It's been a slow off-season in Major League Free Agency but the trade market is certainly heating up led mainly by the San Diego Padres who have pulled off a pair of blockbuster deals this week for Blake Snell and Yu Darvish.
As with all big league deals, new opportunities emerge and value spikes follow for Roger Dorn Baseball League players. This week's deals were no different as multiple players saw a rise or fall in their fantasy value.
Here's a look at our first 2021 Off-Season 3 Up, 3 Down.
C Francisco Mejia (Minors), Cloverdale Clovers
The 25-year-old ranked among Baseball America’s top 35 overall prospects every year between 2017 and 2019 and headlined the Padres-Indians 2018 Brad Hand blockbuster. He comes with question marks about his aptitude behind the dish and has compiled just a .225/.282/.386 slash line in 362 career plate appearances over the past four seasons.
As MLBTR’s Mark Polishuk recently examined, though, it’s easy to understand the appeal he holds to Tampa Bay. Mejía’s a switch-hitter who demonstrated elite bat-to-ball skills in the minors and has a top-of-the-scale arm. Given his lack of MLB track record, there’s more risk in his profile than there may have been at the peak of his prospect status, but Mejía carries some long-term intrigue and can immediately step into the Rays’ catching mix with Mike Zunino.
RHP Luis Patiño (Minors), Mt. Diablo Devils
Patiño made his MLB debut, mostly working out of the bullpen, in 2020. His first 17.1 MLB innings didn’t go well, as he struggled to throw strikes and only managed a 5.19 ERA. But Patiño had only thrown 7.2 innings above A-ball entering the season and surely would’ve been given more minor-league time in 2020 had there been a season. He was nothing short of dominant in the low minors from 2018-19 and is a high-upside arm who should contribute for Tampa Bay in the near future. Patiño has yet to accrue a full year of service and comes with six seasons of team control. He will likely be given every opportunity to earn a starting spot on Opening Day but could be used in a variety of ways next season with Tampa's philosophy on arms.
IF Ha-Seong Kim (Free Agent)
The Padres have reached an agreement to sign free-agent infielder Ha-Seong Kim, reports Dennis Lin of The Athletic (Twitter link). Kim, a client of ISE Baseball, will receive a four-year, $25MM contract according to Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune. Kim, 25, became available to MLB clubs earlier this month when his KBO team, the Kiwoom Heroes, posted him for bidding. In addition to Kim’s contract, the Padres will owe a release fee of $5MM that will be paid directly to the Heroes.
Kim debuted as a teenager in the KBO, allowing him to push for his team to post him at a much earlier age than most stars in South Korea and Japan. Because of his youth and excellent track record, Kim was among the more desirable free agents on the market this winter, landing seventh on MLBTR’s Top 50 list back in November and should have significant interest in the 2021 Auction Draft.
Throughout his career to date, Kim has been an above-average player in Korea, but his game soared to new heights in 2019 even as the KBO altered the composition of its ball in order to cut back on the league’s hitter-friendly environment. Since 2019, Kim has batted .307/.393/.500 with 49 home runs, 62 doubles, three triples and a 56-for-62 showing in stolen base attempts. He’s been 42 percent better than a league-average hitter there over the past two seasons, by measure of wRC+. Back in May, Baseball America’s Kyle Glaser wrote that signing Kim would be akin to inking a Top 100 prospect. ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel and FanGraphs’ Eric Longenhagen have expressed similar sentiments, calling Kim a potential regular at second base, shortstop or third base in MLB.
It should be expected that Kim will be utilized on a near-everyday basis — be it as the primary second baseman or as an oft-used super-utility player.
Mike Clevinger (3/$8), Maltese Falcons
Expected to be one of the top valued arms in the RDBL in 2021, Mike Clevinger is now facing a release this off-season following the announcement of his Tommy John surgery that will put him on the shelf for the next 12 months. Now 29 years old, Clevinger has been one of the majors’ most effective starters since he broke out in Cleveland in 2017. But the Indians decided to part with Clevinger this past August when they sent him to the Padres in a mega-deal before the trade deadline. Clevinger then helped the Padres to their first playoff berth since 2006, throwing 19 innings of six-run ball with 9.0 K/9 and 1.4 BB/9, though he battled elbow issues in his brief debut with the club. He only threw one playoff inning, which came in a start against the Dodgers in the NLDS, before departing.
Hops Starting Pitchers
The Meinert Hops were ready to commit $75 combined to Noah Syndergaard and Madison Bumgarner in 2020. Neither is expected back for 2021 following a disastrous season for each. Syndergaard went down in Spring Training with a sudden elbow injury that required Tommy John. He is expected back late in 2021 and should draw interest in the RDBL Auction but for a far cheaper contract than the $45 option he holds. Bumgarner was unquestionably awful in 2020, totalling just 17.0 points in over 40 innings of work. He did finish the year with 10 scoreless innings and will be one of the more interesting names to follow in Auction after he is cut from his $30 contract by the Hops.
C Joey Bart (Minors), Burlingame Blue Ducks
With the opt-out of Buster Posey in 2020, Joey Bart earned an early promotion and some valuable big league time. Unfortunately, things quickly went south with Bart's lack of plate discipline shining through as he was punched out 41 times in 103 at-bats. With the lack of the DH in the National League in 2021, Bart will serve as Posey's backup in a best case scenario but could face a start in Triple-A.
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