Salt Lake City Group Interested In MLB Expansion Franchise
Big League Utah, a group led by former Utah Jazz owner Gail Miller, is interested in bringing an expansion Major League Baseball franchise to Salt Lake City, reports Jeff Passan of ESPN.
Major League Baseball has not expanded in 25 years now, when the 1998 season saw the league grow to 30 teams with the additions of the Arizona Diamondbacks and Tampa Bay Devil Rays, with the latter club later dropping the demonic portion of their name. Many have wondered when the league might consider expanding again, with commissioner Rob Manfred frequently stating that the Rays and Athletics need to resolve their respective stadium situations before expansion will be legitimately on the table. Passan’s report indicates that is indeed still the priority, though all signs point to expansion being just over the horizon.
Both of those stadium situations seem to be moving towards resolutions, one way or another. The Rays have put forth a plan to redevelop the St. Petersburg Gas Plant District, with mayor Ken Welch backing the proposal. The negotiations are still ongoing but it seems like progress is being made before the club’s lease on Tropicana Field expires after the 2027 season. The A’s, meanwhile, have been in talks with the city of Oakland for a while about developing their own stadium, threatening to move to Las Vegas if nothing gets done. Manfred recently suggested that January of 2024 is an unofficial deadline for them to get something done with Oakland.
As those situations near their conclusions, the talk of expansion should only increase. A couple of groups have already positioned themselves to be in the mix for new franchises. A group in Nashville has attached familiar names like Dave Dombrowski, Tony La Russa and Dave Stewart. They recently added Don Mattingly while branding themselves as the Nashville Stars. Dombrowski and Mattingly are currently employed by the Phillies and Blue Jays, respectively, but are still connected to the Stars/Music City Baseball. There’s also the Portland Diamond Project, which has been trying to position itself for a club for many years, submitting bids for parcels of land five years ago. Passan also lists Charlotte, Montreal and Las Vegas as potential expansion locations, the latter presumably only if they don’t end up hosting the Athletics.
Those two ventures will now seemingly have some competition from this Salt Lake City group. The 79-year-old Miller owned the Utah Jazz until recently. Her husband Larry H. Miller had purchased the team in the 1980s but she took over the club, and his other business ventures, upon his death in 2009. The Miller family sold the Jazz in October of 2020. Passan reports that Big League Utah involves the Larry H. Miller Company but also former big leaguers Dale Murphy and Jeremy Guthrie, both of whom live in Utah now. The group has its sights set on building a stadium in the Rocky Mountain Power District, an area outside the downtown core of Salt Lake City.
“Salt Lake City is a major league city,” said Steve Starks, CEO of the Miller Company. “We believe that as a top-30 media market in the fastest-growing state in the country with the youngest population, that’s where our attention should be — and that we could accomplish bringing a team to the Wasatch Front.”
Utah Governor Spencer Cox also seems on board. “It would be, I think, a validation of everything that we’ve worked so hard to do,” Cox said. “We’ve proven ourselves in a sports capacity with Olympics in 2002 and coming back in 2030 or, more likely, 2034. We’ve hosted two NBA All-Star Games. We know we can do this. It would just be meaningful for people who love this sport, who care deeply about it. We’re a baseball state.”
Per Passan’s report, members of the group have already been in contact with Major League Baseball and have also toured the facilities of the Atlanta Braves. They are touting the viability of Salt Lake City as a destination based on its population, which makes it a larger media market than that of the Padres, Royals, Reds and Brewers. They also highlight a strong economy which includes an unemployment rate of just 2.4%. Starks also said local residents were surveyed about their preferences for expansion sports teams and MLB was the top choice in that polling, ahead of the NFL.
However the expansion competition ultimately plays out, it figures to be a boon to the league. For one thing, expansion tends to create millions of new dedicated fans, which is good for growing the sport. There also should be plenty of interest among current baseball fans, as expansion will need to be accompanied by a draft, with the new clubs filling their rosters by plucking players from the others. Beyond that, expansion franchises pay fees for the right to join the league, with that money divided amongst the existing clubs. The new franchises in Arizona and Tampa each paid $130MM in fees back in 1998 but Passan estimates the fee will be closer to $2 billion this time around.
MLBTR Chat Transcript
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Corey Seager Out At Least Four Weeks With Hamstring Strain
The Rangers announced that shortstop Corey Seager has been placed on the 10-day injured list with a left hamstring strain. It’s a Grade 2 strain and comes with a minimum absence of four weeks, per Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News. His roster spot goes to outfielder Leody Taveras, who has been activated from his own stint on the IL.
Seager, 29 this month, departed last night’s game in the fifth inning with some hamstring tightness. The news that he will now be out of action for a month or longer is certainly a blow to the Rangers, as Seager is one of the best players on the team. Signed to a 10-year, $325MM deal after the 2021 campaign, he played 151 games for the club last year and hit 33 home runs. His .245/.317/.455 batting line amounted to a wRC+ of 117 and he provided solid shortstop defense, leading to a tally of 4.5 wins above replacement from FanGraphs. Seager was off to a scorching hot start here in 2023, hitting .359/.469/.538 through his first 11 games. He wasn’t going to be able to sustain that over a full season, but it’s nonetheless frustrating for him to be cut down in the middle of such a good stretch.
Seager will return later in the year, but the club will now have to try out some other options at shortstop in the meantime. Manager Bruce Bochy told Grant after last night’s game that the club isn’t thinking about moving Marcus Semien over, despite his lengthy experience at the position. He became a primary second baseman with the Blue Jays in 2021, in deference to Bo Bichette. He joined the Rangers in the same offseason as Seager and has stayed on the right side of the bag for the most part. It seems the Rangers would prefer he stay there.
That seems to leave Josh H. Smith and Ezequiel Durán as the top options for taking the job for the next little bit. Since Smith is a left-handed hitter and Durán a righty, it’s possible that they form a platoon. Smith is getting the start tonight as the Rangers face the Royals with right-hander Brad Keller on the mound. Smith has just 81 games of MLB experience thus far, walking in 11.6% of his trips to the plate but not finding many hits thus far. His .197/.318/.245 batting line amounts to a 72 wRC+. He’s fared much better in the minors, however, including hitting .290/.395/.466 in Triple-A last year. Durán has 65 games under his belt and a .233/.272/.354 batting line to show for it, leading to a wRC+ of 77. He hasn’t played shortstop in the big leagues yet but has plenty of experience there in the minors.
The one sliver of good news in this is that the club is getting Taveras back. He was slated to be the club’s everyday center fielder until he was shut down in Spring Training due to an oblique strain, but he’s now back after missing just two weeks of the regular season. He hit just .261/.309/.366 last year for a wRC+ of 93 but put up six Outs Above Average in center field. Adolis García has been getting most of the time in center so far this year with Bubba Thompson and Travis Jankowski also in the mix, while Durán and Smith helped out in left. With Taveras back in the middle, García and Robbie Grossman should be able to take the corners while Durán and Smith now move to the infield.
Matt Manning Fractures Metatarsal In Foot
April 12: The Tigers announced today that Manning has been placed on the 15-day injured list with infielder Tyler Nevin recalled to take his place on the roster.
April 11: Tigers starter Matt Manning fractured the fifth metatarsal in his right foot during tonight’s loss to the Blue Jays, the team informed reporters (including Chris McCosky of the Detroit News). The right-hander was in a walking boot in the clubhouse.
Manning sustained the injury on his final pitch of the start. An Alejandro Kirk comebacker bounced off his foot and rolled to Spencer Torkelson at first base. Manning was able to scramble to first base to receive the throw from Torkelson and record the putout. That likely would’ve ended his start regardless, as he finished the sixth inning on 85 pitches. It wasn’t until after the game that it became clear Manning had been injured on the play.
The 25-year-old downplayed the issue after the game, stating he hoped he’d be back relatively shortly (via Jason Beck of MLB.com). It’s hard to imagine he won’t require at least a brief stint on the 15-day injured list, though, which would represent another setback in his young career. Manning lost most of the first half of the 2022 campaign to shoulder inflammation. The foot issue is a fluke incident that isn’t likely to present the same kind of overarching concern of last year’s shoulder problem, but it seems likely to cost him some time.
A former ninth overall pick, Manning has long been viewed as a potential core piece in Detroit. The Tigers anchored their rebuild around young pitching, with Manning joining Casey Mize, Tarik Skubal and 2020 third overall pick Jackson Jobe as hopeful impact starters. Unfortunately, all four of those hurlers have battled significant injury issues. Mize could miss the entire season recovering from last summer’s Tommy John surgery. Skubal is on the 60-day injured list after undergoing a flexor tendon repair last August. Jobe could miss the majority of the minor league campaign due to lumbar spine inflammation.
The Tigers have turned to a starting five of Matthew Boyd, Eduardo Rodriguez, Spencer Turnbull, Manning and Joey Wentz to open the year. Righty Michael Lorenzen was signed to a free agent deal to hold down a job. He started the year on the IL with a minor groin strain but is expected to be reinstated later in the week after making a rehab start for Triple-A Toledo last Saturday. Should Manning require an IL stint, the Tigers could plug Lorenzen into his spot and keep Wentz in the starting five.
JT Brubaker Undergoes Tommy John Surgery
The Pirates announced that right-hander JT Brubaker underwent surgery to reconstruct the ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow, also known as Tommy John surgery. They project that he can return in 14-16 months.
As frustrating as this news is for Brubaker and the Pirates, it doesn’t come as a shock. Brubaker landed on the 15-day injured list at the start of the season with elbow discomfort and was transferred to the 60-day injured list a few days later. It was reported over a week ago that Tommy John surgery was on the table, then reported just yesterday that Brubaker was seeking a second opinion on his elbow. It seems that his fate could be avoided no longer and he finally underwent the procedure today.
This will now wipe out the entirety of his 2023 season and at least a portion of his 2024 campaign as well. It’s a frustrating setback as Brubaker was looking to build off a strong 2022 campaign. He made 28 starts for the Bucs last year with a 4.69 ERA that probably doesn’t do him justice. He struck out 22.8% of batters faced while walking just 8.4% of them and getting grounders at a 44% clip. His .334 batting average on balls in play and 66.8% strand rate were both on the unfortunate side of league average, which is why his 3.92 FIP and 3.97 SIERA came in well below his ERA.
He’ll now have to go through an extensive rehab process before getting the chance to take a step forward. He finished last year with exactly three years of MLB service time, allowing him to qualify for arbitration for the first time. He and the club agreed to a $2.275MM salary for 2023 and he’ll likely be looking at a similar rate for next year. The arbitration system works to push salaries up year over year and players usually wind up at the same price point after missing an entire season. Brubaker is currently slated for two more passes through arbitration before reaching free agency after the 2025 season.
The Pirates will now be navigating the rest of the year without Brubaker in their rotation mix. That leaves them with Mitch Keller, Rich Hill, Vince Velasquez, Roansy Contreras and Johan Oviedo for now, though Hill and Velasquez are both one one-year deals. Assuming the Bucs don’t stay in the playoff race all summer, they would each be logical trade candidates, which could open opportunities for younger arms like Luis Ortiz or Quinn Priester.
Blue Jays, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. Have Discussed Extension
The Blue Jays and first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. have discussed a contract extension, though it doesn’t appear the two sides got anywhere close to a deal, per Shi Davidi of Sportsnet. The slugger said that he would love to stay in Toronto for his entire career but that the negotiations “haven’t reached the point that there’s something serious about it.”
It’s unclear exactly when these talks took place but Guerrero said in January that extension talks had not yet taken place. That would seemingly point to the negotiations taking place during Spring Training, a fairly standard time for those kinds of conversations.
From the point of view of the Jays, it’s hardly a surprise that they have interest in securing Guerrero’s services for the future. The former top prospect has established himself as a premier hitter in the majors over the past few seasons. He hit 48 home runs in 2021 and slashed .311/.401/.601 for a wRC+ of 166. In most years, that would have been good enough for an MVP award, but Vladdy had the misfortune of having that season coincide with Shohei Ohtani‘s true emergence as a two-way player. That led to Guerrero coming in second in the vote behind Ohtani.
Last year, Guerrero dipped slightly but still hit 32 home runs and put up a .274/.339/.480 batting line and 132 wRC+. He also stole eight bases and showed progress with his first base defense, winning a Gold Glove award and coming in seventh among all major league first basemen in the voting for the Fielding Bible Awards. He’s off to a roaring start here in 2023, hitting .400/.472/.556 through 11 games. All of that has coincided with a return to contention for the club, who made the expanded playoffs in 2020 and then tallied 91 and 92 victories in the subsequent two seasons.
But from the player’s point of view, there’s little reason for him to settle for anything below market value, even if his comments about wanting to stay are genuine. As the son of Hall of Famer Vladimir Guerrero, who made millions of dollars in his career, the younger Guerrero likely began from a stronger financial position than many of his peers. On top of that, he was a highly touted player as a teenager, signing a bonus of $3.9MM when he was 16 years old. He’s now progressed through to his arbitration years, first qualifying last year as a Super Two player. He made $7.9MM last year and got that bumped up to $14.5MM this year. He’s slated for two more passes through arbitration before reaching free agency after 2025.
With all of that money already in the bank and plenty more on the way, Guerrero has tons of leverage. Walking away from money always carries the risk of a serious injury later diminishing one’s earning power, but Guerrero already has plenty of security and is currently slated for free agency ahead of his age-27 season. He doesn’t play a premier defensive position, but his youth and offensive abilities should still make him quite attractive as a free agent if a deal with the Blue Jays doesn’t get done.
The Blue Jays have a few contracts on the books beyond that 2025 season, which is currently lined up to be Guerrero’s last. José Berríos is on the books through 2028 while George Springer and Kevin Gausman are signed through 2026. That leaves plenty of room for a big contract for someone like Guerrero, but the Jays also have other players to consider. Third baseman Matt Chapman is a free agent at the end of this season, while shortstop Bo Bichette is in the same boat as Guerrero, set for free agency after 2025. The club has also reportedly had some talks with right-hander Alek Manoah, though those didn’t appear to gain much traction either. Manoah’s case is less urgent since he’s not slated to hit the open market until after 2027.
Although the talks with Guerrero haven’t made much progress yet, he doesn’t seem to be walking away from the table. “I’m going to take care of what I’ve got to take care of, which is on the field, and the rest I’m going to leave to my agents to work with,” he said. “I know who I am. I know my value. We’re going to keep having conversations, but all my focus every day is here on the field.”
Rockies Place German Marquez On Injured List
The Rockies are placing righty German Marquez on the 15-day injured list, Marquez himself told reporters prior to today’s game (Twitter link via Danielle Allentuck of the Denver Gazette). Marquez, who exited yesterday’s game due to forearm discomfort, has avoided any structural damage it seems. An MRI revealed only inflammation in his ailing forearm, but he’ll still be shelved for a bit to allow for some rest. A more precise timetable for his recovery has not yet been provided by the team. Corner infielder/outfielder Nolan Jones has been recalled from Triple-A to take Marquez’s spot on the active roster for now.
Marquez and lefty Kyle Freeland have been the Rockies’ only two effective starters thus far in the season, and an absence for him will place even further strain on a starting staff that has combined for a 5.07 ERA in its first 60 1/3 frames. Lefty Austin Gomber and righties Ryan Feltner and Jose Urena have combined to allow 24 runs in 25 1/3 innings over their collective six starts so far in 2023.
The Rockies’ options beyond Marquez are relatively thin. Antonio Senzatela is already on the injured list while rehabbing from last year’s ACL tear, and southpaw Ryan Rolison is rehabbing from last summer’s shoulder surgery. Relievers Ty Blach and Connor Seabold are both stretched out for multiple innings already and both have experience as starters. Triple-A righties Peter Lambert and Noah Davis are on the 40-man roster. Lambert has missed significant time due to injury in recent years and hasn’t had much success at the big league level. Davis has just one Major League frame under his belt.
Marquez has been the team’s most consistent starter since 2017, pitching to a cumulative 4.38 ERA in 991 1/3 frames over 169 starts during that time. He’s been one of the game’s most durable starters in that stretch, ranking fourth among all MLB pitchers in terms of games started.
Marquez is playing out the final guaranteed season of a five-year, $43MM contract extension he agreed to back in April of 2019. He’s earning a $15MM salary this season, and the Rox hold a $16MM club option over him with a $2.5MM buyout. So long as he’s healthy, that option seems like a fairly straightforward decision to exercise.
Mariners Select Darren McCaughan, Designate Brennan Bernardino
11:01am: The Mariners announced that they’ve selected the contract of McCaughan. To open space on the active roster, righty Jose Rodriguez was optioned to Triple-A. Lefty Brennan Bernardino has been designated for assignment to open space on the 40-man roster.
Bernardino, 31, parlayed a strong showing in the Mexican League into his big league debut with Seattle in 2022. The lefty had been out of affiliated ball since a 2019 run in the minors with Cleveland but posted a 2.20 ERA in 32 2/3 frames with Triple-A Tacoma last season. He yielded three runs in 2 1/3 innings during his brief MLB debut but remained on Seattle’s 40-man roster throughout the winter.
Unfortunately, the 2023 season has begun on a sour note for the journeyman southpaw. In six innings, he’s been slammed for 11 runs (eight earned) on 13 hits, a walk and a hit batter. Two of those hits have been home runs. Bernardino still possesses a strong 11-to-1 K/BB ratio in his brief showing this year, but the bottom-line results are nevertheless unsightly.
The Mariners will have a week to trade Bernardino or attempt to pass him through outright waivers.
10:55am: The Mariners are expected to select the contract of right-hander Darren McCaughan from Triple-A Tacoma, tweets Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times. He’ll give them a fresh arm in the bullpen after a stretch of games in which they’ve leaned heavily on their relief corps.
The 27-year-old McCaughan has spent his entire career in the Mariners organization. Selected in the 12th round of the 2017 draft, he briefly appeared with Seattle in 2021, tossing nine innings but being tagged for eight runs. He’s spent parts of five seasons with Triple-A Tacoma, pitching to a 4.97 ERA with a 20.9% strikeout rate and an excellent 5.6% walk rate in 331 1/3 frames. He’s been tagged for six earned runs in 10 innings so far in 2023.
McCaughan has worked almost exclusively out of the rotation in his pro career and made two starts in Triple-A thus far, but the Mariners will presumably turn to him as a potential long man in the ‘pen in the event of a short start from Logan Gilbert today. Seattle has an off-day Thursday, which should further help in giving what’s presently a taxed bullpen a bit of a breather. Dating back to Friday, the Mariners’ bullpen has racked up 22 2/3 innings over the course of five games, owing to a combination of extra-innings contests and short starts from the rotation. McCaughan’s last start came on April 7, so he’s fully rested and would be able to give the Mariners several innings today if needed.
Seattle’s 40-man roster is currently full, so they’ll need to make a corresponding roster move in order to get McCaughan to the big league roster.
Twins Promote Edouard Julien
April 12: The Twins formally announced that Julien has been recalled from Triple-A St. Paul. He’ll make his big league debut today at second base, Twins vice president of communications Dustin Morse tweets.
April 11: The Twins are promoting Edouard Julien before tomorrow’s game against the White Sox, reports Aaron Gleeman of the Athletic (Twitter link). That’ll be the corresponding move for the placement of Joey Gallo on the 10-day injured list.
It’s the first major league call for Julien. An 18th round pick out of Auburn in 2019, he signed for a well overslot $493K bonus after a down sophomore season. He’s significantly elevated his stock in pro ball. Julien has been an excellent offensive player throughout his time in the minors. He hit .267/.434/.480 in 2021, his first full minor league season after the cancelation of the previous campaign. The left-handed hitter spent all of last year with Double-A Wichita, raking at a .300/.441/.490 clip with 17 home runs over 508 plate appearances.
Julien showed top-end patience at the plate. His 19.3% walk rate was more than double the MLB average. That willingness to work deep counts translated to a slightly higher than average 24.6% strikeout percentage, though it’s a tradeoff with which the Twins are surely comfortable given Julien’s huge on-base marks.
The Quebec native played for Canada during this spring’s World Baseball Classic. He was assigned to Triple-A St. Paul to open this season. Julien has picked up right where he left off, collecting eight hits and seven walks through his first 36 plate appearances. He’s homered twice and doubled over his first eight games at the top minor league level.
Over the winter, Julien generated some top prospect attention. ESPN and FanGraphs placed him near the back of their respective Top 100 lists, while he finished just outside the Top 100 at Baseball America. Prospect evaluators unsurprisingly praise his plate discipline and strong left-handed power potential. He’s widely expected to be a productive offensive player at the MLB level.
Julien’s defensive profile is more spotty. He’s split his time between second base, left field and first base in the minors. Evaluators have offered bearish reviews on his glove at the keystone, suggesting he’s better suited for left field or first base long term. With Gallo’s injury vacating first base, it seems likely Julien will break in primarily there.
The Twins added Julien to their 40-man roster last offseason to keep him out of the Rule 5 draft. They won’t need to make any additional moves to call him up. The 23-year-old still has three minor league option years remaining, so the Twins can shuttle him between the majors and St. Paul as needed.
While Julien didn’t break camp with the MLB club, he’s still in position to potentially secure a full service year in 2023. Players need to accrue 172 days on the big league roster to reach one year. Julien would narrowly meet that cutoff if he’s in the majors for good, though any optional assignment back to the minors would keep him shy of a full season. The Twins aren’t in position to recoup any draft compensation for his promotion, as he only appeared on the preseason Top 100 list at one of ESPN, Baseball America and MLB Pipeline.
Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.
Shohei Ohtani Breaks 50-Year-Old Nolan Ryan Record, Shuts Down Nationals In 2-0 Win
On Tuesday night, Shohei Ohtani took the mound for the third time this season and tossed seven shutout innings to lead the Los Angeles Angels to a 2-0 win against the Washington Nationals.
The Japanese two-way superstar struck out six and held the Nats to just one hit in another dominant outing. The right-hander has improved to 0.47 ERA and 24 Ks in 19 innings, only giving up a single allowed run in his three starts. He’s struck out 32% of batters faced, while he’s been a bit wild in the early going with a 16 BB%. The advanced stats are also impressive, holding hitters to just .150 xBA and .196 xSLG.
This was Ohtani’s tenth consecutive start with two or fewer runs given up, setting a new franchise record and surpassing Nolan Ryan’s nine-game streak set back in 1972-1973.
Sho-Time has another impressive streak going. According to ESPN Stats and Info, this is Ohtani’s 7th straight start dating back to last season with 3 or fewer hits allowed in at least 5 innings pitched. The 7-game streak is tied for the second-highest all-time behind Jacob DeGrom’s 8-game record set in 2021. Ohtani will get the chance to tie DeGrom’s record in his next outing.
Ohtani still sees room for improvement despite his impressive start to the season. “If you just look at the results on paper it looks great, but I haven’t really had too many 1-2-3 innings,” said Ohtani, through his interpreter Ippei Mizuhara.
It was a surprisingly efficient outing for the 2021 AL MVP, who is still overcoming his early season control struggles. He finished the game at 92 pitches despite giving up a combined six walks and HBP. He seemed to struggle with the umpire’s strike zone, and the usually calm-demeanored right-hander was more expressive and would turn his head in confusion when he did not get calls on borderline pitches.
Although he struggled with his control, Ohtani was able to keep hitters off-balance by changing speeds and shapes on his pitches. According to Baseball Savant’s pitcher report, Nats hitters made contact with 28 of Ohtani’s pitches, but only three were hit hard into fair territory.
Angels manager Phil Nevin said that Ohtani’s in-game adjustments have been impressive. “He’s added some shapes to his pitches. The adjustments he’s making in-game and between starts are what great pitchers do,” said the Halos skipper. “He got some pitches tonight that we haven’t seen and [Ohtani was] very effective.”
Fans usually think of overpowering 100mph fastballs when Ohtani’s on the mound, but it was another game where Ohtani leaned heavily on his sweeper. He threw his sweeper 51 times in this game, 55% of his total pitches, and got five whiffs. It’s a small sample size, but Ohtani’s sweeper usage has dramatically from 37.4% last season to up to 49% and the pitch has the run value of -6.
The game plan and approach isn’t the only part of Ohtani’s game that is evolving. The average horizontal movement of Ohtani’s sweeper has increased from 14 inches in 2022 to 17.6 inches this year. The movement of his sweeper caught the attention of fans on Twitter after The Pitching Ninja posted a clip of an Ohtani sweeper with 20 inches of break.
Ohtani will get his first day off tonight, as the Angels try to effectively manage his heavy workload. His next projected start is against the Boston Red Sox next Monday, April 17th, at 11:10 EST.