Headlines

Go To Pro Hockey Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

Marlins Rumors

Yankees Interested In Jesus Luzardo, Shane Bieber

By | at

Earlier reports suggested that the Yankees were talking with the Marlins about their starting pitching, and USA Today’s Bob Nightengale adds some specifics by writing that New York is interested in left-hander Jesus Luzardo.  In addition, the Yankees have also checked in the Guardians about righty Shane Bieber, Nightengale adds.

These two pitchers represent the wide range of options the Bronx Bombers are considering are they seek out rotation help.  Luzardo would be a longer-term add, as the 26-year-old is arbitration-controlled through the 2026 season and is only arb-eligible (projected for a $5.9MM salary) for the first time this winter.  Bieber is projected to earn $12.2MM in 2024, which is slated to be his final season before free agency.  Though Bieber is reportedly open to signing an extension with his new team in the event of a trade, that probably won’t be an option with the Yankees in particular, since New York so rarely breaks its unofficial team rule about offering contract extensions.

Because Cleveland almost always moves its higher-paid players prior to free agency, Bieber has been rumored as a trade candidate for years, and that speculation has been peaking now that he is entering his final year of team control.  The Guardians have already dealt one veteran pitcher in Cal Quantrill this offseason, and given the talented by generally inexperienced nature of the rest of Cleveland’s rotation, the Guards could potentially opt to hang onto Bieber to further bolster its own pitching staff.  There’s also the fact that Bieber pitched only 128 innings in 2023 due to elbow inflammation, and his numbers were only good (3.80 ERA) rather than the elite form he showed earlier in his career.

As much as Bieber could help the Guardians, however, it seems likely that the team wouldn’t hesitate to move a pitcher who might not be a part of their future in exchange for a longer-term asset.  Whether or not the Yankees might match up well with the Guardians is another matter, as New York already dealt away a good chunk of their younger pitching assets in the Juan Soto deal, and the Yankees’ young infield depth might not hold as much appeal to a Cleveland team that already has plenty of young infielders.

Naturally the Bombers aren’t going to have much interest in dealing top minor league talent for just a year of Bieber’s services, yet they could be willing to explore such a move for three years of Luzardo.  The left-hander is coming off his first full and healthy season as a starting pitcher, and the results were impressive — Luzardo posted a 3.58 ERA over 178 2/3 innings, with solidly above-average strikeout and walk rates.

As noted by MLBTR’s Nick Deeds earlier today, Oswald Peraza might have a clear appeal to the shortstop-needy Marlins, but it would take more just Peraza to pry Luzardo away from South Florida.  It’s fair to assume that any number of teams have at least floated the idea of a Luzardo trade with the Marlins, and a demand of multiple top-100 prospects seems like a reasonable ask for Miami given Luzardo’s age, ability, and three years of control.

Unlike with Bieber and the Guardians, there is no ticking clock on Luzardo’s time in Miami, so president of baseball operations Peter Bendix would probably have to be bowled over by an offer to move the left-hander.  The Marlins might well look to move a starter for hitting help, yet any of Edward Cabrera, Trevor Rogers, or even Braxton Garrett could be likelier trade candidates than Luzardo.  With Sandy Alcantara missing 2024 due to Tommy John surgery, Luzardo and Eury Perez are lined up as the cornerstones of the talented Miami rotation.

Latest On Yankees’ Starting Pitching Pursuits

By | at

The Yankees are well-established as seeking an arm to pair with ace Gerrit Cole at the front of their rotation. For much of the offseason, the club had their sights set on NPB star Yoshinobu Yamamoto, though they’ve had to shift gears in the aftermath of the right-hander’s decision to sign with the Dodgers last month. The club has seemingly stepped those pursuits up recently as recent reports have connected the club to both right-hander Dylan Cease via trade and southpaw Blake Snell in free agency. Jon Heyman of the New York Post provided an update on the club’s pitching pursuits recently, noting that “there’s a belief” within the organization that the club will be successful in adding a front-of-the-rotation arm before the season begins. Heyman adds that club chairman Hal Steinbrenner is “on board” with the idea of making a significant addition to the rotation, suggesting a willingness on the side of ownership to spend on rotation improvements.

Of course, commitment to adding a front-of-the-rotation starter and actually doing so are two different things, and Heyman reports that the club has continued to engage with Snell in free agency, though there’s a notable gap between the sides in negotiations. The same goes for left-hander Jordan Montgomery, though Heyman notes that the Yankees believe they have a better shot of signing Snell among the two southpaws. Montgomery, of course, was drafted by the Yankees in the fourth round of the 2014 draft and spent six and a half seasons in the Bronx before being shipped to St. Louis at the 2022 trade deadline.

Heyman suggests that Montgomery may prefer to return to the Rangers this offseason after winning the World Series with the club last year. Even if that’s the case, however, it’s worth noting that Texas’s front office has indicated the club doesn’t have much room in the budget for significant additions. That could pose a major roadblock to a Montgomery reunion in Arlington, as Joel Sherman of the New York Post recently reported that the left-hander is seeking a contract that would surpass the $172MM Aaron Nola re-signed in Philadelphia for back in November. That ask still positions him as cheaper than Snell, who Sherman notes is believed to be seeking more than $200MM this winter.

As for Cease, Heyman notes that the White Sox and Yankees face a “serious gap” in negotiations, with Yankees brass uncertain whether or not Chicago truly plans to move Cease before the beginning of the season and Heyman noting they’d face in uphill battle in outbidding other potential suitors like the Reds and Orioles for the righty’s services. With that being said, Cease isn’t the only player the Yankees are looking into on the trade market. Heyman reports that the club has discussed a trade with the Marlins as the club fields interest on lefties Jesus Luzardo, Trevor Rogers, and Braxton Garrett as well as right-hander Edward Cabrera, though he adds that those sides don’t appear to be close on a deal, either.

Even so, the Marlins could prove to be a cleaner fit as a trade partner for the Yankees than the White Sox. Miami has a clear need for a starting shortstop as things stand; the club currently has utilityman Jon Berti penciled into the everyday shortstop role with the likes of Vidal Brujan and Xavier Edwards as potential depth options. New York, meanwhile, has plenty of depth in the middle infield, where 2023’s double play duo of Anthony Volpe and Gleyber Torres figure to block youngster Oswald Peraza from regular playing time in the majors. While the Yankees were recently granted additional flexibility in how they handle Peraza via a fourth option year on the slick-fielding infielder, the 23-year-old could make plenty of sense as the centerpiece of a package that lands the Yankees a quality rotation piece.

However the Yankees end up addressing their rotation woes, it’s clear that the club needs to make an addition. Each of Michael King, Jhony Brito, Randy Vasquez, Luis Severino, and Domingo German have parted ways with the club this offseason by way of either trade or free agency, severely hampering the club’s rotation depth. While Cole provides the club with a reliable, innings-eating ace at the front-of-the-rotation, both Carlos Rodon and Nestor Cortes are coming off 2023 season hampered by injuries and ineffectiveness. Clarke Schmidt’s first season as a regular member of the starting rotation saw him perform on the level of a back-end starter, but without an external addition the club’s final rotation spot would go to an unproven arm such as Clayton Beeter or Luis Gil.

Twins Claim Ryan Jensen From Marlins

By | at

The Twins announced that they have claimed right-hander Ryan Jensen from the Marlins. The latter club designated him for assignment two weeks ago. DFA limbo normally only lasts a week but the clock is paused for the week from Christmas to New Year’s Day. Minnesota’s 40-man roster count is now at 38.

Jensen, 26, now joins his fourth organization, though he still hasn’t made his major league debut. He was drafted by the Cubs with a first-round pick, 27th overall, in 2019. As he climbed the minor league ladder, he posted some mediocre results, largely due to control issues. The Cubs nonetheless added him to their 40-man roster in November of 2022 to keep him out of the Rule 5 draft. His struggles continued in 2023, which put him into the waiver carousel. Between August and today, he has gone to the Mariners, Marlins and now Twins via waiver claims from each club.

He was moved from the rotation to the bullpen this year, which didn’t lead to immediate results. He started the year in the Double-A rotation in the Cubs’ system, got moved to the bullpen and then bumped up to Triple-A. He posted an earned run average of 5.06 at that level between the Cubs and Mariners, walking 20.1% of batters faced in the process. He has walked 14.5% of batters faced in his minor league career overall.

For the Twins, they had a few open roster spots and will take a flier on the former first-round pick to see if they can help him harness his stuff. Despite the free passes, he’s also struck out a strong 25.9% of batters faced in his minor league career overall. He still has a couple of options remaining and can be kept in the minors until he shows some progress.

Where Can The Marlins Look For Shortstop Help?

By | at

Shortly after it was reported that the Blue Jays had a two-year, $15MM deal in place with Isiah Kiner-Falefa, Craig Mish of the Miami Herald relayed that the Marlins were “down the road with IKF but not at 2/15.” He added that the club may have to use Jon Berti and other internal options to cover the shortstop position, with the club not strongly linked to any big free agent, though a trade is still possible.

The reality is that there is no big free agent shortstop this winter for them to be linked to. There are some guys out there, though each with obvious shortcomings. The trade market is somewhat similar. But with their internal options headlines by Berti, Vidal Bruján and Jacob Amaya, it makes sense for the Marlins to still be casting out their net. Let’s take a look at where the Fish can go from here, with just six weeks to go until Spring Training kicks off.

Free Agents

Tim Anderson

It’s well-known that Anderson is coming off a dreadful season. He hit just one home run in 123 games and produced a line of .245/.286/.296. His wRC+ of 60 was dead last among qualified hitters last year. His defensive metrics also took a tumble, leading to a negative WAR tally at both FanGraphs and Baseball Reference. Taking a shot on Anderson would be a bet that he was held back by a knee injury in 2023 and will bounce back to his previous form. From 2019 to 2022, he hit .318/.347/.473 for a wRC+ of 123 with some passable glovework in there as well.

Amed Rosario

Rosario is somewhat similar to Anderson, as he is coming off a down year but looks better with a wider view. From 2019 to 2022, he hit .282/.315/.412 for a wRC+ of 101, though his defense wasn’t terribly well regarded in that time. His bat dropped off in 2023, though not as far as Anderson’s. He ultimately hit .263/.305/.378 between the Guardians and Dodgers for a wRC+ of 88. The latter club utilized him at second base and he seemed to post better results there, so perhaps he’ll be viewed as more of a second baseman going forward.

Elvis Andrus

Outside of a blip in 2022, Andrus has been subpar at the plate for quite a while but his defense continues to be strong. He got into 112 games for the White Sox last year, spending more time at second base but 404 innings at short, producing four Outs Above Average in that time. Though he hit just .251/.304/.358 for a wRC+ of 81, he was still worth 1.1 fWAR on the year thanks to his speed and defense. Having signed for just $3MM last winter, he should be fairly cheap again this offseason.

Gio Urshela

Urshela is decent at the plate, having hit .281/.323/.415 over the past three seasons for a wRC+ of 106. He’s also a solid defender but has never been more than a part-time option at shortstop. He had just 359 career innings at the position, with subpar grades for that small sample of work.

Others

There are plenty of other free agents who can play shortstop, but it’s hard to envision any of them getting an everyday job there. Each of Brandon Crawford, Kevin Newman, Nick Ahmed, Ehire Adrianza, Luis Guillorme, Enrique Hernández, Adalberto Mondesí, Yu Chang and Kevin Smith are available, but each is either coming off a poor season or is best served as a utility/bench option.

Trade Market

Willy Adames

Adames is perhaps the best player listed in this post, regularly combining 25-homer power with strong defense, but it’s hard to imagine the Marlins prying him loose from Milwaukee. He’s an impending free agent and is projected by MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz for a salary of $12.4MM. That makes it speculatively possible that the Brewers are open to moving him, but then they would be left with a shortstop vacancy of their own, which would put them in the same tricky spot the Marlins are in now. For a low-spending club like the Marlins that needs a strong prospect pipeline to succeed, it’s unlikely they would part with significant prospects for a rental.

Ha-Seong Kim

Kim is somewhat similar to Adames, as he’s a good player but a rental. He’s hit .256/.338/.391 over the past two seasons and has been great in the field, allowing him to produce 8.1 fWAR in that span. The Padres are running a tight budget but Kim has a CBT hit of just $7MM and they have infield questions. Manny Machado had elbow surgery in October and may need to miss some of the start of the season or at least slot into a DH role for a while. That could leave Kim covering third with Jake Cronenworth at second until Machado comes back, moving Kim back to second and Cronenworth to first.

Kyle Farmer

Farmer is a glove-first utility guy that generally grades out well at shortstop. He’s hit .258/.316/.402 over the past three years for a wRC+ of 94. He has over 2,000 innings at shortstop in his career, with a -1 DRS, 0.7 UZR and +3 OAA. The Twins tended him a contract for 2024 with a projected salary of $6.6MM, but they are looking to cut payroll this year due to their broadcast situation. Their infield is loaded with Carlos Correa, Royce Lewis, Edouard Julien, Jorge Polanco and Alex Kirilloff set for regular roles and prospect Brooks Lee charging hard from the minors. Without Farmer, they would still have Willi Castro and Nick Gordon for bench/utility roles and José Miranda in the minors as depth. Like Adames and Kim, he’s a rental, but should be more attainable.

Santiago Espinal

Espinal seems somewhat redundant as a depth/utility player now that the Jays have IKF on the roster. Espinal hit .282/.340/.382 over 2021 and 2022 for a wRC+ of 105 and received strong grades at the three infield positions to the left of first base. He hasn’t played too much shortstop but that’s mostly because the Jays have had Bo Bichette locked in there. Espinal is coming off a down year at the plate, however, having hit .248/.310/.335 in 2023 for a wRC+ of 80. He’s projected for an arbitration salary of $2.5MM and has two extra years of control beyond this one.

Jorge Mateo

The Orioles are loaded with infield talent, with 2024 likely to see a left side of Gunnar Henderson and Jackson Holliday, which will squeeze out Mateo. He has hit just .223/.270/.363 in his career for a wRC+ of 77 but has stolen 30-plus bases in each of the past two years. He’s also considered a great defender at short, having grades of 15 DRS, 8 OAA and 9.1 UZR in his career. He will make $2.7MM this year and can be retained for one more arbitration season after that.

Guardians

The Guardians have a high number of shortstop-capable players on their roster, including Brayan Rocchio, Gabriel Arias, Juan Brito, Tyler Freeman, Angel Martínez and José Tena all in the mix. Andrés Giménez could also be on that list, though he’s likely to be the everyday second baseman. They may be willing to part with someone from that group, depending on who they believe will eventually take the job in Cleveland.

Braxton Garrett’s Rotation Emergence

By | at

Braxton Garrett did not begin the 2023 season in the Marlins’ rotation. His first appearance was a three-inning relief outing on April 1. The Fish optioned him two days later but recalled him within a day as Johnny Cueto went on the injured list.

Cueto’s injury opened a spot for Garrett to assume the #5 starting job behind Sandy Alcantara, Jesús Luzardo, Trevor Rogers and Edward Cabrera. The left-hander was a quality depth option, a former #7 overall pick who had turned in a 3.58 ERA over 17 starts in 2022. That the Marlins nevertheless brought in Cueto and began with Garrett sixth on the depth chart suggests the front office had trepidation about his ability to repeat those results.

Once injury pushed Garrett back into the starting mix, he didn’t look back. The 26-year-old made 30 starts from that point forward, ultimately logging 159 2/3 innings. He finished third on the team in workload while allowing 3.66 earned runs per nine. That came with above-average peripherals across the board. Garrett punched out a solid 23.7% of batters faced while keeping the ball on the ground nearly half the time. He walked only 4.4% of opposing hitters, showcasing the plus control which evaluators had praised during his time as a prospect.

It’s not an overpowering profile. He averaged just 90.5 MPH with the sinker that serves as his primary offering. Despite the pedestrian velocity, Garrett has shown the ability to miss bats with his assortment of secondary pitches. He generated above-average whiff rates on each of his slider, cutter and changeup. The well-rounded arsenal allowed him to avoid significant platoon issues. Garrett’s strikeout and walk profile was better than average regardless of the opponent’s handedness. Right-handed hitters made more authoritative contact than southpaws, but neither side produced much overall.

Garrett’s development into a mid-rotation arm has taken on extra importance given other setbacks in the starting staff. Alcantara underwent Tommy John surgery in October, knocking him out of the mix for 2024. Rogers injured his left biceps and right (non-throwing shoulder), limiting him to four starts. Cabrera, a former top pitching prospect, has shown promising stuff but continues to issue plenty of free passes. The Cueto signing didn’t work.

Miami’s rotation was productive overall. Luzardo also took a step forward, while 20-year-old Eury Pérez posted a 3.15 ERA over 19 starts as a rookie. That the Fish turned to Garrett in the second game of their Wild Card series with the Phillies still hints at both the strength of his ’23 campaign and some of the hits Miami took above him on the season-opening depth chart.

Garrett has just under two years of major league service. He’ll surely qualify for early arbitration next offseason as a Super Two player but remains under club control for five additional seasons. The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal wrote in late November the Fish were receiving trade interest in their young starters but were likely to consider Garrett off limits. There’s no question of his place in the rotation heading into 2024.

Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.

Marlins Acquire Roddery Muñoz From Pirates

By | at

The Marlins announced that they have acquired right-hander Roddery Muñoz from the Pirates in exchange for cash considerations, with fellow righty Ryan Jensen designated for assignment in a corresponding move. Muñoz was designated for assignment last week as the Bucs opened a roster spot for their acquisitions of Rowdy Tellez and Edward Olivares. Alex Stumpf of DK Pittsburgh Sports first relayed that Muñoz would be heading to Miami and Christina De Nicola of MLB.com was among those to relay the full slate of moves.

Muñoz, 24 in April, has never pitched for the Pirates or any major league team. He was a prospect with Atlanta and had a solid 2022 campaign, tossing 100 1/3 innings between High-A and Double-A. His 4.66 earned run average for that year doesn’t jump off the page, but he struck out 26.9% of batters faced while walking 9.5%. That got him a roster spot in November of last year, to keep him out of the Rule 5 draft.

But his results backed up in 2023 and he went to the Nationals and Pirates on waiver claims in July and December, respectively. He tossed 78 minor league innings on the year overall with a 5.42 ERA, striking out 23% of opponents but also walking 15.1% of them. He is still young and has a couple of options, so the Marlins will add him as some optionable starting depth.

The club has a rotation mix that currently consists of Jesús Luzardo, Eury Pérez, Braxton Garrett, Edward Cabrera, Trevor Rogers, Max Meyer, Ryan Weathers and others. Relievers A.J. Puk and George Soriano will reportedly be stretched out in the spring to see if they can help. There have been rumors of some members in that group receiving trade interest, which doesn’t necessarily mean the Marlins are looking to make a deal but Muñoz will give them some extra depth in either case.

As for Jensen, 26, he is somewhat similar in that he has bounced around to various clubs without making a major league appearance. A first-round pick of the Cubs in 2019, he racked up some decent strikeout numbers on his way up the minor league ladder but also gave out walks at a high frequency.

The Cubs added him to their 40-man roster just over a year ago to keep him out of the Rule 5 but his results dipped in 2023. He had a 5.31 ERA after six Double-A starts and was moved to the bullpen. That transition didn’t lead to vastly improved results and he wound up on waivers in August, claimed by the Mariners. He ultimately tossed 64 1/3 innings on the year at Double-A and Triple-A between the organizations of the Cubs and the Mariners. He had a 5.32 ERA in that time, striking out 25.1% of opponents but also walking 17.4%.

The Mariners designated him for assignment in November. The Marlins put in a claim but have now bumped him off the roster less than a month later. They will have a week to work out a trade or try to pass him through waivers. The control has been an issue but he’s a former first-round pick with strikeout stuff and two option years remaining.

Jesús Luzardo Drawing Trade Interest

By | at

8:57pm: In a separate column, Rosenthal reports that Miami and the Royals discussed the framework of a trade that would’ve sent the southpaw to Kansas City and first baseman Vinnie Pasquantino to South Florida during the Winter Meetings. It doesn’t appear that those conversations are still going, as the Royals instead addressed their rotation with free agent adds of Seth Lugo and Michael Wacha.

Pasqunatino, who owns a .272/.355/.444 slash in 558 career plate appearances, saw his second big league season cut short by surgery to repair a labrum tear in his right shoulder. He remains under team control for five years.

12:28pm: Marlins left-hander Jesús Luzardo is drawing trade interest, per a report from Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic.

The Miami rotation has been a frequent nexus point of rumors in recent years, which has continued into this winter. Just last month, Rosenthal reported on the same concept, highlighting Edward Cabrera and Trevor Rogers as possible trade candidates. At that time, Rosenthal portrayed Luzardo as likely off-limits, but his report from today seems to suggest it may not be totally off the table after all.

Rosenthal suggests that Peter Bendix, the club’s new president of baseball operations, might have more willingness to consider a trade than now-former general manager Kim Ng. As Rosenthal points out, Bendix came to the Marlins from the Rays, a club that has generally been unafraid to trade players at peak value. For instance, in 2018, they traded Chris Archer to the Pirates for Tyler Glasnow, Austin Meadows and Shane Baz. They later sent Meadows to the Tigers for Isaac Paredes and are in the process of trading Glasnow to the Dodgers at this very moment.

If Bendix has any intention of bringing a similar operating style to Miami, then considering a Luzardo deal can become plausible in that light. He has three years of club control remaining, with MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projecting a salary of $5.9MM in 2024. He will be due raises in the two following seasons before he’s slated to reach free agency after 2026. Since he’s going to get more expensive as his control dwindles, his trade value right now is likely as high as it will get.

Of course, beyond the contractual situation, there is the on-field stuff to consider. Luzardo posted a 3.32 earned run average in 18 starts last year, then a 3.58 ERA in 32 starts here in 2023. He struck out 28.7% of batters faced over those two years while walking just 7.9% and keeping 40.1% of balls in play on the ground. That kind of performance, along with his relatively modest salary and years of control, should combine to give him a tremendous amount of trade value.

But that also makes him incredibly valuable to the Marlins and it’s worth pointing out that their situation is more precarious than in past years. Sandy Alcántara underwent Tommy John surgery at the end of the most recent season and is slated to miss all of 2024. The club also subtracted Pablo López from the mix by flipping him to the Twins last offseason. If they were to trade Luzardo, they would be down to Eury Pérez, Braxton Garrett, Cabrera, Rogers and Max Meyer.

Pérez and Garrett make for a strong front two, but Pérez might be on a workload limit next year due to his youth and quick ascent. Cabrera has significant control problems while Rogers struggled in 2022 and then missed almost all of 2023 due to injury. Meyer has just two MLB starts and missed all of 2023 due to his own TJS. The club is reportedly planning to stretch out relievers A.J. Puk and George Soriano in the spring but there’s no guarantee that transition will work.

Given the uncertainty in the rotation, they may not want to subtract a talented pitcher like Luzardo, and there’s nothing to suggest they are actively shopping him. But if the right offer comes in, the club may have to consider it. Roster Resource currently projects the club’s 2024 payroll at $98MM. Bruce Sherman bought the team at the end of 2017 and, per the data from Cot’s Baseball Contracts, we can see the club’s Opening Day payroll dropped from $115MM that year to $100MM the year after. It hasn’t been higher than $93MM since.

The club could use some upgrades to its lineup, particularly in the middle infield, and may not have many resources available to do so. Even if they were willing to spend a bit more money, the best free agents available are guys like Whit Merrifield, Tim Anderson and Isiah Kiner-Falefa. While trading a pitcher would come with the risk of further weakening the rotation, it’s possible it could be their best path forward. Clubs like the Reds, Twins, Rays, Cardinals and Orioles are flush with position players and could use some pitching, perhaps allowing them to line up with the Marlins.

Marlins Remain Open To Catching Addition

By | at

The Marlins added to the catching corps over the weekend, bringing in Christian Bethancourt in a trade with Cleveland. The former Ray looks to have the top spot on the depth chart, nudging Nick Fortes to the backup role. Those two are the only catchers on the 40-man roster, leaving room for another acquisition.

Barry Jackson and Craig Mish of the Miami Herald report that the Fish remain open to adding another catcher. To that end, Jackson and Mish indicate they’ve considered Andrew Knizner as a low-cost free agent target. The 28-year-old (29 in February) became a free agent when he was non-tendered by the Cardinals last month.

A former seventh-round pick, Knizner had spent his entire career in St. Louis. He was a prospect of some regard during his run in the Cards’ farm system. The presence of Yadier Molina kept Knizner from getting many extended reps, though, and he didn’t produce much in his limited opportunities. He hit .204/.292/.288 in 553 plate appearances between his 2019 debut and the end of the 2022 season. That contributed to the club’s decision to sign Willson Contreras to a five-year free agent deal after Molina’s retirement.

Knizner picked up 241 plate appearances in a depth role last season, the second-highest workload of his career. His .241/.288/.424 batting line marked a step up from his early-career work, at least from a power perspective. The right-handed hitter knocked 10 homers while making hard contact on a solid 40.9% of his batted balls. While still below-average offense overall, Knizner’s production was in line with the .236/.303/.394 league slash for catchers.

That the Cards nevertheless moved on from Knizner despite a modest $2MM arbitration projection hints at continued struggles on the other side of the ball. A late conversion to catching during his final season at North Carolina State, Knizner has always been viewed as a work in progress defensively. Statcast consistently grades him below average at framing pitches. He also ranked 65th out of 74 catchers (minimum 10 throws) in average pop time to second base.

Defensive questions aside, Knizner is coming off a better year at the plate than either Bethancourt or Fortes managed. He’d likely be available for a little more than the league minimum salary and would be eligible for arbitration after next year. He also still has a minor league option remaining (as does Fortes), meaning a signing team could send him to Triple-A — at least until he reaches five years of MLB service, which won’t happen until late August at the earliest. Beyond Knizner, players like Austin Nola, Martín Maldonado, Yasmani Grandal and Eric Haase are likely looking at one-year free agent contracts.

In other news, Jackson and Mish write that the Fish are considering giving right-hander George Soriano a rotation look next spring. The 24-year-old has worked in relief over the past two seasons, including during his 52-inning MLB debut this year. Soriano worked to a 3.81 ERA with a reasonable 22.8% strikeout rate against an elevated 10.1% walk percentage while frequently working two innings per appearance.

The Fish have already indicated that left-hander A.J. Puk will stretch out as a starter in exhibition play. Even if they do the same with Soriano, they could determine both pitchers are ultimately best suited to open the year back in the bullpen. Miami presently projects for a starting five of Jesús Luzardo, Braxton Garrett, Eury Pérez, Edward Cabrera and Trevor Rogers.

First-year president of baseball operations Peter Bendix comes from a Tampa Bay front office that hasn’t been shy about converting bullpen arms to starters, often in response to midseason injuries. The Rays found success with rotation moves for Drew Rasmussen, Jeffrey Springs and Zack Littell over the past two years (although Rasmussen and Springs have since sustained injuries that necessitated arm surgery).

KBO’s NC Dinos Sign Daniel Castano

By | at

The NC Dinos of the Korea Baseball Organization have signed former Marlins lefty Daniel Castano to a one-year contract, the team announced (English-language link via Jee-ho Yoo of South Korea’s Yonhap News Agency). He’ll earn $650K in guaranteed money between his salary and signing bonus, and he can take home another $200K via incentives.

Castano, 29, came to the Marlins alongside future stars Sandy Alcantara and Zac Gallen (later flipped to Arizona for Jazz Chisholm Jr.) in the trade that sent Marcell Ozuna to St. Louis. He’s appeared in each of the past four seasons with Miami, logging a total of 88 2/3 innings. Along the way, the former 19th-round pick has posted a 4.47 earned run average with a 12.4% strikeout rate that’s roughly half the league average and a solid 7.9% walk rate.

Castano has appeared in parts of three Triple-A seasons with the Marlins and produced generally similar run-prevention numbers, albeit with a much better strikeout rate. In 174 innings with Miami’s top affiliate in Jacksonville, he’s logged a 4.24 ERA, 20.6% strikeout rate and 7.3% walk rate. He’s expected to work as a starter with the Dinos, per general manager Sun-nam Lim.

The Marlins outrighted Castano off the 40-man roster in September, and he became a free agent following the season. He’d likely have been in line for a minor league deal were he to sign with an MLB organization, at which point he’d have earned at a prorated deal not far north of the MLB minimum for any time spent in the big leagues. The $650K guarantee alone should top what he might’ve made under that scenario, and the incentives give him further earning potential.

If things go well for Castano in the KBO, he could position himself to re-sign for a guarantee closer to seven figures next year, and with enough success he could draw interest from Japan’s NPB or even on a return to the big leagues. He only just turned 29 in September, so he’s still young enough to make his way back to North American ball in a few years, depending how he fares overseas.

Marlins Acquire Christian Bethancourt From Guardians

By and | at

The Marlins and Guardians have announced a trade that will send catcher Christian Bethancourt to Miami in exchange for cash considerations.  Daniel Alvarez-Montes of El Extrabase was the first to report Bethancourt going to the Marlins, while the Miami Herald’s Craig Mish reported the cash return to Cleveland (both links to X).

The trade adds context to the Guardians’ $one-year, $4MM deal with Austin Hedges from earlier today.  The signing initially seemed curious given how Bethancourt and Bo Naylor were already lined up as Cleveland’s catching corps, but obviously the Guards were planning two moves at once in both signing Hedges and then flipping Bethancourt to the catcher-needy Marlins.

Bethancourt is a veteran of seven MLB seasons, though none in 2018-21 as he played in the minor leagues and spent a season playing in South Korea.  Returning to the big leagues with the A’s in 2022, Bethancourt was then dealt to Tampa Bay in July 2022, and the catcher ended up hitting .235/.257/.399 over 483 PA with the Rays over the last two seasons.  With his numbers falling off at the plate in 2023, the Rays outrighted Bethancourt off their 40-man roster at the start of November, and the Guardians claimed him off waivers two days later.

Almost at that exact same time, Peter Bendix was in final talks with the Marlins to leave the Rays’ GM job and become Miami’s new president of baseball operations.  As such, Bethancourt has become one of several ex-Tampa players that Bendix has already added to Miami’s roster during his brief time in charge of the front office.

While Bethancourt had exactly a league-average 100 wRC+ (from a .252/.283/.409 slash line and 11 homers in 333 PA) in 2022, it is safe to assume he probably won’t be viewed as a true starting catcher for the Marlins.  Bethancourt and Nick Fortes at least provide the Fish with a slight upgrade on paper from last year’s catching tandem of Fortes and the non-tendered Jacob Stallings, as Bethancourt’s strong throwing arm can pair with Fortes’ glove for a defense-first approach.  Bendix will probably keep an eye out for any more possible upgrades, as Fortes can still be optioned to the minors.

Bethancourt was projected to earn $2.3MM in arbitration salary this winter, so the Rays’ outright essentially served as an early non-tender for the team.  This is Betancourt’s second of three arb-eligible years, so the Marlins have control on his services through the 2025 season.

Show all

MLB Trade Rumors is not affiliated with Major League Baseball, MLB or MLB.com

Do not Sell or Share My Personal Information

hide arrows scroll to top