Ehjays

https://www.espn.com/mlb/insider/insider/story/_/id/33340382/a-hurricane-activity-8-things-happen-once-mlb-lockout-ends The presumption among a lot of rival executives last year was that Freeman and the Braves would eventually work out a deal. But Freeman was not among the stars who signed a pre-lockout contract -- even after the Braves won the World Series and the franchise operated with the championship glow (and cash injection). So the industry view has shifted; there is a growing belief that Freeman will land somewhere outside of Atlanta because of the standoff in his negotiations. The Braves offered $135 million over five years, sources say, and Freeman is looking for a six-year deal. "I think [the Braves] will move quickly to settle on an alternative and move on to get past the conversation," one official said. Maybe that's a deal for Oakland's Matt Olson. Maybe they'll sign Anthony Rizzo. But the Freeman negotiations became a competition, and as one agent said, you never want to do that. Freeman would be a perfect fit for just about any lineup, especially with the universal designated hitter likely to be used in the National League in 2022. Even a team with an established first baseman could envision Freeman splitting time between DH and first base. But as great as Freeman is as a hitter and a clubhouse presence, there probably aren't many teams in position to spend big money on a 32-year-old first baseman. The left-handed hitting Freeman would help to balance the Yankees' very right-handed lineup, and he would probably enjoy swinging into the cozy confines of Yankee Stadium's right-field dimensions. If Hal Steinbrenner chooses to operate within the limits of the competitive balance tax threshold, as he did last year, Cashman may not have the space for another big-money deal. The Yankees already have significant investments in Gerrit Cole and Giancarlo Stanton, and the club's intention is to work to retain Aaron Judge, as his foray into free agency looms next fall. For Freeman, the most likely alternative to the Braves might be the Dodgers. Some agents believe Andrew Friedman, the head of baseball operations for L.A., would never devote a six-year deal to a first baseman entering the back half of his career. "But a shorter term deal that's really lucrative -- I could see that," said one agent, positing a four-year, $140 million contract as more workable for L.A. Wherever the future Hall of Fame inductee lands, folks in the industry believe it'll happen swiftly.

ffs!!!

https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2022/02/frank-herrmann-joins-blue-jays-front-office.html Frank Herrmann Joins Blue Jays’ Front Office By Anthony Franco | February 18, 2022 at 10:12pm CDT Former big league reliever Frank Herrmann recently joined the Blue Jays’ front office, as first reported by David Laurila of FanGraphs (on Twitter). He’ll split his time between the scouting, player development and baseball operations departments. Herrmann, 37, appeared in parts of four big league seasons. He spent the 2010-12 campaigns with the Indians, where his time as a player overlapped with Blue Jays president Mark Shapiro’s and general manager Ross Atkins’ stints in the Cleveland front office. The right-hander spent the next couple seasons in Triple-A but returned to the bigs in 2016, making 14 appearances with the Phillies. Over 135 1/3 MLB innings, Herrmann pitched to a 4.72 ERA. He only punched out 14.8% of batters faced but threw plenty of strikes (5.8% walk rate). After the 2016 campaign, Herrmann made the move to Japan. He signed with the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles of Nippon Professional Baseball. He’d spend three years with the Eagles before catching on with the Chiba Lotte Marines, where he closed out his playing career with a final two seasons. Herrmann was a productive reliever in NPB. Over his five seasons, he worked to a 3.02 ERA. That mark is inflated a bit by a 5.19 figure he posted last year, but Herrmann put up an ERA of 3.04 or lower in each of his first four seasons in Japan. A Harvard graduate, he’ll now transition to his post-playing days. Herrmann brings 16 years of professional playing experience to his role in Toronto’s baseball ops.

https://www.espn.com/mlb/insider/story/_/id/33296649/kiley-mcdaniel-2022-mlb-farm-system-rankings-all-30-teams Kiley McDaniel's 2022 MLB farm system rankings for all 30 teams Hes got the Jays at 21 21. Toronto Blue Jays ($163.5 million) (37 players ranked, 9 better than 40 FV) Last year: 11th, $230 million Top-100 prospects: 2 The Jays have handed out nearly $400 million via three long-term deals (George Springer, Kevin Gausman and Jose Berrios) but are still running outside of the league's top 10 payrolls. They now appear to be in a perennial four-team race for the AL East (until the Orioles' rebuild begins to bear fruit), buoyed by the cost-controlled salaries of young stars like Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Bo Bichette and Alek Manoah. They have a top-heavy farm, led by two more potential impact players in Gabriel Moreno and Orelvis Martinez, who may soon be added to that list, making their balancing act a bit easier.

Blue Jays “Very Interested” In Tyler Mahle Prior To Lockout By Mark Polishuk | February 17, 2022 at 12:51pm CDT The Blue Jays had Tyler Mahle on their radar as a trade target before the lockout, as TSN’s Scott Mitchell hears from a source that the Jays “were very interested” in the Reds right-hander. The exact timing of the Jays’ interest isn’t specified, or whether or not the club may have moved on from big-ticket pitching acquisitions after signing Kevin Gausman. Cincinnati GM Nick Krall began the offseason with a quick trade of catcher Tucker Barnhart to the Tigers, and followed that deal up with his now somewhat infamous statement that the Reds “must align our payroll to our resources and continue focusing on scouting and developing young talent from within our system.” Wade Miley (who had a $10MM club option for 2022) was then placed on waivers and claimed by the Cubs, thus sparking even more speculation about just how much payroll the Reds were looking to shed. As such, players like Mahle, Luis Castillo, Sonny Gray, and many other veteran Reds players were immediately seen as trade candidates, even though Cincinnati didn’t make any other overt cost-cutting transactions before the lockout hit. As MLBTR’s Anthony Franco speculated last month, it could be that between the Barnhart/Miley moves and Nick Castellanos’ likely free agent departure, the Reds might have already gotten their finances in order. On top of that, the Reds were reportedly open to discussing Gray in trade talks but not either Mahle or Castillo. This isn’t to say that the Reds wouldn’t at least listen if Toronto or another team came calling with a big offer, and if the Reds still had designs on contending in 2022, the Blue Jays could offer some combination of both young talent and big league-ready pieces. Cincinnati would likely only accept such a significant trade package for Mahle given that he is both controlled through the 2023 season and coming off the strongest of his five years in the majors. The 27-year-old righty has been both durable (227 2/3 innings) and effective since the start of the 2020 season, posting a 3.72 ERA and a 28.3% strikeout rate, though Mahle’s 8.9% walk rate was below the league average. Mahle did have strong fastball spin rates in both seasons, and 2021 saw Mahle post far and away the best hard-hit ball rate of his career. Mahle seems overqualified for a fourth or fifth starter role, yet that might be where he lines up in a Toronto rotation that also consists of Gausman, Jose Berrios, Hyun Jin Ryu, and Alek Manoah. Ross Stripling is penciled in as the fifth starter for the moment, though as Mitchell notes, Stripling “profiles better as a swingman and spot starter” than as a regular rotation member. Top prospect Nate Pearson is likely going to be on an innings limit after two injury-plagued seasons, so while a Pearson/Stripling combo isn’t bad on paper, the Jays might prefer to shift both pitchers into depth roles and cement their rotation by adding some sort of veteran starter, perhaps even one as accomplished as Mahle. While it remains to be seen if Cincinnati will ultimately deal any of its three starters, the fact that all three may be available to some degree gives the Reds some leverage in talks. In that sense, the Jays aren’t only bidding against other teams interested in Mahle, but also against what other teams (like the Dodgers or Angels) might offer the Reds for Castillo and/or Gray. Given how aggressive Toronto GM Ross Atkins has been in searching out pitching options over the last few years, it is probably safe to assume that the Jays have also checked in on obtaining Castillo or Gray, though only the Blue Jays front office knows which Cincinnati starter is their chief target.

MLB’s CBA Proposal Included Ability To Reduce Number Of Available Minor League Roster Spots By Anthony Franco | February 14, 2022 at 8:29pm CDT Major League Baseball put forth its latest collective bargaining proposal last weekend. Among the provisions included in that broad offer: a clause that would allow the commissioner’s office to reduce the amount of minor league roster spots available to teams in future seasons, according to a report from Jeff Passan of ESPN. Currently, teams are permitted to carry up to 180 minor league players in their organizations during the season; that number expands to 190 over the offseason (not including the Dominican Summer League). According to Passan, MLB’s proposal would leave that 180-player limit in place for the upcoming season but would provide the league the flexibility to set the limit of minor leaguers per club at under 150 players at some point during the term of the next CBA. Passan hears from a league source that they’re not currently envisioning cuts to minor league membership at any point in 2023 but value the opportunity to implement stricter roster limits down the line. MLB has made efforts to contract the minor leagues over the past few years. Over the 2019-20 offseason (prior to the start of the pandemic), the league eliminated 42 teams from affiliated ball, turning them into independent clubs or amateur summer ball teams. As part of the COVID-19 protocols, the league shrank the 2020 first-year player draft from 40 to five rounds. It was set at 20 rounds last year, and Passan writes that the league and union agreed last July to keep a 20-round draft in place going forward. MLB’s proposal could affect different organizations to varying extents. Passan reports that five franchises currently roster more than 180 MiLB players, while two already have fewer than 150. Given that wide discrepancy in roster count between teams, there’s certainly some logic in tighter regulations to balance the field. Yet MLB no doubt also values the potential to reduce the number of minor league roster spots for cost-cutting reasons. Stricter limits on the number of spots available, if implemented, could involve many or all organizations having to release players. Whether the Major League Baseball Players Association will sign off on changes to the minor league roster setup remains to be seen. Minor league players are not members of the MLBPA, nor are they members of a union of their own. Yet the MLBPA does play a role in some decisions involving amateur or minor league players. In addition to the aforementioned league-union agreement on cutting draft rounds, the parties have also discussed the possible implementation of a draft lottery, for example. The treatment of minor league players is an issue that has garnered a fair bit of attention in recent years. The league suggested that improving conditions for remaining minor leaguers provided a compelling justification for cutting teams in the first place. Whether they’ve indeed made significant enough strides to justify those cuts has been a matter of debate. The league is requiring teams to provide housing for their farmhands, starting next season. Yet there remain concerns about the sufficiency of player pay during the season, and MLB continues to battle to keep minor league Spring Training unpaid.

What To Expect From Blue Jays’ Best Prospects | At The Letters With spring training likely to be delayed, Sportsnet turn their attention to the Blue Jays’ top prospects. This week Ben Badler of Baseball America joins ATL to discuss Gabriel Moreno, Jordan Groshans, Orelvis Martinez and some lesser-known minor-leaguers in the Jays’ system on this week's At The Letters

FEBRUARY 10: The Los Angeles County Medical Examiner/Coroner’s Office has ruled Giambi’s death a suicide, reports Matt Kawahara of the San Francisco Chronicle. According to the M.E.’s Office, he died of a gunshot wound to the chest. Barry Zito, Giambi’s former teammate in Oakland, told the Chronicle Giambi was “an incredibly loving human being with a very soft heart and it was evident to us as his teammates that he had some deeper battles going on. I hope this can be a wake-up call for people out there to not go at it alone and for families and friends to trust their intuition when they feel somebody close to them needs help. God bless Jeremy and his family in this difficult time.”

Hazel has since updated she meant Dante Bichette Sr

Yeah, they're still testing in the minors though as 5 MILB guys were caught the other day, one was Dalton Pompeys brother. I think thats his second time caught.