Rays Agree To Minor League Deal With Dominic Smith
The Rays have signed first baseman Dominic Smith to a minor league contract, FanSided’s Robert Murray reports (X link). Smith’s latest trip in free agency didn’t last long, as he opted out of his previous minors deal with the Cubs just over a week ago.
With both Josh Lowe and Jonathan Aranda on the injured list, the Rays are thin in left-handed hitters, and also thin at first base since Aranda was expected to get some time at the position. The lefty-swinging Austin Shenton was called up to be part of Tampa Bay’s Opening Day roster, though Smith provides a more experienced alternative who might represent Shenton’s ticket back to the minors after just a cup of coffee in the big leagues (Shenton has yet to officially make his MLB debut).
Smith has been non-tendered in each of the last two offseasons, with the first coming when the Mets cut him loose following the 2022 campaign. New York selected Smith 11th overall in the 2013 draft, and seemed to living up to that potential when he hit .299/.366/.571 with 21 homers over 396 plate appearances in 2019-20. Smith’s performance in the abbreviated 2020 season even earned him some down-ballot MVP support, but injuries contributed to a big dip in production over the next two seasons. The Nationals signed Smith to a one-year, $2MM guarantee last winter, though he hit only .254/.326/.366 with 12 home runs in 586 PA for Washington.
After the deal with the Cubs didn’t pan out, signing with Tampa Bay represents yet another fresh start for Smith, who is still just 28 years old. The Rays’ history of successful reclamation projects makes it possible that Smith might yet enjoy a post-hype breakout at this later stage of his career, but for now Smith will be focused just on getting back to the majors and earning regular at-bats.
White Sox Release Lucius Fox, Yoelqui Cespedes
The White Sox parted ways with two notable names, as shortstop Lucius Fox and outfielder Yoelqui Cespedes have each been released within the last few days. Fox’s release was reported on his official MLB.com profile page, while James Fegan of the Sox Machine blog was first to note Cespedes’ release.
Fox inked a minor league deal with Chicago in February but didn’t receive any action during Spring Training, and so the 26-year-old will again hit the open market. Fox was a highly-regarded international prospect who signed for a whopping $6MM bonus from the Giants in 2015, though San Francisco dealt Fox (and Matt Duffy) to the Rays just over a year later in order to acquire Matt Moore at the trade deadline. The shortstop has since bounced around to four other organizations, counting his brief stint with the White Sox.
The Nationals claimed Fox off waivers from the Orioles in the 2021-22 offseason, and Fox’s only career Major League games to date came in the form of 10 games (and two hits in 28 plate appearances) with Washington in 2022. This cup of coffee in the Show at least made Fox the ninth big leaguer in history to hail from the Bahamas. Fox played in the Nats’ farm system in 2023 but didn’t hit much, continuing the theme of his pro career. Over 2476 career PA in the minors, Fox has a .243/.335/.333 slash line and 156 steals out of 202 chances.
Cespedes has something of a similar story, as he signed a $2.05MM deal with the White Sox out of Cuba in January 2021 (the opening of the 2020-21 international signing window was delayed by the pandemic). There was some extra hype attached given how older brother Yoenis was already a former All-Star, but the younger Cespedes hit .230/.319/.350 over 503 combined PA at the Double-A and Triple-A levels in 2023. Though the 26-year-old Cespedes hit pretty well in his previous two pro seasons, it appears that newly-hired Sox farm director Paul Janish is ready to move on following Cespedes’ down year.
Nationals Place Nick Senzel On 10-Day IL, Select Trey Lipscomb
TODAY: The Nationals announced Lipscomb’s selection, and Senzel was officially placed on the 10-day IL with a right thumb fracture.
MARCH 28: The Nationals are planning to select infielder Trey Lipscomb, reports Andrew Golden of The Washington Post. Lipscomb would replace Nick Senzel on the active roster; the third baseman broke his thumb in practice before Washington’s Opening Day game. As for the 40-man roster, Lipscomb can take Stephen Strasburg‘s spot. The ailing veteran was placed on the 60-day IL earlier today, per Mark Zuckerman of MASN.
Drafted in the third round out of the University of Tennessee in 2022, Lipscomb made his way up to Double-A last season. He hit .284/.310/.438 with a 102 wRC+ in 80 games for the Harrisburg Senators. While he is primarily a third baseman, he has spent time at all four infield positions. He even began to practice as an outfielder this spring, per Golden.
In addition to flexing his defensive versatility, Lipscomb made a strong impression at the plate in big league camp, going 20-for-50 with five walks and only seven strikeouts. However, this spring, manager Davey Martinez told Zuckerman that Lipscomb would only make the roster out of camp if he was going to get regular playing time. Indeed, a few days later, the 23-year-old was reassigned to minor league camp.
However, it seems Lipscomb won’t have to wait long to make his MLB debut after all. Senzel was set to be Washington’s primary third baseman, and presumably, Lipscomb is being called up to fill that hole. The Nationals already have rookie Nasim Nuñez and veteran Ildemaro Vargas on the bench, but neither will stand in Lipscomb’s way if Martinez wants him playing every day. In fact, Zuckerman notes that Lipscomb is expected to be the starting third baseman for the Nationals on Saturday as they take on the Reds for game two of their season.
NL West Notes: D’Backs, Montgomery, Buehler, Monfort
The Diamondbacks officially introduced Jordan Montgomery at a press conference yesterday, with Montgomery, agent Scott Boras, and several team officials answering questions from the Arizona Republic’s Nick Piecoro, Alex Weiner of Arizona Sports, and other media. D’Backs managing general partner Ken Kendrick said that the club initially checked in on Montgomery early in the offseason but weren’t eager to meet the asking price at the time. As Montgomery’s stay in free agency ended up stretching almost to the very end of Spring Training, GM Mike Hazen and assistant GM Amiel Sawdaye started to explore the idea of re-engaging with the southpaw, and negotiations both started and ended within just a few days’ time.
The two sides agreed to a one-year, $25MM contract with a $20MM vesting player option and opt-out clause covering the 2025 season. Boras said Montgomery had some longer-term offers but “Jordan’s edict to me was, ‘I want to play for a competitive team. I want to make sure that I’m there and if I have to take something short-term to play for a competitive team, I will.’….It resulted in I think a deal that served our purposes in the short term and certainly served Jordan’s competitiveness needs and put an evaluation on I think his performance for this year and potentially next year that was appropriate for what he’s done.”
From Arizona’s perspective, adding Montgomery boosts payroll to a team-record $168MM for 2024, yet Kendrick and team president/CEO Derrick Hall are comfortable with the extra spending in order to keep the team in championship contention. While Hall hinted that the D’Backs might need another lengthy postseason trip to sustain a higher payroll into 2025, Arizona’s run to the World Series last year already provided enough of an extra revenue boost (both in ticket sales during the playoffs and more tickets already sold for this season) to justify more of all-in push in 2024.
Some other items from the NL West…
- Walker Buehler will throw four or five innings in a Triple-A rehab start on Sunday, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts told reporters (including Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register and Jack Harris of the Los Angeles Times). Sunday’s outing will be the first of four rehab starts for Buehler, as per the team’s current plans, though things remain fluid as the Dodgers want to be as careful as possible in managing Buehler’s return after undergoing Tommy John surgery in August 2022. Buehler is already well beyond the normal 13-15 rehab window, though obviously not every recovery process is the same for every pitcher, plus this was also the second TJ procedure of Buehler’s career. If all goes well at Triple-A, Buehler should be on track to be part of the L.A. rotation before April is over.
- “I do feel like we are on the right track,” Rockies owner Dick Monfort told the Denver Post’s Troy Renck, with Monfort citing his team’s up-and-coming core of young talent and his ongoing trust in GM Bill Schmidt and manager Bud Black. Colorado has had only five winning seasons since the Monfort family bought the team in late 2005, and things seemed to bottom out last year when the Rox lost a club-record 103 games. Still, Monfort believes in the “organic” strategy of relying on homegrown prospects and only mid-range payrolls, as Monfort is critical of the revenue disparities among Major League franchises. Denver fans have themselves long been critical of Monfort’s approach due to the lack of on-field success, and Monfort has frequently come under fire for his perpetually over-optimistic view of his team’s fortunes and the Rockies’ reliance on long-time employees. While Monfort admitted that he worries about being too loyal at times, he noted that when looking to replace former GM Jeff Bridich, he wasn’t impressed by external candidates’ plans to fix the team. “They would tell me how to win at altitude and everything they mentioned, it would not have worked, or it’s all things we have tried. I think in any business you have to have people you can trust, and I trust [Schmidt and Black],” Monfort said.
Braves Place Sean Murphy On Injured List Due To Oblique Injury
TODAY: The Braves officially announced Murphy’s placement on the 10-day IL, due to a strained left oblique. Tromp’s contract was officially selected to the big league roster.
MARCH 29: Braves catcher Sean Murphy departed today’s game with an oblique issue and the club informed reporters after the game that the backstop will go on the injured list. Mark Bowman of MLB.com was among those to relay the news. David O’Brien of The Athletic relays that Chadwick Tromp will be called up. Tromp is not currently on the 40-man and will need to be added, though Atlanta has multiple vacancies there.
The severity of the issue isn’t yet known but it will be a notable one for Atlanta, as Murphy is one of the better backstops in the league. He hit 21 home runs last year and drew walks in 11.2% of his plate appearances. That led to a batting line of .251/.365/.478, which translates to a wRC+ of 129. He’s also considered a strong defender and FanGraphs considered him to be worth 4.2 wins above replacement on the year. That was the fifth-highest tally among catchers, but the four above him all played at least 18 more games than Murphy did.
The reason Murphy played just 108 wasn’t due to injury, but the club splitting the catching playing time between him and Travis d’Arnaud. With Murphy now out, d’Arnaud will have to step up and take on a larger role for at least the next 10 days but perhaps longer.
As far as backup catchers go, few clubs could boast one as good as d’Arnaud, but he’s clearly a drop-off from Murphy. d’Arnaud hit 11 home runs in 292 plate appearances last year but his .225/.288/.397 batting line translated to a wRC+ of 83. He has been in better form in the past, as recently as 2022, when he hit .268/.319/.472 for a wRC+ of 120.
The club is loaded with talent but those are the only two catchers on the 40-man roster right now. d’Arnaud is now 35 years old and has had his share of injury woes over the years, including multiple concussions, Tommy John surgery, a thumb sprain, a broken finger and a strained rotator cuff. While Atlanta will still be a great team, Murphy is arguably the player on the roster whose absence would make the most negative impact.
Tromp, 29, has a bit of major league experience. He’s been in the big leagues in each of the past four years but taken just 102 plate appearances in 40 games over that time. His career batting line of .222/.225/.414 translates to a wRC+ of 65. In Triple-A over the past three years, he’s hit .229/.299/.399 for a wRC+ of 76. He was non-tendered by Atlanta after last season but re-signed on a minor league deal. As mentioned, he’ll need a 40-man spot but Atlanta has plenty of spots open.
Atlanta will roll with that combination for the time being but could also perhaps look around the league for external additions, as various roster cuts have been made in recent days with the season starting. Eric Haase was designated for assignment by the Brewers yesterday, Alí Sánchez by the Pirates and Cooper Hummel by the Giants. It’s also possible a small trade could be had, perhaps involving someone like Joey Bart of the Giants. Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle recently took a look at how Bart has a tenuous grasp on his roster spot in San Francisco.
Regardless of how things play out, Atlanta won’t find anyone as good as Murphy. Whatever plans they cobble together in the weeks to come, they will be hoping for him to get healthy as quickly as possible and rejoin the club.
2023-24 Offseason In Review Series
MLBTR’s annual Offseason In Review series breaks down what each of the 30 teams did (or didn’t) do this winter to build their 2024 rosters. This landing page will contain the links to all 30 of our posts, for easy reference and to track when your favorite team’s post is online.
NL East
NL Central
NL West
AL East
AL Central
AL West
Scott Boras Discusses Recent Free Agent Contracts
The latter stages of the 2023-24 offseason were focused on the so-called “Boras Four.” Each of Blake Snell, Matt Chapman, Cody Bellinger and Jordan Montgomery lingered on the open market beyond the start of Spring Training and signed deals below the forecasts from the early winter. Agent Scott Boras, who represents all four of that group, discussed the matter with Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times, noting that he and the players were likely going to be deciding between long-term deals or shorter pacts but with higher annual salaries.
“I don’t think their predictions included what we were fully aware of,” Boras said of media predictions coming into the winter, “and that is, clubs were going to come to us and say, ‘We’re not going to look at length with premium AAVs (average annual values) because of what preceded their performance prior to 2023.” He used Snell and Bellinger as examples of how clubs could look past the 2023 season and focus on prior seasons.
“Blake Snell has $30 million a year for a couple of years to go out and just show durability,” Boras said. “Blake Snell doesn’t have to go out and win the Cy Young every year. He’s an extraordinary pitcher. The market viewed him as, what happened in ‘21 and ‘22? The market viewed Cody as, what happened in ‘21 and ‘22? So we knew going into this process that choices were going to be most important. You’re either going to get the appropriate AAV, but you’re not going to get the length, or you’re going to get the length at a much lower AAV, so what do you choose?”
The comments provide an interesting look into the sorts of tough decisions a free agent has to make. Even if a player is incredibly talented and lucky enough to stay healthy beyond their arbitration years, they are likely to only sign one really significant contract in their career. While some players in that position may just take the best guarantee available when the opportunity arises, others seem willing to kick the can down the road if they can’t find the ideal deal.
Snell was surely looking to cash in after a Cy Young-winning season wherein he posted a 2.25 earned run average for the Padres. At the start of the offseason, MLBTR predicted Snell could ride the momentum of his trophy win to a deal of $200MM over seven years, with other media outlets making similar prognostications.
It appears that type of deal never materialized, with the largest reported offer he received being a six-year, $150MM deal from the Yankees. In the end, he pivoted to a two-year, $62MM deal from the Giants, which allows him the chance to opt-out midway through. As Boras alluded to, Snell hasn’t been the most consistent pitcher in his career. He fell short of 130 innings in both 2021 and 2022, with an ERA of 4.20 in the former and 3.38 in the latter.
Bellinger was in a somewhat similar position. He was the National League’s Most Valuable Player in 2019 but went through a real rough patch after suffering a shoulder injury. He hit just .193/.256/.355 over 2021 and 2022, getting non-tendered by the Dodgers. A one-year deal with the Cubs gave him the opportunity to bounce back, which he did, hitting 26 home runs and stealing 20 bases while providing quality defense in center field and first base.
It would appear that clubs used the inconsistency of those players to justify not maximizing their offers this winter, so Snell pivoted to the aforementioned short-term deal. Bellinger got a three-year deal worth $80MM to return to the Cubs, with opt-outs after each year. Both players can bank some money this year and hopefully return to the open market next winter, with the extra years on the deal providing a bit of a safety net in the case of renewed struggles or health problems this year.
It’s a tactic Boras has taken before, with Carlos Correa perhaps being the best example prior to this winter. Correa first hit free agency in the winter of 2021-22, which was impacted by the lockout. He didn’t find a deal to his liking prior to the stoppage and hired Boras during the transactions freeze. After the new collective bargaining agreement was agreed to, he signed a three-year, $105.3MM deal with the Twins which allowed him to opt-out after each season.
After another strong season in 2022, he triggered his opt-out and returned to the open market. He finally found the mega deal that he was looking for when he and the Giants agreed to a 13-year, $350MM framework. That deal eventually got scuttled when the Giants grew concerned by Correa’s medicals, as did another pact with the Mets, but Correa still got himself a sizeable $200MM guarantee to return to the Twins. That deal can also max out at $270MM via four vesting options.
That is the type of playbook that each of the Boras four will be looking to follow, though obviously without the part where deals gets thrown out by physicals. Chapman got three years and $54MM from the Giants, also with opt-outs. Montgomery got one year and $25MM from the Diamondbacks, with a vesting player option valued at $20MM if he makes just 10 starts this year.
The hope will be that each can continue to perform well in 2024 and hopefully find better conditions next winter. The 2023-24 offseason saw many clubs scale back spending, either due to competitive balance tax concerns or uncertainty around television revenue. “One billion dollars was removed from the ability to contract players,” is the way Boras frames it. He and his clients will be hoping some of that money is back on the table next winter.
Central Notes: Cardinals, Quero, Cantillo
The Cardinals have been hit hard by injuries in the early days of the 2024 season, but they have recently received some good news about several players.
Major offseason acquisition Sonny Gray suffered a right hamstring strain in spring training, robbing him of the necessary game action he needed to be ready for the regular season. The right-hander threw 36 pitches over three simulated innings today (per Jeff Jones of the Belleville News-Democrat), and he will pitch for the Triple-A Memphis Redbirds on Wednesday (per Lynn Worthy of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch). Jones adds that a return as soon as April 9 or 10 is a possibility.
Keynan Middleton, another significant free agent signing this winter, is not quite as close to returning, but Worthy notes that he will begin to work off a mound on Wednesday. He was shut down with a forearm strain in mid-March.
As for the position players, Jones mentions that Lars Nootbaar took eight live at-bats today and will take another four tomorrow. Manager Oliver Marmol will meet with the outfielder to decide if he needs a rehab stint at Triple-A before coming off the IL. Nootbaar is recovering from two nondisplaced fractures in his ribs.
Tommy Edman is dealing with wrist pain following offseason surgery. Worthy reports that he is set to undergo an MRI on Wednesday. The scan will show whether or not he is ready to start ramping up his swing. Finally, Worthy notes that Dylan Carlson received an injection to help combat pain in his left shoulder. The pain is a result of a sprained AC joint that he suffered during an outfield collision in one of the final games of spring training. Barring a setback, he should be ready to get back into game action before too long.
More news from around the NL and AL Central…
- Brewers catching prospect Jeferson Quero is being evaluated for a right shoulder injury, GM Matt Arnold told reporters, including Todd Rosiak of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. The severity of the injury is currently unclear, although it’s certainly worrisome when a catcher known for his strong arm injures his throwing shoulder. Quero is only 21 years old and has yet to make his MLB debut. However, the highly-regarded catching prospect is one of three backstops on Milwaukee’s 40-man roster, along with William Contreras and Gary Sánchez. If his injury proves to be serious, the team’s catching depth will be tested early in the season.
- Joey Cantillo, a left-handed pitcher in the Guardians organization, will miss eight to 10 weeks with a hamstring strain he suffered at the end of spring training, per Mandy Bell of MLB.com. Cantillo was unlikely to make the Guardians Opening Day roster, even if he had stayed healthy this spring. That said, he is already on the 40-man roster, and after 18 starts at Triple-A last season, he seemed like a good candidate to make his MLB debut at some point this year. That could still happen, but he’ll have to wait at least a couple of months to get that chance.
Brandon Belt “Baffled” By Lack Of Offers In Free Agency
Two days into the regular season, only one position player from MLBTR’s Top 50 Free Agents list remains unsigned: designated hitter/first baseman Brandon Belt. On Friday, the veteran slugger discussed his enduring free agency in an appearance on The JD Bunkis Podcast. According to Belt, he had very few calls with teams this winter that went further than the teams expressing loose interest. He never got to the point of “talking about money” with any clubs.
Belt suggests that numerous teams considered him a second-choice option if they were unable to land their first choice on a longer-term deal. In the end, he says “pretty much every one” of those teams “got their guy.” He could be referring to the Giants, who signed Jorge Soler to a three-year deal, or the Mariners, who signed Mitch Garver to a two-year contract. Several other teams signed designated hitters to one-year deals this offseason, including the Diamondbacks (Joc Pederson), the Mets (J.D. Martinez), and the Blue Jays (Justin Turner).
The Rangers were one team that reportedly discussed signing Belt, but evidently, they never reached the point of making him an offer. That surely has something to do with top prospect Wyatt Langford earning a spot on the Opening Day roster, but still, Texas could have considered Belt for the spot that ultimately went to non-roster invitee Jared Walsh. Two more teams that seemed like potential fits for Belt also opted to sign veterans on minor league deals instead: the Blue Jays went with Daniel Vogelbach, while the Angels added Miguel Sano.
Although Belt “definitely” wants to play in 2024 (per Andrew Baggarly of The Athletic), he told Bunkis that he didn’t want to settle for a minor league contract. He made $9.3 million last season, and it’s safe to say he outperformed the Blue Jays’ expectations when they offered him that deal. It’s reasonable to presume he was hoping for a raise. Instead, he will almost certainly have to settle for a sizeable pay cut, if and when he eventually signs. To that point, Belt mentioned how different his free agent experience was during the 2022-23 offseason. He says it was “pretty easy” to land a contract because “quite a few teams” were interested in his services. That couldn’t be further from the case this time around.
Belt says the whole experience has “baffled [him] a little bit,” and it’s not hard to see why. The left-handed hitter is coming off an excellent season with Toronto in which he hit 19 home runs in just 103 games. He also hit 23 doubles and drew 61 walks over 404 plate appearances. Only seven AL batters (min. 400 PA) outproduced his .858 OPS and 138 wRC+. His .336 expected wOBA was more good than great, and he’s likely due for some regression as he enters his late thirties. Still, plenty of teams would be better off with his experienced lefty bat on their roster.
Brown: Astros, Alex Bregman Will Discuss Extension “At Some Point”
Speaking to reporters on Thursday (including Brian McTaggart of MLB.com), Astros general manager Dana Brown said that the team has not yet broached the subject of an extension with Alex Bregman. This aligns with comments Bregman made this spring, telling reporters (including Chandler Rome of The Athletic) that he had not received an offer and did not expect to before Opening Day.
However, Brown added that he still plans to discuss a new contract with his third baseman. “At some point,” the GM stated, “we will have some discussions with Bregman and make him an offer” (per McTaggart).
While there is often a long way to go between an initial offer and an agreement, this is a reassuring update for Astros fans hoping the two-time All-Star signs a long-term deal with the club. Brown made similar comments regarding Bregman ahead of spring training, which is often considered the best time for extension discussions. Although the spring has wrapped up and the season has begun, the executive’s more recent remarks clarify that the Astros are open to negotiations over the next several months. For his part, Bregman has also expressed a willingness to allow his agent, Scott Boras, to negotiate with Houston during the season (per Rome).
Bregman made back-to-back All-Star appearances in 2018 and ’19. He slashed .291/.409/.561 with 72 home runs across those two seasons, finishing in the top five in AL MVP voting each year. Leg injuries limited him to 133 games between 2020 and ’21, and although he has stayed healthy ever since, he has never quite returned to his 2018-19 form. Nonetheless, Bregman has remained a highly productive player, thanks to excellent plate discipline, plus power, and a capable glove at the hot corner. As he enters his age-30 season, he is still one of the better third basemen in the American League. With another strong showing in 2024, he will be one of the top free agents available if he hits the open market this coming winter.
Brown also told reporters that Kyle Tucker will receive an extension offer, though he noted that the two sides are not engaged in “deep discussions” (per McTaggart). The GM had previously expressed a desire to extend Tucker, but his words on Thursday suggest a further degree of certainty that the Astros will in fact make an offer.
Tucker has blossomed into one of the better corner outfielders in baseball over the past four seasons. He won a Gold Glove in 2022, a Silver Slugger in 2023, and made the AL All-Star team both years. However, extending Tucker is less pressing business for the Astros; the right fielder won’t reach free agency until after the 2025 campaign.