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Ramon Laureano

Braves Exploring Outfield Market, Prefer Left-Handed Bat

By Steve Adams | November 25, 2024 at 1:50pm CDT

The Braves are poking around the market for outfield help after non-tendering Ramon Laureano and prefer to add a left-handed bat if possible, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reports.

It doesn’t seem as though Atlanta is intent on shopping at the top of the market. They’ve not been suggested as anything more than a speculative dark horse for top free agent Juan Soto. Veterans like Anthony Santander, Teoscar Hernandez, Jurickson Profar and Tyler O’Neill all seem likely to command multi-year deals of note. The Braves are looking for some depth to help cover early in the season, in the likely event that Ronald Acuna Jr. is unavailable to begin the year; president of baseball operations Alex Anthopoulos said at this month’s GM Meetings that they’re planning as though Acuna will open the season on the injured list.

With no Acuna, the Braves’ outfield would include Jarred Kelenic, Michael Harris II and some combination of Eli White, Luke Williams and recently signed Carlos D. Rodriguez. It’s logical that Atlanta would pursue some more solidity on that front. Some may feel Laureano could have provided just that, but his solid showing with Atlanta was buoyed by a .380 average on balls in play and came in spite of a 3.5% walk rate and 28.3% strikeout rate. Regression seems highly likely. Laureano hit just .218/.296/.373 in 2022-23 with a similar strikeout rate, twice the walk rate, and a BABIP about 100 points lower. Plus, he’s a right-handed bat.

Most of Atlanta’s moves in free agency and on the trade market thus far have been modest in scope. Anthopoulos rarely spends on long-term deals in free agency, preferring instead to operate on the trade market and to rely on a strong track record of in-house development. Atlanta has only given out three free-agent contracts greater than two years under Anthopoulos (link via MLBTR’s Contract Tracker): left-hander Will Smith (three years, $40MM), right-hander Reynaldo Lopez (three years, $30MM) and outfielder/DH Marcell Ozuna (four years, $65MM). None of that necessarily precludes a larger-scale deal, but history suggests it to be unlikely.

Fortunately for the Braves, there’s a fairly deep pool of inexpensive left-handed-hitting bats on this offseason’s market. Max Kepler, Michael Conforto, Alex Verdugo, Jesse Winker, David Peralta, Mike Tauchman and switch-hitting former top prospect Dylan Carlson are among the lefty bats available this winter. (Kepler and Conforto, in particular, might require multi-year deals.) The trade and waiver markets offer further possibilities.

Anthopoulos has already suggested this offseason that he expects his payroll to rise in 2025. The Braves spent about $232MM on last year’s roster and currently have a projected $202MM payroll in 2025, per RosterResource. That certainly leaves room for some additions, but Atlanta’s luxury-tax ledger is a bit more crowded.

The Braves have more than $217MM in projected luxury obligations, leaving them $24MM or so from hitting this year’s $241MM barrier. They’d be paying the tax for a third straight season if they cross that line and, as such, would be subject to the steepest tier of penalties. They’d start at a 50% tax on the first $20MM by which they exceed the line, followed by 62% for the next $20MM, 95% for the next $20MM (plus their top draft pick in 2026 dropping by ten places) and 110% for any dollars thereafter. With needs at shortstop, in the starting rotation and in the bullpen as well, Anthopoulos will have a hard time piecing everything together without crossing that line.

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Atlanta Braves Ramon Laureano Ronald Acuna

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Braves Non-Tender Ramón Laureano, Griffin Canning

By Anthony Franco | November 22, 2024 at 8:10pm CDT

The Braves made five non-tenders this evening. Most notably, they parted ways with outfielder Ramón Laureano and recent trade pickup Griffin Canning. Atlanta also dropped lefty reliever Ray Kerr and righties Huascar Ynoa and Royber Salinas.

Laureano caught on with the Braves in May after being released by the Guardians. He had a surprisingly strong finish, hitting .296/.327/.505 with 10 homers across 226 plate appearances. Laureano’s dismal early-season production with Cleveland left his season batting line right around league average: .259/.311/.437 with 11 homers through 309 trips to the plate.

The late-season turnaround was Laureano’s best extended stretch since his 2021 suspension for performance-enhancing drugs while a member of the A’s. It’s fair to wonder if that was more than a small sample mirage. He struck out at an elevated 28.3% clip while walking only 3.5% of the time with the Braves. Laureano has never been an elite contact hitter, but he drew walks more consistently during his best years in Oakland. Atlanta wasn’t sufficiently convinced to retain him at a salary which MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projected at $6.1MM.

Canning’s non-tender may come as a bit of a surprise. The Braves just acquired him three weeks ago in a one-for-one swap that sent Jorge Soler to the Angels. That was far more about shedding Soler’s salary than an indication that the Braves valued Canning in particular. The Angels were willing to assume the remaining two years and $26MM on Soler’s contract, which wasn’t a tenable price for an Atlanta team that has Marcell Ozuna locked in at designated hitter.

Indeed, MLBTR’s Steve Adams noted within our Soler writeup that the Braves could cut bait with Canning entirely if they didn’t agree to a deal below his $5.1MM projected salary. Atlanta could’ve viewed the righty as a candidate for a “pre-tender” deal that checks in below his projection so as to avoid a non-tender. Whether the Braves never pursued that or Canning simply didn’t have interest in signing at a discounted rate, the result is the same. He’ll hit free agency, which probably would’ve been the case had he not been traded. The Angels would likely have non-tendered him themselves.

Canning will look elsewhere for a landing spot after struggling to a 5.19 ERA in 32 appearances for the Halos last year. The UCLA product has battled injuries over his five-year career, though he’s intermittently flashed mid-rotation potential. He had a 4.32 ERA with a near-26% strikeout rate in 127 frames a year ago. Canning should be able to find an MLB deal, presumably with a lower base salary than the arbitration projection, now that he’s a free agent.

The other cuts were about clearing roster space rather than shedding salary. Kerr and Salinas have yet to reach arbitration. Ynoa was arb-eligible but projected for a salary barely above the league minimum. Kerr underwent Tommy John surgery in June and will miss the bulk of next season. Ynoa hasn’t pitched in the big leagues since 2022, while Salinas has yet to make his MLB debut. Atlanta could look to re-sign any of them to minor league deals. They’ll likely try that route with Salinas, in particular, as they just claimed the 23-uyear-old off waivers from the A’s three weeks ago.

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Atlanta Braves Newsstand Transactions Griffin Canning Huascar Ynoa Ramon Laureano Ray Kerr Royber Salinas

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National League Non-Tenders: 11/22/24

By Darragh McDonald | November 22, 2024 at 6:09pm CDT

The deadline to tender a contract to arbitration-eligible players is tonight at 7pm CT. Here’s a rundown of the players on National League teams that have been non-tendered today. This post will be updated as more decisions are revealed. MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projected salaries for all players eligible for arbitration last month. All players who are non-tendered before this evening’s deadline go directly into free agency, where they’re eligible to sign with any of MLB’s 30 clubs.

Onto the transactions…

  • The Braves non-tendered outfielder Ramón Laureano, left-hander Ray Kerr, as well as right-handers Griffin Canning, Huascar Ynoa and Royber Salinas, which you can read more about here.
  • The Brewers parted ways with lefty reliever Hoby Milner, who’d been projected at $2.7MM for his final arbitration season. The typically reliable southpaw was tagged for a 4.73 ERA in 64 2/3 innings this year.
  • The Cardinals have non-tendered right-hander Adam Kloffenstein, per Jeff Jones of the Belleville News-Democrat (Bluesky link). The righty only just made his major league debut in 2024 and was not yet arb-eligible. He immediately becomes a free agent without being exposed to waivers.
  • The Cubs have non-tendered infielder Nick Madrigal, per Jesse Rogers of ESPN (X link). Madrigal has hit .251/.304/.312 for a 76 wRC+ over the last three seasons with the Cubs and was projected for a $1.9MM salary next year. Chicago also announced they non-tendered outfielder Mike Tauchman, which comes as a bit of a surprise after he reached base at a .357 clip this year. Patrick Wisdom, Adbert Alzolay, Brennen Davis and Trey Wingenter — all of whom were designated for assignment earlier this week — were also dropped.
  • The Diamondbacks non-tendered lefty reliever Brandon Hughes, per a club announcement. The 28-year-old southpaw allowed 16 runs over 17 2/3 big league innings this year. He wasn’t eligible for arbitration but would’ve occupied a 40-man roster spot if offered a contract.
  • The Dodgers are non-tendering right-hander Brent Honeywell Jr. and left-hander Zach Logue, per Jack Harris of the Los Angeles Times (X link). Both pitchers are still in their pre-arbitration years, so this was more about the Dodgers sending them to free agency without exposing them to waivers, as opposed to cost cutting. Perhaps the club will look to re-sign them on minor league deals.
  • The Giants only made two non-tenders, parting with lefty Ethan Small and righty Kai-Wei Teng. Teng had been designated for assignment earlier in the week. Small, who was in his pre-arbitration years, spent the season in the minors or on the injured list.
  • The Marlins had zero non-tenders. They offered contracts to everyone on the 40-man roster.
  • The Mets dropped a trio of players from the 40-man roster: relievers Grant Hartwig and Alex Young and outfield prospect Alex Ramirez. Young was the only member of that group who’d been eligible for arbitration. The southpaw pitched well in a depth role, but the Mets didn’t want to keep him around at a $1.4MM projection. Hartwig made four appearances this year, while the 21-year-old Ramirez (a former top prospect) had a .210/.291/.299 showing in Double-A.
  • The Nationals announced that they have non-tendered right-hander Kyle Finnegan and Tanner Rainey, which you can read more about here.
  • The Padres dropped four players from the roster: righties Luis Patino and Logan Gillaspie, outfielder Bryce Johnson and infielder Mason McCoy. Patino, who underwent Tommy John surgery last summer, was the only member of the group who’d been eligible for arbitration. The other three cuts are simply about roster maintenance. The Padres could try to bring anyone from that group back on minor league deals.
  • The Phillies will not be tendering a contract to outfielder Austin Hays, which MLBTR covered earlier today.
  • The Pirates are expected to non-tender first baseman/outfielder Connor Joe and outfielder Bryan De La Cruz, per Alex Stumpf of MLB.com (Bluesky link). They are also non-tendering right-hander Hunter Stratton, per Noah Hiles of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (X link). Joe was projected for a salary of $3.2MM next year and De La Cruz $4MM. Stratton had not yet qualified for arbitration. Joe has been around league average at the plate in his career but doing more damage against lefties. De La Cruz has hit .253/.297/.407 in his career for a wRC+ of 90. Startton had a 3.58 ERA this year but his season was ended by knee surgery, giving him an uncertain path forward.
  • The Reds have non-tendered right-hander Ian Gibaut, per Gordon Wittenmyer of the Cincinnati Enquirer (Bluesky link). The righty was projected for a salary of $800K. He spent the vast majority of 2024 on the injured list due to arm trouble and only made two appearances on the season.
  • The Rockies moved on from starter Cal Quantrill and second baseman Brendan Rodgers, which MLBTR covered here.
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Arizona Diamondbacks Atlanta Braves Chicago Cubs Cincinnati Reds Colorado Rockies Los Angeles Dodgers Miami Marlins Milwaukee Brewers New York Mets Philadelphia Phillies Pittsburgh Pirates San Diego Padres San Francisco Giants St. Louis Cardinals Transactions Washington Nationals Adam Kloffenstein Adbert Alzolay Alex Ramirez Alex Young Austin Hays Brandon Hughes Brennen Davis Brent Honeywell Bryan De La Cruz Bryce Johnson Connor Joe Ethan Small Grant Hartwig Griffin Canning Hoby Milner Huascar Ynoa Hunter Stratton Ian Gibaut Kai-Wei Teng Kyle Finnegan Logan Gillaspie Luis Patino Mason McCoy Mike Tauchman Nick Madrigal Patrick Wisdom Ramon Laureano Ray Kerr Royber Salinas Tanner Rainey Trey Wingenter Zach Logue

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Braves Outright J.P. Martinez

By Anthony Franco | July 10, 2024 at 8:30pm CDT

The Braves announced that outfielder J.P. Martínez went unclaimed on outright waivers. Atlanta had designated him for assignment on Monday when they promoted Eddie Rosario. Atlanta also optioned AJ Smith-Shawver, placed Ramón Laureano on the 10-day injured list with an oblique strain, recalled Dylan Lee and reinstated Brian Anderson from the IL.

Martínez has appeared in seven games this year, picking up a lone start in right field. He has two hits in 10 at-bats. Acquired from the Rangers in an offseason DFA trade, Martínez has spent the majority of the year on optional assignment to Triple-A Gwinnett. Over 60 games with the Stripers, he’s hitting .244/.335/.360 with three home runs. Martínez has drawn a fair number of walks (10.9%) but gone down on strikes at an alarming 27.6% rate.

While he hasn’t had a great ’24 season, Martínez was a productive Triple-A player a year ago. He raked at a .298/.418/.543 clip with 14 homers and 38 stolen bases over 77 games with the Rangers’ top affiliate. That earned the Cuban-born outfielder 17 MLB appearances with Texas.

Martínez has never previously been outrighted and isn’t close to three years of major league service. As a result, he doesn’t have the ability to test free agency. He’ll stick in Gwinnett as non-roster outfield depth. Atlanta is likely to bring in outfield help before the July 30 deadline. With Laureano joining Ronald Acuña Jr. and Michael Harris II on the injured list, their current outfield group consists of Jarred Kelenic, Adam Duvall, Rosario, Anderson and Eli White.

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Atlanta Braves Transactions J.P. Martinez Ramon Laureano

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Braves Place Michael Harris On IL With Grade 2 Hamstring Strain, Select Ramon Laureano

By Anthony Franco | June 15, 2024 at 6:15pm CDT

6:15pm: Harris has been diagnosed with a Grade 2 strain in his hamstring, Snitker told reporters (including MLB.com’s Mark Bowman) this afternoon. Snitker noted that there is no clear timeline for Harris’s return to action beyond the fact that he will be out for “a long time.”

JUNE 15, 9:26am: The Braves officially placed Harris on the 10-day IL, with the injury termed a left hamstring strain.  Laureano’s contract was selected to the 26-man roster, and Strider was moved to the 60-day IL to open up a 40-man roster spot.

JUNE 14: The Braves will place Michael Harris II on the 10-day injured list tomorrow, manager Brian Snitker told reporters (X link via Gabe Burns of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution). Atlanta’s center fielder came up lame while running the bases in tonight’s win over the Rays. He left the game with what the team called left hamstring tightness.

Harris will go for an MRI on Saturday to determine the extent of the injury. It is evidently serious enough for the Braves to rule Harris out for at least 10 days before the imaging. It seems likely he’ll be diagnosed with a strain of some degree, though that’ll be clearer over the weekend.

The former Rookie of the Year has started all 67 games in center field. J.P. Martínez came off the bench to handle the position tonight, the first time anyone other than Harris has played a single center field inning for Atlanta this year. Harris hasn’t had a great third MLB season, turning in a .250/.295/.358 batting line through 278 trips to the plate. He’d been an above-average hitter in each of his first two campaigns, rebounding from a slow start last season with a massive .325/.356/.522 showing in the second half.

Even with Harris struggling at the plate, he’s a tough player to replace. He’s an anchor in the outfield as one of the sport’s top defensive center fielders. The Braves don’t have a clear option to step into center field in his stead. Martínez will probably get the first crack at it, but he’s a 28-year-old rookie with 53 MLB plate appearances under his belt. Atlanta acquired the Cuban-born outfielder in a minor trade with the Rangers over the winter. Martínez has spent the bulk of the season at Triple-A Gwinnett, hitting .265/.337/.394 with a 25.8% strikeout rate across 190 plate appearances.

Snitker didn’t announce who would replace Harris on the roster. David O’Brien of the Athletic observes (on X) that Ramón Laureano was pulled midway through tonight’s game for Gwinnett. Laureano signed a minor league deal a couple weeks ago, shortly after he was released by the Guardians. He has plenty of center field experience and could see some action there, but he has primarily been a corner outfielder over the last three seasons.

Laureano didn’t hit at all for Cleveland early in the season. The right-handed hitter fanned in 38.6% of his plate appearances en route to a .143/.265/.229 slash line over 31 games. Laureano has been on a tear in Gwinnett, carrying a .333/.403/.593 line with a trio of homers into tonight’s action. Atlanta would need to add him to the 40-man roster to bring him up. That’s not much of an issue, as the Braves can move Spencer Strider to the 60-day injured list whenever they need to open a 40-man spot.

If Harris is out for an extended stretch, that would only increase the urgency for the Braves to acquire outfield help at the deadline. That already looked like a priority once Atlanta lost Ronald Acuña Jr. to another ACL tear. They’ve been forced to rely on both Adam Duvall and Jarred Kelenic as everyday players (instead of their planned left field platoon) since Acuña went down.

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Atlanta Braves Newsstand Transactions Michael Harris II Ramon Laureano Spencer Strider

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Braves Sign Ramón Laureano To Minor League Deal

By Darragh McDonald | May 29, 2024 at 3:10pm CDT

The Braves have signed outfielder Ramón Laureano to a minor league deal, reports Robert Murray of FanSided on X. The outfielder was recently released by the Guardians and will presumably now head to Triple-A Gwinnett.

Laureano, now 29, got his major league career off to a hot start but he was cooled off by an 80-game PED suspension and hasn’t really gotten back on track since. With the Athletics from 2018 to 2021, he took 1,257 plate appearances and hit 49 home runs in that time. He batted .263/.335/.465 overall for a 119 wRC+, indicating his offense was 19% better than league average in that time. He also stole 34 bases and was considered a solid defender in the outfield.

But in 2021, as mentioned, he was dinged for testing positive for Nandrolone, a banned performance-enhancing substance. He returned to the A’s in 2022 but slashed just .211/.287/.376 that year for a wRC+ of 95. He struggled again in 2023, slashing .213/.280/.364 for the A’s before they put him on waivers.

The Guardians put in a claim and saw a bit of a bounceback late last year. In 41 games for Cleveland, Laureano hit three home runs and stole four bases, slashing .243/.342/.382 for a 106 wRC+. The Guards were evidently encouraged by that, as they tendered Laureano a contract and agreed to a salary of $5.15MM.

Unfortunately, his 2024 season has been abysmal thus far. He struck out in 38.6% of his trips to the plate with Cleveland and was hitting .143/.265/.229 when he was designated for assignment last week and eventually released.

For Atlanta, there’s essentially no risk in bringing him aboard. Since the Guardians released him, they remain on the hook for the majority of his salary. If Atlanta selects him to their roster at any point, they would only have to pay him the prorated league minimum salary for however long he holds a spot, with that amount subtracted from what Cleveland pays.

Atlanta’s outfield depth was significantly thinned this week with the news that Ronald Acuña Jr. has a torn left ACL and will miss the rest of the season. The club still has Michael Harris II in center but Jarred Kelenic and Adam Duvall are now the everyday options in the corners. J.P. Martínez has been recalled to take Acuña’s place on the roster but he’s more of a speedy bench outfielder.

Kelenic and Duvall were previously in a platoon but could wind up overexposed as everyday players in Acuña’s absence. Kelenic swings from the left side and has hit just .188/.252/.307 in his career against southpaws, with Atlanta giving him just seven appearances against them so far this year. Duvall is right-handed and better against lefties, but isn’t a total liability against righties. He has a career .235/.307/.477 batting line and 105 wRC+ with the platoon advantage, with a line of .230/.285/.468 and 95 wRC+ without it.

Similar to Duvall, Laureano is a righty with modest platoon splits. He has hit .263/.334/.440 against southpaws for a 116 wRC+ and .232/.311/.414 otherwise for a 103 wRC+. Even last year, when he didn’t hit well overall, he was able to produce a .270/.333/.460 line and 121 wRC+ against lefties.

Atlanta will get a close-up look at Laureano and see if he can get back on track. He’s been in rough form this year but, as mentioned, they have almost nothing to lose by signing this deal and seeing how it goes. If Laureano can return to his old form, perhaps that will help them bolster their outfield or at least keep lefties away from Kelenic.

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Atlanta Braves Transactions Ramon Laureano

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Guardians Release Ramón Laureano

By Darragh McDonald | May 27, 2024 at 2:10pm CDT

The Guardians have released outfielder Ramón Laureano, according to his transactions tracker at MLB.com. He’ll now head to the open market and will be free to explore opportunities with all clubs.

This was the most likely outcome when the Guardians designated Laureano for assignment last week. The outfielder’s production has been trending down for a few years now and is at an especially low point this year. The 29-year-old has hit .143/.265/.229 thus far in 2024 while striking out 38.6% of the time.

On top of his poor performance, his salary has been creeping up gradually via the arbitration process. He’s making $5.15MM this year and any team acquiring him via a waiver claim or trade would have been taking on that money. It’s unsurprising that no club wanted to take that on, given how he has been playing of late. He has more than five years of service time, meaning he can reject an outright assignment while also keeping that salary in place.

Now that he is a free agent, teams may be interested in a low-cost flier. Since he’s now been released, the Guardians are on the hook for what’s left of the money, meaning that any club that signs him would only be responsible for the prorated league minimum for any time spent on the roster. That amount would be subtracted from what the Guards pay.

It’s been a few years now, but Laureano was once a solid regular for the Athletics. From 2018 to 2021, he stepped to the plate 1,257 times for the A’s and hit 49 home runs. His .263/.335/.465 batting line translated to a wRC+ of 119, indicating he was 19% above league average in that time. He also stole 34 bases and was generally given strong defensive grades, leading FanGraphs to credit him with 8.6 wins above replacement in 313 games.

But towards the end of that 2021 season, he was given an 80-game PED suspension and his performance has been tailing off since then. He hit .211/.287/.376 in 2022 for a wRC+ of 95 and his offense slipped a bit farther in 2023. The A’s designated him for assignment in August of last year and the Guards put in a claim.

Moving to Cleveland seemed to spur a bit of a bounceback, as Laureano slashed .243/.342/.382 for a wRC+ of 106 down the stretch. That apparently intrigued the Guards enough that they tendered him a contract, agreeing to the aforementioned $5.15MM salary. But he has fallen off dramatically and now finds himself looking for his next opportunity.

As mentioned, Laureano can be signed to a major league roster at essentially no cost. Perhaps some club would give him a spot and see if he can play well enough over the next two months to be flipped for a lottery ticket prospect. Or even if no club is willing to bite on that, he should at least be able to find a minor league deal somewhere.

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Cleveland Guardians Transactions Ramon Laureano

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Guardians Designate Ramon Laureano For Assignment

By Steve Adams | May 20, 2024 at 11:59pm CDT

The Guardians have designated outfielder Ramon Laureano for assignment, tweets Zack Meisel of The Athletic. In his place, the team is promoting outfield prospect Johnathan Rodriguez for his MLB debut. Rodriguez is already on the 40-man roster, so the move also frees up a 40-man spot for Cleveland. Guardians Prospective first reported that Rodriguez was getting the call to the big leagues.

Laureano, 29, came to the Guardians early last August after the A’s placed him on waivers in hopes of finding a taker for the remainder of last season’s salary. The Guardians obliged, hoping that Laureano would provide a boost down the stretch as they tried to keep pace in the American League Central. The veteran did provide a bit of offense, hitting .243/.342/.382 following the claim (106 wRC+), but the Guards wound up missing the postseason.

It was something of a surprise to see a budget-conscious team like Cleveland tender Laureano a contract this winter. He wound up agreeing to a $5.15MM salary, which amounted to a significant portion of the Guardians’ very limited offseason resources. The team made that commitment despite Laureano having turned in a bleak .224/.304/.371 slash (91 wRC+) on the season overall — and a .218/.296/.373 batting line in 2022-23 combined (93 wRC+).

The decision didn’t go at all as the Cleveland front office or the player himself hoped. Laureano’s strikeout rate has absolutely erupted to a career-worst 38.6% this season. He’s hitting just .143/.265/.229, albeit in a small sample of 83 plate appearances. Just four of his 10 hits have gone for extra bases (one homer, three doubles). The Guardians will have a week to try to trade Laureano, place him on outright waivers or release him.

Given the pronounced nature of Laureano’s struggles at the dish and his relatively notable salary, they won’t find a trade market for his services. Laureano is overwhelmingly unlikely to be claimed on waivers due to that salary and will thus likely clear and become a free agent. He has enough service time to retain all of his salary even if he rejects an outright assignment in favor of free agency.

Earlier in his career, Laureano was a quality regular in Oakland. From 2018-21, he turned in a sound .263/.335/.465 batting line (119 wRC+) with 49 homers and 34 steals over the life of 1257 plate appearances. That came while playing strong defense across all three outfield spots. Laureano was an oft-rumored trade candidate and might well have been part of Oakland’s fire sale, but an 80-game PED suspension midway through the 2021 season tanked his value. That proved all the more costly, as his suspension surely played a role in pushing the A’s to part with left-hander Jesus Luzardo to acquire Starling Marte from the Marlins in a rental deal while Oakland made a push for the postseason.

As for the 24-year-old Rodriguez, he’ll step into the Cleveland outfield for his MLB debut after hitting .276/.389/.449 in 185 Triple-A plate appearances this season. The 2017 third-rounder entered the season ranked 23rd among Guarda farmhands at Baseball America, 16th at MLB.com and 30th at FanGraphs.

The 6’0″, 225-pound Rodriguez draws praise for his plus raw power but also some skepticism for his penchant to chase and whiff. He’s walked in a huge 15.7% of his plate appearances in Triple-A Columbus but also fanned at a 25.4% clip. That’s a suboptimal mark against Triple-A pitching but also a marked improvement over 2023’s 32.4% strikeout rate in 202 Triple-A plate appearances. Rodriguez is a former switch-hitter who now bats exclusively from the right side of the plate. He popped 29 homers between Double-A and Triple-A last season, and he’s already slugged seven long balls on the season.

Strikeouts will likely continue to be a part of his game, but probably not to the extremes that Laureano experienced this season. Rodriguez will also add some legitimate thump to a Cleveland lineup that in recent years has been light on power but is turning a corner this season. Thanks in part to a big step forward from emerging star Josh Naylor, the Guards rank ninth in the majors with 51 big flies on the season. Rodriguez gives them another power bat. He won’t be nearly as strong a defender in the outfield corners as Laureano was, but MLB.com pegs him as a potentially average right fielder and Baseball America touts his plus throwing arm.

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Cleveland Guardians Newsstand Transactions Johnathan Rodriguez Ramon Laureano

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Guardians Outright Myles Straw

By Steve Adams | March 24, 2024 at 9:14pm CDT

TODAY: Straw cleared waivers and accepted an outright assignment to Triple-A, according to Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer.

MARCH 22: The Guardians have placed center fielder Myles Straw on waivers, reports Zack Meisel of The Athletic. Any team will have the opportunity to claim him, although doing so would require taking on the entirety of the three years and $19.25MM still remaining on his contract. That appears quite unlikely. Straw figures to clear waivers, at which point the Guardians could assign him outright to a minor league affiliate.

While Straw’s 4.112 years of MLB service time give him the right to reject that outright assignment, he’s still short of the five years necessary to reject an outright and retain the money he’s owed. There’s no chance he’d forfeit that $19.25MM to go into free agency, so the likely outcome seems to be Straw clearing and heading to Triple-A Columbus while no longer occupying a spot on the 40-man roster. It’s also feasible that the Guardians could simply be gauging whether there’s a taker for Straw and, if not, could simply plug him back into their center field spot. He can be optioned to Triple-A if the club keeps him on the 40-man roster. A player does not have to be assigned outright to a minor league affiliate after clearing waivers (though that’s obviously the most common outcome).

With Straw in limbo for the time being, that leaves Steven Kwan and Ramon Laureano as locks in the Cleveland outfield. The former will see regular reps in left field. The latter had been slated for right field work but can handle center. It’s also possible the Guards will go with Will Brennan and/or Estevan Florial to fill outfield roles. Infielder Tyler Freeman has also gotten looks in center this spring. Brennan has all three minor league option years remaining, while Florial is out of minor league options. Top outfield prospect Chase DeLauter could be an option eventually, but he was never a full-time member of big league camp and was only called up on occasion to fill at-bats as needed, Meisel notes. He was never a consideration to make the Opening Day roster.

Cleveland originally acquired Straw in a now-regrettable 2021 deadline swap sending right-hander Phil Maton and catcher Yainer Diaz to the Astros. He made a strong first impression, hitting .285/.362/.377 with plus defense and baserunning down the stretch. That brought his season-long line to a solid .271/.349/.348 — just shy of league-average production (98 wRC+). Paired with Straw’s speed and glovework, it was a strong effort that served as a catalyst for the Guards to sign him to a five-year, $25MM extension with a pair of club options for two additional seasons.

Unfortunately, Straw’s bat has cratered since putting pen to paper on that deal. Over the past two seasons, he’s turned in just a .229/.296/.284 in 1114 trips to the plate. That’s about 32% worse than average, by measure of wRC+. Straw is a light-out defender in center (23 Defensive Runs Saved, 17 Outs Above Average over the past two seasons) and offers blazing speed (41-for-48 in steals since 2022), but his lack of offensive ability has severely capped his overall value. For an immensely cost-conscious Guardians club, his contract has apparently reached a point where they’ll see if another club is willing to take him on for no return other than salary relief.

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Cleveland Guardians Newsstand Transactions Chase DeLauter Estevan Florial Myles Straw Ramon Laureano Steven Kwan Will Brennan

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Guardians, Padres Swap Scott Barlow, Enyel De Los Santos

By Anthony Franco | November 17, 2023 at 11:51pm CDT

The Guardians announced they’ve acquired reliever Scott Barlow from the Padres. Fellow reliever Enyel De Los Santos is back to San Diego in a one-for-one swap. Cleveland also announced they’ve signed outfielder Ramón Laureano to a one-year contract to avoid arbitration. Zack Meisel of the Athletic reports (on X) that Laureano will make $5.15MM next season.

Barlow has spent the majority of his career in the AL Central. The right-hander reached the big leagues with the Royals in 2018. He logged five and a half seasons in Kansas City, where he was one of the game’s more quietly effective bullpen arms. Barlow turned in a sub-3.00 ERA over 74 1/3 innings in consecutive seasons from 2021-22. That excellent run prevention took a step back this year, as he carried a 5.35 mark through 38 2/3 frames at the time of the trade deadline.

The Royals swapped Barlow to San Diego last summer. While he’d been working as Kansas City’s closer, he stepped into a setup role in deference to Josh Hader at Petco Park. Barlow made 25 appearances for the Friars down the stretch, pitching to a 3.07 ERA. While Barlow was effective, he became a trade candidate yet again as rumors of payroll constraints in San Diego arose.

MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projects Barlow for a $7.1MM salary in what’ll be his final year of arbitration control. While that’s decent value for an effective reliever, the Padres are reportedly aiming to cut spending (potentially by as much as $50MM). Moving a non-closing reliever is one of the less impactful ways for San Diego to clear spending room, although it’s another hit to a bullpen that also stands to lose Hader to free agency.

It’s rare for the low-payroll Guardians to find themselves on this side of a trade of that nature. Cleveland tends to deal away players as they’re nearing free agency. The Guards jumped on the opportunity to add a high-quality reliever to join Trevor Stephan and Sam Hentges as a leverage bridge to star closer Emmanuel Clase.

To offset the loss of Barlow, San Diego brings back a more affordable short-term bullpen piece. De Los Santos had a nice 2023 campaign, pitching 70 times and working to a 3.29 ERA through 65 2/3 innings. The righty, 28 next month, had an average 23.7% strikeout rate and walked 9.5% of opposing hitters.

It was his second straight year with an ERA in the low 3.00s. Since signing a minor league deal over the 2021-22 offseason, he has turned in a 3.18 ERA over 119 frames. De Los Santos worked in mostly low-leverage situations but had pitched his way into the middle innings during his second season in Terry Francona’s bullpen.

De los Santos, who spent some time in the Padres system early in his minor league career, has between three and four years of MLB service. He will be eligible for arbitration for the next three years. Swartz forecasts him for an affordable $1.2MM this winter, meaning the deal should save San Diego roughly $6MM in the short term.

Images courtesy of USA Today Sports.

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Cleveland Guardians Newsstand San Diego Padres Transactions Enyel De Los Santos Ramon Laureano Scott Barlow

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