AL Notes: Twins, Park, Soria, Tigers’ Pen
It was a bit of a surprise to learn that the Twins emerged with the winning posting bid for Korean slugger Byung-Ho Park. Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN tweets that there were multiple other bids of $10MM or greater, suggesting that Minnesota did not go much beyond the rest of the market to secure the rights. GM Terry Ryan explained that the club’s “evaluators think [Park] can make the transition” to the big leagues, as John Shipley of the St. Paul Pioneer Press reports. Minnesota sees the 29-year-old as a primary DH who is capable of filling in at first or even third. Ryan said that adding Park did not necessarily mean that third baseman Trevor Plouffe would need to be traded to keep exciting young power hitter Miguel Sano in the lineup. Explaining that the team is “adding, not subtracting,” Ryan said that it is “serious about the possibility of Sano playing in the outfield.”
Here’s more from the Twin Cities and their AL Central rivals in Detroit:
- Righty Joakim Soria has drawn early interest not only from the Tigers, but also from the Twins, according to Wolfson (via Twitter). Minnesota has put out feelers on other relief arms as well, with the pen representing one priority along with the team’s catching situation.
- Tigers GM Al Avila left no doubt in his comments today that his club intends to play at the top of the relief market, as Anthony Fenech of the Detroit Free Press reports. “We’re trying to get a closer,” Avila said. “Who that guy is right now, I can’t tell you. There might be a guy there that you might not think is a closer but we do, or we might go after a guy that’s already been a closer. I don’t know where it’s going to take me right now.”
- The new general manager did stress, though, that starting pitching remains the priority. He also added that Detroit could also shift those starters who don’t make the rotation into the pen, possibly including recent trade addition Michael Fulmer, as Jason Beck of MLB.com tweets.
- The Tigers are also continuing to make good on the promise to build out their analytical department, and have hired former Blue Jays assistant GM Jay Sartori to run that area, according to Jon Morosi of FOX Sports (via Twitter).
Pirates Claim Guido Knudson From Tigers
The Tigers announced today that right-hander Guido Knudson has been claimed off waivers by the Pirates (Twitter link).
The 26-year-old Knudson, a 28th-round pick of the Tigers back in 2011, made his big league debut with the Tigers this past season but endured significant struggles in his first taste of the Majors. Knudson yielded 10 runs on 13 hits, including a staggering five homers, in five innings of work. However, he averaged a healthy 93.4 mph on his fastball in the process and comes with a nice track record at the Triple-A level, where he logged a 2.34 ERA with 44 strikeouts against 21 walks in 42 1/3 innings this season.
The Pirates have plenty of spots open on their 40-man roster — six, even after this waiver claim — so there was no 40-man move necessary to compensate for Knudson’s addition.
Bullpen Notes: Miller, O’Day, Soria, Madson
The Yankees are reportedly open to nearly any scenario this winter, and according to Jon Heyman of CBS Sports, that includes trading Andrew Miller. While Heyman is careful to note that the scenario isn’t likely and the Yankees aren’t actively shopping their excellent closer, other clubs have said that Miller’s name is “out there a bit,” as Heyman puts it. Andy Martino of the New York Daily News applauds GM Brian Cashman’s open-mindedness (Twitter link). He speculates that the Yankees could flip Miller for immediate help and then trade prospects to acquire Craig Kimbrel from the Padres, leaving the 2016 club improved overall. The Yankees already have a dominant late-inning arm that could step into the ninth inning in place of Miller, of course, in Dellin Betances, though there’s certainly something to be said for having a pair of shutdown arms to handle the final two-plus innings of a game.
A few more notes from the relief market as the GM Meetings get underway…
- Preliminary interest in Darren O’Day is “steep,” tweets Heyman, who adds that the Tigers, Cubs, Nationals, Red Sox, Royals and Dodgers are all in at this stage. The 32-year-old O’Day is probably the top relief arm on the market, as he’s coming off a dominant stretch in which he posted a 1.92 ERA in 263 innings over a four-year stretch spanning 2012-15. O’Day landed 33rd on MLBTR’s Top 50 Free Agent list, with Tim Dierkes projecting a three-year deal worth about $22.5MM.
- The Tigers will meet with the representatives for right-hander Joakim Soria at the GM Meetings this week, according to Tony Paul of the Detroit News (links to Twitter). The Tigers traded Soria to the Pirates at this summer’s non-waiver deadline, but that move was carried out by the since-departed Dave Dombrowski, and it stands to reason that new GM Al Avila, who is known to be seeking bullpen upgrades, could want Soria back in the ninth inning in Detroit. Paul adds that the Tigers’ preference between O’Day and Soria could come down to who is more willing to sign first, as the team will want to move onto other needs/targets relatively quickly.
- Andy McCullough of the Kansas City Star tweets that Ryan Madson, who picked up a World Series ring and emphatically re-established himself as a quality big league setup man with the Royals this season, is seeking a multi-year deal on the free agent market. That’s not a huge surprise given the lack of elite relief arms on the free agent market this season and the strong results he delivered in 2015. Madson tallied a 2.13 ERA with 8.2 K/9 against 2.0 BB/9 in 63 1/3 innings with Kansas City this season. He struggled in the ALDS and ALCS before turning in three very strong World Series innings. Tim pegged Madson for a three-year deal in the $15MM range in the aforementioned Top 50 list.
Latest On Byung-ho Park
8:52am: Yahoo’s Jeff Passan tweets that the White Sox aren’t the winner, either. That leaves the Brewers and Twins in addition to the Cubs and Reds, though the latter duo doesn’t have much of a spot for Park to play (unless Cincinnati feels he can handle left field). Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN reported last week that the Twins have scouted Park quite a bit, though the Brewers seem to be a better fit from a roster standpoint, in my eyes.
8:37am: Heyman also eliminates the Rockies and the Phillies from the mix (via Twitter). That leaves the Brewers, Reds, Cubs, White Sox and Twins as the remaining options. As I noted before, the presence of Joey Votto in Cincinnati and Anthony Rizzo on the Cubs’ roster makes that pair of NL teams seem like long shots, to say the least. The White Sox and Twins each have long-term first base options in Jose Abreu and Joe Mauer, though Park could certainly split time at first and DH with either player.
8:22am: The Astros didn’t submit the winning bid for Park, either, tweets Jon Heyman of CBS Sports.
NOV. 9, 7:29am: We’re down to seven possibilities on the mystery team for Park, as ESPN’s Buster Olney (Twitter link) and the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review’s Rob Biertempfel (Twitter link) report that the Pirates have not won the bidding.
There have been reports eliminating all but seven teams from the Park bidding, leaving the Phillies, Brewers, Reds, Cubs, White Sox, Twins and Astros as possibilities. And while the Reds and Cubs are technically possibilities, it’d be surprising to see either NL club post the winning bid on a first baseman, given the stars that each has entrenched at that position. The Rockies haven’t been completely ruled out, though the report below seems to indicate they’re more of a long shot than anything else at this point.
Alan Nero, Park’s agent at Octagon, tells Travis Sawchik of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review that even he does not yet know which club won the bidding, adding that both league offices were closed over the weekend (Twitter link).
NOV. 8, 9:51pm: The winning bid wasn’t posted by the Royals or Braves, Yahoo Sports’ Jeff Passan reports (Twitter links). “It’s safe to assume” the Rays didn’t have the winning bid either, the Tampa Bay Times’ Marc Topkin tweets.
9:10pm: The Athletics and Marlins also didn’t have the top bid, Heyman tweets.
7:24pm: The Mariners and Diamondbacks didn’t place bids on Park, as per tweets from CBS Sports’ Jon Heyman and Zach Buchanan of AZCentral.com. Also, the Giants can be eliminated from contention, according to Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle. The Rockies might also be out, as MLB.com’s Thomas Harding doesn’t “think anything is happening there.”
2:39pm: Italian artist Michelangelo is famously misquoted as saying that he sculpted the historic David statue by chipping away the parts that did not look like David. Perhaps that is how we will whittle down the field of suitors for first baseman Byung-Ho Park until we unravel the mystery team that submitted the winning bid to negotiate with the Korean star. Failing that, we might just have to wait until Monday, when the announcement is formally made.
On Friday, Korea’s Nexen Heroes accepted a $12.85MM bid on the rights to negotiate a big league contract with Park. As of today, we still don’t know which MLB club won the posting process, but one team out there now has a thirty day window with which to hammer out a deal with one of the winter’s most intriguing and mysterious free agents.
The Blue Jays are not the winning team, according to Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com (on Twitter), and the winning bid was not submitted by the Mets, Yankees, Dodgers, or Angels, either (link), The Cardinals, who are looking at various first base options, tendered an unsuccessful bid for the 29-year-old, according to Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. James Wagner of the Washington Post (on Twitter) heard that the Nats did not have interest. Late last week, the Indians, Tigers, Rangers, Orioles, Padres, and Red Sox were also crossed off the list by various reporters.
If Park and his new club do not reach agreement on a contract, Nexen will lose out on the posting fee and the winning team will have to move on to a Plan B at first base. The reported $12.85MM fell shy of the $25MM+ posting amount commanded by lefty Hyun-Jin Ryu, but it easily tops what the Pirates paid Nexen last year (~$5MM) for the rights to reach a deal with infielder Jung-Ho Kang. After the team-to-team transfer was arrived at, Kang and the Bucs agreed to a four-year, $11MM guarantee.
In the recently-released list of MLBTR’s top fifty free agents, Tim Dierkes predicted that Park would command a $10MM posting fee and a five-year, $40MM contract from the winning team. The first part of that was close, but it remains to be seen how negotiations will proceed.
AL Central Notes: Soria, Indians, Cueto, Glass
The Tigers have contacted Joakim Soria‘s agent about a possible return to Detroit, MLB.com’s Jason Beck reports, though they’ll be one of several teams in the mix for his services. The reliever-needy Tigers have a distinct need for a solid bullpen arm, but Aroldis Chapman probably isn’t a fit since Detroit aren’t keen on dealing from their just-rebuild farm system to match the Reds‘ high asking price for the ace closer. Here’s some more from around the AL Central…
- Indians president of baseball operations Chris Antonetti told Jim Bowden and Jim Duquette on MLB Network Radio on SiriusXM (via Twitter) that he will look into trading a starting pitcher in order to improve elsewhere, though it’s not necessarily something that he’d like to do. The Tribe received a lot of interest in their young starters last summer; Carlos Carrasco drew particular attention and Cleveland in fact almost dealt him to the Blue Jays.
- While the Indians may not be able to spend big on free agents, what they can offer is playing time at third, first or in the outfield, ESPN’s Buster Olney writes (Insider-only link). This might be significant in helping the Tribe land a lower-tier free agent veteran; Olney suggests the likes of Juan Uribe, Justin Morneau, Mike Napoli and Will Venable as possible fits.
- Johnny Cueto‘s agent, Bryce Dixon, also Duquette and Bowden (Twitter links) to discuss his client’s free agency. Dixon expressed confidence that teams will see that Cueto his healthy after viewing his medicals, and if Cueto had been hurt, he wouldn’t have been able to deliver such strong results for the Royals in two of his postseason outings.
- Royals owner David Glass deserves credit for standing behind GM Dayton Moore during tough times, Tracy Ringolsby of MLB.com writes. Moore’s tenure is the fourth longest among current general managers behind Brian Sabean of the Giants (now executive VP of baseball operations), Brian Cashman of the Yankees, and Jon Daniels of the Rangers. Those executives, however, enjoyed either quick success or quicker returns on rebuilds than Moore, as the Royals didn’t even post a winning record until Moore’s seventh full season running the team.
- Joe Mauer will be 36 when his current contract expires in three years, but the Twins first baseman tells Charley Walters of the St. Paul Pioneer Press that he hasn’t given any thought about retirement at that time, only that he “probably” wants to play “as long as I can.”
MLBTR’s Zach Links also contributed to this post
Heyman’s Latest: Free Agents, O’Day, Gordon, Hunter
CBS Sports’ Jon Heyman shares his predictions about where this offseason’s top 50 free agents will earn in their next contracts. Be sure to check out MLBTR’s own top 50 free agents list, as Heyman and Tim Dierkes have a few interesting differences over some contract values and where some players are ranked within the top 50. In other news from Heyman, his latest Inside Baseball column recaps several items that he and others have reported over the last few weeks, as well as some fresh hot stove tidbits…
- The Dodgers, Nationals, Red Sox and Tigers are among the many teams who have already shown interest in Darren O’Day. It’s no surprise that quartet has been particularly eager to check in with O’Day given how all four teams are known to be hunting for bullpen upgrades this winter. The Orioles, the righty reliever’s former team, “are trailing at present.”
- The Royals will look to re-sign Alex Gordon but are hoping to do so on a three- or four-year contract. Given how Gordon’s well-rounded game makes him a fit on several teams, he’ll easily top the three-year plateau and even four might be a pipe dream for Kansas City unless the Royals inflate his average annual value. MLBTR’s Tim Dierkes predicts Gordon will land a five-year contract worth $105MM.
- We’ve already heard that the Twins were disappointed by Torii Hunter‘s retirement, and beyond the loss of his clubhouse leadership, Heyman adds that the team will miss him from an on-field standpoint as well. Hunter would’ve been an insurance policy since the Twins aren’t sure if former top prospect Byron Buxton is ready for an everyday job. Buxton’s rookie season was a forgettable one, as he hit .209/.250/.326 over 138 plate appearances and also spent about seven weeks on the DL with a sprained thumb.
AL Central Notes: Tigers, Zobrist, Park, Robinson
Early indications are that the Tigers are more focused on second-tier free agents than the top of the market, sources tell ESPN’s Buster Olney (Twitter link). That would seem to preclude, at least for the time being, notions of a reunion with either David Price or Yoenis Cespedes, even though both could conceivably fit onto the roster. The question for the Tigers, as I noted in my recent Offseason Outlook on Detroit, is whether a top free agent would fit into the club’s long-term payroll capacity. Justin Verlander‘s resurgence has lessened the need to seek a top-flight arm, meaning names like Ian Kennedy, Scott Kazmir, Jeff Samardzija, Wei-Yin Chen and Yovani Gallardo could be more plausible targets for first-year GM Al Avila, who has previously stated a preference to add a pair of starters this winter.
Here’s more from the AL Central as the offseason gets underway…
- Ben Zobrist tells MLB.com’s Jeffrey Flanagan that Alex Gordon should be the Royals‘ top priority this offseason due to Gordon’s status as face of the franchise, but adds that he would love to return to Kansas City (Twitter link). Kansas City picked up Zobrist from the A’s in exchange for lefty Sean Manaea and right-hander Aaron Brooks prior to the non-waiver trade deadline. Zobrist, like Gordon, figures to be one of the more in-demand free agents this winter due to his versatility and track record of above-average offense. Gordon declined his player option with the Royals earlier tonight.
- The Twins have interest in a reunion with fleet-footed center fielder Shane Robinson, a source tells Mike Berardino of the St. Paul Pioneer Press. Robinson recently elected free agency after being outrighted by the Twins, who presumably would like to bring him back on a minor league pact. The 31-year-old somewhat improbably cracked Minnesota’s Opening Day roster in 2015 and spent the entire season serving as a fourth outfielder, late-inning defensive replacement and pinch-runner. The former Cardinal hit .250/.299/.322 in 197 plate appearances and graded out quite well by measure of Defensive Runs Saved and Ultimate Zone Rating (+3 and +2.7, respectively, in just 458 innings).
- Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN tweets that the Twins have scouted Korean first baseman Byung-ho Park extensively, with one club official calling him a “good run producer.” It’s somewhat difficult to see where Park would fit into Minnesota’s crowded corner scene, where Trevor Plouffe, Joe Mauer and Miguel Sano are all likely to rotate throughout third base, first base and DH (though Mauer wouldn’t see time at third). Park was posted earlier this week after hitting 105 homers over the past two seasons in KBO. Bids on the 29-year-old are due Friday.
Tigers Decline Nathan’s Option, Add Cessa To 40-Man Roster
The Tigers announced on Tuesday that they’ve declined their $10MM option on right-hander Joe Nathan and added pitching prospect Luis Cessa to the 40-man roster. Nathan, who underwent Tommy John earlier this year, will receive a $1MM buyout. Nathan said back in April that he planned to undergo the lengthy rehabilitation process that came with the surgery with the goal of again pitching in the Major Leagues.
Nathan was a high-profile signing by now-former Tigers GM Dave Dombrowski prior to the 2014 season. Detroit signed the longtime Twins closer to a two-year, $20MM contract in spite of his advanced age, but Nathan was unable to replicate the All-Star form that he showed with the Twins or with the Rangers. Nathan posted a 4.81 ERA in his age-39 season in 2014 and pitched just one-third of an inning in 2015 before going down with a torn tendon and ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow. The 40-year-old seems like a candidate for a minor league deal this winter, but he could conceivably wait to sign until midseason, when he’s further along in his rehab, in hopes of securing a big league deal.
As for Cessa, the 23-year-old was one of two right-handed pitching prospects acquired from the Mets in exchange for Yoenis Cespedes. (Michael Fulmer was the other.) Cessa would’ve been Rule 5 eligible this winter and needed to be added to the 40-man roster in order to be protected, so it was only a matter of time as to when his contract was selected by the Tigers. Cessa split his age-23 season between the Double-A and Triple-A levels, logging a 4.52 ERA with 7.7 K/9 against 2.3 BB/9 in 139 1/3 innings. He currently ranks sixth among Tigers farmhands, per MLB.com.
Daniel Norris Has Successful Surgery For Thyroid Cancer
OCTOBER 29: Norris has announced on Instagram that his surgery was successful and that he is considered cancer-free. That’s obviously outstanding news. Hopefully, the surgery has not only secured Norris’s long-term health, but also will allow him to resume his promising career in short order.
OCTOBER 19: Tigers lefty Daniel Norris announced today on Instagram that he has been diagnosed with cancer in his thyroid. He will undergo surgery soon to remove the malignant growth.
Needless to say, the news is shocking, particularly given that Norris is just 22 years of age. On the bright side, of course, many of the factors that made him a top pitching prospect — youth, physical strength, and mental toughness — will serve him well as he battles this new foe.
Also providing hope for a good prognosis is the fact that Norris played out the season despite receiving the diagnosis several months back. He indicates in his announcement that he got the news prior to his trade from the Blue Jays to the Tigers, but was advised that it was safe to hold off on having the procedure. Remarkably, Norris performed quite well in a late-season run of eight starts with Detroit.
MLBTR extends its very best wishes to Daniel, who was kind enough to join the MLBTR Podcast back in early August. Already an inspirational figure for his approach to life, he’ll no doubt continue to set an example as he tackles cancer.
AL Central Notes: Tigers, Castellanos, Hunter, Indians
The Tigers announced that they have hired Rich Dubee as their new pitching coach, as MLB.com’s Jason Beck first reported would be the case. The former Braves pitching coach brings with him 13 years of experience as a Major League pitching coach, most notably serving as the Phillies’ pitching coach when the team won the World Series in 2008. The 58-year-old Dubee, who has spent the past two seasons as Atlanta’s minor league pitching coordinator, will replace pitching coach Jeff Jones, who retired abruptly following the season’s completion.
A few more notes from around the AL Central…
- While many Tigers fans are disappointed with the development (or lack thereof) of Nick Castellanos, MLive.com’s Chris Iott preaches patience and notes that the approximate $550K salary Castellanos will receive next season will keep him in the team’s plans. Iott notes that while he isn’t a good defender at third base, Castellanos did make strides. He’s also still just 23 years of age, and though he may not reach the star-level ceiling to which some thought he might ascend, there’s still hope for further improvement. Iott also points out that with enormous salaries for Miguel Cabrera, Justin Verlander, Victor Martinez and others, Detroit needs to rely somewhat on contributions from pre-arbitration players like Castellanos, Anthony Gose and James McCann, as the team simply cannot afford to stack the roster with significant salaries. Iott writes that it “would be a shock” to see the Tigers pursue an upgrade at third base via trade or free agency.
- The Twins were planning their offseason as if Torii Hunter would return next year, tweets La Velle E. Neal III of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune. Neal adds that some within the organization are “crushed” by his decision to hang it up. Meanwhile, Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN tweets a quote from assistant GM Rob Antony regarding Hunter’s retirement. “We have some people that will be able to handle the leadership part of things,” Antony said in reference to Hunter’s role within the clubhouse. However, Minnesota’s AGM still stressed the impact that Hunter had in that regard this past season.
- The $17.7 billion sale of Cablevision, a company owned by the Dolan family, who also own the Indians, will not impact Cleveland’s payroll, writes Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer. At the time Larry Dolan purchased the Indians, he noted that his brother, Charles (who owns Cablevision), and Cablevision were “not involved” in his purchase of the team. Larry’s son, Paul, now serves as the CEO and offered the following statement on the sale: “Cablevision’s pending sale is entirely separate from us and has no impact on us.” Paul Dolan, however, is looking to sell as much as a 30 percent ownership stake in the Indians, as was reported in late August, though he’s made it clear that the Dolan family will maintain a controlling interest in the Indians. Cleveland typically operates with one of the league’s lowest payrolls and has averaged an Opening Day mark of $84.7MM over the past three seasons.