Page 56 - Eric Longenhagen News Today

December 16, 2020 After going all in on their rebuild in 2019, the Mariners have cycled through what seems like a million different pitchers in just two years. (The real figure is 61, the highest number of pitchers used by any team over the last two seasons.) That shouldn’t be surprising considering general manager Jerry Dipoto’s reputation for roster churn and the team’s goal of building a contender in just a few years time; scouring the waiver wire and the Mariners’ minor league syste...

Batters To make the playoffs in 2020, the Marlins needed a few things to happen. First, some of their young starting pitching, the organization’s strength, had to take a big step forward. The other thing was that the offense had to become, well, an MLB-ready lineup. With a 2018 team wRC+ of 83 and 2019’s woeful 79, run scoring (or the lack thereof) was a serious drag on the team’s hopes. Doubling this humiliation is the fact that Miami’s punchless attack could be directly linked to the ...

Photo by Brian Rothmuller/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images Gray and Jeter Downs were acquired in December 2018 in a trade with the Reds that held the dual purposes of averting the competitive balance tax in 2019 — by trading Matt Kemp, Yasiel Puig, and Alex Wood — and adding minor league talent. Downs, a shortstop, was traded to Boston in the Mookie Betts deal, and the pitcher Gray remains as the Dodgers’ top prospect. Gray, who was at the Dodgers alternate site at USC during the 2020 sea...

December 15, 2020 Before the 2020 season, the Cincinnati Reds were a team on the rise. For two straight seasons, they’d built for the present, acquiring a dynamic pitching staff and attempting to rebuild their once-potent lineup. 2020 was going to be their year, the last year before Trevor Bauer’s free agency and the first with Mike Moustakas, Nick Castellanos, and Shogo Akiyama in tow. The year didn’t work out particularly well for them, though. Their pitching was excellent, but the off...

A controversial intra-division trade Share this story Photo by Bob Levey/Getty Images I have thought of the unthinkable. I have thought about the Astros trading Framber Valdez. Ace of the 2020 pitching staff, owner of one of the best curveballs in baseball, and most of all, a bonafide playoff hero. Why would I want the Astros to move such a celebrated and talented player who has a long career ahead of him? Well, I don’t want them to. Not in general. But there is one trade that has intrigued...

Minor league left-handed pitcher Leo Crawford was sent by the Dodgers to the Brewers to complete their December 2 trade for Corey Knebel.

December 10, 2020 Yesterday, the Seattle Mariners signed Chris Flexen to a two-year deal. The 26-year-old will earn $4.75 million in guaranteed money, with an option to make more if he hits certain innings thresholds. Per MLB Trade Rumors, the Mariners attached “a $4MM club option and, if Flexen throws 150 innings in 2022 or 300 frames from 2021-22, an $8MM vesting option.” The contract itself is a bit of a Dipoto special, as the Mariners used a similar structure when they extended Wade LeB...