while still unsigned. He eventually signed with the Rockies but was delayed in joining the club in camp due to visa issues. He eventually did report to the team’s facilities in Arizona and is apparently still there, per Harding, continuing to get at-bats in minor league games. Harding adds that the decision on when Profar joins will be done “by feel.” It seems the club will play with a shortened three-man bench until then.

Offseason In Review: Colorado Rockies

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The Rockies entered the winter with payroll already at franchise-record heights. That portended a quiet offseason, which ultimately proved to be the case. Colorado made a couple low-cost veteran free agent pickups to round out the roster in Spring Training.

Major League Signings

2023 spending: $17.25MM
Total spending: $18.25MM

Option Decisions

Trades and Claims

Notable Minor League Signings

Extensions

  • Signed RHP Tyler Kinley to three-year extension worth $6.25MM (deal also includes 2026 club option and potentially buys out two free agent years)

Notable Losses

The Rockies missed the playoffs for the fourth consecutive season, falling to last place in the NL West for the first time since 2015. It’s not a good position for an organization that also entered the offseason with a player payroll projected at franchise-record heights. That was the case even before Nolan Arenado declined his opt-out chance with the Cardinals, which kicked in another $5MM annually in payments from Colorado to St. Louis over the next three seasons (on top of the reported $16MM the Rox were paying this year regardless of whether Arenado opted out).

It pointed to a relatively quiet offseason and that proved the case for much of the winter. Colorado made a couple early moves on the pitching front. José Ureña returned on a $3.5MM deal to serve a back-of-the-rotation role. The right-hander had started 17 games last season, allowing more than five earned runs per nine but generating a fair number of grounders. Colorado had to address the starting staff in some capacity with Ureña and Chad Kuhl both hitting the open market and Antonio Senzatela still recovering from last summer’s ACL tear.

They didn’t wind up doing much else on that front, perhaps in part thanks to the rising cost of mid-tier free agent starters. Colorado swung a small trade for depth starter Connor Seabold from Boston but will otherwise rely on internal rotation arms. Germán Márquez and Kyle Freeland will be counted on to bounce back from disappointing 2022 seasons, as will Senzatela once healthy. Ureña grabs a back-end spot with Austin Gomber, while Ryan Feltner and Seabold could vie for depth appearances.

Colorado was a little more aggressive in addressing the bullpen. Carlos Estévez and Alex Colomé walked in free agency, leaving a couple holes in an already underwhelming relief corps. The Rockies targeted hard-throwing righty (and Denver native) Pierce Johnson in free agency, signing him to a $5MM deal. It was a bit of a surprising sum for a pitcher who was limited to 15 appearances last year by injury but he’s just a season removed from striking out nearly 32% of opponents with a 3.22 ERA over 58 2/3 innings. He’ll pick up some high-leverage work as a bridge to closer Daniel Bard.

Tyler Kinley could eventually return to setup work but he’ll miss a good chunk of this season rehabbing from last year’s elbow surgery. Colorado placed a show of faith in him this offseason, guaranteeing him $6.25MM to cover his final two seasons of arbitration and potentially buy out a pair of free agent years.

If Johnson’s an upside play at the back end, the Rox also brought in a couple more stable relief arms. Control specialist Brent Suter was claimed off waivers from Milwaukee. The Brewers had evidently determined not to tender the southpaw an arbitration contract in the $3MM range but the Rox stepped in to claim his final season of team control. He adds a multi-inning relief option for skipper Bud Black. That’s also true of left-hander Ty Blach, who returned on a non-roster deal over the winter and will break camp with the club.

Perhaps the highest-leverage southpaw will be three-time All-Star Brad Hand. The Rockies signed Hand late in the offseason to a $2MM deal (with another $1MM just for cracking the active roster) shortly after losing Lucas Gilbreath to Tommy John surgery. Hand has continued to keep runs off the board into his mid-30s but has seen his swing-and-miss numbers decline. He’s not the same pitcher he was a couple seasons back but for $3MM, just capable middle innings work would be a fine return on investment.

The buy-low approach to free agency also extended to the position player side of things. The Rockies were loosely linked to some bigger-ticket upgrades, primarily in the outfield. A left-handed hitter (preferably one who could play some center field) seemed to be on the target list. Yet players like Cody Bellinger, Michael Conforto and particularly Brandon Nimmo all priced themselves well beyond the Rockies’ spending range.

Colorado didn’t sign a single position player to a major league free agent deal until the offseason was all but over. The Rockies waited out the market but eventually added an outfielder who could hit from the left side. Switch-hitting Jurickson Profar was the last unsigned player from MLBTR’s top 50 free agents. His market never materialized as he’d envisioned upon opting out of his deal with the Padres. He settles for a $7.75MM pillow deal in Colorado on the heels of a decent .243/.331/.391 showing with 15 homers. Profar brings a high-contact bat and solid offensive approach to Coors Field. He’s not a star, but the Rockies have to be pleased with the value they’re getting on a player whom most expected to land a higher annual salary over at least two or three years.

Profar’s signing pushes Kris Bryant from left to right field. Colorado will hope for better health from last winter’s $182MM signee. Randal Grichuk will start the season on the injured list, leaving Yonathan Daza as the frontrunner for center field work. Franchise stalwart Charlie Blackmon is back after making the obvious decision to exercise a $15MM player option; he could see some corner outfield reps but will spend most of his time at designated hitter.

Arguably the most significant acquisition of the Colorado offseason could factor into the corner outfield rotation at some point. As teams were reshuffling their rosters in advance of the Rule 5 draft in November, the Rockies lined up with the Guardians on a rare prospect for prospect swap. Power-hitting corner bat Nolan Jones landed in Colorado, while the Rockies sent Low-A middle infielder Juan Brito to Cleveland. It wasn’t about roster machinations — both Jones and Brito occupied spots on the 40-man — but was a rare case of two clubs valuing the other’s unproven player more than their own.

Jones won’t start the year in the majors, as he’s been optioned to Triple-A Albuquerque on the heels of a tough spring. He’s certain to get an MLB look at some point in the next few months. The Rockies are hopeful his blend of power and patience can offset big strikeout totals and some defensive questions to allow him to develop into a middle-of-the-order force. The 24-year-old is a .252/.361/.443 hitter in 655 Triple-A plate appearances and can be controlled through at least the 2028 season.

Colorado entered Spring Training without much question about their infield. C.J. Cron is back at first base. Brendan Rodgers and Ryan McMahon are above-average second and third basemen, respectively. Rodgers was loosely floated in trade rumors, specifically regarding young Marlins righty Edward Cabrera. No deal came together and the Fish instead flipped Pablo López to Minnesota for Luis Arraez. The Rox made no effort to retain last year’s shortstop José Iglesias, with top prospect Ezequiel Tovar ticketed for regular work there. Colorado brought in bat-first utility player Harold Castro on a minor league deal, and he eventually cracked the MLB roster in a utility capacity.

That seemed like enough infield depth, particularly with Jones and Elehuris Montero also in the mix for third base playing time. Unfortunately, Rodgers dislocated his shoulder during a spring game. He underwent surgery and might miss the entire season. That pushed McMahon over to second base and led Colorado to look outside the organization. They rolled the dice on a bounceback from three-time All-Star Mike Moustakas, signing him to a minor league deal shortly after Rodgers’ injury.

Colorado has already informed Moustakas he’s breaking camp. He hasn’t performed well over the past two seasons, missing a good chunk of that time as he battled foot issues. At 34, it’s possible he’s just not an everyday player anymore. The acquisition cost was minimal, as the Reds will pay all but the league minimum of the $22MM still remaining on the contract he signed with Cincinnati three offseasons back. Moustakas offers a left-handed complement to the righty-swinging Montero and Cron in the infield corners.

Catching was a disaster for the Rockies last season. They made no effort to address it over the winter, instead relying on Elias Díaz and Brian Serven for another year. Signing Díaz to a three-year, $14.5MM extension two offseasons ago was an odd move at the time, one that looks a particularly poor decision after he hit only .228/.281/.368 during the first season of that deal. The Rockies are clearly of the opinion he can bounce back, but Díaz has been a below-average hitter and gotten dreadful defensive grades from public metrics throughout his career.

Continuity has been a theme for the Rockies in recent years. Even as the losses have mounted, ownership and the front office have broadcast confidence in the group. Colorado has refused to entertain the possibility of rebuilding. They’ve committed to so many players on contract extensions (plus the Bryant megadeal) they probably couldn’t pivot to a teardown even if they wanted to at this point. That continued this winter, both in the form of an extension for skipper Bud Black to run through 2024 and comments from owner Dick Monfort about the state of the roster.

Monfort has previously caught flak for optimistic projections of playoff competitiveness that haven’t borne out. He wasn’t quite so bullish this offseason but again found himself in headlines in January, when he suggested the team could be around .500. That’s not the loftiest goal but again seems unlikely. The Rockies have one of the game’s thinnest starting rotations and a lineup that was middle-of-the-road in on-base percentage and slugging last year despite playing half its games at Coors Field.

The Rockies swapped out Dave Magadan for Hensley Meulens as hitting coach, hopeful a new voice can generate some more offense. Aside from Profar, they didn’t add anyone from outside the organization who’s likely to provide above-average hitting. Even if Bryant stays healthy and Tovar hits the ground running, Colorado is facing an uphill battle.

In Monfort’s defense, his proclamation of .500 ball came before Colorado lost one of its best players (Rodgers) to injury. Still, even another strong season from the Gold Glove second baseman would have been very unlikely to make this an average roster. FanGraphs’ projections peg the Rockies and Nationals as the two worst teams in the majors; Baseball Prospectus has Colorado 26th in MLB. Preseason projections will have misses, of course, but the Rox would have to win 15-20 more games than those outlets anticipate to get to .500.

In all likelihood, Colorado is headed for another losing season. There’s some room for optimism in the farm system. Tovar is already in the majors. The likes of Zac Veen, Drew Romo and Warming Bernabel are climbing the minor league ranks and have a chance to be important core position players in the not too distant future. The major league team continues to more or less spin its wheels, awaiting the arrival of a bulk of young talent from within the system while the MLB roster falls short of organizational expectations.

That was never going to be resolved in one offseason, and Colorado’s transactions this winter are all justifiable. It remains hard to discern the long-term plan, though, particularly as they again run up against one of the sport’s toughest division competitors.

MLBTR is conducting team-specific chats in conjunction with the Offseason In Review series. Anthony Franco held a Rockies-centric chat on March 30. Click here to view the transcript.

How would you grade the Rockies’ offseason? (poll link for app users)

 

Rockies Sign Grayson Greiner To Minor League Deal

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The Rockies have informed reporters, including Thomas Harding of MLB.com, that they have signed catcher Grayson Greiner to a minor league deal. He had been in camp with the Twins on a minor league deal but was recently released. Harding adds that Rockies’ minor league catcher Willie MacIver will be out for the next six to eight weeks due to a shoulder issue.

Greiner, 30, has appeared in each of the past five MLB seasons as a backup/depth catcher, getting into 139 total games in those five campaigns with the Tigers and Diamondbacks. He’s drawn walks at a decent 9.1% clip but struck out in 32.2% of his trips to the plate. His .201/.275/.307 batting line amounts to a 58 wRC+. He has -8 Defensive Runs Saved in his career with a negative grade from FanGraphs’ framing metric.

The Rockies have just a pair of backstops on their roster at the moment in Elias Díaz and Brian Serven. MacIver was set to be the club’s regular catcher in Triple-A but it looks like he’ll now miss the next couple of months with that shoulder issue. Greiner will presumably take over that responsibility and could be first in line for a call-up to the majors should another injury arise. One of the club’s top prospects, Drew Romo, is a catcher, though he just reached Class-A Advanced last year and will likely head to Double-A to start this season.

Rockies Trade T.J. Zeuch To Phillies

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The Rockies have traded T.J. Zeuch to the Phillies, according to the right-hander’s transaction log at MLB.com. He was not on Colorado’s 40-man roster, so he’ll add some non-roster depth to the upper minors with Philadelphia.

Zeuch signed a minor league deal with Colorado over the offseason. The 6’7″ hurler pitched four times this spring, allowing eight runs in as many innings with seven strikeouts and five walks. Even with the Rox having a decent amount of uncertainty at the back end of the rotation, that predictably wasn’t enough to land him a roster spot. Colorado trades away a depth starter for the second time today after sending righty Tony Locey to Tampa Bay this morning.

The Phillies have been hit with a number of pitching injuries over the past few weeks. Ranger Suárez has been bothered by elbow soreness this spring and might start the year on the injured list. Top pitching prospect Andrew Painter, who entered camp battling for the fifth starter job, went down with a UCL sprain. Depth arms Cristopher Sánchez and Nick Nelson have battled injuries of their own. That pushes expected reliever Matt Strahm into the season-opening rotation and has a trickle-down effect on the minor league depth.

Zeuch will open the season at Triple-A Lehigh Valley. A former first-round draftee of the Blue Jays, he’s pitched in parts of four big league campaigns. The Pitt product has a 6.49 ERA across 59 2/3 major league innings, posting a quality grounder rate but dismal strikeout and walk numbers. He has a 4.71 ERA over 216 innings at the Triple-A level.

Rays Acquire Tony Locey From Rockies

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The Rays announced Tuesday that they’ve acquired right-hander Tony Locey from the Rockies in exchange for a player to be named later or cash. He’s not on the 40-man roster, so a corresponding move isn’t necessary.

Locey, 24, is one of four players the Rockies acquired from the Cardinals in the trade that sent Nolan Arenado to St. Louis. The Cardinals also sent Austin Gomber, Elehuris Montero and minor league infielder Mateo Gil to Colorado in that swap.

In 2022, Locey reached the Double-A level for the first time but saw his longstanding command issues continue while opponents hit him harder than ever before. After beginning the ’22 season with a 3.09 ERA through 67 innings in High-A (despite a 13.9% walk rate), Locey was hammered for a 12.11 ERA in 35 2/3 innings. He yielded 48 runs on 60 hits, 28 walks and five hit batters, striking out just 28 of his 197 opponents along the way (14.7%).

Overall, Locey has walked 14.7% of the opponents he’s faced since being selected in the third round by the Cardinals out of the University of Georgia back in 2019. FanGraphs’ Eric Longenhagen wrote in his 2021 report on Locey that he had a heater that could run up to 97 mph but noted the following year that his velocity had dipped. Locey was used as a starter in 20 of his 26 appearances with the Rockies this past season, but it’s possible the Rays will shift him into a bullpen role, given the ongoing command troubles and poor results in the rotation.

Rockies Notes: Profar, Senzatela, Cron

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  • Jurickson Profar finally left the free agent market when he signed with the Rockies last week, but the outfielder has yet to actually join his new club due to visa issues, manager Bud Black told The Denver Gazette’s Danielle Allentuck and other reporters.  Profar is still in his native Curacao and slated to visit the consulate on Monday, with the hopes of being able to join the Rox in time for Opening Day.  It is possible Profar might still need some ramp-up time during extended Spring Training given that he only recently signed, but Profar is at least in game shape, after playing with the Netherlands during the World Baseball Classic.
  • Jurickson Profar finally left the free agent market when he signed with the Rockies last week, but the outfielder has yet to actually join his new club due to visa issues, manager Bud Black told The Denver Gazette’s Danielle Allentuck and other reporters.  Profar is still in his native Curacao and slated to visit the consulate on Monday, with the hopes of being able to join the Rox in time for Opening Day.  It is possible Profar might still need some ramp-up time during extended Spring Training given that he only recently signed, but Profar is at least in game shape, after playing with the Netherlands during the World Baseball Classic.
  • Sticking with the Rockies, Antonio Senzatela’s recovery from ACL surgery hit another key checkpoint yesterday, when the righty faced hitters for the first time.  Senzatela is expected to return to the Rockies sometime in May, and he told MLB.com’s Thomas Harding that after yesterday’s 20-pitch session, “I feel like I’m getting closer…My knee is feeling good, everything is feeling good.”  In more immediate injury news, Black told Harding and other reporters that C.J. Cron could return to the lineup as soon as today, as the first baseman has missed the last 10 days due to back spasms.

Rockies To Select Mike Moustakas, Ty Blach, Harold Castro

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Infielder Mike Moustakas has told reporters, including Danielle Allentuck of The Denver Gazette, that the Rockies have informed him that he’s made the club’s Opening Day roster. Moustakas, 34, signed with the Rockies after being released by the Reds earlier this offseason. As Moustakas is still owed $22MM of his four-year, $64MM contract with the Reds, the Rockies will only pay Moustakas the big-league minimum salary of $720,000 this season.

In addition, the Rockies are set to select the contract of left-hander Ty Blach, sources tell MLBTR’s Steve Adams. Allentuck adds that infielder Harold Castro will also be on Colorado’s Opening Day roster, and that Brendan Rodgers, Sean Bouchard, and Ryan Rolison were moved to the 60-day IL to clear 40-man roster space for Moustakas, Blach, and Castro.

Over twelve seasons as a big leaguer, Moustakas has proven to be a roughly league-average bat with a career slash line of .247/.308/.434 (97 wRC+). That being said, he was an above average regular from 2015 to 2020, as he slashed .262/.326/.490 with a wRC+ of 113 in 661 games for the Royals, Brewers, and Reds. The past two seasons have been difficult for Moustakas, however. In 140 games between 2021 and 2022, Moustakas has struck out in 24.6% of plate appearances, a significant leap from his career 16.8% rate. Between that strikeout rate and a dip in slugging (his .145 ISO from 2021-2022 is a step back from his career level of .187), it’s no surprise that the aging slugger struggled to a wRC+ of just 73 the past two seasons.

Despite his struggles, the Rockies decided to take a chance on Moustakas following Rodgers’s shoulder injury this spring, which will likely cause him to miss the 2023 campaign. Moustakas figures to be the everyday third baseman for the Rockies, with Ryan McMahon sliding over to second to cover for the injured Rodgers.

With top prospect Ezequiel Tovar entrenched at shortstop, Castro appears set to play for the Rockies in a utility role this season. Such a role is familiar to Castro, who has played every position on the diamond except catcher during his career. Since debuting with the Tigers in 2018, Castro has appeared in 351 games, slashing .284/.309/.377 for a wRC+ of 88, just below the league average of 100. Despite that mediocre slash line, Castro still provides a versatile lefty bat off the bench for the Rockies.

Blach, meanwhile, figures to slot into a long relief role for the Rockies. With 370 2/3 career major league innings under his belt, Blach has a 5.10 ERA, good for an ERA+ of just 82, though his 4.35 FIP and a strand rate of just 55.4% in 71 1/3 innings since the start of the 2019 season indicate there may be bad luck baked into his run prevention numbers. With his first season following Tommy John surgery in 2020 under his belt, the 32 year-old Blach will look to bounceback into the swing role he held for the Giants from 2016 until 2019.

Veterans With Upcoming Opt-Outs On Minor League Deals

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Major League Baseball and the MLB Players Association agreed to a new collective bargaining agreement just over a year ago, and one of the provisions in that CBA is uniform opt-out opportunities for Article XX(B) free agents on minor league deals. An Article XX(B) free agent is one with at least six years of service time who finished the previous season on a major league roster or injured list. Any such player who signs a minor league deal more than ten days prior to Opening Day can opt out of that deal at three points if they haven’t been added to the 40-man roster: five days before Opening Day, May 1 and June 1.

This year, Opening Day is March 30, meaning that first opt-out opportunity is coming up this Saturday, March 25. Teams will have to make some decisions between now and then about whether or not to give these players roster spots or let them return to the open market to pursue other opportunities. With many teams dealing with spring injuries, some of these players should be able to find opportunities elsewhere if they can’t find it with their current organization. Their current clubs can prevent them from opting out by giving them a roster spot, but that may involve cutting someone else.

Players who don’t meet this criteria can also negotiate opt-out provisions into their contracts. First baseman Luke Voit has less than six years service time but has an opt-out in his deal with the Brewers, which he recently pushed to this Friday. But the players listed below will have them automatically.

Angels: RHP Chris Devenski

Devenski, 32, had some good seasons with the Astros in 2016 and 2017 but fell off in the two years after. He’s been either hurt or ineffective in the past three campaigns, not reaching 15 innings pitched in any of them. He tossed 14 2/3 frames last year between the Diamondbacks and Phillies with a combined 8.59 ERA. The Halos have a large number of relievers on their roster that can’t be optioned, which doesn’t leave a lot of room for someone like Devenski.

Braves: IF Ehire Adrianza, OF Kevin Pillar and RHP Jesse Chavez

Adrianza, 33, is a light-hitting utility infielder who was with the Nationals last year until the Braves acquired him at the deadline, though injuries limited him to just six games with Atlanta. Pillar, 34, has long been known as a glove-first outfielder. He was drafted by the Blue Jays and worked his way up to the majors when Alex Anthopoulos, now the president of baseball operations in Atlanta, was with the Jays. Pillar got into four games with the Dodgers last year before a shoulder fracture ended his season. Chavez, 39, started last year with the Cubs but was flipped to Atlanta in April for Sean Newcomb. The Braves then sent him to the Angels in the Raisel Iglesias deal but claimed him off waivers a few weeks later. He ended up throwing 69 1/3 innings on the year with a 3.76 ERA.

It’s possible that all three of these guys are on the verge of getting roster spots. The club recently optioned various players on the 40-man, including Vaughn Grissom, Braden Shewmake, Jordan Luplow, Eli White and Nick Anderson. Grissom and Shewmake were in competition for the shortstop job but it seems they will get more seasoning in the minors while Orlando Arcia takes the gig, with Adrianza in backup infield role. Pillar was competing with Luplow and White for a job as a backup outfielder but it seems he may get the nod. The club clearly loves Chavez based on the fact that they acquired him twice last year. The 40-man roster already has a couple of open spots before they’ve even moved Huascar Ynoa and Tyler Matzek to the 60-day injured list. Both of them are going to be out for most or perhaps all of the year due to Tommy John surgery. Atlanta could therefore have four roster spots at their disposal, allowing them to select these three and whichever of Jared Shuster or Dylan Dodd gets the fifth starter job.

Brewers: OF Tyler Naquin

Naquin, 32 next month, is a solid platoon bat from the left side. For his career, he’s hit .274/.326/.468 against righties for a 109 wRC+, compared to a .210/.272/.339 line and 62 wRC+ against southpaws. With Tyrone Taylor set to miss the first month of the season with an elbow injury, the club could use another outfielder. As mentioned above, the Brewers also have Voit in camp on a minor league deal, which makes things a little crowded. Voit could have opted out of his deal last week but agreed to push his decision because he and the club seem happy with each other, but the roster decisions still need to be made.

Opening one spot on the 40-man will be easy, as Justin Wilson is set to miss most of the year recovering from Tommy John surgery and will surely be placed on the 60-day IL shortly. Aaron Ashby could also go to the 60-day as he’s out with a shoulder injury, though the latest reporting indicated that he was targeting a mid-May return, which the club might not want to close off. Beyond the 40-man questions, there’s the fit on the active roster to think about, as adding both Voit and Naquin would likely involve optioning Owen Miller and Brice Turang, or perhaps designating Keston Hiura for assignment. Brewers general manager Matt Arnold recently spoke about some of the “tough decisions” the club has to make.

Dodgers: OF Jason Heyward

Heyward signed an eight-year, $184MM deal with the Cubs prior to the 2016 campaign but never really lived up to expectations. Outside of the shortened 2020 season, he never posted a wRC+ higher than 100, which is league average. Last year, he hit .204/.278/.277 for a wRC+ of 61 in 48 games. He went on the injured list in late June with a knee injury and never returned. While on the IL, the Cubs announced they would be releasing Heyward at season’s end, despite still having one year left on his contract.

The Dodgers signed him to a minor league deal and will be responsible for paying him just the MLB minimum salary for any time spent on the big league roster, with the Cubs on the hook for the majority of his salary. Despite not hitting much in recent years, he’s always gotten good grades for his defense, though those numbers have naturally declined as he’s aged. Manager Dave Roberts has recently suggested Heyward is likely to make the club. They’ll need to open a roster spot but could do so easily by transferring Gavin Lux to the 60-day IL, as he’s expected to miss the entire season with a torn ACL.

Giants: C Roberto Pérez and RHP Joe Ross

Pérez, 34, has long been a well-regarded defensive catcher with a subpar bat. He has a career batting line of .207/.298/.360 but has also racked up 79 Defensive Runs Saved. He only played 21 games for the Pirates last year before hamstring surgery ended his season. The Giants already have two catchers on the roster in Joey Bart and Rule 5 pick Blake Sabol, but the latter can play other positions and has recently been getting some outfield work. Perhaps that allows Pérez to make the club as a more straightforward backup to Bart, which will necessitate a roster move. Luis González is expected to miss the first half of the season due to back surgery and could be move to the 60-day IL to open a spot for Perez.

Ross, 30 in May, had the second Tommy John surgery of his career last June and isn’t set to return for a while. He signed a minor league deal with the Giants in January and presumably intends to stick with the organization as he rehabs.

Mariners: OF Kole Calhoun

Calhoun, 35, has had many strong years at the plate but is coming off a pair of rough ones. In 2021, he made multiple trips to the IL for hamstring issues and only got into 51 games. Last year, he hit .196/.257/.330 with the Rangers, striking out in 32.1% of his plate appearances.

The M’s will likely have Julio Rodríguez, Teoscar Hernández, Jarred Kelenic and AJ Pollock in their outfield mix. Some recent injuries to Taylor Trammell and Dylan Moore perhaps helped Calhoun’s chances of carving out a bench role, but the club also has Cooper Hummel and Sam Haggerty on hand as outfield-capable utility players, and outfield prospect Cade Marlowe is on the 40-man roster.

Marlins: IF Yuli Gurriel and IF José Iglesias

Gurriel, 39 in June, has been an excellent hitter for much of his career but inconsistent of late. He dipped in 2020 but bounced back to winning a batting title in 2021. Another dip followed last year, as he hit .242/.288/.360 for a wRC+ of 85. Iglesias, 33, has long been a light-hitting glove-first shortstop, though his defensive grades have slipped of late. With the Rockies last year, he hit .292/.328/.380 for a wRC+ of 85.

Gurriel seems likely to get a spot based on the way he and the club danced with each other this offseason. They reportedly offered him a $2MM deal at one point but withdrew it after a week went by without a response, later circling back to get this minor league deal done. Iglesias also makes sense as insurance for the club now that Miguel Rojas has been traded to the Dodgers, leaving utility man Joey Wendle as the top option at short. If they want to select both, they’ll need two roster spots. One of them should be easy with Max Meyer set to miss most of the season due to Tommy John surgery and bound for the 60-day IL shortly.

Mets: RHP Tommy Hunter

Hunter, 36, is a 15-year veteran who has thrived as a reliever over the past 10 of those. However, injuries have been an issue recently, as he hasn’t topped 25 innings in a season since 2018. With the Mets last year, he posted a 2.42 ERA in 22 1/3 innings but made multiple trips to the IL due to back tightness.

The Mets’ bullpen suffered a huge blow recently with Edwin Díaz likely done for the season due to knee surgery, as Sam Coonrod and Bryce Montes de Oca also deal with injuries. That could open up a window for someone like Hunter, but the Mets have also said they’d prefer to have some optionable pitchers in the bullpen, which could work against him. If they do want Hunter in the mix, opening a roster spot will be easy with Díaz and José Quintana both destined for the 60-day IL soon.

Nationals: RHP Chad Kuhl, RHP Alex Colomé and LHP Sean Doolittle

Kuhl, 30, had some decent seasons pitching for the Pirates but had an inconsistent season with the Rockies last year. He had a 3.49 ERA through the end of June but then an 8.60 the rest of the way, finishing up at 5.72 combined. Colomé, 34, has been an effective reliever for many years but also found it hard to succeed in Coors. He signed with the Rockies last year and posted a 5.74 ERA on the year. He’s not too far removed from a ridiculous 0.81 ERA in the shortened 2020 season and a 2.80 in 2019.

Kuhl seems to be the favorite to replace Cade Cavalli in the rotation, with the latter set to miss the whole season due to Tommy John surgery. Colomé makes sense for the club given they have few settled options in their bullpen. Opening up two spots should be straightforward since Cavalli and Tanner Rainey are both candidates for the 60-day IL due to Tommy John surgery.

As for Doolittle, he recently spoke about taking it slow in his rehab from last year’s elbow sprain and brace procedure. He isn’t likely to be ready for Opening Day but seems happy with his rehab process and would therefore likely forgo his first opt-out opportunity.

Padres: IF Rougned Odor and RHP Craig Stammen

Odor, 29, has long been a one-dimensional hitter, providing power and little else. With the Orioles last year, he hit 13 home runs but slashed .207/.275/.357 for a wRC+ of 80. He’ll be trying to force his way into a bench role in San Diego. One spot will go to a backup catcher, leaving three spots for Odor, Adam Engel, José Azocar, Brandon Dixon, Matthew Batten, Tim Lopes and David Dahl. The club doesn’t have an obvious candidate for the 60-day IL, which could work against non-roster players like Odor, Lopes and Dahl.

As for Stammen, 39, he recently revealed that he suffered a torn capsule in his right shoulder and strained sub scapula and likely won’t pitch ever again.

Pirates: C Kevin Plawecki

Plawecki, 32, is a career .235/.313/.341 hitter, leading to a wRC+ of 80. That’s bit below average, even for a catcher, but he has good grades for his defense and framing and is considered a strong clubhouse leader. When he was designated by assignment by the Red Sox last year, some players, including current Pirate Rich Hill, spoke publicly about how much they didn’t like Plawecki’s departure. The Rangers added him for the final games of the season even though they weren’t in contention, seemingly valuing those same intangibles.

The Bucs will have Austin Hedges as their primary catcher but seem likely to select Plawecki to be the backup. Hedges is one of only two backstops currently on the 40-man. The other is prospect Endy Rodríguez, who was optioned to Triple-A last week. If Plawecki in indeed added, it’s possible that Jarlín García is headed for the 60-day IL, as he’s been shut down for the next four to five weeks with a nerve injury in his biceps area and won’t be able to return until May at the earliest.

Rangers: C Sandy León, LHP Danny Duffy and RHP Ian Kennedy

León, 34, is generally regarded as a glove-first option behind the plate. Last year, he split his time between the Guardians and Twins, hitting .169/.298/.211. For his career, he’s racked up 34 Defensive Runs Saved and has positive framing numbers from FanGraphs.

The Rangers have three catchers on their 40-man roster in Jonah Heim, Mitch Garver and Sam Huff. León might have a better path to playing time elsewhere, as multiple clubs around the league are dealing with injuries to their catching corps. Carson Kelly of the Diamondbacks was recently diagnosed with a forearm fracture, leaving them with youngsters Gabriel Moreno and José Herrera as their top two. The Athletics only have two catchers on their roster right now and one of them, Manny Piña, will open the season on the injured list.

Duffy, 34, spent years as an effective starter for the Royals, currently sporting a 3.95 career ERA in 234 games. However, he hasn’t pitched July of 2021, when a flexor strain in his forearm sent him to the IL. The Dodgers acquired him from the Royals, hoping for a return to health in the second half, but he suffered a setback. He then underwent surgery but the Dodgers took a chance on him again, signing him to a $3MM deal with a club option for 2023 and hoping for a return late in 2022. He never made it back to the mound and the Dodgers declined his option at season’s end. General manager Chris Young listed Duffy as a closer candidate in January, but he’s yet to appear in a game this spring.

Kennedy, 38, had an effective half season of relief with the Rangers in 2021, posting a 2.51 ERA before getting flipped to the Phillies. He had a 4.13 ERA after the deal and then slumped to a 5.36 mark with the Diamondbacks last year. The club doesn’t currently have an obvious candidate to put on the 60-day IL, which could work against Kennedy’s chances of cracking the roster.

Rays: IF/OF Charlie Culberson and OF Ben Gamel

Culberson, 34 next month, is a veteran journeyman who brings much defensive versatility to the table. He’s played every position except catcher and center field in his career. With the Rangers last year, he hit .252/.283/.357 for a wRC+ of 81.

Gamel, 31 in May, was with the Pirates last year and hit .232/.324/.369 for a wRC+ of 97. He’s had modest platoon splits for his career but they were exaggerated last year. The left-handed hitter slashed .252/.342/.409 against righties for a wRC+ of 112 but just .175/.273/.258 against southpaws for a wRC+ of 56.

The Rays have a tight roster and spent most of the winter making cuts from it, which could make it tough for either of these players to make it. But if either played is deemed worthy, Shane Baz is destined for the 60-day IL soon due to his Tommy John rehab, making it easy to open a spot for someone.

Reds: OF Chad Pinder, RHP Chase Anderson and RHP Hunter Strickland

Pinder, 31 next week, has spent his entire career with the Athletics until reaching free agency this winter. He’s a super utility guy, able to play anywhere on the field but catcher. He’s didn’t have his best season last year, walking just 3.7% of the time and striking out at a 31.1% clip, but his career batting line is a serviceable .242/.294/.417 for a wRC+ of 96.

Anderson, 35, had some good years on his track record but hasn’t been able to post an ERA under 6.00 since 2019. He got into nine games for the Reds last year with a 6.38 ERA. He was recently transferred from minor league camp to major league camp, suggesting he has a legitimate chance at earning a job.

Strickland, 34, had some good years with the Giants but has gone into journeyman mode recently. He made 66 appearances with the Reds last year, finishing with a 4.91 ERA while walking 11.6% of batters faced.

The Reds should be able to open a roster spot by transferring Justin Dunn to the 60-day IL, as he’s going to be out for a few months with a shoulder issue.

Rockies: IF Mike Moustakas

Moustakas, 34, had many good years with the Royals and Brewers but his four-year deal with the Reds didn’t go very well. He was fine in the shortened 2020 season but largely injured and ineffective for the past two years. He got into 78 contests last year but hit just .214/.295/.345.

Moving his home to Coors Field could give him a boost if he’s healthy. The Rockies could use help at third base after second baseman Brendan Rodgers suffered a potentially season-ending injury. The club’s plan is to move Ryan McMahon from third to second, freeing up the hot corner for someone like Moustakas.

Opening up a spot should be straightforward, with Rodgers and Sean Bouchard both set to miss extensive time and easy calls to be placed on the 60-day IL.

Royals: OF Jackie Bradley Jr. and IF Matt Duffy

Bradley, 33 next month, has long been an excellent defender with an okay bat, but his offense has been awful for the past two seasons. Last year, splitting his time between the Red Sox and Blue Jays, he hit .203/.255/.311 for a wRC+ of 56.

Duffy, 32, is a versatile utility player who can cover any infield position and has some limited corner outfield experience. He’s not coming off a great year at the plate, as he hit .250/.308/.311 with the Angels for a wRC+ of 78, but he’s had better results in the past.

The Royals optioned a few notable position players earlier today, potentially open the door for these two and Franmil Reyes to make the Opening Day squad. They can open up one 40-man roster spot by moving Jake Brentz to the 60-day IL, as he’ll be rehabbing from Tommy John surgery, but finding two more spots will require alternative solutions.

Tigers: IF César Hernández and RHP Trevor Rosenthal

Hernández, 33 in May, is primarily a second baseman who is coming off a bizarre power surge and then a blackout. He had never hit more than 15 home runs in a season until he hit 21 in 2021, but then he had just a single homer last year. His final batting line with the Nats last year was .248/.311/.318, wRC+ of 79. Assuming Nick Maton is taking the third base job in Detroit, Hernández is competing for a bench spot along with players like Zack Short, Andre Lipcius and Andy Ibañez.

Rosenthal, 33 in May, has occasionally been one of the best relievers on the planet, including his 2020 campaign. He posted a 1.90 ERA over 23 appearances, striking out 41.8% of batters he faced. However, various injuries have prevented him from pitching at all in the past two seasons. He recently spoke about how he may not be ready for Opening Day but is happy with his rehab process with the Tigers. It’s possible he forgoes his opt out in order to continue his work with the training staff.

The club doesn’t have an obvious 60-day IL candidate and they might also want to add non-roster invitees like Chasen Shreve or Trey Wingenter, creating a bit of a roster squeeze.

Twins: RHP Aaron Sanchez

Sanchez, 30, had an excellent season back in 2016, posting an ERA of 3.00 over 30 starts with the Blue Jays. Unfortunately, injuries have diminished his workload and results in recent years. He had a 6.60 ERA in 15 appearances for the Nationals and Twins last year.

He twice accepted outright assignments with the Twins last year and then re-signed on a minor league deal in the winter. He doesn’t seem to have a path to a roster spot at the moment but seems to be comfortable with the organization. He’ll soon have a chance to return to the open market but the relationship is good enough for him to stick around.

White Sox: IF Hanser Alberto and OF Billy Hamilton

Alberto, 30, is a light-hitting utility option. He spent last year with the Dodgers, spending time at all four infield positions in addition to some corner outfield work. He hit .244/.258/.365 for a wRC+ of 73. He was signed to bolster Chicago’s uncertain second base position, but that was before they solidified it by adding Elvis Andrus.

Hamilton, 32, has long been one of the game’s best defenders in the outfield and speediest baserunners. However, hit bat has always lagged behind. He got into 37 games between the Marlins and Twins last year but hit .050/.136/.050. His career batting line is .239/.292/.326 for a wRC+ of 66. The club came into spring with a question mark in right field but it seems like prospect Oscar Colás is trending towards taking that job.

Rockies Sign Jurickson Profar

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March 21: The Rockies officially announced today that they have signed Profar to a one-year deal. To open a spot on the 40-man roster, left-hander Lucas Gilbreath was transferred to the 60-day injured list. The southpaw underwent Tommy John surgery earlier this month and will miss the entire season.

March 19: The Rockies are in agreement with free agent outfielder Jurickson Profar, reports Jon Heyman of The New York Post. Profar will be guaranteed $7.75MM but can get the total up to $8.75MM with 400 plate appearances. The deal is pending a physical.

Jurickson Profar | Orlando Ramirez-USA TODAY SportsProfar, 30, has had an up-and-down career but is coming off arguably the best season of his career. Though his power is fairly modest, he has a good eye and strong bat-to-ball skills. His 11.1% walk rate and 15.7% strikeout rate this year were both a few percentage points better than league averages. Along with his 15 home runs, that led to a .243/.331/.391 batting line and a 110 wRC+, indicating the switch-hitter was 10% better than the league average hitter overall.

Defensively, though he’s played all over the diamond in his career, the Padres kept him exclusively in left field last year. That consistency may have suited him, as he was given a +2 grade from Defensive Runs Saved and a +1.1 from Ultimate Zone Rating, though Outs Above Average was less enthused and gave him a mark of -5. Taking his whole season together, FanGraphs considered him to be worth 2.5 wins above replacement, the highest tally of his career thus far.

Going into the 2021 season, the Padres had signed Profar to a three-year, $21MM deal that afforded him the opportunity to opt out after each season. The first year of the deal didn’t go well, as Profar hit just four homers while being bounced around the field in a utility capacity. He declined to trigger his first opt-out and stuck with the Friars for 2022, before having a much better campaign in the second year. Going into the 2022-23 offseason, he had just one year remaining on his deal, valued at $7.5MM. He decided to go for the $1MM buyout and become a free agent, leaving $6.5MM on the table.

Profar continued to linger on the open market for months, the last of MLBTR’s Top 50 Free Agents that was still available until now. Recent reporting had suggested he had been trying to get $10MM per season, but that apparently didn’t materialize based on the fact that he remained unattached for so long. He’ll now settle for a deal a bit below that, though he’ll still end up making a bit more money than if he had just stayed with the Padres.

For the Rockies, they have some question marks in their outfield, as Sean Bouchard recently underwent biceps surgery that could keep him out all year while Randal Grichuk is going to miss the first few weeks of the season due to sports hernia surgery. That leaves Kris Bryant, Yonathan Daza and Charlie Blackmon as the primary options, though Blackmon made more starts at designated hitter last year and seems likely to do the same going forward, especially considering that his 2022 was ended by knee surgery. Daza should have center field spoken for until Grichuk returns, at which point they could split the duties there as they did in 2022. Like Profar, Bryant settled in as a full-time left fielder last year, despite lengthy time on the infield earlier in his career. When Grichuk went down earlier in the spring, Bryant began spending more time in right, per Thomas Harding of MLB.com. That seems to suggest that he could yield left to Profar while splitting right field and the designated hitter spot with Blackmon. Bryant was limited by injury to only 42 games last year, making it sensible to add another corner outfielder into the mix and perhaps reduce his workload on the grass a bit. Danielle Allentuck of the Denver Gazette reports that the plan is indeed for Bryant to be in right with Blackmon primarily serving as the designated hitter.

Though Profar is coming off a decent year, there’s still some risk here for the Rockies, given his inconsistency. Once one of the top prospects in the sport, shoulder injuries kept him from appearing in the big leagues at all in 2014 or 2015. In the next two campaigns, he was healthy but struggled to establish himself in sporadic playing time. He finally had a decent season in 2018 but the Rangers quickly sold high, trading him to Oakland. Unfortunately, he seemed to battle “the yips” with his new team, as he made 11 throwing errors from second base in 2019 and got flipped to San Diego. He was solid enough in the shortened 2020 campaign to earn himself a three-year deal but, as mentioned, struggled in the first before rebounding in the second.

The Rockies will be hoping that another year of having a consistent left field position will allow him to be less mercurial at the plate. It’s also possible that playing in Coors Field will suit him well, given the famously thin atmosphere and large outfield. Perhaps those conditions will allow Profar to launch a few more home runs or simply spray the ball all over the outfield, given his low-strikeout approach. With just 11 days until Opening Day, it might be fair to expect that a player signing now would need a spring ramp-up and wouldn’t be ready for Opening Day. However, Profar might be a different case since he was recently representing the Netherlands in the World Baseball Classic.

The Rockies were already running a franchise-high payroll and this deal will nudge them a bit further into that territory. Roster Resource now pegs their spending at $170MM for the season, well beyond their previous high of $145MM, per Cot’s Baseball Contracts. However, it’s possible that the final tally ends up below that, as most observers aren’t expecting the Rockies to be contenders this year. Players like Profar, Grichuk and C.J. Cron are impending free agents and make decent salaries, perhaps leading to them becoming trade chips this summer if the Rockies don’t become surprise competitors. Then again, the Rockies have also surprised many onlookers, and their own players, by their lack of trade deadline activity, so that’s no guarantee.

Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.

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