It’s nothing short of remarkable that Beimel has worked his way back to affiliated ball. Now 44 years old, he first broke into the big leagues with the Pirates in 2001. Beimel appeared in the majors every year from that point through 2011 but didn’t crack a big league roster in 2012 or 2013. The southpaw returned in 2014 with the Mariners and threw 92 1/3 major league innings over the next two seasons. A 2016 minor league deal with the Royals didn’t lead to a big league opportunity, and Kansas City released him that July. Beimel hasn’t pitched in affiliated ball since then, and he hasn’t appeared on MLBTR’s pages in any capacity since March 2017. Against all odds, he’s made it back.

It’s anyone’s guess whether Beimel will prove effective enough to eventually earn a major league call. He has recently been throwing in the mid-90s, Lin notes, suggesting he’s still got plenty of arm strength despite his age and the long layoff. Scott Kazmir got back to the big leagues with the Giants last month following a five-year absence. Beimel will look to make it back after six years away. Over the course of his career, Beimel has worked to a 4.06 ERA across thirteen seasons.

• Longtime major league reliever Joe Beimel has signed with the New Britain Bees of the independent Atlantic League, the team announced. The 39-year-old left-hander pitched for seven different big league teams from 2001-15, a 680-inning stretch in which he posted a 4.06 ERA, 5.02 K/9, 3.6 BB/9 and a 47 percent ground-ball rate. Beimel spent last season at the Triple-A level with the Royals organization, though the club released him in mid-July after he allowed seven earned runs and issued more walks than strikeouts (eight to six) over 14 2/3 frames.

• The latest updates on Mark Melancon last night revealed that the three-time All-Star has received multiple four-year offers, potentially in excess of $60MM in some cases. The Nationals have indeed made a four-year offer to closer Mark Melancon, according to Jorge Castillo of the Washington Post, but their offer was for less than $60MM guaranteed. That makes a reunion look unlikely for now, barring an increase in the offer from the Nats.
• FanRag’s Jon Heyman writes that Melancon is the Giants’ top target, and Greg Holland could be their primary alternative, as opposed to either Aroldis Chapman or Kenley Jansen. Heyman feels it’s unlikely that they’d pursue either Jansen or Chapman if they fall to land Melancon. The Giants and Nationals are pushing the hardest for Melancon, tweets Heyman.
• The Nationals, Marlins, Cubs, Dodgers, Yankees and Giants are all in on Kenley Jansen, per ESPN’s Jim Bowden. Heyman tweets that the Marlins are intent on adding a top closer, and owner Jeffrey Loria is a fan of Chapman in particular. Joel Sherman of the New York Post reports that Loria is at the Winter Meetings and is participating in meetings with the representation for top-tier bullpen arms.
• The Yankees, Mets, Blue Jays, Indians, Dodgers, Rockies and Diamondbacks are all in the market for a bullpen lefty, putting names like Mike Dunn, Boone Logan and Jerry Blevins in a good position, Heyman tweets. Heyman also tweeted this morning that the D-backs are focused on the bullpen at the moment and have no plans to “shock the world” like they did last offseason.
• Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times tweets that veteran southpaw Joe Beimel is at the Winter Meetings and is seeking a minor league deal with an invite to Spring Training. Beimel, 40 in April, hasn’t pitched in the Majors since 2015 but had a nice two-year stretch in Seattle from 2014-15, posting a 3.12 ERA in 92 1/3 innings.

More deadline-related news:

• Scouts from the Nationals, Dodgers and Rangers were in attendance for the Rays’ Jake Odorizzi’s start Sunday against the Orioles, reports Bill Chastain of MLB.com (via Twitter). Odorizzi fired six innings of two-run ball and struck out seven against one walk in a 5-2 victory. The right-hander lowered his season ERA to 4.39 and improved his respective strikeout and walk rates per nine innings to 8.54 and 2.85. Interest in Odorizzi from the Rangers is no surprise, as they and the Rays are reportedly discussing him (and two of Tampa Bay’s other starters) leading up to the deadline.
• Matt Moore, another of the Rays’ coveted starters, drew scouts from the Dodgers, Red Sox, Rangers, Pirates and Nationals for his Saturday start, per Roger Mooney of the Tampa Bay Times. As is the case with Odorizzi, the Rangers are also engaging with the Rays about Moore, so Texas’ interest isn’t a revelation. Moore spun 7 1/3 two-run innings in a 2-1 loss and dropped his ERA to 4.33. The 27-year-old has also put up 7.58 K/9 against 2.63 BB/9 this season.
• Despite hitting the disabled list Saturday with an oblique injury, 25-year-old Braves closer Arodys Vizcaino isn’t out of play for the deadline, tweets FanRag Sports’ Jon Heyman. Although Vizcaino has struggled of late, his numbers this year – 3.00 ERA, 11.75 K/9, 5.5 BB/9 and 54.8 percent ground-ball rate in 36 innings – are mostly outstanding and he’s under control via arbitration eligibility through 2019. Those factors, not to mention his $897,500 salary this year, could combine to make Vizcaino rather appealing to reliever-needy teams.
• The Yankees are scouting the Nationals’ Triple-A affiliate in Syracuse, leading Barry Svrluga of The Washington Post to wonder (on Twitter) if a trade is in the works. The Nats are looking for bullpen help, per several reports in recent months, and Yankees lights-out relievers Aroldis Chapman and Andrew Miller have been connected to Washington as a result.
• The Orioles are interested in adding a left-handed reliever, writes Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com. Kubatko lists the Braves’ Eric O’Flaherty, whom the O’s were previously interested in, and free agent Joe Beimel as possibilities outside the organization.

Beimel posted a 4.30 ERA in 14 2/3 innings with Omaha, issuing eight walks against six strikeouts in his fairly brief stint with the Royals. Prior to that, he had reportedly agreed to a minor league deal with the Marlins, but Miami axed the agreement based on issues that popped up when Beimel was taking his physical.

The 39-year-old Beimel spent the 2014-15 seasons with the Mariners, where he posted a 3.12 ERA in 92 1/3 innings. He saw quite a bit of his work come against left-handed batters and held them to a paltry .226/.281/.381 batting line in that two year stretch. His struggles against righties were notable, however, as he walked more right-handed hitters than he struck out in that time. He’s best-suited as a lefty specialist, though he actually struggled with lefties in 2015 and yielded a .796 OPS against them in his brief sample of 29 minor league plate appearances this year.

Beimel had previously struck a deal with the Marlins, but that accord fell apart — apparently over issues with the status of his arm. Unless something new is found this time around, though, it seems that the veteran will join his ninth major league organization.

The 39-year-old has seen action with seven teams at the big league level, including a two-year run with the Mariners from 2014-15 in which he compiled 92 1/3 innings of 3.12 ERA pitching. Of course, he had better results in the first of those campaigns, and ERA estimators viewed his results last year with particular skepticism.

Beimel was actually somewhat better against right-handed hitters in 2015, but historically he’s much stingier when facing opposing lefties. Presumably, the Royals will give him a shot to earn a LOOGY role. With Danny Duffy moving to the rotation, the club’s pen currently features only one lefty, Scott Alexander. He’s been effective in his first ten innings on the year, and has good results recently at Triple-A, but has a fairly limited MLB track record.

A few more notes on the NL East…

• Yoenis Cespedes has been as good as anyone could have hoped since returning to the Mets, and Ken Davidoff of the New York Post wonders whether there’s any chance of the sides getting back together on a new deal. Cespedes seems well on his way to returning to the open market via his opt-out clause, of course, having gotten off to a tremendous start to the season in advance of a considerably weaker free agent class than the one in which he found himself last winter. The 30-year-old is batting .309/.387/.678 and leading the National League in OPS, slugging percentage and RBIs while holding the MLB lead with 15 home runs. Assistant GM John Ricco said that there’s been no talk between the two sides about working out a new deal, though he also acknowledged: “There’ll be a time and place for that and I think when that time comes, we’ll see what happens.” Davidoff suggests multiple hypothetical offers the Mets could make to Cespedes now, though the slugging outfielder could ultimately find himself positioned as the top free agent on the market, especially now that division-rival Stephen Strasburg is off the market following a seven-year extension.
• Left-hander Joe Beimel had a visit with Dr. James Andrews after his recent minor league agreement with the Marlins fell through due to physical concerns, reports ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick (links to Twitter). Andrews gave Beimel’s shoulder and elbow a clean bill of health, though clearly there was something that gave Miami some degree of pause. Of course, for a 39-year-old veteran of 13 big league seasons, it wouldn’t be surprising to see some degree of wear and tear in his arm. Beimel has pitched well with the Mariners across the past two seasons, working to a combined 3.12 ERA in 92 1/3 innings and holding lefties to a .226/.281/.381 batting line and whiffing nearly 18 percent of the same-handed opponents he faced in that time.
• Nationals right-hander Shawn Kelley has quietly been one of the game’s most dominant relievers in recent years, writes MLB.com’s Mike Petriello. As Petriello notes, the Nationals’ new setup man, who signed a three-year contract in free agency this winter, has the lowest ERA in baseball across the past calendar year, and while some may think his dominance has come out of nowhere, he’s actually been strong dating back to 2013, Petriello points out. Only 11 pitchers registered a higher strikeout percentage in that time. Kelley is enjoying his best season yet, and while he hasn’t altered his pitch selection much, Petriello explains that Kelley has significantly improved the command of his fastball, moving the pitch more to the edge of the zone as opposed to the center of the plate, resulting in more strikeouts and more pop-ups. The bottom-line result for Kelley has been a 1.13 ERA with a 22-to-3 K/BB ratio in 16 innings this season

MAY 12: The Marlins have signed veteran left-handed reliever Joe Beimel, reports MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro (via Twitter). Presumably, the 39-year-old Frye McCann Sports client’s deal is of the minor league variety. He’ll report to extended Spring Training for the time being to get up to speed, per Frisaro. Beimel auditioned for clubs last week, ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick reported at the time.

Beimel returned to the Majors in 2014 after a two-year absence and went on to deliver a pair of strong seasons out of the Seattle bullpen. Over that 2014-15 stretch with the Mariners, the southpaw worked to a 3.12 ERA with 4.6 K/9, 2.9 BB/9 and a 45.9 percent ground-ball rate in 92 1/3 innings of work. While ERA estimators such as FIP and SIERA feel his ERA drastically overstates his performance in that time (due largely to a lack of strikeouts), Beimel’s numbers against left-handed batters were quite strong; lefties batted just .226/.281/.381 against him, and his 17.7 percent strikeout rate and 5.3 percent walk rate against lefties in that time were both fairly sound. Of course, Beimel also walked more right-handed batters than he struck out in that time and yielded a .275/.353/.432 line to hitters that held the platoon advantage, suggesting that he’s best-suited for a specialist role.

Yesterday’s DFA of Craig Breslow rendered the Marlins as the only club without a left-handed relief option at the Major League level, Frisaro pointed out last night (Twitter link), so the addition of a veteran depth option is perhaps unsurprising. It’s unclear how much time Beimel would need to ramp up and become an option for the Fish at the big league level, but he doesn’t seem likely to be available in the near future based on his initial assignment.

The two-time NL Cy Young winner explained to Passan that the uncertainty surrounding his hip prior to undergoing surgery was unfamiliar territory after he felt “invincible” on the mound earlier in his career. “Now I kind of have an idea of the tools I get to work with and how to stay within myself and at the same time be dynamic,” said Lincecum to Passan. “I want to be explosive with certain parts of the body and not be apprehensive. It has taken time to get there.” Passan outlines Lincecum’s current workout regime, and Lincecum makes it clear to the Yahoo scribe that he is set on joining a rotation at this time. Heyman, meanwhile,  lists an extensive number of clubs that will attend the workout, including the Giants, Dodgers, A’s, Rangers, Cubs, White Sox, Padres, Orioles, Nationals and Marlins. Additionally, the Pirates will have talent evaluators in attendance for Lincecum’s showcase on Friday, Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review tweets. And, notably, Heyman adds that the Yankees aren’t expected to be in attendance.

A few more notes on the free agent market…

• Left-hander Joe Beimel will audition for clubs this week as well after changing representation and hiring Frye McCann Sports, reports ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick (via Twitter). Though he just turned 39 years of age, the well-traveled southpaw has been a quality contributor to the Mariners in each of the past two seasons, turning in 92 1/3 innings of 3.12 ERA, although his 47-to-30 K/BB ratio and 4.84 FIP in that time paint a less favorable picture. That said, Beimel has held opposing lefties to a rather feeble .226/.281/.381 batting line in those two seasons, so clubs in need of some left-handed relief depth could consider him to be worth a look.
• Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports tweets that 29-year-old Cuban infielder Ramon Lunar has been declared a free agent by Major League Baseball. Lunar, who has played primarily first base since 2011 but also was originally a third baseman and has some limited experience in left field, is currently playing with Los Tigres de Quintana Roo in the Mexican League. He’s a career .313/.414/.489 hitter in parts of seven seasons in Cuba’s Serie Nacional, and he’s collected 10 plate appearances in Mexico thus far in 2016. Lunar has been absent from rankings of the top Cuban free agents on lists published by the likes of Baseball America and MLB.com, though as a player in his prime years that has shown a bit of pop, he could certainly garner some interest from big league clubs. Lunar is exempt from international bonus pools.
• The Twins have had top international scout Fred Guerrero watching Cuban free agent Jose Miguel Fernandez in the past two days, tweets Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN. Fernandez, a second baseman/third baseman known for minimal strikeout rates and strong on-base skills, is considered one of the top Cuban players on the market and is believed capable of stepping into a big league lineup in the very near future. It’s not clear how he’d fit with the Twins, so perhaps Minnesota is merely performing due diligence. It should be noted, too, that Fernandez hosted a showcase for clubs from May 2-3, and Wolfson notes that there were “many” scouts in attendance for the 28-year-old’s audition. Fernandez, like Lunar, is exempt from international bonus pools due to his age and the extent of his pro experience in Cuba.

Here’s more from the AL West…

• The Mariners last night announced the demotions of righty Yoervis Medina and lefty Tyler Olson to Triple-A Tacoma, and while no official word has been released on the corresponding roster moves that will follow, Bob Dutton of the Tacoma News Tribune reports that signs point to Chris Taylor and Joe Beimel joining the club. Taylor was batting Brad Miller for the everyday shortstop role in Spring Training before a fractured wrist sidelined him for four to six weeks. He’s hitting .313/.385/.475 in Triple-A this season and could either serve as a platoon partner for the lefty-swinging Miller or eventually push him for more regular playing time. Beimel inked a Minor League pact in April after unsuccessfully holding out for a more lucrative big league deal this winter. Beimel isn’t on the 40-man roster, so a 40-man move will need to be made, though I’d imagine that could entail simply moving southpaw Edgar Olmos to the 60-day DL, as he’s already been on the 15-day DL since March 30.
• In the latest edition of his 10 Degrees column, Yahoo’s Jeff Passan notes that Angels righty Jered Weaver’s fastball is averaging an alarming 83-84 mph (depending on whether one uses Baseball Info Solutions’ data or Brooks Baseball). Either way, the concern over his fastball is justified, as Passan points out that 120 of the 122 pitchers that throw four-seam fastballs have an average velocity higher than Weaver’s peak velocity of 87.81 mph this year. Weaver is averaging just 3.9 K/9 and has whiffed three or fewer hitters in all but one of his starts this season, en route to a 6.29 ERA. “Reinvention is the only way to save Weaver,” Passan opines, unless he, like righties Mike Pelfrey and Chris Young before him, is experiencing such a precipitous decline due to injury. (Young, like Weaver, never threw particularly hard in the first place and may be a more apt comparison.)
• Struggles in the Athletics’ bullpen have the team pondering roster moves, writes Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle. One option is switch-pitcher Pat Venditte, who has performed well at Triple-A since signing a Minor League deal this offseason. However, he’s not on the 40-man roster, and space is tight after claiming Alex Hassan off waivers for a staggering third time in the past several months. Slusser writes that when first baseman Nate Freiman is activated from the DL later this month, the team may try to sneak him through waivers to remove him from the 40-man but keep him in the organization. She also notes that southpaw Drew Pomeranz could be bullpen-bound when Jarrod Parker is activated from the DL and reinserted into the rotation.
• I’ll add a note on the surprising division leaders — the 18-7 Astros. Houston is the only club in the AL West with a record above .500 and, as the Chronicle’s Evan Drellich pointed out (Twitter link), they now rank as probables to make the playoffs looking at both Fangraphs’ and Baseball Prospectus’ postseason odds. However, outside of the excellent work provided by Collin McHugh and Dallas Keuchel, the team has received a collective 5.05 ERA from Scott Feldman, Sam Deduno, Brad Peacock, Asher Wojciechowski and Roberto Hernandez in the final three spots in the rotation. Given the club’s early lead, Brett Oberholtzer’s health and the struggles of Dan Straily at Triple-A, I’d wonder if the ’Stros would be open to pursuing an early rotation upgrade in an attempt to make their grip on the division more sustainable. Few teams are actively selling pieces this early in the season, but the Brewers are reportedly open to trade proposals, and Houston could look to clubs that have more serviceable arms than slots in the rotation. Given the lack of quality innings at the back of the Astros’ rotation, the team needn’t add an elite arm in order to acquire a significant upgrade. While this is all speculation, history has shown GM Jeff Luhnow to be aggressive on the trade market. Names like Kyle Lohse, Matt Garza and Dillon Gee have all been floated on the rumor mill lately, and it’s not hard to envision the Rays soon having a surplus of arms once Alex Cobb and, eventually, Matt Moore are healthy. For Astros fans that really want to dream big, the argument could be made that there is in Houston both the need and the means (in terms of prospects and finances) to take on a significant portion of Cole Hamels’ contract, though the asking price could very well exceed Houston’s comfort level.

Beimel posted a strong 2.20 ERA in 45 relief innings for Seattle in 2014, though his advanced metrics (4.18 FIP, 4.17 xFIP, 4.09 SIERA) paint a different picture of his effectiveness, as Beimel was aided by a .250 BABIP and a whopping 86.8% strand rate.  Left-handed hitters managed only a .504 OPS against Beimel last season, indicating that the veteran can still contribute as a specialist out of the bullpen.

Beimel, who turns 38 on April 19, signed a one-year, non-guaranteed Major League deal with the Rangers in early March but was released just over two weeks later after being hit hard in brief spring action.  Charlie Furbush and rookie Tyler Olson project to be Seattle’s two left-handed bullpen options on Opening Day.

• The Mets aren’t likely to pursue Joe Beimel, ESPN New York’s Adam Rubin tweets.  Though the Mets have a need for a left-handed reliever, they apparently don’t have much interest in the recently-released Beimel.
• The relationship between Mets GM Sandy Alderson and manager Terry Collins is one to watch, as there have been a few signs of miscommunication between the front office and the dugout this spring, Newsday’s John Harper writes.  Alderson’s recent biography revealed that the GM came close to firing Collins last season, though Harper reports that the two men “had a clear-the-air meeting” to resolve their differences.
• Michael Cuddyer told CBS Sports’ Jon Heyman (Twitter link) that “most interest dried up” for his services in the free agent market after the Rockies made the surprise move of issuing him a qualifying offer.  Cuddyer’s final choice came down to the one-year, $15.3MM qualifying offer or his eventual pick, the two-year/$21MM deal he got from the Mets.
• The Phillies don’t have much interest in Red Sox third baseman Garin Cecchini, Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe writes as part of a reader mailbag.  The Phils and Sox have been linked for much of the offseason in Cole Hamels rumors and the Phillies have reportedly scouted Cecchini already during their examinations of Boston’s farm system.  The Phillies have concerns about Cecchini’s defense, both at third and for a possible conversion to the outfield.  Cecchini was ranked as one of the 100 top prospects in the sport prior to the 2014 season and is still ranked by MLB.com as the eighth-best prospect in the Red Sox system, though his stock dipped a bit after only an okay season at Triple-A.
• The Rangers are cited as one of “a number of teams…would be eager to acquire Andrew McKirahan in a trade,” MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro writes in his look at the Marlins’ situation.  Texas and Miami have recently been connected in trade rumors, with Brad Hand and Mike Dunn cited as possible targets for the Rangers.  As Frisaro notes, however, the Marlins might want to keep Hand since he can be a spot starter and could bring a bit of balance to their all-righty rotation.  What complicates matters for the Fish is that Hand is out of options and McKirahan is a Rule 5 draft pick who would have to remain on Miami’s 25-man roster all season or else be returned to the Cubs.

The Rangers signed Beimel to a non-guaranteed $1.5MM MLB deal earlier this month, but he allowed 14 runs in three innings this spring. The reliever had a fine 2014 season with the Mariners, posting a 2.20 ERA with 2.8 BB/9, albeit with an underwhelming 5.0 K/9, in 45 innings. That had been his first year in the big leagues since 2011. The 37-year-old veteran has appeared in 12 MLB seasons with the Pirates, Twins, Dodgers, Nationals and Rockies in addition to the Mariners.

As Grant points out, the move leaves Alex Claudio as the Rangers’ main left-handed option. The team has also been connected in trade rumors to the Marlins’ Mike Dunn, suggesting they might not be finished pursuing left-handed relief help.

1:03pm: Beimel’s deal is an MLB contract but is not guaranteed, tweets Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News.

12:41pm: The Rangers have signed left-handed reliever Joe Beimel to a one-year, Major League contract, executive vice president of Rangers communications John Blake announced today (on Twitter). Beimel is a client of agent Joe Sroba.

Beimel, who turns 38 next month, spent the 2014 season with the division-rival Mariners, working to an excellent 2.20 ERA in 45 innings of relief. He worked primarily as a lefty specialist, as evidenced by the fact that his 45 innings came over the life of 56 appearances. In 85 plate appearances against Beimel last year, left-handed hitters mustered a putrid .188/.217/.288 batting line. Right-handed bats had a much easier time against Beimel, batting .282/.367/.424.

Beimel’s peripheral stats don’t look as exciting as his ERA, as the lefty struck out just 5.0 hitters per nine and walked 2.8 per nine. His .250 batting average on balls in play and 86.8 percent strand rate were both significant outliers, relative to his career marks, suggesting that some regression is possible. Metrics such as FIP, xFIP and SIERA all pegged Beimel in the 4.09 to 4.18 range.

The Rangers have been known to be on the lookout for left-handed help in the bullpen, as they were reportedly connected to Phil Coke prior to his minor league deal with the Cubs. Texas also briefly claimed left-hander Edgar Olmos off waivers from the Mariners but had the claim reversed after learning of injury problems with Olmos. With Beimel in the fold, he’ll likely join Alex Claudio as a left-handed option in manager Jeff Banister’s bullpen.

A bit more on what’s left of the relief market…

• The Rangers are still looking for left-handed relievers and are considering both Phil Coke and Joe Beimel, tweets Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. As Wilson notes, the team needn’t worry about a 40-man roster spot, as they can move an injured player to the 60-day disabled list if they accommodate either southpaw with a big league contact.
• The Brewers and Marlins remain in the mix for Francisco Rodriguez, tweets Jon Heyman of CBS Sports. The two teams have been the most commonly linked clubs to Rodriguez’s market, with reports over the weekend indicating that Brewers owner Mark Attanasio has discussed K-Rod with agent Scott Boras. Last week, the Marlins were rumored to be interested in the two-year, $10MM range, but Rodriguez is said to be eyeing a $10MM figure for 2015 alone.
• Right-hander Dustin McGowan, who signed a Major League deal with the Dodgers earlier today, is viewing himself as a reliever at this point in his career, he told reporters (including FOX’s Ken Rosenthal). The Dodgers view McGowan as a relief candidate based on his 95 mph fastball and his splits; McGowan had a 5.08 ERA in the rotation last year compared to a 3.35 mark in the bullpen. His career 3.79 ERA as a reliever is nearly a run lower than his 4.78 mark as a starter.