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Archives for July 2013

Odds & Ends: Thornton, Soriano, Mariners, Rockies

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Here's today's look around baseball..

  • Other teams passed on Matt Thornton because they felt that he hasn’t been throwing well and that the cost of acquiring him outweighed the possible reward, writes Buster Olney of ESPN.com (Insider sub. req'd).  The cost for the Red Sox was giving up a 22-year-old minor league outfielder in Brandon Jacobs and taking on the remainder of Thornton's salary, less the $750K that came from the White Sox.
  • Jerry Crasnick of ESPN.com sized up the trade market for Windy City outfielders Alfonso Soriano and Alex Rios.  Recently, our own Steve Adams sized up the trade market for corner outfielders and center fielders as the deadline approaches.
  • Teams are waiting on the Mariners, Phillies, and Giants to decide their strategy before the trade deadline as they all have "useful players", tweets Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe.
  • The Rockies could conceivably go out-of-house to replace Todd Helton once he retires, but they have a couple of options to turn to in their farm system, writes Irv Moss of The Denver Post.

East Notes: Red Sox, Mets, Byrd, Buchholz

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The Red Sox bolstered their bullpen last night when they acquired Matt Thornton (and cash) from the White Sox in exchange for minor league outfielder Brandon Jacobs.  The left-hander hasn't been quite as sharp this season as he has in years past, but Boston hopes that he'll help fill their need for a quality southpaw after losing Andrew Miller for the season.  Here's more out of the AL and NL East..

  • Mets assistant GM J.P. Ricciardi told Jim Bowden of SiriusXM (via Twitter) that the club will only move Marlon Byrd if they can get a serious return.  Andy Martino of the Daily News heard earlier this week that the Mets were unlikely to trade the veteran, though one scout noted that GM Sandy Alderson & Co. could just be looking to drive up the price.
  • Clay Buchholz's timeline for returning has been pushed back a bit, which could lead the Red Sox to put a little more thought into acquiring a starter before the deadline, writes Tim Britton of the Providence Journal.  Buchholz was originally scheduled to make a rehab start tomorrow, but he'll instead spend some time regaining his arm strength with bullpen sessions.
  • In speaking to season ticket holders, Orioles Executive Vice President Dan Duquette explained that the club has the financial resources to make deals that are worthwhile, writes Rich Dubroff of CSNBaltimore.com.  “The addition of Scott Feldman to our team was a sign that we want to be in this thing,” Duquette said.
  • Ed Rendell of the Philadelphia Daily News suggests that the Phillies should look to add a quality reliever like Jesse Crain of the White Sox while moving Carlos Ruiz, who he has value given the lack of quality catching out there.

NL Central Notes: Cubs, Theo, Garza, Pirates

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While most in the baseball world will fly out to Queens for the upcoming All-Star festivities, Cubs president Theo Epstein will miss out on the fun and Pat LaFrieda's steak sandwiches in order to man the phones back in Chicago, writes Tom Ginnetti of the Sun-Times.  "These days, more is done on the cellphones,’’ Epstein said of trade talk.  "It’s almost harder to get things done when you’re at the All Star Game trying to find people."  Here's more out of the NL Central..

  • We've been hearing that the price tag on Matt Garza is rather high and with 18 days to go until the trade deadline, it hasn't dipped, according to Buster Olney of ESPN.com (on Twitter).
  • The Cubs have put a lot of work into their farm system in recent years and it appears to be in great shape, particularly with this year's addition of No. 2 overall pick Kris Bryant, writes Bruce Miles of the Daily Herald.
  • The Pirates' unpopular trade of Nate McLouth in 2009 has yielded tremendous results, writes Mike Petriello of ESPN.com (Insider subscription required).  While McLouth has been up-and-down in the four years since the deal, Pittsburgh landed promising pitchers Jeff Locke and Charlie Morton.

Cubs Claim Cole Gillespie Off Waivers

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The Cubs announced that they have claimed Cole Gillespie off waivers from the Giants.  The outfielder was designated for assignment by San Francisco earlier this week.

Gillespie, 29, played in just three games for the Giants' varsity squad this season.  In 269 plate appearances for the club's Triple-A affiliate this season, the outfielder slashed .277/.361/.455 with nine homers.  Gillespie is expected to provide the Cubs with depth in the outfield but will not yet report to the club today, according to the press release.

Reactions To The Thornton Trade

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Last night, the Red Sox made the first major move on the trade deadline relief pitching market, sending mid-level prospect Brandon Jacobs to the White Sox for lefty Matt Thornton. (The Rockies did snag Mitchell Boggs from the Cardinals, but that deal shapes up as more of a roll of the dice given that Boggs has spent most of the year toiling in Triple-A.) Let's take a look at some of the initial reactions to Boston's move to replace the injured Andrew Miller:

  • Looking at the deal from a broader perspective, MLB Network's Peter Gammons tweets that it carries lessons about the trade market. Namely, says Gammons, the deal shows that free cash and toolsy prospects are a powerful combination of trade commodities for a contender to wield.
  • Indeed, White Sox GM Rick Hahn says that the club has been pursuing Jacobs for over a year, reports Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune. "He's an athletic kid who projects to be a power bat/corner outfielder," Hahn explained. "He's a toolsy player with upside to be an everyday corner outfielder."
  • While a trade of Thornton became more and more inevitable as Chicago's season continued to turn south, the late-inning stalwart will be missed by Sox fans. Jim Margalus of South Side Sox took a look at Thornton's interesting path to becoming a dominant reliever.
  • From Boston's side of things, the team is tempered in its hopes for Thornton. As the Boston Herald's Scott Lauber explains, the Red Sox intend to deploy him primarily in the sixth and seventh innings and as a lefty specialist. In spite of Thornton's history of success against batters on both sides of the plate, he has been much better against lefties this year. GM Ben Cherington said that whereas Thornton once possessed "elite, elite stuff, … it may just be really good stuff now. But we're confident he has enough stuff to be effective in the role that we need him in." (Click here for a transcript of all of Cherington's remarks, courtesy of WEEI.com's Rob Bradford.)
  • Lauber also notes that the Red Sox would have been facing a decision on Jacobs in the offseason. Had the club retained him, it would have had to place him on the 40-man roster to protect him from the Rule 5 draft.
  • Jacobs has largely failed to convert his tools into on-field production, Alex Speier of WEEI.com details. Nonetheless, given his immense upside — Speier says a Red Sox official told him that Jacobs had far more tools than Jackie Bradley Jr. — a team like the White Sox was sure to pluck him in the Rule 5 draft. Hence, Speier suggests, it made sense for Boston to cash in Jacobs now.

Astros Extend Jose Altuve

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Diminutive second baseman Jose Altuve already has “his face on the side of the stadium,” explains Astros GM Jeff Luhnow, and now has the contract to support his status as the team’s biggest attraction. Altuve agreed today to an extension that will guarantee him $12.5MM over the next four years and includes two club options for the 2018 and 2019 seasons ($6MM and $6.5MM, respectively). In addition to buying out Altuve’s remaining pre-arbitration season and all of his arbitration years, the Astros now control the 23-year-old Altuve for his first two free agent-eligible seasons.

Jose Altuve

Altuve, a client of Octagon since leaving the Boras Corporation in May, has held down the club's regular second base job since last year. Altuve emerged last year with a .290/.340/.399 line and 33 stolen bases over a full season of 630 plate appearances. He has failed to maintain quite that pace so far this season, however, as he currently sports a .280/.317/.354 line in 380 plate appearances. Altuve has swiped another 21 bags thus far in 2013, though, and advanced defensive metrics peg him as a stable, if unspectacular, presence at the keystone. 

The move to lock up Altuve represents the first significant long-term commitment since Houston handed the reigns to GM Jeff Luhnow, but is unlikely to be the last. The deal does not provide Altuve with any no-trade protection. While the Astros will only be bound to pay $12.5MM to Altuve over the next four seasons, the deal would be worth up to $25MM over its full six year term if the club exercises both options. Altuve was not set to reach arbitration eligibility until 2014 and will not be eligible for free agency until 2017, at which time the Astros will have to decide whether to exercise one or both of the options they hold.

As MLBTR's Tim Dierkes explained upon Altuve's change of agents, the then-hot-hitting Altuve could conceivably have been worth a five-year deal in the range of up to $30MM. Dierkes pointed to the relevant, if not precisely comparable, extensions given to Alcides Escobar (four years, $10.5MM) and Cameron Maybin (five years, $25MM). With Altuve cooling off at the plate considerably since that time, the parties seem to have followed the Escobar model in structuring this deal. Both the Altuve and Escobar extensions guaranteed four pre-free agent seasons in exchange for a pair of options. Altuve, like Escobar, is a light-hitting, speedy middle infielder whose value is heavily dependent upon getting on base. In that respect, Altuve’s lower walk rate and higher strikeout rate this year (as against 2012) are of some concern, especially since his ISO is also down.

While Altuve has yet to take the step forward that some expected after an All Star appearance last season, he nevertheless remains a valuable young commodity. Luhnow says that the team felt the time was right to “remov[e] some of the uncertainty for him and for us.” Certainly, by reaching agreement now, Houston was able to lock up Altuve at a lower price than he might have commanded earlier in the year (or, conceivably, could command down the line). And the limited guarantee holds down the deal's risk to an Astros organization that has been highly protective of its present and future payroll.

Brian McTaggart of MLB.com was the first to report that the parties had reached agreement. McTaggart also tweeted that the deal did not include a no-trade clause. CBSSports.com’s Jon Heyman provided the first detail on the length and value of the contract (on Twitter), with FOX Sports' Ken Rosenthal reporting the value of the option years (also via Twitter). 

Photo courtesy of Troy Taormina/USA Today Sports Images.

Minor Moves: Eric Patterson

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You can check here throughout the day to learn of any notable minor moves …

  • The Brewers have signed utilityman Eric Patterson to a minor league deal and plan to assign him to the club's Double-A affiliate, reports Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. The 30-year-old Patterson is not only the younger brother of long-time big leaguer Corey Patterson — who was recently released from his own minor league deal – but has seen MLB action in parts of five seasons (2007-11). Over 575 career plate appearances spread across 226 games with the Cubs, A's, Red Sox, and Padres, Patterson has managed a cumulative .217/.294/.343 line to go with ten home runs and 35 stolen bases.
  • Four players currently reside in DFA limbo: Pedro Ciriaco of the Padres, Jair Jurrjens of the Orioles, Travis Ishikawa of the Yankees, and Cole Gillespie of the Giants.

Red Sox Acquire Matt Thornton

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The Red Sox bolstered their bullpen tonight when they acquired left-handed pitcher Matt Thornton from the White Sox in exchange for outfielder Brandon Jacobs.  The White Sox also sent $750K out east to help take care of a portion of Thornton's salary.

Thornton, 36, is owed about $3.5MM over the remainder of the season. A fixture in the White Sox's bullpen since 2006, the lefty owns a 3.86 ERA with 6.8 K/9 and 2.3 BB/9 in 28 innings this year.  In ten big league seasons, eight of which have been in Chicago, Thornton owns a career 3.53 ERA with 9.3 K/9 and 3.6 BB/9.  

Thornton

Thornton's name has come up quite a bit on the pages of MLBTR as speculation has increased that the White Sox would look to sell at this year's deadline.  The deal brings GM Rick Hahn a decent prospect while freeing them from the bulk of Thornton's remaining 2013 salary.  For Boston, the veteran could theoretically be more than a rental as he has a $6MM club option with a modest $1MM buyout for 2014.

Jacobs, a 22-year-old outfielder, was recently promoted to Double-A Portland in the Red Sox's system after hitting .244/.334/.440 for the club's High A affiliate.  Baseball America's 2013 Prospect Handbook had him ranked at the 13th best prospect in the BoSox system coming into this season.  According to BA, he had one of the more intriguing bats of anyone in the Red Sox farm system despite his dip in production from his breakout Low-A season in 2011 to his last two seasons in Advanced-A ball.

A source told Sean McAdam of CSNNE.com (via Twitter) that the two clubs have been discussing a deal for Thornton, but talks picked up when Andrew Miller was ruled out for the season.  Meanwhile, Hahn says that he had serious talks about the lefty with seven or eight clubs before pulling the trigger on this deal, tweets Dan Hayes of CSNChicago.com.

The White Sox still have a number of key trade chips that could be moved, including Alex Rios, Matt Thornton, Matt Lindstrom, and possibly Jake Peavy and Jesse Crain when they return to action.  Crain figures to bring back the best return of any White Sox reliever if he can come back healthy in time.

Alex Speier of WEEI (on Twitter) reported the cash amount headed to the Red Sox in the deal.  Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Quick Hits: Orza, Orioles, Boras, Gardenhire

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Here's tonight's look around baseball..

  • A source tells MLB Network's Peter Gammons (Twitter link) that Gene Orza may rejoin the MLB Players Association. Orza retired as the organization's chief operating officer before the 2011 season. In a Thursday article, Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports reported that Donald Fehr, the predecessor to current MLBPA executive director Michael Weiner, could also return to the association,. 
  • Orioles Vice President Dan Duquette says his club wants to see how its newly revamped rotation, which features recent acquisition Scott Feldman and a now-healthy Wei-Yin Chen, performs before it considers adding another starting pitcher via trade. Duquette also discussed the possibility of trading prospects for big leaguers in an article by Steve Melewski of MASNSports.com. "I wouldn't handicap our opportunities to make additional deals," Duquette said. "We're going to be active in the market to try and help our team so we can go back to the playoffs and have another crack at it."
  • Jim Callis of Baseball America (via Twitter) notes that the top four MLB draft bonuses of all time went to players advised by Scott Boras: Gerrit Cole ($8MM), Stephen Strasburg ($7.5MM), Bubba Starling ($7.5MM) and Kris Bryant ($6.7MM).
  • Leaks of names associated with the Biogenesis scandal are a violation of baseball's collective bargaining agreement, Scott Boras says in an article by Bruce Levine of ESPNChicago.com. "I don't know where [the leaks] are coming from," Boras said. "There are only a very small group of parties that have access to this information. Whenever these things happen, whoever is doing it, is not serving the game well." MLB Players Association executive director Michael Weiner has also criticized the leaks in recent days, saying they "threaten to harm the integrity of the Joint Drug Agreement and call into question the required level of confidentiality needed to operate a successful prevention program."
  • Twins manager Ron Gardenhire doesn't intend to resign, despite the team's recent poor play, Phil Miller of the Star Tribune reports.  In comments earlier this month, Twins GM Terry Ryan accepted some of the blame for the Twins' losing ways. "I put this roster together. I've told Gardy to do the best he can. I understand that I don't have a perfect roster here," Ryan acknowledged.
  • White Sox GM Rick Hahn said in a conference call with reporters that the team remains active in trade discussions after shipping reliever Matt Thornton off to Boston. "We're going to keep talking and see where it leads over the coming weeks," Hahn is quoted as saying in a tweet from the South Siders' official feed.

Minor Moves: Owings, Gardner, Rosales

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Here are Friday's minor moves from around the league…

  • The Brewers signed pitcher/outfielder Micah Owings to a minor league deal, the club announced.  Owings will both pitch and play the outfield in the Brewers' system, assistant GM Gord Ash told Todd Rosiak of the Journal Sentinel.  On the mound, Owings had a 4.86 ERA with 6.5 K/9 and 3.9 BB/9 across six big league seasons.
  • Joe Gardner, who was designated for assignment by the Rockies earlier this week, was outrighted to Colorado's Triple-A affiliate, according to the Texas League's transactions page.
  • Adam Rosales has cleared waivers and been outrighted to Triple-A Sacramento, the Athletics announced on Twitter. The 30-year-old Rosales had been designated for assignment earlier in the week after hitting .200/.273/.331 in 147 plate appearances this year.
  • The Red Sox signed right-hander Bobby Lanigan and assigned him to Double-A Portland after he was released by the Twins, tweets Alex Speier of WEEI.com. The 26-year-old pitched to a 3.68 ERA with 5.2 K/9 and 3.4 BB/9 in 29 1/3 innings between Double-A and Triple-A for Minnesota this season. He was the Twins' third-round pick in 2008.
  • Three players currently reside in DFA limbo: Jair Jurrjens of the Orioles, Travis Ishikawa of the Yankees, and Cole Gillespie of the Giants.

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