Free Agent Notes: Correa, Iglesias, Rodriguez
The upcoming free agent shortstop market has been talked about for awhile now, and we’re still a few months off from seeing how the whole thing plays out. Perhaps the most coveted of the soon-to-be available shortstops is the Astros’ Carlos Correa. One potential match for Correa’s services will be the Tigers, tweets MLB Network’s Jon Heyman.
The Tigers are an up-and-coming team with plenty of financial flexibility, and it’s certainly interesting to think about Correa once again teaming up with his former skipper A.J. Hinch. As hard as it is to imagine Correa leaving Houston, they do have prospect Jeremy Pena waiting in the wings, making an exit at least feasible. The Tigers, meanwhile, have one of the most open shortstop situations in the game, with incumbent Niko Goodrum easily able to shift into a super-utility role.
Angels’ closer Raisel Iglesias figures to be another in-demand free agent this winter. His priority, however, is re-signing with the Angels, writes Jeff Fletcher of the Orange-County Register. Iglesias made the most of his first season with the Angels, tossing 69 innings in 64 appearances with a 2.61 ERA/2.87 FIP. He has notched 34 saves, a mark that will look attractive to contenders this offseason.
In terms of rotations arms, there are few with the upside of the Red Sox’ Eduardo Rodriguez. Rodriguez and the Red Sox spoke about a possible extension earlier in the year, but there wasn’t much progress made and the two sides ultimately decided to table talks until the offseason, per Alex Speier of the Boston Globe. After complications from COVID-19 cost Rodriguez all of 2020, he has returned to his usual stable workload, making 31 starts for the playoff hopefuls.
Rodriguez hasn’t quite pitched to his pre-2020 level, though his 4.77 ERA may be a touch inflated. A 3.33 FIP suggests the 28-year-old hasn’t lost a step. He’s tossed 156 2/3 innings with an above-average 27.4 percent strikeout rate, 7.0 percent walk rate, 44.2 percent groundball rate, all numbers that will look good on Rodriguez’s free agent resume this winter.
Tigers Place Victor Reyes On 10-Day Injured List, Recall Zack Short
The Tigers placed Victor Reyes on the 10-day injured list with a right groin strain, the team announced. Given the amount of time left in the season, Reyes’ year is done. In a corresponding move, Zack Short has been recalled from Triple-A.
Reyes, 26, has played well enough in the second half to put himself in the conversation for an outfield spot next year. Reyes has just an 88 wRC+ on the year, but he hit .325/.348/.516 across 134 plate appearances in the second half. He doesn’t walk enough (3.6 percent walk rate), nor does he offer much pop (.158 ISO), but he saw some growth in the latter category this season, and if he continues on that upward trajectory, he could find regular at-bats for a Detroit team on the rise.
Short has been back and forth from Toledo to Detroit a couple of times this season. The 26-year-old right-handed infielder hit .147/.239/.293 in 176 plate appearances with the Tigers. That’s not enough bat, obviously, though his positional flexibility and ability to handle shortstop will make him a roster candidate next season.
AL Notes: Avila, Tigers, Angels, Vazquez
Tigers president/CEO Christopher Ilitch said in August that his team was willing to go after “high-impact players” this offseason, and spend as necessary (or if necessary) to obtain such talent. Ilitch reiterated those comments again speaking with The Detroit News’ Chris McCosky and other reporters recently, while GM Al Avila made further remarks hinting at a busy offseason, if not necessarily an all-in push for the 2022 season in particular. “Just rest assured we’re going to try to improve this team for next year and make a big push,” Avila said. “We feel we are very close to being in the playoffs. We’re not too far away.”
Detroit improved to 75-79 with today’s 5-1 victory over the Royals, so the Tigers still have a shot at their first winning season since 2016. The Tigers essentially sunk their season by starting out with only nine wins in their first 33 games, yet they’ve quietly been one of baseball’s better teams every since, going 66-55 since that ugly 33-game start. With the Twins and Indians taking a step backwards in 2021, the Royals still waiting for their latest rebuild to bear fruit, and the White Sox playing well but hardly dominating on their way to the AL Central title, the Tigers may feel the opportunity is ripe to return to contention. It remains to be seen how extensive the Tigers’ shopping spree will be this winter, but after several years of rebuilding, Detroit fans are surely excited to see what headlines their club can generate in the offseason.
More from around the American League…
- The Angels have needs in both the rotation and at shortstop, though a source tells Mike DiGiovanna of The Los Angeles Times that the team is more willing to spend big on pitching, and the Angels could “perhaps scrimp a bit at shortstop.” This could indicate a shortstop acquisition akin to the Halos’ pickup of Jose Iglesias from the Orioles last winter, with the Angels obviously hoping for much more than Iglesias’ underwhelming performance in Anaheim. Though several star shortstops will be available in free agency, it is hard to argue against pitching as the greater need, considering that Los Angeles has long been hampered by a lack of healthy and productive arms. Manager Joe Maddon believes the Angels need two front-of-the-rotation starters, telling The L.A. Times’ Bill Shaikin and other reporters that while he thinks his team has a “championship-capable” core of position players, “it’s almost impossible for it to happen” without an upgraded rotation. Maddon used his former organization as a comparison point, noting that the Cubs wouldn’t have won the 2016 World Series without their signings of Jon Lester and John Lackey.
- 2021 is the last guaranteed year of Christian Vazquez‘s contract, as the Red Sox hold a $7MM club option ($250K buyout) on the catcher’s services for next season. Vazquez is certainly eager to see that option exercised, as he told MassLive.com’s Christopher Smith that he would like to remain in Boston for the remainder of his career. Vazquez has already spent his entire pro career in the organization, delivering generally quality defense behind the plate and some offensive production, though his bat has been very inconsistent. This hasn’t been one of Vazquez’s better years, with a modest .261/.313/.354 slash line and six homers through 480 plate appearances entering today’s play, and his framing numbers are also down, as Smith notes. Still, it doesn’t seem likely that the Red Sox would just let Vazquez walk, as Boston could pick up the option and still look for catching upgrades, with Vazquez on hand as either a Plan B or as a potential trade chip. It would also seem like Vazquez is a natural extension candidate if the Sox want to keep him in the fold for years to come, though catching prospects Ronaldo Hernandez and Connor Wong are knocking on the door for future playing time.
Injury Notes: Cousins, Andrus, Loaisiga, Taillon, Cisnero
The Brewers placed righty Jake Cousins on the 10-day injured list due to a right biceps strain, as right-hander Miguel Sanchez was called up from Triple-A to take Cousins’ spot on the active roster. Speaking with The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel’s Todd Rosiak and other reporters, Brewers GM Matt Arnold described Cousins’ injury as “nothing major,” adding that “We just want to be careful. It’s that time of year where we want to make sure he’s available in a playoff capacity.”
Considering that Cousins didn’t even make his MLB debut until June 21, his status as a potential postseason weapon is a sign of how well he has performed during his rookie season. Cousins has a 2.70 ERA over 30 relief innings, along with an eye-popping 35.2% strikeout rate — not far off his minor league numbers since joining the Milwaukee organization in 2019. While Cousins’ control hasn’t been nearly as impressive (15.2% walk rate), opponents haven’t been able to take much advantage, as Cousins has been carving up batters with his wipeout slider.
More on other injury situations around baseball…
- While scoring the game-winning run in the Athletics‘ 2-1 walkoff win over the Astros today, Elvis Andrus suffered a left ankle injury and had to be helped off the field. A’s manager Bob Melvin told MLB.com’s Martin Gallegos and other reporters that Andrus is getting x-rays after “feeling a pop” in his ankle. More will be known after Andrus has been tested, but it certainly looks like the 33-year-old’s season could be over, as the shortstop could be facing a serious injury. It has been a tough year overall for Andrus, as he has hit only .243/.294/.320 over 541 plate appearances in his first season in Oakland.
- The Yankees could have Jonathan Loaisiga and Jameson Taillon back from the injured list during the club’s upcoming series against the Blue Jays, manager Aaron Boone told reporters (including ESPN’s Marly Rivera and Newsday’s Erik Boland). Loaisiga was sidelined on September 5 with a strained right rotator cuff, but the reliever has already thrown one bullpen session and will throw another soon, Boone said. Taillon has missed close to the game amount of time with an ankle injury, though he has been on a minor league rehab assignment and threw a bullpen today.
- Jose Cisnero‘s IL stint has lasted beyond the minimum 10 days, and Tigers manager A.J. Hinch told reporters (including Chris McCosky of The Detroit News) that while Cisnero hasn’t yet been shut down, a return this season is “improbable.” Cisnero has been hampered by swelling around the right elbow laceration that first sent him to the injured list back on September 14. If this is it for the right-hander in 2021, Cisnero will finish with a 3.65 ERA over 61 2/3 innings, marking his third consecutive year of solid work out of Detroit’s bullpen.
Matthew Boyd To Undergo Flexor Tendon Surgery
Tigers southpaw Matthew Boyd will undergo surgery to repair the flexor tendon in his left forearm, manager A.J. Hinch told reporters (including Jason Beck of MLB.com). The team didn’t provide any specific timetable for his recovery, but they’re “hopeful” he’ll be able to pitch at some point in 2022.
It’s a disappointing but not wholly unexpected development. Boyd missed two and a half months earlier this season because of triceps discomfort, returning in late August. He made just two starts before landing back on the shelf due to recurring elbow soreness, and the team sent him to visit a specialist a couple weeks ago.
The small silver lining is that the repair which Boyd will undergo is a less extensive procedure than a full Tommy John surgery. That offers some hope he’ll make it back onto a mound next year, but he’s almost certainly going to miss a good portion of the upcoming season.
It’s possible the surgery brings a premature end to Boyd’s six-plus year tenure in Detroit. The 30-year-old is scheduled to go through the arbitration process for a third and final time this offseason. Were the Tigers to tender him a contract, he’d be due a raise on this season’s $6.5MM salary before reaching free agency at the end of the 2022 campaign. Now that he’s seemingly in line to miss much of next year, Boyd’s likely to be let go a year early.
Tigers GM Al Avila told reporters (including Evan Woodbery of MLive) the club isn’t ruling out the possibility of Boyd pitching there moving forward. That’d most likely come in the form of a lower cost, incentive-laden free agent deal after a non-tender. But a non-tender would give Boyd the opportunity to explore inquiries from other teams.
If this does wind up marking the end of Boyd’s time with the Tigers, it’d conclude a generally up-and-down tenure. Acquired from the Blue Jays at the 2015 trade deadline as part of the David Price deal, Boyd almost immediately stepped into the Tigers’ rotation. He’s remained a member of the starting staff ever since, settling in as a reliable back-end innings eater for the first few years.
That changed in 2019, when Boyd leaned more heavily on his four-seam fastball at the expense of his sinker and saw a huge uptick in whiffs. Through the end of July that year, he owned a 3.94 ERA with an elite 32.5% strikeout rate across 132 1/3 innings. That dramatically improved performance — coupled with the Tigers’ continued rebuild — made Boyd one of the hottest names on the summer trade market.
Ultimately, Detroit made the decision to hold onto Boyd past the deadline. That proved to be a misstep in retrospect. He struggled down the stretch that season before a very poor showing in last year’s shortened campaign.
Detroit continued to stick by Boyd, though, and he rewarded their faith with a bounceback showing in 2021. The huge strikeout stuff Boyd showed in that 2019 season has fallen all the way back to his early-career levels, but Boyd tamped down on his prior home run troubles early this season en route to a career-low 3.89 ERA in fifteen starts.
Tigers Hire Ryan Garko As Vice President Of Player Development
The Tigers have hired former big league first baseman Ryan Garko as their new vice president of player development, per a club announcement. He’d spent the past two seasons with the Angels’ coaching staff as an instant replay coordinator and working to integrate information from the club’s analytics department into the clubhouse and dugout.
Garko, 40, was the 78th overall draft pick by the Indians back in 2003 and spent parts of six seasons in the Majors, batting a combined .275/.347/.434 with 55 home runs, 75 doubles and three triples in 1752 plate appearances. He spent the 2011 season playing with the Samsung Lions of the Korea Baseball Organization, and since retiring he’s managed the Dodgers’ Double-A affiliate and coached in the college ranks at the University of the Pacific and at Stanford.
Garko’s hiring comes just a few weeks after some changes in the Tigers’ front office were announced. Former VP of player development Dave Littlefield, who has been with the club since 2014, moved into a new role as a special assignment scout. Littlefield, who was the Pirates’ general manager from 2001-07, has spent three decades working in baseball operations, dating back to his time as a scout with the Expos in 1991.
The Tigers also recently announced a pair of key front office promotions, as director of baseball ops and pro scouting Sam Menzin and senior director of baseball analytics Jay Sartori were both named vice president/assistant general manager. Menzin, 31, began his baseball career as an intern with the Tigers and had held his previous title for the past four seasons. Sartori, 42, has spent the past six years building and overseeing the Tigers’ analytics department. He’s previously served as the Nationals’ director of baseball operations and spent three years as an assistant general manager with the Blue Jays as well.
Tigers Place Gregory Soto, Derek Hill On 10-Day Injured List
The Tigers placed closer Gregory Soto (left finger fracture) and outfielder Derek Hill (left knee sprain) on the 10-day injured list. Both players are expected to miss the rest of the season, manager A.J. Hinch told The Detroit News’ Chris McCosky and other reporters. Outfielder Daz Cameron and infielder Isaac Paredes were called up from Triple-A Toledo to replace Soto and Hill on the active roster.
Soto suffered his injury after being hit by a Manuel Margot line drive on Friday, while Hill sprained his knee while trying to beat out a bunt single yesterday. Hill had to be wheeled off the field following the awkward-looking play, which also involved a collision with Rays first baseman Ji-Man Choi.
Soto’s strong work in the first half of the season saw him reach the AL All-Star roster, as he ended up being Detroit’s top choice to preserve late-game leads. Soto posted a 3.39 ERA over 63 2/3 innings out of the bullpen, racking up 18 saves while recording a solid 27.5% strikeout rate. On the down side, Soto’s 14.5% walk rate was one of the league’s worst, as the control problems that bothered Soto in his first two MLB seasons continued in 2021.
As a result of these walks, Soto never exactly held a firm hold on the closer role, as Michael Fulmer also received a good chunk of save opportunities. It remains to be seen if the Tigers will continue with Soto as part of a closer committee in 2022, give him a clearer opportunity as the ninth-inning man, or perhaps go in another direction entirely and acquire another closer. Regardless, Soto has certainly done enough to earn himself a spot in Detroit’s late-game mix.
Hill was the 23rd overall pick of the 2014 draft, and he mostly appeared as a pinch-runner and defensive sub over 15 games in his debut season in 2020. Getting a longer look this year, Hill hit .259/.313/.388 with three home runs over 150 plate appearances, though he also missed about a month total in two separate IL stints (shoulder sprain, ribcage contusion).
Hill’s bat has been a question mark throughout much of his minor league career, though he batted .320/.377/.504 over 141 PA for Toledo this season. A right-handed hitter, Hill has a .311/.353/.459 slash line in 63 PA against southpaw pitching this year, which bodes well for his chances of sticking in the majors as at least a platoon player. Hill is known for excellent speed (160 steals in 206 chances in the minors) and defensive ability, though metrics are split on his glovework in center field this season.
Alex Avila To Retire After 2021 Season
Nationals catcher Alex Avila will retire at the end of the season, The Athletic’s Maria Torres reports (Twitter link). While Avila plans to remain involved with the sport and “doesn’t intend to stay out of the game for long,” the veteran backstop will be hanging up his glove after 13 Major League seasons.
Breaking into pro ball as a fifth-round pick for the Tigers in the 2008 draft, Avila is best remembered for his eight seasons in Detroit, highlighted by a Silver Slugger performance in 2011. Avila hit .295/.389/.506 with 19 homers over 551 plate appearances in that breakout year, earning an All-Star nod and a 12th-place finish in AL MVP voting.
While Avila never again quite reached those heights, he has often provided good offensive production from the catcher position throughout his career, offering on-base skills and a bit of power (while also struggling to avoid strikeouts). Over his 3626 career PA, Avila has a .233/.348/.393 slash line and 105 home runs, good for an above-average 101 OPS+ and 104 wRC+.
Defensively, Avila has been one of baseball’s best at preventing stolen bases, throwing out 30.13% (213 of 707) of baserunners trying to steal. He has also been a solid pitch-framer for much of his career, and he been widely praised as a game manager and handler of pitchers.
This reputation has helped Avila catch on with six different teams (the Tigers, White Sox, Cubs, Diamondbacks, Twins, and Nationals) over the course of his career, mostly recently his one-year free agent deal with Washington. Avila has made only 99 PA over 29 games, as calf injuries kept him on the injured list for almost two months, and he also missed time at the start of the year on the COVID-19 list. Injuries have been a significant part of Avila’s career, including multiple concussions and leg problems.
Only 34 years old, Avila now moves onto the next phase of his baseball career, and could very well continue his family’s history of off-the-field success. His father Al Avila is the Tigers’ general manager, and his grandfather Ralph was a longtime Dodgers scout who was a key figure in the development of the Dominican baseball pipeline.
We at MLB Trade Rumors congratulate Avila on a fine career, and wish him the best in his next endeavors.
Injury Notes: Paddack, Snell, Hill, Gallo
It “seems more likely than not” that Blake Snell and Chris Paddack won’t pitch again for the Padres in 2021, sources tell Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune. With just two weeks left in the regular season, time is running out for either pitcher to return from the 10-day injured list. Paddack was retroactively placed on the IL on September 12 due to right elbow inflammation, while a groin strain sidelined Snell on September 15.
Snell isn’t likely to pitch again unless San Diego is still playing into the postseason, while Paddack has some smaller chance of a quicker return, as he said his elbow felt fine after a game of catch yesterday. Still, Paddack was only throwing lightly from a 75-foot distance, so it remains to be seen if he can progress quickly enough to get back on the mound before the regular season is over. “Regardless of how [Paddack] is feeling the Padres almost certainly won’t even consider him pitching again in 2021 if they are not squarely in contention,” Acee writes, and that latter scenario is starting to look more remote. The reeling Padres are 5-10 in September, and have dropped 2.5 games behind the Cardinals for the last NL wild card slot.
More updates on injury situations from around the game…
- Tigers outfielder Derek Hill had to be helped off the field via a cart and a wheelchair after suffering a knee injury in yesterday’s 4-3 win over the Rays. Hill was trying to beat out a bunt grounder to first base, and seemed to hyper-extend his knee while colliding with Tampa first baseman Ji-Man Choi. While Hill was still being examined by team medical staff, Tigers manager A.J. Hinch told reporters (including Evan Petzold of The Detroit Free Press) that an IL trip seems pretty inevitable for the 25-year-old. It seems as if Hill’s rookie season might well be over, after 49 games and 150 plate appearances that saw the 2014 first-round pick hit .259/.313/.388 with three home runs. Injuries have been a big factor in Hill’s season, as he missed time in two separate IL stints due to a left ribcage contusion and a right shoulder sprain.
- Joey Gallo left the Yankees‘ 11-3 loss to the Indians yesterday due to neck tightness, and is day-to-day. Gallo took one plate appearance before being replaced in left field prior to the start of the fourth inning. Manager Aaron Boone told The Associated Press and other media that Gallo was receiving treatment on his neck before the game, and “I think after his first at-bat, it was just barking too much on him.” While the injury seems pretty minor, the Yankees surely want one of their hottest bats back as quickly as possible to aid their pursuit of a wild card berth. Gallo got off to a slow start after being acquired by the Yankees at the trade deadline, but has posted a 1.490 OPS and six home runs over his last 25 PA.
Injury Notes: Snell, Boyd, deGrom, Nimmo
The big storylines from today’s Padres-Dodgers game all revolve around Max Scherzer. Not only did he become just the 19th pitcher in Major League history to reach 3,000 career strikeouts, he also threw an immaculate inning and carried a perfect game into the eighth inning. However, the opposing clubhouse didn’t have nearly as much to celebrate. Padres reliever Austin Adams tied a modern-day record for hit batsmen in a season and Blake Snell left the game after just 11 pitches with what the club later announced as “left adductor tightness”, also known as a groin injury.
This is very unfortunate timing for both the club and Snell, as they are in a crowded playoff race and he was just starting to turn his frustrating season around. Following a miserable outing against Oakland on July 28th, Snell was sitting on an ERA of 5.44 through 84 1/3 innings, with an elevated walk rate of 14.3%, well above this year’s league average of 8.7%. However, since that time, the lefty seemed to have got into a groove and righted the ship, throwing 43 2/3 innings with 65 strikeouts and an ERA of 1.85, along with a much-improved walk rate of 8.6%.
The severity of the injury isn’t clear at this point. But with the club currently tied with the Reds for the last National League Wild Card spot, with the Cardinals just a game back and other teams looming, every remaining game is tremendously important. Rotation health has been an ongoing issue for the club in the past few months, so much so that the club signed Jake Arrieta a few weeks ago to try and paper over the injuries. However, Arrieta landed on the IL himself and hasn’t been terribly effective in his two appearances with the Friars. Losing Snell for any amount of time, especially when he was throwing so well, would surely be a blow to their chances.
Some other injury updates…
- Matt Boyd is meeting with elbow specialist Keith Meister, Tigers manager AJ Hinch tells Chris McCosky of The Detroit News. “He is scheduled to see Dr. Meister in Dallas and then we’ll get further evaluations and opinions and see what’s next for him,” Hinch said. While a meeting doesn’t necessarily spell doom, this is a potentially concerning development, given that Meister is often associated with Tommy John surgery. McCosky points out that Meister recently performed the procedure for Tigers catcher Jake Rogers, but the doctor has also recently taken the knife to Tyler Glasnow and many others. If any kind of serious surgery is required, it would be very poor timing, given that Boyd is currently slated to reach free agency after the 2022 season. The 30-year-old is playing this year on a $6.5MM salary and can be controlled for one more year via arbitration. Boyd’s name has been often mentioned as a trade candidate for the rebuilding Tigers in recent years, though a deal has yet to come to fruition. A lengthy surgery rehab could further dent any trade value he has left and also hurt Boyd’s chances to cash in on his quality career via free agency. Since the start of 2016, Boyd had given the Tigers 727 innings with an ERA of 4.75, accruing 10.2 fWAR in that time.
- The Mets provided yet another vague update about Jacob deGrom, as manager Luis Rojas tells Anthony DiComo of MLB.com he is scheduled to throw off a mound, “maybe this week.” deGrom was on his way to a brilliant season before elbow issues put him on the shelf in July. Through 92 innings this season, he has an ERA of 1.08 with an excellent walk rate of 3.4% and an absurd strikeout rate of 45.1%. Given that there’s only three weeks remaining in the season, it seems that the chances of those winding up as his final numbers are growing.
- In better news for the Mets, the prognosis for outfielder Brandon Nimmo seems to have improved. DiComo gives some details of the onfield workout Nimmo took part in today and says that Nimmo believes he can return to face Philadelphia, whom the Mets start a three-game series with on Friday. Going into tonight’s game against the Yankees, the Mets are 3 1/2 games out of a playoff spot and would surely love to get Nimmo back into the mix to help with their postseason push. In 77 games this year, the 28-year-old has hit .302/420/.415, an excellent wRC+ of 139.