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Archives for July 2014

Minor Moves: Snyder, Clark, Robinson, Dobbs

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Here are today’s outright assignments and minor moves from around the league…

  • Brad Snyder, who recently elected free agency after being outrighted by the Rangers, has signed with the LG Twins of the Korea Baseball Organization, Dan Kurtz of MyKBO.net reports (via Twitter). Snyder has crushed Triple-A pitching to the tune of a .288/.351/.507 batting line in his career but has never received an extended look in the bigs.
  • First baseman Matt Clark, who recently opted out of his minor league deal with the Mets, tweets that he has signed a new minor league deal with the Brewers (hat tip: Adam Rubin of ESPN New York on Twitter). Clark hit .297/.380/.498 with 10 homers for Double-A Binghamton this season, one year after he posted a .785 OPS and hit 25 bombs for the Chunici Dragons of Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball.
  • Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet reports that the Braves are set to acquire right-hander Andrew Robinson from the Astros. The 26-year-old Robinson, a former 12th-round pick by the Astros, has excelled in 41 1/3 innings between Double-A and Triple-A this season, posting a combined 2.40 ERA with 8.5 K/9 and 2.4 BB/9. Further details of the deal aren’t known at this time.
  • The Nationals announced that Greg Dobbs has accepted an outright assignment to Triple-A Syracuse.  The 35-year-old was designated for assignment last week.  He has largely struggled in a limited bench role for the Marlins and Nats this year and owns a .171/.186/.195 line through 43 plate appearances on the season.  Over parts of 11 seasons in the bigs, Dobbs has slashed .261/.306/.386 over 2,272 plate appearances.

Padres Notes: Torres, GM Search, Francoeur, Street

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The Padres have signed fourth-round selection Nick Torres, reports MLB.com’s Corey Brock (on Twitter). Torres, whose slot was valued at $445K, received a $406.7K bonus and is already DHing for the team’s Arizona Rookie League affiliate tonight. Torres ranked as the No. 117 prospect in the draft per BA, and MLB.com ranked him 109th. Jim Callis and Jonathan Mayo of MLB.com note that Torres was the heart of a strong Cal Poly team and profiles as a corner outfielder that can generate consistently hard contact and has plenty of raw power to tap into.

Here’s more on the Padres…

  • The Padres wanted to interview Indians assistant GM Mike Chernoff for their vacant GM slot, but he turned down the opportunity to interview and will remain in Cleveland, Jon Heyman of CBS Sports reports (on Twitter). David Forst of the A’s and Jason McLeod of the Cubs took the same route, Heyman notes.
  • Jeff Francoeur, currently enjoying a strong season for the Friars’ Triple-A affiliate, has a rolling opt-out in his contract and could soon leave for a Major League opportunity, reports Chris Cotillo of MLB Daily Dish. Francoeur’s contract allows him to leave should a team offer him a big league deal, and one source suggested to Cotillo that the Blue Jays have have interest. Frenchy is slashing a healthy .297/.325/.485 with 15 big flies this season, though those numbers have come in the very hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League.
  • ESPN’s Jim Bowden feels that the Orioles, Tigers, Angels and Reds are good fits for Huston Street and offers his thoughts on what each club would have to surrender in order to pry the potential All-Star away from San Diego (ESPN Insider subscription required). Street, who has a $7MM club option for the 2015 season, has posted a stunning 0.90 ERA with a 32-to-7 K/BB ratio in 30 innings this year.
  • The Padres’ decision to extend Seth Smith was simply weird, writes Fangraphs’ Dave Cameron. While Smith can more than justify the relatively small investment, his value likely won’t ever be higher, and the Padres probably aren’t going to win during the life of this contract. San Diego hasn’t been able to decide whether it’s rebuilding or pushing for contention in years, Cameron writes, and this move further exemplifies that indecision despite the fact that it came after the team dismissed its GM.

NL Central Links: Brewers, McCarthy, Alcantara, Cubs

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The Brewers won’t announce their signing of Dominican shortstop Gilbert Lara yet due to the fact that they’re expecting a change to their international bonus pool, reports Dionisio Soldevila of ESPN Deportes (Twitter link). Teams can acquire additional bonus money as long as they’ve yet to exceed their bonus pool, so it appears they’ll try to land some additional slots before making the Lara deal official. The two sides reportedly agreed to terms on a $3.2MM signing bonus yesterday, but the team has made no statement. Milwaukee has a bonus pool just north of $2.6MM, per Baseball America.

Here’s more out of the NL Central…

  • Travis Sawchik of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review writes that the Pirates have some interest in Brandon McCarthy and wonders if the team could sell high on Vance Worley by flipping him to the Diamondbacks as part of a McCarthy deal. He notes that sabermetric ERA estimators such as xFIP love McCarthy despite an unsightly ERA, while Worley’s strong ERA isn’t sustainable. Sawchik opines that even if the two can’t be traded directly for one another, acquiring McCarthy and slotting him into Worley’s spot would improve the team’s roster.
  • Cubs GM Jed Hoyer offered high praise for top prospect Arismendy Alcantara to Bruce Miles of the Daily Herald. Hoyer wouldn’t comment on whether or not Alcantara would see the Majors this season but noted that he’s underappreciated due to the big reputations of Kris Bryant, Javier Baez and Albert Almora. Alcantara is hitting .310/.350/.546 with 10 homers, 11 triples, 22 doubles and 20 steals, and that strong play has “opened [the Cubs’] eyes,” in Hoyer’s words.
  • Rooftop owners in Chicago have agreed not to sue the Cubs if the team adds just one video board and one advertising sign in the outfield, according to a report from Ameet Sachdev, Jared Hopkins and Blair Kamin of the Chicago Tribune. The team’s most recent vision for the upgrades had a video board and five signs as well as other renovations to Wrigley Field.

Athletics Agree To 10-Year Lease With Coliseum Authority

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8:40pm: The A’s and the Coliseum Authority have now officially agreed to a 10-year lease, writes MLB.com’s Jane Lee. The new lease calls for the city to provide $10MM worth of upgrades, which will be completed this offseason. Additionally, the A’s will be able to leave the Coliseum at any time, so long as they provide two years of notice and make their usual lease payments during that two-year period. The A’s do not have to continue making those payments if they relocate to a new stadium in Oakland, however.

Athletics owner Lew Wolff offered the following statement:

“After much diligence and cooperation from both parties, we are delighted to make this announcement today. We believe this agreement works well for city and county taxpayers, the team, A’s fans and all involved. It provides stability for the A’s, while also improving fan and player experience with significant upgrades and improvements at the facility.”

1:05pm: A power play from MLB commissioner Bud Selig has reignited lease talks between the A’s and the city of Oakland, as Carolyn Jones of the San Francisco Chronicle details.  Athletics co-owner Lew Wolff informed city officials late last night that he received permission from Selig to immediately move the team to a “temporary or permanent location” if a new lease agreement was not approved.

That email from Wolff – which is reprinted in full in Jones’ article – prompted city and county officials to come back to the table this morning to hammer out a deal.  Oakland city councilman Noel Gallo, who was initially opposed to the proposed ten-year lease proposal, said city, county and baseball leaders were on the phone hammering out a deal overnight.

“I think this agreement will be fair,” he said. “It might not be perfect, but I think it’ll be good for Oakland and the region in the long run.”

The Athletics have fought hard for a new stadium for years now and there has been talk of possible moves to San Jose and Fresno at different times.  The ten-year lease agreement, which Jones outlined in an earlier article, called for the the rent to decline over the course of the contract from $1.75MM at the outset to $1.25MM at the end.  While it seemed to be a done deal, some Oakland officials opposed the agreement and it was not completed as expected.  Now, it seems that things are back on track to keep the A’s in Oakland.

Royals Sign Ricky Aracena

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Here are the day’s most notable international prospect signings from the (rankings via MLB.com and Baseball America):

  • The Royals have signed Dominican shortstop Ricky Aracena, reports MLB.com’s Jesse Sanchez (via Twitter). Aracena, who ranked 24th on Sanchez’s Top 30 list and 17th per Baseball America’s Ben Badler, will receive a bonus of $850K, Sanchez says. Sanchez notes that Aracena is a switch-hitter with equal bat speed and home run power from each side of the plate, and he has the tools to stick at shortstop. Sanchez likens him to Rafael Furcal in terms of body type, while Badler (subscription required) compares him to a larger version of Jose Altuve. Scouts “marvel” at how polished and instinctive Aracena is at such a young age, according to Badler.

MLBPA Investigating Agents’ Roles In Biogenesis

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The Major League Baseball Players Association is conducting an investigation to determine the roles of certain agents in last year’s Biogenesis scandal, ESPN’s T.J. Quinn reports. Specifically, Quinn writes, the investigation will look into ACES — who represented 10 Biogenesis clients — and CAA (Ryan Braun’s agency).

This isn’t the first time that ACES has come under investigation by the MLBPA. Following Melky Cabrera’s 2012 suspension for PED use, ACES employee Juan Carlos Nunez assisted Cabrera in creating a fake web site in a bizarre attempt to explain the failed drug test. Brothers Seth and Sam Levinson, the founders of ACES, said at the time that although Nunez was certified as an agent, he was a consultant and they were unaware of his actions. Late MLBPA executive director Michael Weiner released a statement at the time that said a “thorough investigation” had been conducted that cleared any ACES principals of involvement with the scam.

This new investigation, Quinn reports, will seek to determine if the Levinson brothers were aware of Nunez’s work with Biogenesis founder Tony Bosch or his involvement in Cabrera’s web site. Quinn adds that any agents who are found to have been complicit or to have violated their duties could lose their certification, though the MLBPA’s agent regulations do allow for lesser penalties.

The investigation is being run by veteran attorney Robert Muse, according to Quinn. He and his team are expected to release a report within a few weeks.

Athletics Designate Jeff Francis For Assignment

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The A’s announced (on Twitter) that they have designated left-hander Jeff Francis for assignment and activated fellow lefty Eric O’Flaherty from the disabled list.

The 33-year-old Francis appeared in nine games for the A’s (all relief appearances) and yielded nine runs in 13 1/3 total innings with a 10-to-3 K/BB ratio. The longtime Rockies hurler began the year with the Reds but was claimed off waivers by Oakland back in May. Once a mainstay in Colorado’s rotation, Francis has seen his stock drop since his peak years in 2006-07. The former No. 9 overall pick in the draft has a career 4.95 ERA with 6.0 K/9, 2.7 BB/9 and a 44.6 percent ground-ball rate in 1267 1/3 innings.

O’Flaherty will be making his first appearance on Oakland’s active roster after signing a two-year, $7MM contract with the A’s this offseason. The former Brave underwent Tommy John surgery last year and has been on the shelf all season as he recovers. When healthy, O’Flaherty was one of the National League’s best setup men, posting a 1.99 ERA with 7.2 K/9 and 2.9 BB/9 in 249 1/3 innings from 2009-13. He’s lethal against opposing lefties and has typically been solid against right-handed hitters as well, so he will make a nice addition to Oakland’s relief corps.

Mets Haven’t Had Recent Talks On Daniel Murphy

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Daniel Murphy’s name has been featured frequently pages of MLBTradeRumors in recent weeks, but it sounds like he probably won’t be changing uniforms in the next few days.  Mets assistant GM John Ricco told Tim Rohan of the New York Times that the club hasn’t had any recent talks on the second baseman.

“We haven’t specifically talked about Dan recently,” Ricco said. “He is one of the more valuable guys we have. He leads the league in hits. He’s settled in as one of the best second basemen in the game, certainly offensively, and is a leader on our team.”

When asked if the Mets were worried about the perception if they traded Murphy, Ricco said, “It depends what the return is,” which Rohan takes to mean that a deal would be better received if they got more immediate help rather than prospects who are a few years away.  The 29-year-old is enjoying his best season to date, hitting .300/.351/.421 with seven homers through 83 games.

Ricco also indicated that the Mets have yet to decide if they’ll be buyers or sellers at the trade deadline.  However, comments from GM Sandy Alderson yesterday seemed to indicate that a sell off could be close as he said the next 10-12 days will be vital to that assessment.  If they do sell, however, Alderson says that they’re not likely to move left-hander Jon Niese.

Of course, the Mets could instead lock up their second baseman for the long haul.  Our own Steve Adams recently looked at what a new deal for Murphy might look like.

Indians Sign Mike Papi

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1:14pm: Papi gets a $1.25MM bonus and a $30K scholarship, according to Chris Cotillo of MLBDailyDish (on Twitter).  That’s a little less than the prescribed $1.495MM slot value for the No. 38 pick.

1:10pm: The Indians announced that they have signed their Competitive Balance Round A selection, Mike Papi.  The University of Virginia product was taken with the No. 38 overall pick.

Keith Law of ESPN.com (Insider sub. req’d) and Baseball America both ranked Papi as the 43rd best prospect in this draft.  MLB.com was more or less in agreement with that assessment, putting him at No. 45.  Baseball America was very complimentary of Papi’s physical strength and noted that scouts give him plus power grades.  However, Papi is a below-average runner and so-so athlete who will probably be a better fit at first base than in the outfield, according to BA.

The outfielder/first baseman earned All-America and First-Team All-ACC honors for the second straight year in 2014, leading the team in average, homers and RBI and became the first Cavalier to lead the ACC in home runs since 1978.

White Sox To Release Scott Downs

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The White Sox have requested waivers on left-hander Scott Downs for the purpose of granting him his unconditional release, tweets Scott Merkin of MLB.com.  The White Sox designated Downs for assignment late last month.

Over 23 2/3 innings for the White Sox, Downs recorded a 6.08 ERA with a better-than-usual 8.4 K/9 clip but an alarmingly high 5.7 BB/9 mark.  Still, ERA estimators are kinder to Downs, as he owns a 3.69 FIP, 4.07 xFIP, and 3.96 SIERA.

While his 58.5% strand rate is one mark that looks prime for regression, that is also perhaps a reflection of the fact that he has been less than successful in his LOOGY role. On the other hand, Downs has held opposing left-handed hitters to a .225/.309/.367 mark; his real issue has been with righties, who own a .296/.415/.364 triple-slash against him.

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