The three uniform opt-out dates on those contracts land five days before Opening Day, on May 1 and on June 1. With the regular season set to kick off next week, any Article XX(b) free agents who are in camp on minor league contracts will have the opportunity to opt out on Saturday, March 22. A player triggering one of these out clauses gives his current club 48 hours to either add him to the 40-man roster or let him become a free agent.

There are other ways to secure opt-outs in contracts, of course. Many players who don’t qualify for XX(b) designation will still have opt-out opportunities negotiated into their minor league deals in free agency.

The following is a list of 36 players who are in camp as non-roster invitees and will be able to opt out this weekend. Most were XX(b) free agents, but there are a handful of names who didn’t meet that requirement but had outs negotiated into their respective deals nonetheless. This is not a comprehensive list of all players with opt-out opportunities this weekend.

All spring stats referenced are accurate through the completion of games played Wednesday, March 19.

Astros: LHP Jalen Beeks

Beeks, 31, was a relatively late sign (March 7) who’s since tossed three spring frames — including two scoreless innings just yesterday. He logged a 4.50 ERA in 70 innings between the Rockies and Pirates last season. He struggled to miss bats last year but typically runs strong strikeout rates. Dating back to 2020, Beeks carries a 4.16 ERA in 192 2/3 innings. In Josh Hader, Bryan King and Bennett Sousa, the Astros already have three lefty relievers on the 40-man. Another veteran non-roster invitee, Steven Okert, has rattled off 8 2/3 shutout spring innings with a 14-to-2 K/BB ratio. Beeks might have long odds of cracking the roster.

Blue Jays: RHP Jacob Barnes, LHP Ryan Yarbrough

The 34-year-old Barnes logged a 4.36 ERA in a career-high 66 big league innings last season. He posted an ERA north of 5.00 in each of the five preceding seasons (a total of 115 1/3 frames). He’s been tagged for four runs in 5 1/3 innings this spring.

Yarbrough, 33, had a terrific run with the Jays to close out the 2024 season. Joining Toronto in a deadline swap sending Kevin Kiermaier to the Dodgers, the veteran southpaw posted a 2.01 ERA in 31 1/3 innings. He’s a soft-tosser, sitting just 86.5 mph with his heater, but Yarbrough can pitch multiple innings in relief and has a decent track record even beyond last year’s overall 3.19 earned run average (4.21 ERA in 768 MLB innings). He’s allowed three runs with and 8-to-1 K/BB ratio in 6 2/3 innings in camp.

Braves: RHP Buck Farmer, RHP Hector Neris

Farmer was already reassigned to minor league camp on Sunday, so there’d seem to be a good chance of him taking his out. The 34-year-old turned in a terrific 3.04 ERA in 71 innings for the Reds last year but was probably hampered by his age, pedestrian velocity and subpar command in free agency. With a 3.68 ERA in 193 innings over the past three seasons in Cincinnati, he should find an opportunity somewhere — even if it’s not in Atlanta.

Neris is still in Braves camp. He signed well into camp and thus has only pitched one official inning so far, which was scoreless. (Neris is pitching today as well.) He’s looking to bounce back from a 4.10 ERA and a particularly poor performance in save opportunities last year. Prior to his nondescript 2024, Neris rattled off a 3.03 ERA in 208 innings from 2021-23 between Philly and Houston, saving 17 games and collecting 67 holds along the way.

Brewers: 1B/OF Mark Canha, OF Manuel Margot

He’s had a brutal spring, but the 36-year-old Canha has been an above-average hitter every year since 2018, by measure of wRC+. He’s just 2-for-23 in Brewers camp, but he’s slugged a homer and walked as often as he’s fanned (four times apiece). Milwaukee has Rhys Hoskins at first base, but Canha could chip in at DH and offer a right-handed complement to lefty outfielders Sal Frelick and Garrett Mitchell.

Margot hasn’t hit well in a tiny sample of 35 spring plate appearances, but he’s outproduced Canha with a .250/.314/.375 slash. He’s coming off a dismal .238/.289/.337 showing in Minnesota, however, and hasn’t been the plus defender he was prior to a major 2022 knee injury. Like Canha, he could complement Frelick and Mitchell as a righty-swinging outfielder, but Canha has been the far more productive bat in recent seasons.

Cubs: RHP Chris Flexen

The Cubs reassigned Flexen to minor league camp after just 3 2/3 innings this spring. He was hit hard on the other side of town with the White Sox in 2024, though Flexen quietly righted the ship after an awful start. He posted a 5.69 ERA through nine starts but logged a 4.62 mark over his final 21 trips to the mound, including a tidy 3.52 earned run average across 46 innings in his last eight starts. Flexen may not bounce back to his 2021-22 numbers in Seattle, but he’s a durable fifth starter if nothing else.

Diamondbacks: INF/OF Garrett Hampson, RHP Scott McGough

The D-backs don’t really have a backup shortstop while Blaze Alexander is sidelined with an oblique strain, which seems to bode well for Hampson. He’s hitting .235/.333/.324 in camp and can play three infield spots and three outfield positions. He had a bleak .230/.275/.300 performance in Kansas City last year but was a league-average hitter for the Marlins as recently as 2023.

McGough was reassigned to minor league camp yesterday after serving up six runs in 4 2/3 innings of spring work. That wasn’t the follow-up to last year’s gruesome 7.44 ERA for which the 35-year-old righty or the team had hoped.

Giants: C Max Stassi, RHP Lou Trivino

Stassi is battling Sam Huff, who’s on the 40-man, for the backup catcher’s role while Tom Murphy is injured. The 34-year-old Stassi is hitting .300/.364/.700 with a pair of homers in 22 spring plate appearances. He’s a plus defender with a scattershot track record at the plate.

Trivino hasn’t pitched since 2022 due to Tommy John surgery and a separate shoulder issue. He also hasn’t allowed a run in 8 1/3 spring innings. (9-to-4 K/BB ratio). Trivino’s scoreless Cactus League showing, his pre-injury track record and his familiarity with skipper Bob Melvin — his manager in Oakland — all seem to give him a real chance to win a spot.

Mariners: RHP Shintaro Fujinami, RHP Trevor Gott, 1B Rowdy Tellez

Fujinami’s command has never been good, and he’s walked more batters (seven) than he’s struck out (four) through 5 2/3 spring innings. He’s also plunked a pair of batters. He’s looking to bounce back from an injury-ruined 2024 season but might have to take his first steps toward doing so in Triple-A.

Tellez has had a big camp and looks like he could have a real chance to make the club in a part-time DH/first base role, as explored more yesterday. Gott is on the mend from Tommy John surgery performed last March and won’t pitch until midseason. He’s unlikely to opt out.

Mets: RHP Jose Ureña

Ureña was torched for seven runs in his first 1 1/3 spring innings after signing with the Mets on Feb. 27. He bounced back by striking out all three opponents he faced in an inning this past weekend, but he hasn’t helped himself otherwise. Ureña’s 3.80 ERA in 109 innings with Texas last year was his first sub-5.00 ERA since 2017-18 in Miami.

Padres: 1B Yuli Gurriel, INF Jose Iglesias

Both veterans have a legitimate chance to make the club. Gurriel has had a productive spring (.296/.321/.519) at nearly 41 years of age, while Iglesias is out to a 5-for-18 start since signing in mid-March. Gurriel could split time at first and DH, lessening the need to use Luis Arraez in the field. Iglesias could see frequent work at second base, shifting Jake Cronenworth to first base and pushing Arraez to DH. The Padres probably wouldn’t have put a hefty (relative to most minor league deals) $3MM base salary on Iglesias’ deal if they didn’t see a real path to him making the roster.

Pirates: LHP Ryan Borucki

Borucki was great for the Pirates in 2023 and struggled through 11 innings during an injury-marred 2024 season. The 30-year-old southpaw has allowed one run in eight spring innings. His five walks are a bit much, but he’s also fanned 11 of his 33 opponents.

Rangers: SS Nick Ahmed, RHP David Buchanan, RHP Jesse Chavez, OF Kevin Pillar, RHP Hunter Strickland

Ahmed has more homers in 28 spring plate appearances than he had in 228 plate appearances in 2024 or 210 plate appearances in 2023. He’s popped three round-trippers already and slashed .286/.310/.607. With a crowded infield and versatile backups like Josh Smith and Ezequiel Duran, Ahmed might still have a hard time cracking the roster.

None of the three pitchers listed here has performed well in limited work. Buchanan had a nice run as a starter in the KBO in the four preceding seasons, while Chavez has been a mainstay in the Atlanta bullpen for much of the past few years. Strickland had a nice 2024 in Anaheim but signed very late and retired only one of the five batters he faced during his long spring outing.

Pillar may have the best chance of the bunch to make the team. He’s hitting .273/.333/.394 in 39 plate appearances. Outfielders Wyatt Langford and Adolis Garcia have been banged up this spring, so some extra outfield depth could make sense.

Rays: DH/OF Eloy Jimenez

Jimenez homered for the second time yesterday, boosting his Grapefruit line to .263/.300/.447. He’s coming off a dreadful season in 2024, but from 2019-23 the former top prospect raked at a .275/.324/.487 pace, including a 31-homer rookie campaign (admittedly, in the juiced-ball 2019 season). Durability has been a bigger factor than productivity. If the Rays can get Jimenez to elevate the ball more, he could be a bargain; he’s still only 28.

Red Sox: LHP Matt Moore, RHP Adam Ottavino

Moore signed on Feb. 20 and has only gotten into two spring games so far, totaling two innings. Ottavino has pitched four innings but allowed five runs. He’s walked five and tossed a pair of wild pitches in that time. Both pitchers have long MLB track records, but they’re both coming off lackluster seasons.

Reds: LHP Wade Miley

Miley underwent Tommy John surgery early last season and contemplated retirement upon learning his prognosis. He wanted to return to one of his former NL Central clubs in free agency, and the Reds clearly offered a more compelling minor league deal than the Brewers. He’s not going to be a realistic option until late May, and it seems unlikely he’d opt out while his rehab is still ongoing.

Rockies: RHP Jake Woodford

Woodford isn’t an Article XX(b) free agent, but MLBTR has learned that he still has a March 22 opt-out. He made his fourth appearance of Rockies camp yesterday, tossing 2 2/3 innings with an earned run. Woodford has allowed seven runs on 11 hits and three walks with five punchouts and a nice 47.2% grounder rate in 10 2/3 frames this spring. He has experience as a starter and reliever. The righty doesn’t miss many bats but keeps the ball on the ground and has good command. He’s a fifth starter/swingman who’s out of minor league options.

Royals: C Luke Maile, RHP Ross Stripling

Maile is a glove-first backup who’s had a nice spring at the plate but has done so on a team with a healthy Salvador Perez and Freddy Fermin. His path to a roster spot doesn’t look great. Speculatively, his former Reds club, which just lost Tyler Stephenson to begin the year, would make sense if they plan to add an outside catcher. Maile’s .214/.294/.329 performance over the past three seasons is light, but he’s already familiar with the bulk of Cincinnati’s staff. He’s a fine backup or No. 3 catcher for any club, Kansas City included.

Stripling notched a 3.01 ERA in 124 innings for the 2022 Blue Jays, but it’s been rough waters since. He was rocked for a 5.68 ERA across the past two seasons, spending time with both Bay Area clubs, and has been tagged for 11 runs on 14 hits — four of them homers — with just two strikeouts in six spring frames. He’ll likely need a strong Triple-A showing, be it with the Royals or another club, to pitch his way back to the majors.

Tigers: LHP Andrew Chafin

Chafin surprisingly commanded only a minor league deal this offseason and has struggled to begin his third stint with the Tigers. He’s been tagged for eight runs in four spring innings, walking six batters along the way. It’s a rough look, but the affable southpaw notched a 3.51 ERA in 56 1/3 MLB frames last year and touts a 3.12 mark across the past four seasons combined.

White Sox: RHP Mike Clevinger, INF Brandon Drury, OF Travis Jankowski

The ChiSox signed Clevinger for a third time late this spring and are trying him in the bullpen. He’s responded with four shutout innings, allowing only one hit and no walks while fanning six hitters. His 2025 White Sox reunion is out to a much better start than his 2024 reunion, wherein he was limited to only 16 innings with a 6.75 ERA thanks to elbow and neck troubles.

Drury could hardly be doing more to secure a spot with the Pale Hose. He’s decimated Cactus League pitching at a .410/.439/.821 pace, slugging three homers and seven doubles in only 41 plate appearances. He’s coming off a terrible 2024 showing with the Angels but hit .263/.313/.493 from 2021-23. It’d be a surprise if the Sox didn’t keep him.

Jankowski started the spring with the Cubs, was granted his release and signed with the Sox. The hits haven’t been dropping, but he has six walks in 25 plate appearances. The White Sox already have Michael A. Taylor in a fourth outfield role. Andrew Benintendi, who missed three-plus weeks with a fractured hand, was back in the lineup yesterday, making Jankowski something of a long shot.

Yankees: RHP Carlos Carrasco

With a nice spring showing and several injuries in the Yankees’ rotation, Carrasco looks to have a good chance at making the roster. Jack Curry of the YES Network already reported it’s “likely” Carrasco will be added this weekend. Carrasco has a 1.69 ERA with 15 strikeouts and seven walks (plus four hit batters) in 16 spring innings. He tossed five shutout frames yesterday.

As spring training progresses, we’re seeing an uptick in minor league signings. Free agents who’ve lingered on the market and felt their leverage in negotiations dry up begin to concede and accept non-guaranteed pacts to get to camp in hopes of winning a roster spot.

Salary details for minor league signees isn’t as prominently reported on as it is for players signing guaranteed big league deals. The Associated Press just published a list of free agent signings throughout the winter, including within salary details for a handful of (mostly) recent minor league signings. Many of the salaries reported by the AP were already known and reflected here at MLBTR, but the report does include more than two dozen previously unreported base salaries for players on minor league deals. Here’s a quick rundown (player salary links point back to prior MLBTR posts detailing that minor league signing):

Blue Jays: Jacob Barnes, RHP, $1.4MM | Ryan Yarbrough, LHP, $2MM

Braves: Curt Casali, C, $1.25MM | Buck Farmer, RHP, $1MM

Brewers: Manuel Margot, OF, $1.3MM | Mark Canha, 1B/OF, $1.4MM

Cubs: Brooks Kriske, RHP, $900K | Travis Jankowski, OF, $1.25MM | Chris Flexen, RHP, $1.5MM

Diamondbacks: Garrett Hampson, INF/OF, $1.5MM | Scott McGough, RHP, $1.25MM

Dodgers: Luis Garcia, RHP, $1.5MM

Giants: Lou Trivino, RHP, $1.5MM

Mariners: Shintaro Fujinami, RHP, $1.3MM | Trevor Gott, RHP, $1.35MM

Padres: Yuli Gurriel, 1B, $1.35MM ($100K higher than initially reported)

Rangers: Nick Ahmed, SS, $1.25MM | Jesse Chavez, RHP, $1.25MM | David Buchanan, RHP, $1.375MM | Kevin Pillar, OF, $1MM

Red Sox: Matt Moore, LHP, $2MM

Royals: Luke Maile, C, $2MM | Ross Stripling, RHP, $1.75MM

White Sox: Brandon Drury, INF/OF, $2MM | Mike Clevinger, RHP, $1.5MM

A few things bear emphasizing. First, this is clearly not a comprehensive list of minor league signings throughout the league — nor is it even a comprehensive list of the listed teams’ non-roster invitees to camp. Secondly, many of these sums are of little consequence to the team. They’re not even guaranteed, after all, and even if a player makes the Opening Day roster and earns the full slate of his minor league salary, most of these salaries aren’t going to carry significant payroll ramifications.

That’s not true across the board, though. For instance, the Rangers are fully intent on remaining under the $241MM luxury tax threshold. At present, RosterResource projects them at $235.7MM of luxury obligations. Opting to select the contract of Buchanan or Chavez rather than allocating those innings to pre-arbitration players who’s being paid at league-minimum levels (or a few thousand dollars north of it) would inch the Rangers’ CBT number forward. They’re not going to hit the tax line even in if they wind up adding multiple NRIs to the actual roster, but selecting their contracts will further narrow the resources president of baseball ops Chris Young will have at his disposal for midseason dealings.

The Red Sox, meanwhile, are effectively seated right at the tax threshold. RosterResource has them with $241.4MM of luxury considerations. Team president Sam Kennedy said after signing Alex Bregman that he expects his team will be a CBT payor in 2025. As things stand, the Sox could duck back under that threshold, but selecting the contract of Moore, Adam Ottavino (also $2MM) or another prominent NRI would further signal ownership’s willingness to return to luxury tax status for the first time since 2022.

There’s probably no getting back under the tax line for the Blue Jays, who currently have a $273.3MM CBT number. However, the front office would presumably like to avoid reaching $281MM in tax obligations, as that’s the point at which Toronto’s top pick in the 2026 draft would be dropped by ten spots. In-season trades will have more of an effect on their tax number than decisions on NRIs like Barnes, Yarbrough, Eric Lauer and others, but it bears mentioning that the Blue Jays are around $8MM shy of what many clubs consider to be the most detrimental impact of straying to deep into CBT waters.

This is Gott’s second stint with the M’s, as he previously joined the club on a one-year, $1.2MM guaranteed deal back in November 2022.  Gott went on to post a 4.03 ERA across 29 innings for the Mariners in 2023 before he and fellow righty Chris Flexen were traded to the Mets in July 2023.  Gott then had a 4.34 ERA in another 29 innings with New York before he was non-tendered last offseason, leading to a one-year, $1.5MM contract with the Athletics.

However, Gott never officially played for the A’s during this one season in Oakland, as Gott tore his UCL during Spring Training and underwent Tommy John surgery in late March.  Given the usual 13-15 month recovery period for such procedures, Gott projects to be ready to return to a big league mound at some point in May or June, if all goes well with the rehab.

Even though Gott’s deal with Seattle is non-guaranteed, it counts as a good sign in Gott’s rehab that the Mariners felt comfortable to extend an offer in the latter stages of the recovery process.  It’s basically a no-risk investment for the M’s, with the upside of landing a veteran arm at a discount price if Gott recovers as expected.

Gott has suited up for six different teams over his eight seasons in the Show, which is a pretty typical journeyman resume for a reliever who has good but not great velocity and strikeout ability.  Gott mostly relies on a sinker/fastball mix with both pitches sitting around 95mph, and as his best, the 32-year-old has been able to deliver results and eat bullpen innings.  Over his last two healthy seasons, Gott had a 4.17 ERA, 23.7% strikeout rate, and 6.9% walk rate in 103 2/3 combined innings with the Brewers, Mariners, and Mets.

Adams, 32, was an eighth-round pick in the 2012 draft by the Angels but didn’t make his MLB debut until the 2017 season when he was a member of the Nationals. He entered the 2023 season with 108 big league games under his belt between his time in Washington, Seattle, and San Diego, having pitched to a 3.90 ERA with a 3.81 FIP and a 34.2% strikeout rate during that time. Despite those solid numbers, forearm and shoulder issues had limited his ability to stay on the field and capture a regular role with any of the clubs he had pitched for, leading him to sign a minor league deal with the Diamondbacks prior to the 2023 season.

His performance in Arizona was something of a mixed bag. While the right-hander yielded an unsightly 5.71 ERA in 17 1/3 innings of work with the club prior to a season-ending ankle injury last August, Adams’s peripheral numbers suggest he may have pitched better than those results would indicate. After all, the 32-year-old hurler struck out a solid 27.2% of batters faced while walking 9.9%. That left Adams with a 3.55 xERA and a 3.72 FIP, both far more palatable numbers that are more in line with his career marks. The discrepancy can be explained by both an unusually low 61.6% strand rate and an elevated .333 BABIP, leaving Adams with both far more traffic on the basepaths than expected and those runners scoring more often than usual.

Those positive peripheral signs may have played a role in the Mets decided to sign Adams to a major league deal back in November, after he elected free agency in response to being removed from Arizona’s 40-man roster. That seemingly left Adams in position to be a key piece of the bullpen mix in Queens this season, but the club scuttled those plans by signing more proven relievers such as Adam Ottavino and Jorge Lopez later that winter. That left Adams to be outrighted off the club’s roster just before Spring Training began, though he remained in camp with the club as a non-roster invitee.

Now, Adams once again appears poised to get an Opening Day job after being dealt to Oakland. With the A’s, he figures to slot into the middle of a bullpen that heavily features young arms such as Mason Miller, Kyle Muller, and Mitch Spence. If Adams pitches well early in the season, it wouldn’t be a shock to see him take on late inning duties alongside the likes of Miller and Lucas Erceg in the Oakland bullpen.

Gott, 31, signed with the A’s in the offseason, a one-year deal with a $1.5MM guarantee and performance bonuses based on appearances. Unfortunately, he won’t be unlocking any of those bonuses now and it will go down as a wasted investment for the A’s. Gott will be placed on the 60-day injured list when the club needs a roster spot and spend the year there. He’ll cross six years of service time in the process and return to free agency in the fall.

He has 243 2/3 innings under his belt with a 4.65 ERA. He split last season between the Mariners and Mets, tossing 58 innings with a 4.19 ERA, 23.8% strikeout rate and 7.3% walk rate. The Mets could have retained him via arbitration, with MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projecting a modest $2MM salary. But they non-tendered him instead and he landed in Oakland.

He’ll turn 32 this August while rehabbing and then will hit the open market in advance of the 2025 season. For the A’s, it opens up another spot in their bullpen for them to cycle their various young guys through and see who sticks.

December 15: The A’s are in agreement with reliever Trevor Gott on a major league contract, reports Ken Rosenthal of the Athletic (X link). Financial terms are not clear. The A’s have a full 40-man roster, meaning they’ll need to make a corresponding DFA once the contract is official. Gott is represented by Sports One Athlete Management.

Gott was non-tendered by the Mets. He’d been projected for a modest $2MM salary, but New York apparently didn’t envision him holding a middle innings spot all season. He should have that opportunity in Oakland, where he’s one of the most experienced pitchers in a bullpen full of uncertainty.

The 31-year-old righty has appeared in parts of eight MLB seasons, although he has between five and six years of service time overall. Gott has appeared with the Angels, Nationals, Giants, Brewers, Mariners and Mets over the course of his career. He turned in serviceable middle relief results between Seattle and New York this year, pitching to a 4.19 ERA through 58 innings.

Gott struck hitters out at an average 23.8% clip while walking fewer than 8% of opponents. He didn’t miss many bats on a per-pitch basis, generating swinging strikes on only 9.2% of his offerings. That came with a slight velocity dip. After averaging north of 95 MPH on his sinker and four-seam in 2022, he sat in the 93-94 MPH range last season.

Even in the absence of overpowering stuff, Gott posted better results than most Oakland relievers. Only the Rockies and Royals had a higher bullpen ERA than the 5.20 mark turned in by the A’s. Among the team’s relievers with 20+ frames, Austin Pruitt, Trevor May and Dany Jiménez worked to a sub-4.00 ERA. Pruitt was waived and elected free agency; May retired. Jiménez found his decent results in 22 1/3 innings with mediocre strikeout and walk rates.

Gott could therefore pick up some high-leverage work for skipper Mark Kotsay. He’ll return to free agency again next winter. As a decent veteran arm on what’s surely a low-cost guarantee, he could find himself on the move for a mid-level prospect at next summer’s trade deadline.

Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.

Relief arms are among the players most commonly cut loose at the non-tender deadline. Though it’s elite players on the level of Bellinger and Gausman aren’t found among the relievers non-tendered each year, teams find quality bullpen pieces among the pile of discarded players fairly frequently. Rays right-hander Jason Adam, Orioles lefty Danny Coulombe and Phillies righty Jeff Hoffman are among the pieces non-tendered in recent years who went on to have strong seasons out of the bullpen.

Now that we’ve discussed five hitters and starters to keep an eye on this coming winter, let’s turn our attention to bullpen arms. Though this offseason’s crop of free agent relievers has plenty of interesting options, headlined by relief ace Josh Hader, all 30 clubs are constantly on the lookout for additional bullpen help, more so than they are for any other position. Without further ado, let’s take a look at five relievers who hit free agency following last week’s non-tender deadline and could be worth keeping an eye on throughout the offseason. Players are listed in alphabetical order, with their age for the 2024 season in parentheses.

Adam Cimber (33)

A ninth-round pick by the Padres in the 2013 draft, Cimber made his big league debut with San Diego during the 2018 season but was almost immediately shipped to Cleveland alongside Brad Hand in a deadline deal that sent catching prospect Francisco Mejia to the Padres. Cimber remained in Cleveland through the end of the 2020 season, acting as an adequate middle reliever with a combined 4.30 ERA (108 ERA+) and 4.70 FIP across 110 appearances. The sidearming righty had a breakout season in 2021, with a 2.26 ERA and 3.07 FIP in 71 2/3 innings of work between the Marlins and Blue Jays.

His excellence continued for Toronto last year, as he posted a 2.80 ERA with a 3.47 FIP while appearing in 77 contests, the most in the big leagues that season. Unfortunately, things came off the rails for Cimber in 2023 as he was sidelined for much of the year by multiple shoulder injuries. That being said, it’s easy to see how Cimber could positively impact a club’s bullpen in 2024 if healthy, given the late-inning potential he flashed in recent years.

Trevor Gott (31)

Gott was drafted by the Padres in the same year as Cimber, with San Diego selecting the righty in the sixth round of the 2013 draft. He didn’t stick in the Padres organization long, however, as he was quickly shipped to Anaheim before making his big league debut with the Angels in 2015. Though he posted a strong 2.85 ERA and 3.68 FIP across his first 57 big league appearances with the Halos and Nationals, the 2017-20 seasons saw Gott struggle with injuries and under-performance as he posted a ghastly 6.36 ERA and 5.18 FIP in 89 big league appearances. Those struggles saw Gott spend the entire 2021 campaign in the minor leagues.

Since then, however, Gott has fashioned himself into a solid middle relief option with peripherals that could hint at something more. Gott has been roughly league average by the results the past two seasons, with a 4.17 ERA across 103 2/3 innings of work split between Milwaukee, Seattle, and Queens. During that time, Gott has posted 23.7% strikeout rate against a 6.9% walk rate, both better-than league average marks. If Gott can replicate his 2023 campaign while getting his sky-high .343 BABIP under control in 2024, he could prove to be a valuable relief arm for a contending club.

Tim Hill (34)

The oldest entrant on this list, Hill was a 32nd-round pick by the Royals in the 2014 draft and made his debut with the club in 2018 at the age of 28. Hill was a steady if uninspiring left-handed relief option for Kansas City and San Diego from 2018-22, with a 3.88 ERA and 3.98 FIP that both clocked in slightly better than league average in that time. Unfortunately, his 2023 campaign saw him post a brutal 5.48 ERA and matching 5.49 FIP in 44 1/3 innings of work.

While Hill posted a well-below league average 12.9% strikeout rate and allowed a massive 1.033 OPS to right-handers this year, his fantastic 61.2% groundball rate in 2023 and strong .223/.302/.304 slash line allowed against lefties for his career suggest he could be a solid option against left-handers out of the bullpen next year for a club lacking depth in that area.

Brandon Hughes (28)

A 16th-round pick by the Cubs in the 2017 draft, Hughes began his professional career as an outfielder before converting to left-handed relief prior to the 2019 season. He posted solid numbers in the lower levels of the minors in that first season as a bullpen arm before breaking out in a big way during the 2021 campaign, with a 1.71 ERA in 42 innings between High-A and Double-A. After 16 2/3 scoreless innings of work at the Double- and Triple-A levels in 2022, Hughes got the call to the majors and fashioned a strong rookie campaign, with a 3.12 ERA and 4.64 FIP in 57 2/3 innings of work for Chicago while picking up eight saves.

Hughes appeared poised to be a key piece of the Cubs’ bullpen in 2023 after his strong 2022 debut. While he managed a strong 27% strikeout rate, he struggled badly with his control (12.7% walk rate) and surrendered 11 runs in 17 appearances before seeing his 2023 cut short by knee surgery. That said, he’s expected to be ready for Spring Training in 2024, and could be an interesting left-handed relief option for clubs thanks to his youth and recent late-inning success.

Penn Murfee (30)

Murfee stands out somewhat from the rest of the options on this list thanks to his consistently excellent results at the big league level. Initially drafted by the Mariners in the 33rd round of the 2018 draft, Murfee debuted in the big leagues during the 2022 season and fashioned an excellent rookie campaign with a 2.99 ERA, 3.10 FIP, and 27.9% strikeout rate across 69 1/3 innings of work. He followed that up with even better results in 2023, as the right-hander posted a sterling 1.26 ERA across his first sixteen appearances this year. Unfortunately, those would prove to be his only appearances in 2023 as he underwent UCL surgery in late June.

Murfee was cut loose by the Mariners but found himself claimed by both the Mets and Braves before being non-tendered by Atlanta at the deadline earlier this month. Though Murfee figures to miss most, if not all, of the 2024 campaign, the right-hander is under team control through at least the 2028 season. That long-term team control could make the late-blooming righty an interesting pickup for a team willing to take a chance on him as he continues his rehab process.

All players who are non-tendered before this evening’s deadline go directly into free agency without being placed on waivers. They’ll be eligible to sign with any of the league’s 30 teams. It’s not uncommon to see non-tendered players almost immediately return to their previous organization on a minor league deal.

The transactions:

Latest Moves

• The Giants non-tendered pitchers Thomas Szapucki, José Cruz and Cole Waites, reports Maria Guardado of MLB.com (X link). None of that trio had been eligible for arbitration.
• No team had a higher percentage of non-tenders than the Braves, who cut seven players loose. As reported by Mark Feinsand of MLB.com (on X), they’re moving on from pitchers Yonny Chirinos, Kolby Allard, Penn Murfee, Angel Perdomo and Michael Tonkin, catcher Chadwick Tromp and infielder Luke Williams. Murfee and Perdomo were recently claimed off waivers.
• San Diego’s non-tenders are covered here.

Earlier

• The Reds have non-tendered relievers Derek Law and Reiver Sanmartin. Cincinnati also confirmed the previously reported non-tender of Nick Senzel.
• In addition to Rowdy Tellez and Brandon Woodruff, the Brewers have non-tendered right-hander J.C. Mejía. He failed a PED test in September, the second such result of his career, and was suspended for 162 games.
• Former Rookie of the Year winner Kyle Lewis was non-tendered by the Diamondbacks. He played in only 16 games after being acquired from the Mariners last offseason.
• The Cubs non-tendered relievers Ethan Roberts, Brandon Hughes and Codi Heuer. All three are recovering from surgeries.
• Right-hander Tommy Doyle was non-tendered by the Rockies. Colorado designated him for assignment when acquiring Cal Quantrill this morning.
• The Cardinals have non-tendered catcher Andrew Knizner, first baseman Juan Yepez and starting pitchers Jake Woodford and Dakota Hudson. St. Louis reportedly tried to deal Hudson this afternoon but evidently did not find a taker.
• The Mets have non-tendered relievers Jeff Brigham, Sam Coonrod and Trevor Gott. New York also cut loose infielder Luis Guillorme and confirmed the reported non-tender of Dan Vogelbach.
• Left-hander Josh Fleming was non-tendered by the Phillies, the team announced. Philadelphia just snagged the southpaw off waivers from the Rays a few weeks ago.
• The Marlins have non-tendered catcher Jacob Stallings and infielder Garrett Hampson, per a club announcement. Stallings spent two seasons as the primary catcher after being acquired from the Pirates at the 2021-22 offseason. Hampson signed a minor league deal with the Fish last season.
• The Pirates non-tendered Osvaldo Bido and Hunter Stratton, tweets Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Neither had yet been eligible for arbitration. Both right-handers made their big league debuts in 2023; Mackey suggests the Bucs will try to bring them back on minor league pacts.
• The Nationals announced they’ve non-tendered first baseman Dominic Smith and right-hander Cory Abbott. Both players were designated for assignment earlier in the week, making this an inevitability.

Stewart, 29, spent the previous five seasons with the Orioles, mostly as a part-time player. He got into 195 games, hitting 26 home runs and walking in 13.2% of his plate appearances, though also striking out at a 26.8% rate. His overall .213/.327/.400 batting line in that time amounted to a wRC+ of 99, indicating he was just a hair below average. But since he was considered a poor defender in the outfield corners, that offense wasn’t enough to hold his roster spot.

He was outrighted by the O’s last year and later reached free agency, signing a minor league deal with the Mets. He’s been faring well in Triple-A Syracuse here in 2023, hitting 16 home runs so far and producing a .229/.362/.516 line for a 115 wRC+. The Mets will see if he can carry any of that production up with him to the big leagues. He still has an option and can be sent back down to the minors without being exposed to waivers.

In order to get Stewart onto the roster, the Mets have nudged Reyes off of it. He made his major league debut with the Orioles last year, tossing 7 2/3 innings with a 2.35 ERA in that small sample. He spent most of the year in Triple-A, posting a 7.17 ERA in 54 innings at that level. Like Stewart, he was outrighted off the Baltimore roster last year and signed a minor league deal with the Mets as a free agent.

Here in 2023, he was added to the club’s roster in the first week of the season but was later optioned with the club hoping to stretch him out for extra rotation depth. That plan hasn’t really worked out as Reyes has a 6.97 ERA in Triple-A this year, tossing 41 1/3 innings. The Mets will now have one week to trade Reyes or pass him through waivers. Despite his struggles this year, he still has an option remaining and is only 26 years old.

New York is taking on a decent amount of money to plug Gott into the bullpen. They’re reportedly assuming the remainder of the contracts for both Flexen, whom Seattle had designated for assignment last week, and Gott. That’s about $3.9MM for Flexen and about $587K for Gott.

Originally a Mets draftee back in 2012, Flexen found success overseas pitching in the Korea Baseball Organization and returned to North American ball on a two-year deal with the Mariners. He made good on Seattle’s modest investment, pitching to a sharp 3.66 ERA in 317 1/3 innings over the first two seasons of the contract. Flexen worked primarily as a starter — though he was dropped to the ’pen last year after the Mariners’ acquisition of Luis Castillo — and shouldered a heavy enough workload that he triggered an $8MM vesting option for the current season.

While Flexen didn’t have a rotation spot heading into the season, he was locked in as a long reliever and sixth starter — the first man up in the event of a rotation injury. The Mariners incurred such an injury early in the season when Robbie Ray went down with an arm injury that eventually resulted in Tommy John surgery. Flexen, however, scuffled in the rotation when attempting to fill that void and hasn’t generated good results in the bullpen either. He’s appeared in 17 games for the Mariners and logged an ugly 7.71 ERA over the course of 42 innings.

Flexen’s 3.66 ERA from 2021-22 never quite lined up with his pedestrian strikeout rate (just north of 16%), but a downturn of this magnitude still couldn’t have been expected. He’s been extraordinarily homer-prone this year (2.36 per nine innings) but has also been plagued by a .350 average on balls in play.

The Mets’ willingness to take on the remainder of his salary will effectively allow them to purchase the veteran Gott in the midst of a solid year with Seattle. The 30-year-old Gott has thus far posted a pedestrian 4.03 ERA but with much stronger secondary marks: 24.8% strikeout rate, 6.2% walk rate, 0.62 HR/9, 42.5% ground-ball rate, 3.01 FIP, 3.47 SIERA. He’ll give the Mets an experienced middle relief option to help bridge the gap to veterans David Robertson and Adam Ottavino.

Gott is also still controllable through the 2024 season via arbitration. If he pitches well for the remainder of the season, he’d be owed a raise on this year’s $1.2MM salary but would still be highly affordable — especially for a high-payroll club like the Mets.

The whole gambit underscores Mets owner Steve Cohen’s willingness to spend. Not only are the Mets taking on about $4.5MM in total salary, they’ll also pay a 90% tax given their status as luxury tax payors who are in the newly created fourth tier of penalization. It boils down to a roughly $8.55MM in additional spending — a fairly stunning number to acquire a journeyman reliever.

It’s also surely a frustrating series of events for Flexen. He’s already spent a week in DFA limbo wondering where he’ll land, and he’ll now restart that process. The Mets could quickly place him on waivers rather than taking the maximum five days to do so, but it’s hardly a direct trip through the DFA process.

MLBTR confirmed with a source last week that Flexen can reject an outright assignment and retain his salary, despite the fact that he doesn’t have five years of Major League service time. That’s attributable to the nature of the contract he signed when returning from the KBO, which also stipulates that he cannot be sent to the minors without his consent and that he would become a free agent at the deal’s conclusion despite being shy of six years of MLB service.

Because of that contract, Flexen will become a free agent if the Mets aren’t able to find a trade partner of their own. Barring a trade, Flexen will hit waivers and surely clear, as other clubs aren’t going to want to be on the hook for that $3.9MM or so in salary. Once he clears, a new team would be able to sign him and only owe Flexen the prorated league minimum for any time spent on the MLB roster. The Mets would remain on the hook for the rest of that salary.

As for the Mariners, they’ll save more than $4.5MM on that pair of relievers and also add an optionable lefty in the 28-year-old Muckenhirn. The southpaw signed a minor league deal with the Mets over the winter and made his big league debut earlier this season. He’s tallied six innings in the Majors, yielding four runs on 11 hits and a pair of walks with three strikeouts.

Muckenhirn’s work in Triple-A has produced far better results. He boasts a sensational 0.88 ERA in 30 2/3 frames, although his 15.7% strikeout rate and 10.7% walk rate don’t exactly support that minuscule number. Muckenhirn has induced grounders at a hearty 50% clip, but he’s also benefited from a .230 average on balls in play and a mammoth 95.2% strand rate in Triple-A so far. He’ll give the Mariners a third left-handed bullpen option on the 40-man roster, joining Tayler Saucedo and Gabe Speier in that regard.

Ken Rosenthal of the Athletic first reported the Mets were acquiring Flexen and Gott for Muckenhirn. Andy Martino of SNY was first to report the Mets planned to designate Flexen for assignment. Joel Sherman of the New York Post reported the Mets were assuming the remainder of Flexen’s and Gott’s deals.

2:10pm: The Mariners announced that right-hander Trevor Gott has been reinstated from the injured list with fellow righty Chris Flexen designated for assignment in a corresponding move.

Flexen losing his roster spot is totally unsurprising given his results this season but it’s a shocking turn of events compared to where things stood just a few months ago. After a successful stint in the KBO in 2020, Flexen returned to North America by signing a two-year deal with the Mariners, with an option for 2023 as well.

The guaranteed portion of that agreement went quite well, with Flexen tossing 317 1/3 innings over 2021 and 2022 with a 3.66 ERA. His 16.5% strikeout rate in that time wasn’t especially strong, but his 6.8% walk rate showed strong control. He also did a good job keeping the ball from going over the fence, as his 8.8% home run per fly ball rate was third-best in the league among pitchers with at least 300 innings pitcher. His pitcher-friendly ballpark may have had an impact but his 3.75 road ERA was only slightly higher than his 3.57 mark at T-Mobile Park.

The 2023 option on his contract could be vested at $8MM if Flexen tossed 300 innings over the first two years, which he did. With the M’s having five other rotation options in Luis Castillo, George Kirby, Robbie Ray, Logan Gilbert and Marco Gonzales, that led to Flexen getting interest in trade talks over the offseason.

The Mariners ultimately held onto Flexen for some extra rotation depth, which seemed like a wise move when Ray quickly landed on the injured list and eventually required Tommy John surgery. Unfortunately, Flexen couldn’t step up and take the open rotation spot, getting torched for a 10.38 ERA in four starts before getting bumped back to the bullpen.

His next five outings were scoreless but he’s allowed at least one earned run in his past seven appearances. Whatever skill or luck he previously deployed to prevent home runs has eluded him this year, as he’s already given up 11 long balls, leading to a 21.6% HR/FB rate that’s more than double his clip from the previous two campaigns. Overall, he has a 7.71 ERA on the year in 42 innings, which has bumped him off Seattle’s roster.

The Mariners will now have a week to trade Flexen or pass him through waivers. He garnered interest over the winter and some of those clubs could now circle back, especially with so many pitching injuries throughout the league, though Flexen’s poor results this season will obviously tamp down whatever trade value he previously had. With approximately $4.1MM still remaining on his contract, the M’s would surely have to swallow some or all of that in order to facilitate a deal.

As for the waiver route, that will be an interesting factor here. Normally, players with more than three years of service time can reject an outright assignment in favor of electing free agency, but they require five years of service to do so while retaining their salary. Assuming those normal rules apply and Flexen goes on to clear waivers, he obviously wouldn’t leave that money on the table and would therefore stick in the Mariners’ organization as depth. However, players coming from stints in other countries like Japan, Korea or Cuba often have language in their contracts that allows them to circumvent the normal service time rules. For instance, MLBTR confirmed this winter that Flexen would become a free agent after 2023 even though he would be well shy of six years’ of service time. Whether the M’s can potentially keep Flexen as depth or not will have an impact on how much they are willing to trade him.

November 28: The Mariners are in agreement with reliever Trevor Gott on a one-year contract, reports Ken Rosenthal of the Athletic (on Twitter). Financial terms have not yet been reported. Gott is a Sports One Athlete Management client. Seattle’s 40-man roster count will jump to 38 once the deal is finalized.

Gott signed a somewhat surprising big league contract with the Brewers last offseason. He’d spent the entire 2021 campaign in Triple-A in the Giants organization, impressing the Milwaukee front office with a 31% strikeout rate at the top minor league level. Milwaukee jumped early in the offseason to add him, and he played a fairly significant role in their middle innings mix this past season.

The right-hander tallied 45 2/3 innings across 45 outings. The results were mixed, as he managed just a 4.14 ERA while surrendering eight home runs (1.58 per nine innings). He paired that with quality strikeout and walk marks, though, fanning a slightly above-average 23.7% of opponents against a 6.5% walk rate. He averaged around 95 MPH on his fastball and just north of 91 MPH on a cutter that served as his top secondary offering. Gott’s 10.5% swinging strike percentage and 43.7% grounder rate were right around the respective league marks, and he held right-handed hitters to a meager .200/.243/.333 line in 111 plate appearances.

MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projected Gott for a $1.4MM arbitration salary this winter, and the Brewers instead opted to non-tender him. His roughly average peripherals in 2022 were enough to land a 40-man spot with Seattle, and he figures to have an inside track at an Opening Day bullpen job. Gott has exhausted his minor league option years, so the M’s will either have to carry him on the big league roster or make him available via waivers.

With between four and five years of major league service time, Gott would again be eligible for arbitration next offseason if he holds his roster spot all year. He could be a multi-year bullpen pickup for president of baseball operations Jerry Dipoto and his staff if he performs well. Gott has also suited up for the Angels, Nationals and Giants in parts of seven seasons at the big league level.

The Mariners have an excellent bullpen that ranked sixth in the majors this past season in ERA at 3.33. Seattle relievers placed fifth with a 26.6% strikeout rate, and only the Orioles blew fewer leads in the late innings. That was a key part of the M’s winning 90 games for a second consecutive season and securing a Wild Card berth. Seattle subtracted from that with the deal that sent Erik Swanson to Toronto to bring in Teoscar Hernández, but they’ll bring back Andrés Muñoz, Diego Castillo, Matt Brash, Paul Sewald and Penn Murfee. Gott figures to work in lower-leverage spots, at least initially, to deepen the group available to manager Scott Servais.

MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projected salaries for all arb-eligible players last month.

Later Updates

• The Reds have non-tendered righty Daniel Duarte and minor league outfielder Allan Cerda, taking both off the 40-man roster. Neither had been eligible for arbitration, but Cincinnati will send both into free agency without having to place either on waivers. Duarte made three relief appearances this year, his first as a big leaguer. Cerda, 23 next month, has yet to reach the majors. He hit .198/.350/.401 in 257 plate appearances in Double-A. Cincinnati also announced that six players designated for assignment earlier this week — Aristides Aquino, Jared Solomon, Kyle Dowdy, Derek Law, Art Warren and Jeff Hoffman — were all let go. Both Duarte and Cerda have already agreed to re-sign with Cincinnati on minor league deals, reports Mark Sheldon of MLB.com (Twitter link).

Earlier Moves

• The Braves freed a pair of 40-man roster spots by non-tendering minor league pitchers Brooks Wilson and Alan Rangel. Rangel spent most of this past season in Double-A, while Wilson didn’t pitch in 2022. Atlanta also announced that three players non-tendered earlier this week — Guillermo Heredia, Jackson Stephens and Silvino Bracho — have been let go.
• The Giants have non-tendered relievers Mauricio Llovera and Alex Young and infielder Donovan Walton, clearing three spots on the 40-man roster. Walton was acquired from the Mariners midseason and hit .158/.179/.303 in 24 games with San Francisco. Young made 24 appearances after his contract was purchased from the Guardians. Llovera pitched 17 times after signing a minor league deal last offseason. Additionally San Francisco non-tendered seven players who’d been designated for assignment earlier this week: Drew Strotman, Meibrys Viloria, Colton Welker, Jarlin Garcia, Dom Nunez, Sam Delaplane and Jason Vosler.
• The Pirates non-tendered lefty Manny Banuelos and catcher Tyler Heineman. Both had been designated for assignment earlier this week.
• The Diamondbacks non-tendered righty Reyes Moronta, the team announced. The reliever posted a 4.50 ERA in 17 outings with the Snakes after being claimed off waivers from the Dodgers.
• The Padres announced they’ve cut loose catcher Jorge Alfaro and righty Efrain Contreras. Alfaro had been projected at a $3.6MM salary this season, a hefty amount after a .246/.285/.383 season. Contreras hasn’t pitched in the majors; he had a tough year in High-A and loses his 40-man spot spot as a result.
• The Cubs have non-tendered center fielder Rafael Ortega, as well as minor league pitchers Brailyn Marquez and Alexander Vizcaino. Ortega has seen a decent amount of action the last two years and had a respectable .241/.331/.358 line through 371 plate appearances this past season. Nevertheless, the Cubs opted against a salary in the $1.7MM range for next year. Marquez has been a top pitching prospect but has battled injury issues for the past few years. Vizcaino was part of the Anthony Rizzo trade with the Yankees but didn’t pitch in the minors this year.
• The Nationals non-tendered righty Tommy Romero. He’d been designated for assignment earlier this week. Washington confirmed the previously-reported decisions to part with Luke Voit and Erick Fedde.
• The Brewers cut loose right-handers Trevor Gott, Jandel Gustave and Luis Perdomo. All three were part of Milwaukee’s middle innings mix, with Gustave’s 45 appearances the most among that group. Gott had a 4.15 ERA over 45 2/3 innings after signing a free agent deal last offseason.
• The Rockies non-tendered infielder/outfielder Garrett Hampson, the club announced. The 28-year-old had been projected for a $2.1MM salary. A speedster with the ability to play anywhere up the middle, Hampson just hasn’t hit at the big league level. He’s coming off a .211/.287/.307 showing through 226 plate appearances.
• The Mets announced they’ve non-tendered Sean Reid-Foley and confirmed they’re letting go of Dominic Smith, who’s non-tender was previously reported. This year, Reid-Foley made seven MLB appearances, tossing 10 innings of relief.
• The Dodgers have non-tendered infielder Edwin Rios and utilityman Luke Williams, per a club announcement. Los Angeles also confirmed the previously reported non-tender of former MVP Cody Bellinger. Rios has shown some offensive promise in the past and owns a .212/.299/.492 line through 112 big league games. He missed a good chunk of this past season with a hamstring strain. Williams was claimed off waivers from the Marlins recently; the Dodgers could look to bring him back on a minor league deal.

2:50PM: The Brewers announced a batch of roster moves today, with four-right handed pitchers involved. Trevor Gott and Jandel Gustave were each reinstated from the 15-day injured list. To create room for those two on the active roster, Peter Strzelecki was optioned to Triple-A Nashville and Miguel Sanchez was placed on the 15-day IL, retroactive to June 22, with right UCL discomfort.

The club hasn’t provided a timeline for Sanchez, but the wording of the announcement is certainly ominous. The ulnar collateral ligament is the part of the elbow that, when damaged, requires Tommy John surgery. If Sanchez is experiencing discomfort in that area, it certainly raises the possibility that he will need such a procedure. Although, to be clear, no announcement of next steps has been made as of yet.

First selected to the big league team in June of last year, he has since thrown 39 1/3 innings out of the bullpen for Milwaukee, with a 4.12 ERA. He hasn’t had a tremendous amount of strikeouts or grounders in that time, but seems to have overcome a 12.4% walk rate by getting infield pop-ups at a 21.6% clip, much better than the MLB average, which is usually just under 10%. His strikeout numbers are more impressive in the minors, however, as he’s struck out 107 of 436 batters faced over four Triple-A seasons. That amounts to a 24.5% rate. The 28-year-old’s career will now be placed on hold while he will surely undergo further testing to figure out how to proceed.

The Milwaukee bullpen has dealt with its share of injuries, as Sanchez joins Jake Cousins, Luis Perdomo and Justin Topa as the relievers on the IL. The return of Gott and Gustave will surely help bolster the squad, though. The bullpen has outsized importance at the moment due to the injuries to the rotation, as Freddy Peralta, Brandon Woodruff and Aaron Ashby are all sidelined as well. With so many arms out of action, each healthy hurler becomes that much more important. The Brewers and Cardinals are deadlocked at the top of the NL Central at the moment, with each club sporting a 40-33 record coming into today.

12:58 pm: Gott’s deal is a split contract, reports Mark Feinsand of MLB.com (Twitter link). He’ll receive a 40-man roster spot but earn different salaries depending upon if he’s pitching at the major league or minor league levels.

11:47 am: The Brewers are signing free agent reliever Trevor Gott to a one-year, major league contract, reports Ken Rosenthal of the Athletic (Twitter link). Gott is represented by Sports One Athlete Management.

It’s a bit surprising to see the right-hander land a big league deal right out of the gate. Gott was designated for assignment by the Giants last offseason and passed through outright waivers. Briefly re-selected to the 40-man roster in April, he was quickly DFA’d and again cleared the waiver wire. Gott spent the rest of the season with San Francisco’s top affiliate in Sacramento before electing minor league free agency last month. Because he qualified for minor league free agency in early October, Gott was eligible to sign elsewhere before the end of the current five-day window of exclusivity for teams to negotiate with their own free agents.

Gott had a nice run with the River Cats in 2021, tossing 41 2/3 innings of 4.10 ERA ball over 43 appearances. Opponents’ .340 batting average on balls in play inflated his Triple-A run prevention numbers, but Gott punched out a very strong 31% of minor league hitters on the back of a solid 14.9% swinging strike rate.

Between 2015-20, Gott posted inconsistent results but intermittently flashed solid ability. He worked to a 3.02 ERA with the Angels in his rookie season, overcoming mediocre strikeout and walk numbers that year thanks to a massive 57.2% ground-ball rate. After three years with the Nationals riddled by injuries and underperformance, Gott seemed to break out with the 2019 Giants. While he posted an ordinary 4.44 ERA over 52 2/3 frames, his strikeout (26.6%), walk (7.9%) and swinging strike (10.8%) numbers were all solid or better.

Unfortunately for Gott, he couldn’t build off that success in 2020. He was tagged for thirteen runs, including a staggering seven homers, in just 11 2/3 innings. That remains his most recent body of work at the major league level, but the Milwaukee front office will take a low-risk roll of the dice that the 29-year-old can yet regain some of his best form.

Once made official, the Gott signing will bring Milwaukee’s 40-man roster tally up to 38. It’s not out of the question the Brewers could bump Gott from the 40-man at some point this winter should the need for another spot arise, but the front office is clearly intrigued by his potential to assume a role in next year’s bullpen. Gott is out of minor league option years, so he’ll either need to break camp with the big league team next season or be made available to the rest of the league. Should he right the ship and cement himself in the Brewers’ relief group, Gott could be controlled through the end of the 2024 campaign via arbitration.