Headlines

Go To Pro Hockey Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

Heyman’s Latest: Corbin, Darvish, Cobb, Kemp, Nationals, CarGo, K-Rod

By | at

Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports is back with his latest collection of notes and rumblings on all 30 Major League teams…

  • The Brewers and Diamondbacks had “extensive talks” about left-hander Patrick Corbin at some point in the offseason.  Corbin has been mentioned as a possible trade chip due to his price tag ($7.5MM in 2018, his final year under contract) and Arizona’s increased amount of rotation depth.  Milwaukee, meanwhile, has a clear need for rotation help, so it makes sense that the Brew Crew checked in on Corbin amidst their numerous other talks about notable arms on the free agent and trade fronts — as Heyman put it, “they have investigated every pitching possibility out there.”  This is just my speculation, but the Brewers’ surplus of young center fielders (Keon Broxton and Brett Phillips) could be intriguing to the D’Backs since A.J. Pollock is only a year away from free agency.  The Yankees are known to be one of the many teams who have also discussed Corbin this winter.
  • The Twins aren’t thought to be willing to go beyond five years for Yu Darvish, and “Alex Cobb is believed to be their fallback choice for the rotation” if Darvish passes.  The Rangers similarly have interest in Darvish and Cobb if their prices fall, though it sounds like Texas is hoping for only a major bargain signing.  As one source tells Heyman, “the Rangers are lowballing even the lowballers” in contract offers.
  • The Dodgers have “three or four” potential trade partners in mind for Matt Kemp, according to a source, though Heyman hears from another source that the Rangers are “probably not” a candidate for the veteran outfielder.  It seems like not much has changed since Heyman last checked in on Kemp’s trade market in December, and L.A. may have to attach some minor league talent to get anyone to bite on Kemp’s $43MM in remaining salary owed through the 2019 season.
  • Nationals ownership has concerns about the luxury tax, so it seems unlikely that they will make another pricey, late-winter signing as in past years.  Washington currently projects to exceed the $197MM tax threshold but only by a few million dollars, and should still be able to spend a bit on in-season upgrades without triggering a higher level of tax penalties.
  • Carlos Gonzalez is still an option for the Orioles as they look to add another left-handed hitting outfielder.  CarGo is looking to rebound from a nightmarish 2017 that saw him post a -0.2 fWAR overall, though he did hit much better over the last two months of the season.  Baltimore likely wouldn’t have to spend much to land Gonzalez, and thus the O’s could focus more money on their larger pitching needs.
  • Francisco Rodriguez has received some offers after throwing for scouts.  The former closer is trying to revive his career after a disastrous season that saw him released by both the Tigers and Nationals.

Orioles Notes: Machado, Duquette, Jones, Gausman

By | at

Some significant news has already come out of the Orioles’ annual FanFest event, and here are some more items from some reporters on hand (including Eduardo A. Encina and Jon Meoli of the Baltimore Sun, PressBoxOnline.com’s Rich Dubroff, and MASNsports.com’s Roch Kubatko)…

  • The Orioles expect Manny Machado to be on the roster on Opening Day and, while they didn’t entirely close the door on trading him, executive VP Dan Duquette said that teams weren’t willing to meet Baltimore’s high demands.  Interestingly, Duquette mentioned that the O’s might have swung a deal if they had received an offer similar to the one that allowed the Cardinals to land Jason Heyward from the Braves in the 2014-15 offseason.  That trade saw Heyward (who was, like Machado, a year away from free agency) and young reliever Jordan Walden moved for an MLB-experienced, controllable arm in Shelby Miller and a top-100 prospect in righty Tyrell Jenkins.
  • Duquette identified the rotation as the biggest need still facing the club.  “The key will be addressing the starting pitching.  If we can do that, and I’m confident that we can — don’t ask me how exactly. But if we can do that, I think we can have another good season,” Duquette said.  Though Spring Training is approaching, Duquette felt that a pitcher could be signed as late as around March 1 without it impacting their preparations for the start of the season.  Aside from pitching, Duquette also mentioned that the O’s are still looking to add a left-handed hitting outfielder and a veteran catcher.
  • Duquette’s contract is up after the 2018 season, and the executive said he would “like to continue” with the club beyond the end of his current contract.  “The Orioles gave me an opportunity to re-establish myself in Major League Baseball, which I really appreciated….I enjoy the fans in Baltimore, I enjoy working in the organization and I appreciate the opportunity Mr. (Peter) Angelos gave me,” Duquette said.
  • There haven’t been any extension talks between Adam Jones and the team, the outfielder said (Twitter links from Meoli and Dubroff).  Jones declined to answer what he considered to be hypothetical questions about his future with the team, other than to say that he was prioritizing winning over money in his next contract.  The lack of negotiations aren’t necessarily a surprise; reports back in November stated that the O’s would wait until later in the offseason to discuss extensions with Jones and Machado.  Jones is entering the last season of a six-year, $85.5MM deal, and it remains to be seen if the Orioles will keep the longtime star into his age-33 season and beyond.  Jones has posted above-average hitting numbers over the last two years but his overall value has diminished thanks to a big dropoff in his fielding metrics.  He did express a willingness to consider moving out of center field, though not for “a couple of years.”
  • Kevin Gausman’s arbitration hearing with the Orioles has been scheduled for February 14, though the righty is hopeful a deal can be reached beforehand.  Gausman is seeking a $6.225MM salary for 2018, while the Orioles countered with a $5.3MM offer.

NL East Notes: Mets, Acuna, Marlins

By | at

Some items from around the NL East…

  • The slowed free agent market could benefit a team with seemingly limited payroll space like the Mets, Kristie Ackert of the New York Daily News writes.  If price tags fall due to the lack of movement, players like Jonathan Lucroy, Lance Lynn, or Alex Cobb could emerge on the Mets’ radar, especially if the team is willing to get “creative” with offers.  For Mike Moustakas, for instance, Ackert wonders if the Mets could offer the third baseman a contract with an opt-out after the first season if Moustakas wanted to quickly test the market again; New York made a similar deal with Yoenis Cespedes two years ago.
  • The Mets’ methods of dealing with injured players has been a source of controversy for years, and while the club has made new hires in its medical department this winter, Ken Davidoff of the New York Post reports that ownership “micromanagement” and hyper-competitiveness will have to be curtailed in order for progress to be made.  In particular, COO Jeff Wilpon is “more involved in medical matters — such as working on media releases about injuries.”
  • As you might expect, rival teams have been coveting Braves outfield prospect Ronald Acuna, with the Marlins most recently asking for Acuna in as part of a Christian Yelich trade package.  Braves GM Alex Anthopoulos told reporters (including Gabriel Burns of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution) that the team might still consider an outfield move “but [one] that’s not as big because we don’t want to block Acuna” in 2018.  Arguably the top prospect all of baseball, Acuna is expected to debut in Atlanta’s outfield as early as Opening Day.
  • The Marlins could be an attractive destination for lower-tier free agents who are still trying to find a new team, the New York Post’s Joel Sherman writes, given their lack of big league-ready talent.  Signing a couple of notable veterans to reasonable contracts would help the Marlins on several fronts, Sherman argues — the team could gain some trade deadline chips, add veteran leadership to a young roster, and alleviate criticism from the players’ union about a lack of spending.

AL East Notes: Jays, Yelich, Guerrero, Schoop, O’s, Yankees, Sox, JDM

By | at

The Blue Jays were “the only other team that came close” to acquiring Christian Yelich from the Marlins before the outfielder was dealt to the Brewers, SiriusXM’s Craig Mish reports (Twitter links).  “Several variations” of trade packages were discussed between the Jays and Marlins, including some deals that would’ve seen Toronto take some extra money off Miami’s payroll.  What ended talks between the two sides was the Jays’ refusal to deal Vladimir Guerrero Jr.  It was no secret that the Marlins were demanding a big return for Yelich, and it also isn’t surprising that the Jays balked at moving Guerrero, one of baseball’s very best prospects.

Here are more rumblings from around the AL East…

  • Despite “a significant reduction in the gap between” the arbitration numbers filed by the Orioles and Jonathan Schoop, “the level of frustration on both sides is growing” as a deal still isn’t close, MASNsports.com’s Roch Kubatko writes.  In what could be a related story, Schoop didn’t attend the Orioles’ FanFest this weekend, which left manager Buck Showalter “disappointed,” implying that Schoop’s agent advised the second baseman to skip the event (as per Eduardo A. Encina of the Baltimore Sun and other reporters).  Schoop filed for a $9MM salary while the Orioles filed at $7.5MM.  Kevin Gausman’s arbitration case has also yet to be settled, though Kubatko hears that the O’s will continue to talk to both Gausman and Schoop in the hopes of avoiding a hearing.
  • The Yankees have roughly $10-$15MM ticketed to spend on a starting pitcher or an infielder who can play second base and/or third base, Joel Sherman of the New York Post writes.  If everything breaks right for the Yankees in regards to the slow free agent market, they could fill both needs with those funds.  With the club intent on staying under the $197MM luxury tax threshold, that $10-$15MM will leave the Yankees with around $15-20MM on other potential expenses (i.e. contract bonuses, in-season callups or midseason trade acquisitions).  Adding a second baseman would provide depth if Gleyber Torres needs more minor league time as he recovers from Tommy John surgery, and Sherman notes that delaying Torres’ debut would help the Yankees gain an extra year of team control over the star infield prospect.
  • With Lorenzo Cain landing a five-year commitment from the Brewers, the Boston Herald’s Michael Silverman believes that the Red Sox may be forced to offer J.D. Martinez more than the five-year deal they reportedly have on the table for the free agent outfielder.  Martinez is two years younger than Cain and can be signed without draft pick compensation, which could go towards enhancing Scott Boras’ argument that Martinez should receive at least a six-year deal.

Latest On Slow-Moving Free Agent Market

By | at

In his latest exploration of the stagnant free-agent market, Yahoo’s Jeff Passan reports that free agents have begun to discuss the possible organization of a training camp that would “mimic their typical spring work.” Pitchers and catchers are set to begin reporting for Spring Training in just three weeks, of course, and there are well over 100 unsigned players still seeking employment for the upcoming season.

While the five-year deal for Lorenzo Cain established a new high-water mark for free agents this winter both in terms of contract length and guaranteed money, Passan suggests that other top free agents aren’t necessarily expected to follow. Despite a recent report that Yu Darvish is expected to reach an agreement in the next few days, Passan hears differently, writing that teams throughout the league don’t think that any of Darvish, Jake Arrieta, Eric Hosmer or J.D. Martinez is close to signing. (Certainly, that can change in a hurry with an improved offer from even one potential suitor.)

More broadly, Passan again explores the lack of spending throughout the league in an offseason environment that has been increasingly governed by some teams’ strict adherence to avoiding luxury tax penalization. Prior to the latest wave of collective bargaining negotiations, Passan adds, the league was prepared for the luxury tax line to jump as high as $215MM and considered it a major victory when the bar was raised to $195MM last year and $197MM in 2018. (The tax threshold will increase to $206MM in 2019, $208MM in 2020 and $210MM in 2021.)

While the luxury tax only serves as a direct deterrent for Major League Baseball’s top spenders and thus cannot be viewed as some form of panacea to explain the woefully slow winter, it’s unquestionably slowed things at the top end of the market. Officials from both the Yankees and Dodgers acknowledged to Passan that they’d have spent more this offseason had the tax barrier been higher. And the Giants, of course, have openly stated on multiple occasions that they, too, are looking to reset their penalty level by narrowly staying under the tax line. It stands to reason that they could’ve been more involved in the outfield market with some extra breathing room in that regard.

Exactly how the remainder of the offseason plays out obviously can’t be known, but Passan indicates that players are continuing to encourage one another to hold firm and not cave into lesser deals in a sense of panic as Spring Training approaches.

At some point, it seems fair to wonder, too, if that sense of panic will hit teams that view themselves as hopeful contenders but have multiple glaring holes on the roster. The Orioles, for instance, have been seeking three starting pitchers as well as a left-handed-hitting outfielder but have yet to address any of those needs in a meaningful way. The Nationals still could use a fifth starter and an upgrade behind the plate. The Twins have made a trio of bullpen upgrades but still have clear rotation needs. Eventually, there will have to be a landslide of agreements, though that’s been the common refrain for weeks and there’s still little in the way of actual results.

Brewers Release Wei-Chung Wang To Pursue KBO Opportunity

By | at

TODAY: NC Dinos has announced the signing (hat tip to MyKBO’s Dan Kurtz).  Wang will receive $900K, with $200K coming in the form of a signing bonus.

YESTERDAY: The Brewers have cleared a spot on the 40-man roster by granting left-hander Wei-Chung Wang his release, tweets Adam McCalvy of MLB.com. The move also creates a roster spot for Lorenzo Cain, who was re-introduced to Milwaukee at a press conference earlier today.

Wang will be pursuing an opportunity with a team in the Korea Baseball Organization. Sung Min Kim of River Ave. Blues recently tweeted that Wang had agreed to a deal with the NC Dinos. He’ll be the first Taiwanese-born pitcher to appear in the KBO, Kim adds.

Wang, 25, was originally signed by the Pirates back in 2011 but wound up in the Brewers organization via the 2013 Rule 5 Draft. Milwaukee carried him for the entire 2014 season despite the fact that he’d never pitched above the Rookie-level Gulf Coast League. Unsurprisingly, the lefty didn’t fare well in limited action that year, pitching to a 10.90 ERA in just 17 1/3 innings of work.

Though he didn’t return to the Brewers’ big league team until 2017 (when he tossed just 1 1/3 innings), Wang pitched quite well at Triple-A over parts of three seasons. Despite pitching his home games in an extremely hitter-friendly setting (Colorado Springs), Wang posted a 2.73 ERA with 7.7 K/9 against 1.4 BB/9 through 89 innings across parts of three seasons for the Brewers’ Triple-A affiliate.

Orioles To Move Manny Machado To Shortstop

By | at

After weeks of speculation, Orioles manager Buck Showalter confirmed today to fans and reporters (including MASNsports.com’s Roch Kubatko) that Manny Machado would be moving from third base to shortstop, with Tim Beckham shifting over to the hot corner.  This will at least be the club’s setup going into Spring Training, Showalter specified, though plans could still change down the road.

News broke in November that Machado was interested in a move back to his original position, despite developing into one of baseball’s best defensive players as a third baseman.  Machado has played just 433 big league innings at shortstop over his six-year career, with the bulk of that action coming in 2016 (380 innings) when he filled in for the injured J.J. Hardy.  Machado posted strong metrics that year (5.4 UZR/150, +3 Defensive Runs Saved) as a shortstop, though it’s hard to extrapolate from that small sample size how Machado could fare at the position over the long term.

Given that Machado is just a year away from free agency, it can’t be ignored that the position change widens Machado’s potential market.  Proving that he can handle shortstop would only raises Machado’s already sky-high value heading into the 2018-19 offeason.  While his first preference would seemingly be to find a team that would allow him to continue at short, Machado could also keep third base-needy teams in the picture or even explore scenarios that would see him play every day at one of the two positions.

The position change also has significant 2018 implications for the Orioles, who now could look to complement the right-handed hitting Beckham with a left-handed platoon partner at third.  Given how Beckham impressed in his first month in an O’s uniform, however, the team might want to give him a clear shot at the everyday job.  Executive VP Dan Duquette mentioned (via Kubatko) that the Orioles had been talking to long-time utilityman Ryan Flaherty about a possible return; such an addition wouldn’t be any significant threat to reducing Beckham’s status as the starting third baseman.  Engelb Vielma or prospect Ryan Mountcastle could also eventually get into the third base or infield backup mix.

On the other hand, the Orioles could go big by moving Beckham into a multi-positional bench role and looking for a full-time third baseman.  Mike Moustakas and Todd Frazier are the most notable hot corner names still available in free agency, with Moustakas carrying the bigger price tag (both in terms of salary and draft pick compensation) but his left-handed bat is also a better fit in Baltimore’s lineup.  Making a big signing or trade splash for third base could be difficult, however, given that the O’s have a more pressing need in their rotation.

AL Central Notes: Cain, Tribe, Mondesi, Royals, Hahn, Wilson

By | at

The Indians felt they had a shot at signing Lorenzo Cain to a three-year deal, Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer writes, though they still would have needed to trade another notable contract off the roster to accommodate a Cain signing.  Management felt a pursuit of Cain was a risk worth taking, as the Tribe is very familiar with the center fielder’s abilities from his years as a division rival.  Cleveland was able to land Edwin Encarnacion on a smaller-than-expected three-year deal last winter due to a slow market, though while Cain’s market also took a while to develop, he still had multiple four-year offers on the table (and eventually landed five years from the Brewers).  It isn’t clear if the Tribe is still looking to make a notable outfield addition if they can clear payroll, or if the team was only willing to make such a big splash for Cain specifically.

Some more from around the AL Central…

  • With Alcides Escobar on the verge of re-signing with the Royals, GM Dayton Moore still sees Raul Mondesi Jr. as a notable piece of the team’s future, Moore told reporters (including Maria Torres and Pete Grathoff of the Kansas City Star).  Mondesi had been expected to take on a larger role as the everyday shortstop this season, though the additions of Escobar and Ryan Goins as shortstop depth could see Mondesi spend time at other positions.  “[Mondesi] can play second base, he can play short, he’s good enough to play center field. We’ll see how that emerges,” Moore said.  “We don’t have a clear vision of that right now, other than to simply say that he is a talent that we expect to develop.”  It still seems as though K.C. plans to see quite a lot of Mondesi this season, as Moore said that Mondesi’s development is best helped by appearing in “five of six, five of seven” games per week.
  • On the flip side, Fangraphs’ Eric Longenhagen wonders if the Royals may have moved on from Mondesi and are now looking at prospect Nicky Lopez as their shortstop of the future.  Some scouts and executives from around the league are troubled by Mondesi’s bat control and lack of plate discipline, as well as concerns about his off-the-field preparation and focus issues.  Longenhagen feels that teams with an interest in Mondesi’s potential should be calling the Royals in case Kansas City would be open to trading the shortstop.
  • The White Sox will be ready and willing to spend when they move from rebuilders to contenders, GM Rick Hahn told CBS Chicago’s Bruce Levine and other reporters.  “Ultimately, competing for free agents and targeting big-ticket items and hopefully converting on them will be the next logical step when the time is right,” Hahn said.  “Anyone who doubts that we will break from past perception or past process, I believe the evidence is there over the last year that those old standards are gone.”  Chicago has explored making some high-profile (and pricey) trades for the likes of Manny Machado and Christian Yelich this winter, and in my opinion, it wouldn’t be a total surprise to see the Sox make a play for one of the big-name free agents still on the market.  Speaking of Yelich, Hahn said (via Levine’s Twitter) that the White Sox “we were not comfortable going above what we offered” the Marlins in negotiations.
  • Alex Wilson will stretch out as a starter in the Tigers’ spring camp, the right-hander tells Chris McCosky of the Detroit News.  Just one of Wilson’s 231 MLB appearances has come as a starting pitcher, and even that was a three-inning emergency outing in 2015.  Still, Wilson has been a durable multi-inning reliever and feels a transition is possible.  As McCosky notes, it’s essentially “a no-risk experiment” for the Tigers since Wilson can always return to his previous bullpen role if the rotation move doesn’t pan out.  Wilson posted a 2.47 ERA over 171 1/3 IP from 2014-16, though an inflated homer rate boosted his ERA to 4.50 over 60 frames last season.  The righty also said that he is fully recovered from a broken right leg suffered last September.

Reds Notes: Garrett, Relievers, Rebuild

By | at

Following a hip surgery and successful rehab, Reds left-hander Amir Garrett feels optimistic about the 2018 season, Mark Sheldon of MLB.com reports. The sophomore is ready to put a nightmarish 2017 behind him. “I will re-establish myself again and basically start over from the beginning in spring,” says Garret. “It’s a clean slate, 2018. 2017 is behind me. I have a book and that page isn’t even in there.” Garrett added that he feels stronger and has even shed ten pounds. While the 25-year-old southpaw got off to a hot start last year, his 7.39 ERA and 5.09 BB/9 at season’s end look disastrous. Garrett claims he’s happy that he had a rough year, as he had “never really had any struggles and adversity” prior to that.

More news out of Cincinnati…

  • In light of a slow free agent market, the Reds are looking to add a player, says GM Dick Williams (hat tip to Sheldon). That player is likely to be a reliever, however, which seemingly closes the door on any notion that a rebuilding Cincinnati ballclub might be in on the market’s remaining position players and rotation candidates. Thus far, the only contract the Reds have given out this offseason is a two-year, $4.5MM guarantee to right-handed reliever Jared Hughes. According to our 2017-2018 free agent list, over 40 MLB relievers remain available on the free agent market.
  • Although Cincinnati obviously isn’t expected to compete for a playoff spot, the 2018 season will prove a crucial one for the franchise’s rebuild, says Zach Buchanan of the Cincinnati Enquirer. Reds fans have watched the rival Brewers undergo a notoriously short rebuild while they’ve had to endure four consecutive losing seasons already. “We’ve struggled to be competitive since the second half of 2014,” manager Bryan Price told reporters at the Reds Caravan on Thursday. “That’s a fair amount of time to ask our fan base to wait. I think they’re going to see a lot of improvement as far as wins and losses. They need to see that.” Buchanan does cite some reasons for optimism, including a much healthier pitching staff that could take a step forward, the rising stardom of Eugenio Suarez and the potential for top prospect Nick Senzel to make the big league roster at some point this season. Interestingly, he also notes that the Reds were apparently in on Christian Yelich early on, but backed off quickly when they learned that they’d need to part with either Senzel or Hunter Greene “just to start”.

Finding A Catcher For The Nationals

By | at

As things stand right now, the Nationals are clear favorites to win the NL East pennant once again in 2018. Fangraphs projects that their current roster would win about 91 games in the coming season, and sees all four of its division rivals as sub-.500 teams. That’s great for the Nats, but likely doesn’t mean much to its fan base at this point, who have seen their home team clinch the division in four of the past six seasons (and the NL’s best record in two of them) only to lose in the NLDS. For a team that’s set to lose Bryce Harper, Daniel Murphy and Gio Gonzalez to free agency next winter, there seems to be some pressure to push for a World Series Title while they still have the pieces to do so.

While the overall look of Washington’s roster is fantastic, they have a gaping hole at the catcher position, as MLBTR’s own Jeff Todd examined back in October. The situation remains the same; Matt Wieters performed below replacement level in 2017, and at this point he can’t be counted on to provide much value. Pedro Severino hasn’t yet done anything to convince the club that he’s ready to produce against big-league pitching. By finding a catching upgrade, the team could improve its lineup considerably and thereby improve its chances to make a deep postseason run. That being said, the market has shifted a bit since Todd’s initial assessment.

First off, it’s somewhat surprising that the Nationals haven’t addressed their need already. It’s been clear since the beginning of the offseason. In addition to our own post on the matter, the baseball community has seen Travis Sawchik of Fangraphs examine the situation in detail back at the beginning of December.

Of course, it’s not exactly a quick-fix situation. The best catching option on the market at the outset of the winter was Jonathan Lucroy, who isn’t without his own set of question marks. Welington Castillo was scooped up by the White Sox by beginning of December, taking away another potential fit. And it’s not as though MLB teams will freely trade talented catchers; a premium position comes at a premium rate. Acquiring a catcher on the trade market without diminishing some other area of the major league roster would be a difficult task to accomplish.

The Nationals have been connected to a few players throughout the offseason already, but they’ve got fairly limited resources to make such an acquisition. They’re already above the luxury tax threshold, so an addition on the free market will technically cost 130% of whatever he signs for; that dramatically reduces the cost-effectiveness of that avenue. And the team seems likely to hang onto top prospects Victor Robles and Juan Soto due to their immense values. With that in mind, let’s take a look at the options available…

Free Agents:

Jonathan Lucroy: As recently as the first half of last season, Lucroy was one of the top catchers in the game. He posted a .292/.355/.500 slash line with 24 home runs during a 2016 campaign split between the Brewers and Rangers. But his power fell off significantly last season, which led him to put up one of the worst fWAR totals of his career (1.2). Lucroy managed to hit only six homers despite a notoriously homer-happy trend throughout the league and a significant number of plate appearances in Coors Field.

Due to his steep offensive drop-off and an equally stark decline in pitch-framing skills, Lucroy will probably only require a one- or two-year contract. But he’s no guarantee to provide value even on the two-year, $24MM deal that MLBTR predicted for him at the outset of the winter, and it’s not even a certainty that he’ll provide enough of an upgrade over Wieters to justify an eight-figure commitment with a 30% surcharge stemming luxury tax considerations.

Alex Avila: The soon-to-be 31-year-old Avila started off hot with the Tigers last year, but cooled down after being traded to the Cubs midseason. Still, he maintained a .369 on-base across 112 plate appearances even after the trade. The Nats have already been connected to Avila this offseason. He could be had at very low price, and would therefore be a low-risk signing for the club.

The biggest issue with entertaining Avila as a serious option is the fact that he probably can’t be counted upon to take a significant workload behind the plate. The veteran hasn’t caught more than 650 innings in any of the past three seasons, meaning he might not provide the type of upgrade the Nationals need.

Trade Options

J.T. Realmuto: As Todd pointed out three months ago, this is a fairly obvious match. The fit only became stronger in theory when the Marlins sold off Giancarlo Stanton, then Dee Gordon, later Marcell Ozuna and most recently Christian Yelich. As things stand at the present moment, the Nationals are said to be the organization that is “most heavily engaged” in talks with Miami concerning their catcher. While their reported unwillingness to include Robles or Soto would seem a significant roadblock on the surface, it’s looking as though the Fish might just be willing to settle for a package comprised of other assets.

Yasmani Grandal: If the 2017 playoffs are to be seen as any indication, Austin Barnes has usurped the starting job from Grandal, leaving the veteran switch-hitter destined to serve in a backup role for 2018. He’s set to earn $7.9MM after avoiding arbitration with the Dodgers, and will become a free agent following the season. The 2010 first-rounder has averaged over 2.5 fWAR across the past three seasons, meaning he could prove an excellent upgrade for the Nats at a far cheaper cost than someone like Realmuto.

Yan Gomes/Roberto Perez: The two Tribe backstops have been steady if unimpressive in recent years, and each can be controlled for at least three more seasons. Both are stellar defensive players with penchants for throwing out a remarkable percentage of opposing base-stealers, and each would be a clear upgrade over Wieters. Trading either player to the Nationals would pave the way for top prospect Francisco Mejia to crack the big league roster, though the Indians may perhaps prefer to hold him at Triple-A for a while due to service time considerations and/or need for further seasoning.

Francisco Mejia: Mejia gets his own paragraph due to the considerably different circumstances surrounding his hypothetical trade candidacy. Being that he’s blocked by Gomes and Perez at the MLB level, the Tribe could perhaps be willing to part with him. The logic of this match declines from there, however, as it’s difficult to imagine what the Nationals could (or would) possibly offer to improve Cleveland’s shot at a World Series title in 2018.

James McCann: The rebuilding Tigers don’t seem likely to be competitive in any of the next three seasons, meaning McCann will probably be on the move sooner or later. Though he’s impressive defensively, McCann’s bat has proved below-average across 1,201 big league plate appearances. That could (in theory) make him more affordable than other trade options while still offering an upgrade over Washington’s in-house options.

 

MLB Trade Rumors is not affiliated with Major League Baseball, MLB or MLB.com

Do not Sell or Share My Personal Information

hide arrows scroll to top