Boras On MLB Finances, Season Length, Bryant, A’s, Universal DH
Agent Scott Boras and MLB disagree over whether the league’s teams lost money during the pandemic-shortened, spectator-less 2020 season. Speaking with Jon Heyman of MLB Network and other reporters Tuesday, Boras declared that clubs “lost profits” last season, but they didn’t lose money. Per Heyman, a league spokesman responded that “clubs lost $3B — $100M per team.” It now appears the league and the players side are in for another few months of disagreement over whether to play a full schedule in 2021. MLB reportedly wants to push the season back, which would mean a second straight shortened season. That would cost the players money, though, so they’re currently not open to the idea of playing fewer than 162 games next year.
Boras, for his part, remains upset that the league’s teams only played 60 games in 2020. “I was very disappointed we didn’t play 100 games at minimum, 120 games, in 2020,” he said (via Chris McCosky of the Detroit News). Boras is of the belief the league can return to its normal slate going forward, as he stated: “We now know we can play the game and we can do it safely. And with the vaccine coming, we can play it at an even higher level of safety. It’s not a question of whether we can do it. We’ve already done it. That unknown has been erased.”
The ever-outspoken Boras had plenty more to say during his discussion with the media. Here are some other highlights…
- Boras asserted that the low-budget Athletics will need “an insurgence of a small amount of money” in order to sustain success, and they can’t simply rely on a potential new stadium for that, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle relays. That “insurgence” doesn’t appear as if it’s coming this offseason. According to Slusser, the A’s have been telling agents that they don’t have much to spend, which is especially alarming for a team facing the losses of several key free agents (Marcus Semien, Liam Hendriks and Tommy La Stella are among them). In better news for the club, Boras announced that third baseman Matt Chapman has been cleared for increased activity and should be ready for spring training. Chapman underwent hip surgery in September, at which point Boras said he’d need 12 to 16 weeks to recover.
- Although Cubs third baseman/outfielder Kris Bryant has been the subject of trade rumors this offseason, Boras seems to be under the impression he’ll remain with the team for another year, per Heyman. On Bryant’s future, Boras said (via Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune): “That question probably will be very clearly addressed at the end of ‘21, because we’re going to know a lot more about what Jed (Hoyer) wants to do, and also about the continuance of Kris Bryant’s excellence in a baseball uniform.” The Cubs would be selling low on the former MVP, who’s due a projected $18.6MM salary in his final season of team control. Many clubs may deem that too rich after Bryant endured uncharacteristic struggles last season.
- Likewise, Boras doesn’t expect the Rays to trade left-hander Blake Snell.
- MLB introduced the universal designated hitter in 2020, but even with free agency underway, there has been no official word on whether it will return next year. Boras advocated for it to come back and took a shot at the lack of clarity from the commissioner’s office, saying, “Maybe in the commissioner’s office, the DH may stand for dragging their heels.” He also believes it’s “absolutely necessary” for the league to stick with expanded rosters (via Tyler Kepner of the New York Times and Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register).
Rockies, Daniel Bard Avoid Arbitration
The Rockies and right-handed reliever Daniel Bard have avoided arbitration with a $2.925MM agreement for 2021, Bob Nightengale of USA Today reports. Bard had been projected to earn anywhere from $1.2MM to $2.2MM in arbitration.
This is a nice payday for the 35-year-old Bard and one few would have expected he’d end up receiving when he signed a minor league contract with the Rox in February. At the time, Bard was coming off a long layoff from Major League Baseball, owing to struggles with injuries and performance. Bard began his career with a flourish in Boston from 2009-11, during which he looked as if he would be a long-term answer at the back of its bullpen. However, Bard severely tailed off after that three-year run, and he was out of the league within a couple of years.
Although he hadn’t pitched in the majors since 2013, Bard earned a spot on the Rockies’ roster and proceeded to enjoy a career renaissance last season. Across 24 2/3 innings, Bard recorded a 3.65 ERA/3.64 FIP with 9.85 K/9, 3.65 BB/9 and a 48.5 percent groundball rate, even recovering the 97 mph fastball velocity that abandoned him during his final two seasons with Boston. Thanks to his perseverance and solid production, Bard earned National League Comeback Player of the Year honors.
Mike Rizzo Discusses Nationals’ Lineup, Rotation
While the Nationals don’t appear to be pursuing Cubs third baseman/outfielder Kris Bryant in a trade, general manager Mike Rizzo does have interest in landing a big bat before the 2021 season begins.
Speaking Tuesday with Mark Zuckerman of MASNsports.com and other reporters, Rizzo said the Nationals will “make offensive production a little more of a priority this offseason,” and ownership won’t stand in his way to spend on help. Rizzo left the door open for the team to address multiple positions, though he “downplayed” third base and catcher as glaring holes, Zuckerman writes. That could rule out high-profile free agents such as Justin Turner and J.T. Realmuto.
Where could the Nationals look instead? According to Rizzo: “I think we’re versatile in that it doesn’t have to be strictly a right fielder or strictly a left fielder. But a corner outfielder that complements the lineup, or a first baseman, would be the smoothest transition, because those are positions of need. With that said, you can get creative and get a bat in all sorts of ways. And with a little maneuvering, we’d feel comfortable doing it in all sorts of different creative ways.”
The Nationals do have two-thirds of their starting outfield set with superstar Juan Soto and Victor Robles, but it’s unclear who will replace the departed Adam Eaton in the other spot. George Springer, Marcell Ozuna, Michael Brantley and Joc Pederson appear to be the most desirable outfield free agents. It’s unknown whether the Nationals have shown interest in them, but they do have the recently non-tendered Kyle Schwarber on their radar. Schwarber’s production took a huge dip in 2020, but he was a well-above-average hitter in the two prior seasons.
Meanwhile, the stable of free-agent first basemen doesn’t look particularly exciting. Washington did make an effort to sign Carlos Santana, though he wound up with the Royals. Versatile infielder DJ LeMahieu may be able to play the position on a regular basis if given the chance, but the Nats reportedly aren’t going after him. Longtime Nat Ryan Zimmerman (who opted out of last season), C.J. Cron, Mitch Moreland, Tommy La Stella, Jake Lamb and Justin Smoak are some other available names. There certainly aren’t any stars in that group. Nevertheless, it shouldn’t be too tall of a task to upgrade over the Nats’ first basemen from last season, as each of Eric Thames, Asdrubal Cabrera and Howie Kendrick managed below-average production.
On the pitching side, the Nationals’ rotation went from one of the league’s best during their 2019 World Series-winning season to a disappointment during a disastrous ’20 for the team. Of course, it didn’t help that Washington had to go without right-hander Stephen Strasburg, who dealt with carpal tunnel syndrome and totaled just five innings for the season. Strasburg underwent surgery in September, but Rizzo expects him to be “full-go for spring training” (via Byron Kerr of MASNsports.com).
Strasburg still has six years left on his contract, while co-ace Max Scherzer is entering the last season of the seven-year, $210MM deal he inked in 2015. That has been among the most successful big-money signings ever, though another agreement doesn’t appear imminent. Rizzo revealed that there haven’t been “any substantive conversations about an extension for Max to my knowledge,” but he added that it “could be on the ownership level” and noted that extensions often come together during the spring.
Regardless of whether Washington extends the 36-year-old Scherzer, he’ll front its rotation with Strasburg and Patrick Corbin next year. The rest of their starting five is up in the air, but Rizzo hinted he will prioritize adding a veteran No. 4 starter after he addresses the team’s lineup, according to Kerr. As for the No. 5 role, manager Dave Martinez named Joe Ross, Austin Voth and Erick Fedde as in-house possibilities. He’s especially high on Ross, saying, “I want Joe to be in the rotation.” Ross opted out of last season over health concerns, but the 27-year-old plans to return in 2021.
Mets Sign Jerad Eickhoff
The Mets have signed right-hander Jerad Eickhoff to a minor league contract, per Bob Nightengale of USA Today. Eickhoff will earn a $1.25MM salary if he makes the majors, and he could pull in another $700K in incentives.
This deal means Eickhoff could get another crack at the National League East, where he has pitched his entire major league career so far. As a member of the Phillies from 2015-19, Eickhoff combined for 440 innings of respectable 4.15 ERA/4.39 FIP ball with 8.1 K/9 and 2.58 BB/9. During his best full season, 2016, Eickhoff put together a 3.65 ERA/4.19 FIP and 7.62 K/9 against 1.62 BB/9 over a career-high 197 1/3 frames.
Unfortunately, injuries – including carpal tunnel syndrome – have hampered what once looked like a promising big league tenure. Eickhoff threw just 5 1/3 innings in 2018 and followed that with 58 1/3 frames in his most recent season, in which he struggled to a 5.71 ERA/6.51 FIP. The 30-year-old spent some time last year with the Padres and Rangers (who drafted him in 2011), but he didn’t return to the majors with either club.
Juan Soto, Walker Buehler, Max Fried Among Players Reaching Super Two Status
Several notable players have surpassed the threshold for Super Two status, earning them an extra year of arbitration eligibility. According to The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal (Twitter link), the following players have all gained a fourth arbitration year: Walker Buehler, Clint Frazier, Max Fried, Dominic Smith, Mike Soroka, Juan Soto, Gleyber Torres, Luke Voit, and Brandon Woodruff. Other players who should qualify include J.D. Davis (as Tim Britton of The Athletic notes via Twitter) and Austin Slater (as per MLB Network’s Jon Heyman).
The official Super Two cutoff point hasn’t yet been established. The Athletic’s Lindsey Adler reported that Miguel Andujar (who has two years and 117 days of service time) fell five days short of Super Two status, though Jesse Dougherty of the Washington Post reports that the Nationals’ Wander Suero “missed it by just a few days,” and Suero has two years, 123 days of service time.
Of the players mentioned, Frazier has the least amount of service time, with two years and 133 days. For comparison’s sake, here are the Super Two cutoff points for the last 11 years….
- 2019: 2.115
- 2018: 2.134
- 2017: 2.123
- 2016: 2.131
- 2015: 2.130
- 2014: 2.133
- 2013: 2.122
- 2012: 2.140
- 2011: 2.146
- 2010: 2.122
- 2009: 2.139
As a refresher, all players become eligible for arbitration after they amass three full seasons of Major League service time. However, of the players who have between two and three seasons of service time, the top 22 percent of that group qualify as Super Twos, and thus they get become arbitration-eligible going into their third season, not after their third season.
Naturally, this means a lot of extra money in these players’ bank accounts, as they’ll get a significant raise on the minimum salary. For the players who have already posted some big numbers, the ability to not just get an extra arbitration year but to establish a high salary benchmark in that first year provides the opportunity to bank several extra millions of dollars in escalating salaries through their arb years. For instance, Soto has done nothing but mash at a Cooperstown level since joining the Nationals’ lineup, and is projected to earn between $4.5MM and $8.5MM in his first arb-eligible year. Assuming Soto keeps producing at anything close to his current rate, he seems like a solid bet to reach $20MM in average annual salary by his fourth year of arbitration eligibility.
This offseason’s arbitration class is unusual, of course, since the shortened season will throw off some of the normal methods for calculating arb salaries. In his annual arbitration projections for MLBTR, Matt Swartz provided three different methods (and often, three different projected salaries) for each player, depending on how arbiters view 2020 statistics.
Rangers Sign David Dahl
TODAY: The Rangers have announced the signing. Dahl will earn $2.7MM in guaranteed money, MLB Network’s Jon Heyman tweets, with another $300K available in salary incentives.
DECEMBER 11: The Rangers and free-agent outfielder David Dahl have agreed to a one-year deal worth approximately $3MM, Jeff Passan of ESPN reports.
Texas will be the second major league franchise for the 26-year-old Dahl, who spent the first several seasons of his professional career as a member of the Colorado organization. Dahl is a former No. 10 overall pick and top 100 prospect who was a successful hitter with the Rockies for most of his time there (which spanned from 2016-20), but after he recorded woeful production last season, the Rockies moved on at the non-tender deadline a week ago. Instead of paying Dahl a projected $2.5MM to $2.7MM for 2021, Colorado cut him loose.
Dahl was just a .183/.222/.247 hitter without a single home run in 99 plate appearances last year, though he entered the campaign with a far more respectable .297/.346/.521 line with 38 HRs over 921 PA. Dahl even earned an All-Star nod in 2019. Of course, there were plenty of health issues that helped stop Dahl from making an even greater impact in Colorado. Rib, foot, ankle and back injuries have limited Dahl to a mere 264 games to this point, including just 24 in 2020, and he has only appeared in at least 100 contests in one season.
While Dahl does come with question marks, this still looks like an interesting buy-low signing on the part of the Rangers. If it works out, they’ll be able to control Dahl via arbitration through 2023. In 2021, Dahl – who has experience at all three outfield positions – should get ample chances to revive his career. Aside from Joey Gallo and Willie Calhoun, who endured their own significant drop-offs in 2020, the Rangers’ 40-man roster is sorely lacking outfielders who have experienced any real major league success.
The Dahl addition makes for the third noteworthy move the Rangers have made since they hired Chris Young as their new general manager on Dec. 4. Young and president of baseball operations Jon Daniels traded right-hander Lance Lynn to the White Sox and acquired first baseman Nate Lowe from the Rays earlier this week.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Mets Sign James McCann
TODAY: The signing has been officially announced. It’s a $40.6MM deal that includes a $600K signing bonus, Tim Healey of Newsday tweets.
DECEMBER 12, 12:48pm: The deal is done pending McCann’s physical, according to MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand (via Twitter). An official announcement from the Mets is expected to come today.
11:21am: The Mets and James McCann are in the “final stages” of completing a four-year deal that will pay McCann around $40MM, The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal reports (Twitter link). According to ESPN.com’s Jeff Passan, the deal is worth “just a touch over” the $40MM threshold and there is a signing bonus involved. The contract will be official once McCann passes a physical. McCann is represented by the Ballengee Group.
After reports surfaced earlier this week that McCann and the Mets were on the verge of a deal, it seemingly took a few days more to reach an agreement. While McCann was the second-best catcher on the free agent market after J.T. Realmuto, a four-year deal worth north of $40MM is more than double the two-year/$20MM pact that MLB Trade Rumors projected for McCann, making it a very nice score for the 30-year-old.
McCann produced fairly unremarkable numbers as the Tigers’ regular catcher from 2015-18, and was non-tendered following a rough 2018 season. McCann then joined the White Sox and rather surprisingly broke out, hitting .276/.334/.474 with 25 homers over 587 plate appearances since the start of the 2019 season. McCann greatly improved both his amount of hard contact and the quality of that hard contact, though he did get some good fortune in 2020 — a .339 BABIP and a .372 wOBA that far outpaced his .329 xwOBA. (McCann also had a .359 BABIP in 2019.)
McCann’s defense also took a step up, as recently outlined by MLBTR’s Steve Adams…
Behind the plate, McCann has long been adept at controlling the running game. Even with the Tigers, he nabbed 37 percent of those who attempted to take a base against him. One knock on McCann, however, was on his receiving ability — or lack thereof. McCann ranked well below average in terms of framing metrics for much of his time with the Tigers and even early in his White Sox tenure — a flaw that likely influenced the White Sox’ decision to sign Yasmani Grandal to a four-year pact last winter.
Recognizing that shortcoming, McCann spent the bulk of his (2019-20) offseason working with catching guru Jerry Narron to improve his receiving and framing. The results paid off, as Statcast ranked McCann as much-improved in that regard, particularly with pitches at the bottom of the strike zone, which was where he’d struggled most. McCann went from garnering strike calls on just 44.1 percent of pitches at or slightly below the bottom of the zone to an excellent 61.8 percent. One can suggest that there’s some small-sample smoke and mirrors at play, but McCann’s improvement was pronounced enough that it can’t be entirely dismissed as small-sample noise. It would seem that the Mets agree.
A four-year contract for a 30-year-old catcher (McCann turns 31 in June) carries some risk, though making an aggressive play to address a clear roster weakness is the type of boldness Mets fans expected once Steve Cohen bought the team. At least in the short term, the Mets have now strongly upgraded a position that was a major offseason question mark, and it also sets the table for further transactions.
For one, Realmuto is no longer in the picture, meaning that the Mets can now save their biggest spending splurge for another player….or even players. As noted by Ken Davidoff of the New York Post, the Mets “stayed in touch with the Realmuto camp” if the McCann talks fell through, but with McCann now signed, a preferred major target like George Springer or Trevor Bauer could potentially be next.
Mariners To Acquire Rafael Montero
The Mariners and Rangers have agreed to a trade that will sent right-hander Rafael Montero to Seattle, ESPN.com’s Jeff Passan reports (Twitter link). Texas will receive right-handed pitching prospect Jose Corniell in return, Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times reports (Twitter links), with Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram adding that the Rangers will also get a second prospect. That other minor leaguer is a player to be named later, according to Joel Sherman of the New York Post.
Relief pitching was a major offseason target for the Mariners, and GM Jerry Dipoto will now add a talented reliever from within the AL West. Montero posted a 4.08 ERA, 3.17 K/BB rate, and 9.7 K/9 over 17 2/3 innings last season, with ERA predictors painting a pretty solid view of his work (3.70 FIP, 4.85 xFIP, 4.00 SIERA), as his very low 49.4% strand rate was at least somewhat balanced out by a .227 BABIP.
2020 marked Montero’s first full (or as full as could be, given the shortened schedule) season back after he missed all of 2018 recovering from Tommy John surgery. Montero returned to toss 29 innings out of the Texas bullpen in 2019, looking very impressive in posting a 2.48 ERA.
Once a highly-touted prospect during his time in the Mets farm system, Montero never really clicked while pitching in parts of four (2014-17) seasons in New York. Shoulder injuries, frequent shuttles up and down between Triple-A and the big leagues, and moving between both starting and relieving all contributed to Montero posting a 5.38 ERA over 192 1/3 innings in a Mets uniform.
The Amazins cut him loose following the 2018 season and Montero then inked a minor league deal with Texas, where he has gotten his career back on track. The move to full-time relief work has unlocked some extra velocity for Montero even post-TJ surgery. He has averaged 95.7mph on his fastball in 2019-20, after never topping the 93.7mph mark in his first four seasons.
Montero completed all eight of his save chances for Texas in 2020, and now looks to be the favorite to work as the closer in a Mariners bullpen that is lacking in ninth-inning answers. Montero turned 30 in October, though while he isn’t all that young, he is still controllable for two more seasons, projected to earn between $1.4MM and $2.5MM in his second trip through the arbitration process.
The trade marks another step in the Rangers’ plan to get younger this winter, as the team embarks on a mini-rebuild. (Moving Montero also clears a 40-man roster spot for the newly-signed David Dahl.) Given the low cost involved in acquiring Montero, trading him for a couple of young prospects isn’t a bad return for Texas, especially considering the relative difficulty in offering bullpen help in trade talks given the large number of other relievers available in free agency.
Corniell is only 17 years old, and was brought aboard by the M’s when the 2019-20 international signing window opened. He has yet to begin his pro career thanks to the minor league shutdown in 2020, but MLB.com ranks Corniell as the 24th-best prospect in Seattle’s farm system, touting a solid three-pitch arsenal of a changeup, a “power curve,” and a fastball that can hit the mid-90’s.
Mike Rizzo: Nationals Not Pursuing Kris Bryant Trade
Reports last month mentioned Kris Bryant as a potential Nationals trade target, but Washington GM Mike Rizzo rather definitively ruled out a Bryant swap during a session with reporters (including ESPN.com’s Jesse Rogers) this afternoon.
“We haven’t had a serious conversation about Kris Bryant in probably two years,” Rizzo said. “He was not a big guy on our radar last year or this year. He’s a great player but at this point and time of where we’re at, and what we have in our farm system, and where we’re going, we think we can allocate our dollars and prospect capital in another way.”
As Rogers noted, it’s something of an “unusual step” for a general manager to so publicly and specifically comment on trade negotiations. It could be that this is some gamesmanship on Rizzo’s part if talks with the Cubs are actually still ongoing, though there’s no real reason to believe Rizzo is being anything but forthright in his comments.
Bryant is, after all, coming off the worst of his six MLB seasons, as he battled injuries throughout 2020 and hit only .206/.293/.351 over 147 plate appearances. While it isn’t hard to imagine Bryant returning to his old form with better health next season and with a more measurable sample size of playing time, counting on such a rebound year might not be a risk that the Nats want to take — especially since Bryant is projected to earn an $18.6MM salary in 2021, his final year of arbitration eligibility.
It isn’t yet known if Washington can fully stretch its payroll this offseason, but there have been indications that the Nationals are able to spend some money, if not something in the neighborhood of $18.6MM to one player for one season. The Nats were connected to Carlos Santana before he signed with the Royals, and the District has also showed interest in a former Bryant teammate in Kyle Schwarber.
Minor MLB Transactions: 12/15/20
The latest minor league moves from around the sport…
- The Cardinals have signed infielder Max Moroff to a minors contract that contains an invitation to the Cards’ big league Spring Training camp, Tim Dierkes of MLB Trade Rumors reports (Twitter link). A veteran of 104 Major League games with the Pirates and Indians from 2016-19, Moroff has a .183/.277/.319 slash line over 244 career plate appearances, though his ability to play second base, third base, and shortstop makes him a useful bench asset. Moroff signed a minor league deal with the Mets last winter.
- The Phillies signed utilityman Christian Bethancourt to a minor league deal, The Athletic’s Matt Gelb reports (via Twitter). The contract has an invite to the Phillies’ Major League spring camp. Bethancourt inked a minors deal with Philadelphia last offseason but didn’t see any action in any big league games or at the Phils’ alternate training site. Bethancourt hit .222/.252/.316 over 489 PA with the Braves and Padres from 2013-17, and he has since played in the Brewers’ minor league system and in South Korea with the KBO League’s NC Dinos. Though Bethancourt is known for his ability to play multiple positions around the diamond, he’ll likely be used primarily as a catcher by the Phillies, Gelb notes, since the team is lacking in catching depth.