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Mike Napoli

This Date In Transaction History: Red Sox Sign Mike Napoli

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On this date in 2003, the Red Sox made one of the best free-agent signings of all time. The story of David Ortiz’s Red Sox career is well-known and often recounted, however. So let’s fast-forward to this date eight years ago when the Red Sox added another pretty good first baseman/designated hitter: Mike Napoli put pen to paper and officially signed a one-year deal worth $5MM guaranteed. The deal was notable because the two sides had previously agreed to a three-year, $39MM contract that fell apart because of concern over the health of Napoli’s hip.

After the failed physical, Napoli briefly flirted with a return to the Texas Rangers, with whom he’d spent the previous two seasons. Napoli had been a significant trade acquisition for the Rangers following the 2010 season, making his one and only All-Star team while helping Texas repeat as American League champions. Though Texas would fall for the second consecutive season in the World Series, Napoli played lights out, slashing .350/.464/.700 in 28 plate appearances with two home runs and 10 runs driven in.

Regardless, the Red Sox had more playing time to offer the former catcher, and he became Boston’s new first basemen with a deal guaranteeing $5MM while still providing a ceiling of $13MM based on incentives. The 31-year-old would take home the full boat, cashing in with 139 games played, 578 plate appearances, and 3.7 rWAR by way of a .259/.360/.482 batting line. He chipped in 23 home runs despite a 32.4 percent strikeout rate.

Napoli was absolutely a contributing factor in the Red Sox turning around a 93-loss team from the season prior, becoming a 97-win juggernaut that rolled past the Rays, Tigers, and Cardinals to win the World Series title. Though Napoli would play in the World Series three times, 2013 was the only time he’d walk away with a ring.

Ultimately, though the hip issue got Napoli’s Boston tenure off to an inauspicious start, the relationship was an unmitigated success, so much so that Napoli re-upped following that 2013 campaign for another two seasons at a $16MM AAV. Ultimately, Napoli earned $45MM over that three-year stretch, well more than the $39MM he would have earned under the original terms of his deal.

These days, Napoli is a Quality Assurance Coach on the staff of one of his former teammates from that 2013 team, David Ross.

Mike Napoli To Join Cubs’ Coaching Staff

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The Cubs will add former MLB slugger Mike Napoli to their coaching staff, tweets MLB Network’s Jon Heyman (link). Napoli is expected to serve as the club’s quality assurance coach, per Sahadev Sharma of The Athletic (link). As Sharma notes, Napoli was a teammate of new Cubs manager David Ross while a member of the Red Sox in 2013.

Most fans will remember Napoli as a thumping catcher and first baseman responsible for 267 home runs in an MLB career that spanned 12 seasons. Aside from garnering a reputation as one of the game’s more fun-loving clubhouse figures, Napoli also earned himself a World Series ring as a member of the previously mentioned 2013 Boston team (not to mention his runner-up effort as part of the 2016 Indians, who lost in seven games in the Fall Classic to his new Chicago employer).

If similar to other QA roles around the game, Napoli’s new position as quality assurance coach will likely call for an emphasis in hands-on supervision and instruction of players across the Cubs’ roster and minor league system. Recently, Royals quality control and catching coach Pedro Grifol received serious consideration for a handful of managerial openings, so the import of Napoli’s new role is not to be discounted. As a former player — and one who was revered in the clubhouse — Napoli should be adept at conveying data and analytical input to the players on Chicago’s roster.

Quick Hits: Tulo, Napoli, Castellanos, Rays

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Troy Tulowitzki impressed enough in his December 16th showcase to draw genuine interest from as many as 16 major league clubs, per Andy Martino of SNY.tv. The Cubs were reportedly willing to hand Tulo their starting shortstop position at least until the end of Addison Russell’s suspension. The Pirates, as well, liked Tulo’s lateral mobility and overall athleticism enough to install him as their starting shortstop. The Angels were interested in him as a third baseman. By signing with the Yankees, however, Tulo arguably sees more playing time certainly than in Chicago, assuming Didi Gregorius’ injury will keep him out for longer than Russell. The Yankees fulfill (at least for now) his desire to stick at short, and they certainly figure to be more competitive than the Pirates. In context, there’s ample reason to understand New York’s appeal to Tulowitzki and vice versa, though the story changes if Manny Machado winds up in pinstripes. Of course, Tulo’s minimum salary deal would hardly be a deterrent to a Machado signing, but it could be yet another sign that Brian Cashman and the Yankees are more than content to enter 2019 without the divisive superstar. Let’s check in on a few other notes from around the game…

  • Interestingly, Mike Napoli interviewed with the Chicago Cubs before they filled their recent coaching vacancies, per Fancred’s Jon Heyman (via Twitter). It’s been less than a month since the former All-Star announced his retirement, but now that the Cubs went in a different direction, Napoli will have no trouble enjoying his time off. Napoli was always touted as a positive influence who buoyed clubhouse morale with intensity and charm, and there’s plenty reason to believe there is a future in coaching for him, if he so chooses.
  • The Tigers are no-doubt ready to deal Nick Castellanos, but they’re not ready to give him away, per mlive.com’s Evan Woodbery. GM Al Avila faced a similar quandary last offseason in trying to find a match for veteran Ian Kinsler. He settled on returning a pair of lower-tier prospects from the Angels, only one of whom registers on their list of top-30 prospects from MLB.com (Troy Montgomery at #29). Kinsler’s situation was complicated by a partial no-trade list, but the Tigers still ended up with a package not much different from what the Angels received when they moved him to Boston mid-season. The Tigers don’t appear ready to settle this time around, even if it means getting a lesser prospect mid-season or letting him walk at year’s end. The crux of the issue is that the Tigers view Castellanos as a robust offensive producer on a one-year deal coming off a career season and entering his prime. Trade partners, meanwhile, can paint Castellanos as an $11MM defensive liability. Of potential trade partners, the division rival Indians are still the most logical fit, and they’ve partnered even recently on the Leonys Martin deal last season. Still, finding middle ground on appropriate compensation for a player with such evaluative extremes is proving difficult. Avila and the Tigers, however, will not be cowed by the challenge, nor will they give in to it – at least for now.
  • The Tampa Bay Rays are reducing the seating capacity of Tropicana Field in order to create “a more intimate, entertaining, and appealing experience [for our fans],” per Carl Lisciandrello of the Tampa Bay Times. The new renovation plan will lower the seating capacity by roughly 6,000 to around 25,000 to 26,000. With an average daily attendance in 2018 of 14,258 that exceeded only the Marlins, the Rays are certainly taking a creative approach to attract more fans by lowering their capacity ceiling. While the initial optics of this renovation plan certainly invites a degree of ribbing, Rays ownership is wise to take a creative approach to growing a fanbase that has been historically lackluster, especially given the recent failure to finalize a deal for a new stadium in Ybor City. Outfielder Tommy Pham was the latest to criticize Rays’ fans in a recent interview on MLB Network Radio, saying, “It sucks going from playing in front of a great fan base to a team with really no fan base at all,” as chronicled by Anthony Barstow of the New York Post. The Rays have done the job of putting a competitive and exciting team on the field, now they’ll embark on better utilizing areas within the ballpark. Hopefully, there will be more fans there in 2019 to notice.

Mike Napoli To Retire

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37-year-old Mike Napoli has announced his retirement on Twitter. Napoli, who’d dealt with significant injuries to his right knee over the last calendar year, had initially planned to give it another go after completing the rehab process, but has decided, “after much thought and consideration,” to call it quits.

Napoli, a 2011 All-Star and 2013 World Series Champion, will long be remembered for his soaring moonshots, magnetic personality and sought-after clubhouse presence, and a preternatural eye at the plate. Napoli’s career spanned 12 major league seasons, during which time he featured prominently on seven playoff teams, three pennant winners, and the 2013 World Champion Boston Red Sox.

The catcher/first baseman piled up 5,330 plate appearances for four teams during that time, including three stints with the Texas Rangers, for whom his 2011 season (.320/.414/.631, 179 wRC+) was among the best in club history. In all, Napoli appeared in nearly 1400 major league games, slashing .246/.346/.475 with 267 career HR and an offensive output that graded approximately 20% above the league average during that frame. His 25.1 career fWAR is an outstanding mark for a player who never ranked among his organization’s top 10 prospects at any point during his minor league career.

Selected in the 17th round of the 2000 draft out of a high school in Florida, Napoli’s career began with a slow burn in the Anaheim/Los Angeles Angel farm system. By the time he finally reached the majors in 2006, after nearly seven full seasons in the minors, the then-catcher wasted no time making his mark. His 2.5fWAR in just 99 games places him squarely in the pantheon of most impressive seasons in history for a rookie catcher, and his 92 HR while behind the dish is easily tops in club history.

Persistent friction with skipper Mike Scioscia, though, who never quite seemed satisfied with Napoli’s work behind the plate, led the club to move Napoli in a bizarre 2011 swap with the Blue Jays, where the productive backstop was traded with outfielder Juan Rivera in exchange for the aging Vernon Wells, whose four years and $90MM in remaining salary placed him high on the list of least attractive assets in the game. Napoli was quickly shipped to Texas, where in 2011 he established himself as one of the game’s premier hitters; substantial decline followed, though, and the then-first baseman found a new home for the next three seasons in Beantown.

After the championship run of ’13, and a solid follow-up the next season, an aging Napoli sputtered a bit in ’15, and was left searching for a new home prior to the start of the 2016 season. He found it in Cleveland, where a last hurrah – a career-high 34 HR for the pennant-winning Tribe – left him within mere outs of a second ring.

Quick Hits: Napoli, Cubs, Koehler, Tigers

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Even after tearing his right ACL and meniscus last April, Mike Napoli isn’t ready to close the book on his career, the veteran slugger tells The Athletic’s Zack Meisel (subscription required).  “I’m going to train like I’m going to play next year,” Napoli said.  “When it’s time to make that decision, I’ll make it, but I still really want to play.  I don’t want to go out like that.  I feel like I can still play.  We’ll see.  We’ll see what opportunities there will be and go from there.”  Even if his chances at a 13th big league season seem remote, it wouldn’t be too surprising for a team to take a flier on Napoli on a minor league deal next spring, assuming he is healthy enough to play.  If a comeback doesn’t materialize, Napoli said his next dream would be to become a Major League manager, and he believes he would be able to start his post-playing career as a coach somewhere in the Indians organization.

Here’s some more from around the league…

  • The Cubs aren’t yet sure what their plans are for the trade deadline, GM Jed Hoyer told Patrick Mooney of The Athletic (subscription link).  “What we may need on July 31 may be totally different than what we know sitting here right now,” Hoyer said.  “I do think that right now the answers are here….Now, that might not be the answer in six weeks. But I think that’s the answer today.”  Chicago already has quite a bit of depth and talent on the roster, plus Yu Darvish and Carl Edwards Jr. will provide reinforcements upon returning from the disabled list, though it would be surprising if the Cubs didn’t make at least one notable addition as they push for another postseason berth.
  • Right-hander Tom Koehler has had a setback in his recovery from an AC strain and isn’t expected back until August, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts told J.P. Hoornstra of the Southern California News Group (Twitter link) and other reporters.  Koehler signed a one-year, $2MM deal with Los Angeles last winter but has yet to officially pitch for the club after suffering the injury during Spring Training.  He initially hoped to return by the All-Star break but will now have to wait longer to properly don the Dodger blue.
  • The Tigers are considering deploying a six-man rotation, as manager Ron Gardenhire hinted to MLive.com’s Evan Woodbery and other reporters.  With Blaine Hardy pitching well, Detroit wants to find a way to keep him in the rotation when Francisco Liriano makes his expected return from the DL this week, plus the other starters could benefit from the lesser workload.  “We’ve got some guys in there that could probably use extra days, take innings off our load.  We started thinking we could probably do this.  Not saying we’re going to, but we could,” Gardenhire said.

Mike Napoli Undergoes ACL Surgery, Continues To Weigh Future

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Slugger Mike Napoli has undergone a procedure to repair his anterior cruciate ligament, per Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe (via Twitter). That has been anticipated since he was diagnosed with a torn ACL and meniscus last month.

The injury occurred while Napoli was playing for the Indians’ Triple-A affiliate, which he joined after failing to find an MLB opportunity all spring. Napoli’s anticipated recovery time has been pegged at ten to fourteen months, which is not an insubstantial span for a 36-year-old player.

All things considered, it wouldn’t be surprising if Napoli decided that this was an opportune moment to hang up his spikes. But he’s not ready to declare his intentions just yet, per Cafardo, who reports that Napoli hasn’t yet decided whether he’ll attempt a comeback next season.

It’s certainly understandable that the dozen-year MLB veteran prefers to take his time making a decision. After all, he has driven 63 balls out of the yard over the past two seasons and still rates as a quality defender at first.

To be sure, that output has come with loads of strikeouts and, in 2017, an unsatisfactory .285 on-base percentage. And it’s only fair to note Napoli had managed only one hit (albeit with seven walks) in his 31 Triple-A plate appearances to open the present season, though of course that’s not much of a sample.

Still, it wouldn’t have been at all surprising had he ended up turning in some useful plate appearances in the majors had it not been for the injury. And it’s still plausible, perhaps, that he could do so in the future, should he decide to make another go of it.

Quick Hits: BLA, Hernandez, Napoli

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Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic recently did a deep dive into the company known as Big League Advance, whose business model involves lump sum payments to minor-leaguers in exchange for a percentage of their future earnings. MLBTR readers might best know BLA as the company entrenched in a legal battle with top prospect Francisco Mejia of the Indians. Rosenthal’s piece goes into detail far beyond Mejia alone, and he notes at one point that BLA claims to have recently signed its 100th player. Players such as Fernando Tatis Jr. and Jose Osuna have benefitted from the lump sum payments BLA offers; the former is using the money to invest in his health, nutrition and conditioning, while the latter claims the money allows him to focus on baseball by reducing the stress of wondering how he’ll support his family. Others around baseball, however, claim that BLA uses predatory tactics to pressure young players into giving up significant money on the whole; indeed they’ve admitted to intentionally bypassing agents to talk with players directly. It seems that the major focus of Rosenthal’s piece is the upside and downside of BLA’s presence in baseball. My biggest takeaway from reading the piece is that there ought to be a serious discussion in the near future about how (or if) MLB ought to be involved in regulating companies like BLA.

More from around the league…

  • It was widely assumed that Scott Kingery’s surprise extension and resulting presence on the Phillies’ MLB roster would sap at least some playing time from incumbent second baseman Cesar Hernandez. That hasn’t been the case, as MLB.com’s Todd Zolecki points out. Hernandez has actually started 18 of 19 games for the club this season, and while Kingery is a second baseman by trade, he’s played that position just twice so far at the MLB level. Instead, he’s spent time at shortstop, third and right field. Zolecki posits that while Hernandez may have seemed like an obvious trade deadline candidate at the season’s outset, it’s now difficult to see the Phillies dealing him due to his offensive impact and the uncertainty surrounding Maikel Franco and J.P. Crawford. Manager Gabe Kapler’s comments certainly strengthen that line of thinking: “We knew how Cesar’s track record suggested that he’s one of the better second baseman in baseball,” he said. “And now we’re blessed to see it every single day. It’s really exciting to look out there and see a guy that consistent. It’s really nice for a manager to have Cesar at the top of the lineup.”
  • Mike Napoli’s season-ending surgery obviously doesn’t necessarily mean the end of his career. But Ryan Lewis of the Akron Beacon Journal has some interesting comments from Terry Francona suggesting that he believes Napoli (who was playing with the Indians’ Triple-A affiliate prior to the injury) will be an excellent coach if and when the time comes for him to hang up his spikes. “I’m not saying he’s done playing, I just mean if he chooses to start to be on this side of the field, my guess is he’ll be even better than he was as a player,” Francona said. It’s certainly a fair point; Napoli is well-known for his clubhouse leadership, and especially in Cleveland during their 2016 playoff run.

Mike Napoli Suffers Torn ACL, Meniscus In Right Knee

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April 20: The Indians announced that Napoli has a torn ACL and meniscus in his right knee that will require season-ending surgery. The procedure comes with an estimated recovery time of anywhere from 10 to 14 months, per MLB.com’s Jordan Bastian (Twitter link).

April 18: The Indians announced that veteran first baseman Mike Napoli suffered a “significant” right knee injury while playing with their Triple-A club in Columbus last night. He’s expected to miss an “extended amount of time,” per the team, though specifics of his timeline or the nature of the injury remain unclear.

Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer quotes Indians skipper Terry Francona in relaying that Napoli was injured when chasing down a foul pop early in the game (Twitter link). The injury sounds grim, as MLB.com’s Jordan Bastian adds that Francona suggested that if this proves to be the end of Napoli’s playing career, he has the ability to “make an impact” on the game in his post-playing days.

The 36-year-old Napoli signed a minor league contract with Cleveland this offseason and agreed to report to Triple-A when he didn’t make the club in Spring Training. He’s gotten off to a 1-for-24 start, though his lone hit was a home run and he’s also drawn seven walks.

Napoli was a fan favorite virtually everywhere he’s played later in his career and was especially popular in his first stint with Cleveland in 2016, when he hit .239/.335/.465 with 34 homers and helped the Indians reach the World Series. His 2017 season with the Rangers wasn’t as successful, as he posted a more tepid .193/.285/.428 slash with a career-worst 33.6 percent strikeout rate.

Indians To Add Rajai Davis To MLB Roster; Mike Napoli Will Go To Triple-A

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SUNDAY: Napoli will report to the Indians’ Triple-A affiliate, Paul Hoynes of Cleveland.com tweets.

THURSDAY: Indians skipper Terry Francona ran through a laundry list of roster moves today, as MLB.com’s Jordan Bastian reports in a series of tweets. Of particular note, the club intends to add outfielder Rajai Davis to the active roster for the start of the season and has released first baseman Mike Napoli, with expectations of re-signing him if he cannot find a MLB opportunity elsewhere.

Davis’s minor-league deal included an opt-out opportunity today, so it’s no surprise to see a decision come down. He’ll be slated to earn a $1.75MM salary with another $3.25MM possible through incentives.

The 37-year-old did not hit much this spring but obviously left a positive impression on the organization, which is plenty familiar with him from his 2016 run in Cleveland. Presumably, Davis will supplement youngster Bradley Zimmer in center while also seeing some time in the corners and functioning as a pinch-runner.

As for the 36-year-old Napoli, he’s slated to re-sign with the Indians on a new minor-league deal unless he finds a job elsewhere. Unless the market is suddenly more welcoming than it was just a few weeks back, he’ll presumably end up joining the Indians’ top affiliate to begin the season.

There were some other roster calls made or at least addressed today, as Bastian further details. Veteran righty Alexi Ogando won’t make the MLB team but will return to rotation duties at Triple-A. Fellow non-roster relievers Matt Belisle and Carlos Torres are still awaiting their fates, which will be decided by Article XX(B) bonus decision day (this coming Saturday).

Central Notes: Brewers, Napoli, Merritt, Twins, Buxton, Mercer

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Brewers GM David Stearns spoke today about his team’s much-discussed offseason pitching decisions, as Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel writes. Explaining that the organization believes it has ample rotation depth on hand, Stearns explained that his focus was on evaluating “the extent of the upgrade” that could be achieved in any particular transactions. Clearly, the team felt it could do more by adding two high-quality outfielders than by putting veteran hurlers in front of a group of youngsters that, in Stearns’s view, “have the ability to make an impact on the major-league level” in the near future. That said, Stearns acknowledges that his front office was involved with several free agents and also “were close a couple of times” to trades for pitching.

Here’s more from the central divisions:

  • Mike Napoli is expected to decide shortly whether he’ll return to the Indians on another minor league contract, ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick reports (Twitter link). The presumption seemingly remains that he’ll return and open the year at Triple-A, as manager Terry Francona tells reporters including MLB.com’s Jordan Bastian (Twitter link). But nothing has been formalized at this point, with Napoli evidently still holding out hope of finding a big league opportunity elsewhere. The veteran first baseman, who was released yesterday from a minors deal with Cleveland, has struggled to generate interest at the MLB level all winter long after a middling 2017 season.
  • Meanwhile, the Indians got a bit more clarity in their pitching plans with the decision to place Ryan Merritt on the DL to open the season, as Bastian reports. A combination of knee problems to open camp and a “tired arm” as it draws to a close have conspired to hold him back. The news also prevents the Cleveland organization from making a tough call on Merritt, an out-of-options hurler that the team would prefer not to expose to waivers.
  • The Twins are likely to look for a right-handed hitter with some pop, Phil Miller of the Minneapolis Star Tribune writes, as teams make their final Spring Training cuts and veteran players can opt out of minor league contracts. Robbie Grossman, Zack Granite, and Ryan LaMarre are competing for two of Minnesota’s remaining bench spots, though none of that trio has much power. The Minnesota organization was connected previously with Napoli, though after signing Logan Morrison as the primary DH it seems reasonable to anticipate that the club would prefer any new addition be capable of spending time in the outfield.
  • In other news out of Minnesota, the Twins have renewed young center fielder Byron Buxton at a $570K rate, Mike Berardino of the St. Paul Pioneer-Press reports on Twitter. The 24-year-old entered the winter as a 2+ service-class player who was under consideration for an extension, but the sides have thus far failed to see eye to eye on both a near-term and long-term arrangement. From the outside, at least, it still seems possible that the Twins could strike a deal with a player who finally showed the output to match the hype in an outstanding second half of the 2017 season. Of course, his less-than-smooth transition to the majors could also create divergent opinions on value.
  • Long-time Pirates shortstop Jordy Mercer acknowledges that this could be his last campaign in Pittsburgh, as Rob Biertempfel of The Athletic writes (subscription link). He also says he’s content to allow the situation to “play out” as it will. As Biertempfel explains, the 31-year-old does not appear likely to be in the team’s long-term plans with a variety of interesting middle-infield prospects moving up the ranks behind him.
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