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East Notes: Orioles, Pedroia, Red Sox, Olivera

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The Orioles have begun reaching agreements with much of their coaching staff after offering deals to all of them. Bench coach John Russell inked a two-year deal last month, Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com reports (all links to Twitter). Hitting coach Scott Coolbaugh, third base coach Bobby Dickerson, and bullpen coach Dom Chiti are all now under contract for next year, Kubatko adds.

Here’s the latest out of the game’s eastern divisions:

  • Red Sox second baseman Dustin Pedroia says that his hamstring injury was somewhat more serious than had been known during the season, as WEEI.com’s Rob Bradford reports. The 32-year-old explains that he tried to come back too quickly after suffering a grade 2.5 tear of the biceps femoris — the lower part of the hamstring where it attaches to the knee. Fortunately, Pedroia does not seem to have done any long-term damage and ought to be ready to go for a normal spring. Though he only made 425 plate appearances, Pedroia slashed a healthy .291/.356/.441.
  • Though the Red Sox had one of the league’s more notable backlogs of outfielders heading into 2015, the team now looks in need of an addition, Jason Mastrodonato of the Boston Herald explains. It’s not entirely clear what route the club will go, and it does have Brock Holt on hand as a super-utility option to go with presumptive starters Mookie Betts, Jackie Bradley Jr., and Rusney Castillo. Mastrodonato suggests that a lefty masher might make sense.
  • Hector Olivera is a key to the Braves’ plans, writes MLB.com’s Mark Bowman. President of baseball operations John Hart said that the club took the risk, after “multiple looks,” in order to take a rare chance to add “a nice five- or six-hole hitter that we’re going to control affordably.” That will, in theory, enable the club to “add other pieces” along with him.

Rangers Notes: Staff, Lewis, Beltre, Napoli, Gallardo, Offseason

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The Rangers were one of the biggest surprises of the year. While the club was bounced from the playoffs in disappointing fashion, it nevertheless accomplished much more than expected and raised expectations heading into 2016.

Here’s the latest from Texas:

  • Rangers hitting coach Dave Magadan and bullpen coach Andy Hawkins will not be back, as MLB.com’s T.R. Sullivan reports. The rest of the club’s staff has been invited to return to work under manager Jeff Banister. Magadan is looking to remain closer to his home in Florida, per the report, while Hawkins is aiming to move to another organization.
  • In other after-season business, also via Sullivan, the Rangers announced that righty Colby Lewis had a procedure to repair a torn meniscus in his left knee. The soon-to-be free agent pitched through it for much of the year. It remains to be seen whether veteran third bagger Adrian Beltre will need surgery for a torn ligament in his thumb, an injury that he (rather remarkably) played with for some time.
  • Texas has interest in bringing back first baseman Mike Napoli, GM Jon Daniels said. The 33-year-old hit a blistering .295/.396/.513 down the stretch for Texas, and would make sense as a right-handed-hitting complement to the club’s left-heavy lineup. But it appears that Napoli may prefer to seek a more expansive role on the open market.
  • As expected, the Rangers intend to make a qualifying offer to righty Yovani Gallardo. If he doesn’t take the $15.8MM offer, Gallardo will hit the market heading into his age-30 season after throwing 376 2/3 innings of 3.46 ERA pitching over the last two campaigns. The draft compensation would create some drag, but his record of durability and effectiveness makes him an obvious target for clubs in need of reliable innings.
  • It’s back to business already for Daniels, who says that he believes the team “did a lot of our heavy lifting in July,” as Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reports. That’s a reference to the club’s acquisition of Cole Hamels and Jake Diekman, of course, both of whom were added with the future in mind. That being said, Daniels made clear that Texas will be active. “There are some areas that I would expect that we’ll look to upgrade,” Daniels said. “I think we’ll have a lot of conversations with other clubs and kind of see where the market is. I don’t feel like there are any glaring holes if we are healthy.”　
  • Regarding starting pitching, Daniels said that the organization will “look to add some stability” over the winter. That could mean a return of Lewis or (perhaps less likely) Gallardo, but it seems quite possible that Texas will be on the market for a new addition.

Offseason Outlook: Colorado Rockies

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The Rockies shipped out mega-star Troy Tulowitzki this summer in the midst of another miserable campaign. Does his departure portend more changes to the big league roster?

Guaranteed Contracts

Arbitration Eligible Players (service time in parentheses; projections by MLB Trade Rumors)

Contract Options

Free Agents

By and large, Rockies GM Jeff Bridich has maneuvered subtly since taking the helm just over a year ago. His transactional history shows a variety of fairly minor moves — with one glaring exception. This summer, of course, Bridich manufactured a stunning trade this summer that sent franchise icon Troy Tulowitzki (and veteran reliever LaTroy Hawkins) to the Blue Jays in exchange for Jose Reyes and a trio of intriguing pitching prospects. That move not only signaled that Colorado was willing to embrace change, but set the course for the current offseason.

Colorado’s prior two winters featured efforts to re-work the cast surrounding Tulowitzki and Carlos Gonzalez while carefully managing payroll. Before 2014, the club dealt for Brett Anderson and Drew Stubbs while extending Jorge De La Rosa, signing Justin Morneau and Boone Logan, but also dealing away Dexter Fowler for cheaper MLB assets. Last year involved the addition of Kyle Kendrick, Nick Hundley, Daniel Descalso, and John Axford via free agency and the shedding of pitchers Brett Anderson, Juan Nicasio, and Jhoulys Chacin. While the organization set consecutive Opening Day payroll records ($93.5MM, $97MM) in the process, the results were the same.

That seems unlikely to be repeated in the coming months. It’s not clear how much cash the club intends to dedicate to player salaries, but it would be surprising to see another group of veteran acquisitions with intentions of remaining competitive. Instead, this time around, the smart money seems to be on a continued — albeit cautious — conversion of veteran assets into younger, cheaper pieces.

Bridich played a nifty hand last fall, netting the club a draft pick by making a qualifying offer to Michael Cuddyer. He might’ve hoped to do the same with Justin Morneau, but injuries derailed that possibility. Adding young talent will have to come the old-fashioned way, via trade. So, what are the team’s options?

With Tulo now in Toronto, the attention turns to his former co-star CarGo. It probably won’t be as hard for the club to part with the latter having already moved the former, though Bridich has made clear he has no intentions of selling low. There’s a lot of cash left to go in the final two years of Gonzalez’s contract, but it’s still a much smaller commitment in terms of years and annual salary than the winter’s best free agent outfielders will command. And while the persistent injuries limit his value, Gonzalez did play a career-high 153 games and post a dramatic second-half turnaround (142 wRC+). All said, this may be the high water mark in his trade value.

Moving CarGo is the likeliest route to adding young arms to the stable. Bridich obviously feels good about the youthful pitching he’s already brought in, as he explained in his recent appearance on the MLBTR Podcast, and this approach could allow him to target more young pitching talent of the kind he believes can thrive under the organization’s unique circumstances.

Moreover, Colorado is also very well situated to fill in for the hypothetical loss of the veteran. 2014 was a lost season for Corey Dickerson, but there’s no reason he shouldn’t be penciled in for an everyday role. And Charlie Blackmon showed that he can be relied upon as an average regular. Though defensive metrics seem to prefer him in a corner spot, Blackmon can handle center. Dealing the veteran Gonzalez, then, would create an opening (on the roster and in terms of payroll) for the team to add a bounceback free agent looking for playing time and the chance to hit at altitude. The market has several possibilities, including center field capable players like Austin Jackson, who could keep a seat warm for top outfield prospect David Dahl. Such a player could, in turn, be flipped for yet more prospects depending upon how things shake out — making for a possible double dip of sorts.

Regardless of what the team (if anything) does with Gonzalez, there’s Jose Reyes to consider. The organization might’ve hoped that the thin air would do the 32-year-old Reyes some good, but the early returns weren’t positive. He hit just .259/.291/.368, was caught in four of twelve stolen base attempts, and continued to put up uninspired defensive marks. There would surely be some teams with interest in rostering him, but will any give up young talent or take on a lot of salary to do so? While Colorado could ship out Reyes and hand the reins to Christian Adames and/or Trevor Story, the club might prefer to see if the veteran can rebuild some value over the first half before doing so.

It’s not clear that there is a ton to be gained from dealing from other parts of the roster. Players such as Blackmon, emerging star third baseman Nolan Arenado, and solid second bagger DJ LeMahieu all have real value, of course, but there’s little impetus to trade them. Colorado would surely be willing to part with underwhelming and now-arb-eligible players such as Wilin Rosario and Brandon Barnes, but they are just as likely to end up being non-tendered or kept in reserve roles.

That brings us to two positions of most uncertainty: catcher and first base. Behind the dish, the 32-year-old Nick Hundley turned in a sturdy campaign and is under contract for another season. With Michael McKenry cut loose, the Rockies will presumably give a chance to Tom Murphy, who performed well in a short MLB stint last year. Dustin Garneau provides yet another, younger option. But defense is a concern. Hundley has rated well overall behind the dish, but is charged with some of the worst framing numbers in the league. And Murphy is known as a bat-first backstop. As Colorado increasingly transitions young arms into the hostile environment of Coors Field, there’s good reason to wonder if a more highly-regarded defender needs to be found.

First base, too, is a spot that the club can cover internally. It all starts with a decision on Morneau, who has been a solid performer when healthy but just missed most of the 2015 season with rather scary head and neck issues. His mutual option will cost $9MM (against a $750K buyout). That’s hardly an unimaginable price, but the 34-year-old comes with an awful lot of risk given that he’d occupy nearly one-tenth of the club’s payroll. If he isn’t dealt or non-tendered, with the latter perhaps being likely, Rosario could look to rebound while continuing to learn to field on the infield dirt. He’d make for a natural platoon partner with the left-handed-hitting Ben Paulsen, though that doesn’t make for the most exciting situation.

Those possibilities at catcher and first are certainly reasonable enough, so there’s no urgency to act here. But the Rockies could look to act boldly in free agency, if they are so inclined, at those positions. The organization has reportedly had interest in players like Brian McCann and Russell Martin behind the dish and Jose Abreu at first in recent years, and there are some interesting possibilities available this winter. The 2015-16 free agent pool includes a quality defensive backstop with some upside at the plate in Matt Wieters, and one can’t help but be intrigued by what he could do in the power department at altitude. (And Hundley could probably draw a decent trade return from catching-needy team.) With his cost held down by injury issues, it might be an opportune time to pounce. Likewise, at first, KBO sensation Byung-ho Park may be posted this year, and might make for an Abreu-like signing (even if expectations of Abreu-like results are unwise). Otherwise, the Rox would be a highly appealing landing spot for any number of sluggers in need of a place to re-launch, with both first base and the corner outfield potentially open to accommodate the acquisition of possible summer trade chips.

Time, then, to move on to the pitching staff. You might’ve thought that this discussion should start here, as Colorado continues to struggle to keep runs off of the board. No doubt there’s an immense amount of work to be done, as Bridich signaled in parting with Tulowitzki for the right to three high-upside young pitchers.

Despite the need for improved pitching, though, it isn’t immediately clear that there is much for the Rockies to do — other than trying to work deals, as discussed above — in addressing this area in the hot stove season. It’s hardly novel to observe that the team struggles to draw free agent pitching. Its most recent open-market pitching signings, starter Kyle Kendrick and reliever Boone Logan, have been distinct failures. That’s not to say that Colorado should shy away from that approach entirely, but it needs to be targeted when it does.

Looking at the rotation, as things stand, the Rockies don’t hold much promise for a quality outfit in the near-term. But they also don’t seem much in need of another overpay just to add an arm. Jorge De La Rosa will be back for one more go. It isn’t possible to go back in time and trade him during the 2013 season, and he’s not that valuable a commodity at $12MM, so keeping him for sake of stability (with a possible deadline flip in mind) is probably the best route at this point. Chad Bettis had a solid 115-inning run, with ERA estimators pegging his 4.23 earned run mark as slightly unlucky, and has probably done enough to warrant a presumption of a slot. Righty Tyler Chatwood will be making his way back from Tommy John, with the club looking to make good on the two-year arb deal it gave him last winter. Jordan Lyles has been serviceable, should be healed from a toe injury, and will play all of 2016 at 25 years of age.

And that’s all before getting to the more exciting group of younger arms coming up through the system. True, Tyler Matzek and Eddie Butler had more or less disastrous seasons, but both (especially the latter) still hold some promise and deserve opportunities. The highly-regarded Jonathan Gray actually showed quite a bit of promise when you look past the unsightly ERA from his first forty or so big league frames. And Jeff Hoffman, the crown jewel of the Tulo swap, ought to be knocking on the big league door by mid-season, if not before. (Fellow 2014 first-rounder Kyle Freeland might have been right there with him, but last year was basically a lost season due to injury and he’ll probably be delayed. The same is true of 2011 first-round choice Tyler Anderson, who seems in even more dire injury straits.)

With that array of pitchers, which doesn’t even consider the organizational depth options who have picked up big league experience in recent years, there’s just not much reason to go blowing cash on a low-upside free agent arm. (That’s especially true if the club is able to get an MLB-ready starter back for Gonzalez.) Instead, perhaps, the Rockies can wait for an appealing opportunity to arise. The Brett Anderson deal potentially provides a model to add an MLB-level arm with some upside, even if it didn’t work out as hoped. While there’s little chance of a veteran turning to the Rockies for an opportunity to rebuild their value, a later-career hurler such as Rich Hill might be wooed by the opportunity to start even without a market-busting offer. And Colorado could wait to bail out one of the many quality pitchers who are on this year’s market, as there’s a possibility that a player or two could fall through the cracks. But another Kendrick-like investment just doesn’t seem all that necessary.

Much the same holds true of the bullpen, though perhaps Colorado can woo a ding-and-dent late-inning arm on a reasonable deal with the promise of save opportunities. The exciting Adam Ottavino likely won’t be available for a good piece of the season. And while John Axford has been solid, unless the team can strike a deal, he seems like a luxury at his projected arb salary (though indications are that the team may want him back). Justin Miller and Jairo Diaz showed some real promise, but there’s no reason to boost their earning power with too much late-inning work if it can be avoided.

Otherwise, a veteran depth addition is always useful, but there isn’t much reason to do more. Tulo trade piece Miguel Castro may go back for some altitude training at Albuquerque, but is another live-armed option. And the club has other veterans to be called upon, including the overpriced but useful Logan, Christian Friedrich and Christian Bergman. And then there are wild cards such as former Rule 5 pick Tommy Kahnle and Scott Oberg. It’s worth noting that Rex Brothers could be sent packing now that he’s qualified for arbitration. That’s a tough call since he had so much success earlier in his career, but Brothers has walked more than six batters per nine innings since the start of 2014 (at both the major and minor league level).

Bottom line: tempting as it is to invest in pitching, the Rockies’ dollars may go to better use elsewhere, at least for 2016. The club could look instead to invest in some buy-low bats, for example. Paying Morneau $12MM over two years made him into a nice trade chip last summer, though the team never cashed him in. Taking some risks on players of that ilk at least holds out the promise of a positive ROI. The team almost certainly won’t contend regardless. And there won’t be much room to maneuver, barring some big-salary shedding, with $65MM in guarantees and upwards of $30MM in potential arb payouts coming down the line in 2016 (in the unlikely even that all eligible players are tendered).

Another way to invest would be in extensions. Both the Tulo and CarGo early-career deals worked out, at least giving the organization the chance to try to build around two reasonably-priced superstars. The increasingly awesome Arenado is the chief candidate now, and his startlingly steep arbitration projection as a Super Two provides good cause to begin talking about a deal. (Check out MLBTR arbitration projection expert Matt Swartz’s appearance on a recent MLBTR Podcast episode to understand why his number is so high.) Of course, Arenado is a Scott Boras client, though that didn’t prevent the team from getting something done with Gonzalez.

Locking up Arenado and making him the team’s new central star might be good business in more ways than one. The attendance at Coors Field seems somewhat impervious to record, and the new party deck surely helping to keep the fans streaming in. But there’s a real sense of negativity around the franchise, and knighting Arenado could help to assuage it. Certainly, it’s a better use of the team’s resources than trying to patch over holes with duct tape while wishing away the inevitable growing pains of an organization that is seeking to accumulate young talent with a new GM.

AL Central Notes: Dozier, Zobrist, Brantley, Almonte

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The MRI conducted on Brian Dozier’s right hip revealed no structural damage, reports Mike Berardino of the St. Paul Pioneer Press, meaning the Twins’ All-Star second baseman will not require offseason surgery. GM Terry Ryan revealed last week that Dozier would undergo the test after playing through hip pain that most likely played somewhat of a role in Dozier’s precipitous second-half decline. After batting .256/.328/.513 with 19 homers in the season’s first half, Dozier’s production fell off a cliff. He batted just .210/.280/.359 with nine homers in the season’s second half.

Elsewhere in the AL Central…

  • MLB.com’s Jane Lee spoke to Royals manager Ned Yost and multiple players about the impact that Ben Zobrist has had on the team since being acquired prior to the non-waiver trade deadline. All agreed that in addition to his defensive versatility and under-the-radar power, Zobrist’s patient approach has deepened the lineup and added a dynamic that wasn’t previously there. “He’s the only patient hitter we have on the team,” said Lorenzo Cain. “We have a lot of aggressive hitters, so he kind of changes it up a little bit, adds a different dynamic to our lineup. He actually takes pitches and works the count. He’s been a huge addition to this team.”
  • Indians GM Chris Antonetti spoke to Zack Meisel of the Cleveland Plain Dealer about the upcoming offseason, noting that the always cost-conscious team will need to be “creative” in filling its needs. One thing Antonetti noted is that the team hasn’t ruled out the possibility of using Michael Brantley in center field, which would give the club more options when trying to add pieces in the outfield. Additionally, Antonetti noted that he can envision a scenario in which Abraham Almonte, who impressed after being acquired from the Padres, could fill an everyday role for the club. Whether or not that scenario comes to fruition, though, will depend on how the rest of the offseason shakes out. I recently took my own stab at previewing Cleveland’s upcoming winter as past of our Offseason Outlook series and suggested a run the Marlins’ Marcell Ozuna would make some sense for Cleveland.

Dodgers Notes: Grandal, Kendrick, Peralta, Mattingly, Greinke

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The Dodgers figure to come up in the news quite a bit in the coming days as the team’s focus now shifts to the offseason after last night’s loss to the Mets in Game 5 of the NLDS. Earlier today, Jon Heyman already touched down on topics including Don Mattingly’s future, Zack Greinke’s opt-out and qualifying offers for Howie Kendrick and Brett Anderson.

Here’s  more on the Dodgers…

  • Yasmani Grandal will undergo arthroscopic surgery on his left shoulder on Wednesday of next week, writes the Orange County Register’s Bill Plunkett. The switch-hitting catcher termed the procedure “just a cleanup” but said he looks forward to no longer dealing with pain in the joint. As Plunkett notes, Grandal played through that discomfort for two months, which resulted in a woeful seven hits over his final 104 at-bats.
  • Also from Plunkett’s column, Kendrick says that he very much wants to return to the Dodgers in 2016, though he declined to get too far into specifics. The Dodgers are “on top of [Kendrick’s] list,” the second baseman said before neglecting to elaborate any further. Heyman reported this morning that Kendrick will receive a qualifying offer from L.A.
  • One last note from Plunkett’s piece — right-hander Joel Peralta will pitch again in 2016. The 39-year-old nearly underwent neck surgery that could have ended his career earlier in the season, but he returned for a strong final month of the season, prompting him to decide he’d like to pitch for at least another season. He’ll head to winter ball to make up for some of the innings he lost. Peralta logged a 4.34 ERA with 7.5 K/9, 2.5 BB/9 and a 33.7 percent ground-ball rate in just 29 innings this year, but he allowed just two runs with 11 strikeouts and no walks over his final nine innings of the season.
  • While Mattingly’s job security figures to be a topic of discussion after another NLDS exit, members of the clubhouse seem to be behind him, writes Zach Helfand of the L.A. Times. Hefland quotes Justin Turner, J.P. Howell and Enrique Hernandez each emphatically defending Mattingly, stating that the reason for the team’s early postseason exit stems from a lack of run-scoring, which shouldn’t be blamed on the manager. “I would play for Donnie any day of the week,” said Turner. “…I’m behind him 100 percent. I think he’s an unbelievable manager, did an unbelievable job handling everything that goes on both on and off the field with this club, and he’s got my support 100 percent.”
  • Buster Olney and Keith Law of ESPN discussed the Dodgers in today’s podcast (audio link, with Law appearing around the 27-minute mark), specifically last night’s game (including managerial decisions on both sides) and the future of Mattingly. Both Olney and Law feel that Mattingly will be dismissed. Law opines that while Mattingly isn’t one of the game’s better tactical managers, he’s not among the worst, and much of the team’s postseason struggles must be blamed on the front office and the roster construction. Olney discusses the fact that Andrew Friedman’s strategy of building platoons and part-time roles worked in Tampa Bay with less-established players, but it’s highly difficult to make that strategy work when dealing with veteran players on expensive contracts. Also discussed is how the Dodgers should be willing to overpay to retain Greinke, with Law projecting Greinke’s style of pitching to hold up well over the life of a theoretical free agent contract.

Heyman’s Latest: Greinke, Mattingly, QOs, Gordon, Anderson, Hunter

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Jon Heyman of CBS Sports kicks off Friday morning with a pair of columns — the first being a piece on Zack Greinke’s opt-out status and the second being his weekly Inside Baseball column. Heyman writes in the first piece that Greinke will indeed opt out of the remaining three years and $71MM on his Dodgers contract, as has been widely anticipated for the better part of a year. One general manager suggested to Heyman that Greinke will receive, “at minimum,” multiple offers of $125MM over the next five seasons. That GM wagered a guess at the winning bid: $150MM over five years. Heyman notes that while many teams — the Cubs, Giants, Red Sox, Yankees, Tigers, D-Backs and Rangers, among others — will be in the mix for Greinke this winter, the right-hander enjoyed 2015 with the Dodgers more than he enjoyed his first two seasons, and L.A. will attempt to bring him back. Per Heyman, Greinke didn’t mesh with Josh Beckett and Hanley Ramirez in previous years but had nothing but positive feelings about the 2015 campaign.

Onto some highlights from his second column…

  • There’s no certainty on the job status of Don Mattingly right now despite three consecutive division titles, Heyman writes. Mattingly is well-liked by the new Dodgers front office on a personal level, and the team is pleased with how he handled Andre Ethier’s shift to a part-time role, A.J. Ellis’ shift to a backup role in favor of Yasmani Grandal, and the emergence of Corey Seager over Jimmy Rollins late in the year. Mattingly’s people-managing skills are valued by the Dodgers, even if his in-game tactics aren’t quite as strong. Heyman notes that with the Dodgers unconvinced of Mattingly as their long-term option, they may allow him to interview with other clubs, and both the Nationals and Marlins would show interest.
  • The Orioles are believed to be hesitant to make a qualifying offer to Matt Wieters and will only do so if they’re convinced that he won’t take it. (I can’t imagine a Scott Boras client that plays a premium position in the midst of his prime age doing so under any circumstances.) The White Sox will make a QO to Jeff Samardzija, who will not accept it, as has been suggested multiple times over the past couple of months.
  • Colby Rasmus, on the other hand, is not expected to receive a $15.8MM qualifying offer from the Astros despite 25 regular-season homers and a strong postseason showing. Heyman writes that Alex Gordon will be “a name to keep an eye on” in connection with the Astros this offseason, as the team may look to inject its lineup with more on-base percentage and batting average than the 2015 crop. They’ll also look for more steady production at first and third base this winter after a season of boom-or-bust results from Luis Valbuena and Chris Carter.
  • The Dodgers are set on making a qualifying offer to Howie Kendrick and are also planning on making a QO to Brett Anderson despite his injury history. The latter of the two drew some surprise when Heyman shared it with execs around the league, though as he points out, L.A. is in need of pitching. If Anderson accepts — again, a scenario I find unlikely given his age and strong 2015 results — he’d solidify a spot in the rotation behind Clayton Kershaw. And, I’ll point out, Anderson’s 2016 salary would then check in just $3.4MM north of the $12.4MM he earned in total after receiving a $10MM base salary and earning another $2.4MM worth of innings-based incentives this season.
  • The Twins are willing to pay a premium to bring Torii Hunter back to their clubhouse if he’s willing to take a reduced role. Hunter, though, has been resistant to that idea in the past. He’s not yet decided whether or not he’ll return to the Majors for his age-41 season or call it a career.
  • Other qualifying offer notes from Heyman throughout the column indicate that Padres people have suggested that they’ll make a QO to Ian Kennedy, though rival execs remain skeptical. Current expectation in the industry is that the Mets won’t make a qualifying offer to Daniel Murphy, and the same is true of the Nationals with regard to Denard Span, who suffered through an injury-shortened season. Kennedy and Murphy seem like easy calls to decline the qualifying offer to me, whereas Span is a tougher case due to his age and injuries, which included season-ending hip surgery. I can see a case for Span taking the $15.8MM payday — the initial contract extension he signed with the Twins, after all, was only for $16.5MM guaranteed, though that rose to $25MM after his 2016 option was exercised.
  • The Nationals have received permission from the Giants to interview bench coach Ron Wotus to fill their managerial vacancy. Wotus has coached on the Giants’ Major League staff for the past 17 seasons and is a two-time Minor League Manager of the Year.

NL Notes: Russell, Asche, Rockies, Cardinals

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The Mets rode a big night from Daniel Murphy, a gutty performance from Jacob deGrom and strong relief work from Noah Syndergaard and Jeurys Familia to an NLDS victory over the Dodgers tonight. Here’s the latest from the Senior Circuit as the Mets celebrate their first NLCS appearance since 2006…

  • Addison Russell has been ruled out for the NLCS, as MLB.com’s Carrie Muskat writes. Russell, who suffered a mild hamstring strain when running out a triple in the NLDS, will be replaced by Javier Baez as the Cubs’ starting shortstop for the League Championship Series. Russell could be ready for the World Series, should the Cubs advance that far, and the Cubs are still deciding who to add to the NLCS roster to replace him. Muskat notes that one option is outfielder Quintin Berry, whose blistering speed would be a late-game asset and potential difference-maker for manager Joe Maddon in close games.
  • Cody Asche might be running out of time to prove himself with the Phillies, writes MLB.com’s Todd Zolecki. Already forced to the outfield to make way for budding star Maikel Franco, Asche now sees the outfield picture growing a bit more crowded. Odubel Herrera has claimed the center field job, and Aaron Altherr’s strong play earned him a look in a corner. The Phillies will likely sign a veteran outfielder this winter, be it Jeff Francoeur or someone new, and top prospects Nick Williams and Roman Quinn will open next season at Triple-A. Asche, who hit .245/.294/.395 with a dozen homers this season, admits that he isn’t quite sure where he stands heading into spring training. “That’s the unanswered question,” he tells Zolecki. “I really think the answer lies within myself, and how I come out and play in Spring Training. It’s up to me to take advantage and force my way back into the lineup.”
  • Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post tackles a number of offseason topics in his latest mailbag column, including the possibility of a Carlos Gonzalez trade. Asked if the Rockies could move the remaining money on Jose Reyes’ deal by packaging him with CarGo, Saunders points out that doing so would require an acquiring club to take on $81MM over the next two seasons. The Rockies’ best hope at moving Reyes, he writes, is to eat a large chunk of his salary, but owner Dick Monfort doesn’t typically operate that way. Saunders also writes that he believes Tom Murphy will back up Nick Hundley next season before inheriting the starting role in 2017, at which point Murphy and Dustin Garneau could comprise Colorado’s catching tandem.
  • Cardinals GM John Mozeliak will look for an upgrade over backup infielder Pete Kozma this winter, writes MLB.com’s Jen Langosch. As Langosch writes, manager Mike Matheny was hesitant to insert Kozma — an excellent fielder but very weak hitter — into the lineup over either Jhonny Peralta or Kolten Wong, possibly leading to each wearing down this year. Mozeliak will also look for more depth on the pitching staff, though he’s content with the internal starting options he has on the roster. Per Langosch, there will be “a shakeup” in the bullpen this winter, however.

Buehrle: No Decision Made On Retirement

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Though some reports have indicated that left-hander Mark Buehrle may very well call it quits after the 2015 season, the veteran innings eater tells ESPN Chicago’s Doug Padilla that he hasn’t made any decision one way or the other. If anything, Buehrle implied that he could very well suit up for a 17th big league season, as he told Padilla that he’ll listen to offers this winter.

The 36-year-old Buehrle saw his incredible streak of 200-inning seasons come to a close this year, as he finished the year at 198 2/3 innings, denying him 15th consecutive year with 200 or more innings. Though his amazing streak came to an end, Buehrle nonetheless had a quality year on the mound, pitching to a 3.81 ERA with 4.1 K/9, a league-leading 1.5 BB/9 and a solid 45.9 percent ground-ball rate. Buehrle admitted to Padilla that he was indeed bothered by shoulder problems this season. He received a cortisone shot late in the season, though he also said he’d welcome the opportunity to be added to Toronto’s postseason roster and compete once again. Shoulder problems are nothing new, Buehrle said, noting that he’s worked through shoulder pain for much of his career.

One thing Buehrle said he won’t be doing is signing a minor league deal, though I can’t imagine a scenario in which multiple teams aren’t interested in Buehrle on at least a one-year Major League deal. Buehrle will technically be eligible for a qualifying offer, though given his age and shoulder problems late in the year, the Blue Jays probably won’t be keen on risking a $15.8MM price tag on him in order to collect a compensatory draft pick.

Padilla notes that it’s not in Buehrle’s nature to make a flashy departure from the league when he finally does decide to hang it up. Somewhat playfully referring to his status as a former 38th-round draft pick, Buehrle told Padilla, “I snuck into this league, and I’m going to sneak out.”

Outrighted: Rico Noel, Josh Wilson

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Here are the day’s minor moves:

  • The Yankees announced that they’ve outrighted Rico Noel off the 40-man roster. Noel received a September call-up from the Yanks based largely on his speed and appeared in 15 games down the stretch. Noel logged just two plate appearances but stole five bases in seven attempts. The 26-year-old outfielder has a career .248/.338/.300 in Triple-A and has stolen 51 bases in 61 attempts at that level.
  • As expected, the Tigers have outrighted infielder Josh Wilson, the club announced. He has already cleared waivers and elected free agency, per the release. Wilson is a veteran of eight big league seasons, but the defensive specialist hasn’t cleared 100 plate appearances in a given year since 2010. He put up a career-best .316/.350/.395 slash in his age-34 season for Detroit, but that came in just 41 plate appearances and is not well-supported by his sub-.600 OPS career batting mark. Wilson slashed a more typical .252/.316/.347 in his 293 plate appearances at the Triple-A level in 2015.

Cardinals Notes: Heyward, Martinez, Moss, Bourjos, Matheny, Coaches

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The Cardinals’ 2015 season came to an end this week after the team fell to the division-rival Cubs in Game 4 of the NLDS at Wrigley Field. That means that club’s immediate focus now becomes the offseason, and the chief question with which St. Louis figures to be faced is whether or not the team can re-sign Jason Heyward. Whether or note Heyward remains in St. Louis is up for debate, but GM John Mozeliak made clear today that the Cards want to bring Heyward back into the fold on a long-term deal, writes MLB.com’s Jen Langosch. Heyward “was a tremendous fit on this club [and] did exactly what we wanted him to do,” said Mozeliak, who added that the team’s wait for a Heyward decision in free agency won’t handcuff its other offseason pursuits.

A few more notes on the Cards as they gear up for the winter…

  • Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch also has a breakdown of issues discussed by Mozeliak when talking to the media today. The GM gave good news when it comes to young right-hander Carlos Martinez, revealing that there are no plans for the 24-year-old to undergo surgery to repair his ailing shoulder. Rather, he’ll spend the offseason at the team’s spring complex in Jupiter, Fla. and go through what Goold terms a “more regimented” offseason under the guidance of the club’s training staff.
  • Also from Goold, the Cardinals have interest in bringing Brandon Moss back for at least a bench role. “Obviously Moss was someone we acquired because we like his power potential and we like his flexibility he gives you being able to play outfield or first,” said Mozeliak. “He’ll have a spot at some point.” The question facing the Cardinals when it comes to Moss, I’d imagine, is whether they can find a way to bring him back at a cheaper price. Moss earned $6.5MM in 2015 and is projected by MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz to earn $7.9MM in 2016. That seems too expensive for a part-time player with limited defensive upside.
  • Mozeliak was more vague when it came to the team’s interest in retaining outfielder Peter Bourjos. Acquired from the Angels alongside Randal Grichuk in the 2013-14 offseason, Bourjos has received inconsistent playing time and undergone hip surgery since his acquisition, either of which may have contributed to diminished performance. “As far as Peter goes, I don’t think it ever worked to the point where we were hopeful of,” Mozeliak explained. “That doesn’t mean we’re at the point to give up either. We’ll reassess and look at what our opportunities look like over the next six weeks or so.” Bourjos is projected to earn an affordable $1.8MM in arbitration, but with Matt Holliday, Grichuk, Stephen Piscotty, Jon Jay and Tommy Pham all in the fold, it’s certainly easy to envision him being traded to another club. (Moving Holliday to first base, Mozeliak said, isn’t a consideration.) A non-tender strikes me as unlikely, simply because Bourjos’ defensive ceiling is so high. A team in need of center field options such as the Brewers, Indians, Mariners or Padres would make some sense to me as a fit.
  • Tyler Lyons or Marco Gonzales could emerge as left-handed relief options in next year’s bullpen, according to Mozeliak (via Goold). The Cardinals like the idea of using either in the bullpen because they’d be less-specialized options than Randy Choate was over the past few seasons.
  • As Langosch notes, the team hasn’t made a decision on Jaime Garcia’s $11.5MM option, but the Cardinals feel he exceeded their expectations in 2015. “You think back to Garcia, and the impact that he made on our roster was extremely positive,” said Mozeliak. “If we were having this conversation in February, I don’t think any of us would have thought he was going to contribute, especially the way he did.” I’d expect the option to be exercised, especially considering Mozeliak’s August comments on Garcia.
  • Don’t expect many (or any) changes in the Cardinals dugout, as Goold writes that the entire coaching staff has been invited back for the 2016 season.
  • Bernie Miklasz of 101 ESPN examines the difficulties of managing in the social media era as part of a lengthy piece on manager Mike Matheny. While Miklasz notes that he has often been critical of Matheny himself, he also opines the onslaught of criticism Matheny received during the NLDS wasn’t necessarily deserved, as Matheny alone was not the reason for the Cardinals’ early exit from the playoffs.

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