Coronavirus Notes: Upcoming Negotiations, Furloughs, Angels, Brewers, KBO
It’s make-or-break time for MLB and the MLBPA on forging a path to baseball in 2020. With some significant negotiations looming this week, ESPN’s Jeff Passan runs through some of the biggest questions facing the league. The battle between players and owners is rife with potential roadblocks, and it’s not just the conditions of 2020 that are at stake. With the CBA renegotiation still in the (what-now-feels-like distant) future, both sides are aware of the impact any concession can make to the bigger picture. The way this week’s negotiations are handled could reveal the potential the two sides have of forging an effective working relationship moving forward. One would think now would be an ideal time for opposing sides to come together, and yet it’s just not as simple as that when billions of dollars are at stake. There are countless people and opinions to take into account on both sides of the aisle. While we await a loaded week of negotiations, let’s check in on how teams are handling their non-player-and-coach employees…
- Teams are taking a variety of approaches when it comes to their employees in the wake of COVID-19, but the Angels have come under fire for taking a more drastic approach than most, per The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal. The Angels will be furloughing employees from nearly every department, including, in the words of Rosenthal, “weakening its amateur scouting department heading into the draft.” The optics aren’t great here for the large-market Angels, especially when clubs like the Brewers, Giants, and Phillies have made commitments to retaining their staff at least through October. The Blue Jays also recently made the decision to keep employees’ on their full-time salaries through October 1, tweets John Lott, a frequent contributor to The Athletic. The Brewers have been the most aggressively pro-employee, per Rosenthal, committing to keeping their staff on through the entirety of the baseball season. The pro-employee approach is laudable, though not necessarily all that shocking coming out of Milwaukee. The Brewers have increasingly stepped into the spotlight in recent years as a progressive organization, from the supportive atmosphere provided players to making special efforts to get Milwaukee residents in to see games to their very team-building approach. The Angels, meanwhile, might find tough sledding ahead when it comes to signing undrafted amateur players. Without their typical scouting infrastructure in place, those relationships will be harder to build in an open market, and it’s possible the decisions being made by ownership today will have far-reaching consequences for the organization’s future.
- The Rays, meanwhile, are readying to return to the field. Camp will re-open on Monday for a small collection of 15 to 20 players, per Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. Those players involved will still be keeping a separation of six feet from other players, and workouts will be limited. Still, it’s a positive sign to see players start to congregate again around a playing field. It’s also, no doubt, a risky proposition, but so long as safety precautions are followed and we don’t see a breakout of cases among these players, these workouts could be a harbinger of more baseball to come.
- Baseball is back already in some places of the world, of course. The KBO is about 17 games into their 2020 season, and they’re about to get a lot more popular. A new deal was announced for ESPN to become the English-language home of KBO games set to broadcast around the world, per ESPN’s Santa Brito. Play-by-play announcers will continue to provide commentary while social distancing. ESPN will soon be broadcasting KBO games “throughout Canada, Mexico, Central America, the Caribbean (including the Dominican Republic), Europe, Middle East, Africa, and parts of Asia.”
Latest On Teams’ Plans For Second Spring Training
While the league and the MLBPA have yet to reach a formal agreement on either player compensation or health/safety protocols for a rebooted 2020 season, teams are still preparing for a shortened restart of “Spring” Training — ideally beginning in mid-June. The goal is for a three-week training period to lead into an 82-game season that kicks off in early July. The latest on plans for a few NL clubs…
- The Mets will likely hold their version of Spring Training 2.0 at their spring facility in Port St. Lucie, Fla. rather than at Citi Field in New York, Tim Healey of Newsday reports. New York City remains the U.S. epicenter for the coronavirus, and beyond the pure health aspect of the decision, staging their training camp in Florida gives the Mets access to multiple fields. As Healey notes, the Mets completed a $57MM renovation project at Clover Field back in February, which has improved the overall quality of the facilities and equipment available to Mets players — several of whom are already in Florida.
- The Phillies are likely to remain in Philadelphia for their second wave of Spring Training, per Jim Salisbury of NBC Sports Philadelphia. The Phillies’ Urban Youth Academy, across the street from Citizen’s Bank Park, has two full-size fields that could be made available, and Salisbury notes that the Phils have ownership stake in their nearby Triple-A and Double-A affiliates, which could allow those parks to be used as well. Both affiliates are fewer than 70 miles away from Citizen’s Bank Park.
- The Diamondbacks have opened Chase Field for individual workouts, USA Today’s Bob Nightengale tweets. Unlike other clubs, the D-backs have the luxury of their home field and spring facility being a mere 20 miles apart. Nightengale notes that in addition to Chase Field opening up, some players are also reporting to the Salt River Fields spring facility in preparation for a second Spring Training.
Cardinals Notes: Mikolas, Freese, Molina
Cardinals right-hander Miles Mikolas tossed a bullpen session last Friday and expects to be ready to go whenever play resumes, per The Athletic’s Mark Saxon (subscription required). Mikolas feels he’ll have time to get in another “eight to ten” bullpen sessions between now and the reported mid-June target for a reboot of Spring Training, at which point he’d be able to kick things off with a two- or three-inning appearance. A flexor strain slowed the right-hander back in February and likely would’ve cost him a notable portion of the season under normal circumstances, but like many others, he’s been able to use the extended time off to heal up. Mikolas also chats with Saxon about the likely addition of the designated hitter in the NL and gives his reasons for welcoming that change.
More out of St. Louis…
- St. Louis native and postseason hero David Freese plans to be with the Cardinals’ fantasy camp next year, and the recently retired corner infielder tells Rick Hummel of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch that he’s open to coaching in the future but not fully committed to the idea. “I always think about it, just because baseball is a part of me,” says Freese, who goes on to marvel at the manner in which the workload of Major League coaches has expanded over the past several years. A managerial role, even at the minor league level, has a bit more appeal to Freese than a coaching job, but the 37-year-old is currently focused on his family, with a second child due next month. Cards fans will want to check out the interview to read Freese’s personal recollection of a legendary postseason showing in 2011, when he rallied back from an icy NLDS showing to hit a combined .444/.528/.889 with four homers, six doubles and an unforgettable triple in just 53 plate appearances between the NLCS and World Series. He was named MVP of both series.
- ESPN’s Marly Rivera recently spoke with Yadier Molina about his willingness to test free agency and sign elsewhere if a reunion with the Cardinals doesn’t work out. Those comments were understandably the focus of her initial piece from their talk, although a lengthier transcript of the interview was published last week — one in which Molina discusses his Hall of Fame aspirations, his journey from a “defensive catcher” to a well-rounded All-Star performer, his pursuit of the 2,000 hit milestone and the change in the way that catchers have been valued since his MLB debut. There’s no additional context or change in his thoughts on potentially playing elsewhere; those comments were published in their entirety from the get-go, and it’s clear that Molina hopes to remain in St. Louis but wants another two years whether as a Cardinal or not. Still, as with the Freese interview, Cards fans will surely enjoy the personal stories and recollections from a revered player looking back on his career and discussing his future in the game.
Quick Hits: Howe, Johnson, Boras, Wright
After five days in hospital, Art Howe is back at home and continuing to recover from a COVID-19 diagnosis. The longtime former manager and player told ESPN.com and other media outlets that he is “finally feeling a little bit better” following a harrowing week that included time in the intensive care unit. While Howe is “still not able to eat real good, taste buds are giving me a hard time,” the 73-year-old said “it’s just nice to be back home and hopefully continue to progress.” On behalf of the MLBTR staff, it’s great to see Howe on the mend, and we wish him all the best in his recovery.
More from around baseball…
- Former Rockies right-hander DJ Johnson signed with the Hiroshima Carp of Nippon Professional Baseball over the offseason, and Johnson tells the Denver Post’s Kyle Newman that he also received interest from Japanese teams in each of the previous two winters. The decision to play ball overseas didn’t come lightly to Johnson, though “it came down to, I had realized my dream of making the major leagues after all those years of grinding and sacrifice. Now, it’s time to start taking care of my family.” Johnson will earn close to $1MM for the 2020 season, considerably more than he was slated to make even if he had spent the whole year on Colorado’s Major League roster (even before player salaries were reduced as part of the league shutdown). Similar seven-figure paydays could also be in the offing for Johnson, as Hiroshima holds a club option on his services for the 2021 season and the two sides have a mutual option for 2022. Johnson posted a 4.88 ERA over 35 games and 31 1/3 innings with the Rockies in 2018-19, which represents the extent of his MLB experience over a nine-year career. It’s a pretty solid resume for a player who wasn’t even drafted coming out of Western Oregon University, and Johnson is now looking forward to “embracing the culture change” of playing in Japan and helping the Carp win some games.
- While Scott Boras is a household name in the baseball world, many fans may not be familiar with Boras’ early days as a ballplayer. Sports Illustrated’s Stephanie Apstein looks back at Boras’ time as a member of the Cardinals’ and Cubs’ farm systems, as the future agent played four seasons (1974-77) before recurring knee problems ended his playing career. Boras made it as far as the Double-A level, and a look at his Baseball Reference page reveals some impressive averages and on-base numbers for the future agent.
- The Mets drafted David Wright with the 38th pick of the 2001 draft, beginning the long association between the Amazins and their future captain. More indirectly, however, the Mets got Wright because they….drafted Jon Matlack fourth overall in 1967? MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo takes an entertaining deep dive through the transactional path that began with the Matlack pick and ended with Mike Hampton leaving the Mets to sign with the Rockies in the 2000-01 offseason, thus netting New York the compensatory pick that resulted in Wright’s selection.
Central Notes: Twins, Bryant, Mize, Reds
Let’s check in on a few teams from the game’s Central divisions…
- The Twins signed injured left-hander Rich Hill in December with the expectation he’d miss a large part of the season. That was before the coronavirus pandemic ran amok, though, and now the Twins might get a full season (if there is one) out of Hill. The 40-year-old, who’s still recovering from the primary revision surgery he underwent in November , told Betsy Helfand of the Pioneer Press, “(I’ve) been able to make the most out of the situation so I’m right where I should be as far as rehab progression-wise, so if we do have a season, I should be ready to go when we kick off something of a spring training.” That means the Twins could get an entire season out of a hurler who has been one of the most effective starters in the majors on a per-inning basis since his out-of-nowhere breakout in 2015. Dating back to then, Hill has combined for a 2.91 ERA with 10.67 K/9 and 2.82 BB/9 in 466 1/3 frames as a member of the Red Sox, Athletics and Dodgers.
- Cubs third baseman/outfielder Kris Bryant is scheduled to become a free agent after the 2021 season. In theory, a shortened or canceled 2020 campaign could have a negative effect on his market if he does reach free agency, but agent Scott Boras doesn’t expect it to damage Bryant or any of the other star players who could be available then. “For the players who are the great players — because there’s always only a few great players — I don’t think it’s going to have anywhere near the impact,” Boras told Gordon Wittenmyer of NBC Sports Chicago, “because those great players are somebody you would sign for 10 years, and you can defer the cost. You just backload the contracts. You can do things with long-term contracts; you could wait for better times but still get the player for today.”
- Righty Casey Mize, the No. 1 pick in the 2018 draft, may be the best prospect in the Detroit organization. But with a minor league campaign unlikely to happen, Mize could miss out on further professional seasoning this year. So what’s the solution? Well, Evan Woodbery of MLive.com makes a case that the Tigers should just put him in their rotation this season. Doing so would burn a year of service time, and it’s unlikely Mize would help make the Tigers a playoff-caliber team even in a shortened season, but there’s no denying he is one of the most talented players in the organization. Mize spent the majority of last year in Double-A, where he pitched to a 3.20 ERA with 8.69 K/9 and 2.06 BB/9 in 78 2/3 innings.
- The Reds will start temporarily furloughing employees – less than 25 percent of them – on June 1, C. Trent Rosecrans of The Athletic tweets. Those individuals will continue to receive benefits while laid off, though.
Latest News & Notes On Coronavirus, MLB
If there is a 2020 Major League Baseball season and at least some of it doesn’t occur in teams’ home ballparks, the state of Arizona has come up as a potential host. It’s anyone’s guess whether that will happen, but Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey announced Tuesday that pro sports teams will be able to resume without spectators in the state beginning on May 16, Andrew Oxford of the Arizona Republic writes. That in itself is not necessarily an indicator that baseball’s nearing a return, though. As Jon Heyman of MLB Network tweets. the league’s not going to play this year if it’s not convinced it will be be in position to provide sufficient coronavirus testing to its players. Fortunately, MLB does expect that it will be able to fulfill that requirement.
- MLB and the MLBPA met Tuesday to discuss a potential season, but they mostly talked about health and safety, according to Heyman. He and Joel Sherman of the New York Post note that there wasn’t a former proposal regarding 50-50 revenue sharing or pay cuts, adding that those talks will occur later. However, owners are not keen on paying players prorated salaries without fans in the stands, per Heyman. They instead believe they’d lose less money with no baseball at all, which could be a major stumbling block in negotiations. “I think we will play,” an agent told Travis Sawchik of FiveThirtyEight, “but there is going to be an economic war.” That’s not a reassuring statement, especially with the league and the union set to engage in serious collective bargaining agreement discussions in the near future.
- Beginning June 1, any Mariners employee who makes $60K or more will have to take a 20 percent pay cut through the end of October, Corey Brock of The Athletic reports. That will have a negative effect on about 60 employees, but the Mariners are taking that measure as a way to avoid any layoffs or furloughs during that five-month period. General manaager Jerry Dipoto will be among those on the bad end of it, as Brock writes that his pay will decrease by even more than 20 percent, but he’s behind the organization’s plan. “We wanted to make sure we did the right thing and kept people afloat during a difficult time,” Dipoto told Brock.
- You can probably forget about baseball taking place in Los Angeles County in the near future. Its stay-at-home orders “with all certainty” will last for at least three more months, county Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer announced Tuesday, per Colleen Shalby and Sarah Parvini of the Los Angeles Times.
- Three notable members of the Rangers have preexisting conditions, making them more susceptible to contracting the virus, as Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News writes. Starter Kyle Gibson was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis a year ago, reliever Brett Martin’s a diabetic, and third base coach Tony Beasley is a cancer survivor. All three told Grant that they’re eager to get back in action, though there would have to be safety protocols in place first.
NL East Notes: Mets, Realmuto, Cano, Marlins, Brinson, Sierra
Let’s check in on a pair of teams from the National League East…
- The Mets pushed hard to land J.T. Realmuto before he was ultimately traded from Miami to Philadelphia, and Mike Puma of the New York Post writes in his latest mailbag column that the team’s pursuit of Realmuto might not yet be over. Realmuto is represented by CAA, the former agency of GM Brodie Van Wagenen, and current catcher Wilson Ramos has a club option for the 2021 season that isn’t a lock to be picked up ($10MM or a $1.5MM buyout). The Mets have acquired several of Van Wagenen’s former players since he became GM — Jed Lowrie, Michael Wacha and Robinson Cano — although CAA has a rather large base of clients and Van Wagenen has certainly added plenty of players from other firms (Ramos, J.D. Davis, etc.). Still, there’s no obvious in-house alternative if the team opts to move on from Ramos — or to pick up his option and look to trade him. Realmuto would indeed be an upgrade, particularly on the defensive side of things, which is notable given the questions that arose regarding Ramos’ glove in New York last year.
- The COVID-19 shutdown hasn’t been fun for anyone, but Cano has at least found a silver lining during the delayed season. Cano said Tuesday that the downtime has “been beneficial for me for sure” physically, as Tim Healey of Newsday relays. “My legs feel strong right now,” continued Cano, who’s champing at the bit to return to the diamond. “Just can’t wait to go back on the field, and then play.” If there is a season, the longtime star, 37, will aim to rebound after a rough debut campaign with the Mets. Cano hit just .257/.307/.428 with 13 homers during an injury-limited, 423-plate appearance season.
- Expanded rosters should be quite favorable for several Marlins outfielders who might not have been a lock to make the team, writes Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald. Lewis Brinson has drawn his share of flak having yet to produce after arriving as the centerpiece in the widely panned Christian Yelich trade, and he’d be “very, very” likely to break camp with an expanded roster. Magneuris Sierra is out of minor league options and was a risk to be exposed to waivers given his lack of big league production, but greater roster flexibility and his elite speed make him a likely bench piece at the very least. Sierra, like Brinson, came over in a high-profile swap — the Marcell Ozuna deal — although the Fish have already fared quite a bit better in that deal. Sandy Alcantara was that trade’s headliner, while righty Zac Gallen was also in that deal and has since netted the team top shortstop prospect Jazz Chisholm.
Quick Hits: Judge, Team Finances, Tsutsugo
Should the Yankees sign Aaron Judge to a long-term extension? Joel Sherman of the New York Post isn’t sure, noting that Judge already has a significant injury history, is already under team control through his age-30 season, and how the Yankees’ financial situation will be impacted in the post-coronavirus baseball world. There’s also the fact that the Yankees have generally shied away from contract extensions since Hal Steinbrenner took over the team, and the two players whose deals were most recently extended (Aaron Hicks and Luis Severino) have battled injuries since inking those new contracts. Judge is in the first of his three arbitration-eligible seasons, and back in January agreed to an $8.5MM deal for the 2020 season.
More from around baseball….
- Most of the 30 teams have already arranged to pay non-baseball employees through the end of May, with such clubs as the Phillies, Tigers, Rockies, and Padres already committed to avoiding job cuts or furloughs beyond May 31. However, there is concern and, “among front-office officials there is an expectation,” ESPN.com’s Buster Olney writes, that there could be major job losses within baseball operations departments after the draft in June. Scouts could be in particular danger, as some clubs have already made moves in recent years towards relying on video analysis rather than in-person reports for scouting purposes. As one team executive tells Olney, “it just doesn’t make any sense to me that these [teams] need to dump people making $40K, $50K. Those savings are not difference-making,” even for franchises that will be taking a big revenue hit this season. Such actions are likely to hurt a team’s reputation around the sport, and could impact future chances of hiring or keeping front office personnel in the future.
- Yoshitomo Tsutsugo has been in Japan since late March, and Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times writes that the newly-acquired Rays slugger is continuing to work out in preparation for his first Major League season. Keeping in touch with Rays staff throughout, Tsutsugo has been involved in various workout, hitting, and throwing routines. As to when Tsutsugo will be able to return to North America, nothing will be determined until (or if) a plan to launch the 2020 season is underway, and Tsutsugo be further delayed given travel restrictions between Japan and the U.S. For instance, Tsutsugo could face a mandatory 14-day self-quarantine upon arriving in America, regardless of any COVID-19 symptoms he may or may not show.
Quick Hits: Draft, Player Salaries, Blue Jays
Some items from around the sport…
- The league’s decision to limit this year’s amateur draft to five rounds is explored by The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal (subscription required), who notes that the players’ union turned down a proposal from MLB to have a ten-round draft, with the signing bonuses attached to the picks in rounds 6-10 reduced to half of their usual value. The gap between the cost of full bonuses and half-bonuses was relatively minor, only around $500K per team, yet the MLBPA “did not want to set the precedent of altering the March deal, knowing the league will likely seek a similar opening next week and ask for additional sacrifices.” This is in reference to the public discord that has already taken place between MLB and the union about the possibility of reduced player salaries should the season begin without any fans in attendance.
- Speaking of salaries, ESPN.com’s Buster Olney points out that some players managed to avoid the financial crunch that most of the players around baseball will face under the terms of the March agreement between the league and the MLBPA. Those with deferred contracts will take less of a financial hit in 2020 since they’ll be getting their money down the road, while other players (i.e. Dellin Betances) who had up-front signing bonuses in their contracts have already received those full payments. Zack Cozart will receive the full $12.167MM salary owed to him in 2020 since the Giants released him in January, whereas Cozart would have had his salary greatly reduced had he still been on San Francisco’s roster at the time of the shutdown.
- While nothing has been decided about the location of any possible 2020 games for any team, restrictions on the Canada/U.S. border adds another layer of difficulty to the possibility of Blue Jays games in Toronto, Sportsnet.ca’s Shi Davidi writes. International visitors to Canada are currently subject to a mandatory 14 days of either self-isolation or quarantine upon arriving in the country, depending on whether or not they show any coronavirus symptoms. While the Jays have had some discussions with civic and provincial officials about the feasibility of playing games at Rogers Centre, Davidi notes that the club could end up playing regular season games at its Spring Training facility in Dunedin unless the situation changes (such as “expected advancements and the wide-scale deployments of rapid-result diagnostic testing”).
NL East Notes: Phillies, Bonds, Braves
Some items from around the NL East…
- The Phillies have promised their full-time employees that “there will be no furloughs or layoffs due to the coronavirus crisis through the end of our fiscal year (October 31, 2020),” managing partner John Middleton wrote in a letter to staff. (NBC Sports Philadelphia’s Jim Salisbury reported on the letter’s contents.) Most teams in baseball have already committed to retaining their employees at least through the end of May, with the Padres, Rockies, and Tigers also taking steps to keep jobs intact beyond May 31. As per Middleton’s letter, Phillies full-time employees could potentially still face “possible salary reductions,” in the fact of the organization’s revenue loss, staffers “can be assured of your job and health insurance for the next five-plus months.”
- Barry Bonds in a Braves uniform? Atlanta’s failed attempt to land the superstar prior to the 1992 season has long been the subject of regret for Braves fans, though as The Athletic’s David O’Brien notes, some of the long-held beliefs about the trade may be inaccurate. For instance, former Braves GM John Schuerholz wrote in his book “Built To Win” that then-Pirates manager Jim Leyland strongly protested the idea of trading Bonds, which led Pittsburgh to back out of the deal. However, Leyland tells O’Brien that he “would have never had the authority to nix a trade. That would have never happened.” Needless to say, the concept of Bonds being added to the 1992 Braves (a team that lost the World Series to the Blue Jays in six games) is a fascinating one, not to mention the wider-ranging impact on baseball history if Bonds had re-signed with Atlanta rather than join the Giants in free agency during the 1992-93 offseason.
- It has been over two and a half years since the shocking international signing scandal that resulted in then-Braves GM John Coppolella being permanently banned from baseball, and John Hart leaving his post as club president. As for the 13 international prospects who became free agents after the Braves lost their rights, Gabriel Burns of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution catches up with how the players are developing in their new organizations. None have yet reached the big leagues, and only four of the 13 are ranked as top-30 prospects (as per MLB Pipeline) within their new farm systems. This isn’t to say that Atlanta emerged unscathed from the scandal, of course, as the club has since been hugely limited in the international market, and they also missed out a 14th prospect in shortstop Robert Puason, who went on to sign with the A’s and is “by far the highest regarded player of this group,” Burns writes. The Braves were prohibited from signing Puason after the league’s investigation into their international signing improprieties revealed that the club had arranged to sign Puason before he was eligible. MLB Pipeline rates the 17-year-old Puason as the fourth-best prospect in Oakland’s farm system.