MLBTR Originals
A look back at the original reporting and analysis found on MLBTR the last seven days:
- Former Phillies manager Charlie Manuel spoke with MLBTR in Clearwater, Florida about his role with the team and the club’s rebuilding process. “We can go first to third, we can go second to home, but we still have to develop ourselves as hitters to be able to be regular players at the Major League level. And, when it comes to young pitchers, we got so many that some of them have to be good,” Manuel told MLBTR.
- Nick Swisher is hoping that he still has enough left in the tank to make an impact in 2016. MLBTR spoke with the veteran outfielder in the dugout prior to Atlanta’s Friday contest against the Phillies. “It was a business move and I don’t blame [the Indians] for doing that,” said Swisher when asked about the deal that brought him to the Braves. “I got hurt in the second year of a five-year deal [his deal includes an option] and my production was down. I was hired to do a job and I didn’t get it done, so I don’t blame them. It made a lot of sense as a business move.”
- On the latest edition of the MLBTR podcast, host Jeff Todd talked with Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News and analytics expert Bradley Woodrum. A new episode of the podcast is released every Thursday and can be accessed on iTunes, SoundCloud, and Stitcher.
- It’s March and Austin Jackson is still without a team. MLBTR’s Steve Adams ran down possible landing spots for the outfielder, including the Indians, White Sox, and Orioles. Cleveland is reportedly tapped out in terms of payroll, but the Indians are perhaps the most obvious on-paper fit for Jackson. As for the White Sox, Jackson would provide a reasonable backup to Adam Eaton in center and could see regular at-bats in the outfield corners, as his glove would be an upgrade over that of either Melky Cabrera or Avisail Garcia. Click the link to see where MLBTR readers see Jackson landing.
- Hurler Doug Fister is hoping to rebound with the Astros. MLBTR was on hand as Fister discussed his free agency experience and his reasons for signing with Houston.
- Getting traded can be an adjustment and that’s a change that Jake Thompson has experienced twice in his young career. Thompson spoke with reporters, including this reporter, about the lessons he learned after trade No. 1.
- New Phillies outfielder Peter Bourjos chatted with MLBTR about his fresh start in Philly and what he can do to get back to his 2011 form.
- Jeff ran down notable recent late-spring trades, including one notable swap from 2015.
- MLBTR was on hand in Lakeland, Florida last week as Tigers manager Brad Ausmus gave his thoughts on Detroit’s offseason and more.
- Veteran outfielder Nate Schierholtz, who is in camp with the Tigers, spoke to MLBTR about his time in Japan.
Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Fowler, Greinke, Pirates
Here’s this week’s look around the baseball blogosphere:
- Camden Depot isn’t upset about the Orioles losing out on Dexter Fowler.
- Inside The Zona compared Rubby De La Rosa‘s changeup to Zack Greinke‘s.
- TPOP ranked the Pirates’ top prospects.
- Chin Music Baseball says the Rangers have question marks.
- Big Three Sports spoke with FanGraphs’ Jeff Zimmerman.
- North Shore Nine weighed in on the Gerrit Cole situation.
- Outside Pitch says it’s an important year for Matt Moore.
- 80 Grade Halos is amped for Angels Spring Training.
- Super Two Sports examined the Cody Asche situation.
- Baseball Hot Corner chatted with ex-GM Dan Evans.
- The Runner Sports checked in on the Astros.
- A’s Farm took a position-by-position look at Oakland’s organizational depth.
- Same Page Team sized up the Blue Jays’ bullpen.
- Fansided sees seven perfect fits for Lazaro Armenteros.
- Pirates Breakdown examined the disparity in minor league salaries.
- Gardy Goes Yardy says James Kaprielian can help the Yanks fairly soon.
- Think Blue PC reconsidered the Dodgers rotation.
- Redbird Rants discussed Trevor Rosenthal‘s future.
- MLB Reports looked into the Yankees’ payroll going forward.
- Chris Zantow delved into Milwaukee’s father-son connection.
- Jays From The Couch says Toronto’s defense is underrated.
- Philliedelphia discussed Ryan Howard‘s pursuit of 400 home runs.
- Wayniac Nation says this could be the D’Backs’ year.
- Notes From The Sally previewed the 2016 Lakewood Blueclaws.
- BBA says the Nats are banking on three players to bounce back.
- Dynasty Digest wonders if the Yankees made a mistake trading for Aroldis Chapman.
- Sports Heaven has five prospects to keep an eye on.
- Puckett’s Pond made a 25-man roster prediction.
- Motor City Bengals looked back on the Andrew Romine deal.
- Pinstriped Prospects examined Ben Gamel‘s recent breakout.
- World Series Dreaming created a taxi squad.
- About Sports wonders if Henry Owens can break through this year.
- Baseball Essential pitted Carlos Correa vs. Francisco Lindor.
- The Runner Sports had some fun with Jake Marisnick and George Springer‘s field trip.
- Pittsburgh Sports Report weighed the pros and cons of keeping Andrew McCutchen.
Please send submissions to Zach Links at ZachBBWI@gmail.com.
Chase Utley Won’t Serve Further Suspension For Slide
Dodgers infielder Chase Utley will not have to serve a suspension for his controversial slide into Ruben Tejada in last season’s NLDS, a source tells Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times (on Twitter). Utley was supposed to sit out two more games to round out his suspension.
During the seventh inning of Game 2 of the NLDS, Utley’s hard slide broke up a double play and broke Tejada’s fibula. In the end, the Mets bested the Dodgers and went on to the World Series, but they were subsequently without the services of their starting shortstop.
MLB’s Chief Baseball Officer Joe Torre determined that Utley made a “rolling block … away from the base” when he took out Tejada. However, there was no rule against such a slide until this winter.
The 36-year-old Utley joined the Dodgers after an August trade with the Phillies and hit just .202/.291/.363, numbers that don’t come close to his All-Star years. In December, the Dodgers and Utley reached agreement on a new one-year, $7MM deal. This year, the Dodgers might be hoping he improves somewhat offensively, making him a valuable player when coupled with his defensive abilities.
When asked for his reaction to today’s news, Mets GM Sandy Alderson said he’s just glad the sliding rule has been changed, as Adam Rubin of ESPN.com writes.
Cafardo On Orioles, Bruce, Red Sox, Maeda
In today’s column, Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe wonders where James Loney might fit in with the Rays this year. The veteran is currently behind the platoon of Steve Pearce and Logan Morrison at first and he’s also blocked at DH and left field by Corey Dickerson and Desmond Jennings, respectively. With a salary of $8MM, the Rays have been unable to find a taker for Loney via trade, though they are willing to eat some of that money to facilitate a deal.
Here’s more from today’s column:
- The Orioles are still considering a deal for Reds outfielder Jay Bruce as they try to bolster their lineup in March. The O’s are also considering Austin Jackson, but Bruce could be considered the better fit thanks to his power. Bruce will make $12.5MM in 2016, plus a $1MM buyout or a $13MM option in 2017, which isn’t exactly chump change. Also, even though Bruce has some excellent campaigns on his resume, his play over the past two seasons hasn’t been all that strong.
- One NL exec says a few teams have ID’d Red Sox catcher Ryan Hanigan as a possible trade target this summer. Red Sox officials have said that it’s unlikely they would part with Hanigan due to the inexperience of Blake Swihart and fellow youngster Christian Vazquez. However, rival officials aren’t sold on that and believe that Hanigan could be more available than Boston is letting on. Hanigan has a $3.7MM salary for 2016 with an option for 2017.
- Can new Dodgers pitcher Kenta Maeda be effective in his first MLB season? One scout who watched him throw in Japan isn’t so sure. “His stuff isn’t as good as [Masahiro] Tanaka and he’s more a middle to end of the rotation type of guy,” said the scout. “I don’t know how his fastball plays in the big leagues. I think he’s got the secondary pitches, but the quality of hitters he’ll face may be a challenge at first.” The Dodgers will be without Brett Anderson for the next three to five months, so they are certainly hoping that Maeda can hit the ground running.
- Agent Randy Rowley tells Cafardo that Justin Masterson will throw a bullpen session for several teams towards the end of March.
- The trade sending John Ryan Murphy to the Twins in exchange for outfielder Aaron Hicks was “the best pure baseball deal of the offseason,” in the opinion of one official who spoke with Cafardo. That official, Cafardo notes, was not involved in the swap in any way. Hicks, a defensive specialist, posted a .256/.323/.398 batting line in 2015 and added 13 steals, numbers that made him a little more attractive to the Bombers. The Twins, meanwhile, got themselves an upgrade behind the plate in the wake of Kurt Suzuki‘s struggles.
- Free agent outfielder Grady Sizemore hasn’t received much interest to date. The veteran spent the second half of last season with the Rays.
NL Notes: Cole, Braves, Altherr, Klentak
Last weekend, it was discovered that Pirates ace Gerrit Cole was displeased to have his contract renewed for the same pay as he earned last season. While Cole may be peeved by the lack of raise, it doesn’t mean he and the club don’t have common ground for an extension, writes Travis Sawchik of Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. Former Phillies ace Cole Hamels made similar public comments back in 2008 before inking a three-year, $20MM deal for his arbitration seasons. Sawchik also relates a number of details about Cole’s specific situation as well as the players’ share of revenue league wide – it’s well worth a read.
- The Braves rotation is a shadow of the unit that dominated the National League for over a decade, writes the associated press for the New York Times. The entire unit has issues. “Ace” Julio Teheran is coming off his worst major league season, and he’s the only lock for a job. As manager Fredi Gonzalez joked, there’s a wave of high profile arms, but they’re “out by the Marshall Islands.” Pitching prospects are notoriously fickle. Before the high ceiling talents get a chance to work in the majors, Atlanta fans will have to hope players like Matt Wisler, Mike Foltynewicz, and Bud Norris can show some sign of life.
- Phillies outfielder Aaron Altherr suffered a left-wrist injury on a diving play yesterday, writes Matt Breen of Philly.com. Altherr had the wrist in a splint today and has not received X-Rays yet. The former prospect is familiar with wrist injuries which sapped his development in late 2013 and early 2014. He doesn’t believe this round is anywhere as serious as his previous injury which required surgery. Altherr is widely expected to start for the Phillies after a breakout 2015 season. In my view, the club could option him if they preferred for him to ease into action in the minors.
- For those curious about Phillies GM Matt Klentak’s playing background, Mike Sielski of Philly.com has the details. Klentak, 35, attended Dartmouth College where he played shortstop for head coach Bob Whalen – himself a friend of now-Mets GM Sandy Alderson. From there, it’s not a far jump to Moneyball. Klentak also offered a couple interesting quotes, including “Players will reach their ceilings when they’re playing confidently, when they’re in an environment that’s loose and that allows them to be the player that they want to be.“
Dodgers Notes: Seager, Maeda, Turner, Guerrero
Corey Seager has the eighth highest trade value in baseball, opines Sports Illustrated’s Jonah Keri in his annual review of the top assets in the sport. In recent years, Seager was a popular trade target for teams attempting to sell veterans to the Dodgers. For example, their decision to keep Seager rather than trade him (and others) for former Phillies ace Cole Hamels already looks brilliant. Hamels was ranked 39th last year and fell out of the top 50 this year. While nobody would argue that Seager is better than Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw (ranked 21), his superior contract situation and youth make him a superior long term bet. Top pitching prospect Julio Urias (43rd) also made the list.
Here’s more from the Dodgers:
- Japanese import Kenta Maeda made his Cactus League debut today, writes Ken Gurnick of MLB.com. His performance today (he did well) is hardly relevant, but Maeda has already taken on an important role in the team’s success. With Hyun-jin Ryu, Brett Anderson, and Brandon McCarthy set to miss chunks of the 2016 season, the Dodgers’ pitching depth will be tested. Maeda’s performance will help to determine how the favored Dodgers perform in a wide open NL West.
- Third baseman Justin Turner may return to game action as early as next week, writes Gurnick. Manager Dave Roberts would ease him back, using him as the designated hitter for a time. Turner had microfracture surgery over the offseason. A return to action next week would put him well ahead of the usual recovery timeline. Players like Carlos Beltran and Grady Sizemore had to ease back in to regular reps over a long period of time, although Turner’s specific situation may differ from theirs.
- One of Turner’s third base backups, Alex Guerrero, has been sidelined with a sore left knee, per Gurnick. The team does not believe the injury is serious, and they have not even ordered tests. The Dodgers have struggled to find Guerrero a regular role due to poor defensive chops at second base and an inconsistent bat. Should Turner and Guerrero both miss time, options to fill in at third include Howie Kendrick and Chase Utley.
Quick Hits: Cubs, Cahill, Davis, Judge
Yesterday, we heard about several Cubs free agent signees who took less money to play in Chicago. Jon Heyman of MLB Network (via Twitter) illuminates a few of the teams that missed out. We know the Orioles were in on Dexter Fowler as well as the Nationals and Cardinals interest in Jason Heyward. Ben Zobrist turned down better offers from the Nationals and Mets while Trevor Cahill declined to join the Pirates on a stronger offer. Of course, the details of those hypothetical deals are unknown. For example, the Nationals probably made heavy use of deferred money in their offers, reducing the present day value of their proposals. Heyman also has some contract details for reserve clause signees (on Twitter).
Here’s more from around the league:
- The Pirates offer to Cahill was to pitch as a starter, writes Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun Times. However, rumors of a two-year offer may have been exaggerated. Cahill himself claims to be unaware of any two-year proposals. In my opinion, Cahill was smart to remain in Chicago as a reliever. His skill set plays particularly well out of the bullpen and could set up a strong multi-year offer in free agency next winter.
- New Athletics outfielder Khris Davis is happy with his new ball club, writes Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. The former Brewer saw the writing on the wall when Milwaukee dealt away several veterans in the last calendar year. Davis, originally picked in the 2009 draft, was the second-to-last player from that draft class with the club. The Brewers still have Scooter Gennett penciled in to play second base.
- When Yankees prospects Aaron Judge and Jorge Mateo homered earlier today, they offered a glimpse of the future, writes Wallace Matthews of ESPN. The pair rank first and second in the Yankees farm system. Judge, 23, has a shot to contribute to the club in 2016 while Mateo, 20, is a little way off. Judge is a power hitting outfielder who hit 20 home runs in 540 plate appearances last season. Mateo is a speedy shortstop with 82 stolen bases in 2015 (500 plate appearances).
MLB Pursuing New Signing Rules For Cuban Players
Major League Baseball has submitted a proposal to the U.S. Treasury Department to offer Cuban players a better route to sign with major league clubs, writes Ben Strauss of the New York Times. Presently, a U.S. embargo against Cuba forces defectors to establish residency in a third country before they can join the professional ranks. While relations have thawed between America and the island nation, the embargo remains in place and could create additional future challenges.
Agreements with baseball leagues in Japan, Korea, and elsewhere include financial compensation for when a player leaves to join the majors. However, the embargo of Cuba makes it a crime to transfer money to the Cuban government. These new talks are aimed at circumventing the embargo.
The proposed plan includes the creation of a non-profit entity to develop baseball and other public interests in Cuba. Teams would donate to this non-profit when signing away Cuban players – theoretically dodging the embargo since the money would not be directly accessible by the government. It’s not yet clear if the Treasury Department will agree with this interpretation for a host of reasons. A spokesman for the league defined the proposal as “opening the way for more substantive talks.”
The need for a new process was most recently made obvious by the reported travails of prospect Lazaro Armentaros aka “Lazarito.” Conflicting reports indicate that, at the very least, Armentaros’ former agent Charles Hairston of Culture39 was physically threatened by a Dominican buscone. His family refuted the notion that Lazarito or his family were in any danger. Regardless of the truth here, other major leaguers have detailed the often life threatening conditions experienced by a defector and their family.
As Jesse Sanchez of MLB.com notes, about 125 players have defected from Cuba in the last 20 months. The sooner baseball and the U.S. government can solve this humanitarian issue, the better.
Blue Jays Notes: Cecil, Sanchez, Pennington
Brett Cecil, who is eligible for free agency after the 2016 season, is “open” to an extension with the Jays, writes Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet (who, by the way, chatted with Zach Links and MLBTR readers on Periscope earlier today). Cecil is not aware of any extension talks between the two sides. “There’s not necessarily going to be demands on what it’s got to be,” he says. “If they want to talk then we can talk. If not then we don’t.” As Nicholson-Smith notes, Cecil appears to be in line for a significant payday, whether that’s with the Blue Jays or with another team. He posted a 2.48 ERA, with an outstanding 11.6 K/9 and 2.2 BB/9 last season, and this past winter saw good non-closing relievers like Darren O’Day and Ryan Madson land contracts well north of $20MM. And Cecil compares favorably to fellow lefty Tony Sipp, who got $18MM from the Astros. Here’s more from Toronto.
- It’s possible Aaron Sanchez could start the season in the minors, MLB.com’s Gregor Chisholm writes. If Gavin Floyd or Jesse Chavez wins the last spot in the rotation, but the Jays feel Sanchez and the team would best served by having him continue to develop as a starter rather than as a reliever. That path could make sense, given Sanchez’s age (he’s still just 23), former top prospect status, and his control problems while serving as a starter in both the Majors and minors. Last year, he allowed 37 walks in 66 innings as a starter. He has also walked over four batters per nine innings in both Triple-A and Double-A, and he was mostly used as a starter in his stints there.
- Earlier today, we learned about longtime first baseman Dan Johnson trying his hand as a pitcher with the Rays. But Johnson isn’t the only position player to attract recent interest as a pitcher. New Angels infielder Cliff Pennington attracted a bit of interest as a pitcher this offseason after making a relief appearance with the Jays in the playoffs last year, reports MLB.com’s Alden Gonzalez. “In talking to some teams about straight utility, there was maybe some talk about maybe pitching a few innings to save a bullpen guy here or there throughout the course of a year,” says Pennington. “Nothing more than six, seven innings in a year. It never was anything that was talked about with the Angels.” Such a role would, obviously, be unusual, and only a handful of players in recent memory — Brooks Kieschnick and Micah Owings being two — have really split time between pitching and another role. Pennington threw 90 MPH in the ALCS last year, though he only retired one of the three batters he faced.
Brewers Sign Franklin Morales To Minors Deal
SATURDAY: The deal is now official. Morales will receive $2.3MM plus up to $1.5MM in incentives if he makes the team, MLB.com’s Adam McCalvy tweets.
FRIDAY: The Brewers have struck a minor league pact with lefty Franklin Morales, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (via Twitter). He’ll receive an invitation to big league camp in the deal.
Morales had a quietly excellent season last year, logging 62 1/3 frames of 3.18 ERA pitching for the Royals. Notably, he logged 5.9 K/9 against 2.0 BB/9, both well below his usual blend of more strikeouts and walks. Morales also drew grounders on 49.5% of the balls put in play against him, well above his career average.
ERA estimators saw a solid effort, though they weren’t as enthused as his results would suggest. Morales tallied a 3.52 FIP, 3.99 xFIP, and 3.75 SIERA in 2015, each of which represented career bests. He was quite stingy against lefties, holding them to a cumulative .194/.250/.320 slash, though right-handers proved tougher outs (as they always have for Morales).