- Ryan Zimmerman feels “it’s just a matter of time” before he signs a new contract with the Nationals, the veteran first baseman tells The Athletic’s Brittany Ghiroli (subscription required). “We’ve talked. We are continuing to talk,” Zimmerman said. “I’ve made my intentions pretty clear, they know where I stand and we know where they stand. We’ve been going back and forth the last couple weeks.” It has been widely assumed that Zimmerman will return for his 16th season with the Nats, and as Ghiroli notes, a deal doesn’t necessarily need to be finalized before camp opens since Zimmerman “has never been a big fan of spring training.”
Nationals Rumors
Nationals, Mac Williamson Agree To Minor League Deal
The Nationals have agreed to a minor league contract with outfielder Mac Williamson, tweets USA Today’s Bob Nightengale. He’ll be in Major League camp this spring and would earn a modest $700K salary if he makes the big league club. He’s represented by CAA Sports.
For years, the Giants hoped that Williamson, now 29, would eventually seize an everyday spot in an outfield corner. But despite a strong Triple-A track record and some occasional flashes of potential, Williamson mustered a tepid .203/.282/.348 line with 17 homers, 10 doubles and a triple in 483 plate appearances over the life of 160 MLB games. Williamson didn’t get a prolonged opportunity at regular at-bats in San Francisco or in Seattle after the Mariners picked him up, and it seems unlikely that he’ll have such an opportunity in a crowded Nationals outfield.
Juan Soto, Victor Robles and Adam Eaton comprise a strong starting unit in D.C., while Michael A. Taylor and Andrew Stevenson are on hand as reserve options. Newly signed slugger Eric Thames, too, has corner outfield experience.
The Nationals’ upper-level outfield depth is rather thin, however, which also prompted the club to pick up center fielder Carlos Tocci on a minor league arrangement. If Williamson isn’t able to crack the roster as a bench bat, he could head to Fresno as a depth option in Triple-A, where he’s a career .265/.343/.487 hitter in 1156 plate appearances.
Nationals Re-Sign Daniel Hudson
JANUARY 14: The Nats have announced the signing.
JANUARY 6, 3:29pm: The deal’s worth $11MM with up to $1MM in performance bonuses based on games finished, per Passan. The total falls in line with the two-year, $12MM guarantee MLBTR projected for Hudson at the beginning of the offseason.
2:17pm: The Nationals and free-agent reliever Daniel Hudson have reached a two-year contract, Jon Heyman of MLB Network tweets. Jeff Passan of ESPN first reported the two sides were nearing an agreement. Hudson is a client of Jet Sports Management.
This is the second significant bullpen signing in a matter of days for the Nationals. They added righty Will Harris on a three-year, $24MM commitment last week, and signing him and Hudson shows a desire on the team’s part to avoid last season’s well-publicized bullpen foibles. The Nationals’ relief corps was a major problem throughout the season, but they still earned a wild-card spot and then rallied to win their first-ever World Series title. Hudson, whom general manager Mike Rizzo acquired from the Blue Jays before the July 31 deadline, was a key reason for Washington’s triumph.
Between Toronto and D.C. a season ago, the flamethrowing Hudson, 32, put up a 2.47 ERA/3.97 FIP with 8.75 K/9 and 3.33 BB/9 over 73 innings. For the most part, those aren’t great numbers, and Hudson hasn’t been lights-out for the majority of his career, but he was an important part of the Nats’ playoff run. Hudson converted all four of his save attempts in the postseason, in which he threw 9 2/3 frames of four-earned run ball with 10 strikeouts against four walks, and closed out the Astros in Game 7 of the World Series.
While the Nationals did lose star third baseman Anthony Rendon to the Angels earlier this offseason, the Hudson re-signing continues a busy winter for the club. Before bringing back Hudson, they picked up Harris and re-signed four important members of their title-winning team in starter Stephen Strasburg, infielders Howie Kendrick and Asdrubal Cabrera, and catcher Yan Gomes. The team also agreed to sign established infielder Starlin Castro last week, and it could still be in the running for the No. 1 free agent available in third baseman Josh Donaldson.
An ideal offseason for the Nationals likely would’ve meant keeping Rendon. Even in the wake of his departure, though, it’s clear this isn’t a club that’s ready to rest on its laurels after a championship season.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Managers, Top Front Office Execs On Expiring Contracts
Monday was one of the most stunning days baseball has seen in recent memory. Astros general manager Jeff Luhnow and A.J. Hinch, who oversaw several contending teams in Houston and led the club to a World Series championship, lost their jobs as a result of a sign-stealing scandal. Before accusations against the Astros arose several weeks ago, neither Luhnow nor Hinch looked likely to leave their posts for the foreseeable future. Now, though, the Astros are the lone team in baseball that doesn’t have a clear answer at either spot (though the Red Sox could join the Astros soon if the league drops the hammer on manager Alex Cora). But what about after the 2020 season? Which clubs could be in need then?
With help from the ever-valuable Cot’s Baseball Contracts, let’s take a look at clubs whose GMs and/or managers are entering contract years. As a reminder, this list might not be complete or fully accurate. Some teams may have extended their lame-duck executives/skippers and not publicized those moves yet, for instance, while other individuals in those spots could have less job security than it appears.
Angels: Entering the 2016 season, the Angels hired general manager Billy Eppler to helm a franchise led by all-world center fielder Mike Trout. As was the case then, Trout remains on a collision course with a Cooperstown plaque. The problem is that the Angels have continually failed to take advantage of his presence. Since Eppler came aboard, they haven’t even posted a .500 season. They’re also on their third manager (Mike Scioscia, whom Eppler inherited, then Brad Ausmus and now Joe Maddon) since their GM assumed the reins. Eppler has been rather aggressive this offseason as he works on a turnaround, though, having signed third baseman Anthony Rendon to a seven-year, $235MM contract, picked up catcher Jason Castro and added starters Julio Teheran and Dylan Bundy. The acquisition of a much-needed front-line rotation piece this winter has eluded Eppler, who will perhaps keep trying to land one before the season. Regardless, it appears to be put up-or-shut up time for Eppler. Should the Angels fail to make significant progress in the upcoming campaign, it seems likely they’ll have a new GM a year from now.
Blue Jays: The partnership consisting of president Mark Shapiro and GM Ross Atkins has been going on since before 2016. The Blue Jays were then on the cusp of their second straight ALCS-bound season, but they’ve since launched a rebuild and endured three consecutive losing campaigns. Shapiro’s now going into the final season of his contract, though he and the organization are willing to discuss an extension, while Atkins’ status is a bit less clear. Atkins signed an extension last June, but it’s unknown whether it will go beyond the coming season. One thing’s for sure, however: This has been a busy offseason for Shapiro and Atkins, as the Jays have acquired four pitchers (Hyun-Jin Ryu, who cost the team an $80MM commitment, as well as Tanner Roark, Chase Anderson and Shun Yamaguchi) and infielder Travis Shaw.
Braves: The two-year extension Snitker inked in 2018 has a team option for 2021, in which he and the Braves will go for their third straight NL East title. Snitker, who took over as interim manager in 2016, endured a couple losing seasons before his recent run of success and has not been able to secure a playoff series win thus far. The overall results have been good, however, so it stands to reason the Braves will exercise Snitker’s option if they have another playoff-caliber season.
Nationals: The extension the Nationals gave GM Mike Rizzo a couple years back reportedly lasts through 2020, while manager Dave Martinez has a club option for ’21. Back when the Nats re-upped Rizzo, they were known as a talented team that couldn’t break through in the fall. That finally happened in 2019, the year the franchise finally took home its first World Series. Thanks in part to that triumph, it would be a stunner to see the Nats allow Rizzo or Martinez to get away anytime soon.
Royals: Like Rizzo, it doesn’t seem Moore’s in any danger of exiting his current organization. Moore, KC’s GM since 2006, has only overseen two playoff teams, but the Royals sure made those seasons count. They won the AL pennant in 2015 and then the World Series the next year. They’re now amid a rebuild and coming off two 100-loss seasons, and are likely in for another lean year. Still, new owner John Sherman is reportedly set to hand Moore an extension to keep him atop the franchise’s baseball hierarchy.
Tigers: GM Al Avila seems to be safe, at least from a contractual standpoint, but the rebuilding Tigers could go in another direction in the dugout soon. Veteran skipper Ron Gardenhire’s not signed beyond then, and there doesn’t appear to be any hurry on the team’s part to change that. While Gardenhire enjoyed plenty of success with the division-rival Twins from 2002-14, he signed off for a difficult job in Detroit. The club, which hasn’t had much talent throughout Gardenhire’s reign, has gone 111-212 on his two-season watch. The Tigers have somewhat beefed up their roster this winter, though, and that should give Gardenhire a legit chance to help lead the team to a better output than its 47-win mark in 2019. Detroit has redone the right side of its infield by signing first baseman C.J. Cron and Jonathan Schoop, improved at catcher by adding Austin Romine and landed innings-eater Ivan Nova for their rotation. Nothing splashy there, but Gardenhire’s probably happy to have those vets aboard after he had to guide such a sorry roster a season ago.
Yankees: This is the last guaranteed year of Boone’s contract, though his deal does include a club option for 2021. At this rate, the Yankees will exercise it, as Boone has made an almost seamless transition from the broadcast booth to the dugout. He has two 100-win seasons in as many attempts, has helped the Yankees to an ALCS, and nearly won AL Manager of the Year honors during an injury-laden 2019 for the club. Expectations will be even higher this season, though, considering Boone now has ace Gerrit Cole at the front of his rotation.
Nationals Prospect Fausto Segura Killed In Traffic Accident
12:10pm: In addition to Severino’s comments to Rojas, the Nationals organization has issued the following statement:
The Washington Nationals are extremely saddened to learn of the tragic passing of Fausto Segura, a 23-year-old pitcher who spent the 2019 season with our short-season affiliate Auburn Doubledays. He was beloved by his teammates, coaches, coordinators and everyone he came in contact with throughout our organization. We extend our deepest sympathies to Fausto’s family, friends and loved ones in their time of grief.
11:40am: Nationals pitching prospect Fausto Segura was tragically killed in a road accident in his native Dominican Republic last night, Hector Gomez of Z101 Sports reports. The right-hander, who signed with the Nationals on July 2, 2017, was just 23 years old.
Nationals director of Latin American scouting Fausto Severino confirmed the report to Enrique Rojas of ESPN Deportes, calling it a tragedy for both the Segura family and the Nationals organization. “You are never prepared to see someone so young die,” Severino said.
Segura was riding a Honda scooter when he was struck by a van near his native Barahona, according to Rojas. He spent the 2019 season, his third year of professional ball, with the Nationals’ short-season Class-A affiliate in Auburn and was named to the league’s All-Star team. We at MLBTR extend our most heartfelt condolences to the Segura family and to those in the Nationals organization for their loss.
Trea Turner Should Be Fully Healthy In 2020
- Nationals’ shortstop Trea Turner underwent surgery on his problematic index finger last November. Now, he’s primed to enter 2020 at full strength, he tells reporters (including Mark Zuckerman of MASN). “I’ve started hitting. I can hit with 10 fingers, so it’s good,” Turner told reporters. As Zuckerman notes, Turner played almost all of the 2019 season with nine healthy fingers after fracturing the digit on a hit-by-pitch in the first week of April. The injury hardly seemed to hold him back, as Turner slashed .298/.353/.497 (117 wRC+) with 19 home runs and 35 stolen bases as Washington’s primary shortstop and leadoff hitter.
Nationals Expect Zimmerman Resolution Soon
- The Nationals settled with all their arbitration eligible players, but GM Mike Rizzo spoke with the media today, touching on a number of topics. They expect resolution on the Ryan Zimmerman front shortly, per MASN’s Mark Zuckerman. GM Mike Rizzo met with Zimmerman for 90 minutes on Friday, and it’s long been expected that the Nats would bring back Mr. National for the title defense. As for third base, Rizzo considers the position filled without totally shutting the door on a Donaldson signing, per The Athletic’s Brittany Ghiroli. Asdrubal Cabrera and Starlin Castro figure to get time at third, and speculatively speaking, Howie Kendrick saw a few innings at the hot corner last year as well. Bottom line, the Nats plan on creativity and flexibility for their whole infield this year, and they are okay not naming and everyday starter, per Jesse Dougherty of the Washington Post.
- Only Shane Greene remains from their arbitration pool. The Braves and Greene have a $500K gap in their filing numbers to reconcile lest the panel get the final say. Greene will figure in the back end mix no matter his price point. With Will Smith in tow and a full season of Mark Melancon, Greene should slot in somewhere closer to the 7th inning along with Chris Martin and Luke Jackson. Overall, the Braves payroll is already set to open at a franchise record $130MM for the 2020 season – and that’s without Josh Donaldson, per The Athletic’s David O’Brien. It certainly says something that the Braves are still trying to bring back Donaldson despite already setting a team record for payroll. Despite the Nationals’ World Series title, the Braves are the back-to-back defending NL East champs, and they’ve been aggressive this winter in their attempt to make it a turkey with a third consecutive division crown in 2020.
- The Nationals settled with all their arbitration eligible players, but GM Mike Rizzo spoke with the media today, touching on a number of topics. They expect resolution on the Ryan Zimmerman front shortly, per MASN’s Mark Zuckerman. GM Mike Rizzo met with Zimmerman for 90 minutes on Friday, and it’s long been expected that the Nats would bring back Mr. National for the title defense. As for third base, Rizzo considers the position filled without totally shutting the door on a Donaldson signing, per The Athletic’s Brittany Ghiroli. Asdrubal Cabrera and Starlin Castro figure to get time at third, and speculatively speaking, Howie Kendrick saw a few innings at the hot corner last year as well. Bottom line, the Nats plan on creativity and flexibility for their whole infield this year, and they are okay not naming and everyday starter, per Jesse Dougherty of the Washington Post.
Players Avoiding Arbitration: National League
Entering the day, there were more than 150 players on the clock to exchange arbitration figures with their respective teams prior to a noon ET deadline. As one would expect, there’ll be an utter landslide of arbitration agreements in advance of that deadline. We already ran through some key facts and reminders on the arbitration process earlier this morning for those who are unfamiliar or simply need a refresher on one of MLB’s most complex idiosyncrasies, which will hopefully clear up many questions readers might have.
We’ll track the majority of the National League’s settlements in this post and are maintaining a separate one for American League settlements as well. Note that all projections referenced come courtesy of MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz:
- The Rockies have an agreement in place with righty Jon Gray, per Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post (via Twitter). It’s a $5.6MM deal, per Jon Heyman of MLB Network (Twitter link).
- Outfielder Tommy Pham has struck a $7.9MM pact with the Padres, who acquired him at the outset of the offseason, according to Bob Nightengale of USA Today (via Twitter). Other Friars striking deals, per an update from Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune, include Zach Davies ($5.25MM) and Matt Strahm ($1.4MM).
- The Nationals announced that they’ve avoided arbitration with Trea Turner. It’s a $7.45MM agreement, per Jesse Dougherty of the Washington Post (via Twitter), right in range of the $7.5MM projection.
- The Mets are in agreement with a laundry list of players. Right-handers Marcus Stroman ($12MM) and Noah Syndergaard ($9.7MM) were the top earners, per reports from MLB Network’s Jon Heyman (via Twitter) and MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo (via Twitter). Both come in close to their projected values of $11.8M and $9.9MM, respectively. The Mets also have a $5.1MM deal with reliever Edwin Diaz, Jon Heyman of MLB Network reports (Twitter links). He entered the offseason projected at the $7.0MM level but will fall well shy of that. Despite an outstanding overall track record, Diaz’s platform season was a dud and obviously created some risk in a hearing for his side. Outfielder Brandon Nimmo will play for $2.175MM in his first season of arb eligibility, landing well over the $1.7MM that the model projected. Southpaw Steven Matz, meanwhile, lands a $5MM deal, according to Joel Sherman of the New York Post (via Twitter). That’s $300K shy of his projected amount. Relievers Robert Gsellman and Seth Lugo will earn $1.225MM and $2MM, respectively, per Mike Puma of the New York Post (Twitter links). Slugger Michael Conforto will earn $8.0MM, per SNY.tv’s Andy Martino (via Twitter), which is notably south of the $9.2MM that we projected. And fellow outfielder Jake Marisnick checks in a just over 10% north of his projection at $3,312,500, Bob Nightengale of USA Today tweets.
- Star reliever Kirby Yates receiveds a $7,062,500 salary from the Padres, per Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune. He tops the $6.5MM that MLBTR projected by a solid margin, reflecting just how exceptional he was in 2019.
- The Marlins will pay recently acquired infielder Jonathan Villar a $8.2MM salary, per MLB.com’s Jon Heyman (via Twitter). That’s a far sight shy of the $10.4MM that the MLBTR system projected, perhaps reflecting a more difficult path to the bigger number through recent comparables. The club also had some added leverage here since Villar would likely not fare terribly well on the open market if cut loose at this stage or later. (Unless this is a guaranteed deal, Villar could still be jettisoned, with the club paying just a fraction of the settled amount.) The Fish also have also agreed to terms with lefty Adam Conley (for $1.525MM, per MLB Network Radio’s Craig Mish, via Twitter) and righty Jose Urena (for $3.75MM, per MLB Network’s Jon Heyman, on Twitter).
- Righty Vince Velasquez will pitch for $3.6MM this year with the Phillies, per Jim Salisbury of NBC Sports Philly (via Twitter). Fellow hurler Jose Alvarez will earn $2.95MM, per Scott Lauber of the Philadelphia Inquirer (via Twitter).
- The Rockies have an agreement with lefty Kyle Freeland, per Jon Heyman of MLB Network (Twitter link). He’ll earn $2.875MM. Outfielder David Dahl takes home $2.475MM, Heyman adds on Twitter. The former had projected at $2.4MM and the latter at $3.0MM.
- Pirates hurler Joe Musgrove will receive $2.8MM, per Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (Twitter links). Fellow righty Keone Kela will earn a reported $3.725MM. Both players had projected at $3.4MM, but land well to either side of that number. Infielder Adam Frazier also has a deal at $2.8MM, per Mackey (via Twitter).
- Righty Anthony DeSclafani will earn $5.9MM from the Reds, according to Robert Murray (via Twitter). He had projected at $5.2MM. Backstop Curt Casali will earn $1.4625MM, per Bobby Nightengale of the Cincinnati Enquirer (Twitter link). And reliever Matt Bowman takes down $865K, Murray adds on Twitter.
- The Dodgers have worked out a non-typical deal with righty Ross Stripling, Heyman tweets. He’ll get an up-front signing bonus of $1.5MM, which he’ll receive in the next week, and then earn $600K for the campaign to come. Stripling had projected to earn $2.3MM on the year.
- Cardinals righty John Gant will earn $1.3MM after settling with the club. Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch first tweeted that a deal was in place, while Murray had the number on Twitter. That comes in just under his $1.4MM projection.
Earlier Settlements
Nationals Avoid Arbitration With Michael A. Taylor
The Nationals have avoided arbitration with outfielder Michael A. Taylor, as per reporter Robert Murray (Twitter link). Taylor will make $3.325MM in guaranteed money next season, slightly above the $3.25MM projected by MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz. Taylor can also make another $25K in bonuses should he reach 300 PA for the Nats next season.
Seen as a top-60 prospect headed into the 2015 season, Taylor has shown some flashes of potential (particularly during an impressive 2017 season) but has struggled to lock down anything beyond a fourth outfield role. Taylor has hit only .240/.294/.393 over 1705 career plate appearances, and the end of his tenure in Washington seemed to be looming in the summer when he was optioned to the minors for over two months.
However, 2019 ended on a great note for both Taylor and the Nationals, as the outfielder re-emerged to make a big contribution to the club’s World Series run. Taylor had a 1.010 OPS over 23 postseason plate appearances, including the solo homer that the Nats on the board in their 3-1 win over the Cardinals in Game Two of the NLCS.
Taylor still offers value to Washington as a fourth outfielder capable of solid glovework at all three positions, as well as elite speed. Taylor turns 29 in March but is still controllable through the 2021 season in his fourth and final year of arbitration. This fourth year arose as a result of his lengthy demotion, as Taylor finished the 2019 season with only four years and 129 days of service time.
Trea Turner, Roenis Elias, and Joe Ross are the three remaining arb-eligible Nationals who have yet to reach agreements with the team prior to tomorrow’s 11am CT deadline for exchanging arbitration figures. You can follow along with all of the arb dealings on the MLBTR Arbitration Tracker.
Nationals To Sign Tyler Eppler To Minors Contract
The Nationals have agreed to a minor league deal with right-hander Tyler Eppler, MLB Trade Rumors’ Steve Adams reports (Twitter link). Eppler is returning to North American baseball after pitching for NPB’s Orix Buffaloes last season.
The trip to Japan saw Eppler pitch for both Orix’s minor league affiliate and with the Buffaloes themselves, including a 4.02 ERA, 7.2 K/9, and 2.78 K/BB rate over 31 1/3 relief innings with the big club. Eppler worked almost exclusively as a starting pitcher over his previous 592 innings in the Pirates’ farm system from 2014-18, starting 100 of his 111 career games.
Originally a sixth-round pick for the Pirates in the 2014 draft, Eppler had some decent but unspectacular numbers in his minor league career. He had a 3.82 ERA and 3.14 K/BB, though didn’t generate many grounders or miss many bats (6.4 K/9), which could be why Pittsburgh didn’t protect Eppler from the Rule 5 Draft in either 2017 or 2018. Still, the bottom-line results are pretty solid, and there’s little risk for the Nationals in bringing the 27-year-old Eppler to Spring Training to see that he could contribute to the club’s shaky bullpen.
