Teams have until December 2 at 11:59pm ET to decide which of their arbitration-eligible players they’ll tender contracts. By MLBTR’s reckoning, about 40 of those players are non-tender candidates, including two first basemen, Ike Davis and Gaby Sanchez, who platooned at the position for the Pirates in 2014.
Davis is projected to make $4.4MM in 2015 after earning $3.5MM last season. Sanchez, meanwhile, is projected to make $2.7MM, a raise from $2.3MM. Those costs wouldn’t be exorbitant for any team, even the low-payroll Pirates, but after another somewhat disappointing season from Davis and an off year for Sanchez, it’s worth asking whether the Pirates’ money might best be spent elsewhere.
Perhaps just as important for Davis is the fact that Pedro Alvarez now appears to be a first baseman. The former No. 2 overall pick struggled with throws from third base in 2014, while utilityman Josh Harrison had an unexpectedly outstanding season and staked a claim on a starting job, which will likely end up being at third. GM Neal Huntington has said that Alvarez will likely get the bulk of the playing time at first base, and he called keeping Davis “probably a challenge.” Alvarez and Davis both bat left-handed, so they can’t share a position. Davis has been working out in the outfield this offseason, but there’s probably no space on the Pirates’ roster there, either, since the Pirates already have a top young lefty outfielder in Gregory Polanco and another reasonably strong one in Travis Snider.
It’s still possible that the Pirates could trade Davis, who could theoretically have a bit of value for a team in need of a lefty first base option. But Davis will be more expensive through arbitration than he was in 2014, when he had a .233/.343/.378 season that qualified as a modest disappointment. The trade that brought Davis to Pittsburgh early in the 2014 season didn’t cost the Pirates much (a minor league reliever in Zack Thornton and a young pitching prospect in Blake Taylor), and it’s unlikely the Bucs could get more than that if they traded Davis now. It’s also obvious that, unless they trade Alvarez, the Pirates don’t have space for Davis on their roster. So there’s little incentive for interested teams to do anything but wait until the deadline for the Pirates to cut him loose.
Sanchez is right-handed and has had a reputation as a strong hitter against lefties, so Alvarez’s move to first base doesn’t impact Sanchez the way it impacts Davis. Given Sanchez’s declining performance, however, the Pirates could decide to allocate resources elsewhere. Sanchez hit .229/.293/.385 last season. He was better against lefties, at .256/.318/.429, but perhaps not so well as to justify the expense and the roster spot, especially given that the NL Central is thin on left-handed pitching. Sanchez is a career .291/.382/.481 hitter against southpaws, but at 31, his 2014 performance might be closer to his expected level going forward.
Like Davis, Sanchez has little or no trade value. So the Pirates’ best option might be to non-tender him and save money to spend elsewhere. The Bucs could then look for a cheaper Triple-A slugger to platoon with Alvarez (who, like Davis, can certainly use a good platoon partner). They could also employ some more creative arrangement like having Tony Sanchez, who dabbled as a first baseman late last season at Triple-A Indianapolis, break camp as a righty first base option and third catcher. They could also attempt to bring Gaby Sanchez back for less than $2.7MM.
Davis, who is represented by Octagon, should still be able to land a big-league deal somewhere — his 10 homers last season weren’t anything to write home about, but .343 on-base percentages don’t grow on trees, and Davis is still just 27 (28 in March). The Marlins already have a lefty first baseman in Garrett Jones, but they reportedly like Davis and could have interest if he becomes a free agent. The Padres could also be a possibility, although it’s questionable whether they’ll see Davis as an upgrade over incumbent lefty first baseman Yonder Alonso.
Sanchez, who is represented by Beverly Hills Sports Council, would be a good fit (on a cheap Major League deal or minor league deal with an out clause) for a team looking for a partner for their lefty first baseman. St. Louis, where Matt Adams has a career .197/.227/.326 line against lefties, could be one possibility. A reunion with the Marlins, and with either Davis or Jones (who platooned with Sanchez in Pittsburgh in 2013) could make sense also.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
If a coach helped Ike Davis with the hitch in his swing back when he was still young enough to adapt, he wouldn’t have this problem. It is sad that such a fixable problem threw a wrench in a career that otherwise could have been all star calibre. He has the tools, he just has one massive flaw.
As a Mets fan, his problems are his own fault. There were constant reports about him being uncoachable. He did what he wanted all the time.
I recall people saying kinda the same things about Jose Bautista when he was with the Pirates. Not so much that he did what he wanted, but whatever instruction he was given didn’t seem to sink in. I think I remember the word uncoachable being thrown about.
If I’m remembering correctly… well, just sayin’.
Many of the same types of criticisms could have been leveled by the pundits who saw little value in a second tier player such as Josh Harrison. A little patience, time, coaching. opportunity and confidence by management might still yet salvage the careers of Ike Davis and Gaby Sanchez in Pittsburgh. This is the same team that undervalued the potential of Jose Bautista, Nate McClouth, Brandon Moss, Steve Pearce, and Brock Holt in recent years (either by releasing them, or by undervaluing their potential via trade). It would be a big mistake for Pittsburgh to let either of these players walk for the money being discussed.
Not to quibble, but the Pirates weren’t the only team to undervalue the potential of Buatista, McLouth, Moss, and Pearce– all those guys were available to whomever wanted them at at least one point in their careers.
And I think they judged Holt’s potential about right– he wasn’t all that necessary to the team at the time and he helped get them Melancon and Pimentel.
My point is that if they are considering non-tendering either Davis or Sanchez, for the amount of money being discussed, the Pirates would be better served to hold onto both. One is a former 30 HR hitter and the other is a former NL all-star. Especially since they do not have another real first base option, beyond a guy coming off a disappointing injury-filled, modestly hitting/high strike-out, error-filled season, and who has never played 1B before (beyond a few “experimental” innings). Unlike the big market teams, the Pirates can ill afford to repeat recent mistakes of judging player talent.
Gaby Sanchez was a PED user when he was a National League All Star though. He should be nontendered, but Ike still has value.
I get it.
But my point isn’t that those weren’t so much past mistakes in judging talent as they were failing to be super-patient in order to wait for that talent to show itself– at least with Bautista and Moss and possibly Pearce. How many years do you have to give a guy before he puts it all together?
The Pirates had Moss for his 24-25-26 year old seasons, and he hit .222, .236, and .154, with 13 home runs over 569 at bats in those 3 years. I think that was enough. Moss himself says that he felt he was dealt with fairly by the Pirates. As for Pearce, it seemed like every time it was his turn, he got injured. Bad luck. At age 28 he was granted free agency, as a first baseman with 8 home runs in 465 at bats over parts of 5 seasons. I’m glad he turned it around, but it still took 4 more seasons and 4 trades for it to happen. I don’t think there was any prescience to be had there.
Seems like a bit of a tricky situation for the Bucs with Alvarez, Davis and Sanchez all vying for time at first. One possible scenario might be Davis leaving town for Kansas City if they don’t re-sign Butler. A cheap, fairly young power bat to DH and back up Hosmer at 1B might turn out to be a shrewd cost-effective move.
A lot of Ike’s value comes from gold glove defense (even though I think he hasn’t played that well recently, but that is a confidence thing, not ability). I don’t think he would be an ideal DH.
I’m not sure I would describe Davis’ defense as Gold Glove caliber, honestly. I mean, for one thing, he doesn’t hit that well.
Oh, he definitely is. He kinda slipped recently due to confidence problems, but his actual ability is way up there. He just can’t make contact.
Ike’s defense has been average to slightly below average since his rookie season. He is nowhere near elite as a defensive player.
This move would then depend on whether Davis can rediscover his swing. KC needs people who can hit on a consistent basis. Not sure if Butler or Davis is the answer for DH. If KC can attract Torii Hunter, he’d be the perfect candidate for a DH position anywhere really.
Ike would be an interesting buy low candidate. Not much trade value though, he going to be 28 by opening day, and he has no position flexibility.
Gaby Sanchez for Randy Choate. Cardinals fill the need for a RH platoon bat, Pirates get a LH specialist since Justin Wilson left.
Interesting. But I doubt the Cardinals are interested in someone that can only play 1B. It’d be good value for Choate, so I could get on board.
Would much rather keep Gaby and pick up someone like Zach Duke to fill that void.
Sanchez seems to have had pretty much the same year three years in a row, with just a spike in walk rate in 2013.
Don’t really see the appeal for keeping either of them around. They both had negative WAR on the Pirates last year. If you had to take one, I would say Davis IMO.
can’t see how any of them could be back
obvious but brutus.
Even if Gaby Sanchez bounced back to his modest career numbers, I can’t see justifying using up a roster spot on someone who can only hit lefties and only play 1B. Surely there must be guys out there with similar skill sets who offer a little more versatility?
Fewer than you would think. There’s Alberto Callaspo and his ilk, and Mark Reynolds and similar. Anyone better than that is hard to pry loose.
One of them would take a pre tender deal. I’m just not sure which one.
Interesting that on Baseball Reference, the player that Ike Davis has the second highest Similarity Score is Gaby Sanchez.
I really think the Valley Fever is what did Ike in. If you watch him in 2010 when he first came up he looks like a different player both offensively and defensively. Now he just seems lost and slow. I thought he might rebound when he left the Mets but he was basically the same for the Pirates. I think some team will take a chance, but this will probably be his last one.
Bah, if you read the statistics, almost everyone who lives in the south west has valley fever (saw one study that suggested 100% of people who lived there for 5 or more years). It is particularly harmful in a tiny number of cases, but other than that it is harmless. People way overhyped that illness to the point of absurdity.
Breaking his ankle is a much more likely cause. Look at Rickie Weeks, he broke his ankle at the same time and neither has played well since.
What am I going to do with my Ike Davis jersey? . . . Don’t answer that.
This is great news for Sanchez and Davis. Every time the Pirates gave up on a first baseman, they excelled on their next team. For example, Pearce, Moss, LaRoche, Jones, Morneau, McGehee, and Overbay. I guess you can throw Ishikawa into the mix after his playoff heroics.
You have a very generous definition of excelled for a couple guys on that list.
If Sanchez or Davis do get non-tendered they should sign with the cards maybe even both
Why would the Cards need Davis? I understand Gaby though.
I’ve seen enough of Pedro whiffing at curve balls in the dirt to last a lifetime. This guy is a liability in every way, especially his zombie approach to playing the game. It’s a shame that Huntington continues to stick with the guy and in the process, has lost all trading power thanks to the 2014 train wreck. Ike, Gabi? Very little help there.
It’s interesting that the much talked about Pirates farm system can not produce a first baseman or catcher.
So rather than Pedro’s “zombie like approach” you want a guy that reacts everytime he struggles? I dont. Give me the guy who stays even and is able to keep his emotions in check. Pedro has flaws, but his power isnt a liability and his improvements in K rate and BB rate warrant 1 more year. Kid is improving in ways that arent far off from making him an all star.
If I’m the Pirates I trade Alvaraz to the Red Sox (looking for a lefty batter to play 3B with some power) for some solid SP prospects and have Snider/Sanchez platoon at 1B. Not sure what to do with Davis.
It’s about time they dump these guys. 230 hitters are a dime a dozen!
I’m not a Pedro fan at all but I’m not sure trading him now would be worthwhile. Look at the Braves – they could only get a back end #4 starter for Heyward and he’s probably got more value than Pedro does at this point. Not that the Pirates couldn’t use a decent starter. Still, while I like Ike I do think they’re better off rolling the dice with Pedro one more year. It’s not like his value can really sink any lower.