Cafardo On Murphy, Price, Davis, Cueto
In today’s column, Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe spoke with eight major league officials about the players trending up and trending down as free agency approaches. It probably won’t surprise you to learn that the list of players trending in the right direction starts with Mets second baseman Daniel Murphy.
“Obviously, he’s not going to be as hot as he’s been in the postseason, but he plays positions where his power plays well,” an American League GM told Cafardo. “There are teams like the Dodgers and Yankees who need a second baseman. Others, like the Angels, need a third baseman, where he also plays. He’s going to be sought-after and get a five-year deal at around $75MM. Maybe more.”
Murphy, who can also play at first base, would also have appeal for the attractive to the Orioles, Astros, Padres, and Tigers, Cafardo writes.
Here’s more from today’s column..
- The feeling is that a seven-year, $210MM deal for David Price would be fair, Cafardo writes, though some are concerned that Price won’t live up to that kind of deal unless he goes somewhere that he’s comfortable. The incumbent Blue Jays could be that place, but the Dodgers, Cardinals, and Cubs are also listed as possibilities. Price, 30, pitched to a 2.45 ERA with 9.2 K/9 and 1.9 BB/9 in 32 regular season starts for the Tigers and Blue Jays this past season.
- The group of eight anonymous scouts, managers, and GMs polled by Cafardo would not want to give Orioles bopper Chris Davis more than a five-year deal. Of course, a team out there very well could. “In the heat of the negotiations and fearing someone else will get him, this will likely get beyond what everybody wants. Scott Boras is the agent, so we may be looking at seven years,” one scout remarked. Recently, MLBTR’s Tim Dierkes profiled the two-time home run king and estimated that he’ll be in line for a six-year, $144MM pact.
- Johnny Cueto had a rough second half after being traded to the Royals and one National League GM told Cafardo that a “few teams have scratched him off their list.” Still, that GM estimates that Cueto can net a Jon Lester-type $155MM deal. Recently, we learned that the Red Sox are mulling a serious push for Cueto. The Marlins also like Cueto, but financial constraints will probably hold them back in that pursuit.
- One GM told Cafardo that he wouldn’t give Royals outfielder Alex Gordon anything more than a three-year deal at $36MM-$38MM. In addition to KC, Cafardo recently listed the Indians, Orioles, Mets, Tigers, and possibly the Red Sox as potential fits.
- Nationals hurler Jordan Zimmermann didn’t have a great season, but he was listed by Cafardo as a player whose arrow is pointing upwards. One NL scout praised Zimmermann’s work ethic and toughness. At the end of the regular season, Zimmermann sounded like a player who knows that he’ll be changing teams.
- One AL GM envisions Blue Jays pitcher Marco Estrada attracting attention from “six or seven teams” who could offer up a “four- or five-year deal in the $12MM-$15MM [per year] range.” Last month, MLBTR’s Mark Polishuk checked in on Estrada’s free agent stock. The right-hander posted a 3.13 ERA with 6.5 K/9 and 2.7 BB/9 across 28 starts and six relief appearances in 2015.
- Cafardo’s panel indicated that Scott Kazmir could get a three-year deal this offseason, but at a reduced rate because of his struggles with the Astros down the stretch. The group of eight officials sees Kazmir getting $10-$12MM AAV over a three year period. The Tigers are among the clubs with interest in the veteran left-hander, though Kazmir has also expressed a desire to return to Houston.
- At least two teams have their top advisers and scouts looking at Rich Hill‘s last four starts with the Red Sox to see if his emergence in 2015 is for real. One AL scout who has done his homework on the left-hander praised the hurler for his confidence.
- Cafardo identified the Braves, Dodgers, Rays, Astros, and Mariners as teams that could have interest in Orioles catcher Matt Wieters. Of course, his market will be impacted by whether or not he receives a qualifying offer. The Rangers will be among the teams with interest, according to Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com, but only if he does come with a QO attached. In a recent MLBTR poll, 60% of readers said that the O’s should give Wieters a QO.
Adrian Beltre Undergoes Thumb Surgery
Rangers third baseman Adrian Beltre underwent surgery on his left thumb yesterday, the club announced via press release. The club expects that he’ll “be fully ready for spring training,” per the statement.
The club explained that scar tissue was removed and a general clean-up was performed. Beltre injured a ligament in the thumb on May 31 on a slide, according to the team.
The veteran played through the injury for much of the year, drawing stunned admiration in the process. Beltre, 36, managed not only to appear in 143 games and take 619 trips to the plate, but produced a .287/.334/.453 slash with 18 home runs while drawing typically stellar defensive ratings.
All in all, it wasn’t that far from a typical season for the future Hall-of-Famer, who’ll earn $18MM next year in the final year of his contract. It’s not to soon to call that five-year, $80MM pact — which included a 2016 option, now guaranteed, to bring its total value to $96MM over six seasons — an outright bargain. Beltre has already contributed about 30 rWAR since coming to Texas.
Scott Servais A “Strong Front-Runner” For Mariners Manager
Just-hired Mariners GM Jerry Dipoto decided largely to start from scratch in constructing his team’s field staff, parting ways with incumbent skipper Lloyd McClendon and many of his coaches. Now, the club is joining the managerial market as it looks to develop a group of uniformed personnel that meshes well with the new front office.
We’ll keep track of the latest in this post:
- Servais is now the “strong front-runner” for the Mariners’ managerial opening, reports Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (via Twitter). Mike DiGiovanna of the L.A. Times adds (also via Twitter) that Servais, like Dipoto, butted heads with manager Mike Scioscia at times and wasn’t expected to remain with the Angels.
Earlier Updates
- Angels assistant GM/director of player development Scott Servais, who has been rumored to be a candidate to join the club’s front office, is “gaining traction” as a managerial candidate, reports Bob Dutton of the Tacoma News Tribune. Servais, of course, worked with Dipoto in the Angels’ front office but is said to have a desire to become a manager as well and has been linked to the Padres’ vacancy, too.
- One source told Dutton that Dipoto is interviewing five candidates. If that’s the case, he notes, the list of candidates would seem to be Servais, Bogar, Varitek, Montoyo and Nevin.
- Jon Heyman of CBS Sports hears that the Mariners have interviewed former big league catcher Jason Varitek for the position. Previous reports have indicated that it isn’t clear if Varitek would be interested in leaving his Boston-area home (and, more specifically, leaving his young children), so it’s not known if he will give the position serious consideration. Varitek doesn’t have managerial experience, though former major leaguers Brad Ausmus, Mike Matheny and Paul Molitor were all recently hired without prior experience.
- Rays coach Charlie Montoyo interviewed today for the job, Ken Davidoff of the New York Post reports on Twitter. He served as the club’s third base coach this year after an eight-year run as the manager for the Triple-A Durham Bulls.
- USA Today’s Bob Nightengale reports that the Mariners will interview Diamondbacks Triple-A manager and longtime Major Leaguer Phil Nevin (Twitter link). Nevin has been mentioned increasingly as a future Major League manager and has drawn interest from every club with a managerial vacancy this offseason.
- Angels special assistant Tim Bogar, who was once the interim skipper for the Rangers, has been mentioned as a possible front-runner from the job. He and Dipoto are not only former teammates, but worked together recently in Los Angeles.
- The club is also expected to show interest in a variety of other candidates. Among those mentioned thus far as at-least-hypothetical possibilities are Alex and Joey Cora, Padres bench coach Dave Roberts, Rays third base coach Charlie Montoya, former Pads manager Bud Black, long-time Mariners Raul Ibanez and Dan Wilson, and a host of others.
Jurickson Profar, Dylan Bundy To Join Arizona Fall League
Two of the most heralded prospects in recent memory — Jurickson Profar of the Rangers and Dylan Bundy of the Orioles, both just 22 years of age — are set to participate in the Arizona Fall League after long injury layoffs, according to team announcements.
The news had long been expected for Profar, who was named to the roster already. But he’ll now be activated for the first time, meaning he is no longer on the 60-day DL and will take up a roster spot. Eduardo Encina of the Baltimore Sun reported on Bundy yesterday, explaining that the Orioles want him to see some live action before the spring. Per the team announcement, he’ll take the AFL spot of righty Jon Keller.
Profar did manage a brief rehab stint in the minors already this year, marking his first game action since 2013. He’ll continue to serve as a DH in the AFL as he works to reacclimate his bat even as he continues to get his oft-injured right shoulder in shape for duty in the field. Profar debuted with Texas way back in 2012, when he was just 19 years of age. He owns only a .231/.301/.343 slash in 341 big league plate appearances, but he took all of those in or before his age-20 season.
It’s not yet clear whether and how Profar will factor into the Rangers’ plans for 2015, but he seems on track to do so. Texas still has Elvis Andrus embedded at shortstop and figures to continue utilizing the promising Rougned Odor at second. While an eventual replacement or contributor at short could make sense, it’s far from clear whether Profar will ever again be able to handle the demands of throwing from that position.
Bundy, meanwhile, also debuted in 2012 and has yet to return to the big leagues after suffering a variety of arm ailments. He has made it back for rehab stints in each of the last two seasons, but both times has been shut down after relatively limited action. He was not originally a part of Baltimore’s AFL plans, but will be moved into the competitive league after showing sufficient progress.
This is an important winter for Bundy and the O’s, as he’s out of options for 2016. That means that Baltimore will need to keep its former top prospect on the major league roster out of camp or risk losing him on waivers. While he’s most valued as a future starter, Bundy will obviously need to build back his innings and could feature as a reliever in the near-term.
Outrighted: Blanks, Corporan, Richardson, Strausborger, Fryer, Robinson, Thompson
Here are the day’s outright assignments:
- The Rangers have outrighted infielder/outfielder Kyle Blanks, catcher Carlos Corporan, and outfielders Antoan Richardson and Ryan Strausborger, according to a club announcement. Blanks continues to struggle to stay on the field and ended his season with surgeries on both feet. Corporan, acquired last winter from the Astros, struggled to a .178/.244/.299 batting line in 121 plate appearances for Texas. Richardson saw minimal action this year, all in the minors. And Strausborger, 27, reached the majors for the first time, though he produced only a .507 OPS in his first 51 plate appearances.
- The Twins outrighted catcher Eric Fryer, outfielder Shane Robinson, and lefty Aaron Thompson from their 40-man roster, as Phil Miller of the Star Tribune was among those to report (on Twitter). All have cleared waivers. Fryer, 30, has seen limited MLB action in each of the last five seasons and will surely catch on somewhere (if not back in Minnesota) as a depth option. Robinson, who is also 30, has been somewhat more heavily used at the major league level. Despite a light bat, he is capable of playing center and has received solid grades on his glovework. As for the 28-year-old Thompson, he managed only a 5.01 ERA last year in his first season of frequent MLB usage.
Dodgers Claim Lisalverto Bonilla
The Dodgers have claimed righty Lisalverto Bonilla off waivers from the Rangers, the club announced. He has been placed on the 60-day DL by Los Angeles.
Bonilla, 25, spent all of the 2015 season on the DL after undergoing Tommy John surgery in April. He had reached the big leagues for the first time in the prior year, allowing seven earned runs with 17 strikeouts and 12 walks over 20 2/3 innings for Texas.
While he made three of his five MLB appearances in a starting capacity, Bonilla has mostly worked as a reliever in recent years in the minors. At Triple-A in 2014, Bonilla threw 87 1/3 innings of 4.33 ERA ball (34 relief appearances, nine starts), with 10.8 K/9 against 3.3 BB/9. He has consistently posted double-digit strikeouts per nine since moving to the pen.
Coaching Notes: Rockies, Mariners, Tigers, Marlins
Here’s the latest on coaching changes throughout MLB:
- The Rockies will bring back their entire coaching staff under manager Walt Weiss, Nick Groke of the Denver Post writes. That includes hitting coach Blake Doyle, bench coach Tom Runnells, pitching coach Steve Foster, and bullpen coach Darren Holmes.
- The Rockies will, however, lose mental skills coach Andy McKay to the Mariners, Bob Dutton of the Tacoma News Tribune reports. McKay will reportedly take over for Chris Gwynn as the organization’s farm director. Along with Gwynn, a number of minor-league coaches have also departed, signaling that new GM Jerry Dipoto is changing the way the Mariners develop prospects.
- Tigers pitching coach Jeff Jones has announced his retirement, James Schmehl of MLive.com notes. The team had previously announced that its entire coaching staff would be back next season, so the moves comes as a bit of a surprise, although perhaps not a huge one — Jones considered retiring after Jim Leyland’s departure in late 2013. In a statement, Jones said he wanted to spend more time with his family.
- Rangers pitching coach Mike Maddux’s contract expires at the end of the month, Evan Grant of DallasNews.com writes. The team has invited Maddux to return next season, but it’s unclear whether he will. One would think he would attract plenty of attention if he were to become available — Maddux’s tenure in Texas has been successful, and he’s highly respected throughout the game.
- The Diamondbacks are interviewing pitching coach candidates, Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic writes. Bullpen coach Mel Stottlemyre Jr. was expected to be in the mix, but he wants to be closer to his father (who lives in Washington State) as he deals with cancer. The Diamondbacks now believe Stottlemyre is likely to take a position with the Mariners, who have requested permission to interview him. The Diamondbacks say they could consider up to six internal candidates and have requested permission to speak with others outside the organization.
- Former Cubs manager Rick Renteria has spoken with the Marlins about their managerial job, Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald writes (scroll down). The other known interviewees for the position include Larry Bowa, Manny Acta, Bo Porter, Phil Nevin and Alex Cora.
- Orioles first base coach Wayne Kirby will be back, Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com tweets. Baltimore is working to retain all of its staff and has nearly done so.
Charlie Wilmoth contributed to this post.
Heyman’s Latest: Harvey, Murphy, Kennedy, Wieters, Phillies
Mets righty Matt Harvey and agent Scott Boras took out an insurance policy on the right-hander’s arm, writes Jon Heyman of CBS Sports in his latest Inside Baseball column. The policy covers a mere fraction of Harvey’s overall earning potential, says Heyman, but it does give him a bit of a safety net in the event that his workload following Tommy John surgery leads to future arm complications. Heyman notes that Harvey’s dominant outing in Game 1 of the NLCS “all but obliterated” other teams’ chances of trading for the right-hander, who was lauded by the Citi Field faithful. Never one to pass up the chance for a memorable quote, Boras said of Harvey’s performance on a cold New York evening: “Forget Batman. He’s Mr. Freeze.”
A few more highlights from the column…
- While multiple reports have indicated that the Mets aren’t planning on giving Daniel Murphy a qualifying offer, one rival GM tells Heyman that they “absolutely have to” extend the QO on the heels of Murphy’s huge postseason. The GM added that Murphy should reject the offer and look to capitalize on the five homers he’s launched since the NLDS got underway.
- The Padres appear to have interest in a reunion with starter Ian Kennedy, per the report. It’s likely, of course, that there will be competition. As Heyman notes, the 30-year-old righty has sustained the gains in velocity and strikeout rate that he showed last year — in fact, his 9.3 K/9 is second only to David Price among free agents — and has been a reliable source of innings for the last six years.
- Catcher Matt Wieters will draw some open-market interest from the Rangers, but only if he avoids a qualifying offer. Texas would not have interest in giving up its first-round pick to ink Wieters, says Heyman.
- The Phillies haven’t yet called Jim Hendry about their open GM seat. He teamed with new Philadelphia president Andy MacPhail with the Cubs. But Heyman writes that the Phils appear to be angling toward younger candidates. Though we haven’t heard much lately on the status of Kim Ng, one source says that she remains in the mix.
West Notes: Rangers, Conte, Rockies
Rangers hitting coach Dave Magadan left the position yesterday, and Evan Grant of DallasNews.com examines four possible candidates to replace him. Three of those are former MLB stars: Jason Giambi, Michael Young and Ivan Rodriguez. Giambi is widely considered a potential future manager, and he already works with young Rangers power hitter Joey Gallo. Young is a special assistant with the Rangers, but Grant feels he’s unlikely to take the hitting coach job and spend less time with his family. Rodriguez was briefly rumored to be a candidate for the Marlins’ manager job earlier this year. Grant also mentions Rangers minor-league hitting instructor Justin Mashore, noting that the organization holds Mashore in high regard. Here’s more from the West divisions.
- The Dodgers have announced the resignation of Vice President, Medical Services and Head Trainer Stan Conte, who had worked with the team for nine years. “I want to thank Stan for his contributions to the Dodgers over the past nine years as well as all he has done for the entire community of sports medicine,” says Dodgers exec Andrew Friedman. The departure could be the first of many within the Dodgers organization after a disappointing exit from the playoffs this week.
- The Rockies need to get more from their bench next season, writes Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post. In particular, Daniel Descalso, Wilin Rosario and the since-departed Drew Stubbs struggled. 3B/OF Rafael Ynoa and outfielder Brandon Barnes appear likely to take two bench spots next year, but beyond that, the Rockies’ plans are unclear. Rosario, however, appears likely to depart — he could be a non-tender candidate and has also already indicated that he’s open to being traded.
Rangers Notes: Staff, Lewis, Beltre, Napoli, Gallardo, Offseason
The Rangers were one of the biggest surprises of the year. While the club was bounced from the playoffs in disappointing fashion, it nevertheless accomplished much more than expected and raised expectations heading into 2016.
Here’s the latest from Texas:
- Rangers hitting coach Dave Magadan and bullpen coach Andy Hawkins will not be back, as MLB.com’s T.R. Sullivan reports. The rest of the club’s staff has been invited to return to work under manager Jeff Banister. Magadan is looking to remain closer to his home in Florida, per the report, while Hawkins is aiming to move to another organization.
- In other after-season business, also via Sullivan, the Rangers announced that righty Colby Lewis had a procedure to repair a torn meniscus in his left knee. The soon-to-be free agent pitched through it for much of the year. It remains to be seen whether veteran third bagger Adrian Beltre will need surgery for a torn ligament in his thumb, an injury that he (rather remarkably) played with for some time.
- Texas has interest in bringing back first baseman Mike Napoli, GM Jon Daniels said. The 33-year-old hit a blistering .295/.396/.513 down the stretch for Texas, and would make sense as a right-handed-hitting complement to the club’s left-heavy lineup. But it appears that Napoli may prefer to seek a more expansive role on the open market.
- As expected, the Rangers intend to make a qualifying offer to righty Yovani Gallardo. If he doesn’t take the $15.8MM offer, Gallardo will hit the market heading into his age-30 season after throwing 376 2/3 innings of 3.46 ERA pitching over the last two campaigns. The draft compensation would create some drag, but his record of durability and effectiveness makes him an obvious target for clubs in need of reliable innings.
- It’s back to business already for Daniels, who says that he believes the team “did a lot of our heavy lifting in July,” as Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reports. That’s a reference to the club’s acquisition of Cole Hamels and Jake Diekman, of course, both of whom were added with the future in mind. That being said, Daniels made clear that Texas will be active. “There are some areas that I would expect that we’ll look to upgrade,” Daniels said. “I think we’ll have a lot of conversations with other clubs and kind of see where the market is. I don’t feel like there are any glaring holes if we are healthy.”
- Regarding starting pitching, Daniels said that the organization will “look to add some stability” over the winter. That could mean a return of Lewis or (perhaps less likely) Gallardo, but it seems quite possible that Texas will be on the market for a new addition.