Yankees Claim Wade LeBlanc From Angels
The Yankees have claimed lefty Wade LeBlanc off waivers, the Angels announced. New York has moved Michael Pineda to the 60-day DL to create space on the 40-man roster, the club announced via press release.
The Halos had indicated they were hoping to pass LeBlanc through waivers so that he could stretch out and provide rotation depth. LeBlanc, 29, had thrown 6 1/3 big league innings this year in just one relief appearance, allowing four earned and striking out four while walking two. In nine starts at the Triple-A level this year, LeBlanc had logged 53 2/3 frames of 3.69 ERA ball, with 7.2 K/9 against 2.3 BB/9.
LeBlanc had primarily been a starter prior to 2012, but he has split his time between starting and relieving since. Across 423 1/3 career big league innings, LeBlanc has posted a 4.53 ERA with 6.1 K/9 against 3.3 BB/9.
Rosenthal’s Latest: Gonzalez, Chacin, Singleton, Cards, Span
In his latest Notes column, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports opines that the Rockies shouldn’t be buyers at this summer’s trade deadline. While the club could make a Wild Card run, he writes that the team isn’t a serious World Series contender. Rosenthal feels that the club should look to move Jhoulys Chacin — who could be a non-tender candidate this offseason — to clear room for one of its top pitching prospects (likely either Jon Gray or Eddie Butler). The bigger, and certainly bolder move posited by Rosenthal is to deal Carlos Gonzalez in order to clear room for everyday at-bats for Corey Dickerson and Charlie Blackmon. With Kyle Parker and a number of other outfield prospects on the horizon, plus Brandon Barnes and Drew Stubbs as reserve options, the team has plenty of outfield depth. Gonzalez is also owed $53MM following this season. Rosenthal notes that ownership has never shown an inclination to move Gonzalez, however, so the Rockies likely don’t share his point of view on the future of their star outfielder.
More from his latest piece…
- Most agents with whom Rosenthal has spoken feel that Jon Singleton sold himself short by agreeing to a five-year, $10MM contract extension that could reach $30MM with three club options and $35MM if he hits enough performance bonuses. First base prospects are among the safest variety of prospects, and while some bust, Singleton will earn scarcely more than the current MLB average salary, over the life of his deal on an annual basis (assuming all options are exercised).
- Rosenthal feels that the Cardinals should look to add a big-name starting pitcher such as James Shields or David Price at the deadline (should either become available, which is no guarantee, of course). While pitching certainly isn’t a need for the Redbirds, it’s not exactly clear where they’d place another bat upon acquiring one. And, given the team’s wealth of prospects at multiple positions, they could move valuable assets that are essentially spare parts to their own organization.
- Ryan Zimmerman projects to play first base for the Nationals next season, but Rosenthal asks what might happen if Washington instead decides to keep Adam LaRoche. Doing so could push Zimmerman to left field full-time, with Bryce Harper manning center field, Jayson Werth in right field and Denard Span becoming a trade chip. Span has a $9MM club option and a “limited”future with the club given the presence of Michael Taylor (not to be confused with the former A’s prospect of the same name) at Double-A, writes Rosenthal.
Draft Prospect Q&A: Michael Chavis
MLBTR is re-launching its Draft Prospect Q&A series this season in order to give our readers a look at some of the top names on the board in this year’s draft. MLBTR will be chatting with some of the draft’s most well-regarded prospects over the next couple of weeks as they prepare for the 2014 draft on June 5-7.
Scouts see Georgia high school prospect Michael Chavis as someone who can do it all thanks to his well-rounded skill set as well as his versatility. Chavis spent most of his career at Sprayberry High School at the shortstop position but he also boasts arm strength that can allow him to play anywhere in the infield. He’s got the speed to play second base or stick at shortstop, and while he has a bit of experience behind the plate and in the outfield, most say his big league future is at third base. The Clemson commit is ranked No. 21 by MLB.com, No. 26 by Baseball America, and No. 27 by ESPN.com’s Keith Law.
The first-round prospect left high school on a high note, slashing .557/.580/.663 with 13 homers in his senior season. At the plate, Chavis flashed his plus bat speed as well as his plus raw power, which helped him to win the Perfect Game Home Run Derby over other notable prospects such as Alex Jackson, Braxton Davidson, and Michael Gettys.
The charismatic and confident young man spoke with MLBTradeRumors recently about what position he wants to ultimately play, the prospect of going to Clemson, and more:
Phillies Sign Jason Marquis
The Phillies announced that they’ve signed right-hander Jason Marquis to a minor league deal. The 35-year-old veteran is a client of ACES.
Marquis underwent Tommy John surgery last July but said a few months later that he didn’t intend for that operation to be the end of his career. He’s been working out for teams of late, recently throwing his fastball between 88 and 90 mph in an audition for the Reds.
Marquis’ command took a step back in 2013 with the Padres, as he walked a career-worst 5.2 hitters per nine innings (some of those struggles may have been due to his elbow injury, of course). However, his ground-ball rate remained a strong 52.3 percent — his fifth consecutive season with a ground-ball percentage north of 52.
The sinkerballing Marquis is a veteran of 14 Major League seasons with the Braves, Cardinals, Cubs, Nationals, Rockies, Twins, Diamondbacks and Padres. In 1921 career innings at the big league level, Marquis owns a 4.56 ERA with 5.3 K/9, 3.5 BB/9 and a 50.7 percent ground-ball rate. He can serve as veteran rotation depth for the Phils when healthy, as the team has already seen injuries to both Cliff Lee and Cole Hamels this season in the Major League rotation (the latter is healthy now). Additionally, Cuban signee Miguel Gonzalez is also working his way back from injury and isn’t close to appearing in the Majors.
Astros Extend Jon Singleton
TUESDAY: Passan has the year-to-year breakdown of Singleton’s contract (Twitter link). He will earn $1.5MM this season and $2MM per year from 2015-18. He notes that each of the second options have a $250K buyout as well.
MONDAY, 6:19pm: Jon Heyman of CBS Sports reports (via Twitter) that Singleton’s options are worth $2.5MM, $5MM and $13MM. Singleton would earn $17MM for his pre-arbitration and arb years, with the $13MM option being for his first year of free agency.
5:30pm: The future of the Houston Astros is getting brighter and brighter, and the latest ray of light will make his Major League debut tomorrow. The Astros announced today that they have not only promoted top prospect Jon Singleton, but also inked him to a historic five-year contract extension with three club options despite the fact that he’s never played a Major League inning. The Sosnick/Cobbe Sports client reportedly receives a $10MM guarantee, and his contract can max out at $35MM if all of the options are exercised and he reaches various performance bonuses.
Singleton will reportedly earn $9.5MM in salary over the five guaranteed years, plus a $500K buyout if the Astros decline their first option. The total value of all three option years is $20MM, with an extra $5MM available in bonuses and awards.
The extension sets a new precedent for players who don’t have any Major League service time. Singleton was already under team control through at least the 2020 season, though now the Astros have cost certainty over the slugging first baseman through all of his pre-arbitration and arbitration-eligible seasons, not to mention his first free agent season should Houston use all of its team options. The 22-year-old Singleton is now locked up through his age-29 season.
The Astros aggressively pursued extensions with several of their young players over the last few months, pursuing deals with George Springer, Robbie Grossman and Matt Dominguez that would’ve covered all most or all of their arb and pre-arb years and given the team more options years, to boot. Springer’s proposed extension would have also locked him up prior to his ever playing a day in the bigs, the same as Singleton’s contract.
Originally an eighth-round pick of the Phillies in the 2009 draft, Singleton came to the Houston organization as part of the trade package for Hunter Pence in 2011. The left-handed hitting first baseman has been on a tear at Triple-A Oklahoma City this season (hitting .267/.397/.544 and hitting 14 homers over 239 plate appearances), rebounding from a tough 2013 campaign that saw him struggle at Triple-A and serve a 50-game suspension for marijuana use.
Despite his issues last season, Singleton was still ranked among the game’s top prospects in preseason rankings by MLB.com (42nd overall), ESPN’s Keith Law (78th) and Baseball America (82nd). The 2014 Baseball America Prospect Handbook ranked Singleton as the seventh-best prospect in Houston’s system and described him as having “middle-of-the-order potential” and “plus raw power,” whle also praising his bat speed and ability to draw walks. The BA Handbook questioned his consistency against left-handed pitching, though Singleton showed improvement by posting a .919 OPS in 77 PA against southpaws this season at Triple-A.
Yahoo Sports’ Jeff Passan was the first to report the agreement, while ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick reported some of the specific terms (Twitter links).
Photo courtesy of Steve Mitchell/USA Today Sports
AL East Notes: Cano, Yankees, Cruz, Francisco
Robinson Cano told reporters, including the New York Daily News’ Andy Martino, that he wasn’t bothered by the boos he received in returning to Yankee Stadium. Martino goes on to opine that the booing of Cano seems to be the only emotion the Yankee fanbase can muster due to the team’s lackluster performance. He asked Brett Gardner how the club could be more consistent at the plate and received a frustrated reply: “Well, if we knew that, we would have done it two days ago.” More on the Yankees’ decision to let Cano walk and the AL East…
- Martino’s colleague, John Harper, wonders if the Yankees would let Cano walk again if they had a mulligan on the offseason. As he notes, there’s virtually no certainty next season in the infield with Derek Jeter retiring, Brian Roberts on a one-year deal, Mark Teixeira‘s injuries, an unproven track record for Yangervis Solarte and Alex Rodriguez‘s suspension. While the back-end of any Cano deal would surely look poor, he asks if that would be an acceptable price to pay for chasing greatness in the short term.
- Rangers GM Jon Daniels appeared on The Afternoon Show with Cowlishaw and Moseley in Texas yesterday and discussed Nelson Cruz‘s hot start with the Orioles. Daniels said he’s not surprised to see Cruz thriving — though they wouldn’t have expected 20 homers through this point in the season. He adds that Texas made multiple attempts to sign Cruz, making a qualifying offer and offering a multi-year deal at the Winter Meetings. Daniels adds: “…by the time it came down to Spring Training, when he was signing, there was some other factors at play. We made the decision that we did to give our own guys an opportunity and keep the draft pick.”
- Shi Davidi of Sportsnet breaks down Juan Francisco‘s strong play for the Blue Jays and wonders if the Jays could possibly have struck gold on a third low-cost slugger acquisition. Davidi points out that Toronto stumbled into franchise cornerstones Jose Bautista and Edwin Encarnacion, and Francisco is cut largely from the same cloth. Davidi looks at improvements to Francisco’s pitch selection — though his strikeout rate remains high — and changes to his approach made by the team’s coaching staff. Francisco, a close friend of Encarnacion, says he feels at home with the Jays. Davidi also reports that Toronto tried to acquire Francisco last season as well before Atlanta traded him to Milwaukee, suggesting he’s been on their radar for quite some time.
Quick Hits: Pollock, Morales, Lester, Cubs
The Diamondbacks announced today that outfielder A.J. Pollock underwent surgery to repair a right hand fracture and would not resume baseball activity for eight weeks. Pollock, 26, had been a rare bright spot on one of baseball’s most disappointing clubs, emerging with a .316/.366/.554 triple-slash with six home runs and eight stolen bases in 192 plate appearances. Here’s more from around the league:
- The Royals could enter the running to sign first baseman/DH Kendrys Morales to bolster a sagging offense, reports Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com. While no serious discussions have happened to date, the club is not ruling out the possibility, adds Andy McCullough of the Kansas City Star (via Twitter). According to Heyman, pursuit of Morales would require the Royals to move some salary off its books. Ticking through the team’s roster, the most obvious big-salary trade candidate (assuming, of course, that the team is looking to make a run) is DH Billy Butler, who earns $8.5MM this year and comes with a $12.5MM club option ($1MM buyout) for 2015. But his defensive limitations and serious struggles this year make it somewhat difficult to imagine that the team will be able to find a buyer willing to take on enough salary to make the switch-out plausible — especially since clubs looking at Butler would presumably also have interest in Morales. (Then, there’s the question whether Kansas City could both lock up Morales and dump Butler or another contract in early June.)
- Meanwhile, the Yankees have made contact with Morales but are waiting to learn more on Mark Teixeira‘s wrist re-aggravation before acting decisively, Heyman reports. Turning to analysis, Heyman writes that the Yankees have many reasons to pursue Morales strongly, whether or not they get good news on Teixeira in the coming days.
- Informed of recent comments from Red Sox president and CEO Larry Lucchino indicating that the club expects to re-engage him in extension talks, Jon Lester emphasized that he remains focused on the season at hand, reports Boston.com’s Maureen Mullen. “I think right now, obviously with us playing good baseball and us focused on what we need to do today, I think that’s where we need to stay,” he said. “The contract talks will come at the right time. … [T]hat time’ll come, whether it’s tomorrow, I don’t know. Whether it’s in the offseason, I don’t know. We’ll figure that out as we go.”
- Carlos Villanueva of the Cubs says that he and fellow righty Jason Hammel hope to stay with the team but realize they could be traded, reports MLB.com’s Carrie Muskat. “What’s happened here the last couple years, you can’t help but wonder if you’re going to be one of those guys, too,” he said. “When they sign here, they know. They know the direction this team is going.” Both pitchers, explained Villanueva, have played with multiple clubs and understand the business of the game. “In a perfect world, we could stay here and build around the young guys, and we could be part of the upswing of the team,” he said. “That could still happen — we’re still here, we’re going to make the most of it.”
Nationals Notes: Beltre, Treinen, Trade Deadline
Adrian Beltre made his first career appearance at Nationals Park this weekend, but he confirmed to Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post that he came very close to calling that stadium home for a long time back in 2010. Beltre said that he was close to choosing the Nationals over the Rangers, with whom he signed a five-year, $80MM in 2010. He and agent Scott Boras met with the Nats’ front office at the 2010 Winter Meetings and had advanced talks. Beltre notes that the meeting took place before Washington signed his friend, Jayson Werth, to a seven-year, $126MM deal. It’s unclear if Washington could’ve afforded both, but it’s interesting to wonder how different the franchise would look and whether or not they could’ve afforded Ryan Zimmerman‘s $100MM contract extension with Beltre in the fold.
More on the Nats…
- Kilgore also examines the remarkable story of Blake Treinen, who was refused a walk-on tryout by the University of Arkansas and got his first shot at a Division I baseball program after attending a $20 pitching camp attended primarily by middle school children. Treinen, who nearly developed diabetes due to an unhealthy lifestyle in early high school, was throwing just 79 mph late in high school but worked his way up to the seventh round of the draft and now fires a 98 mph sinker for the Nationals.
- Looking ahead to the summer, the Nationals are one club that needs to make a roster upgrade via trade, opines Paul Swydan of ESPN.com (Insider subscription required). The situation is a difficult one for the stagnant Nats, says Swydan, given that the club lacks obvious places to make an impact. It is hard to imagine how Washington would go about upgrading the pitching staff, and the everyday lineup does not have any spots that are truly ripe for a move. Nevertheless, Swydan argues that the team’s bench could stand to be improved. The club put a priority on bolstering its reserves in the offseason, adding Nate McLouth, Jose Lobaton, and Kevin Frandsen, but the group has struggled on the whole. Of course, things have not been helped by the fact that the loss of several regulars for long stretches has at times pressed reserves into everyday duty.
- Aside from the obvious possibility of swapping out bench pieces, it could be that the Nationals will largely need to sink or swim with the players they have. It is easy to imagine a more productive option than Denard Span in center or even the struggling Wilson Ramos at catcher, but actually getting such a player would be extremely expensive and may not even be a realistic possibility. (Looking at the center field and catcher leaderboards, it is hard to identify reasonably plausible targets that would really move the needle.) And that is even before considering how Washington would deal with the fallout of such a move, both in the present and in the future. Given the uncertainty surrounding the role of Zimmerman, who is apparently set for time in left field and both corner infield spots when he returns, it seems that versatility could be an important factor should GM Mike Rizzo choose to go after a truly impactful player. In that respect, it is worth wondering — and this is pure speculation — whether Ben Zobrist of the Rays would be a viable target, if Tampa decides to sell off veterans. He is under control next season through a bargain $7.5MM club option, and could theoretically play any number of positions depending upon how the rest of this season and the coming offseason shake out. It is worth noting here, too, that Tampa is familiar with the Nats’ system after negotiating the Lobaton deal, and has long been said to have interest in Danny Espinosa, whose role in D.C. would largely disappear were the Nats to add a player like Zobrist.
Jeff Todd wrote the latter two bullets to this post.
Marlins To Sign Kevin Gregg
7:41pm: Gregg will receive a $2.1MM pro-rated salary upon being called up, which means he’ll earn right around the same amount ($1.4MM) that the Marlins will now forego in draft bonus slot money, reports Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com (via Twitter).
5:37pm: MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro reports (via Twitter) that Gregg’s deal is technically a minor league deal. The Marlins won’t have to make a 40-man move immediately, and they won’t have to make a procedural move like placing Gregg on optional waivers before sending him to the minors, as the Red Sox did with Stephen Drew.
3:51pm: The Marlins have agreed to sign right-hander Kevin Gregg, pending a physical, reports Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (Twitter link). Gregg will spend eight or nine days getting up to speed in the minors before joining the Major League club.
In a second tweet, Rosenthal adds that part of the reason behind Miami’s decision to trade their No. 39 overall pick to the Pirates in exchange for Bryan Morris was to clear room to sign another reliever (Gregg). The draft slot traded by the Fish was valued at $1.4MM.
The 35-year-old Gregg (he turns 36 later this month) posted a 3.48 ERA with 8.1 K/9, 4.7 BB/9, a 36.6 percent ground-ball rate and 33 saves in 62 innings for the Cubs in 2013. Though that marked the most success that Gregg had enjoyed since a solid 2010 season with the Blue Jays, Gregg didn’t find an offer to his liking this winter. The veteran told reporters in April that he wasn’t sure why he couldn’t secure a guaranteed big league deal this offseason but felt he could still get outs at the Major League level and was waiting for the right offer.
Gregg, a client of the Beverly Hills Sports Council, has had an up-and-down career but owns a 4.07 ERA and 177 saves in 700 2/3 Major League innings. The Marlins are hoping that he can help to bolster a relief corps that has, to this point, produced a 4.04 ERA that ranks 23rd among MLB bullpens. The team’s most recent attempt to revitalize a former Cubs closer didn’t pan out well, as Carlos Marmol pitched to an 8.10 ERA before being released.
This marks Gregg’s second stint with the Marlins, as he served as the team’s closer back in the 2007-08 campaigns, saving 61 games. The team has been a pleasant surprise this season, going 28-28 through its first 56 games, placing them three games back of the Braves in the National League East and one game out of a Wild Card spot.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Minor Moves: Maloney, Hanzawa, Lopez
Here are today’s minor moves from around the league…
- The Reds have released left-hander Matt Maloney after just two starts according to a tweet from Cincinnati’s Triple-A affiliate, the Louisville Bats. Maloney, a former Reds prospect, allowed 16 runs (12 earned) in 6 2/3 innings with Louisville this season, striking out three with no walks. He allowed a staggering 25 hits in that time, however, including two homers. Despite the rough outings, Maloney does have a very strong Triple-A background and has seen Major League action in parts of four seasons with the Reds and Twins.
- The Tigers have released shortstop Troy Hanzawa from Triple-A Toledo, according to the International League transactions page. Hanzawa, 28, collected just three hits and no walks in 30 plate appearances for the Mud Hens. The former Phillies farmhand is a career .248/.300/.324 hitter in parts of seven minor league seasons since being drafted in the 16th round in 2008.
- Former Pirates farmhand Cesar Lopez has signed a minor league deal with the Braves, according to the club’s transactions page. The 23-year-old Cuban-born hurler was pitching for the independent American Association’s Grand Prairie AirHogs prior to this deal. Lopez notched a 4.46 ERA with 10.0 K/9 and 2.1 BB/9 in 42 1/3 innings across three levels for the Pirates last season, though he topped out at Class-A Advanced.