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D-Backs Release Zach Davies

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The Diamondbacks have released veteran righty Zach Davies, per the transaction log at MLB.com. That was expected after the Snakes designated him for assignment on Wednesday.

Davies spent two years in Arizona. He turned in a 4.09 ERA through 27 starts last season after signing a $1.5MM free agent deal coming out of the lockout. While that came with middling strikeout and walk numbers, he provided stable enough innings out of the fifth spot in the rotation on a generally young pitching staff.

That secured him a raise when he re-signed with the Snakes in January. Davies landed a $5MM guarantee taking the form of a $4.7MM salary and a $300K buyout on a mutual option for 2024. He tacked on another $950K in incentives and added $200K to the option buyout by topping 16 starts, meaning he’ll collect $6.15MM overall. Arizona will remain on the hook for the buyout once he officially clears release waivers.

Davies will likely be limited to minor league offers this winter. The 30-year-old is coming off a career-worst season, allowing exactly seven earned runs per nine through 82 1/3 frames. His 19.1% strikeout rate is actually his best mark since 2020, though it’s still a few points below league average. The nine-year MLB veteran walked just over 10% of batters faced while allowing hard contact on an elevated 42.4% of batted balls.

Tyler Clippard Announces Retirement

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Veteran right-hander Tyler Clippard took to Instagram yesterday to announce his retirement from professional baseball. A sixteen-year big league veteran, Clippard last played for the Nationals during the 2022 season, making four appearances at the big league level while primarily pitching at the Triple-A level.

“The time has come to announce my retirement from baseball,” Clippard wrote, “Thank you to my parents, my wife, my friends, my teammates, my agent, my coaches and trainers, and everyone else who has supported me along the way!”

Clippard’s professional career began when he was selected in the ninth round of the 2003 draft by the Yankees. He eventually made his big league debut at the age of 22, starting six games for New York in 2007. The audition did not go well, as Clippard posted a 6.33 ERA and 6.68 FIP in 27 innings of work. He was traded to the Nationals that offseason and made just two appearances in the majors in 2008, allowing five runs on 12 hits and 7 walks in 10 1/3 innings of work across his pair of starts.

Clippard move to the bullpen ahead of the 2009 season, and the then 24-year-old righty quickly proved that relief work suited him. Clippard posted a sterling 2.69 ERA while striking out 27.3% of batters faced in 60 1/3 innings of work across 41 appearances. The 2009 season proved to be the start of the most successful stretch of Clippard’s career, as he would dominate toward the back of the bullpen in Washington for years to come.

Over the next five seasons, Clippard posted a 2.63 ERA, 48% better than league average by measure of ERA+, with a 3.24 FIP in 393 1/3 innings of work. Clippard struck out 29% of batters faced while walking 9.1%. He racked up 34 saves across those seasons, primarily coming from the 2012 season when he acted as the club’s closer. The stretch also included both of Clippad’s career All Star appearances. His first All Star nod came in 2011, when the righty posted a phenomenal 1.83 ERA across 88 1/3 innings, good for a whopping 209 ERA+. Clippard struck out 31.6% of batters faced that season while walking just 7.9%, resulting in a career-best 23.7 K-BB%. His 2014 season was nearly as strong, as the then-29-year-old righty posted a 2.18 ERA and 2.75 FIP in 70 1/3 innings of work en route to his second All Star game.

The 2015-17 seasons proved to be tumultuous ones for Clippard, as he suited up for six different teams across the three campaigns. After being traded from the Nationals to Oakland shortly after New Year’s in 2015, Clippard was shipped to the Mets at the trade deadline and signed a two-year deal with the Diamondbacks that offseason before finally returning to his original team in New York via trade at the 2016 deadline. His stay in New York lasted until shortly after the 2017 All Star break, when he was shipped to the White Sox. Chicago flipped Clippard to the Astros just one month later. While Clippard did not appear on the club’s postseason roster, he nonetheless received a World Series ring in 2017 as a member of the Astros’ championship club.

Despite the constant upheaval Clippard faced over those three seasons, his results remained above average: in 205 appearances across the 2015-17 campaigns, Clippard posted a 3.70 ERA (114 ERA+) with a 4.34 FIP and a 25.2% strikeout rate, though his walk rate jumped to 10.6% over that time. Now 33 years old and a veteran of eleven big league seasons, Clippard provided quality innings of relief to Toronto, Cleveland, Minnesota, and Arizona over the next four seasons (3.21 ERA and 3.96 FIP in 182 innings of work) before returning to the Nationals to close out his career.

In all, Clippard’s big league career concludes with a career 3.16 ERA in 807 appearances. The two-time All Star finished 212 games in his career with 74 saves and struck out 956 batters in 872 1/3 innings of work. We at MLB Trade Rumors congratulate Clippard on his baseball career and wish him all the best as he moves on to his post-playing career.

Diamondbacks Designate Zach Davies For Assignment

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The Diamondbacks have designated right-hander Zach Davies for assignment, the team announced. Fellow righty Justin Martinez has been recalled from Triple-A to take his place on the active roster.

Davies was a solid back-of-the-rotation starter for Arizona last year, making 27 starts with a 4.09 ERA. That hasn’t been the case this season, as he is pitching to a 7.00 ERA in 18 starts, interspersed between two separate stints on the injured list. Despite his poor performance, the D-backs have kept him around, since they have struggled to find reliable starters to pitch behind Zac Gallen and Merrill Kelly all year. Now, however, with just five games remaining in the regular season and the playoffs right around the corner, Arizona no longer has much need for an innings eater on the roster.

This could be an indication the Diamondbacks are planning to make an addition to the 40-man roster ahead of the playoffs, or it could simply be a way of making room to add an extra relief arm for the final five games of the regular season.

Davies, who is making $4.7MM this season and has a $300K buyout for next year, is likely to go unclaimed on waivers, at which point the D-backs would be responsible for the guaranteed salary remaining on his contract. Still just 30 years old, he shouldn’t have trouble finding a new club in the offseason, although he might have to settle for a minor league deal.

Martinez, a right-handed reliever, is the team’s No. 24 prospect, per MLB Pipeline. He made his MLB debut earlier this season and has pitched to a ghastly 14.63 ERA in a few brief call-ups to the big league squad. His numbers at Triple-A are much more palatable; he has a 4.20 ERA in 47 games, although his 21.2% walk rate is still alarming. It’s unlikely he’ll play much of a role while the D-backs are fighting for a postseason berth, but he’ll provide manager Torey Lovullo with an extra arm out of the ’pen.

Diamondbacks, Mike Hazen Have Discussed Contract Extension

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Diamondbacks president/CEO Derrick Hall said Monday and he and general manager Mike Hazen “are always having conversations about his future,” and that the two had talked about a possible extension.  “I can’t envision us going a different direction with what he’s built and his [leadership] team, too….I’m more than willing to have conversations with him at any point,” Hall told Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic.

Hazen is nearing the end of his seventh season in change of the Diamondbacks’ front office, and the Snakes are on pace (79-72) for their fourth winning season of Hazen’s tenure.  Arizona entered today’s action in possession of the second NL wild card slot, though three other teams remain within a half-game of the D’Backs in the tightly contested playoff race.  (The Phillies hold the top wild card possession and are 3.5 games ahead of Arizona.)  Should the D’Backs crack the postseason field, it will mark their first playoff appearance since 2017, when they claimed a wild card berth in Hazen’s first season with the team and then advanced to the NLDS to face the Dodgers.

With winning records in his first three seasons in the desert, Hazen received a contract extension in September 2019, which locked up him up through at least the 2024 season (the D’Backs have a club option on his services for 2025).  However, the Snakes struggled badly in the immediate aftermath of Hazen’s new deal, going 77-145 over the 2020-21 seasons.  Opting against a full rebuild in the wake of those two seasons, Hazen instead retrenched to some extent, signing Ketel Marte and Merrill Kelly to new extensions and hoping for a relatively quick turn-around.  That rebound seems to be taking place this season, and NL Rookie of the Year favorite Corbin Carroll leads a crop of well-regarded prospects that could provide the franchise’s next wave of talent.

It isn’t surprising that Hall is interested in retaining Hazen, nor that other clubs have noticed the Diamondbacks’ progress.  Hall noted that he and Hazen had discussed an extension prior to the firing of Red Sox chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom last week, and ESPN’s Buster Olney reported over the weekend that the Sox had some interest in perhaps bringing Hazen back to Fenway Park.  Hazen is from Massachusetts, and he previously worked in the Red Sox front office from 2006-16.

The D’Backs would have grant permission to any other team for an interview with Hazen, and Hall said the Red Sox “haven’t contacted me, and I hope they don’t.  He’s under contract and we like him.”  When asked by Piecoro how the D’Backs would approach a situation where Hazen showed interest in an interview, Hall admitted “that would be a tough one.  I feel like we both negotiated a contract for a reason; contracts protect him just as they protect us.  He’s aware of that.  He’s meant a lot to this franchise.  I really like the situation he has navigated and created here, so I just can’t see us going in a different direction.”

White Sox Expected To Hire Josh Barfield, Brian Bannister, Gene Watson To Front Office Roles

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Diamondbacks director of player development Josh Barfield is expected to leave the D’Backs for a new job in the White Sox front office, according to MLB.com’s Scott Merkin and Steve Gilbert (X link).  Barfield will step into the role of assistant general manager, under newly-hired Sox GM Chris Getz.

Barfield isn’t the only newcomer to Getz’s staff, as USA Today’s Bob Nightengale (via X) reports that the White Sox have also hired Brian Bannister for a role in pitching development and Gene Watson for a player development job.  Bannister has worked as the Giants’ director of pitching since December 2019, while Watson was an assistant GM and VP of Major League scouting with the Royals.

Fans may know the 40-year-old Barfield best from his playing career, as he appeared in 309 Major League games with San Diego and Cleveland from 2006-09.  He continued playing in the minors and in independent ball until 2013, and then started his post-playing career as a scout with the D’Backs in 2016, moving his way up the front office depth chart until assuming his current role during the 2019-20 offseason.

Bannister is another former player, tossing 667 1/3 innings with the Mets and Royals from 2006-10.  (Notably, Getz and Bannister were teammates in Kansas City in 2010.)  Since retiring, the 42-year-old Bannister worked from the Red Sox from 2015-19 in a variety of roles, ranging from scout, to assistant pitching coach, to a more analytical front office position as a director of pitching analysis and development.  This led to a similar position in San Francisco, as Bannister worked in a uniformed on-field role except in 2022, when league rules didn’t permit Bannister to participate in his coaching role because he wasn’t vaccinated.

Watson also has some past Kansas City ties to Getz and Bannister, as Watson has worked for the Royals for all but one season from 2006-23, as Watson worked for the Angels in 2021.  A longtime scout and evaluator, Watson has also worked with the Padres, Braves, and Marlins during a career that began back in 1997.  Watson has been interviewed for GM jobs in the past, including the Angels’ opening in 2021 that eventually went to Perry Minasian, though the Halos were impressed enough to still hire Watson away from K.C. for an advisory position.

The three hires bring some fresh voices into the White Sox front office, giving Getz (who has been working for Chicago since 2016) some different perspective as he embarks on his first stint running a baseball operations department.  Getz’s promotion continued the criticism that the Sox organization is too insular in its thinking, but today’s hires act as something of a counter to the idea that the White Sox are set in their ways.  Barfield and Bannister, like Getz, are younger executives with past playing experience who perhaps have a bit more of a modern analytical approach to player development, whereas Watson brings some old-school scouting knowledge into the fold.

NL Notes: Fried, Anderson, Braves, McGough, Wiemer

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Max Fried’s next start is being pushed back, as the Braves southpaw won’t next pitch until sometime during Atlanta’s upcoming series with the Nationals that starts on Thursday.  In Fried’s last outing on September 12, he developed a hot spot on his finger, and manager Brian Snitker told reporters (including Justin Toscano of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution) that the club was being cautious to prevent Fried from developing a blister.  With the NL East clinched, the Braves naturally want to make sure their roster is healthy and set for the playoffs, especially a front-of-the-rotation arm like Fried.

Nick Anderson’s participation on a postseason roster has yet to be determined, as the righty has missed over two months due to a shoulder strain.  Anderson will start a Triple-A rehab assignment on Tuesday, but as Toscano notes, the reliever won’t have a lot of time to ramp up since the Triple-A season ends next weekend.  Atlanta will get some extra time to decide on Anderson, Jesse Chavez (also on a rehab assignment) and other players on the borderline of its roster due to the first-round bye in the playoffs, and the pitching mix figures to get particular attention.  The Braves’ hurlers have been quite good for most of the season, but have a collective 5.60 ERA since August 31 — the fifth-highest in baseball in that span.

More from around the National League…

  • The Diamondbacks placed right-hander Scott McGough on the 15-day injured list due to right shoulder inflammation, and McGough might only pitch again if Arizona makes the postseason, manager Torey Lovullo told MLB.com and other reporters.  Signed to a two-year, $6.25MM free agent last winter, McGough was making his return to North American baseball after an impressive four-year run in Japan, and the D’Backs had designs on using McGough in high-leverage relief situations.  The results were mixed, as McGough displayed some shaky control and allowed a lot of hard contact in posting a 4.73 ERA over 70 1/3 innings, though his 28.6% strikeout rate and 49.2% grounder rate were both strong.  The righty had nine saves while getting some looks in the closer role before Arizona acquired Paul Sewald at the trade deadline.
  • The Brewers activated outfielder Blake Perkins from the 10-day injured list today, as Perkins returned to the roster after missing about five weeks due to an oblique strain.  In the corresponding move, Milwaukee optioned Joey Wiemer to Triple-A, as Wiemer has been mired in a lengthy lengthy slump of just three hits in his last 38 plate appearances.  This will mark Wiemer’s first Triple-A action of 2023, as he has spent the rest of his rookie season in the bigs, hitting .204/.283/.362 over 410 plate appearances.  Injuries within the Brewers’ outfield have led to regular playing time for the former top-100 prospect, and while Wiemer hasn’t contributed much at the plate, his glovework in center field has been well above average.  However, Sal Frelick has gradually taken over regular center field duty, as Wiemer hasn’t hit enough to retain his spot in the lineup.  With the Brewers heading towards the NL Central title, it remains to be seen if Wiemer might return to the active roster before the season is out, or if his defense might merit him a postseason roster slot.

NL West Notes: Hazen, Red Sox, Cobb, Freeland

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The Red Sox have started looking for a new front office boss, and a familiar face might be on their radar since ESPN’s Buster Olney (X link) reports that Diamondbacks GM Mike Hazen “is one of the names discussed” as a potential candidate.  Hazen is a Massachusetts native and he previously worked for the Sox from 2006-16, including a stint as the club’s general manager during the 2016 season.  Hazen was the top lieutenant under president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski that year before Arizona hired him away to lead their front office.

Hazen’s time in the desert has included the lows of two brutal seasons in 2020-21, and the highs of a playoff appearance in 2017, three winning records in six full seasons, and a club that is fighting for another postseason berth with a 79-72 record this year.  Between this season’s success and the wealth of quality young talent in Arizona’s farm system, Hazen might not necessarily be too eager to consider a job change, especially considering that the D’Backs have him under contract through the 2024 season (with a club option for 2025).

As Olney notes, Hazen could potentially leverage any interest from the Red Sox into a new extension from the D’Backs, though one would imagine that Arizona was already looking to retain an executive who has seemingly gotten the team back on track.  Since the Diamondbacks would have to give permission for Hazen to be interviewed by another club, it’s possible Boston’s interest might go unexplored if the D’Backs aren’t willing to give that consent.  It also isn’t known if Hazen is seen as a prime candidate for the Sox, or if they were doing some natural due diligence early in their front office search on an experienced executive with many past Boston ties.

More from around the NL West…

  • Alex Cobb recently revealed that he has been pitching through hip discomfort for over three months, though he has still posted a respectable 4.20 ERA over his last 13 starts and 70 2/3 innings pitched.  The Giants have been trying to manage the injury with a cortisone shot and some extra rest, as Cobb had eight days between his most recent two starts, and will be working on eight more days of rest when he is scheduled to take the mound Tuesday for a big game with the Diamondbacks.  Cobb underwent hip surgery in 2019, though he told Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle that he doesn’t believe he’ll need another procedure to address his current impingement (which is in his left hip, whereas his right hip previously received the surgical repair).  However, Cobb did add “I should get more clarity on it, honestly,” which is something of an ominous admission for the veteran hurler.  Trying to tough it out carries some extra risk for Cobb since he technically isn’t under contract for 2024 — San Francisco holds a $10MM club option ($2MM buyout) on his services for next year.
  • The Rockies placed left-hander Kyle Freeland on the 15-day injured list today due to a right oblique strain, so Freeland won’t pitch again during the 2023 season.  The oblique injury forced Freeland to make an early exit from Saturday’s game, and continued the season-long string of pitching injuries that has devastated the Rockies’ staff.  It was a frustrating year overall for the veteran southpaw, who posted a 5.03 ERA and one of the sport’s lowest strikeout rates (13.9%) over 155 2/3 innings.

Drey Jameson To Undergo Tommy John Surgery

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Diamondbacks right-hander Drey Jameson has been on the injured list since early July due to elbow problems, and unfortunately the 26-year-old is now facing the worst case scenario.  Manager Torey Lovullo told reporters (including Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic) that Jameson will undergo a Tommy John surgery, which will almost certainly keep the pitcher out of action until Opening Day 2025.

The outcome isn’t unexpected, as Jameson was almost immediately shifted to the 60-day injured list soon after his initial 15-day IL placement, and Lovullo indicated in July that the righty’s UCL had suffered some type of damage.  Jameson had been trying to work through the injury without surgery and had been on a throwing program, though that program was paused earlier this week.

Jameson now faces a much more extensive rehab process and an unfortunate stoppage in his young career.  Selected 34th overall by the D’Backs in the 2019 draft, Jameson was still able to blaze a quick path to the majors even despite losing 2020 as a development year because of the pandemic.  He made his Major League debut with four starts and a 1.48 ERA over 24 1/3 innings in 2022, and then battled for a starter’s job in Spring Training before opening this season in Arizona’s bullpen.

Some tough early results got him sent to Triple-A for much of May, after Jameson had been moved into the rotation to fill in for the injured Zach Davies.  Jameson returned to the big league bullpen at the end of May and looked pretty sharp before his elbow injury, at least in terms of bottom-line results.  Jameson had a 3.32 ERA over 40 2/3 total innings this season, with a 4.49 SIERA reflecting his below-average strikeout and walk rates, though he at least limited damage with a 45.8% grounder rate and a hefty 87% strand rate.

The TJ surgery could well factor into any future decision over Jameson’s role as a starter or reliever, though that determination will certainly wait until after he is healthy and ready to pitch.  Rebuilding arm strength for a relief role isn’t quite as extensive as rehabbing to take on a starter’s workload, so there is a slim chance Jameson might be able to make it back at the very end of the 2024 regular season, but the much likelier scenario is that he’ll miss all of next season recovering.

Even if Jameson might have been a depth starter for 2024, his injury removes another arm from the Diamondbacks’ depth chart heading into the offseason.  The Snakes have hung in the wild card race despite not getting much from their rotation beyond Zac Gallen and Merrill Kelly, leaving pitching as a question to be more fully addressed over the winter.  Tommy Henry, Ryne Nelson, and Brandon Pfaadt will all be in the running to compete for rotation jobs, but Arizona will surely look to acquire at least one veteran arm.  Davies could be retained on a $5.5MM mutual option, though that doesn’t seem likely to be exercised given Davies’ struggles this year.

Diamondbacks Release Nick Ahmed

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The D-Backs released Nick Ahmed over the weekend, tweets Theo Mackie of the Arizona Republic. He’s officially a free agent.

There was never any doubt the veteran shortstop would hit the open market after Arizona designated him for assignment last Wednesday. Players in DFA limbo have to go on waivers after the trade deadline. Ahmed has well more than the five years of major league service necessary to decline a minor league assignment while retaining his entire salary. With around $1.4MM in remaining guarantees on his $10MM salary at the time of the DFA, no other club was going to put in a claim.

The 33-year-old infielder becomes a free agent for the first time in his career. He’d signed a $32.5MM extension with the D-Backs going into the 2020 campaign, which would’ve been his platform year. The defensive stalwart hit .230/.285/.351 in 954 plate appearances over the course of that deal. That includes a .212/.257/.303 slash this season.

Ahmed has been healthy this season after losing most of last year to shoulder surgery. He’s still a quality defensive shortstop. The D-Backs turned to 21-year-old top prospect Jordan Lawlar to try to add some spark to the lineup, though, pushing Ahmed off the roster a few weeks before his contract was set to expire.

The 10-year veteran will surely at least find minor league interest based on the strength of his glove — although that might not materialize until the winter. Now that the calendar has turned to September, he’d be ineligible for postseason play elsewhere. As a result, he could elect to sit out the final few weeks of this season and look for a new landing spot during the upcoming offseason.

NL West Notes: Betts, Marte, Stripling, Lee

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Mookie Betts hasn’t played since suffering a bone bruise on his left foot on Thursday, though the superstar could be back in action as early as Monday when the Dodgers open a series against the Padres.  In the wake of the initial injury, the Dodgers put Betts through a battery of tests to ensure that his foot hadn’t incurred more serious damage, and Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register writes that Betts was walking normally around the L.A. clubhouse yesterday.

The club is naturally being as cautious as possible with the MVP candidate, as it is hard to imagine Los Angeles making a serious postseason run without Betts wreaking havoc in the lineup.  The league leader in fWAR (7.9), Betts is hitting .314/.411/.609 with 38 homers over 610 plate appearances, and his ability to play second base and shortstop has been crucial for a Dodgers team that has been beset by middle-infield injuries since Spring Training.  Fortunately, it looks like Betts will be able to resume his dream season in short order, with an eye towards then helping the Dodgers capture another World Series championship. [UPDATE: Betts is in the Dodgers’ lineup today, leading off and playing second base.]

More from around the NL West…

  • The Diamondbacks had a pair of injury scares in yesterday’s 3-2 win over the Cubs, as Ketel Marte fouled a ball off his right knee and Jordan Lawlar was hit in the right hand with a pitch.  Marte’s knock occurred in the first inning and he remained in the game until the seventh, with postgame x-rays coming back negative.  Manager Torey Lovullo told reporters (including Theo Mackie of the Arizona Republic) that Marte might not miss any time as long as his knee didn’t have continued soreness overnight.  Lawlar’s HBP occurred in the 10th inning, so an update on his status won’t come until Lovullo meets with the media today.
  • A mid-back strain has kept Ross Stripling from any MLB action since August 16, but the Giants right-hander told Evan Webeck of the Bay Area News Group that he is healthy and ready to return from the injured list.  However, Stripling feels “in limbo” and like he’s on the “phantom IL” due to a roster crunch, according to his conversations with president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi and manager Gabe Kapler.  “It’s bad luck of the timing that I’m healthy and Farhan likes the roster that he has.  And I’m just sitting here healthy with nowhere to go,” Stripling said.  Juggling a number of arms on the pitching staff, San Francisco has used an opener-heavy strategy for the last couple of months, perhaps leaving Stripling without a clear role with everyone healthy.  Kapler said the Giants “actually have a pretty good plan in place to have [Stripling] back on the roster sooner rather than later,” but didn’t give any specifics about a timeline.  It could be that the team simply prefers its other pitching options, as Stripling has a 5.29 ERA over 78 1/3 innings while battling back problems for much of the season.
  • The Padres are “viewed as a strong candidate to sign” Jung Hoo Lee this winter, The Athletic’s Dennis Lin writes.  Lee has been posting excellent numbers over seven seasons in the KBO League, and only just turned 25 years old last month.  The outfielder’s 2023 season was prematurely ended due to ankle surgery, but Lee is still expected to be posted to MLB teams by the Kiwoom Heroes, his KBO club.  The Padres have traditionally been aggressive on the international market, and they might have an extra recruiting advantage since Ha-Seong Kim is a close friend of Lee’s and a former teammate with the Heroes.
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