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Fred Valentine Passes Away

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Former major league outfielder Fred Valentine has passed away, the Nationals announced. He was 87 years old.

Valentine, a Mississippi native, attended Tennessee State University. He entered the professional ranks in 1956 as a member of the Orioles organization. Three years later, he made his MLB debut with 12 games for Baltimore. The switch-hitter spent a few more seasons in Triple-A before briefly returning to the big leagues in 1963.

Following the ’63 campaign, the O’s sold his contract to the Washington Senators. Valentine played his first couple years in a part-time role with Washington before a breakout showing in 1966. That season saw him swipe 22 bases, collect 16 home runs and put together a .276/.351/.455 line across 578 trips to the plate. Valentine picked up some down-ballot MVP support during what proved to be a career-best showing. He hit .234/.330/.346 the following season, roughly average output during a year in which the league hit .242/.306/.357.

Midway through the ’68 season, Washington dealt Valentine back to the Orioles for pitcher Bruce Howard. Valentine wrapped up his MLB career with 84 games between the two clubs that year. He spent the 1969 season back in Triple-A before finishing his playing career with a year for the Hanshin Tigers in Japan.

All told, Valentine appeared in parts of seven MLB campaigns. He hit .247/.330/.373 through 533 games, connecting on 36 home runs while stealing 47 bases. Valentine drove in 138 runs and scored 180 times. After his playing career wrapped up, he helped found the MLB Players Alumni Association in 1982.

MLBTR sends our condolences to Valentine’s family, friends, loved ones, former teammates and those who knew him from his time with the MLBPAA.

Reds Sign Austin Romine, Alan Busenitz To Minor League Deals

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The Reds announced this afternoon they’ve brought in catcher Austin Romine and reliever Alan Busenitz on minor league contracts. Both players will be in major league camp as non-roster invitees.

Romine, 34, returns to Cincinnati, where he spent the stretch run in 2022. Acquired in a deadline day trade with the Cardinals, the veteran played out the year in a depth role. He suited up 37 times for the Reds, hitting .147/.173/.263 across 99 trips to the plate. Cincinnati was one of three teams for Romine in 2022, as he also spent brief time with the Angels and St. Louis.

Between the trio of teams, the righty-hitting backstop posted a .155/.187/.248 line through 136 plate appearances. That was his most robust MLB workload since 2019, though he’s now appeared in the majors in 11 of the past 12 seasons overall. A longtime backup with the Yankees, Romine has played for five clubs since reaching free agency in advance of the 2020 season. He’s a .230/.268/.348 hitter in over 1400 career plate appearances.

Romine brings plenty of experience and some familiarity with the pitching staff to Reds camp. Cincinnati has already signed Curt Casali and Luke Maile to MLB deals this winter, bringing in a pair of depth options behind highly-regarded young backstop Tyler Stephenson. Barring injury, it’s hard to envision Romine cracking the Opening Day roster. He’s likely to start the season at Triple-A Louisville and remain on hand if the organization needs to call upon a veteran depth option.

Busenitz, 32, came out of the Twins bullpen 51 times between 2017-18. He worked to a 4.58 ERA through 57 innings. After the second campaign, Minnesota granted him his release to sign with the Rakuten Golden Eagles of Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball.

The right-hander has spent the past four seasons in Japan, where he carved out a career as a solid late-game option. Busenitz pitched to a 2.83 ERA through 155 2/3 NPB innings. His 18.8% strikeout percentage was fairly modest, though his 8.6% walk rate is manageable. The Kennesaw State product returns stateside on the heels of a 2022 campaign that saw him toss 31 2/3 frames of 2.27 ERA ball with a 20% strikeout rate at Japan’s top level.

Diamondbacks Sign Zach McAllister To Minor League Deal

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The Diamondbacks have signed right-hander Zach McAllister to a minor league deal, per Chris Hilburn-Trenkle of Baseball America. McAllister will presumably receive an invitation to major league Spring Training, though no official announcement has been made.

McAllister, 35, appeared in eight big league seasons from 2011 to 2018 but hasn’t made it back since. He spent most of that big league tenure with Cleveland before getting released in 2018 and then making three appearances with the Tigers. He was a solid starter for a time, posting a 4.24 ERA over 22 starts in 2012 and then a 3.75 ERA in 24 starts in 2013. He struggled in 2014, however, and was transitioned into a bullpen role.

He had a good three-year run of effective relief from 2015 to 2017, posting a 2.99 ERA in that time while striking out 26.1% of batters faced and walking 8.6% of them. Unfortunately, his ERA ballooned to 6.20 in 2018, leading to his release. He’s been pitching in the minors since then, spending 2022 in the Cardinals’ system. He tossed 67 2/3 Triple-A innings with a 3.99 ERA, 30% strikeout rate and 9% walk rate. He’ll provide the Snakes with a veteran depth option who is coming off a season of solid results in the minors.

Enny Romero Signs With KBO’s SSG Landers

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The SSG Landers of the Korea Baseball Organization announced that they have signed left-hander Enny Romero (hat tip to Dan Kurtz of MyKBO.net). Romero will make $800K with another $200K available in incentives.

Romero, 32 in January, made 137 MLB appearances from 2013 to 2018, spending time with the Rays, Nationals, Pirates and Royals. He has a career 5.12 ERA but was bombed for a 12.60 mark over 10 innings in 2018 and hasn’t been able to get back to the majors since then.

Romero has since pitched in Japan in 2019, as well as 2021 and 2022. With the Chunichi Dragons in 2019, he was given a rotation job, throwing 116 1/3 innings over 21 appearances with a 4.26 ERA. He didn’t pitch in 2020 but returned to Japan for 2021, this time joining the Chiba Lotte Marines. He was limited to just four appearances that year but had a more substantial showing in 2022, throwing 115 1/3 innings with a 3.36 ERA over 20 games.

For 2023, Romero will stay overseas but will jump from Japan to Korea in order to suit up for the Landers. He’s still young enough that he could return to North American at some point, but for now, he’s secured himself a salary a bit above the major league minimum, which will be $720K in 2023.

Pirates, Rich Hill In Agreement On One-Year Deal

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The Pirates and left-hander Rich Hill are in agreement on a one-year, $8MM deal, reports Jeff Passan of ESPN. The deal is pending a physical. Hill is an ACES client.

Hill, 43 in March, has one of the most unique baseball stories. He had some success as a starter early in his career, which began with the Cubs. Back in 2007, he made 32 starts for the Cubbies, tossing 195 innings with a 3.92 ERA. However, injuries and underperformance led to an extended period of struggle for Hill. He didn’t reach 60 MLB innings pitched in any season from 2008 to 2015, often struggling with his health or command or both while bouncing to Baltimore, Boston, Cleveland, the Angels and the Yankees.

Hill’s struggles were so pronounced that he wound up pitching for the Long Island Ducks for a spell in 2015, but he showed enough promise there to earn a minor league deal from the Red Sox. He got promoted late in the season and made four starts with an ERA of 1.55. That was enough for the A’s to take a gamble on him, as they signed him to a $6MM deal for his age-36 season. Hill cemented his improbable late-career comeback by posting a 2.12 ERA in 2016 over 20 starts and has continued to generally post solid results in each year since.

Hill isn’t a workhorse, as he hasn’t hit 160 innings in any season outside of that 2007 campaign with the Cubs. What he has been able to provide in recent years is generally strong innings on a rate basis. From 2016 to the present, he’s made at least 20 starts and logged at least 110 frames in five of the six full seasons, with 2019 being the lone exception when a forearm strain limited him to just 13 starts and 58 2/3 innings. In that time, he has a 3.39 ERA, 25.8% strikeout rate, 8% walk rate and 39.7% ground ball rate, spending time with the A’s, Dodgers, Twins, Rays, Mets and Red Sox.

The southpaw hasn’t been quite as successful in the past three seasons, especially in the strikeout department. While he punched out 29% of batters faced from 2016 to 2019, it’s been just 21.6% since then. That’s pushed his ERA up as well, as he got to 4.27 with Boston in 2022, with a 20.7% strikeout rate, 7% walk rate and 40.2% ground ball rate this year. Nonetheless, he’s still found ways to be effective, as his hard hit rate was in the 79th percentile this year and his average exit velocity in the 56th.

Going into his age-43 campaign, Hill still garnered plenty of interest on the open market this offseason. The Orioles, Angels, Rangers and Red Sox all showed some interest, but it’s the Pirates that have secured his services for 2023. Hill is the second rotation addition the club has made this offseason, as they also added Vince Velasquez a few weeks ago. Those two should slot next to Mitch Keller, JT Brubaker and Roansy Contreras in the club’s rotation, bumping Bryse Wilson to a long-relief role in the bullpen. The club will have Johan Oviedo, Luis Ortiz and some other arms available as depth for inevitable injuries or future trades. For those clubs that missed out on Hill, the free agent starting pitching market is now topped by the likes of Nathan Eovaldi, Corey Kluber, Michael Wacha and Johnny Cueto.

The Bucs have been firmly in rebuild mode for a few years and are coming off a 100-loss season, but they’ve been fairly active in adding veterans for 2023. They acquired Ji-Man Choi in a trade with the Rays and have also signed Carlos Santana, Austin Hedges and Jarlín García, as well as adding Velasquez and Hill to the rotation. All of those players are lined up to be short-term additions, as they are each slated for free agency after 2023. Though those players could make the club more competent for the upcoming season, they’re also lined up to be trade candidates about half a year from now unless the Pirates suddenly take a huge leap forward in their rebuilding process. Regardless, they should all be able to impart some wisdom to the younger players from their years in the game, with Hill the most qualified to contribute in that capacity. The retirement of Albert Pujols leaves him as the oldest player in the majors.

Financially, this signing bring the Pittsburgh payroll up to $70MM, according to the calculations of Roster Resource. That puts the club well beyond last year’s $56MM, per figures from Cot’s Baseball Contracts, but well shy of their franchise record of just under $100MM. There’s no real long-term investment to speak of, as Ke’Bryan Hayes is still the only player under contract for 2024, but this winter’s crop of one-year deals represents the most aggressive additions for the team in a few years.

Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.

Mets Designate William Woods For Assignment

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The Mets have made their signing of reliever Adam Ottavino official, announcing it today. They also announced that right-hander William Woods was designated for assignment in a corresponding move.

Woods, 24 later this week, was on Baseball America’s list of top 30 Atlanta prospects in each of the past two seasons, with BA highlighting a fastball that has been reaching triple digits after the minors were canceled in 2020. Injuries limited him to just 10 2/3 innings in 2021 but the club still added him to the 40-man roster to protect him from the Rule 5 draft.

He made his MLB debut this year but was only given the chance to make two appearances in the show. He tossed 25 1/3 innings at various minor league stops, but posted a disappointing 6.04 ERA, along with a 24.1% strikeout rate and 9.8% walk rate.

He was designated for assignment in November and was claimed by the Mets, who were facing a huge bullpen exodus at the time. Edwin Díaz was quickly re-signed but Ottavino, Seth Lugo, Trevor May, Trevor Williams, Joely Rodriguez and Mychal Givens all became free agents. The Mets have since improved the situation by re-signing Ottavino, signing David Robertson and trading for Brooks Raley. Woods has now been squeezed off the roster and The Mets will have one week to trade him or pass him through waivers. He could stick with the organization if he were to clear those waivers, as he lacks the service time or previous career outright that would give him the right to elect free agency.

Mets Re-Sign Adam Ottavino To Two-Year Deal

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December 27: The deal has now been officially announced by the Mets.

December 20: The Mets and right-hander Adam Ottavino are in agreement on a contract to bring him back to Queens. It will be a two-year, $14.5MM deal with Ottavino having the ability to opt-out after the first year. The deal is pending a physical. Ottavino is represented by WME Baseball.

Ottavino, 37, has had some ups and downs in his career but has an overall track record of effective relief pitching going back a decade now. He debuted with the Cardinals back in 2010 but came to prominence with the Rockies over a seven-year stretch from 2012 to 2018. In that timeframe, he pitched in 361 games and logged 390 2/3 innings, posting a 3.41 ERA with a 27.6% strikeout rate, 10.1% walk rate and 46.1% ground ball rate. His strikeout rate ticked upward over his time in Colorado, getting as high as 36.2% in 2018, though there were some control issues, as he walked 16% of batters faced in 2017 and 11.7% in 2018.

He reached free agency and signed with the Yankees going into 2019, signing a three-year deal worth $27MM. The first year of that deal went very well as he posted a 1.90 ERA in the Bronx, though that ballooned to 5.89 in 2020. That was a small sample of 18 1/3 innings in the shortened season, but it was enough for the Yanks to move on, flipping him to the Red Sox in a salary dump trade. Ottavino then posted a 4.21 ERA for Boston in 2021, with his strikeout rate dipping to 25.7% and his walk rate coming in at 12.7%.

The Mets signed Ottavino to a modest one-year deal for 2022 worth $4MM plus incentives and were rewarded with an excellent bounceback campaign. The righty made 66 appearances out of the Mets’ bullpen in 2022, finishing the year with a 2.06 ERA, striking out 30.6% of batters faced while walking just 6.2% of them. He also got ground balls on 51.9% of balls in play while racking up three saves and 18 holds for the year. Based on that strong comeback campaign, MLBTR predicted Ottavino could secure himself a two-year, $14MM contract, which he has narrowly exceeded here.

The Mets were facing a huge bullpen exodus this offseason, with Ottavino, Edwin Díaz, Seth Lugo, Trevor Williams, Joely Rodríguez and Trevor May all reaching free agency a few weeks ago. They have since addressed that situation by re-signing Díaz, signing David Robertson, trading for Brooks Raley and now bringing Ottavino back into the fray as well.

In addition to those moves, the club has been extremely active in free agency to address other parts of the roster. The rotation also had a number of holes appear, with Jacob deGrom, Chris Bassitt and Taijuan Walker all becoming free agents. Those three were replaced by signing Justin Verlander, Kodai Senga and José Quintana. The club also bolstered its position player mix by re-signing Brandon Nimmo and signing Omar Narváez.

The Mets already had one of the highest payrolls in the league in 2022 and those moves have shot them up to incredible new heights. Roster Resource has them at $344MM before even factoring in the Ottavino deal, with a competitive balance tax figure of $356MM. Since the Mets are second-time payors and are well beyond the fourth CBT threshold of $293MM, they are now paying a 90% tax on any further spending. Ottavino will add $7.25MM to that CBT figure, leading to an extra $6.525MM in taxes, meaning the club is effectively paying $13.775MM for Ottavino’s services in 2022.

Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic first reported the Mets signing Ottavino and the two-year with opt-out structure (Twitter links). Jeff Passan of ESPN first had the dollar figures.

Gregory Polanco Signs With NPB’s Chiba Lotte Marines

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The Chiba Lotte Marines of Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball announced that they have signed outfielder Gregory Polanco for the 2023 season. This will be the second straight year in Japan for Polanco, who played for the Yomiuri Giants in 2022.

Polanco, 31, was a highly-touted prospect with the Pirates and emerged as a valuable piece of their club in the middle parts of the previous decade. An all-around player, Polanco posted double-digit stolen base totals in four of the five season from 2014 to 2018, as well as getting to double digits in home runs three times. His best offensive season was 2018, when he hit 23 home runs and stole 12 bases in 130 games. He finished that campaign with a .254/.340/.499 batting line for a wRC+ of 123.

However, that season was ended when Polanco injured himself on an awkward slide. He dislocated his left shoulder and suffered a bone bruise in his left knee and seemingly wasn’t himself afterwards. He was limited to just 42 games in 2019 and hit at a below-average level when on the field. He generally stayed on the field in 2020 and 2021 but hit just .191/.261/.345 over those two seasons.

Polanco was likely going to be limited to minor league contracts if he stayed in North America for 2022 but instead went to Yomiuri. He got into 138 games for the Giants, hitting 24 home runs and producing a batting line of .240/.306/.457. That performance was solid enough to get him another NPB job in 2023, though he’ll be moving to a new club.

Despite the many ups and downs in his career, Polanco is still just 31 years old and could return to the majors at some point if he stays healthy and continues producing in Japan.

The Opener: D-Backs, Kepler, Marlins

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As the hot stove continues to warm back up after the holidays, here’s three things we’ll be keeping an eye on around baseball throughout the day today:

1. What’s next for Arizona following their trade with Toronto?

The trade last week that sent Daulton Varsho to Toronto with Gabriel Moreno and Lourdes Gurriel Jr. heading to Arizona in exchange brought to a conclusion two storylines that had stretched throughout the whole offseason to that point- that of the Diamondbacks trading one of their outfielders and that of the Blue Jays trading one of their catchers. Toronto could be mostly done after adding Varsho, Kevin Kiermaier, Chris Bassitt, and Erik Swanson, but Arizona still has work to do to round out their roster, even after adding Kyle Lewis in a trade with the Mariners earlier this offseason. The D-Backs lineup looks fairly set at this point, but Mike Hazen’s front office has been said to be targeting relief pitching this offseason, and even though that didn’t come to pass in the Varsho deal, there’s plenty of free agent relievers left on the market for Arizona to choose from. Chief among them is former Diamondback Andrew Chafin, though others such as Michael Fulmer and Will Smith also remain available. Perhaps even more in need of additions than the relief corps is the rotation, however. Zac Gallen and Merrill Kelly combine to form a solid top of the rotation, and Madison Bumgarner is locked into a rotation spot toward the back, but the D-Backs could really use another arm or two to occupy the middle of their rotation. Nathan Eovaldi, Michael Wacha, and Johnny Cueto are the top options remaining on the free agent market, though a bounce-back candidate such as Wade Miley or Corey Kluber could also make sense.

2. Which teams remain a fit for a Kepler deal?

The Twins are known to have interest in dealing longtime right fielder Max Kepler this offseason, and it’s possible that, with the long-awaited outfield deal out of Arizona done, Kepler’s market could begin to heat up. The Yankees and Marlins both were known to have interest in Arizona’s outfielders prior to the Varsho deal, and if Arizona is done trading from its outfield corps then its possible either team could pivot to Kepler as a less expensive backup option. While the Dodgers and Braves are both known to have interest in upgrading their outfield mixes, the addition of Kepler’s $8.5MM salary in 2023 would be a complicated add for either team, making a deal unlikely. Perhaps the best fits for Kepler are the Rockies and Rangers, both teams in need of outfield help who could be improved by Kepler’s steady though unspectacular bat even if he fails to return to the solidly above average bat he was 2019-2020, when he posted a .831 OPS in 182 games.

3. When will the Marlins move an arm?

The Marlins are known to be shopping members of their starting rotation to other clubs in their search for improved offense, though they’ve made it clear both Sandy Alcantara and Eury Perez are off-limits. Pablo Lopez is the most frequently discussed trade candidate in the Marlins rotation, but Trevor Rogers could make more sense for clubs with a longer path to contention, as he is under club control for two more years than Lopez, a free agent after the 2024 season. The Dodgers and Cardinals, as immediate clear contenders with solid rotations lacking in depth, seem like prime candidates to deal for Lopez, as such a deal would allow them to push Dustin May and Steven Matz, respectively, into swing roles. The Orioles and Diamondbacks, meanwhile, could make sense as partners in a Rogers trade. Both clubs are making pushes toward increased competitiveness in 2023, but face tough divisions that could limit their playoff opportunities in the near-term, making a longer term investment make more sense. Both teams are also in desperate need of rotation help; Arizona’s situation is detailed above, while Baltimore arguably downgraded the rotation by swapping out Jordan Lyles for Kyle Gibson when it was already the weakest part of their roster. All four of these clubs have the young, controllable position players/prospects who could be attractive to the Marlins as a return for one of their pitchers, as well.

Latest On Mets, Carlos Correa

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The status of the Mets’ agreement with Carlos Correa is the predominant story in MLB at the moment. Reports over the weekend emerged that New York had taken issue with something related to Correa’s right leg/ankle during his physical. There’s remained optimism the sides will be able to get a deal done, although it presented another twist in an unexpected saga for one of the offseason’s top free agents.

The Mets had jumped in to agree to terms with Correa on a 12-year, $315MM contract — pending the physical — within a day of the Giants pulling out of a 13-year, $350MM pact after their doctors reportedly took issue with something in the All-Star’s right leg. Correa underwent his physical with the Mets last Thursday; reports emerged Saturday afternoon that examination hadn’t gone completely smoothly.

With the holiday weekend, discussions between the Mets and Correa’s camp have apparently been somewhat on the back burner for the past couple days. Last night, Jon Heyman of the New York Post wrote that some other teams had touched base with the player’s representatives after word of the physical concerns trickled out. However, Heyman indicated Correa remained focused on the Mets as of last night, with dialogue between his camp and the New York organization more productive than it had been with San Francisco in the hours after the Giants expressed concern about Correa’s physical during their examination.

The Post’s Mike Puma provides additional context this evening, reporting that three-plus rival teams have been in touch with the Boras Corporation about Correa after the Mets expressed trepidation. Puma writes the 28-year-old would strongly prefer to join the Mets than go back into free agency after a second agreement fell apart but suggests Correa’s camp is not open to moving off the sides’ initial 12-year, $315MM price point.

Puma suggests it’s still likelier than not that Correa and the Mets work something out, with one source pegging the odds of him landing in Queens around 55%. Nevertheless, Correa’s reported unwillingness to alter the basic framework of the deal could prove a stumbling block depending on the extent of the Mets’ trepidation. Puma writes there’s some consideration being given to the possibility of including a provision that’d protect the Mets in the event Correa’s right leg proves problematic during the contract term.

That kind of provision is rare but not completely without precedent. As an example, fellow Boras Corporation client J.D. Martinez altered his deal with the Red Sox over the 2018-19 offseason after the team flagged a foot issue during his physical. The sides moved forward with their agreed-upon five-year, $110MM framework but included stipulations that would’ve allowed the Red Sox to opt out of the final two years of the contract in the event Martinez suffered another foot injury that resulted in a lengthy injured list stint (as reported by Evan Drellich, then of NBC Sports Boston). Martinez never suffered a serious injury and wound up playing out the five-year deal before hitting free agency again this winter.

Correa has never had an MLB injured list stint related to his right leg, which he fractured as a prospect back in 2014. The injury required surgery and ended his minor league season. He returned at the start of the following year and hasn’t missed any notable time because of the issue since then, though doctors for both the Giants and Mets have now identified something that gives them pause.

There figures to be more clarity on the matter over the coming days. It’s likely to remain the sport’s top story until the sides either finalize the deal or Correa’s camp decides to pivot back to free agency. Various reports continue to suggest the former outcome is probable, though far from certain.

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