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Grant Dayton

Angels, Grant Dayton Nearing Deal

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The Angels are nearing a deal with free-agent lefty Grant Dayton, reports Robert Murray of FanSided (Twitter link). Dayton, a client of KVA Sports, opted out a minor league deal with the Marlins last weekend.

Dayton, 34, has appeared in parts of five big league seasons — two with the Dodgers and three with the Braves. He carries a 3.43 ERA with a 27.6% strikeout rate against a 9.0% walk rate in 102 1/3 innings — all in relief. He’s been a generally effective reliever throughout his big league career, when healthy, although that’s a notable caveat. Dayton missed all of the 2018 season due to Tommy John surgery and has missed considerable time in subsequent seasons due to a broken foot and shoulder inflammation.

Dayton has spent the past three seasons with Atlanta, the first two of them with solid results. (His early time with the Braves overlapped with that of current Angels GM Perry Minasian, who was working in the Atlanta front office as an assistant general manager at the time.) Dayton’s 2021 campaign saw him limited to 13 frames by that shoulder issue while posting a 6.23 ERA along the way. He opened the 2022 season with Miami’s Triple-A club, pitching to a 2.35 ERA with a 24-to-5 K/BB ratio through 15 1/3 innings of bullpen work before opting out.

The Halos have a pair of lefties in their bullpen at the moment, with offseason signee Aaron Loup and homegrown southpaw Jose Suarez helping to serve as bridges to closer Raisel Iglesias. Down in the minors, lefties Kenny Rosenberg and Jhonathan Diaz give them an additional pair of  the 40-man roster. Assuming a deal is finalized, Dayton will add to that left-handed depth and could get a look in the big leagues if he’s able to keep up the form that he displayed with the Marlins’ top affiliate to begin the season.

 

Grant Dayton To Opt Out Of Minors Deal With Marlins

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Marlins left-hander Grant Dayton is planning to exercise his minor league contract’s opt-out clause on Sunday, FanSided’s Robert Murray reports (via Twitter).  As per the usual structure of minors deals, the Marlins could retain Dayton by selecting his contract to the Major League roster, but it doesn’t appear as though the club is willing to make that move.

Dayton has a 3.43 ERA over 102 1/3 career innings in the majors, and left-handed hitters haven’t had much success (.169/.256/.331) against Dayton’s offerings.  However, Dayton has been plagued by a 13.6% career home run rate, as well as multiple injuries.  A Tommy John surgery cost him all of the 2018 season, and Dayton also missed substantial time in 2019 (foot fracture) and 2021 (shoulder inflammation) campaigns.  That latter injury limited Dayton to only 13 innings last year for the World Series champion Braves.

As Triple-A Jacksonville this year, Dayton helped his case for a call-up by posting a 2.51 ERA, 8.5% walk rate, and a huge 37.3% strikeout rate over 14 1/3 innings.  However, it seems like Miami is satisfied with the left-handed relief depth they already have in Tanner Scott, Steven Okert, and (currently on the COVID-IL) Richard Bleier.  As Murray notes, Dayton figures to generate interest as a free agent, and could find a quicker path back to the majors on a team in more dire need of some left-handed help

Marlins, Grant Dayton Agree To Minor League Deal

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The Marlins are in agreement with reliever Grant Dayton on a minor league contract, reports Craig Mish of SportsGrid (Twitter link). He’ll receive an invitation to big league Spring Training.

Dayton has spent the past three seasons in the NL East as a member of the Braves. The left-hander was effective when healthy between 2019-20, but he missed most of the former campaign on account of a fracture in his right foot. Between the two seasons, he only tallied 39 1/3 innings across 32 outings but he posted a 2.52 ERA.

Last year was a struggle for the Auburn product, as he surrendered ten runs in thirteen frames. He landed on the injured list in early June with inflammation in his throwing shoulder, then was transferred to the 60-day IL in July. Dayton never returned, and Atlanta cut him loose after the season.

Originally a Marlins draftee (11th round in 2010), Dayton made it as high as Triple-A in the Miami system and briefly cracked the 40-man roster. The Fish outrighted him in April 2015, before he ever made it to the majors, then traded him to the Dodgers that July. He made his big league debut in Los Angeles the following season, working to a 2.05 ERA in 25 games as a rookie.

Dayton, now 34, has 99 MLB appearances under his belt. He’s pitched in the majors in five of the past six seasons, posting a 3.43 ERA over 102 1/3 innings. The Alabama native has never had a problem missing bats, as he’s punched out an above-average 27.5% of opponents throughout his career. His 9% career walk rate is manageable, but the fly-ball pitcher has served up 1.67 homers per nine innings in the big leagues. Spacious Marlins Park could aid him in keeping the ball in the yard, but Dayton will first have to pitch his way onto the roster. The newly-extended Richard Bleier is Miami’s top southpaw in the bullpen, while Steven Okert and Sean Guenther also occupy spots on the 40-man.

Braves Announce Several Roster Moves

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The Braves announced a series of roster transactions, including the news that Josh Tomlin’s 2022 club option has been declined.  Left-hander Grant Dayton has been released, and outfielder Terrance Gore has been outrighted to Triple-A.  Joining the 40-man roster are outfielder Travis Demeritte and right-hander Alan Rangel, whose contracts were selected from Triple-A.  Ronald Acuna Jr. and Mike Soroka were also reinstated from the 60-day injured list as procedural moves.

Tomlin has spent the last three years with Atlanta, signing a pair of minor league contracts for the 2019 and 2020 seasons and then inking a one-year Major League deal last winter that paid him $1.25MM in guaranteed salary.  That money took the form of a $1MM salary for the season and then a $250K buyout of the team’s $1.25MM club option for the 2022 campaign.  The Braves therefore had a $1MM decision to make on Tomlin, and opted to not bring Tomlin back after a rough season for the 37-year-old.

Tomlin posted a 6.57 ERA over 49 1/3 relief innings last year, and was the victim of some bad luck — an ungainly .358 BABIP and a .346 xwOBA was well below his .377 wOBA.  That said, even his xwOBA was only in the 15th percentile of all pitchers, and Tomlin allowed more than his usual amount of hard contact.  With a very low strikeout rate and whiff rate, this lack of missed bats caught up to Tomlin in a big way.  On the plus side, Tomlin still delivered his usual excellent walk rate and spin rates on both his fastball and his curve.

Though a neck strain sidelined Tomlin for much of September, he likely wouldn’t have made the Braves’ postseason roster anyway.  The declined option doesn’t necessarily spell the end of his tenure with the club, as Atlanta could look to retain Tomlin via another minor league deal and see if the veteran has anything left in the tank during Spring Training.

Dayton has also been with Atlanta over the last three seasons, and was projected to earn $1.2MM this winter in his final year of arbitration eligibility.  The release allows the southpaw to get an early jump on a new job in free agency, rather than wait a few more weeks until the non-tender deadline (and the Braves also free up a roster spot in advance of the 40-man deadline on November 19).

Dayton pitched only 13 innings in 2021, as a shoulder injury kept him on the injured list for much of the last four months of the season.  Injuries have plagued Dayton for the last four years, as he missed all of 2018 recovering from Tommy John surgery and he missed a big piece of the 2019 season due to a fractured toe.  The southpaw was pretty effective when he was able to pitch in 2019-20, though this year had a 6.23 ERA over his 13 frames.

Gore was signed to a minor league deal last winter and didn’t see any action for the Braves during the regular season, but was on the team’s roster for both the NLDS and the World Series.  Gore appeared in one game during the playoffs, pinch-running and being left stranded at first base in the Braves’ 3-0 win over the Brewers in Game 2 of the NLDS.  If he wishes, the 30-year-old Gore can decline the outright assignment and look for another contract elsewhere, and contenders might be interested in signing Gore for karma purposes alone.  The veteran pinch-running specialist has been a part of the last two World Series championship teams, and has three Series rings in total over his career, despite appearing in only 102 regular-season games from 2014-20.

Braves Option William Contreras, Select Jonathan Lucroy

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The Braves made a change behind the plate, optioning catcher William Contreras to Triple-A and selecting the contract of veteran backstop Jonathan Lucroy.  To create 40-man roster space for Lucroy, southpaw Grant Dayton was moved to the 60-day injured list.

With Travis d’Arnaud injured for much of the season and not expected back until August, the Braves have gotten sub-replacement level production from the catching position this season, ranking 29th of 30 teams in catcher bWAR.  Contreras initially looked good after being called up from Triple-A, but his bat cooled off, leaving the 23-year-old with a modest .204/.278/.387 slash line and seven home runs in 158 plate appearances.

It’s probably safe to assume that Contreras will be recalled at some point this season, perhaps as soon as he gets his timing back and strings together some good games at the plate for Triple-A Gwinnett.  In the interim, Atlanta will make do at catcher with the veteran combo of Lucroy and Kevan Smith, and Alex Jackson is also on a rehab assignment after missing two months with a strained hamstring and an injured finger.

Lucroy inked a minor league deal with the Braves in May, about a month after he chose free agency rather than accept an outright assignment to the Nationals’ alternate training site.  Lucroy appeared in five games with Washington this season and one game with the Red Sox in 2020, and it has now been several seasons since the former All-Star has been a significant force in a lineup.

Until Jackson is ready to return, Lucroy and Smith could essentially be competing to see who remains on the MLB roster, though Atlanta could also opt to keep the two veterans on hand and keep the less-experienced Jackson at Triple-A.  While d’Arnaud’s return should theoretically stabilize matters, the Braves could certainly look to acquire catching help at the trade deadline, adding some depth in case d’Arnaud has a setback.

Braves Acquire Kevan Smith, Designate Jeff Mathis

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The Braves have acquired catcher Kevan Smith from the Rays in exchange for cash, per a team announcement. Tampa Bay had designated him for assignment earlier in the week. In a corresponding move, Atlanta designated veteran backstop Jeff Mathis for assignment.

The Braves catching situation has been in constant flux since the injury to Travis d’Arnaud. The 38-year-old Mathis went 0-for-9 in his three games of work, striking out five times and failing to reach base. Of course, his value proposition is on the defensive side of the ball, not with the bat.

As for Smith, he is 1-for-4 this season with the Rays, his second season with Tampa after previously seeing time with the Angels and White Sox. For his career, Smith owns a .271/.320/.383 across 751 plate appearances since 2016.

In other moves, the Braves activated Grant Dayton from the 10-day injured list and optioned Tucker Davidson to Triple-A, per the Athletic’s David O’Brien (via Twitter). Davidson made a spot start against the Mets yesterday. In just his second career start, the southpaw gave up three runs on five hits across six innings of work. He walked one while striking out five. The Braves ultimately lost the game by the score of 4-3.

Dayton will return to the bullpen, the fifth lefty in manager Brian Snitker’s pen. He has made nine appearances totaling nine innings and giving up five runs. He does have a solid 10-to-3 strikeout-to-walk ratio in this small sample of work.

Players Avoiding Arbitration: 12/2/20

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With the non-tender deadline coming today at 7pm CT, expect quite a few players to agree to contracts for the 2021 season, avoiding arbitration in advance.  In many (but not all) cases, these deals — referred to as “pre-tender” deals because they fall prior to the deadline — will fall shy of expectations and projections.  Teams will sometimes present borderline non-tender candidates with a “take it or leave it” style offer which will be accepted for fear of being non-tendered and sent out into an uncertain market.  Speculatively, such deals could increase in 2020 due to the economic uncertainty sweeping through the game, although there are also widespread expectations of record non-tender numbers.

You can track all of the arbitration and non-tender activity here, and we’ll also run through today’s smaller-scale pre-tender deals in this post.  You can also check out Matt Swartz’s arbitration salary projections here.

Latest Agreements

Earlier Agreements

  • Twins righty Jose Berrios will earn $6.1MM with a $500K signing bonus in 2021, Dan Hayes of The Athletic reports. Catcher Mitch Garver will rake in $1.875MM, per Darren Wolfson of 5 Eyewitness News. Center fielder Byron Buxton ($5.125MM) and reliever Taylor Rogers (terms not released) also agreed to deals, according to Phil Miller of the Star Tribune.
  • The Phillies have deals with starter Zach Eflin ($4.45MM) and relievers Hector Neris ($5MM), David Hale ($850K) and Seranthony Dominguez ($727,500), Jim Salisbury of NBC Sports Philadelphia, Heyman and Todd Zolecki of MLB.com relay.
  • The Marlins and first baseman Garrett Cooper have a $1.8MM agreement that could max out at $2.05MM with performance bonuses, Craig Mish of Sportsgrid tweets.
  • The Brewers are keeping catcher Manny Pina in the fold for $1.65MM, according to Heyman. They’re also retaining first baseman Daniel Vogelbach for $1.4MM, Nightengale reports.
  • The Giants and outfielder Austin Slater have a one-year, $1.15MM deal, per Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle.The club also reached a $925K agreement with lefty Wandy Peralta and a $700K pact with righty Trevor Gott, Heyman tweets.
  • The Cubs are bringing back hurlers Dan Winkler ($900K), Colin Rea ($702,500) and Kyle Ryan ($800K), Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times reports. Ryan’s agreement is a split contract that features a $250K minor league salary.
  • The Mets are retaining lefty Steven Matz for $5.2MM, Nightengale tweets. Matz had a brutal campaign in 2020 with a 9.68 ERA/7.76 FIP over 30 2/3 innings in 2020, but the Mets will give him a chance to rebound.
  • The Padres and lefty Matt Strahm have a one-year, $2MM deal, Nightengale reports. Strahm gave the Padres a 2.61 ERA/4.93 FIP in 20 2/3 innings in 2020.
  • Outfielder Guillermo Heredia, whom the Mets claimed from Pittsburgh in August, will earn $1MM in 2021, according to Nightengale.
  • The Astros and reliever Austin Pruitt have settled for $617, 500, per Heyman. The right-hander missed the season with elbow issues.
  • The Royals and outfielder Jorge Soler have agreed to a one-year, $8.05MM deal with $250K in incentives, Nightengale reports. Soler was a 48-home run hitter in 2019, but his production went backward this past season, in which he slashed .228/.326/.443 with eight HRs in 174 trips to the plate.
  • The Red Sox have kept relievers Matt Barnes ($4.4MM) and Ryan Brasier ($1.25MM) and catcher Kevin Plawecki ($1.6MM), per tweets from Nightengale, Robert Murray of FanSided and Heyman. Barnes has been a solid reliever as a member of the Red Sox, though he yielded more than five walks per nine and upward of four runs per nine in 2020. Brasier was more successful this past season, as he tossed 25 frames of 3.96 ERA/3.15 FIP ball and averaged better than 10 strikeouts per nine. Plawecki had a nice year as the backup to Christian Vazquez, as he batted .341/.393/.463 in 89 PA.
  • The Giants and southpaw Jarlin Garcia have settled for $950K, according to Heyman. Garcia is coming off an 18 1/3-inning effort in which he posted a near-perfect 0.49 (with an impressive 3.14 FIP) and 6.87 K/9 against 3.44 BB/9.
  • The Marlins have agreed to a one-year, $4.3MM deal with first baseman Jesus Aguilar, USA Today’s Bob Nightengale tweets. The 30-year-old slugger put up strong numbers in his first year with the Fish, slashing .277/.352/.457 with eight long balls in 216 plate appearances.
  • The Giants and outfielder Alex Dickerson settled at a year and $2MM, tweets Nightengale. The 30-year-old slugger has a lengthy injury history but has been excellent in limited work with the Giants, including a .298/.371/.576 slash in 170 plate appearances this past season.
  • Luis Cessa will be back with the Yankees on a one-year deal, tweets Nightengale. He’ll earn $1.05MM. The righty notched a 3.32 ERA and 3.79 FIP with a 17-to-7 K/BB ratio in 21 2/3 innings this past season. Fellow righty Ben Heller will also return, the team announced, though it didn’t disclose financial details.
  • First baseman Matt Olson and the Athletics settled on a one-year deal worth $5MM, tweets Nightengale. The 26-year-old Olson’s .198/.310/.424 slash was an obvious step back from his 2019 campaign, but he’s still viewed as a vital part of the club’s future moving forward.
  • The Braves and righty Luke Jackson agreed to a one-year deal, tweets MLB Network’s Jon Heyman. The 29-year-old was rocked for a 6.84 ERA in this year’s shortened slate of games but posted a 3.84 ERA and 3.24 FIP with better than 13 K/9 as one of the team’s steadiest relievers in 2019. The contract is valued at $1.9MM, per a team announcement.
  • The Brewers are bringing back catcher Omar Narvaez for one year and $2.5MM, Heyman tweets. Narvaez was a very good offensive catcher from 2o16-19 with the White Sox and Mariners, but he struggled last season after the M’s traded him to the Brewers. Thanks in part to a career-worst 31 percent strikeout rate, Narvaez could only muster a .176/.294/.269 line and a paltry two HRs in 126 plate appearances. Nevertheless, he’s in line to return to the Brewers for a second season.
  • The Brewers have agreed to a one-year, $2MM contract with shortstop Orlando Arcia, Nightengale relays. Arcia endured serious struggles on offense in prior years, but the 26-year-old managed a respectable .260/.317/.416 line with five home runs over 189 plate appearances this past season.
  • The Phillies and catcher Andrew Knapp have reached a one-year, $1.1MM agreement, per Nightengale. Typically a light-hitting backstop, Knapp batted a career-best .278/.404/.444 in 89 plate appearances in 2020. He’s currently the No. 1 catcher on a Phillies team that could lose J.T. Realmuto in free agency.
  • Pirates infielder Erik Gonzalez agreed to a one-year deal worth $1.225MM, USA Today’s Bob Nightengale tweets. It was the second year of arb eligibility for Gonzalez, whose glovework will earn him a contract despite a brutal .227/.255/.359 batting line in 193 plate appearances in 2020.
  • The Royals and Hunter Dozier agreed to a one-year deal worth $2.72MM in entirely guaranteed money, MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand reports.  More is available to Dozier via contract incentives.  Dozier hit .228/.344/.392 over 186 PA after missing over the first two weeks of the season recovering from a positive COVID-19 diagnosis.
  • The Red Sox agreed to an $870K deal with right-hander Austin Brice for the 2021 season, as per Nightengale.  Brice posted a 5.95 ERA, 11.4 K/9, and 5.9 BB/9 over 19 2/3 innings in his first season in Boston, and was considered a potential non-tender candidate.
  • The Twins and righty Tyler Duffey agreed to a one-year, $2.2MM pact, SKOR North’s Darren Wolfson reports.  According to ESPN.com’s Buster Olney, Duffey’s deal is fully guaranteed.
  • The Braves agreed to a one-year, $900K deal with southpaw Grant Dayton, USA Today’s Bob Nightengale tweets.  Dayton had a 2.30 ERA over 27 1/3 innings in 2020.
  • The Braves announced an agreement with utilityman Johan Camargo on a one-year, $1.36MM deal.  Camargo was thought to be a non-tender candidate after struggling to a .222/.267/.378 slash line in 375 plate appearances over the last two seasons, but he will return for a fifth year in Atlanta.
  • The White Sox and left-hander Jace Fry agreed to a one-year deal worth $862.5K, according to MLB Network’s Jon Heyman (Twitter link).  Fry posted a 3.66 ERA, 2.00 K/BB rate, and 11.0 K/9 over 19 2/3 innings in 2020, and he has strong overall career numbers against left-handed batters.
  • The Orioles agreed with second baseman Yolmer Sanchez on a one-year deal worth $1MM, according to MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand (via Twitter).  Baltimore claimed Sanchez off waivers from the White Sox at the end of October.  A Gold Glove winner in 2019, Sanchez was non-tendered by Chicago prior to last year’s deadline, though after signing a minors deal with the Giants, he returned to the White Sox on another minors deal and appeared in 11 games on the South Side.
  • The Twins agreed to a one-year deal worth roughly $700K with left-hander Caleb Thielbar, The Athletic’s Aaron Gleeman reports (via Twitter).  2020 marked Thielbar’s first taste of MLB action since 2015, as the southpaw worked his way back from independent ball to post a 2.25 ERA, 2.44 K/BB rate, and 9.9 K/9 over 20 innings for Minnesota.
  • The Dodgers and left-hander Scott Alexander have agreed to a one-year, $1MM deal, USA Today’s Bob Nightengale reports (Twitter link).  Alexander posted a 2.92 ERA over 12 1/3 innings out of the Los Angeles bullpen this season, recording an equal number of walks and strikeouts (nine).  The southpaw was thought to be a potential non-tender candidate given his relative lack of usage and his non-inclusion on the Dodgers’ playoff roster, but the team will retain Alexander for his second arb-eligible year.  ESPN.com’s Buster Olney (via Twitter) adds the noteworthy detail that Alexander’s $1MM salary is fully guaranteed, as opposed to the usual contracts for arbitration-eligible players that allow their teams to release them prior to Opening Day and only pay a fraction of the agreed-upon salary.

Players Avoiding Arbitration: National League

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Entering the day, there were more than 150 players on the clock to exchange arbitration figures with their respective teams prior to a noon ET deadline. As one would expect, there’ll be an utter landslide of arbitration agreements in advance of that deadline. We already ran through some key facts and reminders on the arbitration process earlier this morning for those who are unfamiliar or simply need a refresher on one of MLB’s most complex idiosyncrasies, which will hopefully clear up many questions readers might have.

We’ll track the majority of the National League’s settlements in this post and are maintaining a separate one for American League settlements as well. Note that all projections referenced come courtesy of MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz:

  • The Rockies have an agreement in place with righty Jon Gray, per Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post (via Twitter). It’s a $5.6MM deal, per Jon Heyman of MLB Network (Twitter link).
  • Outfielder Tommy Pham has struck a $7.9MM pact with the Padres, who acquired him at the outset of the offseason, according to Bob Nightengale of USA Today (via Twitter). Other Friars striking deals, per an update from Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune, include Zach Davies ($5.25MM) and Matt Strahm ($1.4MM).
  • The Nationals announced that they’ve avoided arbitration with Trea Turner. It’s a $7.45MM agreement, per Jesse Dougherty of the Washington Post (via Twitter), right in range of the $7.5MM projection.
  • The Mets are in agreement with a laundry list of players. Right-handers Marcus Stroman ($12MM) and Noah Syndergaard ($9.7MM) were the top earners, per reports from MLB Network’s Jon Heyman (via Twitter) and MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo (via Twitter). Both come in close to their projected values of $11.8M and $9.9MM, respectively. The Mets also have a $5.1MM deal with reliever Edwin Diaz, Jon Heyman of MLB Network reports (Twitter links). He entered the offseason projected at the $7.0MM level but will fall well shy of that. Despite an outstanding overall track record, Diaz’s platform season was a dud and obviously created some risk in a hearing for his side. Outfielder Brandon Nimmo will play for $2.175MM in his first season of arb eligibility, landing well over the $1.7MM that the model projected. Southpaw Steven Matz, meanwhile, lands a $5MM deal, according to Joel Sherman of the New York Post (via Twitter). That’s $300K shy of his projected amount. Relievers Robert Gsellman and Seth Lugo will earn $1.225MM and $2MM, respectively, per Mike Puma of the New York Post (Twitter links). Slugger Michael Conforto will earn $8.0MM, per SNY.tv’s Andy Martino (via Twitter), which is notably south of the $9.2MM that we projected. And fellow outfielder Jake Marisnick checks in a just over 10% north of his projection at $3,312,500, Bob Nightengale of USA Today tweets.
  • Star reliever Kirby Yates receiveds a $7,062,500 salary from the Padres, per Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune. He tops the $6.5MM that MLBTR projected by a solid margin, reflecting just how exceptional he was in 2019.
  • The Marlins will pay recently acquired infielder Jonathan Villar a $8.2MM salary, per MLB.com’s Jon Heyman (via Twitter). That’s a far sight shy of the $10.4MM that the MLBTR system projected, perhaps reflecting a more difficult path to the bigger number through recent comparables. The club also had some added leverage here since Villar would likely not fare terribly well on the open market if cut loose at this stage or later. (Unless this is a guaranteed deal, Villar could still be jettisoned, with the club paying just a fraction of the settled amount.) The Fish also have also agreed to terms with lefty Adam Conley (for $1.525MM, per MLB Network Radio’s Craig Mish, via Twitter) and righty Jose Urena (for $3.75MM, per MLB Network’s Jon Heyman, on Twitter).
  • Righty Vince Velasquez will pitch for $3.6MM this year with the Phillies, per Jim Salisbury of NBC Sports Philly (via Twitter). Fellow hurler Jose Alvarez will earn $2.95MM, per Scott Lauber of the Philadelphia Inquirer (via Twitter).
  • The Rockies have an agreement with lefty Kyle Freeland, per Jon Heyman of MLB Network (Twitter link). He’ll earn $2.875MM. Outfielder David Dahl takes home $2.475MM, Heyman adds on Twitter. The former had projected at $2.4MM and the latter at $3.0MM.
  • Pirates hurler Joe Musgrove will receive $2.8MM, per Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (Twitter links). Fellow righty Keone Kela will earn a reported $3.725MM. Both players had projected at $3.4MM, but land well to either side of that number. Infielder Adam Frazier also has a deal at $2.8MM, per Mackey (via Twitter).
  • Righty Anthony DeSclafani will earn $5.9MM from the Reds, according to Robert Murray (via Twitter). He had projected at $5.2MM. Backstop Curt Casali will earn $1.4625MM, per Bobby Nightengale of the Cincinnati Enquirer (Twitter link). And reliever Matt Bowman takes down $865K, Murray adds on Twitter.
  • The Dodgers have worked out a non-typical deal with righty Ross Stripling, Heyman tweets. He’ll get an up-front signing bonus of $1.5MM, which he’ll receive in the next week, and then earn $600K for the campaign to come. Stripling had projected to earn $2.3MM on the year.
  • Cardinals righty John Gant will earn $1.3MM after settling with the club. Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch first tweeted that a deal was in place, while Murray had the number on Twitter. That comes in just under his $1.4MM projection.

Earlier Settlements

Read more

Braves Activate Grant Dayton, Place A.J. Minter On 60-Day IL

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The Braves have exchanged one left-handed reliever for another off the 60-day injured list.  The club announced that Grant Dayton has been activated, while A.J. Minter’s season was placed on the IL due to inflammation in his throwing shoulder, which will end his season.

After missing all of 2018 due to Tommy John surgery, Dayton returned to a big league mound for 8 1/3 innings over 10 games for Atlanta this season, posting a 2.16 ERA and 11.9 K/9 over his brief stint.  A fractured big toe sent him to the injured list on July 12, however, so Dayton will return after exactly a two-month absence.  Over 58 1/3 career innings with the Braves and Dodgers, Dayton has dominated left-handed batters (holding them to a .574 OPS) and also performed quite well against righty batters (.711 OPS) en route to a 3.24 ERA, 3.33 K/BB rate, and 10.8 K/9.

As a whole, Atlanta’s bullpen has middle-of-the-pack type of numbers against left-handed hitters this season, so Dayton could provide more of an overall boost than Minter, who has struggled through a very rough campaign.  After breaking out and even stepping into a part-time closer role for the Braves in 2018, Minter has a 7.06 ERA over 29 1/3 innings this year, due in large part to major control issues.  He has issued 23 walks (18 international) over those 29 1/3 IP, making for a 7.1 BB/9 that more than doubles his previous highs in that category at either the MLB or minor league levels.

Braves Activate Anthony Swarzak, Place Grant Dayton On 10-Day IL

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The Braves have activated righty Anthony Swarzak from the injured list, per an announcement. To create an opening, the club placed southpaw Grant Dayton on the 10-day injured list with a fractured big toe.

It’s nice to see Swarzak returning quickly from a shoulder malady. After all, he has quickly become an important piece of the puzzle for a relief unit that still clamors for some mid-season additions.

That said, the loss of Dayton makes for an unwelcome development. The 31-year-old southpaw has shown some promise since returning to the majors for the first time since undergoing Tommy John surgery. Despite showing reduced velocity from his prior work in the bigs, Dayton has generated a 12.4% swinging-strike rate and compiled an 11:3 K/BB rate in 8 1/3 innings.

Dayton will be sidelined for at least a month, per David O’Brien of The Athletic (via Twitter). That will rob the club of a chance to take a closer look at him before finalizing its deadline plans. Regardless, the Atlanta front office seems to have a nice volume of internal pieces to work with. Depth isn’t a particular concern so much as is quality in high-leverage spots. The trick will be deciding how many and what kind of outside additions to make.

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