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Zack Wheeler

Hot Stove History: How The Yankees Almost Acquired Zack Wheeler From The Mets

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The Mets and Yankees haven’t agreed to a player-for-player trade since the Mike Stanton-for-Felix Heredia swap in December 2004, but that streak was almost broken in blockbuster fashion during Brodie Van Wagenen’s two-year stint as the Mets’ general manager.  The two New York teams came very close to a July 2019 swap that would have sent Zack Wheeler to the Bronx, according to SNY’s Andy Martino, except an unknown player also involved in the trade failed a medical exam.

The Yankees were known to be one of the teams interested in Wheeler heading into the deadline, though the Bronx Bombers reportedly had even more interest in another Mets hurler in Noah Syndergaard.  Beyond those two members of the Mets rotation, the Yankees cast a wide net looking for rotation help at the deadline but didn’t come away with any significant trades whatsoever, whether it be for pitchers or hitters.

The Mets also held off on dealing Wheeler to anyone, as the right-hander finished off a strong season and then left Queens that winter for a five-year, $118MM free agent contract with the Phillies.  Interestingly, the Yankees were also linked to Wheeler’s free agent market, but instead pivoted to make an even bigger splash by signing Gerrit Cole to a nine-year, $324MM pact — still the largest contract ever given to a pitcher in total dollars.

Beyond the sheer rarity of the two Big Apple rivals swinging such a notable trade, the Wheeler deal would have created a big ripple effect across recent baseball history.  For starters, adding Wheeler might have been the final piece the Yankees needed for a championship, as the club overcame a ton of injuries to win 103 games before eventually falling to the Astros in the ALCS.

If Wheeler had been a key cog in a 28th Yankees World Series title, perhaps the Bombers would’ve been more inclined to retain their new hero in free agency, rather than sign Cole.  Even if keeping Wheeler might’ve cost more than $118MM in this scenario, his deal would’ve been worth much less than Cole’s contract, thus giving the Yankees extra money to spend on other needs that offseason.

It isn’t known what the Yankees would’ve had to have given up to land Wheeler from the Mets, though since he was a free agent that winter, it wouldn’t have been an overwhelming trade package for just two-plus months of the righty’s services. However, it was clearly enticing enough for Van Wagenen to pull the trigger had everything worked out on the medical front, and it was enough to outbid the many other teams known to be circling Wheeler in the lead-up to July 31, 2019.  The Mets could have kept those Yankees trade pieces as a way of restocking the farm system after the Marcus Stroman deal with the Blue Jays that same deadline, or perhaps looked to flip the prospects in a future trade for more immediate help.

A Wheeler trade would have impacted his free agency in another fashion, as he would’ve been been ineligible to receive a qualifying offer due to the midseason deal.  While it didn’t seem like the QO draft compensation had much impact on Wheeler’s market, the lack of a qualifying offer might have resulted in one or two extra teams getting involved, which could have resulted in a few extra millions in Wheeler’s bank account.

The qualifying offer also must have factored into the Mets’ decision-making about the proposed Wheeler deal.  The Yankees must have offered something Van Wagenen judged as being more valuable than the compensatory pick the Mets were set to receive for Wheeler.  This ended up being the 69th overall pick in the 2020 draft, which the Mets used on high school outfield prospect Isaiah Greene.  With his first pro season now in the books, the 20-year-old Greene hit a very solid .289/.421/.368 over 191 plate appearances…

…for the Guardians’ rookie ball affiliate.  This is another interesting branch in the Zack Wheeler/Yankees multiverse, as Greene was part of the four-player package (along with Amed Rosario, Andres Gimenez, and prospect Josh Wolf) sent to the Guardians in exchange for Francisco Lindor and Carlos Carrasco — a blockbuster trade completed exactly one year ago today.  While Greene wasn’t the centerpiece of that deal from Cleveland’s perspective, it could be that the two sides might have agreed on another prospect as the fourth player.  Or, maybe that one little change makes the whole trade fall apart, and Cleveland could have opted for another team’s offer for Lindor and/or Carrasco.

Phillies Deny Any Interest In Trading Zack Wheeler

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6:20 pm: Middleton rather firmly reiterated his unwillingness to trade Wheeler. “If they offered me Babe Ruth, I wouldn’t trade him,” the managing general partner told Olney. “I have authorized no one to have a conversation about trading him.”

12:57 pm: Both owner John Middleton and team president Andy MacPhail have denied Olney’s report, according to Jim Salisbury of NBC Sports Philadelphia, with Middleton saying “there’s zero truth to this.”  MacPhail stated that Wheeler “is very much in our plans going forward,” and while “I’m not surprised that other clubs might inquire about him, [a trade is] not something on our radar.”

11:25 am: The Phillies have let other teams know that they are open to hearing trade offers for right-hander Zack Wheeler, ESPN.com’s Buster Olney reports.  Wheeler signed a five-year, $119MM free agent deal with Philadelphia almost exactly one year ago, yet the Phils “have communicated…that they are facing a financial crunch,” Olney writes.

As always, teams are routinely “open to” receiving trade offers on just about any player as a matter of due diligence, just in case an unexpectedly great offer is floated.  The Phils being willing to listen about Wheeler trades doesn’t necessarily mean that he is being openly shopped.  This being said, there were already indications that the Phillies were looking to limit spending or even cut payroll in the wake of their revenue losses from the shortened 2020 season, and moving some or all of Wheeler’s remaining $96.5MM would certainly accomplish those rumored financial goals.

In the bigger picture, of course, trading Wheeler could also be a sign that a larger shakeup is coming in Philadelphia.  Trading an established front-of-the-rotation arm isn’t the type of move made by a big-market team that is planning to contend, and if Wheeler is on the table in trade negotiations, it’s fair to assume the Phils are also willing to discuss anyone earning a big salary.  Olney reports that “there is no indication” Bryce Harper is a trade candidate at this point.  Harper has a full no-trade clause and is still owed $274MM over the next 11 seasons, so moving him might possibly be too complicated to manage.

Beyond Harper, however, Jean Segura (owed $30MM through 2022) has already been mentioned as a possible trade candidate, Andrew McCutchen is owed $20MM in salary for 2021 plus a $3MM buyout of a $15MM club option for 2022, and Aaron Nola is slated to earn $31MM through the 2022 season and is controllable through 2023 on a club option.  Nola would certainly be the most attractive trade chip to rival teams, though one would think he would be pretty untouchable unless the Phillies were embarking on another complete team rebuild.

It also remains to be seen if the Phils would entirely abandon the idea of competing in 2021, or whether they would try the even more difficult strategy of trying to add pieces to contend even while in the midst of this “financial crunch.”  Olney opines that it’s at least possible the Phillies would reallocate any money saved in a Wheeler trade towards trying to re-sign J.T. Realmuto, though it would seem likely that Realmuto would be wary about rejoining a team that just dealt another star free agent a year into a long-term contract.  Plus, as Olney notes, “no matter what happens, there will be gaping holes in the roster,” since the Phillies already have needs in the bullpen and around the diamond, and trading Wheeler would create even greater need in the rotation.

Despite some fingernail issues that led to surgery in October, Wheeler posted some strong numbers in his first year in Philadelphia.  The right-hander posted a 2.92 ERA, 6.7 K/9, 3.31 K/BB rate, and 55.9% groundball rate over 71 innings in 2020, reducing his strikeout rate at the benefit of generating more grounders and keeping the ball in the park.  Among qualified pitchers, only Dallas Keuchel had a lower HR/9 than Wheeler’s NL-leading 0.38 figure.

Trevor Bauer is the only free agent pitcher projected to earn more than $96.5MM on the open market this offseason, and that assumes Bauer takes a longer-term deal rather than a shorter-term contract with a higher average annual value.  With that in mind, Wheeler’s remaining contractual obligations will give some trade suitors pause, unless some other salary is moved back to Philadelphia in return.  If the Phillies do have some level of desperation to cut payroll, however, a club willing to take Wheeler’s contract in full might only have to surrender a minimal amount of prospect return.

Zack Wheeler Undergoes Fingernail Resection Procedure

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The Phillies announced Wednesday that righty Zack Wheeler underwent a “right middle fingernail resection procedure” last week. He’s expected to be ready to go in time for Spring Training.

The minor surgical procedure was performed not only in hopes of repairing a fluky late-season injury in which Wheeler almost lost his middle fingernail completely after catching it on a zipper, but to correct some chronic issues with the nail. NBC Sports Philadelphia’s Corey Seidman notes that Wheeler has had minor issues with that nail dating back to high school. Cracked nails certainly don’t sound like a major issue, of course, but such maladies can impact a pitcher’s ability to grip the ball — particularly on breaking pitches.

If the fingernail was a major impediment for Wheeler this season, it certainly didn’t show in his results. The 30-year-old right-hander, who signed a five-year deal worth $118MM last offseason, made 11 starts for the Phils and racked up 71 innings with a 2.92 ERA, 3.22 FIP and career-best 55.9 percent ground-ball rate. Wheeler’s strikeout rate dipped, though that was due largely to his incorporation of a sinker/two-seamer that dramatically improved his ground-ball rate.

There was some concern late in the season that the aforementioned freak injury might cause Wheeler to lose his entire fingernail and possibly end his season. He rallied and returned to the mound to give the Phils three more solid starts down the stretch, however, allowing nine runs on 19 hits and seven walks with 17 strikeouts through 21 frames after that point. Wheeler is still owed $96.5MM over the final four seasons of his contract in Philadelphia.

Phillies To Place Rhys Hoskins On 10-Day IL

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The Phillies will place first baseman Rhys Hoskins on the 10-day injured list with a left UCL injury, Todd Zolecki of MLB.com reports. In better news for the club, catcher J.T. Realmuto (hip flexor) will avoid the IL, while right-hander Zack Wheeler (finger) should return to the mound this week.

The Hoskins news continues a rough few days for the Phillies, who have dropped three in a row – including a 6-2 defeat to the Marlins on Monday. The 27-year-old Hoskins hasn’t played since Saturday, when he suffered a forearm injury, and it’s unclear whether he’ll be able to take the field again this season. Time’s running out in 2020 for him and the Phillies, who are an even 23-23 but are still in possession of a playoff spot in the National League.

If Philly does break its eight-year playoff drought this season, it’ll have Hoskins to thank to some extent. Although Hoskins is stuck in an 0-for-10 slump, he has slashed a rather effective .245/.384/.503 (138 wRC+) with 10 home runs in 185 plate appearances. That’ll be tough production for the Phillies to replace in the season’s final couple weeks, especially considering Hoskins has played almost every game at first for the team this base. Otherwise, only the now-gone Neil Walker and the historically light-hitting Phil Gosselin have lined up there for the Phillies.

Latest On Zack Wheeler

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9:41PM: Wheeler will indeed miss his Monday start, Girardi told Meghan Montemurro of The Athletic and other reporters, though the righty may not be out of action for long.  Girardi feels Wheeler will be able to start during the Phillies’ upcoming series with the Mets, which runs from Tuesday, Sept. 15 to Thursday, Sept. 17.

12:11PM: Zack Wheeler may miss his scheduled start on Monday after he “ripped the nail bed from his middle finger,” writes The Athletic’s Matt Gelb (via Twitter). Interestingly, Wheeler has dealt with a version of this issue his whole career. The Phillies’ right-hander puts undue pressure on his middle finger when he throws, often cracking the nail, per Gelb. In this particular instance, however, Wheeler caught the nail on his jeans and ripped it free. While Gelb says, “It’s not good,” he also gives Wheeler a chance to make his scheduled start on Monday.

In his first season with the Phillies, Wheeler has maintained the success he enjoyed in his final two seasons as a Met, perhaps even taking his dominance a step further. Wheeler boasts a 4-0 record through 8 starts with a 2.47 ERA/3.11 FIP. He’s been everything the Phillies could have hoped for after inking him to a five-year, $118MM deal this offseason.

Slotting Wheeler into the top of the rotation has transformed the Philly starting five into a top-10 unit. Their 3.87 ERA ranks 9th in the majors, 3.83 FIP is tied for 4th in the game, and their 4.9 fWAR is tied for 3rd overall. Last season’s rotation finished 15th, 17th, and 13th by the same metrics.

NL East Notes: Phillies, Wheeler, Mets, Braves, Freeman

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Phillies offseason addition Zack Wheeler is still weighing his options about participating in the 2020 season, according to Jim Salisbury of NBC Sports. With Wheeler and his wife expecting a baby in late July—right around the start of the regular season—he’s constantly evaluating his level of comfort with the precautions being taken around baseball. For the time being, Wheeler expects to play this season, though that’s subject to change. Matt Gelb of The Athletic adds that, even if he continues to play after the birth of his child, Wheeler expects to miss a couple of starts at that time. A number of players have already declared their intentions to sit out this year, and plenty of players in situations similar to Wheeler’s who will continuously evaluate that possibility. Players with young children or expecting a child are in particularly difficult circumstances as they keep their family’s health in mind; like Wheeler, Mike Trout has some reservations about playing this year as he awaits the arrival of a newborn.

  • The Mets and manager Luis Rojas might opt for a closer-by-committee approach this year, with the likes of Edwin Diaz, Seth Lugo, Dellin Betances, and Jeurys Familia all candidates to pitch in the ninth inning, as reported by Anthony DiComo of MLB.com. While Diaz was acquired with the expectation that he’d be the guy for years to come, a down year in 2019 coupled with the unique circumstances surrounding this season means that Rojas is open to a less rigid formula for winning games. The Mets are pretty well positioned to employ such a strategy, with the aforementioned four pitchers all having closing experience or boasting closer-quality stuff. Mets fans will hope for a rebound from Diaz, but if that doesn’t happen, Betances—hopefully healthy—and Lugo are certainly not bad options to fall back on.
  • With franchise cornerstone Freddie Freeman on the shelf due to COVID-19, the Braves are evaluating contingency plans at first base if Freeman is unable to play in time for regular season games. Per Mark Bowman of MLB.com, Brian Snitker named Austin Riley, Adam Duvall, and Nick Markakis as candidates to appear at first base during Freeman’s absence. All three have limited experience at the position, and Markakis could combine with either Duvall or Riley to form a platoon at first. Johan Camargo, a versatile infielder, could also see some time there, while Peter O’Brien and Yonder are on board as depth options. Obviously, though, the hope is that Freeman will return to good health quickly and with no hiccups to man the position as planned.

Angels GM Billy Eppler Discusses Wheeler, Simmons, Ohtani, Canning

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Angels general manager Billy Eppler took part in an online Q&A session with fans on Friday, addressing many topics about his team.  Here are some of the highlights, with Eppler’s answers compiled by Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register…

  • The Angels were linked to Zack Wheeler’s market over the winter, and Eppler filled in some details about the team’s interest, saying “we pursued Wheeler pretty aggressively.”  That pursuit included a cross-country trip in November for Eppler, manager Joe Maddon, and team president John Carpino to meet with Wheeler in person.  Despite this courtship, Wheeler ended up signing with the Phillies, though the Halos may have faced an uphill battle to sign the right-hander for geographical reasons, as Wheeler wanted to stay on the East Coast and in closer proximity to his wife’s family in New Jersey.  Other suitors such as the Twins and White Sox also seemingly fell short of Wheeler’s services for the same reason, as Chicago’s offer was reportedly worth more than the $118MM Wheeler received from Philadelphia.
  • Fletcher reported in February that the Angels had yet to begin extension talks with Andrelton Simmons, and Eppler confirmed that the club hadn’t held any negotiations with Simmons and his agents prior to the league shutdown.  As per the GM, there had only been “internal discussions” within the front office at the start of Spring Training about a possible new deal for the defensive wizard.  Simmons is set to become a free agent in the 2020-21 offseason, and the shortstop would still be eligible for the open market even if the COVID-19 pandemic wipes out the entire 2020 season.  Of course, the league-wide transactions freeze also covers extension negotiations, so the Angels and other teams can’t talk contracts with any players during the shutdown.
  • Shohei Ohtani threw two bullpen sessions this week, Eppler revealed, including a 15-pitch session on Friday that consisted of only fastballs.  Ohtani continues to progress in his recovery from Tommy John surgery and should be ready to pitch when and if the season does get underway.  The two-way star was originally slated to return to the mound in mid-May, though since games surely won’t resume by that point, Ohtani likely won’t end up missing any time in the Los Angeles rotation.
  • Eppler also provided an update on Griffin Canning, saying that the young righty should start throwing off a mound within 7-10 days.  “His throwing program is back to 120 to 150 feet this week, at about 70 to 80 percent intensity,” Eppler said.  Canning was sidelined early in Spring Training due to elbow problems, including what the club described at the time as “chronic changes to the UCL and acute joint irritation.”  While there was much speculation that Canning would need Tommy John surgery, Canning instead received a platelet-rich plasma injection, as Eppler said that “surgery wasn’t recommended in Griffin’s case…ultimately the different physicians we had him see didn’t recommend it.”  The prospect of the season being canceled doesn’t have any bearing on whether Canning would eventually undergo a Tommy John procedure, as Eppler said “we would not proactively subject him to that surgery unless there was new evidence or a new injury that took place.”

Zack Wheeler Heard “Crickets” From Mets In Free Agency

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Phillies right-hander Zack Wheeler and the Mets are engaged in a public feud. Wheeler, a Met from 2013-19, joined the Phillies on a five-year, $118MM contract during the offseason. However, Wheeler indicated Thursday that he had hoped to remain with his longtime team, revealing (via Greg Joyce of the New York Post) that he reached out to the Mets to gauge their interest in re-signing him before he became a Phillie. But Wheeler said he only heard “crickets” from the Mets, adding: “Because it’s them. It’s how they roll.”

Wheeler went on to suggest the Mets are a dysfunctional organization, but general manager Brodie Van Wagenen took exception to his comments. Van Wagenen expressed “surprise” in regards to Wheeler’s statements, per Tim Britton of The Athletic. The GM also noted, “I feel like this organization supported him in giving him the opportunity to reach major league success.” He then took a shoot at Wheeler, contending, “Our health and performance department, our coaches, all contributed and helped him parlay two good half-seasons over the last five years into $118MM.”

It should be pointed out that Wheeler has produced palatable results in every season but 2017 – his first year back from a March 2015 Tommy John procedure that helped cost him two campaigns. He has otherwise totaled three seasons with at least 180 innings and ERAs somewhere in the threes. The hard-throwing Wheeler was statistically one of the most effective starters in baseball from 2018-19, during which he put up a 3.65 ERA/3.37 FIP ERA with 8.91 K/9 and 2.5 BB/9 in 377 2/3 frames. Considering that, Van Wagenen’s snipe doesn’t ring true.

Neither side may look great in this situation, but the spat does make a division rivalry even more interesting. Both teams are looking up at the Braves and the Nationals in the NL East, though all four are arguably good enough on paper to at least compete for the division. Wheeler was the Phillies’ big-ticket acquisition during the winter, while the Mets still boast a strong rotation even in the wake of his departure. Jacob deGrom, Noah Syndergaard and Marcus Stroman and Steven Matz lead the group, and the Mets have added Rick Porcello and Michael Wacha since free agency opened.

Teams That Gained Or Lost Draft Picks Via Qualifying Offer Free Agents

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Now that Marcell Ozuna has signed, all 10 of the players who were issued a one-year, $17.8MM qualifying offer in November have settled on teams for the 2020 season.  Of that group, two (Jose Abreu of the White Sox and Jake Odorizzi of the Twins) accepted their qualifying offers and returned to their clubs — Abreu, in fact, topped off his QO by signing a contract extension that will run through the 2022 season.  Stephen Strasburg also isn’t changing uniforms, as the longtime Nationals ace rejected the club’s qualifying offer but eventually re-signed with Washington on a seven-year, $245MM deal.

That leaves us with seven QO players who will be playing on new teams in 2020, and as such, the draft compensation attached to those seven players has also now been allotted.  Under the rules of the Collective Bargaining Agreement, the same compensation was handed out to all six teams who lost those players, as the entire sextet fell under the same financial criteria.  The Mets, Cardinals, Braves, Giants, Nationals, and Astros all aren’t revenue-sharing recipients, nor did they exceed the luxury tax threshold in 2019, so all six teams will receive a compensatory draft pick between Competitive Balance Round B and the third round of the 2020 draft.

Here is how the so-called “Compensation Round” breaks down.  The order of the picks is determined by worst record-to-best record from the 2019 season.

68. Giants (for Madison Bumgarner)
69. Giants (for Will Smith)
70. Mets (for Zack Wheeler)
71. Cardinals (for Marcell Ozuna)
72. Nationals (for Anthony Rendon)
73. Braves (for Josh Donaldson)
74. Astros (for Gerrit Cole)

San Francisco now possesses five of the first 87 picks in next June’s draft.  With the Giants still in the NL wild card race last summer, president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi opted to hang onto Bumgarner and Smith rather than trade either player, a decision that led to some criticism since San Francisco was widely considered to be closer to rebuilding than truly contending.  The critics’ judgement grew even harsher after the Giants went 22-32 record in August and September and fell well short of the postseason.  Still, given that teams were reluctant to part with top-flight young talent for even controllable players (let alone rentals like Bumgarner and Smith) at the trade deadline, Zaidi clearly felt that the two picks he could recoup from the qualifying offer process were more valuable than anything offered for the two Giants pitchers last July.

It’s worth noting that the 74th overall pick will be Houston’s first selection of the 2020 draft, after the Astros lost both their first- and second-highest selections in both 2020 and 2021 as part of their punishment for the sign-stealing scandal.  Since the Red Sox are also under league investigation for their own alleged use of electronics to steal opponents’ signs in 2018, Boston could also potentially lose at least one pick in this year’s draft, so we can’t yet say that the 2020 draft order is finalized.  Of course, the order could be further muddled if more trades occur involving picks from the two Competitive Balance Draft rounds, which are the only types of draft picks that can be traded.  We’ve already seen the Rays and Cardinals swap their picks in Rounds A and B as part of the multi-player trade that sent Jose Martinez and Randy Arozarena to Tampa Bay earlier this month.

Let’s now look at the six teams who signed the seven QO-rejecting free agents, and see what those clubs had to give up in order to make the signings.

Yankees, for signing Gerrit Cole: Since New York exceeded the luxury tax threshold in 2019, they gave up their second- and fifth-round picks in the 2020 draft (a.k.a. their second- and fifth-highest selections).  The Yankees also gave up $1MM in funds from their international signing bonus pool.

Diamondbacks, for signing Madison Bumgarner: As a team that didn’t exceed the luxury tax threshold and was a revenue-sharing recipient, the D’Backs had to give up their third-highest draft choice to sign Bumgarner.  This ended up being Arizona’s second-round selection — the team’s first two picks are their first-rounder (18th overall) and their pick in Competitive Balance Round A (33rd overall).

Twins, for signing Josh Donaldson: Minnesota also received revenue-sharing and didn’t exceed the luxury tax threshold, so signing Donaldson put the Twins in position to give up their third-highest draft selection.  However, the Twins are actually giving up their fourth-highest pick in the 2020 draft, which is their third-round selection.  The Twins’ actual third selection is their pick in Competitive Balance Round B, but those picks aren’t eligible to be forfeited as compensation for QO free agent signings.

Angels, for signing Anthony Rendon: Since the Halos didn’t receive revenue-sharing funds and also didn’t pay any luxury tax money, they had to give up their second-highest draft pick (their second-rounder) and $500K in international bonus funds to sign Rendon.

Phillies, for signing Zack Wheeler: The Phillies surrendered their second-highest selection (their second-round pick) and $500K of their international bonus pool, since they were another team that didn’t exceed the luxury tax line and didn’t receive revenue-sharing money.

Braves, for signing Will Smith and Marcell Ozuna: The dual signings put Atlanta in line for a dual penalty.  The Braves didn’t exceed the luxury tax threshold and also didn’t receive revenue-sharing money, so they gave up their second-highest draft pick (their second-rounder) and $500K of international bonus money for Smith.  In landing Ozuna, the Braves then had to also forfeit their third-round pick (their third-highest selection) and another $500K from their international bonus pool.

Losing two draft picks and $1MM in international pool money isn’t nothing, though these particular sanctions had less impact on the Braves than on other teams, which undoubtedly influenced their decisions.  First of all, the compensatory pick Atlanta received for Donaldson is higher in the draft order than their third-round pick, so the net loss is only a second-round pick.  Secondly, the Braves’ movement in the international market is still limited by the punishment handed out by Major League Baseball in November 2017 for Atlanta’s past international signing violations.  Part of that punishment included the Braves’ pool for the 2020-21 international market being reduced by 50 percent — being so handcuffed in the international market anyway, the Braves probably felt $1MM in pool money was no great loss.

Twins Targeted Wheeler, Bumgarner, Ryu Before Winning Donaldson Sweepstakes

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Before the holidays, the Twins offered Josh Donaldson a four-year, $84MM contract that would have made him the second-highest paid player in team history after Joe Mauer, writes Phil Miller in a profile well worth a read from the Star Tribune. Another interesting tidbit from Miller confirmed that Zack Wheeler had been the Twins’ primary target at the outset of the offseason, shifting only to Donaldson after missing out on Madison Bumgarner and Hyun-Jin Ryu. Donaldson offered a potent bat, of course, but the ability to improve their infield defense at third (and by effect, their pitching) also keyed the Twins on the Bringer of Rain. 

Donaldson and his agent Dan Lozano fielded recruitment efforts from all corners of the Minnesota Twins extended universe before committing, from Miguel Sano over video eagerly offering to accommodate Donaldson by changing positions, to a former tennis professional and friend of Donaldson’s who happens to be a Twins fan, to the substantial recruitment effort put in ink by Twins’ ownership when they offered him a four-year, $92MM contract. The fifth year, $16MM team option helped push the deal over the edge, especially once the Twins’ agreed to set the buyout amount at $8MM. If the option is picked up, the deal becomes a five-year, $100MM pact.

Some of the heaviest lifting was done in a meeting between Donaldson, Lozano, Twins’ manager Rocco Baldelli, General Manager Thad Levine and Chief Baseball Officer Derek Falvey. Baldelli sold Donaldson on clubhouse culture and his plans for deploying Donaldson. The front office put together metrics on their 2019 success and profiled some of the talent on its way to Minneapolis from the minor leagues, establishing a belief that the Twins will remain in contention throughout Donaldson’s tenure.  

Misinformation persisted in the media throughout, with Lozano suspected of leaking the $110MM asking price in the hopes of a team with deep pockets (like the Dodgers) matching the number. It worked, in a way, as the Twins realized Donaldson must not have had the offer he wanted, so they set out with renewed enthusiasm (and more money). Obviously, $100MM turned out to be the magic number.

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