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Cardinals Extend John Mozeliak, Mike Girsch, Mike Shildt

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The Cardinals have announced new deals for three key members of their leadership, as Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch covers (links to Twitter). President of baseball operations John Mozeliak gets three new years, while top lieutenant and GM Mike Girsch receives two more on top of his 2020 deal.

There’s continuity as well in the dugout. Skipper Mike Schildt will receive a new three-year arrangement that keeps him at the helm through 2022. His entire coaching staff will also be returning.

Last we checked on the contract status of Mozeliak and Girsch, they had reached new deals with the club that aligned with promotions in the middle of the 2017 season. Both reportedly signed on through 2020. It seems they’ll both remain on the same track, through the ’22 campaign, though the word out of the presser was a bit confusing on that front.

As for Shildt, he had already inked a deal upon being named the permanent manager in August of 2018. He’ll now also be bumped out through the 2022 season.

This news comes on the heels of a strong 2019 campaign in which the Cards returned to the postseason by hanging on in a tight NL Central. Despite suffering a sweep in the NLCS, the campaign was unquestionably a success. The organization will face a difficult task to repeat but certainly has a roster that remains set up to contend.

Cardinals, Marcell Ozuna To Discuss Multiyear Deal

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Cardinals left fielder Marcell Ozuna was one of 10 players to receive a qualifying offer before the deadline Monday. Should he turn it down, Ozuna will reach free agency with draft-pick compensation hanging over his head. But if Ozuna accepts, he’d return to the Cardinals in 2020 on a $17.8MM price tag. As of now, though, there’s at least some chance of a multiyear contract between the Cardinals and Ozuna that would negate the qualifying offer. The club has recently talked with Ozuna’s agent, Melvin Roman of MDR Sports Management, and will meet again with him in the next 10 days to explore a new contract, Rick Hummel of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports. Ozuna has until Nov. 14 to take or reject the QO.

This is the first reported instance of the Cardinals showing serious interest in re-signing Ozuna, undoubtedly one of the premier unsigned position players in baseball. The soon-to-be 29-year-old Ozuna has made it known on multiple occasions he’d like to stay in St. Louis, where he has played since the Cardinals acquired him from the Marlins entering the 2018 campaign.

Ozuna was coming off a tremendous season when the Cardinals traded for him, though he has been more good than exemplary since then. He’s now on the heels of a 2.8-fWAR campaign in which he hit .243/.330/.474 with 29 home runs and a personal-best 12 stolen bases in 549 plate appearances. Ozuna’s production led to a 110 wRC+, meaning he was 10 percent better than the league-average offensive player. That’s obviously closer to solid than stellar, but the longtime Statcast darling did continue to thrive in that regard this season. Ozuna’s expected weighted on-base average (.382) blew past his real wOBA (.336) and ranked in the top 8 percent of baseball. His hard-hit rate (49.2 percent) was even better, defeating all but 4 percent of hitters.

Ozuna’s reps are likely to push his Statcast excellence when trying to secure a new deal for their client. And MLBTR expects Ozuna to do fairly well on the market despite a QO, as his projection (three years, $45MM) ranks as our 11th-highest guarantee among free agents and falls behind just one other corner outfielder (Nicholas Castellanos) in a market rife with flawed options. Whether the Cardinals would dole out that type of money over a multiyear period is up in the air, but by extending a QO, they’ve already shown a willingness to keep Ozuna around at a pricey figure for at least another season. For now, with Ozuna’s status in limbo, the reigning National League Central champions count Dexter Fowler, Tyler O’Neill, Harrison Bader, Tommy Edman, Jose Martinez, Lane Thomas, Yairo Munoz, Randy Arozarena and coveted prospect Dylan Carlson among their outfield options who remain under control.

10 Players Receive Qualifying Offers

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It appears that ten players have received qualifying offers this year. Bob Nightengale of USA Today rounds up the full slate of players on Twitter, some of whom were already reported and covered on this site.

This year’s qualifying offer value is $17.8MM for a one-year term. Players issued the offer will have ten days to assess their options. Should a player reject the offer and fail to work out a deal with their existing team, he will enter the market carrying the requirement that a signing team sacrifice draft compensation. (While the former team would not stand to lose a pick, it would not gain a compensatory pick if it re-signs that player.) Click here for a full rundown of the QO rules.

This represents a bounce back up in the number of players to receive a qualifying offer. Last year was a record-low of seven, with other offseasons ranging from nine (2012, 2017) all the way up to twenty offers (2015).

Here are the ten players:

There are a few notable players that were eligible for the QO but did not receive it. Those players will hit the open market free and clear of draft compensation. Didi Gregorius of the Yankees and Cole Hamels of the Cubs were perhaps the leading possibilities beyond those that received the offer. J.D. Martinez would surely have received one from the Red Sox had he opted out of his deal; Aroldis Chapman was also certain to get a QO had he not agreed to a new contract. Quite a few other prominent free agents were ineligible because they were traded during the 2019 season and/or had previously received a qualifying offer.

Cardinals Outright Joe Hudson

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The Cardinals announced today that they have outrighted catcher Joe Hudson off of their 40-man roster. His roster spot was needed with several players being reinstated following 60-day injured list stints.

Hudson, 28, is a former sixth-round pick who has seen very brief MLB action in each of the past two campaigns. He owns a modest .249/.323/.411 slash line over 383 plate appearances at Triple-A since the start of 2018. As is often the case with offensively limited backstops of this ilk, Hudson is primarily valued for his sturdy glovework behind the plate.

Angels Claim Mike Mayers

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The Angels announced that they have claimed righty Mike Mayers off waivers from the Cardinals. The out of options hurler will compete for a pen job in camp if he can stick on the Los Angeles 40-man roster the rest of the winter.

Mayers, 27, is coming off of a forgettable campaign in St. Louis. He was given just 19 innings, over which he allowed 14 earned runs with a 16:11 K/BB ratio. In his 80 2/3 total frames at the game’s highest level, Mayers has worked to a 7.03 ERA.

Though the results clearly haven’t been there at the game’s highest level, Mayers has shown a mid-nineties fastball. He has also been quite effective at Triple-A. This past year, he turned in twenty frames of 3.15 ERA pitching there with 24 strikeouts and seven walks.

NL Notes: Cubs, Epstein, Cardinals, Lindor, Padres

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For those looking for an indication of the Cubs’ offseason spending strategy, this week’s comments from president Theo Epstein provided little satisfaction–even if Epstein has previously shown a willingness to lift the curtain on club plans. “As an organization, we’re not talking about payroll or luxury tax at all,” Epstein is quoted as saying in an article from Jordan Bastian of MLB.com. “I feel like every time we’ve been at all specific, or even allowed people to make inferences from things we’ve said, it just puts us in a hole strategically.”

While North Side fans would likely love for the club to pursue upper-echelon free agents like Gerrit Cole or Anthony Rendon, Bastian calculates that such a development is unlikely given the club’s current payroll commitments. Chicago is accountable for roughly $107MM toward eight contracts next season, before providing for team options on Anthony Rizzo ($16.5MM) and Jose Quintana ($10.5MM). The Cubs opened 2019 with a payroll in excess of $203MM, before finishing with a disappointing 84-78 record and missing the playoffs.

In more news from around the NL…

  • After the Dodgers were connected to Indians shortstop Francisco Lindor this week, is it possible the Cardinals could also take a run at Cleveland’s superstar infielder? That’s a question pondered by Mark Saxon in a reader mailbag for The Athletic–with Saxon venturing that such a pursuit could be manageable for St. Louis (link). While it’s important to underline that this is only the speculation of one writer, Saxon draws up a potential trade package headlined by prospect Nolan Gorman and one of Paul DeJong, Tommy Edman, or Kolten Wong. While such a hypothetical package has its merits (and it’s laudable for a writer to go out on a limb regarding trade scenarios), it is worth pointing out that Gorman, at 19, is likely two years away from being considered an MLB-ready contributor. MLBTR readers, of course, took their own crack at projecting Lindor’s future in a recent poll.
  • After a 2019 season that saw the Padres use eight different rookie pitchers in their starting rotation, writer AJ Cassavell of MLB.com notes that–strange though it may sound–the club is likely more focused on offense heading into the offseason (link). As Cassavell notes, pitching prospects MacKenzie Gore and Luis Patino promise to aid a 2020 rotation mix that includes Chris Paddack, Garrett Richards, Dinelson Lamet, Joey Lucchesi, Eric Lauer, and Cal Quantrill, whereas the projected lineup of new manager Jayce Tingler provides a few more question marks. The veteran scribe underscores that, by virtue of wRC+, San Diego received worse-than-average production at every position save for shortstop in 2019. Although Cassavell offers second base, catcher, and outfield as areas in need of an upgrade, it might be added that San Diego ran out well-regarded rookies at those spots for much of 2019 in Luis Urias, Francisco Mejia, and Josh Naylor. It stands to reason that the club could simply look for sophomore improvements at those particular positions while moving to offset Eric Hosmer’s tremendous struggles against left-handed pitching (59 wRC+ against lefties in 2019) by way of a first base platoon addition.

NL Notes: Urias, Rockies, Wieters, Marlins

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We’ve already seen a pair of headline-grabbing moves by National League clubs this morning. We’ll round up some smaller reports from the Senior Circuit.

  • The Padres aren’t prepared to hand the second base job to Luis Urías without competition, reports A.J. Cassavell of MLB.com as part of a reader mailbag. While the organization remains bullish on the 22-year-old long-term, the Pads must find alternative options in case his early-career woes persist, Cassavell opines. Despite elite minor-league numbers, Urías has gotten off to a rocky start as a big leaguer, slashing just .221/.318/.331 (79 wRC+) in his first 302 MLB plate appearances. Interestingly, Cassavell expects the Padres to at least gauge rival teams’ interest in Urías- which would surely be robust- this offseason, if for no other reason than to “learn what (he would) be worth.”
  • The Rockies are likely to non-tender pitchers Chad Bettis and Tyler Anderson, observes the Denver Post’s Patrick Saunders in a broader look at the upcoming offseason. Both Bettis and Anderson were useful back-end starters for Colorado not too long ago, although injuries and/or underperformance made this outcome inevitable for each. Bettis slogged to a 6.08 ERA in 39 appearances (36 in relief) this season. Anderson, meanwhile, was limited to five starts before suffering a season-ending knee injury, and Saunders reiterates that he’s not expected to be fully recovered by next spring. Jettisoning Bettis (projected $3.8MM salary) and Anderson (projected $2.625MM salary) will save payroll-tight Colorado around $6-7MM.
  • The Cardinals are likely to pursue another one-year deal with catcher Matt Wieters, opines Anne Rogers of MLB.com as part of a mailbag. The 33-year-old signed with St. Louis for $1.5MM last offseason and figures to command a similar salary this go-round, Rogers adds. Wieters again ranked among the worst defensive catchers in baseball this season, but he offers respectable power for a catcher (.214/.268/.435 in 183 PA in 2019). The Cardinals also value Wieters’ veteran presence and switch-hitting bat off the bench, Rogers adds.
  • The Marlins are set to hire Wellington Cepeda as bullpen coach, reports Joe Frisaro of MLB.com. Cepeda, 42, managed the Diamondbacks’ rookie-level Arizona League affiliate in 2019, his first season as a minor-league skipper. Cepeda has a background as a minor-league pitching coach, Frisaro adds. He’ll work with pitching coach Mel Stottlemyre, Jr., who is returning for a second season. Cepeda will have his work cut out for him, as Miami’s young bullpen was among MLB’s worst in 2019.

Pitchers Recently Electing Free Agency

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Since the conclusion of the regular season, a number of players have elected free agency. That right accrues to certain players who are outrighted off of a 40-man roster during or after the season — namely, those that have at least three years of MLB service and/or have previously been outrighted. Such players that accepted outright assignments during the season have the right to elect free agency instead at season’s end, provided they aren’t added back to the 40-man in the meantime.

We already rounded up the position players. Now, here are the pitchers that have recently taken to the open market, along with their now-former teams (via the International League and PCL transactions pages):

Carlos Martinez Undergoes “Small Procedure” On Shoulder

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Carlos Martinez recently underwent a “small procedure” on his bothersome right shoulder, Cardinals president of baseball operations John Mozeliak said during a radio interview on KMOX 1120 AM Sunday (hat tip to Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch).  The treatment involved a platelet-rich plasma injection.  Martinez isn’t expected to miss any significant time, as Mozeliak said the right-hander “should have a pretty normal offseason” and is expected to ready for the start of the Cards’ Spring Training camp in February.

Shoulder issues have plagued Martinez in each of the last two seasons, which is why St. Louis shifted him into the bullpen in 2018 and used him exclusively as a reliever in 2019.  After making his season debut in May, Martinez posted a 3.17 ERA, 9.9 K/9, and 2.94 K/BB rate over 48 1/3 innings, and also ended up accumulating 24 saves as the Cards’ closer once Jordan Hicks had to undergo Tommy John surgery in June.

Despite this success, Martinez has long stated his preference to work as a starting pitcher, the Cardinals left the door open to a return to the rotation in 2020.  Last week’s shoulder procedure was intended to correct the soreness that arose whenever Martinez began to pitch deeper into games, though after over a year away from the rotation, it remains to be seen if Martinez will be able to return to his old form as a starter.  “In terms of what we want to see happen with Carlos this upcoming year, I think there are going to be many factors that way into that, and him being one of them,” Mozeliak said.  “What he decides he thinks is best for him when you look at his career path and where he is physically.”

It wasn’t long ago that Martinez was seen as one of baseball’s top young arms, as he posted a 3.24 ERA, 2.82 K/BB rate, and 8.9 K/9 from 2015-17, averaging 193 innings per season.  This led to a contract extension in the 2016-17 offseason that guaranteed Martinez $51.5MM over a five-year stretch, and Martinez is still owed $23.5MM on that deal.  He’ll earn $11.5MM in 2020 and 2021, before the Cardinals can either exercise a $17MM club option for 2022 or buy it out for $500K, and there’s also an $18MM club option ($500K buyout) on Martinez’s services for 2023.

Those salaries become a veritable bargain if Martinez is able to return to the starting five and pitch as he did in 2015-17, and even if he remains as a reliever, $11.5MM per season isn’t an untoward amount for a bullpen arm who pitches as well as Martinez did in 2019.

Jack Flaherty, Miles Mikolas, and Dakota Hudson have three spaces in the Cardinals’ rotation spoken for next season, though getting Martinez back would go a long way towards helping the team fill the final two spots.  Austin Gomber, Daniel Ponce de Leon, Genesis Cabrera, and Alex Reyes are all on the short list to compete for starting jobs, though one rotation space could be taken if veteran stalwart Adam Wainwright were to re-sign for another year in St. Louis.  If Martinez does return to starting, however, it leaves a vacancy for the Cards to address at closer, since Hicks is slated to miss most or potentially all of the 2020 season.

Latest On Marcell Ozuna, Cardinals

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Pending free-agent left fielder Marcell Ozuna has made it known he’d prefer to re-sign with the Cardinals, but it doesn’t look likely with free agency approaching. The Cardinals won’t be making an effort to re-up Ozuna to a long-term contract before the market opens in a couple weeks, Mark Saxon of The Athletic writes (subscription link). They are, however, likely to issue Ozuna a $17.8MM qualifying offer, according to Saxon.

[RELATED – FA Outlook: Marcell Ozuna]

If the Cardinals do hit Ozuna with a QO and he accepts, they’ll keep him for 2020. Otherwise, rejecting would enable Ozuna to head to free agency as arguably the most appealing corner outfielder available in a class that will also include Nicholas Castellanos and Yasiel Puig, among others. In a best-case scenario for Ozuna, St. Louis will pass on doling out the QO, as saddling him with one would force another team to give up draft-pick compensation in signing him. As we’ve seen in recent offseasons, clubs generally aren’t enthusiastic about losing draft capital while simultaneously having to fork over a sizable contract.

In the event Ozuna does get to free agency with a QO attached, he’ll still have a case for one of the offseason’s top paydays. Set to turn 29 next month, Ozuna’s coming off his fifth season with at least 2.6 fWAR since he debuted with the Marlins in 2013. Ozuna continued a trend of above-average (but not spectacular) offensive production in 2019, as he slashed .243/.330/.474 with 29 home runs and 12 stolen bases in 549 plate appearances. If we’re to believe Statcast, there may be more in the tank – Ozuna’s expected weighted on-base average (.379) far outpaced his real wOBA (.340) and ranked in the majors’ 91st percentile. He was also near the apex of the league in average exit velocity (91.8 mph; 93rd percentile) and hard-hit percentage (49.2; 96th percentile), among other Statcast metrics.

While Ozuna hasn’t been able to replicate the star-caliber 2017 he enjoyed with the Marlins during his two years as a Cardinal, his output would still be a challenge for the Redbirds to replace. St. Louis does have several other outfielders in the mix, though, and it’s not a guarantee the club will aggressively pursue outside help in the wake of an Ozuna exit. With Dexter Fowler, Harrison Bader, Tyler O’Neill, Tommy Edman, Jose Martinez, Lane Thomas, Yairo Munoz, Randy Arozarena and high-end prospect Dylan Carlson among options under control for next season, the Cardinals “have no intention of adding to the outfield glut” this winter, Saxon writes.

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