Orioles Place John Means On Injured List, Select Travis Lakins
3:23pm: Manager Brandon Hyde told reporters (including Nathan Ruiz of the Baltimore Sun) that Means has a muscular strain in his forearm. The southpaw is headed for further testing to determine if there’s any structural damage, and Hyde said the O’s will be without their top pitcher for “a while.”
2:15pm: The Orioles announced Friday that they’ve placed left-hander John Means on the 10-day injured list due to a left elbow strain. In his place, they’ve selected the contract of right-hander Travis Lakins Sr. from Triple-A Norfolk. Lefty Kevin Smith was outrighted to Norfolk after clearing waivers, thus opening a spot on the roster for Lakins.
It’s an ominous IL placement for Means, who’s been Baltimore’s top (and only consistently serviceable) starter since 2019. The 28-year-old southpaw carries a 3.72 ERA with a 21.2% strikeout rate and a stellar 5.1% walk rate through 353 1/3 innings in that time — including a 3.38 ERA in two starts this season. Means, however, exited his most recent outing due to forearm tightness, which is often a precursor to an elbow injury. The O’s haven’t made any further announcements about the extent of the strain or a possible timetable for Means’ return, though a strain, by definition, involves at least some degree of stretching or tearing.
Lakins, 27, will return for a third straight season of big league work with the O’s. He posted a strong 2.81 ERA in 25 2/3 innings for the Birds back in 2020, albeit with more dubious peripheral stats (in particular, his 11.2% walk rate). He tossed another 28 innings with the Orioles in 2021 but saw the pendulum swing the other direction on his results, as opponents knocked him around to the tune of a 5.79 ERA.
A sixth-rounder by the Red Sox back in 2015, Lakins has spent parts of three seasons in the Majors and compiled a 4.21 ERA in 77 frames, albeit with a sub-par 19.7% strikeout rate and 11.7% walk rate. He’s posted similar numbers in 66 career innings at the Triple-A level as well.
As for Smith, the 24-year-old lefty had yielded just two runs through his first 7 2/3 innings of Triple-A ball this season. That said, he’d also issued six walks against just three strikeouts in that time — a continuation of last year’s troublesome penchant for issuing free passes. Smith didn’t have major control problems prior to reaching Triple-A, but since debuting at that level in 2021, he’s walked a sky-high 18% of the 306 opponents he’s faced. Paired with only an average strikeout rate, those issues locating the ball led him to go unclaimed by all 29 other teams. He’ll remain with the O’s and hope to work out those command issues.
Phillies Outright Jeff Singer
April 15: Singer has been assigned outright to Triple-A Lehigh Valley after clearing waivers, the Phillies announced.
April 13: The Phillies announced Wednesday morning that they’ve reinstated right-hander Corey Knebel from the Covid-related injured list and designated left-hander Jeff Singer for assignment to open a spot on the 40-man roster.
Singer, 28, was just selected to the big league roster yesterday when Knebel landed on the Covid list. Placement on the Covid-related IL is not necessarily indicative of a positive test, as players can also be placed on the list if they are deemed a close contact to a confirmed positive case or if they exhibit symptoms and undergo testing. Knebel was dealing with flu-like symptoms earlier in the week, though it would appear any such concerns have subsided.
For those wondering why Singer was not eligible to be “returned” to the Triple-A roster without needing to pass through waivers — as we saw with Covid replacement players on several occasions in 2021 — MLBTR has confirmed that the 2022 health-and-safety protocols stipulate that waiver-exempt replacement/substitute players can be utilized only if a team “experiences a significant number of Covid-19 IL placements … such that it implicates a club’s ability to field a competitive team.” That threshold is subject to commissioner Rob Manfred’s discretion, but Knebel was a one-off case with the Phillies and thus could not be replaced by a “substitute” player.
Thus, it’ll be a brief one-day call-up to the Majors for Singer, who did not appear in last night’s game. That’s a harsh reality that now comes with the possibility of him changing hands via a small trade or a claim from another club on outright waivers. On the flip side, he just logged his first day of Major League service time and the subsequent prorated pay that comes with it. He’ll continue to accrue Major League service and pay as long as he’s in DFA limbo for anywhere from the next two to seven days.
The 28-year-old Singer has tossed four shutout innings so far for the IronPigs in 2022, though he’s also yielded four walks against just a pair of strikeouts. The Philadelphia native spent the 2021 season in Triple-A as well, pitching to a 4.75 ERA with a 28.2% strikeout rate against a 10.9% walk rate. He’s kept his strikeout rate in the 27-29% range over the past several minor league seasons, albeit without particularly strong walk rates. If he passes through waivers unclaimed, he’d return to Lehigh Valley and remain with the organization, though he’d no longer occupy a spot on the 40-man roster.
A’s Announce Several Roster Moves
The Athletics announced a series of roster moves Friday, placing outfielder Stephen Piscotty on the Covid-related injured list in addition to placing catcher Austin Allen, left-hander A.J. Puk and left-hander Kirby Snead on the restricted list in advance of the team’s series in Toronto. In their place, the A’s added catcher Christian Bethancourt, right-hander Ryan Castellani, left-hander Zach Logue and outfielder Drew Jackson as “substitute” players. That they’ve been designated Covid-related substitutes will allow the A’s to send all four back to Triple-A without needing to use an option or (in the case of Bethancourt, Castellani and Jackson) pass anyone through waivers. Lastly, the A’s announced that outfielder Luis Barrera, whom they designated for assignment last week, cleared waivers and has been assigned outright to Triple-A Las Vegas.
The series of placements on the restricted list quite likely stems from restrictions preventing unvaccinated athletes from traveling into Canada to participate in games there. Many teams will likely make a few placements of this nature in advance of road series against the Jays, at least so long as those regulations remain in place (although the Rangers did not do so prior to traveling to Toronto for last weekend’s opener).
Piscotty, 31, is out to a 4-for-14 start with four singles, a pair of walks and five strikeouts in 17 trips to the plate. He’s hoping for a bounceback season after logging a combined .223/.277/.355 batting line in 359 plate appearances from 2020-21. That he was placed on the Covid-related injured list does not necessarily indicate a positive test from Piscotty; players can also be placed on the Covid-related IL if they’re deemed close contacts or experiencing symptoms.
Bethancourt, Castellani, Logue and Jackson will provide some depth in the absence of the three players going on the restricted list. Bethancourt, Castellani and Jackson have some MLB experience — Bethancourt, in particular — but this’ll be the first call to the Majors for the 25-year-old Logue, who was one of four players Oakland acquired from the Blue Jays in the trade that sent Matt Chapman to Toronto (as was Snead). Logue has made a pair of starts in Triple-A Las Vegas thus far but will likely be available out of the ‘pen, with Daulton Jefferies, Paul Blackburn and Adam Oller slated to start the next three games for Oakland.
As for Barrera, the A’s will surely be glad they were able to hang onto the 26-year-old — although the very fact that he went unclaimed speaks to the manner in which his stock has deteriorated in recent years. Barrera has long been considered one of the organization’s better prospects but hit just .276/.348/.393 in Triple-A last season, checking in at 12% worse than league-average by measure of wRC+.
Despite last year’s 10.1% walk rate in Triple-A, however, virtually every scouting report on Barrera cites a need to be more selective at the plate. Baseball America notes that he swung at 48% of the pitches he saw in 2021, which might make it tough for him to repeat that walk rate. Still, Barrera can play all three outfield spots and has above-average speed, as well as a solid track record up through Double-A.
Nationals Claim Josh Palacios From Blue Jays
The Nationals announced Friday that they’ve claimed outfielder Josh Palacios off waivers from the Blue Jays and optioned him to Triple-A Rochester. Washington freed a spot on the 40-man roster earlier this week when infielder Dee Strange-Gordon was placed on the COVID-19 injured list.
Palacios, 26, made his big league debut with the Jays in 2021 and went 7-for-35 (all singles) with three walks, a couple of hit-by-pitches and 11 strikeouts. The resulting .200/.293/.200 batting line obviously isn’t appealing, but the 2016 fourth-rounder has a better track record in the minors, where he’s slashed .287/.367/.402 in parts of six seasons.
Capable of playing all three outfield spots, Palacios draws praise in scouting reports for solid defense, above-average speed and good bat-to-ball skills. He’s never had much in the way of power, however, evidenced by a career-high of eight home runs back in 2018 — though it’s perhaps of note that he has already connected on a pair of round-trippers in just 24 Triple-A plate appearances so far in 2022. He’s not a burner on the basepaths but does have a pair of 15-steal seasons under his belt, and Palacios has fanned in under 20% of his minor league plate appearances while walking at a 10% clip.
The Nationals’ current outfield mix includes Lane Thomas, Victor Robles, Yadiel Hernandez, newly recalled Donovan Casey and, of course, superstar outfielder Juan Soto. Palacios could eventually get a look as a versatile fourth-outfield option, but for the time being he’ll provide some depth in the upper minors.
Twins Place Alex Kirilloff On Injured List
April 15: An MRI did not reveal any new damage for Kirilloff, Baldelli tells reporters (Twitter link via Helfand). Kirilloff received a cortisone injection to help with the inflammation and discomfort. Baldelli expressed some optimism that eventually, Kirilloff should be able to “manage and do some maintenance” on the wrist while continuing to play through the issue.
That’s not a terribly encouraging update, though it’s at least good news that there’s no new injury at play for the promising young outfielder. Do-Hyoung Park of MLB.com adds that it does not appear Kirilloff will be shut down for too long.
April 13: The Twins have placed outfielder Alex Kirilloff on the 10-day injured list due to inflammation in his surgically repaired right wrist. Fellow outfielder Trevor Larnach is up from Triple-A St. Paul in his place.
It’s a concerning development for the Twins and Kirilloff, whose 2021 season ended after he underwent surgery to repair a torn ligament in that same wrist. Manager Rocco Baldelli told Betsy Helfand of the St. Paul Pioneer Press and other reporters that the discomfort in Kirilloff’s wrist didn’t pop up after one particular swing but just slowly crept back up (Twitter link).
Kirilloff, 24, was the No. 15 overall draft pick back in 2016 and ranked among the game’s 100 best prospects from 2019-21 as he climbed the minor league ranks. MLB.com rated him as the sport’s ninth-best prospect heading into the 2019 season. Kirilloff made his Major League debut for the Twins in the 2020 postseason and made his regular-season debut in 2021.
After a brutal first eight games in terms of results, the hard contact Kirilloff had been making began translating into production. From April 30 through the time of his season-ending IL placement last year, he slashed .270/.322/.460 with eight homers, ten doubles and a triple in 205 plate appearances. Kirilloff actually sustained the wrist injury in early May, which resulted in a nearly three-week stay on the injured list. He returned and remained generally productive, but his power began to dip, and the pain in his wrist eventually became too much to play through. Minnesota announced on July 21 that Kirilloff would undergo surgery.
The obvious hope for the Twins is that the injury this time around will prove to be nothing more than inflammation, though Kirilloff will undergo further evaluation before determining the full extent of the injury. The short-term impact of the injury is notable, but the most important issue for the Twins and for Kirilloff will be to put the injury behind him once and for all — to whatever extent that’s possible. Kirilloff has the makings of a potential building block for the Twins, evidenced by his lofty draft status, prospect rankings and his career .318/.366/.503 slash in the minors.
In place of Kirilloff, the Twins will turn to the 25-year-old Larnach. Like Kirilloff, he’s a former first-round pick (20th overall in 2018) and top-100 prospect who has the potential to serve as a key lineup piece for years to come. Larnach is a career .292/.375/.451 hitter in the minors and got out to a strong start in his big league career in 2021, with his initial call-up also coming as the result of a Kirilloff injury. Larnach hit .262/.361/.445 with seven homers and nine doubles through his first 191 plate appearances, but he fell into a catastrophic late slump and batted just .156/.255/.188 over his final 110 trips to the plate.
Larnach had a big Spring Training, hitting .294/.400/.706 with a pair of homers and a double in 20 plate appearances. He’s out to a poor start in St. Paul so far (2-for-19), but he’ll now be thrust back into the big league spotlight and hope to recapture that early-2021 form. He’ll share time in the outfield with fellow prospect Gilberto Celestino and former first-rounder Nick Gordon, who got the nod in left field today with Kirilloff heading to the injured list.
Brandon Nimmo, Mark Canha Test Positive For Covid-19
Mets outfielders Brandon Nimmo and Mark Canha are both out of the lineup and likely headed to the injured list after testing positive for Covid-19, reports Mike Puma of the New York Post (Twitter link). Both players are asymptomatic. Newsday’s Tim Healey first reported this morning that tweets that a member of the Mets’ staff had tested positive and that a few players were deemed close contacts and undergoing testing.
Under the league’s 2022 health-and-safety protocols, players who test positive are subject to a 10-day absence from the club, though it’s possible to be reinstated in less time if the player has gone 24 or more hours without a fever, received a pair of negative PCR tests, and been given approval from a team physician and the MLB/MLBPA joint committee (a panel of one league-appointed and one union-appointed physician). Asymptomatic players are not subject to regular testing under the 2022 protocols, but it’s possible that Canha (who told reporters last year that he is vaccinated) and Nimmo were deemed close contacts of the staff member(s) in question.
With both Nimmo and Canha sidelined for at least the next few days, manager Buck Showalter tells reporters that outfielder Nick Plummer and infielder Matt Reynolds are with the team (Twitter link via Puma). Showalter also added that one member of his coaching staff tested positive (Twitter link via Healey).
Plummer is on the 40-man roster, but Reynolds was not previously on the 40-man. Neither Nimmo nor Canha will count against the 40-man roster while on the Covid-related injured list, however, making it easier to add Reynolds to the roster. The Mets have Jeff McNeil starting in left field, Travis Jankowski in center, Robinson Cano at second base and J.D. Davis at designated hitter today. Dominic Smith‘s left-handed bat is somewhat surprisingly absent from the lineup against right-hander Zach Davies, but Showalter tells reporters that’s simply because he wanted to get Davis some at-bats amid a lengthy stretch of predominantly right-handed opponents (Twitter link via Puma).
Reds, Sandy Leon Agree To Minor League Contract
The Reds and free-agent catcher Sandy Leon have agreed to a minor league contract, reports Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic (Twitter link).
Leon, 33, will give Cincinnati some extra catching depth after they traded Tucker Barnhart to the Tigers this offseason. The emergence of young Tyler Stephenson played a large role in prompting that trade, and Stephenson is locked in as the primary backstop for manager David Bell, but Leon could eventually get a look in the big leagues should Stephenson incur an injury or should current backup Aramis Garcia struggle or get hurt.
Leon spent the 2021 season with the Marlins, where he slashed .183/.237/.267 in 220 plate appearances. Outside of what now looks like an anomalous 2016 campaign that saw him slash .310/.369/.476 in 283 trips to the plate, Leon has never provided much value with the bat. He’s regarded as a strong defensive backstop, however, evidenced by plus framing rates, a career 33% caught-stealing rate and a total of 36 Defensive Runs Saved in 3621 career innings behind the plate.
Offseason In Review: St. Louis Cardinals
The Cardinals brought in some new faces and some old friends, as they look for a 15th straight winning season and fourth consecutive playoff berth.
Major League Signings
- Steven Matz, SP: four years, $44MM
- Drew VerHagen, SP/RP: two years, $5.5MM
- Corey Dickerson, OF: one year, $5MM
- Albert Pujols, 1B: one year, $2.5MM
- T.J. McFarland, RP: one year, $2.5MM
- Nick Wittgren, RP: one year, $1.2MM
2022 spending: $22.2MM
Total spending: $60.7MM
Options Exercised
- None
Trades and Claims
- Claimed SP/RP Ljay Newsome off waivers from Mariners (later outrighted to Triple-A)
- Claimed SP/RP Packy Naughton off waivers from Angels
Extensions
- Signed CF Harrison Bader to a two-year, 10.4MM deal to cover two arbitration seasons
Notable Minor League Signings
- Kyle Ryan, Aaron Brooks (later selected to the 40-man roster), Cory Spangengerg, Zach McAllister, Blake Parker, James Naile, Anderson Tejeda
Notable Losses
- Luis Garcia, Carlos Martinez, J.A. Happ, Jon Lester, Matt Carpenter, Kwang Hyun Kim, Andrew Miller, Austin Dean, Wade LeBlanc, Justin Williams
Before the offseason even began, a lot had already happened in the world of the Cardinals. Yadier Molina signed a one-year extension in August and then quickly declared that 2022 would be his final season. In September, Nolan Arenado went public with the fact that he would not be opting out of his contract. In October, just a couple of days before the team was about to face the Dodgers in the Wild Card game, they reached a one-year extension with Adam Wainwright, thus keeping in place one of the most consistent batteries in the history of the game. If Wainwright and Molina can start 20 games together this year, they will pass the Tigers battery of Mickey Lolich and Bill Freehan for most in baseball history. (Wainwright, it should be noted, has not announced whether the 2022 campaign will be his last.)
Despite all that continuity, there was one major shakeup, with manager Mike Shildt being fired about a week after the Cards lost to the Dodgers in the Wild Card game. This was quite surprising at the time, as there hadn’t been any indication a change of this nature had been imminent. The Cardinals made the postseason in all three of his full seasons at the helm, and on the heels of last September’s 17-game winning streak, there’d even been talk of a potential extension for Shildt after the season. Within less than two weeks of the firing, the club had replaced him from within, promoting bench coach Oliver Marmol to the job.
As the calendar flipped to November and the World Series ended, awards season began, with the Cardinals becoming the first ever team to win five Gold Gloves, highlighting the tremendous defense that helped them be so successful. This defense would go on to be a central part of their offseason moves. It was even reported recently that the club considered moving in the fences of Busch Stadium to make it more hitter-friendly, but ultimately decided against it as that would negate their defensive advantage. With the position player core almost entirely intact for 2022, their offseason would largely be focused on pitching, as well as the new designated hitter slot.
Less than 24 hours into free agency, the club pounced and re-signed lefty T.J. McFarland. He had a nice season in 2021, throwing 38 2/3 innings with a 2.56 ERA. Though he didn’t strike out many hitters (14.6%), his 63.7% ground-ball rate made him an excellent fit in front of that elite Cardinal infield.
On the starting pitching side, the Cardinals reportedly had interest in players such as Andrew Heaney, Alex Cobb and Nick Martinez, but ultimately agreed to a deal with Steven Matz. His four-year, $44MM guarantee beat MLBTR’s three-year, $27MM projection in both years and average annual value. Matz doesn’t have McFarland’s elite ground-ball numbers, but he’s a bit better than most in that regard. He has a career grounder rate of 47%, and his 45.5% mark in 2021 checked in a couple points ahead of last year’s league-wide average of 42.7%. Matz doesn’t have huge strikeout totals, but he owns a career walk rate of 7.1% and was down to 6.6% in 2021. With that golden defense behind him, it’s possible he could improve upon 2021’s 3.82 ERA, as solid as that was.
The Cards further bolstered their pitching staff after the lockout by signing Drew VerHagen, the first MLB signing after the transactions freeze lifted. He had spent the previous two seasons pitching in Japan and used his sinker to record a 53.9% ground-ball rate in that time, continuing with the offseason’s broader acquisition pattern. Nick Wittgren was then added to the bullpen mix. He isn’t specifically a ground-ball machine, but does have good control. He’s only had a walk rate higher than 7.1% in one of his big league seasons thus far. Aaron Brooks, selected to the roster in late March, fits this profile as well. He spent the past two seasons pitching in Korea, with a mediocre strikeout rate but a minuscule 4.4% walk rate and incredibly posting a ground-ball rate above 75% in both years.
During the lockout, it was reported that the Cardinals had some interest in Colin Moran. Given the likelihood of the universal designated hitter being implemented in the new CBA, Moran made some sense as a left-handed bench/DH option. However, after the lockout ended, Moran signed with the Reds and the Cards landed Corey Dickerson for the job instead. The outfielder had slumped in the shortened 2020 campaign and didn’t have a great start to 2021 with the Marlins, but Dickerson finished well after a midseason trade to the Blue Jays.
The Cards had one final move up their sleeves, a move that might have been small in terms of cost but huge in terms of emotion. Franchise icon Albert Pujols, who spent the best years of his Hall-of-Fame career in St. Louis, headed back to Missouri after a decade in California. Shortly after signing, like Molina, he announced that this would be his last season.
Although Pujols’ productivity slipped during his time with the Angels, the Dodgers picked him up last year and showed he could still be a useful part of a team in a limited role. They tried to mostly send him up to the plate to face left-handed pitching, allowing him to hit .254/.299/.460 as a Dodger, around league average production. His overall work against lefties, a .294/.336/.603 output, further proves that he can still produce in the right role. Pujols will likely serve a similar bench/platoon/DH role with the Cards, but the image of him reuniting with Molina and Wainwright will resonate among Cardinals fans beyond his on-the-field contributions.
In the end, there’s a lot of continuity for the Cardinals. They’ve lost some now-retired veterans like Jon Lester and Andrew Miller, but added in a few fresh arms in Matz, VerHagen, Wittgren and Brooks. Although they’re not marquee names, they have a chance to succeed based on the marriage of their particular skills with what the Cardinals already have in house. With the Pirates deep in a rebuild, the Reds cutting costs and the Cubs retooling, St. Louis seems well-positioned for another strong season in the NL Central. In the past 21 years, they’ve only posted a losing record once (78-84 in 2007), have made the playoffs 15 times and won the World Series twice. Wainwright, Molina and Pujols have been huge contributors in that stretch, and this year will provide at least two members of that trio a chance to put the finishing touches on their legacies and an incredible run of success for the franchise.
Twins Select Kyle Garlick, Designate Dereck Rodriguez For Assignment
The Twins announced Friday morning that they’ve selected the contract of outfielder Kyle Garlick from Triple-A St. Paul and designated right-hander Dereck Rodriguez for assignment in a corresponding move.
Garlick, 30, opened the 2021 season as a fourth outfielder with the Twins and posted a .232/.280/.466 batting line in 107 trips to the plate. Primarily deployed against southpaws, he turned in a much more robust .271/.302/.576 batting line in 59 trips to the plate in such situations. Garlick landed on the 10-day injured list a couple of times — the first for a positive Covid test and the second for a sports hernia that eventually required surgery and ended his season. Minnesota passed him through waivers after the season, but Garlick will now return and presumably occupy a similar part-time role, perhaps splitting time with Trevor Larnach in left field while Alex Kirilloff is on the shelf with continued wrist troubles.
It proved to be a short stay with the big league club for Rodriguez, the son of Hall of Fame catcher and a former Twins prospect who made his way back to the organization by way of a minor league deal this offseason. Rodriguez tossed four innings of long relief against the Dodgers earlier this week, tossing three scoreless frames before being tagged for back-to-back-to-back home runs off the bats of Cody Bellinger, Gavin Lux and Austin Barnes. He finished that lone appearance as a Twin with three runs through four innings pitched.
Now 29 years old, Rodriguez was a sixth-round pick by Minnesota back in 2011 but didn’t make his MLB debut until 2018, after he’d signed with the Giants as a minor league free agent. He turned in a stellar rookie campaign, logging 118 1/3 innings of 2.81 ERA ball, but Rodriguez has just a 5.97 ERA in 107 big league innings since that time.
Rodriguez averaged 92 mph on his heater in that one-off appearance this year. He’s generally posted below-average strikeout and ground-ball rates but been better than average when it comes to limiting free passes. He’s also optionable for the remainder of the 2022 season, which could enhance his appeal to another club in need of some upper-level pitching depth. The Twins will have a week to trade Rodriguez, pass him through outright waivers or release him.
Pirates, Bryan Reynolds Agree To Two-Year Deal To Avoid Arbitration
The Pirates and center fielder Bryan Reynolds have agreed to a two-year contract to avoid arbitration, reports Jeff Passan of ESPN (Twitter link). The deal covers the 2022-23 campaigns and doesn’t affect the team’s window of contractual control. Reynolds is a CAA Sports client.
It’s a $13.5MM guarantee, reports Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (on Twitter). He’ll receive matching $6.75MM salaries in each of the next two seasons, adds Rob Biertempfel of the Athletic.
Mackey wrote last week the Pirates were hoping to get a two-year deal done with Reynolds. As he noted, the Bucs are a “file-and-trial” team, meaning they decline to discuss one-year agreements with players once the deadline to exchange arbitration figures passes. That’s a fairly common practice around the league, albeit one teams set themselves.
By establishing the precedent they won’t continue negotiations after filing day, the reasoning goes, teams can deter players from filing at a high number in hopes of anchoring further discussions from an elevated starting point. If team and player go to a hearing, the arbitrator chooses one of the side’s desired figures rather than picking a midpoint. That incentivizes both to file for a salary reasonably in line with established precedent, since an outlier in either direction is less likely to be judged fair in the hearing.
On the other hand, going to a hearing with a star player like Reynolds isn’t ideal. The 27-year-old maintained in the past he wouldn’t be miffed by the process, but also acknowledged that the inherently adversarial arbitration process can sometimes get “messy” (link via Mackey). Signing a two-year deal after filing day allows the Pirates to maintain they’ve not violated their “file-and-trial” policy while avoiding the possibility of irritating one of their best players.
From Reynolds’ perspective, he locks in guaranteed earnings over the next couple years without delaying his path to free agency. He’ll also make more money this season than he would’ve even had he won a hearing. Reynolds’ camp had filed for a $4.9MM salary; the team had countered at $4.25MM. Pittsburgh will go above Reynolds’ desired mark this year to foreclose the possibility he receives a notable raise in 2023 with another big season.
Both sides are surely glad to avoid hearings for the next two years, but Reynolds’ long-term status with the organization isn’t much affected by today’s news. This was his first of four seasons of arb-eligibility as a Super Two qualifier. Barring another agreement at some point down the line, he’ll head through the arbitration process again in the 2023-24 and 2024-25 offseasons.
Reynolds is controllable through 2025, his age-30 campaign. He reportedly rejected an extension offer from the Bucs prior to the 2021 season and said in Spring Training the organization hadn’t seriously approached him about a long-term deal this year. Biertempfel tweets the two sides have discussed various potential contract structures in the past. It stands to reason they’ll eventually make a renewed effort at a longer-term pact.