May 18th: The Padres have released Chase Headley following this past weekend’s DFA, tweets Dennis Lin of The Athletic. The veteran third baseman is now a free agent. San Diego has yet to make a formal announcement, though the move is listed both on the MLB.com transactions log and on the Padres’ transaction log at their official web site.

It’s hardly an unexpected outcome for the 34-year-old Headley, who opened the season with a dismal .115/.233/.135 performance through 60 trips to the plate and is earning $13MM in the final season of a four-year, $52MM contract that he initially signed with the Yankees. Any team to claim Headley off waivers would’ve been on the hook for the remaining $9.5MM of that figure. San Diego technically could’ve absorbed a notable chunk of that salary in a trade, but Headley’s performance this season surely didn’t drum up much interest from rival clubs in that regard.

Headley is now available to any club that wishes to sign him to a minor league contract, and he’ll only be owed the pro-rated portion of the league minimum under a new deal. That sum, subsequently, would be subtracted from the $9.5MM the Padres still owe him, so they could save at least a small portion of that money if he latches on elsewhere.

It’s unlikely that any team would plug Headley straight into its MLB roster, but he’d make sense for a club in need of some depth at the infield corners in Triple-A. While there seems to be a perception that Headley didn’t provide much of any value to the Yankees in 2017, that’s not really the case. In 586 plate appearances last year, Headley slashed .273/.352/.406 with a dozen homers, 30 doubles and a triple. That’s hardly elite production, but his overall output rated average or slightly better, after adjusting for park and league, per OPS+ (99) and wRC+ (104). Both Fangraphs (1.9) and Baseball-Reference (1.8) felt that he was worth roughly two wins above replacement.

For the Padres, the trade that brought Headley back to San Diego has provided poor results all around in the early going. The trade, of course, was never about acquiring Headley but rather acquiring right-hander Bryan Mitchell from the Yankees. In taking on the remainder of Headley’s contract, the Padres effectively purchased four years of control over Mitchell for $13MM.

Mitchell, though, hasn’t panned out whatsoever in San Diego and has already lost his rotation spot. The 27-year-old came to the Padres with a terrific minor league track record and had shown potential at times in the Majors as well, but he’s been rocked for a 6.21 ERA in 37 1/3 innings with his new organization. While early-season ERA numbers can often be misleading, Mitchell’s struggles aren’t merely the product of poor luck, though. He’s issued 29 walks in 37 1/3 frames — a considerably higher total than the meager 18 strikeouts he’s managed. Mitchell has also surrendered six home runs and yielded a 39.4 percent hard-contact rate to opposing batters, as well (30th-highest among 132 MLB pitchers with at least 30 innings pitched).

Because Mitchell is out of minor league options, the Padres weren’t able to send him to Triple-A to straighten out and were instead forced to move him into the bullpen. He logged a starter’s workload in his lone appearance out of the ’pen thus far, totaling 5 2/3 innings of long relief and allowing three runs — again with more walks (three) than strikeouts (two).

Certainly, there’s ample time for him to improve his performance and to even make the trade a worthwhile one. The Padres, after all, can afford to be patient with him in a long relief role given their 17-28 start to the season, but he’ll eventually need to display better control, as the Friars will become more serious about contending in 2019 and beyond.

With a .115/.233/.135 line in 60 plate appearances, Headley got off to a terrible start prior to his designation. Between his own struggles and the success of fellow third baseman Christian Villanueva, the 34-year-old Headley was unable to return to a regular role in San Diego – which he held with both the Padres and Yankees from 2008-17. Headley was a quality starter throughout that run, especially during a 31-home run, 7.2-fWAR season with the Padres in 2012.

The switch-hitting Headley chipped in a decent season last year in New York, where he slashed .273/.352/.406 with 1.9 fWAR in 586 PAs and helped the Yankees to the ALCS. But the Yankees then shipped Headley to the Padres in a salary-dumping trade over the winter, when the Pads dealt outfielder Jabari Blash, agreed to take on Headley’s $13MM salary and acquired right-hander Bryan Mitchell.

The hope was that Headley would continue to serve as a capable veteran in his second go-round with the Padres, but the deal was more about Mitchell from the rebuilding team’s point of view. Unfortunately for the Padres, however, the 27-year-old Mitchell hasn’t been a worthwhile pickup to this point. Mitchell has been among the worst pitchers in the majors during the first month-plus of the season, in fact, having recorded 37 2/3 innings (eight appearances, seven starts) of 6.21 ERA/6.66 FIP ball and posted disastrous strikeout and walk rates (4.3 K/9, 6.93 BB/9).

A turnaround could perhaps still be in the offing for Mitchell, but it doesn’t appear one will come for Headley in a Padres uniform. Unless the Padres are able to deal him elsewhere for another team’s unwanted salary within the next week, it seems likely Headley will clear waivers and become a free agent. At that point, a club would be able to add a potentially helpful piece for the prorated league minimum.

To account for the decision on Mitchell, the club has moved fellow righty Jordan Lyles into the rotation for at least one start, veteran Padres writer Bill Center tweets. Meanwhile, lefty Matt Strahm was activated from the DL to step in for Makita.

These moves reflect the disappointing initial showings of two of the Padres’ most significant offseason pitching additions. Mitchell was the key piece acquired in a trade in which the Friars agreed to take over the remaining $13MM owed to Chase Headley, while Makita signed for $3.8MM over two years (plus a $500K posting fee).

In the case of Mitchell, who is out of options, the results have been awful thus far. He’s carrying a 6.47 ERA with 4.5 K/9 against 7.3 BB/9 in 32 frames over seven starts. His swinging-strike rate, which has never been very compelling in the majors, is down to just 5.0%.

Though Acee writes that the organization still believes in Mitchell and even thinks he could yet be a big-league starter, he’ll need to show something to earn another opportunity. For now, it’ll be Lyles who gets another crack at working from the rotation, though it’s unclear whether he’ll receive an extended shot. He’s still just 27 years of age and broke into the majors as a starter, but has not yet shown that he can hold down a job working every fifth day.

As for the 33-year-old Makita, a veteran of Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball but a MLB rookie, he’s shown both some good and bad to open the year. He’s sporting a healthy 15.4% swinging-strike rate and 9.6 K/9 against 3.9 BB/9 over his 16 innings. While a 6.75 ERA is never a good sign, in this case the damage is mostly isolated to a pair of rough outing and is surely a reflection in some part of a 58.5% strand rate that likely will go down. Makita needs to pare back the long balls (1.69 HR/9, 20.0% HR/FB) as well, but generally his unique, soft-tossing pitch mix has shown a fair bit of promise of playing in the majors.

Strahm, meanwhile, will look to make good on his long-observed talent. He was part of the interesting swap swung last year between the Padres and Royals. Strahm, who did not debut with the San Diego organization until 2018, has impressed in 14 1/3 innings this year at Double-A, allowing four earned runs while running a 22:4 K/BB ratio. Though he was knocked around in his debut outing last night, he figures to get a real chance to stick in the bigs.

“We’ve had a lot of dialogue on it — [GM A.J. Preller, manager Andy Green and assistant GM Josh Stein] obviously lead the discussions as it relates to players,” said Fowler. “They talked to me probably six months or so ago when they looked at who the free agents would be for 2018. They like him. They like his makeup, they like his leadership in the clubhouse, and obviously they like him as an athlete. We met with him, and he’s a very impressive individual.”

The Padres are reported to have made a seven-year offer to Hosmer and agent Scott Boras, and while word of that offer came in earlier this month, Fowler didn’t suggest that there’ve been any changes to what has been proposed. Moreover, he implied that he’s not exactly comfortable stretching the deal much further. Asked about concerns of paying for too much of a player’s decline phase, Fowler indicated that Boras may have a hard time selling him on a lengthier deal.

“I think you’re taking my side of the discussions I’ve had with [Green, Preller and Stein],” Fowler replied. “They feel that this guy is so focused, he has all of the exercise stuff, all of the elements in place to take care of himself like few players have. He would be 28 in the first year, obviously 34 would be his last year if it’s seven, but I can’t really get into it more than that. But I think we were pretty creative in the way we put a contract proposal together. We like it. I don’t know if Mr. Boras likes it, but that’s probably another story.”

The pursuit of Hosmer is just one of the many elements of the Padres’ offseason that some feel have clashed with the team’s rebuilding direction. In addition to putting forth a (presumed) nine-figure offer to Hosmer, San Diego has also traded a fairly well-regarded pitching prospect (right-hander Enyel De Los Santos) for a one-year rental of Freddy Galvis and taken on the final year of Chase Headley’s contract as a means of landing Bryan Mitchell from the Yankees. Fowler confirmed that Headley trade was almost entirely about Mitchell and stressed that the team is still focused on the development of young talent.

“We still are looking for the young guys to get up here that we either picked through the draft or signed internationally,” he explained. “But A.J. looked at who the pitchers were out there, and some of the guys were getting three-year contracts … [H]e felt that Bryan Mitchell, the guy we got from the Yankees, was worth taking the last year of the contract for Chase. We’re happy that Chase will be here — we think he’ll be here — but it was really for Mitchell that we paid that money, it wasn’t for Chase.”

Fowler went on to add that the team’s preference was to add players that will remain under control for several seasons. While Galvis, of course, does not match that description — he’ll be a free agent next winter — Fowler revealed that he hopes the switch-hitting shortstop can be retained beyond 2018.

“I’m hoping Galvis will be here for more than a year, take some pressure off some of the young guys coming up,” he stated. “…We’re feeling very good about that trade and what he might be able to do for us over the next few years.”

Of course, Fernando Tatis Jr. is widely expected to be the Padres’ shortstop of the future, though the vaunted top prospect isn’t yet ready for the Majors after spending most of 2017 in A-ball. If the team were able to retain Galvis beyond the upcoming season, it wouldn’t necessarily indicate a change of plans as pertains to Tatis, however; Galvis could provide some reasonably priced insurance and could potentially see time at other positions. That could further a current “problem” the organization is facing, which Fowler described as having “too many people at second and third right now” before noting that the logjam would likely work itself out.

The Padres have already traded Yangervis Solarte to the Blue Jays, but they still have Carlos Asuaje, Cory Spangenberg and Headley as options that figure to be on the 25-man roster come Opening Day, while Allen Cordoba, Tatis and Luis Urias loom in the minors.

The interview with Fowler covers considerably more topics, ranging from the team’s recent hiring of former Fangraphs managing editor Dave Cameron, to the team’s uniforms and their failed pursuit of Shohei Ohtani. (Fowler reveals that Preller began the team’s presentation to Ohtani by speaking in Japanese for the first five minutes or so and expresses immense pride for the work his team put into that pursuit.) The San Diego chairman also weighs in on the stalled free agent market, suggesting a belief that the luxury tax and a number of players whose asking prices are simply “really beyond their value” have combined to grind free agency to a halt.

Suffice it to say, the 16-minute interview is packed with topics that’ll be of interest not only to Padres fans but to baseball and hot stove fans in general. It’s well worth a full listen.

• The Halos are considering free agent Zack Cozart as an option at the hot corner, per Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic (via Twitter). Though he’s a shortstop by trade, the market doesn’t admit of many obvious holes at that position. But Cozart isn’t just any shortstop: he’s elite at the position, repeatedly rating as one of the best fielders in baseball. With the legendarily slick-fielding Andrelton Simmons already locked in at short and top-quality Kinsler at second, the Angels could arrange one of the best-defending 4-5-6 trios in recent memory, helping to ameliorate any concerns with utilizing the aging Albert Pujols at first. Better still, Cozart — like the others — has also established a solid ceiling at the plate, though perhaps it’s not quite reasonable to expect the 32-year-old to keep up his .297/.385/.548 output from a breakout 2017 offensive season.
• Trade is also a viable option for Los Angeles, according to Bob Nightengale of USA Today (via Twitter) and Jon Heyman of Fan Rag (via Twitter). As has been noted before, the Angels are one of several teams with possible interest in Padres third bagger Chase Headley. Headley and others are more likely to be added, at this point, than is free agent Mike Moustakas, according to Nightengale. “Moose” certainly has more home runs in his bat than the others under consideration and is also a more youthful option, though his contract is expected to reflect that and he remains a questionable performer in the on-base department. There’s nothing imminent on Headley or new teammate Yangervis Solarte, Scott Miller of Bleacher Report notes on Twitter. (Solarte has not emerged as a target of the Halos to this point, it should be noted.)
• It also emerged yesterday that the Angels have interest in Todd Frazier, yet another free agent who could fill the team’s major remaining position-player need. Though it seemed at one point yesterday that the organization was nearing a move at third, it seems there are still several irons in the fire at this point.

7:56pm: The Angels are close to acquiring a third baseman, Bob Nightengale of USA Today reports (Twitter link). They have “strong interest” in new Padres third baseman Chase Headley, Nightengale adds.

Headley was already part of one trade this week, going from the Yankees to the Padres on Tuesday in what amounted to a salary dump for New York. For now, the Padres are on the hook for $12.5MM of Headley’s $13MM in 2018, the last year of his contract. Given that the Angels are positioning themselves to contend in 2018 and the Padres are still amid a rebuild, the 33-year-old Headley would make more sense on Anaheim’s roster.

Headley has an important fan in Angels general manager Billy Eppler, Joel Sherman of the New York Post notes (Twitter link). Eppler was in the Yankees’ front office when they acquired Headley from his current team, San Diego, in 2014.

Along with Headley, the Angels have shown interest in free agent third basemen Mike Moustakas and Todd Frazier, who was teammates with Headley in New York last season, this week.

Some other rumblings from around the NL West…

• The Dodgers are still in “active dialogue” with Yu Darvish, GM Farhan Zaidi told MLB.com’s Ken Gurnick and other reporters.  Andrew Friedman said yesterday that the team was more focused on relievers than starters due to the number of depth rotation options already in the organization, though with Darvish’s market yet to fully develop, it only makes sense that L.A. would continue to check in with the ace righty.  In regards to the Dodgers’ bullpen search, Zaidi noted that the team is looking for value additions rather than at the top of the market.
• Rockies GM Jeff Bridich poured cold water on some speculation surrounding his team, telling Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post (all Twitter links) and other reporters that the Rox aren’t involved in trade talks for Marlins outfielder Marcell Ozuna.  Bridich also said that the club doesn’t have the payroll capability to shop at the very top of the free agent market for players like J.D. Martinez or Eric Hosmer.  One player Colorado is involved with is Wade Davis, as Bridich confirmed that the team is still talking to the free agent closer.
• The Padres’ rather surprising pursuit of Hosmer has drawn headlines, though Bleacher Report’s Scott Miller tweets that San Diego is more focused on either signing Zack Cozart or acquiring Freddy Galvis from the Phillies during the Winter Meetings.  Either infielder would address a more pressing need at shortstop.  Preller said (hat tip to Dennis Lin of the San Diego Union-Tribune) that the Padres have a list of eight or nine shortstop options that they feel could be acquired.  Lin also hears from some rival officials that the Padres would possibly be open to dealing a young pitcher in exchange for a shortstop.

MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand tweets that $500K will go to San Diego, though Jon Heyman of Fan Rag notes on Twitter that the cash will represent payment of half of Headley’s $1MM assignment bonus, which the clubs agreed to split.

10:13am: The Padres have reached agreement with the Yankees on a swap that will bring third baseman Chase Headley back to San Diego along with righty Bryan Mitchell, according to Joel Sherman of the New York Post (via Twitter). Jabari Blash is going to the Yanks in the deal, per Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic (via Twitter). It’s far from clear that Blash will have any chance of holding a 40-man spot with New York, so this seems to make clear the move is intended almost entirely to shed Headley’s salary and free up some roster space.

There are several interesting dimensions to this deal at first glance. Headley’s shocking return to San Diego is surely among them; he went through a lengthy trade saga with the Friars before being sent to the Yanks. Ultimately, the veteran third baseman re-upped with the Yankees on a contract that has one year and $13MM remaining on it.

In taking on that money, the Padres get a solid veteran player but also add an interesting and controllable arm in Mitchell. The 26-year-old has mostly worked in a relief role during sporadic MLB action over the past four years, pitching to a middling 4.94 ERA with 5.9 K/9 and 4.0 BB/9. But he has also shown greater promise at times in the minors. In 2017, Mitchell posted a 3.25 ERA with 9.3 K/9 and 1.8 BB/9 over 63 2/3 frames at Triple-A.

Things really get interesting when one considers the potential fallout. On the San Diego side, plugging Headley in at third would likely mean that Yangervis Solarte will end up on the move, though perhaps there are still some arrangements where both could coexist. Headley himself could end up moving on to another team; he ought to hold some appeal after a late-season hot streak boosted his overall 2017 batting output to a .273/.352/.406 slash that lands in range of league average. While he’s probably not worth his full contract value, the Padres ought to be able to find a taker for a not-insignificant portion.

For the Yankees, this swap — combined with the decision to include Starlin Castro in the Giancarlo Stanton deal — leaves the team without clear options at both second and third base. With added payroll flexibility, though, there are any number of possibilities that could be pursued, including a potential reunion with Todd Frazier, who was acquired to upgrade over Headley at the 2017 trade deadline. The Yanks have a variety of intriguing young players, too, led by top prospect Gleyber Torres, so that remains an option at either spot. And, of course, the Yankees are said to be perusing the trade market for starters, with free agency also now seemingly a possibility as well.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

• While the Los Angeles-born Stanton would have preferred to go to the Dodgers, they didn’t make an offer that “intrigued” the Marlins, Joel Sherman of the New York Post tweets. Sending Stanton to the Dodgers would have required the Marlins to take on more bad contracts than they were “comfortable with,” according to Sherman, who reports that LA wanted Miami to accept one or both of Adrian Gonzalez or Scott Kazmir and absorb $30MM of Stanton’s contract. The Marlins found acquiring Starlin Castro from the Yankees much more appealing, as he’s someone they could slot in at second base or flip elsewhere.
• The Dodgers’ wariness toward a more aggressive Stanton pursuit stemmed from the back-loaded nature of his 10-year, $295MM commitment, per Buster Olney of ESPN (subscription required and recommended). If he doesn’t opt out of his contract after 2020, Stanton will rake in $96MM over the final three years of his pact, when he’ll be in his late 30s. The Yankees will be able to slot him in at designated hitter then if his work in the field sharply declines with age, whereas the Dodgers would have had to continue running him out as a defender.
• Adding Stanton gives the Yankees as many as six major league-caliber outfielders, thereby making Jacoby Ellsbury and Clint Frazier potential trade candidates. The Yankees will work to rid themselves of Ellsbury, even if it means eating “a lot” of the $68.3MM left on his contract, George A. King III of the New York Post reports. Ellsbury was reportedly uninterested in leaving the Yankees as of earlier this week, but that was before the acquisition of Stanton relegated him to the role of a fifth outfielder. While Ellsbury, who has a full no-trade clause, would be a salary dump, the 23-year-old Frazier would likely bring back a quality return – perhaps a starter, King suggests. Additionally, the Yankees “would certainly listen on offers” for third baseman Chase Headley, per King. Headley is entering the last year of his contract, in which he’ll make $13MM.
• With new Marlins owners Derek Jeter and Bruce Sherman on a mission to continue paring down payroll to the $90MM range, Castro looks like their most obvious trade chip, Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald writes. By parting with Castro – who has two years and $22MM left on his pact – and not taking back another guaranteed contract, Miami would still be about $15MM above its spending goal, Jackson notes. Further payroll slashing could come from deals involving some combination of Marcell Ozuna, Christian Yelich, Martin Prado, Brad Ziegler and Junichi Tazawa. Moving Castro, Ozuna, Ziegler and Tazawa would likely obviate any need to trade Yelich, Jackson suggests.
• Prior to the Yankees’ Stanton acquisition, they looked poised to go after Nationals right fielder Bryce Harper in free agency a year from now. That may be out the window now, leading Chelsea Janes of the Washington Post to posit that the trade probably helps the Nationals to some degree because it appears to erase a would-be Harper suitor. However, several other teams will make big offers to Harper, Janes points out, so retaining him on what should be a record contract still figures to be a tall order for the Nats.
• Harper is among the losers in this trade, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic opines (subscription required and recommended). Unsurprisingly, Harper’s agent, the always colorful Scott Boras, disagrees. “A Bronx opera . . . The Three Tenors . . . Hal’s genius, vision,” Boras told Rosenthal via email, referencing Harper, Stanton, Aaron Judge and Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner. Boras added that the Harper-Stanton-Judge trio would be “a galaxy of international popularity” on the same team. While Boras clearly isn’t ruling out a Yankees-Harper union, Rosenthal sees Manny Machado as a more likely target for the club in free agency next year.
• The fact that Stanton is set to join a Yankees team that was just one win from securing a World Series trip last season is a major blow to parity in the AL, Dave Cameron of FanGraphs argues. Cameron classifies the Astros, Yankees, Red Sox and Indians as potential “super teams” heading into next season, and the Angels could be on their way to the playoffs after winning the Shohei Ohtani sweepstakes. As impressive as those clubs look, there’s now less incentive for others to play for the last wild-card spot, Cameron contends, which could lead certain fringe teams to rebuild.

Here’s more from the American League:

• The Red Sox now have Giants infielder Eduardo Nunez atop their list of possible third-base targets, a source tells MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand (Twitter link). Indeed, the clubs have discussed Boston’s interest in both Nunez and reliever Hunter Strickland, Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe reports. It seems the Sox are also still engaged with the Marlins on third bagger Martin Prado (as well as reliever David Phelps) along with Pirates infielders David Freese and Josh Harrison. Of course, it’s worth bearing in mind that Prado is on the DL, while the Bucs may be hesitant to deal given the team’s improved outlook. All told, it still seems to be a wide-open search.
• It’s not clear if talks have occurred between the Indians and Giants, but Cleveland is scouting Nunez as well, per ESPN.com’s Buster Olney (via Twitter). With the defending AL champs still battling for a postseason spot, they can’t just wait idly for second baseman Jason Kipnis to return from the DL. And a player such as Nunez would also improve the team’s bench once Kipnis is back.
• The Indians also got some bad news on the pitching front today, as lefty Boone Logan departed his appearance with an injury to his lat muscle, as MLB.com’s Jordan Bastian tweets. Logan owns an ugly 4.95 ERA on the year, but he’s producing 12.2 K/9 against 3.6 BB/9 with a 49.0% groundball rate, with a .360 BABIP helping to explain the disconnect. Ryan Merritt is on hand to give the team another southpaw matchup option to go with relief ace Andrew Miller, though it’s possible to imagine the Indians weighing alternatives if Logan’s injury turns out to be serious.
• With Todd Frazier now in pinstripes, the Yankees intend to work Chase Headley in at first base, manager Joe Girardi told reporters including MLB.com’s Bryan Hoch (Twitter link). The switch-hitting Headley will pair with new addition Garrett Cooper for the time being, though that duo doesn’t promise to deliver the kind of offensive output that might be hoped for from the position. It remains to be seen whether the Yankees will continue to dabble in the market for first basemen.

• Some teams pursued free agents last winter with the idea that the new CBA would allow them to have 26-man rosters in 2017. That plan, along with a related move to reduce September roster expansion to 28 players, did not wind up in the CBA, but owners and the union are open-minded to the possibility of revising it next winter, although such a change to the current CBA would likely only take place along with the addition of pace-of-play rules.
• It would make sense for the Cardinals to discuss a trade with the Marlins involving outfielder Marcell Ozuna, Rosenthal writes. The Cardinals would get a middle-of-the-order hitter who is controllable through 2019. The Marlins, meanwhile, want to add prospects and it’s doubtful they can extend Ozuna, who is represented by Scott Boras. (Rosenthal recently reported that the Marlins would consider trading Ozuna.) Rosenthal also argues that the Marlins’ best path forward right now is to rebuild. Past attempts to win now have resulted in the team giving up too many small pieces of their future (including players like Andrew Heaney and Josh Naylor) in recent trades.
• Top Yankees infield prospect Gleyber Torres has limited experience in the high minors, but he might be promoted to replace Chase Headley (who’s batting just .228/.300/.348 over 203 plate appearances this season) at third base in the near future, since the first-place Yankees could see Torres as a better option than dealing prospects to acquire a veteran third baseman.
• Outfielder Howie Kendrick and reliever Pat Neshek have performed well for the Phillies this season and could provide the team with good trade value, perhaps along with Joaquin Benoit, once Benoit returns from a DL stint caused by a knee strain.
• A source tells Rosenthal the Orioles want lefty relief help, although he notes that Double-A lefty Tanner Scott could become an option at some point. Scott, a sixth-round pick in 2014, has a 1.64 ERA and 11.7 K/9 in 33 innings thus far this season, although he might need to work on his 6.0 BB/9 so far before making it to the Majors. The O’s currently have Donnie Hart and Richard Bleier pitching as lefties out of their bullpen; another lefty reliever, Zach Britton, is out for an extended period with a forearm strain, although he doesn’t pitch in a typical lefty role anyway.

While we watch to see how the third base situation shakes out in Boston, here are some more notes from the AL East:

• It’ll be interesting to see whether and when the Yankees make their own decisions in the infield. As ESPN.com’s Andrew Marchand writes, top prospect Gleyber Torres could represent an alternative to Chase Headley at third base. Torres, who draws big praise for his poise, just earned a promotion to the highest level of the minors after posting a strong .273/.367/.496 batting line (with 17 walks against 21 strikeouts) in 139 plate appearances at Double-A.
• The Yankees will soon face a decision on veteran reliever Ernesto Frieri, Jon Heyman of Fan Rag notes on Twitter. Frieri, 31, can opt out from his minors deal tomorrow. He has been effective through twenty Triple-A frames, allowing five earned runs on just 11 hits while compiling 23 strikeouts against eight walks. Frieri was last a reliable MLB contributor in 2013.
• Blue Jays outfielder Steve Pearce is still “at least” a few more weeks away, manager John Gibbons tells MLB.com’s Gregor Chisholm (Twitter link). The 34-year-old went to the DL recently with a calf strain. He had been off to a rough start to the season, slashing just .205/.256/.373 with 24 strikeouts and just five walks through 90 plate appearances. Fortunately for Toronto, Ezequiel Carrera has hit well in Pearce’s stead.
• It seems that Orioles closer Zach Britton is proceeding as hoped as he works back from a forearm strain. Per Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com, via Twitter, Britton is now ramping up his throwing on flat ground. It doesn’t appear that he has taken to the mound as of yet, though there also haven’t been any setbacks so far. While the club isn’t yet ready to put a specific timeline on the lefty, the original schedule still seems reasonable.

Dozier, too, appeared on the show (audio link) and called the trade drama an “eye-opening experience,” adding that it was interesting to “[dig] deeper into how other clubs value you, how the Twins value you, and that kind of thing.”

A few additional notes from the American League…

• The Twins were somewhat surprisingly connected to free agent Jose Bautista yesterday, but La Velle E. Neal III of the Minneapolis Star Tribune tweets that the Twins don’t have interest in the slugger. The link between the Twins and Bautista was never characterized as a strong one, as MLB.com’s Rhett Bollinger reported that the Twins touched base with Bautista’s agent. They may well have done so out of due diligence — chief baseball officer Derek Falvey said yesterday that the club has an idea of a price point at which they’d be interested in every remaining free agent — and simply found that Bautista is still seeking more than they’d care to commit. Of course, the 36-year-old Bautista doesn’t seem like a great on-paper fit for a team in the Twins’ situation anyhow, though a team with a protected first-round pick (like Minnesota) could perhaps gamble on punting its second pick in the hopes of flipping Bautista this July for greater value.
• There’s been no talk of a new contract between the Yankees and Masahiro Tanaka, general manager Brian Cashman tells Mike Mazzeo of the New York Daily News. Tanaka is, of course, technically under contract with the Yankees for another four years, but he also has an opt-out clause in his contract following the 2017 season, which will allow him to re-enter the free agent market if he performs well. “We have a significant contract with Masahiro Tanaka,” said Cashman. “…I think he pitched like a Cy Young award candidate last year, and I certainly hope he does so again this year. But at this point we’ve had no discussions internally to pursue any kind of extension.” Tanaka is just one of three Yankees starters that is set to hit free agency next winter, as lefty CC Sabathia and righty Michael Pineda will also see their contracts expire.
• Mazzeo adds that Cashman said he’s “not in active trade talks at all” regarding veteran Yankees like Brett Gardner, Chase Headley or any of his position players. That comes as little surprise, as Cashman has quite recently suggested that the roster, as currently constructed, is the likely roster that the team will take into Spring Training. While both seemed like on-paper trade candidates entering the offseason, neither Gardner nor Headley ever surfaced all that much on the rumor circuit.
• Tigers GM Al Avila appeared on 97.1 FM The Ticket in Detroit and discussed the team’s needs in center field, and CBS Detroit’s Will Burchfield has highlights from the interview. Avila acknowledged that the Tigers are keeping tabs on the free agent market, but also cautioned, “…if you look at what you’re going to get in production, you have to evaluate that compared to what you already have in-house.” Avila listed usual candidates Tyler Collins, Anthony Gose and JaCoby Jones as options and also twice mentioned non-roster invite Alex Presley without being prompted (per MLive.com’s Evan Woodbery, on Twitter).
• In a full column on Avila’s interview, Woodbery notes that the GM said he’s fielded calls about left-handed reliever Justin Wilson this winter but decided there’s more value to Wilson opening the year in the bullpen. Wilson, as Woodbery notes, could boost his value with improved results this season and become a more appealing trade chip this summer. As I noted when previewing the Tigers’ offseason in October, Wilson’s bottom-line results were rather pedestrian, but his secondary stats suggest that he should see a rebound from 2016’s lackluster 4.14 ERA.

• The conventional wisdom was that the Nationals paid too heavily for Adam Eaton this week, Barry Svrluga of the Washington Post writes. One key to the trade from the Nationals’ perspective, though, is that the organization had changed its mind about Lucas Giolito, with one team official telling Svrluga, “He’s not going to be what I thought he was going to be.” Also, Eaton (who is controllable for the next five years) offered the Nationals a long-term outfield solution that Andrew McCutchen wouldn’t have — McCutchen would have been eligible for free agency after the 2018 season, at the same time as Bryce Harper, and the Nats would have been forced to address two outfield positions at once.
• GM Brian Cashman says the Yankees have completed their biggest moves this offseason, “unless I trade (Brett) Gardner,” as related by MLB.com’s Bryan Hoch (on Twitter). Hoch adds that Cashman has rejected trade offers for third baseman Chase Headley. The Yankees, of course, have agreed to terms with Chapman and Matt Holliday to upgrade their bullpen and DH spot. The Yankees have listened to offers for Gardner this week.
• With the Winter Meetings in the books, the Mets will now attempt to trade Jay Bruce or another outfielder, and they’ll try to add relief pitching on short-term deals, ESPN’s Adam Rubin tweets. Earlier this week, the Mets reportedly were interested in a Curtis Granderson / Brad Brach deal with the Orioles that would have addressed both needs, but that trade seems unlikely.

A few more highlights…

• The Yankees, Astros and Blue Jays all remain in the mix for Edwin Encarnacion, but Heyman joins others in writing that Twitter reports of a deal between Houston and Encarnacion were premature. The Astros are being aggressive on Encarnacion, according to Heyman, though agent Paul Kinzer told him that there are “a couple” of other teams in the mix beyond this group as well. Perhaps signaling their desire to add an impact bat, the Astros made a legitimate run at Yoenis Cespedes both this offseason and last winter, Heyman adds, noting that last winter’s pursuit flew largely under the radar.
• One general manager who has spoken to the Tigers about a J.D. Martinez trade tells Heyman that he believes Martinez is “all but certain” to be traded. Detroit, Heyman points out, is now the somewhat surprising MLB payroll leader with several Dodgers hitting free agency and with the Yankees trading Brian McCann.
• The Mets would like to add not one but two left-handed relievers to their bullpen, Heyman writes. They’re interested in a reunion with southpaw Jerry Blevins, who spent the past two seasons in the organization, but other reports have indicated that Blevins is likely to receive a multi-year deal that will exceed the Mets’ comfort zone. The Mets might also consider adding catching help, though that’s not characterized as a priority in this report, which also notes that the team considers Michael Conforto to be close to untouchable in trade talks.
• The Yankees have spoken to other teams about third baseman Chase Headley and outfielder Brett Gardner but received minimal interest in that pair. Headley has $26MM in guaranteed money remaining on his deal and quietly rebounded from a disastrous start to post a solid overall season in the Bronx last year, while Gardner is owed a similar $25MM through 2018 and also has a club option for the 2019 season on his deal. Gardner would seem to have more trade value to me, and perhaps teams would show more interest later in the winter once some of the free-agent options in the outfield have come off the board.
• There’s been no formal extension offer made by the Rockies to Carlos Gonzalez, who said last week that the team has expressed interest in an extension. According to Heyman, that could be due to the fact that initial suggestions were deemed “too low” by Gonzalez’s camp to even merit an official offer. CarGo is just one year away from free agency and could be an appealing trade piece for the Rox this summer if the team doesn’t contend in 2017.