AL Notes: McCullers, Cron, Schoop, Orioles
Lance McCullers Jr. has “been dying” to return to the mound, and “is ready for the season to start tomorrow if it could,” the Astros righty tells MLB.com’s Brian McTaggart. Recovery from Tommy John surgery in November 2018 kept McCullers sidelined for all of last season, though he said he is on track for Spring Training and Opening Day after completing his rehab last month. McCullers’ return will be a boost to an Astros rotation that has already lost Gerrit Cole and Wade Miley in free agency, and the 26-year-old is still looking to fully break out in what would be his fifth MLB season. Injuries have limited the former 41st-overall pick to just 453 2/3 innings in his career, though McCullers has pitched well (3.67 ERA, 10.1 K/9, 2.86 K/BB rate) when healthy and has both an impressive postseason resume and an All-Star appearance to his name.
More Christmas Day notes from the American League…
- Jonathan Schoop and C.J. Cron are both looking forward to new opportunities in the Motor City, as the two newest Tigers told reporters (including Chris McCosky of the Detroit News). In Cron’s case, he said the Tigers “were on me from the beginning” after the first baseman was non-tendered by the Twins. “The thing that stood out the most was just how much Detroit wanted me….They told my agent early on they wanted me to be a part of this thing and their persistence never stopped,” Cron said. “Anytime somebody wants you that bad, it feels good and it made my interest higher and higher.”
- Several Orioles questions are addressed by The Athletic’s Dan Connolly (subscription required) during a reader mailbag piece, including the issue of just how much financial support GM Mike Elias has at his disposal as he rebuilds the roster. For example, Baltimore’s decision to trade Jonathan Villar to the Marlins for a fairly minimal prospect return created the impression that the O’s were more concerned with getting Villar’s $10.4MM projected arbitration salary off the books than they were in getting full value back for the talented infielder. In Connolly’s view, “Elias’ hands are tied more than he would have preferred,” perhaps due to such factors as low attendance at Camden Yards and the likelihood that the Orioles will have to start more evenly sharing their MASN broadcast revenue with the Nationals. It doesn’t seem that the O’s will be able to explore such tactics as offering to take a bad contract off another team’s hands if that team also includes some prospects in the trade. That said, it isn’t as if the Orioles are running a total bare-bones operation — Connolly notes that ownership has invested in the Orioles’ infrastructure, giving Elias more modernized analytics and international scouting departments.
Tigers To Sign C.J. Cron
The Detroit Tigers have completed their coup of the Twins’ right side, agreeing to a one-year deal with first baseman C.J. Cron, per Anthony Fenech of the Detroit Free Press. This deal matches the one made with Schoop, coming in at $6.1MM, per Fenech and MLB Insider Jeff Passan. The Tigers have announced the deal with Cron, represented by Moye Sports Associates.
Cron joins his third club in as many seasons after being non-tendered in back-to-back winters by the Rays and Twins, respectively. The Twins claimed Cron from Tampa and paid him $4.8MM last season, but balked at the $7.7MM salary he was projected to earn through arbitration. Cron ends up getting a raise from the Tigers, though still coming in under his projected arbitration mark.
The trepidation over paying Cron stems from the fairly limited skillset offered by the slugging first baseman. The power is legit, as Cron has put together back-to-back seasons with an ISO north of .200 – but as with his once-and-future teammate Jonathan Schoop, the power comes with below-average walk rates and a batting average consistently in the neighborhood of .250 (he’s a .258 BA career hitter).
Cron did post an above-average barrel rate rate in 2019, but he also suffered some bad luck with a .277 BABIP that fell well below his average rate of .293. In his one year in Minnesota, Cron hit .253/.311/.469 with 25 home runs and 78 RBIs while helping the Twins to the AL Central crown.
Along with Schoop, Cron brings much-needed pop to the right side of the Tigers infield and gives them some potential trade chips come July. To make room for the Cron and Schoop signings, Brandon Dixon has been designated for assignment, the team announced. Coincidentally, Dixon led the Tigers with 15 home runs last season, a mark that both Schoop and Cron topped with the Twins. The Tigers 40-man roster is currently full.
Tigers To Sign Jonathan Schoop
The Detroit Tigers are “in agreement” with free agent second baseman Jonathan Schoop, per The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal. It’s a one-year deal worth $6.1MM plus performance bonuses for Schoop, a client of VC Sports Group. Rosenthal notes that the Tigers plan on utilizing Schoop in the middle of the order as their everyday second baseman. The Tigers have announced the deal.
Schoop stays in the American League where he has spent his entire career save the couple months in Milwaukee following the 2018 trade deadline. He enjoyed a bit of a return to form with the Twins last season, though come playoff time, the Twins turned to rookie Luis Arraez to man the keystone.
On the one hand, the Twins are probably satisfied with the return they got from Schoop on a one year, $7.5MM base deal. He put forth a .256/.304/.473 line with 23 home runs in 464 plate appearances, amassing 1.8 bWAR/1.3 fWAR. The 28-year-old graded out as an average or slightly below-average defender at second base by UZR and DRS.
On the other hand, a slight pay cut likely signals that teams aren’t seeing the upside that once accompanied Schoop, whose 5.2 bWAR season in 2017 with the Orioles suggested superstar potential. That season seems more and more anomalous the further it moves in the rearview.
Still, a 100 wRC+ pegs him right around league-average as an offensive contributor. Schoop will likely join with Niko Goodrum to form the everyday double play duo in Detroit next season, per MLB.com’s Jason Beck. The pair certainly offers a higher-upside play than the veteran duo of Jordy Mercer and Josh Harrison that started up the middle on Opening Day of 2018.
The move also buys development time for Willi Castro and Sergio Alcantara. Castro struggled mightily in his first taste of the big leagues, hitting just .230/.284/.340 in a 30-game sample. He’ll be in the infield mix this season, but Schoop gives the Tigers the flexibility to be patient with a young group of position players prospects.
Tigers Sign Zack Godley
The Tigers announced that they have signed righty Zack Godley. He’ll receive a minor-league deal with an invitation to participate in MLB camp.
There’s a $1.5MM salary if Godley can crack the roster, with another $1.5MM in available incentives, MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand tweets. Godley also receives a March 23rd opt-out date to force the Tigers’ hand. If all goes well Godley can elect free agency at season’s end rather than being subject to the arbitration process.
Godley looks to be an intriguing buy-low candidate for the Detroit organization. He has at times demonstrated an intriguing blend of skills that could make him quite a valuable starter. But more recent struggles forced the 29-year-old into a make-good, minor-league arrangement.
Last year, Godley limped through 92 innings of 5.97 ERA pitching, generating only 6.9 K/9 to go with 4.1 BB/9 and a 43.0% groundball rate. That was a far cry from his excellent 2017 season, when he ran up 155 frames of 3.37 ERA ball while striking out 9.6 and walking only 3.1 per nine and generating grounders at a hefty 55.3% rate. Godley wasn’t quite as effective in 2018 but still carried sub-4.00 FIP and xFIP numbers.
Godley has been hampered of late by a loss of fastball velocity, though it did trend up over the course of the season. He also increasingly experimented late in the ’19 campaign with abandoning his frequently used curve in favor of his cutter. Whether he’s already on track or still needs to find the right tweak, Godley will have to find a way to reverse the trends. If he can return to generating a combination of a 13+% swinging-strike rate and 50+% groundball rate, as he did in 2017, he could become a nice trade chip. If not, the Tigers will at least hope Godley can fill some innings in a respectable manner.
Tigers Sign Shao-Ching Chiang
The Tigers announced that they’ve inked a minor-league deal with righty Shao-Ching Chiang. It comes with an invitation to MLB camp.
Chiang, a 26-year-old hurler, originally signed with the Indians out of his native Taiwan. He steadily moved up the ladder in the Cleveland system but ran into headwinds as he reached the upper tiers in recent campaigns.
Last season, Chiang repeated the Triple-A level without earning a call-up to the bigs. He has recorded 195 2/3 innings of 5.11 ERA ball with 7.7 K/9 and 3.1 BB/9 at the highest level of the minors. Chiang became a minor-league free agent at the conclusion of the 2019 season.
Tigers Sign Austin Romine
The Tigers signed their first free agent of the winter Friday, announcing a one-year pact with catcher Austin Romine. The Moye Sports Associate client will reportedly be guaranteed $4.1MM and looks to be in line to see an increased workload with the Tigers — the same club that employed his brother, Andrew Romine, from 2014-17.
“Signing an experienced catcher was high on our list of offseason priorities, and we believe Austin will have an impact both on the field and in the clubhouse,” GM Al Avila said in a press release. “He’s a proven leader and game caller who has earned respect around the league for the tenacious and passionate manner in which he plays the game.”
Romine, 31, has been a steady contributor to the Yankees for some time now. While he was the clear number two in New York, he got a good bit of action in recent years when Gary Sanchez was sidelined. Though he carried a dismal track record with the bat until recently, Romine has trended up in the past two seasons, slashing .262/.302/.428 with 18 long balls in 505 plate appearances since the start of the 2018 season.
Romine has graded as a below-average framer but obviously impressed the Yanks with his overall abilities on the defensive side of the equation. He’s thwarted 28 percent of stolen-base attempts against him over the past two seasons while posting above-average numbers in terms of blocking pitches in the dirt, per Baseball Prospectus. Romine will surely be called upon to handle a big chunk of the time behind the dish in Detroit while helping younger backstops Grayson Greiner and Jake Rogers learn the ropes.
George A. King III of the New York Post first reported the deal (via Twitter). MLB.com’s Jason Beck and MLive.com’s Evan Woodberry added financial details (Twitter links).
AL Central Notes: Donaldson, Edwin, Shaw, Fulmer, Tigers
Some rumblings from the AL Central…
- Reports surfaced a few weeks ago that the Twins “kicked the tires” on Josh Donaldson and other third basemen, and La Velle E. Neal III of the Minneapolis Star Tribune writes that the Twins have continued to show interest in Donaldson’s services. With Anthony Rendon now wearing Angels red, Minnesota will face some stiff competition for the best third baseman remaining on the market, as the Rangers and Nationals are among the clubs who are reportedly set to redirect their efforts towards signing Donaldson are coming up short on Rendon.
- The White Sox have met with Edwin Encarnacion‘s agents, 670 The Score’s Bruce Levine reports (Twitter link). After already adding Yasmani Grandal and Nomar Mazara, signing Encarnacion would add even more pop to Chicago’s lineup, as he would pair with Jose Abreu (and Grandal, on days when Grandal isn’t catching) in the first base/DH mix. The Blue Jays are the only other team known to have some interest in Encarnacion this offseason, though Levine reports that Encarnacion’s camp has also met with two other teams, and MLB Network’s Jon Heyman tweets that Encarnacion has received interest from six clubs overall — five in the American League and one in the National League. The mystery NL team made Encarnacion an offer, according to Heyman, though the veteran slugger has said he would prefer to remain in the AL.
- The Tigers are one of the teams interested in Travis Shaw, MLB.com’s Jon Morosi reports (via Twitter). Shaw was non-tendered by the Brewers last week, as Shaw’s disastrous 2019 season left Milwaukee wary of paying the infielder a projected $4.7MM arbitration salary. In 2017-18, however, Shaw hit .258/.347/.497 with 63 homers over 1193 PA for the Brew Crew, so he could be an intriguing buy-low candidate for several clubs. In particular, a rebuilding team like Detroit could certainly see the rebound potential in Shaw, who can play either corner infield position and also has experience at second base.
- Tigers GM Al Avila provided reporters (including MLB.com’s Jason Beck) with an update on right-hander Michael Fulmer, who is “on track” in his recovery from Tommy John surgery and “should be able to pitch in games sometime in July.” Fulmer underwent his procedure last March, so a July return would be slightly beyond the normal 12-15 month timeframe for TJ patients, though not by any unusual amount.
AL News & Rumors: Yanks, Gardner, Tigers, Chirinos, ChiSox, Rangers
Optimism continues to build regarding a potential agreement between the Yankees and free-agent outfielder Brett Gardner. The Yankees are “hopeful” they’ll finalize a contract soon, Jon Heyman of MLB Network tweets, and Joel Sherman of the New York Post adds that the two sides are “far down the line” in negotiations. With center fielder Aaron Hicks set to miss a large portion of next season after undergoing Tommy John surgery and the Yankees having no established in-house replacements, the need for Gardner – the most accomplished CF option in free agency – is obvious. Although he’ll turn 37 years old in 2020, Gardner remains a valuable all-around contributor and a revered clubhouse presence.
Here’s more on New York and a few other AL clubs:
- The Yankees agreed to sign ace Gerrit Cole on Tuesday. Now they’re interested in free-agent catcher Martin Maldonado, who caught Cole 10 times last season in Houston, Mark Feinsand of MLB.com reports. If he goes to the Yankees, Maldonado would presumably replace Austin Romine – who’s a free agent – and serve as a defensively gifted backup to slugging catcher Gary Sanchez.
- Fellow catcher Robinson Chirinos, who was teammates with Maldonado in Houston, has drawn widespread interest on the open market. The Rockies were already just put on the board along with the Rangers, Astros, Tigers, Rays, and Pirates. You can add the Tigers to the still-growing list of teams eyeing Chirinos, MLB.com’s Jon Morosi tweets. It’s no surprise Detroit’s in on Chirinos, as he may be the top catcher left and general manager Al Avila has made it known the team’s serious about finding an upgrade behind the plate.
- Any catcher the Tigers sign will be managed by Ron Gardenhire next season, but his future’s murkier thereafter. Gardenhire doesn’t have a contract for 2021, and it doesn’t sound as if he’ll be signing an extension this winter. The 62-year-old said Wednesday that he won’t discuss a new deal with Avila until after next season, per Jason Beck of MLB.com. It’s possible, though, that the Tigers will choose to go in another direction by then.
- Several teams have shown interest in free-agent outfielder Kole Calhoun, who hit the market when the Angels declined his pricey 2020 option after the season. It turns out the White Sox had been involved in the race, but they’re now out after acquiring fellow outfielder Nomar Mazara from Texas on Wednesday, according to Bruce Levine of 670 The Score. Between Mazara and Eloy Jimenez, Chicago no longer has a need for a starting-caliber corner OFer.
- The Rangers acquired outfield prospect Steele Walker from Chicago in exchange for Mazara. One day into his tenure with the Rangers organization, Walker has garnered almost as many calls from interested teams as Mazara generated, according to general manager Jon Daniels (via Levi Weaver of The Athletic). However, Daniels added the Rangers do not intend to flip the 23-year-old Walker elsewhere.
Rangers Exploring Outfield Trades, Pursuing Chirinos Reunion
8:58pm: The Cardinals are also in the mix for Mazara, Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reports. That jibes with their goal of acquiring a lefty-hitting outfielder.
6:17pm: The White Sox are “working hard to land” Mazara, as Jim Bowden of SiriusXM first reported. As for Chirinos, the Astros, Tigers, Rays and Pirates join the Rangers in the market for him, Jon Heyman of MLB Network tweets.
1:04pm: The Rangers have remained busy on the market, with MLB.com’s TR Sullivan reporting that the club is active on multiple fronts (Twitter links). While it stands to reason that the team is still considering moves in the rotation, the attention now is on the position player side after several notable pitching additions.
It has long seemed likely that the Rangers would explore possible swaps involving its existing outfielders. But the team now appears to be engaged in a somewhat dedicated manner. Sullivan says the intention is to “move one of their extra left-handed hitting outfielders,” with Nomar Mazara, Willie Calhoun, and Shin-Soo Choo named as possibilities.
That’s a highly varied group of players. Mazara is a mid-arbitration player that hasn’t turned the corner in the majors but remains quite youthful. Calhoun hasn’t had the same degree of opportunity (and hasn’t logged as much service) but showed well with the bat last year. He’s also still a question mark defensively, as is the aging Choo, who can still hit but isn’t worth the remainder of his big contract.
The Rangers are said to be chatting with the Diamondbacks about some of these players; the clubs were connected last night regarding Mazara. Evidently talks between the Rangers and Marlins didn’t advance. Craig Mish of MLB Network Radio tweets that the Fish were turned off by the asking price for Mazara, a former top prospect.
Meanwhile, there’s “mutual interest” in a new deal with backstop Robinson Chirinos. That’s rather an interesting development, considering the Texas organization surprisingly declined its option over him last fall. The replacement plan fell apart, as MLBTR’s Connor Byrne explored, while Chirinos flourished with the cross-state Astros.
The 35-year-old Chirinos and the Rangers are amply familiar with one another, as he played with the team for six seasons. It seems the sides carry no ill will over the way things ended. The catching market has moved rather swiftly to this point, leaving Chirinos and Jason Castro as the top available options.
Tigers Rumors: Castro, Goodrum, Boyd, Tsutsugo
Finding a catcher is the Tigers’ No. 1 priority this offseason, according to general manager Al Avila, who also named first base, corner outfield, the rotation and perhaps the middle infield as other areas of interest for the rebuilding club (via Chris McCosky of the Detroit News). Behind the plate, the belief is that Jason Castro – one of the best catchers remaining on the open market – is at the top of the Tigers’ list, Anthony Fenech of the Detroit Free Press reports. The defensively adept Castro is coming off a quality all-around season as a member of one of the Tigers’ division rivals, the Twins, with whom he batted .232/.332/.435 and swatted 13 home runs over 275 plate appearances. Thanks in part to his 2019 showing, MLBTR forecasts a two-year, $10MM payday in free agency for Castro, 32. On paper, he’d be a marked upgrade over the catcher trio of Grayson Greiner–John Hicks–Jake Rogers trio the Tigers mostly relied on last season.
More from the Motor City…
- Utilityman Niko Goodrum, likely the Tigers’ most valuable position player of 2019, has drawn quite a bit of trade interest from elsewhere, Avila revealed (link via McCosky). It’s unclear, though, how open the Tigers are to trading the 27-year-old switch-hitter, who’s the in-house favorite to start at shortstop for them next season. Goodrum saw time at short and six other positions in 2019, when he slashed .248/.322/.421 with 12 home runs, a dozen steals and 1.9 fWAR in 472 trips to the plate. He’s not eligible to reach arbitration until after next season.
- Detroit may not have a more obvious trade chip than 28-year-old left-hander Matthew Boyd, who’s been the subject of rumors for several months. Boyd’s still arbitration-eligible for another three years, though, and as of now, the Tigers aren’t “actively” looking to deal him, McCosky tweets. At the same time, the Tigers haven’t initiated extension talks with Boyd. However, Boyd’s agent, Scott Boras, has plenty of other matters to focus on at the moment.
- The Tigers are among those who have shown interest in Japanese free-agent outfielder Yoshitomo Tsutsugo, but it doesn’t appear he’ll end up wind up in Detroit. Avila suggested Monday that the Tigers are unlikely to make a serious run at Tsutsugo.