Free Agents

• Some teams are considering using Jeff Hoffman as a starter.

ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel reported within his ranking of the offseason’s top free agents that some clubs have considered pursuing Hoffman as a starting pitcher. The Athletic’s Matt Gelb backs that up in his own report, further pointing out that Hoffman is represented the same agency (CAA) that represented Reynaldo Lopez during his own switch from the bullpen to the rotation last winter.

Notably, McDaniel opines that Hoffman is still likelier to sign as a reliever. It’s the role in which he’s dominated over the past two seasons, and while he’s not the No. 1 reliever in this offseason’s free agent class — most publications, including MLBTR, assigned that honor to lefty Tanner Scott — Hoffman has a case to be considered the No. 2 or No. 3 bullpen arm on the open market this winter.

As a reliever, Hoffman has three pitches that have great grades and results.

Pitch: SwStr%, BotOverall, Pitching+
Four-seamer: 15%, 67, 103
Slider: 21%, 49, 104
Splitter: 18%, 49, 107 Read the rest of this entry »

Free Agents

• Tomoyuki Sugano and…

Right-hander Tomoyuki Sugano, the most successful Japanese pitcher of his generation to have spent his whole career in Nippon Professional Baseball, will come to Major League Baseball as an international free agent this winter, sources told ESPN.

Sugano, who turns 35 in a week, is in the midst of a renaissance season that has seen him post a 1.67 ERA over 24 starts for the Central League champion Yomiuri Giants. He is a two-time winner of the Sawamura Award — the equivalent of the Cy Young — two-time Central League MVP and four-time ERA champion, and his reemergence paved the way for him to finally reach MLB.

…Shinnosuke Ogasawara plan to be posted this offseason.

Left-hander Shinnosuke Ogasawara is looking to move to the majors, and as per a report from Yahoo Sports Japan (Japanese language link), he’ll ask the Chunichi Dragons to make him available to MLB teams via the posting system this offseason. The Yakyu Cosmopolitan also reported earlier this year that Ogasawara was aiming to pitch for a big league team in 2025, and MLB Network’s Jon Morosi reported (via X) back in April that Major League scouts were watching Ogasawara pitch in Japan.

While the pair are eight years apart in age, their production last season was similar making their comps similar when comparing them to other pitchers coming from Japan to the States. Read the rest of this entry »

MLB.com has a unique news section where each team updates their injuries and transactions. I’ve found this information useful but it’s unique. Each team’s webpage (not an article) is in flux with information constantly appearing and disappearing. I plan to check for updates (each blurb is dated) and report any information. I’ll quote the page to preserve the information. The information disappears into the abyss so quoting the source is the only way to keep it.

I won’t report headline news but will try to dig a little deeper. Additionally, I want this article to be a quick reference so don’t expect a certain word count. I’ll provide the useful info and then fantasy managers can figure out how best to utilize it.

Enjoy and please give me any suggestions. Read the rest of this entry »

American League

Angels

• Mike Trout might move to a corner outfield spot or DH next season.

Angels superstar Mike Trout said his twice surgically repaired left knee is feeling better and he’s open to potentially moving to a corner outfield spot or serving as designated hitter more often to try to stay healthy.

Read the rest of this entry »

American League

Angels

• Logan O’Hoppe tries to regain his swing as he works through some fatigue.

“After that game, we hopped in and worked on some things, felt really different,” O’Hoppe said. “So that was a good sign, you know? I mean, it wasn’t beating my head against the wall like it was the past month. So I’m just looking to build on it.”

O’Hoppe wouldn’t get into detail on the changes he made, but he said that both coaches pointed out things that were different with his swing during his recent skid.

“They pointed a lot of things out to me that I didn’t realize had changed over time,” O’Hoppe said. “There was a lot going on, so I don’t want to get into the specifics of it, but I’m grateful for them and kind of keep leaning on them.”
…
“We’re supposed to be tired right now in September,” O’Hoppe said. “I didn’t just admit that I am tired. Don’t take it the wrong way, but I really do believe that we’re supposed to be tired right now.”

Read the rest of this entry »

American League

Angels

• Here is your periodic reminder to read Lance Brozdowski’s work on pitcher adjustments (and watch his YouTube channel). In this instance, Lance points out how much Caden Dana’s release varies between his pitches.

There’s large release height variation here that makes me worried. He’s popping a half-foot above his slider to get to his fastball shape and then popping another half-foot to get to his curveball shape. These are massive differences and he’s not creating outlier shapes in the process like a Ricky Tiedemann, where you can squint and justify it. Rhett Lowder does this a bit too but not nearly as dramatic. Dana looks like a 20-year-old pitcher to me.

Here are Dana’s different release points.

For a comparison, here are Zack Wheeler’s release points from his last start.

The biggest issue with the various release points is he is tipping his pitches so the batters know which pitch is coming. Read the rest of this entry »

American League

Angels

• Griffin Canning is struggling for several reasons including a new sweeper that is not yet “sharp”.

The sweeper that he’s worked on in bullpen sessions hasn’t been as sharp in game action and is registering as a slider. There’s also some concern he’s showing his grips, potentially tipping pitches. His fastball-changeup usage against lefties has also been viewed as a bit predictable, resulting in an .865 OPS for lefties against him.

Read the rest of this entry »

American League

Angels

• Jo Adell simplified his swing by removing his leg kick.

So Adell made a major change at the plate against the Rockies on July 30, ditching his leg kick in an attempt to cut down on his strikeout rate and put the ball in play more often. It’s worked so far, as he’s hitting .286/.388/.476 with two homers, two doubles and seven RBIs in 12 games since. He looks much like he did early in the year and he’s struck out just nine times in 49 plate appearances over that stretch after having previously struck out in 29% of his plate appearances.
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“The no leg kick, at times it takes some getting used to, but my contact rate has gone through the roof,” Adell said. “I’ve been really able to make a lot more contact, and that’s something where it’s not always about the big fly. We’ve talked about this before, but being able to put the ball in play hard [going] forward should be my goal every time — and I think it’s given me a better chance to do that.”

Adell, 25, added that he doesn’t believe the change will have a negative impact on his power, and so far, the results have shown that. He hit a two-run homer on Friday into the bullpen in left-center field at Nationals Park that went a Statcast-projected 431 feet. And he has four extra-base hits since making the change.

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American League

White Sox

• Drew Thorpe is throwing his changeup at different speeds.

“He learned his changeup plays three times in a row to certain guys,” said White Sox manager Pedro Grifol, commending Thorpe for greater fastball command since Arizona put seven earned runs on him on June 16. “Normally, that doesn’t happen because you don’t throw the same pitch three times in a row.

“People make adjustments. He learned today he can with the changeup if he continues to mix the speeds of the changeup. There are some really good learning moments.”

Read the rest of this entry »

American League

Astros

• Yainer Diaz is getting some reps at first base.

Since Abreu’s departure, Singleton is hitting .301/.374/.411 in 83 plate appearances. Whether the Astros believe this is sustainable may dictate their deadline approach at first base. That the team hasn’t ruled out catcher Yainer Diaz as a possibility at first base is intriguing, too.

Diaz took groundballs at first base during the team’s last homestand before the All-Star break, though that itself isn’t newsworthy. Backup catcher Victor Caratini’s imminent return from a hip flexor strain could free Espada to experiment with Diaz at first base, perhaps putting him in a platoon with Singleton on days he does not catch.

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