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Gary Sutherland Passes Away

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Former major league infielder Gary Sutherland passed away on December 16 at age 80. His obituary was provided by a Monrovia, California funeral home.

Sutherland was an L.A.-area native who attended USC. He signed with the Phillies out of college. The right-handed infielder debuted during his age-21 season. He appeared in parts of three seasons for Philadelphia. The Phils lost him to the Expos in the 1968 expansion draft. Sutherland was the everyday second baseman on the inaugural Montreal team. He played three years for the Expos, hitting .234/.287/.299 over 368 games.

Montreal dealt Sutherland to the Astros after the ’71 season. He barely played over two years in Houston before he was on the move again. The Tigers acquired him during the 1973-74 offseason. Sutherland took a career-high 672 plate appearances during his first season in Detroit. He hit 20 doubles with a .254/.282/.313 showing. He played three years in Detroit. Sutherland finished his playing career with brief stints between Milwaukee, San Diego and St. Louis.

Over a 13-year playing career, Sutherland picked up 754 hits with a .243/.291/.308 batting line. He appeared in more than 1000 major league games between seven teams. Sutherland remained in the game after his playing days as a scout and worked as a special assistant in the Angels’ front office into the 2010s. MLBTR sends condolences to his family, loved ones and friends.

Corbin Burnes Reportedly Seeking $245MM+

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Corbin Burnes is the remaining headliner of the free agent class. The top starting pitcher is still unsigned despite the generally robust and quick-moving rotation market.

Most of the recent chatter regarding Burnes has centered on some combination of the Blue Jays, Giants, Red Sox and Orioles (albeit to a lesser extent in Baltimore’s case). Mark Feinsand of MLB.com writes that San Francisco has had a standing offer on the table, though he notes that the Giants could elect to move on to other targets if there continues to be no resolution on Burnes’ part.

Terms of San Francisco’s proposal are not clear. However, Feinsand reports that the former Cy Young winner is looking for a deal that would at least match the $245MM guarantee which Stephen Strasburg received from the Nationals over the 2019-20 offseason. (The net present value of Strasburg’s contract actually checked in around $229MM after accounting for deferrals.) The pre-deferral guarantee is the third-largest pitching investment in MLB history, trailing Yoshinobu Yamamoto’s $325MM contract with the Dodgers and the $324MM Gerrit Cole deal with the Yankees.

It’s unsurprising that Burnes and agent Scott Boras are shooting for Strasburg money in this market. MLBTR predicted Burnes to land seven years and $200MM in early November. Essentially every starter who has signed so far has equalled or beaten those (and most other) predictions. Max Fried was the biggest beneficiary. He landed an eight-year, $218MM contract at the Winter Meetings. That beat MLBTR’s prediction by two years and $62MM. Fried landed an extra season and $43MM than Aaron Nola received last winter.

Virtually every prognostication had Burnes above Fried. That makes something in the $220MM range feel like the former’s floor. Creating a notable separation would push Burnes close to or beyond Strasburg money. Burnes is nine months younger than Fried. He hasn’t had any injuries of note. That differentiates him from Fried, who missed three months in 2023 because of a muscular flexor strain in his forearm. Burnes has also reached bigger heights, winning the National League ERA title and Cy Young in 2022.

The one question has been a recent dip in swing-and-miss. Burnes fanned upwards of 35% of batters faced between 2020-21. That dropped to roughly 30% in 2022. It has continued to trend down over the past two seasons, falling to a slightly above-average 23.1% rate this year. Even the “diminished” strikeout rate essentially matched Fried’s 23.2% rate, though, so Burnes isn’t at a disadvantage in that regard.

That’ll be weighed against the question of which teams still have the willingness to offer a deal well north of $200MM. The Yankees would’ve been an obvious Burnes suitor if they hadn’t landed Fried. They’re probably out of the mix now. The Mets seem unlikely to make a massive commitment to a starting pitcher. The Sox have already acquired Garrett Crochet and agreed to terms with Walker Buehler on a one-year deal, adding significant upside to their rotation. They might have the payroll room to remain involved on Burnes, but they’re no longer facing the same sense of urgency to add an impact arm.

San Francisco might offer the best blend of spending capacity and need for an ace. Logan Webb is a legitimate #1, but the Giants haven’t replaced the production they lost when Blake Snell walked. Beyond Webb, San Francisco’s rotation consists of upside plays with questions about their durability and/or performance track records (i.e. Robbie Ray, Jordan Hicks, Kyle Harrison, Hayden Birdsong).

The Giants have made two nine-figure investments in recent months. They extended Matt Chapman for $151MM in September before adding Willy Adames on a seven-year, $182MM free agent deal. RosterResource calculates their luxury tax number at approximately $208MM, which puts them around $33MM shy of the base threshold. Their actual salary commitments sit around $167MM. That puts them almost $40MM below last year’s spending level. It’s not clear if ownership is willing to again push beyond $200MM in Opening Day payroll, but they could theoretically add Adames and Burnes without a significant spike in relative spending.

The Giants relinquished their second- and fifth-highest draft picks and $1MM from their ’26 international amateur bonus pool to sign Adames. They’d surrender their third- and sixth-highest selections and another $500K from the international pool if they were to land Burnes, who declined a qualifying offer from Baltimore.

Yankees Showing Interest In Andrew Chafin

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The Yankees have interest in Andrew Chafin, reports Jon Heyman of the New York Post. New York is looking for a left-handed bullpen arm. Heyman reported earlier this week that a reunion with Tim Hill was also a possibility.

Both players are natural targets for a team that doesn’t have a single left-hander in its projected bullpen. The Yankees only have two left-handed pitchers on their 40-man roster: Max Fried and Carlos Rodón. New York has yet to add an experienced southpaw on a minor league contract either, so they’ll probably look for multiple lefties over the coming weeks.

Chafin, 34, has been a durable and generally reliable middle innings arm for a decade. He’s coming off another decent season, turning in a 3.51 earned run average across 56 1/3 innings between the Tigers and Rangers. Most of the positives came during his first few months in Detroit, however. Chafin carried a 3.16 ERA with a near-31% strikeout rate into late July. Things went downhill after a deadline deal sending him to Texas. He allowed a 4.19 ERA with the Rangers. His strikeout rate fell to 24% while his walk percentage nearly doubled to an untenable 17.9% clip.

While it wasn’t a great finish, Chafin has an extended track record. Despite middling velocity, he has fanned around 28% of batters faced in three straight years. He missed bats on a huge 15.4% of his pitches this year — the second-highest rate of his career. Chafin has walked more than 12% of opponents in consecutive seasons, reflecting command that comes and goes. He can handle hitters of either handedness, though, so he shouldn’t have an issue finding another big league contract. Chafin has been a bullpen workhorse, topping 50 innings in seven of the last eight full seasons. (He threw 49 1/3 frames in 2018.) His only injured list stint in the last four years was a two-week stay in April ’22 for a groin strain.

Chafin has signed one-year contracts — respectively valued at $6.25MM and $4.75MM — in the last two winters. Texas declined a $6.5MM club option at the beginning of the offseason. Chafin will be limited to one year and could land a base salary in the $3-5MM range.

Phillies, Payton Henry Agree To Minor League Deal

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The Phillies and catcher Payton Henry agreed to a minor league contract earlier this month, according to the MLB.com transaction log. Henry confirmed the deal on social media.

Henry, 27, appeared in the majors with the Marlins between 2021-22. He suited up in 20 games, hitting .186 with one extra-base hit (a double) through 51 trips to the plate. The former sixth-round draftee has spent the past two seasons in Triple-A. He played 2023 in the Milwaukee system and spent this year with the Toronto organization.

The righty-hitting Henry was limited to 27 games with Triple-A Buffalo this past season. He was injured in a frightening play on May 31. Henry was catching when an opposing hitter accidentally struck him on the head with a backswing. Henry was removed on a cart and transported to a Syracuse, New York, hospital. The game was cancelled at that point. Fortunately, Henry was released the following day.

After a three-month stay on the injured list, he returned to action with the Bisons in the middle of September. He played in three games to finish the season. While he didn’t have time to put himself in position for an MLB call, getting back on the field checks a significant box going into Spring Training.

Henry is likely to open next season in Triple-A, where he’s now a career .266/.332/.414 hitter. Garrett Stubbs and Rafael Marchán are each on the 40-man roster and potential backups behind J.T. Realmuto. They’ll remain ahead of Henry and Paul McIntosh, whom the Phils acquired over the weekend in the Jesús Luzardo trade, on the depth chart.

NPB’s Nippon-Ham Fighters Re-Sign Drew VerHagen

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The Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters in Japan announced yesterday that they’re bringing back righty Drew VerHagen on a one-year deal. The Vayner Sports client first joined the Fighters on a one-year contract with a 2025 player option last winter. While it seems he explored free agent possibilities in lieu of the player option, he elected to return to Hokkaido all the same.

VerHagen divided the ’24 season between the Fighters and their minor league affiliate. He posted similarly solid numbers at both stops. The 34-year-old tossed 49 innings of 3.12 ERA ball at Japan’s top level and managed a 3.06 mark across 47 minor league frames. He fanned a slightly above-average 20.6% of NPB opponents against a 5% walk rate.

That was VerHagen’s third season with the Fighters overall. He pitched for the team between 2020-21 and now carries a 3.44 earned run average in 256 2/3 NPB innings. Around the separate stints in Japan, he has appeared in parts of eight MLB campaigns. VerHagen worked as long reliever for the Tigers between 2014-19. He returned to the majors in 2022 for a two-season run with the Cardinals. After posting a 6.65 ERA during his first year in St. Louis, he rebounded with a 3.98 mark across a career-high 61 innings in 2023.

Rockies Sign Diego Castillo To Minors Deal

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The Rockies have signed right-hander Diego Castillo to a minor league contract, according to Aram Leighton of Just Baseball Media.  The pact includes an invitation for Castillo (who turns 31 next month) to attend Colorado’s big league spring camp.

Castillo is best known for his five-year run as a workhorse in the Rays’ and Mariners’ bullpens from 2018-22, as the righty posted a 3.12 ERA, 28.1% strikeout rate, 50.7% grounder rate, and 8.9% walk rate over 259 2/3 innings and 250 appearances in that span.  Unfortunately, he got off to a very rough start in his first eight games (and 8 2/3 innings) in 2023, leading the Mariners to outright him off their 40-man roster at the start of May.  Castillo spent the remainder of the season at Triple-A, then elected free agency at season’s end.

The Rangers signed Castillo to a minor league deal last winter and released him near the end of Spring Training, with the Twins then quickly adding him on another minors contract.  Castillo’s season in Minnesota saw him twice designated for assignment and outrighted off the 40-man roster, and he re-signed another minor league deal with the Twins after opting for free agency after that initial outright at midseason.  All of this movement resulted in another season of pretty minimal MLB playing time, as Castillo appeared in 10 games with the Twins and posted a 2.70 ERA in 10 innings.

Control is the biggest issue behind Castillo’s decline, as his walk rate has shot up to 14.92% over 84 1/3 innings of Triple-A ball over the last two seasons, and 17.9% in his brief MLB sample size of 18 2/3 innings.  A velocity drop may have also been partially responsible for Castillo’s struggles in 2023 specifically, though his fastball ticked upwards from 93.8mph in 2023 to 95.9 mph in 2024.

Castillo’s prime years are recent enough that it makes sense that teams would still want to take a flier on the veteran righty.  For the Rockies in particular, his ability to keep the ball on the ground could be useful in the thin air of Coors Field, if Castillo can earn himself a shot on Colorado’s active roster.

Padres Sign Jose Espada To Minor League Contract

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The Padres signed right-hander Jose Espada to a minor league deal earlier this month, as first reported by the Mad Friars website.  It’s a reunion between the two sides, as the 27-year-old Espada pitched for San Diego during the 2022-23 seasons before joining the Yakult Swallows last offseason.

The move to Japan wasn’t as much of a showcase as Espada had hoped, as he posted a 5.00 ERA over 27 relief innings for the Swallows.  His strikeout rate plummeted to just 13.56%, in a rather stark dropoff from the 26.59K% he posted over 374 career innings in the minor leagues.  While his numbers with the Swallows’ minor league team were much better, Espada had already displayed plenty of quality in the affiliated minors, including a 2.79 ERA in 19 1/3 innings with the Padres’ Triple-A affiliate in 2023.

Impressive numbers at both the Double-A and Triple-A levels allowed Espada to make his MLB debut in 2023, in the form of a single cup-of-coffee outing.  Espada recorded two strikeouts and two walks in a scoreless inning of mop-up work in the Padres’ 12-2 rout of the Cardinals on September 24, 2023.  That brief outing was the high point of a pro career that began as a fifth-round pick for the Blue Jays in the 2015 draft, and Espada also had stints in the Red Sox farm system and in independent ball as well as his time with the Padres and Swallows.

Espada has had issues with his control but has long been able to miss bats, making his diminished strikeout numbers in NPB all the more puzzling.  A return to the familiar environment of Triple-A El Paso might help him get back on track, while from the Padres’ perspective, they’ll add a known quantity to their list of bullpen depth arms.

CPBL’s Rakuten Monkeys Sign Jonathan Bermudez

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The Rakuten Monkeys of the Chinese Professional Baseball League have signed left-hander Jonathan Bermudez, according to the CPBL Stats X account.  The 29-year-old Bermudez elected minor league free agency at the end of the 2024 season.

A 23rd-round pick for the Astros in the 2018 draft, Bermudez spent parts of his first four pro seasons in Houston’s farm system before the Giants claimed him off waivers in August 2022.  He was on Puerto Rico’s roster for the World Baseball Classic in March 2023, but that same month saw the Giants release the southpaw.  Bermudez caught on with the Marlins on a minors deal a few weeks later and had been with Miami until he chose free agency this past October.

This time with the Marlins resulted in Bermudez’s Major League debut, as he posted an 8.10 ERA over three appearances and 6 2/3 innings this season.  One of the many pitchers cycled on and off Miami’s active roster this season, Bermudez was twice designated for assignment and then outrighted off the Marlins’ 40-man in August and September.

The southpaw posted solid numbers throughout most of his minor-league career but seemed to hit a wall at Triple-A, posting a 7.01 ERA over 140 innings at the top farm level.  Bermudez’s walk and strikeout totals have trended in the wrong direction at Triple-A, and home runs were a particular issue for him during the 2022 season in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League.

Bermudez has started 85 of his 122 career minor league games, and seems likely to assume a starting role in the Monkeys’ rotation.  Rather than battle for a minor league contract with North American moves, signing with the CPBL allows Bermudez to lock in some guaranteed money and perhaps provide a fresh start to his career.

Marc Narducci: My Hall Of Fame Ballot

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Marc Narducci spent 37 years covering all sports for The Philadelphia Inquirer before retiring in July 2021. He covered everything from high school sports to the Phillies winning the World Series and the Eagles winning the Super Bowl. A lifelong southern New Jersey resident, he remains a freelance writer and broadcaster. Once again, Marc reached out to see if MLB Trade Rumors would be interested in publishing his Hall of Fame ballot. I am happy to do it and hope it can be an interesting topic of debate for our readers. Here’s Marc…

It’s always an honor to be published by MLBTradeRumors.com, among the most respected baseball publications around. For those who haven’t read the previous years, just a little housekeeping. I don’t vote for those associated with steroids, which means Alex Rodriguez and Manny Ramirez, don’t receive my vote.

I have also not voted for Carlos Beltran who admittedly was the mastermind of the 2017 Houston Astros sign-stealing scandal, which altered the perception of that World Series winning team. Those actions cost him his job as a manager and for now, this vote. I don’t feel all the Astros should be punished, but as stated before, that’s a story for another day.

I never criticize how a fellow voter votes. That doesn’t mean our votes aren’t subject to criticism, including mine. Each voter has to do what he or she feels is best.

And now, here is this year’s ballot, which includes five names.

The Holdovers

There are three holdovers I voted for last year and again got my vote this year.

Chase Utley

There is no question injuries slowed down Utley’s career and many feel he didn’t have the counting stats to get in, but he was a six-time All-Star and only four HOF second basemen have more home runs than Utley’s 259. Those four are Rogers Hornsby (301), Craig Biggio (291), Ryne Sandberg (282) and Joe Morgan (268). I’m big on second basemen who show great power, which is why I voted for Jeff Kent (377 career home runs) when he was on the ballot. Also, we tend to look at excellence, even if it is shorter-term. As mentioned last year, from 2005-2009, Utley’s slash line was .301/.388/535 and he averaged 29.2 home runs, 110. Runs. 101.4 RBI, 151 games and 675 plate appearances. His BWAR during that time was 7.7. Just nine HOF second basemen have a higher career B-War than Utley (64.5).

Utley won a World Series in 2008 with the Philadelphia Phillies and the next year hit five home runs in the 2009 World Series against the Yankees, tying an MLB record with Reggie Jackson in 1977 and George Springer in 2017. He was a career 275/.358/.465 hitter with an 823 OPS and 117 OPS+. Utley also won four Silver Slugger awards. Will it be enough? Last year in his first season on the ballot, Utley received 28.8% of the vote, so he has a long way to go.

Billy Wagner

This is Wagner’s 10th and final season on the ballot after coming close last year by earning 73.8% of the vote, missing by five votes. Those who don’t feel Wagner is a HOF player point to his low number of appearances and World Series statistics. Both are valid.

Wagner pitched just 903 innings. His postseason production, even though it only consisted of 11 1/3 innings over 14 appearances, was poor to say the least. He had a 10.03 ERA.

The reason for voting for Wagner was his excellence. According to the Baseball Hall of Fame, his career WHIP of 0.998 is the lowest among all retired relievers with at least 700 innings pitched, and his career 2.31 ERA is lowest among retired left-handed pitchers with at least 500 innings pitched in the live ball era. His ERA+ of 187 is second all-time to only Mariano Rivera.

According to HOF expert Jay Jaffe, Wagner’s 11.9 strikeouts per nine innings (minimum of 900 innings pitched) is the best in MLB history. There are now others ahead of him, but they have pitched fewer than 900 innings.

Wagner finished with 422 saves, second highest among left-handed relievers and eighth overall. According to MLB.com, he converted 422 of 476 save opportunities (.887).

He was a seven-time All-Star and played on teams that advanced to the postseason seven times.

David Wright

Wright falls in the Utley category of not having the counting stats due to injury. This is his second year on the ballot, and he only received 6.2 percent of the vote last year. Still, Wright was a dominant force when healthy. Wright was a seven-time All-Star during a nine-year period from 2005-2013. During that time, his slash line was .302/384/.505 with a 138 OPS+. He averaged 23 home runs, 90 runs and 93 RBI while also winning two Gold Gloves and two Silver Slugger awards. Wright finished in the Top 10 for MVP voting four times. During that nine-year period, he was among the best players not only at his position, but in baseball.

According to the Baseball HOF, Wright is one of our four third basemen in history (along with Hall of Famers George Brett, Chipper Jones and Mike Schmidt) who retired with at least 350 doubles, 200 home runs and 150 stolen bases. He ended with 390 doubles, 242 home runs and 196 stolen bases.

He was a career .296/376/.491 hitter with a 133 OPS+. Only seven HOF third baseman have a higher OPS+ than Wright. Due to injuries, he was never a full-time player past his age 31 season.

The Newcomers

CC Sabathia

This is one player who is sure to create some debate. Among his biggest selling points were his career wins (251) and winning percentage (.609) in an era where wins aren’t valued the way they used to be. He is tied for 47th all-time in career wins.

Some would use his 3.74 ERA against Sabathia, which is fair. His career ERA+ was 116, solid but not spectacular.

On the positive side, he was the ace for the three teams that he played for (Cleveland, Milwaukee and the NY Yankees) and led all three to the postseason. (Later In his career he wasn’t the best pitcher on the Yankees, but for the first five years in New York, he was the ace).

The lefthander was a six-time all-star and the 2007 Cy Young Award winner with Cleveland. He finished in the top 10 of Cy Young voting four other times. He was a workhorse, having made 30 or more starts 12 times. Sabathia helped lead the Yankees to the 2009 World Series championship during his first year with the club. During that year he was the ALCS MVP, going 2-0 with a 1.13 ERA in two starts against the Los Angeles Angels. In 10 of his 19 seasons he played on playoff teams and has a career 10-7 record and 4.28 ERA in 26 postseason games. Sabathia is one of three left-handers with at least 3,000 strikeouts. He recorded 3,093 strikeouts, which is 18th all-time.

Ichiro Suzuki

Just as Adrian Beltre was a slam-dunk first-ballot selection last year, so is Ichiro this year. He has the credentials to be a unanimous selection. Probably the best stat is that Ichiro had 200 or more hits and won a Gold Glove in each of his first 10 seasons with Seattle. In 2001 he became the second player to win both the Rookie of the Year and Most Valuable Player award in the same season. What’s more impressive is that he didn’t make his MLB debut until the age of 27. In those first 10 seasons, he his slash line was .331/.376/.430. Before coming to play with the Seattle Mariners, he had 1,278 hits while playing in Japan. He finished with 3,089 career MLB hits and a .311/.355/.402 slash line. Ichiro won two batting tiles when he hit .350 in 2001 and .372 in 2004. He also stole 509 bases in 626 attempts (83%) in his career and was a 10-time All-Star, all coming in his first 10 seasons. In 86 postseason plate appearances, he hit .346/.400/.436. Mainly a right-fielder, Ichiro played 1,970 career games in right, 322 in center and 117 in left. He also had great durability, playing 150 or more games 13 times and 160 or more on nine occasions.

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