Kevin Kiermaier

Blue Jays Sign Kevin Kiermaier

By Simon Hampton | December 15, 2022 at 8:05am CDT

Dec. 15: The Blue Jays have formally announced their one-year deal with Kiermaier. The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal tweets that the contract contains $750K of bonuses based on days spent on the active roster.

Dec. 14: Kiermaier’s contract is a one-year deal that comes with a $9MM guarantee, reports Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times (Twitter link).

Between Kiermaier’s $9MM salary and the recent $21MM annual value on the Jays’ three-year deal with righty Chris Bassitt, the Jays now project to cross the luxury-tax threshold for the first time; Roster Resource pegs them at just over $234MM — a bit more than $1MM north of the $233MM cutoff point. Certainly there are ways for Toronto to duck back beneath the barrier if required — a trade of catcher Danny Jansen, for instance, would clear his projected $3.7MM salary and bring back help in other areas of need — but there’s no indication that ownership has placed given the front office any such mandates.

Dec. 10: The Blue Jays have an agreement in place with center fielder Kevin Kiermaier, according to Shi Davidi of Sportsnet. The deal is pending a physical. It’ll be just the second team Kiermaier has played for, having spent ten big league seasons with the AL East rival Rays. He became a free agent for the first time after the Rays declined his $13MM team option for 2023. Kiermaier is represented by Equity Baseball.

Center field has been an area of need for the Blue Jays this winter, and they had previously been linked with Brandon Nimmo and Cody Bellinger.

The 32-year-old appeared in 63 games for the Rays last season, slashing .228/.281/.369 with seven home runs over 221 plate appearances. He’s always been known for his stellar defense in center field, and while that’s declined a bit in recent seasons he was still worth two Defensive Runs Saved there in 2022. The offensive production amounted to a below average wRC+ of 90, but his defensive work meant he was still worth 1.1 fWAR.

Injuries played a big part in Kiermaier’s 2022 season, as he landed on the IL in June with left hip inflammation. He was activated July 1, but by July 10 he was back on the IL with the same problem, which ultimately ended his season early. He’d wind up having surgery in August to address the labrum issue in the left hip, but the expectation at the time was that he’d be ready for spring training.

Kiermaier is a three-time Gold Glove winner who’s been one of the best center fielders in all of baseball for the past decade. Since his first full year in 2014, Kiermaier has been worth 147 Defensive Runs Saved, according to Fielding Bible. That’s the best of all outfielders and second overall behind Andrelton Simmons (who had 1,400 more defensive innings).

Despite 2022 being the worst defensive year of his career, it was still above average and there’s every chance his hip problem played a significant part in that. After all, just a year ago he was worth 13 DRS in 894 2/3 center field innings. He still ranked in the 93rd percentile in sprint speed and ranked well above league average in arm strength.

Offense has never been Kiermaier’s calling, and he owns a lifetime .248/.308/.407 line. That’s largely built off his early work, and since 2018 he’s put up a wRC+ of 79, 79, 94, 101 and then 90. There’s not a lot of power there (82 career home runs), and his strikeout rate has gradually ticked up to 27.6% in 2022 against a walk rate of 6.3%.

George Springer has been handling the bulk of the work in center field in recent seasons, but there’s been speculation that he’d move to a corner spot moving forward. The trade of Teoscar Hernandez to the Mariners and this signing of Kiermaier seems to confirm that, and it looks likely the Jays will line up with Springer and Lourdes Gurriel Jr. in the corner spots with Kiermaier manning center.

This move may not be the last outfield addition either, and the team could look to add a fourth offensively-minded outfielder at some stage. Ben Nicholson-Smith of SportsNet reports that the team has interest in both Michael Conforto and Michael Brantley. Signing either of those two would give the Jays a more flexible outfield group, and allow them to rotate options through the DH position as well depending on matchups, form and workload.

Photo credit: USA Today Sports.

Quick Hits: Kiermaier, Dodgers, Red Sox, Marlins, Bellinger, Bell, Rays, Diaz, Reds

By Mark Polishuk | December 10, 2022 at 9:08pm CDT

Kevin Kiermaier is off the market after agreeing to a deal with the Blue Jays earlier today, and the former Gold Glover was drawing interest elsewhere on the market. The Dodgers “were in the running down to the end” on Kiermaier, according to Jorge Castillo of the Los Angeles Times (Twitter link), as Kiermaier was presumably being eyed as the left-handed hitting, center field replacement for Cody Bellinger. Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman is no stranger to Kiermaier, as Friedman was the Rays’ general manager when Kiermaier began his career in Tampa Bay.

Red Sox chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom is also a former member of Tampa’s front office, but Kiermaier and the Sox had only “periphery discussions” about a possible contract, MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo tweets. Adding Kiermaier would’ve helped the Sox address their needs in the outfield, but the newly-signed Masataka Yoshida is Boston’s biggest swing in the outfield market to date. For now, the first-choice Red Sox starting outfield looks like Yoshida in left field, Enrique Hernandez in center, and Alex Verdugo in right.

Dodgers, Rockies, Reds Exploring Center Field Market

By Anthony Franco | December 6, 2022 at 7:02pm CDT

Any chance of the Dodgers retaining Cody Bellinger at a lower price after they non-tendered him were dashed this afternoon, with the 2019 NL MVP agreeing to terms on a $17.5MM pact with the Cubs. Shortly after news of that agreement broke, L.A. manager Dave Roberts met with reporters and confirmed the club is scouring the market for center field help (via Jack Harris of the Los Angeles Times).

Aside from Aaron Judge, the free agent class is handily led by Brandon Nimmo. The longtime Met is coming off arguably a career-best season in which he hit .274/.367/.433 over a personal-high 673 plate appearances. Headed into his age-30 campaign, the lefty-swinging Nimmo is widely expected to command a deal that tops nine figures. Nimmo has drawn interest from the Yankees, Giants, Rays, Mariners and Blue Jays in addition to the incumbent Mets. There’s been no concrete reports of any interest on L.A.’s part, though they’re certainly capable of exploring that market.

Teams not interested in making that kind of commitment are facing a rather sharp drop to the next tier. It’s possible that applies to the Dodgers, and it’s certainly a factor for the Rockies and Reds. Colorado general manager Bill Schmidt tells Danielle Allentuck of the Colorado Springs Gazette the team is seeking a left-handed hitter, preferably a player who can factor into center field (Twitter link). Nimmo fits that description, but both Allentuck and Nick Groke of the Athletic suggested yesterday he’d be too pricey for the Rockies.

Meanwhile, Bobby Nightengale of the Cincinnati Enquirer reports the Reds are seeking center field help and have looked to the free agent market. As with Colorado, Nimmo’s certainly out of the question for Cincinnati. Nightengale suggests the team is likely looking at one-year offers for hitters of interest. Payroll limitations have loomed over the Reds in each of the last two offseasons, and GM Nick Krall told reporters yesterday the front office has “a little bit of money” to spend this winter but cautioned they “don’t have a ton” at their disposal.

With Bellinger off the board, the market beyond Nimmo is very thin. Kevin Kiermaier is perhaps the only regular center fielder available, and he’s coming off a .228/.281/.369 showing with the Rays before his season was cut short by hip surgery. Jon Heyman of the New York Post tweeted this afternoon the Mets could look into Kiermaier if Nimmo signs elsewhere. Beyond the longtime Ray, the market is led by depth options like Rafael Ortega, Adam Engel and Jackie Bradley Jr. Perhaps teams could look to Andrew Benintendi or Joey Gallo given the scarcity of the center field market, although both players have worked exclusively in the corners for the past couple seasons.

It’s a similar story on the trade market, where there aren’t many obvious candidates. Pittsburgh’s Bryan Reynolds will be the subject of renewed speculation after his trade request became public last week, but the Bucs have maintained it won’t increase their likelihood of actually making a move. The Diamondbacks are known to be open to offers on a number of their young outfielders but only in deals that’d net them MLB help. Speculatively speaking, players like Michael A. Taylor or Trent Grisham could plausibly come up in trade discussions, but there’s been no indication either is currently on the block.

Rays Notes: 40-Man Roster, Trades, Choi, Kiermaier

By Mark Polishuk | November 13, 2022 at 11:04pm CDT

Several teams are facing a 40-man roster crunch this winter, with the Rays in particular facing a lot of tough decisions due to the depth in their talented farm system. As such, MLB Network’s Jon Morosi (Twitter links) reports that the Rays have been “in advanced trade negotiations” and could make multiple deals before Tuesday’s deadline to set 40-man rosters in advance of the Rule 5 Draft. The Reds, Cubs, Mets, and Angels are among the teams who have called the Rays in search of pitching.

Any number of options could be on the table for a Tampa Bay front office that is always seeking roster and payroll flexibility. It is possible and even likely that the Rays might not swing any major deals, as Tampa might first be exploring the trade value of any players at the back end of their 40-man roster. Before leaving these players unprotected or maybe even non-tendering them or designating them for assignment, the Rays first want to check if anything can be obtained in exchange for these somewhat expendable pieces.

A more interesting wrinkle would see the Rays discussing trades involving prospects or part-time players who might also be a bit superfluous within the organization. Last November, the Rays dealt Louis Head, Mike Brosseau, Brent Honeywell Jr., and Tobias Myers in separate trades in the week prior to the 40-man deadline. Of that group, only Brosseau had some success at the MLB level in 2022, posting some solid numbers in a reserve role with the Brewers.

Of course, the biggest headline-grabber for the Rays would be a trade involving a regular on their Major League roster, and this possibility certainly can’t be ruled out given Tampa’s history of aggressive deal-making. The Rays have a very large arbitration class that they’ve already reduced to “only” 16 remaining players, after trading Ji-Man Choi to the Pirates and parting ways with Nick Anderson and Roman Quinn. None of the arbitration-eligibles are projected to earn truly huge money, but every dollar counts for the budget-conscious Rays, and Yandy Diaz ($5.4MM in projected salary), Ryan Yarbrough ($4.2MM) and Randy Arozarena ($4MM) are the most expensive of the bunch.

Yonny Chirinos is projected for $1.6MM and Shawn Armstrong for $1.4MM, and those two hurlers stand out since Morosi reported earlier this week that the Rays were discussing Chirinos, Armstrong, and Yarbrough during the GM Meetings. It isn’t known if the Reds, Angels, Cubs, or Mets were focused on any of this trio in particular, but any of those pitchers could be potential fits for teams with rotation or bullpen needs. Chirinos could carry the most intrigue, as the right-hander pitched well in 2018-19 before injuries (a Tommy John surgery and a fractured elbow) limited him to just 18 1/3 MLB innings since the start of the 2020 campaign.

Choi’s projected $4.5MM salary certainly played a role in his move to Pittsburgh, and the Rays were known to be talking to more than just the Pirates about the first baseman. Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports that the Padres and Astros also had some interest, with Houston revisiting their interest in Choi from prior to the trade deadline.

The Astros ended up adding Trey Mancini to bolster themselves at first base, but since Mancini and Yuli Gurriel are both free agents, it makes sense that the Astros would again check in on a past target. Likewise, the Padres have a need at first base with Josh Bell hitting the open market. Choi is scheduled for free agency himself next winter and thus probably wouldn’t have been seen a longer-term add for either team, or even a full-time option. Either Houston or San Diego might have opted to just play Choi against right-handed pitching.

Also from Topkin’s notes column, he had an interesting wrinkle to the end of Kevin Kiermaier’s tenure in Tampa Bay. There was no doubt that the Rays were going to buy out Kiermaier for $2.5MM rather than exercise his $13MM club option for 2023, yet Kiermaier said that he heard an unknown team had some talks with the Rays about a veritable sign-and-trade deal. In this scenario, the Rays would have exercised the club option and then swapped Kiermaier to this mystery team.

Given that Kiermaier is coming off a season shortened by hip surgery, it doesn’t seem likely that the other club would’ve been too keen to give up an asset to absorb that entire $13MM contract. It is more probable that the other team perhaps offered another undesirable contract in return to help offset the cost, or maybe had Kiermaier involved as part of a larger trade package. In any case, the Rays weren’t interested, and preferred to just decline the option — perhaps with an eye towards re-signing Kiermaier at a lower price.

Cubs Expecting To Add Starting Center Fielder; Active In Shortstop Market

By Simon Hampton | November 12, 2022 at 12:15pm CDT

It’s shaping up as a busy off-season for the Cubs as they look to push on with their rebuild and improve on their 74-88 record in 2022. According to remarks made by president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer to Maddie Lee of the Chicago Sun-Times, the Cubs are expecting to add a starting center fielder, while Jon Morosi of MLB Network reports that the team has been one of the most active early on in the shortstop market.

“We have guys internally that will certainly play out there [in center],” Hoyer said, “but I think the lion’s share might come from external.”

Rafael Ortega and Christopher Morel had the bulk of the playing time in center this past season, but while both are under club control for next season, Hoyer’s comments make it pretty clear that neither are seen as their center fielder moving forward. Ortega hit .241/.331/.358 with seven home runs, while Morel posted a .235/.308/.433 line with 16 home runs in his rookie campaign. Morel bounced around the infield positions as well, but neither posted positive defensive marks for their work in center.

A number of the Cubs top prospects are outfielders, but they’re at varying stages of their development. Their top prospect, according to Fangraphs, Pete Crowe-Armstrong is at High-A while Kevin Alcantara (third) is at Single-A. Brennen Davis and Alexander Canario are their best outfield prospects at Triple-A, but both are injured and uncertain timelines.

“Certainly with [Alexander] Canario’s injury and Brennen [Davis’] setback, it made that just that much more obvious,” Hoyer said.

As far as center field options go in free agency, the options aren’t particularly plentiful. Aaron Judge is the biggest name available, but while he played a significant amount of center this season for the Yankees, it seems unlikely the Cubs would be prepared to make the sort of splash needed to land him. Brandon Nimmo’s blend of elite on-base skills, solid power, and adequate defense would make him a strong candidate, but even though he’ll be much cheaper than Judge, he’ll still likely command a deal north of $100MM and there’ll be plenty of suitors to drive his price up.

Two less high profile names to consider are Kevin Kiermaier and Cody Bellinger, and Gordon Wittenmyer of NBC Sports reports that both are n the Cubs’ radar. Kiermaier, 33, is a free agent after the Rays declined his team option for 2023. While his previously elite defensive numbers have dropped off as he’s aged, he’s still a strong defender and would be a cheaper stopgap option until one of the Cubs’ prospects are ready. Bellinger could well become a free agent shortly if the Dodgers opt to non-tender him. He’s dropped off considerably since his 47-homer MVP year in 2019, posting a wRC+ of 47 and 83 the past two seasons, but is still a solid defender in center, and at 27, he’s young enough that a change of scenery might allow him to rediscover some of his offensive talent.

While a big splash in center doesn’t appear likely, it could come at shortstop where the team is active in the market for the top four options available – Trea Turner, Carlos Correa, Dansby Swanson and Xander Bogaerts. Wittenmyer’s report adds that the Cubs apparently “love” Correa, something that dates back to the 2012 draft when they were eyeing him up with the sixth pick before he went first overall to the Astros. The 28-year-old had a strong platform year with the Twins, where he signed on a short term deal after no adequate long term deals materialized last winter. He’ll look to cash in this winter though, and it’s certainly possible that his contract lands in the $300MM range over nine or ten years.

The Cubs used Nico Hoerner at shortstop this year to great effect. Hoerner was worth 11 Defensive Runs Saved and 13 Outs Above Average at the position, but he could easily slide over to second base in the event the Cubs do sign one of the aforementioned shortstops, and take over at shortstop again if a new signing begins to decline and needs to switch position.

Ultimately, it’s going to be a busy winter for the Cubs, and it won’t just stop at shortstop and center field. As Wittenmyer adds, the Cubs have explored upgrading at first base and have checked in with Josh Bell and Trey Mancini, while they’re also looking to beef up their rotation and showing interest in Koudai Senga and a reunion with lefty Drew Smyly. The Cubs payroll is currently projected at $126MM, according to RosterResource. That’s well short of the sort of spending they made during their championship years last decade, so as they begin to show progress in their rebuild, it’s not surprising to see them willing to flex their financial muscle again.

Rays Decline Kevin Kiermaier’s Option

By Darragh McDonald and Anthony Franco | November 10, 2022 at 10:53am CDT

The Rays announced they’ve officially declined their option over outfielder Kevin Kiermaier. Kiermaier collects a $2.5MM buyout and heads to free agency for the first time in his career.

There hasn’t much suspense with this decision, as reports emerged in early August that Tampa Bay would buy the center fielder out. That would’ve been an easy call for any team, as Kiermaier would otherwise have been in line for a $13MM salary next year. He’s coming off season-ending surgery to repair the labrum in his left hip. With a $10.5MM gap between the option value and the buyout price, cutting him loose was a particularly easy call for a Rays club that consistently runs one of the league’s lower payrolls.

The move could officially end Kiermaier’s 10-year tenure in Tampa Bay. One of the game’s best defensive outfielders at his peak, he’s collected three Gold Glove awards in his career. The Rays have long placed an emphasis on strong defense, and that focus was baked into the club’s decision to sign Kiermaier to a $53.5MM extension back in 2017. He’s battled injuries and typically been a below-average hitter over that stretch, but he’s continued to play spectacular defense when healthy enough to take the field.

Both Kiermaier and Rays executives have expressed an openness to continuing their relationship, although that’d certainly come at a lower price point than the value of the option. Meanwhile, Bob Nightengale of USA Today suggests the Cardinals could have some interest in Kiermaier as a free agent. St. Louis already has Dylan Carlson as their primary center fielder, meaning Kiermaier would likely be a fourth outfield target if the Cards did reach out to his representatives at Reynolds Sports Management.

It’s possible Kiermaier may find better opportunities to play every day in center field elsewhere. He’s headed into his age-33 season and coming off a disappointing .228/.281/.369 showing in 221 plate appearances before the hip surgery. Yet he’s also still one of the sport’s better defensive outfielders, and he’s arguably the second-best center fielder available in a weak free agent class. Excepting top free agent Aaron Judge, who’s better suited for right field long-term, only Brandon Nimmo looks like a slam-dunk regular to play center field next year. Nimmo’s likely to command a nine-figure contract of his own, and Kiermaier is alongside players like Jackie Bradley Jr. and Adam Duvall as the next tier of options. The Dodgers could non-tender Cody Bellinger, which would cut loose a plus defender coming off a couple seasons of offensive struggles, but the options aren’t robust for teams looking for outside help in center field.

Rays Notes: Offense, Choi, Arozarena, Kiermaier, Zunino

By Steve Adams | October 12, 2022 at 9:23am CDT

For a fourth consecutive season, Rays president of baseball operations Erik Neander held a press conference to discuss his team’s playoff exit — this time after seeing the Rays’ lineup held to just one run in 24 innings during a two-game Wild Card ousting at the hands of the Guardians (links via Adam Berry of MLB.com and Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times). In broad terms, Neander spoke of a need to improve the offense, particularly against right-handed pitching, while also praising the depth and quality of the returning pitching staff.

As a collective unit, Rays hitters batted just .234/.305/.373 against right-handed pitching. Their 24% strikeout rate against righties was seventh-worst in MLB (and trailing only one playoff club, Atlanta). Rays hitters connected on 108 homers against righties, placing them 22nd among MLB clubs.

There are varying reasons for the struggles against righties. Playing much of the season without injured lefty-swinging Brandon Lowe, a career .257/.353/.505 hitter when holding the platoon advantage, deprived the Rays of one of their top power threats against right-handed opposition. Wander Franco and Kevin Kiermaier also missed substantial time, and the Rays received a fairly pedestrian showing from deadline pickup David Peralta, who was largely acquired for his track record in this specific area. The spate of health issues pushed the Rays to lean on younger, unproven players more often than they’d have liked and also brought about more right-on-right matchups than the team would surely have preferred.

To that end, Neander indicated that changes are likely on the horizon. While of course declining to mention specific names, the team’s top decision-maker indicated a need to “raise” the team’s “offensive standards” and plainly indicated that the Rays cannot simply “stand pat and assume things will get better.” As ever with the Rays, an active offseason seemingly awaits.

Some degree of turnover was always to be expected, given the Rays’ massive slate of 19 arbitration-eligible players — the most of any team in Major League Baseball. That group will cost a projected $42MM next season, per MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz. Paired with the roughly $25MM in guaranteed contracts on next year’s books (Franco, Lowe, Manuel Margot, Tyler Glasnow and Brooks Raley), plus a handful of pre-arbitration players to round things out, that $42MM sum would push the Rays north of $70MM — a small payroll number for most organizations but one that’s more significant at Tropicana Field. The Rays ran out a franchise-record payroll in 2022 but still clocked in around $85-86MM, illustrating the relative heft of this year’s arbitration class.

As far as potential candidates for a change of scenery, Topkin unsurprisingly indicates that first baseman Ji-Man Choi “seems to be on the way out.” Given Choi’s projected $4.5MM salary, his proximity to free agency (next winter), and the fact that he’s seen his power dip while his strikeouts have risen over the past couple seasons, he stands out as a fairly obvious trade or non-tender candidate. The Rays regularly find low-cost platoon options at first base and designated hitter, which is how Choi landed in Tampa Bay in the first place. (Southpaw Ryan Yarbrough, who lost his rotation spot this year, is out of minor league options in 2023 and could earn more than $4MM in arbitration, seems like another clear candidate, in my view.)

More interestingly, Topkin suggests that the Rays will at least be open to the idea of trading Randy Arozarena this winter (though, to be clear, that’s a far cry from suggesting he’ll be shopped or that he’s likely to be moved). The 27-year-old is still controllable for another four seasons and is only projected to earn $4MM next season in the first of what’ll be four trips through arbitration as a Super Two player, so there shouldn’t be any urgency for the Rays to move him. At the same time, Arozarena could fetch some immediate MLB help in other areas if the Rays are either confident in their in-house outfield options or if they’re able to acquire some additional corner outfield help, be it via trade or free agency.

While subtractions from the arb class — be they via trade or free agency — will lower the club’s payroll, so will the expected departure of some veteran mainstays. Kiermaier’s $13MM club option will surely be declined in favor of a $2.5MM buyout after the perennial defensive standout saw his season truncated by July hip surgery. Catcher Mike Zunino, meanwhile, underwent surgery to alleviate thoracic outlet syndrome. That pair accounted for a combined $19MM in salary this past season.

Neander noted that both players have been important to the Rays over the past several seasons and that the team will be open to discussing returns with each of them. Obviously, with Kiermaier and Zunino both less than three months into their rehab from notable surgeries, the status of their recovery will be paramount both with regard to the potential fit and price point in free agency. Both figure to draw interest from other clubs, too, considering their defensive excellence and the near-perennial scarcity of quality open-market options in center field and behind the plate.

Rays End-Of-Season Notes: Fairbanks, Free Agents, 40-Man

By Maury Ahram | October 9, 2022 at 2:02pm CDT

With the Rays 15-inning marathon loss yesterday, their 2022 season has officially ended. Heavily impacted by the injury bug, including Wander Franco, Tyler Glasnow, Shane Baz, and Mike Zunino, the Rays managed to piece together their fifth consecutive winning season, leading to their fourth-straight playoff appearance. Beginning with a strong April and May going 38-21 (.571 win percentage), by the end of the season the Rays were fighting to hold onto a Wild Card berth, going 14-19 in September and October regular season games, finishing their last eight regular season games 1-7 before being swept by the Guardians in the Wild Card series.

Reliever Pete Fairbanks’s departure from yesterday’s game was likely due to a circulation issue, or possibly Raynaud’s syndrome, in his fingers per Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. It’s the latest injury for Fairbanks, who has dealt with a right rotator cuff issue, right shoulder inflammation, and a right lat strain since the 2021 season. Making his 2022 debut in mid-July, the righty pitched a 1.13 ERA in a limited 24 innings. On the heels of this strong regular season performance, he was selected to Rays postseason roster, but could not record an out due to the finger injury.

Transitioning to the 2023 season, the Rays have a few notable free agents including starter Corey Kluber, outfielder David Peralta, and catcher Mike Zunino. Kluber joined the Rays on a 1-year, $8MM contract and pitched to a respectable 4.34 ERA in 164 innings (31 starts). The 36-year-old pitched his first full season since 2018 with a below-average 20.2% strikeout rate, but an excellent 3.1% walk rate. Peralta began the season with the Diamondbacks, slashing .248/.316/.460 before being traded to the Rays where his numbers dropped to .255/.317/.335. The Rays picked up Zunino’s $7MM club option for the 2022 season after his strong 2021 season, but the catcher underwent thoracic outlet syndrome surgery in July, ending his 2022 season early. The power-hitting catcher was having a cold start to his season, posting a meager .148/.195/.304 line in 115 at-bats.

Center fielder Kevin Kiermaier is also likely to become a free agent, with the Rays holding a $13MM club option for his 2023 season that they will most likely decline. Kiermaier’s 2022 season ended in early July with a hip injury, with the righty posting a substandard .228/.281/.369 slash line in 206 at-bats.

In addition to these free agents, the Rays currently have 19 players who are arbitration-eligible entering the 2023 season, including bullpen forces Jason Adam, Nick Anderson, and Colin Poche. It is very likely that the team won’t retain all 19 players but will instead opt for non-tendering some of them.

As a whole, the 2022 Rays were marked by a surprisingly weak offense. Likely affected by injuries to key bats, Tampa slumped to a collective .239/.309/.377 batting line in 2022, a far cry from the .250/.327/.424 slash line the team put up during the 2018-2021 seasons. Interestingly, the Rays’ catching fell flat after a strong 2021, likely due to the absence of All-Star Zunino.

Tampa’s 2022 catching core, primarily composed of Francisco Mejia, Rene Pinto, and deadline addition Christian Bethancourt, posted a combined measly .224/.248/.373 line. Comparatively, Rays’ catchers slashed .234/.309/.494 in 2021. This team primarily relied on Zunino who broke out and batted a strong .216/.301/.559 in 2021. With Zunino becoming a free agent following the conclusion of the 2022 season, the Rays may opt to bring the veteran back or search for a new slugging backstop for the 2023 season.

Moving sixty feet, six inches from the Rays’ backstop to the mound, once again injuries severely impacted Tampa Bay’s performance. Starters Glasnow and Baz both dealt with elbow injuries that resulted in Tommy John surgery. At an individual level, only one pitcher made over 30 starts, Kluber, and only four pitchers made over 10 starts. Additionally, similar to Zunino, Kluber is a free agent at the conclusion of the season.

These injuries forced Tampa to continue to rely on their bullpen, with starters pitching the fewest innings in the league (753) to the third-lowest ERA (3.45) and the bullpen pitching the most innings in the league (682 2/3) with a low 3.36 ERA, stranding a hefty 74.3% of base runners. While this strategy worked for the majority of the season, by the end of the season Tampa’s bullpen was beginning to crack. Over their last 51 1/3 innings, the Rays’ bullpen ERA increased to 4.38 ERA, and they only stranded 67.6% of base runners.

Nevertheless, the Rays will look to retool this winter and update their roster in hopes of reaching the playoffs for the fifth-straight season.

Previewing Upcoming Club Option Decisions: American League

By Anthony Franco | August 10, 2022 at 8:03pm CDT

Yesterday, MLBTR checked in on the status of seven players who have vesting options in their contracts for the 2023 season. Each can (or already has) lock in some guaranteed money or the right to opt out of their current deal based on their workload or finish in awards voting this year.

Over the next two days, we’ll turn our attention to players with less of a say over their contractual status. A host of contracts around the league contain club options for 2023. Some of them will be easy decisions one way or the other, while there are others that’ll be more borderline calls. With teams having to make these calls a little over two months from now, it’s worth taking a look at how these players are performing in 2022.

Today, we’ll start with the American League. We’ll follow up with a look at the Senior Circuit tomorrow.

Orioles

Jordan Lyles, SP ($11MM option, $1MM buyout)

Baltimore signed Lyles to a $7MM guarantee last winter, taking the form of a $6MM salary for 2022 and at least a $1MM buyout on next year’s option. He’s been a fine back-end starter, working to a 4.35 ERA across 130 1/3 innings. Lyles has below-average strikeout, swinging strike and ground-ball rates, but he leads the club in innings pitched and is throwing plenty of strikes. He’s also drawn strong reviews for his work in the clubhouse with the team’s younger arms. A $10MM call is borderline for a 4th/5th starter type, but the Orioles have almost nothing on the books next season and could keep him around as a veteran stabilizer.

Red Sox

James Paxton, SP (team must decide on consecutive $13MM options this offseason; Paxton would have $4MM player option for 2023 if club declines)

Paxton signed a convoluted deal last winter that reflected his atypical situation. A mid-rotation caliber starter when healthy, he’s made just six starts over the past three years and hasn’t pitched in an MLB game since undergoing Tommy John surgery last April. He’s making $6MM this season and could be a rotation option for a team that’ll see each of Nathan Eovaldi, Michael Wacha and Rich Hill hit free agency. The club will have to decide whether to trigger consecutive $13MM options (essentially a two-year, $26MM pact) this winter. If they decline, Paxton could opt in to a $4MM salary for 2023 or test free agency. How things play out largely depends on how Paxton looks down the stretch. Manager Alex Cora recently told reporters the southpaw will throw a simulated game on Friday and could soon head out on a minor league rehab appearance (link via Chris Cotillo of MassLive).

Hirokazu Sawamura, RP (team holds option currently valued at $3.6MM; Sawamura holds player option for 2023 currently valued at $1.8MM if club declines)

Sawamura signed a two-year, $3MM guarantee with the Red Sox over the 2020-21 offseason. The deal also included a club option for 2023 valued anywhere between $3-4MM, depending on whether Sawamura held his roster spot and based on his number of appearances. MLBTR has confirmed that escalators have already pushed the value of the club option to $3.6MM; that price escalates by an additional $100K for reaching each of 45, 50 and 60 appearances this season. (He’s presently at 43 games). If the team declines, Sawamura would have the right to trigger a player option currently valued at $1.8MM. As with the club option, the player option price escalates by $100K for reaching 45, 50 and 60 appearances. If both sides bypass their respective options, Sawamura would receive a $1MM buyout.

It seems likely that Sawamura’s team option price will fall somewhere in the $3.8MM – 3.9MM range, with a $1.8MM gap between the value of the club and player options. That’s an acceptable price to pay for a solid reliever, albeit one who’s been relied upon more in lower-leverage innings. Sawamura has a 3.14 ERA in 97 1/3 innings since coming stateside, striking out a decent 23% of opponents with a strong 51.7% ground-ball rate. He’s had issues throwing strikes consistently, but he’s an affordable power arm for a middle innings group that has been one of the team’s biggest weaknesses. That the Red Sox haven’t given Sawamura much high-leverage work in spite of their bullpen struggles is enough of a red flag to put this one in some doubt, but it seems likelier they’ll keep him around.

Yankees

Luis Severino, SP ($15MM option, $2.75MM buyout)

Severino barely pitched between 2019-21 because of injuries, including a Tommy John recovery. He returned to the rotation this season and pitched to an impressive 3.45 ERA through 16 starts before suffering a lat injury that’ll cost him at least two months. The injury history is a real concern, but Severino still looks like an above-average starter when healthy. He’s averaged around 96 MPH on his fastball, struck out 27.2% of opposing hitters and has a tiny 7.2% walk rate. The Yankees would have to be very pessimistic about his health outlook to buy out his age-29 season, particularly since it’s only a $12.25MM decision once the buyout price is taken into account.

Rays

Kevin Kiermaier, CF ($13MM option, $2.5MM buyout)

Kiermaier hit .228/.281/.369 over 221 plate appearances before suffering a season-ending left hip injury. It’s the latest in a long line of major health issues for the 32-year-old, and the Rays are planning to buy out the three-time Gold Glove winner. It’s possible the team tries to circle back at a lower price point, but the career-long Ray is likely to hit the open market for the first time in his career.

Blue Jays

Anthony Bass, RP ($3MM option, $1MM buyout)

The Jays just acquired Bass from the Marlins at the trade deadline, fortifying their bullpen with a productive middle-innings arm. Bass has an excellent 1.49 ERA through 48 1/3 innings on the year, striking out 26.2% of opponents against just a 5.9% walk rate. It’s a career-best season at age 34, but Bass has a sub-4.00 ERA for five years running. He’s an underrated bullpen piece, and the Jays are sure to bring him back for what amounts to a $2MM decision.

White Sox

Tim Anderson, SS ($12.5MM option, $1MM buyout)

This is as easy a call as any team will have to make this winter. Anderson has been one of the game’s better players four years running. He’s an elite contact hitter and baserunner, and he’s cemented himself as the Sox’s franchise shortstop. His 2022 season has been dinged by injuries, including a recent hand ligament tear that’ll cost him most of the remaining schedule. Frustrating year aside, Anderson has hit at a quality .301/.339/.395 clip this season and been an All-Star caliber performer in prior years. The White Sox are keeping him around next year, and they can do the same in 2024 via $14MM option.

Josh Harrison, 2B ($5.5MM option, $1.5MM buyout)

Harrison signed a one-year deal in Spring Training and got off to a dreadful start. The veteran utilityman has turned things on since the calendar flipped to June, though, and he now carries a roughly league average .242/.312/.385 line through 281 plate appearances. The Sox will have to make a $4MM call this offseason on whether to bring him back for 2023. They’ll probably look for an upgrade at second base, but that’s a reasonable enough sum to dedicate to a quality infielder off the bench. Chicago already has Leury García making decent money in that role, and they might prefer to focus their finances on adding to the back of the rotation and bringing back star first baseman José Abreu.

Guardians

Bryan Shaw, RP ($4MM option, $500K buyout)

Shaw is a longtime member of the Cleveland organization, having spent seven of his 11 MLB seasons there. He’s a durable bullpen workhorse who’s clearly a favorite of the coaching staff and front office, but his 2022 results have not been good. The 34-year-old righty owns a 5.36 ERA across 40 1/3 innings. He’s only striking out 17.7% of opponents, walking batters at an elevated 11.6% clip and has had some home run issues. The Guardians seem likely to go in another direction this offseason.

Twins

Miguel Sanó, 1B ($14MM option, $3MM buyout)

Sanó is a longtime member of the organization who’s capable of carrying a lineup with his power at his best. His platform season has been a disaster, though, and the Twins are sure to buy out his option. The 29-year-old underwent surgery to repair a meniscus tear in his knee in May. He returned briefly but went back on the 60-day injured list last week with additional knee concerns. It’s not clear whether he’ll make it back this season. Sanó has an .083/.211/.133 line in 20 games this year after slightly above-average offensive performances in 2020-21.

Sonny Gray, SP ($13.1MM option, no buyout)

Just as Sanó’s option is certain to be bought out, Gray’s is a no-brainer to exercise. Minnesota acquired the right-hander from the Reds in Spring Training, sending last year’s first-round pick Chase Petty to Cincinnati. Gray lost some time on the injured list, but he’s posted an impressive 3.19 ERA with slightly above-average peripherals through his first 16 starts in a Twins uniform. A mid-rotation starter of his caliber is a solid bargain at the cost of his option, which played into the fairly high asking price the Twins had to relinquish in the trade.

Dylan Bundy, SP ($11MM option, $1MM buyout)

The Twins bought low on Bundy on a one-year free agent deal, hoping he’d rebound from a dismal 2021 and look more like the mid-rotation arm he resembled in 2020. That hasn’t really transpired, as the right-hander has a 5.01 ERA through 93 1/3 innings. He’s averaging a personal-low 89.2 MPH on his fastball, and while he’s throwing plenty of strikes, that lack of velocity has been reflected in both his 18.6% strikeout rate and higher than average home run rate. It seems likely the Twins will decline the option and reallocate that $10MM elsewhere, particularly with the recent acquisition of Tyler Mahle and Kenta Maeda’s expected return reducing the urgency to add to the rotation next season.

Astros

Will Smith, RP ($13MM option, $1MM buyout)

Acquired in a one-for-one deadline swap that sent Jake Odorizzi to Atlanta, Smith is having a generally disappointing year. He has a 4.17 ERA through 41 innings, striking out a personal-worst 24.1% of batters faced with a career-high 11.2% walk rate. Smith was an effective late-game arm as recently as a season ago and is still generating swinging strikes at a quality 14.2% clip, but the $12MM price tag seems likely to be too hefty given the mediocre strikeout and walk numbers.

Athletics

Stephen Piscotty, RF ($15MM option, $1MM buyout)

Piscotty has spent five seasons in Oakland after being acquired from the Cardinals heading into the 2018 campaign. He had an excellent first season in green and gold, but he’s been a well below-average hitter fours years running now. Going back to the start of 2019, Piscotty has a .231/.288/.380 line in just under 900 trips to the plate. He’s sure to be bought out and could be looking at minor league offers next winter.

Mariners

Ken Giles, RP ($9.5MM option, $500K buyout)

Seattle signed Giles to a two-year deal knowing he’d miss all of 2021 recovering from Tommy John surgery. Unfortunately, hopes of a year two payout have been largely derailed by a finger issue that delayed his season debut and some shoulder tightness that has kept him out of action for the past month. Giles has thrown just 4 1/3 innings in a Seattle uniform, surrendering only one hit but four walks with six strikeouts. He’s averaged 94.8 MPH on his fastball, still solid but down from the 96.9 MPH range he showed during his incredible 2019 season with the Blue Jays. There’s a non-zero chance Giles returns — he’s currently on a rehab assignment in Triple-A — and dominates down the stretch to make Seattle think about the option. For the moment, though, it’s trending towards a buyout.

Rangers

Garrett Richards, RP ($9MM option, $1MM buyout)

Texas signed the 34-year-old Richards to a one-year guarantee over the offseason, hoping he’d build off the promise he showed in a late-season bullpen stint with the Red Sox. That hasn’t panned out, as he has a 5.35 ERA across 38 2/3 innings of relief. Richards has an excellent 52.1% ground-ball rate, but he’s not missing as many bats as one would like and he’s giving up a lot of hard contact. Texas seems likely to buy him out.

José Leclerc, RP ($6MM option, $750K buyout)

Texas signed Leclerc to an early-career extension in 2019, locking him in after a 1.56 ERA season the year before. He struggled with his control the following season, then missed virtually all of 2020-21 battling elbow issues that eventually culminated in Tommy John surgery. Leclerc returned to the mound in June but has a 4.01 ERA with a personal-low 20.4% strikeout percentage in 24 2/3 innings of generally low-leverage work. He’s still throwing hard and missing plenty of bats with his slider, so there’s a chance Texas takes an optimistic view and keeps him around. His deal also contains a $6.25MM option for 2024, so he’d be under control for multiple seasons if the Rangers are willing to give him a bit of a longer leash. This feels like it could go either way depending on how he performs down the stretch.

Kole Calhoun, RF ($5.5MM option, no buyout)

The Rangers signing of Calhoun to a one-year deal over the winter hasn’t panned out. He’s hitting .211/.269/.363 through 350 plate appearances and is currently on the injured list with a heel issue. It’s a second straight below-average season for the veteran outfielder, who’ll be 35 in October. The Rangers will almost assuredly decline the option and look elsewhere in right field as they aim for legitimate competitiveness in 2023.

Latest On Kevin Kiermaier

By Steve Adams | August 8, 2022 at 12:15pm CDT

Rays center fielder Kevin Kiermaier underwent season-ending hip surgery last month, and the outfielder took to Twitter to send a video updating on his recovery and thank fans for the support this week (video link). Within, Kiermaier indicated that the hip issues which ultimately required the surgery have plagued him for the past year and a half. The Rays described the surgery as a procedure to address an impingement and repair a torn labrum, per Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times.

Of course, for many Rays fans, the broader question is whether Kiermaier will suit up in Tampa Bay or with another club next year. Unsurprisingly, both Topkin and Bob Nightengale of USA Today wrote this weekend that the Rays are planning to pay the $2.5MM buyout on Kiermaier’s $13MM club option rather than commit to that weighty guarantee. That was obvious from the moment Kiermaier underwent surgery; it was worth wondering whether the low-payroll Rays would’ve picked up that option even in the event of a generally healthy and productive season.

Kiermaier didn’t address the contract specifically but made sure to mention his fondness for the Tampa area, the Rays organization, the community and the fans who’ve reached out to offer him support as he’s gone through this latest injury. Whether he’ll return to the Rays next year is likely dependent on how several of the organization’s younger options play over the next few months.

Randy Arozarena and Manuel Margot — on the shelf himself due to a knee injury — seem likely to return regardless. Arozarena has not yet even reached arbitration (though could do so as a Super Two player this winter) and thus remains quite affordable. Margot inked a two-year extension spanning the 2023-24 seasons (plus a 2025 team option) not long before Opening Day. Elsewhere on the roster, the Rays have the just-acquired Jose Siri and top prospect Josh Lowe, both of whom have struggled against big league pitching this season. Siri could fill a similar backup role to that of the since-traded Brett Phillips, whereas Lowe entered the season widely viewed as a potential long-term option in the outfield.

From a financial perspective, there ought to be room on the books for Kiermaier, particularly if he’s signing at a reduced rate. The Rays only have about $22MM in guaranteed salary on next year’s ledger, although that does not include a massive arbitration class featuring Tyler Glasnow, Ji-Man Choi, Ryan Yarbrough, Yandy Diaz, Andrew Kittredge, Francisco Mejia, Yonny Chirinos, Jeffrey Springs, Nick Anderson, Jalen Beeks, Harold Ramirez, Pete Fairbanks, JT Chargois, Colin Poche, Ryan Thompson and perhaps, depending on the Super Two cutoff, both Arozarena and Jason Adam. Not all of that group will be tendered a contract — Yarbrough, for instance, could be cut loose or traded elsewhere — but it has the potential to be a pricey group by the Rays’ standards, especially if Arozarena indeed reaches arbitration eligibility.

The 32-year-old Kiermaier has spent parts of ten seasons in the Majors, batting a combined .248/.308/.407 with some of the best glovework of any player in the Majors, regardless of position. The fearless manner in which Kiermaier patrols the outfield (and, presumably, the artificial surface on which he plays half his games) has taken its toll on his body over the years and regularly left Kiermaier sidelined for lengthy stints on the injured list.

Dating back to 2016 (and excluding the shortened 2020 season), Kiermaier has averaged 86 games played per year, missing time along the way with a fractured left hand, a fractured right hip, a torn ligament in his right thumb, a damaged ligament in his other thumb, a sprained left wrist and now this most recent left hip surgery. Even in spite of that huge list of injuries, Kiermaier has the fourth-most Defensive Runs Saved of the 5511 players who’ve stepped onto a Major League field in that span.

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