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Heyman’s Latest: Maddon, Braves, Rockies, Hammel, Kenley, Napoli, Lucroy

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The Cubs’ World Series victory triggered an escalator clause in manager Joe Maddon’s five-year, $25MM contract, reports Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports. Maddon’s annual salary will now be bumped from $5MM to $6MM in the final three years of the deal, though the skipper claims to ESPN Chicago’s Jesse Rogers that he wasn’t even aware of the clause. “I’ve never seen a paycheck,” Maddon tells Rogers.

Here are some highlights from Heyman’s latest lengthy Inside Baseball column…

  • The Braves are in the market for a right-handed-hitting outfielder that can handle center field. Currently, Atlanta lacks a clear-cut fourth outfielder and is set to deploy two left-handed-hitting starters in Ender Inciarte and Nick Markakis.
  • Rockies right-handers Jason Motte and Chad Qualls, each of whom disappointed in the first season of their respective two-year contracts last year, are both available in trade, per Heyman. Motte hasn’t enjoyed a strong season since 2012 and has undergone Tommy John in the interim (making the two-year deal all the more surprising). He’s owed $5MM in 2017. As for Qualls, the 38-year-old is more affordable at $3.25MM this season, but he’s also considerably older and coming off a worse year.
  • Jason Hammel and the Mariners were discussing a one-year deal in the $10MM range before he switched agents this offseason. Following the change in representation, Hammel shifted course and took a larger guarantee but a lower annual value, inking a two-year deal worth $16MM with the Royals. Seattle, in turn, picked up Drew Smyly and Yovani Gallardo via the trade market.
  • The Marlins’ offer to Kenley Jansen this winter was, perhaps unsurprisingly, extremely backloaded, Heyman reports. The deal would’ve paid Jansen something in the vicinity of $7MM in year one, $9MM in year two, $11MM in year three and $25MM in each of the final two years. That’d obviously be an advantageous structure for owner Jeffrey Loria, who is looking to sell the team.
  • The Padres and Tigers are both still looking to add to their roster, with San Diego focusing on shortstop options while Detroit pokes around the market for center field help. Heyman notes that the Friars would prefer a shortstop who is controlled beyond the 2017 season. Currently, the only MLB-ready, in-house option that fits that bill is Luis Sardinas.
  • The Twins were willing to pay Mike Napoli $11MM on a one-year deal or $16MM on a two-year pact, but Napoli instead is headed back to the Rangers on a one-year, $8.5MM deal with an option for the 2017 season that would allow him to match the $16MM total he could’ve made over two years in Minnesota. The slugger tells Heyman that he’s already made a lot of money in his career and instead prioritized winning.
  • The Rangers are still hoping to talk extension with Jonathan Lucroy and Yu Darvish. Lucroy tells Heyman that he “would absolutely love to stay” in Texas, adding that he likes the culture, the coaches and his teammates. The former Brewers backstop conceded that he at one point regretted signing his initial contract — a five-year deal with a club option that will end up paying him a total of $15.5MM over the six years — though it sounds like those days are behind him. (And, obviously, he’s poised to do quite well for himself in the very near future.) As for Darvish, Heyman notes that his agents may well try to use Stephen Strasburg’s seven-year, $175MM contract as a comp in negotiations, but the Rangers aren’t willing to push it that far to retain Darvish.

Camp Battles: Colorado Rockies

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The Rockies made several moves this winter geared toward putting a contender on the field, but face a tall task to unseat the Dodgers and Giants as the leading team in the NL West. While there’s not a ton to sort out in camp, there are a few notable battles that could impact Colorado’s hopes.

Here are the key camp competitions for the Rockies, who are the second entrant in MLBTR’s new Camp Battles series.

CATCHER
Tony Wolters
Age: 24
Bats: L
Contract Status: Pre-Arbitration; projected to become a free agent after ’21 season
Options remaining: 2

Tom Murphy
Age: 25
Bats: R
Contract Status: Pre-Arbitration; projected to become a free agent after ’22 season
Options remaining: 2

Dustin Garneau
Age: 29
Bats: R
Contract Status: Pre-Arbitration; projected to become a free agent after ’22 season
Options remaining: 2

After relying heavily on veteran Nick Hundley for the past two seasons, the Rox are set to hand off the field generalship to some much less experienced players. Wolters emerged after coming over through a waiver claim, providing solid defense behind the dish while adding value on the basepaths. He’s not much of a hitter — he posted a 75 wRC+ over 230 plate appearances and never did much more in the minors — but seems to have the trust of the organization.

Vying with each other to share time with Wolters, or possibly even take primary duties, are Murphy and Garneau. The former has shown quite a bit of bat in the upper minors and in his brief MLB time, though he’s still a work in progress behind the plate. The latter raked last year at Triple-A, but seems clearly third in line.

There’s still perhaps an outside chance that Colorado will make a move for Matt Wieters — if not some other veteran — before camp breaks. But if that doesn’t come to pass, the plan likely involves hoping that Murphy takes charge while leaning on Wolters to the extent necessary.

Prediction: Murphy is given every opportunity to win semi-regular time, but ends up in a time-share with Wolters.

CLOSER
Adam Ottavino
Age: 31
Throws: R
Contract Status: 2 years, $9.1MM
Options remaining: Can’t be optioned without consent

Greg Holland
Age: 31
Throws: R
Contract Status: 1 year, $6MM with 2018 mutual option ($10MM or $1MM buyout)
Options remaining: Can’t be optioned without consent

Jake McGee
Age: 30
Throws: L
Contract Status: 1 year, $5.9MM
Options remaining: Can’t be optioned without consent

Mike Dunn
Age: 31
Throws: L
Contract Status: 3 years, $19MM
Options remaining: Can’t be optioned without consent

Jason Motte
Age: 34
Throws: R
Contract Status: 1 year, $5MM
Options remaining: Can’t be optioned without consent

These five veterans all have substantial late-inning experience, with most having handled the ninth inning for at least some significant stretch. The only one that hasn’t — Dunn — just signed a contract that includes incentives for games finished, though that hardly means he’s been promised a full-blown shot at the job.

Ottavino seems the obvious choice: he has been nails over the past two seasons, with a 1.93 ERA and 11.6 K/9 against 2.2 BB/9. But he has managed only 37 1/3 total innings in that stretch, owing to Tommy John surgery, and his health will be monitored closely all year long. The veteran Holland is a wild card, as he’s returning from his own TJ procedure and has a long record of dominating from a closer’s role. McGee is looking to bounce back from a subpar 2016 campaign, while Motte could be turned to if he can rebound from his own struggles and the need arises. Unless Ottavino falters, though, it seems the job is likely his.

Prediction: Ottavino

STARTING ROTATION (ONE SPOT)
Jeff Hoffman
Age: 24
Throws: R
Contract Status: Pre-Arbitration; projected to become a free agent after ’22 season
Options remaining: 3

Jordan Lyles
Age: 26
Throws: R
Contract Status: 1 year, $3.175MM
Options remaining: Can’t be optioned without consent

German Marquez
Age: 21
Throws: R
Contract Status: Pre-Arbitration; projected to become a free agent after ’22 season
Options remaining: 2

Kyle Freeland
Age: 23
Throws: L
Contract Status: Pre-Arbitration; projected to become a free agent after ’22 or ’23 season (not yet on 40-man)
Options remaining: 3

The Rockies finally have some hope in the starting staff, but the fifth slot remains undetermined as camp opens. Fortunately, there are a host of intriguing arms that figure to compete for the job, with the losers expected to remain on hand if a leak springs during the season.

Both Hoffman and Marquez struggled in their MLB debuts, but are seen as talented hurlers and obviously have caught the eye of GM Jeff Bridich. If neither grabs the reins in camp, though, it’s plenty possible that they’ll be left in Triple-A for added seasoning when the season opens. That could leave room for a comeback for Lyles, who struggled badly in 2016 and may otherwise end up in the bullpen. Though Freeland has only a dozen Triple-A starts under his belt, that’s more than Marquez, so he too could factor with a big spring — though going to him would require opening a 40-man spot.

Prediction: Hoffman

[RELATED: Colorado Rockies Depth Chart]

Rockies Place Jake McGee On 15-Day DL

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8:00pm: An MRI revealed that McGee has a sprained MCL, tweets Ben Weinrib of MLB.com. It remains unclear how much time he’ll miss, though sprained MCLs have led to month-plus absences in the past. For now, the Rockies will go forward with Estevez as their closer, manager Walt Weiss said Saturday (via Weinrib). Estevez relieved Motte to pick up his first career save in a 5-3 win over the Padres earlier today.

2:59pm: The Rockies have placed closer Jake McGee on the 15-day DL with knee inflammation, Nick Groke of the Denver Post writes. They’ve promoted lefty Tyler Anderson to take McGee’s place on the active roster. Jason Motte will likely take over at closer, although Carlos Estevez could get looks there as well.

McGee tweaked the knee while pitching yesterday and had an MRI today. It’s unknown how long he’ll be unavailable. After arriving from Tampa Bay in a January deal involving Corey Dickerson, the 29-year-old McGee has a 4.98 ERA, 6.2 K/9 and 2.5 BB/9 in 21 innings in his first season with Colorado.

Jason Motte Has Strained Shoulder, Likely To Miss Opening Day

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Rockies reliever Jason Motte is dealing with a shoulder strain that will likely cause him to miss the start of the season, Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post reports on Twitter. That seems to line up lefty Jake McGee to take the closing duties to start the year.

Any significant time missed by Motte would represent a big blow to the Rockies. He signed a two-year, $10MM deal over the winter to provide a stabilizing late-inning presence. And the club’s staff is already dealing with an injury to Jon Gray, which has pushed Christian Bergman from the pen to the rotation.

While McGee is more than capable — preferable, really — in the ninth inning, the overall pen situation obviously will suffer without Motte. Presumably, Justin Miller and Chad Qualls will function as the two late-inning righties.

Then, there’s the question of the long-term effects of fighting through a shoulder injury. Motte was coming off of a somewhat less-than-stellar 2015 — though he did bring his velocity up to a 95 mph average fastball. And he gave up six earned runs in 5 2/3 spring innings — though that was largely due to two well-timed home runs, as Motte struck out four without surrendering a walk.

Rockies Sign Jason Motte, Chad Qualls To Two-Year Deals

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The Rockies have agreed to terms with a pair of veteran relievers on two-year contracts, the club announced. Both Jason Motte and Chad Qualls are headed to Colorado.

Motte will receive a $10MM guarantee over his two years, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reports (Twitter links). That will be broken out into equal, $5MM salaries, per Joel Sherman of the New York Post (via Twitter). And Qualls will take home a $6MM overall promise from Colorado, Rosenthal adds. He’ll receive a $1MM signing bonus and then annual payouts of $1.75MM and $3.25MM, according to a tweet from Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports.

Jul 19, 2015; Atlanta, GA, USA; Chicago Cubs relief pitcher Jason Motte (30) reacts after the final out during their win over the Atlanta Braves at Turner Field. The Cubs won 4-1. Mandatory Credit: Jason Getz-USA TODAY Sports

Bringing in this veteran pen package will obviously do quite a bit to bolster the back of a bullpen that was obviously in need of reinforcement. Several of the team’s most-used late-inning options — including Adam Ottavino (Tommy John), John Axford (non-tender), and LaTroy Hawkins (trade/retirement) — won’t be opening the year in Colorado.

Motte, 33, handled 48 1/3 frames for the Cubs in 2015, working to a 3.91 ERA with 6.3 /9 against 2.0 BB/9. That was a fair cry from the more dominant numbers he posted as the Cardinals closer, but he had missed all of 2013 and a big chunk of 2014 with Tommy John surgery.

But Motte was at least able to show last year that he is still capable of handling a significant bullpen role. And he ran his average fastball up to 95 mph — not quite what it used to be, but still a big radar reading.

Qualls is a 37-year-old right-hander who has bounced around a lot over his career, as is common for relievers who last as long as he does. He posted only a 4.38 ERA in 49 1/3 innings for the Astros last year, but did run up some impressive peripherals. Qualls racked up 8.4 K/9 against just 1.6 BB/9 to go with a 59.9% groundball rate.

That solid showing wasn’t enough to entice Houston to pick up a $3.5MM option to retain him for 2015, however. Qualls did show a fairly significant velocity drop-off last year, going from the 92 to 93 mph range down to an average 91.4 mph on his sinker. But it’s worth noting, too, that he carries sub-3.00 SIERA marks for each of the last three seasons, which he maintained in spite of the reduced pop on the gun.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Cubs Place Jorge Soler, Jason Motte On DL

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The Cubs have placed right fielder Jorge Soler and right-hander Jason Motte on the disabled list due to a strained oblique and a strained right shoulder, respectively, tweets Bruce Levine of 670thescore.com. In corresponding moves, infielder Tommy La Stella and left-hander Zac Rosscup have been recalled from Triple-A, he adds. Levine also tweets that Soler might be out for a month.

The loss of both players thins out the depth of a surging Cubs team that currently sits 6.5 games back from the division lead but has a six-game lead on the Giants for the second Wild Card spot in the National League. While the injuries may not be a significant detriment to the Cubs’ Wild Card chances due to their fairly substantial lead, the Cubs surely would prefer the pair to be healthy and in a good rhythm entering a potential playoff game or series.

Soler, 23, has had a rather disappointing absence of power this season but is hitting a respectable .265/.325/.385 with seven homers on the season. His contributions in 2015 have been about replacement-level when factoring in sub-par defense in right field, but the upside Soler brings (which he displayed in his first taste of big league action in 2014) is greater than that of his replacements. For the time being, the Cubs can use a platoon of Chris Denorfia and Chris Coghlan in right, with La Stella filling in at second base when Coghlan is in the outfield.

The 33-year-old Motte enjoyed a nice first half of the season (in part due to a .240 BABIP), but he’s worked to a 6.00 ERA in the second half (with his BABIP swinging wildly in the other direction — .385). Inconsistencies aside, he’s totaled a 3.91 ERA with 6.3 K/9, 2.1 BB/9 and a 30.3 percent ground-ball rate. Those numbers are a far cry from his best days with the Cardinals in 2011-12, but his absence will nonetheless thin out a bullpen that is already without injured righties Rafael Soriano and Neil Ramirez.

If the Cubs do wish to make an outside addition, there are a handful of relievers that have cleared waivers, though each has his flaws (hence the clearing of waivers). Jonny Gomes is one veteran outfielder that has already cleared waivers. Any player acquired prior to Sept. 1 would be eligible to play in the postseason. The Cubs, however, may simply elect to stay the course until Sept. 1, when expanded rosters will give them the opportunity to bring up additional internal reinforcements.

Cubs Sign Jason Motte

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DEC. 22: Jon Heyman of CBS Sports tweets the breakdown of Motte’s incentives structure: Motte will receive $250K for appearing in 60 games and another $250K for appearing in 65 games. He also has incentives for games finished, as he’ll earn $250K for each of his 50th through 59th games finished.

DEC. 19: The Cubs have officially announced the signing of Motte to a one-year deal.

DEC. 15, 6:44pm: The deal comes with $2.5MM in achievable bonuses, Levine tweets.

5:32pm: Motte gets a $4.5MM guarantee, Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports reports (Twitter links). Motte has incentives based on games finished, Passan adds.

5:18pm: The Cubs have agreed to a one-year deal with free agent reliever Jason Motte, Bruce Levine of 670TheScore.com reports on Twitter. Motte, a 32-year-old righty, is represented by ACES.

Motte had a nice run with the Cardinals as one of the game’s better back-end relievers. Over 2010-12, he tossed 192 1/3 innings of 2.43 ERA ball with 9.5 K/9 against 2.4 BB/9. He moved into the team’s closer role in 2012, locking down a league-leading 42 games.

But things took a turn when Motte was forced to undergo Tommy John surgery. A long recovery period kept him out until the 2014 season, when he also missed time with a lower back issue. All said, Motte only appeared for 25 innings last year, struggling to a 4.68 ERA with 6.1 K/9 and 3.2 BB/9.

More troublingly, perhaps, ERA estimators were down on Motte’s work last season: FIP (6.49), xFIP (4.58), and SIERA (4.25) all saw Motte as a below-average contributor. He was hurt significantly by the long ball, giving up a 20.0% HR/FB rate and a whopping 2.52 HR/9 that ranked second-to-worst in all of baseball among relievers who threw at least 20 frames.

He will look for a rebound in the same division, moving to a Cubs team that has some live young arms at the back of the pen. Motte should slot in as a setup option, but perhaps his experience in the closer’s role provides some measure of protection if Hector Rondon cannot repeat his strong effort from a season ago.

NL East Notes: Nationals Bullpen, Fister, Crow, Marlins

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Here’s the latest out of the National League East:

  • The Nationals are interested in adding a veteran right-handed arm to the pen, writes James Wagner of the Washington Post, who adds that the team is presently focused on other matters and has not fully engaged the free agent market. Wagner lists many of the better free agent arms as at least theoretical possibilities, and says that Washington has at least “shown some interest” already in both Casey Janssen and Jason Motte.
  • Doug Fister and the Nationals have not re-engaged on extension talks since they first took place last spring, reports Wagner. Fister has been mentioned as a hypothetical trade candidate as well, though presumably the club would only seriously consider dealing one of he and Jordan Zimmermann.
  • Just-added Marlins hurler Aaron Crow has worked from the bullpen for the last four seasons but could get a chance to return to a starting role in Miami, reports Juan C. Rodriguez of the Sun-Sentinel. “It’s still early in the offseason and we’re not sure how the rest of the offseason will unfold in terms of what else we add to our pitching staff, but we love the flexibility,” said president of baseball operations Michael Hill. “We love the thought he could possibly be a starting option for us, but at a minimum we know he’ll be a valuable bullpen piece and just add to the overall depth of our staff.”
  • The Marlins’ front office is focused on achieving “sustainable success,” writes MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro. Miami hopes to step its payroll up over the next few years, more or less in line with the raises in Giancarlo Stanton’s contract, by adding targeted pieces to supplement its young core.

Mozeliak On Jay, Taveras, Choate, Arb Eligibles

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Cardinals general manager John Mozeliak and manager Mike Matheny conducted their end-of-season meeting with the media today, and Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch has several highlights from the talk. Here are some of the main items that are relevant to MLBTR readers, but interested parties should check out the full transcript for additional insight into the team…

  • The Cardinals view Jon Jay as their starting center fielder heading into the 2015 season after the 29-year-old hit .302/.372/.378 in 140 games. Mozeliak revealed that Jay will have his wrist scoped this week to clear out some damage that has been lingering since July.
  • Mozeliak expects Oscar Taveras and Randal Grichuk to compete for the starting right field job next season and echoed recent comments that he expects Taveras to be with the club in 2015. Taveras has received specific instructions to work on his conditioning and speed this winter.
  • The entire coaching staff has been asked to return for the 2015 season. Bench coach Mike Aldrete is expected to be pursued by at least one other team, Goold reports, but Mozeliak said to this point no team has gone through the protocol of asking to interview Aldrete.
  • The Cards will be on the hunt for power to add to their lineup and possibly a right-handed power bat to add to the bench or pair with Matt Adams at first base. Still, Mozeliak said that he and Matheny see Adams as a potential 600-plate-appearance player.
  • St. Louis will shop Randy Choate this offseason, Goold writes, following comments from Mozeliak on the “specialized” nature of Choate’s current role. Said the GM: “I think we both feel that if we can upgrade there or have an additional arm to choose from, that makes sense. We’re certainly not ruling out [Kevin] Siegrist. I think in Choate’s case, for us, he’s fairly one-dimensional. That makes it difficult for us to use him, particularly during a long season.” Choate is owed $3MM next season and held southpaw hitters to a .093/.205/.147 batting line.
  • Mozeliak expects to offer contracts to all of the team’s arbitration eligible players, including Peter Bourjos and Daniel Descalso. However, Goold writes that the team could gauge interest in both on the trade market. Bourjos strikes me as a particularly appealing candidate, given his elite glove in center field. I speculated that he’d be a good fit for the Twins as a starer in my recent Offseason Outlook, and he could make sense for a number of teams, in my mind. Goold’s colleague, Joe Strauss, tweets that he got a “strong sense” that at least one outfielder would be moved.
  • Both Carlos Martinez and Marco Gonzales will come to Spring Training as starters, Mozeliak said, but the clearer openings for each are in the bullpen at this time. Elsewhere in the bullpen, Mozeliak noted that the team won’t rule out re-signing Pat Neshek or Jason Motte.

Central Links: Moore, Royals, Tigers, Cardinals

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Though there’s been speculation that Royals GM Dayton Moore could be a possibility to take over the GM slot in Atlanta following Frank Wren’s dismissal, Royals owner David Glass told Jon Heyman of CBS Sports that Moore is “absolutely” staying with the Royals. Moore’s contract runs through 2016, but as Heyman and others have noted, it’d seem odd to leave town after getting the Royals to their first World Series in 29 years. Glass had nothing but praise for Moore: “He’s done a great job. He’s as good as it gets as far as a general manager.”

More news from baseball’s Central divisions…

  • MLB.com’s Jim Callis breaks down how the Royals constructed their World Series roster, noting that the club has 14 homegrown players (draft or international signing), nine acquired via waivers or trade and only two signed via free agency (Omar Infante and Jason Vargas). One could make the case that Jeremy Guthrie also belongs in the free agent category, as he technically hit the open market for a couple of weeks between the end of the 2012 season and re-signing in Kansas City. However, the most intriguing part of Callis’ piece, for MLBTR readers, may be a comment from Moore on the importance of Jake Odorizzi’s role in the James Shields/Wade Davis trade: “…he also kept Yordano Ventura out of that deal at that time.”
  • MLive.com’s Chris Iott makes five predictions about the upcoming Tigers offseason in his latest piece, prognosticating that Detroit will not make a serious run at re-signing Max Scherzer, nor will it spend lavishly on its bullpen, perhaps adding one mid-range option at best. As he notes, the combined $17MM owed to Joe Nathan and Joakim Soria is already more than the $15.4MM the club spent on last year’s entire Opening Day bullpen. Iott does, however, foresee a re-signing of Victor Martinez. For his last two predictions, he expects an internal competition for the fifth starter slot and that one (or both) or Andy Dirks and Don Kelly will be non-tendered, based on recent comments from GM Dave Dombrowski. Bottom line: he expects Detroit to spend on retaining Martinez and acquiring a center fielder rather than on the bullpen or rotation.
  • The Cardinals aren’t likely to re-sign any of their five free agents, writes MLB.com’s Jen Langosch. That means that Justin Masterson, A.J. Pierzynski, Mark Ellis and perhaps most notably, lifetime Cardinal Jason Motte and the resurgent Pat Neshek are ticketed for new jerseys. Neshek is probably the most intriguing of the bunch, as the 34-year-old signed a minor league deal last offseason but earned an All-Star nod en route to a final ERA of 1.87 in 67 1/3 innings with 9.1 K/9 and 1.2 BB/9.
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