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Archives for April 2014

Ryan Roberts Accepts Outright Assignment

By Steve Adams | April 22, 2014 at 8:30am CDT

Infielder Ryan Roberts has cleared waivers after being designated for assignment and accepted an outright assignment to Triple-A Pawtucket, the Red Sox announced yesterday.

The 33-year-old Roberts collected just two hits and three walks in 22 plate appearances for the Sox after signing a Major League deal with them when Will Middlebrooks went down with an injury. Though he didn’t perform particularly well in that very small sample, Roberts has demonstrated in the past that he has enough pop and speed to post double-digit totals in homers and stolen bases, particularly in his 2011 campaign with the D’Backs when he slashed .249/.321/.427 with 19 homers and 18 steals.

For his career, Roberts owns a .243/.320/.388 batting line with 46 homers and 35 stolen bases. He’s been particularly useful against left-handed pitching, hitting at a .261/.337/.435 clip. Defensive Runs Saved feels that he’s an average defender at third base and has been worth +5 runs in about a season’s worth of innings at second base (1357), while UZR/150 feels he’s a plus defender at each position.

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Boston Red Sox Transactions Ryan Roberts

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Ryan Rowland-Smith Elects Free Agency

By Steve Adams | April 22, 2014 at 8:17am CDT

The Diamondbacks announced yesterday that left-hander Ryan Rowland-Smith has cleared waivers after being designated for assignment and elected free agency rather than accept an outright assignment to Triple-A.

The 31-year-old Australian made a return to the Major Leagues this season after a three-year absence, and though he posted a 4.91 ERA in a small 7 1/3 inning sample size, he also struck out nine batters in that time and limited left-handed batters to three singles in 12 plate appearances.

For his career, Rowland-Smith has a 4.57 ERA with 5.6 K/9, 3.4 BB/9 and a 37.5 percent ground-ball rate. He’s worked 47 games as a starter and posted a 4.87 ERA in that time, but in 100 1/3 innings of relief, he’s posted a much better 3.77 ERA with an even better 3.59 FIP, suggesting that he could be a useful arm out of the bullpen.

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Arizona Diamondbacks Transactions Ryan Rowland-Smith

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MLBTR Is Back

By Tim Dierkes | April 22, 2014 at 6:52am CDT

MLB Trade Rumors is back!  It’s been a trying several days for our website, as our blogging platform was subject to distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks.  We tried in vain all day yesterday to get MLBTR back online.  Ultimately, we were able to simply move up a planned change in blogging platforms by one day.  So, MLBTR is now operational on WordPress, hosted by WP Engine.  We appreciate your patience.

DDoS attacks involve sending huge amounts of traffic to websites or groups of websites in hopes of crashing them.  It’s not an issue of hacking, as nothing was broken into, but our blogging platform was flooded and knocked offline.  It’s a serious attack though, and doesn’t have a quick fix.  In this case, the goal of crashing our former blogging platform, TypePad, was apparently to extort money from them.  This post from Sarah Perez of TechCrunch has further details.  TypePad has been working round-the-clock to restore their websites.

Launching on WordPress one day early means we still have a few minor issues on the site, mainly a gap in our archive from March 13th through April 20th.  We’ve filled in all of Monday, April 21st with new posts, however, and will be writing new ones today as usual.

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Oscar Taveras Changes Agencies

By Tim Dierkes | April 21, 2014 at 10:53pm CDT

Cardinals prospect Oscar Taveras has changed agencies yet again, according to a report from Jesse Sanchez of MLB.com (via Twitter). Taveras will now be represented by Dan Lozano and Brian Mejia of MVP Sports Group.

Taveras, 21, has moved between agencies quite a bit for a player who has yet to see his first MLB action. The outfielder has consistently been rated as among the game’s very best prospects over the last few seasons, but injuries and the lack of need at the big league level have kept him in the upper minors. Taveras has produced at every level of the minors, and is off to a .297/.348/.500 start in his second stint at Triple-A (after a shortened season there in 2013).

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St. Louis Cardinals Oscar Taveras

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Twins Still Looking To Improve Bench

By Tim Dierkes | April 21, 2014 at 9:42pm CDT

The Twins have been active in seeking bench help in the past week or so, acquiring Eduardo Nunez from the Yankees (in exchange for lefty Miguel Sulbaran) and claiming Sam Fuld off waivers from the A’s. It doesn’t sound like the team has any plans to stop actively seeking bench upgrades on the waiver wire, however, reports Mike Berardino of the St. Paul Pioneer Press. Neal spoke with manager Ron Gardenhire, who expressed a continued emphasis on improvements:

“We aren’t finished. We’re going to get better. We’re going to continue to get better. We’re going to keep changing around until we get what we want and get a feel for what we want off the bench. How we can move people around. And we are still working on it.”

As La Velle E. Neal of the Minneapolis Star Tribune pointed out, Darin Mastroianni was an unfortunate roster casualty following the Fuld claim. The Twins had hoped that Jason Bartlett’s retirement papers would be processed by the time the Fuld claim became official, but the holiday weekend worked against them and they had to designate Mastroianni. The silver lining for them, he adds, is that there will now be a free spot on the 40-man roster, which will make it easier to make an additional move on the waiver wire or trade market.

Based on Berardino’s writing, it seems as if the Twins will give Nunez a test run as their shortstop based on Pedro Florimon’s offensive woes. Nunez’s poor defense might lead to further moves down the line, however, as he’s graded out very poorly there per Ultimate Zone Rating and Defensive Runs Saved. Gardenhire sounded adamant in insisting that changes should be expected: “We had three years to make adjustments. Now it’s time. Everyone is tired of watching that other stuff. I’m tired of it. You’re tired of it. The fans are tired of it. We see something we like, go get it.”

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Minnesota Twins

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Mets Notes: Abreu, Payroll, Ike, Duda, Hanrahan

By Tim Dierkes | April 21, 2014 at 8:39pm CDT

The Mets announced today that they’ve selected the contract of Bobby Abreu, who will join the club as a bench bat and part-time outfielder. New York signed the former Phillies/Yankees slugger to a minor league deal after Philadelphia released him near the end of Spring Training. Abreu slashed .395/.489/.579 with a homer, four doubles and a 7-to-5 K:BB ratio for the Mets’ Triple-A affiliate prior to his promotion. Here’s more on the Amazins…

  • ESPNNewYork.com’s Adam Rubin writes that following the departure of Ike Davis in a trade to the Pirates, the Mets’ payroll now sits at an estimated $86.1MM. Rubin’s estimate is based on his discussions with a team official that estimate $4-4.5MM for paying players that are replacing those who are injured (e.g. Kirk Nieuwenhuis and Juan Lagares are both collecting an MLB paycheck at the moment). In a separate piece, Rubin also looks at the rarity of mid-April trades for the Mets and runs own the history of such transactions.
  • With Davis out the door, Newsday’s David Lennon opines that Lucas Duda needs to become the cleanup hitter the Mets are looking for instead of being sheltered lower in the lineup. Curtis Granderson, signed for four years and $60MM to fill a run-producing role, was frank with Lennon in stating, “I haven’t given [the fans] much to cheer about.”
  • Mike Puma of the New York Post reports that the Mets have not yet decided whether or not they will make a contract offer to free agent closer Joel Hanrahan (Twitter link). Hanrahan reportedly looked very impressive in a showcase last week, and the Mets were one of about 20 teams that had scouts on hand to watch him throw.
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New York Mets Joel Hanrahan

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Minor Moves: Buckner, Martinez, Edlefsen, Carter, Ramirez, Hauser, Scammell

By Tim Dierkes | April 21, 2014 at 7:37pm CDT

The Padres have sold the contract of Triple-A right-hander Anthony Carter to the Nippon Ham Fighters of Nippon Professional Baseball, MLB.com’s Corey Brock reports (via Twitter). The 28-year-old Carter appeared in just three games for Triple-A El Paso this season, allowing a pair of runs in three innings of work. The former 26th-round draft pick (White Sox) has punched out more than a batter per inning in his minor league career and owns a 4.93 ERA with a 2.51 K/BB ratio in 680 1/3 innings. In addition to the Sox and Padres, he spent the 2013 season — arguably his best year — with the Red Sox’ Triple-A affiliate. In Pawtucket, he posted a 3.47 ERA with 11.4 K/9 and 3.3 BB/9 in 62 1/3 innings. Here are the rest of today’s minor moves from around the league…

  • The Padres have inked righty Billy Buckner to a minor league deal, tweets Corey Brock of MLB.com. Buckner, 30, has tossed 155 2/3 MLB innings in parts of five MLB seasons, splitting his appearances about evenly between starting and relieving. His lifetime ERA stands at 6.07, and he has averaged 6.4 K/9 against 3.5 BB/9 with a 44.7% ground-ball rate.
  • Two former big leaguers decided to hang up their spikes rather than continue on at the Triple-A level, according to the PCL transactions page. Joe Martinez of the Angels and Steve Edlefsen of the Dodgers both retired today. The right-handed relievers had both seen relatively minimal MLB action over their professional careers, and were off to rough starts in the season’s early going.
  • The Reds have signed right-hander Elvin Ramirez, per Cincinnati’s official transactions page. The 26-year-old struggled in 61 innings with the Angels’ minor league affiliates last season but had a strong 2.13 ERA in 55 innings with the Double-A and Triple-A affiliates for the Mets in 2012. In 422 2/3 career innings in the minors, the Dominican native has a 4.02 ERA with 7.8 K/9 and 5.1 BB/9.
  • Right-hander Matt Hauser has signed a minor league deal with the Orioles, according to the team’s transactions page. A former seventh-round pick of the Twins (2010), Hauser enjoyed strong minor league numbers until posting a 5.09 ERA between Double-A and Class-A Advanced last year. The 25-year-old has a career 2.95 ERA with 8.4 K/9 and 3.3 BB/9.
  • The Royals have inked outfielder Cory Scammell to a minor league contract (also via the club’s transactions page). The 20-year-old Canadian was a 35th-round pick of the Mariners in the 2011 draft and spent two seasons with the team’s Rookie-level affiliate, slashing a solid .274/.349/.355 in 358 plate appearances.
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Baltimore Orioles Cincinnati Reds Kansas City Royals Los Angeles Angels Los Angeles Dodgers San Diego Padres Transactions Joe Martinez

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Rosenthal’s Latest: Nats, Mets, Tigers, Hunter, Draft

By Tim Dierkes | April 21, 2014 at 6:34pm CDT

In his latest Notes column, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports begins by examining the managerial change for the Nationals. As Rosenthal points out, the change from the laid-back Davey Johnson to the intense Matt Williams hasn’t prevented sloppy play. A source tells Rosenthal that Williams called a team meeting to call out how sloppy they’d been and how they needed to hustle down the line. Rosenthal also points out Washington’s poor defense — something that wouldn’t be expected under Williams. Here are some more highlights from Rosenthal’s latest piece…

  • The Mets’ bullpen woes under Sandy Alderson can’t be blamed on payroll constraints, writes Rosenthal. He looks at the success the A’s, Royals and Giants have had in building a relief corps on the cheap before looking at Alderson’s misses on Frank Francisco, D.J. Carrasco, Ramon Ramirez and Brandon Lyon. Though they did well in landing Carlos Torres and Scott Rice, the team’s financial state isn’t an excuse for its poor relief work, he concludes.
  • Rosenthal also looks at the Tigers’ puzzling Alex Gonzalez situation. Detroit gave up infielder Steve Lombardozzi (who was part of the return for Doug Fister) and spent $1.1MM for nine games of Gonzalez before cutting him loose. Asked by Rosenthal about the possibility of Stephen Drew, GM Dave Dombrowski replied: “I’m sure people will focus on that, but we’re going to look internally at our situation first and foremost.” The Tigers would likely only want Drew on a one-year deal, as Jose Iglesias will be healthy in 2015.
  • Torii Hunter tells Rosenthal that he’s physically capable of playing another two or three years, but it’s going to be a matter of whether or not he wants to do so. Hunter certainly didn’t hint that retirement was on his mind, though: “I’m a man. A man is supposed to work. This is the only thing I know, the only thing I’€™m supposed to do.”
  • One executive told Rosenthal that the increase in extensions for younger players is due to the lack of overall talent in today’s game. With so few impact performers, teams are more compelled than ever to lock them up through their prime. As an example, that executive pointed to this year’s draft class, noting that NC State shortstop Trea Turner might be the only college shortstop selected in the Top 250.
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Detroit Tigers New York Mets Washington Nationals Torii Hunter

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Athletics Claim Andy Parrino

By Tim Dierkes | April 21, 2014 at 5:32pm CDT

The Athletics announced, via Twitter, that they’ve claimed infielder Andy Parrino off waivers from the Rangers and assigned him to Triple-A Sacramento.

Parrino, 28, was with the A’s last year but found himself claimed off waivers by the Rangers in early March. The back-and-forth is reminiscent of the Adam Rosales shuffling of 2013, in which the Rangers claimed Rosales off waivers from Oakland only for the A’s to claim him back. Shortly after, the Rangers again claimed Rosales off waivers from Oakland.

Parrino is a career .186/.295/.242 hitter with a homer and two steals in 229 plate appearances. He’s seen big league action at second base, shortstop, third base and both corner outfield positions. The switch-hitter has a solid .265/.346/.380 batting line in 922 plate appearances at the Triple-A level.

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Oakland Athletics Texas Rangers Andy Parrino

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Poll: Did The Astros Promote George Springer At The Right Time?

By charliewilmoth | April 20, 2014 at 10:10pm CDT

USATSI_7873385When the Astros promoted top prospect George Springer earlier this week, it ended a mini-drama that cut to the heart of Major League Baseball's rules concerning Super Two status and free-agency eligibility. MLB, of course, allows players to become free agents after six full years of service. By waiting two weeks after the start of the season to promote Springer, the Astros ensured that they could control his rights through 2020. But by promoting him before June, they also gave him the chance to become a Super Two player. That meant he could be eligible for arbitration following the 2016 season, and go to arbitration four times instead of three, potentially making several million more dollars than he would have made had the Astros waited just two more months to promote him.

The circumstances surrounding Springer's promotion are complex. The Astros offered Springer a seven-year, $23MM deal last September, a deal that would have allowed the Astros to have Springer break camp with the team this spring without concern about Super Two status or the timing of his free-agency eligibility. Springer turned the contract down, and the Astros decided to send him to Triple-A Oklahoma City to start the season, reportedly leading the MLBPA and Springer's agent, Greg Genske, to consider the possibility of a grievance against the Astros.

It isn't clear, of course, whether Springer's service time was the primary consideration in the Astros' decision to send Springer to the minors, or even whether it was a consideration, period. Springer began the season with only 266 (admittedly brilliant) career plate appearances in Triple-A, so it wouldn't have been outlandish for an organization to make the somewhat conservative decision to have him get more seasoning at that level before promoting him.

But many fans and commentators couldn't help wondering about how Springer's status had been affected by MLB's rules. "If Springer was good enough to be offered $23 million, why isn't he good enough to crack the 25-man roster of a team that has finished with the worst record in the majors in each of the past three seasons?" wrote FOX Sports' Ken Rosenthal. "Some on the players' side have long felt that clubs act in bad faith when they keep major-league-ready players in the minors for financial reasons."

The timing of Springer's promotion in mid-April thus feels like a compromise. By keeping Springer in the minors for two more weeks, the Astros received an extra year of control, preventing Springer from becoming eligible for free agency after the 2019 season. But they will likely pay Springer more through 2020 than they would have if they had waited a bit longer. Of course, the Astros were within their rights not to compromise — they could have just kept Springer in the minors until June. And again, there may have been developmental considerations at work, too.

The service-time issue is hard to ignore, however, as the Houston Chronicle's Evan Drellich explains in a good piece about why not everyone agrees with the Astros' timing. Drellich quotes analyst and former MLB pitcher C.J. Nitkowski (via Twitter): "It's about the culture & the message you're sending to players/fan[s]: We don't promote on merit, winning is secondary to FA status [seven years] away."

It also appears that the Astros' decision may have been at least somewhat spontaneous. As Drellich points out, the Astros had Springer travel to Colorado Springs for one game with Oklahoma City, only to then join the big-league team in Houston. A planned promotion might well have had Springer play his first big-league game on the road, in order to limit the pressure on Springer. Maybe, Drellich suggests, the Astros intended to wait until June to him, thus avoiding Super Two status, but the Astros offense's awful performance to that point made them change their minds.

From the perspectives of Springer and the Astros, the precise timing of Springer's promotion may not matter much in the long run. If Springer is upset right now (and aside from the talk of a grievance, there's no indication that he is), the Astros will have almost seven years to make it up to him. Regardless, there are likely to be episodes similar to Springer's until or unless MLB and the MLBPA address the service-time issue — and even if they do, it's hard to imagine what solution they might come up with that would allow teams to promote players as soon as they deem them ready, without fear of paying them piles of extra money or worrying about them leaving a year early.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

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Houston Astros MLBTR Polls George Springer

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