SPRING TRAINING NEWS/RUMORS Thread

@MLBPipeline
The #Dodgers have extended non-roster Spring Training invites to nine of their Top 30 prospects: https://atmlb.com/4knOYlY

1. Josue De Paula (MLB No. 15)
2. Zyhir Hope (MLB No. 27)
6. Jackson Ferris
8. James Tibbs III
13. Adam Serwinowsk
17. Patrick Copen
24. Kendall George
25. Noah Miller
27. Zach Ehrhard

 

All of these make sense from the standpoint that they've advanced enough to conceivably get called up in 26 or 27, but I find the Copen one a little perplexing. Maybe he was able to make some great adjustments over the wither. Maybe they want to see how his stuff plays against major leaguers. But unless he's found a way to be able to manage the strike zone monocularly, this could be a pretty ugly spring for him.

 

ouch, literally and figuratively


@DanClarkSports
Kris Bryant is back on the IL and is expected to miss at least the first 2-3 months of the season.

Since signing his 7-year/$182M contract 4 years ago, his numbers have been horrendous:
• 170 G
• -1.6 WAR
• .695 OPS
• 30.9 HardH%

His last home run? May 2024.

 

Three straight years of negative WAR and now this. I almost feel bad for Colorado.

 

yes his proposal is self-serving
but for once in my life i actually agree with scott boras…

@FoulTerritoryTV
Scott Boras proposes decreasing revenue sharing for teams that don't try and constantly miss the playoffs because they're not returning a proper plan to make the league better:

"It's very clear in today's game that every club can afford one or two major free agents."

 

maybe they’re thinking rortvedt will clear waivers and they re-sign him
otherwise idk

 

No... this makes a ton of sense. Next logical move is to DFA Phillips and claim Ibanez. Or Banda.

I jest.

I like the move, and I believe the intent from the git-go with reclaiming Rortvedt was to try to pass him through waivers again. They weren't going to carry three catchers, and short of doing a preseason trade of Rushing, there wasn't a spot for him on the active roster. Besides, like the article insinuated, Ben is not offensively-productive enough to hold a long-term spot on an MLB roster, but he's a great option to have in AAA as an insurance policy. It'll be interesting to see if any team tries to foil these plans again by claiming Ben. That guaranteed $1.25M contract should be enough of a deterrent though.

It's great to have Evan back and he could provide a fresh arm down the stretch, but the only part of this that surprises me is the dollar amount... $6.5M plus luxury tax for half a season (and even that's not a sure thing)?!?! Well, like we always say, "ain't my money."

 

If Ben is realistic about his skill level, then those one-and-a-quarter big ones ought to make him pretty happy and okay with getting bounced back and forth for a couple of months.

I'm also surprised the Reds were willing to pay that, initially. I assume that even after they cut him, they'd have been on the hook for that salary if no other team made a claim. Not sure another team will take that chance just to fuck with the Dodgers, but who knows?

 

yep

@BlakeHHarris
Great to see that Evan Phillips is officially back
The Ben Rortvedt DFA makes sense, as they're gonna hope he makes it through waivers and back to OKC for depth
I'm guessing next move will be the signing of Kiké, where they'll transfer Phillips to the 60-day IL

 

@DodgersNation
Dodgers President Andrew Friedman says he thought the team’s odds of signing both Kyle Tucker & Edwin Diaz were less than 5%:
“We feel fortunate that we were able to wind up with both.”​

amazing
even if disingenuously posturing

 

perspective…

@OleTimeHardball
A player could get a Hit in all 162 games…for 26 straight seasons…and he’d still be 44 Hits shy of Pete Rose.

 

@JeffPassan
Right-hander Chris Bassitt and the Baltimore Orioles are in agreement on a one-year, $18.5 million contract, sources tell ESPN. Bassitt, 36, joins an overhauled O’s rotation that also added Shane Baz and re-signed Zach Eflin to join Kyle Bradish, Trevor Rogers and Dean Kremer.