2024-25 Misc Offseason News

[JCREW]

On 12/5/2024 at 2:25 PM, wallus said:

Luis Severino to the..... A's? 3 years, 67 million

This article https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2024/12/athletics-risk-mlbpa-grievance-without-further-payroll-increases.html said that the A's could receive $70M in revenue sharing, and therefore need to have a payroll of at least $105M. That makes the Severino signing make more sense. 

The A's paltry attendance is cited as one reason for receiving such a large piece of the revenue-sharing pie. 

Does anyone know where one could find the full breakdown of those revenue sharing numbers? Thre Crew had 2.5M in home attendance, but had the WORST TV deal. I'm curious with Milwaukee's take is. 

[CheeseheadInQC]

54 minutes ago, Joseph Zarr said:

If this isn’t just for show (and I seriously question that) Milwaukee, Cleveland and Tampa would match a lot of the criteria. Cleveland at one point was estimated to have among the most left uncommitted. I wonder if he does choose Milwaukee if the Brewers would scramble to acquire more signing space in trades to avoid breaking all of their agreements.

[BlazingGunz]

Alex Cobb getting $15m for 1 year is crazy.   Makes me wonder what is wrong with Colin Rea, that nobody wanted him at $5.5m.

[sveumrules]

8 minutes ago, BlazingGunz said:

Alex Cobb getting $15m for 1 year is crazy.   Makes me wonder what is wrong with Colin Rea, that nobody wanted him at $5.5m.

Cobb is just a way better pitcher than Rea. 

22-24 Cobb (317 IP)
91 ERA- | 84 FIP-
4.8 rWAR | 5.8 fWAR

23-24 Rea (292 IP)
104 ERA- | 114 FIP-
3.3 rWAR | 1.7 fWAR

2025 Cobb Steamer
127 IP of 3.69 ERA

2025 Rea Steamer
135 IP of 4.72 ERA

[markedman5]

 

[Thurston Fluff]

30 minutes ago, BlazingGunz said:

Alex Cobb getting $15m for 1 year is crazy.   Makes me wonder what is wrong with Colin Rea, that nobody wanted him at $5.5m.

It's a little early to be signing guys like him. Rea isn't someone you're worried about losing out on. Nothing against him but players of his age and caliber are fairly interchangeable. Teams can wait to see how the market shakes out for higher level players and still get him or someone like him later on.

[jay87shot]

What is going on 3/75 for Eovaldi, 8/218 Fried, 1/15 Wood these starting pitching prices just keep get higher. Do team not worry about starters in there late 30s any more? Fried isn't in his late 30s but will be 39 when that contract expires.

[sveumrules]

46 minutes ago, jay87shot said:

What is going on 3/75 for Eovaldi, 8/218 Fried, 1/15 Wood these starting pitching prices just keep get higher. Do team not worry about starters in there late 30s any more? Fried isn't in his late 30s but will be 39 when that contract expires.

The interesting comp for Eovaldi is Freddy. Stats are from 2021-24 with rankings in parentheses among 133 starting pitchers with at least 300 IP over that stretch...

Eovaldi (606 IP | 26th)
104 K+ (54th) | 69 BB+ (18th) | 94 HR+ (49th)
88 ERA- (40th) | 86 FIP- (34th) | 111 GB+ (25th)
12.1 rWAR (28th) | 11.9 fWAR (20th)

Freddy (558 IP | 37th)
132 K+ (7th) | 104 BB+ (111th) | 97 HR+ (59th)
82 ERA- (27th) | 86 FIP- (34th) | 119 FB+ (17th)
12.9 rWAR (21st) | 11.4 fWAR (21st)

They get there a little different ways - Eovaldi with control and groundballs, Freddy with strikeouts and flyballs - but the FIPs are identical and the overall value is about as close as it gets. 

With Freddy being six years younger and $34M cheaper over the next two years that is some pretty nice surplus value.

Here is how Max Fried stacks up among those same 133 starting pitchers with at least 300 IP from 2021-24...

Fried (603 IP | 29th)
104 K+ (54th) | 72 BB+ (28th) | 60 HR+ (3rd)
68 ERA- (3rd) | 77 FIP- (12th) | 126 GB+ (6th)
17.8 rWAR (4th) | 13.9 fWAR (10th)

The only two pitchers in the sample with a lower ERA- than Max are Woodruff (65) and Ohtani (67), so no healthy pitcher has been better at preventing runs over the last four years. He doesn't strike anybody out, but the combination of excellent control with elite home run suppression and ground ball induction has been a successful (and lucrative) one for him. 

[Scooterfletcher]

2 hours ago, jay87shot said:

What is going on 3/75 for Eovaldi, 8/218 Fried, 1/15 Wood these starting pitching prices just keep get higher. Do team not worry about starters in there late 30s any more? Fried isn't in his late 30s but will be 39 when that contract expires.

I think it means let’s back out on Crochet and try trade Devin to LA and get two good chance to be starting pitchers from the dodgers that are controllable.

[markedman5]

 

[markedman5]

 

[sveumrules]

30 minutes ago, markedman5 said:

 

Interesting signing.

Has been pretty durable averaging 150+ IP over his 12 year career.

Definitely a control artist averaging just over one walk per nine innings the last three years, but only like 6.3 strikeouts per nine in Japan.

For comparison here are some other recent NPB guys (with their K9) before coming over…Sasaki (11.4), Yamamoto (9.3), Imanaga (9.2), Senga (10.3), Ohtani (10.4), Darvish (8.9).

Sugano has also been pretty homer prone in NPB with an HR9 over one in 4 of the 5 seasons from 2019-23 before putting up good homer suppression in 2024. Will be curious to see how that plays in the AL East.

[wallus]

Bryse Wilson to the White Sox. I wish him good luck, hopefully the Sox will have improved defense otherwise it will be ugly for him

[nate82]

Arenado has killed a deal that would have sent him to the Astros.

[markedman5]

https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6005721/2024/12/19/mlb-lockout-2026-salary-cap/

[MNBrew]

On 12/18/2024 at 1:46 PM, wallus said:

Bryse Wilson to the White Sox. I wish him good luck, hopefully the Sox will have improved defense otherwise it will be ugly for him

Definite upgrade for the White Sox.  Definite downgrade for Wilson, though probably a good opportunity.

Wishing him well!

[markedman5]

 

[markedman5]

Hoby signed a 1 year deal with the Rangers.

[TURBO]

If we didn't have Hoskins, this seems like a deal we could have handled...

 

Ari Alexander of KPRC in Houston reports that the Astros are signing Christian Walker to a three-year, $60 million contract.

 

Ken Rosenthal and Chandler Rome of The Athletic reported that the deal was close earlier Friday, and now it appears to be wrapped up, pending a physical. Walker has spent his entire career with the Diamondbacks, and the 33-year-old hit 26 homers with an .803 OPS in 2024 with Arizona over 130 games. He’ll hit in the middle of the order for Houston, and even with no Kyle Tucker, there should be solid opportunities for run production in the Astros’ lineup.

[wallus]

This is the first signing this offseason where I thought the player would have gotten more 

[markedman5]

38 minutes ago, wallus said:

This is the first signing this offseason where I thought the player would have gotten more 

I imagine his age (34 on opening day) and position were mitigating factors in his market value.

[Playing Catch]

58 minutes ago, markedman5 said:

I imagine his age (34 on opening day) and position were mitigating factors in his market value.

This, and the other available options out there. It's possible the big spenders go somewhere else for 1st base, and Walker is left choosing between non-playoff teams and penny-pinchers.

[HarryDoyle]

It's being reported that Rickey Henderson has passed away at age 65.

[markedman5]

Carlos just keeps getting paid………

 

[Brian]

Rickey Henderson died today.  He was 4 days shy of his 66th birthday, December 25, 1958, died of pneumonia.