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Team Plans For Signing Undrafted Amateurs

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Now that MLB’s abbreviated 2020 draft is in the books, we can move along to the next phase of this one-off amateur signing season. Undrafted amateur players will now be free to sign with any team of their choosing, though they are capped with a signing bonus of $20K. Thus, the setup here presents a fascinating situation for amateur ballplayers and for us, those interested in parsing the ins-and-outs of roster-building. Here we have a unique situation where money will not necessarily be the driving factor for players choosing their first professional team. As players start to sign, we’ll likely hear stories that shed light on player perspective, which could paint an interesting picture of how young players view different franchises around baseball. For now, we’re starting to hear from teams themselves about spending limits for this class of amateur free agents. We’ll use this post to update those strategies as they trickle in…

  • The Giants have no apparent limits when it comes to signing amateur free agents now that the draft is completed. John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle provides a primer for this period of amateur free agents, writing, “The process starts at 6 a.m. Sunday, and the Giants will compete with the other 29 teams for the best available talent. But rather than outspending the others, all they can do is try to outsell them and offer appealing opportunities.” Given the Giants’ current position as a team looking to infuse as much young talent as possible, one would expect them to be aggressive in their attempts to add players from this pool. Obviously, more players than usual will be returning to college or committing to school as high school graduates, but given the volatility of the MLB draft under normal circumstances, it’s fair to expect a quality player or two to emerge from this pool of undrafted amateurs.
  • The Marlins are planning on limiting their pool of undrafted amateur free agents to 10 signings or less, per Jordan McPherson of the Miami Herald (Twitter links). Along with their six drafted players, all of whom are expected to sign, the Marlins can expect an influx of 16 players max.
  • Similarly, the Mariners don’t expect to go hog wild with this year’s class of undrafted amateur. Per MLB.com’s Corey Brock, the Mariners’ Scouting Director Scott Hunter said the Mariners will only be signing between five and ten amateur free agents.
  • The Royals, meanwhile, are ready to shop, tweets Jeff Rosen of the Kansas City Star. The Royals could be big-time players in this sphere, as they’ve generated some goodwill recently because of their treatment of minor league players. Kansas City might not typically be a major free agent draw, but for amateur players, it’s a different story. The Royals have the opportunity and a long track record of highly valuing their own players. For players looking for their first professional contract, the Royals have a lot to offer. Among other things, they’re ready to be aggressive. GM Dayton Moore has the green light to “sign as many of those guys as we can,” per Lynn Worthy of the Kansas City Star.

Rounding Up The Latest Minor League Cuts

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Yesterday brought a slew of news regarding minor league ballplayers. Players like T.J. Rivera, Carlos Asuaje and Juremi Profar were returned to the free-agent pool after rounds of cuts from their minor league teams. There was also a smattering of good news, including a report of David Price giving $1K to each minor leaguer on the Dodgers’ 40-man roster.

Today brings a new round of news about how teams are deciding to treat their minor league players during this trying time. While these cuts seem gaudy, it’s important to note that most teams waited on their spring training cuts, actually extending the pay for many of the players now being cut loose. Every year a round of these cuts occur, and it’s not solely an effect of the coronavirus shutdown. That said, Baseball America’s JJ Cooper is compiling a running list of the number of players released by each organization and comparing those numbers to their releases in 2019 and 2018. As news continues to filter out little by little about each organization’s cuts, let’s try to round up some of that info here…

National League

  • The Giants cut 20 players from their minor league system on Thursday, per Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle.
  • The Diamondbacks have been the most egregious offenders in this department with 62 players released, as noted by Cooper, while MLB Network’s Jon Heyman had the number of Dback releases at 64.
  • It’s not clear if we have the entire list of minor league players released by the Rockies, but The Athletic’s Nick Groke has a list of 15 players with confirmed releases. Groke notes that the Rockies refused comment or confirmation.
  • Cooper also listed the 30 players released by the Braves this week. He notes 31 released last year at this time and 24 the year before.
  • The Mets released 39 players, including right-hander Nick Rumbelow, formerly of the Yankees and Mariners. The Mets, of course, are weighing options in terms of selling the franchise after reporting losses of up to $150MM even if an 82-game season eventually gets underway.
  • The Phillies released T.J. Rivera, but a comprehensive list of players released by the Phillies isn’t yet known.
  • Jim Goulart of Brewerfan.net tweets a list of 30 minor leaguers released by the Brewers thus far, though the list may be incomplete. Goulart compiled the list from milb.com. Veteran Andres Blanco was among those released.
  • The Cubs’ total list of releases reached 28 by the end of the day yesterday, with Brock Stewart and Asuaje two of the better-known names.
  • The Nationals have released more than 30 minor leaguers, per Britt Ghiroli of The Athletic, a number that includes many of their minor league free agents. The club has committed to pay minor league players $300 weekly through June.
  • The Reds and Cardinals are said to have released payers, but the number of players released isn’t clear at this time. Big picture, the Reds have committed to paying their remaining minor leaguers through the end of the minor league season in early September.
  • The Pirates have yet to release any minor league players, according to Rob Biertempfel of The Athletic, though he adds that the club is still deliberating on roster moves so such a decision can’t be ruled out. Meanwhile, Pittsburgh has committed to paying players through at least June.

American League

  • The Rays released “20 or so” players, as per Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times.
  • The Mariners released more than 50 minor leaguers.
  • The Astros released 17 players, all listed here in a tweet from Baseball America’s JJ Cooper. Cooper recalls the Astros number of player cuts from past years, comparing this year’s 18 released players in March through May to 10 players released in 2019 and 24 in 2018.
  • The Orioles cuts came out early, with 37 players listed.
  • The White Sox let go of 25 players, including Josue Guerrero.
  • The Red Sox released 22 players, with Nick Lovullo and Profar two players with some name recognition who are among those released.
  • The Twins and Royals are bringing the best bit of news, as neither organization has made cuts to their minor leaguer systems. Given the number of releases league-wide, it’s a notable decision from these clubs.
  • The Athletics, meanwhile, have informed their minor leaguers that their pay will be suspended as of May 31.
  • The Blue Jays have released 29 minor league players, according to Shi Davidi of Sportsnet. On the bright side, retained players will be paid through the end of June.

On the plus side, teams like the Marlins, Padres, and Mariners will pay their minor leaguers through the end of the season, though releases are still considered a normal course of business. Many clubs have committed to paying their minor leaguers either through the end of June or the end of August.

The Athletic’s Alec Lewis shed some light on the Royals’ mindset, providing a quote from Royals GM Dayton Moore (via Twitter). Among other insights, Moore said, “…we felt it was really, really important not to release one minor league player during this time, a time we needed to stand behind them.”

How To Get A Job In Baseball, According To GMs

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Working in baseball operations for a Major League team is a dream job for many baseball fanatics.  If front office job-seekers are being honest, the pinnacle would be to one day land in the GM’s chair and call the shots on trades, free agent signings, and draft picks.  But in such a competitive field, how do you stand out?  What should you focus on to become as appealing as possible to an MLB team in a job interview?

Seven years ago, I polled many MLB executives on their advice for high school students with front office aspirations.  With so many new executives in the game since then, I decided to move a bit further down the career path and ask this question:

What one piece of advice would you give to a college student who hopes to work in baseball operations one day?

I posed this question to many of MLB’s top-ranking baseball operations executives.  Just like the rest of us, these people are currently sheltered in place with their families trying to get some work done in these difficult and strange times.  The following ten execs kindly took the time to answer my question: Ross Atkins of the Blue Jays, Jeff Bridich of the Rockies, Ben Cherington of the Pirates, James Click of the Astros, Mike Elias of the Orioles, Derek Falvey of the Twins, Matt Kleine of the Brewers, Dayton Moore of the Royals, Brodie Van Wagenen of the Mets, and Dick Williams of the Reds.  Their answers are below.

I always think of the creative examples of how several of the current team’s GMs and Presidents got their foot in the door when asked this question. Without sharing those ideas specifically, I tell the individual who asked to think of something that they can bring to the table today that would be beneficial for a baseball operations team. Is there something that they do or can do that would have an immediate impact even if very small. It could be data analysis, programming, scouting, performance coaching, or leadership/communication application but ideally in the form of a project or deliverable and in a perfect world something that the organization doesn’t already have.

I believe that if those looking to get into baseball have excelled in other arenas they should think about how they have done that and share that in a way that is applicable to baseball as that is usually an attractive approach to those who are deciding to add to their operations teams.  – Ross Atkins, Blue Jays Executive Vice President, Baseball Operations & General Manager

In terms of trying to trying to get into the world of baseball operations out of college, mindset and attitude will determine a lot. Create for yourself a mindset built around relentlessness, flexibility and hard work. The typical college school year and/or graduation timeframe do not lineup perfectly with when most Major League teams are hiring. So there could be some lag time between leaving college and getting hired.

Also, there usually are hundreds, maybe thousands, more applicants for jobs than there are jobs available. So chances are you’ll hear a bunch of “Nos” before you hear a “Yes”. That’s where relentlessness, flexibility and work ethic come into play. Your first opportunity in the baseball industry may not come in the perfect shape, size and package that you desire – but that’s OK. Be flexible in what you are willing to do and where you’re willing to work (be that departmentally or geographically).

At some point in your job search, you may feel like you are being annoying or that you’re bothering team employees too often. But know that relentlessness and persistence often pay off. It’s tough to count up how many times we have said over the years, “You have to give that person credit for his/her persistence,” whether we hired that person or not. If the worst outcome is that you are not hired (yet) but you are given credit for your relentless desire to work in the game, then it’s worth it.

Finally, look at the job search process like it is a job in itself. Put in the time. Make sure your resume is as good as it possibly can be. Ask thoughtful questions of any and all people who could help you. And always be ready – after you’ve sent off your resume and applied for a job, you never know when a team might call you. Those people who are ready for an in-depth discussion at a moment’s notice usually make a good first impression.  – Jeff Bridich, Rockies Executive Vice President & General Manager

It’s hard to narrow down to one but if I had to I’d say finding opportunities to solve complicated problems in groups. Almost all of the work we do in baseball operations focuses on assessing, predicting, or improving human performance. Human performance is complicated. Almost none of the work we do in baseball is done by ourselves. Just about everything we do is done by teams of people. So I’d say the more practice combining those two things the better.  – Ben Cherington, Pirates General Manager

There’s no magic bullet, no secret code to getting into baseball. All of us have a unique story about how we got here, so play to your strengths and put yourself in as good a position as possible to take any job that you’re offered, even if – especially if – it’s not in the area in which you see yourself long term. Every job is an opportunity to show what you can do, a chance to gain valuable experience and perspective on how the game works, and to make sure that this lifestyle is something you want to take on. Finally, don’t get discouraged! It took a lot of us a long time to get into the game, but it’s worth it.  – James Click, Astros General Manager

I think there are so many public forums today to showcase your work online. Whether it’s contract analysis, data analysis, or scouting evaluation that you want to do, you can start to build this body of work on your own, before anyone hires you. It is so helpful when we are interviewing when someone has a portfolio already started. It shows how you work and think, but also shows initiative and that you are truly passionate about this line of work.  – Mike Elias, Orioles Executive Vice President and General Manager

I’d recommend that you don’t wait around for the perfect opportunity to come your way and instead find a way to create one. People who want to work in baseball will reach out and say they’re just waiting for that “break” to come their way. It’s not uncommon that a year later we’ll hear from them again still waiting for that opening to show up.

My suggestion – dive into a topic within the game that interests you, learn as much as you can about it, and then generate a work product that shows you have the baseline skills and passion to impact a baseball operation as soon as you walk through the door. Don’t be afraid to try something because you might fail. Of all the resumes we get, it’s the ones that are accompanied by a work product (and therefore a willingness to put yourself out there) that generate the most interest.  – Derek Falvey, Twins President of Baseball Operations

My advice to students is to create baseball-specific opportunities for yourself. Don’t wait for them to come to you. Volunteer to capture video, analyze data or operate pitch tracking software for your school’s team. Connect with your Sports Information Director and ask how you can help. Learn SQL. Learn Spanish. Contact baseball-centric websites and volunteer your time. Devise your own work product that attempts to solve meaningful questions you believe are currently unanswered within the public sphere. This is especially important because providing MLB clubs with examples of self-driven work product showcases your curiosity, thought process, and reasoning. It’s equally as important – if not more so – than a strong resume.

Students should also understand that our approach to hiring is shaped by our constant pursuit of the next marginal win. How can the next hire help us win games both today and in the future? Students who approach us with hard skills, novel work product and a strong resume quickly move to the front of that line.  – Matt Kleine, Brewers Vice President – Baseball Operations

As it pertains to teams and front office, compatibility is the most important trait. This will only exist if you have an above and beyond attitude with the commitment to do the jobs that others simply find meaningless. You must have an “others first” mindset and model that behavior. Finally, never stop looking at this game from the eyes of your youth. – Dayton Moore, Royals Senior Vice President – Baseball Operations/General Manager

1. When interviewing with a prospective employer/executive, be specific about the area in which you want to work. Prove to your audience that you have you done the research in his/her area of focus. This will enable you to be versed enough to hold a meaningful conversation. Those who want a “PARTICULAR job” are much more compelling than those who simply just want “a job.”

2. Be willing to work in any city that has an opportunity to further your pursuits. Don’t let geography limit your search.  – Brodie Van Wagenen, Mets Executive Vice President & General Manager

The best way to get your foot in the door is to figure out how you can solve a problem for me that I may not have even known I had. It makes for a much more effective cold call when you email your resume into an organization if you can articulate what you can do that the Reds are not doing today that could make us better. At least it makes us more likely to read further.

Keep abreast of the evolving trends in the industry and tailor your coursework accordingly. If you have baseball experience, focus on adding database management or machine learning or something technical. And if you are technically skilled, work on adding the baseball experience however you can.  – Dick Williams, Reds President of Baseball Operations

Royals Notes: Perez, First Base, Holland, Trades

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After missing all of 2019, Kansas City Royals catcher Salvador Perez will see extended stretches of time at first base in 2020, per The Athletic’s Alec Lewis (via Twitter). Perez underwent Tommy John surgery, and the Royals are willing to be cautious with their catcher as they ease him back in behind the plate. New manager Mike Matheny can certainly commiserate, having spent so many years behind the dish himself.

By Opening Day, Perez may be the last bastion of their title team. Danny Duffy remains, and there’s still a chance that Alex Gordon returns, but if Gordon retires or signs elsewhere, Perez would be the last remaining every day piece of their back-to-back pennant winning teams. Especially now that manager Ned Yost has passed the torch to Matheny, Perez represents an important daily reminder as the bridge to a successful era of Royals baseball.

Simply from a scorebook standpoint, a catcher with a strong defensive reputation who annually hits 20 home runs like Perez is extremely valuable, though poor baserunning and an extremely low walk rate have somewhat mitigated the plus sides of Perez’s game. Regardless, priority one will be avoiding another lost season like 2019. Besides, neither first base nor catcher is a position of real strength for the Royals sans Perez. As with Perez’s counterpart in the 2014 World Series Buster Posey, time at first base should ease the physical toll on Perez’s knees, arm, and back as he prepares to enter his thirties in early May. It may be that this move will be what allows Perez to maintain his influence behind the dish for longer, if not with the workload of his younger years.

As Perez returns to service, there’s some chatter about another member of the title team returning. MLB.com’s Jeffrey Flanagan asked Dayton Moore about the possibility of a Greg Holland signing, to which Moore expressed some optimism. Granted, it would have been a bizarre jab for Moore to outright reject Flanagan’s postulating, but Holland does fit the mold of a free agent the Royals could afford and who might have some interest in playing in Kansas City.

Holland, 34, came out the chute hot last season as the Diamondbacks closer, but he was released after 40 appearances and a 4.54 ERA/4.76 FIP. Thus continued the late-career trend of hot-and-cold for Holland, who simply couldn’t find the strike zone with consistency. He can still miss bats (10.3 K/9), but 6.1 BB/9 and 6 wild pitches led to 5 blown saves and his eventual removal from the closer’s role in Arizona despite 17 successful conversions.

Once released, he signed on with the Nationals, for whom he’d put together a masterful 24 games with a 0.84 ERA at the end of 2018. He didn’t give up a single earned run in 9 innings for the Nats’ Double-A affiliate, but he did not find his way back to the big leagues.

As for the rest of the Royals roster, Moore doesn’t foresee much movement on the big league front. Whit Merrifield, Jorge Soler, and Adalberto Mondesi are parts of their core and the Royals have no intention of breaking them up, per Lynn Worthy of the Kansas City Star. There is excitement internally about the return of Perez and even Duffy gets a shoutout from Moore as having the potential to get better in the latter years of his contract. Though that’s not typically the arc for pitchers on the backside of thirty, it would not be wholly unprecedented. Duffy’s last two seasons have been largely forgettable as he’s put together 285 2/3 innings of 4.63 ERA baseball (4.74 FIP) while making roughly 25 starts per season.

Beyond those core performers, the Royals believe in the growth potential of infielder Nicky Lopez as well as first baseman Ryan O’Hearn. Both players struggled mightily in 2019. Lopez, 24, hit an underwhelming .240/.276/.325 in 402 player appearances, and O’Hearn, 25, wasn’t much better at .195/.281/.369. For players with at least 350 plate appearances, O’Hearn’s 69 wRC+ ranked 5th from the bottom in the American League, while Lopez came in dead last at 56 wRC+, two points behind Chris Davis’ mark of 58 wRC+.

Winter Meetings Previews: Royals, White Sox

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In advance of the winter meetings, let’s take a moment to quickly preview a couple teams from the American League Central…

  • The Kansas City Royals will look for value buys on the free agent market, per Lynn Worthy of The Kansas City Star. Given the sale of the team and the managerial transition underway, the Royals have more justification than usual for patience this offseason. With Kansas City, however, there’s often a sense that internal valuations of the talent on hand differs from those of the general public. The Royals continue to present the idea that they are happy with their core, an impression bolstered by the “moon, sun, and stars” type packages the Royals are demanding for players like Whit Merrifield, Danny Duffy and Ian Kennedy. Senior VP of Baseball Ops & GM Dayton Moore refined his fence-walking trick recently while saying both, “…we’re very encouraged with where we are based on how our players performed individually last year,” and also, “I think we’ve got to upgrade everywhere, really.” Pitching is definitely a target, and Moore has been active in trade discussions already, enough to have a sense of where trades might happen – though from Moore’s comments, it seems the Royals are disinclined to be major players on the trade market unless opposing GMs become more amenable to Moore’s ask(s). They do have four open spots on the 40-man roster and should be active in the Rule 5 draft, per The Athletic’s Alec Lewis.
  • After being spurned by Zack Wheeler, the White Sox remain in the hunt for starting pitching, per MLB.com’s Scott Merkin. Chicago was also among the teams in on Jordan Lyles before the righty signed with the Rangers, tweets the MLB Network’s Jon Heyman. Their rotation candidates are currently made up of high-ceiling but largely-unestablished youngsters, fronted by 2019 breakout superstar Lucas Giolito. Speculatively, Dallas Keuchel fits nicely from a culture perspective as the perennially-attention-starved White Sox have already added Yasmani Grandal from the nobody-believes-in-us free agent pool – and they like playing with a chip on their shoulder on the southside. As for position players, Chicago boasts close to a full house now that Grandal and Jose Abreu are officially on board. With prospects Luis Robert and Nick Madrigal expected to play a large portion of 2020 in the big leagues, they have one of the more intriguing groups on that side of the ball. Still, there’s definitely room to tinker around the edges, especially in the outfield, where Luis Alexander Basabe, Daniel Palka, Leury Garcia, Adam Engel, and Luis Gonzalez make up the flexible collection of candidates to join Eloy Jimenez and Robert in the outfield.

Organizational Notes: Falvey, Red Sox, Washington, Padres, Royals

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Some front office and dugout items from around the game…

  • Twins chief baseball officer Derek Falvey turned down a request to interview for the top baseball operations job with the Red Sox, La Velle E. Neal III of the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports.  There wasn’t much public news about Boston’s search prior to the hiring of Chaim Bloom as the new CBO earlier this week, though there had been rumors that the Sox might have interest in Massachusetts native Falvey, and Neal indeed writes that Falvey was “high on their list of candidates.”  Reports from earlier this month suggested that Falvey and the Twins could be close to a contract extension, in the wake of Minnesota’s 101-win season.
  • Braves third base coach Ron Washington was the runner-up in the Padres’ managerial search and also won’t be taking on a bench coach job with San Diego, Dennis Lin of The Athletic reports (subscription required).  There had been speculation that Washington could provide a veteran counsel to first-time manager Jayce Tingler, though it appears that Washington will remain in his current job in Atlanta.
  • Lin’s piece also details the risk GM A.J. Preller is taking in hiring another first-time skipper in what seems like a must-win year for the Padres.  Going into such a pivotal season, however, Preller “preferred to take his chances with a candidate he clearly knows and has long held in high regard.”  Lin also notes that Preller originally tried to hire Tingler away from the Rangers when Preller first became San Diego’s general manager back in 2014.
  • The general consensus has been that the Royals would wait to hire their new manager until John Sherman officially took ownership of the franchise, though GM Dayton Moore tells Lynn Worthy of the Kansas City Star that this isn’t the case.  “We have been given full autonomy to hire the next manager of the Kansas City Royals when we feel that we are ready and the process is complete.  That could be today, tomorrow or sometime prior to the winter meetings,” Moore said, noting that Sherman has already been involved in the search process.”  Since Moore described the front office as still being “in the middle of a very thorough process,” however, a new managerial hire doesn’t yet seem near.  Royals special advisor and former Cardinals manager Mike Matheny has been widely seen as the favorite for the job, and to date, the only other publicly known candidates are also internal names, though the club has spoken to some external candidates.

Report: Dayton Moore To Receive Extension Under New Royals Ownership

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The impending sale of the Royals from David Glass to John Sherman has created a lot of speculation about the team’s future, though one key face within the organization doesn’t appear to be changing.  According to MLB Network’s Jon Heyman in the latest edition of the Big Time Baseball podcast (audio link), current Royals GM Dayton Moore “will receive a long extension and be there for a long time” once Sherman officially takes control of the franchise.  As a minority owner of the Indians, Sherman is no stranger to the AL Central, and thus “knows Dayton Moore well” and “is an admirer” of the GM and his work in Kansas City.

A new contract would keep Moore at the helm throughout the Royals’ ongoing rebuild, which would be the second time Moore has overhauled the club since first taking the general manager job in 2006.  That first rebuild, lengthy as it was though losing seasons from 2007-12, eventually paid off in major fashion.  K.C. won the American League pennant in both 2014 and 2015, and captured the franchise’s second-ever World Series title in 2015.

That success wasn’t sustained, however, and the Royals haven’t since topped the .500 mark.  In fact, over Moore’s 13 full seasons as general manager, Kansas City has only three winning seasons.  Nonetheless, Moore is a well-respected executive throughout baseball, and he has a proven track record in shepherding a small-market team all the way to championship glory.

It isn’t yet known how Sherman will operate the franchise or whether he’ll authorize a higher payroll, though Moore has already demonstrated that his front office can identify and develop young talent.  In fairness to Glass, he was willing to boost spending to try and extend the Royals’ contention window, though many of Moore’s big signings from the 2015-16 offseason (Alex Gordon, Ian Kennedy, Chris Young) didn’t pan out.

Moore’s current deal is believed to run through the 2020 season, though the exact terms of his 2016 extension weren’t officially revealed.  Heyman thinks the Royals may have given Moore another extension in the aftermath of the 2017 offseason, when the Braves heavily pursued Moore (who worked in Atlanta’s front office prior to taking Kansas City’s GM job) to run their vacant baseball operations department after John Coppolella’s shocking resignation as general manager.

While Moore may not be going anywhere, the same might not be true of manager Ned Yost, as Heyman said “the likelihood is that [the Royals] will move on.”  Though Moore has given his skipper more or less permanent job security, the 65-year-old Yost has indicated in the past that he is taking things on a year-to-year basis, even once citing the end of the 2019 season as a potential endpoint.  Yost is nearing the end of his 16th season as a Major League, and his 10th in Kansas City.  Yost will soon meet with Royals officials to discuss his future, Heyman said, with these meetings possibly taking place as early as this week.

Heyman’s Latest: Moore, Cain, Rangers, Vargas/O’s, Rodney/D-Backs

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In his latest Inside Baseball column, Jon Heyman of Fan Rag looks into the Royals front office. Owner David Glass is “considering a possible two-year extension” for GM Dayton Moore, writes Heyman, even though Moore has “no leverage” given that he’s already under contract for three more seasons. This all arises after Glass declined to allow the Braves to speak with Moore about changing squads. While Moore has expressed gratitude to ownership, his recent comments were interesting, if difficult to interpret with any precision. All told, it seems there could still be some unresolved matters in the Kansas City front office.

Let’s look at a few more items from Heyman of particular relevance to the still-developing hot stove season:

  • Top free agent center fielder Lorenzo Cain has drawn some early interest from the Mets and Giants, according to Heyman. As regards the New York organization, this information seems to conflict with recent statements from Mets GM Sandy Alderson — though as ever it’s worth taking things with a grain of salt and acknowledging fluidity this time of year. As for the Giants, we at MLBTR pegged San Francisco as the likeliest landing spot for Cain, though some doubt whether the organization will go over the luxury tax line and sacrifice draft choices to land him. At a minimum, though, the organization would seem to be wise to do some diligence on the possibility.
  • The Rangers have “looked into” free agent righties Lance Lynn and Tyler Chatwood, says Heyman. While it’s not clear just how serious the interest is, the link isn’t surprising. Texas clearly needs arms; indeed, MLBTR guessed they’d land Lynn. While Chatwood doesn’t have nearly the track record of results that Lynn does, he is an intriguing option in his own right and shares some of the characteristics of Andrew Cashner — the former Ranger free agent signee who is himself back on the open market.
  • Another team with a desire to add several starters (and with reputed interest in Chatwood) is the Orioles. The Baltimore front office met with agents for lefty Jason Vargas during the GM Meetings, Heyman reports. The 34-year-old veteran seems to be a good match for the O’s, as we predicted, since the team needs to find so many rotation innings and can’t afford to make major long-term commitments to multiple starters.
  • The Diamondbacks are “open” to bringing back Fernando Rodney, GM Mike Hazen tells Heyman. Arizona is facing a difficult payroll situation but obviously will be looking to maintain and improve upon a Wild Card-winning roster. Though Rodney didn’t dominate last year, he’s still throwing mid-nineties heat and generating quite a few swings and misses — and obviously met with the approval of the D-Backs’ brass in the closer’s role. Beyond improving the pen, the Arizona priority is to improve in the outfield, per the report. That could mean pursuing under-the-radar additions; though Hazen says he’s not ruling out a return for J.D. Martinez, that’d almost certainly require the kind of payroll increase that does not appear to be under consideration.

GM Meetings Notes: The American League Central

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Royals GM Dayton Moore did not strike a particularly optimistic tone yesterday with regard to the the organization’s major free agents, as Rustin Dodd of the Kansas City Star reports on Twitter. “We’ll see what the market dictates, we’ll stay engaged with our current free agents,” said Moore. “But I’m not sure if it’s at the levels that everyone’s talking about. It may be extra challenging for us.” The Kansas City organization will get a chance to begin figuring out just how much it’ll cost to keep Eric Hosmer or Mike Moustakas when it sits down today with agent Scott Boras, as Jon Heyman of Fan Rag reports.

  • Moore also discussed the fact that he’ll stay with the Royals after owner David Glass declined to allow him to interview with the Braves, as Dodd further writes. “I simply left that in Mr. Glass’s hands,” said Moore. “If he wanted to grant permission, then that would signal to me that he didn’t want me here. If he denied permission, that would tell me he wants me here.” That’s certainly an interesting perspective. Moore did emphasize, too, that he’s happy both to remain in charge of the Royals’ baseball ops and to put the speculation behind him. He is under contract in Kansas City through the 2020 campaign, Dodd further reports, and it seems as if there’s good cause to expect the relationship to continue for the foreseeable future.
  • Unsurprisingly, GM Rick Hahn suggests the White Sox are open to trading their few established veteran hitters this winter, as ESPN.com’s Jerry Crasnick writes. With the club still “focused on the long-term,” says Hahn, it will entertain offers on first baseman Jose Abreu and outfielder Avisail Garcia. Hahn explained: “At some point, not necessarily this offseason, we have to make the decision: Are we best served by extending them through what we project to be the bulk of our (competitive) window, or are we better off making a move like some of the others we’ve made and trying to reinforce the future with prospects?'” It’ll be interesting to see what kinds of offers are dangled for both players and whether Chicago truly seeks to initiate extension talks to create an alternative path.
  • The Tigers are diving right into talks on several players, GM Al Avila told reporters including Evan Woodberry of MLive.com (via Twitter). Avila said he has already discussed a few of the team’s players with rival organizations, including veteran second baseman Ian Kinsler. Detroit is also preparing to make some difficult 40-man roster decisions, Woodberry reports. Indeed, Avila says the process of whittling the players to protect from the Rule 5 draft has been “excruciating and painful.”
  • The Twins front office duo of Derek Falvey and Thad Levine faces quite a different situation in their second offseason with the franchise, as Phil Miller of the Star Tribune writes. Indeed, the team’s reported interest in some of the best free agent pitching serves to highlight the opportunities and expectations facing the organization this winter.

Latest On The Braves’ Front Office Search

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10:14pm: The Braves are moving on from Moore, MLB.com’s Mark Bowman reports, as “hope evaporated this weekend” that Moore would be made available by the Royals.  In regards to Hart’s future, Bowman notes that since both Anthopoulos and Hendry are experienced general managers, either could take over the Braves’ baseball ops department should Hart no longer continue with the organization.  “The Braves likely will make a decision as soon as possible” about their new GM, and Anthopoulos looks like the favorite.

7:39pm: Dayton Moore is still the Braves’ top choice to become the club’s new general manager, though if Atlanta isn’t able to get Moore away from the Royals, Joel Sherman of the New York Post reports that former Blue Jays GM Alex Anthopoulos is “the preferred Plan B” option.  Three sources paint Anthopoulos as the front-runner for the job, given that there still seems to be little traction to the idea of Moore leaving Kansas City for Atlanta.

The situation is far from being finalized, however, due to the Braves holding out hope that Moore could still become available, Major League Baseball’s ongoing investigation into signing violations under former Braves GM John Coppolella, and the status of Braves president of baseball operations John Hart.  Sherman reports that Hart prefers Anthopoulos for the GM job, while club vice chairman John Schuerholz is thought to prefer former Cubs GM Jim Hendry.  Hart’s own contract with the Braves expired after the 2017 season, and it isn’t yet clear if he will remain atop Atlanta’s baseball ops pyramid or if the team could desire a clean slate with a new name in charge of the front office.  (In regards to Moore, he would reportedly want full control over the Braves’ operations if he were to join the organization.)

Anthopoulos, 40, worked as Toronto’s GM for six seasons, building the nucleus that led the Jays to consecutive runs to the ALCS in 2015-16.  He somewhat surprisingly left the job after his contract was up after the 2015 season, however, the presence of new Jays president Mark Shapiro meant that Anthopoulos would’ve essentially been demoted to second-in-command on the team’s depth chart of baseball decision-makers.

Anthopoulos has worked as the Dodgers’ VP of baseball operations since January 2016, and turned down offers from the Twins and Diamondbacks last year when the two clubs were in the midst of their own GM searches.  Family concerns were reportedly behind Anthopoulos’ decision to bow out of those searches, as he didn’t want to uproot his young children from the west coast so quickly.  As Sherman notes, however, the Braves’ job “is viewed as attractive” around baseball due to the team’s deep well of prospects, even despite the likelihood that MLB will level some type of punishment against the franchise.

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