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Hanser Alberto

From Waiver Fodder To MLB Regular?

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If you’re a hitter who records a wRC+ of 150 during a season, it means you were absolutely tremendous and 50 percent better than the average offensive player. The Diamondbacks’ Ketel Marte finished with exactly that number last season, and as most who follow baseball know, he was a contender for National League Most Valuable Player honors. Shifting to the AL, the Orioles essentially had their own offensive version of Marte, at least against left-handed pitchers. While facing southpaws, little-known infielder Hanser Alberto batted an eyebrow-raising .398/.414/.534 in 227 plate appearances. Only J.D. Martinez (.404) bettered the right-handed Alberto’s average versus lefties, while just 18 batters defeated his 151 wRC+ against them.

Alberto’s ownership of southpaws was a rare bright spot during a 54-win campaign for the Orioles, and no one could have expected it after he was passed around so much during the previous offseason. The Rangers, with whom Alberto appeared in the majors from 2015-16 and again in 2018, designated Alberto for assignment and he left the organization when the Yankees claimed him on waivers in November 2018. He never suited up for the Yankees, though, as they lost him to the Orioles via waivers in January 2019. That was not the end of a busy offseason for Alberto, whom the Giants picked up on waivers in February before the Orioles claimed him yet again in March.

You have to give credit to the 27-year-old Alberto for persevering through a whirlwind of transactions and emerging as one of the O’s most productive players a season ago. The question now is whether Baltimore has a keeper or at least a valuable trade chip in Alberto.

First of all, the fact that Alberto thrashed lefties last year isn’t the only positive. He’s also versatile enough to play multiple infield positions (second and third) and under affordable control via arbitration through 2022. Problem is that it’s hard to envision Alberto sustaining his 2019 production. Prior to then, he was just a .192/.210/.231 hitter with zero home runs in 192 major league plate appearances. That doesn’t mean the light bulb couldn’t have gone on – Alberto was a solid .309/.330/.438 batter over 1,000 Triple-A attempts before last season – but it appears there was a substantial amount of luck lifting him up during his first year in Baltimore.

Alberto concluded last season with an overall line of .305/.329/.422 (96 wRC+) and 12 dingers and 1.9 fWAR in 550 PA. He also led the league in strikeout percentage (9.1) and came in 10th in contact percentage (86.5). Looks like good news, but was it impactful contact? Not really. According to FanGraphs, Alberto ranked dead last among 135 qualified hitters in hard-contact percentage (24.6). Statcast also wasn’t enthralled, ranking Alberto in the bottom 1 percent of the majors in hard-hit rate, average exit velocity and walk percentage. Alberto did place in the game’s 88th percentile in expected batting average (.290), but even that looks as if it will be difficult to maintain. Just about all of his damage came off southpaws (righties held him to an awful 57 wRC+), but he posted a .435 batting average on balls in play against them that you can’t reasonably expect to carry over.

While Alberto’s bottom-line production versus lefties was otherworldly last year, chances are that it won’t continue. But even if it doesn’t, you can’t criticize Baltimore in this case. The team has already gotten far more value from Alberto than it could have realistically anticipated when it added him to its roster.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

East Notes: Phillies, Werth, Harper, Mets, Gimenez, Orioles, Martin

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Jayson Werth was not surprised when his bromantic partner Bryce Harper signed with the Phillies exactly a year ago yesterday, per Jim Salisbury of NBC Sports Philadelphia. After years of traveling together, yukking it up from stadium to stadium, Werth knew Harper’s feelings about the league about as well as could be expected, and given his own positive feelings about his time in Philly (he won a ring there in 2008), Harper taking a shine to his mentor’s former club definitely tracks. Werth impacted both franchises in their most recent championship endeavors, directly for the Phils as he hit .309/.387/.582 during their ’08 run. For the Nats, he provided legitimacy to the franchise at the outset of their current run of competency. The Nationals have posted a winning record in each of the last eight seasons back to 2012, Werth’s second year with the club. That’s enough reminiscing for today. Let’s stay in the NL East and check in on some spring training news…

  • New York Mets prospect Andres Gimenez added a leg kick to his swing this winter in an effort to get more lift, per Deesha Thosar of the New York Daily News. Gimenez will have to push the envelope to make his presence felt at the major league level this season, but he’s breathing down Amed Rosario’s neck. Robinson Cano is owed big money over the next four seasons, but there’s certainly the possibility that one of the Mets’ young shortstops could eventually move to the keystone. Despite some uncertainty regarding Rosario’s performance at the big league level, shortstop is a deep positional field for the Mets organizationally. Gimenez is the Mets’ 2nd-ranked prospect, per Fangraphs, behind only Ronny Mauricio, who trails Gimenez in timeline by roughly the same margin between Gimenez and Rosario. For now, Rosario, 24, will keep the position warm until Gimenez, 21, can take it. That is, until Mauricio, 19 in April, can get to it first. 
  • Jumping to the junior circuit, the Baltimore Orioles expect 2020 to be a development year for Richie Martin – out of the spotlight. With defensive wizard Jose Iglesias in-house to hold down shortstop – until July at least – Martin can make up for lost time in Triple-A. Last year’s Rule-5 selection from the A’s, Martin was pushed into a full season with the big league club last year, and his naïveté showed. Martin put up -0.6 rWAR and a 50 wRC+ in 2019 as their more-or-less everyday shortstop. Still, Martin isn’t giving up the possibility of winning a job at second base or in a utility role, per MASN’s Roch Kubatko. The team lacked middle infield depth last season, but they at least have more players vying for those roles this spring – likely leaving Martin on the outside looking in on opening day. Hanser Alberto has his name on one roster spot, while Andrew Velazquez and Ramon Urias are contenders for utility roles, while Stevie Wilkerson, Pat Valaika, Jose Rondon, and Dilson Herrera are all in camp as non-roster invitees. 

Players Avoiding Arbitration: American League

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Entering the day, there were more than 150 players on the clock to exchange arbitration figures with their respective teams prior to a noon ET deadline. As one would expect, there’ll be an utter landslide of arbitration agreements in advance of that deadline. We already ran through some key facts and reminders on the arbitration process earlier this morning for those who are unfamiliar or simply need a refresher on one of MLB’s most complex idiosyncrasies, which will hopefully clear up many questions readers might have.

We’ll track the majority of the American League’s settlements in this post and split off a separate one for NL settlements as well. Note that all projections referenced come courtesy of MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz:

  • Newly acquired Angels righty Dylan Bundy receives a $5MM salary, per Jon Heyman of MLB Network (Twitter links). He had projected at a $5.7MM price tag. Teammate Hansel Robles gets $3.85MM, per Heyman, just shy of his $4MM projection.
  • The Yankees have worked out deals with all of their eligible players. The team has a hefty $8.5MM pact with Aaron Judge, per MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand (via Twitter). Backstop Gary Sanchez settled for $5MM, per Feinsand (via Twitter). The New York org will pay righty Luis Cessa $895K and Jonathan Holder $750K, Murray reports (Twitter links). Fellow reliever Tommy Kahnle will earn $2.65MM, per Jon Heyman of MLB Network (via Twitter). And star lefty James Paxton has settled at $12.5MM, Heyman adds via Twitter. Chad Green and Jordan Montgomery have also agreed to terms, the former at $1.275MM and the latter at $805K, per Heyman (Twitter links).
  • The Twins announced that they struck deals with Trevor May, Taylor Rogers, Eddie Rosario and Byron Buxton. Jon Heyman of MLB Network followed up with salary terms (all links to Twitter). May earns $2,205,000; Rogers takes home $4.45MM; Rosario lands at $7.75MM; and Buxton receives $3.075MM. While the first and last of those land rather close to the projected amount, Rogers got $550K more and Rosario got $1.15MM less than the calculators predicted.
  • Shortstop Carlos Correa settled with the Astros for $8MM, per MLB.com’s Brian McTaggart (via Twitter). Righty Brad Peacock lands at a $3.9MM salary, per Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle (Twitter link). The former went for more than his $7.4MM projection, while the latter ended up shy of the $4.6MM mark produced by the computers. The ’Stros also have agreed with closer Roberto Osuna as well, per an announcement. It’s a $10MM deal, slotting in just $200K shy of his projection, per Rome (via Twitter).
  • The Orioles have a deal with outfielder/first baseman Trey Mancini, Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com tweets. It’s for $4.75MM, per Dan Connolly of The Athletic (via Twitter), well south of the $5.7MM projection.
  • Outfielder Jorge Soler has agreed to a $7.3MM deal with the Royals, MLB.com’s Jeffrey Flanagan tweets. That’s well off of the $11.2MM that MLBTR’s model projected, though it is likely that the cause of the gulf lies in the interpretation of the correct baseline to start from in building Soler’s salary. He’s in the 4+ service class but had been playing on the original deal he signed out of Cuba.
  • The Tigers have a deal in place with southpaw Matthew Boyd, per Anthony Fenech of the Detroit Free Press (via Twitter). It’ll pay him $5.3MM, per Chris McCosky of the Detroit News (Twitter link). That falls comfortably below the $6.4MM, suggesting that Boyd’s camp was concerned with the way his suboptimal ERA would play in the arb process. Fellow lefty starter Daniel Norris will earn $2.96MM, McCosky tweets.

Earlier Settlements

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AL Notes: Rays, O’s, Alberto, Tigers, Hardy

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Let’s kick off the week with updates on a trio of American League clubs…

  • The wild card-contending Rays haven’t set specific timetables for the returns of injured starters Tyler Glasnow, Blake Snell and Yonny Chirinos, but the three figure to come back in that order, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times writes. Glasnow, who has been out since early May with a forearm injury and will finish 2019 as a reliever, could rejoin the team in the second week of September, per Topkin. Meanwhile, Snell is “probably 10 days behind [Glasnow] at least,” according to manager Kevin Cash. Snell, the reigning AL Cy Young winner, underwent arthroscopic surgery on his left elbow a month ago. Chirinos has been down for three weeks with an inflamed right middle finger – an injury that has thrown a wrench into a solid season for the 25-year-old.
  • Utilityman Hanser Alberto was waiver fodder last offseason, switching teams on multiple occasions before finally settling in with the Orioles for good in March. Since then, the 26-year-old has enjoyed what has easily been a career season. He’s slashing .314/.337/.440 with 10 home runs in 432 plate appearances, and the right-hander been downright dominant against lefties – whom he has victimized for a .402/.422/.540 line over 180 PA. A .446 batting average on balls in play has buoyed Alberto’s numbers versus southpaws, though, and Statcast isn’t really buying into his above-average production. Nevertheless, he’ll garner trade interest in the offseason, Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com hears. It’s up in the air whether the O’s will strongly consider moving Alberto, who has played second and third with regularity this year and will enter arbitration for the first time in the offseason.
  • Tigers lefty Blaine Hardy’s season came to an end two weeks ago when he underwent a platelet-rich plasma injection in his elbow. Looking ahead to the offseason, Hardy realizes his Tigers tenure could conclude next. “You know and I know I might not be in Lakeland next year,” the 32-year-old told Chris McCosky of the Detroit News, referring to the team’s spring training home in Florida. Hardy has been a fairly successful reliever in Detroit since he debuted in 2014, but after elbow issues helped limit him to a 4.47 ERA/5.72 FIP with 5.89 K/9 and 2.64 BB/9 in 44 1/3 innings this year, it’s possible the Tigers will non-tender the soon-to-be out-of-options hurler as he readies for his second trip to arbitration. Regardless, Hardy’s glad he decided to call it a year instead of trying to gut out his elbow problems through the season. The Tigers were on the verge of demoting Hardy to Triple-A Toledo before his PRP injection, leading him to tell McCosky: “I had so many people in my corner say it would’ve been career suicide if I decided to go down to Triple-A and keep pitching through this. If something happened, and they found the tear at Triple-A, it would have been hard to retro it back to a big-league deal.”

AL Notes: Rangers, Montero, Kiermaier, Alberto, White Sox

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Amidst a pitching staff that has continually shuffled through under-the-radar options, the Rangers have been impressed by Rafael Montero, writes T.R. Sullivan of MLB.com. A reclamation project who didn’t pitch in 2018 thanks to Tommy John srugery, Montero made a name for himself as a promising prospect in the Mets’ farm system. However, the New York organization relinquished the righty when he opted for free agency in lieu of an outright assignment. After cutting his teeth as a starting pitcher for years, the 28-year-old has transitioned to a bullpen role in Texas, where he has excelled for a team that has constructed a bullpen out of dozens of cast-offs and scrap parts. Appearing in 10 games since coming up in late July, Montero has compiled a 1.08 ERA while striking out 19 batters in 16 2/3 innings of work. He, along with the likes of Emmanuel Clase and Jonathan Hernandez, has been a second-half revelation for a team that employs an increasingly youthful bullpen after dealing Chris Martin and losing Jesse Chavez to injury. Factor in Jose Leclerc, and the Rangers may indeed have discovered some foundational bullpen pieces.

Here are all the latest updates from around the American League…

  • Rays outfielder Kevin Kiermaier exited Sunday’s game prematurely after crashing into the outfield wall while attempting to catch a DJ Stewart fly ball. After the game, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times offered an encouraging update on the defensive virtuoso, Tweeting that X-rays indicated no broken bones, and that Kiermaier sustained a left ribcage contusion in the collision. It seems to be a minor injury for the Rays and their center fielder, who expects to be back in the lineup after an off day tomorrow. For the time being, it appears that Kiermaier has avoided a stint on the injured list, which would have been his second this season after a thumb sprain in July.
  • In the same game, the Orioles’ Hanser Alberto sustained a knee to the head while attempting to take second base on a ball in the dirt. Manager Brandon Hyde did deliver some promising news, telling reporters (including Joe Trezza of MLB.com) that there was no evidence that the Orioles’ leading hitter suffered a concussion. Rather, it looks to be a head contusion and a cervical neck strain for Alberto. While it looks that the worst-case scenario has been avoided, it’s yet unclear what the diagnosis means for Alberto, with a recovery timeline unknown.
  • More injury news coming from Chicago, where White Sox utilityman Leury Garcia also underwent X-rays after leaving today’s game following a hit by pitch. He was struck in the lower left leg while trying to bunt against the Rangers’ Emmanuel Clase. After the game, Scott Merkin of MLB.com reported that X-rays came back negative and that Garcia’s injuries did not extend beyond a left shin contusion. He’ll be day-to-day for the South Siders, who will have an off day tomorrow before hosting the Twins for a three-game set.

Hanser Alberto: Trade Piece?

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Infielder Hanser Alberto had an extreme amount of difficulty sticking with one organization last offseason. The Yankees claimed Alberto off waivers from the Rangers on Nov. 2, only to designate him for assignment Jan. 11. The Orioles claimed Alberto that same day but designated him Feb 19. The Giants claimed Alberto on Feb. 22 and then designated him March 1, at which point the Orioles scooped him back up.

Thankfully for Alberto, the O’s haven’t subjected him to the waiver process again since they reclaimed him. Rather, rebuilding Baltimore has seen Alberto turn into a useful part of its roster since earning a season-opening spot on it. That doesn’t mean Alberto is there to stay, though. On the contrary, the 26-year-old may now be a trade chip for the club with the July 31 deadline approaching, Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com observes.

The Orioles’ version of Alberto has been substantially more productive than the player the Rangers got in parts of three seasons from 2015-18. During that stretch of 192 plate appearances, Alberto mustered an unfathomably awful wRC+ (9), batted .192/.210/.231 and failed to hit a home run. This year, though, Alberto has been 10 times the offensive player by wRC+ (91), having slashed .306/.325/.402 with five homers across 304 PA.

Although much improved, Alberto’s 2019 numbers still aren’t all that exciting – especially taking his .311 weighted on-base average/.292 xwOBA and meek 83 mph average exit velocity into account. On the other hand, the righty has terrorized southpaw pitchers, whom he has teed off on for a .397/.407/.512 line (144 wRC+) in 121 trips to the plate. The problem is that those numbers are rather unlikely to hold. After all, Alberto has benefited from a .438 batting average on balls in play versus LHPs, and has drawn just one walk against them.

Along with his serviceable bottom-line production at the plate, Alberto has provided the Orioles a credible defender at second and third base. Alberto has essentially been a scratch fielder at each of those spots in 50 and 36 appearances, respectively, per Defensive Runs Saved and Ultimate Zone Rating. And for what it’s worth, he’s a well-liked, high-energy clubhouse presence, according to Kubatko.

The Orioles value Alberto’s on- and off-field contributions, and as someone who won’t reach arbitration for the first time until the offseason, they don’t have to trade him. But “Alberto’s value may never reach this level again,” Kubatko writes, which could persuade the club to deal him for something almost five months after getting him for nothing.

AL East Notes: Pearce, Smoak, Orioles

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It was on this day in 1925 that the legendary Lou Gehrig replaced Wally Pipp in the Yankees’ lineup, beginning Gehrig’s then-record streak of 2130 consecutive games played.  While both Pipp and the Yankees themselves were slumping at the time, Gehrig’s insertion into the lineup wasn’t only meant as a way to give a promising youngster some at-bats.  Pipp was given a day off due to a headache, which according to some reports was suffered after being hit in the head with a pitch from a teammate during batting practice.  Since that fateful day, Pipp’s name has become synonymous with being replaced — whenever a player goes on a hot streak replacing an injured teammate, you can count on an announcer mentioning that the injured player might “be Wally Pipp’ed” out of a job.  This unusual legacy has overshadowed a very solid career from Pipp, who hit .281/.341/.408 over 7838 plate appearances with the Yankees, Reds, and Tigers from 1913-28, including serving as the starting first baseman on the Yankees’ first World Series championship team, in 1923.

The latest from around the AL East…

  • The Red Sox re-signed Steve Pearce on a one-year, $6.25MM contract last November in the wake of Pearce’s epic performance as the World Series MVP.  The deal looked like a solid move at the time, though as the Boston Globe’s Peter Abraham notes, now looks like a misstep given Pearce’s rough 2019 season.  Pearce has slashed just .180/.245/.258 over 99 plate appearances, and is currently on the IL with back spasms.  Considering that many comparable first base/DH types of free agents signed for considerably less than Pearce’s $6.5MM guarantee last offseason, the contract now looks like an overpay in hindsight.  A few million dollars normally wouldn’t be a big issue for a wealthy team like the Red Sox, though with the Sox wanting to stay under the $246MM maximum penalty luxury tax threshold, Abraham notes that signing Pearce to a smaller deal (or letting him go altogether) would have freed up more money for Boston to pursue some needed bullpen help, either in the offseason or at the deadline.
  • Could Justin Smoak go from trade candidate to extension candidate?  As Ken Rosenthal opines in his latest FOX Sports video update, the Blue Jays’ efforts to deal Smoak at the deadline could be hampered by the fact that teams have been increasingly hesitant to give much up for veteran first base/DH players.  Smoak’s age (32) and status as a rental player could also work against the Jays in netting any significant return for the first baseman.  With this in mind, Rosenthal suggests that Toronto could explore retaining Smoak as a veteran leader to help the club through its rebuild, perhaps on a one- or two-year extension to split first base and DH duties with Rowdy Tellez.  Vladimir Guerrero Jr.’s ability to stick at third base will factor into such a decision, of course, and I’d also add that the Blue Jays might not want to return to a fairly inflexible first base/DH situation so soon after parting ways with Kendrys Morales.
  • While the Orioles have suffered from disastrous pitching, their everyday lineup has featured some unexpected bright spots, the Baltimore Sun’s Peter Schmuck writes.  Names like Renato Nunez, Dwight Smith Jr., Pedro Severino, and Hanser Alberto were all acquired in unheralded fashion over the last year, yet all four have delivered decent to above-average production at the plate.  Some of this could stem from a simple increase in playing time, as all four players are getting the chance at regular at-bats for the first time.  Severino, whose .268/.351/.474 slash line through 112 PA dwarfs his previous output as a member of the Nationals, noted that “My job over there [in Washington] was to have the mentality to win the game and call a good game and not think about my offense….It was tough to play once a week and take one at-bat in the ninth inning against a good closer. That’s really tough.”  It remains to be seen if any of this quartet will develop into long-term pieces for the rebuilding Orioles, though if nothing else, the O’s could have some extra trade chips to consider for the July 31st deadline.

Orioles Claim Hanser Alberto, Designate Donnie Hart

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The Orioles have claimed infielder Hanser Alberto off waivers from the Giants, per a club announcement. Southpaw Donnie Hart was designated for assignment to clear roster space.

If you’re keeping score at home, this is now the fourth time Alberto has been designated and claimed this winter — and the second time by the O’s. The Baltimore org had recently dropped him from the 40-man in order to claim lefty Josh Osich from the Giants, who in turn claimed (and have now waived and lost) Alberto.

In retrospect, perhaps it’d have all been easier had the O’s dropped Hart in the first place. Perhaps the team’s evaluation of the 28-year-old — and/or its non-Alberto infield assets — has changed in the meantime.

Hart has appeared in each of the past three MLB campaigns, working to a 3.43 ERA in 81 1/3 innings with 6.0 K/9 and 3.4 BB/9 along with a 52.6% groundball rate. He was knocked around in his twenty appearances in the majors last year, though he did manage 41 frames of 2.41 ERA ball at Triple-A.

Giants Claim Hanser Alberto, Designate Jake Barrett For Assignment

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Infielder Hanser Alberto is on the move once again, as the Orioles announced Friday that he’s been claimed off waivers by the Giants. In a corresponding move, the Giants announced that they’ve designated right-hander Jake Barrett for assignment.

San Francisco will be the fourth organization for Alberto this offseason, as the versatile 26-year-old has gone from the Rangers to the Yankees to the Orioles via the waiver circuit. Baltimore designated him for assignment earlier this week upon claiming lefty Josh Osich off waivers from the Giants. In some respects, the pair of move effectively amounts to a trade of the two assets.

Alberto, who has experience at second base, shortstop and third base, is a .309/.330/.438 hitter in 1000 Triple-A plate appearances. He’s never managed to carry that production over to the MLB level, however, as evidenced by a meek .192/.210/.231 slash through 192 MLB plate appearances (all coming with the Rangers).

Barrett was only acquired by the Giants earlier this month. New president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi has already shown early in his tenure that he’ll carry some of the trends that have been characteristic of the Dodgers over to his new club. Namely, he’s been unafraid to continually shuffle players in and out of the final spot on the Giants’ 40-man roster, regularly claiming players who’ve been designated for assignment only to try to pass them through waivers once again. In the case of outfielder John Andreoli, that worked out nicely, and San Francisco will seemingly hope that a similar situation plays out with Barrett.

The 27-year-old Barrett has a career 4.05 ERA with 8.5 K/9, 4.3 BB/9, 1.35 HR/9 and a 44.2 percent ground-ball rate in 93 1/3 MLB innings — all coming with the Diamondbacks. He’s struggled since turning in an strong rookie season back in 2016, but he did average better than 11 strikeouts per nine innings pitched over 53 1/3 frames in Triple-A last year.

Orioles Claim Josh Osich, Designate Hanser Alberto

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The Orioles have claimed lefty Josh Osich off waivers from the Giants, per a club announcement. To open a roster spot, they designated infielder Hanser Alberto for assignment.

Osich gives the O’s yet another lefty relief option. The 30-year-old will try to show that he can tap into his apparent upside. Osich has a big fastball and draws loads of grounders, but has struggled with control and carries a 5.01 ERA in 120 1/3 MLB innings.

As for Alberto, 26, he’ll either land back with the O’s as a non-roster player or move once again through the DFA process. He has turned in solid offensive numbers at the Triple-A level but hasn’t yet carried that over to the majors in limited opportunities.

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