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Archives for May 2016

Josh Ravin Receives 80-Game PED Suspension

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Dodgers righty Josh Ravin has received an 80-game PED suspension, according to Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link). That is the penalty for a first-time offender under MLB’s Joint Drug Prevention and Treatment Agreement.

Ravin, 28, was on the 60-day DL after breaking his non-pitching arm in a car accident during the offseason, so he wasn’t expected back for some time. Now, he’ll be unavailable until late July, at the earliest.

Last year was Ravin’s first at the major league level. He allowed seven earned runs on 13 hits in 9 1/3 innings of relief, but did impress with a 12:4 K:BB ratio and showed an upper-90s fastball. Ravin spent most of 2015 at Triple-A, where he worked to a 3.86 ERA in 28 frames with 12.2 K/9 against 5.1 BB/9.

Padres Designate Michael Kirkman

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The Padres have designated lefty Michael Kirkman for assignment, per a club announcement. His spot on the active roster will go to outfielder Alex Dickerson.

Kirkman, 29, made just one appearance on the year, surrendering six hits and four earned runs in 1 1/3 innings. Long a member of the Rangers organization, Kirkman spent most of last year at the Triple-A level with the Brewers before receiving his release in August. He carried an impressive 2.81 ERA on just 19 hits over 32 innings at Colorado Springs, but his 9.6 K/9 was accompanied by a troubling 7.9 BB/9.

Mariners Outright Joe Wieland

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The Mariners announced on Monday that they have outrighted the contract of righty Joe Wieland off the 40-man roster. Wieland, who passed through waivers, remains at the Triple-A level, while Seattle’s 40-man roster now sits at 39 players.

Seattle acquired Wieland from the Dodgers in exchange for minor league infielder Erick Mejia this offseason. Wieland was originally a fourth-round selection of the Rangers back in the 2008 draft but was dealt to the Padres in the 2011 Mike Adams trade and was then flipped to the Dodgers in the Matt Kemp blockbuster of the 2014-15 offseason. Wieland looked to be a potential rotation option in San Diego back in 2012 when he posted a 4.55 ERA with 7.8 K/9 against 2.9 BB/9 in five starts (27 2/3 innings) as a 22-year-old, but he underwent Tommy John surgery that season and missed the entire 2013 campaign. A stress reaction and eventual arthroscopic surgery on his elbow cost Wieland much of the 2014 campaign, making the 2015 season the first in which he was fully healthy in two years.

Last year, Wieland worked to a 4.59 ERA in 113 2/3 innings at the Triple-A level with the Dodgers organization and also tossed 8 2/3 innings at the Major League level, though he surrendered eight runs in that brief big league stint. The 2016 season has been a disaster for the now 26-year-old Wieland, however, as he’s allowed an unthinkable 25 earned runs on 36 hits and eight walks with 10 strikeouts in just 13 innings at the Triple-A level. Perhaps even more amazing is the fact that Wieland actually looked sharp through his first two outings of the year, surrendering a total of three runs with a 7-to-1 K/BB ratio in nine innings. He’s made a trio of starts since that time, though, and failed to escape the second inning while allowing at least five runs in each of the three.

Braves Designate Drew Stubbs, Option Jace Peterson

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The Braves has designated outfielder Drew Stubbs for assignment, reports Mark Bowman of MLB.com (Twitter link). That DFA comes as part of a flurry of roster moves; the Braves have selected the contracts of veterans Reid Brignac, Chase d’Arnaud and Matt Tuiasosopo (David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal Constitution reported the Tuiasosopo news earlier today) and also recalled right-hander Mike Foltynewicz from Triple-A Gwinnett. Infielder Jace Peterson and right-hander John Gant have been optioned to Gwinnett as well. Atlanta has since announced the moves (also via Twitter).

Stubbs, 31, batted .237/.310/.316 with a homer and four steals in 20 games/42 plate appearances for the Braves prior to being jettisoned from the 40-man roster. He picked up his fair share of at-bats with Ender Inciarte on the disabled list while serving as part of a timeshare in center field with rookie Mallex Smith. However, with Inciarte set to return from the disabled list in the near future, his presence on the roster was perhaps deemed superfluous for Atlanta.

Peterson, 25, saw regular at-bats with the Braves for much of last season but cooled considerably down the stretch and has posted a woeful .182/.260/.205 batting line in 50 plate appearances this season. The infielder will hope to get back on track and return to the form that allowed him to bat .284/.363/.389 through his first 65 games last season. That production, though, was bolstered by a .339 batting average on balls in play, and the fact that his strikeout rate climbed in the second half of the 2015 campaign as well as early in the 2016 season (26 percent this year) suggests that returning to those heights could be a difficult task.

Brignac, d’Arnaud (the older brother of Mets catcher Travis d’Arnaud) and Tuiasosopo all come with their fair share of MLB experience, though none of the bunch has enjoyed prolong success a the big league level. Given the high volume of roster turnover we’ve seen from the Braves across the past seven months of regular-season play, it seems highly plausible that none of the three will be a long-term addition to the big league roster. Foltynewicz, however, should have a chance to stick in the rotation now that fellow right-hander Bud Norris has seemingly been dropped from the rotation.

Tim Lincecum’s Showcase Set For Friday

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MAY 2: The Athletics will also be in attendance, tweets John Hickey of the Bay Area News Group. Meanwhile, Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post (Twitter link) and Mike Puma of the New York Post (Twitter link) report that the Rockies and Mets, respectively, will not be in attendance. Puma notes that the Mets are already comfortable with their pitching depth, and as Saunders notes, it’s highly unlikely that the Rockies would be able to convince Lincecum to attempt to revitalize his career at Coors Field.

MAY 1: Tim Lincecum will hold a long-awaited throwing showcase for scouts on Friday in Scottsdale, MLB Network’s Jon Heyman reports (Twitter links).  As many as 20 teams are expected to attend, including representatives from the Orioles, Padres and the Giants, Lincecum’s former team.

As of February, a return to the Giants was still Lincecum’s preference, as the right-hander told at least one person while visiting his old teammates during Spring Training, CSNBayArea.com’s Alex Pavlovic reports.  The Giants have long said that they would be interested in a reunion with Lincecum if “the Freak” was willing to take on a bullpen role, and Pavlovic reports that this relief-only stance hasn’t necessarily changed even though the club’s rotation has had some early struggles.

Lincecum, for his part, wants to return as a starter and has been working out all winter in order to rebuild his durability and velocity following hip surgery that shortened his 2015 season.  He reportedly wanted to be in top form before officially throwing for scouts, which is why the showcase (rumored to be imminent for four months) is only taking place this week.  There is no small amount of mystery surrounding Lincecum’s condition as scouts have been kept away from his workouts, though recent reports have him throwing 70 pitches on an every-five-days basis and throwing in the 90 mph range off of flat ground.

If Lincecum looks good in his showcase, he would likely be able to find a starting job with one of the many interested teams, though it might be on a minor league contract given his health history.  San Diego and Baltimore have both been connected to Lincecum all offseason, with both clubs perhaps in more need of starting pitching depth now due to injuries and ineffectiveness within their current rotations.  The Orioles just added some veteran depth earlier this week by signing Wandy Rodriguez to a minors deal.

Minor MLB Transactions: 5/2/16

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Here are the day’s minor moves from around the league…

  • The Reds have signed former Rockies first-rounder Kyle Parker to a minor league deal, reports Baseball America’s Matt Eddy. Parker, 26, logged 112 plate appearances with the Rox last season but batted just .179/.223/.311 with three homers. The first baseman/outfielder does have  solid .285/.332/.442 line in parts of two minor league seasons, and he’ll give the Reds some additional depth at what is currently a somewhat uncertain position.
  • Fleet-footed minor league veteran Antoan Richardson has signed a minors pact with the Dodgers, also according to Eddy. The 32-year-old Bahamian-born outfielder has seen brief stints with the Braves and Yankees in the Majors. As Eddy notes, Richardson is the active minor league leader in on-base percentage (.394) and stolen base success rate (85 percent). Richardson is a lifetime .275/.394/.344 hitter in the minors with 15 homers and 328 steals (in 386 attempts).
  • Eddy also reports that catcher Luke Carlin has signed a minor league deal with the Indians, but Paul Hoynes of the Plain Dealer clarifies that it’s a coaching gig (Twitter link). Carlin spent the 2010-14 seasons in the Cleveland organization and saw a bit of time in the Majors in 2010 and 2012. Carlin has 156 Major League plate appearances and has batted .179/.263/.286 in that time. He’s a career .239/.357/.350 hitter at the minor league level, where he’s prevented 31 percent of stolen base attempts and drawn consistently solid pitch-framing marks from Baseball Prospectus.
  • The Braves will select the contract of infielder/outfielder Matt Tuiasosopo from Triple-A Gwinnett, reports David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution (via Twitter). Tuiasosopo, 29, is a well-traveled veteran that last saw the Majors in 2013 with Detroit. He’s a lifetime .207/.290/.356 hitter in 401 Major League plate appearances that has posted a considerably better .246/.352/.413 line in nearly 3,000 minor league plate appearances.

J.J. Hardy Out Four To Eight Weeks With Fractured Foot

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2:08pm: CSN Mid-Atlantic’s Rich Dubroff (Twitter link) and Eduardo Encina of the Baltimore Sun each have a slightly more optimistic take on Hardy’s timeline, as both cite sources in reportingt hat Hardy will miss four to six weeks, as opposed to six to eight weeks. Connolly tweets that he’s been told both four to six weeks and six to eight weeks.

1:32pm: Orioles shortstop J.J. Hardy has suffered a small fracture in his foot and is heading to the disabled list, Dan Connolly of BaltimoreBaseball.com first reported (Twitter link). MASNsports.com’s Roch Kubatko adds more context, calling the injury a hairline fracture and reporting that Hardy is expected to miss six to eight weeks of action. Hardy suffered the injury in yesterday’s game after he fouled a ball off of his left foot.

Per Kubatko, the Orioles are expected to recall Ryan Flaherty from Triple-A Norfolk to take Hardy’s spot on the roster, and veteran infielder Paul Janish could also be an option once he returns from paternity leave (he’ll leave the Triple-A club Wednesday for the birth of his child). Janish isn’t currently on the 40-man roster and would thus require an additional 40-man move to be made. It’s also worth noting that Manny Machado could slide over to shortstop in Hardy’s absence, as he did for a bit in 2015 when he played seven games. Machado was originally drafted as a shortstop but moved over to third base due to Hardy’s presence when he was initially promoted to the Major Leagues.

Losing Hardy for up to two months is a notable blow to the Orioles, as the 33-year-old’s bat had bounced back somewhat early in the season, resulting in a .244/.291/.410 (90 wRC+) batting line in 86 plate appearances. While that production isn’t up to par for a league-average hitter, it’s a notable step up from the .246/.306/.372 (83 wRC+) batting line of the average big league shortstop and is more than serviceable when considering Hardy’s elite defensive contributions. While the Orioles should be able to maintain a quality infield defense with some combination of Machado, Flaherty and Janish comprising the left side of the infield, it’s likely that the net outcome of that trio — both on offense and defense — will fall shy of the would-be combination of Machado and Hardy on an everyday basis.

2017 MLB Free Agent Power Rankings

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The first month of the 2016 MLB season is in the books, and we’ve got movement in our 2017 MLB Free Agent Power Rankings.  These rankings apply to players projected to reach free agency after this season, and the players are ranked based on earning power.  In the middle of April, the Rangers unsurprisingly extended Adrian Beltre, so he’s off the list.  To see the full list of 2016-17 MLB Free Agents, click here.

1.  Stephen Strasburg.  Strasburg was dominant in the season’s first month, carrying over his success from last year.  By measure of wins above replacement, only Clayton Kershaw and Noah Syndergaard have been better.  With a full season of good health, agent Scott Boras could look to push a seven-year deal for Strasburg past $240MM.  An opt-out clause or two will surely figure in as well.  Strasburg doesn’t turn 28 until July.

2.  Yoenis Cespedes.  Cespedes jumps up a spot after a huge April.  In addition to seven home runs, he even managed to draw a few extra walks.  A less streaky campaign than 2015, perhaps ending with around 35 home runs again, could net Cespedes the six-year deal that eluded him last winter.  To take a shot at it, he’ll have to opt out of the remaining two years and $47.5MM on his current contract with the Mets.

3.  Jose Bautista.  Bautista continues to do his thing, hitting for power and drawing lots of walks.  Last week, Jon Heyman tweeted that he believes Bautista will take less than his five-year, $150MM asking price but not less than $100MM.  Something a bit north of $100MM on a four-year deal does seem plausible for Bautista, who told Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe last month that he is willing to negotiate in-season with the Blue Jays.

4.  Josh Reddick.  Nothing out of the ordinary from Reddick in April.  As a solid player who doesn’t turn 30 until February, Reddick could be a sneaky candidate for a five-year deal this winter.  He told MLB.com’s Jon Paul Morosi that he’s not aware of any substantive extension talks with the A’s.  In that column, Morosi had some interesting speculation about whether the Cubs could trade for Reddick this summer.

5.  Carlos Gomez.  Gomez is hitting .245/.303/.364 since June of last year, and I’ve dropped him three spots since our last rankings.  The Astros’ center fielder is currently battling rib cage soreness and is trying to avoid the DL.  For the Astros, Gomez just hasn’t looked like the player he was with the Brewers.  Even if he performs to projections from here on out, which is a total unknown, Gomez could be limited to a four-year deal in the range of Alex Gordon’s $72MM.  He carries further downside risk if this becomes a lost season.

6.  Kenley Jansen.  Business as usual for Jansen, who has allowed one run in his first ten appearances.  If the save opportunities continue coming as they did in April, perhaps the Dodgers’ closer can top his career high of 44 saves.  It would be interesting to see a reliever earn the second-largest pitching contract of the offseason.  Jansen could make that happen with a precedent-shattering five-year deal.

7.  Edwin Encarnacion.  Like last year, it was a rough April for Encarnacion.  The Blue Jays’ designated hitter has shown many times he’s capable of going on a tear.  Still, my confidence in a four-year deal for Encarnacion is wavering a bit.  He’ll turn 34 in January.

8.  Aroldis Chapman.  Chapman’s 30-game suspension for a domestic violence incident ends a week from today, and he’ll presumably jump right into the Yankees’ closer role.  He’s been working out at the Yankees’ minor league complex, taking some time last week to become a U.S. citizen.  I expect Jansen to do better than Chapman in free agency, but Chapman should still land a huge contract if he stays incident-free until free agency.

9.  Francisco Cervelli.  Cervelli makes his first appearance in our top ten.  The Pirates’ backstop has stepped it up a notch after a stellar 2015, and ranks fifth in the NL with a .438 on-base percentage.    As it stands now I could see a four-year deal worth $60MM, and I think he could have a shot at five years if his offensive success continues.  Quite the transformation for Cervelli, who will turn 31 shortly before the 2017 season.

10.  Dexter Fowler.  Like Cespedes, Fowler could find the contract that eluded him after another year back with his old team.  So far in 2016, Fowler has been the best player in baseball.  The Cubs’ center fielder boasts an MLB-best .470 OBP.  Though he’s never approached four wins above replacement, Fowler already has two in the books after one month.  If he stays healthy and productive, Fowler should be able to get a four-year deal in free agency.

Neil Walker and Michael Saunders are both pushing for a spot in our top ten after stellar starts to their seasons.  Walker has already crushed nine home runs, and could reach 30 this year.  Saunders is healthy and hitting after a lost 2015.  Typically weaker against left-handed pitching, Saunders smacked three home runs off southpaws in April, including two off Drew Smyly.  Colby Rasmus, Mark Trumbo, Martin Prado, and Rich Hill are a few others off to hot starts in 2016.  Andrew Cashner drops out of our top ten after a lackluster April.

AL East Notes: Yankees, Rays, Paredes, Smith

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With the Yankees off to a woeful 8-15 start to the season, the New York Post’s Ken Davidoff opines that it’s time to make some significant changes to the lineup. Chief among them, writes Davidoff, is the benching of struggling third baseman Chase Headley in favor of Ronald Torreyes. While he notes that such a move wouldn’t be a long-term fit, Davidoff feels Torreyes would provide quality at-bats on a more consistent basis. Davidoff also calls for a demotion for right-hander Luis Severino if his struggles persist much longer, writes that aging veterans (Carlos Beltran, Alex Rodriguez, Mark Teixeira) should receive less playing time and adds that the Yankees should make it known that they’ll eat a large portion of Jacoby Ellsbury’s salary in a trade.

While the Yankees could certainly look to move Ellsbury, that’s far easier said than done, even if they’re eating a huge portion of his contract. Ellsbury has nearly $107MM remaining on his contract through the end of the 2020 season (including the $5MM buyout on his 2021 option). While the Dodgers were able to move Matt Kemp with nearly an identical amount remaining on his deal, Kemp was significantly more productive at the plate prior to his trade, and the Dodgers still had to eat $32MM of his deal. L.A.’s inability to move Carl Crawford and the longtime struggles the Braves faced in trying to shed Melvin Upton Jr. serve as reminders that it would be exceptionally difficult to move Ellsbury.

More from the AL East…

  • Fangraphs’ David Laurila spoke with Headley about his struggles at Yankee Stadium. Headley explained that he’s in somewhat of a catch-22, as with the exception of the short porch in right field, Yankee Stadium plays fairly large. His swing from the left side is more geared for power to center field or to left field, which negates some of the advantages of hitting left-handed there. However, because of the increased shifting against him, he does feel the need to try to hit the ball in the air, which has resulted in a number of fl-ball outs. Headley tells Laurila that he’s working on pulling the ball in the air with more authority, though clearly he’s still enduring some troubles at the plate.
  • Also within Laurila’s notes column, he speaks to Rays right-hander Danny Farquhar about the increase of data that he’s received now that he’s in the Tampa Bay organization. “They’re presenting me with more than anyone I’ve been with,” said Farquhar. The former Mariners setup man feels that the increased data is good information to have to provide context when he’s struggling.
  • Orioles infielder/DH Jimmy Paredes will see his minor league rehab assignment end in two weeks, and Baltimore will face a decision on the out-of-options 27-year-old at that point, writes MASNsports.com’s Roch Kubatko. Kubatko doesn’t see how the O’s can keep Paredes on the roster unless they view him as their backup second baseman over Ryan Flaherty, who is expected to be recalled from Triple-A this week. It does indeed seem as if Baltimore has some trepidation about playing Paredes in the field with any form of regularity. Last season, he logged just 72 2/3 innings in the field despite appearing in more than 100 games. The Orioles, in fact, elected to play Steve Pearce at second base over Paredes despite a complete lack of experience for Pearce at the position. With Pedro Alvarez locked in at DH, Paredes does appear to be squeezed out of a role unless the club feels comfortable with his glove, which hasn’t been the case in the past.
  • The Red Sox optioned infielder Marco Hernandez to Triple-A, which will clear a spot on the 25-man roster for right-hander Carson Smith to be activated from the disabled list tomorrow, tweets ESPN Boston’s Scott Lauber. As the Boston Herald’s Evan Drellich writes, manager John Farrell explains that he plans to be careful with Smith early in his season. “We’ve got to be mindful that Carson comes back to us with a limited rehab (stint), so we’ve got to be careful on his frequency of use,” said Farrell. “It’s not being ruled out that we would go with an extra pitcher for the short term.”

Sean Burnett Opts Out Of Dodgers Contract, Will Sign Minors Deal With Braves

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Veteran left-handed reliever Sean Burnett will opt out of his minor league contract with the Dodgers and sign a new minor league pact with the Braves, reports Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet (Twitter link).

Burnett, 33, is seeking a return to a big league mound for the first time since the 2014 campaign. Once an excellent setup option for the Nationals, Burnett signed a two-year, $8MM pact with the Angels as a free agent prior to the 2013 season. A left elbow impingement in 2013, however, led to season-ending elbow surgery, and a torn ulnar collateral ligament in 2014 required Tommy John surgery (the second such operation of Burnett’s career).

After a year off to recovery from that Tommy John, though, Burnett is back on a mound and now with his third organization in the past six weeks. The veteran southpaw, a client of agent Jim Munsey, was in camp with the Nationals on a minor league pact but didn’t make the club in Spring Training and subsequently latched on with the Dodgers, for whom he tossed 7 2/3 innings at the Triple-A level over the past month. In that time, Burnett allowed three runs (two earned) on eight hits and six walks (one intentional) with five strikeouts. That lack of control isn’t particularly encouraging, though some rust for a pitcher who had as long of a layoff as Burnett did is to be expected.

Burnett will report to Triple-A Gwinnett tomorrow, according to Nicholson-Smith, where he’ll look to continue to iron out some of the kinks. The Braves figure to present a clearer path to the Majors for Burnett, as Atlanta’s collective 5.14 bullpen ERA is markedly worse than the collective 3.84 mark turned in by the Dodgers. The two lefties in Atlanta’s ’pen at the moment are veteran Eric O’Flaherty and 26-year-old rookie Hunter Cervenka, either of whom could conceivably be unseated by Burnett if he can rediscover his form. From 2009-13, Burnett posted a 2.77 ERA with 7.5 K/9 against 3.1 BB/9 in 243 2/3 innings between the Pirates, Nats and Angels.

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