AL Notes: Glasnow, Jansen, A’s
The Rays figure to spend much of their offseason grappling with how to improve their roster despite a $126MM projected payroll (per RosterResource) that would be a franchise record. Given the considerable expected increase in Tampa’s payroll, plenty of speculation has swirled surrounding the future of ace right-hander Tyler Glasnow, who is in the final year of his contract with the Rays and is due $25MM in 2024. Moving Glasnow would trim considerable payroll for the Rays while also allowing them to secure cheaper talent in the return package, a method the club has frequently utilized in recent years when parting ways with players like Blake Snell, Chris Archer and, Evan Longoria.
While it’s certainly feasible the Rays could decide to take that route with Glasnow, MLB Network’s Jon Morosi indicates that such a deal is unlikely to come together any time soon, noting that the club’s talks regarding a Glasnow deal are seen as “preliminary.” Morosi goes on to suggest that a Glasnow trade is more likely to occur after the top tier of free agent starters, which includes Snell, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Aaron Nola and Jordan Montgomery, have found new homes. Waiting until the free agent market plays itself out more is a sensible choice for the Rays; after all, plenty of clubs are rumored to be looking for front-of-the-rotation impact this offseason, and teams that miss out on the aforementioned group of pitchers may be more motivated to get a deal for Glasnow done later in the offseason once the big names of the free agent market are off the table.
More from around the American League…
- Blue Jays catcher Danny Jansen is poised to hit free agency following the 2024 season, but it appears that the 28-year-old and the team aren’t planning on getting together on an extension any time soon. In an interview with Scott Mitchell of SportsCentre, Jansen said that though the sides did talk about a potential extension, “both parties agreed to carry on and see what happens throughout this year.” Toronto, of course, has fellow backstop Alejandro Kirk under team control through the end of the 2026 season. Given that reality, the fact that an extension for Jansen appears to not be a top priority for the Blue Jays is hardly a surprise. That’s especially true considering the club’s reported interest in top free agent bats such as Shohei Ohtani and Cody Bellinger.
- The Athletics have now received unanimous approval from MLB owners for their plan to relocate to Las Vegas. In the wake of the relocation vote, team president Dave Kaval interviewed with The Athletic’s Evan Drellich. Kaval expressed the team’s excitement for the coming move. Though he noted that Las Vegas leaves the club with “uncertainty” regarding revenue from local media as the smallest TV market in MLB, Kaval noted that the club expects their new market to “punch a little above its weight” in other areas to make up for that. Kaval also suggested that the club has no interest in leaving the “Athletics” name behind as it moves to the desert. That’s a particularly relevant piece of information given Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao has previously indicated that leaving the name in Oakland could be among the city’s demands should the A’s wish to stay in Oakland after their lease expires following the 2024 campaign but prior to the club’s Las Vegas ballpark’s opening, which is expected to occur in time for the start of the 2028 season. Kaval went on to clarify that the club’s current TV deal only applies while the club is playing in the Bay Area, which could provide the club with an additional incentive to get a deal done either with the city of Oakland or to share Oracle Park with the Giants for the 2025-27 seasons.
Yankees Notes: Nola, Yamamoto, Peralta, Bailey
While hitting upgrades have dominated the Yankees’ offseason narrative to date, the team is certainly also keeping an eye on the pitching market, including some top-shelf names. MLB Network’s Jon Morosi (via X) writes that the “Yankees are among the most active teams” exploring pitchers thus far, with such names as Aaron Nola and Yoshinobu Yamamoto on their list of targets.
The Yankees’ interest in Yamamoto is well known, and while Nola is a new face linked to the Bronx Bombers, it makes perfect sense why Nola would be of interest. No opponent would relish facing Gerrit Cole and Nola in a short playoff series, and Nola’s durability would be a significant boost to a New York rotation that has some question marks heading into 2024. Carlos Rodon and Nestor Cortes were plagued by injuries last season, Clarke Schmidt has only one full season as a big league starter under his belt, and Michael King (who is being tapped to remain in the rotation) has even less experience as a starter.
If everyone is healthy and if King and Schmidt can pitch as well as they did in 2023, this could be one of baseball’s best rotations on paper. However, signing Nola, Yamamoto, or another stabilizing force to the front end of the staff would both clear up some of the uncertainty, and perhaps allow the Bombers some more flexibility with their other offseason moves. For instance, younger pitchers like Yoendrys Gomez or Randy Vasquez might become trade chips, or perhaps even Schmidt might be shopped to land a bat. While King will be given every opportunity to stick as a starter, the Yankees would be more open to reinstalling him as a bullpen weapon if they were more comfortable with the rest of their rotation.
Of course, it should be noted that signing Rodon last winter was supposed to deepen the rotation, but Rodon was ineffective in the first year of his six-year, $162MM contract. Rodon’s struggles won’t preclude New York from again spending big on a starter, though it might change the general focus of their search. For instance, Nola has averaged just under 199 innings pitched in each of the last five full MLB seasons, so he has a much longer track record of good health and consistent success.
The Yankees’ pitching endeavors also reach to the bullpen, as Gary Phillips of the New York Daily News reports that the club has interest in re-signing Wandy Peralta, though the left-hander hasn’t yet been presented with a formal offer. Peralta has a 2.82 ERA over 153 innings with the Yankees since being acquired in the Mike Tauchman trade with the Giants in April 2021, and he is among baseball’s best at keeping the ball on the ground with a 56.3% grounder rate over the last three seasons. While a .256 BABIP has helped Peralta’s cause, he is also very good at limiting hard contact, making it easier for his fielders to handle any balls in play.
This grounder-heavy arsenal and a relative lack of strikeouts makes Peralta prone to outperforming his peripherals, though he took this to extremes in 2023. Peralta’s 2.83 ERA and .293 xOBA were well below his 4.44 SIERA and .332 xwOBA, and his walk rate (which has usually been below average anyway) spiked to a dismal 13.2%. It could just be a one-year blip that it probably won’t be enough to prevent Peralta from landing a multi-year free agent deal, yet it does serve as a potential red flag for suitors. Since the Yankees know Peralta better than any other club, their continued interest is perhaps a sign that they don’t see the control issue as a long-term problem, or it could be the Yankees are just monitoring Peralta to see if he can be retained at a relative bargain price.
In some Yankees news off the field, Andrew Bailey interviewed with the team on Monday about the bench coach job, according to the New York Post’s Joel Sherman. Bailey is no stranger to the Bronx, as his eight seasons as a big league pitcher included a stint with the Yankees in 2015. Formerly the Giants’ pitching coach for the last four seasons, Bailey is now out of contract and is known to be getting consideration from not just the Yankees as a bench coach, but also from the Orioles and Red Sox as a pitching coach candidate. Sherman adds that the Marlins also have interest in Bailey as a pitching coach, and that Bailey “turned down an opportunity to be considered by the White Sox” for an unspecified role.
West Notes: Nevin, Giants, Angels, A’s
The Padres reportedly have former Angels manager Phil Nevin among the finalists for their managerial position, according to Jon Morosi of MLB Network. Nevin, 52, was hired as third base coach in Anaheim prior to the 2022 season but became the club’s interim manager early in June of that year following the firing of Joe Maddon. Nevin continued as the club’s interim manager for the remainder of the season and the club decided to retain him in the role for 2023. Ultimately, however, the sides parted ways at the conclusion of the regular season. Anaheim found their replacement for Nevin last week, hiring Ron Washington away from his role as third base coach for the Braves.
Upon former Padres manager Bob Melvin’s departure to manage the division rival Giants, Nevin quickly became a candidate linked to San Diego’s managerial vacancy. Reports indicated late last week that Nevin had interviewed with the Padres for the role, and now Morosi’s report places Nevin as a potential finalist for the position. That being said, Nevin is far from the only finalist with a chance to be San Diego’s next manager. A pair of internal candidates in bench coach Ryan Flaherty and senior advisor Mike Shildt interviewed for the position shortly after Melvin’s departure and have long been seen as likely favorites to ultimately land the role. Shildt, in particular, has been linked to the role very frequently in recent weeks as an experienced skipper with four seasons at the helm of the Cardinals under his belt.
More from around MLB’s West divisions…
- The Giants have reportedly settled on a new bullpen coach to replace outgoing coach Craig Albernaz, who was recently hired away by the Guardians. Per Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle, San Francisco has decided upon Garvin Alston for the role. Alston, 51, was drafted as a player by the Rockies in the 10th round of the 1992 draft and spent eight seasons pitching in the minors, eventually briefly cracking Colorado’s big league roster during the 1996 season. Since retiring from his playing career, Alston has served in a variety of coaching roles in Oakland’s organization, including as bullpen coach, in addition to spending the 2018 season as pitching coach for the Twins.
- The Angels have begun to assemble a coaching staff under the newly-hired Washington, though despite suggestions to the contrary 19-year big league veteran Torii Hunter will not be joining that staff. Speaking to reporters (including Bill Shaikin of the LA Times), Hunter confirmed that he interviewed for the managerial position prior to Washington’s hiring and that the club subsequently reached out to gauge his interest in coaching, but that he declined to be considered for a coaching role. Nonetheless, Hunter spoke effusively of the Angels, noting that he would have been excited by the “challenge” of managing the Angels through what figures to be a difficult 2024 season, particularly if they are unable to retain franchise face Shohei Ohtani.
- While Hunter won’t be coaching for the Angels in 2024, the New York Post’s Jon Heyman wrote recently that former Astros manager Bo Porter is a candidate to join the club’s coaching staff. While Porter’s hypothetical role on the staff is unclear, Porter has plenty of experience from his time as a big leaguer with the Cubs, A’s, and Rangers to his time as third base coach with the Diamondbacks, Marlins, Nationals, and Braves to his two seasons managing in Houston, though those Astros clubs struggled to a 110-190 record under his guidance. As Heyman notes, Porter has connections to Washington both from his time as a player in Oakland and also from his time on the coaching staff and in the front office with Atlanta.
- The A’s announced their coaching staff for the 2024 season today, with a pair of new faces on the staff: Bobby Crosby, who won the AL Rookie of the Year award with Oakland back in 2004 and more recently has served as a manager in the minor leagues, as well as Dan Hubbs, who previously served as director of pitching development for the Tigers from 2020-21 and as a minor league coach with the A’s this past season. Crosby is replacing Mike Aldrete as first base coach as Aldrete moves into a hitting coach role, while Hubbs will replace Mike McCarthy as bullpen coach.
NL Central Notes: Shildt, Brewers, Morel, Keller, Cruz
Mike Shildt is considered one of the favorites to be the Padres’ next manager, but USA Today’s Bob Nightengale reports that if San Diego doesn’t make the hire, the Brewers would have interest in Shildt for their own managerial vacancy. Shildt and bench coach Ryan Flaherty are thought to be the two top candidates in San Diego, though there is a bit of fluidity to the situation. Shildt, Flaherty, and Angels infield coach Benji Gil were thought to be the final three (Carlos Mendoza was also a finalist before he was hired by the Mets) candidates, but the Padres have since interviewed Phil Nevin and also reportedly have some interest in ex-Cubs skipper David Ross.
MLB Network’s Jon Morosi writes that “Padres are expected to” make their decision on a new manager by the middle of the week, so the Brewers should know soon about Shildt’s availability. The Brew Crew didn’t want to fully explore other candidates until Craig Counsell had made his decision, but after Counsell shocked the baseball world by supplanting Ross as the Cubs’ dugout boss, the Brewers now have a preliminary candidate list that included six names. Joe Espada was on the list but has now been hired by the Astros as their new manager, so Shildt’s inclusion might keep the field at six for now. Milwaukee has plenty of intra-division familiarity with Shildt, as he managed the Cardinals from 2018-21 before joining the Padres in an advisory role.
Some other items from around the NL Central…
- Christopher Morel has drawn a lot of buzz as a trade candidate this winter, but The Athletic’s Patrick Mooney and Sahadev Sharma have some doubts that the Cubs would move Morel for a player who is only under control for the 2024 season. Morel is controlled through the 2028 season, so Chicago is likelier to explore trades that would see another longer-term asset come back to Wrigleyville, in the event that Morel is moved at all. The 24-year-old has shown lots of power potential and the athleticism to play multiple positions, though it remains to be seen if Morel is a real defensive plus anywhere on the diamond. The presence of Nico Hoerner at second base perhaps blocks Morel at an ideal position, though Morel is preparing to add first base to his repertoire and might be an option at the cold corner if the Cubs don’t add a more established first baseman.
- The Pirates were known to have had some talks with Mitch Keller about a contract extension last May, and while no deal was hammered out, Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette writes that “talks gained traction during the middle of last season, though the up-and-down nature of performance mixed with business led both sides to press pause until the fall or winter.” Keller had an overall solid 2023 season, but ran into a midseason slump with a 6.28 ERA over five starts in July. The Bucs also received some trade interest in Keller leading up to the deadline, and while it didn’t seem like a deal was ever likely to happen, it makes sense that the Pirates didn’t want to lock themselves into an extension with Keller just in case another club came along with a blow-away offer. Speaking with Mackey and other reporters at the GM Meetings, Bucs general manager Ben Cherington called Keller “one of the guys who checks a lot of boxes” and “a guy we would love to see in a Pirates uniform for a long time,” but unsurprisingly didn’t give any information on the status of any ongoing extension negotiations.
- Cherington did give an update on Oneil Cruz, who might play some winter ball in the Dominican Republic as a way of continuing his recovery from ankle surgery. Cruz played in only nine games last season due to the April surgery, as continued soreness in his left leg prevented him from returning to action in September. The good news is that Cruz has been participating in full baseball activities at the Pirates’ training camp, and he’ll be at least getting in some game action at the Pirates‘ academy in the Dominican Republic, even if the winter ball assignment doesn’t happen. Cherington still expects Cruz to be ready to go for Spring Training.
AL East Notes: Blue Jays, Donovan, Nootbaar, Watson, Judge
Before signing Willson Contreras last winter, the Cardinals were known to be considering catching options on the trade market, which included talks with the Blue Jays about their then-surplus of Gabriel Moreno (who was eventually dealt to the Diamondbacks), Alejandro Kirk, and Danny Jansen. Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch shed some light on those past talks between the Jays and Cards, writing that Toronto had interest in Lars Nootbaar and Brendan Donovan.
With Goold also reporting earlier this week that Dylan Carlson was on the Jays’ radar this winter, there’s plenty of reason to think that Toronto and St. Louis could line up on some sort of trade this winter. Nootbaar could slide perfectly into the Blue Jays’ left field vacancy, while Donovan’s ability to play almost any position would give Toronto lots of flexibility in figuring out how it wants to address its many needs around the diamond. Of course, several teams have also made calls about Nootbaar, Donovan, and Carlson, and it remains to be seen if the Jays could outbid the field, if the Jays have the available pitching that the Cardinals are badly seeking this offseason, or even if St. Louis dealt any of these particular players whatsoever.
More from around the AL East…
- The Rays hired Tony Watson for a job in their player development department, according to Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. Watson will be working under director of pitching Winston Doom. A veteran of 11 big league seasons from 2011-21, Watson retired in 2022 due to shoulder problems, and the 38-year-old is now moving into a new stage of his baseball career. Known mostly for his seven seasons with the Pirates, Watson was a former All-Star reliever who posted a 2.90 ERA over 648 1/3 career innings, and is MLB’s all-time leader in holds (246) since the statistic started to be officially recorded by the league in 1999.
- It isn’t any surprise that Aaron Judge is a big voice within the Yankees organization, and The Athletic’s Chris Kirschner writes that Judge and owner Hal Steinbrenner “have already met this offseason on multiple occasions.” Examples of Judge’s influence might extend to the job security of manager Aaron Boone and director of player health and performance Eric Cressey, as Judge (and perhaps the Yankees clubhouse at large) likes both. Kirschner notes the interesting dynamic this creates, writing that “Judge is seemingly on the second level of the team’s organizational ladder alongside” GM Brian Cashman, though Cashman himself earlier this week said he didn’t have any issue with star players like Judge or Gerrit Cole giving their input.
- For more from the AL East, MLBTR’s Nick Deeds compiled another set of notes from around the division earlier today.
AL East Notes: Yankees, Bailey, Rays
The Yankees inquired after recently-dismissed Cubs manager David Ross regarding their bench coach opening, per Ken Rosenthal and Brendan Kuty of The Athletic. Per the duo, however, Ross has indicated that his preference is to manage again if he were to return to the dugout for the 2024 season. That would seemingly be an unlikely outcome, as following this morning’s news of Joe Espada being hired as manager in Houston the only remaining managerial openings are in Milwaukee and San Diego. Ross has not been connected to the Brewers as a potential managerial candidate, and is not viewed as a favorite for the position with the Padres despite some level of reported interest on the part of San Diego.
With Ross an unlikely candidate, Rosenthal and Kuty suggest that former Tigers and Angels manager Brad Ausmus, who was reportedly a candidate for the managerial gig in Houston before the club opted to promote Espada, could be a contender for the bench coach gig in the Bronx. Another potential candidate could be Yankees third base coach and former Mets manager Luis Rojas, though that hire would simply shift the hole on the big league coaching staff from the dugout to the third base line. The person hired to replace Mendoza will be the fourth to serve under manager Aaron Boone in the role, following not only Mendoza but also Phillies manager Rob Thomson and Dodgers bullpen coach Josh Bard.
More notes from around the AL East…
- Giants bullpen coach Andrew Bailey is expected to be a hot commodity on the coaching market this offseason, with Rosenthal and Kuty suggesting that he’s not only a candidate for the bench coach role with the Yankees but also the pitching coach role with both the Red Sox and Orioles. The duo suggest that Bailey could have a preference to return to the east coast after being denied permission by San Francisco to interview for a bench coach vacancy with the Mets back in 2022. The Giants hold no such power over Bailey at this point, as the 39-year-old is currently a free agent. Bailey pitched for both the Yankees and Red Sox during his big league career, which spanned eight seasons. Prior to his tenure as pitching coach in San Francisco, Bailey worked as a bullpen coach with the Angels under Ausmus during the 2019 season.
- The Rays have no plans to replace Peter Bendix as GM after Bendix departed the organization to take a job as president of baseball operations for the Marlins last week, per Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. Topkin relays that there will be no external search for a new GM, with assistant GMs Will Cousins, Chanda Lawdermilk and Carlos Rodriguez all expected to take larger roles in the baseball operations department in the wake of Bendix’s exit. Senior adviser Jon Daniels, who previously lead baseball operations for the Rangers from 2005 to 2022, is also expected to take on a larger role in the Rays’ front office, acting as a mentor to the club’s group of assistant GMs. Bendix is the fifth high-ranking member of the Rays front office to depart to lead another baseball operations department, joining Andrew Friedman, Chaim Bloom, James Click, and Matt Arnold, though Bloom and Click are no longer in those roles.
Phillies Notes: Nola, Castellanos, Front Office
As right-hander Aaron Nola hits free agency for the first time in his career, there have been indications of mutual interest in a reunion with the Phillies, as both Nola and president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski have spoken publicly about a desire to continue the relationship into 2024 and beyond. MLB Network’s Jon Morosi cautions, however, that the sides are not “at all close on a reunion.” While Morosi acknowledges the “strong” relationship between Nola and the Phillies, he suggests that due to the number of teams in the market for pitching help this season, there’s a “better than 50/50” chance that Nola is able to find a better offer outside of Philadelphia.
That Nola’s camp wouldn’t look to get together on a deal with the Phillies this early in the offseason is hardly surprising. After all, the sides were unable to agree on an extension prior to the 2023 campaign, and with Nola now a free agent he figures to be one of the most attractive rotation arms on the open market this offseason to teams in need of pitching. He ranked fifth overall in MLBTR’s Top 50 free agents list this offseason, behind only NPB superstar Yoshinobu Yamamoto and left-hander Blake Snell among this offseason’s starting pitching market. That being said, there’s still reason for optimism regarding a reunion between the sides, as Morosi suggests that Nola could give the Phillies the opportunity to match if he receives a better offer elsewhere.
Of course, Nola is far from the only quality starter on the market, meaning the Phillies will have plenty of alternatives available should he depart for another club this winter. In addition to Yamamoto and Snell, left-handers Jordan Montgomery and Shota Imanaga figure to be among the upper-tier rotation arms available this offseason. Veteran right-hander Sonny Gray is also available this offseason and has already been connected to the Phillies, while Brewers ace Corbin Burnes and Rays righty Tyler Glasnow are among the front-of-the-rotation caliber arms who could potentially be available in trade this offseason.
More from the Phillies…
- ESPN’s Buster Olney reported earlier today that Philadelphia has “no intention” of trading outfielder Nick Castellanos this offseason. While previous reporting had indicated that the club could be open to moving Castellanos, MLBTR’s Steve Adams discussed the pitfalls in such a strategy yesterday. Given the likelihood that Philadelphia would likely have to attach a prospect or eat significant salary to move the remaining three seasons on Castellanos’s deal, it’s hardly a surprise that the club doesn’t expect to deal the two-time All Star ahead of his age-32 campaign. With Kyle Schwarber set to be the club’s regular DH and Bryce Harper poised to remain at first base long term, Castellanos figures to remain entrenched as the club’s everyday right fielder, with Brandon Marsh in left and Johan Rojas in center barring any additions to the club’s outfield mix.
- The Phillies recently announced a series of promotions in their front office, headlined by Brian Barber being promoted to the role of assistant GM, amateur scouting and Preston Mattingly being promoted to the role of assistant GM, player development. Barber has overseen the club’s amateur drafts since joining the club following the 2019 season. Mattingly, the son of longtime player and manager Don Mattingly, joined the Phillies as director of player development at the end of the 2021 season after five years as a member of the Padres’ scouting department.
Red Sox Notes: Turner, DH, Kluber
Veteran free agent Justin Turner was among the most reliable hitters in Boston last year, slashing a solid .275/.345/.455 with 23 home runs and a 17.6% strikeout rate. Taken together, that offensive production was 14% better than league average by measure of wRC+ despite Turner posting his highest strikeout rate since 2014 and lowest walk rate since 2016. Though Turner declined his player option with the Red Sox and decided to test the open market ahead of his age-39 season, the infielder spoke to reporters recently (as relayed by MassLive’s Chris Cotillo) regarding his free agency and his desire to return to the Red Sox.
“I would love to be back and be with the Sox,” Turner said, “…what I’ve heard from all these guys is how amazing this town is when you’re making a playoff run. I want to be a part of that. It has been A-plus across the board in everything we’ve done and that’s with finishing in fifth place in the AL East. I want to know what it’s like to play in a playoff game for the Red Sox, not against them.”
Though Turner made his desire to remain in Boston clear, he also admitted that he’s fielded interest from more teams this season than he did as a free agent last year. Cotillo notes that the Dodgers, Diamondbacks, Marlins, and Angels all made offers to the veteran last year. The Diamondbacks are once again rumored to be interested in Turner’s services this offseason, though it’s unclear what other clubs may have interest in Turner this offseason. That uncertainty surrounds the Red Sox, themselves, as the club’s level of interest in Turner for 2024 and beyond isn’t entirely clear.
MassLive’s Sean McAdam recently suggested that the Red Sox “may be reluctant” to offer Turner a a two-year guarantee this offseason, noting that newly-minted chief baseball officer Craig Breslow has spoken of the DH as a way to rest players. While McAdam notes that Breslow would not rule out having one player serve as the club’s regular DH, a desire to utilize players such as Masataka Yoshida at DH could limit the club’s interest in a reunion with Turner, who played 98 games at DH and combined for less than 400 innings of work in the field split between first, second, and third base in 2023.
Turner isn’t the only newly-minted free agent to recently discuss his future after spending 2023 in Boston. Veteran right-hander Corey Kluber has returned to the open market after a tough season in Boston where he posted a 7.04 ERA (65 ERA+) with a 7.11 FIP in 55 innings of work while striking out just 16.3% of batters faced. On top of the brutal on-field performance, Kluber battled shoulder injuries throughout the year that ultimately left him sidelined for the season by late June. Kluber was noncommittal when asked if he intends to continue his playing career in 2024, with Alex Speier of the Boston Globe relaying that the veteran righty simply responded to the question with “we’ll see.”
Given his deep struggles in Boston this season, it’s somewhat difficult to imagine the sides coming together on a reunion even if Kluber decides to pitch next season. While the Red Sox are expected to make pitching help a priority this offseason, the club already has right-handers Nick Pivetta, Tanner Houck, Kutter Crawford, and Garrett Whitlock as starting caliber options alongside Chris Sale for the middle-to-back of the club’s rotation, and the addition of Kluber at this stage of his career would be unlikely to move the needle for a club more in need of impact than depth in the starting rotation.
Brutal as the 2023 season was for Kluber, the righty was one of the best pitchers in the game not long ago. The 37-year-old’s illustrious career includes two AL Cy Young awards and an ERA title in 2017. While Kluber is certainly not the same pitcher he was back then, he was an effective back-end starter for the Rays and Yankees the past two seasons and could potentially draw interest from a club in need of depth this offseason, should he prove healthy enough to continue his playing career.
Coaching Notes: Cora, Tigers, Johns, Rays, Albernaz, Guardians
The Tigers will be hiring Joey Cora for their coaching staff, The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal (X link) reported earlier this week. Cora has spent the last two seasons as the Mets‘ third base coach, and he “is expected” to fill that same role in Motown, according to Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press, who reports that current third base coach Gary Jones will remain on the staff in a new role. However, that new position won’t be first base coach, as Petzold suggests that Triple-A manager Anthony Iapoce might take over first-base duties from the departing Alfredo Amezaga.
The 58-year-old Cora has 16 seasons’ worth of MLB coaching experience, coming on the heels of his 11 seasons as a Major League player from 1987-98. Cora has worked as a bench coach and third base coach at the big league level, and is also known for his work as an infield instructor. This is the first time Cora and Detroit manager A.J. Hinch have worked together, though Cora’s brother Alex worked as Hinch’s bench coach with the Astros before the younger Cora was hired as the Red Sox manager.
Catching up on some other coaching hires from the past week…
- The Rays named Michael Johns as the club’s new first base coach. (Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reported the day before the official announcement that Johns was the “likely choice” for the job.) Johns will replace Chris Prieto as both the first base coach, and as a baserunning and outfield instructor. This will be the first time the 48-year-old Johns has worked on a big league staff, though he has a wide range of experience as a coach, coordinator, and manager within Tampa’s farm system since the 2007-08 offseason. Johns has managed five different Rays affiliates, including Triple-A Durham in 2023.
- The Guardians announced that Craig Albernaz has been hired as their big league coaching staff’s new field coordinator. Albernaz interviewed for the managerial vacancy that was filled by Stephen Vogt, though obviously Albernaz impressed the Guards enough to earn a spot in the organization. The 41-year-old Albernaz played with Vogt when both were minor leaguers in the Rays farm system, and Albernaz went onto a five-season stint in Tampa’s organization as a coach, coordinator, and manager in the minors after ending his playing career. For the last four seasons, Albernaz was the Giants‘ bullpen coach.
Astros Notes: Payroll, Rotation, Maldonado, Neris
The Astros advanced to their seventh consecutive League Championship Series in 2023 but fell shy of a third straight World Series bid when the division-rival and eventual World Series Champion Rangers knocked them off in a thrilling seven-game series. They’ll head into the winter with a trio of notable relievers hitting free agency (Hector Neris, Phil Maton, Ryne Stanek) and with a rotation that’s a bit thinned out by to injuries of Lance McCullers Jr. (flexor tendon surgery) and Luis Garcia (Tommy John surgery). Veteran Michael Brantley is also returning to the open market.
Despite a plethora of needs up and down the roster, general manager Dana Brown openly acknowledged at this week’s GM Meetings that his team doesn’t “have a ton” of financial flexibility heading into the offseason (link via Matt Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle). That’s unwelcome news for ‘Stros fans, though Brown suggested that if the right situation presented itself, owner Jim Crane might push beyond his current comfort levels.
As it stands, strong rookie performances from the likes of Hunter Brown and J.P. France give Houston a quality group of six starters on which to lean. Reacquired ace Justin Verlander, lefty Framber Valdez and righties Cristian Javier and Jose Urquidy round out the rotation options.
Verlander will pitch next season at 41, however, while Valdez and Javier faltered a bit as the year wore on; Javier’s rotation spot was skipped a couple times over the summer as he labored through mixed results, while Valdez turned in a pedestrian 4.64 ERA over his final 99 innings before being rocked for 12 earned runs in 12 postseason frames. Urquidy spent several months on the injured list and turned in 73 innings of 5.30 ERA ball between the regular season and playoffs combined.
The depth beyond those six is more concerning. Righties Shawn Dubin and Brandon Bielak both had rough showings in Triple-A. The latter tossed 80 innings of 3.83 ball in the big leagues but did so with a 10.2% walk rate, 17.6% strikeout rate and too many home runs allowed (1.35 HR/9) to necessarily bank on a repeat. Former top prospect Forrest Whitley, also on the 40-man roster, posted a 5.70 ERA in 30 Triple-A frames.
Brown indicated to reporters that he’d be open to opportunities to add “a legit third starter or better.” Logically speaking, doing so without radically increasing the payroll would likely require operating on the trade market rather than in free agency. It sounds as though that’s viewed more as a luxury than a priority anyhow; McCullers and Garcia are expected back sometime in July, and Brown instead called the bullpen and backup catcher “priorities.”
To that end, it’s perhaps not surprising to hear that the ‘Stros and longtime catcher Martin Maldonado could continue their relationship. Chandler Rome of The Athletic reports that the two parties have mutual interest in a reunion, adding that Brown has already met with Maldonado’s agent, Dan Lozano, during this week’s GM Meetings. The Astros have publicly declared that Yainer Diaz will be their primary catcher in 2024, but as Brown himself spelled out, adding an experienced backup is a goal.
Houston has stuck with Maldonado for four and a half years despite the fact that he’s perhaps been MLB’s least-productive hitter during that time. Over the past three seasons in particular, Maldonado has been a liability at the dish. In 1212 plate appearances since 2021, he’s turned in a .183/.260/.333 — about 34% worse than league average by measure of wRC+. However, the Astros are enamored of Maldonado’s game-calling, game-planning and broad defensive skills. Maldonado ranks among the game’s best at blocking pitches in the dirt over the past four years, although his framing skills fell off a cliff in 2023 and his caught-stealing rate has steadily declined.
Houston clearly loves Maldonado’s work with their pitching staff, however, and the organization would surely welcome him working in a mentor role to Diaz, whom they hope can cement himself as the catcher of the future. Add in that a new deal with Maldonado in a reduced role would undoubtedly be a low-cost arrangement, and it wouldn’t at all be surprising to see them hammer something out. Maldonado earned $5MM in 2022 and $4.5MM last year.
Maldonado isn’t the only former Astro who’s on the radar. Via Rome, Brown acknowledged that he’s also spoken with Neris’ representatives at Octagon about a new deal, though there’s no indication a new deal is close to fruition. Neris turned down an $8.5MM player option and although he’s 34 years old will quite likely be able to secure a multi-year pact on the open market this winter after turning in a sub-2.00 ERA in his second season with Houston.
Turning to a pair of Astros icons, both Jose Altuve and Alex Bregman are entering the final year of their contracts. Brown has been forthcoming about his desire to make the pair lifelong Astros, but agent Scott Boras — who represents both players — said at this week’s meetings that contract talks have not yet begun (link via Kawahara).
Astros fans will want to check out the pieces from both Kawahara and Rome in full, as they’re rife with refreshingly straightforward answers from Brown — the type of candor that many of his peers throughout the league generally shy away from offering. Beyond acknowledging priorities in the bullpen and behind the plate as well as interest in bolstering the rotation, Brown suggested that outfield won’t be a primary focus this offseason, given the presence of Kyle Tucker, Chas McCormick, Yordan Alvarez, Mauricio Dubon and Jake Meyers. That doesn’t expressly rule out an addition — unexpected opportunities on the trade market, for instance, could always arise — but it doesn’t seem that’s a hot-button issue for the Astros at the moment.