Giants Claim Hanser Alberto, Designate Jake Barrett For Assignment
Infielder Hanser Alberto is on the move once again, as the Orioles announced Friday that he’s been claimed off waivers by the Giants. In a corresponding move, the Giants announced that they’ve designated right-hander Jake Barrett for assignment.
San Francisco will be the fourth organization for Alberto this offseason, as the versatile 26-year-old has gone from the Rangers to the Yankees to the Orioles via the waiver circuit. Baltimore designated him for assignment earlier this week upon claiming lefty Josh Osich off waivers from the Giants. In some respects, the pair of move effectively amounts to a trade of the two assets.
Alberto, who has experience at second base, shortstop and third base, is a .309/.330/.438 hitter in 1000 Triple-A plate appearances. He’s never managed to carry that production over to the MLB level, however, as evidenced by a meek .192/.210/.231 slash through 192 MLB plate appearances (all coming with the Rangers).
Barrett was only acquired by the Giants earlier this month. New president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi has already shown early in his tenure that he’ll carry some of the trends that have been characteristic of the Dodgers over to his new club. Namely, he’s been unafraid to continually shuffle players in and out of the final spot on the Giants’ 40-man roster, regularly claiming players who’ve been designated for assignment only to try to pass them through waivers once again. In the case of outfielder John Andreoli, that worked out nicely, and San Francisco will seemingly hope that a similar situation plays out with Barrett.
The 27-year-old Barrett has a career 4.05 ERA with 8.5 K/9, 4.3 BB/9, 1.35 HR/9 and a 44.2 percent ground-ball rate in 93 1/3 MLB innings — all coming with the Diamondbacks. He’s struggled since turning in an strong rookie season back in 2016, but he did average better than 11 strikeouts per nine innings pitched over 53 1/3 frames in Triple-A last year.
Padres Sign Manny Machado
Feb. 21: The Padres have formally announced the signing and confirmed the terms of the contract (10 years, $300MM). To clear room on the 40-man roster, right-hander Dinelson Lamet was transferred to the 60-day injured list.
Per Heyman, the deal will pay Machado $30MM annually and contain a six-team no-trade clause (Twitter links). Technically, the first season of the deal is paid out in the form of a $10MM salary and a $20MM signing bonus — that latter of which is not subject to the same level of taxation as Machado’s actual salary. Machado will play third base in San Diego.
Feb. 19, 10:20pm: Machado’s deal doesn’t contain any deferred money, USA Today’s Bob Nightengale tweets.
6:23pm: Machado’s deal will contain limited no-trade protection, Passan tweets. The contract should be formally announced Thursday or Friday, he adds.
12:58pm: There are some key elements of the deal still to be worked out, per Jon Heyman of MLB Network (Twitter link). Notably, the sides have yet to hammer out terms on trade protection. That said, it seems the final pieces are not expected to pose an obstacle to the contract’s completion. Machado will receive the $300MM on a fairly evenly spread basis, with the opt-out chance midway through the deal.
11:27am: The Padres have agreed to terms on a free agent contract with star infielder Manny Machado, according to ESPN.com’s Jeff Passan (via Twitter). It’s a ten-year, $300MM deal for the MVP Sports Group client, according to MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand (Twitter link). The contract includes an opt-out after the fifth season, per Tim Brown of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link).
Nothing is formally concluded here, it bears noting. If nothing else, it seems a physical will still need to be completed. Padres chairman Ron Fowler says a deal is not complete, per Dennis Lin of The Athletic (via Twitter), saying the sides are “continuing discussions.” Of course, that hardly means there isn’t an agreement in principle on the key terms.
Certainly, the White Sox believe they’ve lost their primary winter target. VP Kenny Williams expressed shock in comments to reporters. “We could not go to that $300MM level,” he said (via Daryl Van Schouwen of the Chicago Sun-Times, Twitter links). Williams indicated that he had believed the South Siders were the high bidders, and he maintains “there was more potential for him to make more here than that reported deal.” It seems, though, that Machado preferred the greater guaranteed money and other elements of his new deal to the structure proposed by a White Sox organization that had rolled out quite a welcome mat, including the acquisition of Machado’s comrades Yonder Alonso and Jon Jay.
It’s a stunning result for the 26-year-old Machado, whose long-running open-market saga has coincided with that of fellow star Bryce Harper. It took some time, but Machado will still spend the bulk of Spring Training with his new teammates.
Last year, the Friars shocked the baseball world by outbidding the market for first baseman Eric Hosmer. Now, they’ve followed up that move with a much bigger commitment to an even better and younger player.
The move plainly sets the Padres organization on a course to compete in the near-term, though the investment will hopefully coincide with a rather lengthy competitive window. It’s reasonable to wonder, though, whether this move sets the stage for further action this winter. The Padres have a fairly crowded outfield group, a ton of top prospect talent, and clear room to improve the MLB pitching staff. They could consider pursuing the top remaining open-market pitchers (Craig Kimbrel, Dallas Keuchel, Gio Gonzalez) while revisiting trade talks on other starters.
[RELATED: MLBTR Free Agent Tracker]
It’s not hard to see how this signing could have a ripple effect in the market, with the potential for a highly intriguing late-spring reignition of the hot stove. If nothing else, there’s now a clear mark for Harper to try to top, with several teams potentially interested in landing him after missing on Machado.
The 10/300 price is precisely where many anticipated Machado landing at the outset of the market. It sets a free agent record in terms of total guarantee, at least before adjusting for inflation, though falls shy of Giancarlo Stanton‘s extension and may soon be topped by Harper’s own deal.
Despite his excellence to this point of his career, and the promise of many more productive seasons to come, Machado entered the market with some questions. He raised eyebrows with some questionable acts and words during the postseason, leaving many fans — and perhaps some organizational leaders — with the sense that, as he himself put it, he’s “not the type of player that’s going to be ‘Johnny Hustle.'”
Clearly, those oft-cited comments didn’t cost Machado a chance at a massive contract. He also picked up support of several former teammates and coaches, so it’s not as if there weren’t countervailing facts. Clearly, though, the ill-advised words didn’t help his cause. We’ll never know the full extent of the impact, but reduced interest from even a single potential suitor could have changed the way the market took shape. The Yankees never fully engaged despite making sense on paper, while it seems the Phillies passed on a chance to outbid the more budget-conscious Padres, though those and other organizations were surely weighing other factors as well.
In truth, the hustle chatter held such attention in no small part due to Machado’s otherwise mostly impeccable resume. He has topped 6 fWAR in three of the past four seasons, owing to a combination of outstanding glovework and well-rounded offensive production. Despite some knee issues earlier in his career, Machado has played all 162 games in two seasons (2015, 2018) and missed just 11 total contests in the two intervening campaigns.
Over his seven seasons in the majors, Machado carries a .282/.335/.487 batting line with 175 home runs. That perhaps understates his present ability with the bat, though, as Machado has posted 130+ wRC+ campaigns in three of the past four years and has hit between 33 and 37 long balls in all four seasons. He has also successfully honed his plate discipline over the years, setting career-best marks in 2018 with a 9.9% walk rate and 14.7% strikeout rate.
It’s a more interesting question on the defensive side of things. Machado had long graded as an outstanding defender at third base, but drew negative reviews upon shifting back to his native shortstop in 2018. Of course, the numbers reversed somewhat after he landed with the Dodgers in a mid-season trade, perhaps indicating that he still has the potential to handle short at an average or better clip if surrounded by the appropriate analytical resources and adjacent defenders.
Regardless, the plan seems to be for Machado to slide back to the hot corner in San Diego. The club has been searching for a piece there all winter long. Indications are that Luis Urias (with an assist from Greg Garcia) will keep the seat warm at shortstop while uber prospect Fernando Tatis Jr. finishes his development. Urias could ultimately slide back to second, though that position is occupied for the time being by veteran Ian Kinsler. Of course, as noted above, it still seems premature to guess at the overall roster picture, as the Padres could explore a nearly endless variety of complementary moves.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Giants To Sign Fernando Abad
The Giants have reached agreement on a minors deal with lefty Fernando Abad, per Jon Heyman of MLB Network (via Twitter). The deal will not include a MLB camp invite; Abad would earn a $800K salary in the majors.
Abad, 33, had seen big league time in eight-straight seasons before falling short in 2018. He might well have been back in the bigs at some point, but it emerged during camp that he was facing a lengthy PED suspension. Abad was ultimately hit with an 80-game ban that sidelined him for most of the year. He did not sign with a team thereafter.
Over 317 2/3 total innings at the game’s highest level, Abad carries a 3.65 ERA with 7.7 K/9 and 3.2 BB/9. Historically, he has been quite a bit more effective against opposing lefty hitters (.237/.287/.383; 144:31 K/BB) than those who own the platoon advantage (.258/.338/.412; 127:82 K/BB).
If he can force his way into the competition, Abad could join a long list of competitors for pen roles. Beyond a reasonably lengthy slate of existing hurlers with at least some MLB experience, newcomers include Rule 5 pick Travis Bergen, switch-pitcher Pat Venditte, DFA trade acquisitions Jake Barrett and Trevor Gott, and minor-league signees Nick Vincent and Keyvius Sampson. There may not be many open spots up for grabs at the moment, but that could change if the club swings late deals on its best relievers.
Giants Sign Nick Vincent
The Giants have agreed to a contract with right-hander Nick Vincent, Andrew Baggarly of The Athletic tweets. Vincent will join the MLB side of camp, but on a minor-league deal, per Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area (Twitter link).
Vincent, 32, owns a sparkling 3.17 ERA over his 332 total MLB innings, so the track record of outcomes is certainly an appealing one. He ended the 2018 campaign with a personal-worst 3.99 ERA, though, and ended up being non-tendered when the Mariners decided not to pay a projected $3.5MM salary.
Given the outcome of his foray onto the open market, MLB teams aren’t terribly optimistic as to Vincent’s ability to keep up his career earned run average. The signing seems like quite a nice move from the Giants’ perspective, though, as Vincent has not only managed to find success over a long stretch but has been supported (at times, at least) by a closer examination.
Vincent, in fact, is something of a darling of certain ERA estimators, though that’s due more to his earlier-career combination of excellent K/BB rates and low home run tallies. More recently, Vincent has proven less than immune to the long ball. Still, metrics have generally valued him as a useful pitcher — including both last year (3.75 FIP, 4.51 xFIP, 3.72 SIERA) and over his full career to date (3.09 FIP, 3.85 xFIP, 3.27 SIERA).
Statcast, likewise, gives cause for optimism. Vincent has been among the league’s best at limiting exit velocity over the past two seasons. During the Statcast era, opposing hitters have managed only a .283 wOBA against Vincent. And that’s actually just a shade higher than the .279 xwOBA that the computers would have anticipated.
Phillies Sign Trevor Plouffe
The Phillies have announced the signing of third baseman Trevor Plouffe to a minor-league deal. He’ll receive an invitation to Spring Training.
Plouffe had appeared briefly at the major-league level last year with the Phils, marking his ninth-straight season with some action in the majors. He only took a dozen plate appearances, though, marking the first time since his debut season of 2010 that he strode to the MLB plate less than three hundred times in a given campaign.
Once a solid regular with the Twins, Plouffe was non-tendered after an injury-marred 2016 campaign. He struggled badly in the ensuing campaign, leaving him to ink a minors deal last winter. Plouffe ultimately turned in solid power numbers at Triple-A in 2018, slashing .232/.357/.468 with 13 home runs in 291 plate appearances with the Phillies and Rangers organizations.
Now 32, Plouffe will certainly face an uphill task to crack the Phillies roster. But with the club falling short in the bidding on Manny Machado, there could be some opportunity available. Plouffe might conceivably push incumbent third bagger Maikel Franco in camp and could theoretically earn a MLB roster spot or a place on the depth chart at Triple-A.
Phillies, Trevor Plouffe Agree To Minor League Deal
Veteran infielder Trevor Plouffe is returning to the Phillies on a minor league contract, per MLB Network’s Jon Heyman (Twitter link). He’ll report to camp tomorrow, Heyman adds. Plouffe is represented by CAA.
The 32-year-old Plouffe spent the 2018 season in the Philadelphia organization as well, appearing in seven big league games and making 12 plate appearances with three hits (including a memorable walk-off three-run homer in the 16th inning of a marathon game against the Dodgers). The rest of his season was spent with the Phillies’ Triple-A affiliate, where he slashed .230/.347/.460 with a dozen homers and 16 doubles in 274 trips to the plate.
Plouffe was the Twins’ primary third baseman for a significant portion of the team’s downturn earlier this decade, logging 2201 plate appearances from 2012-15 and posting a solid .248/.312/.426 while averaging 18 homers and 29 doubles per season along the way. The right-handed-hitting Plouffe is a better option against lefties, as one might expect. A former first-round pick, Plouffe never found his footing as a shortstop at the MLB level but eventually settled in as a solid defender at third base in his best seasons. He eventually began seeing occasional work at first base, as well.
Plouffe seems like a long shot to make the Phillies’ roster out of Spring Training, given that the team’s two primary corner infielders, Rhys Hoskins and Maikel Franco, both hit right-handed. The organization has a left-handed-hitting corner option on the 40-man roster already (Mitch Walding), and Plouffe’s experience in the outfield is limited. That said, he’s an experienced depth addition to have on hand in the event of injuries at the MLB level, and the team’s trade of Carlos Santana earlier this offseason does create a slightly easier path for him to resurface at the MLB level at some point in 2019.
Indians To Sign Tyler Clippard
The Indians have a deal in place with righty reliever Tyler Clippard, per Jon Heyman of MLB Network (Twitter link). It’s a minor-league pact that would pay him $1.75MM in the majors with up to $1MM in incentives.
Clippard worked plenty of useful frames last year for the Blue Jays, compiling a 3.67 ERA in 68 2/3 innings. That’s well shy of his prime levels, when he was a late-inning stalwart for the Nationals, but still represents a productive campaign.
Interestingly, Clippard has become an even more extreme pitcher than he was in his heyday. The 34-year-old worked at a healthy 14.3% swinging-strike rate and carried 11.1 K/9 against 3.0 BB/9. He also carried a 19.2% groundball rate last year, the lowest rate in all of baseball. Clippard still knows how to get hitters to chase and whiff on his change-up. The question remains what happens with his high heaters.
In each of the past three seasons, more than 12 percent of the balls put in the air against Clippard have ended up leaving the yard, breaking a string of six-straight years with a HR/FB rate of less than ten percent. As a result, Clippard has surrendered 33 dingers over his past 192 innings — a boost in long ball frequency that maps to a reduction in his average four-seam velocity.
On the other hand, Clippard did still bounce back to a well-above-average 16.3% infield fly rate, allowing him to rack up easy outs. When he keeps the ball in the yard, Clippard remains awfully tough to touch. In fact, he allowed earned runs in only five contests last year in which he did not also surrender a home run.
All things considered, it seems like an easy risk for the Indians to take. Clippard wasn’t well-loved by FIP (4.24) and xFIP (4.28) last year, or in the prior few campaigns, but checked in with an appealing 3.42 SIERA number in 2018. He also fared well in the eyes of Statcast, which credited him with a .278 xwOBA (compared with a .309 wOBA). Clippard is also the game’s most durable reliever, easily topping the league in total innings over the past decade.
Minor MLB Transactions: 2/19/19
While the world is abuzz following the largest signing of the offseason earlier today, there are still some minor moves happening throughout the league. We’ll keep track of them here…
- The Pirates have voided their minor league contract with right-hander Roberto Gomez after concerns arose following his physical exam, the team told reporters (Twitter link via the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s Bill Brink). The 29-year-old spent the past two seasons with the Giants organization and tossed 14 2/3 innings at the big league level, though he was roughed up to the tune of a 7.98 ERA in that tiny sample. Gomez, to his credit, notched a much more impressive 14-to-2 K/BB ratio in that time. He also owns a respectable 4.21 ERA with 8.0 K/9 against 3.5 BB/9 in 115 1/3 innings of Triple-A ball — all coming in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League. The exact nature of his injury remains unclear, but he’ll no longer be vying for a job with the Buccos.
- Journeyman infielder Dean Anna, who’d been slated to report to camp with the Twins on a minor league contract, has opted to retire (Twitter link via Betsy Helfand of the St. Paul Pioneer Press). Anna, 32, saw brief MLB action with the Yankees and Cardinals back in 2014-15, though he only ever tallied a total of 26 MLB plate appearances. He’s spent parts of six seasons in Triple-A, where he was a career .280/.372/.377 hitter with experience playing all over the infield (plus a bit of outfield work).
Orioles Claim Josh Osich, Designate Hanser Alberto
The Orioles have claimed lefty Josh Osich off waivers from the Giants, per a club announcement. To open a roster spot, they designated infielder Hanser Alberto for assignment.
Osich gives the O’s yet another lefty relief option. The 30-year-old will try to show that he can tap into his apparent upside. Osich has a big fastball and draws loads of grounders, but has struggled with control and carries a 5.01 ERA in 120 1/3 MLB innings.
As for Alberto, 26, he’ll either land back with the O’s as a non-roster player or move once again through the DFA process. He has turned in solid offensive numbers at the Triple-A level but hasn’t yet carried that over to the majors in limited opportunities.
Brewers Re-Sign Mike Moustakas
The Brewers and free-agent third baseman Mike Moustakas have officially agreed to a one-year agreement. The Boras Corporation client will reportedly earn $10MM on the deal, which includes a $7MM salary in 2019 and $3MM buyout on a $11MM mutual option for 2020.
The 30-year-old Moustakas’ deal with the Brewers means he’ll wrap up a second straight lengthy stay in free-agent limbo. He first reached the open market last offseason and ended up going without a job until early March, when the Royals re-signed him to a contract worth a guaranteed $6.5MM. Kansas City was no doubt hoping to contend at the time, but it ended up as a bottom-feeding team, leading it to send Moustakas to Milwaukee in advance of the July trade deadline. As a Brewer, Moustakas hit .256/.326/.441, right in line with the .249/.309/.468 line he posted as a Royal last year. All told, Moustakas smacked 28 home runs, logged a 105 wRC+ and registered 2.4 fWAR over 635 trips to the plate.
Since his 2011 major league debut with the Royals, Moustakas has almost exclusively played third base, where he has accounted for nine runs saved and a plus-15.1 Ultimate Zone Rating. The hot corner is also the home of slugger Travis Shaw, who bumped over to second for the first time last season on the heels of the Moustakas acquisition. Now, the plan is for Moustakas to get a run at second base this spring, with the organization continuing to rely upon defensive positioning to help shoehorn both power hitters into the same unit. With those two, Jesus Aguilar at first base and Orlando Arcia at shortstop, the Brewers look to have a strong starting infield in place after falling just one win shy of reaching the World Series in 2018.
The Moustakas re-signing is the second major move for Milwaukee since last season ended. The club previously signed catcher Yasmani Grandal to a one-year contract, and with him and Moustakas in the fold for a full year, the Brewers may be serious NL contenders once again. The club finished seventh in the majors in position player fWAR last season despite receiving subpar production at second, where Shaw should take over in the wake of the Moustakas deal, and behind the plate. Of course, it’s up in the air whether the Brewers will be able to survive a second straight year without anything resembling a front-line starter, unless one of their in-house hurlers bursts on the scene.
Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reported the signing. Bob Nightengale of USA Today had the salary, while Mark Feinsand of MLB.com and Bob Nightengale of USA Today added the mutual option details.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.