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Hector Olivera is the last major free agent of this offseason, the final piece that could dramatically change the fortunes of whichever team signs him. He batted .316/.412/.474 in 2013, his last season in Cuba’s Serie Nacional, and unlike Yoan Moncada, is ready to step into the majors immediately as he’s already 29. It’s no guarantee that he hits that well when he’s playing in MLB, but the potential for an impact bat is there, and that’s no small thing in what is currently a pitchers’ game.
No one knows exactly what he’s going to sign for. The Padres want Olivera badly, as they could use him at third base instead of Will Middlebrooks or utility man Yangervis Solarte, or at second instead of Jedd Gyorko if he fails to recapture any of his rookie promise. They won’t pay the reported $70 million it might take to get Olivera, though, and neither will the Braves, who have reportedly been in extensive talks with Olivera’s camp. It turns out that nobody might actually bid that much, however: Kiley McDaniel notes that there is something suspicious about the numbers being thrown about for Olivera’s agent, and that the early bids are actually disappointing. Is it a plot to get the Dodgers and their wallet involved? Either way, it sounds like $50 million or less is more what we should expect Olivera to sign for.
A complicating factor is the rumor going around about Olivera’a UCL in his throwing arm. Supposedly, the UCL is damaged and could potentially need Tommy John surgery to repair. While it’s a procedure with a shorter recovery timetable for hitters, it’s still hard to believe anyone would toss $70 million his way if it’s true. His camp denies that his UCL is damaged, but he’s taken a number of physicals already, and whatever the truth is lies with them. We’ll know the answer soon, as we’re just weeks from Opening Day.
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- Brandon McCarthy has dealt with a number of injuries that limited him in his 20s, but a new workout regimen has the Dodgers’ pitcher thinking the 30s are his decade.
- Pablo Sandoval’s decision to leave the Giants as a free agent seemed dramatic, but according to the Panda himself, he already knew he was leaving San Francisco this time last year, thanks to the way the front office treated him in negotiations.
- We love Yasiel Puig as much as anyone (okay, more), but the world did not need a terrifying life-sized bobblehead of him.
- The trade deadline isn’t until July 31, but hey, let’s see if we can figure out how this year’s will look right now.
- The Diamondbacks turned 20 years old on Monday, so here is a look back at what the world was like back in March of 1995.
- Should Brandon Finnegan, the Royals’ first-round pick from the 2014 draft, have a place in their bullpen this season rather than in the minors as a starter?
- We like to get wrapped up in debates about whether the new way of analyzing things in baseball trumps the old, but the argument itself is old, and has existed for almost as long as baseball.
- Of course the Red Sox and Rick Porcello haven’t talked extension yet. Both sides need 2015 to go well before they even know what kind of contract makes sense for the impending free agent.
- The next time the A’s have a plumbing problem at O.co, remember their primary owner is worth almost $3 billion and owns two other sports franchises. He’s not the only MLB owner lying to you about what he can and cannot do with his money, though.
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