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Eric Thames

Eric Thames Announces Retirement

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Veteran first baseman and outfielder Eric Thames took to Instagram yesterday to announce his retirement. “The day has finally come,” he says in the post. “In the year of our lord, twenty, twenty-three…HE GONE! I’ve been so blessed over these last 14 years to call baseball my job. The friendships that will last a lifetime, the memories that I’ll never shut up about (and those that I’m sworn to secrecy to take to my grave ).”

This announcement officially ends one of the more unique baseball careers, as Thames has spent the past few decades crisscrossing the globe. His professional baseball life began when the Blue Jays drafted him in 2008 out of Pepperdine University. He made his major league debut with the Jays in 2011 and performed well, hitting 12 home runs in 95 games. His batting line on the year was .262/.313/.456 for a wRC+ of 107, indicating he was 7% better than the league average hitter.

Things didn’t go as well the following year, as Thames hit .243/.288/.365 for the Jays and was optioned to the minors for a time. He was then traded to the Mariners in July for Steve Delabar, getting into 40 games with Seattle after that deal. In 2013, the Mariners kept Thames in the minors and eventually designated him for assignment. He was traded to the Orioles and then went to the Astros on a waiver claim, though neither team called him up to the big leagues.

Thames signed with the NC Dinos of the Korea Baseball Organization for 2014, which transformed his career. After years of being on roster bubbles in North America, he emerged as a star in Korea. He hit 37 home runs for the Dinos that year and followed that up by hitting 47 and 40 in the next two seasons. His 2015 season stands out as being exceptionally impressive, as he also stole 40 bases and walked in 17.3% of his trips to the plate. His .381/.497/.790 batting line amounted to a 216 wRC+. He was crowned as the Most Valuable Player in the league that year.

After that strong three-year stretch with the Dinos, Thames returned to Major League Baseball, signing a three-year, $16MM deal with the Brewers. He was able to transfer a decent amount of his success from Korea to North America, as he hit 31 homers in 2017 while walking in 13.6% of his trips to the plate. His .247/.359/.518 batting line led to a 125 wRC+. Thumb surgery kept him out of action for a while in the following year, but he was still able to add another 16 home runs in 96 games, then hit another 25 in 2019. His three-year stretch in Milwaukee resulted in 72 long balls and a .241/.343/.504 batting line for a 118 wRC+. That last year saw the Brewers qualify for the Wild Card game against the Nationals. Thames went 2-4 in that game, including hitting a solo home run off Max Scherzer. But the Brewers ultimately lost 4-3 to the Nats, who would go on to win the World Series later that year, and that now goes down as the only MLB playoff game in which Thames played.

Despite that solid stretch, the Brewers surprisingly turned down a $7.5MM option on Thames for 2020 and went for the $1MM buyout instead. The Nationals scooped him up on a $4MM guarantee but he struggled in the pandemic-shortened season, hitting .203/.300/.317 with just three homers in 41 games. He signed with the Yomiuri Giants of Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball for 2021 but suffered a ruptured Achilles tendon after just one game with the club. He tried another return to the majors in 2022 by signing a minor league deal with the A’s, but struck out in 38% of his plate appearances in Triple-A and got released after 22 games.

In the end, it makes for quite a journey, with Thames having played for baseball teams all over the world. His major league career resulted in 96 home runs, 18 stolen bases, 451 hits, 286 runs scored and 235 driven in. But he’ll perhaps be best remembered by some fans for that magical three-year run in the KBO wherein he hit 124 home runs, stole 64 bases, scored 343 runs and drove in 382.

We at MLB Trade Rumors congratulate Thames on a fascinating and distinctive career, and wish him the best in his future endeavors.

A’s Outright Vimael Machin, Reassign Eric Thames

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The Athletics announced this afternoon they’ve outrighted infielder Vimael Machín off the 40-man roster. Oakland’s 40-man roster now sits at 38. Additionally, Oakland announced that non-roster invitee Eric Thames has been reassigned to Triple-A Las Vegas.

Machín has suited up with the A’s in each of the past two seasons after being selected out of the Cubs organization in the 2019 Rule 5 draft. The left-handed hitter has tallied 108 combined MLB plate appearances, putting up a .179/.264/.200 slash line without a home run. The Puerto Rico native fared much better on optional assignment to Las Vegas, however. In 393 Triple-A plate appearances last year, he hit .295/.389/.479 with 11 homers. Along the way, he walked in an impressive 12.5% of his trips to the plate while striking out just 18.3% of the time.

With just over one year of big league time under his belt, Machín doesn’t have enough service to refuse an outright assignment. He’ll head to Las Vegas and remain in the organization as a non-roster depth option. With Machín off the big league club, it looks as if the A’s will open the season with an infield group of Jed Lowrie, Tony Kemp, Elvis Andrus, Kevin Smith and Sheldon Neuse.

It’s a moderate surprise Thames won’t be in that mix. The slugging first baseman joined the organization on a minors pact over the offseason. He’d been slated to spend the 2021 campaign with the Yomiuri Giants of Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball, but he missed virtually the entire season after rupturing an Achilles in his first game. Lost season notwithstanding, Thames looked a good candidate to play first base for an Oakland team that traded Matt Olson to Atlanta. Instead, it seems the A’s will rely on a combination of Lowrie, corner outfielder Seth Brown and perhaps catcher Stephen Vogt at the position.

Whether Thames will wind up reporting to the Aviators is unclear. It’s not uncommon for non-roster deals for veterans of his ilk to contain opt-out clauses at the end of Spring Training if the player doesn’t make the big league club.

Athletics To Sign Eric Thames To Minor League Deal

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The A’s are signing first baseman Eric Thames to a minor league contract, reports Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle (on Twitter). It’s a homecoming of sorts for the 35-year-old, who is a San Jose native.

Thames has appeared in the big leagues in parts of six seasons. He debuted with the Blue Jays in 2011, then split the following campaign between Toronto and the Mariners. Thames didn’t make it back to the majors in 2013, instead spending the year in Triple-A with the M’s and Orioles. Over the 2013-14 offseason, the left-handed hitter made the jump to South Korea, signing with the NC Dinos of the Korea Baseball Organization.

It was a masterful pick-up by the Dinos, for whom Thames blossomed into an instant superstar. He spent three seasons with the Changwon-based club, popping 37 or more home runs with an OPS north of 1.100 in each. The KBO was a hitter-friendly league, but Thames’ production was outrageous even after putting it into context. That was particularly true in 2015, when the Pepperdine University product hit .381/.497/.790 with 47 homers and 40 stolen bases. That output at the plate was an incredible 116 points above the KBO league average, by measure of wRC+, and he was awarded the MVP that year.

After dominating in the KBO, Thames set his sights on a return to the majors. He was a high-profile target during the 2016-17 offseason, eventually landing a three-year, $16MM guarantee with the Brewers. Milwaukee got a solid return on that investment, as Thames continued to produce at an above-average level (albeit nowhere near his otherworldly KBO numbers) with the Brew Crew.

He hit 31 homers and posted an overall .247/.359/.518 line over 551 plate appearances in his return season. That’d be his most productive year in Milwaukee, although his combined .236/.331/.495 line between 2018-19 still checked in 12 points above average (112 wRC+). Thames increasingly struggled with strikeouts, but he also drew plenty of walks and proved a consistent power threat.

After his contract with the Brewers expired, Thames inked a one-year guarantee with the Nationals that also included a 2021 club option. He stumbled to a .203/.300/.317 mark during the shortened season, and Washington bought him out. Thames made the jump back to Asia — this time to Japan — last winter, signing with the Yomiuri Giants of Nippon Professional Baseball. Unfortunately, he ruptured an Achilles in his first game with the Giants and missed the rest of the season.

Thames now returns to affiliated ball, hoping to earn his way back into the majors. Presumably, he’ll get a chance to report to MLB Spring Training and compete for a spot on an A’s roster that could find itself in flux. Matt Olson is a potential trade candidate, as Oakland is reportedly looking to cut payroll after the lockout. Even if Olson sticks around, Thames could work his way into the designated hitter or corner outfield mix. Mitch Moreland and Jed Lowrie took the bulk of DH playing time last season, but they’re each free agents. Seth Brown and Chad Pinder could be in consideration for DH at-bats, but they look likely to platoon in left field to replace Mark Canha at the moment.

Quick Hits: Thames, Tsutsugo, Minors

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Eric Thames is planning on holding a showcase in Korea in November, according to a report from MK Sports relayed by The Athletic’s Sung Min Kim. The slugger previously played in Korea from 2014 to 2016 and parlayed his star turn there into a three-year, $16MM deal with the Brewers for the 2017-2019 seasons. He had a solid run over the length of that deal, playing 383 games, hitting 72 home runs and slashing .241/.343/.504. That production was 18% better than league average, according to wRC+. But it only amounted to 5 fWAR due to his defensive limitations. The Brewers passed on a 2020 option, leading Thames to sign a one-year deal with the Nationals. That turned out to be a miserable campaign for Thames, as he hit just .203/.300/.317. He then signed with the Yomiuri Giants of Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball. Unfortunately, as Kim notes, Thames missed all but one game this year due to a torn achilles. It’s unclear who will be invited to the showcase, but it stands to reason that interest from MLB teams will be limited, given how the past couple of years have gone. However, if this winter’s Collective Bargaining Agreement negotiations lead to a universal DH, as has been widely speculated, that could theoretically increase the chance of Thames getting offers, though likely only of the minor league variety.

Some other items of note from the baseball world…

  • The Pirates have interest in re-signing Yoshi Tsutsugo, according to Alex Stumpf of DK Pittsburgh Sports.  Given how Tsutsugo performed (.268/.347/.535 with eight homers in 144 plate appearances) after signing with the Pirates in August, it isn’t a surprise that the Bucs would want him back in the fold.  Returning to Pittsburgh on a short-term (or one-year) deal makes sense for both sides, Stumpf reasons, as Tsutsugo would get a full season as a platform year for a bigger deal in the 2022-23 offseason, while the Pirates would get a relatively inexpensive player who could maybe be flipped at the trade deadline.  A few weeks ago, MLBTR’s Steve Adams wrote about Tsutsugo’s breakout with the Pirates.
  • Over at Baseball America, in relation to the CBA expiring December 1st, J.J. Cooper answers a question about a theoretical work stoppage and how that would impact the minor leagues. Cooper reminds readers about previous stoppages and how the minor leagues continued essentially as normal. However, only players not on a 40-man roster were allowed to participate since the MLBPA includes every player who is on one. If the next strike or lockout follows historical precedent, that means baseball fans could get their fill with minor league ball while waiting for the big leagues to return. Cooper also relays that the 1994 Rule 5 draft took place during the most recent strike of 1994. This situation could theoretically pop up again, as the current CBA expires December 1st, with the Rule 5 draft typically taking placing a the end of the Winter Meetings, in the second week of December.

Eric Thames To Sign With NPB’s Yomiuri Giants

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Slugger Eric Thames is in agreement on a one-year deal with the Yomiuri Giants of Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball, as first reported by Sports Hochi. Reports out of Japan have pegged the one-year contract’s value in the vicinity of $1.2MM, though the precise number remains unclear. Thames is repped by Apex Baseball.

Thames becomes the second former Brewers first baseman to join the Giants in as many days, as Justin Smoak is also reported to be wrapping up a deal to join the Giants. That could mean that one or both will spend ample time at designated hitter, and Thames of course has plenty of experience playing the outfield corners as well.

The 2020 season was a tough one for Thames, who inked a one-year pact with the Nationals last winter. The 34-year-old had a productive three-year run with the Brewers (.241/.343/.504 with 72 homers and a 118 wRC+), but his lone season in D.C. resulted in a .203/.300/.317 batting line through 140 trips to the plate.

Thames is no stranger to playing overseas, having starred for the NC Dinos of the Korea Baseball Organization from 2014-16 before returning to MLB with the Brewers in 2017. This will mark his first action in NPB, however. Depending on how the 2021 season plays out for Thames, he should again be an interesting free agent next winter. With a productive year for the Giants, it’s easy to see him drawing legitimate interest from all three of MLB, NPB and the KBO a year from now.

Quick Hits: Snell, Mariners, Yanks, Voit, Thames, Mets, Tebow

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The Mariners entered the rumor mill Monday as a team reportedly interested in acquiring Rays left-hander Blake Snell. Unsurprisingly, though, it would take a significant offer for the Mariners to acquire Snell. The Mariners would need to include any of three of their best young outfielders – Kyle Lewis, Jarred Kelenic or Julio Rodriguez – in order to get a deal done, Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times reports. Lewis is probably out of the question as a trade chip for Seattle, as he just won American League Rookie of the Year honors for 2020. Kelenic and Rodriguez may be off the table, too, considering they’re elite prospects. Nevertheless, you can’t blame the Rays for aiming high. After all, the soon-to-be 28-year-old Snell is a recent AL Cy Young winner (2018) who’s due an affordable $39MM over the next three seasons.

  • Yankees first baseman Luke Voit has popped up in trade rumors early this offseason, but “that idea does not seem to have generated real traction in the front office,” Bryan Hoch of MLB.com writes. There doesn’t seem to be any reason for the Yankees to trade Voit, who’s coming off a huge year and under affordable control through 2023. Voit slashed .277/.338/.610 with a league-leading 22 home runs over 234 plate appearances in 2020.
  • Teams in the majors, Nippon Professional Baseball and the Korea Baseball Organization have shown interest in free-agent first baseman/outfielder Eric Thames this offseason, per Jon Morosi of MLB.com. Thames spent the prior four seasons in the majors with the Brewers and Nationals, with whom he combined for a .237/.339/.486 line and 75 home runs in 1,428 plate appearances, but he struggled in Washington last year. Thames was previously a folk hero in Korea before joining the Brewers, even earning the nickname “God” during an incredible run with the KBO’s NC Dinos from 2014-16.
  • Ex-NFL quarterback and current Mets minor league outfielder Tim Tebow said earlier this month that he hasn’t given up on his baseball career. Neither has Mets president Sandy Alderson, who was at the helm of their front office when they signed Tebow in 2016. Alderson stated Monday that the Mets are hopeful the 33-year-old Tebow will continue pursuing his baseball dream in 2021, per Mollie Walker of the New York Post. “I think that the organization has already benefited significantly from his involvement with the Mets and his pursuit of a baseball career,” said Alderson, who added that “he’s entitled to another shot post-COVID. And I’m happy he’s coming back.”

Nationals Decline 2021 Options On Four Players

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The Nationals have declined their 2021 options on right fielder Adam Eaton, right-hander Anibal Sanchez, first baseman Eric Thames and infielder/outfielder Howie Kendrick, per a club announcement. Eaton’s five-year, $23.5MM deal contained club options for the 2020 season ($9.5MM) and the 2021 season ($10.5MM with a $1.5MM buyout). The Nats picked up his 2020 option last winter but will buy him out on the heels of a woeful season at the plate.

Sanchez’s two-year, $19MM deal with the Nats contained a $12MM club option with a $2MM buyout. Thames signed a one-year, $4MM deal last winter — one that came with a $4MM mutual option and a $1MM buyout. Kendrick’s $6.25MM deal with the Nats came with a $4MM salary in 2020 but a hefty $2.25MM buyout on a $6.5MM mutual option for 2021. All four players will be paid those buyouts and head back to the open market.

Eaton, 32 in December, was acquired in the blockbuster trade that sent pitching prospects Lucas Giolito, Reynaldo Lopez and Dane Dunning to the White Sox — all three of whom started games for the South Siders in 2020. Giolito has emerged as one of the game’s best young pitchers since the trade, but the others have yet to solidify themselves as consistent arms. (Dunning will surely get that chance in 2021.)

While Eaton’s time with the Nats ended with a whimper — he batted just .226/.285/.384 in 2020 — he was a key member of 2019’s World Series roster. Eaton appeared in 151 games with the Nats in that championship season, batting .279/.365/.428 with 15 homers, 25 doubles, seven triples and 15 steals. He had a quiet postseason before breaking out to go 8-for-25 with a pair of homers and four walks during the 2019 World Series.

From 2014-19, Eaton batted .289/.367/.423 with 51 homers, 133 doubles, 37 triples and 74 steals, and any club that signs him this winter will hope for a return to that level of productivity. He’s never won a Gold Glove — he very arguably should have in 2016 — but Eaton has a solid defensive reputation in right field. He’s unlikely to return to those 2016 heights that saw him log 27 Defensive Runs Saved and an 18.5 Ultimate Zone Rating in right field, but Eaton has a solid track record of above-average power, speed and glovework that should appeal to clubs at something less than the one-year, $10.5MM price point on which the Nats passed.

Sanchez, 37 in February, improbably revitalized his career for a second act when he latched on with the 2017 Braves at the end of Spring Training. Sanchez parlayed a brilliant rebound campaign with the Braves into a two-year, $19MM deal in D.C. and, like Eaton, provided considerable value to the World Champs in 2019. That season saw Sanchez rack up 166 innings of 3.85 ERA ball, and he went on to give the Nats 18 innings with a 2.50 ERA in the postseason — including a dominant, 7 2/3-inning scoreless effort against the Cardinals in Game 1 of the NLCS.

Unfortunately for Sanchez and the Nats, his 2020 season swung in the other direction. He pitched 53 innings and was tattooed for a 6.62 ERA in that time, but there’s no denying the crucial role he played in helping the Nats to their first World Series title.

Speaking of that World Series, Kendrick will go down in Nationals lore as perhaps the biggest hero of the whole season. His epic grand slam put away the Dodgers in the decisive Game 5 of the NLDS, and Kendrick again played savior when he banged what looked like a perfectly located pitch from Will Harris off the right foul pole to put the Nats on top over the Astros in Game 7 of the World Series.

Kendrick battled through injuries in his return to the Nats in 2020, however, taking just 100 plate appearances and posting a solid but unremarkable .275/.320/.385 slash in that time. Kendrick isn’t certain whether he’ll play again in 2020 or retire at this point, so he’ll take some time to ponder his future.

Thames inked a one-year deal with the Nats last winter but never really found his footing. He took 140 turns at the plate but managed only a .203/.300/.317 batting line in that small sample. The former KBO star slugged 72 homers in the three prior seasons with the Brewers, and he could fit on a club looking for a lefty bat that can platoon at first base or in the outfield corners. Given the scope of his 2020 struggles, he may need to earn his way onto a roster via a minor league deal, however.

Universal DH Would Allow Nationals To Reboot Their World Series Approach

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With the DH likely headed to the National League, at least for 2020, we’re going over each NL roster to find their best and most likely candidates to reap the rewards of the extra at-bats. We’ve already looked at the Cardinals and Reds from the Central, the Dodgers and Diamondbacks out West, as well as some free agent options still available. Let’s dip our toes into the NL East, and what better place to start than with the defending World Series champs: the Washington Nationals.

If there’s a team ready for post-coronavirus baseball, it’s the Nats. Last we saw of the Nationals, they were stomping the Astros on Houston’s turf en route to becoming the first team in history to win a World Series with four road wins. The Nats floundered with NL rules, scoring one run per game in front of their home crowd – but with Howie Kendrick at designated hitter, Dave Martinez’s club cannot be beat. They’ve proven they can win with their fans watching from home and their pitchers keeping a safe distance from the batters’ box.

Obviously, even the seven most high-pressure games in baseball is a poor stand-in for large sample data, and those games alone don’t suggest much of anything at all about how the Nats will actually transition to the universal DH. That said, Howie Kendrick remains their likeliest DH candidate, and that bodes well for Washington’s offense. Being able to let Kendrick DH most days should loosen Martinez’s strickly regimented rest schedule for his 36-year-old utility slugger. Given the discipline Martinez showed in limiting a healthy Kendrick to 70 starts last season – even as he put up a .344/.395/.572 line – it’s unlikely Kendrick suits up on an everyday basis. But two years removed from Achilles surgery in a shortened season with a DH: that might be the recipe for an everyday Howie Kendrick.

There could do a flip side to a shortened season, however, such as fewer rest days or stacked doubleheaders, so the Nats will need other options beyond Kendrick. Luckily, Washington has other options on the roster beyond its NLCS MVP, and if they want to station Kendrick in the field a time or two a week, he can capably man first, second, or even third.

In terms of alternative, Eric Thames should be liberally deployed against right-handers. Thames joins the roster in place of Matt Adams, who shouldered much of the first-base burden against tough righties last season. Beyond serving as injury insurance for Adam Eaton in right, that’s the role Thames should step into in Washington. With an extra bat in the lineup, the former KBO star ought to find himself in the lineup against right-handers most days, whether at first base, right field, or DH. Coming off a 25-homer season in which he slugged .529 against righties, he’s a weapon in the right spot.

As in 2019, the Nats will play a three-man game at first base, with no less than Mr. National himself taking up that third slot. Ryan Zimmerman should slot in for Thames or Kendrick on occasion against righties, but expect to find him in the lineup while Thames comes off the bench against lefties. Zim’s numbers last season could be construed as a vet nearing his last legs (.257/.314/.415), but the problem wasn’t his legs: it was his feet. Plantar fasciitis slowed Zimmerman for most of the season, but he came up with some big hits in the postseason, and the extra time to rest and recuperate this offseason should benefit the long-time National

The final consideration for the Nats’ DH spot is this: if top prospect Carter Kieboom starts the season in the minors, Asdrubal Cabrera will man third base.  But if the Nats deem Kieboom ready from the jump, then Cabrera could cycle through the DH role a bit as well. Cabrera was excellent after joining the Nats in 2019, finishing the year with a total line of .260/.342/.441 with 18 home runs and 91 driven in. For what it’s worth, Cabrera reached base at a higher rate while batting right-handed last year (.357 OBP to .337 OBP), but he slugged better while hitting from the left side (.452 SLG to .410 SLG).

If indeed the National League plays with a DH this season, Dave Martinez will juggle the role as he did with his veterans’ playing time in 2019. With the Kendrick/Thames/Zimmerman triumvirate time-sharing at-bats between first base and DH, the Nats may need the extra oomph from having two of the three in the lineup up every day to help offset the loss of Anthony Rendon. If nothing else, the Nats proved in the World Series they could thrive living the American League lifestyle. Soon, they may soon get the chance to prove it for a full (shortened) season.

Nationals Sign Eric Thames

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In a continuation of a recent signing bonanza, the Nationals announced a one-year contract with first baseman/outfielder Eric Thames. The Apex Baseball client’s contract contains a mutual option as well. Thames is reportedly guaranteed $4MM, which comes in the form of a $3MM salary and a $1MM buyout on the option.

The Nats have now added five veteran infielders on short-term deals in the past several weeks. In addition to bringing back catcher Yan Gomes and utilitymen Howie Kendrick and Asdrubal Cabrera, the club has picked up Starlin Castro and now Thames.

It’s rumored the D.C. org still intends to work something out with long-time franchise stalwart Ryan Zimmerman, leaving open the question whether a major addition at third base is still plausible. Whether there’s space for Josh Donaldson or some top-end trade target, even with a 26th active roster spot to work with, may depend upon the Nats’ willingness to utilize Kendrick and/or Thames as part of the outfield mix. Both have spent time there in the recent past but are probably best limited to duties at first base to the extent possible.

Fans of the Nats won’t be especially surprise to hear of today’s signing. President of baseball operations Mike Rizzo has made a practice of keeping a left-handed-hitting corner piece around. The role was filled most recently by Matt Adams but has also been occupied by Adam Lind, Clint Robinson, and Chad Tracy. It’s a clearer need now than ever given the otherwise mostly right-handed-hitting infield mix. (Cabrera is a switch-hitter.)

Thames, 33, was trusted to take only fifty trips to the plate against southpaws last year and didn’t fare well. But he is a weapon against right-handed pitching. He strikes out quite a bit, but also walks at an above-average rate. And he devastated opposing righties to the tune of a .254/.348/.529 slash with 23 home runs in 346 plate appearances.

It was much the same split in effectiveness in Thames’s first two seasons with the Brewers, so the Nats will anticipate much the same and pick their spots with their new slugger. He landed in Milwaukee after reviving his career in Korea, where he once even managed a 40/40 campaign. Though he hasn’t attempted many steals in the majors, Thames does grade well on the basepaths. Metrics have graded him as a roughly average performer at first base and even in the corner outfield of late.

The Brewers could’ve kept Thames at a $7.5MM price tag, but opted instead to pay him a $1MM buyout. Justin Smoak ended up inking in Milwaukee to take up the slack.

Britt Ghiroli of The Athletic first reported the agreement (via Twitter). MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand (via Twitter) and ESPN.com’s Jeff Passan (Twitter link) added financial details.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Latest On Brewers’ First Base Plans

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Although the Brewers declined first baseman/outfielder Eric Thames’ 2020 option on Monday, that doesn’t necessarily mean his time with the franchise is up. General manager David Stearns stated after the decision that the team’s open to re-signing Thames for less than the $7.5MM salary he’d have made had it exercised his option, per Adam McCalvy of MLB.com.

“We’re certainly not closing the door on bringing Eric back. We’ll see if there’s a fit sometime later in the offseason,” said Stearns. “But at this point with the dollar value associated with the club option and the market we see developing out there at that position, we thought it was in the [team’s] best interests to decline the option.”

The Brewers ended up saving $6.5MM by cutting Thames, whose option came with a $1MM buyout. The former Korea Baseball Organization superstar spent three years in Milwaukee, where his tenure began with a flourish early in 2017 before his production settled in at solid but unspectacular levels. Thames, who will turn 33 next week, slashed .247/.346/.505 with 25 home runs in 459 plate appearances this season. His overall offensive output checked in at a respectable 16 percent above the league-average mark, per FanGraphs’ wRC+ metric, though the left-handed hitter was a platoon player who did just about all of his damage versus righty pitchers.

Considering Thames’ limitations and what the Brewers deemed too high a price tag, the small-market club now at least wants to sees if it can find similar or better production for less money. In Stearns’ estimation, it’s shaping up to be a “robust” offseason market for first basemen in terms of free agency and trades. Jose Abreu, Edwin Encarnacion, Howie Kendrick, Justin Smoak and Mitch Moreland look like the game’s best free-agent first basemen, though at least the first two names on that list could prove to be out of the price range of a Milwaukee team that may want to save money at the spot, re-sign one or both of Yasmani Grandal and/or Mike Moustakas and perhaps upgrade other areas of need.

Should the Brewers opt against adding any somewhat pricey first basemen in the coming months, they could turn to outfielder Ryan Braun at the position. Braun is indeed “on the table” as an in-house option, Stearns revealed. While Braun only has 18 games at first on his resume (all of which came in 2018), moving him there may help preserve the oft-injured soon-to-be 36-year-old and his keep his still-capable bat in the lineup on a more consistent basis. The Brewers would perhaps be in position to deploy Trent Grisham as their primary left fielder in that scenario.

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