Howie Kendrick retires after a 15 year career.
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Kendrick was a stud in that World Series run.Comment -
The Yankees haven’t made it any secret that their top offseason priority is to re-sign second baseman DJ LeMahieu. However, they’re facing serious competition from American League rival Toronto. The Blue Jays may be the top threat to the Yankees for LeMahieu, Jeff Passan of ESPN reports.
At last check, the Yankees and LeMahieu – a 2020 AL MVP contender and the league’s batting champion – were far apart in contract negotiations. The 32-year-old LeMahieu is reportedly seeking a five-year, $100MM contract, while the Yankees seem to be in the $75MM to $80MM range over four seasons. The two sides want to stay together, but unless they’re able to close the gap, it could open the door even more for the Blue Jays. MLBTR predicted at the outset of the offseason that the Jays would end up with LeMahieu, who would form an excellent double-play tandem with shortstop Bo Bichette. Cavan Biggio would presumably move from second to third on a Toronto team with LeMahieu, giving the club one of the league’s top infields.
Bichette would like to see LeMahieu move north, as he told teammate Ross Stripling (via Kristie Ackert of the New York Daily News): “I think DJ LeMahieu is the best hitter in baseball, and I don’t even really think it’s close, from what I’ve seen. He’s probably the No. 1 player I’d want to play with in the league. If that would happen, that would be awesome for us, but either way, man, our team’s pretty good already.”
Having gone 32-28 in 2020, the Blue Jays do look like a top contender in the AL. They finished a game behind the Yankees, though, and if they’re going to to overtake New York, it would help to steal one of its best players. The Jays are making a real effort to do just that.Comment -
Gets big-league deal with Giants
December 21, 2020
Brebbia (elbow) signed a one-year, major-league contract with the Giants on Monday.
ANALYSIS
The 30-year-old righty missed all of last season due to Tommy John surgery, a procedure he underwent in early June. The timing of the surgery means he's unlikely to be ready to return until late in the upcoming campaign. He owns a career 3.14 ERA in 175 innings of relief at the big-league level, so there's a decent chance he's a useful piece of the Giants' bullpen when he eventually arrives.
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The Blue Jays need pitching instead of LeMahieu.Comment -
The Jays still might add to their rotation as it is a priority this offseason but I would take DJ Lamahieu on my team anyday. I know I'm really high on him but he will make any lineup better and will make your defense better up the middle. If you get him and add another top of the rotation starter then the Jays are on their way to being better than the Yankees.Comment -
While Kris Bryant has been the focal point of most Cubs trade speculation this winter, MLB Network’s Jon Heyman tweets that right-hander Yu Darvish’s name “seems out there in trade talks,” though he cautions that it could be little more than a matter of due diligence as the Cubs keep an open mind. Heyman adds that he spoke to a pair of executives with two other clubs, neither of whom expects a trade to ultimately come together.
All of that said, it’s worth breaking down the Darvish scenario a bit more extensively. First and foremost, it’s not surprising to see Darvish or any other high-priced Cubs player pop up on the rumor circuit. Changes to the team’s core looked inevitable heading into the current offseason, given the dwindling control remaining for so many key players. The Cubs already non-tendered Kyle Schwarber, and ESPN’s Buster Olney reported in mid-November that the Cubs were at least open to talks on “almost” any veteran player on their club. Even prior to that, MLBTR’s Tim Dierkes laid out the possibility of a Darvish trade in his Offseason Outlook for the Cubs.
Cubs owner Tom Ricketts has publicly lamented his lack of available resources, even prior to the Covid-19 pandemic and the associated revenue losses. While few fans sympathize much with Ricketts’ efforts to explain the plight of the misunderstood MLB owner, his repeated comments are still notable and have been reflected in the team’s actions — or lack thereof. The Cubs’ lone major signing dating back to the 2018-19 offseason has been an in-season deal for Craig Kimbrel, which only came to pass after Chicago unexpectedly was spared some of its commitment to Ben Zobrist after the infielder/outfielder left the club for personal reasons. Beyond that, the Cubs’ combined spending in the 2018-19 and 2019-20 offseasons totaled just $14.25MM.
Given that context and the fact that Darvish is owed $62MM over the final three seasons of his contract, it’s only natural that the team would at least entertain offers on the righty. However, while the Darvish deal looked like a regrettable, potential albatross contract after an injury-ruined 2018 season, that’s no longer the case — and the asking price in any trade talks would surely reflect the right-hander’s turnaround.
Since that dismal first year of the contract, Darvish has not only bounced back but pitched at the most effective levels of his MLB career. Over his past 32 starts, Darvish has tallied 199 2/3 innings of 2.84 ERA/3.04 FIP ball with averages of 11.5 strikeouts and 2.4 walks per nine frames. He was dominant in 2020, posting a career-best 2.01 ERA with a 93-to-14 K/BB ratio in 76 innings en route to a second-place finish in NL Cy Young voting. Darvish also has a 12-team no-trade clause, which could throw a wrench into various potential destinations.
A trade of Darvish would serve as not only a means of shedding payroll at a time when ownership has clearly been looking to curb spending, but also as a means of adding controllable just as the team’s World Series core is on the cusp of disbanding due to free agency. It’s easy to imagine any package for Darvish beginning with an MLB-ready starter who is controlled for five-plus seasons, with multiple quality prospects and/or young big leaguers then being added to the equation. Removing the $23MM owed to Darvish in 2021 from the payroll could also free up some resources to address other needs via free agency or trade.
Viewed through that lens, a Darvish trade seems practical, if somewhat painful for a club that has been a regular presence at or near the top of the NL Central over the past half decade. On the other hand, that track record of winning and a still-talented core underline the argument against trading Darvish away.
The Cubs may have been bounced from the postseason in surprising fashion by an upstart Marlins club in 2020, but this team still finished 34-26 and won the National League Central. Schwarber’s non-tender aside, the majority of that division-winning core is intact, and rebounds for some combination of Cubs stars who struggled — Bryant, Javier Baez, Anthony Rizzo — should be expected.
Trading Darvish unequivocally weakens a roster that still looks capable of contending in a division that no team seems to want to seize. The Pirates are rebuilding. The Cardinals are paring back payroll and mulling whether they can retain icons Yadier Molina and Adam Wainwright. The Reds have cut costs considerably in the bullpen and are at least listening to offers on their top starters. The Brewers aren’t expected to spend aggressively.
Some degree of turnover and change on the Chicago roster still seems quite plausible, but it’s also possible that a continued lack of aggression in St. Louis, Cincinnati and Milwaukee could motivate the Cubs to keep the bulk of their core intact, recognizing that the NL Central appears to be largely up for grabs. The Cubs currently project to carry a payroll of about $157MM, per Roster Resource’s Jason Martinez, with only about $164MM of luxury-tax considerations on the books at the moment.Comment -
If they trade Darvish, I will be very sad.Comment -
Chi-Sox sign Yoelqui Cespedes, the half brother of Yoenis Cespedes.Comment -
Yeah it sucks when one of your favorite players gets dealt or signs somewhere else but in this case it might be good for the Cubs because they can look to spend elsewhere and Yu might begin to regress soon after signing a big contract. Still doesn't change the fact that it sucks that they will look to deal one of their best players away after he had such a good year but I think in this case it might be a good thing.Comment -
Free-agent left-hander James Paxton recently held a showcase with “as many as 20 teams” in attendance, per Jon Morosi of MLB Network. Paxton’s fastball reached 94 mph during the session, Morosi adds.
The 32-year-old Paxton is coming off a difficult season as a member of the Yankees, with whom he totaled just five starts and pitched to a 6.64 ERA/4.37 FIP over 20 1/3 innings. Paxton did post appealing strikeout and walk numbers (11.51 K/9 against 3.1 BB/9), though a fastball that has averaged upward of 95 mph throughout his career clocked in at a disappointing 92.1 in 2020. Paxton, who has dealt with several injuries in the majors, underwent back surgery last February and didn’t pitch beyond Aug. 20 because of a flexor strain. Fortunately, Paxton avoided surgery on his arm, and agent Scott Boras issued encouraging updates on his health in recent weeks.
If Paxton is at 100 percent, it’s easy to see why teams would have interest in him on what’s likely to be a fairly affordable short-term contract. Also a former Mariner, Paxton logged quality numbers from 2013-19 before enduring struggles last season. To this point, Paxton has put up an impressive 3.58 ERA/3.31 FIP with 9.9 K/9 and 2.75 BB/9 across 753 1/3 innings and 136 appearances (all starts).Comment -
Darvish starts just got me so giddy the last year and a half. Looks like my boy Peavy has a chance to get him on the Padres though! Battery mate with Benito Santiago in SD, not bad!Comment -
Paxton had trouble with the pressure in NYComment -
Pittsburgh Pirates trade Josh Bell to Washington Nationals, source says
First baseman Josh Bell has been traded from the Pittsburgh Pirates to the Washington Nationals, a source told ESPN's Jeff Passan on Thursday.
In return, the Pirates will get young pitchers Wil Crowe, who made his debut with the Nats in 2020, and Eddy Yean, the source said.
Coming off a 2019 season in which he set career highs in almost every offensive category, Bell, 28, regressed during the pandemic-shortened 2020 season, hitting .226 with eight home runs and 22 RBIs.
He made his first All-Star team in 2019, hitting .277 with 37 home runs and 116 RBIs, and got a hefty pay bump to $4.8 million while avoiding arbitration in January.
In five seasons, all with the Pirates, Bell has a .261 career batting average with 86 home runs and 309 RBIs.Comment -
Bell's got popping power.
He's a good fit in that Nat lineup.Comment
