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Phillies Likely Done Spending For Now

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The Phillies payroll is roughly where it was last year – at least as long as they entertain rostering Brandon Kintzler and Tony Watson on opening day. A lot remains to be seen, but it’s certainly a possibility that the pair of veteran relievers makes the team. In that case, they would both make $3MM, pushing their luxury tax payroll close to $208MM, writes the Athletic’s Matt Gelb. Wanting to leave a touch of breathing room under the tax for an in-season acquisition, the Phillies are likely done adding Major League players. Whether the Phillies should trifle over surpassing the luxury tax by a million or two is certainly worth the question, but it’s not a level of spending they’ve breached in the past.

If they are using that line as a soft cap,  there won’t be much flexibility even for a mid-season acquisition. Clearing close to $6MM by not putting Kintzler and Watson on the roster might be appealing for that cause, but considering the disaster that was their 2020 bullpen, they may prefer having those veteran hands at the ready. Kintzler was the Marlins closer last year with a 2.24 ERA over 24 1/3 innings. Watson logged a 2.50 ERA across 18 innings for the Giants. Both have been steady Eddies for the past decade out of the bullpen.

Watson, for his part, fits a particular need for the Phillies. Southpaw Ranger Suárez is behind in his preparation by a couple of weeks because of visa issues, notes Gelb. Suárez would be one of the lefties competing for a spot in the bullpen. If Suárez isn’t ready for opening day, Watson would be in competition with JoJo Romero for deputy southpaw behind nominal sheriff José Alvarado. The 24-year-old Romero had a 7.59 ERA in 12 appearances last year. There are plenty of reason to be bullish on Romero, however. He had a 3.66 FIP and minuscule 4.3 percent walk rate, suggesting better times may be ahead for the crowd-pleasing southpaw. Still, Watson is by far the most experienced arm with a 2.80 ERA/3.61 FIP in 591 career innings.

Damon Jones, Kyle Dohy, Cristopher Sánchez, and Bailey Falter are the other left-handers on the Phillies 40-man. None of the four have experience at the Major League level, however.

Phillies Have “Checked In” On Jake Odorizzi

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The Phillies are among the clubs to have checked in recently on free-agent righty Jake Odorizzi’s asking price, MLB Network’s Jon Heyman tweets. He adds that the Angels have maintained some level of interest in the right-hander throughout free agency as well. There’s still no indication that Odorizzi is in serious talks with any individual team at this point.

It’s been a slow winter for Odorizzi, who was reported several weeks ago to be seeking a three-year pact worth around $15MM per year. A contract in that range would put the Phillies well north of the $210MM luxury tax threshold, as they’re currently about $8.5MM shy of that mark.

Given that proximity, it’s tough to see any match between the two sides without the Phillies exceeding the tax. That said, the penalty for surpassing the tax in 2021 wouldn’t be all that substantial for the Phillies — a 20 percent tax on their first $20MM worth of overages — and they’d quite likely dip back below the tax line in 2022 (assuming the system remains in place after another wave of collective bargaining talks). The Phillies will see Andrew McCutchen, Odubel Herrera and several others come off the books next year; their 2022 tax obligations are currently in the $133MM range.

As for the fit with Odorizzi specifically, there’s little denying that he’d be an upgrade in the middle of the Philadelphia staff. Odorizzi’s 2020 season was more or less wiped out by a series of non-arm injuries — an intercostal strain, a line-drive to the chest and a blister on his pitching hand — but his 2019 season was quite strong. He started 30 games and tallied 159 innings with the Twins, pitching to a 3.51 ERA with a career-best 27.1 percent strikeout rate against a strong 8.1 percent walk rate. That showing prompted the Twins to make a $17.8MM qualifying offer, which Odorizzi accepted over some multi-year interest at lower annual rates.

Aside from last year’s series of injuries, Odorizzi has been among the game’s most durable starters. From 2014-19, he averaged better than 30 starts and 165 innings per season, logging a combined 3.88 ERA and 4.20 SIERA with strikeout and walk rates that were a bit better than league average.

The Phillies, meanwhile, will open the year relying on a strong one-two punch of Aaron Nola and Zack Wheeler, with a solid Zach Eflin holding down the third spot on the staff. After that, top prospect Spencer Howard, the talented-but-inconsistent Vince Velasquez, and offseason signees Chase Anderson and Matt Moore will be the leading candidates to round things out. Howard struggled in his MLB debut last year but is still highly regarded. However, he also skipped Triple-A entirely and still has only six Double-A starts to his name, so the organization may feel he needs some more development time.

As for the Halos, they’re about $17MM shy of the luxury threshold, so there’s certainly room to add Odorizzi without crossing that threshold if that’s ownership’s goal. The Angels actually have a fairly deep mix of rotation options at this point, with Dylan Bundy, Andrew Heaney, Jose Quintana, Griffin Canning, Alex Cobb and Shohei Ohtani all likely to factor in early.

The Angels have been decimated by injuries in recent years, however, and that group of rotation options has some question marks within its ranks. Odorizzi certainly isn’t the ace for which Angels fans have clamored for the past few seasons, but he’d quickly become one of their top starting options were the two sides to strike a pact.

At this point, there’s no clear favorite for where Odorizzi will land. He has, at times, been connected to the Twins, Blue Jays, Giants and Red Sox (in addition to the two clubs listed here), but it’s a tough winter to be a mid-rotation starter on the market. Only four starting pitchers have agreed to multi-year deals: Trevor Bauer (Dodgers), Taijuan Walker (Mets), Mike Minor (Royals) and Chris Flexen (Mariners). Bauer was in his own class, of course, while Flexen is something of a unique case himself after a breakout showing in the KBO.

Quick Hits: Pujols, T. Rosenthal, Gardner, Hoskins

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Deirdre Pujols, wife of Angels first baseman Albert Pujols, suggested on Instagram on Monday that this will be the final season of the 41-year-old’s storied career. However, she quickly amended her post and made it clear that he won’t necessarily retire after 2021. Indeed, Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times was among those to report that Pujols hasn’t made a decision on his future beyond this year. But as someone who has struggled immensely over the past few seasons, it doesn’t seem likely that the future Hall of Famer will land another guaranteed contract even if he wants to play in 2022. Regardless, he’ll earn $30MM this season on the 10-year, $254MM deal he signed with the Angels entering the 2012 campaign.

  • The Brewers were among the teams that tried to sign reliever Trevor Rosenthal before he inked a one-year, $11MM guarantee with the Athletics, Jon Heyman of MLB Network tweets. The Braves were also known to be in the mix, and they made the right-hander a back-loaded offer for two years, according to Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic. Trevor Rosenthal ultimately chose the A’s back-loaded proposal (they’ll pay him through 2023).
  • Outfielder Brett Gardner re-signed with the Yankees for a $5.15MM guarantee, but at least a few other teams considered prying him out of New York. The Braves, Angels and Blue Jays all showed interest in Gardner during his long stay in free agency, per Heyman. However, Gardner’s goal was to remain a member of the Yankees. A 2005 third-round pick who made his big league debut in 2008, Gardner is easily the Yankees’ longest-tenured player.
  • Phillies first baseman Rhys Hoskins, who underwent Tommy John surgery last October, said that he has been “medically cleared” for all spring training activities, Scott Lauber of the Philadelphia Inquirer relays. It’s not certain whether Hoskins will be in the Phillies’ lineup on Opening Day – that will depend on how many reps he gets this spring – but it’s not “out of the picture,” he stated. After a somewhat disappointing 2019, the 27-year-old slugger enjoyed a major rebound last season, when he slashed .245/.384/.503 (140 wRC+) with 10 home runs in 185 plate appearances.

J.T. Realmuto Suffers Fractured Thumb

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The Phillies kicked off Spring Training with some brutal news for fans. Star catcher J.T. Realmuto recently sustained a small fracture in his right thumb, manager Joe Girardi announced to reporters (Twitter link via MLB.com’s Todd Zolecki). The injury occurred six days ago when catching a bullpen session, tweets Jim Salisbury of NBC Sports Philadelphia.

Realmuto’s thumb will be immobilized for the next two weeks, and while the Phils are hopeful he’ll be ready for Opening Day, there’s no guarantee that’ll be the case. It’s certainly not the way the team or Realmuto hoped to kick off his newly inked five-year, $115.5MM contract.

Realmuto will be reevaluated after that immobilization period, at which point the club will have a better timeline for his return to games. If Realmuto is forced onto the injured list to begin the season, the Phillies would likely turn to Andrew Knapp as the primary catcher in his absence. Rafael Marchan could get a look as the backup role in that scenario, given that he’s already on the 40-man roster. If not Marchan, one of Jeff Mathis or Christian Bethancourt could get the nod. Both would need to be added to the 40-man roster, however, as they’re in Spring Training as non-roster invitees at the moment.

Phillies Sign Brad Miller

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12:22pm: Miller is guaranteed $3.5MM on the deal, tweets MLB Network’s Jon Heyman.

11:45am: The Phillies announced Wednesday that they’ve signed utilityman Brad Miller to a one-year, Major League contract. Right-hander Seranthony Dominguez, who is recovering from Tommy John surgery, has been transferred to the 60-day injured list to create space on the 40-man roster. MLB.com’s Jon Morosi reported last week that the Phillies and Miller, an ISE Baseball client, were in talks on a one-year deal in the $3MM range.

Brad Miller | Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports

Miller, who is returning to the Phils after a year with the Cardinals, makes for a sensible upgrade for a thin bench. With Didi Gregorius back in the fold and Jean Segura expected to serve as the everyday option at second base, the 31-year-old Miller will join versatile Scott Kingery in backing up at a number of positions around the diamond. He probably won’t get much reserve time at shortstop and won’t see action in center — both spots Kingery can handle — but Miller could see time at second base, first base, third base and in the outfield corners.

Prior to re-signing Miller, the Phillies would’ve lacked infield depth on days that Kingery was roaming the outfield. Philadelphia acquired infield prospect C.J. Chatham — a former Dave Dombrowski draftee — from the Red Sox earlier this winter but have little on the 40-man roster behind him. Ronald Torreyes is in Spring Training as a non-roster invitee, but a couple of injuries could have left the Phillies reliant on a thin farm system that lacks MLB-ready infield talent.

Miller isn’t the plus defender that Kingery is, but he’s been a much better hitter of late and has a longer track record at the MLB level. In 171 plate appearances with the Cardinals in 2020, Miller slashed .232/.357/.451, and over the past three years combined he’s a .247/.329/.468 batter with 27 homers, 27 doubles and four triples. He’s strikeout-prone (29.1 percent in that time), which limits his batting average, but Miller draws plenty of walks (10.4 percent) and makes frequent hard contact.

The Cardinals used Miller as a designated hitter more often than anything else in 2020, although he played 15 games at third base and also appeared at shortstop and second base. He lined up most frequently in left field and at third base with the Phillies in 2019, but Miller has more than 1200 at second base and more than 600 at first base as well. He’s also logged 3000-plus innings at shortstop, so while he’s only their third- or fourth-best defensive option there, he can certainly handle the position in a pinch.

The Phillies, by all indications, are angling to stay beneath the $210MM luxury tax threshold, though adding Miller on a reasonable deal doesn’t really jeopardize that goal. Assuming that roughly $3MM price point proves correct, the Miller signing will push them to just under $202MM in luxury obligations, per Jason Martinez of Roster Resource.

That leaves the club with a bit of room for some in-season maneuvering, although if either of Brandon Kintzler or Tony Watson makes the club’s roster, that figure will climb further north. Both veteran relievers agreed to minor league deals that contain $3MM base salaries upon making the MLB roster. The Phillies formally announced Watson’s deal, which was reported earlier this morning, alongside their announcement of the Miller deal.

Phillies, Tony Watson Agree To Minor League Deal

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The Phillies are in agreement on a minor league contract with veteran left-handed reliever Tony Watson, reports Todd Zolecki of MLB.com (via Twitter). He’ll be in Major League Spring Training and compete for a bullpen job.

Watson, a client of the Boras Corporation, would earn $3MM if he makes the big league roster, per Jim Salisbury of NBC Sports (Twitter link). As with fellow Phillies non-roster invitee Brandon Kintzler, that $3MM sum represents a relatively large potential salary for a minor league signee. USA Today’s Bob Nightengale further adds that Watson could earn an additional $1MM via incentives.

There’s been some surprise that Watson settled for a minor league arrangement after the veteran lefty notched a tidy 2.50 ERA in 18 innings with the Giants last year and generally pitched well for them. However, Watson’s fastball velocity plummeted by more than three miles per hour in 2020, dropping from just over 93 mph to 89.9 mph. Watson still managed a strong 12.9 percent swinging-strike rate and a career-high 40.6 percent opponents’ chase rate, but the velo dip for a pitcher in his mid-30s was likely something of a concern for interested parties.

It’s not the first time that Watson’s market (or lack thereof) has been a source of some surprise. Watson had a $2.5MM player option with the Giants last offseason that seemed like a no-brainer to decline, but he instead reworked that contract and took a one-year, $3MM deal with the Giants in early November rather than actually exploring the market. Given a solid 2018-19 showing in San Francisco (3.30 ERA, 23 K%, 5.3 BB%) and a generally thin market for lefty relief, that decision was also rather unexpected.

It’s possible that, like Kintzler, Watson had some smaller Major League offers but chose to bet on himself with a non-guaranteed deal and the appeal of a potentially more lucrative base salary. Regardless of the market factors that led to today’s agreement, it looks to be a nice pickup for a Phillies club in desperate need of a bullpen makeover. Watson has a long track record of success, pitching 10 years at the MLB level with a composite 2.80 ERA and only one single-season ERA north of 4.00 (4.17 in 2019). He’s worked as both a closer and a setup man, and unlike many lefties he doesn’t carry a sizable platoon split.

Since naming Dave Dombrowski president of baseball operations, the Phillies have signed Archie Bradley, traded for Jose Alvarado and brought in Watson, Kintzler, Hector Rondon and Neftali Feliz on non-guaranteed deals. On the starting staff, they’ve signed both Chase Anderson and Matt Moore as back-of-the-rotation options while inking Ivan Nova and Bryan Mitchell to minor league deals. At the very least, the Phils should have a deeper staff — starters and relievers alike — than in 2020.

Phillies Sign Jeff Mathis To Minor League Deal

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The Phillies announced Tuesday that they’ve signed veteran catcher Jeff Mathis to a minor league deal and invited him to Major League Spring Training. The Phils also confirmed previously reported non-roster invites for veterans Neftali Feliz, Brandon Kintzler, Bryan Mitchell, Ivan Nova, Hector Rondon, Michael Ynoa, Ronald Torreyes, Travis Jankowski and Matt Joyce. Mathis a client of Jet Sports Management, would earn $1.8MM if he makes the roster, tweets MLB Network’s Jon Heyman.

Mathis, 38 in March, just wrapped up a two-year stint with the Rangers. He didn’t hit well at all in Texas, but the Rangers surely weren’t expecting him to provide anything with the bat, either. Mathis hit .207/.274/.297 in the two prior seasons with the D-backs and was nonetheless signed to a two-year deal almost exclusively for his defensive prowess behind the dish.

Long considered one of the best all-around defensive catchers in the game, Mathis will head to Spring Training with the Phillies as the quintessential veteran mentor for the team’s younger players. It seems difficult to envision him cracking the Opening Day roster with J.T. Realmuto re-signed to a new five-year deal, Andrew Knapp the likely backup and a third catcher, Rafael Marchan, on the 40-man roster. But Mathis can work with Knapp and the 22-year-old Marchan on their defensive aptitude behind the plate and has no shortage of veteran insight to share with the pitching staff after spending the past 16 seasons in the Majors.

Mathis has appeared in 945 Major League games and tallied 3006 plate appearances between the Angels, Blue Jays, Marlins, D-backs and Rangers. He’s just a .194/.253/.300 hitter in that time, but at his peak he controlled the running game brilliantly and was among the league’s best both in terms of pitch framing and blocking balls in the dirt.

As one might expect for a player as he enters his late 30s, Mathis has seen his defensive ratings dip in recent years, but he made known back in September that he hoped to continue his playing career and the Phillies are giving him the opportunity to do so. Mathis can always head to Triple-A Lehigh Valley if he doesn’t make the Opening Day roster, and it’s common for veterans of this nature to have multiple out dates in non-guaranteed deals, allowing them to return to the market near the end of camp (and/or early in the regular season) if they haven’t been added to the Major League roster.

Phillies Sign Travis Jankowski To Minors Contract

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The Phillies have signed outfielder Travis Jankowski to a minor league deal, the team announced.  Jankowski receives an invitation to the Phillies’ big league Spring Training camp.

Jankowski can play all three outfield positions and has graded out as an average-to-plus defender (as per UZR/150 and Defensive Runs Saved) at all three spots, which could help him win a job amidst a lot of competition.  Jankowski will head to the Grapefruit League to battle with Adam Haseley, Roman Quinn, Matt Joyce, and Mickey Moniak for a backup outfielder role, and if he doesn’t make the team, Jankowski would be a useful depth piece in the minors.

A native of Lancaster, Pennsylvania, Jankowski has signed on with his local team after spending five seasons with the Padres and the 2020 season with the Reds.  Jankowski didn’t see much action with Cincinnati, receiving only 17 plate appearances over 16 games.  Between last season and a 2019 campaign that included a long IL stint due to a broken wrist, Jankowski has appeared in only 41 MLB games in two years after getting semi-regular playing time with San Diego in 2016 and 2018.  The 29-year-old has hit .238/.315/.313 over 994 career plate appearances.

Phillies, Brad Miller Closing In On Deal

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8:30am: The Phillies and Miller are working toward a deal that would come with a guarantee in the $3MM to $3.5MM range, Morosi tweets.

7:45am: The Phillies are in talks with veteran utilityman Brad Miller about a contract for the 2021 season, MLB.com’s Jon Morosi reports (via Twitter). If completed, it’d mark Miller’s second stint with the Phillies after spending half the season with them in 2019.

A Miller reunion would be an affordable and sensible upgrade for the Phillies’ bench. Manager Joe Girardi said this week that with Didi Gregorius now officially back in the fold, it’s likely that Jean Segura is penciled in for the starting role at second base (Twitter link via Matt Breen of the Philadelphia Inquirer). Scott Kingery will again bounce around the diamond and see time at multiple positions. Kingery has average or better defensive grades at each of second base, third base, shortstop and in center field but will be looking for a rebound at the plate after slumping through 124 plate appearances in 2020 following a bout with Covid-19.

On days when Kingery is tasked with roaming the outfield, the current iteration of the Phils lacks much in the way of infield depth. The Phillies acquired infield prospect C.J. Chatham — a former Dave Dombrowski draftee — from the Red Sox earlier this winter but have little on the 40-man roster behind him. Ronald Torreyes will be in Spring Training as a non-roster invitee, but at the moment, a couple of injuries would leave the Phillies reliant on a thin farm system that lacks MLB-ready infield talent.

Miller, 31, would give them another versatile player to add to the mix. He’s not the defender that Kingery is, but he’s been a much better hitter of late and has a longer track record at the MLB level. In 171 plate appearances with the Cardinals in 2020, Miller slashed .232/.357/.451, and over the past three years combined he’s a .247/.329/.468 batter with 27 homers, 27 doubles and four triples. He’s strikeout-prone (29.1 percent in that time), which limits his batting average, but Miller draws plenty of walks (10.4 percent) and makes frequent hard contact.

The Cardinals used Miller as a designated hitter more often than anything else in 2020, although he played 15 games at third base and also appeared at shortstop and second base. He lined up most frequently in left field and at third base with the Phillies in 2019, but Miller has more than 3000 MLB innings at shortstop, more than 1200 at second base and more than 600 at first base as well.

The Phillies, by all indications, are angling to stay beneath the $210MM luxury tax threshold, but signing Miller wouldn’t jeopardize that goal. They’re currently at $198.7MM worth of luxury obligations, per Jason Martinez of Roster Resource, and Miller’s price ought to only push that upward by a few million dollars.

Phillies Sign Matt Joyce To Minor League Deal

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The Phillies have signed veteran outfielder Matt Joyce to a minor league contract, president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski announced to reporters Wednesday (Twitter link via The Athletic’s Matt Gelb). The ACES client will compete for a job in Spring Training.

Joyce, 36, had a noticeable dip in power with the Marlins in 2020 but remained a strong on-base threat, as is typical for the 13-year big league veteran. In 148 plate appearances with the Fish, Joyce batted .252/.351/.331 with a pair of homers and four doubles. A career-worst 27.7 percent strikeout rate does create some cause for concern, but that came in a small sample and punchouts have never been too large a problem for Joyce.

Dombrowski is quite familiar with Joyce, having selected him in the 12th round of the ’05 draft, developed him with the Tigers (for whom he made his MLB debut) and traded him to the Rays (in exchange for the also-well-traveled Edwin Jackson when both were still in their mid-20s). The pair will reunite with a Phillies club that is largely set in the outfield, where Andrew McCutchen, Adam Haseley, Bryce Harper, Roman Quinn and Scott Kingery are all options. (Dombrowski said on today’s call that the club hasn’t decided whether Odubel Herrera will be invited to Spring Training.)

Joyce, however, can give the Phils the quintessential “professional” bat off the bench. He walked at a 13.5 percent clip this past season and hasn’t posted a walk rate south of 10.6 percent in any year since 2011. He’s a lifetime .253/.355/.448 hitter against righties.

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