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AL East Notes: Blue Jays’ Catchers, Yoshida, Red Sox

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All off-season it’s seemed a matter of when not if the Blue Jays trade one of their three catchers – Alejandro Kirk, Danny Jansen and Gabriel Moreno. According to Mark Feinsand of MLB.com, the Blue Jays were open to trading Jansen to bring in a starting pitcher, but after landing Chris Bassitt on a three-year, $63MM deal Feinsand reports that a trade is no certainty now.

In any event, Toronto is in a strong negotiating position as there’s a few paths they could go down. The clear top two free agent options – Willson Contreras and Christian Vazquez – are off the board, while the Braves have acquired Sean Murphy, making the Blue Jays the clear and obvious fit for any catcher-hungry teams. They could also opt to carry three catchers on the active roster, cycling players through the DH spot, or option Moreno back to Triple-A and go with a Kirk-Jansen tandem to begin the year at least.

The additions of Bassitt to the rotation and Kevin Kiermaier to the outfield decrease the clear needs for the Blue Jays to address this winter, but in a competitive AL East, it wouldn’t be surprising to see them ultimately opt to pursue further upgrades, whether via trade or free agency. As Jon Heyman of the New York Post notes, the Jays were finalists for Masataka Yoshida (the Dodgers were the other finalist) before he signed for the Red Sox. It’s not clear whether the Kiermaier signing arose because they missed out on Yoshida, or whether they tried to sign both, but given the former’s injury history and declining production it wouldn’t be a surprise to see them seek another outfielder.

Boston’s signing of Yoshida addressed the need to upgrade their offense following the departure of Xander Bogaerts to San Diego. It also likely spelled the end of any chance of Eric Hosmer, who was DFA’d yesterday, receiving regular at bats. The Red Sox look to have locked in youngster Triston Casas as their everyday first-baseman moving forward, while Yoshida (and others) could well take a few DH at bats as the Red Sox cycle through their outfielders. Boston’s chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom addressed the DFA of Hosmer to Chris Cotillo of MassLive.

“Our roster isn’t complete yet, but as we build our club, we feel it’s important to give Triston a clear lane, and that carrying two left-handed hitting first basemen would leave us short in other areas. Given that, it’s important to do right by Eric and give him time to find his next opportunity. We knew when we first got him that this day would come at some point, and wanted to make sure we treated him right.”

Cotillo also reports that the Red Sox tried hard to trade Hosmer prior to DFA’ing him, but found minimal interest in the league. Hosmer did receive a full no-trade clause as part of the trade that sent him from San Diego to Boston at the deadline, but Cotillo’s report said that the lack of trade interest meant the no-trade clause didn’t even come into play. The Red Sox can still trade him while he’s on waivers, but it seems likely he’d be released onto the open market.

While an outgoing trade of Hosmer seems unlikely, the team is working on incomings, and recently asked the Marlins about Miguel Rojas, according to Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic. Rojas was one of the top defensive shortstops in the sport last season, and as Rosenthal notes, the Marlins value that defense and rebuffed Boston’s inquiry. Rojas is under contract for one more year at an affordable $5MM salary.

Yankees Sign Michael Hermosillo, Demarcus Evans To Minor League Deals

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The Yankees have added a bit of minor league depth, signing outfielder Michael Hermosillo and right-hander Demarcus Evans to minor league deals, according to each player’s MLB transaction log (here and here).

Hermosillo, 28 next month, has spent the past two seasons with the Cubs. He hit just .115/.250/.148 without a home run across 73 plate appearances and 31 games in 2022. He spent much of the year on the injured list with a left quadriceps strain, and only made an additional ten appearances at the Triple-A level, hitting .324/.400/.559 in 40 plate appearances. While that sort of sample size is far too small to draw accurate conclusions, he did hit .306/.446/.592 over 186 plate appearances a year earlier at that level, so he certainly can hit at the highest level of the minors.

Originally drafted in the 28th round by the Angels in 2013, Hermosillo came up through their system and made his big league debut in 2018. Despite tallying some promising numbers coming through the minors, Hermosillo never hit enough in the big leagues to stick, putting up a .188/.287/.288 line over 118 plate appearances in three years with the Angels. Combined with his Cubs work, that makes for a career .167/.268/.283 line with four home runs over 229 plate appearances.

Defensively, Hermosillo logged most of his time in center field, but also spent some time in left as well. On the whole, he’s been worth 3 Outs Above Average in 312 2/3 career innings in center, 1 OAA in 115 innings in left and 1 OAA in 126 innings in right. So even if the bat doesn’t show up in the big leagues, there’s a solid glove-first depth piece for the Yankees to cover any injuries.

Evans, 26, didn’t pitch in the big leagues last year but made appearances over the prior two seasons for the Rangers. Originally drafted in the 25th round in 2015, Evans came up through the Rangers’ system flashing big strikeout stuff, averaging a 13.5 SO/9 over his minor league career. He got a brief cup of coffee in the big leagues in 2020, pitching four innings to a 2.25 ERA. A longer stint was ahead in 2021, but the results didn’t come, as Evans was tagged for a 5.13 ERA over 26 1/3 innings. Despite striking out batters at an above-average 27.5% clip, the walks were an issue for Evans, as he handed out free passes at a 13.3% rate.

At Triple-A this year, Evans tossed 33 innings of 3.82 ERA ball. The same issues that plagued his big league stint were evident in the upper minors, as Evans offset a strong strike out rate (30.1%) with a poor walk rate (15.1%). His fastball sits in the low-90s, and he mixes in a cutter and a curveball. He’ll give the Yankees a bit of minor league bullpen depth at worst, with a bit of upside there if they can straighten out his walk problems.

Giants, Nick Duron Agree To Minor League Deal

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The Giants have signed reliever Nick Duron to a minor league contract, according to his transactions log at MLB.com. The 26-year-old joins the fourth organization of his professional career.

Duron entered the pro ranks in 2015, selected by the Red Sox in the 31st round out of Clark College in Washington. He spent a few seasons in the Boston system but didn’t advance past Low-A before being released in 2018. Signed to a minor league deal by the Mariners, he pitched his way to Triple-A in 2021 before qualifying for minor league free agency. Last winter, Duron hooked on with the Phillies on a minor league pact.

The 6’4″ hurler would again spend most of the season in Triple-A, but he earned a cup of coffee at the MLB level. Duron was called to the majors in July as a replacement for unvaccinated players in a series in Toronto. He came out of the bullpen once, working around two hits to get out of a scoreless inning. After the contest, Philadelphia returned him to Triple-A Lehigh Valley, where he spent the remainder of the season before again hitting minor league free agency.

While Duron only has that one inning of MLB experience, he’s an interesting depth flier for the Giants. He averaged 97.2 MPH on his fastball during his MLB appearance. That strong velocity translated into plenty of whiffs in the minors, as he struck out a strong 29.6% of opponents over 48 2/3 innings for the IronPigs. Duron walked an alarming 13.6% of batters faced, but the strikeouts and a lofty 50.4% ground-ball percentage helped him to a 2.77 ERA.

Duron’s control has been inconsistent, but he’s flashed decent stuff and is coming off a career-best showing in Triple-A. He’ll presumably start next year with the Giants highest affiliate in Sacramento but could put himself in the mix for an MLB bullpen job at some point. Duron has all three option years remaining, so if he cracks the 40-man roster at any point, the Giants can freely move him between San Francisco and Sacramento for a long while.

Brett Anderson Seeking Return To MLB

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Left-hander Brett Anderson sat out the 2022 season, but Ken Rosenthal of the Athletic reports he’s preparing for a potential comeback next year. The veteran starter turns 35 in February.

Anderson appeared in the majors in every year from 2009-21. He spent his first five seasons in Oakland before taking on more of a journeyman role by the 2014 campaign. Dealt to the Rockies during the 2013-14 offseason, he’d go on to appear with five different teams over the next five seasons. Anderson spent one year in Denver followed by two seasons with the Dodgers. He split the 2017 campaign between the Cubs and Blue Jays before heading back to Oakland.

The former second-round draftee spent the 2018-19 seasons with the A’s, throwing 176 innings (the second-highest total of his career) in the second season. After that year, Anderson inked a $5MM contract with the Brewers. He spent the abbreviated 2020 campaign in Milwaukee, then returned on a new $2.5MM pact for 2021.

Anderson made 24 starts during his second season with the Brew Crew, but the club limited him to 96 frames. He only faced an opponent for the third time in a outing on 43 occasions. That somewhat sheltered role paid off, as Anderson posted decent numbers in a hitter-friendly Milwaukee environment. He worked to a 4.22 ERA, only walking 6.8% of his opponents while racking up grounders on a massive 57.5% of batted balls. Anderson averaged under 90 MPH on his fastball and only struck out 14.2% of batters faced, but his go-to sinker remained effective at keeping the ball out of the air.

At year’s end, Anderson qualified for free agency. He seemingly didn’t pursue any opportunities, as there were no substantive reports of teams with interest last winter. Anderson never announced his retirement, however, and he’s apparently again looking to get back to the highest level.

For his career, the Texas native owns a 4.07 ERA in 1140 1/3 innings. He allowed around four earned runs per nine innings in each season from 2019-21, and some clubs will presumably check in on his progress as he builds back towards game strength. Anderson will surely have to take a minor league contract and may well have to conduct a showcase in front of scouts before signing, but it stands to reason he could secure an invitation to Spring Training at some point this offseason.

White Sox, Sebastian Rivero Agree To Minor League Deal

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The White Sox are in agreement with catcher Sebastian Rivero on a minor league contract, tweets Lynn Worthy of the Kansas City Star. The 24-year-old backstop was released by the Royals last month.

Rivero, a Venezuela native, had spent his entire career in the Kansas City organization. Originally signed as an amateur free agent during the 2015-16 signing period, he played parts of six seasons in the minors. Rivero hasn’t hit much over that stretch, compiling a .247/.295/.357 line in a bit more than 1300 minor league plate appearances. He’s made contact at a roughly average rate but rarely walks and only has 20 professional home runs.

Despite the tepid offensive output, he played his way onto the 40-man roster over the 2020-21 offseason based on the strength of his defensive reputation. Kansas City kept him on hand as a depth option for the last two years, getting him into 34 combined contests. Rivero has managed only a .167/.236/.197 line in very sparse looks against big league pitching. He spent the bulk of the 2022 season at Triple-A Omaha, where he posted a .218/.294/.410 showing in 174 trips to the plate.

At the end of the season, Kansas City designated Rivero for assignment as part of a 40-man roster shuffle. They cut him loose, but he fairly quickly finds a new job. Chicago’s first-year skipper Pedro Grifol has spent the past decade in the K.C. organization, getting plenty of work with the team’s catchers in particular. That connection surely helped Rivero find this next opportunity.

The White Sox look likely to give Yasmani Grandal another shot to bounce back in the final season of his four-year contract. Carlos Pérez and Seby Zavala are on the 40-man roster as backup possibilities. Rivero looks likely to head to Triple-A Charlotte as a depth option behind that trio.

Royals Open To Trade Offers On Michael A. Taylor

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The Royals are open to the possibility of dealing center fielder Michael A. Taylor, reports Ken Rosenthal of the Athletic. They’ve also made corner infielder/outfielder Hunter Dozier available, Rosenthal writes, although Taylor’s the more appealing of that duo.

Taylor, who turns 32 shortly before Opening Day, is coming off one of the better seasons of his career. He hit .254/.313/.357 with nine home runs over 456 plate appearances in 2022. That offensive output is below-average but it was his best work at the plate since his 19-homer showing with the Nationals back in 2017.

The right-handed hitter has a .241/.296/.381 line in a little under 2800 plate appearances over parts of nine seasons. Strikeouts have been a consistent concern for much of that time, as he routinely fanned in over 30% of his trips to the plate during his time in Washington. Taylor has trimmed that swing-and-miss a bit in recent years, though, including a career-low 23.9% strikeout percentage this past season. That’s still a few points higher than average but hardly disastrous, and his .313 on-base percentage was also his best since that 2017 campaign.

Of course, Taylor’s greater appeal lies in his defensive acumen. He’s an excellent center fielder, one who routinely posts elite marks for his glove. Taylor has rated as 60 runs above average in just shy of 5500 career innings in center, by measure of Defensive Runs Saved. Statcast has pegged him at 37 runs above par since the start of the 2016 season. Even as he’s gotten into his 30’s, the former sixth-round pick has shown no signs of tailing off. DRS pegged him as the league’s most valuable defensive center fielder this year, rating him 19 runs above average. Statcast wasn’t quite so bullish, “only” crediting him at +5 runs.

Regardless of the precise value of Taylor’s defense, there’s little question he’s a plus on that side of the ball. He’s also quite affordable, due a modest $4.5MM guarantee in the second season of a two-year contract extension. He’ll hit free agency at the end of next year, but he’d be a fine stopgap and/or a quality fourth outfielder on a contender.

That’s especially true given how shallow the center field market is. Free agency is essentially devoid of regulars at this point, highlighted by players like Jackie Bradley Jr., Rafael Ortega and Bradley Zimmer. There aren’t many obvious trade candidates either. Bryan Reynolds is the most commonly speculated target after his trade request, but the Pirates have maintained an extremely high asking price. That’s also true of the Diamondbacks, who are seeking MLB-ready help in any deal that sees them ship off Daulton Varsho, Alek Thomas or Jake McCarthy. Players like Max Kepler and Ramón Laureano could change uniforms, although they’re each better suited for right field. Cedric Mullins, Trent Grisham and Dylan Carlson all seem longshots, at best, to move.

A number of teams could check in with Kansas City about Taylor, who’d come at a much lower asking price than any of the younger options with extended windows of remaining control. Rosenthal writes the Dodgers are scouring the trade market for center field help, although it’s unclear if they have any interest in Taylor specifically. Other speculative candidates for a center field addition include the Giants, Marlins, Red Sox and Rockies.

While Taylor should generate a few calls, Kansas City figures to have a harder time finding a taker for Dozier. The 31-year-old doesn’t have much defensive value. He’s limited to the corners and has rated very poorly at third base and in the outfield, with first base and designated hitter the better fits. Dozier hasn’t hit at commensurate levels for those positions over the past two seasons, though, carrying a combined .226/.289/.391 line in 1043 plate appearances. FanGraphs and Baseball Reference have each pegged his production below replacement level in both seasons.

The Royals inked Dozier to a contract extension headed into the 2021 season, guaranteeing him $25MM over four years. That’s one the organization likely wishes they could have back, as Dozier has never taken the expected step forward after hitting .279/.348/.522 with 26 homers in 2019. The former eighth overall pick is still due $17.25MM over the next two seasons (including a buyout on a 2025 club option), and the Royals would have to eat the majority of that tab or take back an undesirable deal in return to find a taker.

If Dozier does stick in Kansas City, Rosenthal suggests the Royals would likely move him back to third base. Vinnie Pasquantino has seized either the first base or designated hitter job, while former top prospect Nick Pratto should get another chance at the other spot. MJ Melendez looks like the favorite for left field playing time, while the club has a number of outfielders (Drew Waters, Edward Olivares and Kyle Isbel) who could jockey for reps in right field.

Moving Dozier back to the hot corner would cut into the playing time of both Nate Eaton, who finished the season fairly well as a 25-year-old rookie, and former top prospect Adalberto Mondesi. Mondesi and the Royals agreed to a $3.045MM salary for next year, buying out his final season of arbitration eligibility. He’s coming off another season mostly lost to injury, this time an April ACL tear in his left knee. Rosenthal suggests K.C. could explore trades involving Mondesi as well.

Mondesi, 27, has shown an enviable combination of power potential and athleticism at times. He’s stolen 133 bases and connected on 38 home runs in 358 MLB games, flashing the elite physical tools that made him such a tantalizing young talent. Yet he’s also shown an extremely aggressive offensive approach that has impacted his consistency, and he’s just a .244/.280/.408 career hitter. Mondesi has yet to reach 500 plate appearances in a season, with oblique, hamstring, shoulder, back and groin issues all impacting him even before this year’s ACL injury. He’s a difficult player to rely upon with that kind of track record, but he’s shown flashes of impact talent intermittently as a big leaguer.

Latest On Dansby Swanson’s Market

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Dansby Swanson is the best remaining free agent, the only of the top four shortstops who has yet to agree to terms. Teams like the Cubs, Twins, Dodgers, Red Sox and incumbent Braves have all been tied to him, although there’s no indication he’s especially close to a deal.

Minnesota, Boston and the Dodgers each lost a star shortstop of their own to free agency, making them all natural fits to look to Swanson as a possible replacement. However, various reports have cast some doubt on each of those possible landing spots. Both Ken Rosenthal of the Athletic and Jon Heyman of the New York Post have written recently that Los Angeles is presently more on the periphery of the Swanson market. Rosenthal and Heyman each suggest L.A. might only jump into the mix if Swanson’s asking price dips into a range they find especially palatable.

That at least partially stems from luxury tax considerations, with various reports suggesting the Dodgers are eyeing the possibility of dipping below next year’s $233MM base threshold. The Dodgers have paid the tax in each of the last two seasons, setting them up for heightened penalties as repeat payors. A team can reset their payor status by dipping below the threshold for one year, and doing so next season may free L.A. up to aggressively target free agency during the 2023-24 offseason. Los Angeles is presently projected around $32MM shy of the tax marker by Roster Resource, leaving room to add Swanson without going past the threshold. However, there’s apparently some organizational concern they could find themselves on the hook for money owed to Trevor Bauer if the pitcher’s two-year suspension is overturned or reduced on appeal, which is expected to be heard in the next month.

Heyman wrote yesterday the Red Sox are “seriously considering” Swanson after watching Xander Bogaerts head to San Diego. Chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom recently told the media the club was looking to add players at up-the-middle positions, but the presence of Trevor Story means they’re not locked into a shortstop pursuit. Boston reportedly offered Bogaerts, whom they’d called their top offseason priority, $162MM over six years before he landed in San Diego. Pivoting with a similar or higher proposal to Swanson would raise some eyebrows, and Jen McCaffrey of the Athletic wrote yesterday it seems unlikely Boston would make such an investment.

The Twins had been in contact with Swanson even before Carlos Correa agreed to terms with the Giants, putting themselves into the mix for a fallback option. Both Darren Wolfson of SKOR North (Twitter link) and Dan Hayes of the Athletic (on Twitter) suggest the Twins remain involved, but both reporters characterize it as more of a longshot for Swanson to actually land in Minneapolis. The Twins do still have a fair bit of payroll flexibility, even after this afternoon’s $11MM agreement with Joey Gallo.

Regardless, Swanson’s sure to find a significant deal from some team this winter. The next-best remaining free agent shortstop is Elvis Andrus, while the trade market doesn’t have many obvious solutions. Swanson is coming off an All-Star campaign, one in which he connected on 25 home runs with a .277/.329/.447 line while appearing in all 162 games for the Braves. He also secured his first career Gold Glove after rating as 15 runs above average defensively, per Statcast. At the start of the offseason, MLBTR predicted a seven-year, $154MM contract.

Giants Sign Sean Manaea

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DECEMBER 16: The Giants have officially the signing of Manaea.

DECEMBER 12: Lefty Sean Manaea and the Giants have agreed to a two-year, $25MM deal with an opt-out after the 2023 season, according to Jon Heyman of the New York Post. Manaea is represented by the Boras Corporation.

The deal marks a return to the Bay Area for the 30-year-old Manaea, who was traded from Kansas City to Oakland as a prospect at the 2015 trade deadline as part of the Ben Zobrist deal. Manaea debuted for the A’s the following year and was a steady presence in their rotation throughout his six seasons in Oakland, though he did miss most of the 2019 season after undergoing shoulder surgery.

Still, with both his career ERA (3.86) and FIP (3.96) under 4.00, Manaea was a fairly attractive arm to teams searching for rotation help after the lockout ended this spring, and so the A’s shipped him to San Diego along with relief prospect Aaron Holiday to acquire prospects Euribiel Angeles and Adrian Martinez. Things didn’t go so well for Manaea in San Diego, however, as he struggled in 2022, posting an unsightly 4.96 ERA (75 ERA+) in 158 innings that his 4.53 FIP only slightly improves upon.

That rough platform season is likely why Manaea was available to San Francisco, who showed interest in him during last week’s Winter Meetings, at such a low price compared to what we’ve seen from the rest of the mid-rotation market. It’s of course possible that Manaea eschewed a larger guarantee in order to secure a chance to test the market again next offseason, hoping to see his results improve in 2023.

In that regard, the deal is similar to the one the Giants signed Carlos Rodon to last offseason, albeit at a much lower AAV of just $12.5MM compared to Rodon’s $22MM. Manaea may prove to be Rodon’s replacement in a rotation that includes Logan Webb, Alex Cobb, Alex Wood, and Anthony DeSclafani, should Rodon ultimately sign elsewhere this offseason. Rodon is known to be seeking a seven-year deal this offseason, with the Cardinals and Yankees among those interested.

While it seems unlikely Manaea can imitate Rodon’s sterling 2022 production in 2023, there’s still reason to believe that Manaea can bounce back from his difficult 2022 in the coming season. His strikeout and walk rates of 23.2% and 7.5%, respectively, are roughly in line with his career norms and were actually slightly above league average last year according to Baseball Savant. And for the season’s first three months, Manaea’s numbers were right in line with his career marks. Through the end of June, he’d posted a 3.92 ERA and 3.76 FIP with a 25.8% strikeout rate and 9% walk rate. Over the final three months of the season, however, Manaea was rocked for an ERA just over 6.00, with a huge portion of the damage coming in a pair of eight-run drubbings at Dodger Stadium.

Manaea’s biggest problem in 2022 was the long ball, as he allowed a whopping 1.65 home runs per nine innings that doubtlessly contributed to his strand rate of just 67.5% — his lowest in any full season of his career. Moving his home games Oracle Park, one of the most difficult ballparks in the majors for home run hitters, should aid Manaea in his bid to return to form in 2023. If Manaea can post a season more in line with his 2021 performance, where he posted a 3.91 ERA/3.66 FIP in his 179 1/3 innings of work, he’ll justify the investment from San Francisco and be in line for a larger deal, more in line with the four-year, $52MM guarantee MLBTR predicted for him this offseason.

With their starting five for 2023 likely set barring another surprise addition, the Giants seem primed to turn their attention to the lineup, which largely struggled in 2022 with the exception of All-Star Joc Pederson, who returned to the Giants by accepting a qualifying offer early in the offseason. San Francisco already added Mitch Haniger but is rumored to be interested in adding a second outfielder, even after missing on pursuits of Aaron Judge, Brandon Nimmo, and Cody Bellinger.

The Giants are also are expected to address an infield that lost Brandon Belt and Evan Longoria to free agency this offseason, while suffering a considerable step back from shortstop Brandon Crawford after his resurgent 2021 season. The Giants reportedly have Carlos Correa as their top option in the free agent shortstop market, with the Twins and Cubs representing possible competition for Correa’s services. San Francisco also seems likely to look to upgrade their relief corps for next season. Earlier, they were rumored to have interest in pairing Kenley Jansen, who signed with the Red Sox, with Camilo Doval at the back of their bullpen, so a pursuit of another back-end bullpen option like Taylor Rogers seems feasible.

Marlins, Rangers Interested In Michael Conforto

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6:41pm: The Rangers are also involved in the Conforto market, reports Ken Rosenthal of the Athletic. Texas general manager Chris Young told reporters coming out of the Winter Meetings they were hoping to address left field, where rookies Bubba Thompson, Ezequiel Duran and Josh Smith look like the in-house favorites for playing time. That corner outfield vacancy makes Conforto a fairly obvious target, particularly with Andrew Benintendi’s five-year deal with the White Sox taking the top free agent left fielder off the board.

1:09pm: The Marlins have shown some interest in free agent outfielder Michael Conforto, reports Jon Heyman of the New York Post. Heyman also lists the Astros and Cubs, both of whom have been previously linked to the Boras Corporation client, as teams with interest.

Miami entered the offseason searching for offensive help. They’ve done essentially nothing thus far, with the only noteworthy move being the non-tender of Brian Anderson. The Marlins hit just .230/.294/.363 in 2022, finishing 27th in on-base percentage and 28th in slugging. Spacious Marlins Park hasn’t done their batters any favors, but Miami’s offense was one of the league’s worst even after accounting for home environment. By measure of wRC+, which adjusts for park, the Marlins were 12 percentage points worse than the average hitting team — the sixth-lowest mark in the league.

Most of the Miami offense underperformed, with second baseman Jazz Chisholm Jr. their only standout hitter. That gives general manager Kim Ng and her staff myriad positions they could look to address. The outfield, which Miami thought they’d fixed last offseason, posed particular problems. Avisaíl García fell flat with a career-worst .224/.266/.317 showing in the first season of a four-year free agent deal. Jorge Soler, inked to a three-year deal after a massive postseason showing in 2021, managed just a .207/.295/.400 mark with subpar defense in left field.

The Marlins gave extended auditions to young players Jesús Sánchez and Bryan De La Cruz. Neither ran away with an everyday job, with both reaching base at a sub-.300 clip. Sánchez and De La Cruz each showed interesting power potential, but they both struck out more often than average while walking at a subpar clip. Of that group, only Sánchez — who spent most of the season’s second half in Triple-A after being optioned — hits left-handed.

Bringing in a lefty-swinging outfielder makes plenty of sense, and Conforto’s one of the more interesting options available. The 29-year-old missed all of 2022 recovering from an offseason injury to his right shoulder that required surgery. He’s not expected to have any health limitations by next spring, but the lost year raises some questions about how he’ll respond after such a long layoff.

Conforto wasn’t even at his best before the surgery, as his 2021 campaign was his worst in a while. He hit .232/.344/.384 over 479 plate appearances for the division-rival Mets in 2021. That’d still be an upgrade over the production Miami received from any of their outfielders last season, but it’s well shy of the .265/.369/.495 cumulative line Conforto had posted from 2017-20.

With his value at a low ebb, Conforto is looking for a bounceback opportunity. Agent Scott Boras has suggested he expects Conforto land a multi-year guarantee this offseason, one that allows him to opt out and retest free agency at the end of the 2023 campaign. Boras reiterated that sentiment when speaking with Anthony DiComo of MLB.com yesterday (Twitter link). That’s a rather lofty goal for a player coming off a season lost to shoulder surgery, and it remains to be seen if a team is willing to guarantee him multiple years.

While Conforto’s bat would be a welcome addition to the Miami lineup, he’s not an ideal fit from a positional perspective. He hasn’t played a single inning of center field since 2019, and his early-career defensive metrics there were very poor. Conforto’s a solid defender in the corner outfield, but he’s even less likely to be an option up-the-middle after surgery on his throwing shoulder. Miami reportedly prefers to push Soler more fully into designated hitter work in 2023, so Conforto and García could take the corners. That’d require leaning on Sánchez, De La Cruz or JJ Bleday again in center field, where each player is probably miscast. Of course, with an already shallow center field market having been picked clean, the Marlins may no longer have a viable alternative to rolling out another mediocre defensive outfield.

The Astros have been tied to Conforto on a number of occasions this offseason, as they’re reportedly looking to install a left-handed bat into the corner outfield mix. The Cubs were previously linked to Conforto as well, although that was before they signed Cody Bellinger to play center field. That filled Chicago’s outfield, which already contained Seiya Suzuki and Ian Happ in the corners. The Cubs don’t have a great option at designated hitter, though, which is presumably where they’re eyeing Conforto at this point. Seattle and both New York franchises were also linked to the Oregon State product at points this offseason.

Miami’s facing some competition in the Conforto market, but he shouldn’t be unattainable from a financial perspective. Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald wrote in September that owner Bruce Sherman was willing to sign off on a fairly modest payroll bump, but they’ve yet to dip into free agency thus far. The Fish have reportedly put forth an offer to former Dodgers third baseman Justin Turner, who remains unsigned. Heyman writes Miami appears willing to make a two-year commitment to the 38-year-old, who’s coming off a .278/.350/.438 showing in Los Angeles.

Mets Discussing James McCann In Trade Talks

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The Mets are discussing catcher James McCann in trades, reports Andy Martino of SNY. No specific clubs are mentioned as having interest and it doesn’t appear anything is close, but the discussions are notable nonetheless.

Going into yesterday, the club already had three catchers on their 40-man roster going into yesterday, with McCann joined by Tomas Nido and Francisco Álvarez. Last night, the club agreed to terms with Omar Narváez, adding a fourth catcher into the mix. That created immediate speculation that the club would look to move one of their other receivers, with McCann a fairly logical choice.

McCann, 33 in June, had a strong two-year run with the White Sox over 2019 and 2020, hitting .276/.334/.474 for a wRC+ of 114. He parlayed that into a four-year, $40.6MM deal with the Mets, but has taken a dip since then. He hit .232/.294/.349 in 2021 for a wRC+ of 80 and then dipped further to .195/.257/.282 this year for a wRC+ of 59. He also made multiple trips to the IL and only got into 61 games. Defensively, he’s been a bit below average in his Mets tenure, posting a -3 Defensive Runs Saved and a -0.8 from FanGraphs’ framing metric.

McCann’s deal was slightly backloaded, as he got a $600K signing bonus followed by salaries of $8MM in the first two seasons followed by $12MM in each of the two seasons to come. That leaves two years and $24MM still to be paid out. Given his underperformance, it makes sense for the club to see if any team is willing to take it off their hands.

They don’t really need the cost savings, since money seems to be no object under owner Steve Cohen. Roster Resource pegs their current payroll at $344MM with a competitive balance tax figure of $356MM. That’s miles beyond the top luxury tax tier of $293MM. Since the club is a second-time payor, they’ll pay a 90% tax on any spending beyond that $293MM figure. Given that obvious willingness to spend, they don’t need to pinch pennies by shedding McCann’s contract, but it’s worth pointing out that those high taxes mean shedding a contract would come with double savings. McCann’s contract comes with an annual CBT hit of $10.15MM, since it’s based on the average annual value of the deal. A 90% tax on that means $9.135MM, so moving McCann and and his $12MM salary would actually save the Mets almost $20MM.

Regardless, it’s unlikely that any club would want to take on that salary in full, given his disappointing performance over the past two seasons. The catching market no longer has the most exciting free agents like Willson Contreras, Christian Vázquez and others, but there are still a few names left. Teams like the Cubs, Diamondbacks, Astros, Giants, Pirates, Padres, Tigers, Rays, Angels, Marlins and Red Sox either have reported interest in catching upgrades or make sense for one. They might look into McCann but they could also just sign someone like Gary Sánchez, Roberto Pérez or Tucker Barnhart. Those players would likely be limited to one-year deals at significantly lower salary than what McCann is set to make.

If the Mets are truly motivated to get McCann out of the way, they would likely have to include something else in the deal or just eat a portion of his salary. Álvarez is one of the most highly-regarded prospects in the game but is considered a bat-first catcher at this point. It’s possible the club could carry three catchers with Álvarez frequently slotting in as the designated hitter. However, four catchers seems rather untenable, meaning that McCann and Nido will likely see their names in trade rumors until a deal comes together.

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