Outrighted: Twins, Phillies, Rays, Cardinals, Padres, Dodgers, Pirates
A variety of teams cleared 40-man space today. Some of the moves are reflected elsewhere on the site, but we’ll round up the others right here:
- The Twins have outrighted catcher Chris Gimenez and left Ryan O’Rourke, as MLB.com’ Rhett Bollinger tweets. Gimenez could have been retained for a projected $1MM arbitration salary, but Minnesota elected not to commit that much cash (and a roster spot) despite Gimenez’s 225 plate appearances of roughly league-average hitting in 2017. He tells Mike Berardino of the St. Paul Pioneer that he’ll likely elect to return to the open market, but would be open to a return (links to Twitter). As for O’Rourke, he was said to be exploring ways of hastening his return from Tommy John surgery, but Minnesota isn’t willing to gamble on the lefty’s recovery at this time.
- Infielder Pedro Florimon and righty Jesen Therrien are now free agents after being outrighted off of the Phillies 40-man, per a club announcement. The 30-year-old Florimon has made his way onto a major league roster in each of the past seven seasons, compiling a .209/.269/.308 slash in 791 plate appearances but providing enough with the glove to keep earning return trips. The 24-year-old Therrien was knocked around in 15 relief appearances for the Phils this year, but did turn in 57 1/3 frames of 1.41 ERA ball (with 10.2 K/9 and 1.4 BB/9) during his time in the upper minors.
- The Rays outrighted catcher Curt Casali, outfielder Cesar Puello, and righty Shawn Tolleson, as Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times tweets. Casali played a bigger role on the 2016 MLB outfit and posted only a .698 OPS at Triple-A. The 26-year-old Puello has bounced around of late and struggled in a brief go at the bigs, but did manage a productive .327/.377/.526 slash in 379 plate appearances at the highest level of the minors (none of which came with a Tampa Bay affiliate). Tolleson required Tommy John surgery in May, so he’ll likely be looking for an organization to rehab with.
- Departing the Cardinals‘ 40-man were infielder Alex Mejia and catcher Alberto Rosario, according to MLB.com’s Jenifer Langosch (via Twitter). Mejia struggled mightily in the bigs as a 26-year-old rookie, but slashed .291/.341/.413 in his 475 plate appearances in the upper minors. As for Rosario, who is thirty years of age, there just hasn’t been much opportunity for time behind the MLB plate.
- Backstop Hector Sanchez and righty Tim Melville took free agency from the Padres after clearing outright waivers, per AJ Cassavell of MLB.com (Twitter link). Sanchez, a 28-year-old switch-hitter who has seen action in each of the past seven MLB seasons, will surely be targeted as a depth acquisition by other organizations. Melville, who’s also 28, worked to a 2.95 ERA with 8.5 K/9 and 3.9 BB/9 in 76 1/3 Triple-A innings — his best results in the minors — but was bombed in brief MLB time.
- The Dodgers outrighted first baseman/outfielder O’Koyea Dickson, as J.P. Hoornstra of the Southern California News Group tweets. Dickson, 27, briefly touched the majors in 2017 but spent the bulk of his time at Triple-A for the third-straight season. After putting up big numbers there in 2016, Dickson managed a career-best 24 home runs over 458 plate appearances in his most recent campaign, but slipped to a .328 on-base percentage.
- Finally, the Pirates outrighted lefty Dan Runzler, MLB.com’s Adam Berry reports on Twitter. He’ll head back to free agency after refusing an assignment. Runzler, 32, made it back to the majors after a four-year absence, but only saw four innings in eight appearances. He pitched to a 3.05 ERA in 41 1/3 Triple-A innings, managing only 7.8 K/9 against 4.8 BB/9 but also generating typically strong groundball numbers.
Giants Exercise Club Options Over Bumgarner, Moore, Sandoval
As expected, the Giants have exercised club options over left-handed starters Madison Bumgarner and Matt Moore, as Andrew Baggarly of the Mercury News reports. San Francisco will also retain veteran third baseman Pablo Sandoval — a move that resulted from fairly unique circumstances.
There isn’t much cause to belabor the decisions on Bumgarner and Moore. Both had trying seasons, but were easy calls to retain at their respective salaries of $12MM and $9MM. That’s all the more true since each can be retained for similar rates ($12MM and $10MM) for 2019.
The 28-year-old Bumgarner missed about half the season after suffering a rotator cuff tear, but still posted a typically excellent 3.32 ERA with 8.2 K/9 against 1.6 BB/9. He will look to return to his place among the game’s very best pitchers in 2018. Moore scuffled to a 5.52 ERA, but the 28-year-old has had quite a bit more success in the past and at worst ought to provide innings at a palatable rate of pay.
In the case of Sandoval, the key factor remains the ongoing obligations borne by the Red Sox, who’ll pay the lion’s share of the $18MM owed Sandoval over each of the next two seasons (along with a $5MM buyout on a 2020 option). San Francisco will only be on the hook for the league-minimum salary, which is the least they’d have to commit to anyone occupying a roster spot regardless.
Sandoval returned to San Francisco after two and a half years of dreadful production in Boston. But the move back west did not spur a rebound; to the contrary, Sandoval batted just .225/.263/.375 in his 171 plate appearances. That said, the move hardly signals that the Giants are committed to putting Sandoval back in his former role as the regular third baseman. Instead, the team is likely to pursue upgrades there while considering Sandoval for a bench role.
Cubs Claim Cory Mazzoni, Outright Leonys Martin
The Cubs have announced a series of roster moves as teams around the league continue to trim rosters. Chicago claimed righty Cory Mazzoni off waivers from the Padres, adding a new name to the 40-man. Leaving the MLB roster is outfielder Leonys Martin; he’ll be replaced by righty Matt Carasiti, whose contract was selected.
Mazzoni, a former second-round draft pick who recently turned 28, has been shelled in minimal MLB time. But he put up some exciting numbers at Triple-A, allowing just two earned runs in 20 1/3 innings while racking up 31 strikeouts against just three walks. Despite those eyebrow-raising tallies, Mazzoni made it through much of the rest of the league on the wire.
As for Martin, he will have the right to elect free agency and seems likely to take it. He was a surprising mid-season acquisition for the Cubs after falling out of favor with the Mariners. Martin posted anemic offensive numbers all year long but still found himself onto the Cubs’ postseason roster. Given his well-regarded defense and baserunning, along with a history that includes some stretches of passable hitting, there ought to be a fair bit of interest in Martin, who is just 29 years of age.
Cardinals To Issue Qualifying Offer To Lance Lynn
The Cardinals will issue a qualifying offer to righty Lance Lynn, MLB.com’s Jenifer Langosch reports on Twitter. He’ll have ten days to weigh the $17.4MM offer.
Expectations long have been that Lynn would receive a QO from the Cards — and that he’d ultimately reject it. We’ll have to wait a while to learn his decision, but given his apparent expectations in free agency it seems all but a foregone conclusion that he’ll choose to hit the open market.
Lynn’s decision is eased by the new rules governing the qualifying offer. Teams weighing a signing won’t need to worry about punting a first-round pick, as would have been the case in prior years. The hope and expectation is that the rule change will tamp down on the market difficulties faced by some non-star veterans in the past.
As we discussed in our ranking of the top fifty free agents, Lynn figures to land one of the ten largest contracts of the winter. But our prediction (four years and $56MM) probably seems light if you focus on the positives — namely, a shiny 3.38 career ERA over 977 2/3 innings. That reflects some concerns about the sustainability of that output as Lynn enters his thirties.
Cardinals Release Trevor Rosenthal
The Cardinals have granted right-hander Trevor Rosenthal his unconditional release, per MLB.com’s Jenifer Langosch (on Twitter). Rosenthal was eligible for arbitration this offseason but underwent Tommy John surgery this summer and is likely to miss the majority, if not all of the 2018 season as a result.
The 27-year-old Rosenthal went under the knife late in August, making it unlikely that he’ll be able to contribute next season. Even in the unlikely event that Rosenthal had made it back for the tail end of the 2018 season, MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz had projected a $7.9MM salary, which would be far more than any club would be willing to pay given the amount of the season he’ll miss.
Rosenthal and agent Scott Boras will have to weigh multiple options this winter in free agency. When faced with a similar situation, Boras and client Greg Holland opted not to sign at all in the 2015-16 offseason, instead waiting until Holland was completely healed in the 2016-17 offseason and signing a one-year deal with a player option. That route certainly comes with more earning power, though all players have different preferences.
Alternatively, Rosenthal may well wish to find the security that someone like Nathan Eovaldi received last offseason, signing a one-year MLB deal with the Rays that contained a cheap club option for the 2018 campaign. While Eovaldi will “only” earn about $4MM over the 2017-18 seasons, he’s now had a full year to familiarize himself with his new organization and locked in some guaranteed money in the process.
Rosenthal could go either route, though the Holland route leaves him exposed to the possibility of lingering complications from his surgery ultimately preventing him from coming away from the ordeal with any guaranteed money. Regardless, interest in Rosenthal this winter should be robust, as teams look to buy low on the possibility of adding a high-caliber arm to their bullpen for the 2019 campaign once he has (hopefully) recovered from the ligament replacement procedure.
Blue Jays Claim Taylor Guerrieri From Rays, Outright Four Players
The Blue Jays announced on Monday that they’ve claimed right-hander Taylor Guerrieri off waivers from the Rays. Additionally, Toronto announced that catcher Rafael Lopez and right-handers Leonel Campos, Luis Santos and Taylor Cole have been outrighted off the 40-man roster after clearing waivers.
Arm troubles have persistently slowed the career of Guerrieri, a former first-round pick (No. 24 overall, 2011) that from 2012-14 was a consensus top 100 prospect in all of baseball. Guerrieri had Tommy John surgery back in 2013, which limited him to 9 1/3 frames the following season. He slowly built back up over the next two seasons, topping out at a career-high 146 1/3 innings at the Double-A level in 2016. However, further elbow complications limited Guerrieri to that exact same mark of 9 1/3 innings once again in 2017, though he didn’t require surgery this time around. Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times tweets that Guerrieri is believed to be healthy and ready for Spring Training 2018.
Santos (27 in February) and Campos (30) made a handful of appearances each in Toronto this past season, totaling 31 1/3 innings between the two of them. While Santos posted a solid-looking 2.70 ERA in his 16 2/3 frames, he also walked four and served up four home runs in that time. He turned in a 4.07 ERA in 108 1/3 Triple-A innings, mostly as a starter. Campos, meanwhile, showed promising strikeout numbers but shakier control both in the Majors and minors — a common trend throughout his career.
Cole, 28, saw more limited action yet, missing most of the minor league season with an injury before going on a 12 2/3-inning scoreless streak and earning a late look in the Majors. He was hit hard in his lone MLB appearance and suffered a fractured toe after one inning, which cut short his chances of further auditioning.
Lopez, meanwhile, had a great season in Triple-A, hitting .293/.368/.551 in 223 plate appearances. The 30-year-old saw just 63 PAs with the Blue Jays late in the season, though, and has never established himself in the Majors to this point in his career (nor has he demonstrated the level of offensive prowess he did at Buffalo this season).
Pirates Claim Nik Turley From Twins
The Pirates announced on Monday that they’ve claimed left-hander Nik Turley off waivers from the Twins.
The 28-year-old Turley made his big league debut with the Twins this past season on the heels of excellent work in Triple-A, though he didn’t fare well in Minneapolis. Turley was rocked for 22 runs on 30 hits and eight walks with 13 strikeouts in 17 2/3 frames as a big leaguer, resulting in an 11.21 ERA. However, he tore through Double-A and Triple-A, pitching to a 2.02 ERA with 12.1 K/9 against 2.8 BB/9 in 92 innings (most of which was spent at the Triple-A level).
Turley becomes the third player the Twins have lost to waivers in the past week. Fellow left-hander Randy Rosario was claimed by the Cubs on Friday, while outfield prospect Daniel Palka was claimed by the White Sox a couple of days later.
Dodgers To Exercise Club Option On Logan Forsythe
The Dodgers will exercise their $8.5MM club option over second baseman/third baseman Logan Forsythe, tweets SB Nation’s Chris Cotillo. Los Angeles had until 5pm ET today to decided between that sum and a $1MM buyout for the 30-year-old Forsythe.
Forsythe didn’t have the season that the Dodgers envisioned when acquiring him from the Rays in exchange for touted pitching prospect Jose De Leon (though De Leon himself missed most of the season due to injury). In 439 plate appearances, Forsythe batted just .239/.351/.327 with six homers and 19 doubles — a far cry from the .273/.347/.444 slash he posted with the 2015-16 Rays. He did, however, hit left-handed pitching at a robust .290/.418/.452 clip in 153 plate appearances and turn in strong defensive work.
Though he was primarily a second baseman with the Rays, Forsythe was used in a larger variety of roles with the Dodgers. In addition to 587 frames at second base (where he graded out at +5 Defensive Runs Saved and a +3.2 Ultimate Zone Rating), Forsythe saw 301 innings at third base (+4 DRS, +3.4 UZR) and also made brief appearances at shortstop, first base and in the outfield corners. At the very least, he can serve as a versatile multi-position asset for the Dodgers in 2018, though his lack of a defined starting role could lead the Dodgers to also explore trades this offseason.
Welington Castillo To Decline Player Option
Orioles catcher Welington Castillo will decline a one-year, $7MM player option and re-enter the free-agent market in search of a larger multi-year contract, tweets FanRag’s Jon Heyman. The decision has seemed likely for quite some time now given the strength of Castillo’s 2017 season in Baltimore. He’ll hit the open market as one of the top catchers available, along with Alex Avila and Jonathan Lucroy.
Castillo, 31 next April, had a career year at the plate in what looks like it will be his only season in Baltimore. Through 365 plate appearances, the slugger batted .282/.323/.490 with a career-best 20 homers. He was limited to 96 games in large part due to a testicular injury that was suffered when a ball was fouled into his groin. Castillo was sidelined for about three weeks and got off to a slow start upon returning before he closed out the year with a blistering finish. (He also missed 10 days early in the season with a minor bout of shoulder tendinitis.)
Defense has long been a knock on Castillo, but his 2017 work behind the plate showed legitimate signs of improvement as well. Castillo caught a whopping 49 percent of runners that attempted to steal against the Orioles’ pitching staff, and his oft-panned pitch-framing skills finished at a roughly league-average level, per Baseball Prospectus.
While it’s certainly possible that the O’s could kick the tires on a reunion with Castillo, the team has top prospect Chance Sisco all but ready to take over a prominent big league role in 2018. He’ll presumably pair with backup Caleb Joseph to form the Orioles’ primary catching duo in 2018 and beyond, though 26-year-old Austin Wynns is also an option to see some time behind the dish of Sisco proves to be in need of additional development.
Moving on from Castillo and going with an affordable combination of Sisco, Joseph and/or Wynns will allow the Orioles to dedicate more of their offseason resources to the starting rotation, which is clearly the organization’s top overall need.
Indians Reportedly Decline Option On Boone Logan
The Indians have declined their $7MM club option on left-handed reliever Boone Logan, tweets Tom Withers of the Associated Press. The 33-year-old Logan will receive a $1MM buyout, bringing his total earnings with Cleveland to $6.5MM.
Logan spent much of the 2016-17 offseason in search of a multi-year deal before ultimately signing a one-year pact with a club option in early February. The contract, at the time, was viewed as a coup for a Cleveland organization that lacked another established lefty reliever to pair with Andrew Miller in the ‘pen. Logan’s 2016 season with the Rockies featured 46 1/3 innings of 3.69 ERA ball, 11.1 K/9, 3.9 BB/9 and a 49.5 percent ground-ball rate. Lefties batted just .139/.222/.255 against him in ’16.
His 2017 season in Cleveland, however, was considerably less successful. Logan’s season was cut in half by a strained lat muscle in mid-July, and in the end his lone year with the Indians resulted in a 4.71 earned run average in just 21 innings of work. On the plus side for Logan, his strikeout, walk, home-run and ground-ball rates all remained virtually identical. Logan actually allowed hard contact at a lower rate in 2017 and didn’t see any appreciable decline in his velocity. Rather, he was plagued by a massive spike in his BABIP (.353), which can be more reasonably expected to take a step back in 2018 and beyond.
Cleveland, though, has a tight payroll that now has even less wiggle room after the club elected to exercise its $12MM option over outfielder Michael Brantley. That Tyler Olson has emerged as an excellent left-handed complement to Miller in manager Terry Francona’s bullpen only makes the decision to walk away from Logan an easier one.
As for Logan, he’ll likely draw plenty of interest and could yet land a Major League deal with a lower base salary than last winter’s $6.5MM mark. Some clubs may wish to hold out hope that he’ll take a minor league contract in light of his season-ending injury, but Logan’s solid across-the-board peripheral numbers create hope that he’ll be able to bounce back nicely in coming seasons.