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Rangers sign SP Andrew Cashner to 1 year-$10M deal.http://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/1...-texas-rangersComment -
The Blue Jays made a four-year contract offer to Edwin Encarnacion that was worth “about” $80MM before agreeing to a three-year, $33MM deal with Kendrys Morales, reports Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports. Sportsnet’s Shi Davidi first noted that the Jays’ offer to Encarnacion was “likely” in that vicinity. However, despite the addition of Morales, Toronto is still interested in re-signing Encarnacion and remains in the mix for his services, according to Heyman. The Jays feel that Encarnacion can play first base competently enough to coexist on the roster with Morales.
The $80MM offer to Encarnacion is a sizable step up from the team’s reported two-year offer back in Spring Training, though Encarnacion’s robust market seems likely to lead to greater offers. Heyman lists the Astros, Yankees, Rangers and Red Sox as other teams that have at least reached out to Encarnacion, and agent Paul Kinzer tells him that a couple of National League clubs have reached out as well. Certainly, there will be some who are scared off by the notion of playing Encarnacion at first base on an everyday basis, especially as he advances into his late 30s over the life of a four- or five-year deal, but it’s worth noting that Encarnacion has at least graded out as a roughly average defender at first in fairly limited action with the Jays over the past two seasons (0 DRS, +3.3 UZR in 1117 innings).Comment -
Haha he's prob on the fat panda Sandoval diet now.On his Wiki page it says he only lasted 3 months before giving it up.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prince...#Personal_lifeComment -
Here are the 34 players on the 2017 baseball Hall of Fame ballot
Monday morning, the Baseball Writers Association of America released the official 2017 Hall of Fame ballot. The 34-player ballot includes 15 holdovers from last year and 19 newcomers.
Here are the 15 holdovers on this year's ballot, as well as their voting results from a year ago. The players are listed alphabetically.
McGriff, Raines and Smith are all on the ballot for the final time. Players used to remain on the ballot for a maximum of 15 years, though that was reduced to 10 not too long ago. Smith was grandfathered in, which is why he is on the ballot for the 15th time while McGriff and Raines are both on for the 10th time.2016 voting percentage Years on ballot Jeff Bagwell 71.6% 6 Barry Bonds 44.3% 4 Roger Clemens 45.2% 4 Trevor Hoffman 68.3% 1 Jeff Kent 16.6% 3 Edgar Martinez 43.4% 7 Fred McGriff 20.9% 9 Mike Mussina 43.0% 3 Tim Raines 69.8% 9 Curt Schilling 52.3% 4 Gary Sheffield 11.6% 2 Lee Smith 34.1% 14 Sammy Sosa 7.0% 4 Billy Wagner 10.5% 1 Larry Walker 15.5% 6
As a reminder, a player needs to receive 75 percent of the vote for induction into the Hall of Fame and at least 5 percent of the vote to stay on the ballot another year. Historically, when a player gets over 70 percent of the vote but falls short of induction, he gets in the following year. That bodes well for Bagwell.
To be eligible for the Hall of Fame, a player must have played at least 10 years in MLB and played their final game at least five years ago.
Here are the 19 newcomers to the Hall of Fame ballot, listed alphabetically.
Casey Blake
Pat Burrell
Orlando Cabrera
Mike Cameron
J.D. Drew
Carlos Guillen
Vladimir Guerrero
Derek Lee
Melvin Mora
Magglio Ordonez
Jorge Posada
Manny Ramirez
Edgar Renteria
Arthur Rhodes
Ivan Rodriguez
Freddy Sanchez
Matt Stairs
Jason Varitek
Tim Wakefield
Manny, Vlad and Rodriguez are the most notable newcomers to the ballot. Ramirez has first-ballot Hall of Fame credentials but is unlikely to ever be voted into Cooperstown after being suspended not once, but twice for performance-enhancing drugs.Comment -
I don't think Casey Blake is going to get the 5% vote to be on the ballot next year.Comment -
Casey Blake and Matt Stairs on that list?Comment -
I think Jeff Bagwell, Vladimir Guerrero, & Ivan Rodriguez get in...
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The Twins have reached agreement on a contract with free agent catcher Jason Castro, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (Twitter links). Castro will receive a three-year deal with over $24MM guaranteed, per the report. The exact guarantee is $24.5MM, Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports tweets.
Castro, 29, drew strong early interest in a market that featured few immediate, near-regular catching options. With Wilson Ramos carrying a second ACL tear with him into free agency, Castro’s standing was significantly improved — as was that of other top options such as Matt Wieters, Kurt Suzuki, and Nick Hundley.
Age was undoubtedly a factor that worked in Castro’s favor, but he also intrigued with his blend of left-handed power and reputation as a framing guru. Though he has never returned to his breakout 2013 levels of production at the plate, and is deficient in the on-base department, Castro has hit double-digit home runs in each of the last four seasons and has historically posted approximately league-average power (in terms of isolated slugging).
In the defensive department, Castro has consistently rated as one of the game’s best at winning borderline strikes for his pitchers (by measure of both StatCorner and Baseball Prospectus). Though he’s average in other regards behind the plate, that leaves Castro as a top-quality run preventer, at least if one accepts the more aggressive assessments of pitch framing’s capacity to impact run expectancy.
There are plenty of limitations to his game, too, of course. Most notably, Castro carries only a .215 batting average and .291 OBP over the past three seasons. There’s a lot of swing and miss to his game (32.7% strikeout rate last year), though he can take a free pass and just boosted his walk rate to a career-best 12.0% in 2016.
With proper platoon usage, though, those problems can perhaps be offset. Castro hit just .149/.237/.241 last year when facing southpaws, but posted a much more useful .231/.331/.426 slash over his 279 plate appearances against righties. Those numbers mirror his career marks, which suggest there’s little reason ever to send him out without the platoon advantage.
[RELATED: Updated Twins Depth Chart]
For the Twins, Castro represents the first major acquisition of a new-look front office led by Derek Falvey and Thad Levine. With Kurt Suzuki departing this winter — bringing with him a glove that framing metrics were not fond of — that pair set out to find a replacement. Falvey and Levine evidently believe in the value of pitch framing, targeting Castro and staying on him even as the price tag moved to a fairly lofty level.
Minnesota will presumably pair Castro with John Ryan Murphy, who was picked up last winter in hopes he’d turn into a quality receiver. Though the 25-year-old scuffled badly at the plate in the majors, and hit just .236/.286/.323 in his 290 Triple-A plate appearances, he has shown more bat in the past and is considered a highly-talented framer in his own right. The club also just added Mitch Garver, another right-handed-hitting backstop, to the 40-man roster, so he’ll provide another option.Comment -
Damn. That's a lot of money for a catcher who can't hit a lick.The Twins have reached agreement on a contract with free agent catcher Jason Castro, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (Twitter links). Castro will receive a three-year deal with over $24MM guaranteed, per the report. The exact guarantee is $24.5MM, Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports tweets.
Castro, 29, drew strong early interest in a market that featured few immediate, near-regular catching options. With Wilson Ramos carrying a second ACL tear with him into free agency, Castro’s standing was significantly improved — as was that of other top options such as Matt Wieters, Kurt Suzuki, and Nick Hundley.
Age was undoubtedly a factor that worked in Castro’s favor, but he also intrigued with his blend of left-handed power and reputation as a framing guru. Though he has never returned to his breakout 2013 levels of production at the plate, and is deficient in the on-base department, Castro has hit double-digit home runs in each of the last four seasons and has historically posted approximately league-average power (in terms of isolated slugging).
In the defensive department, Castro has consistently rated as one of the game’s best at winning borderline strikes for his pitchers (by measure of both StatCorner and Baseball Prospectus). Though he’s average in other regards behind the plate, that leaves Castro as a top-quality run preventer, at least if one accepts the more aggressive assessments of pitch framing’s capacity to impact run expectancy.
There are plenty of limitations to his game, too, of course. Most notably, Castro carries only a .215 batting average and .291 OBP over the past three seasons. There’s a lot of swing and miss to his game (32.7% strikeout rate last year), though he can take a free pass and just boosted his walk rate to a career-best 12.0% in 2016.
With proper platoon usage, though, those problems can perhaps be offset. Castro hit just .149/.237/.241 last year when facing southpaws, but posted a much more useful .231/.331/.426 slash over his 279 plate appearances against righties. Those numbers mirror his career marks, which suggest there’s little reason ever to send him out without the platoon advantage.
[RELATED: Updated Twins Depth Chart]
For the Twins, Castro represents the first major acquisition of a new-look front office led by Derek Falvey and Thad Levine. With Kurt Suzuki departing this winter — bringing with him a glove that framing metrics were not fond of — that pair set out to find a replacement. Falvey and Levine evidently believe in the value of pitch framing, targeting Castro and staying on him even as the price tag moved to a fairly lofty level.
Minnesota will presumably pair Castro with John Ryan Murphy, who was picked up last winter in hopes he’d turn into a quality receiver. Though the 25-year-old scuffled badly at the plate in the majors, and hit just .236/.286/.323 in his 290 Triple-A plate appearances, he has shown more bat in the past and is considered a highly-talented framer in his own right. The club also just added Mitch Garver, another right-handed-hitting backstop, to the 40-man roster, so he’ll provide another option.Comment -
I guess I am excited for the Twins signing of Castro
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Free agent class is weak.Comment -
General manager Jerry Dipoto has been searching for a productive, consistent shortstop and a presence at the top of the Mariners’ lineup since the middle of last season. On Wednesday evening, he got both in one player, but it came at a hefty price.
In a five-player trade with the Arizona Diamondbacks, Seattle acquired talented shortstop and leadoff hitter Jean Segura, outfielder Mitch Hanigar and left-handed pitcher Zac Curtis in exchange for right-handed pitcher Taijuan Walker and infielder Ketel Marte.
To make room for the three players add to their 40-man roster, the Mariners designated switch-pitcher Pat Venditte for assignment.
Dipoto and new Diamondbacks general manager Mike Hazen first discussed the possibility of the deal at the MLB GM meetings in Arizona in early November. Talks resumed last week.
“Segura was one of the premiere offensive players in the Majors last season,” Dipoto said. “His combination of average, power and speed is extremely difficult to find, especially at a position like shortstop and at the top of our lineup. We believe pairing him with Robinson Canó gives us tremendous offensive potential in the middle of our infield.”
Segura, who turns 27 on March 17, had an outstanding year for Arizona, hitting .319 with an .867 on-base plus slugging percentage, 41 doubles, seven triples, 20 home runs, 64 RBI and 33 steals in 153 games. Segura hit leadoff in 147 games for Arizona, ranking first in hits (198), tied for first in triples (7), second in total bases (310), tied for second in homers (20), third in RBI (63) and fifth in average (.319) among NL leadoff hitters.
Segura is arbitration eligible and projected to make $7.3 million next season. The Mariners will have club control of Segura through the 2018 season.Comment -
Happy thanksgiving allComment -
I have no idea on who got the better of that M's and D-backs trade. Seems like the M's sold low on Walker and the D-backs sold high on Segura.Comment -
Twins need a lot more help than Castro!Comment -
The Braves have agreed to a 2-year deal with Sean Rodriguez, pending a physical. Rodriguez had career highs in all 3 slashline stats (.270/.349/.510). His 18 HR were also a career high. Rodriguez started at least 5 games al each infield position, along with 13 games in RF and 3 games in LF (he played 5 in CF, all off the bench).Comment -
- The Nationals could use a right-handed power bat and/or first base help given Ryan Zimmerman’s injury history, though the biggest option in both categories (Edwin Encarnacion) isn’t likely to be a possibility. Janes notes that the Nats haven’t made much contact with Encarnacion’s agents, and he is an imperfect fit since Washington is still counting on Zimmerman (who is too expensive to bench) as a regular. Janes cites Jose Bautista, Carlos Beltran, Matt Holliday and Brandon Moss as potential Nationals targets who would bring an ability to help out in the outfield, though she notes that most of this group would be better suited to an AL team that can provide DH at-bats.
- Stephen Drew is getting some attention from teams as an everyday player, which could make a return to the Nationals unlikely given the team’s infield depth. Drew hit .266/.339/.524 over 165 PA for D.C. last season, splitting time between second, third and shortstop. If Drew goes leave, Wilmer Difo is the top choice as the new utility infielder and Clint Robinson would become Washington’s top left-handed bench bat.
- In another piece, Janes reports that the Nationals haven’t had many talks with Wilson Ramos’ camp in the last couple of weeks. The two sides were scheduled to touch base at the GM Meetings, though apparently little has taken place since, leaving the Nats still looking for a catcher in a thinning market (as Brian McCann and Jason Castro have been removed from the board). Since there’s still quite a bit of uncertainty about how much of the 2017 season Ramos will miss due to his ACL surgery, he could get more attention from Washington and other teams once his recovery timeline is more clearly established.
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Wish it were spring training already.Comment -
Rose to appear at Redsfest in December
CINCINNATI -- Reds Hall of Famer and all-time hits leader Pete Rose will be appearing at Redsfest for the first time, the club announced on Wednesday.
Rose will be making his appearances on Dec. 2-3 during the annual event at the Duke Energy Convention Center. He is attending on behalf of the Reds Hall of Fame and Museum to support the "Pete Rose Hit Collection." It will be part of a fundraising campaign for the bronze sculpture of Rose that will be erected and unveiled outside Great American Ball Park on June 17, 2017.
According to the Reds' Hall of Fame, Rose has signed 4,256 baseballs -- one for each of his career hits -- that will be available for purchase. Proceeds will go towards the statue. Go to redsmuseum.org for more information.
Rose will be featured three times on the Redsfest main stage. He will appear at 5:30 p.m. ET on Dec. 2 during introductions of current and former Reds players and remain on stage at 6 p.m. for a question and answer session. Another Q&A is slated for Dec. 3 at 12:30 p.mComment -
Major League Baseball’s owners and players might not agree to a new collective bargaining agreement before the Dec. 1 expiration of the current CBA, but a lockout isn’t guaranteed if they don’t, reports Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe. Instead, business could continue under the soon-to-be old CBA as the two sides keep negotiating toward a new deal, even if doing so takes them through spring training.
Here’s more from Cafardo:
- Although there are some appealing designated hitter types on the free agent market, teams are showing interest in Tigers DH Victor Martinez, according to Cafardo. Given that the Tigers are aiming to get younger and cut payroll, trading Martinez would seem to make sense, as he’ll turn 38 in December and is owed $36MM over the next two years. However, in addition to his lofty salary, Martinez’s 10-and-5 rights could put the kibosh on a potential deal. The switch-hitter recovered from a miserable 2015 to slash .289/.351/.476 with 27 home runs in 610 plate appearances this past season.
- There’s a “healthy amount” of interest in free agent first baseman/DH Edwin Encarnacion, a general manager told Cafardo, who notes that a signing is unlikely until there’s clarification on the 2017 luxury-tax threshold. “Normally, teams would be very aggressive in getting both of these hitters signed, but right now you have to stay back a little,” an AL GM said in regards to Encarnacion and outfielder Yoenis Cespedes. FanRag’s Jon Heyman reported Saturday that the league has agreed to increase the figure from $189MM to $200MM in CBA negotiations. That could make big spenders like the Yankees and Red Sox more inclined to chase Encarnacion (and maybe Cespedes in New York’s case).
- The Yankees, Dodgers and Giants are known to be eyeing free agent closer Aroldis Chapman, and the Nationals have also emerged as a possible destination, per Cafardo. Executives around the majors expect aggressiveness from the Nats this winter, and signing Chapman to what should be a record deal for a reliever would certainly qualify as a bold move. Notably, Washington attempted to acquire Chapman from the Yankees over the summer, but he ended up with the Cubs. The Nationals then picked up Mark Melancon from the Pirates. He’s also a free agent now, leaving the Nats in need of late-game help.
- Along with the previously reported Twins, the Marlins are among the teams with interest in free agent right-hander Justin Masterson. The low-payroll, starter-needy Fish “are looking to hit the jackpot with a surprise pitcher,” writes Cafardo. The 31-year-old Masterson hasn’t pitched in the majors since an unsuccessful 59 1/3-inning run with Boston in 2015. He threw 54 1/3 frames with the Pirates’ Triple-A affiliate last season and recorded a 4.97 ERA, 5.3 K/9 and 4.31 BB/9. Shoulder and knee injuries have beset Masterson in the past, but he indicated earlier this week that he’s now healthy.
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The Nats are going to pay big, BIG, Bucks for Chapman.
Either way (Was, Yanks, SF, LAD) Chapman will be the new Highest payed closer in the game next year.Comment -
I didn't think Melancon had anything left like two years ago
been proving me wrongComment -
He's not Rivera, but you can't teach 104 mph.Comment
This could make all the difference for the Twins.