Lee last pitched on July 31, 2014 and has since been sidelined due to elbow problems and then a partially torn flexor tendon in his throwing shoulder.  After receiving a clean bill of health in December, however, Lee was looking to return to the mound and drew interest from at least 15 teams.  There were some caveats to Lee’s comeback attempt, however, as Braunecker said in January that his client would require “a perfect fit” to return.  Lee was looking for a one-year Major League deal with a contender reportedly in the range of $6MM-$8MM in base salary, plus incentives.  The left-hander also didn’t reach the point of throwing for teams or holding a showcase, so clubs had several questions about the health of Lee’s shoulder, or when in the season he’d be able to pitch.

At age 37 and already 18 months removed from his last game, it’s hard to see Lee mounting another comeback attempt next offseason.  If this is indeed the end of Lee’s 13-year Major League career, he’ll go down as one of the best left-handed starters of his era.  Lee’s impressive resume includes the 2008 AL Cy Young Award, four All-Star appearances, stints on two pennant winners (the 2009 Phillies and the 2010 Rangers) and a 2.93 ERA over his last 1415 innings.  He also banked over $143.3MM over his career, most of it earned from the five-year, $120MM contract he signed with Philadelphia in the 2010-11 offseason.

• Andrew Cashner wasn’t the only Padre to draw interest from the Orioles, as the O’s also discussed James Shields and Matt Kemp in talks with San Diego.  Shields has been the subject of some trade speculation this winter but there hasn’t been much solid buzz around the veteran following his somewhat disappointing 2015 campaign.  Shields allowed a career-high 17.6% homer rate last year despite pitching home games at Petco Park, which certainly would be a concern for a team playing in hitter-friendly Camden Yards.  Shields can opt out of his contract after 2016, and if he chooses to remain in his current deal, he’s owed $44MM in 2017-18 (counting the buyout of his 2019 club option).  That opt-out and Shields’ age make him a trickier trade candidate than Cashner, despite Shields’ stronger career track record and history of success in the AL East.
• Kemp, meanwhile, was also an Orioles target last winter before the outfielder was dealt from the Dodgers to the Padres.  Kemp would provide the O’s with a bat beyond their rumored targets of Dexter Fowler, Pedro Alvarez and Jay Bruce, and he might come at a discounted price since San Diego would obviously have to eat a healthy chunk of the $86MM owed to Kemp through the 2019 season (the Dodgers are also paying $14MM of that total).  Kemp’s hitting has been inconsistent over the last three seasons, however, and Baltimore’s outfield defense would take a big hit with either Kemp or Mark Trumbo getting regular playing time.  As Kubatko puts it, Kemp is “still not coming to Baltimore,” so it may be that the O’s have moved on.
• Several teams have asked Baltimore about Jonathan Schoop but the O’s aren’t listening to offers involving the young second baseman.
• Minor league southpaw Chris Lee is also getting attention in trade talks, and while Lee doesn’t seem as untouchable as Schoop, Kubatko says the Orioles “would like to hold onto” the left-hander.  Lee was recently ranked as the seventh-best prospect in Baltimore’s system by Baseball America after a 2015 that saw him make his Double-A debut.  The Orioles acquired Lee from Houston last May for two international bonus slots.
• The Orioles are planning to watch Tim Lincecum’s upcoming throwing session once the date is finalized.  The O’s were linked to Lincecum earlier this month and they’ll likely be one of several teams interested in seeing if the former two-time NL Cy Young Award winner is looking healthy.
• Beyond Lincecum, “the Orioles are pretty much open to any bounceback candidate coming off an injury,” Kubatko writes.  This search would include Cliff Lee, though the O’s don’t seem to feel that the veteran southpaw wants to pitch in 2016.

• The Astros have asked about Tyler Clippard.  Houston has already made a couple of big offseason moves to reinforce their bullpen in trading for Ken Giles and re-signing Tony Sipp, and adding Clippard would only further deepen a relief corps that also includes Luke Gregerson, Will Harris, Pat Neshek and Josh Fields.  Clippard’s market was fairly quiet for much of the winter, though as Cafardo notes, things have started to heat up for the veteran righty with at least six teams (including the Rays and Diamondbacks) showing interest.
• Matt Thornton is drawing interest from around six teams, though the veteran lefty may have to settle for a minor league contract.  Thornton turned 39 in September and has a 1.98 ERA over 77 1/3 innings in 2014 and 2015, though with only a 5.9 K/9 in that stretch, ERA predictors such as xFIP (4.19) and SIERA (3.79) are less enthused with his performance over the last two years.  The Braves, Pirates and Twins were all rumored to have some interest in Thornton earlier this offseason.
• The Rays are likely to keep their pitching, despite “quite a bit of interest” from other teams about Alex Cobb.
• Teams have considered signing Cliff Lee, though they’re wary of giving him a contract in the range of $6MM-$8MM (plus incentives).
• Dan Uggla’s agent says that teams have called about his client, though no side has made any commitments.  The veteran infielder is another player who is likely to only find a minor league deal with a Spring Training invite.
• “It’s just so slow out there” for the large number of veteran players still on the market, one agent tells Cafardo.  This offseason has been the apex of a growing trend in recent years for teams to spend on a few high-salaried stars and then rely on young, cheap talent for the rest of the roster rather than spend more on established veterans.  This not only goes for the rank-and-file veterans looking for bench jobs but also for would-be starters like Ian Desmond, Dexter Fowler and Yovani Gallardo, all of whom have had their markets slowed by the qualifying offer-attached draft compensation required to sign them.  “The [draft-pick] compensation issue is a factor, no question, and we have to do something about it with our collective bargaining talks because this is hurting good baseball players getting jobs,” the agent said.
• An AL general manager, however, implies that some agents should perhaps be a bit more realistic about their demands.  “The agents are still asking for major league guarantees for players who should be grateful for major league invitations and minor league deals,” the GM said.  “I hear the agents blaming the teams, but I think a lot of teams are willing to add these players. But we’re in February, and quite frankly the signings need to be on our terms at this stage of the game. Eventually, these guys will break down and sign minor deals but we’re close to spring training and there hasn’t been a lot of bend.”

Plans can, of course, change in the event that the asking price of Gallardo comes down, but Duquette’s comments would be a blow to Gallardo’s market, as the right-hander hasn’t been connected to a large number of teams of late. The Orioles and Astros have been the two most frequently mentioned club’s in connection to Gallardo, although his representatives will reportedly meet with the Rockies soon. The Blue Jays have also at least checked in on Gallardo, although there’s no indication that their interest extends beyond due diligence at this point.

Duquette’s comments would also rule out Dexter Fowler, and while the switch-hitter hasn’t been concretely linked to Baltimore, he did appear to be a speculative fit in the outfield (as Jeff Todd and I discussed on yesterday’s MLBTR Podcast). Ian Desmond and Howie Kendrick are the other two remaining free agents that rejected qualifying offers, although neither has a clear fit on the Baltimore roster anyway, due to the presence of J.J. Hardy and Jonathan Schoop.

Furthermore, Bowden adds (links to Twitter) that Duquette confirmed some interest in Doug Fister but said the Orioles are not in the mix for free-agent lefty Cliff Lee. “Fister is interesting, bounceback candidate,” said Duquette. “I can’t say we’ve made an offer, but we’ve been monitoring his market.” Fister is said to be eyeing a two-year deal worth a total of $22MM, but the Orioles are said to be uninterested at that price. As for Lee, he’s looking for a one-year deal this season if he pitches at all; his agent recently told MLB Network Radio that Lee would need a “perfect fit” in order to make a comeback attempt, though it’s not clear exactly what would constitute that fit.

JAN. 20: The Marlins still have interest in adding a veteran starter, as Jon Heyman notes on Twitter and Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald reported this morning. Doug Fister and Alfredo Simon are possible names under consideration, as are rehabbing hurlers Cliff Lee and Tim Lincecum.

Certainly, those pitchers represent two of the most accomplished veteran bounceback candidates who remain on the market. Fister and Mat Latos have long been considered the class of the rebound hopefuls, but it seems safe to say the latter won’t be coming back to Miami after his brief run there in 2015.

We haven’t heard much on Simon this winter, but Fister is said to be seeking a two-year deal in the $22MM range. Drawing either pitcher will likely require not only some guaranteed money, but also an appealing opportunity.

It’s not clear how far the Fish will extend themselves to bring in another option, and Jackson suggests that the ballclub is looking for a low-cost investment. If that doesn’t happen, he says, then the organization is prepared to move on with what it has.

That makes sense, as Miami has already added a veteran pitcher in Edwin Jackson who’s had success in the past but needed an opportunity in the present. Obviously, the signing of Wei-Yin Chen went a long way toward shoring up the top of the staff. And the team still has a solid inventory of internal depth options.

• Cliff Lee is still something of a question mark for some teams, as it’s unclear as to whether Lee will be able to pitch on Opening Day or around midseason.  Agent Darek Braunecker recently said his client would be 100 percent ready if he decided to pitch in a showcase for teams, though an AL official tells Cafardo that he didn’t know much about how Lee was progressing after missing all of 2015 with a flexor tendon tear that wasn’t surgically repaired.  Two NL officials tell Cafardo that Lee is looking for a big base salary and a spot on a contending team, which ties into Braunecker’s previous comment about how Lee needs a “perfect fit” in order to return to pitching.
• Cafardo wonders if the Red Sox could make a play for David Freese if the third baseman is still available by Spring Training.  Boston already has Pablo Sandoval at the hot corner, though Sandoval struggles so much against southpaws that Freese (a right-handed hitter) could surely get at-bats against left-handed pitching.  Though Freese went into the offseason as the top player in a thin free agent market for first basemen, he hasn’t generated a lot of buzz on the rumor mill outside of some talks with the Angels in December before the Halos acquired Yunel Escobar to fill their third base void.  If Freese was indeed willing to take a backup or platoon role, I’d suggest he might look at teams who can provide a clearer path to playing time than the Red Sox, who also have Brock Holt, Deven Marrero and Travis Shaw as backup third base options.
• “We have a couple of teams that have been nibbling, but don’t know when they become fully engaged,” agent John Boggs said about his client Shane Victorino.  It could be that interest picks up in the veteran once other free agent outfielders leave the market.
• An executive for an NL team says Tim Lincecum is generally seen as “inventory” around the league.  Lincecum was said to be hoping to hold a showcase this month to prove his health following September hip surgery and enhance his stock.  Perhaps given this health concern, only two teams (the Marlins and Giants) have been linked to Lincecum in recent months.  “For the moment, ties with the Giants have been severed,” Cafardo writes, though “who knows” if the two sides could agree to a reunion.

Lee has drawn interest from at least half the league so far this season, according to Jon Heyman.  The veteran was said to be seeking a one-year, major league deal, but now it appears that he’s at least considering sitting out the 2016 season entirely.  If Lee does decide to pitch this year, the Marlins are one of the clubs known to have some level of interest.

Lee, 37, is looking to make his way back from a flexor tendon tear without surgery and while there’s no guarantee that he can get back to his old form, he offers unmatched upside among the free agent bounceback candidates.  It’s far from clear, of course, whether teams are willing at present to commit big dollars to Lee.  For what it’s worth, Heyman indicated earlier this offseason that Lee could command more than many would expect him to.

Though he only put up a 3.65 earned run average in his 81 1/3 innings in 2014, Lee carried a 6.00 K:BB rate and drew ratings from metrics that valued his effort in the 3.00 earned-per-nine range.  Of course, Lee also showed much more prior to that season. He racked up over 220 frames per season over 2011 through 2013, working to a cumulative 2.80 ERA in that span while striking out a batter per inning and walking less than one-and-a-half per nine.

All three of the free agents listed by Jackson are probably in line for one-year deals. As a four-time All-Star and former Cy Young winner, the 37-year-old Lee comes with the highest ceiling but also quite a bit of risk after missing the 2015 season with a torn flexor tendon. He’s reportedly seeking a one-year deal with a winning team as he attempts to revive his career.

Fister was one of the game’s more underrated pitchers from 2011-14, when he posted a 3.11 ERA with 6.5 K/9 against 1.7 BB/9 in 750 2/3 innings with the Mariners, Tigers and Nationals. However, 2015 was a much different tale, as Fister’s average fastball velocity dipped from about 89 mph to 86 mph. The diminished heater undoubtedly contributed to what was the worst full season of Fister’s career; the 31-year-old (32 in February) logged a 4.60 ERA across 15 starts before losing his rotation spot and experiencing better results in the bullpen.

As for Jackson, he’s coming off a disappointing tenure with the Cubs. Signed to a four-year, $52MM contract prior to the 2013 season, Jackson posted a 5.58 ERA in 316 innings out of the Cubs’ rotation in his first two seasons in Chicago. In 2015, he quietly rebounded in the bullpen, pitching to a 3.07 ERA with 6.5 K/9 against 3.4 BB/9 in 54 2/3 innings between the Cubs and Braves. It’s been quiet on the Jackson front this offseason, but he’ll presumably receive interest both as a reliever and as a starter following his solid bullpen work between Chicago and Atlanta. If he does prefer to reestablish himself as a starter — and at 32, there’s plenty of time for that — Miami seemingly wouldn’t be a bad place to take a shot. Marlins Park has been a pitcher-friendly environment since opening in 2012, although the Marlins are altering the dimensions this offseason, which could remove some of the pitchers’ advantage. Jackson would be a low-cost addition for any club that signed him, as he’s still owed $13MM from the Cubs this season, so he’d only cost a club the league minimum and a roster spot.

• The Cardinals and Diamondbacks are both still interested in Mike Leake, CBS Sports’ Jon Heyman reports (Twitter link).  Reports from yesterday indicated that both clubs were somewhat wary of Leake’s asking price.
• The Indians aren’t actively shopping any of their top starting pitchers and they’d prefer to obtain hitting help without subtracting from the rotation, president of baseball operations Chris Antonetti told reporters (including MLB.com’s Jordan Bastian).  The Tribe is receiving plenty of offers and Antonetti is open to considering anything that would help the roster.  That being said, Antonetti also noted that “our rotation’s been a strength of the team.  So, we would be very judicious in considering trading away any one of those guys. It’s certainly not our intent. It’s not our motivation. We’re not looking to do it.”
• Cliff Lee is looking for a one-year Major League contract and his main goal is to sign with a winning team, according to Heyman (via Twitter).  Lee’s upside is strong enough that Heyman predicts Lee “probably gets more than you’d think” in his next salary, despite his missing all of 2015.
• The White Sox don’t seem likely to trade any of their top starters, CSN Chicago’s Dan Hayes tweets.  If the Sox do deal an arm, it will probably be a minor leaguer or a reliever.

It’s certainly not surprising to hear that so many organizations are looking into the southpaw. While he’s 37 and will be looking to make his way back from a flexor tendon tear without surgery, Lee offers unmatched upside among the bounceback candidates on the free agent market.

It’s far from clear, of course, whether teams are willing at present to commit big dollars to Lee. Certainly, they’ll want to learn more about his progress and prognosis. But the report does make clear that there’ll be no shortage of teams lined up to pursue Lee if he shows promise of returning to the form that made him one of the game’s best pitchers well into his mid-30s.

Here’s more from the ever-shifting pitching rumor mill…

• The Giants are still interested in Mike Leake, ESPN’s Buster Olney tweets, even after signing Jeff Samardzija.  Leake’s market is “now more defined” with so many other top pitchers off the board.  The Giants may not be willing to give Leake a Samardzija-esque deal, however, as reported by Andrew Baggarly of the Bay Area News Group (via Twitter).  This could take them out of the running for Leake given how several other teams also have interest.
• Also from Olney, the Royals are in the mix for starting pitching.  Chris Young has been the only starter directly tied to Kansas City in reports, though there has been speculation that the World Series champs could aim higher in their search for rotation help.
• The Dodgers and Giants both fell short in their search for Zack Greinke, but MLB Network’s Peter Gammons wonders if the two arch-rivals could compete again for Hisashi Iwakuma.  Both teams have already shown interest in the Japanese righty, and while the Mariners also have a long-stated interest in re-signing Iwakuma, I would guess the presence of these two big-market teams could drive Iwakuma’s price out of Seattle’s comfort zone.
• There has been speculation in the Japanese media that Kenta Maeda would prefer to pitch for the Dodgers, according to NPBTracker’s Patrick Newman (Twitter link).  The Dodgers have a long history with Japanese talent and they have a need in the rotation, so a connection makes sense.  L.A. will get a chance to negotiate with Maeda if they’re one of the teams who posts a $20MM bid for his services.
• Wei-Yin Chen has become a “hot topic” for the Cubs, 670TheScore.com’s Bruce Levine tweets.  Chen is another free agent whose market should benefit from other pitchers disappearing off the market.  Chicago, for instance, had interest in Price, Zimmermann and Samardzija before all of those pitchers signed elsewhere, though the Cubs already made one rotation-bolstering move in signing John Lackey.
• The Marlins are exploring a wide range of pitching options as they head to the Winter Meetings, president of baseball operations Michael Hill tells MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro writes.  Frisaro suggests that James Shields or Wade Miley could be trade targets since Miami has been interested in both pitchers in the past, though the Marlins are trying to hang onto their core position players in deals (presumably trade candidate Marcell Ozuna isn’t necessarily part of this equation).
• The Marlins are open to the possibility of signing Cliff Lee, Frisaro reports.  Presumably Miami would be one of several clubs interested in seeing if the former Cy Young Award winner has anything left in his comeback attempt.
• The Astros could look to deal 26-year-old lefty Brett Oberholtzer, CBS Sports’ Jon Heyman reports (via Twitter).  Oberholtzer has a 3.94 ERA, 2.86 K/BB rate and 5.9 K/9 over 253 2/3 career innings, all with Houston since 2013.  He’s one of many young arms the Astros have on hand beyond the five-man rotation, and the southpaw could be expendable if Houston is satisfied with its other depth options.  Heyman speculates that the Orioles, Phillies, Rangers and Reds could all be fits as trade partners.
• The Twins aren’t one of the reported 10 teams interested in Henderson Alvarez, 1500ESPN.com’s Darren Wolfson tweets.

There figures to be no shortage of interest in the one-time ace. Clubs pay good money for the right to take risks on injured players all the time, but rarely is there as much upside as comes with Lee.

True, Lee is already 37 years of age and is looking to return after a lengthy rehab from a partially torn flexor tendon. But he’s also thrown at an exceedingly high level as recently as 2014. Though he only put up a 3.65 earned run average in his 81 1/3 innings that year, Lee carried a 6.00 K:BB rate and drew ratings from metrics that valued his effort in the 3.00 earned-per-nine range.

Of course, Lee has also shown much more prior to that season. He racked up over 220 frames per season over 2011 through 2013, working to a cumulative 2.80 ERA in that span while striking out a batter per inning and walking less than one-and-a-half per nine.

It goes without saying that Lee’s past success guarantees nothing moving forward. He might re-injure his arm. Or he might have reduced velocity, movement, and/or command. But even a lesser version of Lee would likely be a productive big league asset, and there’s hope of much more. Assuming he continues on track to throw in 2016, Lee will be a fascinating player to watch on the market.

At one point, it seemed a foregone conclusion that Lee’s option would be exercised, both because of its unusually robust buyout price and his consistent excellence. But Lee has experienced significant left elbow issues, with a tear in his flexor tendon keeping him out of action all year. He decided against surgery in favor of a rehab route, though it’s been a while since we’ve heard an update on his progress.

All in all, there’s little question that the $15MM spread on the option was too steep a price for Philadelphia to pay. It’s not even entirely clear whether Lee will look to return, as there have been suggestions that he’ll instead retire.

In the event that Lee does look for a new contract, he’ll represent an intriguing free agent. After all, there’s good reason to believe a healthy Lee could still be a force, even at 37 years of age.

The 37-year-old southpaw put up 666 1/3 innings of 2.80 ERA pitching in the first three years of his deal with Philly. He did drop back to a 3.65 earned run average over the 81 1/3 frames that he managed in 2014. But ERA estimators were still just as enamored of his work, he maintained an excellent 6.00 K:BB rate, and a .358 BABIP-against could explain the run prevention numbers.

• Cliff Lee’s tenure with the Phillies is about to officially reach its end, Todd Zolecki of MLB.com writes. This is the last year of the $120MM contract to which the Phillies signed Lee before the 2011 season, and the Phillies will surely pay Lee a $12.5MM buyout rather than exercising his 2016 option for $27.5MM. Lee missed much of the 2014 season and all of 2015 with elbow trouble. “He helped us make the World Series in ’09 and the postseason in ’11. He pitched very well in ’12 and ’13. It just didn’t work out,” says Phillies interim GM Scott Proefrock. “It was a situation last year where we were looking to trade him and obviously his injury short circuited that.” Zolecki notes that the Phillies insured Lee’s contract, so they’ll get back part of the $25MM they’ve paid him for 2015. Lee was, of course, a huge part of the 102-win 2011 Phillies, ranking among the best pitchers in a brilliant rotation that also featured Roy Halladay, Cole Hamels and Roy Oswalt. He also pitched 200-plus excellent innings in both 2012 and 2013.
• The Diamondbacks and Padres have both had underwhelming seasons, but they’re taking diverging paths, Dennis Lin of the San Diego Union-Tribune writes. The Diamondbacks have plenty of good young players under team control, including Paul Goldschmidt, A.J. Pollock, David Peralta and Ender Inciarte, Lin writes. The Padres, meanwhile, have a veteran team that would be expensive to try to keep together even if it weren’t already disappointing. The D-backs entered the season with modest expectations and may have already surpassed them, while the Padres began with great expectations and fell well short. “For us, we have a nice core of talent that’s come through the minor leagues together, and now they’re getting this opportunity,” says Diamondbacks manager Chip Hale. “We have to make the decision this winter of where do we spice in some of those veterans, whether it’s a position player or a couple starting pitchers.”
• The Padres’ situation is such that more wins this season might actually diminish their flexibility for the future, writes Jeff Sanders of the Union-Tribune. Not only does fewer wins mean a higher draft position for 2016, but a bottom-ten finish in wins means the Padres can pursue top-tier free agents this winter without risking losing their top draft pick due to the qualifying offer system. Currently, the Padres are tied with the Tigers for the eighth-worst record in the big leagues at 72-81, but they’re within striking distance of improving upon the records of several other teams, including the White Sox, Diamondbacks, Red Sox and Mariners.

• Chase Utley, Dodgers: There’s no chance that Utley’s $15MM option — the first of three in succession — will vest. (He’d need 110 plate appearances over the final two weeks of the season to reach 500.) Instead, Utley will become subject to a team option — the value of which floats between $5MM and $11MM based upon days spent on the DL. The precise details have yet to be reported, so it’s not yet clear how much it would cost Los Angeles to control the veteran. Neither is it known whether the team would have interest; Utley has a mediocre .200/.296/.347 slash over 108 plate appearances with the Dodgers.
• Jonathan Papelbon, Nationals: This one was taken care of as part of the deal that sent Papelbon to D.C. from the Phillies. Papelbon helped facilitate the swap by agreeing to take $11MM to throw next year for the Nats. He was already likely to reach the requirements for his option to vest at $13MM, but that agreement greased the wheels on a move he desperately wanted and removed any doubt as to his payday.
• David Ortiz, Red Sox: Big Papi has blown well past the 425 plate appearances he needed for his 2016 option to vest, though he’ll also need to pass an offseason physical. The question now is the value of the option. It has already reached $15MM, but would go higher if he makes his 600th trip to the dish. In that case, it will go to $16MM (or, if it’s more than that, the value of the qualifying offer). Ortiz has earned it, with another huge season and successful run at 500 career home runs.
• Joaquin Benoit, Padres: Benoit needed to finish 55 games for to his $8MM option to vest. That can’t happen, so it’ll turn into a team option. It’s a fair sum for a reliever, but Benoit continues to put up strong results at 38 years of age.
• Marlon Byrd, Giants: The 38-year-old sits at 502 plate appearances. He needs 48 more the rest of the way to reach 550 total, which, in combination with those accumulated last year, would be sufficient for his $8MM option to vest for 2016. With 13 games left, it’s still possible that he could reach the needed total, but that’ll depend heavily on playing time — and San Francisco may well not wish to be on the hook for that kind of cash.
• Santiago Casilla, Giants: As MLBTR reported, Casilla needs 55 games finished for his $7.5MM option to vest for 2016. The situation is somewhat similar to Byrd’s. With 49 finished games in the bank so far, it’s still possible — but, perhaps, unlikely — for Casilla to reach the necessary tally.
• Nori Aoki, Giants: Due to injuries, the outfielder is stalled well shy of the 550 plate appearances he needed to turn a $5.5MM club option into one of the mutual variety. That could still be an appealing price tag for a player who performed well when healthy.
• Jonny Gomes, Royals: Gomes needs 325 plate appearances for a $3MM club option for 2016 to become guaranteed. He only has 246, and hasn’t been used much in Kansas City, so that’s not happening.

We already know that Cliff Lee won’t achieve the innings totals required for his 2016 option to vest, as the Phillies southpaw hasn’t pitched all season and is attempting to recover from a torn left flexor tendon without undergoing surgery.  Brandon League also hasn’t pitched this season and has been released by the Dodgers, so he won’t reach the games-finished total required to allow his 2016 player option to vest.