Ross Detwiler Accepts Outright Assignment
Here are today’s outrights and minor moves from around the league…
- The Indians announced today that left-hander Ross Detwiler has accepted an outright assignment to Triple-A Columbus after clearing waivers (Twitter link). Given his service time, Detwiler could have rejected the assignment in favor of free agency, but he’ll instead seek a return to form with Cleveland’s top minor league affiliate. It’s been a rough 13 months for Detwiler, who was traded from the Nats to the Rangers last offseason and has since struggled in Texas, Atlanta and Cleveland. In 63 innings across the past two seasons, the 30-year-old has a bloated 7.14 ERA with nearly as many walks (40) as strikeouts (44). Detwiler, though, was a solid contributor to the Nationals’ pitching staff from 2010-14, recording a 3.61 ERA in 394 1/3 innings pitched while splitting his time between the rotation and the bullpen. Kyle Crockett is currently the lone lefty in Cleveland’s bullpen, while Detwiler and fellow veteran Tom Gorzelanny are the only lefties in the Triple-A bullpen. That would seem to open a window for Detwiler to return, though the club could also pluck a starter such as T.J. House or Ryan Merritt from the Triple-A rotation and insert him into the Major League relief corps.
AL East Notes: A-Rod, Phelps, Hanley, Rays
A strained hamstring will send Yankees designated hitter Alex Rodriguez to the 15-day disabled list, writes MLB.com’s Bryan Hoch. Rodriguez, who had previously been slowed by an oblique injury, expressed frustration at the timing of the injury, as he’d begun to emerge from an early slump. Over the past 12 games, the 40-year-old Rodriguez is hitting .262/.311/.619, and he’d homered in three of his five games as well. Hoch notes that the brief hiatus could give the Yankees the opportunity to play Carlos Beltran at DH and get offseason acquisition Aaron Hicks some extra time in the outfield, which would be a defensive upgrade. Left-handed reliever James Pazos was recalled from Triple-A to fill Rodriguez’s spot on the roster for the time being.
Checking in elsewhere in the division…
- The trade that sent Martin Prado and David Phelps from the Yankees to the Marlins looked to be a win for New York as recently as last August, writes Joel Sherman of the New York Post, but early 2016 results for those involved serve as a reminder that judging the “winner” of a trade is a long-term (and imperfect) process. Last year, right-hander Nathan Eovaldi had taken some steps forward, while the main components sent to Miami had delivered solid but inferior returns. However, Eovaldi has struggled this season, while Prado is leading the NL in hitting and Phelps has blossomed under the tutelage of pitching guru Jim Benedict (hired by the Marlins from the Pirates this winter). Sherman writes that the Yankees would probably do the trade again even today, as they still believe in Eovaldi’s upside, but Phelps’ emergence and remaining club control (through the 2018 season) bode quite well for the Fish. Phelps has allowed just two runs through 16 innings with a 19-to-7 K/BB ratio and a fastball that is 2.5 miles per hour faster than it was in his New York days. Marlins assistant GM Mike Berger spoke to Sherman about Phelps’ breakout, favorably drawing some parallels with another former Yankee farmhand: Mark Melancon.
- Red Sox first baseman Hanley Ramirez nearly had shoulder surgery late last year, Rob Bradford of WEEI.com reports. He ended up taking a rehab approach, which seems to have worked out, but did undergo a similar procedure to teammate Pablo Sandoval back in 2011. “The hardest thing is not the surgery. The hardest thing is the rehab,” Ramirez explained. “My advice to Pablo is that it’s going to take a lot of work. A lot of work, a lot of education and a lot of discipline because you use your shoulder for everything. I know that he can do it.”
- Right-hander Erasmo Ramirez has pitched so well in relief that the Rays may not move him back to the rotation, even though that was the initial plan, writes Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. “Once we were going to go to a four-man rotation, we knew that we were going to use Erasmo in some pretty high-leverage situations,” manager Kevin Cash tells Topkin. “I don’t think any of us could have said he was going to be pitching this good at this point. Not discounting him at all, he’s just been unbelievable.” Ramirez has fired 10 1/3 innings of one-run ball since April 19, striking out seven hitters against just one walk with a 60.7 percent ground-ball ratio. His overall relief numbers are even more impressive, as Ramirez has tossed 16 1/3 innings out of the bullpen this year and yielded just three runs on 11 hits and a walk with 13 strikeouts. The Rays have Alex Cobb on the mend and could could turn to Blake Snell or Matt Andriese as rotation options in the interim. If Ramirez can sustain his success, it’ll only be a boon for a Tampa Bay ‘pen that is also on the verge of getting closer Brad Boxberger back as well. Boxberger is nearing a return from offseason hernia surgery.
Danny Espinosa Switches Agents
Nationals infielder Danny Espinosa has switched agents and will now be represented by MVP Sports Group, ESPN.com’s Jerry Crasnick reports on Twitter.
Espinosa, 29, entered the year with 4.113 days of service on his ledger. He agreed to a $2.875MM arbitration salary in his second (and second-to-last) season of arb eligibility.
The veteran has transitioned nicely in the field after spending most of his big league time at second. A natural shortstop with a big arm, Espinosa has returned to the position with Ian Desmond departing.
While he’s shown himself capable of playing at least an average shortstop, though, Espinosa’s bat has never quite returned to its former promise. He has made big strides in his walk (10.9%) and strikeout (20.7%) rates thus far in 2016, but that’s come at the expense of power (.091 ISO).
If he can combine that newfound plate discipline with some of his prior pop, Espinosa would look more like an everyday player. As things stand, though, the switch hitter is probably best suited to a utility role, and he may well end up in just such a spot when the club brings up top prospect Trea Turner.
Braves Notes: Olivera, Gonzalez, Ballpark
Major League Baseball has once again extended the paid administrative leave period of Braves outfielder Hector Olivera, MLB.com’s Mark Bowman reports on Twitter. The league has done so once already, and has yet to issue any final determination under the domestic violence policy since Olivera was arrested on April 13th. Along with Olivera, Rockies shortstop Jose Reyes has yet to learn the outcome of his own pending domestic abuse investigation despite the fact that his court case was brought to a close before the season started. While it isn’t surprising to see commissioner Rob Manfred proceeding cautiously while gathering facts, and there are no doubt behind-the-scenes discussions taking place, it’s surprising to see such lengthy periods of uncertainty.
Here’s more from Atlanta:
- The Braves are weighing whether now is the time to part ways with manager Fredi Gonzalez, Bob Nightengale of USA Today reports. If Gonzalez is fired, he’d likely be replaced from within on an interim basis. But the organization could well look to veteran skipper Bud Black in the long run, Nightengale suggests.
- While Gonzalez makes a rather easy target given the club’s start, Nightengale says that the club’s higher-ups don’t view him as somehow being solely responsible. Still, the sense is that things shouldn’t be as bad as they are. As Mark Bradley of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution writes, the Braves have already cycled through plenty of roster options in an effort to spark some improvement.
- Atlanta’s ballpark machinations have extended back well beyond their current stadium-building efforts, Ira Boudway and Kate Smith of Bloomberg report. Per the report, the organization has engaged in political and financial maneuvering with several of its minor league affiliates, too, with taxpayers often carrying the burden for new buildings while the team-owned affiliates prosper.
Dodgers Suspend Erisbel Arruebarrena For Season
The Dodgers have suspended minor league shortstop Erisbel Arruebarrena for the remainder of the season without pay, according to Barry Lewis of the Tulsa World (via Twitter).
Team director of player development Gabe Kapler says that the suspension occurred due to “repeated failure to comply with the terms of his contract,” as Eric Stephen of SB Nation reports on Twitter. The particular underlying issue that spurred the action remains unknown.
Of course, this isn’t the first time that the high-cost international signee has run afoul of the organization; the Dodgers stated the same grounds for action back in May of 2015. He was suspended then, too, with a “rest of the season” ban ultimately being reduced to thirty days after a grievance proceeding.
Arruebarrena is still owed a good bit of cash under the $25MM free agent contract he signed out of Cuba. He’s due $4MM this season — which is now in jeopardy — and $9MM total over the next two campaigns.
The 26-year-old, who’s known as a glove-first player, ended up having a reasonably productive season at the plate last year at Double-A level, slashing .299/.337/.418 over 205 plate appearances. Arruebarrena was off to a slower start back at Tulsa in 2016; his strikeout rate is up quite a bit, though so too is his isolated slugging.
Indians Acquire Chris Gimenez, Designate Adam Moore
The Indians have acquired catcher Chris Gimenez from the Rangers, Texas VP of communications John Blake announced. Cash considerations are going back in the deal.
Cleveland has designated fellow backstop Adam Moore to clear roster space, the club announced. Gimenez himself had been in DFA limbo after Texas acquired Bobby Wilson to join its catching mix.
For the Indians, Gimenez will help fill the void left by the injured Roberto Perez, who’s on the DL and could miss significant time with a broken thumb. Gimenez is only returning to readiness now after dealing with an ankle infection. The 33-year-old has long been a reserve backstop; last year, with the Rangers, he contributed a .255/.330/.490 slash in 113 plate appearances.
The 31-year-old Moore has seen action in each of the last seven MLB seasons, but has only picked up 287 MLB plate appearances in that span. He owns a lifetime .201/.241/.309 batting line.
Additional PED Suspensions Expected
On the heels of several recent PED suspensions, several additional players are expected to receive 80-game bans as a result of positive tests, according to a report form ESPN.com’s T.J. Quinn. Player identities are not known, but Quinn notes on Twitter that no major names are believed to be involved.
Interestingly, he notes, several of the recently busted players were caught with the steroid turinabol. That substance is known more for its role in pumping up eastern bloc Olympic athletes in the seventies than for cutting-edge performance enhancement.
It’s not entirely clear why that’s occurred, but Quinn notes that advances in testing have almost certainly played a role. While it used to be that turinabol could only be detected within about one week of its use, traces can now be found in a much larger window. With several players caught during Spring Training, when testing would be anticipated, it could simply be that drug handlers were not caught unprepared.
Beyond that link, though, Quinn says the recent run of suspensions — which has included, most notably, Dee Gordon and Chris Colabello — doesn’t appear to revolve around any single nexus, as occurred in the Biogenesis case.
Looking forward, Quinn says that the unnamed players who triggered positive tests have been informed of their pending suspensions and are in various phases of the “administrative process.” While it’s unclear how many of those names currently appear on big league rosters, any 40-man members would have the chance to initiate a grievance to challenge any suspension, potentially adding more delay before any bans are officially applied and announced.
NL East Notes: Harper, Arroyo, d’Arnaud, McClure
Nationals star Bryce Harper has signed a ten-year endorsement deal with Under Armour that is the largest such agreement ever reached by a baseball player, according to ESPN.com’s Darren Rovell. While the full financial terms weren’t revealed, it’s reasonable to expect that the contract will be plenty valuable. That would tend to reduce Harper’s need for a long-term extension of his playing contract, though he’s already earned enough — and, of course, has such sky high future earning potential — that any new deal would likely stem from other motivations (if Washington makes a real effort to sign him).
Here’s more from the NL East:
- Injured Nationals righty Bronson Arroyo is trying out something new as he continues to be bothered by shoulder problems, as MLB.com’s Bill Ladson reports. Per Nats skipper Dusty Baker, the veteran hurler is experiencing pain when he tries to throw from his typical motion, so he’s experimenting with a sidearm delivery. Expectations are that Arroyo will retire if he can’t return without surgery.
- The Mets don’t yet have any kind of timetable for catcher Travis d’Arnaud, who is on the DL with a strained rotator cuff, per MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo. Indeed, he hasn’t even begun physical activity yet, and won’t begin throwing again until he has seen sufficient improvement in the shoulder. Needless to say, it’s a highly uncertain situation, but it’s not difficult to imagine an extended absence ultimately being required.
- While the aforementioned teams are still in front of the NL East, there’s a surprising club in nice position just behind them. The Phillies have sprinted out of the gates, and the early success is attributable almost entirely to the shockingly effective pitching staff. Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports provides an interesting look at Philly pitching coach Bob McClure, who has played a major role in spurring the development of the team’s younger arms and in coaxing improvements from some veterans.
Rangers Notes: Gimenez, Gallo, Mazara
Rangers general manager Jon Daniels told reporters today that it’s unlikely that catcher Chris Gimenez will remain with the club following his DFA (Twitter link via Stefan Stevenson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram). While Gimenez has in the past cleared outright waivers, Daniels says there’s trade interest in the 33-year-old, who batted .255/.330/.490 in 113 PAs with the Rangers last season. Gimenez’s overall big league numbers, of course, are nowhere near that strong, but he’s off to a fairly solid start in Triple-A this season (.240/.345/.360) and certainly makes sense for a club in need of a backup catcher. Speaking from a purely speculative standpoint, the Indians, White Sox and Reds have all recently incurred injuries in the catching department, while the Twins, Rays and Blue Jays all seem like clubs that could reasonably look for an alternative to their current backup catcher.
A few more late-night notes on the reigning AL West champs…
- Top prospect Joey Gallo will miss the next three to four weeks with a Grade 1 left groin strain, tweets Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News. Many have wondered at what point the slugger will force Texas’ hand due to not only his excellent batting line but his greatly improved strikeout rate in the minors this season. Gallo is hitting .250/.400/.642 with seven homers in just 85 plate appearances to open the Triple-A season, but most importantly, perhaps, is that he’s struck out a relatively low 21 times in those 85 PAs. A 25 percent strikeout rate at Triple-A wouldn’t necessarily be encouraging for every player, but for a prospect with 80-grade power that whiffed at a 39.5 percent clip in Triple-A last year, the gains are indeed notable. With Adrian Beltre locked up for another two seasons, it’s unlikely that Gallo will settle into his natural position, third base, in the Majors anytime soon. However, Texas could find room for him in the outfield, at first base or at DH later this season, once the groin injury is behind him.
- Fellow top prospect Nomar Mazara isn’t likely to return to the minor leagues, writes Grant in a full column. Originally called up as a replacement for the injured Shin-Soo Choo, Mazara burst onto the scene as a 20-year-old (he’s since turned 21), batting an outstanding .325/.375/.468 with three homers through 88 plate appearances after tonight’s game. The Rangers have Ian Desmond in left field (whose bat is heating up), Delino DeShields in center and Mazara in right for the time being, but with Choo and Josh Hamilton on the mend, there’s been some curiosity as to what will become of Mazara as the veterans return to health. “If things continue the way they are, the answer will be: Play him,” Daniels tells Grant. Daniels hedged his strong words a bit by cautioning that things could change — a Choo setback or a prolonged slump for Mazara could arise — but Grant writes that it’s becoming clear that Mazara will stick in the Majors. Notably, Grant writes that DeShields could ultimately end up as a fourth outfielder or even in Triple-A, with Desmond sliding over to center while Choo and Mazara man the corners. DeShields was a nice success story in the Rule 5 Draft last season, but he’s hitting just .239/.316/.307 after an 0-for-4 showing tonight.
AL Central Notes: White Sox, Danks, Lincecum, Pelfrey
The White Sox are on the lookout for a left-handed bat and an addition to the starting rotation, reports Bruce Levine of CBS Chicago/670thescore.com (via Twitter). Per Levine, GM Rick Hahn and his staff have been “very active” to this point. Levine expands on that statement a bit toward the end of his latest column, noting that the Sox figure to look for a replacement for John Danks, who was designated for assignment earlier today, both internally and via trade. The Sox are turning to Erik Johnson to make Danks’ upcoming start, and the club has other internal options in the form of Miguel Gonzalez, Jacob Turner and Chris Beck. As for the search for bats, Levine writes that the Sox are “kicking the tires” on quality left-handed bats. Levine speculates that Carlos Gonzalez, who could be moved by this year’s Aug. 1 trade deadline, would make sense and could fit into the budget after the Sox saved $13MM with Adam LaRoche‘s retirement. I’d add that lefties Jay Bruce and Nick Markakis both figure to be available in trades this summer, though neither is as strong a hitter as Gonzalez.
More from the AL Central…
- Within that column above, Levine has quotes from Hahn about the difficult decision to designate Danks, the White Sox‘ longest-tenured player, for assignment. “There is no doubt in my mind that after the shoulder surgery he was not the same guy,” said Hahn of Danks. “That was zero fault of John Danks because he did everything in his power to fight back. Really giving the extent of the surgery, it was impressive how much he was able to contribute.” Levine also spoke to Sox stars Jose Abreu and Chris Sale about the move, with Sale plainly stating that “it stinks” to see a close friend that means so much to the clubhouse dismissed from the team. “He definitely left his mark on me and a lot of guys in here,” said Sale. Levine also tweeted following Danks’ DFA that the Sox offered him a chance to go to the minor leagues, but he declined.
- Twins GM Terry Ryan told reporters, including MLB.com’s Rhett Bollinger (Twitter link), that he’s undecided about whether to send a scout to watch Tim Lincecum‘s showcase on Friday. The issue, Ryan explained, is that Lincecum wants to start. Minnesota has a number of rotation options in house already, with Ervin Santana slated to return this week to join Phil Hughes, Ricky Nolasco, Jose Berrios and Tyler Duffey. Minnesota also has Kyle Gibson on the DL with a shoulder injury, left-hander Tommy Milone in the bullpen (but capable of starting) and righty Alex Meyer, who got the nod in tonight’s contest (where he struggled).
- While the Tigers aren’t ready to pull the plug on Mike Pelfrey‘s rotation spot, GM Al Avila admitted that the club is concerned with the big righty’s early struggles, writes Peter J. Wallner of MLive.com. “Yeah, we are concerned because he has not pitched consistently,” said Avila. “This last outing, he did show some flashes of really, really good stuff, which is some of what scouts saw in him from previous years that we felt he could give us the innings we needed. All we need him to do is be a solid fifth starter and go five, five and two-thirds and every once in a while go six.” The Tigers will indeed be present to watch Lincecum throw, Wallner notes, though Avila chalked it up to due diligence more than a firm indicator that the club will embark on a serious pursuit of the former NL Cy Young winner. As Wallner notes, the Tigers do have internal alternatives to Pelfrey, including Michael Fulmer, Shane Greene (once he is healthy), Daniel Norris and Matt Boyd.