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White Sox Acquire Ivan Nova

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12:58am: Young hurler Yordi Rosario and $500K in international spending capacity are going to the Bucs, Heyman tweets. The deal has now been announced.

12:10pm: The Pirates will receive a “young pitcher” and an unstated amount of international bonus pool availability, per Jon Heyman of Fanced (via Twitter).

10:55am: The White Sox have struck a deal with the Pirates to acquire righty Ivan Nova, according to Ken Rosenthal and Robert Murray of The Athletic (via Twitter). The return is not yet known; the deal will not be finalized until the teams have completed a review of medicals.

At first glance, this is quite an interesting swap owing to its potential downstream ramifications. Moving Nova will clear $8.5MM of payroll for the Bucs, who could put those funds to use in pursuing other players. The White Sox, meanwhile, have continued to make good on their stated intention to bolster their MLB roster in the near term.

Nova, who’ll turn 32 early next year, has been a sturdy rotation piece since landing in Pittsburgh at the 2016 trade deadline. He re-signed with the club in the ensuing winter on a three-year deal that expires at the end of the 2019 campaign.

Over the past two campaigns, Nova carries a 4.16 ERA with 6.3 K/9 and 1.8 BB/9 over 348 frames. He’s not generating as many grounders as he once did, but still has drawn worm burners on over 45% of the balls put in play against him. Meanwhile, Nova has been hurt by the long ball, allowing more than 1.4 per nine since the start of 2017.

It’s not a terribly exciting profile, but it’s one with value. Nova is still working in the 93 to 94 mph range with his pair of fastballs, while his swinging-strike rate has sat above eight percent — right in line with his career average. There’s good reason to anticipate that he’ll mostly be the same pitcher in 2019.

For the Chicago organization, adding Nova will help bolster a staff that has bid adieu to veteran James Shields. The club could certainly stand to add more arms, though it’ll also continue to decade at least two or three spots to its preexisting rotation options. Previously, the South Siders added veteran reliever Alex Colome to anchor the bullpen.

Interesting as it will be to see what else the White Sox do the rest of the way, the Pirates are now a potentially intriguing wild card on the market. Having dealt for Chris Archer and Keone Kela over the summer, the Bucs certainly seem positioned to add more pieces. After today’s trade, they’ll have more free payroll space to work with than they did at the outset of the offseason, even after having already signed Jung Ho Kang and Lonnie Chisenhall. Of course, moving Nova also leaves the Pittsburgh rotation with one less reliable arm. The organization could fill the opening from within (with Nick Kingham and eventually top prospect Mitch Keller) and/or pursue cheaper depth pieces via free agency.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Cashman On Harper, Machado, Gregorius, Kikuchi, Corbin

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Yankees GM Brian Cashman met with media today in Las Vegas and provided updates on several potential targets (and non-targets) on the team’s radar this winter.  The highlights….

  • Cashman gave his firmest answer yet about the Yankees’ apparent lack of interest in Bryce Harper, telling reporters (including Newsday’s David Lennon and the New York Post’s Joel Sherman) “I’m surprised you’re still asking” about the free agent outfielder.  Cashman reiterated that the Yankees don’t have room for Harper, as the club already has six outfielders and Harper isn’t viewed as a first base option, and the general manager would prefer to spend on more pressing areas of need on the roster.  While this could be some gamesmanship on Cashman’s part, he isn’t saying anything that isn’t true, as making a $400MM splurge on Harper wouldn’t seem to be the best use of the team’s resources.
  • Manny Machado, however, still seems to be a target.  Cashman said he’d had “several conversations” with Dan Lozano, Machado’s agent (via Sherman and MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand on Twitter), though the two sides had yet to meet at the Winter Meetings.  Reports yesterday from Fancred Sports’ Jon Heyman indicated that the Yankees had interest in Machado but weren’t willing to spend more than $300MM to sign him, which could be a roadblock to an eventual signing.  Unlike with Harper, the Yankees have a clearer positional need for Machado, given that Miguel Andujar’s mediocre glovework may require him to move away from third base, and shortstop Didi Gregorius will miss at least part of 2019 recovering from Tommy John surgery.  Speaking of Gregorius, Cashman again noted (via Sherman) that he would like to retain the shortstop on a long-term deal.
  • Cashman has also spoken to agent Scott Boras about one of his more notable free agent clients, Japanese southpaw Yusei Kikuchi (via Feinsand).  The GM first mentioned his team’s interest in Kikuchi a few weeks ago, and the Yankees have a long history of landing top talents out of Japan.
  • The Yankees considered Patrick Corbin to be the best free agent pitcher available, though Cashman said the team wasn’t comfortable about giving the left-hander a six-year contract (as per The Athletic’s Lindsey Adler and WFAN’s Sweeny Murti).  Since Corbin was firm in looking for that sixth year, New York never made him a formal contract offer.  Corbin did land that six-year deal, and $140MM in salary, from the Nationals last week.

Tigers Sign Tyson Ross

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6:08PM: The Tigers have officially announced the signing.

2:58PM: The Tigers have struck a deal with free agent righty Tyson Ross, according to Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic (Twitter link). It’s a $5.75MM guarantee over a single season, with a readily achievable roster bonus that would add another $250K, per Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports (via Twitter).

Ross, 31, finally got back on track last year after a pair of injury marred campaigns. He ended up throwing 149 2/3 innings of 4.15 ERA ball, with 7.3 K/9 against 3.7 BB/9 along with a 45.9% groundball rate.

Clearly, that’s not quite a vintage Ross showing. He was a 3.07 ERA hurler over a 516 2/3 inning run from 2013 to 2015. For a pitcher who once steadily worked in the mid-nineties, it’s hardly promising to see a career-low 91.7 mph average fastball. And he was far shy of his peak strikeout and groundball rates.

All that being said, it’s still rather impressive that Ross was able to turn in a full season after shoulder issues and eventual thoracic outlet procedure sidetracked his career. His prior effort, in 2017 with the Rangers, had fallen notably flat as he struggled to stay in the zone.

For Detroit, Ross will join the recently inked Matt Moore to help fill out the rotation and perhaps provide the club with a summer trade chip. That approach yielded dividends this past season with Mike Fiers.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Harold Baines, Lee Smith Elected To Baseball Hall Of Fame

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Harold Baines and Lee Smith have been elected to the National Baseball Hall Of Fame, as announced on the MLB Network.  The two longtime veterans were voted in by a 16-member panel reviewing candidates from the “Today’s Game” era (1988-present).

Baines joins Ken Griffey Jr. and Chipper Jones as the only players drafted first overall in the June amateur draft to reach Cooperstown.  Selected by the White Sox in 1977 out of St. Michael’s High School in Easton, Maryland, Baines quickly emerged as a threatening left-handed bat, hitting 25 homers and picking up MVP votes as a 23-year-old in 1982, his third Major League season.  Baines spent 14 of his 22 MLB seasons with the ChiSox, also spending seven years with the Orioles as well as shorter stints with the A’s, Rangers, and Indians.

The “professional hitter” description seemed permanently attached to any mention of Baines’ name, as he was dangerous at the plate almost to the very end of his lengthy career.  Baines was also one of the first players who thrived as a long-term designated hitter, as he more or less became a full-time DH by the late 80’s.  Baines’ 2866 hits ranks him 48th on the all-time list, and he also hit 384 homers with a career .289/.356/.465 slash line over 11092 plate appearances.

Smith also held a significant spot in the record books when he retired after the 1997 season, as Smith’s 478 saves were then the all-time record (Mariano Rivera and Trevor Hoffman have since passed him).  If Baines was a prototypical DH, then Smith might have been the prototypical example of a closer-for-hire, pitching for eight different teams over his career, often in short stints apart from spending his first eight years with the Cubs.

A seven-time All-Star, Smith finished in the top five in Cy Young Award voting three times, including a second-place finish in 1991 as a member of the Cardinals.  The hard-throwing right-hander posted a 3.03 ERA, 8.7 K/9, and 2.57 K/BB rate over 1289 1/3 career innings.

The inductions of Smith and Baines provide an interesting counterpoint to two players poised to enter Cooperstown via the regular writers’ ballot in January — Rivera, widely considered the greatest closer of all time, and Edgar Martinez, arguably the best designated hitter ever.  As we’ve seen in past HOF votes, there has been some resistance on the part of the writers to induct players who spent the bulk of their careers in either of the “limited positions” of closer or designated hitter, particularly the latter (given Martinez’s long wait for induction).  Smith barely cracked the 50-percent threshold over 15 unsuccessful years on the writers’ ballot, while Baines spent only two years on the writers’ ballot, falling off in 2011 after failing to appear on at least five percent of all ballots.

Similar to the old veterans’ committee, the “Today’s Game” committee looks at candidates (both players and other important non-playing figures in baseball history) who weren’t voted into Cooperstown by the usual means.  People from four different eras — Early Baseball, Golden Days, Modern Baseball, and Today’s Game — are considered, with each era being highlighted on a rotating basis.

At least 12 of the 16 votes from the “Today’s Game” committee were required for HOF election, with Baines gaining 12 votes and Smith going a perfect 16-for-16.  Longtime manager Lou Piniella fell just short with 11 votes, while the seven other candidates on the ballot (Albert Belle, Joe Carter, Will Clark, Orel Hershiser, Davey Johnson, Charlie Manuel, George Steinbrenner) each received four or fewer votes.

Mike Napoli To Retire

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37-year-old Mike Napoli has announced his retirement on Twitter. Napoli, who’d dealt with significant injuries to his right knee over the last calendar year, had initially planned to give it another go after completing the rehab process, but has decided, “after much thought and consideration,” to call it quits.

Napoli, a 2011 All-Star and 2013 World Series Champion, will long be remembered for his soaring moonshots, magnetic personality and sought-after clubhouse presence, and a preternatural eye at the plate. Napoli’s career spanned 12 major league seasons, during which time he featured prominently on seven playoff teams, three pennant winners, and the 2013 World Champion Boston Red Sox.

The catcher/first baseman piled up 5,330 plate appearances for four teams during that time, including three stints with the Texas Rangers, for whom his 2011 season (.320/.414/.631, 179 wRC+) was among the best in club history. In all, Napoli appeared in nearly 1400 major league games, slashing .246/.346/.475 with 267 career HR and an offensive output that graded approximately 20% above the league average during that frame. His 25.1 career fWAR is an outstanding mark for a player who never ranked among his organization’s top 10 prospects at any point during his minor league career.

Selected in the 17th round of the 2000 draft out of a high school in Florida, Napoli’s career began with a slow burn in the Anaheim/Los Angeles Angel farm system. By the time he finally reached the majors in 2006, after nearly seven full seasons in the minors, the then-catcher wasted no time making his mark. His 2.5fWAR in just 99 games places him squarely in the pantheon of most impressive seasons in history for a rookie catcher, and his 92 HR while behind the dish is easily tops in club history.

Persistent friction with skipper Mike Scioscia, though, who never quite seemed satisfied with Napoli’s work behind the plate, led the club to move Napoli in a bizarre 2011 swap with the Blue Jays, where the productive backstop was traded with outfielder Juan Rivera in exchange for the aging Vernon Wells, whose four years and $90MM in remaining salary placed him high on the list of least attractive assets in the game. Napoli was quickly shipped to Texas, where in 2011 he established himself as one of the game’s premier hitters; substantial decline followed, though, and the then-first baseman found a new home for the next three seasons in Beantown.

After the championship run of ’13, and a solid follow-up the next season, an aging Napoli sputtered a bit in ’15, and was left searching for a new home prior to the start of the 2016 season. He found it in Cleveland, where a last hurrah – a career-high 34 HR for the pennant-winning Tribe – left him within mere outs of a second ring.

Lerner: Nationals Don’t Expect To Re-Sign Bryce Harper

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In a candid interview with Grant Paulsen and Danny Rouhier on 106.7 The Fan, Nationals managing principal owner Mark Lerner cast significant doubt on whether Bryce Harper would return to the organization. While Lerner didn’t comment on the size of the team’s reported last-minute extension offer — it was reported to be worth $300MM over 10 years — he also made it clear that the Nats likely do not have a higher offer in them.

“Well, when we met with them and we gave them the offer, we told them, ’This is the best we can do,'” said Lerner of the September extension offer. “We went right to the finish line very quickly, and we said, ’If this is of interest to you, please come back to us and we’ll see whether we can finish it up.’ But we just couldn’t afford to put more than that in and still be able to put a team together that had a chance to win the NL East or go farther than that.”

Obviously, Harper and agent Scott Boras passed on the offer in favor of free agency. In the two and a half months since that offer was said to be put forth, the Nationals have added starter Patrick Corbin, catchers Kurt Suzuki and Yan Gomes, and relievers Trevor Rosenthal and Kyle Barraclough. Corbin was promised $140MM over a six-year term. Suzuki signed for two years and a total of $10MM, while Gomes is owed $9MM in 2019 and can earn as much as $27MM over the next three seasons by virtue of a pair of club options. Rosenthal received a $7MM guarantee, and Barraclough projects to earn $1.9MM next year.

While Nats president of baseball operations Mike Rizzo reiterated earlier that the club sees its negotiations with Harper as “independent” of the high-dollar signing of Corbin, as MLB.com’s Jamal Collier tweets, Lerner suggested some connectivity. In light of the team’s new commitments, he said, it “may very well be” that the $300MM offer to Harper is now off the table even in the event that he and Boras have a change of heart and wish to accept those terms.

Ultimately, Lerner dumped a big bucket of cold water on the notion of a reunion. “I really don’t expect him to come back at this point,” he stated. “I think they’ve decided to move on. There’s just too much money out there that he’d be leaving on the table. That’s just not Mr. Boras’ MO to leave money on the table.”

That last line may draw some attention, but it also describes the approach of most players and agents in free agency. Plus, Lerner did not express any disappointment at the idea of Harper going elsewhere for a bigger payday. “It’s the opportunity of a lifetime for Bryce and Kayla and their family,” he said, “adding that “we have no hard feelings about it.” Neither is Lerner concerned about the state of the Nationals’ outfield unit without Harper, saying it’s a “young, pretty incredible outfield defensively, and certainly with the bat it’s going to be special.”

Of greater interest, really, is the prior line — “there’s just too much money out there that he’d be leaving on the table” — in which Lerner hints that Harper still has good cause to anticipate that he’ll beat the $300MM he had in hand from the Nats. Whether that’s based upon specific knowledge or just his sense of things isn’t clear; regardless, it’s a notable statement from someone as well-placed as anyone to know how the market is developing for a top-shelf free agent represented by Boras (who has negotiated many a deal with the Lerners).

Luis Valbuena, Former Pirates Infielder Jose Castillo Killed In Car Accident In Venezuela

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In a gutwrenching and heartbreaking piece of news, Major League Baseball announced overnight that Luis Valbuena and former Pirates/Giants/Astros infielder Jose Castillo were killed in a car crash in Venezuela. The pair had played in a game for the Venezuelan Winter League’s Cardenales de Lara earlier in the evening and were both passengers in the vehicle, per BeisbolPlay journalists Carlos Valmore Rodriguez and Andrew Sanchez Ruiz. Valbuena was just 33 years of age.  Castillo was 37.

Suspects have been arrested in conjunction with the tragedy, Maria Torres of the Los Angeles Times writes. It is suspected that the vehicle crashed when it struck a rock that was placed in the roadway intentionally, as part of a horrific robbery ploy.

Valbuena spent the past two seasons playing with the Angels and, prior to that, spent two years with the Astros, three years with the Cubs, three with the Indians and part of one season with the Mariners. Known for his affinity for bat flips and an ebullient personality, Valbuena was a popular clubhouse fixture in his decade-plus as a Major Leaguer — as evidenced by the outpouring of emotional messages from former teammates on social media.

Castillo saw fairly regular action at second base with the Pirates from 2004-07 and split the 2008 season between the Astros and Giants. While he hasn’t played in the Majors since that 2008 campaign, he continued his career with a pair of seasons in Japan, where he suited up for the Yokohama Bay Stars and the Chiba Lotte Marines in 2010-11. He’s played in the Venezuelan Winter League every year since 2006.

“Every day, every single day he had a smile on his face, happiness in his heart and a genuine interest in making others feel the same,” Angels VP of communications Tim Mead tweeted of Valbuena. “He treated everyone with respect, sincerity,and his wonderful gift of humor. Every day, every single day.”

MLBTR joins the baseball world in mourning the loss of the two and in expressing heartfelt condolences to the families, loved ones, friends and former teammates of both Valbuena and Castillo.

Phillies Acquire Jose Alvarez From Angels

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The Phillies announced Thursday that they’ve acquired left-handed reliever Jose Alvarez from the Angels in a straight-up swap for right-handed reliever Luis Garcia.

Jose Alvarez | Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

At first glance, the move looks like a head-scratcher for the Halos, as both pitchers come with two years of remaining club control and identical $1.7MM arbitration projections, via MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz. However, Alvarez turned in a terrific 2018 season, working to a 2.71 ERA with 8.4 K/9, 3.1 BB/9, 0.43 HR/9 and a 45 percent ground-ball rate in 63 innings out of the Angels’ bullpen. Garcia, meanwhile, struggled to a 6.07 ERA in 46 innings of relief. Of course, he also averaged a hefty 10.0 K/9 against 3.5 BB/9 with a 48.4 percent ground-ball rate.

Looking past their ERAs, then, Garcia actually graded out more favorably in some regards. Some fielding-independent metrics were actually more bullish on the 31-year-old Garcia than the 29-year-old Alvarez; Garcia’s 3.64 xFIP was superior to Alvarez’s 3.98 mark, and his 3.46 SIERA also bested Alvarez’s mark of 3.78 by a slight margin. Garcia is also just a year removed from a 2.65 ERA in 71 1/3 innings of work, and there’s plenty to like about his 97.2 mph average fastball and impressive 14.5 percent swinging-strike rate. It’s also worth noting that the Phillies were one of the worst defensive teams in baseball by virtually any measure in 2018, which did Garcia and others no favors.

Luis Garcia | John Geliebter-USA TODAY Sports

Angels fans will surely bristle at the notion of acquiring a reliever whose ERA checked in north of 6.00, of course, but Major League front offices have generally moved away from evaluating players based solely on that rudimentary mark. Admittedly, however, it still registers as a surprise when looking at the Angels’ moves on the whole; the club bid adieu to Blake Parker via non-tender last week and has effectively replaced him with Garcia — all at the expense of its lone experienced left-handed reliever. Adding another lefty (or two) to the relief corps figures to be a priority for GM Billy Eppler and his staff moving forward.

As for the Phillies, they’ll add a pitcher who can’t match Garcia in terms of velocity or swinging-strike rate but was generally dominant against left-handed opponents in 2018. Alvarez held same-handed batters to a putrid .206/.265/.338 slash through 147 plate appearances in 2018 and will give the Phils a lefty to pair with fellow recent acquisition James Pazos and longtime Philadelphia southpaw Adam Morgan.

Alvarez, in essence, will step into the role that would have been filled by fellow lefty Luis Avilan had he not been non-tendered last week — and he’ll do so with a projected arbitration salary that checks in $1.4MM south of the $3.1MM that Avilan was projected to earn.

Twins Sign Jonathan Schoop

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6:40pm: Minnesota has issued a press release to announce the signing.

3:36pm: Free agent second baseman Jonathan Schoop is finalizing a one-year deal with the Minnesota Twins. The deal will be worth $7.5MM plus incentives, per the Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal (Twitter links). A physical has already been completed, he adds.

Jonathan Schoop |Evan Habeeb-USA TODAY Sports

Schoop, 27, represents a high-upside play for the Twins on a team full of them. He joins fellow non-tender C.J. Cron in the infield, but the Twins also figure to give bounceback hopefuls Byron Buxton and Miguel Sano a chance to get their careers back on track. Schoop and Sano were both All-Stars in 2017 when Buxton won a Gold Glove and finished 18th in MVP voting (Schoop finished 12th). Production from all three cratered last season.

The former Orioles and Brewers second baseman was one of the more interesting free agents available given his on-field volatility. He disappointed in Milwaukee, managing a meager .202/.246/.331 with four home runs after he was acquired at the trade deadline — but it wasn’t that long ago that Schoop put up a 5.2 rWAR season in Baltimore. Schoop has three consecutive seasons of more than 20 home runs, including a career-high 32 dingers during that tremendous 2017 campaign with the Orioles.

Brewers GM David Stearns recently took responsibility for the deadline deal in a recent piece from Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. The Brewers surrendered quite a bit of talent for what turned out to be only a half season of less-than-ideal contributions from Schoop, who lost playing time in the playoffs to regular third baseman Travis Shaw. The Brewers chose not to tender Schoop a contract rather than pay him the projected arbitration salary of $10.1MM.

Schoop will take only a small pay cut from the $8.5MM he earned last year, though his final earnings may, of course, change depending on the particulars of the incentives involved.

Astros Sign Robinson Chirinos

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Dec.6: The Astros have now formally announced the signing, which brings their 40-man roster count to a total of 38 players.

Dec. 5: The deal is for $5.75MM, Rosenthal tweets.

Dec. 4, 4:31pm: Chirinos himself confirms to Mark Berman of FOX 26 that he has agreed to a one-year deal with the Astros and will be in Houston tomorrow to take a physical (Twitter link).

3:02pm: The Astros are closing in on a contract with free agent backstop Robinson Chirinos, per Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic (Twitter link). A deal is “believed to be in place” and is pending a physical, he adds. Terms are not yet known. Chirinos is represented by MDR Sports Management.

Robinson Chirinos | Jennifer Buchanan-USA TODAY Sports

Chirinos will join Max Stassi atop the Astros’ depth chart behind the plate and bring an offensive-minded profile to the table. The 34-year-old somewhat surprisingly had a $4.5MM option declined by the Rangers despite hitting a combined .233/.337/.456 with 54 homers in 1178 plate appearances as a Ranger over the past four seasons. Chirinos’ production did dip substantially in 2018 from a career year in 2017, but he was still a roughly league-average bat per park-adjusted metrics like OPS+ (97) and wRC+ (103).

That said, Chirinos doesn’t come with a strong defensive reputation. He’s thrown out 25 percent of opposing base thieves in his career but saw that mark fall to just 10 percent last season, and while he grades out well in terms of blocking pitches in the dirt, Baseball Prospectus has routinely graded him as a below-average framer — never more so than in 2018.

With each of Brian McCann, Martin Maldonado and Evan Gattis hitting free agency, the Astros had a clear need to add some catching help to pair with Stassi, who has yet to fully establish himself as a big league regular. The 27-year-old Stassi (28 in March) batted .226/.316/.394 with eight homers and 13 doubles in 2018. He’s prevented stolen bases at a roughly league-average clip and graded out as a premium framer, but he’s also never topped the 250 plate appearances the Astros gave him last season. Adding Chirinos to the fold will give Houston at least one additional catching option with notable big league experience.

Of course, it’s not out of the questions that the ’Stros further add behind the plate. Houston has often carried three catching options in the past, with McCann, Gattis, Stassi and Maldonado all occupying space on the 40-man roster in various combinations at times.

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