MLB Hot Stove 2023-2024

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The Pittsburgh Pirates have signed OF Gilberto Celestino to a minor league deal. Although not immediately confirmed, it is presumed that Celestino will receive an invitation to spring training. Celestino was with the Twins in 2023, but tore a ligament in his thumb in pre-season and underwent surgery in March 2023. He remained on the IL until the middle of June and was optioned to the minors once healthy. He was outrighted off the roster in October by the Twins and selected free agency.

 

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The New York Mets have signed RHP Cole Sulser to a minor league deal with an invitation to Spring Training. Sulser opened the 2023 season with the Diamondbacks, making three appearances before going on the IL with a right shoulder sprain in April. He returned to make one more appearance at the end of July before the Serpientes designated him for assignment. He was picked up by the Rays but kept on optional assignment for the final two months of the season and he was then outrighted as the offseason commenced. Sulser's career high point came with Baltimore back in 2021, where he pitched 63 1/3 innings for an ERA of 2.70. Sulser didn't make it back to the major leagues after the Diamondbacks designated him for assignment, but he pitched to an ERA of 3.86 over 18 2/3 innings with Durham at the Triple-A level after going to the Rays.

 

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The Orix Buffaloes have officially posted RHP Yoshinobu Yamamoto, which opens a period of 45 days for Yamomoto to sign with any MLB team. Therefore, he must enter into a contract with a MLB team by 4pm CT on 4 January 2024. If, in the unlikely event Yamomoto does not sign with an MLB team during his negotiation window, he will return to the Buffaloes for the 2024 season. The Buffaloes will be entitled to receive a posting fee from whichever MLB team signs him, calculated on the basis of 205% of the first $25 million in guaranteed money, 17.5% of the next $25 million and then 15% on anything beyond the $50 million. It is speculated that Yamomoto could land a deal in the vicinity of nine years and $225 million, which would require the team signing him to pay a posting fee of the order of $35.625 million to the Buffaloes.



One of the teams that will pitch for his services includes the Phillies, who are reported to be still aggressively looking to sign Yamomoto despite having re-signed Aaron Nola earlier in the off-season.

Source: Phillies agree to $172 million deal with Aaron Nola; still in play for Yoshinobu Yamamoto

The Phillies can cross off their top priority in the offseason by coming to agreement with Nola on the biggest deal for a pitcher in team history.

www.inquirer.com

The Phillies and Aaron Nola — forever linked: What the $172M deal means for both sides

The seven-year, $172 million contract, agreed to Sunday according to major-league sources, is the richest for a pitcher in Phillies history.

theathletic.com

 

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The St Louis Cardinals have agreed on a one-year deal with RHP Lance Lynn for the 2024 season. Lynn is expected to earn approximately $10 million on his contract, which is still pending the completion of a physical. There is a $1 million buyout on a 2025 option worth $11 million. The contract also includes incentives worth $3 million.

Lynn returns to the club that drafted him with the 39th overall pick in the 2008 draft. Lynn spent six seasons with St Louis, pitching 977 2/3 innings of 3.38 ERA.

 

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The Atlanta Braves announced that they have signed free agent Reynaldo Lopez to a three year contract that will guarantee him $30 million. He will be paid $4 million in 2024 and then $11 million in 2025 and 2026. The Braves hold a $8 million club option on him for 2027, with a $4 million buyout.

Although Lopez has primarily been a reliever during his MLB career to date, it has been reported that the Braves will work with Lopez to prepare as a starting pitcher over the offseason. Lopez last started games when he was with the White Sox back in 2018, where he managed 3.91 ERA in 188 innings across 32 starts, but his success has predominantly come as a reliever (a career 3.01 ERA as a reliever compared to a career 4.73 ERA as a starter).

Braves bolster 'pen, sign RHP Reynaldo López to 3-year deal

ATLANTA -- Reynaldo López has been an effective reliever since transitioning to a bullpen role a couple years ago. But the Braves are going to give the hard-throwing right-hander a chance to return to a starting role. López and the Braves agreed to a three-year, $30 million deal on Monday

www.mlb.com

 

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LHP Zack Britton has formally announced his retirement from MLB. He announced his retirement in an interview with The Athletic. Britton retires as a two-time All-Star (2015 and 2016) and his career included a period between 2014-2016 where he was almost unhittable as a reliever while with the Orioles. In that period, he pitched 209 innings with an ERA of 1.38, with a 27.1% strikeout rate and a 6.9% walk rate. Britton is also one of the best groundball pitchers to ever play. Since batted-ball data was first tracked in 2002, Britton owns five of the top 14 single-season grounder rates of any qualified pitcher in baseball, including the top two. Britton managed a groundball rate of 80% in 2016, thanks primarily to his 96-98 mph sinker.

After seven seasons with the Orioles, he was traded mid-season in 2018 to the Yankees. Although initially a rental for the Yankees, he re-signed with them during free agency and spent the last five seasons with the Yankees before being released at the end of the 2022 season. He attempted to come back multiple times during the 2022-2023 off-season, holding a number of showcases for MLB teams, but did not sign with any team during the 2023 season.

Former Yankee, Oriole All-Star Zack Britton announces retirement: 'I'm very grateful'

The 35-year-old Britton told The Athletic in an exclusive interview earlier this month that he's hanging it up after a 12-year career.

theathletic.com

 

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The MLB revealed the identities of players who will be eligible for election to the Hall of Fame overnight.

The returning players are Carlos Beltran (second year on the ballot), Jimmy Rollins (third year on the ballot), Mark Buerhle (fourth year on the ballot), Francisco Rodriguez (second year on the ballot), Torii Hunter (fourth year on the ballot), Todd Helton (sixth year on the ballot), Billy Wagner (ninth year), Andruw Jones (seventh year), Gary Sheffield (10th and final), Alex Rodriguez (third year), Manny Ramirez (eighth year), Omar Vizquel (seventh year), Andy Pettitte (sixth) and Bobby Abreu (fifth year). Helton and Wagner each earned more than two-thirds of the vote on the previous ballot (Helton just fell short, with 72.2% of the vote), and seem to be in the frame for achieving the 75% threshold to earn election to Cooperstown. Sheffield has one last shot to get elected (excluding the Veterans Committee route) and needs to achieve a jump from 55% of the ballot to 75% to make it.

Newcomers to the ballot include Adrian Beltre, Joe Mauer, David Wright, Bartolo Colon, Adrian Gonzalez, Matt Holliday, Jose Reyes, Jose Bautista, Victor Martinez, James Shields and Brandon Phillips.

All eligible BBWAA voters have a deadline of 31 December to submit their ballots, and the results will be announced on 23 January 2024.

 

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The Toronto Blue Jays are "open to" offers on RHP Alek Manoah according to Ken Rosenthal. Manoah finished third in the AL Cy Young voting in 2022, but he had a disastrous 2023, posting an ERA of 5.87 over 87 1/3 innings and he was demoted to the Florida Complex League for a month to try to solve his sudden mechanical issues. He was also optioned to Triple-A Buffalo in August (although he did not actually take the mound for Bisons during his time in Triple-A).

Rosenthal: Interest in free-agent Brandon Woodruff, plus Braves likely planning another move

Brandon Woodruff’s likely destination is a high-revenue team willing to entertain greater risk.

theathletic.com

 

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The Los Angeles Dodgers are reportedly interested in acquiring RHP Dylan Cease from the White Sox, though there is no indication that a trade is particularly close. New GM of the White Sox, Chris Getz, has previously told reporters that he is open to trade offers as the White Sox look to address their multiple issues with their roster. The White Sox traded LHP Aaron Bummer to the Braves last week in exchange for RHP Michael Soroka, LHP Jared Shuster, INF Nicky Lopez, INF Braden Shewmake and RHP Riley Gowens. Bummer was a White Sox draftee and broke out for the Southsiders back in 2019 when he pitched 67 2/3 innings for an ERA of 2.13.

Nightengale's Notebook: What made late Padres owner Peter Seidler beloved by his MLB peers

Seidler, who purchased a controlling stake in the franchise in 2020, spared little expense in chasing a World Series championship.

www.usatoday.com

 

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The Chicago White Sox have signed free agent shortstop Paul DeJong to a major league deal. The financial details are not known and the deal is pending a physical.





DeJong came up to the big leagues with the Cardinals back in 2017, hitting 25 home runs in his first 108 games. He had an overall line of .285/.325/.532 in his rookie year, which prompted the Cardinals to sign him to a six year, $26 million extension prior to the 2018 season. However, that season proved to be his best in St Louis, as his production dropped precipitously thereafter, to a low point of wRC+ of 54 in the 2022 season. He bounced back to a certain extent in the 2023 season, hitting .233/.297/.412 with 13 homeruns in 81 games for the Cardinals, but was traded by the Cardinals to the Blue Jays who were looking for depth to fill in for the injured Bo Bichette as they made a playoff push. DeJong was an absolute disaster at the plate for Toronto, hitting .068/.068/.068 in 44 plate appearances, with a strikeout rate north of 40% and zero walks. When Bichette returned to full health, the Blue Jays designated DeJong for assignment and released him. He signed with the Giants at the back end of the season, but continued to struggle, hitting .184/.180/.286 for the Giants, with a 32% strikeout rate and also zero walks. The Giants let him go near the end of September.

 

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The Detroit Tigers are reportedly seriously interested in free agent RHP Kenta Maeda, with the Tigers hoping that his experience will allow him to stabilise a young rotation and help market the Tigers to be a more attractive destination for Japanese pitchers looking to move to the USA.

https://www.freep.com/story/sports/mlb/tigers/2023/11/21/kenta-maeda-and-detroit-tigers-could-be-ideal-fit-for-2024-season/71669991007/

In addition, the Tigers are reportedly interested in veteran pitcher Seth Lugo. Lugo was mostly used as a reliever but moved into the starting gig with the Padres in the 2023 season, pitching 146 1/3 innings over 26 starts with a 3.57 ERA. He declined a $7.5 million player option to stick with the Padres for the 2024 season.

 

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The St Louis Cardinals have announced that they have signed RHP Kyle Gibson to a one-year, $12 million contract with a club option for 2025. The value of the option has not been publicly reported. Gibson spent the 2023 season with the Orioles, on a one-year $10 million contract.

 

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The New York Yankees have hired Brad Ausmus to be their bench coach, replacing Carlos Mendoza who joined the Mets as their new manager. Ausmus played in the MLB between 1993 and 2010, and then went into coaching shortly thereafter, including a stint as manager of the Tigers between 2014-2017. After his stint with the Tigers finished, he joined the Angels and became their manager for a season in 2019. After the Angels went 72-90 in his single season in charge, he was fired by the Angels and was out of baseball for a couple of years before joining the Oakland Athletics as their bench coach in 2022, supporting first time manager Mark Kotsay. He did not return to that role in 2023, reportedly seeking a front office position. He was considered by the Astros for their vacant GM role but was passed over in favour of Dana Brown.

 

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The New York Yankees have signed Yerry De Los Santos to a minor league deal with an invitation to Spring Training. According to reports, De Los Santo would earn $900,000 upon making the major league roster, and has opt outs in the deal on 1 June and 1 July if he is not on the Yankees' major league roster at that time.

 

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The San Diego Padres have their new manager, with Mike Shildt named to the job on a two year contract. Shildt replaces Bob Melvin, whom the Padres allowed to join the Giants earlier in the off-season. Shildt has previous management experience with the Cardinals. He spent the last two years in the Padres' player development department.

 

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The Atlanta Braves have re-signed backup catcher Chadwick Tromp to a minor league deal, after non-tendering him last week. The Braves also re-signed infielder Luke Williams

Luke Williams

Age

44

Ht

185cm

Wt

82kg

Pos.

Def

Career

Season

Last 5

D

9.7

2star

K

5.1

2star

HB

4.5

3star

M

2.8

3star

T

1.5

3star

No current season stats available

D

3.4

1star

K

1.6

1star

HB

1.8

2star

M

1.4

2star

T

0.2

3star

on a minor league deal after non-tendering him last week.

Transactions

The Official Site of Minor League Baseball web site includes features, news, rosters, statistics, schedules, teams, live game radio broadcasts, and video clips.

www.milb.com

 

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The Arizona Diamondbacks have traded for third baseman Eugenio Suarez from the Mariners in exchange for reliever Carlos Vargas and catcher Seby Zavala. Both teams have announced the deal. Suarez was acquired by the Mariners in 2021 from the Reds alongside Jesse Winker in a trade that sent Justin Dunn and Brandon Williamson to Cincinnati. Suarez hit the ball hard in 2022, mashing 31 homers on his way to an overall .236/.332/.459 slash line in 2022. He took a step back in 2023, hitting .232/.323/.391 with 22 homeruns. However, Suarez is prone to striking out and the Mariners are looking to move towards a more contact-oriented approach at the plate.

The Diamondbacks acquire Suarez in the last guaranteed year on the $66 million contract he signed with the Reds back prior to the 2018 campaign. Suarez is owed $11 million plus a $2 million buyout on a $15 million option for the 2025 season.

 

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Reports suggest that nearly half of the clubs in the MLB have got in touch with the agent representing Yoshinobu Yamamoto, according to the agent. He told Japanese news outlets that he has already heard from 11 to 14 teams after the negotiation window officially opened yesterday when his NPB team, the Orix Buffaloes, posted Yamamoto. Teams including the Cardinals, Phillies, Diamondbacks, Tigers, Yankees, Mets, Blue Jays, Cubs, Giants, Red Sox and Dodgers have all been reported to have interest in Yamamoto.

Baseball: Japanese ace Yoshinobu Yamamoto in high MLB demand, agent says

Japanese pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto's agent says there has been unprecedented interest among MLB teams for the Orix Buffaloes' ace right-hander.

english.kyodonews.net

 

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As noted previously, the Tigers had expressed interest in signing free agent RHP Seth Lugo to bolster their starting rotation. However, the two sides are not close on terms, with the Tigers reportedly prepared to give Lugo a one-year deal, while Lugo (now 34) is looking for a three-year contract.

https://www.freep.com/story/sports/mlb/tigers/2023/11/22/detroit-tigers-target-of-luis-severino-makes-sense-for-both-sides/71656325007/

 

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It appears that LHP Shota Imanaga is likely to be posted by his team, the Yokohama BayStars, on Monday which would give him an opportunity of up to 45 days to negotiate a contract with an MLB team. This appears to reverse course on previous reports suggesting that Imanaga would not be posted until compatriot Yoshinobu Yamamoto had signed with an MLB team. Imanaga is not expected to command thes ame salary as Yamamoto, primarily because Imanaga is already 30 while Yamamoto is just 25.

 

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The stove for pitching is starting to bubble in earnest with a report suggesting that veteran RHP Seth Lugo is drawing interest from numerous clubs with reportedly "more than half the league" having checked in on him. Prior to the 2023 season, Lugo was a career reliever but signed with the Padres last off-season with the promise to start. He was signed to a two-year, $15 million with an opt-out opportunity midway through. Lugo started 26 games and pitched 146 1/3 innings for the Padres, even after missing a month thanks to a calf strain. He posted an ERA of 3.57, with a 23.2% strikeout rate.

 

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The Chicago White Sox have signed RHP Justin Anderson to a minor league deal. Anderson has been assigned to Triple-A, and it is not clear whether he will get an invitation to Spring Training. Anderson pitched for the Angels back in 2018-2019, but has barely appeared in any professional league since then due to a litany of injuries.

Justin Anderson Stats, Age, Position, Height, Weight, Fantasy & News

Justin Anderson Stats, Age, Position, Height, Weight, Fantasy & News

www.mlb.com

 

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The Minnesota Twins have been transparent about their plans to cut payroll and they are looking to trade players off their roster, including catcher Christian Vazquez, who is reportedly someone the Twins have been shopping around the league. Vazquez signed a three-year, $30 million contract in free agency last year, and was fairly disappointing in his first season in the twin cities, hitting just .223/.280/.318 with a 23.1% strikeout rate. Vazquez is likely expendable after the breakout from Ryan Jeffers, who is younger and cheaper than Vazquez, and produced better results at the plate, hitting .276/.369/.490.

 

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OF Yusniel Diaz has signed a minor league contract with the San Francisco Giants. Born in Cuba, Diaz was originally with the Dodgers before being traded to the Orioles as the headliner in the Manny Machado deal in 2018. Diaz was named the best prospect in the Orioles' farm system in 2019, and among the top 40 minor league prospects overall. However, Diaz hit at a below-average level in Triple-A. He was called up to the major leagues by the Orioles at the back end of the 2022 season but he only got one plate appearance in one game, and struck out. Diaz went back to the Dodgers on a minor league deal last off-season, where he was assigned to Double-A Tulsa. He mashed at that level, hitting .278/.374/.484 with 16 homeruns in 406 plate appearances. He was let go by the Dodgers and will see if his career can take off with the Giants.

Yusniel Díaz Stats, Age, Position, Height, Weight, Fantasy & News

Yusniel Díaz Stats, Age, Position, Height, Weight, Fantasy & News

www.mlb.com

 

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The New York Mets have hired John Gibbons as their bench coach, according to multiple reports. He was drafted by the Mets in the first round of the 1980 draft, and played 18 MLB games for the Mets in the mid-80s. He has had two separate turns as manager of the Blue Jays between 2004-2008, and then from 2013-2018. The Mets also will hire Antoan Richardson as first base coach.