Amateur Draft, International Bonus Pools Rise By 1.7 Percent
Amateur draft pools and international bonus pools allotted under the latest collective bargaining agreement will rise by 1.7 percent this year, according to Jim Callis of MLB.com. As Callis notes, the Marlins have the largest bonus pool due to their 13 picks in the first 10 rounds, while the Orioles, who forfeited their first- and second-round picks to sign Ubaldo Jimenez and Nelson Cruz, have the lowest total.
Callis notes that this year's No. 1 overall pick in the draft is valued at $7,922,100 — an increase of $131,700. Below, you can look at the draft and international pools available to all 30 teams (As Callis points out, both Stephen Drew and Kendrys Morales could still impact the draft pools, as their signing with new teams could create new picks/bonus money for the Red Sox and Mariners):
All bonus money directed toward a player selected in the Top 10 rounds of the draft counts against a team's bonus pool, as does any bonus money that exceeds $100K to players selected in rounds 11 through 40 (for example, a $180K bonus to a team's 11th-round pick would result in $80K being removed from its draft pool). As a reminder, the penalties for exceeding draft bonus pools are as follows:
- Exceed by 0 to 5 percent: 75 percent tax on the overage.
- Exceed by 5 to 10 percent: 75 percent tax on the overage plus the loss of a first-round pick in the following year's draft.
- Exceed by 10 to 15 percent: 100 percent tax on the overage plus the loss of a first- and second-round pick in the following year's draft.
- Exceed by more than 15 percent: 100 percent tax on the overage plus the lost of a first-round pick in the following two drafts.
Penalties for the international bonus pool are as follows (international bonus pools only apply to players who are under the age of 23 and have fewer than three years of professional experience):
- All overages are taxed at 100 percent.
- Exceed bonus pool by 5 to 10 percent: Team is not allowed to sign a player for more than $500K in the following international signing period.
- Exceed by 10 to 15 percent: Team is not allowed to sign a player for more than $300K in the following international signing period.
- Exceed by more than 15 percent: Team is not allowed to sign a player for more than $300K in the following two international signing periods.
As Callis writes, under last year's rules (which were slightly different), the Cubs and Rangers are unable to sign a player for more than $250K in the coming international signing period (July 2, 2014 through June 15, 2015) as a result of exceeding their 2013-14 bonus pools by more than 15 percent. Additionally, we've seen reports that the Yankees are planning to shatter their international bonus pool this season, meaning that they, too, could be looking at harsh penalties in the future.
Here are the team-by-team breakdowns of overall slot bonuses (click here to download an excel file to allow sorting). As the chart shows, and as one would expect, the Astros and Marlins have far and away the highest total spending allotment, landing over $18MM.
Dodgers Claim Carlos Triunfel From Mariners
The Dodgers have claimed shortstop Carlos Triunfel off waivers from the Mariners, the club announced via press release. Triunfel has been optioned to Triple-A.
That brings an end to a disappointing tenure for Triunfel in Seattle, which designated him for assignment on Friday. Once a consensus top-100 prospect, Triunfel saw only limited big league action with his former club. Last year, at Triple-A, he posted a .282/.328/.394 line in 383 trips to the plate.
Minor Moves: Adam Rosales, Xavier Avery, Carlos Peguero
Here are today's minor moves and outright assignments from around the league…
- Infielder Adam Rosales has accepted an outright assignment with the Rangers, tweets Anthony Andro of FOX Sports Southwest. The well-travelled Rosales has 920 MLB plate appearances over his career, and owns a .219/.287/.335 line in that stretch.
- Outfielder Xavier Avery of the Mariners has cleared waivers and been outrighted to Triple-A, reports Greg Johns of MLB.com (via Twitter). The 24-year-old figures to be a useful depth piece for Seattle.
- Andy McCullough of the Kansas City Star reports (via Twitter) that the Royals have outrighted outfielder Carlos Peguero to Triple-A Omaha after he cleared waivers. According to a previous report from McCullough, the Royals made a clever move — Peguero and his agent might use a different adjective — by claiming left-hander Patrick Schuster from the Padres and designating Peguero for assignment. Per McCullough, Schuster never really had a shot to crack the roster, and the Rule 5 pick was returned to his original organization, the Diamondbacks. However, the move gave Kansas City cause to DFA Peguero, and the 10-day DFA window helped ensure that he could be slipped through waivers more easily, as he didn't have to be waived until eight days after his DFA (most teams' 40-man rosters were set by the time Peguero was placed on waivers).
Braves Claim Pedro Beato From Reds
The Braves have claimed reliever Pedro Beato off of waivers from the Reds, tweets David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal Constitution. Beato will go right onto the team's active roster in time for Friday's game, O'Brien adds (Twitter links), with another reliever likely to be optioned to create space.
Beato, a 6'6" righty, threw last year in the Red Sox organization. He allowed only four earned runs in ten big league frames, but spent most of the year at Triple-A, where he posted a 2.98 ERA over 51 1/3 innings. The 27-year-old saw his most extensive MLB action in 2011with the Mets, when he registered a 4.30 ERA in 67 innings.
Mets Outright Ryan Reid Off Of 40-Man Roster
The Mets have taken Ryan Reid off of the club's 40-man roster to make way for Kyle Farnsworth, reports Adam Rubin of ESPNNewYork.com (via Twitter). Reid was outrighted, the club announced.
New York claimed Reid, 28, back in December from the Pirates. Reid finally got a brief MLB audition last year and threw 11 quality innings for Pittsburgh. Over 194 career Triple-A frames, he has a 3.57 ERA and has averaged 8.6 K/9 against 3.2 BB/9.
Angels Claim Michael Brady From Marlins; Marlins Outright Bogusevic
1:13pm: The Marlins have outrighted Bogusevic, the club announced.
12:55pm: The Angels have claimed right-hander Michael Brady off waivers from the Marlins, reports Chris Cotillo of MLB Daily Dish (on Twitter). The 27-year-old Brady was designated for assignment by the Fish along with outfielder Brian Bogusevic in order to clear 40-man roster spots for Reed Johnson and Kevin Slowey.
Brady, a former 24th-round pick, enjoyed a solid season at Double-A last year, though it should be noted that pitching the entire season at age 26, he was older than most of his competition. Still, Brady posted a stellar 1.53 ERA with 9.3 K/9 and 1.5 BB/9 in 53 innings. He finished 44 games and collected 23 saves along the way.
Padres Claim Bobby LaFromboise
The Padres have claimed lefty Bobby LaFromboise off of waivers from the Mariners, reports Corey Brock of MLB.com (via Twitter). He has been optioned to Triple-A, Brock adds.
LaFromboise was designated by the Mariners to create 40-man space for Chris Young. At age 27, he has only ten MLB appearances under his belt, but has posted an intriguing stat line in the upper minors for a southpaw. He worked to a 3.39 ERA last year and a 1.36 mark in 2012, both in over 60 frames of work. Better, he did so with over 9.0 K/9 and less then 3.0 BB/9.
Offseason In Review: Atlanta Braves
After a quiet start, the Braves made a fascinating play to lock up multiple young stars, then reacted boldly when two top pitchers were lost to their second UCL tears.
Major League Signings
- Ervin Santana, RHP. One year, $14.1MM.
- Gavin Floyd, RHP. One year, $4MM.
- Aaron Harang, RHP. One year, unknown.
- Total Spend: $18.1MM
- Yenier Bello ($400K bonus), Mat Gamel, Freddy Garcia, Tyler Greene, Mark Hamilton, Steven Lerud, Yunesky Maya, Luis Perez, Atahualpa Severino, Jose Yepez
- Acquired C/OF Ryan Doumit from Twins for LHP Sean Gilmartin.
- Acquired RHP Zach Stewart from White Sox in exchange for cash.
- Freddie Freeman, 1B. Eight years, $135MM.
- Andrelton Simmons, SS. Seven years, $58MM.
- Craig Kimbrel, RHP. Four years, $42MM.
- Julio Teheran, RHP. Six years, $32.4MM. Club option for 2020.
- Jason Heyward, OF. Two years, $13.3MM. (No team control added.)
Notable Losses
- Luis Ayala, Scott Downs, Tim Hudson, Paul Janish (non-tendered), Elliot Johnson (non-tendered), Reed Johnson (declined option), Kameron Loe, Paul Maholm, Christhian Martinez (non-tendered, still unsigned), Brian McCann, Eric O'Flaherty
Otherwise, the major concerns for Atlanta are those that the team expected to face going into the year. Will high-dollar veterans B.J. Upton (center field) and Dan Uggla (second base) do enough to justify regular roles, if not their contracts? If not, the team may be forced to turn to other, far-from-certain options (such as Jordan Schafer and Tommy La Stella) to supplement or replace those veterans. Will the Gattis/Laird combination behind the dish be serviceable over a full season, and/or can Bethancourt force his way into the bigs? And can Chris Johnson approximate his surprising 2013 at third?
Quick Hits: Hudson, Nunez, Rockies, Frandsen, Myers
The Diamondbacks added righty Daniel Hudson to the club's 40-man (and subsequently placed him on the DL) as part of the agreement reached when he was re-signed, reports Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic. Arizona promised the rehabbing starter that "if everything was going right with rehab and everything was feeling good, they were going to add me to the roster and put me on the DL," Hudson said. Of course, this means that he will accrue MLB service time (and take a valuable roster slot) over the course of the season. The contract pays Hudson $700K this year and provides the club a $800K option for next year, Piecoro reports. With 3.117 years of service going into the season, Hudson is within reach of a new arbitration plateu, which could give him a final arb year in 2016 before he would hit free agency. Of course, the focus now is on getting back from a second Tommy John. Here are more stray notes from around the game:
- The Yankees made a notable move today in designating Eduardo Nunez for assignment. As MLB.com's Bryan Hoch reports, GM Brian Cashman indicated that the team was ready to move on after liking what it saw from Dean Anna and Yangervis Solarte this spring. "In this most recent spring," said Cashman, "[Nunez] had a good spring but we had other guys that had better ones. He possesses a great deal of talent and you can dream on him – and we have – as a potential every day shortstop in the big leagues. All that talent is still there and I think his versatility does provide for a great deal of choices as a player on a Major League roster. We’ll see what develops in the next 10 days."
- The Rockies' preliminary thinking is that the club will make qualifying offers after the season to outfielder Michael Cuddyer and starter Jorge De La Rosa, tweets Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com. Needless to say, there is plenty of season left to play before these decisions come into focus, but Heyman opines that the 35-year-old Cuddyer would seem a good candidate to accept if the offer is made.
- For the Nationals, signing utilityman Kevin Frandsen was an extension of the team's earlier interest in Jeff Baker, reports Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post. GM Mike Rizzo had admired Frandsen's approach in his prior stints with the Giants and Phillies, and liked his fit with the club. “He really filled a role that I was looking for in that Jeff Baker type of role,” Rizzo said. “He can play third and first. This guy can play second and short and corner outfield. From afar, I really like the way he went about his business."
- Veteran pitcher Brett Myers will not sign to pitch this year but hopes to return for 2015, reports Chris Cotillo of MLBDailyDish.com (via Twitter). The 33-year-old had been said to be healthy and looking for an opportunity.
Blue Jays To Sign Juan Francisco
The Blue Jays have agreed to sign corner infielder Juan Francisco, according to a report from Hector Gomez of Dominican radio outlet ZDeportes (via Twitter). Francisco, 26, had spent camp with the Brewers but was released when he lost the battle at first to Mark Reynolds and Lyle Overbay. He is a client of Relativity Baseball.
Last year, in 385 plate appearances, the left-handed swinging Francisco hit .227/.296/.422 with 18 home runs while spending time at first and third (and being limited almost exclusively to facing righties). In parts of five years at the MLB level, Francisco has a cumulative .243/.300/.432 triple-slash and 32 long balls in 771 plate appearances. In addition to his struggles getting on base (last year, he had 138 strikeouts against 32 walks), Francisco's value has been limited by his defense. Though he graded out well in 2012, advanced metrics did not like his work at either of the corner positions last year.
Signed as an amateur free agent out of his native Dominican Republic back in 2004 by the Reds, Francisco broke into the bigs with Cincinnati before being dealt to the Braves for J.J. Hoover in 2012. He was shipped off to Milwaukee last year and tendered arbitration as a Super Two (the sides agreed upon a $1.35MM contract). With less than three years of MLB service time accrued, Francisco will come with three years of control, if the Jays choose to tender him.