Blue Jays Select Joe Panik
The Blue Jays have selected the contract of veteran infielder Joe Panik, as first indicated on the league transactions log at MLB.com. Right-hander Yennsy Diaz was placed on the 60-day injured list in a corresponding roster move. Sportsnet’s Ben Nicholson-Smith tweets that the move is indeed official, adding that Panik had an opt-out clause in his contract, which necessitated the transaction. It’s also likely that with the league instructing teams to send non-40-man players home (if they’re safely able to do so), the Jays wanted to act quickly to ensure that Panik is able to remain with the group.
The 29-year-old Panik was the Giants’ first-round pick back in 2011 and ascended to the role of everyday second baseman in San Francisco by 2014. He held that role late into the 2019 season, but the Giants, amid a rebuild phase and hoping to evaluate a younger wave of long-term pieces, designated Panik for assignment in early August and released him shortly thereafter. He quickly signed on with the Mets and finished out the year in a part-time role there.
This past season marked a second consecutive rough year at the plate for Panik, who slashed a combined .249/.311/.334 in 883 plate appearance from 2018-19. That’s a far cry from the quality .282/.345/.408 (105 OPS+) that Panik posted from 2014-17 — a stretch wherein he made the 2015 All-Star Game and won a Gold Glove in 2016. Injuries have surely played a part in his downturn. Since 2015, a stress fracture in his back, multiple bouts of concussion symptoms, thumb surgery and a groin strain have all sent Panik to the injured list. He avoided the IL in 2019, although the litany of injuries certainly could have had a lingering effect on his play.
Prior to the league’s coronavirus shutdown, though, Panik looked quite comfortable in camp with the Jays. It’s only 10 games and 26 plate appearances, but Panik went 8-for-21 with a pair of homers, a triple and more walks (four) than strikeouts (three). It’s difficult to glean too much from that limited showing, but the Blue Jays were impressed enough to add Panik to the roster, thus locking in a $2.85MM base salary for the veteran infielder.
A bench role may be likelier for Panik than a starting role, as Cavan Biggio‘s youth and his .364 on-base percentage in 100 big league games last season will probably get him the nod in that regard. Biggio hit .234/.364/.429 with 16 home runs, 17 doubles, a pair of triples and 14 steals in 430 plate appearances as a rookie, and the Blue Jays will surely want to give him a large role to see if he can solidify himself as the primary second baseman for years to come. But Panik is plenty capable of playing both up-the-middle positions — he was drafted as a shortstop but moved to second base due to Brandon Crawford‘s presence in San Francisco — and could conceivably be asked to be a backup option at third base as well.
As for the 23-year-old Diaz, it’s not yet clear what his actual injury is. The Jays haven’t made a formal announcement of the roster move yet, however, so details will surely emerge when they publicly acknowledge the transaction. Diaz ranks 26th among Jays farmhands at FanGraphs and 29th at MLB.com. He spent the 2019 season with their Double-A club, pitching to a 3.74 ERA with 7.2 K/9, 3.3 BB/9, 0.75 HR/9 and a 40 percent ground-ball rate before appearing in a single big league game last September.
Brett Cecil Has “Fairly Significant” Hamstring Strain
Cardinals lefty Brett Cecil suffered a “fairly significant” strain of his right hamstring while covering first base in the Cardinals’ final game before the spring shutdown, manager Mike Shildt told reporters over the weekend (link via Rick Hummel of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch). There’s no concrete timeline on his rehab — as is the case with baseball in general — but he’ll require “multiple weeks of treatment to get him back to close to being into baseball activities,” per Shildt.
Shildt did note that Cecil avoided a full tear of the hamstring, although any strain, by definition, involves some partial tearing. He was able to walk off the field under his own power at the time of the injury (video link), although the 33-year-old was in obvious pain and walking with a limp.
Cecil didn’t pitch at all in 2019 after undergoing surgery to alleviate carpal tunnel syndrome in his pitching hand. A year prior, shoulder troubles wiped out roughly six weeks of his season. The lefty actually pitched well upon returning from the injured list in mid-May but tanked in the second half of that season. Cecil pitched 9 2/3 innings after the 2018 All-Star break and surrendered a staggering 16 runs on 17 hits and 10 walks with just seven strikeouts.
Cecil is now 75 percent of the way through a four-year, $30.5MM contract he signed with St. Louis prior to the 2017 campaign, and to date, he’s managed only 100 innings of 4.86 ERA ball with just 7.7 K/9 against 3.7 BB/9. Cecil struck out 31.6 percent of the hitters he faced over his final three seasons with the Blue Jays but has seen that number plummet to 19.6 percent. His fastball, which averaged 92.2 mph in 2016, averaged just 89.8 mph during the aforementioned 2018 season.
Suffice it to say, that’s not really what the Cards hoped when issuing the largest contract to which they’ve ever signed a reliever. Depending on the length of the shutdown with which the league is faced, it’s possible that Cecil could be healthy by the time a “second Spring Training” rolls around. Shildt’s rather vague wording and the broader uncertainty surrounding the timeline to Opening Day make that impossible to ascertain, however.
Quick Hits: Peraza, Amateur Draft, Cardinals, Pitchers
Jose Peraza was linked to the Orioles, Indians, and two other unknown teams this offseason, though Peraza tells Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe that he heard from eight or nine clubs while on the open market. Peraza chose to sign with the Red Sox because of their recent success (“It’s a great place to play baseball if you want to win a championship“) and the opportunity they presented for regular second base work. “Second base is my most comfortable position. I played a lot of second base in the minors. I know I can help this team playing there,” Peraza said. He saw quite a bit of second base action over his four seasons in Cincinnati, though the Reds gave Peraza more time as a shortstop (almost exclusively so in 2018) and also used him as an outfielder. Peraza might get some utility action with the Sox but will likely see the most action as Boston’s first-choice option at the keystone.
More from around the baseball world…
- The title of Keith Law’s latest piece for The Athletic (subscription required) says it all: “How do you prepare for the draft when there are no games to watch?” Law speaks to several sources from teams and the league itself about how the 2020 amateur draft will be impacted by the COVID-19 shutdown, as universities and high schools have already halted their seasons. Some of the draft’s top prospects, therefore, will have had little or no chance to play in front of scouts in weeks or even at all by the time the draft rolls around on June 12. Pushing the draft back altogether could be an option, and other ideas suggested include holding prospect combines or “thrown-together tournaments” (in the words of one GM) so evaluators could look at the players in both workout and game scenarios. There is no perfect solution to solve such a major interruption in the usual pre-draft process, of course, though Law suggests that Major League Baseball should “work with amateur institutions to waive the typical restrictions on amateur players. Nobody’s eligibility should be at stake here, not in these extraordinary circumstances.”
- The Cardinals “will not make any [transactions] until we have more clarity on what the future holds,” president of baseball operations John Mozeliak told Rick Hummel of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. This means everything from roster cuts, minor league assignments, releases, or any other moves that would have been expected within the next week had Spring Training progressed as per usual. Despite some speculation on the subject, the league didn’t issue an official freeze on roster moves while the next steps are figured out during this shutdown period, even though some veterans on minor league contracts are approaching the opt-out dates in their contracts. A couple of teams have made some minor league re-assignments in the interim, while the Nationals made the most notable move in releasing Hunter Strickland and David Hernandez.
- “The longer the delay lasts, the longer it will take for the pitchers to reset, to rebuild,” ESPN.com’s Buster Olney writes about a timeline for the “second Spring Training” that will be required should the season get back on track. The latest reports suggest that late May or early June could be earliest date for a new Opening Day, and should the season be delayed until closer to mid-summer, “some staffers believe something close to a month…will be required to get the pitchers up to speed.” This is yet another complication facing the league and the MLBPA over the coming weeks or months as they try to work out what will be a heavily-reduced schedule.
Latest On League, MLBPA Discussions Over Player Access To Spring Camps
Major League Baseball issued a memorandum to all 30 teams earlier today that addressed multiple topics, most notably the halt of any organized player workouts at Spring Training facilities. The plans outlined in the memo will be in place at least through Monday’s planned conference call between the teams and Commissioner Rob Manfred, and alterations could continue to be made Monday or in the days to come based on further developments concerning the spread of the coronavirus pandemic.
Joel Sherman of the New York Post detailed some of the main points of the memo, which focused primarily on immediate issues concerning Spring Training matters. Such bigger-picture topics as a revised schedule were discussed between the league and the union, Sherman noted, though no decisions were made since it is too early to know when the season could potentially get underway.
The memo highlights many concerns that the MLBPA raised with the league over the last few days, as outlined by Ken Rosenthal and Evan Drellich of The Athletic (subscription required). The Orioles, Brewers, Braves, Marlins and Mets were all cited in player complaints to the union about a lack of access to facilities. As Rosenthal and Drellich put it, “even as MLB and the PA technically agree that facilities are to be open to major league players for now, they differ about what ‘open’ means.”
As outlined in today’s memo, players on a 40-man roster “must be permitted to remain at the Club’s Spring Training site, and are eligible to receive their usual Spring Training allowances.” Non-roster players were instructed to return to their normal homes, though such players with injury problems were allowed to stay in camp to receive treatment from team medical staffers, and “Clubs should work…to provide suitable accommodations” for any player who wished to remain in the United States rather than another country, or for American players “who reside in high-risk areas in the United States.”
The stability of a team facility offers obvious appeal to players who wish to keep training in preparation for whenever the season begins, though MLB and the individual teams have similarly understandable concerns about keeping players gathered in any sort of clustered situation. “In the view of several executives and MLB officials, any objection to limited access in the middle of a public health crisis misses the larger point of trying to keep players safe,” Rosenthal and Drellich wrote, adding that teams are also worried about older staff members at the facilities who could be at greater risk of catching the coronavirus.
MLBTR Chat Transcript: 3/13/2020
Click here to read the transcript of tonight’s baseball chat
Reports: MLB Season Could Be Delayed Until Memorial Day Weekend
6:55PM: The Center Of Disease Control And Prevention has issued a recommendation against any events of 50 or more people over the next eight weeks in the United States. That eight-week timeline would last until May 9, so assuming that the health situation stabilizes within those eight weeks, a Memorial Day start to baseball season wouldn’t seem feasible, given the necessary time required for preseason preparations.
4:56PM: With MLB operations on hold due to the spread of the coronavirus, it’s becoming increasingly likely that the season remains on hold until at least Memorial Day weekend, according to a report from Bob Nightengale of USA Today. Such a scenario would push back the beginning of the regular season to late May. MLB Network’s Jon Heyman expressed a similar sentiment, saying that the commencement of the season “anytime before June would be viewed as welcome.”
Officially, the beginning of the regular season has been delayed for a minimum of two weeks, which points to April 9 as the earliest date for the sport’s return. But in light of recent developments, that date is looking more and more like a mere pipe dream. Indeed, Robert Murray reports that the MLBPA has advised players to consider returning to the place they would be most comfortable for the next 4-6 weeks. The Athletic writers Ken Rosenthal and Evan Drellich reported yesterday that it was unlikely for the season to begin before May.
In light of a memo distributed by MLB this morning, minor leaguers have been sent home and organized group workouts at team facilities have been halted. Yesterday, it looked like a host of teams were planning to stick together despite the stoppage, but it’s expected that more and more clubs will vacate their Spring Training facilities in the coming days. And with affiliated baseball discovering its first confirmed case of the virus this morning, teams may be more hesitant to keep players grouped together.
By all accounts, MLB is still aiming to play a 162-game season, but the feasibility of that goal will no doubt be challenged by any significant setback. If indeed the season is delayed until Memorial Day or June, a truncated season may be in order. Otherwise, we might be looking (speculatively) at December World Series games in neutral sites. Of course, specifics on this front are scarce and will remain nebulous until the situation gains clarity.
The consequences of a delayed regular season are wide-ranging, and the subsequent questions that must be resolved will be manifold. Issues such as compensation (especially for minor league players and stadium staff), service time, schedule structure, workouts, and plenty more will need to be sorted out before the 2020 campaign may carry on.
MiLB Player Tests Positive For Coronavirus
A player in the Yankees’ farm system has tested positive for coronavirus, reports Jeff Passan of ESPN (via Twitter). He becomes the first known case in pro baseball. The player was quarantined Friday morning.
According to Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic, all Yankees minor leaguers have been instructed to self-quarantine in their hotel rooms for the next two weeks. GM Brian Cashman told reporters including The Athletic’s Lindsey Adler that the organization has only administered one coronavirus test (this positive one) thus far. Meanwhile, the team’s minor league complex will remain closed until March 25 at the earliest.
The player involved was only on the minor-league side of Yankees’ camp this spring, Passan adds. The minor-league complex has been closed since, although that was part of the team’s plan regardless, reports Kristie Ackert of the New York Daily News (Twitter link). That the player who tested positive wasn’t in major league camp hardly means MLB is insulated from the disease, of course.
It seemed like only a matter of time before the virus spread to the affiliated ranks. The NBA quickly suspended its season once the first player tested positive this week. MLB, of course, since followed suit, and teams were already set to cease group-organized workouts at their facilities. MLB has already sent minor-leaguers home; it seems the only reason the league hasn’t done the same with players on 40-man rosters is a lack of authority to do so under the collective bargaining agreement.
MLB Teams Expected To Halt Organized Group Workouts
MLB is set to advise teams against conducting organized group workouts at team facilities, reports Ken Rosenthal of the Athletic (via Twitter). Limiting mass workouts is designed to comply with health experts’ recommendations that people avoid congregating when possible to help contain the spread of the coronavirus. However, facilities are likely to remain open for individual use on a case-by-case basis, Rosenthal adds. MLB has formally sent the advisement to the clubs, reports Joel Sherman of the New York Post (via Twitter). One player has informed ESPN’s Marly Rivera that teams are indeed now set to cease all organized group workouts.
MLB is mandating that non-roster players return home if safely possible (via Sherman). Players on a team’s 40-man roster remain eligible to stay onsite at spring camps, MLB announced, citing a lack of authority to send rostered players home under the CBA. Nevertheless, even players on the 40-man roster are expected to be barred from group workouts at club facilities.
Many teams were planning to continue working together while the sport is on pause. That no longer seems it’ll be the case, at least not at team facilities. Players are still free to work out individually and organize training groups among themselves. Some will almost certainly do so. But with experts calling for everyone to practice social distancing wherever possible, MLB (wisely) determined that mass gatherings of players are simply too dangerous at this point.
Today’s development only lends further credence to yesterday’s report that the season won’t be getting underway until May at the earliest, as Sherman points out (via Twitter).
Coronavirus Plan Updates: Cardinals, Astros, Mets, Royals, Rays
Teams have taken various approaches in the wake of the coronavirus hiatus. Some more details have emerged about how a few teams plan to handle the unpredictable situation.
- The Cardinals had initially planned to largely disperse, with only ten to fifteen players remaining at the team’s Florida complex. It seems they’ve reversed course somewhat. Fifteen to twenty-five players will stick around for the time being, reports Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. They’ll continue to work out informally, but they unsurprisingly plan to pare back the training intensity, especially on the pitching side. Cardinals officials anticipate an eventual abbreviated “2.0 spring training,” in the words of manager Mike Shildt, that’ll last around two weeks in advance of MLB’s official regular season start date. Technically, MLB could return as soon as April 9, but it’s unlikely games will get underway until at least May.
- The Astros will split into two groups to train, pitcher Lance McCullers announced (h/t to Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle). Some members of the club will remain in the team’s spring complex in Florida, while others are headed back to Houston. The players plan to work out collectively.
- Most of the Mets‘ coaching staff will stay at the team’s Florida spring complex, as will many players on the team, tweets MLB Network’s Jon Heyman. Newsday’s Tim Healey recently reported that most of the team would stay put.
- As of yesterday, the Royals were holding tight at their Arizona spring facility, reports Lynn Worthy of the Kansas City Star. As pitcher Danny Duffy acknowledged to Worthy, the fluid situation could call for a change in plans at any time.
- A good portion of the Rays’ roster is holding tight at the team’s spring complex for now. 30-35 players took part in an informal workout yesterday, reports Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. Unlike some other clubs, Tampa has no plans to conduct any sort of team-wide vote on the matter, Topkin adds, preferring to let players decide on a case-by-case basis their preferred course of action.
MLBTR Poll: Bauer vs. Ray vs. Stroman
Baseball’s hiatus gives us an opportunity to examine both the past and future of the sport. Yesterday, MLBTR’s Mark Polishuk looked back at a potential franchise-altering trade that never materialized. Today, we’ll turn our attention to the future: specifically, the upcoming free agent class.
MLBTR’s Tim Dierkes ran his initial 2020-21 free agent power rankings a few weeks ago. No question, Mookie Betts looks like the jewel of a position player heavy class. Yet the pitching side looks a bit muddled. Trevor Bauer, Robbie Ray and Marcus Stroman checked in alongside one another (in that order) as the three arms in Tim’s top ten. Obviously, there’s time for one to emerge as the unquestioned top starter on the market in 2020. As of now, though, which hurler do the MLBTR readers anticipate getting the top guarantee next winter, and which one would you prefer your favorite team roll the dice on?
- Trevor Bauer, Cincinnati: For most of his career, the 29-year-old Bauer’s been a durable, mid-rotation type. He’s soaked up tons of innings, but in five of six seasons, he’s put up an ERA between 4.18 and 4.55 (with marginally better FIP’s). At his best, though, Bauer flashed a ceiling most pitchers can only dream of. In 2018, the former #3 overall pick worked to a 2.21 ERA with an elite 30.8% strikeout rate. An unsustainably low HR/FB rate meant that ERA always figured to regress somewhat, but it was still surprising to see Bauer post a league-average 4.48 mark in 2019. Bauer, of course, has expressed a desire to sign a series of one-year deals as a free agent. If he sticks to that plan, he’ll almost certainly not garner the top overall guarantee for a pitcher this offseason (or any other). But that high-risk approach is easier to espouse in theory than in practice, and Bauer recently walked back that plan a little bit. His free agency will be fascinating to follow.
- Robbie Ray, Arizona: A bit like Bauer, the 28-year-old Ray is a tantalizing but somewhat frustrating talent. Since the start of 2017, he ranks fifth among starters (minimum 300 innings) in strikeout rate and 12th in swinging strike rate. He’s surrounded by the game’s aces on both leaderboards. Only Tyler Chatwood and Francisco Liriano have higher walk rates than Ray in that same period, though. The southpaw has never had a season with a better than average walk rate; that general inefficiency has run up some high pitch counts and helped prevent Ray from ever eclipsing 175 innings in a season. His ERA’s the past four years have varied quite a bit (4.90, 2.89, 3.93, 4.34). Teams could have different evaluations for Ray’s future, but the most likely outcome seems to be solid mid-rotation production via something of an extreme approach.
- Marcus Stroman, Mets: Unlike his top two competitors, Stroman doesn’t generate many whiffs. The 28-year-old’s sinker is more conducive to a ground-ball heavy game. He throws strikes and has managed to avoid home runs even in the juiced ball era thanks to strong contact management. Stroman’s sinker/slider/cutter mix isn’t the four-seam/curveball combination coveted by most teams nowadays. Nevertheless, he’ll have plenty of suitors since he’s proven capable of ample success. 2018 was an injury-marred struggle, but Stroman’s put up at least 184.1 innings in three of the past four seasons and boasts a career ERA of 3.76. That’s a better track record of run prevention than either Bauer (4.04) or Ray (4.11) can boast.
- Others: Other free agents to be (complete list of 2020-21 free agents) include Kevin Gausman, James Paxton, Alex Wood and Taijuan Walker. Between age, injuries and/or recent underperformance, it’s tough to project any of them to beat Bauer, Ray or Stroman this winter. Perhaps you’re more optimistic about someone a bit under-the-radar?
Which Free Agent Starter Will Earn The Largest Guarantee In 2020-21 Offseason?
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Trevor Bauer 43% (3,272)
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Marcus Stroman 28% (2,160)
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Robbie Ray 24% (1,837)
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Other (specify in comments) 4% (314)
Total votes: 7,583
poll link for app users
Which 2020-21 Free Agent Starter Will Prove To Be The Best Investment For A Team?
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Trevor Bauer 41% (2,217)
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Marcus Stroman 34% (1,834)
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Robbie Ray 25% (1,371)
Total votes: 5,422
poll link for app users