Free Agent Spotlight: Vaughn Grissom

The Roger Dorn Baseball League rulebook might be required reading when it comes to the Free Agency of Vaughn Grissom. Claimed on August 15th of 2022 by the Idaho Taters, Grissom was not eligible to be a 2023 Keeper to the dismay of GM Mike Friedrch as his addition came after the in-season RDBL Keeper Deadline of August 1st, pushing him into Free Agency.

The complexity around Grissom hardly stops there. A shortstop throughout the Minors, Grissom only played second base in his 41 games for the Braves, making him only eligible at that position for Draft Day despite being penciled in as the Opening Day shortstop in Atlanta.

Things could get more complicated if Grissom is sent to Triple-A to start the season. He exhausted his MLB Rookie eligibility in 2022 with 156 plate appearances, making him only available on a 1D/$5 contract in the Reserve Draft and not a Minors contract even if he's in Triple-A on Draft Day. While there would still be a strong market, that change could push him down Draft boards.

Grissom began the 2022 season with High-A Rome before being promoted to Double-A Mississippi. Atlanta summoned him in early August, and he filled in admirably, posting a .291/.353/.440 line in 156 plate appearances. However, a .163/.250/.163 stretch for two weeks in September cost Grissom his starting job for the last ten games and into the playoffs.

He should have a robust market in Auction if he does earn the starting job, but a club will have a stash him at MI or 2B to start which could limit his market a touch.

On The Lookout: Wednesday, 3/1

The calendar has flipped to March with rotations beginning to turn over for the first time while World Baseball Classic players are making their final Spring appearances before joining their respective camps.

Here's what we are on the lookout for on Wednesday:

Andrew Painter Time

The Cloverdale Clovers were already salivating over the 2023 debut of Ricky Tiedemann on Tuesday who sat at 97-99 with a wipeout slider in his one clean inning of work. It's hard to believe the club could have an even better pitching prospect but Andrew Painter is earning that praise entering the season. The 6'7" 19-year-old pitched at three different levels in 2022, going 6-1 with a 1.56 ERA, racking up 155 strikeouts in 103.2 innings pitched, holding opposing hitters to a .188 batting average. He was acquired from the Alamo Short Stacks in a blockbuster deal that sent Rafael Devers, Juan Soto and others to the eventual 2022 Champions.

Stacks Await MRI Results on Rodgers

When Rockies second baseman Brendan Rodgers dislocated his shoulder yesterday, manager Bud Black indicated that there would be more information on the timetable for his return “in the coming day.” Black’s comments indicate that Opening Day may be in question for Rodgers, who would be good to go in “a few weeks” if all goes well. Rodgers, who won a Gold Glove at second base and posted a strong 4.3 bWAR in 2022. After being acquired by the Stacks in early May, Rodgers turned it up a level slashing .284/.344/.439 over his final 491 at-bats, overcoming a rough start to the season.

The Stacks lost fellow middle infielder Gavin Lux for the season on Monday while Miguel Vargas (finger) continues to battle back from a fracture in his finger.

Shaking Off 2022 Injury Concerns

Shane McClanahan (Hops) and Matt Manning (Taters) are set for their 2023 Spring Training debuts after each dealing with elbow issues to end the 2022 season. All reports have been positive on both players entering camp as they are set to serve important roles in their respective RDBL rotations. McClanahan was one of the top arms in the league a season ago, posting 537.0 points with a 2.54 ERA an 0.93 WHIP.

Alcantara 2023 Encore

The Fringe will have their ace Sandy Alcantara for the first time in 2023 after capturing the 2022 RDBL Pitcher of the Year Award. Alcantara posted 733.0 points last season, 86.0 points more than the next best pitcher and the 9th most full season points in RDBL History. His 614.0 points in the RDBL Regular Season were the second best mark in League History as he looks to continue that momentum into 2023, his last season under contract with the Fringe.

Grapes Rotation

Grapes GM Terry Shelley was less than enthused with Jose Quintana's outing on Tuesday after he surrendered five earned runs while failing to make it out of the first inning. This came after Luis Severino gave up four earned runs in two innings of work on Monday. That moves the spotlight to Brady Singer who will make his Spring debut on Wednesday after a breakout season where he posted 374.0 points with a strong 3.23 ERA and 1.14 WHIP in 153 1/3 innings.

With starting pitching the most readily available asset on the trade market, keep an eye on the Grapes over the next few weeks if their pitchers continue to falter.

2023 RDBL Schedule Released

The 10th Season of Roger Dorn Baseball is closing in with just under a month until the RDBL Draft. The 2023 Season is headlined by a blockbuster Free Agent Class and what looks to be another healthy year for parity and depth of competition.

The 2023 Season will mark a pair of in-season rule changes that are highlighted below with the addition of the Free Agent Bidding Process and the RDBL Trade Deadline being moved up two periods.

---

Monday, March 20th: Keeper Rosters Due to Commissioner

Full Keeper Rosters including Minor Leaguers are due to the Commissioner's Office by midnight on Monday, March 20th. This includes decisions on activations.

Monday, March 27th: 2023 RDBL Draft

The 10th Draft in Roger Dorn Baseball League History will take place on Monday, March 27th. The start time will be announced closer to Draft Day but we are likely to start at either 11am or 12pm. The Draft will take place in Concord in-person along with the option of Zoom.

Wednesday Night, March 29th: First Waiver Claims Processed

The 2023 Season will make the addition of a Free Agent Bidding process through CBS. This will allow teams to have full control of their waiver additions, eliminating the email back and forth with the Commissioner.

- All teams will start the season with a $100 Free Agent Budget. The team with the highest bid will be awarded the player.

- In-Season Waiver Claims will be processed overnight on Sundays as it was in previous seasons.

- We have eliminated the limitations on claims. Teams can claim/drop as many players as they wish on a weekly basis.

- Claims can be submitted at any point during the week, eliminating the Sunday night work.

- Claims can be submitted with a $0 bid. If that bid goes unchallenged, that team will be awarded the player.

Thursday, March 30th: 2023 Opening Day

Following the processing of Waiver Claims overnight on Wednesday, teams will set their lineups for Period 1 which will run Thursday to Sunday.

Monday, May 22nd: Prospect Activation Window Opens

Players that made the Opening Day Roster and were not activated by their RDBL Franchise can begin to be added to the Active Roster at the beginning of Period 9 (Monday, 5/22).

The "Fernando Tatis, Jr. Rule" remains in place allowing teams a 24-hour window to activate prospects who are promoted to the Big Leagues between Opening Day on Period 9.

Monday, July 17th: RDBL Trade Deadline (Start of Period 17)

As agreed to this off-season, the RDBL Trade Deadline has been moved up two weeks after sharing the date of the MLB Trade Deadline since 2013. This will provide six remaining periods of play in the RDBL Regular Season compared to four in previous seasons.

Monday, July 31st: RDBL Keeper Deadline

Claims processed on Monday, 7/31, the start of Period 19, will mark the final eligibility for players to be Keepers for 2024. Any players added or dropped after 7/31 will not be eligible to be retained for 2024.

Sunday, August 27th: End of Regular Season (Period 22)

The Regular Season Champion will be crowned on Sunday, August 27th at the completion of Period 22.

Monday, August 28th: Start of 2023 Playoffs

The RDBL added the Playoff System in 2016 with the top six teams through Period 22 entering a five week season to crown the RDBL Champion.