Tommy Pham On Injuries, Free Agency
Tommy Pham‘s time with the Padres hasn’t gone as he or the organization would’ve hoped at the time of his acquisition from the Rays. The 33-year-old outfielder missed a chunk of “Summer Camp” last July after testing positive for Covid-19, and he suffered a broken hamate bone mid-August, limiting him to just 31 games. Even more alarming was a frightening offseason scene in which Pham was stabbed outside a San Diego club — a life-threatening attack that required 200 stitches and left the outfielder with a footlong scar on his back.
Pham, remarkably, managed to participate in Spring Training and was able to take the field come Opening Day for the Padres. It marked an incredible recovery, but it’s clear that that wave of health issues has taken its toll on Pham. Through 150 games and 553 plate appearances, Pham has posted just a .229/.342/.383 batting line. He’s drawing walks at a career-high 14.1 percent clip, but he’s also striking out at high highest rate since 2018 (22.8 percent) and hasn’t matched the power he showed from 2016-19. Given that Pham is set to hit the open market at season’s end, the combined .226/.336/.370 slash he’s delivered in two years with the Padres is all the more disappointing.
In a postgame interview with the San Diego Union-Tribune’s Annie Heilbrunn (YouTube link), Pham was candid in discussing his health, his own lackluster performance and the second-half collapse of his team. Asked about the Padres’ descent from what looked like a surefire playoff club to a team fighting to finish .500, Pham placed no shortage of blame on himself.
“I didn’t play well enough,” Pham said when asked what went wrong for the Padres. “…I’ve got to be a more consistent hitter. I’ve got to work on regaining my strength and speed this offseason. I have a lot to work on.”
Obviously, the Padres’ nosedive in the standings is related to far more than just a disappointing season for Pham, who couldn’t have anything resembling a normal offseason while recovering from surgery in the wake of that stabbing. However, Pham’s acknowledgement regarding his speed and strength (or lack thereof) is indeed borne out when looking at his Statcast profile.
Pham’s average exit velocity dropped by a hefty 1.9 mph in spite of the fact that his percentage of “barreled” balls improved from 7.3 percent to 10.1 percent. As Pham explains to Heilbrunn: “…even the balls I’ve been barreling, the exit velocity just ain’t there.”
From a speed perspective, Pham is still a better runner than the average big leaguer, but his sprint speed of 27.8 feet per second is down from last year’s 28.2 ft/sec and down more handily from the 28.7 ft/sec he posted in each season from 2016-19. It should be noted that Pham’s 90.9 mph exit velocity and 27.8 ft/sec sprint speed still rank in the 78th and 70th percentiles among big league players.
It’s all led to a stark downturn in performance for Pham, who from 2017-19 was among the game’s most underrated players. A 2017 breakout saw him post a huge .306/.411/.520 batting line with 23 homers and 25 steals in just 530 plate appearances/128 games. Pham largely sustained his production in his two subsequent healthy seasons, wrapping that three-year stretch up with a composite .284/.381/.475 line. He was worth 13.5 and 13.8 wins above replacement, respectively, in the estimation of Baseball-Reference.com and FanGraphs during that time.
Had Pham reached the market on the heels of that three-year run, he’d have been extremely well compensated. But as a late-bloomer who didn’t get an earnest look with the Cardinals until 2017, at age 29, Pham will instead reach free agency headed into his age-34 campaign and on the heels of a pair of highly unfortunate seasons. He’s realistic about the toll these past two years have likely taken on his market.
“I didn’t have the season I was expecting,” says Pham. “I’m fully prepared to take a one-year deal and reestablish my market.”
[Related: 2021-22 MLB Free Agent List]
That’s a tough proposition for a player entering his mid-30s, however. Pham will be 34 next March, so even if he indeed reestablishes himself as a quality all-around corner outfielder, he’ll do so in advance of his age-35 campaign.
Given the manner in which teams are increasingly reluctant to sign mid-30s and late-30s players to lucrative multi-year deals, it’s fair to question just what type of ceiling would be placed on Pham’s earning power even if he does rebound in full. Michael Brantley inked a two-year, $32MM contract covering his age-34 and age-35 seasons after playing for three years at a roughly three- to four-win pace, however, so there’s some recent precedent for a corner outfielder in this age bracket commanding a rather lucrative multi-year pact.
Of course, any such talk is putting the cart before the horse. Pham’s focus in the offseason will be both getting back into peak physical condition and finding the best opportunity for the 2022 season. It’s not out of the question that teams would have some interest on a multi-year contract, given Pham’s prior excellence. Pham, however, sounded plenty confident in his ability to rebound from these past couple seasons and position himself for a stronger annual value in future trips to the market. Unsurprisingly, he made clear that he’d welcome the opportunity to do so with the Padres, though he gave no indication any such negotiations have taken place just yet.
Cubs Select Trent Giambrone
The Cubs are set to select the contract of infielder Trent Giambrone, reports MLB Network’s Jon Heyman (Twitter link). It’ll be the first call to the Majors for the former 25th-round pick.
Giambrone, 28 in December, has had a rough season in Triple-A this year but will bring plenty of versatility to the Cubs’ bench for the final few games of the year. In 271 plate appearances, he’s posted just a .174/.274/.255 batting line with three homers, eight doubles, a triple and five steals. He’s shown more power than that in past seasons, swatting 12 homers in 2017, 17 home runs in 2018 and 23 home runs in 2019.
Defensively, Giambrone has primarily been a second baseman both in 2021 and throughout his minor league career. He’s seen brief spells at third base, at shortstop and in the outfield corners this season, but he was deployed all over the field on a consistent basis back in 2019. That season saw Giambrone log between 103 and 334 innings at six different positions: all four infield spots and both outfield corners.
To make room for Giambrone on the active and 40-man rosters, Chicago placed third baseman Patrick Wisdom on the COVID-19 injured list.
Marlins, Sandy Alcantara Becoming More Optimistic About Possible Extension
There’s “growing optimism” between the Marlins and right-hander Sandy Alcantara about a potential extension, reports Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald. It’s a notable turn of events after the Marlins’ initial overtures were reported to be on the light side. Talks between the two sides have been ongoing, per Jackson, and both parties feel there’s progress being made.
It’s not clear when a theoretical deal would come together. Such matters are often reserved for later in the offseason or even Spring Training. Progress being made at this point could lead to a rare but not unheard-of September extension for a key player of this nature, or it could simply lay the groundwork for when the two parties pick things back up early in 2022.
What is clear to see is just why Miami is so keen on the idea of keeping Alcantara for the long haul. The 26-year-old righty has steadily improved in parts of four seasons with the Fish and has now emerged as the workhorse leader on the pitching staff. He’s one of just four pitchers in all of Major League Baseball to have reached the 200-inning threshold in 2021, as teams have been even more guarded than usual with pitcher workloads on the heels of the pandemic-shortened 2020 campaign. Alcantara, however, isn’t simply a durable innings eater providing innings in bulk; he’s developed into one of the game’s most effective hurlers.
In 200 2/3 frames this year, Alcantara boasts a strong 3.09 ERA with a roughly average 24 percent strikeout rate but near-elite walk and ground-ball rates (six percent and 53.4 percent, respectively). He averages 98.1 mph on his four-seamer and 97.5 mph on his sinker, complementing those high-speed offerings with a changeup and slider that both grade out as above-average pitches (the slider in particular). Alcantara’s 13.2 percent swinging-strike rate and huge 36.5 percent opponents’ chase rate are career-bests over a full season. This year’s ERA may look like a mere continuation of his 2020 success (3.00 ERA in 42 innings), but Alcantara has improved across the board in nearly every underlying rate stat of note.
Alcantara will be eligible for arbitration for the first time this winter, which has been an atypical juncture for starting pitchers to agree to extensions in recent years. As MLBTR’s Anthony Franco pointed out the last time extension rumors surrounding Alcantara surfaced, there are only two starting pitchers in the past half decade who’ve signed an extension when they were between three and four years of service time: Cardinals righty Carlos Martinez (five years, $51MM plus two club options) and Phillies righty Aaron Nola (four years, $45MM plus one club option).
The two contracts fall in the same realm in terms of total value, but Nola’s comparable guarantee over a shorter term was reflective of his superior results and stronger arbitration case to that point in his career. He likely prioritized a shorter deal as a trade-off, securing some early financial security while still being able to reach the market at a young enough age (31) to command a lucrative free-agent pact. Martinez’s deal surrendered considerably more team control but did so for a slightly larger guarantee that still represents a record sum for a pitcher in this service bracket.
On the surface, Alcantara has pitched well enough to stake a claim to set a new record, although it’d register as something of a surprise for a low-payroll club like Miami to set a new precedent in any service-time bracket. On the other hand, Alcantara has established himself as a high-end, foundational piece in the rotation and is now on the cusp of arbitration. That forthcoming arbitration raise gives him some leverage, as he’s all but locked up a notable salary for the first time in his career.
First-time arb-eligible pitchers have been stuck in a rather staggering rut when it comes to arbitration filings, as the repeatedly cited precedent for teams with first-time-eligible starting pitchers is Dontrelle Willis‘ $4.35MM mark all the way back in 2006. David Price matched that sum in his own first-time offseason (2012), but the only first-time-eligible starting pitcher to top that mark was Dallas Keuchel ($7.25MM), who only managed to do so on the heels of being named American League Cy Young winner. Perhaps notably, Nola filed at a hearty $6.7MM before agreeing to his extension; the Phillies had countered with a $4.5MM filing figure, which would have nominally moved the precedent forward regardless of a hearing’s outcome.
Alcantara could struggle to move past that clearly dated precedent in arbitration, but he’s pitched well enough to command a salary in the low-$4MM range at the very least. Even with a step back or a notable injury in 2022, he’d be quite likely to receive a similar salary in 2023, given that a pitcher of Alcantara’s caliber wouldn’t be non-tendered after one poor or injury-marred season. All of that lessens any urgency — at least relative to a pre-arbitration scenario — to take too team-friendly an offer.
Time will tell whether the two parties can hammer out a deal, but it’s notable that the Marlins are making an attempt and are seemingly coming up from their initial proposals. They currently control Alcantara through at least the 2024 season, but even following the Nola trajectory would extend that control through 2026. Of course, we can’t know yet how any tweaks to the collective bargaining agreement might impact the arbitration process and subsequent extension structures, which only adds another layer to a complex set of negotiations.
Regardless, Alcantara looks like a focal point in an increasingly interesting Marlins pitching staff that also features Pablo Lopez, Trevor Rogers, Elieser Hernandez, Jesus Luzardo and Zach Thompson. Notable prospects such as Edward Cabrera, Sixto Sanchez, Max Meyer and Jake Eder (who recently had Tommy John surgery) provide the Fish wish a wealth of high-upside depth — depth that could also set the stage for some offseason trades as the club looks to bolster its core of young position players.
Noah Syndergaard Discusses Impending Free Agency
Noah Syndergaard made his long-awaited return to the Mets this evening, firing a perfect inning as an opener in tonight’s win over the Marlins. It was the right-hander’s first big league appearance since September 2019, as Syndergaard lost all of last year and almost the entirety of this season recuperating from a March 2020 Tommy John surgery.
Syndergaard is scheduled to hit the open market a couple months from now, setting up one of the more interesting free agency cases of the offseason. At his best, the fireballer is one of the game’s most fearsome starters. He entered play tonight with a 3.31 ERA over 716 career innings, including a 2016-18 stretch in which he worked 368 1/3 frames of 2.81 ERA/2.42 FIP ball.
It’s difficult to know precisely what to expect from Syndergaard coming off two almost completely lost seasons, though. Teams aren’t going to place much emphasis on his results over a lone inning of work, but Syndergaard’s fastball averaged 96 MPH in his return outing. That’s not quite his peak level of arm strength, of course, but it’s sufficient velocity to assuage concerns that his stuff completely evaporated over the long layoff.
After the game, Syndergaard discussed his upcoming free agency with reporters (including Tim Britton of the Athletic and Deesha Thosar of the New York Daily News). The 29-year-old said he’s “fairly confident” he’ll remain with the Mets beyond this season, although he cautioned that statement was speculative as opposed to an indication the club and his representatives at CAA were on the verge of any sort of agreement.
The qualifying offer is one potential form a Mets’ return might take. New York could tag Syndergaard with a QO, which would be for one year and is expected to land in the $19-20MM range. If Syndergaard accepted the offer, he’d lock in another year in Queens. Were he to reject and sign elsewhere, the Mets would receive a draft choice as compensation.
Unsurprisingly, Syndergaard didn’t directly answer whether he’d accept a QO if offered. But he told reporters he’d “be extremely grateful” to be tagged with a QO, adding that that outcome would be “definitely something I’m hoping for.” That’s a bit counterintuitive on the surface, since being attached to draft pick compensation could have something of an adverse effect on Syndergaard’s market. It’s possible he’d simply appreciate the symbolism of the offer as a show of faith on the Mets’ part in his ability to bounce back next season. And a QO would at least give Syndergaard and his reps an additional option; players tagged with a QO have ten days to decide whether to accept, giving them some time to explore the market early in free agency while having a solid one-year salary available as a fallback.
Syndergaard is one of two key QO decisions the Mets will have to make this winter. They’re reportedly leaning towards offering one to outfielder Michael Conforto in spite of his generally disappointing 2021 campaign. There’s certainly merit to the idea of potentially bringing back both Syndergaard and Conforto on significant one-year deals. If they were to get a healthy season from Syndergaard and/or a Conforto bounceback next year, those salaries would look plenty reasonable and they’d be significant boons to the club’s hopes of putting this year’s second half swoon behind them and competing in the NL East.
Were both players to accept, however, that’d push the Mets’ guaranteed payroll up to around $175MM, in the estimation of Jason Martinez of Roster Resource, before accounting for an arbitration class that’ll include the likes of Edwin Díaz, Brandon Nimmo, Dominic Smith, J.D. Davis, Pete Alonso and Jeff McNeil. Those raises would take the Mets right up to or perhaps even past this season’s estimated $203MM player tab, and that’s without considering the possibilities of extending Marcus Stroman or Javier Báez and making outside upgrades. That’d leave the front office — and its still-unknown incoming president of baseball operations — potentially looking to trade away some established members of the roster, unless owner Steve Cohen is willing to dramatically ramp up spending in his second year atop the franchise.
Astros Could Use Zack Greinke In Relief In Postseason
The Astros are two wins away from wrapping up an AL West title that would lock in a Division Series matchup with the White Sox. That series could see one of Houston’s most prominent hurlers working in a relief capacity.
Zack Greinke landed on the 10-day injured list last week because of neck soreness, his second trip to the IL this month. He’s expected to conclude his regular season with a rehab start on Thursday for Triple-A Sugar Land, manager Dusty Baker told reporters (including Jake Kaplan of the Athletic). Asked about Greinke’s potential postseason role, Baker said using him in relief is “a very distinct possibility.”
Using Greinke in shorter stints would primarily be motivated by workload concerns. The veteran righty has made just two big league starts this month, topping out at 75 pitches on September 14 against the Rangers. With the postseason kicking off next week, there’s some concern Greinke might not be able to ramp back up to work 100+ pitches in a traditional start.
Even independent of injury limitations, it’s debatable whether his performance merits a spot in the Astros’ top three or four starters this fall. Greinke’s 4.11 ERA ranks fifth among Houston’s six starters (minimum 50+ innings), and his peripherals land in a similar position. His 17% strikeout rate is the lowest on staff, while his 11.8 percentage point strikeout/walk rate differential ranks fifth on the team. Greinke ranks fifth on the club in SIERA (4.58) and last in swinging strike rate (9.1%).
Quite obviously, Greinke’s no longer the ace he was at his peak. The former Cy Young award winner’s 2021 season has been average or slightly worse by most metrics. He still has fantastic command, but Greinke’s stuff has dipped to the point where he’s best suited in the middle or back of a rotation.
But Greinke’s potential exclusion from a postseason rotation is also a testament to the strength of the Astros’ other options. Framber Valdez and Lance McCullers Jr. have each ridden huge ground-ball rates to an ERA below 3.25. Luis García should garner some Rookie of the Year support after tossing 144 1/3 innings of 3.30 ERA ball with better than average strikeout and walk rates. José Urquidy doesn’t post big strikeout totals, but he’s a control artist who stays off barrels and perennially outperforms his peripherals. And while Jake Odorizzi hasn’t been fantastic, he’s posted similar numbers as Greinke has, giving Baker and the front office plenty of starting options to choose from come October.
Baker also provided an update on Michael Brantley (via Mark Berman of Fox 26). The left fielder could be reinstated from his own IL stint “in the next couple days,” suggesting he should be ready to go for the postseason. One of the game’s most consistently productive hitters, Brantley has a characteristically strong .315/.367/.441 line (126 wRC+) in 493 plate appearances.
Brandon Belt Expected To Miss Around Four Weeks Due to Thumb Fracture
SEPTEMBER 28: Belt has been placed on the 10-day injured list, with Thairo Estrada recalled to take his active roster spot. Belt’s fracture is expected to take around four weeks to fully heal, reports Andrew Baggarly of the Athletic (Twitter link). It’s possible the club attempts to expedite his return to the field even before the bone is fully healed, with the plan for Belt to be reevaluated on an approximately weekly basis.
That wouldn’t officially end Belt’s season, but it does seem likely the Giants will need to make a deep postseason run (perhaps as far as the World Series) to give him an opportunity to return. Ruf, who is eligible to be activated from his own IL stint this week, seems likely to handle first base for the Giants throughout most of the playoffs.
SEPTEMBER 27: The Giants have announced that an x-ray revealed a fracture in the left thumb of first baseman Brandon Belt, as relayed by several reporters, including Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area. Belt was hit on the thumb by a pitch in yesterday’s game and was pulled a short time later. The expected recovery timeline is still unknown right now, as Belt still plans on more meetings with doctors, per Maria I. Guardado of MLB.com. However, for comparison’s sake, both J.T. Realmuto and Joey Votto suffered a fractured thumb earlier this year and missed about a month before returning to action.
This is awful timing for Belt and the Giants, both because the postseason begins in a week and because Belt had been on such a tear of late. Since returning from a knee injury August 5th, Belt’s slash line is an absurd .297/.394/.690, hitting 18 home runs in that stretch. That production is 83% better than league average, according to wRC+. After three straight years of lagging production from 2017 to 2019, Belt has essentially been on fire the past two years. Since the start of the 2020 season, in 148 games, his line is .285/.393/.595. His wRC+ of 163 in that time is the third-best in the majors among those with at least 550 plate appearances, trailing only Juan Soto and Bryce Harper.
As for the team, they are already guaranteed a playoff spot, though which kind is still to be determined. They are currently two games ahead of the Dodgers for the lead in the NL West, with each team having six games remaining. In the absence of Belt, they will likely turn to Wilmer Flores and LaMonte Wade Jr., who have each seen some time at first base this year. Darin Ruf could be an option down the road, but he himself was just placed on the IL on Thursday with an oblique injury. Those three all have good numbers this year, but the loss of Belt’s potent bat is certainly a blow to the offense, as it would be to any team’s.
It’s also unfortunate timing for Belt, career-wise, as he’s heading into free agency in just over a month. This injury could deny him the ability to add to his postseason ledger, which already includes a pair of World Series titles with the Giants in 2012 and 2014. Although, based on the incredible numbers he’s put up over the past two seasons, he should still garner plenty of interest on the open market, even if he’s unable to make another appearance this year.
Dodgers Activate Cody Bellinger From Injured List
The Dodgers reinstated outfielder Cody Bellinger from the injured list before this evening’s game against the Padres. First baseman Albert Pujols was placed on the COVID-19 injured list in a corresponding move. Pujols was recently vaccinated and is feeling side effects from his second shot, manager Dave Roberts told reporters (including Juan Toribio of MLB.com).
Bellinger missed a minimal amount of time due to a rib fracture. He’ll return to the roster, but Gavin Lux gets the start in center field tonight. A healthy Bellinger not being in the lineup for some of the Dodgers’ most important games of the year would’ve been inconceivable a few months ago, but the 2019 NL MVP has had a miserable season. In addition to three separate IL stints, Bellinger has struggled to a disastrous .159/.237/.291 line over 337 plate appearances. With the Dodgers hoping to erase a two-game deficit behind the Giants in the season’s final week, they’ll keep the two-time All-Star in a reserve role.
Pujols has hit at a league average level since latching on with the Dodgers after being released by the crosstown Angels in May. He’s done quite well against left-handed pitching and could be a key right-handed bench bat for manager Dave Roberts this postseason.
Orioles Place Anthony Santander On Injured List
The Orioles announced they’ve reinstated left-hander Bruce Zimmermann from the 60-day injured list. He’ll start this evening’s game against the Red Sox. They’ve also recalled corner infielder/outfielder Tyler Nevin from Triple-A Norfolk and placed right-hander Chris Ellis and outfielder Anthony Santander on the 10-day IL. To create space on the 40-man roster for Zimmermann, Baltimore transferred lefty Keegan Akin, who underwent abdominal surgery last week, from the 10-day to the 60-day injured list.
Zimmermann is back after missing around two and a half months due to left biceps tendinitis. The 26-year-old appeared in twelve games (eleven starts) before going on the IL, tossing 59 2/3 innings of 4.83 ERA/4.48 SIERA ball. Zimmermann posted a below-average 20.2% strikeout rate and gave up nearly as much hard contact as any pitcher in baseball, but he pounded the strike zone and posted a ground-ball rate just a bit below the league average.
That’s not the most exciting production, but only John Means posted better numbers among O’s hurlers with 50+ innings this season. That looks to give Zimmermann a decent shot at landing a season-opening rotation spot next year, although the O’s front office will at least add a low-cost veteran option or two to that mix this offseason.
Santander’s season comes to a close a few days early because of a right knee sprain. The 26-year-old mashed in last year’s shortened campaign, but he couldn’t follow up on that over a larger body of work. Through 438 plate appearances, Santander hit .241/.286/.433. He hit for a decent amount of power for a third consecutive year, popping 18 home runs, but Santander’s tiny 5.3% walk rate and career-worst 23.1% strikeout percentage (excluding his 13-game rookie year) contributed to serious on-base issues.
This offseason, Santander will be eligible for arbitration for the second of four times. If tendered a contract, he’d be in line for a raise on this year’s $2.1MM salary. The Orioles have no guaranteed money on the books next season, so they could certainly shoulder a few million dollar tab for Santander. Still, that was true last offseason of Renato Nuñez — another low-OBP, power bat — and Baltimore elected to non-tender Nuñez. The front office will have to make a similar call on Santander this winter.
Rays Reinstate Andrew Kittredge From 10-Day Injured List
4:54 pm: Conley has tested positive for the virus, reports Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times (Twitter link). Fortunately, he’s currently asymptomatic, but the quarantine period could threaten Conley’s availability for the Rays’ Division Series that begins next week.
11:47 am: Right-hander Andrew Kittredge has been reinstated from the Rays’ injured list after a 10-day minimum absence due to a neck strain. To make room on the active roster, Tampa Bay placed left-hander Adam Conley on the COVID-19 injury list.
After four inconsistent years as a reliever, starter, and opener with the Rays, Kittredge rejoined the team on a minor league deal, looking to rebound after a 2020 season shortened by a UCL injury. The results have been startling, as Kittredge has one of the best members of the very strong Tampa bullpen and will likely be a big factor in the team’s postseason pitching plans.
Kittredge has a 1.55 ERA/2.96 SIERA over 69 2/3 innings, mostly working out of the bullpen with a few opener appearances on his resume. As per Statcast, no pitcher in baseball has a higher chase rate than Kittredge, which has translated into an above-average 27.5% strikeout rate to go along with an excellent 5.6% walk rate. The righty has also continued to keep the ball on the ground, with a 54% groundball rate that stands as a new career high.
Conley will be sidelined for a quarantine period if he has tested positive for the virus, though there isn’t yet any indication if Conley has COVID-19 or if his placement is a precaution due to symptoms or contact tracing. (As always, teams are not obliged to reveal whether or not a player’s stint on the COVID-IL is due to a positive test.) After signing a minors deal with the Rays in May, Conley has a 2.29 ERA/4.01 SIERA over 19 2/3 relief innings.
MLB, MLBPA Extend Marcell Ozuna’s Administrative Leave Through End Of Postseason
Major League Baseball and the MLB Players Association have agreed to extend the administrative leave period of Braves outfielder Marcell Ozuna through the end of this postseason, reports Gabe Burns of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution (Twitter link). Ozuna has been on administrative leave since September 10 as the league investigates domestic violence allegations made against him.
The league has the authority to unilaterally place players on administrative leave for up to seven days, per the MLB – MLBPA Joint Domestic Violence, Sexual Assault and Child Abuse Policy. The leave can be extended thereafter by mutual agreement between MLB and the Players Association, and the parties have elected to formally rule Ozuna out for the remainder of this season rather than extending the leave on a weekly basis. Placement on administrative leave is not a disciplinary action and does not reflect any sort of finding in the league’s investigation. Players placed on administrative leave continue to be paid and to accumulate Major League service time.
Ozuna has not appeared in a game since bring arrested on May 29 after police responded to a domestic disturbance at his residence. Court filings at the time indicated that the responding officers saw Ozuna place his hands around his wife’s neck, throw her against a wall and strike her with a cast that was on his left hand. (He had fractured two fingers in a game the week before and was on the injured list at the time).
Felony charges originally brought against Ozuna were dropped in early August, but prosecutors moved forward with a pair of misdemeanor charges. Earlier this month, Ozuna agreed to enter into a three-to-six month domestic violence intervention program that could see those charges dropped if he completes all the required measures.
The joint Domestic Violence policy authorizes MLB to impose discipline in the absence of criminal charges. Even if both misdemeanor charges against Ozuna are ultimately dropped, he could still face a suspension depending upon the results of the league’s investigation.
Ozuna signed a four-year, $65MM contract with the Braves last offseason. He remains under contract through 2024.