Padres Decline Aaron Loup’s Option; Robbie Erlin Elects Free Agency
It’s been a busy day transactional day for the Padres, and the team announced two more additional moves to clear space on the 40-man roster. San Diego declined its $2MM club option on left-hander Aaron Loup, instead paying him $200K in a buyout. The club also parted ways with left-hander Robbie Erlin, who cleared waivers and is now a free agent.
Loup came to San Diego on a one-year deal that paid him at least $1.4MM in guaranteed money (the $200K buyout and $1.2MM in salary for 2019). Unfortunately for the veteran southpaw, his season was cut short after only four appearances, as he suffered a left forearm strain that sidelined him for the remainder of the year. Loup also missed about a month in 2018 with a forearm strain, which creates even more durability questions for a pitcher who was a bullpen workhorse for the Blue Jays from 2013-17 (averaging 57 appearances per season). It seems that Loup will almost surely have to settle for a minor league contract as he looks to rebound from his lost 2019.
Erlin will hit the open market after nine years in San Diego’s organization. Long considered a potential staple of the Padres’ rotation, inconsistency and some notable injuries hampered Erlin’s progress. He missed a good deal of 2014 due to elbow problems, and then virtually all of the 2016-17 seasons recovering from Tommy John surgery.
Since returning, he has pitched largely as a reliever and shown some promise, as his 5.37 ERA over 55 1/3 innings in 2019 was underscored by some much stronger ERA predictors (3.61 FIP, 4.14 xFIP, 4.07 SIERA), and could have been inflated by a .373 BABIP. With a fastball that barely cracked the 90mph mark, Erlin isn’t a hard thrower, though his 8.46 K/9 in 2019 represents a new career best.
Erlin only just turned 29, and could draw some free agent interest in his new role as a multi-inning reliever. He is projected to make $2MM this winter, in third and final year of arbitration eligibility.
Marlins To Decline Club Option On Starlin Castro
As expected, the Marlins will decline their $16MM option on infielder Starlin Castro, MLB Network’s Jon Heyman reports (Twitter link). Castro will instead receive a $1MM buyout and head into the free agent market for the first time in his career.
Castro’s eventual departure from Miami has been more or less forecast ever since he was acquired from the Yankees as part of the Giancarlo Stanton blockbuster in December 2017. Castro’s inclusion in the deal was largely due to help balance out the salaries involved in the trade, and the Marlins have spent much of the last two seasons exploring trades for Castro as part of the club’s efforts to pare down payroll and move veteran talent.
Castro didn’t entirely help his trade value by posting a pair of decent but unspectacular seasons in Miami. 2018 saw him hit .278/.329/.400 over 647 PA, with a 101 wRC+ and 102 OPS+ indicating slightly above-average offense and solid glovework upping his value to 2.3 fWAR. He took a step back to 1.3 fWAR and a 91 wRC+/94 OPS+ in 2019 largely due to a horrific opening three months of the season, as Castro hit only .230/.258/.313 over his first 345 plate appearances.
His much improved hitting from July 1 onward will help Castro’s chances in free agency, and he also boosted his versatility by playing third base for the first time in his Major League career, appearing in 45 games at the hot corner last season. Though a ten-year veteran, Castro still doesn’t turn 30 years old until March, making him both younger and with a lot more experience as an everyday performer than several of the other second-tier options on the second base/third base market.
The Marlins will move forward with prospect Isan Diaz penciled into second base, though since Diaz only had a .566 OPS over his first 201 Major League plate appearances, Miami is likely to look for a veteran backup or multi-position player who could step into second base duty if Diaz still needs more minor league seasoning. Re-signing Castro is “not a priority early in free agency,” Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald hears from a source, though the Marlins haven’t totally closed the door on the possibility of a Castro return.
Mason Williams Elects Free Agency
4:45pm: Williams has elected to become a free agent after being outrighted, as per a team announcement.
8:29am: This transaction is still “in the works” at the moment, per Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com (via Twitter), but it appears the result will indeed be an outright assignment of Williams.
6:41am: The Orioles have outrighted outfielder Mason Williams, according to the International League transactions page. That comes in addition to four other recently announced 40-man roster cuts.
Williams turned in a strong 2019 effort at Triple-A, where he slashed .308/.371/.477 (117 wRC+) over 494 plate appearances. The Orioles added him to the big-league roster late in the season, giving him a brief shot at stating his case for a role in 2020. But the 27-year-old didn’t do much damage in an eleven-game stint.
Once a highly regarded prospect, Williams has yet to gain any traction at the game’s highest level. He has appeared in each of the past five campaigns but carries only a .286/.325/.382 slash in 234 trips to the plate. Having previously been outrighted, Williams can elect free agency.
Athletics Exercise Club Option On Yusmeiro Petit; Decline Jake Diekman’s Option
The Athletics made their decisions on two outstanding club options today, announcing that right-hander Yusmeiro Petit‘s club option will be exercised, thus guaranteeing the veteran reliever $5.5MM in 2020. The A’s will decline their end of a mutual option on southpaw Jake Diekman, paying him a $500K buyout rather than a $5.75MM salary next season.
Today’s option decision will turn Petit’s original contract with the A’s from November 2017 into a three-year, $14.5MM commitment, and Oakland’s investment has paid off nicely in the first two years of the deal. Petit has a 2.86 ERA, 7.5 K/9, and 5.25 K/BB rate over 176 relief innings and 154 games in 2018-19, and he led the league with 80 appearances this season. Though Petit turns 35 in November, his pitching style seems built to age well — his excellent control and ability to induce soft contact belies his lack of strikeout ability and somewhat limits issues with the home run ball (1.2 HR/9 over the last two seasons).
Diekman was acquired in a late-July deal from the Royals, and posted a 4.43 ERA over 20 1/3 innings with the A’s that included more than a few nervous moments (Diekman issued 16 walks during his brief time in Oakland). Overall, Diekman had a 4.65 ERA over 62 combined innings for the Royals and A’s, with a 2.15 K/BB rate and 12.2 K/9.
Those numbers are quite similar to Diekman’s statistics from his 2018 season split between the Rangers and Diamondbacks. With back-to-back years of only okay performance, Oakland will decide to move on rather than spend the extra $5.25MM to retain Diekman’s services. Left-handed relief does seem like it will be an offseason priority for the A’s, given that Ryan Buchter is currently the only southpaw reliever on Oakland’s 40-man roster.
Angels Acquire Parker Markel
The Angels announced that right-hander Parker Markel has been acquired from the Pirates in exchange for cash considerations.
The 29-year-old Markel will change teams for the second time in 2019, after first going from the Mariners to the Pirates on a waiver claim back in July. It made for a particularly busy first Major League season for Markel, who posted a 7.77 ERA over 22 combined innings for Seattle and Pittsburgh in his first taste of the Show.
It marked the culmination of a long road to the majors for Markel, who was originally a 39th-round draft pick for the Rays in 2010. His ten-year pro career has included brief stints in independent ball and South Korea’s KBO League, as well as time away from the sport due to anxiety issues. Through it all, Markel has managed some solid minor league stats, with a 3.81 ERA, 2.23 K/BB rate, and 8.0 K/9 over 508 innings, pitching almost exclusively as a reliever since 2014.
He’ll now join an Angels team that is looking for pitching depth. While the Halos have a more glaring need in the rotation than in the bullpen, Markel and his 95.6 mph average fastball velocity could certainly become part of the conversation as the Angels consider their relief options come Spring Training.
Reds Acquire Travis Jankowski
The Reds have acquired outfielder Travis Jankowski from the Padres, as announced on San Diego’s official team Twitter feed. International bonus money will head back to San Diego in return.
2019 was essentially a lost year for Jankowski, who suffered a broken wrist in Spring Training and didn’t start playing until July, turning him into something of an afterthought in a crowded Padres outfield mix. Jankowski ended up appearing in only 25 games and receiving just 24 plate appearances. Given that abbreviated campaign, Jankowski wasn’t expected to receive much of an arbitration raise, as MLBTR’s Matt Swartz projected the outfielder to receive only $1.2MM in his second of four arb years as a Super Two player. (Jankowski earned $1.165MM in 2019.)
It’s a minor enough sum that, despite Jankowski’s struggles last year, he was still an interesting option for a Cincinnati club that is looking to add outfield depth. Jankowski has displayed some solid glovework at all three outfield positions, making him a decent candidate for bench duty or perhaps as the left-handed hitting side of a platoon.
Between the Jankowski trade and other recent transactions, the Padres have now cleared four spots off their 40-man roster. San Diego faces something of a 40-man roster crunch given the number of prospects that have to be protected from the Rule 5 draft, so we could perhaps see even more minor housecleaning moves from the team in the coming days.
Mariners Decline Club Option On Wade LeBlanc
The Mariners won’t be exercising their $5MM club option on left-hander Wade LeBlanc, the team announced. LeBlanc will instead receive a $450K buyout and become a free agent.
LeBlanc will hit the open market almost 16 months after signing something of an unusual extension with the Mariners that paid him $2.45MM in guaranteed money (his $2MM in 2019 salary and the buyout of his option) and contained three different $5MM club/vesting options for the 2020, 2021, and 2022 seasons. The 2020 option would have vested if LeBlanc had finished the year without an arm injury and at least 160 innings pitched in 2019, though he only managed 121 1/2 frames last season, due in large part to an oblique injury that sent him to the IL for a month.
LeBlanc, who turned 35 in August, posted a 5.71 ERA, 2.97 K/BB rate, and 6.8 K/9 for Seattle last season, a notable step back from the solid numbers in his first year in Seattle (that led to the extension). Home runs were a particular problem for LeBlanc, who had a 2.1 HR/9. Eight of LeBlanc’s 26 appearances in 2019 were starts, though he was often utilized as a “bulk pitcher” working after an opener.
Rangers To Decline Club Options On Nate Jones, Shawn Kelley, Welington Castillo
The Rangers are planning to decline their 2020 club options on newly-acquired catcher Welington Castillo and right-handers Nate Jones and Shawn Kelley, The Athletic’s Levi Weaver reports (Twitter link). Castillo will be bought out for $500K rather than his $8MM salary for 2020. Jones will receive a $1.25MM buyout rather than $3.75MM, and Kelley will get $250K in buyout money rather than $2.5MM in 2020.
Both Castillo and Jones came from the White Sox in trades that were ultimately more about the international bonus money that came into the Rangers’ coffers rather than anything the two veteran players brought to the table. Jones underwent right forearm surgery last season and was already on the 60-day injured list at the time of the deadline day trade, never suiting up for Texas in a game. With this much uncertainty surrounding his health, and Jones’ checkered injury history also looming as a big factor, it perhaps isn’t surprising that the Rangers decided to move on and explore less-risky relief options.
As for Kelley, he said in September that he was planning to retire if his option wasn’t picked up, so today’s news could mark the end of the right-hander’s Major League career. Kelley spent time on the IL due to a biceps injury and a bacterial infection last season, and posted a 4.94 ERA, 8.2 K/9, and 3.91 K/BB rate over 47 1/3 innings when healthy. If this is indeed the end, Kelley has enjoyed a very solid career over 11 seasons as a Major League reliever, posting a 3.80 ERA over 464 2/3 IP and banking over $25MM in career earnings.
Rangers Acquire Welington Castillo
The Rangers have acquired catcher Welington Castillo and international draft bonus pool money from the White Sox in exchange for minor league outfielder and corner infielder Jonah McReynolds, as per Rangers executive VP of communications John Blake (Twitter link). Texas has also outrighted left-hander Jesse Biddle and outfielder Zack Granite to Triple-A, with Biddle first being reinstated from the 60-day injured list.
The Rangers will get $250K in international bonus funds, as per Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News (Twitter link), which seems to have been the team’s real incentive for the trade. Texas is expected to decline Castillo’s $8MM club option and instead pay him a $500K buyout.
In essence, the White Sox decided to save that $500K of Major League payroll in favor of giving up $250K in international money. It could be that the Sox also simply decided McReynolds was of more interest to them than any other prospects who might arise on the international market.
Castillo became expendable in Chicago after he hit only .209/.267/.417 over 251 PA in 2019, losing playing time to James McCann in the process. This comes on the heels of a 2018 season that saw Castillo post some respectable numbers (94 OPS+, 96 wRC+) for a catcher over 181 PA, though that year was marred by an 80-game PED suspension.
While the $8MM salary was too rich for the Rangers’ liking, it wouldn’t be a total surprise to see the team have an interest in Castillo at a lower price. While Castillo struggled at the plate last year, his numbers still represent an improvement over what the current Texas catching corps (Jeff Mathis, Jose Trevino, Isiah Kiner-Falefa) produced in 2019. Then again, the Rangers could also choose to stand pat at catcher since they have several other areas to address this winter.
McReynolds, who turns 24 in December, was a 13th-round pick for the Rangers in the 2016 draft. He has a .217/.285/.322 slash line over 637 PA in his first four pro seasons, the last three of which have been spent at low A-ball. He has played all over the diamond as a professional, though spent much of 2019 focused on third base and first base.
Diamondbacks Decline Options On Flores, McFarland; Outright Almonte, Scott
The Diamondbacks announced that they won’t be exercising their club options on either infielder Wilmer Flores or left-hander T.J. McFarland. Flores’ $6MM option will be bought out for $500K, while McFarland will receive a $50K buyout rather than a $1.85MM salary for the 2020 season. In addition to these moves, the D’Backs also announced that outfielder Abraham Almonte and lefty Robby Scott have been outrighted to Triple-A.
Though a right foot contusion cost him almost two months of the season, Flores’ first year in Arizona was a successful one when he was able to take the field. The 28-year-old hit .317/.361/.387 over 285 PA, and while a particular power surge against left-handed pitching led to some significant splits (.337/.367/.615 against lefties, .304/.358/.404 against righties), Flores was still plenty dangerous against all types of pitching.
Flores was primarily used at second base last year, handling the keystone whenever Ketel Marte wasn’t in center field. Given that the D’Backs will again look to move Marte around the diamond next year, retaining Flores for the extra $5.5MM wouldn’t have seemed like an exorbitant choice. Then again, the team might not have expected Flores to duplicate his 2019 performance, given that Flores’ .362 wOBA far outpaced his .329 xwOBA, and he also had some notable batted-ball luck in the form of a .332 BABIP.
It isn’t out of the question that the Diamondbacks could look to re-sign Flores at a lesser price, though one would imagine he’ll get interest from multiple teams looking for a versatile infielder (Flores also saw a lot of action at third base during his time with the Mets) who can crush southpaws.
After posting a 2.00 ERA over 72 frames for Arizona in 2018, McFarland’s bottom-line numbers (4.82 ERA) came back down to earth last year, even though a lot of his peripheral statistics weren’t too dissimilar. The grounder specialist ran into trouble when he did let the ball get into the air last year, as McFarland’s 17.1% home run rate was a career high.