Latest On Astros, Alex Bregman
The Astros and general manager Dana Brown have been open about their interest in signing extensions with infielders Jose Altuve and Alex Bregman, but the former may be more likely than the latter. Per Bob Nightengale of USA Today, a high-ranking executive with the club said they want Altuve for the rest of his career but are highly skeptical of getting something done with Bregman as well.
Bregman, 30 in March, already signed one extension with the Astros. Going into the 2019 season, he and the club agreed to a five-year pact with a $100MM guarantee. He already had a 2019 salary in place, with that deal covering the 2020-2024 seasons. That leaves just one year and $28.5MM left on the contract.
When pen was put to paper that time, Bregman was in between his two best seasons. In 2018, he launched 31 home runs and stole 10 bases, leading to a batting line of .286/.394/.532 and wRC+ of 157. He got strong grades for his defense at third and even played a passable shortstop for part of the year, leading to 8.0 wins above replacement per FanGraphs and a fifth-place finish in the voting for American League Most Valuable Player. The next year, he only stole five bases but his homer tally jumped to 41 and his on-base percentage was almost 30 points higher. That was the “juiced ball” season so his wRC+ only increased slightly to 167, but he finished second to Mike Trout in MVP voting that year.
Since then, Bregman has settled in a bit below that level, still a very good player but not quite MVP caliber. The past two seasons have seen him combine for 48 home runs and a .261/.364/.447 batting line, which translates to a wRC+ of 131. He produced 9.8 fWAR over the two years combined.
Though that technically qualifies as diminished production relative to his 2018-2019 peak, it’s still excellent work overall. Only 21 position players had a higher fWAR tally in 2022-2023, with Bregman fourth among regular third basemen behind just José Ramírez, Manny Machado and Austin Riley.
As of right now, Bregman is set to hit free agency in advance of his age-31 season, which still lines him up for a solid payday. Marcus Semien was also an above-average infielder who generally produced a bit below MVP levels when he got $175MM from the Rangers two years ago. Bregman’s former teammate George Springer was able to get $150MM going into his age-31 season. Freddie Freeman nabbed an MVP award in 2020 but was a bit limited as a free agent since he only played first base and was going into his age-32 season, though he nonetheless got himself $162MM.
Something in that range should be attainable for Bregman but it may not be from the Astros. The club has generally avoided long-term deals that run deep into a player’s career, letting guys like Springer, Carlos Correa and others walk away and get paid elsewhere. That strategy has continued to work out for them so far, as they just made the ALCS for a seventh straight season, but there are some pivot points coming up. Altuve and Bregman are both set to become free agents after 2024, with Justin Verlander perhaps joining them depending on his vesting option. One year later, it will be Kyle Tucker, Framber Valdez, José Abreu and others.
With such a significant chunk of their core nearing free agency, it’s not surprising that they want to pivot from their standard playbook in order to try to keep that mass exodus from coming to fruition. Things can always change but it seems the current feeling is that Altuve will get done but Bregman won’t. The club already has some significant deals for younger players on the books going forward, with Yordan Alvarez signed through 2028, Cristian Javier through 2027 and Lance McCullers Jr. 2026. Perhaps those deals, and a theoretical Altuve contract, don’t leave much room for Bregman. Or perhaps Bregman simply wants to test the open market after having already signed one significant extension and banking nine figures.
It’s unclear if there are any strict timelines on negotiations, with Spring Training being the most common time for extensions to be hammered out. At this time of year, clubs usually prefer to focus on bringing in new players from free agency and trades, before pivoting back to talks with their incumbent players in February and March. However, the Astros don’t seem to have a massive to-do list this winter, with Brown recently listing backup catcher and the bullpen as priorities. Perhaps that gives them a bit of breathing room this winter to have some detailed talks with Scott Boras, who represents both Altuve and Bregman, to see if anything can get done. Boras will certainly be busy though, as he is representing a pile of this winter’s free agents, including Cody Bellinger, Matt Chapman, Blake Snell, Jordan Montgomery and many more.
Astros To Promote Joe Espada To Manager’s Job
The Astros have concluded their managerial search and are expected to promote bench coach Joe Espada to the role, according to reports from USA Today’s Bob Nightengale and Jim Bowden of The Athletic. An official press conference to introduce Espada is set for Monday at 11am CT.
Espada, 48, was a second-round pick by the A’s in the 1996 draft and played nine seasons in the minor leagues. While he was selected by the Twins in the 1998 Rule 5 draft, he did not ultimately crack the Opening Day roster in Minnesota and never received a big league opportunity afterward, ending his minor league career with a .275/.363/.343 slash line in 644 career games. After retiring as a player in 2005, he began his coaching career as a member of the Marlins organization in 2006, serving as a minor league hitting coach and infield coordinator before being named the major league third base coach prior to the 2010 season. Espada ultimately spent four seasons in Miami as third base coach. When the Marlins attempted to reassign Espada to manage in the minor leagues following the 2010 season, he departed the organization to become a special assistant in the Yankees’ front office.
Espada returned to coaching in 2015 as third base and infield coach for the Yankees, serving in the role for three years before being hired by the Astros to replace Alex Cora as the club’s bench coach for the 2018 season following Cora’s hire as manager of the Red Sox. Espada has been the club’s bench coach ever since, serving under both A.J. Hinch and Dusty Baker over the past six seasons. During his time as Houston’s bench coach, Espada has regularly been a candidate for managerial positions. The Cubs, Giants, Mets, White Sox, Marlins, and Athletics are all among the clubs Espada interviewed with in recent years, though the job ultimately went to another candidate each time. With Baker having stepped away from managing, however, Espada is finally getting his first shot to manage in the majors.
Though the hiring of Espada as manager hardly constitutes a surprise, the club’s long-time bench coach was not the only candidate consider for the role. The Astros were briefly linked to Craig Counsell prior to him joining the Cubs, while former Tigers and Angels manager Brad Ausmus and third base coach Omar Lopez were among other candidates reportedly considered for the role. Houston owner Jim Crane and adviser Jeff Bagwell were both thought to have “immense say” over the managerial search, though rumors indicated that Brown, in particular, pushed for Espada to take over for Baker in the dugout.
While Espada has no managerial experience at the big league level, he’s far from inexperienced after stints managing clubs in winter leagues as well as coaching in the World Baseball Classic for Team Puerto Rico in both 2013 and 2017 on top of his many seasons serving as bench coach under Hinch and Baker. That deep experience both with the Astros organization and in the dugout should make the transition a smooth one for both Espada and the players in Houston, who won’t have to adjust to a new personality leading the team and clubhouse next season. That continuity figures to be especially valuable to a club that’s cultivating a winning culture in recent years with seven straight ALCS appearances, four AL pennants and two World Series championships over the past seven seasons.
Espada’s first season as manager in Houston won’t be without challenges, however. Key veterans Martin Maldonado and Michael Brantley departed for free agency earlier this month, meaning the club will have to either replace or re-sign the duo behind the plate and in the outfield. Brantley, in particular, figures to be of importance to replace given the club’s lack of left-handed bats to provide balance to the lineup alongside Yordan Alvarez and Kyle Tucker. What’s more, the club’s starting rotation features plenty of question marks behind a front three of Justin Verlander, Framber Valdez, and Cristian Javier. Though the likes of Lance McCullers Jr. and Luis Garcia could return from surgery as potential midseason reinforcements, the club currently figures to rely on the likes of Hunter Brown, Jose Urquidy, and J.P. France as potential options to fill out the club’s Opening Day rotation. That trio combined for a 4.64 ERA across 355 innings of work last year.
Despite those potential holes in the roster, there’s also reason for optimism the club will perform better than their 90-win 2023 campaign next year. After all, the club figures to get full seasons out of Verlander, whom they re-acquired in a deadline deal with the Mets this summer, and Jose Altuve, who appeared in just 90 games this season due to injuries. A full season from rookie catcher Yainer Diaz in his sophomore campaign should help bolster the club’s offense by replacing the below-average production of Maldonado’s bat in the everyday lineup, putting the Astros in decent position as they look to fend off the rival Rangers and Mariners for their fourth-consecutive AL West crown.
Martin Maldonado Reportedly Drawing Interest From Several Teams
Veteran catcher Martin Maldonado has been a staple of the Astros lineup in recent years, joining the club as a part-time option behind the plate in deadline deals during both the 2018 and 2019 seasons before sticking in Houston as the club’s primary catcher for the 2020-23 campaigns. Now, however, the 37-year-old veteran is a free agent for the first time since the 2019-20 offseason as the Astros plan to pivot to youngster Yainer Diaz as their primary catcher for the 2024 season.
While Maldonado is out of the starting role in Houston, he’s already drawing plenty of interest on the open market per MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand, who reports that “4-5 teams” have checked in on the veteran already this offseason. Presumably, one of those clubs is the Astros themselves, as the two sides reportedly have mutual interest in a reunion even as Maldonado would consequently take a smaller role with the club going forward in deference to Diaz.
A 27th-round pick by the Angels in the 2004 draft, Maldonado has never been particularly outstanding with the bat. Since making his major league debut with the Brewers back in 2011, Maldonado has never posted above average offensive numbers by measure of wRC+ in a 162-game season, though he did manage a 107 wRC+ during the shortened 2020 campaign. He fell back to Earth in the following three seasons, however, slashing just .183/.260/.333 (66 wRC+) with a 31.5% strikeout rate in 355 games. Despite those offensive deficiencies, however, has generally been regarded as among the best defensive catchers in the game throughout his career.
That stellar defense took a major hit in 2023, as Statcast placed Maldonado in the first percentile among all catchers with -18 framing runs this season, after years of the metric regarding him as slightly below average at pitch framing, with -1 to -2 framing runs per year. Those iffy framing numbers were more than made up for in the past by Maldonado’s throwing arm behind the plate and blocking abilities, but those metrics dipped in 2023 as well. While the differences were only slight, they exacerbated his struggles with pitch framing in 2023 to leave him worth -1.2 fWAR this season, a bottom-five figure in the majors among players with at least 300 plate appearances this season.
Dire as those numbers look, it’s still reasonable that the Astros and other teams would have interest in Maldonado’s services next year. After all, he’s clearly well-respected as a game-caller who does a good job with a pitching staff, considering Houston’s pitching staff is second to only the Dodgers with a 3.63 ERA since Maldonado took over as the club’s primary catcher in 2020 despite ranking 10th in xFIP and 11th in SIERA over that same period of time. What’s more, a deal with Maldonado would surely be a short-term, low-cost affair given his age and difficult platform season.
Those factors could make Maldonado an attractive back-up option for teams in need of a one-year solution behind the plate, particularly for those with a young catcher who could benefit from an experienced mentor to share time with. Speculatively speaking, the Brewers, Rays, Marlins, and White Sox all have a need behind the plate this offseason, with the White Sox in particular likely to dedicate time to former Astro Korey Lee behind the plate in 2024. Lee, 25, has just 36 games of experience at the big league level and has worked with Maldonado previously, as the duo shared time behind the plate during Lee’s first big league cup of coffee in 2022.
Astros Notes: Payroll, Rotation, Maldonado, Neris
The Astros advanced to their seventh consecutive League Championship Series in 2023 but fell shy of a third straight World Series bid when the division-rival and eventual World Series Champion Rangers knocked them off in a thrilling seven-game series. They’ll head into the winter with a trio of notable relievers hitting free agency (Hector Neris, Phil Maton, Ryne Stanek) and with a rotation that’s a bit thinned out by to injuries of Lance McCullers Jr. (flexor tendon surgery) and Luis Garcia (Tommy John surgery). Veteran Michael Brantley is also returning to the open market.
Despite a plethora of needs up and down the roster, general manager Dana Brown openly acknowledged at this week’s GM Meetings that his team doesn’t “have a ton” of financial flexibility heading into the offseason (link via Matt Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle). That’s unwelcome news for ‘Stros fans, though Brown suggested that if the right situation presented itself, owner Jim Crane might push beyond his current comfort levels.
As it stands, strong rookie performances from the likes of Hunter Brown and J.P. France give Houston a quality group of six starters on which to lean. Reacquired ace Justin Verlander, lefty Framber Valdez and righties Cristian Javier and Jose Urquidy round out the rotation options.
Verlander will pitch next season at 41, however, while Valdez and Javier faltered a bit as the year wore on; Javier’s rotation spot was skipped a couple times over the summer as he labored through mixed results, while Valdez turned in a pedestrian 4.64 ERA over his final 99 innings before being rocked for 12 earned runs in 12 postseason frames. Urquidy spent several months on the injured list and turned in 73 innings of 5.30 ERA ball between the regular season and playoffs combined.
The depth beyond those six is more concerning. Righties Shawn Dubin and Brandon Bielak both had rough showings in Triple-A. The latter tossed 80 innings of 3.83 ball in the big leagues but did so with a 10.2% walk rate, 17.6% strikeout rate and too many home runs allowed (1.35 HR/9) to necessarily bank on a repeat. Former top prospect Forrest Whitley, also on the 40-man roster, posted a 5.70 ERA in 30 Triple-A frames.
Brown indicated to reporters that he’d be open to opportunities to add “a legit third starter or better.” Logically speaking, doing so without radically increasing the payroll would likely require operating on the trade market rather than in free agency. It sounds as though that’s viewed more as a luxury than a priority anyhow; McCullers and Garcia are expected back sometime in July, and Brown instead called the bullpen and backup catcher “priorities.”
To that end, it’s perhaps not surprising to hear that the ‘Stros and longtime catcher Martin Maldonado could continue their relationship. Chandler Rome of The Athletic reports that the two parties have mutual interest in a reunion, adding that Brown has already met with Maldonado’s agent, Dan Lozano, during this week’s GM Meetings. The Astros have publicly declared that Yainer Diaz will be their primary catcher in 2024, but as Brown himself spelled out, adding an experienced backup is a goal.
Houston has stuck with Maldonado for four and a half years despite the fact that he’s perhaps been MLB’s least-productive hitter during that time. Over the past three seasons in particular, Maldonado has been a liability at the dish. In 1212 plate appearances since 2021, he’s turned in a .183/.260/.333 — about 34% worse than league average by measure of wRC+. However, the Astros are enamored of Maldonado’s game-calling, game-planning and broad defensive skills. Maldonado ranks among the game’s best at blocking pitches in the dirt over the past four years, although his framing skills fell off a cliff in 2023 and his caught-stealing rate has steadily declined.
Houston clearly loves Maldonado’s work with their pitching staff, however, and the organization would surely welcome him working in a mentor role to Diaz, whom they hope can cement himself as the catcher of the future. Add in that a new deal with Maldonado in a reduced role would undoubtedly be a low-cost arrangement, and it wouldn’t at all be surprising to see them hammer something out. Maldonado earned $5MM in 2022 and $4.5MM last year.
Maldonado isn’t the only former Astro who’s on the radar. Via Rome, Brown acknowledged that he’s also spoken with Neris’ representatives at Octagon about a new deal, though there’s no indication a new deal is close to fruition. Neris turned down an $8.5MM player option and although he’s 34 years old will quite likely be able to secure a multi-year pact on the open market this winter after turning in a sub-2.00 ERA in his second season with Houston.
Turning to a pair of Astros icons, both Jose Altuve and Alex Bregman are entering the final year of their contracts. Brown has been forthcoming about his desire to make the pair lifelong Astros, but agent Scott Boras — who represents both players — said at this week’s meetings that contract talks have not yet begun (link via Kawahara).
Astros fans will want to check out the pieces from both Kawahara and Rome in full, as they’re rife with refreshingly straightforward answers from Brown — the type of candor that many of his peers throughout the league generally shy away from offering. Beyond acknowledging priorities in the bullpen and behind the plate as well as interest in bolstering the rotation, Brown suggested that outfield won’t be a primary focus this offseason, given the presence of Kyle Tucker, Chas McCormick, Yordan Alvarez, Mauricio Dubon and Jake Meyers. That doesn’t expressly rule out an addition — unexpected opportunities on the trade market, for instance, could always arise — but it doesn’t seem that’s a hot-button issue for the Astros at the moment.
Astros Have Interviewed Joe Espada In Managerial Search
Astros bench coach Joe Espada has received an interview in the club’s managerial search, GM Dana Brown confirmed this afternoon (link via Chandler Rome of the Athletic). That’s no surprise considering he has been viewed by many as the logical choice to replace Dusty Baker atop the Houston dugout.
Espada has never managed in the big leagues but has gotten serious attention from a number of teams. He was reportedly one of the finalists in the Marlins search last offseason and has interviewed for several jobs over the years. This morning, The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal listed Espada among the potential targets for the Brewers as they set out in search of Craig Counsell’s replacement.
Curiously, Brown told reporters today that the Astros would not grant permission for Espada to interview with Milwaukee until Houston had made its own decision. However, Rome reports that Espada’s contract with the Astros expired on October 31 — thereby negating Houston’s ability to block him from speaking with other teams.
That the Astros have considered trying to prevent Espada from interviewing elsewhere at least seems to suggest he’s a legitimate candidate for the Houston job. Brown pushed back against characterizing the 48-year-old (or anyone else) as the favorite but confirmed Espada was the only in-house person under consideration. That rules out first base coach Omar López, who had been floated as a potential option in the immediate aftermath of Baker’s retirement. Brown added that another team’s bench coach without MLB managerial experience (whom he did not name) is among the other candidates.
Espada has spent the past six seasons as Houston bench coach, holding the position under both A.J. Hinch and Dusty Baker. Before that, he’d logged three seasons on the Yankees staff. Espada has managed for Puerto Rico at the World Baseball Classic but has no experience doing so in the affiliated ranks.
Latest On Brewers’ Managerial Vacancy
The Brewers are suddenly looking for a manager for the first time in almost a decade, with Craig Counsell‘s stunning move to the Cubs yesterday. Some of the options they are considering as a replacement, per Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic, are current Brewers bench coach Pat Murphy, Blue Jays bench coach Don Mattingly, Astros Bench coach Joe Espada, Dodgers first base coach Clayton McCullough, Astros hitting coach Troy Snitker and former player Rickie Weeks.
Counsell departing Milwaukee wasn’t totally unforeseen. He was on an expiring contract in 2023 and extension talks didn’t come to fruition. But with David Stearns moving on from the Brewers to become president of baseball operations for the Mets and then firing manager Buck Showalter, many assumed Counsell would follow him to Queens. But Counsell joining the division-rival Cubs was not foreseen or known to be on the table.
Brewers principal owner Mark Attanasio spoke on the matter yesterday, per Curt Hogg of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, and it seems he was surprised as well. “When he first told me, I said, ‘Are you messing with me?’” Attanasio added that “It is what it is” and that the club intends to continue putting their best foot forward without Counsell. “We have a really good thing. I give Craig credit for helping to build that, and for adding all these coaches, all of whom have stayed. So we’re going to look for a manager who can continue having a terrific clubhouse culture and that can help us keep winning and hopefully get over the hump in the playoffs.”
As for the Mets, despite the generally spendthrift behavior of Steve Cohen in recent years, they apparently never got close to the $40MM over five years that Counsell secured from the Cubs. Per Andy Martino of SNY, there was a sense that his interest in coming to the Mets wasn’t actually that high and he was merely using them to drive up the bidding. That would track with his reported interest in resetting the market for managerial salaries. Perhaps he wasn’t especially willing to do that in Queens since he grew up in the Midwest and Chicago is a better fit for him, or perhaps the Mets were content to hire a manager with lesser demands, but the end result is that the Mets landed first-time manager Carlos Mendoza instead.
As for the Brewers’ immediate concerns in relation to this, though it may sting that Counsell joined a division rival instead of the Mets, the focus now will be on filling the void. It seems they weren’t terribly proactive while Counsell was still available, with Attanasio stating that he and general manager Matt Arnold “thought it was going to muddy things if we started interviews with third parties” but that Arnold has “conducted a couple of internal interviews, for what that’s worth.” That suggests they are still in the early stages of their search, with still a wide list of potential candidates being considered, as mentioned above.
Murphy, 65 this month, has a small amount of managerial experience. He was in the Padres’ organization in June of 2015 when Bud Black was fired as manager. Murphy got the gig on an interim basis for the second half of that season but Andy Green took over for the 2016 campaign. Murphy then came to the Brewers to serve as bench coach under Counsell and has garnered plenty of interest from clubs with managerial openings since, but has stayed in Milwaukee.
Mattingly, 63 in April, has plenty of experience as a bench boss. He was at the helm for the Dodgers from 2011 to 2015 and then for the Marlins from 2016 to 2022, before joining the Blue Jays as bench coach for the 2023 season.
Espada, 48, has coaching experience with the Marlins and Yankees but has been the bench coach of the Astros since the start of the 2018 season. He has been connected to various managerial gigs in the past few years but is still with the Astros, who just saw Dusty Baker step out of the skipper’s chair. It’s been speculated that Espada could take over in Houston but nothing is official there.
McCullough, 44 next month, has been the first base coach of the Dodgers since the 2021 campaign. He recently interviewed for the managerial opening in Cleveland but that position has now been filled by Stephen Vogt.
Snitker, 35 next month, is the son of Atlanta manager Brian Snitker. He has been co-hitting coach for the Astros for the past five seasons alongside Álex Cintrón.
Weeks, 41, played in the majors from 2003 to 2017, most of that in Milwaukee. He was hired by the Brewers for a player development role going into the 2022 season.
Enoli Paredes To Elect Free Agency
The Astros have assigned right-hander Enoli Paredes outright to Triple-A, per a club announcement. There had been no prior indication Paredes was on waivers. The move leaves the Astros with 37 players on their 40-man roster. Paredes is electing free agency, per Ari Alexander of KRPC 2 (X link).
Paredes, 28, was added to the club’s roster prior to the 2020 campaign. He made 22 appearances for them in that shortened campaign but has mostly been on optional assignment for the past three years. He has now tallied 37 major league appearances in total with an earned run average of 3.90. His 23.6% strikeout rate is around league average but his 19.7% walk rate is roughly double par.
In 2023, he spent most of his time at Triple-A, with a 4.80 ERA over 54 1/3 innings. His 27.3% strikeout rate was strong but he again struggled with free passes, giving them out to 18.6% of hitters at that level. Beyond his control issues, he’s also set to be out of options next year, meaning he will have less roster flexibility going forward. Both of those factors likely led to the Astros removing him from the roster.
Managerial Notes: Counsell, Mets, Guardians, Astros, Padres
The Mets are approaching a decision on who will take the reins from Buck Showalter as the club’s new manager, per SNY’s Andy Martino, with a decision from star manager Craig Counsell expected in the next few days. That, Martino notes, seems to set the Mets up to act quickly regarding their own managerial vacancy; if Counsell settles on the Mets, the Mets will of course hire him for the position, while Martino suggests that Yankees bench coach Carlos Mendoza is another “very strong” candidate for the role. Martino implies that Counsell and Mendoza are regarded as the two finalists for the role, noting that the “only scenario” that could hold up the manager search in Queens is both Counsell and Mendoza electing to take jobs elsewhere.
That’s not necessarily a completely far-fetched scenario, however. After all, Counsell seems likely to have his pick between the Mets, Guardians, and the incumbent Brewers, all of whom appear to be prioritizing Counsell as their top option to lead their club in the dugout next year. It’s unclear where Counsell will ultimately land, reports have indicated that Counsell will at least offer Milwaukee a chance to match whatever salary offer he receives from New York and Cleveland. If Counsell does wind up returning to Milwuakee, Paul Hoynes of cleveland.com relayed recently that the favorites for the job with the Guardians would then be Mendoza and Mariners coach Stephen Vogt.
That creates at least the possibility of a situation where the Brewers retain Counsell while the Guardians land Mendoza, leaving the Mets unsure about who their next manager will be. Cubs bench coach and former Padres manager Andy Green as well as current A’s manager Mark Kotsay have both been noted as possible candidates for the manager job in New York in the past, and the Mets are known to be searching for an external candidate, specifically.
More managerial notes from around the game…
- The Astros could be nearing the end of their search for a manager to replace veteran skipper Dusty Baker, who retired at the end of the 2023 season. Per USA Today’s Bob Nightengale, GM Dana Brown is “pushing” for the organization to promote bench coach Joe Espada to take over for Baker in the role. That being said, even an endorsement from Brown doesn’t necessarily guarantee the job will go to Espada; after all, as recent reports have indicated that both owner Jim Crane and adviser Jeff Bagwell will have “immense say” over who takes the reins from Baker in the dugout when all is said and done. Former Tigers and Angels manager Brad Ausmus along with third base coach Omar Lopez are among the other rumored contenders for the managerial gig in Houston.
- Before the Padres settled on Bob Melvin to manage the club during the 2021-22 offseason, Tom Krasovic of the San Diego Union-Tribune indicates that president of baseball operations met with former Padres and Giants manager Bruce Bochy regarding his interest in the position. Krasovic relays that per Bochy’s agent Tony Attanasio, Preller and Bochy met twice that offseason in Bochy’s home in Nashville, TN. Attanasio suggests that Bochy wasn’t especially interested in returning to San Diego, and of course the club wound up hiring Melvin for the role instead. For his part, Bochy would return to the game as skipper of the Rangers in 2023, leading the club to its first World Series championship in franchise history.
Hector Neris Declines Player Option With Astros
Right-hander Hector Neris will test free agency after declining his player option for the 2024 season, MLB Trade Rumors has learned. Neris passed a postseason physical, which was the final step in turning the Astros’ $8.5MM club option (with a $1MM buyout) for 2024 into a player option. The terms of Neris’ two-year, $17MM deal with Houston allowed that club option to vest into a player option if Neris made at least 110 appearances over the 2022-23 seasons, and the righty easily passed that benchmark with 141 games pitched.
Neris turned 34 back in June, yet doesn’t appear to be slowing down at all, considering that he posted a 1.71 ERA over 68 1/3 innings in 2023. An 11.4% walk rate is a red flag, yet most of Neris’ other metrics were well above average, and he was one of baseball’s best at limiting hard contact. A 3.89 SIERA might be a better reflection of Neris’ 2023 performance given his walk rate and his .219 BABIP, yet in some sense, Neris’ luck was evening out after a 2022 season that saw him post a 3.72 ERA but a 2.70 SIERA.
The combined result is a 2.69 ERA/3.29 SIERA over Neris’ two seasons in an Astros uniform, as well as 56 holds in a setup role in front of closer Ryan Pressly. With Rafael Montero, Phil Maton, and Bryan Abreu also contributing to a strong late-game mix, Neris was routinely called upon to shut down batters in the seventh or eighth inning, with generally impressive results. In addition to his regular-season work, Neris also had a 1.50 ERA over six innings and eight appearances during the 2022 playoffs, helping the Astros win the World Series.
There wasn’t much suspense that Neris would test the market again, as he should be able to land another multi-year deal coming off of this strong performance. The 10-year MLB veteran formerly worked as the Phillies’ closer early in his career, so he might have some extra appeal to a team that could use at least a backup option for save situations, even if Neris is likely going to be targeted as a setup man by most of his suitors. Neris looks to be one of the better options available in a typically crowded bullpen market, and some options are already off the board since the Braves re-signed Joe Jimenez and Pierce Johnson.
Front Office Notes: Astros, White Sox, Janish, Nationals
The Astros announced a series of internal promotions earlier this week, most notably the promotion of Gavin Dickey to an assistant general manager position. Dickey is a longtime member of the Astros’ staff, working in numerous jobs since his initial hiring as a scout in 2011. Most recently, he worked as a special assistant to GM Dana Brown during the 2023 season. The 40-year-old Dickey moved right into scouting on the heels of his playing career, which consisted of six seasons in independent ball and in the Mariners’ and Braves’ farm systems from 2006-11.
Dickey joins Andrew Ball and Charles Cook as Houston’s assistant GMs, after the team parted ways with former assistant GM Bill Firkus last month. This isn’t to say that Dickey will necessarily be taking Firkus’ exact role, as the specific duties of an assistant GM vary greatly from club to club and executive to executive, usually based on each individual’s areas of expertise.
More on some other front office moves from around baseball….
- The White Sox announced that Paul Janish has been hired as their new director of player development. Janish is a veteran of nine Major League seasons with the Reds, Braves, and Orioles from 2008-17, and since retirement has worked as a coach with Rice University. This will be the first non-playing role in pro ball for the 41-year-old Janish, who will be taking over the position previously held by Chris Getz before Getz was named Chicago’s new general manager in August.
- The Nationals promoted Eddie Longosz to the role of VP/assistant general manager of player development and administration. The Washington Post’s Andrew Golden reported earlier this week that Longosz would be taking over the Nats’ player development department, which is the next step up the ladder for a longtime employee who has been with the Nationals since 2010. As Golden notes, much of the Nationals’ focus over the last couple of months has been a revamp of their front office, with several employees on the way out (like De Jon Watson, Longosz’s predecessor as farm director) and a couple of longer-term staffers like Longosz moving into larger roles.