MLB News Tracker: Gurriel Signs Extension, Cardinals Lose Hudson to Tommy John, and More
As the MLB postseason gets underway, 16 teams around the league are vying for the coveted title of World Series champion. While most of the focus is on the games at hand, there is still ample news around the league off the field. Here is a look at some of the biggest stories from the last week:
Yuli Gurriel Signs Extension
On Tuesday, hours before taking the field against the Minnesota Twins in Game 1 of their Wild Card series, the Houston Astros announced that they had reached an agreement on a one-year deal with first baseman Yuli Gurriel. The deal also includes a club option for 2022.
The extension is worth $6.5 million but has several incentives that could push the deal even higher. Furthermore, it has a club option for 2022 at $8 million (with a $500,000 buyout).
The Astros will need to re-sign or replace an entire outfield, as George Springer, Michael Brantley, and Josh Reddick are all free agents. There is also a newfound vacancy in the rotation after Justin Verlander had Tommy John surgery. The Guriel extension checks off one of the more important boxes on general manager James Click’s To-Do list for this offseason.
Gurriel, like many of the Astros, is having a down year this year. In 211 at-bats, he is hitting .232/.274/.384 with six home runs, 22 runs batted in, and 27 runs scored. Still, he is just a year removed from hitting .298/.343/.541 with 31 home runs and 104 RBIs. The Astros will hope he can revert to that level of production next season, but at age 36, that might be easier said than done.
Reds Hope To Retain Trevor Bauer
The Cincinnati Reds are taking on the Atlanta Braves in the Wild Card round, and their playoff appearance is primarily due to their starting pitching. One pitcher in particular, Trevor Bauer, has been instrumental to their success.
On the season, Bauer is 5-4 with a 1.73 ERA, 0.80 WHIP, and he has struck out 100 batters in 73 innings pitched. The Reds’ problem is that Bauer will be a free agent at the end of the season.
According to Reds President of Baseball Operations, Dick Williams, the team is hopeful they can bring their star hurler back. With Bauer, the Reds should be annual competitors for the NL Central title, but it would be a massive blow to the rotation to lose him.
Signing him may be tricky, though. Bauer has previously explained that he will be exploring the free-agent market and could go year-to-year with his contracts.
Regardless, after the season that he has had, Bauer will get paid handsomely this offseason. Now, it is up to the Reds to determine if they are willing to pay the money or not.
Dakota Hudson Has Tommy John Surgery
The St. Louis Cardinals’ starting rotation took a hit this week as it was announced that Dakota Hudson underwent Tommy John surgery on Monday. Not only does this knock him out of this postseason, but it will likely knock him out of the entire 2021 season as well.
In 2020, Hudson was 3-2 with a 2.77 ERA, 1.00 WHIP, and had struck out 31 batters in 39 innings pitched. His absence leaves a considerable void, but the Cardinals are turning to the trio of Kwang Hyun Kim, Adam Wainwright, and Jack Flaherty to be the trio of starters in their best-of-three matchup with the San Diego Padres. ‘
