MLB Hot Stove 2023-2024

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The Braves are reportedly declining their $9 million club option on Eddie Rosario, according to reports. The decision is apparently a "close call", after Rosario hit .255/.305/.420 in 2023 for the Braves, which is a line that was exactly league average by measure of wRC+.

 

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The Arizona Diamondbacks have declined their side of a mutual option with RHP Mark Melancon. The option was valued at $5 million, but the Diamondbacks will now pay Melancon $2 million to not pitch for them in 2024. Melancon did not pitch for the Diamondbacks in 2023 thanks to a shoulder strain that cost him the entire season.

 

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The Minnesota Twins have reportedly targeted Kevin Kiermaier to address their need in centre field. Their former every-day centre fielder, Byron Buxton, did not play in centre field all season thanks to ongoing health issues, and Michael A. Taylor is a free agent. Kiermaier was his usual high quality defender in centre field for the Blue Jays this season, and won a Gold Glove in the American League in the position while hitting .265/.322/.419 over 408 plate appearances.

Shohei Ohtani's free agency takes center stage at MLB's GM meetings

The temperature gets turned up on Major League Baseball's hot stove with the GM Meetings this week in Arizona.

www.usatoday.com

 

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The Toronto Blue Jays have exercised their two-year club option on RHP Chad Green. He will now earn $21 million across 2024-2025. Green signed a contract with an unusual structure last off-season. It offered the Blue Jays a three-year, $27 million option that would convert into a one-year, $6.5 million player option if the Blue Jays declined their option. If Green then declined his option, the Blue Jays would have a final two-year, $21 million option, which they have evidently exercised.

 

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Michael Conforto has exercised his player option to stay with the Giants for another season. He will be paid a salary of $18 million.

 

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RHP Adam Ottavino has declined his player option and will return to free agency rather than to the Mets. He could have stayed with the Mets through a $6.75 million player option. Ottavino turns 38 later this month.

 

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The San Diego Padres have made qualifying offers to free agent LHP Blake Snell and free agent LHP Josh Hader. RHP Michael Wacha, RHP Seth Lugo and RHP Nick Martinez have all elected free agency.

 

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Although it was reportedly a close-run thing, the Braves have elected to exercise their club option on RHP Charlie Morton and will reportedly decline their option on RHP Kirby Yates. Morton will be paid $20 million by the Braves in 2024. Yates will receive a $1.25 million buyout in lieu of a $5.75 million salary.

 

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For reasons that escape me (actually, it's probably because he's the only person who would agree to take on the role), the Oakland Athletics have exercised their option on retaining Mark Kotsay as manager for 2025.

A's exercise manager Kotsay's option for 2025

Despite the A’s coming off a second consecutive 100-loss season and finishing with the worst record in the Majors, general manager David Forst praised manager Mark Kotsay for his ability to navigate a young and inexperienced team through a challenging year. On Monday, the A’s reaffirmed their...

www.mlb.com

 

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Seven players ended up receiving qualifying offers from their teams, according to Jeff Passan. The players are as follows:

• Shohei Ohtani (SP/OF/DH) - Los Angeles Angels;
• Cody Bellinger (CF/1B) - Chicago Cubs;
• Matt Chapman (3B) - Toronto Blue Jays;
• Sonny Gray (SP) - Minnesota Twins;
• Josh Hader (CP) - San Diego Padres;
• Aaron Nola (SP) - Philadelphia Phillies; and
• Blake Snell (SP) - San Diego Padres.

It is expected that none of the players who received qualifying offers will accept them, and all will test free agency.

The list confirms that players who were eligible to receive qualifying offers such as Teoscar Hernandez (Mariners), Mitch Garver (Rangers), J.D. Martinez (Dodgers) and Rhys Hoskins (Phillies) did not receive them.

The deadline to offer qualifying offers has now passed, which means that every free agent is allowed to commence negotiations with teams other than their own.

Although it is virtually certain that none of the players will return to their clubs on the basis of the qualifying offer, the qualifying offer does offer upside to the club extending the offer. In the case of Sonny Gray, for example, should he sign a contract with a guarantee of at least $50 million, then the Twins (since they receive revenue sharing) will receive a compensatory pick that will fall after the first round in the 2024 draft. The Cubs, as a team that neither receives sharing nor paid the luxury tax, would receive a compensatory pick that falls between Competitive Balance Round B and the start of the third round for Bellinger. The Padres, Blue Jays and Phillies can expect a draft choice between rounds 4 and 5 as compensation for the loss of their free agents, while the Angels will receive either a pick before the third round (if they are determined not to have crossed the luxury tax threshold) or after the fourth (if they did cross the threshold) if Ohtani leaves.

 

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The Chicago White Sox have signed Cleveland Indians legend Grady Sizemore as a outfield and baserunning coach. The White Sox did not have a dedicated coach for either role last season, so Sizemore will not be replacing anyone currently on staff.

 

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David Ross, who was unceremoniously dumped by the Cubs as manager to sign Craig Counsell to the richest managerial contract in MLB history, may yet end up landing on his feet, with reports suggesting that he is now a candidate to fill the vacant managerial role at the Padres. Before Counsell shocked the baseball world by signing with the Cubs as manager, the Padres had narrowed their search to four candidates - Mike Shildt (internal candidate), Ryan Flaherty (internal candidate), Benji Gil (Angels) and Carlos Mendoza (Yankees). The latter has subsequently signed to be the Mets' new manager.

Padres’ list of finalists for vacant manager’s job down to three (plus a possible twist)

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Any time now, the Padres will have a new manager.The team has interviewed four candidates and did not plan to interview more — until a wild Monday morning …

www.sandiegouniontribune.com

 

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LHP Drew Smyly exercised his player option to return to the Cubs, on an $8.5 million salary (and he is guaranteed a buy-out of $2.5 million on a mutual option for 2025). This was an easy decision for Smyly to make, after he ended up allowing five earned runs per nine across 142 1/3 innings for the Cubs in 2023. He was moved to the bullpen by the Cubs in August, which helped him, as he lowered his ERA to 2.51 through 28 2/3 innings of relief.

 

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Over the weekend, the Detroit Tigers traded for 1B/OF Mark Canha from the Brewers, in exchange for minor league reliever Blake Holub. The Tigers subsequently announced that they have exercised the $11.5 million club option on Canha (a provision that the Tigers inherited from the Mets via the Brewers, as part of the two-year, $26.5 million free agent contract Canha signed with the Mets last off-season).

The Tigers also announced that they had exercised the club option on catcher Carson Kelly, worth $3.5 million for 2024.

 

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The Angels hire Ron Washington as their manager. With Dusty Baker now retired, Ron Washington takes over the mantle as the oldest current manager. Washington last managed between 2007-2014 with the Texas Rangers, taking the Rangers to the AL Pennant twice and compiling a record of 664-611. He spent the last seven seasons as the third base coach for the Braves, helping them to win the 2021 World Series.

Angels turn to veteran Washington to lead club

The Angels hired Ron Washington as their new manager Wednesday, opting for an experienced and respected coach as the team prepares for the possibility of a significant overhaul if star Shohei Ohtani leaves in free agency.

www.espn.com

According to Bob Nightengale of USA Today, Washington signed a two-year contract with the Angels.

 

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The Philadelphia Phillies have found their permanent first baseman, with president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski telling reporters that Bryce Harper will be their first baseman from 2024 onwards, and that former first baseman Rhys Hoskins has been advised by the Phillies of their plans. Kyle Schwarber will stay as the every-day DH, according to Dombrowski.

 

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The Boston Red Sox are fielding trade inquiries on outfielder Alex Verdugo, according to their new chief baseball officer Craig Breslow, who spoke to reporters at the GM Meetings being held in Scottsdale Arizona for a few days. Verdugo was the subject of trade interest at the deadline during the season but ultimately the Red Sox chose to hold on to him. He is entering his final season of club control and doing so at a time when the Red Sox appear to have some depth in the outfield, with Jarren Duran, Masataka Yoshida, Wilyer Abreu and top prospect Ceddanne Rafaela all options to start in the outfield. Verdugo hit a .264/.324/.421 in 2023.

 

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After declining his option with the Marlins, the market for free agent outfielder/designated hitter Jorge Soler appears to be warming, with reports suggesting that he is drawing interest from around six teams, including the Marlins who are keen to bring Soler back on a multi-year deal. Soler hit 36 home runs in 137 games for the Marlins in 2023, and also walked at 11.4% of the time. His overall batting line of .250/.341/.512 resulted in a wRC+ of 126. Soler was primarily the Marlins' designated hitter, only playing in the outfield in 32 games in 2023. Soler previously won the World Series with the Braves in 2021, including the World Series MVP.

 

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The Blue Jays GM Ross Atkins outlined his plans for the offseason for Toronto to reporters at the GM meetings. Suffice it to say, the Jays are looking to bolster their position player depth, targeting up to four new players to sign, although they would settle for two or three. The Jays made it to the ALWC (but were swept by the Twins) and they relied on pitching and defence to get there, with their combined hitting worth wRC+ of 107 (just inside the top-10 league wide). They only scored one run in their two-game sweep at the hands of the Twins and are set to lose Matt Chapman, Brandon Belt, Whit Merrifield and Kevin Kiermaier to free agency. Chapman was the Blue Jays' every day starter at third base, while Merrifield spent time between second base and the outfield. Belt was mostly a DH but also spelled Vladimir Guerrero Jr at first base from time to time.

According to Jon Heyman, the Blue Jays have met with Matt Chapman during the GM meetings about the possibility of Chapman re-signing with the Blue Jays. Chapman started 2023 on fire but cooled off considerably as the weather heated up, and is a long way removed from his peak (in terms of hitting) while Chapman was with Oakland. He still offers significant value as a Gold Glove-calibre third baseman, but there would be some question about whether Chapman would solve the problems the Blue Jays have with their offence.

The Blue Jays also reportedly met with the representatives of Jeimer Candelario, who is a free agent after splitting his time between Washington and Chicago during 2023. Candelario would represent a significant downgrade defensively when compared to Chapman, but would offer significant upside offensively, provided that his production with the bat holds up.

Votto, Suarez on Blue Jays’ radar as search for multiple bats begins

The Blue Jays are in search of productive bats. It's been clear for months the team needs more at the plate, and at the GM Meetings on Tuesday, Ross Atkins offered the clearest look yet at how they plan to make sure that happens in 2024.

www.sportsnet.ca

Blue Jays trusting returning staff to extract more offence from core players

Assuming Mattingly doesn’t fill the managerial opening in Milwaukee, for which he’s a candidate, he’ll now head the hitting program with hitting coach Guillermo Martinez, back for a sixth season, and assistant hitting coach Hunter Mense, seeking to more effectively leverage an offence that...

www.sportsnet.ca

 

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The Cleveland Guardians have added former Oakland Athletic and Seattle Mariner Adam Oller on a minor league contract with an invitation to spring training. Oller was acquired by Oakland in the 2021-2022 off-season as part of a trade that sent Chris Bassitt to Queens. He played in parts of two seasons with Oakland and pitched a total of 94 innings between the starting rotation and their bullpen, but opponent batters hit a combined .294/.378/.556 against Oller. The A's gave up on him, designating him for assignment and was claimed off waivers by the Mariners without much success.

 

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Sonny Gray is drawing considerable interest as a free agent, including from the Phillies. The Phillies would like to retain their own starter Aaron Nola, but are likely to up their interest in Gray should Nola go elsewhere. Gray pitched 184 innings for the Twins in 2023, returning an ERA of 2.79 during that timeframe. He also pitched well in the ALWC, going five innings against the Blue Jays without giving up a run in his start. He did allow four runs in the ALDS in his only start against the Astros, all of which came in the first inning (he managed to pitch four innings in that start).

 

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We're still in that part of the offseason where teams are lining up their targets. Of note, the Yankees are looking for multiple outfielders and are reportedly targeting free agent CF Kevin Kiermaier, who had a terrific season with the Blue Jays in 2023. He signed a one-year deal with Toronto last offseason and posted 18 Defensive Runs Saved and 13 Outs Above Average in 981 innings at centre field. He also hit .265/.322/.419, stole 14 bases (from 15 attempts), hit eight home runs, 21 doubles and six triples.

What we learned about the Yankees after Day 3 of the GM meetings

Topics include silence on Juan Soto, keeping an eye on the outfield and whether Gleyber Torres will receive an extension.

theathletic.com

 

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After acquiring and then trading away Justin Verlander and Max Scherzer last season, the Mets are again looking for starting pitchers, according to their president of baseball operations David Stearns, in an interview with reporters. However, they may not necessarily be looking for the best pitchers on the free agent market.

Mets notes: No 'need' to add a No. 1 pitcher, Stearns says

The Mets have just two names penciled into the rotation for next season: Kodai Senga and Jose Quintana.

www.newsday.com

 

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The Baltimore Orioles is also another ball club looking for starting pitching and late inning reliever assistance. The Orioles figure to run out Kyle Bradish, Grayson Rodriguez and Dean Kremer in the first three spots in the rotation, while they hope to have John Means fully recovered from Tommy John surgery. Starters from 2023 Kyle Gibson and Jack Flaherty are both free agents sand may not return. The Orioles will also miss premiere closer Felix Bautista for the entirety of 2024 after he had to undergo Tommy John surgery late in the season, so they are looking for a replacement closer. The Orioles currently only have $3.5 million in guaranteed money for 2024 on their books (for James McCann and Baustita) but also have 17 players up for arbitration during the off-season (Anthony Santander, John Means, Danny Coulombe, Cedric Mullins, Austin Hays, Ryan O'Hearn, Dillon Tate, Jorge Mateo, Ryan Mountcastle, Cionel Perez, Cole Irvin, Keegan Akin, Jacob Webb, Ramon Urias, Tyler Wells, Ryan McKenna and Sam Hilliard are all arbitration-eligible players).

Here's a look at O's offseason wish list

This story was excerpted from Jake Rill's Orioles Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

www.mlb.com

 

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The White Sox will head into the 2024 season with uncertainty over their shortstop position for the first time in seven years after they recently declined their option on Tim Anderson. Although a possible reunion between Chicago and Anderson is not out of the question, it is reported that new White Sox GM Chris Getz is looking for a veteran option with good defensive skills who would be happy with a short-term deal. The intention is that this player would serve as a bridge to top prospect Colson Montgomery, who is on track to make his debut in the big show sometime in 2024.

White Sox’ shortstop focus shifting toward Colson Montgomery

“He’s a guy that is very unique and has the ability to be a special player at the major-league level,” Sox GM Chris Getz said.

chicago.suntimes.com