Favorite pitcher of the past for the Dodgers sparking interest in free agency
Kenta Maeda, a former fan favorite of the Dodgers, appears to be getting closer to signing an offseason deal with a new team. The Detroit Tigers are reportedly giving him serious consideration, according to MLB insider Jon Heyman of The New York Post. The Minnesota Twins, who were his previous team, are also keen to hold onto him. “Kenta Maeda is drawing interest from the Tigers and his old Twins.” Maeda made a successful comeback from Tommy John surgery last season, according to Jon Heyman of The New York Post, pitching for the Twins. In 21 starts, he had an ERA of 4.23 and struck out 117 in 104.1 innings pitched.
Although his past injuries may deter some teams, he proved last season that he was still capable of producing. Perhaps he would sign a two-year contract with a 2025 team option. Maeda brings veteran experience with him, making him a low-risk, potentially high-reward option for whichever team signs him. He could be a middle-of-the-pack rotation piece and a mentor to one of the two pitching staffs.
The decision by Eduardo Rodriguez to exercise his right to free agency has left the Tigers in need of a pitcher. Whether he decides to go back to Detroit is still up in the air, but if not, Maeda could step in and cover for him. Maedam may also be of interest to the Los Angeles Angels, according to reports from earlier in the offseason. The Tigers appear to be making a strong effort to sign him, even though his market appears to be unstable at the moment. The former Dodger is well-known for his successful career and his affectionate relationship with Los Angeles fans. He is an absolute professional who will succeed wherever he ends up.
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Every year, clubs under team control are permitted to allow players under team control to enter the open market early. This can happen for a variety of reasons, such as the need for extra room on the team’s 40-man roster or an increasing arbitration price tag. Players who were non-tendered during the offseason in 2023, like Cody Bellinger and Jeimer Candelario, went on to have successful seasons. On Friday, we talked about five hitters who were released by their teams before last week’s non-tender deadline.
Although position players made up the bulk of last offseason’s crop of non-tenders, there have been a few arms in recent memory who went on to contribute significantly to teams despite having been non-tendered at an earlier point in their careers. Taijuan Walker and Kevin Gausman are two of the more notable examples.
Eventually, the two signed multi-year contracts worth $110 million and $72 million, respectively. It remains to be seen if any of the non-tendered hurlers this year will be able to reach those same heights.
Unlike this year’s hitters, this year’s crop of arms won’t profit from an otherwise weak free agent class because there are a ton of viable options in the class of free agent starters, from elite players like
Nevertheless, teams can never have enough starting pitching depth, and if given the opportunity, each of these arms could theoretically provide a club useful innings in the future.
Without further ado, let’s examine five starters who became available for free agency after the non-tender deadline last week and who may be players to watch this offseason.
The alphabetical list of players includes their age for the 2024 season in parenthesis.
Allard was once one of the most highly-touted prospects in the game. When Allard reached Double-A in 2017, he was widely regarded as one of the sport’s top 50 prospects, having been selected by the Braves in the 2015 draft with the 14th pick overall. Allard, who was only 19 years old, dominated that season, recording a 3.18 ERA in 150 innings of work. In 2018, he made his major league debut with Atlanta, though his stay there was brief—just eight innings.
Allard was traded to the Rangers in 2019, and he spent a portion of three seasons coming and going in the Rangers rotation, finishing with 203 2/3 innings pitched at a 5.70 ERA and 4.96 FIP.
Allard was traded back to the Braves by the Rangers in exchange for Jake Odorizzi in 2022 after an unsuccessful stint in the bullpen. Due to oblique and shoulder problems, Allard missed almost the whole 2023 season; as a result, the Braves decided not to tender the lefty pitcher.
Even though Allard has had difficulty making a name for himself in the major leagues, he will pitch in the upcoming season at the age of just 26, and sophisticated metrics like xFIP (4.57) and SIERA (4.31) indicate that, since the beginning of the 2021 season, his performance has been about league average, lending support to
Chirinos joined the Rays in 2018 to start his big league career, and from that time until the end of the season, he was a valuable arm for the team in a number of capacities. During those three seasons, the right-hander appeared in 47 games (28 starts), pitched 234 1/3 innings, and recorded a 3.65 ERA (117 ERA+) and 4.17 FIP.
Chirinos, regrettably, had Tommy John surgery in August 2020 and didn’t get back on the mound until the end of the 2022 season.
In his first full season following surgery in 2023, Chirinos had difficulties. As a swingman for the Rays, he recorded a respectable 4.02 ERA in 62 2/3 innings pitched, but his peripherals—a 5.49 FIP and an 11.8% strikeout rate—showed that his effectiveness had significantly declined. As a result, Tampa had to part ways with Chirinos, who the Braves eventually claimed off waivers.
In Atlanta, Chirinos’s performance declined precipitously as he was shut out for a 9.27 ERA in 22 1/3 innings pitched before being placed on the injured list due to elbow inflammation. Although Chirinos had a difficult time in his first full season since Tommy John’s injury this year, if he can stay healthy, it’s easy to see the right-hander returning to form as a useful, versatile depth piece for a contending club in 2024.
Hudson, Dakota (29).
Hudson, who was selected by the Cardinals in the first round of the 2016 draft, rose quickly and joined the team in 2018. In 2018, he made his big league debut. The groundballer performed at a mid-rotation level for the Cardinals, greatly surpassing his early-career peripheral stats, with
Sadly, Hudson missed practically the entire 2021 season due to Tommy John surgery. When he did return to the Cardinals rotation in 2022, his performance suffered greatly.
Hudson has recorded a 4.64 ERA (88 ERA+) and almost identical 4.60 FIP in 221 frames since the 2022 season began. His strikeout rate has decreased to just 13% compared to a 10% walk rate. Because of this, the Cardinals decided not to tender Hudson despite their critical need for rotation depth going into 2024.
Despite Hudson’s brutal past two seasons, it’s important to remember that he still produces ground balls at a very high rate; his 52.5% groundball rate ranks ninth among pitchers who have worked at least 200 innings over the previous two years, behind Sandy Alcantara and Ranger Suarez.
Although Hudson’s groundball skills prevented the Cardinals from trading him before last week’s non-tender deadline, it is still possible that a team in need of starting depth would try to use them in the hopes that Hudson can find his previous form.
Turnbull eventually made it to the majors for a quick cup of coffee in 2018 after being selected by the Tigers in the second round of the 2014 draft. In 2019, he was given a regular spot in the team’s starting rotation. Turnbull recorded a 4.61 ERA in 148 1/3 innings during that rookie season, which was marginally better than the league average (103 ERA+). However, his 3.99 FIP suggested that he was capable of more.
Following a modest improvement in the 2020 season (with a 3.97 ERA and 3.49 FIP in 11 starts), Turnbull seemed to be reaching his peak in the 2021 season, posting a 2.88 ERA and 2.97 FIP, before Tommy John surgery ended his season after just nine starts.
After making a comeback in early 2023, Turnbull looked ready to get back into the team’s rotation. However, a combination of injuries, poor play, and a disagreement over service time between Turnbull and Detroit brass resulted in the sides splitting this offseason, with Turnbull finishing with a 7.26 ERA over seven big league starts.
Turnbull is one of the more intriguing bounce-back options available this offseason, despite those terrible numbers.
Without mentioning Woodruff, who has become one of the best starters in the game in recent years, this list wouldn’t be complete. Woodruff has been dominant since joining the Brewers’ rotation on a regular basis in 2019. He has made two All-Star appearances, finished fifth in the NL Cy Young award voting in 2021, and amassed a 2.93 ERA and 3.10 FIP in 103 starts.
Woodruff had a 2.28 ERA and a 29.2% strikeout rate in 2023, proving to be as dominant as ever. Sadly, he had a difficult season due to injuries, making only eleven starts before needing shoulder surgery last month.
There are no doubts about Woodruff’s ability, unlike the other arms on this list; he is widely regarded as the best arm in terms of raw talent. In spite of this, the Brewers had to make the tough choice last week to not tender him because of uncertainties about his availability for the 2024 season.
After his surgery, it’s not clear if Woodruff will be able to take the mound in 2024 at all. However, earlier in the offseason, the right-hander expressed hope that he would be able to pitch again sometime in the summer. However, the Brewers chose to cut ties with the right-hander rather than offer him a contract worth an estimated $11.6 million, which is a significant amount for a small-market team to commit to a pitcher who might not be available the following season.
Woodruff’s return date is unknown, but given his performance over the last few seasons, he could be one of the most significant pitchers in the entire class of free agents. That thrilling upside and risk combination
