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Archives for May 2014

Marlins Release Greg Dobbs

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MAY 6: The Marlins have released Dobbs, tweets MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro.

APRIL 29: The Marlins announced that they have designated Greg Dobbs for assignment in order to clear roster space for Ed Lucas, who has been reinstated from the disabled list.

The 35-year-old Dobbs made just 13 pinch-hitting appearances for the Fish this season, collecting one hit. Last season, he appeared in a more regular (but still limited) role for Miami, batting .228/.303/.300 in 267 plate appearances.

Dobbs and the Marlins agreed to a one-year, $1.75MM contract extension last August that was the source of some controversy. Former president of baseball operations Larry Beinfest, who had not yet been fired at that time, was reportedly unaware of the contract negotiations, as Marlins owner Jeffrey Loria is said to have negotiated the deal with Dobbs and his agents entirely on his own.

Indians Designate George Kottaras For Assignment

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The Indians have designated catcher George Kottaras for assignment, tweets MLB.com’s Jordan Bastian. With the move, an active roster space was cleared for reliever Josh Tomlin.

The 30-year-old Kottaras saw only four plate appearances during his brief stint with the Tribe, though he delivered two home runs and drew a walk in that time. Kottaras caught on in Cleveland with a minor league deal after being released by the Cubs late in the spring. (He had been picked up by Chicago from the Royals via trade, but lost the backup battle.) Kottaras has drawn attention in the past for his ability to get on base (.355 OBP since 2012), and could appeal to some other clubs around the league.

West Notes: Almonte, Chatwood, Astros, Putz

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The Mariners announced yesterday that Opening Day center fielder and leadoff man Abraham Almonte has been optioned to Triple-A Tacoma in favor of outfield prospect James Jones. Almonte, acquired from the Yankees in a trade for right-hander Shawn Kelley, entered the season ranked as the club’s No. 17 prospect (per Baseball America). However, he struggled with an everyday role, batting just .198/.248/.292. Jones, 25, has already made his MLB debut earlier this season, collecting a hit in his only plate appearance in mid-April. He hit a strong .313/.382/.450 in Triple-A, and Bob Dutton of the Tacoma News Tribune wrote that despite not starting against a tough lefty yesterday (Scott Kazmir), Jones will receive regular playing time in center field.

More from the game’s Western divisions…

  • The Rockies got some mixed news on right-hander Tyler Chatwood, Nick Groke of the Denver Post reports. While Chatwood’s arm injury doesn’t appear to be season-ending, he will miss at least six to eight weeks as he rehabs from a flexor strain in his right arm. Franklin Morales has stepped into the rotation as the team purchased the contract of righty reliever Nick Masset, whose 40-man spot was opened by transferring Chatwood to the 60-day DL. For Masset, this marks a long journey back to the Majors after a series of shoulder injuries derailed his career in 2011-13.
  • Evan Drellich of the Houston Chronicle spoke with Astros medical risk manager and analyst Bill Firkus about his role with the team and also spoke with key members of the club’s medical/training staff about how Birkus has helped the club since his arrival last July. Firkus isn’t a doctor, but he specializes in analyzing trends and injury studies around professional sports. “What has changed is the way we look at files for possible trades or picking up free agents,” said head trainer Nate Lucero. Drellich’s article gives an excellent look at Houston’s medical program and the changes that have been made to evaluating the success of operations since GM Jeff Luhnow took over.
  • Add J.J. Putz’s name to the list of upcoming free agent pitcher (or just pitchers in general) who have a troublesome arm injury; Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic reported late last night that Putz will be placed on the DL with right forearm tightness. The Diamondbacks have had poor luck with its pitching staff in 2014, losing Patrick Corbin and David Hernandez to Tommy John surgery while Archie Bradley has hit the minor league DL after struggling at Triple-A. As Piecoro notes, Putz suffered a UCL sprain last year that didn’t require surgery. Any long-term injury could potetially be a crushing blow to his free agent stock.

NL East Links: Gonzalez, Kendrick, Phils, Uggla, Mets

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Phillies right-hander Miguel Alfredo Gonzalez threw three innings in an extended Spring Training appearance and ramped his fastball up to 95 mph, GM Ruben Amaro Jr. tells CSN Philly’s Jim Salisbury: “This was the first time we’ve seen [95 mph] since we signed him. He was really bringing it. It’s a good sign. He’s progressing.” Amaro said the plan for his team is to keep Gonzalez in the rotation, though many scouts do feel he is eventually ticketed for bullpen work. Here are some additional links on the Phillies and the rest of the division…

  • David Murphy of the Philadelphia Daily News looks at the Phillies’ biggest two flaws: their weakness outside the No. 3 through 6 spots in the lineup and a bullpen that lacks power arms. As Murphy points out, the No. 7 through 2 hitters in last night’s game entered with a combined five extra-base hits in 217 plate appearances, and only four of the bullpen’s arms are strikeout pitchers. Though the team is currently 15-15, one injury could significantly dampen the club’s outlook.
  • If Kyle Kendrick can continue his current pace — a 3.58 ERA with 5.5 K/9, 2.4 BB/9 and a 52.7 percent ground-ball rate — he could do quite well for himself in free agency next winter, writes CSN Philly’s Corey Seidman. Seidman notes that while Kendrick wouldn’t be in the top two tiers of free agent starters, he could be one of the better third-tier options available. He looks at contracts such as the ones signed by Scott Feldman and Phil Hughes in noting that Kendrick would fetch a multi-year contract worth something similar to this season’s $7.675MM value.
  • Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez wouldn’t comment on specifics regarding his second base dilemma when asked by Mark Bowman and Joe Morgan of MLB.com. However, the MLB.com duo reports that some Braves players have privately voiced the opinion that Tyler Pastornicky could be a productive replacement, and Bowman and Morgan add that there’s a chance the team could promote the hot-hitting Tommy La Stella from Triple-A as well. That move, however, could require the Braves to think long and hard about the possibility of biting the bullet on the remaining two years of Uggla’s contract.
  • Andy Martino of the New York Daily News spoke with a veteran scout and asked about the Mets’ top young arms — namely Jacob deGrom and Rafael Montero — to see if they could help the team’s floundering bullpen. The scout pegged deGrom as more of the relief type than Montero: “That’s the one who seems like he has a better chance. As a starter, I see him throw 94, touch 95. The he settles in around 92-92. If you bring him in for an inning, he could just blow it out.”

AL East Notes: Morrow, Francisco, Cruz, Santana, Sabathia

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With Blue Jays starter Brandon Morrow going to the 60-day DL with a torn tendon sheath, the Star’s Richard Griffin writes that Morrow may well have thrown his last pitch for the club. As Griffin notes, the 29-year-old’s $10MM club option (which comes with a $1MM buyout) seems unlikely to be exercised at this point after yet another significant injury. Here’s more from Toronto and the rest of the AL East:

  • Indications are that the Blue Jays will look to keep power-hitting corner infielder Juan Francisco in the fold after Adam Lind is activated, tweets Brendan Kennedy of the Toronto Star. Discussing the situation, MLB.com’s Gregor Chisholm writes that Toronto could conceivably drop one of its eight relievers or shift Brett Lawrie into the club’s regular second base role.
  • Orioles slugger Nelson Cruz discussed his difficult last year with MLB.com’s Britt Ghiroli, saying that it was hardest on his family. As for the qualifying offer situation, Cruz said he probably would have grabbed it had he known what was in store. “But it’s something that you risk and you trust your instincts,” said Cruz. “In this case, it wasn’t what I expected. But I’m happy with my decision and happy with where I am now. That’s the only thing that matters.” From the O’s perspective, executive VP Dan Duquette said that the deal was made when Cruz’s camp “adjusted what they were looking for in terms of the term” (i.e. length) of the deal. Cruz if off to a hot start, of course, posting a .294/.369/.596 triple-slash with nine home runs in his first 122 plate appearances with Baltimore.
  • A less-consequential decision for the Orioles front office was the low-risk signing of one-time ace Johan Santana, who has been working his way back to full strength on a minor league contract. Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com reports on Twitter that Santana’s fastball has reached the 88-89 mph range, with his slider in the low-80’s and change in the mid-70’s. While that obviously represents a significant drop from his peak years, Santana posted an average fastball velocity of just 89.6 mph in his 2.98 ERA, 199-inning 2010 season.
  • In a chat today, ESPN.com’s Jerry Crasnick touched upon the situation of Yankees starter C.C. Sabathia. A scout recently told Crasnick that Sabathia’s offerings are “very fringy,” and that he will need impeccable control to be effective going forward. On the other hand, Crasnick opines that Sabathia has actually delivered decent value to New York on his massive contract. For what it’s worth, Sabathia’s unsightly 5.75 ERA through his first 40 2/3 innings in 2014 is much worse than his 4.16 FIP, 2.95 xFIP, and 2.92 SIERA marks. Indeed, while Sabathia has been hurt by the long ball (21.9% HR/FB rate) and a .361 BABIP, he is sporting 9.74 K/9 against just 1.99 BB/9 while generating a 50.8% ground-ball rate.

Minor Moves: Rogers, Geltz, Sappelt, Ni, Rodriguez, Hottovy

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Here are today’s minor league transactions, with the latest moves atop the post…

  • The Mariners have released hurler Mark Rogers, tweets Tacoma Rainiers announcer Mike Curto (hat tip to Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times). Rogers, 28, is now far removed from his days as one of the game’s better pitching prospects. He was given a Spring Training invite in the offseason, but Seattle pulled the plug on his comeback attempt after Rogers walked 7 in his first 7 innings on the year.
  • Rays minor league reliever Steve Geltz has been hit with a 50-game suspension after a second positive test for a drug of abuse, Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times tweets. The 26-year-old righty, who came to Tampa last year in exchange for Dane De La Rosa, threw to a 2.82 ERA in 67 frames last year (10.7 K/9 against 3.2 BB/9) and was off to a 3.86 ERA start in his first 16 1/3 innings in 2014.
  • Outfielder Dave Sappelt has signed with los Acereros de Monclova in Mexico, tweets Chris Cotillo of MLB Daily Dish. Sappelt has split the past three seasons between the Cubs and Reds, posting a .251/.301/.343 batting line in 274 big league plate appearances.
  • Former Tigers lefty Fu-Te Ni has signed with the independent Atlantic League’s Lancaster Barnstormers in hopes of eventually landing a Major League or Triple-A opportunity, tweets Cotillo. Ni had a solid rookie campaign with Detroit in 2009 but struggled to a 6.65 ERA in 23 innings in 2010. Now 31 years of age, Ni has a strong Triple-A track record but didn’t pitch in affiliated ball last season.
  • The Rays have released catcher Eddy Rodriguez, Baseball America’s Matt Eddy tweets.  Rodriguez, 28, signed a minor league deal with Tampa in the offseason but had only a .443 OPS in 49 PA for Triple-A Durham.  The veteran catcher has a career .235/.286/.386 slash line over 2271 minor league PAs and he received a two-game cup of coffee in the majors with the Padres in 2012.
  • The Cubs have released southpaw Tommy Hottovy, Baseball America’s Matt Eddy reports (as part of his full recap of the week’s minor league moves).  Hottovy signed a minor league contract with Chicago in December but had yet to pitch this season due to injury.  The left-hander threw 13 1/3 innings for the Red Sox and Royals in 2011-12 and spent last season in the Blue Jays’ farm system.
  • The Angels have signed left-hander Dustin Richardson to a minor league contract, according to the team’s MLB.com transactions page.  Richardson will report to Triple-A Salt Lake City.  The 30-year-old southpaw appeared in 20 games in Salt Lake last season, as well as six games with the independent Sugar Land Skeeters.  Richardson has 16 1/3 Major League innings to his name (with the Red Sox in 2009-10) and he has also spent time with the Braves’ and Marlins’ Triple-A affiliates and served a 50-game PED suspension.

Steve Adams contributed to this post.

Central Notes: Guerrier, Coke, Taveras, Cardinals

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Here are a few notes out of the game’s central divisions:

  • Twins right-hander Matt Guerrier has a May 8 opt-out clause in his minor league contract and isn’t willing to push that date back to wait for a future opportunity, agent Joe Bick tells Mike Berardino of the St. Paul Pioneer Press. Guerrier has thrown well in the minors as he rehabs from flexor mass repair surgery last August, allowing just one earned run on eight hits and four walks with eight strikeouts in eight innings between Double-A and Triple-A (four at each level). Guerrier, who is earning $90K in the minors, would earn a $1MM base salary and earn an additional $250K for reaching 45, 50, 55 and 60 appearances, Berardino writes.
  • John Lowe of the Detroit Free Press breaks down the challenges behind the Tigers potentially jettisoning left-hander Phil Coke. For starters, the 31-year-old Coke is earning $1.9MM this season, all of which is guaranteed after he broke camp with the club. Additionally, there are no left-handed relievers in the minors who have stood out in a meaningful way. Detroit would like to keep two lefty relievers if possible, and Lowe wonders if Robbie Ray could take Coke’s bullpen spot when Anibal Sanchez returns from the DL. The team has already cleared a roster spot for Ray by outrighting Jordan Lennerton off the 40-man roster.
  • While plenty have argued that the time is now for the Cardinals to call up top prospect Oscar Taveras, GM John Mozeliak plans to keep him in the minors for the time being, reports Rick Hummel of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. “I know a lot’s being made out of Oscar … coming to St. Louis,” Mozeliak said, “but right now I don’t even think it’s a logical thing to do. There are a lot of question marks going on in the outfield to begin with, and I think that would muddy it up.” Looking ahead, Mozeliak said that if Taveras continues at his present level of play, “that will make it a very difficult decision at some point.” As I documented a few weeks back, Taveras is one of those prospects with no MLB service time for whom Super Two status has now become the primary consideration (apart from development and team need, of course).
  • Also in that piece, Hummel provides injury updates on two once-key cogs of the St. Louis pitching corps. Former closer Jason Motte has upped his heater into the mid-90s, while starter Jaime Garcia is still battling through injury issues but is nevertheless progressing through a rehab assignment. Needless to say, either or both of these two arms could give a real boost to a Cardinals club that is off to a somewhat sluggish start. While the team’s issues have generally not been on the pitching side of the ledger, added depth always opens up new possibilities.

Nationals Tried To Extend Fister In Offseason

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The Nationals made one of the offseason’s biggest splashes by acquiring Doug Fister from the Tigers (in exchange for left-handed starter Robbie Ray, infielder Steve Lombardozzi and lefty reliever Ian Krol), but according to Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post, the team tried to double down on that move by signing Fister to a long-term deal. Talks never got very far off the ground, however, according to Kilgore’s report. Fister himself wouldn’t comment on the situation.

Washington GM Mike Rizzo employed a similar tactic when he acquired Gio Gonzalez from the Athletics prior to the 2012 season, signing him to a five-year, $42.5MM contract with a pair of $12MM club options. Locking up Fister would have ensured that the team’s rotation could be fronted by Stephen Strasburg, Gonzalez and Fister through at least the 2016 season. Washington tried to lock up its other top starter, Jordan Zimmermann, this offseason as well. Instead, they agreed to a two-year, $24MM contract that gave the team cost certainty but didn’t buy any further team control.

Over the past three seasons, Fister has pitched to a 3.30 ERA with 6.8 K/9, 1.8 BB/9 and a 50.9 percent ground-ball rate in 586 2/3 innings. In that time, his 13.3 fWAR and 12.6 rWAR each rank ninth in the Major Leagues. In place of a multi-year deal, he and the Nationals agreed to a $7.2MM salary for the 2014 season. Washington controls Fister through 2015, and he is set to make his team debut on Friday against the A’s.

Diamondbacks Release Alex Sanabia

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Just a few weeks after being outrighted off the 40-man roster, right-hander Alex Sanabia has been released by the Diamondbacks, the team announced via Twitter.

The 25-year-old Sanabia was hit hard in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League, surrendering 21 earned runs in 23 1/3 innings (8.10 ERA) with 11 strikeouts against eight walks. He fared better in 55 1/3 innings with the Marlins in the Majors last season, registering a 4.88 ERA, though he posted a 31-to-25 K/BB ratio and a 38.8 percent ground-ball rate.

Sanabia has a 4.15 ERA with 5.6 K/9, 2.9 BB/9 and a 36.7 percent ground-ball rate in 138 2/3 innings — all coming with the Marlins. Arizona had claimed him off waivers from the Marlins this past October.

Padres Designate Xavier Nady For Assignment

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The Padres announced (on Twitter) that they have designated outfielder Xavier Nady for assignment in order to clear a spot on the 25-man roster for Kyle Blanks, who will be recalled from Triple-A El Paso for tonight’s game.

Though the 35-year-old Nady belted three homers in 42 plate appearances for the Padres, he also batted just .135 with a .238 on-base percentage in 2014. This season marked his first big league action since 2012 as well as a return to the organization that originally selected him in the second round of the 2000 draft

Blanks, 27, has hit very well for El Paso this season, slashing .265/.364/.651 with nine home runs in 99 trips to the plate. The former top prospect has seen his share of big league experience but has never been able to replicate the strong production he posted in his 54-game debut as a 22-year-old back in 2009. Over the past four seasons in the Majors, Blanks has batted .223/.300/.375 with 18 homers in 624 plate appearances — a far cry from 2009’s .255/.355/.514 with 10 round-trippers in 172 PA.

The Padres could use all of the help they can get offensively, as the team has batted just .216/.268/.325 as a collective unit thus far, causing them to rank last in the Majors in nearly any measure of offensive output (e.g. runs scored, OPS, wOBA, OPS+ and wRC+).

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