We’ve now passed the deadline for teams to tender contracts to pre-arb and arbitration-eligible players. We’ll keep track of the more minor players non-tendered in the National League here. The American League non-tenders are available at this link.
As a reminder, you can view MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz’s projected salaries for arbitration-eligible players here:
- The Cardinals announced they’ve non-tendered utilityman José Rondon. The right-handed hitting infielder tallied 90 plate appearances this past season while suiting up at a handful of position.
- The Giants announced they’ve non-tendered outfielder Luis González, right-hander Sam Delaplane and southpaw Joe Palumbo. None of that trio was arbitration-eligible, and all three were recently acquired via minor transactions. It wouldn’t be a surprise if San Francisco attempts to work out minor league pacts with one or more of that group now that they’ve been removed from the 40-man roster.
- The Phillies have non-tendered southpaw Kyle Dohy and re-signed him to a minor league contract, per a team announcement. He’ll remain in the organization but no longer occupies a spot on the 40-man roster. Dohy made on major league appearance in 2021.
- The Padres announced they’ve non-tendered relievers José Castillo, Trey Wingenter, and Matt Strahm. Castillo and Wingenter haven’t pitched since 2019 because of arm injuries that necessitated Tommy John surgeries. Strahm was limited to just 6 2/3 frames in 2021 by health issues himself.
- The Cubs are non-tendering reliever Jason Adam, reports Robert Murray of FanSided. The southpaw missed much of the season after suffering a gruesome ankle fracture in Triple-A in May, but he made a triumphant late-season return to the big leagues. Adam ultimately tossed 10 2/3 innings over 12 outings. Chicago also announced they’ve non-tendered outfielder Michael Hermosillo, who made a late-season appearance on the big league roster.
- The Mets have non-tendered outfielder Mark Payton, per a club announcement. The left-handed hitter was acquired from the Reds midseason but never suited up for New York at the major league level.
- The Reds have non-tendered righty Brandon Bailey, per a team announcement. The 27-year-old made five appearances with the Astros in 2020. He missed all of 2021 recovering from Tommy John surgery, the second such procedure of his career. Bailey is re-signing on a minor league deal with a Spring Training invitation but will no longer occupy a spot on the 40-man roster, reports C. Trent Rosecrans of the Athletic.
- The Nationals announced three non-tenders: relievers Wander Suero and Ryne Harper and first baseman Mike Ford. Suero is the most notable of the group, having been an effective set-up option at times during his four-season run in D.C. He struggled to a 6.33 ERA across 42 2/3 innings in 2021, though.
- The Mets have non-tendered reliever Stephen Nogosek, reports Robert Murray of FanSided (on Twitter). The right-hander made just one three-inning appearance at the big league level in 2021. He worked 35 innings of 5.14 ERA ball with Triple-A Syracuse.
- The Diamondbacks are non-tendering reliever Taylor Clarke, reports Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic (on Twitter). The 28-year-old has pitched with the D-Backs in each of the past three seasons. The left-hander worked to a 4.98 ERA over 43 1/3 innings this past season, showing solid control but posting a 20.1% strikeout rate that was about four percentage points below the league average mark for bullpen arms.
- The Dodgers have non-tendered southpaw Andrew Vasquez, tweets Fabian Ardaya of the Athletic. Vasquez wasn’t eligible for arbitration, but Los Angeles decided to bump him off the 40-man roster without placing him on waivers. Acquired in a minor trade with the Twins, Vasquez made two appearances for the Dodgers in early September. The 28-year-old struck out a massive 37.4% of batters faced in Triple-A in 2021.
- The Pirates have non-tendered right-hander Chad Kuhl, reports Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (Twitter link). A productive back-of-the-rotation arm at times, Kuhl has developed escalating control problems over the past couple seasons. The 29-year-old throws in the mid-90s and has posted decent strikeout numbers, but he’s coming off a 4.82 ERA/4.89 SIERA over 28 appearances (including 14 starts)
- The Mets have non-tendered reliever Robert Gsellman, reports Tim Healey of Newsday (on Twitter). The right-hander has appeared with New York in each of the past six seasons, moving to the bullpen full-time in 2018. While Gsellman showed quite a bit of promise over seven starts as a rookie, he’s yet to find much consistent success in the years since. The 28-year-old did manage a solid 3.77 ERA with a 49.5% ground-ball rate over 28 2/3 innings in 2021, but he also missed a couple months because of a lat strain and only punched out 14.3% of batters faced.
Kuhl isn’t a huge surprise. He was pretty much like Steven Brault, but with Tommy John surgery in terms of where he was in his career with the Pirates. Pirates can’t say they didn’t try with either. Kuhl and Brault were given multiple chances to find themselves and neither worked out. Would have liked to see what Kuhl could have done in a relief role though.
I remember when everyone thought Searage was the “pitcher whisperer”. Shame. When Kuhl and Brault arrived here, I thought both had tremendous upside. There aren’t many, but a solid pitching coach may have righted one, if not both
Back in the mid-2010s, after Burnett, Liriano, Morton, etc., there was some truth to Searage’s success. Not sure what’s happened since.
Yes, and rightly so, Burnett and Liriano in particular. He kind of fell out of favor here after those three years of Pirates contention. Somehow he went from being the smartest guy in the room to someone who was just fortunate to be around reclamation projects that found the winning formula here
I think a lot of it came from his philosophy for pitching which focused on throwing the ball low and away to induce grounders, which worked incredibly well, until the fly ball movement and hitting change. Searage wasn’t willing to adapt despite the league moving to a high fastball approach to combat the change in hitting approach.
Ehhh, it’s really a matter of strength in numbers. If you take on more bounceback candidates or reclamation projects, you’re likely going to hit on more.
Kind of like Roger McDowell for the Braves, and how he was able to revitalize the careers of several pitchers, but he really did have a high success rate as the Braves didn’t bring in quite as many projects as some of the lower payroll teams.
Searage was good at getting veteran pitchers back to where they had been at one time.Volquez wanted to come back after 2014 but the Pirates did not give him an offer so he went to Kansas City and won a World Series.
With young pitchers,not so much.
He was the ‘pitcher whisperer’ for a while.
Gsselman and Kuhl I hope get minor league deals with the Brewers.
Gsellman warrants a big league deal from someone
Can’t wait for another team to sign Kuhl and Brault so they can contend for Cy Young.
Sam Howard just popped up on Sportrac’s free agent list. He may have been Released. Can’t confirm on other sites.
Kuhl’s career moment was actually at the plate, in a long, ten pitch AB vs Kershaw.
Kuhl shown short stretches of being useful. He could still come back at a cheaper number. Control is the problem. If my team signed him I would be pleased.
Gsellman’s groundball rate might play in the STL pen.
hey, same thinking. nice
Gsellman has been terrible and is coming off injury. Red flags all over the place. He was giving up rockets when he pitched.
If he’s cheap and healthy he could be worth a dice roll.
So you’re saying he’s right up the Angels’ alley?
He’d help complete their makeover. After the Angels signed Thor and Loup, I saw a photo on Twitter of Mr. Met in Angels’ gear with a “Welcome” greeting underneath it.
He belongs in the minors for depth. If he had options he would have been down years ago.
One man’s trash is another man’s treasure
That’s … kuhl … for the Pirates
Can someone escort this man out of here. Thanks
Nah I’ll stay 🙂
More like Chad… Duhl!! Hahahaha
I like dad jokes too!
Kuhl could be a cheap BP option for the Yankees.
You mean batting practice?
Seamaholic. Seems to be a pirate basher…how many names do you have…or are you just a loser troll
Relax man, that was just a funny comment on the dual use of BP… Yeesh.
Personally, I’d be happy to see my team pick up Kuhl, hes got a great arm, but let’s be honest- he has NOT been good for any length of time in MLB. Maybe he needs a new team, maybe he’s a bust.
Yeah lol. Like the Yankees could ever take a Pirate’s pitcher with control problems and make them a good BP option. That will be the day.
Condolences to Gsellman. Now that you are no longer with the Mets, you are no longer a stud.
lol that’s actually funny. I can attest to the “every player on the mets is stud” approach. Terrible mindset to have as a Mets fan. Constant let downs. Constant.
We’ve been trying to replicate the Wilson-Isringhausen-Pulsipher SI cover ever since the three of them were on it.
Thought we got close with Harvey-Wheeler-Syndegaard-deGrom (if I remember right, deGrom was the least hyped)
We’re always looking for that next triumvirate.
You forgot about Matz. Remember, you had “Five Aces”. And yes, deGrom was the least hyped.
Say hello to Fried, Soroka, Wright, Muller, and Strider, or if one or more of those guys falters you can throw in Davidson or Elder..lol
Just kidding, but the Braves rotation could be receiving a big boost come about midway next season if Soroka can come back healthy, ajd if Strider and Elder prove they’re ready for the Big Leagues.
All jokes aside if Gsellman’s medical check out, I certainly wouldn’t mind the Braves taking a chance on him..I think, at times, he was overworked with the Mets and overextended pitching too many multiple inning outings. If he could just be used in the 6th or 7th every 2-3 games, for an inning, I think he’d be able to rediscover the success he had previously, ajdnI think he could be a solid piece for a contenders bullpen…
That’s an incredible hit rate on that group of arms. See the early 2010s Royals arms by comparison.
Most of the hype went to deBride !!
Remember Seaver, Koosman & Gentry ?
I remember when DeGrom was coming up, beanpole was throwing low 90s, and I was like the Mets are high on this guy?! Why..? Haha joke was on me. His velo increased every year along with his overall dominance. That guy is the complete package, no real weaknesses/flaws.
Gsellman primarily throws a sinker, so I don’t really mind that his K numbers aren’t there. Would be a great fit as a 6th-inning reliever for the Cardinals with their defense; sort of the role that Ryan Helsley was shoved into on every single occasion in 2021.
You forgot to add until he (Helsley) was over used by the recently fired Manager and finalist for Manager of the year (how does that work?) resulting in another Cardinal pitcher out for the season in 2021.
Vasquez should catch on in someones bullpen . Strikeout numbers are impressive !
Good riddance to Bobby. Now that the Mets have Mad Max, no need for Big Bad Bob
There it is!
I would not be surprised if Chaim Bloom goes after Robert Gsellman. Seems like the perfect fit- washed up pitcher who was successful in the past and looking to reinvent himself and strike a gold mine.
I started checking his stats out before I read your post. He’s not without talent. I don’t think he is contract-worthy, but I’d give a minor league contract with a camp invite.
Harper is available!! Oh, wait.
I’ll take Velasquez all day.
Jason Adam is a rhp.
And on top of it he went through the trouble of calling him a “southpaw” to appear even brighter.
Matt Strahm is a decent LHRP he’d be a good pickup for cheap
Castillo is nasty. kinda surprised by that non tender. pads been dreaming on his upside forever and he’s not expensive. I expect he’ll be picked up pretty quick
Castillo has excellent stuff, but can he get and stay healthy
Castillo was so nasty in 2018, but he has basically missed 3 whole seasons since. I hope he’s still got that in him, it’s just been so long since he was actually on the field.
It’s really hard to tell with these injuries. Strahm was pitching hurt at the end of 2020, gets knee surgery in October, then there were reports that Strahm would be ready by spring training 2021, but instead he came back in August and even then only made a handful of appearances before his injury flared up.
Both are quality LHRP if healthy, that’s just the big if.
Im glad Gsellman is gone. His numbers are very decieving. Hes awful if you actually see him pitch. Same with Miguel Castro. I hope he gets non tendered next
Castro is much better and has more potential. Be patient
Would like to see Cubs bring back Hermosillo on a minor league deal. Very athletic w/ some power – think he could be a good depth of option for a lot of teams.
Yes. Adam too for that matter. Both have real upside.
Cubs are too unbalanced. Whole dang team hits right-handed. Frazier and Ramirez additions made Hermasillo unnecessary. They have to get some lefty bats…that can actually hit.
Gsellman will be Colorado bound.
Strahm showed plenty of upsides in the past. Mets should sign him for depth
Adam isn’t a southpaw.
He’s got great stuff, was never able to figure it out
I would give Mike Ford a shot
The Phillies are prepping for some kind of move it seems.
Suero was brutal last year but there could still be something there. Interesting under the radar option.
kuhl was a no brainer to be non tendered
unhappy about being put in the pen even though thats where he should have been all along
Matt Strahm can be solid low buy Reliever for the Yankees
Wow, Luis Gonzalez the outfielder is still in the league? Seems like just yesterday when he walked off the Yankees for a ring.
They do some amazing things with cryonics in Arizona. In addition to Gonzalez’s re-emergence, the Red Sox are in talks with the agent of Ted Williams’ head.
All three of those Padres arms would be nice low-risk pickups.
I liked rondon on the cards. Guess dejong or sosa becomes the utility guy
Little surprised the Cardinals non-tendered Rondon. He had a good end to the season, had pop in his bat and was very versatile. Guess there’s not much room for him next season.
He was the best pinch hitter off the bench the Cards had in 2021 if all the starters were playing and even if some of them weren’t playing. He is only 27 or 28 yrs old.
He’s just an average AAAA replacement level guy that turned in a nice 90 PAs. He’s not really good anywhere defensively and you can find these dudes on minor league deals all the time. We have no room for him this year and he’s not a hot commodity or anything. Let him shop himself or sign a NRI in spring training with the cards again.
I wouldn’t mind if the Tigers got Gsellman to come to ST on an invite, lol.
Some team should immediately sign Taylor Clarke. If the D’backs had known he was ambidextrous, they never would have let him go!
Strahm was due to make over 2 mil in 22, injury questions and $ made him a sacrifice.
The Marlins should take a flier with Castillo (SD) or Vazquez (LA). Their numbers look very impressive. Also Strahm can be a good pickup.
Best of luck to Jose Rondon. Dude had some big hits and did a nice job in his role for the Cards. Already plenty of right handed bats on the roster though. Hopefully he’ll catch on with another club for 22.
Cardinals should sign Knebel and Mychal Givens and call it an offseason…I think we will ride or die with Edmundo and Paul Dejong to keep payroll flexible. Brendan Donovan will be our Chris Taylor…He’s a ball player….Drafted in 2018, and there wasn’t really a need to put him on 40 man. It was just quietly done…I think he will be a good one.
Coret Knebel just signed with the Phillies.
WOW !!
Not a surprise that Luis Gonzalez was non tendered by the Giants.
At 54 years old, clearly his best days must be behind him
From when he played for Houston & Arizona
as well as the Cubs, Marlins, Tigers and Dodgers.
Nentwigs- González is going to the Pirates.BC considers him a prospect,albeit a very very old one,and the Pirates need outfielders.It will be a low cost signing,and one never knows.He may have lost a step or two,or three or four,or five or six,but he was a good player at one time,and that is what the Pirates are looking for.He may not be quite ML ready,but should return to being productive by the year 2040 when the Pirates will become competitive again.