Rockies Sign Mark Reynolds
5:20pm: The deal comes with a $1MM base salary and another $1MM worth of incentives, MLB Network’s Jon Heyman tweets.
4:53pm: The Rockies and first baseman Mark Reynolds are in agreement on a minor league contract with an invitation to Major League Spring Training, Reynolds himself tells Thomas Harding of MLB.com (Twitter link). The Ballengee Group client previously spent the 2016-17 seasons with the Rox.
Reynolds, 35, has turned in three straight solid efforts at the plate but has not found much in the way of rewards in free agency as teams continue to put less emphasis on bat-first players with limited defensive value. Most recently, he turned in a .248/.328/.476 line with 13 home runs and eight doubles over the life of 235 players in a reserve role with the Nationals in 2018. Overall, he’s batted .269/.349/.472 with 57 home runs in 1269 PAs dating back to 2016.
While he’ll obviously have to earn his way onto the roster, Reynolds will head to camp as a potential right-handed bat off a bench that currently is lacking in terms of established big league pop. Players like Raimel Tapia, Noel Cuevas, Ryan McMahon, Pat Valaika and Mike Tauchman are all on the 40-man roster and will be in the mix for bench gigs.
At least one of Tapia, Cuevas or Tauchman seems likely to make the club as an outfield reserve option behind Charlie Blackmon, David Dahl and Ian Desmond. Either McMahon or Valaika could well factor into the mix at multiple infield spots (assuming Garrett Hampson claims the second base job to begin the season), and the Rox will of course need to roster a backup to catcher Chris Iannetta (either Tony Wolters or the out-of-options Tom Murphy). Reynolds doesn’t offer much in the way of defensive versatility but has more pop than the rest of the bunch and is a known commodity to organizational decision-makers following his previous two-year run in Denver, so it wouldn’t be much of a surprise to see him win a spot on the Opening Day roster.
Minor MLB Transactions: 1/30/19
We’ll use this post to track the day’s minor moves …
- Joining the Pirates on a minor-league contract is right-hander Vicente Campos, according to John Dreker of Pirates Prospects. The contract includes an invitation to MLB camp. Once a rather well-regarded pitching prospect, Campos ran into injury and performance issues just as he was reaching MLB readiness. As things stand, he has just one appearance at the game’s highest level and has thrown only 46 total frames over the past two seasons. Dreker writes, though, that Campos has been clocked in the mid-nineties and found some success this winter in his native Venezuela.
- The Dodgers added outfielder Ezequiel Carrera on a minors deal, per reports. Now 31 years of age, Carrera has seen action in seven MLB seasons and was a frequently-utilized reserve with the Blue Jays from 2016-17. Last year, though, he struggled quite a bit at the Triple-A level with the Braves and Mets organizations and failed to get a look at the majors.
- Outfielder Mike Gerber was outrighted after clearing waivers, per the Giants. He’ll remain under control of the San Francisco organization after being claimed and then designated for assignment earlier in the offseason. The 26-year-old Gerber is only a .224/.286/.428 hitter in 334 Triple-A plate appearances but had posted strong numbers at every other level in the Tigers’ farm system.
Reds Sign Ian Krol
The Reds announced today that they have signed lefty reliever Ian Krol to a minors pact. He’ll receive an invitation to participate in MLB Spring Training as a non-roster player.
Krol, 27, had thrown 188 MLB innings over five seasons heading into the 2018 campaign, pitching to a 4.50 ERA with 8.4 K/9 and 3.5 BB/9. He didn’t receive much of a shot last year, however, ultimately making just one appearance in the majors with the Angels. Krol did work to a 2.72 ERA with 9.4 K/9 and 4.2 BB/9 in 56 1/3 Triple-A frames, split between the Halos and Mets organizations.
Needless to say, Krol will not enter camp as a favorite to secure a big league job this spring, but he will have a chance to show what he can do. Amir Garrett is locked in, but there’s otherwise a fair bit of uncertainty on the left-handed side of the Cincinnati relief corps. Wandy Peralta and Brandon Finnegan each struggled badly last year. Cody Reed showed some promise in a brief stretch as a reliever but could be stretched out as a starter, perhaps leaving the door open for Krol or fellow minor-league signee Buddy Boshers to snag an opportunity with an impressive effort in camp.
Marlins Sign Neil Walker
7:12pm: Walker will receive a $2MM salary on the contract, tweets Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic. Walker’s primary role will be platooning with Peter O’Brien at first base, president of baseball ops Mike Hill told reporters (Twitter link via Wells Dusenbery of the South Florida Sun Sentinel, but he’ll also see action at second base and third base from time to time.
5:02pm: The Marlins announced Tuesday that they’ve signed free-agent infielder Neil Walker to a one-year contract. Miami has reportedly been seeking a left-handed bat, and the switch-hitting Walker can offer additional flexibility both at the plate and in the field. It stands to reason that Walker, 33, could be slotted in at multiple infield positions or even in the corner outfield after seeing time all over the diamond in a utility role with the Yankees in 2018. He’s represented by Excel Sports Management.
Walker’s overall .219/.309/.354 slash from last season certainly doesn’t look appealing, though the veteran posted a more palatable .235/.335/.403 slash from May 1 through season’s and enjoyed a generally solid second half (.247/.346/.442). Much of his 2018 struggles were confined to a disastrous showing through the end of April (.402 OPS), and while there’s no direct evidence of causation, it’s worth noting that Walker didn’t sign with the Yankees until March 12 last year.
Walker was one of many free agents to sign after Spring Training was well underway, and it’s perhaps telling that a number of those players struggled through awful starts to the 2018 season. Lance Lynn, Logan Morrison, Alex Cobb, Greg Holland and Jonathan Lucroy were among the March signees who had underwhelming 2018 seasons — particularly early in the year.
This time around, Walker will look to rebound with the benefit of a full spring workload to ramp up for what will be his 11th Major League season. Last year’s struggles aside, Walker was one of the game’s more consistent hitters from 2010-17, as I outlined in depth at the time. If he’s able to get back to those previous levels, the Marlins will find themselves with a bargain on their hands and, quite likely, a summer trade chip.
While adding Walker makes plenty of sense for Miami, it’s nevertheless confounding that the organization elected to move on from Derek Dietrich only to sign a 33-year-old player with a similar skill set. Granted, Walker is a switch-hitter, but he’s not a massive defensive upgrade over Dietrich and for all his past success, is still four years older. The financial savings figure to be minimal, as well, as Dietrich had been projected to earn a rather modest $4.8MM salary. It’s likely that Walker’s salary will check in lower than that, of course, but going from Dietrich to Walker still seems like somewhat of a lateral move.
Rangers Designate John Andreoli For Assignment
The Rangers announced that they’ve designated outfielder John Andreoli for assignment in order to open a spot on the 40-man roster for right-hander Shawn Kelley, whose one-year deal with the team is now official. Texas had claimed the 28-year-old Andreoli off waivers just two weeks ago.
Andreoli split the 2018 season between the Orioles and the Mariners, posting a combined .230/.284/.262 slash in a tiny sample of 67 plate appearances. He has a strong track record of getting on base in the upper minors, as evidenced by his .264/.371/.408 batting line in nearly 2000 Triple-A plate appearances, and he’s knocked 34 homers, 83 doubles and 26 triples in that time while also collecting 121 steals.
This past season in Triple-A was one of his best, as Andreoli got on base at a robust .397 clip in 388 PAs with the Seattle organization. He has experience playing all three outfield positions and has minor league options remaining, although this is also the fourth time he’s lost a 40-man roster spot since mid-August.
Rangers Sign Shawn Kelley
Jan. 29: The Rangers have formally announced the signing. Heyman tweets that Kelley will earn an extra $62,500 for reaching his 50th, 55th, 60th and 65th appearance in both seasons of the contract. It’s worth pointing out that Kelley has only appeared in 60 games once in his career, so the top end of those incentives could be difficult to achieve.
Jan. 28, 5:55pm: The two sides are in agreement on a one-year contract with a club option for a second season, reports ESPN’s Jeff Passan (Twitter links). MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand tweets that Kelley will earn $2.5MM in 2019, and his 2020 option is also for $2.5MM with a $250K buyout. As such, his total guarantee will be $2.75MM. There are incentives packages in each season that can boost his annual salary to $3MM, and Kelley has already passed his physical, Feinsand adds.
5:49pm: The Rangers are closing in on a contract with free-agent right-hander Shawn Kelley, reports MLB Network’s Jon Heyman (via Twitter). Kelley was said late last week to be choosing among three potential suitors as he neared a decision. The veteran reliever is represented by Frye McCann Sports.
Kelley, 35 in April, just wrapped up a three-year, $15MM deal originally signed with the Nationals (though he finished it out in Oakland). In the final season of that pact, Kelley posted a 2.94 ERA with 9.2 K/9, 2.0 BB/9, 1.29 HR/9 and a 30.2 percent grounder rate in 49 innings — his third sub-3.00 ERA in the past four seasons. The interim season was an ugly one, as Kelley limped to a 7.27 ERA in 26 innings as part of a season in which he was hampered by a lower back strain, a trapezius strain and eventually bone chips in his right elbow — each of which sent him to the disabled list.
Texas hasn’t made much in the way of large-scale splashes this offseason, with Lance Lynn‘s three-year, $30MM contract and the trade of Jurickson Profar to Oakland standing out as the largest moves to date for president of baseball operations Jon Daniels. However, the Rangers have steadily added a bevy of affordable veteran arms on short-term commitments, with Kelley joining a list that also includes Shelby Miller (one year, $2MM), Drew Smyly (acquired in a trade with the Cubs), Jesse Chavez (two years, $8MM) and Zach McAllister (one year, $1MM). Texas also picked up veteran infielder Asdrubal Cabrera on a one-year pact to help offset the departure of Profar. It’s unlikely that all of those moves will pan out, but the bulk nature of value additions should yield some smaller-scale trade assets for Daniels & Co. this summer.
Kelley will now join Chavez and McAllister as somewhat new additions — Chavez was with the Rangers on a one-year deal last season before being traded to the Cubs, so he’s not all that new to the organization — who will hope to comprise a setup core for electric young reliever Jose Leclerc. Durability will be the chief concern for Kelley, who has never reached 60 innings in a Major League season, but he’s generally been a quality bullpen piece when healthy enough to take the hill.
Marlins Designate Nick Wittgren For Assignment
The Marlins announced that they’ve designated right-hander Nick Wittgren for assignment. His roster spot will go to veteran infielder Neil Walker, who signed a one-year contract with Miami this evening.
It registers as at least a moderate surprise to see Wittgren cut loose, as the right-hander pitched to a 2.94 ERA with 8.3 K/9, 4.0 BB/9, 0.27 HR/9 and a career-best 46 percent ground-ball rate in 33 2/3 innings with Miami this past season. However, Wittgren isn’t likely to repeat the success he had in limiting homers last season (one allowed; 2.7 percent homer-to-fly ball ratio), and the four walks he averaged on a per-nine-inning basis was the highest mark of his career.
Last year was a roller coaster for Wittgren. He allowed just one earned run through his first 15 2/3 inning, posting a 17-to-7 K/BB ratio along the way before being absolutely destroyed over the next month. Wittgren missed a bit of time with a finger injury along the way and was ultimately torched for eight runs on 14 hits and six walks through just 6 2/3 innings before being optioned to Triple-A. He returned as a September call-up, though, and posted a brilliant 1.59 ERA (two runs in 11 1/3 innings) with an 11-to-2 K/BB ratio.
All of that said, Wittgren is a 27-year-old righty (28 in late May) with a career 3.60 ERA, 8.2 K/9 and 2.7 BB/9 in 127 2/3 of big league relief. He also has a minor league option remaining, which could boost his appeal should the Marlins look to find a trade partner. Wittgren did miss some time in 2017 due to an elbow strain, but he avoided elbow troubles in 2018. His 92.1 mph average fastball in 2018 falls right in line with his 92.2 mph career mark, though he relies heavily on that offering and doesn’t generate much spin on it.
Red Sox To Sign Jenrry Mejia
The Red Sox have inked a minor-league deal with former MLB reliever Jenrry Mejia, according to Jon Heyman of Fancred (Twitter link). He’ll head to Spring Training (though not MLB camp, Heyman notes) in search of a comeback from a lengthy absence — one that was occasioned by his own incredibly poor decisionmaking. The contract would pay him $625K in the Majors, USA Today’s Bob Nightengale tweets.
Mejia, of course, was once a key late-inning reliever for the Mets. That all changed when he was mind-numbingly popped for PED-related violations on three occasions, leading to a lifetime ban. While commissioner Rob Manfred ultimately lifted that prohibition, Mejia is now long removed from his big league career. The 29-year-old last appeared on the MLB mound in the middle of the 2015 season.
Before he cost himself a major chunk of his prime, Mejia had shown some interesting abilities on the bump. After failing to exhibit quite enough as a starter to earn a full chance in the New York rotation, he slid comfortably into the team’s bullpen in 2014. Over 56 1/3 relief innings that year, he worked to a 2.72 ERA with a 60:21 K/BB ratio. Mejia ultimately took the closer’s job, locking down 28 games.
Just what’s left in the tank isn’t known, but the Red Sox will take a shot on the talent of the enigmatic right-hander. That the defending World Series champs have now added Mejia while otherwise waiting out the relief market is sure to draw some curious glances, from both fans who’d like to see more additions and from those on the players side that believe teams need to be spending more money. Obviously, this sort of move will not itself preclude the Boston powerhouse from making further acquisitions, but the timing certainly creates some interesting juxtapositions.
Blue Jays Sign Freddy Galvis
The Blue Jays announced today that they have signed veteran infielder Freddy Galvis. It’s a one-year deal that includes a club option for 2020.
Galvis receives a $5MM guarantee, per MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand (via Twitter). That includes a $4MM salary for the coming season and $1MM buyout on a 2020 option that can instead be exercised at $5.5MM. Righty Danny Barnes was designated for assignment to create 40-man roster space.
Galvis, 29, has logged a ton of innings at shortstop over the past several seasons for second-division clubs. In fact, he appeared in all 162 games in 2017 with the Phillies and in 2018 with the Padres. He was rumored to be a target of the Pirates after talks for a return to San Diego seemingly fizzled earlier in the offseason.
As it turns out, Galvis will join a Toronto club that doesn’t seem to have much hope of contention but is interested in bolstering its infield situation. It remains to be seen whether he’ll be given an everyday role at short or will instead share time there with Lourdes Gurriel Jr. while also moving around the field.
The 2018 season turned out to be Galvis’s most productive overall effort at the plate, with his .248/.299/.380 slash and 13 long balls translating to a personal-high 85 wRC+. That’s still not much offense, obviously, but it’s a tick above his lifetime output (.246/.290/.374).
How to explain the fact that Galvis has been a steady regular for the past four seasons? Beyond the fact that he’s obviously a respected and dedicated professional, with the benefit of being a switch-hitter with both pop and speed, glovework obviously represents the carrying tool here.
Galvis is quite sure-handed, having been charged with just 24 total errors over the past three campaigns. Metrics are not unanimous on Galvis’s abilities at short, but generally reflect a positive view of his glovework. Oddly, he started out as a Ultimate Zone Rating darling who wasn’t as well-loved by Defensive Runs Saved, but the two systems flipped on him last year (-3.8 UZR, +7 DRS).
While he’s primarily a shortstop now, it probably doesn’t hurt that Galvis has a good bit of experience elsewhere as well. Previously, he has spent time at second base, third base, and left field (along with a one-game stint in center).
As for Barnes, the 29-year-old righty had a strong 2017 showing in Toronto, working to a 3.55 ERA with 8.5 K/9 and 3.3 B/9 through 66 innings of relief. His extreme proneness to fly-balls, penchant for surrendering homers and an unsustainable 81.6 percent strand rate made him a clear regression candidate, though, and that proved to be the case. Barnes was clobbered for a 5.71 ERA with 8.4 K/9 against 4.8 BB/9 in 41 innings this past season.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Dodgers Sign A.J. Pollock
JANUARY 29: Bob Nightengale of USA Today has further details on the contract (Twitter links).
Pollock receives a $12MM signing bonus followed by salaries of $1MM, $12MM, $15MM, and $10MM. That sums up to $50MM over four years.
The 2023 player option can escalate up to $15MM if he takes 600 plate appearances in the season prior and can move all the way to $20MM based upon the 2022 MVP voting.
Pollock could alternatively opt out after the third campaign — and keep his $5MM buyout — if he reaches one thousand total plate appearances in 2020 and 2021 or if he tallies 1,450 from 2019 through 2021.
The deal also includes a $1.5MM assignment bonus, per Jon Heyman of Fancred (via Twitter).
JANUARY 26: The Dodgers added a big piece to their new-look outfield by officially signing free agent outfielder A.J. Pollock, to a four-year contract. The Excel Sports Management client receives a $60MM guarantee.
Pollock stands to pick up an opt-out opportunity after the 2021 season if he reaches plate-appearance thresholds. If he stays past that point, the deal will pay him $50MM over its four promised campaigns. There’s also a player option for a fifth season. Pollock will choose between a $10MM salary (which can also escalate further) and a $5MM buyout for the 2023 campaign.
Pollock hit .257/.316/.484 with 21 homers and 61 runs scored over 460 plate appearances with the Diamondbacks last season. Between these numbers at the plate and a solid defensive showing (+6 Defensive Runs Saved, though a -1.6 UZR/150 for his first negative UZR/150 total in six years), it was a decent platform year for Pollock as he entered the free agent market, despite downward trends in his swinging strike and contract rates.
The biggest issue, however, was that Pollock had another lengthy stint on the disabled list, missing roughly six weeks due to a fractured thumb. This makes it four out of five seasons that Pollock has missed significant time, with a laundry list of injuries (fractured thumb, broken hand, groin strain, and a fractured elbow that sidelined him for much of 2016). It was during his one healthy season, 2015, that Pollock exhibited his high ceiling, hitting .315/.367/.498 over 673 PA, while also racking up 20 homers, 39 steals, a Gold Glove, and his lone All-Star appearance.
With this injury history in mind, perhaps it isn’t surprising that Pollock wasn’t able to land the $80MM contract he reportedly sought at the start of the offseason, despite a solid amount of interest from the Reds, Mets, Braves, and Astros at various points this winter. MLB Trade Rumors projected Pollock to land a four-year, $60MM contract in our Top 50 Free Agents rankings, with Pollock ranked eighth in the Top 50 list.
Pollock was linked to the Dodgers earlier this week, and his signing helps solidify a Dodgers outfield that already underwent one shakeup when Yasiel Puig and Matt Kemp were traded to the Reds. While Pollock could end up seeing time as a corner outfielder depending on how the Dodgers shuffle their versatile lineup, the expectation is that Pollock will spend the large majority of his time in his usual center field position, flanked by some combination of Chris Taylor, Max Muncy, Cody Bellinger, Enrique Hernandez, Joc Pederson, Andrew Toles, and/or top prospect Alex Verdugo in left and right field. Perhaps more importantly than just his position, Pollock also gives the Dodgers an everyday right-handed bat to help balance out their lefty-heavy lineup.
Perhaps just as notably, adding Pollock would seem to put to rest any chance of Bryce Harper landing in the Los Angeles outfield. The Dodgers were long seen as potential suitors for Harper, particularly after they cleared some extra payroll space in the Puig/Kemp trade. Adding approximately $12MM in average annual value on Pollock’s reported contract terms, however, would keep L.A. slightly under the $206MM Competitive Balance Tax threshold, as per Roster Resource’s calculations of the Dodgers’ salary commitments.
This doesn’t mean the Dodgers ultimately won’t end up crossing the luxury tax line this winter, depending on what other moves could still be in the offing. (For instance, Nightengale reports that the team is in “intensive ongoing talks” with the Marlins about J.T. Realmuto.) Given the Dodgers’ reported reluctance to again cross the CBT line, however, they could only surpass the $206MM threshold by a minimal amount. Spending between $206MM and $226MM would subject the Dodgers to only a first-timer penalty of a 20% tax on every dollar spent in overage, so it could be that $226MM is the real barrier for the team this offseason, and they could then duck back under the $206MM line next offseason once some big contracts come off the books.
Since Pollock rejected the Diamondbacks’ qualifying offer and signed a deal for more than $50MM, Arizona will receive a compensatory draft pick that will fall after the first round of next summer’s draft. The D’Backs have already received such a compensation pick when Patrick Corbin signed with the Nationals, giving Arizona a whopping six picks in the first 79 (or so, depending on what other compensatory picks are awarded) selections in the draft.
For signing a qualifying offer free agent, the Dodgers give up $500K from their international draft bonus pool, as well as their second-highest selection in the 2019 draft. That pick will be the 31st overall selection, which the Dodgers received as compensation for failing to sign 2018 draft pick J.T. Ginn.
The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal was the first to report (via Twitter) on an agreement between the two sides, with USA Today’s Bob Nightengale reporting the four-year contract length and Fancred Sports’ Jon Heyman (Twitter link) noting the deal was worth at least $55MM. ESPN.com’s Buster Olney (Twitter link) had the specifics on Pollock’s contract breakdown and the player option details.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images