Rangers Exercise Option On Perez, Decline Options On Barnette, Napoli
The Rangers announced that they’ve exercised their $6MM club option on left-hander Martin Perez. The 2018 options of Tony Barnette ($4MM) and Mike Napoli ($11MM) have been declined. Barnette will receive a $250K buyout, while Napoli receives a $2.5MM buyout.
Beyond the option decisions, the Rangers announced that catcher A.J. Jimenez and right-hander Austin Bibens-Dirkx have cleared waivers and been assigned outright to Triple-A Round Rock.
In coaching staff news for the Rangers, Texas also announced that it has hired former Mets pitching coach Dan Warthen as its new assistant pitching coach and hired former big league right-hander Colby Lewis as a special assistant to GM Jon Daniels.
The 26-year-old Perez hasn’t exactly made good on his once lofty prospect status, but he’s developed into a dependable back-of-the-rotation starter. Given the affordable nature of his option and the steep $2.35MM buyout that was associated with that option, it’d have been nothing short of shocking to see his option declined.
The 2017 season saw Perez log a team-high 185 innings with a 4.82 ERA, 5.6 K/9, 3.1 BB/9 and a 47.3 percent ground-ball rate. Obviously, his run-prevention numbers weren’t anywhere near where Perez or the team would’ve hoped, but he’s made 65 starts across the past two seasons for a Rangers team that is in desperate need of innings. Andrew Cashner and Miguel Gonzalez are free agents, leaving Perez and Cole Hamels as the only true locks for the Texas rotation. Other options include Nick Martinez, A.J. Griffin and Yohander Mendez, but the Rangers very clearly need to add multiple arms to the rotation for the coming season.
Barnette, 34 later this week. made his Major League debut with the Rangers in 2016. A former Diamondbacks farmhand, Barnette never cracked the Majors early in his career and instead went overseas to find enormous success pitching in Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball. He earned a two-year Major League contract with the Rangers as a result of efforts in Japan and was every bit worth that investment in his first year with the club.
In 2016, Barnette pitched to a 2.09 ERA with 7.3 K/9 against 2.4 BB/9 with a 46.3 percent ground-ball rate in 60 1/3 innings out of manager Jeff Bannister’s bullpen. However, his strand rate plummeted in 2017 as his BABIP rose, causing his ERA to spike to 5.49. Barnette’s strikeout rate actually improved in ’17, and metrics like FIP and xFIP didn’t feel he was all that much worse than he was in 2016. However, the disappointing bottom-line results and a need for more bullpen stability caused the Rangers to move on. Barnette’s strong 2016 season and promising uptick in punchouts could generate him some interest on big league deals with a low base salary this winter, but many teams will likely hope to bring him into camp on a minor league contract.
The 36-year-old Napoli swatted 29 homers in his return to Arlington this season but saw his batting average check in south of the Mendoza Line and his OBP land in the upper .200s. Overall, the benefit of his considerable power (.235 ISO) was counteracted by a .193/.285/.428 batting line and below-average baserunning. Both Fangraphs and Baseball-Reference pegged him slightly worse than replacement level. Napoli struck out at a career-worst 33.6 percent clip and also popped up at a career-high 15.6 percent pace. A troublesome 38.1 percent of his trips to the plate resulted in a punchout or an infield fly. He’d already been informed that his option would be declined (as previously detailed on MLBTR), and he’ll now return to the open market in search of a new team for the 2018 campaign.
Minor MLB Transactions: 5/7/17
Here are the latest minor moves from around baseball, with the newest transactions at the top of the post…
- The Astros have released righty Edison Frias, the Houston Chronicle’s Jake Kaplan reports (Twitter link). The 26-year-old Frias has some respectable numbers (4.07 ERA, 7.6 K/9, 2.71 K/BB rate) over 425 career innings in Houston’s farm system, though he has been hit hard at the Triple-A level this year, with a 7.71 ERA in 23 1/3 frames. Pitching in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League is likely a factor, though Frias hasn’t helped himself with a 5.8 BB/9 that is more than double his career average.
Earlier today
- In a surprising development, the Reds announced Sunday that they’ve optioned left-hander Amir Garrett to Triple-A Louisville. Aside from one poor start on April 24, when the Brewers teed off on Garrett for nine earned runs on eight hits in 3 1/3 innings, the 25-year-old has pitched well enough to remain in the majors. The rookie surrendered two or fewer earned runs in his other six starts, all of which lasted at least six frames. All told, Garrett has recorded a 4.25 ERA, 7.0 K/9, 3.5 BB/9 and a 44.7 percent ground-ball rate in 36 innings. The Reds are entering a stretch in which they will only need four starters, which will give them an opportunity to manage Garrett’s workload, tweets Zach Buchanan of the Cincinnati Enquirer. Service time considerations may have also factored into this decision, as the Reds will only need to keep Garrett in the minors for about two weeks to control him through 2023 instead of 2022. For now, right-hander Barrett Astin is up from Triple-A to take Garrett’s place on the Reds’ roster.
- The Padres have sold corner infielder/outfielder Jamie Romak‘s contract to SK Wyverns of the Korea Baseball Organization, report Sung Min Kim of River Ave Blues and Dennis Lin of the San Diego Union-Tribune (Twitter links). Romak, a fourth-round pick of the Braves in 2003, saw brief major league action with the Dodgers in 2014 and the Diamondbacks in 2015. For the most part, the 31-year-old has played at lower levels, including a stint in the Japan Central League. Romak has spent the majority of his career at the Triple-A level, where he has slashed an impressive .271/.340/.516 line in 1,800 plate appearances.
- The Mariners have made a few pitching changes, selecting Christian Bergman‘s contract from Triple-A Tacoma, optioning Rob Whalen to Triple-A and moving Shae Simmons to the 60-day disabled list, per an announcement from general manager Jerry Dipoto. Bergman, who signed a minor league deal with the Mariners over the winter, spent 2010-16 with the Rockies organization. The swingman debuted in the majors in 2014 and has since posted a 5.79 ERA, 5.49 K/9 against 1.89 BB/9, and a 36.7 percent ground-ball rate in 147 2/3 innings. He got off to a strong start this year with Tacoma, tossing 29 innings from the Rainiers’ rotation and logging a 2.17 ERA. Simmons has been dealing with a right forearm strain since March, which has prevented the offseason trade acquisition from taking the mound this year. The Mariners acquired Simmons, a hard-throwing reliever, from the Braves in a January deal that also included Mallex Smith and Luiz Gohara.
- The Rangers have purchased righty Austin Bibens-Dirkx‘s contract from Triple-A Round Rock and optioned lefty Dario Alvarez in a corresponding move, according to the club. The 32-year-old Bibens-Dirkx has never pitched in the majors, having spent the first 11-plus years of his career in the minors with several teams, including Seattle, which selected him in the 16th round of the 2006 draft. Bibens-Dirkx owns a lifetime 5.16 ERA, 7.0 K/9 and 3.0 BB/9 in 383 2/3 Triple-A frames.