Jays Acquire Aledmys Diaz from Cardinals for JB Woodman

[zilby]

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Aledmys will likely be a backup middle infielder/primary 2B if Travis isn’t ready to go. 27 years old. Hit .259 with 7 homers in 286 AB last year. JB Woodman was ranked our #28 prospect on Pipeline. Diaz is talented but struggled, Buy-low move with potential upside.

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[Schad]

Great deal from where I'm sitting. Diaz is a steady if not great SS, and demonstrated that he can hit as a rookie. JB Woodman, meanwhile, mostly made me sad. It's hard to imagine him ever making the majors, because his above-average power is completely swamped by the fact that he could strike out three times on a day off.

[North_of_Border]

Ryan Goins has been Non Tendered.


Dec-01-17

[Wo1verine]

Six years of control, with three at basically the minimum major league salary!

[Schad]

Ryan Goins has been DFA’d.

Dec-01-17

Non-tendered rather than DFA'd, actually. There is something of a difference: DFAing would mean that we'd retain his salary but attempt to remove him from the 40 man. Non-tendering means that he has been granted free agency, and we owe him nothing.

[flatjacket1]

Ryan Goins has been DFA’d.

Dec-01-17

Non-tendered is a bit different. Both Goins and Koehler were going to be non-tendered regardless of future plans. Same as Thole before he came back that one year, non-tendered and signed a 1 year deal two days later.

Nobody likes playing arbitration roulette these days, and players like Goins and Koehler who are somewhat replaceable still might find large raises due to the arbitrary nature of MLB arbitration. Of the like 40 players in arbitration in 2014-2015 for example, only one signed a contract under a million dollars. It's also a somewhat tedious process for teams, and does cost a bit as well. Koehler was projected to get like 6M due to his previous success/salaries while he'd be lucky to secure a MLB deal. Goins was projected to get 1.8M.

Now that a huge part of players leverage is gone, you may see "take it or leave it" type offers, and with how Pedro Alvarez got a MiLB deal last year there is a pretty good chance players will make it work.

In Koehlers case, I'd say there is a pretty good chance he get some form of a MiLB deal with a 30 day option, or maybe a low dollar guaranteed deal in the coming days. Pitching is thin, and he doesn't have many options.

Goins on the other hand may leave due to rumors of him wanting to start long term during this season. Octagon is a pretty big agency with strong ties in Arizona and some good hook ups elsewhere. I'm sure they shopped the idea of him around to teams (not negotiating obviously due to rules) and have an idea of if he could secure a ML deal in another city with a better chance to start. But still, ML deals are getting harder to find these days so don't be surprised to see him back. Still fits with the team, Diaz is insurance as well as a guy who can PH in a backup type role. Goins would be a defensive replacement, and could start big games and PH Diaz is a situation where scoring becomes an option. We need either Goins or Barney back. Can play 3B, defensive guys.

[Skin Blues]

Nice move, here. Aledmys has shown he can produce at the big league level, and he has some cheap years remaining, even if it's not as low as most pre-arb guys.

I've been calling for Goins to be non-tendered for a little while, now. It makes very little sense to keep him, and I'm surprised we didn't trade him last year when there was apparently some kind of demand for him.

EDIT: typo

[Lateral Quicks]

This guy posted a studly 3.5 WAR rookie campaign in 2016. And we got him for JB freakin' Woodman? And he doesn't hit free agency until 2023? Huh?

Sure he sucked last year, but clearly some upside is there. Great deal from where I'm sitting.

[Schad]

This guy posted a studly 3.5 WAR rookie campaign in 2016. And we got him for JB freakin' Woodman? And he doesn't hit free agency until 2023? Huh?

Sure he sucked last year, but clearly some upside is there. Great deal from where I'm sitting.

Yeah, even if his rookie season was a mirage, and he becomes a 1.0 - 1.2 fWAR/650 guy...hey, that's a hell of a lot better than the negative WAR we've been getting at the position.

It's a shame that we have to lose the clutchest hitter in the history of baseball, but such is life.

[polo007]

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Everyone did after the 2016 season when he was named to the National League all-star team and finished fifth in rookie of the year voting.

In only 111 games and 460 plate appearances, the Cuban amassed 2.7 fWAR thanks to a .300/.369/.510 slash line with 17 home runs.

Last year, however, Diaz cratered and the power dried up and he couldn’t get on base with the same type of frequency, running up a .259/.290/.392 slash line and being demoted to Triple-A at the end of June.

When he returned in September, it was as a utility guy, playing second base, third base and short. Which is exactly the kind of role the Blue Jays are likely envisioning Diaz reprising in Toronto if things work out.

Offensively, he’s without a doubt an upgrade on Goins, who was projected to earn about $1.8 million in arbitration by MLB Trade Rumors, a dollar amount GM Ross Atkins obviously wasn’t comfortably paying.

In 791 career plate appearances, Diaz has hit 24 homers and produced 2.9 fWAR.

Goins, in 1,397 plate appearances with the Jays, hit 20 homers and produced exactly 0.0 WAR, including a negative total of minus-1.3 over the past two seasons.

The Jays sided with the advanced metrics, rather than the nine home runs and 62 RBI Goins produced this past summer when he was forced into 459 plate appearances.

[Schad]

A moment of appreciation for the fact that Scott Mitchell not only led with Diaz's WAR, but noted which version of WAR he was using. In a throwaway article on TSN's website!

[JaysRule15]

Still wondering why we drafted Woodman in the second round. Never really had any plus tools and scouts always said his ceiling was low. Not the type of player you reach for that high in the draft. Ah well, we got Bo Bichette 9 picks later in the same draft, so can't complain too much.

[Schad]

Still wondering why we drafted Woodman in the second round. Never really had any plus tools and scouts always said his ceiling was low. Not the type of player you reach for that high in the draft. Ah well, we got Bo Bichette 9 picks later in the same draft, so can't complain too much.

Basically, if Woodman figured out how to put his bat where the ball might be, he had real upside. Had the power, had the speed, had the possible ability to play a passable CF.

Unfortunately, being able to make contact more than occasionally is an important skill, and he didn't demonstrate that. I expected him to muddle through for another 18-24 months before getting released, but getting trade for a major league calibre middle infielder is also okay.

[vaff87]

Still wondering why we drafted Woodman in the second round. Never really had any plus tools and scouts always said his ceiling was low. Not the type of player you reach for that high in the draft. Ah well, we got Bo Bichette 9 picks later in the same draft, so can't complain too much.

Basically, if Woodman figured out how to put his bat where the ball might be, he had real upside. Had the power, had the speed, had the possible ability to play a passable CF.

Unfortunately, being able to make contact more than occasionally is an important skill, and he didn't demonstrate that. I expected him to muddle through for another 18-24 months before getting released, but getting trade for a major league calibre middle infielder is also okay.

Given that it’s the Cardinals, I’m sure he’ll somehow manage to turn into solid major leaguer.

[JaysRule15]

Still wondering why we drafted Woodman in the second round. Never really had any plus tools and scouts always said his ceiling was low. Not the type of player you reach for that high in the draft. Ah well, we got Bo Bichette 9 picks later in the same draft, so can't complain too much.

Basically, if Woodman figured out how to put his bat where the ball might be, he had real upside. Had the power, had the speed, had the possible ability to play a passable CF.

Unfortunately, being able to make contact more than occasionally is an important skill, and he didn't demonstrate that. I expected him to muddle through for another 18-24 months before getting released, but getting trade for a major league calibre middle infielder is also okay.

I didn't mind drafting him and hoping he developed. I just wasn't sure why we were throwing away a second round pick on a third year college hitter who had done nothing to show he could be a consistent hitter in the majors, or had any plus tools that jumped out. I think he struck out like 40% of the time in the Cape Cod league heading into the draft.

Considering that he had average tools in multiple categories, I would've been fine grabbing him later on in the draft if he was still available. But I guess maybe the Jays really liked him and had intel that another team was grabbing him soon.

I'm doing some reading on Aledmys Diaz. He had a tough sophomore season in 2017, but is coming off a solid 2016 season where he finished 5th in RotY voting. If he bounces back, he could definitely be an upgrade over Goins and be really valuable when Travis and/or Tulo go down with their yearly injury. Cost controllable too. Any idea why the Cards were willing to let him go for just Woodman?

[Schad]

I'm doing some reading on Aledmys Diaz. He had a tough sophomore season in 2017, but is coming off a solid 2016 season where he finished 5th in RotY voting. If he bounces back, he could definitely be an upgrade over Goins and be really valuable when Travis and/or Tulo go down with their yearly injury. Cost controllable too. Any idea why the Cards were willing to let him go for just Woodman?

With Wong/DeJong their MI was pretty well locked down for the next several years. Still doesn't make it a great deal on their part, but if they had their eyes on someone in the Rule 5 draft and wanted a 40-man spot, I can see why they'd turf Diaz for almost nothing, which is Woodman.

[WuTang_OG]

Still wondering why we drafted Woodman in the second round. Never really had any plus tools and scouts always said his ceiling was low. Not the type of player you reach for that high in the draft. Ah well, we got Bo Bichette 9 picks later in the same draft, so can't complain too much.

when is Bo gonna make the big league roster?

[Lateral Quicks]

Goes without saying, but thank goodness Ryan Goins' reign of terror is over. I thought, like Casey coaching the Raptors, he'd be here forever. I get that he's a good clubhouse guy, but that's a secondary consideration to being a positive contributor on the field. It's laughable that he thinks he has a shot at a full-time gig.

Then again, maybe I shouldn't get ahead of myself. Maybe they're still hoping to bring him back, just for less money than he would have made in arbitration.

[JaysRule15]

Still wondering why we drafted Woodman in the second round. Never really had any plus tools and scouts always said his ceiling was low. Not the type of player you reach for that high in the draft. Ah well, we got Bo Bichette 9 picks later in the same draft, so can't complain too much.

when is Bo gonna make the big league roster?

He's probably starting the minor league season in High-A Dunedin, or maybe Double-A New Hampshire if the Jays want to be aggressive. From there, it depends on how he performs. There's a small chance that he might see a call-up in September 2018. But it's far more realistic that the team keeps him in the minors throughout 2018 and lets him finish his season in Triple-A Buffalo. We'll probably see him some time in 2019 if everything goes right.

[flatjacket1]

I didn't mind drafting him and hoping he developed. I just wasn't sure why we were throwing away a second round pick on a third year college hitter who had done nothing to show he could be a consistent hitter in the majors, or had any plus tools that jumped out. I think he struck out like 40% of the time in the Cape Cod league heading into the draft.

Considering that he had average tools in multiple categories, I would've been fine grabbing him later on in the draft if he was still available. But I guess maybe the Jays really liked him and had intel that another team was grabbing him soon.

Woodman was a top guy in that draft class. Hitting .323/.412/.578 with 14 HR's in his college season with some speed and a great glove it really makes sense he went in the top 75. Like in 2015 Swanson went as a Jr as the number one overall pick with .335/.423/.623 with a shakey glove.

Cape Cod is a crazy strong league, and with wood bats and college players you kinda expect bats to suck. I went for work in 2014 and 2015 and pretty much every arm you see is mid-90's and a top 5 round draft pick. You need to hit like .350 or be a top draft prospect (a complete package) to get an invite. Since everyone is used to BBCOR and hitting jam shot home runs in college, wood bats don't let anyone get bailed out with bullcrap hits.

I'm doing some reading on Aledmys Diaz. He had a tough sophomore season in 2017, but is coming off a solid 2016 season where he finished 5th in RotY voting. If he bounces back, he could definitely be an upgrade over Goins and be really valuable when Travis and/or Tulo go down with their yearly injury. Cost controllable too. Any idea why the Cards were willing to let him go for just Woodman?

Thumb injuries for hitting are easily on of the worst in terms of affect on performance. More significantly than many other upper body injuries. Usually guys try to play through it a bit and try to come back sooner because it one of those injuries you can kinda tough out a bit. But his right thumb would be his top hand on a bat, pretty hard to control a bat and pretty easy to re-aggravate. Hairline fracture is usually overuse, so its one that only hurts a bit at first but progresses into intense pain over time.

I would say he is poised for a better year than last, but likely did experience a bit of a sophomore slump as well.