Arbitration Hearing Notes: Donaldson, Arrieta, Martinez, Britton, Astros
The arbitration hearing between the Blue Jays and Josh Donaldson is set for Feb. 15, reports Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (on Twitter), giving the two sides 10 days to work out a multi-year deal. President Mark Shapiro and GM Ross Atkins said last night that the two sides have been discussing such a pact, and the hearing deadline certainly gives the club motivation to strike a deal. The Blue Jays employ a file-and-trial approach to arbitration, which is to say that the team is one of many that have a policy against negotiating on one-year deals once figures are exchanged. That approach led to a hearing between the Blue Jays and Donaldson last year, and both sides undoubtedly would prefer to avoid a hearing for the second straight season. The Blue Jays won a hearing over Donaldson last winter, though he’ll have an American League MVP Award in his corner this season. Those interested in Donaldson’s case can check out an in-depth look from MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz, written as part of his Arbitration Breakdown series, prior to the exchange of figures.
Some more notes on various arbitration hearings around the league…
- The Cubs and reigning NL Cy Young winner Jake Arrieta are on a tighter schedule, as Bruce Levine of CBS Chicago/670thescore.com reports (on Twitter). Arrieta’s arbitration hearing is set to come next Tuesday — Feb. 9. The $5.5MM gap between Arrieta’s submitted figure of $13MM and the Cubs’ $7.5MM counter is the largest of any case this year. Swartz also examined Arrieta’s case at length.
- J.D. Martinez and the Tigers are continuing to discuss both one- and two-year deals, reports Jon Morosi of FOX Sports (via Twitter). Martinez appears open to a considerably longer-term deal, having voiced a desire to spend the rest of his career with the Tigers. Martinez said last month that the two sides have discussed a long-term deal, but it’s unclear whether talks on a contract extending the club’s control beyond Martinez’s two remaining arbitration seasons has been seriously discussed. Swartz broke down Martinez’s case at length as well.
- Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com reports that the Orioles and Zach Britton have a hearing set for Feb. 17 (Twitter link). The two sides are facing a fairly sizable $2.3MM gap between Britton’s $7.9MM figure and the club’s $5.6MM counter. If a deal can’t be reached, it’d mark the second straight season with an arb hearing for the Orioles, who won a hearing over Alejandro De Aza last February.
- The Astros have arbitration hearings for Jason Castro and Evan Gattis set for Feb. 8 and Feb. 16, respectively, according to MLB.com’s Brian McTaggart (Twitter link). With Houston taking a file-and-trial approach to arbitration, both cases seem likely to reach a trial. Castro, in particular, seems destined for that outcome, as he’s a free agent following the season and thus unlikely to hammer out a multi-year deal.
- While in many cases, the gap between the player and team submission appears trivial, there’s a reason that many teams take such a firm stance. MLBTR spoke to multiple Major League executives on the topic last February to get their explanation of the responsibility felt by teams in arbitration.
All of the remaining unresolved cases, as well as the exchange of figures and settled amounts for all 156 players that filed for arbitration can be viewed in MLBTR’s Arbitration Tracker.
Minor MLB Transactions: 2/5/16
Here are the day’s minor moves and outright assignments from around the league:
- The Orioles will hold onto outfielder L.J. Hoes after he cleared outright waivers, per a club announcement. Baltimore re-acquired Hoes from the Astros earlier in the offseason, but designated him about a week back to clear roster space for the addition of Efren Navarro. Hoes continues to produce at Triple-A, and is only 25 years old, but has struggled to a .237/.289/.329 batting line in 337 Major League plate appearances.
- The Brewers announced that outfielder Shane Peterson, who was designated for assignment when the team acquired Rymer Liriano from the Padres, has cleared waivers and been outrighted to Triple-A Colorado Springs. The soon-to-be 28-year-old, who will be in Major League camp as a non-roster invitee, batted .259/.324/.353 in 226 plate appearances last season. He’s a nice depth option for the Brewers to hang onto, as he can play all three outfield spots and boasts an excellent .297/.383/.461 batting line over the life of 1720 plate appearances at the Triple-A level.
- Veteran utilityman Don Kelly is headed back to the Marlins on a minor league pact that includes a spring invite, the club announced. Kelly’s 2015 season ended early when he required Tommy John surgery, Soon to turn 36, Kelly has spent parts of eight seasons in the majors, appearing at literally every position on the diamond (including pitcher, catcher, and DH) in his 572 total games. Kelly’s career slash sits at .232/.296/.335.
Dodgers Notes: Puig, Ryu, Ethier, Kendrick
Andre Ethier has been the most oft-mentioned trade candidate for the Dodgers recently, in part, according to Bob Nightengale of USA Today (Twitter link), because Los Angeles is telling teams with interest in Yasiel Puig that Puig is not available at this time. Puig isn’t without his red flags, as he’s facing potential disciplinary action in connection with domestic violence allegations, is coming off a down season and has long come with questions about his clubhouse persona. Of course, even Puig’s “down” season saw him bat a solid .255/.322/.436 with 11 homers in 311 plate appearances, and he remains just 25 years of age with a considerable track record of elite production under his belt. Puig’s contract guarantees him $19.5MM over the next three seasons, although it also allows him to opt into arbitration once he is eligible next offseason, so it’s perhaps likely that he’ll instead go that route, as his earning capacity figures to be greater going down the arbitration path.
A few more Dodgers-related notes…
- Dodgers GM Farhan Zaidi was a guest on High Heat with Chris Russo on the MLB Network today (video link) and discussed a number of topics regarding the upcoming season. In regard to left-hander Hyun-jin Ryu, who underwent shoulder surgery and missed all of the 2015 season, Zaidi stopped short of declaring that he’d be ready for Opening Day but did say the Korean southpaw’s recovery is progressing as expected. Zaidi sounded hopeful that Ryu would indeed be available, but as the GM noted, it’s impossible to project a player’s return from that type of procedure before seeing him pitch in a game setting.
- Zaidi deflected the notion that the team is looking to move Andre Ethier, stating that, “Right now, he’s a really important part of our team,” mentioning Ethier’s quite-productive numbers from the 2015 season (albeit in a platoon capacity). Zaidi acknowledged that the Dodgers have quite a bit of outfield depth and stressed that earlier in the offseason, the team was open to various scenarios involving a number of their players. “But right now, we have nothing going on,” Zaidi continued. “…We expect [Ethier] to be here in 2016.”
- Howie Kendrick, whose two-year, $20MM contract with the Dodgers became official today, will see time not only at second base but also at third base in 2016, president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman told reporters, including Bill Shaikin of the L.A. Times, on today’s conference call. “He expressed a willingness to play different spots,” said Friedman of Kendrick. “That’s when things kind of accelerated.” Friedman said there could be as many as 1400 at-bats to go around between Kendrick, Chase Utley and Enrique Hernandez, with each expected to play multiple positions. As Shaikin notes, Kendrick’s willingness to play third base is of particular importance given Justin Turner‘s offseason knee surgery and the fact that Turner has never played more than 126 games in a season before.
- Interestingly, Shaikin adds his own bit about the recent trade talks between the Dodgers and White Sox, reporting that the Sox actually approached the Dodgers about Puig, but the Dodgers instead tried to sell the Sox on trades involving Ethier and Carl Crawford. At this point, there’s very little traction between the two sides, a source tells Shaikin.
- Kendrick and his agent, Larry Reynolds, were among those that spoke to Nightengale for a full column on the problems caused by the current qualifying offer system. Reynolds, an agent for 32 years, told Nightengale that Kendrick’s free agency was the most difficult of any throughout his career representing players. Kendrick himself expressed surprise at the lack of interest in him: “Nobody wanted to give up that draft pick. It was a shocker.”
AL East Notes: Bautista, Donaldson, Chavez, Gallardo, Betts
Blue Jays slugger Jose Bautista indicated that he’s very open to holding contract talks before reaching free agency after the season, as Gregory Strong of the Canadian Press reports. Bautista said it would be an honor to end his career in Toronto, though obviously there’s a long way to go to make that happen. He noted that he had recently sat down with new club president Mark Shapiro and GM Ross Atkins, but also suggested that true negotiations haven’t occurred. “I have to have something to consider at some point if I’m going to make that decision, which hasn’t happened yet,” said Bautista. “So I’m going to continue to go about my business just like any other year and any other day because I don’t really have a decision to make right now.”
Here’s more out of the AL East, including a few other notable possible extension scenarios — a topic that Steve Adams and I tackled on today’s MLBTR Podcast.
- Shapiro and Atkins are addressing their fanbase as we speak, and quotes continue to be reported. Josh Donaldson‘s contract situation came up, as it appears he’s headed for a second arb hearing unless a multi-year agreement can be reached. (The club employs a file-and-trial approach.) Atkins indicated that there is real interest in a multi-year scenario, as Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet.ca reports (Twitter links), though it could well be an arb-only agreement. Nevertheless, the newly-minted general manager suggested that something more could at least be contemplated. “We want him here as long as humanly possible,” he said.
- The team seemingly already went to an arb hearing with righty Jesse Chavez, Nicholson-Smith tweets. There’s only a $400K difference between the sides’ filings — $4MM vs. $3.6MM — so there isn’t a ton of money at stake. It’s certainly possible that both preferred to take their chances to bridging the gap. Either way, Chavez will fall shy of his $4.7MM projection.
- Meanwhile, Shapiro says that it’s unlikely the team will make another major move before hitting camp, as Nicholson-Smith tweets. But the team has had “substantive conversations as recently as just a few days ago,” per Shapiro.
- We’ve heard a lot of back-and-forth on the Orioles‘ interest in signing free agent righty Yovani Gallardo — and giving up the 14th overall pick — and Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports says that the O’s are still monitoring things. If Gallardo’s asking price falls far enough, the team could be willing to punt the pick.
- The Red Sox don’t have much reason to pursue an extension with blooming star Mookie Betts, Brian MacPherson of the Providence Journal argues. Boston already has five years of control over Betts, isn’t really in need of cost certainty, and may prefer to avoid shifting forward salary for purposes of luxury tax calculations.
NL East Notes: Mets’ Payroll/Rotation, Nationals, Marlins
Mets GM Sandy Alderson said at yesterday’s Yoenis Cespedes press conference that the significant signing illustrates that the team is working without payroll limitations, as MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo writes. Alderson was asked if it’s possible that he can retain his entire rotation for the long haul, and while the GM unsurprisingly didn’t want to commit to anything, he did note that the increased payroll flexibility creates the possibility for some long-term deals. “I don’t want to foreclose any possibility,” said Alderson. “…I think maybe if the Cespedes signing says anything, it’s that there are no possibilities that will be dismissed out of hand strictly for financial reasons.” Alderson said the team will get a better feel for any mutual interest in extensions over the next several weeks as Spring Training looms and eventually kicks off. Of the team’s excellent rotation core, Matt Harvey is the only one that has already reached arbitration eligibility, although as a Scott Boras client, he’s perhaps an unlikely candidate to sign long-term in the first place. Next winter will see Jacob deGrom and Zack Wheeler reach arbitration. (MLBTR’s Jeff Todd and I discussed extensions — and not just for the Mets’ rotation — at length on today’s MLBTR Podcast, for those interested in the matter.) Perhaps most notable of all of Alderson’s payroll comments, however, is the fact that he said he doesn’t anticipate returning to the club’s previous payroll levels even if Cespedes opts out after this season. New York’s payroll will be in the $140MM vicinity for the 2016 season.
Here’s more from the NL East…
- Every contract the Nationals offered to a free agent this winter contained significant deferrals due to uncertainty over the team’s MASN television dispute, writes Barry Svrluga of the Washington Post. The issue came to light most prominently after the team’s failed pursuit of Cespedes. While the Nats technically offered $110MM over five years, Svrluga spoke to sources on both sides of the negotiation who felt the Mets’ offer was clearly better. As he notes, there’s perhaps no need to look further than the first year of the deal; Cespedes landed a $10MM signing bonus and a $17.5MM salary for the 2016 season — $27.5MM up front, with the possibility to max out at $75MM over three years — but would’ve received just $7MM in 2016 with the Nationals’ offer, which contained a decade’s worth of deferrals. One person that spoke to Svrluga called the team’s $200MM offer to Jason Heyward “the most complicated deferral” that person has ever encountered, noting that it contained 16 years worth of deferred monies. Even the players they’ve managed to sign over the past two years — Max Scherzer and Daniel Murphy — come with notable deferrals. Svrluga points out that Scherzer will be owed $15MM in the first year after his deal ends, and while delaying that payment drives down the value of those funds, Svrluga is correct to note that said line item on the team’s budget could interfere with the Nats’ ability to add some secondary pieces six years down the line.
- The Marlins continue to search for veteran rotation options, but president of baseball operations Michael Hill has very little to work with remaining in the budget that was given to him by owner Jeffrey Loria, Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald writes. Jackson notes many of the same names that he and Jon Heyman connected to the Marlins a couple of weeks ago: Kyle Lohse, Tim Lincecum, Alfredo Simon and Cliff Lee (though based on the picture Jackson painted in referencing the tight budget, Lee seems somewhat unlikely).
Orioles Avoid Arbitration With Brian Matusz
We’ll track the day’s arb deals here:
- The Orioles have avoided arbitration with southpaw Brian Matusz for $3.9MM, according to Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com (via Twitter). Matusz had filed at $4.4MM, with the team countering at $3.5MM, so he’ll fall just on the low side of the midpoint. MLBTR had projected him to earn just $3.4MM in his final trip through the arb process, so he’ll do a fair bit better than that. The 28-year-old posted career-best results last year, working to a 2.94 ERA with 10.3 K/9 against 3.7 BB/9 over 49 frames. Certainly, a repeat would put him in rather high demand on the open market.
MLBTR Podcast: Happy Extension Season!
After running through the week’s quick hits, Jeff welcomes back MLBTR’s Steve Adams to talk about the upcoming extension season. Chatter on new deals tends to reach a high point over the months of February and March, with all kinds of players — from pending free agents to exciting youngsters — fielding offers from their teams.
What kinds of deals could come together this year? Are there any trends to keep an eye on? What are some intriguing names to watch? Who are the likeliest players to re-up early in 2016? Those questions and more are covered in this week’s episode, which includes discussion of Bryce Harper, J.D. Martinez, Adrian Beltre, and many more. Tune in below:
Click here to subscribe to the podcast on iTunes, and please leave a review! The podcast is also available via Stitcher at this link.
The MLB Trade Rumors Podcast runs weekly on Thursday afternoons.
Padres Trade Despaigne To Orioles, Announce Rodney Deal
The Orioles and Padres are in agreement on a trade that will send right-hander Odrisamer Despaigne to Baltimore in exchange for minor league right-hander Jean Cosme, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com had first reported that Cosme was headed to the O’s in exchange for a pitcher off San Diego’s Major League roster.
San Diego also announced the previously-reported signing of reliever Fernando Rodney. The veteran, late-inning righty needed a 40-man spot, and he’ll take over for the departing Despaigne.
Despaigne, 28, is coming off a tough season with the Padres in which he posted a sky-high 5.80 ERA with 4.9 K/9, 2.3 BB.9 and a 50.5 percent ground-ball rate in 125 1/3 innings. While the ERA is certainly uninspiring, metrics such as FIP, xFIP and SIERA all pegged Despaigne more in the mid-4.00 range, with some of the ERA spike being attributed to an abnormally low number of runners stranded and a spike in his homer-to-flyball ratio. A year prior, Despaigne tossed 96 1/3 innings in his rookie season, compiling a considerably better 3.36 ERA with 6.1 K/9, 3.0 BB/9 and a 52.5 percent ground-ball rate. Despaigne has experience both in the rotation and the bullpen and will give Baltimore another arm for its rotation mix or serve as a candidate to compete for a swingman job out of the bullpen. As Kubatko noted, Despaigne also has minor league options remaining (three of them, to be exact), so he can be sent down to Triple-A and stored at Norfolk as a depth piece in the event that an injury arises.
From the Padres’ vantage point, Despaigne probably became expendable when the team added Carlos Villanueva to serve as a swingman/long reliever. Dennis Lin of the San Diego Union-Tribune points out (on Twitter) that the trade also frees up a spot on the 40-man roster for Fernando Rodney, whose one-year deal with San Diego has yet to be announced. Cosme is a 19-year-old out of Puerto Rico that Baltimore selected in the 17th round of the 2014 draft. He’s posted a 4.73 ERA with 8.7 K/9 against 3.2 BB/9 in 72 1/3 professional innings but did not rank among Baltimore’s Top 10 prospects this offseason, per Baseball America.
Of course, the broader move also ties in with the Rodney signing. He’ll join the Pads on an incentive-laden deal and look to rebound from a tough 2015 season. Soon to turn 39, Rodney’s ratios and results suffered last year. But he may have been somewhat unlucky in the volume of home runs he surrendered, and still brings a 95+ mph heater.
Orioles Designate C.J. Riefenhauser For Assignment
The Orioles announced that they have designated left-handed reliever C.J. Riefenhauser for assignment in order to clear a spot on the 40-man roster for right-hander Odrisamer Despaigne, who was acquired from the Padres in a trade.
Riefenhauser has had an active offseason, initially going from the Rays to the Mariners in the Nate Karns/Brad Miller swap but spending less than a month as a member of the Rays before heading to the Orioles alongside Mark Trumbo in a trade that netted Seattle catcher Steve Clevenger (and saved about $9MM). He’ll now hit DFA limbo for the first time this offseason, during which time Baltimore can explore trades for the still-promising left-hander or attempt to sneak him through outright waivers (although there’s certainly a chance that Riefenhauser would be claimed by another organization).
The 26-year-old Riefenhauser has struggled in his brief exposure to the Majors, to be sure, having logged a 6.30 ERA in a limited sample of 20 innings. However, he’s also excelled at the minor league level, where he’s authored an outstanding 2.15 ERA with 8.7 K/9 against 3.2 BB/9 in parts of three seasons, totaling 113 innings of relief. Riefenhauser doesn’t light up the radar gun by any means, sitting around 89 mph, but that’s passable velocity for a southpaw, and there’s no denying that he dominated lefties between Triple-A and the Majors before a rocky 2015 season, holding them to a .430 OPS in what was a strong season. Scouting reports from Fangraphs, MLB.com and Baseball America have given Riefenhauser credit for at least an average fastball and average slider with a slightly below-average third offering in the form of his changeup. If he’s a two-pitch reliever, he could still carve out a role as a lefty specialist, one would think, though as MLB.com’s most recent scouting report on him indicated, he could take on a bigger bullpen role with some improvement in his changeup. Prior to the 2014 season, BA credited him with a plus heater/slider combo, though his velocity in the Majors has sat below the 91-93 mph mentioned in that scouting report.
Dodgers Announce Howie Kendrick Deal
The Dodgers have announced the re-signing of infielder Howie Kendrick to a two-year contract. Reports suggested the deal will pay the veteran $20MM.
New details on the payout have been reported today by Jon Heyman (Twitter links). Kendrick will receive $10MM annually in each year of the contract, half of which will be deferred. But Heyman suggests that the deferrals won’t significantly reduce the contract’s value.
The 32-year-old Kendrick will also cost the Dodgers the opportunity to add another draft pick. He previously declined a $15.8MM qualifying offer, which obviously did not pay off in the end. But it’s hard to fault Kendrick and his reps for that decision, as he seemed to be in line for a much bigger payday; MLBTR’s Tim Dierkes, for instance, predicted that Kendrick could land $50MM over four years.. (And it isn’t as if the downside scenario is all that bad.)
Bringing back Kendrick not only plugs in a talented veteran, but effectively adds to the Dodgers’ already impressive depth. Going back to 2010, Kendrick owns an excellent.289/.332/.418 slash. His steady contributions at the plate have been accompanied by good-enough work in the field and on the bases, making him an above-average regular.
While Kendrick says he’s “thankful” to be returning to L.A., he also tells Bob Nightengale of USA Today that he was shocked at how his market played out. Interest was minimal despite his long track record of sturdy production, said Kendrick, with the QO-driven draft compensation seemingly proving a significant impediment.
“I figured there would be quite a few suitors for me, and nobody was really calling,” said Kendrick. “Here it is, getting close to spring training, and you keep hearing the same thing over and over. Nobody wanted to give up that draft pick. It was a shocker.’’
Indeed, while market peculiarities probably also played a role — including relatively low demand and several trade candidates — it is hard to deny the impact of the qualifying offer. Ben Zobrist was heavily pursued and earned a $56MM guarantee, while a lesser (albeit shortstop-capable) player in Asdrubal Cabrera earned nearly as much as Kendrick. While fellow QO recipient Daniel Murphy fared better, his own $37.5MM deal also came in shy of expectations.