Ehjays

Guardians, Jose Ramirez Have Reportedly Had Informal Extension Discussions By Anthony Franco | March 28, 2022 at 9:32pm CDT Since the end of the lockout, the Guardians have had “on and off” discussions with the representatives for star third baseman José Ramírez, reports Paul Hoynes of Cleveland.com. Hoynes characterizes the talks as exchanging ideas about players who could be considered comparable to Ramírez as opposed to floating actual frameworks for a deal. It’s not surprising to hear the Cleveland front office has gotten in touch with Ramírez’s reps. The three-time All-Star is controllable for two more seasons, but it stands to reason the Guardians would want some idea about the kind of money it’d take to keep him around for the long haul. Ramírez is, after all, one of the game’s best players. The switch-hitting third baseman broke out as a superstar in 2017, and he’s been among the most valuable players in the sport over the past half-decade. Going back to the beginning of the 2017 campaign, only Mike Trout and Mookie Betts edge out Ramírez among position players by FanGraphs’ measure of Wins Above Replacement. Ramírez owns a .280/.365/.547 line in that time, offensive production that checks in checks in 39 percentage points above average by measure of wRC+. That’s the 15th-highest mark among qualifiers, and Ramírez pairs that offensive damage with excellent marks for both his baserunning and defense at the hot corner. Cleveland signed Ramírez to an incredibly team-friendly deal just before he took his game to new heights. In March 2017, they inked him to a $26MM guarantee that extended their window of team control by three seasons. He’ll play this season on an $11MM salary and is controllable in 2023 via a $13MM club option that’s a lock to be exercised barring catastrophic injury. That extension delayed Ramírez’s path to the open market, and he’s not slated to hit free agency (assuming next year’s option is picked up) until the advance of his age-31 campaign. Accordingly, he won’t command a decade-long commitment in the Corey Seager mold, but teams have still paid a fair amount for slightly older star position players in recent offseasons. George Springer landed a six-year, $150MM deal from the Blue Jays heading into his age-31 season last winter; Marcus Semien picked up $175MM over seven years from the Rangers this offseason at the same age. If he keeps playing at his current form over the next couple years, Ramírez would quite likely beat those deals in free agency. His camp could justifiably argue he’s a better player than either Springer or Semien, and the overall market could be more robust as teams move further away from the lost revenues in 2020. Draft pick compensation for free agents, which applied to both Springer and Semien, could also be pulled from the collective bargaining agreement depending on the status of an international draft. The Guardians wouldn’t pay an open market price for Ramírez two years in advance, but it’d still register as a surprise if they went to the level it’d take to keep him in Cleveland long-term. The franchise has never gone above $60MM in guarantees on any individual player. A Ramírez extension would probably cost more than double that amount. Cleveland has had a bottom five player payroll in each of the past two years, and they’re currently slated to head into 2022 with around a $56MM mark, in the calculation of Jason Martinez of Roster Resource. Owner Paul Dolan would probably have to greenlight more spending in the future to keep Ramírez around. The post-2023 payroll slate is wide open, but it’s tough to imagine the Guardians allocating 40-50% of their annual payroll to a single player. Hoynes writes that the front office is conferring with Dolan about the long-term spending plans and that no further negotiations with Ramírez have presently been scheduled. It stands to reason the front office will reengage with their star player once they have a better understanding about the kind of resources that’ll be at their disposal. With their two years of club control, the Guardians don’t have to hammer out a deal with Ramírez in the coming weeks or months. So long as no extension is in place, however, chatter figures to mount about his future. That’s particularly true if the Guardians struggle early in the season. Ramírez’s name was floated briefly in trade rumors this winter, with the Blue Jays among the teams to inquire about his availability, but it never seemed likely Cleveland would ship him out over the offseason. A rough first half for the team would probably result in increased speculation about a Ramírez trade as the deadline gets closer. Cleveland would surely prefer to avoid that situation — either by keeping him for the long haul or playing well enough in the season’s first couple months there’s no question about their direction come July.

Another small motivator for the Jays to consider is the added Ghost Runner rule for extra innings this year. Having Tapia on the bench will help in this regard.

Blue Jays, Rockies To Swap Randal Grichuk For Raimel Tapia By Steve Adams | March 24, 2022 at 12:01pm CDT The Blue Jays and Rockies have agreed to a trade sending outfielder Randal Grichuk from Toronto to Colorado in exchange for outfielder Raimel Tapia, reports Mark Feinsand of MLB.com (via Twitter). The Jays will acquire infield prospect Adrian Pinto from the Rockies, and they’ll also send cash to Colorado to help cover Grichuk’s contract, Feinsand adds. Grichuk, 30, has been viewed as a trade candidate for more than a year now as the Rockies have deepened their outfield mix and Grichuk’s performance has slipped. Signed to a five-year contract covering the 2019-23 seasons, Grichuk is still owed $9.33MM both this season and next, while Tapia and the Rox settled on a $3.95MM salary earlier this week. He’s arbitration-eligible and controlled through the 2023 season himself. The difference in salary between the two players clocks in at about $14.7MM. Grichuk signed a five-year, $52MM contract back on April 2, 2019 — fresh off a 2018 season in which he’d batted .245/.301/.502 with what was then a career-high 25 home runs in 462 plate appearances. It was something of a head-scratching deal even at the time, as Grichuk’s perennial OBP struggles worked to offset his power and solid glovework in the outfield. That’s not to say he wasn’t a useful player, but the Jays already controlled Grichuk for two seasons and were effectively committing about $39-40MM on top of what he might’ve earned in arbitration to buy out his first three free-agent seasons. Since putting pen to paper, Grichuk has posted a .242/.286/.448 batting line with 65 home runs in 1414 plate appearances. Among the 159 players with at least 1000 plate appearances in that three-year stretch, he ranks 158th in on-base percentage. To his credit, Grichuk curbed his strikeout rate from 26.4% in 2018 all the way down to 20.9% in 2021, but the gains in contact didn’t result in a better average and his walk rate dipped to a career-low 5.0%. It’s clear that there’s above-average pop in his bat, but defensive metrics have also soured on Grichuk’s work in center over the past couple seasons. Meanwhile, the Jays have signed George Springer and received breakouts from Lourdes Gurriel Jr. and Teoscar Hernandez since signing Grichuk to that long-term pact. There were reports even while the lockout was still ongoing that Tapia could be on the move when transactions resumed. Adding Kris Bryant as the new primary left fielder surely only hastened the Rockies’ efforts to move Tapia, who’d previously occupied that position. Grichuk can serve as a primary center fielder or right fielder in Colorado, and he’ll bring the Rox quite a bit more power than Tapia ever offered — albeit at the expense of some speed, on-base percentage and (arguably) defensive value. In Tapia, the Jays will get a much-needed lefty bat to help balance out an entirely right-handed outfield mix (and a generally right-leaning lineup overall). The 28-year-old has served as Colorado’s primary left fielder since 2019, logging a .282/.327/.394 slash line that appears solid on the surface but falls well shy of average after weighting for home park and league (79 wRC+). Tapia has strong bat-to-ball skills but an extreme ground-ball approach that has resulted in just 16 home runs through 1186 plate appearances since 2019. He can swipe a base when needed (37 steals with a 77.1% success rate across the past three seasons. Like Grichuk, he’s not one to take many walks (6.3% since ’19), but he’s also a tough strikeout, evidenced by last year’s career-best 13.1% mark. Tapia has received solid marks in left field from metrics like Defensive Runs Saved (4), Ultimate Zone Rating (6.0) and Outs Above Average (7) since emerging as a regular in the lineup at Coors Field. He’s at least capable of playing center in a pinch, having logged 189 innings there in his career (15 this past season, none in 2020, 83 in 2019). Those ratings, plus his left-handed bat, make him a better fit for Toronto’s roster than the right-handed-hitting Grichuk was. While Tapia may not be the star the Rockies envisioned when he ranked among the sport’s 50 best prospects in the 2016-17 offseason, he’s emerged as a solid defensive outfielder with better-than-average speed and bat-to-ball skills. The Jays will likely hope to coax some more fly-balls out of Tapia, thus generating some extra power, but even if his batted-ball profile remains unchanged, he can be a useful fourth outfielder for a club that is deep in slugging right-handed options. As for the 19-year-old Pinto, he’ll give the Jays something of a prospect wild card to plug into the low levels of their farm system. Baseball America rated Pinto 19th in a fairly thin Rockies system this spring, labeling the 5’6″ second baseman as a “breakout candidate” who could take substantial steps forward as he moves from the Dominican Summer League to a full-season affiliate. Pinto hit .360/.486/.543 in 224 DSL plate appearances last season, walking at a massive 17% clip against just an 8% strikeout rate while leading the league with 41 stolen bases. BA’s scouting report lauds his “outstanding” hand-eye coordination, advanced pitch recognition skills and plus-plus speed. Players of his size and stature will always have their share of skeptics, but the Jays probably feel better about paying Grichuk to play elsewhere if they’re viewing part of the transaction as an effective purchase of Pinto from the Rockies.

Yes they were talking about aquiring Anderson AND a pitcher https://www.miamiherald.com/sports/mlb/miami-marlins/article259612989.html A trade pursuit of Toronto outfielder Teoscar Hernandez. The Marlins and Blue Jays had serious discussions in November, and if this deal had happened, Miami likely wouldn’t have signed Soler. Hernandez, 29, produced his best offensive season last year, hitting .296 with 32 homers and 116 RBI in 143 games. He posted a 3.9 wins over replacement. Though he has played primarily in left and right field, Hernandez has played center field in 110 games, including extensive work there in 2019, and probably is better equipped defensively for center than any of the Marlins starting outfielders. Toronto was seeking an upgrade at third base, and Brian Anderson likely would have been part of any deal. The Marlins also assuredly would have been required to send Toronto at least one starting pitcher. The Blue Jays have been pursuing a left-handed bat all offseason, and had they signed Kyle Schwarber or Michael Conforto in free agency, they might have dealt Hernandez. After the lockout, Toronto instead acquired Gold Glove third baseman Matt Chapman from the Athletics, and signed starting pitcher Yusei Kikuchi to a three-year deal. The Marlins and Jays haven’t revived trade talks since the lockout ended. So the Marlins will stick with what they have for now. If an opportunity to trade for a top center fielder arises - or if outfield defensive shortcomings begin to cost them games in April and May - the Marlins could vigorously renew their search to replace Marte, who was dealt to Oakland last summer for Jesus Luzardo, then signed a four-year, $78 million deal with the Mets and is now sidelined with an oblique injury.

So I found out why that second tweet disappeared. It was the Rangers hitting coaches son, opened a Twitter account called MLBDrops and started to break news before Kenny Ken and the rest of them.

I didnt hear about Moreno, I did hear them say Yimi Garcia has visa issues.

Well its about time he decided to "Retool his throwing program" f***, you would think after throwing less than 40 innings since 2017 you would want something different. Guaranteed no-one said "Hey Julian, whats your throwing program?" Anyway, like everyone else says , If he gets healthy he is a game changer.

I think Chapman will outwar Devers this year.

Blue Jays Continue To Pursue Left-Handed Hitting By Mark Polishuk | March 19, 2022 at 9:30pm CDT The Blue Jays have one of baseball’s most dangerous lineups, though their projected starting nine tilts heavily to the right side. Cavan Biggio is the only left-handed hitter set to receive everyday action in Toronto’s lineup, and even Santiago Espinal is expected to spell Biggio when southpaws are on the mound. With this in mind, the Jays continue to look into left-handed hitters, with Sportsnet’s Shi Davidi writing that the club has shown interest in Michael Conforto, Joc Pederson, Brad Miller, and former Jay Corey Dickerson. While Davidi reports that the Jays “had offers in” on the latter three names, Dickerson joined the Cardinals on a one-year/$5MM deal, Pederson went with the Giants’ one-year/$6MM offer, and Miller received $10MM over a two-year deal with the Rangers. These players all projected for platoon or part-time duty, whereas Conforto would seemingly both be in line for more of an everyday role, and at a significantly higher cost. Such clubs as the Rockies, Marlins, Yankees, and Padres have also been linked to Conforto’s market this winter, though Colorado could be off the board after signing Kris Bryant, while the Marlins have addressed their outfield needs with Jorge Soler and Avisail Garcia. Signing Conforto would cost a draft pick since he turned down the Mets’ qualifying offer, and it does remain to be seen exactly what kind of deal Conforto will land as Opening Day nears. His market could improve as other outfielders get signed, though in the wake of Conforto’s average 2021 season, teams may still balk at committing significant money. A multi-year contract with opt-out clauses could be an option, similar to the deal just signed by another Scott Boras client — new Twins shortstop Carlos Correa. Or, the Jays could offer Conforto a straight one-year contract worth $18.4MM (the cost of the qualifying offer), in a move similar to how Toronto landed Marcus Semien last winter. Like Semien, Conforto could see the one-year deal as a bridge to a bigger contract the following offseason, assuming that Conforto returns to his past form. Signing Conforto would cost the Blue Jays $500K of international spending money and their second-highest pick in the 2022 draft, which would be their second-round selection. However, since the Blue Jays will be getting two extra compensatory picks just prior to the third round (since Semien and Robbie Ray rejected QOs and signed elsewhere this winter), the Jays could feel they have the draft depth to rationalize signing Conforto. The amount of interest Toronto has in Conforto isn’t known, as Davidi acknowledges that the Jays could just be making a routine check-in on a notable unsigned free agent. Since the Jays don’t have a set DH, Teoscar Hernandez, George Springer, Lourdes Gurriel Jr., and Conforto could all see regular work in the DH spot and the starting outfield spots, with Randal Grichuk getting fill-in duty as the situation warrants. Of course, switch-hitting Guardians star Jose Ramirez continues to be a Blue Jays target, and would represent another left-handed option to balance out the lineup in a major fashion. It remains to be seen if the Jays and Guardians can finally agree on a trade package or if Cleveland will even end up moving Ramirez whatsoever, though Davidi reports that a Guardians scout was recently seen taking video of Alejandro Kirk. Since the Guards are thin at catcher now and don’t have a true catcher of the future lined up (depending on Bo Naylor’s future position), Kirk would be a logical candidate to be included as part of a potential Ramirez trade package.

Either that or too many beers

The Rockies

yeah guess so, i was trying to remember who it was from, I think it was from Nightengale. But he was sure it was goin down, I guess he plays 3rd if he goes there. We shall see.

It was saying Story would take a huge discount to play on Rangers

Exactly, That thought crossed my mind when we were talking about the bullpen with Andrew Vasquez or David Phelps, being the 8th man, if they are better than others Im ok with that, but with Charlie, he might send Pearson down to give one a spot. You just never know. Wait maybe he decides on who makes the team by playin rock, paper scissors.