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Ryan Mattheus

Reds Release Ryan Mattheus

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The Reds have released right-hander Ryan Mattheus, the team announced (hat tip to Zach Buchanan of the Cincinnati Enquirer).  Mattheus was non-tendered by the Reds following last season and re-signed on a minor league contract.

As per the arbitration projections from MLBTR’s Matt Swartz, Mattheus was slated to earn $1.3MM in his first time through the arb process.  Despite that fairly modest sum and some offseason needs in the bullpen, the Reds chose to cut Mattheus loose, ultimately saving themselves some money since they were able to re-sign him anyway.

Mattheus, 32, came to Cincinnati after being claimed off waivers from the Angels last May.  The righty posted a 4.09 ERA, 5.7 K/9, 2.06 K/BB rate and 52.7% grounder rate over 55 innings with the Reds, a solid bounce-back campaign for Mattheus after a pair of ineffective, injury-plagued seasons in 2013-14 with the Nationals.  Mattheus held right-handed batters to a .256/.345/.301 slash line last season.

Reds To Re-Sign Ryan Mattheus

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The Reds have agreed to re-sign right-hander Ryan Mattheus, whom the team non-tendered last month, per SB Nation’s Chris Cotillo (on Twitter). MLB.com’s Mark Sheldon reported this morning that a deal was close (via Twitter).

Mattheus will most likely receive a minor league contract, Sheldon notes, which seems like a rational expectation, given the fact that he was non-tendered despite a modest salary projection of $1.3MM from MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz.

The 32-year-old Mattheus, a client of the Boras Corporation, was designated for assignment by the Angels in May and claimed by Cincinnati off waivers. The longtime Nationals reliever went on to log 55 innings for the Reds in 2015, making him one of their most-used and most durable ’pen arms. Mattheus recorded a 4.09 ERA with Cincinnati (4.02 ERA overall), averaging 5.7 K/9 and 2.8 BB/9 to go along with a 52.7 percent ground-ball rate and a fastball that sat at 92.9 mph. Mattheus did struggle against lefties, yielding a .324/.355/.515 batting line, though he was better against same-handed batters, who hit .256/.345/.301 against him.

Cincinnati’s bullpen picture is wide open after the trade of Aroldis Chapman to the Yankees, as J.J. Hoover and Jumbo Diaz are probably the only locks from the right side. Mattheus will compete with Carlos Contreras, Blake Wood, Keyvius Sampson and possibly Michael Lorenzen (though he could still be used as a starter) as he looks to earn a spot in manager Bryan Price’s relief corps.

2015-16 National League Non-Tenders

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Major League clubs have until 11pm CT tonight to tender contracts to players for the 2016 season. Remember that you can track all of the action using MLBTR’s Non-Tender tracker, and we offer a full list of non-tender candidates (in the estimation of MLBTR’s Tim Dierkes). Also important for reference is the set of arbitration salary projections from MLBTR and contributor Matt Swartz.

We’ll run down the list of National League non-tenders here, and update it as reports come in.

  • Pre-arb outfielder Eury Perez was non-tendered last night by the Braves, MLB.com’s Mark Bowman reports on Twitter. The 25-year-old could, in theory, have served as Michael Bourn’s backup in center, but it appears that Atlanta will look for an alternative.
  • The Rockies won’t tender contracts to left-handers Yohan Flande or Jason Gurka for the 2016 season, per a club announcement. The team also announced that outfielder Rosell Herrera will be non-tendered. Flande, 29, is the most experienced arm of the bunch, having soaked up 127 1/3 innings for Colorado over the past two seasons, albeit with a 4.95 ERA.
  • The Dodgers announced that they’ve non-tendered righties Juan Nicasio and Lisalverto Bonilla. Nicasio is a mild surprise considering the fact that he logged a 3.86 ERA with a robust 10.0 K/9 rate and a 2.83 FIP in 2015. However, he also averaged 4.9 walks per nine innings and had what was almost certainly unsustainable luck in terms of home runs, yielding just one big fly in 58 1/3 innings. The hard-throwing righty should garner some interest on the free-agent market.
  • The Marlins announced that they’ve non-tendered Aaron Crow, who missed the 2015 season due to Tommy John surgery. The team also formally announced its previously reported decision to non-tender Henderson Alvarez (more on that controversial decision here).
  • The Nationals will not tender right-hander Craig Stammen a contract for the 2016 season, per a club announcement. He missed nearly the entire season due to a pair of torn tendons in his right forearm that required surgery.

Earlier Updates

  • The Cubs announced that right-hander Ryan Cook has been non-tendered. An offseason waiver claim, Cook never suited up for Chicago. The former All-Star setup man yielded an astounding 18 earned runs in just 8 2/3 innings this season between Oakland and Boston.
  • The Giants have also non-tendered backup catcher Hector Sanchez, per a club announcement, which additionally confirmed Petit’s non-tender.
  • The Giants will non-tender right-hander Yusmeiro Petit, MLBTR’s Steve Adams reports (Twitter link). The right-hander has recorded a solid 3.66 ERA with 8.8 K/9 and 1.9 BB/9 across 245 2/3 innings for the Giants over the past four seasons while spending time in both the rotation and the bullpen. Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports tweeted that Petit was offered to at least one other club in a trade, but clearly nothing materialized, as he’ll now hit the open market in search of new club.
  • The Brewers announced that they’ve non-tendered utilityman Elian Herrera. The 30-year-old was not yet arbitration eligible, but Milwaukee clearly preferred to keep the rosters spot open. Herrera hit .242/.290/.395 last season in a career-high 277 PAs, and GM David Stearns has interest in retaining him on a new minor league deal, tweets Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel.
  • The Reds will not tender contracts to righty Ryan Mattheus, outfielder Ryan LaMarre, or righty Pedro Villarreal, C. Trent Rosecrans of the Cincinnati Enquirer reports on Twitter and the club has since announced. Of those players, only Mattheus was eligible for arbitration. The 32-year-old, who threw 55 innings and posted a 4.09 ERA last year, projected for a $1.3MM salary. LaMarre, 27, just cracked the MLB roster last year but spent most of the year at Triple-A. Villareal, also 27, notched a solid 3.42 ERA in his fifty frames in 2015, but his strikeout rates fell and ERA estimators did not smile upon the quality of his contribution.

Reds Claim Ryan Mattheus From Angels

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The Reds have claimed righty Ryan Mattheus off waivers from the Angels, Cincinnati announced. Los Angeles had designated him for assignment yesterday.

Mattheus, 31, made a single appearance at the big league level for the Halos after joining the organization on a minor league deal. While it is hard to learn much from one appearance, Mattheus worked at or above his usual two-seam fastball velocity (between 93 and 94 mph). He had a nice run to start the year at Triple-A, tossing 12 2/3 frames over which he permitted just four earned runs and registered 12 outs on strikes while not issuing a single unintentional walk.

The Reds have, of course, had rather pronounced bullpen struggles, and will hope that Mattheus can add some quality innings of middle relief. He proved a useful arm for several seasons with the Nationals, working to a 2.84 ERA over 98 1/3 innings from 2011-12. Though his results have declined since, and he missed some time with injuries, metrics suggest that he was much the same pitcher.

Mattheus, known most for his sinker and strong groundball induction rates, will of course require a 40-man roster spot, though the Reds appear to have an opening already. Cincinnati recently designated veteran righty Kevin Gregg after his difficult start to the year

Angels Designate Ryan Mattheus For Assignment

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The Angels announced (on Twitter) that they have designated right-handed reliever Ryan Mattheus for assignment in order to clear a roster spot for first baseman/outfielder Marc Krauss, whose contract has been purchased from Triple-A Salt Lake.

The 31-year-old Mattheus tossed just one inning for the Angels this season, striking out a pair and also walking one in that lone frame. He inked a minor league deal with the Angels this offseason and missed out on making the club in Spring Training. However, Mattheus pitched quite well in 12 2/3 innings with Salt Lake, yielding four earned runs (2.84 ERA) with 12 strikeouts against just one unintentional walk.

Mattheus is no stranger to the Major Leagues, as the former 19th-rounder spent the better part of three season as a member of the Nationals’ bullpen, working to a 3.60 ERA with 5.0 K/9 and 3.4 BB/9 in 142 1/3 innings with Washington. He likely didn’t do his future with the Nats any favors by spending a significant chunk of time on the disabled list in 2013 with a fractured hand that was injured when punched a locker following a poor performance.

That regrettable incident notwithstanding, Mattheus sports a fastball that sits around 93 mph and has racked up a solid 52.2 percent ground-ball rate in his career. The Angels will likely hope that he clears outright waivers and can remain in the organization to serve as a depth piece down the line.

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