Urshela could get first crack at the third base job. A’s general manager David Forst has said on a few occasions that the front office was looking for answers at the hot corner. They explored at least one trade possibility, touching base with the Phillies regarding Alec Bohm, but balked at Philadelphia’s reported ask for star closer Mason Miller.

The free agent options at the position were limited. Alex Bregman is the only clear regular. He’d almost certainly be outside the club’s price range even if he were willing to play in Sacramento for the next three seasons. It’s not clear if Gleyber Torres is willing to sign as a third baseman. Yoán Moncada, Josh Rojas, Jorge Polanco and Urshela were among the rebound candidates who could be had for an affordable one-year deal.

Urshela, 33, is coming off a second consecutive middling season. He split the year between the Tigers and Braves. He combined for 461 plate appearances and hit .250/.286/.361 with nine home runs. Urshela’s plus contact skills remain intact, but his power has dropped off sharply in recent years. His slugging percentage has trended down in two straight seasons. The veteran has never taken many walks, so the dip in power leaves him with something of an empty batting average. Since the start of 2023, the righty-hitting infielder carries a .266/.300/.365 line with 11 longballs in nearly 700 trips to the plate.

While the bat has tailed off, Urshela remains a capable defender. Defensive Runs Saved gave him exactly league average marks in a little over 900 innings this past season. Statcast credited him with two runs above average. Although DRS has historically taken a more favorable view of Urshela’s glove than Statcast has, both metrics feel he’s been a little bit above par over the past two seasons.

Assuming Urshela cracks the big league roster, the A’s could deploy him at either corner infield position. Third base remains his primary spot, but he has topped 100 innings at first base in each of the last two years. Tyler Soderstrom should get the majority of the playing time there. Urshela could move across the diamond against left-handed pitching if the A’s want to shield Soderstrom from unfavorable platoon matchups. That could draw righty Darell Hernaiz into the lineup at third.

Ken Rosenthal of the Athletic first reported the A’s and Urshela had a deal. Martín Gallegos of MLB.com reported the one-year term. The New York Post’s Jon Heyman had the $2.15MM base salary, while The Associated Press reported the incentive specifics.

Image courtesy of Imagn.

8:20am: The Braves and Urshela have agreed to a deal, tweets Jon Heyman of the New York Post.

7:50am: The Braves are nearing a major league deal with third baseman Gio Urshela, per a report from The New York Post’s Joel Sherman this morning. Urshela was recently designated for assignment and released by the Tigers, who’ll be on the hook for the remainder of his $1.5MM salary. The Braves will only owe Urshela the prorated league minimum for the time he spends on the big league roster or injured list. Urshela is a client of Rep 1 Baseball.

The news comes just one day after Braves third baseman Austin Riley was diagnosed with a hand fracture that is expected to sideline him for between six and eight weeks. If that timeline holds, it will leave him out of action for at least the remainder of the regular season and the early portions of the postseason, though it’s feasible he could return to the field if Atlanta makes a deep enough run into the playoffs.

With utilityman Whit Merrifield already covering for the injured Ozzie Albies at second base, that seemingly left the club to rely on top infield prospect Nacho Alvarez Jr. and depth infielder Luke Williams to handle the hot corner down the stretch. With Urshela now in the fold, the club will add a veteran third baseman into the fold who could help raise the floor on their production at the position in Riley’s absence.

For Urshela, the deal represents an opportunity to get regular at-bats with a playoff contender down the stretch while also attempting to re-establish himself as a regular option following a disappointing stint in Detroit this year. Following a 2023 season where he was limited to just 62 games by a season-ending pelvic fracture, Urshela hit free agency and signed a one-year deal worth just $1.5MM with the Tigers back in February. At the time, it seemed to be a bargain for a player who had been a steady regular at third base for several years. It quickly turned sour, however, as Urshela delivered his worst season since establishing himself as a regular with the Yankees back in 2019.

The 32-year-old hit just .243/.286/.333 (73 wRC+) in 325 trips to the plate with the Tigers while splitting time between the infield corners. Defensive metrics are extremely mixed on Urshela’s defense at third, as the veteran has accumulated -17 Outs Above Average at the position since becoming a regular back in 2019. Brutal as that figure may seem, Defensive Runs Saved actually has Urshela as a plus defender at the hot corner over that same timeframe with a +4 figure overall. Still, even the most favorable views of Urshela’s defense leave it difficult to justify him as an everyday option if his hitting numbers remain where they were in Detroit.

Fortunately, there’s some reasons for optimism regarding the veteran’s future. His track record over the past half decade speaks for itself, as he entered the 2024 season as a solid .291/.335/.452 (115 wRC+) hitter since his 2019 breakout with New York. That’s the 16th-best figure among all qualified third baseman over that time frame. What’s more, Urshela’s .271 BABIP is by far the lowest of his career; he entered the 2024 season with a career .319 BABIP that had jumped to .334 since his breakout in 2019.

A return to form in that regard could help Urshela put up numbers closer to league average offensively. His batted ball data also suggests he’s in line for some positive regression. The 32-year-old’s .271 wOBA is a far cry from his .305 xwOBA, a figure that (while still below average) would put him roughly in line with his more palatable 2021 and 2023 seasons, where his offensive output was around 3% and 8% worse than league average (by wRC+). Even that level of production would make Urshela a solid fill-in at the hot corner for Atlanta, particularly if the club doesn’t want to push Alvarez into an everyday big league role in the middle of a pennant race at just 21 years old.

August 16: The Tigers announced today that they have selected the contracts of infielders Jace Jung and Trey Sweeney, moves that were reported yesterday. In corresponding moves, outfielder Akil Baddoo was optioned to Triple-A Toledo and infielder Gio Urshela was designated for assignment. To open another 40-man spot, left-hander Easton Lucas was designated for assignment. Robert Murray of FanSided reported the Urshela move on X prior to the official announcement.

Urshela, 32, reached free agency for the first time after the 2023 season. He had a solid four-year run in the big leagues from 2019 to 2022 but then had an injury-marred 2023 campaign. He got into 62 games with the Angels, hitting just two home runs before a pelvic fracture wiped out the second half of his season.

That was naturally going to impact his individual market but he also had the misfortune of being a part of one of the frostier offseasons in recent memory. Even big-name free agents lingered on the open market well into the new year. Many players below the superstar level ended up settling for very modest deals in the early parts of 2024. Guys like Michael A. Taylor, Enrique Hernández, Adam Duvall, Randal Grichuk and others settled for one-year deals of less than $5MM.

The Tigers were able to nab Urshela for a guarantee of just $1.5MM on a one-year deal. Though his 2023 season wasn’t great, they were likely excited to get a solid veteran at such a low price point. As mentioned, Urshela had a strong four-year run prior to 2023, spending time with the Yankees and Twins. In that stretch, he hit 54 home runs in 435 games and slashed .290/.336/.463 for a wRC+ of 118.

He spent most of that time at third base and generally had the reputation of a strong defender. Bizarrely, Outs Above Average hates him and gave him a grade of -17 in that 2019-22 period, but Defensive Runs Saved gave him a solid grade of +5.

If the Tigers got anything close to that kind of performance for their modest investment, it would have been a steal. Unfortunately, Urshela has not been able to bounce back as hoped. He has been in 92 games for Detroit this year with five home runs and a modest batting line of .243/.286/.333. That translates to a 73 wRC+, indicating he’s been 27% below league average at the plate this year.

Detroit is 7.5 games back of a playoff spot, which isn’t a totally hopeless position, but they are clearly focused on the future at this point. Prior to the deadline, they traded away Jack Flaherty, Carson Kelly, Andrew Chafin and Mark Canha. They are going to use the remainder of the schedule to get Jung and Sweeney exposed to major league pitching, which will nudge Urshela out of their plans.

Since the trade deadline has come and gone, they will have no choice but to place Urshela on waivers in the coming days. He has about $345K of his salary still to be paid out, meaning a claiming team wouldn’t be taking on huge amounts of money by grabbing him. However, given his performance both last year and this year, it’s possible that he passes through unclaimed. He has been hot of late, with a .265/.342/.412 batting line and 108 wRC+ in August, but that’s a sample of just 38 plate appearances amid a rough two-year stretch.

If he passes through unclaimed, he has more than enough service time to reject an outright assignment while keeping that salary in place. If he ends up a free agent, the Tigers would be on the hook for that money. Any other club could sign him for the prorated league minimum, which would be subtracted from what the Tigers pay.

Lucas, 27, was just claimed off waivers from the Athletics in May. Since that claim, he has made three appearances for the Tigers with two earned runs allowed, two strikeouts and two walks. Combined with his time with the A’s, he now has 13 2/3 major league innings pitched with a 9.22 earned run average.

His minor league work this year has been far more interesting. Between the two organizations, he has thrown 49 Triple-A innings with a 3.31 ERA. The 11.2% walk rate is on the high side but he’s countered that with a 25.2% strikeout rate.

Lucas still has a full slate of options and less than a year of service time. For any club intrigued by his Triple-A numbers this year, he could be a long-term depth piece. Like Urshela, he will have to be placed on waivers in the coming days since the trade deadline has passed. Lucas has a previous career outright, which would give him the right to elect free agency if he eventually passes through waivers unclaimed.

Urshela looked to be in discomfort after trying to run out a grounder, and he was replaced at third base by Matt Vierling in the bottom of the second.  Vierling and Zach McKinstry could simply handle third base duties in a platoon until Urshela is healthy, though with Andy Ibanez also on the 10-day IL, Detroit’s infield depth is now further thinned out by the loss of Urshela for at least the next 10 days.  Kennedy also figures to get into the mix, and his first in-game appearance will mark his Tigers debut after being claimed off waivers from the Diamondbacks in February.

Speaking with Evan Petzold of the Detroit News and other reporters, Urshela revealed that he has a Grade 1 strain, or the lowest level of strain.  As such, the infielder is hopeful that he won’t miss much time beyond the 10-day minimum, though Urshela figures he’ll be sidelined for perhaps two weeks.

The hamstring strain is another unfortunate injury setback for Urshela, who missed most of the 2023 season recovering from a pelvic fracture.  Urshela hit .299/.329/.374 over 228 plate appearances for the Angels but didn’t play again after June 15 due to his recovery.

Looking to rebuild his value, Urshela signed a one-year, $1.5MM free agent deal with the Tigers over the offseason, and has quickly stepped in as Detroit’s regular third baseman. While Vierling, McKinstry, and Ibanez has gotten some work at the hot corner, Urshela has started 14 of 20 games and also hit .298/.310/.333 over 58 PA.  A .362 BABIP has greatly aided that production, as Urshela has continued to shown the same lack of power that plagued him in 2023.  Urshela’s walk rate is also only 1.7%, which would easily be the worst of his career if continued over the full season.

Despite these concerns, Urshela has actually been one of the more respectable hitters on a Detroit team that has struggled to generate offense.  Riley Greene, Kerry Carpenter, and Mark Canha are all hitting well, but pretty much the rest of the lineup has ranged from average to mediocre, as the Tigers have been carried by their pitching to their solid 11-9 start.

It’s the second instance this week of a veteran infielder agreeing to a $1.5MM free agent deal that falls well shy of what most pundits expected entering the offseason. Urshela’s deal matches the $1.5MM deal that Amed Rosario inked with the Rays on Tuesday. Detroit president of baseball operations Scott Harris recently suggested his club wasn’t likely to sign any “everyday-type” hitters to big league deals, citing a desire to commit to the wave of young prospects bubbling up to the majors. However, at this price point, Urshela was likely too enticing an opportunity for a team without a clear answer at third base.

Prior to this agreement, the Tigers looked to be preparing to begin the season with a platoon of Zach McKinstry and either Andy Ibanez or Matt Vierling at the hot corner. That pair would presumably hold things own until 2022 first-round pick Jace Jung worked his way to the big leagues.

The Tigers, perhaps not coincidentally, informed Jung today that he wouldn’t be making the Opening Day roster (X link via Evan Woodbery of MLive.com). They’ve also said fellow prospect Justyn-Henry Malloy will move off of third base and focus exclusively on outfield work. The addition of Urshela gives the Tigers a viable everyday option at third base while Jung finishes off his development — or at the very least provides a strong right-handed bat to complement with the lefty-swinging McKinstry.

Beyond the fit at third base, Urshela provides insurance in other ways. He’s played some shortstop in the big leagues, including 71 innings with the Angels in 2023, and could step in for Javier Baez at times. He also gives Detroit a veteran to be leaned upon in the event that top prospect Colt Keith, who signed a six-year extension before making his MLB debut and is expected to open the year as the Tigers’ second baseman, struggles early on. Urshela could handle second base himself or take up a more prominent role at the hot corner, with McKinstry sliding over to second base should Keith ultimately be determined to be in need of some more time in the minors.

Based on track record alone, Urshela was a candidate for a multi-year deal — and he’d likely have been a lock for one had he been fully healthy last season. Dating back to a 2019 breakout with the Yankees, he carries a .291/.335/.452 batting line in 1871 trips to the plate. He’s struck out at an 18.9% clip overall in that time but improved his bat-to-ball skills over the past two seasons between Anaheim and Minnesota; since Opening Day 2022 he’s fanned in just 16.9% of his plate appearances.

Solid as his career has been since becoming a big league regular, Urshela is a rebound candidate. His power output with the Angels was curiously low to begin the 2023 season, with just two home runs and a paltry .075 ISO (slugging minus batting average) through mid-June. He never got much of a chance to right the ship after suffering a pelvic fracture on June 15 of last season. Urshela didn’t require surgery but was on crutches in the aftermath of the injury and wound up missing the remainder of the season as it healed.

Urshela has fairly even platoon splits throughout his career, though he does skew slightly more productive against left-handed pitching (.290/.328/.445 against southpaws; .272/.320/.414 versus righties). That surely held extra appeal for a Tigers club that posted a tepid .241/.312/.398 slash against lefties in 2023, with the resulting 95 wRC+ ranking 22nd among MLB teams.

From a payroll vantage point, the Urshela deal barely makes a dent. He’s effectively replacing a league-minimum player on the roster, so he’s only adding about $750K of additional guarantees to the Tigers’ projected payroll. Roster Resource pegs Detroit at a $108.4MM projection for the 2024 season, which checks in more than $90MM shy of the team’s franchise-record mark set back in 2017 (under late owner Mike Ilitch, whose son, Chris, now runs the team). As such, there ought to be further resources available if similar bargain options to this Urshela addition present themselves. There’s no indication, however, that the Tigers have considered a higher-profile splash in free agency or on the trade market in the late stages of the offseason.

ESPN’s Jeff Passan first reported the Tigers and Urshela were in agreement on a one-year, $1.5MM deal. Jon Heyman of the New York Post reported the presence of incentives, which Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free-Press specified as being worth up to $500K.

Urshela, now 32, is coming off a frustrating season with the Angels. He hit just two home runs in 62 games before suffering a pelvic fracture that ended his season prematurely. Nonetheless, plenty of clubs have been interested in him based on his previous work, where he combined a bit of pop, low strikeout rates and defensive versatility.

From 2019 to 2022, he hit 54 home runs in 435 games while getting punched out in just 19.3% of his plate appearances. His 6.3% walk rate was subpar but he nonetheless managed to hit .290/.336/.463 over those years for a wRC+ of 119, indicating he was 19% better than league average. He has spent most of his career at third base but has also lined up at the other three infield spots and has one inning in left field.

The Sox have a set infield right now with Rafael Devers, Trevor Story, Vaughn Grissom and Triston Casas lined up left to right, but there would be some sense in adding a quality multi-positional infielder like Urshela. Neither Devers nor Cases are considered especially strong defensively. Story has missed significant time in the past two seasons due to elbow surgery. Grissom has just 64 games of major league experience.

If Urshela were added, he could occasionally spell someone in that group or push them to the designated hitter slot. The club plans to use Masataka Yoshida as the DH fairly regularly but he can play the outfield on occasion as others get a rest.

Despite the logical fit, Cotillo downplays the urgency of a deal getting to completion, which suggests the Sox aren’t desperate to add him. If they don’t get something done with Urshela, their in-house options for a depth infielder are Enmanuel Valdéz, Bobby Dalbec, Pablo Reyes, David Hamilton and Romy González.

The Halos acquired Urshela from the Twins in November of 2022, with Urshela one year away from free agency, sending prospect Alejandro Hidalgo the other way. Urshela had hit .290/.336/.463 over the previous four seasons between the Twins and Yankees, leading to a wRC+ of 119. That bat was enticing, as was his defense. With Anthony Rendon’s mounting injury history, Urshela gave the club some insurance at third base, while the club also hoped he could fill in at other positions as well.

Unfortunately, the acquisition didn’t work out too well for the Angels. Urshela bounced around to all four infield positions but got into just 62 games on the year before suffering a pelvic fracture in June. He didn’t require surgery but it ended his season nonetheless. Before that injury, he hit just two home runs and his slash line was down to .299/.329/.374, translating to a 92 wRC+.

Despite that disappointing campaign, the reported interest suggests that the club has some confidence in Urshela bouncing back to health and improving his performance. Once again, there may not be a simple everyday job available to him, but putting him back into a multi-positional role would make sense.

The Halos are set to have youngsters Zach Neto and Nolan Schanuel at shortstop and first base, respectively. Schanuel held his own in his brief major league debut but is still a risk with just 51 professional games under his belt, having just been drafted last summer. Neto also debuted last year and performed well defensively, but with subpar offense. Third base remains an annual question, with Rendon having suffered through another injury-marred season in 2023.

Brandon Drury and Luis Rengifo are on hand to cover second base and one of these other positions, but bolstering the group overall by bringing Urshela back would improve the overall outlook. The Angels have often been hobbled by injuries or underperformance exposing a lack of depth in recent years. Urshela’s presence would give them some cover for another Rendon injury or any sophomore slump from Neto or Schanuel, or another unforeseen development.

The Halos should have plenty of spending room, looking at their budget at Roster Resource. They are currently slated for a budget of $173MM and a competitive balance tax figure of $188MM. Last year, their payroll finished at $215MM and their CBT just under the $233MM line. Those figures were set to be even higher before they fell out of contention and started taking cost-cutting measures as the season was winding down.

Assuming they are willing to get back near those levels again in 2024, there’s lots of things they could do. At the start of the offseason, MLBTR predicted Urshela for a two-year deal worth $20MM. He may not be able to get that high since it has turned out to be a fairly tepid market for position players and he is still lingering on the market in February. But with Spring Training starting shortly and clubs reportedly having offers out to the infielder, he may be coming off the board soon.

Unlike that quarter, the 32-year-old Urshela offers only minimal experience at shortstop — the likeliest place on the diamond if he signs in Miami. The Marlins have Jake Burger and Josh Bell lined up at the infield corners, with Luis Arraez penciled in at second base. The Fish could potentially utilize Burger at designated hitter more often (or move him to first base with Bell taking DH reps) in order to free up some time at the hot corner for Urshela, but finding help at shortstop has been a priority for Miami this winter.

Urshela has played some shortstop in his career, including 71 innings with the Angels this past season. He’s logged a total of 359 frames at the position overall (plus another 276 in the minors) but has been primarily a third baseman — a position at which he’s logged more than 12,000 innings between the big leagues and the minors.

While there might be some questions about Urshela’s fit as a primary shortstop, there’s little doubt in his ability to hit. Dating back to a 2019 breakout with the Yankees, Urshela carries a .291/.335/.452 batting line in 1871 trips to the plate. He’s struck out at an 18.9% clip overall in that time but improved his bat-to-ball skills over the past two seasons between Anaheim and Minnesota; since Opening Day 2022 he’s fanned in just 16.9% of his plate appearances.

Solid as his career has been since becoming a big league regular, Urshela is also something of a rebound candidate. His power output with the Angels was curiously low to begin the 2023 season, with just two home runs and a paltry .075 ISO (slugging minus batting average) through mid-June. He never got much of a chance to rebound after suffering a pelvic fracture on June 15 of last season. Urshela didn’t require surgery but was on crutches in the aftermath of the injury and wound up missing the remainder of the season as it healed.

The Marlins are the only team in MLB that hasn’t signed a free agent to a major league contract this offseason. Urshela, presumably, would change that. Despite his status as a veteran looking to bounce back from a notable (and uncommon) injury, his track record is strong enough that he ought to command a big league deal, if not a two-year pact. The Marlins currently project for a $97MM payroll, per Roster Resource, which is about $13MM shy of where they wrapped up the 2023 season.

A more precise payroll figure will come into clearer focus once the club resolves arbitration scenarios with its two most expensive candidates. Both Arraez and closer Tanner Scott exchanged arb figures with the team after failing to come to terms on an agreement last month. Arraez submitted a $12MM request against the team’s $10.6MM filing, while Scott’s camp is seeking a $5.7MM salary against the Marlins’ $5.15MM submission.

• Matt Chapman: One of the best defensive third basemen in the league, Chapman leads the league in Defensive Runs Saved and Ultimate Zone Rating since the start of 2017. In terms of Outs Above Average, he’s second, trailing only Nolan Arenado. Offensively, he’s strikeout prone but takes his walks and hits home runs. His 2023 season ended up a bit below his previous work, though that may have been caused by a late-season finger injury. His 17 home runs were his first time below 24 in a full season. Chapman’s .240/.330/.424 batting line and 110 wRC+ were a bit lower than his career pace, but through August 13, when he hurt his finger in a weight room incident, he had 15 homers and was sitting on a line of .255/.346/.449 with a 121 wRC+. A down year by his standards, he still produced 3.5 fWAR, his lowest in a full season. He’s had interest from plenty of clubs this offseason but remains unattached as Spring Training nears. Chapman turned down a qualifying offer from the Blue Jays, thus tying him to draft pick compensation.
• Gio Urshela: Going back to his 2019 breakout with the Yankees, Urshela has hit .291/.335/.452 for a wRC+ of 115. He’s generally considered a sure-handed defender, though the advanced metrics are split on his work at the hot corner. Urshela has been credited with 10 Defensive Runs Saved and a grade of 13.5 from Ultimate Zone Rating in his career work at third, but Outs Above Average gives him a dreary -18. He’s coming off a rough platform season, as he hit just two home runs in his 62 games with the Angels and walked in only 4.4% of his plate appearances. His .299/.329/.374 batting line translated to a wRC+ of 92. He then suffered a season-ending pelvic fracture in June. Despite that rough year, he’s the best shot at an everyday third baseman apart from Chapman. There should be a huge difference in terms of their earning potential, which could make Urshela attractive to those who won’t come close to Chapman’s asking price.
• Justin Turner: He won’t be relied upon as an everyday option at the hot corner or any other position, but Turner can still hit and isn’t entirely limited to a designated hitter role just yet. With the Red Sox in 2023, he appeared in 41 games at first, 10 at second and seven at third base. The Dodgers gave him 66 starts at the hot corner in 2022 and 135 the year before that. He’s now 39 years old and his time in the field will likely keep dwindling, but the bat still plays. He hit 23 home runs last year and slashed .276/.345/.455 for a wRC+ of 114. A one-year deal seems likely.
• Evan Longoria: One year younger than Turner, Longoria still managed to head out to third base in 41 contests in 2023, with solid metrics for his work out there. Unfortunately, his work at the plate wasn’t as strong. He had never struck out in more than 24% of his plate appearances in any season of his career until 2022, when that number jumped to 27.9% and then to 30.8% in the most recent campaign. His .223/.295/.422 batting line translated to a wRC+ of 92 last year. But just the year prior, he hit .244/.315/.451 for the Giants, leading to a 116 wRC+. He won’t be considered an everyday option, having not played 90 games in a season since 2019.
• Josh Donaldson: Detractors might say Donaldson is washed, and there are 2023 stats they can point to, such as a .152 batting average. He also made multiple trips to the IL and only played 51 games on the year. But he hit 13 home runs in that limited action and drew walks at an 11.6% rate. His .115 batting average on balls in play wouldn’t be sustained over a longer stretch of playing time, particularly given his 92.1 mph average exit velocity and 51.3% hard-hit rate, so perhaps there’s still a potent bat in there if the baseball gods quit messing with him. His defensive grades at the hot corner have stayed strong, even as he’s now 38 years old. Donaldson said in November he’d like to play for one more year and go out on a high note rather than the down season through which he struggled in 2023. He should be available on an inexpensive one-year contract.

Honorable mentions: Brian Anderson, Eduardo Escobar, Mike Moustakas

• Tim Anderson: It’s no secret that last year was a disaster for Anderson, a stunning drop-off from his previous performance. From 2019 to 2022, he hit .318/.347/.473 for a wRC+ of 123. Last year, his line was just .245/.286/.296. His wRC+ of 60 was the lowest of all qualified hitters in the league. His defense also seemed to take a step back. Despite that rough year, his prior track record and a weak free agent class should get him a chance somewhere. Optimists could perhaps point to an April knee injury as the culprit for 2023, with better health perhaps leading to better results. Anderson has expressed a willingness to move to other positions going forward, but the lack of better alternatives should work in his favor.
• Amed Rosario: Like Anderson, Rosario also experienced a big drop-off in 2023, though not quite as precipitous. He hit .282/.315/.412 from 2019 to 2022, leading to a wRC+ of 101. The reviews on his glovework were mixed. Last year, he hit just .263/.305/.378 between the Guardians and Dodgers, leading to an 88 wRC+. The latter club, after acquiring him in a trade, had him spend more time at second base than at short. It’s unclear whether clubs around the league will consider him a proper shortstop or more of a second baseman that could play there in a pinch. The offense has been uneven but he’s always had good numbers with the platoon advantage, even in his poor 2023 campaign. The righty hitter slashed .282/.326/.442 against southpaws last year for a 112 wRC+.
• Gio Urshela: Going back to his 2019 breakout with the Yankees, Urshela has hit .291/.335/.452 for a wRC+ of 115. He’s also considered a strong defender at third base but has only had brief glimpses at short. While he’s had over 4,600 innings at the hot corner, he’s tallied just 359 at the six hole. His numbers there haven’t been especially strong either. He’s also coming off a season that was ended by a pelvic fracture suffered in June. He may be the most reliable bat in this bunch but he’s probably not considered an everyday shortstop. Then again, the dearth of attractive options may tempt some club to give it a shot.
• Elvis Andrus: The ceiling may not be too exciting with Andrus, but he has more reliability than the names ahead of him on this list. He played 112 games for the White Sox last year, missing a few weeks due to an oblique strain but otherwise staying healthy. He’s only had one full season in his career where he didn’t top that mark, getting to just 97 games in 2018. His .251/.304/.358 batting line translated to a wRC+ of just 81, not far below his career production, but he stole 12 bases and was still considered good in the field. His 1.1 fWAR on the year was easily the highest of anyone else in this post and he’s never been lower than that in a full season. Due to the aforementioned players dealing with rough years and injuries, none of these other guys even got to 0.5 fWAR.
• Adalberto Mondesí: The flip side to Andrus, Mondesí is not reliable at all but comes with a more enticing ceiling. Health has been a constant issue with him, as his 2019 season was the only time he got into more than 75 games, suiting up for 102 contests that year. Most recently, he suffered a torn ACL in April of 2022 and hasn’t appeared in a game since. But he had a strong run with the Royals from 2018 to 2021 when he was able to take the field. He hit 35 home runs in 1,103 plate appearances, though a 4.3% walk rate kept his on-base percentage low. His .261/.293/.445 batting line translated to a wRC+ of 92 but he paired that with strong defense and 114 stolen bases in 271 games. He produced 7.4 fWAR in that time, not even two full seasons’ worth of contests. The health issues will give clubs plenty of pause but he’s still just 28 years old and is almost two years removed from his ACL surgery at this point.

Honorable mentions: Brandon Crawford, Nick Ahmed, Yu Chang

Urshela, of course, is no stranger to New York after enjoying a breakout season with the Yankees back in 2019 and spending three seasons in the Bronx. Since that breakout season, Urshela has established himself as an above-average regular in the infield with a .291/.335/.452 slash line good for a 115 wRC+ over the past five seasons with the Yankees, Twins, and Angels. Urshela has paired that above average offensive production with roughly average defense around the infield dirt, where he’s played primarily third base along with some shortstop and brief cameos at both first and second base.

The infielder’s market has been relatively quiet for most of the offseason to this point. The only potential connection to get any buzz to this point in the winter for Urshela was a recent report of interest from the Blue Jays, though even that comes with the caveat that Toronto’s interest may wane in the wake of the Isiah Kiner-Falefa signing. The relatively quiet market for Urshela’s services could connect back to the infielder’s injury-marred 2023 campaign. While he hit a decent .299/.329/.374 during his time in Anaheim, it’s worth noting the fact that he appeared in just 62 games with the club after his season came to an abrupt end in early June thanks to a pelvic fracture. Given Urshela’s downturn in power production as an Angel and the significant injury the 32-year-old is recovering from, it would be understandable if clubs viewed his free agency with some trepidation.

Even in spite of the question marks surrounding Urshela and his injury-plagued 2023 campaign, he still stands as one of the better infield options on the market this offseason. The unusually thin positional market has been hit particularly hard with regards to available infielders, with Urshela standing as one of the best players available behind third baseman Matt Chapman. The likes of Whit Merrifield, Tim Anderson, Eduardo Escobar and Adam Frazier make up the next tier of players available, all of whom Urshela rates relatively favorably in comparison to.

Given that reality, it’s no surprise that the Mets would have at least some level of interest in Urshela’s services. Switch-hitting youngster Ronny Mauricio appeared to be in line for a shot to be the club’s regular third baseman in 2024, but the 22-year-old suffered an ACL tear while playing winter ball earlier this month, leaving the club with only Brett Baty, Mark Vientos, and Joey Wendle as options for regular starts at the hot corner entering next year. Both Baty and Vientos have struggled offensively in the majors and have questions about their defensive ability at third, while Wendle had previously been ticketed for a utility role in Queens next year. The addition of Urshela to the club’s mix would take pressure off of Baty and Vientos while given the Mets a right-handed complement to Wendle who is similarly versatile on defense.

Urshela’s fit with the Yankees is far less clear. With Anthony Rizzo, Gleyber Torres, and Anthony Volpe all entrenched at first base, second base, and shortstop respectively, that leaves third base as the only uncertain infield position in the Bronx as things stand. While that’s Urshela’s native position, the club nonetheless has veteran DJ LeMahieu penciled in as the everyday third baseman as well as youngsters like Oswald Peraza and Oswaldo Cabrera who could step into the club’s infield mix in the event of an injury. Even on the heels of a relative down season by LeMahieu’s standards, the addition of Urshela is not a clear upgrade over the 35-year-old veteran and would likely only serve to clog up the club’s infield mix further. Of course, it’s possible that a trade of a player such as Torres could free up space on the dirt and make a reunion between the Yankees and Urshela more plausible.

Sammon’s report also suggests that the two New York clubs are not the only ones with interest in Urshela’s services, though it does not name any other specific clubs. It’s at least possible Toronto still has interest in adding Urshela even after signing Kiner-Falefa, but other speculative fits for the infielder’s services include the Cubs, Mariners, and Brewers. Chicago currently figures to utilize some combination of Nick Madrigal, Patrick Wisdom, and Christopher Morel at third base, while the Brewers and Mariners appear likely to turn to Andruw Monasterio and Luis Urias respectively at the hot corner.

There hasn’t been much buzz about Urshela this winter, which isn’t surprising given the injury-shortened nature of the infielder’s season.  Urshela didn’t play after suffering a pelvic fracture in June, ending his 2023 campaign after 62 games with the Angels.  Based on the initial timeline given for Urshela’s recovery, he should be ready by the start of Spring Training, though there wasn’t enough time remaining for him to both rehab his injury and ramp up prior to the end of the Angels’ regular-season schedule.

Urshela hit .299/.329/.374 over 228 PA with Los Angeles while bouncing around the diamond at all four infield positions.  Most of Urshela’s action came at third base in place of the injured Anthony Rendon, and the vast majority of Urshela’s playing time in his eight MLB seasons has been as a third baseman.  The Outs Above Average metric hasn’t been a fan of Urshela’s third base glovework while the Defensive Runs Saved (+10) and UZR/150 (+3.9) metrics have given positive grades to 4620 1/3 big league innings at the hot corner.

Urshela has also shown some quality at the plate, particularly when he hit .310/.359/.523 over 650 PA for the Yankees during the 2019-20 seasons.  This rather unexpected breakout earned Urshela a regular spot in New York’s infield mix, though a somewhat injury-marred down year made him expendable, and the Yankees dealt Urshela to the Twins as part of their big five-player swap in March 2022.

While Urshela didn’t quite reach his offensive heights from his time with the Yankees, he still had a solid bounce-back year, hitting .285/.338/.429 in 551 PA in Minnesota.  Despite these good numbers, the Twins dealt Urshela to L.A. last offseason, in part due to Minnesota’s crowded infield picture and in part due to Urshela’s escalating arbitration salary (a projected $9.2MM, which ended up being $8.4MM after he lost his arb hearing in search of a $10MM salary).

If healthy, the 32-year-old Urshela could be at least a decent signing for a team in need of infield help, with some higher-ceiling potential if Urshela can even replicate his 2022 numbers, let alone his two big Yankees years.  It makes sense that the Blue Jays would’ve had him on their target list given their infield needs this winter, plus Toronto is quite familiar with Urshela due to his past time in their organization — he briefly played for the Jays in 2018, appearing in 19 games at the Major League level.

The Blue Jays’ plans at third base may hinge on whether or not the team can re-sign Matt Chapman, but if Chapman departs, it isn’t out of the question that the Jays could still pursue Urshela even with Kiner-Falefa already in the fold.  IKF’s lack of offensive pop makes him an imperfect answer as a starting third baseman, so if Kiner-Falefa is viewed more as a utility piece, Urshela’s higher-caliber bat and still-solid glove could make him a better option for a regular third base role.

Okey, 28, agreed to a minor league deal with the Angels back in April and made his team debut in May following injuries as the club battled through injuries to Max Stassi, Logan O’Hoppe, and Chad Wallach behind the plate. He appeared in just two games for the Angels, striking out in both of his plate appearances. Prior to his time in Anaheim, Okey made his big league debut in Cincinnati last June. He appeared in seven games for the Reds in 2022, slashing .167/.231/.167 in 13 plate appearances before being designated for assignment in July. Prior to 2023, Okey had spent his entire career in the Reds organization.

Though he certainly didn’t tear the cover off the ball in the minor leagues, Okey owns a career .233/.300/.362 slash line at the Triple-A level, including a .276/.325/.410 line in 33 games with the Angels’ affiliate in Salt Lake City this season. Those numbers could indicate that Okey has more to offer at the plate than his abysmal career wRC+ of -4 in the majors would indicate, though his numbers with the Salt Lake Bees are somewhat inflated due to the offensive environment in the Pacific Coast League.

Looking ahead, the Angels will have seven days to trade, waive, or release Okey. In the likely event that he clears waivers, Okey will have the opportunity to reject an outright assignment to the minors after being outrighted previously in his career, leaving him with the option to continue acting as catching depth for the Angels or attempt to catch on with another club on a minor league deal.

Urshela, 31, was acquired in an offseason trade from the Twins, with pitching prospect Alejandro Hidalgo headed the other way. Urshela was coming off a solid season in Minnesota, hitting .285/.338/.429 for a wRC+ of 119 while providing solid third base defense. However, he was set to make a projected $9.2MM via arbitration in his final season before free agency, so the Twins flipped him to Anaheim. The latter club and Urshela eventually went to a hearing with the Halos emerging victorious, leading to the infielder making $8.4MM this year instead of his desired figure of $10MM.

The addition was a sensible one for the Angels, as they have often fielded a roster with plenty of star power but a lack of depth and complementary pieces. They opted to try to fill multiple holes by bringing in solid and versatile players like Urshela, Brandon Drury and Hunter Renfroe. Overall, the plan has worked quite well as the club is having their best season in years, currently 41-34 and currently in possession of a playoff spot. But they will now have to proceed without Urshela in the mix.

Zach Neto and Anthony Rendon have each landed on the injured list in recent days as well. That forced the Halos to turn to the likes of Andrew Velazquez, Michael Stefanic and Kevin Padlo in the short term. Upgrading the infield via trade  next month seems a possibility. The Halos figure to be aggressive to capitalize on a chance to make the postseason in Shohei Ohtani’s final season of club control. Los Angeles enters play Wednesday at 41-34, tied with the Astros for the final Wild Card spot in the American League.

From Urshela’s perspective, it’s a brutally timed injury. He’ll likely close his platform year with a modest .299/.329/.374 showing in 62 games. While the projected timeline suggests he’s likely to have a more or less typical offseason, he’ll hit the open market coming off an injury-shortened year.

Next offseason’s free agent infield class appears very thin. Matt Chapman tops the group, but there aren’t many other productive regulars trending towards free agency. Jeimer Candelario is having a decent season in Washington, while Whit Merrifield is playing fairly well for the Blue Jays but entering his age-35 campaign. Amed Rosario is probably the top shortstop option, but he carries a .229/.303/.346 line in 65 contests.

The standings that he is referring to have the Angels currently at 41-34 as of this writing. That’s good enough to have them in position to secure one of the Wild Card spots in the American League. That would seem to mean that his “self-explanatory” comment is implying that, as a team firmly in contention, they will hold onto Ohtani rather than consider trade scenarios.

That’s a fairly understandable position to take, all things considered. Ohtani is a rental player, in that he’s slated to become a free agent at the end of this season. Players in that situation are often traded or featured in trade rumors, but they usually go from teams outside of contention to those who are in the hunt for the postseason.

Fans of rival clubs have naturally salivated over the possibility of an Ohtani trade for quite some time for a number of reasons. He is considered by many to be the greatest baseball player alive and continues to rack up stunning accolades on both sides of the ball. He already has one Most Valuable Player award and is making a strong case for another this year. His 24 home runs lead the league and his batting line of .295/.379/.623 amounts to a wRC+ of 170. In addition to that, he’s made 14 starts as a pitcher and has a 3.29 ERA.

That kind of elite play on both sides of the ball would be an upgrade to every club in the league and it’s difficult to even quantify how much to value it since it is so unique. The Angels would undoubtedly be able to recoup a massive haul if they made him available in trade talks but they would also severely undercut their own chances of success this year. Some observers might suggest that making the long-term move would be wise, but it’s understandable that the appetite for that path would be minimal. The club hasn’t posted a winning record since 2015, hasn’t made the playoffs since 2014 and hasn’t won a playoff game since 2009. Punting away their best chance in quite some time would be quite a tough pill to swallow.

That’s not to say that there’s zero chance of an Ohtani trade coming together. The club was willing to listen to offers last year when they were 42-57 and well out of contention. At that time, Ohtani still had a year and a half before his impending free agency. Ultimately, no deal came together and the club tried to compete again here in 2023 with Minasian firmly declaring they wouldn’t entertain Ohtani trades. They grabbed complementary players like Brandon Drury, Hunter Renfroe and Carlos Estévez and are now having their best season in recent memory. The club has also maintained that it would like to keep Ohtani beyond this season but hasn’t been able to get him to commit to anything thus far and will only have a harder time as he gets closer to the open market.

That would seem to create the possibility that there’s some scenario where the club plays poorly enough in the next six weeks that a deal becomes more likely, though Minasian understandably had little interest in entertaining such a hypothetical while the team is in a fairly decent place. It seems the most likely scenario is that the Angels will hold onto Ohtani through season’s end and hope that they can finally break some of their streaks of ineffectiveness. Doing so would still allow them to give Ohtani a qualifying offer at season’s end and receive a compensatory draft pick, likely just before the third round of the 2024 draft. Rivals teams would undoubtedly be willing to give the Halos a package far more appealing than that single draft pick, though it seems like that’s not something they are seriously considering as long as they continue to play well.

Quickly turning to non-Ohtani matters, Blum says that it appears Gio Urshela might have to miss the remainder of the season. The infielder was placed on the injured list this week due to a pelvic fracture and the club has yet to provide any kind of official estimated timeline for his absence. If it is indeed true that he won’t be able to return this year, that would be a blow to their infield depth. He has appeared at all four infield positions so far this year while hitting .299/.329/.374. With fellow infielders Zach Neto and Anthony Rendon also currently on the IL and other players struggling, the loss of a versatile defender like Urshela would be significant.