Padres Non-Tender Everth Cabrera
The Padres have non-tendered shortstop Everth Cabrera, the team announced. He was the only roster casualty of the evening, per the team’s release.
Cabrera was projected by MLBTR and contributor Matt Swartz to earn $2.9MM through arbitration. The 28-year-old took home $2.45MM last year, when he was named to the All-Star team before seeing his season unravel with a Biogenesis suspension and, later, DUI arrest.
Cabrera remains an intriguing talent in spite of his issues off and on the field (.572 OPS through 391 plate appearances last year). In 2013, by far his best season as a pro, Cabrera slashed .283/.355/.381 while swiping 37 bases and delivering solid defensive play.
While San Diego’s position is certainly understandable, it is certainly a disappointing result for a player who looked like a potential franchise building block not long ago. Certainly, there should be several teams interested in taking a shot on his upside.
Dodgers Acquire Chris Heisey For Matt Magill
The Dodgers have officially agreed to acquire outfielder Chris Heisey from the Reds, Jerry Crasnick of ESPN.com reports on Twitter. Heisey, 29, is arb eligible and is projected by MLBTR/Matt Swartz to earn $2.2MM. Righty Matt Magill is coming back to the Reds for Heisey, Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com reports on Twitter.
Needless to say, given the Dodgers’ glut of outfielding options, this is an interesting move. While it is too soon to speculate, adding Heisey could suggest something else may be in the works for president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman and GM Farhan Zaidi.
Soon to be 30, Heisey, has scuffled at the plate in each of the last two seasons with Cincinnati but has been looked upon fondly by defensive metrics. Despite below-average offensive production, his work in the outfield grass has made him a positive overall contributor. And Heisey does have some more promising campaigns at the plate in his history.
It should be noted that Heisey is at least capable of manning center, though he does not have many MLB innings at the spot. That no doubt appealed to a Los Angeles club that lacks a true center fielder at this point, with the exception of the young Joc Pederson — who, it should be noted, would be a platoon match with Heisey.
The 25-year-old Magill made six starts for the Dodgers in 2013, struggling mightily. And he had a rough go of it at Triple-A in 2014, posting a 5.21 ERA and messy ratio of 7.4 K/9 against 6.3 BB/9, even while spending much of his time in relief. But he has shown some ability to miss bats at times, and could be a useful swingman or middle relief piece for Cinci.
Brewers Avoid Arbitration With Brandon Kintzler
The Brewers have agreed to a one-year deal to avoid arbitration with righty Brandon Kintzler, MLB.com’s Adam McCalvy reports on Twitter. Kintzler was projected to earn $900K by MLBTR and contributor Matt Swartz, but will take home a $1.075MM guarantee, per Chris Cotillo of SB Nation (Twitter link).
Kintzler, 30, has been a durable option for Milwaukee over each of the last two seasons, tossing a combined 135 1/3 frames of 2.93 ERA ball with 5.9 K/9 against 2.1 BB/9. But his numbers were better in 2013 than in the season that just wrapped up. Kintzler’s fastball velocity ticked down a bit, and his good fortune on flyballs reversed (4.9% HR/FB in 2013 vs. 17.4% in 2014).
Angels Non-Tender Gordon Beckham, Wade LeBlanc, Yoslan Herrera
The Angels have non-tendered a trio of players led by infielder Gordon Beckham, the club announced via Twitter. With lefty Wade LeBlanc and righty Yoslan Herrera also being shown the door, Los Angeles now has three open 40-man spots.
All said, the moves clear a solid bit of salary capacity for a Halos club that has looked to get creative in adding talent with an already-hefty payroll. Beckham was projected by MLBTR and contributor Matt Swartz to earn $5MM, making up most of the savings. But LeBlanc projected to earn $800K, which may be a few hundred thousand more than the club would like to pay him. Both moves were widely expected, while
Herrera, 33, put together a nice run for the Angels last year, working 16 2/3 frames of 2.70 ERA ball from the pen. But that represented his first MLB action since way back in 2008, and it appears that Los Angeles was not interested in holding a roster spot for him at this point.
Yankees, Esmil Rogers Avoid Arbitration
6:48pm: The deal does indeed come in under the projection, as Rogers will receive a $750K guarantee and will play at the rate of $1.48MM if he makes the club out of camp, per a tweet from Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com. Of course, that result certainly seems preferable to a non-tender.
6:12pm: The Yankees have avoided arbitration with righty Esmil Rogers, Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet.ca reports on Twitter. The move comes as something of a surprise, as Rogers had seemed a reasonably likely non-tender candidate.
Rogers, 29, was claimed off waivers by the Yankees from the Blue Jays last summer. He tossed 25 innings of 4.68 ERA ball in New York, after struggling with Toronto earlier in the year. He does offer some added value given his swingman potential.
MLBTR and contributor Matt Swartz projected a $1.9MM payday for Rogers, though his early signing could indicate a lower price point. At this point, Rogers is best known for being the short end of the deal that sent Yan Gomes and Mike Aviles from the Jays to the Indians.
Mariners Extend Kyle Seager
DECEMBER 2: MLBTR’s Tim Dierkes has the breakdown (links to Twitter). Seager will earn $4MM next year before taking home $7.5MM (2016), $10.5MM (2017), $18.5MM (2018), $19MM (2019 and 2020), and $18MM (2021). A $3.5MM bonus brings the total guarantee to $100MM.
As for the option year, both the contract price and the buyout fluctuate based on performance. The former can land between $15MM and $20MM while the latter may fall between zero and $3MM. Notably, the option becomes a player option if Seager is dealt, Dierkes adds via Twitter.
In sum, then, the deal can max out at $120MM over eight years.
NOVEMBER 24: The Mariners and third baseman Kyle Seager have officially completed a seven-year, $100MM extension,. The deal was first reported by Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports. The contract contains an option for an eighth season which could be worth as much as $20MM, depending on performance escalators, Passan adds. Seager’s deal is pending a physical. He is represented by Jet Sports Management’s Andrew Lowenthal.
Seager’s payday is well-deserved, as the 27-year-old has emerged as one of baseball’s best third basemen over the past three seasons. Seager has established himself as a durable source of power in an increasingly pitcher-friendly environment, and he’s a solid defender at third base as well. This past season, he batted .268/.334/.454 with a career-high 25 homers and excellent defensive marks (+10 DRS, +9.2 UZR/150) at third. His offense has increased incrementally with each full season in the Majors, and he’s never been placed on the disabled list.
Originally selected in the third round of the 2009 draft out of UNC, Seager has spent his entire career with the Mariners organization and now looks poised to spend the majority of his days as a Major Leaguer calling Safeco Field his home. The new contract will run through Seager’s age-33 season, with the option year covering his age-34 campaign. Seager had been projected by MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz to earn $5MM this offseason as a first-time arbitration eligible player.
If we take a guess at his second- and third-time arbitration figures — and this is a highly rudimentary estimate — he may have earned something in the range of $27-30MM over his arbitration seasons. That means the four free agent seasons purchased in this contract are valued somewhere between $17.5MM and $18.25MM. Seager becomes just the fourth player in his service class to secure a $100MM payday. As Passan tweets, only Mike Trout, Buster Posey and Freddie Freeman had reached that feat prior to this deal.
MLBTR’s Jeff Todd recently looked at each team’s future payroll obligations, where the Mariners were among the leaders in future commitment due to their contracts with Felix Hernandez and Robinson Cano. While this will further boost their long-term commitments and potentially limit their ability to add a large contract via trade or free agency, team president Kevin Mather recently said payroll will continue to increase following the $107MM spent in 2014. And, the contracts don’t overlap entirely; Hernandez is only controlled through 2019, which will be just the second free agent season on Seager’s deal. The team could potentially backload the contract, to some extent, to create sustained financial flexibility until Hernandez’s deal is off the books.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Athletics Avoid Arbitration With Ike Davis, Fernando Rodriguez
The Athletics have announced one-year deals to avoid arbitration with Ike Davis and Fernando Rodriguez, via Twitter.
Davis will earn $3.8MM, per Chris Cotillo of SB Nation (Twitter link), which falls shy of the $4.4MM he was projected to take home by MLBTR and contributor Matt Swartz. Of course, that may go some way in explaining the deal, as Oakland may not have been interested in tendering him if it was unable to lock in its price.
Rodriguez’s deal is for $635K, MLBTR’s Tim Dierkes reports on Twitter. The 30-year-old righty saw a good bit of action with the Astros over 2011-12, but only resurfaced at the MLB level last year after missing a year due to Tommy John surgery. He was dominant in 45 2/3 Triple-A frames, and put up good results in limited MLB action as well.
Braves Non-Tender Medlen, Beachy, Schlosser
The Braves have non-tendered righties Kris Medlen, Brandon Beachy, and Gus Schlosser, per MLB.com’s Mark Bowman (Twitter link). The team has tendered contracts to its remaining eligible players: lefties Mike Minor and James Russell and righty David Carpenter.
The move is somewhat jolting, though perhaps not entirely unexpected; indeed, I noted in my offseason outlook for Atlanta that the move had to at least be considered, particularly if an incentive-based arrangement could not be worked out. Both Medlen and Beachy have been outstanding when healthy, but the pair missed all of 2015 after each undergoing a second Tommy John procedure.
With Medlen projected by MLBTR/Matt Swartz to earn $5.8MM, the club was said to be looking for a way to avoid that kind of guarantee in crafting a new deal. Likewise, Beachy’s $1.5MM projected tab was probably steep given his expected timeline and likelihood of returning to form.
Despite the move, the Braves will still try to work out a contract with the now-free agent hurlers, Bowman reports on Twitter. But the team could well run into some competition, as both righties have demonstrated rather high ceilings.
Atlanta tried to entice Medlen with a deal that would have promised him $5.8MM for the coming season, matching his earnings last year, tweets David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal Constitution. But the club was looking for a good rate on an option for 2016, which apparently was the sticking point in negotiations.
Cardinals To Sign Matt Belisle
The Cardinals have struck a one-year deal with free agent righty Matt Belisle, Jenifer Langosch of MLB.com tweets. Belisle receives a $3.5MM guarantee, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports tweets.
The deal has a bonus structure that maxes out at $4MM, Rosenthal further tweets. Belisle can take home $150K for making fifty appearances, another $150K for his next ten turns, and then $200K if he reaches seventy.
Belisle, a 34-year-old righty, had been a stalwart in the Rockies’ pen for the last five seasons since emerging with a strong 2010 campaign. Over the first three years of that run, Belisle worked to a 3.28 ERA over 244 innings with 8.0 K/9 against 1.8 BB/9, all while throwing half the time at Coors Field.
An uptick in his ERA in 2013 was offset by a still-solid FIP, but things took a more pronounced downturn in 2014. Belisle’s ERA shot up to 4.87 as he posted strikeout (6.0 per nine) and walk (2.6 per nine) rates that were his worst since moving to the pen full-time.
The Cards will hope for a return to form for the veteran, who will presumably fill some of the innings that are leaving with Pat Neshek and, to a lesser extent, Jason Motte. With Shelby Miller already dealt away, the St. Louis pen is likely to lose a late-inning arm such as Carlos Martinez. Of course, that swap also brought back a reliable veteran righty in Jordan Walden.
Minor Moves: Leach, Nix, Pirates, Martin, Brown
The Brewers have re-signed left-hander Brent Leach to a minor league contract with an invitation to big league Spring Training, MLBTR has learned (Twitter link). The 31-year-old Leach has an opt-out clause as well as Asian buyout language worked into his contract. Leach enjoyed a solid campaign at Triple-A Nashville last year, posting a 3.28 ERA with 10.3 K/9 and 4.2 BB/9 while holding lefties to a .220/.331/.330 batting line.
Some more minor moves from around the game…
- Infielder Jayson Nix elected free agency rather than accepting an outright assignment from the Royals, according to the club’s transactions page. The seven-year veteran is a career .212/.282/.345 hitter that has shown a bit of pop and some speed while playing third base, second base, shortstop and the outfield corners in the past.
- The Pirates announced that they have signed outfielder Gorkys Hernandez, catcher Sebastian Valle and third baseman Deibinson Romero to minor league deals with Spring Training invites. Hernandez, 27, saw big league action with the Bucs back in 2012 and spent parts of four seasons in their minor league system. He’s a .272/.340/.367 hitter at the Triple-A level. Valle, 24, was formerly one of the Phillies’ top prospects per Baseball America, but his bat never caught up to his glove. He’s a lifetime .234/.265/.384 hitter at Double-A and has minimal Triple-A experience. Romero, 28, has spent his career with the Twins but never reached the bigs. He has a .266/.366/.412 line in two seasons at Triple-A.
- The Dodgers announced that lefty Jarret Martin has been outrighted to Triple-A after being designated for assignment upon the club’s acquisition of Mike Bolsinger. The 25-year-old had a 3.29 ERA with 64 strikeouts in 54 2/3 innings at Triple-A last year, but he also walked an alarming 48 batters.
- Outfielder Corey Brown has signed a minor league deal with the Rays, per a tweet from his agents at O’Connell Sports Management. The 29-year-old is a Tampa native that has batted .171/.244/.390 with a pair of homers in 46 big league PAs to go along with a career .249/.326/.458 batting line at Triple-A.