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Chasen Shreve

Mets To Designate Jordan Yamamoto For Assignment

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The Mets have designated right-hander Jordan Yamamoto for assignment in order to open a spot on the roster for left-hander Chasen Shreve, whose contract has been selected to the 40-man roster, per the team’s transaction log at MLB.com. Shreve told reporters earlier this week that he’d been informed he’s made the roster.

Yamamoto, 25, joined the Mets last offseason in a trade that sent minor league infielder Federico Polanco to the Marlins. He only made two appearances with the big league club and tallied only 32 2/3 minor league innings while battling a right shoulder injury. Originally drafted by the Brewers, Yamamoto was part of the Christian Yelich blockbuster with the Marlins and made his big league debut with the Fish in 2019, pitching to a solid 4.46 ERA with a 25.2% strikeout rate and 11.1% walk rate in 78 2/3 frames.

The shortened 2020 season was a nightmare for Yamamoto, as he surrendered 24 runs in just 10 2/3 innings. That ballooned his career ERA north of 6.00, but Yamamoto has generally been a solid pitcher in limited work outside that outlier season. He carries a career 3.79 ERA with a 25.3% strikeout rate, a 6.9% walk rate and a 44.6% ground-ball rate in 495 2/3 minor league innings as well.

Yamamoto does have a minor league option remaining, so it’s certainly possible that another club in need of some rotation depth will take a chance on a still-young righty who has had plenty of minor league success and also some success in the big leagues (2020 aside). The Mets will have a week to trade Yamamoto or attempt to pass him through outright waivers. If he clears waivers, they can assign him to Triple-A Syracuse to begin the season, and he’ll continue to serve as depth in the upper levels of their system. Given that Jacob deGrom is expected to miss months and the Mets’ rotation has several other injury risks and situations worth monitoring, that’d be a welcome bonus for the organization.

With deGrom slated to start the year on the injured list, it’s looking increasingly like young righty Tylor Megill will be tabbed as New York’s Opening Day starter (Twitter link via Mike Puma of the New York Post). Max Scherzer has been slowed a minor hamstring issue but is back on track and looks ticketed for the season’s second game. Taijuan Walker recently had what the team hopes to be a minor knee issue pop up in his final spring start. Carlos Carrasco is looking for a rebound after an injury-ruined 2021 season, and righty Chris Bassitt, acquired from the A’s over the winter, is expected to round out the Mets’ rotation to begin the season.

Mets To Select Chasen Shreve

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Veteran left-handed reliever Chasen Shreve has been informed that he’ll make the Mets’ Opening Day roster, Shreve himself tells Tim Healey of Newsday (Twitter link). Shreve signed a minor league deal back on March 17.

This’ll be Shreve’s second stint with the Mets, and it’s a well-earned roster spot for the 31-year-old southpaw, who rattled off four hitless innings with six strikeouts against just one walk allowed during Grapefruit League play with the Mets. Following yesterday’s trade for Joely Rodriguez, Shreve gives new manager Buck Showalter a pair of experienced lefties to help balance out his bullpen.

Shreve spent the 2021 season in Pittsburgh, where he worked to a 3.20 ERA in 56 1/3 innings. However, Shreve also saw his typically strong strikeout rate (career 27.1% prior to 2021) drop to 19.1%, while his 11.9% walk rate was the third-highest mark of his eight-year big league career. The Pirates could’ve retained him via arbitration but instead chose to outright him after the season rather than pay him a raise on last year’s $1.5MM salary.

Shreve’s prior stint with the Mets was a successful one, as he tossed 25 frames during the shortened 2020 season and worked to a 3.96 ERA with a much more robust 33.3% strikeout rate. The Mets will surely hope there’s more of that bat-missing prowess on display in 2022, but so long as he notches something in the vicinity of his career 3.63 ERA (285 innings), they’ll surely be pleased with what already looks like a solid low-risk pickup.

Shreve isn’t your typical lefty specialist with gaudy platoon splits; he hasn’t dominated left-handed opponents in his career but also hasn’t been overmatched by right-handers like so many southpaws. Through 482 plate appearances, lefties have batted .222/.319/.405 against Shreve, while right-handers have posted a very similar .226/.316/.428 slash in a larger sample of 741 plate appearances. Shreve will reach six years of Major League service early this year, so when the 2022 season ends, he’ll be eligible for free agency.

Mets Sign Travis Jankowski To Minor League Deal

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The Mets have signed outfielder Travis Jankowski to a minor league contract, per a club announcement. Jankowski would earn $1.25MM upon making the big league roster, tweets MLB Network’s Jon Heyman. The team also formally announced its previously reported minor league deal with lefty Chasen Shreve.

Jankowski, 30, appeared in 76 games with the division-rival Phillies last season and posted a solid .252/.364/.351 batting line through 157 plate appearances. Jankowski seldom played in a full game last year but was regularly used as a pinch-hitter or pinch-runner and as a late-game defensive upgrade for the Phils. It’s easy enough to see why, as he can play any of the three outfield slots and carries a career +15 Defensive Runs Saved and +8.5 Ultimate Zone Rating through 2356 innings of defensive work at the MLB level. Statcast pegged Jankowski’s average sprint speed in the 88th percentile of MLB players.

Originally a supplemental first-round pick of the Padres back in 2012 (No. 44 overall), Jankowski has seen Major League time in parts of seven big league seasons — five with the Padres, plus a brief 2020 look in Cincinnati and last year’s showing in Philadelphia. He’s a .239/.322/.318 hitter in 1151 plate appearances at the big league level and a .321/.411/.385 hitter in 619 Triple-A plate appearances.

Barring injuries and/or trades of current players, Jankowski won’t have an immediate path to a big league roster spot with the Mets. New York currently has Mark Canha, Starling Marte and Brandon Nimmo penciled in as the starting trio, and bench players like J.D. Davis and Dominic Smith have ample experience in the outfield (as does second baseman Jeff McNeil). Younger players like Khalil Lee and Nick Plummer are ticketed for Triple-A and are already on the minor league roster.

That said, it’s widely expected that the Mets will be open to moving either Davis or Smith in the coming days and weeks, which could lead to an opportunity for a speed- and defense-oriented role player to make the roster. Even if Jankowski winds up heading to Triple-A to begin the season, he’s a nice depth option to have on hand, as virtually no team in the league will get through the season without some injuries in the outfield.

Mets, Chasen Shreve Nearing Deal

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The Mets are close to signing free-agent lefty Chasen Shreve to a minor league contract, tweets MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo. It’d be the second Mets stint for Shreve, who spent the 2020 campaign pitching in Queens as well.

Now 31, he has pitched in the past eight MLB seasons, seeing some time with the Braves, Yankees, Cardinals and Pirates, in addition to the Mets. He’s played 292 games in his career, logging 285 innings, with a 3.63 ERA. His 25.6% strikeout rate is a few ticks above average, but so is his 11.6% walk rate.

Spending last year with the Pirates, Shreve had an outlier season for him. His strikeout rate dropped to 19.1%, yet he still managed to get good results, as evidenced by his 3.20 ERA. That was largely driven by a .234 batting average on balls in play, leading advanced metrics to rank his work in less favorable light. (3.87 xERA, 4.73 FIP, 4.93 SIERA, 5.15 xFIP) However, looking at Shreve’s Statcast page, he threw his slider more at the expense of his fastball and did a good job at limiting hard contact, perhaps suggesting that it wasn’t just pure luck that kept his ERA low.

The Mets, despite a wild offseason, have a clear lack of lefties in the bullpen. There’s no one on the 40-man roster at the moment who’s likely to fill a regular relief role. However, they have signed Alex Claudio, Mike Montgomery and now Shreve to compete for a job, or perhaps jobs, as the southpaw element of the club’s relief corps. Shreve did fare better against lefties (.200/.288/.344) but wasn’t awful against righties (.221/.321/.398) last year.

Pirates Outright Seven, Chasen Shreve Elects Free Agency

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The Pirates announced a slew of roster moves today, outrighting seven players off the 40-man roster, per the team. Pitchers Chase De Jong, Enyel De Los Santos, Kyle Keller, Connor Overton, Chasen Shreve, and Shea Spitzbarth have all been outrighted to Triple-A. Infielder Wilmer Difo was also outrighted to Triple-A.

Shreve has elected free agency, per Jason Mackey of PGSportsNow (via Twitter).The 31-year-old southpaw posted a 3.20 ERA/4.73 FIP across 57 appearances out of the bullpen. Shreve has suited up for the Braves, Yankees, Cardinals, Mets, and Pirates over an eight-year career.

The Pirates also added a number of players to the 40-man roster, returning most from the 60-day injured list. Steven Brault, Blake Cederlind, Dillon Peters, Jose Soriano, Duane Underwood Jr., and Bryse Wilson are all now on the 40-man roster.

Pirates Announce Roster Moves

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The Pirates announced that they have reinstated outfielder Gregory Polanco from the injured list, selected left-hander Chasen Shreve and designated outfielder Hunter Owen for assignment. They also placed righty Kyle Crick on the 10-day IL, retroactive to May 1, with a triceps strain.

Polanco went on the COVID-related IL on May 4, and it was revealed a few days later that his placement came as a result of a violation of MLB’s health and safety protocols. Now that Polanco’s back, he’ll try to rebound from a subpar 90-plate appearance stretch in which he hit .200/.289/.350 with three home runs and four stolen bases.

Shreve, 30, joined the Pirates on a minor league contract last offseason after appearing in the majors in each year from 2014-20. The former Brave, Yankee, Cardinal and Met has thrown 228 2/3 innings with a respectable 3.74 ERA/3.70 SIERA and a 27.1 percent strikeout rate against an 11.5 percent walk rate. Along the way, Shreve has produced almost equal results against right-handed hitters (.228/.328/.422) and lefties (.227/.315/.434).

The Pirates selected Owen when they put Polanco on the IL, but he only totaled five plate appearances before his designation. The former 25th-round pick (2016) owns a .266/.341/.473 line with 55 home runs in 1,425 minor league plate appearances.

Pirates Sign Chasen Shreve To Minor-League Deal

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The Pirates are in agreement with left-hander Chasen Shreve on a minor-league contract, reports Jeff Passan of ESPN (Twitter link). The deal will guarantee him $1.5MM if he makes Pittsburgh’s MLB roster, per Passan. The Pirates have since announced the move.

Shreve, 30, is coming off a decent 2020 season with the Mets, where he pitched to a 3.96 ERA/3.45 SIERA across 25 relief innings. Impressively, Shreve struck out a third of the batters he faced, a career-best mark that tied for twentieth among the 141 relievers with at least 20 innings pitched. Relatedly, Shreve’s 17.1% swinging strike rate tied for thirteenth among that group.

It’s a bit surprising a left-hander with that kind of swing-and-miss stuff wound up settling for a minor-league deal, but Shreve has proven susceptible to both walks and home runs over the course of his career. That continued last season, as he allowed four home runs (1.44 HR/9) while walking a higher-than-average 11.8% of opposing hitters.

Control issues notwithstanding, it’d still register as a bit of a surprise if Shreve doesn’t earn a spot on Pittsburgh’s big league roster out of spring training. At present, only Austin Davis and Sam Howard occupy left-handed relief roles on Pittsburgh’s 40-man roster.

Free Agent Notes: Braun, Shreve, Kintzler, Marlins, Rondon

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The Brewers continue to remain in touch with Ryan Braun, but GM David Stearns told MLB.com’s Adam McCalvy (Twitter links) that there isn’t much new to report about the possibility of a reunion between the two sides.  Braun hit free agency for the first time in his career after the Brew Crew declined their half of a $14MM option on his services for 2021, on the heels of an injury-hampered season that saw Braun hit .233/.281/.488 over 141 plate appearances.

After starting 15 games as a designated hitter last season, it’s quite possible Braun’s chances of a return to Milwaukee could hinge on whether or not the universal DH is a part of the 2021 season.  Stearns gave no specifics on this front, other than to say that his team is making preparations to play either with or without a DH in the lineup.  While Braun is entering his age-37 season and doesn’t exactly fit the Brewers’ preferred model of multi-positional players, his 14-year tenure as the face of the franchise could create some room for a return — perhaps for just a final season, as Braun has weighed the idea of retirement but also said he wants to play another year.

More on the free agent front…

  • The Marlins have interest in left-hander Chasen Shreve, according to Barry Jackson and Craig Mish of the Miami Herald.  The Mets non-tendered Shreve following a season that saw the lefty post a 3.96 ERA and a very impressive 33.3K% over 25 innings, but Shreve also had a below-average 11.8% walk rate and he allowed four homers over his 25 frames.
  • Also from Jackson and Mish, there doesn’t appear to be any new progress between the Marlins and Brandon Kintzler, as the club still hasn’t made an offer to their former closer despite some ongoing interest in bringing Kintzler back.  Kintzler posted a 2.22 ERA and a 57.3% grounder rate over 24 1/3 innings for Miami last season, with the groundball specialist also posting his usual small strikeout totals (13.9K%).  The Marlins paid Kintzler a $225K buyout in October rather than exercise their $4MM club option on the veteran righty.
  • Hector Rondon signed a minor league deal with the Phillies earlier today, and The Athletic’s Zach Buchanan reports (via Twitter) that the Diamondbacks didn’t have interest in re-signing the right-hander.  Arizona signed Rondon last winter to a one-year contract worth $3MM in guaranteed money that included a club option for 2021, but after a disastrous 7.65 ERA over 20 innings, Rondon’s option wasn’t picked up.

Mets Notes: Odorizzi, Springer, Bauer, Owens, Shreve

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The Mets were linked to Jake Odorizzi’s market last month, though the team doesn’t appear to be one of the front-runners for the right-hander’s services, as Joel Sherman of the New York Post reports that Odorizzi “is believed to be much more engaged with other teams right now.”  We heard yesterday that the Twins were also falling behind in the race to sign Odorizzi, which could potentially mean good news for the Giants and Blue Jays — the other two teams cited as having interest in Odorizzi back in November.

San Francisco and Toronto are two of the teams considered to be most fervently exploring the pitching market thus far, with Sherman also listing the Padres, White Sox, Red Sox, Rays, and Angels as being particularly keen on adding arms.  It’s probably safe to guess that at least a couple of those teams have also checked in on Odorizzi, who was projected by MLBTR to receive a three-year, $39MM free agent deal.

More from Citi Field…

  • Also from Sherman, he opines that the Mets’ pitching plans could be altered by what happens with Trevor Bauer, as Bauer and George Springer appear to be the team’s top targets.  “It is possible they are planning to make just one substantial purchase,” Sherman writes, so the Mets could turn towards Odorizzi or other pitchers if Springer is signed rather than Bauer.  A trade target like Reds right-hander Sonny Gray could also be explored, with Sherman theorizing that Amed Rosario could interest a Cincinnati team known to be looking for shortstop help.
  • After speculation earlier in the offseason that Athletics assistant GM Billy Owens could be a candidate to join the Mets, the New York Post’s Ken Davidoff reports that the Mets have, at least, “held internal discussions” about Owens, though it isn’t known if Owens has actually interviewed for the team’s general manager vacancy.  Owens has a prior relationship with Mets president Sandy Alderson, as Alderson worked as a senior advisor to the Oakland front office for the last two seasons before returning to the Mets.
  • Chasen Shreve was non-tendered by the Mets prior to Wednesday’s deadline, and MLBTR’s arbitration projections had Shreve in line for an arbitration salary of between $800K and $1.1MM.  However, MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo reports that minor league deal Shreve signed with the Mets last offseason paid the left-hander a $1.5MM base salary upon reaching the majors, so Shreve’s arbitration number would have been closer to $2MM.  While not a major financial difference for a reliever who pitched pretty well in 2020, DiComo figures the Mets believe they can find either a less-expensive pitcher who can match or better Shreve’s 2020 performance, or they’re saving money for a bigger-ticket addition.  Shreve was also out of options, which undoubtedly also factored into New York’s non-tender decision.

National League Non-Tenders

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With revenue losses expected to result in reduced payrolls around baseball, a larger number of players than usual are expected to be let go by their current teams by tonight’s 7pm CT non-tender deadline.  Some of these players could end up re-signing with their teams for salaries below what they were projected (by MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz) to earn through the arbitration process, or teams could end up simply opting to explore other options…with many of those options arriving on the market through this same non-tender process.

You can track all of the arbitration and non-tender activity here, and we’ll also run through the list of National League players who have been let go in this post.

Earlier Non-Tenders

  • The Cardinals non-tendered righty John Brebbia and outfielder Rangel Ravelo, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch tweets. Brebbia had played a significant role in the St. Louis pen for his first three MLB campaigns but is still recovering from mid-2020 Tommy John surgery.
  • Right-handed reliever Clay Holmes has been non-tendered by the Pirates, Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette was among those to cover on Twitter. The 27-year-old hurler made it into just one MLB contest in 2020 owing to a forearm injury.
  • The Marlins have decided not to tender a contract to righty Ryne Stanek, Craig Mish of Sports Grid first tweeted. He joins fellow right-hander Jose Urena in departing via non-tender. (Urena had already been designated for assignment.) Stanek, 29, struggled with the free pass in limited action this year but has been a quality, high-strikeout arm in the past and could be an interesting name to watch on the open market.
  • In addition to Shreve, the Mets announced the non-tenders of righties Ariel Jurado, Paul Sewald, and Nick Tropeano.
  • The Mets will not tender a contract to left-handed reliever Chasen Shreve, Robert Murray of FanSided tweets. Shreve performed reasonably well in 2020, logging a 3.96 ERA/3.99 FIP with 12.24 K/9 and 4.32 BB/9 in 25 innings, but the Mets will nonetheless move on instead of paying him around $1MM in arbitration.
  • The Padres won’t tender a contract to infielder Greg Garcia, reports Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune (Twitter link). Garcia, 31, posted a woeful .200/.279/.250 batting line in 2020, albeit in a tiny sample of 71 plate appearances. In parts of two seasons with the Friars, he slashed .240/.351/.337, but the team opted not to give him a raise on last year’s $1.5MM salary.
  • The Reds have non-tendered outfielder Brian Goodwin, he announced on Twitter (hat tip to Mark Sheldon of MLB.com). Goodwin, whom the Reds acquired from the Angels over the summer, slashed .215/.299/.417 with six home runs and five stolen bases over 164 plate appearances between the teams in 2020. He was due to earn a projected $2.7MM to $3.6MM in arbitration.
  • The Cubs have told Jose Martinez he isn’t being tendered a contract, ESPN.com’s Jesse Rogers reports (Twitter link).  Acquired from the Rays in a deadline deal, Martinez went hitless over 22 plate appearances with Chicago, only reaching base once on a walk.  The 32-year-old mashed for the Cardinals from 2016-18, but delivered closer to league-average production in 2019 with St. Louis and with the Rays last season prior to the trade.
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