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Latest On Rays’ Stadium Situation

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The Rays’ plans for 2028 and beyond are back up in the air. Over the weekend, owner Stuart Sternberg criticized local officials for postponing bond votes to approve the public financing to construct a new stadium in St. Petersburg’s Gas Plant district. Sternberg alluded to the possibility of relocation when discussing the situation with John Romano of the Tampa Bay Times.

MLB commissioner Rob Manfred addressed it at this week’s owners meetings. Asked about the possibility of relocation, Manfred said MLB remains “committed to the fans in Tampa Bay” (link via Mark Feinsand of MLB.com). “I think given all that’s happened in that market, we’re focused on our franchise in Tampa Bay right now,” he added.

That partially walks back Sternberg’s relocation threat, though the team continues to agitate for a quick resolution. Pinellas County officials met on Tuesday afternoon, a few days after Sternberg’s comments. Leading up to the meeting, Rays presidents Brian Auld and Matt Silverman wrote a letter to the county saying that the delays have already “ended an ability for the delivery of the 2028 ballpark” (link via Colleen Wright of the Tampa Bay Times). Auld and Silverman wrote that moving forward with the plan in ’29 “would result in significantly higher costs,” though they concluded by saying they “stand ready to work on a new solution with any and all willing partners to preserve the future of baseball in Tampa Bay.”

That didn’t spur any kind of movement from the county. Officials voted for another postponement on the bonds, pushing that back until at least December 17, writes Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. Sam Blum of the Athletic wrote yesterday that some county officials have taken issue with Sternberg’s tactics.

“To be clear, we did not vote to kill the deal, nor should a three-week delay in a 30-plus year commitment be a deal killer to begin with,” the board’s vice chair Brian Scott said at the meeting (per Blum). “That’s just a totally ridiculous statement. The delay was not because of a lack of support for the Rays or our partnership. But it was a necessary due diligence to ensure the best interest of our residents and our taxpayers were met.”

In July, St. Petersburg and Pinellas County each approved the stadium deal that would’ve committed upwards of $300MM in public funding to a $1.3 billion project. They didn’t officially vote on the bonds at that time, however, and the deal was thrown into flux in recent weeks. Hurricanes Helene and Milton have hit the area incredibly hard. Hurricane Milton destroyed the Tropicana Field roof, rendering it unplayable for at least the 2025 season. The city has yet to announce whether it’ll approve the approximate $55.7MM in repair costs necessary to get the Trop into playing condition by ’26. Elections in November also changed the makeup of the county council.

The Rays will play next season at George M. Steinbrenner Field in Tampa. Manfred suggested the end of 2025 could serve as an unofficial deadline for having a long-term plan in place. “It’s one thing to make an interim arrangement for 2025, which we’ve done,” the commissioner stated. “When you get into another year, there’s obviously going to be another interim arrangement unless they get the Trop fixed. I think that second year of an interim arrangement, you need a plan as to how you’re going to get into a permanent facility.”

Trade Candidates To Watch Before Friday’s Non-Tender Deadline

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Friday represents the deadline for teams to tender contracts to players who are under club control. There are always a few notable names who are cut loose as their projected arbitration price tags begin to outpace production. The non-tender deadline can also serve as a catalyst for trades. A player's current team might not want to meet their arbitration salary, but the price isn't so outlandish that they can't find someone else willing to take that on.

Cal Quantrill, Scott Barlow, Luis Urías and Kyle Wright all fell into this bucket at last year's deadline. They'd each had some early-career success that built their arbitration prices, but each was either coming off a mediocre year or (in Wright's case) facing a significant injury absence.

We'll try to identify a few players who could land in the middle ground this week. These aren't the arbitration-eligible players who are most likely to be traded at any point this offseason. Garrett Crochet, Ryan Helsley and Devin Williams all have a decent chance to move over the winter, but none of them is in danger of getting cut. Friday doesn't serve as any kind of deadline to spur a trade for them. Their teams can tender them a contract and trade them weeks or months from now. Players traded this week are usually borderline non-tender candidates. If their teams don't find a trade partner by Friday evening, they could decide to move on entirely. Salary projections are courtesy of MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz. All of these players have five-plus years of service and are down to their final year of club control.

Mike Yastrzemski, Giants ($9.5MM projection)

All four of San Francisco's arb-eligible players could arguably fit on this list. LaMonte Wade Jr., Tyler Rogers and Camilo Doval are themselves viable offseason trade candidates. Moving Yastrzemski could be the most urgent decision for president of baseball operations Buster Posey. With a $9.5MM projection, he's the most expensive player in the team's arbitration class and seems the likeliest to be non-tendered if they don't arrange a trade in the next 48 hours.

Yastrzemski is a capable everyday right fielder. After two excellent offensive seasons to begin his career, he has settled in as an average hitter. The lefty-hitting outfielder carries a .225/.311/.431 batting line since the start of the '21 season. This year's .231/.302/.437 slash with 18 homers is on par with that production. Yastrzemski is a solid defensive corner outfielder but isn't an option for more than emergency work in center field. A near-$10MM salary for his age-34 season is neither an albatross nor a bargain. Yastrzemski seemed to be a favorite of former front office head Farhan Zaidi. It's not clear if Posey values him to the same extent, but the Giants are clearly going to reshuffle the lineup in some way this winter.

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Manfred: Sasaki Unlikely To Sign Until 2025

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Roki Sasaki is one of the offseason’s top stories. The Chiba Lotte Marines announced two weeks ago that they’d make the 6’2″ righty, who is widely viewed as the best pitcher in Japan, available to major league clubs via the posting system. While the Marines didn’t specify a timeline for the posting, MLB commissioner Rob Manfred confirmed this afternoon that Sasaki is not expected to sign until 2025 (link via Johnny Flores of the Athletic).

That doesn’t come as any kind of surprise. The 23-year-old Sasaki is classified as an amateur free agent — as are all players signing from a foreign league before their 25th birthday. That’s most notable because it caps Sasaki’s signing bonus to a few million dollars, a small fraction of his actual open market value. The amateur status is also relevant to the timing of his signing.

MLB permits teams to sign international amateur free agents at any point between January 15 and December 15. The vast majority of significant deals are inked on January 15. Players signing as teenagers out of Latin America usually reach verbal agreements with teams months or years in advance of the signing period. Those deals are typically finalized as soon as the period opens in mid-January.

As a result, teams have spent most or all of their bonus pools for 2024. Baseball America’s Ben Badler wrote last week that the Dodgers had the most remaining ’24 bonus space at roughly $2.5MM. By contrast, every team has between $5.1MM and $7.6MM in its pool for next year. If Sasaki were to sign before December 15, he’d be limiting himself to a small percentage on a bonus that is already capped. He’s not eligible to sign between December 15 and January 15, so he’ll wait until the opening of next year’s pool.

Of course, that presents a problem for players who have already reached verbal agreements that they expected the teams to finalize on January 15. The amateur bonus pool is hard capped. Teams can trade for bonus allotments to add a couple million dollars to their pools, but there’s a finite amount of money that MLB allows teams to spend. (Players who sign for $10K or less are exempt from the pool, but any prospect of note will sign for much more than that.)

Whichever team signs Sasaki will likely commit most or all of their pool to him. As a major league ready potential ace, he’s far more attractive to teams than even the most well-regarded teenage prospects in the class. The signing team will probably need to renege on verbal agreements with other players, who’d find themselves in flux as they look for other teams that have reached unofficial agreements with targets of their own.

If Sasaki waits into late January or February to sign, teams will need to weigh whether to finalize any commitments to other amateur players — which subtracts from the amount of money they could offer the NPB star. Badler’s piece is worth checking out in full, as he covers the trickle-down impacts that Sasaki’s free agency could have on players and trainers in Latin America. None of those are Sasaki’s concern. They’re unfortunate consequences of the system that was collectively bargained between MLB and the Players Association.

While Sasaki isn’t likely to sign before the middle of January, the posting process could begin earlier than that. A player posted by an NPB team has 45 days to sign with a major league club. The Marines could theoretically post Sasaki anytime from December 2 on to allow him to sign in the ’25 window. They’ll presumably wait at least into the middle of December so as not to force him to sign within a day or two of the opening of the signing period.

Tarik Skubal Wins American League Cy Young Award

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Tarik Skubal has his first Cy Young award. The Baseball Writers Association of America announced that the Tigers ace won the AL Cy Young by a unanimous margin. He received all 30 first-place votes. Kansas City’s Seth Lugo placed runner-up, while Cleveland closer Emmanuel Clase rounded out the top three.

Whether Skubal would win the award was never in doubt. The hard-throwing southpaw, who turns 28 today, won the AL’s pitching Triple Crown. He led the Junior Circuit with a 2.39 earned run average across 192 innings. He held the major league lead in wins (18) and strikeouts (228). Skubal was essentially dominant from start to finish, as he didn’t allow an ERA higher than 3.05 in any month. He carried a 2.41 mark into the All-Star Break to earn his first selection to the Midsummer Classic.

Skubal fired 76 innings of 2.37 ERA ball after the Break, serving as the one constant in a Detroit rotation that was patched together after the Jack Flaherty deadline trade. He was the biggest contributor to the Tigers’ Cinderella run to a Wild Card in the second half. He punctuated the regular season with seven scoreless innings in a 2-1 victory over the Rays that more or less ensured Detroit would clinch a playoff spot in the final weekend of the regular season.

This was the first season in which Skubal topped 150 innings. He looked like a budding ace in 2022, when he turned in a 3.52 ERA with huge strikeout numbers across 21 starts. A late-season flexor injury brought that year to a halt. Skubal underwent surgery in August and was out into July ’23. He struck out 102 batters with a 2.80 ERA in 15 starts to close that season. Skubal was a trendy preseason Cy Young pick coming into 2024. He more than lived up to that promise.

Lugo, who turned 35 earlier this week, had the best season of his career. He turned in an even 3.00 ERA across 206 2/3 innings. Only Logan Gilbert threw more innings than Lugo, a former reliever who didn’t move back to the rotation until the ’23 season. The Royals made out incredibly well in the first season of a three-year, $45MM free agent deal. Lugo’s stellar year was a big reason that K.C. snapped a nine-year playoff drought of their own.

Clase had one of the best seasons by a reliever ever. The Guardians’ closer managed a 0.61 ERA across 74 1/3 frames. He locked down 47 saves in 50 attempts. Clase has led the majors in saves in three straight seasons. He anchored an elite Cleveland bullpen that carried the Guardians to an AL Central title. He’s the first reliever since Francisco Rodríguez in 2008 to earn a top three finish in Cy Young balloting.

While Skubal had a monopoly on first-place votes, five pitchers placed second on at least one ballot. In addition to Lugo and Clase, Cole Ragans, Corbin Burnes and Gilbert all picked up a second-place vote. Framber Valdez was the only other pitcher to receive any top three votes. Kirby Yates, Yusei Kikuchi and Cleveland rookie reliever Cade Smith all appeared on one ballot in fourth or fifth place.

Image courtesy of Imagn. Full voter breakdown courtesy of the BBWAA.

Stephen Vogt, Pat Murphy Win Manager Of The Year

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The Baseball Writers Association of America announced that Guardians’ skipper Stephen Vogt and Brewers’ manager Pat Murphy were named the respective leagues’ Managers of the Year.

Both men took the award after leading their teams to Central division titles in year one. Vogt took the reins for the Guardians within a year and a half of retiring as a player. He spent one season on Seattle’s staff as bullpen coach before Cleveland tabbed him to replace future Hall of Famer Terry Francona. Vogt took over a team that had a much weaker rotation than the Guardians customarily sport, especially after Shane Bieber went down two starts into the season.

Expectations outside the organization generally weren’t very high. Cleveland nevertheless ran away with the AL Central. They built a lead as big as nine games by the end of June and didn’t look back. The Guardians cruised to a 92-win season, taking 16 more games than they had in 2023. They outscored opponents by 87 runs, largely on the strength of an elite bullpen. Vogt’s relief group easily led the majors with a 2.57 earned run average. The Guardians nabbed the #2 seed in the American League to secure a first-round bye.

Awards voting occurs before the start of the postseason, so the playoffs weren’t a factor in these honors. Cleveland held serve by defeating the upstart Tigers in the Division Series. They dropped a five-game set to the top-seeded Yankees in the Championship Series. While it didn’t end as hoped, it was a much more successful season than most people envisioned.

Vogt rather handily won the support of voters. He nabbed 27 of the 30 first-place selections. Kansas City’s Matt Quatraro and Detroit’s A.J. Hinch were the only others to receive a first-place vote in the America League. Quatraro and Hinch finished second and third, respectively. Joe Espada, Aaron Boone, Mark Kotsay, Rocco Baldelli and Alex Cora all appeared on at least one ballot.

The story was much the same in the National League. Murphy was in his first year at the helm. Like Vogt, he took over for one of the sport’s most respected managers. Craig Counsell departed to sign with the Cubs, leaving Murphy in charge of a dugout for the first time since an interim stint with the Padres in 2015. As with Cleveland, Milwaukee’s formerly vaunted rotation had been thinned by injury and trades.

The Brewers got success out of unheralded starters Tobias Myers and Colin Rea. Their bullpen was arguably the best in the National League. Despite losing Devin Williams for the first half of the season, Milwaukee relievers led the NL with a 3.11 ERA that trailed only Cleveland’s mark overall. The Brewers outscored opponents by 136 runs to post a 93-69 record. They essentially replicated their results from Counsell’s final season and grabbed their third NL Central title in four years.

Milwaukee’s year ended with a bitter defeat. Williams’ blown save against the Mets in the Wild Card round left them with a first-round exit for the second straight year. That’s not a factor in the voting, of course, and it’s not as if anyone would fault Murphy for turning to his star closer in that situation anyhow.

 

Murphy rather remarkably becomes the first Brewers’ manager to win the award. Counsell has surprisingly never won that honor. As with Vogt, Murphy took 27 of 30 first-place spots. San Diego’s Mike Shildt, New York’s Carlos Mendoza and Philadelphia’s Rob Thomson each picked up one first-place nod. Shildt and Mendoza placed second and third, respectively. Torey Lovullo landed in fourth overall, while Thomson rounded out the top five. Brian Snitker, Dave Roberts and Oli Marmol also received votes.

Full voter breakdowns courtesy of the BBWAA.

D-Backs Select Tim Tawa, Joe Elbis

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The Diamondbacks added infielder Tim Tawa and right-hander Joe Elbis to their 40-man roster to keep them out of the Rule 5 draft. Arizona’s roster count sits at 37.

Tawa, a 25-year-old utility player, was Arizona’s 11th-round pick in 2021. The Stanford product is primarily a second baseman but can bounce around to the corner infield or any outfield spot. The right-handed hitter split the ’24 season between Double-A Amarillo and Triple-A Reno. He hit 31 homers with a .279/.349/.519 batting line across 613 plate appearances. The power output is surely inflated by his favorable home parks, but Tawa’s versatility and minor league production could make him a solid bench piece.

Elbis, 22, is a starting pitcher who reached Double-A. The Venezuela native combined for 135 1/3 innings of 3.39 ERA ball between High-A and Double-A this year. While his 20% strikeout rate isn’t overpowering, he showed solid control with an 8.3% walk percentage. He’ll begin the ’25 season as minor league rotation depth.

Dodgers Select Jack Dreyer

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The Dodgers added left-hander Jack Dreyer to their 40-man roster, reports Ari Alexander of KPRC 2 (X link). He’s their only addition to the 40-man roster on Rule 5 protection day.

Dreyer, 26 in February, was an undrafted signee out of Iowa in 2021. The 6’2″ reliever has overcome that lack of draft pedigree to grab a roster spot with the defending World Series winners. Dreyer posted fantastic numbers in the upper minors this year. Between Double-A Tulsa and Triple-A Oklahoma City, he turned in a 2.20 earned run average across 57 1/3 innings. He struck out nearly 32% of batters faced while limiting his walks to a 5.3% clip.

The Dodgers have Alex Vesia and Anthony Banda as their top lefty relief options. Justin Wrobleski and swingman Zach Logue were the only other southpaws on the 40-man roster. Dreyer has a shot to pitch his way into the middle innings next season.

Rockies Add Zac Veen To 40-Man Roster

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The Rockies only made one addition to their 40-man roster on Rule 5 protection day. Colorado selected the contract of former ninth overall pick Zac Veen. Their roster count is up to 39.

Veen, a lefty-hitting outfielder, drew ample praise for his power potential as a high schooler. He hasn’t yet shown that in the minors, at least partially due to a left hand injury that required season-ending surgery in 2023. Veen had a solid rebound this year, running a .258/.346/.459 line with 11 longballs in 65 games between four levels. He played his way to Triple-A Albuquerque by the end of the season.

The 22-year-old (23 next month) could still use some minor league reps, but he’s not too far off his MLB debut. Baseball America recently ranked him the #7 prospect in the Rox’s system. While his prospect stock is down from where it was a couple seasons ago, it was still a no-brainer for Colorado to keep him out of the Rule 5 draft.

Red Sox Designate Bryan Mata, Isaiah Campbell For Assignment

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The Red Sox announced they’ve designated right-handers Bryan Mata and Isaiah Campbell for assignment. The moves create the necessary 40-man roster spots for the previously reported additions of Hunter Dobbins and Jhostynxon Garcia to the roster.

Mata, 25, was once among the most highly-touted pitchers in the Boston system. The Venezuela native posted excellent numbers in the low minors and earned a 40-man roster spot after the 2020 season. He unfortunately hasn’t made it to the big leagues four years later, largely because of injury. Mata underwent Tommy John surgery early in the ’21 campaign. He hasn’t topped 83 innings in a minor league season since then.

A hamstring strain limited him to 22 2/3 innings between four minor league levels this year. Mata turned in a 4.37 ERA as he tried to work to the majors. He has allowed 4.87 earned runs per nine through 87 career Triple-A frames. The Sox will likely non-tender him on Friday and try to bring him back on a minor league deal, but he could look for other opportunities if he hits free agency.

Campbell, 27, also lost most of the season to injury. Acquired from the Mariners last offseason for infielder Luis Urías, he only pitched 6 2/3 innings in a Sox uniform. Campbell was blitzed for 13 runs in that small sample, a far cry from the 2.83 ERA he posted in 27 appearances for the Mariners as a rookie. The Arkansas product missed time with both a shoulder impingement and elbow inflammation amidst a difficult year.

Guardians Designate Three Players For Assignment

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The Guardians added four players to their 40-man roster before tonight’s Rule 5 deadline: pitchers Franco Aleman, Nic Enright, and Doug Nikhazy and outfielder Petey Halpin. To open 40-man spots, Cleveland designated former top outfield prospect George Valera and relievers Peter Strzelecki and Connor Gillispie for assignment.

The most notable piece of news here is the club opting to part ways with Valera. The 24-year-old is just a couple of years removed from being a consensus top-50 prospect in the sport but has been plagued by injuries over the past two years. Valera underwent offseason hand surgery prior to the 2023 season and ultimately did not make his season debut until May of that year, ultimately playing just 11 games prior to June 17 of that year due to additional injury woes. Overall, he hit just .211/.343/.375 despite an excellent 16% walk rate last year.

Things improved in his age-23 season with the Guardians this year on offense, as he hit .248/.337/.452 with 17 home runs, a major step in right direction after slugging just ten the year prior. Unfortunately, Valera was once again limited by injury and played just 90 games in 2024 before going under the knife again back in September. That surgery came with a six-to-nine month recovery timetable, which left him poised to start 2025 on the injured list and likely not be available as a potential big league contributor until the second half of next year at the earliest.

Given the former top prospect’s injury woes and relatively modest production at Triple-A, the Guardians evidently decided to cut him from the 40-man roster. Now, Valera will be available for any interested club to claim off waivers. If he manages to clear waivers, the Guardians will have the opportunity to outright him to the minor leagues and retain him in the organization for 2025. Importantly, Valera does not have minor league options remaining so any acquiring club would either need to carry him on their active roster or sneak him through waivers themselves later in the offseason.

As for Strzelecki, the 30-year-old right-hander has appeared in the majors in each of the past three seasons but only arrived in Cleveland back in March. Prior to this year, Strzelecki made his big league debut for the Brewers back in 2022 and pitched quite well with a 2.83 ERA and 2.94 FIP in 35 innings of work. The right-hander suffered a down year in 2023, however, as he pitched to a 4.54 ERA in 35 2/3 frames for Milwaukee before being swapped to the Diamondbacks at the 2023 trade deadline in exchange for southpaw Andrew Chafin. Strzelecki made just one appearance in a Dbacks uniform last year where he threw 1 1/3 scoreless frames.

The righty was squeezed off of Arizona’s 40-man roster in the run-up to Opening Day this year in order to make room for the addition of Tucker Barnhart, and the Guardians pounced on the opportunity to bring him into the fold. He served as an up-and-down reliever for Cleveland this year and pitched quite well in a limited sample with a 2.31 ERA and 3.77 FIP in 11 2/3 innings of work, though that wasn’t enough to earn a more permanent spot in a loaded Guardians bullpen. With Strzelecki set to enter 2025 without any option years remaining, the Guardians opted to part ways with the right-hander, who could garner interest from rival clubs on the waiver wire now that he’s available.

Gillispie, meanwhile, made his big league debut with the Guardians just this year. He pitched to a 2.25 ERA in eight innings of work in the majors to go along with a rather pedestrian 4.05 ERA in 27 appearances (15 starts) at Triple-A. The 27-year-old will enter the 2025 campaign with options remaining, which could make him particularly attractive to a pitching-needy club as an optionable young arm with the ability to pitch both in the rotation and out of the bullpen.

As for the quartet of prospects, each will be protected from the Rule 5 Draft next month now that they’re on the 40-man roster. Aleman, 24, turned in a dominant season in relief at the Triple-A level with a 1.99 ERA and a 36.6% strikeout rate in 24 appearances. The 27-year-old Enright was picked in the Rule 5 draft one before by the Marlins but was eventually returned to the Guardians. A two-way player for much of his career, the right-hander turned to pitching full-time in 2024 and looked quite good in a small sample as he posted a 1.06 ERA in 17 innings of work with an incredible 49.2% strikeout rate. Nikhazy, a 25-year-old lefty, split 2024 between the Double- and Triple-A rotations and posted solid numbers with a 2.98 ERA and 25.4% strikeout rate in 123 2/3 innings of work, potentially putting him on the radar for big league starts in 2025. Halpin is the lone position player the Guardians protected, and the club’s third-round pick in the 2020 draft and slashed .233/.314/.399 in 90 games at Triple-A this year.

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