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Dinelson Lamet

Pitching Notes: Lamet, Claudio, Robertson, E. Cabrera, Oberg

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The Padres had to go without breakout star Dinelson Lamet in the playoffs last year because of arm issues, but the right-hander told AJ Cassavell of MLB.com and other reporters that he’s healthy heading into the upcoming season. “I’m coming off that rest period, I did everything I needed to do, I feel well-prepared,” said Lamet. “I feel like I’m 100 percent myself.” That’s another excellent development in an offseason full of them for the burgeoning Padres, as Lamet was a 2020 Cy Young contender who pitched to a 2.09 ERA/3.16 SIERA in 69 innings and struck out more than 12 batters per nine. If healthy, he’ll open the season near the top of a San Diego rotation that added Yu Darvish, Blake Snell and Joe Musgrove in the offseason, and also has Chris Paddack in the fold as a holdover.

  • Angels lefty reliever Alex Claudio is battling a hip infection that could delay his camp debut by at least one to two weeks, Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com tweets. That’s unwelcome news for Claudio and the Angels’ bullpen, as the team’s counting on him to fill a regular role after it signed him to a $1.125MM guarantee in free agency. The 29-year-old spent last season with the Brewers and registered a 4.26 ERA/4.43 SIERA in 19 innings.
  • Free-agent reliever David Robertson held his second showcase of the month on Friday, per Mark Feinsand of MLB.com. A dozen-plus teams were in attendance to watch Robertson, according to Feinsand, who writes that the right-hander “was said to look good.” Robertson’s fastball regularly checked in between 90-91 mph and hit 92 mph multiple times. The 35-year-old has averaged 92 mph on his fastball since his career started in 2008.
  • Marlins righty prospect Edward Cabrera has an inflamed nerve in his biceps, and there’s no timetable on when he’ll be able to throw, according to Christina De Nicola of MLB.com. The Marlins will obviously be careful with the 22-year-old Cabrera, whom MLB.com ranks as the 68th overall prospect in the game. Cabrera didn’t pitch last year because of the lack of a minor league season, but he put up 38 2/3 innings of 2.56 ERA ball at the Double-A level in 2019.
  • Rockies reliever Scott Oberg hasn’t suffered any setbacks since he underwent thoracic outlet syndrome surgery in September, Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post writes. The hope is that the procedure will help Oberg get over blood clots that have dogged him in the past. Oberg hasn’t taken a major league mound since Aug. 16, 2019, but the righty was highly effective out of the Rockies’ bullpen that season and in the prior campaign.

Players Avoiding Arbitration: 1/15/21

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The deadline to exchange arbitration figures is today at 1pm ET. As of this morning, there were 125 arbitration-eligible players who’d yet to agree to terms on their contract for the upcoming 2021 season. Arbitration is muddier than ever before thanks to the shortened 2020 schedule, which most believe will lead to record number of arb hearings this winter. Be that as it may, it’s still reasonable to expect dozens of contractual agreements to filter in over the next couple of hours.

We’ll highlight some of the more high-profile cases in separate posts with more in-depth breakdowns, but the majority of today’s dealings will be smaller-scale increases that don’t radically alter a team’s payroll or a player’s trade candidacy. As such, we’ll just run through most of today’s agreements in this post.

I’ve embedded MLBTR’s 2021 Arbitration Tracker in the post (those in the mobile app or viewing on mobile web will want to turn their phones sideways). Our tracker can be sorted by team, by service time and/or by Super Two status, allowing users to check the status on whichever groups of players they like. You can also check out Matt Swartz’s projected arbitration salaries for this year’s class, and we’ll do a quick sentence on each player’s agreement at the bottom of this post as well, with the most recent agreements sitting atop the list.

Today’s Agreements (chronologically, newest to oldest)

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A.J. Preller Discusses Padres’ Offseason, Tatis, Lamet

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Padres general manager A.J. Preller spoke with reporters (including MLB.com’s Maria Guardado and The Athletic’s Dennis Lin) Monday about a variety of topics related to the team’s offseason business, including a continued search for pitching.  However, an in-house star was also discussed, as Preller said that working out a multi-year extension for Fernando Tatis Jr. is “a priority” for the organization.

“I think his situation is a priority and I think we’re in a position to try to line up on a deal,” Preller said.  “I think we’ll see what happens here over the course of the rest of the offseason, to see if we can do that.”

Tatis has quickly become one of baseball’s biggest young talents over his two MLB seasons, hitting .301/.374/.582 with 39 homers over 629 career plate appearances.  He doesn’t even turn 22 years old until January, putting him on pace to receive a potential record-setting free agent contract if he reaches the open market following his age-25 season.  Tatis’ price tag will already begin to rise significantly next offseason, as he will reach the first of three years of arbitration eligibility.

The Padres therefore have lots of incentive to ink Tatis to a long-term deal, and some common ground could be reached given that Tatis has also reportedly expressed interest in an extension.  Locking in a life-changing fortune so early in his career would naturally have appeal to Tatis, and because he is so young, he has plenty of time to land at least one more major deal later in his career.  Signing even a seven-year extension now would allow Tatis to still reach free agency before his age-29 season.

With both the COVID-19 pandemic and potential labor strife next winter hanging over the sport, Tatis could also prefer to get some guaranteed financial security sooner rather than later.  On the flip side, Lin wonders if Tatis and his representatives would perhaps prefer to wait another year before seriously diving into extension talks, since by then there will be more clarity about both the state of public health and how baseball’s financial structure will be altered by a new collective bargaining agreement.

Since most extension negotiations usually don’t take place until later in the offseason, Preller’s more immediate attention will be focused on adding new pieces to the roster.  The GM said the club is continuing to explore pitching options, and has “looked at it both ways,” in terms of adding either front-of-the-rotation ace type or perhaps more of a mid-rotation type.

“I think it’s just kind of going to depend on the individual pitcher that’s involved, and then obviously, what potentially we’d have to do from a money standpoint or from a trade standpoint,” Preller said.  “Weighing that in versus what we see the impactability of our own talent and when that will happen.”

Dinelson Lamet’s status will also surely factor into San Diego’s plans, as the right-hander missed the end of the season (and the playoffs) due to biceps tightness, and was undergoing platelet-rich plasma therapy on his throwing elbow.  While Preller noted that the Padres won’t fully know how ready Lamet is until Spring Training, “in terms of the tests that he’s passing right now — all his workouts, picking up a baseball, beginning his throwing program to start the offseason — he’s reporting that he’s in a very similar spot to where he was last year, which is a good place,” Preller said.

Latest On Dinelson Lamet, Mike Clevinger

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OCT. 14: Good news for Lamet, Clevinger and the Padres: General manager A.J. Preller said Wednesday (via AJ Cassavell of MLB.com) that it doesn’t seem “either situation is surgical,” so the two righties should be ready for the spring.

OCT. 13: Padres righty Dinelson Lamet has begun platelet-rich plasma therapy on his right elbow, Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune reports.  Lamet has been out of action since September 25 due to biceps tightness, though examinations of his arm revealed “no ligament issues” according to one of Acee’s sources, and Lamet is expected to be ready for the start of Spring Training.

Lamet was unable to pitch during the Padres’ postseason run, bringing a sour end to an otherwise dream season for the 28-year-old.  Seen as a potential breakout candidate after a promising 2019, Lamet more than lived up to expectations by posting a 2.09 ERA, 4.65 K/BB rate, and 12.1 K/9 over 69 innings for San Diego.  Armed with a 97mph fastball that sat in the 91st percentile of spin rate, Lamet’s 2.4 fWAR tied him for fifth among all Major League pitchers in 2020.

After Lamet missed all of 2018 due to Tommy John surgery, there was natural concern about another arm injury, but the issue didn’t sideline Lamet entirely.  As Acee notes, Lamet kept playing catch in order to keep his arm loose, just in case he received clearance to pitch in some capacity during the playoffs.

It’s quite possible that the Padres could still be playing had Lamet and Mike Clevinger both been healthy for October.  Clevinger is also expected to be ready for the start of the 2021 season since his elbow impingement is thought to require arthroscopic surgery at the most, though Acee adds today that Clevinger will be examined by doctors this week and “no definite plan has been established.”

Latest On Mike Clevinger, Dinelson Lamet

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Oct. 6: There are “strong indications” that Clevinger will get the Game 1 nod, Robert Murray reports. H’s thrown a pair of flat-ground sessions and a bullpen session recently.

Oct. 5, 8:54 pm: The Padres are deciding between Clevinger and Chris Paddack to start tomorrow’s game one against the Dodgers, per Kevin Acee of the San Diego Tribune. Both threw bullpen sessions on Sunday, and if they deem Clevinger healthy enough, he’ll get the ball.

Starting Clevinger in game one would be an interesting call, because it could also set him up to start a potential game five on short rest. The Padres might be hesitant to do so given the injury concern. Perhaps more to the point, starting Clevinger tomorrow would mean Paddack would not be able to go in a potential series-deciding game five.

9:33 am: The Padres are “optimistic” right-hander Mike Clevinger will be able to return for their National League Division Series against the Dodgers, hears Bob Nightengale of USA Today (Twitter link). However, fellow starter Dinelson Lamet “likely won’t be ready for this round,” Nightengale adds. Both pitchers missed the playoffs’ opening set, but San Diego leaned heavily on their bullpen to advance past the Cardinals in three games.

Clevinger has generally seemed the more likely of the duo to work his way back to the mound this week. Sidelined since September 23 due to an elbow strain, the 29-year-old threw a “high-intensity” bullpen session yesterday, reports Jon Morosi of MLB Network (via Twitter). The highest-profile of San Diego’s myriad deadline season acquisitions, Clevinger has a 3.02 ERA/4.15 FIP in 41.2 innings between the Indians and Padres this season.

Lamet emerged as an NL Cy Young contender this year, pitching to a 2.09 ERA/2.48 FIP across 69 innings. Unfortunately, he exited his final start of the regular season with biceps tightness. The Padres have until tomorrow to formally set their NLDS roster.

NL Notes: Padres, Clevinger, Lamet, Marlins, Marte

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Padres manager Jayce Tingler spoke to the media regarding injured starters Mike Clevinger and Dinelson Lamet, saying that both hurlers are playing catch but not yet throwing bullpen sessions. Their official status remains day-to-day, per The Athletic’s Andy McCullough. With the NLDS consisting of 5 games over 5 consecutive days this season, the Padres don’t have the luxury of using a roster spot on a pitcher who’s not going to be ready to throw. Clevinger and Lamet will likely be healthy enough to start, or they won’t be on the NLDS roster. The Padres will set their NLDS roster on Tuesday, per Dennis Lin of the Athletic (via Twitter).

  • Miami will likewise take as much time as possible before making a decision on Starling Marte. In the meantime, per Jordan McPherson of the Miami Herald (via Twitter), it’s “Rest. Recovery. Treatment.” The Marlins will likely start Magneuris Sierra if Marte isn’t on the roster. Unlike with the Padres’ starters, there is a scenario where Marte is available to pinch-hit, but not to start. Sierra had just 53 plate appearance during the regular season, but he’s a burner who put together some nice at-bats against the Cubs in the wild card round.
  • Game one, of course, would likely pit the Marlins against southpaw Max Fried. In that case, Monte Harrison or Lewis Brinson would be more likely to get the nod. Brinson saw the most playing time during the season, slashing .226/.268/.368 across 112 plate appearances in 47 games. Brinson started 28 of the Marlins 60 games in the outfield, but he saw more time in the corners than in center. For what it’s worth, Brinson’s triple slash jumped to .260/.315/.480 in his 54 plate appearances against left-handers in 2020.

Latest On Dinelson Lamet, Mike Clevinger

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OCTOBER 3: There’s seemingly cause for optimism regarding Clevinger. ESPN’s Pedro Gomez hears (Twitter link) that he could be in line to return to the mound for next week’s NLDS against the Dodgers.

OCTOBER 2: Tonight could prove to be the end of the line for the 2020 Padres, who are gearing up to face the Cardinals in a do-or-die Game 3 of their first-round series. The Padres have gone the series without their two best starting pitchers, right-handers Dinelson Lamet and Mike Clevinger, and they’ll turn to reliever Craig Stammen as an opener Friday. If Stammen & Co. manage to lead San Diego past St. Louis, though, the Padres could see Lamet and Clevinger return in the second round.

Both Lamet and Clevinger played catch Friday, per the San Diego Union Tribune’s Kevin Acee, and manager Jayce Tingler said it’s a “possibility” they’d be around for the NLDS. Lamet has been dealing with biceps discomfort, while Clevinger has been out with an elbow strain. Fortunately, Clevinger came out of his throwing session “feeling great,” Robert Murray reports.

Lamet and Clevinger are undoubtedly two of the main reasons the Padres reached the playoffs for the first time since 2006. Lamet turned in a Cy Young-caliber season with a 2.09 ERA/2.48 FIP and 12.13 K/9 against 2.61 BB/9 in 69 innings. Clevinger, whom the Padres acquired from the Indians at the Aug. 31 trade deadline, pitched to a 3.02 ERA/4.15 FIP and notched 8.64 K/9 against 3.02 BB/9 over 41 2/3 frames between the teams. Healthy versions of the two hurlers would have played prominent roles versus the Cardinals, but perhaps they’ll still have a chance to help the Padres this postseason.

Mike Clevinger, Dinelson Lamet Not On Padres’ Wild Card Roster

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The Padres have formally announced their Wild Card Series roster, and neither Mike Clevinger nor Dinelson Lamet is included. Both right-handers recently incurred arm injuries, with Clevinger suffering an elbow strain and Lamet experiencing biceps discomfort. There’s still no formal update on their status, but neither has been ruled out from future rounds. For this round at least, here’s how the roster breaks down:

Right-Handed Pitchers

Left-Handed Pitchers

Catchers

Infielders

Outfielders

Both Clevinger and Lamet are among the other 12 players in the Padres’ 40-man postseason player pool, the team announced, so they could still be added in future rounds, should the team advance. Beyond Clevinger and Lamet, the other 10 players in San Diego’s pool are as follows: Michel Baez, Luis Perdomo, Taylor Williams, Jose Castillo, MacKenzie Gore, Ryan Weathers, Francisco Mejia, Webster Rivas, Greg Allen and Jorge Ona.

Mike Clevinger “Unlikely” To Pitch In Wild Card Round

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10:47am: The Padres are still evaluating the decision on Clevinger and Lamet after their latest throwing sessions, per Dennis Lin and Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic (Twitter link). It doesn’t sound as though the club is formally committing to either pitcher’s availability (or lack thereof) just yet. They still have a bit more than an hour to submit their roster.

10:04am: Padres right-hander Mike Clevinger is unlikely to pitch in the Wild Card round, Jeff Passan and Jesse Rogers of ESPN report (Twitter link). There is “significant” concern after a Tuesday bullpen session, per the report, which casts doubt not only on Clevinger’s availability for the Wild Card round but for the entire postseason.

Acquired in a blockbuster, nine-player trade with the Indians on the morning of the trade deadline, Clevinger made four starts with the Padres and turned in 19 innings of 2.84 ERA ball with a 19-to-3 K/BB ratio. He was diagnosed with an elbow strain last week, however, and while he’s reportedly been cleared of any UCL damage, his status for the postseason has remained up in the air.

Clevinger’s injury is all the more concerning given that breakout righty Dinelson Lamet exited his most recent start after experiencing discomfort in his right biceps. Both pitchers threw earlier in the week, but it seems as though Clevinger hasn’t progressed to a point where he’s ready for game action. Lamet’s status remains unclear as well.

Quick Hits: Padres, M’s, Twins, White Sox

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It’s possible Dinelson Lamet or Mike Clevinger could start Game 1 of the Padres’ series against the Cardinals on Wednesday, Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune reports. It’s fantastic news for the Padres, who saw Lamet go down with right biceps tightness last Friday, while Clevinger suffered a sprained right elbow last Wednesday. At least in Clevinger’s case, it initially didn’t seem he would be ready for the start of the playoffs, but it now looks as if the Padres’ top starters (along with Zach Davies) will be ready when they begin their first postseason series since 2006.

  • The  Mariners will enter the upcoming offseason with a focus on upgrading their bullpen, per general manager Jerry Dipoto (via Greg Johns of MLB.com). Seattle would “like to add three or four guys down there that can stabilize that group and give us some certainty as we move toward the end of a game,” acccording to Dipoto. The Mariners, who finished with a 27-33 record, kept their long-running playoff drought going this year thanks in part to a weak relief corps that finished last in the AL in ERA (5.92).
  • Twins third baseman Josh Donaldson (calf) and center fielder Byron Buxton (concussion) had “a relatively good day” Monday, according to manager Rocco Baldelli (via Betsy Helfand of the St. Paul Pioneer Press). Donaldson battled calf problems in the past, but that didn’t stop the Twins from signing him to a four-year, $92MM contract in the offseason. Further calf troubles have held Donaldson to 28 games this year, though, and he hasn’t played since Sept. 25. Buxton, who also has a history of injuries, only played in 39 regular-season games. However, even without full campaigns from either of those two, the Twins won 36 games en route to a second straight AL Central title. They should be even stronger if the two are ready for playoff action.
  • White Sox left fielder Eloy Jimenez expects to be available for the team’s Game 1 playoff showdown in Oakland on Tuesday, Scott Merkin of MLB.com was among those to tweet. Jimenez hasn’t played since Sept. 24 because of a mid-foot sprain, but when he was able to take the field, he was one of Chicago’s most valuable hitters. As a .296/.332/.559 hitter in 226 plate appearances, the 23-year-old Jimenez helped the White Sox to their first playoff berth since 2008.
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