Mets Return Rule 5 Pick Zach Greene To Yankees
Right-hander Zach Greene, whom the Mets selected in the 2022 Rule 5 Draft, has cleared waivers and will be returned to the Yankees organization, reports Anthony DiComo of MLB.com (via Twitter). The Yankees are not required to add him to the 40-man roster.
Greene, 26, was the Yankees’ eighth-round pick back in 2019. As a player selected in the Rule 5 Draft, he’d have had to spend the entire season on the Mets’ roster or injured list (with at least 90 of those days coming on the active roster) in order for the Mets to be able to option him the following season. Before being offered back to his original team, a Rule 5 selection must first pass unclaimed through the entire league on outright waivers, which was the case in this instance.
Greene spent the 2022 season, his age-25 campaign, pitching with the Yankees’ Triple-A affiliate. He logged 68 1/3 innings out of the bullpen, notching a 3.42 ERA with a huge 33.3% strikeout rate but a bloated 11.1% walk rate. Eric Longenhagen and Tess Taruskin of FanGraphs called him a potential three-pitch middle reliever when profiling last year’s Rule 5 class, noting that Greene’s delivery generated tremendous carry on his heater, which helps to offset the pitch’s below-average velocity.
With five relievers who can’t be optioned — Edwin Diaz, David Robertson, Adam Ottavino, Brooks Raley and Stephen Nogosek — the Mets were always going to have a hard time carrying a Rule 5 pick. That’s especially true considering one of the few optionable arms they do have was also one of their most effective relievers in 2022: right-hander Drew Smith. Carrying Greene would’ve likely left Smith and righty John Curtiss as the team’s only two optionable relievers, creating minimal flexibility to shuffle the staff when the bullpen needs an extra arm or the rotation needs a spot starter.
Blue Jays Sign Ernie Clement To Minor League Deal
The Blue Jays have signed infielder Ernie Clement to a minor league contract and invited him to spring training, tweets Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet. The A’s released Clement over the weekend.
Clement, 27 next week, had gone 2-for-11 with a walk, a strikeout and a stolen base in camp with Oakland, who claimed him off waivers from the Guardians back in September. He’s totaled 312 plate appearances and appeared in 109 big league games over the past two seasons, posting a tepid .204/.261/.264 batting line in that time. He’s also posted plus defensive grades in a small sample of innings at third base and is capable of bouncing around the entire infield.
The versatile Clement has spent parts of three seasons in Triple-A, where he’s a .261/.311/.419 hitter with experience at all four infield positions and in left field (to say nothing of extensive work at center field back in his college days at the University of Virginia). He’s not on the 40-man roster for now, but if the Jays eventually add him, he does have a minor league option remaining.
Toronto has a full big league infield and already has multiple bench spots allotted to infielders Cavan Biggio and Santiago Espinal, so the addition of Clement is likely just a pure depth move. Barring some late injuries in camp, he’ll likely open in the upper minors and give the organization some defensive versatility and a bit of speed to stash in Buffalo.
Trevor Bauer Signs With NPB’s Yokohama DeNA BayStars
7:06pm: The BayStars have officially announced Bauer’s signing on a one-year contract.
2:41pm: Free-agent right-hander Trevor Bauer has agreed to a one-year, $4MM deal with the Yokohama DeNA BayStars of Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball, as first reported by Japan’s Sankei Sports (Twitter link). Bauer had previously been suspended for 324 games under MLB’s joint domestic violence, sexual assault and child abuse policy. Back in December, commissioner Rob Manfred announced that Bauer’s suspension had been reduced, via appeal, to the 194 games he’d already served. He was immediately reinstated, and the Dodgers released him the following month.
For the past two months, Bauer has been a free agent who’s free to sign with any Major League team for the league minimum, as the Dodgers are on the hook for the remainder of his 2023 salary under the terms of the previous three-year, $102MM contract to which they signed him. No team has chosen to do so. It appears Bauer will now head overseas to pitch in Japan’s NPB, widely regarded as the second-best league in the world behind MLB, perhaps with an eye toward eventually engineering a return to Major League Baseball down the road.
When the Dodgers originally signed Bauer, he was heading into his age-30 season on the heels of a National League Cy Young win during the shortened 2020 season. Then a member of the Reds, Bauer tossed 73 innings of 1.73 ERA ball, striking out an elite 36% of his opponents against a strong 6.1% walk rate along the way. He got out to a strong start through 17 starts with the Dodgers (2.59 ERA 31.7% strikeout rate, 8.6% walk rate) and, over the course of his past 569 big league innings, carries a 3.07 earned run average.
Bauer’s Dodgers tenure came to an abrupt halt when, in June 2021, it came to light that a woman in California had filed a restraining order against him and accused him of sexual assault. An investigation by both Major League Baseball and the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s office ensued. Bauer spent the remainder of the 2021 season on paid administrative leave — a mutually agreed-upon status between MLB and the MLBPA that is not considered punitive in nature. (Administrative leave is common while players are being investigated under the domestic violence, sexual assault and child abuse policy.) During this time, two other women, both in Ohio, came forth with similar allegations against Bauer. The alleged incidents in those complaints came prior to the alleged incidents in California.
In August of 2021, the California plaintiff’s request for a long-term restraining order against Bauer was denied. A judge ruled that Bauer did not pose an ongoing threat to his accuser. Months later, the L.A. district attorney declined to pursue criminal charges. While the DA did not declare Bauer’s innocence, the department stated: “After a thorough review of the available evidence, including the civil restraining order proceedings, witness statements and the physical evidence, the People are unable to prove the relevant charges beyond a reasonable doubt.”
Major League Baseball’s domestic violence, sexual assault and child abuse policy does not require criminal charges to be enforced, however. Manfred, upon his own review of the evidence, opined that Bauer had indeed violated the policy and levied that record 324-game suspension, which was reduced to 194 games back in December. Immediately in the wake of Bauer’s reinstatement, reports emerged that several teams were completely uninterested in pursuing Bauer — the Yankees, Mets, Padres, Twins and Guardians among them.
Mets Place Zach Greene On Outright Waivers
The Mets have placed right-hander Zach Greene on outright waivers, MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo reports (Twitter link). Greene was selected away from the Yankees in December’s Rule 5 Draft, and unless another team claims Greene on waivers, the Mets will have to offer him back to the Yankees for $50K. If another team make a claim, they will assume Greene’s Rule 5 status, and will have to keep the hurler on their active roster for the entire season in order to fully obtain his rights.
Greene was an eighth-round pick for the Yankees in the 2019 draft, and he made a pretty quick rise through their farm system ranks even with the canceled 2020 minor league season interrupting development. He spent the entire 2022 season at Triple-A, and posted a 3.42 ERA and a strong 33.3% strikeout rate over 68 1/3 innings (almost all in relief except for four “starts” as an opener). An 11.1% walk rate was a weak point, and Greene has had pretty average control throughout his brief pro career.
With the Yankees filling their 40-man roster holes with other prospects, the 26-year-old Greene was left available for selection in the Rule 5 Draft. It was always going to be difficult for a win-now team like the Mets to try and carry a Rule 5 player on their roster all season, and after Greene’s struggles in Spring Training, the Mets have opted to part ways with the righty. Through 4 2/3 innings of Grapefruit League action, Greene posted a 13.50 ERA with more walks (six) than strikeouts (five).
Despite these uninspiring numbers, it’s not out of the question that another team (perhaps a non-contender) might take a chance on Greene to see if he can stick in their bullpen. The strikeout potential and overall profile is intriguing, and since Greene already has a full Triple-A season under his belt, he is more of a big league-ready player than a project, unlike many other Rule 5 picks.
Athletics Release Ernie Clement
The Athletics announced that infielder Ernie Clement has been released. Clement was claimed off waivers from the Guardians back in September, and was designated for assignment in December before clearing waivers and remaining with Oakland on an outright assignment.
A release this relatively early in Spring Training could be the Athletics’ way of giving Clement a jump on the open market, as more veterans will start getting cut from minor league deals the closer we get to Opening Day. Clement (who turns 27 later in March) will now become a free agent for the first time in his pro career.
Cleveland selected Clement in the fourth round of the 2017 draft, and the University of Virginia product hit .273/.328/.360 over 1340 plate appearances in the minors. Despite the lack of overall production, Clement still made his way up the minor league ladder due to his defensive versatility and his good contact numbers. This culminated in some MLB playing time in 2021 and 2022, but Clement has a lackluster .204/.261/.264 slash line over 312 PA with Cleveland and Oakland.
Clement played mostly second and third base at the big league level, with a handful of games as a left fielder, first baseman, and shortstop to boot (and even a couple of mop-up pitching appearances). This ability to play all over the diamond makes Clement an interesting candidate for teams in need of depth, so another minor league contract in short order wouldn’t be a surprise.
Diamondbacks, Corbin Carroll Agree To Eight-Year Deal
The Diamondbacks and outfielder Corbin Carroll are in agreement on an eight-year extension worth at least $111MM in guaranteed money. The deal also contains a $28MM club option for the 2031 season, and an additional $20MM is available in escalators covering the 2029-31 seasons. Carroll is represented by CAA Sports.
The deal begins with a $5MM signing bonus for Carroll and a $1MM salary this season. Carroll will then earn $3MM in 2024, $5MM in 2025, $10MM in 2026, $12MM in 2027, $14MM in 2028, and then $28MM in each of the 2029 and 2030 seasons. The $28MM club option for 2031 contains a $5MM buyout. The $20MM in escalator clauses are mostly related to Carroll’s finishes in awards voting during the course of the deal.
The extension will buy out the remainder of Carroll’s club-controlled years, as well as at least two of Carroll’s free agent years, depending on whether or not the option is exercised. Since Carroll is only 22 years old, he’ll still be able to hit free agency at age 31 even if the D’Backs to pick up that option year.
It’s an aggressive move from Arizona to lock up the future face of their franchise, as Carroll is the centerpiece of what the D’backs hope is a new wave of young talent to their big league roster. The team has also made history with this deal, as this is the largest contract ever signed for a player with fewer than 100 days of Major League service time (and no experience in foreign leagues), comfortably eclipsing the $70MM Atlanta gave Michael Harris last year.
Carroll debuted for the Diamondbacks last season and hit .260/.330/.500 with four home runs over 115 plate appearances. He also provided plenty of value in the field, earning five Outs Above Average in his small amount of work in the outfield. Crucially, Carroll fell 15 plate appearances short of reaching 130 last season, which means he’ll still be eligible for Rookie of the Year honors in 2023.
The 16th overall pick, Carroll quickly made a name for himself as an exciting young prospect coming through the Diamondbacks’ system. He hit .299/.409/.487 in his first year of pro ball as a 19-year-old in 2019, then missed the 2020 minor league season due to the pandemic. A dislocated shoulder saw him miss significant time in 2021, but he made up for it in 2022, belting 24 home runs and hitting .307/.425/.611 across three minor league levels to earn his first call up to the big leagues.
The Athletic’s Keith Law ranked Carroll as his top overall prospect in the sport recently, citing his “plus power” and “advanced plate discipline” while labeling him a “true center fielder”. There’s no question Carroll is one of the game’s brightest stars, and the type of player teams dream of building a roster around.
Carroll’s name did come up in trade chatter earlier this winter as the Diamondbacks looked to ease a bit of an outfield logjam, but it always seemed he was off-limits and the team ultimately wound up sending Daulton Varsho to Toronto for Gabriel Moreno and Lourdes Gurriel Jr.
Law ranked the Diamondbacks as having the fourth best farm system in the game, and indeed the team is well setup to contend in the future with a bevy of young talent on the way. Carroll is the big name there, but Moreno, Jordan Lawlar, Druw Jones and co will mean the team has plenty of talent arriving over the next few seasons.
As far as the financials go, the D’Backs have placed a big bet on a player with only 32 MLB games under his belt. However, if Carroll comes anywhere close to living up to the hype, the extension will become a very good piece of business from GM Mike Hazen. It’s unclear yet how the contract will be distributed, but it comes with a $13.875MM AAV. Arizona has a lot of money coming off the books this year, and with only $32MM in guaranteed payroll for 2025 (Carroll accounts for almost half of that). While the Diamondbacks have traditionally been a mid-range spender at best, they still have a good deal of payroll flexibility for the team to make external additions, or perhaps to sign other extensions with members of their young core.
Steve Gilbert of MLB.com was the first to report that the two sides had reached an agreement. Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic reported earlier in the day that Carroll and the Diamondbacks were “making progress” on an extension, and Piecoro also had (Twitter links) details on the escalator clauses and the year-to-year salary breakdown.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
Nationals Sign Keibert Ruiz To Eight-Year Extension
TODAY: The Nationals have formally announced the deal, confirming it’s an eight-year contract with a pair of club options for 2031 and 2032. The full financial breakdown isn’t known, but Barry Svrluga (Twitter link) reports that the deal is somewhat front-loaded. Ruiz will receive a signing bonus, and he’ll earn $7MM in 2028, and $9MM in each of the 2029 and 2030 seasons. The second year of the extension also “has a higher salary than he would normally receive in a last pre-arb year.”
MARCH 10: The Nationals are in agreement with 24-year-old backstop Keibert Ruiz on an eight-year contract extension that guarantees $50MM, as first reported by Wow Deportes (Twitter link). Barry Svrluga of the Washington Post (Twitter link) reports that the contract also contains two club options. The Nationals are expected to formally announce the deal tomorrow, writes Mark Zuckerman of MASNsports.com. Ruiz is an Octagon client.
It’s a long-term commitment from the rebuilding club to a player they consider the franchise catcher. Washington acquired the switch-hitting Ruiz at the 2021 trade deadline as part of the blockbuster that sent Trea Turner and Max Scherzer to the Dodgers. Ruiz and starter Josiah Gray headlined a four-player return. Both were upper level prospects and Ruiz would get a look as Washington’s primary backstop by the end of the ’21 campaign.
After playing in 23 games down the stretch, Ruiz got the nod as the Opening Day catcher last season. He played in 112 games and tallied 433 plate appearances, though his season was cut short when he had to be hospitalized after he was hit in the groin area by a foul ball. Before that unfortunate conclusion, Ruiz hit .251/.313/.360 in his first full season at the big league level. That offense was a little better than that of the average catcher, with the league receiving a .228/.295/.368 line from the position.
Ruiz didn’t hit for a ton of power, only connecting on seven home runs. He drew walks in a modest 6.9% of his trips to the dish. Ruiz demonstrated excellent pure contact skills, though, striking out in fewer than 12% of his plate appearances while putting the bat on the ball with 86.3% of his swings. Only Blue Jays star Alejandro Kirk showed comparable contact skills at the position.
Putting the ball in play has been Ruiz’s calling card throughout his professional career. The Venezuela native appeared among top prospect lists for a few seasons during his time in the Los Angeles farm system. Evaluators have long lauded his hit tool, though reviews on his power upside and defensive acumen were more middling.
According to public metrics, Ruiz’s defensive performance as a rookie was mixed. Statcast pegged him as a slightly below-average pitch framer. He rated positively for his ability to keep the ball in front of him, though. Statcast estimated he blocked five more pitches than average over the course of 865 innings. His four passed balls were manageable. He did a solid job controlling the running game, throwing out 28.2% of attempted basestealers (more than three percentage higher than the league mark).
While Ruiz isn’t a finished product, his rookie season more or less fell in line with his longstanding prospect profile. He proved his elite contact skills can translate against big league pitching and adequately managed things defensively. The Nats are surely hopeful he’ll tap into a little more extra-base impact over time. He’d connected on 21 home runs in 72 Triple-A contests in 2021, and while that was surely aided by a favorable offensive environment, it at least hints at double-digit homer potential for Ruiz at the MLB level.
Ruiz had between one and two years of service time. He wouldn’t have been eligible for arbitration until after the 2024 campaign and wasn’t headed to free agency until the 2027-28 offseason. This deal forecloses any chance he’ll go through arbitration and buys out at least three free agent years. If the club were to exercise both options, they’d extend their window of control by five seasons on a deal that could reach a decade in length.
It’s technically the third-largest guarantee for a player in that service bracket. Ke’Bryan Hayes holds the official record with last spring’s eight-year, $70MM extension with the Pirates. Andrelton Simmons secured $58MM over seven seasons on a 2014 extension with the Braves. Michael Harris signed an eight-year, $72MM deal with Atlanta last summer that, for all intents and purposes, also fits into the service group. Harris technically had less than a year of service at the time of his deal, though he was all but certain to finish in the top two in Rookie of the Year balloting and secure a full service year by the time he signed in August.
Ruiz’s guarantee checks in a fair bit south of the Hayes and Harris contracts, though one could argue the latter two players were safer bets. Harris and Hayes are excellent defenders and had produced a little more offensively than Ruiz has to date, even if each comes with some questions about their overall impact potential at the plate. Early-career extensions for catchers haven’t been especially common; Ruiz becomes the first backstop with less than three years of service to sign an extension since Roberto Pérez in April 2017.
In exchange for upfront security, Ruiz concedes some long-term earning potential. That’s the case in every early-career extension of this ilk, though the potential ten-year term makes it particularly true in this instance. If Washington exercises both options, Ruiz wouldn’t get to free agency until leading into his age-34 campaign. Had he proceeded year-by-year through arbitration, he’d have first qualified for free agency at age 29.
Of course, doing so would’ve entailed the risk of injuries or underperformance derailing his career. Ruiz wasn’t a high-profile amateur signee, only signing for $140K back in 2014. It’s easy to understand the appeal of averting risk and securing the first life-changing payday of his career.
The Nationals, meanwhile, lock in a core player whose aging curve aligns with when the club should be more equipped to contend. They’re in for another non-competitive season in 2023 and look hard-pressed to compete by next year either. Ruiz is now locked in for a few years into the 2030’s, though, and the club obviously anticipates having plenty of chances to compete for a playoff spot in the medium to long-term future.
The contract’s financial breakdown hasn’t yet been reported. The deal has an average annual value of $6.25MM that’ll count evenly against the luxury tax ledger for its duration. That’s not a concern in the short term; Washington’s projected 2023 payroll is more than $100MM south of this year’s threshold. The organization has paid the CBT in years past, however, so it’s not out of the question they’ll again push towards that threshold a few years down the line if the team’s competitive window comes clearer into view. The ongoing uncertainty about the Lerner family’s ownership plans clouds the picture, though ownership is clearly at least willing to sign off on future-oriented moves of this nature.
Washington will continue to audition younger players to hopefully join Ruiz in the core over the next couple seasons. Gray, shortstop CJ Abrams, left-hander MacKenzie Gore and yet-to-debut prospects like James Wood and Robert Hassell have joined the organization in deadline blockbusters. Right-hander Cade Cavalli is a former first-round pick and a highly-regarded pitching prospect. Not everyone in that group will find success, of course, but there’s now no shortage of intriguing players who will try to establish themselves at Nationals Park over the coming seasons.
Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.
Rangers Trade Mark Mathias To Pirates
March 11: The Rangers announced they’re getting right-hander Ricky DeVito from the Pirates as the player to be named later. DeVito, 24, was acquired from Atlanta in the Richard Rodriguez deal, and worked to a 5.40 ERA across 70 innings at High-A last season (six starts, 29 relief appearances).
March 8: The Rangers announced Wednesday that they’ve traded infielder/outfielder Mark Mathias to the Pirates in exchange for a player to be named later. Texas designated Mathias for assignment over the weekend in order to open a 40-man roster spot for newly signed reliever Will Smith. The Pirates announced that righty Max Kranick, who’s recovering from Tommy John surgery, has been transferred to the 60-day injured list to open a spot on the 40-man roster.
Mathias, 28, comes to the Pirates with a minor league option and five years of team control remaining. He’s seen action in part of two big league seasons — 2020 with the Brewers and 2022 with Milwaukee and Texas. He’s logged just 127 plate appearances in that time but carries a solid .256/.307/.462 batting line (114 wRC+) with six homers, six doubles, a 7.1% walk rate and a more troubling 29.1% strikeout rate.
Mathias lost the entire 2021 season to a torn labrum that required shoulder surgery. It was the second shoulder surgery for Mathias, who also had a procedure performed back in his college days. He returned to post a huge .318/.421/.518 batting line in 50 Triple-A games with the Brewers in 2022. Milwaukee also carried him on the big league roster for six games, but Mathias was traded to Texas prior to the deadline in the deal that sent righty Matt Bush to the Brewers.
The versatile Mathias could crack the Pirates’ Opening Day roster in a bench role, though his remaining minor league option means he’s not a lock to do so. Still, he’s played all four infield positions and all three outfield spots in his professional career, albeit with just one lone inning in center field with the Brewers in 2020. He’s moved around the diamond consistently in the Majors, with no more than 51 innings played at any single position (despite a total of 292 defensive innings under his belt).
While he’s never been regarded as a plus defender at any position, Mathias can play pretty much anywhere. He doesn’t have huge power, but he’s a career .286/.377/.466 hitter in 715 Triple-A plate appearances and has stacked up 21 homers, 41 doubles, three triples and 26 steals (in 31 attempts) in 173 total games at that level.
Second base has been Mathias’ most frequent position in the minors, and that happens to be the Pirates’ least-settled spot in the lineup, so he’s a particularly sensible add for Pittsburgh at a low cost of acquisition. He’ll compete with Rodolfo Castro, Ji Hwan Bae and Nick Gonzales for playing time there throughout the remainder of camp.
Minor MLB Transactions: Pelham, Shore
A pair of NL West teams recently added some pitching depth via minor league deal:
- The Padres agreed to a non-roster pact with southpaw CD Pelham, according to his transactions tracker at MLB.com. The 28-year-old adds some bullpen depth to open the season with Triple-A El Paso. Pelham has ten big league games under his belt, all of which came as a member of the 2018 Rangers. He threw 7 2/3 innings that year, allowing six runs on 12 hits. The South Carolina native has a 5.31 ERA over parts of six minor league campaigns. Pelham spent last season in the Cubs organization, splitting the year between Double-A Mississippi and Triple-A Iowa. Over 41 1/3 combined frames, he worked to a 4.31 ERA with a 23.6% strikeout percentage and a lofty 14.4% walk rate.
- The Giants have added right-hander Logan Shore on a non-roster deal, per the MLB.com transactions log. A University of Florida product, Shore went to the A’s in the second round of the 2016 draft. He was dealt to Detroit as one of two players returned in the 2018 Mike Fiers trade. Shore has spent the past few seasons at the upper levels of the Tigers system but never earned an MLB call. He spent all of last year with Triple-A Toledo, working more out of the bullpen than the rotation for the first time in his career. The 28-year-old struggled to a 5.68 ERA through 52 1/3 frames, striking out a below-average 15.9% of batters faced against a 9.8% walk rate.
Royals Sign Jorge Bonifacio To Minors Deal
The Royals signed outfielder Jorge Bonifacio to a minor league contract last week, MLB.com’s Anne Rogers reports (Twitter link). Bonifacio has already started to appear in Spring Training games, but the signing flew under the radar.
The 29-year-old Bonifacio last appeared in the majors in 2021, playing in seven games with the Phillies. 2022 marked the first time since the 2016 season that Bonifacio didn’t appear in a big league game, as he spent the entire year with Philadelphia’s Triple-A affiliate in Lehigh Valley, hitting .240/.336/.407 with 15 home runs over 444 plate appearances.
Bonifacio will now return to his original organization, as he first signed with the Royals as an international free agent back in 2009. He made his MLB debut with Kansas City in 2017 and hit .247/.319/.408 with 21 homers over 713 PA during the 2017-19 seasons, but that stint was marred by an 80-game PED suspension during the 2018 campaign. Bonifacio didn’t hit much after returning from the suspension, and the Royals ultimately released him after the 2019 season.
At the negligible cost of a minor league deal, the Royals can take another look at a familiar face, and Bonifacio’s signing continues a trend for K.C. this offseason. The Royals spent their free-agent dollars to upgrade their pitching staff (re-signing Zack Greinke and signing Jordan Lyles and Ryan Yarbrough), but didn’t do much around the diamond, other than deal such former regulars as Michael A. Taylor, Adalberto Mondesi, and Ryan O’Hearn. The club is counting on those gaps being filled primarily by in-house younger players, and Bonifacio now joins a lengthy list of MLB veterans in Kansas City’s camp as non-roster invitees.