River Avenue Blues

Four Minor League Relievers that Could Help in 2019

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Phillip Diehl. (Mark LoMoglio/Tampa Tarpons)

Have we mentioned before that the Yankees are hoping to snag two relievers to fill the voids left by Zach Britton and David Robertson? I imagine so, but you can never be too sure.

As of this writing, several of the higher-end bullpen options have signed – Jeurys Familia with the Mets, Joe Kelly with the Dodgers, Andrew Miller with the Cardinals, and Joakim Soria with the A’s – but there are still plenty of intriguing options out there (including the aforementioned Britton and Robertson). It’s way too early to worry about the Yankees missing out on a top reliever or two, but it’s never to soon to peruse the system and see what sort of help they may have waiting in the wings. So let’s take a look at four relievers that aren’t too far from the show.

Phillip Diehl, LHP

2018 Stats (High-A & Double-A) – 75.1 IP, 36.2 K%, 7.7 BB%, 2.87 ERA

The 24-year-old Diehl was drafted in the 27th round back in 2016, and he has been nothing but terrific since making his professional debut. He has a 2.78 ERA in 194.1 professional innings, and is equally effective against righties and lefties, which is a great sign (even at such low levels). Here’s a peak at his approach:

Diehl is a two-pitch reliever, working with a low-90s four-seamer and a low-80s slider, which he throws at about a 60/40 split. The slider, when it’s on, has excellent movement, and is a true swing and miss offering. As you can see from the video he throws from a three-quarters slot with a bit of crossfire, so he hides the ball fairly well, which makes the velocity play up a bit more. And it helps against righties, too. It’s not elite stuff, but he’s far from a junkballer.

There’s a non-zero chance that Diehl could add some weight and some velocity, given that he’s 6’2″ and relatively slim, but it’s far from a guarantee. And, in the Yankees organization, that uptick in velocity tends to come sooner rather than later. With more velocity, he could be an serious asset in the bullpen. As-is, I think of him more as a middle reliever than a late innings type – and that’s just fine.

Raynel Espinal, RHP

(Tampa Tarpons/Twitter)

2018 Stats (Triple-A) – 67.0 IP, 33.1 K%, 9.1 BB%, 3.09 ERA

Espinal is the old man on this list, having turned 27 a couple of months ago. He has been in the Yankees organization since signing out of the Dominican Republic in 2013, posting a 3.04 ERA, 29.2 K%, and 6.8 BB% in five full seasons. The Yankees tried him out as a starter in 2016, but the results were ugly (4.63 ERA), and the experiment was scrapped thereafter.

In terms of stuff, Espinal has the classic reliever profile with his low-to-mid 90s fastball and big-breaking mid-80s slider. Both pitches have big-time movement, and his 14.5% swinging strike rate was among the best at Triple-A last year. There are reports out there indicating that Espinal’s pure stuff is legitimately above-average, which would suggest that his ceiling may be a bit higher than the other arms on this list. However, his delivery is somewhat open, which removes any semblance of deception … which makes him the opposite of the aforementioned Diehl, in a way.

Espinal is probably the most MLB-ready reliever that the Yankees have and, as he was invited to Spring Training last year, he might just have an inside track to the show in 2019.

Joe Harvey, RHP

(YouTube)

2018 Stats (Double-A & Triple-A) – 59.1 IP, 29.1 K%, 10.7 BB%, 1.67 ERA

Mike wrote about Harvey a bit over a month ago, when he was somewhat surprisingly added to the 40-man roster in advance of the Rule 5 draft. The important stuff, for our purposes:

Harvey, 26, was the Yankees’ 19th round pick in 2014. He was a trusted late-inning reliever for Triple-A Scranton this past season, throwing 54.1 innings with a 1.66 ERA (2.49 FIP) with a very good strikeout rate (28.5%) and an okay walk rate (9.8%). He’s a mid-90s fastball guy with a curveball and something resembling a changeup. Classic reliever profile.

Harvey is one of those minor leaguers that leaves fans wondering when he’ll get the call to the show. He has amassed 144 IP in parts of five seasons, with an excellent 1.75 ERA, and has only once finished a year with an ERA above 2.00. Of course, minor league numbers don’t mean nearly as much as the process that yielded the results – but the Yankees likely love the process, too:

Harvey probably isn’t an elite reliever, either, but he’s knocking on the door to the majors, and the Yankees clearly like him. If I had to pick one of these guys to spend most of the season in the Bronx, it’d certainly be him.

Matt Wivinis, RHP

(MiLB.com)

2018 Stats (High-A & Double-A) – 56.0 IP, 34.5 K%, 6.7 BB%, 2.41 ERA

The 25-year-old Wivinis was signed as a non-drafted free agent in October of 2016, after posting an excellent 1.59 ERA in 39.2 IP in the independent Frontier League. He was dominant in 2017 (0.88 ERA and 46 strikeouts in 30.2 IP) between Rookie Ball and Single-A, and that brilliance continued in 2018. He was quite good at this year’s Arizona Fall League, as well, posting a 1.50 ERA in 12 IP. It’s a short track record of success, to be sure – but his results have been outstanding.

Wivinis is more of a pitchability reliever than the other guys on this list, however, working with a low-90s fastball, a mid-80s change-up, and a low-80s slider:

It’s not overwhelming stuff. However, it is worth noting that he’s another spin rate guy, with all of his pitches purportedly boasting above-average rates. With solid control and three pitches that move, it’s not too hard to see him being successful in a middle relief role. He might not be a stud, but there’s more here than meets the eye.

Update: Yankees sign lefty Rex Brothers to minor league deal

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(Presswire)

Friday: The Yankees announced the Brothers signing earlier today. He did indeed receive an invitation to Spring Training. Joel Sherman report Brothers will earn $800,000 at the big league level and, if he’s not on the MLB roster by July 31st, a team in Japan or Korea can purchase his rights for $100,000.

Wednesday: According to Jon Heyman, the Yankees have signed journeyman lefty reliever Rex Brothers to a minor league contract. I assume he received an invitation to Spring Training. Brothers is the third depth player the Yankees have signed to a minor league deal so far this offseason, joining catcher Ryan Lavarnway and infielder Gio Urshela.

Brothers, who turns 32 today, was a pretty big deal with the Rockies a few years ago, but injuries and control issues have hampered him this last few years. This past season he pitched to a 6.20 ERA (4.84 FIP) with 27.5% strikeouts and 21.6% walks in 40.2 innings split between Double-A and Triple-A with the Braves. That is 56 strikeouts and 44 walks in 40.2 innings, plus 17 wild pitches. Yeah.

The Yankees signed Brothers despite those control issues because he’s a lefty with big velocity, and lefties with big velocity have more lives than a cat. In his two-batter stint with the Braves this year — he walked both batters, naturally — Brothers averaged 97.0 mph with his fastball and topped out at 98.3 mph. This is kinda interesting:

At the moment the Yankees are looking for two relievers, and while I’m sure we’ll see Brothers during Grapefruit League play, I don’t think he has a real shot at cracking the Opening Day roster. Consider him a reclamation project and a depth arm. A veteran to soak up some innings in Triple-A to help keep the actual prospects from being overworked.

If that newfound velocity sticks and Brothers is pumping 97-98 mph with some semblance of control with Triple-A Scranton early next season, great! The Yankees will make room for him. If not, well, no big deal. It’s a no risk minor league signing. As far as I’m concerned, a lefty with some MLB success to his credit and this sort of velocity is always worth a minor league deal.

Free agent spending is down again and that sets the Yankees up to get a bargain late in the offseason

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Last offseason’s bargain signing. (Presswire)

With 2019 a little more than a week away, the Yankees have had a fairly active offseason so far. They brought back Brett Gardner and CC Sabathia, traded for James Paxton, then re-signed J.A. Happ to round out the rotation. The Yankees came into the winter needing three starters and they’ve already added those three starters. Now they need a Didi Gregorius replacement and some bullpen help.

Although the Yankees have been busy, the rest of baseball hasn’t, and free agent spending is down once again. There have been a lot of trades — you can thank for Mariners for that — but not many free agent signings. Travis Sawchik ran the numbers earlier this week and here’s what he came up with for free agent spending in the first 50 days of the offseason (through Monday this year) the last few years:

  • 2014-15 offseason: 7.8% of free agents signed and $1.173 billion in signings
  • 2015-16 offseason: 9.2% and $1.401 billion
  • 2016-17 offseason: 9.2% and $976.5 million
  • 2017-18 offseason: 5.5% and $469.8 million
  • 2018-19 offseason: 5.2% and $442.5 million

Through the first 50 days of the winter, free agent spending has more or less been cut in half the last three years, and cut even moreso when you go back three years. Teams are not spending money and there are many reasons for that. Chief among them are the luxury tax threshold becoming an unofficial salary cap and roughly one-third of the league not even pretending to be competitive. There are more reasons not to spend than reasons to spend these days.

Chatter about last winter’s slow free agent market being an anomaly never made much sense to me. The luxury tax penalties weren’t going to change and — this is the big one — not spending worked! Teams waited out free agents and they landed some great value buys late in the winter. Free agents like Todd Frazier, Eric Hosmer, J.D. Martinez, and Jake Arrieta didn’t sign until February last year. And, aside from Hosmer, they all received less than expected.

The Yankees were among the teams to grab a quality free agent late in the offseason last year. They inked Neil Walker to a one-year deal worth $4M on March 12th — remember, Walker was coming off a .265/.362/.439 (115 wRC+) batting line with +2.2 WAR for the Mets and Brewers — and while that didn’t work out as hoped because he struggled transitioning to a utility role, the idea was sound. Get a good player at a much lower than expected price.

Freezing out free agents worked out quite well for the teams as a whole last offseason so of course they were going to it again this winter. The numbers don’t lie. Free agent spending is down this offseason compared to the same point last offseason. In all likelihood, that means there again will be bargains to be had in February. Manny Machado and Bryce Harper, guys like that, they’ll be fine. It’s the second and third and fourth tier free agents who are in trouble.

And, when those second and third and fourth tier free agents are still seeking work as Spring Training begins, the Yankees will again be in position to pounce. There are a lot of second base types and middle relievers sitting in free agency right now — I assume the top relievers will be off the board long before camp opens — and undoubtedly some will be looking for work in February. That was the case last year and we’re trending in that direction again.

While waiting is justifiable, my preference would be for the Yankees to address their needs now rather than sit back and see who’s still on the market when pitchers and catchers start to report. I think that February/March bargain shopping should be the icing on the offseason cake. Address your needs over the winter, then see if there’s anything that makes sense to top off the roster as Spring Training opens, you know? That’s how I’d approach it.

Walker may not have worked out as hoped this season but that doesn’t mean the Yankees should stop looking at late offseason bargains. In this free agent climate, patience is rewarded, and waiting things out seems to be a viable strategy. You’re not getting a David Robertson or Adam Ottavino that way, but Cody Allen or rehabbing Kelvin Herrera? Jed Lowrie or Josh Harrison? I could see them sitting out there late in the offseason looking for work.

Hopefully the Yankees address their middle infield and bullpen needs over these next few weeks and can go into Spring Training knowing the roster is set. If there’s a free agent out there who makes sense on a cheap contract, great, pick him up. If not, well, no big deal because the roster’s already in place. The free agent market is moving slowly right now, and the longer this continues, the more likely it is the Yankees can land a bargain in a few weeks.

Mailbag: Minor, Arenado, Beltran, Dozier, Yankee Stadium

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Good mailbag this week, I think. Eleven questions for the holiday weekend. Send your questions to RABmailbag (at) gmail (dot) com. I’ll answer as many as I can stomach each week (I kid, I kid).

Minor. (Ronald Martinez/Getty)

Steve asks: What’s your thoughts on Mike Minor as a 6th Starter/swingman type that Yanks may look for? And on top of that, if everyone stays healthy he’d be a weapon out of the bullpen too right?

Minor was excellent out of the bullpen with the Royals last year (2.55 ERA and 2.62 FIP) and serviceable as a starter with the Rangers this year (4.18 ERA and 4.43 FIP), though, to be fair, he much better in the second half (2.97 ERA and 4.18 FIP). Also, for what it’s worth, Minor is a big time spin rate guy, especially with his fastball (2,543 rpm in 2018), which could appeal to the Yankees. He’s owed $9.5M in each of the next two seasons and carries a $9.33M luxury tax hit. Given how good he was with Kansas City, I’d be tempted to use Minor as a short reliever again rather than as a swingman type. Put him in the rotation if you must due to injuries/poor performance, otherwise using him as a high-leverage reliever seems like the better way to go. I’m not sure what the Rangers would seek in return though I assume Minor’s available since they’re rebuilding. I do like the idea. There’s a chance he’ll be just as effective as the big name free agent relievers and do so at a more reasonable cost in salary/prospects.

Douglas asks: Any chance there’s a team out there with a decent 2B/SS prospect that is being blocked by a popular veteran that they might be willing to deal in exchange for Sonny Gray?

I looked into it as part of my 2018-19 Offseason Plan. Believe me, I looked. Essentially what you end up looking for is another team’s Tyler Wade. A talented player with no real path to MLB playing who doesn’t have much more to prove at Triple-A. I thought about Royals prospect Nicky Lopez, but he’s too good. The Cardinals have a few guys (Max Schrock, Edmund Sosa) but I’m not sure how realistic that is. Teams tend to keep their middle infield prospects because they are typically the most athletic players and thus best able to move to other positions, if necessary. That’s one reason why the Yankees chose Gleyber Torres over Eloy Jimenez in the Aroldis Chapman trade. Quality middle infielders are hard to find and I’m not sure a team would be willing to give up a good MLB ready middle infield prospect to get the current version of Sonny Gray.

Roy asks: Why has there seemingly been zero talk of the Yankees picking up Fiers?

Mike Fiers is a real bad fit for Yankee Stadium and the AL East. He has a fastball you can catch with your teeth (averaged 89.4 mph in 2018) and he’s an extreme fly ball pitcher (39.4% grounders in 2018) who’s allowed 90 homers in 494 innings the last four years (1.6 HR/9). His skill set plays in the National League or in Detroit or Oakland. When he played in that hitter friendly ballpark in Houston, the result was a 4.59 ERA (4.82 FIP) in 384.1 innings. There’s a reason the Athletics chose not to start Fiers in the AL Wild Card Game at Yankee Stadium. He’s a bad fit for hitter friendly ballparks. As a swingman/last guy in the bullpen type, I guess Fiers would be okay. Seems to me he’ll end up with a starting job elsewhere though. Besides, I’m pretty sure Giancarlo Stanton would snap Fiers in half like a twig on the first day of Spring Training given their history.

Chris asks: If you were told that you could sign Machado or Harper but not both – to a similar contract – who would you pick? While we have more need in IF, I’d take Harper. I can’t see going into season with a Yankee team with virtually no left handed power.

Bryce Harper and it has nothing to do with the right-handed batter vs. left-handed batter thing. Manny Machado is obviously excellent and, with a player that good, handedness at the plate is a secondary concern. I’d take Harper because I think he’ll be the better player the next 5-7 years. That’s all there is to it. The roster construction will change a ton during that time — the Yankees need a lefty bat now but it was only two years ago that they seemed overloaded with lefties — so I wouldn’t obsess too much over current needs when signing a player like this. Harper (and Machado) is a 26-year-old star and guys like that are always worth acquiring. I think Harper will be the better player going forward so I’d take him. I would happily take Machado as a consolation prize.

Machado & Arenado. (Joe Mahoney/Getty)

Julian asks: Would you rather sign Machado this offseason or try to sign Arenado next offseason?

Machado this offseason, easily. For three reasons. One, I think he’s the better player. Arenado is obviously excellent himself but I do wonder what his numbers look like outside Coors Field full-time. Two, Machado is a year and a half younger. And three — and this is a big one — Machado helps you win in 2019. Arenado doesn’t. When you’re an extreme win now team like the Yankees, waiting a year to sign that other desirable free agent almost never makes sense. Put yourself in the best position to win this year because you never know how quickly a window can close. (Or if that other player will even be available next year.) Even if you think Arenado is slightly better than Machado, the difference isn’t large enough to justify waiting a year and forcing the 2019 Yankees to do more with less. Get Machado now. Don’t wait around for Arenado (or Anthony Rendon!).

Jeff asks: You’ve made your thoughts on Realmuto vs. Sanchez clear…and I agree. But with the Mets signing Ramos and maybe shrinking the realistic market for Realmuto, what about NYY acquiring Realmuto AND keeping Sanchez? Moving one of them to 1st base could potentially answer the 1B production question mark. Would love to hear your thought process on that idea.

I’m not a fan of that idea. J.T. Realmuto and Gary Sanchez are elite offensive talents at their position, but move them to first base and DH, they go from special to just another guy. Realmuto had a 126 wRC+ this past season. That would’ve ranked seventh among first basemen with at least 400 plate appearances and isn’t much better than C.J. Cron (122 wRC+). Realmuto and Sanchez are so valuable because they are catchers, a very hard to fill position. Move them to first base and you lose all that positional value. Also, it’s going to take a lot to acquire Realmuto. I don’t expect the Marlins to just give him away because the Mets (Wilson Ramos) and Nationals (Yan Gomes) found catchers elsewhere. The Yankees would have to give up a lot to get a guy when they already have a very good (and younger) player at the position, and then move one of them to a much less valuable position. Don’t like it at all.

Mark asks: Troy Tulowitzki. Can you explain the “pro-rated portion” means here? That would mean the whole season correct? Or does a team have to pay him two years worth because of his contract?

Just the current season. Sign Tulowitzki before Opening Day and you owe him the league minimum ($555,000 for 2019) in 2019. Sign him in the middle of the season and you only owe him the pro-rated portion for the rest of the season. So, say you sign him 86 days into the 186-day season. That means you owe him 100 days at the league minimum rate, or $298,387.10. It doesn’t matter that there are two years remaining on his contract. You sign him for just the one year, and, if you want, you can re-sign him at the pro-rated minimum again in 2020 because the Blue Jays are still paying him that year. Long story short, whenever someone with a guaranteed contract is released, any team can sign him and pay him the league minimum rate for the remainder of that season and continue doing so year after year until his original contract with the team that released him expires.

John asks: Does hiring Beltran as a special advisor (same agent as Machado) say anything about Cashman’s confidence in Boone? I would assume that it cant hurt in the meeting with Machado.

It can’t hurt, but I think the whole “they have the same agent” thing really gets overplayed. Not just with Machado and Carlos Beltran. With any two players who share an agent. As for Aaron Boone, no, hiring Beltran says nothing about the team’s confidence in Boone. Joel Sherman says the Yankees tried to add Beltran to the front office last year. This has been in the works a while. And besides, if the Yankees had concerns about Boone, why would they bring in another rookie manager as a potential replacement? Why is everyone assuming Beltran would be a better manager than Boone? (“He was a better player” is not a good answer.) Anyway, no, I don’t think the Beltran signing had to do with anything specifically, like Boone or Machado. It was about adding a knowledgeable and respected person to the front office, which is something every team tries to do all the time. The Yankees are fortunate they were able to land Beltran and that he didn’t go to the Astros or Mets or wherever.

More like D’ohzier. (Kevork Djansezian/Getty)

Ian asks: Is there a fit for the Yankees and Brian Dozier, if Gleyber moves over to short whilst Sir Didi is injured? I am hearing no noise at all about Dozier on the free agent market yet, so presumably there’s no bidding war heating up? Or is the fact he’s another right-handed bat just leading to yet more imbalance?

Dozier has really fallen off the last year or two. He had that monster 42 home run season in 2016 but has gone from a 132 wRC+ and +6.2 WAR in 2016 to a 125 wRC+ and +5.0 WAR in 2017 to a 90 wRC+ and +0.8 WAR in 2018. His defensive numbers slipped too. Dozier is 31 and I don’t buy him as a true talent +1 WAR player now. There’s likely some rebound potential here. His walk (11.1%) and strikeout (20.4%) rates are solid and held steady this past season, and he still pulled the ball (49.9%) in the air (39.5% grounders) a ton, which is what he does. Dozier isn’t some finesse hitter who shortens up and strokes the ball the other way. He tries to yank everything to left field. (Check out his 2016-18 spray chart.) That said, his hard contact rate took a nosedive this year and he actually outperformed his expected wOBA (.304 wOBA vs. .288 xwOBA). Dozier’s worth a longer look outside a mailbag setting. There’s likely some bounceback potential but probably not so much that he can be a 120 wRC+ and +4 WAR player again. He strikes me as 2019’s version of 2014 Brian Roberts.

Hector asks: Would you be ok with Hal selling the naming rights to Yankee Stadium to Amazon for $50M if it meant that he would put that money back into payroll? Assuming he would not go over tax threshold otherwise.

Safeco Field is now T-Mobile Park, you know. The Mariners sold the ballpark naming rights to T-Mobile for $87.5M over 25 years. Doesn’t $3.5M per year for naming rights seem low? Seems low to me, but what do I know. Anyway, I’ve been assuming the name “Yankee Stadium” is too iconic for ownership to sell the naming rights. Then again, everyone has a price, and I reckon $50M a year would be hard to turn down. They could call it “Amazon Field at Yankee Stadium” or something like that. I’m not one to obsess about tradition. If they sell the naming rights to Yankee Stadium, who cares? It’s just a building name. A name change wouldn’t impact my life in any way. And if ownership puts that money into the roster, then it would be pretty cool. (Of course, the Yankees don’t need to sell the ballpark naming rights to pump another $50M into the roster, but I digress.)

Jesse asks: An earlier question asked about having one 80-grade tool to assign one current Yankee. This made me wonder: What if you had one of each 80-grade tool to distribute among the current Yankee roster (hit / power / run / field / arm / fastball of your choice / breaking ball of your choice / changeup / control)? How would you distribute them?

Fun question! Not necessarily an easy one either. An 80 on the 20-80 scouting scale is top of the line. Giancarlo Stanton has 80 power. Aroldis Chapman still has an 80 fastball even after losing some velocity this past season. Billy Hamilton is an 80 runner. Let’s start with the position players:

  • 80 hit: Giancarlo Stanton. Stanton’s a much better hitter than he gets credit for, but give him an 80 hit tool and he’d hit like .320 with 65 homers on the regular.
  • 80 power: Aaron Hicks. He already has power (27 homers this year) but give him 80 power and we’re talking 40+ homers annually. I thought about Tyler Wade but nah.
  • 80 run: Gleyber Torres. Gleyber is a sneaky bad baserunner. Some more speed would help.
  • 80 field: Miguel Andujar. Easy call. Andujar with a golden glove would be Adrian Beltre-ish.
  • 80 arm: Austin Romine. Almost by default. Romine gets the nod over Brett Gardner and Jacoby Ellsbury because he seems more likely to stick around beyond 2019 than those two.

Weirdly, the 80 power decision was the toughest because the Yankees already have so much power. Stanton and Aaron Judge are legitimate 80 power guys. Would anyone be surprised if Sanchez, Torres, Hicks, and Andujar each hit 30 homers next year? I sure wouldn’t. Ronald Torreyes would’ve been a fun answer here had he not been traded away. Anyway, let’s get to the pitchers.

  • 80 fastball: Masahiro Tanaka. Imagine him pumping 97+ heaters with those secondary pitches?
  • 80 breaking ball: Chad Green. As easy a call as giving Andujar an 80 glove.
  • 80 changeup: Luis Severino. Severino has a good changeup he doesn’t use often enough. Give him an 80 changeup and he’d be untouchable, assuming he actually throws it.
  • 80 control: Dellin Betances. Betances with consistent strike-throwing ability might be the second best reliever ever. For real.

The 80 pitching tools were pretty straightforward, I thought. Giving Severino the 80 changeup happened by default, more or less. You want to give that elite third pitch to a starter, not a reliever, but CC Sabathia and James Paxton already have pretty good changeups, Tanaka throws everything, and while J.A. Happ could use something to play off his fastball, Severino is 15 years younger. He’ll be around much longer, so give him the 80 changeup.

Bullpen option off the board: Andrew Miller heads to Cardinals

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(Abbie Parr/Getty)

Friday: The Cardinals announced the signing today, so it’s a done deal. Two years with a vesting option. Ken Rosenthal says Miller will earn $11M in 2019 and $11.5M in 2020. The $12M option for 2021 vests with 110 appearances from 2019-20 and comes with a $2.5M buyout. Similar to the Yankees and J.A. Happ, Miller wanted a three-year deal and was willing to compromise on a vesting option.

Thursday: According to multiple reports, free agent left-hander Andrew Miller has agreed to a multi-year deal with the Cardinals. The contract details are unknown at this point but Miller was said to be seeking three years. Either way, he’s heading to St. Louis and there is now one fewer free agent reliever on the board.

It was reported in recent weeks that the Yankees had interest in reunion with Miller. They reviewed his medicals in November — that was much more than a formality given this season’s hamstring, knee, and shoulder trouble — and Brian Cashman met with Miller’s agent at some point, likely during the Winter Meetings last week.

I don’t know anyone who doesn’t love Andrew Miller but giving three years to a soon-to-be 34-year-old reliever with an injury history makes me a tad squeamish. Miller clearly was not himself this season, throwing 34 innings with a 4.24 ERA (3.51 FIP) and 29.2% strikeouts. Giving him three years at this point really would’ve been pushing it, I think.

Miller, Jeurys Familia, and Joe Kelly have all signed within the last week or so. The free agent market still offers plenty of quality relievers though, including David Robertson, Zach Britton, Adam Ottavino, and Craig Kimbrel. The Yankees are reportedly seeking two relievers. My guess is they’ll sign a big name and add an under-the-radar type.

Hot Stove Rumors: Machado, Tulowitzki, Andujar, Loup, Happ

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Machado. (Tom Pennington/Getty)

There are less than two weeks to go in 2018 and the Yankees are still searching for a Didi Gregorius replacement and bullpen help. At least they’ve got their rotation sorted out. Anyway, here are the latest hot stove rumblings.

Machado visits Yankees

As expected, Manny Machado visited Yankee Stadium yesterday as part of his free agent tour. Here’s the obligatory scoreboard photoshop. He visited the White Sox on Monday and is visiting the Phillies today. George King and Jon Heyman report Machado met with Randy Levine, Brian Cashman, Aaron Boone, and new special advisor Carlos Beltran — CC Sabathia was also at the ballpark, though he works out there in the offseason, and I’m not sure whether he actually met with Machado — and everyone went out to dinner last night. Same deal as Patrick Corbin a few weeks ago, basically.

The Yankees and Hal Steinbrenner have made a pretty big deal about Machado having to explain his non-hustle comments when they meet face-to-face, so I assume that happened during the 90-minute meeting at Yankee Stadium yesterday. I have no idea what he could’ve said to make everyone happy, but whatever. Machado is certainly familiar with the ballpark from his time as a division rival — he’s the first and still only player to hit a ball into the camera row in center field — so the visit wasn’t so much about touring Yankee Stadium. He knows the park already. The meeting was about both sides getting to know each other in a way they couldn’t as opponents.

Yankees scouted Tulowitzki at workout

The Yankees were among the eleven teams on hand earlier this week to watch Troy Tulowitzki work out in Southern California, reports Tim Brown. Tulowitzki fielded ground balls at shortstop and took batting practice during the workout. “I have no idea (what teams are interested). I don’t control that. My job’s to be accountable, to play the game. Time will tell. Talk is talk,” he said. Tulowitzki hasn’t played since July 2017 due to various injuries.

According to Brown, Tulowitzki said he’s willing to play second or third base, but he has no interest in being a utility guy. He wants to start. The Yankees could offer Tulowitzki a middle infield spot until Gregorius returns — I’d rather put Tulowitzki at second than short at this point of his career — though it’s awfully risky given his injury history and the fact he hasn’t hit at a league average rate since 2016. In a vacuum, signing Tulowitzki makes sense. In reality, it seems the Yankees need more of a sure thing and Tulowitzki needs a stronger playing time guarantee.

Teams convinced Yankees want to trade Andujar

Rival executives are convinced the Yankees want to trade Miguel Andujar this offseason, according to Ken Rosenthal (subs. req’d). The Padres are seen as a potential landing spot. Keep in mind this is a secondhand rumor. Rosenthal’s passing along what he’s heard about the Yankees from other teams, not the Yankees directly. We heard last week the Yankees are open to moving Andujar, though that was as part of the reported J.T. Realmuto-Noah Syndergaard three-team blockbuster.

Andujar. (Jim McIsaac/Getty)

I am open to trading Andujar in the sense that I am open to trading pretty much any player in the right deal, and for a guy like Miggy, the right deals mean getting an absolute stud in return. Trading Andujar simply because they don’t believe he’ll ever improve defensively would be a mistake. The offensive potential is special. Keep all the young bats. All of ’em. Build around the young bats and spend money on pitching. If you spend money on a pitcher and he breaks, so what? The Yankees print money. Trade a young bat for a pitcher and he breaks, well, you’re not getting that bat back.

Yankees have checked in on Loup

The Yankees have checked in on free agent lefty reliever Aaron Loup, reports Dan Martin. Interestingly enough, Loup was among those high spin, high swing-and-miss rate relievers I identified earlier today, so I guess it makes sense that they checked in on him. Loup owns a career 3.49 ERA (3.49 FIP) with a 21.7% strikeout rate in 322.2 innings, almost all with the Blue Jays. He’s a pure situational reliever who’s been much better against lefties (.278 wOBA) than righties (.329 wOBA).

A few years ago I would’ve been cool with signing Loup as a left-on-left matchup guy. Not so much now though. Lefty specialists are starting to disappear because using a precious roster spot on a player with such limited utility doesn’t make a whole lot of sense. Starting pitchers are throwing fewer and fewer innings with each passing season and teams are carrying eight full-inning relievers nowadays. Guys like Loup, who is a good but not truly great matchup guy, are becoming harder to find. I’d be surprised to see the Yankees carry someone like Loup next year.

Happ turned down three years to return to Yankees

According to Rosenthal (subs. req’d), lefty J.A. Happ turned down at least one contract offer with three guaranteed years to return to the Yankees. It’s unclear which team made that offer. The Phillies and Braves were said to be in the mix, as were the Angels, who Jeff Fletcher says offered two years and $28M with a third year vesting option. Happ returned to the Yankees on a two-year, $34M contract with a $17M third year option that vests with 27 starts or 165 innings in 2020.

“The chance to win was high on (my) list. I feel like this was a place that you come to the ballpark to win every day. I really appreciated that. I feel like it was a good fit to come back,” said Happ to Bryan Hoch earlier today. There have been a few instances of players taking less money to sign with the Yankees in recent years — Andrew Miller turned down more money from the Astros and Chase Headley turned down more money from an unknown team — and it seems Happ did the same. (Surely the three-year offer was worth more than $11.1M per year, right?) The $17M annual salary did seem a little high to me, and I assume the Yankees traded a few extra bucks to avoid that third guaranteed season. I’m cool with that. I didn’t love the idea of guaranteeing Happ’s age 38 season in 2021.