The Rays have reached agreement on a contract with free-agent outfielder Avisail Garcia. He’ll earn at least $3.5MM on the one-year deal, with the potential for more.
The 27-year-old, who was non-tendered by the White Sox just before the deadline earlier in the offseason, can achieve an additional $2.5M via incentive pay tied to his playing time. He’ll get $250K upon reaching 350 plate appearances and do the same for every fifty more thereafter, through his 600th PA. There’s another $1MM payout if he strides to the plate 650 times.
Tampa Bay has reportedly been in the market for a right-handed bat and, if finalized, will bring a buy-low candidate who fits that description into the fold with Garcia. Hamstring issues torpedoed Garcia’s 2018 season, as he was limited to just 93 games and managed just a .236/.281/.438 batting line in 385 plate appearances. A year prior, though, Garcia enjoyed a breakout campaign with a .330/.380/.506 slash through 561 plate appearances.
Truthfully, though, it’s difficult to know what to make of Garcia. His 2017 season was very clearly inflated to an extent by a .392 average on balls in play that he isn’t ever likely to repeat (or even approach). Garcia struck out at a career-low 19.8 percent clip that season, but he also hit the ball on the ground at a 52.2 percent clip — hardly a trend that is conducive to success for a plodding player who is listed at 6’4″ and 240 pounds.
Garcia seemed a prime regression candidate in 2018, and while that held true when looking at his bottom-line stats, there were actually a fair number of silver linings in an otherwise disastrous season. Garcia hit the ball in the air at a career-high 34.4 percent rate, resulting in a clear power surge. Despite having just 385 PAs last season, he clubbed a career-high 19 home runs, and his .202 ISO (slugging percentage minus batting average) was easily a career-high mark as well. Moreover, Garcia’s hard-hit rate jumped from 40.7 percent in 2017 to 43.2 percent in 2018, per Statcast. At the same time, though, Garcia also punched out in a career-worst 26.5 percent of his plate appearances.
Those past two seasons, in many ways, are a microcosm of Garcia’s career. He’s long been touted as a potential impact bat and clearly has some raw offensive capabilities, but he’s never been able to consistently tap into that talent. In fact, outside of that All-Star 2017 season, Garcia has essentially been a replacement-level player because of the fact that he’s graded out as a poor defender over parts of seven big league seasons.
The Rays have a strong defensive mix in the outfield with Tommy Pham, Kevin Kiermaier and Austin Meadows lined up for regular work, so it’s perhaps likelier that Garcia will see more time at designated hitter and play in the outfield corners only sparingly. Tampa Bay, then, is betting firmly on the offensive potential that has teased both the Tigers and White Sox so often in the past but rarely manifested itself over a consistent stretch in the Majors. If the Rays can cut back on Garcia’s strikeouts while helping him to maintain his hard-contact and fly-ball gains, however, he could prove to be a bargain source of pop in 2019 before returning to the open market next winter.
Tampa Bay already has Yandy Diaz lined up for some regular work at designated hitter, though he could also see time at first base with Ji-Man Choi as well. And given that neither Choi nor Diaz is a proven asset, it’s possible that either could struggle and thus further open at-bats for Garcia, who already figures to be in line for fairly regular playing time.
Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic first reported that a deal was close (via Twitter). Jon Heyman of Fancred (links to Twitter) reported that it was done and had financial details. The Athletic’s Jim Bowden first tweeted the total guarantee.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Raysup247
Not Jose Martinez but hey we got someone!
Yankeepatriot
I bet everyone that he will be the annual scrap heap player that the rays get that absolutely kills my team like Sean Rodriguez, hechavarria and James looney were
-__-
dangleswaggles
You forgot the Left field Speaker.
Yankeepatriot
HA !!!!!
geejohnny
Good one! With that terrible park….any advantage is appreciated.
jvent
Damn I wanted mini Manny Ramirez on the Mets lol
metfan3324
so did I, nice pickup for tampa bay..
david klein
Why? Besides for 2017 he’s been a mediocre hitter and bad defender. He’s an easy pass for me.
brushbackmlb
I’d always heard him called “Mini Miggy” from his Detroit days, so I think that’s what you mean. I wanted to see what kind of numbers he’d pull in Colorado.. good signing!
niclopez
The White Sox luck, Avi is going to bat .330 with 22 HR and 80 RBIs.
Free Clay Zavada
He’d somehow manage to be below average with that line, knowing his horrible plate discipline and defense.
DarkSide830
hey, heard of the DH?
Free Clay Zavada
hey, heard of positional adjustment? you have to hit really, really well to be an above average DH. and his 2017 season was one of the most extreme examples of batted ball luck in the history of the sport
DarkSide830
My point still stands: there is no clear holder of the TB DH spot currently, and that will negate the “bad defense” part of your argument. Perhaps allowing him to focus more on hitting will make him better in that department.
Free Clay Zavada
History shows the exact opposite, there’s said to be a DH penalty (and it’s backed by data). Guys hit less well when they don’t play the field
baumann
Him getting a roster spot over Brandon Lowe would be a mistake. Or Nathaniel Lowe, for that matter. So many Lowes.
stymeedone
Imagine Big Papi, Edgar Martinez, and Harold Baines if they had only played the field.
brushbackmlb
Love this comment!
Ejemp2006
Rays has magic, fixed Fernando Rodney overall bad loser attitude. Turned him into one with nasty winner attitude. Remember?
Do the same with Garcia? He is Adonis with work ethic bad, attitude bad. Tweak with Rays magic? And maybe, just maybe, hold breath? All Star! Then we like, a lot?
kc38
The guys that have come into Tampa with a career in flux or in trouble always leave Tampa with big pay days. I’d put this clubhouse and organization culture against anyone.
Ejemp2006
Plus, Tampa is for lists of best places to live on the planet. Ball player on the road? Family not miss too much because make love time at beach, nearby Disney, take cruise, decent schools (north of Gandy, lol), friendly military community too! AND Central American ball player has airport access to his home country cheap and easy. Or just relax with great Spanish community of Tampa/St Pete.
Garcia can’t be super success in Tampa, revolution for career? Then hope becomes zero for his natural talent.
canocorn
“The White Sox luck, Avi is going to bat .330 with 22 HR and 80 RBIs.”
… with 10 of those HRs and 32 of the RBI coming against CWS.
brushbackmlb
I think that’s exactly what’ll happen. If nothing more, he’ll out-perform Jon Jay at a similar price.
kc38
Pham 2.0. Good outlying stats just a short injured season. Expect bigger things
mrnatewalter
He needed a .392 BABIP to have a dominant season. That’s not good outlying stats. That’s a really good amount of luck.
kc38
I’m glad that’s the only outlying stat you look at lol. Not his hard hit % or exit velocity and things of that nature
pplama
Yes. When he grounds out to the SS, the ball really jumps off his bat.
kc38
Just go look at phams stats before and after the trade when everyone in st louis said his 1 year breakout was a bust. The rays believe in the outside numbers not his “batting average”
Free Clay Zavada
Pham 0.25 if anything
HubcapDiamondStarHalo
If this pans out and he signs with the Rays, I actually would have gotten one right… IF he had been in the free agent contest! (laughing) Still trying to get out of the zero-zone…
macstruts
If they are expecting, and paying for, a 1 to 2 WAR player, It’s a good move.
The_Porcupine
Ugh. Went into the offsets on with dreams of possibly Donaldson and/or Cruz. Instead this guy and Morton. Morton was a good get, but you have to believe last year was his career year and he will regress. And him staying healthy seems iffy, especially how he struggled at the end of the year. Really thought this was the year the Rays might do something exciting. Instead they substituted Morton for Archer.
pplama
That’s a lot of $ for a Lefty-only DH.
kc38
3.5 mil is a lot of money….?
pplama
See what Matt Davidson signs for to get your answer.
The Rays are paying 7x what an invite to spring training for a lefty mashing bench DH usually costs.
geejohnny
Davidson can’t hit. Garcia has. Not even close. Davidson will get an invite from someone.
megaj
kc38- Your comment in a nutshell is what has gone terribly wrong in the world of sports. Hopefully your kids don’t live in Cali where they give out participation trophies, because if they can best the competition, you too can have a millionaire in the family one day. All they have to do is get in the door with average talent
kc38
Okay good argument so I guess the 25 man roster can no longer exist I guess mike trout is gonna play every position. I guess no bench bats or utility guys matter. Good argument. Don’t give a guy a chance who had a stellar season a couple years ago and maybe figured something out. He’s had 6 other mediocre seasons so no chance for you. Good argument. Well please name me a cheaper but better player???
Cc13
While naturally I agree with the sentiment, the commenter was obviously speaking in relative terms. Given the state of MLB today, 3.5 million is a fair amount for Garcia. It’s fun to follow the game even despite the obvious economic injustice.
With that said, it’s worth reflecting on the situation. Have you seen bill James’ recent twitter remark?
“If the players all retired tomorrow, we would replace them, the game would go on; in three years it would make no difference whatsoever. The players are NOT the game, any more than the beer vendors are.”
It was dispiriting but predictable to see the outrage this comment sparked among players and fans alike, mostly in the form of non sequiturs, as when Verlander asked whether the Red Sox would have won the World Series without Mookie Betts or whatever, and this was supposed to prove that he deserves the salary he’s getting.
If the question is who deserves the money more, the players or the owners, i would obviously side with the players. But if we’re asking whether the beer vendors or, say, the average joe busting his butt for forty hours a week on a forklift, or whatever, deserves a raise more than the players do, then it’s obviously the average joe, it isn’t even debatable. On one side there’s a bunch of millionaires throwing a ball around for a living, and on the other there’s basically subsistence laborers, without whose interest in the sport, moreover, the players might not even have the opportunity to play the game they love, let alone get paid for it.
B-Twice
Lol at everyone bagging this. Hes basically free. Worth a shot. Can hit.
geejohnny
Hmmmm….good sign. If they ever would have pried Martinez away from the Cards it would’ve cost them at least that plus a player.
bigguccisosa300
Well damn now he’s probably gonna hit 280/385/550 this year smh haha
bigguccisosa300
.. against my jays at least lol
jekporkins
Good signing. I had some hopes he’d get desperate and end up in left for the Giants.
its_happening
Typical Rays signing in-hopes he contributes. He might. Not a bad get for Tampa.
A career .304/.358/.457 hitter against lefties for an OPS of .816. Let him face lefties and play DH, he “should” be ok. I’m sure you’d take those numbers at that salary.
Oxford Karma
He’ll probably go .300/30/100 with the Rays. They have a knack for buying low and getting the good season out of guys.
geejohnny
Eight…..ONE good season then they can’t afford them and it’s bye bye.
dematteo1982
I was waiting to see who Garcia was going to sign with. And I think it was one of the best possible spots he could have signed. I understand his inconsistency…but the talent is obviously there. And at 27? there is without a doubt a chance to reach his full potential. I see .275 30 95 at his absolute best. I’m guessing .255 20 75 would be more plausible. You never know though..maybe this is the year he puts it all together. Good signing by Tampa
shoelessjeff
I hope he does well for Tampa, there is still time in his career, but he isn’t likely to even turn out to be a even an average regular player. More likely you’ll see .240 14 hr 56 rbI if he isn’t injured for 2 months. That’s the line line he’s pretty much trademarked.
canocorn
If Avi stays healthy he’ll have a solid “show ‘em” season.
Scrap1ron
The Indians and Giants have two of the worst outfields in baseball. Are they even trying to pursue players like Garcia?
bobtillman
The Indians need defense for their pitching, as do the Giants because of their park. There’s no fit for Garcia in either place. Even if he’s healthy, Garcia’s only marginally better than hideous as an outfielder. And he K’s way too much to be an effective, middle of the order bat.
Very limited skill set…..and actually a lot of money for that set. It’s hard to imagine his starting on any good team, like the Indians, or even a re-imaging one like the Giants. Pretty much a waste of time.
jekporkins
I’d say left field in SF isn’t that bad, actually. Crimminy, they won a World Series or three with Travis Ishikawa, Pat Burrell and Michael Morse looming out there. Right or center field they’d be dead.
bobtillman
The Rays really dropped the ball not getting Goldsmidt , who they had both the money and prospects to acquire. THAT would have taken them to the next level.
Garcia? Only starts on second tier teams. Which is what the Rays are looking like more and more like. The Yanks have added enough to chase the Sox, who are still far superior to anyone else, even with Donald Duck closing. Minny’s gotten better, White Sox may very well (Machado? Harper? Both?)…….second WC well is drying up.
HubcapDiamondStarHalo
I’m a Sawx fan, and I have to say that I’m WAY scared of the Yankees this season. They’ve done a lot to improve the club from last year, they had a lot of lousy luck and still won a ton of games last year. Sawx as of this moment haven’t done anything to improve over last season and have lost people in a few spots who helped a lot last year. If we were making predictions today, I’d say Yanks win the division, Red Sox make the wildcard at 2nd place. Not what makes me happy, but for now it’s the way I see it.
Carrington Spensor
The Yankees were rolling until their starting pitching broke down. Having Paxton and Happ for the whole season is a great improvement. Britton replaces Robertson for the full season. No doubt the Yankees will add pitching during the season as needed.
Trout’s the key as is Betts for the Sox. If either has a prolonged injury, their team is in trouble. Anyone else on the 2 teams can be replaced.
HubcapDiamondStarHalo
Trout? Thinking you mean Judge or Stanton…
Carrington Spensor
Thanks!
Judge.
He makes the Yankees go.
bobtillman
Don’t despair. Xander and Sale and Porcello in contract years…JD in a possible contract year…..Mookie trying to set the record in arbitration….. Benetendi and Devers improving just by maturation….FWIW, I think they’ll be BETTER in 2019 than they were last year. And let’s face it, they were on a cruise control the last 6 weeks of the season. They easily could have won 120. The World Series proved it; LA could only win one freakazoid 18 inning game.
Kimbrell? Ya, like he wasn’t an adventure…..Really, at this point in his career, no great loss…..HOF guy, little doubt…but the train’s left the station…..
No doubt the Yanks have improved (not that they were bad to begin with), and, as noted below, will adjust as the season plays out; there figures to be LOTS of available talent (especially in the AL) in July……but it’s not like DD sits on his hands and watches the parade pass him by…..
These are easily the two best teams in MLB and it’s not even remotely close…..
joepanikatthedisco
Austin Meadows was actually pretty bad on defense last year. -9 DRS compared to Avi Garcia’s -4 and in only half the playing time.
shoelessjeff
Wait til Garcia completely misplays 3 or 4 balls in the OF in one game, like line drives that smack off his glove or he falls/over dives on an easy liner. Man, rose colored Rays fans!
geejohnny
He’s hardly ever going to step on the turf. The Rays have several outfielders and some infielders who can do a decent job there. Maybe a tough leftie like Sale…..but rarely.
NYMETSHEA
Probably not worth that much. Does not provide much value.
Expect low BA, OBP, SLUG, and OPS with teen home run potential in a full season.
Stress full season.
Everyone that seem shocked about the signing nor value should understand that the player had one lucky season in his career. That season included an insane BAbip (.391), and should be considered with a grain of salt.
matt4baseball
I’m not to familiar with Garcia so obviously he never got my attention as a feared hitter. My question is for this money why didn’t we keep Cron? That was a mistake from the FO among their many success stories. I hope Garcia becomes another rare find for the Rays, or I’ll fall back asleep when he gets up. I guess the lineup is set when LHers are pitching?
kc38
Why are you so obsessed with Cron. His huge swing will never ever be able to produce over what he did. Way too long. Terrible player
NYMETSHEA
Maybe due to the fact that Garcia is an overrated player that never hit even 20 HR? His only great offensive season came with a .391 BAbip.
CJ Cron hit BA .253 OBP .323 SLUGGING .493 OPS .816 and hit 30 HR last year.
Cron can be a force as a platoon against left handed pitching.
Not even close in value, and appropriate to ask since the poster clearly is comparing the two players. Not all available players, but players that might be in the same class in terms of financial obligations.
kc38
Well again the outlying numbers besides your batting average stat prefer Garcia and he’s much more athletic with a better swing that can be fixed. He was still making contact with the balls he put in play. Crons pop ups to the roof because he grazes the dirt on every swing doesn’t have a chance to be anything. Garcia has a short strong swing and with tweaks and a mentor like Pham with a very similar swing things can happen for an athletic 27 year old. Any single day of the week I take Garcia over Cron.
matt4baseball
We’ll see with Cron since we play the twins often enough. Every HR hitter has some sort of long swing, he was not a major strike out player . Besides he was very good with pitches inside and low as well. All at 28 yrs old! I hope all comments are right about Garcia, Hell certainly be great in any brawls we might encounter over the season.
DockEllisDee
smart signing, over the last two seasons he’s had a much more potent output.. Not saying he’ll have a monster year but I see him living up more to his potential
canocorn
Doc;
Don’t know whether Ellis’ nickname should be ‘no-hit’ or ‘one-hit’.
Tampadelphia Ed
It’s a typical Rays move. Low cost, potential upside based on a prior season’s results. The Rays are masters of this kind of signing. They will be a decent to good team again this year without actually contending in the ridiculously competitive AL East. Some other teams (I’m looking at you Phillies) could take a page from the Rays playbook.
shoelessjeff
Um, try like half a decade of crap play, then one insane year, then back to crap. Now you’ve got Avisail.
Strike Four
No way this guy wouldn’t be available in March. I know the money is rather low, but why handcuff yourself to like, that guy? I miss the old Rays.
kc38
For one why risk not getting someone you truly believe in? If they signed him to this deal obviously it’s not because they were just scared he wouldn’t be around in March this is obviously an I believe in you being our Dh. Believing in someone isn’t handcuffing you. I take this guy over Cron anyday
shoelessjeff
I wish him well, but am so glad he’s gone! See ya!!!
canocorn
Say it ain’t so, Jeff.
bucjoe
They got rid of Cron and signed Garcia? This is a DESPERATE move, not a good one. They will be a poorer team due to the exchange of these two.
kc38
Oh boy lol. Only reply to your comment. Oh boy.
bobtillman
Again, Rays fans have to ask themselves: if Garcia was worth it, why would the White Sox, a team that fancies itself a contender, let him go? Like Charlie Morton…nice guy, Charlie, but the Astros are sucking wind for starters and never returned his calls…..and it’s not like Houston’s FO guys are dumb……
The Rays are the Rays….by the time all their young talent settles in, Snell will be in pinstripes……they just refuse to make the commitment to win……
kc38
Hey!! Do you have a brain? Orrrr
Coach Bombay
Sounds like Bob has some inside knowledge.
eric9690
Have fun with this guy lol. After rays games you will probably see him at the portillos location in tampa. Loves the chocolate cake from them. Also enjoy his mediocre defense and spotty bat. I’m honestly just happy the Sox couldn’t reach an agreement with him after non tendering. This is one of the last Kenny Williams acquisitions that never panned out.
GarryHarris
You really can’t give Kenny Williams too much grief for trading an old Jake Peavy for Avisail Garcia. He had as much upside as anyone and perhaps the strongest OF arm in MLB. He simply lacked dedication.
eric9690
I agree it wasn’t kenny’s fault the deal didn’t work out in our favor. Also Iglesias didn’t pan out either and peavy was on fumes at that point in his career.
throwinched10
The Rays don’t really have to try that hard to make the playoffs. They just have to beat the Twins or Athletics.
Astros, Indians, Redsox, Yankees, 2 of the Rays, Athletics, Twins.
The AL is getting boring.
throwinched10
One of* not 2 of.
Yikes, long day.
Nick P
If you’re in the Tampa Area, Hide your kids, Hide your wives…
Just ask Prince Fielder.
GarryHarris
That’s the whole reason the Tigers traded him away almost immediately. He’s a pig’s a^^
minoso9
Good luck to Avisail. He still has excellent potential and needs to work hard. Sometimes a change of scenery can help a player upgrade his game.
daveineg
He’s one year removed from an .885 OPS. That wasn’t all luck. He’s getting a very modest deal. Getting him in a better lineup should help his production. A team like the Rays needs to take fliers on guys like Garcia.
Apostle Biff
White Sox fan here. Rays getting a high reward lotto ticket here for a bargain price. No guarantees, but he takes with him the expectations, hopes, and dreams that Sox fans left on the field with him.
mattynokes
When 4.6 of your career 4.9 bWAR comes from a season in which you basically just got a lot more singles than usual, I don’t think it suggests that things can or will click. Solid platoon bat, but not an everyday player.
matt4baseball
Well I guess the Rays FO got it right since they only need a platoon RH bat with all the lefty options they have. Seems like a great choice as long as he makes contact.