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Marcell Ozuna

Quick Hits: Rangers, Infield, Rays, Ozuna, Braves, Freeman

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Isiah Kiner-Falefa was so impressive in his Gold Glove winning season at the hot corner that the Rangers plan on bumping him further up the defensive hierarchy in 2021. He’ll be their starting shortstop, per Kennedi Landry of MLB.com, which means an open competition to fill his spot at third. Oddly enough, Elvis Andrus seemed to have the inside track on the job before being traded to the Texas Rangers today. Instead, his long-time double play partner Rougned Odor may be an option, or they could see a replacement from outside the organization. The Rangers prefer that youngsters like Josh Jung and Sherten Apostel spend more time in the minors, Landry notes.

  • Marcell Ozuna and Braves GM Alex Anthopoulos were all laughs today as they spoke to reporters, including the Athletic’s David O’Brien, Chelsea Janes of the Washington Post, and Gabe Burns of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Though the two sides certainly took their time to come together on a new contract, the deal itself was actually finished over the course of a single day. The Rays had made an offer to Ozuna, but after one season in Atlanta – a year Ozuna described as the best year of his career – the slugging outfielder told his representation at CAA Sports that he wanted to hear from the Braves. The takeaway here is that clarity, communication, and a little pressure exerted from the outside go a long way to helping two sides come together.
  • The jolly atmosphere included a playful reference to the future negotiation of Freddie Freeman’s extension, tweets Janes. Anthopoulos certainly didn’t seem all that worried about potentially losing their franchise first baseman, who is a free agent after the 2021 season. For his part, Freeman doesn’t seem particularly likely to test his options elsewhere. The 31-year-old was handed the keys to the franchise from the legendary Chipper Jones, and there’s little reason to doubt his plans to stay behind the wheel in Atlanta. Coming off an MVP season and three consecutive NL East division titles, the partnership clearly works. As with Ozuna, the Braves and Freeman could be as much as a conversation away from keeping the California native on the East Coast, a sentiment the Athletic’s David O’Brien has shared for some time.

Braves Re-Sign Marcell Ozuna

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7:56pm: The Braves have designated outfielder Kyle Garlick for assignment to make room on the 40-man roster for Ozuna’s re-signing, according to David O’Brien of The Athletic. Formerly a Dodger and Phillie, Garlick joined the Braves as a waiver claim on Jan. 23.

7:27pm: The Braves are re-signing outfielder Marcell Ozuna to a four-year deal, Joel Sherman of the New York Post tweets. The club has announced the move, and it’s a $65MM guarantee that could reach $80MM if the Braves pick up an option in Year 5, per Robert Murray of Fansided. Hector Gomez reported earlier Friday that Ozuna was close to returning to Atlanta. The buyout in 2025 is worth $1MM, Craig Mish of SportsGrid relays. Ozuna is a client of CAA Sports.

This is an enormous raise for Ozuna, a former Marlin and Cardinal who parlayed a history of above-average production into an $18MM guarantee with the Braves last winter. It ended up as a great move by Atlanta, as Ozuna slashed a monstrous .338/.431/.636 with 18 home runs in 60 games and 267 plate appearances. Along with his stellar bottom-line numbers, Ozuna ranked as an elite hitter by Statcast’s standards.

If there’s any criticism of Ozuna’s 2020, it’s that he didn’t play much defense, only lining up in the outfield 21 times during a year in which the National League featured the universal designated hitter. It remains unclear whether the NL will keep the DH around in 2021, but even if it doesn’t, the Braves will bank on the 30-year-old Ozuna’s offensive abilities remaining intact. The back-to-back-to-back NL East champions clearly needed to either re-sign Ozuna or pick up another big bat to replace him this offseason, and now they have succeeded in retaining one of MLB’s premier hitters.

Braves general manager Alex Anthopoulos isn’t known for signing players to long-term deals, but he made an exception in this case to keep together an offense built around Ozuna, 2020 NL MVP Freddie Freeman and Ronald Acuna Jr. The Braves made earlier notable free-agent signings when they added starters Charlie Morton and Drew Smyly on shorter pacts. Considering what the Braves have done this offseason, they ought to be a force again in the NL East next season, though the Mets, Nationals, Phillies and Marlins should make it difficult on them to win the division yet again.

The MLB offseason got off to an incredibly slow start, but high-end free agents have come flying off the board in the past few weeks. Ozuna’s re-signing means none of MLBTR’s top 10 free agents from the beginning of the winter are left without jobs. MLBTR ranked Ozuna fourth among available players and predicted he would earn a four-year, $72MM deal.

Marcell Ozuna’s Market “Moving Forward”

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The market for free-agent slugger Marcell Ozuna is “moving forward,” reports Craig Mish of SportsGrid, and the Rays are among the final few teams involved in the mix. A deal is not yet imminent, per the report. Tampa Bay is something of a surprise entrant, though MLB Network’s Jon Heyman recently indicated interest on the Rays’ behalf.

At the time, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times tweeted that Ozuna would only land with the Rays in the event of a “major shift” in his contract goals, suggesting they’d likely only be serious players on a one-year deal. Mish, however, writes that Ozuna’s eventual deal is expected to be for either three or four years. Additional reports out of the Dominican in recent days connected Ozuna to the Rays enough that he took to Instagram to stress that he does not have any sort of agreement with Tampa Bay.

As for the incumbent Braves, a reunion is still possible, Mish adds. Earlier this morning, MLB.com’s Jon Morosi tweeted that Atlanta “continues to be the favorite” to sign Ozuna. The Braves, of course, received elite production at the plate from Ozuna in the shortened 2020 season, but their interest in him — as is the case with many NL clubs — has been somewhat tempered due to the lack of agreement on the return of the designated hitter in the National League.

One fringe suitor likely disappeared when the Twins agreed to a new deal with Nelson Cruz earlier this week. Technically speaking, Minnesota still has room to add Ozuna and play him in left field, but that seems decidedly unlikley. Cruz always appeared to be the Twins’ top target, but reports in the past couple of weeks indicated that after a months-long stalemate, they’d at least considered pivoting to Ozuna.

It at least worth an anecdotal mention that one of Ozuna’s former clubs, the Cardinals, has a suddenly less-crowded outfield picture after trading Dexter Fowler to the Angels last night. There’s been no indication the Cards would make a serious run at Ozuna — they’re reported to be more in the market for rotation help — but a considerable shift in the outfield mix for a suddenly motivated buyer who knows Ozuna well has already led to some speculation among fans.

Twins, Nelson Cruz Resume Negotiations

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Nelson Cruz and the Twins have recently restarted talks on a new contract for the slugger, The Athletic’s Dan Hayes reports.  Cruz had been looking for a two-year contract, but “the possibility of a one-year accord [is] now on the table” in his current discussions with Minnesota, Hayes writes.

Despite mutual interest in a continued relationship, there hasn’t been much action between Cruz and the Twins this offseason since both sides were fairly entrenched in their positions.  The team didn’t want to pay too much money and give more than one guaranteed year to a player who turns 41 in July, especially when a DH-only player like Cruz is (at the moment) limited to only American League teams.  From Cruz’s perspective, he was hopeful that his market could expand to NL teams if the universal DH was implemented, and as a result was looking for a two-year contract commensurate with his continued outstanding production.

Since there isn’t yet any movement towards the NL getting the designated hitter in 2021, that could explain why Cruz’s representatives have re-engaged with the Twins, and why there have be some flexibility from Cruz’s original two-year ask.  As Hayes notes, however, the two sides still have to “common ground on a salary,” which may not be simple since the Twins would ideally like to both re-sign Cruz and still have money left over to obtain more pitching.  Minnesota has weighed such alternate strategies as focusing all of its available payroll space on pitching and either letting its internal options handle the DH spot, or perhaps signing a cheaper alternative to Cruz — Hayes notes that Edwin Encarnacion has been considered as a possibility.

Or, in separate direction entirely, the Twins have also “floated” the idea of another free agent signing in Marcell Ozuna.  Such a move would pivot the club away from a pitching search, since Ozuna would be both pricier than Cruz and require at least a three-year contract.  Ozuna is over a decade younger than Cruz, of course, and while Ozuna might become a DH-only type in the future, Minnesota could deploy him as a part-time outfielder for at least a season or two.  It’s probably safe to assume that Ozuna is something of a Plan C for the Twins, just in case an agreement couldn’t be reached with either Cruz or any notable pitching targets.

Latest On Universal DH, Expanded Playoffs

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The Major League Baseball Players Association rejected the league’s most recent proposal to implement a universal designated hitter, The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal reported this morning in a larger, broad-reaching look at the issues facing the two parties. MLB offered up a universal DH and a willingness to rule in favor of two players on a pair of service time grievances, per Rosenthal, but in exchange they sought an agreement on expanded playoffs, the implementation of a pitch clock and a Spring Training trial run with electronic strike zones, among other elements.

The lack of clarity on whether there will be a DH in the National League next season continues to serve as a major impediment for teams and for some free agents alike. Nelson Cruz and Marcell Ozuna, in particular, can’t fully get a grasp on their markets until they know whether the NL will carry a DH. Meanwhile, NL teams are left to build a lineup and a roster without knowing whether they’ll have a spot for an extra hitter.

The MLBPA clearly doesn’t view the addition of a designated hitter in the National League to be as advantageous to its side as the expansion of playoffs is to the league. That’s plenty understandable, given that most clubs no longer employ expensive, dedicated designated hitters and that the expansion of playoff teams would create far more revenue for the league than  for its players.

Rosenthal notes that MLB’s latest offer included an extra $30MM or so to be divided up among players — up from $50MM in 2020’s expanded field — but team-side revenues would increase on a much greater basis. Under the traditional structure (i.e. pre-2020), players’ postseason shares are tied to gate revenue, while teams collect 100 percent of television revenues. Last year, in the absence of fans, players agreed to an expanded, 16-team playoff field that saw $50MM of television revenues divided among players.

From the players’ vantage point, postseason expansion is a double-edged sword. A greater chance to play in October could very well be appealing, but there are likely some who (like many fans) worry about “watering down” the field. Of greater concern is the manner in which postseason expansion could also impact free agency. The league would surely argue that increasing the field will motivate borderline clubs to spend more on the open market, thus making it a win for the players.

However, the opposite effect could also play out as well; if the bar to reach the postseason is lowered, some clubs won’t feel as compelled to spend for an extra couple of wins to push themselves over the top. The margin for error is much greater when nearly half (or even more than half) of the teams in the game qualify for postseason play than it is when only a third of clubs do. That’s especially true when at any given point, there are a handful of teams tanking and actively doing everything they can not to win games.

At the end of the day, there’s a substantial disconnect between the extent to which the league and the union feel the universal DH will benefit players. The MLBPA knows that playoff expansion, and the associated revenues, is a massive bargaining chip to leverage in current talks and in the looming talks for a new CBA. That seems too large a concession to make in exchange for the universal DH — particularly because the commissioner’s office also wants a DH implemented in the National League.

Rob Manfred has continually sought to increase in-game action, and considering the fact that pitchers posted a combined .128/.160/.162 batting line with a 44 percent strikeout rate in 2019, swapping them out for a competent hitter would help with that goal. Of course, many traditionalists abhor the very notion of the designated hitter and are overwhelmingly against its implementation in the National League, but at this point it feels like an inevitability — whether that implementation comes in 2021 or in 2022.

As labor lawyer Eugene Freedman (who recently chatted with MLBTR’s Tim Dierkes about the CBA) points out on Twitter, the very framing of this scenario as a negotiation is somewhat misleading. The two sides already have an agreement in place in the form of the 2016-21 CBA, and the union is under no obligation to renegotiate that agreement simply because the league is now making a push for an expanded postseason format.

The MLBPA’s latest rejection doesn’t mean that the two sides won’t eventually agree to something, of course. The league is obviously very motivated to expand the upcoming postseason field and grow its postseason revenues, so perhaps they’ll put together a more enticing offer. We saw in 2020 that the two sides are willing to come back to the table at the last minute, as 2020’s expanded postseason format was agreed upon about three hours prior to the first pitch being thrown on Opening Day.

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.

East Notes: Lindor, Yankees, Springer, Mets, Jays, Braves

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The Yankees never made a formal offer to the Indians in talks regarding Francisco Lindor, writes Buster Olney of ESPN. The two teams kicked around frameworks involving Lindor before Cleveland dealt him and right-hander Carlos Carrasco to the Mets, but the Yankees evidently never put an official proposal on the table. It seems the Yankees were deterred by Lindor’s lofty projected arbitration salary for 2021, which eventually landed at $22.3MM. New York’s main focus all winter has been agreeing to a long-term deal with DJ LeMahieu, which the team finally pulled off this week.

More out of the East divisions:

  • The Mets and Blue Jays have been the two teams most closely connected to George Springer this winter. Jon Morosi of MLB.com feels the Mets have the geographical upper hand, noting that the Connecticut native and former UConn star would prefer to play close to home. (Springer’s home town of New Britain is approximately a two-hour drive from Queens, compared to seven-plus hours to Toronto). Of course, geographical ties of this sort are often discussed as potential tiebreakers for prominent free agents but are rarely enough to overcome significant discrepancies in teams’ respective contract proposals. Indeed, Morosi acknowledges the possibility the Mets eventually turn their attention elsewhere, particularly if they manage to sign reliever Brad Hand.
  • More from Olney, who notes that the Braves “appear highly unlikely” to re-sign outfielder Marcell Ozuna. The 30-year-old slugger had an incredible season in Atlanta after signing a one-year deal last offseason. Ozuna is now in line for a much bigger multi-year accord this winter. That doesn’t fit the general approach of Braves’ GM Alex Anthopolous, who has tended to shy away from longer-term deals since taking over baseball operations. Just last winter, the Braves watched Josh Donaldson, who had starred on a similar pillow contract in 2019, walk for a four-year deal with the Twins. MLBTR projects a $72MM accord over that same length for Ozuna.

Free Agent Notes: Ozuna, Schwarber, Romo, Twins

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Marcell Ozuna drew a lot of early attention once the free agent market opened, but there hasn’t been much recent news on the slugger’s quest to find a new team.  As Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe plainly puts it, “there is little buzz around the 30-year-old,” as clubs don’t seem willing to move on Ozuna until there is a firm answer about whether or not the NL will adopt the designated hitter in 2021.

Though there has been some thought that Ozuna’s recent change in representation indicated that he wanted a quicker end to his free agent journey, there might be a lack of offers on the table, or perhaps a lack of offers that Ozuna finds acceptable, and he is also waiting for news on the DH situation rather than potentially leave more money on the table if the universal DH becomes a reality in relatively short order.

In other free agent buzz…

  • Kyle Schwarber drew interest from at least a half-dozen teams before agreeing to a one-year, $10MM contract with the Nationals today, according to ESPN.com’s Jesse Rogers (Twitter link).  The Twins, Blue Jays, Yankees, and Angels were some of the teams linked to Schwarber in earlier reports, and the level of interest is further evidence that there is “always a market for lefty sluggers,” as Rogers notes.
  • Several of the most prominent names from the Twins’ 2020 bullpen have entered free agency, with Trevor May (Mets) and Matt Wisler (Giants) already signed to other rosters.  On top of these departures, La Velle E. Neal III of the Minneapolis Star Tribune considers it “unlikely” that Sergio Romo will be re-signed, while Tyler Clippard is a “maybe.”  The Twins declined their $5MM club option on Romo’s services for 2021 and now could poised to move on entirely from the veteran.  Minnesota has already signed Hansel Robles to add some experience to the bullpen, and while the Twins are hoping some of their younger arms also step up, Neal figures the club is continuing to explore the relief market since their current group “could use an additional hard thrower.”

Open Market Notes: Kluber, Twins/Cruz, Nats, Odorizzi

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Add the Pirates to the clubs planning to attend for Corey Kluber’s January 13th workout, writes Rob Biertempfel of the Athletic (via Twitter). The Nationals and Diamondbacks were previously mentioned as two among many planning to view Kluber in Florida. The Pirates don’t seem like the likeliest team to sign Kluber, though he could conceivably provide some veteran stability with the upside of becoming a mid-season trade chip. It’ll be interesting to see how Kluber shows after two mostly lost seasons. Before he ran into health troubles, the 34-year-old reeled off an exceptional five-season run.

Here are a few other items of open-market chatter …

  • Though there’s no evidence of recent progress, there’s still cause to remain bullish on the odds of a reunion between the Twins and slugger Nelson Cruz. The match, after all, has worked out well for both sides to date. In an appearance on the Locked On Twins podcast, Darren Wolfson of KSTP 5 indicated that mutual interest remains strong. But the club and the 40-year-old DH could also be eyeing alternatives. Wolfson suggests the Padres would have interest in Cruz if it turns out that the DH will remain in the National League. Remaining uncertainty in that regard has iced the market for lumbering sluggers. Depending upon how things shake out, per Wolfson, the Twins may have interest in a slate of options that includes Michael Brantley, Kyle Schwarber, and even Marcell Ozuna.
  • Several of those players would also be of interest to the Nationals, per Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic. It seems that Ozuna is likely to require too much space on the balance sheet. But Brantley and Schwarber, along with Joc Pederson, are each seen as possibilities to take up a post in the D.C. corner outfield. The Nats have an opening after allowing Adam Eaton to depart.
  • Free agent righty Jake Odorizzi appears to be in position to land a three-year deal, an executive tells Rosenthal. The expectation from that industry source is that the veteran starter could secure a guarantee in the realm of $36MM to $42MM — just where MLBTR predicted he’d land. There’s still no clarity as to Odorizzi’s slate of suitors, but it stands to reason he’ll have fairly widespread appeal given that Kevin Gausman and Marcus Stroman each accepted qualifying offers, removing two primary targets from the market.

MLB Teams Told To Operate Under Assumption Of No Universal DH In 2021

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With MLB and the MLBPA reportedly preparing to ramp up talks on the structure of the 2021 season and the potential continuation of 2020 rule changes, The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal reports that Major League Baseball sent a memo to clubs just last week telling them to operate under the assumption that there will not be a universal DH in 2021.

It’s not a firm declaration that there will be no NL DH next season, and the two sides will surely discuss the matter further as they also assess 2020 changes like seven-inning doubleheaders, runners on second base in extra innings, roster size and expanded playoffs. Both sides have clear reasons to want the universal DH, and its permanent implementation is broadly seen as a question of “when” that will happen rather than “if” it will happen.

With regard to the current offseason, it’s a particularly important element for several players. Nelson Cruz is the most obvious name impacted by the universal designated hitter (or lack thereof) in 2021, but it’ll have an impact on other free agents as well. The Braves used Marcell Ozuna at DH more than in left field last year, and concerns about how his defense will hold up over the course of a multi-year pact will surely impact his earning potential among NL clubs. Michael Brantley could benefit from more time at designated hitter, and there are several first base types who’d benefit from the addition of 15 new DH spots.

The lack of clarity on the matter has likely already contributed to some offseason decisions. Perhaps the Cubs would’ve non-tendered Kyle Schwarber regardless, as they look to pare back payroll, but not knowing whether they’d have a DH option couldn’t have helped Schwarber’s case. It’s a similar story in Atlanta where Adam Duvall was cut loose after a 16-homer season. While Duvall is a solid defender in left field, the Braves are also uncertain of Ozuna’s status, which surely played into the Duvall decision to some extent.

Even if the league and the union formally agree to table the universal DH for the 2021 campaign, it’ll again be a heavily discussed piece of next offseason’s looming collective bargaining talks. The current collective bargaining agreement is slated to expire in Dec. 2021.

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