Astros To Non-Tender Chris Carter
The Astros will non-tender first baseman/DH Chris Carter, Bob Nightengale of USA Today reports on Twitter. Carter, who was a Super Two last year, was projected by MLBTR to earn $5.6MM.
We had heard yesterday that Houston would only tender Carter a contract if it felt he could be traded, and that obviously did not prove to be the case. The Astros will presumably rely upon Evan Gattis as its primary DH, with players like Jon Singleton and prospect A.J. Reed potentially factoring in at first, though some kind of outside addition can’t be ruled out.
Carter, 28, is a huge source of power, with 90 home runs over the last three years. He’s put up a productive .218/.312/.459 slash over that span, indicating that this immense pop makes up for an equally monumental strikeout rate.
But that still leaves unaddressed the matter of defense, and that’s just not an area where Carter shines. He is more or less unplayable in the outfield, and also hasn’t drawn very good reviews at first, either. As a bat-only player, the overall production record just wasn’t quite good enough — it seems — to support his projected earning capacity.
Pirates Non-Tender Pedro Alvarez
The Pirates announced that they have elected not to tender contracts to first baseman Pedro Alvarez and outfielder Jaff Decker for the 2016 season. The rest of the team’s arbitration eligible players, aside from Alvarez, have been tendered contracts. Alvarez had been projected to receive an $8.1MM salary next season, per MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz.
Alvarez, the second overall pick in the 2008 draft, adds an intriguing name to the free-agent market for teams in search of power. He’s crushed 111 homers over the past four seasons (11th in all of Major League Baseball) while hitting .238/.310/.456. That, on the surface, would seem to make Alvarez a worthy tender, but Alvarez comes with a number of less appealing factors as well.
Alvarez broke into the league as a third baseman, but the Pirates moved the 6’3″, 250-pounder across the diamond to first base in 2014 due to defensive issues. While Alvarez readily accepted his new role, he proved to be a liability at first base as well. Both Defensive Runs Saved and Ultimate Zone Rating pegged Alvarez at -14 runs in 906 innings this season, and his 23 errors tied him for third in all of baseball at any position despite the fact that he had the fewest defensive innings played of any player in the top 30 of that dubious list.
Additionally, Alvarez has long struggled against left-handed pitching. He hit .258/.292/.419 against lefties in 2015, though he was limited to 65 plate appearances versus same-handed pitchers. Those limitations were placed on Alvarez with good reason; he’s a lifetime .203/.270/.332 batter against fellow lefties. On the flip side of the equation, Alvarez has proven to be a formidable force against right-handed pitchers. He’s a .246./320/.473 hitter against righties in his career with 114 of his 131 homers coming while holding the platoon advantage.
The Pirates certainly made an effort to trade Alvarez, tweets Stephen Nesbitt of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, but were simply unable to find a willing taker. Considering the fact that the still-28-year-old Alvarez (29 in February) averages a home run every 19 plate appearances versus right-handed pitching, he should draw considerable interest from American League clubs looking for a first baseman/designated hitter that can be platooned with a potent right-handed bat. Clubs like the Orioles and Indians stand out as possible fits, while the Rays and White Sox could make some sense depending on their ability to move James Loney and Adam LaRoche, respectively.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Angels Non-Tender Cesar Ramos
The Angels announced tonight that they have non-tendered left-handed reliever Cesar Ramos. The move comes as something of a surprise, considering Ramos’ reasonable $1.7MM projected salary and strong results out of the Halos’ bullpen in 2015. Ramos will join a class of free-agent left-handed relievers that is fronted by Tony Sipp and Antonio Bastardo.
Ramos, 31, logged a 2.75 ERA with 7.4 K/9, 2.5 BB/9 and a 47.1 percent ground-ball rate in 52 1/3 innings with the Angels in 2015. That translated to a sound 3.02 FIP, although SIERA (3.56) and xFIP (3.79) were a bit less bullish on Ramos due to a lack of strikeouts and a perhaps unsustainable 4.4 percent homer-to-flyball rate. MLB.com’s Alden Gonzalez wrote recently that Ramos was viewed as a non-tender candidate because he also typically worked in low-leverage situations — often in mop-up duty.
Ramos didn’t dominate lefties, but same-handed batters weren’t able to show any semblance of power against him, batting .274/.346/.316 in 109 plate appearances. He held his own against right-handed pitching as well, yielding a .284/.324/.382 batting line in 112 PAs. Certainly, Ramos wasn’t an overpowering bullpen arm, but he has a track record of solid performance, having worked to a 3.49 ERA with 7.2 K/9 against 3.6 BB/9 across the past five seasons/276 innings.
With just over five years of service time, Ramos has only one year of club control remaining, so any team that signs him won’t receive the benefit of multiple years of control. Neverthelss, he’s a seemingly useful bullpen piece that should find his way into a big league bullpen in 2016.
Indians Acquire Collin Cowgill, Designate Nick Hagadone
The Indians have acquired outfielder Collin Cowgill from the Angels in exchange for cash considerations and designated left-hander Nick Hagadone for assignment, per a club announcement. MLB.com’s Alden Gonzalez reported (via Twitter) that Cowgill was headed to Cleveland just before the trade was announced.
Cowgill, 30 next May, gives the Indians a strong defensive option in the outfield corners, though he comes with a light bat. The right-handed hitter comes to Cleveland with a .236/.299/.334 batting line in 745 trips to the plate as a Major Leaguer and a .188/.233/.290 line in just 74 PAs last season in Anaheim. However, Cowgill is a standout left/right fielder in the eyes of defensive metrics such as Ultimate Zone Rating and Defensive Runs Saved and also has the ability to play center field. Cowgill has saved 28 runs in 1336 innings of corner defense, per DRS. UZR agrees, pegging him at +25 runs in that time. He’s average to below-average in center, per those same metrics, but he’s played just 370 innings there in his career.
Hagadone’s removal from the 40-man roster isn’t entirely unexpected, as the lefty reliever underwent elbow surgery in late July that was projected to sideline him for six to nine months. He was projected to receive just $700K in arbitration, but the Indians probably didn’t want to commit the dollars nor the roster spot to Hagadone without knowing when he could return to the mound. He also has a fairly spotty track record as a Major Leaguer; while he worked to a sound 3.55 ERA with a 55-to-18 K/BB ratio in 50 2/3 innings from 2014-15, his big league work prior to that point amounted to a 5.59 ERA in 67 2/3 innings.
Per MLB.com’s Jordan Bastian, Indians president of baseball operations Chris Antonetti said that he has interest in keeping Hagadone in the organization despite removing him from the 40-man roster (Twitter link).
Marlins To Non-Tender Henderson Alvarez
The Marlins will non-tender right-hander Henderson Alvarez — their Opening Day starter from this past season — sources tell Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link).
The decision comes as somewhat of a surprise but seemingly indicates that the Marlins aren’t fully convinced that Alvarez will be able to contribute in 2016 as he recovers from right shoulder surgery that he underwent back in late July. Indications in September were that the Marlins felt comfortable tendering Alvarez, who projected to earn $4MM this year (per MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz), a contract for the 2016 season. However, recent reports have suggested that the team was no longer certain that would be the case, as Alvarez’s injury was expected to keep him out at least into the first month of the season.
Despite questions surrounding the health of his shoulder, Alvarez figures to draw widespread interest on the free-agent market. He’s still just 25 years of age (26 in April) and pitched to a sparkling 2.98 ERA with 5.2 K/9, 1.9 BB/9 and a 53.6 percent ground-ball rate from 2013-14 when healthy in Miami (including a a no-hitter on the final day of the season in 2013).
Alvarez has just over four years of big league service under his belt, meaning that any club which signs him to a big league deal will be able to control him for not only the 2016 season but also the 2017 campaign, via the arbitration process. Alvarez has never been one to miss many bats, but he’s a well-regarded arm that could certainly slot into the middle of a big league rotation, so long as his shoulder allows him to do so.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Royals Non-Tender Greg Holland
The Royals announced that they have non-tendered injured closer Greg Holland as well as infielder Orlando Calixte (Twitter link). Holland, who would have been arbitration eligible for the final time this winter and came with a projected $11.3MM price tag, will enter the free-agent pool.
It’s been known for quite some time that the Royals would non-tender Holland, who underwent Tommy John surgery earlier this year and missed the end of the season. Kansas City has expressed interest in working out a two-year contract that would allow the team to retain Holland, who was among the most dominant pitchers in baseball when healthy. Any contract would, of course, backload most of the salary into the second year of the deal, as Holland will almost certainly not take the mound in 2016 as he recovers from the operation.
Though it was a well-known possible outcome, the non-tender is nonetheless notable; due to the fact that the Royals weren’t able to strike up a two-year pact with Holland in advance of tonight’s deadline, he and agent Scott Boras will now have the opportunity to negotiate with all 29 other clubs to see if a more lucrative offer is available on the open market.
Orioles Acquire Francisco Pena From Royals, Designate Paul Janish
The Orioles announced that they have acquired catcher Francisco Pena from the Royals in exchange for cash considerations and designated infielder Paul Janish for assignment in order to clear room on the 40-man roster.
Pena, 26, is the son of former Major League catcher Tony Pena. He picked up seven plate appearances with the Royals this past season — the first seven he’s seen in the big leagues — and collected a single in that brief cup of coffee. Pena spent the bulk of the season at Triple-A Omaha, where he’s played since 2014, and batted .251/.305/.430 with 13 homers. He’ll replace some of the depth that the Orioles lost when they traded Steve Clevenger to the Mariners earlier today.
Janish, 33, is a well-traveled veteran known for outstanding infield defense but a light bat. He hit .286/.278/.381 in 14 games with Baltimore this season and is a career .216/.284/.291 hitter at the Major League level. He can elect free agency upon clearing outright waivers and should draw interest from multiple clubs as an infield depth option due to his veteran status and defensive prowess.
Cardinals Non-Tender Steve Cishek
The Cardinals announced that they have non-tendered right-hander Steve Cishek as well as catcher Cody Stanley. The latter of the two, as Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch notes (Twitter link), is in the midst of serving a suspension.
Cishek’s non-tender wasn’t necessarily unexpected, considering his lofty $7.1MM arbitration projection (per MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz). Nevertheless, his entry into the free-agent market is notable, as teams will now have the opportunity to negotiate with a player that was once considered to be a star-caliber closer.
The 29-year-old Cishek saved 88 games for the Marlins from 2012-14 and logged a stellar 2.65 ERA with 9.9 K/9 and 3.2 BB/9 over his first 257 2/3 innings as a Major League reliever (2010-14). However, he struggled in the early stages of the 2015 season, even earning a demotion to the minors along the way. Cishek performed well at Triple-A and yielded just one earned run across 12 2/3 innings in his return to the Majors before being traded to St. Louis for right-hander Kyle Barraclough.
With the Cardinals, Cishek posted a strong 2.31 ERA, but that number didn’t tell the full story of his work in St. Louis, as he posted a somewhat troublesome 20-to-13 K/BB ratio in 23 1/3 innings with his new club. His velocity was also down in 2015, as his 90.8 mph average heater was the lowest of his career and a good bit south of the ~92.5 mph he averaged when at his best.
Although he’s coming off the worst season of his career, Cishek still seems like a candidate to land a big league deal when considering his entire body of work at the Major League level: a 2.82 ERA, 9.6 K/9, 3.4 BB/9 and a 50.1 percent ground-ball rate.
White Sox Non-Tender Tyler Flowers
The White Sox have non-tendered catcher Tyler Flowers and right-hander Jacob Turner, tweets Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune. Cutting ties with Flowers is at least somewhat of a surprise, as many considered Flowers likely to at least find himself in a timeshare with newly signed Alex Avila. He’d been projected to earn $3.5MM by MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz, while Turner had been projected at $1MM.
Flowers, who turns 30 in January, is just a career .223/.289/.376 hitter across parts of seven seasons, but he’s produced offensively at a clip that is roughly average for catchers over the past two seasons (.240/.296/.378, 90 OPS+). He also delivered positive pitch-framing metrics in 2015 and has caught about 28 percent of attempted base-stealers over the past two seasons.
The departure of Flowers leaves Rob Brantly and Kevan Smith as the two other backstop options on the White Sox’ 40-man roster. I’d imagine that the departure of Flowers opens the White Sox up to possible trades for catching help or free-agent additions such as Michael McKenry and Dioner Navarro, as well as Wilin Rosario, who recently elected free agency.
Orioles Designate Steve Johnson For Assignment
The Orioles announced that they’ve designated right-hander Steve Johnson for assignment. The move creates space on the club’s 40-man roster for new acquisitions Mark Trumbo and C.J. Riefenhauser (only one spot was needed, as a second was opened up when Steve Clevenger went to Seattle in the deal).
Johnson, 28, logged a 2.11 ERA with 46 strikeouts against 18 walks in 38 1/3 innings for Baltimore back in 2012 but has tallied just 21 innings of 8.14 ERA ball in the Majors since that time. He’s spent stints on the disabled list due to a lat injury and an oblique injury since that successful rookie debut and also spent considerable time at the Triple-A level. Johnson has 317 1/3 career innings at Triple-A, where he’s worked to a 4.20 ERA with 8.5 K/9 against 4.0 BB/9.