Osuna began the 2022 season playing in the Mexican League for the Diablos Rojos del México, tossing 13 1/3 innings of three-run ball while striking out 15 batters and earning six saves, before joining the Marines for the second half of the season. Once in Japan, he threw 32 2/3 innings of 1.37 ERA ball, posting a 37:3 strikeout-to-walk ratio, earning sixteen saves, and allowing only a single home run.

Osuna, who will be 28-years-old during the 2023 season, hasn’t appeared in a major league game since 2020, when he was outrighted off the Astros’ roster. Osuna had missed much of that season with an elbow injury that limited him to only four appearances. The injury initially came with a recommendation of Tommy John surgery, but a second opinion led him to rebab instead. Now, with two consecutive years of pitching more than 45 innings, Osuna appears fully recovered.

Osuna served a 75-game suspension in 2018 for violating the MLB – MLBPA Domestic Violence Policy. A member of the Blue Jays at that time, he was arrested in Canada and charged with the assault of his then-girlfriend. He later agreed to a one-year peace bond, with the alleged victim withdrawing the charges to resolve the criminal case.

Per the Canadian Department of Justice’s website, peace bonds are generally used when “an individual (the defendant) appears likely to commit a criminal offence, but there are no reasonable grounds to believe that an offence has actually been committed.” The Canadian Department of Justice further adds that peace bonds are obtainable by “any person who fears that another person may injure them, their spouse or common-law partner, or a child, or may damage their property.”

It’s unclear if any major league club has shown interest in bringing Osuna back state-side this offseason. There’s little question of his on-field effectiveness when he is healthy, but it remains to be seen whether he’ll get another MLB opportunity at any point down the line.

Osuna has spent the 2022 season playing in the Mexican League, where he’s appeared in 12 games with the Diablos Rojos del México. He tossed 13 1/3 innings of three-run ball, striking out 15 batters and collecting six saves. That strong work caught the attention of the Marines, who figure to install Osuna at the back end of their bullpen.

The 27-year-old hasn’t appeared in a major league game since 2020, when he was outrighted off the Astros roster. Osuna had missed much of that season with an elbow injury that limited him to four appearances. That malady initially came with a recommendation he undergo Tommy John surgery, but a second opinion suggested he could rehab without going under the knife. He’s spent the past couple seasons pitching in Mexico and seems to have recovered from the elbow issue, considering how effective he’s been for the Diablos Rojos.

Of greater import is that Osuna served a 75-game suspension in 2018 for violating the MLB – MLBPA Domestic Violence Policy. A member of the Blue Jays at the time, he was arrested in Canada and charged with the assault of his then-girlfriend. He later agreed to a one-year peace bond, with the alleged victim withdrawing the charges to resolve the criminal case.

Per the Canadian Department of Justice’s web site, peace bonds are generally used when “an individual (the defendant) appears likely to commit a criminal offence, but there are no reasonable grounds to believe that an offence has actually been committed.” The Canadian Department of Justice further adds that peace bonds are obtainable by “any person who fears that another person may injure them, their spouse or common-law partner, or a child, or may damage their property.”

The Astros acquired Osuna from Toronto at the 2018 trade deadline while he was in the midst of serving his suspension. He posted excellent numbers, tossing 103 innings of 2.53 ERA ball with a 26.1% strikeout rate through the end of 2019. He led the American League with 38 saves in 2019, his most recent full season in the majors. There’s little question of his on-field effectiveness when he’s healthy, but it remains to be seen whether he’ll get another MLB opportunity at any point down the line.

• Red Sox prospect Bryan Mata has a slight tear in his UCL, per MLB.com’s Ian Browne (via Twitter). Mata will avoid surgery for now, though there’s no timetable for his return. Mata is the 4th-ranked prospect in Boston’s system per Baseball America. He’s ranked third in their system by Fangraphs. Obviously, if rest and rehab don’t do the trick, a long road to recovery may await the 21-year-old right-hander. For now, however, Mata and the Red Sox remain optimistic. He made it as high as Double-A in 2019 with 11 starts, a 5.03 ERA/3.99 FIP and promising 52.1 percent groundball rate.
• Roberto Osuna will hold a showcase for teams in the Dominican Republic on March 12th, per MLB Network’s Jon Heyman (via Twitter). Osuna is still just 26-years-old, but he made only four appearances with the Astros in 2020. After initially being diagnosed with an elbow injury that required Tommy John surgery, Osuna sought a second opinion and chose to rehab the injury instead. Osuna, of course, was already a fairly high-risk signing – at least from an optics perspective – even before the injury because of a 75-game suspension under the MLB-MLBPA Joint Domestic Violence, Sexual Assault and Child Abuse Policy back in 2018. That said, when healthy, he’s been an incredibly productive bullpen arm, most recently leading the American League with 38 saves in 2019. He owns a 2.74 ERA and 2.76 FIP over 315 innings for his career.

The most notable addition to the open market here is Osuna, whom the Astros outrighted earlier this week. Osuna has been excellent since he debuted with the Blue Jays in 2015, but he’s forever marred because of a domestic violence suspension in 2018. The Astros still traded for him that year, however, and they did benefit from his on-the-mound presence after that. But the 25-year-old’s future is now uncertain because of a right elbow injury that cost him almost all of 2020 and could force him to undergo Tommy John surgery.

The righty Devenski was a lights-out bullpen workhorse for the Astros in his first two seasons, including during their World Series-winning year in 2017, but the 29-year-old has since fallen on hard times. Not only has Devenski’s production taken a severe turn for the worse, but he threw only 3 2/3 innings in 2020 and is just over a month removed from undergoing arthroscopic surgery on his right elbow. He’s not expected to recover from that procedure until sometime in the winter.

The well-traveled Garneau, 33, signed with the Astros last winter and ended up seeing time as their backup catcher. Garneau hit a meager .158/.273/.289 with one home run in 46 plate appearances, though.

De Jong began the year in independent ball before the Astros acquired him from the Sugarland Skeeters on Aug. 3. That move didn’t prove successful for Houston, as the right-handed De Jong went on to allow a whopping 12 earned runs in 7 1/3 innings.

Given Osuna’s injury, projected salary and prior suspension under Major League Baseball’s domestic violence policy, it’s all but a lock that he’ll clear waivers and become a free agent.

Still just 25 years of age, Osuna pitched only 4 1/3 innings in 2020 before landing on the injured list with what proved to be a season-ending elbow ailment. He’s been consistently excellent every season he’s been on the mound — career 2.74 ERA, 9.9 K/9, 1.6 BB/9 — but Osuna also served 75-game suspension in 2018 after his girlfriend filed domestic violence charges against him. Osuna eventually agreed to a peace bond in Canada, which resulted in the charges being dropped.

Per the Canadian Department of Justice’s web site, peace bonds are generally used when “an individual (the defendant) appears likely to commit a criminal offence, but there are no reasonable grounds to believe that an offence has actually been committed.” The Canadian Department of Justice further specifies  that peace bonds are obtainable by “any person who fears that another person may injure them, their spouse or common-law partner, or a child, or may damage their property.”

All of that will be factored into any future negotiations between Osuna and a new team once he reaches the market, although Osuna’s own track record shows that teams will look past allegations of abuse and assault in order to acquire a productive Major Leaguer. The Astros embarrassingly walked back their own “zero tolerance” policy for domestic abuse in order to acquire Osuna at a lower cost in the middle of his suspension, and we’ve seen other teams pay premium prices to sign players who’ve served suspensions under the domestic violence policy (most notably the Yankees with Aroldis Chapman).

The most immediate determining factor in Osuna’s next destination will be the health of his right elbow (or lack thereof). He began a throwing program about a month after initially being shut down, but he’ll have a ways to go before he’s ready to rejoin a bullpen.

Even with a deep postseason run for Houston, it’s hard to imagine a scenario where he builds up to the point of being able to pitch in 2020. And given that he’s eligible for a raise on this year’s $10MM salary in arbitration before becoming a free agent next winter, he doesn’t appear to be a lock to be tendered a contract. Even if he were to simply repeat this year’s salary, that’d be a rather sizable gamble to take on a reliever who is just months removed from a Tommy John recommendation.

A couple more injury notes from around the game…

• The Rays have been without Austin Meadows since Sept. 17 due to an oblique strain, but Tampa Bay general manager Erik Neander tells reporters that it’s possible Meadows will be able to rejoin the club for its upcoming ALDS date against the Yankees (Twitter link via Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times). The 25-year-old Meadows opened the season on the Covid-19 IL after testing positive and experiencing symptoms in July. He didn’t look like himself when on the field, struggling to a .205/.296/.371 slash with a bloated 33 percent strikeout rate in 152 plate appearances. That’s miles away from last year’s .291/.364/.558 slash and 22.2 percent strikeout rate. If Meadows is able to return to that 2019 form, it’d obviously represent a major boost to the Rays in a division series that could pit them against Gerrit Cole twice. With Meadows absent, the Rays’ only left-handed-hitting outfield options have been Kevin Kiermaier and Brett Phillips.
• Brewers skipper Craig Counsell didn’t give a particularly positive update on Brett Anderson when asked by reporters last night (Twitter link via Adam McCalvy of MLB.com). The veteran lefty, who is not on the Wild Card roster due to a blister, hadn’t improved much since the end of the regular season and was “not close” to being considered for the team’s roster in round one of postseason play. Right-hander Devin Williams, meanwhile, said he believes he’d be able to rejoin the roster in the next round of postseason play, should the Brewers qualify (Twitter link from McCalvy). The breakout changeup artist was left off Milwaukee’s Wild Card roster due to shoulder soreness. Any Brewers injury news could be rendered mostly moot, of course, as they’ll fight for their playoff lives tonight in an elimination showdown with the Dodgers and Clayton Kershaw.

• Astros’ closer Roberto Osuna has progressed to throwing, per GM James Click (via Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle). Osuna was seemingly ticketed for a Tommy John surgery after going down with an elbow injury earlier, although the reliever instead elected to rehab and attempt to return this season. The likelihood of that happening isn’t clear, but it’s generally encouraging to hear that he’s throwing again.
• Twins’ DH Nelson Cruz was scratched from today’s lineup against the Cubs. He’s dealing with right knee soreness, per various reporters (including Do-Hyoung Park of MLB.com). Eddie Rosario, who was initially slated to start in left field, got to DH instead, with LaMonte Wade, Jr. taking over in left. Cruz has again been among MLB’s best hitters, slashing .314/.403/.623 over 201 plate appearances.
• A pair of Mariners are unsurprisingly out for the season, per Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times (Twitter links). Catcher Tom Murphy has been shut down; he’ll miss the entire year due to a fractured metatarsal in his left foot. Outfielder Mitch Haniger continues to build up strength and endurance but hasn’t yet begun baseball activities, per Divish. Like Murphy, Haniger missed all of 2020.
• The Blue Jays held Vladimir Guerrero, Jr. out of today’s lineup as a precaution, per Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet (via Twitter). The young first baseman felt “a little dizzy” after being hit by a pitch in the helmet last night, per Nicholson-Smith. The Jays can afford to slow play things with Guerrero, as they sit four games up on Seattle for the final playoff spot in the American League.
• Orioles’ shortstop José Iglesias left tonight’s game after getting hit on the left hand by a Charlie Morton pitch, relays Jon Meoli of the Baltimore Sun (Twitter link). Pat Valaika stepped in at short in his stead. The 30-year-old Iglesias, a longtime defensive stalwart, has been stellar when healthy for Baltimore, hitting .377/.406/.515 in 139 plate appearances. He has been diagnosed a left wrist contusion, per Roch Kubtako of MASNsports.com (Twitter link).

A precise timeline isn’t yet known for Alvarez, but it sounds as if the young slugger’s activation is imminent. He was cleared to resume training on July 24th after an unexplained but presumptively coronavirus-related absence. Adding Alvarez back into the lineup would be a big boost for the scuffling Houston squad.

As for Osuna, it’s quite a bit less clear where things are headed. His worrisome elbow situation has left a hole at the back of the Astros bullpen. He’s going to rest and rehab for a stretch, with eyes on a possible late-2020 comeback.

That’s far from a guarantee that Osuna will be able to avoid Tommy John surgery, let alone contribute again this season. But it’s a better outlook than had been indicated a week ago, when it seemed a surgical procedure was the likeliest outcome.

In other updates, the Astros have a trio of hurlers that are still moving in the right direction. Chris Devenski, Brad Peacock, and Jose Urquidy are all gearing up in bullpen sessions, though it remains unknown just when they’ll be ready for MLB action.

If indeed that major reconstruction is required, it could have major ramifications beyond the present season. Osuna is earning $10MM this year (on a full-season basis) and would be due a raise through arbitration for 2021. It’s quite possible that he’d miss all or virtually all of the ensuing season if he requires a UCL reconstruction, so the ’Stros may end up cutting him loose at the end of the season.

12:44pm: The Astros had been hoping for good news after closer Roberto Osuna came down with an elbow injury. Astros manager Dusty Baker indicated in an appearance on SportsTalk 790 that the club is now bracing for the worst (link to audio stream).

“Doesn’t look real good, actually,” Baker explained. “[Osuna] went and had an MRI yesterday. He’s in our prayers and in our thoughts. The reality is it’s probably not really good news.”

Whether Baker knows of an initial diagnosis isn’t evident, but it seems clear the organization anticipates a lengthy absence. Given the short schedule, there wouldn’t be much time for Osuna to work back from a significant injury — let alone to recover from a major surgery.

8:46am: Astros closer Roberto Osuna left Saturday’s game due to an arm injury, and manager Dusty Baker told reporters that Osuna will head from Anaheim to Houston to undergo an MRI.  Facing his third batter of the ninth inning last evening, Osuna threw a pitch to the Angels’ Jason Castro and immediately signaled for the trainer to visit the mound.  The right-hander was removed and replaced with Cy Sneed.

In the short term, Osuna’s injury quite possibly cost Houston the game, as Castro hit an RBI double to tie the score, and the Angels then scored the winning run in the 10th.  But Saturday’s defeat could be a relatively small matter compared to a potentially serious arm problem for Osuna, especially considering how the Astros’ pitching staff has already been ravaged by injuries.

Chris Devenski, Brad Peacock, Joe Biagini, Jose Urquidy, Austin Pruitt, and reigning AL Cy Young Award winner Justin Verlander are all on the injured list, while Ryan Pressly only just returned from a sore elbow.  The Astros have made some recent acquisitions (signing Fernando Rodney and acquiring Hector Velazquez from the Orioles) to help fill out their pitching depth, though there’s only so much that can be done to replace so many sidelined hurlers.

Should Osuna’s MRI reveal any bad news, his loss would be a particularly tough one for the Astros.  Osuna has a 2.45 ERA, 6.33 K/BB rate, and 9.3 K/9 over 92 innings since coming to the Astros from the Blue Jays in July 2018.  Pressly might be the top choice for save situations with Osuna sidelined, though the club might want to ease Pressly back in action considering that Saturday marked his first game of the season.

Osuna, the most important member of the group, reported to camp late and hasn’t thrown off a mound yet. However, manager Dusty Baker said Osuna’s “not hurt,” adding that the club’s hopeful he’ll “be ready sooner than later.” Even he does miss only a small amount of time, Osuna’s void will be rather difficult to fill. The 25-year-old turned in another effective season in 2019, throwing 65 innings of 2.63 ERA ball and racking up 38 saves in 44 tries. Righty Ryan Pressly seems like the most logical candidate to take over as Houston’s go-to game-ending choice, though he also hasn’t been at full strength of late because of a finger blister.

As is the case with Osuna, it’s unclear how long Peacock and Pruitt will stay on the shelf. Peacock’s down with shoulder inflammation, which he also dealt with last year during a season in which he racked up 91 2/3 innings of 4.12 ERA pitching over 23 appearances (15 starts). Pruitt, meanwhile, has a bone bruise in his right elbow, but he did express optimism last week (via Adam Coleman of the Houston Chronicle) that he’ll be ready sometime soon. The first time he takes the mound this year will be his Astros debut, as the team acquired the 30-year-old from the Rays over the winter. In his final season as a Ray, Pruitt logged a 4.40 ERA in 47 innings.

Peacock and Pruitt could be candidates to make starts this year if they do return to health. For now, though, the Astros’ rotation – which lost Gerrit Cole and Wade Miley in free agency – will consist of Lance McCullers and Josh James behind aces Justin Verlander and Zack Greinke. The Astros haven’t decided on a fifth starter, but McTaggart pegs lefty Framber Valdez as the favorite.

James and Valdez have only made 17 starts between them since they came into the league in 2018, but they did combine for 132 innings a year ago. While the hard-throwing James posted a whopping 14.67 K/9 in 61 1/3 frames, an ugly 5.14 BB/9 helped lead to an unspectacular 4.70 ERA. Valdez also had trouble with control and run prevention, as his 5.6 BB/9 and 5.86 ERA in 70 2/3 frames indicate, though he did record a stellar 62.1 percent groundball rate.

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

• Newly acquired Angels righty Dylan Bundy receives a $5MM salary, per Jon Heyman of MLB Network (Twitter links). He had projected at a $5.7MM price tag. Teammate Hansel Robles gets $3.85MM, per Heyman, just shy of his $4MM projection.
• The Yankees have worked out deals with all of their eligible players. The team has a hefty $8.5MM pact with Aaron Judge, per MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand (via Twitter). Backstop Gary Sanchez settled for $5MM, per Feinsand (via Twitter). The New York org will pay righty Luis Cessa $895K and Jonathan Holder $750K, Murray reports (Twitter links). Fellow reliever Tommy Kahnle will earn $2.65MM, per Jon Heyman of MLB Network (via Twitter). And star lefty James Paxton has settled at $12.5MM, Heyman adds via Twitter. Chad Green and Jordan Montgomery have also agreed to terms, the former at $1.275MM and the latter at $805K, per Heyman (Twitter links).
• The Twins announced that they struck deals with Trevor May, Taylor Rogers, Eddie Rosario and Byron Buxton. Jon Heyman of MLB Network followed up with salary terms (all links to Twitter). May earns $2,205,000; Rogers takes home $4.45MM; Rosario lands at $7.75MM; and Buxton receives $3.075MM. While the first and last of those land rather close to the projected amount, Rogers got $550K more and Rosario got $1.15MM less than the calculators predicted.
• Shortstop Carlos Correa settled with the Astros for $8MM, per MLB.com’s Brian McTaggart (via Twitter). Righty Brad Peacock lands at a $3.9MM salary, per Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle (Twitter link). The former went for more than his $7.4MM projection, while the latter ended up shy of the $4.6MM mark produced by the computers. The ’Stros also have agreed with closer Roberto Osuna as well, per an announcement. It’s a $10MM deal, slotting in just $200K shy of his projection, per Rome (via Twitter).
• The Orioles have a deal with outfielder/first baseman Trey Mancini, Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com tweets. It’s for $4.75MM, per Dan Connolly of The Athletic (via Twitter), well south of the $5.7MM projection.
• Outfielder Jorge Soler has agreed to a $7.3MM deal with the Royals, MLB.com’s Jeffrey Flanagan tweets. That’s well off of the $11.2MM that MLBTR’s model projected, though it is likely that the cause of the gulf lies in the interpretation of the correct baseline to start from in building Soler’s salary. He’s in the 4+ service class but had been playing on the original deal he signed out of Cuba.
• The Tigers have a deal in place with southpaw Matthew Boyd, per Anthony Fenech of the Detroit Free Press (via Twitter). It’ll pay him $5.3MM, per Chris McCosky of the Detroit News (Twitter link). That falls comfortably below the $6.4MM, suggesting that Boyd’s camp was concerned with the way his suboptimal ERA would play in the arb process. Fellow lefty starter Daniel Norris will earn $2.96MM, McCosky tweets.

Earlier Settlements

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According to Heyman, three notable players who’ll start out under the GEM roof: Dodgers third baseman Justin Turner, Rays outfielder Tommy Pham, and Astros reliever Roberto Osuna. All had previously been represented by Genske. Turner will be a free agent after the 2020 campaign, when Pham and Osuna will be entering their final seasons of arbitration eligibility.

This move comes after a period of immense upheaval following the purchase of Genske’s former outfit, The Legacy Agency, by Gatemore Capital Management. The ensuing maneuvering, including Genske’s firing, have led to various splinter agencies, representatives moving to other firms, and the re-badging of Legacy as GSE Worldwide. It wasn’t exactly an orderly transition. Genske initiated litigation regarding the matter, which is still pending in California.

As always, these latest moves are reflected in MLBTR’s Agency Database.

It’s worth mentioning that the vast majority of teams have adopted a “file and trial” approach to arbitration, meaning that once arbitration figures are exchanged with a player, negotiations on a one-year deal will cease. The two parties may still discuss a multi-year deal after that point, but the majority of players who exchange figures with their team today will head to an arbitration hearing.

As always, all salary projections referenced within this post are courtesy of MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz, and we’ll also be updating our 2019 Arbitration Tracker throughout the day…

Today’s Updates

• Yankees 1B Greg Bird will make $1.2 MM next season, per Bob Nightengale on Twitter.
• The controversial Roberto Osuna will make $6.5MM next season, per Feinsand. Teammate Jake Marisnick, who again scuffled in ’18 after a promising 2017, will make $2.2125MM.
• Per Mark Feinsand on Twitter, A’s lefty Sean Manaea $3.15MM in what’s sure to be an injury-marred 2019.
• Hard-throwing reliever Mychal Givens will make $2.15MM, per Eduardo A. Encina of the Tampa Bay Times (via Twitter), with additional incentives for making the All-Star team or placing in the Top-3 for the Rivera/Hoffman Reliever of the Year Awards, added MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand (via Twitter).
• The Mariners agreed on a $1.95MM deal with outfielder Domingo Santana, per MLB.com’s Greg Johns (via Twitter). Santana is the second and last of the Mariners’ arbitration-eligible players.
• The Angels agreed to contracts with a pair of players yesterday, per Maria Torres of the LA Times (via Twitter). Reliever Hansel Robles signed for $1.4MM. Robles threw 36 1/3 innings of 2.97 ERA baseball after the Angels claimed him off waivers from the Mets in June. Luis Garcia, acquired via trade from the Phillies this winter, signed for $1.675MM.
• The Tigers and reliever Shane Greene settled on $4MM, per USA Today’s Bob Nightengale (via Twitter).
• The Yankees reached an agreement with Sonny Gray for $7.5MM, per Nightengale. Gray, of course, has been involved trade rumors most of the winter, but for the time being, he stands to play a role in the Yankee pen while providing insurance for the rotation.
• Didi Gregorius has also come to an agreement with the Yankees on a one-year, $11.75MM deal in his final season before free agency, per USA Today’s Bob Nightengale (Twitter links).
• New Yankee James Paxton signed for $8.575, per Nightengale (via Twitter). Paxton is under contract for the 2020 season as well.
• The Houston Astros came to an agreement with Collin McHugh for $5.8MM, per Nightengale (via Twitter). McHugh could be moving back into the rotation after a stellar season in the pen, either way this will be his final season of arb eligibility before hitting the open market.
• Jonathan Villar comes away with $4.825MM for what will be his first full season in Baltimore, per Nightengale (via Twitter).

Earlier Updates

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Per the Canadian Department of Justice’s web site, peace bonds are generally used when “an individual (the defendant) appears likely to commit a criminal offence, but there are no reasonable grounds to believe that an offence has actually been committed.” The Canadian Department of Justice further adds that peace bonds are obtainable by “any person who fears that another person may injure them, their spouse or common-law partner, or a child, or may damage their property,” and violation of a peace bond can result in up to four years of prison time. Sportsnet’s Shi Davidi tweets that according to the Crown Prosecutor, the complainant is in Mexico with the couple’s three-year-old and wishes to continue co-parenting. She chose not to testify.

Osuna declined to speak with the media upon leaving the courthouse, instead only releasing the following statement via his lawyer (Twitter links via Rome and via Shi Davidi of Sportsnet):

“Now I can begin to put these alegations behind me and focus on baseball. I want to thank my family, teammates and fans for believing in me. I am grateful to the Astros for providing me with the opportunity to play baseball and compete for a World Series championship. I will make no further comments about this matter, as I plan on moving past this and look only to the future.”

The Astros, meanwhile, released their own statement on the proceedings:

“Today, the Ontario Court of Justice withdrew the assault charge against Roberto Osuna. The Houston Astros look forward to Roberto continuing his commitment to be a productive and caring part of our community. The Astros remain committed to increase our support rearding the issues of dometic violence and abuse of any kind. We have engaged with a number of local, state and national organizations — and we look forward to working with them in the short term and over the long term.”