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Astros, Framber Valdez Avoid Arbitration

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The Astros and left-hander Framber Valdez have avoided arbitration by agreeing to a $12.1MM salary for the 2024 season, according to Chandler Rome of The Athletic.

Valdez, 30, took something of a step back last year from a standout 2022 campaign that saw the southpaw post a 2.82 ERA while leading the AL with 201 1/3 frames en route to a top 5 finish in AL Cy Young award voting. Nonetheless, Valdez posted strong numbers in 2023 with a 3.45 ERA that was 22% better than league average by measure of ERA+ in 198 innings of work. That solid performance was backed up by a 3.50 FIP that largely matches his top-level run prevention numbers. Looking under the hood, Valdez posted a 54.2% groundball rate that, while well above average, was actually a career low for the lefty, who generated grounders at a 66.2% clip for his career entering 2023. That being said, he countered the increased contact in the air with the best strikeout (24.8%) and walk (7.1%) rates of any 162-game season in his career.

It’s Valdez’s third trip through arbitration, though as a Super Two player the left-hander will be eligible for arbitration a fourth and final time in 2025. The $12.1MM salary for 2024 is an exact match for the projection put forth by MLBTR contributor Matt Swatz back in October. The deal continues the streak of the sides avoiding arbitration throughout Valdez’s career. Last season, the sides avoided arbitration by agreeing to a $6.8MM salary for 2023, while the sides settled on a $3MM salary for the 2022 campaign in his first year of arbitration eligibility.

Houston attempted to work out a long-term extension with the left-hander last spring, though the sides ultimately did not come together on a deal. While it’s possible the sides could look to reopen those negotiations in the coming weeks, rumors swirled last month that the Astros were listening to offers on the left-hander from at least half a dozen clubs. Between those trade rumors and the impending free agencies of second baseman Jose Altuve and third baseman Alex Bregman, both of whom GM Dana Brown has expressed interest in extending as recently as November, it seems reasonable to think any talks of a longer term arrangement with Valdez could be on hold for the time being. In the meantime, Valdez figures to be paired with veteran ace Justin Verlander at the front of Houston’s rotation with the likes of Cristian Javier, Jose Urquidy, J.P. France, and Hunter Brown also in the mix for spots in the club’s Opening Day rotation.

Astros, Kyle Tucker Avoid Arbitration

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The Astros and Kyle Tucker have avoided arbitration by agreeing to a $12MM salary for 2024, per Chandler Rome of The Athletic. The outfielder is a client of Excel Sports Management.

Tucker, 27 next week, is coming off another excellent season at the plate. He hit 29 home runs, just one beneath the even 30 he hit in each of the previous two campaigns. He also drew walks in 11.9% of plate appearances while striking out just 13.6% of the time. For reference, the major league averages in those categories were 8.6% and 22.7% in 2023. Tucker’s .284/.369/.517 batting line translated to a wRC+ of 140, indicating he was 40% above league average.

His defensive metrics slipped a bit in 2023 but he’s been solidly above average in his career overall. On the basepaths, he stole 30 bases last year, setting a new career high. He swiped 14 bags in 2021 and then 25 the year after.

Tucker first qualified for arbitration last offseason and went to a hearing with the Astros. He filed at $7.5MM but the arbiters opted for the club’s $5MM salary instead. MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projected him for a jump to $12.6MM but he has settled for a salary just beneath that. He will be eligible for another raise in 2025 before he’s slated to reach free agency.

He and the Astros have had some extension talks in the past but the two sides didn’t appear to make much traction. Regardless, he’ll head into 2024 as part of an outfield that’s also slated to feature Jake Meyers and Chas McCormick, with Yordan Álvarez perhaps spending some time there as well when he’s not serving as the designated hitter.

Reds To Sign Brent Suter

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The Reds are in agreement with left-hander Brent Suter on a one-year deal, reports Robert Murray of FanSided. It’s a $3MM guarantee that takes the form of a $2.5MM salary in 2024 and a $500K buyout on a $3.5MM club option for ’25. The deal is still pending a physical for the Diamond Sports Management client. Cincinnati will need to make a corresponding move to clear a spot on the 40-man roster once the contract is finalized.

It’s the latest move in a pitching-heavy offseason. The Reds have added Frankie Montas to the rotation and Emilio Pagán to the late innings. Swingman Nick Martinez could contribute in either role. Suter seems ticketed for the bullpen, although he reportedly drew some interest as a starting pitcher this winter.

The 34-year-old has spent the past half-decade in relief. Suter saw some work out of the rotation early in his career with the Brewers. Despite finding a decent amount of success, he was pushed to the bullpen by 2019 as Milwaukee graduated pitchers with higher caliber stuff.

While Suter isn’t a prototypical power reliever, he has been a valuable bullpen piece. The Harvard product has turned in a sub-4.00 ERA in five straight seasons. Suter’s profile has been built around strong control and excellent contact suppression. He has posted better than average ground-ball rates over the past five seasons and is consistently one of the game’s toughest pitchers to square up.

Opponents have averaged between 84-86 MPH in exit velocity in each of the last four seasons, per Statcast. That ranked in the 95th percentile or better in all four years. Batters made hard contact (an exit velocity at or above 95 MPH) on only 26.3% of their batted balls a season ago. Among qualified pitchers, only Phil Maton, Tom Cosgrove and Tanner Scott did a better job avoiding authoritative contact.

The ability to stay off barrels allowed Suter to overcome hitter-friendly home environments. He turned in strong results in Milwaukee and had no issues acclimating to Colorado’s Coors Field after a waiver claim last offseason. In 69 1/3 innings, he turned in a 3.38 ERA for the Rockies, including a 3.66 mark in 32 frames in Denver. A track record of success in difficult home parks is surely appealing to a front office building a pitching staff in Great American Ball Park.

Nevertheless, teams generally harbor skepticism about a pitcher who succeeds on guile and command without overpowering pure stuff. Suter’s only season with an above-average strikeout rate came during the abbreviated 2020 campaign. Last year, he punched out just 18.8% of opponents while sitting in the mid-upper 80s with his sinker and four-seam fastball.

Suter’s age and lack of velocity was always likely to limit his market. It’s still somewhat surprising that he landed a $3MM guarantee. Next year’s salary is a half million dollars below the $3MM he made last year, his final arbitration season. Suter grew up in Cincinnati and attended high school there, so it seems fair to presume that geography played a role in his decision — particularly if his camp was sorting through a number of low-cost, one-year offers.

He joins Sam Moll and Alex Young as left-handed relief options for skipper David Bell. The Reds have Alexis Díaz in the ninth inning and brought back Buck Farmer to join Pagán and Lucas Sims as right-handed setup candidates. Ian Gibaut, who is out of options, could compete with Fernando Cruz and Tejay Antone for the final spot or two in the middle innings.

Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.

Orioles, Anthony Santander Avoid Arbitration

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The Orioles have agreed to an $11.7MM deal with Anthony Santander to avoid arbitration, reports Robert Murray of FanSided (X link). The outfielder is a client of Beverly Hills Sports Council.

Santander, 29, is coming off yet another solid season as a potent middle-of-the-order bat with the Orioles. The switch hitter slugged 28 home runs in 2023 while batting .257/.325/.472. That line translated to a wRC+ of 119, indicating he was 19% better than the league average hitter overall. His defense isn’t considered as strong as his offense but his glovework received better grades last year than it did in 2022.

This is his fourth arbitration season, as he was a Super Two player going into 2021. He and the O’s went to a hearing that year, with the club winning and paying him a salary of $2.1MM, as opposed to his filing number of $2.475MM. He then avoided arbitration in each subsequent campaign, earning $3.15MM in 2022 and $7.4MM last year before this year’s bump into eight-figure territory. MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projected a bump to $12.7MM, though Santander will come in a bit below that.

Due to the O’s avoiding notable free agent deals, Santander will remarkably be second on the club in terms of the salary the O’s are paying. Craig Kimbrel is at the top of he list, making a $12MM salary and he has a $1MM buyout on a 2025 option. James McCann is also set to make $12MM this year but the Mets are paying $8MM of that as part of the trade they made with the O’s just over a year ago.

Due to the club’s surplus of outfielders and position players in general, there has been some speculation the O’s would use that to line up a trade for some pitching. There’s still plenty of time for that to happen but nothing significant has happened thus far. That leaves Santander in the corner outfield/designated hitter mix alongside guys like Austin Hays, Ryan Mountcastle, Ryan O’Hearn, Sam Hilliard, Heston Kjerstad, Colton Cowser, Ryan McKenna and Kyle Stowers. Santander is slated to become a free agent after the 2024 season.

Mariners, Michael Chavis Agree To Minor League Deal

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The Mariners and free-agent infielder Michael Chavis have agreed to a minor league contract, reports ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel. He’ll in big league camp as a non-roster invitee this spring.

Now 28 years old, Chavis was the Red Sox’ first-round pick back in 2014 and was considered one of Boston’s top prospects prior to his big league debut. He got out to a hot start in his 2019 rookie showing, and while he faded a bit at season’s end, Chavis’ overall .254/.322/.444 slash and 18 home runs gave him the look of someone who’d be a long-term piece in Boston.

Instead, the late-season struggles from 2019 trickled into 2020. Chavis batted just .212/.259/.377 in the pandemic-shortened 2020 campaign, and he’s struggled to regain his footing during brief stops with the Pirates and Nationals. Overall, since that mostly productive rookie effort, Chavis owns a tepid .231/.265/.382 batting line. He’s popped 42 home runs in 1186 MLB plate appearances and shown particular power against lefties (.200 ISO), but he’ll be a depth piece and a project for the Mariners at this point.

Chavis has experience all around the diamond. He’s spent the bulk of his time at first base but also has more than 800 innings at second base, 133 innings at the hot corner and 102 innings of corner outfield work in his MLB career. He’ll give the M’s a potential righty bat off the bench, and if he doesn’t land a roster spot this spring he’ll likely open the year in Triple-A Tacoma.

Cubs Designate Brian Serven For Assignment

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The Cubs announced they’ve designated catcher Brian Serven for assignment. The move clears the necessary opening on the 40-man roster for the two players acquired in this afternoon’s trade with the Dodgers: Michael Busch and Yency Almonte.

Serven is a newcomer to the Chicago organization in his own right. The Cubs claimed him off waivers from Colorado six days ago. They’ll now trade him or, more likely, put him back on waivers within the next week.

Until that claim, Serven had spent his whole career with the Rockies. Colorado selected him in the fifth round of the 2016 draft out of Arizona State. He reached the majors six years later and worked as their backup catcher for a good portion of the ’22 campaign. The right-handed hitter posted a .203/.261/.332 batting line over 62 contests as a rookie.

Colorado went with a catching tandem of Elias Díaz and Austin Wynns for the bulk of last season. Serven only appeared at the MLB level 11 times. He got into 38 contests with their Triple-A team in Albuquerque. Despite an extremely favorable environment for hitters, he managed only a .199/.241/.331 slash over 162 plate appearances.

Serven had turned in better offensive results earlier in his minor league career. He’s a .240/.310/.418 hitter in a little under 1500 minor league plate appearances. That’s still fairly tepid work at the dish, but the Cubs placed a claim a week ago on the strength of his defensive reputation. Serven received solid marks for his pitch framing in 2022 and has strong caught stealing numbers throughout his minor league tenure.

Yankees Sign Luke Weaver To Major League Deal

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The Yankees announced they have signed right-hander Luke Weaver to a one-year deal with a club option. Robert Murray of FanSided initially reported the deal, noting that Weaver will make $2MM in 2024 with the potential for the deal to max out at $8.25MM. The deal for the Ballengee Group client is pending a physical. Jon Heyman of The New York Post relays that there are performance bonuses in 2024 while the 2025 option comes with a $2.5MM base salary and escalators based on innings pitched in 2024 that could push it to $6MM.

Luke Weaver | Jake Roth-USA TODAY SportsWeaver, 30, had a nomadic season in 2023, one which he finished with the Yankees. They claimed him off waivers from the Mariners in mid-September and he made three starts for the club down the stretch. He tossed 13 1/3 innings over those outings and had a solid earned run average of 3.38.

That’s obviously a small sample of work and the rest of his season wasn’t nearly as impressive. He signed a $2MM deal with the Reds for the year but posted a 6.87 ERA in 97 innings for that club. He was released in August and signed with the Mariners, logging 13 1/3 innings for them with a 6.08 ERA before heading to the Yanks to finish out the year. Between the three clubs, he talled 123 2/3 frames with a 6.40 ERA, 19.4% strikeout rate, 7.1% walk rate and 35.5% ground ball rate.

The righty has shown better form in the past, including a stretch from 2017 to 2019 when he posted a 4.21 ERA in 261 innings between the Cardinals and Diamondbacks, with Weaver joining Andrew Young and Carson Kelly as the return in the Paul Goldschmidt trade. He paired a 23.4% strikeout rate in that time with a 7.6% walk rate, also getting grounders on 43.5% of balls in play. But his ERA jumped to 6.58 in the shortened 2020 season. He recovered somewhat in 2021, getting that down to 4.25, but missed time due to a strained shoulder and elbow inflammation and only made 13 starts.

In 2022, the Diamondbacks moved him to a relief role, which didn’t work out. He finished the year with a 6.56 ERA, split between the Snakes and the Royals, getting flipped at the deadline for Emmanuel Rivera. The Reds took a shot on him and moved him back to a starting role but, as mentioned, that didn’t work out well either.

Overall, he goes into 2024 with a 5.14 ERA which isn’t immediately impressive. He has never really had control problems, however, having never walked more than 8.9% of hitters in any season and currently sporting a 7.4% rate for his career. For reference, the league average in 2023 with 8.6%. Perhaps there’s some bad luck overall in his results, as his .328 batting average on balls in play and 68.4% strand rate are reach on the unfortunate side of average. ERA estimators such as his 4.31 FIP and 4.20 SIERA paint a more flattering picture than his actual ERA. But on the other hand, his strikeouts have ticked down for four straight seasons now.

The Yankees put a sizable dent in their pitching depth with the Juan Soto trade, as Michael King, Drew Thorpe, Jhony Brito and Randy Vásquez were each sent to San Diego. The Yanks are set to have Gerrit Cole ace the ace this year, with Carlos Rodón and Nestor Cortes each looking to bounce back from injury-related struggles in 2023. Clarke Schmidt should be line for a back end job. The club has also been heavily connected to free agent starters like Blake Snell, Jordan Montgomery and Marcus Stroman, as well as trade candidates like Dylan Cease.

Even if they do land another starter in the coming weeks, depth will still be important. Almost no club gets through a season using only its top five projected starters, with each team inevitably needing to turn to starter number six and seven and so on. The Yanks have Clayton Beeter, Luis Gil, Yoendrys Gómez, Cody Poteet and Will Warren around as depth options but Weaver will presumably jump into that mix.

Though his results on the season as a whole were poor in 2023, he finished strong in pinstripes and they must have liked what they saw. He’s also a former first-round pick and top prospect, in addition to having some decent major league results in the past. The $2MM salary isn’t far beyond this year’s $740K major league minimum, but the Yankees are slated to be a third-time competitive balance tax payor, with Roster Resource projecting a $291MM CBT figure at the moment. That puts them above the third tax line and near the fourth and final line of $297MM. Their current level of spending has a 95% and it would be 110% for any spending beyond the top line, so the Yanks will effectively be paying double for Weaver and anyone else they sign from now on.

If Weaver doesn’t have a rotation job to start the season, he will likely find himself in a bullpen job, perhaps as a long reliever. He has over five years of major league service time and cannot be optioned to the minors without his consent. If the Yanks want to remove him from the active roster at any point, they will need to work out a trade or designate him for assignment.

Cubs Acquire Michael Busch, Yency Almonte

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The Dodgers and Cubs announced a trade sending rookie infielder Michael Busch and reliever Yency Almonte from Los Angeles to Chicago for prospects Jackson Ferris and Zyhir Hope. The deal clears a pair of 40-man roster spots for L.A. — one of which will go Teoscar Hernández once his free agent pact is finalized. The Cubs designated catcher Brian Serven for assignment in a corresponding move.

Busch has the more significant value of the players headed to Chicago. Los Angeles selected the UNC product with the 31st overall pick in the 2019 draft. Regarded as a bat-first prospect with questions about his defensive fit, Busch has mostly lived up to that billing during his time in the minors.

Over parts of four seasons, the left-handed hitter owns a .283/.390/.529 line. That includes a robust .293/.385/.544 showing in just under 1000 plate appearances at Triple-A. Busch has connected on 48 home runs and 58 doubles with an excellent 11.8% walk rate at the top minor league level. His 22.5% strikeout rate is closer to league average, but Busch has shown a strong combination of power and patience.

Despite his excellent Triple-A production, the 26-year-old hasn’t gotten much of an MLB opportunity. He didn’t reach the majors until last April. He appeared in 27 games scattered over the course of the season. Through his first 81 plate appearances, he hit only .167/.247/.292 with a pair of home runs. He struck out in a third of his trips.

There’s not much to be gleaned from such a small sample of MLB work. At the same time, that the Dodgers haven’t given Busch extended run is indicative of a few factors. The Dodgers have had strong position player groups in recent years. That’s an impediment to a young hitter, but L.A. had some questions at second base and left field last season. Were Busch regarded as a better defensive player, perhaps he’d have forced his way into the discussion at one or both of those spots.

L.A. has given Busch opportunities at a few positions in the minors. While he has played primarily second base, he’s also gotten work at both corner infield spots and in left field. Prospect evaluators have graded him as a below-average defender at every spot, raising questions about his athleticism and arm strength. Baseball America nevertheless ranked him as the top prospect in the Dodgers system this offseason on the strength of his offensive ceiling.

In some respects, the Cubs will face the same question on Busch as they do on Christopher Morel — where to find at-bats for a promising hitter who hasn’t defended well at any position. That’d most likely come at a corner infield spot or at DH. Morel projects for a starting role at either first base or DH. Some combination of Patrick Wisdom and Nick Madrigal are the top options at the hot corner. The Cubs could still pursue a free agent target at either spot — they’ve been tied to Rhys Hoskins and Matt Chapman this winter — but Busch adds an affordable, high-upside lefty bat to the mix.

Busch still has a pair of minor league option years, so he’s not a lock to open the season on the MLB roster. He’s at least three years from arbitration and won’t be eligible for free agency for at least six seasons. Future minor league assignments could push that back even further.

A secondary part of the return, Almonte steps into the middle relief corps. The 29-year-old righty pitched in 49 games a year ago, working to a 5.06 ERA across 48 innings. He struck hitters out at a solid 23.6% clip but issued free passes to more than 11% of opponents. That continues an up-and-down career for Almonte, who has three seasons with a sub-3.00 ERA and a trio of campaigns allowing more than five earned runs per nine.

Almonte and the Dodgers already agreed to a $1.9MM arbitration salary back in November. The Cubs will take on that near-$2MM sum to add a pitcher with a mid-90s fastball and a low-80s sweeper that has generated a strong number of whiffs throughout his career. He’s out of options, so he’ll very likely have a spot in the Opening Day bullpen. The Cubs could control him via arbitration for the 2025 season as well.

To add immediate MLB help, Chicago parts with two promising lower-level players. Ferris, who turns 20 next week, was a second-round pick in the 2022 draft. A 6’4″ left-hander, he signed for a well overslot $3MM bonus as a high school prospect. Ferris made his professional debut last season, turning in a 3.38 ERA over 18 starts for Low-A Myrtle Beach. He punched out nearly a third of his opponents while walking almost 14% of batters faced.

As a young, lanky pitching prospect, it’s not particularly surprising that Ferris has yet to dial in his control. Baseball America praised a 93-95 MPH fastball and a pair of potential above-average or plus breaking balls this offseason, slotting him as the #10 prospect in the Chicago system. He’s a high-upside development play whose future will largely be determined by how well his command develops.

Hope was an overslot signee for $400K in the 11th round last summer. A left-handed hitting outfielder from a Virginia high school, he played in 11 rookie ball games after the draft. In a pre-draft report, BA wrote that Hope was among the fastest players in last year’s class. He’s regarded as a viable fit in center field with a line drive approach, although BA expressed trepidation about his aggressiveness at the dish.

Juan Toribio of MLB.com first reported the Dodgers were discussing Almonte and Busch in trades with the Cubs. Jon Heyman of the New York Post confirmed an Almonte deal was agreed upon. Ken Rosenthal of the Athletic reported the Dodgers were receiving two players not on the 40-man roster, which Toribio specified included a highly-regarded pitching prospect. Ari Alexander of KPRC 2 was first to report L.A. would receive Ferris and Hope.

Images courtesy of USA Today Sports.

Diamondbacks Avoid Arbitration With Christian Walker, Paul Sewald

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The Diamondbacks and first baseman Christian Walker have agreed to a deal to avoid arbitration, per Robert Murray of FanSided. The CAA Sports client will make a salary of $10.9MM in 2024. Right-hander Paul Sewald, a client of ISE Baseball, has also settled and will make $7.35MM this year.

Walker, 33 in March, has settled in nicely as an above-average first baseman for the Snakes. He hit 33 home runs last year and had solid walk and strikeout rates of 9.4% and 19.2%, respectively. His .258/.333/.497  batting line translated to a wRC+ of 120, indicating he was 20% above league average. His defense was also highly regarded, leading to 12 Outs Above Average, nine Defensive Runs Saved and a grade of 3.5 from Ultimate Zone Rating.

All of those numbers were quite close to his 2022 season, when he hit 36 homers, walked at a 10.3% clip and struck out in 19.6% of his plate appearances. He had a batting line of .242/.327/.477, 123 wRC+, 14 OAA, 17 DRS and 5.4 UZR.

This is his third trip through arbitration, as he made $2.6MM in 2022 and $6.5MM last year. MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projected him for a raise to $12.7MM in 2024, but he’ll come in almost $2MM below that. It’s his final season of club control before he’s slated for free agency.

Sewald, 34 in May, is also in his final season before hitting the open market. A late bloomer, he established himself as an excellent reliever in a breakout season with the Mariners in 2021, posting a 3.06 earned run average. He carried that over into 2022 and lowered his ERA to 2.67, racking up 20 saves in the process.

He continued to serve as Seattle’s closer until a deadline trade that sent Josh Rojas, Dominic Canzone and Ryan Bliss to the Mariners. Sewald continued to pitch well and stabilized the bullpen in the desert, helping the club push all the way to the World Series. He finished the year with a 3.12 ERA and 34 saves, plus six more saves in the playoffs. He made $1.735MM in 2022, his first arbitration season, then $4.1MM last year. He was projected for a raise to $7.3MM this year but will barely edge past that.

Rays, Shane McClanahan Agree To Two-Year Deal

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The Rays have agreed to a two-year, $7.2MM contract with ace Shane McClanahan, reports Robert Murray of FanSided. It’ll buy out the left-hander’s first two seasons of arbitration. McClanahan, who underwent Tommy John surgery in August, will spend the bulk of the contract’s first year rehabbing. He’d been projected by MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz to earn $3.6MM this coming season, based on the strength of his pre-arbitration platform. Murray adds that McClanahan’s 2025 salary will be boosted by $120K for every start he makes in 2024. The Rays can control the southpaw through the 2027 season.

McClanahan, 26, was the No. 31 overall draft pick in 2018 and has arguably surpassed even those lofty draft standards with his performance to date. Since making his MLB debut in the 2020 postseason, the southpaw has emerged as Tampa Bay’s clear top starter. From 2021-23, he logged 404 2/3 innings of 3.02 ERA ball with a 28% strikeout rate, 7.1% walk rate and 46.8% ground-ball rate.

McClanahan has averaged 97 mph on his heater in each of the past two seasons and was the sixth-place finisher in 2022 Cy Young voting in the American League. Were it not for a shoulder impingement that cost him three weeks late in the 2022 season, McClanahan might’ve had a legitimate chance at winning the award — or at least overtaking Dylan Cease as the runner-up. When he landed on the injured list, he’d pitched 147 1/3 innings with a dominant 2.20 earned run average, a massive 32.5% strikeout rate and a 5.4% walk rate. Upon returning, he stumbled with a 5.21 ERA in his final four starts, dropping him down the ballot that eventually saw Justin Verlander win the award in unanimous fashion.

In all likelihood, last August’s Tommy John surgery will keep McClanahan shelved into the 2024 season’s final month or perhaps wipe out his ’24 season entirely. He’s one of three key starters who suffered a major injury for Tampa Bay last year, joining Jeffrey Springs (Tommy John surgery) and Drew Rasmussen (internal brace surgery). That trio of injuries has depleted the Rays’ once-enviable pitching depth. Their current quintet of Zach Eflin, Aaron Civale, reliever-turned-starter Zack Littell and young righties Ryan Pepiot and Taj Bradley has plenty of upside but lacks stability (particularly when considering the injury histories of veterans Eflin and Civale). Former top prospect Shane Baz will return from his own Tommy John surgery at some point, but the Rays still seem likely to add some rotation help this winter.

As for McClanahan, he figures to be back at full strength for Opening Day 2025. In an ideal world, both he and Baz will recapture the form that made them elite pitching prospects (and, in McClanahan’s case, a two-time All-Star) and lead the starting staff for several years. McClanahan finished the 2023 season with 2.158 years of MLB service, making him a slam-dunk Super Two player and setting the stage for him to be arb-eligible four times. This two-year deal takes care of the first two of those arb years, but he’ll be eligible again both in 2026 and 2027.

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