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Nationals Make Five-Year Offer To Yoenis Cespedes; Mets Won’t Go Beyond Three

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10:23pm: Rosenthal says that Cespedes prefers to stay with the Mets, who are scheduled to speak with his representatives tomorrow, but is wrestling with the fact that the team is refusing even to begin negotiating dollars until Cespedes agrees to their three-year concept. It’s also still possible that other teams are participating in talks on Cespedes, says Rosenthal, though certainly all the recent public reporting has painted the picture of a two-horse race.

Given that New York is set to meet again with Cespedes’s agents, it certainly seems that the organization still has a chance to bring back their three-month star.

4:08pm: The Nationals are indeed offering five years, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports notes (Twitter links). Meanwhile, the Mets are standing at three years. It remains unclear to what extent any other clubs are still involved in the bidding, Rosenthal adds.

The Mets have no interest in moving past three years, say Newsday’s Marc Carig and David Lennon, and the team has not actually even reached the point of making a formal offer.

1:25pm: The Nationals are “pressing” to complete a deal with outfielder Yoenis Cespedes, reports Jon Heyman (links to Twitter). The Nats are believed to be willing to offer about $100MM over a five-year term (“maybe a bit more,” Heyman adds) with some deferrals — a tactic they used in structuring Max Scherzer’s seven-year deal last winter. Heyman characterizes the talks between the two sides as serious.

Cespedes is an imperfect fit for the Nationals, who already have a crowded outfield scene (as Jeff Todd and I discussed at greater length on today’s MLBTR Podcast). Washington currently has Jayson Werth in left field, NL MVP Bryce Harper in right field and Ben Revere and Michael A. Taylor as options in center field. However, the Nationals have shown in the past that they’re willing to add talent even without a clear fit, as was evidenced by last year’s signing of Scherzer despite an already excellent rotation. Even this offseason, the Nats have pursued Jason Heyward and Justin Upton, and they signed both Daniel Murphy and Stephen Drew even though one could argue that the team already had sufficient middle infield depth.

Ultimately, Cespedes is the type of player that would serve as an upgrade to any roster in the Majors, and Washington may feel that his current market is at a point where they can’t pass on adding a player of this caliber to its roster. Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports first reported that the Nats had made an offer to Cespedes last night, though he noted at the time that the offer was short of the contract that Upton landed with the Tigers.

Nationals Pursuing Yoenis Cespedes

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The Nationals made an effort to sign Justin Upton but came up short to the Tigers, writes Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports, adding that with Upton now in Detroit, the Nationals are in pursuit of fellow free agent Yoenis Cespedes. While exact parameters aren’t known at this time, Rosenthal hears that the Nationals have indeed made an offer to Cespedes. The proposed contract is not as lucrative as the one that Upton landed in Detroit, writes Rosenthal, although the mere fact that they have an offer on the table does speak to the sincerity of their interest.

As Rosenthal points out, Cespedes is far from a perfect fit for the Nationals’ roster. Jayson Werth is owed $42MM over the next two seasons, has a full no-trade clause on his contract and struggled with health and on-field production in 2015. Suffice it to say, all of that makes a trade difficult to envision. Bryce Harper, of course, is a fixture in the outfield on the heels of his first National League MVP Award, and the team recently traded for Ben Revere to pair with Michael A. Taylor in center field. Speaking purely speculatively, the Nats could look to trade Revere themselves or move Taylor, considering Cespedes a large enough upgrade to make an unexpected play in that regard. While both Cespedes and Harper are best suited for corner outfield work, Cespedes played quite a bit of center field last season (albeit, with some difficulties), and many scouts believe that Harper is young enough and athletic enough to capably handle center field for a few years.

However, as Chelsea Janes of the Washington Post writes, the lack of a clear fit doesn’t necessarily preclude the Nationals from making a splash. The Nats didn’t look like an on-paper fit for Max Scherzer one year ago but still sprung to sign him, pushing Tanner Roark out of the rotation just months after he had turned in a seemingly breakout campaign. GM Mike Rizzo has long prioritized a deep roster, Janes notes, and the team could mix and match with Revere in center and Cespedes in left on days when Werth is out of the lineup (I’ll also point out that Werth has quite a lengthy injury history and is by no means a lock to stay healthy in 2016). Janes also points out that the Nats had interest in Cespedes back in 2012 when he was an international free agent, adding that the team’s current payroll projects to be about $30MM lighter than it was at the end of the 2015 season.

Earlier this week, reports indicated the market for Cespedes was intensifying. To this point, the Orioles have been linked to Cespedes most prominently — at least in terms of their willingness to spend on him — but it’s unclear if they remain in the mix after re-signing Chris Davis. The Mets are said to open to a short-term deal with Cespedes, and the same is said to be true of the White Sox, who just tonight were reported to be maintaining their limit of a three-year term in their pursuit. Late last night, the San Diego Union-Tribune’s Dennis Lin threw the Padres into the Cespedes market to some extent as well, reporting that the team is “monitoring” the late development of his market.

Wagner’s piece reports that Washington’s offer to Upton was for less than the six years he received in Detroit, and Rosenthal hears the same. Furthermore, the team also reportedly offered Jason Heyward $200MM earlier this offseason. Clearly, the Nationals are open to, if not actively seeking outfield improvements, and Rosenthal adds that Nationals ownership is “intrigued” by Cespedes. Whether that culminates in an agreement remains to be seen, but the Nationals could take the approach of hoarding as much talent as they possibly can this offseason, then worry about how to maximize said talent in terms of on-field production when the season rolls around.

Jonathan Lucroy Discusses Trade Possibility

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Jonathan Lucroy has seen his name bandied about in trade rumors for quite some time, dating back to the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline. Today, the Brewers’ catcher candidly and openly discussed the possibility of a trade with Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, and while he stopped short of asking new GM David Stearns to trade him Lucroy implied that a trade might be best for both him and the rebuilding Brewers. Via Haudricourt, Lucroy offered the following statement:

“I’m not going to sit here and say we’re going to compete for the playoffs this year. If I did that, you’d call me a liar. I’d lose credibility and respect. I want to win and I don’t see us winning in the foreseeable future. I want to go to a World Series. That’s what all players want. Rebuilding is not a lot of fun for any veteran guy. … It’s not guaranteed that I’m going to win if I am traded. But I’m going to be a 30-year-old catcher (in June). I can’t put numbers on how much longer I’m going to play, but as players we want to win. I don’t care about the money; I just want to win. That’s the bottom line.”

One thing made clear by Lucroy after those comments is that he is not asking for a trade, nor is he expecting to be traded. In fact, Lucroy told Haudricourt that he’s planning on heading to camp with the Brewers and will be playing this season “with a chip on [his] shoulder” as he looks to prove naysayers wrong in the wake of a down season in 2015. Last year, Lucroy was limited to 103 games by a fractured big toe and a concussion that came with lasting effects and forced him to finish the year at first base. “I want to go out and tear it up. It wasn’t for a lack of effort last year,” said Lucroy. “I just did not compete at the level I know I’m capable of. There’s always doubters out there, which is fine. I plan on proving a lot of people wrong.”

Of course, those injuries — specifically the late concussion — make Lucroy a difficult trade chip for teams to assess. On the one hand, Lucroy batted .297/.359/.472 and averaged 18 homers per 162 games from 2012-14 as Milwaukee’s primary catcher. He’s also signed to a highly affordable deal that will pay him $4MM in 2016 plus a $5.25MM club option for the 2017 campaign. Those components of the Lucroy equation paint the picture of a player teeming with trade value — one of baseball’s most coveted assets. However, the other side of the coin is a bit murkier; Lucroy batted .264/.326/.391 with seven home runs this past season — solid production for a catcher, but nowhere near the levels he displayed in the three years prior. On top of that, Lucroy caught his final game of the season on Sept. 8 due to the aforementioned concussion, with the remainder of his time coming as either a pinch-hitter or first baseman.

That creates somewhat of a difficult situation when looking to trade Lucroy. Stearns has reportedly been seeking an enormous return to part with Lucroy, and the 29-year-old’s outstanding track record and contract make that a justifiable request. However, teams are probably wary of the potential for lingering concussion effects, causing reluctance to surrender significant talent to part with Lucroy. By hanging onto Lucroy, Stearns runs the risk of continued diminished production, which would only drop his value further. But, trading Lucroy now would be selling low if Lucroy is indeed able to bounce back to his previous heights.

Haudricourt notes that the Brewers also value Lucroy’s leadership and his ability to be a voice of calm and reason on a rebuilding club that will likely go through some painful stretches in the upcoming season. Lucroy insists that his clubhouse demeanor won’t be any different if he remains with the team, saying he won’t “dog it” or be a bad teammate/clubhouse presence in 2016 if he’s not moved.

A number of teams have been linked to Lucroy over the course of the offseason, with the Rangers perhaps representing the most commonly cited team with interest. James Wagner of the Washington Post recently wrote that the Nationals like Lucroy quite a bit as well, and Washington is said to have explored the trade market for upgrades at the catcher position.

I’ll add that readers are encouraged to check out Haudricourt’s interview in its entirety, as the column contains far more quotes from Lucroy than are transcribed here in addition to plenty of insight from Milwaukee’s seasoned beat writer.

Latest On Yoenis Cespedes

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The departure of Justin Upton from the free agent market leaves the spotlight squarely on fellow star outfielder Yoenis Cespedes. We recently heard of interest from as many as ten teams and the possibility of a fairly short signing timeline. And there’s been some chatter today as his market begins to take greater form.

Here’s the latest:

  • Marlins president David Samson tells reporters, including Bob Nightengale of USA Today, that his team has no interest in signing Cespedes (Twitter link). Samson cited the team’s already crowded outfield picture as a reason for not pursuing the slugger.

Earlier Updates

  • The Marlins “have discussed pursuing” the star Cuban on some kind of “short-term deal,” Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reports on Twitter. But he says that it’s hard to see the club being in the lead for his services, and it’s also hard to disagree with that assessment. For such a move to come together, Rosenthal suggests, Miami would likely need to line up a deal involving center fielder Marcell Ozuna. (Presumably, Christian Yelich would slide to center.)
  • Rosenthal also tweets that the Nationals are indeed interested in Cespedes, too — but only if his asking price comes down. We heard mention earlier today (via BobNightengale of USA Today, on Twitter) that both the Nats and the Astros had some discussions on Upton and might also be involved on Cespedes. It’s a bit of a stretch to imagine the Nats adding Cespedes, at least without making another move, though Washington is perhaps better able to take on his salary obligations than are other organizations with rumored interest. From a roster perspective, the team could in theory demote or trade Michael Taylor, put Ben Revere in a timeshare with Jayson Werth, and utilize Bryce Harper and/or Cespedes in center when Revere isn’t in the lineup.
  • The Braves are yet another N.L. East club with continued amenability to a short-term pact with the star outfielder, David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution tweets. As with the other teams, a trade — probably involving Nick Markakis or Ender Inciarte — could conceivably go along with a signing scenario. But O’Brien’s cautionary words seem worth heeding: “Don’t hold your breath.”
  • We touched upon where things stand with the incumbent Mets this morning, though we haven’t heard of any recent movement on the team’s stance. (No word from the Phillies, alas.) Of course, it’s certainly plausible to imagine teams from other divisions remaining involved or joining the hunt.

Reactions To And Effects Of The Justin Upton Deal

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Last night’s news that the Tigers had landed Justin Upton surprised some, who felt that his market may have dried up. But while pitching was first in the queue this winter, we’ve seen a steady stream of position player signings at or near expectations ever since we hit 2016.

With the agreement set to be announced tomorrow after a physical, per Bob Nightengale of USA Today (Twitter link), here are some reactions to and ramifications of the move:

  • Both the Nationals and Astros had expressed interest in Upton, and “may” look instead at top remaining free agent outfielder Yoenis Cespedes, Bob Nightengale of USA Today tweets. Neither team looks in need of a player at that position, of course, but both are in position to be opportunistic. (Houston has been fairly quiet after a bold trade deadline, while Washington still appears to be about $30MM shy of its 2015 payroll after several moves.)
  • The Braves also had conversations with Upton, says Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports, but the club was only discussing a six-year deal at a “significantly lower average annual value” than Upton’s new contract provides. GM John Coppolella acknowledged the chats, adding that his club will “remain both opportunistic and disciplined.”
  • Tigers owner Mike Ilitch was “absolutely ready” to sign Chris Davis, tweets Jon Heyman, but GM Al Avila talked him out of taking that route. From where I stand, that seems wise; unless Detroit was convinced that Davis could play the corner outfield on a regular basis for at least another year or two, it’s hard to see how he’d fit.
  • Once the decision was made to focus on Upton, Avila and skipper Brad Ausmus went to Phoenix and negotiated with Upton over the weekend, Nightengale reports. Per the report, the White Sox, Rangers, and Astros were other key teams in the hunt for Upton.
  • A source with knowledge of the Astros’ side of things tells Evan Drellich of the Houston Chronicle that the interest was never very “serious.” It does not appear that the ’Stros talked about much more than a three-year scenario. (While it isn’t clear what kind of ideas might have been batted around, MLBTR’s Steve Adams has written about the plausibility of an opt-out-driven, high-AAV, multi-year pillow contract concept.)
  • Ilitch’s latest big move proves that he’s the “most munificent owner in professional sports,” Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports argues. Certainly, he’s proven willing on plenty of occasions to plunk down the cash needed to arm his ballclub, this time cracking the luxury tax ceiling to add Upton. (They’ve done so previously on at least one occasion.)
  • From my perspective, it seems that Detroit got a nice price on a prime-aged free agent. The price comes in well below our expectations here at MLBTR, and even further below what Upton might have commanded with a bigger platform year. It may or may not be reasonable to hope that he has some growth remaining as a player, but even the current package makes for a solid investment given his age. As always, there’s risk. But as major win-now, open-market moves go, it’s hard to do much better.

Players Avoiding Arbitration: Friday

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The deadline for teams to exchange arbitration figures with eligible players is 1pm ET today. Dozens of arb agreements figure to flow in over the next few hours, and we’ll keep track of the smaller arb agreements in this post. All projections referenced are courtesy of MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz and can be viewed on the full list of 156 players that filed for arbitration this year. Remember also that you can keep track of everyone that has avoided arbitration by checking out MLBTR’s Arbitration Tracker.

Onto the agreements…

  • Shortstop Zack Cozart is in agreement with the Reds for an undisclosed sum, per a team announcement. He projected at $2.9MM in his second year of eligibility after a promising start to the 2015 season was cut short by a serious knee injury.
  • The Diamondbacks announced that they have avoided arbitration with righty Rubby De La Rosa for an undisclosed sum. He was projected at $3.2MM but, per Jack Magruder of Fanragsports.com (on Twitter), will earn only $2.35MM.
  • Reliever Fernando Rodriguez settled with the Athletics for $1.05MM — beneath his projected $1.3MM — per the Associated Press.
  • Dodgers infielder Justin Turner will earn $5.1MM next season, Jon Heyman reports on Twitter. That’s just a shade under his $5.3MM projection.
  • The Braves settled with reliever Arodys Vizcaino for $897,500, MLB.com’s Mark Bowman tweets. He had a $1.1MM projection entering the fall.
  • Both Zach Putnam will earn a $975K salary next year after agreeing with the White Sox, per a club announcement. That’s $175K over the projected arb value of the Super Two.
  • The Cardinals settled with first baseman Matt Adams for $1.65MM, Heyman tweets. That’s a small bump over his $1.5MM projections. The team is also in agreement with right-hander Seth Maness, per Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. The Super Two reliever projected at $1.2MM but will receive $1.4MM, per MLB.com’s Jenifer Langosch (via Twitter).
  • Righty Tom Koehler receives a $3.5MM payday from the Marlins, per Jon Heyman (via Twitter). The team gets a break on the $3.9MM that had been projected. The team also has an agreement with righties David Phelps and Carter Capps, MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro tweets. Heyman adds (via Twitter) that Phelps will earn exactly his projected amount of $2.5MM. Capps was predicted to earn $800K, but his salary is yet to be reported.
  • The Diamondbacks agreed to a $4.35MM rate with first-year-eligible starter Shelby Miller, Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports reports on Twitter. He had projected at $4.9MM. Notably, Miller comes in just ahead of fellow 3+ service-class pitcher Harvey (who is covered below). Fellow Arizona hurler Patrick Corbin will earn $2.525MM next year, Passan also tweets.
  • The Nationals have agreed with infielder Danny Espinosa for $2.875MM, Jon Heyman tweets. He gets a slight bump over his $2.7MM projection in his second season of arb eligibility.
  • Nolan Arenado will receive a $5MM salary from the Rockies in his first season of eligibility, Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports tweets. That’s exactly what fellow star young third baseman Manny Machado settled for as well, though Arenado was a Super Two. As Swartz explained recently, those two players’ cases may well have been tied together despite some important distinctions. He also explained why Arenado might not reach his sky-high $6.6MM projection in actuality.
  • The Orioles have agreed with starter Miguel Gonzalez for $5.1MM, Eduardo Rodriguez of the Baltimore Sun reports on Twitter. Gonzalez projected for $4.9MM.
  • Outfielder Chris Coghlan agreed at $4.8MM with the Cubs, MLB.com’s Carrie Muskat tweets. That’s quite a nice increase over his projected $3.9MM. Also agreeing with Chicago was reliever Pedro Strop, who gets $4.4MM, per Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times (via Twitter). He had been projected at $4.7MM.
  • Both righty Michael Pineda (for $4.3MM) and infielder/outfielder Dustin Ackley ($3.2MM), according to Passan (via Twitter) and Jon Heyman (Twitter link). Those numbers largely track the projected amounts of $4.6MM and $3.1MM, respectively.
  • Danny Duffy will play at $4.225MM next year after reaching terms with the Royals, Jeffrey Flanagan of MLB.com reports (Twitter links). Catcher Drew Butera, meanwhile, will get $1,162,500 from Kansas City. Both represented small bumps over their projected values of $4MM and $1.1MM.
  • Marlins closer A.J. Ramos will get $3.4MM in 2016, Heyman reports (Twitter links). Teammate Adeiny Hechavarria, meanwhile, will take down $2.625MM. Both first-year-eligible players went over their projections ($2.8MM and $2.3MM, respectively).
  • The Mets will pay $4.325MM to Matt Harvey and $3MM to shortstop Ruben Tejada for 2016, ESPNNewYork.com’s Adam Rubin reports (Twitter links). Harvey approaches, but doesn’t quite reach, his $4.7MM projection. Though he’s still recovering from an unfortunate leg injury suffered during the post-season, Tejada will take home a cool half-million more than had been projected.
  • Righty Joe Kelly has agreed with the Red Sox at $2.6MM, Rob Bradford of WEEI.com reports. He falls a fair sight shy of the $3.2MM that MLBTR projected. Though he reached ten wins on the year, Kelly scuffled to a 4.82 ERA over his 134 1/3 innings.
  • Righty Drew Hutchison agreed with the Blue Jays for $2.2MM, Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet.ca reports on Twitter. He falls short of a $2.6MM projection after a tough 2015 campaign.
  • The Tigers have reached terms with shortstop Jose Iglesias for $2.1MM, per another Heyman tweet. The deal also includes some incentives, per the report. That’s a healthy jump up over the $1.5MM projection for the slick-fielding infielder, who did have a strong 2015 season.
  • The Mariners announced that they reached agreement with lefty Charlie Furbush and righty Evan Scribner. Furbush will receive $1.7MM, while Scribner will get $807.5K, Bob Dutton of the Tacoma News Tribune reports.
  • Both shortstop Jean Segura and righty Wily Peralta are under contract with the Brewers, per a team announcement. Segura gets $2.6MM after being projected at $3.2MM, per Heyman (Twitter link). Matt Swartz’s system pegged Peralta at $2.8MM, and that’s exactly what he’ll earn, according to Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel (via Twitter).

There are plenty more after the jump:

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Nationals Avoid Arbitration With Ben Revere

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The Nationals have struck a one-year deal with just-acquired outfielder Ben Revere for $6.25MM with the possibility of a bit extra in performance bonuses, Jon Heyman reports ( Twitter links). Revere had been projected by MLBTR to earn a $6.7MM salary next year.

Revere, a former Super Two, earns just over a $2MM raise above his earnings last year. He benefited from a strong number of plate appearances (626) and solid overall .306/.342/.377 batting line with 31 stolen bases and 84 runs. Of course, Revere’s arb earnings are limited by his low output of home runs (2) and runs batted in (a career-high 45).

It’s not yet immediately clear how Revere will be utilized in D.C., but he should be a part of a somewhat flexible three-man rotation along with veteran Jayson Werth and youngster Michael Taylor. He’s controllable for another year through arbitration process.

In the trade that brought Revere to the Nationals, the team reportedly agreed to send enough cash to offset the difference between his salary and that of Drew Storen. While it isn’t clear exactly how that will work, it’s worth noting that Storen agreed today to a $8.375MM salary for 2016.

Nationals, Stephen Strasburg Avoid Arbitration

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The Nationals and right-hander Stephen Strasburg have avoided arbitration by agreeing to a $10.4MM salary for the 2016 season, tweets Jon Heyman. That lines up nearly perfectly with MLBTR’s projection of $10.5MM for the Scott Boras client, who is entering his final season before free agency. Strasburg projects to be the top name available on next year’s market as things currently stand.

Nationals Made Failed Attempt At Christian Yelich Trade

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  • Within that piece, Frisaro reports that the Nationals made a run at Christian Yelich this offseason, floating a concept involving left-hander Gio Gonzalez going to the Marlins. He’s the second reporter to say as much, as Jon Heyman first mentioned the scenario about a month ago While I’d imagine that other pieces were involved in the Washington’s scenario, Frisaro hears that the inquiry “didn’t go anywhere,” which isn’t necessarily a surprise. The Marlins took Yelich 23rd overall back in 2010 and rewarded him with a hefty $49.75MM contract extension with a little more than one year of service time under his belt last offseason; the team is quite high on Yelich’s potential.

Minor MLB Transactions: 1/14/16

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Here are some of the most recent minor moves from around the game:

  • Japan’s Chiba Lotte Marines have signed infielder Yamaico Navarro for one year and $1.2MM, the team announced (via the Japan Times). The 28-year-old saw 199 MLB plate appearances over 2010-13, but has spent the past two seasons with the KBO’s Samsung Lions. Navarro earned his new deal with a .297/.404/.574 cumulative slash — and 79 home runs — over his 1,245 plate appearances in Korea.
  • Catcher Josmil Pinto has cleared waivers and been outrighted to Triple-A by the Brewers, the club announced (h/t to Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel; Twitter link). Pinto will receive an invitation to major league camp this spring and will try to get his career back on track in the Milwaukee organization. Once a promising young big leaguer with the Twins, Pinto has suffered through a fall-off at the plate, concussion problems, and continued defensive question marks.
  • Also passing through waivers unclaimed were Nationals pitchers Erik Davis and Taylor Hill, per a team announcement. Davis, 29, struggled to get back on track last year after missing 2014 due to Tommy John surgery. He logged 48 2/3 minor-league innings of 3.88 ERA pitching with 8.7 K/9 but an uncharacteristic 5.0 BB/9. Hill had a strong campaign in 2014, but scuffled to a 5.23 ERA in 118 2/3 Triple-A frames last year.
  • The Rays have signed left Justin Marks, Jon Heyman tweets. Marks, who turned 28 just two days ago, made one appearance with the Royals in 2014. He pitched to a 5.63 ERA in 108 2/3 innings at the Triple-A level last year with the Diamondbacks organization.
  • Outfielder Donald Lutz has a minor league deal to return to the Reds, Alexis Brudnicki reports. Mark Sheldon of MLB.com adds on Twitter that Lutz won’t get a camp invite in the agreement. The first player to reach the majors after coming up in German baseball, Lutz was released by Cincinnati last summer after undergoing Tommy John surgery but has been playing recently in Australia. Brudnicki provides a full update on his recovery, as well of plenty of other interest insight, in the above-linked piece.
  • The Tigers inked catcher Rafael Lopez to a minors deal, Anthony Fenech of the Detroit Free Press reports on Twitter. Lopez briefly reached the majors with the Cubs in 2014. He has put up some solid years at the plate in the minors, though he slipped to a .266/.339/.335 batting line in 246 Triple-A plate appearances last year.
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