All of the MLB roster deadlines have come and gone, and with Thanksgiving now in the rear view, free agency may pick up in earnest.
The Winter Meetings are still a week and change away, but it’s Black Friday – so we would be remiss in looking at the available list of new free agents after the MLB Rule 5 protection and non-tender deadlines and wondering if these five players may not be good fits for the Yankees’ and/or Mets’ shopping lists.
OF/1B CODY BELLINGER
Non-tendered by the Dodgers, Bellinger was projected to make $18 million in his final arbitration year, but now sits as a free agent one year (and just about 12 days of service time) short of expected. Bellinger’s agent is Scott Boras, so it may not come cheap, but he is apparently looking for a one-year pillow deal to prove himself before reaching service time free agency at age 28 next winter.
Once upon a time, Bellinger was the NL Rookie of the Year, an NL MVP, and two-time All-Star, but he has slashed just .193/.256/.355 over the past two seasons after 2020 shoulder surgery, with 29 homers and 104 RBI in 239 games.
However, he’s still a premium defender that can play all three outfield positions, and with the Yankees looking for at least one outfielder, perhaps Bellinger could perfectly rehab his image as the left fielder for a season (or right fielder, if, somehow, they need one of those…) with the team his dad won two rings with a generation ago. Or, if he decided Queens were more his flavor, he might be a perfect one-year center field option if Brandon Nimmo goes elsewhere.
RHP RYAN YARBROUGH
True story: Yarbrough received AL Rookie of the Year votes in 2018 after finishing seventh in the AL with 16 wins as the Rays’ main “bulk pitcher” that year, when the opener became a bigger hit than before.
He has since been a starter/long reliever hybrid, and while he struggled in 2022 (4.50 ERA in 80 innings, finished the year on the IL with an oblique issue), he’s 31, would be under control for two seasons, and also has a minor-league option remaining – one he can’t fight being used until he accrues another 55 days of MLB service time.
Yarbrough was projected to make $4.2 million in arbitration – a big sum for the Rays, who traded Ji-Man Choi a year closer to free agency and scheduled to make only about $300K more – so perhaps a one-year deal in the range of $3.5 million deal for some starting depth that can go to Scranton or Syracuse to start the season and still be arbitration-eligible in 2023-24 might work? The Mets might actually need that depth more given that three of their 2022 starters are free agents, but Yarbrough could work for either team very well.
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RHP JOSH JAMES
Once upon a time, James was a phenomenon in Houston, lighting up the radar gun at triple digits and looking like maybe a rotation piece or bullpen cornerstone – and he was the latter in 2019, posting an unsightly ERA (4.70) that was worse than FIP projected (3.98) and striking out 100 in 61 1/3 innings.
The last three seasons, though, James has appeared in just 18 MLB games due to a slew of injuries – including 2021 hip surgery and a 2022 lat strain – and he has a 6.85 ERA and 19 walks in 22 1/3 innings. Something still isn’t right for the 29-year-old righty, who was non-tendered as he entered arbitration by the defending World Series Champs despite being projected for a salary under $1 million, but the Yankees have a history of being able to “fix” hard-throwing righties, and the Mets lost a good chunk of their bullpen to free agency, so James could jump into a thin mix.
James could even be a minor-league contract candidate for the Yankees, as they have a lot of bullpen depth even with Scott Effross and Luis Gil still rehabbing Tommy John surgery – but Albert Abreu and Deivi Garcia are both out of options, so more depth is never a bad thing. For either team, James would still have two to three arbitration years, depending on how much MLB service time he accrued in 2023, as well as a minor-league option if he’s added to the 40-man roster.
LHP JARLIN GARCIA
Garcia turns 30 in January, and if his thirties are anything like his twenties, the Giants may regret non-tendering him a year from free agency. The southpaw had a 2.84 ERA in 152 innings as a Giant over the last three seasons, and while that was trending downward by the year, he was still at a respectable 3.74 in 65 innings last year.
He was much better against lefties (.192 BAA, .609 OPS) than righties (.275/.777) last year, but his career splits are not that extreme, and southpaws are always in demand – just ask the Mets, who had only the now-departed Joely Rodriguez in their ‘pen last year. He was projected for $2.4 million through arbitration this year, and considering Rodriguez got $2 million plus a 2024 option from Boston, Garcia, if he can be had for a similar deal, could be in high demand.
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OF RAIMEL TAPIA
Left-handed hitting, center field-capable fourth outfielder? Tyler Naquin is gone from the Mets and the Yankees are always looking for versatile lefties, so Tapia, whose numbers in Toronto last year weren’t too far off from his five seasons in Colorado, could fit either team nicely on a one-year deal, somewhere a little south of the projected $5.2 million Toronto decided not to tender.
Tapia slashed .265/.292/.380 last year (he was .280/.325/.395 career in Colorado), is a year removed from a 20-steal season, and played all three spots extensively. He’s also not a huge platoon split guy, so he’s not a standard “platoon” fourth outfielder. Even if the Yankees re-sign Aaron Judge and the Mets re-up Brandon Nimmo, Tapia could be a very useful utility piece in either borough.
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