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Tommy Pham wins $4.1-million in arbitration, Rays 2019 promo schedule, Noteworthiness

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Tommy Pham is set to earn $4.1-million in his first time through the arbitration process.

Outfielder Tommy Pham won his arbitration case against the Tampa Bay Rays and is set earn $4.1-million rather than the $3.5-million figure that the team had submitted. This marks the fifth consecutive arbitration case the Rays have lost after going 6-0 under the ownership of Stu Sternberg.

Tampa Bay took a chance on Pham at the trade deadline, and the late-blooming outfielder did not disappoint upon joining the Rays, slashing .355 BA/.452 OBP/.623 SLG/1.075 OPS with seven home runs and 22 RBI in the final 37 games (174 plate appearances) of his 2018 campaign. All told, he has now posted a .279 BA/.375 OBP/.482 SLG/.857 OPS line across 1,458 MLB plate appearances.

Pham was clearly pleased with the outcome of the arbitration case, tweeting:

He, however, acknowledged the difficult nature of the arbitration process in a later tweet.

The team previously lost to Drew Smyly, Jake Odorizzi (twice), and Adeiny Hechavarria, and now are 6-5 overall in arbitration.

Rays release 2019 promotional schedule

On Tuesday, the Rays released their 2019 promotional schedule.

Daniel Russell (DRaysBay) did a bang-up job listing all the Saturday and Sunday promotional items, which you can read below:

Saturday promotional items this year are available to all fans, and include:

  • Blake Snell Cy Zilla Bobblehead (March 30 vs. Astros) presented by DEX Imaging
  • Ryne Stanek Bottle Opener (April 20 vs. Red Sox) presented by Republic Bank
  • Tropical Shirt (May 11 vs. Yankees) presented by TradeWinds Island Resorts
  • Tommy Pham Bobblehead (June 1 vs. Twins) presented by DEX Imaging
  • Short Sleeve Hoodie (June 15 vs. Angels) presented by Tampa Bay Times
  • Umbrella (June 29 vs. Rangers) presented by the Florida Department of Transportation
  • Blake Snell Replica Jersey (July 20 vs. White Sox) presented by Suncoast Credit Union
  • DJ Kitty Mini Speaker (August 3 vs. Marlins)
  • Willy Adames Bobblehead (August 17 vs. Tigers)
  • Tote Bag (August 31 vs. Indians) presented by MLB Network
  • Pajama Pants (September 7 vs. Blue Jays).

Sunday promotional items are for fans 14 years and under and include:

  • Kevin Kiermaier Replica Jersey (March 31 vs. Astros) presented by Tampa General Hospital
  • Daniel Robertson Wristbands (April 21 vs. Red Sox) presented by Moffitt Cancer Center
  • Snapback Hat designed by St. Petersburg multimedia artist Chad Mize (May 12 vs. Yankees) presented by FOX Sports Sun
  • Arm Sleeve (June 2 vs. Twins) presented by FOX Sports Sun
  • Fanny Pack (June 16 vs. Angels) presented by tampabay.com
  • Jedi Joey Wendle Socks (June 30 vs. Rangers) presented by Crown Automotive Group
  • Playing Cards (July 21 vs. White Sox); Backpack (August 4 vs. Marlins)
  • Raymond Bendable Keychain (August 18 vs. Tigers)
  • Toy Truck (September 1 vs. Indians) presented by W.B. Mason
  • Pillowcase Set (September 8 vs. Blue Jays)

Noteworthiness

— With Spring Training just around the corner, Marc Topkin (Tampa Bay Times) listed the 64 players that have been invited to camp, starting next week. The non-roster invitees are marked with an asterisk:

Pitchers (34)

46 José Alvarado (L)
53 Anthony Banda (L)
68 Jalen Beeks (L)
63 Diego Castillo
72 Yonny Chirinos
87 José De León
47 Oliver Drake*
34 Jake Faria
62 Wilmer Font
76 Mike Franco*
92 Ian Gardeck*
58 Ian Gibaut
20 Tyler Glasnow
59 Brent Honeywell Jr.
36 Andrew Kittredge*
56 Adam Kolarek (L)
71 Ryan Merritt* (L)
60 Hoby Milner* (L)
82 Dalton Moats* (L)
49 Andrew Moore
50 Charlie Morton
15 Emilio Pagán
70 Ricardo Pinto*
37 Colin Poche* (L)
45 Austin Pruitt
52 Chaz Roe
73 Casey Sadler*
75 Luis Santos*
4 Blake Snell (L)
55 Ryne Stanek
74 Cole Sulser*
77 Curtis Taylor*
44 Hunter Wood
48 Ryan Yarbrough (L)

Catchers (6)

67 Anthony Bemboom*
19 Nick Ciuffo
78 Mac James*
7 Michael Perez
83 David Rodríguez*
10 Mike Zunino

Infielders (16)

1 Willy Adames
22 Christian Arroyo
64 Emilio Bonifacio*
84 Mike Brosseau*
26 Ji-Man Choi
81 Jake Cronenworth*
2 Yandy Díaz
5 Matt Duffy
86 Lucius Fox*
8 Brandon Lowe
79 Nate Lowe*
28 Daniel Robertson
85 Nick Solak*
11 Andrew Velazquez
18 Joey Wendle
80 Kean Wong*

Outfielders (8)

24 Avisaíl García
54 Guillermo Heredia
39 Kevin Kiermaier
61 Joe McCarthy
17 Austin Meadows
29 Tommy Pham
65 Jesús Sánchez
9 Jake Smolinski*

— Baseball America suggested that while teams are raking in hundreds of millions (yes, even the Rays) — in the very least — they are only committing a fraction of the earnings to the on-field product? shocker, I know.

Rays invite five players to MLB Spring Training including Emilio Bonifacio

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The Rays signed Emilio Bonifacio to a minor league deal on Monday.

On Monday, the Tampa Bay Rays announced invitations for five non-roster players to MLB Spring Training, including veteran utilityman Emilio Bonifacio. The other four are right-handers Ricardo Pinto, Casey Sadler, Luis Santos, and Cole Sulser.

Emilio Bonifacio

Bonifacio did not appear in the majors last year, opening the season on the indie ball circuit with Long Island (Atlantic League) and later joining the Brewers organization — playing five games for Colorado Springs. The MLB veteran slashed a modest .256 BA/.313 OBP/.333 SLG/.646 OPS line with 13 home runs across 2,894 plate appearances, with 165 RBI and 166 stolen bases over parts of 11 seasons in the majors. Bonifacio has spent of his career at second base (201 starts) and centerfield (170 starts) but also has plenty of experience at shortstop (100 starts), third base (135 starts), and both corner outfield spots (106 starts). He has played with the Arizona Diamondbacks (2007-2008), Washington Nationals (2008), Miami Marlins (2009-2012), Toronto Blue Jays (2013), Kansas City Royals (2013), Chicago Cubs (2014), Atlanta Braves (2014, 2016-2017) and Chicago White Sox (2015).

Ricardo Pinto

Pinto, 25, split time last season in the White Sox organization at Triple-A Charlotte and Class-A Winston-Salem, going 3-2 with a 5.95 ERA across 30 appearances including six starts. The right-hander made his big league debut with the Philadelphia Phillies two seasons ago, going 1-2 with a 7.89 ERA/6.36 FIP across 29-2/3 innings (25 outings).

Per Brooks Baseball, Pinto’s four-seam fastball (96 mph) has well above average velocity and results in somewhat more flyballs compared to other pitchers’ four-seamers. His changeup (88 mph) is much firmer than usual and has a lot of backspin. His sinker (95 mph) generates an extremely high number of swings & misses compared to other pitchers’ sinkers, has well above average velocity and has slight arm side run. His slider (87 mph) has primarily 12-6 movement, generates fewer whiffs/swing compared to other pitchers’ sliders and has less than expected depth. His curve (80 mph) is basically never swung at and missed compared to other pitchers’ curves, results in more flyballs compared to other pitchers’ curves, has a sharp downward bite, is slightly harder than usual and has slight glove-side movement.

Casey Sadler

The 28-year-old Sadler pitched for the Pirates in 2014 and 2015, yet suffered an elbow injury which required Tommy John surgery in November 2015. After a long recovery, the right-hander made it back to the big leagues last August. Over the three seasons, he has pitched in nine Major League games having gone 1-1, with a 6.86 ERA. Sadler remains one out away from hurling his 20th inning. He most of his 2018 campaign at Triple-A, working to a 3.39 ERA with 7.1 K/9 and 3.0 BB/9 across 77 innings.

Per Brooks Baseball, his sinker (93 mph) results in somewhat more flyballs compared to other pitchers’ sinkers, has slight arm side run and has some natural sinking action. His cutter (90 mph) is an extreme flyball pitch compared to other pitchers’ cutters and has slightly above average velocity. His curve (82 mph) is much harder than usual, results in more flyballs compared to other pitchers’ curves, has little depth and has slight glove-side movement. His changeup (87 mph) generates an extremely high number of swings & misses compared to other pitchers’ changeups, is much firmer than usual, results in more flyballs compared to other pitchers’ changeups, has slight arm side fade and has some natural sink to it.

Luis Santos

Santos, 27, spent parts of the last two season in Toronto, going 1–2 with a 5.15 ERA/50.4 FIP over 25 appearances (36-2/3 IP). Last season, the right-hander pitched in 15 games (one start) in three stints with Toronto, going 1-1 with a 7.20 ERA, notching 20 strikeouts. Santos spent the remainder of the season in Triple-A, going 2-3 with a 2.74 ERA (42-2/3 IP) with 40 strikeouts across 20 appearances (two starts).

Per Brooks Baseball, Santos’ four-seam fastball (94 mph) generates an extremely high number of swings & misses compared to other pitchers’ four-seamers, results in more flyballs compared to other pitchers’ four-seamers and has slightly above average velocity. His curve (84 mph) is thrown extremely hard, has very little depth, has primarily 12-6 movement and results in somewhat more flyballs compared to other pitchers’ curves. His changeup (87 mph) generates a high number of swings & misses compared to other pitchers’ changeups, is much firmer than usual, has slight armside fade and has some natural sink to it. His sinker (94 mph) generates an extremely high number of swings & misses compared to other pitchers’ sinkers, is an extreme flyball pitch compared to other pitchers’ sinkers, has slight armside run, has slightly above average velo and has some natural sinking action.

Cole Sulser

The 28-year-old Susler went 20-26 with a 4.02 ERA (378-1/3) in 176 appearances (37 starts) across five minor league seasons in the Cleveland organization. Last season, Sulser split his time between Triple-A Columbus and Double-A Akron, going 8-4 with a 3.86 ERA (60-2/3 IP), performing to a 14.1 K/9 across 47 appearances.

Tropicana Field to go cashless, Rays host optional workout, and Noteworthiness

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Tropicana Field is set to become the first cashless sports facility in North America.

Following news that the Tampa Bay Rays will reduce the seating capacity of Tropicana Field in 2019, the team announced the stadium will become the first cashless sports facility in North America.

According to the press release below, Tropicana Field’s concessions, team stores, box office, and all other points–of–sale will operate cash–free in 2019:

The Tampa Bay Rays announced today that, in collaboration with hospitality partner Levy and analytics and emerging tech firm E15, Tropicana Field will become the first cash–free sports venue in North America.

Tropicana Field’s concessions, team stores, box office, and all other points–of–sale will operate cash–free in 2019. The move follows extensive pilot testing engineered and led by E15 at Tropicana Field and venues nationwide to measure the effects of cash–free transactions. These tests found that transitioning to cash–free environments results in an average transaction time of up to half that of traditional environments that accept cash, resulting in faster moving lines and increased fan satisfaction.

Forms of payment accepted at concession stands and retail stores inside the ballpark will include major credit cards, Rays gift cards, NFC mobile payments such as Apple Pay and Samsung Pay, and Season Ticket Holder Rays Cards. For fans without electronic forms of payment, cash can be exchanged for gift cards in any amount at all retail locations and in $10 or $20 increments through roaming gift card vendors. Tropicana Field’s parking operations will also be cash–free, as they were for the 2018 season.

“We have made significant investments each year to improve the ballpark experience for fans, including an overhaul of our approach to food and beverage since the beginning of our partnership with Levy,” said Rays Vice President of Strategy & Development William Walsh. “This change will increase speed of service and reduce lines throughout the ballpark.”

“Throughout our testing last season at Tropicana Field, we saw thatfans quickly adapted to cash–free environments and loved the resulting benefits to the game–day experience,” said Jaime Faulkner, CEO of E15. “By offering fans a variety of forms of electronic payment, coupled with the ability to exchange cash for gift cards, we can ensure that fans are having frictionless experiences and getting back to enjoy the game.”

Fan Fest on February 9 will be the first cash–free event at Tropicana Field in 2019. A free event, fans are invited to shop at the Rays Baseball Foundation’s Yard Sale, as well as the Rays Republic Team Store and auxiliary shops during Fan Fest. Several concession stands will also be open and will accept digital payments.

Concerned fans have been quick to push back on the new policy. And while the team intends to create a frictionless experience that allows fans to get back the game, the decision ignores how restrictive this can be for low-income households that do not have access to credit cards or are not in a position to load cards with cash they won’t get back later.

Or, in the words of John Romano (Tampa Bay Times), “Going cashless at Tropicana Field carries the unmistakable whiff of arrogance.”

It’s a bold idea, and the Rays say plenty of research indicates it will lead to a better, more streamlined fan experience at the stadium. That may be true in theory. And it may be the wave of the future.

But it ignores the reality that a lot of people, for whatever reason, prefer to use cash. Even worse, this unilateral decision carries an unmistakable whiff of arrogance.

We know what’s best for you.

Essentially, that’s what the Rays are saying. And that’s a horrible message to send when you’re in the business of trying to attract more customers. Especially when you’re the worst in the league at that skill.

Rays have reported interest in utility player Josh Harrison

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The Rays have shown reported interest in free-agent utility player Josh Harrison.

The Tampa Bay Rays are one of five teams that have reported interest in utility player Josh Harrison, tweeted Jon Heyman (Fancred) on Saturday.

The Dodgers, Giants, Angels, and Phillies are also said to be in on the versatile defender.

The 31-year-old Harrison is coming off a below-average season with Pittsburgh, which declined his $10.5-million club option in favor of a $1-million buyout. Yet Harrison has typically been a good offensive player and a solid defender over the span of his career.

Harrison is a .277 BA/.317 OBP/.408 SLG/.725 OPS.98 wRC+ hitter across 3,012 plate appearance. Harrison broke out with a 4.8 fWAR campaign four seasons ago, however, he has averaged a 1.3 fWAR over the past four seasons. Harrison slashed .250 BA/.293 OBP/.363 SLG/.656 OPS with 8 home runs over 374 plate appearances, performing to a 0.3 fWAR in 2018.

The utility player has spent time at second, third and in the corner outfield, although the vast majority of his playing time last season came on the right side of the infield.

While it is uncertain how Harrison could fit into the mix, it is thought he could offer the Rays further protection behind infielders Joey Wendle, Matt Duffy Willy Adames, Joey Wendle, Daniel Robertson, Christian Arroyo, Brandon Lowe, and Yandy Diaz, as well as corner outfielders Tommy Pham, Avisail Garcia, and Austin Meadows. It isn’t known whether he can learn first base for the purpose of platooning the position with Ji-Man Choi.

Rays finalize deal with platoon OF/DH Avisail Garcia

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The Rays finalized a one-year, $3.5-million (plus incentives) deal with OF Avisail Garcia on Friday.

On Friday, the Tampa Bay Rays finalized a one-year, $3.5-million (plus incentives) deal with OF Avisail Garcia. To make room on the 40-man roster, Tampa Bay designated RHP Oliver Drake for the second time this offseason.

With the acquisition of Garcia, the Rays are thought to have completed the offensive construction of their roster with less than one month remaining until pitchers and catchers report to camp.

Tampa Bay has been in the market for a right-handed bat to pair with DH/1B Ji-Man Choi and Garcia fits that description to a large extent. The outfielder was plagued with knee and hamstring issues last season, limiting him to just 93 games in which he slashed a disappointing .236 BA/.281 OBP/.438 SLG/.719 OPS line over 385 plate appearances, with a -4 DRS in the outfield, leading to a modest 0.3 fWAR in spite of his power profile. In 2017, however, Garcia enjoyed a breakout campaign, performing to a .330 BA/.380 OBP/.506 SLG/.886 OPS line across 561 plate appearances, with 18 home runs, 80 RBI and a 4.6 fWAR.

The question begs: which Garcia are they getting? Let’s dig into that.

The known known: Avisail Garcia hits the ball hard.

Garcia has posted average exit velocities of 90.2 MPH, 90.3 MPH, and 90.2 MPH since 2016. Moreover, Garcia hit the ball +95 MPH on 43.2% of the balls he made contact with. His hard-hit rate finds him ranking 55th (2016), 22nd (2017), and 57th (2018) in all of Major League Baseball.

 

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He not only has the ability to barrel up the balls, but his peripherals also suggest that he has lots of success on balls in play. Over the span of his career, Garcia has a 45.8% GB rate (over 50% since 2016 and just under at 48.6% last season). Jason Hanselman (The Process Report) wrote about Garcia’s ability to scorch the ball, especially vs. left-handed pitchers:

…all that incredibly hard contact even at those downward trajectories and he has seen a good deal of even the lower angles go for base hits solely due to how very hard he hits the ball. Hard contact is always the first step, and while many will think all he needs to do is lift the ball more, it doesn’t look like he actually has much success via that route other than when he’s pairing ideal angles with very hard contact. Something you could tell every player to do more often. Looking at lefties you can see how much of his production came on line drive like contact including many of his homers that were utterly scorched piss missiles clearing low walls. Like with Yandy Diaz, many would like to see more elevation leading to celebration, but it’s an approach that is already working. Unlike Diaz, Garcia’s inability to control the zone means he has no margin on this type of contact. If he isn’t hitting the ball hard then he’s not going to have the kind of success necessary for his role. Luckily, that looks like something you can project going forward.

Garcia has slashed .304 BA/.358 OBP/.457 SLG/.815 OPS/121 wRC+ against southpaws over his career, including a .279 BA/.333 OBP/.477 SLG/.780 OPS/119 wRC+ last season — one of the worst campaigns of his career.

Garcia is expected to play right field or DH against left-handed pitchers and compete for playing time against some right-handers.

Superlatives aside, Garcia saw his K% balloon from 19.8% in 2017 to 26.5% just one season later. Meanwhile, his BB% has been in a steady decline since 2016. Meanwhile, his launch angle increased from 5.4% in 2016 to 9.7% last season, and he began to pull the ball more than ever before (43.6% in 2018). Garcia attributed all of this to an injury-marred campaign 2018 campaign.

I had been feeling something, something, something (in my knee) and then I started feeling my hammy because I think I was (favoring it), Garcia told Manny Randhawa (MLB.com). Especially because it’s my right knee, and that’s where all my power is.

The outfielder ultimately underwent the knife to surgically repair his knee in October, which Marc Topkin (Tampa Bay Times) wrote about on Saturday.

…with his hamstring healed, his knee surgically repaired in early October and the resulting bad habits eradicated from his swing, Garcia is confident he can return to his old form with his new Rays team.

“One hundred percent, Garcia said Friday night,” after his deal for $3.5 million, plus up to $2.5 million of plate-appearance based incentives, was finalized. “For sure. I know what I can do. I know my swing. I’ve just got to be healthy and ready to go. And that’s how I am right now.”

Garcia has been “working on hitting more to right-center,” writes Topkin.

His outfield play has gotten mixed reviews, which Darby Robinson (DRaysBay) wrote about below, although he has a strong arm.

At first glance, Garcia seems like somebody who isn’t a very good defender. I’ve seen that written in comments and tweets so far.

But is he?

DRS sure doesn’t look very kindly on him; however, Statcast’s Outs Above Average metric paints a different picture.

In 2018, Avisail Garcia was worth 4 Outs Above Average, which is more than Kevin Pillar (2) and Mallex Smith (-2) to put into some perspective. By this metric, his past few years he’s ranked 33rd (2018), 76th (2017), and 67th (2016).

Garcia is also faster than he might appear with his 6’4” 240 LB frame. He has a sprint speed (ft/second) of 29.0 f/s, where a sprint speed of 30 f/s is considered Elite. Again, for some perspective, Garcia’s 29.0 ranks equal to Dee Gordon (29.0) and slightly ahead of Kevin Kiermaier (28.9).

Avisail Garcia does not seem like a terrible outfielder. He isn’t going to dazzle like Pham and KK in the field, but Garcia has the versatility and ability to fill in nicely in the corners. With the injury histories of Kiermaier, Pham, and Meadows, it’s useful to have contingency plans in place.

Garcia might not be Nelson Cruz, yet he is a solid buy-low on an above average hitter who fits the team’s needs and he seems like a worthy gamble. If he can overcome his injury derailed 2018 campaign, the $3.5-million acquisition will be justified. If, on the other hand, Garcia puts together a season like Carlos Gomez, his predecessor, the budget conscious Rays could always peruse the other options ready and willing to run with the opportunity, given the chance.

Noteworthiness

— Topkin writes that the most glaring need for the Rays is a veteran closer.

As much as the Rays like Alvarado, Castillo and Roe and want to give them chances, they could benefit from someone with some “been there, done that” experience. They should be able to wait out the market, with opportunity a part of their pitch. Then again, with Cody Allen getting $8.5 million, plus $2.5 million in incentives, from Anaheim coming off a bad year, there may not be any bargains to be had.

— Catcher Mike Zunino was ranked ninth on MLB Network’s annual Top 10 Catchers Right Now!, finishing one spot ahead of the Kansas City Royals’ Salvador Pérez and one spot behind the New York Mets’ Wilson Ramos. Joey Wendle was previously ranked seventh on Top 10 Second Basemen Right Now! last week.

The complete ranking for MLB Network’s top-10 catchers is listed below:

1. Buster Posey, San Francisco Giants
2. J.T. Realmuto, Miami Marlins
3. Yasmani Grandal, Milwaukee Brewers
4. Gary Sánchez, New York Yankees
5. Willson Contreras, Chicago Cubs
6. Yadier Molina, St. Louis Cardinals
7. Kurt Suzuki, Washington Nationals
8. Wilson Ramos, New York Mets
9. Mike Zunino, Tampa Bay Rays
10. Salvador Pérez, Kansas City Royals