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Orioles, Rays, Braves Among Teams Interested In Welington Castillo

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1:17pm: Add the Orioles to the list of teams interested in Castillo, as MASN’s Roch Kubatko tweets. The Orioles could lose Matt Wieters to free agency and have been interested in Castillo for some time, according to Kubatko.

11:03am: The Diamondbacks’ unexpected decision to non-tender Welington Castillo has added a new name to the free agent catching market, and Castillo is already receiving interest. The Rays are “expected to aggressively pursue” Castillo, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times wrote last night. The Rays, who currently have Luke Maile and Curt Casali atop their depth chart at catcher, were already expected to look for catching help, so it’s easy to see why the surprise addition of a .264/.322/.423 hitter and longtime starter to the market would be intriguing for them.

Topkin also tweeted this morning, though, that Castillo was receiving a number of calls, and not just from the Rays. It’s possible one of those teams could be the Braves, who have “some interest,” as David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal Constitution tweets. Current Braves backstop Tyler Flowers hit fairly well last year and rates as a good framer, and he and fellow catchers Anthony Recker and Tuffy Gosewisch are all now under contract for 2017. Castillo could certainly still help the Braves, however, and it stands to reason that they’d have interest, since they’ve also shown at least some interest in free agent backstops like Matt Wieters and Jason Castro.

Rays Non-Tender Ryan Brett

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  • The Rays non-tendered infielder Ryan Brett, who wasn’t eligible for arbitration, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times tweets.

Braves Still Interested In Archer, Reluctant To Deal Prospect Albies

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The Braves are still looking at trading for an ace even after adding Bartolo Colon, R.A. Dickey and Jaime Garcia to their rotation this winter and are specifically focused on White Sox lefty Chris Sale and Rays right-hander Chris Archer, per ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick (all Twitter links). The Braves prefer Sale to Archer despite the potentially higher asking price and shorter amount of club control remaining on his contract, Crasnick adds. Atlanta is receiving quite a bit of interest in top prospect Ozzie Albies (in general and not specifically from the White Sox or Rays), Crasnick adds, but they’re expressing a good deal of reluctance to part with him. The Braves don’t seem especially enamored of Athletics right-hander Sonny Gray on the heels of a down season in 2016, according to Crasnick.

Brewers Claim Steve Geltz, Designate Adam Walker For Assignment

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The Brewers announced on Monday that they’ve claimed right-handed reliever Steve Geltz off waivers from the Rays and designated minor league outfielder/first baseman Adam Walker for assignment.

Geltz will head to the Brewers, where former Rays director of player personnel Matt Arnold is now serving as the assistant GM. The 29-year-old who recorded a 5.74 ERA in 26 2/3 innings with Tampa Bay this past season but posted a more impressive 3.03 ERA with better than 10 strikeouts per nine innings during his time at Triple-A. He had a solid season out of the Tampa Bay ’pen in 2015 (3.74 ERA, 8.2 K/9, 3.5 BB/9 in 67 1/3 innings) and has a 4.23 ERA in 104 1/3 innings at the big league level dating back to 2012. Milwaukee has some uncertainty in the bullpen after trading both Jeremy Jeffress and Will Smith at the non-waiver trade deadline this past year, and Geltz will give them an experienced arm to add to the 2017 bullpen competition.

Walker, 25, was claimed off waivers from the Twins last week but proved to have a very brief stay on Milwaukee’s 40-man roster. The former third-round pick has massive power, having homered 58 times across the past two minor league seasons, but he also strikes out at a prodigious clip. Walker punched out an incredible 202 times in 531 plate appearances at the Triple-A level this season (38 percent) and whiffed at a 34.8 percent clip at Double-A in 2015. He also lacks any true defensive position, as he’s played left field recently but is projected by most to ultimately function as a first baseman or DH if he ever breaks into the Majors.

Rays Seeking Right Opportunities On Free Agent Market

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  • The Rays haven’t yet made any significant moves this offseason, and some of the deals made by other teams might have thwarted them to a degree, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times suggests. Jason Castro and Brett Cecil stood out as potential fits for the Rays, but other teams signed them at relatively high costs. GM Erik Neander, though, says the opportunities available later in the offseason might turn out to be better for the Rays. “Early offseason signings are typically the result of a very competitive market for those players,” says Neander. “Sometimes it’s difficult to contend with that, but not always. Our job is to be prepared, try to do our evaluations correctly, wait for the right opportunity to arise and be in position to strike when it does.”

Rays Notes: Beckham, Castro

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  • Although Tim Beckham was sent home by the Rays at the end of the 2016 season, prompting some to speculate that his time with the team could be drawing to a close, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times wrote this weekend that Beckham now looks to be part of the 2017 picture, thanks largely to his defensive ability. Topkin also expanded a bit on Tampa Bay’s interest in Jason Castro, noting that while the catcher’s agent told him recently that the Rays are “in the thick of things” with regard to Castro, it’s not characteristic for the Rays to win a free-agent bidding war. A three-year commitment north of $20MM seems unlikely to come from the Rays, Topkin writes, which leads him to wonder if the team might instead pursue a trade for Miguel Montero, assuming the Cubs would be willing to include some salary in the deal.

Dodgers Interested In Logan Forsythe

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Having already checked in on Ian Kinsler and Brian Dozier, the second-base needy Dodgers are now interested in the Rays’ Logan Forsythe, reports Jon Morosi of MLB Network. Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman previously traded for Forsythe when he was the Rays’ general manager in 2014, notes Morosi (Twitter links). It’s unclear whether Tampa Bay is currently open to dealing him, though.

Forsythe, who will turn 30 in January, has quietly established himself as a high-end second baseman dating back to 2015. In 1,182 plate appearances since then, Forsythe has batted .273/.347/.444 with 37 home runs and 15 stolen bases, and his 6.8 fWAR during that span places him ninth among the league’s second basemen. Most of the damage the right-handed Forsythe has done the past two years has come against lefties (.287/.350/.543 in 317 PAs), which surely appeals to a Dodgers team that posted a league-worst .213/.290/.332 line versus southpaws in 2016.

Like Kinsler and Dozier, Forsythe is controllable through the 2018 campaign, though he’s set to rake in less money than those two and shouldn’t cost as much to acquire in a trade. Forsythe – who’s due $14.25MM (including an $8.5MM club option for 2018) – has also seen action at third base, where the Dodgers have an opening as Justin Turner sits without a contract. The lion’s share of Forsythe’s playing time has come at second, though, and the Dodgers could clearly use a solution there with Chase Utley on the open market and Howie Kendrick now in Philadelphia.

Padres, Rays, Athletics Interested In Eric Thames

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Free agent outielder Eric Thames has drawn interest from the Padres, Rays and Athletics (as Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle previously reported), according to Jerry Crasnick of ESPN.com. Thames, who has starred in Korea since 2014, previously saw major league action with the Blue Jays and Mariners from 2011-12.

Thames, 30, was so-so in his two-year major league stint, hitting .250/.296/.431 with 21 home runs in 684 plate appearances, but he could cash in this winter thanks to his phenomenal showing with the NC Dinos of the hitter-friendly KBO. Thames swatted at least 37 homers in each of the previous three seasons, including 47 in an MVP-winning 2015, giving him a combined 124 since he immigrated to Korea. All told, he has slashed a videogamelike .348/.450/.720 in 1,634 plate appearances and also added 64 stolen bases on 78 attempts since leaving America.

Assuming he returns to the States, MLBTR projects a two-year, $10MM deal for Thames (from the Rays, in fact), but one National League executive told Crasnick he could fare even better than that.

“Look at some of the money that Cuban players have gotten,” said the exec. “What’s the difference here? I think somebody is going to bite, and he’ll get a contract for two years and $12 million, or three years and $15-18 million.”

Thames, a California native, acknowledged that he has contemplated another major league go-around.

“Yes, the thought has crossed my mind a few times,” Thames told Crasnick via email. “I’m wondering about how my new mindset could transfer over. Next year feels like light years away! Who knows where I will end up.”

Re-signing in Korea or heading to Japan are also possibilities for Thames, who might not exclusively play the outfield in a second major league stint. Thames moved to first in Korea, notes Crasnick, and the lefty-swinger would likely spend time there, in the outfield and, if he signs with an American League team, at designated hitter. With Wil Myers at first and no DH, the Padres would have to to utilize Thames in the outfield, while the hitter-needy Rays and A’s would have more flexibility in deploying him.

Rays Have “Serious Interest” In Steve Pearce

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In need of a right-handed hitter after trading Richie Shaffer to the Mariners on Friday, the Rays have “serious interest” in reuniting with free agent utilityman Steve Pearce, according to Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. The Rays are one of at least three teams in pursuit of Pearce, who has also drawn the attention of the Blue Jays and Mets.

Pearce, who will turn 34 in April, spent the first few months of last season with Tampa Bay after it signed him to a one-year, $4.75MM contract in January. The Florida native was excellent as a Ray, slashing .309/.388/.520 with 10 home runs in 232 plate appearances, but they fell out of contention and dealt him to AL East rival Baltimore at the Aug. 1 non-waiver trade deadline. He wasn’t nearly as successful with the Orioles, hitting .217/.329/.400 in with three homers in 70 PAs during his third stint with the team, and is now on the mend from September forearm surgery.

Despite both his less-than-stellar end to the season and current health issues, odds are Pearce will outdo his previous deal in terms of guaranteed value (MLBTR projects $10MM over two years). Pearce was coming off an underwhelming 2015 at the time, but even factoring in the .218/.289/.422 line he put up in 422 PAs that season, the journeyman has batted .266/.348/.485 in 1,148 trips to the plate since his breakout 2013 showing. Pearce’s combined wRC+ of 129 in the past four seasons ties him with the Rangers’ Adrian Beltre, albeit across 1,415 fewer PAs, and he has shown versatility by playing all over the diamond.

Pearce spent time at first, second, third and designated hitter last season for the Rays, who could use a platoon partner for lefty-swinging first baseman Brad Miller and a DH. Miller has struggled versus southpaws throughout his career, including in 2016, while Pearce has recorded an outstanding .270/.353/.500 line against them in 689 PAs.

Rays Notes: Starters, Longoria

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  • The Rays are primed to base their 2017 approach on which starting pitcher they trade, writes Rosenthal. If the Rays deal right-hander Alex Cobb or southpaw Drew Smyly, both of whom have two or fewer years of team control remaining, they’re likely to make an attempt at competing next season. On the other hand, shipping righties Chris Archer (five years of team control) or Jake Odorizzi (three) out would signal a rebuild. Even if Tampa Bay chooses the latter route, it’s still unlikely to move third baseman Evan Longoria, the longtime face of the franchise. Longoria has demonstrated remarkable durability since 2013, missing just six games, and has Rays officials convinced he could be part of winning Tampa Bay teams down the line. The 31-year-old is controllable through the 2023 season.

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