Carlos Santana

Indians Plan To Explore Extension With Carlos Santana

By Steve Adams | April 6, 2017 at 4:50pm CDT

The Indians have been active in extension talks of late, reaching multi-year agreements with infielder Jose Ramirez (five years, $26MM) and catcher Roberto Perez (four years, $9MM) in addition to making an effort to hammer out a deal with star shortstop Francisco Lindor. They may not be done just yet, either, as Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports reports that the Indians will explore an extension with first baseman/designated hitter Carlos Santana in attempt to prevent him from reaching free agency following the 2017 season.

Santana, 31 this weekend, has long been one of the most productive and durable hitters in the Cleveland lineup. Dating back to the 2011 campaign, he’s been on the disabled list just once: an 11-day absence on the 7-day DL in 2014 due to concussion symptoms. Since Opening Day 2011, Santana has averaged 153 games and 654 plate appearances per season. In that time, his bat has been above the league average in each year, and his collective .247/.363/.443 batting line in that time has translated to a 121 OPS+ and a 124 wRC+ (meaning, essentially, that he’s been 21 percent to 24 percent better than the league-average hitter after accounting for league and park).

While Santana was a catcher for much of his early career and had a brief experiment as a third baseman in 2014, he’s largely limited to first base and designated hitter duties at this stage of his career. He played only those two positions during the regular season in 2015-16 (plus two left field appearances in the World Series), and it doesn’t seem especially likely that a team would feel comfortable playing him elsewhere with any sort of regularity.

It’s certainly possible to envision Santana preferring to remain with the only team he’s ever known and one that looks to be very well-positioned for the near future. However, a significant discount on an extension may not be likely with free agency just six months away. His initial contract — a five-year, $21MM extension — already looks to be a feather in Cleveland’s cap, after all, even with his 2017 option elevating his total earnings to $31.8MM over six years.

Then again, Santana will hit the open market heading into his age-32 season and with the memory of a free-agent market that was not kind to defensively limited sluggers fresh in his mind. From my vantage point, he’s a definite qualifying offer candidate at season’s end, which wouldn’t do any favors for his market. (Although Santana may not face the same hurdles as others have in recent years now that the new collective bargaining agreement has lowered the penalty for signing a player that rejected a QO.)

Cleveland entered the 2017 season with a club-record $128MM payroll, but the Indians only have about $77MM committed to the 2018 payroll. That sum could rise depending on the fate of outfielder Michael Brantley ($11MM club option), left-hander Boone Logan ($7MM club option) and Josh Tomlin ($3MM club option). There will also be arbitration raises on the horizon for Cody Allen, Danny Salazar, Trevor Bauer, Lonnie Chisenhall, Zach McAllister and Dan Otero, further complicating the financial outlook. That said, if ownership is comfortable with a payroll in this range once again in 2018, the Indians could probably fit a Santana extension into the payroll — especially were it to be backloaded in nature.

AL Central Notes: Indians, White Sox, Royals

By Jeff Todd and Connor Byrne | March 4, 2017 at 3:30pm CDT

The Indians plan to utilize Carlos Santana as the team’s primary first baseman, skipper Terry Francona told reporters including MLB.com’s Jordan Bastian (via Twitter). That means that Edwin Encarnacion will mostly serve as the team’s designated hitter, though the two will also exchange roles at times. While that’ll increase the wear and tear somewhat on Santana, who’s slated to hit the open market after the season, it will give him a chance also to show his defensive chops after lining up as the DH primarily in 2016.

Carlos Santana Changes Agents

By Jeff Todd | March 3, 2017 at 1:50pm CDT

With free agency on the horizon, veteran DH Carlos Santana has decided to change agents, as Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports recently reported (via Twitter). Santana, 30, will now be represented by Octagon.

The Indians could conceivably engage Santana’s new representatives about another extension, though that has never seemed particularly likely. A return to Cleveland could still come to pass, especially if the club hangs a qualifying offer on him, but it would rate as a surprise if the sides were to strike a new deal this spring.

Santana’s current deal, signed when he hadn’t even reached his second year of MLB service, wraps up this year. The club picked up a $12MM option for 2017, meaning that the contract ended up paying out $31.8MM over its six-year span, which covered a pair of pre-arbitration years, all three arb campaigns, and one would-be free agent season.

Things have changed quite a bit in the meantime for the switch-hitting Santana. He has been steadily productive offensively, compiling a lifetime .247/.365/.444 slash, but no longer spends any time as a catcher. While he has logged plenty of innings at first and ever some at third base, Santana spent 92 games as the Indians’ DH in 2016.

Landing big bucks has never been harder for defensively limited sluggers, as this last winter’s free agent market showed. But there’s some reason to believe that Santana will find broader demand than some otherwise similar players. He remains relatively youthful, offers the versatility of hitting from both sides of the plate, and still delivers the kind of impeccable plate discipline (99 strikeouts against 99 walks in 2016) that many organizations covet. Notably, Santana was able to maintain that outstanding zone control while hitting a career-best 34 home runs last year.

Indians To Exercise Carlos Santana’s Option

By Steve Adams | November 3, 2016 at 12:25pm CDT

The Indians will pick up their $12MM club option on designated hitter/first baseman Carlos Santana, tweets Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports. The decision was a foregone conclusion, as Santana not only remained productive in his age-30 campaign but had one of the best years of his career in 2016.

Santana, 31 next April, appeared in a career-high 158 games and notched a career-best 688 plate appearances in 2016. The switch-hitting slugger also notched career-best marks in homers (34), runs scored (89) and RBIs (87) while posting a strong .259/.366/.498 batting line that checked in well above the league average. Santana spent most of his time as Cleveland’s DH this season, starting 92 games there, though he did also make 64 appearances as a first baseman. It’s yet to be determined exactly how that playing time will be divided up in 2017, as the team currently stands to lose its primary first baseman, Mike Napoli, to free agency. However, GM Mike Chernoff said prior to the conclusion of the World Series that Cleveland had a desire to keep Napoli in the fold, so the possibility exists that Santana and Napoli can once again provide the bulk of the power in manager Terry Francona’s lineup next season.

We’re also nearing the point at which Santana’s future with the Indians becomes a question mark. Originally acquired in a wildly lopsided trade that sent Casey Blake to the Dodgers, Santana has taken every at-bat of his Major League career whilst wearing an Indians uniform. Cleveland signed him to a five-year, $21MM pact prior to the 2012 season, and the 2016 campaign marked the final guaranteed year of that deal. His club option for 2017 was a no-brainer, but Santana will be eligible to test the open market for the first time next offseason if the Indians don’t broker a longer-term pact with him in the next 12 months.

Heyman’s Latest: ChiSox, Santana, Cozart, Rockies, Davis, Brewers, Smith

By Steve Adams | October 7, 2016 at 4:43pm CDT

Jon Heyman of Fan Rag gives his odds on the postseason and provides a host of interesting information in his latest notes column. Here are a few highlights:

While there’s been some turnover in the White Sox’ dugout, as bench coach Rick Renteria has moved up to manager as a replacement for the departing Robin Ventura, changes to the field staff don’t figure to impact pitching coach Don Cooper, per Heyman. In fact, the South Siders have actually made an extension offer to their well-respected pitching coach, who is on the brink of entering his 16th season at that post.
While it’s hardly a surprise, Heyman notes that the Indians will exercise their $12MM option on Carlos Santana. For a player with a .259/.366/.498 with a career-high 34 homers, that decision was a no-brainer, even for a typically cost-conscious club like Cleveland.
The Rockies quietly made a run at Cincinnati’s Zack Cozart prior to the non-waiver trade deadline, knowing that Trevor Story, whose last game came on July 30, was ailing and could miss the remainder of the season. Talks continued into August, per Heyman, but Cozart’s own injury issues arose and made a deal more difficult. It’d have been interesting to see the Rox land Cozart, as he’d have once again become a trade chip for them in the offseason with Story expected to be ready to go for the 2017 season. While talks don’t seem likely to be revisited this winter, the note is another reminder that Cozart is a desirable trade chip for the Reds, who also had a near-swap that would’ve sent Cozart to the Mariners on Aug. 1. Heyman also reminds that longtime GM/president Walt Jocketty will step into an adviser role this winter, leaving GM Dick Williams as the top decision-maker in Cincinnati’s baseball ops department.
Sticking with the Rockies, Heyman chronicles the rift that grew and eventually became irreconcilable between now-former manager Walt Weiss and GM Jeff Bridich. Per the report, there was a near-total breakdown of communications between the two. Weiss expressed concern with owner Dick Monfort — who was seemingly preparing to give Weiss a two-year extension and tried to convince him to stay. But the skipper didn’t believe that the two leaders could co-exist, and Monfort ultimately stuck with his GM.
Tigers owner Mike Ilitch was serious about pursuing slugger Chris Davis in free agency last winter — so much so that he was willing to guarantee something approaching $200MM, says Heyman. Newly-installed GM Al Avila, however, recommended that the team take another course. Though Davis has been reasonably productive, he hasn’t produced at the levels that earned him his ultimate contract — a $161MM deal with the Orioles.
As the Brewers’ brass has suggested, Heyman says that the team is not inclined to utilize Jonathan Villar at third base. With Orlando Arcia seemingly set for his first full season at short, that may well mean that Villar is destined to shift over to second base. If that’s the case, it’s not clear just what role Scooter Gennett will have. The 26-year-old is entering his first season of arbitration eligibility after a posting a below-average .263/.317/.412 batting line in his 542 plate appearances in 2016.
Meanwhile, the Brewers may not be sold on the idea of tendering Chris Carter a contract. While the team has suggested he’s expected back, Carter’s 41 homers also make him a good bet to earn a rather significant arbitration raise.
The Mariners appear to be “leaning toward” picking up a $7MM option over outfielder Seth Smith. Smith, 34, isn’t quite an everyday player, but has received over 400 plate appearances in each of his two campaigns in Seattle. This year, he hit .249/.342/.415 with 16 home runs, just under his overall career marks. At $7MM, the M’s would be getting Smith for something like the going annual rate for a fourth outfielder, while limiting its commitment to a single season.

Heyman’s Latest: Dodgers, Puig-Braun, CarGo, Cespedes, EE, Santana, Red Sox, Mariners

By Jeff Todd | September 15, 2016 at 8:33pm CDT

Dodgers righty Kenley Jansen says he is grateful to the team for all it has done for him, Jon Heyman of Fan Rag reports, but notes that he fully intends to explore the open market this winter. “We’ll have to see what’s good for the family,” he said. “It’s going to be a tough decision. It’s not going to only be me.” Infielder Justin Turner, meanwhile, says he’d “love to stay” in Los Angeles, as Heyman provides in his weekly notes column. Both figure to be targets for the Dodgers in free agency, but also ought to draw wide-ranging interest from other organizations.

Here are some of the other highlights from Heyman’s latest post:

Heyman pushes back on recent reports suggesting that the Dodgers nearly shipped Yasiel Puig to the Brewers as part of a package to acquire Ryan Braun. A source tells him that “there was a lot of dialogue but [a swap] was never close.” Regardless, it seems that there’s still merit to the idea that the teams could revisit the scenario this winter.
“No great offers” emerged last winter for Rockies outfielder Carlos Gonzalez, according to the report. But Colorado may be wise to shop him again in a few months, Heyman writes, as the team’s glut of left-handed-hitting outfielders could represent an opportunity to improve in other areas. Gonzalez is hitting a productive .300/.350/.523, even if it is aided by playing at Coors Field, and is owed a reasonable $37MM over the next two seasons. It’s worth noting, too, that the club could potentially not only turn that contract into some intriguing, younger assets, but would also free up a good bit of payroll space to deploy on the open market.
The upcoming market for free agents is obviously short on star power, but Heyman provides some preliminary guesses on the contracts for the top players. He suggests four years and $100MM for Yoenis Cespedes of the Mets as the biggest deal that could be had (assuming, as seems likely, that he’ll opt out of his deal). From my perspective, another star campaign from Cespedes has likely boosted his market beyond that level. The Cuban slugger rates as the top overall free agent on the free agent power ranking of MLBTR’s Tim Dierkes.
Edwin Encarnacion of the Blue Jays is fourth on Dierkes’s most recent list — he rates Aroldis Chapman and Jansen higher — while Heyman rates him second to Cespedes. But the veteran slugger is headed for a monster contract regardless, and Heyman notes that the continued belief around the game is that Toronto won’t extend itself to retain him. Instead, the Jays seem to be angling to put together a younger roster.
Whether Blue Jays skipper John Gibbons is interested in staying on with more change possibly afoot remains to be seen, but Heyman says that the club has been impressed with his work. An internal team source suggests that the team will attempt to retain him — at least as long as a postseason berth is secured — and sources with ties to the skipper say that he likely prefers to stick in the position rather than hunting for another opportunity elsewhere.
Carlos Santana is highly likely to return to the Indians, per the report. His $12MM club option is a “no-brainer” for the club, a source says. The 30-year-old never seemed very likely to be allowed to test the market: he carries a .243/.353/.471 batting line with 31 long balls and has struck out only one time more than he has walked thus far in 2016.
The Red Sox are expected to pursue relief help on the upcoming free agent market, Heyman says. That’s not surprising to hear, of course, as depth and quality have both been in question at times and the team is set to watch pitchers such as Brad Ziegler, Koji Uehara, and Junichi Tazawa depart via free agency.
With a group of talented, high-performing players on hand, the Mariners are “talking behind the scenes” about taking advantage of a window of contention, according to Heyman. That could position the club to strike out on the free agent market in search of a “complementary piece,” he says. There are several areas the team could target, but I wonder whether the time may be right to add a slugging first baseman; there are several available, and the team is set to lose its primary tandem of Adam Lind and Dae-ho Lee to free agency.

AL Central Notes: Molitor, Royals, Minor, Fulmer, Greene, Tribe

By Mark Polishuk | February 21, 2016 at 7:24pm CDT

The Twins haven’t had any talks with Paul Molitor about a contract extension, Mike Berardino of the St. Paul Pioneer Press reports. Molitor exceeded expectations in his first year as a Major League manager, leading the Twins to a surprising 83-79 record. There isn’t necessarily a lot of urgency to get a new deal done — not only is Molitor still under contract through the 2017 campaign, “the expectation at this point is that” the Twins will give Molitor “every opportunity to” continue managing, Berardino writes, especially as long as Terry Ryan is the GM. Here’s some more from around the AL Central…

The Twins will likely wait to see how their bullpen situation develops in Spring Training before checking out any free agent relievers, LaVelle E. Neal III of the Minneapolis Star Tribune tweets.
Given how Ned Yost, Dayton Moore and J.J. Piccolo all have ties to the Braves, it’s maybe no surprise that the Royals have picked up so many former Atlanta pitchers as reclamation projects, ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick writes. Kris Medlen proved to be a very sound investment for K.C. last winter and now Peter Moylan and Mike Minor have both joined the Royals this offseason looking to re-establish their value. The ties between the pitchers themselves also played a role — Medlen and Moylan trained and rehabbed together in 2014 when both were recovering from Tommy John surgery.
Minor said that pitching at Kauffman Stadium and the Royals’ offer of two guaranteed years were big reasons he signed with the team, the lefty tells Rustin Dodd of the Kansas City Star (Twitter link).
Shane Greene’s first season with the Tigers was riddled with injuries, including a scary situation involving an aneurysm that caused blood clots in his fingers, ESPN’s Katie Strang writes. Greene underwent shoulder surgery to address the problem in August, and while the blood clots have yet to dissolve (which may not happen for years), Greene said he’s feeling much better and is looking forward to competing for a spot in Detroit’s rotation.
Michael Fulmer drew heavy interest in trade talks this offseason, Jeff Seidel of the Detroit Free Press reports, though the Tigers didn’t bite on dealing the highly-touted young righty. It’s no surprise that GM Al Avila was keen to keep Fulmer, given that the right-hander was the centerpiece of the trade package received last summer for Yoenis Cespedes.
“The Indians are always sneaky about” working on contract extensions, Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer writes, so it wouldn’t surprise him if the Tribe inks at least one player to a multi-year deal this spring. Danny Salazar and Trevor Bauer make sense as possible extension candidates since both become arbitration-eligible next winter, and Hoynes also thinks the Tribe could extend Cody Allen.
Hoynes’ mailbag piece covers several other Indians-related topics, including Hoynes’ belief that the Tribe won’t exercise their $12MM club option on Carlos Santana for the 2017 season. I tend to agree, unless Santana rebounds from something of a down year in 2015.

Central Notes: Indians, Tigers, Buehrle, Pirates

By charliewilmoth | November 14, 2015 at 9:35am CDT

The Indians need outfield help, particularly after Michael Brantley’s recent shoulder surgery, but they don’t appear likely to trade Carlos Santana or any of their top starting pitchers (Corey Kluber, Carlos Carrasco, Danny Salazar or Trevor Bauer) to get it, Paul Hoynes of Cleveland.com writes. They likely won’t pursue top free agents like Yoenis Cespedes or Alex Gordon, either. Instead, they could sign a middle-tier outfielder like Gerardo Parra, Austin Jackson, Steve Pearce or Nori Aoki, and even then, they’ll probably wait until December or January when the market is a bit clearer. Santana, meanwhile, is likely to play first base or DH, with the Indians looking for someone else to take the other spot. The Indians are also likely to give Giovanny Urshela, whose defense they like, more opportunities at third base. They could, however, have someone platoon with him. Here’s more from the Central divisions.

The Tigers have interest in free agent starter Yovani Gallardo, Buster Olney of ESPN tweets. The Tigers don’t seem likely to be serious bidders for top starting pitchers, but they could bid for players in Gallardo’s tier as they attempt to fill in their rotation around Justin Verlander, Anibal Sanchez and Daniel Norris.
It’s unclear whether veteran starter Mark Buehrle will retire, but if he doesn’t, he’s likely to pitch for the Cardinals, Bob Elliott of the Toronto Sun writes. The Cardinals seem likely to look for starting pitching in the wake of Lance Lynn’s injury, although it’s unclear whether they would have interest in Buehrle specifically. Buehrle was born and raised in St. Charles, Missouri, about a half hour from St. Louis.
The Pirates will have to consider adding a number of prospects to their roster next week to protect them from being selected in the Rule 5 Draft, writes MLB.com’s Adam Berry. Top prospects Tyler Glasnow, Josh Bell and Harold Ramirez will likely be easy decisions, in my opinion, and pitcher Clay Holmes and infielder (and Pirates minor league player of the year) Max Moroff will likely receive consideration as well.

AL Central Notes: Atkins, Picollo, Mauer, Tribe

By Mark Polishuk | October 11, 2015 at 8:29pm CDT

The Royals’ backs are against the wall after losing Game Three of their ALDS matchup with the Astros today, and Houston now holds a 2-1 edge in the series. Dallas Keuchel continued his Minute Maid Park dominance by holding K.C. to one run (on five hits and three walks) over seven innings, striking out seven. Solo homers from Lorenzo Cain and Alex Gordon accounted for all of the Royals’ offense in the 4-2 defeat. Yordano Ventura will take the mound against Lance McCullers tomorrow as the Royals hope to force a fifth game on Wednesday back in Kansas City.

Some news from around the AL Central…

Indians VP of player personnel Ross Atkins will interview for the Phillies GM job this week, Jon Heyman reports in his latest notes column (which contained several other interesting hot stove items). Atkins has worked in various capacities within Cleveland’s organization over the last 15 years, and he also interviewed for the Angels’ open GM position last month before the Halos hired Billy Eppler. Atkins is the third known candidate to interview for the job, along with Kim Ng and Larry Beinfest.
Royals assistant GM J.J. Picollo has also been mentioned as a contender for the Phillies position, and one talent evaluator predicts to ESPN’s Buster Olney (Twitter link) that Picollo will indeed be Philadelphia’s next general manager. Picollo has worked with the Royals since 2006 and spent seven years in the Braves front office prior his arrival in Kansas City.
The time has come for Joe Mauer to be moved as both as No. 3 hitter in the Twins’ lineup and as an everyday first baseman, Jim Souhan of the Minneapolis Star Tribune opines. Souhan suggests that Mauer could best help the Twins in a super-sub role (rotating between first, third, left field, right field and DH in five starts per week) and his declining production is better suited for hitting seventh or perhaps occasionally at second since he still takes a lot of pitches. While I agree with Souhan that a drop in the batting order is probably needed at this point, I’m not sure the position switching is a good plan. It’s a lot to ask of a long-time catcher/first baseman who turns 33 in April to suddenly learn two new brand-new positions, and added versatility won’t help anyone if Mauer is a defensive liability.
Indians backup catcher Roberto Perez could be an interesting piece to be shopped as part of a trade package this offseason, Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer writes. That said, Hoynes notes that Perez is well-liked by the Indians braintrust and “Perez is probably more valuable to the Indians than to any other team.” Perez had a solid .228/.348/.402 slash line and seven homers in 226 PA for Cleveland in 2015, seeing quite a bit of playing time with Yan Gomes on the DL.
Also from Hoynes’ mailbag piece, he thinks the Indians will test Carlos Santana’s trade value this winter. A deal may not be too likely given that the Tribe is already hurting for bats, however, and a better move might be to acquire a solid hitter to help complement Santana in the lineup.

Al Notes: Fiers, Santana, Francona, Shapiro

By | August 22, 2015 at 9:27pm CDT

Astros July trade acquisition Mike Fiers tossed a no hitter against the Dodgers last night. The 134 pitch performance was a microcosm of the Astros season, writes Evan Drellich of the Houston Chronicle. Fiers, 30, was the second piece in the Carlos Gomez trade. He was supposed to provide a little depth in the rotation – not outmatch a potent Dodgers lineup. The Astros are also doing more than they ever were supposed to – they currently have a 3.5 game lead in the AL West with a 67-56 record. Of course, Fiers’ no hitter isn’t completely shocking. He’s posted a solid 3.63 ERA with 9.13 K/9 and 3.25 BB/9. The same can be said of the Astros success. The club obviously entered the season with a few good starting pitchers, a powerful offense, and a revamped bullpen.

Here are a few more notes out of Cleveland:

The Indians may want to consider trading first baseman Carlos Santana this offseason, opines Terry Pluto of the Cleveland Plain Dealer.Santana, 29, used to offer more utility by playing catcher, third, and first. Now he’s locked into the cold corner due to concussion issues and shoddy defense. More importantly, his offensive performance is at a career worst. He’s been particularly bad from the right side which is peculiar given his strong career splits. Pluto lists several internal replacements. None are likely to approach Santana’s production.
Also per Pluto, rumors that Mark Shapiro is under consideration to become the next Blue Jays CEO won’t affect the roles of GM Mark Antonetti or manager Terry Francona. While Shapiro advises on baseball decisions, Antonetti has full authority in that sphere. Francona originally joined the Indians in part due to Shapiro, but he also has a strong relationship with Antonetti. He can opt out of his contract if either executive is fired, but it’s not clear if that extends to one of them leaving by choice. Paul Hoynes of the Northeast Ohio Media Group echoes Pluto’s sentiments. He names a few internal candidates who could be promoted to club president, but also mentions CEO and owner Paul Dolan as a likely candidate.

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