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Hector Noesi

NPB/KBO Signings: Moya, Noesi, Bernadina, Paredes

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The free-agent market in Major League Baseball may be crawling along at an all-time slow pace, but there are plenty of recognizable former big league names landing contracts overseas. Here’s the latest group of names signing (or re-signing, in some cases) contracts in Nippon Professional Baseball and in the Korea Baseball Organization…

  • Former Tigers outfielder Steven Moya is headed to Japan on a one-year deal with the Chunichi Dragons, as Emily Waldon of The Athletic and 2080ball.com (Twitter link). The Jackson Management Group client was long considered one of the Tigers’ more promising farmhands but struggled in multiple big league auditions from 2014-16, hitting .250/.293/.452 in 133 plate appearances. The 26-year-old Moya struggled in Double-A and Triple-A this season but hit .284/.310/.501 in Triple-A as recently as 2016.
  • The KBO champion Kia Tigers announced that they’ve re-signed right-hander Hector Noesi, outfielder Roger Bernadina and left-hander Pat Dean to 2018 contracts (link via Jee-ho Yoo of the Yonhap News Agency). Noesi will earn $2MM with the Tigers next year, while Bernadina will earn $1.1MM and Dean will take home $925K. Noesi, 30, struggled through nearly 400 MLB innings from 2011-15 but has carved out a niche for himself as a high-quality starter in Korea, where he’s posted consecutive 200-inning seasons with a 3.44 ERA and a better than 3-to-1 K/BB ratio. Bernadina, who spent parts of six seasons with the Nationals, belted 27 homers with a .913 OPS last year in the KBO. Dean, a former Twins third-round pick who pitched 67 innings for Minnesota in 2016, pitched to a 4.14 ERA with 7.3 K/9 against 2.0 BB/9 in 176 innings out of the Tigers’ rotation in 2017.
  • Former MLB infielder Jimmy Paredes has a deal with the KBO’s Doosan Bears (also per Yoo). The 29-year-old will take home an $800K bonus in his first KBO season. Paredes hit .251/.286/.369 in parts of six big league seasons between the Astros, Orioles, Royals, Phillies and Blue Jays from 2011-16 before latching on with the Chiba Lotte Marines of Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball last season. Paredes struggled in his first run through NPB, but he’ll hope to more closely replicate his lifetime .301/.338/.461 Triple-A batting line in his first season with the Bears in 2018.

Rogers, Noesi, Spruill, Coello Sign With KBO Teams

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Former Major League right-handers Hector Noesi, Esmil Rogers, Zeke Spruill and Robert Coello have signed contracts to play in the Korea Baseball Organization. The Hanwha Eagles have signed Rogers to a one-year, $1.9MM contract, making him the highest-paid foreign player in the league, the club announced (report from Jeeho Yoo of the Yonhap News Agency). Noesi, meanwhile, will become the league’s second-highest-paid international player, landing a $1.7MM guarantee on his one-year deal with the Kia Tigers (Yonhap link). Kia also inked former Diamondbacks righty Zeke Spruill, who will receive a $700K salary. And, right-hander Robert Coello has signed with the Nexen Heroes for $550K on a one-year deal (Yonhap story).

Rogers, 30, was released by the Yankees at the trade deadline this year and latched on to play with the Eagles in KBO. Rogers was outstanding in 10 starts with the Eagles, tossing four complete games (three shutouts) as he worked to a 2.97 ERA with 7.1 K/9 against 2.4 BB/9 in 75 2/3 innings in what is a notoriously hitter-friendly league. His salary is technically $1.7MM, though he also receives a $200K signing bonus, per the above report.

Noesi, 28, will be getting his first taste of Korean ball with this contract. While he struggled to a 6.89 ERA in 33 2/3 innings with the White Sox this past season and eventually yielded his rotation spot to impressive rookie Carlos Rodon, Noesi logged 166 innings of 4.39 ERA ball for the ChiSox a year prior and comes with a strong minor league track record.

The 26-year-old Spruill was long one of the Braves’ most highly ranked farmhands but found himself traded to the D-backs in the original Justin Upton trade. After appearing in the Majors with Arizona in 2013-14, Spruill spent this past season with the Red Sox’ Triple-A affiliate in Pawtucket, where he recorded a 3.94 ERA with 5.3 K/9 and 2.7 BB/9 across 114 1/3 innings. The former second-round pick will also be playing overseas for the first time.

Coello, 31, has appeared in parts of three seasons in the Majors, most recently in 2013 with the Angels. He’s struggled to a 5.90 ERA in an admittedly tiny sample of 29 innings but has a career 3.78 ERA while averaging better than a strikeout per inning in parts of seven Triple-A seasons. He split the past season between the Triple-A clubs of the Rangers and Giants.

Hector Noesi Likely To Sign With Korean Team

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Righty Hector Noesi appears likely to sign with the KIA Tigers in Korea, SB Nation’s Chris Cotillo tweets. The 28-year-old Noesi is an ACES client.

Noesi posted a 6.89 ERA, 6.1 K/9 and 4.7 BB/9 in 32 2/3 innings with the White Sox in 2015 before being outrighted, after which he had more success with Triple-A Charlotte. In 2014, though, he was a regular in the White Sox’ rotation, pitching 166 innings with a 4.77 ERA. In addition to the White Sox, Noesi has pitched with the Yankees, Mariners and Rangers in his five-year big-league career, posting a 5.30 ERA, 6.4 K/9 and 3.3 BB/9 in 395 1/3 innings. As a fly ball pitcher, he gives up more than his fair share of homers, thus far preventing him from being more than a passable fifth starter in the big leagues.

Elected Free Agency: Gee, Thayer, Gillaspie, Pestano

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Several players with significant big league service time have elected free agency since the conclusion of the regular season. Per baseball’s collective bargaining agreement, players with more than three years of Major League service time that have been outrighted off a 40-man roster have the right to elect free agency at season’s end.

This list — not to be confused with our full list of 2015-16 free agents (which has been updated to include these names) — represents some of the players that would’ve been arbitration eligible following the season and were regular or fairly regular contributors recently but now find themselves on the open market after being outrighted…

  • Dillon Gee: The right-hander opened the season in the Mets’ rotation, and the possibility of trading him loomed large in Spring Training and early in the regular season. Instead, Gee was designated for assignment after eight appearances (seven starts) and a 5.90 ERA this season. Of course, Gee’s FIP and xFIP marks were mostly in line with his career numbers, and he was plagued by factors like a .355 BABIP and a fluky 63 percent strand rate. Gee would eventually clear waivers and be outrighted, due in large part to his $5.3MM salary. His struggles continued, to some extent, in Triple-A, where he logged a 4.58 ERA in 88 1/3 innings, though that performance comes with the caveat that the Pacific Coast League is an incredibly hitter-friendly environment. Gee has less than five years of Major League service, so any team signing him this winter could control him for two seasons. He’s a nice bounceback candidate for a team in need of help at the back of its rotation.
  • Dale Thayer: The elder statesman of the players listed here, the 34-year-old Thayer was designated and outrighted earlier this season when the Padres signed Bud Norris. Thayer worked to a reasonable 4.06 ERA in 37 2/3 innings this season, but his 6.0 K/9 and 3.6 BB/9 rates were significant departures from his previous seasons, perhaps a portent for less desirable results. However, Thayer was an effective member of the San Diego ’pen from 2012-14, notching a 3.02 ERA, 8.3 K/9 and 2.4 BB/9 with eight saves — he briefly served as closer whilst Huston Street was injured in 2012 — across 188 innings. Thayer, too, has four-plus years of service and would be controllable for two seasons upon signing.
  • Conor Gillaspie: The White Sox’ regular third baseman from 2013 through the first half of 2015, Gillaspie looked the part of at least a serviceable platoon option at the hot corner until a dismal start to the most recent season. Designated for assignment by the Sox then acquired by the Angels, Gillaspie would again be designated in Anaheim and eventually outrighted. He hit just .228/.269/.359 this season between the two clubs, but he managed a solid, if unspectacular .265/.322/.404 line from 2013-14 in Chicago. Those numbers are almost identical to his lifetime .266/.325/.410 line versus right-handed pitching, suggesting that the 28-year-old can help a big league roster in a platoon capacity. At 28 years old, he has three-plus years of service and would be controllable for three seasons.
  • Vinnie Pestano: The Angels designated and outrighted the former Cleveland setup ace struggled through 11 2/3 innings in the Majors this year. Pestano, who lost his grip on regular setup work in 2014, posted a 5.40 ERA with 13 strikeouts but eight walks (two intentional) in the Majors this season. However, he was a dominant setup man in Cleveland from 2011-12 and has posted serviceable big league numbers and strong Triple-A marks since. With a lifetime 1.97 ERA, 11.1 K/9 and 2.8 BB/9 in his Triple-A career, a reasonable amount of big league success and two years of team control remaining, Pestano could be a nice buy-low candidate for teams seeking low-cost bullpen help
  • Hector Noesi: Last season, Noesi stepped into the White Sox rotation and soaked up 166 innings with a 4.39 ERA. The 2015 campaign didn’t go as smoothly, however, as his 6.89 ERA in 32 2/3 innings ultimately served as reason for a DFA and an outright assignment. Noesi will turn 29 in January and has three years of team control remaining for any team that feels it can get him back to the fourth/fifth starter he looked like for much of the 2014 season.

Full lists of players that have declared free agency following a 2015 outright assignment can be seen on the transactions pages for the Triple-A Pacific Coast League and International League.

Minor Moves: Noesi, Dykstra, Velez, De La Rosa

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We’ll track the day’s minor moves in this post:

  • White Sox righty Hector Noesi has accepted an outright assignment with the club, Dan Hayes of CSNChicago.com reports on Twitter. The 28-year-old was designated for assignment recently after posting a 6.89 ERA over 32 2/3 frames to start the year. Working both as a starter and from the pen, Noesi has struck out 6.1 and walked 4.7 batters per nine on the season. He has permitted 5.30 earned runs per nine in his 395 1/3 career MLB innings.
  • The Rays have released first baseman Allan Dykstra and utilityman Eugenio Velez, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times tweets. Dykstra, 28, saw his first big league action this year, but has spent most of his time in recent seasons in the upper minors. Though he carries a strong .261/.411/.457 line in his 606 total plate appearances at Triple-A, with similar numbers over exactly twice as many career turns at bat at Double-A, Dykstra has scuffled to a .705 OPS this year at Durham. The 33-year-old Velez has not seen big league action since 2011. He has generally hit well at Triple-A in the years since, but slipped to a .272/.336/.371 slash in 236 plate appearances this season at that level.
  • Orioles righty Dane De La Rosa has retired, David Hall of the Virginia Pilot reports on Twitter. The big, 32-year-old reliever had worked to a 4.35 ERA in 10 1/3 innings at Triple-A Norfolk, striking out 6.1 but walking 7.0 batters per nine innings. De La Rosa had seen big league time in each of the last four years, and was quite a productive pen option for the Angels in 2013, when he delivered 72 1/3 innings of 2.86 ERA ball. But he’s struggled badly with command since that time while dealing with shoulder, forearm, and knee issues.

White Sox Designate Hector Noesi For Assignment

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The White Sox announced today that they have designated right-hander Hector Noesi for assignment and recalled fellow righty Scott Carroll from Triple-A Charlotte to fill his spot on the roster (Twitter link).

The 28-year-old Noesi soaked up 166 innings in the White Sox rotation in 2014 after Chicago claimed him off waivers from the Rangers, but he’s struggled greatly this season. In 32 2/3 innings, Noesi has produced a 6.89 ERA with 22 strikeouts against 16 walks. His spot in the rotation has been taken over by Carlos Rodon, the No. 3 overall pick from the 2014 draft.

Carroll, 30, has been up and down with the White Sox over the past two seasons, totaling 129 1/3 innings last season and 17 2/3 innings this year. His 2015 efforts at the Major League level have yielded a 3.12 ERA, although he’s fanned just seven hitters against seven walks in that time. Carroll has notched a 2.37 ERA with 5.3 K/9 against 3.3 BB/9 in 30 1/3 innings at the Triple-A level this season and could serve as swingman in the Chicago bullpen.

Players Avoiding Arbitration: Thursday

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As we approach tomorrow’s deadline for exchanging filing numbers, the volume of arb deals will increase. All arb agreements can be monitored using MLBTR’s 2015 Arbitration Tracker, but here are today’s smaller agreements, with all projections referring to those of MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz:

  • The Indians have avoided arbitration with third baseman Lonnie Chisenhall and agreed to a one-year, $2.25MM deal, CBS Sports’ Jon Heyman reports (Twitter link).  It’s a slight bump over Chisenhall’s projected $2.2MM salary.  Chisenhall hit .280/.343/.427 with 13 homers in 533 PA with the Tribe last season.
  • The Indians and left-hander Marc Rzepczynski have agreed to a one-year, $2.4MM contract to avoid arbitration, according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports (Twitter link).  Rzepczynski surpassed his projected salary with the contract, as he was pegged to earn $1.9MM next season.  The southpaw posted a 2.74 ERA, 2.42 K/BB rate and an even 46 strikeouts over 46 innings out of Cleveland’s bullpen last season.
  • The Nationals and catcher Jose Lobaton will avoid arbitration after agreeing to a deal, CSN Washington’s Mark Zuckerman reports.  Lobaton will earn $1.2MM, FOX Sports’ Jon Paul Morosi tweets, which exactly matches his projected 2015 salary.  Lobaton hit .234/.287/.304 over 230 PA in backup duty for the Nats last season.
  • The Athletics and outfielder Craig Gentry agreed to a one-year, $1.6MM deal to avoid arbitration, FOX Sports’ Jon Paul Morosi tweets.  Gentry was projected to earn $1.5MM.  After posting a .759 OPS over 556 PA in 2012-13, Gentry took a step back at the plate last season, slashing just .254/.319/.289 over 258 plate appearances but still providing tremendous defense (a +16 UZR/150).
  • The Nationals have avoided arbitration with second baseman Danny Espinosa, agreeing to a one-year, $1.8MM contract, James Wagner of the Washington Post reports.  This deal falls below Espinosa’s projected $2.3MM contract, though Espinosa hit .219/.283/.351 in 364 plate appearances for the Nats last season and managed only a .465 OPS in 167 PA in 2013.
  • The Indians agreed to a one-year, $2.337MM deal with right-hander Carlos Carrasco, according to Jon Heyman of CBS Sports (via Twitter).  This figure is a significant increase over the $1.4MM contract that was projected for Carrasco in his first arb-eligible year.  The righty enjoyed a breakout 2014 season, posting a 2.55 ERA, 9.4 K/9 and 4.83 K/BB rate over 134 innings with the Tribe.  Carrasco pitched mostly out of the bullpen but also delivered several quality starts down the stretch.
  • The Dodgers and outfielder Chris Heisey agreed to a one-year deal worth $2.16MM to avoid arbitration, CBS Sports’ Jon Heyman tweets.  This is slightly less than the $2.2MM Heisey was projected to earn.  Heisey is coming off a .222/.265/.378 slash line over 299 PA with the Reds last season and was dealt to L.A. last month.
  • The Angels inked catcher Drew Butera to a one-year, $987.5K deal to avoid arbitration, Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register reports.  Butera was projected to earn $900K next season.  The catcher posted a .555 OPS in 192 PA with the Dodgers last season and was dealt to the Halos last month.
  • The Nationals agreed to a one-year, $2.25MM contract with Craig Stammen, avoiding arbitration with the right-hander, CBS Sports’ Jon Heyman reports (via Twitter).  This figure slightly tops Stammen’s projected $2.1MM contract.  Stammen posted a 3.84 ERA, 6.9 K/9 and a 4.00 K/BB rate over 72 2/3 innings out of Washington’s bullpen last season.
  • The Cardinals agreed to a one-year, $1.65MM deal with outfielder Peter Bourjos to avoid arbitration, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.  Bourjos was projected to earn $1.6MM.  Bourjos displayed his usual top-shelf defense with the Cards last season but only hit .231/.294/.348 over 294 PA.

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White Sox Claim Hector Noesi

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The White Sox have claimed right-hander Hector Noesi off waivers from the Rangers, Texas executive VP of communications John Blake tweets.  Noesi was designated for assignment by the Rangers earlier this week.

This is Noesi’s third team is two weeks, as Texas just acquired him from Seattle on April 12.  Noesi threw 4 1/3 scoreless innings in his first two appearances as a Ranger and was then hammered for seven runs in a single inning of work on April 20 against (ironically) the White Sox.  The righty has an ungainly 14.21 ERA for the season and owns a career 5.81 ERA over 196 2/3 IP with the Mariners, Rangers and Yankees.

With Noesi claimed, it leaves only Steve Pearce (Orioles) and Matt Daley (Yankees) in DFA limbo according to the MLB Trade Rumors DFA Tracker.

Rangers Designate Hector Noesi For Assignment

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The Rangers have designated pitcher Hector Noesi for assignment, the club announced via press release. The righty made only three appearances with the club after being acquired ten days ago from the Mariners.

Noesi, 27, has had a forgettable start to the 2014 season. His ERA stands at 14.21 through 6 1/3 frames. Over parts of four seasons in the bigs, Noesi has allowed 5.81 earned runs per nine in just under 200 total frames. He has struggled roughly equally against batters from both sides of the plate: over his career, lefties have touched him for a .866 OPS while righties have managed a .832 mark.

Rangers Acquire Hector Noesi

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The Rangers have announced that they have acquired pitcher Hector Noesi from the Mariners. The Mariners will receive cash in the deal, CBS Sports' Jon Heyman tweets. The Mariners designated Noesi for assignment last week. To clear space on their 40-man roster for Noesi, the Rangers moved Jurickson Profar to the 60-day disabled list. The Rangers will have to make another move to add Noesi to their 25-man roster.

Noesi, 27, has a 5.64 ERA, 6.4 K/9 and 3.4 BB/9 in 191 1/3 career innings with the Mariners and Yankees. The Mariners acquired him from New York before the 2012 season in the Michael Pineda / Jesus Montero trade. There's no immediate word on Noesi's role in Texas, but the Rangers' pitching staff has struggled with injuries, and Noesi has experience with both starting and relieving.

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