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Archives for August 2014

Quick Hits: Escobar, Rodon, Prado, Colon, Rosario

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25 years ago today, Bart Giamatti banned Pete Rose from Major League Baseball for life for gambling on the game. As Bleacher Report’s Scott Miller points out, the next year could be a turning point for Rose, as Rob Manfred replaces Bud Selig as commissioner and MLB prepares to host the All-Star Game in Cincinnati next July. Miller suggests it’s time for baseball to give its all-time hits leader a second chance. Here’s more from around the game.

  • The Athletics recently claimed Yunel Escobar from the Rays on revocable waivers, but Escobar does not want to play for Oakland, CBS Sports’ Jon Heyman writes. “I am very concerned with Yunel having been selected on waivers by Oakland,” says Escobar’s agent, Alex Esteban. “While I believe Oakland is an excellent organization, I don’t feel that it is the best organization for him.” Esteban adds that Escobar has a good relationship with Rays manager Joe Maddon. Of course, Escobar does not have a no-trade clause and cannot block a trade to the A’s, but his disinterest in playing for them is one variable to keep in mind as the situation develops. Escobar has stayed out of trouble in Tampa, but he did not get along with Bobby Cox in Atlanta and received a suspension for a homophobic slur while playing for Toronto.
  • White Sox top prospect Carlos Rodon dominated Sunday in his second career start for Triple-A Charlotte. Rodon pitched four innings and struck out eight batters, including five of the last six he faced. Less than two months after signing as the third overall pick in the draft, Rodon is already pitching well at the highest level of the minor leagues.
  • Martin Prado and Brandon McCarthy have played well since the Yankees traded for them this summer, writes Barry M. Bloom of MLB.com. Prado played mostly third base with the Diamondbacks, but since being traded he’s played there sparingly, instead appearing more often in right field and at second base. That’s not surprising, given that the Yankees had acquired Chase Headley the previous week. “They talked to me about that the first day before I even stepped out on the field,” says Prado. “I had this experience in the past with the Braves. It’s not like I haven’t done it.”
  • The most likely destination for Bartolo Colon is either the Angels or Dodgers, one executive tells Adam Rubin of ESPN New York (via Twitter). The Tigers don’t have the money for him, Rubin writes. The Mets placed Colon on revocable waivers on Saturday. Rubin tweets that he does not think the Mets will get rid of Colon simply to avoid paying him his $11MM salary next year.
  • Wilin Rosario is dealing with a wrist injury just as he might be coming to a fork in the road with the Rockies, Nick Groke of the Denver Post writes. Rosario is eligible for arbitration after the season and he hasn’t made an overwhelming case to start next season, hitting .248/.289/.399 while concentrating on improving his defense. One element possibly in Rosario’s favor, though, is that there won’t be many good catchers available on the free agent market — Russell Martin is the only obvious starting-caliber catcher.

AL West Notes: Angels, Holland, Telis, Feldman

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The Angels have watched the Athletics add Jeff Samardzija and Jon Lester — and now Geovany Soto — to an already-strong club, but they don’t feel a compulsion to make similar moves, Kevin Baxter of the Los Angeles Times writes. “You have to make sure you tend your own garden,” says Angels GM Jerry Dipoto. “Don’t worry about what they’re doing. Do what you know will help our team get better.” The Angels will be without Garrett Richards and Tyler Skaggs for the rest of the season, but Dipoto points out that acquiring a starter to replace someone like Richards is different from acquiring a backup catcher, as the Athletics did today. The Angels did recently add Gordon Beckham in a trade with the White Sox. Here’s more from the AL West.

  • Derek Holland has missed all of this season due to a knee injury, but he’s excited to return to the Rangers in the near future, writes Christian Corona of MLB.com. “There’s no doubt I’m ready. That’s for sure. It’s just now, are they ready for me to come back?” says Holland. “I’ll take whatever they give me. I’m happy to be playing after what I’ve been through.” Holland has recently had back spasms, which could be a complicating factor, although he now says his back isn’t bothering him. Either way, his return will surely be a day of relief for the Rangers, whose season has been destroyed by injuries to Holland, Prince Fielder, Jurickson Profar, Matt Harrison, Martin Perez, Alexi Ogando and numerous others.
  • With Soto’s departure, the Rangers promoted rookie Tomas Telis, and giving them a preview of what the position might look like for them in 2015, ESPN Dallas’ Calvin Watkins writes. Telis will back up Robinson Chirinos for now, and the Rangers will decide which of them will start next season. “[Telis has] really taken a step forward with his game,” says GM Jon Daniels. “I want to take a look at both those guys.” Top prospect Jorge Alfaro still looks like the Rangers’ catcher of the future, but for now, he’s at Double-A Frisco.
  • Scott Feldman isn’t concerned that the Astros placed him on revocable waivers, Jose de Jesus Ortiz of the Houston Chronicle writes. “I don’t think it’s something to worry about,” Feldman says. “It’s part of the game. If they put me on waivers and somebody wants me it will probably be a win-win.” Feldman adds that he’s also happy to stay with the Astros. Feldman is in the first season of a three-year, $30MM contract, so it’s unclear whether someone will claim him. If they want to, they’ll have to do it by tomorrow. The Angels and Tigers might be possibilities, as Peter Gammons noted earlier today.

NL Notes: Solarte, Wang, Papelbon

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Yangervis Solarte has made a good impression on the Padres since arriving from New York in the Chase Headley trade, Dennis Lin of the San Diego Union-Tribune writes. He’s versatile (playing second base, third base and outfield), and he’s hit .271/.347/.383 in 126 plate appearances so far, coming up with several big hits. That’s not bad at all for a solid defender playing in Petco Park. The Padres can move him around the diamond to accommodate their other players. “He’s shown he’s capable of holding down a major-league job,” says manager Bud Black. “What role that is, I think depends on the makeup of the other 12 position players.” Here are more notes from the NL.

  • It’s unclear what the Brewers will do with Rule 5 pick Wei-Chung Wang, Caitlin Swieca of MLB.com writes. Milwaukee selected Wang from the Pirates last fall even though he hadn’t played above rookie ball. He predictably struggled out of the Brewers’ bullpen, but since hitting the DL with shoulder tightness in July, he’s transitioned back into starting while on a rehab assignment at the Class A level. It’s unclear whether the Brewers will recall him in September.
  • The Phillies have had trouble drumming up interest in closer Jonathan Papelbon even though he’s cleared waivers and the Phillies are willing to eat some of his salary, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports writes. Papelbon’s declining velocity might be a one problem, but as Rosenthal points out, he’s gotten good results despite it. His personality might be another issue, but GM Ruben Amaro insists Papelbon is well behaved, even though he’s opinionated.

MLBTR Originals

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A look back at the original reporting and analysis found on MLBTR the last seven days:

  • Charlie Wilmoth opines a pre-free agency contract extension might represent the best chance for Kole Calhoun to land a big payday, due to his age. Charlie envisions a five-year deal, plus a team option, guaranteeing slightly more than $21MM ($27-30MM, if Calhoun qualifies for Super Two status) as working for both sides.
  • Jeff Todd asked MLBTR readers to pick the winner of the Rusney Castillo sweepstakes. Just 19.5% of you correctly predicted the Red Sox landing the Cuban outfielder/infielder.
  • Zach Links was the first to report right-hander Wirfin Obispo was outrighted by the Pirates to Triple-A Indianapolis.
  • Zach also broke the news left-hander Clay Rapada will take some time to let his injured ankle heal before pursuing his next contract.
  • This past week marked the anniversary of two recent transactions by the Cubs, so Jeff revisited the 2013 trade of David DeJesus to the Nationals and Starlin Castro’s seven-year, $60MM extension in 2012.
  • Steve Adams hosted this week’s chat.
  • Zach compiled the latest edition of Baseball Blogs Weigh In.

Diamondbacks Release Lucas Harrell

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The Diamondbacks have released starting pitcher Lucas Harrell, according to the PCL transactions page. Arizona acquired Harrell from the Astros for a PTBNL in April, and he’s spent most of the season with Triple-A Reno, posting a 5.15 ERA with 5.7 K/9 and 6.5 BB/9 in 106 2/3 innings.

Harrell was an Astros rotation staple as they struggled through the 2012 and 2013 seasons, and once seemed to have a fair amount of trade value. (The Astros reportedly asked the Nationals for top prospect Lucas Giolito for him in 2013.) Harrell pitched well in 193 2/3 innings in 2012, posting a 3.76 ERA with 6.5 K/9, 3.6 BB/9 and plenty of ground balls. He went way downhill in 2013, however, leading the American League in walks. The righty made three starts for the Astros this April before being designated for assignment.

Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Young, Gordon, Duda

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On this date in 2006, Sean Casey grounded out to left field.   Yes, that’s right.  The unique 5-7-3 play was the result of the batter starting to head back to the dugout, believing he was robbed of a hit, when the ball actually glanced off White Sox third baseman Joe Crede’s glove reaching left fielder Pablo Ozuna.  Ozuna’s throw to first base just beat the runner to the bag.  Here’s this week’s look around the baseball blogosphere.

Please send submissions to Zach at ZachBBWI@gmail.com.

Minor Moves: Crosby, Anderson, Telis

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We’ll keep track of today’s minor moves here.

  • Lefty Casey Crosby, who was released two weeks ago by the Tigers, has re-signed with them, Chris Cotillo of MLB Daily Dish tweets. Crosby is out for the rest of the year due to injury, and he’ll rehab with Detroit before becoming a free agent after the season.
  • The Athletics acquired Geovany Soto from the Rangers this afternoon, and they’ve just announced yet another deal for a catcher — they’ve acquired minor-leaguer Bryan Anderson from the Reds for a portion of their international bonus pool. Anderson, 27, has hit .315/.395/.530 in 269 plate appearances split between Double-A Pensacola and Triple-A Louisville this season. The former Cardinals prospect got cups of coffee in St. Louis in 2010 and 2012 and with the White Sox last season.
  • With Soto’s departure, the Rangers have announced that they will select the contract of catcher Tomas Telis from Triple-A Round Rock tomorrow. The 23-year-old has hit .319/.353/.434 in a season split between Round Rock and Double-A Frisco.

East Notes: Syndergaard, Castillo, Howard

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Top Mets pitching prospect Noah Syndergaard likely won’t get to make his big-league debut this season, Newsday’s Marc Carig reports. Mets manager Terry Collins says Syndergaard, who has pitched 124 1/3 frames for Triple-A Las Vegas this season, is close to hitting his innings limit for the year. Las Vegas will also make the PCL playoffs, so their season will continue past the usual early-September endpoint. Collins also says that if Syndergaard were to be promoted, the Mets would want it to be for more than just an inning or two. Here’s more from the East divisions.

  • Rusney Castillo was able to get such a big contract from the Red Sox in part because his skill set of speed, defense and power will be rare in this offseason’s free agent market, his agent tells Scott Lauber of the Boston Herald. “[E]specially when teams were evaluating what was going to be available either at the trade deadline this summer or, more importantly, in free agency this winter, there just weren’t players that matched (Castillo’s) skill set,” says Brodie Van Wagenen of Roc Nation Sports.
  • The Phillies need to seriously consider removing Ryan Howard from their roster this offseason, David Murphy of the Daily News writes. Howard has, of course, struggled this season, hitting .222/.300/.373, but Murphy points out that Howard’s offensive struggles go all the way back to 2012, and there were signs of decline even before that. Meanwhile, as the Phillies attempt to remake themselves, plate appearances represent an asset — a way to gain information about a player who might help in the future, like Darin Ruf. Instead of finding playing time for Ruf primarily at first, though, the Phillies are moving him around, cutting into Domonic Brown’s playing time.

Athletics Acquire Geovany Soto

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The Athletics have acquired catcher Geovany Soto from the Rangers, according to a tweet from Mark Madson. The Rangers will receive cash considerations for Soto, Yahoo Sports’ Jeff Passan tweets. The Athletics announced that they cleared space for Soto on their 40-man roster by moving Kyle Blanks to the 60-day DL.

The 31-year-old Soto has played sparingly this season due to injury, but he’s now healthy, and he was very effective in 2013, hitting .245/.328/.466 in part-time duty. The Athletics already have two good catchers in Derek Norris and John Jaso on their active roster, but Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle tweets that Jaso has recently experienced worsening concussion symptoms and will likely need a stay on the disabled list. And as ESPN’s Buster Olney tweets, Stephen Vogt, another catcher on the active roster, is currently dealing with a foot issue that makes catching difficult. (Vogt can also play first base and outfield.) Soto could see time at DH as well as behind the plate, but he has no significant history at any other position.

Soto, a former National League Rookie of the Year (with the Cubs), re-signed a one-year, $3.05MM contract with the Rangers this offseason. He’s owed $600K through the end of the season, at which point he will be a free agent. Soto is hitting .237/.237/.368 this season, although that comes in a small sample of just 38 plate appearances. In 2483 Major League plate appearances, Soto is a .248/.333/.438 batter.

Pirates Claim Bobby LaFromboise, Designate Field

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The Pirates have announced that they’ve claimed pitcher Bobby LaFromboise from the Padres. San Diego designated the lefty for assignment last week. To make space on their 40-man roster, the Pirates designated infielder Tommy Field for assignment.

LaFromboise has spent the 2014 season in the bullpen at Triple-A El Paso, posting a 4.75 ERA with 7.6 K/9 and 3.6 BB/9 in 53 innings. The 27-year-old pitched 10 2/3 innings for the Mariners last season, striking out 11 batters and walking four while allowing eight runs, seven earned. The Padres claimed him in April.

The Pirates claimed Field from the Angels two weeks ago. He’s hit .289/.359/.452 at the Triple-A level in 2014 while playing second base, shortstop and third base.

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