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Miguel Sano Not Facing Criminal Charges After Traffic Accident In Dominican Republic

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Oct. 8: Dominican police spokesman Colonel Frank Duran Mejia tells Enrique Rojas of ESPN Deportes that Sano is not facing criminal charges. Furthermore, Duran characterized the incident as accidental in nature. Sano, according to Duran, was questioned by officer Argenis Emilio Gillandeux outside a night club because his truck did not have a license plate and because Sano was not carrying his driver’s license on him. After speaking with Gillandeux, he backed up his truck without realizing that the officer and his motorcycle were still parked behind him. Gillandeux has no plans to press charges, Duran emphasized in a statement:

“The citizen, Miguel Sano, was sent today to the traffic court to comply with the due process in these types of cases. It is a formality when someone is injured in a vehicular accident. It is important to clarify that the policeman declared that the accident was not intentional, and that Sano hit his leg when Sano was reversing his vehicle to leave the place and that the baseball player was the first to provide help and never abandoned the scene. Neither the agent nor the national police plan to charge Sano with anything.”

Sano, according to Duran, transported Gillandeux to the hospital himself and actually knew the officer personally from the pair’s days in school.

Oct. 7: Twins third baseman Miguel Sano was detained at a police station in his native Dominican Republic after a traffic accident on Sunday morning, according to Spanish-language news outlet El Nuevo Diaro (via Phil Miller of the Star-Tribune). A police officer “ordered Sano to stop at a checkpoint, but he continued [and] ran over the uniformed officer, leaving him with serious damage,” Miller writes. The officer suffered a fractured fibula and tibia after Sano ran over his foot, according to a police report which circulated online, after Sano and his wife were stopped in a car without license plates. Sano offered to pay for the damage to the officer and was eventually released, per a report from Spanish-language outlet Diario Libre (via Miler).

“We have been made aware of the situation involving Miguel Sano in the Dominican Republic. We are still gathering facts at this point,” a Twins spokesperson told Bob Nightengale and Jorge L. Ortiz of USA Today.

At this point, it’s unknown if Sano will face any legal punishment or discipline from Major League Baseball for this. Nonetheless, it’s an unwelcome development for the Twins, especially after Sano was accused of assault last offseason. However, Sano didn’t face any ramifications for that from either the legal system or MLB.

This news continues a downward trend for Sano since the end of the 2017 season, when he batted .264/.352/.507 with 28 home runs in 483 appearances and earned an All-Star nod. The 25-year-old is now coming off an injury-limited season in which the Twins demoted him to the minors on account of a drop in production. He ended up totaling 299 PA in the majors and hitting a disappointing .199/.281/.398 with MLB’s worst strikeout percentage (38.5) and 13 HRs.

NL Notes: Rockies, Bader, Cardinals, Marlins

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The Rockies’ Game 3 loss to the Brewers not only bounced them from the 2018 postseason but may also have marked the end of the Colorado tenure for a number of impending free agents, Kyle Newman of the Denver Post writes. Second baseman DJ LeMahieu and setup man Adam Ottavino could land with new cubs this winter, as could outfielders Carlos Gonzalez, Gerardo Parra and Matt Holliday. The 30-year-old LeMahieu said after the loss that he’d like to return, though there’s hardly any certainty that the Rox will make a concerted effort to retain him. Trevor Story has a firm grip on the shortstop role, while the Rockies have top middle-infield prospect Brendan Rodgers also looming in the upper minors and another young option in Garrett Hampson. And, as Newman points out with regard to Ottavino, the bullpen already has three large contracts in Wade Davis, Jake McGee and Bryan Shaw, even if each of those three relievers took a step back in 2018 after inking a three-year pact this past offseason. Meanwhile Scott Oberg stepped up as a cost-effective potential replacement for Ottavino.

Here’s more from the NL to kick off the week…

  • Center field has been a position of extreme turnover for the Cardinals in recent seasons, writes Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, but Harrison Bader’s exceptional defensive prowess gives hope for some much-needed continuity. The last player to make consecutive Opening Day starts for the Cardinals in center field was Peter Bourjos, Goold notes, and no Cardinal has started 100-plus games in center in consecutive seasons since Jon Jay. “He’s sort of taken that job and run with it,” GM Mike Girsch tells Goold. “The way Harrison plays center field defensively makes it pretty obvious he’s the best defensive center fielder that we have, and he’s hit more than well enough to earn the first shot.” Bader still needs to improve his offensive consistency — specifically, his output against breaking balls — but after after being declared by Girsch as the team’s center fielder moving forward, the 24-year-old should have an extended chance to do so.
  • After acquiring additional international bonus allotments in a weekend trade with the Reds, the Marlins are exploring the trade market for opportunities to further pad their bonus pool, reports MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro. It’s not yet clear how much money Miami added to what was already baseball’s second-largest bonus pool ($4.3MM) with their latest move, but they’re still looking up at the Orioles, who carry a reported $6.7MM. Miami and Baltimore have the most money available to sign Cuban outfielder Victor Victor Mesa and both are widely expected to make aggressive pitches to the 22-year-old.

Quick Hits: Counsell, Brantley, Britton, Yankees, O’s

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After being shut out in the first two games of the NLDS, the Braves not only posted a crooked number on the scoreboard in Game Three, but staved off elimination entirely with a 6-5 win over the Dodgers.  Ronald Acuna continued to make history, as the 20-year-old rookie sensation become the youngest player ever to hit a grand slam in postseason action.  Game Four is set for Monday in Atlanta at 3:30pm CT.

As we look forward to three playoff games tomorrow, here are some items from three teams still active in the postseason…

  • The Brewers made Craig Counsell’s continued employment as manager a requirement for any general manager candidate in 2015, owner Mark Attanasio told Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.  “We interviewed seven or eight candidates, and I told all of them that Craig was going to be the manager,” Attanasio said.  “So, that would have disqualified a candidate if they had a problem with that….That was a precondition to the job.”  Counsell has paid off his employer’s faith by leading the Brewers into the NLCS, and quickly impressing observers along the way — eventual new GM David Stearns, the Brewers’ roster, and fans in Counsell’s home state of Wisconsin.
  • Two shoulder surgeries and a right ankle injury limited Michael Brantley to just 101 total games in 2016 and 2017, limiting his productivity and sidelining him for all of the Indians’ run to Game Seven of the 2016 World Series.  That long recovery period has made this season all the more special for the outfielder, who rebounded to hit .309/.364/.468 and 17 homers over 631 plate appearances and 143 games while helping the Tribe reach the postseason.  “When you go through basically almost a two-year rehab, you don’t always know that you’re going to come back,” Brantley told MLB.com’s Jordan Bastian.  “Every day that I’m there to be with my teammates, that I’m healthy enough to be in that lineup, where I can joke around and know that I’m going out to left field to play with these guys, I’m very appreciative.  I don’t take it for granted.”  Monday, however, could mark Brantley’s last game in a Cleveland uniform if the Tribe is swept by the Astros, as Brantley will be a free agent at season’s end.
  • “There’s a gigantic difference in how we use analytics here compared to Baltimore,” Yankees reliever Zach Britton told Fangraphs’ David Laurila.  After coming to New York from the Orioles in a trade deadline swap, Britton was presented with lots of personally-focused data.  “I’d never been exposed to that amount of information,” Britton said.  “And it’s not just ’Here’s a stack of stuff to look over.’ …. I don’t want to get into specifics, but some of it is how my ball moves, both my sinker and my slider, compared to different hitters’ swings. It kind of opens your eyes to things you maybe didn’t think of when you didn’t have that information.”  The Orioles are known to be looking for a more analytically-minded figure in their new general manager, though the team has a long way to go to catch up to the Yankees, who are known to have one of baseball’s best information departments.  If Britton’s comments sound similar to Justin Verlander’s reaction to joining the Astros last season, it isn’t a surprise, as Britton noted that “If you look at the teams in the postseason, most are well-known for their analytics departments, especially the Astros.”

NL West Notes: Rockies, Evans, Hernandez, Freese

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The Rockies’ season came to a disappointing end tonight, as the Brewers swept them out of the NLDS in three games.  While Colorado can be proud of two straight years of postseason baseball, Nolan Arenado’s future may be the biggest issue looming over the team as its offseason begins.  There has been speculation that the Rox could consider trading the superstar third baseman rather than let him walk as a free agent once his contract is up after the 2019 season, assuming an extension can’t be reached.  (Though the chances of an offseason trade seem doubtful, as surely the Rockies must be figuring on contending again in 2019.)  For his part, Arenado told The Athletic’s Nick Groke (Twitter links) and other reporters that offseason contract discussions are less important to his winter activities than his family’s Wiffle Ball competition, saying bluntly “I expect to be here next season. The future is bright here.”

Here’s more from around the NL West…

  • Former Giants GM Bobby Evans tells the Boston Globe’s Nick Cafardo that he would like to be considered for the other open general manager jobs around baseball, though since he still has 15 months remaining on his contract in San Francisco, he is happy to take on whatever role assigned by the Giants’ next baseball operations head.  Evans would also be understanding if the new GM would prefer if Evans left the organization.  The team’s decision to remove Evans from his former post caught him somewhat off-guard: “I think you’re always surprised when something like this happens because we’ve all worked so closely together for so long and we had three World Series championships together.”  Nevertheless, Evans said “the Giants were fantastic to me for 25 years,” and he defended his front office from the perception that it was somewhat behind in analytical implementation, noting that the team was already in the process of shifting from a traditional scouting-heavy approach to more analytics usage.
  • Enrique Hernandez has become the definition of a super-utilityman for the Dodgers, with The Athletic’s Eno Sarris noting (subscription required) that Hernandez’s 118 wRC+ from the 2018 season is the highest of any player who has ever played at least eight different positions in a season.  “If it wasn’t for my defense and the versatility, I’d probably have been stuck in the minors,” Hernandez said.  “At first, it was what got me to the big leagues. After that, it’s what kept me here.”  Hernandez hit .256/.336/.470 with 21 homers over 462 PA, while playing everywhere except catcher and making at least one start at every position except first base.  His bat really began to heat up after adopting a slight step backwards during his swing in May, allowing Hernandez to produce against both left-handed and right-handed pitching, and making him a starter at second base for Los Angeles in all three games of the NLDS.
  • After joining the Dodgers in a trade from the Pirates at the August 31 deadline, David Freese has made a big contribution both on the field and in the clubhouse, the Orange County Register’s Bill Plunkett writes.  Justin Turner praised Freese as a veteran influence to the Dodgers’ younger players, while manager Dave Roberts appreciated how Freese was open to a part-time role.  Freese “didn’t try to force his way into a leadership role but really bought into what we were doing as far as sacrificing,” Roberts said.  “That minimized the noise.  He was walking the walk.  He just has a way of commanding a room and players respect it.”  As a part-time first baseman and mostly facing left-handed pitching, Freese hit a whopping .385/.489/.641 over 47 PA after coming to L.A.

Poll: Which Is The Most Intriguing General Manager Job?

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After recently polling MLBTR’s readership about which of the six open managerial positions had the most to offer, it only follows that we ask the same question about the three general manager vacancies.

For simplicity’s sake, let’s use “general manager” in this sense as the person in charge of a team’s baseball operations department, even if that official title could be something different (i.e. president of baseball ops) on a particular team.  If you’re a hypothetical executive who has multiple GM offers presented to them, deciding which job to take demands a big-picture view.  Which franchise has the most to offer a new GM in terms of resources, which range from everything from player payroll to front office staffing?  Would a GM have full control of baseball ops, or is there another rung above them on the organizational ladder?  Does a team already have some good players in place and is expecting to win, or is a rebuild under way, or will a rebuild be under way in the near future?

With all these factors (and more) in mind, let’s take a look at the three open GM jobs…

Mets: As disappointing as New York’s 2018 season was, this is still a team that boasts one of the game’s best pitching staffs, plus some intriguing young building blocks in Brandon Nimmo, Amed Rosario, and a healthy Michael Conforto.  If incumbent veterans like Yoenis Cespedes, Jay Bruce, and Todd Frazier can avoid the DL and regain some of their old productivity, the team’s lackluster lineup will already get a huge boost, not even factoring in what external additions can bring into the fold.  There is certainly opportunity for quick improvement in 2019, and since the team doesn’t have any payroll money guaranteed beyond the 2020 season, there’s plenty of room for extending in-house stars and adding some other notable salaries in trades or free agents.

That’s the good news about the Mets job, though as any follower of New York’s sports media could tell you, there’s also quite a bit of bad news.  It’s still unknown how much financial flexibility the Mets actually have, as while team payroll has cracked the $150MM mark in each of the last two seasons, that’s still a modest figure for a club that plays in the New York market.  There’s also the open question about how much autonomy a general manager truly has within the organization, given how owners Fred and Jeff Wilpon are so often accused of taking a heavy hand with their input in the baseball operations department.  For instance, it’s unusual that an incoming GM would be inheriting three influence senior members of a team’s current front office staff, and there is uncertainty if a new GM would really be allowed to fire John Ricco, J.P. Riccardi, and/or Omar Minaya unless ownership allows it.  Manager Mickey Callaway is also staying on for 2019, so a new general manager wouldn’t even able to select their own preferred voice in the dugout.  It also might not help that the Wilpons themselves are reportedly looking for different things in a general manager, as Jeff prefers to hire a younger GM with an analytics background, while Fred wants a more experienced name from a scouting and personnel background.

Giants: The main pro and the main con of the San Francisco job amount to the same thing — this is a team that expects to win.  Even if 2019 may be a season more focused on something of a rebuild-on-the-fly, there is little doubt that the franchise wants a turn-around after two straight losing seasons.  To this end, a new GM will have money to spend, as the Giants haven’t afraid of exceeding the luxury tax threshold in the past, and are now free for more big spending after (barely) getting payroll under the threshold this season to reset their escalating tax payment figure to zero.  There’s also no small amount of appeal in taking over one of baseball’s top-tier, most historically-rich franchises, and a team that has three World Series championships within the last decade.

The downside, of course, is that taking over such a team means taking on a lot of pressure.  There may be more of a case that the Giants need a rebuild rather than a reload, given how many expensive veteran contracts are on the books.  (And how more veteran additions could be coming, if the Giants stick to their logic from last offseason.)  Madison Bumgarner, the Giants’ best asset, is also scheduled for free agency after the 2019 season, so the contention window may be particularly short unless Bumgarner can be extended, though the team is at least open to listening to a GM that would suggest Bumgarner be traded.

There is also some question of autonomy within the chain of command, as long-time executive Brian Sabean is staying on in an upper-management role, plus Bruce Bochy is being retained as manager.  Team CEO Larry Baer has said, however, that the new baseball operations head will be reporting to him, and will have the freedom add new faces to the front office mix.  This could be a situation where the “new GM” is really a president of baseball operations, with a general manager also hired in a secondary role to handle day-to-day duties.

Orioles: The cleanest slate of the three jobs, the Orioles are undergoing a change in direction at the very top of the organization, as John and Louis Angelos take over ownership duties from their father, Peter.  It remains to be seen how the Angelos brothers’ style will differ from that of Peter Angelos’ style, though there has already been some indication that the Orioles are adopting a more standard approach to baseball operations (such as a new willingness to spend on international players).  It also isn’t clear if a new GM will have the full autonomy that the team’s recent media release claims, or if incumbent VP of baseball operations Brady Anderson will still have a major voice in the decision-making process.

This all being said, while it might take some years for a general manager to remake the Mets or Giants in their own image, the new Orioles GM can put their big stamp on the organization as early as this offseason.  Rather than navigate pre-existing payroll hurdles or expectations of contention, the new Orioles only has to focus on rebuilding for the next several years.  As low as the Orioles sunk in 2018, the lure of a total rebuild could be enticing to many candidates — Blue Jays baseball ops VP Ben Cherington, for one, would seemingly only leave his position in Toronto “to build an organization from the ground up,” according to The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal.  A new general manager also has something of a head start on the rebuilding process due to the number of young talents acquired by former baseball operations executive VP Dan Duquette in the trade deadline deals of Manny Machado, Zach Britton, Kevin Gausman, Darren O’Day, Brad Brach, and Jonathan Schoop.

(poll link for app users)

Which Is The Most Intriguing GM Job?

  • Giants 41% (4,267)
  • Mets 32% (3,344)
  • Orioles 27% (2,867)

Total votes: 10,478

Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Playoff Experience, Harper, Machado, White Sox, Phils, Yelich

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This week in baseball blogs…

Submissions: ZachBBWI @gmail.com

Sorting The Relievers Of The Upcoming Free-Agent Class

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On Saturday, we took a look at which pending free-agent starters had the most successful regular seasons in terms of velocity, strikeouts, walks, generating ground balls and inducing weak contact. We’ll do the same here with relievers who are scheduled to become free agents in a few weeks (once again, thanks to MLBTR’s Steve Adams for coming up with this method a year ago and to FanGraphs for supplying such invaluable data).

To qualify, a reliever must have thrown at least 20 innings this past regular season. Notably, we’re leaving Sean Doolittle, Mark Melancon, Pedro Strop and Brandon Kintzler off the list. Everyone from that group has either a team option or an opt-out for 2019 (or both in Kintzler’s case), but it appears highly unlikely any will hit free agency. On the other hand, just to be safe, we are including Milwaukee’s Joakim Soria, Oakland’s Fernando Rodney and the White Sox’s Nate Jones.

Soria and the Brewers will have to decide on a $10MM mutual option, but he may instead return to free agency on the heels of a strong season. Both Rodney’s age (42 in March) and the Athletics’ low payroll seem to increase the odds of them buying out the journeyman for $250K instead of exercising his $4.25MM option. Jones has a similarly affordable option ($4.65MM), so it’s hard to imagine the White Sox cutting ties with him in favor of a $1.25MM buyout, but perhaps his history of injuries will convince the team to go in another direction. (The guess is he’ll remain with the White Sox, but we’ll err on the side of caution.)

Hardest Throwers (FanGraphs leaderboard)

League average = 93.4 mph

  1. Joe Kelly: 98.1 mph fastball velocity
  2. Nate Jones: 97.2 mph
  3. Craig Kimbrel: 97.1 mph
  4. Kelvin Herrera: 96.5 mph
  5. Jeurys Familia: 96.2 mph
  6. Ryan Madson: 95.8 mph
  7. John Axford: 95.6 mph
  8. Daniel Hudson: 95.4 mph
  9. Zach McAllister: 95.2 mph
  10. Fernando Rodney: 95.2 mph

Top Strikeout Arms (FanGraphs leaderboard)

League average = 23.2 K%, 8.95 K/9

  1. Craig Kimbrel: 38.9 K%, 13.86 K/9
  2. Adam Ottavino: 36.3 K%, 12.98 K/9
  3. David Robertson: 32.2 K%, 11.76 K/9
  4. Tyler Clippard: 30.2 K%, 11.17 K/9
  5. Joakim Soria: 29.4 K%, 11.13 K/9
  6. Andrew Miller: 29.2 K%, 11.91 K/9
  7. Justin Wilson: 29.2 K%, 11.36 K/9
  8. Tony Sipp: 27.8 K%, 9.78 K/9
  9. Cody Allen: 27.7 K%, 10.75 K/9
  10. Jeurys Familia: 27.5 K%, 10.38 K/9

Fewest Walks (FanGraphs leaderboard)

League average = 9.3 BB%, 3.57 BB/9

  1. Jesse Chavez: 4.5 BB%, 1.6 BB/9
  2. Tony Barnette: 4.8 BB%, 1.71 BB/9
  3. Zach McAllister: 5.0 BB%, 2.0 BB/9
  4. Kelvin Herrera: 5.5 BB%, 2.03 BB/9
  5. Shawn Kelley: 5.8 BB%, 2.02 BB/9
  6. Sergio Romo: 6.1 BB%, 2.3 BB/9
  7. Joakim Soria: 6.3 BB%, 2.37 BB/9
  8. Matt Belisle: 6.8 BB%, 2.88 BB/9
  9. Ryan Madson: 6.9 BB%, 2.73 BB/9
  10. Jim Johnson: 7.6 BB%, 2.9 BB/9

Highest Groundball Rates (FanGraphs leaderboard)

League average = 43.5 percent

  1. Zach Britton: 73.0 percent
  2. Brad Ziegler: 71.1 percent
  3. Zach Duke: 59.4 percent
  4. John Axford: 53.4 percent
  5. Tony Barnette: 51.2 percent
  6. Peter Moylan and Blaine Boyer: 51.2 percent
  7. Jorge De La Rosa: 50.9 percent
  8. Jim Johnson: 49.2 percent
  9. Jake Diekman: 47.8 percent
  10. Andrew Miller: 47.7 percent

Least Hard Contact Allowed (FanGraphs leaderboard)

League average = 34.8 percent

  1. Adam Ottavino: 25.3 percent
  2. Joakim Soria: 25.9 percent
  3. Tony Sipp: 26.3 percent
  4. John Axford: 26.4 percent
  5. Craig Kimbrel: 27.1 percent
  6. Justin Wilson: 28.4 percent
  7. Jeurys Familia: 28.6 percent
  8. Ryan Madson: 28.7 percent
  9. Zach Britton: 28.8 percent
  10. Zach Duke: 29.0 percent

No surprise, but Kimbrel figures prominently here. After enjoying yet another excellent regular season, during which he racked up 42 saves in 47 chances and posted a 2.74 ERA, the 30-year-old is poised to to sign one of the richest deals in the history of relievers. He’s joined by several other high-end options (Ottavino, Robertson, Familia and Britton, to name only a few) who should garner notable paydays on the open market. For teams that can’t afford the top relievers available, some of the less exciting names above may carry appeal as reclamation projects. Madson, for instance, had a horrid year with respect to run prevention (5.47 ERA in 52 2/3 innings), but he’s coming off a standout season in terms of velo, walks and weak contact. The 38-year-old also brings an impressive track record to the table.

Red Sox Notes: Pitching Staff, Kinsler, Moreland

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We checked in on Boston earlier Sunday in the aftermath of its loss on Saturday to the Yankees, who tied the teams’ ALDS matchup at a game apiece.  Here’s yet another set of notes on the Red Sox as they prepare for Game 3 on Monday:

  • The Red Sox have chosen Nathan Eovaldi, not Rick Porcello, to start Game 3, Pete Abraham of the Boston Globe was among those to report. Porcello is slated to take the ball in Game 4, though manager Alex Cora said that could change if the Red Sox need him out of the bullpen Monday, Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com tweets. Game 2 starter David Price also seems likely to be available in relief, Ian Browne of MLB.com relays. As for the 28-year-old Eovaldi, a former Yankee whom the Red Sox acquired from the Rays in July, he’s in line for his first playoff appearance. The hard-throwing right-hander earned his way into Boston’s October rotation by logging a 3.33 ERA with 8.0 K/9 and 2.0 BB/9 in 54 regular-season innings with the team.
  • Second baseman Ian Kinsler – who, like Eovaldi, joined the Red Sox in a late-July trade – may be a regrettable pickup in the wake of an Aug. 3 hamstring injury, Alex Speier of the Boston Globe observes. Kinsler got off to a nice start with Boston, but since suffering the injury, his production has plummeted. The 36-year-old has slashed a measly .234/.280/.295 with a subpar 85.1 mph average exit velocity in 34 games dating back to his return from the disabled list, notes Speier. Further, his ongoing presence in the Red Sox’s lineup has kept Brock Holt – who thrived in September – on the bench. And Speier goes on to point out that adding Kinsler cost the Red Sox young reliever Ty Buttrey, who turned in quality numbers for the Angels after the trade and may have helped shore up Boston’s bullpen had it kept him. Of course, as Speier writes, there’s still time for Kinsler to emerge as a key contributor for Boston this postseason. He did collect a hit in each of their first two playoff games, including an RBI double on Saturday.
  • After leaving Saturday’s game with right hamstring tightness, first baseman Mitch Moreland is receiving “aggressive treatment,” Evan Drellich of NBC Sports Boston was among those to tweet. His status for Monday is still up in the air, but as was the case late Saturday, Cora expects Moreland to remain on Boston’s ALDS roster, per Cotillo.

International Notes & Signings: Mesas, Gaston, O’s, Marlins, Dodgers, Gutierrez

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The latest on the international market:

  • Cuban free agents Victor Victor Mesa, Victor Mesa Jr. and Sandy Gaston held a showcase in Miami for all 30 teams on Friday. The Orioles, with the most international spending room available (~$6.7MM), are reportedly the favorites to sign Victor Victor Mesa, an outfielder who’s the No. 1-ranked int’l prospect available. It seems the team that gets him will also land his brother, a fellow outfielder, as Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com writes the two “are viewed within the industry as a package deal.” The O’s are indeed interested in the tandem, reports Kubatko, who adds that they also “really like” Gaston – a right-handed pitcher. Financially speaking, the Orioles hold a significant edge over every other team in the league when it comes to signing any of these players, but Kubatko notes that the Marlins’ proximity to Cuba could stand in Baltimore’s way. The Marlins, who have the second-most money to spend ($4.3MM), have made it known that they are trying to use location to their advantage. Further, in their push to sign the Mesas and Gaston, the Marlins set up personalized lockers with uniforms for the players, Kubatko relays. Team CEO and future Hall of Famer Derek Jeter also happened to be on hand for their showcase.
  • The Dodgers have signed Cuban righty Osvani Gutierrez to a $600K bonus, Ben Badler of Baseball America reports. The 17-year-old did not rank among the top international prospects available at any of BA, MLB.com or FanGraphs, but Badler writes that Gutierrez is “a solid strike-thrower for his age” who “shows feel for his secondary pitches” and can bring 93 mph heat. The Dodgers entered this year’s international signing period with the standard bonus pool of $4,983,500. As of mid-September, they were down to $2.78MM – still one of the highest sums left.

NL Notes: Cardinals, Nats, Benoit, Giants, Panik

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The Cardinals just wrapped up their third straight season without a playoff berth, which is all the more concerning given that team control is dwindling over Yadier Molina (two years), Matt Carpenter, Miles Mikolas, Marcell Ozuna, Michael Wacha (one year apiece) and Adam Wainwright (pending free agent), as Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch points out. The Redbirds are cognizant of the fact that the 36-year-old Molina won’t be around forever, chairman Bill DeWitt Jr. said this week, adding: “Our timeframe with this club is now. It has been that way literally every year for many years.” There’s now a “palpable” impatience atop the St. Louis hierarchy, according to Goold, who reports that the Cardinals are poised to seek left-handed relief upgrades and left-handed power for their lineup this offseason as they work to snap a three-year playoff drought in 2019. The Cards have pitching depth to dangle in trades and plenty of money to spend, Goold notes, so it figures to be an active winter for the club.

Here’s more from the National League:

  • While nothing’s official, it’s “pretty clear” pending free-agent reliever Joaquin Benoit will retire, Mark Zuckerman of MASNsports.com writes. The 41-year-old Benoit joined the Nationals on a $1MM guarantee last winter, but a shoulder injury prevented him from throwing a pitch for the team during the regular season. Had Benoit been younger, he likely would have undergone surgery and then rehabbed his way back, general manager Mike Rizzo said last week. Understandably, though, Benoit doesn’t want to fight through a lengthy recovery period at his age. If the journeyman’s career is over, it’ll conclude with a 3.83 ERA, 212 holds and 53 saves over 1,068 2/3 innings.
  • Fresh off a rough season, Giants second baseman Joe Panik’s future in San Francisco is uncertain, considering the team’s next head of baseball operations may opt for someone else at the keystone, Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports California observes. Panik realizes as much, telling Pavlovic: “It’s all about whoever comes in and who they feel is the best fit for the organization going forward. You hope it’s you, but at the end of the day, it’s not your call.” Although the soon-to-be 28-year-old Panik batted a non-threatening .254/.307/.332 (75 wRC+) with four home runs in 392 plate appearances this season, he’s likely to score upward of $5MM during his second-last arb trip during the winter, Pavlovic writes. That’d be a solid raise over the $3.45MM Panik pulled in this year. As for his disappointing 2018, during which he missed time with thumb and groin injuries, Panik offered: “Once I went down with the thumb, I feel like I could just never get it back. It’s hard to explain to people … when your season is kind of choppy and broken up, it’s hard to sometimes find your rhythm. But when it comes down to it, you still have to find a way.”

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