The Weekly Rundown: 12/17/23 - 12/23/23
The Dodgers did it again.
Good morning and happy holidays!
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It wasn’t the most eventful week in baseball, but another top free agent is off the board. You’ll never believe where he signed! (extreme sarcasm).
Let’s get into it…
Yamamoto joins Ohtani in L.A.
Surprise! Japanese ace Yoshinobu Yamamoto is headed to the Los Angeles Dodgers, because where else would a star end up this winter?!
Yamamoto and the Dodgers agreed on a 12-year, $325 million contract late Thursday night. With that deal, the L.A. has officially spent a BILLION dollars this offseason.
The Yankees and Mets reportedly were finalists in the Yamamoto sweepstakes and offered him $300M, but the Dodgers were willing to go the extra mile. Now, Yamamoto becomes the ace of a Dodgers rotation that includes Tyler Glasnow (acquired via trade and signed to a $136.5M extension last week), Walker Buehler, Bobby Miller, and Ryan Yarbrough. Clayton Kershaw is a free agent but I’d put my money on him re-signing with L.A. yet again. Shohei Ohtani won’t be able to pitch in 2024 after undergoing elbow surgery, but he’ll join that mix in 2025.
Yamamoto was highly coveted after a stellar career in the Nippon Professional Baseball league. The 25-year-old right-hander has won three consecutive MVP awards and Sawamura Awards (NPB’s version of the Cy Young). Over 820.1 innings in Japan, he has posted a 1.65 ERA and struck out almost five times as many hitters as he has walked.
With Yamamoto off the market, the top free-agent starting pitchers are Jordan Montgomery, Blake Snell, Shota Imanaga, Lucas Giolito, and Marcus Stroman.
Gurriel Stays in AZ
Lourdes Gurriel Jr. is running it back. The 30-year-old outfielder re-signed with the Arizona Diamondbacks on a three-year deal worth $42 million. The contract includes a player option after the second season and a club option for 2027.
Gurriel, 30, is coming off an All-Star season in his first year with Arizona after being traded by the Toronto Blue Jays. He slashed .261/.309/.463 with a career-high 24 homers and 82 RBIs in 145 games for the National League champions.
“We felt like we needed to continue to add to our outfield and then the middle of our lineup, specifically right-handed hitting,” Diamondbacks GM Mike Hazen said in a press conference. “… Secondarily, I think what he added to our clubhouse last year, what he does for our players, his makeup, his work ethic, those are major factors in bringing him back.”
Arizona has made some intriguing moves this offseason, first acquiring slugging third baseman Eugenio Suarez from the Seattle Mariners and then signing southpaw Eduardo Rodriguez to a four-year deal worth $80M.
Hazen mentioned that the club is still looking for a designated hitter. J.D. Martinez, Justin Turner, and Jorge Soler are the top options on the free-agent market.
Padres Sign Matsui
The San Diego Padres filled a void in their bullpen with Josh Hader gone by signing Japanese left-hander Yuki Matsui to a five-year, $28 million contract.
Matsui has pitched for the NPB’s Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles for the last 10 years. Throughout his career, he has logged 236 saves in 501 appearances (659.2 innings). He’s posted a 2.40 ERA with a 31.9 percent strikeout rate and has earned five All-Star selections.
It’ll be fascinating to see how Matsui adjusts to the big leagues. The 28-year-old is just 5-foot-8, 165 pounds, and he had some issues with the MLB ball during the 2023 World Baseball Classic. He boasts some real upside, however, with a four-pitch mix out of the ‘pen that includes a fastball, splitter, slider, and curveball.
Verdugo Disses Cora
We’ve got a little drama!
The Red Sox traded Alex Verdugo to their archrival Yankees earlier this month. The move ended a tumultuous four-year tenure for Verdugo in Boston that included multiple benchings for either being late to the ballpark or failing to hustle on the basepaths.
Red Sox manager Alex Cora wasn’t afraid to call Verdugo out for his infractions. That apparently didn’t sit well with Verdugo, who appeared to take a subtle shot at Cora during his introductory press conference with the Yankees.
"I'm very, very excited to work with Aaron," Verdugo said. "I've seen the way he has his players' backs. The one that really stands out to me is when he's like 'These guys are savages' and he's yelling at the umpire. I mean, that's something I want to see out of my head coach, man. I want to see some fire, some fight for the guys. I think just instead of airing people out, have their backs.
"I'm really excited for this fresh start and just to kind of get with the guys and really just change the narrative. Go out there and work hard, play hard, and just have fun. That's the biggest thing."
You can watch the clip below (10:18 mark of the video):
Well, at least one part of the Red Sox-Yankees rivalry is exciting now.
As someone who unfortunately watched plenty of Red Sox baseball this year, I can say Verdugo looks awful in this clip — and no, I don’t mean the clean-shaven face. This is a serious lack of accountability. It’s actually amazing Cora had as much patience as he did. Verdugo’s antics were a constant distraction, and his departure may be addition by subtraction.
By the way, no one is more fired up about this than former Red Sox closer Jonathan Papelbon. Tell us how you really feel, Pap!
Rapid Fire
The Pittsburgh Pirates signed left-hander Martin Perez to a one-year deal worth $8 million.
Veteran outfielder Andrew McCutchen re-signed with the Pirates on a one-year, $5M deal.
The Milwaukee Brewers signed catcher Eric Haase to a one-year contract.
The Brewers traded right-hander Adrian Houser and outfielder Tyrone Taylor to the Mets for minor-league pitcher Coleman Crow.
The San Francisco Giants signed catcher Tom Murphy to a two-year contract worth $8.25M. The deal includes a club option for 2026.
The Yankees claimed infielder Jeter Downs off waivers from the Washington Nationals. Downs was famously sent to the Red Sox as part of the infamous Mookie Betts deal in 2020. The Yankees now have 2/3 of Boston’s return in that deal with Downs joining Verdugo in pinstripes.
The Tigers continued adding to their pitching staff by signing veteran hurler Shelby Miller to a one-year, $3 million contract with a $4.25 million club option for 2025.
The Rumor Mill
Brewers ace Corbin Burnes is one of the top pitchers on the trade market, but there’s a catch. During a recent appearance on the Foul Territory podcast, he expressed his desire to test free agency next year rather than sign an extension after a trade.
The Blue Jays have shown interest in free-agent sluggers Justin Turner and Rhys Hoskins, according to Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet. They’re also interested in trading for Reds infielder Jonathan India, per Bob Elliott of the Canadian Baseball Network.
With Yamamoto off the market, reigning NL Cy Young award winner Blake Snell is the top starter available. The veteran left-hander has become the Los Angeles Angels’ “top priority” and the Giants are also interested, per Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle.
The Angels and Red Sox are both interested in free-agent outfielder Teoscar Hernandez, according to Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic. Hernandez is coming off a down season in Seattle, but he’s one of the top right-handed bats on the market this winter.
The Red Sox also have “strong interest” in re-signing left-handed starter James Paxton, according to WEEI’s Rob Bradford.
Thanks for reading! Have a great holiday. Catch you next Sunday for the final rundown of the year.