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Angels To Sign Jake Faria To Minor-League Contract

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The Angels are set to sign right-hander Jake Faria to a minor-league deal, reports Jon Heyman of MLB Network (Twitter link). Presumably, he’ll receive an invitation to spring training.

Faria looked like a potential long-term rotation piece with the Rays back in 2017. He broke into the league with 86.2 innings of 3.43 ERA/4.12 FIP ball that season. He couldn’t build upon that success the following year, however. Faria’s strikeout and walk rates each went in the wrong direction and he struggled to a 5.40 ERA in 2018. He was bumped into a bullpen role in a 2019 season split between Tampa Bay and Milwaukee but continued to struggle. The Brewers didn’t bring him back to the majors in 2020, releasing him in September.

Recent struggles notwithstanding, there’s little risk for the Angels in giving the 27-year-old another opportunity. Throughout his MLB career, Faria has generated whiffs at nearly a league average rate. His fastball velocity ticked up from 92.2 MPH in 2018 to 93.7 MPH the following season thanks to his bullpen conversion. Faria could plausibly compete for a job as a starter or as a reliever for a Los Angeles club perennially on the hunt for pitching. There’s not a ton of certainty behind Dylan Bundy, Andrew Heaney and Griffin Canning in the rotation. The Angels also non-tendered five relievers earlier this week, so they’ll surely be on the hunt for bullpen help this winter.

In addition to the Angels, Faria drew the attention of one of his former clubs. The Rays had interest in bringing him back on a minor-league deal. It seems a tougher road to crack the major league pitching staff in Tampa Bay, though, likely factoring into Faria’s decision to instead sign with L.A. The right-hander is also a Southern California native, and he’ll now look to return to the majors with his hometown club.

Minor MLB Transactions: 12/5/20

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The latest minor transactions from around the sport:

  • The Orioles signed right-hander Conner Greene to a minor-league contract earlier this week, per MLB.com’s transactions page (and confirmed by Greene on Twitter). A 2013 draftee out of a California high school by the Blue Jays, Greene became a prospect of some note after his velocity spiked early in his pro career. He was traded to the Cardinals after the 2017 season and has spent the past two years in the Royals’ system. The 25-year-old struggled badly in the high minors in recent years but was still throwing in the mid-to-high 90’s in 2019, as FanGraphs’ Eric Longenhagen noted in April. Greene has extensive starting experience in the minors and could be an option for either the rotation or bullpen mix if he shows well in spring training.

Ryon Healy Signs With KBO’s Hanwha Eagles

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Corner infielder Ryon Healy is signing with the Hanwha Eagles of the Korea Baseball Organization, the team announced (via Jeeho Yoo of Yonhap). It’s a one-year deal that guarantees him $800K and offers an additional $200K in incentives.

The 28-year-old Healy has logged big league time in each of the past five years. Most of his playing time came between 2017-18, when he was a regular with the Athletics and Mariners, respectively. Healy signed a one-year deal with the Brewers last offseason after being cut loose by Seattle, but he spent most of the year at their alternate training site. Healy only played in four regular season games for Milwaukee; he got one more start against the Dodgers in the Wild Card playoff round. The Brewers outrighted him off the 40-man roster after the season, and Healy again became a free agent.

All told, Healy has managed a .261/.298/.450 slash line (101 wRC+) with 69 home runs in 1606 MLB plate appearances. While he broke into the league as a third baseman, Healy has rated rather poorly defensively at both corner infield spots. Between his subpar defense and on-base deficiencies, he’s seen his big league playing time dwindle in recent years.

However, Healy has shown decent pop over his MLB time, with a career .190 isolated power (slugging minus batting average). Unlike many power-oriented bats, he’s not overly prone to punchouts, with generally average strikeout and whiff rates. Indeed, the Eagles pointed to Healy’s decent batted ball data and contact rates as reasons for pursuing him, Yoo notes in a follow-up tweet.

Mariners, Mitch Haniger Avoid Arbitration

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The Mariners and outfielder Mitch Haniger have agreed to a one-year, $3.01MM contract, according to FanSided’s Robert Murray (Twitter link).  The deal replicates the agreement made between the two sides last winter heading into Haniger’s first year of arbitration eligibility, which is no surprise given that Haniger missed the entire 2020 season.

Haniger hasn’t played since June 6, 2019, when he suffered a ruptured testicle.  While rehabbing from that horrific injury, Haniger then tore an adductor muscle that eventually led to a pair of surgeries (one for his core, the other a discectomy) during the 2019-20 offseason and he never got onto the field last year.  However, Mariners GM Jerry Dipoto indicated during his end-of-season press conference that Haniger was making good progress in his recovery and was expected to be ready for the start of the 2021 season.

Seattle’s decision to tender Haniger a contract reinforces that optimism in the outfielder’s health, and he will now look to resume what had been a very promising career.  Haniger hit .271/.351/.486 with 57 home runs over his first 1376 plate appearances in a Mariners uniform, emerging as Seattle’s breakout star of the memorable November 2016 deal with the Diamondbacks that sent Taijuan Walker and Ketel Marte to Arizona.

Haniger (who turns 30 in December) is under team control through the 2022 season, so a good performance in 2021 will line him up for a nice raise in third and final year of arbitration eligibility.  While the M’s might make some level of a push to reach the playoffs next season, Haniger might still project as a trade chip for the deadline if he regains his old form.  Between Kyle Lewis and star prospects Jarred Kelenic, Julio Rodriguez, and Taylor Trammell, Seattle is loaded with young outfielders, so Haniger could still be expendable.  For now, however, the focus is just on getting Haniger fully recovered after all of his health woes over the last 18 months.

With Haniger’s deal settled, the Mariners have two remaining arbitration candidates in J.P. Crawford and Tom Murphy.

Twins Sign Tzu-Wei Lin To Minor League Deal

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The Twins have signed utilityman Tzu-Wei Lin to a minors contract, according to MLB.com’s transactions page.  Lin chose to become a free agent after the Red Sox outrighted him off their 40-man roster in October.

Originally signed as an international free agent out of Taiwan in 2012, Lin spent the last nine years in Boston’s organization, and he saw big league action in each of the last four seasons.  The first two of those seasons saw Lin hit a respectable .256/.348/.380 over 139 plate appearances, but he has posted only a .416 OPS over 79 PA since the start of the 2019 season.  It adds up to a career slash line of .223/.298/.316 over 218 PA and 101 games.

Lin offers the ability to play virtually all over the field, as he has appeared in at least one game at every position except first base.  That range around the diamond includes an inning at catcher back on August 13 of this year during a 17-8 loss to the Rays, and an inning of mop-up time on the mound in a 13-1 loss to the Orioles on September 24.

The bulk of Lin’s MLB playing time has come as a shortstop and second baseman, so he provides Minnesota with some extra depth behind Jorge Polanco, who underwent ankle surgery in October.  Lin (who turns 27 in February) will help fill the utilityman void left behind by free agents Marwin Gonzalez and Ehire Adrianza.  There has been some speculation that the Twins might look for a new regular shortstop and move Polanco into a super-utility role himself, though Lin certainly seems like more of a depth option than someone ticketed for even a platoon role.

Phillies Sign Ronald Torreyes To Minor League Deal

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The Phillies have agreed to terms on a minor league deal with infielder Ronald Torreyes, Jon Heyman of MLB Network tweets.

A former Dodger, Yankee and Twin, Torreyes signed a minors pact with the Phillies last offseason. He only totaled seven plate appearances with the team last season, though.

If Torreyes does make the Phillies’ roster at any point next year, it will be his fourth season under manager Joe Girardi, who previously led the Yankees. The 28-year-old Torreyes hasn’t had much major league success of late, but he was a useful bench piece for the Yankees from 2016-18. Torreyes posted a .281/.308/.374 line across 606 plate appearances in New York.

Pirates Sign Clay Holmes To Minor League Contract

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The Pirates non-tendered right-hander Clay Holmes on Wednesday, but he’s making a quick return to the organization. The club has signed Holmes to a minor league contract with an invitation to major league camp, Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette tweets.

Holmes will now stay with the only organization he has been a part of since coming off the board in the ninth round of the 2011 draft. The 27-year-old saw action with the Pirates in each of the previous three seasons, though he has had trouble keeping offenses at bay, thanks in part to control problems. In 47 appearances and four starts, Holmes has posted a 5.91 ERA/5.06 FIP with 9.04 K/9 against 6.84 BB/9 across 77 2/3 innings.

This past season was a wash for Holmes because of a forearm strain, as he made just one appearance (on July 24) before landing on the injured list. He’ll now try to work his way back to Pittsburgh on a non-guaranteed deal.

NPB’s Nippon Ham Fighters Post Haruki Nishikawa For MLB Teams

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The Nippon-Ham Fighters of Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball have made center fielder Haruki Nishikawa available to Major League clubs through the NPB/MLB posting system, the Japan Times reports. Major League teams will now have a 30-day window to negotiate with the 28-year-old Nishikawa.

The left-handed-hitting Nishikawa batted .296/.419/.388 with just five homers, 15 doubles and three triples this year, although he also swiped 37 bags in 42 tries. He’s posted an OBP of .378 or better in each of the past four seasons while striking out in 16.5 percent of his plate appearances against a 14.3 percent walk rate.

Overall, dating back to 2017, Nishikawa is a .291/.397/.401 hitter through 2433 plate appearances. He’s stolen 144 bases with an 87.8 success rate in that time. Nishikawa has three stolen base titles, three Gold Gloves in the outfield and a pair of All-Star nods in NPB. He made it known last offseason that he hoped the Fighters would post him for big league clubs this winter.

There’s an obvious lack of power that will curb Nishikawa’s earning capacity with big league clubs, but his speed, plate discipline, bat-to-ball skills and ability to play multiple spots in the outfield all will hold appeal. Sports Info Solutions’ Ted Baarda profiled him recently, likening Nishikawa’s skill set to that of Ben Revere: a fleet-footed, contact-oriented hitter with the range to play anywhere in the outfield but arm strength (or a slight lack thereof) more suited for left field or center field. (It should be noted, though, that Nishikawa’s walk rate in NPB is about three times greater than Revere’s career mark in MLB.)

While this is expected to be a rather unforgiving offseason to baseball’s middle tiers of free agents, Nishikawa’s attempt to move to the Majors could be well-timed given relatively thin group of free-agent center fielders. George Springer, of course, is one of the top overall free agents but is also likely to come with an asking price that is a nonstarter for the majority of clubs around the league as they try to scale back payroll. Jackie Bradley Jr. presents a glove-first everyday alternative. Kevin Pillar is again available, but defensive metrics are down on his work in center.

That’s not to say Nishikawa is a clear starter at the big league level, of course. It’s possible that a low-payroll club could give him the opportunity to earn that role, but any team giving him that chance would figure to have alternatives on hand in the event that Nishikawa’s bat is overmatched by big league pitching. Still, his presence adds another option to the free-agent mix in center or for any team seeking a left-hitting fourth outfielder with speed to burn.

Any team that eventually signs Nishikawa will owe a release fee to the Fighters under the aforementioned posting system. That fee, which comes on top of the contract paid to the player himself, is equal to 20 percent of the contract’s first $25MM, plus 17.5 percent of the next $25MM and 15 percent of any dollars thereafter. Nishikawa’s track record in NPB is lesser than that of countryman Shogo Akiyama, who inked a three-year, $21MM deal with the Reds last winter. It’d be a surprise to see Nishikawa top that mark, so in all likelihood his posting fee will fall squarely into that first tier, 20-percent bracket.

Nishikawa becomes the second Fighters player to be posted for MLB clubs this winter, following the previously announced posting of the team’s top starting pitcher, righty Kohei Arihara.

Minor MLB Transactions: 12/3/20

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The latest minor moves from around baseball…

  • The Rays have signed righty David Hess to a minors deal, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times tweets. The Orioles, who chose Hess in the fifth round of the 2014 draft, outrighted him in October. He debuted in the majors in 2018 and has since recorded a 5.86 ERA/6.41 FIP with 6.76 K/9 and 3.26 BB/9 in 190 1/3 innings.

Earlier transactions:

  • The Rockies announced that they have acquired left-hander Yoan Aybar from the Red Sox for infielder Christian Koss. Aybar, now 23, didn’t produce much as an outfielder through 2017, which led the Red Sox to move him to the mound. With a fastball that can reach triple digits, Aybar pitched to a 4.61 ERA with 11.1 K/9 and 6.5 BB/9 in 56 2/3 innings between the Single-A and High-A levels in 2019. Koss, who will turn 23 in January, was a 12th-round pick of the Rockies in 2019 who hasn’t gotten past rookie ball. He did perform very well there during his first pro season, though, as he slashed .332/.447/.605 with 11 home runs in 238 plate appearances.
  • The Brewers tweeted that they’ve signed third baseman Zach Green to a minor league contract with an invitation to big league camp. The 26-year-old was a third-round pick of the Phillies in 2012 who spent the previous two seasons in the Giants organization. Green made his MLB debut in 2020 and totaled 16 plate appearances, though he picked up just two hits. However, Green isn’t far removed from an excellent 2019 showing in Triple-A, where he slashed .282/.380/.659 with 25 home runs in 297 plate appearances.
  • Right-hander Zach Thompson announced on Twitter that he has signed with the Marlins. It’s presumably a minors deal for Thompson, who had been with the White Sox since they selected him in the fifth round of the 2014 draft. The 27-year-old topped out in Triple-A ball in 2019 with 70 1/3 innings of 5.50 ERA ball. While Thompson had difficulty preventing runs then, he did post impressive strikeout and walk numbers (10.0 K/9, 2.9 BB/9).
  • The Pirates outrighted first baseman/outfielder Will Craig to Triple-A Indianapolis on Wednesday, Adam Berry of MLB.com tweets. Craig joined the Pirates as a first-rounder in 2016, but his major league impact has been minimal to this point. He collected four plate appearances in his Pittsburgh debut last season, but he went hitless in that short span and the Pirates designated him for assignment last week. In his most recent minor league action, in 2019, the 26-year-old batted .249/.326/.435 with 23 homers across 556 plate appearances at the Triple-A level.

Cardinals, John Gant Avoid Arbitration

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The Cardinals and right-handed reliever John Gant have reached a one-year, $2.1MM agreement to avoid arbitration, Bob Nightengale of USA Today tweets. His salary is fully guaranteed.

Gant had been projected to earn $1.5MM to $1.9MM in arbitration, so the actual salary he’ll make in 2021 isn’t too far off from that. The 28-year-old seems well worth the money he’ll make next season, as he has been a highly productive member of the Cardinals’ bullpen over the past few seasons.

Gant debuted in 2016 with the Braves, with whom he didn’t post great numbers that season. The Braves then traded Gant to the Cardinals in a deal involving Jaime Garcia, but he was hardly lights-out during his initial action in St. Louis. However, Gant has been an integral part of the Cardinals’ bullpen dating back to 2018. The 28-year-old owns a 3.46 ERA/3.81 FIP with 7.97 K/9, 4.52 BB/9 and a 46.6 percent groundball rate in 195 1/3 innings in the past three seasons. Next year will be Gant’s penultimate season of team control.

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