MLB Roundup 1/11: The Twins extend Miguel Sanó

Twins extend Miguel Sanó

The Twins have had a bit of a disappointing winter coming off a surprising 101-win season and a division championship, though that could change if they end up winning the Josh Donaldson sweepstakes. In the meantime, they did lock up one of their better young hitters for a few years. The arbitration figures deadline also represents a chance for teams to lock up players to multi-year deals, and the Twins got one done with Miguel Sanó that will keep him in Minnesota for the next three years. The deal is worth $27 million with a fourth year option worth $14 million and a $3 million opt-out. Sanó, who turns 27 early in the season, is coming off a big year in which he hit 34 homers in only 105 games with a 137 wRC+. He has never played more than 116 games in a season, though, and two years ago he managed just a 83 wRC+. There’s no doubt the power is there and this cheap deal is certainly worth the risk, but Sanó is no sure thing.

Sox Spin: There’s not much here. I don’t know that the Red Sox have a good comp for Sanó that could be looking at a similarly structured extension.

Brewers sign Jedd Gyorko

Speaking of disappointing offseasons, the Brewers haven’t done a ton this winter, but they did make a small signing on Friday. To help fill the hole left by Mike Moustakas’ departure they have signed former Cardinal Jedd Gyorko. He’ll get a one-year deal worth $2 million. Gyorko is coming off a brutal year split between St. Louis and Los Angeles, finishing the year with only 101 plate appearances and a 36 wRC+. Milwaukee is betting on a bounce-back here, as he was an above-average hitter in the three previous seasons, with wRC+’s of 111, 113 and 112, respectively. Right now, the expectation is that he will be platooned with Eric Sogard at the hot corner.

Sox Spin: Gyorko was an interesting potential bounce-back candidate for second base, but that was obviously filled by José Peraza. Peraza has potential longer-term intrigue being arbitration-eligible beyond this season, and Gyorko has been more of a third baseman in recent years anyway.

David Peralta signs extension with the Diamondbacks

Sanó wasn’t the only player to get an extension on Friday, with David Peralta also receiving a three-year deal. This one is a little lighter for the team, coming in at $22 million over the life of the deal. The Diamondbacks outfielder has always been a guy that I liked, but he’s never really put it together consistently. He’s always solid, with just one of his six seasons coming in below-average at the plate and that only being 48 games. However, he’s also only had two seasons in which he was at least ten percent better than league-average. As a corner outfielder, that’s a fine player but not a special one. Still, there’s value in having consistently solid players with a little upside on a cheap deal, and that’s what Arizona got here.

Sox Spin: I think there’s a legitimate comparison to be made to Andrew Benintendi here performance-wise, but age complicates matters a bit. Peralta is entering his age-32 season.