CLOSED NEWS/RUMORS Thread

conforto 2.0

 

Cardinals sign free-agent RHP May
by Jeff Passan | ESPN — 6 hours ago



Right-hander Dustin May and the St. Louis Cardinals are in agreement on a free agent contract, pending a physical, sources told ESPN on Saturday.

As one of the youngest free agents in the class, May, 28, drew widespread interest from teams tantalized by his ceiling.

May threw a career-high 132⅓ innings last year in his first season since recovering from a torn esophagus in July 2024 that required surgery and caused him to miss the remainder of the year after an arm injury kept him out the first 3½ months. He was traded from the Los Angeles Dodgers to the Boston Red Sox and together went 7-11 with a 4.96 ERA.

While May's sinker velocity dipped from its peak of 98 mph to 94.5, the 6-foot-6 May was trying to regain the 40 pounds he lost in the first three weeks after the surgery. May bulked up from 185 pounds to around 205 during the season, and in the time since he has added another 15 pounds, leaving him just five short of his previous playing weight.

At his best, May was dominant, but never had he pitched more than 56 innings in a season before last year -- and that was as a 22-year-old in the COVID-shortened 2020 season. The Dodgers relied heavily on May during their run to the World Series title that year, and he projected as a fixture in their rotation.

He underwent Tommy John surgery the next year, suffered further arm injuries in 2023 and ended this season on the injured list with neuritis in his right elbow.

Over seven major league seasons, May has thrown 324 innings with a 3.86 ERA. He has struck out 297, walked 100 and allowed 35 home runs with a 46.6% ground ball rate.

 

• Former Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Andre Ethier revealed he did some recruiting work at the MLB Awards, putting the idea of signing with the Dodgers in All-Star closer Edwin Diaz’s head. Ethier sat next to Diaz at the MLB Awards in November, and spoke to Dodger Talk’s David Vassegh about the nature of their conversation. “The first thing I said to him was, ‘You’re going to sign with the Dodgers, right?’” Ethier said. “…I sat there for the entire two-hour event and talked up the Dodgers to him the whole time. I don’t know if I had a hand in it or not, but I like to say that I was one of the first ones to go heavy and hard after him that he should be a Dodger.”

translation...

ethier: "dude you need to sign with the dodgers."
díaz: "thanks man, gimme a patrón with a water back."
ethier: "no, really... LA's got food trucks straight from TJ."
díaz: "okay idiot, i'm not mexican i'm from puerto rico."
ethier: "that's perfect... i played with yasiel puig!"
díaz: "wow, are you a racist or just stupid."
ethier: "whatever esé, i wen't to asu."
díaz: "that explains a lot."
ethier: "so are you going to sign with the dodgers?"
díaz: "depends, are you employed or affiliated with them in any way?"
ethier: "unfortunately, no."
díaz: "okay i'm in."
ethier: "that's what your wife said."
díaz: "that makes zero sense, but again explains a lot."
ethier: "alright, so i'll see you in LA?"
díaz: "whatever bkitch, just get me my drink."
ethier: "water back, that means ice right?"
díaz: "aye, pinché gusano."

 

Yes, and potentially excel in that role, but his ego might not allow that, so instead he could stick in this league for a while as a back-of-the-rotation starter for a non-playoff team where mediocrity and inconsistency is acceptable.

 

• The Detroit Tigers have agreed to a one-year contract with veteran closer Kenley Jansen, sources told ESPN's Jeff Passan.

 

right titties

 

@Masterflip_
Edwin Diaz on why the Mets didn’t get a shot to match Dodgers deal;

“We took an offer to the Mets and they said they have a gap to negotiate. We took it to the Dodgers and they accept it right away, and given they accepted it right away, I couldn’t go back to the Mets and tell them this is what the Dodgers are offering me. When the Dodgers said yes, I decided to sign with them”

 

fixed

 

@TheInclinePod
Bo Bichette is open to playing second base and Mark Feinsand lists the Dodgers as a potential fit.

 

sí mon
that’s some serious queso carnál

 

Am I understanding this correctly... 82 players/coaches/others on the Dodgers each get $485k?