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Latest On Hamels Talks Between Phillies, Rangers

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5:20pm: A team source tells MLB.com’s T.R. Sullivan that a trade for Hamels “is not on the board” at time time (Twitter link).

11:39am: The Rangers and Phillies are “having ongoing dialogue” regarding the possibility of a deal that would send lefty Cole Hamels to Texas, Jon Morosi of FOX Sports reports on Twitter. Hamels cannot block a deal to the Rangers pursuant to the current list of teams covered by his limited no-trade clause, Morosi adds in a later tweet.

Texas has received surprisingly solid results from its rotation. And as Morosi notes (Twitter link) the club still expects to receive contributions from rehabbing starters Martin Perez, Matt Harrison, and Derek Holland.

While those factors might indicate that the Rangers could sit back and rely on its internal options, there are other indicators favoring a move. The current staff has succeeded in spite of rather uninspiring peripherals. And the injured pitchers still have a ways to go to prove they will be durable and effective.

Per Morosi, the real motivating factor on the Texas side of the equation is the fact that the team “view[s] Hamels as [an] elite upgrade.” Given his contract, the Rangers presumably see Hamels as a current and future asset that could not only give the team a shot this year but pair with Yu Darvish atop the staff for seasons to come. It remains to be seen how much staying power this year’s Rangers club has, but adding Hamels certainly would not be solely a “win-now” move.

As of late April, at least, Philadelphia was reportedly asking for a package headlined by catcher Jorge Alfaro and outfielder Nomar Mazara. Both of those prospects were rated among the Rangers’ top five heading into the year by Baseball America. While they would look to be great fits for a Philly organization that is looking to add premium talent, it remains to be seen whether Texas has any appetite to pay that kind of price. (Note that Alfaro may not be a movable asset this point, as he is dealing with a significant ankle injury.)

Needless to say, the Phillies will hope that several other bidders enter the fray to drive up the return. Things are shaping up rather nicely for GM Ruben Amaro Jr., as many of the clubs that seem like a fit remain in contention and in need of an arm. Meanwhile, the other presumed top arm available, Johnny Cueto, is a pure rental who now faces at least some potential health questions.

Hamels has been as strong as ever this year, racking up 94 1/3 innings of 2.96 ERA pitching with 9.8 K/9 and 3.0 BB/9. And the 31-year-old seems ready to move past a seemingly minor hamstring injury to make his next start.

The Hamels contract looks more and more appealing every time you check back: he’s owed the balance of a $22.5MM salary this season, and then has three guaranteed years plus an option for a total guarantee of just $73.5MM. (Hamels’ deal also included a $6MM signing bonus, with an unreported payout schedule, which could still factor into the equation.) Essentially, a team dealing for him now would not only have the benefit of adding a top arm for the rest of this year, but would be making a future commitment that is not much greater than the contract signed last year by James Shields (four years, $75MM). At the start of 2016, Hamels will be a full year younger than was Shields at the start of his deal.

Royals Showing Interest In Cueto, Leake, Zobrist

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The Royals are casting a wide net in their search for upgrades on the trade market and have shown signs of interest in Johnny Cueto, Mike Leake and Ben Zobrist, reports Jon Morosi of FOX Sports (via Twitter).

The Reds have, in fact, received inquiries from multiple clubs on Cueto, Leake and Aroldis Chapman, Morosi continues, but Cincinnati is still reluctant to engage in serious trade discussions despite sitting 12.5 games back in the NL Central. Likewise, Morosi’s colleague, Ken Rosenthal, hears that the A’s are in no rush to move Zobrist, as the team is still trying to get back into the race (Twitter link). Rosenthal adds that it’s not entirely clear if the Royals have inquired on Zobrist specifically, but they’ve discussed upgrading at second base, making Zobrist a logical target.

Many pundits feel that while a sale of veteran pieces is only a matter of time for the Reds, they’ll wait until after hosting next month’s All-Star Game before doing so. It would, after all, be a bitter pill to swallow for Cincinnati natives to watch Cueto and Chapman pitch in the All-Star Game while wearing another club’s jersey.

On last week’s MLBTR Podcast, Jeff Todd and I discussed the Reds’ trade possibilities at length. I posited that given the sheer volume of appealing pieces the team could trade, it’s possible that Cincinnati could enjoy a Braves-esque turnaround by willingly listening to offers on not only Cueto, Chapman and Leake, but also Jay Bruce and Todd Frazier.

As for the Athletics, their reluctance to throw in the towel has been noted before, but the team remains 10 games under .500 and 10 games out of first in the AL West even after going 17-11 over the past month. They’re a slightly more manageable eight games back from a second consecutive Wild Card playoff berth, but there’s a clear uphill battle for the A’s to become serious contenders again.

From the Royals’ standpoint, it’s not hard to see why they’d be interested in an upgrade at second base. Setting aside the avalanche of Omar Infante/All-Star jokes already pouring in on Twitter, Kansas City second basemen have combined to hit a woeful .230/.248/.307 this season. Of course, Infante is owed a significant $22.01MM through the end of the 2017 season. (That number will rise by $500K if he does indeed start the All-Star game.)

A rotation upgrade would seem sensible for Royals GM Dayton Moore as well; the Kansas City rotation has produced just a 4.37 ERA this season (21st in the league), and metrics such as FIP and xFIP feel that’s a pretty fair indicator of what to expect based on the talent the Royals are working with. Just three pitchers have made 10 or more starts for the Royals this year, and two of them are Yordano Ventura and Jeremy Guthrie, who have posted respective ERAs of 4.68 and 5.55. Both Cueto and Leake, then, stand out as logical trade targets for the first-place Royals, while on the Oakland side of the equation, names like Scott Kazmir and Jesse Chavez could come into play. Cueto, Leake and Kazmir are all free agents at season’s end, where the late-blooming and somewhat unheralded Chavez is controllable through the 2016 season.

Dillon Gee Accepts Outright Assignment

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3:53pm: Unsurprisingly, Gee has indeed accepted the assignment to Triple-A, tweets MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo.

TUESDAY, 12:43pm: Gee has cleared waivers, the club announced. He remains shy of five years of service time, meaning that he had to accept the assignment or forfeit the remainder of his guaranteed salary.

SUNDAY: The Mets have placed Dillon Gee on outright waivers with the intent of sending him to Triple-A, according to Adam Rubin of ESPN.com.  Gee’s name has been in trade rumors for a very long time but the Mets designated him for assignment late last week when they couldn’t find a match.

From 2010-14, Gee notched a 3.91 ERA with 6.5 K/9 and 2.9 BB/9 in 639 2/3 innings, and he’s typically posted a ground-ball rate near or above the league average (career 46 percent).  This season, however, he has struggled to a 5.90 ERA in 39 2/3 innings for the Mets.  Meanwhile, Gee was owed about $3.24MM prorated on his $5.3MM salary at the time of his DFA, so teams were wary of taking him on.  Now, the Mets will be able to stash him in Triple-A Las Vegas, barring a claim between now and noon CT Tuesday.

Gee missed time this year with a groin strain and spent nearly two months on the DL in 2014 with a strained lat muscle. His 2015 struggles, along with the injuries and his salary have presumably diminished his trade value since Opening Day.  However, in his defense, his rough 2015 numbers were hurt badly by his outing against the Braves on Monday when he surrendered eight runs in just 3 and 2/3 innings.

Gee could theoretically refuse an assignment to Las Vegas if he clears waivers and declare free agency, but as Rubin notes, he’s unlikely to do that since it would cost him the $3.1MM he’s owed for the remainder of the season.

Indians Designate Scott Atchison

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The Indians have designated righty Scott Atchison for assignment, the club announced. His roster spot will go to fellow right-hander Austin Adams.

Atchison, 39, had a great 2014 campaign, when he tossed 72 innings of 2.75 ERA ball for Cleveland with 6.1 K/9 against 1.8 BB/9. More broadly, he had performed well — at least according to ERA estimators, if not always results — dating back to the start of 2011. All said, the Indians felt comfortable giving Atchison a $1MM deal for 2015, which was agreed upon last August.

This year has been different, however. While his strikeout and walk numbers are similar, Atchison has not generated groundballs as consistently and has been punished by the long ball (25.0% HR/B, 2.75 HR/9). The average velocity on both his fastball and slider is down two full miles per hour. Even the most optimistic of advanced stats show him as a below-average performer at this point, and his ERA stands at an unsightly 6.86 over 19 2/3 innings.

Adams, 28, has put up big strikeout numbers this year at Triple-A, though that ability has not shown up yet in his limited MLB action over the last two years. In 18 1/3 total big league frames, he has a 4.91 ERA with 5.4 K/9 against 2.5 BB/9.

Cubs Canvassing Market For Starting Pitching

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The Cubs’ need for starting pitching is well known, but it remains somewhat unclear how much flexibility the team has in addressing it, Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times reports. Chicago would optimally add a controllable-but-established arm, per the report.

Of course, cost-controlled starting pitching is among the game’s most sought-after commodities, so they won’t be alone in that search. The club appears to be looking at a broad range of options as the trade deadline comes into focus, as a source tells Wittenmyer that Chicago has cast a wide net.

The Cubs have reached out to a number of clubs, among them the Mets and Angels, in search of a match. Interestingly, per the report, one prospective swap was disrupted when young infielder Javier Baez suffered a broken finger a few weeks back.

Pursuing an upgrade certainly seems a reasonable strategy. With Tsuyoshi Wada down for an unknown amount of time after leaving his last start early, the team can turn back to Travis Wood, though that duo has been underwhelming. Jacob Turner is working his way back to health and could soon be available, but he has much to prove at this stage of his career.

It remains conceivable that the Cubs could look to acquire a serviceable, short-term veteran to add innings, but the possibility of a more significant addition remains tantalizing. While Baez appears to be on the table, at least if he can get back on the field in time, Wittenmyer says that the club does not appear inclined to move its blue chip assets to strike a deal.

Adding impact pitching without parting with top prospects is obviously a tall order, though we have increasingly seen teams utilize their wallets to facilitate deals. President of baseball operations Theo Epstein indicated that the team’s overall financial situation has not changed significantly, with the club’s current budget already determined by “anticipating some of the new revenue streams, new revenues and expenses as well.” Of course — and this is my speculation — Chicago may have more capacity to take on future obligations.

Minor Moves: Dustin McGowan, Jayson Nix, Josh Prince

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Here are the day’s minor moves …

  • Phillies righty Dustin McGowan has been added to the Triple-A roster at Lehigh Valley, per Director of Media Relations Matt Provence (via Twitter), meaning that he accepted his outright assignment. The club has also released infielder Jayson Nix. Over 195 plate appearances this year at the Triple-A level with the Phillies and Orioles organizations, Nix has struggled to a .162/.196/.222 slash. He has seen at least some MLB action in each of the past seven seasons, but will need to find another minor league opportunity to work his way back to the big leagues.
  • The Tigers have released infielder Josh Prince, James Schmehl of MLive.com reports. Prince, 27, joined the Detroit organization as a minor league free agent after spending his entire prior pro career with the Brewers. He enjoyed a cup of coffee in 2013, but has otherwise played exclusively in the minors. Prince’s primary calling card is his speed — he has 217 professional stolen bases over parts of seven seasons — and his up the middle capabilities on defense. He had scuffled to a .205/.295/.299 slash in his 132 plate appearances at the Tigers’ Double-A affiliate.

NL East Notes: Nats, Mets, Conforto, Phils, Utley, Braves

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The Nationals have yet to play to expectations and are dealing with several injury and performance issues, as Jonah Keri of Grantland explains (in addition to breaking down several other clubs, particularly the A’s, Rays, and Pirates). In terms of potential deadline moves, the area that Keri highlights as needing improvement is first base. As he explains, Ryan Zimmerman has not performed at the plate and is now in the midst of a DL stint of indeterminate length as he deals with plantar fasciitis. Keri suggests that the Nats could go after a rental such as Adam Lind, reserving longer-term questions for the future. From my perspective, adding a left-handed power bat makes a good deal of sense: such a player could boost the team’s production now while ultimately serving as a bench bat and/or platoon mate for Zimmerman, depending upon how things progress, while also supplying some injury insurance.

Here’s more from the NL East:

  • Even as the Mets continue to try to practice responsible roster-building, the club risks legitimate criticism if it can’t find a way to improve its chances while the Nationals look vulnerable, Joel Sherman of the New York Post suggests. There are plenty of possibilities for bold action, of course, but Sherman says not to expect a change of manager. The promotion of young lefty Steven Matz is not the panacea some might think, says Sherman, but could make a difference. (From my perspective, that still seems the single most likely move to inject talent onto the big league roster.) As for trades, Sherman writes that the club may need to get creative, but should be prepared to turn in some of its resources (payroll & prospects) to make something happen.
  • Of course, some have suggested that the Mets really ought to be taking a look at 2014 first-round draft pick Michael Conforto to help boost the team’s sagging offense. But the club is “not considering” that move at this time, Mike Puma of the New York Post tweets. That’s probably not too surprising, really. Conforto is still only 22 and has less than a full season of professional plate appearances on his resume. He has been raking at Double-A, but has not even seen 100 turns at bat at that level and was producing solid but hardly overwhelming numbers at High-A.
  • If the Phillies are serious about building an organization that can succeed in the long run, then they should open their upper management search up broadly before making a decision, writes David Murphy of the Philadelphia Daily News. President Pat Gillick was never expected to stay at the helm of the organization for very long, and it seems that one key function of his office is to find a more permanent replacement. One name that has come up, of course, is former Orioles, Cubs, and Twins executive Andy MacPhail. Murphy says that MacPhail may or may not be the best person to take over, but the club ought to make that determination through a process that includes “a thorough examination of other top candidates throughout the sport.”
  • Phillies manager Ryne Sandberg says he is aware of Chase Utley’s vesting clause terms but won’t allow it to dictate his lineups, as Ryan Lawrence of the Philadelphia Daily News reports. The struggling veteran has lost time to Cesar Hernandez recently. Utley will be guaranteed $15MM next year if he reaches 500 plate appearances this season. He’s just one PA shy of the halfway mark, easily putting him on pace. But as things stand — Utley is slashing .179/.257/.275, and his hard contact and line drive rates have plummeted — the organization would be amply justified to curb his playing time.
  • The Braves are not likely to sell off any significant pieces at the deadline, MLB.com’s Mark Bowman writes in response to a fan question, though they could ship out a few one-year veterans if they fall well out of the picture. Atlanta could still be a limited buyer, Bowman suggests, with the team potentially looking to bolster its bullpen.

Prospect Notes: Appel, Judge, Margot, Toussaint

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Mark Appel may have thrown his last pitch at the Double-A level, as Evan Drellich of the Houston Chronicle reports that the 2013 No. 1 overall pick is likely to be promoted to Triple-A following a strong Double-A showing on Sunday. Appel’s overall numbers aren’t great due to a pair of ugly starts in May, but as Drellich points out, the Stanford product has worked to a 2.17 ERA with a 24-to-8 K/BB ratio in 29 innings over his past five starts. Appel’s production at Triple-A will be worth monitoring, as Drellich also adds that the Astros want to assess their internal starting pitching options before exploring a trade for an upgrade.

Here’s more on Appel and some other top prospects filtering up toward the big leagues …

  • Appel spoke with MLB.com’s Brian McTaggart about his desire to join close friends and former Double-A teammates Lance McCullers, Vincent Velasquez and Carlos Correa in the Majors. He tells McTaggart that the key to his turnaround has been establishing his fastball earlier in counts in order to get ahead of hitters — something on which he has worked repeatedly with pitching coach Doug Brocail.
  • The Yankees have announced that slugger Aaron Judge will move up to Triple-A Scranton, as Jack Curry of the YES Network was first to report on Twitter. The massive outfielder cracked top-100 lists to start the year, and has performed well thus far in his first run at Double-A, slashing .284/.350/.516 with 12 home runs in 280 plate appearances.
  • Red Sox outfielder Manuel Margot has received a bump up to Double-A, Alex Speier of the Boston Globe tweets. The 20-year-old has slashed .282/.321/.420 and added twenty steals over his 198 turns at bat at the High-A level this year. Baseball America rated him the organization’s seventh-best prospect entering the year, crediting Margot with the potential to develop into a true five-tool performer who can play center field. We heard some chatter this spring that the Phillies were eyeing the interesting prospect as a possible piece in a Cole Hamels deal.
  • We saw a fascinating deal last weekend involving the effective sale of young righty Touki Toussaint from the Diamondbacks to the Braves. Over at Fangraphs, Dave Cameron discusses the deal in terms of prospect valuation. He reckons that Toussaint is probably worth about $20MM based on consensus prospect evaluations. While Arizona’s internal assessment may well have been lower, as Cameron notes, it still seems puzzling that the team cut bait given the organization’s current standing.
  • Diamondbacks chief baseball officer Tony La Russa weighed in on the Toussaint deal, as Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic reports. La Russa says the move was all about opening budgetary space to improve the big league roster in the relatively near future. “The ability to to have some payroll flexibility is critical to adding a couple of pieces,” said La Russa. “I don’t think we’re going to need a lot of pieces because we’re going to develop with this core. But if you can make the right move or two with somebody, that brings a lot to the table. Payroll flexibility is important.” Toussaint was a ways off from contributing at the big league level, said the club’s top baseball decisionmaker, while the D’Backs “think [their future] is sooner rather than later.” All said, La Russa indicated that the club simply preferred to move the salary of Bronson Arroyo to holding onto the lottery ticket of a young arm. “We’re not pushing a five-year plan, which is what Touki is,” he said. “Does that mean, just in retrospect, since I was there, should I have told (former scouting director Ray Montgomery), ’Ray, don’t draft a Touki?’ Maybe I should have, but that was my first draft.” The 19-year-old (as of two days ago) Toussaint, of course, was the first name that Arizona called in last year’s amateur draft. Notably, as Piecoro has observed, this year’s selections were heavy on collegiate players.

Draft Signings: Davis, Degano, Williams, Matheny

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Here today’s notable draft signings, with slot value information via Baseball America:

  • The Dodgers went well over slot to sign fifth-round pick Brendan Davis, Jonathan Mayo of MLB.com reports on Twitter. Davis gets $918,600, which is $605K north of the 162nd pick’s assigned slot value. Baseball America placed him just inside its top 500 list, noting that Davis was expected to attend Cal State Fullerton after missing much of his senior high school season with a broken wrist. A “smooth athlete” with good instincts and solid power and hit tools, the shortstop had been a fairly highly-valued prospect before the injury intervened. Los Angeles has yet to sign its top two picks, Walker Buehler and Kyle Funkhouser, and presumably expects to find some savings from those prospective deals to make up for the Davis overage.
  • Meanwhile, the Yankees will realize some savings on second-rounder Jeff Degano, according to Jim Callis of MLB.com (via Twitter). The southpaw will earn a $650K bonus after being taken 57th overall ($1,074,400 slot value), freeing $424,400 for New York to apply toward other picks. ESPN.com’s Keith Law was high on Degano, ranking him the 54th-best player available. Law credits Degano with a low-90s fastball, sweeping slider that could grow into an above-average offering, and reasonably promising change. Degano does have some injury questions and already has undergone Tommy John surgery.
  • Phillies third-round pick Lucas Williams has agreed to an at-slot, $719,800 bonus, Mayo tweets. The high school shortstop was not considered an early-round option by many prospect hounds coming into the draft, but still commanded a full-slot bonus to forego his commitment to Cal Poly San Luis Obispo.
  • The Red Sox have agreed with outfielder Tate Matheny, son of Cards skipper Mike Matheny, to a $512,700 bonus, per Callis (via Twitter). That is the full slot value for the 111th overall pick. Matheny, an outfielder from Missouri State, rated 107th on Baseball America’s list. BA noted that he lacks any notable tools, but has average abilities in several areas and makes the most out of them with plus makeup.

Phil Coke Declines Optional Assignment, Elects Free Agency

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Lefty Phil Coke has declined an optional assignment with the Blue Jays, Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca tweets. As was his right given his 6+ years of service, Coke has elected free agency.

Coke, 32, had allowed just one earned run in 2 2/3 innings in Toronto, striking out three but walking two. Combined with his stint with the Cubs earlier in the year, he owns a 5.68 ERA with 8.5 K/9 against 3.6 BB/9 on the year.

Though he’s continued to bounce around, Coke figures to have another big league shot in relatively short order. His velocity is down a tick from last year, but he still brings 92 to 93 mph heat from the left side and has fairly promising peripherals. SIERA values his contributions this year at a 3.15 earned run equivalency, while FIP likewise shows him at a promising 3.39 mark.

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