While my opinions on the wisdom of picking up Craig Kimbrel’s option were pretty clear-cut (and I am aghast at the number of people who believe he can actually be traded for something worthwhile), the decision on César Hernández’s option is far murkier.
When Rick Hahn traded Nick Madrigal to the Cubs for Kimbrel, it was assumed that Hernández was going to fill the void left by picking up his $6 million option for 2022. Though by no means a superstar, César had been a steady hand for his entire career on both offense and defense, and $6 million to lock down the position with a competent veteran seemed a good way to fill in on a budget while investing more heavily elsewhere (right field, anybody?