PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. — The spring training workout facility created for free agents by the players’ association will close Friday after three weeks.
Major League Baseball Players Association executive director Tony Clark announced the decision Wednesday after meeting with New York Mets players as part of his tour of the 30 team camps.
With dozens of free agents unsigned as spring training began, the camp opened Feb. 13 at the IMG Academy in Bradenton and workouts started the next day. Forty-one players have attended, and Mike Napoli, Adam Lind, Tyler Clippard, Lucas Duda, Alejandro De Aza, Carlos Torres and Tommy Layne left after agreeing to contracts.
Neil Walker, Mark Reynolds, Omar Infante, Jarrod Saltalamacchia and Chris Johnson are among those still seeking deals from among the group that reported.
Top free agents have continued to work out on their own, among them Mike Moustakas, Jake Arrieta, Alex Cobb, Lance Lynn and Greg Holland.
Given the slow pace of free-agent signings during the offseason, Clark and players have questioned whether an increased number of teams are more focused on rebuilding than trying to win now.
“Players are questioning whether the best 750 are on the field, and fans are questioning whether or not they’re seeing the best 750 on the field at any given time,” Clark said. “That’s not a conversation that any of us should want to have.”
MARINERS: Seattle is bringing back Ichiro Suzuki.
The Mariners finalized a one-year deal with 44-year-old Japanese star on Wednesday after several outfielders got hurt.
Suzuki spent his first 11 major league seasons with the Mariners, earning 2001 AL Rookie of the Year and MVP, winning a pair of batting titles and becoming a 10-time All-Star.
Suzuki appeared in 136 games for Miami last year and hit .255 with a .318 on-base percentage.
RAYS: Tampa Bay intends to use a four-man rotation while filling a fifth starter’s role with a combination of multi-inning relievers this season.
Manager Kevin Cash delivered the surprising news, saying the club thinks it has enough pitching depth to make the plan work long-term.
The projected rotation currently features Chris Archer, Nathan Eovaldi, Blake Snell and Jake Faria.
CARDINALS: Closer Luke Gregerson is expected to be sidelined for at least several days with tightness in his oblique.
BLUE JAYS: Reliever Tyler Clippard agreed to a minor league contract and will report to big league spring training.
Clippard was 2-8 with a 4.77 ERA in 76 games last season with the Yankees, White Sox and Astros.
Copy the Story LinkSend questions/comments to the editors.
Success. Please wait for the page to reload. If the page does not reload within 5 seconds, please refresh the page.
Enter your email and password to access comments.
Hi, to comment on stories you must . This profile is in addition to your subscription and website login.
Already have a commenting profile? .
Invalid username/password.
Please check your email to confirm and complete your registration.
Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Here’s why.
Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.