Mike Leake Opts Out Of 2020 Season
Diamondbacks right-hander Mike Leake is planning to opt out of participating in the 2020 season, Steve Gilbert of MLB.com reports (via Twitter). Leake becomes the first known player to choose not to play amid public health concerns stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic, although others will surely follow suit.
D-backs general manager Mike Hazen has confirmed the decision, tweets Zach Buchanan of The Athletic. The details surrounding Leake’s decision aren’t known, nor need they be shared. As Hazen went on to tell reporters: “I think those conversations are personal in nature” (Twitter link via the Arizona Republic’s Nick Piecoro). Leake’s agent, Danny Horwits, offered the following statement (via ESPN’s Jeff Passan):
During this global pandemic, Mike and his family had many discussions about playing this season. They took countless factors into consideration, many of which are personal to him and his family. After thorough consideration, he has chosen to opt out of playing in 2020. This was not an easy decision for Mike. He wishes the best of luck and health for his Diamondback teammates this season and he’s looking forward to 2021.
Leake, 32, was in the final season of a five-year, $80MM contract originally signed with the Cardinals — although he’s since been traded to Seattle and then Arizona. He’d have earned a prorated $16MM salary this season — about $5.5MM — and had a $5MM buyout on an option for the 2021 season. MLB Network’s Jon Heyman tweets that Leake will not be paid in 2020, which suggests that his decision is not due to concerns about his own health but rather the health of close-proximity family and loved ones. Under the agreement reached between the league and union last week, only players who are deemed high-risk themselves are entitled to receive salary and service time after opting out.
Under the terms of Leake’s previous trades, the Cardinals were set to pay $4MM to the Mariners this season to cover a portion of Leake’s salary. The Mariners, meanwhile, were on the hook for as much of $9MM of Leake’s salary, which was to be paid to the D-backs in deferred installments. Those payments will now presumably be forgiven. As for the $5MM buyout on Leake’s 2021 option, that does not pertain to the 2020 season and should therefore still remain on the table. The Mariners are also responsible for that sum under the terms of last summer’s trade.
With Leake suddenly and unexpectedly out of the rotation picture in Arizona, the D-backs will likely rely on the quartet of Madison Bumgarner, Robbie Ray, Zac Gallen and Luke Weaver to lead the rotation. Merrill Kelly could be in line to retake the fifth spot, although he’ll face some competition from younger arms like Alex Young, Jon Duplantier and, if healthy, Corbin Martin. Arizona will also have a 40-man roster spot opened up with Leake no longer occupying a spot.
Brewers Announce Initial Player Pool
The Brewers on Monday announced their initial player pool for the 2020 season. Pools can contain up to 60 players, and only players in a team’s pool will be eligible to participate in summer training camp or regular/postseason games. Teams are free to change the makeup of the pools as they see fit, but once a team’s pool reaches 60 players, a player must be removed (released, traded, waived, etc.) in order to make a new addition. That player becomes ineligible to return to that same team in 2020.
Not all players within a team’s pool are ticketed for MLB playing time, of course. Most teams will include well-regarded but still far-off prospects as a means of getting them training reps with no intention of running them onto a major league diamond this season. A comprehensive review of 2020’s unique set of rules can be found here.
Here are the 45 players in the Brewers’ initial pool (* indicates player not on 40-man roster)…
Right-Handed Pitchers
- Ray Black
- Zack Brown*
- Corbin Burnes
- Jake Faria*
- J.P. Feyereisen
- Justin Grimm*
- Adrian Houser
- Corey Knebel
- Josh Lindblom
- Shelby Miller*
- Mike Morin*
- Freddy Peralta
- David Phelps
- Drew Rasmussen*
- Bobby Wahl
- Devin Williams
- Brandon Woodruff
- Eric Yardley
Left-Handed Pitchers
Catchers
Infielders
- Orlando Arcia
- Jedd Gyorko
- Ryon Healy
- Keston Hiura
- Brock Holt
- Mark Mathias
- Logan Morrison*
- Jace Peterson*
- Ronny Rodriguez
- Justin Smoak
- Eric Sogard
- Luis Urias
Outfielders
Mets Sign Melky Cabrera, Erasmo Ramirez, Gordon Beckham
JULY 1: Cabrera can earn at a $1.1MM annual rate if he makes the roster, Jon Heyman of MLB Network tweets.
JUNE 29: The Mets’ signing spree continued Monday with the additions of outfielder Melky Cabrera, infielder Gordon Beckham and right-hander Erasmo Ramirez. All three have been announced by the club, and all are “expected” to be added to the 60-man player pool, according to the team. They join earlier signees Hunter Strickland and Ryan Cordell in that regard.
At 35 years old, Cabrera isn’t the hitter he once was. That said, the Melk Man also hasn’t batted lower than .273 in the past decade, and his contact skills generally make him a source of a respectable OBP even though he doesn’t walk much.
The switch-hitting Cabrera’s .280/.313/.399 slash with the Pirates last year was below-average on the whole (88 OPS+, 85 wRC+), but he was an average or better hitter in the three preceding seasons. Cabrera carried an .807 OPS into the All-Star break last year, but he hit just .231/.257/.306 down the stretch as his role shrunk. To his credit, he struck out at just a 10.3 percent clip in 2019. He’s no lock to make the roster, but if he can shake off last year’s second-half slide, the Mets could conceivably work him into the DH mix and not need to worry about his glove.
Beckham, 33, inked a minor league pact with the Padres in February but had a rough showing in their initial camp that led to his release. Although he drew five walks, Beckham was hitless in 14 at-bats. He spent the 2019 campaign with the Tigers, hitting .215/.271/.372 with six homers, a dozen doubles and a pair of triples in 240 trips to the plate.
Beckham made his big league debut just one year after being selected with the No. 8 overall pick in the 2008 draft by the White Sox. He wasn’t able to replicate a strong rookie campaign, though, and eventually settled in as a journeyman utility infielder. He’s appeared in the big leagues each year since 2009, but Beckham carries a tepid .237/.300/.367 slash in 3782 plate appearances as a big leaguer.
Ramirez, 30, was a quality arm with the Mariners and Rays from 2015-17, pitching to a combined 3.97 ERA (4.22 FIP) with 7.0 K/9, 2.3 BB/9 and 1.2 HR/9 in 385 1/3 big league innings. A teres major strain wiped out most of his 2018 season, though, and Ramirez has yet to really regain his footing. He spent the 2019 season with the Red Sox’ Triple-A affiliate, for whom he posted a 4.74 ERA with 6.8 K/9 and 3.1 BB/9 in 125 1/3 innings.
Diamondbacks Announce Initial Player Pool
The D-backs on Monday announced their initial player pool for the 2020 season. Player pools can contain up to 60 players, and only players in a team’s pool will be eligible to participate in summer training camp or regular/postseason games. Teams are free to change the makeup of the pools as they see fit, but once a team’s pool reaches 60 players, a player must be removed (released, traded, waived, etc.) in order to make a new addition. That player becomes ineligible to return to that same team in 2020.
Not all players within a team’s pool are ticketed for MLB playing time, of course. Most teams will include well-regarded but still far-off prospects as a means of getting them training reps with no intention of running them onto a major league diamond this season. A comprehensive review of 2020’s unique set of rules can be found here.
Here are the 60 players in the Diamondbacks’ initial pool (* indicates player not on 40-man roster)…
Right-Handed Pitchers
- Jeremy Beasley*
- Archie Bradley
- J.B. Bukauskas*
- Taylor Clarke
- Stefan Crichton
- Jon Duplantier
- Luis Frias*
- Zac Gallen
- Kevin Ginkel
- Josh Green*
- Junior Guerra
- Bryce Jarvis*
- Levi Kelly*
- Merrill Kelly
- Mike Leake
- Artie Lewicki*
- Yoan Lopez
- Corbin Martin
- Keury Mella*
- Joel Payamps
- Hector Rondon
- James Sherfy*
- Riley Smith
- Luke Weaver
- Taylor Widener
Left-Handed Pitchers
- Madison Bumgarner
- Andrew Chafin
- Matt Grace*
- Tommy Henry*
- Joe Mantiply*
- Robbie Ray
- Blake Walston*
- Alex Young
Catchers
Infielders
- Nick Ahmed
- Seth Beer*
- Kevin Cron
- Eduardo Escobar
- Jake Lamb
- Ketel Marte
- Wyatt Mathisen
- Geraldo Perdomo*
- Juniel Querecuto*
- Josh Rojas
- Pavin Smith*
- Ildemaro Vargas
- Christian Walker
- Andy Young
Outfielders
Mets Sign Hunter Strickland, Ryan Cordell
The Mets announced Monday that they’ve signed right-hander Hunter Strickland and re-signed outfielder Ryan Cordell, whom they’d previously released. Both received non-guaranteed deals, and both players are “expected” to be added to the Mets’ 60-man pool, per the club.
Strickland, 31, joins the Mets with nearly five years of big league service time under his belt. He was limited by a Grade 2 lat strain last year and struggled enormously when on the mound, pitching to a combined 5.55 ERA in 24 1/3 frames between the Mariners and Nationals. His track record on the mound prior to that unsightly campaign, however, was strong. From 2014-18, Strickland worked to a combined 2.91 ERA (3.40 FIP) with averages of 8.4 K/9, 3.1 BB/9 and 0.7 HR/9.
Of course, Strickland has drawn as much if not more attention for other reasons. He incited a benches-clearing brawl in 2017 after throwing at Bryce Harper — an incident most believe to be the result of a years-old grudge against Harper for homering twice off Strickland in the 2014 NLDS. The next year, upon being pulled from a game after blowing a saved, Strickland punched a door out of frustration and sustained a broken right hand. He required surgery and missed the next six weeks.
Cordell, 28, was once a fairly well-regarded prospect with the Rangers and Brewers but hasn’t put it together in the Majors. He’s had 287 plate appearances at the game’s top level but managed just a .205/.267/.335 slash line in that time. Cordell does possess a more solid .266/.323/.455 slash in three Triple-A seasons, and he’s capable of playing any of the three outfield slots.
Twins Alter Coaching Staff Due To COVID-19 Concerns
Twins bullpen coach Bob McClure and Major League coach Bill Evers will be sidelined for the 2020 season due to health and safety concerns surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic, La Velle E. Neal III of the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports. It’s the team’s decision and came after physical exams that factored both age and preexisting conditions into consideration, per Neal. Both the 68-year-old McClure and the 66-year-old Evers will still be paid. The Twins have since confirmed the pair’s omission from the coaching staff. McClure and Evers could contribute in other ways, taking on advisory roles in the front office, according to Neal.
This would’ve been the first season for McClure with the Twins. Minnesota lost bullpen coach Jeremy Hefner to the Mets over the winter and named McClure, a former pitching coach with the Phillies, Red Sox, Royals and Marlins, as his successor. McClure had previously worked as a senior advisor with the Twins, focusing on pitching development, so it sounds as though he may instead handle a role more similar to the one he filled over the past two years.
Neal wrote this morning that minor league pitching coordinator Pete Maki was “in line” to replace McClure as the bullpen coach for the 2020 season, and he has now indeed been announced in that role. Minnesota hired Maki prior to the 2018 season after he’d spent a decade in the college coaching ranks — including stops as pitching coach at Columbia and Duke.
Evers was returning to the Twins’ staff for a second season. It’s no surprise that he joined the ranks alongside manager Rocco Baldelli, as the pair has a long history together in the Rays organization. Evers was Baldelli’s bench coach back in 2006-07, and he spent nine years as the Rays’ minor league field coordinator while Baldelli was rising through the coaching ranks in Tampa Bay. There’s no direct replacement for Evers listed, although the Twins’ coaching staff does now list 21-year MLB veteran LaTroy Hawkins as a special instructor. He’d previously been working as an advisor to the front office under president of baseball ops Derek Falvey and GM Thad Levine.
Twins Announce Initial Player Pool
The Twins on Monday announced their initial player pool for the 2020 season. Player pools can contain up to 60 players, and only players in a team’s pool will be eligible to participate in summer training camp or regular/postseason games. Teams are free to change the makeup of the pools as they see fit, but once a team’s pool reaches 60 players, a player must be removed (released, traded, waived, etc.) in order to make a new addition. That player becomes ineligible to return to that same team in 2020.
Not all players within a team’s pool are ticketed for MLB playing time, of course. Most teams will include well-regarded but still far-off prospects as a means of getting them training reps with no intention of running them onto a major league diamond this season. A comprehensive review of 2020’s unique set of rules can be found here.
Here are the 59 players in the Twins’ initial pool (* indicates player not on 40-man roster; ^ indicates restricted list)…
Right-Handed Pitchers
- Jorge Alcala
- Homer Bailey
- Jose Berrios
- Jhoulys Chacin*
- Dakota Chalmers
- Tyler Clippard
- Edwar Colina*
- Randy Dobnak
- Tyler Duffey
- Jhoan Duran
- Ryan Garton*
- Cory Gearrin*
- Zack Littell
- Kenta Maeda
- Trevor May
- Jake Odorizzi
- Michael Pineda^
- Sean Poppen
- Fernando Romero^
- Sergio Romo
- Cody Stashak
- Matt Wisler
Left-Handed Pitchers
Catchers
Infielders
- Ehire Adrianza
- Luis Arraez
- Travis Blankenhorn
- Josh Donaldson
- Marwin Gonzalez
- Nick Gordon
- Royce Lewis*
- Drew Maggi*
- Jack Reinheimer*
- Jorge Polanco
- Miguel Sano
- Wilfredo Tovar*
- Zander Wiel*
Outfielders
- Lane Adams*
- Byron Buxton
- Jake Cave
- Gilberto Celestino
- Max Kepler
- Alex Kirilloff*
- Trevor Larnach*
- Brent Rooker*
- Eddie Rosario
- LaMonte Wade Jr.
Designated Hitter
Note: Pineda has 39 games remaining on a reduced 60-game PED suspension. That penalty must be served in full and is not prorated. Romero, meanwhile, is on the restricted list due to ongoing visa issues that make it unclear when he’ll be able to report. So while the team listed 59 players, the Twins technically have three open spots in their 60-man pool.
White Sox Announce Initial Player Pool
The White Sox on Monday announced their initial player pool for the 2020 season. Player pools can contain up to 60 players, and only players in a team’s pool will be eligible to participate in summer training camp or regular/postseason games. Teams are free to change the makeup of the pools as they see fit, but once a team’s pool reaches 60 players, a player must be removed (released, traded, waived, etc.) in order to make a new addition. That player becomes ineligible to return to that same team in 2020.
Not all players within a team’s pool are ticketed for MLB playing time, of course. Most teams will include well-regarded but still far-off prospects as a means of getting them training reps with no intention of running them onto a major league diamond this season. A comprehensive review of 2020’s unique set of rules can be found here.
Here are the 44 players in the White Sox initial pool (* indicates player not on 40-man roster)…
Right-Handed Pitchers
- Drew Anderson*
- Dylan Cease
- Steve Cishek
- Alex Colome
- Jimmy Cordero
- Dane Dunning
- Carson Fulmer
- Tayron Guerrero*
- Lucas Giolito
- Ian Hamilton
- Kelvin Herrera
- Codi Heuer*
- Tyler Johnson*
- Michael Kopech
- Jimmy Lambert
- Reynaldo Lopez
- Evan Marshall
- Jose Ruiz
Left-Handed Pitchers
Catchers
Infielders
- Jose Abreu
- Tim Anderson
- Cheslor Cuthbert*
- Edwin Encarnacion
- Leury Garcia
- Nick Madrigal*
- Danny Mendick
- Yoan Moncada
- Andrew Romine*
- Andrew Vaughn*
Outfielders
MLB, MLBPA Still Discussing Vesting Options, Retention Bonuses
The length of the season, prorated salaries and protocols for health and safety are finally all set in place, but Major League Baseball and the MLB Players Association are still negotiating the manner in which contractual options, performance incentives/bonuses and escalator clauses will be handled, per Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic (subscription required).
Fortunately, an agreement is believed to be “within reach,” per Rosenthal. The league had initially sought to prorate the value of 2021 options using the same formula as 2020 salaries, although the MLBPA obviously pushed back against that notion. There’s still some debate over the handling of vesting options — particularly those that are triggered by reaching a set number of games pitched or plate appearances over the life of multiple seasons. The two sides also must determine how those options would be treated in the event that the season is canceled at any point due to health concerns.
There aren’t too many vesting options in MLB this year, although some of the notable ones include:
- Jon Lester, LHP, Cubs: Lester’s $25MM mutual option ($10MM buyout) for the 2021 season would become guaranteed with 200 innings pitched in a normal season.
- J.A. Happ, LHP, Yankees: Happ’s $17MM club option for the 2021 season would’ve become guaranteed upon making 27 starts or totaling 165 innings in 2020.
- Andrew Miller, LHP, Cardinals: Miller’s $12MM club option for 2021 would have been guaranteed if he totaled 110 games between 2019-20. As Rosenthal explores, there are various ways to interpret how many more games he’d need to pitch to trigger that option — some more beneficial to Miller and others to the Cardinals.
- Charlie Morton, RHP, Rays: Morton’s option is another that comes with a multi-year criteria. His contract calls for a $15MM club option in 2021 if he spends fewer than 30 days on the injured list between 2019-20. The option value decreases if he spends additional time on the injured list. Morton avoided the IL entirely last year. Unlike Miller, who surely hopes the number of appearances he needs to make in 2020 can be prorated, it’d be beneficial to Morton for that number (30) to remain as is. That seems unlikely, but the disparity between the clauses of Miller and Morton illustrates that this isn’t exactly straightforward for the player side. The value of his option
- Kelvin Herrera, RHP, White Sox: Herrera, too, needed 110 games between 2019-20 for his $10MM club option to become guaranteed. He pitched in 57 games last year, leaving him 53 shy of his target.
- Wade Davis, RHP, Rockies: Davis’ $15MM mutual option would’ve converted to a $15MM player option in the event that he finished 30 games. He’d only need to finish out 11-12 games in the shortened 2020 season if the two sides go with a strictly prorated interpretation of the qualifiers.
- Bryan Shaw, RHP, Rockies: Shaw has the same 110-game target for 2019-20 that Miller and Herrera have. He pitched 70 times in 2019 and needed just 40 appearances in 2020 to lock in a $9MM salary for the 2021 campaign.
- Jake McGee, LHP, Rockies: With 60 games pitched or 40 games finished in 2020, McGee would’ve locked in a $9MM salary for the 2021 season. His contract also allowed the option to vest with a with 110 games between 2019-20, but he only pitched in 45 contests last year.
- Stephen Vogt, C, Diamondbacks: Vogt’s contract included a $3MM club option that not only vests but increases to a $3.5MM base upon starting 45 games and appearing n a total of 75 games overall.
- Dee Gordon, 2B/SS/OF, Mariners: Gordon would’ve been guaranteed a $14MM salary for the 2021 season with 600 plate appearances this year. That, of course, was extremely unlikely in the first place, though.
Beyond those options, there are myriad escalator clauses throughout baseball that could be impacted by the shortened schedule. It’s fairly common for club options and/or future salaries to be boosted by steady performance — particularly among players returning from injury. Take Dellin Betances, for instance. His contract with the Mets calls for the value of next year’s $6MM player option to increase by $800K upon pitching in 40 games. He’d receive additional $1MM boosts to that figure for appearing in 50, 60 and 70 games apiece.
The league and the union are also still discussing potential retention bonuses for six-year veterans on non-guaranteed deals. In a typical year, any player with six-plus years of service who finished the preceding season on a 40-man roster qualifies as an Article XX(B) free agent. Such players must either be added to the 40-man roster, released five days prior to Opening Day or paid a $100K retention bonus to remain with the club in the minor leagues. Many players in that situation are released and quickly re-signed to a new minor league deal, but that won’t be possible in 2020 due to the fact that players who are removed from a team’s 60-man pool become ineligible to return to that team this season.
Mariners Release Carlos Gonzalez, Wei-Yin Chen
The Mariners released a pair of veterans on minor league contracts, as Shannon Drayer of MyNorthwest.com reports that Carlos Gonzalez and Wei-Yin Chen were both let go from the organization within the last few days. Chen hinted as much in a tweet on his personal account on Saturday, while Gonzalez’s name was initially reported as being one of over 50 Seattle minor league releases in May, before later reports confirmed that CarGo was still with the team.
Gonzalez signed his minors deal in February, and didn’t seem likely to make Seattle’s Opening Day roster prior to the league shutdown. The 34-year-old hit only .200/.289/.283 over 166 PA with the Indians and Cubs in 2019, marking new career lows in both batting performance and playing time. While Gonzalez has posted some excellent numbers over his 12 big league seasons, he hasn’t delivered an above-average season (by wRC+ or OPS+) since 2016, and it could be difficult for the veteran to catch on with another team even with the 2020 season’s expanded rosters.
Chen joined the Mariners in January on a minor league deal, while still collecting the $22MM owed by the Marlins in the final year of his five-year, $80MM free agent deal from the 2015-16 offseason. Injuries and inconsistency resulted in a 5.10 ERA for Chen during his 358 innings with Miami, and the Fish finally parted ways with the southpaw last November.
Between this lack of performance and his age (35 in July), Chen may also have trouble catching on with another Major League organization. Indeed, there have already been reports out of Chen’s native Taiwan suggesting that the left-hander could catch on with a team in Japan. Chen began his career with the Chunichi Dragons back in 2005, and posted an impressive 2.59 ERA over 650 2/3 frames in Nippon Professional Baseball.