Amed Rosario

Dodgers Acquire Amed Rosario

By Mark Polishuk | July 29, 2024 at 7:29pm CDT

The Dodgers and Rays continue to be two of the deadline’s more active teams, as Los Angeles reacquired Amed Rosario from Tampa Bay. Minor league righty Michael Flynn heads to the Rays in return in a one-for-one swap. To create roster space for Rosario, the Dodgers have designated Ryan Yarbrough for assignment

Rosario has now been a deadline pickup for the Dodgers in consecutive years, after L.A. acquired him from the Guardians in exchange for Noah Syndergaard last July. Rosario hit .256/.301/.408 over 133 plate appearances for the Dodgers following the trade, primarily playing second base with a few appearances at his old shortstop position, after primarily playing short in his previous six seasons with the Guardians and Mets.

After signing a one-year, $1.5MM deal with the Rays last winter, Rosario moved into more of a full utility role, spending most of his time at second base and left field while still getting substantial playing time at shortstop and third base. The initial expectation was that the right-handed hitting Rosario would mostly face left-handed pitching, but between injuries and his respectable splits, Rosario ended up facing more right-handers than southpaws while hitting an overall .307/.331/.417 across 275 PA for Tampa Bay. Rosario has a 115 wRC+, which would be a career high if he can keep it going over the rest of the season.

Rosario could just slot back right back into regular second-base duty in a platoon with Gavin Lux, but a larger role is probably in store for Rosario while the Dodgers try to manage several injuries. With Mookie Betts, Max Muncy, Miguel Rojas, Chris Taylor, and the newly-acquired Tommy Edman all on the mend, Rosario figures to get a decent dose of playing time all over the infield.

With only around $500K still owed to Rosario in salary for the rest of the season, the trade is a cost-effective move for the Dodgers that might pay big dividends, considering Rosario’s quality numbers and his familiarity with playing in Los Angeles. The deal also continues Andrew Friedman’s long history of trading with his former team, as the L.A. president of baseball operations has swung several deals since leaving the Rays for the Dodgers back in 2014.

Flynn is just over a week away from his 28th birthday, and he’ll get to celebrate by once more changing organizations during his pro career. A sixth-round pick for the Pirates in 2018, Flynn also spent time in the Mariners’ farm system before joining the Dodgers this season, and he has a 4.95 ERA over 36 1/3 relief innings for Triple-A Oklahoma City.

As with most Pacific Coast League numbers, a look behind the ERA is necessary in the hitter-friendly league, and Flynn has a 32.1% strikeout rate and 9.6% walk rate. His strikeout numbers have increased exponentially over his last two seasons, and given the Rays’ penchant for uncovering hidden gems, it stands to reason that Tampa has seen something in Flynn that might put him in line for his Major League debut.

Since the Dodgers’ injury woes also extend to their pitching staff, Yarbrough’s DFA counts as a bit of a surprise, as he has been a fairly effective arm for L.A. since being picked up from the Royals at last year’s trade deadline. This season Yarbrough has a 3.74 ERA in 67 1/3 innings while working as a long reliever and occasional bulk pitcher, albeit with such unimpressive metrics as an 8.9% walk rate and a 13.9% strikeout rate. That latter number is one of the lowest K-rates in the sport, though he has also been one of the league’s best at limiting hard contact, albeit with some significant help from a .214 BABIP.

Yarbrough’s 4.96 SIERA apparently carried more weight for the Dodgers than his ERA of over a run lower, so Los Angeles has now sent the veteran to the DFA wire. The left-hander’s ability to eat innings out of the pen could make him a candidate for a waiver claim, particularly since several teams might have holes to fill in their relief corps if other relievers are traded by the deadline.

Ken Rosenthal of the Athletic first reported the Dodgers were acquiring Rosario. Robert Murray of FanSided reported Flynn was going back to Tampa. Juan Toribio of MLB.com first reported the Yarbrough DFA.

AL East Notes: Rosario, Peraza, Chapman, Orioles, Wong

By Mark Polishuk | March 9, 2024 at 8:35am CDT

Before Amed Rosario signed a one-year, $1.5MM deal with the Rays, the Yankees offered the infielder a one-year contract with a significantly higher $4MM salary, the New York Post’s Joel Sherman reports. While Rosario can earn another $500K in bonus money with Tampa, agent Ulises Cabrera told Sherman that his client was more interested in steady playing time than in extra guaranteed salary, as Rosario would’ve been ticketed as a bench or backup option in the Bronx. Since Yankee targets Rosario and Enrique Hernandez have now both left the free agent market, Sherman feels the team will keep looking for veteran infield depth, and perhaps might pursue players currently on other rosters who might be cut or squeezed out of jobs late in Spring Training.

Oswald Peraza, of course, is ostensibly already slated to be New York’s backup infielder and backup shortstop in particular. However, the Yankees might prefer to continue Peraza’s development by giving him everyday work at Triple-A rather than more a sporadic part-time role in the Show. There is also the question of Peraza’s health, as a right shoulder issue has been bothering the infielder for the last two weeks. Manager Aaron Boone said the Yankees don’t consider the injury to be overly serious for now, though Peraza is undergoing testing to determine the nature of the problem.

Rays Planning Utility Role For Amed Rosario

By Steve Adams | February 21, 2024 at 2:50pm CDT

The Rays deepened their infield mix with yesterday’s signing of Amed Rosario to a one-year contract, but despite the 28-year-old’s experience as a starting shortstop in both Cleveland and in New York, he’ll be ticketed for a multi-position role with his new club. Rays president of baseball operations Erik Neander tells Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times that Rosario will likely see time at both middle infield spots and in the outfield corners. Trade acquisition Jose Caballero, meanwhile, is still viewed as the starter at shortstop due to his superior glovework.

Injuries and/or performance can always change those plans, particularly with the entirety of spring training still to play out, but it seems Rosario will be used to spell several players and to boost the team’s production against left-handed pitching. The righty-swinging veteran is a career .298/.339/.467 hitter against lefties (121 wRC+) but has posted a rather hollow .262/.296/.374 line in his career against right-handed pitching.

Entering the 2023 season, Rosario looked like he could be in line for a notable multi-year deal once he reached free agency. From 2021-22, he’s posted a solid .282/.316/.406 batting line (103 wRC+) with enough defensive aptitude to be valued between 5.2 wins above replacement (via FanGraphs) and 6.2 WAR (Baseball Reference). He stumbled with a .263/.305/.378 slash in 2023, however, and seemingly wasn’t able to find a team willing to put down a significant bet that he could rebound to his previous status as a viable starter at the shortstop position.

The move to a utility role will be a new one for Rosario, who’s played the overwhelming majority of his career at shortstop. He logged 190 innings with the Dodgers at second base in 2023, following a deadline swap that sent him to L.A. in exchange for Noah Syndergaard, and he logged a combined 171 innings in the outfield from 2019-22 with the Mets and Guardians. Rosario has just 48 career innings in left field and none in right field. He’s tallied more than 6400 innings at shortstop in his career. While Rosario lacks experience in the outfield, he does still rank in the 95th percentile of MLB players in terms of sprint speed, per Statcast, so he should have the raw ability to cover ground in the corners. His route-running will presumably be a point of focus in camp.

Rosario’s addition helps the Rays take a more patient approach with a number of their young infielders. Junior Caminero and Curtis Mead are widely considered to be among the game’s top prospects (Caminero, in particular), and the Rays also have young infielders Jonathan Aranda, Osleivis Basabe and Austin Shenton on the 40-man roster. Aranda is down to his final minor league option year and probably ticketed for a big league look to begin the season, but the others each have multiple options remaining.

Rays Sign Amed Rosario To One-Year Deal

By Darragh McDonald | February 20, 2024 at 11:59pm CDT

The Rays added to their infield on Tuesday afternoon, signing Amed Rosario to a one-year contract. The Octagon client is reportedly guaranteed $1.5MM and can unlock an additional $500K in incentives. Tampa Bay placed Drew Rasmussen, who is recovering from flexor surgery, on the 60-day injured list in a corresponding move.

Rosario, 28, has been an everyday big league shortstop for many years but is coming off a challenging season. He started the year with the Guardians but was hitting just .265/.306/.369 when the deadline was approaching, with that production translating to a wRC+ of 87. His shortstop defense had always been questionable but it became downright problematic in 2023. He was tagged with grades of -16 Defensive Runs Saved and -15 Outs Above Average with Cleveland.

The Guards flipped him to the Dodgers for Noah Syndergaard, and Rosario’s new club moved him to the other side of the bag most of the time. He seemed to take well to the position switch, at least in a small sample of 190 innings, producing 3 DRS and OAA at an even zero. His bat was roughly the same, as he hit .256/.301/.408 as a Dodger for a wRC+ of 93.

He was a notably better in the two prior seasons. He hit 11 home runs in both 2021 and 2022, a modest number but much better than the six he hit in 2023. He slashed .282/.316/.406 in those two years with Cleveland for a 103 wRC+, not walking much but also avoiding strikeouts, 4.5% walk rate and 18.4% strikeout rate.

Defensively, he had a positive grade from DRS in 2022 but has otherwise always been subpar. OAA has had him in negative territory in each full season of his career. He probably won’t be an everyday option for the Rays at shortstop but he might see some occasional time there.

The Rays love flexibility and have a big hole at shortstop thanks to the absence of Wander Franco, who has an uncertain future as he’s under investigation for having a relationship with an underage girl. In addition to that, Taylor Walls is recovering from hip surgery and will miss at least part of the season. President of baseball operations Erik Neander recently suggested that José Caballero could be the starter to begin the year.

The club also has prospect Junior Caminero, who is generally considered one of the top 10 prospects in the sport and has already made his major league debut. But his bat is considered superior to his defense and some evaluators expect him to wind up at third base rather than short. Osleivis Basabe is in the mix but he didn’t hit much in his first taste of the majors or Triple-A. They added Yu Chang on a minor league deal earlier today to provide some non-roster depth.

Caballero, acquired from the Mariners in the Luke Raley deal, has just 280 MLB plate appearances and slashed just .221/.343/.320 in those. He has some speed, having swiped 26 bags in 29 tries last year, and the defense seems to be good, 4 DRS and 2 OAA thus far. But overall, the Rays don’t have a ton of solid answers for their shortstop position and Rosario could perhaps factor in there.

But if his days at that position are no more, there are still ways for him to be useful for the Rays. The right-handed hitter has wide platoon splits in his career, having hit .298/.339/.467 against lefties for a 121 wRC+ but just .262/.296/.374 the rest of the time for a wRC+ of 84.

The Rays have a left-handed hitting second baseman in Brandon Lowe and he also fares better with the platoon advantage. He’s hit .220/.284/.437 against southpaws, 99 wRC+, but produced a huge line of .253/.349/.499 and 135 wRC+ against righties. He’s also had notable injury setbacks in his career, with 2021 being his only season in the big leagues where he played in more than 109 games. A platoon of Lowe and Rosario at the keystone could perhaps be best for both players.

Players like Josh Lowe and Jonathan Aranda are also lefties with notable issues when southpaws are on the mound. That could perhaps lead to Rosario getting some time as the designated hitter or even taking a corner outfield role on occasion. He has just 171 1/3 innings of outfield experience at the big league level but the Rays could perhaps try to rotate him through if they think it will help their versatility.

Despite his rough season and generally poor defensive track record, Rosario still generated plenty of interest this winter. The free agent market for middle infielders was on the weak side but plenty of teams were in need of help there. The Angels, Marlins, Red Sox and Blue Jays were connected to him at various points in the offseason. The Jays pivoted to Justin Turner and Isiah Kiner-Falefa as their infield additions while the Red Sox filled their second base position by trading for Vaughn Grissom. The Marlins are still looking to upgrade at shortstop but reportedly have made an offer to Tim Anderson. The Angels are known to have interest in bringing back Gio Urshela as a multi-positional infield upgrade.

Jeff Passan of ESPN first reported the Rays and Rosario had agreed to a one-year, $1.5MM contract. Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reported the $500K in incentives.

Angels Showing Interest In Amed Rosario

By Anthony Franco | February 15, 2024 at 10:52pm CDT

The Angels are showing interest in free agents Amed Rosario and Enrique Hernández as they continue their search for infield depth, writes Jon Heyman of the New York Post. The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal tied the Halos to Hernández last month. They hadn’t been directly linked to Rosario before this point.

Rosario is coming off a pedestrian season split between the Guardians and Dodgers. The right-handed middle infielder hit .263/.305/.378 with six homers and 15 steals through 545 combined plate appearances. His power production ticked up a bit after the trade as the Dodgers more frequently leveraged him against lefty pitching. His .256/.301/.408 slash in 48 games was still a bit below average, though. Los Angeles left him off their playoff roster.

The former top prospect had posted roughly average numbers for Cleveland over the preceding two seasons. A durable fixture in the lineup at shortstop, he combined for a .282/.316/.406 slash between 2021-22. Rosario has always been an aggressive hitter who doesn’t hit for much power. His plus contact skills have contributed to three seasons batting above .280, giving him a decent offensive floor.

Where Rosario fits defensively is a bigger question. Public metrics have never looked kindly on his glove. His grades were especially poor in the first half of last season. Statcast and Defensive Runs Saved rated him between 11 and 16 runs worse than an average shortstop in fewer than 800 innings with the Guardians. The Dodgers used him more frequently at second base, his first MLB action on the right side of the infield, down the stretch.

Despite the mediocre platform year, Rosario is one of the better middle infielders available in a thin free agent class. He drew some interest from the Blue Jays and Red Sox early in the winter before those teams added other righty-hitting infielders (Isiah Kiner-Falefa and Vaughn Grissom, respectively).

More recently, Rosario was among a handful of shortstop possibilities tied to the Marlins. Barry Jackson and Craig Mish of the Miami Herald wrote this morning that Miami has shown more significant interest in Rosario and Gio Urshela than they have in other reported candidates like Tim Anderson, Nick Ahmed and Adalberto Mondesi.

While Miami has a path to everyday reps at shortstop, the Halos would likely view Rosario as multi-positional insurance. The Halos have second-year player Zach Neto penciled in at shortstop. Anthony Rendon, Brandon Drury and Luis Rengifo could split time between second and third base. Rendon hasn’t reached 60 starts at the hot corner in a season since 2019. Rengifo is a fringe defender who underwent season-ending biceps surgery last September. The Halos haven’t replaced Urshela, who served as a righty-hitting versatile infielder before a pelvis fracture last season.

Owner Arte Moreno said this week that he didn’t anticipate matching last year’s spending level. A run at Rosario should nevertheless be well within range financially. The 28-year-old is looking at a one- or two-year contract. Roster Resource calculates the club’s projected payroll around $173MM. They opened last season with approximately $212MM in player commitments.

Latest On Marlins’ Shortstop Pursuits

By Darragh McDonald | February 5, 2024 at 3:26pm CDT

The Marlins are known to be looking for shortstop help and Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic relays today that they are considering names such as Tim Anderson, Amed Rosario, Nick Ahmed and Adalberto Mondesí. Their interest in Mondesí was reported last week but the other three are new connections for the Fish.

That the club is looking for shortstop help is perfectly logical, as their internal options are not great. Joey Wendle got most of the playing time there last year, but he reached free agency and signed with the Mets this offseason. They still have Jon Berti, but he’s now 34 years old and best suited to a utility role. Jacob Amaya is a glove-first guy who still has an option and can be kept in the minors for regular at-bats. Xavier Edwards only played four games at short in the minors last year, spending far more time at second, third and center field. Like Amaya, he’s also optionable. Vidal Bruján has always hit well in the minors but just .157/.218/.221 in the majors. He’s out of options but probably shouldn’t be the club’s Plan A at such an important position.

But now we’re just about a week away from pitchers and catchers reporting to Spring Training with the position still looking like an area of the roster that obviously needs work. Part of that seems to be due to new president of baseball operations Peter Bendix taking his time in getting to know the organization. The club still hasn’t signed a free agent to a major league deal this winter, regardless of position, with their offseason work limited to a few small trades and minor league deals.

The lack of activity might also be attributed to the weak free agent class at the position. While past winters have featured superstar free agents like Corey Seager, Trea Turner, Dansby Swanson, Xander Bogaerts, Carlos Correa and others, the top names for the current offseason were those mentioned at the top of this post.

Anderson and Rosario are both coming off down years, with their respective markets surely impacted. Anderson hit just .245/.286/.296 on the year for a wRC+ of 60, the worst such mark of any qualified hitter last year. Rosario’s .263/.305/.378 line wasn’t quite as bad, 88 wRC+, but still well below league average. Both of them also saw their defensive metrics slide a bit, with Rosario largely kept at second base by the Dodgers after a deadline trade. Anderson, meanwhile, expressed a willingness to move across the bag if that’s necessary for his next club.

Both players could point to better results in previous seasons. Anderson hit .318/.347/.473 from 2019 to 2022 for a wRC+ of 123, with better defensive marks as well. Rosario’s slash for that same four-year period was .282/.315/.412, translating to a wRC+ of 101. If the Marlins were looking for reasons to expect a bounceback, perhaps Anderson’s knee injury could give them some hope. He went on the injured list in the second week of April due to a left knee sprain and perhaps was never himself, despite returning from the IL after only about three weeks. Last year’s 27.2 mph sprint speed was a big drop from 2022’s 28.3 mph, moving him from the 77th to the 45th percentile in the league. Rosario wouldn’t have any excuse like that, not going on the IL all year, but he did deal with some back soreness and knee soreness during the season and his offensive drop wasn’t nearly as steep.

Ahmed would be a different type of pursuit as he’s an excellent defender but has never really been a threat at the plate. He has 80 Defensive Runs Saved and 111 Outs Above Average in his career, but he’s hit just .234/.288/.376 for a wRC+ of 73. That was already subpar offensive production but his work at the plate slipped even farther in 2023, as he hit .212/.257/.303 and was released by the Diamondbacks in September.

If the Marlins decide that any of these players are worth a flier, they should be able to get something done. None of them should be able to command a massive deal, given their weak platform seasons. The fact that they remain unsigned this close to Spring Training probably doesn’t give them much leverage either. The club’s quiet offseason has left them with a projected payroll of $97MM, per Roster Resource, a decent drop from last year’s $110MM figure.

Rosario reportedly received interest from the Red Sox and Blue Jays this winter, though that was before the Sox added Vaughn Grissom and the Jays added Justin Turner. Anderson has been connected to the Angels while Ahmed’s market has been fairly quiet since his release.

The Top Unsigned Second Basemen

By Darragh McDonald | January 26, 2024 at 5:35pm CDT

Pitchers and catchers will be reporting to Spring Training in about three weeks but a slow offseason means there are still plenty of free agents out there. MLBTR already took a look at the catchers, first basemen, shortstops, third basemen, center fielders and starting pitchers still available and will now take a look at some notable second basemen.

Whit Merrifield: A late bloomer who also signed an extension with the Royals, Merrifield is now a free agent for the first time at the age of 35. He’s never been a huge power guy, nor does he take many walks, but he’s tough to strike out and has had some success with the contact approach. He’s also provided defensive versatility by playing the keystone and the outfield, along with some brief time at the infield corners. In each of the past three years, he’s hit either 10 or 11 home runs while walking less than 7% of the time, but his strikeout rate has never climbed above 17.1%. He’s stolen 82 bases over those three seasons while getting solid defensive grades at second and passable marks in the outfield corners. His .284/.330/.420 career batting line translated to a 101 wRC+.
Tim Anderson: From 2019 to 2022, Anderson hit .318/.347/.473 for the White Sox for a wRC+ of 123. But his batting line dropped all the way to .245/.286/.296 last year. That translated to a wRC+ of 60, the worst mark of any qualified hitter in the league. His glovework also seemed to decline, relative to his previous work. He’s a prime bounceback candidate, with an April knee injury perhaps helping to explain his poor results last year. The lack of available shortstops could lead to him getting a job at that position but he has expressed a willingness to move over to second going forward.
Amed Rosario: Mostly a shortstop in his career, Rosario got his first taste of second base in the latter stages of the 2023 campaign. His glovework received solid marks at the keystone, albeit in a small sample of 190 innings. But since he was never considered a strong defensive shortstop, he’s probably best suited to move across the bag regardless. Like Anderson, the weak shortstop market might get him a gig at that spot but he could be a solid option on the other side if that’s his best bet. He’s also a bounceback candidate, having hit .263/.305/.378 for a wRC+ of 88 last year but .282/.315/.412 for a 101 wRC+ in the four previous seasons.
Donovan Solano: Somewhat quietly, Solano has been an excellent utility piece over the past five years. Since the start of the 2019 season, he has hit .296/.355/.413 for a wRC+ of 112. His on-base percentage hasn’t been below .339 in any of those seasons and his wRC+ never below 100. He’s done that while playing all four infield positions, though he hasn’t played shortstop in the past two years. The majority of his time in the field has come at second base, where he’s received passable reviews for his glovework.
Adam Frazier: Somewhat similar to Merrifield, Frazier doesn’t walk much or run up huge power numbers, but he’s tough to strike out and does a few things well. His 13 homers in 2023 were a career high and he has career walk and strikeout rates of 7.4% and 13%, respectively. He’s hit .269/.331/.393 overall for a wRC+ of 98, though his 2023 output was slightly below that, except in the power department. DRS likes his glovework at the keystone but OAA doesn’t, though both like his work as an outfielder. He’s tallied double-digit steal totals in each of the past three seasons.

Honorable mentions: Elvis Andrus, Enrique Hernández, Tony Kemp, Kolten Wong

The Top Unsigned Shortstops

By Darragh McDonald | January 25, 2024 at 8:52pm CDT

Pitchers and catchers will be reporting to Spring Training in about three weeks but a slow offseason means there are still plenty of free agents out there. MLBTR already took a look at the center fielders and catchers still available and will now take a look at some notable shortstops.

Tim Anderson: It’s no secret that last year was a disaster for Anderson, a stunning drop-off from his previous performance. From 2019 to 2022, he hit .318/.347/.473 for a wRC+ of 123. Last year, his line was just .245/.286/.296. His wRC+ of 60 was the lowest of all qualified hitters in the league. His defense also seemed to take a step back. Despite that rough year, his prior track record and a weak free agent class should get him a chance somewhere. Optimists could perhaps point to an April knee injury as the culprit for 2023, with better health perhaps leading to better results. Anderson has expressed a willingness to move to other positions going forward, but the lack of better alternatives should work in his favor.
Amed Rosario: Like Anderson, Rosario also experienced a big drop-off in 2023, though not quite as precipitous. He hit .282/.315/.412 from 2019 to 2022, leading to a wRC+ of 101. The reviews on his glovework were mixed. Last year, he hit just .263/.305/.378 between the Guardians and Dodgers, leading to an 88 wRC+. The latter club, after acquiring him in a trade, had him spend more time at second base than at short. It’s unclear whether clubs around the league will consider him a proper shortstop or more of a second baseman that could play there in a pinch. The offense has been uneven but he’s always had good numbers with the platoon advantage, even in his poor 2023 campaign. The righty hitter slashed .282/.326/.442 against southpaws last year for a 112 wRC+.
Gio Urshela: Going back to his 2019 breakout with the Yankees, Urshela has hit .291/.335/.452 for a wRC+ of 115. He’s also considered a strong defender at third base but has only had brief glimpses at short. While he’s had over 4,600 innings at the hot corner, he’s tallied just 359 at the six hole. His numbers there haven’t been especially strong either. He’s also coming off a season that was ended by a pelvic fracture suffered in June. He may be the most reliable bat in this bunch but he’s probably not considered an everyday shortstop. Then again, the dearth of attractive options may tempt some club to give it a shot.
Elvis Andrus: The ceiling may not be too exciting with Andrus, but he has more reliability than the names ahead of him on this list. He played 112 games for the White Sox last year, missing a few weeks due to an oblique strain but otherwise staying healthy. He’s only had one full season in his career where he didn’t top that mark, getting to just 97 games in 2018. His .251/.304/.358 batting line translated to a wRC+ of just 81, not far below his career production, but he stole 12 bases and was still considered good in the field. His 1.1 fWAR on the year was easily the highest of anyone else in this post and he’s never been lower than that in a full season. Due to the aforementioned players dealing with rough years and injuries, none of these other guys even got to 0.5 fWAR.
Adalberto Mondesí: The flip side to Andrus, Mondesí is not reliable at all but comes with a more enticing ceiling. Health has been a constant issue with him, as his 2019 season was the only time he got into more than 75 games, suiting up for 102 contests that year. Most recently, he suffered a torn ACL in April of 2022 and hasn’t appeared in a game since. But he had a strong run with the Royals from 2018 to 2021 when he was able to take the field. He hit 35 home runs in 1,103 plate appearances, though a 4.3% walk rate kept his on-base percentage low. His .261/.293/.445 batting line translated to a wRC+ of 92 but he paired that with strong defense and 114 stolen bases in 271 games. He produced 7.4 fWAR in that time, not even two full seasons’ worth of contests. The health issues will give clubs plenty of pause but he’s still just 28 years old and is almost two years removed from his ACL surgery at this point.

Honorable mentions: Brandon Crawford, Nick Ahmed, Yu Chang

Free Agent Faceoff: Tim Anderson/Amed Rosario

By Nick Deeds | January 14, 2024 at 9:14pm CDT

Teams have been spoiled by the star-studded free agent classes of recent offseasons, particularly when it comes to shortstops. The past two winters have seen the likes of Corey Seager, Carlos Correa (twice), Marcus Semien, Dansby Swanson, Trea Turner, and Xander Bogaerts hit the open market, giving teams in search of help at the position a plethora of All Stars to choose from. Teams in need of help at shortstop this winter have found themselves with slim pickings, however.

Just three players with recent experience at shortstop cracked MLBTR’s Top 50 MLB free agents list this offseason, and the highest rated among them (Gio Urshela) played just nine games at the position in 2023 before suffering a groin injury that leaves questions about his ability to handle the position defensively entering his age-32 campaign. That leaves just two players at the top of the offseason’s thin shortstop market, and both come with major question marks: longtime White Sox shortstop Tim Anderson, and former Mets, Guardians, and Dodgers infielder Amed Rosario. Both players had profiled as everyday regulars at the position entering the year but are coming off significant down seasons both at the plate and in the field.

Entering the 2023 season, Anderson was generally considered to be a top-10 shortstop in the majors. Over the previous four seasons, he had slashed an impressive .318/.347/.474 in 374 games while collecting two All Star appearances, a Silver Slugger award, and a seventh-place finish in AL MVP voting. His 123 wRC+ during that time frame ranked seventh among all shortstops in the majors, ahead of stars such as Marcus Semien and Francisco Lindor. Unfortunately, the 2023 campaign saw the 30-year-old struggle badly both at the plate and in the field. Anderson posted -2 Outs Above Average last year after posting a +5 figure over the preceding four seasons while slashing a putrid .245/.286/.296 in 524 trips to the plate. That performance translates to a wRC+ of 60, 40% worse than the league average hitter and the worst figure among all qualified major leaguers last year.

As for Rosario, the 28-year-old was once a consensus top-10 prospect in the sport but struggled early in his career as a member of the Mets. He took a significant step forward during his age-23 season, however, and from 2019 to 2022 was more or less a league average regular at shortstop with a .282/.315/.412 slash line good for a 101 wRC+. While his defensive chops at shortstop were questionable, he nonetheless accumulated a respectable 7.3 fWAR during that time, good for 19th among shortstops across those four seasons. Just as Rosario’s peak was less extreme than Anderson’s, so too was his downfall in 2023. Rosario’s overall offensive production dipped only slightly last year as he slashed .263/.305/.378 (88 wRC+) in 545 trips to the plate. Much of Rosario’s regression this season came in the field, as he posted a whopping -14 Outs Above Average at shortstop in 2023, putting him in the first percentile among all major leaguers according to Statcast.

As worrisome as Anderson’s offensive woes and Rosario’s defensive struggles are, teams in need of a shortstop will be hard-pressed to find a better option available to them. While it seems there’s at least a decent chance that the Padres trade defensive stalwart Ha-Seong Kim this offseason, other top trade candidates capable of handling short such as Willy Adames of the Brewers appear unlikely to be moved at this point in the offseason. Free agency doesn’t offer much in the way of alternative options either. Looking beyond Urshela and his aforementioned defensive question marks, the list of available shortstops is made up primarily of aging veterans coming off down seasons like Brandon Crawford and Elvis Andrus and players who have struggled to stay on the field at all recently such as Nick Ahmed and Adalberto Mondesi.

Given the many question marks surrounding both players, rumors of interest have been relatively few and far between to this point in the offseason. The Angels were connected to Anderson back in November, and his presence could allow the club to give youngster Zach Neto more time in the minor leagues to develop after he was rushed to the majors last summer. As for Rosario, he’s been rumored as a potential target for the Red Sox and Blue Jays, though both clubs have added middle infielders since then in Vaughn Grissom and Isiah Kiner-Falefa, respectively.

As far as clubs who could be speculative fits for Anderson or Rosario this winter, the team that sticks out most as in need of a shortstop is the Marlins. Miami currently figures to utilize Jon Berti as their everyday shortstop despite him having started just 86 games at the position during his major league career, more than half of which came just last season. The Dodgers are also known to be on the lookout for an upgrade over their current tandem of Gavin Lux and Miguel Rojas at the position, while the Rays could use a shortstop given that Taylor Walls is still recovering from hip surgery while Wander Franco’s future in MLB is in question due to alleged inappropriate relationships with minors. The Mariners, A’s, and Pirates are among other clubs who could potentially benefit from adding another bat to their middle infield mix.

If your team needed to added a shortstop to its middle infield mix this winter, which would you rather sign? Would you value Anderson’s stronger defense and more impressive peak, or Rosario’s youth and stronger overall numbers last season?

Red Sox Reportedly Interested In Robert Stephenson, Amed Rosario

By Nick Deeds | December 28, 2023 at 8:11pm CDT

The Red Sox have made clear throughout the offseason that adding to the club’s starting rotation is their top priority this winter but MassLive’s Chris Cotillo reports that Boston’s pursuit of rotation arms hasn’t stopped them from looking elsewhere, even beyond their reported pursuit of outfielder Teoscar Hernandez. Per Cotillo, the Red Sox also have interest in righty reliever Robert Stephenson and infielder Amed Rosario, though Cotillo goes on to caution that it’s uncertain how strong the club’s interest is in either player.

Rosario, 28, made his big league debut for the Mets in 2017 and was essentially a league average starter at shortstop in Queens and (after being included as part of the return package for Franciscor Lindor) Cleveland from 2019-22 as he slashed .282/.315/.412 while playing defense that fluctuated from above average to well below average on a year-to-year basis. 2023 was something of a down year for Rosario, as he slashed just .265/.306/.369 with brutal defensive numbers in 92 games for the Guardians before being swapped to the Dodgers midseason, with whom he saw significantly reduced laying time. In all, Rosario finished the season with a wRC+ of 88 and just 0.2 fWAR, the worst full season of his career. Rosario clocked in as the 39th free agent on MLBTR’s annual Top 50 MLB free agents list, where we projected him for a two-year, $18MM deal.

Despite Rosario’s many flaws, he’d nonetheless be a sensible addition for a Boston club that got the second-worst production in the majors from the keystone last season. Even Rosario’s .263/.305/.378 slash line from last season would be a significant improvement over the .240/.286/.376 slash line Red Sox second baseman posted in 2023, and Rosario performed solidly on defense at second base in 36 games with the Dodgers at the position last year, his first taste of the role at the big league level. While Rosario may not be the most impactful free agent available on the market, the Red Sox would shore up their depth at a clear position of need by adding him and would do so without blocking the club’s top infield prospects such as Marcelo Mayer and Nick Yorke from playing their way into the big leagues later in the year.

Stephenson, on the other hand, is coming off a much stronger platform season. The 30-year-old right-hander was a first-round pick in the 2011 draft by the Reds and made his big league debut as a starter back in 2016. Stephenson struggled badly in the role for parts of three seasons in the majors before eventually converting to the bullpen full time in 2019, where he found more success. The righty posted a 3.76 ERA (125 ERA+) and a 3.63 FIP in his first season as a full-time reliever, and after being limited to just ten innings of work during the shortened 2020 season was traded to Colorado in exchange for Jeff Hoffman. Stephenson’s first season with the Rockies went exceptionally well, as the righty posted a 3.13 ERA with a 3.63 identical to that of his 2019 campaign.

Stephenson struggled in the 2022 season, which he split between the Rockies and Pirates, and started off 2023 on a rough note by allowing nine runs (eight earned) in just fourteen innings for Pittsburgh. Stephenson’s fortunes quickly turned when the calendar flipped to June and the Pirates shipped him to the Rays, with whom he would have the most dominant stretch of his career. After changing his pitch mix to replace his slider with a cutter as his primary breaking ball, Stephenson struck out an incredible 42.9% of batters faced during his time with the Rays while walking just 5.7%. The top-level run prevention numbers are just as impressive, as the righty posted a 2.35 ERA and 2.45 FIP across 38 1/3 innings of work with the Rays this year. That strong production led MLBTR to rank Stephenson as the offseason’s 27th-best free agent, with a prediction of a four-year, $36MM deal.

That being said, the fit between Stephenson and Boston isn’t quite as clean as it is with Rosario. The Red Sox boasted a strong bullpen in 2023 anchored by veteran right-handers Kenley Jansen and Chris Martin, to say nothing of solid campaigns from the likes of Josh Winckowski and John Schreiber. Such a solid mix of righties in the club’s bullpen leaves the Red Sox seemingly unlikely to outbid bullpen-needy teams such as the Rangers, Astros, Cardinals and Cubs for Stephenson’s services. That being said, Cotillo suggests that the Red Sox may see a Stephenson signing as a method to leverage that bullpen depth and work out a trade of Jansen, Martin, or Schreiber. Speculatively speaking, a deal packaging a top relief arm like Jansen or Martin with a young outfielder like Wilyer Abreu or Jarren Duran could be enticing for a club with starting pitching depth available such as the Astros or Marlins that likely needs to improve other areas of the roster.

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