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Archives for February 2018

Phillies To Sign Ryan Flaherty

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TODAY: Flaherty would earn at a $1.9MM rate if he makes the roster, Bob Nightengale of USA Today tweets. He could also earn a further $300K in incentives and may opt out on March 22nd if he has not been added to the MLB roster.

YESTERDAY: The Phillies and free-agent infielder Ryan Flaherty have agreed to terms, tweets ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick. Presumably, it’s a minor league deal for the CAA client, based on Crasnick’s note that Flaherty will “compete for a job in Spring Training.” He’ll join fellow veterans Adam Rosales and Pedro Florimon in competing for a utility infield spot with the Phils.

Baltimore was said to have interest in retaining Flaherty, who hit free agency this winter after spending the past six seasons with the Orioles. Instead, he’ll head to an organization that has several Orioles ties in the front office; Philadelphia president Andy MacPhail, GM Matt Klentak and assistant GM Ned Rice were all with the Phils at some point during Flaherty’s tenure with the team.

Flaherty, 31, missed a significant chunk of the 2017 season due to a shoulder strain and only took 43 plate appearances at the big league level last year. But, from 2012-16, the versatile utility man averaged 86 games and 245 plate appearances per year with the O’s, appearing at all four infield positions and in the outfield corners.

Flaherty isn’t much of a hitter, as evidenced by a career .215/.284/.355 slash. He does have a bit of extra-base pop, though (.140 ISO) and draws above-average grades for his defensive work at second base and third base. He can play shortstop in a pinch as well, though Defensive Runs Saved (-8) and Ultimate Zone Rating (-4.8) aren’t exactly bullish on his work in 391 innings at the position.

AL East Notes: Pomeranz, Orioles, Blue Jays, Tanaka

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Red Sox lefty Drew Pomeranz is a year from the open market — a reality that comes with added concern when viewed against the backdrop of the current free-agent landscape — but he tells Rob Bradford of WEEI.com that he’s more focused on the upcoming season than anything else. “Obviously, I know I’m a free agent at the end of the year and I want to have a good year,” says Pomeranz. “…I’m just worried about picking up where I left off and kind of continuing to get better every year like I have every year of my career.” Pomeranz is no stranger to the business of baseball, having been traded four times in his young career as he struggled to establish himself as a quality big leaguer. Since coming to Boston, though, he’s pitched to a 3.68 ERA with 9.1 K/9 against 3.5 BB/9 in 242 1/3 innings. Pomeranz says his biggest goal in 2018 is to get quicker outs so that he can work deeper into games. Doing so would almost certainly allow him to establish a new career-high in innings pitched; Pomeranz tossed 170 innings in 2016 and a career-best 173 1/3 frames in 2017.

Elsewhere in the division…

  • While the Orioles have been in touch with the majority of free-agent starters available, they’re content to wait out the market for now to see if they can ultimately secure some rotation help on shorter-term deals, tweets ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick. Owner Peter Angelos is wary of locking in another four-year deal just months after Ubaldo Jimenez’s four-year, $50MM landmine is finally off the books, he adds. Crasnick lists Lance Lynn, Alex Cobb, Jason Vargas, Andrew Cashner and Chris Tillman as some of the many possibilities on whom the O’s have been keeping tabs.
  • Aledmys Diaz tells Sportsnet’s Ben Nicholson-Smith that he informed the Cardinals early in the offseason that he’d prefer to be traded if the team couldn’t find more regular at-bats for him in St. Louis. The Cards obliged that wish, though the trade that sent Diaz to the Blue Jays doesn’t necessarily create an immediate path to regular playing time, either. Diaz, though, spent much of the 2017 season in the minors, and it seems certain that the Jays envision him as a big league piece to at least fill a reserve capacity. “It’ll be nice to look down the bench and see a little more firepower,” said manager John Gibbons of the additions of Diaz and Yangervis Solarte. Indeed, that duo should be a more productive pairing than Ryan Goins and Darwin Barney, each of whom signed minor league deals elsewhere this offseason. And, with a pair of injury question marks up the middle in the form of Troy Tulowitzki and Devon Travis, it’s certainly not difficult to see Diaz and Solarte both getting their fair share of reps in 2018 with Toronto.
  • Masahiro Tanaka again spoke about his decision to forgo his opt-out clause and return to the Yankees (link via Newsday’s Erik Boland). While Tanaka acknowledged that there were likely other possibilities for him in free agency, the righty doesn’t sound as if he ever gave serious consideration to testing the open market. “…[T]he important thing for me was to follow what my heart was saying, and that’s what I did,” said Tanaka. The right-hander, of course, now looks like he may have been well-served to remain with the Yankees, as nearly every starting pitcher that hit the open market this offseason remains unsigned, with a few exceptions (e.g. Tyler Chatwood, Jhoulys Chacin). “[Y]ou would never know it was going to turn into something like this,” said Tanaka of the stagnant market. Tanaka also spoke about his early struggles in 2017 and spoke about the disappointment over Shohei Ohtani’s decision to sign with the Angels, as well as his excitement to face his countryman down the line.

Matt Davidson Changes Agencies

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White Sox third baseman Matt Davidson has changed representation and is now a client of agent Dan Lozano and the MVP Sports Group, reports Yahoo’s Tim Brown (via Twitter).

A former top-tier prospect, Davidson initially came to the White Sox organization in the 2013 trade that sent Addison Reed to the Diamondbacks. After struggling mightily with Chicago’s Triple-A affiliate in Charlotte in 2014-15, Davidson put together a solid 2016 campaign there and eventually found his way onto the big league roster for the rebuilding South Siders in 2017.

Davidson, 27 in March, slugged 26 homers for the ChiSox in just 118 games/443 plate appearances this past season, though he did so while hitting .220/.260/.452 on the season as a whole. Davidson punched out an alarming 165 times in what was roughly three quarters of a season (37.2 percent of his PAs), so he’ll clearly need to improve his contact skills if he is to carve out any sort of long-term role with the Sox.

As things currently stand for the Sox, Davidson should once again be in line for a healthy share of plate appearances. He spent 60 games at DH last season and could share time with Nicky Delmonico there in 2018, and he can also spell both Yolmer Sanchez and Jose Abreu at the infield corners.

Davidson currently has a year and 145 days of MLB service time, meaning he’d likely qualify as a Super Two player next offseason he accrues a full year of big league service in 2018. The White Sox can control him through the 2022 campaign, should he prove capable of holding down a big league spot in the long term.

Davidson’s switch in representation has been reflected in the MLBTR Agency Database, which contains representation info on more than 2,500 Major League and minor league players. If you see a notable error or omission, please let us know: mlbtrdatabase@gmail.com.

Twins Reportedly Make Formal Offer To Yu Darvish

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After several months of back and forth negotiations, the Twins have submitted a formal offer to Yu Darvish’s camp, reports Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN in the latest episode of his podcast (audio link, Twins talk starting up at the 2:25 mark and running through 11:00).

Exact parameters of the offer aren’t known, but Wolfson cites multiple sources in reporting that the offer is four or five years in length. Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic (subscription required) reported yesterday that Darvish has received multiple offers worth $100M+, while Bob Nightengale of USA Today reported earlier today that he has “several” five-year offers. Given all three of those reports, it certainly seems plausible that the Twins have put forth a nine-figure offer to Darvish, which would easily be the largest commitment they’ve ever made to a free agent.

Minnesota, according to Wolfson, remains reluctant to push its offer for Darvish up into the six-year territory. To that end, while Darvish is the top target for the Twins, Minnesota has also remained in touch with the agents for a number of other free-agent starters, ranging from second-tier names like Alex Cobb and Lance Lynn. Other names mentioned by Wolfson include Jaime Garcia, Chris Tillman and Jason Vargas, so the Twins are understandably casting a wide net in the event that Darvish chooses another suitor. Notably, the team hasn’t made an offer to either Lynn or Cobb.

Perhaps more interestingly, Wolfson adds that the Twins are “maintaining pretty regular trade talk” with the Rays about the possibility of acquiring some rotation help, though Tampa Bay remains largely resistant to the idea of parting with coveted top starter Chris Archer. Jake Odorizzi’s name has been connected to the Twins on multiple occasions this offseason, however, and he could yet remain a target for the Twins. (More generally, he adds that the Rays have quite a bit of interest in outfielder Max Kepler, who has been the Twins’ primary right fielder in each of the past two seasons despite the fact that he’s not yet 25 years of age.)

A trade, though, would likely be a more serious option in the event that Darvish signs elsewhere; Wolfson notes that even after learning that Ervin Santana will be out for 10 to 12 weeks following surgery on his right middle finger, the Twins are only looking to fill one rotation spot.

Even with Santana sidelined for as much as the first month of the season, the Twins don’t appear to be in any kind of panic mode. The Athletic’s Dan Hayes wrote yesterday that the Twins believe Santana could be ready on the shorter end of his 10- to 12-week timeline. Even if he takes the full 12 weeks, Wolfson notes that the team will only need a fifth starter two or three times in April, given the large number of off days baked into the early-season schedule.

With Santana on the shelf, the Twins’ rotation will likely consist of whichever free agent/trade target they bring into the mix, in addition to Jose Berrios, Kyle Gibson and Adalberto Mejia. The team also has a pair of prospects that have dotted top 100 lists over the past two seasons in Stephen Gonsalves and Fernando Romero, plus veteran Phil Hughes returning from thoracic outlet surgery. Triple-A righties Felix Jorge and Aaron Slegers each saw brief glimpses of MLB action last year as well and could be leaned on for a spot start this coming April. Reliever Tyler Duffey will be stretched back out and given a shot at starting once again this spring as well, Wolfson notes. Righty Trevor May would be another option, though he’s not expected to return until late May, per both Hayes and Wolfson.

Suffice it to say, the Twins aren’t exactly lacking for depth, though the group of arms on which they’ll lean early in the year is, clearly, rife with question marks. A veteran to position at or near the top of the rotation looks all the more like a priority, given that context.

Latest On J.D. Martinez’s Market

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8:27pm: USA Today’s Bob Nightengale tweets that, in addition to the five-year offer from the Red Sox (which he pegs for “at least” $120MM), Martinez has discussed both long- and short-term scenarios to return to the Diamondbacks.

A shorter-term deal to return to the D-backs would come as something of a surprise, though it’d be somewhat similar to Yoenis Cespedes’ initial deal to return to the Mets. Unable to find the long-term pact he sought on the open market in the 2015-16 offseason, Cespedes instead returned to the Mets on a three-year, $75MM contract with an opt-out after the first season of the contract. He’d go on to sign a four-year, $110MM pact with the Mets the following offseason.

Nightengale reported earlier today that the only other formal offer that Martinez had received outside of Boston was a one-year pact to return to Arizona, though certainly that doesn’t mean that Martinez and Boras haven’t discussed other parameters with the Diamondbacks (or potentially with other clubs whose interest has yet to be firmly reported).

7:30pm: Boras, unsurprisingly, rejected the notion that Martinez is unhappy with any potential suitor, writes Michael Silverman of the Boston Herald. Rather, the agent tells Silverman that Martinez is “involved in multiple negotiations and is pleased with the participants and the good faith process,” calling suggestions to the contrary “not accurate.”

12:15am: The staredown between J.D. Martinez and the Red Sox doesn’t appear to be all that close to ending. Evan Drellich of NBC Sports Boston spoke to agent Scott Boras Tuesday evening, with Boras making clear that his client is willing to wait until after the start of Spring Training to sign a contract. Meanwhile, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reports (subscription required) that Martinez has become “fed up” with the lack of flexibility on Boston’s part and may actually prefer to sign with another club at this point.

“The dialogue is ongoing, we have not reached any kind of agreement,” Boras tells Drellich, noting that Martinez doesn’t necessarily need a full Spring Training to work himself into game shape. “Particularly for position players, these guys are in great shape, they’re ready to go.”

Boston has reportedly offered Martinez a five-year deal in the neighborhood of $125MM, and to this point there hasn’t been much in the way of serious competition that has been widely reported. The D-backs would love to retain Martinez, but they’re already facing a record payroll in 2018 without Martinez in the fold and have an onerous commitment to Yasmany Tomas on the books. Beyond that, one has to imagine some concerns from the Arizona brass when it comes to Martinez’s glovework in the outfield over the course of a long-term pact.

Rosenthal reports that the Red Sox don’t seem anxious to up their bid. President of baseball ops Dave Dombrowski preached to Rosenthal a “wait-and-see” approach when it came to Martinez, expressing some confidence that Hanley Ramirez could rebound and ably fill the team’s DH slot in 2018 (though that belief seems more like lip service than anything else when made against the backdrop of a reported $125MM offer to another right-handed bat that would clearly supplant Ramirez as the primary designated hitter).

“I don’t have a (timetable) on it because I really don’t know,” said Dombrowski to Rosenthal. “Perhaps if I was losing options, juggling three guys, or if we were in the starting-pitching market where there are four (top) guys, I would say, ‘Hey, I need an answer now, or I’m going to turn to this guy.’ But we’re really not in that situation.”

Beyond the lack of competition for Martinez on the free-agent market, Dombrowski also suggested that the trade market could yet be a viable approach. The veteran exec called it “amazing” to be hearing of so many players available in trade talks at this juncture of the offseason.

“At this time of year, you normally don’t get phone calls out of the blue about such-and-such being available,” said Dombrowski. “I have. I don’t know what’s going to go on.”

Outside of Boston and Arizona, there’s been little talk of serious competition for Martinez’s services. The Giants and Blue Jays were both rumored landing spots at one point, but both have made multiple outfield acquisitions since that time. It’s certainly possible that a spring injury creates a new opening for Martinez, and the very presence of a five-year offer in the currently reported range suggests that the Red Sox feel there’s some degree of competition a bit below that level (perhaps from the D-backs, though that’s purely speculative).

Are MLB Players Overpaid?

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MLB players earned more than $4MM on average in 2017, with some players’ salaries exceeding $30MM.  For most people, that’s an unfathomable amount of money.  Many people feel that baseball players and other athletes are overpaid, with the median American full-time worker earning around $45K per year.

Why do people object to MLB player salaries?  One reason is the nature of the profession – Major League Baseball is a game played for the public’s entertainment, while baseball itself is a game many of us played in our youth for the sheer enjoyment of it.  MLB players don’t serve an essential function to society like a teachers or doctors.  And to many, the work of an MLB player seems less difficult and much more enjoyable than a typical job.  It can be difficult to stomach professional athletes earning 100 times or more than that of a typical American.

Another reason some fans consider players to be overpaid is ticket prices.  For a family of four to see the Cubs host the Cardinals on a Saturday in July, sitting in the upper deck, currently costs $565.91 on Stubhub for tickets alone.  Of course, context is everything.  Go to a Rays-White Sox game on a Wednesday afternoon in April, and a family of four can get in the door for $50 or less.  At the heart of the matter: how much do player salaries actually affect ticket prices?  I’m not an economist, but I think one would argue that teams will charge what fans are willing to pay.  If player salaries were magically cut in half tomorrow, but demand for tickets remained the same, would you expect teams to reduce prices?

The other side of the coin is that, as difficult as it may be to accept given their salaries, MLB players might be underpaid.  As an industry, MLB’s revenue has grown to $10 billion.  As Nathaniel Grow wrote on FanGraphs a few years ago, the players’ percentage of that pie has dropped from a peak of 56% in 2002 to less than 40% in 2015.  No one’s suggesting fans should feel sympathy for wealthy MLB players, but rather that they are entitled to fight for their fair share of the sport’s revenue.  After all, without these 1,000 or so players, there’s no MLB.  More money for the players doesn’t have to mean higher ticket prices; it would just mean less for the owners.  Those on this side of the debate would note that MLB players are highly compensated because there are so few people in the world capable of doing their jobs, and interest in watching them perform drives the sport’s revenue.

As tensions mount between the owners and players, let’s see where MLBTR readers stand.  App users can click here to take the poll.

Wasserman Agency Terminates Relationship With Yasiel Puig

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The Wasserman agency announced Wednesday that it has “terminated” its relationship with Yasiel Puig. The news, obviously, comes as a surprise given that Puig is a fairly high-profile client that stands to receive a raise on his $7.5MM salary next winter, via arbitration, before reaching free agency as a 28-year-old upon conclusion of the 2019 season. J.P. Hoornstra of the Southern California News Group tweets that, at present, it does not seem that Puig has an agent representing him.

It’s not clear what exactly prompted the decision to cut ties with Puig, though SB Nation’s Chris Cotillo tweets that the issue related to Puig’s behavior. He further adds that it’s unlikely the Dodgers will take any sort of action. Andy McCullough of the L.A. Times tweets a similar sentiment.

Puig, 27, turned in a strong bounceback effort in 2017 after a lackluster 2016 season. In 570 plate appearances for the NL Champion Dodgers, Puig slashed .263/.346/.487 with a career-high 28 homers and 15 stolen bases. Defensive Runs Saved (+18) and Ultimate Zone Rating (+12.1) pegged him as one of the game’s best defenders in right field as well.

For all the promise he shows on the field, Puig’s off-field behavior has been a constant topic throughout his big league career. Since coming to the Majors in 2013, there have been stories about his clubhouse clashes with teammates, a bar fight in Miami back in 2015, and Snapchat videos of Puig partying with Triple-A teammates just days after being optioned to the minors in 2016 (videos that Puig himself posted) — among other issues.

Of course, it should be noted that Puig drew praise throughout his strong rebound campaign in 2017 not only for his play on the field but for his improved maturity off the field and in the clubhouse. Veterans Chase Utley and Kenley Jansen were among the teammates to join manager Dave Roberts in publicly praising Puig’s improved attitude and clubhouse demeanor (via Bill Plunkett of the O.C. Register).

As it stands, Puig figures to once again be the team’s primary right fielder in 2018. Trade talk surrounding Puig died down in 2017 after his rebound season, though the Boston Globe’s Alex Speier did report earlier this offseason that the Red Sox declined a proposal that would’ve sent Puig to Boston in exchange for Jackie Bradley.

Royals Sign Blaine Boyer To Minor League Deal

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The Royals announced Wednesday that they’ve signed veteran right-hander Blaine Boyer to a minor league contract with an invitation to Major League Spring Training. The Moye Sports client will vie for a bullpen spot in Kansas City.

Boyer, 36, had walked away from baseball for nearly three full seasons before making a 2014 comeback with the Padres and reestablishing himself as a solid big league arm. Since returning to the bigs, he’s pitched for the Padres, Twins, Brewers and Red Sox on a series of minor league deals — making the roster in each instance and ultimately performing well at each stop along the way. Over the past four seasons, he’s pitched to a combined 3.51 ERA with 5.1 K/9, 2.5 BB/9, 0.6 HR/9 and a 44.7 percent ground-ball rate.

Despite the quality bottom-line results, Boyer has attracted minor league offers only in each season since his return. The lack of strikeouts may contribute to that relatively tepid level of interest, though it’s also worth noting that Boyer has compensated for the lack of whiffs by limiting hard contact against him. Only 28 of the 299 pitchers that have logged 200+ innings since 2014 have turned in a lower hard-contact rate than Boyer’s 26.2 percent, per Fangraphs.

With the Royals, Boyer will compete for a spot in a new-look relief corps. Right-hander Joakim Soria and left-handers Scott Alexander and Ryan Buchter have already been traded away by the Royals this winter, and it stands to reason that GM Dayton Moore and his staff will continue entertaining offers on higher-priced members of the bullpen such as Kelvin Herrera and Brandon Maurer.

Mets To Designate Matt Reynolds For Assignment

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The Mets have designated infielder Matt Reynolds for assignment in order to clear a spot on the roster for newly signed Todd Frazier, tweets Anthony DiComo of MLB.com.

The 27-year-old Reynolds (not to be confused with the veteran lefty reliever of the same name) has appeared in parts of two seasons for the Mets, hitting a combined .228/.300/.351 with four homers in 226 plate appearances. While he’s never provided much value with the bat, he’s provided some defensive versatility by appearing at all four infield positions and in both outfield corners (with the bulk of his work coming at third base and shortstop).

Reynolds has a much better track record in Triple-A, albeit in a hitter-friendly environment (Las Vegas / the Pacific Coast League). Through 1234 PAs in Triple-A, Reynolds has slashed .289/.348/.419 — including an impressive .320/.396/.484 line this past season in limited action (144 PAs).

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