The 2021 Major League Baseball Player Chatter, News and Fantasy Thread

[EmpireMaker]

THURSDAY, 7:45am: Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune reports that Martinez remains a free agent, though sources tell MLBTR that there is no concern the deal won’t be completed after the lockout since an agreement is in place between Martinez and the Padres. It’s also worth noting that Martinez is set to earn $7MM in 2022, so he’d be leaving three years and $13MM on the table if he decides to opt out.
WEDNESDAY, 9:21pm: The Padres are signing Nick Martínez to a four-year, $20MM contract, reports Jeff Passan of ESPN (Twitter link). The deal includes opt-outs after the first two years. The right-hander has spent the past four seasons pitching in Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball. His contract with the NPB’s Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks just expired today, but his representatives worked quickly to find him a big league landing spot before the anticipated transactions freeze. Martinez is represented by Brian Mejia, Ulises Cabrera, and Alan Nero of Octagon.
Martínez is making his return to the majors for the first time since 2017, though he did pitch for Team USA in the Tokyo Olympics this summer. The Florida native was drafted and developed by the Rangers, where current San Diego president of baseball operations A.J. Preller was then a prominent member of the scouting department. Martínez debuted in 2014 and worked as a back-of-the-rotation arm for the next few seasons.
Martinez, 31, posted a stellar 1.62 ERA with a 24.8 K% and 6.6 BB% for the Hawks this year in 149 2/3 innings. According to Sung Min Kim, Martinez’s fastball velocity increased to nearly 94 miles per hour this year, and his changeup has become more effective. Several American pitchers have revived their careers in NPB or KBO in recent years and returned to MLB on big league deals, including Chris Flexen, Josh Lindblom, Merrill Kelly, and Miles Mikolas. Martinez’s contract tops all of them, as Mikolas had inked a two-year, $15.5MM deal with the Cardinals four years ago. Plus, Martinez maintains the ability to re-enter free agency if he’s able to have success in 2022 or ’23.
Martinez’s $5MM AAV is key for the Padres, one of only two teams to exceed the $210MM luxury tax threshold in 2021. The club is currently in a similar place for 2022, though we don’t know how much success the players’ union will have in increasing the base tax threshold.
Martinez joins a Padres rotation that currently includes Joe Musgrove, Yu Darvish, Blake Snell, and Mike Clevinger. Chris Paddack, Dinelson Lamet, and Ryan Weathers also figure to be in the mix. Though that’s significant depth, but it’s plausible that Preller might look to trade someone as a means of clearing payroll. The Padres already sent Adam Frazier to the Mariners to clear an estimated $7MM or so.
Aside from the Frazier trade, the Padres added to their stock of catchers by acquiring Jorge Alfaro from the Marlins. They also signed a pair of relievers today in Luis Garcia and Robert Suarez, with the latter having played against Martinez in NPB this year. There’s a sense that the Padres have plenty of additional offseason moves to make, but like the other 29 teams everything will go on pause until the lockout ends.

[jrgum3]

THURSDAY, 7:45am: Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune reports that Martinez remains a free agent, though sources tell MLBTR that there is no concern the deal won’t be completed after the lockout since an agreement is in place between Martinez and the Padres. It’s also worth noting that Martinez is set to earn $7MM in 2022, so he’d be leaving three years and $13MM on the table if he decides to opt out.
WEDNESDAY, 9:21pm: The Padres are signing Nick Martínez to a four-year, $20MM contract, reports Jeff Passan of ESPN (Twitter link). The deal includes opt-outs after the first two years. The right-hander has spent the past four seasons pitching in Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball. His contract with the NPB’s Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks just expired today, but his representatives worked quickly to find him a big league landing spot before the anticipated transactions freeze. Martinez is represented by Brian Mejia, Ulises Cabrera, and Alan Nero of Octagon.
Martínez is making his return to the majors for the first time since 2017, though he did pitch for Team USA in the Tokyo Olympics this summer. The Florida native was drafted and developed by the Rangers, where current San Diego president of baseball operations A.J. Preller was then a prominent member of the scouting department. Martínez debuted in 2014 and worked as a back-of-the-rotation arm for the next few seasons.
Martinez, 31, posted a stellar 1.62 ERA with a 24.8 K% and 6.6 BB% for the Hawks this year in 149 2/3 innings. According to Sung Min Kim, Martinez’s fastball velocity increased to nearly 94 miles per hour this year, and his changeup has become more effective. Several American pitchers have revived their careers in NPB or KBO in recent years and returned to MLB on big league deals, including Chris Flexen, Josh Lindblom, Merrill Kelly, and Miles Mikolas. Martinez’s contract tops all of them, as Mikolas had inked a two-year, $15.5MM deal with the Cardinals four years ago. Plus, Martinez maintains the ability to re-enter free agency if he’s able to have success in 2022 or ’23.
Martinez’s $5MM AAV is key for the Padres, one of only two teams to exceed the $210MM luxury tax threshold in 2021. The club is currently in a similar place for 2022, though we don’t know how much success the players’ union will have in increasing the base tax threshold.
Martinez joins a Padres rotation that currently includes Joe Musgrove, Yu Darvish, Blake Snell, and Mike Clevinger. Chris Paddack, Dinelson Lamet, and Ryan Weathers also figure to be in the mix. Though that’s significant depth, but it’s plausible that Preller might look to trade someone as a means of clearing payroll. The Padres already sent Adam Frazier to the Mariners to clear an estimated $7MM or so.
Aside from the Frazier trade, the Padres added to their stock of catchers by acquiring Jorge Alfaro from the Marlins. They also signed a pair of relievers today in Luis Garcia and Robert Suarez, with the latter having played against Martinez in NPB this year. There’s a sense that the Padres have plenty of additional offseason moves to make, but like the other 29 teams everything will go on pause until the lockout ends.

Interesting that the Padres are dipping into the Japanese League to find pitching. That league is a cut above the KBO so we'll see how Martinez does in his return to the Big Leagues this year.

[stevenash]

^
The far east countries like Japan and Korea for instance has a totally different pitching philosophy.
For instance, they prefer six- and seven-man rotations.

This is my opinion.
Condition today's pitchers for endurance, stretch them out to throw 100 pitches a game.
Bring back the four-man rotation with a fifth starter if the team has games on eight or more consecutive days.

In the mid 60's, say 1967 for instance, there were 23 starters that made 34 or more starts.
In 2021 there were none.

In 1967 those starters all pitched will over 220 innings, and all won double digit games.
Hell, Jim Bunning made 40 starts and pitched over 300 innings. His arm didn't fall off.
Then he became a successful politician, but that's a story for another day.

In 1967 everything like medicine and conditioning etc. etc. was primitive if you compare it to the resources available to us in 2022.
It can be done.

I think the so-called bullpen era is interesting, I don't dislike it.
If you blow out your bullpen arms in early August however, your season is cooked.

That's my concern.

[JAKEPEAVY21]

Interesting that the Padres are dipping into the Japanese League to find pitching. That league is a cut above the KBO so we'll see how Martinez does in his return to the Big Leagues this year.

We got Pierce Johnson from the KBO(I think) a couple years ago and he has been a quality relief arm.

I like the idea of kicking the tires around the globe and maybe finding some diamonds in the rough.

[stevenash]

We got Pierce Johnson from the KBO(I think) a couple years ago and he has been a quality relief arm.

I like the idea of kicking the tires around the globe and maybe finding some diamonds in the rough.

Yeah, some of the Asians have quality arms, usually short inning guys.
Most MLB pitchers go to Japan to die (career wise that is)

[BigSpoon]

^
The far east countries like Japan and Korea for instance has a totally different pitching philosophy.
For instance, they prefer six- and seven-man rotations.

This is my opinion.
Condition today's pitchers for endurance, stretch them out to throw 100 pitches a game.
Bring back the four-man rotation with a fifth starter if the team has games on eight or more consecutive days.

In the mid 60's, say 1967 for instance, there were 23 starters that made 34 or more starts.
In 2021 there were none.

In 1967 those starters all pitched will over 220 innings, and all won double digit games.
Hell, Jim Bunning made 40 starts and pitched over 300 innings. His arm didn't fall off.
Then he became a successful politician, but that's a story for another day.

In 1967 everything like medicine and conditioning etc. etc. was primitive if you compare it to the resources available to us in 2022.
It can be done.

I think the so-called bullpen era is interesting, I don't dislike it.
If you blow out your bullpen arms in early August however, your season is cooked.

That's my concern.

You want to kill the Shohei Ohtani two-way experiment?

[stevenash]

You want to kill the Shohei Ohtani two-way experiment?

Like Trout, Ohtani can turn water into wine, and walk on water.
(With all due respect to our Lord and Saviour)

God help the American League if the Angels can get one power armed starter.
I broke down their bullpen, it's more than adequate. (depending on what metrics you use 8th or 10th best in MLB)

[JAKEPEAVY21]

Yeah, some of the Asians have quality arms, usually short inning guys.
Most MLB pitchers go to Japan to die (career wise that is)

Don't leave any stone unturned.

[stevenash]

Don't leave any stone unturned.

Can't argue that.

Look at some of those NBA stars that came from third world European countries and African countries.

The Greek came from dirt poor Greece.

[JMobile]

Oh great, Fernando Tatis Jr was involved in a minor traffic accident in the Dominican Republic. But he's okay...

[Cross]

Baseball is the way out of poverty for many of these players outside of US, these guys are fighters!

[jrgum3]

We got Pierce Johnson from the KBO(I think) a couple years ago and he has been a quality relief arm.

I like the idea of kicking the tires around the globe and maybe finding some diamonds in the rough.

It's definitely not a bad strategy as guys have resurfaced in MLB after spending some time in those leagues and they have done well.

[EmpireMaker]

Although veteran left-hander Danny Duffy was a fairly notable deadline pickup by the Dodgers back in July, the soon-to-be 33-year-old didn’t throw a pitch in Los Angeles following the trade. Acquired while on the injured list due to a forearm strain, Duffy suffered a setback while rehabbing with L.A. and never made it back to a big league mound.
The Dodgers and Duffy were both rather quiet on his outlook. The left-hander now reveals to Andy McCullough of The Athletic that after initially fearing what would’ve been his second career Tommy John surgery, he instead required surgery to repair the flexor tendon in his left arm. That procedure, performed in October, comes with a months-long rehabilitation process. Duffy is targeting June for a return to a big league mound and expects to pitch out of the bullpen in 2022 before hopefully moving back into a rotation thereafter.
Of course, the team for which Duffy will throw remains entirely uncertain. The left-hander hit free agency for the first time in his career at season’s end and did not agree to terms with a club prior to the expiration of the 2016-21 collective bargaining agreement. It stands to reason that either the Dodgers, who traded for him, or the Royals, who drafted and developed him, would have interest in bringing him back.
Then again, Duffy has a lengthy track record of big league success and ought to be of interest to a variety of contenders and non-contenders alike on a short-term deal. Most clubs figure to be interested on a one-year deal, though as we saw with Kirby Yates earlier in the offseason, its feasible that a team could try to lure Duffy on a heavily backloaded two-year arrangement.
Duffy appeared in 13 games for the Royals this past season, all but one of them as a starting pitcher. In 61 frames he notched a tidy 2.51 ERA, albeit with less-favorable reviews from fielding-independent marks like FIP (3.40) and SIERA (4.14). This season’s 93.8 mph average heater was his best mark since 2016, while his 25.8% strikeout rate was a narrow career-high mark over 2016’s rate of 25.7%.

[Otters27]

Did you see pitcher who does back flips after he closes the game

[JAKEPEAVY21]

Oh great, Fernando Tatis Jr was involved in a minor traffic accident in the Dominican Republic. But he's okay...

Thank heavens he is alright!!

[stevenash]

Yasiel Puig signs a one year, one-million-dollar deal in Korea.

[BigSpoon]

Yasiel Puig signs a one year, one-million-dollar deal in Korea.

It's the same team that signed Addison Russell in 2020 too.

[Cross]

Fuk Addison Russell

[stevenash]

It's the same team that signed Addison Russell in 2020 too.

I give Puig a month or less before he pisses off the entire nation of Korea.

[EmpireMaker]

Corey Seager’s 10-year, $325MM deal with the Rangers prior to the MLB lockout shocked baseball — both because it was the Rangers winning the bidding and because Texas had already signed Marcus Semien for a surprising seven years and $175MM. As one would expect with any bidding war that reaches a decade and more than $300MM, Texas had some competition as they sought to lure Seager to Arlington. However, ESPN’s Jeff Passan reports this morning that a perhaps-unexpected suitor was one of the primary competitors in that Seager market: the Blue Jays.
The Dodgers also had strong interest in re-signing Seager, per Passan, though that much was largely known to this point. Toronto’s involvement in the process, however, is a newer revelation. The Jays were known to be attempting to re-sign Semien, but Seager’s contract was in an entirely different financial stratosphere. Ultimately, Toronto simply wasn’t willing to match Texas’ 10-year, $325MM terms, but Passan suggests that the team was “very much” in on Seager prior to his deal with Texas.
That’s of some anecdotal note and makes for a fine “what-if” moment for Jays fans down the line, but it’s also informative of the team’s current mindset and simultaneously instructive of how the Jays will be able to operate post-transaction freeze. The Blue Jays have just shy of $97MM committed to the septet of George Springer, Kevin Gausman, Hyun Jin Ryu, Jose Berrios, Randal Grichuk, Lourdes Gurriel Jr. and Yimi Garcia. Add in a steep arbitration class headlined by burgeoning star Vladimir Guerrero Jr., and the Jays have another $31MM or so in projected payroll, according to MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz.
That brings the Jays to nearly $128MM in 2022 projections — plus another nine pre-arbitration salaries (generally in the vicinity of the league minimum). For a team that opened the 2021 season with about $135MM in guaranteed salary and has previously pushed payroll to $163MM, it’s not really a shock to see that there’s more room in the 2022 budget. However, signing Seager would’ve been about far more than 2022 dollars.
For Toronto, signing Seager would’ve meant had four sizable, fully guaranteed contracts on the books as far out into the future as 2026, when Springer, Gausman and Berrios are all still under contract. (Berrios is signed through 2028, though his contract contains an opt-out after that ’26 campaign.) Any Seager signing would’ve figured to include a salary north of $30MM being added onto that 2026 ledger, meaning the Jays were essentially comfortable with the idea of committing $93MM or more to four players in 2026 — about a half-decade in advance.
With Toronto also surely keen on extending both Guerrero and Bo Bichette at some point, any serious level of interest in Seager is all the more notable. The 2026 season is the first would-be free-agent year for both Guerrero and Bichette, so throwing a Seager contract onto the pile indicates a willingness to spend well above nine figures on 2026 payroll if there’s to be any hope of realistically extending either young star.
It’s all an exercise in hindsight, to an extent, as Seager is of course set to spend the next decade as a Ranger. But the Jays’ apparent willingness to jump into the Seager market also provides some useful context when looking at how they’ll operate once transactions resume under a new collective bargaining agreement.
Perhaps Toronto simply viewed Seager as an exception and was comfortable spending that type of money singularly on Seager and Seager alone. However, the market has several high-end free agents who remain unsigned and will be in position to command sizable long-term deals. Carlos Correa could well land a deal in the same range as Seager commanded. Trevor Story figures to be eyeing a nine-figure commitment, perhaps over a shorter term that caps off around that same 2026 point the Jays’ current commitments come to an end. The Jays have already been tied to star NPB outfielder Seiya Suzuki, and the outfield market also includes higher-profile names like Kris Bryant, Nick Castellanos and Kyle Schwarber.
Toronto certainly isn’t under any obligation to tack another nine-figure deal onto the books, but the mere fact that they were a player of any real note in the Seager bidding shows that they can’t be squarely ruled out from doing so. Another major free-agent expenditure would make for enormous major payrolls down the road when Guerrero and Bichette are in their final couple years of arbitration (and/or into the free-agent portions of theoretical extensions), but the Jays are committed to winning right now. Even with three long-term deals on the books and a pair of high-profile young stars they’ll hope to extend, we shouldn’t assume Toronto will shy away from another major long-term deal.

[jrgum3]

I give Puig a month or less before he pisses off the entire nation of Korea.

I doubt it he'll be one of the most well liked guys over there just because the first time he hits a home run he'll do an epic bat flip and the fans over there will love him for it. At least that's all they talked about on ESPN when they used to broadcast KBO games. I suspect Puig will hit his fair share of dingers over in Korea and he'll be a fan favorite.

[Chi_archie]

I give Puig a month or less before he pisses off the entire nation of Korea.

oh wow, Puig is going to korea?

[jrgum3]

oh wow, Puig is going to korea?

Yeah he signed the other day with the Kiwoom Heroes of the KBO.

[JMobile]

oh wow, Puig is going to korea?

1 year worth $1 million

[Cross]

Puig going to wear out his welcome.

[jrgum3]

^
The far east countries like Japan and Korea for instance has a totally different pitching philosophy.
For instance, they prefer six- and seven-man rotations.

This is my opinion.
Condition today's pitchers for endurance, stretch them out to throw 100 pitches a game.
Bring back the four-man rotation with a fifth starter if the team has games on eight or more consecutive days.

In the mid 60's, say 1967 for instance, there were 23 starters that made 34 or more starts.
In 2021 there were none.

In 1967 those starters all pitched will over 220 innings, and all won double digit games.
Hell, Jim Bunning made 40 starts and pitched over 300 innings. His arm didn't fall off.
Then he became a successful politician, but that's a story for another day.

In 1967 everything like medicine and conditioning etc. etc. was primitive if you compare it to the resources available to us in 2022.
It can be done.

I think the so-called bullpen era is interesting, I don't dislike it.
If you blow out your bullpen arms in early August however, your season is cooked.

That's my concern.

I think the bullpen era is here to stay. Gone are the days when managers let their starters throw 100-120 pitches a game and its going to stay that way as long as teams have flamethrowers in their bullpen that can wiggle out of jams by striking guys out. The Braves won the World Series this past year because they had the best bullpen. So I don't think the bullpen era is going to end anytime soon and its not necessarily a bad thing if you have power arms you can depend on in the bullpen.

[EmpireMaker]

Free agent outfielder Yasiel Puig is in agreement with the Kiwoom Heroes of the Korea Baseball Organization, reports Yonhap News (h/t to Yonhap’s Jeeho Yoo). It’ll be a one-year, $1MM contract, the maximum amount allowed under KBO rules for first-year foreign players. (Francys Romero of Las Mayores reported yesterday that Puig was nearing agreement with a KBO team).
Puig, who turned 31 years old yesterday, hasn’t appeared in the majors since 2019. After a league average offensive showing between the Reds and Indians that year, he lingered on the free agent market for the entire offseason. Puig looked as if he’d lined up a deal with the Braves coming out of the pandemic-driven transactions freeze last July, but his potential agreement with Atlanta was scuttled after he tested positive for COVID-19.
Puig didn’t wind up playing in 2020. During the ensuing offseason, a woman filed a civil action against him, alleging that he had sexually assaulted her in 2018. In March, John Barr of ESPN detailed the allegations, which Puig and his representatives denied. Criminal charges were never filed, and the parties settled the civil case out of court this past October.
While Puig continued to express interest in a return to Major League Baseball, he spent the 2021 season in the Mexican League. The right-handed hitter signed with El Águila de Veracruz. He hit .312/.409/.517 across 247 plate appearances and 62 games. He’ll now reportedly head to South Korea for his first career action outside of North America.
Puig has appeared in seven big league seasons, including star-level showings in each of his first two years with the Dodgers. He appeared on MVP balloting in both 2013 and 2014, earning an All-Star selection in the latter of those seasons. From 2015 onwards, Puig settled in as a solid but not elite offensive player, posting slightly above-average marks until his average 2019 showing. For his career, he’s a .277/.348/.475 hitter.

[Chi_archie]

I think the bullpen era is here to stay. Gone are the days when managers let their starters throw 100-120 pitches a game and its going to stay that way as long as teams have flamethrowers in their bullpen that can wiggle out of jams by striking guys out. The Braves won the World Series this past year because they had the best bullpen. So I don't think the bullpen era is going to end anytime soon and its not necessarily a bad thing if you have power arms you can depend on in the bullpen.

yeah i think it continues this way

[Otters27]

Starters lose their zip after 5-6 innings. Except the degrom type guys

[JAKEPEAVY21]

The pussification of American sports continues...

[Cross]

3rd time through the order drop off in pitchers is real. Only the very best starters are better options than gas from fresh bullpen arms.

[JMobile]

Blue Jays looking into Freeman.

[EmpireMaker]

Second base stands out as the most glaring area of need in the White Sox lineup, yet the idea of moving Yoan Moncada back to the keystone doesn’t seem too likely, NBC Sports Chicago’s Vinnie Duber opines. Moncada began his career with regular second base duty in 2017-18, yet has played exclusively as a third baseman over the last three seasons, posting very solid defensive numbers along the way. Beyond just the improved glovework, the position change also seemed to spark Moncada towards better numbers at the plate. As White Sox GM Rick Hahn told Duber and other reporters last month, Moncada is “a pretty darn good third baseman. He’s comfortable there….I don’t know if you want to upset the apple cart of something that’s working.”
That said, Hahn also twice said “never say never” about the possibility of a Moncada position change. The logic would be that the White Sox could be able to address a third base vacancy more easily than their second base vacancy, as many of the winter’s top available second basemen are already off the market. Moncada also wouldn’t have to stay at second base forever, if the Sox acquired a third baseman on a relatively short-term deal. Hypothetically, Kyle Seager could be open to a one-year deal to join a contender, or a trade candidate like the Athletics’ Matt Chapman is under team control only through 2023.
More from around the AL Central…

• The Tigers had interest in Kevin Gausman before the right-hander signed with the Blue Jays, ESPN’s Jeff Passan writes. Detroit hadn’t previously been linked to Gausman, though given how aggressively the Tigers courted the pitching market, it isn’t surprising that they checked in on his services as part of their broad search for arms. That search has already resulted in one major pitching signing, as Detroit signed lefty Eduardo Rodriguez to a five-year, $77MM pact.
• Gabriel Arias is an intriguing prospect in the Guardians’ farm system, and ranked by MLB Pipeline as the 82nd-best minor leaguer in all of baseball. Since the Guardians have several other notable middle infield options both on the active roster and in the minors, Cleveland.com’s Paul Hoynes and Joe Noga wonder if Arias might be a viable trade chip, if the team ultimately prefers other players as their ideal shortstop/second baseman of the future. Traditionally, Cleveland has been more apt to keep its top prospects rather than move them in deals, and yet between both the middle infield depth and the Guardians’ more glaring need for outfield help, the situation could be right for the club to move a prospect of Arias’ caliber. The 21-year-old Arias has already been part of one major trade in his young career, as he was one of the six players sent by the Padres to Cleveland in the Mike Clevinger deal in August 2020.

[jrgum3]

Blue Jays looking into Freeman.

That would be scary if they got him but I think he comes back to the Braves. He just doesn't seem like the kind of guy that wants to leave for more money especially after his team just won the World Series and he's played there his whole career.

[BigSpoon]

That would be scary if they got him but I think he comes back to the Braves. He just doesn't seem like the kind of guy that wants to leave for more money especially after his team just won the World Series and he's played there his whole career.

I don't see it happening either on the Jays side of things. Vlad Jr. would have to play 3B (yikes for the Jays) or just DH.