The Former Nationals Watch (2023)

[Natsinpwc]

Jeter "The Ensign" Downs?

Private. 

[JCA-CrystalCity]

https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2023/12/marlins-acquire-roddery-munoz-from-pirates.html

for a fellow who has never pitched in the majors and gets shuffled from organization to organization, lots of teams take flyers on Roddery. This is his 3rd NL East organization.

[JCA-CrystalCity]

https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2023/12/blue-jays-reportedly-sign-paolo-espino.html

Heyman reports in the NYPost the signing, which is presumably a minor league contract with an invite.

recapping his time with the Nats:

Though he pitched just six innings for the club during the shortened [2020] season, the performance went reasonably well as he posted a 4.50 ERA and 4.02 FIP with seven strikeouts across two appearances.

That cup of coffee with the Nationals in 2020 kicked off a four-year stint in D.C. that saw Espino relied upon as a swingman for the rebuilding club. Espino appeared in 77 games for the Nationals between 2021 and 2022, drawing 38 starts and pitching 223 innings during that time. While his numbers, while unimpressive, were more or less that which would be expected of a club’s #5 or #6 starter: a 4.56 ERA (88 ERA+) and a 4.70 FIP despite a meager 19.5% strikeout rate thanks in large part to a walk rate of just 5.2%.

Things took a turn for the worse for Espino in 2023. The veteran righty pitched just four innings for the big league club this past season, and was lit up for 11 runs on 14 hits and three walks while striking out just three in that limited time on the mound. Though Espino’s 13 starts at the Triple-A level went better as he posted a 4.33 ERA across 60 1/3 innings of work, Espino’s season came to an end in July when the righty was placed on the injured list due to a flexor strain. The end of his time in the Nationals organization came shortly thereafter, as the club placed Espino on release waivers in early August.

He's looked good in the Dominican Winter League (2.40 ERA over 48.2 IP, 25.8 K%), which makes him a viable depth piece again.

[JCA-CrystalCity]

https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2023/12/rangers-sign-derek-hill-andrew-knapp-elier-hernandez-to-minors-contracts.html

Minor league contract with spring invite for derek hill.

Just a few days shy of his 28th birthday, Hill hasn’t hit much over his limited big league career, with a .229/.279/.314 slash line over 304 plate appearances.  Selected 23rd overall by the Tigers in the 2014 draft, Hill’s bat took a while to get going even in the minors, though he has hit .288/.348/.472 with 22 homers and 28 steals (in 35 tries) over 756 career PA at the Triple-A level.

These numbers hint at some “quad-A” uncertainty for Hill, yet his speed, Triple-A production, and his ability to at least passably play all three outfield positions should keep giving him some opportunities on minor league contracts.  With Robbie Grossman and Travis Jankowski both free agents, Hill and Hernandez will give the Rangers some outfield depth at the Triple-A level, especially since top prospect Wyatt Langford is expected to make his MLB debut in 2024 and Evan Carter has already broken out as an outfield regular heading into next season.

[Senatorswin]

Lucas Giolito to the Red Sox 2 years $38.5 million.

[imref]

Lucas Giolito to the Red Sox 2 years $38.5 million.

That's amazing after the year he had (~7.00 ERA in his last 12 starts). If he's getting $19 million a year, we should be able to move Corbin for something.

[Natsinpwc]

That's amazing after the year he had (~7.00 ERA in his last 12 starts). If he's getting $19 million a year, we should be able to move Corbin for something.

Well Lucas has not had three straight years with an ERA over 5.20.  But if Corbin has a decent first half there might be some takers.  If Nats eat some salary. 

[JCA-CrystalCity]

https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2023/12/dusty-baker-discussing-potential-role-with-giants.html

Dusty Baker has had “preliminary talks” with Giants president Larry Baer about a position with the organization, the longtime manager told Jason Dumas and F.P. Santangelo of 95.7 The Game (X link). Baker indicated he’s likely to speak with president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi at some point.

The 74-year-old stepped down from managing the Astros after the season, concluding what’ll very likely be a Hall of Fame career in the dugout. Even as he moved on from the daily responsibility of managing, Baker indicated he hoped to remain within the sport in some capacity. Houston owner Jim Crane said in October they were willing to keep Baker with the Astros, although a position with the Giants may be a better fit.

Baker lives in Sacramento. Not only is that much closer to San Francisco than to Houston, it’s also the site of the Giants’ Triple-A team, the River Cats. Some kind of special assistant job could allow him to stay involved with the MLB and Triple-A clubs while leaving the kind of personal flexibility that he couldn’t have had as a manager.

Good job, FP, getting the scoop.

[Senatorswin]

Good to see FP got a gig.

[Natsinpwc]

Good to see FP got a gig.

Ok. He has been in radio broadcasting for a while out there. This says he was let go buy one station in November. Budget cuts. I guess this is a new gig?

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/F._P._Santangelo