Notes

NL Notes: Padres, Phillies, India

By Nick Deeds | January 13, 2024 at 10:46pm CDT

The Padres saw four members of their rotation mix department for free agency back in November, led by reigning NL Cy Young award winner Blake Snell. Along with their ace southpaw, San Diego parted ways with right-handers Seth Lugo, Michael Wacha, and Nick Martinez, each of whom has found a new club. At least in the case of Lugo, however, it appears San Diego hoped to continue the relationship into 2024 and beyond. According to Dennis Lin of The Athletic, the Padres made a four-year offer to Lugo before he landed in Kansas City on a three-year, $45MM deal last month. Lin adds that while San Diego was willing to beat the Royals’ offer in terms of years, their offer came at a lower average annual value than that of Kansas City.

That the Padres would want to reunite with Lugo is hardly a surprise given his successful 2023 with the club. After spending his entire career with the Mets prior to hitting free agency last winter, Lugo signed on with San Diego on a two-year deal with an opt-out after the 2023 campaign. After spending most of his time in Queens as a reliever, Lugo stepped into the Padres’ rotation and made 26 starts for the club last year with a 3.57 ERA (115 ERA+) and 3.83 FIP in 146 1/3 innings of work. San Diego entered the winter with just Joe Musgrove and Yu Darvish locked into the 2024 rotation, and the return of Lugo would have greatly improved the club’s rotation even after the Padres managed to add Michael King, Randy Vasquez, and Jhony Brito to their Opening Day rotation mix in the Juan Soto trade.

Ultimately, of course, Lugo chose to head to Kansas City. Still, that the Padres felt they had enough room in the budget to make an offer to Lugo could be a positive sign for the club’s ability to fill the remaining holes on their roster before Opening Day. Adding at least one more starter to slot into the middle of the club’s rotation alongside King figures to be a priority for the Padres, particularly after they’ve addressed the bullpen by landing Yuki Matsui and Woo Suk Go in recent weeks. Beyond the rotation, the club’s lineup is in dire need of an overhaul after the club parted ways with Soto, Trent Grisham, and Matt Carpenter in trade this offseason. A left-handed bat such as Joc Pederson or Eddie Rosario would make plenty of sense to occupy either left field or DH, and the club was also recently reported as being among the teams interested in center fielder Michael A. Taylor.

More from around the National League…

As the Phillies look to augment their club with pitching and outfield depth this winter, Alex Coffey of the Philadelphia Inquirer reports that they’ve received interest in a package of shortstop prospect Bryan Rincon and catching prospect Eduardo Tait from at least three clubs, though Philadelphia has rebuffed the advances of rival clubs on the duo to this point. Rincon, in February, was a 14th-round pick by the Phillies in the 2022 draft and sports strong defense along with a switch-hitting bat and a 14.8% walk rate for his career in the minor leagues against a strikeout rate of just 17.8%. Tait, meanwhile, signed with the Phillies out of Panama last year and slashed an impressive .333/.400/.517 during his first taste of affiliated ball in the Dominican Summer League.
Among the 22 arbitration-eligible players who did not agree to a contract with his club for the 2024 season by yesterday’s deadline was Reds second baseman Jonathan India, who filed at $4MM against the club’s $3.2MM counteroffer. Reds GM Nick Krall recently spoke regarding the dispute between player and club, as noted by Gordon Wittenmyer of the Cincinnati Enquirer. As relayed by Wittenmyer, Krall emphasized that he doesn’t consider the impending arbitration hearing to be “adversarial” and explained the $800K gap in negotiations by saying that there was a “fundamental issue” between the sides that prevented the deal from getting done. Clubs often take strict stances in arbitration negotiations because both settlements and arbitration decisions can be used as precedent for salaries not for the player in question as he advances through the arbitration process but also by future players around the league. That at times leads to tension between players and their clubs, with right-hander Corbin Burnes’s spat with the Brewers last year standing as a recent example.

Cardinals Notes: Mozeliak, Bloom, Payroll, Injuries

By Nick Deeds | January 13, 2024 at 6:37pm CDT

Cardinals president of baseball operations John Mozeliak spoke to reporters at the club’s Winter Warm-up fan event today about a variety of topics, including the future of first baseman Paul Goldschmidt in St. Louis. Beyond those discussions, Mozeliak also addressed his own future as the head of the club’s baseball operations department as noted by Jeff Jones of the Belleville News-Democrat.

When asked if he still intended to step back from running baseball operations in St. Louis by the end of his current contract with the club in 2025 as he indicated last winter, Mozeliak stood by those previous comments. “I would imagine that’s going to stay pretty true,” he told Jones and other reporters. “I don’t want to sit up here on January 13 and retire, but I think having a succession plan and uncoupling some of the things I’ve been involved in at such a high level…it’s probably reasonable to think that having a different voice at some point would make a lot of sense.”

As Jones notes, the comments from Mozeliak serve to highlight the club’s recent hiring of former Red Sox chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom in an advisory role. While the hire was only announced earlier this week, Mozeliak indicated today that Bloom has been advising the several months and that the club’s acquisitions this offseason have been “bounce(d) off” the club’s new hire. Mozeliak went as far as to note that Bloom has factored into discussions with chairman Bill DeWitt III regarding the future of the baseball operations department following Mozeliak’s eventual move away from leading the club, though he went on to note GM Mike Girsch and scouting director Randy Flores as other potential candidates.

Mozeliak also discussed the club’s payroll in a way that seemingly leaves the door more widely open to the club making additional moves this winter than previously thought. Though DeWitt indicated recently that the club was close to reaching the limits of its budget, Ben Frederickson of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch points out that Mozeliak left the door open to further roster additions with comments to reporters earlier today.

“The budget question always comes up. Payroll question. It’s probably not as black and white as people would like to think it is,” Mozeliak said (as relayed by Frederickson), “Depending on what the type of investment might look like, it’s something we can always take to ownership if we feel like it’s important or a good value. But do I think there is some room in the payroll if we needed to? Yes.”

The comments largely track with those Mozeliak made early in the offseason, stating that the club needed to add “at least two” high-leverage relief arms to its bullpen mix this offseason. While the addition of veteran right-hander Andrew Kittredge surely accounts for one of those additions, the club’s other bullpen additions have been less impactful. Right-handers Nick Robertson, Wilking Rodriguez, Riley O’Brien and Ryan Fernandez all add depth to the St. Louis bullpen, the quartet has just 26 2/3 innings of combined big league experience. Plenty of quality bullpen arms who could bolster the Cardinals’ late-inning mix remain, though they’ve previously been connected to right-hander Phil Maton and left-hander Matt Moore.

In addition to those comments, Mozeliak provided updates on a trio of injured position players, noting (per Daniel Guerrero of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch) that shortstop Tommy Edman is recovering well from the wrist surgery he underwent back in October while also adding that both outfielder Dylan Carlson and utilityman Brendan Donovan are expected to be ready for Spring Training next month. Carlson underwent ankle surgery back in September, while Donovan underwent surgery on his elbow on August 2.

The healthy return of that trio of players figures to be crucial for the Cardinals as they look to rebound from a 71-91 record that saw them finish last in the NL Central last season. Edman provides the club with valuable versatility thanks to his ability to capably handle both shortstop and center field on an everyday basis, while Donovan’s .365 on-base percentage in 95 games last year trailed only Lars Nootbaar’s .367 figure among qualified Cardinals. Carlson, meanwhile, struggled badly in 2023 but could join Nootbaar and Jordan Walker as one of the club’s regular outfielders entering 2024 as he looks to recapture the form he flashed in 2021, when hit .266/.343/.437 in 619 trips to the plate while roving between all three outfield spots.

Cubs Notes: Suter, Imanaga, Shaw

By Nick Deeds | January 13, 2024 at 5:21pm CDT

The Cubs were among several teams with interest in left-hander Brent Suter prior to his decision to sign in Cincinnati on a one-year deal earlier this week, according to Gordon Wittenmyer of the Cincinnati Enquirer. Wittenmyer adds that Chicago remained interested in Suter’s services “down to the end” of his time as a free agent.

That the Cubs would have interest in Suter is hardly a surprise. The 34-year-old was among the lefty relievers the club was reportedly interested in prior to last summer’s trade deadline, and the club has found itself connected to the relief market frequently with this winter, with Ryan Braiser and Robert Stephenson among the names rumored as potential Cubs targets. Suter also spent seven seasons in Milwaukee under new Cubs manager Craig Counsell prior to joining the Rockies prior to the 2023 campaign.

The relief market has seen the likes of Andrew Chafin, Will Smith and Chris Stratton sign over the past month in addition to Chafin, with right-hander Jordan Hicks also recently coming off the board after signing with the Giants as a starting pitcher. Even so, the Cubs nonetheless figure to have plenty of options available to them as they search to upgrade their bullpen this winter. In addition to Stephenson and Brasier, the likes of left-hander Matt Moore and right-hander David Robertson could provide some veteran stability to the late innings for Chicago, where they currently project to utilize Adbert Alzolay and Julian Merryweather.

More from the north side of Chicago…

The Cubs made their first big move of the offseason last week by landing left-hander Shota Imanaga on a four-year, $53MM deal. While Imanaga was posted for MLB teams to sign less than two months ago, Maddie Lee of the Chicago Sun Times recently detailed the club’s efforts to land the southpaw, which date back to the club beginning to scout the southpaw back in 2018, the third season of Imanaga’s career in Nippon Professional Baseball. Lee notes that Imanaga caught Chicago’s attention in a more significant way during the World Baseball Softball Confederation’s 2019 Premiere12 tournament, the same tournament where they first identified outfielder Seiya Suzuki as a possible future target. That lengthy time spent scouting the duo has paid off as Imanaga figures to slot behind Justin Steele in the middle of the club’s rotation this year, while Suzuki slashed an impressive .285/.357/.485 in 138 games as the club’s everyday right fielder in the second year of his five-year pact with the Cubs last year.
Chicago’s first-round pick in the 2023 draft, shortstop Matt Shaw, made a big first impression during his first professional campaign with a .357/.400/.618 slash line in 170 trips to the plate across three levels last summer, including a stop at Double-A where he slashed a strong .292/.329/.523 in 15 games. With that performance, the 22-year-old has put himself on the radar for a possible big league debut at some point during the 2024 campaign. Gold glove fielders Nico Hoerner and Dansby Swanson are locked into the middle infielder positions at Wrigley, however, and that’s led Shaw to explore new defensive positions this winter. Shaw himself told Ryan Herrera of CHGO Sports at this weekend’s Cubs Convention that “probably 99%” of his defensive reps this winter have come at third base. Prospect evaluators questioned Shaw’s arm strength when he was selected last summer, making the hot corner an unusual fit for the youngster. On the other hand, the Cubs found success in moving Nick Madrigal to third base last year despite similar questions about arm strength with Madrigal posting +10 Outs Above Average at the position in 2023.

AL Notes: Mariners, White Sox, Stroman, Yankees

By Nick Deeds | January 7, 2024 at 12:32pm CDT

The Mariners have been busy on the trade market of late, swapping Robbie Ray for Mitch Haniger and Anthony DeSclafani in a deal with the Giants while acquiring lefty slugger Luke Raley in a swap with the Rays that sent infielder Jose Caballero to Tampa. President of baseball operations Jerry Dipoto recently spoke to reporters (including Ryan Divish of The Seattle Times) about the deals and the club’s plans for the remainder of the offseason.

Dipoto described the moves as making the Mariners’ roster “more complete” than it has been at any point in the offseason and suggested that if the regular season were to start tomorrow, the club would be satisfied with its roster as currently constructed. The additions of Raley and Haniger certainly shore up the roster’s corner outfield spots, which were the most glaring holes on the roster following the departures of Jarred Kelenic and Teoscar Hernandez. Even as the outfield appears to be set, however, the club’s infield depth took a hit when Caballero was shipped to the Rays. That leaves the Mariners with just Josh Rojas, Luis Urias, and Dylan Moore to handle second and third base with J.P. Crawford entrenched at shortstop and Ty France penciled in as the club’s everyday first baseman.

Despite Dipoto’s vote of confidence in the roster as currently constructed, he left the door open to the Mariners making additional moves as the offseason continues. “…I don’t think we’re done,” Dipoto said (as relayed by Divish), “We still have the desire to find ways to get better. And we certainly have the flexibility from a roster standpoint to go do that.” While it’s unclear how much room the Mariners have remaining in their budget this winter, Dipoto’s comments certainly make it feasible that the club could look to shore up their infield depth before the offseason comes to a close. Gio Urshela, Whit Merrifield, and Amed Rosario are among the mid-level free agent infielders still available on the market.

More from around the American League…

The White Sox are continuing to shuffle their front office after hiring Chris Getz as GM on the heels of the club’s midseason firing of Rick Hahn and Kenny Williams last year. According to USA Today’s Bob Nightengale, the club is hiring longtime Royals executive Jin Wong as an assistant GM. Wong will handle many of the duties previously assigned to assistant GM Jeremy Haber going forward, as Nightengale adds that Haber is expected to depart the club’s front office before Spring Training begins next month. Wong spent 24 years as a member of the Royals organization after first joining the organization in the scouting department back in 2000. Over his time in Kansas City, Wong filled a variety of roles before eventually rising to the title of VP of baseball administration and assistant GM.
Nightengale also reports that free agent right-hander Marcus Stroman has approached the Yankees to express “serious interest” in signing with the club, though he adds that the club has not reciprocated that interest with a contract offer at this point. Stroman, whose free agency MLBTR profiled last week, pitched solidly with the Cubs last year en route to a 3.95 ERA and 3.58 FIP in 136 2/3 innings of work. While the Yankees are in the market for pitching, recent reporting has suggested that the club is focused on top-of-the-market southpaws Blake Snell and Jordan Montgomery in free agency, both of whom are generally considered to be a tier above Stroman who stands as one of the stronger mid-market options remaining in free agency.

AL Notes: Angels, Tigers, Yankees

By Nick Deeds | January 6, 2024 at 8:02pm CDT

According to Robert Murray of FanSided, the Angels had interest in center fielders Kevin Kiermaier and Harrison Bader before they signed with the Blue Jays and Mets, respectively. The news isn’t necessarily a surprise given the club’s reported interest in bolstering the club’s outfield mix with the likes of Michael A. Taylor and Adam Duvall. Taylor, in particular, fills a similar role to Bader and Kiermaier as a glove-first outfield option who offers a plus glove in center field and roughly league average offense.

That being said, both Bader and Kiermaier are elite defensive center fielders who have received at least semi-regular playing time throughout their careers. Given their status as regulars best suited for center field, the Angels’ interest in the duo is noteworthy even in spite of the fact that both players have already signed elsewhere, as it could indicate a willingness to move franchise face and future Hall of Famer Mike Trout out of center field. Trout, 32, has logged nearly 93% of his 12207 1/3 career innings on the outfield grass in center, and his glovework has continued to rate well even as he enters his 30s with +3 Outs Above Average in 82 games last year.

Despite his solid defense and lengthy track record at the position, rumors of the Angels moving Trout out of center field have been floated somewhat regularly in recent years, dating back to 2022 when former Angels skipper Joe Maddon told reporters that the club was considering playing Brandon Marsh as the club’s regular center fielder. Moving Trout to a corner or even DH isn’t without logic; after all, he’s seen his star fade somewhat in recent years due to a rash of injuries that left him to play just 237 games in the last three season, or less than half of the Angels’ contests in that time. While Trout appears as capable of handling the position as ever when on the field, it’s possible moving down the defensive spectrum could allow him to stay healthier and remain on the field for the Halos going forward.

More from around the American League…

Longtime Tigers slugger J.D. Martinez is currently a free agent after a rebound season with the Dodgers where he crushed 33 home runs in just 113 games. Earlier in his career, Martinez spent three and a half seasons in Detroit and found great success with the club as he slashed .300/.361/.551 with 99 homers in 458 games during his tenure with the Tigers. With Detroit on the rise after finishing second in the AL Central last year, adding a power bat like Martinez to the club’s lineup could make some sense, and MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand indicates that the club is “believed to have some interest” in a reunion with the veteran slugger. With that said, Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press pumped the breaks on a rumored connection between Martinez and the Tigers today, saying the club has not expressed interest in the veteran’s services this offseason with Kerry Carpenter penciled in as the club’s everyday DH.
The Yankees have hired Pat Roessler as their newest assistant hitting coach, according to a report from Randy Miller of NJ Advance Media. Roessler has previously served as hitting coach for both the Expos and the Mets, and his stay in Queens coincided with the club’s NL pennant-winning season back in 2015. Roessler’s most recent role was as assistant hitting coach for the Nationals, though the sides parted ways earlier this offseason as the Nats overhauled their coaching staff. Earlier this offseason, the Yankees added James Rowson as their hitting coach and tapped Brad Ausmus to replace new Mets manager Carlos Mendoza as the club’s bench coach.

Pirates Notes: Cherington, Payroll, Cruz, Keller

By Mark Polishuk | January 6, 2024 at 1:35pm CDT

Several Pirates players and executives are in attendance at the team’s PiratesFest fan event in Pittsburgh this weekend, which acts as something of a midway point in the Bucs’ offseason. As such, GM Ben Cherington, team president Travis Williams, and manager Derek Shelton took part in a Q&A with fans today, and the group shared some tidbits on further winter plans with fans and media (including Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette).

Cherington made it clear that the Pirates’ offseason work is far from over, stating “We’re engaged on a number of fronts, and certainly my hope is that there’s going to be more happening between now and Spring Training.” Though Cherington naturally didn’t cite any specific players of interest, recent reports have linked the Pirates to such players as Carlos Santana, Michael A. Taylor, Adam Frazier, and a likely far more expensive target in Yariel Rodriguez.

With Martin Perez and Marco Gonzales already added to the rotation mix, Rodriguez would be the biggest boost yet to a starting staff that still has plenty of question marks, considering that Perez lost his spot in the Rangers rotation last year and Gonzales struggled through 50 innings in a injury-shortened season. Cherington made it clear that the Bucs are still looking for more pitching help, and that the team had offered some multi-year contracts to free agent arms.

This represents a bit more aggressiveness than usual for the Pirates, who haven’t signed any free agents to multi-year deals since 2016 — almost three full years before Cherington even took over the front office to oversee a major rebuild. Pittsburgh’s 76-86 record in 2023 represented the club’s highest win total since 2018, and between some burgeoning younger talent and the unsettled nature of the NL Central, there is some hope within the organization that it can fully turn the corner in 2024.

“Our goal was to play playoff games in October,” Shelton said bluntly. “Whether that’s winning the Central, which is definitely the goal, or being a playoff caliber team, that’s something we’re striving for. And I will be very clear in our first message in Bradenton [at Spring Training] in about a month that we should be thinking about that every day.”

Roster Resource currently projects the Buccos to have a $70.37MM payroll in 2024, slightly less than their approximate $73.28MM Opening Day payroll from last season. Since Cherington is on record as saying that the Pirates will increase their payroll, it remains to be seen exactly how much the team is willing or able to spend for further upgrades. It does appear that the Pirates should exceed their 2023 figure in some way, especially since some clear roster holes needs to be addressed if Pittsburgh is to achieve its goal of being postseason contenders.

With broadcasting revenue such a major topic of conversation this offseason, the Pirates’ recent deal for a co-ownership stake in the SportsNet Pittsburgh network won’t be impacting the team’s ability to spend, Williams reiterated. “We’re not changing our plan, not changing our payroll. We’re committed to our plan, and we’re going to stick to it,” the team president said.

That said, Williams also seemed to stay away from any specifics about spending in general, and noted that “I’d say that payroll, while important, is not the most important factor in terms of how we get to building a championship-caliber team for our fans.” Williams claimed that the Pirates are one of baseball’s top five teams in terms of developmental spending, which Mackey notes is a difficult claim to verify or gauge with any accuracy, though it could be true given Cherington’s overhaul of the minor league pipeline.

“We’re putting all of our revenues back into the ball club,” Williams said. “We’re trying to get better every day and investing in areas where we’re gonna get better every day….We’re doing all the right things to win for Pittsburgh. We also want to make this work within the economics of baseball.”

A full and healthy season from Oneil Cruz would go a long way towards making the Pirates better in 2024, after the star prospect missed almost the entire season due to ankle surgery. Cruz told reporters (including Justin Guerriero of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review) that he is now fully recovered following a summer setback in his rehab process. “Everything’s like it’s supposed to be….Now that I feel 100% again, just go out there like I do every year and give my 100% out there and be ready from Day 1,” Cruz said.

There had been some consideration given to Cruz participating in the Dominican Winter League in order to help him ramp up his readiness heading into Spring Training, but the Pirates have instead been limiting him to instructional league games in the Dominican Republic. Given how the Bucs already lost Endy Rodriguez to a torn UCL while playing DWL ball last month, it isn’t surprising that the team is being extra cautious with Cruz.

In other Pirates news, the team has yet to start any extension negotiations with Mitch Keller, as the right-hander himself told Mackey. This doesn’t mean that talks won’t eventually happen, and Keller feels a meeting “would probably be around Spring Training again like it was last year.”

Those earlier talks obviously didn’t lead anywhere, nor did some follow-up negotiations that reportedly took place during the season. In the interim, Keller delivered an All-Star season that saw him post a 4.21 ERA over 194 1/3 innings, though he was much more effective in the first half of the season. With this in mind, Keller is planning to make some adjustments to his preparation for next year, noting “maybe you need to change a little bit with recovery or mid-week lifts, bullpens and cut some out here and there, just so I’m feeling good toward the end or middle of the season. Just learning from how to handle a load like that.”

Keller is projected to earn a $6MM salary in 2024, his second year of arbitration eligibility. Since he is slated for free agency after the 2025 season, there is still a considerable amount of time left for the two sides to potentially reach an agreement on a long-term deal. Ke’Bryan Hayes and Bryan Reynolds both finalized extensions with Pittsburgh in each of the last two Aprils, and locking up Keller would represent yet another core piece being added to what the Pirates hope is the nucleus of their next winning team.

NL Notes: Miley, Reds, Mets, Marte, Brewers, Junk

By Mark Polishuk | January 1, 2024 at 5:18pm CDT

The Reds’ search for starting pitching help has resulted in deals with Frankie Montas and Nick Martinez, while the team has been linked to several other pitchers who either remain available (in trades or in free agency) or have since landed elsewhere. MLB.com’s Mark Sheldon reports that one of those now-signed pitching targets included Wade Miley, as Cincinnati had some talks with the veteran left-hander before Miley re-signed with the Brewers.

There’s plenty of familiarity between the two sides, as Miley pitched for the Reds in 2020-21 and posted a 3.55 ERA over 177 1/3 innings. The Reds held a $10MM club option on his services for 2022, yet as part of a payroll cutback, Cincinnati put Miley on waivers (where he was quickly claimed by the Cubs) in order to part ways without even paying the $1MM buyout on that option. Miley has since posted a 3.15 ERA in 157 1/3 innings with Chicago and Milwaukee since the start of the 2022 campaign, though injuries again limited his availability.

Miley received $8.5MM in guaranteed money in his one-year deal with the Brewers, and the Reds went beyond that price range in their one-year, $16MM deal with Montas. With $106.2MM spent so far this winter, Cincinnati has been one of the offseason’s busier teams in free agency, and it seems possible the Reds might not be done with their efforts to bolster the pitching staff.

Central Notes: Frazier, Pirates, Twins, Tigers, Miller

By Nick Deeds | December 26, 2023 at 2:04pm CDT

The Pirates are coming off a season that saw the club take some steps forward as young players like Jack Suwinski and Johan Oviedo took steps forward while prospects like Henry Davis and Endy Rodriguez rose to the majors for the first time. Unfortunately, those young players didn’t help Pittsburgh much in the standings as the club finished fourth in the NL Central with a 76-86 record, 16 games back of the division-leading Brewers while key pieces like Oviedo and Rodriguez are expected to miss the 2024 season.

Those obstacles aren’t stopping the Pirates from participating in the shallower end of free agency, however. The club has already inked Rowdy Tellez and brought back Andrew McCutchen to help fill out the lineup, and Kevin Gorman of TribLive relays comments from GM Ben Cherington indicating the club hopes to add at least one more position player to the mix. One player Gorman notes the club has been connected to in the rumor mill is second baseman Adam Frazier, who spent parts of six seasons in Pittsburgh following the club drafting him in the sixth-round of the 2013 draft and promoting him to the majors in 2016.

Since the Pirates traded Frazier to the Padres partway through the 2021 season, Frazier struggled with both San Diego and Seattle before catching on with the Orioles on a one-year deal last offseason. Though Frazier saw his playing time reduced somewhat by the presence of young, up-and-coming players like Jordan Westburg vying for playing time at the keystone, he still got semi-regular playing time in Baltimore. In 455 trips to the plate with the Orioles last season, Frazier slashed .240/.300/.396 with a wRC+ of 93, a considerable upgrade over the 80 wRC+ he posted in Seattle the previous year. While approximately league average offense and rough defense (-15 OAA, -1 DRS) at second base isn’t exactly an impact signing, the addition of Frazier to the Pirates lineup could offer the club a stable, veteran solution at the keystone while not blocking the likes of Nick Gonzalez from taking a step forward and seizing everyday playing time in the majors.

More from around the league’s Central divisions…

The Twins have faced plenty of uncertainty regarding the future of their TV broadcasting situation this offseason, prompting the club to cut payroll even after the club won its first playoff game since 2004. Some clarity of the specifics of Minnesota’s situation could be on the horizon as we head into the new year, according to Phil Miller of the Star Tribune. Miller reports that the Twins have been in the midst of negotiations with Bally Sports North to televise the club’s games in 2024. Though the previous deal between the sides concluded after the 2023 campaign, Miller indicates that BSN has “strong and sincere interest” in a one-year arrangement with the Twins. If the Twins aren’t able to come together with BSN on a deal for 2024, Miller suggests that the club’s games would likely be distributed by MLB as the league did with the Padres and Diamondbacks in 2023.
Tigers president of baseball operations Scott Harris spoke effusively about newly-signed right-hander Shelby Miller after he landed in Detroit on a one-year pact last week. According to Chris McCosky of The Detroit News, Harris was particularly impressed by Miller’s performance with the Dodgers after coming off the injured list last summer. Miller’s final eleven appearances with the club saw him post 12 scoreless innings as he scattered seven hits and one walk while striking out 25.6% of batters faced. Per McCosky, Harris went on to suggest that Miller’s role has yet to be determined. The righty could compete for a spot at “the very back” of the Tigers’ bullpen alongside the likes of Alex Lange and Andrew Chafin or could be used in a multi-inning role. Miller recorded more than three outs in eleven of his thirty-six appearances with the Dodgers last year.

West Notes: Buehler, Kershaw, Rangers, Astros, Giants, Yamamoto

By Nick Deeds | December 23, 2023 at 8:33pm CDT

The Dodgers have long seemed likely to lean on the services of right-hander Walker Buehler next season as he returns from rehabbing Tommy John surgery, which will have kept him away from the major league mound for nearly two years by the time Opening Day 2024 rolls around. While the club has recently bolstered its rotation with the additions of Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Tyler Glasnow, the club’s starting corps still offers little certainty beyond that duo, Buehler, and sophomore right-hander Bobby Miller even as youngsters like Emmet Sheehan and Gavin Stone show promise.

According to Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register, the club may be more careful with Buehler’s return to action than initially expected. While the right-hander is expected to be at full strength for Spring Training, Plunkett indicates that the club intends to limit Buehler’s innings in 2024, though he relays comments from GM Brandon Gomes that indicate the club is likely to be “flexible” regarding the specific innings total Buehler is allowed to reach and his schedule for the 2024 campaign as a whole. Plunkett goes on to suggest that one possibility would be delaying the start of Buehler’s 2024 season in order to ensure he’ll be available to the Dodgers come October.

If the Dodgers do intend to have Buehler sit out the start of the season, it would further incentivize the club to add additional depth to its rotation even after landing both Yamamoto and Glasnow. Even if the club ends up reuniting with longtime ace Clayton Kershaw, the veteran lefty isn’t expected to return to the mound until sometime next summer after undergoing offseason shoulder surgery. Adding an additional starting pitching option who figures to be ready to go on Opening Day along with Yamamoto, Glasnow, and Miller would allow the club to have the likes of Sheehan, Stone, and Ryan Yarbrough battle for the fifth starting job entering the season rather than using them to cover multiple rotation spots.

More from around MLB’s West divisions…

While he has re-upped with the Dodgers on one-year pacts each of the past two offseasons, it doesn’t appear that Kershaw’s return to L.A. is necessarily guaranteed, as Kershaw’s hometown Rangers have been frequently connected to the veteran lefty this offseason on the heels of their first World Series championship in franchise history. While the club already has Jacob deGrom, Max Scherzer, and Tyler Mahle all targeting midseason returns from surgeries of their own, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reports that Scherzer’s recent surgery hasn’t deterred the Rangers from their pursuit of the 3-time Cy Young Award winner. While Kershaw has struggled to stay healthy in recent years, he’s been as valuable as ever when he manages to take the mound with a 2.67 ERA and 3.23 FIP in 78 starts since the start of the 2020 season.
Astros center field prospect Jacob Melton was a hot commodity on the trade market at the trade deadline this year, as noted by Chandler Rome of The Athletic. Rome relays comments from Houston GM Dana Brown who told a podcast run by the Astros that Melton was “the one guy [he] was afraid to give away” but that he was asked after in “almost every” trade conversation last summer. Rome goes on to note some officials in the organization internally valued him more highly than top prospect Drew Gilbert, who was part of the package the club dealt to New York to re-acquire Justin Verlander. Melton, 23, was the club’s second-round pick in the 2022 draft and slashed .245/.334/.467 across 99 games split between the High-A and Double-A levels last year.
While the Giants ultimately fell short in their pursuit of Yamamoto, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports that the club was “in the mix right until the very end” and that Yamamoto was impressed enough with San Francisco’s pitch that the club would have been the “West Coast finalist” for his services had the Dodgers not entered the fray after signing Shohei Ohtani. A source indicated to Slusser that Ohtani’s presence on the Dodgers played a role in Yamamoto’s decision to ultimately sign with the club for a record-breaking $325MM guaranteed over twelve years.

Chicago Notes: Lee, Candelario, Pepiot

By Nick Deeds | December 17, 2023 at 2:45pm CDT

After losing Jeimer Candelario, Cody Bellinger, and Marcus Stroman to free agency last month, the Cubs figure to look for additional help at the corner infield spots and in the rotation while also continuing a search for a left-handed bat that saw them connected to both Juan Soto and Shohei Ohtani before the superstars landed with the Yankees and Dodgers, respectively. According to Patrick Mooney of The Athletic, that search for a left-handed bat took them to a somewhat unusual place, as Mooney indicates that Chicago pursued star KBO outfielder Jung Hoo Lee prior to him landing in San Francisco on a six-year, $113MM deal last week.

It’s something of a peculiar fit, as the Cubs have Ian Happ and Seiya Suzuki locked into the corner outfield spots with top prospect Pete Crow-Armstrong and his 80-grade glove in center field expected to break into the majors as a regular sometime next season. While that hasn’t stopped president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer and his front office from pursuing Soto and a reunion with Bellinger, it’s worth noting that Bellinger has plenty of experience at first base and that Soto is a fringe defender in the outfield who may be best suited for a DH role. Lee, by contrast, has spent his entire professional career in the outfield and is viewed as a plus defender on the grass with a chance to stick in center.

Despite the uncertain fit, Mooney suggests that the 25-year-old’s youth, left-handed bat, and ability to play center were all attractive factors in the eyes of the Cubs. Speculatively speaking, the club may have seen Lee as a piece who could slot into center field on Opening Day to allow Crow-Armstrong more time to develop in the minors. Upon Crow-Armstrong’s promotion, the club could have utilized the DH slot, where they have no regular starting option, to rest Suzuki, Happ, and Lee by divvying up time in the outfield corners between the three of them while also allowing them to all play on an everyday basis.

More rumblings out of Chicago…

Sticking with the Cubs, Mooney suggests that the club “didn’t express interest” in retaining Candelario after he hit the open market last month. Candelario came up as a member of the Cubs but was shipped to the Tigers at the 2017 trade deadline alongside infielder Isaac Paredes in exchange for catcher Alex Avila and left-hander Justin Wilson. Candelario made his way back to Chicago this past summer when the Cubs landed him in exchange for infield prospect Kevin Made and lefty relief prospect D.J. Herz. Candelario’s second stint with the Cubs was shortened by a two-week stint on the injured list in September due to a back issue. Though Candelario was a strong fit for the Cubs’ offseason needs as a switch-hitting infielder who can contribute at both infield corners as well as DH, it’s possible the club was turned off from pursuing him by the relatively modest .234/.318/.445 slash line he put up in 157 trips to the plate with Chicago this season. Candelario wound up signing with the Reds on a three-year, $45MM deal earlier this month.
Looking toward the south side, USA Today’s Bob Nightengale reports that the White Sox were interested in right-hander Ryan Pepiot as part of a possible return package while discussing a Dylan Cease trade with the Dodgers earlier this winter. Pepiot ultimately was shipped to the Rays alongside outfielder Jonny DeLuca in exchange for oft-injured ace Tyler Glasnow and outfielder Manuel Margot. It’s unclear if the Dodgers and White Sox are still engaged in discussions regarding Cease following the Glasnow deal, though the Dodgers are certainly in need of multiple starting pitchers this offseason and would surely benefit from the addition of Cease, who sports a 3.54 ERA and 3.40 FIP over the past three seasons, to their rotation mix.

« Previous Page

Load More Posts

Show all

Headlines

Notes

Navigation

MLBTR INFO

Connect