Tyler Gilbert, Austin Adams Elect Free Agency
The Diamondbacks announced they’ve outrighted pitchers Tyler Gilbert and Austin Adams off the 40-man roster. The moves were necessary to create space for the reinstatement of five players from the 60-day injured list. Arizona’s 40-man is at capacity with the offseason underway, while Gilbert and Adams have each chosen free agency.
Gilbert is best known for throwing a no-hitter in his first career start (fourth appearance overall) back in 2021. The former sixth-round draftee has pitched in each of the last three big league campaigns, totaling 91 2/3 innings. He owns a 4.32 ERA, including a 5.19 mark over 17 1/3 frames out of the bullpen this year. Gilbert struck out a career-high 26.4% of opponents while averaging a personal-best 92.5 MPH on his fastball. That wasn’t enough to hold his spot on Arizona’s roster but should aid him in landing a minor league opportunity elsewhere.
Adams, 32, has 132 MLB games between four clubs. He inked a minor league contract with Arizona last offseason and reached the majors in May. The right-hander came out of the bullpen on 24 occasions for Torey Lovullo. He allowed 12 runs (11 earned) in 17 1/3 innings, walking eight and hitting five batters. Adams punched out 22 behind a decent 12.1% swinging strike rate. While the slider specialist has always flashed the ability to miss bats, below-average control has led to plenty of walks and a staggering number of hits batsmen (including an MLB-leading 24 in just 52 2/3 innings two seasons ago).
The veteran hurler’s time in the desert ended on a sour note. Adams broke his right ankle when he was hit by a Joc Pederson comebacker in early August. That ended his season and made it a virtual lock Arizona would cut him loose rather than retain him on a projected $1.1MM arbitration salary.
Latest On Angels’ Managerial Search
Three teams landed new managers on Monday, but there’s still plenty more to be done on that front around baseball. The Angels continue to search for a new dugout leader after declining an option on Phil Nevin at the start of the offseason.
It seems that search could be nearing its conclusion. Jon Morosi of MLB.com tweeted this morning the Halos could finalize a new hire by the end of the week. Jon Heyman of the New York Post listed a handful of candidates for the position (on X): Buck Showalter, Ron Washington, Gary DiSarcina, Benji Gil and Ray Montgomery. That isn’t necessarily an exhaustive list, as Heyman leaves open the possibility for another candidate to emerge.
Whether all five of those people have already interviewed with Halos brass is unclear. Showalter has been perhaps the most frequently mentioned candidate for the job. Gil and Montgomery make for natural candidates since they’re already on staff — the former as infield coach, the latter as bench coach.
DiSarcina also has myriad ties to the organization. He played for the Halos for the entirety of his 12-year playing career, earning an All-Star selection in 1995. He spent time in the front office at the beginning of the 2010s and logged three seasons on Mike Scioscia’s coaching staff. DiSarcina spent the last two seasons on Dave Martinez’s staff in Washington as third base coach. The Nationals announced last month that he would not return.
Ron Washington has spent seven seasons with the Braves as third base coach. The former Ranger skipper has come up in various managerial searches in recent years but hasn’t gotten a job since resigning from Texas at the end of the 2014 season. Washington led Texas to consecutive pennants in 2010-11 amidst a nearly eight-year run in Arlington.
Recent reports have named former Angels players Darin Erstad and Torii Hunter as potential options. Heyman confirms the Angels have spoken with Hunter but casts doubt on the fit, noting that owner Arte Moreno appears to prefer someone with prior MLB managerial experience. That could give the upper hand to Showalter or Washington, although it’s tough to pinpoint a specific favorite.
Padres Considering David Ross For Managerial Opening
With the shocking news that long-time Brewers manager Craig Counsell signed a five-year, $40MM contract with the Cubs, a new managerial free agent entered the fray: David Ross. The freshly fired former Cubs manager should be an intriguing candidate for those teams still in need of a skipper, and indeed, at least one club is already interested. Per Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune, the Padres are “considering adding Ross to their candidate pool” for the position left vacant by Bob Melvin, who recently traveled north for a job with the Giants.
Before the game of managerial musical chairs began on Monday, the Padres and president of baseball operations A.J. Preller had reportedly narrowed down their search to four finalists: senior advisor to player development and major leagues Mike Shildt, bench coach and offensive coordinator Ryan Flaherty, Angels infield coach Benji Gil, and Yankees bench coach Carlos Mendoza. According to Acee, the team wasn’t planning to interview any further candidates; their next manager would be one of Shildt, Flaherty, Gil, or Mendoza.
However, with Ross now available, along with the news that the Mets have hired Mendoza to be their next manager, the Padres could be inclined to reconsider their options. After all, Preller has a well-documented history of changing his mind. Acee mentions several surprise hires the executive made during his tenure with the Padres, including former managers Andy Green and Jayce Tingler.
Of Shildt, Flaherty, and Gil, only Shildt has genuine managerial experience; he took over from Mike Matheny as the Cardinals manager in 2018, steering the team for the next four years. St Louis had a winning record in all four of his seasons at the helm, making the playoffs in the final three. Shildt was fired due to “philosophical differences” with president of baseball operations John Mozeliak, but he seems to be on the same page with the front office in San Diego. He has spent the past two years working in the organization, and evidently, they are happy with the work he has done.
Still, if the Padres are looking for a seasoned manager to replace Melvin, one of the most experienced skippers in the game, Ross presents an intriguing alternative. He has spent the past four years with the Cubs, leading the team through a mini-rebuild and out the other side. By all indications, the Cubs were largely happy with his performance. At his end-of-season presser, president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer praised his then-manager for the clubhouse culture he fostered. Indeed, if it weren’t for Counsell hitting the open market, the Cubs would almost certainly have stuck with Ross in 2024.
Drew Smyly Exercised Player Option
Left-hander Drew Smyly exercised his player option to return to the Cubs, tweets Jesse Rogers of ESPN. He’ll make an $8.5MM salary next season and is guaranteed a $2.5MM buyout on a mutual option for 2025.
There wasn’t much suspense with the decision. Smyly wasn’t going to beat $11MM in guarantees on the open market. The veteran southpaw had a tough 2023 campaign, allowing five earned runs per nine across 142 1/3 innings. The Cubs moved him to the bullpen in mid-August as his struggles mounted. Smyly fared well in relief, working to a 2.51 ERA through 28 2/3 innings.
That’s perhaps the ideal role for him to assume in 2024. The Cubs have Justin Steele, Kyle Hendricks and Jameson Taillon locked into three rotation spots. They’re likely to add at least one arm this winter to replace Marcus Stroman, who opted out of his contract. Javier Assad, Jordan Wicks and Hayden Wesneski headline the remaining options for back-end roles.
With Smyly officially back in the fold, Roster Resource projects the Cubs’ 2024 player payroll around $178MM. They’re at roughly $186MM in luxury tax obligations, around $50MM shy of the threshold. Chicago opened the ’23 campaign with a payroll around $184MM.
Guardians Designate Cam Gallagher For Assignment
The Guardians announced that right-hander Tanner Bibee was activated from the 60-day injured list, a procedural move since there’s no IL from today until Spring Training. To open a 40-man spot for him, catcher Cam Gallagher was designated for assignment.
Gallagher looked like a non-tender candidate entering the offseason. After signing last offseason, the right-handed hitter ran a .126/.154/.168 line across 149 plate appearances as a backup catcher. Even with a modest projected arbitration salary of $1.3MM, the complete lack of offense made it difficult for Cleveland to keep him on the MLB roster.
It became clear they’d move on once they claimed Christian Bethancourt from the Rays this afternoon. The Guards will now have a week to trade Gallagher or put him on waivers. Assuming he goes unclaimed, he’ll become a free agent.
Tigers Exercise Club Options On Carson Kelly, Mark Canha; Designate Tyler Alexander For Assignment
The Tigers announced a flurry of roster moves this afternoon. Chief among those was the team’s decision to exercise their 2024 club options on catcher Carson Kelly and outfielder Mark Canha. In addition, the club designated left-hander Tyler Alexander for assignment, assigned left-hander Andrew Vasquez and right-hander Trey Wingenter outright to Triple-A, and selected the contract of right-hander Keider Montero. There had been no prior indication that Vasquez or Wingenter had been on waivers, but each of them now figures to have the opportunity to become a minor league free agent.
In addition, the Tigers activated Alexander, outfielders Austin Meadows and Riley Greene, as well as right-handers Casey Mize and Freddy Pacheco from the 60-day IL.
It comes as no surprise that the Tigers exercised their $11.5MM option for Canha after they dealt for the veteran outfielder on Saturday. Given the $2MM buyout on his contract, it wouldn’t have made any sense for Detroit to trade for Canha (and give up 25-year-old righty Blake Holub) only to part ways with him two days later. He figures to play an important role in the team’s offense next season, presumably splitting his time between the corner outfield and DH.
As for Kelly, the Tigers were expected to pick up his $3.5MM option for 2024. At his end-of-season press conference, president of baseball operations Scott Harris said the team was seriously considering keeping the backstop in the fold. The team already has a starting catcher in place, 28-year-old Jake Rogers, so Kelly can serve as a capable defensive backup, with the potential to be a little bit more – the former top prospect is only two years removed from an above-average season at the plate. For $3.5MM, the Tigers weren’t going to find much more than that.
Alexander, 29, made 25 appearances for the Tigers in 2023, his first full season as a reliever. He pitched to a 4.50 ERA and a career-best 3.48 SIERA in 44 innings of work. Unfortunately, his solid season came to an early end when he landed on the IL with a shoulder strain in July.
Vasquez spent the first four months of the season with the Phillies, with whom he posted an impressive 2.27 ERA but less promising underlying numbers. He was designated for assignment shortly after the trade deadline, and the Tigers scooped him up. Unfortunately, he couldn’t find the same success in Detroit. Across 12 appearances, he gave up nine runs (eight earned) in just 8 2/3 innings of work. He missed most of September with a calf injury, although he made two scoreless appearances at the end of the month.
After spending most of the first half on the injured list, Wingenter made 17 appearances for the Tigers in 2023, his first big league action since 2019. His 5.82 ERA was troublesome, but his underlying metrics were actually quite encouraging: a 3.43 SIERA, a 3.87 xERA, and a much-improved 3.14 strikeout-to-walk ratio. Then again, he produced those numbers in mostly low-leverage spots, and apparently, the Tigers weren’t impressed enough with what they saw to keep Wingenter on the 40-man roster.
After seven years in Detroit’s minor league system, Montero would have been eligible to elect minor league free agency had the Tigers not added him to the 40-man roster this afternoon. He is coming off a difficult couple of months at Triple-A, but he is still just 23 years old, and evidently, the Tigers like what they have seen enough to keep him around. According to MLB Pipeline, he is the No. 26 prospect in the Tigers system.
Minor 40-Man Moves: Rodríguez, Vázquez, Nance
It has been an extremely busy day at MLBTR, since today was the deadline for various roster machinations around the league. Free agency, both the major league and minor league variety, kicked off at 4:00 pm Central. That was also the deadline for decisions on various contract options, as well as the deadline for clubs to decide whether to issue qualifying offers to eligible players. Those deadlines led to many roster moves, some of which got lost in the shuffle. Here’s a post rounding up some moves that were missed throughout the day.
- The Rays announced that they added right-hander Manuel Rodríguez to their 40-man roster, preventing him from reaching minor league free agency. Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reported on the move prior to the official announcement. The 27-year-old was acquired from the Cubs in a trade just before the deadline. He made 34 major league appearances with the Cubs over 2021 and 2022 but spent all of 2023 in the minors. Between the two clubs, he had a 3.99 ERA in 56 1/3 innings on the farm, striking out 32.4% of hitters against a 10.5% walk rate. The club also announced that infielder Tristan Gray, outfielder Raimel Tapia and right-hander Cole Sulser, all of whom were placed on waivers last week, cleared waivers and will become free agents.
- The Cubs added infielder Luis Vázquez to their 40-man roster, per Meghan Montemurro of Chicago Tribune, to prevent him from reaching minor league free agency. The 24-year-old has spent his entire professional career with the Cubs, having been selected by them in the 14th round of the 2017 draft. He split this year between Double-A and Triple-A, hitting .271/.361/.456 for a wRC+ of 112. He played the three infield position to the left of first base, giving the club some depth at those positions going forward.
- The Marlins announced they sent right-hander Tommy Nance outright to Triple-A Jacksonville. The righty had an encouraging season for the Fish in 2022, making 35 appearances with a 4.33 ERA, 29.1% strikeout rate, 10.7% walk rate and 46.4% ground ball rate. Unfortunately, a shoulder strain kept him on the injured list until August, at which point he was optioned, meaning he didn’t pitch in the majors in 2023. He also finished the year on the IL due to an oblique strain. His 17 innings in the minors resulted in a 1.59 ERA.
Diamondbacks Extend Torey Lovullo Through 2026
The Diamondbacks have signed manager Torey Lovullo to a contract extension that will keep him at the helm in Arizona through the 2026 season, sources revealed to reporters (including Steve Gilbert of MLB.com). Considering the team’s success in 2023 – capped off with a National League pennant – it’s no surprise that the Diamondbacks’ front office wants the skipper to stick around for the foreseeable future. Lovullo has been the D-backs manager since 2017.
Funnily enough, this is the second extension Lovullo has signed this year alone. As the 2023 campaign began, his contract was set to expire at the end of the season. However, in early June, when the D-backs boasted the best record in the National League, the skipper signed a one-year extension; evidently, the front office didn’t want a lame duck manager leading the team on a playoff run.
Earlier in the offseason, the Diamondbacks signed general manager Mike Hazen to an extension that runs through the 2028 campaign, with a club option for 2029. They also gave new contracts to executives Amiel Sawdaye and Mike Fitzgerald. Now, with Lovullo under contract for the next three seasons, the team has extended all of the top baseball decision-makers who helped the team win their first NL pennant in over twenty years.
Javier Baez Opts In To Final Four Years On Tigers’ Deal
Tigers shortstop Javier Baez declined to opt out of his contract with the Tigers, writes Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free-Press. He’ll be due $98MM over the next four seasons.
There was no suspense with the decision. Baez has struggled mightily since landing in Detroit. He owns a .230/.273/.361 line through the first two seasons of a six-year, $140MM free agent pact. That includes a .222/.267/.325 slash through 547 trips to the dish in 2023.
Baez is due $25MM annually over the next two seasons, followed by $24MM yearly salaries in 2026 and ’27. That contract would make it very difficult for the Tigers to trade him unless they pay the money down almost in entirety. Detroit could look to supplant Baez as the starting shortstop this offseason, although the weak free agent class at the position makes that more challenging than would be the case in a typical winter.
Mets Claim Zack Short From Tigers
Former Tigers infielder Zack Short has been claimed on waivers by the Mets, the Tigers announced. This comes amidst a flurry of roster moves for the Tigers, who needed to open up several spots on the 40-man ahead of the deadline to move players off of the 60-day injured list, as well as the deadline to add players to the 40-man before they can elect minor league free agency.
Drafted by the Cubs in 2016, Short was traded to the Tigers in 2020 in exchange for veteran outfielder Cameron Maybin. He made his big league debut the following season, appearing in 61 games for Detroit and struggling his way to a .141/.239/.282 batting line. The utility infielder spent almost all of the 2022 season at Triple-A, but he made his way back to the majors in April 2023 and never looked back. While no one could argue his bat was an asset, he posted a much-improved .204/.292/.339 slash line while showing off his defensive versatility all over the diamond. By the end of the year, he had appeared in 112 games, occasionally as a starter but just as often as a pinch runner or mid-game defensive replacement.
While his offense may never be a strength, Short draws walks well, and he can put his plus speed to work when he reaches base. Moreover, his defense might not stand out at any one position, but he is capable of covering second, third, and short, and even the outfield in a pinch. As long as he doesn’t regress at the plate, his flexibility could earn him another shot at MLB playing time next season, especially since he is out of minor league options.
In further Mets news, all six players the team placed on outright waivers last week have cleared, per Anthony DiComo of MLB.com. Bryce Montes de Oca and Peyton Battenfield have been sent outright to Triple-A and will remain with the organization, while Tim Locastro, John Curtiss, Elieser Hernandez, and Denyi Reyes have elected free agency.