MLBTR Originals
A look back at the original reporting and analysis found on MLBTR the last seven days:
- Mark Polishuk asked readers to predict which one of MLBTR’s top five free agents – Alex Gordon, Justin Upton, Chris Davis, Yoenis Cespedes, and Ian Desmond – will be the next to sign. Nearly 39% of you predicted that Gordon will be the next to put pen-to-paper, followed by Cespedes and Davis. However, recent news has made it seem as though Gordon could be on the shelf for a little while longer. The Royals have reportedly been told that there’s “no chance” they’ll re-sign Gordon if they don’t increase their offer, and recent comments from Arte Moreno seem to suggest that the Angels aren’t a likely destination either.
- Later on, Mark surveyed readers on the next tier of available free agents: Wei-Yin Chen, Kenta Maeda, Dexter Fowler, Scott Kazmir, and Ian Kennedy. Nearly half of readers who participated said that Kazmir would be the first one to sign of those listed. On the other hand, it seems that readers are expecting Ian Kennedy to be waiting for a while. Only 3.67% of readers predicted that the right-hander would be the next man to sign. Kazmir has apparently received offers of three years, but might be holding out hope for four. That could be a sticking point for some teams — the Orioles, for example, might not be willing to sign Kazmir to a four-year deal.
- Charlie Wilmoth ran down the top ten remaining free agents on MLBTR’s list. Charlie provided detailed updates on each of the free agents listed above and his article is highly recommended for anyone looking to get caught up on the current state of the free agent market.
- On Saturday, Mark looked at managers and GMs from around the league who are on expiring contracts. Several teams, including the White Sox, Tigers, Rockies, and Reds, could have vacancies coming up sooner rather than later.
- MLBTR learned that the Hiroshima Toyo Carp have set the release fee for Kenta Maeda at $20MM, the maximum allowed by the agreement between MLB and NPB. Maeda, 28 in April, is widely considered to be one of the best pitchers in Japan.
- If you missed out on the most recent MLBTR chat hosted by Steve Adams, you can check out the transcript here.
Poll: Who Will Be The Next Of These Top-10 Free Agents To Sign?
In our last MLBTR poll, over 38.6% of MLBTR readers surveyed felt that Alex Gordon would be the next to sign out of a group consisting of the top five players left on MLBTR’s list of this offseason’s Top 50 Free Agents. Fast-forward a week and, unsurprisingly, all five players (Gordon, Justin Upton, Chris Davis, Yoenis Cespedes and Ian Desmond) are all still on the board.
Earlier today, Charlie Wilmoth examined the situations surrounding not just those five, but also the next five remaining from MLBTR’s original list — Wei-Yin Chen, Kenta Maeda, Dexter Fowler, Scott Kazmir and Ian Kennedy. These five may not carry the high price tags of the top-rated quintet, so it’s possible any of them could come off the board before Gordon and company. (Then again, it wouldn’t shock me if Chen or Maeda both sign for more than Desmond given how badly Desmond struggled in 2015. In fact, with the other top free agent pitchers all signed, it’s possible Chen or Maeda could even best Gordon’s eventual contract.)
Also, given the intertwined free agent market, some of the big names may need to be signed before attention can be turned to the next five names. As Charlie noted, for instance, Fowler’s market may not come into focus until the top-tier outfielders find new homes. Conversely, Fowler offers a different skillset than Upton, Cespedes or Gordon, so it’s also possible he could be signed before any of them.
The qualifying offer also looms large in this tier of free agents. Chen, Fowler and Kennedy all rejected the QO, so any new team that signs them will have to give up a draft pick as compensation. Maeda, obviously, doesn’t have the qualifying offer to worry about coming from Japan, though he has two more obstacles — the extra $20MM posting fee his MLB team will have to pay to the Hiroshima Carp, and the simple fact that Maeda is the most unknown quantity in Major League play. Kazmir doesn’t have a qualifying offer attached, yet that actually may be what’s holding up his signing since multiple teams are showing interest; Kazmir reportedly has several three-year offers in hand but he may be holding out for a team that gives him that guaranteed fourth year.
With these factors in mind, which of the “next five” do you think will be the first to sign a contract? (MLBTR app users can weigh in here)
Which Of These Free Agents Will Sign First?
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Scott Kazmir 48% (4,593)
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Kenta Maeda 23% (2,197)
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Wei-Yin Chen 13% (1,234)
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Dexter Fowler 12% (1,112)
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Ian Kennedy 4% (369)
Total votes: 9,505
Managers And GMs On Expiring Contracts
If a team is intent on shaking up its front office or dugout, contract length is usually not a great concern. For example, when the Mariners decided to part ways with GM Jack Zduriencik last summer, the club didn’t hesitate even though Zduriencik signed a multi-year extension in August 2014. Likewise, former manager Lloyd McClendon’s guaranteed contact through 2016 didn’t stop new GM Jerry Dipoto from making a change after the season.
This being said, everyone obviously wants more security than less when going into a season. It’s usually rather unusual for a team to let its manager or top baseball executive be a “lame duck” for optics purposes if nothing else, though there are some extenuating circumstances. Some executives or managers are so entrenched that they’ve already been given unwritten assurances that they’ll eventually receive new deals, or some skippers prefer to work on one-year deals (i.e. Walt Weiss’ original contract with the Rockies) since they’re unsure as to how long they wish to remain on the job.
Here’s the rundown of managers and GMs who could be facing a bit of extra pressure in 2016 as they’re entering the final guaranteed year of their contracts. (Much thanks to Cot’s Baseball Contracts for many of these details.) While we’re focusing mostly on GMs, there’s also one very prominent example on this list of a president of baseball operations entering a contract year. One caveat: some teams don’t make front office contract details public, so it’s possible that some of these executives may have already quietly agreed to extensions.
White Sox: Team owner Jerry Reinsdorf is a big fan of Ventura, so the skipper’s contract status (he’s entering the last season of a two-year extension) may not be a big factor. Of larger import, of course, could be Chicago’s performance given how the Sox underachieved in 2015. Another rough season could also lead to some speculation about the status of GM Rick Hahn; his contract terms aren’t known, though he was promoted to his current role after the 2012 season.
Twins: The details of Terry Ryan’s contract aren’t known, though given his long history in Minnesota and the Twins’ return to winning baseball last year, it’s hard to imagine Ryan leaving as GM unless he chooses to do so himself.
Tigers: Brad Ausmus was reportedly almost fired last season before former GM Dave Dombrowski fought to keep the manager. Reports then emerged in September that the club was planning to let Ausmus go at season’s end, though when ownership let new GM Al Avila make the decision, Avila opted to keep Ausmus in place. Avila’s support notwithstanding, it still seems like Ausmus is on thin ice given how badly owner Mike Ilitch wants to win; even a slow start next season could raise new rumors about a managerial change. Ausmus is signed through 2016 and Detroit has a club option on his services for 2017.
Royals: GM Dayton Moore and manager Ned Yost are both entering the last year of their contracts, so they clearly have a lot of negotiating power in the wake of Kansas City’s World Series championship. Yost, however, signed just a one-year extension last winter and said at the time that he only wanted to manage two or three more seasons. If he still feels this way, Yost may sign another one-year extension at most or he could just ride his current deal out before retiring. Yost and Moore both expressed no doubts that ownership would work out extensions with both men, so it’s likely just a matter of time before those new deals are finalized.
Rockies: Walt Weiss is entering the last season of the three-year extension he signed after the 2013 season and he’s yet to top even the 74-win plateau as Colorado’s manager, posting an overall 208-278 record. It’s rather hard to blame Weiss, however, given how the Rockies have suffered through injuries, consistently poor pitching and a change in front office mentality (as evidenced by the hiring of GM Jeff Bridich and the trade of Troy Tulowitzki) since he became manager. As such, it’s hard to judge exactly how much or little job security Weiss has, though if the Rockies struggle again in 2016, Bridich could quite possibly get the green light to hire his own manager.
Reds: Bryan Price is entering the final year of his original three-year contract, and there was some question as to whether he’d return for that third year in the wake of a tough season on and off for the field for the skipper. With Cincinnati going into a rebuild, however, the club’s expectations for its manager may have changed; rather than wins and losses, Price may now be judged on how he handles the development of an overall younger roster.
Phillies: The team was impressed enough by Pete Mackanin as an interim manager that they gave him the full-time job in September, signing him through 2016 with a club option for 2017. It’s fair to say that Mackanin is quite safe as he leads the rebuilding young Phillies.
Nationals: After Washington grossly underachieved from their preseason favorite status, GM Mike Rizzo may just have a “tenuous” grip on his job. Rizzo is under contract through 2016 and the Nats have a club option on him for 2017, and it’s quite possible Rizzo will need a major rebound season for his team in order to keep his job.
Diamondbacks: Chip Hale signed a two-year contract with a club option for 2017, and his first season as manager saw the D’Backs make a 15-win improvement from 2014. It was a good first step in leading the Snakes back to respectability, but expectations are now sky-high following Arizona’s acquisitions of Zack Greinke and Shelby Miller. Barring a disaster season, however, I’d think Hale’s job is fairly safe. It also wouldn’t surprise me if the D’Backs extended Hale this winter, at least in the form of guaranteeing that club option year.
Cubs: Theo Epstein’s contract as Chicago’s president of baseball operations is up after this season. While GM Jed Hoyer’s contractual status isn’t public, given that he was hired just a week after Epstein in October 2011, it’s safe to assume that his deal is probably also set to expire at the same time as his boss and longtime co-worker. Epstein didn’t sound too concerned about his contract status when asked about it in October, and he hinted that extensions for other front office members would be more of a priority. It’s difficult to imagine Epstein leaving just as the Cubs have become contenders again, especially given the historic significance of a Cubs World Series victory. Given his track record and how the Cubs have rebounded, Epstein is already in position to command the largest contract ever given to a baseball executive in his next contract, whether it’s in Chicago or elsewhere.
Braves: The club extended Fredi Gonzalez’s contract last summer, guaranteeing his 2016 year and adding a club option for 2017. The Braves are now in such full-fledged rebuild mode that firing Gonzalez now would seem unusual given how they had arguably more reason to do so prior to his extension, such as after the team’s late-season collapse in 2014. Atlanta has targeted 2017 and the opening of its new ballpark for a return to respectability, so it wouldn’t be a shock if a change was made next winter if the team feels its rebuild is over and a dugout upgrade is needed to take the next step into contention.
Blue Jays: John Gibbons is only technically on this list for another few days given his rolling contract. If Gibbons is still the Jays’ manager on January 1, Toronto’s club option on his services for 2017 will become guaranteed and another club option will be generated for 2018. Despite the Jays’ AL East title last year, Gibbons (who had a close relationship with former Toronto GM Alex Anthopoulos) may still be under extra pressure in 2016 with Mark Shapiro and Ross Atkins now atop the Blue Jays’ baseball operations pyramid.
Astros: The terms of Jeff Luhnow’s original deal to serve as Houston’s GM weren’t revealed when he was hired in the 2011-12 offseason, nor were the terms of his extension during the 2013-14 offseason (in fact, news of that extension didn’t even break until roughly a year after the fact). Looking at the timeline of these deals, it’s possible 2016 could be Luhnow’s last year under contract, though this all could be a moot point — given how his extensive and sometimes controversial rebuild paid off in the form of a playoff berth, Luhnow likely isn’t going anywhere.
Top Ten Remaining Free Agents
We’re now deep into the MLB offseason, and a number of the winter’s best free agents — David Price, Jason Heyward, Zack Greinke — are off the board. It has, however, been a quiet winter, at least in terms of the number of published reports, for many of the rest of the best players available. FOX Sports’ Ken Rosenthal recently explored the reasons why, focusing on the qualifying offer, the lack of involvement in the market by some traditional big spenders (Yankees, Angels), the large number of rebuilding teams, and the robust trade market. Nonetheless, the free agent market is sure to pick up in the coming weeks. Here’s a look at the best ten free agents left, with their rankings from Tim Dierkes’ Top 50 free agents list from early November.
4. Justin Upton. Upton’s market has seemed quiet, with most recent news reports naming teams who aren’t likely to heavily pursue him (like the Angels, Cardinals and Giants). Upton’s agent met with the Orioles earlier this month (although their level of interest might be different now depending on their progress with Chris Davis and their deal with Hyun-soo Kim). The White Sox could perhaps enter the market for Upton.
5. Chris Davis. Davis has been most strongly connected with the Orioles, who made a significant offer earlier this month that they later rescinded (although without ruling out the possibility of future discussions). Beyond that, Davis’ market is unclear, not only from recent reports, but apparently also in the eyes of the Orioles themselves, who aren’t even sure who they’re bidding against.
6. Yoenis Cespedes. Like those of Upton and Davis, the rumor mill surrounding Cespedes has been relatively quiet. The Tigers reportedly have some interest, although perhaps only if Cespedes’ price drops. The Orioles have also been connected to Cespedes. The Mets have reportedly dropped out of the running.
9. Alex Gordon. The Royals have reportedly been told that there’s “no chance” they’ll re-sign Gordon if they don’t increase their offer, and recent comments from Arte Moreno seem to suggest that the Angels aren’t a likely destination either. The White Sox, however, have emerged as a possible suitor, and Gordon has been connected to a wide variety of teams this offseason.
10. Ian Desmond. It appears Desmond’s market has been slow to develop, which perhaps isn’t surprising given that he’s coming off a subpar season. The latest significant bits of news — and these are both over a week old — are that the Padres aren’t likely to make a large offer and that teams have at least some interest in using Desmond at second, third or outfield, even though he’s played shortstop almost exclusively in his big-league career.
13. Wei-Yin Chen. Many of the top pitchers in this year’s free agent market are off the board, with Chen as the top remaining name. The Dodgers might be a possibility, and the Nationals might as well. It’s unclear, however, whether any team will be willing to meet Chen’s reported five-year, $100MM asking price.
14. Kenta Maeda. On Christmas Day, the Orange County Register’s Bill Plunkett tweeted that, according to a source in the Japanese media, Maeda visited Dodger Stadium on Thursday. That remains unconfirmed right now, but if in fact the Dodgers were close to signing Maeda, it would certainly make sense — the Dodgers figure to be in on most of the top starting pitchers remaining after having missed out on Greinke and other pitching targets. The deadline for Maeda to sign is January 8.
16. Dexter Fowler. The team to which Fowler has been most heavily connected lately has been the Giants, with another report mentioning the Royals as a possibility. One might think, though, that the market for second-tier outfielders like Fowler and Denard Span won’t come into focus until some of the bigger names come off the market, even though Fowler’s skill set as a full-time leadoff hitter and center fielder is somewhat different than those of Upton, Cespedes and Gordon.
18. Scott Kazmir. In contrast with a number of other big-name free agents, Kazmir’s name has popped up over and over this offseason. Lately, he’s been connected to the Nationals, Orioles, Royals, Athletics and Astros. He has apparently received offers of three years, but might be holding out hope for four. That could be a sticking point for some teams — the Orioles, for example, might not be willing to sign Kazmir to a four-year deal.
19. Ian Kennedy. Kennedy lately has been connected to the Royals and Marlins. At issue for Kennedy, of course, is that, in contrast with some other mid-tier options, signing him will result in the loss of a draft pick. Of course, the qualifying offer has not prevented pitchers like John Lackey, Jeff Samardzija and Hisashi Iwakuma from finding homes.
Latest On Kenta Maeda
2:13pm: The Dodgers are interested in Maeda and are maintaining contact with his representatives in advance of the January 8th deadline, Jon Morosi of FOX Sports tweets.
12:35pm: The deadline for an MLB team to sign Kenta Maeda is January 8th at 5pm ET/4pm CT, according to Jon Morosi of FOX Sports (on Twitter). Meanwhile, MLBTR has learned that the Hiroshima Toyo Carp have set the release fee at $20MM, the maximum allowed by the agreement between MLB and NPB. Any team willing to meet that $20MM asking price will have the right to negotiate with Maeda over the next couple of weeks.
The question now is, which teams will be making a serious run at Maeda? We learned recently that the Red Sox will not submit a bid to negotiate with Maeda thanks to the mammoth deal given to David Price. At the Winter Meetings, Giants GM Bobby Evans told MLBTR that his club had internal conversations about Maeda, but they’re almost certainly out on him after adding Jeff Samardzija and Johnny Cueto. The Padres will not be in the mix, despite sending a number of club officials to Japan in November. The Cardinals looked to be one possibility, but they’re probably not considering the Japanese star after inking Mike Leake to a five-year, $80MM deal.
The Dodgers would appear to be a solid fit for Maeda after losing Zack Greinke to free agency and tearing up their agreement with Hisashi Iwaukma. They have been expected to be among the teams in the hunt for the right-hander, but there hasn’t been any definitive word on that as of late.
Maeda, 28 in April, is widely considered to be one of the best pitchers in Japan. He just wrapped up a season in which he pitched to a 2.09 ERA with 7.6 K/9 against 1.8 BB/9 across 206 1/3 innings, marking his sixth consecutive season with an earned run average of 2.60 or better. His excellent 2015 season netted Maeda his second Sawamura Award — Japan’s equivalent to the Cy Young Award. With his relative youth, dominant track record and, of course, lack of draft pick compensation, Maeda immediately becomes one of the more intriguing arms on the free-agent market. MLBTR’s Tim Dierkes forecasted a five-year, $60MM deal for Maeda this winter. When factoring in a release fee of $20MM, that amounts to an $80MM commitment overall.
MLBTR Originals
A look back at the original reporting and analysis found on MLBTR the last seven days:
- On a conference call, MLBTR asked Steve Cishek about his decision to sign with the Mariners and whether he had opportunities to close elsewhere. “There were a couple other teams [with significant interest], but not too many closing opportunities out there. For me, Seattle was the No. 1 place I wanted to go when I heard that they wanted me to be their closer,” Cishek said.
- On the most recent edition of the MLB Trade Rumors podcast, free agent Todd Coffey joined host Jeff Todd to talk about his career in the pen and his current comeback attempt. Coffey, who plans to throw for teams in January, says he feels healthy and wants to be able to pitch multiple innings for his next MLB club. Steve Adams also chatted with Jeff about what’s up ahead in the hard-to-predict offseason market. A new episode of the MLB Trade Rumors Podcast is released every Thursday and can be accessed on iTunes, SoundCloud, and Stitcher.
- On Thursday, MLBTR was the first to report that the Braves designated right-hander Brandon Cunniff for assignment. Cunniff, 27, made his big league debut with the Braves in 2015, working to a 4.63 ERA with an impressive 37 strikeouts in 35 innings of work out of the Atlanta bullpen. However, he also yielded 22 walks in that time, which contributed to his somewhat elevated earned run average
- Recently, MLB Trade Rumors launched a brand new official Instagram account:@TradeRumorsMLB. Each day, we’re sharing conversation-inspiring images about the hottest topics in baseball. From there, we invite you to give us a like, weigh in with your thoughts in the comments section, and even share the link with a friend. So, what are you waiting for? If you don’t have an Instagram account, this is the perfect excuse to sign up and get one. Follow us on Instagram today!
Braves To Designate Brandon Cunniff For Assignment
TODAY: Atlanta has made the moves official, with Cunniff departing the roster to make way for Bonifacio.
YESTERDAY: The Braves will designate right-hander Brandon Cunniff for assignment, reports MLBTR’s Zach Links (on Twitter). The move that necessitated Cunniff’s DFA remains unclear, though the club has yet to formally announce the reported agreement with utility man Emilio Bonifacio.
Cunniff, 27, made his big league debut with the Braves in 2015, working to a 4.63 ERA with an impressive 37 strikeouts in 35 innings of work out of the Atlanta bullpen. However, he also yielded 22 walks in that time, which contributed to his somewhat elevated earned run average.
A former 27th-round draft pick by the Marlins, Cunniff spent three seasons in the independent Frontier League following his brief minor league career with the Marlins. The Braves plucked him from the indy circuit in June of 2013, and he rather quickly rose through their ranks over the past two years. Cunniff jumped straight to the Majors from Double-A, where his numbers had been outstanding: a 2.02 ERA with a 51-to-20 K/BB ratio in 53 1/3 innings of work.
Steve Cishek On Signing With Mariners
On Monday afternoon, the Mariners formally announced that they have reached agreement with reliever Steve Cishek on a two-year deal. The pact, reportedly worth $10MM combined between 2016 and 2017, will help replenish a bullpen that has lost former temporary closers Tom Wilhelmsen, Carson Smith, and Danny Farquhar. On a conference call with reporters just minutes ago, GM Jerry Dipoto confirmed that Cishek will be the Mariners’ closer in 2016. For Cishek, that was pivotal as he shopped the open market. I asked the veteran if he had other offers to pitch in the ninth inning.
“There were a couple other teams [with significant interest], but not too many closing opportunities out there. For me, Seattle was the No. 1 place I wanted to go when I heard that they wanted me to be their closer,” Cishek said.
Until today, Cishek spent his entire career in the National League, but he has gotten to play at Safeco Field in the past. His previous time spent in Seattle also played into his interest in signing with the M’s.
“When I was here, I loved the city and the stadium. It was gorgeous. I was able to confirm all of that again when I did the physical here a couple of days ago,” Cishek said. “When my agent called me, he said that there are a couple of offers are on the table, but one in particular is really interesting. He said the Mariners are looking for a closer and I said, ‘Tell me more! Tell me more!’ I wanted to return to the back end of the bullpen and that’s something that I didn’t get to do too much in St. Louis because their bullpen was amazing.”
The addition of Cishek might not mark the end of the Mariners’ bullpen revamp, Dipoto says, but the signing will probably be the end of the team’s “heavy lifting” when it comes to relievers. Dipoto fully expects Cishek and Charlie Furbush to hold down the back end of the bullpen and that’s cause for excitement from Cishek’s perspective.
Photo courtesy of Seattle Mariners Baseball Information department.
MLBTR Originals
A look back at the original reporting and analysis found on MLBTR the last seven days:
- On Wednesday, MLBTR sat down with Johnny Cueto‘s agent for an exclusive interview at the Winter Meetings in Nashville, Tennessee. In the chat, Bryce Dixon made the case for Cueto as a strong fit for the Cardinals and also touched on his client’s involvement in a 2010 brawl against St. Louis. “I can’t speak to how the Cardinals feel. ..Obviously [Johnny] regrets how the fight went down,” Dixon said. “He’s expressed regret over it in the past. He loves pitching in the NL Central. He’s the best pitcher of our era in the NL Central. It would be a good marriage [between] Johnny and the Cardinals. I think once the fans got past the fight and they saw what a gamer Johnny is and what he could bring to the team, I think they would be able to embrace him now, though I don’t think that they’ll do that overnight.”
- Giants GM Bobby Evans also sat down with MLBTR for a one-on-one chat. Evans discussed his pursuit of a left fielder and explained that there is still significant spending room to work with, even after the addition of Jeff Samardzija. “There’s flexibility, yes,” Evans told MLBTR. “I think [last year] we didn’t go as far on multi-year deals and we did shorter term deals. It does give you some flexibility this time around.”
- MLBTR’s Jeff Todd profiled slugger Yoenis Cespedes as he searches for his big payday.
- On the most recent edition of the MLBTR podcast, I joined Jeff to discuss all of the happenings from the Winter Meetings. A new episode of the MLB Trade Rumors Podcast is released every Thursday and can be accessed on iTunes, SoundCloud, and Stitcher.
- Joe Torre spoke to reporters in Nashville about the Aroldis Chapman situation.
- MLBTR learned that the Mets and Diamondbacks were among the teams with interest in Joakim Soria before he signed with the Royals.
- Catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia drew interest from six or seven teams before landing with the Tigers, a source told MLBTR.
- MLBTR was on hand for Scott Boras’ annual address to the media at the Winter Meetings.
Johnny Cueto’s Agent On Cardinals, Market
The Winter Meetings in Nashville are nearly through and many of the open market’s starting pitchers have found their homes for 2016 and beyond. However, one of this class’s very best, Johnny Cueto, is still searching for his big payday. Cueto is a bona fide ace with years of experience at the head of the Reds’ rotation, but a number of his expected suitors have already allocated major funds towards the top of the starting five. Even though some might have the impression that Cueto’s market is shrinking, agent Bryce Dixon told MLB Trade Rumors in a 1-on-1 interview that he doesn’t see things that way.
“You can always add an ace pitcher to your staff. All thirty teams can use a Cueto,” Dixon told MLBTR on Wednesday in Nashville, Tennessee. “So, yeah, there are teams like the Diamondbacks that have added a [Zack] Greinke and a [Shelby] Miller, so maybe their appetite for him has lessened but, no, I don’t view the market as shrinking up. I’m still finding interest and there still seems to be enough out there for him to land comfortably with a team.”
So far, Cueto has yet to receive an offer that clearly separates him from the second tier of starting pitchers and Dixon says that he is comfortable in waiting. A few weeks ago, Cueto’s camp was handed a sizable offer from the Diamondbacks, one that was worth $126MM over six years, according to ESPN.com’s Buster Olney (on Twitter). Some observers suggested that the offer was a strong one given Cueto’s second half issues and 50/50 showing in the postseason, but Dixon says that he did not discuss the offer at length with the pitcher before they turned it down.
Dixon concedes that the Diamondbacks are one club that does not have a clear fit for Cueto at this stage, but, on paper, the Cardinals do stand out as a team that would have the need and the resources required to sign the veteran. Still, some outsiders have suggested that unpleasant history between the two sides could get in the way of a union. In 2010, the Reds and Cardinals got into a brawl and, in one exchange, Cueto kicked catcher Jason LaRue in the head while wearing spikes. The impact of the kick left LaRue with concussion issues that forced him to retire at the end of the 2010 season. The brawl may still be fresh in the minds of some Cardinals fans, but the Cardinals organization has not brought up the incident in their talks with Cueto’s camp.
“I can’t speak to how the Cardinals feel. ..Obviously [Johnny] regrets how the fight went down,” Dixon told MLB Trade Rumors on Wednesday afternoon. “He’s expressed regret over it in the past. He loves pitching in the NL Central. He’s the best pitcher of our era in the NL Central. It would be a good marriage [between] Johnny and the Cardinals. I think once the fans got past the fight and they saw what a gamer Johnny is and what he could bring to the team, I think they would be able to embrace him now, though I don’t think that they’ll do that overnight.”
Dixon went on to explain that the circumstances of the brawl were complicated. Cueto was pushed up against the screen and, feeling trapped, he made a split-second reaction that he deeply regrets. For a time, the fight may have defined him as someone who is angry or violent, but those who work with and around Cueto, he says, can attest to his mellow character and positive attitude. Ultimately, Dixon can see the Cardinals being a great landing spot for his client.
“Johnny’s best friend is Brayan Pena (Pena signed a two-year deal with St. Louis this winter). Johnny would love to pitch to him and a catcher like [Yadier] Molina, so I think it would be a good fit. Whether the Cardinals step up with the necessary resources, that remains to be seen. But he has no problem towards the Cardinals and the manager of that [2010 Cardinals] team [Tony La Russa] is with the Diamondbacks organization now. He came down and met Johnny and they had no problem. It’s in the past. It’s unfortunate that it happened, but, on our side, we’ve moved on,” said Dixon.
Dixon could see Cueto forming a strong rotation alongside Adam Wainwright, Michael Wacha, and Carlos Martinez, but he could also envision his client looking good in Dodger blue next to Clayton Kershaw in L.A.’s rotation. Those are just two of the fits that Dixon can see for Cueto at this stage and he’s still willing to wait for what he feels is an appropriate pact. When asked to put a timetable on a Cueto signing, Dixon indicated that it could happen in a matter of minutes or a matter of weeks. One option he’s not considering at this time, however, is a one-year pillow deal to allow Cueto to cash in next winter.
“I don’t think we’re going to have to go down that road. We’ll remain flexible but I don’t anticipate something like that,” he said.