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Diamondbacks A Finalist For Eduardo Rodriguez

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MLB Network’s Jon Morosi reported this evening that the Diamondbacks have had “advanced discussions” with left-hander Eduardo Rodriguez. Morosi notes that no deal has been finalized to this point, but Arizona is considered a finalist for the southpaw. The report comes on the heels of news earlier today that Rodriguez had narrowed his possible destination down to two teams. A report from Ken Rosenthal and C. Trent Rosencrans of The Athletic initially suggested that the other finalist for Rodriguez’s services was the Cincinnati Reds, though Gordon Wittenmyer of the Cincinnati Enquirer reports that the Reds are not a finalist for Rodriguez’s services. Rosenthal and Rosencrans have since retracted the report.

For the reigning NL champions, Rodriguez would provide a third front-of-the-rotation caliber arm to pair with 2023 NL Cy Young award finalist Zac Gallen and veteran right-hander Merrill Kelly. Despite excellent performances from the club’s top two arms, who combined for a 3.39 ERA across 64 starts, the club’s overall rotation ranked just 21st in the majors last season with a 4.67 ERA. That’s thanks to a dearth of quality options behind Gallen and Kelly. Arizona relied on the likes of Brandon Pfaadt, Ryne Nelson, and Zach Davies in the rotation for much of the year, each of whom posted ERAs north of 5.00.

Adding Rodriguez to the mix should help the club’s run prevention efforts considerably. The 30-year-old southpaw enjoyed a career year in 2023 as a member of the Tigers, finishing the season with a 3.30 ERA and 3.66 FIP across 152 2/3 innings of work while striking out 23% of batters faced against a walk rate of just 7.7%. Those strong overall numbers on the season well may have been even stronger had Rodriguez managed to stay healthy all season, as the lefty cruised to a 2.13 ERA and a 25.5% strikeout rate across his first eleven starts of the season.

Unfortunately, Rodriguez subsequently suffered a ruptured pulley tendon at the end of May that wound up sidelining him for the entire month of June. Upon returning in early July, Rodriguez struggled to match his excellent first half performance. The southpaw delivered decent results, with a 4.24 ERA and 4.08 FIP over his final 85 frames, though his strikeout rate dipped to just 21.2% while his walk rate climbed to 8.9%. Fortunately, Rodriguez bounced back down the stretch to post a solid 3.60 ERA in September. Assuming the left-hander is fully healthy entering the 2024 campaign, he would be a strong addition to most any rotation in the majors.

2023 Rule 5 Draft Results

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The 2023 Rule 5 draft will begin at 1pm Central time today at the Winter Meetings in Nashville.

As a refresher, the Rule 5 draft is a way for players potentially talented enough for the big leagues but blocked by their current clubs to find opportunities elsewhere. Any players that were 18 and under at the time of their original signing and have played five professional seasons, and any players who signed at 19 years of age or older at signing that now have four professional seasons, who are not on a club’s 40-man roster are eligible to be selected in the Rule 5 draft.

The clubs will draft in reverse order of the 2023 standings, with no club obligated to make a selection when it’s their turn. If they do make a pick, they will have to pay $100K to the team they select from. The selected players must stay on the active roster (or injured list) for the entire 2024 season or else be placed on waivers. If they clear waivers, they must be offered back to their original team. They cannot be optioned to the minors. Last year’s edition saw some key players change clubs, such as Ryan Noda going from the Dodgers to the Athletics and Blake Sabol going from the Pirates to the Giants.

This post will be updated as the draft continues. Here is the order…

1.  Athletics: RHP Mitch Spence (Yankees)
2. Royals: RHP Matt Sauer (Yankees)
3. Rockies: RHP Anthony Molina (Rays)
4. White Sox: LHP Shane Drohan (Red Sox)
5. Nationals: SS Nasim Nuñez (Marlins)
6. Cardinals: RHP Ryan Fernandez (Red Sox)
7. Angels: pass
8. Mets: RHP Justin Slaten (Rangers); Mets later traded Slaten to the Red Sox for LHP Ryan Ammons* and cash considerations.
9. Pirates: pass
10. Guardians: 3B Deyvison De Los Santos (Diamondbacks)
11. Tigers: pass
12. Red Sox: pass
13. Giants: pass
14. Reds: pass
15. Padres: RHP Stephen Kolek (Mariners)
16. Yankees: pass
17. Cubs: pass
18. Marlins: pass
19. Diamondbacks: pass
20. Twins: pass
21. Mariners: pass
22. Blue Jays: pass
23. Rangers: RHP Carson Coleman (Yankees)
24. Phillies: pass
25. Astros: pass
26. Brewers: pass
27. Rays: pass
28. Dodgers: pass
29. Orioles: pass
30. Braves: pass

The minor league phase of the Rule 5 draft also occurred this afternoon. Those players will not go onto the selecting teams’ 40-man roster. A few former major leaguers changed uniforms. They include 1B Seth Beer going from the Diamondbacks to the Pirates while the Yankees took RHP Kervin Castro from the Astros.

* (Robert Murray of FanSided first reported that Ammons was going to the Mets. Joel Sherman of The New York Post added that Ammons and cash were being exchanged for Slaten.

Mets, Red Sox, Diamondbacks, Royals Interested In Lucas Giolito

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Free agent right-hander Lucas Giolito is getting a lot of attention, with Jon Morosi of MLB.com reporting that the Dodgers, Mets, Red Sox, Diamondbacks, and Royals are interested in him. The interest from the Dodgers was already reported but the four other clubs are new mentions.

Giolito, 29, is one of the hardest free agents to value. From 2019 to 2021, he made 72 starts and tossed 427 2/3 innings with a 3.47 earned run average. He struck out 30.7% of batters faced in that time while walking just 8%. His 11.3 wins above replacement in that stretch, per FanGraphs, was seventh among all pitchers in the league.

Things took a bit of a downturn in 2022, at least in terms of results. His ERA jumped to 4.90 and his strikeouts dropped a bit, though his 25.4% rate was still above league average. His .340 batting average on balls in play that year stands out as a clear outlier, as he’s never had that figure finish higher than .274 in any other season. His 4.06 FIP and 3.79 SIERA both suggested he was actually more in line with his previous track record than the ERA would indicate.

He seemed to be back on track in the first half of 2023, making 21 starts for the White Sox with a 3.79 ERA. But things went downhill for him after he was traded to the Angels prior to the deadline. He took the ball six times for the Halos, posting an ERA of 6.89 in those. As that club fell out of contention, he was put on waivers and claimed by the Guardians. Six more starts with that club yielded an even worse ERA of 7.04. His walk rate jumped to 10.8% in the 12 starts after being traded and he also allowed 20 home runs in just 63 1/3 innings.

That poor stretch of play represents such a small sample in a career that now includes over 1,000 big leagues innings, but was unfortunately timed right before his first trip to free agency. MLBTR predicted he would get a two-year, $44MM with an opt-out that lets him potentially return to free agency with a stronger platform.

Each of the four clubs now connected to him are sensible fits since they each are known to need pitching. The Diamondbacks have Zac Gallen and Merrill Kelly in two rotation spots with Brandon Pfaadt likely to be somewhere behind them, but there’s not much certainty beyond that. General manager Mike Hazen has been open about the club’s desire to upgrade the rotation this offseason.

The Mets have added Luis Severino to a rotation that also features Kodai Senga and Jose Quintana, but there are question marks for the back end and even Severino is no guarantee after his poor 2023 campaign.

The Red Sox have plenty of options but none of them concrete. Chris Sale should be in one spot but he hasn’t reached 105 innings pitched in a season since 2019 due to various injuries. Brayan Bello had a decent 2023 season overall but faded later in the year with a 5.49 ERA in the second half. Each of Nick Pivetta, Tanner Houck, Garrett Whitlock and Kutter Crawford have oscillated between the rotation and bullpen without permanently cementing a spot. Chief baseball officer Craig Breslow said at the Winter Meetings that the club would be “aggressive” in pursuing upgrades.

The Royals have plenty of questions in their rotation. Cole Ragans had a strong finish after coming over in the Aroldis Chapman trade but Brady Singer and Jordan Lyles each had disappointing seasons. General manager J.J. Picollo said this week that the club has about $30MM to spend and adding a starter is one thing on their to-do list. Signing someone like Giolito would likely eat up a decent chunk of that budget and leave little for bullpen upgrades, but it’s at least feasible that they could dedicate more of their resources to the rotation.

Red Sox “Stepping Up Efforts” In Pursuit Of Seth Lugo

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Dec. 5: The Red Sox are “stepping up [their] efforts” to bring Lugo to Boston, reports Heyman, who notes that the Braves are among the four to five other clubs still in the mix for the righty. Cotillo tweets the Red Sox are “expected” to make a formal offer to Lugo soon, if they haven’t already.

Dec. 4: Seth Lugo is a popular target in the middle tiers of free agency. The Tigers (prior to signing Kenta Maeda) and Dodgers have been publicly tied to the right-hander, who has reportedly drawn interest from upwards of half the league.

Jon Heyman of the New York Post adds a few more clubs to the mix, reporting that the Braves are among the teams showing interest. Heyman adds the Reds, Red Sox and Diamondbacks have also been involved this offseason — although it’s not specified whether Cincinnati’s interest predated their two-year contract with Lugo’s former San Diego teammate Nick Martinez.

The newly revealed suitors on Lugo are all sensible. Each has found themselves in the market for starting pitching. The Braves made a run at Aaron Nola before he returned to the Phillies. They subsequently signed Reynaldo López, whom they’re considering stretching back to rotation work. Atlanta also acquired Marco Gonzales in last night’s trade with the Mariners but reportedly plan to flip the southpaw elsewhere.

Boston has been in the market for multiple starting pitchers. They’re involved on top-of-the-market options like Jordan Montgomery and Yoshinobu Yamamoto but are surely identifying targets at various tiers of free agency. Chief baseball officer Craig Breslow reiterated this afternoon that the rotation was the Sox’s top priority (relayed by Chris Cotillo of MassLive).

The D-Backs have made no secret of their desire for a mid-rotation starter to step in behind Zac Gallen and Merrill Kelly and alongside Brandon Pfaadt. Arizona general manager Mike Hazen suggested this evening that acquisition was likelier to come via free agency than trade, although he unsurprisingly indicated they’re exploring both avenues (link via Steve Gilbert of MLB.com).

Cincinnati added Martinez last week, bringing in the veteran righty to join an otherwise young starting staff. There’s still room for more innings considering the injury history and/or limited MLB track records of players like Hunter Greene, Nick Lodolo, Andrew Abbott, Graham Ashcraft and Brandon Williamson. The Reds have also left open the possibility of keeping Martinez in a swing/multi-inning relief role, although it’d be an odd decision to guarantee him $13MM annually over two seasons if they didn’t anticipate him earning a spot in the rotation.

Lugo, entering his age-34 campaign, is reportedly seeking a three-year deal. He has a strong case for one on the heels of a 3.57 ERA over 26 starts for the Padres.

Diamondbacks Open To Adding Full-Time Designated Hitter

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4:20pm: Arizona executives have had internal discussions about potentially making a run at Martinez or Turner, tweets Jim Bowden of the Athletic. Martinez played the second half of the 2017 season in Arizona, while Turner has reportedly been on the organization’s radar in each of the last two offseasons.

2:27pm: The annual Winter Meetings are taking place in Nashville this week and Steve Gilbert of MLB.com was able to discuss the ongoing offseason with Diamondbacks general manager Mike Hazen.

The club is in a very different position than some other recent years. They missed the playoffs in five straight years from 2018 to 2022, including an especially rough 110-loss season in 2021, but were able to go all the way to the World Series in 2023. Though they ultimately lost to the Rangers, the momentum from that run and the extra revenue from those playoff games could perhaps lead to a different offseason approach this winter.

“We’re engaged in the market more aggressively,” Hazen said. “It’s not to say that something’s going to happen involving us there, but I think we’re probably in a little different spot than we have been in the past going into the Winter Meetings is how I would characterize it.” Hazen goes on to suggest they are unlikely to made a trade involving someone currently on their major league roster, meaning they are likely looking to free agency or perhaps trades of prospects.

One thing that is definitely on the wish list is another right-handed bat. The club already brought one aboard by trading for Eugenio Suárez a couple of weeks ago, but that still leaves them a bit behind last year’s team. Each of Lourdes Gurriel Jr., Tommy Pham and Evan Longoria reached free agency at season’s end, subtracting three righty bats from the mix. The club could acquire a right-handed hitting outfielder, though Hazen says they are also open to bringing in a full-time designated hitter.

“I think a right-handed bat is [a need],” Hazen says. “I wouldn’t say a right-handed-hitting outfielder. A right-handed bat is somebody that would help fill out our lineup. There are options and various places to get that. Depending on who that was, where that landed, how that fit, I think we would have more flexibility for how the rest of it would come together.” The outfield market has some options for a right-handed bat, including re-signing Pham or Gurriel. Then there’s also Teoscar Hernández, Harrison Bader, Adam Duvall and others. But by being open to a player that would be limited to DH duties would give them some more options.

J.D. Martinez is coming off a strong 33-homer season but needs a DH slot, having played just 12 innings in the outfield this year and none at all in 2022. Jorge Soler had 36 home runs in 2023 and should be capable of a bit more work in the field than Martinez, with 32 games in right field in 2023. However, he’s generally considered a poor fielder and fits best on a club with an open DH spot. Justin Turner can play the infield corners, and even second base in a pinch, but is now 39 and best suited for a part-time defensive role. Catcher Mitch Garver has a potent bat but has seen injuries diminish his ability to squat behind the plate with regularity. First baseman Rhys Hoskins missed all of 2023 due to a torn ACL and should perhaps be signed by a club that can use the DH spot to give him a lighter workload next year. The club was speculatively connected to Martinez on the weekend and has had previous reported interest in Turner. On the trade market, Eloy Jiménez, Randy Arozarena, Tyler O’Neill, Nick Castellanos or Christopher Morel could perhaps fit the needs in Arizona.

That gives the D’Backs plenty of options to consider, none of whom should be strictly off the table financially, even though the club hasn’t been a huge spender. Roster Resource currently estimates next year’s payroll to be at $114MM right now. They have been as high as $132MM in the past, per the data at Cot’s Baseball Contracts. If their recent World Series run allows them to get back into that range or a bit beyond, then they have some money to work with. But the club needs to add some pitching and will have to balance those needs as the offseason continues to develop.

Astros, Diamondbacks Interested In Tucker Barnhart

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Veteran catcher Tucker Barnhart is drawing interest from teams in need of catching depth, per Ari Alexander of KPRC-2. Alexander adds that the Astros and Diamondbacks are among the teams with interest in Barnhart’s services.

Barnhart, 33 in January, was selected in the tenth round of the 2009 draft by the Reds and made his big league debut with the club back in 2014. A veteran of ten major league seasons, Barnhart has fashioned a lengthy major league career as a glove-first option behind the plate. Though he has never posted a wRC+ higher than 90 in his career and sports a career slash line of just .217/.289/.312, Barnhart emerged as one of the better defensive catchers in the league over his time in the majors. His +8 Fielding Run Value (per Statcast) in 2021 was tied for the third-best figure among all catchers that season, behind only Sean Murphy and Buster Posey. Combined with an 81 wRC+ in 2021 that was roughly average for a catcher that season, Barnhart had the look of a decent regular behind the plate when he was swapped from the Reds to the Tigers that offseason.

Unfortunately, things took a turn for the worse for the veteran from there. Barnhart’s 2022 season was the worst offensive campaign he had delivered since his 21-game cup of coffee in the majors during the 2014 season. That said, Barnhart’s reputation as a quality defender behind the plate earned the veteran a two-year deal with the Cubs in free agency following the 2022 campaign despite his weak .221/.287/.267 slash line in 94 games with the Tigers.

That two-year pact proved to be a blunder on Chicago’s part, as Barnhart’s offense collapsed even further with a wRC+ of just 53 in 2023. Among players with at least as many major league plate appearances as Barnhart (123) in 2023, just 23 hitters posted a worse offensive season by that metric. Barnhart’s struggles and the emergence of youngster Miguel Amaya behind the plate in Chicago led the Cubs to designate Barnhart for assignment in mid-August. He caught on with the Dodgers on a minor league deal shortly thereafter but did not crack the club’s 40-man roster down the stretch, leaving him to return to free agency this winter.

While Barnhart appears to be a fringe option for even a backup role at this stage of his career, his decade of experience at the major league level and solid defensive reputation behind the plate could make him a worthwhile depth option for a club short on big league caliber catchers. Both Arizona and Houston fit that description, as each club has just two catchers on their 40-man roster with minimal depth in the upper minors. Barnhart is still owed $3.25MM from the Cubs in 2024 thanks to his aforementioned two-year pact with the club. That means that he could be a particularly valuable depth option for clubs as he would only need to be paid the pro-rated big league minimum for any time spent on the 40-man roster next year, allowing a payroll-conscious organization to cover for an injury to their primary catching tandem on the cheap.

D'Backs Notes: Hampson, Front Office

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  • The Diamondbacks had some interest in Garrett Hampson before the utilityman signed with the Royals earlier this week, Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic reports.  The versatile Hampton would’ve been a backup at several positions off the bench, and in particularly been a right-handed hitting complement to Alek Thomas or Geraldo Perdomo at center field or shortstop, respectively.  Right-handed hitting is a priority for the D’Backs in general, and Piecoro suggests that J.D. Martinez might be a candidate for a return to Arizona, based off GM Mike Hazen’s recent comments about how the Diamondbacks could be open to a DH-centric player who swings from the right side.  Arizona has already landed one notable right-handed bat this offseason in acquiring Eugenio Suarez from the Mariners.
  • Sticking with the National League champs, the Diamondbacks named Shaun Larkin as their new director of player development earlier this week.  Larkin has spent the last three seasons as the Dodgers’ field coordinator as part of an eight-year tenure in L.A., and he previously had a long history as a minor league player, coach, and manager in Cleveland’s farm system.  Larkin’s hiring is the latest move in a D’Backs offseason that has seen quite a bit of turnover in the front office and coaching ranks, though as Hazen told Piecoro, “we 100 percent expected it.  This is what happens when you have a successful season….Bringing some outside perspectives into the organization in terms of what’s going on in scouting and player development around the game, I think is important.”

Diamondbacks Sign Ricky Karcher To Minor League Deal

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The D-Backs have signed reliever Ricky Karcher to a minor league contract, according to Matt Eddy of Baseball America. The Snakes also brought back Humberto Castellanos on a non-roster deal.

Karcher joins the second organization of his career. The Reds selected him in the 13th round of the 2017 draft. The 6’4″ righty moved to the bullpen full-time in 2021. He has shown the ability to miss plenty of bats in the minor leagues but also demonstrated significant control issues. In parts of six minor league seasons, he owns a 26.4% strikeout rate while walking a massive 20.4% of batters faced.

Despite the strike-throwing concerns, Cincinnati added Karcher to the 40-man roster last offseason. That kept him out of the Rule 5 draft. They called him up for the first time in early June. He pitched once, tossing a scoreless inning against the Royals. Karcher averaged just under 98 MPH with his fastball in that appearance, pointing to the power arsenal he has shown in the minors.

That wasn’t enough to hold his roster spot with the Reds. The 26-year-old had a rough season at Triple-A Louisville, where he walked almost a quarter of his opponents over 60 1/3 innings. He posted a 4.77 ERA in 51 outings there, with Cincinnati outrighting him from the 40-man around the All-Star Break. Karcher qualified for minor league free agency at season’s end.

Castellanos is a depth starter who logged 100 2/3 MLB innings with the Astros and D-Backs between 2020-22. A soft-tossing control specialist, he owns a 5.45 ERA with a modest 16.6% strikeout rate. The right-hander underwent Tommy John surgery in August 2022. Arizona ran him through waivers last offseason and he missed this year rehabbing. If he’s healthy next spring, he could head to Triple-A Reno as rotation or long relief insurance.

Diamondbacks Sign José Castillo To Minor League Deal

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The Diamondbacks have signed left-hander José Castillo to a minor league deal with an invitation to major league Spring Training, reports Tim Dierkes of MLB Trade Rumors. The lefty is repped by the OL Baseball Group.

Castillo, 28 in January, has spent most of his career with the Padres. He had an encouraging debut season for that club back in 2018, making 37 relief appearances as a 22-year-old with a 3.29 earned run average. He struck out 34.7% of batters he faced while giving out walks at just an 8% clip.

Unfortunately, he hasn’t been able to build off that, having been injured for most of the past five years. He was limited to just one big league appearance in 2019 due to a torn ligament in his hand. He missed the pandemic-shortened 2020 campaign due to a lat strain and then Tommy John surgery kept him out of action for all of 2021 and most of 2022.

He started 2023 on the IL due to a shoulder strain and eventually spent most of the season in the minors, making just one big league appearance. He was struggling badly in Triple-A as well, with an ERA of 9.82 in 22 appearances at that level when he was designated for assignment in July. He was then flipped to the Marlins for cash and made 14 more Triple-A appearances with a 5.59 ERA. He was passed through waivers in August and didn’t get his roster spot back by season’s end, leading to him hitting the open market.

For the Diamondbacks, there’s no harm in taking a flier on Castillo to see if he can finally get healthy and in a good groove. Despite their World Series run, pitching was a relative weakness for them in 2023, with a collective 4.48 ERA for the staff. Castillo is now out of options but he has just over four years of service time, meaning he could be retained beyond 2024 via arbitration if he is able to get back to that 2018 form.

The Diamondbacks' Playoff Share Decision-Making

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Championship rings carry much greater import than financial gain during a postseason run, but teams that reach the playoffs get extra revenue that is divvied up into shares.  The Associated Press reported the figures on the 2023 playoff pool earlier this week, and how the $107.8MM in playoff revenue was divided amongst the 12 playoff teams, with more money naturally going to the teams who advanced furthest.  According to numbers released by the league, the Rangers got $38.8MM (split into 64 full shares, 12.56 partial shares and $48,000 in cash awards) and the Diamondbacks got 71 full shares and 11.49 partial shares out of their bonus of $25.9MM.

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