Rafael Soriano Retires
TODAY: Soriano made his retirement official in a statement from the Blue Jays media department today, as the reliever thanked fans, teammates, and personnel from his former clubs for their support over the course of his career.
THURSDAY: Right-hander Rafael Soriano is set to retire, according to James Wagner of the Washington Post (via Twitter). The 36-year-old was set to join the Blue Jays on a minor league deal but had yet to report due to apparent visa issues.
Soriano had a short stint last year with the Cubs after waiting until mid-season to sign. He was limited due to a shoulder injury and ultimately made only six appearances with Chicago before he was released.
Before that, of course, Soriano enjoyed a lengthy run as a prominent late-inning reliever. All told, he’s racked up 636 1/3 innings of 2.89 ERA pitching with 9.1 K/9 against 2.8 BB/9 over 14 MLB campaigns.
That neat summation of his career probably doesn’t do justice to the volume of interesting transactional news that Soriano provided to MLBTR readers over the years. In many ways, his career functions as a crash course in recent hot stove developments.
Soriano had uneven results in his first several seasons, but established himself as a quality pen presence with the Mariners in 2006. He was dealt to the Braves after that season and enjoyed a solid three-year run. Atlanta offered him arbitration when he hit the open market after 2009, with intentions of recouping draft compensation under the old Type A/B system, but was surprised when he decided to accept. Thus began a dizzying series of trade rumors, with Soriano ultimately heading to the Rays in exchange for Jesse Chavez.
In his lone season in Tampa Bay, Soriano turned into a dominant closer, leading the league with 45 saves and posting a 1.73 ERA in his 62 1/3 frames. Entering the open market (again, as a Type A free agent), he landed with the Yankees as Mariano Rivera‘s set-up man. The deal promised the then-Scott Boras client $35MM over three years, and included two consecutive opt-outs.
Soriano’s first year in New York didn’t go as hoped, and he passed on his first opt-out opportunity. But he excelled in 2012, taking over as closer for an injured Rivera, and elected to head back to free agency. Of course, intervening rule changes had since swapped in the qualifying offer system, so this time Soriano declined a $13.3MM qualifying offer and again came with draft compensation attached to his name.
The Nationals added Soriano for two years and $28MM (with half of it deferred) on a contract that included a vesting clause. The veteran displaced an incumbent closer, Drew Storen, and ultimately gave the Nats 128 2/3 innings of 3.15 ERA pitching over a somewhat uneven tenure. (Storen ultimately re-took his closing duties, but the stage had been set for last year’s controversy and his eventual departure from D.C.)
In the aggregate, Soriano topped 200 career saves and was a net positive for the vast majority of his career. While it appears he won’t be taking a shot at a comeback, despite reportedly showing well in the Dominican winter league, Soriano has already completed a ten-year run as one of the game’s most productive overall relievers. MLBTR wishes him the best of luck in his future pursuits.
LaRoche Issues Statement On White Sox Departure, Reportedly Files Retirement Papers
5:25pm: LaRoche has officially filed his retirement papers with Major League Baseball and the Players Union, reports Bruce Levine of CBS Chicago (on Twitter).
2:33pm: Veteran White Sox slugger Adam LaRoche has issued a statement regarding his decision to leave the team, via TwitLonger. Notably, he does not state definitely that he has retired, calling it instead a “decision to walk away” from the White Sox.
That being said, LaRoche does seem to suggest that his playing career is over in discussing his “wonderful journey” and memories in the game. He also states that 2016 was “likely to be the last year of my career” even before the present circumstances arose.
Controversy has enveloped the club after LaRoche left camp days ago, with several players expressing serious concern and commentary coming in from all around the game. We rounded up all the latest earlier this morning, and owner Jerry Reinsdorf has since said that he will address the matter further only after meeting with players and club officials.
In addition to explaining his decision more generally, LaRoche makes several key points about the dispute with the club that led directly to his departure. First, he emphasized that bringing his son into the clubhouse was a critical topic of conversation that led to his free agent deal with Chicago:
“Prior to signing with the White Sox, my first question to the club concerned my son’s ability to be a part of the team. After some due diligence on the club’s part, we reached an agreement. The 2015 season presented no problems as far as Drake was concerned. (My bat and our record are another story!)”
LaRoche went on to explain that his decision came about as “the result of a fundamental disagreement between myself and [club executive VP] Ken Williams.” He explained that Williams “recently advised me to significantly scale back the time that my son spent in the clubhouse.” Thereafter, says LaRoche, he “was told not to bring [his son] to the ballpark at all.”
The 36-year-old first baseman/DH further discussed his viewpoint on his agreement with the organization and his ultimate departure, saying:
“Obviously, I expressed my displeasure toward this decision to alter the agreement we had reached before I signed with the White Sox. Upon doing so, I had to make a decision. Do I choose my teammates and my career? Or do I choose my family? The decision was easy, but in no way was it a reflection of how I feel about my teammates, manager, general manager or the club’s owner Jerry Reinsdorf.”
Williams has expressed a somewhat different version of events — you can read more here and here. The club certainly seems likely to have a differing view, also, as to whether any pre-signing discussion of family clubhouse access is a part of the bargained-for contract between the sides.
Notably, LaRoche’s statement does not provide any indication as to whether or when he’ll formally retire. And it doesn’t suggest whether or not he will pursue any kind of settlement or grievance action against the club. He entered the year with a $13MM guaranteed salary for the coming season, the second of two campaigns covered by his free agent deal.
This matter has also generated interest from other angles, of course, and those who are interested in learning more about LaRoche’s perspective should certainly give his statement a full read (along with all of the above-cited sources). Among other things, LaRoche expressed gratitude to the Nationals and White Sox for the “privilege” of having his son on hand at the ballpark. He also emphasized that he never had a situation arise where he was told that a “teammate, coach or manager was made to feel uncomfortable” by the presence of his son.
Brad Penny To Retire
Veteran right-hander Brad Penny is hanging up his spikes, according to MLB.com’s Gregor Chisholm (via Twitter). Penny has been in camp with the Blue Jays on a minor league deal.
Now 37, Penny is rather far removed from productivity at the MLB level. Indeed, you could argue that his last full and fully effective season came way back in 2007 with the Dodgers, when he posted a career-low 3.03 ERA over a career-high 208 frames.
To that point — his age-29 season — the righty had provided 1,365 2/3 innings of 3.90 ERA pitching in extended stints with the Marlins and Dodgers. Since, he’s only appeared in 559 1/3 MLB innings and owns a composite 5.23 ERA, with his strikeout rate falling to less than five batters per nine.
Penny isn’t alone in battling the effects of age and injury, of course, and there’s a lot to commend about his willingness to keep returning to the hill — even when it’s in the minors. After leaving Los Angeles, Penny bounced from the Red Sox to the Giants, then on to the Cardinals for an injury-shortened run.
A stop in Japan did not work out as hoped, and Penny wasn’t effective in a relief role upon returning to San Francisco. He sat out all of 2013 before returning to the Marlins the following year though he couldn’t replicate a solid minor league showing at the MLB level. Last year, Penny made 24 starts at Triple-A for the White Sox, working to a 4.46 ERA with 5.4 K/9 and 2.2 BB/9.
Cracking the Toronto roster always seemed a longshot, but this spring hadn’t gone as Penny probably hoped after entering camp as one of several bounceback veterans (among them Gavin Floyd, Roberto Hernandez, Wade LeBlanc, Randy Choate, David Aardsma, and Rafael Soriano, who is reportedly also retiring). He’s received a legitimate look — his seven frames is third-most in the organization — but the results haven’t been there. Penny has surrendered eight earned runs on 12 hits and four walks, with just three strikeouts on his ledger.
All said, it’s been a nice run for Penny, who ended up appearing in 14 MLB seasons and racked up 26.8 fWAR — most of it during his prime years with the Marlins and Dodgers. Penny played a major role on the then-Florida Marlins’ 2003 championship squad, taking the ball every fifth day during the regular season and logging two World Series wins. Los Angeles ultimately acquired him along with Hee-Seop Choi and Bill Murphy in a 2004 deadline deal that sent Juan Encarnacion, Paul Lo Duca, and Guillermo Mota to the Fish.
MLBTR wishes Penny the best of luck moving forward.
Minor MLB Transactions: 3/15/16
We’ll track the day’s minor moves in this post:
- Angels lefty Rob Rasmussen has elected to retire, per a club announcement (via J.P. Hoornstra of the Los Angeles News Group, on Twitter, who also had an interesting recent profile on the southpaw). According to MLB.com’s Alden Gonzalez, via Twitter, the UCLA grad is off to pursue a business degree. The 26-year-old Rasmussen logged 26 2/3 innings with the Blue Jays and Mariners over the past two seasons, though he struggled in 2015 after a nice 2014 debut. Originally a second-round pick of the Marlins, Rasmussen’s career will come to a close with a 3.71 ERA in the minors to complement his small sample of big league work.
- Former big leaguer Jeff Kobernus has joined the indy league Lancaster Barnstormers, Jason Bristol of Pennsylvania’s CBS 21 reports (Twitter link). The club confirmed the move on Twitter and also announced that it will bring back righty Mark Lamm, who has also pitched recently in the upper minors in the Braves system. The 27-year-old Kobernus tallied 44 plate appearances with the 2013-14 Nationals and spent an injury-shortened season in the Giants system last year. He’s a lifetime .295/.354/.375 hitter at the Triple-A level and will hope to jump back into affiliated ball with a strong showing on the independent circuit.
Adam LaRoche Retires
FRIDAY: Chicago has filed LaRoche’s retirement paperwork, officially leaving three open spots on the club’s 40-man roster, according to MLB.com’s Scott Merkin (via Twitter). Of course, there’s been plenty of other story development since he first left the organization on Tuesday, and you can read it all at LaRoche’s MLBTR tag.
TUESDAY: White Sox DH Adam LaRoche says he will “step away from baseball,” Colleen Kane of the Chicago Tribune reports (Twitter links). He indicated that he would wait a few days before addressing the matter further, out of respect for his teammates’ request that he think it over, but seemingly made clear he is set on retirement.
That news is notable on multiple levels, particularly as there were no prior indications that the 36-year-old was considering hanging up his spikes. The 12-year-veteran is under contract this year for $13MM, the second and final year of the two-year pact he signed to join the Sox out of free agency.
A respected veteran with a smooth swing and graceful glove at first, LaRoche endured quite a few ups and downs in his career but always seemed to re-emerge. After a promising start to with the Braves, beginning in 2004, he was dealt to the Pirates in advance of the 2007 season. He put up two solid campaigns there before falling off in 2009, when he bounced to the Red Sox and then back to Atlanta — where he finished strong to set up a one-year deal with the Diamondbacks. All told, through his age-30 season in Arizona, LaRoche carried a sturdy .271/.339/.488 slash.
The next chapter of LaRoche’s career began when he signed a two-year, $16MM contract with the Nationals. LaRoche bombed in his first year in D.C. — an injury-riddled, career-worst performance — then bombed in a good way in his second — putting up a .271/.343/.510 batting line with 33 home runs. That set up another two-year deal with D.C. in free agency, with his final two seasons with the Nats once again following the down-up pattern. LaRoche again visited the open market, with a qualifying offer weighing him down for a second time, and ultimately went to the White Sox for two years and $25MM.
LaRoche scuffled last year for Chicago, though he wasn’t alone in that regard. Over 484 plate appearances, he slashed just .207/.293/.340 and hit a dozen home runs — well off of the production levels that earned him that contract. Most worryingly, perhaps, his strikeout rate shot up to 27.5% and LaRoche struggled to get anything going against opposing southpaws. While he’s turned things around before, he was certainly a major question mark heading into 2016. It didn’t help that he’s been limited by back issues this spring.
From the team’s perspective, parting with LaRoche on its own accord surely at least had to be considered. Melky Cabrera profiles better as a designated hitter than a corner outfielder, and looks like the most likely option to slide into LaRoche’s presumed role as the primary DH. Of course, that would leave Avisail Garcia back in primary duties in one outfield corner, perhaps platooning with J.B. Shuck or Daniel Fields, and that may not be optimal.
While LaRoche’s career is worth celebrating on its own accord, the financial elements cannot be ignored. It’s unclear at present whether LaRoche will recoup any of the $13MM he was set to earn, but even a significant chunk of that amount would represent a huge boon to the team’s payroll flexibility. There aren’t any obvious, big-ticket free agents to spend it on — unless Chicago wants to replace him directly with Justin Morneau or add a veteran such as Marlon Byrd — but it’s certainly plausible to imagine the South Siders revisiting trade talks for a player such as Andre Ethier or Jay Bruce. Alternatively, of course, the club could wait and prepare to deploy those reserves at the deadline.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Willie Bloomquist Announces Retirement
Veteran infielder Willie Bloomquist announced his retirement today with an entertaining tweet that’s well worth a look. He had yet to sign with a team over the offseason after being released by the Mariners last summer.
The 38-year-old will wrap up his playing career after logging time in 14 major league seasons. Though he topped 400 plate appearances only once in a single campaign — his 2009 stint with the Royals — Bloomquist stepped to the dish over 3,000 times in the bigs.
All told, Bloomquist provided only a .269/.316/.342 overall batting line, which landed a fair sight below league-average. Though he never managed even five home runs in a season, he did put up double-digit stolen base tallies in half a dozen campaigns and was generally rated as a top-quality baserunner.
But it was never really about the offensive side of the equation for Bloomquist, who spent time everywhere on the diamond except on the mound and behind the plate, with about a third of his innings coming at shortstop. Though he’s never been a darling of defensive metrics, he generally provided sturdy glovework and immense defensive flexibility.
Bloomquist will be best remembered as a member of the Mariners, having spent parts of nine seasons — including the beginning and the end of his career — in Seattle. In addition to the aforementioned Royals, Bloomquist also suited up for the Diamondbacks and Reds.
There are several other veterans who’ve announced their retirement in recent days, including fellow utilityman Skip Schumaker and lefty Randy Wolf. Remember, you can look back at all such announcements by clicking on the “Retirement” tag at the bottom of this post or following this link.
As with those players, MLBTR extends its best wishes to Bloomquist in his post-playing days.
Randy Wolf Retires
Veteran lefty Randy Wolf has decided to retire, according to Jon Heyman of MLB Network (Twitter link). Though a club recently called to inquire about his availability, the 39-year-old is uninterested in taking another shot at a return to the majors.
Wolf spent parts of 16 seasons in the majors with a total of eight different clubs. Most recently, he contributed 60 1/3 innings over the last two seasons for the Marlins and Tigers. He has also pitched at the Triple-A level for the Angels, Diamondbacks, Orioles, and Blue Jays organizations since the start of 2014, making for quite a farewell tour.
It had seemed that Wolf would break camp with the Mariners back in 2014, but he resisted the organization’s demands for an advance consent form that would have allowed Seattle to cut him loose without a full year’s pay within 45 days of the start of the season. As MLBTR’s Zach Links explored at the time, that decision highlighted a little-known but frequently-used approach for teams dealing with veterans on minor league deals.
There’s little question, though, that Wolf will be best remembered for his time with the Phillies, which accounted for about half of his total career (in seasons, innings, and starts). After breaking in at age 22 back in 1999, Wolf provided Philadelphia with 1,175 frames of 4.21 ERA pitching with 7.4 K/9 against 3.3 BB/9.
Those early-career numbers in Philly largely mirror Wolf’s overall stat line, which serves as a testament to his longevity. Wolf worked almost exclusively as a starter, with 379 of his 390 appearances coming from the rotation. Beyond his time with the clubs mentioned above, Wolf appeared in parts of three consecutive campaigns for the Brewers, worked for two seasons with the Dodgers, and appeared with the Padres, Astros, and O’s.
MLBTR congratulates Wolf on his long and productive career, and wishes him the best in his future endeavors.
Skip Schumaker To Retire
Utilityman Skip Schumaker has departed Padres camp and appears to be wrapping up his MLB career, manager Andy Green told reporters including Jeff Sanders of the San Diego Union-Tribune (Twitter link). Though he’s not referring to the decision as a formal retirement, the veteran made clear he is moving on from his playing days to spend more time with his family.
Schumaker, 36, signed a minor league deal with San Diego a month ago, and had made a strong impression in camp on the field staff and younger players in the organization. Earlier in the winter, the Reds declined an option to put him onto the open market.
Schumaker has spent parts of eleven seasons in the majors. Most recently, he logged two disappointing seasons in Cincinnati, putting up a meager .238/.297/.322 batting line over 539 turns at bat.
He’ll be remembered most for his time with the Cardinals, where he was a strong contributor for eight campaigns. Schumaker was a regular contributor over 2008 through 2012, and ultimately provided St. Louis with over 2,500 plate appearances with a .288/.345/.377 slash line while splitting his time between second base and the outfield. Schumaker also played for one season with the Dodgers.
With the move, the Padres seem positioned to infuse some additional youth onto the active roster, as players such as Jose Pirela and Jabari Blash now have a clearer path to cracking the club. The competition is also thinned for other potential utility/bench/platoon options in camp, including Alexi Amarista, Brett Wallace, Adam Rosales, Nick Noonan, Jemile Weeks, and Alex Dickerson.
MLBTR wishes Schumaker the best in his future pursuits.
Maicer Izturis Retires
Veteran second baseman Maicer Izturis announced his retirement from Major League Baseball at Blue Jays camp in Dunedin, Fla., this morning, per a club announcement. The 35-year-old had been in camp on a minor league deal but has now elected to call it a career.
Izturis has spent the past three seasons in the Blue Jays organization after signing a three-year contract prior to the 2013 season. However, after a down year in 2013, Izturis’ health would scarcely allow him to take the field again. The infielder missed all but 11 games of the 2014 campaign with a complete tear of the medial collateral ligament in his left knee, and he missed the entire 2015 season due to a groin injury and then, eventually, shoulder surgery. Given the poor luck that Izturis has had with his health in recent seasons, it’s perhaps unsurprising that he told Sportsnet’s Shi Davidi (Twitter link) that his body simply isn’t equipped to deal with the rigors of playing anymore. “I put my heart and soul into it this year to see how I was going to feel,” Izturis explained, “but my body can’t handle it anymore.”
Prior to an injury-riddled stint with the Jays, Izturis had carved out a successful role as an oft-used and highly versatile utility piece with the Angels. Though he never tallied 500 plate appearances in a season, Izturis compiled yearly averages of 95 games and 350 trips to the plate while batting a combined .276/.339/.384 (95 OPS+) from 2005-12 with the Angels. During that stretch, Izturis logged more than 2500 innings at third base, more than 2400 innings at second base and nearly 1700 innings at shortstop. While he wasn’t necessarily a Gold Glove caliber defender at any of the three positions, he handled each of them capably while providing nearly league-average defense, thus making him a very useful utility option for manager Mike Scioscia.
Izturis was one of the last remaining active players to have ever donned a Montreal Expos uniform — Bartolo Colon is still carrying the torch — as he spent the 2004 campaign with the club prior to its move to D.C. Although he was originally signed out of Venezuela by the Indians in 1998, Cleveland traded him to Montreal in 2004. He spent just one year with the organization before being traded to the Angels alongside Juan Rivera for slugger Jose Guillen.
All told, Izturis’ career will come to a close with a .269/.331/.372 batting line, 39 home runs, 406 runs scored, 334 RBIs and 93 stolen bases over the life of 909 games/3350 plate appearances. He earned nearly $24MM in player salaries over that time, per Baseball-Reference. Best wishes to Izturis in his post-playing days.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Minor MLB Transactions: 2/29/16
Outfielder Andrew Brown, who had been in big league camp with the Angels as a non-roster invitee, has now elected to retire from baseball rather than embark on a 10th professional season, MLB.com’s Alden Gonzalez tweets. According to Gonzalez, the 31-year-old Brown decided he would rather spend time with his children than continue to pursue a playing career. Brown last appeared in the Majors as a member of the 2014 Mets. In parts of four big league seasons, the former 18th-rounder batted .220/.281/.390 with 14 homers in 362 plate appearances. Brown went overseas and enjoyed great success in Korea last year, where he batted .261/.360/.496 with 28 homers in his lone KBO experience. Best wishes to Andrew in whatever steps he takes following his playing career.
Here are the day’s minor transactions from around the league…
- The D-backs have signed former Pirates/Nationals/Twins closer Matt Capps to a minor league contract, according to Baseball America’s Matt Eddy. Earlier this month, FOX’s Jon Morosi reported that Capps was eyeing a big league comeback after having been absent from the Majors since 2012. After being non-tendered by the Pirates and signed to a one-year deal by the Nationals prior to the 2010 season, Capps was traded to the Twins in one of the more lopsided swaps in recent memory, with Wilson Ramos heading to the Nats in exchange. Capps did go on to pitch well in his first half-season with Minnesota before struggling in 2011 and 2012. The 32-year-old has a lifetime 3.52 ERA with 6.5 K/9, 1.7 BB/9 and a 39.5 percent ground-ball rate in 439 2/3 innings as a big league reliever.