Free-agent righty Jake Peavy remains unsigned with Spring Training well underway, but as Jerry Crasnick of ESPN.com reports, that’s due largely to personal matters impacting the veteran starter. Peavy says he is currently focused on being with his four sons while he and his wife finalize a divorce.
Peavy says he still expects to return to the hill, so it doesn’t seem that the 35-year-old is heading toward retirement despite a sub-par, injury-plagued 2016 season. Instead, his representatives have informed teams that he is not yet ready to commit to an organization, but Peavy says he’s working out and will hold a showcase when he is ready.
“It hurts not to be in spring training,” Peavy tells Crasnick. “I know that day is coming, but right now being a dad is absolutely No. 1. There’s no way in a million years that I could leave my boys at this time.”
There’s little doubt that Peavy will draw interest when he is prepared to sign; indeed, we’ve already heard that the Padres had interest at one stage of the winter. Last season’s struggles may be attributable in part to back issues. And, as Crasnick writes, the fallout of a financial scheme that took advantage of Peavy and others proved a major distraction. While his age rightly dampens expectations moving forward, Peavy was capable of delivering a 3.58 ERA in 2015 and racking up over 200 frames the season prior.