The spring training is two weeks over and we now know that there will not be a universal DH and an extended post-season in 2021. Twenty-seven of our top 60 free agents remain unsigned, so expect a spate of activity between now and the start of camp. Here’s the latest uproar from the hot stove.
Reds agrees to one year deal with Doolittle
The Reds have agreed a $ 1.5 million one-year deal with free agent Sean Doolittle. reports Jon Morosi of MLB.com. Cincinnati traded Raisel Iglesias and non-tender Archie Bradley earlier this season, plus Michael Lorenzen is expected to move into the rotation next year. Doolittle would fill a clear gap in the back of the bullpen. Our RJ Anderson did not count Doolittle among his top 60 free agents.
Doolittle (34) was limited to 11 games and 7 2/3 overs due to knee and oblique injuries in 2020. He threw 60 overs with an ERA of 4.05 in 2019 and made 29 saves, and was recently an All-Star as in 2018. It is not unreasonable to think that Doolittle has a strong bounce season with good health in 2021 may not have. If he does, he could help the Reds get a post-season spot, or be a prospect by the trade deadline. .
Red Sox, Phillies among teams in Gonzalez
Free agent agent Marwin Gonzalez’s market is heating up and the Red Sox and Phillies are among the half a dozen teams interested, MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand and NBC Sports Philadelphia’s Jim Salisbury. Boston signed super-handyman Enrique Hernandez last month for a two-year contract, though he and Gonzalez are versatile enough to co-exist on the same list. This is not a problem.
Gonzalez (next month), 32, would probably not have to be an everyday player at this point in his career, although a switch that can play just about any position has a clear value as a banker. The athletics, brave, brewers and countrymen stand above and beyond the Red Sox as potential landing sites, though that’s just my speculation. Gonzalez is likely to look at a one-year, low-wage contract.
Encarnacion plans to play in 2021 (and 2022)
The free agent, Edwin Encarnacion, plans to play two more seasons that his agent, Paul Kinzer, said Jon Morosi of MLB Network. Now 38, Encarnacion is third on the active list with 424 home races, behind only Albert Pujols (662) and Miguel Cabrera (487). He needs two monster seasons in 2021 and 2022 to reach 500 careers, though that is not entirely impossible.
With the White Sox last year, Encarnacion had its worst season in more than a decade, with a 70 OPS + and losing playing time. Decline in production at his age is usually a recipe for forced retirement. The fact that MLB is unlikely to have the universal DH in 2021 does not help either. Encarnacion is a respected veteran and has long had a reputation as a clubhouse leader, although the odds are stacked against him at this point.
Padres expands Preller
The Padres have signed GM AJ Preller for an extension of the contract until 2026, the team announced. Preller also added president of baseball operations to this title. “AJ has skillfully built both a play-off Major League club and a top-tier league system,” owner Peter Seidler said in a statement. Preller joined San Diego in August 2014 and built the club into a power station. The Padres achieved the third best record (37-23) and the second best running differential (plus-84) in baseball in 2020 and this winter added Blake Snell, Yu Darvish and others to the series.