Many fans found it refreshing when New York Mets owner Steve Cohen gave what he described as a “brutally honest” assessment of the team’s contract talks with free-agent first baseman Pete Alonso.
Club owners and executives, however, are almost always less forthcoming than Cohen was when talking about negotiations with free agents. The reason: Attachment 49 of the Collective Bargaining Agreement.
Whether Cohen violated Attachment 49 is a matter of interpretation. And even if he did, the Players Association likely would file a grievance only at the prompting of Alonso and/or his agent, Scott Boras — an unlikely outcome, considering such a stand likely would be counterproductive to negotiations.
Still, it would be a surprise if Cohen made it a regular practice to comment on free-agent discussions with as much transparency as he did Saturday at the Mets’ Amazin’ Day fan event. Some executives refuse to answer even basic questions from reporters about free agents in text messages, fearing their answers might become part of a grievance.
Attachment 49, which the players and owners agreed upon in response to past acts of collusion by the clubs, is designed to prevent club officials from attempting to influence the market through their public comments. In theory, it also applies to agents.
The attachment states the negotiating parties “may not disclose to the media the substance of contract discussions between a player and a club (including but not limited to the facts of offers, the substance of offers, or decisions not to make offers or to withdraw offers) until after terms on the contract have been confirmed by the Office of the Commissioner and the Players Association.”
The attachment continues, “Similarly, none of the (parties) may make comments to the media about the value of an unsigned free agent, or about possible or contemplated terms for an unsigned free agent, regardless of whether discussions have occurred.”
Cohen might argue he did not disclose “the substance of contract discussions” or the “possible or contemplated terms” for Alonso. He did not specifically mention the Mets’ last offer to Alonso – three years between $68 million and $70 million. His comments, however, certainly approached the line drawn by Attachment 49, and perhaps crossed it.
“We made a significant offer to Pete,” Cohen said. “I don’t like the structures that are being presented back to us. It’s highly asymmetric against us. And I feel strongly about it. I will never say no. There’s always the possibility. But the reality is, we’re moving forward. And as we continue to bring in players, the reality is it becomes harder to fit Pete into what is a very expensive group of players that we already have. That’s where we are. And I am being brutally honest.
“I don’t like the negotiations. I don’t like what’s been presented to us. Listen, maybe that changes. Certainly, I’ll always stay flexible. If it stays this way, I think we are going to have to get used to the fact that we have to go forward with the existing players we have.”
As noted by The Athletic’s Will Sammon, who was in attendance, the crowd applauded the answer. Prior to Cohen’s statement, the fans were chanting for the Mets to re-sign Alonso.
Pretty good entertainment for late January. Just don’t expect any other owner or front-office executive to follow suit. Cohen, who has owned the Mets since October 2020, still might not be well-versed in every detail of the CBA; few owners are. But most in the game know not to mess with Attachment 49.
How Bregman’s return might shake up Astros
Houston Astros officials are adamant that free agent Alex Bregman will remain at third base if they re-sign him as a free agent. But defensively, the Astros might be better off with Bregman moving to second and Isaac Paredes staying at third.
Bregman, 30, won his first Gold Glove at third in 2024. But his agent, Boras, has indicated that he is willing to move to second — the position Bregman would play if he signed with the Boston Red Sox.
Of course, it is one thing to change positions for Rafael Devers, the Red Sox’s franchise player (though a subpar defender), and quite another to move for Paredes, who made his first All-Star team last season but is still only 25.
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A potential return to Houston for Alex Bregman would force the Astros to reshuffle their infield in some way. (Jerome Miron / Imagn Images)
Bregman, who was a shortstop at LSU and has appeared in 257 games professionally at that position, likely would adapt well to second, where he has only 32 innings of experience. The Tampa Bay Rays, because of Paredes’ limited range, considered him much more of a third baseman. Yet Paredes seemingly is the one who would switch, even though he has played only 67 games at second compared to 335 games at third.
The re-signing of Bregman also would raise another defensive question for the Astros. Jose Altuve said at the team’s Fan Fest on Saturday that he is willing to go from second to left field to accommodate Bregman’s return and Paredes’ expected move to second. But in 18 professional seasons, Altuve has never played outfield. In the majors, he has spent all but six of his more than 15,000 defensive innings at second (the others were at short).
Moving Altuve off second certainly makes sense. He ranked 35th among second basemen last season in Defensive Runs Saved, 36th in Outs Above Average. Left field at Houston’s Daikin (formerly Minute Maid) Park might not be a problem for him; Fenway is the only left field in the majors that is smaller. But Altuve turns 35 in May. His sprint speed last season was in only the 44th percentile. And the Astros prefer Yordan Alvarez as their primary DH.
Adding Bregman to an offense with Paredes and Christian Walker would cushion the blow of losing right fielder Kyle Tucker in the trade that brought Paredes from the Chicago Cubs. But while Walker is a significant upgrade at first, the turnover of position players would leave the Astros with questionable defense at second and in left. And the trade of Ryan Pressly to the Cubs will weaken their bullpen.
Defense: The Dodgers’ Achilles heel?
Perhaps it’s wishful thinking, but one rival executive views defense as the Los Angeles Dodgers’ one potential weakness.
The executive, granted anonymity for his candor, sees it like this: Teoscar Hernández and Michael Conforto lack range in the outfield corners. Center fielder Tommy Edman is a better infielder than outfielder. The infield, too, is not without concerns.
Freddie Freeman remains solid at first. Hyeseong Kim figures to be at least as good as Gavin Lux was at second. Max Muncy, when healthy, is fine at third. But shortstop hinges on how much Mookie Betts improves after a full offseason and spring training trying to master the position. Freeman is 35, Muncy 34, Betts 32.
Miguel Rojas and Chris Taylor are reasonable alternatives as infield reserves. The same goes for Andy Pages and James Outman in the outfield. But it might turn out the Dodgers need to sign one more free agent — super utility man Kiké Hernández, a quality defender in both the infield and outfield.
The Dodgers last season ranked third in Defensive Runs Saved and 10th in Outs Above Average. They also were 12th in strikeout rate, a ranking that might improve this season with the signings of Blake Snell, Roki Sasaki, Tanner Scott and, if he passes his physical, Kirby Yates.
Additional strikeouts will be necessary if the defense proves less than stellar.
“Obviously big stuff and being hard to hit and striking guys out are good things to add into a group,” general manager Brandon Gomes told reporters at the news conference introducing Scott. “But I think it’s more of just how things have played out, rather than just completely targeting one type of profile.”
Skenes planning next step forward
Pittsburgh Pirates right-hander Paul Skenes doesn’t need to work on much, not after winning the 2024 National League Rookie of the Year with a 1.96 ERA in 133 innings. Skenes, who turns 23 on May 29, finished with a 33.1 percent strikeout rate and 6.2 percent walk rate, a ratio only Spencer Strider exceeded as a rookie.
Naturally, though, Skenes is thinking about how to get better. On Saturday night, I asked him on Foul Territory’s broadcast from the New York Baseball Writers’ Dinner the number one thing he wanted to improve. Skenes said he wanted to attack the zone more, citing the respective Cy Young Award winners, Tarik Skubal and Chris Sale.
“I think there were a lot of times last year where I just put myself in bad positions a little bit,” Skenes said. “After the season was over, I had one of the analysts at LSU run some numbers for me on Skubal, Sale and then me. They pretty much led in just about every category, which shows that is how you pitch at a very high level. That’s how you win those awards, winning the first two out of three pitches, strike percentage, first-pitch strike percentage, stuff like that. Those are the process-oriented goals I’m focusing on this year a little bit more.”
Erik Kratz, a former catcher with the Pirates and eight other clubs, asked Skenes, “You had to go back to LSU to get analytics?”
Skenes laughed.
“Our analysts with the Pirates are very good,” Skenes said. “I just happened to be talking to him, and he went home and ran the numbers for me. I didn’t ask him to do it.”
Sale was fourth in first-pitch strike percentage last season at 69.2 percent, while Skubal was fifth at 68.5 percent among pitchers who threw at least 162 innings, according to STATS Perform. Skenes was significantly below them at 62.1 percent.
In overall strike percentage, Skubal ranked fifth at 69.3 percent, Sale 36th at 67.2 percent and Skenes 71st at 66.1 percent, among pitchers with more than 1,000 pitches thrown.
“The analysts, I don’t know, sometimes they get in the way. But a lot of times they have really good stuff,” Skenes said. “(The Pirates’ analysts) came to me last year and said, ‘Hey, you should throw your sinker more to lefties with two strikes.’ I was like, ‘Ok, let’s try it.’ And then it worked. Usually, if they’re coming to you with something, they’re probably right. You probably should listen to them usually.”
And finally…
It’s Jan. 27, and four teams — the Minnesota Twins, St. Louis Cardinals, San Diego Padres and Miami Marlins — have yet to sign a major-league free agent. Dozens of players remain on the open market, including a number of quality relievers. The Los Angeles Angels, exploring all areas of improvement, have told at least one agent they have two or three bullpen spots to fill.
One reason the open market remains clogged is that teams continue to discuss trades. The Seattle Mariners’ Luis Castillo and San Diego Padres’ Dylan Cease and Michael King, for example, are among the starting pitchers who remain in play (King asked for $8.8 million in arbitration and the Padres offered $7.325 million; a hearing appears likely).
Most of the best free-agent starting pitchers — Max Fried, Corbin Burnes, Blake Snell, Roki Sasaki — are now signed. But Jack Flaherty and Nick Pivetta are among those who remain available. Pivetta appears hindered by his rejection of a qualifying offer, making him subject to draft-pick compensation. But the continuing presence of trade alternatives isn’t helping him and Flaherty, either.
An offseason trade deadline — say, at the end of the Winter Meetings — likely would juice the free-agent market. But Major League Baseball would not agree to that type of deadline without another for free-agent signings, according to sources briefed on past discussions. The league proposed a signing deadline in the last round of collective bargaining. The players’ side, however, opposes restrictions of the open market.
(Top photo of Steve Cohen and Pete Alonso: Rob Tringali / MLB Photos via Getty Images)
Many fans found it refreshing when New York Mets owner Steve Cohen gave what he described as a “brutally honest” assessment of the team’s contract talks with free-agent first baseman Pete Alonso.
Club owners and executives, however, are almost always less forthcoming than Cohen was when talking about negotiations with free agents. The reason: Attachment 49 of the Collective Bargaining Agreement.
Whether Cohen violated Attachment 49 is a matter of interpretation. And even if he did, the Players Association likely would file a grievance only at the prompting of Alonso and/or his agent, Scott Boras — an unlikely outcome, considering such a stand likely would be counterproductive to negotiations.
Still, it would be a surprise if Cohen made it a regular practice to comment on free-agent discussions with as much transparency as he did Saturday at the Mets’ Amazin’ Day fan event. Some executives refuse to answer even basic questions from reporters about free agents in text messages, fearing their answers might become part of a grievance.
Attachment 49, which the players and owners agreed upon in response to past acts of collusion by the clubs, is designed to prevent club officials from attempting to influence the market through their public comments. In theory, it also applies to agents.
The attachment states the negotiating parties “may not disclose to the media the substance of contract discussions between a player and a club (including but not limited to the facts of offers, the substance of offers, or decisions not to make offers or to withdraw offers) until after terms on the contract have been confirmed by the Office of the Commissioner and the Players Association.”
The attachment continues, “Similarly, none of the (parties) may make comments to the media about the value of an unsigned free agent, or about possible or contemplated terms for an unsigned free agent, regardless of whether discussions have occurred.”
Cohen might argue he did not disclose “the substance of contract discussions” or the “possible or contemplated terms” for Alonso. He did not specifically mention the Mets’ last offer to Alonso – three years between $68 million and $70 million. His comments, however, certainly approached the line drawn by Attachment 49, and perhaps crossed it.
“We made a significant offer to Pete,” Cohen said. “I don’t like the structures that are being presented back to us. It’s highly asymmetric against us. And I feel strongly about it. I will never say no. There’s always the possibility. But the reality is, we’re moving forward. And as we continue to bring in players, the reality is it becomes harder to fit Pete into what is a very expensive group of players that we already have. That’s where we are. And I am being brutally honest.
“I don’t like the negotiations. I don’t like what’s been presented to us. Listen, maybe that changes. Certainly, I’ll always stay flexible. If it stays this way, I think we are going to have to get used to the fact that we have to go forward with the existing players we have.”
As noted by The Athletic’s Will Sammon, who was in attendance, the crowd applauded the answer. Prior to Cohen’s statement, the fans were chanting for the Mets to re-sign Alonso.
Pretty good entertainment for late January. Just don’t expect any other owner or front-office executive to follow suit. Cohen, who has owned the Mets since October 2020, still might not be well-versed in every detail of the CBA; few owners are. But most in the game know not to mess with Attachment 49.
How Bregman’s return might shake up Astros
Houston Astros officials are adamant that free agent Alex Bregman will remain at third base if they re-sign him as a free agent. But defensively, the Astros might be better off with Bregman moving to second and Isaac Paredes staying at third.
Bregman, 30, won his first Gold Glove at third in 2024. But his agent, Boras, has indicated that he is willing to move to second — the position Bregman would play if he signed with the Boston Red Sox.
Of course, it is one thing to change positions for Rafael Devers, the Red Sox’s franchise player (though a subpar defender), and quite another to move for Paredes, who made his first All-Star team last season but is still only 25.
A potential return to Houston for Alex Bregman would force the Astros to reshuffle their infield in some way. (Jerome Miron / Imagn Images)
Bregman, who was a shortstop at LSU and has appeared in 257 games professionally at that position, likely would adapt well to second, where he has only 32 innings of experience. The Tampa Bay Rays, because of Paredes’ limited range, considered him much more of a third baseman. Yet Paredes seemingly is the one who would switch, even though he has played only 67 games at second compared to 335 games at third.
The re-signing of Bregman also would raise another defensive question for the Astros. Jose Altuve said at the team’s Fan Fest on Saturday that he is willing to go from second to left field to accommodate Bregman’s return and Paredes’ expected move to second. But in 18 professional seasons, Altuve has never played outfield. In the majors, he has spent all but six of his more than 15,000 defensive innings at second (the others were at short).
Moving Altuve off second certainly makes sense. He ranked 35th among second basemen last season in Defensive Runs Saved, 36th in Outs Above Average. Left field at Houston’s Daikin (formerly Minute Maid) Park might not be a problem for him; Fenway is the only left field in the majors that is smaller. But Altuve turns 35 in May. His sprint speed last season was in only the 44th percentile. And the Astros prefer Yordan Alvarez as their primary DH.
Adding Bregman to an offense with Paredes and Christian Walker would cushion the blow of losing right fielder Kyle Tucker in the trade that brought Paredes from the Chicago Cubs. But while Walker is a significant upgrade at first, the turnover of position players would leave the Astros with questionable defense at second and in left. And the trade of Ryan Pressly to the Cubs will weaken their bullpen.
Defense: The Dodgers’ Achilles heel?
Perhaps it’s wishful thinking, but one rival executive views defense as the Los Angeles Dodgers’ one potential weakness.
The executive, granted anonymity for his candor, sees it like this: Teoscar Hernández and Michael Conforto lack range in the outfield corners. Center fielder Tommy Edman is a better infielder than outfielder. The infield, too, is not without concerns.
Freddie Freeman remains solid at first. Hyeseong Kim figures to be at least as good as Gavin Lux was at second. Max Muncy, when healthy, is fine at third. But shortstop hinges on how much Mookie Betts improves after a full offseason and spring training trying to master the position. Freeman is 35, Muncy 34, Betts 32.
Miguel Rojas and Chris Taylor are reasonable alternatives as infield reserves. The same goes for Andy Pages and James Outman in the outfield. But it might turn out the Dodgers need to sign one more free agent — super utility man Kiké Hernández, a quality defender in both the infield and outfield.
The Dodgers last season ranked third in Defensive Runs Saved and 10th in Outs Above Average. They also were 12th in strikeout rate, a ranking that might improve this season with the signings of Blake Snell, Roki Sasaki, Tanner Scott and, if he passes his physical, Kirby Yates.
Additional strikeouts will be necessary if the defense proves less than stellar.
“Obviously big stuff and being hard to hit and striking guys out are good things to add into a group,” general manager Brandon Gomes told reporters at the news conference introducing Scott. “But I think it’s more of just how things have played out, rather than just completely targeting one type of profile.”
Skenes planning next step forward
Pittsburgh Pirates right-hander Paul Skenes doesn’t need to work on much, not after winning the 2024 National League Rookie of the Year with a 1.96 ERA in 133 innings. Skenes, who turns 23 on May 29, finished with a 33.1 percent strikeout rate and 6.2 percent walk rate, a ratio only Spencer Strider exceeded as a rookie.
Naturally, though, Skenes is thinking about how to get better. On Saturday night, I asked him on Foul Territory’s broadcast from the New York Baseball Writers’ Dinner the number one thing he wanted to improve. Skenes said he wanted to attack the zone more, citing the respective Cy Young Award winners, Tarik Skubal and Chris Sale.
“I think there were a lot of times last year where I just put myself in bad positions a little bit,” Skenes said. “After the season was over, I had one of the analysts at LSU run some numbers for me on Skubal, Sale and then me. They pretty much led in just about every category, which shows that is how you pitch at a very high level. That’s how you win those awards, winning the first two out of three pitches, strike percentage, first-pitch strike percentage, stuff like that. Those are the process-oriented goals I’m focusing on this year a little bit more.”
Erik Kratz, a former catcher with the Pirates and eight other clubs, asked Skenes, “You had to go back to LSU to get analytics?”
Skenes laughed.
“Our analysts with the Pirates are very good,” Skenes said. “I just happened to be talking to him, and he went home and ran the numbers for me. I didn’t ask him to do it.”
Sale was fourth in first-pitch strike percentage last season at 69.2 percent, while Skubal was fifth at 68.5 percent among pitchers who threw at least 162 innings, according to STATS Perform. Skenes was significantly below them at 62.1 percent.
In overall strike percentage, Skubal ranked fifth at 69.3 percent, Sale 36th at 67.2 percent and Skenes 71st at 66.1 percent, among pitchers with more than 1,000 pitches thrown.
“The analysts, I don’t know, sometimes they get in the way. But a lot of times they have really good stuff,” Skenes said. “(The Pirates’ analysts) came to me last year and said, ‘Hey, you should throw your sinker more to lefties with two strikes.’ I was like, ‘Ok, let’s try it.’ And then it worked. Usually, if they’re coming to you with something, they’re probably right. You probably should listen to them usually.”
And finally…
It’s Jan. 27, and four teams — the Minnesota Twins, St. Louis Cardinals, San Diego Padres and Miami Marlins — have yet to sign a major-league free agent. Dozens of players remain on the open market, including a number of quality relievers. The Los Angeles Angels, exploring all areas of improvement, have told at least one agent they have two or three bullpen spots to fill.
One reason the open market remains clogged is that teams continue to discuss trades. The Seattle Mariners’ Luis Castillo and San Diego Padres’ Dylan Cease and Michael King, for example, are among the starting pitchers who remain in play (King asked for $8.8 million in arbitration and the Padres offered $7.325 million; a hearing appears likely).
Most of the best free-agent starting pitchers — Max Fried, Corbin Burnes, Blake Snell, Roki Sasaki — are now signed. But Jack Flaherty and Nick Pivetta are among those who remain available. Pivetta appears hindered by his rejection of a qualifying offer, making him subject to draft-pick compensation. But the continuing presence of trade alternatives isn’t helping him and Flaherty, either.
An offseason trade deadline — say, at the end of the Winter Meetings — likely would juice the free-agent market. But Major League Baseball would not agree to that type of deadline without another for free-agent signings, according to sources briefed on past discussions. The league proposed a signing deadline in the last round of collective bargaining. The players’ side, however, opposes restrictions of the open market.
(Top photo of Steve Cohen and Pete Alonso: Rob Tringali / MLB Photos via Getty Images)
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