Lynn, 37, has not pitched out of the bullpen since 2018. But his agent, Kevin Lustig, recently informed him that several clubs asked if he would be interested in pitching the ninth inning.
“He said, ‘I got a couple of weird calls today.’ I was like, ‘What? Did someone ask me for a minor-league deal?’” said Lynn, who remains a free agent. “He started dying laughing. He was like, ‘No, they asked what you thought about being a back-end guy, a closer.’
Kingery, with nothing to lose, said he did things the way he wanted to in 2024. With that came an uptick in production. His walks decreased significantly. The enhanced aggressiveness resulted in 12 more homers, 25 more hits and 20 more RBI in just 39 more at-bats compared to the year prior. But also zero call-ups. Not even a promotion back to the 40-man roster.
Last season in AAA, the 30-year-old hit .268/.316/.488 with 25 HR and 25 SB in AAA.
Another option for left field is prospect Zach Dezenzo, who spent a month playing winter ball in Puerto Rico to get more at-bats and some reps in left field. Dezenzo, ranked by MLB Pipeline as the Astros’ No. 6 prospect, has played mostly third base in the Minor Leagues, along with some time at second and first base. He was a shortstop when he played at Ohio State University.
While in Puerto Rico, Dezenzo played eight games in left field, 10 at first base and one at third base. The Astros have since signed Christian Walker to play first base, but there remains a real opportunity for Dezenzo to make the club as a contributor in left field.
“The whole goal for me going out there was to get reps in the outfield and get more at-bats,” Dezenzo said. “As you guys know, I missed some games earlier last season [with a wrist injury]. I was in rehab until mid-June. And getting those at-bats, continuing to play, was big. I get better when I’m playing. So I think being in those game environments, atmosphere and situation was good for me.”
…
“Zach Dezenzo played some really good left field there,” Espada said. “I think he’s someone who is going to go to spring, and I’m going to give him some looks in the outfield. I already had that conversation with him. I really like his potential, his athleticism, his bat.”
As we hit the beginning of draft season, it is important to monitor where players are being drafted on a regular basis. Throughout draft season, I will be doing that work for you with regular updates on the Average Draft Position on NFBC up until Opening Day.You can read all the Market Reports here.
This is another one of my favorite offseason exercises. Last week, I went through the Steamer600 projections to uncover some potential gems who could break out if they get that kind of playing time. Today we’re on the hunt again, this time for gold (they’re minerals, Marie!) and we’re doing so by lopping off the first 300 picks of the Average Draft Position and then picking our players.
Later this week, I’ll have the rest of the lineup and then next week, I’ll share my pitchers.
This one is very straightforward: a super powerful catcher-eligible bat in Coors. He also played some 1B and LF so he could be a non-catching catcher. He must figure out how to hit first! Goodman clubbed 13 HRs in just 70 games last season, but his 0.13 BB/K was tied for 3rd-lowest (min. 220 PA) as he posted a 61 wRC+ in 224 PA. He did have a 0.35 BB/K (MLB league average: 0.36) in 1259 minor league plate appearances so he has shown some ability to draw a walk. Think Patrick Wisdom in Coors if things work out for Goodman. Wisdom clubbed 30 HRs/500 PA from 2021-23 despite a paltry 0.26 BB/K and .214 AVG in 1211 PA.
Tanner Scottsigned with the Dodgers earlier this week and you may be wondering, does that make him a top 10 closer going into the 2025 season? Certainly, it must change his pre-trade auction calculator (Steamer) ranking of 14th, right? Roster Resource lists Scott as the Dodger closer for now, but Michael Kopech, Blake Treinen, and maybe even Evan Phillips may cut in on his save counts. And what if the Dodgers score so many runs with their high-powered offense that Scott doesn’t get the opportunity to earn a save often enough? Does being on a really good team limit a team’s save accumulation? Read the rest of this entry »
As we hit the beginning of draft season, it is important to monitor where players are being drafted on a regular basis. Throughout draft season, I will be doing that work for you with regular updates on the Average Draft Position on NFBC up until Opening Day.
One of my favorite traditions every winter is to peruse our Steamer600 projections and dream about some potential breakthrough seasons. This puts everyone on equal footing playing time-wise since it is the most difficult factor to consistently project as Rob Manfred simply refuses to turn off injuries in the global settings of the game!
Here are some of my favorite potential breakouts using these numbers:
CATCHER (they do make an exception at C where it’s 450 PA since very few Cs log 600)
I am still on the Moreno Train! He couldn’t really build on his 2023 breakout because while he did add a few points to his wRC+ total, he only played 97 games and saw his .284 AVG drop 18 points. Thumb and adductor strains in June and August, respectively, cost him about a month of time and contributed to his modest overall output. While it didn’t yield much in the way of his counting stats, it is worth noting that Moreno had a sharp improvement in plate skills, doubling his BB/K from 0.8, tops among catchers with at least 350 PA. A fully healthy season could see the 25-year-old backstop eclipse 400 PA for the first time while this projection likes him for a power surge, too. We did catch a glimpse of power production during their World Series run in 2023 as Moreno clubbed 4 HRs in 70 PA after hitting 7 in 380 during the regular season. The batting average is the key though, so even if he stays more in the 5-7 HR range, there is upside to chase with Moreno. In the last five full seasons (so 2019 added in to replace 2020) there have been just eight instances of a catcher hitting .280+ in at least 400 PA with William Contreras being the only guy to do it twice. I like Moreno to join that club in 2025.
