Bullpen Notes: Chapman, Gott, Albers, Blevins
It’s been a huge day for reliever signings, as Joakim Soria, Ryan Madson, Mark Lowe and (probably) Darren O’Day all reaching agreements on new contracts. If that wasn’t enough, the Dodgers and Reds are also discussing an Aroldis Chapman trade, so the biggest bullpen trade chip of them all could also soon be off the table. Here’s some news on the relievers who have left the market, some who remain, and yet others who could be on the trading block…
- The Nationals continue to have interest in trading for Chapman but are wary about the prospect cost, MLB.com’s Bill Ladson writes. There’s also the difficulty involved in trading current closer Jonathan Papelbon, and Papelbon’s grievance against the Nats is just the latest in several obstacles that will make it hard for Washington to find a taker for the controversial righty.
- The Angels are getting interest in right-hander Trevor Gott, FOX Sports’ Ken Rosenthal reports (Twitter link). The Halos want a player of similar value in return. Gott made his MLB debut in 2015 and posted a 3.02 ERA, 5.1 K/9 and 1.69 K/BB rate over 47 2/3 innings. Owner of a 96.2mph fastball, Gott posted much higher strikeout totals over his three minor league seasons and is controlled through the 2021 season.
- Righty Matt Albers has received interest from multiple teams, Sportsnet’s Ben Nicholson-Smith reports (Twitter link). Albers missed most of 2014 due to shoulder problems and signed a minor league deal with the White Sox last winter, only to miss quite a bit of time after fracturing his pinkie during a bench-clearing brawl with the Royals in April. Still, Albers ended up posting a very impressive 1.21 ERA, 6.8 K/9 and 3.11 K/BB rate over 37 1/3 innings with Chicago last year.
- Yakult Swallows right-hander Tony Barnette didn’t reach a deal with any of the five teams who met his $500K posting fee, according to a story from the Sanspo news outlet (hat tip to NPBTracker’s Patrick Newman for his translating tweets). Barnette is set to return to Yakult, though there’s a chance the Japanese team could allow him to pursue a deal with a Major League team anyway.
- The Mets will meet with lefty Jerry Blevins‘ agent during the Winter Meetings, ESPN New York’s Adam Rubin reports. Assistant GM John Ricco confirmed the club’s interest in re-signing Blevins and expects it will take a Major League contract to get the veteran southpaw back in the fold. Blevins pitched only five innings for the Mets in 2015 as a result of two forearm fractures — one from a line drive, and another suffered while slipping off a curb.
- In another piece from Rubin, he hears from Ricco that the Mets weren’t in on O’Day or Madson due to their high price tags. “We didn’t see ourselves playing in that top end where O’Day was,” Ricco said. “But I think that next tier, we’re going to be keeping an eye on….We’re going to meet with a lot of the representatives for the relievers here over the next couple of days.”
- Part of the reason the Athletics agreed to a deal with Madson was because they can’t afford to land any of the top free agent hitters and thus have to “spend money where they can,” according to Rosenthal on Twitter. The A’s are also still looking at more starting pitching as well, as evidenced by earlier reports of their interest in Scott Kazmir.
- Before signing Lowe, the Tigers made one more try for Soria but talks went nowhere, MLB.com’s Jason Beck tweets. The Pirates, another of Soria’s former teams, didn’t have any interest in re-signing him since the club prefers to build low-cost bullpens, Bill Brink of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette tweets. The Blue Jays looked into Soria in the name of “checking options,” a source tells Sportsnet’s Ben Nicholson-Smith, but Toronto wasn’t seriously interested.
Mets Willing To Give Ben Zobrist Four-Year Deal; Others Still In Mix
10:13pm: Zobrist’s priority is to play for a winning club, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports, leaving the Braves “behind” in the race.
Meanwhile, Mets assistant GM John Ricco acknowledged today that the club has serious interest, as ESPNNewYork.com’s Adam Rubin reports. “We’ve had conversations with his guys,” said Ricco of Zobrist, “and we’ll definitely be meeting with them [at the Winter Meetings].” He added: “It’s pretty obvious we think he’s a fit.”
New York expects a decision to be made in the coming days, though it hasn’t apparently been given any such assurances by Zobrist’s camp. The club is “not sure … which direction [it] would go” if Zobrist heads elsewhere, Ricco said. He notes that the Mets haven’t ruled out Daniel Murphy and acknowledged that the team has “touched base” with “all of the free agents,” including middle infielder Asdrubal Cabrera, who Chris Cotillo of SB Nation reported (Twitter link) could be an option.
7:57pm: More than one team is willing to guarantee four seasons in a contract with free agent super-utilityman Ben Zobrist, according to Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com (via Twitter). The Mets are one such club, per the report, which indicates that there are others as well.
Other teams in the mix include the Mets, Nationals, Giants, and a “mystery team,” Heyman says. Earlier today, Marc Carig of Newsday reported (Twitter links) that six clubs remained involved with Zobrist to some extent.
Zobrist wrapped up his on-site visits with a trip to the Giants’ AT&T Park today, MLBTR’s Tim Dierkes has learned. And the hotly-pursued veteran appears to be lined up for a decision in the coming days, as Carig adds.
But that doesn’t mean he’s done with meetings. Indeed, ESPN.com’s Buster Olney tweeted earlier today that Zobrist would meet with representatives of the Nationals at the Winter Meetings — which are being held in his home town of Nashville. And it stands to reason that he’ll have cause to chat with other organizations as well.
Pitching Notes: Lowe, Red Sox, Marlins, O’s, O’Day, Mets, Miller
Free agent righty Mark Lowe is “in active talks with multiple teams” and could be nearing a decision, ESPN.com’s Jerry Crasnick reports on Twitter. The Mariners have some interest in a reunion, tweets MLB.com’s Greg Johns, though as he notes it’ll take much more than the minor league pact that brought Lowe to Seattle last winter.
Here’s the latest pitching chatter around the league:
- The Red Sox are receiving interest in starters Wade Miley and Joe Kelly as well as Clay Buchholz, Crasnick reports on Twitter. Boston is prepared to “listen to trade pitches” on their arms. Jon Heyman hears the same and notes that the club is interested in adding relievers. (Twitter link.)
- Miley is among the pitchers that could be pursued by the Marlins, MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro reports on Twitter. In free agency, Miami’s targets include Ian Kennedy — as we heard earlier today — as well as Yusmeiro Petit, who’d presumably be a swingman option.
- The Orioles will likely add another pen arm even if they wrap up a deal with Darren O’Day, Crasnick tweets. One possibility is southpaw Tony Sipp, per the report, who figures to draw rather wide interest.
- Speaking of O’Day, the key point of separation between the Orioles and Nationals has been Baltimore’s willingness to guarantee a fourth year, Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun reports on Twitter. The Nats were offering a better AAV, but only over three years.
- The Mets are “keeping an eye” on the top of the still-available relief market, per assistant GM John Ricco (via ESPN.com’s Adam Rubin, on Twitter).
- Some in the Braves organization believe that the team ought to hold onto Shelby Miller, MLB.com’s Mark Bowman reports. Atlanta is asking both for a young, “impact bat” as well as a “Major League-ready starting pitcher” in trade talks, per the report.
Dodgers “Making Progress” On Aroldis Chapman Deal
4:57pm: The Dodgers are “making progress” on a deal involving Chapman, Rosenthal tweets.
4:13pm: The Dodgers are discussing a trade with the Reds that would bring Chapman to Los Angeles for prospects, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports tweets. Obviously, the prospect package likely required to land Chapman would be considerable. The Dodgers do, of course, already have a terrific closer in Kenley Jansen, but having too many great ninth-inning options is an excellent problem to have. A dominant bullpen would also likely help ameliorate worries the Dodgers might have about their rotation, which just lost Zack Greinke to the Diamondbacks. As Rosenthal tweets, there’s also the possibility that the Dodgers could trade either Chapman or Jansen if they do trade for Chapman.
4:04pm: Reds GM Dick Williams expects that his club will deal star closer Aroldis Chapman, CBS Sports’ Jon Heyman tweets. There is, obviously, plenty of interest in Chapman, with potential trade partners including the Nationals, Astros and Diamondbacks as well as the Dodgers.
That the Reds plan to deal Chapman perhaps comes as little surprise — Chapman is eligible for free agency after the season, the Reds don’t appear likely to contend in 2016, and he ought to fetch a very significant return. The 27-year-old flamethrower was brilliant as usual in 2015, posting a 1.63 ERA, 4.5 BB/9 and a ridiculous 15.7 K/9 in 66 1/3 innings while winning his fourth straight All-Star berth in 2015. He also posted an average fastball velocity of 99.5 MPH that came in 1.4 MPH faster than the closest pitcher (the Royals’ Kelvin Herrera).
Nationals To Shop Drew Storen At Winter Meetings
The Nationals are expected to shop reliever Drew Storen at the upcoming Winter Meetings, reports Bill Ladson of MLB.com. Storen was in the midst of a career renaissance as the Nationals’ closer last season before the club acquired Jonathan Papelbon from the Phillies. Storen pitched poorly and eventually broke his hand in an off-field incident after being displaced as the team’s closer.
Storen, 28, is club controlled through next season. MLBTR’s Matt Swartz projects him to earn $8.8MM in arbitration. In 55 innings, Storen finished last season with a 3.44 ERA, 10.96 K/9, and 2.62 BB/9. He was even better prior to the acquisition of Papelbon. He posted a 1.64 ERA, 11.27 K/9, and 2.11 BB/9 through his first 38 frames.
The presence of Papelbon on the roster makes Storen expendable for the Nationals. We’ve heard earlier this offseason that Papelbon would be hard to shop due to perceived personality issues. Papelbon also physically assaulted franchise star Bryce Harper. Some analysts thought the club might cut Papelbon after the incident, but it appears all parties have made amends.
Interestingly, the Nationals are pursuing free agent reliever Darren O’Day. The 33-year-old is expected to run about four-years and $36MM to sign. While they’re remarkably different pitchers, O’Day and Storen project similarly in 2016. Storen is also younger and doesn’t require a commitment beyond 2016.
It’s possible the team views Storen as a change of scenery candidate. This was the third time he lost the Nationals closer job. The first was due to an elbow injury and the second time occurred when the team signed Rafael Soriano. The club may also simply view O’Day’s funky delivery as a valuable change of pace from Papelbon. They may see an O’Day signing; Storen trade sequence as a way to improve elsewhere without hurting the bullpen.
The Astros are reported to be one of the teams interested in the former closer. Houston is looking to add depth to a bullpen featuring Luke Gregerson and Pat Neshek.
Bullpen Notes: Storen, Sipp, Astros, Rodney, Soria, Soriano
Here’s the latest on a number of free agent or trade candidate relievers…
- The Astros have discussed former Nationals closer Drew Storen as a potential backup plan, ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick tweets. Storen could become of more interest to Houston if it fails to land one of its bigger-name targets like Aroldis Chapman, Jake McGee or Ken Giles.
- The Astros‘ search for bullpen help is the major focus of this Houston Winter Meetings preview piece from MLB.com’s Brian McTaggart. Within the piece, McTaggart notes that there’s mutual interest between the Astros and free agent Tony Sipp for the lefty to return to Houston though the price tag remains an issue. It could be that the Astros will focus on landing a big name closer first and then address other relief needs like adding a sorely-needed lefty to the bullpen.
- The Cubs, Padres and Twins have shown the most interest in Fernando Rodney, Mike Berardino of the St. Paul Pioneer Press reports. Rodney would ideally prefer to return to closing, a source tells Berardino, so the Padres could have the edge in this respect since the back of their bullpen is wide open with Craig Kimbrel and Joaquin Benoit gone. Rodney followed up three years of excellent closer numbers from 2012-14 with a disastrous stint in early 2015 that cost him his stopper job with the Mariners, though he regained some old form after catching on as a setup man with the Cubs late in the season.
- There haven’t been any developments between the Twins and Joakim Soria since the team made its initial contact, Berardino tweets. The Royals, Blue Jays, Giants, Rangers, Tigers and Red Sox have all been among the other teams linked to Soria this winter, though the latter two are said to be out of the running after their respective acquisitions of Francisco Rodriguez and Craig Kimbrel. Soria is looking for a big salary in the form of a three-year deal in the $27MM range, which may eliminate at least a couple of those teams who were only looking at Soria as a setup reliever.
- Also from Berardino (via Twitter), Rafael Soriano is pitching well in the Dominican League and has drawn attention from a few MLB teams. The Twins aren’t one of those clubs.
Darren O’Day Close To Decision; Nationals Are Front-Runners
10:54pm: The Nationals and Orioles are the two top contenders for O’Day at this point, Bill Ladson of MLB.com writes.
5:16pm: The Nationals are the “clear front-runner” for O’Day, Connolly tweets. The two sides could soon reach a deal. O’Day has not, however, ruled out Baltimore or Atlanta, ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick tweets.
4:14pm: Here’s the latest on free agent righty reliever Darren O’Day.
- The bidding for O’Day is down to the Orioles, Nationals and Braves, Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun tweets. Connolly writes that O’Day’s decision could come before the start of next week’s Winter Meetings and certainly should be in the books by the time the Winter Meetings end. The Dodgers have also been connected to O’Day, although, as MASNsports.com’s Roch Kubatko tweets, it appears O’Day wants to remain on the East Coast.
- The Nationals’ acquisition of Oliver Perez will not impact their pursuit of O’Day, FOX Sports’ Ken Rosenthal writes (all Twitter links). The Nats do not, however, think they are likely to be the top bidder. Instead, they hope he’ll take less to play in Washington because his wife Elizabeth Prann, a reporter, works there. The Nationals don’t want to go past a certain point in bidding for a reliever, Rosenthal writes, noting that the Nats’ outlook isn’t uncommon around the league.
Latest On Ben Zobrist
The Mets are maintaining strong interest in Ben Zobrist, and assistant GM John Ricco told reporters as much today (as ESPN New York’s Adam Rubin tweets), plainly stating, “We’re very interested” when asked about Zobrist, adding that a decision is expected sooner rather than later. Rubin adds that Zobrist recently visited with the Mets, who spent some time showing him around the Connecticut suburbs and the Westcheseter area with his wife and newborn son in an effort to “demonstrate there is grass in the New York City area for families” (Twitter link). Sandy Alderson was present for an entire day of recruiting, per Rubin.
It would appear that meeting is one of four such meetings that Zobrist has planned, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (Twitter link). Rosenthal says that the Giants are “likely” another one of the planned visits, and he also tweets that Zobrist already met with the Braves. The Nationals, too, are a club of interest, Rosenthal adds, although it’s not yet clear if he’ll be visiting the Nats in this manner.
The main roadblock for the Mets in previous Zobrist rumors has been that the team doesn’t want to go to a fourth year for Zobrist, who will play next season at age 35. Yahoo’s Jeff Passan recently pegged the asking price for Zobrist at about $60MM over four years, so it’s certainly possible that a fourth year will ultimately be required if the Mets want to land Zobrist.
Newsday’s Marc Carig reported today, though (links to Twitter), that a fourth year isn’t necessarily a dealbreaker for the Mets. The team hasn’t drawn a hard line when it comes to length of contract and is prepared to offer a fourth year if that’s what it takes to acquire him. The Mets are being “very aggressive” with Zobrist and can accept the risk of a fourth year, per Carig, who adds that Zobrist left the club with the impression that he has narrowed his choices. For what it’s worth — I’ll point out that initial reports two years ago indicated that the Mets didn’t want to go to a fourth year on Curtis Granderson, either, and Granderson ultimately wound up signing for the exact four-year, $60MM figure Passan mentioned in connection to Zobrist.
Latest On Darren O’Day
2:54pm: Industry expectation is that O’Day will secure a four-year deal that comes in a bit shy of Andrew Miller‘s $36MM pact, Crasnick now tweets, suggesting something in the range of $32-34MM.
DEC. 3, 1:59pm: Baltimore has been making contact with alternative free agent relievers, reports Jerry Crasnick of ESPN.com (Twitter links), who suggests that could be an indication that the team “might not be optimistic” about its chances of re-signing O’Day. Meanwhile, the Nats, Dodgers, and Braves remain in the hunt, per the report, which notes that the veteran would like to continue pitching on the east coast.
DEC. 1: The Orioles have made a “competitive” bid for free agent reliever Darren O’Day, Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun reports. Baltimore appears to be one of the final teams under consideration for the veteran, though numerous others — the Nationals, Braves, Dodgers, and perhaps more — could still be involved, per the report.
While a signing timeline remains uncertain, O’Day has seen plenty of action over the early weeks of the offseason. He could reach an agreement before the Winter Meetings open on Monday, Connolly suggests.
The O’s have been in touch with O’Day’s representatives for some time, so the interest itself isn’t new. But Connolly writes that this is the team’s first formal offer to the late-inning ace. And its apparent competitiveness also seemingly suggests that the team is more serious about retaining O’Day than had perhaps been expected.
O’Day is the top-ranked reliever on the free agent market, per MLBTR’s Tim Dierkes. While he’s entering his age-33 campaign, O’Day’s sub-2.00 ERA over the last four seasons makes him an obvious target for many teams looking at pen upgrades.
Trade Notes: Escobar, Yankees, Shields
We just took a look at the latest on Braves righty Shelby Miller, but there are plenty of other possible trade situations percolating around the league. Here are some notes on a few of those:
- The Nationals are expected to dangle infielder Yunel Escobar in trade talks next week, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports tweets. A possible trade of Escobar has long seemed plausible, as Washington has a variety of other right-handed-hitting infield options. He could still be relied upon to hold down the fort at shortstop while Trea Turner finishes his development, but a left-handed bat (such as Ben Zobrist) would probably fit better. As I discussed in breaking down the Nats’ offseason outlook, the club might prefer to reallocate Escobar’s $7MM payroll hit elsewhere.
- The Yankees are participating in wide-ranging trade talks in the run-up to the Winter Meetings, Buster Olney of ESPN.com tweets, with the one refrain being New York’s focus on adding young rotation pieces. That’s long seemed a defining focus of the winter for GM Brian Cashman, though it remains to be seen what level of starter the team hopes to acquire and what kind of assets it is willing to part with to make a deal.
- Meanwhile, the Padres “continue to push” righty James Shields in trade talks, Olney tweets. Shields will soon turn 34, is coming off of an underwhelming campaign, and is owed $65MM over the next three seasons (including a 2019 option buyout) under his back-loaded deal. Those considerations suggest that San Diego may need to sweeten the pot (with young talent or cash) to find a taker for the contract, but Shields is hardly immovable. To the contrary, he’s still quite a useful pitcher: his 2015 effort did nothing to disturb his record of durability and he actually put up career highs in swinging strike rate (12.4%) and strikeout rate (9.6 K/9).