Rockies, Mickey Moniak Agree To Major League Deal
The Rockies are in agreement with Mickey Moniak on a one-year, $1.25MM contract, report Mark Feinsand and Thomas Harding of MLB.com. The Angels released the former first overall pick yesterday. Moniak, a Wasserman client, has a little over three years of service time and is technically controllable through 2027 via arbitration. Colorado has not announced the signing. They opened a 40-man roster spot by waiving Greg Jones, who was claimed by the White Sox this afternoon.
Moniak had gone to an arbitration hearing with the Halos. He prevailed and was awarded a $2MM salary. However, arbitration salaries are only fully guaranteed if the player and team mutually agree to them without a hearing. The distinction was introduced in the most recent collective bargaining agreement, at least partially to incentivize players to agree to deals without going to hearings.
Players who go to a hearing (regardless of whether they win or lose) are only guaranteed termination pay until the beginning of the regular season. Players released before or early in Spring Training receive 30 days termination pay; those released within 15 days of Opening Day are guaranteed 45 days termination pay. Moniak obviously fell into the latter bucket, so he received roughly $484K from the Angels when he was cut loose.
That’s on top of the money he’s guaranteed from the Rockies, meaning he has now locked in around $1.73MM for this season. That’s about $270K below what he had won in the hearing, but it’s roughly $230K above the Angels’ $1.5MM filing figure during the arbitration process. Moniak lands just shy of the midpoint between his and the Halos’ respective filing numbers.
Moniak, a lefty-hitting center fielder, has spent the last two seasons playing a semi-regular role with the Angels. He had a productive 2023 season, hitting .280/.307/.495 with 14 homers in 85 games. A massive 35% strikeout rate made it unlikely he’d be able to keep up that production. His numbers indeed fell off last season, as he hit .219/.266/.380 over 418 plate appearances. Moniak cut his strikeout rate to a slightly more palatable 27.3% mark, but that came with a dramatic drop to his ball-in-play results.
The Angels are moving Mike Trout to right field this season. That reopened the path for Moniak and another former top prospect, Jo Adell, to work as a center field platoon. Moniak had a terrible Spring Training, batting .191 while striking out 18 times in 58 plate appearances. Adell’s numbers were even worse (.172/.194/.375 in 67 PAs), but the Angels decided to move on from Moniak and cut a little more than $1.5MM from their payroll.
Moniak projects as a fourth outfielder in Colorado. Brenton Doyle is one of the better all-around center fielders in MLB. Jordan Beck, Sean Bouchard and minor league signee Nick Martini round out the corner outfield after last week’s Nolan Jones/Tyler Freeman swap. The signing probably doesn’t bode well for Sam Hilliard, another left-handed hitter who was slated to work as the fourth outfielder. Moniak and Hilliard are both out of options, so they’ll need to break camp or be exposed to waivers. Moniak is clearly going to make the team. Hilliard batted .137 while striking out nearly half the time this spring.
Image courtesy of Jesse Johnson, Imagn Images
Giants Select Christian Koss
The Giants announced that they’ve selected infielder Christian Koss onto the 40-man roster. He’ll break camp and will make his major league debut once he gets into a game. San Francisco optioned Grant McCray and Brett Wisely while reassigning non-roster invitees Joel Peguero and Max Stassi to Triple-A Sacramento. The Giants also placed Jerar Encarnacion on the 10-day injured list with a fracture in his left hand that’ll require surgery. They placed catcher Tom Murphy on the 60-day injured list to open a 40-man roster spot for Koss.
Koss, 27, is entering his second season in the San Francisco organization. The Giants acquired him from the Red Sox in a minor league deal on the eve of the ’24 campaign. It was the second trade of his career. Koss was initially a 12th-round pick by Colorado and went to the Red Sox in a minor trade in 2020. He reached Triple-A in the Boston system before being traded.
The UC-Irvine product divided his first season with San Francisco between the top two minor league levels. He raked at a .386/.453/.627 clip over 25 Double-A games but posted a more modest .257/.332/.415 line across 197 Triple-A plate appearances. Koss played quite well in Spring Training, hitting .341 with five walks and seven strikeouts through 47 trips to the plate. He can bounce around the infield and provides a speed element off the bench. Koss and Casey Schmitt will work as utility players behind Tyler Fitzgerald, Willy Adames and Matt Chapman.
Murphy, who has dealt with plenty of injuries throughout his career, is currently shelved with a herniated disc in his back. He has received multiple epidural injections. He’ll miss at least the first two months of the season. Sam Huff will begin the season as the backup catcher behind Patrick Bailey.
Mariners Sign Cal Raleigh To Six-Year Extension
The Mariners announced that they’ve signed catcher Cal Raleigh to a six-year extension that starts this year. It’s reportedly a $105MM guarantee for the Excel Sports Management client. He had previously agreed to a $5.6MM salary in 2025 to avoid arbitration, so this deal adds five years and $99.4MM in terms of new money. He was slated to hit free agency after 2027, so this deal buys out three free agent seasons and there’s also a vesting option for 2031. Raleigh gets full no-trade protection.
The specific breakdown is a $10MM signing bonus and $1MM salary in 2025, followed by salaries of $11MM and $12MM in 2026 and 2027. He will then make $23MM salaries for three straight years. For 2031, there is a vesting player option valued at $20MM with a $2MM buyout. The option would vest if Raleigh appears in 100 games behind the plate in at least four of the six guaranteed seasons.
Raleigh, now 28, was a third-round pick of the M’s in the 2018 draft. As a prospect, he drew attention as a switch-hitting catcher with notable power. His 2021 debut wasn’t great but he has since established himself as one of the best two-way catchers in the game.
Over the past three seasons, Raleigh has stepped to the plate 1,612 times. His 28.3% strikeout rate in that time is a bit on the high side, but he’s also drawn walks at a 10% clip and hit 91 home runs. The end result is a .222/.303/.457 line, which translates to a 117 wRC+. That indicates he’s been 17% better than the league average hitter, but that’s even more impressive for a catcher, since they are usually about 10% below average.
The switch-hitter hasn’t been totally balanced in his production. 73 of his 93 career homers have come against righties and he has a .223/.304/.454 line when hitting from the left side. When he turns around to bat right-handed against southpaws, his line drops to .202/.271/.410, though the 94 wRC+ on that latter line is still passable.
Defensively, he’s received strong marks for all aspects but especially his framing. FanGraphs gave him the third-best framing mark last year, behind only Patrick Bailey and Jake Rogers. Statcast had him second only to Bailey.
The overall package is quite strong. FanGraphs has credited him with between 4.2 and 5.3 wins above replacement in each of the past three seasons. That means he was worth a total 13.9 fWAR over the 2022-24 period. That was tops among all catchers in the league and in the top 20 of all position players. It’s difficult to quantify a catcher’s contributions to a pitching staff but Seattle has had strong results from the mound during Raleigh’s time as well.
He just crossed the three-year service line in 2024, qualifying him for arbitration for the first time. As mentioned, he and the club settled at $5.6MM for this year. He would have been slated for two more arbitration passes before hitting free agency after 2027, his age-30 season.
Had he stayed healthy and productive between now and then, he could have perhaps been in line for a strong trip to free agency. However, the earning power of catchers at that age isn’t tremendous, as shown on MLBTR’s Contract Tracker.
While shooting into nine-figure territory and beyond is common for other players, the wear-and-tear of the catching positions make it rare for that group. J.T. Realmuto is actually the only free agent catcher to get to nine figures. He and the Phillies agreed to a five-year, $115.5MM deal going into 2021. Only four other free agent catchers have gone beyond $53MM. Willson Contreras got $87.5MM from the Cardinals, Brian McCann $85MM from the Yankees, Russell Martin $82MM from the Blue Jays and Yasmani Grandal $73MM from the White Sox.
Extensions have been the path for the top deals for catchers. Joe Mauer and Buster Posey are tops on that leaderboard, though those deals are both over a decade old. More recently, some rough comps for Raleigh can be found in Will Smith and Sean Murphy. Smith’s $131.5MM guarantee is larger than Raleigh’s, though he was one year closer to free agency, therefore giving him a bit more earning power. The nine-year term is a bit eye-popping but that was largely viewed as a way to lower the average annual value for tax purposes.
Murphy was in the same three-to-four service window as Raleigh and got $73MM over six years plus a $15MM option. The two players had a broadly similar profile as strong two-way backstops. Raleigh’s deal shoots well beyond that one.
For the Mariners, they generally struggle to attract top free agents. That’s perhaps somewhat due to the pitcher-friendly nature of T-Mobile Park but more generally about the club not having massive payrolls. Since Jerry Dipoto has been atop the baseball operations department, this is now the eighth contract the club has given out worth more than $24MM. Of those eight, only two of those were free agent deals. They went to Robbie Ray and Yusei Kikuchi, both pitchers.
The six extensions have gone to Raleigh, Julio Rodríguez, Luis Castillo, Jean Segura, J.P. Crawford and Marco Gonzales. There are couple of pitchers in there but four of the six have gone to position players, showing that to be a preferred way of spending money for the club, particularly the lineup.
Perhaps not coincidentally, Raleigh’s salary jumps up at a time when the club should have some extra payroll capacity down the line. He will almost double his salary from 2027 to 2028, going from $12MM to $23MM. By that time, Castillo’s deal will be done the guaranteed portion, though there is a vesting option for 2028. Castillo would need to throw 180 innings in 2027 and be verified as healthy by an independent surgeon. Even if Castillo is still around in ’28, the deals for Mitch Haniger, Mitch Garver, Crawford, Polanco and Víctor Robles will all finish between now and then.
It’s surely an exciting day for Raleigh, the Mariners and their fans. “Big Dumper” has become one of the better backstops in the league and a fan favorite. He’ll now be slated to stick around for six or maybe even seven more years, instead of just three. He’ll be 33 years old in the final guaranteed year of the deal and 34 in 2031, the vesting option year. Barring a future trade, he will eventually spend the majority or perhaps his entire career in Seattle.
Jeff Passan of ESPN first reported that the two sides had agreed to six-year, $105MM deal. Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic relayed the no-trade clause. Ryan Divish of The Seattle Times first reported on the vesting option that could push the total to $123MM. Passan reported the specific salary breakdown. Rosenthal reported the vesting condition.
Photos courtesy of Mark J. Rebilas, Imagn Images.
Nationals Place Four Players On Injured List
The Nationals announced a series of roster moves to set up their Opening Day roster, including four injured-list placements retroactive to March 24. Right-handers Derek Law (forearm inflammation) and Zach Brzykcy (right quad strain) are both headed to the 15-day IL, infielder Andres Chaparro (oblique strain) is going to the 10-day IL, and right-hander Cade Cavalli was placed on the 15-day IL as he enters the final stages of his recovery from Tommy John surgery.
DJ Herz was moved from the 15-day to the 60-day IL as he could be facing a Tommy John procedure of his own in the wake of a UCL tear. Herz’s transfer opens up a 40-man roster spot the Nats to select the contract of right-hander Brad Lord, in a move that was reported earlier today. Finally, D.C. also optioned first/baseman outfielder Juan Yepez and righty Jackson Rutledge to Triple-A, and catcher Andrew Knizner was reassigned to Triple-A.
As Spencer Nusbaum of the Washington Post wrote last weekend, Law’s injury dates back to last season, when the reliever missed just under three weeks in late August and early September due to a flexor strain in his throwing elbow. Though Law was able to return in relatively short order, the discomfort lingered through the winter and into Spring Training, and Law pitched in only one game during the Nationals’ Grapefruit League schedule. The team had already planned to limit Law’s spring workload in the wake of his 90-inning campaign last season, but the forearm issue kept him off the mound almost entirely.
Manager Davey Martinez said Law’s MRI came back clean and the injury isn’t thought to be too serious, with Law saying he believes he’ll be back when first eligible for activation on April 8. Law was one of the game’s most valuable workhorses last season, tossing 90 innings of 2.60 ball over 75 appearances for the Nationals.
Brzykcy also pitched just once this spring, as his quad strain has kept him out of game action for over a month. The righty has started throwing bullpens again, so he is at least partway through the ramp-up process even if it seems like Brzykcy could miss more than the 15-day minimum given how little he pitched in the spring.
Brzykcy was an undrafted free agent from the 2020 class (the year the draft was shortened to five rounds due to the pandemic) who signed with the Nats that summer. He made his MLB debut last season, and was hit hard to the tune of a 14.29 ERA over the small sample size of 5 2/3 innings and six appearances. Brzykcy didn’t pitch in 2023 due to a Tommy John surgery, but his overall impressive minor league numbers made him a candidate to win a job in the Nationals’ bullpen this winter before his quad strain ended his bid.
Chaparro is another player who made his big-league debut in 2024, and he hit .215/.280/.413 with four home runs in his first 132 plate appearances in the Show. While the presence of the newly-acquired Nathaniel Lowe and Josh Bell may have hurt Chaparro’s chances of winning a bench job as a backup first baseman and outfielder, he was posting big numbers in camp before hurting his oblique during a batting practice session. The uncertain nature of oblique injuries leaves Chaparro’s recovery timeline somewhat up in the air, but a best-case scenario would probably see him activated by mid-April.
Without Chaparro, Yepez, or Knizner, Washington’s bench now consists of Riley Adams in the backup catcher role, veteran Amed Rosario, Jose Tena as the primary backup infielder, and Alex Call as the fourth outfielder. Between Law’s injury and the Nationals’ decision to option Rutledge, the Nationals went with Lord and rookie Orlando Ribalta for the last two bullpen spots.
Note: The initial version of this post erroneously stated that Cavalli was placed on the 60-day injured list. MLBTR apologizes for the error.
Pirates To Designate Peter Strzelecki, Select Ryan Borucki
Pirates general manager Ben Cherington told reporters (including Noah Hiles of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette) that right-hander Peter Strzelecki will be designated for assignment. The move opens up a 40-man roster spot for Ryan Borucki, as reports over the weekend indicated that the southpaw’s contract would be selected.
This is the third time Strzelecki has been designated for assignment within the last 366 days, and his first two trips into DFA saw the righty get traded elsewhere. It was almost exactly a year ago that the Guardians acquired Strzelecki for cash considerations after the Diamondbacks designated him, and Strzelecki went on to post a 2.31 ERA in the small sample size of 11 2/3 big league innings out of Cleveland’s bullpen. The Guards DFA’ed Strzelecki in November, and he then went to the Pirates in another cash deal.
With only a 7.00 ERA to show from nine innings (across nine appearances) this spring, Strzelecki didn’t make a great case for himself in trying to win a job on Pittsburgh’s roster. Strzelecki is out of minor league options and thus couldn’t have been sent down to the minors without first being DFA’ed, and yet the the Pirates still decided to go with Borucki, who posted far better numbers in Grapefruit League action.
Strzelecki has pitched in each of the last three MLB seasons, delivering a respectable 3.44 ERA, 24% strikeout rate, and 8.4% walk rate across 83 2/3 frames with the Brewers, D’Backs, and Guardians. He spent most of the 2024 season at Cleveland’s Triple-A affiliate, posting a 5.01 ERA and pretty solid peripherals over 46 2/3 innings, as a .352 BABIP may have been the chief reason for Strzelecki’s inflated ERA.
Mets Announce Several Roster Decisions
5:14PM: Acuna will also make the team, according to Daniel Alvarez-Montes of El Extra Base.
2:22PM: The Mets will break camp with infielder Brett Baty, catcher Hayden Senger and righties Max Kranick and Huascar Brazoban on the roster, president of baseball operations David Stearns announced to the team’s beat this afternoon (links via Newsday’s Tim Healey). A decision on infielder Luisangel Acuña has not yet been reached. The Mets could still bring an infielder in from outside the organization, per Healey. Senger is not on the 40-man roster, but the Mets currently have one opening.
On top of that, Stearns revealed that righty Paul Blackburn will begin the season on the injured list due to inflammation in his right knee. He won’t throw for the next seven to ten days, but the team expects that Blackburn will return at some point in April.
Injuries to Jeff McNeil, Nick Madrigal and Ronny Mauricio (still rehabbing from last year’s ACL tear) opened the door for Baty or Acuña to break camp with the Mets in 2025. Early on, Acuña seemed like the more natural fit, given his ability to back up Francisco Lindor at shortstop. However, some struggles from Acuña and an absolute monster performance from Baty during Grapefruit League play has given Baty the nod, even if he’s not a viable shortstop option and has limited experience at second base, where he’ll play to begin the season.
In 59 spring plate appearances, Baty launched four homers, six doubles and a triple — all while walking more often (13.6%) than he struck out (10.2%). He finished the spring with a Herculean .353/.441/.745 batting line and will now see regular time at second base while McNeil is on the shelf. If Baty continues to hit, the Mets will be hard-pressed to send him back down, though that’s putting the cart before the horse.
Baty, a 2019 first-rounder and longtime top prospect, has seen action in parts of three MLB seasons but has yet to put it together in the majors. He’s .215/.282/.325 hitter in 602 big league plate appearances. He also only just turned 25 this offseason, however, and Baty boasts a terrific track record in Triple-A. He’s played parts of three seasons at the top minor league level and turned in a hearty .273/.368/.531 in 94 games there. That .899 OPS is a near-mirror image of the .900 mark he logged in 129 Double-A games and the .911 mark he recorded in 51 High-A games.
Senger, 27, was the Mets’ 24th-round pick back in 2018. He’s slowly climbed the minor league ladder for several years, splitting time the past three seasons between New York’s Double-A and Triple-A affiliates. In 2024, he turned in a combined .234/.302/.363 slash between the two levels. He ranked as highly as 23rd in the Mets’ system back in 2022, with Baseball America calling him a likely backup who has better-than-average blocking and throwing skills. He’s thwarted 31% and 37% of stolen base attempts against him over the past two seasons, even as limits on throws to first base and slightly larger bases have resulted in far greater success for runners on the basepaths.
Were it not for an injury to Francisco Alvarez, Senger likely wouldn’t have been in position to earn a roster spot. Alvarez fractured the hamate bone in his left wrist during batting practice earlier in camp, however, which required surgery. He’ll miss at least a month of the season. Journeyman Luis Torrens will break camp as the Mets’ starting catcher.
The Mets acquired Blackburn from the A’s last summer, but he’s scarcely been able to pitch for the team. The 31-year-old righty (30 at the time of the swap) pitched in only five games before a comeback liner struck his right hand and sent him to the injured list. He avoided any fractures, but Blackburn required some down time due to swelling and a lack of mobility. While on the mend, he suffered a spinal fluid leak in his back. He didn’t return in 2024 and underwent surgery in October.
Blackburn is a late bloomer who clearly has the ability to pitch in a big league rotation but has repeatedly been set back by uncommon injuries. On top of the spinal issue last year, he’s also missed significant time due to a stress reaction in his right foot and a torn pulley tendon in his right middle finger. Dating back to 2022, Blackburn has a 4.43 ERA, 20.2% strikeout rate and 7.5% walk rate in 290 1/3 MLB frames.
It’s been a tough spring for the Mets’ rotation. Frankie Montas was diagnosed with a lat strain shortly after camp opened, leading to a full shutdown of six to eight weeks. Sean Manaea suffered an oblique strain not long after that. Prospect Christian Scott is still recovering from last summer’s Tommy John surgery.
The Mets will open the season with a rotation that includes Opening Day starter Clay Holmes, lefty David Peterson and righties Kodai Senga, Tylor Megill and Griffin Canning.
Diamondbacks Designate Rene Pinto, Select Shelby Miller
The Diamondbacks announced that catcher Rene Pinto was designated for assignment. The move opens up a 40-man roster spot for Shelby Miller, as the team confirmed reports from over the weekend that the right-hander’s contract was being selected to the active roster. Arizona also officially announced its one-year deal with Jalen Beeks, and placed Jordan Montgomery (who is undergoing Tommy John surgery) to the 60-day injured list in the corresponding roster move.
The Pinto move was expected, as Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic wrote on Sunday that the catcher was “saying his goodbyes in the clubhouse” to teammates after not making the Diamondbacks’ Opening Day roster. The D’Backs now have seven days to work out a trade for Pinto during the DFA period, or another team in need of catching depth could simply claim Pinto off waivers. Pinto has already changed teams twice via the waiver wire in the last five months — after the Orioles claimed the backstop from the Rays in early November, the D’Backs claimed Pinto in January after Baltimore had DFA’ed him to make roster space for Charlie Morton.
A veteran of three big league seasons, Pinto has spent his entire MLB tenure with the Rays, hitting .231/.263/.404 over 237 career plate appearances in the Show. As part of the ongoing revolving door that is the Rays’ catching position, Pinto was actually Tampa Bay’s Opening Day backstop last year, but he didn’t hit enough to earn much more regular playing time. The D’Backs brought Pinto aboard to compete for the backup catching job, but Arizona will instead go with Jose Herrera as the secondary option behind starter Gabriel Moreno.
Pinto is out of minor league options, so the Diamondbacks had to first expose him to the waiver wire in order to move him down to Triple-A. This out-of-options status could mean Pinto has more trips through the DFA process in his future, if teams continually see him as the proverbial last man on the roster, and just as a pure depth piece.
Rays Place Shane McClanahan, Richie Palacios On Injured List
The Rays placed left-hander Shane McClanahan on the 15-day injured list and utilityman Richie Palacios on the 10-day IL today, with both placements retroactive to March 24. McClanahan is dealing with a nerve problem in his left triceps, while Palacios has a fracture in his right ring finger. Righty Hunter Bigge and outfielder Kameron Misner were called up from Triple-A and will be part of the Opening Day roster.
Palacios has missed the last week of Spring Training action due to the fracture, which is at the tip of ring finger. Tampa skipper Kevin Cash told reporters (including Ryan Bass) last Friday that the injury was considered minor and that Palacios would miss “probably…a couple days,” but it appears as though the club has opted to sideline Palacios for a week into the season to give him a bit more time to heal up.
The left-handed hitting Palacios appeared in 92 games for the Rays last season, hitting .233/.346/.318 over 316 plate appearances (285 of them against right-handed pitching). As one would expect from a part-time Rays player, Palacios saw action at multiple positions, primarily at second base and the two corner outfield slots plus a couple of games at third base and shortstop. Misner is an outfield-only player, but he is another lefty bat who can provide more help in that department while Palacios is out.
It was known earlier this week that McClanahan’s nerve issue would send him to the season-opening IL, and delay his return to the big leagues after he missed all of 2024 recovering from Tommy John surgery. No timeline has been provided for when McClanahan might be ready to pitch, which isn’t unusual given the unpredictable state of nerve-related injuries. McClanahan and the Rays can only wait for the nerve to calm, and once that happens, a ramp-up plan can be devised to plot out the southpaw’s official return to action.
In other Rays injury news, Cash told reporters (including Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times) that catcher Danny Jansen‘s pulled rib muscle is feeling a bit better, but a simulated game today will determine whether or not Jansen can be available for Opening Day. If Jansen is still feeling discomfort through the 5-6 simulated innings, Tampa Bay will likely put him on the 10-day IL and use Kenny Piper as the new backup catcher to Ben Rortvedt. An 18th-round pick for the Rays in the 2021 draft, Piper has yet to make his MLB debut, and the Rays would have to select his contract into their open spot on the 40-man roster.
Reds Select Austin Wynns
The Reds announced that they have selected catcher Austin Wynns to their roster. To open a spot on the 40-man, they transferred left-hander Brandon Williamson to the 60-day injured list. Williamson underwent Tommy John surgery in September and will likely miss the entire 2025 season.
Adding Wynns has seemed likely for a while now. The Reds previously only had two catchers on their 40-man roster in Tyler Stephenson and Jose Trevino. Stephenson got an MRI on his back a couple of weeks ago which revealed a low-grade oblique strain. That made it inevitable that the Reds would have to add another backstop to pair with Trevino to start the season.
Wynns, 34, was in this role with Cincinnati in 2024 as well. The club selected his contract three times last year, whenever they needed a fresh body. In the first two cases, he was designated for assignment and outrighted back to Louisville a few days later. In the third case, he himself landed on the IL due to a right teres major tear and finished the season there. At season’s end, he was outrighted off the roster again and elected free agency but returned on a fresh minor league pact.
His .230/.277/.332 career batting line isn’t strong but he’s a veteran backstop who has appeared in parts of six big league seasons now. He’s considered a competent defender and the Reds are clearly comfortable with him.
White Sox To Select Nick Maton, Travis Jankowski
The White Sox have some more roster moves to come. Per Scott Merkin of MLB.com, infielder Brooks Baldwin, infielder Nick Maton and outfielder Travis Jankowski all made the team. Maton and Jankowski aren’t yet on the 40-man roster, so a couple of spots will have to be opened for them. Per James Fegan of Sox Machine, Tyler Gilbert will start the season on the injured list.
Maton, 28, signed a minor league deal with the club in December and has had a strong camp. He hit .289/.357/.632 in his 43 Cactus League plate appearances, which will get him a chance to return to the majors.
He’s been given some chances in the big leagues before, thanks to some strong work on the farm, but those auditions have generally been brief and unsuccessful. He has a line of .267/.375/.454 over the past three minor league seasons, production which translates to a wRC+ of 118. He’s also been put into 185 major league games over the past four seasons but with a tepid line of .205/.303/.357 in those.
The Sox have plenty of uncertainty on their roster and Maton can move all around. He has big league experience at the three infield spots to the left of first base, in addition to some outfield work. He’s also played first in the minors and could be an option there as well. The Sox figure to have Miguel Vargas and Andrew Vaughn at the corner infield spots but the middle infield is less certain. Baldwin, Lenyn Sosa and Jacob Amaya are options but each is fairly lacking in experience, so Maton can earn some playing time in there.
Maton is out of options and can’t be sent to the minors if he doesn’t click. But if he is finally able to carry some of his strong offense up to the majors, he can be controlled for another four seasons since his service clock is just a bit over the two-year line.
Jankowski, 34 in June, has a long track record as a glove-first outfielder. He’s been in 681 big league games over his decade-long career with a .236/.319/.305 batting line. But he has 102 steals and strong defensive grades. Mike Tauchman seems likely to start the season on the injured list due to a hamstring strain and Andrew Benintendi might be the regular designated hitter. That leaves the White Sox with an outfield mix of Luis Robert Jr., Michael A. Taylor, Austin Slater and Jankowski.
The moves could lead to more domino effects. The Sox already designated Oscar Colás for assignment earlier today. If they plan to select Mike Clevinger, they’ll need to open three more 40-man spots for him, Maton and Jankowski. Drew Thorpe will be able to open one of those by getting placed on the 60-day injured list, since he’ll miss the season recovering from Tommy John surgery, but the Sox will have to find two more.
Photo courtesy of Jayne Kamin-Oncea, Imagn Images