MLB Hot Stove 2023-2024

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The Washington Nationals seem to be another team looking to build strength in depth in their pitching. According to their president of baseball operations, Mike Rizzo, the Nationals will be hunting for both starting pitching and relief pitching, as well as a middle-of-the-order bat.

The Nationals still have Stephen Strasburg on their roster, but it is clear that Strasburg is not able to pitch any more thanks to his battle with thoracic outlet syndrome. He and the Nationals held negotiations on a retirement deal before the end of the season, but the Nationals evidently walked away from the negotiations and he was activated from the IL earlier in the week (as per MLB rules).

Currently, putting Strasburg to one side, the Nationals have a rotation consisting of Patrick Corbin, Josiah Gray, MacKenzie Gore, Jake Irvin and Travor Williams. Corbin has been fairly ineffective, but his contract (with a guarantee of $35 million in 2024) makes him immovable so he will be pencilled in as a starter with the hope that he can at least chew through some innings for the Nationals.

According to reports, the Nationals have fielded inquiries on RHP Kyle Finnegan and RHP Hunter Harvey, who are both in the Nationals bullpen. Finnegan finished 2023 with a 3.76 ERA and picked up 28 saves in the process. Harvey had an ERA of 2.82, 10 saves and 19 holds for the Nationals. Both are under club control through the end of 2025 via arbitration.

 

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The Astros GM Dana Brown acknowledged to reporters at the GM Meetings that, while the Astros have several needs thanks to impending free agency to key pieces of their bullpen in particular, the Astros do not have a lot of financial flexibility to address those needs. The Astros will see Hector Neris, Phil Maton and Ryne Stanek all test free agency, while Michael Brantley is also set to hit free agency. Their starting rotation has been hit by injury (Lance McCullers Jr and Luis Garcia) while their depth has not proved reliable.

The Astros have expressed interest in reuniting with veteran catcher Martin Maldonado, with Brown having already met with Maldonado's agent, Dan Lozano, during the GM meetings. The Astros tabbed Yainer Diaz as their primary catcher for 2024, but the Astros are looking for a veteran catcher to back up Diaz.

Dana Brown has also held conversations with representatives of Hector Neris about returning to the club in 2024. Neris turned down a player option worth $8.5 million and although he is 34 years old, the expectation is that Neris should be able to secure a multi-year deal on the open market after pitching to an ERA of under 2.00 with the Astros in 2023.

Boras: Astros have reached out about Jose Altuve extension, but no talks yet

Astros GM Dana Brown also expressed interest in an Alex Bregman extension, though his situation is significantly different.

theathletic.com

Astros open to adding rotation piece under right circumstances

GM Dana Brown likes the starters he has coming back, including Luis Garcia and Lance McCullers Jr. at some juncture, but isn't being close-minded.

www.houstonchronicle.com

 

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Kiley McDaniel has posted his article on ESPN previewing free agency, providing his estimates on the contracts that the top 50 free agents are likely to receive.

10 years, $520 million?! Rankings, contract projections for the top 50 MLB free agents

How much will the biggest stars get paid this winter? Kiley McDaniel breaks down this year's free agent class.

www.espn.com

Rank	Player	Years/Money
1	Shohei Ohtani (DH/OF/RHP)	10 years, $520 million
2	Yoshinobu Yamamoto (RHP)	7 years, $212 million
3	Blake Snell (LHP)	6 years, $150 million
4	Cody Bellinger (CF/1B)	7 years, $147 million
5	Aaron Nola (RHP)	5 years, $120 million
6	Jordan Montgomery (LHP)	5 years, $106 million
7	Josh Hader (LHP)	5 years, $105 million
8	Matt Chapman (3B)	4 years, $100 million
9	Eduardo Rodriguez (LHP)	4 years, $72 million
10	Sonny Gray (RHP)	3 years, $69 million

 

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The San Diego Padres organisation are mourning the death of owner Peter Seidler who died on Tuesday in San Diego at the age of 63. The cause of death was not immediately disclosed. Seidler had previously undergone treatment for non-Hodgkin's lymphoma twice and had also undergone an unspecified medical procedure in August that caused him to cease attending games from September onwards.

Seidler was the grandson of Brooklyn Dodgers' owner Walter O'Malley, who was responsible for driving the move of the Dodgers from Brooklyn to Los Angeles. Seidler was the nephew of Peter O'Malley who took over the Dodgers after Walter's death and oversaw the Dodgers World Series wins in 1981 and 1988.

Seidler co-founded Seidler Equity Partners in 1992, a private equity investment firm which manages more than $5 billion in assets, according to the Padres. Seidler formed an ownership group to buy the Padres in 2012, including his uncle Peter O'Malley who left the Dodgers in the late 1990s. Seidler took over as chairperson of the Padres in 2020 after Ron Fowler stepped down, and the Padres immediately began to spend money on signing free agents, including Yu Darvish, Blake Snell and Joe Musgrove, as well as trading for Juan Soto and signing Xander Bogaerts among other free agents. Seidler is survived by his wife, Sheel, and three children, as well as nine siblings and his mother.

Peter Seidler, Big-Spending San Diego Padres Owner, Dies at 63

Under his leadership, the team’s payroll grew to one of the largest in Major League Baseball. But a championship proved elusive.

www.nytimes.com

 

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The Brewers appear to be promoting from within in order to replace former manager Craig Counsell. It appears that longtime bench coach Pat Murphy is in line to take over the role. The Brewers had considered candidates such as Blue Jays bench coach Don Mattingly, Dodgers first base coach Clayton McCullough, Rickie Weeks and Astros hitting coach Troy Snitker. It also appears that Weeks will be joining the Brewers but his title is not yet known. Weeks was the second overall pick in the 2003 draft and played 11 seasons in Milwaukee, as well as the Mariners, Diamondbacks and Rays before ending his playing career in 2017.

Brewers promote Pat Murphy to manager

MILWAUKEE -- The Brewers have long prioritized continuity in their staffing decisions, and they are putting that philosophy to use in the choice of their new manager. The club made it official on Wednesday by promoting Pat Murphy to manager after he served as Milwaukee’s bench coach for the past

www.mlb.com

 

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It has been reported that a decision on Shohei Ohtani's playing future is expected before the winter meetings kick off in early December. Clubs such as the Dodgers, Rangers and Red Sox have been linked with Ohtani, while the Mariners have also expressed a desire to bring in a designated hitter who "just goes out and bangs". Ohtani officially rejected his qualifying offer from the Angels earlier today, which was a foregone conclusion given that he will not pitch in 2024 thanks to the surgery he recently undertook to repair an injury to his elbow ligament in his pitching arm.

Passan predicts the MLB offseason: From the big names to know to when Ohtani actually could sign

Here are the players, teams and themes that will dominate the hot stove headlines.

www.espn.com

Dipoto sheds light on keys to Mariners' offseason

This story was excerpted from Daniel Kramer’s Mariners Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

www.mlb.com

 

[RPCB]

Baltimore fans right now:

It sounds like Angelos is selling!



… to an investment group

 

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The Padres, Dodgers and Giants are among the clubs interested in signing free agent LHP Blake Snell, according to Jon Heyman of the NY Post. Snell is among the favourites for the NL Cy Young award after a season where he made 32 starts for a 2.25 ERA, with a 31.5% strikeout rate.

 

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The MLB is considering a reduction of the pitch clock with runners on base, according to ESPN's Jeff Passan. In 2023, pitchers were allowed 20 seconds with runners on base, but the proposal would reduce that time to 18 seconds in 2024. The 15-second clock with bases empty will not be changed.

Sources: MLB mulls tweaks to pitch clock rules

MLB is weighing a proposal that would reduce the pitch clock with runners on base from 20 seconds to 18 next season, sources told ESPN.

www.espn.com

 

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The San Diego Padres have claimed RHP Logan Gillaspie off waivers from the Boston Red Sox, according to the Red Sox. The Padres have several open spots on their 40-man roster so they do not need to create space for him. Gillaspie spent only a couple of months with Boston after being claimed off waivers in early September from the Orioles. Gillaspie pitched 4 1/3 innings with Boston's Triple-A affiliate and now heads cross country to join the Padres.

 

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Aaron Nola turned down the Phillies' qualifying offer and is now a free agent. The Phillies have indicated publicly that they would love to see Nola back at Citizens Bank Park in 2024 and beyond, although there is speculation in the media that the Phillies may not try too hard to bring Nola back, given that the two sides remained far apart during negotiations during spring training on a contract extension. Nola is thought to be in position to demand a seven year contract given the interest in him from around the league and the Phillies may not be prepared to give him a contract of such length.

Dave Dombrowski told reporters last week that the Phillies are looking to re-sign Nola as their first option to complete their starting rotation, with Zack Wheeler, Ranger Suarez and Taijuan Walker already locked in to the rotation, while Cristopher Sanchez is likely to get more innings in 2024 after pitching 99 1/3 innings in 2023 for an ERA of 3.44.

Dave Dombrowski on Phillies' season, Harper at first | 11/09/2023

Dave Dombrowski joins the show to talk about the Phillies' successful season, Bryce Harper playing first base and more

www.mlb.com

 

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The Cleveland Guardians have designated RHP Cal Quantrill for assignment, according to a team announcement. Quantrill has pitched in multiple MLB seasons and was locked into a starting spot in the Cleveland rotation heading into the 2023 season. However, he struggled in an injury-shortened year and was due for a pay rise in arbitration this off-season.

Any team that makes a claim on him during the waiver process would control Quantrill for two more years via arbitration, but it is expected that he would command a salary in the vicinity of $6.6 million for 2024.

 

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We're all still waiting for the first major domino of the 2023-2024 off-season to fall.

The Mets have apparently signalled their interest in free agent RHP Luis Severino, who most recently pitched for the Yankees. It doesn't seem likely that Severino will return to the Yankees, but at least eight other teams appear to be interested in signing him. The Yankees signed him to a four-year, $40 million contract prior to the 2019 season, and didn't get much return for their investment. Tommy John surgery wiped out most of the value of this contract, with Severino only pitching 18 innings between 2019-2021. He pitched 102 innings in 2022, returning an ERA of 3.18. The Yankees thought well enough of Severino to exercise their club option on him for 2023, but Severino pitched 89 1/3 innings for an ERA of 6.65, with his time on the mound curtailed by an oblique strain and a lat strain.

Mets musings: Luis Severino could be a target, Daniel Vogelbach gets non-tendered

Plus notes on the Mets' pursuit of Yoshinobu Yamamoto and which outfielder they could look to acquire from Tampa Bay.

theathletic.com

 

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The Cincinnati Reds have long been rumoured to be open to trading infielder Jonathan India, given their glut of young and talented infielders, but their President of Baseball Operations Nick Krall downplayed the prospect of India departing via trade when speaking to the Cincinnati Enquirer and other reporters on Friday.

Nick Krall: Jonathan India ‘guy who fits here’; Cincinnati Reds not motivated to trade him

On the day Cincinnati Reds president Nick Krall cut ties with one former top prospect, he spoke on the value of '21 Rookie of the Year Jonathan India.

www.cincinnati.com

 

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With the success that Ichiro enjoyed in the Pacific Northwest as a member of the Mariners, it had been expected that the Mariners would participate in the Shohei Ohtani sweepstakes. However, "industry sources" have indicated that the Mariners have determined that landing Ohtani is not within their realistic agenda for the off-season.

Why Ohtani may not be part of Mariners' plans

This story was excerpted from Daniel Kramer’s Mariners 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 Kansas City Royals have signed former Yankee RHP Luis Cessa to a minor league contract in a hope that he can be reclaimed. Cessa pitched as both a starter and a reliever for the Yankees and Reds in 2021, achieving an ERA of 2.51 in 64 2/3 innings. Used as a starter by the Reds in 2023, he struggled hard, giving up an ERA of 9.00 over 26 innings before being released by the Reds in May. He signed a couple of minor league contracts with the Rockies and the Nationals, but didn't pitch again in the major leagues last season, given he couldn't turn things around in the minor leagues.

 

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The Brewers have decided to non-tender RHP Brandon Woodruff, who is expected to miss at least the majority of the 2024 season with a serious shoulder injury and is then a free agent at the end of next season. The Brewers had negotiated with Woodruff over an extension, as well as possible trades, but neither came to fruition. It is likely that Woodruff will look for a contract that goes for at least two years, to give him some security while he rehabs the surgery on his pitching shoulder.

 

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The Boston Red Sox and Seattle Mariners are in agreement on a trade that sends Luis Arias to Seattle in exchange for reliever Isaiah Campbell. Urias has had a fairly nomadic career so far. He came up with the Padres and was traded to the Brewers in the deal that took Trent Grisham to California. Urias hit .239/.308/.294 in his first season in Milwaukee in 2020, but from 2021-2022, he hit .244/.340/.426 across 1042 plate appearances for the Brewers and was also useful across the infield for the Brewers, spending time at shortstop, second base and third base.

However, Urias suffered an injury just before opening day of the 2023 season and was out of action until June. On his return, he struggled badly at the plate hitting .145/.299/.236 across 20 games with the Brewers. They quickly gave up on him, trading him to the Red Sox at the trade deadline. Urias was used by Boston as a depth option off the bench, and managed a slashline of .225/.361/.337 in 109 plate appearances.

 

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The Phillies and RHP Aaron Nola are in agreement on a seven year, $172 million contract extension that should make Nola a Phillie for life. The deal was announced by the Phillies on Sunday, although they did not announce the monetary value. Sources later told ESPN that the deal was worth $172 million.

Ace pitcher Nola returns to Phillies on 7-year deal

Right-hander Aaron Nola and the Phillies agreed to a $172 million contract on Sunday, sources told ESPN, with the announced seven-year deal locking up the team's longtime rotation stalwart.

www.espn.com

 

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With Nola now removed from the free agent market, and with Shohei not expected to pitch in 2024, attention is now turning to other free agent pitchers. The Braves reportedly have serious interest in signing free agent RHP Sonny Gray, but may have to beat out interest from the Cardinals and the Twins to sign Gray.

The Braves recently traded RHP Kyle Wright to the Royals, although Wright is expected to miss the majority (if not all) of the 2024 season after undergoing shoulder surgery. Wright was the fifth overall pick in the 2017 draft and broke out with a dominant season in 2022, pitching a 3.19 ERA in 180 1/3 innings in that season. However, Wright reported soreness in his pitching shoulder in the 2023 spring training and went on the IL until mid-April, but then went back on the IL just three weeks later. Wright returned for four September appearances and was hit hard while showing diminished velocity. He underwent surgery after the conclusion of the regular season.

In exchange for Wright, the Braves received RHP Jackson Kowar, who was a first round pick for the Royals but has not really broken out in the major league so far, having given up 75 earned runs in 74 innings across parts of three seasons. Kowar was moved into the bullpen by the Royals.

 

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Over the weekend, the Cleveland Guardians announced that they have acquired RHP Scott Barlow from the Padres in exchange for RHP Enyel De Los Santos. Cleveland also announced that they have signed OF Ramon Laureano (a former teammate of new Cleveland manager, Stephen Vogt) to a one-year contract to avoid arbitration. Laureano will reportedly make $5.15 million in 2024.

Barlow is quite familiar with the AL Central division, having reached the majors with the Royals in 2018. He turned in a sub-3.00 ERA over 74 1/3 innings between 2021-2022, but was less effective in 2023 before being traded by the Royals to the Padres at the deadline. While Barlow served as the Royals' closer this past season, he was turned into a set-up man in deference to LHP Josh Hader at the Padres. Barlow made 25 appearances until the end of the season for the Padres, returning an ERA of 3.07. He is likely to compete with Trevor Stephan and Sam Hentges as the set-up man for closer Emmanuel Clase in Cleveland.

De Los Santos made 70 appearances out of the Cleveland bullpen in 2023, and ended the season with an ERA of 3.29 in 65 2/3 innings.

The main reason for the swap from the Padres' perspective is a save on salary, with Barlow expected to make $7.2 million next season in his last season of arbitration, while De Los Santos is projected to earn $1.2 million in his first run through arbitration. The Padres are reportedly looking to slash up to $50 million from their bloated payroll after an ill-fated spending spree last off-season.

 

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The two Florida-based teams have executed a trade over the weekend, with the Miami Marlins announcing that they have acquired utility Vidal Brujan and RHP Calvin Faucher from the Tampa Bay Rays in exchange for OF Erick Lara, RHP Andrew Lindsey and "a player to be named later". Bruan was a highly touted prospect in the Rays' farm system but has not translated his talent into MLB success just yet, hitting .157/.218/.221 in 272 MLB plate appearances so far in his career. His Triple-A results are much more encouraging, having hit a combined .273/.357/.450 over parts of three seasons. Brujan is now out of minor league options, so will need to stick on the Marlins' MLB roster next season.

Faucher was designated for assignment by the Rays last week and is now traded for the second time in his career, having been traded by the Twins to the Rays as part of the Nelson Cruz/Joe Ryan trade at the 2021 deadline. He debuted with the Rays in 2022 and has pitched in 39 MLB games for the Rays over the past two seasons, returning an ERA of 6.32 in 47 innings.

The Rays have picked up a couple of lottery tickets in return for Brujan and Faucher. Lara is a 17 year old shortstop signed by the Marlins out of the Dominican Republic. Lindsey was a fifth-round pick in the 2023 draft out of Tennessee, and pitched to a 2.90 ERA in 71 1/3 innings during his junior season with the Volunteers.

 

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The Colorado Rockies have announced that they have acquired RHP Cal Quantrill in a trade with the Guardians, in exchange for catcher Kody Huff. Colorado has designated RHP Tommy Doyle to create room on the 40-man roster. Quantrill was designated for assignment by the Guardians earlier last week.

 

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The Padres have signed shortstop Mason McCoy to a minor league contract with an invitation to Spring Training. McCoy was outrighted by the Blue Jays off their 40-man roster in late September and became a minor league free agent after the season. McCoy was originally drafted by the Orioles in the 2017 draft.

 

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The Oakland Athletics and RHP Osvaldo Bido are in agreement on a major league deal, according to FanSided's Robert Murray. Bido was signed by the Pirates out of the Dominican Republic at 21 years old six years ago, and worked his way up through the minor league system before debuting for the Pirates at the age of 27 in the 2023 season. He appeared in 16 games for the Pirates (including nine starts) and pitched 50 2/3 innings with a 5.86 ERA. However, his peripherals suggest that Bido pitched better than his ERA suggested, with a FIP of 4.10 and a SIERA of 4.63. Bido also pitched 62 2/3 innings at Triple-A with a 4.16 ERA. He was non-tendered by the Pirates last week, which put him directly onto the free agency list without going through waivers.