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Mariners, Casey Lawrence Agree To Minor League Deal

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The Mariners have agreed to bring back right-hander Casey Lawrence on a minor league contract, per Baseball America’s Matt Eddy. He’d previously been outrighted off the 40-man roster and become a free agent. Presumably, he’ll be in Major League camp this coming spring.

The 30-year-old Lawrence proved to be an oft-used depth piece for an injury-plagued Mariners staff in 2017. After being claimed off outright waivers (out of the Blue Jays’ system) in early May, Lawrence was recalled to the Majors on four separate occasions by the Mariners through season’s end.

All told, Lawrence tossed 42 innings for the M’s, and while his 5.57 ERA wasn’t pretty, he did average 9.6 K/9 against a respectable 3.0 BB/9 mark in his 23 appearances. Home runs proved to be a significant problem for the rookie, though, as he also averaged 1.93 big flies per nine innings pitched in Seattle. Metrics like xFIP (3.87) and SIERA (3.68) reviewed Lawrence’s work far more favorably than his ERA (due largely to those K/BB numbers), but he’ll need to rein in the home runs if he’s to have any sort of chance at success in the Majors.

Orioles Notes: Gonzalez, Goins, Santander, Tejada

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The Orioles are interested in a reunion with free-agenty righty Miguel Gonzalez and are one of at least three clubs to show interest in the 33-year-old thus far in the offseason, reports Eduardo A. Encina of the Baltimore Sun. Gonzalez, who’ll turn 34 next May, made 27 starts between the White Sox and Rangers last year, logging a rather pedestrian 4.62 ERA with 5.8 K/9, 3.2 BB/9 and a 36.7 percent ground-ball rate over the life of 156 innings. Gonzalez spent the first four seasons of his career, 2012-15, as a member of the Orioles’ rotation and has enjoyed the most success of his career wearing an O’s uniform. He’s hardly a high-upside option, but the O’s are looking to add as many as three starters to the rotation this offseason, and Gonzalez could likely be had on a one-year deal, so he could conceivably step into the fifth slot in the Baltimore rotation next year.

A bit more on the O’s…

  • The latest column from Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com runs down a number of Orioles topics, including whether left-hander Chris Lee should be viewed as a starter or reliever heading into 2018 and how much time Mark Trumbo should be expected to see in right field (as opposed to at designated hitter). On the topic of the team’s utility infielder, Kubatko cites recently non-tendered Ryan Goins as an option in Baltimore. The Orioles have seen Goins up close with the Blue Jays for years, and while he’s just a career .228/.275/.335 hitter in nearly 1400 plate appearances, he comes with a sterling defensive reputation (despite a season of abnormally poor marks at shortstop in 2017).
  • Kubatko also examines whether the Orioles will carry switch-hitting outfielder Anthony Santander on their roster to open the season. The 23-year-old Santander was Baltimore’s pick in the 2016 Rule 5 Draft, but a forearm injury kept him on the disabled list for most of the 2017 campaign. Santander was activated in mid August but still needs another 44 days on the active roster before his Rule 5 status expires, per Kubatko, who notes that the Indians would take Santander back if offered the opportunity. Baltimore plucked Santander out of the Cleveland system despite the fact that he’d never played above Class-A Advanced, but he tore through a 15-game rehab assignment in Double-A last year (.380/.458/.780 with five homers) and is considered one of the better prospects in the Orioles’ system. It seems likely that the O’s will want to hang onto him, and in a worst-case scenario they could simply option him to the minors after the season’s first 44 days, should he prove in need of more development.
  • Following the Orioles’ announcement of a new minor league deal with Ruben Tejada, Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports reported (on Twitter) that the infielder’s deal comes with a $1.35MM base salary and another $600K of available incentives if he makes the Major League roster. Tejada, who turned 28 in October, will be in camp vying for a bench spot after hitting .230/.293/.283 in 124 PAs with the Orioles and .280/.357/.440 in 197 PAs at the Triple-A level in 2017. Luis Sardinas and Steve Wilkerson could be his primary competition right now, though as Kubatko suggests, the O’s could very well add further infield depth in the months to come.

Shohei Ohtani Rumors: Wednesday

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Shohei Ohtani has completed meetings with the seven finalists for his services, reportedly going through an exhaustive set of seven face-to-face meetings in Los Angeles over a 48-hour period. Now that he’s met with each of the Mariners, Padres, Cubs, Angels, Rangers, Dodgers and Giants, Ohtani will spend anywhere from the next few days to the next two weeks deciding on where he’ll sign his first pro contract in the United States. He has until Dec. 22 to make that call, though the expeditious manner in which he met with the finalists lends some speculative optimism that he could reach a conclusion well before that deadline.

Here’s the latest on Ohtani…

  • Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic writes (subscription required & recommended) that there are those in the game who wonder if Ohtani’s decision has already been made. The expedited manner in which Ohtani eliminated 23 teams and then met with seven finalists has been a point of frustration for some clubs, Rosenthal writes, noting that execs from some East coast teams have privately wondered why they were asked to put so much time into their presentations for Ohtani when he ultimately eliminated the East coast in one swoop.

Earlier Updates

  • Giants GM Bobby Evans tells John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle that in addition to manager Bruce Bochy and several front office executives, the Giants brought Buster Posey to their meeting with Ohtani and his representatives. Ohtani’s translator said at the meeting that the 23-year-old was impressed by Posey’s “great aura, and Evans tells Shea that Ohtani has watched and admired Posey’s play in the World Series and other settings. The Giants envision Ohtani starting once per week, and Evans wouldn’t even rule out the possibility of him playing some center field. “Some scouts see him being able to play all three [outfield positions] very capably,” says Evans. “It’s a matter of what’s best for him.”
  • In an excellent column at MLB.com, Mike Petriello utilizes Statcast to break down Ohtani’s skills and generate comps based on current big league stars. MLB.com obtained Trackman data on Ohtani’s 2017 season, giving them 231 plate appearances and six starts to dive into, and while the sample is small, it’s certainly enough to see some trends in terms of velocity, spin rate and average exit velocity. Per Petriello, Ohtani’s average 97.5 mph fastball would’ve ranked second among MLB starters, and his max velocity of 101.6 mph would rank among the hardest pitches thrown by any starter in the Statcast era. The velocity and spin rate on Ohtani’s fastball are strikingly similar to Luis Severino, Petriello points out (though spin rate may not be a direct comp due to the different balls used between MLB and NPB). On the offensive side of the coin, Ohtani’s max 111.1 mph exit velocity was greater than the hardest-hit ball of more than 70 percent of MLB players in ’17. His exit velo on fly-balls and liners ranks alongside several of the game’s top overall sluggers. The fascinating column only further builds intrigue around what Ohtani can do in a Major League setting.
  • Fangraphs’ Travis Sawchik, meanwhile, notes that the Cubs can offer a unique benefit that no other suitor can: (relatively) limited travel time. While all Major League players spend an obscene amount of time flying from destination to destination, the Cubs’ setting in the Midwest means they travel as many as 10,000 miles less per season than the Rangers and upwards of 23,000 fewer miles than the Angels and Mariners in a given season (based on Chris Ford’s mileage estimates for the 2017 campaign). It may be a minor benefit, but as Sawchik notes, for a player whose recovery time will be monitored closely than just about any in baseball as he attempts the rigors of two-way play (at least to some extent), there’s some degree of appeal.

Royals Agree To Deals With Two Former Braves Prospects

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Dec. 6: The Royals have also agreed to a deal with former Braves prospect Juan Carlos Negret, Sanchez reports (via Twitter). The Cuban-born 18-year-old hit .264/.401/.391 with a pair of homers and 23 steals (in 32 attempts) across 217 plate appearances and 50 games in the Dominican Summer League this past season.

Dec. 5: The Royals have agreed to sign right-hander Yefri Del Rosario for a $650K signing bonus, reports Jesse Sanchez of MLB.com (via Twitter). The 18-year-old Rosario had originally signed for a $1MM bonus with Atlanta but was one of the dozen prospects whom commissioner Rob Manfred declared a free agent following the league’s investigation into the Braves’ misdealings on the international prospect front.

Del Rosario made his professional debut in 2017 when he tossed a combined 37 1/3 innings between the Braves’ Rookie-level affiliates in the Dominican Summer League and the Gulf Coast League. In that time, he posted a 3.62 ERA with a 36-to-14 K/BB ratio. Prior to DelRosario’s signing, Baseball America’s Ben Badler noted that he had already run his fastball up to 94 mph and featured a breaking pitch that at times looked like a plus offering while also noting that there were some concerns that Del Rosario’s mechanics and smaller stature would eventually lead to a future as a reliever. More recently, ESPN’s Keith Law called Del Rosario the “most intriguing” pitcher the Braves lost in the scandal, praising his athleticism and arm speed.

The Royals are still in the “penalty box” for vastly exceeding their international pool in the 2015-16 signing period, meaning they’re barred from signing any player on the 2017-18 class for more than $300K. However, as pertains to the Braves prospects that were recently dubbed free agents by Manfred, teams can reportedly dip into next year’s signing pool in order to ink them. That, it seems, is the route the Royals are taking here. Notably, today marks the first day that those former Atlanta prospects can officially sign with new organizations. They’re eligible to sign for a new bonus with any team other than the Braves between now and Jan. 15, after which they’ll still be eligible to sign but ineligible to receive an additional bonus.

Cardinals Notes: Mikolas, Stanton, Longoria

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The Cardinals’ signing of right-hander Miles Mikolas to a two-year, $15.5MM contract might not have been the splash that many St. Louis fans were hoping to see this week, but it nonetheless is a significant pickup for the club. GM Mike Girsch tells reporters, including MLB.com’s Jenifer Langosch, that Mikolas will compete for a rotation spot after impressing Cardinals scouts for several years with his transformation in Japan. “Our scouts have watched him as he refined his repertoire, improved his velocity and became one of the most effective pitchers in Japan the last couple seasons,” says Girsch. “While Miles has always had good control back to his days with San Diego and Texas, he has been able to sharpen his pitches and improve his strikeout rate over the past three seasons.” The righty pitched to a 2.18 ERA with 8.0 K/9 against 1.5 BB/9 in 424 2/3 innings for the Yomiuri Giants before making the leap back to MLB. Langosch also quotes Mikolas himself on a number of the adjustments he made and his decision to sign with the Cardinals, whose Spring Training facility is in Mikolas’ hometown of Jupiter, Fla.

Some more Cardinals chatter as the Winter Meetings loom…

  • Adding Mikolas is also in many ways preparation for a potential trade, writes Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Goold reports that the Cards have made a “compelling” offer for Giancarlo Stanton and have discussed right-handers Sandy Alcantara and Jack Flaherty in various trade scenarios with the Marlins. (Notably, Goold does not specify whether either Alcantara or Flaherty is in the Cardinals’ final offer.) The Cardinals, he adds, are also willing to take on more of the contract than other teams.
  • Even if Stanton doesn’t approve a trade to the Cardinals, however, Goold points out that their negotiations with the Marlins won’t go to waste. Much of the talk that has gone on between the two clubs could serve as a framework for a deal involving Marcell Ozuna or Christian Yelich, if the Marlins are amenable to parting with them. The Cards have also talked to the Rays about closer Alex Colome, as Goold and others have previously reported, and Goold notes that those talks “could shift or expand” to include Evan Longoria. The longtime Rays cornerstone has come up as a speculative trade candidate on several occasions this winter. As Goold notes, Longoria gains 10-and-5 rights early in the 2018 season, so if the Rays do want to move the remaining five years and $86MM on his contract, this offseason is the time to do it before he gains the full no-trade power that comes with those 10-and-5 rights.
  • President of baseball operations John Mozeliak joined Chris Hrabe and Mike Claiborne of KMOX Sports Radio in St. Louis to discuss a host of topics, and the transcription of much of the conversation has been posted online by KMOX. Mozeliak didn’t delve into specifics on the Stanton rumors but did discuss the Mikolas signing, his surplus of young outfield options, some of the team’s new coaching hires (Mike Maddux, Willie McGee) and more. Notably, Mozeliak plainly stated that while some reports have pegged Mikolas as a potential fifth starter, the Cardinals “definitely see him with higher expectations than that.” Regarding the many upper-level outfield prospects the Cardinals have in their system, Mozeliak implies that the team will put that supply of talent to use in the near future. “When you envision the next couple of weeks, it’s how do we take that depth and put it towards finding a way to help the club…” Mozeliak states.

Twins Acquire Jacob Pearson From Angels In Exchange For International Bonus Money

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8:35pm: The Twins announced the trade and confirmed that they’re sending $1MM in international allocations.

8:22pm: Rosenthal tweets that the Angels, like the Mariners, are adding $1MM in their deal with the Twins. That pushes their pool up to $2.315MM.

8:18pm: After trading away $1MM of their international bonus pool to the Mariners, the Twins are set to trade away another portion of their pool to the Angels in exchange for outfield prospect Jacob Pearson, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reports (on Twitter). Minnesota has $2.245MM available to send to Anaheim in the deal. Pearson, Rosenthal notes, was the Angels’ third-round pick in the 2017 draft and received a $1MM signing bonus.

The Angels still trail the Rangers ($3.535MM) and Mariners ($2.5575MM) in overall international bonus money, but they’re nevertheless positioned to put forth one of the best financial offers to Shohei Ohtani. All four of the NL clubs reported to be among the finalists — the Cubs, Padres, Giants and Dodgers — are capped at a $300K offer as penalization for prior overages in international free agency.

The Twins will pick up a recent third-rounder who was considered to be the fifth-best prospect in the Angels’ farm, per Jim Callis and Jonathan Mayo of MLB.com, and now slots in 22nd among Twins farmhands per those same rankings.

Pearson, 19, batted just .226/.304/.284 in 40 games this past summer in his pro debut with Anaheim’s Rookie-level Arizona League affiliate. However, Callis and Mayo laud his bat speed in their free scouting report and tout him as a plus runner who will eventually have 20-homer, 20-steal potential. Arm strength is an issue following a torn labrum in high school, Callis and Mayo note, though it’s certainly possible that he improves in that regard as he distances himself from surgery. Pearson played 60 innings in center during his debut campaign and another 278 in left field.

Twins Acquire David Banuelos From Mariners In Exchange For International Bonus Money

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The Mariners announced that they’ve traded catching prospect David Banuelos to the Twins in exchange for international bonus money. Minnesota has also announced the deal, revealing that they’re sending $1MM of their $3.245MM pool to Seattle in the deal.

For the Mariners, the money added in tonight’s deal will allow them to pad their offer to Shohei Ohtani. Seattle’s international pool now sits at $2.5575MM, which still leaves them shy of the Rangers’ leading pool of $3.535MM but nonetheless allows them to sweeten their offer. Money, of course, isn’t thought to be the deciding factor when it comes to choosing a landing spot for Ohtani, but those of the seven finalists that are allowed to offer him more than $300K unsurprisingly appear to be putting forth their best effort to maximize their spending capacity. The Angels, for instance, are also set to reel in $1MM in bonus money from the Twins in a trade of their own.

The Twins will pick up a prospect that ranked 10th in a weak Mariners farm system, per MLB.com’s organizational rankings. Banuelos, 21, will give the Twins an intriguing prospect at what had been a relatively thin position in the organization. Seattle selected him in the fifth round of the 2017 draft out of Cal State Long Beach, and he went on to bat .236/.331/.394 with four homers and eight doubles in in short-season Class-A this summer. Banuelos, who threw out 38 percent of would-be base thieves, draws praise from MLB.com’s Jim Callis and Jonathan Mayo for his plus arm behind the plate and strong plate discipline/on-base skills.

Mariners Finalizing Trade To Acquire International Bonus Money From Twins

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The Mariners and Twins are closing in on a deal that would send international bonus money from Minnesota to Seattle, reports MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand (on Twitter). Feinsand’s colleague, Jon Morosi, had recently tweeted that the Twins were likely to trade international funds to one of the seven finalists for Shohei Ohtani tonight.

The Twins have $3.245MM in their international pool after their $3MM deal with prospect Jelfry Marte fell through due to an issue on his physical. The Twins had hoped to utilize that money to pursue Ohtani themselves, but after being informed they’d miss out on him, reports indicated that they’d be willing to part with some of that pool in trades with potential Ohtani suitors.

Red Sox Place Henry Owens On Outright Waivers

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The Red Sox have placed former top prospect Henry Owens on outright waivers, removing him from the 40-man roster and clearing a space for a possible acquisition, reports Evan Drellich of NBC Sports Boston. Drellich notes that it is not immediately clear that a corresponding acquisition is on the cusp of completion.

Owens, 25, once ranked among the game’s top 50 overall prospects in the eyes of Baseball America, Baseball Prospectus and MLB.com, but his stock has fallen since last landing on one of those lists, prior to the 2015 campaign. The left-hander has seen time in a pair of big league seasons, tossing 85 innings for the BoSox from 2015-16 but struggling to the tune of a 5.19 ERA with 7.5 K/9 against 4.7 BB/9.

Early in his pro career, Owens posted enormous strikeout rates, but that trait has diminished as he’s reached the upper minors and the Major Leagues. Moreover, his longstanding issue with walks has become increasingly magnified against more advanced hitters. That’s never been truer than it was in 2017, as Owens split the year between Double-A Portand and Triple-A Pawtucket and walked a staggering 115 batters in 126 innings (8.2 BB/9). Owens also hit 17 batters and uncorked 17 wild pitches in those 126 innings — further exemplifying his struggles to locate the ball.

Owens does have a minor league option remaining, so any club that claims him would have the opportunity to stash him in Triple-A rather than being forced to carry him on the roster out of Spring Training. Outright waiver priority is not league-specific, so he’ll be available to all rival clubs in the reverse order of the 2017 regular season standings.

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