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Abraham Toro

Players Avoiding Arbitration: 11/17/23

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Tonight marks the deadline for teams to tender contracts to players who are eligible for arbitration. This evening should also see a handful of arb-eligible players agree to terms with their clubs to avoid a hearing.

These so-called “pre-tender deals” usually, although not always, involve players who were borderline non-tender candidates. Rather than run the risk of being cut loose, they can look to sign in the lead-up to the deadline. Those salaries often come in a little below projections, since these players tend to have less leverage because of the uncertainty about whether they’ll be offered a contract at all.

Under the 2022 collective bargaining agreement, players who sign to avoid an arbitration hearing are guaranteed full termination pay. That’s a change from prior CBAs, when teams could release an arb-eligible player before the season began and would only owe a prorated portion of the contract. This was done to incentivize teams and players to get deals done without going to a hearing.

All salary projections referenced are courtesy of MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz. This post will be updated throughout the night as deals are reported.

Latest Moves

  • The Orioles agreed to deals with outfielders Sam Hilliard and Ryan McKenna, reliever Keegan Akin and shortstop Jorge Mateo, as announced by the team. Mateo will make $2.7MM, as first reported by Mark Feinsand of MLB.com (X link). Jon Heyman of the New York Post has terms (on X) for Akin and Hilliard: $825K for the former, $800K for the latter.
  • Giants outfielder Mike Yastrzemski has a deal for $7.9MM, Heyman reports. That’s a little above his $7.3MM projection. Yastrzemski has one additional arbitration year remaining.
  • Reliever Yency Almonte and the Dodgers have agreed to a $1.9MM salary, per Heyman. That matches his projection.
  • Lefty reliever Ryan Borucki agreed to a contract with the Pirates, the team announced. Feinsand reports it as a $1.6MM deal. He was projected at $1.3MM.
  • The Rockies have a deal with lefty reliever Jalen Beeks, Heyman reports. He’ll make $1.675MM. Recently claimed off waivers from Tampa Bay, Beeks was projected at $1.8MM.
  • The Cubs announced a deal with third baseman Patrick Wisdom. Jesse Rogers of ESPN reports that the power-hitting infielder will make $2.725MM. That’s narrowly above a $2.6MM projection.
  • Outfielder DJ Stewart agreed to a deal with the Mets, per a club announcement. Joel Sherman of the New York Post reports it’ll be for $1.38MM. Stewart had been projected at $1.5MM as an early qualifier via Super Two.
  • The Phillies announced deals with right-hander Dylan Covey, catcher Garrett Stubbs and outfielder Jake Cave. Terms were not disclosed.
  • The White Sox announced agreement with reliever Matt Foster on a deal for $750K, narrowly above the league minimum. The right-hander underwent Tommy John surgery in April.

Earlier Tonight

  • The Royals announced agreement with lefty reliever Josh Taylor. He’ll make $1.1MM, tweets Anne Rogers of MLB.com. Acquired from the Red Sox last winter, Taylor allowed an 8.15 ERA over 17 2/3 innings before undergoing season-ending back surgery. He was projected for a $1.3MM salary.
  • The Athletics announced today that they have agreed to one-year deals with infielders Miguel Andujar and Abraham Toro. The club claimed Andujar off waivers from Pittsburgh earlier this month and swung a deal to acquire Toro from the Brewers earlier this week. Andujar hit .250/.300/.476 in 90 trips to the plate in the majors this year while Toro appeared in just nine games at the big league level but slashed .444/.524/.778 in that extremely limited action. Andujar will make $1.7MM (Heyman link); Toro is set for a $1.275MM salary.
  • The Giants have a deal with outfielder Austin Slater for $4MM, reports Craig Mish of SportsGrid (X link). That’s a little north of his $3.6MM projected salary. Slater has over five years of service time and will be a free agent next offseason. The right-handed hitter is coming off a .270/.348/.400 showing over 89 games. He’s a career .285/.374/.463 batter against left-handed pitching but owns a .227/.314/.333 mark versus righties.

A’s Acquire Abraham Toro

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The A’s have acquired infielder Abraham Toro in a trade with the Brewers. Minor league pitcher Chad Patrick is headed back to Milwaukee. Oakland already had four vacancies on the 40-man roster, so no further move was necessary.

Toro, 27 next month, has now been traded three times in his career. The former Astro draftee went to the Mariners in the Kendall Graveman deal at the 2021 deadline. Toro didn’t find consistent offensive success over a season and a half in Seattle. He hit only .213/.276/.342 in 605 plate appearances (roughly one full year of playing time) through the end of the 2022 campaign.

As a result, the Mariners looked to upgrade at second base. They sent Toro alongside designated hitter Jesse Winker to Milwaukee for Kolten Wong. The trade didn’t work out for anyone involved. Wong was released by August while Winker slumped to a .199/.320/.247 line before hitting free agency. Toro barely played for the Brew Crew, getting into just nine MLB contests.

Toro spent most of the season on optional assignment to Milwaukee’s Triple-A team in Nashville. The switch-hitter had solid numbers there, running a .291/.374/.471 batting line over 414 plate appearances. He only hit eight home runs but walked at an excellent 11.8% clip while striking out 17.6% of the time. Despite the solid numbers, Milwaukee stuck with light-hitting rookie Brice Turang at second base and rotated through a number of third base options. 26-year-old rookie Andruw Monasterio and scuffling veteran Josh Donaldson got looks at the hot corner instead of Toro.

That limited usage made him a non-tender candidate approaching Friday’s deadline. While his projected $1.3MM arbitration salary isn’t exorbitant, it’s almost twice the league minimum rate. Toro is also out of minor league option years. Milwaukee would have had to keep him on the MLB roster or designate him for assignment at the beginning of next season.

Oakland is apparently more willing to take that shot. The A’s have almost nothing locked down in the infield. Second baseman Tony Kemp hit free agency. A’s third basemen (primarily the since-traded Jace Peterson, Jordan Diaz and Aledmys Díaz) combined for dreadful .192/.271/.285 batting line. Toro has a solid minor league track record and is eligible for arbitration through 2026. The A’s can afford to give him some run in what’ll be another uncompetitive season to see if he can hit MLB pitching.

The move for Milwaukee is mostly about clearing the roster spot and projected salary. Rather than a straight non-tender, they’ll pick up a mid-tier pitching prospect. Patrick joined the A’s before the trade deadline in the deal that sent Peterson to the Diamondbacks.

A former fourth round pick, Patrick spent the 2023 campaign in the upper minors. He logged a 5.59 ERA over 124 innings between the Arizona and Oakland organizations. The Purdue-Northwest product struck out 23% of opponents while issuing walks at a slightly high 9.4% clip. He won’t be eligible for the Rule 5 draft until next offseason, so Milwaukee can keep him in Nashville as non-roster rotation depth.

Brewers Place Jesse Winker On IL With Neck Strain

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The Brewers announced that outfielder Jesse Winker has been placed on the 10-day injured list, retroactive to May 28, with a cervical strain. Infielder Abraham Toro has been recalled in a corresponding move.

Winker’s neck started bothering him a few days ago, per Todd Rosiak of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, and the hope is that he’ll feel better after the IL stint. That would seem to suggest the issue is mild and won’t require a significant absence, though there are some reasons for concern. One is that Winker’s performance has been nose-diving in recent years. He hit a tremendous .288/.385/.504 with the Reds from 2017 through 2021 for a wRC+ of 132. After getting traded to Seattle, he hit .219/.344/.344 last year, 108 wRC+, and has fallen even further this year after getting dealt to Milwaukee. He’s hit no home runs in 127 plate appearances and is slashing .204/.315/.231 for a wRC+ of just 60.

Furthermore, this isn’t the first time that neck issues have held him back. He also went on the injured list due to a cervical strain with the Reds in August of 2019, missing over a month. In October of last year, the Mariners put him on the IL due to a cervical disc bulge and he eventually required surgery. That makes this the third time in the past four years that a neck issue has put him out of action.

Whether the neck injury is the culprit or not, the Brewers were obviously hoping for more when they acquired Winker this past offseason when they sent second baseman Kolten Wong to Seattle with both Winker and Toro coming to Milwaukee. The deal hasn’t worked out for either club so far, as Wong is hitting a dismal  .160/.250/.189 for the Mariners. Toro has spent the entire season in Triple-A so far, hitting .258/.344/.352 for a wRC+ of 80.

Winker has been serving as Milwaukee’s designated hitter most of the time, which only made his struggles more glaring, given the offensive expectations of that position. With Luke Voit having been designated for assignment yesterday, the Brewers are now without two of their primary options for that spot, perhaps freeing them up to rotate playing time around to various players on the roster.

Brewers Sign Luke Voit To One-Year Deal

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MARCH 28: Voit signed a split deal that comes with a $2MM base salary for time spent in the majors, the Associated Press reports. Voit should reach five years of major league service a few days into the season, which would afford him the right to refuse an optional assignment to the minors at that point. The Excel Sports Management client would receive $500K apiece for reaching 250, 300, 350, 400, 450 and 500 plate appearances — potentially maxing the deal out at $5MM. The ’24 club option is valued at $12MM and doesn’t come with a buyout. He’d remain arbitration-eligible if Milwaukee declines the option.

MARCH 27: The Brewers announced to reporters, including Adam McCalvy of MLB.com, that they have signed first baseman Luke Voit to a one-year deal with a club option for 2024. The financial terms aren’t publicly known at this time. In a corresponding move, infielder Keston Hiura was designated for assignment. Additionally, infielder Abraham Toro was optioned to the minors and outfielder Sal Frelick was reassigned to minor league camp. The Brewers also announced that infielder Brice Turang has made the Opening Day roster.

Luke Voit | Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY SportsVoit, 32, has previously been in camp with the Brewers on a minor league deal, though it afforded him the ability to opt-out and pursue opportunities elsewhere. Though he initially agreed to kick that decision down the road, he eventually triggered his opt-out and returned to the open market. However, the Brewers didn’t want him to get away and have now brought him back aboard with a major league deal and an option for 2024. Even if they turn that option down, they could still retain Voit via arbitration since he will still be shy of six years’ service time at the end of the season.

The slugger has previously been one of the most potent bats in the league but is coming off a couple of years that weren’t quite as strong. He actually led the majors in home runs in the shortened 2020 season, going over the fence 22 times. His .277/.338/.610 batting line that year amounted to a wRC+ of 153, indicating he was 53% better than the league average hitter. But in 2021, he dealt with knee injuries for much of the year and struggled when he wasn’t on the IL. The Yanks eventually supplanted him at first by acquiring Anthony Rizzo, trading Voit to the Padres going into 2022.

Voit stayed healthy enough to get into 135 game last year, eventually hitting 22 home runs, but with lesser results overall. He struck out in 31.5% of his plate appearances and hit .226/.308/.402 for a wRC+ of 102. That included a midseason trade to the Nationals in the Juan Soto deal, after Eric Hosmer used his limited no-trade clause to take himself out of it. The Nats could have kept him around via arbitration, with MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projecting an $8.2MM salary, though they non-tendered him instead.

The Brewers have a left-handed hitter at first base in Rowdy Tellez and their outfield/designated hitter mix contains further lefties in Christian Yelich, Jesse Winker and Garrett Mitchell. Voit’s right-handed bat would seem at first glance to make a good fit for that group in a platoon role, though he actually has modest reverse splits in his career. He’s hit .262/.347/.491 against righties in his career for a 129 wRC+. Against southpaws, he’s hit .236/.329/.439, for a 110 wRC+, still above average but less than his work against righties. However he’s deployed, he’ll look to get back on track with his new club after a couple of trying seasons.

As for Hiura, 26, he made a big splash with his debut in 2019, hitting 19 home runs in just 84 games. He’s continued to hit for power in the seasons since but with mounting strikeout issues that have diminished his overall production. Last year, he hit 14 homers in just 80 games but was also punched out at a 41.7% rate. MLBTR’s Steve Adams recently took a detailed look of the Hiura situation, which put the club in an awkward spot because he no longer has options. A few days ago, Hiura was informed that he would not be making the roster.

The Brewers will now have a week to either trade Hiura or try to pass him through waivers. Despite his struggles, it seems possible that another team would be willing to give him a shot based on his huge power output. That could perhaps be a team that isn’t expecting to be competitive this year, though it’s also possible that injuries could create opportunities elsewhere. In the event that Hiura clears waivers, he would be able to reject an outright assignment, though it’s possible he accepts. Players with between three and five years of service time can reject outright assignments but they have to forfeit their salary. Hiura qualified for arbitration for the first time this offseason and agreed to a $2.2MM salary, meaning he’d have to leave that on the table to become a free agent.

As for Turang, 23, he’s one of the club’s top prospects. Selected in the first round of the 2018 draft, he spent last year in Triple-A. He hit 13 home runs and stole 34 bases, hitting .286/.360/.412 for a wRC+ of 108. Though he’s mostly been a shortstop in his time in the minors, he figures to take over the second base job in Milwaukee next to Willy Adames. Turang is already on the 40-man roster so a corresponding move won’t be necessary.

Each MLB Team’s Players On WBC Rosters

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The World Baseball Classic is returning this year, the first time since 2017. The quadrennial event was supposed to take place in 2021 but was scuttled by the pandemic, now returning after a six-year absence. Rosters for the tournament were announced today and those can be found at this link. Here is a breakdown of which players from each MLB team are set to take participate. Quick caveat that this list is fluid and might be changed as more information becomes available.

Without further ado…

Angels

Astros

Athletics

Blue Jays

Braves

Brewers

Cardinals

Cubs

Diamondbacks

Dodgers

Giants

Guardians

Marlins

Mariners

Mets

Nationals

Orioles

Padres

Phillies

Pirates

Rangers

Rays

Red Sox

Reds

Rockies

Royals

Tigers

Twins

White Sox

Yankees

Mariners Acquire Kolten Wong For Jesse Winker, Abraham Toro

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The Mariners and Brewers announced a trade sending second baseman Kolten Wong and cash considerations from Milwaukee to Seattle in exchange for outfielder Jesse Winker and infielder Abraham Toro. The Brewers are reportedly sending about $1.75MM to the Mariners, which effectively makes this a cash-neutral swap.

Kolten Wong

The 32-year-old Wong is owed a $10MM salary after the Brewers exercised a club option on him following the season. He’ll be a free agent next winter. Winker, meanwhile, is owed $8.25MM in 2023 after inking a two-year deal covering his final arbitration seasons last year. Like Wong, he’s ticketed for free agency next winter. Toro, on the other hand, is not yet arbitration-eligible and can be controlled for another four seasons.

Wong was a natural target for the Mariners, given their lack of an obvious starter at second base and their desire to add some balance to a lineup that skews a bit right-handed. He’ll give the M’s a steady presence, quite possibly atop the lineup, on the heels of the two best offensive seasons of his career. During his two years as a Brewer, Wong slashed a combined .262/.337/.439 with 29 home runs, 56 doubles, six triples and 29 steals.

With the Brewers, Wong seemingly made a concerted effort to begin elevating the ball with more frequency. His ground-ball rate, which had sat around 47% in St. Louis, dropped to a career-low 41.8% this past season, and Wong made noticeable gains in both his line-drive rate and especially his fly-ball rate as a member of the Brewers. As one would expect, the increased number of balls in the air also increased Wong’s power output. His .177 ISO (slugging percentage minus batting average) in two years with the Brewers was substantially higher than the .123 mark he carried in parts of eight seasons with the Cardinals.

On the defensive side of the game, however, the 2022 season was a bizarre and borderline nightmarish one for Wong. Typically one of the game’s best defenders at his position, Wong made a stunning 17 errors — more than he’d totaled in the three prior seasons combined. When his option was picked up, Wong told the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel’s Todd Rosiak that his legs weren’t fully healthy in 2022, which he felt contributed to his surprising defensive shortcomings (Twitter links). Wong missed time in June with a calf strain that sent him to the injured list, and it’s certainly plausible that his legs cost him some of  his typical defensive excellence.

It was a similar tale for Winker in 2022, as injuries weighed down his production in what will now be his lone season as a Mariner. Acquired alongside Eugenio Suarez in a trade that sent pitching prospect Brandon Williamson, outfielder Jake Fraley and righty Justin Dunn to Cincinnati, Winker (perhaps literally) limped through the weakest offensive season of his career before undergoing left knee surgery and a second procedure to address a bulging disc in his neck back in October.

Jesse Winker

The extent to which those injuries dogged Winker can’t be known for certain, but the former Reds slugger went from one of the game’s best hitters against right-handed pitching to a lackluster .219/.344/.344 batting line with the Mariners in 2022.

Winker’s defense was also impacted; he’s never been considered a plus defender in the outfield corners, but he logged career-worst marks in Defensive Runs Saved (-16), Ultimate Zone Rating (-7.2) and Outs Above Average (-10) in the Emerald City. Beyond Winker’s deteriorating performance on the field, Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times reported in October the manner in which Winker had fallen out of favor in the Seattle clubhouse.

The decline was swift and fairly stunning. In the two seasons prior to being acquired by the Mariners, Winker was one of the game’s three best hitters against right-handed pitching, trailing only Juan Soto and Bryce Harper in terms of wRC+. He posted a video game-esque .321/.417/.619 batting line in 509 plate appearances against righties in that span, and while his production against fellow lefties was nowhere near that level, he still walked at a 12% clip against them, resulting in a .314 OBP. His .199 average and .338 slugging against lefties were dismal, but at the very least, Winker could get on base at a near-average clip even in disadvantageous platoon matchups.

The Brewers’ hope will be that the pair of surgeries and an offseason of rest and rehab will get Winker back to the form he showed when he was a thorn in their side as a member of the division-rival Reds. Only time will tell, however, whether Winker is indeed able to rebound.

If Winker is unable to return to form, the Brewers can still pin some hopes on Toro — another rebound candidate looking to benefit from a change of scenery. The switch-hitting 25-year-old (26 later this month) was one of the top prospects in the Astros’ system for several years but never got the opportunity to establish himself for a Houston club that had Alex Bregman at third base and Jose Altuve at second base — Toro’s primary positions. The Astros traded Toro and veteran reliever Joe Smith to the Mariners in a controversial deadline swap that saw Seattle send then-closer Kendall Graveman and righty Rafael Montero to Houston in return.

Abraham Toro

There were plenty of parallels between that Toro trade and the 2022 trade that saw the Brewers send Josh Hader to San Diego. As was the case with Brewers fans this year, Mariners fans — and the clubhouse — were angered to see the closer of a contending club traded to another postseason contender, even though both the Mariners (Smith, Toro) and Brewers (Taylor Rogers, Esteury Ruiz, Robert Gasser) received some immediate MLB help and long-term prospect value in the return.

Unfortunately for the Mariners, Toro wasn’t ever able to fully cement himself as a regular fixture in the lineup. He caught fire with the Mariners immediately following the trade, even connecting on a memorable go-ahead grand slam against Graveman himself just one month after the trade. The 2022 season, however, saw Toro receive infrequent playing time and struggle to a .185/.239/.324 slash in 352 plate appearances. That said, he’s not far removed from being a well-regarded prospect, is still in his mid-20s, and carries a career .343/.451/.545 batting line in Triple-A, so there’s reason to hope he could yet break through.

Toro does have a minor league option remaining, so it’s not a lock that he’ll open the ’23 season on the Brewers’ roster, but he’ll head to Spring Training competing for time at either second base or third base. Both he and Luis Urias have ample experience at both positions, but the ideal defensive alignment would be Toro at third base and Urias at second base. Of course, it’s possible that the Brewers will deepen their infield mix with further moves this offseason, and top infield prospect Brice Turang could factor into the mix at second base early in the season, too, after hitting .286/.360/.412 in Triple-A last season.

In all likelihood, the trade is just one amid a series of moves for both clubs involved. The Mariners were open to adding another outfield bat even before trading Winker, and they could now even more clearly accommodate a notable bat in left field or at designated hitter. The Brewers, meanwhile, have focused thus far on trimming the margins of the payroll and extracting some modest value for players whom they feel they’re able to replace in-house (e.g. Wong, Hunter Renfroe).

It’s no doubt been a frustrating start to the winter for many Milwaukee fans, but the Brewers have thus far moved on from players who were controllable through 2023 only. They’ve scaled back payroll to an extent in doing so, and the question will now be one of how — or if — they reallocate those dollars. It’s possible they’ll even turn and flip Winker to another club, but they’ve not yet shown any indication of a full-on rebuild, so at some point it seems likely the Brewers will make some at-least modest upgrades to the roster.

Jon Heyman of the New York Post was first to report the Brewers and Mariners were in discussions about a trade involving Wong and Winker. Ken Rosenthal of the Athletic reported the Mariners were acquiring Wong for Winker and Toro. Jeff Passan of ESPN reported the Brewers were including roughly $1.75MM in the deal.

Images courtesy of USA Today Sports.

The Mariners Shouldn’t Ignore The Free Agent Shortstop Market This Year

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This past offseason featured a super class of free agent shortstops: Corey Seager, Carlos Correa, Javier Baez, Trevor Story and Marcus Semien. However, very early in the offseason, just one week after the World Series ended, Mariners president of baseball operations Jerry Dipoto made it publicly known they were unlikely be big players in this arena. Incumbent shortstop J.P. Crawford had been told he was going to stay at that position for the club, regardless of what the rumors said.  While that theoretically left the door open for one of those shortstops to be signed to play another position such as second base, that didn’t come to pass.

In order to address their middle infield, they made a much more modest move. In late November, just prior to the lockout, the Mariners acquired Adam Frazier from the Padres. Frazier wasn’t as exciting of a pickup as one of those free agents would have been, but he was a sensible addition nonetheless. His left-handed bat meant that he and switch-hitting Abraham Toro could have formed a second base platoon. Frazier also can play the outfield, which he could have done in the event Toro established himself as an everyday option at the keystone. The M’s saved their big free agent splash for the rotation, signing Robbie Ray to a five-year, $115MM deal.

Now two-thirds of the way through the season, it’s fair to wonder if this approach has paid off. Frazier has largely had a disappointing season, failing to build on his strong 2021. He hit .305/.368/.411 last year for a wRC+ of 114, indicating his overall offensive production was 14% above league average. This year, however, he’s slumped to a line of .246/.309/.315, wRC+ of 85. Toro’s been even worse, with a batting line of .180/.239/.322 on the year for a wRC+ of 61. On the year overall, Seattle second basemen have produced 0.7 fWAR, a mark that ranks 22nd among major league teams.

As for the shortstop position, Crawford has gotten the vast majority of the time there, with Dylan Moore getting a handful of starts throughout the season. Crawford got out to a blistering start, hitting .360/.449/.573 through the end of April with three home runs. He hasn’t been able to maintain that, however, hitting .231/.301/.304, adding just two more homers in that span. That leaves his overall batting line at .257/.333/.358, good enough for a 105 wRC+ that’s still above average, though it’s been sliding for over three months straight at this point.

There are also questions about his defense here in 2022, with the advanced metrics in disagreement on his 2022 work. Defensive Runs Saved has him at plus-three so far this year, a dip from last year’s eight, though he could potentially close some of the gap in the season’s final few months. Ultimate Zone Rating has him at 1.3, an improvement over last year’s 0.8 but behind the pace of the 2.5 he earned in the shortened 2020 season. Outs Above Average is the most bearish, giving Crawford -7 so far this year, after giving him zero last year and six in 2020. Combined, Mariner shortstops have produced 1.6 fWAR on the season, a mark that’s 17th in the majors.

Subpar production from both middle infield positions surely isn’t ideal, but it hasn’t decimated the team’s chances. The Mariners are 59-51, currently holding the final American League Wild Card spot, but with the Orioles and Guardians just a couple games back and both Sox clubs just behind them. The M’s are looking to make the playoffs for the first time since 2001 and break the longest active postseason drought in the league, though we may not know whether they succeed or not until the final days of the season.

Whether they break that drought or not, Seattle might want to think about being more involved in the shortstop market this winter. The Mariners committed to Crawford on a $46.15MM extension just before opening day, so he’s certainly going to keep a regular role. There’s a case to be made for exploring the shortstop market and considering moving Crawford across the bag, however. There’s another strong shortstop class this winter, with Correa likely to opt-out of his contract with the Twins and re-enter the open market. Xander Bogaerts is widely expected to opt-out as well. Then there’s also Trea Turner and Dansby Swanson, who are each in their final season of club control. Frazier is also heading into free agency, which will subtract from a middle infield mix that is already weak.

None of those players will be cheap, but Seattle should give some thought to paying out. For one thing, if they miss out on those four, the fifth-best option is probably Jose Iglesias, who’s having a fine season but is undoubtedly on a lower tier than those other guys. For another thing, the Mariners have the payroll space to pull this off. The club ran an Opening Day payroll of $104MM this year, according to Cot’s Baseball Contracts. That’s a far cry from the club’s highest spending, as they were in the $140-160MM range from 2016-2019. Next year’s payroll is only at about $67MM, in the estimation of Roster Resource. That doesn’t include salaries for arbitration-eligible players, but that won’t add a tremendous amount. Luis Castillo is likely the only player of the bunch to get a significant salary next year, probably getting into eight figures after making $7.35MM this year.

They also shouldn’t have too many other holes to address. All six of their rotation candidates can be controlled again in 2023, with Ray and Marco Gonzales under contract, Castillo having one more arb year, and George Kirby and Logan Gilbert still pre-arb. The Mariners have a $4MM club option for Chris Flexen’s 2023 services, though that will vest to $8MM and become guaranteed if he throws 300 innings combined between last year and this year. He’s currently at 296 2/3, making him a virtual lock to stick with Seattle next year, barring injury.

Elsewhere on the roster, Ty France and Eugenio Suarez should still have the corners covered. Catchers Cal Raleigh and Luis Torrens are both still around next year, with Tom Murphy potentially returning to health and coming back as well. Despite possibly losing Mitch Haniger to free agency, the outfield will still have a deep mix that includes Julio Rodriguez, Jesse Winker, Jarred Kelenic, Kyle Lewis, Sam Haggerty, Derek Hill and Taylor Trammell. Dylan Moore can be retained via arbitration for more utility duty. The relief corps can all be retained via arbitration except for Ken Giles, who’s barely pitched this year but can be brought back via a $9.5MM club option if the team wants.

Taking all that into consideration, the middle infield seems like the clearest way to upgrade the team for 2023. Two of this year’s super class of shortstops (Story and Semien) ended up signing to be second baseman, which is one way the M’s could go, though that requires buy-in from the player. It’s unclear if any of Bogaerts, Turner, Swanson or Correa would be interested in such an arrangement. It might be wise for them to soften their stance on Crawford’s permanence at the shortstop position, since they have the money and the roster to go after a marquee shortstop this winter.

Mariners Reinstate Mitch Haniger From 60-Day IL

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In between games of today’s doubleheader with the Angels, the Mariners reinstated outfielder Mitch Haniger from the 60-day injured list.  Abraham Toro was optioned to Triple-A in the corresponding move.

Haniger has played in just nine games this year, due to both a two-week stint on the COVID-related IL to begin the season, and then this extended trip on the 60-day IL because of a Grade 2 high ankle sprain.  Tonight’s game will mark just the second time Haniger has been able to take the field since April 15.  2022 has been another injury-plagued year for Haniger, who missed over half of the 2019 season and the entire 2020 season due to a ruptured testicle.

Haniger had emerged as a productive bat for the Mariners in 2017-18, and was named to the AL All-Star team in 2018.  Returning from his long layoff last year, Haniger basically picked up right where he left off, hitting .253/.318/.485 with 39 home runs over 691 plate appearances and 157 games in 2021.

A healthy and in-form Haniger is an enormous boost to the Mariners’ chances of finally returning to the postseason for the first time 2001.  It’s probably safe to assume that he’ll get a few extra DH days to ease back into the lineup, but Haniger’s return as the regular right fielder will move Adam Frazier back into full-time second base work.  Julio Rodriguez is still recovering from a wrist injury, but a Seattle outfield featuring Rodriguez and Haniger is a much more daunting challenge for opposing pitchers.

With a little less than two months remaining in the regular season, Haniger will get at least some kind of a platform to post some numbers and add to his market as a free agent this winter.  Between his injury history and his age (Haniger will be 32 on Opening Day), the outfielder will need a big finish to give himself a shot at a lucrative multi-year contract.  With the qualifying offer now back in play for all free agents, Haniger could be an intriguing candidate to receive and perhaps accept a QO, presuming the Mariners are willing to make what would be a $18MM-$19MM investment in Haniger on a one-year deal.

Health Notes: Kershaw, Lewis, Barnes

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Clayton Kershaw threw a 30-35 pitch bullpen session this afternoon, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts told reporters (including Jack Harris of the Los Angeles Times). It marked the star southpaw’s second bullpen work of the week, as he also tossed 35 pitches on Memorial Day. The team will monitor how Kershaw feels over the coming days, but it’s possible he heads out on a minor league rehab assignment as soon as this weekend.

Kershaw has been on the injured list since May 13 after experiencing some inflammation in the SI joint of his right hip area. The team initially expressed hope he’d be back after a minimal 15-day stint, although that proved untenable once the three-time Cy Young award winner experienced continued soreness. Now that he’s back on a mound and potentially nearing a rehab assignment, however, it seems as if he could be back at Dodger Stadium by the middle of the month. Before the injury, Kershaw had been characteristically excellent, posting a 1.80 ERA through five starts.

Some more health situations of note:

  • The Mariners placed outfielder Kyle Lewis on the seven-day concussion injured list, retroactive to May 29, before tonight’s game against the Orioles. There’s no indication the 26-year-old is in for a long-term absence, but it’s another health setback for a player who has dealt with more than his fair share of injuries. Lewis’ previous issues have typically been related to his right knee, and he only made his season debut on May 24 after he missed the final few months of last season due to a meniscus tear and a bone bruise in the joint. To take Lewis’ spot on the active roster, infielder Abraham Toro is back from the 10-day IL. The switch-hitting Toro is off to a disappointing .179/.237/.366 start through 135 plate appearances. He missed the minimal amount of time on the shelf recovering from a left shoulder sprain.
  • The Red Sox placed reliever Matt Barnes on the 15-day injured list, retroactive to May 31, before this evening’s contest with the Reds. He’s dealing with inflammation in his throwing shoulder. It’ll be a reset opportunity for Barnes, whose struggles down the stretch last season have carried over into this year. Through 20 games, the right-hander has a 7.94 ERA with nearly as many walks as strikeouts. That’s on the heels of a 6.48 ERA in the second half of 2021, an out-of-the-blue downturn for a pitcher who earned a deserved All-Star nod during a dominant first-half performance. Barnes signed a two-year, $18.75MM extension last July — a deal that looked team-friendly at the time but has gone immediately haywire. To take Barnes’ spot on the roster, fellow reliever Matt Strahm has been reinstated from the COVID-19 injured list following a two-day absence.

Mariners Designate Steven Souza Jr., Select Sam Haggerty

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The Mariners are making a series of roster moves today, per Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times. Infielder Abraham Toro is heading to the 10-day injured list. He had hurt himself in a collision with Adam Frazier during last night’s game. The club’s announcement of the moves describes his injury as a left shoulder sprain. Also leaving the roster is outfield Steven Souza Jr., who has been designated for assignment. To fill those two holes on the active roster, the club has recalled utility player Sam Haggerty and outfielder Taylor Trammell.

With the recent demotion of Jarred Kelenic and injury of Mitch Haniger, the Mariners turned to the veteran Souza as another outfield option. He had been off to a great start to the year in Triple-A, hitting .267/.417/.533 for a wRC+ of 140. Unfortunately, he hasn’t been able to carry that production into the big leagues, as he’s hit .158/.158/.158 over six games since his promotion. The club will now have a week to trade the 33-year-old or put him on waivers.

Taking his spot on the 40-man roster is the 27-year-old Haggerty. Over 59 career games between the Mets and Mariners, he has a batting line of .207/.265/.321, wRC+ of 66. Last year, he went on the IL in May with a shoulder injury and never returned. He was outrighted by the M’s at the end of the season after clearing waivers. He seems to have recuperated and gotten things back on track this year, as he’s hitting .304/.378/.512, 123 wRC+ through 32 Triple-A games so far. The club will now see if he can sustain that in the big leagues. He’s played exclusively at second base so far this year, though he’s previously spent time at third base, shortstop and all three outfield positions. He’ll likely fill the utility role that was previously filled by Toro, who had spent time at first, second and third base this year.

As for Trammell, he will be the club’s latest attempt to get some kind of production out of its corner outfielders. Julio Rodriguez has played well in center but hasn’t gotten much help from those on his flanks. Kelenic and Souza struggled enough to get demoted and designated for assignment, respectively, with Haniger only able to play nine games on the year so far. Jesse Winker has slumped to a line of .216/.310/.304, 89 wRC+ on the campaign. Dylan Moore has technically been above average with a wRC+ of 104, though in a very uneven fashion. He’s popped a couple homers and walked in 14.6% of his plate appearances, though he’s also struck out 27.1% of the time and is hitting .154.

Trammell suffered a hamstring strain in April and has been gradually working his way back to health, though he hasn’t even begun a rehab assignment before today’s recall, having been in extended Spring Training until now. He played 51 games last year and hit just .160/.256/.359, 73 wRC+, though his Triple-A numbers were much better.

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