Nationals, Drew Storen Avoid Arbitration
The Nationals and Drew Storen have avoided arb by agreeing to a one-year deal worth $5.7MM, according to Barry Svrluga of the Washington Post (Twitter link). That salary is just a hair off from the $5.8MM that MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projected for the CAA Sports client.
Storen, 27, was dominant in 2014, working to a 1.12 ERA with 7.3 K/9 and 1.8 BB/9 in 56 1/3 innings for the Nats. The former No. 10 overall pick began the season as a setup man for Rafael Soriano but inherited the ninth inning when Soriano struggled at season’s end. Storen figures to be the primary closer in 2015, particularly with Tyler Clippard having been traded to the Athletics and Soriano departing via free agency. As a Super Two player, this marks Storen’s third trip through the arbitration process, and he’ll be eligible one more time next offseason before hitting the open market following the 2016 season.
Nationals, Stephen Strasburg Avoid Arbitration
8:53am: Strasburg will earn $7.4MM in 2015, tweets Barry Svrluga of the Washington Post.
8:45am: The Nationals announced that they’ve avoided arbitration with right-hander Stephen Strasburg by agreeing to a one-year deal for the 2015 season. Terms haven’t been disclosed, although MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projected an $8.1MM payday for the Scott Boras client.
Strasburg, 26, pitched a career-best 215 innings and made a career-high 34 starts in 2014, working to a 3.14 ERA with 10.1 K/9, 1.8 BB/9 and a 45.9 percent ground-ball rate. The former first overall pick earned $3.975MM last year in his first trip through the arb system.
Further Moves Likely For Astros
The Astros made a splash yesterday by acquiring Evan Gattis from the Braves in exchange for Michael Foltynewicz, Rio Ruiz and Andrew Thurman, but the team is “almost certainly not done” making moves, reports Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (All links to Twitter).
Houston has three catchers on the 40-man roster (not including Gattis) and has discussed trades of Carlos Corporan, Jason Castro and Dexter Fowler as well, according to Rosenthal. If either Corporan or Castro were to be moved, Hank Conger could split time with the remaining catcher, with Gattis filling in behind the plate sporadically. As far as a potential trade of Fowler, both George Springer and Jake Marisnick are capable of handling center field, and Fowler, of course, is in his final year of team control before reaching the open market.
Additionally, Rosenthal lists Chris Carter and Matt Dominguez as trade possibilities, noting that Gattis could fill the role of a right-handed DH/first baseman in Carter’s stead. The signing of Jed Lowrie gives Houston an option to play at third, should Domniguez be dealt. Rosenthal also adds that the Astros have some concern to how much they’ve thinned out their pitching depth (Foltynewicz, Nick Tropeano, Jarred Cosart and Jordan Lyles have all been traded in the past two offseasons), indicating that the Astros may prefer to acquire some young pitching should any of those bats be moved.
Yesterday, Rosenthal and Jon Heyman of CBS Sports indicated that Houston may be looking at short-term additions for the back of its rotation, with Rosenthal naming Kyle Kendrick and Ryan Vogelsong as potential targets.
Evan Gattis On Joining The Astros
After months of rumblings, the Braves finally found a deal they liked for catcher/outfielder Evan Gattis. The veteran is now the newest member of the Astros, who now appear determined to make an impact in 2015.
Gattis, a Dallas-area native, sheepishly admitted to reporters today that he grew up as a fan of the Rangers, and not his current ball club. Interestingly, before Gattis was sent to Houston for a trio of prospects, he was picking up trade interest from other clubs, including the nearby Rangers. I asked the 28-year-old if the Braves or his agent gave him a sense of how close he was to being traded to his favorite childhood team.
“All I’ve heard along the way is about as much as you’ve heard… or, maybe less than you’ve heard,” Gattis said on today’s conference call.
Gattis was certainly aware of the trade rumors surrounding him, and inquiring family members amplified things by asking him about the Rangers on a constant basis. Still, the veteran believed that he would still be in Atlanta come April.
“I didn’t think I was going to get traded, believe it or not. I think with four more years under club control, I think that was kind of big [for the Braves], so that kind of surprised me until I found out about the deal,” Gattis explained. “Even though I heard all the rumors, I figured if something was going to happen, it would have gotten done a lot earlier. That’s what I kind of chalked it up to, just being a lot of rumors. It didn’t really sink in until it happened yesterday.”
Now, Gattis has gone from a clear rebuild in Atlanta to Houston, where the timeline to contend has been advanced considerably. While heaping praise on the way the Braves organization treated him over the years, he spoke glowingly of what awaits him with the Astros.
“We are on the rise. They’re trying to push this team and get guys in the direction of winning. We won 19 more games last year and more games than in however many years, so I think the potential is there. The difference is so small between a really good team and a .500 team over the course of 162 games, it’s small situations and little stuff. It’s all about how you can carry it out and put it together.”
“We have a bunch of young guys who are eager to compete and win jobs, I think it’s a good environment here in Houston.”
Brewers Sign Martin Maldonado To Two-Year Deal
4:47pm: MLB.com’s Adam McCalvy reports (via Twitter) that Maldonado’s deal is a two-year, $1.95MM contract. He’ll receive a $50K signing bonus, and then salaries of $800K in 2015 and $1.1MM in 2016.
4:41pm: The Brewers announced that they have signed catcher Martin Maldonado to a two-year contract to avoid arbitration (Twitter link). Terms of the deal with the Praver/Shapiro client are not yet known, but MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projected him to earn $1MM in 2015. This was his first offseason of arbitration eligibility and, as a Super Two player, he will be eligible twice more on the completion of his two-year contract.
The 28-year-old Maldonado played well in 52 games as the backup to Jonathan Lucroy last season, slashing .234/.320/.387 with four homers. He threw out 32 percent of base-stealers last year, which is well in line with his career mark, grading out as an above-average pitch-framer.
Braves Will Not Trade Craig Kimbrel
The Braves have made a flurry of trades that are clearly aimed at the future this winter, acquiring Shelby Miller, Tyrell Jenkins, Max Fried, Jace Peterson, Dustin Peterson, Mallex Smith, Manny Banuelos, Michael Foltynewicz, Rio Ruiz and Andrew Thurman in exchange for Jason Heyward, Jordan Walden, Justin Upton, David Carpenter and Evan Gattis. However, despite the departure of so many key players from recent seasons, president of baseball operations John Hart says he plans to hang onto closer Craig Kimbrel, per MLB.com’s Mark Bowman.
“We have never entertained trading (Kimbrel) and have had zero conversations with any clubs about Craig,” Hart explains. “I want him finishing out a World Series win.” Hart adds that despite trading away Heyward, Upton, Gattis, Carpenter and Walden, he feels confident about the players that he’s added. Atlanta has inked Nick Markakis, Jason Grilli, A.J. Pierzynski and Jim Johnson as free agents this winter, and Miller, acquired in the Heyward/Walden deal, figures to be a key cog in their 2015 rotation.
The Braves may yet add another piece, as they currently project to have Zoilo Almonte starting in left field. Reports since last night have linked them to Nori Aoki, and David DeJesus‘ name has come up in a speculative fashion as well. (I’d also note that both Ichiro Suzuki and Colby Rasmus remain available on the free agent market.)
Still, it seems a long shot that the Braves would contend after shedding so much talent, particularly given the presence of a stacked Nationals team, a much-improved Marlins club and a presumably healthier Mets roster within their division. However, given the large amount of young talent that’s been stockpiled and the fact that the Braves did extend several core players — including Andrelton Simmons, Freddie Freeman and Julio Teheran — last winter, Atlanta could be in for a quick turnaround.
Cardinals Sign Lance Lynn To Three-Year Deal
The Cardinals announced on Thursday that they have reached a three-year, deal with righty Lance Lynn that buys out his remaining three seasons of arbitration eligibility. The contract reportedly guarantees Lynn a total of $22MM. Additionally, the second and third year of the contract contain incentives, based on games started, that can boost the total value to $23.5MM. There are no options on the straight three-year deal, so the Cardinals will be gaining cost certainty, but no additional years of club control.
MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz recently broke down the arbitration case for Lynn, who projected to earn a $5.5MM payday that would set a record for first-time arb-eligible pitchers. (As Swartz explains, he expected that Lynn would fall shy of that mark, but still earn somewhere in the $4.5MM range.) Instead, like several other quality starters before him, Lynn will take a multi-year guarantee that avoids any new records.
For the club, this contract ensures cost certainty while avoiding the expected annual haggling that would have come from continued quality work from Lynn. If he puts up numbers remotely in line with his prior work — he has averaged over 200 innings of 3.35 ERA pitching over the past two seasons — then his arb earnings would likely have handily outstripped the $22MM guarantee that he takes home.
If, on the other hand, Lynn were to reach his full ceiling, it is not hard to imagine that the Cards will realize rather significant savings. (David Price, after all, is projected to take home nearly $19MM next year alone.) While no additional control appears to have been obtained via the contract, the protection against massive performance-driven salary increases has plenty of value for St. Louis.
A corresponding set of considerations surely drove the deal for Lynn, a client of Excel Sports Management. Though he sacrifices some upside earning opportunity, he preserves the ability to hit free agency in advance of his age-31 season while locking down his first significant payday and safeguarding himself in the event of an injury or an unexpected decline in performance.
Deals of this nature are uncommon, though not entirely unheard of. As MLBTR’s Extension Tracker shows, recent cases of players selling all three of their arb years with no options include Pablo Sandoval ($17.15MM in 2012), Elvis Andrus ($14.4MM in 2012) and Joey Votto ($38MM in 2011). Of course, Andrus and Votto ultimately signed new extensions on top of those pre-existing deals.
Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com first reported the deal (Twitter links), while Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch added further details.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Rangers, Padres, Cardinals, Red Sox Are “Primary Suitors” For Cole Hamels
The Rangers have joined the Padres, Cardinals, and Red Sox as the four primary teams pursuing Phillies lefty Cole Hamels, according to a report from Jim Salisbury of CSNPhilly.com. Texas has previously been mentioned as having interest, but not much attention has focused on that possible destination.
It is worth noting that Philadelphia is not interested in simply finding the highest bidder. Rather, per the report, the club is holding firm in demanding two premium talents in return and will keep Hamels at least through the summer if it is not satisfied with an offer. Among the possible trade partners, Boston may be “most in the background” at present after its run of pitching acquisitions, Salisbury adds.
Nevertheless, the Phillies do appear to be serious about making a deal. Ruben Amaro Jr. has dedicated significant resources to scouting systems of the clubs he has been in contact with, says Salisbury, who notes that the embattled GM can ill afford a misstep with the organization’s best MLB asset.
Philly is especially interested in adding a young catcher, says Salisbury, who notes that several of the teams most heavily involved on Hamels possess top backstop prospects. The club would likely insist on adding Blake Swihart in a deal with Boston, or Austin Hedges in a deal with San Diego. And, as Salisbury notes, the Rangers also possess a top minor league receiver in Jorge Alfaro along with a nice collection of other heralded young players.
Dodgers Will Pursue Yoan Moncada
JAN. 14: Dodgers GM Farhan Zaidi spoke with Jim Bowden on MLB Network Radio’s Inside Pitch (via MLB.com’s Ken Gurnick) about Moncada and candidly declared his club’s interest in the Cuban star:
“Moncada, we’ve scouted extensively. We have the checkbook. Young elite talent in baseball is the most valuable asset to have. To the extent that our evaluation of him matches or exceeds where the market goes, we’ll definitely be players for him.”
Zaidi continued, explaining that in this type of situation the Dodgers will evaluate Moncada as a talent and Moncada as a person. The GM noted that with an investment of this size, no stone can be left unturned.
JAN. 13: To this point, the Yankees and Red Sox have been the teams most commonly connected to 19-year-old Cuban phenom Yoan Moncada, but MLB.com’s Jesse Sanchez adds the Dodgers to the mix of clubs expected to make a serious run (Twitter link). According to Sanchez, the Dodgers “aggressively” pursued right-hander Yoan Lopez, and, having missed out on Lopez to the division-rival D-Backs, will now shift their focus to Moncada. Sanchez adds that a private workout for the Dodgers can be expected.
Fangraphs’ Kiley McDaniel has called the Yankees and Red Sox the “heavy favorites” to sign Moncada, but the Dodgers certainly possess the financial wherewithal to go toe-to-toe with both of those clubs in terms of spending. Los Angeles has invested heavily in Cuban players over the past 18 months, spending a combined $57MM on Alex Guerrero and Erisbel Arruebarrena. While those acquisitions were made under different management — Andrew Friedman, Farhan Zaidi and Josh Byrnes were tasked with leading a revamped baseball operations department this winter — the signings do show that ownership is willing to devote significant resources to the international market.
Moncada, of course, is expected to absolutely shatter Lopez’s record-setting bonus of $8.25MM; estimates on his signing bonus have ranged from $30-40MM. And, because clubs are required to pay a 100 percent tax for any spending that exceeds their assigned international bonus pools, the total outlay for Moncada could approach $80MM.
A switch-hitting infielder said to have four plus tools — hit, power, arm and speed — Moncada has been labeled by Baseball America’s Ben Badler as a potential franchise player. For the time being, however, Moncada cannot sign with any club, as he is still awaiting clearance from the United States Office of Foreign Assets Control, and there’s no word on a timeline for his approval.
Astros Acquire Evan Gattis
The Astros have added more right-handed power to their lineup, acquiring catcher/outfielder Evan Gattis and minor league right-hander James Hoyt from the Braves, the teams announced. In return, Atlanta will acquire a trio of prospects: right-handers Michael Foltynewicz and Andrew Thurman as well as third baseman Rio Ruiz.
With the DH role likely going to Chris Carter and four catchers on the 40-man roster, the Astros will use Gattis primarily in left field, MLB.com’s Brian McTaggart tweets. He’ll also be used sparingly at catcher and first base, per McTaggart.
By adding Gattis, the Astros are adding another big right-handed bat to a lineup that already features two of them in Carter and George Springer. As I wrote in a profile of Gattis as a trade candidate, the bat-first backstop has limited defensive value (whether behind the dish or in the outfield) but has established himself as a legitimate contributor on offense. After posting a .243/.291/.480 slash with 21 home runs over 382 plate appearances in 2013, Gattis stepped things up with a .263/.317/.493 line and 22 long balls last year in 401 turns at bat.
Of course, Gattis also comes with an attractive contractual situation. He will play at league minimum for the final time this year before qualifying for arbitration in 2016. Though his power numbers should inflate his earnings, Gattis will nevertheless remain an affordable piece for some time.
The 28-year-old Hoyt, meanwhile, is an interesting story. After going undrafted out of Centenary College of Louisiana, he began working on sailboats for a living before an independent league tryout got him back into baseball (via Baseball America’s most recent scouting report on Hoyt [subscription required]). Eventually, he was picked up by Atlanta at age 25. Hoyt rose through Atlanta’s ranks, compiling particularly impressive marks at the Double-A level in 2013 (1.82 ERA, 11.5 K/9, 4.2 BB/9). That earned him the No. 30 ranking on BA’s list of top Braves prospects, with BA praising his 94-96 mph fastball and a slider that could develop into a plus pitch.
Another fact that becomes all the more obvious with this move is that the Braves are not playing for 2015. Atlanta has undergone a significant amount of roster turnover this offseason, with new president of baseball operations John Hart driving the change. The club already dealt away its two star corner outfielders, Justin Upton and Jason Heyward, and replaced their expiring contracts with a four-year deal for free agent Nick Markakis.
Without Gattis to plug in left, current options are few. The club could strike a deal for a younger player, make an upside play for someone like Colby Rasmus, or make a run at Nori Aoki — a solid, high-OBP veteran in the general Markakis mold.
The Rangers also expressed heavy interest in Gattis and were even next in line to acquire him, MLB.com’s Mark Bowman tweets. The deal took awhile to get across the finish line, as there was some significant concern as to how Gattis’ back and right knee would look when examined by doctors, per Evan Drellich of the Houston Chronicle (Twitter link). Those concerns ultimately failed to derail the deal.
As with the Braves’ other moves, young pitching will come in return. Foltynewicz, who briefly reached the bigs last year as a reliever, sat at number three on Baseball America’s list of the best ‘Stros prospects and at fourth on the MLB.com version. He will likely be given a chance to continue his development as a starter, and could even have a shot at a MLB rotation spot this year. Thurman, 23, was taken in the second round in 2013 but has struggled to adapt to pro ball. Last season, pitching at the Class A level, he threw 115 1/3 innings of 5.38 ball with 8.3 K/9 and 3.1 BB/9.
Ruiz was set to jockey with trade deadline addition Colin Moran to be Houston’s third baseman of the future, and was ranked by BA right aside Moran at eighth amongst the team’s minor leaguers, with MLB.com placing him ninth. The 20-year-old slashed .293/.387/.436 with 11 home runs in 602 plate appearances at High-A last year. Ruiz fills a gap in the club’s corner infield pipeline created by the recent trade of Kyle Kubitza.
Bob Nightengale of USA Today first reported on Twitter that Gattis was slated for a physical and that there were advanced negotiations with the Astros. Braves blogger Martin Gandy was first to tweet that something might be in the works between the clubs. David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution first tweeted that the deal was in place, pending the physical. Joel Sherman of the New York Post reported the return for Gattis (Twitter links). MLB.com’s Mark Bowman reported the deal’s completion and Hoyte’s inclusion (Twitter links).