Notes

Mets To Overhaul Coaching Staff

By Mark Polishuk | October 7, 2021 at 12:26pm CDT

The Mets are planning to part ways with the majority of their coaches, SNY’s Andy Martino reports. The club has told six members of the staff (bench coach Dave Jauss, first base coach Tony Tarasco, third base coach Gary DiSarcina, bullpen coach Ricky Bones, Major League field coordinator/catching coach Brian Schneider, and assistant pitching coach Jeremy Accardo) that they are free to look for jobs elsewhere.

Pitching coach Jeremy Hefner will also remain but perhaps not in his current position, as Hefner “and the Mets are discussing his future role.” Hitting coach Hugh Quattlebaum and assistant hitting coach Kevin Howard will be staying in the organization but will be reassigned to the minor leagues, as Deesha Thosar of the New York Daily News reports that Howard will return to his former job as the director of player development.

Considering the Mets have already moved on from Luis Rojas as manager, it isn’t surprising that the club would also look for a clean slate with its coaching corps, thus giving the new manager some opportunity to hand-pick his own staff. As Martino notes, the Mets coaches were something of “a patchwork group that represented remnants of previous regimes,” which perhaps isn’t surprising given how many managerial and front office changes the Mets have made just in the last few years.

Yankees Notes: Boone, Gardner, Judge

By Mark Polishuk | October 6, 2021 at 8:13am CDT

The Yankees’ season ended in last night’s 6-2 loss to the Red Sox in the AL wild card game, and speculation immediately began about the Bronx Bombers’ next steps. It has now been 12 seasons (a eternity by Bronx standards) since the Yankees’ last World Series appearance, and a return trip won’t get any easier in 2022.

“We’ve got to get better in every aspect because it’s not just the Red Sox and the Astros now in our league,” manager Aaron Boone told ESPN’s Joon Lee and other reporters. “Look at our division — the Rays are a beast, Toronto. There’s some teams in the Central that are better and better, teams in the West that are better and better, teams that have closed the gap on us.”

Whatever moves are made during the offseason, perhaps the first question on many fans’ minds is whether or not Boone will still be the one managing any new faces. While Boone has an outstanding 328-218 record in his four seasons as manager, it hasn’t resulted in a contract extension from the original deal he signed back in December 2017. That original contract was for three seasons and a club option for 2021, which the Yankees exercised, though Boone spent the year in lame-duck status without any guarantee for a longer tenure.

“I haven’t had any conversations about [my contract] with anyone, so we’ll see,” Boone said. “I love being here. I love going to work with this group of players….Whatever does happen, I’m at peace with. I know that I can hold my head high.”

Brett Gardner is the last player remaining from the Yankees’ 2009 championship team, and after spending his entire career in New York, the outfielder told ESPN’s Marly Rivera and other reporters that “I hope I am back next season.” The ball is in Gardner’s court to some extent, as he has a $2.3MM player option for 2022, and the Yankees have a $7.15MM club option (with a $1.15MM buyout) available should Gardner decline his player option.

Gardner has played each of the last three seasons on one-year guaranteed contracts, with the Yankees opting to decline club options following the 2018 and 2020 seasons. Since Gardner delivered a below-average (90 OPS+, 93 wRC+) offensive season by hitting only .222/.327/.362 over 461 plate appearances, it seems hard to see the Yankees retain him at that $7.15MM figure, even considering Gardner’s long history with the team and his still-solid baserunning and outfield glovework at age 38. It’s possible a new deal could be worked out for something between the $2.3MM and $7.15MM price points, though Gardner might prefer to avoid the uncertainty of offseason negotiations and just lock in his player option, even if it means a substantial pay cut.

Aaron Judge can look forward to a nice raise (from his $10.175MM salary in 2021) in his third and final arbitration year, as the star slugger enjoyed another big season. Judge hit .287/.373/.544 with 39 home runs, and though he spent 11 days on the COVID-related injury list, Judge’s 148 games and 633 PA represented his highest totals in either category since 2017.

It all makes for a very nice platform for Judge in extension talks, as Judge is scheduled for free agency following the 2022 season. “I want to be a Yankee for life,” Judge told Tyler Kepner of The New York Times and other reporters last night. “I want to wear the pinstripes the rest of my career and represent this great organization and bring a championship back to the city. But you never know what the future holds for you.”

After Judge was hampered by injuries in 2018-20, his ability to stay on the field this season should to some extent lessen any concerns the Yankees might have about Judge’s chances of staying healthy into his 30’s. (Judge will be 31 on Opening Day 2023.) Judge has been one of the sport’s most fearsome bats even in his injury-plagued years, and he has also become a fan favorite in New York and the face of this era of Yankees baseball. It remains to be see, however, whether Judge’s track record results in an extension with a franchise that generally hasn’t agreed to many contract extensions in the Hal Steinbrenner era.

While pure dollars aren’t really the issue, the fact that the Yankees stayed under the luxury tax threshold this season and reset their tax payment status could be a hint towards a willingness to work something out with their popular slugger. When the Yankees last ducked under the luxury tax line in 2018, they responded with a pair of extensions with Luis Severino and Aaron Hicks the following spring. Of course, the fact that the Yankees have thus far gotten very little return on those Severino and Hicks deals might also have perhaps hardened the team’s resolve against extensions.

NL East Notes: Harper, Phillies, Davis, Mets, Nationals

By Mark Polishuk | October 3, 2021 at 11:06pm CDT

For players eager to win now, they usually want their teams to add veteran players to help put the club over the top. Bryce Harper may be an exception, as when speaking to The Athletic’s Matt Gelb and other reporters following the Phillies’ season-ending loss to the Marlins, Harper stressed that “we can’t just keep going out and buying and buying and buying. We need homegrown talent. When you look at teams that have homegrown talent, those are the teams that have success….We need guys to come up from the minor leagues and have success and be successful. Not have to go up and down.”

Aaron Nola and Rhys Hoskins stand out as recent success stories from Philadelphia’s player pipeline, but apart from that duo, the Phillies have struggled to find consistent contributions from within the organizations. Highly-touted youngsters like Alec Bohm, Scott Kingery, Mickey Moniak, and Adam Haseley have yet to make much of an impact at the big league level, and Gelb notes that the Phils have been lacking a streamlined approach throughout the organization — there appears to be “a disconnect between what was taught below and preached in the majors.” The Phillies are already making changes in the player development department and are on the lookout for a new hitting coach, though it remains to be seen if the team can figure out this “disconnect” while still addressing their 2022 needs and being competitive next season.

Rockies Notes: Schmidt, Feasel, Payroll, Offseason

By Mark Polishuk | October 2, 2021 at 10:54pm CDT

The Rockies officially promoted Bill Schmidt from interim GM to full-time general manager today, and Schmidt, manager Bud Black, and team president/COO Greg Feasel spoke with reporters (including Patrick Saunders of The Denver Post) about both the hiring and some of the team’s offseason plans.

The chief priority will be adding relief pitching and power bats, according to both Schmidt and Black. Some of that power could come by retaining free agents such as Trevor Story and C.J. Cron, and Schmidt reiterated that the Rox have interest in re-signing both sluggers, as well as right-hander Jon Gray.

Though Colorado was out of the playoff race at midseason, the team controversially held onto Story, Cron, Gray, and most of its other impending free agents due in part to this desire to keep everyone in the fold. In the wake of the trade deadline, Story indicated he was “confused” at not being dealt, and reports from back in June suggested that Story was already planning to move on from the Rockies following the season. Today, Schmidt said simply that Story’s future in Denver is “up to him. He knows how we feel about him.”

As to how the Rockies could retain their free agents, some extra spending appears to be in the works. Roster Resource has Colorado’s current payroll at just over $116.8MM, down from the team’s spending in the $157MM range during the 2019 season. With revenue levels becoming more normalized post-pandemic, Feasel said the Rockies intend to return to that higher spending capacity within two years’ time — “We think we are going to gain ground in ’22, and we think we’ll be back to 2018-19 levels in 2023.”

If Story did leave, his $18.5MM salary from 2021 could certainly be put towards a new contract for Gray and/or Cron. 2022 is also one of the seasons where the money owed to the Cardinals as part of the Nolan Arenado trade dips down; the Rockies only owe around $5.57MM to St. Louis in 2022, before that number spikes to $21MM in 2023, and then $5MM each in both 2024 and 2025.

While the Rox have some cash available, it remains to be seen exactly how that money will be spent, or how Schmidt will operate now that has the full reigns of an organization for the first time in his long career. The lack of activity at the trade deadline didn’t provide many hints about Schmidt’s plans, and given Feasel’s payroll projection, it could be any real serious expenditures are held off until next winter.

The broader question also exists about how much things will really change in Colorado under the Schmidt regime, considering that Schmidt is already a long-time Rockies staffer, and owner Dick Monfort’s insular management style has come under heavy criticism. To this end, some new voices are expected to join the mix, as Schmidt said the Rockies are already looking to increase the analytics department. (An understaffed and sometimes-ignored analytics team was identified by The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal and Nick Groke as one of the Rockies’ many issues in a harsh spotlight and critique of the organization last March.)

When former GM Jeff Bridich resigned in April, the expectation was that the Rockies would conduct an external search for a new general manager or president of baseball operations following the season. According to Feasel, however, Schmidt’s work as interim GM impressed upper management to the point that “he didn’t give us a choice…I mean, how many times you need to be hit over the head with a bat. And he was the right guy for us at the right time.”

Details about Schmidt’s contract weren’t released, and it could be that Schmidt isn’t working under a traditional deal, as Feasel said there isn’t a firm length attached to Schmidt’s role. “We consider him an officer of our club and we think that’s pretty special. His standing is not going to change,” Feasel said.

Marlins Notes: Free Agency, Castellanos, Alcantara

By Anthony Franco | October 2, 2021 at 9:54pm CDT

9:54PM: Marlins CEO Derek Jeter backed up Ng’s comments, telling Bally Sports Florida that “For the first time really since we’ve been here as an ownership group, I expect to be pretty active” in the offseason. Jeter also said the focus will be on adding hitting to augment “one of the top pitching staffs in baseball.”

7:35AM: The Marlins are wrapping up their 11th losing season in the past 12 years, with last year’s shortened-season playoff berth looking like an aberration. Miami’s young but promising pitching staff actually put together an above-average campaign, but they were let down by a lack of run support. The Marlins’ 615 runs scored is the third-lowest tally in the majors, with the team’s .241/.308/.387 slash line (excluding pitchers) checking in sixth from the bottom.

Bolstering the lineup will be an obvious priority for the club this offseason, and general manager Kim Ng acknowledged as much Friday afternoon in an appearance on the MLB Network. Most notably, Ng suggested ownership is prepared to support at least some measure of activity in free agency. “We are going to have some money to spend. … We feel that we are primed to do very well with the pitching set up as it is and with us being able to spend some money on bats this offseason.”

Miami typically runs one of the lowest payrolls in the league, but their ledger is fairly open. Miguel Rojas’ $5.5MM option recently vested, and Anthony Bass’ $3MM salary is the only other guaranteed deal on the books. (Miami also owes the Yankees $3MM as part of the Giancarlo Stanton trade). The Fish will have one of the game’s more significant arbitration classes, with Jesús Aguilar, Brian Anderson, Sandy Alcantara, Pablo López and Elieser Hernández among those in line for raises. Even then, Miami should have a bit of spending capacity before closing in on this year’s estimated $63MM payroll (via Roster Resource’s Jason Martinez).

Ng was unsurprisingly vague about precisely how much money the front office will have to play with, but they’re seemingly at least considering one of the more notable players likely to be on the market. On his Swings and Mishes podcast, Craig Mish of the Miami Herald suggested the Marlins could be in the market for South Florida native Nick Castellanos, who is expected to opt out of the remaining two years and $32MM on his current deal with the Reds.

On the surface, the Marlins certainly seem a long shot to wind up landing Castellanos, as Mish acknowledges. The 29-year-old placed tenth on MLBTR’s most recent free agent power rankings, with a four or five-year deal worth $20MM+ annually seemingly within the realm of possibility coming off a season in which he’s hitting .308/.362/.570 with 33 home runs. For a Miami team that balked at meeting Starling Marte’s reported four-year, $50MM asking price this summer, an earnest Castellanos pursuit would require a significant change in direction, although it’s at least theoretically possible ownership and the front office would be willing to make an exception for one of the younger potential free agents on the market.

While a Castellanos deal would register as a major surprise, the team agreeing to an extension with Alcantara seems entirely plausible. There’s reportedly growing optimism the two sides can get a long-term deal done this winter, and Mish adds that such talks could result in a more team-friendly arrangement than one might expect. MLBTR’s Steve Adams recently broke down the factors that could go into an Alcantara extension, although Mish hears the first-time All-Star might be willing to settle for a bit less than his maximum earning power in order to lock in some financial security before the expiration of the current collective bargaining agreement on December 1.

Free Agent Notes: Correa, Iglesias, Rodriguez

By TC Zencka | October 2, 2021 at 11:30am CDT

The upcoming free agent shortstop market has been talked about for awhile now, and we’re still a few months off from seeing how the whole thing plays out. Perhaps the most coveted of the soon-to-be available shortstops is the Astros’ Carlos Correa. One potential match for Correa’s services will be the Tigers, tweets MLB Network’s Jon Heyman.

The Tigers are an up-and-coming team with plenty of financial flexibility, and it’s certainly interesting to think about Correa once again teaming up with his former skipper A.J. Hinch. As hard as it is to imagine Correa leaving Houston, they do have prospect Jeremy Pena waiting in the wings, making an exit at least feasible. The Tigers, meanwhile, have one of the most open shortstop situations in the game, with incumbent Niko Goodrum easily able to shift into a super-utility role.

Angels’ closer Raisel Iglesias figures to be another in-demand free agent this winter. His priority, however, is re-signing with the Angels, writes Jeff Fletcher of the Orange-County Register. Iglesias made the most of his first season with the Angels, tossing 69 innings in 64 appearances with a 2.61 ERA/2.87 FIP. He has notched 34 saves, a mark that will look attractive to contenders this offseason.

In terms of rotations arms, there are few with the upside of the Red Sox’ Eduardo Rodriguez. Rodriguez and the Red Sox spoke about a possible extension earlier in the year, but there wasn’t much progress made and the two sides ultimately decided to table talks until the offseason, per Alex Speier of the Boston Globe. After complications from COVID-19 cost Rodriguez all of 2020, he has returned to his usual stable workload, making 31 starts for the playoff hopefuls.

Rodriguez hasn’t quite pitched to his pre-2020 level, though his 4.77 ERA may be a touch inflated. A 3.33 FIP suggests the 28-year-old hasn’t lost a step. He’s tossed 156 2/3 innings with an above-average 27.4 percent strikeout rate, 7.0 percent walk rate, 44.2 percent groundball rate, all numbers that will look good on Rodriguez’s free agent resume this winter.

NL Notes: Padres, Cubs, Mets

By TC Zencka | October 2, 2021 at 8:21am CDT

Fernando Tatis Jr. made no two ways about it when discussing his future as a shortstop. “(A.J. Preller) signed a shortstop, and he’s gonna have a shortstop,” he said, per Dennis Lin of The Athletic (via Twitter). “That’s the plan so far, and I’m not planning on moving for a very long time from there.” Tatis moved to the outfield this season after being slowed by a repeated shoulder injury. The Padres are flush with infielders under team control for next season, including Jake Cronenworth and Ha-Seong Kim, both of whom are capable of manning short. Regardless, Tatis Jr. sounds dedicated to reclaiming his natural position.

Elsewhere in the National League…

Willson Contreras gave an honest assessment of what he thinks the Cubs need heading into next season, while acknowledging that he thought he was going to be traded in this piece from The Athletic’s Sahadev Sharma. Despite being the “last man standing” in many respects, Contreras continue to say all the right things about wanting to stay and be a leader on the next generation of Cubs’ contender. They have some money to spend this offseason, but for the first time in awhile, many teams seem to, and there are only so many “foundational” pieces available in that market.
The Mets biggest decision this winter will be finding the right man to lead their front office. After a number of missteps, the Mets will look to some high profile names to come in and right the ship. Of the most noteworthy, Oakland’s Billy Beane may be the most realistic target, per MLB Network’s Jon Heyman (via Twitter). In the Mets favor is the fact that the Athletics are often looking to save money, and at this point in his storied career, Beane comes at a significant cost. Still, Beane has been the driving force behind a successful couple of decades of A’s baseball, and it’s hard to imagine him walking.

Front Office Notes: Padres, Rangers, Phillies, Royals

By Anthony Franco | September 29, 2021 at 10:25pm CDT

As the offseason nears, we’ve started to see some movement of front office personnel across teams. A few clubs have made significant changes to their executive staffs over the past few days.

Rangers assistant general manager Mike Daly is departing the organization to join the Padres’ front office, reports Jeff Wilson. (Jon Heyman of the MLB Network reported this morning that Daly and the Friars were in talks). Daly had spent fifteen years with Texas working in international scouting and player development, the last five of which had come as assistant GM. He’ll now reunite with former Rangers’ executive A.J. Preller in San Diego. Daly becomes the second Rangers’ AGM in as many months to leave the organization; Shiraz Rehman departed in August, as the front office structure in Arlington continues to evolve under president of baseball ops Jon Daniels and first-year GM Chris Young.
While the Padres added one executive, they saw another depart. San Diego coordinator of advance scouting Preston Mattingly was hired as Phillies director of player development. (Dennis Lin of the Athletic first reported the news). Mattingly, the son of Marlins’ manager Don Mattingly and a former first-round draft choice, had spent the past five seasons with the Friars. The Padres have already seen quite a bit of turnover in the front office on the heels of their second half collapse.
The Royals announced a pair of promotions yesterday. Lonnie Goldberg has been promoted from assistant GM/amateur scouting to vice president of player personnel, while Danny Ontiveros has been bumped up from assistant director of scouting to scouting director. Both Goldberg and Ontiveros have been in the Kansas City organization for well over a decade, with much of that time spent in the club’s scouting department. Earlier this month, the Royals bumped longtime baseball operations leader Dayton Moore up to president of baseball operations, promoted AGM J.J. Piccolo to general manager, and brought veteran executive Gene Watson back into the fold after he departed Kansas City to join the Angels last winter.

NL Roster Notes: Braves, Pirates, Dodgers

By TC Zencka | September 26, 2021 at 2:25pm CDT

Let’s check in on some roster moves filed before today’s slate of afternoon games…

The Braves activated Touki Toussaint from the bereavement list and optioned the right-hander to Triple-A, the team announced. Toussaint could still prove useful in the Braves’ push for the postseason. A playoff role would likely have to come out of the bullpen, however. The 25-year-old logged 50 innings with a 4.50 ERA/5.79 FIP.
The Pirates have reinstated David Bednar from the 10-day injured list and optioned Kyle Keller to Triple-A to create the open roster spot, per the team. Bednar has put together a solid season out of the Pirates’ bullpen, establishing himself as a high leverage arm for the Pirates with a 2.18 ERA/2.70 FIP over 57 2/3 appearances, chipping in three saves and 11 holds.
The Dodgers recalled southpaw Andrew Vasquez and optioned outfielder Luke Raley, the team announced. Vasquez has made just two appearances for the Dodgers this season, tossing 1 2/3 scoreless innings after being acquired from the Twins at the August 31 deadline to trade players not on the 40-man roster. Raley has a .182/.250/.288 line in 72 plate appearances.

AL Notes: Avila, Tigers, Angels, Vazquez

By Mark Polishuk | September 25, 2021 at 10:18pm CDT

Tigers president/CEO Christopher Ilitch said in August that his team was willing to go after “high-impact players” this offseason, and spend as necessary (or if necessary) to obtain such talent. Ilitch reiterated those comments again speaking with The Detroit News’ Chris McCosky and other reporters recently, while GM Al Avila made further remarks hinting at a busy offseason, if not necessarily an all-in push for the 2022 season in particular. “Just rest assured we’re going to try to improve this team for next year and make a big push,” Avila said. “We feel we are very close to being in the playoffs. We’re not too far away.”

Detroit improved to 75-79 with today’s 5-1 victory over the Royals, so the Tigers still have a shot at their first winning season since 2016. The Tigers essentially sunk their season by starting out with only nine wins in their first 33 games, yet they’ve quietly been one of baseball’s better teams every since, going 66-55 since that ugly 33-game start. With the Twins and Indians taking a step backwards in 2021, the Royals still waiting for their latest rebuild to bear fruit, and the White Sox playing well but hardly dominating on their way to the AL Central title, the Tigers may feel the opportunity is ripe to return to contention. It remains to be seen how extensive the Tigers’ shopping spree will be this winter, but after several years of rebuilding, Detroit fans are surely excited to see what headlines their club can generate in the offseason.

Headlines

Notes

Navigation

MLBTR INFO

Connect