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Rangers Sign Adrian Sampson To Minor League Deal

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The Rangers announced that they have signed right-hander Adrian Sampson to a minor league deal with an invitation to major league Spring Training camp. The righty is a client of Apex Baseball.

It’s something of a homecoming for Sampson, now 32, as he was with the Rangers for three years. Claimed off waivers from the Mariners in November of 2016, he was with the org through the 2019 campaign. By that point, he had thrown 153 major league innings, allowing 5.71 earned runs per nine. He only struck out 17.3% of batters faced but limited walks to a 6% clip.

He went overseas prior to the 2020 season, signing with the Lotte Giants of the Korea Baseball Organization. He posted a 5.40 ERA in his one season in Korea before coming back to sign a minor league deal with the Cubs. He bounced on and off the Cubs’ roster throughout 2021 and 2022, posting solid results but with the numbers under the hood being a bit less impressive. He logged 139 2/3 innings over those two years with a 3.03 ERA, 17.6% strikeout rate and 6.1% walk rate. His .275 batting average on balls in play and 80% strand rate were both on the lucky side, which is why his 4.28 FIP and 4.44 SIERA were much higher than his ERA.

The Cubs retained him via arbitration for 2023, agreeing to a $1.9MM salary. He battled for a rotation job in camp but was ultimately optioned to the minors. While on optional assignment, he required debridement surgery on his right knee and wasn’t able to pitch much. He was outrighted off the roster in late July and flipped to the Rays a few days later. The Rays released him after about a week, indicating he was only really in the deal for financial reasons. The Cubs saved a bit of money while the Rays got some extra international bonus pool space and minor leaguer Manuel Rodríguez.

Due to his knee issue and getting released in August, he only tossed 28 minor league innings on the year with a 9.07 ERA. With the Rangers, he’ll be looking to bounce back for a club with some notable pitching depth concerns, particularly earlier in the year. Each of Jacob deGrom, Max Scherzer and Tyler Mahle are going to start the season on the injured list due to their respective surgeries. That will leave the rotation as Nathan Eovaldi, Jon Gray, Andrew Heaney, Dane Dunning and Cody Bradford to start the year, with some of those pitchers having notable injury histories of their own.

The bullpen was already the weakest part of the roster last year and then they lost Aroldis Chapman, Will Smith and Chris Stratton to free agency. They subsequently signed David Robertson and Kirby Yates but Yates is the youngest of the two even though he turns 37 next month.

All told, there could be a need for the defending champions to lean on their non-roster depth this year. Sampson has worked both as a starter and reliever, giving the club depth in both areas. He will jump into a group of experienced guys on minor league deals that includes José Ureña, Shane Greene, Diego Castillo, Austin Pruitt, Chasen Shreve, Danny Duffy and many others. If Sampson is added to the roster at any point, he still has a couple of options remaining.

Yankees Claim Jordan Groshans, Designate Matt Krook

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The Yankees announced this afternoon that they’ve claimed infielder Jordan Groshans off waivers from the Marlins. New York designated lefty reliever Matt Krook for assignment to open a spot on the 40-man roster.

Miami designated Groshans for assignment last Tuesday as the corresponding transaction when they traded for fellow infielder Jonah Bride. Groshans heads back to the AL East, the division in which he began his career. A highly-regarded talent in high school, he was drafted 12th overall in 2018 by the Blue Jays. His stock had dipped by the 2022 trade deadline, when Toronto flipped him to the Fish for relievers Anthony Bass and Zach Pop.

Groshans got to the big leagues not long after that trade. He appeared in 17 MLB contests, hitting .262/.308/.311 with one home run through his first 65 plate appearances. Miami optioned him back to Triple-A to open the 2023 campaign. Groshans spent the whole year there, thanks in large part to a mediocre offensive season.

The right-handed hitter put up a .243/.339/.330 slash line over 528 trips to the plate. He showed strong awareness of the strike zone, walking at a 12.5% clip while striking out only 17.4% of the time. Groshans provided very little impact when he made contact, though, hitting just six home runs, 20 doubles and a triple. He split his defensive work between the two corner infield spots, playing mostly third base. Groshans had experience in the middle infield early in his career but was always viewed by most prospect evaluators as a better fit at the hot corner.

Last year was Groshans’ first minor league option season. New York can still send him to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre for the next two years if they keep him on the 40-man roster. He slots in at the back of an infield depth chart that also features Oswald Peraza, Oswaldo Cabrera and Jorbit Vivas behind the starting group of Anthony Rizzo, Gleyber Torres, DJ LeMahieu and Anthony Volpe.

Taking a flier on Groshans could come at the expense of Krook, a 29-year-old who made his major league debut last season. The Oregon product pitched in four MLB games, walking six batters and allowing 11 runs in four innings. While that’s obviously a dismal small-sample showing, Krook turned in a 1.32 ERA through 34 frames in Scranton. He punched out 39% of batters faced in Triple-A.

The 6’4″ southpaw clearly has swing-and-miss potential, yet he has never thrown strikes at a tenable rate. Krook walked over 18% of opposing hitters with the RailRiders last season. He’d issued free passes at a 12.1% rate there the year before that, leading New York to move him to the bullpen by 2023. That didn’t result in the necessary step forward in his command, but it’s possible another team takes a flier given the gaudy minor league whiff rates. The Yankees have a week to trade Krook or attempt to run him through waivers.

Reds Claim Bubba Thompson, Designate Levi Stoudt

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The Reds announced to reporters, including Mark Sheldon of MLB.com, that they have claimed outfielder Bubba Thompson off waivers. He had been designated for assignment by the Twins last week. In order to open up a spot for Thompson, the Reds designated right-hander Levi Stoudt for assignment.

Thompson, 26 in June, has been on the roster carousel for the past six months. Designated for assignment by the Rangers in August, he has since gone to the Royals, Reds, Yankees, Twins and now the Reds again on waiver claims. The high level of interest is a reflection of his elite speed and strong defensive abilities, while his tenuous hold on a roster spot is a result of his poor work at the plate.

He received 241 plate appearances with the Rangers over the past two seasons, walking in just 4.6% of them while striking out at a 29.9% clip. His .242/.286/.305 batting line translates to a wRC+ of just 65, indicating he’s been 35% worse than the league average hitter. He’s been better in the minors but still subpar. In 740 trips to the plate at Triple-A since the start of 2022, he has a 7.4% walk rate, 24.1% strikeout rate and .283/.346/.442 batting line for a wRC+ of 96.

But he’s one of the fastest runners in the game, with Statcast considering him to have 100th percentile sprint speed. He has 22 steals in 27 attempts at the major league level and dozens more in the minors. That speed has helped him earn strong defensive grades during his time in the big leagues.

He still has two option years and is clearly attractive to clubs around the league, either as a depth piece getting regular at-bats in the minors or a speed-and-defense guy off the bench. The Reds like him enough that this is the second time they have claimed him of late. He could wind up off the roster again in short order, but if he sticks, he’ll be fighting for a spot on their depth chart. They will have TJ Friedl, Will Benson, Jake Fraley and Stuart Fairchild in their outfield mix, while their crowded infield could push guys like Spencer Steer and Jonathan India to the grass.

Stoudt, now 26, came to the Reds as one of the players in the 2022 Luis Castillo trade. He was a prospect of note in the M’s system but his results have not carried up to the higher levels of the minors or to the majors. He got a brief MLB debut last year, throwing 10 1/3 innings with 11 earned runs allowed. His 82 1/3 Triple-A innings resulted in a 6.23 ERA, 15.1% strikeout rate and 13% walk rate.

It was obviously a challenging year for him and he’s now been squeezed of the Reds’ roster. They will have a week to find a trade for him or pass him through waivers. He still has a couple of options and there are lots of club in need of pitching, which could perhaps help him find a new club in the coming days.

Red Sox Pursuing Outfield Additions

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As players begin arriving to spring training, the Red Sox are still looking to add to their roster. Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com reports that the Sox have been in active pursuit of outfield options recently, suggesting a right-handed bat is the preferable addition. (Notably, he adds that Boston was not “meaningfully” involved in Jorge Soler’s market in the late stages of his free agency before he agreed to a three-year deal with the Giants.)

A right-handed outfield bat is a generally sensible addition for the Sox, whose current outfield alignment features three lefty bats (Jarren Duran, Wilyer Abreu, Masataka Yoshida) and one right-handed bat (Tyler O’Neill). Manager Alex Cora said today that Yoshida will see the most time at designated hitter of any of his current outfielders, but he’ll still see some work in the field as well (X link via Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe).

Top prospect Ceddanne Rafaela will get a chance to make the Opening Day roster as well and would add a right-handed bat to the bunch, but it’s also possible he’s ticketed for Triple-A to begin the season. Rafaela made his MLB debut last year but posted a tepid .241/.281/.386 slash with a 31% strikeout rate in 89 plate appearances. He’s still only played 48 games at the Triple-A level, and good as they were (.312/.370/.618 in 219 plate appearances), that’s a relatively small sample. He’ll need to earn a spot with a strong showing in camp. If Rafaela does make the roster, Cora noted that he’ll be the primary center fielder (X link via the Globe’s Alex Speier). “The defensive game is elite,” Cora said of Rafaela. “It’s a game-changer.”

As things stand, the Red Sox have a pair of right-handed outfield options on the bench in Rob Refsnyder and Bobby Dalbec. Refsnyder is a 32-year-old journeyman but does have a solid track record against lefties, including a .308/.428/.400 slash in 145 plate appearances last season. Dalbec, 28, has a minor league option remaining but has long seemed like a change-of-scenery candidate as a former top infield prospect who doesn’t have a clear role with the club. Neither player came up as an outfielder, and neither is considered to be an especially strong defender on the grass.

If the Sox prefer to turn to the free agent market, there are plenty of righty bats still available. Randal Grichuk, Michael A. Taylor, Tommy Pham and Adam Duvall all remain unsigned. Pham (2022) and Duvall (2023) have both played with the Red Sox recently, though they were acquired under now-former chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom’s watch. All four members of that quartet have experience across the outfield, although at this point only Taylor is considered an above-average option in center field (where he rates as one of the game’s premium defenders at the position).

While none of the free agents remaining in this tier of players is a star by any stretch of the word, each is affordable and can fill a clear role on a number of teams. As such, the Sox have competition for signing any of the bunch. The D-backs, for instance, have been tied to Grichuk, Pham and Duvall as they seek a right-handed complement to Joc Pederson at designated hitter. The Twins have been on the lookout for a righty outfield bat for much of the offseason after seeing Taylor become a free agent. Minnesota has reportedly shown interest in Duvall, specifically, but has had interest in Taylor throughout free agency as well. The Phillies could conceivably be in the mix for an outfield bat after an injury to Brandon Marsh. The Padres have considered a reunion with Pham.

Speaking of the Padres, it’s at least worth pointing out that San Diego has reportedly expressed interest in a trade involving Duran, though there’s never been any indication the two parties are close to a deal. But as the Sox look for ways to add to their collection of outfielders, it bears mentioning that the addition of a free agent could at least make the idea of moving Duran a bit more palatable. Boston would presumably prefer MLB-ready pitching in such a swap, however, and that’s an area the Padres themselves are also a bit thin, which complicates the scenario.

The Red Sox currently project for a $177.5MM payroll with about $198MM worth of luxury tax considerations, per Roster Resource. That $177.5MM projection is more than $20MM away from last year’s year-end payroll of about $199MM and miles away from the franchise-record $236MM, set back in 2019. Over the past month, the Red Sox have been specifically connected to Duvall, Pham and first baseman/outfielder Garrett Cooper (who is reportedly nearing a decision in free agency).

White Sox Sign Corey Knebel, Dominic Leone

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The White Sox announced Tuesday that they’ve signed veteran right-handed relievers Corey Knebel and Dominic Leone to minor league contracts. Both will be in big league camp as non-roster invitees.

Knebel, a client of Excel Sports Management, didn’t pitch last season after suffering a capsule tear in his shoulder with the Phillies late in the 2022 campaign. He pitched 42 2/3 innings of 3.43 ERA ball with the Phils that season and saved a dozen games. The 32-year-old been severely limited by injuries in recent years, including Tommy John surgery that wiped out his 2019 season and a lat strain that sent him to the 60-day IL and kept him to just 25 2/3 innings with the Dodgers in 2021.

Lengthy as Knebel’s injury track record is becoming, there’s little questioning his ability when healthy enough to take the mound. A 2017 All-Star who saved 39 games for the Brewers and led the NL with 76 appearances, Knebel has a career 3.26 ERA and 31.8% strikeout rate in 306 2/3 MLB frames. His 11.2% walk rate is too high, but he’s worked around that flaw with plenty of missed bats and weak contact over the years. His 3.17 SIERA and 3.44 FIP both generally align with his strong ERA, and if Knebel is back to full strength he could be a nice low-cost bullpen pickup for a rebuilding ChiSox club.

Leone, also 32, pitched for the Mets, Angels and Mariners in 2023, working to a combined 4.67 ERA with a 23% strikeout rate and 11.9% walk rate in 54 innings. It wasn’t his best work by a long shot, although Leone’s 2.33 HR/9 mark and jarring 21.2% homer-to-flyball rate both seem due for regression toward his career levels (1.06 and 11.8%, respectively).

Looking beyond the shaky bottom-line results, Leone, who’s represented by ACES, maintained his velocity (95.7 mph average fastball) and posted respective swinging-strike and opponents’ chase rates of 16% and 35.3% — both excellent numbers. Prior to the ’23 campaign, he’d enjoyed a nice two-year run with the Giants, working to a 2.71 ERA in 103 frames with similar K/BB numbers and velocity. The spike in home runs last season was Leone’s primary downfall, and while a potential move to the launching pad at Guaranteed Rate Field won’t help in that regard, he’s had success in homer-friendly venues like Toronto in the past. On a no-risk minor league deal, he’s a perfectly sensible addition.

The White Sox traded righty Gregory Santos and lefty Aaron Bummer this offseason, subtracting two of the only locks for their bullpen from the roster in exchange for a plethora of younger players. They also could deploy Garrett Crochet as a starting pitcher, further thinning out the bullpen mix. Knebel and Leone will join fellow veteran Jesse Chavez as the most interesting NRIs in camp this spring. That trio will compete for roster spots in a relief corps where free-agent signees John Brebbia and Tim Hill are currently the only experienced names with any semblance of consistent MLB success.

The Opener: Cooper, Padres, MLBTR Chat

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On the heels of an overnight splash on the free agent market, here are three things for MLBTR readers to keep an eye out for today:

1. Cooper nearing a decision?

One area of the free agent market that remains fairly deep as Spring Training begins is the first base market, where the likes of Joey Votto, Brandon Belt, and Donovan Solano linger as available options. According to Craig Mish of SportsGrid and the Miami Herald, the list of available veteran first baseman in free agency could thin out a bit in the coming days, as he writes that slugger Garrett Cooper “could make a decision soon” with around five teams in the market for the 33-year-old’s services. Cooper struggled somewhat in 2023, slashing a slightly-below-average .251/.304/.419 in 123 games with the Marlins and Padres last year.

Prior to that dip in production last year, however, Cooper had established himself as a reliably above-average hitter at first base who could also moonlight in the outfield corners. From 2019-22, Cooper slashed .274/.350/.444. The righty-swinging slugger sports a notable platoon split for his career, as he’s hit .286/.338/478 (120 wRC+) against lefties and .262/.337/.417 versus righties (107 wRC+). It’s solid production against pitchers of both handedness, but he’s been particularly potent against southpaws. Speculatively speaking, Cooper could be a sensible target for clubs like the Red Sox, Pirates, or Guardians which struggled against left-handed pitching last year and could use another veteran bat in the mix for reps in a corner spot.

2. Preller to hold spring presser:

Padres president of baseball operations AJ Preller is set to be made available to the media at noon CT today, per a team announcement. The Padres have faced a great deal of upheaval this offseason as they watched three-time Reliever of the Year award winner Josh Hader and rotation arms Seth Lugo, Michael Wacha, and Nick Martinez all depart via free agency. Reigning NL Cy Young award winner Blake Snell is likely to follow them out the door, setting the stage for further turnover, but as of now he remains unsigned. To help address the club’s sudden exodus of pitching talent, Preller dealt superstar slugger Juan Soto to the Yankees back in December alongside center fielder Trent Grisham.

That left San Diego to enter camp with just two outfielders on the club’s 40-man roster in Fernando Tatis Jr. and Jose Azocar, though the club did reunite with Jurickson Profar yesterday on a one-year deal to help fill out its outfield mix somewhat. Still, with question marks remaining in the outfield, at DH, and in the rotation, plenty of uncertainty remains for the Padres as Spring Training begins. Preller’s presser this afternoon could begin to shed some light on the club’s plans for those areas headed into the season.

3. MLBTR Chat:

While teams around the league gear up for Spring Training, a handful of the winter’s top free agents remain unsigned and plenty of offseason shopping lists around the league remain unfulfilled. Are you wondering if there’s more in store for your team as camps open in Arizona and Florida? If so, tune in this afternoon when MLBTR’s Steve Adams hosts a live chat with readers at 1pm CT. You can click here to ask a question in advance, and that same link will allow you to join in on the chat once it begins or read the transcript after its completed.

Chris Getz Discusses Kopech, Crochet

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White Sox general manager Chris Getz spoke with reporters this morning. His implication that Dylan Cease was likely to remain on the roster into the season was the most notable development, but Getz also addressed a pair of Cease’s potential rotation mates.

The first-year GM said he still views Michael Kopech as a starting pitcher (link via James Fegan of Sox Machine). Chicago moved the hard-throwing righty to the bullpen at the tail end of a dismal 2023 campaign. Kopech posted a 5.16 ERA while walking more than 15% of opposing hitters in 26 starts through the first week of September. Manager Pedro Grifol deployed him in short stints — three relief appearances and a deliberately brief start as an opener — to close the year. Kopech was tagged for seven runs in 3 2/3 frames before undergoing a season-ending knee procedure.

That was a minor cyst removal surgery that isn’t expected to affect Kopech’s preparation for the season. The bigger question is whether he’ll be able to rebound from a performance perspective. Kopech showed some promise over 25 starts two seasons ago. He turned in a 3.54 ERA, albeit with a middling 21.3% strikeout rate and 11.5% walk percentage, in 2022. That was Kopech’s first full season working from the rotation. The hope was that he’d take a step forward with greater experience in the role. It did not happen last year.

Kopech built up to starting after working in relief in the early portion of his MLB career. Injuries, most notably a Tommy John procedure, wiped out his 2019-20 campaigns. The Sox used him out of the bullpen in ’21 to keep his workload in check. He was quite good in that capacity, turning in a 3.50 ERA with a massive 36.1% strikeout percentage and a much more manageable 8.4% walk rate over 69 1/3 innings.

That general playbook is one which Garrett Crochet is hoping to follow. The former first-round pick has come out of the bullpen for all 72 of his MLB appearances dating back to 2020. An elbow ligament replacement cost him the ’22 season and the first six weeks last year. Shoulder inflammation sent him back to the injured list a month after he returned and kept him on the shelf into September. The Tennessee product finished the year with 12 2/3 innings over 13 appearances.

Crochet has nevertheless been vocal about his desire to battle for a rotation spot. The Sox certainly aren’t going to expect him to make 30+ starts given his limited reps over the past two seasons. However, Getz left the door open for Crochet to compete for an Opening Day rotation job.

“It was very clear he was excited to get a look as a starter and when you’ve got a player that has that type of conviction, I think you’re doing the player a disservice to ignore that,” the GM told reporters. “He needs to be built up further. He hasn’t had too many starter innings under his belt. That’s even going back to college. But he’s a special arm. He’s shown three pitches in the past, so he’s got the starter kit.” Fegan writes that Getz indicated Crochet could spend some time on optional assignment to Triple-A Charlotte as the southpaw trains for a heavier workload.

Cease leads the staff, while KBO returnee Erick Fedde slots into the middle. Kopech and Crochet join Michael Soroka and Jared Shuster (acquired from Atlanta in the Aaron Bummer trade), free agent pickup Chris Flexen, and incumbent depth starters Jesse Scholtens and Touki Toussaint in competition for rotation work.

Royals To Reveal Plans For Proposed New Park

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The Royals are set to reveal plans for a new stadium in Kansas City’s Crossroads District tomorrow, according to reports from Anne Rogers of MLB.com (on X) and Sam McDowell of the Kansas City Star. The club is holding a press conference at 2:30 pm local time. “Important details about this transformative project will be shared including renderings, economic data, and progress towards lease and community benefits agreement,” the team said (via Rogers).

McDowell writes that the targeted site is in the approximate area of the former Kansas City Star Press Pavilion. The team has not yet revealed its specific financing plan, but they’re seeking some amount of public funding via a 40-year sales tax that’ll be up for a vote in early April. That tax plan would split the money between the Royals for their intended new facility and the NFL’s Chiefs for renovations to its Arrowhead Stadium.

The Royals’ current home, Kauffman Stadium, was opened in 1973. It’s the sixth-oldest park in MLB. Fenway Park and Wrigley Field have been open for more than a century. Dodger Stadium (1962), Angel Stadium (1966) and the Oakland Coliseum (1968) each began playing host to big league clubs in the general vicinity of Kauffman’s opening. The A’s are very likely to depart the Coliseum after the upcoming season. If the Royals secure a new ballpark, that’d put Toronto’s Rogers Centre — which opened in 1989 — among the sport’s five oldest home stadiums.

Last summer, owner John Sherman told reporters that the team was hopeful of having a new park ready for the 2027 or ’28 seasons (link via The Associated Press). Sherman purchased the franchise from the late David Glass in August ’19.

The club has yet to find any on-field success during his ownership tenure, which began amidst a rebuild on the heels of their consecutive pennants and 2015 World Series win. Last season’s 106 losses tied a franchise record. The Royals have had an active offseason as they try to turn things around fairly quickly. They’ve brought in Seth Lugo, Michael Wacha, Hunter Renfroe, Will Smith, Chris Stratton and Adam Frazier in free agency. They saved their biggest move for last week, inking franchise shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. to a team-record guarantee in excess of $288MM to ensure he remains in K.C. through at least 2030.

Mets Notes: Diaz, Third Base, Alonso

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Edwin Díaz threw a bullpen session on the back fields at Mets camp today, opening his Spring Training build-up. The two-time All-Star told reporters he had no obstructions over the winter after missing the entire 2023 campaign.

“It was my normal offseason, I did my normal routine,” Díaz told reporters (including Tim Britton of the Athletic). “I won’t be afraid to jump, to run. … I feel great.” That was the general expectation, as Díaz considered making a push to return at the end of last season before shutting things down with New York well out of contention.

The Mets are hopeful of a better showing than last year’s 75-87 performance. Díaz’s return is one of the reasons for optimism that they can hang around the playoff mix. He was the best reliever in baseball in 2022, when he struck out more than half the hitters he faced en route to a career-low 1.31 ERA across 62 innings.

While the team is hopeful of at least remaining in the Wild Card race, they’ve opted against making another all-in push for 2024. President of baseball operations David Stearns has pointed to the upcoming season as something of a evaluative year which they expect to serve as a stepping stone to a full-fledged run in 2025. That’s perhaps most evident in the team’s approach at third base and designated hitter. They’ve left the door ajar to making a run at a veteran DH while suggesting that the likelier outcome is giving playing time to Brett Baty and Mark Vientos to gauge whether they can serve important roles on the ’25 team.

Stearns left open the possibility for “some level of competition” among the in-house options at the hot corner this afternoon (relayed by Tim Healey of Newsday). Baty enters camp as the heavy favorite for the starting job despite his disappointing season. The former first-round pick and top prospect hit .212/.275/.323 with nine home runs in 389 plate appearances over his first full big league campaign. New York sent Baty to Triple-A for a few weeks in August as his struggles mounted. He raked in that brief minor league stint but again struggled after being recalled in September.

New York hasn’t done much to bring in serious competition for Baty this offseason. Stearns mentioned Vientos, Joey Wendle and Zack Short as others who could pick up playing time at the hot corner. Vientos is regarded as a below-average defender who is better served at first base or DH. He’d see the bulk of the DH reps unless the Mets somewhat surprisingly add a veteran bat like J.D. Martinez or Jorge Soler in the coming weeks. Wendle inked a $2MM free agent deal after hitting .212/.248/.306 in his second season with the Marlins. Short was a November waiver claim out of Detroit.

While Baty’s season could go in a number of directions, the Mets can feel safe about getting excellent production out of the other corner infield spot. Pete Alonso enters his platform year as one of the sport’s preeminent sluggers. Last month, he and the team agreed to a $20.5MM salary to avoid a hearing in his final winter of arbitration eligibility.

Throughout the offseason, the Mets have downplayed the chances of discussing a deal beyond the 2024 campaign. Stearns reiterated that the club didn’t have much expectation of signing Alonso to an extension. He called it “probably the most likely outcome” that the three-time All-Star hit the open market (link via Chuck King of the Associated Press). “Look, when you have a really talented player, who’s really good, who’s entering his final year of club control, who happens to be represented by Scott Boras, these things generally end up into free agency and we understand that,” he added.

The Mets have expressed confidence they could retain Alonso after he hits the open market, following the process of fellow Boras Corporation client Brandon Nimmo. Assuming he posts a typical platform year, Alonso should handily surpass the $162MM guarantee which Nimmo secured and could search for a contract approaching or exceeding $250MM.

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