Bernie on the Scene: Important Transactions & More

This week, I again will share my opinions and analysis of some of the more recent MLB transactions. This edition includes players from both leagues.

These are meant to help prepare for upcoming drafts and auctions. Things will change as we get closer to spring training.

Toronto Blue Jays

George Springer
Right-handed-hitting outfielder
6-2, 221
Age 31

If I had to guess, Springer will play center field in Toronto. If he leads off, he could get as many as one more at-bat per game than if he hit anywhere else in the order. That should be factored into his fantasy value. 

Springer could be followed in a tough Blue Jays lineup by Cavan Biggio, Bo Bichette, Teoscar Hernandez and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. All except Biggio give me great hope for fantasy success.

An All-Star three consecutive years beginning in 2017, Springer hit 29, 34, 22 and 39 home runs before hitting 14 in the short 2020 season. I am surprised the Astros chose to pass on him when he became a free agent. They did, however, re-sign Michael Brantley.

For a power hitting outfielder, Springer makes surprisingly good contact. He knows how to barrel the ball, and he can give the Astros Blue Jays a fair amount of doubles in addition to the homers.

His 2019 season was the first in four years when Springer didn't score at least 100 runs. That's what matters in fantasy. Scoring runs means the hitter has been on base. If he's on base, he has hit himself there or he has walked. And Springer knows how to walk. That's a good, good thing.

Conclusions: Springer will add life and power to a good Blue Jays lineup. I think he could end up anywhere in their outfield, and he should get at least 650 at-bats as a minimum if he remains healthy. At-bats mean opportunity.

Kirby Yates
Right-handed pitcher
5-10, 205 pounds
Age 33

Yates will begin spring training as the new closer for the Blue Jays. He solves a need for Toronto, as only Rafael Dolis and Jordan Romano could give him competition at this point of the offseason.

Yates isn't big, but he's solid. He was a 26th-round pick of the Red Sox in 2005 out of high school. He was then signed by the Rays, purchased by the Indians, purchased by the Yankees, signed by the Angels, signed by the Padres and now signed by the Blue Jays. All in seven seasons. Such is the life of a reliever.

Yates has thrown his fastball consistently at 93-94 mph for years. He also has a split-finger fastball and a slider. But it will be his two forms of fastballs, the four-seam and the split that he'll take to the ninth inning in games. Until now, those have been enough for him.

Keep in mind that Yates saved 41 games as recently as 2019 for the Padres. He appeared in 60 games and finished with a 1.19 ERA while yielding only 41 hits. He struck out an average of 15 hitters per nine innings.

An elbow issue limited Yates to pitching six games in the shortened 2020 season. Bingo. Warning light for me. Elbow issues.

Conclusions: I am wary of pitchers with elbow, forearm or shoulder histories. What's next? Further elbow issues? surgery? Not always. But I think I have to sit it out when his name comes up. There are other closers out there. I'll watch the flow, but history has not fooled me.

Tyler Chatwood
Right-handed pitcher
5-11, 200
Age 31

My guess is the Blue Jays signed Chatwood for their bullpen, but he has started too. They may ultimately turn to him in that role if he's needed at some point.

Chatwood spent his last three years with the Cubs following time with the Angels and the Rockies. Most of his career was as a starter with Colorado.

In his 2020 season with the Cubs, Chatwood appeared in five games, all as a starter. In fact, in 197 game appearances, Chatwood has made 143 starts. Again, I think we'll see him in that role at some point in Toronto.

He throws his fastball 95-96 mph, a fact not many people realize. He has a quality arm and a complete four-pitch repertoire. His best secondary pitches are his curve and cutter.

Chatwood's problem historically? Command and control. He has averaged 4.7 walks per nine innings. Giving up those free passes adds stress to his game and inflates his ERA and WHIP, which hurt his fantasy stats. And he isn't known as a big strikeout pitcher.

Conclusions: I'm concerned Chatwood will yield home runs in Toronto if he falls behind in counts and has to come in with cookies. I also think he can be a solid very late draft pick with the hope that he gets some starts on a good Blue Jays club.

Minnesota Twins

J.A. Happ
Left-handed pitcher
6-5, 196
Age 38

Happ is an aging lefty with pitches left on his arm. And, of course, he has job security because he pitches left-handed. In 14 seasons, Happ has pitched for Philadelphia, Houston, Toronto, Seattle, Pittsburgh, New York and now Minnesota. He gets around.

I would guess Happ will pitch at or near the end of the Twins rotation, meaning he may be the odd man out on short weeks. Keep that in mind and watch where he slots in spring training.

Many fantasy leagues use innings as a category, and Happ may come up short of your expectations. Randy Dobnak may make the rotation and slot below Happ.

Happ was an All Star in 2018 when he pitched for the Blue Jays. That counts. 

A finesse pitcher, Happ will try to deceive hitters and come right at them with good command. He doesn't strike out more than seven to eight hitters per nine innings. He throws his fastball 91-92 mph consistently, with a slider and changeup as secondary pitches.

Conclusions: In a weak division like the AL Central, Happ can make some sense. He's perfect for AL-only leagues, as he'll get the ball when it's his turn and he has a good enough lineup to pitch fairly deeply into games. But he's not a star. He's serviceable but probably a tad above MEH.

San Diego Padres

Joe Musgrove
Right-handed pitcher
6-5, 235
Age 28

Having just turned 28, Joe Musgrove is entering the prime of his career. He, like so many good players before him, won the lottery and escape Pittsburgh. For me, this is another Pirates mistake. And it all happens under their new general manger.

Musgrove might really explode as a quality starter in a good rotation on a good team. He has what it takes to be a winning pitcher. Consider that Musgrove got virtually no run support in Pittsburgh. 

Musgrove isn't overpowering as a pitcher. He throws 91-93 mph with a changeup, slider, curve and cutter in a complete repertoire. He uses all his pitches and pitches with confidence.

Musgrove likely will slot behind Yu Darvish, Blake Snell and Dinelson Lamet and before Chris Paddack. And the Padres also have MacKenzie Gore and Adrian Morejon waiting in the wings.

In the short season, Musgrove struck out 12.5 hitters per nine innings in his eight starts covering 39.2 innings. He does, however, walk more than two hitters per nine in his major league career, which isn't great, but not horrible.

I like that he'll pitch in San Diego on a good team.

Conclusions: I got to see Musgrove a great deal on television last season. I was more impressed with each outing. This is a new beginning for him, and I think he, along with most Padres pitchers are fantasy worthy.

Philadelphia Phillies

Archie Bradley
Right-handed pitcher
6-4, 215
Age 28

People used to think Archie Bradley was a flame-thrower. No, he isn't. In fact, when he was with the Diamondbacks he was a gasoline thrower. He was not dependable as a closer.

He throws his fastball 94 mph, right about league average. He also throws a curve and a changeup. BUT.

BUT Bradley has the knack of looking terrific for a hitter or two and then … he gives up the big, game-winning hit. Or. he'll put the winning run on base and then watch from the dugout as the next guy up allows his run to score.

Now in Philadelphia he will once again be given the opportunity to close games if he can beat out Hector Neris and Jose Alvarado. Funny how Dave Dombrowski couldn't give the Tigers or Red Sox the closers they needed, but he signed Archie. I don't get it. Frankly, I think Neris will be the guy.

Conclusions: Maybe I'm too harsh on Bradley because I've seen him so much. But for me, seeing is believing. He might be worth a flyer for your team. After all, he has enough auditions for this new role, and maybe it really is true that closers can find themselves after a few attempts. But I'm going to leave him for you.

Heading Home

As I write this, major league baseball teams have spent $577.15M on free-agent players. My friend Barry M. Bloom wrote about free agency at Sportico and featured that number.

Who's doing the shopping? The Yankees, Mets, Blue Jays and, to some degree, the White Sox.

We haven't heard yet from the smaller market clubs, as they get blown out of the water in a quest to improve their lot against the big boys.

Where will Trevor Bauer go? I still say either the Angels or the Mets with the Blue Jays in the hunt. Bauer will be a major component to his next team.

The Reds may have signed shortstop Andrelton Simmons. He will really help that Reds pitching staff with his defense.

I like that the Cubs signed Austin Romine. I think he's a solid catcher with a nice bat for Wrigley. And I think he'll get playing time for a manager who was himself a catcher. I think he'll be valued.

Enrique Hernandez goes to the Red Sox on a two-year, $14M contract. The second base job is his, I would guess. That's a hefty contract for a guy who has not really had a regular role. I would guess he slots in the nine-hole for Boston.

Larry King passed away this past weekend. He was an avid Brooklyn Dodgers/ Los Angeles Dodgers fan. He hosted the annual Scout's Appreciation Dinner in Los Angeles several times. It was a gala affair, and he did a great job. He told me once that he would have loved to have been a professional baseball scout. He would have been a good one. He really knew the game and the players.

I was very upset when I read the news about Henry Aaron passing away. In the past seven or so months we have lost some of the most iconic figures of the modern era of baseball.

Just recently Tommy Lasorda, Don Sutton and now Henry Aaron joined so many great All-Star, Hall of Fame players in eternal rest.

The oldest living Hall of Famer is Willie Mays. Mays is almost blind and is struggling.

Henry Aaron is the best true "wrist" hitter I ever saw. His bat was lightning fast and his wrists and forearms were so strong he could power the ball out of any park. He just made it look so easy.

Skinny and lithe when he entered the big leagues in 1954, Aaron played on 25 All-Star teams in his 23-year career. (Some years there were two All-Star games.) Can you believe that? He had a lifetime batting average of .305. He hit 755 home runs, which we all know. He drove in an incredible 2207 runs.

Henry Aaron hit 44 home runs four times. His high was 47 in 1971. And remember, the ball was far from juiced at that time.

We forget that Aaron won three Gold Gloves. In 1959 his offensive WAR was 9.1. In 1963 his offensive WAR was 9.5.

Here are some of the players we lost in 2020 and so far in 2021:

Lou Brock
Whitey Ford
Bob Gibson
Al Kaline
Joe Morgan
Phil Niekro
Tom Seaver
Tommy Lasorda
Don Sutton
Henry Aaron

and ...

Dick Allen
Johnny Antonelli
Glenn Beckert
Ed Farmer
Don Larson
Mike McCormick
Bob Oliver
Bob Watson
Jimmy Wynn

and there were more.

I appreciate and respect the criticism you offer in the comments section. I value your opinion. It really is all right if we disagree. I'm just thankful for you and I appreciate that you read my work.

Stay safe out there. Stay healthy. And thank you for following me on Twitter @BerniePleskoff.

You can read my work at Forbes … like this one.