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Brewers Decline Option On Brad Boxberger

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1:48pm: Milwaukee general manager Matt Arnold told reporters Boxberger went unclaimed on waivers before the team decided on the option (via Todd Rosiak of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel). Had another team claimed him off waivers, they could’ve controlled him for $3MM while saving Milwaukee the buyout money. Arnold noted that indicates no team presently values Boxberger at $3MM but suggested the Brewers could be open to a reunion at some point down the line.

12:51pm: The Brewers announced they’ve declined their $3MM option on reliever Brad Boxberger. The 34-year-old collects a $750K buyout and heads back to the open market.

It was only a $2.25MM decision, which seems a reasonable sum for a pitcher who posted a 2.95 ERA over 64 innings this year. That makes this a moderately surprising move, but there are a number of underlying marks in Boxberger’s profile that explain why the Milwaukee front office wasn’t bullish about his chances of repeating that success.

The right-hander got swinging strikes on a below-average 9.5% of his pitches, two points lower than the league mark. That was the worst whiff rate in any of his 11 MLB seasons, although he offset that somewhat with one of the better called-strike rates of his career. Boxberger still struck out a slightly above-average 25.4% of opposing hitters, but he didn’t dominate on a pitch-for-pitch basis as he has at his best. His velocity also took a slight step back, with his fastball sitting at 92.7 MPH after averaging 93.5 MPH in 2021.

Missing bats has long been Boxberger’s calling card, as he’s never had great control or consistently strong ground-ball rates. He has been effective keeping runs off the board, posting an ERA of 3.34 or lower in each of the last three years. Manager Craig Counsell continued to rely upon him in high-leverage spots, but the front office clearly isn’t of the opinion he’ll continue to be a fit in that kind of role.

Despite some of the red flags in Boxberger’s profile, he could find a major league deal with a similar base salary to the option value in free agency. He has plenty of high-leverage experience, including a 41-save All-Star campaign with the 2015 Rays. He’s also been a durable source of innings in middle relief and setup work, avoiding the injured list three years running.

Will Sammon of the Athletic reported the news before the team announcement.

Yankees Select Jhony Brito, Matt Krook

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The Yankees announced they’ve selected pitchers Jhony Brito and Matt Krook onto the 40-man roster. New York also outrighted outfielder Tim Locastro off the roster, and the speedster elected minor league free agency upon clearing waivers.

Both Brito and Krook have played seven seasons in the minor leagues. That’d have given the right to elect free agency this evening if the Yankees didn’t place them on the 40-man roster. New York clearly values both enough to keep them from hitting the open market, with each player cracking a 40-man for the first time.

Brito, 25 in February, is a former amateur signee out of the Dominican Republic. He’s a quality strike-thrower, and Baseball America wrote this summer that he could develop into a back-of-the-rotation starter. The righty split this year between Double-A Somerset and Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, working to a 2.96 ERA through 112 2/3 combined innings. He only struck out 20% of opponents but had a tiny 7.7% walk rate.

Krook spent the whole year in Scranton, starting 22 of 29 appearances. The University of Oregon product, a fourth-round draftee back in 2016, pitched to a 4.09 ERA over 138 2/3 frames. He had a solid 25.7% strikeout percentage but walked an elevated 12.1% of batters faced. The left-hander is generally regarded by evaluators as a likely future reliever.

Locastro, a 30-year-old outfielder, has seen sporadic action for the Yankees in each of the last two seasons. He appeared in 38 games this year but worked mostly as a late-game entrant based on his speed and defense. Locastro hit .186/.239/.349 in 46 plate appearances this year and is a career .227/.325/.331 hitter. He spent most of the season in Scranton, putting up a .240/.332/.395 line over 47 games.

Blue Jays Select Nathan Lukes

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The Blue Jays announced a few roster moves, selecting outfielder Nathan Lukes to the 40-man roster. He would have qualified for minor league free agency today otherwise. Additionally, Hyun Jin Ryu and Vinny Capra were reinstated from the 60-day IL.

Lukes, 28, spent most of his minor league career in the Rays’ system before reaching free agency a year ago. He signed a minor league deal with the Jays and spent 2022 with the Triple-A Buffalo Bisons. He got into 111 games and hit .285/.364/.425 for a wRC+ of 111. He also swiped 20 bags on the year.

Defensively, Lukes split his time between the three outfield positions, though spent more in center than the corners. He could be an interesting fourth outfielder for the Jays, especially given his left-handed bat. The club skews heavily right-handed, particularly in the outfield. All four of George Springer, Lourdes Gurriel Jr., Teoscar Hernandez and Whit Merrifield hit from the right side.

As for Ryu and Capra, those moves are formalities since the IL ends today and doesn’t come back until Spring Training. That means all players must be reinstated or else removed from the roster in some way. Ryu required Tommy John surgery in June and will miss at least half of 2023. Capra was recalled from the minors in October and placed on the IL due to left middle finger tendon surgery.

Brewers Claim Tyson Miller From Rangers

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The Brewers have claimed right-hander Tyson Miller off waivers from the Rangers, according to announcements from both clubs.

Miller, 27, was a fourth round pick of the Cubs and made a very brief MLB debut with them in 2020. The proverbial cup of coffee resulted in five innings pitched over two appearances. He went to the Rangers on a waiver claim in 2021 but didn’t make it back to the show that year.

Here in 2022, he spent most of his time in Triple-A, getting into 29 games there with 16 of those being starts. He logged 89 2/3 innings in that time with a 4.52 ERA, 28.6% strikeout rate, 10.1% walk rate and 45.5% ground ball rate. The long ball was an issue for him, as he watched it go over the fence 14 times in that sample. He also logged 10 2/3 innings in the majors though was hit hard to a 10.97 ERA in that time.

Miller still has an option remaining, allowing the Brewers to keep him in the minors as depth. If they can find a way to suppress those homers, the rest of his results look pretty good.

Giants To Decline Evan Longoria’s Option

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The Giants have declined their $13MM club option on Evan Longoria, the third baseman tells Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle (Twitter link). He’ll collect a $5MM buyout and head to free agency.

It’s hardly surprising news, as reports emerged last month the team was leaning towards buying Longoria out, although they could still revisit talks at a lower price point. The hefty buyout figure made this an $8MM call for San Francisco, but they’ve still deemed that too high after he’s appeared in just over half the team’s games over the past couple seasons. Within the past two years, the veteran infielder has had injured list stints for right hamstring, left oblique and left shoulder issues, in addition to surgery on his right hand.

Heading into his age-37 season with that recent injury history, Longoria may be a tough fit for a Giants club that is prioritizing youth and athleticism this winter, according to president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi. That’s particularly true with the team re-signing another right-handed hitting third base option, Wilmer Flores, to a two-year deal late in the year.

To his credit, Longoria has played well when healthy. He has a combined .252/.333/.466 line in 589 plate appearances going back to the start of the 2021 season. That includes an excellent .295/.379/.536 showing against left-handed pitching, making the three-time All-Star a particularly strong fit for teams seeking righty-hitting infield help. The Diamondbacks, Royals and Marlins could all fit that description, making them viable speculative possibilities.

Longoria has previously alluded to the possibility of retiring after an illustrious 15-year big league career. That’s at least theoretically possible, although he tells Slusser this afternoon he’s looking forward to seeing what free agency might offer. That at least suggests he’s open to opportunities to continue playing in 2023.

Mets To Pick Up Options On Carlos Carrasco, John Curtiss

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The Mets are going to pick up Carlos Carrasco’s option for 2023, per Tim Healey of Newsday. He’ll earn a $14MM salary instead of a $3MM buyout. They will also pick up their $775K option on reliever John Curtiss instead of the $70K buyout, per Mike Puma of The New York Post.

Carrasco, 36 in March, has been up-and-down over the past few years, with injuries usually contributing to the down parts. Acquired by the Mets prior to 2021, he only tossed 52 2/3 innings last year with a 6.04 ERA. 2020 was much better, as he was healthy enough to make 29 starts and toss 152 frames. In that time, he registered a 3.97 ERA with a 23.6% strikeout rate, 6.4% walk rate and 46% ground ball rate. With the $14MM option price and $3MM buyout, it was a net $11MM decision for the club. There’s certainly risk in that kind of commitment given Carrasco’s injury history, but it’s also possible that he’s well worth that salary.

What also likely played a role in the Mets’ decision was their broad rotation picture. Jacob deGrom opted out of his contract while Taijuan Walker and Chris Bassitt declined options in favor of free agency. That’s left three big holes in the club’s starting staff for next year. Even if Carrasco’s age and injury history caused them to consider turning down his option at any point, they might have been dissuaded from doing so by the circumstances. Replacing three starters is challenging enough without creating another vacancy.

With Carrasco now retained, he will slot in behind Max Scherzer as two of the club’s starters next year. There are some in-house options for filling the remaining three slots, such as Tylor Megill, David Peterson, Joey Lucchesi and Jose Butto. However, the Mets have been quite aggressive in upgrading their roster in recent years and will likely bring in reinforcements, either fresh faces or convincing their departing free agents to return.

As for Curtiss, 30 in April, he seemed to be having a breakout in recent years. In 2020, he tossed 25 innings for the Rays with a 1.80 ERA, 25.3% strikeout rate, 3% walk rate and 42% ground ball rate. He got traded to the Marlins prior to 2021 and then to the Brewers a few months later. He posted a 3.45 ERA over 44 1/3 innings that year but then required Tommy John surgery in September.

After he was non-tendered by the Brewers, the Mets signed him to a one-year deal, knowing that he would miss the entire 2022 campaign, but with the option for 2023. The $775K salary is barely above the league minimum, which will be $720K next year. There’s little risk in the Mets picking it up and seeing if Curtiss can bounceback to his old form once healthy. They also face a huge amount of turnover in the bullpen, as Mychal Givens, Adam Ottavino, Trevor Williams, Joely Rodriguez, Seth Lugo, Trevor May and Tommy Hunter are all now free agents. Edwin Díaz was set to join that group before he and the Mets agreed to a new contract. Given that the Mets will need to essentially rebuild their entire bullpen, it makes sense to retain any warm they can find.

With these two salaries now on the books, the Mets’ payroll for 2023 is up to $238MM, according to Roster Resource. Their CBT number is slightly ahead at $249MM, since that figure is calculated by looking at the annual average value of contracts over their entire length, not just the 2023 salaries. This year’s top luxury tax bracket will begin at $293MM, with owner Steve Cohen hinting to Jon Heyman and Joel Sherman of The New York Post that he could be willing to spend in that range. If that’s the case, the club still has some funds available to continue upgrading the pitching staff and the positional player mix.

Reds Acquire Nick Solak From Rangers

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The Reds have acquired outfielder Nick Solak from the Rangers in exchange for cash considerations, according to an announcement from Texas.

Solak, 28, in January, was a second round pick of the Yankees in 2016 but was traded to the Rays as part of the 2018 three-team deal that saw the Yanks get Brandon Drury and the Diamondbacks get Steven Souza Jr. In July of 2019, the Rays flipped him to Texas for Pete Fairbanks.

After that second trade, Solak made his MLB debut with the Rangers, getting into 33 games down the stretch in 2019. It could hardly have gone much better, as Solak hit .293/.393/.491 in that stretch for a wRC+ of 126. He played second and third base in that time, giving the Rangers an exciting option for the infield.

Unfortunately, he hasn’t been able to maintain those results since then. Over 2020 and 2021, he hit .250/.318/.357 for a wRC+ of just 88. He also struggled defensively and got pushed into a corner outfield role, putting more pressure on him to provide value offensively. He was optioned on and off the team throughout 2022, only getting into 35 big league games and not hitting too much when in the lineup. He finished the season on the IL due to a foot fracture and needed to be reinstated since the IL goes away today and doesn’t come back until Spring Training. Instead of adding him back to the roster, the club has swung a deal and sent him to Cincinnati.

For the Reds, there’s little harm in taking a shot on a bounceback. They’ve been stripping the roster down for the past couple of years and aren’t likely to be competitive here in 2023. Although Solak has struggled at the big league level in the past few years, he’s still performed well in Triple-A. In 2022, that led to a batting line of .278/.371/.489 and a wRC+ of 114.

The Reds have some other outfield options, such as Nick Senzel, TJ Friedl, Jake Fraley and Aristides Aquino, though none of them are really set in stone. Solak still has one option year remaining, which means the Reds don’t even need to commit an active roster spot for him. If he can get his bat back on track, he still has years of arbitration control remaining.

Rays Decline Kevin Kiermaier’s Option

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The Rays announced they’ve officially declined their option over outfielder Kevin Kiermaier. Kiermaier collects a $2.5MM buyout and heads to free agency for the first time in his career.

There hasn’t much suspense with this decision, as reports emerged in early August that Tampa Bay would buy the center fielder out. That would’ve been an easy call for any team, as Kiermaier would otherwise have been in line for a $13MM salary next year. He’s coming off season-ending surgery to repair the labrum in his left hip. With a $10.5MM gap between the option value and the buyout price, cutting him loose was a particularly easy call for a Rays club that consistently runs one of the league’s lower payrolls.

The move could officially end Kiermaier’s 10-year tenure in Tampa Bay. One of the game’s best defensive outfielders at his peak, he’s collected three Gold Glove awards in his career. The Rays have long placed an emphasis on strong defense, and that focus was baked into the club’s decision to sign Kiermaier to a $53.5MM extension back in 2017. He’s battled injuries and typically been a below-average hitter over that stretch, but he’s continued to play spectacular defense when healthy enough to take the field.

Both Kiermaier and Rays executives have expressed an openness to continuing their relationship, although that’d certainly come at a lower price point than the value of the option. Meanwhile, Bob Nightengale of USA Today suggests the Cardinals could have some interest in Kiermaier as a free agent. St. Louis already has Dylan Carlson as their primary center fielder, meaning Kiermaier would likely be a fourth outfield target if the Cards did reach out to his representatives at Reynolds Sports Management.

It’s possible Kiermaier may find better opportunities to play every day in center field elsewhere. He’s headed into his age-33 season and coming off a disappointing .228/.281/.369 showing in 221 plate appearances before the hip surgery. Yet he’s also still one of the sport’s better defensive outfielders, and he’s arguably the second-best center fielder available in a weak free agent class. Excepting top free agent Aaron Judge, who’s better suited for right field long-term, only Brandon Nimmo looks like a slam-dunk regular to play center field next year. Nimmo’s likely to command a nine-figure contract of his own, and Kiermaier is alongside players like Jackie Bradley Jr. and Adam Duvall as the next tier of options. The Dodgers could non-tender Cody Bellinger, which would cut loose a plus defender coming off a couple seasons of offensive struggles, but the options aren’t robust for teams looking for outside help in center field.

Red Sox To Select Enmanuel Valdez

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The Red Sox are going to select the contract of infielder Enmanuel Valdez today, according to Christopher Smith of MassLive. Acquired in the Christian Vázquez trade, Valdez was set to reach minor league free agency but will instead get a spot on Boston’s 40-man roster.

Valdez, who turns 24 next month, spent six and a half seasons in the minors of the Astros’ system. For the purposes of seven-year minor league free agency, 2020 counts as a year even though no official games were played due to the pandemic. In that time, he never got a huge amount of attention from prospect evaluators, having never appeared on a Baseball America list of top Houston farmhands coming into this year. FanGraphs gave him an honorable mention on their lists going into 2019, 2020 and 2021.

2022 was a big breakout for Valdez, however, with his bat taking a big step forward. Prior to the trade, he split his time between Double-A and Triple-A and produced a combined batting line of .327/.410/.606 for a wRC+ of 151. He slumped a bit after the deal, hitting .237/.309/.422 for a wRC+ of 92. But nonetheless, the Boston brass are intrigued enough that they have given Valdez a roster spot.

He doesn’t appear to have a set position at the moment, having spent time at first, second and third base in 2022, as well as the outfield corners. The Sox have an uncertain position player mix at the moment, with Xander Bogaerts now a free agent. They could look to have Trevor Story or Enrique Hernández cover short, but that would then create a vacancy at second base or center field. Of course, there’s also the possibility of the club re-signing Bogaerts, though it remains to be seen if that’s in the cards. Regardless, Valdez will join Christian Arroyo, Yu Chang and Jeter Downs as depth/utility types battling for playing time next season.

Braves Select Michael Tonkin, Seth Elledge

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The Braves announced some roster moves today, selecting the contracts of right-handers Michael Tonkin and Seth Elledge. They also reinstated catcher Manny Piña and righty Huascar Ynoa from the injured list. The 40-man roster is now full.

Both Tonkin and Elledge signed minor league deals with the club last offseason and would have been able to elect minor league free agency today. However, it seems Atlanta was impressed enough by both of their minor league seasons that they wanted to prevent them from getting away and have given each of them spots on the 40-man roster.

Tonkin, 33 next week, got some MLB action with the Twins from 2013 to 2017 but hasn’t made it back to the big leagues since. He has a career 4.43 ERA in 146 1/3 innings from that time. In the years since, he’s bounced around quite a bit, including stints in Japan and with Indy Ball teams. In 2022, he spent the whole season with Triple-A Gwinnett, throwing 48 1/3 innings over 47 appearances. He posted a 3.17 ERA along with excellent rate stats, such as a 36.5% strikeout rate, 7.5% walk rate and 50% ground ball rate. He’s out of options but the club evidently thinks there’s a chance he can help the big league bullpen next year.

Elledge, 27 in May, got brief MLB stints with the Cardinals in 2020 and 2021, bizarrely throwing exactly 11 2/3 innings and posting a 4.63 ERA in each of those two campaigns. He was designated for assignment and outrighted in October of last year before joining the Braves on a minor league deal. He made 43 appearances for Gwinnett, tossing 46 1/3 innings with a 3.88 ERA. That came with an excellent strikeout rate of 33.7%. Unlike Tonkin, he does have options remaining and can serve as depth in the minor leagues next season.

As for Piña and Ynoa, those moves are formalities as there is no injured list in the offseason, meaning the club had to either reinstate those players or else cut them from the roster entirely. It was around this time last year when Atlanta signed Piña to a two-year deal. Unfortunately, he required season-ending wrist surgery in May after getting into just five games. As for Ynoa, he underwent Tommy John surgery in September and will likely miss the entire 2023 campaign. If he hangs onto his roster spot through the winter, he can spend all of next year on the 60-day IL.

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