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Marlins Will Try Jonathan Villar In Center Field

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The Marlins have talked about Jonathan Villar as a potential center field option since the day they acquired him, and manager Don Mattingly confirmed to reporters today that the organization’s plan is to work the speedster out as a potential center fielder this spring (Twitter link via Jordan McPherson of the Miami Herald). Villar will still get some work in the infield, and the club has other options to fall back on if the results aren’t favorable.

Villar, 29, started six games in center field for the Brewers in 2017 and has only 39 career innings at the position. He’s traditionally been a middle infielder, but with Miguel Rojas penciled in at shortstop, well-regarded prospect Isan Diaz hopefully emerging at second base and Brian Anderson lined up at the hot corner, the Marlins will hope that Villar can make the transition to the outfield.

The situation, of course, is still fluid. Diaz has yet to establish himself as a Major Leaguer, and if he doesn’t show well this spring, a move back to second base could be sensible for Villar. The mix in right field also features several unproven players — Lewis Brinson, Monte Harrison, Jesus Sanchez, Harold Ramirez — so the team could opt to move Anderson back to right field. In that case Villar could also yet be infield-bound. Alternatives in center include Brinson, Harrison, Sanchez, Jon Berti and Magneuris Sierra.

If Villar is able to make the move to center field, he could position himself quite favorably heading into free agency next winter. The switch-hitting Villar batted .270/.338/.438 with Baltimore in 216 games from 2018-19 before the tanking Orioles dumped in late November. Dating back to his first full season in 2016, Villar is a .268/.336/.423 hitter through 2344 plate appearances. He’s been able to provide league-average offense — and more, at times — in addition to excellent baseruning value. If he can add capable center field defense to his resume, that’d serve as a notable boost to his earning power.

Marlins Sign Brad Boxberger

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February 14: Miami has announced the signing.

February 13: The Marlins have agreed to a minor-league pact with righty Brad Boxberger, per MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro (via Twitter). He receives an invitation to MLB camp.

Boxberger, 31, is looking for a bounceback shot after a rough 2019 season. He landed a $2.2MM guarantee from the Royals last winter, coming off of an ’18 campaign in which he managed only a 4.39 ERA but picked up 32 saves and averaged 12.0 K/9 against 5.4 BB/9. But he fell flat in Kansas City, coughing up 16 earned runs in 26 2/3 innings with a 27:17 K/BB ratio before being cut loose.

Before that, Boxberger had enjoyed a rather successful six seasons in the majors. He had maintained a 3.19 ERA through 231 career frames, rarely posting eye-popping swinging-strike rates but still coming up with a mean 11.6 K/9 strikeout rate.

That past track record shows the potential upside here for the Marlins. But the question remains whether Boxberger can rediscover his former form. His precipitous strikeout decline is worrisome, particularly as it coincided with a significant drop in average fastball velocity (to 90.6 mph). Boxberger never blew fastballs by hitters, but velocity — he sat in the 93 mph range until it started to erode in 2018 — was obviously a component of his highly effective heater.

Closer Role Notes: Red Sox, Pirates, Marlins

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The notion of a closer’s role has evolved over the years, but there’s never been any doubt of the importance of a reliable late-inning relief strategy. While some organizations prefer more flexible arrangements, quite a few still utilize dedicated ninth-inning men. Settling on a closer isn’t just important to a team and to fantasy baseball gurus. It’s also a factor in a player’s trade and free agent status and — especially — to his potential arbitration earnings.

Here are some early notes on spring closer situations from around the game …

  • Red Sox manager Ron Roenicke made rather clear that he views Brandon Workman as the top closing option entering camp, as Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com tweets. The club isn’t making anything official just yet, but the comments from the just-minted skipper give him a strong presumption. That’s not too surprising: the 31-year-old Workman emerged as a premium pen arm last year, when he racked up 71 2/3 innings of 1.88 ERA ball with 13.1 K/9 and 5.7 BB/9. He does have some experience closing out games, having finished 16 Boston wins as part of a committee approach last year.
  • For the Pirates, there’ll be no waiting: new skipper Derek Shelton says Keone Kela will handle the ninth, as Adam Berry of MLB.com reports on Twitter. Kela’s time in Pittsburgh hasn’t exactly been smooth, but he’s undeniably talented enough to do the job and will now be challenged with added responsibility as the organization seeks to turn the page on a brutal 2019 season. There were numerous problems on and off the field for the Bucs. By far the most important was the arrest of closer Felipe Vazquez on charges so awful that it’s hard even to think of the matter from a baseball perspective. But the organization has obviously had to make decisions to account for that departure. There is plenty of incentive for Kela, who will be a free agent at season’s end. If things go better for the 26-year-old than for the remainder of the Pirates team, he could also feature as a significant mid-season trade piece.
  • The Marlins have set about compiling a new-look bullpen this winter. It seems it’ll be anchored by one of the club’s recent veteran additions. Manager Don Mattingly strongly suggested that Brandon Kintzler is the top choice to function as closer, Craig Mish of FNTSY Sports Radio tweets. The 35-year-old isn’t exactly a prototypical swing-and-miss, capital-C closer type. But he did turn in 57 frames of 2.68 ERA ball last year with a typically strong 54.7% groundball rate. And Kintzler has saved 49 games in his career.

Giants Claim Jarlin Garcia, Designate Burch Smith

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The Giants have claimed southpaw Jarlin Garcia off waivers from the Marlins. In a corresponding move, righty Burch Smith was designated for assignment.

It’s not surprising at all to see these two teams line up on a transaction of this nature. The Giants have claimed pitcher after pitcher under president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi, quite often going on to attempt to slip them through waivers. And the Marlins have dropped a variety of interesting but not-yet-established relief pitchers this winter, with quite a few landing on other 40-man rosters.

Garcia was rather successful last year, compiling 50 2/3 innings of 3.02 ERA ball. He lacks eye-popping strikeout numbers, but does get a solid number of groundballs and was quite successful at limiting hard contact. Garcia also found equal success against right and left-handed hitters in 2019, though fielding-independent pitching measures suggested he was much more effective when facing southpaw swingers.

As for Smith, he was added through the waiver wire last August. The 29-year-old had some effective outings last in the year with San Francisco but has obviously yet to show he’s a reliable MLB relief option. Over 135 2/3 career innings at the game’s highest level, Smith carries a 6.57 ERA with 9.5 K/9 and 5.0 BB/9.

Angels Claim Jose Quijada, Designate Parker Markel

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The Angels announced that they have claimed lefty Jose Quijada off waivers from the Marlins. Righty Parker Markel was designated to create roster space.

The Halos will try to tap into the upside of Quijada, who got quite a few swings in his 2019 debut despite relying heavily upon his fastball. He also coughed up 26 walks, 19 earned runs, and 10 home runs in his first 29 2/3 MLB frames. Over seventy career Triple-A innings, Quijada carries a 3.73 ERA with 11.2 K/9 against 4.4 BB/9.

Markel also debuted in 2019, though he’s already 29 years of age. He throws a 95+ mph heater and a slider with about equal frequency, but didn’t draw a stand-out number of swinging strikes (just over ten percent) in the majors last year. He was hammered in his 22 debut innings, surrendering 19 earned runs with a 24:17 K/BB ratio. But Markel was much better in the upper minors last year, throwing 41 1/3 innings of 1.74 ERA ball with a hefty 16.3 K/9 against 5.7 BB/9.

Marlins Sign Sean Rodriguez

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TODAY: The Marlins have officially announced the signing.  Rodriguez’s minor league deal indeed contains an invitation to Miami’s big league Spring Training camp.

FEBRUARY 4: The Marlins have struck a minor-league deal with veteran utilityman Sean Rodriguez, per Jeff Passan of ESPN.com (via Twitter). Other terms aren’t yet known.

Presumably, the 34-year-old will receive an invitation to participate in MLB camp. Rodriguez has seen action in each of the past dozen years in the big leagues, though he has failed to produce league-average offensive numbers over the past three seasons.

Rodriguez slashed a robust .270/.349/.510 in 342 plate appearances with the Pirates in 2016. That was an remains his best campaign at the plate. He inked a two-year contract with the Braves in the ensuing offseason, but was never really able to get going in Atlanta. Rodriguez and his family were victims in a major automobile accident before camp opened in 2017.

Given the severity of the injury and the depth of his ensuing struggles on the field, Rodriguez’s 2019 season was actually something of a rebound. He took 139 plate appearances last year with the Phillies, slashing .223/.348/.375.

Marlins Sign Matt Joyce

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FEBRUARY 3: Joyce will earn $1.5MM with another $250K in available incentives based upon plate appearances, MLBTR’s Steve Adams reports on Twitter.

JANUARY 30: Joyce’s deal is a Major League contract, Heyman tweets.

JANUARY 26: The Marlins have agreed to terms with free agent corner outfielder Matt Joyce, reports Jon Heyman of MLB Network (via Twitter). He is represented by ACES. Terms of the deal remain unclear.

Matt Joyce | Jason Getz-USA TODAY Sports

Joyce, 35, has had a series of up-and-down performances the past few seasons. A productive hitter for the Rays from 2010-14, Joyce was traded to the Angels prior to the 2015 season. He endured a miserable season in Anaheim before an offensive rebirth with the Pirates the following year. He continued that strong showing with the the A’s in 2017, where he amassed a career-high 544 plate appearances of .243/.335/.473 hitting (117 wRC+). After a down 2018 season in Oakland, though, Joyce was forced to settle for a pair of minor-league contracts last offseason.

The Giants, who signed Joyce to the second of those minor-league deals, traded him to Atlanta just before the start of the season. The Braves quickly selected him to their active roster, and they were rewarded with yet another bounceback year at the plate. In 238 plate appearances, Joyce put up a .295/.408/.450 line with seven home runs.

As that plate appearance figure suggests, Joyce was used judiciously by Braves’ manager Brian Snitker. He started just 34 games (thirty in right field, four in left). He was much more prominently used as a bench bat, pinch hitting 85 times. He wasn’t especially productive as a pinch hitter (and hasn’t been throughout his career), but he was stellar when trusted to start games.

Joyce is almost exclusively a platoon player. He has just a .188/.272/.309 career line against left-handed pitching, and he totaled all of 26 plate appearances against southpaws last season. He’s got a career .252/.354/.452 (122 wRC+) mark against right-handers and is coming off a season in which he was even better than that. Clearly, the Fish believe he can still serve as a quality hitter if put in the right role.

The Marlins’ corner outfield mix is promising but uncertain. Fellow free agent signee Corey Dickerson will surely get a long leash, but he’s coming off an injury-riddled 2019 season. Miami plans to move Jonathan Villar around the diamond. He’s also an option on the dirt and could speculatively be given a look in center, too, given his athleticism.

That likely leaves Garrett Cooper and Harold Ramírez as Joyce’s primary competition for at-bats. Both hit right-handed, making Joyce a potential platoon partner. (Both Cooper and Ramírez have been better without the platoon advantage to this point in their careers, although that tends to reverse itself over a larger sample size). Joyce has never played first base, but it’s at least possible (speculatively speaking) to imagine him occasionally spelling the right-handed Jesús Aguilar there as well. At the least, he figures to give manager Don Mattingly a deeper, more balanced bench as the Marlins continue to improve around the margins in hopes of being more competitive in 2020.

Marlins Designate Jarlin Garcia, Jose Quijada

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The Marlins announced today that they have designated southpaws Jarlin Garcia and Jose Quijada for assignment. Their roster spots will go to Brandon Kintzler and Matt Joyce, whose signings are now official (see here and here).

Young hurlers continue to fly off the Miami 40-man roster. The club vowed to compile a strike-throwing relief corps entering the 2020 season, but it remains surprising to see so many pitchers flowing out — most of them to this point landing on other MLB rosters via claim or trade.

Garcia, 27, is entering his final pre-arbitration season after working to a 3.02 ERA over 50 2/3 innings in 2019. He managed only 6.9 K/9 against 2.8 BB/9, but did post a 46.9% groundball rate and had success at preventing home runs (0.71 per nine, 7.8% HR/FB). Garcia was exceptionally difficult for MLB hitters to square up; he held them to a 31.8% hard-hit rate that sat in the 84th percentile among pitchers leaguewide.

The 24-year-old Quijada had struggled quite a bit last year in his first taste of the majors. He was bombed for a 5.76 ERA in 29 2/3 innings, allowing 10 long balls on a whopping 34.5% HR/FB rate. But Quijada also showed he could get MLB hitters to swing and miss, as he has in the upper minors, by producing a 14.0% swinging-strike rate.

Free Agent Spending By Team: National League

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With the clear exception of the still-unsigned Yasiel Puig, free agency is almost devoid of high-upside contributors at this point. The majority of players capable of securing guaranteed contracts have already come off the board, making this a good time to check in on which teams have spent the most and which clubs have paid the least via the open market. We’ve already gone through the same exercise for the American League, where the Yankees have returned to the top of the heap as the biggest spenders in their league and in the sport in general. Meanwhile, over in the Senior Circuit, reigning world champion Washington clearly isn’t resting on its laurels after a storybook playoff run…

Nationals: $316.75MM on 10 players (Stephen Strasburg, Will Harris, Daniel Hudson, Starlin Castro, Yan Gomes, Howie Kendrick, Eric Thames, Asdrubal Cabrera, Ryan Zimmerman and Kyle Finnegan; financial details unclear for Finnegan; top 50 MLBTR signings: four)

Reds: $164MM on four players (Nick Castellanos, Mike Moustakas, Shogo Akiyama and Wade Miley; top 50 signings: four)

Phillies: $132MM on two players (Zack Wheeler and Didi Gregorius; top 50 signings: two)

Braves: $116.25MM on nine players (Will Smith, Marcell Ozuna, Cole Hamels, Travis d’Arnaud, Chris Martin, Nick Markakis, Tyler Flowers, Darren O’Day, Adeiny Hechavarria; top 50 signings: five)

Diamondbacks: $109.65MM on five players (Madison Bumgarner, Kole Calhoun, Hector Rondon, Stephen Vogt and Junior Guerra; top 50 signings: two)

Brewers: $48.38MM on eight players (Avisail Garcia, Josh Lindblom, Justin Smoak, Brett Anderson, Eric Sogard, Alex Claudio, Ryon Healy and Deolis Guerra; financial details unclear for Healy and Guerra; top 50 signings: two)

Padres: $48MM on three players (Drew Pomeranz, Craig Stammen and Pierce Johnson; top 50 signings: three)

Mets: $24.35MM on four players (Dellin Betances, Rick Porcello, Michael Wacha and Brad Brach; top 50 signings: three)

Marlins: $23.855MM on five players (Corey Dickerson, Brandon Kintzler, Francisco Cervelli, Matt Joyce and Yimi Garcia; financial details unclear for Joyce; top 50 signings: one)

Giants: $17.775MM on four players (Kevin Gausman, Drew Smyly, Tony Watson and Tyler Anderson; top 50 signings: one)

Dodgers: $15.25MM on three players (Blake Treinen, Alex Wood and Jimmy Nelson; top 50 signings: one)

Cardinals: $15MM on three players (Adam Wainwright, Kwang-hyun Kim and Matt Wieters; top 50 signings: one)

Cubs: $2.5MM on three players (Steven Souza Jr., Jeremy Jeffress and Ryan Tepera; top 50 signings: zero)

Pirates: Signed OF Guillermo Heredia and C Luke Maile (financial details unclear; top 50 signings: zero)

Rockies: Signed RHP Jose Mujica (financial details unclear; top 50 signings: zero)

Marlins, Sinclair Negotiating New TV Contract

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  • The Marlins are in ongoing negotiations with Sinclair Broadcast Group about a new TV rights contract, reports Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald. The parties’ current deal, which will pay the club a league-low $20MM for broadcast rights on Fox Sports’ regional networks in 2020, expires at the end of the season. The figures the parties are discussing for 2021 and beyond are unclear. However, Jackson notes that the Marlins turned down an offer which would’ve paid north of $50MM annually in 2017; that offer was put on the table after the current Bruce Sherman/Derek Jeter group agreed to buy the franchise, but before the franchise sale was completed, and new ownership preferred to negotiate the TV deal on their own. Whether that particular offer (or something higher) is still on the table isn’t known. What is apparent, however, is the new TV contract will be far more lucrative than the old deal, which could spur ownership to significantly increase spending on player payroll (Jackson estimates an extra potential $20MM annually) in future seasons.
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