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Collective Bargaining Issues: Draft Lottery

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As part of ongoing collective bargaining deliberations, Major League Baseball and the MLB Players Association have kicked around the possibility of implementing some form of draft lottery. With both sides willing to put a lottery in place, it seems likely to be included whenever the next CBA is finalized.

The precise format the lottery would take remains an open question, though. The MLBPA — of the mind that a higher draft slot for teams with worse records incentivizes already bad teams not to improve — has pushed for a lottery to determine the first eight selections. MLB has favored a narrower system, with only the top three choices to be settled by the lottery. While the sides differ on the number of picks it would impact, Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet reports (Twitter links) they are in agreement that all non-playoff teams would be eligible for the lottery. The team’s chances of winning would be weighted such that clubs with the worst record the previous year would have the highest odds of landing a high pick.

That’s broadly similar to the systems in play with both the NHL and NBA, although those leagues have some individual nuances. The NHL prohibits teams from jumping more than ten spots relative to their position in inverse standings order, effectively restricting a shot at the top pick to the league’s bottom 11 finishers. The NBA allows all non-playoff teams a chance — admittedly a very small one for the best non-playoff clubs — to get a top-four selection but doesn’t allow teams outside the bottom five in the standings to make more marginal moves up the draft order (say, from 12th to 9th).

MLBTR has learned some specifics regarding the MLBPA’s latest proposal for the draft, which MLB rejected during recent collective bargaining discussions. Under the union’s offer, teams would find themselves excluded from the lottery for finishing below certain thresholds in the standings for two to three consecutive seasons. The specific thresholds for exclusion varied depending upon market size, with larger-market clubs facing stricter requirements for lottery eligibility. Non-playoff teams either excluded from or that didn’t win selection in the lottery would select in reverse order of the previous season’s standings from Pick #9 onwards; playoff teams would select in reverse order of regular season record after all the non-playoff teams have picked, as is the case under the current system.

The possibility for lottery exclusion is doubtless a measure the union hopes to implement in response to tanking, with the lowered draft position serving as something of a punitive measure for teams that finish among the league’s worst across a multi-year stretch. Diminished draft position for repeat bottom-dwellers wouldn’t alone stamp out rebuilding, and some teams that merely underperformed rather than setting out to rebuild would be adversely affected. Yet avoiding the possibility of the same teams collecting top picks for three-plus straight years seems to be a goal for the MLBPA, with the union taking particular aim at unsuccessful large-market franchises that should theoretically have enough of a financial advantage to avoid lengthy down stretches.

On the flip side, the union has proposed measures that would reward competitive smaller-market franchises with additional draft choices. Clubs eligible for Competitive Balance picks — those among the bottom ten leaguewide in either revenue or market size — would receive a bonus pick before Competitive Balance Round A (around #31-#40 overall in a typical draft) the year after reaching the postseason. Competitive Balance-eligible teams that finish .500 or better but don’t reach the playoffs would receive a bonus pick before Competitive Balance Round B (around #65-#75 in an average year).

Much about the potential MLB draft lottery remains unclear. The number of picks subject to the lottery and the probability of moving up for each team based on their position in the standings remains to be determined. So too is the number of teams that will be involved. How many non-playoff teams will there be in the next CBA? That’s presently unknown, given the league’s desire for an expanded postseason field. It’s also not clear whether a lottery would only apply to the domestic draft, or if a draft for the acquisition of international amateurs — which MLB hopes to include in the CBA — would contain one as well.

The draft lottery is far from the most important point of contention between the league and union. The competitive balance tax, league minimum salary and path to arbitration eligibility are all among the bigger topics to iron out. Implementing a draft lottery is, however, one of the smaller yet visible ways in which the league is likely to change in the coming months.

Blue Jays Notes: Murov, Sclafani, Phelps

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The Blue Jays announced this morning they’ve promoted Mike Murov to assistant general manager (h/t to Keegan Matheson of MLB.com). He had been the club’s director of baseball operations, a role he’s held for six years. Before joining the Toronto front office, he spent time as an assistant director of major league ops with the Red Sox. Murov broke into front office work a little more than a decade ago, spending a bit of time in the Marlins and Reds organizations. He joins Joe Sheehan in an AGM capacity in Toronto, where president/CEO Mark Shapiro and general manager Ross Atkins lead baseball operations.

Some more news out of Toronto:

  • Along with Murov’s bump to assistant GM, the Jays promoted Joe Sclafani to director of player development. The 31-year-old, who played four seasons in the Astros farm system before moving into his front office career in 2016, had been Toronto’s assistant player development director. In the wake of his promotion, Sclafani spoke with Kaitlyn McGrath of the Athletic about his new role. The Dartmouth product emphasized the need for organizations to effectively curate data they provide to players so as to make developmental goals actionable. “How can we effectively translate everything available to these guys so it doesn’t overwhelm them,” he asked rhetorically. “(Provide) everything they need and nothing that they don’t.” Also discussed as part of Sclafani’s wide-ranging conversation with McGrath: the organization’s continued work with minor league hitters on understanding the strike zone, the process for hiring of minor league coaches, and the progression of infield prospects Jordan Groshans and Orelvis Martinez.
  • The Jays brought reliever David Phelps back on a minor league contract in November, his second consecutive year with the organization. Phelps had allowed just two runs through 11 1/3 innings last season, but in late May, he suffered a season-ending injury that the team called a lat strain. Speaking recently with Arden Zwelling of Sportsnet, Phelps says he suffered a complete rupture, one he feared might end his career. The 35-year-old ultimately decided to undergo lat revision surgery and continue playing, although he tells Zwelling he gave serious thought to stepping away from the game. Phelps, who says he’s optimistic about his chances of being ready to go for Spring Training, also goes into detail about his rehab process and decision to return to Toronto versus signing with other clubs that offered him non-roster deals.

Cubs, Matt Dermody Agree To Minor League Deal

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The Cubs are in agreement with reliever Matt Dermody on a minor league contract, reports MLBTR’s Steve Adams (on Twitter).  The southpaw made one big league appearance with the Cubs in 2020, his most recent MLB action to date.

Dermody spent last season in Japan, suiting up with the Seibu Lions of Nippon Professional Baseball. The Iowa native split the season between the Lions and their minor league affiliate, posting a 5.13 ERA across 33 1/3 innings during his time at Japan’s top level. He only punched out 14.6% of batters faced, somewhat negating a decent 8.6% walk rate.

During his time in affiliated ball, Dermody has fared a bit better at missing bats. He owns a 19.1% strikeout percentage over parts of four Triple-A seasons en route to a 4.12 ERA at the level. Dermody has appeared in parts of three big league campaigns with the Blue Jays and Cubs, working to a 5.13 ERA with an 18.4% strikeout rate but a very stingy 4.4% walk percentage across 26 1/3 career innings.

The 31-year-old has been leveraged situationally over his MLB career, facing nearly as many left-handed batters (52) as right-handers (62). Dermody has held opposing southpaws to a .250/.288/.375 line in that fairly brief action, but he has coughed up a .298/.355/.632 mark against righty swingers. Presumably, he’ll hope to land a similar situational role on a Cubs team that has Brad Wieck, Justin Steele and prospect Brailyn Márquez as lefty relief options on the 40-man roster.

Royals Sign Sam Freeman To Minor League Deal

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The Royals announced this afternoon they’ve signed lefty reliever Sam Freeman to a minor league contract. The club didn’t specify whether the deal included an invitation to big league Spring Training.

Freeman has appeared in parts of nine MLB seasons. The Texas native broke in with the Cardinals in 2012 and spent the next few seasons as a situational option in St. Louis. While Freeman didn’t post particularly impressive strikeout and walk numbers, he was generally successful at inducing ground balls and keeping runs off the board. Between 2013-15, he posted a 2.74 ERA over 88 2/3 frames between the Cardinals and Rangers, racking up grounders on more than half the balls in play against him during that stretch.

The southpaw didn’t fare well in a brief look with the Brewers in 2016, but he posted a 3.34 ERA with a 55.8% grounder rate in 110 1/3 innings for the Braves between 2017-18. Freeman missed a few more bats than he had earlier in his career during that time, but he walked an alarming 12.6% of batters faced. Released by Atalanta shortly before the start of the 2019 season, he logged minimal MLB action with the Angels and Nationals over the next two years.

Freeman underwent Tommy John surgery late in the 2020 campaign, the second time in his career he’d required that procedure. That cost him all of last season, but he’ll try to work his way back to the majors in Kansas City. The 34-year-old averaged a solid 94.1 MPH on his fastball during his most recent action. He owns a 3.58 ERA over 233 2/3 career big league frames, overcoming a lofty 13.3% walk rate thanks to his success keeping the ball on the ground and avoiding the long ball.

Kansas City has stockpiled veteran bullpen depth via a few non-roster pacts in recent weeks. The Royals also added Arodys Vizcaíno and Colten Brewer on respective minors contracts earlier this month. They’re obviously barred from acquiring major league free agents during the course of the lockout, but they’re likely to target additional bullpen arms with more certainty whenever the transactions freeze comes to a close.

Giants, Matt Carasiti Agree To Minor League Deal

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The Giants have agreed to a minor league deal with right-hander Matt Carasiti, per their official transactions log. He’ll give them some bullpen depth in the upper levels of their system heading into the 2022 season.

Carasiti, 30, has appeared in parts of two Major League seasons: the 2016 campaign with the Rockies and the 2019 season with the Mariners. This will be Carasiti’s second stint with the Giants organization, as he’d signed on for the 2020 season on this same type of minor league arrangement. However, the right-hander’s elbow gave out in an early-March appearance during Spring Training (just a week or so prior to the Covid-19 shutdown), and he wound up requiring Tommy John surgery.

Last offseason, Carasiti joined the Red Sox on a minor league pact, but he was still on the mend from that Tommy John procedure when camp opened. He was quickly reassigned to minor league camp and placed on the injured list in Triple-A when the season began. However, he never made it back to the mound to pitch for one of Boston’s minor league affiliates.

Carasiti and the Giants will hope for better health this time around, and if he’s able to match his career output at the Triple-A level, he could well earn a ticket back to the big leagues. A sixth-round pick by the Rockies back in 2012, Carasiti carries a lifetime 3.15 ERA, 26.2% strikeout rate, 9.9% walk rate and 49.4% grounder rate in 100 Triple-A frames. He’s averaged 95.4 mph on his sinker in both of his relatively brief MLB stints, though it remains to be seen if he can recapture that velocity post-Tommy John.

In 25 1/3 Major League innings between Colorado and Seattle, Carasiti has a 7.46 ERA — albeit with a sky-high .429 opponents’ batting average on balls in play. He’ll need to sharpen the shaky command he’s shown in the big leagues (16 walks, three hit batters) if he’s to replicate his minor league success, but given his strong results between Triple-A and Double-A, it’s not hard to see why multiple clubs have been intrigued by bringing him to Spring Training in recent years.

Mets Notes: Showalter, Rotation, Infield

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The Mets’ deal with incoming manager Buck Showalter was announced as a three-year contract, but while it was reported to be the most lucrative managerial deal in club history, terms weren’t reported at the time. MLB Network’s Jon Heyman tweets some specifics now, however, reporting that Showalter will be guaranteed $11.75MM in total over the next three years in Queens. He’ll be paid $3.5MM this season before earning $3.75MM in 2023 and $4MM in 2024. The signing falls closely in line with the three-year, $12MM deal that Bob Melvin secured when joining the Padres as their new skipper earlier this winter.

A few more notes on the Mets as fans continue to await meaningful updates in CBA talks…

  • The Mets haven’t been afraid to jump into the deep end of the free-agent market this winter, but despite some recent speculation about the possibility of Clayton Kershaw as a fit, SNY’s Andy Martino writes that the Mets didn’t have any contact with Kershaw’s camp prior to the lockout. As fun as it would be for Mets fans to dream on a rotation spearheaded by Jacob deGrom, Max Scherzer and Kershaw, most expect Kershaw to either remain with the Dodgers or head to the Rangers, whose stadium is a short drive from Kershaw’s home. The Mets were linked to free agent Yusei Kikuchi prior to the lockout, while Jeff McNeil and Dominic Smith — either of whom could conceivably be part of a deal to bring in some rotation depth — saw their names pop up on the rumor mill last month. Beyond Scherzer and deGrom, the Mets currently project to lean on Taijuan Walker, Carlos Carrasco and some combination of Tylor Megill and David Peterson at the back of the rotation.
  • Matthew Roberson of the New York Daily News looks at the shortstop situation for both New York clubs, noting that Francisco Lindor’s presence at shortstop and a growing number of upper-level infield prospects could point to an eventual trade for the Mets. Ronny Mauricio is still just 20 years of age but has already reached Double-A, while 22-year-olds Mark Vientos (Triple-A) and Brett Baty (Double-A) will impact the third base situation in the not-too-distant future. There is, of course, room for the entire group to contribute to the Mets simultaneously, depending on position changes and injuries. That said, the presence of three well regarded left-side infield prospects gives the front office plenty of firepower to make deals at some point down the road if newly minted GM Billy Eppler finds a deal to his liking. Both Baty and Mauricio ranked among Baseball America’s Top 100 prospects last week, while Vientos landed on a list of 15 more who “just missed.” There’s no indication that the Mets have seriously entertained moving any of Mauricio, Baty or Vientos just yet, but their names will surely be popular as teams talk with the Mets post-lockout and again at the July trade deadline.

Gene Clines Passes Away

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The Pirates announced this morning that former Major League outfielder and veteran big league coach Gene Clines has passed away at the age of 75.

“Gene was a speedy outfielder who was a key member of our 1971 World Series team,” Pirates president Travis Williams said in a press release. “He made a tremendous impact on the game, not only as a player after his career with the Pirates, but also as a long-time coach in the big leagues.

“It was an honor to have Gene back in Pittsburgh this past September to recognize him and his teammates from our 1971 World Series Championship team who took the field as part of Major League Baseball’s first all-minority lineup. It was a joy to talk to him about his deep passion for baseball, his love for his teammates and his appreciation for the city of Pittsburgh. Our hearts go out to his wife Joanne, his children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren.”

Clines spent parts of 10 seasons in the Majors, debuting as a rookie with the 1970 Pirates and indeed playing a key role on that ’71 championship team, when he batted .308/.366/.392 through 300 plate appearances with the World Series-champion Bucs. He’d remain in Pittsburgh through 1974 before being traded to the Mets in advance of the ’75 season. New York flipped him to the Rangers a year later, and Clines eventually landed with the Cubs following a third trade.

All told, Clines played 870 big league games, batting a combined .277/.329/.341 through 2556 plate appearances. He hit just five homers at the MLB level but also notched 85 doubles, 24 triples and 71 stolen bases while logging considerable time at all three outfield positions. Clines may not have been known for his power, but the first postseason hit of his career was a solo homer in Game 2 of the ’71 NLCS that gave the Bucs some breathing room, pushing their lead over the Giants to 4-2. (Bob Robertson eventually tacked on his second and third homers of the day in what proved a 9-4 Pirates victory.)

Following his playing career, Clines remained deeply involved in the game. He spent several years as the Cubs’ first base coach before settling in as a highly respected hitting coach, working with the Astros, Mariners, Brewers and Giants in that capacity before finally returning to the Cubs for the 2003-06 seasons. Along the way, Clines coached some of the greatest hitters of the generation, working with a young Craig Biggio in Houston, a young Ken Griffey Jr. in Seattle and, eventually, Barry Bonds in San Francisco. In addition to that impressive collection of pupils, Clines also teamed (and at times shared an outfield) with all-time greats such as Roberto Clemente and Willie Stargell while playing with the Pirates.

Between his 10 years as a player and 20 years as a coach, Clines amassed three decades in a Major League dugout, leaving his mark on multiple generations of the nation’s pastime. We at MLBTR extend our condolences to the friends, family, loved ones and former teammates of Clines, as well as the innumerable fans who are surely mourning his passing as well.

Tigers Name Gary Jones First Base Coach

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The Tigers announced Thursday that they’ve promoted Triple-A manager Gary Jones to the Major League staff, where he’ll serve as the team’s new first base coach. The promotion comes in the wake of the tragic death of Detroit first base coach Kimera Bartee, passed away at just 49 years of age earlier this offseason due to a brain tumor.

Jones, 61, assumes his new role under unenviable circumstances, but he’ll bring a wealth of prior coaching and managerial experience to the position. He’s spent more than three decades in professional baseball, serving as a minor league skipper with the A’s, Red Sox and Padres — where he also worked as a minor league coordinator for nearly a decade. Jones was also Oakland’s first base coach back in 1998. He also served as the Cubs’ third-base coach from 2014-17, meaning he’s no stranger to newly signed shortstop Javier Baez or to third baseman Jeimer Candelario — who debuted with the Cubs in 2016-17 before being traded to Detroit at the ’17 deadline.

Jones joins third base coach Ramon Santiago, bench coach George Lombard, hitting coach Scott Coolbaugh, assistant hitting coach Mike Hessman, pitching coach Chris Fetter, assistant pitching coach Juan Nieves and quality control coach Josh Paul in rounding out manager A.J. Hinch’s staff for the upcoming season.

Jones’ ascension to the Major League staff left a vacancy with the Triple-A Toledo MudHens, but they’ve also filled that role with a very familiar name: Lloyd McClendon. The 63-year-old McClendon managed the MudHens back in 2016, but he’s best known for his time as the big league manager with the Pirates (2001-05), Mariners (2014-15) and his stint as the Tigers’ interim manager late in the 2020 season, following Ron Gardenhire’s retirement.

McClendon also has 16 years of Major League coaching experience — most of it coming with the Tigers organization. He’s previously held the roles of bullpen coach, hitting coach and bench coach with the Tigers, working alongside managers Jim Leyland, Brad Ausmus and Gardenhire.

Brewers Hire Matt Klentak As Special Assistant

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Jan. 27: Though Klentak’s formal title is special assistant to president of baseball operations David Stearns and general manager Matt Arnold, he’ll actually be assuming oversight of the team’s international scouting department, tweets MLB.com’s Adam McCalvy. That responsibility had formerly fallen under the purview of vice president of player personnel Mike Groopman, but he was hired away by the Red Sox as an assistant general manager back in November.

Furthermore, Stearns indicated to reporters that Klentak’s role with the club is expected to eventually increase (Twitter link via Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel). “As he becomes more familiar with our processes, we look forward to his contributions in other areas as well,” Stearns said of Klentak.

Jan. 23: The Brewers have hired Matt Klentak for a special assistant role, according to The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal and Matt Gelb (Twitter link).  Since stepping down as the Phillies’ general manager in October 2020, Klentak had still been working in Philadelphia’s front office as a strategy and development officer, and Rosenthal notes that Klentak will depart a year before his contract with the Phils was up.

While known best for his time in Philadelphia, Klentak has close to 20 years of baseball experience, including stints with the Rockies, the Orioles, MLB’s Labor Relations Department, and four years as an assistant GM with the Angels.  Klentak moved from Los Angeles to Philadelphia after being hired as the Phillies’ GM in October 2015.

Klentak took over a Phillies team in the midst of a rebuild, but the Phils never posted a winning record over Klentak’s five seasons in charge, even after turning the course and signing several bigger-name veterans heading into the 2018 campaign.  An 81-81 record in 2019 was the best the Phillies could manage under Klentak, as while the club acquired Bryce Harper, J.T. Realmuto, Andrew McCutchen, Jean Segura, and many other prominent players, the Phils still couldn’t crack the .500 mark.

Not all of Klentak’s big acquisitions worked out, of course, and yet the ex-GM did better than most at landing premium veteran talents for the roster.  The bigger issue seemed to be a lack of help from within, as beyond Aaron Nola and Rhys Hoskins, the Phillies had trouble developing in-house prospects to provide extra (and cheaper) production alongside the pricier names like Harper.  After the club went 28-32 in 2020, Klentak stepped down as GM, though the Phillies just reassigned him rather than let him go from the organization altogether.

Klentak will now provide Brewers president of baseball operations David Stearns and GM Matt Arnold with another experienced voice within Milwaukee’s front office.  It isn’t yet known what Klentak’s specific duties will be with the Brewers, as “special assistant” responsibilities tend to vary based on the team’s needs and the talents of the individual in the job.  Klentak is the latest familiar name to join the Brewers as a special assistant, as the team also has Doug Melvin, Carlos Villanueva, Dick Groch, Quinton McCracken, and Nick Davis working under that title in various departments.

Gordon Beckham Announces Retirement

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Former big league second baseman Gordon Beckham announced his retirement this evening (via Twitter). “Since my good friend Buster Posey decided to retire this year, I am officially announcing I will be retiring as well. I want to make sure we get into the Hall of Fame the same year. Start the countdown!!,” Beckham wrote in a tongue-in-cheek statement.

Selected by the White Sox with the eighth overall pick in 2008 coming out of the University of Georgia, Beckham entered pro ball as a very highly-touted prospect. Baseball America ranked him the game’s #20 overall farmhand entering the 2009 campaign, with that offseason counting as his only one with prospect eligibility. That’s because the righty-hitting infielder spent barely any time in the minor leagues, reaching the big leagues after just 59 games on the farm.

Beckham, now 35, debuted in June 2009 and was essentially pencilled into the White Sox’s everyday lineup from that point forward. He hit .270/.347/.460 with 14 home runs across 430 plate appearances in his age-22 campaign, finishing fifth in that season’s AL Rookie of the Year balloting. Beckham would spend the next few seasons manning the keystone in the South Side of Chicago, but he never recaptured the above-average offensive form he’d shown during his debut season.

Over the next four-plus years, Beckham tallied 2467 plate appearances and hit .240/.299/.359. In August 2014, the White Sox traded him to the Angels. He slashed an impressive .268/.328/.429 in 26 games while playing a utility role down the stretch for the playoff-bound Halos. Despite that solid finish, Los Angeles non-tendered Beckham after the season. He returned to the White Sox as a free agent but struggled to a .209/.275/.332 mark in 237 trips to the plate.

From that point forward, Beckham bounced between a few teams as a veteran journeyman type. He split the 2016 campaign between the Braves and Giants, then appeared with the Mariners in the 2017 and 2018 seasons. Beckham played for the Tigers in 2019, suiting up in a bit more than half of the team’s games. That proved to be his final MLB action, as subsequent minor league deals with the Padres and Mets didn’t result in big league opportunities.

Beckham didn’t become the All-Star caliber player the White Sox and their fans might’ve envisioned after his first couple years in pro ball. Yet he appeared in 11 consecutive MLB seasons between 2009-19, spending more than half that time as a regular. The Atlanta native hit .237/.300/.367 across 3782 plate appearances. He hit 80 home runs, drove in 351 runs and scored 420 times. Beckham earned a bit more than $12MM in career earnings, per Baseball Reference. MLBTR congratulates him on his career and wishes him the best in retirement.

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