Nationals Looking To Add Starter, Corner Outfielder
As a team that finished 55-107 in 2022 and faces an uncertain ownership picture, the Nationals are not expected to be shopping for the big ticket free agents this winter, but general manager Mike Rizzo has said he will remain active in looking to upgrade the roster. Per Jesse Dougherty of the Washington Post, Rizzo specifically mentioned the rotation, as well as first, third and the corner outfield spots as positions he could look to add in.
The rotation is no surprise, given the Nats ranked 29th in the majors in starting pitcher ERA last season. Given the team is still in the midst of a rebuild, it’s more likely they seek out one or two buy-low veterans to stabilize the rotation than make any sort of splashy move. For starters, a few of the rotations spots are already sewn up. Veteran Patrick Corbin has struggled mightily of late, posting 5.82 and 6.31 ERAs the past two years but he’s owed $24.4MM next season and then $35.4MM in 2024. Then there’s Stephen Strasburg, who’s owed $140MM over the next four seasons but has thrown just 31 1/3 innings over the past three seasons as he battles his way back from a mountain of injury problems. It’s possible there’s a bad contract swap to be done, but it’s more likely the Nationals try and get Strasburg healthy and see if they can both rebuild their value in 2023.
Beyond those two, the team may look to fill the final three spots with youngsters Josiah Gray, Cade Cavalli and MacKenzie Gore, but that poses plenty of questions itself. Gray gave up 38 home runs across 148 2/3 innings in his rookie year after coming across from the Dodgers in the Max Scherzer deal. Cavalli dealt with shoulder problems and Gore never pitched for the team after arriving in the Juan Soto deal due to elbow inflammation. All three have plenty of promise and will get a lot of opportunities in 2023, but it certainly wouldn’t hurt for the Nats to solidify things a little by adding a veteran pitcher or two.
On the position player side of things, Keibert Ruiz, CJ Abrams, Luis Garcia and Lane Thomas form a promising young core up the middle, so it’s not surprising that it’s the edges that Rizzo is looking to upgrade there.
In the infield, Carter Kieboom will look to bounce back from Tommy John surgery and stake a claim to be the team’s long term third baseman. Kieboom hasn’t hit much in the big leagues, posting wRC+s of 18, 68 and 69 in his three seasons. The Nats rebuild affords him a bit more time to find his feet, and Rizzo’s already stated he’ll have spring training to compete for the position. Over at first, the team will surely give 30-year-old rookie Joey Meneses a chance to show his surprise 2022 season was no fluke. He hit .324/.367./.563 with 13 home runs in 240 plate appearances, and while that sample size is still small, there’s no real reason why Washington wouldn’t give him plenty of looks in 2023.
Washington does have Luke Voit under control for 2023 as well, and it’s possible they use him and Meneses as their first base/DH split. However, Voit is due an arbitration salary of $8.2MM per MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz’ predictions, and given he was right around league average last year (102 wRC+), the Nats may opt to non-tender him and look for a cheaper alternative. Speculatively speaking, perhaps a low-cost bounce back candidate such as Miguel Sano or Jesus Aguilar could appeal.
Rizzo also mentioned the corner outfield spots as possible places to add. Thomas spent most of last year in right field with Victor Robles manning center. Robles is the superior defender and Thomas is the better hitter, so there’s every chance that alignment remains heading into 2023. Both are projected to make modest salaries in arbitration ($2.1MM for Thomas, $2.5MM for Robles), but given Robles’ struggles at the plate there’s a chance they trade or non-tender him and let Thomas take over in center, where he’s still more than adequate. Waiver claim Alex Call and veteran Yadiel Hernandez hit well enough this season to suggest they’ll be back, and perhaps Washington will look to platoon them in left.
Considering all of that, there’s certainly room for the Nationals to add another outfielder to the mix, and it wouldn’t be surprising to see Call or Hernandez relegated to a bench spot. The Nats added Nelson Cruz on a $15MM deal last winter when they were a ways off contention, and while that particular move didn’t pay off, it shows they’re willing to commit a bit of salary to players in the hope of them turning into something come the trade deadline. Again, speculatively, that could put the likes of Tommy Pham, Andrew McCutchen and Corey Dickerson on their radar, particularly if they’re still available later in the off-season.
Any ownership change will certainly shape most of the conversation of how much Rizzo can get done in free agency though. All he could offer on the matter is they’ve been told to continue “business as usual”.
A’s Sign Rico Garcia To Minor League Deal
Oakland have agreed to terms on a minor league deal with pitcher Rico Garcia, according to A’s broadcaster Jessica Kleinschmidt. The deal comes with an invite to spring training.
Garcia, 28, appeared in six games for the Orioles in 2022, throwing eight innings of 4.50 ERA ball, giving up a pair of home runs and striking out just two batters. In 34 2/3 innings at Triple-A, Garcia had a 2.34 ERA with a 28.4% strikeout rate and 9.9% walk rate. He throws a 95mph fastball and adds in a changeup and cutter to his arsenal.
Garcia was drafted in the 30th round of the 2016 draft by the Rockies. He made his way up through Colorado’s system, debuting with a handful of innings in 2019. He was plucked off waivers by the Giants that winter and pitched ten innings of 5.40 ERA ball for them in 2020. Tommy John surgery in the spring of 2021 put an end to that campaign and he latched on with the Orioles for 2022 before being granted free agency shortly after the season.
All told, Garcia owns a lifetime 6.38 ERA across 24 innings in the big leagues. Given his solid numbers in the minors, he’ll join the A’s and provide them with some pitching depth heading into the 2023 campaign.
Cubs Expecting To Add Starting Center Fielder; Active In Shortstop Market
It’s shaping up as a busy off-season for the Cubs as they look to push on with their rebuild and improve on their 74-88 record in 2022. According to remarks made by president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer to Maddie Lee of the Chicago Sun-Times, the Cubs are expecting to add a starting center fielder, while Jon Morosi of MLB Network reports that the team has been one of the most active early on in the shortstop market.
“We have guys internally that will certainly play out there [in center],” Hoyer said, “but I think the lion’s share might come from external.”
Rafael Ortega and Christopher Morel had the bulk of the playing time in center this past season, but while both are under club control for next season, Hoyer’s comments make it pretty clear that neither are seen as their center fielder moving forward. Ortega hit .241/.331/.358 with seven home runs, while Morel posted a .235/.308/.433 line with 16 home runs in his rookie campaign. Morel bounced around the infield positions as well, but neither posted positive defensive marks for their work in center.
A number of the Cubs top prospects are outfielders, but they’re at varying stages of their development. Their top prospect, according to Fangraphs, Pete Crowe-Armstrong is at High-A while Kevin Alcantara (third) is at Single-A. Brennen Davis and Alexander Canario are their best outfield prospects at Triple-A, but both are injured and uncertain timelines.
“Certainly with [Alexander] Canario’s injury and Brennen [Davis’] setback, it made that just that much more obvious,” Hoyer said.
As far as center field options go in free agency, the options aren’t particularly plentiful. Aaron Judge is the biggest name available, but while he played a significant amount of center this season for the Yankees, it seems unlikely the Cubs would be prepared to make the sort of splash needed to land him. Brandon Nimmo‘s blend of elite on-base skills, solid power, and adequate defense would make him a strong candidate, but even though he’ll be much cheaper than Judge, he’ll still likely command a deal north of $100MM and there’ll be plenty of suitors to drive his price up.
Two less high profile names to consider are Kevin Kiermaier and Cody Bellinger, and Gordon Wittenmyer of NBC Sports reports that both are n the Cubs’ radar. Kiermaier, 33, is a free agent after the Rays declined his team option for 2023. While his previously elite defensive numbers have dropped off as he’s aged, he’s still a strong defender and would be a cheaper stopgap option until one of the Cubs’ prospects are ready. Bellinger could well become a free agent shortly if the Dodgers opt to non-tender him. He’s dropped off considerably since his 47-homer MVP year in 2019, posting a wRC+ of 47 and 83 the past two seasons, but is still a solid defender in center, and at 27, he’s young enough that a change of scenery might allow him to rediscover some of his offensive talent.
While a big splash in center doesn’t appear likely, it could come at shortstop where the team is active in the market for the top four options available – Trea Turner, Carlos Correa, Dansby Swanson and Xander Bogaerts. Wittenmyer’s report adds that the Cubs apparently “love” Correa, something that dates back to the 2012 draft when they were eyeing him up with the sixth pick before he went first overall to the Astros. The 28-year-old had a strong platform year with the Twins, where he signed on a short term deal after no adequate long term deals materialized last winter. He’ll look to cash in this winter though, and it’s certainly possible that his contract lands in the $300MM range over nine or ten years.
The Cubs used Nico Hoerner at shortstop this year to great effect. Hoerner was worth 11 Defensive Runs Saved and 13 Outs Above Average at the position, but he could easily slide over to second base in the event the Cubs do sign one of the aforementioned shortstops, and take over at shortstop again if a new signing begins to decline and needs to switch position.
Ultimately, it’s going to be a busy winter for the Cubs, and it won’t just stop at shortstop and center field. As Wittenmyer adds, the Cubs have explored upgrading at first base and have checked in with Josh Bell and Trey Mancini, while they’re also looking to beef up their rotation and showing interest in Koudai Senga and a reunion with lefty Drew Smyly. The Cubs payroll is currently projected at $126MM, according to RosterResource. That’s well short of the sort of spending they made during their championship years last decade, so as they begin to show progress in their rebuild, it’s not surprising to see them willing to flex their financial muscle again.
White Sox Interested In Sean Murphy
After a disappointing 81-81 campaign, the White Sox enter the off-season with some clear needs to tend to if they’re to bounce back into contention with their current core of players. Among them, the catcher position, and Bruce Levine of 670 The Score reports the team has inquired about the A’s Sean Murphy.
While an inquiry into a player’s availability falls well short of any meaningful momentum towards a deal, it is interesting to consider given the White Sox have the under performing Yasmani Grandal under contract for 2023 at the steep rate of $18.25MM, while Murphy is projected to make $3.5MM in his first season going through arbitration, per MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz.
Murphy, 28, was drafted in the third round of the 2016 draft by Oakland. While his defensive prowess behind the plate was his big calling, his bat developed to the point where he quickly became one of the A’s top prospects. Since making his debut in 2019, he’s blossomed into one of the best catchers around and 2022 was his best season yet, as Murphy hit 18 home runs, slashed .250/.332/.426 and appeared in 148 games (116 at catcher). He cut back on his strikeouts this year, dropping them from around 25% for much of his career to 20.3% in 2022.
Defensively, Murphy receives strong marks for framing and ranked sixth in all of baseball on Statcast’s Catcher Framing Runs. He also ranked fifth in Pop Time – that is, the amount of time it takes the catcher to receive a pitch and get it to the base he’s throwing it to – and that resulted in him throwing out 19 of 61 potential baserunners.
As mentioned, Murphy is going through arbitration for the first time in 2022 and is expected to make a moderate $3.5MM salary. He won’t be a free agent until after the 2025 campaign, so any team acquiring him would have him for three years. All told, the price for Murphy would be steep and given the free agent catching market is thin outside of Willson Contreras and Christian Vazquez, the A’s will surely be looking for a big trade haul if they are to move him.
The White Sox could certainly do with Murphy, given Grandal’s struggles this season. The recently-turned 34-year-old hit just .202/.301/.269 across 99 games, with an alarming drop in power the biggest cause for concern. Grandal never hit much for average, but was always an OBP machine who could slug 20-plus homers each year. He hit just five long balls this past season, and saw his HardHit rate drop almost 14% from a year ago.
There’s already been reports that Chicago’s payroll is expected to drop and the team would be more focused on trades than the free agent market. With that in mind, the team could look to shift Grandal and bring in Murphy, freeing up just under $15MM or so of salary. While Grandal had a poor season and has a hefty salary, there is only one year remaining so it’s not unreasonable to think that a team could be interested in acquiring him if the White Sox are willing to kick in a bit of cash or throw in an intriguing prospect too. That’s purely speculation though, and there’s no indication that the team is shopping Grandal.
Astros Part Ways With General Manager James Click
The Astros have parted ways with general manager James Click, the team announced Friday. ESPN’s Jeff Passan tweets that Click formally rejected Houston’s one-year offer to return to the organization. Future details on the Astros’ baseball operations structure will come at an unspecified later date, per the team.
“We are grateful for all of James’ contributions,” owner Jim Crane said in a prepared statement. “We have had great success in each of his three seasons, and James has been an important part of that success. I want to personally thank him and wish him and his family well moving forward.”
It’s a bizarre and largely unprecedented dismissal, though not one that comes as a total surprise. Reports suggesting friction between Crane and Click date back more than a month now, although the general expectation was that if Houston managed to win the World Series, Click would be retained. Crane technically gave his GM that opportunity, but only in the form of a one-year extension. Extensions of just one year for a lame-duck GM are rare in the first place, and putting forth that type of offer on the heels three consecutive ALCS appearances, two straight World Series berths and, of course, a 2022 World Series victory, seems like little more than a lowball offer.
Crane hired Click on Feb. 3, 2020, just weeks after former president of baseball operations Jeff Luhnow and manager AJ Hinch were fired in the wake of the investigation into the Astros’ 2017 sign-stealing scandal. Click oversaw three seasons and three trade deadlines with the Astros in addition to a pair of full offseasons. Among his notable free-agent signings were Hector Neris, a bargain pickup of Ryne Stanek, and a new deal for Justin Verlander, though Verlander himself has spoken on record about how it was a call directly from Crane that wrapped up that agreement. Relatedly, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reported recently that Crane has had a far larger role in baseball operations than most owners, functioning as a sort of “owner/GM” at times.
At least on the surface, there’s some evidence that was true not only with regard to free agent endeavors but the trade market. Crane reportedly nixed a trade agreement that would’ve sent righty Jose Urquidy to the Cubs in exchange for Willson Contreras this past summer, for instance. The Astros pivoted and acquired Christian Vazquez instead. Among the other trades of note made during Click’s tenure were acquisitions of relievers Kendall Graveman, Rafael Montero, Yimi Garcia, Phil Maton and Brooks Raley — all of which look anywhere from defensible to outstanding with the benefit of hindsight.
Where the Astros go from here remains to be seen. In the past several seasons, they’ve seen key lieutenants like Sig Mejdal (Orioles) and more recently Pete Putila (Giants) leave for more prominent roles with other organizations. At present, they have a pair of assistant GMs in Andrew Ball and Scott Powers.
Of course, there will be (and already has been) rampant speculation about former Astros assistant GM David Stearns, who recently stepped down as the Brewers’ president of baseball operations. Milwaukee hired Stearns away from Houston as their GM back in 2015, and Stearns quickly built a reputation as one of the most respected and successful executives in the sport, eventually being elevated to the title of president of baseball operations.
Stearns still has a year to go on his contract with the Brewers. The team announced at the time of his decision to step back that Stearns would remain with the team in an advisory/consultant capacity, helping GM Matt Arnold transition into the lead baseball operations role. Stearns, a New York native and frequent target of the Mets in recent offseasons, said at the time that he had no plans to pursue any other opportunities. “I’m not going anywhere,” Stearns stated, plainly adding that he planned to remain in Milwaukee and, for the first time in years, have the opportunity to take a deep breath and spend time with his young family.
Whether Stearns is a legitimate option for the Astros remains to be seen, though it stands to reason that Crane will look into the possibility. It’s been speculated that because Stearns still has a contract, the Astros would need to orchestrate some kind of trade to bring him into their front office. That, however, presumes that Stearns even wants to immediately jump back into the rigors of a 24-hour-a-day, 365-days-a-year baseball operations schedule.
Failing that, Crane will now have the opportunity to interview executives with other clubs to step into Click’s former role. If the hope is to eventually lure Stearns or another big-name executive to Houston, Crane might only hire a general manager for the time being, thus leaving the “president of baseball operations” title vacant and perhaps waiting for a bigger name. Doing so, however, would generally limit Crane to interviewing assistant GMs from other organizations. Teams typically only allow their executives to interview with other clubs and leave if they’re being offered a promotion.
However things play out, it’s a major shift for the Astros organization and a jarring sight to see a World Series-winning GM ousted just weeks after hoisting the trophy above his head. Crane can and likely will point to the one-year offer and say he tried to retain Click, though any such transparent statements will ring hollow. Click, who was previously an assistant GM with the Rays, should have no shortage of interest from other organizations as he looks for his next opportunity in baseball, though, and in all likelihood will have multiple offers and multiple roles from which to choose as the 44-year-old ponders what’s next in his career.
Blue Jays Interested In Andrew Heaney
The Blue Jays enter the offseason in search of starting pitching, with a few names of note trickling out in the early going. Jon Morosi of MLB.com listed the Jays as a suitor for NPB star Kodai Senga earlier this week, and Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet reports that southpaw Andrew Heaney is also of interest (Twitter link).
That’s hardly a surprise, as the Jays were one of the teams known to have pursued Heaney when he was a free agent last winter. The former first-rounder instead jumped early to join the Dodgers, inking an $8.5MM deal a few days into the offseason. Heaney will handily beat that sum this time around, as he showed immense promise during what may be his lone season as a Dodger.
Heaney pitched to a 3.10 ERA this past season, striking out an eye-popping 35.5% of batters faced. He’s always blended solid swing-and-miss stuff with decent control, but this year’s strikeout rate was on another level. Heaney also got a swinging strike on an incredible 16.8% of his offerings, the highest rate of any major league pitcher to top 70 innings.
It’s fairly easy to identify reasons behind that success, as he overhauled his pitch mix on the heels of a 5.83 ERA showing in 2021. Heaney developed a slider that instantly became one of the best offerings of its kind, and he turned to that as his go-to secondary offering. He scrapped his curveball and scaled well back on the use of his changeup, and the results were excellent. Heaney did still give up a fair bit of hard contact — an issue that has plagued him throughout his career — but he missed so many bats he managed an ERA just above 3.00 despite serving up 1.73 home runs per nine innings.
Of course, the black mark on Heaney’s ledger was a pair of injured list stints related to discomfort in his throwing shoulder. Those kept him to 16 appearances (14 starts) and 72 2/3 innings, roughly half a season’s workload. Had Heaney stayed healthy the entire season, he’d quite likely have received a qualifying offer from L.A. The Dodgers were concerned enough with his lack of innings they opted against making a QO, even as they extended the offer to fellow offseason signee Tyler Anderson.
That decision does boost Heaney’s free agent stock for other clubs as he enters his age-32 campaign. Signing him won’t cost a team any draft choices and/or international signing bonus space. He’s already gotten hits from a few rotation-needy teams, with the Jays joining the Mets and Red Sox as clubs known to have checked in.
Certainly, Heaney will be one of a number of players under consideration for the Jays this offseason. General manager Ross Atkins told reporters at this week’s GM meetings the team was looking to add to both the starting rotation and the relief corps (link via Keegan Matheson of MLB.com). That could obviously come via free agency or trade, with the team’s catching surplus sure to be a topic of frequent discussion.
Meanwhile, Nicholson-Smith tweeted this week the team has been in touch with Ross Stripling’s camp to express interest in bringing the swingman back. Stripling, who turns 33 this month, bounced back from rough 2020-21 seasons to unexpectedly emerge as one of Toronto’s more reliable arms this year. He started 24 of 32 outings, working to a 3.01 ERA with a slightly below-average 20.7% strikeout rate but a sterling 3.7% walk percentage across 134 1/3 innings. The veteran right-hander is a first-time free agent and looks to have pitched his way to a multi-year deal.
Toronto’s rotation will be anchored by one of the league’s top 1-2 punches: Kevin Gausman and Alek Manoah. The final three spots are question marks to varying degrees. José Berríos will occupy a rotation spot but will look to bounce back from a surprising 5.23 ERA showing. The internal favorites for the fourth and fifth spots appear to be Yusei Kikuchi and Mitch White, but neither should be a rotation lock for a hopeful contender. White was battered in 10 outings after being acquired from the Dodgers at the trade deadline, while Kikuchi pitched himself out of the rotation in a dreadful first season of a three-year free agent deal.
Reds, Kevin Herget Agree To Minor League Deal
The Reds are in agreement with right-hander Kevin Herget on a minor league contract, according to the MLB.com transactions log. He’ll presumably get an opportunity in big league Spring Training to compete for a roster spot.
Originally a 39th-round pick of the Cardinals in 2013, Herget has spent parts of 10 seasons in the minors. He earned his long-awaited first MLB call after inking a minor league deal with the Rays going into the 2022 campaign. The 31-year-old came out of the bullpen three times for manager Kevin Cash, logging seven innings of six-run ball. Outrighted off the 40-man roster at the end of the year, he qualified for minor league free agency.
While he didn’t get much work against big league hitters, Herget had an excellent year for Triple-A Durham. Starting 17 of his 21 outings, he pitched to a 2.95 ERA across 97 2/3 innings. Herget punched out a solid 24.4% of batters faced and only walked 3.9% of opponents. He’s now pitched five years at the highest level of the minor leagues, posting a cumulative 4.14 ERA over 380 1/3 frames.
Herget has spent most of his career working out of the bullpen, but he’s gotten more rotation work over the past few seasons. He averaged 4.65 innings per appearance with the Bulls this year and could serve as either rotation or long relief depth in Cincinnati. The Reds presently have Hunter Greene, Nick Lodolo and Graham Ashcraft as their top three starters, while the bullpen finished 28th in the majors with a 4.72 ERA. They’re sure to add a few more immediate big league options this offseason, but the lack of defined roles in both the rotation and relief unit makes Cincinnati a solid landing spot for quality depth players of Herget’s ilk looking to snag an Opening Day job.
Braves Designate Rylan Bannon For Assignment
The Braves announced this evening they’ve designated infielder Rylan Bannon for assignment. The move opens a 40-man roster spot for Nick Anderson, who has been signed to a one-year contract as previously reported.
Bannon has moved around the league over the past couple months. A longtime Orioles farmhand, he was designated for assignment by Baltimore in early August. He moved to the Dodgers and Braves in rapid succession via waivers. He didn’t play in the majors with L.A. and only suited up once for Atlanta, appearing as a late-game defensive substitution. Bannon only has five games of big league experience overall, but he’s attracted interest from a number of teams as infield depth.
A Xavier University product, he put together a .249/.367/.421 line over 411 Triple-A plate appearances this year. Bannon connected on 13 home runs and walked in a stellar 14.4% of his trips to the plate at that level. He punched out at a slightly elevated 24.3% clip, but he blended a very patient approach with decent power. The 26-year-old can’t play shortstop, though he’s capable of suiting up at either second or third base.
The Braves will now have a week to trade Bannon or look to run him through waivers. He still has a minor league option year remaining, so he could occupy a similar depth role he played this past season if another team is willing to hand him a 40-man roster spot.
Marlins To Hire Luis Urueta As Bench Coach
The Marlins plan to hire Luis Urueta as their bench coach, as first reported by Enrique Rojas of ESPN (Twitter link). He’ll join the staff of first-year manager Skip Schumaker. It isn’t clear whether previous bench coach James Rowson will remain on the staff or in the organization.
Urueta, 41, has spent the past decade and a half in the Diamondbacks organization. After a lengthy run coaching and managing in the minors, he was bumped up to Torey Lovullo’s big league staff heading into 2018. He was promoted to bench coach in 2020, a year that also saw him attract some attention from the Red Sox during their managerial search. After two years as bench coach, he was reassigned to a minor league instructional role last offseason.
The Colombia native now gets back to the highest level, joining Schumaker’s first MLB coaching staff. That’s beginning to take shape. Miami retained Mel Stottlemyre Jr. as pitching coach and agreed to hire Jon Jay as first base coach this week. Meanwhile, Jon Heyman of the New York Post reported yesterday (Twitter links) that former big leaguers Jody Reed and Rod Barajas are joining the staff. Reed will be the new third base coach, reports Jordan McPherson of the Miami Herald (on Twitter), while Heyman adds that Barajas is taking on a quality assurance role.
Hitting coach is now the biggest remaining vacancy, as Marcus Thames departed to take the same position with the Angels this week. Heyman reports that Dave Hansen, a former MLB infielder and now a minor league hitting instructor in the Reds system, is under consideration.
Cody Stashak Elects Free Agency
The Twins sent reliever Cody Stashak through outright waivers, according to the transactions log at MLB.com. The right-hander has elected minor league free agency, tweets Dan Hayes of the Athletic. That’s his right as a player with more than three years of major league service.
Stashak has been a decent lower-leverage option for manager Rocco Baldelli over the past few years. He’s appeared in each of the last four seasons, although he’s only managed between 15 and 25 frames in each. In three of the four years, Stashak put up a sub-4.00 ERA with an above-average strikeout rate. The 2021 campaign was a disaster, but he bounced back with 16 1/3 frames of 3.86 ERA ball this year. He’d punched out 15 and hadn’t issued a single walk through May 22, but an impingement in his throwing shoulder sent him to the injured list.
The Twins announced a few weeks later he’d need surgery to fix a labrum tear. That ended his season, and he spent the second half of the year on the 60-day injured list. With the IL officially going away at the start of the offseason, Minnesota had to reinstate him onto the 40-man roster to keep him around. They’ve opted against doing so, instead cutting him loose.
Stashak has between three and four years of service, so he’d have been eligible for arbitration for the first time. MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projected him for an $800K salary that’s barely above the league minimum, but the Twins weren’t prepared to carry Stashak on the roster all winter after his surgery. His departure leaves Minnesota with 36 players on the roster heading into next week’s deadline to add prospects to the 40-man in order to keep them from Rule 5 draft eligibility.
If Stashak’s healthy, he’ll be a solid strike-throwing arm for clubs looking to bolster their bullpen depth. He’s likely to land a minor league deal with a Spring Training invitation.