Headlines

Go To Pro Hockey Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

Archives for July 2016

Rosenthal’s Latest: Archer, Pirates, Royals, Nats, Yanks, Reds

By | at

The Rays believe there are roughly eight teams with strong enough farm systems to put together a package for right-hander Chris Archer in advance of the Aug. 1 non-waiver trade deadline, reports FOX Sports’ Ken Rosenthal (video link). One of those clubs, the Pirates, would have to move both righty Tyler Glasnow and outfield prospect Austin Meadows to acquire Archer. Glasnow, who’s currently in the midst of his second major league start, is sixth on Baseball America’s Midseason Top 100, while Meadows is 10th. Tampa Bay’s asking price is quite high, then, but Rosenthal notes that Archer has an eminently team-friendly contract through 2021. The soon-to-be 28-year-old has struggled to prevent runs this season and has seen both his walk and home run rates increase significantly, but he was a top-of-the-rotation option over 535 1/3 innings from 2013-15.

More deadline-related buzz from Rosenthal:

  • The remainder of the Royals’ current homestand (five games) will determine their course entering the deadline. At 48-47, the reigning World Series champions are eight games behind AL Central-leading Cleveland and five out of a Wild Card spot. Should they end up selling, free agents-to-be Edinson Volquez, Luke Hochevar and Kendrys Morales are all candidates to change uniforms. So is closer Wade Davis, whose contract expires after next season and whose demand around the league will only rise if the Yankees retain their late-inning relief aces. FanRag Sports’ Jon Heyman reported earlier Saturday that Washington is among the teams interested in Davis.
  • Nationals right-handed pitching prospect Erick Fedde could headline a package for Yankees closer Aroldis Chapman, and Rosenthal says landing the 23-year-old would be “a coup” for a team that covets young starters. Fedde, the 18th overall pick in the 2014 draft, is BA’s 61st-ranked prospect and has put up a 0.69 ERA in his last eight starts at the High-A level, per Rosenthal.
  • The thinness of the pitching market means it would make sense for the rebuilding Reds to listen to offers for righty Anthony DeSclafani, according to Rosenthal, who adds that the timing might not be right for Cincinnati to deal him. Given that DeSclafani is under club control through the end of the 2020 season, the Reds could build around him or keep him for now and hope his trade value continues increasing. The 26-year-old has been stellar this season, notching a 2.50 ERA, 7.15 K/9 and 1.61 BB/9 in 50 1/3 innings.

Deadline Rumors: Sale, Mazara, Rays, Profar, Rangers, Twins, Inciarte

By | at

Here’s the latest on some names who may or may not be on the move by the August 1 trade deadline…

  • The White Sox are reportedly asking for “five top prospects” for Chris Sale, FanRag Sports’ Jon Heyman reports.  It’s an incredibly high asking price but one that at least one rival executive thinks will be met, though others believe Chicago may not actually be serious about dealing its ace.  The Marlins are among the teams who have inquired about Sale but with such a thin farm system, Miami doesn’t seem close to meeting Chicago’s demand.  The Red Sox and Rangers do have deep systems and have asked about Sale, though Heyman reports that the Rangers/White Sox talks haven’t led to much progress.
  • The Rangers are known to be widely scouring the starting pitching market, and if Sale can’t be obtained, Texas will turn to the Padres’ Andrew Cashner or the Rays’ Jake Odorizzi or Matt Moore, tweets T.R. Sullivan of MLB.com.
  • The Rays continue to ask for Jurickson Profar from the Rangers in exchange for a starting pitcher and Texas is still refusing, FOX Sports’ Jon Morosi reports (Twitter links).  Several other Rangers prospects have been mentioned in talks between the two teams, including lefty Yohander Mendez and first baseman Ronald Guzman.
  • The Twins are seen as something of a “backup plan” for multiple contending teams in case other deadline plans ball through, Mike Berardino of the St. Paul Pioneer Press reports (Twitter link).  Ervin Santana, Eduardo Nunez, Fernando Abad and Kurt Suzuki are a few of the Twins mentioned as possible trade chips, though since none of these players are top-tier upgrades, it makes sense that contenders would explore other options first.
  • Barring a knockout offer, it doesn’t look like the Braves will move Ender Inciarte at the deadline, MLB.com’s Mark Bowman writes.  Inciarte received some trade interest even after Atlanta acquired him from the D’Backs last offseason, though a hamstring injury sidelined him for a month and he hasn’t delivered much at the plate.  Still, Inciarte has so much defensive value in center field that the Braves consider him to be a strong piece for the future.

Rangers Claim Matt Duffy From Astros

By | at

The Rangers have claimed infielder Matt Duffy off waivers from the Astros, Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News reports (Twitter link).  Houston designated the infielder (who isn’t to be confused with the better-known Giants third baseman of the same name) for assignment last week.  Texas has optioned Duffy to Triple-A.

[Related: updated Rangers depth chart at Roster Resource]

Duffy’s MLB career consists of 11 games for the Astros over the last two seasons and 12 career plate appearances.  A 20th-round pick in the 2011 draft, Duffy has a very solid .286/.360/.458 slash line over 2794 career PA in the minors.  Duffy has played mostly third base over his career with significant time across the diamond at first, though this season he also saw action at short and left for Houston’s Triple-A affiliate.

Nationals Among Teams Checking In On Wade Davis

By | at

The Nationals and other teams have called the Royals about star closer Wade Davis, FanRag Sports’ Jon Heyman reports.  Kansas City is weighing the possibility of selling at the trade deadline, Heyman reported yesterday, though even if the Royals did decide to reload for next season, it would take quite a bit to convince them to part with Davis.  The Royals are asking for more for Davis than the Yankees are for Aroldis Chapman, which makes sense given that Davis has an extra year of control.

Washington is known to be looking for bullpen help, either to set up closer Jonathan Papelbon or to supplant Papelbon entirely as the team’s ninth-inning option.  Chapman and Miller have both been targeted by the Nats, though they aren’t willing to give up one of their top prospects for two months of Chapman’s services.  (It’s worth noting that Miller is signed through 2018, though presumably the Nats have some reservations about dealing one of their elite minor leaguers for any relief pitcher.)

Davis has a $10MM club option ($2.5MM buyout) for 2017 that looks like a no-brainer to be exercised, though there are a few minor red flags about his performance.  Davis has a 1.14 ERA over 31 2/3 IP, though he has posted his lowest K/9 (8.5) and K/BB (2.5 K/BB) in his three years as the Royals’ closer, plus his fastball velocity has dropped from 95.9 mph last season to 94.9 mph this year.  These aren’t exactly steep declines, of course, and it may speak more to just how dominant Davis was in 2014-15 that his current excellent numbers count as a dip in form.  Davis recently spent time on the DL with a right forearm strain, though that ominous-sounding injury ended up being rather minor, and Davis is already back in action.

Latest On The Mets’ Deadline Plans

By | at

The Mets aren’t likely to make a big splash at the trade deadline, as Mike Puma of the New York Post notes that the team simply doesn’t have the prospect depth to acquire a big bat as they did last season with Yoenis Cespedes.  A bullpen addition is still in the team’s plans, however, and as Puma reports in a separate tweet, the Mets could add one reliever prior to August 1 and then another in the August waiver period.  Just yesterday, Puma reported that Jeremy Jeffress, Joe Smith and Chris Withrow were a few of the relief names on the Mets’ radar.

It could be a quiet deadline in another sense for the Mets should the team suddenly hit a slump, as Newsday’s Marc Carig reports that the Mets wouldn’t become deadline sellers in the event that they were to fall back in the standings over the next week.  In fact, the Mets would likely still look to buy even if they did have a losing streak, as the team is looking ahead to a weak September schedule as an opportunity to make a late run at a wild card, if not the NL East if the Nationals slow down.

At least a couple of notable teams (the Royals and White Sox) are considering becoming deadline sellers after a dip in form, and the Yankees have long been seen as candidates to unload veterans as August 1 approaches.  Any of these teams could become big players in the trade market if they made some of their established stars available, and the Mets could follow suit by shopping Cespedes or Neil Walker.  In regards to those two, however, Carig reports that the team prefers to receive draft pick compensation in the form of the qualifying offer if either or both leave in free agency this winter.  The Mets also don’t have interest in dealing Bartolo Colon, which isn’t surprising given the injury questions within their rotation.

Mariners Place Ketel Marte On 15-Day DL With Mononucleosis

By | at

The Mariners have placed Ketel Marte on the 15-day disabled list (retroactive to July 20) after the shortstop was diagnosed with mononucleosis yesterday, the club announced.  Left-handed David Rollins was called up in a corresponding move.  Luis Sardinas was already called up yesterday to provide infield depth, taking the roster spot left by the traded Mike Montgomery.

[Related: updated Mariners depth chart at Roster Resource]

Marte has been sidelined for much of the week with the illness, leaving utilityman Shawn O’Malley making regular starts at short, and he’ll split time with Sardinas until Marte is healthy.  A return date, however, is unknown given the unpredictable status of the illness.  Manager Scott Servais told reporters (including Gavin Day of the Seattle Times) that Marte had already lost six or seven pounds, so clearly once Marte is recovered, he’ll still need time to get his strength back.

The sickness is the latest setback within a tough season for the 22-year-old Marte, who entered the year as the Mariners’ starting shortstop and looking to build on a strong 2015 rookie year.  Instead, Marte has already had one DL stint due to a sprained thumb and he has hit just .273/.299/.358 over 300 PA with subpar defensive metrics.  As per Fangraphs’ WAR calculation, Marte has been worth exactly 0.0 wins, making him nothing more than a replacement-level player.

These struggles made the Mariners one of the few teams who could be looking for shortstop help at the deadline, even before Marte came down with mono.  Zack Cozart, Eduardo Nunez or Jed Lowrie are a few of the everyday options the M’s could pursue, though I’d argue that Lowrie is an unlikely target due to his recent lack of shortstop action and his big price tag.  Seattle entered today’s action with a 49-47 record, 5.5 games behind Texas in the AL West and 4.5 games behind Toronto for the last wild card slot.

Blue Jays Designate Chris Colabello From 25-Man Roster

By | at

The Blue Jays have designated Chris Colabello off their 25-man roster now that the first baseman’s 80-game PED suspension is over and he has been reinstated from the restricted list, Sportsnet’s Ben Nicholson-Smith reports (Twitter link).  This isn’t a standard case of a player being designated for assignment, as Colabello is still on Toronto’s 40-man roster.  As Brendan Kennedy of the Toronto Star notes, the move is akin to the Jays simply optioning Colabello to the minors.

Colabello was a surprisingly big contributor to Toronto’s 2015 AL East championship team, hitting .321/.367/.520 with 15 home runs over 360 plate appearances.  The Jays entered the season planning to platoon Colabello and Justin Smoak at first (with Edwin Encarnacion getting the occasional start but mostly seeing DH duty), though Colabello got off to an ice-cold start, with just two hits in his first 32 PA of 2016.  It’s reasonable to guess that the impending PED suspension may have been weighing on Colabello’s mind, given that he was first informed of his positive result on March 13 and was appealing the result.

In theory, Colabello’s reinstatement could help the Jays, especially given that Smoak has posted barely replacement-level numbers.  GM Ross Atkins, however, was recently rather non-committal about Colabello’s role with the team, especially since Colabello won’t be eligible for postseason play under the terms of the league PED policy.  While the Jays have mostly been linked to pitching upgrades on the trade deadline rumor mill, they’ve also been connected to outfielders like Melvin Upton Jr., Josh Reddick and Jay Bruce.  Getting a new regular outfielder would force Encarnacion or Jose Bautista into more action at first, leaving no room for Smoak or Colabello in the everyday lineup.

5 Key Stories: 7/16/16 – 7/22/16

By | at

Here’s a look back at this week’s top stories here at MLBTR:

Twins fire GM Terry Ryan: Though the Twins have badly struggled in recent years, it was still a bit of a surprise to see the team part ways with the longtime general manager given how Ryan has been such a key figure in franchise history.  Assistant GM Rob Antony will take over the top job on an interim basis while Minnesota will immediately begin a search for its new general manager — Antony himself figures to be a top candidate, though the Twins could depart from their usual method of internal promotions to bring a totally fresh face into the organization.  The short-term effect of Ryan’s firing was an immediate surge of interest from rival teams looking to add Twins players before the deadline.

Chris SaleWhite Sox could be deadline sellers: The Pale Hose are just 6-11 in July and have dropped to four games under the .500 mark, a slide that has led the club to consider moving some veterans by August 1.  The only White Sox who seem to be untouchables are youngsters Tim Anderson, Carlos Rodon and Carson Fulmer, plus rotation stars Chris Sale and Jose Quintana…though the Sox are at least willing to hear offers about Sale and Quintana.  The Rangers have already shown interest in Sale and needless to say, several teams would jump in if Sale or Quintana were being openly shopped.  It would be a surprise if the two southpaws or the likes of Jose Abreu, David Robertson or Adam Eaton left Chicago over the next week, though if the White Sox are really willing to consider moving any of these cornerstones, it would drastically shake up the deadline.

Cubs acquire Mike Montgomery from the Mariners for Dan Vogelbach: One notable trade has already made in advance of the deadline, as the Cubs addressed their need for lefty bullpen help at the cost of one of their top slugging prospects.  (The deal also involved two minor league righties, with Jordan Pries going to Chicago and Paul Blackburn going to Seattle.)  The Cubs’ middle-of-the-pack bullpen is arguably the team’s only weakness, and while they’ve been linked to such major names as Andrew Miller or Aroldis Chapman, Montgomery is a controllable young southpaw who was available at a much lower price.  Vogelbach is no slouch, however, as the M’s have acquired a young slugger who has torn up minor league pitching and could be Seattle’s first baseman (or at least DH) of the future.

Clayton Kershaw’s questionable status: The Dodgers (and really, fans of historic pitching performances) got some bad news this week when Kershaw reported feeling back pain after a 60-pitch simulated game.  The star lefty has been shut down until his back is feeling better, and there currently isn’t any timeline about when Kershaw could return.  Kershaw originally hit the DL with mild disc herniation at the end of June, and he was estimated to be out of action for roughly a month, though obviously that timeline has now been pushed back.  Any time without Kershaw obviously doesn’t bode well for the Dodgers’ playoff chances, and it could push the club to look for bigger starting pitching targets at the deadline.

Rich Hill’s blister problems: The veteran lefty could have one of the largest trade markets in baseball, though the question facing Hill and the A’s now is whether or not he will make another start before the deadline.  Hill left a start against the Blue Jays last Sunday after just five pitches due to a popped blister, and the nagging issue will keep Hill sidelined until next week at the earliest.  Hill could be looking at one start (at most) before August 1, and if he pitches well in that outing, the A’s could still salvage a decent return for the southpaw in a trade.  If Hill is hit hard or can’t pitch at all before the deadline, Oakland could try to workout a deal in the August waiver period or face the tough question of whether or not to extend a qualifying offer to Hill before he hits free agency this winter.

Photo courtesy of David Banks/USA Today Sports Images

AL East Notes: Orioles, Scott, Jays, Longoria, Yankees

By | at

The Yankees are 5-3 since the All-Star break, which further complicates the question of whether or not the team should buy or sell at the deadline, NJ Advance Media’s Randy Miller writes.  “I don’t know how much the organization actually has publicly said (about the trade deadline),” said Andrew Miller, himself a regular candidate in trade speculation.  “I feel like it’s been rumor and things that kind of have been assumed, and in reality I think all we can do is focus on the game at hand.”  New York is 49-47 for the season and sits 4.5 games behind Toronto for the last AL wild card slot.  Here’s more from around the AL East…

  • The Orioles have been getting calls about Double-A southpaw Tanner Scott since the offseason, MASNsports.com’s Roch Kubatko reports.  It’s possible Scott could be one of the prospects desired by the Padres in the rumored Melvin Upton-for-Ubaldo Jimenez trade talks between the two clubs, though Kubatko feels the O’s should keep Scott.  A sixth-round pick from the 2014 draft, Scott has posted a 4.63 ERA and 6.6 BB/9 over 114 2/3 pro innings (mostly out of the bullpen), though he averages 11.5 K/9 and owns a 101-mph fastball.
  • The Blue Jays have been talking to multiple teams about both starters and relievers, FOX Sports’ Jon Morosi tweets.  Bullpen is the more pressing concern for Toronto, though if Aaron Sanchez is shifted to a setup role as planned, that leaves a big hole in the rotation (especially given Marcus Stroman’s inconsistency and Marco Estrada’s recurring back issues).  Then again, Sanchez has been so good this season that the Jays could reverse course and keep him as a starter, which would increase their need for relief help.
  • Though trading Evan Longoria makes some sense for the Rays, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times believes the club won’t and shouldn’t entertain the thought of dealing its longtime star.  Longoria has too much value as Tampa’s franchise player on and off the field, and moving him would only fit if the Rays were pursuing a total rebuild, which doesn’t appear to be the case.  There has been whispers that former Rays boss Andrew Friedman could be exploring a reunion with Longoria with the Dodgers, though the Rays are reportedly uninterested in Longoria trades now and perhaps whatsoever.
  • Alex Rodriguez had “a very positive conversation” with Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner prior to Friday’s game and the subject of releasing the veteran slugger didn’t come up, sources tell ESPN.com’s Wallace Matthews.  The meeting was initiated by Steinbrenner, though the reason isn’t known; it’s possible it could simply have been the owner touching base with A-Rod on any number of topics.  It has been rumored that the Yankees could cut ties with Rodriguez in order to create roster space for younger players, as A-Rod hasn’t hit well this year and can only handle a DH role at this stage of his career.
  • A Kyle Schwarber-for-Andrew Miller deal between the Cubs and Yankees has been one of the hottest rumors of this deadline season, though Chicago management has repeatedly said Schwarber isn’t on the market.  Fangraphs’ Dave Cameron takes an interesting look at Schwarber’s fuure value, arguing that there are signs he may not develop into the top-tier slugger the Cubs believe he can be (though Cameron’s Mike Napoli comp is still flattering).  While Schwarber has more value than Miller as a long-term piece, Cameron that a Yankees trade package of both Miller and Aroldis Chapman would justify the Cubs pulling the trigger on a deal.

International Signings: 7/23/16

By | at

Here are the latest notable signings of players within the July 2 international signing market…

  • The Astros are close to finalizing a deal with 22-year-old Cuban shortstop Anibal Sierra for a $1.5MM bonus, MLB.com’s Jesse Sanchez reports.  Houston has been linked to Sierra for months, though past reports suggested that Sierra would get a much larger bonus of $3.5MM.  Since the Astros are already in excess of their $2.197MM international pool limit, Sierra’s deal essentially costs Houston $3MM (the actual bonus and a 100% tax on the overage).  The Astros were widely expected to blow past its bonus limit in the 2016-17 international market anyway in order to stock up on young talent, though this splurge will limit them to signings of $300K or less in the next two international signing periods.  Sanchez describes Sierra as possessing “an aggressive line-drive approach at the plate and good hands on defense,” and “scouts like his bat and his raw power.”  Sierra is capable of playing second and third base as well as shortstop.

MLB Trade Rumors is not affiliated with Major League Baseball, MLB or MLB.com

Do not Sell or Share My Personal Information

hide arrows scroll to top