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Brewers Sign Kolten Wong

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Kolten Wong is staying in the NL Central, but the longtime Cardinals second baseman will don a new jersey. The Brewers announced Friday that they’ve signed Wong to a two-year contract with a club option for a third season. The PSI Sports Management client will reportedly be guaranteed $18MM on the deal, and the club option would push the total to $26MM, if exercised.

Kolten Wong | Jeff Curry-USA TODAY Sports

Milwaukee is plenty familiar with Wong, 30, after he spent the past eight seasons with the Cardinals — mostly as their everyday second baseman. He hit the open market earlier this winter after the Cards declined a $12.5MM club option in favor of a $1.5MM buyout — a decision that surprised many of their fans. Wong had an up-and-down tenure with the Cardinals early in his career, but he’s been a mainstay in the lineup since late in the 2016 season.

Over the past four seasons, Wong has settled in as a roughly league-average offensive performer, with much of his offensive value coming through a keen eye at the plate. He’s a .273/.356/.398 hitter in that time and has added some value on the bases as well, swiping 43 bags in 56 tries (77 percent).

Where Wong truly shines, of course, is with the glove. He’s established himself as the game’s premier defender at his position, securing Gold Glove wins in each of the past two seasons and standing out as the runaway leader at second base in Defensive Runs Saved in recent years. In fact, over the past three years, Wong’s 41 Defensive Runs Saved are the fourth-most for any player at any position in all of Major League Baseball. Ultimate Zone Rating and Outs Above Average are similarly bullish on his glovework in that time.

With the Brewers, Wong will surely slot in as the everyday option at second base due to that defensive wizardry. That will displace Keston Hiura, but he’s more of an offensive-minded player with questions about his defense at second base anyhow (-13 DRS in 1085 career innings).

There’s been talk of getting Hiura some work at first base in the past, and a deal with Wong figures to push Hiura there on a a near-everyday basis. The Brewers don’t have a set option at first beyond journeyman Daniel Vogelbach, who hit well for them in a small sample of 2020 at-bats but was also designated for assignment by a pair of clubs prior to landing in Milwaukee. His grasp on the job wasn’t exactly strong, and he’ll now likely be used as a bench bat, spot starter at first base and designated hitter during interleague play.

Prior to signing Wong, Milwaukee projected to carry about an $85MM payroll, per Roster Resource’s Jason Martinez. Wong’s $9MM salary still won’t bring them to the $97MM they’d have opened with in 2020 (prior to prorating), and the Brewers’ payroll is still nearly $40MM shy of their 2018 payroll levels. With Jurickson Profar, Enrique Hernandez and Tommy La Stella all commanding $6.5MMM to $7MM annually on multi-year deals, it seems Wong was intent on setting himself apart from the pack in terms of annual value, which he managed to do on his new deal.

Serious talks between the two sides were first reported by Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic (Twitter link). MLB.com’s Jon Morosi reported that an agreement was in place, and Rosenthal then broke the terms of the deal.

KBO’s Kiwoom Heroes To Sign David Freitas

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The Kiwoom Heroes of the Korea Baseball Organization have agreed to a one-year contract with catcher/first baseman David Freitas, per Jee-ho Yoo of the Yonhap News Agency. Freitas, a client of PSI Sports Management, is guaranteed $550K on the deal and can earn another $50K via incentives. He was on the Brewers’ 40-man roster as of this morning, so Milwaukee seems likely to formally announce his release today. They’ll receive some compensation for granting him his release to facilitate the move and free up a spot on the 40-man roster.

Yoo points out that because the Heroes are largely set at catcher and first base, Freitas, who’ll be 32 in March, could DH for them in 2021 while serving as a backup option at both positions. That may sound odd for someone with a .200/.268/.288 batting line in the Majors, but that output has come in a tiny sample of 143 plate appearances and Freitas has clobbered Triple-A pitching in a much larger sample. In parts of seven seasons totaling 1086 plate appearances in Triple-A, Freitas has put together a .326/.403/.474 batting line — including a .381/.461/.561 slash in 382 plate appearances in 2019.

Depending on how things go in his first KBO season, Freitas could find himself with more promising opportunities back in North American ball, or he could position himself for a second contract and a raise overseas. The $550K guarantee on his deal is slightly less than the Major League minimum, but with Omar Narvaez, Manny Pina, Jacob Nottingham and Luke Maile all on the 40-man roster in Milwaukee, the out-of-options Freitas would’ve had a difficult time cracking the Opening Day roster as a Brewer.

Even if he’d landed elsewhere via waivers, there’s no guarantee he’d have stuck on the 26-man roster all season. Freitas has appeared in parts of three MLB seasons, after all (2017-19), and has just over one full year of big league service time under his belt. That $550K guarantee marks a sizable raise from the salary he’d have taken home had he spent the bulk of the upcoming season in Triple-A.

Three Teams Pursuing Rich Hill

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There are at least three teams making serious pushes to land southpaw Rich Hill, according to a report from WEEI.com’s Rob Bradford. The Rays, Brewers, and Mets are each in pursuit of the veteran hurler.

Hill is closing in on his 41st birthday, but still spun 38 2/3 innings of 3.03 ERA ball last year over eight starts with the Twins. There’s little question he’s deserving of an important role on a big league pitching staff, even if it’s unreasonable to expect he’ll turn in a full starter’s workload over the entirety of a 162-game season.

While the results were excellent, Hill did show some worrying signs in Minnesota (with the obligatory short-sample alert). He managed only a 31:17 K/BB ratio, far off of the sparkling strikeout and walk numbers he had routinely sported in prior years with the Dodgers. Hill also shed a few ticks off his fastball — not that he has ever been reliant upon overwhelming velocity.

It’s not surprising to see the Rays and Brewers in the hunt for Hill. Both teams have moved away from traditional pitcher usage patterns in recent seasons and would have little trouble scheming up ways to maximize Hill’s unique capabilities. The Mets do not fit in quite the same manner, but could plug the ageless southpaw into the back of their rotation mix and plan to get him regular respite from the typical five-day pitching schedule.

One team is notably absent from the set of reported pursuers: the Red Sox. Bradford notes that the Boston organization has seemingly backed away from its initial interest after making other additions. That’s likely a bit of a disappointment for Hill, who resides in Massachusetts and has made clear that geographical location is one of his chief concerns (along with the ability to compete for a title). For what it’s worth, the Mets are obviously nearby and the Rays play frequently in the northeast.

Free Agent Notes: Braun, Shreve, Kintzler, Marlins, Rondon

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The Brewers continue to remain in touch with Ryan Braun, but GM David Stearns told MLB.com’s Adam McCalvy (Twitter links) that there isn’t much new to report about the possibility of a reunion between the two sides.  Braun hit free agency for the first time in his career after the Brew Crew declined their half of a $14MM option on his services for 2021, on the heels of an injury-hampered season that saw Braun hit .233/.281/.488 over 141 plate appearances.

After starting 15 games as a designated hitter last season, it’s quite possible Braun’s chances of a return to Milwaukee could hinge on whether or not the universal DH is a part of the 2021 season.  Stearns gave no specifics on this front, other than to say that his team is making preparations to play either with or without a DH in the lineup.  While Braun is entering his age-37 season and doesn’t exactly fit the Brewers’ preferred model of multi-positional players, his 14-year tenure as the face of the franchise could create some room for a return — perhaps for just a final season, as Braun has weighed the idea of retirement but also said he wants to play another year.

More on the free agent front…

  • The Marlins have interest in left-hander Chasen Shreve, according to Barry Jackson and Craig Mish of the Miami Herald.  The Mets non-tendered Shreve following a season that saw the lefty post a 3.96 ERA and a very impressive 33.3K% over 25 innings, but Shreve also had a below-average 11.8% walk rate and he allowed four homers over his 25 frames.
  • Also from Jackson and Mish, there doesn’t appear to be any new progress between the Marlins and Brandon Kintzler, as the club still hasn’t made an offer to their former closer despite some ongoing interest in bringing Kintzler back.  Kintzler posted a 2.22 ERA and a 57.3% grounder rate over 24 1/3 innings for Miami last season, with the groundball specialist also posting his usual small strikeout totals (13.9K%).  The Marlins paid Kintzler a $225K buyout in October rather than exercise their $4MM club option on the veteran righty.
  • Hector Rondon signed a minor league deal with the Phillies earlier today, and The Athletic’s Zach Buchanan reports (via Twitter) that the Diamondbacks didn’t have interest in re-signing the right-hander.  Arizona signed Rondon last winter to a one-year contract worth $3MM in guaranteed money that included a club option for 2021, but after a disastrous 7.65 ERA over 20 innings, Rondon’s option wasn’t picked up.

Brewers Sign Blaine Hardy To Minor League Deal

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The Brewers announced Thursday that they’ve signed lefty Blaine Hardy to a minor league contract and invited him to Major League Spring Training. He’s represented by Only Baseball Players.

Hardy, 33, was with the Tigers from 2014-19 before inking a minor league deal with the Twins last winter. However, he sustained a torn ulnar collateral ligament early in camp with Minnesota and underwent Tommy John surgery in March. As such, he’s unlikely to be ready to pitch in camp with the Brewers, though he’ll report to their spring facility and continue his rehab there.

In 289 2/3 innings at the MLB level — most of it spent as a reliever — Hardy carries a solid 3.73 ERA with a less-optimistic 4.31 SIERA. The Tigers gave him the opportunity to stretch out as a starter in 2018, and while he had some success in that role in both the big leagues and Triple-A, he was eventually moved back to a bullpen setting after 13 starts.

Hardy has punched out 18.6 percent of the hitters he’s faced in the big leagues against an 8.3 percent walk rate. Lefties have hit him at a .232/.298/.412 clip, while righties carry a .271/.328/.407 clip against him. Hardy could give the Brewers some experienced depth in either the rotation or bullpen — possibly as a multi-inning option if the club is encouraged by his limited work in lengthier stints. If he makes it back to the big league roster, Hardy can be controlled through the 2022 season via arbitration.

Central News & Rumors: E. Rosario, A. Rosario, Rodon, Lester, Kuhl

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The Brewers have shown interest in free-agent outfielder Eddie Rosario, according to Robert Murray of Fansided. Rosario, on the open market since the Twins non-tendered him in December, stands out as one of the most accomplished free-agent hitters remaining. The 29-year-old is a three-time 20-home run hitter who belted another 13 during a shortened 2020 season, though it’s unclear where he would fit in Milwaukee. The Brewers already appear to have their starting outfield figured out with Christian Yelich and Avisail Garcia flanking Lorenzo Cain, but if the universal designated hitter sticks around in 2021, Rosario could play a big role there.

  • Indians shortstop Amed Rosario is garnering trade interest, Mike Puma of the New York Post tweets. Cleveland acquired Rosario from the Mets as part of the teams’ Francisco Lindor trade earlier this month, but as Puma notes, the Indians also picked up fellow shortstop Andres Gimenez in that deal. As such, New York may be open to moving Rosario, once a star prospect whose major league career hasn’t gone according to plan so far. The 25-year-old has batted .268/.302/.403 with 32 home runs and 50 stolen bases in 1,564 plate appearances since he debuted in 2017.
  • The Cubs will be in attendance for free-agent left-hander Carlos Rodon’s workout this week, Bruce Levine of 670 The Score writes. Rodon has spent his entire career thus far in Chicago, where he has pitched to a 4.14 ERA/4.32 SIERA with a 22.6 percent strikeout rate and a 9.6 percent walk rate in 536 2/3 innings as a member of the White Sox. Rodon looked like a solid mid-rotation type earlier in his career, but the 28-year-old has declined since 2018 because of shoulder troubles and Tommy John surgery. He became a free agent when the White Sox non-tendered him in December.
  • If signed, Rodon could help the Cubs replace veteran southpaw Jon Lester in their rotation. Lester officially joined the Nationals on Wednesday, when he revealed to Bob Nightengale of USA Today and other reporters that the Cubs did make a late push to re-sign him. The details on the Cubs’ offer aren’t known, but the Nationals brought him in on a one-year, $5MM guarantee. Lester signed a six-year, $155MM deal with the Cubs before 2015, and he and the team enjoyed great success during that contract.
  • It’s a matter of when, not if, the Pirates will trade righty Chad Kuhl, per Stephen J. Nesbitt of The Athletic. Kuhl had a middling 2020 campaign after missing all of the prior season while recovering from Tommy John surgery, as he logged a 4.27 ERA/5.29 SIERA and recorded a 22.3 percent strikeout rate against an unappealing 14.2 percent walk rate in 46 1/3 innings. He has two years of control left and will earn $2.13MM in 2021.

Brewers Among Teams Showing Interest In Justin Turner

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Yesterday we learned that free agent Justin Turner had a final four teams he was considering for 2021. The Dodgers and Blue Jays have long been known as interested parties, but now we can add the Brewers as the third team looking to woo Turner, per Jon Heyman of the MLB Network. Turner wants a four-year deal, but that seems unlikely for the 36-year-old. The Dodgers hope to bring him back for two, but if another team is willing to go to three years for the GEM Agency client, that could be enough to pry Turner from LA. Whether the Blue Jays, Brewers, or the final mystery team are willing to make that kind of commitment to Turner is TBD.

The Brewers are an interesting entrant into the Turner sweepstakes. They have about $25MM before hitting their luxury tax payroll from 2020, so there’s room for a splashy addition if the Brewers are going to maintain their payroll. That’s a big “if,” however. The Brewers have been largely inactive thus far, however, with their only Major League contract going to infielder Daniel Robertson, who figures to play a reserve role for Milwaukee.

The Brewers have a host of young, promising, but unproven infield contributors who could move around the diamond to accommodate Turner.  Keston Hiura demands a lineup spot, and he’ll probably play the keystone, while Luis Urias and Orlando Arcia are their other likely starters. Arcia has had more than enough time to establish himself, and outside of some postseason and big-game heroics, he hasn’t done enough to guarantee his starting spot. A career slash line of .244/.295/.366, with a roughly-average 20.1 percent strikeout rate, and below-average 6.6 percent walk rate definitely leaves room for improvement. Turner’s 130 wRC+, for instance, would give the Brewers’ lineup quite the boost from Arcia’s 71 wRC+ career mark.

Twins, Brewers Have Talked With Marcus Semien

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Two new teams can be added to the list of potential Marcus Semien suitors, as SKOR North’s Darren Wolfson reports (Twitter link) that the Twins and Brewers have each spoken with representatives for the free agent shortstop.  While Semien might not necessarily join one of those two clubs, Wolfson writes that there is some sense that Semien is “moving closer to a decision.”

Minnesota has been speculatively linked to Semien for months, considering that the Twins have been known to be monitoring the middle infield market as part of their rather broad range of free agent considerations.  MLBTR’s Steve Adams wrote back in September that acquiring a new everyday shortstop or second baseman would allow Minnesota to shift either Jorge Polanco or Luis Arraez into super-utility duty, thus effectively filling Marwin Gonzalez’s old role as a Swiss Army knife off the bench.

Or, it isn’t out of the question that Semien could find himself playing elsewhere than shortstop, if the Twins were one of the teams considering him at other infield positions.  It’s probably safe to assume that Semien would get the bulk of the action at shortstop in Minnesota, but if he was open to playing some second base (or even third base, to occasionally spell Josh Donaldson), it would further increase manager Rocco Baldelli’s flexibility in regards to lineup construction and in-game maneuvering.

J.A. Happ and Hansel Robles have been added on the pitching side, but the Twins have yet to make a significant position player move this winter.  There isn’t yet any news on the Nelson Cruz front, and Minnesota already said goodbye to a notable power bat when Eddie Rosario was non-tendered (though the team hopes that top prospect Alex Kirilloff can immediately step in to fill Rosario’s shoes).  Before salaries were reduced last season, the Twins had a non-prorated $132MM payroll projected for 2020 and currently have a little over $100MM committed for the 2021 roster, so there is theoretically room to add at least one more big salary while still not approaching their 2020 spending.

Signing Semien would perhaps be an even more interesting move from the Brewers’ perspective, and it would mark the first big-ticket addition of the offseason within an NL Central that has collectively seemed more focused on cutting payroll than planning to contend.  It could be that the division’s general inactivity has given Milwaukee some inspiration in making a move that could separate the team in the playoff race, even if it means stretching the budget to some extent.  Granted, there was considerable debate over what Semien’s next contract would look like even in the early days of the offseason, and as we approach February, it’s possible Semien’s asking price has dipped into the Brewers’ range.  Milwaukee had a pre-proration payroll of just under $97.5MM in 2020 and are just shy of $85MM in projected payroll for 2021 thanks to some notable contracts (including Ryan Braun) coming off the books.

Semien would immediately solidify a rather uncertain left side of the Milwaukee infield, as Orlando Arcia and Luis Urias are respectively slated as the starting shortstop and third baseman.  Daniel Robertson and Jace Peterson have also been added this winter as backup infield options.  Similar to the aforementioned scenario with Semien and the Twins, Semien would likely mostly play shortstop in Milwaukee but perhaps also get some work at other infield spots to stay in the lineup every day while the Brew Crew juggles their other players in and out of the lineup.

Free Agent Notes: Ozuna, Semien, Simmons, Miller, Moreland, Richards

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The latest buzz from the free agent market…

  • The Dodgers, Brewers, Yankees, and Red Sox are among the teams interested in Marcell Ozuna, according to Hector Gomez of Deportivo Z 101 (via Twitter).  These four clubs are new additions to Ozuna’s market, while the Twins and Mets (also mentioned by Gomez) were linked to the slugger earlier this winter.  Ozuna is looking for at least a four-year contract, Gomez writes.  While financial demands weren’t mentioned, it can be assumed that Ozuna is looking for enough money to put the Dodgers and Yankees well over the $210MM luxury tax threshold, so it’s possible their interest is somewhat limited.  Such a signing would also put Boston close to the threshold, and while the Brewers are nowhere near the tax line, it would represent a very bold move by a Milwaukee team that wasn’t expected to spend much this winter.  It has been a relatively quiet offseason for Ozuna on the rumor mill, as his market may be dependent on whether or not the NL has a designated hitter spot available in 2021 and beyond.
  • Didi Gregorius, Marcus Semien, and Andrelton Simmons “are viewed within the industry as similar enough that no team is compelled to set the market with a contract,” according to Matt Gelb and C. Trent Rosecrans of The Athletic,  This has created a lot of uncertainty about when any of the shortstop trio might sign, what their next deals might be worth, or what teams will eventually make the leap.  Gelb and Rosecrans discussed the three shortstops with nine  evaluators, who broke down the pros and cons of each player and ranked them 1-2-3 on a ballot.
  • In other news about the shortstops, the Red Sox are likely no longer a fit for Semien now that Enrique Hernandez is heading to Boston.  The Sox were reported to have interest in Semien as a second baseman, but MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo (Twitter links) hears from a source who believes “Semien still wants to sign as a shortstop,” despite interest from teams at other infield positions.  Boston is still looking to add a left-handed hitter to the bench mix, with Cotillo reporting that Brad Miller and Mitch Moreland are possibilities.
  • The Blue Jays were known to have interest in Simmons back in November and in the leadup to the trade deadline, and MLB Network’s Jon Heyman tweets that Simmons is still on Toronto’s radar.
  • Garrett Richards is one player who seems to no longer to be under consideration for the Blue Jays, as Cotillo reports that the Jays aren’t one of the teams still looking to sign the free agent righty.  “At least other teams” besides the Red Sox are still vying for Richards, Cotillo writes, though Boston seems to be relatively far along in discussions with Richards’ camp.

Players Avoiding Arbitration: 1/15/21

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The deadline to exchange arbitration figures is today at 1pm ET. As of this morning, there were 125 arbitration-eligible players who’d yet to agree to terms on their contract for the upcoming 2021 season. Arbitration is muddier than ever before thanks to the shortened 2020 schedule, which most believe will lead to record number of arb hearings this winter. Be that as it may, it’s still reasonable to expect dozens of contractual agreements to filter in over the next couple of hours.

We’ll highlight some of the more high-profile cases in separate posts with more in-depth breakdowns, but the majority of today’s dealings will be smaller-scale increases that don’t radically alter a team’s payroll or a player’s trade candidacy. As such, we’ll just run through most of today’s agreements in this post.

I’ve embedded MLBTR’s 2021 Arbitration Tracker in the post (those in the mobile app or viewing on mobile web will want to turn their phones sideways). Our tracker can be sorted by team, by service time and/or by Super Two status, allowing users to check the status on whichever groups of players they like. You can also check out Matt Swartz’s projected arbitration salaries for this year’s class, and we’ll do a quick sentence on each player’s agreement at the bottom of this post as well, with the most recent agreements sitting atop the list.

Today’s Agreements (chronologically, newest to oldest)

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