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  • Yankees, Corey Kluber Agree To Deal
  • Yankees, Aaron Judge Avoid Arbitration
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Newsstand

Phillies Sign Archie Bradley

By Connor Byrne | January 18, 2021 at 9:00am CDT

Jan. 18: Bradley has passed his physical, and the contract has been formally announced by the Phillies.

Jan. 14: The Phillies are signing free-agent reliever Archie Bradley, Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet tweets. It’s a one-year, $6MM pact for the right-hander, according to Mark Feinsand of MLB.com. Alden Gonzalez and Jeff Passan of ESPN.com were first to report that Bradley was nearing a deal with a team. Bradley is a client of BBI Sports Group.

Archie Bradley |Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

Bradley has been on the open market since the Reds non-tendered him Dec. 2 in lieu of paying him a projected $4.3MM to $5.7MM in arbitration. The move was particularly surprising when combining Bradley’s solid track record with the fact that the Reds acquired him from the Diamondbacks for two players – utilityman Josh VanMeter and young outfielder Stuart Fairchild – at last August’s trade deadline.

The Bradley trade did pay off initially for Cincinnati, as he gave the playoff-bound club 7 2/3 innings of one-earned run ball with six strikeouts, no walks and four hits allowed during the regular season. Bradley didn’t fare as well in his lone playoff appearance, though, surrendering the only run in a 13-inning defeat to the Braves in Game 1 of a wild-card round that Cincy went on to lose.

The seventh overall pick of the Diamondbacks in 2011, Bradley was regarded as a premium prospect over the ensuing few years, But he couldn’t put it together as a big league starter in Arizona from 2015-16. The proverbial light bulb went on the next season when the Diamondbacks shifted Bradley to their bullpen. Bradley enjoyed a serious increase in velocity that year (from 92 mph-plus to upward of 96) and pitched to a 1.73 ERA across 73 innings. Although Bradley’s results weren’t as dominant from 2018-19, he continued to keep runs off the board at a good clip while eating innings (over 70 in both seasons) and throwing better than 95.

Bradley’s average fastball velo dipped to around 94 last year, but it was still one of his most effective seasons yet. The 28-year-old notched a 2.95 ERA/3.44 SIERA and recorded a 24.7 percent strikeout rate with a personal-best 4.1 percent walk rate in 18 1/3 innings. Bradley’s 9.4 percent swinging-strike rate was a bit above his career average of 8.7, while the .274 weighted on-base average he allowed wasn’t too far from his .297 expected wOBA.

Now with the Phillies, his third organization, Bradley should provide some much-needed help to a bullpen that helped cost the team a playoff berth in 2020. The Phillies’ relief corps finished last in the majors in ERA (7.06), and the tandem of new president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski and general manager Sam Fuld have tried to improve the group with the acquisitions of Bradley, Jose Alvarado, Sam Coonrod and Ian Hamilton this winter.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

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Yankees, Corey Kluber Agree To Deal

By Connor Byrne | January 15, 2021 at 6:49pm CDT

7:49pm: It’s a one-year, $11MM pact, Bob Nightengale of USA Today reports. That comes in just a bit south of MLBTR’s one-year, $12MM prediction.

7:37pm: It’s a done deal, pending a physical, Mark Feinsand of MLB.com tweets. Kluber will earn upward of $10MM, per Jon Heyman of MLB Network.

7:27pm: The Yankees are finalizing a contract with free-agent right-hander Corey Kluber, according to Jeff Passan of ESPN.com (Talkin Jake first reported the deal). Details aren’t known yet. Kluber is a client of Jet Sports Management.

After a couple of quiet months, the Yankees have certainly been active on Friday. Hours before the Kluber news came down, they made major progress toward re-signing star second baseman DJ LeMahieu for six years and $90MM. The 34-year-old Kluber won’t pull in that type of contract, but as a two-time American League Cy Young winner, he’s clearly a high-profile pickup for a Yankees team in need of help in their rotation.

During his peak years in Cleveland from 2014-18, Kluber averaged about 218 innings per season and combined for a stellar 2.85 ERA/2.99 SIERA with a 28.5 percent strikeout rate and a paltry 5.2 percent walk rate. There was no reason to expect a drop-off heading into 2019, but Kluber hasn’t been the same since then. He threw 35 2/3 innings in the first few weeks of that season and was tattooed by opposing offenses, who totaled 23 earned runs on 44 hits and 15 walks (38 strikeouts) against Kluber before he succumbed to a fractured right forearm on May 1. That proved to be Kluber’s final outing with Cleveland, which traded him to the Rangers for reliever Emmanuel Clase and outfielder Delino DeShields in December 2019.

Texas was banking on a rebound effort from Kluber, but it essentially received no contributions from him. He threw just one inning in his first start last season before exiting with shoulder tightness, and Kluber never took the mound again for the Rangers. The Rangers then declined Kluber’s $18MM option for 2021 in favor of a $1MM buyout, making him a free agent. That left Kluber to try to prove to clubs he was back to health, and he made that effort Wednesday with a showcase that the majority of major league teams attended. Kluber’s fastball topped out around 90 mph during that session, down a bit from his typical 91-92 range but not enough to scare away the Yankees.

Now that he’s on his way to the Bronx, Kluber will continue to work with Yankees director of health and performance Eric Cressey, who – as Joel Sherman of the New York Post notes – has been overseeing the former ace’s shoulder rehab. Kluber is also quite familiar with Yankees pitching coach Matt Blake, Cleveland’s ex-pitching coordinator and assistant director of pitching development.

The Yankees entered the offseason facing the potential loss of veteran righty Masahiro Tanaka, who remains a free agent. Reports have indicated the Yankees have not been aggressive in trying to re-sign Tanaka, so Kluber could end up as his replacement. At the moment, he’s a lock to be part of a season-opening rotation led by ace Gerrit Cole. The Yankees should get Luis Severino back from February 2020 Tommy John surgery at some point, though he probably won’t be ready to begin the season. So, barring other acquisitions, Deivi Garcia, Jordan Montgomery, Domingo German, Clarke Schmidt, Michael King and Jhoulys Chacin look as if they’ll be among those vying for starting jobs behind Cole and Kluber during the spring.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

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Yankees, Aaron Judge Avoid Arbitration

By Anthony Franco | January 15, 2021 at 1:29pm CDT

The Yankees and Aaron Judge have agreed on a $10.175MM contract to avoid arbitration, reports USA Today’s Bob Nightengale (Twitter link). That falls in line with MLBTR’s projected salary range of $9.2MM — $10.7MM. Judge is a client of PSI Sports Management.

This was Judge’s second of three trips through the arbitration process and marks a slight pay bump from last season’s $8.5MM mark (prior to prorating salaries). The power-hitting outfielder will be eligible for free agency after the 2022 season.

Judge was hampered by calf injuries last year but remained plenty productive when he was able to take the field. He popped nine home runs in just 114 plate appearances en route to a .257/.336/.554 slash line (140 wRC+). The 28-year-old figures to reprise his role as one of the sport’s most fearsome sluggers in 2021.

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Dodgers, Cody Bellinger Avoid Arbitration

By TC Zencka | January 15, 2021 at 1:16pm CDT

The Dodgers and Cody Bellinger agreed to a one-year, $16.1MM contract ahead of today’s arbitration deadline, per MLB Insider Jon Heyman (via Twitter). Bellinger made $11.5MM last season, a record amount for a player in his first year of arbitration eligibility. Bellinger is represented by Scott Boras. As a Super-Two player, Bellinger has two more years of arbitration eligibility remaining before his potential free agency following the 2023 season.

Bellinger’s record salary last season came on the heels of a National League MVP season in which he produced a .305/.406/.629 slash line and 7.1 bWAR. While his Dodgers got over the hump to win the World Series this season, Bellinger posted a mere mortal .239/.333/.455 line at the plate during the regular season. Despite seeing a year-over-year drop from 162 wRC+ to 114 wRC+ this season, the Dodgers saw fit to reward Bellinger with a sizable raise regardless. MLBTR’s Matt Swartz projected Bellinger would have received an arbitration award somewhere between $11.5MM and $15.9MM. The model based on 2020’s numbers alone was definitely too conservative, as he was going to get a raise of some sort, but it’s still interesting to see the Dodgers agree to a number beyond even our highest projection.

While Bellinger’s offensive numbers may have been down, he remained as central as ever to the Dodgers’ efforts. The 25-year-old led all of baseball with eight outs above average while manning centerfield for the Dodgers, which the Dodgers certainly could include in their valuation of Bellinger, even if arbitration panels don’t typically overly weigh defensive metrics such as OAA.

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White Sox Sign Liam Hendriks

By Connor Byrne | January 15, 2021 at 9:35am CDT

Jan. 15: The White Sox have formally announced the signing of Hendriks to a four-year, $54MM contract. Chris Hatfield of SoxProspects.com and Joel Sherman of the New York Post point out an interesting wrinkle in the unique structure of Hendriks’ contract (Twitter link): for luxury-tax purposes, the fourth year comes with a zero-dollar hit. Because Hendriks is guaranteed the full $54MM even over a three-year term, the first three years will come with an $18MM hit (dipped slightly because of the 10-year deferrals if the option is bought out).

The White Sox have never flirted with the luxury barrier, but it’s notable in the event that they increase their spending in future years or in the event that another club wants to borrow the concept for future dealings. Of course, with the collective bargaining agreement set to expire next December, it could be rendered a moot point; it’s possible that new luxury limits and/or new means of determining luxury penalization will be bargained.

Jan. 12: If the White Sox don’t pick up Hendriks’ $15MM option for the 2024 season, they’ll pay him a buyout of that same value but defer it over a 10-year period, tweets USA Today’s Bob Nightengale. That’s an unprecedented structure for a club option that affords the ChiSox the opportunity for substantial up-front cost savings while still guaranteeing Hendriks the full freight of the $54MM — even if the actual present-day value of the contract is weighed down by the potential deferrals.

Jan. 11: The White Sox have reached an agreement with free-agent reliever Liam Hendriks, pending a physical, Tim Brown of Yahoo Sports reports. It’s a three-year, $54MM guarantee with a club option for a fourth season, per Mark Feinsand of MLB.com. Both the option and buyout are worth $15MM, according to ESPN’s Jeff Passan, so the right-handed Hendriks will earn that money regardless of how long he’s part of the team. Passan adds that the White Sox would be able to pay the buyout over multiple years. Hendriks is a client of ALIGND Sports Agency.

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So far, this is the largest guarantee given to any free agent during what has been a slow-moving offseason. It comes as a surprise when considering how the winter opened for relievers, as Cleveland waived star closer Brad Hand in lieu of paying him a $10MM option for 2021 and no other team claimed him. After that, it would have been easy expect relievers to continue faring somewhat poorly this offseason, but Hendriks will be paid handsomely. In fact, his deal blows past the three-year, $30MM prediction MLBTR made for him before the offseason.

Just a couple of years ago, it would have been almost impossible to imagine Hendriks at this point. The Athletics outrighted him in July 2018, but he came back with a vengeance as a member of the team that September and carried it over into the 2019 and ’20 campaigns. Hendriks was the majors’ most effective late-game arm during that span, as he pitched to a 1.66 ERA with a similarly astounding 33.1 percent strikeout-walk percentage, piled up 39 saves out of 47 chances, and won American League Reliever of the Year honors  in 2020.

Based on what he has done in recent seasons, the 31-year-old Hendriks looks like an enormous loss for the A’s – who didn’t give the hurler a qualifying offer after they knocked off the White Sox in the first round of last fall’s playoffs – and a massive pickup for Chicago. The White Sox earned their first trip to the postseason since 2008 last season, and they’re one of the few teams in baseball that have been active since then. Assuming the Hendriks deal goes through, he’ll be their third noteworthy pickup of the offseason, joining starter Lance Lynn and outfielder Adam Eaton.

Also a former Twin, Royal and Blue Jay, Hendriks should be in line to take over for free agent Alex Colome as Chicago’s closer. The Australia native will be the highest-profile member of a White Sox relief corps that finished seventh in the majors in ERA (3.76) last year, when holdovers Evan Marshall, Aaron Bummer, Matt Foster and Codi Heuer turned in terrific results. With Hendriks coming in, Chicago’s bullpen could be even better in 2021.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

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Yankees, DJ LeMahieu Nearing Agreement

By Steve Adams | January 15, 2021 at 9:10am CDT

9:10am: It’ll be a six-year, $90MM contract for LeMahieu when finalized, as was first reported by Pat Ragazzo (Twitter link). The $90MM overall guarantee isn’t particularly surprising, but it is indeed an eye-opener to see that sum come over a six-year term rather than five or even four years.

That LeMahieu agreed to a lengthier pact is a boost for the Yankees, as the associated $15MM luxury hit will “only” put the team at about $195MM in terms of 2021 luxury-tax obligations. That leaves the club with as much as $14-15MM of space before reaching the $210MM luxury barrier.

8:52am: The Yankees’ preference was indeed to drive down the luxury-tax hit by lengthening the contract, tweets Bowden, though the precise length of the deal still isn’t clear.

8:17am: The Athletic’s Jim Bowden tweets that LeMahieu’s contract will be more than four years in length. That makes a five-year deal seem likeliest, barring an unexpected six-year arrangement at a comparable total but lower annual rate that is designed to lessen the luxury hit for the Yankees.

7:04am: After a months-long staredown, the Yankees are closing in on a new contract with second baseman DJ LeMahieu, reports Jon Morosi of MLB.com (via Twitter). Terms of the potential agreement aren’t yet known, but the deal could be completed as soon as today, per Morosi. LeMahieu is represented by Wasserman.

DJ LeMahieu | Andy Marlin-USA TODAY Sports

LeMahieu, 32, has been the Yankees’ top priority all season. General manager Brian Cashman acknowledged as much a couple of weeks back, but the club has also seemingly been letting LeMahieu explore his options on the open market rather than emulating the Yankees of old and simply writing him a blank check up front. The interest between the two parties was mutual, and it’s long been apparent that the Yankees would have the opportunity to match any offer LeMahieu received elsewhere. The impending reunion will surely come at a loftier price than his initial deal, which proved to be a bargain; reports have recently suggested that LeMahieu has been looking to top Josh Donaldson’s four-year, $92MM contract — ideally on a five-year arrangement.

The focus on LeMahieu is more than understandable for the Yankees, who looked like an oddball fit for the longtime Rockies second baseman two years ago when he inked a two-year, $24MM contract to come to the Bronx. The Yankees already boasted a relatively full infield, but injuries and LeMahieu’s immediate, career-best production quickly thrust him into regular work in manager Aaron Boone’s lineup. The versatile LeMahieu logged action not only at second base but also at the infield corners, emerging not only as the Yankees’ most productive hitter in that time but as a bona fide MVP candidate in the American League.

During his two seasons in New York, LeMahieu has turned in an outstanding .336/.386/.536 batting line — including a superhuman .364/.421/.590 line in 2020’s truncated season. That .364 showing marked the second time in his career that LeMahieu has led the league in average — he won a batting title with the 2016 Rockies as well — but he’d never put together this type of power until landing in New York. Yankee Stadium proved to be the perfect fit for LeMahieu, who leads the Majors in opposite-field home runs over the past couple of seasons after fully taking advantage of his new home park’s short porch in right field.

That’s not to diminish LeMahieu’s production with the Yankees, of course. He remains one of the toughest players in all of baseball to strike out thanks to his superlative bat-to-ball skills, and LeMahieu has upped his hard-hit rate and exit velocities since his days at Coors Field. LeMahieu’s 12.7 percent strikeout rate is the seventh-lowest in all of baseball among qualified hitters over the past two seasons, and he has the eighth-lowest swinging-strike rate of any player in the Majors in that time.

A reunion with the Yankees means that LeMahieu will remain the primary second baseman, with Gleyber Torres reprising his role at shortstop. There’s been plenty of question about Torres’ ability to develop into a strong or even average defender at shortstop after a pair of seasons punctuated by miscues, but the club has publicly expressed confidence that Torres is up to the challenge.

LeMahieu and Torres, then, will be penciled in as the Yankees’ double-play tandem for the foreseeable future, with Gio Urshela and Luke Voit holding down the infield corners. That still leaves former Rookie of the Year runner-up Miguel Andujar without a clear path to everyday at-bats, though he still has a minor league option remaining and can also be worked in as an oft-used bench piece seeing time at third, first and in left field.

The fit in the lineup was always obvious, but the fit into the Yankees’ budget was another question. The Yanks, of course, have deeper pockets than just about any team in the league, but after last year’s franchise-record level of spending — the Yankees’ $108MM prorated payroll was larger than several teams’ full-season payroll would have been — owner Hal Steinbrenner has reportedly been intent on lowering the team’s payroll and dipping beneath the $210MM luxury tax threshold.

The potential free-agent departures of J.A. Happ, James Paxton, Brett Gardner and Masahiro Tanaka help to drive down that bottom line, as did Tommy Kahnle’s non-tender, but it’s been apparent for months that the Yankees weren’t going to look to replicate the aggressiveness that brought Gerrit Cole to New York on an MLB-record deal for a pitcher. Even without a single addition, the Yankees were projected just shy of $181MM in terms of luxury-tax obligations, per Roster Resource’s Jason Martinez, and adding a likely $20MM+ salary for LeMahieu will eat up anywhere from two-thirds to three-quarters of the space that separates the Yankees and that competitive balance tax threshold.

The Yankees are still in need of some rotation depth even after signing Cole last winter. Luis Severino is expected back from Tommy John surgery but will clearly have his workload monitored. The same is true of righty Domingo German, who’ll be returning from a lengthy suspension under MLB’s domestic violence policy. Jordan Montgomery, top prospects Deivi Garcia and Clarke Schmidt, righty Mike King and swingman Luis Cessa are among the other options for Boone, but it’s clear that some veteran innings would prove quite beneficial.

Barring a trade to shed some payroll, however, it’s tough to see a way for the Yankees to both retain Tanaka and limbo underneath the luxury-tax bar. That reality, and some recent comments from Tanaka himself, have fueled speculation that the 32-year-old righty could return to Japan, leaving a considerable void on the Yankees’ starting staff. There are plenty of veteran options to be had on more affordable deals and various trade options to pursue, of course, and Cashman’s focus now seems likely to shift to solving that puzzle.

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Mets, Brad Hand Discussing Deal

By TC Zencka | January 15, 2021 at 7:48am CDT

The Mets are working to sign free agent reliever Brad Hand to a two-year contract, per the Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal (via Twitter). A contract is not yet signed, however, and the two sides may not be particularly close to resolution, writes MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand (via Twitter). Rosenthal adds two other sources in concert with Feinsand’s assessment that the two sides are not as close to a deal as it was first reported.

Hand unwittingly became an emblematic figure for this winter’s free agency when the Indians surprisingly chose to waive him rather than bring him back on a one-year, $10MM deal. When none of the other 29 teams claimed Hand, despite the seemingly favorable terms of his one-year pact, the tenor for the winter was set. Interest has picked up in recent weeks for Hand, however, as the Astros, Blue Jays, and Dodgers all expressed at least some degree of interest along with the Mets, obviously, and the Red Sox, we learned today from Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com (via Twitter).

The White Sox have expressed interest in the past, though they would seem to be less likely to win the bidding for Hand after their pricey accord with Liam Hendriks. Hand would be an equally impactful signing for the Mets, should they ultimately get him. The Mets bullpen ranked 21st in the Majors last season with a 5.01 ERA, 16th by fielding independent pitching with a 4.46 FIP. That said, Hand would buoy any bullpen after a 2020 season with a 2.05 ERA/1.37 FIP over 22 innings with a 33.7 percent strikeout rate, 4.7 percent walk rate, and 26.5 percent groundball rate.

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Giants Sign Alex Wood

By Connor Byrne | January 14, 2021 at 8:04pm CDT

The Giants have signed left-hander Alex Wood to a one-year contract, Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area reports. It’s a $3MM guarantee that includes up to $3MM more in performance bonuses for the ACES client, per Maria Guardado of MLB.com.

Wood, an ex-Dodger, will now reunite with Giants president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi, who was the Los Angeles general manager earlier in the southpaw’s career. Wood had some of his best seasons when Zaidi was in LA’s front office, and the 30-year-old has largely held his own since he broke into the majors with the Braves in 2013. Overall, Wood has logged a strong 3.45 ERA/3.72 SIERA in a combined 851 2/3 innings, though his drop-off over the past couple of years made him a buy-low type this offseason.

LA sent Wood to Cincinnati as part of a blockbuster deal before the 2019 campaign, and the Reds were surely expecting him to give them quality innings that year. However, nagging back issues held him out for most of the season and limited him to just 35 2/3 frames of 5.80 ERA pitching.

The Dodgers brought Wood back in free agency almost exactly one year ago (Jan. 12, 2020) on a $4MM guarantee, but the reunion didn’t go quite as planned. Wood struggled with shoulder problems in the regular season, in which he tossed 12 2/3 innings and yielded nine earned runs (mostly out of the bullpen). But Wood did rebound during the Dodgers’ World Series-winning playoff run with 6 2/3 innings of one-run ball and eight strikeouts against three walks. Four of those innings, all of which were scoreless, came during the Fall Classic against Tampa Bay.

In an ideal world for the Giants, Wood will perform more like he did in last year’s playoffs than in the regular season. Either way, it’s not all that surprising that they’re bringing him into the fold. Not only does Wood have connections to Zaidi and manager Gabe Kapler, another former member of the Dodgers’ front office, but Giants GM Scott Harris made it known earlier this week that acquiring a lefty starter was a priority for the team.

The Giants lost southpaw Drew Smyly to the Braves earlier in free agency after he served as an inexpensive steal for the club in 2020, which temporarily left them with a righty-laden projected rotation. Wood should provide some balance to a Giants starting staff that figures to rely heavily on two of Wood’s former Reds teammates – Kevin Gausman and Anthony DeSclafani – as well as Johnny Cueto and Logan Webb.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

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MLB Names Theo Epstein Consultant To Commissioner’s Office

By Steve Adams | January 14, 2021 at 12:33pm CDT

Major League Baseball announced today that former Red Sox general manager and Cubs president of baseball operations Theo Epstein has joined the commissioner’s office as a consultant to Rob Manfred. Specifically, Epstein will focus his efforts on “on-field matters,” including (but presumably not limited to) the effects that proposed rule changes would bring about. Bruce Levine of 670 The Score first reported (via Twitter) that Epstein, who stepped down from his post with the Cubs earlier this winter, would be named to the new post. Epstein turned away interest from other clubs who had interest in hiring him for a new baseball operations jobs.

Theo Epstein | Rick Scuteri-USA TODAY Sports

“Theo is one of the most accomplished and thoughtful people in our sport,” commissioner Manfred said in a statement announcing the news. “I am grateful that he has accepted our invitation to complement our ongoing efforts and provide his insights on making the best game in the world even better for the next generation of fans.”

From the moment Epstein stepped down from his position with the Cubs, there’s been speculation about him eventually taking a position with the league. Epstein acknowledged at the time that he had played an inadvertent role in damaging the sport’s aesthetic by helping to pioneer an analytics push that has curbed in-game action. He’s also often been an advocate for expanding the reach and appeal of the game. Some have suggested that Epstein himself may even be an eventual successor for Manfred, although Manfred’s current contract runs through the 2024 season.

“It is an honor to assist the efforts by Major League Baseball and the Competition Committee to improve the on-field product, and I appreciate Commissioner Manfred asking me to be a part of these important conversations,” said Epstein in his own prepared statement. “As the game evolves, we all have an interest in ensuring the changes we see on the field make the game as entertaining and action-packed as possible for the fans, while preserving all that makes baseball so special. I look forward to working with interested parties throughout the industry to help us collectively navigate toward the very best version of our game.”

There’s no indication yet as to whether this is a temporary post or a gateway to a more permanent position within the commissioner’s office. Epstein said when he stepped away from the Cubs and rebuffed interest in new baseball ops ventures that he hoped to spend more time with his family. His status as a consultant with the league will keep him involved in the game but afford him more time at home. Presumably, given Epstein’s track record, other clubs will come calling in future offseasons whether he’s under contract or not — but his status as a consultant at least ostensibly leaves the door open for a return to a club’s front office at some point.

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Astros To Sign Pedro Baez

By Connor Byrne | January 13, 2021 at 6:22pm CDT

7:22pm: Baez is promised a total of $12.5MM, per MLB.com’s Jesse Sanchez (Twitter links). That includes a $500K signing bonus, successive salaries of $4.5MM and $5.5MM, and with a $2MM buyout of a $7.5MM club option.

The pact also contains some other financial provisions. Baez could add up to $1MM to his 2022 salary depending upon how many innings he throws. He could boost the buyout to $2.5MM and the option price to $8MM through innings-pitched-based escalators.

6:22pm: The deal includes an option for a third year, escalators and a buyout, according to ESPN’s Jeff Passan, who tweets that the total value could range from $12MM to $14MM. It’s a team option, per Mark Berman of Fox 26.

5:05pm: The Astros have agreed to a two-year contract with free-agent reliever Pedro Baez, Jorge Castillo of the Los Angeles Times reports. Financial details aren’t yet known, and the deal is pending a physical. Baez is a Kelvin Nova client.

The Astros are landing a proven late-game option in the right-handed Baez, who recorded a 3.03 ERA with a 25.3 percent strikeout rate and an 8.2 percent walk rate over 356 innings as a Dodger from 2014-20. Baez put up a 3.18 ERA during his last season with Los Angeles, though he notched a much less encouraging 4.98 SIERA along the way and easily registered career-worst numbers in average fastball velocity (94.4 mph), strikeout rate (18.6) and swinging-strike percentage (12.4). The year before that, Baez managed 96 mph velo, a strikeout percentage of 25.0 and a 15.0 percent swinging-strike rate.

Addressing the relief corps has been a known point of emphasis this offseason for Astros general manager James Click, who signed former Ray and Marlin Ryne Stanek before agreeing to the Baez deal. The club was also in on Liam Hendriks before he agreed to a pact with the White Sox and has been linked to Brad Hand, Trevor Rosenthal and Alex Colome. Any of the latter three would seemingly be more impactful additions than Baez and Stanek, so the Astros may not be done trying to upgrade a bullpen that dealt with significant health issues in 2020 and finished a middle-of-the-pack 15th in the majors in ERA (4.39).

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    Phillies Sign Archie Bradley

    Yankees, Corey Kluber Agree To Deal

    Yankees, Aaron Judge Avoid Arbitration

    Dodgers, Cody Bellinger Avoid Arbitration

    White Sox Sign Liam Hendriks

    Yankees, DJ LeMahieu Nearing Agreement

    Mets, Brad Hand Discussing Deal

    Giants Sign Alex Wood

    MLB Names Theo Epstein Consultant To Commissioner’s Office

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