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Archives for February 2017

Orioles, Kevin Gausman Avoid Arbitration

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The Orioles and right-hander Kevin Gausman have struck a deal to avoid arbitration, according to FOX Sports’ Ken Rosenthal (Twitter link). Gausman will earn a $3.45MM salary in 2017 – up from a $3.35MM midpoint – and could rake in $50K in incentives if he makes 30 starts and another $50K if he records 33.

MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz had projected a $3.9MM arbitration award for Gausman, whose hearing was set to take place this upcoming Tuesday. The 26-year-old is coming off his best season since his 2012 debut, having amassed 30 starts and registered a 3.61 ERA, 8.72 K/9, 2.35 BB/9 and 44.1 percent ground-ball rate across 179 2/3 innings. Gausman also induced infield fly balls at a 14.3 percent rate, which ranked fourth in the majors among qualified starters.

The Orioles had planned to employ a file-and-trial approach with all their arbitration-eligible players, including Gausman, though they scrapped it in his case. The club will also control Gausman via the arbitration process over the next three offseasons. The last unsigned player the Orioles have as the spring draws closer is reliever Brad Brach, whose hearing is scheduled for Feb. 16, per Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com (Twitter link). Check out MLBTR’s arbitration tracker to keep up with this year’s cases.

MLBTR Originals

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This past week’s original content from the MLBTR staff:

  • MLBTR contributor Dan Lumpkin spoke with Braves center fielder Ender Inciarte, Phillies center fielder Odubel Herrera, former major league second baseman Dan Uggla and the agent for Royals reliever Joakim Soria regarding the Rule 5 draft. All four players improbably turned into successful major leaguers after being Rule 5 selections, and both Inciarte and Herrera – two past Phillies picks – signed lucrative extensions earlier this winter. With that in mind, Herrera is “very grateful and very humble for the Rule 5 draft.”
  • This year’s free agent class is dwindling as the spring approaches, though there are still some notable veterans available. That led Jeff Todd to ask readers which remaining free agent will sign the most lucrative contract this month. The plurality of voters expect that honor to go to catcher Matt Wieters.
  • The Rangers lack clear solutions at first base and designated hitter, so I polled readers on whether they’ll add someone like Mike Napoli or Chris Carter prior to the season. The majority of voters believe the club will pick up another hitter.

Minor MLB Transactions: 2/5/17

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Sunday’s minor moves:

  • The Tigers have signed left-handed reliever Mike Zagurski to a minor league contract, tweets Jerry Crasnick of ESPN.com. Th 34-year-old will now return to the States after spending the past two seasons in Japan, where he pitched to a 4.15 ERA with 9.4 K/9 against 4.9 BB/9 in combined 47 2/3 innings with Hiroshima and Yokohama. Previously, Zagurski logged 75 1/3 major league innings of 7.05 ERA ball with four teams from 2007-13. He has fared far better at the Triple-A level, having recorded a 2.86 ERA and 12.0 K/9 against 4.2 BB/9 in 238 2/3 frames.

Quick Hits: Rays, Pirates, Pace Of Play, Prospects

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Since Stuart Sternberg purchased the Rays in 2005, the franchise has “lost money from every point in time you can pick,” he told Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. In spite of that, Sternberg has no interest in selling the team and is optimistic about keeping it in Tampa Bay with a new stadium to replace Tropicana Field. “If we are going to propose it, it will be because we believe it works for generations,” said Sternberg, who is encouraged that local politicians – including the mayors of both Tampa Bay and St. Petersburg – have been cooperative in the process. Sternberg & Co. are working on cutting down a half-dozen potential stadium sites to a “pin-perfect” choice. He’s also looking to land a new TV deal sometime in the near future, but he admitted it could be years before that comes to fruition.

More from around baseball:

  • As a result of his December DUI arrest in South Korea, Pirates third baseman Jung Ho Kang has agreed to enter a voluntary treatment program, reports Bill Brink of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. By doing so, the 29-year-old Kang could lessen any potential punishment from Major League Baseball. A joint panel agreed upon by the league and the players association recommended treatment for Kang, who has three DUI arrests to his name. The league’s prior collective bargaining agreement stated that “participation in any Treatment Program shall be considered as a mitigating factor in any discipline imposed by either the Club or the Office of the Commissioner.” That likely remains the case in the newly minted CBA, per Brink.
  • MLB and the MLBPA are amid talks centering on pace-of-play issues, commissioner Rob Manfred told Ken Davidoff of the New York Post. Introducing a pitch clock to speed up games doesn’t seem to be on the table, relays Davidoff, though cutting back on mound visits – at least from teammates – is under consideration. However, there’s “still a ways to go” before that becomes a reality, a source informed Davidoff.
  • ESPN’s Keith Law (subscription required and recommended) has released his annual list of all 30 teams’ best sleeper prospects, noting that six to eight of these players typically crack his top 100 the next year. Red Sox shortstop Xander Bogaerts, Cardinals right fielder Stephen Piscotty and Marlins catcher J.T. Realmuto are among those who have recently become quality major leaguers after Law rated them as sleepers.

Cubs Sign Williams Perez To Minor League Contract

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The Cubs have signed free agent right-hander Williams Perez to a minor league contract, tweets FOX Sports’ Ken Rosenthal. Perez had been available since the Braves released him Dec. 8.

[RELATED: Updated Cubs Depth Chart]

The 25-year-old Perez saw fairly extensive action the past two seasons in Atlanta, where he made 34 appearances (31 starts) and logged a 5.18 ERA, 5.3 K/9 and 3.5 BB/9 over 170 1/3 innings. All 11 of Perez’s appearances came via starts in 2016, and his results were unsightly (6.04 ERA) despite the fact that he paired a high ground-ball percentage (57.1) with a quality walk rate (2.52 per nine innings).

Perez’s new organization has one of the majors’ top rotations on paper with Jon Lester, Jake Arrieta, Kyle Hendricks, John Lackey and either Mike Montgomery or Brett Anderson, though the need for more depth is obvious. The Cubs are cognizant of that, having added Perez, swingman Casey Kelly (another ex-Brave) and Eddie Butler in recent days.

Pitching Notes: Wood, Brewers, Braves, Astros

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Free agent left-hander Travis Wood worked almost exclusively out of the Cubs’ bullpen over the previous two seasons, but he could return to the rotation with a new club in 2017. “Multiple teams” are offering Wood a chance to start, according to FOX Sports’ Ken Rosenthal (Twitter link). Wood, who will turn 30 on Monday, combined for 133 starts with the Reds and Cubs from 2010-15 and registered a 4.19 ERA, 7.11 K/9 and 3.15 BB/9 in that 776-inning span. ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick reported Friday that Wood could sign sometime this weekend.

More pitching-related notes:

  • Right-hander Chase Anderson and his representatives don’t expect to avoid arbitration with the Brewers, who are employing a file-and-trial approach, a source told Adam McCalvy of MLB.com. The two sides are set to argue their cases sometime before Feb. 14, which would be the Brewers’ first arbitration hearing since 2012. Anderson, who’s arbitration eligible for the first time, is seeking $2.85MM as his 2017 salary, while the Brewers have offered $2.45MM (MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projected a $3.1MM award entering the offseason). The 29-year-old is coming off a season in which he amassed 151 2/3 innings, totaled nine wins and recorded a 4.39 ERA – the three statistics arbitrators examine when dealing with starting pitchers.
  • The Braves are loaded with bullpen options going into the spring, opines MLB.com’s Mark Bowman, who expects there to be plenty of “buzz” centering on left-handed prospect A.J. Minter. A second-round pick in 2015 (a few months after he underwent Tommy John surgery), the hard-throwing Minter received his first professional action last season and laid waste to hitters at both the Single-A and Double-A levels.
  • David Laurila of FanGraphs had a lengthy, pitching-focused chat with Astros assistant general manager Mike Elias. The two discussed the value of in-person scouting, the Astros’ curveball usage and the risk associated with drafting high school pitchers, among other subjects. On 6-foot-7 righty Forrest Whitley, whom the Astros selected 17th overall out of high school in last year’s draft, Elias observed: “When you see a kid that long and lean be as coordinated, and able to repeat his delivery as well as he was, at the age of 18… that’s a big reason we took him with our first pick. We were really impressed with how he coordinates himself when he’s going down the mound. And he goes down the mound pretty aggressively.”

Twins Notes: Salas, Park, Rodriguez

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Here’s the latest baseball news from the Land Of 10,000 Lakes…

  • The Twins made Fernando Salas an offer before the right-hander re-signed with the Mets, 1500ESPN’s Darren Wolfson reports (Twitter link).  Minnesota’s offer was reportedly a one-year deal, like Salas’ deal with the Mets, and Wolfson notes that Salas’ familiarity with New York was a factor in the righty choosing between the two similar contracts.  The Twins made another move to add a right-handed reliever to their bullpen earlier this week when they signed Matt Belisle.
  • The Twins designated Byung Ho Park for assignment in order to create roster space for Belisle, and Fangraphs’ Dave Cameron feels Park has enough “cheap upside” for several other teams to show interest.  Cameron sees the White Sox, Rangers and Athletics as potential fits for Park, who is owed $9.75MM over the next three seasons.  While Minnesota didn’t have much playing time available for Park with Joe Mauer and Kennys Vargas at first base and DH, Cameron makes the argument that keeping Park to gain more return on their initial investment might’ve made more sense for the Twins than signing Belisle.
  • MLB.com’s Jesse Sanchez profiles Dereck Rodriguez, a right-handed pitching prospect in the Twins’ system and the son of newly-inducted Hall-of-Famer Ivan Rodriguez.  The younger Rodriguez is entering his fourth season on the mound after converting from his original outfield position, and the 24-year-old is looking to land on the Double-A roster in 2017.

Cafardo’s Latest: Fister, Hosmer, Hammel, Mariners, Victorino

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Twelve rookies have drawn attention as potential impact players in 2017, Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe writes in his latest notes column.  Several baseball people give their input on the players, ranging from Red Sox left fielder Andrew Benintendi to “rookie” (though a longtime veteran of Cuban baseball) Astros first baseman Yulieski Gurriel.  Here’s some hot stove news from Cafardo…

  • The Royals have interest in veteran right-hander Doug Fister.  Kansas City is known to be looking for rotation help since the tragic death of Yordano Ventura.  Fister (who celebrates his 33rd birthday today) posted a 4.64 ERA, 5.74 K/9 and 1.85 K/BB rate in 180 1/3 innings with the Astros last season.  The Padres, Marlins, Pirates and Mariners have all been linked to Fister at various times this winter, though several of those clubs have made other additions to their rotation and may no longer have interest.
  • The Royals have several notable players hitting free agency next winter, and “the feeling is the Royals will re-sign at least one of their key hitters, likely Eric Hosmer,” Cafardo writes.  Hosmer is a somewhat surprising name to potentially be staying put given that he is represented by Scott Boras, who would usually put a price tag on his client that would be out of reach for the mid-market Royals.  Then again, Cafardo also notes that while Kansas City has the pieces to be a contender this season, “if they’re out of the hunt at the trade deadline…look for a major fire sale.”  To tie those two items together, the Royals could free up money to re-sign Hosmer if they dealt some other pricey contracts.  (One would think Hosmer would also want to be assured that the Royals’ deadline deals were made with an eye towards reloading for 2018 or 2019.)  K.C. already locked up one long-term piece by signing Danny Duffy to a five-year extension last month.
  • Jason Hammel would also be a fit in Kansas City but Fister would seem to have a much lower price tag at this point, as “Hammel believes he should receive at least a three-year deal.”  Given the lack of clarity in Hammel’s market this winter, it would be quite surprising to see a team make that long a commitment to the right-hander, who is entering his age-34 season.
  • The Mariners were linked to Hammel earlier this winter, and Cafardo reports that Seattle offered Hammel a one-year deal with a $10MM option for 2018.  This offer came “very early” in the free agency process and no longer appears to be on the table.  The M’s have since acquired Yovani Gallardo and Drew Smyly, so they no longer seem like candidates for Hammel’s services.
  • Shane Victorino recently underwent minor surgery to remove a cyst under his arm, which has put the veteran outfielder’s plans to pursue a comeback attempt via a minor league contract “on hold.”  Cafardo reported three weeks ago that a team had offered Victorino a contract but he hadn’t yet informed his agent whether or not to accept.

NL West Notes: Rockies, Park, Owings, Myers

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The latest from around the NL West…

  • The Rockies won’t be making a move for recently-designated Twins first baseman Byung Ho Park, MLB.com’s Thomas Harding tweets.  Colorado made a big splash to sign Ian Desmond to fill its first base need and also recently signed Mark Reynolds to a minor league deal as further positional depth.  Barring an injury or an outfielder trade (which would shift Desmond’s role), Park doesn’t seem like a fit for the Rockies.
  • Chris Owings will likely see some time as a corner outfielder during Spring Training, Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic reports.  The Diamondbacks’ plan would be for Owings (a right-handed hitter) to spell the left-handed hitting David Peralta when a southpaw is on the mound, which would also free up shortstop for Nick Ahmed.  Owings has already seen substantial time at short, second base and center field during his career, and D’Backs GM Mike Hazen believes Owings has the athleticism to fill the type of super-utility role that Brock Holt fills for the Red Sox.
  • The Padres’ six-year, $83MM extension with Wil Myers has drawn “a lot of industry criticism,” ESPN.com’s Buster Olney reports (subscription required).  Some evaluators felt San Diego overpaid for a player who has delivered only good-but-not great hitting numbers for a first baseman, plus Myers has had issues staying on the field; Myers played in just 147 games total in 2014-15 due to injury, though he did play in 157 games in 2016.  Olney cites Myers’ good fielding and baserunning metrics as counterpoints to the critics, as well as the fact that the Padres may have felt the need to lock in a new franchise cornerstone as the club goes through a rebuilding process.

Wilmer Flores Wins Arbitration Hearing Against Mets

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Infielder Wilmer Flores has won his arbitration hearing with the Mets, FanRag Sports’ Jon Heyman reports (Twitter link).  Flores, who was arb-eligible for the first time this winter, will earn $2.2MM for the 2017 season; the Mets had countered with a $1.8MM figure.  Flores is represented by the McNamara Baseball Group.

Flores, 25, delivered something of a breakout offensive performance for the Mets in 2016, posting a career-best 112 wRC+ while hitting .267/.319/.469 with 16 homers over 335 plate appearances.  Much of that damage came from against left-handed pitching, as Flores delivered a whopping 1.093 OPS over 107 PA against southpaws.  He played a valuable utility role around the Mets’ infield, seeing action at all four spots but primarily serving as a third baseman in the wake of David Wright’s health issues.

Flores’ season was cut short on September 10 when he injured his wrist in a home-plate collision with A.J. Pierzynski, and he underwent hamate bone surgery in October to correct the problems.  With the minor procedure now behind him, Flores is again expected to play an important role for the Mets.  He and Jose Reyes will be the primary options at third should Wright again hit the DL, and Flores’ ability to hit lefty pitching makes him a strong compliment at first base alongside the left-handed hitting Lucas Duda.

The $2.2MM figure is slightly higher than the $1.9MM that MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projected Flores would earn.  With Flores’ case now in the books, the Mets’ busy winter of arbitration dealings is now complete; New York entered the offseason with 10 players eligible for arbitration.  You can follow the numbers for every arbitration-eligible player in baseball via MLBTR’s Arbitration Tracker.

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