Mining the News (10/28/24)

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October 28, 2024

• Middle-infielder Hyeseong Kim wants to sign with an MLB team after playing in the KBO last season.

Infielder Hyeseong Kim, who stars for the Korea Baseball Organization’s Kiwoom Heroes, has hired CAA Baseball to represent him ahead of his expected move to Major League Baseball in the upcoming offseason, reports Jeeho Yoo of South Korea’s Yonhap News Agency. (Kim’s name is commonly written as Kim Hye-Seong or Hye-Seong Kim, but Yoo further notes via X that CAA specifically informed him the infielder will go by Hyeseong Kim if he indeed moves to North American ball.)

Kim, who’ll turn 26 next January, is old enough and has enough experience in a major foreign league to be considered a “professional” under Major League Baseball’s international standards. He’ll be exempt from international amateur free-agent bonus pools and thus able to sign a major league contract for any length and dollar amount with an interested team.

The former double-play partner of current Padres infielder Ha-Seong Kim 김하성, the younger Kim is a lifetime .301/.361/.398 hitter in 876 games with the KBO’s Heroes.

…
Prior to the 2023 World Baseball Classic, Baseball America’s Kyle Glaser ranked Kim ninth among the top-ten MLB prospects for fans to track (landing behind current big leaguers Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Jung Hoo Lee 이정후 and Yariel Rodriguez). Glaser called Kim a plus defender at second base (and a capable defender at short) with a “preternatural feel for contact,” good pitch recognition and the ability to catch up to good velocity. At the very least, he could profile as a utilityman with high-end speed and contact skills, though it should come as little surprise if there are clubs who view him as a potential regular at second base. Given his age, Kim should find big league interest — particularly if he can continue his newfound power output.

American League

Angels

• Logan O’Hoppe dealt with sore knees to end the season.

O’Hoppe has also already emerged as one of the club’s key leaders and has worked to earn the trust of the club’s pitchers. He said during the season his goal was to try to catch 150 games, but Washington and the coaches had to help rein him in a bit. But his eagerness to play and catch as much as possible, while also dealing with knee soreness down the stretch, is something that didn’t go unnoticed by his teammates.

Athletics

• The team will now play on a grass field in Sacramento next season.

The nomadic Athletics will play home games on grass as they move from Oakland to Sacramento next season rather than the artificial turf initially planned at Sutter Health Park.

…

“In light of the players’ clear preference for natural grass, and after weighing with the MLBPA the potential risks and benefits of maintaining natural grass versus replacing the playing surface with synthetic turf, all the parties are aligned in moving forward with a natural grass field for opening day 2025,” MLB said in a statement Monday.

Blue Jays

• Orelvis Martinez will play in the Dominican Winter League to makeup for missed time.

Coming off his 80-game suspension for PEDs, Martinez’s trade value took a hit since there will be questions about his performance, so the Blue Jays are better off seeing what they have than selling low. He still ranks as their top hitting prospect, but the Blue Jays need to see him make strides defensively at second and third base to earn a job in 2025. He’s on Licey in the Dominican Winter League and will have an opportunity to make up for some of the playing time he lost to the suspension.

In one game so far, Martinez has played at third base.

Guardians

• David Fry might need elbow surgery.

David Fry will visit with Dr. Keith Meister about his right elbow next week in Dallas. Fry injured the elbow in late June, which limited his defensive versatility for the rest of the season. He admitted to The Athletic during the ALCS that if the need arose, he could catch for a couple of innings, but the injury hampered his ability to throw. He caught once in July but never again after July 23. He and the team were vague about the injury, perhaps to preserve a competitive advantage in case they needed him in a pinch. Meister, for what it’s worth, frequently performs Tommy John surgeries.

Orioles

• Jordan Westburg wasn’t completely healed in the postseason.

The 25-year-old is extremely thoughtful, and answered honestly before Game 1 of the Wild Card series if he felt he was ready after such a long time away.

“I feel good. I don’t think that I’m like 100 percent, right,” he said. “Kind of didn’t have the buildup that a normal injury would but I’m good enough. I’m excited to be back. I’m ready to be back. Adrenaline does a lot of wonders for the body and I’m sure it’s going to kick in even more in this series.

“So I’m happy to be back. I’m excited to be back. I’m going to play as hard as I can, knowing that, you know, there might not be a tomorrow, and my hand can put up with that. Just going to take one day at a time. Not really — it’s not something that I think about on the feel. So it’s not going to affect my performance, I don’t think.”

Red Sox

• Masataka Yoshida had surgery on his shoulder.

Twins

• For the first time since 2017, Byron Buxton started the offseason “healthy”.

This time, there will not be a recovery from a shoulder surgery, or another knee surgery, or rest and recovery from some other season-ending ailment. Buxton’s knee ended the season in a decent place of management, he noted, and he didn’t anticipate any significant health considerations for his programming as he returned home to Georgia with his family.

“I think it’s a good foundation to build on — that he can go into an offseason not knowing he’s got a surgery around the corner and needs to come back from that, and that’s massive,” president of baseball operations Derek Falvey said. “I think that’s going to give him a full offseason of work and development — and what that looks like, that’s awesome.”

What Buxton really wanted of himself at the end of the season was two things: He wanted to cross the 100-game threshold for the first time since 2017, and he wanted to finish the season healthy.

• Top prospect, Emmanuel Rodriguez, might need thumb surgery this offseason.

His return from the first and second of his thumb injuries was again halted after seven games with another thumb flare-up that sidelined him for good on Sept. 2. The Twins last indicated an offseason procedure may be on the table for Rodriguez, but he should be in position to start ‘25 in Triple-A, with a possible opening in a corner-outfield spot created by Max Kepler’s departure.

“Usually, you would think for a left-handed hitter — if you get jammed a lot or otherwise and you have that type of pain in your thumb — it’s usually your top thumb,” president of baseball operations Derek Falvey said. “His is [the] bottom hand, outside, which is just a weird location to have that kind of soreness.”

White Sox

• Yoán Moncada will try to rebuild his value playing for the Cuban National team.

Yankees

• Late in the season, Clay Holmes adjusted his sinker grip.

Late in the season, Holmes appeared to be trusting his slider more than his sinker, but he saw improvement after adjusting his sinker grip in September. Yankees reliever Tommy Kahnle identified Holmes reincorporating his four-seam fastball, a long-shelved offering that has re-appeared during the playoffs, as another key to his turnaround.

“He just kept working on his craft, kept getting everything kind of back into rhythm,” Kahnle said. “I think a big thing was getting his fastball back and using his fastball more. I know we were trying to get him to use it more. And I feel like over the last month-ish, he’s gone back to his heater, and he’s even been throwing four-seam fastballs, which has been amazing.”

National League

Cardinals

• Thomas Saggese only wants to hit flyballs.

Thomas Saggese: “I think my best swings just happen to be balls in the air. I feel like I get the ball in the air pretty well and can hit some homers. I don’t think it’s going to be anything crazy, but I would like to hit 20 a year — .300 with 20 homers every year. That’s kind of my goal.”

Maybe the guy ranked 495th of 548 batters in HardHit% (25.7% HH%) shouldn’t put everything in the air. With this approach, he’s going for the lose/lose approach of no home runs and little batting average.

• Masyn Winn had surgery to remove a cyst from his hand.

• Lance Lynn expects to have a normal offseason.

A pair of IL stints due to right knee inflammation limited to Lance Lynn to just two starts over the last two months of the season, but Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch writes that Lynn is feeling better “and expects to have a normal offseason of preparation.”

Cubs

• Nico Hoerner had forearm surgery …

Chicago Cubs second baseman Nico Hoerner underwent flexor tendon surgery after the season, the team announced Monday. Hoerner experienced discomfort in his right forearm for a significant portion of the season, and his general timeline for next year will depend on how he’s progressing once he reports for spring training in Arizona, according to sources.

… and his return timeline is unclear with him possibly returning well into the regular season.

As for timeline, the word is … there isn’t one. Per The Tribune and The Athletic, the Cubs aren’t going to develop a precise timeline until Hoerner reports to Spring Training next year. It will depend on how he’s progressing in his recovery in the interim.

You can find recovery times on flexor tendon surgery ranging from six months to twelve months depending on where you look and the nature of the player’s injury, but those are all pitchers and catchers, so I think we’re just going to have to deal with a whole lot of uncertainty here when it comes to a second baseman. It sounds like it’s possible Hoerner gets something of a green light in February or March to start a normal season ramp-up. It also sounds like it’s possible that’s when everyone involved lays out a timetable that extends well into the regular season. That part is all guesswork right now. The only semi-sure thing is that we’re probably not going to know much more until January/February at the earliest.

• Jameson Taillon wants to add velocity this offseason.

“Definitely proud of the workload,” Taillon said after his 28th and final start this year. “I’m definitely more comfortable here. I know my way around the locker room. I know the staff and stadium workers more. I know my route to the ballpark. All that stuff does matter.

…

“This offseason, I definitely want to smartly find ways to gain some velocity back. (I’ll) show up to spring training ready to do my job, but also be a leader and lead by example. And hopefully impact some of the younger players that I know we have coming up.”

Taillon’s fastball has lost about 2 mph since the start of the 2023 season.

And to no surprise, the pitch misses more bats the harder it’s thrown.

Mets

• Paul Blackburn had back surgery.

• David Stearns had an end-of-season press conference and here are my notes from it.

Notes:

  • David Peterson, Tylor Megill, and José Buttó will be considered for the rotation or the bullpen. No roles are set just yet.
  • Ronny Mauricio: Needs to do baseball activities. Recovery is slower than anticipated.
  • Brett Baty’s role is not yet determined because of his ability to play multiple positions. I’m not sure about the whole multiple-position thing. He has only played third base in the minors and majors this season. Over his entire minor and major league career, he’s played just 30 games in left field over four seasons.
  • Blade Tidwell and Nolan McLean were mentioned first as top pitching prospects to contribute next season. Both Dom Hamel and Mike Vasil lacked the consistency to be options.
  • He preferred to use a six-day rotation for the extra rest especially when asked a question on Kodai Senga.

Nationals

Padres

• Luis Arraez needed surgery on his thumb.

• Ha-Seong Kim will not be ready for Opening Day.

But on Monday, Preller acknowledged that Kim is unlikely to be ready for Opening Day after undergoing shoulder surgery. Team officials, meanwhile, are not especially optimistic that Kim will pick up his end of an $8 million mutual option. The chances of the clubhouse favorite signing elsewhere seem robust, especially since Kim hired Scott Boras as his agent.

Phillies

• J.T. Realmuto will be limited to about 100 games catching next season.

It is probably time for Realmuto to be closer to 100 games started than 130 — his annual target. How will the Phillies convince him of this?

“I’m not sure yet,” manager Rob Thomson said this week.

He smiled.

The Phillies know how much pride Realmuto takes in being dependable. He is entering the final year of a five-year, $115.5 million contract. His .751 OPS in 2024 was his lowest since his rookie season in 2015, although Realmuto remains one of the better offensive performers at the sport’s most challenging position.

“If you give J.T. some more time off,” Thomson said, “I think his numbers will get better.”

Only one catcher in the past decade has started 120 games behind the plate at age 34 or older: Yadier Molina in 2018. There have been eight instances since 2010 of a 34-or-older catcher starting at least 115 games.

• Rafael Marchán is being considered as the backup catcher.

But Marchán, who turns 26 in February, cannot be sent to the minors in 2025. Stubbs, a good defender who has not hit in the past two seasons as Realmuto’s primary backup, is eligible for salary arbitration but has a minor-league option remaining.
…
“We like Marchán a lot,” president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski said. “We think he’s a real good catcher. He’s shown some offensive prowess also. … He’s had a lot of injuries, but when he’s played, he’s played very well. So I think we have some people capable of doing that internally. But I can’t tell you that they’ll be for sure given the job. We just have to keep an open mind as we explore that this wintertime.”

• Taijuan Walker will be on an offseason conditioning program and is not guaranteed a rotation spot next season.

Taijuan Walker will spend the offseason on what Dombrowski described as a “very detailed program” for his throwing and conditioning. The Phillies will resume the weighted-ball plan they tried during the summer. At this point, they will reserve judgment on Walker until they see him in February in Florida.

“I think he’ll come to spring training with us next year, but he’s not guaranteed a starting spot,” Dombrowski said. “I don’t think I can just say, ‘You’re our fifth starter.’ I think he would come to camp and be in a battle to try to win a spot in the rotation.”

• Andrew Painter might not contribute in the majors until June or July.

Whoever wins the No. 5 job could be a placeholder until Andrew Painter is ready to pitch in the majors. That might not be until June or July if the Phillies delay the start of his season to manage his innings. They know they’ll need more than five or six starters to survive 162 games. This will be one of the bigger spring storylines.

• The team is willing for their hitters to sacrifice some power for more contact.

“One thing I would like us to do, and that’s going to fall into (hitting coach) Kevin Long’s hands: I really would like us to use the whole field a little bit more at times,” Dombrowski said. “We became a pull-oriented club at times too much for me. In the postseason, when you look at it, a lot of our hits didn’t come the opposite way. And that’s something we’ve already talked about ourselves. Now, the hitters have to buy into that, too. They have to be in that position.”

If implemented, this would run counter to modern baseball trends. Teams have valued pull-side power because it’s where the most reward lies. This season, the league had a .689 slugging percentage on balls hit to the pull side with a .435 slugging percentage on balls hit straightaway and to the opposite field. Teams do less damage when using the whole field.

Maybe a contact-based approach is returning to baseball. The run-scoring environment across the sport is depressed. These things tend to move in cycles. It sounds like a novel approach; applying it to a lineup of established hitters who are often stubborn in their ways is a challenge.

….

But to the Phillies, Schwarber epitomizes the lineup ideal. He went to work last offseason to cut down on his strikeouts. He raised his batting average by 51 points. He improved against lefties because he used the whole field. That, however, forced him to sacrifice some power.

It is a trade the Phillies will ask their hitters to make.

• Andrew Painter is averaging 97 mph in the AFL by adding a second harder slider and dumping his sweeper.

The 22-year-old touched 99.2 mph and averaged 97.1 mph with his 19 heaters, up a tick from his 96.8 average in his previous Desert Dogs outing on June 18. Painter also spun six curveballs in the 80-82 mph range, giving him an option in the lower zone that complemented the rising fastball — and he didn’t need his changeup with eight righty hitters in the Rafters lineup.

But there’s also a relatively new pitch in Painter’s repertoire that has piqued interest in Arizona — a sharp upper-80s offering that needs some clarification on its classification.

“It’s a slider,” Painter said. “It’s the same pitch, same grip, just a different thought process. One of them, the slower one, is for a strike most of the time. When I get to two strikes, it’s the same grip, but I’m just thinking to go gloveside away to a righty and in on a lefty. I’m just thinking more heater with it. Same grip though.”

…

Painter was working with two slider types — one in the upper 80s that bit hard and another in the low 80s with more sweep. Following the top Phillies pitching prospect’s rehab work, the sweeper has been left behind.

“That’s no longer in the arsenal,” he said.

• The team is considering resting its players more.

[Dave Dombrowski has] wondered if fatigue hampered the Phillies in July and August. He might pad the hitters’ schedules with more rest to begin the season.

• Trea Turner will remain at shortstop next season.

Several questions centered on Trea Turner’s play at shortstop, and his inconsistencies at the plate. Dombrowski made it crystal clear that Turner will be the team’s shortstop in 2025, following outside speculation that the Phils could move him to a different position as they try to enhance their lineup.

• Johan Rojas will try to improve his hitting this offseason.

Rojas played above-average defense in center field, but he did not produce enough offensively. He will spend the offseason in Clearwater, Fla., trying to improve his offense.

Pirates

• The team has faith in Braxton Ashcraft as a major league starter.

“I think first thing is just want to get [Braxton Ashcraft] feeling good physically and healthy,” Ben general manager Cherington said in September. “He was clearly showing us this year that he could be a Major League starter. I think we felt strongly about that. I think as long as we believe that and see those skills, [we] want to give that every chance to happen.”

Reds

• Connor Phillips‘ fastball velocity was up about 1 mph (96.5 mph to 97.5 mph) in the AFL while not improving his command (6.9 BB/9 in AAA).

The Reds sent several big leaguers here to rehab from injuries, including Connor Phillips, who was 96-99 with an above-average slider at 85-86 and absolutely no command.

Rockies

• The team plans on cutting payroll before next season.

In an article earlier today examining the Rockies’ plans for the upcoming offseason, Patrick Saunders of The Denver Post reported that the club intends to lower their payroll headed into the 2025 campaign. Per Saunders, those plans to lower payroll come with an expectation that the club will shop second baseman Brendan Rodgers, lefty starter Austin Gomber, and righty starter Cal Quantrill on the trade market this winter.





 

Jeff, one of the authors of the fantasy baseball guide,The Process, writes for RotoGraphs, The Hardball Times, Rotowire, Baseball America, and BaseballHQ. He has been nominated for two SABR Analytics Research Award for Contemporary Analysis and won it in 2013 in tandem with Bill Petti. He has won four FSWA Awards including on for his Mining the News series. He's won Tout Wars three times, LABR twice, and got his first NFBC Main Event win in 2021. Follow him on Twitter @jeffwzimmerman.

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David KleinMember since 2024
2 months ago

I didn’t take Peterson being an option for anything but the rotation in the presser he had a breakout year as a starter this year. Baty got a bunch of starts at second base in Syracuse this year.

Last edited 2 months ago by David Klein
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TheBabboMember since 2019
2 months ago
Reply to  David Klein

That one was a head-scratcher, Baty started almost as many games at 2B (27) as 3B (33) in AAA this season.

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