SUNDAY: The Dodgers have released Fields, Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register tweets.
THURSDAY: The Dodgers have claimed left-hander Donnie Hart off waivers from the Orioles, per an announcement from both clubs. In order to open a spot for Hart on the 40-man roster, Los Angeles surprisingly designated right-hander Josh Fields for assignment. The Dodgers will now have a week to trade Fields, release him, or pass him through outright waivers. Hart had previously been designated by the O’s when they re-claimed Hanser Alberto from the Giants.
Hart, 28, posted solid numbers for the 2017 Orioles when he worked to a 3.71 ERA with 6.0 K/9, 2.7 BB/9, 1.03 HR/9 and a strong 53.1 percent ground-ball rate in 43 2/3 innings of work. That performance came on the heels of strong showings in Double-A and Triple-A, and it looked as if Hart was well on his way to cementing himself as a fixture in the Baltimore ’pen.
The 2018 season, though was demonstrably worse for Hart. While he tore through younger competition at Triple-A (2.41 ERA, 9.9 K/9, 2.2 BB/9, 0.22 HR/9, 60.7 percent grounder rate), he was clobbered for 13 runs on 31 hits and 12 walks with 13 strikeouts in 19 1/3 frames at the MLB level. While it’s obviously a small sample of work, it seems that the new-look Orioles front office wasn’t overly impressed with Hart’s abilities. He has a minor league option remaining, which could serve the Dodgers well this year, given their penchant for cycling relievers back and forth between the Majors and upper minors in an effort to keep a fresh slate of arms available to manager Dave Roberts.
Designating Fields for assignment was unexpected both due to his regular-season results over the past couple seasons and due to the fact that the Dodgers had already agreed to a $2.85MM salary with the righty. That’s a non-guaranteed sum, as is the case with all arbitration contracts, but unless the Dodgers find a taker in a trade at that price point, they’ll be on the hook for one-sixth of that sum ($475K) even if they release him and get nothing for him. Fields has more than enough service time to reject an outright assignment, as well, so this seems quite likely to lead to either a trade or Fields becoming a free agent.
Since being acquired by the Dodgers, the 33-year-old Fields has tallied 117 1/3 innings of relief and pitched to a terrific 2.61 ERA with 8.8 K/9, 2.6 BB/9 and 1.22 HR/9. He’s an extreme fly-ball pitcher, never more so than in 2018 (22.9 percent grounder rate, 51.4 percent fly-ball rate), but Fields averages nearly 95 mph on his heater with solid swinging-strike and opponents’ chase rates. Fields’ heater comes with a middle-of-the-pack spin rate, however, and his curve ranks in just the eighth percentile among MLB hurlers in terms of spin rate, though Hart’s breaking ball ranks even lower.
For one reason or another, it seems that the Dodgers don’t believe Fields to be capable of replicating his previous success. If that’s the case, though, it’s puzzling that they opted to tender him a contract in the first place.
I’m not up to speed on the entire Dodger 40-man roster, but I would think someone else would have made more sense to DFA than Fields. The phones should be ringing at Dodger offices very soon.
hmm, as much as i dont expect Fields to perform as well as he has the last few years going forward, he could be a decent cost effective pick up. Probably will not make it far enough for teams like the Cubs and Red Sox to get him though.
Is Fields hurt? The guy has been great for the Dodgers.
This seems like a very backwards move. Really puzzling
Of course, they almost certainly know something we don’t as well, so there is that
Going to be traded. Just a way to clear a roster spot in advance of that trade.
So much for the “going to be traded” claim.
Josh Fields was by far the worst trade Friedman has made and very few Dodger fans bat an eye to it.
Fields has been great, and there are plenty of people who dont believe in Yordan Alvarez
He’s been decent but a non factor or injured in the postseason. Giving up 2 HRs to the team we got him from to lose a world series game doesn’t help.
Fields has been more than just decent. Unfortunately for him, the Dodgers’ staff is insanely deep. Some excellent pitchers will have to be moved before opening day.
Lucky for players that the post season doesn’t count for arbitration. Giving up two runs in a game just doesn’t mean much spread over a season.
Ok Alvarez is certainly unproven, but Josh Fields has not been great. Come on now.
I think you can say it was a bad trade, because the end result was Alvarez is a good prospect. But it was basically a deal in which they wanted an arm, and they knew the Astros were keen on Alvarez. They used their leverage to get a free arm. Plus as good as Alvarez is as a prospect the Dodgers have those guys in spades. I don’t bat an eye simply bc he wasn’t really a part of their farm.
I don’t get this thinking. Alvarez is the #3 prospect in the Astros’ system now. He wouldn’t be any less valuable as a prospect if he was still in the Dodgers’ system no matter who else they have in it. The Dodgers got some milage out of Fields but it isn’t like they gave up nothing to get him. Free wasn’t the cost. Alvarez was the cost.
I dont think it has to be about a love for Alvarez. But he definitely has way more value now than fetching back a Josh Fields. Something they could have done by just holding on until he at least gets some pro ABs. People act like many of the trades they have made are awful but dont really talk about this one.
Probably because when you trade a teenager who hasn’t even played in high school in the U.S., there’s not a lot to talk about. A couple of years down the road and now it looks like the trade is something worth talking about.
I’m not arguing that Alvarez, in hindsight, wasn’t a bad trade or he doesn’t have value. What it comes down to is he was a late add to the class and wasn’t really scouted by the Dodgers. He was signed expressly to trade for the Astros. Which we knew at the time and isn’t a new strategy for this FO, as we’ve seen numerous times. So was it a bad trade? Sure he’s a good prospect and Fields couldn’t really find his footing after injuries. Now how much value does he really have, I’m not getting into that argument, because then we have to go into the devaluation of future 1bs and whether teams believe in the bat as elite. Now I guess the better question should be why the Dodgers didn’t extensively sign him? So I’m guessing why that’s why most fans don’t bring this trade up, because it falls under the category of something that never really was.
There are a lot of teams that are highly interested in Alvarez as part of a package. It easy to say now the Astros won this one the relief corps is deep and Minute Maid was not designed for fly ball pitchers.
Donnie Baseball!
Dodgers have a crunch in the pen. Need dudes that can go to AAA. Fields was the weakest link.
Yeah especially when they had to protect great talents such as Jaime Shultz and Josh Sborz.
both are several years younger, were top prospects just recently, and have options remaining
The last part is the only one that really matters to the Dodgers. As the article points out the strategy of this FO is to constantly shuttle relievers back and forth between the minors and the big team. Controllability counts for more than ability. The LA Times just ran an article about Brock Stewart, somebody who on most teams would have found a regular role. He thought he was out of options but was informed by the MLBPA that his service time gave the Dodgers one more option. So he will live out of a suitcase for another year. It’s the way they roll.
Bluesky – The LAD moved Fields because he was getting by on smoke and mirrors (not because of remaining options). Advanced metrics predict a major regression for Fields.
Were those advanced metrics not available when they gave him a $2.85m contract?
That was a non-guaranteed contract. They were only on the hook for $475k if something better came along, which in their view it did.
Churning the bottom of the roster. The LAD know what they had in Fields, and would rather take a lottery ticket instead.
earm…..WRONG. He was correct. This was soley because he was out of options.
Guess again 101, you’re WRONG, go back to school. Fields is an extreme fly ball pitcher (with a lowly 23% ground ball rate), with no secondary pitches. SIERA is predicting a regression for Fields. But why concern yourself with advanced metrics, you’re probably an ERA kinda person. Or perhaps W-L.
Fields was hitting 88-90 when I saw him in Glendale. I thought someth8ng was wrong with the gun until Chargois came in and was touching 97
Fields would be a perfect pickup for KC
Welcome to Arlington. The Rangers welcome you with open arms
Freidman is an analytics guy and analytics say that Fields was extremely lucky. His FIP was over a full run high than his ERA with LA. He was a low K/fly ball pitcher which doesn’t tend to lead to success. Still seems a bit odd because his end result was a positive. I liked Fields but oh well….best of luck.
A full run higher is still 2 runs lower than what Donnie Hart put up. His FIP was in the mid 3s which is not bad.
SIERA was moving strongly in the wrong direction over the last 3 seasons.
Wtf
And then if Fields goes somewhere else this year and gets rocked, all these people questioning Dodgers management now will be like “Yea! We knew he was gonna be bad!”
When analytics goes too far
question is if donnie can field like josh.
I don’t get it, I thought Fields was having an excellent spring
Velo is way down. That matters more than a couple innings getting AAA hitters out.
Pretty sure you shouldn’t have a comma before “as well”
If a guy with an option left isn’t good enough for the Orioles’ 40-man, I fail to understand how he’s good enough for the Dodgers.
Yeah, sounds crazy on the surface, but hey when the O’s are ready to compete in 3-5 years the rules that will eliminate LOOGY’s may be in place. No sense in even wasting a 40 man spot on Hart if you feel these rules are coming before the 2020/21 seasons.
Never been a fan of fields. Always seems to have the straightest fast ball going right down the middle which ends up in the seats. If he lost his fastball could be an underlying injury. He will catch on somewhere just glad it’s no longer in our pen.
I’d like to see the Cubs pick him up. They’ll have Strop closing til Morrow comes back, but I think they’re putting too much faith in Morrow coming back full strength, and holding up for the season. I think they’re gonna need all the decent arms they can get before it’s over.
I’m a Reds fan. I’d also like to see the Cubs pick Fields up.
And that’s why you’re a Reds fan… and desperate for attention.
Wow, witty. Enjoy the 2019 season; I know I will.
Here’s a question for the rules experts: if Fields accepted the assignment, would he collect his arbitrated salary?
No. Arb salaries are non guaranteed in ST. They aren’t guaranteed until a player breaks camp with the team. Teams would only be responsible for the prorated portion, 30 days or 45 days of pay depending on when they are cut.
Not really the question. The question is, what salary would he receive if he accepted assignment to the minors?
In a sense it is. He can accept assignment, but the contract is non guaranteed. He receives the pro rated portion, which I believe is .692 (45/182)*2.8M. . If he broke camp on the 25 man he’d have enough service time to decline the assignment and
It’s thirty days of salary at this point not 45. He gets that regardless as termination pay.
I am actually going to try to figure this out once and for all. It arose last year with Ezequiel Carrera. The team can always obviate the issue by just releasing instead of outrighting, but they might want to keep the guy in some cases even if it means paying up (or potentially paying up if/when the player is recalled).
The language on the termination pay speaks in terms of terminating the uniform player contract. So perhaps that means the player would be accepting a standard minor league agreement, with salary governed by the minimums that apply there. Most of these guys would be able to command more than that, surely, but maybe they accept the assignment after working that out with the team and we just never hear about it?
I suspect the functional answer lies in the standard practices on these deals … whether they come with split salaries, are sort of renegotiated after the fact, etc. Will see what I can figure out.
According to the article he already has “more than enough” service time to decline the assignment, so I am assuming this to be accurate. You seem to be saying if he accepted the assignment the salary he’d receive would be only the prorated portion represented by spring training. He’d get nothing further for time spent in the minors? That doesn’t make sense, not that everything in the CBA does.
Thanks for your answer Jeff. I will be interested in what are able to find out about this murky area.
I didn’t mean he wouldn’t earn more during the season, no.
The 30 days worth of pay on the arb salary is treated as termination pay for the terminated uniform player contract. I believe that stands alone — once the contract is terminated, he’s entitled to it.
The question is what happens from that point forward.
– Claim: new team takes over arb obligations
– Released: he keeps the aforementioned termination pay and agrees to whatever other terms he can with the Dodgers or some other team
– Rejects outright assignment: same as release
– Outrighted and does not elect FA: he keeps the aforementioned termination pay … would then would have to at least earn at the minor league minimum for a player with his service levels … but how is the precise amount determined? what happens if he’s called up to the majors?
I can imagine several possibilities on how this would work so I’m going to see if I can get some clarification.
Clarifying, my post was a combination response to blue_painted and yourself. Blue I thought was suggesting he’d only earn the prorate.
Now I believe if a player collecting an arbitration salary is designated for assignment with options (cannot refuse the demotion) continues to earn his majors arbitration salary while playing in the minors. The only example of this that comes to mind is Puig, who was sent down while earning an arbitrated salary. This might not be a good example because his contract probably wasn’t entirely standard.
The question might be, if a player who is out of options accepts the designation, is he technically not terminated but demoted with pay in the same way he would have been with options?
I suppose we wouldn’t be asking this question if the Dodgers hadn’t taken the unusual step of agreeing to an arbitrated salary with out of options player, and then designating him. It’s difficult to find any sense in that unless it gives them a means for keeping him in the minors. Continuing his majors salary would certainly be an incentive for the player to accept the assignment,
I suspect the LAD want him (his $2.8M salary) off the roster and by doing so now only are obligated to pay him severance. I believe they are close to the CBT and possibly are contemplating a run at Gio or Keuchel the former more likely than the latter in response to Kershaw’s situation. Can’t believe this a talent only driven decision.
earm…..WRONG. He was correct. This was soley because he was out of options.
His numbers look good but only Dodgers fans know how many inherited runners allowed to score
Seriously, it seems like this man gives up a home run every appearance. At Dodger Stadium, that’s no easy task!
They DFA Fields and they hang onto Pedro “Can’t count on me” Baez … WTF
You must not have seen how good Baez was down the stretch. He was easily their best RP
I’m glad Baez finally put it all together. He throws heat!
My bet is,Donnie Hart will be Designated for assignment within the next few days…
Did this say pirates for Donnie hart earlier?
Fields sounds like help the Brave pen could use, however my guess is they will prowl the waiver wire as spring gets closer to ending. After all, cheap is their MO.
I would say the Dodgers FO don’t trust his extreme flyball tendencies in any mid to high leverage situations. Average spin rate and lots of fly balls give him absolutely no margin for error. With no options left, he’s tough to carry.
Thanks for your service.
As weird as it sounds, he had an option year left. I’m guessing it had more to do with health concerns and shedding the 2.5 M.
Fair cop. I hear his velo was well down this spring, could be related.
Repeat my Really puzzling.
The DFA was clearly going to hurt trade value, but not destroy it completely. Can’t believe the Dodgers could get nothing for Fields.
Now I wonder how long they’ve been trying to trade him prior to the DFA and subsequent release. Shocking no one was interested for even the old C/PTNL standby
In fact, kind of makes me think a suspension could be coming.
Josh to the Red Sox for one of the catchers they are looking to offload wouldn’t be bad.
The Scott Kazmir and Brett Anderson deal so far has the worst
Both got hurt over and over
And over and over again.
Kazmir still on books this year, $8M deferred…
Well something obviously happened, Fields was pitching pretty well this spring.
Now , if you’re the Orioles, and the (arguably) second best team in MLB just claimed someone you had waived, would you check your player evaluation methodology?
Not if that team is the Dodgers (who in any case I’d call the fourth-best team in MLB right now). They are notorious bottom-fishers when it comes to relief pitching.