Indians Sign Ross Detwiler To Minor League Deal
4:50pm: Cleveland has announced the deal via press release.
4:20pm: The Indians and left-hander Ross Detwiler have agreed to a minor league contract, reports Jon Heyman of CBS Sports (links to Twitter). If he makes the club, Detwiler will earn a $1MM base salary, and his contract also contains an additional $1.5MM worth of incentives.
Detwiler, a client of CAA Sports, split last season between the Rangers and Braves but struggled at both stops. The former No. 6 overall draft pick had spent his entire career prior to 2015 with the Nationals, the organization that drafted him, compiling a 3.82 ERA with 5.4 K/9 and 2.9 BB/9 across 471 innings. Detwiler split his time fairly evenly between the bullpen and rotation with the Nationals — 69 starts, 63 relief appearances — but he started just seven games last season (all with the Braves). Home runs were Detwiler’s undoing in Texas, as he yielded nine of them in just 43 innings of work with the Rangers en route to a 7.12 ERA. Upon going to the Braves, the lefty displayed significant control problems — 15 unintentional walks in 15 1/3 innings — which have never been a problem for him in the past. Ultimately, a hamstring injury suffered in early September ended his season and his time with the Braves.
There weren’t many positive takeaways from the 2015 season for Detwiler, but the 29-year-od did hold lefties to a .660 OPS and has always been pretty effective against same-handed batters, yielding just a .233/.314/.301 batting line to such opponents. He’ll join fellow southpaws Joe Thatcher and Tom Gorzelanny as non-roster invites in Spring Training, hoping to edge out one or both as he seeks to land a big league roster spot. Unlike those two, however, Detwiler could conceivably battle for a rotation spot, although with Corey Kluber, Danny Salazar, Carlos Carrasco, Trevor Bauer, Cody Anderson and Josh Tomlin all ahead of him, that looks unlikely at this juncture.
Indians Release Chris Johnson
The Indians have released Chris Johnson, per the club’s transactions page at MLB.com. Johnson was designated for assignment earlier this month.
Johnson, 31, has a career slash line of .280/.316/.411 across seven big league seasons. He first arrived in Atlanta prior to the 2013 season as a part of the Justin Upton deal. This year, he was shipped to the Indians in a waiver trade that saw Michael Bourn,Nick Swisher, and cash considerations go to the Braves.
Johnson signed a three-year, $23.5MM contract prior to the 2014 season. Then 29 years old, Johnson was coming off a career year in which he batted .321/.358/.457 with 12 homers. However, much of that production was the result of a .394 batting average on balls in play, and his overall numbers have come back down to Earth as his BABIP regressed to his career norm. He hasn’t looked like an ~$8MM player as of late, but he could be a useful platoon bat given his success against lefties.
With Johnson out of DFA limbo, there are now only five players left hanging, according to the DFA Tracker: Rey Navarro (Orioles), Yoervis Medina (Cubs), Danny Reynolds (Dodgers), Johnny Monell (Mets), and Josmil Pinto (Padres).
Padres Sign Buddy Baumann To Major League Deal, Designate Josmil Pinto
The Padres have signed left-handed pitcher Buddy Baumann to a Major League contract and designated catcher Josmil Pinto for assignment, according to a team announcement. The Padres had claimed Pinto off waivers from the Twins earlier this month.
Baumann, 28, has spent his entire career to date in the Royals organization, having been Kansas City’s seventh-round pick back in the 2009 draft. The Missouri State product has never reached the Major Leagues, though he does have outstanding numbers at the Triple-A level across the past three seasons. In that time, Baumann has a 3.04 ERA with 9.1 K/9 against 3.3 BB/9 in 216 innings of work. Baumann has worked in both the rotation and the bullpen at Triple-A Omaha, though he spent the bulk of 2015 in a relief role, with just six starts and 28 relief appearances. In 2015, Baumann held opposing lefties to a comically feeble .148/.225/.222 batting line. His 2013-14 numbers against lefties weren’t quite as dominant, but he still held same-handed opponents to an OPS around .600 in that time. Baumann could compete for a spot in the Padres’ bullpen, though he can also be optioned to Triple-A if he doesn’t make the club out of Spring Training.
Pinto, 27, was once viewed as Minnesota’s possible catcher of the future due to his outstanding bat in the minors and in his first September call-up back in 2013. Pinto raked at Double-A and Triple-A in ’13, hitting a combined .309/.400/.482 with 15 homers before earning a September promotion and announcing his presence with a .342/.398/.566 performance in that month-long audition. Pinto, however, was always viewed as a poor defender behind the plate, so when his bat began to slip in 2014 and 2015, his future was called into question. He hit just .219/.315/.391 in 57 games with the Twins in 2014, and his 2015 season was marred by concussions and poor performance at the Triple-A level, where he batted just .228/.304/.354 in 68 games.
Rangers Sign A.J. Griffin To Minor League Deal
The Rangers announced on Monday that they have signed former Athletics right-hander A.J. Griffin to a minor league contract with an invite to Major League Spring Training. The soon-to-be 28-year-old Legacy Agency client hasn’t pitched since 2013 due to 2014 Tommy John surgery and a 2015 shoulder injury.
Prior to those injuries, Griffin was on the verge of establishing himself as a potential long-term cog in Oakland’s rotation. After posting a 3.06 ERA with 7.0 K/9 against 2.1 BB/9 in 82 innings as a rookie in 2012, Griffin rattled off 200 innings of 3.83 ERA ball in 2014, averaging 7.7 K/9 against 2.4 BB/9. He’s very much a fly-ball pitcher, as evidenced by the 33.7 percent ground-ball rate he yielded across those two seasons and the fact that he led the AL with 36 homers allowed in ’13. That skill set may not be as well suited for Arlington’s Globe Life Park as it is for Oakland’s O.Co Coliseum, but a healthy Griffin would nonetheless be a nice option for the back of the rotation. Colby Lewis, for instance, has enjoyed a nice five-year run with the Rangers despite never having topped 38 percent with his ground-ball rate.
Griffin will look to compete for a spot in the Rangers’ rotation behind Yu Darvish, Cole Hamels, Derek Holland, Martin Perez, Chi Chi Gonzalez and Lewis, who reportedly agreed to a new one-year deal with Texas last week. While there are plenty of established names in that mix, Darvish is recovering from Tommy John surgery, Perez returned from that same operation late in 2015 and Holland has been beset by shoulder and knee injuries over the past two seasons. Griffin has three years and 34 days of big league service, so if he makes it back to the Majors next season, he could be controlled through at least 2018 and possibly 2019, depending on the amount of service time accrued in 2016.
Pirates Acquire Kyle Lobstein
The Pirates announced that they have acquired left-hander Kyle Lobstein from the Tigers in exchange for cash considerations.The Tigers had designated the 26-year-old for assignment last Friday in order to clear a spot on the roster for newly signed utility man Mike Aviles.
Since making his Major League debut with the Tigers in 2014, Lobstein has had a fairly significant role with the club, totaling 103 innings across 20 appearances, 17 of which came out of the rotation. His results haven’t been great — a 5.33 ERA, 5.2 K/9, 3.2 BB/9 — but he has capably soaked up innings as the Detroit rotation battled through injuries. He’s struggled due to an inability to miss bats, as evidenced by the low strikeout rate and the fact that he’s yielded 113 hits in those 103 innings.
While there are certainly some unimpressive elements there, Lobstein could be effective in a different role. He’s displayed the ability to throw multiple innings as a reliever, and lefties have batted just .234/.307/.321 against him over the course of his relatively brief career. The Pirates (and perhaps other clubs, as well) may have been drawn to that trait and been intrigued by Lobstein’s 3.19 FIP and 3.41 xFIP against left-handed pitching, believing him capable of working as a relief option. His 49.7 percent ground-ball rate undoubtedly piqued Pittsburgh’s interest as well, as the Bucs have shown an affinity for pitchers that can keep the ball on the ground. And, his superior Triple-A numbers — 4.08 ERA, 7.8 K/9, 2.9 BB/9 in 236 innings — may simply have made him an appealing depth option for the Pirates, especially when weighed against the minimal cost of acquisition.
Lobstein will land in what appears to be a favorable situation. The Pirates have had a good bit of success in elevating the stock of newly acquired pitchers in recent seasons, and the club’s aggressive infield shifting will mesh nicely with his ground-ball tendencies should Lobstein log significant time in the Majors in 2016 and beyond. He’s totaled just over one year of Major League service time, so the Pirates could conceivably control him through the 2020 season if he establishes himself as a consistent Major Leaguer in some capacity.
Rockies Extend Adam Ottavino
DEC. 21: The Rockies have officially announced the deal (Twitter link).
DEC. 19, 1:55pm: The deal was actually completed earlier this week, Nick Groke of the Denver Post tweets.
12:44pm: The Rockies have agreed to terms with reliever Adam Ottavino to a three-year, $10.4MM extension, CBS Sports’ Jon Heyman reports (Twitter links). The deal includes yearly salaries of $1.3MM, $2.1MM and $7MM and contains no options. Ottavino is a client of All Bases Covered.
The 30-year-old Ottavino had Tommy John surgery in May and missed most of the 2015 season. We was projected to make just $1.6MM in his second year of arbitration eligibility, and he would have been eligible for free agency following 2017. The extension, then, provides him with a considerable guaranteed payday in exchange for delaying his free agency eligibility by a year.
Before his injury, Ottavino was a valuable cog in the Rockies’ bullpen, most recently posting a 3.60 ERA, 9.7 K/9 and 2.2 BB/9 in 65 innings in a fine 2014 campaign. He was off to an even better start in 2015 before his injury, striking out 13 batters in 10 1/3 innings, posting an excellent 63.2% ground ball rate in a small sample, and increasing his average fastball velocity to over 95 MPH.
Needless to say, it might be awhile longer before he’s able to contribute at a top level again, which is perhaps one reason why the Rockies felt an extension made sense from their perspective — as it stood, Ottavino’s recovery period would have consumed a meaningful chunk of the remainder of the Rockies’ team control over him. Again via Heyman (on Twitter), Ottavino says he’s recovering well and will return at some point near the middle of the summer. Assuming he’s eventually able to return to something resembling his prior form, though, his $10.4MM deal doesn’t seem exorbitant given the rising costs of good setup men on the free agent market.
It’s possible that the terms of Ottavino’s extension were partially inspired by the White Sox’ recent deal with Nate Jones, which is similar in many respects. It’s the differences between the two hard-throwing righties’ deals, however, that are most striking. Like Ottavino, Jones had a recent Tommy John surgery (although Jones actually returned to action last season and pitched well, while Ottavino’s recovery is ongoing) and was in his second-to-last year of arbitration eligibility.
Jones, however, was projected to make less next season, which perhaps explains why Ottavino got a more significant guarantee ($10.4MM vs. $8MM) over three years. Jones’ contract also contains two team options, plus the possibility of a third if he continues to have UCL trouble; Ottavino’s deal does not include any such options. There are doubtless many differences between the two pitchers’ situations (perhaps including differences in medical reports to which we aren’t privy). But probably the most crucial one is that Jones’ injury troubles occurred before he entered his arbitration seasons, while Ottavino’s occurred after he entered his. The divergence between the two contracts, then, illustrates what a difference timing can make.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Indians Sign Tom Gorzelanny To Minor League Deal
The Indians announced that they have signed veteran left-hander Tom Gorzelanny to a minor league deal with an invitation to Major League Spring Training. Cleveland also confirmed its previously reported minor league deal with lefty Joe Thatcher. Gorzelanny is represented by Relativity Sports, while Thatcher is a client of Platinum Sports.
Gorzelanny, 33, spent the 2015 season in the Tigers’ bullpen but found himself unable to recreate the strong results had delivered from 2012-14 with the Nationals and Brewers (combined 3.13 ERA over 178 1/3 innings). With Detroit, Gorzelanny totaled 39 1/3 innings but struggled to a 5.95 ERA. While an elevated BABIP played some role in the struggles, Gorzelanny also saw his strikeout rate dip and, most troublesome of all, his walk rate soar to 5.3 per nine innings — far and away his worst mark since becoming a reliever. Bloated walk rate notwithstanding, Gorzelanny still held lefties in check for the most part, yielding a .219/.317/.347 batting line. However, right-handers clobbered Gorzelanny to the tune of a .349/.454/.610 slash line. Gorzelanny has long had a platoon split, but 2015 was easily the most notable it has ever been.
The pair of lefties will compete for spots in the Cleveland bullpen, where Kyle Crockett and Giovanni Soto are the current options for manager Terry Francona.
Brewers To Sign Will Middlebrooks To Minor League Deal
TODAY: Middlebrooks will earn $1.2MM if he makes the Brewers’ Major League roster, CBS Sports’ Jon Heyman reports (Twitter link). If he hasn’t reached the majors by July 1, Middlebrooks can be released for a spot on another club’s roster.
TUESDAY: The Brewers have agreed to a minor league pact with third baseman Will Middlebrooks, Dennis Lin of the San Diego Union-Tribune reports on Twitter. Middlebrooks, 27, was non-tendered by the Padres, who elected to cut bait with the former top prospect rather than pay him an arbitration salary that MLBTR projected at $1.5MM.
Though Middlebrooks opened the year as San Diego’s regular third baseman after coming over via trade, he was not able to regain his once-promising trajectory there. He put up a meager .212/.241/.361 batting line with nine home runs over 270 plate appearances last year. Middlebrooks spent a lengthy stretch at Triple-A, too, and managed only a .255/.287/.379 slash in the favorable offensive climate of the PCL.
Milwaukee has been without a clear option at third after dealing away Aramis Ramirez last summer. The team also recently acquired another former Red Sox prospect in Garin Cecchini, and could let those two (among others) battle for playing time this spring.
Indians To Sign Mike Napoli
SATURDAY, 6:17pm: Napoli has passed his physical, according to Paul Hoynes of The Plain Dealer. His deal should be officially announced sometime this week.
WEDNESDAY, 12:35pm: The Indians and first baseman Mike Napoli are in agreement on a one-year contract, pending a physical, reports Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (via Twitter). Jon Heyman of CBS Sports tweets that Napoli will earn $7MM in 2016 and has an additional $3MM worth of incentives built into his contract.
The 34-year-old Napoli will serve as Cleveland’s everyday first baseman in 2016, tweets Rosenthal, indicating that Carlos Santana will shift to the DH slot (though I’d imagine Santana will still see some action at first). That should provide the Indians with a defensive upgrade at first base, though it remains to be seen if Napoli can remain productive in an everyday role having developed such a notable platoon split late in his career.
Napoli batted .224/.324/.410 overall between the Red Sox and Rangers last season, improving greatly upon being traded to Texas (where he was deployed primarily against lefties). Napoli’s 12 percent walk rate and .187 isolated power mark made him a decent overall offensive contributor, but he batted just .191/.283/.320 in 290 plate appearances against right-handed pitching. That’s a stark contrast to his brilliant .278/.391/.563 line against lefties, and the Indians will likely be hoping for more balance in 2016 if he’s to remain in an everyday role. Napoli did show good patience against righties (10.3 percent walk rate) and actually struck out less often versus them than he did versus lefties. A .239 BABIP when facing same-handed pitching dragged down his overall production, so the Indians will hope for a correction in that regard and better overall output from the still-powerful Napoli.
Jarrod Parker, Athletics Avoid Arbitration
Jarrod Parker has avoided arbitration with the Athletics, CBS Sports’ Jon Heyman tweets. Parker will receive $850K for 2016, of which $425K is guaranteed. Parker is a client of Reynolds Sports Management.
MLBTR projected Parker would receive precisely $850K, which is also the same amount he made last season after his first trip through the arbitration process. Parker appeared to be one of the game’s better young starting pitchers after posting a 3.68 ERA, 6.4 K/9 and 3.0 BB/9 in 384 big-league innings through 2013. But he has not appeared in the big leagues in the past two years, as he had the second Tommy John surgery of his career early in 2014 and then fractured the elbow and had yet another operation (although, perhaps mercifully, not another of the Tommy John variety) last season. Now 27, he will attempt to get his career back on track in 2016.