November 17, 2024

By Kevin Glew

Canadian Baseball Network

Some Canadian baseball notes from the past week:

Smith deserved to be AL Rookie of the Year finalist

Baltimore Orioles outfielder Colton Cowser, New York Yankees right-hander Luis Gil and Yankees catcher Austin Wells are the finalists for the Baseball Writers’ Association of America (BBWAA) American League Rookie of the Year award. It’s really hard for me to understand how Cleveland Guardians right-hander Cade Smith (Abbotsford, B.C.) is not a finalist. Not only was Smith one of the top rookie pitchers in the AL in 2024, he was one of the top relief pitchers in all of Major League Baseball period.

Here’s a summary of Smith’s accomplishments this season:

-6-1 record and a 1.91 ERA in 74 relief appearances

-Struck out 103 batters in 75 1/3 innings. This made him just the fourth Canadian reliever to fan 100 in a big-league campaign.

-He topped all Canadian pitchers in ERA, games, holds (28), WAR (2.5), WHIP (0.90) and opponents’ batting average (.190).

-Among rookie major league relievers, he ranked first in innings pitched, tied for first in wins and second in games, strikeouts and holds.

-He allowed just two of 36 inherited runners to score, which was the best ratio for a relief pitcher in MLB.

-He topped major league relievers with a 2.7 fWAR and 1.40 Fielding Independent Pitching (FIP).

-His dominance continued in the playoffs when he appeared in nine games for the Guardians, which set a record for most by a Canadian pitcher in a single postseason.

-His 12 strikeouts in the American League Division Series were a Division Series record for a reliever.

I expected Cowser and Gil to be finalists, but to include Wells over Smith is baffling. Without wasting an entire column on why Smith is a better choice than Wells, I present one stat: Smith had better WAR (2.7) as a relief pitcher who appeared in 74 games than Wells (2.5) had in 115 games as the Yankees’ regular catcher.

The winner of the American League Rookie of the Year award will be announced tomorrow.

Report: Pivetta unlikely to accept Red Sox qualifying offer

ESPN’s Jeff Passan wrote on Tuesday that right-hander Nick Pivetta (Victoria, B.C.) is unlikely to accept the Boston Red Sox qualifying offer prior to Tuesday’s 4 p.m. E.T. deadline. In his article, Passan reiterated that the market for Pivetta is strong and that the Canuck righty is “looking at one of the biggest deals of the winter for a starter.”

“Teams believe his stuff plays like a front-line starter,” writes Passan.

When the Red Sox extended a qualifying offer to Pivetta on November 5, it surprised many in the industry. The 31-year-old Canadian went 6-12 with a 4.14 ERA in 27 games (26 starts) for the Red Sox in 2024, but he also struck out 172 batters in 145 2/3 innings.

The amount of the qualifying offer (which is calculated based on the average of the top 125 salaries in MLB) for 2025 is $21.05 million, which is nearly three times what Pivetta made in 2023 ($7.5 million).

If Pivetta declines the qualifying offer and signs with another club, the Red Sox will receive a compensatory pick prior to the third round in next year’s draft.

Soroka an appealing free agent

In an article published on Monday, MLB.com stats analyst Mike Petriello made a convincing case for why teams should sign free agent right-hander Michael Soroka (Calgary, Alta.). Petriello noted that Soroka had a 39% strikeout rate after the Chicago White Sox shifted him to the bullpen in 2024. That’s the second highest strikeout rate in MLB (for a reliever that faced at least 150 batters) behind only Oakland A’s closer Mason Miller at 42%.

Soroka was dealt to the White Sox by the Atlanta Braves last November. After a rocky start to the season as a starter with the Sox, he was moved to the bullpen. In 16 relief appearances, he posted a 2.75 ERA and struck out 60 batters in 36 innings.

MLB Trade Rumors projects that Soroka is in line for two-year, $14-million contract. A graduate of the Calgary Redbirds and Junior National Team, Soroka, who’s still only 27, was a first-round pick (28th overall) of the Braves in 2015. His career has been hampered by injuries, most notably he tore his right Achilles tendon twice, but he only had one stretch on the injured list (shoulder strain) in 2024.

Brash recovering well from Tommy John surgery

Seattle Mariners right-hander Matt Brash (Kingston, Ont.) told Above Replacement Radio this week that has had no setbacks in his recovery from his Tommy John surgery that he underwent in May. “My elbow feels great,” he said. “I’ve been throwing for a couple of months now.” In the interview, Brash said the surgery would not change the way he pitches in the future, which means he will continue to throw his devastating slider.

The 6-foot-1 righty will continue his rehab program in the off-season and is projected to return to the Mariners in June 2025. In 2023, in his second big league campaign, Brash developed into a go-to late-inning reliever for the Mariners. He led major league pitchers with 78 appearances and had a 9-4 record and a 3.06 ERA. He fanned 107 batters in 70 2/3 innings, good for a 13.6 strikeout-per-nine-inning rate.

10th anniversary of Blue Jays signing Martin

It was on this date 10 years ago that the Toronto Blue Jays officially signed free agent catcher Russell Martin (Montreal, Que.) to a five-year, $82.5-million contract. That remains the largest contract the Blue Jays have ever handed out to a Canadian-born player (This will change if the Blue Jays are able to sign Vladimir Guerrero Jr. to an extension).

In his first season with the Blue Jays, Martin belted a career-best 23 homers to earn his fourth All-Star selection and help the club to their first postseason appearance in 22 years. He clubbed 20 more homers in 2016 to help propel the Blue Jays to the playoffs for a second consecutive year. In total, in parts of four seasons with the Blue Jays, he hit 66 home runs in 447 games.

Martin was inducted into the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame in 2024.

Bell became first Jay to win MVP 37 years ago

Thirty-seven years ago today, George Bell became the first Blue Jays player to win the American League Most Valuable Player Award. The right-handed hitting left fielder edged out Detroit Tigers shortstop Alan Trammell for the honour. In 1987, Bell batted .308 and belted 47 home runs and topped the American League in RBIs (134) and total bases (369). The only Blue Jay to surpass that single-season RBI total is Carlos Delgado. Delgado had 137 RBIs in 2000 and 145 RBIs in 2003.

Former Vancouver Canadians skipper named Miami Marlins manager

The Miami Marlins named Clayton McCullough their new manager on Monday.

That name might sound familiar to Blue Jays fans. From 2006 to 2014, McCullough worked in different roles in the Blue Jays’ organization, including spending seven as a minor league manager. He was the dugout boss of the Low-A Vancouver Canadians in 2012 and 2013, piloting them to 46-30 and 39-37 records respectively. In total, McCullough led Blue Jays’ affiliates to a winning record in six of seven seasons and received two Manager of the Year awards.

He has spent the last 10 seasons in the Los Angeles Dodgers’ organization, most recently serving as the club’s first base coach from 2021 to 2024.

He takes over a Marlins team that went 62-100 and finished in last place in the National League East in 2024.

Wilson was Marlins’ first expansion pick

Thirty-two years ago today, the Marlins selected 22-year-old outfielder Nigel Wilson (Ajax, Ont.) from the Blue Jays with their first pick in the 1992 MLB Expansion draft. Signed as an amateur free agent by the Blue Jays in 1988, he spent five years in their system. The left-handed hitting slugger suited up for seven games for the Marlins in 1993. He would enjoy his greatest professional success, however, with the Japan Pacific League’s Nippon Ham Fighters where he clubbed at least 33 home runs in three different seasons between 1997 and 2000.

In that same expansion draft, the Colorado Rockies selected outfielder/DH Kevin Reimer (Enderby, B.C.) with their ninth pick and promptly traded him to the Milwaukee Brewers for Dante Bichette. The Rockies also chose Denis Boucher (Lachine, Que.) but swapped the Canadian southpaw to the San Diego Padres the following spring.

Jenkins dealt to the Red Sox 49 years ago

It was 49 years ago today that the Texas Rangers traded Canadian baseball legend Fergie Jenkins (Chatham, Ont.) to the Red Sox for outfielder Juan Beniquez, left-hander Steve Barr and a player to be named later (who turned out to be Craig Skok). Jenkins proceeded to go 22-21 with a 3.47 ERA and toss 23 complete games in 58 appearances with the Red Sox over the next two seasons before being dealt back to the Rangers on December 14, 1977.

Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame Holiday Silent Auction to begin on Monday

The Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame’s annual Holiday Silent Auction fundraiser is set to begin on Monday. This is their 21st annual Holiday Auction and more than 100 items will be featured, including jerseys signed by Pedro Martinez and Jesse Barfield and balls signed by Jose Bautista, Joe Carter, and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. There will also be Blue Jays, Toronto Raptors and Toronto Maple Leafs tickets to bid on. You can read more about the auction and the items here.