Plays like this allowed Kevin Kiermaier to win the 2015 AL Gold Glove Award in center field.
On Tuesday night, outfielder Kevin Kiermaier became the fifth Tampa Bay Ray to win a Gold Glove Award, joining third baseman Evan Longoria (who has two), outfielder Carl Crawford, first baseman Carlos Pena and pitcher Jeremy Hellickson.
Two components were used to determine the winner of the Gold Glove: a vote by American League coaches and managers, and a statistical element which consisted of a collaboration with the Society for American Baseball Research (or SABR).
Kiermaier collected a season of gravity defying catches, a pair of home-run robberies, and more than a few pinpoint accurate throws which allowed him to lead big-league centerfielders with 15 assists ― one assist shy of the franchise record set by BJ…urm, Melvin Upton Jr. in 2008. All told, The Outlaw measured well in all of the the different defensive categories, including a record setting 42 Defensive Runs Saved* (or DRS).
Kiermaier became just the seventh AL outfielder to win a Gold Glove in his first full season since 1957, when the awards were first presented, joining Josh Reddick (Oakland, 2012), Ichiro Suzuki (Seattle, 2001), Rick Manning (Cleveland, 1976), Fred Lynn (Boston, 1975), Tommy Agee (ChiSox, 1966) and Norm Siebern (New York Yankees, 1958).
I always knew I’ve been a good defender, Kiermaier said prior to the announcement, but to do it on the biggest stage and get the recognition I have from players and coaches throughout the game, I can’t put words to describe how good it makes me feel about myself and finally getting the recognition I feel like I deserve out there.
Longoria was also a finalist at third base, however, both he and Adrian Beltre lost out to Manny Machado.
*DRS measures the number of runs a player saved or cost their team on defense relative to an average player. Any positive number is above average, and the best fielders typically fall into a range of 15–20 for a season.
Noteworthiness
― In case you needed a reminder of why Kevin Kiermaier deserved a Gold Glove…
Less than a week after Lisa Wheeler-Brown soundly defeated Will Newton in St. Peterburg’s pivotal District Seven city council race, Mayor Rick Kriseman met with Tampa Bay Rays president Brian Auld for a 45-minute meeting that had been described as “cordial” by Charlie Frago of the Tampa Bay Times.
The two sides ― which also included Rays executives Melanie Lenz and Rafaela A. Amador, and Kriseman’s chief of staff Kevin King and Deputy Mayor Kanika Tomalin ― met at Ricky P’s (a restaurant within spitting distance of the Trop) to “restart” stadium negotiations.
Details on the meeting were sparse, although it is highly unlikely that any deal will be brought to city council before January when the pro-deal council-member elect Wheeler-Brown officially joins the council.
Interestingly enough, Noah Pransky (Shadow of the Stadium) successfully predicted that any movement on the Stadium Saga shouldn’t be expected until after January, writing following the election last Tuesday:
The winner of today’s election won’t take office until the new year, so if it’s Wheeler-Brown, we may be able to expect some real movement come January.
For his part, Auld viewed the results of the election as a sign of progress:
We’re optimistic that there’s a deal to be reached. We really do want the city to manage its politics on its own but clearly the Rays were a bit of an issue in this election. And from what we’ve heard the next council may be more amenable to a deal than the prior council.’
On a related side note, in an earlier piece for the Times, Frago asserted that Lisa Wheeler-Brown’s election wasn’t a guarantee of a deal, because councilwoman Amy Foster is now viewed as the key swing vote. Foster supported Kriseman’s deal this past summer, however, her support was predicated on the inclusion of a transparency clause on how the Rays evaluated potential stadium sites. As of now, it is not certain whether that clause would be offered again, nor is it known if any bad blood remains from the election to swing her back to a “no.” As Pransky wrote, these factors could decide whether a deal gets done.
The irony of this photo taken at the Trop in August of 2013 — Brad Miller will now be playing at Tropicana Field as a Ray. (Photo Credit: Kim Klement/USA TODAY Sports)
November 9, 2015 update below in Noteworthiness.
On November 6, the Tampa Bay Rays agreed to a six player trade with the Seattle Mariners, which sent RHP Nathan Karns, LHP reliever C.J. Riefenhauser, and minor league outfielder Boog Powell to Seattle. In return, Tampa Bay received INF/OF Brad Miller, 1B/DH Logan Morrison, and RHP reliever Danny Farquhar.
The move was inevitable, although the timing was unexpected. After all, the Rays fielded offers for Karns at the trade deadline, and the righty seemed destined for the bullpen in 2016 were he to stay in Tampa Bay. In the deal, the team netted the presumed starting short stop and added some much needed left handed bats, as well as a reclamation project of a reliever.
The deal might have deferred the potential for injury, as Karns was shut down in early September with forearm tightness, and Riefenhauser saw a drop in his velocity upon his return from Triple-A this season. The lefty also battled inflammation in his throwing shoulder.
The question begs: how might Miller, Morrison, and Farquhar be utilized next season?
Brad Miller
Called a Ben Zobrist-like player, Miller filled the utility role for Seattle in 2015, though he logged most of his time at shortstop. Miller has solid all-around tools and saw success at the plate this season past, slashing .258 BA/.329 OBP/.402 SLG/.731 OPS/.144 ISO/105 wRC+ (including a 125 wRC+ against right handed pitching).
Dave Cameron (FanGraphs) assessed the trade, and ranked Miller 8th among players who have played at least 25% of their games at shortstop over the last three seasons:
As a big leaguer, he has a 99 wRC+, which ranks 8th among players who have played at least 25% of their games at shortstop over the last three years. If you exclude Hanley Ramirez and Yunel Escobar — neither of whom played an inning at the position last year, and won’t play it in 2016 either — then you’re left with only Troy Tulowitzki, Jhonny Peralta, Jed Lowrie, Brandon Crawford, and Ian Desmond as shortstops who have better offensive numbers since Miller’s debut.
Given that he’s also a good baserunner and headed into the years where most players peak, there just aren’t a lot of guys out there who can play shortstop and provide this level of offense.
Defensively, Miller has shown some real slick fielding work, and a 1.9 UZR (roughly average) for his career. He is a player with strong range, yet he is a bit error prone as exemplified by his 14 errors in 750-1/3 innings at short last season — 39 over the past three seasons. Miller posted a career -9 defensive runs saved (-4 DRS last season), although Asdrubal Cabrera posted a -7 DRS in 2015 to put things into perspective. Tampa Bay does an excellent job with positioning its defenders, which should mitigate the risk of throwing Miller out there on a day-in-and-day-out basis.
Miller has more than two years of service time, and will remain under team control until 2019.
Logan Morrison
Morrison struggled offensively over a career-high 146 games in 2015, slashing .225 BA/.302 OBP/.383 SLG/.685 OPS. However, as Danny Russell (DRaysBay) noted, he collected a respectable 112 wRC+ vs right handed pitching in 2015. In Morrison, the Rays add a left handed-hitting first baseman with some power.
#Rays Silverman says obviously too early to commit but talks about Miller as middle infielder, Morrison for his bat (thus DH).
Matt Silverman, President of Baseball Operations for the Rays, praised Morrison for his bat which points to his use as the DH in place of John Jaso. Yet Morrison also provides important depth at first should the Rays move the $8M contract of James Loney this off-season. Entering his final year of arbitration, Morrison is projected to make about $4M.
Danny Farquhar
Farquhar logged 51 innings for the Mariners in 2015. He utilizes an upper 80s cutter and a mid-90s fastball, which grades as a plus pitch. Under team control until 2019, the righty provides Tampa Bay depth in high leverage pitching situations, assuming he can put it back together under the tutelage of Jim Hickey. Farquhar saw his numbers drop in 2015, collecting a 5.12 ERA (from 2.66 in 2014) and a 4.60 FIP (2.86 in 2014).
Rays manager Kevin Cash discusses his team’s trade with the Mariners and his hopes for Logan Morrison, Brad Miller and Danny Farquhar:
In Conclusion
I’m not going to overgeneralize things by naming a winner and/or a loser — any label as such fails to be seen at the moment. What I will say, however, is that Tampa Bay was able to fill a few long-term needs with this trade, and each player could make a big impact on the Rays from the get-go. That’s a plus/plus in my book.
Noteworthiness
— Monday sounded the beginning of the 2015 GM Meetings in Boca Raton, Florida. And while they are not as active as December’s Winter Meetings, the groundwork for many trades, acquisitions, and free-agent signings is expected to be laid at the GM Meetings.
Even though Tampa Bay jump-started the offseason with the Miller/Morrison/Farquhar trade, Matt Silverman conceded that his work is far from done. Silverman told the Tampa Bay Times that the organization “still (has) some areas to address,” even though the focus has narrowed. The Rays President of Baseball Operations noted that he sees the team’s current “depth” as a means of addressing those needs.
A trade of James Loney could be pursued now that Logan Morrison is in the fold, not to mention there appears to be an opening in playing time for Richie Shaffer. A move of this sort would go far in creating financial and roster flexibility to add a hitter.
— Other roster moves: LHP Jeff Beliveau and INF Jake Elmore were outrighted off the 40-man roster, making them free agents. RHP Alex Cobb, LHP Grayson Garvin, and RHP Burch Smith were reinstated from the 60-day DL, thus filling out the 40-man roster. Per Topkin, further changes will be made as the Rays add prospects in advance of the Nov. 20 deadline for Rule 5 draft eligibility.
— The team did not make qualifying offers (one year, $15.8 million) to any of their other free agents (Asdrubal Cabrera, DH/outfielder John Jaso, and outfielder/DH Grady Sizemore) by the deadline Friday. They are now free to sign with other teams.
— Tampa Bay is not expected to be active on the free-agent market early.
Per Jeff Todd (MLB Trade Rumors) Nathan Karns (pictured), CJ Riefenhauser, and Boog Powell are head to Seattle.
According to Jeff Todd (MLB Trade Rumors), the Tampa Bay Rays have agreed to a six player trade with the Seattle Mariners. Tampa Bay sent RHP Nathan Karns, LHP reliever C.J. Riefenhauser, and minor league outfielder Boog Powell to Seattle, in exchange for infielder/outfielder Brad Miller, first baseman Logan Morrison, and reliever Danny Farquhar.
Todd writes,
With the trade, new Mariners GM Jerry Dipoto has made a striking first major move. The key piece, of course, is the 27-year-old Karns, who put up a solid 147-inning campaign last year, working to a 3.67 ERA with 8.9 K/9 and 3.4 BB/9. He’ll bring ample, cheap control with him to the Mariners.
Seattle also gets Riefenhauser, a 25-year-old southpaw. He has yet to do much of use in the big leagues (6.30 ERA in twenty innings), but has put up stellar run prevention numbers in the upper minors.
And Powell is not an inconsequential piece of the deal, either. He had been rated 13th on MLB.com’s list of the best Tampa Bay prospects. That publication credited him for excellent plate discipline and on-base skills as well as solid defensive versatility across all three outfield positions.
Prying Karns loose required Dipoto to part with some appealing assets. Miller, a talented 26-year-old, has not managed to hold down the everyday shortstop job with the M’s but did product an above-average (when park-adjusted) bating line of .258/.329/.402 last year. He also picked up experience in the outfield, and figures to be a versatile piece for Tampa (joining another former Mariner, Nick Franklin, in the infield mix).
Morrison has had his ups and downs, and didn’t exactly light the world on fire at the plate last year, but ought to provide a first base/DH option for the Rays. And Farquhar, 28, has shown the ability to put up big strikeout totals out of the pen — though he struggled last season.
Tasked with rebuilding a lackluster bullpen, this is the first offseason move by Matt Silverman, the Rays president of baseball operations. The question begs, how might the team use Morrison, who is under team control until 2017? Moreover, what might this mean for James Loney, who is set to make $8M in 2016? Will Morrison take over at DH, or will the Rays deal Loney and slot the newly acquired 1B in his place?
Miller is also intriguing. In 750-1/3 innings at short last season, Miller collected a -4 DRS/.818 RZR. Compare that with Asdrubal Cabrera, who posted a -7 DRS/.752 RZR over 1141 innings. It should be noted, Miller erred 14 times ― a gaudy number to say the least.
For his part, Silverman told Marc Topkin (Tampa Bay Times) that it’s obviously too early to commit, but talks about Miller as a middle infielder and Morrison for his bat (thus DH).
With Karns now on the move, it could be assumed that Erasmo Ramirez ― who I am in the process of writing about ― has earned himself a spot in the 2016 rotation, which may also feature über prospect Blake Snell.
An evaluation of the trade should be expected once I’ve had some time to digest it.
Noteworthiness
― The team posted a triplet of player cards regarding the three newest Rays:
Will they or won’t they? Only time will tell whether the Tampa Bay Rays will ink another deal with John Jaso or not.
With the 2015 season now officially behind us, the time is nigh for Matt Silverman to undergo the arduous task of assembling a formidable squad for the upcoming season. As questions of next season’s 40-man roster linger, a contingent of offseason moves will need to be made if the Tampa Bay Rays are going to put together a late run through next October.
What will the Rays bullpen look like? Who will the team sign to take the place of Asdrubal Cabrera at short? Might John Jaso return as the team’s designated hitter? So on and so forth… One thing is certain ― the Rays’ president of baseball operations figures to have a tall task ahead of him, starting now.
While it’s easy to get bogged down by the minutia of the offseason, Steve Adams (MLB Trade Rumors) compiled a list of the most important dates facing front offices this winter ― something that will undoubtedly come in handy over the next 108 days as we hurl toward the date when pitchers and catchers report to camp:
November 2: First day of an exclusive five-day negotiation window which all teams have with their free-agent-eligible players.
November 6: Final day for teams to extend qualifying offers to free agents. Qualifying offers must be submitted by 5pm ET.
November 7: Players become eligible to sign with any team.
November 13: Deadline for players to accept or reject qualifying offers. Players must formally make their decision by 5pm ET.
November 9-12: GM Meetings are held in Florida. While not as active as December’s Winter Meetings, the groundwork for many trades and free-agent signings will take place here, and a few moves figure to be completed.
December 2: Deadline for teams to decide whether or not to tender contracts to their arbitration-eligible players. The free agent market should expand to some degree on this day, albeit with relatively minor names.
December 7-10: Winter Meetings in Nashville. These four days are among the most chaotic of the year for those who follow trades and free agency — often even more so than the days leading up to the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline. MLBTR will be providing 24-hour, around-the-clock coverage while the Winter Meetings are in effect.
Thankfully there are also a few other handy tools at the ready as we chart the course toward Spring Training.
Click the screenshot to be redirected to Baseball America’s free-agent list.
Baseball America listed all 139 free agent players eligible to negotiate and sign with any club beginning at midnight on November 7.
While you’re at it, MLB Trade Rumor’s free agent tracker was launched in late October. The tracker will be updated throughout the winter as agreements are reached.
Finally, are you feeling like a glutton for punishment, knowing full well that Stuart Sternberg will likely spend somewhere in the ballpark of $72M on his investment…urm, uh, team next season? Get a head start on plotting Tampa Bay’s potential course of action by giving these arbitration projections a quick once over. If they hold true, the Rays could to spend $28.9M on the 11 arbitration eligible players listed.
We’ll continue to break down the season past, as well as keep you up to date on any news of transactions as it breaks.
Noteworthiness
― Per Marc Topkin (Tampa Bay Times) Asdrubal Cabrera, John Jaso, and Grady Sizemore are free agents. They can sign elsewhere starting Saturday, and no preemptive action is expected.
― Congratulations are in order to former Rays’ fan favorites Ben Zobrist and Wade Davis, and the Kansas City Royals on their World Series victory!
