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C.C. Sabathia

CC Sabathia Diagnosed With Grade 2 Hamstring Strain

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The Yankees have announced that lefty CC Sabathia has been diagnosed with a grade 2 strain of his hamstring after undergoing an MRI, as WFAN’s Sweeny Murti tweets. While no official move has been made, it seems clear that Sabathia will require a DL stint.

An expected timetable isn’t yet known, but in all likelihood the Yankees will need to cover at least a handful of starts. As you might expect, a grade 2 strain falls in the middle of the severity chart, representing a partial tear of the muscle. Many other details of the injury, along with the individual’s actual progress, will obviously bear on the amount of rest that’s required.

It’s obviously unfortunate news for Sabathia, who was off to a rather impressive start to the year even as he closes in on his 37th birthday. Through 75 1/3 innings, he owns a 3.46 ERA with 7.4 K/9 and 2.9 BB/9, including a stellar 0.99 ERA over his past six trips to the hill. While he’s obviously not likely to return to his former dominance, the veteran has shown himself more than capable of being a productive rotation member while preparing to re-enter the open market at season’s end.

The injury comes at an interesting time for the Yankees, who currently pace the AL East by three games. While the organization has emphasized its desire to build for the long run, it’d be hard to pass up entirely on a chance to capitalize on that kind of position. Generally, then, the Yanks are lining up as deadline buyers, even if they shouldn’t be expected to push in significant chips for rental players.

Though the staff has been a rather pleasant surprise, the depth has always been somewhat in question. The club has used just five pitchers for all but one start thus far, but that’ll soon change. With questions also hanging over the struggling Masahiro Tanaka, and long-term rotation openings also factoring into the equation, it’ll be interesting to see whether New York ends up wading into the starting pitching market this summer.

It’s not yet clear who’ll take over for Sabathia in the meantime, though at least that’ll give the club a chance to take a closer look at another arm. Chad Green has already made one start this year and could move over from the bullpen. Luis Cessa and Domingo German are other 40-man members with MLB experience.

Cafardo’s Latest: Yankees, Vargas, Gray, Cobb, Volquez

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The Yankees are 35-23 and atop the AL East, but both GM Brian Cashman and manager Joe Girardi are currently lame ducks, notes Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe. Cashman isn’t worried about his contract status, telling Cafardo: “I’ve been to this point a few times now. It’s just not unusual. It’s not something you can spend a lot of time thinking about. When the time comes, hopefully things will be taken care of, but it’s not something I talk a lot about.” Cashman, in his 20th year as the Yankees’ GM, is likely underpaid, writes Cafardo. The same goes for Girardi, who has been in his position since 2008. Both make around $4MM per year, which Cafardo points out is a far cry from the salaries of contemporaries such as Cubs president Theo Epstein ($10MM), manager Joe Maddon ($7MM) and Dodgers president Andrew Friedman ($7MM).

Now for the latest pitching-related rumblings from Cafardo:

  • Royals left-hander Jason Vargas and Athletics right-hander Sonny Gray are the hurlers who are most asked about in trade discussions (in that order), reports Cafardo. While Vargas is a soft-tossing 34-year-old with below-average strikeout and ground-ball rates (7.14 and 37.0, respectively), he’s only walking 2.06 batters per nine and his run prevention hasn’t shown signs of wavering this season. Vargas’ ERA is currently at 2.18 through 74 1/3 frames and hasn’t gone over 2.39. Unlike Vargas, who will be a free agent next winter, Gray comes with multiple years of team control. He’s on a more-than-reasonable $3.575MM salary this year and isn’t scheduled to become a free agent until after the 2019 season. The 27-year-old Gray hasn’t prevented runs to the extent that he did from 2013-15 (2.88 ERA in 491 frames), but he has rebounded from a dreadful 2016 to log a 4.37 ERA, 8.94 K/9, 2.66 BB/9 and a 56.7 percent grounder rate over 47 1/3 innings. Also, his 3.35 FIP is right in line with the 3.36 mark he registered from 2013-15.
  • The Yankees are leaving the door open for southpaw C.C. Sabathia’s return in 2018, according to Cafardo. A free agent in the offseason, Sabathia’s next deal certainly won’t come anywhere close to his expiring five-year, $122MM contract. Still, the erstwhile ace is making a case for a decent payday at the age of 36. Across 71 1/3 innings this year, the soft contact-inducing Sabathia has recorded a 3.66 ERA, 7.32 K/9, 2.9 BB/9 and a 48.8 percent ground-ball rate.
  • Righty Alex Cobb is the Rays starter most likely to end up on the move by the trade deadline, relays Cafardo. The 29-year-old hasn’t been as stingy as he was prior to 2015, when he underwent Tommy John surgery, but has given the Rays 79 2/3 innings of 4.29 ERA ball (with a matching FIP) this year. Along the way, the impending free agent – who’s on a $4.2MM salary – has somewhat offset a low K/9 (6.44) with a quality BB/9 (2.6) and generated grounders at a 43.9 percent clip.
  • If the Marlins go into fire-sale mode, righty Edinson Volquez could draw interest, suggests Cafardo. The offseason signing has been lights out recently, especially during his 11-strikeout no-hitter last Saturday, and has dropped his ERA nearly a run and a half over the past three weeks (from 4.87 on May 18 to 3.41). Volquez, 33, has helped his cause by pairing his best K/9 in five years (8.52) with a 48.6 percent ground-ball rate, though his BB/9 (4.59) is also at its highest since 2012. An acquiring team would take on the remainder of Volquez’s $9MM salary this year and another $13MM in 2018.

Quick Hits: Quintana, White Sox, Sabathia, Harper, Grichuk

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Interest remains strong in White Sox left-hander Jose Quintana, writes CBS Chicago’s Bruce Levine, who reports that teams have sweetened their trade proposals for the 27-year-old over the past week. While the Astros, Pirates and Yankees have been connected to Quintana more than anyone else this offseason, there are also other clubs in the mix, sources told Levine, who adds that the White Sox could strike a deal to move him soon. Chicago isn’t in any hurry to give up Quintana, but Levine expects it to happen prior to spring training.

Elsewhere around the majors…

  • Yankees southpaw C.C. Sabathia will turn 37 in 2017, the last year of his contract, but retirement isn’t on his mind. Regarding the end of the long Yankee tenures of Alex Rodriguez and Mark Teixeira last season, Sabathia told Pete Caldera of the Bergen Record, “If anything, it made me want to play as long as I can. As long as I’m healthy and feeling good, I want to play.’’ While Sabathia is no longer the front-line starter he was earlier in his career, he did bounce back last season from a couple subpar years in a row. In 179 2/3 innings, he logged a 3.91 ERA, 7.61 K/9, 3.26 BB/9 and 50.1 percent ground-ball rate. That impressed general manager Brian Cashman, who said, “It’s a big year for him. It’s his free-agent walk year. And I’ll sign up right now to get what we got out of him last year. He was very effective.’’ Cashman also stated that Sabathia’s “expectations and hopes are to pitch for another four or five years or something like that.”
  • The Nationals and right fielder Bryce Harper avoided arbitration Friday when they agreed to a $13.625MM salary for 2017. That figure trumps MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz’s $9.3MM arbitration projection for Harper, leading Mark Zuckerman of MASNsports.com to wonder if it was a goodwill gesture on the Nationals’ part. Harper made $5MM last season, which was a bargain even during a down year for the 2015 National League MVP. By nearly tripling Harper’s salary, Zuckerman posits that the Nats may have been trying to make up for his cheap cost last year and perhaps improve their chances of extending the Scott Boras client before he hits free agency two winters from now. However, regardless of the club’s motivation, Zuckerman concedes that Harper’s 2017 salary probably won’t affect whether he’ll stay in D.C.
  • Cardinals outfielder Randal Grichuk underwent left knee surgery to remove loose cartilage earlier this offseason, he told reporters – including Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch – on Sunday (Twitter link). Grichuk added that he’s doing well after a month-plus recovery. The 25-year-old has now undergone surgeries in back-to-back offseasons, including a procedure to repair a sports hernia last winter. With the signing of big-money center fielder Dexter Fowler in free agency, Grichuk is in line for the everyday job in left next season (depth chart).

Brian Cashman On Yankees’ Offseason Plans

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Yankees GM Brian Cashman took his turn breaking down the club’s 2016 season and previewing the offseason that lies ahead. Jack Curry of the YES Network was among those on hand, and all links below are to his Twitter feed:

  • When asked about the possibility of dealing for a top-line starter such as Chris Sale, Cashman said he’d be “hard-pressed” to part with the haul of young talent needed to pull off such a deal. He indicated that it would be a “dangerous approach” to chase that kind of acquisition, especially given that his club is more than one piece away from pushing for a championship
  • Dellin Betances is in line to remain the Yankees’ closer, though Cashman held out the possibiity that the club will “do something different.” Curry notes that his own expectation is the team will chase lefty Aroldis Chapman, who is heading onto the open market after spending part of 2016 in New York (prior to his mid-season trade to the Cubs).
  • In other pitching news, intriguing young righty Luis Severino won’t come into camp with a rotation job locked up, Cashman said. Instead, he’ll need to prove himself in camp, with Cashman saying that he hopes Severino “can regain starter ceiling status” after a tough 2016 campaign. Though he contributed only 71 major league frames with a 5.83 ERA last year, Severino is only 22 years of age and threw well at the Triple-A level in 2016.
  • Meanwhile, veteran lefty CC Sabathia is headed for a clean-up procedure for his knee. It’s said to be a “routine” operation, which presumably won’t prevent the 36-year-old from a full spring build-up. Sabathia is an important part of the Yankees’ pitching mix after his $25MM option vested. He contributed 179 2/3 innings of 3.91 ERA pitching last year, making for a rather promising showing.
  • New York will still presumably make an effort to bolster its rotation from the outside. Indeed, Cashman said the team will be on the lookout for opportunities to add arms. While the free agent picture is rather bleak, there are a few useful starters available as well as plenty of trade possibilities — even if chasing an ace likely isn’t in the cards.
  • The Yankees have never asked catcher Brian McCann to waive his no-trade clause, which Cashman says represents an indication of how much the team values the veteran. McCann’s name has come up quite a bit in trade chatter with Gary Sanchez expected to take over primary duties behind the dish. But it’s certainly still plausible to imagine both players holding down important roles. Alternatively, with a lot of demand for catchers around the game, McCann could be moved to address another need.
  • Meanwhile, the current plan is for Greg Bird and Tyler Austin to battle for playing time at first base while choosing from among Aaron Judge, Aaron Hicks, and Rob Refsnyder in right field. It’s likely the club will stay with its internal options in those areas, Cashman said, though he added that there is some uncertainty as to whether that mix will be sufficient.
  • While he probably won’t be an option early in the year, hyped prospect Jorge Mateo could play his way into the team’s plans if he can turn things around after a rough 2016 at the High-A level. The 21-year-old, a shortstop by trade, is being exposed to center field in instructional league action this fall in a bid to increase his versatility.
  • Cashman also addressed a few broader points. The organization still hopes to get under the luxury tax threshold at some point, which would reset the team’s rising tax figure. Both Cashman and skipper Joe Girardi will go year to year on their contracts rather than receiving any long-term assurances. And all coaches except Larry Rothschild are under contract, with the Yanks set to work on a new deal with their pitching coach.

CC Sabathia Hopes To Pitch Beyond 2017

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It’s nearly a foregone conclusion that CC Sabathia’s $25MM option for the 2017 season will vest at season’s end — he’d have to be on the disabled list due to a shoulder injury in order for the option not to trigger — but the big lefty tells Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News that he’s felt so good in 2016 that he isn’t having any thoughts that next year could be his last.

“I know I want to pitch after next year, but I haven’t thought about where or what,” said Sabathia. “Hopefully it will be here. We’ll see.”

While many can accuse Sabathia of putting the cart before the horse, it’s understandable that he’s thinking long term as he puts the finishing touches on his healthiest season since 2013. Myriad knee and elbow injuries limited the former Cy Young winner to just 213 innings in 2014-15, and there was a great deal of uncertainty about his ability to hold up entering the season. Sabathia took to wearing a brace to protect his surgically repaired knee this season, and it would appear that the added support has done him plenty of good. The 36-year-old has pitched to a 4.02 ERA (his lowest mark since 2012) over the life of 172 1/3 innings and averaged 7.5 K/9 against 3.3 BB/9 to go along with the second best ground-ball rate of his career (49.7 percent).

Sabathia will pitch the majority of the 2017 season at the age of 36, so the 2018 campaign he’s targeting at this point would only be his age-37 season — a more than reasonable goal if he proves healthy next year. Of course, Sabathia did hedge his aspirations somewhat, adding the critical caveat: “I know I feel like it’s not my time yet. Barring any crazy injuries, I know I can pitch past next year.”

While no longer the front-line pitcher that he was when he signed a then-record $161MM contract with the Yankees, Sabathia’s 2016 results suggest that there would be plenty of a market for him if he’s able to navigate another season without a significant injury. A pitcher capable of pitching 180 to 200 innings and turning in a roughly 4.00 ERA at Yankee Stadium/in the AL East would certainly have appeal, even if it were only as a fourth starter to round out a team’s rotation and provide some leadership to younger arms.

For those interested in checking out Sabathia’s hypothetical competition, MLBTR has already released its list of 2017-18 free agents, and the crop of starting pitchers looks to be considerably better than the upcoming class. Sabathia is slated to be joined by names like Jake Arrieta, Yu Darvish, Johnny Cueto (if he opts out of his Giants deal), Alex Cobb, Danny Duffy, Tyson Ross and his own teammate, Michael Pineda. Of course, the possibility exists that one or more of those names will sign extensions, and others, most notably Ross, come with plenty of question marks surrounding their health.

AL East Notes: Buchholz, Red Sox, Dombrowski, Pearce, Rays, Jays

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Clay Buchholz may be in his final days as a member of the Red Sox, writes Rob Bradford of WEEI.com. Teams have inquired with the Red Sox about the struggling right-hander, Bradford reports, and his sparse usage as of late has the pitcher himself pondering his future with the club. “…I feel like the guys they’re rolling out there, I don’t have a spot. I’m the odd man out,” said Buchholz in reference to the rotation. “I’m not sure. I don’t know. Not having pitched in a while I felt like something has be going on.” Manager John Farrell offered a rather frank analysis of the situation when asked by Bradford: “He’s in a tough spot, I’ll be candid. I don’t want to say it’s purgatory, but as far as baseball he’s in a difficult spot. There was the four-day layover over the break. We’ve played very good winning baseball. We’ve gotten starters deeper into ballgames where the bullpen has been rested. That’s where the decisions have come in.” Buchholz’s contract has one more club option at $13.5MM on it, so perhaps an interested party would look to buy low in hopes of revitalizing him over the final two months of the year and making that option look like a reasonable price.

More from the AL East…

  • Bradford also spoke with president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski about the process of making several of the more high-profile trades he made while serving as GM of the Tigers. Dombrowski pulled back the curtain a bit on his acquisitions of Doug Fister, Anibal Sanchez and David Price, as well as his trade of Yoenis Cespedes to the Mets last summer. Dombrowski also offered his take on this year’s trade market for starters, noting that it’s rare to see such lofty demand — winning teams are often good because of their starters, which is not the case for several clubs this year — while also seeing such a short supply from clubs that are decided sellers.
  • The Red Sox hoped that adding Brad Ziegler would constitute sufficient pen depth, but now Koji Uehara has joined Craig Kimbrel on the 15-day DL. Michael Silverman of the Boston Herald writes that Boston ought to add at least one more reliever from outside the organization. Though the team isn’t without its internal options, including Joe Kelly, Silverman suggests that it would be wise to have alternatives in place.
  • Steve Pearce has been the subject of quite a few of the Rays’ trade talks as of late, reports ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick (via Twitter). Pearce has been one of the best bargain pickups of the offseason, slashing an outstanding .322/.393/.552 with 10 homers in 206 plate appearances. Because he can play first base, corner outfield or second base, Pearce could help a large number of clubs, and the remaining $1.89MM on his $4.75MM salary is a manageable sum for most clubs. Crasnick lists the Giants and Indians as a pair of possible fits for Tampa Bay’s slugging utilityman.
  • The Rays are in a powerful position on the trade market, writes Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. With so few options on the market for starting pitching, they’re poised to ask for lofty demands for any of Jake Odorizzi, Matt Moore or even Chris Archer, though the common refrain on Archer is that he won’t be moved. The Dodgers and Rangers are both following the Rays’ starters closely, and Topkin lists the Pirates, Astros, Marlins, Nationals and Red Sox as teams with serious interest. Topkin adds Pearce, right-hander Erasmo Ramirez and left-hander Xavier Cedeno to the list of possible trade options for president of baseball operations Matt Silverman and his staff. Notably, the Marlins were recently tied to left-handed relief help, so they could be interested not only in Tampa Bay’s starters but Cedeno as well.
  • The Blue Jays scouted both Andrew Cashner and CC Sabathia for their starts last night, per FanRag’s Jon Heyman. While Cashner is an obvious trade candidate that has been monitored by a large number of clubs, Sabathia’s name hasn’t been suggested often due to his significant salary. He’s earning $25MM this year with an identically priced vesting option for the 2017 season that will trigger if he doesn’t finish out the year with a shoulder injury. Heyman suggests that Sabathia may not be available as the Yankees aren’t yet decided on selling off pieces, though I have to imagine that they’d be perfectly willing to part with Sabathia even if they aim to contend, as that 2017 option isn’t especially appealing for a 36-year-old who has struggled over the past four seasons. Sabathia’s 10-and-5 rights are a factor, though, as he’d have to approve any trade. The Jays would also certainly request that the Yankees pay a hefty portion of Sabathia’s salary to green-light any trade. The notion of trading him seems like a bit of a reach to me, though one can’t fault the Blue Jays for performing due diligence.

Latest On Yankees’ Deadline Possibilities

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Having come sputtering out of the All-Star break, selling before the Aug. 1 trade deadline now looks like an inevitability for the 44-46 Yankees, writes Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. The Bombers, who are 9.5 games back of AL East-leading Baltimore and 5.5 games out of a Wild Card spot, will not undergo a full rebuild, reports Rosenthal. However, he notes that general manager Brian Cashman will have a chance to control this year’s trade market when he starts dealing veterans.

New York has a vast array of potential deadline movers, including superstar relievers Aroldis Chapman and Andrew Miller, right fielder and designated hitter Carlos Beltran, and starters CC Sabathia, Michael Pineda and Nathan Eovaldi. Of those six, only Chapman and Beltran are on expiring contracts.

Catcher Brian McCann and left fielder Brett Gardner, two other prominent Yankees veterans, make up the team’s primary leadership core and might not go anywhere as a result, per Rosenthal. McCann has a no-trade clause to boot, so he’d have the power to block any deal.

Chapman, whom the Yankees acquired from the Reds over the winter for an underwhelming package of prospects, will bring back a more valuable return if traded in the next two weeks. When the Yankees picked up Chapman from Cincinnati, he was facing troubling domestic violence allegations. That enabled the Yanks to buy low on him, but the 28-year-old served a suspension at the beginning of the season and has been his usual self on the mound since. As a pending free agent, the Yankees could trade Chapman and then try to re-sign him in the offseason, as Rosenthal notes.

Miller, who’s under team control through 2018 at $9MM per year, has been even better than Chapman. His excellent production and reasonable salary will make it tough for the Yankees to part with him.

As Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reported Saturday, the Pirates and Yankees have discussed a Eovaldi trade. But Pineda and Sabathia are also garnering interest out of the Yankees’ rotation. Convincing Cashman to give up Eovaldi won’t be easy, according to Rosenthal, as he’s controllable through next season. The Yankees still believe in the hard-throwing 26-year-old despite his 5.54 ERA in 91 innings as a starter this season.

As a struggling right-hander with a year of team control left, Pineda shares similarities with Eovaldi. While the 27-year-old’s ERA sits at a whopping 5.56 through 100 1/3 frames, he’s eighth among starters in K-BB percentage (21.1) and has generated ground balls at a decent clip (44.2 percent).

Sabathia has done a much better job preventing runs than Eovaldi and Pineda, having logged a respectable 3.94 ERA in 93 2/3 innings, but moving him could be difficult. For one, the 35-year-old can veto any trade because of his 10-and-5 rights. He’s also on a $25MM salary this year and has a $25MM option for 2017 that – barring a shoulder injury – will vest, and his ERA has climbed 1.74 runs since June 16.

Even if Cashman can swing a deal for Sabathia, he might instead elect to hold the southpaw and his other two scuffling starters until the offseason. The pitching market will also be weak then, and keeping the three would give them a chance to rebound and improve their respective values, writes Rosenthal.

Considering they’re likelier to buy than sell, the Yankees are entering the deadline in unfamiliar territory. New York hasn’t been in this position since Cashman took the helm in 1998 (or in the few preceding years), and although the club hasn’t been a championship contender in recent years, the executive has earned the respect of his peers.

“I actually think Cash has done a terrific job of getting younger and staying competitive,” one GM told Rosenthal.

Cafardo’s Latest: Yanks, Rays, BoSox, Dodgers

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Surprisingly, Yankees left-hander CC Sabathia has revived his career to the point that he might actually have value in a trade, according to Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe. The soon-to-be 36-year-old has bounced back from multiple underwhelming seasons in a row to post an excellent 3.17 ERA in 76 2/3 innings in 2016, through his strikeout and walk ratios per nine innings (7.16 and 3.52) are each below average and he’s on a $25MM salary through 2017. In addition to Sabathia, hot-hitting 39-year-old right fielder/designated hitter Carlos Beltran, left fielder Brett Gardner, catcher Brian McCann, third baseman Chase Headley, and starters Michael Pineda and Nathan Eovaldi are Yankees who could have value around the deadline (not to mention their much-ballyhooed relievers, of course). The only member of that group who’s set to become a free agent at season’s end is Beltran. As Cafardo points out, it’s currently up in the air whether the playoff hopeful Yankees would move any of these players, though he wonders if clinging to postseason dreams is the right course for the 39-41 club.

More inside stuff from Cafardo:

  • Led by former Rays general manager and current president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman, the Dodgers are in pursuit of Tampa Bay right-hander Chris Archer. The Rays aren’t planning on moving the 27-year-old as of now, though, which backs up FOX Sports’ Ken Rosenthal’s report from Saturday.
  • The presence of senior vice president of baseball operations Frank Wren, formerly the Braves’ GM, could lead the Red Sox to go after Atlanta right-hander Julio Teheran. Wren – who’s high on Teheran – is Red Sox president Dave Dombrowski’s right-hand man, Cafardo notes, and could push him toward putting together a package for the 25-year-old.
  • If they’re unable to swing a deal for Teheran, the Red Sox might turn their attention to Rays southpaw Matt Moore – in whom they’re interested. Moore, who has three more years of team control left via club options, also intrigues the Astros, Dodgers, Orioles, Royals, Yankees and previously reported Rangers.
  • With the possible exception of right-handed reliever Zach McAllister, the Indians aren’t going to give up pitching to augment their offense. Further, the organization has a reputation for keeping its payroll low and avoiding big-money acquisitions, which could take it out of the running to pick up a well-compensated trade chip. Athletics third baseman Danny Valencia, who’s on an affordable $3.15MM salary this season and has another trip through arbitration scheduled, is a potential target for Cleveland.
  • Hard-throwing Diamondbacks lefty Robbie Ray, who’s eighth in the majors in K/9 (10.42), is drawing interest from teams looking for starters. The 24-year-old has thrown 214 innings of 4.00 ERA ball dating to 2015 and won’t even become eligible for arbitration until after 2017, meaning he has four full seasons of club control remaining.
  • The Marlins are aggressively pursuing pitching, as evidenced already by their acquisition of reliever Fernando Rodney and reported interest in starters Drew Pomeranz and Jake Odorizzi. However, the Fish might not have the prospects to land a significant arm for their rotation, writes Cafardo.
  • Blue Jays scouts are keeping a close watch over the Astros’ system, so the two AL playoff contenders could have some kind of deal in the works.

2017 Vesting Options Update

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It’s been a little more than a month since we last checked in on the vesting options from around the league. Here’s where this year’s collection of players with vesting options for the following season stand…

  • Coco Crisp ($13MM option vests at 550 plate appearances or 130 games played in 2016): Crisp was hitting .234/.304/.405 at the time of my initial look at this group of players, but his bat has gone in the tank since that time. The 36-year-old switch-hitter has batted just .212/.235/.343 in 102 plate appearances since that time, but he’s continued to see playing time in part due to injuries elsewhere on the roster (Josh Reddick, Mark Canha). Crisp is still on pace to come in a bit shy of that 550 PA mark, and it wouldn’t be a surprise to see a reduced role upon Reddick’s return to health, as the A’s probably don’t love the idea of paying him $13MM for his age-37 campaign when he’s struggling to this level in 2016.
  • Matt Holliday ($17MM option vests with Top 10 finish in MVP voting): Holliday is having a strong season, as he’s proven that the power outage he experienced last season was more anomaly than a portent for significant decline. However, he’s hitting .257/.332/.478 — numbers that help the Cardinals but won’t make him a factor in MVP voting barring a mammoth finish to the 2016 season.
  • Chris Iannetta ($6MM option vests with 100 games started in 2016): Iannetta has already started 55 games for the Mariners this season, making it seem very likely that he’ll be around in Seattle for the 2017 campaign as well. He hasn’t set the world on fire in his first year with the Mariners, but he’s hitting .237/.337/.395, which translates to an OPS+ of 104 and a wRC+ of 105. (Put another way: he’s been about four to five percent above the league-average hitter after adjusting for his pitcher-friendly home park.)
  • Yusmeiro Petit ($3MM option vests with 80 innings pitched in 2016): At last check, Petit was on pace to see his option vest, but he’s been used very sparingly in the month of June, totaling just six innings thus far after combining for 26 innings in April and May. Given his status as a multi-inning reliever, he could pick up some additional innings in a hurry, but as it stands, he’s behind pace to see that payday locked in automatically. Of course, he’s also posted a 2.81 ERA in those 32 innings, so the Nats may simply pick up his option even if it doesn’t automatically trigger. To this point, he’s pitched well enough that it seems like a fairly easy call.
  • CC Sabathia ($25MM option vests if he does not end season on DL with shoulder injury or miss 45+ games in 2016 due to shoulder injury): Sabathia’s option seems likely to vest, as his shoulder has remained healthy this season. However, what once looked like an egregious overpay can perhaps be seen in a different light for the time being. While few would argue that the Yankees shouldn’t mind paying Sabathia that sum in 2017, his contract looks considerably better than it did last year. The former Cy Young winner has made 11 starts this season and has posted a resurgent 2.20 ERA with 7.7 K/9 against 3.7 BB/9. Sabathia has benefited from some good fortune in terms of homer-to-flyball ratio and strand rate, but this is the best he’s looked since 2012.
  • Kurt Suzuki ($6MM option vests with 485 plate appearances in 2016): Suzuki’s overall production this season has been well below average, but since the last of these updates he’s batting a considerably improved .268/.297/.394 with a pair of homers in 74 PAs. That’s a bit better than the league-average catcher, but the Twins still don’t seem inclined to allow his option to vest. Suzuki has totaled just 158 plate appearances this season even with John Ryan Murphy, his projected replacement, floundering in the Majors and getting optioned to Triple-A (where his struggles have continued). Journeyman Juan Centeno is getting some time behind the dish as well (61 PAs) for the Twins as well. It seems unlikely that Minnesota will allow Suzuki to average 3.5 PAs per game over the final 93 contests after he’s averaged just 2.3 per game thus far.

As noted in the original update, both Nick Swisher and Michael Bourn had vesting options for the 2017 season as well, but those options were negated when each was released from the four-year contracts they initially signed with the Indians.

2017 Vesting Options Update

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Each year, the free-agent class is impacted by the performance of players with vesting options (as is the financial future of players with said provisions in their contract). For those unfamiliar with the option, a vesting option is typically a club option that can automatically trigger based on the player’s health and/or performance. Meeting pre-determined criteria for games played, innings pitched, plate appearances, etc. are the most common means of triggering vesting options, though as you’ll see below, there have been some more creative approaches to vesting options in the past as well.

We’ll check in on these players periodically throughout the season, and here’s the first look…

  • Chris Iannetta: The Mariners hold a $4.25MM club option over Iannetta for the 2017 season, but that option can also vest at $6MM if Iannetta starts 100 games in 2016 and does not finish the season on the disabled list due to an injured hip, back or right elbow. Having started 30 of the Mariners’ first 39 games, Iannetta is on pace to clear the 100 start threshold with ease, and if he can continue to post an OPS in the mid-.700s, the Mariners probably won’t mind having him back for another season at that price. One factor that could throw a wrench into his playing time: Mike Zunino is demolishing Triple-A pitching thus far, batting .305/.357/.580, though the former first-round pick has cooled off considerably in the past two weeks.
  • Kurt Suzuki: Another backstop with a $6MM vesting option, Suzuki needs to reach 485 plate appearances in 2016 for that option to trigger. The big 2014 first-half that earned Suzuki that extension never seemed sustainable, and he has batted just .242/.294/.330 since signing the deal. The Twins probably don’t want to see this one vest, as evidenced by the fact that he’s on pace for 349 plate appearances, which would be his lowest total since signing in Minnesota.
  • Matt Holliday: The 36-year-old Holliday has a $17MM club option for the 2017 season that automatically vests if he places within the Top 10 of this season’s NL MVP voting. Holliday isn’t the hitter he once was, and even in his best years with the Cardinals, he (somewhat surprisingly) never landed inside the Top 10 in NL MVP voting. At 36 years of age and off to a good but unspectacular .250/.325/.485 start to the season, it seems safe to assume that his option won’t vest. The club will have the choice of exercising the option or paying Holliday a buyout of $1MM.
  • Coco Crisp: Crisp, also 36, has a more complicated vesting option tacked onto his two-year, $22MM deal. The option is valued at $13MM and will automatically kick in if Crisp receives 550 plate appearances or appears in 130 games this season. The option initially could also have vested based on combined playing time from 2015-16 (1100 PAs from 2015-16 or 260 games from 2015-16), but Crisp spent most of the 2015 campaign on the DL, so he’ll have to hope to trigger the option based solely on his 2016 health. He’s appeared in 31 of Oakland’s 41 games and picked up 126 plate appearances, so he’s a bit shy of the pace for either threshold. Clearly, though, there’s still plenty of time to make up ground. He’s batting .234/.304/.405.
  • Yusmeiro Petit: The one-year, $3MM contract signed by Petit this winter came with a $3MM club option ($500K buyout) that vests if Petit reaches 80 innings pitched. Petit has occupied a role similar to the one in which he thrived for a few years as a member of the Giants’ bullpen, and he’s picked up 21 innings through the Nationals’ first 40 games. If that pace holds, he’ll indeed clear 80 innings and see that salary lock in. With a 1.71 ERA and 3.28 FIP through his first 21 frames, the Nats probably wouldn’t mind that at all.
  • CC Sabathia: The 35-year-old Sabathia’s vesting option is tied to the health of his shoulder. He’ll lock in a $25MM salary for the 2017 campaign if he doesn’t end the 2016 season on the DL due to a shoulder injury or spend 45+ days on the DL this year due to a shoulder injury. Sabathia is currently on the disabled list, but it’s due to a groin injury, so it doesn’t impact the option’s status. While he’s certainly no longer an ace, Sabathia did have a 3.81 ERA through his first five starts of the season, though his strikeout and walk numbers weren’t particularly encouraging.

It’s perhaps worth noting, as well, that both Michael Bourn and Nick Swisher had vesting options for the 2017 season worked into the four-year deals they originally signed with the Indians. However, with each player having been released from that contract and signing new deals (with the D-backs and Yankees, respectively), those options are no longer in play. (The lack of playing time for each player this season would’ve made them a non-issue anyhow.)

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