Royal Rebuild [OOTP 19]

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CHAMPIONSHIP ROUND

10/13/2018: Atlanta 2, LA Dodgers 5
10/14/2018: Atlanta 1, LA Dodgers 6
10/16/2018: LA Dodgers 1, Atlanta 0
10/17/2018: LA Dodgers 6, Atlanta 1

10/14/2018: Boston 5, Houston 16
10/15/2018: Boston 10, Houston 2
10/17/2018: Houston 3, Boston 11
10/18/2018: Houston 1, Boston 7
10/19/2018: Houston 2, Boston 4

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2018 WORLD SERIES

10/23/2018: LA Dodgers 8, Boston 3
10/24/2018: LA Dodgers 1, Boston 3
10/26/2018: Boston 7, LA Dodgers 3
10/27/2018: Boston 3, LA Dodgers 4
10/28/2018: Boston 0, LA Dodgers 3
10/30/2018: LA Dodgers 3, Boston 8
10/31/2018: LA Dodgers 3, Boston 14

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PRE-FREE AGENCY RECAP
By artoodeetoo
11/24/2018

TEAM OPTIONS DENIED

RHP Jason Hammel ($12M)
RHP Wily Peralta ($3M)

OFFERED ARBITRATION

LHP Brian Flynn -- Signed $835K offer
RHP Jesse Hahn -- Awarded $775K in favor of team
RHP Nathan Karns -- Signed $1.525M offer
3B Cheslor Cuthbert -- Signed $825K offer

NOT OFFERED ARBITRATION

RHP Brandon Maurer
RHP Wily Peralta
OF Paulo Orlando

FREE AGENTS NOT OFFERED QUALIFYING OFFER

RHP Jason Hammel
SS Alcides Escobar

MINOR LEAGUE COACHES HIRED

HC Ramon Nivar (Idaho Falls)
MA Sandy Martinez (Royals DSL 1)
MA Justin Atchley (Idaho Falls)
HC Jose Guillen (Lexington)
HC Roy Gomez (Royals AZL)
PC Alvin Alcantara (Lexington)
MA Gerald Perry (NW Arkansas)
PC Matt Turner (Royals AZL)
PC German Gonzalez (Burlington)
HC Francisco Contreras (Wilmington)
MA Renan Sato (Wilmington)
MA Bip Roberts (Omaha)
PC Ted Power (Idaho Falls)

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FRONT OFFICE CHANGES RECAP
By artoodeetoo
11/24/2018

MANAGERIAL CHANGES

Baltimore: Buck Showalter fired, John Russell hired
San Francisco: Bruce Bochy retires, Chris Woodward hired
Detroit: Ron Gardenhire retires, Carlos Beltran hired
Cincinnati: Bryan Price fired, Sandy Alomar Jr. hired
Chi. White Sox: Rick Renteria fired, Joe Girardi hired

GENERAL MANAGER CHANGES

Miami: Michael Hill out, Ben Cherington hired
Baltimore: Dan Duquette out, Kevin Nicholson hired; Theo Epstein hired as VP of Baseball Operations

MANAGER OF THE YEAR

National League: Dave Roberts, Los Angeles
American League: Alex Cora, Boston

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2018 MLB Award Winners
Award	Player	Pos	Team
AL Cy Young Award	Masahiro Tanaka	RHP	New York Yankees
AL Hank Aaron Award	Giancarlo Stanton	OF	New York Yankees
AL Most Valuable Player	Giancarlo Stanton	OF	New York Yankees
AL Playoff MVP	Ian Kinsler	2B	Boston Red Sox
AL Rolaids Relief Award	Andrew Miller	LHP	Cleveland Indians
AL Rookie of the Year	Shohei Ohtani	P/OF	Los Angeles Angels
NL Cy Young Award	Noah Syndergaard	RHP	New York Mets
NL Hank Aaron Award	Joey Votto	1B	Cincinnati Reds
NL Most Valuable Player	Freddie Freeman	1B	Atlanta Braves
NL Rolaids Relief Award	Mark Melancon	RHP	San Francisco Giants
NL Rookie of the Year	Ryan McMahon	1B	Colorado Rockies

2018 MLB Rawlings Gold Glove Award Winners
American League	Pos	National League
Salvador Perez, Kansas City	C	Austin Hedges, San Diego
Marwin Gonzalez, Houston	1B	Brandon Belt, San Francisco
Ian Kinsler, Boston	2B	Ozzie Albies, Atlanta
Adrian Beltre, Texas	3B	Johan Camargo, Atlanta
Andrelton Simmons, Los Angeles	SS	Brandon Crawford, San Francisco
Alex Gordon, Kansas City	OF	Ronald Acuna, Jr., Atlanta
Kevin Pillar, Toronto	OF	Manny Margot, San Diego
Stephen Piscotty, Oakland	OF	Juan Lagares, New York
Mike Leake, Seattle	P	Tyson Ross, San Diego

2018 MLB Silver Slugger Award Winners
American League	Pos	National League
Gary Sanchez, New York	C	Buster Posey, San Francisco
Yonder Alonso, Cleveland	1B	Joey Votto, Cincinnati
Jose Altuve, Houston	2B	Ozzie Albies, Atlanta
Miguel Sano, Minnesota	3B	Kris Bryant, Chicago
Carlos Correa, Houston	SS	Trea Turner, Washington
Andrew Benintendi, Boston	OF	Marcell Ozuna, St. Louis
Adam Jones, Boston	OF	Odubel Herrera, Philadelphia
Nomar Mazara, Texas	OF	Bryce Harper, Washington
Giancarlo Stanton, New York	DH/P	Dinelson Lamet, San Diego

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ROYALS OFFSEASON BLOG
By artoodeetoo

This is a blog that chronicles the Royals' offseason moves, and other major events of the offseason.

12/13/2018: ROYALS DEAL MERRIFIELD

The Royals had multiple teams with "significant" interest at the trade deadline for Whit Merrifield, but opted not to deal. A few months later at the Winter Meetings, the Royals have decided to part ways with the fan-favorite, trading him to the Mets for three upper-level prospects. Below is an anonymous MLB scout's analysis of the deal:

Royals acquire: 1B Peter Alonso, RHP Drew Smith, C Patrick Mazeika
Mets acquire: 2B Whit Merrifield

Analysis: Alonso is a league-average defender, but is a legitimate .300/.375/30/100 guy that can anchor a lineup a few years down the road. With Dominic Smith firmly entrenched as the team's first baseman of now and the future, it made Alonso expendable as Smith is under the Mets' control through 2023. Mazeika might seem like a throw-in, but is a league-average left-handed bat behind the plate, and could be a replacement for Salvador Perez in the coming years. However, the real prize might be Smith. He has three plus-pitches, including a fastball that reaches 97-98, and sits in the mid 90's. His other offerings are a plus-curveball (that could end up being a plus-plus pitch), a plus-changeup, and a cut fastball that's average, but still coming along. The downside is that he's still recovering from shoulder surgery to repair a torn rotator cuff, and it remains to be seen whether he'll get back to a point where he can go deep into games. If so, he has number-one or two potential. If not, he has All-Star potential as a closer or set-up guy with his stuff and velocity. Before his injury, he had eleven starts with a 2.09 ERA and fifty-three strikeouts over 47 2/3 Triple-A innings.

From the Mets' perspective, Merrifield is a heck of a consolation prize after losing out on the top three second basemen on the open market. He'll be thirty on Opening Day 2019, which presents a little bit of risk; but he's younger than Logan Forsythe (32) or Ian Kinsler (36), and is just as productive, if not more. The cost to get him was also quite steep -- Ranking-wise, Alonso (11th) and Smith (17th) were in the Mets' top thirty according to Baseball America, and Mazeika was ranked as recently as early 2017.

12/17/2018: FLYNN TRADED TO MILWAUKEE

Brian Flynn is no stranger to being traded. Acquired by Kansas City from the Marlins in 2014 along with Reid Redman for Aaron Crow, before that he was part of the deal that sent former Royal second baseman Omar Infante and Anibal Sanchez to the Tigers in 2012. He's on the move again, this time as a veteran piece for a prospect. The Royals will get the Brewers sixth-ranked prospect in Cody Ponce, a six-foot-five, 265-pound right-hander. That seems a little steep from the Brewers' perspective, but they have a pretty weak farm system, and Ponce has dealt with conditioning issues that, if you read Brewers' blogs and sites that cover their minor leagues, has hindered his development some. He features mid-90's heat with a solid cut fastball, but doesn't have an offspeed pitch to write home about, which limits him potentially as a starter.

For the Royals, this helps to get rid of a logjam of southpaws in the bullpen, as that leaves Tim Hill, Eric Stout, Jerry Vasto, Richard Lovelady, and Eric Skoglund all vying for two spots, maybe three at most on the big-league roster.

12/18/2018: ROYALS TAKE, THEN TRADE RULE 5 PICK

Soon after the conclusion of the Rule 5 Draft yesterday, Oakland and Kansas City swapped relief pitchers with the A's taking Kaleb Fleck; who the Royals had just taken the day before in the second round, and 2018 All-Star Blake Treinen going to Kansas City. This deal doesn't make a ton of sense on the surface for Oakland, but Treinen struggled down the stretch with four earned runs allowed in his last five appearances; and he signed a $7M contract to beat arbitration, which beat his Fangraphs estimate by nearly $1.5M. He's under team control through next season, which is nice, but there will be pressure to perform with that potential price tag. This was a classic A's cost-cutting move by Billy Beane and David Forst; one that could pay dividends if Fleck, who has never seen a big-league mound at 29, is even half the pitcher Treinen was in 2018.

12/24/2018: ROYALS LAND SPEEDSTER HAMILTON

Despite not having anyone ready to step in from the minors, the Reds did not offer centerfielder Billy Hamilton arbitration this past November, and became a free agent. The Royals had apparently targeted him pretty early, and that pursuit has come to fruition as they've signed him to a two-year deal, with the second year being a $3.25M team option that has a buyout of just $350,000. He'll make $2M this season, and has a yearly bonus of $250,000 that pays out once 450 plate appearances are reached, which I think is a pretty reasonable expectation. With Alex Gordon in left, Hamilton in center, and Brett Phillips in right, this is a devastatingly good outfield, perhaps the best in all of baseball. Although, I do wonder where this leaves guys like Jorge Bonifacio and Brian Goodwin in the team's future plans. Along with Jorge Soler, the aforementioned six are the only outfielders on the 40-man currently (Hamilton hasn't quite been added as of yet, though). Soler is likely the team's full-time DH, which could free up a spot to carry both Bonifacio and Goodwin on the 25-man, but who are they going to sacrifice elsewhere?

01/03/2019: MOOSE LANDS IN BALTIMORE

Baltimore may have pulled off the best signing so far, inking former Royal third baseman Mike Moustakas to a six-year, $42M contract. He hit forty-one homeruns with 102 RBI last season between the Royals and Brewers, and it was mildly surprising that the Brewers didn't try to re-sign him. It's still strange to talk about him in a different uniform, but he'll do well as a veteran leader on a team that will likely need as much veteran leadership as it can get. It's the first big move of the Theo Epstein era, and I can't imagine he's going to stop there.

01/06/2019: THERE'S A PLAN IN PLACE

Well, it's finally happened -- hometown boy is coming home. Trevor Rosenthal signed a one-year, $4M contract with the Royals late last night, and is going to get a chance to prove himself all over again in Royal blue. His deal also includes a $480K bonus for hitting 60 IP, and a $120K All-Star bonus. He signed with the Yankees as a free agent two weeks prior to the beginning of last season; but suffered a torn labrum a few days after signing in Spring Training, had surgery, and sat out the entire year. He had an off-year in 2016, but if he can recapture his pre-2016 form, this bullpen went from a minor weakness to a solid strength in just one offseason.

To me, it's looking like they're trying to go back to what made them successful from 2013 through 2015 -- great pitching (especially out of the pen), and defense, with decent hitting sprinkled in. A lot of that depends on how far along that Richard Lovelady develops in his first full year, but potentially Kansas City now has three guys they could count on to close games. That's a pretty nice luxury to have. Throw in Tim Hill, Burch Smith, and Nathan Karns (if healthy), dare I say on paper this group could be, I stress could, be as good as those units.

01/22/2019: PITCHERS, CATCHERS REPORT

Pitchers and catchers on the 40-man roster began to make their way towards Surprise, Ariz., early this morning, a few days behind the equipment trucks that departed the stadium on the morning of the 20th. A few non-pitchers/catchers also decided to cut their winter vacations short as well, including outfielders Brian Goodwin and Brett Phillips, and infielders Adalberto Mondesi and Cheslor Cuthbert. It is also the first time that the new minor-league staff for the 2019 season will meet each other in person.

01/23/2019: WELCOME BACK, KELVIN

Fresh off a disastrous run with the Nationals, the Royals have re-signed former bullpen ace Kelvin Herrera to a one-year deal worth $1.5M. It's difficult to see where he fits in with the new-look bullpen, but he may shine without having to worry about closing out games, or even handling eighth-inning duties. Before the trade in late June, Herrera had a 2.70 ERA with the Royals, but ballooned to 7.04 with the Nats. He never seemed to find a foothold in his new city, or really settle on a role. This move makes me wonder if the Royals might be considering Nathan Karns for the rotation again, now that he's back and supposedly healthy. A fan favorite, Herrera being back in Royal blue may put a few more butts in the seats at the stadium this summer. To make room for Herrera, the Royals designated Jesse Hahn for assignment.

01/26/2019: SHORTSTOP SURPRISE

In a curious move, the Royals have signed former long-time Detroit shortstop Jose Iglesias to a one-year, $1M contract. On its face, it seems like a good deal for a guy who ranked in the AL top ten in hits, doubles, and batting average, but he hasn't played anywhere other than short since 2013, so I don't think he's being brought in to play a utility role. This move is probably not good news if you're Nicky Lopez, as it appears the Royals may not be as inclined to call him up as some close to the franchise originally thought. Adalberto Mondesi has played some second base in the past; and if it weren't for Andrelton Simmons, Iglesias probably wins the Gold Glove at short last year. He was second to Simmons in most major defensive categories, including Defensive Runs Saved (+9.0), and efficiency (1.047). The Royals weren't terrible defensively as a team last year, but they were pretty weak up the middle on the infield. Iglesias at short and Mondesi at second fixes that, so it makes a lot of sense from a defensive standpoint. Also, $1M is fantastic value, especially for a guy who racked up a 3.6 WAR number in 2018.

01/28/2019: COLOME CAN'T FIND A HOME

Man, Alex Colome can't catch a break. He's been traded three times in the past six months, first from Tampa Bay to Seattle close to the deadline. He was then acquired by St. Louis in exchange for Jose Martinez a little over five weeks ago. Now, he's on the move again, this time to the Bronx as part of a package to get Aroldis Chapman. The signing of Craig Kimbrel seemed to be the writing on the wall for Chapman, as he's making $15M each year through 2021, and became the subject of trade talks soon after Kimbrel came on board. The Yanks also have other options to close games, including Colome, Chad Green, Tommy Kahnle, and Dellin Betances, so losing Chapman probably doesn't hurt too much, and they pick up a couple of B-level prospects.-

02/07/2019: WHEELIN' AND DEALIN'

Travis Greenleaf continues to be aggressive in the trade market, making his fourth swap of the offseason. However, this one doesn't even net any benefit for the 2019 season, as the return for righty Burch Smith will miss the entire 2019 season after a Tommy John procedure. Southpaw Tyler Skaggs was acquired from the Angels for Smith, as the Royals continue to shed bullpen arms from last year's team. That said, one big benefit is that Skaggs won't take up a 40-man roster spot, as he was immediately placed on the 60-day disabled list along with righty Drew Smith, who is expected to be out through May. Skaggs has another year of control after this year, so it's clear the Royals are anticipating him being ready for the 2020 season.

02/20/2019: REFLECTING ON LERNER AND ANGELOS

The baseball world has lost not one, but two titans in the baseball ownership world this offseason in Ted Lerner and Peter Angelos. Last year, Mike Ilitch passed away as the owner of the Detroit Tigers. David Glass is 83, folks. I'm sure that his son, Dan, has a contingency plan when this event inevitably happens (hopefully not for a long while), but there are signs that he may not be as amenable to keeping the team as his son is.

02/25/2019: SPRING TRAINING REPORT #1

It's pretty early to draw many conclusions, but there are a few observations that I have from being in camp for a few days:

--Losing Whit Merrifield was difficult, but I think Nicky Lopez is going to make a lot of fans forget about him eventually when he hits the bigs. His power potential isn't very good (he's pretty lithe, and at his age is largely done developing physically); but all four of his hits this week went for extra bases with three doubles and a triple, and his quick hands at least give some future hope in that regard. Some thought Whit would never hit for much power, and he went for twenty homeruns and 40+ doubles last year. He's also a max-effort player, diving for grounders in the field, and hustling out grounders at the plate.

--He made just one appearance, but I'll be damned if Josh Staumont doesn't end up on the Opening Day roster, even if in a low-leverage role. Ned Yost has said they're going to be cautious with him this spring, as he's dealing with a minor knee issue from a non-baseball incident prior to the beginning of spring, but looked extremely impressive in his only outing of the week on Friday. Staumont flashed upper 90's heat with solid command of his curveball, fanning three with one walk in 2 2/3 innings. His one walk was the only at-bat where he went past a 2-2 count.

--In a league where first basemen are usually big, lumbering oafs, Peter Alonso is an exception. He's listed at six-foot-three and 245 pounds, but he doesn't look it. He made a pretty incredible impression in his first at-bat Thursday, banging a 450-foot homerun to left; and making a diving stop on a hot smash down the right-field line in the second inning, where he scrambled quickly to his knees to make a 'shovel pass' of sorts to Eric Skoglund covering first.

03/05/2019: SPRING TRAINING REPORT #2

Kansas City had a rough week, going 2-4 in their last six games. While it's still too early to take away a lot from the action so far, the pitching is a bit of a concern. Generally, the starters go three to four innings, but the starters are struggling to reach even the third inning in most starts, forcing Ned Yost to go deeper into his bullpen than he would like in the spring. There have been some nice individual performances out of the pitchers, namely Corey Ray and Jared Ruxer out of the pen. Danny Duffy has also been sharp in his limited time to this point, which is nice to see, but you'd like to see the starters get a little deeper into games.

On a more positive note, the young hitters continue to show promise. Khalil Lee has shown pretty surprising discipline at the plate, drawing more walks than strikeouts, and hitting .462 (6-for-13). Nicky Lopez didn't hit the ball as hard as he did last week, but still managed to rack up four more hits in the week. I still maintain that Lee has a great chance to be a real impact bat for the Royals in the coming few years, possibly as early as next season. If I'm Omaha manager Bip Roberts, I'm salivating right now at the talent I'm going to have on that roster to begin the year. At least for the first few months of the season, most likely.

Also, in personnel signing matters, the Royals signed Francisco Liriano to a minor-league deal, but is not going to be in big-league camp. At this point, the chances are pretty low that he'll be on the 40-man anytime soon, but he's nice organizational depth for now.

03/12/2019: SPRING TRAINING REPORT #3

The Royals finally began to make some cuts off the spring roster, trimming from sixty in camp to fifty. Pitchers Jake Kalish, Foster Griffin, Walker Sheller, Glenn Sparkman, and Eric Stout were sent down; along with position players in catcher Nick Dini, infielders Samir Duenez and Jack Lopez, and outfielders Donnie Dewees and Elier Hernandez. If you're a younger player at this point, and you're not getting a ton of at-bats, chances are you're likely one of the first few cuts of camp. All will be reporting to Triple-A camp in Omaha.

Manager Ned Yost also mentioned that they're going to make their next roster trim a week from now, likely going from fifty to thirty-five; which at that point, you'll see the wheels turning to get ready for Opening Day, which is on March 28th and begins with a dynamite opening series against the Cardinals.

Sheller was a mildly surprising cut since he's been one of the more impressive relievers in camp, but there are others that are going to contribute this year and will need the additional work. At any rate, it's unlikely anyway we see Sheller until 2021 at the earliest, depending on who you talk to.

He's not on the 40-man roster, but Drew Smith made his first appearance at camp earlier this week. Just about two months out from returning to live game action, Smith participated in his first bullpen session since his labrum surgery, throwing roughly twenty pitches at about 80%, according to Yost. Smith was one of the three players acquired in the Whit Merrifield deal back in December.

03/18/2019: SPRING TRAINING REPORT #4

The Royals got down to thirty-five in major league camp as of this posting, with a few surprises still around. Kyle Zimmer hasn't looked sharp at all, and continues to remain with the big club. Kansas City also continues to carry four first basemen, which is awkward because three of them are 1B/DH types (Hunter Dozier being the exception). A notable cut was catcher Meibrys Viloria, who was optioned to Double-A. He hadn't played above High-A Wilmington before getting called up last September, but he had a great spring up to this point, hitting a remarkable .308/.400/.423 with one homerun and five RBI.

It also appears that they are only going to keep two lefties in the bullpen for the time being. Jerry Vasto, who was signed late last season as a minor-league free agent, has thrown seven scoreless innings this spring only to be optioned down to Omaha. He had all three options remaining, so it makes sense, but it leaves just Richard Lovelady and Tim Hill, who is most likely going to handle LHB-only duties, leaving just one southpaw for the middle innings. Lefty Eric Skoglund has one more spring start to make, but it's unlikely he'll go to the bullpen. It's the Royals rotation or Omaha for him it seems, from speaking with people around the team.

Lastly, could Bubba Starling be on the cusp of finally making an Opening Day roster? He's hit in eight of his last ten games (10-for-23), with two doubles, a triple, and an RBI. One thing is in his favor -- the Royals are loaded with left-handed bats in Alex Gordon, Brett Phillips, and Brian Goodwin. He's also out of options, which means that they might want to get an extended look at him before deciding to cut bait or not. Goodwin has hit .314 this spring, but is also out of options. The outfield roster jockey-ing is going to be interesting as the Royals trim to 25 in a little over a week.

03/26/2019: SPRING TRAINING REPORT #5

Well, the 25-man roster is set. Josh Staumont was placed on the disabled list with a sore shoulder, paving the way for Jorge Lopez to remain with the club as the team's 12th pitcher. It's good for him, too, as he's out of options and would have to clear waivers to be sent to Omaha. They also sent both Frank Schwindel and Peter Alonso to Omaha, which makes little sense as both play 1B/DH only, and Samir Duenez is already with the club. And even despite a pretty solid last few weeks of spring, Bubba Starling was designated for assignment, which removes him from the roster. It's doubtful anyone picks him up, so the Royals likely felt comfortable doing so. Brian Goodwin is a bit more of a known commodity, can play all three outfield spots, and who doesn't have big platoon splits between LHP and RHP over his professional career.

Trevor Oaks looked sharp in the spring finale, throwing six solid innings of one-run ball as the Royals capped off Spring Training with a victory over Oakland. A slew of minor league relievers were also given their walking papers, as lefties Jake Kalish and Jonathan Dziedzic were jettisoned; and Jared Ruxer, Glenn Sparkman, and Kevin McCarthy were sent down to Double-A to begin the season, which shows the increased depth they have in their top two minor league affiliates.

Look for a season preview in the coming days, as the minor league rosters are finalized for the upcoming seasons for those affiliates. The Royals' top four affiliates (Omaha, NW Arkansas, Wilmington, and Lexington) all begin play on April 11th.

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MAJOR OFFSEASON TRANSACTIONS

NOVEMBER FREE AGENT SIGNINGS
11/28/2018: Toronto signs LHP Andrew Barbosa on one-year, $680K deal

DECEMBER FREE AGENT SIGNINGS
12/04/2018: Arizona signs RHP Zach Petrick to one-year, $730K deal
12/06/2018: St. Louis signs 3B Chase Headley to one-year, $1.82M deal
12/07/2018: New York (N) signs LHP Clayton Richard to one-year, $1.5M deal
12/10/2018: CF A.J. Pollock signs six-year, $91.2M contract with Cleveland
12/10/2018: Mets, LHP Dallas Keuchel agree on four-year, $73M pact
12/10/2018: 2B Brian Dozier signs four-year, $34.4M contract with Tampa Bay
12/12/2018: Toronto, Josh Donaldson reach agreement on five-year, $89M deal to reunite
12/13/2018: Angels sign RHP Charlie Morton to one-year, $7.7M contract with $480K of incentives
12/13/2018: Angels sign IF Daniel Murphy to four-year, $47.5M deal; fourth year an $11.5M vest option
12/13/2018: D.J. LeMahieu back with the Rockies on six-year, $84.2M contract with up to $900K in bonuses in all
12/15/2018: Nats sign C Cameron Rupp to one-year, $960K deal
12/23/2018: Twins ink All-Star 2B Jed Lowrie to one-year, $6.6M contract
12/24/2018: Royals sign speedster OF Billy Hamilton to two-year deal worth up to $5.75M, incl. incentives; second year team option has $350K buyout
12/25/2018: DH Nelson Cruz, Rays agree to $5.6M for one year
12/26/2018: RHP Sergio Romo signs with San Diego for one-year, $2.16M deal
12/26/2018: Yankees, RHP Craig Kimbrel agree to one-year, $7M contract
12/26/2018: RHP Nathan Eovaldi, Dodgers agree to two-year contract, with second year vesting for $4.72M after 180 IP
12/27/2018: Nationals ink LF Michael Brantley to five-year, $59M pact
12/28/2018: Beantown Bryce: Harper, Red Sox agree to seven-year, approx. $200M contract with additional $4.2M in incentives
12/28/2018: Astros agree to four-year contract with C Wilson Ramos that will pay out $33.15M
12/29/2018: Cutch signs five-year contract with Atlanta worth $62.5M

JANUARY FREE AGENT SIGNINGS
01/02/2019: Jonathan Lucroy, Angels agree to four-year, $48.9M deal; fourth year team option worth $12M
01/02/2019: Giants sign former M's, Reds OF Wladimir Balentien to four-year, $14.84M deal; played in Japan since since 2011
01/03/2019: Orioles sign 3B Mike Moustakas to six-year, $42M deal
01/04/2019: Dodgers, LHP Drew Pomeranz agree to five-year, $43M deal
01/06/2019: Yankees agree to three-year, $25.1M deal with RHP Jeurys Familia
01/06/2019: Royals, RHP Trevor Rosenthal agree to one-year deal worth $4M, incentives up to $600K
01/07/2019: Nationals, 2B Kelly Johnson agree to one-year, $1.14M deal
01/11/2019: Rays, RHP Ervin Santana agree to one-year, $5.5M deal
01/12/2019: RHP David Robertson signs one-year contract with San Francisco, worth $2.52M
01/14/2019: Mets sign IF Asdrubal Cabrera to two-year, $4.8M deal; second year a $2.4M team option with $1M buyout
01/14/2019: Rays sign C Jesus Sucre to one-year, $860K contract
01/14/2019: IF Luis Valbuena agrees to three-year, $13.56M deal, third year is a $4.52M team option with $900K buyout
01/15/2019: RHP Brandon McCarthy, Minnesota agree to one-year, $5.8M contract
01/16/2019: Texas agrees to two-year, $26.1M contract with LHP J.A. Happ
01/16/2019: Houston to bring back 1B Marwin Gonzalez on three-year pact worth nearly $14M
01/17/2019: Yankees sign 3B David Freese to one-year, $2.2M deal
01/18/2019: Astros sign RHP Zach Putnam to one-year, $1.06M contract
01/19/2019: LHP Scott Diamond, Cubs agree to one-year, $3.2 deal
01/20/2019: LHP Cole Hamels, Cubs agree on three-year pact worth $9.6M
01/22/2019: Kershaw to return to the Dodgers on six-year, $168M deal; sixth year a $25M team option and $5M buyout
01/22/2019: Royals reunite with RHP Kelvin Herrera on one-year deal worth $1.5M
01/24/2019: RHP Brandon Kintzler agrees to one-year contract with San Diego worth $2.2M
01/24/2019: Texas, RHP Bud Norris ink $2.52M pact for one year
01/25/2019: LHP Justin Wilson returns to New York; signs with the Yankees for $12M over two years
01/26/2019: Nationals, 2B Logan Forsythe agree to four-year, $35M pact
01/27/2019: Blue Jays bring back OF Curtis Granderson on three-year, $27.3M deal
01/27/2019: 2B Ian Kinsler, Giants agree to two-year $8.4M deal
01/27/2019: Royals sign SS Jose Iglesias to one-year, $1M contract
01/28/2019: 1B Joe Mauer signs $1.38M contract with Washington for one year
01/28/2019: Cardinals, LHP Patrick Corbin agree to three-year, $39.3M deal
01/29/2019: Yankees sign former Cardinals standout RHP Adam Wainwright to one-year, $3.2M deal

FEBRUARY FREE AGENT SIGNINGS
02/02/2019: 1B Hanley Ramirez signs with Oakland for one-year, $1.04M
02/04/2019: Baltimore signs Taiwanese RHP Hiang-ta Zhang to three-year, $5M deal
02/04/2019: 3B Adrian Beltre agrees to one-year, $10M deal with Pittsburgh
02/05/2019: Orioles ink SS Adeiny Hechavarria to three-year, $9.6M contract
02/07/2019: Rangers sign C Yasmani Grandal to one-year, $8.3M deal
02/15/2019: Angels, OF Adam Jones signs two-year deal worth $12M; second year a $5M team option
02/16/2019: White Sox sign 3B Eduardo Nunez to one-year, $1.92M deal
02/17/2019: D-Backs, RHP Joakim Soria reach agreement on two-year, $11m contract
02/19/2019: Rangers sign 1B Lucas Duda to one-year, $3.76M contract
02/19/2019: Braves agree to two-year, $13M pack with LHP Zach Britton
02/19/2019: The Cubs land LHP Andrew Miller for three years and $25M; last year a team option worth $7.5M
02/22/2019: RHP Ryan Madson signs one-year, $1.24M deal with Boston
02/22/2019: OF Carlos Gonzalez, Indians sign one-year, $2.24M pact

MARCH FREE AGENT SIGNINGS
03/10/2019: Rockies agree to terms with LHP Boone Logan on one-year, $1.22M deal
03/15/2019: Angels sign southpaw Jerry Blevins to $2.6M for one season

DECEMBER TRADES
12/12/2018: Texas trades LHP Mike Minor to Toronto for LHP Ryan Borucki, RHP Maverik Buffo, and RHP Tom Robson
12/13/2018: White Sox ship 1B Jose Abreu to St. Louis for RHP Ryan Helsley, OF Jose Adolis Garcia, and 3B Yairo Munoz
12/14/2018: Royals, Mets strike deal to send 2B Whit Merrifield to New York for 1B Peter Alonso, RHP Drew Smith, and C Patrick Mazeika
12/14/2018: Phillies send 1B Justin Bour to Minnesota for LHP Tyler Duffey
12/15/2018: White Sox, Cubs swap pitchers; LHP Xavier Cedeno to the Northsiders for RHP Thomas Hatch
12/15/2018: M's deal 1B Ryon Healy and RHP Nick Vincent to the Cubs for C/1B Victor Caratini and LHP/OF Karlos Morales
12/16/2018: Royals trade LHP Brian Flynn to Milwaukee for RHP Cody Ponce
12/17/2018: Cardinals acquire RHP Alex Colome from Seattle for 1B/OF Jose Martinez
12/17/2018: Royals trade RHP Kaleb Fleck to Oakland for RHP Blake Treinen
12/18/2018: Red Sox trade OF LaMonte Wade to St. Louis for LHP Tyler Lyons

JANUARY TRADES
01/08/2019: Red Sox trade OF Jackie Bradley, Jr., to Arizona for RHP Brad Boxberger and RHP Archie Bradley
01/28/2019: Yankees trade LHP Aroldis Chapman to St. Louis for RHP Alex Colome, 3B Elehuris Montero, and OF Dylan Carlson

FEBRUARY TRADES
02/06/2019: Royals trade RHP Burch Smith to the Angels for LHP Tyler Skaggs (out for 2019, UCL)

RULE 5 DRAFT RESULTS (12/17/2018)
Round 1, Pick 2: 1B Mike Ford, Chi. Sox (from NY Yankees)
Round 1, Pick 5: C Wynston Sawyer, Texas (from Minnesota)
Round 1, Pick 9: RHP Adrian Houser, Toronto (from Boston)
Round 1, Pick 12: RHP JC Ramirez, Seattle (from Atlanta)
Round 1, Pick 16: C Anthony Bemboom, LA Angels (from Colorado)
Round 1, Pick 20: OF Hernan Perez, Pittsburgh (from LA Dodgers)
Round 1, Pick 21: OF Erik Gonzalez, San Francisco (from Tampa Bay)
Round 1, Pick 22: C Dom Nunez, Atlanta (from Colorado)
Round 1, Pick 23: IF Jack Reinheimer, Milwaukee (from Arizona)
Round 1, Pick 27: OF LaMonte Wade, Boston (from Minnesota)
Round 1, Pick 28: UT Rob Segedin, Cleveland (from LA Dodgers)
Round 1, Pick 30: OF Rey Fuentes, NY Yankees (from Arizona)
Round 2, Pick 7: RHP Kaleb Fleck, Kansas City (from Houston)
Round 2, Pick 12: 1B Edwin Rios, Seattle (from LA Dodgers)
Round 2, Pick 21: OF Jacob Hannemann, San Francisco (from Chi. Cubs)
Round 2, Pick 27: OF Jose Cardona, Boston (from Texas)
Round 2, Pick 28: OF Nick Schulz, Cleveland (from San Diego)
Round 3, Pick 27: OF Luis Alexander Basabe, Boston (from Chi. Sox)

[artoodeetoo]

TOP REMAINING FREE AGENTS BY POSITION (SORTED BY WAR)

CATCHER
Rene Rivera (1.7)

FIRST BASE
Logan Morrison (-0.4)

SECOND BASE
Cliff Pennington (-0.1)

THIRD BASE
Jeong Choi (0.0)%,

SHORTSTOP

OUTFIELDERS
Nick Markakis (0.5), Brandon Moss (0.4), Gerardo Parra (-0.3)

STARTING PITCHER
Chris Tillman (1.0), Jeremy Hellickson (0.2)

RELIEVER/CLOSER
Cody Allen (0.8), Jake Diekman (0.8)

Asterisk denotes 2019 draft pick compensation attached
% denotes international free agent
# denotes 2017 WAR (missed all of 2018 due to injury)

SIGNED PLAYERS (SALARIES BASE)
Brian Dozier -- 4 YR/$34.4M (Tampa Bay)
Dallas Keuchel* -- 4 YR/$73M (NY Mets)
A.J. Pollock* -- 6 YR/$91.2M (Cleveland)
Josh Donaldson* -- 5 YR/$89M (Toronto, no draft pick loss)
Charlie Morton -- 1 YR/$7.7M (LA Angels)
Daniel Murphy -- 4 YR/$47M (LA Angels)
D.J. LeMahieu* -- 6 YR/$84.2M (Colorado, no draft pick loss)
Cameron Rupp -- 1 YR/$960K (Washington)
Jed Lowrie -- 1 YR/$6.6M (Minnesota)
Billy Hamilton -- 2 YR/$5.25M (Kansas City)
Nelson Cruz -- 1 YR/$5.6M (Tampa Bay)
Sergio Romo -- 1 YR/$2.16M (San Diego)
Craig Kimbrel -- 1 YR/$7M (NY Yankees)
Nathan Eovaldi -- 2 YR/$9.44M (LA Dodgers)
Michael Brantley* -- 5 YR/$59M (Washington)
Wilson Ramos -- 4 YR/$33.15M (Houston)
Bryce Harper* -- 7 YR/$199.6M (Boston)
Andrew McCutchen* -- 5 YR/$62.5M (Atlanta)
Gio Gonzalez -- 2 YR/$12M (Texas)
Jonathan Lucroy* -- 4 YR/$48.9M (LA Angels)
Wladimir Balentien% -- 4 YR/$14.84M (San Francisco)
Mike Moustakas -- 6 YR/$42M (Baltimore)
Drew Pomeranz -- 5 YR/$43M (LA Dodgers)
Jeurys Familia -- 3 YR/$25.1M (NY Yankees)
Trevor Rosenthal# -- 1 YR/$4M (Kansas City)
Ervin Santana -- 1 YR/$5.5M (Tampa Bay)
David Robertson -- 1 YR/$2.52M (San Francisco)
Brandon McCarthy -- 1 YR/$5.8M (Minnesota)
J.A. Happ -- 2 YR/$26.1M (Texas)
Marwin Gonzalez -- 3 YR/$13.98M (Houston)
David Freese -- 1 YR/$2.2M (NY Yankees)
Zach Putnam -- 1 YR/$1.06M (Houston)
Scott Diamond -- 1 YR/$3.2M (Chi. Cubs)
Wade Miley -- 2 YR/$10.2M (Minnesota)
Clayton Kershaw* -- 6 YR/$168.4M (LA Dodgers, no draft pick loss)
Cole Hamels -- 3 YR/$9.6M (Chi. Cubs)
Kelvin Herrera -- 1 YR/$1.5M (Kansas City)
Bud Norris -- 1 YR/$2.52M (Texas)
Brandon Kintzler -- 1 YR/$2.2M (San Diego)
Logan Forsythe -- 4 YR/$35M (Washington)
Curtis Granderson* -- 3 YR/$27.3M (Toronto, no draft pick loss)
Ian Kinsler -- 2 YR/$8.4M (San Francisco)
Jose Iglesias -- 1 YR/$1M (Kansas City)
Joe Mauer -- 1 YR/$1.38M (Washington)
Patrick Corbin -- 3 YR/$39.3M (St. Louis)
Adam Wainwright -- 1 YR/$3.2M (NY Yankees)
Hanley Ramirez -- 1 YR/$1.04M (Oakland)
Hiang-ta Zhang -- 3 YR/$5M (Baltimore)
Adrian Beltre* -- 1 YR/$10M (Pittsburgh)
Adeiny Hechavarria -- 3 YR/$9.6M (Baltimore)
Yasmani Grandal* -- 1 YR/$8.3M (Texas)
Adam Jones -- 2 YR/$12M (LA Angels)
Eduardo Nunez -- 1 YR/$1.92M (Chi. Sox)
Joakim Soria -- 2 YR/$11M (Arizona)
Lucas Duda -- 1 YR/$3.76M (Texas)
Zach Britton -- 2 YR/$13M (Atlanta)
Andrew Miller -- 3 YR/$25M (Chi. Cubs)
Carlos Gonzalez -- 1 YR/$2.24M (Cleveland)
Ryan Madson -- 1 YR/$1.24M (Boston)
Carlos Gomez -- 1 YR/$950K (Tampa Bay)
Jose Reyes -- 1 YR/$930K (Detroit)
Boone Logan -- 1 YR/$1.22M (Colorado)
Jerry Blevins -- 1 YR/$2.6M (LA Angels)