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NL Notes: Schuerholz, Braves, Astros, Mets, Dodgers

By Mark Polishuk and Drew Silva | January 29, 2023 at 5:50pm CDT

Before the Astros hired Dana Brown as their new general manager, the team also interviewed one of Brown’s co-workers from the Braves front office in special assistant of scouting operations Jonathan Schuerholz, USA Today’s Bob Nightengale reports.  Schuerholz played six seasons in Atlanta’s minor league system (from 2002-07) before moving into a minor league instructor role for the next seven seasons, and then in front office since October 2014 in assistant director roles in the player development and scouting departments.

Houston’s search involved candidates with several differing levels of experience, ranging from at least one former MLB general manager in Bobby Evans to a former manager in Brad Ausmus, who has mostly worked in on-field roles apart from brief stints as a special assistant in the front office with the Angels and Padres.  (Brown was the Braves’ VP of scouting, a role that won’t be filled since Nightengale writes that the team specifically tailored the job to Brown himself.)  Schuerholz was one of the younger known candidates at age 42, though he comes from a noteworthy lineage — Schuerholz’s father John is a Hall-of-Fame executive known for his success in building World Series winners in Atlanta and Kansas City.  The younger Schuerholz could well be a name to watch in future years as teams look to fill GM/president of baseball operations vacancies.

More from around the National League…

  • With the Mets signing Justin Verlander, Kodai Senga, and Jose Quintana to fill their rotation holes this winter, in-house names like David Peterson and Tylor Megill were pushed down the depth chart, and might not even be on New York’s active roster to begin the season.  “If those guys start the year in Triple-A, we have two guys that probably deserve to be in the big leagues just from their past performance and their stuff,” Mets pitching coach Jeremy Hefner told Mike Puma of the New York Post.  That said, Hefner noted the unlikelihood of the Mets’ top five starters getting through the season in perfect health, so the team will keep Peterson and Megill stretched out and “readily available” to step into the rotation if a need arises.  If they are on the big league roster, Peterson and Megill could work out of the bullpen in the interim, and Hefner said the Mets haven’t yet decided on whether Joey Lucchesi will also be used as a reliever or might be stretched out in the minors as starter depth.  Lucchesi underwent Tommy John surgery midway through the 2021 season and didn’t pitch at all last year as he continued to rehab.
  • The Dodgers’ multi-positional players give the club some flexibility, but president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman said in an interview today on MLB Network Radio on SiriusXM that he currently views the regular lineup with Max Muncy at third base, Gavin Lux at shortstop, Miguel Vargas at second base and Chris Taylor in the outfield.  Miguel Rojas, acquired via trade from the Marlins earlier this month, is being thought of as more of a utility option, offering sound defense in reserve.  Vargas made his MLB debut last season and didn’t actually see any action at second base over his first 18 big league games, plus he played far more third base than second base in the minors.  Still, the Dodgers clearly think highly of the top prospect’s potential, and Vargas’ .304/.404/.511 slash line in 520 plate appearances at Triple-A indicate that he is ready for a longer look in the Show.
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Atlanta Braves Houston Astros Los Angeles Dodgers New York Mets Notes David Peterson Joey Lucchesi Miguel Vargas Tylor Megill

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Dodgers Agree To Minor League Deals With Jordan Yamamoto, Dylan Covey

By Steve Adams | January 27, 2023 at 10:46am CDT

The Dodgers have agreed to minor league contract with right-handers Jordan Yamamoto and Dylan Covey. Yamamoto announced his own deal with the Dodgers on Instagram yesterday. Taiwan’s United Daily News first reported that Covey, who spent 2021-22 pitching for the Rakuten Monkeys in Taiwan’s CPBL, was signing with the Dodgers (hat tip: CPBL Stats, on Twitter).

Yamamoto, 26, was one of the four players who went from Milwaukee to Miami in the Christian Yelich blockbuster several years ago. He turned in a solid debut effort with Miami in 2019, pitching to a 4.46 ERA with a strong 25.2% strikeout rate against a rough 11.1% walk rate through 15 starts — a total of 78 2/3 innings. That looked to set the stage for Yamamoto to be a contributor on the Miami staff for the foreseeable future, but the righty was blasted for 23 runs in just 11 1/3 innings during the shortened 2020 season.

That nightmarish 2020 season was perhaps impacted by some health troubles. Yamamoto’s 2019 season ended with an IL placement due to a forearm strain, and his velocity in 2020 was down more than 1.5 mph from its 2019 levels. He was traded to the Mets in the 2020-21 offseason but pitched in just 6 2/3 Major League innings for New York in 2021, as a right shoulder injury shelved him for much of the season. Overall, Yamamoto has a 6.05 ERA in 96 2/3 big league innings, although that’s skewed heavily by the 2020 season. Subtract those 11 1/3 innings, and Yamamoto is at a much more palatable 4.43 ERA in 85 1/3 frames.

Covey, 31, has pitched in parts of four big league seasons, logging time with the White Sox each year from 2017-19 and with the Red Sox in 2020. He’s been tagged for a dismal 6.57 ERA in that time, but he has a strong track record both in Triple-A (2.63 ERA, 95 2/3 innings) and in the Chinese Professional Baseball League, where he tallied 198 1/3 innings of 3.63 ERA ball while pitching for the Monkeys.

The Dodgers already have a deep rotation mix with Clayton Kershaw, Julio Urias, Tony Gonsolin, Dustin May and Noah Syndergaard locked into big league spots (and Walker Buehler rehabbing from Tommy John surgery). That’s not counting top pitching prospects Bobby Miller, Ryan Pepiot and Gavin Stone, each of whom could factor into the plan as soon as this season. Righties Michael Grove and Andre Jackson, both on the 40-man roster, represent further depth options. Both Yamamoto and Covey will add some experience to that group.

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Los Angeles Dodgers Transactions Dylan Covey Jordan Yamamoto

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Dodgers Sign Wander Suero To Minor League Deal

By Anthony Franco | January 26, 2023 at 12:04pm CDT

The Dodgers have signed reliever Wander Suero to a minor league deal, as relayed by Chris Hilburn-Trenkle of Baseball America. Pitcher Kevin Gowdy and catcher Hamlet Marte have also signed non-roster pacts with L.A.

Suero, 31, is the only member of that group with big league experience. The righty was a durable middle innings option for the Nationals between 2018-21. He pitched in 185 games over that stretch, tallying 185 1/3 innings of 4.61 ERA ball. While a bloated 6.33 mark during his final season inflated his overall numbers, Suero was a roughly league average reliever for his first three years.

Between 2018-20, the Dominican-born hurler put together a 4.10 ERA in 140 appearances. He struck out 26.1% of batters faced against a manageable 8.5% walk percentage, holding opposing hitters to a .239/.315/.365 line. Suero contributed 71 1/3 regular season innings to Washington’s World Series team in 2019, logging four postseason appearances that year.

Things went off the rails in 2021. Suero’s strikeout rate dipped from the 27-28% range to 23.2%. His whiff rate also dropped a couple percentage points. Most alarming was a massive spike in home runs, as he allowed 11 longballs in 42 2/3 frames. That rate of 2.32 homers per nine innings was well north of his previous career-high mark of 0.76 HR/9. That led Washington to non-tender him at the end of the season.

Suero latched on with the Angels on a minor league contract for 2022. He made 20 appearances for their top affiliate in Salt Lake, struggling to a 6.08 ERA with just a 13.4% strikeout percentage. The Halos released him in July. Suero made seven appearances in the Mexican League to finish the season, and he’s pitched seven more times in Dominican Winter League action over the offseason. He allowed two runs in 6 2/3 innings in winter ball but only struck out two of 28 opponents.

Gowdy is a 25-year-old righty who went 42nd overall to the Phillies in the 2016 draft. The Phils paid an overslot $3.5MM bonus to buy him out of a UCLA commitment out of high school. That didn’t pan out, as Gowdy missed two seasons recovering from Tommy John surgery and didn’t advance past High-A in the Philadelphia system. The Rangers acquired him as part of the Kyle Gibson/Ian Kennedy deadline deal in 2021. Gowdy spent last season working out of the bullpen at Double-A Frisco, where he was tattooed for a 9.90 ERA with nearly as many walks as strikeouts in 40 innings. He hit minor league free agency at year’s end and will try to earn an MLB look in the third organization of his professional career.

Marte, 29 next month, is a minor league journeyman. He’s played parts of 11 pro seasons for three organizations, hitting .259/.327/.409. He’s spent the past two seasons in the upper levels of the Dodgers’ system but has only played in 52 combined games. He’ll likely head to Triple-A Oklahoma City as a depth catcher.

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Los Angeles Dodgers Transactions Kevin Gowdy Wander Suero

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Read The Transcript Of Our Chat Hosted By Former MLB Pitcher Cory Wade

By Tim Dierkes | January 26, 2023 at 9:58am CDT

Righty Cory Wade was drafted by the Dodgers in the 10th round in 2004 out of Kentucky Wesleyan College “after setting the career record for strikeouts at Indianapolis’ Broad Ripple High,” according to Baseball America.  He broke into the Majors in late April of 2008 as a 24-year-old, tossing a scoreless inning against the Diamondbacks at Dodger Stadium.

As Wade’s stellar rookie season continued, he gained the trust of manager Joe Torre.  He finished the regular season with a 2.27 ERA in 71 1/3 innings, ranking third among all relievers.  Wade was a key part of the Dodgers’ NLDS sweep of the Cubs in ’08, pitching well out of L.A.’s bullpen in all three games.

Unfortunately, Wade’s Dodgers career was derailed by shoulder surgery.  He battled to get back to the Majors, opting out of a minor league deal with the Rays in the summer of 2011 and signing with the Yankees.  Wade jumped straight into the Yankees’ big league bullpen on June 15th, posting a 2.04 ERA on the season that was bested by only a handful of AL relievers, including pen-mates Mariano Rivera and David Robertson.  Under manager Joe Girardi, Wade once again found himself getting crucial postseason innings, putting up two scoreless against the Tigers in the second game of the ALDS.

Wade moved around after his time with the Yankees, pitching in Triple-A for the Rays, Cubs, Mets, and Royals organizations.  After retiring from pitching, Wade spent nine years as a pro scout for the Padres.  He recently left that job to help start a sports scouting app called ScoutUs Pro.

Despite an average fastball velocity shy of 90 miles per hour, Wade showed impeccable control and wound up as one of the league’s better relievers in his work with both the ’08 Dodgers and ’11 Yankees.  His strikeout victims included Chipper Jones, Bobby Abreu, and Todd Helton.

Cory answered questions from MLBTR readers for over an hour today, touching on topics such as modern baseball analytics, scouting, bouncing back from injuries, and much more.  Check out the transcript here!

If you’re a current or former MLB player and you’d like to host an hour-long chat with our readers, contact us here!  It’s easy and fun!

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Los Angeles Dodgers MLBTR Player Chats New York Yankees San Diego Padres Cory Wade

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Dodgers To Sign Tyler Cyr To Minor League Deal

By Simon Hampton | January 21, 2023 at 12:20pm CDT

The Dodgers have agreed to a deal to sign right hander Tyler Cyr, according to Robert Murray of Fansided. It’ll be a minor league deal and comes with an invite to big league spring training, per Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic.

Cyr, 30 in May, split time last season between the Phillies and A’s. He put up promising numbers in Oakland in a short sample size, tossing 13 innings of 2.08 ERA ball in relief. Those numbers came with a quality 30.8% strikeout rate alongside a 9.6% walk rate. He also made one appearances for the Phillies, giving up a home run in 1/3 of an inning of work.

Cyr was drafted by the Giants in the tenth round of the 2015 draft. He had some solid numbers coming up as a reliever in San Francisco’s system, but never got a crack in the big leagues and was granted minor league free agency at the end of the 2021 season. The Phillies gave him a minor league deal, and he worked to a 2.50 ERA in 36 innings of work for their Triple-A affiliate, earning his first big league callup. His time with the Phillies was short lived, and he was DFA’d after that three batter stint.

Oakland landed him on waivers and he put in a strong finish to the season. Oakland designated him for assignment when they made the signing of Shintaro Fujinami official. While the numbers during his time in Oakland were promising, control is an issue, and the 9.1% walk rate he displayed in the big leagues this year was the first time it’d been a single digit figure since Double-A in 2017.

Cyr throws a mid-90s fastball and mixes in a cutter and changeup. He still has a full slate of options and under one year of service time, so it wouldn’t be a surprise to see the Dodgers call on Cyr at some point in 2023 given the inevitable churn of relief pitching over a long season.

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Los Angeles Dodgers Transactions Tyler Cyr

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Dodgers To Hire Chris Woodward As Special Assistant In Front Office

By Anthony Franco | January 20, 2023 at 6:27pm CDT

The Dodgers are hiring former Rangers manager Chris Woodward as a special assistant in their front office, reports Jack Harris of the Los Angeles Times (Twitter link). He returns to the Los Angeles organization, where he spent three years as a member of Dave Roberts’ coaching staff before landing the top dugout job in Arlington.

Woodward, 46, played parts of 12 MLB seasons as a depth infielder. After retiring in 2012, he transitioned into his post-playing career. Woodward joined the Mariners as a minor league infield coordinator and was promoted to the big league coaching staff the next season. He spent two years on staff in Seattle before joining the Dodgers as third base coach over the 2015-16 offseason.

That experience set the stage for Woodward to receive a fair bit of managerial attention. He was mentioned as part of the Yankees’ search that went to Aaron Boone and the Blue Jays’ process that eventually led to Charlie Montoyo. Woodward landed the top gig for the first time during the 2018-19 offseason, tabbed to lead a rebuilding Rangers club on a three-year contract.

Texas signed him to an extension after two seasons, guaranteeing his contract through 2023. That was the opening move of an active offseason for the Rangers, one they hoped would result in a notable step forward in the on-field results. Full-fledged contention in 2022 wasn’t likely, but Texas brass surely anticipated laying the foundation for a postseason-caliber team by 2023.

That didn’t pan out. With the club carrying a 51-63 record in the middle of August, the Rangers fired Woodward. President of baseball operations Jon Daniels was himself dismissed not long thereafter. Texas turned to Tony Beasley as skipper on an interim basis for the stretch run and hired Bruce Bochy to permanently lead the charge this offseason. The Rangers went 211-287 over Woodward’s tenure, though they anticipated a fair number of losses early on.

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Los Angeles Dodgers Chris Woodward

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Details On 2022 Team Payrolls

By Anthony Franco | January 18, 2023 at 9:10pm CDT

The Mets had the sport’s highest competitive balance tax payroll in 2022, reports Ronald Blum of the Associated Press. For CBT purposes, New York’s final tally checked in at $299.8MM. According to the report, that was around $2MM higher than the 2015 Dodgers’ $297.9MM mark that had stood as the previous spending record.

New York is responsible for a $30.8MM tax bill, the second-largest tally in the majors, after paying the tax for the first time in franchise history. The Dodgers will foot the highest tax payment at $32.4MM, Blum writes. While Los Angeles’ $293.3MM CBT payroll trailed that of the Mets, the Dodgers were subject to higher penalties as a payor for a second consecutive season.

The Mets are sure to shatter their own record this coming season, as they’re currently projected for a tax number north of $368MM. The Dodgers have trimmed spending, reportedly in hopes of resetting their tax status this year in preparation for a more active offseason next winter. They’re narrowly above the lowest CBT threshold at the moment. Roster Resource forecasts the Dodgers at approximately $238MM, around $5MM north of this year’s $233MM base threshold.

As the Associated Press first reported last September, six teams went over the CBT mark in 2022. Blum reports today the specifics of the payments owed by the Yankees ($9.7MM), Phillies ($2.9MM), Padres ($1.5MM as a second-time payor) and Red Sox ($1.2MM). The final three figures, in particular, are very modest expenditures relative to club payrolls. Nevertheless, the decision to narrowly surpass the threshold is significant in that it raises penalties for payments in future seasons and alters teams’ compensation for signing or losing qualified free agents. The Padres and Phillies surely don’t have regrets after each posted one of the best years in recent franchise history, but the decision didn’t translate to success in the Red Sox’s case. Blum writes that the tax money will be paid to MLB by the end of this week.

A team’s CBT number is determined by the average annual value of a club’s commitments plus player benefits and their contributions to the new bonus pool for pre-arbitration players. The CBT figure isn’t a match for an organization’s actual player payroll in a given season. Blum reports each club’s final raw payroll figure as well, with the Mets again fronting the pack at roughly $274.9MM. The Dodgers, Yankees, Phillies, Padres, Red Sox, White Sox, Braves, Astros and Blue Jays filled out the top ten.

On the other side, the A’s had the lowest payroll at approximately $49MM. The bottom 10 was rounded out by the Orioles, Pirates, Guardians, Marlins, Royals, Rays, D-Backs, Reds and Mariners. Full team data is available at the AP link.

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Boston Red Sox Los Angeles Dodgers New York Mets New York Yankees Philadelphia Phillies San Diego Padres

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Post-Tommy John Players That Could Impact 2023

By Darragh McDonald | January 17, 2023 at 11:59pm CDT

News items about Tommy John surgeries are fairly commonplace in baseball circles, but there’s no doubting it’s a significant event for the impacted player. It usually takes over a year to return to form, with a multi-stage rehabilitation process required to regain functionality.

Once a player gets back into game shape, there’s no guarantee the results will be the same. Justin Verlander looked just as good as ever in 2022, but Mike Clevinger didn’t get his velocity all the way back and saw his strikeout rate dip. He could still take another step forward in 2023 now that he’s another year removed from the procedure, but it goes to show that there are no guarantees about what happens in the aftermath.

Here are some players who went under the knife over the past year or so and who will be looking for good progress in 2023, both for their teams and themselves. Huge shoutout to the Tommy John Surgery list for having these details and so much more.

Forrest Whitley, Astros — Surgery Date: March 2021

Whitley, 25, was once considered one of the best pitching prospects in baseball, but his progress has been stalled by various factors. He missed 50 games in 2018 due to a drug suspension, and injuries have hampered him in the years since. He returned from his layoff late last year and tossed 40 innings in the minors but walked 14.5% of batters faced. The Astros already have a great rotation without him, but if Whitley could get back to the form that made him such a hyped prospect, they would be even more loaded.

Kirby Yates, Braves — March 2021

Yates, 36 in March, was one of the best relievers in the league in 2018 and 2019, arguably the best. He posted a 1.67 ERA over 125 games, striking out 38.7% of batters faced, walking just 6.1% of them and getting grounders on 45.2% of balls in play. Since then, however, he’s thrown just 11 1/3 innings. Seven of those came late in the 2022  season, though Yates gave up four runs on six hits and five walks in seven innings. This will be his first full season back. The Braves have a strong bullpen even if Yates can’t get back to peak form, but they’ll likely be in a tight division race and that kind of elite stuff would provide a nice boost.

José Leclerc and Jonathan Hernández, Rangers — March and April 2021, respectively

Leclerc, 29, seemed to be establishing himself as an excellent reliever in 2018. He got into 59 games for the Rangers and posted a 1.56 ERA, getting 12 saves and 15 holds in the process. A .211 BABIP surely helped, but there was a lot to like. He took a step back in 2019 with a 4.33 ERA and then missed most of the following two years. Leclerc returned in June of last year and struggled at first before posting a 2.01 ERA from July onwards. Hernández had a 2.90 ERA in 2020 before missing the 2021 campaign. He returned last year and posted a 2.97 ERA, but with concerning peripherals. His 6.4% walk rate from the former campaign jumped to 13% while his strikeout rate fell from 24.8% to 20.6%. On the more encouraging side, his ground ball rate went from 45.7% to 62.4%. The Rangers totally overhauled their rotation without doing much to the bullpen, but they could potentially get a boost from within if Leclerc and/or Hernández look good this year.

Adrián Morejón, Padres — April 2021

Once considered a top pitching prospect, Morejón, 24 next month, has been slowed by various injuries. He returned in 2022 but worked only in relief, tossing 34 innings in the majors and 13 1/3 in the minors. The Padres have some uncertainty in the back of their rotation that Morejón could help with if he stays healthy, but he’ll likely have workload concerns after so much missed time.

James Paxton, Red Sox — April 2021

Paxton, 34, had a great four-year run with the Mariners and Yankees from 2016 to 2019. However, he’s hardly pitched over the last three years due to various arm issues. He got back on the mound last summer while attempting to come back from Tommy John but then suffered a lat tear that halted his comeback effort. The Red Sox then had the choice to trigger a two-year option on the lefty worth $26MM, which they turned down based on his uncertain health outlook. He then had a $4MM player option that he triggered and will be with the Sox for 2023. He and Chris Sale would have made for a formidable one-two punch at the top of a rotation a few years ago, but neither has been healthy and effective for quite some time. Their status this year figures to have a huge impact on the fortunes of the Sox for the upcoming campaign.

Dustin May, Dodgers — May 2021

May, 25, returned late last year and was able to make six starts for the Dodgers. He posted a 4.50 ERA in that time and struck out 22.8% of batters faced, with both of those numbers paling in comparison to his pre-surgery form. The Dodgers let Tyler Anderson and Andrew Heaney depart from their 2022 rotation, while bringing in Noah Syndergaard. The quiet offseason will be easier to accept if May can post results like he did over 2019-2021: 2.93 ERA, 24.2% strikeout rate, 5.9% walk rate, 51.6% ground ball rate.

Joey Lucchesi, Mets — June 2021

Lucchesi, 30 in June, made 56 starts for the Padres in 2018 and 2019 with a 4.14 ERA. He didn’t get much of an opportunity in 2020 and was flipped to the Mets as part of the Joe Musgrove trade. He isn’t one of the club’s five best starters right now, but their rotation features four veterans who are 34 or older in Verlander, Max Scherzer, Carlos Carrasco and José Quintana. Also, Kodai Senga is making the transition from Japan, where starters frequently only pitch once a week. The club will surely need to rely on its depth this year at some point, making Lucchesi a key part of the equation.

Spencer Turnbull, Tigers — July 2021

Turnbull, 30, was seeming to make progress towards being a quality starter for the Tigers. He posted a 4.61 ERA in 2019 but got that down to 3.97 in 2020. He pushed it down even more in 2021, registering a 2.88 ERA over nine starts before getting shut down and requiring surgery. The Tigers seem likely to be without Casey Mize and Tarik Skubal to start the year as those pitchers deal with their own injuries. That could leave a path for Turnbull to get back on track.

Tyler Glasnow, Rays — August 2021

Glasnow, 29, didn’t live up to expectations with the Pirates but made good on his prospect pedigree after getting traded to the Rays. From 2019 to 2021, he had a 2.80 ERA while striking out 35.9% of batters faced and walking just 7.8% of them. Tommy John surgery put him out of action for a while but he was able to return late last year, making two starts in the regular season and one in the postseason. Glasnow has looked like an ace at times but still hasn’t maintained it over an extended stretch, still never reaching 115 innings in a major league season. The Rays have been fairly quiet this winter, but a healthy Glasnow is arguably a bigger upgrade to their roster than any move they could have made.

Tejay Antone, Reds — August 2021

Antone, 29, debuted in 2020 and was excellent out of the Reds’ bullpen. Over that year and 2021, he tossed 69 innings with a 2.48 ERA, 32.3% strikeout rate and 48% ground ball rate. The walks were a little high at 10.8% but he was still able to be incredibly effective regardless. He isn’t slated to reach free agency until after 2025, but the rebuilding Reds might have to consider a deadline deal if Antone is healthy and pitching well this summer.

Garrett Crochet, White Sox — April 2022

Crochet, 24 in June, was selected 11th overall in the 2020 draft and made his MLB debut later that year. Between his five appearances in 2020 and 54 more the following year, he has a 2.54 ERA and 29% strikeout rate. He’ll likely miss at least part of the upcoming campaign but the club is planning on keeping him in a relief role, which could help him return quicker.

Luke Jackson, Giants — April 2022

Jackson, 31, had a huge breakout with the Braves in 2021. He tossed 63 2/3 innings with a 1.98 ERA, striking out 26.8% of batters faced while getting grounders at a healthy 52.5% clip. He wasn’t as effective in the playoffs but nonetheless was part of the club’s World Series victory that year. He reached free agency and signed with the Giants, who are taking a shot on a return to form, though Jackson might miss the first couple of months of the 2023 season.

John Means, Orioles — April 2022

Means, 30 in April, was one of the few highlights for the Orioles during their leanest rebuilding years. He has a 3.81 ERA in 356 2/3 career innings, keeping his walks down to an excellent 5% rate. The Orioles took a huge step forward last year, graduating many of their top prospects and actually flirting with postseason contention. They’ll be looking to make more progress this year, but the rotation is still lacking in proven options. Getting Means back into the mix would be a big help if some of the younger guys struggle.

Chris Paddack, Twins — May 2022

Paddack, 27, had a great debut with the Padres in 2019, making 26 starts with a 3.33 ERA. His results fell off in the next two seasons, and he dealt with an elbow strain late in the 2021 season, but the Twins still liked him enough to acquire him as part of their return for Taylor Rogers. He was only able to make five starts before landing on the shelf. Their faith doesn’t seem to have wavered, as they recently signed him to a three-year extension. The Twins have a solid rotation on paper, but nearly the entire group landed on the injured list at some point in 2022. Kenta Maeda missed the whole season while rehabbing from an internal brace procedure, a modification of Tommy John surgery. Since injuries were the big story for the Twins in 2022, better health and/or better depth will be important in 2023.

Chad Green, Free Agent — June 2022

Green, 32 in May, spent the past seven seasons pitching for the Yankees. He tossed 383 2/3 innings in that time with a 3.17 ERA, striking out 32.5% of batters faced against a 6.3% walk rate. Unfortunately, he required Tommy John just a few months away from qualifying for free agency. He has yet to sign with a club, but players in this position often sign two-year deals that cover their rehab and give the team an extra year of control. If Green can find himself a deal like that, he could be a wild card down the stretch.

Casey Mize, Tigers — June 2022

Mize, 26 in May, was selected first overall by the Tigers in 2018. He posted a solid 3.71 ERA in 2021, but with disappointing underlying metrics. He only struck out 19.3% of batters faced and had a much higher 4.92 xERA, 4.71 FIP and 4.45 SIERA. After a dreadful 2022 season, the Tigers need to see how Turnbull, Mize, Skubal and Manning look this year before deciding how to proceed for the future.

Hyun Jin Ryu, Blue Jays — June 2022

Ryu, 36 in March, has oscillated between being injured and dominant for much of his career. He signed a four-year deal with the Blue Jays prior to 2020 and posted a 2.69 ERA that year, coming in third in the AL Cy Young voting. His ERA ticked up to 4.37 in 2021, and Ryu struggled even more last year before going under the knife. The Jays have a solid front four in their rotation but uncertainty at the back. Ryu is targeting a July return, and his health at that time could impact how the Jays approach the trade deadline.

Andrew Kittredge, Rays — June 2022

Kittredge, 33 in March, dominated in 2021 by posting a 1.88 ERA over 71 2/3 innings. He struck out 27.3% of batters he faced while walking just 5.3% of them and also got grounders on 53.5% of balls in play. He took a step back last year but made multiple trips to the injured list and likely wasn’t 100%. He’ll surely miss the first several months of the season but could jump into Tampa’s bullpen down the stretch.

Walker Buehler, Dodgers — August 2022

Buehler, 28, has an excellent track record for the Dodgers, having posted a 3.02 ERA in 638 1/3 innings. He’s struck out 27% of opponents while giving out free passes to just 6.3% of them. The Dodgers will have to get by without him for the majority of 2023, though there’s a chance he could be a late addition to the roster if all goes well. His August surgery makes him roughly one year behind Glasnow, who was able to return late in 2022. However, Glasnow’s procedure was August 4th of 2021 while Buehler’s was on the 23rd of last year. Still, if the Dodgers make a deep postseason run, that could give Buehler the runway he needs to make a landing this year.

September 2022 Or Later: Shane Baz, Anthony Gose, Scott Effross, Tyler Matzek, Bryce Harper

These players face longer odds of making an impact since their surgeries were so late in the year. The major exception is Harper, since position players require less recovery time than pitchers. Harper is hoped to be able to return to the Phillies around the All-Star break as a designated hitter, with a chance of returning to the field later in the campaign.

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Dodgers, Julio Urias Avoid Arbitration

By Anthony Franco | January 13, 2023 at 2:32pm CDT

The Dodgers are in agreement with starter Julio Urías on a $14.25MM salary for the 2023 season, reports Bob Nightengale of USA Today (Twitter link). The sides avoid a hearing for the left-hander’s final season of arbitration eligibility.

Urías has emerged as one of the game’s top pitchers. He’s somehow never made an All-Star team but finished in the top ten in NL Cy Young balloting in each of the last two seasons, including a third-place finish in 2022. The Mexico native led the National League with a 2.16 ERA across 175 innings, his second straight sub-3.00 campaign. Since firmly establishing himself in the Los Angeles rotation in 2020, he carries a 2.66 ERA and has held opponents to a .210/.262/.345 line over 415 2/3 frames.

Once regarded as the sport’s top pitching prospect, Urías was in the majors before his 20th birthday. He’s still just 26 years old but has already crossed the five-year service threshold. Barring an extension, he’ll be a free agent next offseason. If he has another season like either of his past two, he’d be the top starting pitcher available on the open market (aside from two-way star Shohei Ohtani). Given his youth and production, Urías could plausibly eclipse the $200MM mark next winter.

MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projected Urías for a $13.7MM salary for his final arbitration year. His actual deal comes in a bit above that mark, representing a notable raise on last season’s $8MM figure.

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Los Angeles Dodgers Transactions Julio Urias

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Josh Lindblom Announces Retirement

By Darragh McDonald | January 12, 2023 at 1:26pm CDT

Right-hander Josh Lindblom took to Twitter today to announce his retirement as a player. “For 30 years of my life, I played a game that taught me about more than balls and strikes, hits and runs, and wins and losses,” he wrote. “It taught me about life and made me the person writing this letter.” He then goes on to thank everyone with whom he’s interacted over that time, before concluding “I might be done, but I’m not finished.”

Lindblom, now 35, was first drafted by the Astros, who selected him out of high school with a third-round pick in 2005. Lindblom instead went to the University of Tennessee, later transferring to Purdue University. The Dodgers then selected him in the second round of the 2008 draft.

He was considered one of the club’s better prospects and would make it to the major leagues with the Dodgers in 2011. He did some solid work out of their bullpen that year, making 27 appearances with a 2.73 ERA. He made another 48 appearances for them through July of 2012, posting a 3.02 ERA in that time. He was then flipped to the Phillies at the deadline as part of the trade that sent Shane Victorino to Los Angeles.

His results took a downturn at that point, as his ERA after the trade was 4.63. Another trade sent him to the Rangers for the 2013 season, which he spent working primarily as a starter in Triple-A but struggling in brief MLB appearances. Yet another trade sent him to the A’s for 2014, where he was only able to make a single appearance in the majors, spending the rest of his time in Triple-A.

Lindblom then signed with the Lotte Giants of the Korea Baseball Organization. His first stint overseas was a successful one, as he threw 210 innings over 32 starts there with a 3.56 ERA. He couldn’t quite repeat that performance in 2016, as his ERA ticked up to 5.28 over 30 starts. A brief MLB comeback didn’t lead to much, with Lindblom signing a minor league deal with the Pirates. He was selected to the club’s roster and made four appearances but was eventually outrighted and returned to the Lotte Giants for the final months of the 2017 campaign.

2018 would prove to be a pivotal turning point for Lindblom. He signed with the Doosan Bears of the KBO and posted a 2.88 ERA over 26 starts and 168 2/3 innings. He returned to the club for 2019 and was even better. He made 30 starts in his second year as a Bear and registered a 2.50 ERA over 194 2/3 frames. He was voted the MVP of the league that year and the Bears won the Korean Series title.

He was able to parlay that strong stretch in the KBO into a three-year deal with the Brewers, which came with a $9.125MM guarantee and incentives that could have allowed him to earn $18MM. Unfortunately, he couldn’t quite replicate that production in North America, at least not at the big league level. He posted a 5.16 ERA in the shortened 2020 season and then a 9.72 mark over eight relief appearances the year after. He was outrighted in May of 2021 and has been pitching in Triple-A since then. Though he’s had some decent results at that level, the Brewers never selected him back to the roster.

It’s certainly been a circuitous journey for Lindblom, as his career path took him to six different MLB teams and a couple of KBO squads. He hangs up his spikes having played in 134 major league games and 130 in Korea. We at MLBTR congratulate him on a unique and interesting time as a professional athlete and wish him the best in whatever he gets up to next.

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