With Spring Training just around the corner here are three things we’ll be keeping an eye on around the baseball world throughout the day today:
1. Astros, Altuve to hold press conference:
As noted by USA Today’s Bob Nightengale, the Astros have scheduled a press conference for this afternoon in Houston where star second baseman Jose Altuve and team leadership will be available to discuss Altuve’s five-year extension. An eight-time All Star with three batting titles, six Silver Slugger awards, a Gold Glove award, and the 2017 AL MVP award, Altuve owns a career .307/.364/.471 slash line in 13 seasons in Houston since he made his MLB debut back in 2011. The deal keeps Altuve in an Astros uniform through his age-39 season.
2. Guerrero arbitration result:
Eleven arbitration cases have yet to reach a conclusion, and among the most high-profile of the remaining cases could be nearing a decision. The Associated Press has reported that first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and the Blue Jays went to a hearing yesterday. Guerrero filed at $19.9MM while Toronto countered at $18.05MM. Both those figures come in below MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz’s projection of $20.4MM, which would be a result of the 24-year-old slugger’s “down” season at the plate last year (by his lofty standards, anyhow). In 682 trips to the plate, Guerrero slashed .264/.345/.444 with 30 doubles and 26 home runs. While that’s certainly strong production, it left something to be desired after the youngster crushed the ball to the tune of a .292/.370/.539 slash line over the previous two seasons.
Yesterday saw five players sweep arbitration decisions, as right-handers Jacob Webb and Phil Bickford, outfielders Austin Hays and Taylor Ward, and utility player Mauricio Dubon all won their cases against their clubs, putting players ahead of teams 5-2 in this year’s slate of arbitration hearings.
3. Players to exit DFA Limbo:
When players are designated for assignment, they can remain in transactional limbo for up to a week while their team looks to trade them or attempts to pass them through waivers. For right-hander Declan Cronin of the Astros, outfielder Canaan Smith-Njigba of the Pirates, and right-hander Zack Weiss of the Red Sox, that one-week period expires today, meaning resolutions to each player’s DFA should be announced today. All three of the aforementioned players are unable to reject an outright assignment in favor of free agency, meaning their club’s can retain them as non-roster depth entering the season if they pass through waivers successfully.
Cronin, 26, posted a 9.00 ERA across 11 appearances during his first season as a big leaguer last year, though he enjoyed more success at Triple-A with a 3.88 ERA in 51 2/3 innings of work. Smith-Njigba, 25 in April, came to the Pirates as part of the return in the Jameson Taillon trade and owns a .273/.366/.469 slash line at the Triple-A level, though he’s struggled badly in his first 44 trips to the plate in the majors. Weiss, 31, made his big league debut back in 2018 but had a disastrous outing for the Reds where he surrendered four runs on two walks and two homers while failing to record an out. That first cup of coffee was the only taste of major league action Weiss would get until his age-30 season four years later, when he reemerged as a member of the Angels. Since then, he’s pitched to a 3.29 ERA with a 5.27 FIP in 27 1/3 innings of work.