Reds, Sam LeCure Agree To Two-Year Deal
JAN. 24: Joel Sherman of the New York Post reports (via Twitter) that LeCure will earn $1.2MM in 2014 and $1.85MM in 2015. However, LeCure will have the opportunity to boost his 2015 base salary to $2MM, as he'll earn a $50K boost to his 2015 salary for appearing in 60, 65 and 70 games in 2014.
JAN. 17, 10:12am: LeCure's deal guarantees him $3.05MM, according to Jon Heyman of CBS Sports (on Twitter).
9:42am: The Reds have avoided arbitration with right-hander Sam LeCure by agreeing to a two-year deal, according to LeCure's agents at the Beverly Hills Sports Council (on Twitter).
The 29-year-old LeCure has seen consistent year-to-year improvement in his Major League career to this point. His ERA has dropped from 4.50 in 2010 to 3.71 in 2011 to 3.14 in 2012 and finally 2.66 in 2013. All told, LeCure has a career 3.08 ERA with a 196-to-68 K/BB ratio in 190 innings since being converted to a reliever in 2011. He owns a career 45.5 percent ground-ball rate in addition to his strong strikeout rate.
MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz had projected LeCure to earn $1MM in arbitration this offseason, but Reds GM Walt Jocketty avoided that process for the next two seasons with this two year deal. The Reds still have several high-profile cases remaining, including Homer Bailey, Aroldis Chapman, Mike Leake and Alfredo Simon.
Cubs, Travis Wood Avoid Arbitration
The Cubs have avoided arbitration with lefty Travis Wood, according to Patrick Mooney of CSNChicago.com (on Twitter). The Frontline client receives a one-year, $3.9MM contract that is slightly north of the $3.875MM midpoint between the figures submitted by the two sides.
Wood, who turns 27 in two weeks, enjoyed a breakout season for the Cubs in 2013 when he posted a 3.11 ERA with 6.5 K/9 and 3.0 BB/9 in an even 200 innings. That performance netted him his first All-Star nod, though his so-so K/BB ratio and extreme fly-ball tendencies — Wood's 44.5 percent fly-ball rate was third among qualified starters — lead ERA estimators such as xFIP and SIERA to peg him for a 4.50 ERA going forward.
As shown in MLBTR's Arbitration Tracker, Wood filed for a $4.25MM salary, and the Cubs countered at $3.5MM. Wood, who has three years, four days of service time will be eligible for arbitration twice more before hitting free agency following the 2016 campaign. Mooney adds in a separate tweet that he hears Wood's preference is to go year-to-year with the Cubs rather than discuss a long-term deal.
With Wood's case resolved, the Cubs will turn their focus to settling with second baseman Darwin Barney, outfielder Justin Ruggiano and righty Jeff Samardzija, each of whom exchanged figures with the Cubs last week as well.
Free Agent Notes: Drew, Twins, Ayala, Wells
ESPN's Buster Olney hears that the Yankees won't be making a run at Stephen Drew and are expected to maintain the status quo (Twitter link). Likewise, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports tweets that the Yanks are likely at their spending limit, adding in a second tweet that a more likely move would be to swap a bad contract such as Ichiro Suzuki's for a comparably priced reliever. More free-agent related notes from around the league…
- Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN talked with Twins manager Ron Gardenhire yesterday and was told the team is circling back with one more notable free agent. "[Assistant GM] Rob [Antony] just called me the other day and told me they were gonna make another run at a guy, and I'm like, 'Wow that's pretty good,'" said Gardenhire. "So they did it, and whether it works out or not we'll see, and they're not done. … They're after it. I know that." Wolfson's hunch is that Gardenhire is not referring to Ubaldo Jimenez or Ervin Santana, but rather a bat or Bronson Arroyo (All links to Twitter).
- Among the teams with interest in reliever Luis Ayala are the Indians, Tigers, and Mariners, reports Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com (via Twitter). The 36-year-old Mexican has unquestionably delivered results of late. Over the span of 2011-13, Ayala has a 2.58 ERA in 164 innings, landing him right outside the top 30 MLB relievers in ERA (min. 100 IP) over that time frame. Though Ayala's 3.85 FIP and 3.99 xFIP across the last three seasons may be cause to temper expectations, he has succeeded by consistently inducing grounders (51.4% GB%) and limiting homers (0.77 HR/9) at better than league average rates.
- Three teams watched righty Jared Wells throw on Wednesday, tweets Chris Cotillo of MLBDailyDish.com. The 32-year-old has not seen MLB action since a brief stint in 2008, and played in Independent ball last year after spending a few seasons in the upper minors.
Jeff Todd contributed to this post.
NL East Notes: Harvey, Rodney, Wells, Adams
Matt Harvey knows he's not likely to pitch in 2014, but if it were up to him, he'd be taking the mound late in the season, the injured Mets ace told Daniel Barbarisi of the Wall Street Journal. "When you see stories of guys coming back in 10 months, I'm going to think, 'Hey, I can come back in nine,'" Harvey said. The 24-year-old is doing upper-body workouts and hopes to be playing catch by the end of February, Barbarisi writes. Harvey said that he was excited by the Mets' signing of Curtis Granderson, though he realizes it will be more than a year before he pitches in front of him. More news on the Mets and the rest of the division…
- Though the Mets reportedly made a run at Grant Balfour prior to his new deal with the Rays, Jon Heyman of CBS Sports tweets that they're not likely to embark on a similar pursuit of Fernando Rodney.
- MLB.com's Joe Frisaro reports that the Marlins are interested in adding Vernon Wells. Though Brian Bogusevic projects to be the club's fourth outfielder, the Fish are interested in Wells as a right-handed bench bat and occasional starter. Over the weekend, Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe noted near the end of his Sunday column that the Phillies have also expressed some early interest in Wells.
- Phillies reliever Mike Adams is currently throwing from 100 feet and hopes to be ready for Opening Day, writes CSNPhilly.com's Jim Salisbury. The Phils inked Adams to a two-year, $12MM pact prior to last season, but a shoulder injury sidelined him for much of the 2013 campaign. Though the Phillies would like to salvage as much as they can from that investment, it wouldn't be a surprise to see Adams spend the first couple of weeks on the disabled list, Salisbury adds.
Minor Moves: Aaron Laffey
Here are Thursday's minor moves from around the league…
- The Orioles have signed left-hander Aaron Laffey to a minor league deal with an invite to Spring Training, per MLB.com's Anthony Castrovince (on Twitter). Baltimore has since officially announced the deal. The 28-year-old allowed 10 runs in 12 2/3 innings between the Mets and Blue Jays in 2013 and has a career 4.45 ERA with 4.5 K/9 and 3.6 BB/9 in 487 big league innings.
AL East Links: Jays, Drew, Sizemore, Sox, Balfour
Via Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet.ca, Blue Jays manager John Gibbons told Jim Bowden and Casey Stern of MLB Network Radio that his team has about a 50/50 shot of adding a significant free agent pitcher. Nicholson-Smith writes that the Jays know the asking prices of pitchers like Ubaldo Jimenez and Ervin Santana but aren't prepared to overpay a free agent. Here's more out of the AL East…
- The Yankees are weighing a run at Stephen Drew now that they've blown past the luxury tax threshold, according to Jon Heyman of CBS Sports. A person familiar with the team's thinking told Heyman that a pursuit of Drew would still depend on the price, however. ESPN's Buster Olney reported the other day that the Yankees weren't likely to make any major additions following the Tanaka signing.
- Red Sox GM Ben Cherington told Jason Mastrodonato of MassLive.com that despite signing Grady Sizemore to a Major League deal, there are no guarantees that the former Indians star will make the Opening Day roster. Cherington didn't rule out a minor league assignment for Sizemore.
- Also from Mastrodonato (on Twitter), Red Sox manager John Farrell told reporters at tonight's BBWAA dinner, "We're going to have Jackie Bradley in center field." Mastrodonato adds that Cherington said, "We believe in Jackie Bradley."
- WEEI.com's Alex Speier examines the Red Sox' wealth of pitching depth. Speier writes that while it would seem logical for the Sox to deal from their perceived surplus, the majority of top pitching prospects simply don't pan out. Speier points to a study from Camden Depot's Matt Perez that looks at the history of Baseball America's top prospects, revealing that even in the most successful stretch for those prospects, just over one of four became solid Major Leaguers.
- Asked about his potential grievance with the Orioles at today's press conference, new Rays closer Grant Balfour told reporters, including Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times: "I'm not going to comment on it. We'll see what happens. I'm here to stay. I have a contract with the Rays, and anything else that's going to happen on that part will be taken care of, and we'll move forward. That's not going to affect anything I've got going here. I'm moving on. I'm glad to be here, really happy to be here."
Indians Sign David Aardsma
7:37pm: Aardsma would earn $1MM upon making the roster out of Spring Training, according to Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer (Twitter link).
10:47am: The Indians have signed David Aardsma to a minor league deal with a Spring Training invitation, the club announced via press release. The 32-year-old righty is represented by TWC Sports.
Last year, Aardsma saw fairly extensive action at the MLB level for the first time since 2010, when he was closing games for the Mariners. Throwing for the Mets, Aardsma pitched 39 2/3 innings of 4.31 ERA ball in 2013, including 8.2 K/9 and 4.3 BB/9.
He is joined by several other veterans signed to minor league deals. Cleveland has also inked non-guaranteed contracts with right-handed relievers Scott Atchison and Matt Capps, along with longtime minor leaguer J.C. Ramirez and southpaw Mike Zagurski.
Lester Would Take Discount To Stay In Boston
While the game's best lefty just signed a record-breaking extension, don't expect Clayton Kershaw's groundbreaking deal to impact extension talks between fellow southpaw Jon Lester and the Red Sox. Lester told reporters today, including Jason Mastrodonato of MassLive.com, that he knows he won't get free agent market value on an extension but still wants to remain in Boston:
"I understand that to stay here, you're not going to get a free-agent deal. You're not going to do it. You can't. It's not possible. You're bidding against one team. I understand you're going to take a discount to stay. Do I want to do that? Absolutely. But just like they want it to be fair for them, I want it to be fair for me and my family. If we can get to something hopefully in Spring Training, that's awesome."
Lester recalled the extension inked by Dustin Pedroia — an eight-year, $110MM deal (seven years, $100MM of new money) that was dwarfed by the 10-year, $240MM contract Robinson Cano signed with the Mariners this offseason: "That's what he wanted to do. I understand that. That's my choice, that's his choice." That agreement was reached in Spring Training. As ESPNBoston.com's Gordon Edes writes, Lester said he is hopeful that the he and the Red Sox can also work out a deal in the near future, but he wouldn't put any sort of deadline on extension talks. However, he added that he's yet to personally speak to GM Ben Cherington about an extension.
The 30-year-old Lester is currently set to earn $13MM this coming season after the Red Sox exercised a club option on him following the 2013 campaign. That option came at the tail-end of a five-year, $30MM contract extension Lester signed at age 25. Though he's headed for a significant pay increase even if he takes a hometown discount, Lester stated that the Red Sox are his No. 1 priority and added, "I want to be here 'til they rip this jersey off my back." Lester is represented by ACES, who negotiated Pedroia's extension last year.
Brewers Say Deal With Garza Is Not Complete
6:25pm: McCalvy hears that the holdup in the contract is not due to medical concerns (Twitter link). Meanwhile, Rosenthal hears from a source that Garza took his physical today, and the Brewers had been prepared to introduce him at a press conference (Twitter link).
6:13pm: Despite previous reports that the two sides have agreed to a four-year, $52MM contract, the Brewers announced (on Twitter) that there's no agreement in place with free agent right-hander Matt Garza. Talks are ongoing with the CAA client, according to the team's tweet.
Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel notes that he has never seen the Brewers issue this type of statement and wonders if there was an issue in Garza's physical (Twitter links). Assistant GM Gord Ash would not comment to MLB.com's Adam McCalvy as to whether or not there was an issue with Garza's physical (Twitter link). The initial tweet from FOX Sports' Ken Rosenthal did note that the deal was pending a physical at the time.
I wrote recently that the reported contract was a surprising coup for Milwaukee, as Garza was supposedly obtained for the same price the Cubs paid to land Edwin Jackson last winter. It's rare for teams to come out and explicitly deny that an agreement with a free agent has been reached, which only adds to the curiousity of this situation. Should this deal fall through due to medical reasons, it would be the second major multiyear deal to crumble after a physical returned unfavorable results. Coincidentally, the other such case — Grant Balfour — finalized a new deal with a new team today by inking a two-year pact with the Rays.
Brewers Benefit From Tanaka Waiting Game
Note: Since the time this post was published, the Brewers have issued a statement announcing that the deal with Garza is not yet complete, and negotiations are ongoing.
Prior to the offseason, few would have predicted that the contracts inked by Ricky Nolasco and Matt Garza would land just $3MM apart. Garza was pegged by some as the market's second-best starting pitching option behind Masahiro Tanaka, whereas Nolasco was thought of as a steady, reliable option in the second tier of starters. This was true on MLBTR as well; Garza ranked No. 7 on Tim Dierkes' list of Top 50 free agents, while Nolasco came in at No. 20. Yet, here on Jan. 23, we now know that Garza will pitch for Milwaukee in 2014 on the first season of a four-year, $52MM contract, while Nolasco will be one state to the west, in Minneapolis on a four-year, $49MM deal.
The addition of Garza strengthens Milwaukee's rotation and continues what has become a trend for the Brewers in recent years. MLBTR's Tim Dierkes examined their rash of late-offseason signings earlier this month — a list that is now punctuated by Garza and Kyle Lohse (who signed a three-year deal in March of last season). The fact that Garza comes without draft pick compensation and at the same price the Cubs paid to secure the services of Edwin Jackson just one year prior can be seen as a surprising coup for the Brew Crew.
So then, did the Twins make a mistake by signing Nolasco early in the offseason? It's easy to apply hindsight here and say that had they waited, perhaps they could have topped Milwaukee's offer by a slight margin and landed the consensus superior pitcher, but things aren't that simple.
For one, the Twins entered the offseason likely feeling that they were in desperate need of repairing one of baseball's bleakest rotations. The Brewers, on the other hand, had solid arms returning in 2014 in the form of Lohse, Yovani Gallardo, Marco Estrada and Wily Peralta. While that's hardly an elite rotation, it's significantly better than what the Twins were deploying late in 2013.
Minnesota GM Terry Ryan bided his time in free agency last offseason and ultimately wound up with Kevin Correia and Mike Pelfrey as the only supplements to a rotation that clearly needed more. Predictably, that didn't stop the hemorrhaging, and the Twins entered this offseason with a similar need. After telling reporters last winter that sometimes you "can't give your money away," early-season aggression was likely a key for Ryan and his staff to landing some rotation assistance. The total commitments to Nolasco, Phil Hughes ($24MM) and Pelfrey ($11MM) are a reflection of that aggression. Feeling comfortable with three to four of its rotation spots, Milwaukee laid in wait.
The other key factor in this situation was Tanaka. At the time of the Nolasco signing, Tanaka was a mystery as Major League Baseball and Nippon Professional Baseball looked to hash out an agreement on a new posting system. At that juncture, it wasn't even certai if Tanaka could be headed to the Majors. It also wasn't readily apparent that he would take until Jan. 22 to agree to a deal, nor was it clear that his market would effectively create a gridlock for the rest of the top free agent starters. Had all of the parties that were interested in Nolasco, Jason Vargas, Bartolo Colon and Scott Feldman known that Garza, Ervin Santana, Ubaldo Jimenez and Bronson Arroyo would be available in late January, they may not have acted quite as quickly in striking those deals.
Such is the case in any offseason; teams weigh the risk and reward of pouncing early — and thereby paying more — or waiting out a potential bargain while knowing the result could be empty hands and a disappointed fan base. This particular offseason is one of the most unique in recent memory, as the consensus top three domestic free agent pitchers were without jobs as late as Jan. 23.
Teams that have weathered the storm stand to be rewarded, and Garza's contract is proof of that. Even Santana, who at one point was said to be eyeing $100MM, is thinking something closer to the four-year, $60MM range, according to a report from earlier today. It will be interesting to see the eventual price tags for Santana and Jimenez — two pitchers that (unlike Garza) are attached to draft pick compensation and are looking for jobs at a time when many interested parties have already spent a good deal of their offseason budget.
Tanaka's long, drawn-out free agency has likely created the opportunity for teams to acquire upper-level talent at (relative) bargain prices, as evidenced by Garza signing for Jackson money. While the Twins were handcuffed by their overwhelming need for rotation help, the Brewers' status as a team not desperate for starting pitching allowed them to sit on the periphery of the free agent market and strike quickly following the resolution of the Tanaka saga. Garza's $52MM guarantee could serve as a talking point in discussions for Santana and Jimenez, creating opportunities for pitching-hungry teams to strike deals that most would not have thought possible just two or three months ago.