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Mark Melancon

Market Rumblings: Cutch, Nats, Melancon, Giants, Martinez, Bruce, Rangers, Chapman, Holland

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While much of the trade chatter on Pirates outfielder Andrew McCutchen has focused on the Nationals, the Dodgers are also a plausible suitor, per ESPN.com’s Buster Olney. There’s interest from Los Angeles in the 30-year-old, not least of which because he’s controllable at a fairly reasonable salary and doesn’t come with a lengthy commitment.

  • Despite the ongoing interest in McCutchen, the Nationals are also looking into other outfielders, Jon Heyman of Fan Rag reports. Among the free agent center fielders who have at least come up internally are Dexter Fowler, Carlos Gomez and former Nats shortstop Ian Desmond. The organization has also given some thought to Adam Eaton of the White Sox. That’s doubly interesting given that the Nats are reportedly still engaged on star Chicago southpaw Chris Sale.
  • While the Nationals are trying to work out arrangements to land McCutchen (or an alternative) and/or Sale, they remain in on closer Mark Melancon, per ESPN.com’s Jerry Crasnick (Twitter links). Melancon’s market is moving along well, says Crasnick, with expectations that he could land as much as $60MM over a four-year term. While Washington is clearly intrigued at a reunion, Crasnick adds that the Giants remain engaged and may even be better-situated for a strike on Melancon given that the Nats’ attention may lie elsewhere.
  • That being said, the Giants are also looking to add a power bat in the outfield, and they have continued to consider Tigers slugger J.D. Martinez, according to Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link). That interest has been known for some time, but it seems there’s still life to the possibility. Notably, GM Bobby Evans has signaled that San Francisco does not wish to take on a long-term obligation in the outfield, as Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle tweets. The same rationale that makes Martinez appealing — his one year of team control — could also make Mets outfielder Jay Bruce a possibility, Schulman notes.
  • Another team in the outfield market is the Rangers, who hope to add a center fielder as well as another starter. GM Jon Daniels says that he’s currently paying more attention to the trade market than to free agency, as T.R. Sullivan of MLB.com tweets. Texas is drawing hits on relief pitching, Daniels added.
  • The Yankees have their eye on four possibilities for a big bat, per Heyman (via Twitter): Edwin Encarnacion, Matt Holliday, Mike Napoli, and Carlos Beltran. Most of those free agents have been connected to New York in some form already, though Holliday has not been mentioned with much specificity. Of note, beyond the interest of the Yankees, is that Holliday is apparently looking for a two-year deal, while Beltran appears to be available for a single-season commitment.
  • High-octane lefty Aroldis Chapman remains in excellent position to land a big new deal, but Heyman tweets that he’s not necessarily hunting for a nine-figure contract. While the bargaining could presumably still push the price tag toward (if not past) the $100MM mark, that’s not a “demand” of the free agent, per the report.
  • As the Pirates weigh a number of pursuits, the organization remains engaged with lefty Derek Holland, Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reports on Twitter. Bucs GM Neal Huntington is set to meet with Holland’s reps at the Winter Meetings early next week.

Free Agent Profile: Mark Melancon

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After making three All-Star teams in the past four years and posting a sub-2.00 ERA along the way, Mark Melancon is improbably playing third fiddle on the closer market as he hits free agency for the first time in his career. Despite the competition he faces, he should be in line for a very lucrative contract.

Pros/Strengths

Melancon doesn’t flash the gaudy velocity of fellow free-agent closer Aroldis Chapman, nor does he boast Kenley Jansen’s ludicrous strikeout totals, but he’s turned in a better ERA than either one of them since the start of the 2013 season (1.80) and has also pitched the highest number of innings of any of the three in that time (290).

Mark Melancon

In addition to that 1.80 ERA, Melancon has averaged 8.3 K/9 against a minuscule 1.4 BB/9 rate in that four-year stretch. Melancon uses his cutter to rack up grounders at an enormous rate; he’s 22nd of 222 qualified relievers with a 57.4 percent ground-ball rate dating back to 2013 and has actually been more effective against lefties than righties due to that pitch, so he doesn’t come with platoon worries. Those ground-ball tendencies and his excellence even when hitters hold the platoon advantage are among the reasons that it’s so difficult to leave the yard against Melancon. Since 2013, his 0.31 HR/9 rate trails only Wade Davis among qualified relievers. He’s given up just 10 homers in those 290 innings.

It’s true that relief pitching is a highly volatile commodity, but Melancon’s consistency goes beyond his on-field performance. He’s never been on the disabled list in either the Major Leagues or in the minors, and he’s averaged 74 appearances and 72 innings per season over the past four years. He’s also chipped in 10 playoff innings with a 3.60 ERA and has been pitching in pennant races and in the postseason since that breakout season in 2013, so he’s no stranger to the highest levels of pressure a reliever would face.

Like Chapman, Melancon was traded prior to the non-waiver deadline, meaning he was ineligible to receive a qualifying offer and thus will not require the forfeiture of a draft pick upon signing with a team.

Weaknesses/Cons

Melancon will turn 32 years old next March, making him the oldest of the “big three” closers on the free-agent market this year. His consistency and durability mitigate some of the concern that stems from his age, but the fact that a long-term deal could run through his age-35 season isn’t something that’ll be lost on teams as they negotiate with his representatives.

It hasn’t shown up much yet in his bottom-line results, but Melancon’s contact rate and swinging-strike rate have trended in the wrong direction in each of the past two seasons, and he’s also seen the rate at which hitters chase out-of-zone pitches against him decline in that time. He’s down from averaging a strikeout per inning in 2013-14 to averaging 7.7 K/9 in the past two seasons. His K-rate did bounce back a bit in 2016, but this past season represented the lowest swinging-strike rate and chase rate as well as the highest contact rate that Melancon has allowed since 2013.

As one might expect for a pitcher that recently entered his 30s, Melancon’s velocity isn’t quite what it once was. He averaged 91.9 mph on his oft-used cutter and 92.7 on a more seldom-used four-seam fastball in his first season with the Bucs, but those marks sat at 90.9 and 91.8, respectively, in 2016.

This isn’t necessarily his fault, but Melancon hasn’t proven much in terms of pitching multi-inning stints recently, and the 2016 postseason showed a perhaps-increasing trend in that direction. Melancon has just nine multi-inning appearances over the past four years, with his longest 2016 outing being a two-inning stint late in the season. Certainly, it’s not up to him to determine how managers Clint Hurdle and Dusty Baker have deployed him, but some lengthier outings might’ve done his stock a small favor.

Background

A ninth-round pick by the Yankees back in 2006, Melancon never carried all that much fanfare as a prospect. He debuted with the Yankees in 2009 but was traded to Houston alongside Jimmy Paredes to acquire Lance Berkman the following summer. The Astros flipped him to the Red Sox a year later as part of their package to acquire Jed Lowrie, and after one dismal season in Boston, the Pirates bought low on Melancon and made him one of the focal points of the trade that sent Joel Hanrahan to the Red Sox. The rest is history, as Melancon (like so many other pitchers) blossomed under pitching gurus Ray Searage and Jim Benedict while spending three and a half seasons in a Pirates uniform.

Off the field, Melancon has done work as a global ambassador for MLB in both New Zealand and South Africa, per the Pirates’ 2016 media guide. He also participated in the MLB All-Star Series in Japan back in Nov. 2014. In the community, Melancon and former college teammates Nick Hundley and Chris Woodward have run “Training with the Pros” camps for children.

Market

The Nationals are known to want Melancon back in 2017, and it’s been reported that they could deem Chapman and Jansen to be too expensive. That could indicate that he’s their preferred option in the ninth inning, and as a team that’s familiar with him and “loved” him in the clubhouse, the Nationals should be one of the top clubs in the mix for Melancon in free agency. They’re far from alone, however, as Giants GM Bobby Evans candidly second-guessed not making a larger push to acquire Melancon as he watched his bullpen falter late in the 2016 season. The Giants have met with the representatives for each of the top three closers, and securing a top-tier bullpen arm is reportedly a priority for them.

The Cubs, Dodgers and Yankees are the other three big-market teams that have the means and potential need, and any of the three could make a play for Melancon (though the Cubs are said to be trying to unearth a new elite reliever rather than pay top dollar for a known commodity). The Rangers saw some instability in their bullpen last year and released their Opening Day closer, Shawn Tolleson, earlier this offseason. The Marlins have been linked to bullpen help, specifically to Jansen, but it’s easy to see him being too expensive and Melancon being a bit more in their wheelhouse.

Melancon is a Colorado native, and Rockies GM Jeff Bridich confirmed this week that he’s spoken to Melancon’s representatives at ISE Baseball about bringing the three-time All-Star to his hometown state. That match seems like a bit of a long shot given the expected price tag (more on that below), but the Rockies could certainly use a ninth-inning upgrade. The same could be said of the division-rival Diamondbacks, who have little certainty in the ’pen and have already bolstered their rotation this winter. New GM Mike Hazen knows a bit about Melancon, though the one season Melancon spent in Boston came prior to his breakout and was something of a disaster. The Mets, too, make some degree of sense, though reports indicate that they’re not pursuing the top relief arms, so they’d need to decide to change course in order to be more than an on-paper fit.

Expected Contract

Were it not for Jansen and Chapman, Melancon would be entering the open market with the best numbers that we’ve seen out of a free-agent reliever since David Robertson hit the open market two winters ago. Robertson was two years younger at the time but also came with the burden of a qualifying offer and had posted consistently higher ERAs. He ultimately fell just shy of Jonathan Papelbon’s record $50MM deal when he agreed to a four-year, $46MM pact with the White Sox.

Papelbon’s record has stood longer than anyone might’ve reasonably predicted, but there’s virtually no chance that it survives this winter. And while most pundits have pegged Chapman and Jansen to shatter the record, I’m of the belief that Melancon will join them as a third reliever to break that $50MM benchmark. While I don’t think he’ll do it in as grand of fashion, I’m pegging Melancon for a four-year deal worth $56MM — a slight bump over the $52MM that he was predicted to receive in on MLBTR’s list of Top 50 free agents.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

NL East Notes: Mets, Volquez, Hammel, Marlins, Nationals

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The Braves have already grabbed headlines tonight by acquiring lefty Jaime Garcia from the Cardinals in a four-player trade, but here are a few other notes from around the division…

  • While domestic violence charges against Mets closer Jeurys Familia may soon be dropped, that doesn’t mean he won’t face league discipline. That possibility must be considered by the organization as it charts its offseason, GM Sandy Alderson says, as ESPNNewYork.com’s Adam Rubin reports. Of course, it still seems unlikely that the club will be motivated to spend big on a new late-inning arm, particularly with Addison Reed capable of filling in for the ninth inning after an excellent 2016 season. It’s possible that a reliever, or perhaps some array of young talent, could end up moving to New York if (or, more likely, when) the team deals one of its left-handed-hitting corner outfielders, MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo reports. The Mets’ strong preference is still to trade Jay Bruce rather than Curtis Granderson; it seems that the latter player may be expected to share time in center with Juan Lagares.
  • Alderson also said in an appearance on MLB Network Radio today (Twitter link) that he’d be “surprised” if the Mets got involved with a top-level center fielder in free agency due not only to the draft pick they’d have to forfeit (referring to Dexter Fowler and Ian Desmond) and also due to the fact that the team has other needs on the roster. Following the re-signing of Yoenis Cespedes, the Mets are looking to move an outfielder, with reports indicating that Jay Bruce is the name they hope to shed. However, Curtis Granderson is reportedly drawing more interest, and FanRag’s Jon Heyman reports that the Orioles are among the teams with interest in Granderson (Twitter link). Baltimore doesn’t appear to have much interest in Bruce, however, he adds.
  • The Braves put in a strong pursuit of righty Edinson Volquez before he went to the Marlins, ESPN’s Buster Olney tweeted yesterday. The team’s interest in Volquez came after it had already landed both R.A. Dickey and Bartolo Colon, but the Braves have been said to be focused on acquiring short-term assets in the rotation or front-of-the-rotation arms that would require enormous trade packages. As such, it’s possible that Atlanta only had interest in Volquez on a one-year deal, but he received two years and $22MM from the Marlins. Atlanta acted quickly to grab another short-term rotation commodity with tonight’s Garcia trade.
  • The Marlins, too, still appear to be shopping for arms, as Heyman reports that they have potential interest in free-agent right-handers Jason Hammel and Doug Fister. The Fish are also looking for bullpen help, Heyman notes, which has been a priority in Miami for much of the offseason. Tim Healey of the Miami Sun-Sentinel writes that Miami is hoping to keep right-hander David Phelps in the bullpen following his dominance in that role in 2016. “Ideally, if we can keep a deep bullpen, we can keep him as that multi-inning effective bridge to the back-end guys,” said president of baseball ops Michael Hill to Healey. “He impacts more games for us that way. But we know he has the versatility if he has to move into the rotation to do that seamlessly and not miss a beat.”
  • The Nationals are still looking for a closer, tweets Heyman, but it’s likely that they consider Aroldis Chapman to be too expensive. The Nats are interested in a reunion with Mark Melancon, however, he notes, adding that Washington “loved” Melancon’s clubhouse presence in his short stint with the team following a trade-deadline rental this past summer.

Rockies Rumors: Holliday, Melancon, Bullpen, Reynolds

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It’s been pretty quiet on the Rockies front lately, but GM Jeff Bridich spoke to Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post on a number of offseason topic yesterday. Here are some notable takeaways from that chat and a bit more on the Rockies’ offseason…

  • Many Rockies fans seem to like the idea of bringing back former franchise cornerstone Matt Holliday to fill the club’s first base vacancy in 2017, but Saunders notes that Bridich downplayed the likelihood of a reunion with Holliday. Said the GM: “We have just now started looking into the reality of Matt. With the way that our outfield is situated… the outfield for Matt doesn’t make a whole lot of sense right now. So right now we are just trying to wrap our minds around whether he’s a viable option at first base.” Certainly that’s not a firm denial of any possibility, but it’s not a vote of confidence in Holliday’s first base abilities either, and Bridich’s comments seem to rule out the possibility of Holliday getting any time in left field next year. Holliday played 61 innings at first base last year — his lone experience at the position.
  • Similarly, a signing of Colorado native Mark Melancon seems to be on the wishlist of some fans, and Bridich did confirm to Saunders that the team has at least spoken to Melancon’s representatives. However, the GM characterized Melancon as one of “a lot of guys” whose agents have been contacted by the Rockies. Saunders recently cast some doubt on the Rockies’ ability to compete with other big-spending teams like the Dodgers, Giants, Yankees and Nationals to acquire Melancon’s services, however, and it does seem unlikely that they’d win a bidding war, based on the team’s recent history with free agents.
  • In addition to Melancon, Bridich confirmed to Saunders that he’s spoken to the agent for former Marlins lefty Mike Dunn. Bridich also voiced confidence in last winter’s trio of bullpen acquisitions — Jake McGee, Jason Motte and Chad Qualls — stating that he believes each can rebound from a disappointing first year with the Rox. Saunders notes that between McGee, Adam Ottavino and Carlos Estevez, the Rockies’ 2017 closer may already be on the roster.
  • Elsewhere, SB Nation’s Chris Cotillo reports that the Rockies have expressed some level of interest in a reunion with Mark Reynolds, who performed reasonably well on a low-cost one-year deal for Colorado last year (Twitter link). Reynolds played a passable first base in the estimation of Defensive Runs Saved (+4) and, to a lesser extent, Ultimate Zone Rating (-1.9). He also batted a solid .282/.356/.450 with 14 homers in 441 plate appearances, although park-adjusted metrics like OPS+ and wRC+ felt that his overall offensive output was about league-average after compensating for Coors Field. (And it’s worth noting that Reynolds raked at a .310/.383/.497 clip at home while hitting a pedestrian .255/.329/.403 on the road in 2016.)
  • MLB.com’s Mike Petriello has the Rockies atop his speculative list of teams that make sense as a landing spot for Chris Carter, who was designated for assignment by the Brewers yesterday. Petriello raises a point we’ve examined at MLBTR in the past, noting that Mark Trumbo would be a strong fit in Colorado were it not for the fact that signing him would require the Rockies to forfeit the top unprotected pick in next year’s draft (No. 11 overall). As Petriello further examines, the difference between Carter and Trumbo, from a statistical standpoint, hasn’t been all that great over the past few years. Each offers enormous power with plenty of strikeouts and questionable on-base percentages. The difference between the two, from my vantage point, would be that Trumbo hasn’t had the opportunity to showcase his first base skills in years, as he’s been played out of position in the outfield. Trumbo has rated as a solid defensive first baseman in the past, when given the opportunity, while Carter’s glovework has consistently graded out poorly. Then again, if there’s a sizable enough gap in terms of the required dollars (to say nothing of retaining the draft pick), the downgrade to Carter’s glove may be viewed as an acceptable price to pay.

Marlins Rumors: Ramos, Ozuna, Fister, Phelps, Gee

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The Marlins have “signaled that they might be willing to trade” closer A.J. Ramos, reports ESPN’s Jayson Stark (via Twitter). On the one hand, the news isn’t all that surprising, as Ramos projects to earn a relatively hefty $6.8MM in 2017 and is only controllable for another two seasons, so Miami could market him as it looks to add more stability to its rotation. On the other hand, there have been reports that the Marlins are weighing a run at right-hander Kenley Jansen to beef up the bullpen and shorten the game for their starters due to the lack of available rotation help. Moving Ramos would go against the stated goal of deepening the relief corps with high-end talent, although perhaps the team could look to add some rotation help by moving Ramos and replace him with a free-agent arm. Ramos, 30, posted a terrific 2.81 ERA with 10.3 K/9 but also averaged 4.9 BB/9 and posted a career-worst 36.4 percent ground-ball rate in 64 innings with Miami last year.

A few more notes on the Fish…

  • There’s been “little to no dialogue” between the Marlins and other teams about outfielder Marcell Ozuna, reports MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro. Many clubs are taking a patient approach to see how the pitching market develops before they determine whether they can part with an arm in a trade to address the outfield, Frisaro writes, and there isn’t much internal traction regarding the idea of dealing Ozuna. With Edinson Volquez on board, the Marlins may look further to the free-agent market rather than seeking trades to bolster the staff.
  • Also from Frisaro, the Marlins have had internal discussions regarding Doug Fister, C.J. Wilson and Jon Niese. Previous reports have linked Miami to the latter two names, but this appears to be the first definitive link between the Marlins and Fister, who posted a 4.64 ERA with 5.7 K/9, 3.1 BB/9 and a 45.3 percent ground-ball rate in 180 1/3 innings for the Astros last season. That marked a second consecutive weak showing for Fister, who was previously one of the more underrated starters in baseball while pitching for the Tigers. Fister’s strikeout rate has plummeted in recent years, though, and while he’s never thrown hard, his once 89-90 mph fastball is now more in the 86-87 mph range. David Phelps is also a candidate to step into the rotation, but the Marlins prefer that he remains at the back of the bullpen, Frisaro adds.
  • Also of note from Frisaro’s piece on the team’s free-agent hunt, he lists Jansen and Aroldis Chapman as assets that are probably too expensive for the Marlins but lists right-handers Mark Melancon and Daniel Hudson as more affordable options that could be realistic targets.
  • Meanwhile, Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald reports that the Marlins have reached out to the representatives for right-hander Dillon Gee, who became a free agent when he was cut loose by the Royals after the season. Gee is no stranger to the NL East, having spent the bulk of his career with the Mets, and he delivered 125 innings with a 4.68 ERA, 6.4 K/9, 2.7 BB/9 and a 41 percent ground-ball rate for Kansas City last year. However, Gee’s season came to an end when he required surgery to alleviate thoracic outlet syndrome. He’s expected to be ready for Spring Training, though, and would give the Marlins a veteran arm who could function in a swingman capacity, making some starts as needed but also providing a relief arm capable of throwing multiple innings.

Signing Notes: Napoli, Melancon, Revere

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Some items about notable names on the open market….

  • Mike Napoli received some interest from the Mariners earlier this month, though one club official tells Bob Dutton of the Tacoma News Tribune that Napoli “doesn’t fit” into Seattle’s roster plans.  The M’s intend to give Dan Vogelbach and Ben Gamel a clear shot at the regular first base and right field jobs, with Danny Valencia the top choice to spell both against left-handed pitching.  Guillermo Heredia, Richie Shaffer and Taylor Motter are also in the mix as right-handed bats to platoon with Gamel or Seth Smith.  (Dutton’s piece was written before the Mariners acquired yet another right-handed hitting outfielder in Mitch Haniger from the D’Backs.)  With all of these platoon pieces on hand and Nelson Cruz getting the bulk of DH at-bats, there just isn’t room for Napoli.  Mariners GM Jerry Dipoto said earlier today that he is happy with his club’s position players and will now turn his focus to adding starting pitching.
  • Could Colorado native Mark Melancon return to his home state in a Rockies uniform?  Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post has serious doubts, as the Rockies have been burned on big pitching contracts in the past and the team would have to outbid several big-market teams in need of a closer to land Melancon’s services.  Making the signing, on the other hand, would show that the Rockies are serious about contending with their current core of talent, and Melancon would obviously be a big upgrade for a Colorado bullpen that struggled last year.
  • Ben Revere has long been considered a non-tender candidate, and Mark Zuckerman of MASNsports.com still thinks that will be the case, it isn’t out of the question that Revere returns to the Nationals.  Zuckerman points out that Revere was bothered by an oblique injury for much of the season, which likely contributed to his career-worst .217/.260/.300 slash line over 375 plate appearances.  While Revere could very well bounce back if fully healthy in 2017, I would guess that the Nats would only re-sign him for a backup role or even a minor league deal.

NL West Notes: D-Backs, Giants Pen, Kendrick, Dodgers, Holliday, Pads

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The Diamondbacks expect to enter 2017 with approximately the same payroll level that they carried last year, GM Mike Hazen tells Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic (Twitter link). With about $60MM in obligations and another $30MM or so in projected arbitration salaries, it wouldn’t appear that Arizona will have a lot of free cash to work with this winter after opening 2016 with just under $100MM on the books. While it’s always possible that trades could shift things around, indications from the front office are that players such as Zack Greinke, Paul Goldschmidt, and Yasmany Tomas aren’t likely to be moved. All said, then, the odds appear to favor a fairly quiet approach to the free agent market from the D-Backs.

Here’s more from the NL West:

  • The Giants feel confident they will land one of the three major closers available in free agency this winter, a club official told Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link). We’ve already heard the team linked to Aroldis Chapman, Kenley Jansen, and Mark Melancon (who they met with today), though as John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle writes, the organization is considering alternatives as well. GM Bobby Evans called rehabbing righty Greg Holland a “very good option,” and there are always trade routes to consider. But the expectation has long been that San Francisco would go shopping on the open market to address the ninth inning, and the club seems a strong favorite to land one of those premium arms.
  • Meanwhile, it’s rather unlikely that the Giants will make a splash at third base, Shea further reports. Evans left little doubt as to how the club sees things after already acquiring Eduardo Nunez over the summer. “You try to stay nimble and flexible,” Evans said. “If something comes along, you can always adjust. We’re very comfortable with Nuñez. He’s our third baseman.”
  • Dodgers GM Farhan Zaidi addressed his club’s decision today to ship Howie Kendrick to the Phillies, as Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times reports. “Financial flexibility” was a motivating factor, he said, and the organization also liked the idea of adding Darin Ruf — who Zaidi said was pursued over the summer. Addressing second base, which Kendrick could conceivably have played, Zaidi noted that the Dodgers could go with players already on hand — Enrique Hernandez, Micah Johnson, and Chris Taylor — but added that there’s ample time “to bring in a more experienced player.” Free agent Chase Utley still seems an option, though Zaidi did not discuss him specifically, and there are certainly a variety of interesting trade candidates that might be considered. Kendrick had occupied left field in 2016 for Los Angeles, and his departure leaves an opening there, but Zaidi said that’s “not a position we are targeting right now.” He expressed confidence in existing players such as Andre Ethier, Andrew Toles, Trayce Thompson and Scott Van Slyke in the corner outfield. Of course, right field is also up for grabs, though the team could yet rely on Yasiel Puig along with those other options.
  • The idea of the Rockies bringing back Matt Holliday may not be an unreasonable one, Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post writes. The veteran slugger has expressed interest in the concept, and Saunders notes that Holliday could see time both at first and in the outfield — which currently features three left-handed hitters.
  • The Padres will look to make a few targeted veteran additions this winter, Dennis Lin of the San Diego Union-Tribune recently explored. GM A.J. Preller spoke of finding one or two “guys who have good makeup, guys who are in it for the team, guys who are willing to work, guys who aren’t selfish.” That could be outfielder Jon Jay, who the team is still interested in. Preller spoke highly of the versatile outfielder, but noted that preserving opportunities for a variety of younger players ill be a consideration “as we’re talking to Jon and determining an offer, the term and length.” Shortstop is perhaps a greater priority, with Preller noting that it’s “still an area we’re looking to address.” The team still isn’t sure whether Luis Sardinas is prepared to be an everyday player, Preller suggested. Jose Rondon will also receive consideration, but the organization certainly seems open to pursuing alternatives via trade or free agency.

Reliever Notes: Chapman, Jansen, Melancon, Giants, Holland, Marlins

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The Giants met this week with representatives of top free agent relievers Aroldis Chapman, Kenley Jansen, and Mark Melancon, Bob Nightengale of USA Today (on Twitter) and Jon Morosi of MLB Network (Twitter link) report. Finding a solution for the ninth inning is perhaps the top priority for Giants GM Bobby Evans, so it’s not surprising to hear that he’s looking into the three best options on the open market. It’s far from clear at this point whether the Giants are particularly interested in any of these pitchers. It will certainly be interesting to see the strategic approaches of the players and teams in the market for premium closers. There are plenty of suitors circling, but they’ll surely be somewhat cautious in doling out potentially record-setting contracts.

  • We took a look yesterday at the latest on Greg Holland, who’s a risky but intriguing alternative to the three major options just noted, but there’s more ground to cover today. The Cubs are among many organizations that have real interest in Holland, as Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times reports. They certainly aren’t alone, as Jon Heyman of Fan Rag reports that clubs including the Rays, Indians, and Mariners — in addition to the many others who were reportedly on hand for his recent showcase — could still be involved.
  • While the Marlins’ priority is in the rotation, the club may consider bolstering its relief corps as an alternative, MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro reports. President of baseball operations Michael Hill suggests that the team will allow the market to “dictate[] the direction” that’s ultimately taken, at least to some extent, and that the Fish will explore all free agent and trade possibilities. But if the price for a worthwhile rotation addition proves too steep, the organization may perhaps pivot a bit. “You see the trends now, and the analytics, and they may say you don’t want to face guys a third time through the lineup,” Hill said. “It puts more of an emphasis to have a stronger bullpen. A lot of our success this year was because of our strong bullpen.” Frisaro notes that the Marlins have long been interested in Chapman, though it would seemingly be a big surprise were the club to enter his market in earnest.

Nationals Notes: Turner, Zimmerman, Ramos, Melancon, Hernandez, Revere

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Nats GM Mike Rizzo spoke with the press today about the offseason to come, as Mark Zuckerman of MASNsports.com reports. He expressed satisfaction with the “good, steady brand of baseball” that the club displayed, while acknowledging the disappointment of failing to advance in the playoffs. Rizzo wasn’t keen to offer up much in the way of details on the team’s planning, but did provide some insight. Here are the highlights from his press conference and a few more notes on the team:

  • Rizzo praised his roster’s versatility, suggesting that it allows “a lot of different directions to improve our ballclub.” Trea Turner, in particular, could occupy a middle infield role or play in center — leaving the Nats free to pursue a center fielder, shortstop, or perhaps even a corner outfielder (while moving Bryce Harper to center). As Rizzo put it, Turner’s presence “allows us to build around that, meaning that it gives us more options in the marketplace to improve the ballclub.”
  • One thing that won’t occur is a permanent move of Turner to second base, with Daniel Murphy taking over for Ryan Zimmerman at first. “No, Zim’s our first baseman going into this offseason and spring training,” Rizzo said. The veteran struggled to a .218/.272/.370 batting line this year, by far his worst as a big leaguer, but he made plenty of hard contact (34.7%) and may have been unfortunate to carry a .248 BABIP.
  • The Nats have some notable free agents, of course, including catcher Wilson Ramos and closer Mark Melancon. Rizzo wouldn’t commit to a strategy on the burly backstop, whose season ended with ACL surgery. The plan is to “do all the due diligence on the medicals” before making a call on issuing Ramos a qualifying offer and deciding whether to pursue him.
  • As for Melancon, Rizzo offered effusive praise for his work on the mound and presence in the clubhouse. Looking ahead, though, Rizzo suggested that he isn’t locked into Melancon or the other top relief options on the market. “It’s a broad, deep reliever market this year, and Mark is one of the elite relievers in the marketplace,” he said. “In a perfect world, you’d always like to have a guy that’s done it in the most competitive situations, but that’s not always possible. We’ve got a lot of options as far as guys with plus stuff and plus makeup, and it’s a deep relief market this year. So there’s different avenues to go and different routes that are attractive to us.” One possible internal candidate for ninth-inning duties, righty Shawn Kelley, is expected to be fully healthy after leaving the team’s final game with what looked to be a concerning injury, though it seems fair to expect the organization to pursue a closer regardless.
  • The Nationals’ decision to ink Cuban outfielder Yadiel Hernandez was somewhat uncharacteristic, as Chelsea Janes of the Washington Post explores. Washington has largely sat out the market for Cuban players, but chose to take a limited risk ($200K bonus without promising a MLB roster spot) on the 29-year-old. Hernandez was worth the risk, per VP of international ops Johnny DiPuglia, because “he’s a legit left-handed hitter who grinds at-bats” and is capable of playing center field. Depending upon how the offseason progresses, Hernandez could conceivably position himself as a depth or even a bench piece, though the team hasn’t staked much on that possibility. “We thought we’d take a chance on him,” said DiPuglia. “He’s got a profile for us. We’ll find out.”
  • One reason to add Hernandez? The fact that the team has an expensive decision to make on left-handed-hitting center fielder Ben Revere, who projects to earn $6.3MM in arbitration even after a dreadful campaign. Zuckerman looks at Revere’s 2016 season and the options for the Nats. From my perspective, there’s no real chance that the team will trust Revere with the regular job in center, making it hard to imagine that it will stake over $6MM on him. That’s especially true given the presence of Brian Goodwin, a former top prospect who made strides at Triple-A and showed well in his first taste of the majors.

 

Cafardo’s Latest: Hart, Melancon, Hill, DiSarcina

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In his latest notes column for the Boston Globe, Nick Cafardo looks at the remarkable list of front office talent incubated by John Hart during his stint as the Indians’ general manager from 1989-2001.  Such names as Chris Antonetti, Mark Shapiro, Neal Huntington, Ben Cherington, Paul DePodesta, Josh Byrnes and Dan O’Dowd worked together in the Cleveland front office and went on to run their own front offices as general managers, baseball operations heads and/or club presidents.  Of course, those executives all developed their own notable staffers, to the point that Hart’s front office tree extends to virtually every team in the sport.  Here’s some more from Cafardo’s column…

  • Mark Melancon will draw a lot of interest in free agency this winter, both as a closer and potentially, Cafardo opines, as an Andrew Miller-style hybrid reliever.  Melancon could be willing to accept such a role if he still gets paid like a top-flight closer, and Cafardo thinks firemen could eventually surpass closers as the highest-paid members of a bullpen.  “Don’t kid yourself, one reason Miller accepts his role is because he earns closer money,” Cafardo writes.
  • “The Nationals are expected to go hard” for Melancon, Cafardo reports, which isn’t a surprise given how well he pitched for Washington after he was acquired at the trade deadline.
  • Major League sources often cite a three-year/$45MM contract for Rich Hill in free agency this winter, and Hill could even get more the better he pitches during the Dodgers’ postseason run.  Last month, MLBTR’s Tim Dierkes outlined five reasons why he is predicting Hill to receive at least $45MM, despite Hill’s age and injury history.
  • Angels first base coach Gary DiSarcina could be a candidate for two jobs with other clubs, based on his past experience working in the Red Sox front office and managing their A-ball and Triple-A affiliates.  Cafardo suggests that Mike Hazen (the former Red Sox GM and newly-hired Diamondbacks GM) could consider DiSarcina as the new D’Backs manager.  Boston bench coach Torey Lovullo has been rumored to be a top contender for the Arizona job, so if he indeed leaves, Cafardo wonders if DiSarcina could return to Fenway for a job on John Farrell’s staff.
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