The Diamondbacks are known to be looking at top options in the bullpen — general manager Mike Hazen has said as much on the record — and have spoken to the Brewers about a potential deal. Devin Williams before Milwaukee traded him to the Yankees, John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7 reports.
On the other hand, it’s hardly surprising that a team looking for an arm lift would throw its hat in the ring regarding Williams. On the other hand, it is at least reassuringly noticeable, given the number of similarly priced late-model arms on the market. If the Snakes were trying to get the Brewers involved in Williams, it’s clear that the Cardinals are very close. Ryan HelsleyThe rays are close Pete Fairbanks and maybe Houston Ryan Pressly they are all different levels of interest. (At $14MM, it’s noticeably more expensive than the other options on the list, it should be noted.)
The bullpen market, unlike most recent times, has been slow to grow this winter. That could be in part due to the presence of names like Williams, Helsley, Fairbanks and Pressly (among others) all potentially available. So far, the only signing of the note has been Aroldis Chapman (one year, $10.75MM to Red Sox), Blake Treinen (two years, $22MM back to Dodgers), I’m Garcia (two years, $15MM back to Blue Jays) and Jordan Romano (one year, $8.5MM to the Phillies). None of the top-of-the-market breakers are off the board, save right Clay Holmeswho signed a three-year deal to convert to a starting role with the Mets.
After last week’s Winter Meetings drew to a close, D-backs general manager Mike Hazen told Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic that both the free agent and trade scenarios are still in play. Arizona didn’t finalize any deals at last week’s event, but Hazen expressed confidence that the groundwork for future deals has been laid.
“There are free and commercial situations that exist in every area we looked at,” said Hazen, who is also seeking help early on. “Trying to figure out which compounds interact in different ways is part of what we’re talking about right now.”
Top names still on the free market include Tanner Scott, Jeff Hoffman again Carlos Estevez. They will all be able to do multi-year deals, with Scott in particular having the chance to get a four-year deal. That kind of contract length could be a problem for the D-backs. Under Hazen, they have never signed a free agent shortstop for more than two years and never exceeded the annual cap of $7MM (as shown in MLBTR’s Contract Tracker). The market has many interesting options for one year, although there are David Robertson, Kirby Yates or Kenley Jansen would need to push past that $7MM water mark.
Source link
