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5:07pm: Wood will receive a $12MM guarantee, per Heyman (via Twitter).
4:12pm: The Royals have agreed to a deal with free-agent lefty Travis Wood, according to ESPN.com’s Jerry Crasnick (Twitter links). The Frontline client will receive a two-year guarantee, per Jon Heyman of Fan Rag (Twitter link). Financial terms remain unreported.
[RELATED: Updated Royals Depth Chart]
Wood, 30, is expected to receive a chance to compete for a rotation job in Kansas City, though it seems he won’t be guaranteed a particular role entering camp. The organization recently signed righty Jason Hammel to take the spot that opened with the tragic death of Yordano Ventura. The staff already included Danny Duffy, Ian Kennedy, and Jason Vargas, and the Royals added Nate Karns to the mix earlier in the winter. Presumably, Wood and Karns will battle for the final rotation slot with veteran Chris Young, with the others heading to the bullpen. (In Karns’s case, he could also open at Triple-A.)
With this latest move, Royals GM Dayton Moore has perhaps largely completed an interesting offseason in which he sought to balance salary limitations, a large slate of core players on the brink of free agency, and the unimaginable loss of Ventura. Moore and his staff engineered deals that shipped out quality, short-term assets (Wade Davis and Jarrod Dyson) in exchange for controllable MLB players who come with upside but aren’t yet fully established (Jorge Soler and Karns). With the unexpected need to move on Hammel, the club has already driven its payroll right up to its record-setting 2016 level, and the signing of Wood will seemingly push it past that previous high-water mark.
Though he waited quite a while to sign, Wood drew strong interest throughout the winter. Clubs were seemingly intrigued by his ability to provide quality innings out of the pen or return to the rotation. Last year, he ran up a 2.95 ERA in his 61 frames for the Cubs — an exact match for his earned run average when working out of the pen in the prior year, when he made the transition after scuffling early as a starter. Of course, the real advance that Wood showed in 2015 was a leap in his swinging-strike (9.8%) and strikeout (10.6 K/9) rates. Both were easily career highs, but Wood fell back to typical numbers in his most recent season (6.5%; 6.9 K/9).
There’s little question that Wood was fortunate last year in the batted ball department, too, as opposing batters reached base on just .215 of the balls they put in play. And he still coughed up a few too many walks (3.5 BB/9) while generating a pedestrian groundball rate (37.4%). But there were some positives beyond the bottom-line results. In particular, as MLBTR’s Connor Byrne has noted, Wood exceeded his typically strong performance in generating infield pop-ups, posting one of the game’s best rates (17.8%). He also averaged just over 90 mph with his fastball, which is an unremarkable number in its own right but matched a career high for the soft-tossing southpaw. And Wood continued to baffle opposing lefties, who have compiled a paltry .206/.276/.316 slash against him over 949 total plate appearances.
Wood’s history as a starter likely contributed just as much to his value on the market. To be sure, it has been some time since he turned in a fully productive season out of the rotation, and his excellent 2013 season (exactly 200 innings of 3.11 ERA ball) looks more like an aberration than any kind of reasonable expectation going forward. But Wood has demonstrated an ability to churn out useful innings from the rotation, and seems to be a good bet to continue his strong health record over the two years of his new contract.Comment -
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Mets pitchers Steven Matz (left) and Jacob deGrom on Monday, Feb. 13, 2017, during a spring training workout in Port St. Lucie, Florida. Photo Credit: Newsday / Alejandra Villa
HIGHLIGHTS
- Mets’ chances tied to the well-being of Noah Syndergaard, Matt Harvey, Jacob deGrom, Steven Matz and Zack Wheeler
- Terry Collins says starters will have throwing limits early in spring training
PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. — Nobody could remember for sure the last time it happened.
Matt Harvey guessed it was about a year ago, in spring training. Zack Wheeler thinks it may have been sometime early last season. Noah Syndergaard couldn’t be certain that it had ever happened at all, at least when healthy.
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When was the last time that the Mets’ young guns had assembled at the same time, at the same place?
“Altchek’s office, I think,” manager Terry Collins joked, a reference to the team doctor who hasn’t been hurting for business, David Altchek.
They gathered here on Sunday, formerly the collective future of the Mets, currently its fragile present, sharing the same space, sharing the same burden, sharing the same desire to finally demonstrate all that they can do, together.
Vote
Which Mets pitcher will make the most starts this season?
Noah Syndergaard (87)
61%
Jacob deGrom (33)
23%
Matt Harvey (7)
5%
Steven Matz (4)
3%
Zack Wheeler (2)
1%
Robert Gsellman (4)
3%
Seth Lugo (3)
2%
Someone else (2)
1%
“Walking in for the first time, and seeing the five of us have lockers lined up like that, it’s exciting,” Harvey said on Monday. “It’s motivation to stay healthy and kind of go through, like I said probably 100 times in this interview, the process of spring training.”
Over time, the Mets’ stable of power arms has taken on only a mythical quality. They have been to this point merely an intriguing idea, injuries and circumstance separating a grand vision from reality. But as another new season dawns, the Mets’ chances to win a World Series are tied to the health of Harvey, Syndergaard, Wheeler, Steven Matz and Jacob deGrom.
Things have changed somewhat, of course. For instance, Collins expects that Wheeler will compete for a spot in the rotation. A rocky rehab from Tommy John surgery has sidelined him for two years. Seth Lugo and Robert Gsellman proved to be capable fill-ins last season. They will get a shot, too.
“Right now, because he hasn’t pitched in so long, it’s an open competition,” Collins said. “It’s not just that Zack hasn’t pitched in so long, but it’s pretty fresh in my mind what I saw Robert Gsellman and Seth Lugo do. So, I think they need to be in that mix.”
Meanwhile, Wheeler will face innings limits that could even send him to the bullpen. But both Wheeler and the Mets agree: He is still viewed as a starter.
David LennonLennon: Harvey, Mets hoping for drama-free 2017
And in that way, the Mets’ position hasn’t changed. The franchise has again invested its hopes in starting pitching, and they’ve responded accordingly.
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In his first news conference of spring training, Collins established new parameters geared toward keeping their arms healthy. The Mets and pitching coach Dan Warthen are instituting stricter throwing limits during the earliest stages of camp, when players may be more vulnerable to injuries.
“When you’re talking about the injuries that occur to pitchers, a lot of it has to do with the fact that perhaps we throw too much, too early,” Collins said. “We’re not going to do that this year. You’ll see tomorrow: There will be no throwing during drills.”
By the manager’s calculations, pitchers will save about 100 throws per day early in camp. Pitchers will play catch near the end of the day rather than earlier, another change to cut down on workload. In addition, Collins said pitchers will get extra rest between throwing sessions off the mound.
The Mets will ramp up as the regular season draws near. But there will be no rush. The goal is for a gradual buildup.
MetsMets spring training 2017
For now, all are healthy. Harvey is coming off surgery for thoracic outlet syndrome while deGrom had a nerve issue in his elbow corrected with an operation. Matz had a painful bone spur removed and Wheeler is nearly two years removed from ligament replacement.
All four on Monday said that they had typical offseasons, their preparations unhindered by their various maladies. All declared they are healthy.
Now, the Mets must keep it that way.
“With what happened last year, they’re more willing to buy into some ideas of how to stay healthy this year as opposed to last year,” Collins said. “When you’re young and strong, you think you’re invincible. We found out they’re not.”Comment -
Travis Wood's preference is to start, and he's likely to get that opportunity in Kansas City after signing a two-year contract with the Royals.
Wood joins a rotational mix that already included Danny Duffy, Ian Kennedy, Jason Vargas, Jason Hammel, Nate Karns and Chris Young, so manager Ned Yost will have some decisions to make at the back end as Kansas City's camp gets under way in Arizona.Comment -
Travis Wood, going to miss him. That guy is a real warrior!Comment -
Talks of Goldy on the trading block if the Dbacks come out shitty before the All-Star break. Dbacks farm system is horrendous.Comment -
Mets Pitching Staff on paper looks unbelievable. Lets see if they can stay healthy and fully meet expectations.Comment -
Mets could be World Series bound if the young guns stay healthy. Unfortunately, all five starters carry red flags so we shall see.Comment -
Mets rotation just not the same without Bartolo...Comment -
Best rotation on paper the last three seasons.Comment -
Harvey is the huge question mark.Comment -
Free-agent righty Colby Lewis bid adieu to the Rangers organization in a statement to reporters, including Anthony Andro (Twitter link). Though he has still yet to sign, it seems that there’s now no possibility of a reunion with Texas. Lewis, 37, did not suggest that he’s planning to retire, though he has yet to find a roster spot with camps opening around the league. The veteran right-hander posted a solid 3.71 ERA in 116 2/3 innings last season, but he struggled upon returning from a lat strain that sidelined him for nearly two months. Beyond that, ERA alternatives like FIP, xFIP and SIERA all felt he was fortunate to get through the season with that 3.71 mark, as he posted an abnormally low BABIP while his strikeout, walk and home-run rates each trended in the wrong direction.
A few more notes on the waning market for arms…
- If there was any doubt, former Angels righty Jered Weaver made clear recently to teammates that he won’t be back with the Halos, as Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register reports (Twitter links). Right-hander Garrett Richards told reporters that Weaver recently sent out a group text telling his now-former teammates what a pleasure it was to play alongside them. Said Richards of receiving the text: “After that went out, everything was put into perspective that he wasn’t coming back… It’s going to be weird.” Weaver has been connected to the Padres on multiple occasions, though a union between the two sides has not yet commenced. It’s possible that he could latch on there or with another club, as multiple teams are still seeking depth, and injuries are sure to continue to arise as Spring Training gets underway.
- Justin Masterson worked out for eight teams in Phoenix, Ariz. earlier today, per ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick (Twitter link). He’ll pitch again for some clubs on Friday, Crasnick adds. The Twins were reportedly in attendance for today’s session, though it’s not clear which other clubs were present. Masterson’s last productive MLB campaign came back in 2013, as injuries have hampered his results in recent years. He struggled with Pittsburgh’s Triple-A affiliate last season, but at age 31 (32 in March), he’s hardly old enough to doubt the possibility of a successful comeback effort.
- The Cubs passed on matching the Royals’ offer to Travis Wood and on matching the recent commitments made to Jerry Blevins (by the Mets) and Boone Logan (by the Indians) in large part because they’re saving their resources for the summer trade market, writes CSN Chicago’s Patrick Mooney. “There were some relievers who became available on shorter deals late that we were interested in early on (with) those types of deals,” said president of baseball ops Theo Epstein. “But they weren’t really ready to commit yet to the shorter deal. And then by the time it rolled around late in the offseason, we kind of spent our money.” Epstein specifically cited a desire for “flexibility for in-season moves” and added that the baseball operations department had some “self-imposed limitations” late in the winter. As such, it doesn’t sound as if Cubs fans should expect much in the way of significant additions to the roster between now and Opening Day.
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so colby lewis is still out thereComment -
Padres have a very rare utility player in Christian Bethancourt who might play catcher, outfield and relief pitcher.Comment -
Cardinals pitcher Alex Reyes will undergo season ending Tommy John surgery. http://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/1...y-john-surgeryComment -
I'm guessing the Mets bring Wheeler along slow so that he gets the bulk of his innings in the second half since he will be on an innings limit. I hope he doesn't get/have bone spurs in his elbow.
PORT ST. LUCIE — Zack Wheeler has already hit a pothole in his attempt to rejoin the Mets, after nearly two years of rehabbing from Tommy John surgery.
The righty had “tenderness” in his elbow following a recent throwing session, according to pitching coach Dan Warthen, but has not suffered a setback. A checkup indicated Wheeler likely has scar tissue in the joint.
Wheeler is expected to play catch Thursday to test the elbow and then throw from the bullpen the following day if there is no discomfort.
“We’re not going to push it because we want to see this kid healthy — and once we get healthy, we want him to stay healthy — so we’ll have kid gloves with him,” Warthen said Wednesday.
Another club official said Wheeler’s discomfort likely stems from exerting himself for the first time since last August, when he was shut down in his rehab after a series of setbacks.
The Mets face a dilemma in how to use Wheeler, who is facing a cap in the low-100-innings range for this season, according to Warthen.
Team brass is hesitant to use Wheeler from the bullpen, but also doesn’t want to face a situation in which the pitcher needs to be shut down after the All-Star break because he’s reached his innings cap.
“A number of us would like to see him go out there every fifth day for 25 starts and put that extra starter in there once a month, limit [Wheeler] to five innings, and that puts him for 125 [innings] so we have enough pitches in September if we need him,” Warthen said. “Then possibly October and then you can stretch it a little bit from there, but making sure it stays and now he understands that if we say it, now it has to go that way. Five innings would be the max if we had to make him a starter.”
And there seems to be concern over whether Wheeler could handle the mental grind of the bullpen.
“I think it would be difficult for him to go out there as a reliever,” Warthen said. “Because if he didn’t have success, I think it would be difficult doing something that he has never done before and having to come back.”Comment -
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Ah he'll be fine. At least he's getting it over with now, should be back to near normal by mid-season 2018. Seems like lately I've noticed more pitchers trying to stall getting TJ and hoping it heals instead. It doesn't, then they wasted 4-6 months.Comment -
Last week, Mike Ozanian of Forbes reported that Marlins owner Jeffrey Loria had a “handshake agreement” in place to sell the team to a New York-based real estate developer, which was later reported (by Steven Wine of the Associated Press) to be Joshua Kushner — the brother of Jared Kushner, who serves as a senior advisor to his father-in-law, president Donald Trump.
In a new and fairly astonishing wrinkle to the story, Daniel Halper of the New York Post reports that White House Chief of Staff Reince Priebus pushed for and received sign-off to name Loria the United States ambassador to France. The decisions were made without the approval of Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, sources tell Halper, despite the fact that Tillerson was promised a say in the appointment of ambassadors.
In response to this story, the the Kushner group issued a statement to the press suggesting that it will not pursue the purchase of the Marlins if Loria is indeed a nominee or appointee to that post. Via Maggie Haberman of the New York Times (on Twitter):
“Our family has been friends with Jeff Loria for over 30 years, been in business together, and even owned an AAA baseball team together. Although the Kushners have made substantial progress in discussions for us to purchase the Marlins, recent reports suggest that Mr. Loria will soon be nominated by the President to be Ambassador to France. If that is true, we do not want this unrelated transaction to complicate that process and will not pursue it. The Kushners remain interested in purchasing a team and would love to buy the Marlins at another time.”
The potential appointment of Loria is just the latest complication in the potential sale. The initial report of the agreement noted that the Kushner group does not currently have enough liquid assets to meet the $1.6 billion price point that the two sides have reportedly agreed upon. Beyond that, Charles Kushner — Joshua’s father — served a two-year prison sentence last decade, which could have proved problematic when the Kushner group sought ownership approval from the office of Major League Baseball commissioner Rob Manfred. Furthermore, the commissioner’s office released a statement shortly after the initial wave of reports which indicated that it had “not heard directly or indirectly of any conversation involving Charles Kushner.”
Wine’s report indicated that the deal between Loria and Joshua Kushner was made independently of Charles or Jared Kushner, though certainly one would imagine that the Manfred’s approval process would’ve nonetheless been extensive given the circumstances.Comment -
this day and age it seems rare at the MLB level. they sometimes even come back with extra zip on their fastball, but have to re learn some control.
I can't think of any examples off hand of MLB guys that didn't make it back.
I'd say most guys get it in their minor league career before ever making it to the bigs, so I can't speak to how many of those guys don't make it back. or make it back but don't really get back to their previous levelComment -
Blue Jays sign P Mat Latos to a minor league deal. http://www.sportsnet.ca/baseball/mlb...der-mat-latos/Comment -
At least the cards have Fowler.Comment
