[stevenash]

Yanks just signed Jay Bruce to a minor league deal.
Whos next? Joey Hamilton?

[Stallion]

The Yankees will sign anyone who can hit homeruns.

[batt33]

I can see why he was frustrating to watch when he was on the Giants but he did seem to pitch better when he got to the Braves. I guess it depends which version of Melancon you get because I think he was average as a Giant but he took the closer job on the Braves and ran with it. I don't think he'll be called upon to close out games for the Padres so maybe he'll do better in a setup role.

totally agree, Melacon is much better as a setup pitcher

[BigSpoon]

Pitchers and catchers to report for several teams on Wednesday, crazy.

[Otters27]

Pitchers and catchers to report for several teams on Wednesday, crazy.

No fans correct?

[Cross]

No fans at spring training going to be a letdown.

[jrgum3]

Pitchers and catchers to report for several teams on Wednesday, crazy.

Will be interesting to see whether opening day will start on time. Just doesn't seem realistic but maybe we should be hopeful with pitchers and catchers reporting when they are supposed to.

[EmpireMaker]

Right-hander Jared Hughes has announced his retirement after 10 Major League seasons. “I’ve hung up my cleats. It was time,” the 35-year-old Hughes said on his Instagram page, joking that “they were worn out from all the sprinting.”
Originally a fourth-round pick for the Pirates in the 2006 draft, Hughes spent his first six big league seasons pitching in Pittsburgh’s bullpen, contributing heavily to their playoff teams in 2014 and 2015 (Hughes had a 2.12 ERA in 131 1/3 innings and 139 appearances over those two seasons). He then bounced around to the Brewers, Reds, Phillies, and Mets over his final four years, finishing with a 4.84 ERA over 22 1/3 frames for New York in 2020.
One of the sport’s premier grounder specialists, Hughes posted a 61.3% groundball rate over his 541 1/3 career innings — since the start of the 2011 season, he owned the third-highest grounder rate of any pitcher with at least 500 innings pitched. This helped Hughes achieve consistent success throughout his career despite the lack of the blazing fastball or big strikeout numbers one might expect from someone who cut an imposing 6’7″ frame on the mound. Hughes’ on-field numbers often outpaced his advanced metrics, and his impressive 2.96 career ERA is significantly better than his career 3.79 SIERA.

[JAKEPEAVY21]

Pitchers and catchers to report for several teams on Wednesday, crazy.

Hopefully we can get a full season with very few interruptions...

[stevenash]

No fans at spring training going to be a letdown.

At least there is a spring training.

[stevenash]

Hopefully we can get a full season with very few interruptions...

I hope so, I am spending a lot of brain power organizing by draft order.

I want the fifth overall pick, I would prefer the top four battle it out for Acuna, Tatis, Betts, and Soto.
That's the early ADP (Average Draft Position) in the NFBC. Acuna, Tatis, Betts, Soto, Trout, Cole, and then de Grom.

I want Trout if I had the fifth overall.
If Trout was gone at five, I would strongly consider Cole or de Grom with that pick..

With Trout you know exactly what you are getting, while Acuna and Tatis are bona fide studs they are both still very young, and could have a bit off year.

The more I look at it the more I think de Grom is the best starter in the majors, than Cole at #2.

[Stallion]

As long as we get a season.

[mr. leisure]

Pitchers and catchers to report for several teams on Wednesday, crazy.

We ready

[Stallion]

Hopefully the players stay safe.

[Otters27]

What spring training site did you prefer?

Arizona or Florida?

[jrgum3]

What spring training site did you prefer?

Arizona or Florida?

I've never been to spring training but if I had to pick it'd probably be Arizona where the Giants play so I could watch my team.

[EmpireMaker]

10:18pm: Pillar will earn $3.6MM this year. There is a $2.9MM player option with no buyout or a $6.4MM club option with a $1.4MM buyout for 2022, per Mark Feinsand of MLB.com.
9:40pm: It’s a $5MM guarantee that could go to $10MM over two years, Heyman tweets.
7:57pm: It’s a one-year contract, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reports.
7:38pm: The two sides have a deal, pending a physical, Andy Martino of SNY tweets. It’s expected to be a major league pact, Joel Sherman of the New York Post adds.
7:24pm: The Mets and free-agent outfielder Kevin Pillar “are in serious talks,” according to Jon Heyman of MLB Network. Pillar would be the second notable outfield addition in the past week for the Mets, who previously signed ex-Cub Albert Almora Jr.
Like Almora, Pillar would provide depth in a Mets outfield that, at least for now, is slated to start Brandon Nimmo, Michael Conforto and Dominic Smith in 2021. Of course that, could be subject to change if the Mets make another major acquisition by signing, say, Jackie Bradley Jr. – the top-ranked center fielder left in free agency – or swinging a trade for Cubs third baseman/outfielder Kris Bryant. Mets fans would probably prefer a high-profile move like that, but it’s possible the team will simply go into the year with the cast it has and a lower-cost pickup such as Pillar.
Now 32 years old, Pillar is best known for his run in Toronto from 2013-19, during which he established himself as a world-class defender in center field. Pillar spent most of 2019 as a Giant after they acquired him from the Blue Jays, and he divided last season between the Red Sox and Rockies. Statistically, Pillar’s defense isn’t at peak form (he combined for minus-6 Defensive Runs Saved and a 2.0 Ultimate Zone Rating from 2019-20), but he does carry experience at all three outfield positions.
Pillar has never been a huge offensive threat, but a team could certainly do worse than him as a reserve option. He’s a lifetime .262/.299/.408 hitter with 82 home runs and 88 stolen bases over 3,486 plate appearances. Pillar recorded a personal-best 106 wRC+ last season, when he slashed .288/.336/.462, hit six homers and swiped five bags in 223 PA.

[JAKEPEAVY21]

I hope so, I am spending a lot of brain power organizing by draft order.

I want the fifth overall pick, I would prefer the top four battle it out for Acuna, Tatis, Betts, and Soto.
That's the early ADP (Average Draft Position) in the NFBC. Acuna, Tatis, Betts, Soto, Trout, Cole, and then de Grom.

I want Trout if I had the fifth overall.
If Trout was gone at five, I would strongly consider Cole or de Grom with that pick..

With Trout you know exactly what you are getting, while Acuna and Tatis are bona fide studs they are both still very young, and could have a bit off year.

The more I look at it the more I think de Grom is the best starter in the majors, than Cole at #2.

Trout does not steal bases that much anymore.

[BigSpoon]

What spring training site did you prefer?

Arizona or Florida?

Florida for the Jays.

[stevenash]

Trout does not steal bases that much anymore.

No, but you will get 40/100 .290 +
You are guaranteed 4 out 5 categories.
The aforementioned top 3 will give you more SB's, but they could have .270 averages which will drag you down in the average category.

Speaking of 4 out of 5 categories, look at de Grom's last couple of complete seasons.
Double digit wins despite some of the crappiest run support I've ever seen.
WH/IP's under 1.0 and that's making 30 + starts, 2.00 ERA's, crazy K ratios....

It's a little better than Cole's.

[jrgum3]

No, but you will get 40/100 .290 +
You are guaranteed 4 out 5 categories.
The aforementioned top 3 will give you more SB's, but they could have .270 averages which will drag you down in the average category.

Speaking of 4 out of 5 categories, look at de Grom's last couple of complete seasons.
Double digit wins despite some of the crappiest run support I've ever seen.
WH/IP's under 1.0 and that's making 30 + starts, 2.00 ERA's, crazy K ratios....

It's a little better than Cole's.

It's hard to pass up Trout in fantasy drafts. He's a safe pick and if you can get him at number 5 you've done good.

[EmpireMaker]

Cardinals’ interest in Odorizzi is legitimate but not aggressive. Goold likens the Cards’ interest to their interest in Kyle Lohse more than a decade ago, when Lohse signed a one-year deal during Spring Training 2008 at a much lower rate than he’d initially sought in free agency. Of course, other teams would surely jump into the mix were Odorizzi to eventually settle for a one-year pact, and there’s no indication yet he plans to do so.

• James Paxton is headed back to the Mariners on a one-year deal worth $8.5MM, but he drew interest from numerous other clubs before landing that deal. The Mets offered Paxton $6MM in guarantees, tweets Mike Puma of the New York Post, and Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times writes that the M’s at one point expected the lefty to be out of their price range because of how impressive he looked during an offseason showcase. However, Divish adds that Paxton also had a desire to return to a Seattle setting where he’d previously felt comfortable and had success.
• The Red Sox were among the teams in attendance for free-agent righty Chaz Roe’s bullpen session over the weekend, Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com tweets. The 34-year-old reliever spent the previous three-plus seasons in Tampa Bay and is familiar with Red Sox chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom, who used to be a Rays executive. Roe threw only 9 1/3 innings in 2020, but he was overall a solid bullpen option as a member of the Rays, with whom he pitched to a 3.54 ERA/3.73 SIERA in 119 1/3 frames.
• The Tigers added Jose Urena to their rotation mix earlier in the offseason, but they might not be done yet. “We’re definitely looking for more pitching as we speak. I think at least one more starter would be ideal,” general manager Al Avila said Tuesday (via Evan Woodbery of MLive.com).The right-handed Urena was mostly a starter as a Marlin from 2015-20, but he could wind up in a bullpen role with the Tigers, Avila noted. For now, Urena’s a candidate to join Matthew Boyd, Spencer Turnbull and Michael Fulmer in Detroit’s starting staff. Tarik Skubal, Casey Mize, Matt Manning, Daniel Norris and Tyler Alexander are also among in-house possibilities to rack up starts this year.

[Cross]

I agree that Trout at 5 is an absolute slam dunk.

[stevenash]

There were more pitches thrown 98 MPH+ (4410) last year in the shortened 60 game season than in the entire 162 game season of 2008 (3682).

[Otters27]

I've never been to spring training but if I had to pick it'd probably be Arizona where the Giants play so I could watch my team.

I've been to Arizona to see Griffy Jr and the Mariners. Was an unreal time

[JAKEPEAVY21]

Padres signed reliever, Keone Kela, the other day.

[BigSpoon]

• The Tigers added Jose Urena to their rotation mix earlier in the offseason, but they might not be done yet. “We’re definitely looking for more pitching as we speak. I think at least one more starter would be ideal,” general manager Al Avila said Tuesday (via Evan Woodbery of MLive.com).The right-handed Urena was mostly a starter as a Marlin from 2015-20, but he could wind up in a bullpen role with the Tigers, Avila noted. For now, Urena’s a candidate to join Matthew Boyd, Spencer Turnbull and Michael Fulmer in Detroit’s starting staff. Tarik Skubal, Casey Mize, Matt Manning, Daniel Norris and Tyler Alexander are also among in-house possibilities to rack up starts this year.

Tigers GM said they were mulling a 6-man rotation this season.

[stevenash]

Padres signed reliever, Keone Kela, the other day.

I was reading that yesterday.
That's a very nice signing.
For starters (pardon the pun as he's a reliever) he's still young (27)
He was dominant with Texas a couple of years ago.
He's got a ton of experience.
I did a brief analysis on him, there's a lot to like about Kela, only one thing I don't like. (the walk ratio)
He's got a very impressive K ratio, but if you have a high K ratio and a high BB ratio, than you are throwing a shitload of pitches aren't you?

I'll tell you what's impressive, his FIP was below his ERA in 2018, that's solid.
And the number I pay attention to (the walk and hit per nine ratio) is sound (1.12)

Very nice sign.

Year	Tm	W	L	ERA	G	SV	IP	H	R	ER	HR	BB	SO	FIP	WHIP	H9	HR9	BB9	SO9	SO/W
2015	TEX	7	5	2.39	68	1	60.1	52	18	16	4	18	68	2.64	1.16	7.8	0.6	2.7	10.1	3.78
2016	TEX	5	1	6.09	35	0	34	30	23	23	6	17	45	4.56	1.382	7.9	1.6	4.5	11.9	2.65
2017	TEX	4	1	2.79	39	2	38.2	18	12	12	4	17	51	3.26	0.905	4.2	0.9	4	11.9	3
2018	TOT	3	4	3.29	54	24	52	38	19	19	5	19	66	2.97	1.096	6.6	0.9	3.3	11.4	3.47
2018	TEX	3	3	3.44	38	24	36.2	28	14	14	3	14	44	2.97	1.145	6.9	0.7	3.4	10.8	3.14
2018	PIT	0	1	2.93	16	0	15.1	10	5	5	2	5	22	2.96	0.978	5.9	1.2	2.9	12.9	4.4
2019	PIT	2	0	2.12	32	1	29.2	19	7	7	3	11	33	3.52	1.011	5.8	0.9	3.3	10	3
2020	PIT	0	0	4.5	3	0	2	3	1	1	1	1	3	8.19	2	13.5	4.5	4.5	13.5	3
6 Yrs		21	11	3.24	231	28	216.2	160	80	78	23	83	266	3.3	1.122	6.6	1	3.4	11	3.2
162 Game Avg.		6	3	3.24	68	8	64	47	24	23	7	24	78	3.3	1.122	6.6	1	3.4	11	3.2

[Stallion]

Yes Kela is a good reliever. Very under rated player

[jrgum3]

Fernando Tatis Jr. just signed a 14 year $340 million dollar extension with the Padres. Man that's good news for the Pads and their fanbase.

https://sports.yahoo.com/fernand-tat...014006398.html

[stevenash]

Fernando Tatis Jr. just signed a 14 year $340 million dollar extension with the Padres. Man that's good news for the Pads and their fanbase.

https://sports.yahoo.com/fernand-tat...014006398.html

I read that a couple of hours ago.
Good deal, SD locks him up.

[EmpireMaker]

The Padres have agreed to a historic 14-year deal with superstar Fernando Tatis Jr., according to Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune (via Twitter). It is worth a guaranteed $340MM, Robert Murray of Fansided adds on Twitter. The deal provides Tatis with full no-trade rights, MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand tweets. There’s a $10MM signing bonus.

While the deal covers a staggering number of years, it’ll only take Tatis through his age-35 season. The young superstar only just celebrated his 22nd birthday.
This pact sets a record for pre-arbitration deals by a rather healthy margin. The great Mike Trout had held the record with a $144.5MM deal. In Trout’s case, of course, the contract covered only six seasons — until it was further extended a few years later. Tatis’s guarantee falls just shy of the $360MM of additional money Trout received in the second agreement. It’s such a monster deal, in fact, that it slots in as the third-largest of any kind in baseball history.
[The 20 Largest Contracts In MLB History]
While this deal won’t change the complexion of an increasingly loaded 2021 Friars roster, it makes for a bold statement of intent by the San Diego organization. The club could’ve sat back and enjoyed Tatis while waiting to see how its roster situation evolved. Instead, the Pads have effectively declared him the franchise cornerstone for the foreseeable future.
Tatis would have reached arbitration eligibility after the 2022 season, so he was still a full campaign away from securing serious earnings. The MVP Sports client had been slated to reach free agency after the 2024 season, at which time he’d have been marketing his age-26 and beyond years.
This deal represents the culmination of a fascinating series of developments involving Tatis. At the time the Padres acquired him — in what turned out to be an all-time heist of a deal — Tatis was noteworthy mostly because of his namesake father, former big leaguer Fernando Tatis. The younger Tatis quickly blossomed into one of the game’s most-hyped prospects, though some worried about his strikeout rate and ability to stick at shortstop.
[How Did The White Sox Trade Fernando Tatis Jr.?!]
At this point in the spring of 2019, the Padres appeared set to keep up a steady building process, with Tatis opening at the Triple-A level and trying to earn his way into the majors by mid-season. Instead, the club inked Manny Machado to a $300MM pact, then went on to promote Tatis to the MLB roster to open the season. That decision seemed to some a foolhardy gambit, as even a brief delay would’ve allowed the Friars to delay Tatis’s free agency by a full season.
Now that Tatis has joined Machado to form the most expensive left side of an infield in baseball history, it’s fair to wonder if the daring promotion helped set the stage. While Tatis’s agents gained added leverage in negotiations, the good will surely helped the small-market Pads convince Tatis to commit to the organization instead of holding out for a potential bonanza in free agency.
Though Tatis has logged just 143 MLB games to this point — the product of an injury and global pandemic — he has done nothing but impress. Through 629 plate appearances, he has produced at a healthy .301/.374/.582 clip (good for a 150 wRC+) with 39 home runs and 27 stolen bases. He not only improved his plate discipline but generated much greater defensive value in his sophomore season.
Padres GM A.J. Preller had already given fans of the organization ample reason for excitement — even if it’ll still take a herculean effort to take down the perennial favorite Dodgers. Now, the Friar faithful will have the chance not only to watch one of the game’s most entertaining players, but to do so knowing there’s a real chance he’ll be a lifetime franchise icon.

[jrgum3]

I read that a couple of hours ago.
Good deal, SD locks him up.

Definitely a good deal for the Padres because it ensures the face of the franchise will be around for a very long time. I'm glad to see that small market teams like the Pads are able to take care of their star players.

[Otters27]

14 year deal. Now that's out of hand.

[JAKEPEAVY21]

Very happy to lock him up in San Diego for essentially his entire career.