Miguel Rojas

Players Avoiding Arbitration: National League

By Steve Adams | January 12, 2018 at 3:10pm CDT

The deadline for MLB teams to exchange salary arbitration figures with their arbitration-eligible players is today at 1pm ET. As such, there will be a veritable flood of arb agreements piling up in the next few hours — especially in light of a more universal approach to the “file and trial” method for teams. (That is to say, those teams will no longer negotiate one-year deals after arb figures are exchanged and will instead head to a hearing with those players, barring an agreemenr on a multi-year deal.)

Note that you can keep an eye on all of today’s deals using MLBTR’s 2018 Arbitration Tracker, which can be filtered to show only the results of the team you follow and is also sortable by service time and dollar value of the agreement. All projections that are referenced come from MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz’s annual compilation of projected arbitration salaries.

Onto today’s landslide of deals…

National League West

The Rockies have agreed to a $2MM salary with righty Chad Bettis, MLBTR has learned (Twitter link). That’s a fair sight more than his $1.5MM projection. Bettis surely would have had an opportunity to set a bigger platform for himself, but had to battle through testicular cancer before returning to the hill in 2017. Meanwhile, second baseman DJ LeMahieu has settled for a $8.5MM payday in his final year of arbitration, Jon Heyman of Fan Rag tweets. That’s just a hair short of the $8.8MM he was pegged for in MLBTR’s projections.
Giants second baseman Joe Panik is slated to earn $3.45MM in his first season of arb eligibility, Devan Fink of SB Nation was first to tweet. That’s just a hair shy of the $3.5MM that MLBTR projected. Lefty Will Smith has settled at $2.5MM, per Bob Nightengale of USA Today (via Twitter). The club has also announced deals with its remaining arb-eligible players, right-handed relievers Sam Dyson ($4.6MM projection), Hunter Strickland ($1.7MM projection), and Cory Gearrin ($1.6MM projection). (H/t John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle, on Twitter). Strickland earns $1.55MM, Nightengale tweets.
The Padres and Freddy Galvis agreed to a $6.825MM deal for his lone season of team control in San Diego, tweets Robert Murray of FanRag Sports. Galvis, who spent the first several seasons of his career in Philadelphia before being traded this winter, had been projected to make $7.4MM. Infielder Cory Spangenberg settled at $1.7MM, Heyman tweets, falling below a $2.0MM projection. San Diego has also reached agreements with righty Kirby Yates and outfielder Matt Szczur, the team announced. Yates will earn $1,062,500, Heyman tweets, which is just shy of his $1.1MM projection. Szczur, meanwhile, will get $950K, a healthy boost over his $800K projection, per Dennis Lin of the San Diego Union-Tribune (Twitter link).
The Diamondbacks agreed to a $7.75MM deal with center fielder A.J. Pollock, Murray tweets. Pollock was projected to earn $8.4MM in his final year of eligibility before free agency. Murray also notes that Brad Boxberger is set to earn $1.85MM next year (Twitter link). Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic adds that lefty Andrew Chafin ($1.2MM projection) and the D-backs have a $1.195MM deal in place. Third baseman Jake Lamb, meanwhile, agreed to a $4.275MM deal with the Diamondbacks, according to USA Today’s Bob Nightengale (Twitter link). Lamb, eligible for arbitration for the first time, was projected to earn $4.7MM. He’s controllable through 2020. And ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick tweets that Chris Herrmann ($1.4MM projection) landed a $1.3MM deal. Righty Taijuan Walker has settled for $4.825MM, per Bob Nightengale of USA Today (via Twitter), which is within range but shy of the $5.0MM he projected for. Lefty Robbie Ray has settled at $3.95MM, per Nightengale (Twitter link), which falls short of his $4.2MM projection. Infielder Nick Ahmed will $1.275MM, per Heyman (via Twitter), which tops the projected figure of $1.1MM. Arizona has also announced that Chris Owings and David Peralta have agreed to terms.
The Dodgers are in agreement on a $6MM deal with lefty Alex Wood, per Jon Heyman of Fan Rag (via Twitter). He had projected at $6.4MM. Meanwhile, righty Josh Fields agreed to a $2.2MM deal, tweets Murray. Heyman tweets that Enrique Hernandez will earn $1.6MM. Fields’ projection of $2.2MM was on the money, whereas Hernandez topped his mark by $300K. Fields is controlled through 2019, while Hernandez is controllable through 2020. Southpaw Tony Cingrani gets $2.3MM, Murray tweets, which is just a shade over his $2.2MM projection. Outfielder Joc Pederson has also settled, per J.P. Hoornstra of the Southern California News Group (via Twitter), with Beth Harris of the Associated Press reporting a $2.6MM salary that rather handily tops the $2.0MM that MLBTR projected.

National League Central

All three remaining Cardinals arb-eligibles have agreed to deals, MLB.com’s Jenifer Langosch tweets. Marcell Ozuna will earn $9MM after drawin a much larger $10.9MM projection, Heyman tweets. MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz had explained that Ozuna likely wouldn’t quite reach the amount the algorithm suggested, though the actual salary still comes in a bit shy of expectations. Lefty Tyler Lyons ($1.3MM projection) receives $1.2MM, per Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (via Twitter). The Cards have also reached agreement with Michael Wacha for $5.3MM, per Nightengale (via Twitter); he was projected to earn $5.9MM.
The Reds agreed to a $860K salary with Anthony DeSclafani, tweets Murray. DeSclafani missed the 2017 season due to arm troubles and had been projected to earn $1.1MM. He’ll remain under Reds control through 2020. Billy Hamilton and the Reds have settled on a one-year deal worth $4.6MM, tweets Murray. A popular trade candidate this offseason, Hamilton was projected to earn $5MM and comes with another two seasons of team control. Murray also conveys that Michael Lorenzen agreed to a $1.3125MM deal, which lines up fairly well with his $1.4MM projection.
The Cubs have struck a deal with lefty Justin Wilson, agreeing to a one-year, $4.25MM pact, according to Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times (Twitter link). Wilson, who had been projected at $4.3MM, will be a free agent next winter. The Cubs alsoagreed to a $950K salary with infielder Tommy La Stella, tweets MLB.com’s Carrie Muskat. La Stella was projected to make $1MM in his first offseason of arbitration eligiblity and can be controlled through 2020. Right-hander Kyle Hendricks and the Cubs have agreed to a $4.175MM salary, per Nightengale (on Twitter). That sum comes in a fair bit shy of his projected $4.9MM projection as a first-time eligible player. The Cubs control Hendricks through the 2020 season. Chicago also agreed with Addison Russell, per Wittenmyer (Twitter link). The shortstop will receive $3.2MM for the coming season.
Nightengale reports (on Twitter) that the Brewers and breakout closer Corey Knebel settled at $3.65MM. As a Super Two player, Knebel can be controlled through the 2021 season and will be arb-eligible thrice more. He was projected at $4.1MM. MLB.com’s Adam McCalvy tweets that the Brewers and right-hander Jimmy Nelson settled at $3.7MM, which falls $1MM shy of his $4.7MM projection (though some of that discrepancy may be due to Nelson’s shoulder injury). Milwaukee also announced a deal for infielders Jonathan Villar (projected at $3MM) and Hernan Perez (projected at $2.2MM). McCalvy reports that Villar will earn $2.55MM, while terms of Perez’s deal are not yet available.
The Pirates have avoided arbitration with shortstop Jordy Mercer by settling on a $6.75MM salary for 2018, tweets Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. Mercer, who’d been projected to earn $6.5MM, is entering his final year of team control and will be a free agent next winter. Biertempfel also reports that Gerrit Cole will earn that same $6.75MM salary in 2018 — a $3MM raise over last year (Twitter link). He has two years of control remaining and had been projected to earn $7.4MM. Righty George Kontos has also agreed to terms, per Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review (via Twitter). He had projected for $2.7MM and will receive a smidge more, at $2,725,000, per Bill Brink of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (Twitter link).

National League East

The Braves reached a $3.4MM deal with righty Arodys Vizcaino, per Jon Heyman of FanRag (Twitter link). He’d been projected at $3.7MM. The Braves and righty Dan Winkler agreed to a $610K salary for the upcoming season, tweets Mark Bowman of MLB.com. Winkler tossed just 14 1/3 innings in the Majors this year as he made his way back from elbow surgery. He’d projected at $800K.
The Marlins and Miguel Rojas agreed to a $1.18MM deal for 2018, Heyman tweets, placing him north of his $1.1MM projection. Rojas should see additional playing time following the Marlins’ wave of trades this offseason. He’s controlled through 2020. Miami also has a deal in place with infielder Derek Dietrich for $2.9MM, Heyman tweets, after projecting at $3.2MM.
The Mets were able to settle perhaps their most notable arb case, agreeing to a $7.4MM deal with righty Jacob deGrom, per James Wagner of the New York Times (via Twitter). That’s well shy of his $9.2MM projection, though MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz had explained the formula likely overestimated deGrom’s earning power by quite a wide margin. Fellow top righty Noah Syndergaard gets $2.975MM, per Bob Nightengale of USA Today (via Twitter), which goes a fair sight past the $1.9MM projection for the outstanding young starter, whose 2017 season was limited by injury. And reliever AJ Ramos will take home $9.225MM, according to Wagner (via Twitter). That’s just barely past the $9.2MM projection. Wilmer Flores has also avoided arbitration with the Mets, according to Bob Nightengale of USA Today Sports (on Twitter). He’ll receive a $3.4MM salary, which falls within $300K of his projected rate. The Mets control Flores through the 2019 campaign. The Mets and right-hander Matt Harvey agreed to a one-year deal worth $5.625MM, tweets Nightengale. Harvey, who is a free agent next winter, had been projected to earn $5.9MM. Meanwhile, Marc Carig of Newsday tweets that Jeurys Familia will earn $7.925MM for the upcoming year, while Sportsnet’s Ben Nicholson-Smith reports that catcher Travis d’Arnaud will earn $3.475MM in 2018 (Twitter link). Familia, a free agent next winter, was projected at $7.4MM. The Mets control d’Arnaud through 2019, and his projection was $3.4MM. Righty Hansel Robles gets $900K, Heyman tweets.
Also via Nightengale (Twitter link), the Nationals agreed to a $6.475MM salary for 2018 with right-hander Tanner Roark. That falls about $1MM shy of his $7.5MM projection but still represents a noted raise of $4.315MM for Roark, whom the Nats control through 2019. Jorge Castillo of the Washington Post adds that Michael Taylor will earn $2.525MM next year. Taylor is controlled through 2020 and was projected at $2.3MM.
The Phillies and Maikel Franco settled on a $2.95MM salary for the 2018 season, reports Jim Salisbury of CSNPhilly.com (Twitter link). Franco, a Super Two player who’d been projected at $3.6MM, remains under club control with the Phils through the 2021 season. Second bagger Cesar Hernandez will earn at a $5.1MM rate in 2018, per MLB.com’s Todd Zolecki (via Twitter). That beats his $4.7MM projection and wraps up this year’s arb business for the Phillies.

Marlins Place Martin Prado On 10-Day DL

By Jeff Todd | July 17, 2017 at 10:08pm CDT

The Marlins have placed third baseman Martin Prado on the 10-day DL with a right knee sprain, per a team announcement. He’ll be replaced by infielder Miguel Rojas on the active roster.

That’s a new malady for Prado, who has hit the DL twice previously with hamstring problems. And it comes at a poor moment for Miami, which has reportedly been working on potential trade scenarios for the veteran.

Prado, 33, has struggled when healthy this year. Through 145 trips to the plate, he owns a .254/.283/.362 slash with a pair of home runs. And he’s hardly cheap, with an $11.5MM salary this year and $28.5MM still to go over the coming two seasons.

Still, it’s not surprising to see interest from organizations such as the Red Sox and Yankees. The respected veteran has long provided solid production, with a slightly above-average bat and quality glovework. He also has some defensive versatility, with plenty of time at second and left field in his past — though he has played third almost exclusively over the past several campaigns.

Prado is a clear August trade candidate given his contract. But teams hunting a third baseman will be motivated to explore all their options before the non-waiver deadline on July 31st. Whether Prado can return to the active roster before that date remains to be seen, though he’d only have a few potential games of action to show he’s back at full health.

The injury could help boost the market for the remaining third basemen that could be available. There are quite a few possibilities, though several may or may not be available. Pending free agents Todd Frazier and Eduardo Nunez both still appear to be the likeliest candidates to end up on the move.

Marlins Notes: Jeter, Cruz, Gordon, Ziegler, Ichiro, Rojas, Riddle

By charliewilmoth | July 15, 2017 at 11:18am CDT

Here are a handful of notes on the Marlins, via Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald.

Marlins bidders Jorge Mas and Derek Jeter won’t be joining forces, Jackson writes. Mas, the Miami billionaire, contacted Jeter weeks ago and asked him to join Mas’ ownership group (as Fan Rag’s Jon Heyman also recently noted). Jeter refused, however, because he wants to control both the baseball and business sides of the team despite only contributing a relatively modest $25MM of his own money (as Heyman also previously noted). Jeter’s desire to control all parts of the team’s operations were also an issue when Jeter was previously part of a bidding group that included Jeb Bush.
An earlier report indicated union executive (and former big-league outfielder) Jose Cruz Jr. would be part of the Mas group. Jackson indicates that no specific role has been outlined for Cruz, but that Mas and his group do favor him.
The Marlins aren’t actively looking to trade Dee Gordon, but might deal him for the right return, Jackson suggests. A recent report from Heyman named the Royals, Angels and Blue Jays as potential bidders for Gordon, but indicated that the $41MM left on Gordon’s current deal might be a sticking point. Gordon is batting .291/.338/.353 in 380 plate appearances this season.
Neither righty Brad Ziegler nor outfielder Ichiro Suzuki plan to retire after the season, Jackson writes. Ziegler considered retiring before signing with Miami last winter, Jackson indicates. It’s not surprising that those retirement plans are no more, however, since he’s signed for $9MM next season. The 37-year-old is, however, in the midst of a terrible year, with a 6.52 ERA, 5.3 K/9 and 4.0 BB/9 over 29 innings. Ichiro would play in 2018 at the age of 44 and has a .220/.267/.294 line this year; Jackson suggests that Ichiro is unlikely to return to the Marlins next season, despite his plans to play.
Infielder Miguel Rojas is set to return soon from a thumb injury, and manager Don Mattingly says he’s open to having Rojas compete with rookie JT Riddle for the starting shortstop job. Mattingly indicates, though, that he liked using Rojas in a utility role instead. Rojas has played all four infield positions with the Marlins this season.

Miguel Rojas Diagnosed With Broken Thumb

By Jeff Todd | May 8, 2017 at 9:33pm CDT

The Marlins will be without utility infielder Miguel Rojas for several months, MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro reports on Twitter. He has been diagnosed with a broken thumb that will require a cast.

That news comes at a particularly inopportune time for the Fish, who also just lost third baseman Martin Prado to the DL. It’s likely that Rojas would have helped cover at the hot corner along with Derek Dietrich, while continuing to fill in at short and second base. Instead, the club will be forced to lean on rookie J.T. Riddle for quite a bit longer than had been hoped when Rojas was hurt yesterday.

Rojas has somewhat quietly played a notable reserve role for Miami over the past few years. But his importance to the club has grown substantially early in the current season. Rojas has already taken 73 plate appearances — more than both Dietrich and shortstop Adeiny Hechavarria — and provided a useful .338/.389/.400 slash line with just eight strikeouts.

While there’s not much reason to think that Rojas’s high-contact, power-less approach will ever allow him to be even an average hitter over the long haul, that doesn’t mean he can’t be a useful player. Metrics have graded him as a positive around the infield, and perhaps he can do enough offensively to hang on as a solid utility piece if he can hold onto his current increase in walk rate (up to 8.2%).

NL Notes: Braun, Harvey, Marlins, Giants

By Connor Byrne | May 7, 2017 at 4:17pm CDT

Outfielder Ryan Braun will gain 10-and-5 rights next Sunday, theoretically making it more difficult for the Brewers to trade him. That doesn’t matter to either Braun or Brewers general manager David Stearns, both of whom told Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that the six-time All-Star’s forthcoming 10-and-5 status is irrelevant. As Braun noted in his discussion with Haudricourt, he already has a no-trade clause that can prevent him from vetoing a deal to all but six teams – most of which are conveniently based in his home state of California. “There’s only a couple of teams that would be any possibility now, and there’s only a couple of teams that would be any possibility after, so it’s not going to really change anything,” said Braun. “I don’t think it will play much of a role or have any significance.” If the Brewers do shop the 33-year-old Braun, they’re not going to eat a significant portion of the ~$75MM remaining on a contract that runs through 2020 (there’s a $4MM buyout for 2021) or deal him without receiving quality prospects, per Haudricourt, whose piece contains more quotes from Braun and is worth a full read.

Injury Notes: Travis, Kazmir, Dodgers, Carpenter, Rojas

By Steve Adams | March 7, 2017 at 6:16pm CDT

The Blue Jays aren’t sure when second baseman Devon Travis will be ready to return to game action, writes Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet. Manager John Gibbons seemed to suggest to Nicholson-Smith that the club could be without Travis, come Opening Day, as the 26-year-old’s recovery from knee surgery has been slower than the team expected. “To be honest I don’t know when he’s going to be back and ready to go,” said Gibbons. “It’s one of those things where if it costs him a couple of weeks, or whatever it might be, at the beginning of the season, so be it. … I expected him, to be honest, to be a little further along than he is.” As Nicholson-Smith points out, that could prove advantageous for out-of-options infielder Ryan Goins, who could break camp with the team if Travis ultimately starts the year on the disabled list. Goins and Darwin Barney, then, would presumably be the Jays’ primary options at second base, although Toronto has also been linked to Brett Lawrie since his surprising release by the White Sox last week.

More injury news from around the league…

Scott Kazmir’s MRI revealed no signs of a serious injury in his problematic left hip, as ESPN’s Doug Padilla writes. Kazmir exited yesterday’s Cactus League start after throwing his first pitch of the second inning and expressed frustration about his hip following the game. It’s not clear when Kazmir will return to a mound for the Dodgers just yet, Padilla adds, though the 33-year-old told the media that he’s pain free and is only experiencing limited mobility.
First baseman Matt Carpenter will be out for “at least another week” due to lower back tightness that has sidelined him since last Wednesday, writes Jenifer Langosch of MLB.com. Carpenter, who will slide across the diamond for the Cardinals this season (with Jhonny Peralta manning third base), was forced to withdraw from the 2017 World Baseball Classic due to his back troubles.
Dodgers non-roster invitee Henry Ramos will be out for a considerably longer amount of time (Twitter link via MLB.com’s Ken Gurnick). Manager Dave Roberts revealed to the media on Tuesday that the soon-to-be 25-year-old outfielder will miss the next four to six weeks of action due to a sports hernia/right groin injury. Ramos, who batted .263/.306/.402 between Boston’s Double-A and Triple-A affiliates last season, wasn’t likely to crack Los Angeles’ roster anyhow, of course, but he’ll now be delayed in beginning his minor league campaign as well.
Marlins infielder Miguel Rojas was forced to exit Tuesday’s Grapefruit League game after being struck in the head on a throw down to second base from catcher Tomas Telis, writes Glenn Sattell of MLB.com. As Rojas explains the situation, the grass in front of second base was “really wet,” which caused Telis’ throw following a wild pitch to take an unexpected hop upon bouncing. “I wasn’t expecting the ball to go that high,” said Rojas. “I’m glad I could quickly turn my head. It hit me in the [side of the head] instead of my eye.” Rojas will undergo concussion testing after telling the training staff that he was “feeling a little dizzy and uncomfortable.”

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