Tigers Notes: Wilson, Iglesias, Martinez
The Tigers haven’t yet made much noise at the Winter Meetings, but they’ve been involved in discussions throughout the week. Here are some of the latest:
- Lefty reliever Justin Wilson has been among the Tigers’ most popular players this week. But it appears the Tigers aren’t sitting back and letting potential trade partners come to them. The Tigers asked the Marlins, who are known to be looking for bullpen help (albeit mostly of the closer variety), whether they might have interest in trading for Wilson, Anthony Fenech of the Detroit Free Press tweets. The Marlins don’t currently have much lefty relief help beyond Hunter Cervenka.
- Tigers GM Al Avila says shortstop Jose Iglesias has recently drawn interest, MLB.com’s Jason Beck writes (Twitter links). If the Tigers were to trade Machado, they might turn to Dixon Machado at short — some in the Tigers organization believe Machado could hit enough to start. The 26-year-old Iglesias would make an interesting acquisition for a team hoping to upgrade its up-the-middle defense — he’s made little progress on his hitting, batting just .255/.306/.336 this season, but he retains good value thanks to his defense. He has two years of team control remaining before he’s eligible for free agency.
- The Giants do not seem likely to trade for J.D. Martinez, the San Francisco Chronicle’s John Shea tweets. They would likely only make a deal for someone in Martinez’s position if they were to also able to trade a player making a similar salary. Martinez will make $11.75MM next season as part of the two-year deal he signed with the Tigers in March.
Marlins To Sign A.J. Ellis
The Marlins have agreed to a one-year, $2.5MM deal with veteran backstop A.J. Ellis, reports ESPN’s Buster Olney (on Twitter). Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald had just reported that the Marlins appeared to have a “good shot” at landing Ellis to be the new backup catcher in Miami, where he’ll be reunited with former manager Don Mattingly and former teammate Dee Gordon. Ellis is represented by ACES.
Ellis, 35, will serve as the primary backup to young J.T. Realmuto, who looks to be emerging as one of the better young catchers in the league. Miami has been in the market for a new reserve backstop since veteran Jeff Mathis, who has served as the backup in Miami for the past four seasons, inked a deal with the Diamondbacks last week.
Ellis posted a .216/.301/.298 line in 196 plate appearances split between the Dodgers and Phillies last season, although, of course, his calling card has always been his handling of pitchers, not his hitting. Clayton Kershaw famously loved working with Ellis, who caught Kershaw for 829 innings over the course of Ellis’ tenure with the Dodgers, which spanned parts of nine seasons. The hope in Miami, perhaps, is that Ellis can have a positive influence on Realmuto and the Marlins’ young staff.
Marlins To Sign Jeff Locke
DECEMBER 12: Locke will earn $3.025MM, Heyman tweets.
DECEMBER 7, 10:05am: Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald tweets that it’s a one-year deal, and FanRag’s Jon Heyman tweets that Locke will be guaranteed about $3MM on the deal.
9:52am: The Marlins have agreed to terms with free agent left-hander Jeff Locke, who was recently non-tendered by the Pirates, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (on Twitter). The ACES client’s deal is pending a physical. MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro tweets that it’s a Major League contract for Locke.
[Related: Updated Miami Marlins Depth Chart]
Locke, 29, joins Edinson Volquez as the second former Pirate that the Marlins have added to their rotation mix this offseason. Former Pirates special assistant Jim Benedict, renowned for his work with starting pitchers, moved to the Miami front office last winter, and he’ll now be reunited with a pair of pitchers with whom he is greatly familiar.
Locke spent the better part of four years in the Pittsburgh rotation, making an even 100 starts (plus 11 relief appearances) for the Pirates from 2013-16. In that time, he logged a solid 4.29 ERA with 6.3 K/9 against 3.5 BB/9 with a 50.6 percent ground-ball rate in 593 1/3 innings. However, Locke’s performance began to decline in 2015 and cratered in 2016; over the past two years, he’s turned in a 4.90 ERA, including a 5.44 mark in 127 1/3 innings this past season. The 2016 season saw both Locke’s strikeout rate and ground-ball rate hit career lows, though his average fastball velocity held strong at 91.5 mph.
That performance led the Pirates to designate Locke for assignment (effectively non-tendering him). MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz had projected Locke to receive a $4.2MM deal in arbitration, so he’ll come up a bit shy of that mark with his new organization. However, Locke will benefit from remaining in a pitcher-friendly setting, and the move to Miami figures to promise him a greater opportunity to accumulate innings. Locke should slot into the back of a rotation that also includes Volquez, Adam Conley, Wei-Yin Chen and Tom Koehler.
Aroldis Chapman Reportedly Has $92MM Offer
One of the top three relievers, Mark Melancon, is off the board after agreeing to a record-setting $62MM deal with the Giants yesterday. But both Aroldis Chapman and Kenley Jansen, the top two relievers of the winter, remain unsigned. Both are likely to make Melancon’s time as the relief contract record holder brief, and we’ll track today’s updates on their market here…
- The Yankees haven’t gone as high as $92MM in their offers to Chapman, and the Marlins aren’t believed to be willing to spend quite that much, Heyman reports (Twitter links).
- Marlins owner Jeffrey Loria has indeed given his front office the green light to spend on signing Chapman or Jansen, ESPN.com’s Jayson Stark reports, though this “preliminary approval” of funds may still not be enough to outbid other big spenders on either ace closer.
Earlier Updates
- The Yankees are “determined” to land Chapman, Heyman tweets. It’s not clear, however, that they’re the team that offered Chapman $92MM.
- One team believes Chapman has a $92MM offer in hand, USA Today’s Bob Nightengale tweets.
- The Yankees have made offers to both Chapman and Jansen, reports MLB.com’s Bryan Hoch (on Twitter).
- Andy McCullough of the L.A. Times tweets that the Dodgers are remaining “competitive” in the markets for Jansen and Chapman, and they’ve also chatted with the Royals about closer Wade Davis.
- Chapman has received multiple offers that have passed the $80MM threshold, Heyman tweets. The Yankees still see him as their priority, but the Dodgers and Marlins are in the mix as well. He also suggests that the Nationals could join the fray for Chapman, pointing out that GM Mike Rizzo and manager Dusty Baker (who managed Chapman in Cincinnati) both love Chapman.
- There’s an expectation that Jansen will sign before Chapman, reports ESPN’s Jim Bowden.
- The Yankees are more focused on Chapman than Jansen and are willing to offer a five-year deal in the range of $80MM, reports FanRag’s Jon Heyman. Chapman said yesterday that he’s hoping to receive a six-year deal, but the Yankees won’t go to that level to sign him, according to Heyman. For the Yankees, Jansen is more of a backup plan to Chapman than a prime target.
- The Marlins are firmly in the mix for both top closers, at owner Jeffrey Loria’s behest, but their preference between the two differs from the Yankees, writes Joel Sherman of the New York Post. Miami has preferred Jansen to Chapman from the start of free agency, despite the fact that he comes with the burden of draft pick compensation after rejecting a qualifying offer. Sherman notes that if the Marlins are able to land Jansen before Chapman signs, that could push the Dodgers to make a strong run at Chapman, potentially throwing a wrench into the Yankees’ winter plans. The Dodgers are trying to retain Jansen, according to Sherman, but they’d seemingly shift course to Chapman if Jansen came off the board.
Bullpen Rumors: Marlins, Nats, Melancon, Tigers, D-backs
The Marlins are interested in free agent relievers Brad Ziegler and Koji Uehara as fallback options if they’re unable to reel in Kenley Jansen or Aroldis Chapman, according to Joe Frisaro of MLB.com. Miami could sign both Ziegler and Uehara if it loses out on Jansen and Chapman, per Frisaro (Twitter links). Ziegler and Uehara each carry strong track records, though the former is 37 and the latter will turn 42 in April. The pair finished last season in Boston, where Uehara has pitched since 2013. In other Marlins-related bullpen news, the club is “highly unlikely” to re-sign left-hander Mike Dunn, but it continues “monitoring his status,” tweets Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald.
More bullpen-related rumors:
- The Nationals offered “at least $10MM less” than the Giants’ winning four-year, $62MM bid for closer Mark Melancon, the New York Times’ Tyler Kepner told MLB Network Radio on Monday (Twitter link).
- The Tigers are gauging interest in southpaw setup man Justin Wilson and right-handed reliever Shane Greene, per Joel Sherman of the New York Post (Twitter link). This is the second time Wilson’s name has hit the rumor mill since last week. The 29-year-old impressed with a 9.97 K/9, 2.61 BB/9 and 54.6 ground-ball rate in 58 2/3 innings last season. However, a .340 BABIP (47 points higher than his career .293 mark) and a 12.2 percent home run-to-fly ball ratio (up from a lifetime 8 percent mark) helped lead to an unspectacular ERA of 4.14. Wilson has two years of arbitration eligibility remaining, and MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projects a reasonable $2.7MM salary for next season. Greene, 28, comes with four years of team control – including a pre-arb year in 2017 – but he posted a 5.82 ERA in 60 1/3 frames last season despite an 8.8 K/9, 3.28 BB/9 and 47.6 grounder rate.
- With only Randall Delgado and Jake Barrett as strong in-house bets to crack the Diamondbacks’ bullpen next April, the club wants to add “multiple” relievers and has enough spending room to do so, general manager Mike Hazen told Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic. Moreover, Hazen expects the D-backs’ lack of established options to serve as an advantage in reeling in outside help. “Most times, a lot of players in a lot of cases want opportunity or some definition of role,” Hazen said. “I think we can offer those things in a lot of cases. We’re not asking some of the players that we’re talking to to come here and do something you’re unaccustomed to. That does give us a little clarity. We’re not the only ones that have that ability, but we do have that right now in the bullpen.” Ziegler and Daniel Hudson, two longtime Diamondbacks, are among the free agents the team has contacted this offseason.
East News & Rumors: EE, BoSox, Yanks, Jays, Bruce, Marlins
Free agent designated hitter/first baseman Edwin Encarnacion has three preferred landing spots – the Blue Jays, Red Sox and an unidentified team – a major league source told Rob Bradford of WEEI. The mystery club isn’t the Yankees, per Bradford, and they’re likely out of the running for Encarnacion (if they were ever in it) after adding Matt Holliday. The Blue Jays could be out, too, as they’ve reached deals with two first base/DH types in Kendrys Morales and Steve Pearce this offseason. The fact that Toronto moved on to other options so quickly after Encarnacion rejected its four-year, $80MM offer came as a surprise to the longtime Jay, tweets Jon Morosi of MLB Network.
More from the majors’ two East divisions:
- Despite reported interest in Holliday and now-Astro Carlos Beltran, Boston didn’t make offers to either, Red Sox president Dave Dombrowski told Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe. “I figured we would wait to see what takes place later on, who’s out there. Our priority is to try to get a guy that can pitch the eighth inning for us,” said Dombrowski, who’s working with a limited amount of spending room because of a desire to stay under the $195MM luxury-tax threshold. “There’s a little bit more of a drive to [stay under]. But I can’t tell you where we we’re going to end up,” he stated. “There are penalties attached that I would rather not be in a position that we have to incur.” That would seem to rule out any possibility of Encarnacion to Boston, which already looked unlikely entering Monday. As for the bullpen, Dombrowski is unsure whether he’ll acquire a setup man via trade or free agency, but he hasn’t ruled out re-signing either Brad Ziegler or Koji Uehara.
- The Yankees are one of “several” teams engaging in “ongoing” dialogue with free agent infielder Luis Valbuena, his agent, Steve Schneider, told Joel Sherman of the New York Post. The Bombers have so far balked at the demands of Valbuena, who is seeking a multiyear deal and wants an everyday role. New York won’t be able to offer a daily place in its lineup to Valbuena unless it deals third baseman Chase Headley, but the club hasn’t had any luck doing that. Valbuena, 31, spent the previous two years in Houston and is coming off his third straight strong offensive campaign, though his season ended in August because of hamstring surgery.
- The Blue Jays continue to have interest in acquiring outfielder Jay Bruce from the Mets, but they’re “offering little,” relays FanRag’s Jon Heyman (Twitter link). Toronto nearly acquired Bruce from Cincinnati last offseason, but the deal fell apart and he went on to hit .250/.309/.506 with 33 home runs in 589 plate appearances with the Reds and Mets. New York is now likely to move Bruce, who will make $13MM next season in the final year of his contract.
- The Marlins are “looking outside the organization” for a backup catcher to replace now-Diamondback Jeff Mathis, team president Michael Hill said Monday (Twitter link via Spencer). A.J. Ellis came up as a possibility Monday.
Rotation Rumblings: Gray, Duffy, Astros, Pirates, Fister
The Braves are reportedly still in the mix for Chris Sale, and Joel Sherman of the New York Post reports that the Atlanta also made a run at Athletics right-hander Sonny Gray but found Oakland’s asking price to be prohibitive (Twitter link). Oakland did not ask for Dansby Swanson to be included in the deal, but Atlanta still felt the A’s were asking for too much in return.
A few more notes on the market for starting pitchers…
- The Royals are gauging interest in left-hander Danny Duffy, reports MLB Network’s Jon Morosi (via Twitter). Duffy had a breakout campaign this past season, tossing 179 2/3 innings with a 3.51 ERA, 9.4 K/9, 2.1 BB/9 and a 36.4 percent ground-ball rate. As Morosi points out, he could make sense for a team looking to augment its rotation but unwilling to part with the talent required to land someone like Chris Sale or Chris Archer. Duffy, however, is a free agent next winter, so he’d be a short-term upgrade rather than a long-term solution like those other names.
- The Astros are more likely to trade for rotation help than they are to pursue the remaining free agents on the market, tweets ESPN’s Buster Olney. Houston isn’t in on right-hander Ivan Nova and likely considers him to be too expensive, per Olney. The Astros are reportedly open to moving either Collin McHugh or Mike Fiers as they seek to create some roster/payroll flexibility, as Olney’s colleague, Jayson Stark, reported earlier today.
- Pirates officials are set to meet with free agent lefty Derek Holland at some point this week at the Winter Meetings, reports Bill Brink of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (on Twitter). The Bucs have been linked to H0lland on multiple occasions this winter as the former Ranger looks to rebuild his stock with a healthy 2017 campaign.
- The Marlins are showing some interest in right-hander Doug Fister, tweets FanRag’s Jon Heyman, but adding an established closer is the team’s No. 1 priority at the moment. This isn’t the first time Miami has been connected to Fister, but that fact that they’re still interested after adding Edinson Volquez to the mix is notable.
Marlins’ Owner Driving Pursuit Of Top-Tier Closers
The Marlins have been somewhat surprisingly tied to names like Kenley Jansen and Aroldis Chapman, and Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald reports that the Marlins’ pursuit of the market’s top closers is coming at the urge of owner Jeffrey Loria. Spencer notes that signing any of the “big three” available closers would push Miami well past a $100MM payroll for just the second time in franchise history, but Loria is seemingly comfortable with that fact. According to Spencer, the Marlins’ payroll could rise as high as $115MM next year.
Right-hander Mark Melancon is reportedly nearing a deal with the Giants, which would leave Jansen and Chapman as the top two potential targets for Miami. FOX’s Ken Rosenthal reported last night that the Marlins were willing to offer upward of $80MM to Jansen despite the qualifying offer that is attached to his name. And, earlier this morning, Joel Sherman of the New York Post reported that Loria “loves” Chapman and has been speaking directly to the agents for the top relievers himself thus far.
Either Jansen or Chapman would be a massive boost to Miami’s relief corps and would give the team a potentially dominant late-inning trio, as right-handers A.J. Ramos and Kyle Barraclough both have gaudy strikeout numbers. It’s been rumored that the Marlins could field offers for Ramos this winter, though, so there’s obviously some degree of fluidity in the organization’s plans to solidify its pitching staff.
Also of note for Marlins fans, FanRag’s Jon Heyman reports (via Twitter) that they’re interested in veteran A.J. Ellis as a potential backup to young catcher J.T. Realmuto. Jeff Mathis has been Miami’s reserve catcher in recent seasons, but he recently inked a deal with the Diamondbacks, leaving the Fish in the market for some catching help.
Bullpen Rumors: Melancon, Marlins, Lefties, Diamondbacks
There’s plenty of bullpen chatter circulating as the Winter Meetings get underway. Here’s the latest…
- The latest updates on Mark Melancon last night revealed that the three-time All-Star has received multiple four-year offers, potentially in excess of $60MM in some cases. The Nationals have indeed made a four-year offer to closer Mark Melancon, according to Jorge Castillo of the Washington Post, but their offer was for less than $60MM guaranteed. That makes a reunion look unlikely for now, barring an increase in the offer from the Nats.
- FanRag’s Jon Heyman writes that Melancon is the Giants‘ top target, and Greg Holland could be their primary alternative, as opposed to either Aroldis Chapman or Kenley Jansen. Heyman feels it’s unlikely that they’d pursue either Jansen or Chapman if they fall to land Melancon. The Giants and Nationals are pushing the hardest for Melancon, tweets Heyman.
- The Nationals, Marlins, Cubs, Dodgers, Yankees and Giants are all in on Kenley Jansen, per ESPN’s Jim Bowden. Heyman tweets that the Marlins are intent on adding a top closer, and owner Jeffrey Loria is a fan of Chapman in particular. Joel Sherman of the New York Post reports that Loria is at the Winter Meetings and is participating in meetings with the representation for top-tier bullpen arms.
- The Yankees, Mets, Blue Jays, Indians, Dodgers, Rockies and Diamondbacks are all in the market for a bullpen lefty, putting names like Mike Dunn, Boone Logan and Jerry Blevins in a good position, Heyman tweets. Heyman also tweeted this morning that the D-backs are focused on the bullpen at the moment and have no plans to “shock the world” like they did last offseason.
- Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times tweets that veteran southpaw Joe Beimel is at the Winter Meetings and is seeking a minor league deal with an invite to Spring Training. Beimel, 40 in April, hasn’t pitched in the Majors since 2015 but had a nice two-year stretch in Seattle from 2014-15, posting a 3.12 ERA in 92 1/3 innings.
NL East Rumors: Mets, Orioles, Chapman, Ross, Coppolella
The Mets offered one of Curtis Granderson or Jay Bruce to the Orioles in exchange for “a high-end reliever,” ESPN.com’s Adam Rubin reports, though talks didn’t go anywhere. Based on that description, one would think the Mets were asking about Brad Brach, Mychal Givens or maybe even ace closer Zach Britton. While the O’s are indeed looking for right field help, it’s understandable why they didn’t accept that offer. Here’s more from around the NL East…
- The Marlins will make a strong push for Aroldis Chapman, MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro reports (Twitter links). Miami is also looking at Kenley Jansen (and is thought to be willing to make him a very big offer), though the team would prefer to keep the 14th overall pick in next year’s draft, whereas Chapman can be signed without draft compensation. The Marlins are open to a number of bullpen options, though they’re prioritizing signing a reliever over trading for relief help.
- Some in the Nationals organization question Joe Ross‘ toughness, MASNsports.com’s Pete Kerzel writes, due to the amount of recovery time Ross needed to return from a shoulder injury last year. Ross was posting strong numbers in the Nats rotation before inflammation in his throwing shoulder sidelined him from July 2 to September 18. Ross also has his supporters in the front office and in general, the Nationals don’t want to trade him, though he is one of several potential trade chips who could be included as part of a package for one of Washington’s multiple high-end trade targets.
- The Braves have been linked to the likes of Chris Sale and Chris Archer in trade rumors, though while GM John Coppolella admits to David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that “we want to add an ace,” this desire is “a want, not a need. So if a great opportunity comes along, we’ll be ready to strike. But we don’t need to force the issue.” O’Brien speculates that Sale might be the only pitcher the Braves would be willing to give up a package of young players and prospects to land. Atlanta has already bolstered its rotation by adding Jaime Garcia, Bartolo Colon and R.A. Dickey this winter, and the team is also looking to add another veteran on a minor league deal to compete with Mike Foltynewicz, Josh Collmenter and others for the fifth spot.
- In other division news from earlier today on MLBTR, the Phillies are close to a deal with Joaquin Benoit and we collected more items from Citi Field in an edition of Mets Notes.