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Nick Goody

Zack Godley, Jairo Diaz, Nick Goody Sign With Atlantic League Teams

By Steve Adams | June 7, 2022 at 12:47pm CDT

Right-handers Zack Godley and Jairo Diaz have signed with the Gastonia Honey Hunters of the Atlantic League, per the league’s transactions log. That log also indicates that right-hander Nick Goody latched on with the Long Island Ducks yesterday. All three veteran righties have extensive Major League experience.

Godley, 32, has logged big league time in each of the past seven seasons — albeit just 3 1/3 frames with Milwaukee this past season. A solid mid-rotation arm for the D-backs in 2017-18 (4.10 ERA in 333 1/3 innings), Godley has struggled and dealt with injuries in recent years, most notably a flexor strain that ruined his 2020 season.

Since losing his grip on a rotation spot in Arizona, he’s pitched to a 6.75 ERA in 124 big league innings (2019-21). He posted solid minor league numbers with the Brewers’ top affiliate last year but was rocked for 20 earned runs with a 29-to-19 K/BB ratio in 22 1/3 innings with the Reds’ Triple-A club to begin the current season.

Diaz, 31, has three-plus years of big league service and 107 1/3 frames at the MLB level. He worked in some high-leverage roles as recently as 2019 with the Rockies, but Diaz had a notable velocity drop (97.2 mph to 95.3 mph) in 2020 and limped to a 7.65 ERA in 20 frames with Colorado. He remained with the club in 2021 but pitched only 9 1/3 minor league innings due to injury. Diaz briefly inked a minor league deal with the Mariners earlier this year, as reported by  the New York Post’s Jon Heyman at the time, but he didn’t end up throwing a pitch with a Mariners affiliate.

The 30-year-old Goody totaled 152 2/3 innings of work from 2015-20, enjoying his best years in Cleveland (2017, 2019). At his best, Goody was punching out about 30% of his opponents with a walk rate that was only slightly higher than the league average, but an elbow strain and a back injury slowed him in 2018-19. Goody was claimed off waivers by the 2020 Rangers but served up 11 runs in 11 innings with Texas that summer before being cut loose.

Goody split the 2021 season between the Triple-A affiliates for the Yankees — the organization that originally drafted him — and Nationals. He missed plenty of bats (29.6% strikeout rate) and posted a decent 9.0% walk rate, but Goody surrendered too many home runs (1.5 HR/9) and posted a pedestrian 4.53 ERA between those two stops. He’s spent the early postion of the 2022 season with los Acereros de Monclava of the Mexican League.

All three of Godley, Goody and Diaz have enough recent MLB experience that with some success on the indie circuit, they could jump back into affiliated ball as depth options in the season’s second half.

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Atlantic League Transactions Jairo Diaz Nick Goody Zack Godley

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Yankees, Nick Goody Agree To Minor League Deal

By Steve Adams | August 17, 2021 at 9:15pm CDT

The Yankees are in agreement to bring right-hander Nick Goody back to the organization on a minor league contract, reports Conor Foley of the Scranton Times-Tribune (Twitter link). He’ll head back to Triple-A Scranton Wilkes-Barre for the time being.

Goody, 30, opened the season with the Yankees on a minor league deal and pitched quite well for their top affiliate in Scranton, logging 22 innings of 2.86 ERA ball with a massive 36.5 percent strikeout rate against just an 8.2 percent walk rate. Goody exercised an early July opt-out clause in that deal, however, and the Yankees elected to let him become a free agent rather than add him to the MLB roster at the time. He went on to sign with the Nationals but didn’t fare as well with their Triple-A club in Rochester; in 14 innings there, Goody yielded eight runs on 13 hits and seven walks with 13 strikeouts (5.40 ERA).

Originally a sixth-round pick by the Yankees back in 2012, Goody made his big league debut with them back in 2015. He was traded to the Indians in a 2016 deal that netted minor league reliever Yoiber Marquina, and he went on to enjoy a solid three-year run in Cleveland from 2017-19: 107 innings, 3.53 ERA, 29.6 percent strikeout rate, 10.4 percent walk rate. After going to the Rangers via waivers in the 2019-20 offseason, Goody was hit hard in the 2020 season, yielding 11 runs on 14 hits and eight walks with 13 punchouts through 11 innings.

Now back with the Yankees, Goody will provide some depth to a bullpen that has a different composition than when he left the organization. In the six weeks since that time, the Yankees have lost Darren O’Day to a season-ending hamstring injury; traded Luis Cessa and Justin Wilson; and acquired both Clay Holmes and Joely Rodriguez in separate deals. They’re also currently without closer Aroldis Chapman, who has been on the injured list since Aug. 7 owing to elbow inflammation.

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New York Yankees Transactions Nick Goody

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Nationals Sign Nick Goody To Minors Contract

By Mark Polishuk | July 7, 2021 at 7:45am CDT

The Nationals signed right-hander Nick Goody to a minor league contract.  Goody was released from another minors deal with the Yankees earlier this week, but his stint in free agency didn’t last long, and he’ll now head to Triple-A Rochester.

A veteran of six MLB seasons, Goody has yet to see any big league action in 2021, tossing 22 innings for the Yankees’ Triple-A affiliate.  The righty has some very nice numbers (2.86 ERA, 36.5% strikeout rate, 8.23% walk rate) over those 22 frames, making him an intriguing signing for a Nationals team still missing several key relievers due to injury.

Goody is perhaps best known for his solid work in the Indians bullpen in 2017 and 2019, though he followed up those two seasons with injury-marred campaigns in 2018 and 2020.  Last season was spent in Texas, after the Rangers claimed Goody off Cleveland’s roster, but the right-hander battled back spasms and posted only a 9.00 ERA over 11 innings.

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Transactions Washington Nationals Nick Goody

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Yankees Release Robinson Chirinos, Nick Goody

By Anthony Franco | July 4, 2021 at 2:19pm CDT

The Yankees have released catcher Robinson Chirinos and right-hander Nick Goody from their minor league deals, reports Bryan Hoch of MLB.com (Twitter link). As expected, utilityman Derek Dietrich has also been let go after triggering his opt-out clause.

Chirinos signed with the Yankees over the winter. He was hit by a pitch in Spring Training, though, fracturing his right wrist. That injury required surgery, delaying the veteran’s debut with Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. Chirinos ultimately appeared in just thirteen games with the RailRiders. He mashed at a .278/.422/.556 clip but also struck out in 16 of his 45 plate appearances. With the Yankees catching duo of Gary Sánchez and Kyle Higashioka set, Chirinos will look for another opportunity elsewhere. The 37-year-old has appeared in parts of nine major league seasons, compiling a .231/.325/.431 line.

Goody, like Chirinos, signed with New York last offseason. It was his second stint in the organization, as the 29-year-old began his MLB career with the Yankees in 2015. The 29-year-old has pitched to a 2.86 ERA with an elite 36.5% strikeout rate and a lower than average 8.2% walk percentage with Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. That wasn’t enough to earn a place in a crowded Yankee bullpen, but it should draw the attention of other clubs with more glaring relief needs. Goody has a 4.19 ERA/3.84 SIERA in parts of six big league seasons.

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New York Yankees Transactions Nick Goody Robinson Chirinos

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Yankees Sign Derek Dietrich, Nick Goody

By Steve Adams | February 17, 2021 at 7:32am CDT

The Yankees announced their full slate of non-roster invitees to Spring Training on Wednesday, and while the bulk of them have already been reported over the course of the offseason, there are a few new attendees among the bunch. Infielder/outfielder Derek Dietrich, right-handers Nick Goody and Luis Garcia, outfielder Ryan LaMarre and southpaw Lucas Luetge are will all be in camp as non-roster players with the Yanks.

Dietrich, 31, has gravitated toward a three-true-outcomes skill set over the past couple of seasons as his power, strikeout rate and walk rate have all spiked. Since being cut loose by the Marlins after the 2018 campaign, he’s spent time with the Reds and Rangers, batting a combined .189/.332/.462 with 24 home runs, a 9.7 percent walk rate and a 25 percent strikeout rate. Dietrich has experience at first base, second base, third base and in left field, and his increasingly powerful left-handed swing would be a good fit at Yankee Stadium if he were to crack the MLB roster at some point.

Goody, 29, was a Rangers teammate of Dietrich’s in 2020 but struggled in his lone season with Texas. The former Indians setup man served up 11 runs in 11 innings last year but had strong showings in Cleveland both in 2019 and in 2017. Yankees fans quite likely recall Goody from his prospect days and his 2015-16 big league debut as a Yankee. His best season came with the 2017 Indians when he tossed 54 2/3 innings of 2.80 ERA ball with a huge 32.6 percent punchout rate and a respectable nine percent strikeout rate, though his ’19 season was also sound: 40 2/3 innings, 3.54 ERA, 28.9 K%, 12.7 BB%. His 2018 season was shortened by elbow troubles, and last year’s struggles came in a season marred by back spasms.

Garcia, 34, makes a trifecta of 2020 Rangers joining the Yankees organization. He’s spent parts of eight seasons in the big leagues, mostly with the Phillies, but was knocked around for seven runs on 10 hits and nine walks with 11 strikeouts in 8 1/3 frames as a Ranger last year. Garcia was excellent with the 2017 Phillies but hasn’t had much success since — just a 5.26 ERA in 116 1/3 frames. He still averaged 97.2 mph on his four-seamer in 2020, however.

The 2020 season was the first that LaMarre, 32, didn’t log some big league time since 2014. He’s been an up-and-down fourth outfield type with the Reds, Red Sox, A’s, Twins and White Sox since making his MLB debut with Cincinnati in ’15, hitting .236/.286/.338 in 246 plate appearances along the way. LaMarre is a right-handed hitter who can play all three outfield spots and who carries a .281/.349/.415 career batting line in parts of seven Triple-A seasons.

Luetge, 34 in March, pitched in the Majors with the Mariners from 2012-15 but hasn’t been in the big leagues since. He’s bounced around the Triple-A clubs of the Orioles, Reds, Angels and D-backs in the meantime and owns a 4.22 ERA and 24 percent strikeout rate at that level. In 89 MLB innings he has a 4.35 ERA with pedestrian K/BB numbers but an above-average 47.7 percent grounder rate.

The Yankees also confirmed previously reported minor league agreements with several former big leaguers, including righties Kyle Barraclough, Jhoulys Chacin, Adam Warren and Asher Wojciechowski; lefties Nestor Cortes Jr. and Tyler Lyons; outfielders Socrates Brito and Jay Bruce; catchers Rob Brantly and Robinson Chirinos; and infielder Andrew Velazquez.

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New York Yankees Transactions Derek Dietrich Lucas Luetge Luis Garcia Nick Goody Ryan LaMarre

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Rangers Designate Nick Goody, Select Andrew Romine

By Connor Byrne | September 24, 2020 at 5:51pm CDT

The Rangers have designated right-hander Nick Goody for assignment and selected infielder Andrew Romine, the team announced.

Goody, whom the Rangers claimed from the Indians last winter, has posted a couple of respectable seasons since he debuted in 2015 with the Yankees. He logged a 3.54 ERA/4.62 FIP with 11.07 K/9 and 4.87 BB/9 over 40 2/3 innings in Cleveland in 2019, for instance, but wasn’t able to keep that momentum going this year in Texas. As a Ranger in 2020, the 29-year-old Goody allowed 12 runs (11 earned) on 14 hits and totaled 13 strikeouts against eight walks over 11 frames.

Romine, 34, signed a minors pact with the Rangers on Sept. 15. The former Angel, Tiger and Mariner has amassed 1,323 major league plate appearances, but he has hit just .235/.291/.301 and hasn’t seen action in the bigs since 2018.

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Texas Rangers Transactions Andrew Romine Nick Goody

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Players Avoiding Arbitration Prior To 2019 Non-Tender Deadline

By Steve Adams | December 2, 2019 at 4:41pm CDT

With tonight’s 8pm ET deadline to tender contracts to arbitration-eligible players looming, there’ll be several players who agree to one-year contracts for the 2020 season today. It’s common for the day of the non-tender deadline to be a big one for arbitration agreements, though it’s also worth noting that many of the players who agree to terms today will do so at a rate that’s lower than the salary figures projected by MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz.

Broadly speaking, players who agree to terms on a salary this far in advance tend to be those who were at risk of being non-tendered, and their teams are able to use tonight’s deadline as leverage in bringing about a deal that saves them a bit of cash. A look at some of the early instances of players agreeing to terms reveals this to be true already; Mike Zunino ($4.5MM salary vs. $4.9MM projection), Wilmer Difo ($1MM salary vs. $1.2MM projection) and Scott Alexander ($875K salary vs. $1MM projection) have all agreed to lesser terms rather than risk being cast out into the free-agent market.

We’ll keep track of today’s players who avoid arbitration in this post and update throughout the day…

  • The Padres have a deal for $1.5MM with infielder Greg Garcia, Bob Nightengale of USA Today tweets. That’s a shade under his $1.7MM projection for the 30-year-old.
  • Infielder Orlando Arcia has avoided arbitration with the Brewers, per Bob Nightengale of USA Today (via Twitter). Though he’s set to lose some playing time, it seems Arcia will be expected to retain a notable role. He’s considered a talented defender at short and was long expected to come around with the bat, but it hasn’t happened yet.
  • Dodgers catcher Austin Barnes is in agreement on a $1.1MM deal, per Robert Murray (Twitter link). It’s a guaranteed deal, which isn’t standard for arbitration pacts. Barnes had projected at $1.3MM on the heels of a disappointing season. It seems he’ll be asked to function as the club’s second backstop in 2020.

Earlier Moves

  • The Rangers have a deal in place with right-hander Nick Goody, the club announced. He’ll earn $915K, according to MLB.com’s TR Sullivan (via Twitter). Goody projected to earn $1.1MM, so he’s taking a discount on that mark with his new club.
  • Just-acquired righty Jharel Cotton has agreed to a $640K deal with the Cubs, Rosenthal tweets. Cotton had projected at $800K but he’s surely focused first and foremost on getting a significant MLB opportunity. He didn’t quite make it back to the majors in 2019 after a long injury layoff but figures to represent a swingman option for the Chicago club in 2020.
  • Outfielder Alex Dickerson and lefty Wandy Peralta are in agreement with the Giants, per Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic (Twitter links). Dickerson settled for $925K, which is well under his $1.2MM projected earning power. The 29-year-old has had trouble staying healthy but usually hits when he is on the field. He rewarded the San Francisco organization for taking a shot on him last year by turning in a .290/.351/.529 batting line in 171 plate appearances. As for Peralta, he lands right at his projected value with a $805K salary. The 28-year-old was claimed off waivers late in the 2019 season.
  • The White Sox and James McCann avoided arbitration with a one-year deal worth $5.4MM, tweets ESPN’s Jeff Passan. McCann’s deal checks in a half million dollars north of his $4.9MM projection. Chicago’s addition of Yasmani Grandal has likely relegated McCann to backup duties, so he’ll be a rather expensive second catcher for the South Siders. A free agent next winter, McCann hit .273/.328/.460 with a career-high 18 home runs, but his bat went dormant in the season’s final few months and his .359 BABIP seems particularly ripe for regression.
  • The Athletics avoided arbitration with left-handed reliever T.J. McFarland by agreeing to a one-year contract worth $1.8MM, USA Today’s Bob Nightengale tweets. That salary effectively puts McFarland in line for the same salary he’d have received had he had his $1.85MM club option exercised by the Diamondbacks. Arizona, however, bought him out for $50K and then ran him through waivers, at which point the A’s claimed him. The 30-year-old posted a 4.82 ERA with a middling 5.6 K/9 and 3.2 BB/9 in 56 2/3 innings this past season, but he’s a ground-ball behemoth (61.1 percent). He’ll be a free agent next winter and had been projected at $2.1MM.
  • Infielder Ehire Adrianza and the Twins agreed on a $1.6MM salary for the upcoming season, Nightengale tweets. The versatile utilityman hit .272/.349/.416 in 236 plate appearances while appearing at all four infield spots and both outfield corners. Adrianza, a free agent next winter, was projected at $1.9MM.
  • Outfielder Travis Jankowski agreed to a rare arbitration pay cut with the Reds, Bobby Nightengale Jr. of the Cincinnati Enquirer tweets. After earning $1.165MM in 2019, he’ll be owed $1.05MM in 2020 if he makes the club. A fractured wrist cost him much of the season in 2019, and he was just 4-for-22 when healthy and in the Majors. Jankowski did have a nice season in Triple-A, though (.393 OBP in 39 games), and the Reds gave up some international funds to acquire him, which seemingly indicated that they planned to tender him a contract. He was projected to earn $1.2MM.

Read more

  • The Nationals announced that they’ve agreed to one-year deals with infielder Wilmer Difo and right-hander Hunter Strickland. (Difo’s deal was reported yesterday.) Acquired from the Mariners in a deadline swap, the 31-year-old Strickland was hit hard with the Nats, yielding a dozen runs on 20 hits (five homers) and eight walks with 15 strikeouts in 21 innings. The resulting 5.14 ERA wasn’t pretty, nor was his work in the NLDS (four runs in two innings). But with a $1.6MM salary projection, a quality track record and a clear bullpen need, he was appealing enough for the Nats to keep around on a non-guaranteed arbitration deal.
  • Left-hander Mike Montgomery and the Royals are in agreement on a one-year, $3.1MM contract, Jeffrey Flanagan of MLB.com reports (Twitter link). Acquired in the trade that sent Martin Maldonado to the Cubs, Montgomery made 13 starts with Kansas City and turned in a 4.64 ERA with 7.2 K/9, 3.0 BB/9, 1.69 HR/9 and a 51.5 percent ground-ball rate. Those are hardly world-beating results, but Montgomery has never really struggled with home runs before, so perhaps the belief is that a correction to this past season’s juiced ball will lead to better numbers. He’d been projected to earn $2.9MM, so he actually came out a bit in front despite agreeing to an early deal. Not only that, but unlike most arbitration agreements, Montgomery’s contract is fully guaranteed, MLBTR has learned. The Royals can control Montgomery through 2021.
  • The Phillies and Andrew Knapp agreed to a $710K salary for the upcoming season, thus avoiding arbitration, Todd Zolecki of MLB.com reports (via Twitter). The 28-year-old Knapp has yet to deliver on his prospect status with the Phils, slashing .223/.327/.336 through 579 plate appearances in the Majors (including .213/.318/.324 in 160 plate appearances this past season). With J.T. Realmuto entrenched as the backstop in 2020 (and perhaps beyond), Knapp profiles as the top backup option in Philadelphia for now. He’d been projected to earn $800K and is controllable through the 2022 season.
  • The Orioles announced that they’ve agreed to terms on a 2020 contract with left-hander Richard Bleier. The southpaw had a rough go of things in his return from 2018 surgery to repair a Grade 3 lat strain — 5.37 ERA in 55 1/3 innings — but he finished the season strong. Bleier also continued to display superlative control (1.3 BB/9) and elite ground-ball skills (59.9 percent), both of which have helped to offset his paltry strikeout rates to this point in his career (4.3 K/9, 11.6 K%). He was projected to earn $1.1MM, but MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand tweets that Bleier has agreed to a $915K salary for the upcoming season.
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Arizona Diamondbacks Baltimore Orioles Chicago Cubs Chicago White Sox Cincinnati Reds Kansas City Royals Los Angeles Dodgers Milwaukee Brewers Minnesota Twins Oakland Athletics Philadelphia Phillies San Diego Padres San Francisco Giants Seattle Mariners Texas Rangers Transactions Washington Nationals Alex Dickerson Andrew Knapp Austin Barnes Ehire Adrianza Greg Garcia Hunter Strickland J.T. Realmuto James McCann Jharel Cotton Martin Maldonado Mike Montgomery Mike Zunino Nick Goody Orlando Arcia Richard Bleier Scott Alexander T.J. McFarland Todd Zolecki Travis Jankowski Wandy Peralta Wilmer Difo Yasmani Grandal

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Rangers Claim Nick Goody

By Steve Adams | December 2, 2019 at 11:13am CDT

Dec. 2: Goody has accepted the assignment and been added to the Rangers’ 40-man roster, per a club announcement. The team’s 40-man roster is now full.

Nov. 26: Indians right-hander Nick Goody has been claimed off waivers by the Rangers, per an announcement from the Texas organization. (MLBTR reported that he’d been claimed by an unknown team this afternoon.) Players claimed off release waivers have five days to accept the assignment to their new club or reject in favor of free agency.

Goody, 28, is projected by MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz to receive a $1.1MM salary via arbitration this winter. The right-hander had a terrific 2017 season for the Indians, compiling a 2.80 ERA with 11.9 K/9, 3.3 BB/9 and 1.2 HR/9 in 54 innings out of the bullpen. Goody logged an eye-popping 16.1 percent swinging-strike rate that season and whiffed nearly a third of the hitters he faced. His slider, in particular, gave opponents fits, as evidenced by a 24.2 percent swinging-strike mark and an awful .147 opponents’ average against the pitch.

An elbow strain caused Goody to miss most of the 2018 season, however, limiting him to 11 2/3 innings of 6.94 ERA ball. He was healthy again for most of the 2019 season and turned out a solid 3.54 ERA with a 50-to-22 K/BB ratio in 40 2/3 innings. Control was an issue for Goody this past season, and his 25.7 percent fly-ball rate was a career-low. But the right-hander’s 92.8 mph average fastball was a career-high, and his slider, which was hammered in 2018, appeared to be back into good form in 2019 (.123 average against; 23.2 percent swinging-strike rate).

If Goody does indeed accept his assignment to the Rangers and go through the arbitration process, he’d be controllable for not only the 2020 season but also the 2021-22 seasons.

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Cleveland Guardians Texas Rangers Transactions Nick Goody

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Interesting Players Designated In Advance Of Rule 5 Deadline

By Dylan A. Chase | November 21, 2019 at 6:08pm CDT

Wednesday marked the deadline for teams to protect players from next month’s Rule 5 draft, and the evening didn’t pass without its fair share of activity. Dozens of prospects were ultimately provided shelter on their clubs’ 40-man rosters, but, as expected, many of those moves required some tough decisions on the part of parent clubs.

While gaining a spot on a 40-man roster marks an important step in a young player’s career, it often means that a veteran must be politely shown the organizational door. Sure enough, Wednesday saw several experienced position players and pitchers designated for assignment, traded to rival clubs, or outright released.

With the smoke still clearing on many of these moves, readers may simply be scrambling to make sense of which of their favorite team’s prospects were left unprotected in advance of the Rule 5. But what about the veterans who are currently left floating in DFA limbo as a result of the evening’s activities?

Today offers a good opportunity to examine a few players who, in the coming days, will be available for selection via waiver claim or trade after being designated by their teams last night. While we saw some well-known, oft-injured names either released (Jacoby Ellsbury) or traded (Jose De Leon) by their clubs, we’ll focus instead on DFA’d players who could soon find a place on another MLB roster.

Matt Duffy: Rays GM Erik Neander had a busy night on Wednesday, with his club adding five prospects to its 40-man. While the Rays’ trade of the oft-injured De Leon to the Reds was likely a tough roster-clearing pill for fans to swallow, Duffy’s own designation also brought about a few “what-if” questions. Originally acquired as part of the 2016 package coming back to Tampa in return for Matt Moore, Duffy projected as a controllable, well-rounded infielder who, true to the club’s modus operandi, could play a few positions while hitting well enough to justify his lineup spot. Unfortunately, injuries limited Duffy to just 199 games in a Rays uni since the middle of 2016, and he now hits the waiver wire as a 28-year-old just one year removed from his 2018 batting line of .294/.361/.366 production (107 wRC+).

Nick Goody: The 28-year-old Goody was jettisoned from the Indians roster when the club added outfielder Daniel Johnson, right-hander Triston McKenzie and left-hander Scott Moss to its roster. While the Indians boast enviable pitching depth, it’s easy to see where Goody could fit on a number of MLB rosters. Since making his debut with the Yankees in 2015, the LSU alum has logged a 3.81 ERA supported by a 10.9 K/9 rate; he was superlative in 2017 out of the Cleveland pen, in particular, notching a 2.80 ERA/3.45 FIP across 54 2/3 innings of work. Goody’s 4.62 FIP and 4.9 BB/9 rate in 2019 showed that there was perhaps a bit of rust beneath the veneer of his 3.54 ERA, but the longtime Statcast darling shouldn’t have trouble finding a big league job next season, given the collective strength of his track record.

Nestor Cortes Jr.: Cortes was culled from the Yankees’ active roster on Wednesday, on the heels of a rough 2019 campaign out of the New York bullpen. While his 5.67 ERA across 66 2/3 Bronx innings last year would likely tell you what you need to know, Cortes is still just 24 years old and possesses a solid track record of success in the upper minors. The lefty posited a 3.86 ERA across seven games and six starts for the Triple-A Yankees of Scranton Wilkes-Barre, with decent underlying metrics (9.5 K/9 and 2.5 BB/9). Cortes doesn’t throw hard, with a fastball sitting around 89 mph, but he offers a five-pitch mix and could represent an interesting depth flier for a rebuilding club in search of a back-end starter.

Jharel Cotton: Like Duffy, Cotton’s story is largely defined by injury. Since coming to Oakland from the Dodgers as part of the package received in return for Rich Hill and Josh Reddick, Cotton has loomed as a potential impact arm on the edges of the Athletics rotation. However, his unimpressive 2017 (5.58 ERA in 129 innings) was followed up by Tommy John surgery in 2018, and Cotton ultimately missed most of 2019 due to a hamstring issue that required surgery. The now-27-year-old righty hasn’t thrown a pitch in the majors in two years, but his relative youth and starter’s repertoire could see him latch on with a new team in short order. Cotton was removed from the A’s roster on Wednesday to make room for Daulton Jefferies.

Tim Mayza: Mayza doesn’t bring the former prospect pedigree of some of the other names on this list, and he’s a non-factor for 2020 specifically after undergoing Tommy John surgery.  But, for a team interested in signing Mayza to a low-cost two-year deal, what he does offer is a lefty arm and at least some record of effectiveness while pitching in the AL East. While the 27-year-old limped to a 4.91 ERA/4.73 FIP in extended action in 2019, he was far more effective in a more limited feature in 2018. That season saw Mayza log a 3.28 ERA/3.36 FIP through 35.2 innings; not exactly an overwhelmingly convincing sample size, but lefties are at a perpetual premium and Mayza does hold a 10.6 K/9 rate across 104 career innings. Lefties have managed just a 70 OPS+ against Mayza for his career, although it is fair to wonder whether next year’s introduction of a three-batter minimum rule may limit clubs in their deployment of LOOGY types.

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MLBTR Originals Jharel Cotton Matt Duffy Nestor Cortes Nick Goody Tim Mayza

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Indians Designate Nick Goody For Assignment, Add Three To 40-Man Roster

By Steve Adams | November 20, 2019 at 6:55pm CDT

The Indians announced Wednesday that they’ve designated right-hander Nick Goody for assignment and selected the contracts of outfielder Daniel Johnson, right-hander Triston McKenzie and left-hander Scott Moss.

The 28-year-old Goody had a terrific 2017 season in Cleveland, pitching to a 2.80 ERA with 11.9 K/9, 3.3 BB/9 and 1.2 HR/9 in 54 innings of relief. He was a Statcast darling that season, ranking among the game’s best in terms of expected weighted on-base average (xwOBA), but he missed much of the 2018 season due to an elbow strain. Goody was seemingly back in solid form in 2019 when notched a 3.54 ERA with a 50-to-22 K/BB ratio in 40 2/3 innings (plus another strong .253 xwOBA), but Cleveland apparently didn’t have interest in paying him a projected $1.1MM arbitration salary.

Moss was acquired in the three-team deal that sent Trevor Bauer to Cincinnati this past summer and only allowed four runs in 28 2/3 minor league innings with the Indians. McKenzie, long one of the Indians’ best prospects, didn’t pitch in 2019 due to a back injury but enjoyed an excellent 2018 season in Double-A despite pitching most of the year at the age of 20. The Indians understandably weren’t willing to risk losing the former No. 42 pick, who has been a top-100 prospect three years running. Johnson, meanwhile, reached Triple-A for the first time in 2019 and posted a combined .290/.361/.507 batting line across the Indians’ top two affiliates.

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Cleveland Guardians Transactions Daniel Johnson Nick Goody Scott Moss Triston McKenzie

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