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Pitching Notes: Santana, Gray, Estrada, Anderson, Gearrin

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Potential trade candidate Ervin Santana tossed a complete-game shutout yesterday for the Twins, limiting the Athletics to two hits without a walk while tossing just 100 pitches. Santana dropped his ERA 44 points in the process and is now sporting a 1.63 ERA over his past four starts. Obviously, a nice four-start stretch isn’t going to undo all of the damage Santana did to his trade stock with a rocky start to the season, but 93 innings with a 4.06 ERA, 6.6 K/9, 2.5 BB/9 and a 42.9 percent ground-ball rate looks rather solid on the whole. He has about $6.5MM remaining on his salary in 2016 and is owed $13.5MM in each of the next two seasons, plus a $1MM buyout of a 2019 option. He’s not a cheap option, but given how few starters will be on the open market this winter, adding a durable mid-rotation cog could make sense for a number of contenders this summer.

  • Santana wasn’t the only starter of note in that contest, as Athletics righty Sonny Gray was also on the bump. Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports that the match-up drew attention from quite a few scouts, with representatives from the Blue Jays, Royals, Orioles, Marlins and Cardinals among those in attendance to see the two potential trade candidates throw. Oakland skipper Bob Melvin said that he felt Gray may be turning a corner after the showing, in which he battled through six innings with only one earned run on the board. Gray did allow four walks, but worked through some tough spots and, in Melvin’s words, “found a little of his mojo.” With Gray showing some life and the A’s continuing to muddle through the season, Slusser says that some rival executives feel there’s daylight for a deal on Oakland’s staff ace. There’s little question that the Twins would at least be open to moving Santana, and he’d represent a less costly addition for those organizations in need of rotation help (on the prospect side of the equation, at least; his contractual obligations would need to be worked out).
  • As the Blue Jays eye rotation pieces, the club is also taking a cautious route with All-Star right-hander Marco Estrada. The veteran expressed disappointment that he’ll need a DL stint to rest his ailing back, as Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca reports, particularly since it means he’s virtually certain not to appear in the mid-summer classic as a capstone to his remarkable tale. But he acknowledged that the move was prudent. “I haven’t had much sleep just knowing that there might be a possibility I don’t get the opportunity to pitch in this game. And I guess my worst nightmare unfortunately came true,” said Estrada. “But in the long run this is the right thing to do. And I think this is going to benefit me in the future.” Though the Jays’ staff has been a strength, it’s not hard to see why the club is on the hunt for more arms. In particular, there’s still no reason to believe that Toronto will back away from its plan to move Aaron Sanchez to the pen to limit his innings. Though Drew Hutchison represents a better-than-average insurance policy — he has had success in the past and has been effective this year at Triple-A — he may be needed to step into Sanchez’s shoes. As the club’s depth chart shows, that would leave the organization a bit thin behind its front five.
  • The Dodgers have no shortage of pitchers in various stages of the rehabilitation process, and you can add Brett Anderson to the list of those that could return this summer. Manager Dave Roberts told reports, including Andy McCullough of the Los Angeles Times (Twitter link), that the southpaw might make it back by the middle of August if he continues to progress from his back surgery.
  • Things haven’t gone smoothly of late for the Giants’ bullpen, and now the club will be without righty Cory Gearrin for at least two weeks. As Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle reports, Gearrin has been diagnosed with a strained right shoulder, though the expectation is that he won’t miss much (if any) time beyond the minimum. It helps, too, that the club has welcomed back Sergio Romo, but all in all it wouldn’t be surprising if San Francisco chases a big relief arm over the coming weeks.

Red Sox Release Justin Maxwell To Sign With KBO’s Lotte Giants

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Outfielder Justin Maxwell has been released by the Red Sox to allow him to sign with Korea’s Lotte Giants, as Yonhap’s Jee-ho Yoo reports. He’ll receive a $280K salary in the KBO.

Maxwell, 32, was hitting .219/.310/.320 over 253 plate appearances on the year at Triple-A Pawtucket. That wasn’t enough to earn him a big league promotion despite some need at the major league level, and Boston obviously had decided it did not need him in the organization.

Before his middling start to the present season, though, Maxwell had taken over 250 turns at bat in three of the last four campaigns at the MLB level. All told, he has compiled a .220/.303/.399 batting line in 1,193 big league plate appearances, with 41 home runs and 28 steals.

At his best, Maxwell is a slightly above-average hitter with some pop, and he has also added some value with the glove and on the bases. Maxwell’s new club will certainly hope that he brings a silver hammer with him to the hitter-friendly KBO.

Notably, per the report, Maxwell was pursued because former big leaguer Jim Adduci was released after failing some sort of drug test.

2017 MLB Free Agent Power Rankings

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Multiple contract-year hitters raked in the month of June.  Edwin Encarnacion, Carlos Beltran, Kendrys Morales, Ian Desmond, Wilson Ramos, Michael Saunders, Luis Valbuena, Mark Trumbo, and Justin Turner came up big, and many more have showed well since the most recent installment of our Free Agent Power Rankings back on June 2.  The starting pitching side was much lighter, with nice runs from Bud Norris and Doug Fister.

While no extensions were signed, there was still plenty of movement in the Power Rankings based on June events.  Below, I’ve ranked the 2016-17 free agents by earning power.  You can view the full list of free agents here.

1.  Yoenis Cespedes.  Cespedes remains on pace for his first 40 home run season, which should compel him to opt out of the remaining two years and $47.5MM on his contract with the Mets shortly after his 31st birthday in October.  Cespedes will start in the outfield for the NL All-Star team, and he’s currently the only free agent I project to land a six-year deal well in excess of $100MM.

2.  Jose Bautista.  Bautista, 36 in October, suffered a toe injury in mid-June and won’t return until after the All-Star break.  A four-year deal still seems plausible, with precedents such as Victor Martinez and Ben Zobrist.  Still, the fourth year is not a lock for Bautista, who is on track for his worst season since becoming a full-time player with the Blue Jays.

3.  Edwin Encarnacion.  Bautista’s teammate had a much better month.  Encarnacion smashed 11 home runs in June and has been named to the AL All-Star team.  As he’s shown with mammoth months in years past, EE can go on a hot streak with the best of them.  His free agent stock is suppressed for two reasons: he’ll turn 34 in January, and he’s probably limited to the American League as a primary designated hitter.  Nonetheless, his contract projection is starting to approach that of Bautista: four years at a total of $80MM or more.

4.  Josh Reddick.  Reddick returned to Oakland’s lineup on June 28th after missing over a month with a fractured thumb.  On June 26th, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reported that the A’s and Reddick “appear to be far apart” on a contract extension, and there are no indications of recent progress.  Slusser reported a few days later that the Royals have interest in trading for Reddick, and Joe Stiglich of CSNBayArea.com has also linked the Giants to the right fielder.  Five days ago, MLBTR’s Jeff Todd ranked Reddick as the No. 3 trade candidate in the game.  So Reddick may be on the move this month, which could remove a qualifying offer from the equation this winter.  While I have projected Reddick for a five-year deal previously, a safer call might be four years.

5.  Kenley Jansen.  Jansen’s excellence continues for the Dodgers, and he’s been awarded with his first career All-Star nod.  The 28-year-old closer from Curaçao will look to shatter Jonathan Papelbon’s record contract for a reliever.  Papelbon signed a four-year, $50MM deal in November 2011, so we’re definitely due for a new precedent five years later.  Jansen’s ceiling could be around five years and $70MM.

6.  Ian Desmond.  I wasn’t prepared to award Desmond a spot in our top ten last month, and he proceeded to put up monster numbers in June.  Desmond is the current wins above replacement leader among projected free agents, at 3.9.  He’s in the midst of the best offensive season of his career and has proven to be above average in both left and center field defensively for the Rangers.  It’s been an extremely successful makeover for the former Nationals shortstop, who made the All-Star team for the second time in his career.  Desmond, who turns 31 in September, seems a good bet for a four-year deal north of $60MM.

7.  Aroldis Chapman.  Chapman has been dominant in his 22 innings for the Yankees, dropping his walk rate well below his career norm in the small sample.  He ranked seventh on Jeff Todd’s trade candidate list last week.  The Yankees are below .500 and four games out in the Wild Card standings, and they have the rest of the month to decide whether to sell.  Chapman currently sits below Jansen in terms of free-agent earning power because of his domestic violence incident last year.

8.  Wilson Ramos.  Ramos’ breakout season continued with a huge month of June, and he makes this list for the first time.  The 28-year-old Nationals catcher, who is hitting .335/.390/.554, made the All-Star team for the first time in his career.  A four-year deal is starting to look possible for Ramos, who will be a young free agent.  Even after Francisco Cervelli’s extension with the Pirates, this free agent class offers solid options at catcher with Ramos and fellow All-Star Matt Wieters.

9.  Dexter Fowler.  Fowler suffered a hamstring injury on June 18th and had been scuffling prior to that.  He was voted onto the NL All-Star team, one of seven Cubs to make the roster.  Fowler is hopeful he’ll be able to participate in the All-Star game next Tuesday.  Looking at his free agent stock, two strong months won’t be enough for Fowler to lock in a four-year deal.  A strong, healthy finish will be key, given Fowler’s injury history prior to 2015.

10.  Mark Trumbo.  We had many candidates for this spot, but Trumbo gets the nod for the second consecutive month.  The 30-year-old right fielder/first baseman leads the American League with 24 home runs and has been named to his second career All-Star team.  Barring injury, Trumbo should fly past his career high of 34 home runs, set in 2013 with the Angels.  While he’s a one-dimensional player, a 40 home run season would be difficult to ignore in free agency.

Four players came close to landing a spot within the top ten: Matt Wieters, Michael Saunders, Carlos Gomez, and Justin Turner.  All of them played well in June, and Gomez had his best month in a long time.  A difficult month pushed the Mets’ Neil Walker off our list, while Rich Hill lost his spot due to a groin injury.

Four Former Red Sox Prospects Agree To New Deals

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TODAY: The Marlins have agreed to terms with Albert Guaimaro for an unreported sum, Badler reports. He is considered the best of this bunch of players, per Badler, who says that the youngster sprays a lot of line drives with an aggressive approach. Miami will move him behind the plate from the outfield.

Meanwhile, Badler reported earlier today that shortstop Eduardo Torrealba is going to the Yankees for $300K. That leaves only righty Cesar Gonzalez unsigned among the five prospects who were turned into free agents.

YESTERDAY, 1:48pm: Sanchez also reports that shortstop Antonio Pinero has agreed to a new deal with the Brewers that will pay him $375K (links to Twitter). Of that sum, just $75K will count against Milwaukee’s bonus pool. Badler wrote earlier this spring that Pinero made a name for himself due to his defensive skills, and while he’s a below-average runner he has a quick first step, good hands and a strong throwing arm.

10:21am: The Phillies have reached an agreement with Venezuelan outfielder Simon Muzziotti that will pay the 17-year-old prospect $750K, reports MLB.com’s Jesse Sanchez (via Twitter). Baseball America’s Ben Badler reported last night (Twitter link) that the Phils were the favorites to sign Muzziotti, who just one week ago was under the Red Sox’ control. However, Major League Baseball declared him a free agent as part of Boston’s punishment for the team’s violation of the international bonus pool system via package signings.

When it was ruled that Muzziotti and four other Red Sox prospects would once again be available to MLB clubs, it was ruled that the first $300K of a signing bonus for any of the five prospects would not count toward a club’s bonus pool. As such, $450K of Muzziotti’s bonus with the Phils will count against the club’s bonus pool. Muzziotti also was allowed to keep the original $300K he received from Boston, so he’ll end up with a total of $1.05MM between his two signing bonuses.

Muzziotti wasn’t expected to be part of this year’s July 2 pool and as such wasn’t a part of any international rankings, but Baseball America’s Ben Badler rated him 24th in last year’s class, praising his speed and range/instincts in center field. MLB.com compiled a free video/scouting report last season, and over the weekend, Fangraphs’ Eric Longenhagen wrote that Muzziotti wouldn’t have been ranked among his Top 25 but would’ve merited mention in the unranked portion of his international prospect rankings, meaning he’d have ranked in the Top 50 or so. In 65 plate appearances for Boston’s affiliate in the Dominican Summer League, Muzziotti batted .317/.354/.383.

AL Notes: Medlen, Desmond, Brantley, Shaw, Yankees, Jepsen, Rasmus

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Royals right-hander Kris Medlen suffered a setback in his return from right shoulder inflammation in today’s rehab outing, reports MLB.com’s Jeffrey Flanagan. Medlen has been out since mid-May with the injury and suffered a strain of the same shoulder while throwing a breaking pitch on the 49th pitch of his outing, per Flanagan. He’s set to be re-evaluated later today but seemingly won’t be an option for the Royals at any point in the near future.

Here’s a look at some of the latest news out of the American League …

  • Rangers GM Jon Daniels says that the club would have interest in working out a long-term deal with outfielder Ian Desmond, as Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News reports. Though he said that he wouldn’t discuss the matter beyond acknowledging that fact, Daniels heaped praise upon the deserving All-Star. Grant argues that the time is now for Texas to try to strike a deal. That certainly won’t be easy, but as Grant notes, Desmond may have some added motivation given that he previously turned down a chance at a major payday.
  • Michael Brantley finally received some good news and is progressing toward a return to the Indians, per Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer. Brantley received a cortisone shot after a recent diagnosis of tendinitis in his biceps and will resume batting practice tomorrow before possibly progressing to simulated games and a rehab assignment. It’s not clear exactly when after the All-Star break Brantley will return, per Hoynes, but both Brantley and Indians manager Terry Francona implied that the DL stint may not last all that much longer.
  • The Red Sox are holding their breath on third baseman Travis Shaw, who fouled a ball off of his foot tonight. As Brian MacPherson of the Providence Journal tweets, initial testing was inconclusive and Shaw’s foot is showing lots of swelling. Whether or not there’s a serious injury remains to be seen, but a glance at Boston’s depth chart shows that the club could be pressed regardless if Shaw is out for more than a day or two. Brock Holt could be a replacement option, but he’s being utilized in left field at the moment. Marco Hernandez is the only other infielder on the active roster with Josh Rutledge on the DL, while the 40-man possibilities at Triple-A are Sean Coyle and Deven Marrero.
  • While it remains unclear what path the Yankees will take at the trade deadline, the organization is already working to reshape its roster, Chad Jennings of the LoHud Yankees blog explains. Reducing the role of Alex Rodriguez, demoting Nathan Eovaldi to the bullpen, enhancing Aaron Hicks’s playing time, and keeping Rob Refsnyder up are among the recent decisions that Jennings explores.
  • Assuming he clears waivers, the Rays have interest in a reunion with reliever Kevin Jepsen, according to Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times (via Twitter). Jepsen was designated recently by the Twins, who had picked him up from the Rays last summer. The 31-year-old righty has fallen off badly after a long track record of solid pen work; given his salary ($5.3MM and change), a claim seems unlikely, though perhaps a trade could materialize if Minnesota is willing to keep most of that obligation.
  • Angels reliever Cory Rasmus needs core muscle surgery, Pedro Moura of the Los Angeles Times tweets. Rasmus, who already underwent such an operation last year, had been placed on the DL with what had been called a groin strain. The 28-year-old was carrying a 5.40 ERA through 21 2/3 innings and had taken a big step back in the K/BB department, having issued 14 free passes while K’ing just 13 batters.

NL Central Notes: Bruce, Price, Phillips, Carpenter, Pena, Stewart

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Among the clubs looking at Reds outfielder Jay Bruce are the Dodgers and Nationals, both of whom have been tied previously to the slugger, as Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports writes. (Rosenthal previously reported those connections here and here.) Neither of those organizations has a critical need for an outfielder, though it’s possible to imagine both looking to add some thump to their lineups. Of course, those are likely to face competition for the revived veteran from other quarters. Bruce holds the top spot in MLBTR’s top twenty trade candidates list as he continues to put up monster offensive numbers.

Here’s more from Cincinnati and the rest of the NL Central:

  • Reds manager Bryan Price isn’t at risk of dismissal, president of baseball operations Walt Jocketty tells Rosenthal. Price says that the removal of pitching coach Mark Riggins was done as part of an effort to add “a different perspective, different approach” to address the club’s pitching woes.
  • Rosenthal also notes that the Reds could conceivably look to give youngster Jose Peraza more time at second while reducing the role of veteran Brandon Phillips, who has struggled at the plate. Jocketty acknowledges that Peraza’s current super-utility role is “not the most ideal way to develop a guy,” but says “that’s what [the Reds] have” at present. Rosenthal wonders whether the organization could re-approach Phillips about waiving his no-trade clause, which he has been unwilling to do thus far, though Jocketty says the organization isn’t considering that at the moment. Generally, Jocketty says that trade chatter still isn’t “that active right now.”
  • Cardinals third baseman Matt Carpenter left tonight’s game with what has been diagnosed as an oblique strain, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch was among those to report (Twitter links). He’s headed for an immediate assessment of the injury as the team seeks to get out ahead of things, and manager Mike Matheny says there’s a “high level of concern.” It’s obviously not possible to assess how much time he might miss at this point, let alone whether a DL stint will be required, but the manner in which the Cards are proceeding suggests some pessimism. St. Louis just lost Brandon Moss, so it’s not an optimal time for another position player to be dealing with an injury issue.
  • Meanwhile, Cardinals catcher Brayan Pena is headed to the DL with knee inflammation not long after being activated, as MLB.com’s Jenifer Langosch reports on Twitter. 11-year minor-league veteran Alberto Rosario will get his first big league call to replace Pena as the backup receiver, but that’s probably not what St. Louis was hoping for. The team recently lost Eric Fryer on waivers while attempting to outright him to clear space for Pena.
  • Pirates reserve catcher Chris Stewart will attempt to play through knee soreness, head athletic trainer Todd Tomczyk told reporters including Bill Brink of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (Twitter link). An MRI showed “wear and tear” to the joint, which could ultimately require surgery, but it seems that Stewart will at least make an effort to avoid going under the knife.

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Padres Claim Jake Smith Off Waivers

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The Padres have claimed righty Jake Smith off waiver from the division-rival Giants, per a team announcement. San Francisco had designated him for assignment and ultimately placed him on outright waivers.

Smith showed plenty of promise last year at the High-A level, spinning 84 1/3 innings of 2.35 ERA pitching and posting an impressive 12.2 K/9 versus 2.2 BB/9. But things have turned south in his age-26 campaign, as Smith has struggled after making the jump to Double-A.

Over his 20 1/3 frames thus far in 2016, Smith has been touched for 16 earned runs while permitting 23 free passes. On the positive side, he has struck out 26 batters and has only allowed 17 hits, so it seems that the control issues are the biggest problem.

Cuban Prospect Adrian Morejon Declared Free Agent

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Cuban prospect Adrian Morejon has been declared a free agent, according to MLB.com’s Jesse Sanchez (via Twitter). The southpaw is now free to sign with any team, but will be subject to international signing limits, which will have a major role in shaping his market.

Morejon left his native Cuba last October, as Ben Badler of Baseball America reported. At the time, it had seemed that Morejon might be cleared before the previous July 2 signing period, under a changed approach to MLB’s registration rules.

A rapid move onto the open market did not occur in Morejon’s case, as Badler recently explored. Per that report, though, Morejon isn’t expected to suffer much from the delay. That’s because he is anticipated to agree to terms with the Padres, who would’ve needed him to wait to sign anyway.

Morejon is considered a quality pitching prospect, though it’s important to recognize what type of player he is. At just 17 years of age, he has more in common with the young arms from the Dominican Republic and Venezuela who typically fall under the July 2 rubric than he does with older and more advanced players who have drawn huge bonuses out of Cuba.

That being said, Badler has opined that Morejon should be considered among the top names available among his class, and suggested more recently that the lefty has shown more of late. Morejon doesn’t have a big frame, but has run his fastball up to the mid-nineties. Badler also credits him with promising secondary offerings and “advanced feel” given his age.

 

Mets Place Matt Harvey On 15-Day DL

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5:07pm: Harvey is seeing Dr. Thompson to check out the team’s “suspicion” that Harvey could be dealing with thoracic outlet syndrome, Newsday’s David Lennon tweets. The syndrome involves a compression of nerves and/or blood vessels in the shoulder area, and can be quite painful.

Several hurlers have dealt with it in recent years; most recently, Phil Hughes underwent season-ending surgery to treat his own bout with the issue. In his case, though, he had been pitching through it for quite some time. Royals righty Chris Young also had work done to alleviate his issues, which gave his career new life. Beyond the Box Score’s Nick Lampe took an interesting look at pitchers who have undergone surgery to address thoracic outlet syndrome, with mixed results.

4:35pm: The Mets have placed righty Matt Harvey on the 15-day DL, per a club announcement. The teams says that Harvey is dealing with right shoulder discomfort.

This news raises yet more serious concerns about a pitcher who already hasn’t looked himself this year. Expected to lead a rotation full of outstanding arms, Harvey has instead been the black sheep of the group, pitching to a 4.86 ERA with 7.4 K/9 and 2.4 BB/9 over 92 2/3 innings. There have been some ups and downs mixed in, but the aggregate falls shy of the ace-level results that Harvey has traditionally posted.

It’s not immediately clear whether this is a long-simmering issue or a newly-arising problem, but a glance at Harvey’s Brooks Baseball page shows one apparent change in recent weeks: a sudden and drastic shift in his horizontal arm slot. He’ll visit shoulder specialist Dr. Robert Thompson, who — as Marc Carig of Newsday notes on Twitter — is an expert in vascular issues such as thoracic outlet syndrome.

Harvey had returned from Tommy John surgery last year in dramatic fashion, logging 189 1/3 innings of 2.71 ERA ball with 8.9 K/9 and 1.8 BB/9. That was a largely unprecedented jump in innings for a pitcher who was working with a new UCL, and Harvey went on to throw another 26 2/3 in the post-season — which also shortened his winter rest period. While we haven’t heard of any elbow-related concerns, it’s hard not to wonder whether there could be any connection between that series of events and Harvey’s current malady.

New York has called up righty Seth Lugo to take Harvey’s place on the active roster, but he’s not an option to step into the rotation. For the time being, the club will likely go to swingman Logan Verrett, as they have on several prior occasions this year.

[Related: Updated Mets Depth Chart]

In the event that Harvey requires a lengthier absence, things could begin to get tricky. Steven Matz is pitching through a painful bone spur at the moment, so he’s a bit of a question mark, too. And the obvious replacement – Tommy John rehabber Zack Wheeler — is still not throwing bullpen sessions, per another Carig tweet. That’s still an enviable pitching situation, but a piece or two of bad luck could raise some real depth concerns with the cub’s key area of strength.

That’s not to say that there aren’t other pieces on hand. Former top prospect Rafael Montero is still pitching at Triple-A, but the results haven’t been pretty. Also working in Las Vegas are hurlers such as Gabriel Ynoa and Sean Gilmartin. Ynoa may be at the top of the team’s list among its farmhands, Mike Puma of the New York Post suggests on Twitter.

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