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Archives for March 2015

Contract Details: Young, Cabrera, McGowan

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Jon Heyman of CBS Sports has some details on the incentive structures of a trio of late signings from the offseason, so let’s take a look (All Twitter links)…

  • As has been reported, Chris Young’s contract with the Royals has a $675K base and can reach $6MM via incentives. Per Heyman, Young has $1MM available in roster bonuses, $2.25MM available for games started (capping at 29 starts) and $2.075MM available for total innings pitched (which run up to 140 innings).
  • Everth Cabrera’s deal with the Orioles, which pays him $2.4MM and can reach $3MM in total, awards him $75K for reaching each of 250, 300, 350, 400, 425, 450, 475 and 500 plate appearances, according to Heyman.
  • Dustin McGowan signed a Major League deal with the Dodgers that guarantees him just the MLB minimum ($507.5K), but per Heyman, he’ll receive a $1MM roster bonus for spending as little as one day on the active roster. As was previously reported, he can earn $1.5MM worth of incentives via appearances and innings pitched, maxing out at 60 appearances and 60 innings.

Blue Jays Notes: Stroman, Estrada, Bullpen

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The devastating loss of Marcus Stroman for the season greatly increases the likelihood that top prospect Aaron Sanchez will be in the Blue Jays’ rotation rather than bullpen, as many had assumed, writes MLB.com’s Gregor Chisholm. Sanchez, Daniel Norris and Marco Estrada will compete for the final two rotation spots behind R.A. Dickey, Mark Buehrle and Drew Hutchison. Chisolm notes that if Sanchez does end up in the rotation, an already thin bullpen becomes even thinner, as Brett Cecil becomes the likely closer, with Aaron Loup the top setup option. Behind that duo, Estrada could relieve if he doesn’t win a starting role, and the club can also look to Steve Delabar, Wilton Lopez, Todd Redmond, Kyle Drabek, Jeff Francis and prospect Miguel Castro. One thing no one should expect, Chisolm writes, is a significant trade. GM Alex Anthopoulos all but ruled that out, stating to reporters: “Those guys aren’t normally available in March, actually there might be one but I don’t know that we can afford that right now.” Presumably, Anthopoulos was referring to Cole Hamels.

Here are some more Blue Jays items as they plan for a season without their projected top starter…

  • Writing for FOX Sports, Fangraphs’ Dave Cameron opines that the Jays should give Estrada the first crack at the vacant rotation spot. Cameron notes that while Estrada was undeniably ineffective in 2014, he was a useful rotation piece in 2012-13, getting by with a skill-set similar to that of Jered Weaver; that is to say, he succeeded despite below-average velocity as a result of his ability to command the zone and induce a tremendous amount of infield flies. One shouldn’t expect Estrada to morph into Weaver, of course, but Cameron concludes that Estrada could be useful enough in the first half for the Blue Jays to see if the rest of their team lives up to its potential, and at that point, go rent an ace for the stretch run. Using Estrada in the rotation would also allow Sanchez to pitch at the back of the bullpen, giving the team a bit more relief depth.
  • Castro and fellow right-hander Roberto Osuna, both 20, have a chance at cracking the team’s bullpen, writes Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet. While each is considered a long shot, the duo has impressed Blue Jays management with their power arms and advanced feel, particularly Castro. “If he’s really, really good this spring, there’s an outside shot he could be on the team simply because he’s advanced,” said manager John Gibbons, who noted that Castro is impressive not only due to power stuff but because he can throw strikes. Gibbons also touched on the fact that while there wasn’t necessarily a philosophical change in the organization last year, they acted more aggressively with young arms like Sanchez and Norris and could do so again to help fill out the bullpen.
  • Since publishing that article yesterday, Nicholson-Smith has tweeted that Castro’s odds to make the club seem to be getting better with every passing day. It likely helps that Castro fired two scoreless innings today, yielding one hit and no walks with two strikeouts.

AL East Notes: Orioles, Matsui, Drew, Red Sox

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Orioles shortstop J.J. Hardy spoke with MASNsports.com’s Roch Kubatko about the extension he signed last October, explaining that he told agent Mike Seal he enjoyed Baltimore and wanted to remain there due to the club’s winning ways. Wondering where he was going to play the 2015 season did weigh on him throughout the season, Hardy said, and he was happy to agree to terms on a deal to keep him with the O’s. However, Hardy also discussed the departure of Nick Markakis, noting that the move didn’t necessarily sit well with him or franchise cornerstone Adam Jones. “Adam and I have both thought about that,” Hardy told Kubatko. “I know Adam thinks about it a lot. I mean, losing Nick was big. He was one of the guys out there every single day with us. Obviously, we want to win and the reason we signed our extensions is because we like it here and we like the guys who were around, so if everyone starts leaving, I don’t know.” Hardy said he hasn’t voiced any concerns to executive vice president/general manager Dan Duquette or manager Buck Showalter and that, when signing, he trusted that the Orioles would do everything possible to keep their players. Hardy also discussed teammates Matt Wieters and Chris Davis, pointing out that each has Scott Boras as an agent. “[Boras] kind of does a lot more decision-making,” Hardy said, adding that he hopes to see both Wieters and Davis stay in Baltimore.

More from the AL East…

  • The Yankees announced that Hideki Matsui has been hired as a special adviser to GM Brian Cashman. Per ESPNNewYork.com’s Andrew Marchand, Matsui will work closely with Cashman and vice president of player development Gary Denbo, and he’ll spend much of the 2015 season visiting minor league affiliates to work with their managers, coaches and players, focusing on aspects of hitting.
  • Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News spoke to Cashman about why the Yankees re-signed Stephen Drew. The GM explained that the team believes Drew’s rapid offensive deterioration in 2014 to be an aberration, and there’s little concern about the defensive en of the equation despite a change of positions. Andrew Miller, newly signed with the Yankees but a teammate of Drew’s last year in Boston, also weighed in with Feinsand, stating that he doesn’t envy the situation Drew entered in 2014. “Missing spring training and trying to come in with that weight on your shoulders, for it to be such a big story, have a team act so excited to see him, it was a little unfair to him,” Miller explained. “I can’t imagine missing that time and then trying to go to game speed.” Drew himself adds that the missed time hurt him quite a bit, and he’s pleased to be getting reps on schedule this year with the rest of the league.
  • The Phillies scouted both the Yankees and Red Sox today, via Jon Morosi of FOX Sports and Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe (Twitter links). Of course, having a senior scout in attendance doesn’t necessarily indicate that anything eventful is on the horizon in terms of trade activity, as scouts are frequently watching multiple teams over the course of Spring Training. Still, Abraham notes that the Phils have taken quite a few looks at Boston third base prospect Garin Cecchini.

Hector Olivera Weighing Four- To Six-Year Offers

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Cuban infielder Hector Olivera is weighing offers that range from four to six years in length and could come to terms with a team this week, reports MLB.com’s Jesse Sanchez. Sanchez’s sources indicate that the Dodgers, Braves, Marlins, Padres, A’s and Giants have all shown a strong interest in Olivera, who will turn 30 early next month.

Olivera’s market has been anything but typical, as while scouts believe he’s Major League ready and could hit 15-20 homers with strong OBP marks right out of the gate, he also comes with myriad health issues and underwent a late change of representation, switching to the Legacy Agency’s Greg Genske earlier this week. Olivera has a blood disorder that at one time caused clotting in his biceps but is said to be cleared up now, and a report last week indicated that he may have damage to his ulnar collateral ligament as well. Olivera maintains that he is completely healthy, and multiple teams, including the Braves, Dodgers and Padres, have already conducted physicals.

Meanwhile, MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro hears that Olivera’s price tag is expected to land in the $50MM range, and the Marlins are comfortable making an offer in that vicinity (though he does not specify the number of years, and clearly, $50MM over four years would be drastically different than $50MM over six). As for where he would play in Miami, Frisaro notes that the Marlins believe Olivera could handle all four infield positions, and the team would like to get Mike Morse a day or two off per week. They’d also like to keep Adeiny Hechavarria fresher at shortstop by resting him periodically.

Reports last night indicated that the Padres were weighing an offer that was worth “upwards of $50MM,” though no length of contract was specified. The Braves also reportedly have an offer on the table to Olivera, and their comfort zone is reportedly in the $30-40MM range.

Chris Capuano Likely To Open Season On DL

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Yankees left-hander Chris Capuano suffered a Grade 2 strain of his right quadriceps while covering first base in today’s Grapefruit League game and is expected to open the season on the disabled list, writes MLB.com’s Bryan Hoch. Capuano had been expected to fill a spot in an already thin Yankees rotation, but his injury will open the door for candidates such as Esmil Rogers, Adam Warren, Bryan Mitchell and non-roster invitee Scott Baker.

The 36-year-old Capuano signed a one-year, $5MM contract with the Yankees this winter after he impressed them in a half-season’s worth of work last year. After being released by the Red Sox in July, Capuano signed with the Rockies and then was traded to the Yankees in exchange for cash considerations. With New York, the southpaw notched a 4.25 ERA with 7.5 K/9 and 2.6 BB/9 in 65 2/3 innings. Metrics such as FIP (3.85), xFIP (3.78) and SIERA (3.85) all felt that his work with the Yanks was better than his ERA indicated.

There’s currently no timetable for his return, but manager Joe Girardi told reporters that he’d “be surprised if [Capuano]’s not down for awhile.” GM Brian Cashman expressed earlier in the day that he’s been very impressed by Rogers thus far, Hoch writes, saying that Rogers would be “one of the guys we’re really looking at.”

The Yankees’ projected rotation right now includes Masahiro Tanaka, CC Sabathia, Nathan Eovaldi and Michael Pineda, though Tanaka is attempting to pitch through a minor tear in his UCL, Sabathia missed most of last season with knee injuries and Pineda has just 247 innings in the Majors since debuting in 2011, due largely to shoulder injuries.

NL East Notes: Olivera, Lee, Scherzer

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We have not heard much today on Hector Olivera after a busy run the last few days, but the Braves are still “monitor[ing] his market,” per MLB.com’s Mark Bowman. Atlanta’s comfort level on cost seems to land in the $30MM to $40MM range, per the report.

Here are a few more notes from the NL East:

  • Phillies veteran Cliff Lee did not experience any improvement in his bullpen session today, as MLB.com’s Todd Zolecki reports. “I got through it,” he said. “There’s still something there. Same as yesterday.” Lee will throw again Thursday, and says he will keep trying to work through the discomfort so long as it does not get worse. The situation has wide-ranging implications, of course, one of them simply on the remainder of the club’s staff. Ryan Lawrence of the Daily News breaks down the latest on some of the team’s next men up, including Chad Billingsley, Aaron Harang, and Miguel Gonzalez.
  • Nationals starter Max Scherzer says that there really was a mystery team (other than his former club, the Tigers) that pursued him over the winter, as James Schmehl of MLive.com reports (Twitter links). Scherzer added that he was surprised that Detroit went public regarding the significant extension offer he signed last spring.

AL West Notes: Hultzen, Locker, Featherston, Beane

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Mariners prospect Danny Hultzen, once considered one of the game’s best pitching prospects, made his first competitive outing today since early 2013. Hultzen has struggled with shoulder issues, but obviously remains a talented and potentially quite valuable player for Seattle. He walked the first batter he faced — understandably so, as it was Troy Tulowitzki — but worked out of the inning without incident.

More from the AL West:

  • The Angels have no interest in making use of their rights over retired NFL quarterback Jake Locker, as MLB.com’s Alden Gonzalez writes. Los Angeles signed Locker for $300K back in 2009 despite knowing he was destined for a career in football, and he is still only 26 years old. But GM Jerry Dipoto indicated that the club has “enough going on” as it is, noting that he is generally not inclined to pursue players who prefer another sport.
  • Rule 5 pick Taylor Featherston has a good chance of breaking camp with the Angels, writes Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times. Dipoto says that he thinks another club would take a shot on Featherston were he to hit the waiver wire, and fully acknowledged that the Rule 5 status gives him a leg up in earning a utility role.
  • ESPN.com’s Jim Bowden (Insider link) provides an interesting look at Athletics GM Billy Beane, explaining that the longtime head baseball man in Oakland is consis.tantly “selling high and trading quality in exchange for quantity that he hopes will turn into quality.” That was never more evident than in the last year, of course. While some of that “quantity” may not pan out, of course, Beane is often first able to deal it away for other useful pieces.

Braves, Peter Moylan Agree To Minor League Deal

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MARCH 11: Atlanta has announced a two-year, minor league deal with Moylan. When he is done rehabbing, Moylan will become a player/coach with the club’s Rookie affiliate.

MARCH 6: The Braves and right-hander Peter Moylan have agreed to a minor league pact that will bring the Australian-born sidearmer back to Atlanta, where his Major League career began, MLBTR’s Zach Links reports on Twitter.

Moylan, as O’Brien notes, is about 11 months into rehab from his second Tommy John surgery and could be ready to pitch by midseason. The 36-year-old Moylan has been injury prone throughout his career, having also undergone surgeries to repair a bulging disc in his back and a torn labrum in his right shoulder. However, from 2007-10, he made 259 relief appearances with the Braves, working to a 2.44 ERA with 7.0 K/9 and 4.0 BB/9 in 232 1/3 innings. Moylan’s sidearm delivery has always been tough on righties, who have just a .597 OPS against him in his career. However, it’s also led to problems against left-handed batters, as hitters have roughed up for an .805 OPS when holding the platoon advantage.

Moylan’s back surgery, shoulder surgery and second Tommy John have all come since 2011, which helps to explain why the Aussie has totaled just 28 2/3 innings over the past four seasons combined. He didn’t pitch in the Majors at all last year, though he was in Major League camp with the Astros after signing a minor league deal.

Rangers Purchase Contract Of Antoan Richardson

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Here are the day’s minor moves:

  • The Rangers have purchased the contract of outfielder Antoan Richardson, as Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram tweets. Richardson had been signed to a minor league deal with an invite to big league camp, but his deal included an early out clause that led to his ascension to the 40-man. Texas created roster space by transferring injured starter Martin Perez to the 60-day DL. The speedy, switch-hitting Richardson is competing for a reserve outfield role.

D’Backs Rule 5 Pick Oscar Hernandez Has Broken Hamate Bone

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Diamondbacks Rule 5 pick Oscar Hernandez has suffered a broken hamate bone in his left hand, Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic tweets. Hernandez had seemed on track to open the year as the club’s backup catcher behind presumptive starter Tuffy Gosewisch.

As a Rule 5 pick, Hernandez can still be kept under team control if he is added to the DL and kept on the 40-man roster. In some ways, this could actually make it easier for the team to hold on to him, as it reduces the amount of time that Arizona will be required to carry him on the big league roster. The club will also get a chance to see Hernandez in a rehab assignment, and have a chance to evaluate its big league club, before deciding whether to return him to the Rays.

The injury certainly opens a big league roster spot to start the season, though the D’Backs could simply elect to give the reserve job to one of the veterans it has in camp. Gerald Laird, Matt Pagnozzi, and Blake Lalli each have spent time in the big leagues, with Laird in particular having an extensive track record at the game’s highest level.

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