Mining the News (12/9/24)

by
December 9, 2024
Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports

• Korea’s Hye-seong Kim 김혜성 and Japan’s Koyo Aoyagi have been posted.

• Lance Lynn lost 20 pounds.

Frustrated by knee trouble that last season limited him to 117 1/3 innings, his lowest total for a full campaign excluding the 2016 season he missed while recovering from Tommy John surgery, Lynn adjusted his training regimen. In a phone interview Wednesday, the 6-foot-5 right-hander said he has lost 20 pounds, dropping from 280 to 260.

American League

Astros

• In winter ball, Zach Dezenzo is only playing first base and outfield (no 3B) while prospect Brice Matthews is playing second and third base.

Zach Dezenzo, ranked by MLB Pipeline as the club’s No. 5 prospect, made his Major League debut last season and is playing mostly first base and left field in winter ball in Puerto Rico. No. 3 prospect Brice Matthews, who reached Triple-A last season, has split time between second base and third base in Puerto Rico and has a .589 OPS. He’s likely not an option for the Opening Day roster.

Then there’s third baseman Shay Whitcomb, the club’s No. 14 prospect. He also made his Major League debut last season. He was named the club’s Minor League Player of the Year in 2024 after hitting .293 in 108 games with Triple-A Sugar Land, with 25 home runs, 91 RBIs, 26 stolen bases and a .908 OPS. Whitcomb was 9-for-41 in 20 games with the Astros and was optioned to the Minors after making four errors at third base in a game against the Mariners on Sept. 25.

Blue Jays

• Daulton Varsho is questionable for Opening Day.

Daulton Varsho’s also progressing well, but remains questionable for opening day, according to Atkins, who spoke with the Toronto chapter of the Baseball Writers Association of America Tuesday. All things considered, though, these previously injured players have moved in the right direction since the regular season ended.

…

Varsho had rotator cuff surgery on his right shoulder in September, and recovering from that operation will likely delay his progression in spring training, impacting his availability early in 2025.

…
If Varsho does miss the start of the season, Joey Loperfido, Nathan Lukes and Jonatan Clase would be candidates to handle centre field on an interim basis. While the Blue Jays are interested in free agent outfielders led by Juan Soto, most of their potential targets are corner bats meaning any centre field depth is likely to come internally.

Mariners

• The team doesn’t plan on adding any elite bullpen arms …

The Mariners didn’t have the elite bullpen that they had in years past, finishing 26th in the Majors in fWAR after ranking fourth from 2021-23 combined, but they don’t view that area as a significant need this winter.

“The return from injuries from some guys is really a chance to turn what was a fine bullpen last year into a once again great bullpen,” Hollander said.

Indeed, the three-headed beast of Andrés Muñoz, Gregory Santos and Matt Brash that the club entered Spring Training with wound up being a one-man show after Santos was limited to just eight games due to shoulder and biceps injuries and Brash underwent Tommy John surgery. Muñoz also dealt with lingering back pain during extended stretches but avoided the IL.

… Matt Brash should return earlier than expected.

All three are expected to be key contributors in ‘25, with Hollander optimistic that Brash could return sooner than expected.

“I’m loath to put timelines [on it] because it’s science and there’s some art to it, and it depends on how he progresses through,” Hollander said. “We do anticipate early in the season — sometime in late April or early May, we think, is realistic based on how he’s trending.”

Orioles

• Trevor Rogers is going to Driveline in the hope of adding velocity.

“I have been doing Driveline this offseason (in Phoenix). The Orioles and Driveline, we’ve been in constant communication, just making sure we are all on the same page. We looked at the numbers and my lower body strength was far below average. So, it correlates with velocity.

“To be honest I was happy to see that. If everything was right in the middle or average, we might have a bigger question. But knowing that was lacking and it contributed to my lower velocity, I was excited to know there is an answer. And I can work to attain the goal of getting stronger.”

It was like a light bulb turning on moment for Rogers. The lower body weakness could be turned into more ticks on the radar gun.

Royals

• Maikel Garcia had elbow surgery.

• Kris Bubic will move to the rotation.

Augmenting the bench remains a possibility, though that will depend on if the Royals successfully trade for a bat. The top of the rotation is set with Seth Lugo, Cole Ragans and Wacha. The Royals are also planning for Kris Bubic to be used as a starter next year, though he will likely be on an innings limit of roughly 140 to 150 in his first full season back from Tommy John surgery.

• Kyle Wright is expected to return in the first half of the season.

Kyle Wright missed the 2024 season recovering from shoulder surgery but is on track to return in the early portion of the first half of 2025. Daniel Lynch and Noah Cameron, who was added to the team’s 40-man roster ahead of MLB’s non-tender deadline, also remain options.

Tigers

• The team is trying to add another right-handed bat.

It goes to figure, then, that Tigers president of baseball operations Scott Harris made a right-handed bat an offseason priority, a search that should pick up during next week’s Winter Meetings. They don’t necessarily need an everyday player to fill that role, but they need someone with the kind of bat to restore balance and give them options.

Both Wenceel Pérez (career .594 OPS vs LHP, .709 vs RHP) and Kerry Carpenter (career .588 OPS vs LHP, .897 OPS vs RHP) are liabilities against lefties and could use a platoon partner.

National League

Braves

• MLB.com’s Mark Bowman expects Ronald Acuña Jr. to miss a third of the season and Spencer Strider to miss April.

The current projected Opening Day outfield would be Michael Harris II in center, Jarred Kelenic in left and Eli White/Carlos Rodriguez/write-in candidate in right. So, there is an obvious need for at least one outfielder to account for Acuña’s absence through most of the first third of the season. That outfielder could also provide insurance as Kelenic again tries to prove he can be an everyday big leaguer.

With Strider likely to miss April, the only current locks for Atlanta’s Opening Day rotation would be Chris Sale, Reynaldo López and Spencer Schwellenbach.

Diamondbacks

• Drey Jameson will transition to the bullpen.

However, after throwing just 68 2/3 innings between Triple-A Reno and the Majors in 2023 and no innings last year, Jameson will likely be looked at as a reliever in his first season back.

Hazen said nothing had been fully mapped out in that regard, but it would seem to be a sensible way to get him back up to speed. He could be an extremely valuable piece in the bullpen if that’s the direction they go.

Dodgers

• Evan Phillips’s shoulder is fine.

• Freddie Freeman had ankle surgery.

Los Angeles Dodgers first baseman and World Series MVP Freddie Freeman underwent surgery on Thursday to address the badly sprained right ankle that hampered him throughout the postseason, the club said.

He is expected to be able to participate in baseball activities in spring training, the team added. Dr. Kenneth Jung performed the procedure.

Marlins

• The GM expects full seasons from Connor Norby (IF), Kyle Stowers (OF), and Derek Hill (OF) while liking prospects Agustin Ramirez (C), Deyvison De Los Santos (1B), and Jared Serna (MI).

Bendix had been vague about how Miami might go about improving upon the NL’s lowest-scoring lineup from last season, but he may have tipped his hand Thursday morning. Bendix is eager to see full seasons from midseason acquisitions Connor Norby, Kyle Stowers and Derek Hill. He also namedropped rising prospects Agustin Ramirez, Deyvison De Los Santos and Jared Serna as players whose offensive potential he is excited about. Bendix acknowledged being mindful of the talent already on the roster while looking to add externally. It’s quite the balancing act.

 





 

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.

Comments are closed.