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Archives for April 2017

Injury Notes: Richards, McHugh, Axford, Kaprielian

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After exiting his first start of the season with biceps cramps, Angels ace Garrett Richards will undergo what the team is calling a precautionary MRI tomorrow, per a club announcement. Manager Mike Scioscia told reporters, including Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register, that the team’s medical staff is “confident this isn’t connected to his other situation last year,” in reference to the torn ulnar collateral ligament that Richards suffered last season. While the majority of players with UCL tears ultimately fall to Tommy John surgery, Richards opted for a stem cell therapy treatment that allowed him to rehab without surgery and pitch throughout Spring Training. The Halos are hopeful that Richards can help to anchor their staff in 2017, though obviously this isn’t the start they envisioned.

A few more notable injury updates from around the game…

  • Astros right-hander Collin McHugh exited his rehab start with Triple-A Fresno on Thursday after just one inning, per Bryant-Jon Anteola of the Fresno Bee (Twitter links). According to Anteola, McHugh threw 26 pitches in the first inning, but after a pair of warmup pitches prior to the second frame, he called for the trainer to come to the mound and was removed from the game. McHugh dealt with a dead arm during Spring Training and opened the season on the disabled list. There’s been no word from the team just yet, but Anteola notes that McHugh’s pitch count for the rehab outing was set for 85 pitches, making the early departure all the more ominous.
  • An MRI revealed nothing beyond the original diagnosis of a strain in the right shoulder of injured Athletics reliever John Axford, as MLB.com’s Alex Espinoza writes. Nonetheless, Axford won’t even pick up a ball for the next week. Manager Bob Melvin told reporters that there’s no timeline for Axford’s return right now, and the team will reevaluate the situation once he resumes throwing. It seems likely, then, that Axford will miss more than the minimum 10 days with this ailment, though the fact that the MRI revealed no structural damage in his rotator cuff or labrum is good news for both team and player. Somewhat remarkably, Espinoza notes that this is Axford’s first trip to the disabled list in a nine-year MLB career.
  • Yankees top prospect James Kaprielian is headed for an MRI and a dye contrast on his right elbow after experiencing pain, the team announced. Kaprielian, New York’s first-round pick back in 2015 and one of the top-ranked prospects in all of baseball, has already been placed on the minor league disabled list. This isn’t Kaprielian’s first brush with arm troubles, either, as he made just three starts in 2016 due largely to a strained flexor tendon in his right arm. (He did return to make seven starts in the Arizona Fall League.) Baseball America, Baseball Prospectus, MLB.com and ESPN’s Keith Law all ranked Kaprielian in their top 100 prospects heading into the 2017 season, with Law’s No. 28 overall ranking standing out as the most bullish.

Brewers Notes: Villar, Broxton, Jungmann

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Melvin Roman, the agent for Brewers infielder Jonathan Villar (among others), said today on MLB Network Radio on SiriusXM (Twitter link) that Villar is “willing to bet on himself and go year-to-year unless they approach us with a contract that makes sense.” Villar reportedly rejected an extension this offseason that would’ve guaranteed him around $20MM. While it’s difficult to dissect that offer without knowing the exact amount and length, there are several instances of players in Villar’s service class securing quite a bit more.

Jason Kipnis, Matt Carpenter and Rougned Odor each signed in the vicinity of $50MM. The Brewers could rightly argue that Villar doesn’t have the track record that any of those three players did upon signing, of course, though Roman could cite Jose Ramirez’s $26MM deal and Villar’s superior power/speed numbers in arguing for a larger sum. Or, the two sides could go the route that the Twins went with Brian Dozier when he signed a four-year, $20MM deal that locked in his arbitration salaries but didn’t extend the club’s control.  That’s all just a quick and rudimentary look at some recent comps, with the greater takeaway perhaps being that Villar isn’t inclined to take an especially club-friendly deal at the risk of short-changing himself.

More on the Brew Crew…

  • Brewers center fielder Keon Broxton escaped serious injury after a frightening hit-by-pitch today, writes Todd Rosiak of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel. Broxton was hit in the head by a 93 mph fastball from Rockies rookie Anthony Senzatela, but was fortunately wearing a helmet with a “C-flap” — the increasingly popular helmet that extends protection with a flap that covers a hitter’s cheek. Broxton, who considered reverting to a traditional helmet this spring, said he believed the pitch that struck him would’ve connected directly with his eye socket had he not had the extended flap on his helmet and vehemently encouraged teammates and players around the league to begin donning the same type of helmet. “I’m grateful I kept that thing on, and I encourage every player to use it,” says the center fielder. “Even if you’re uncomfortable with it, guys, it saved me. I know it’ll help out a lot of other players as well. The best thing about this game is being healthy and being on the field.” Broxton was diagnosed with a small nasal fracture but won’t require a DL stint.
  • Milwaukee optioned right-hander Taylor Jungmann to Double-A Biloxi today, per a club announcement. The move creates a spot on the 25-man roster for waiver claim Nick Franklin, who will join the Brewers this weekend. Per Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel (Twitter link), the Brewers are being selective with their minor league assignments for pitchers this season. Jungmann and pitching prospect Jorge Lopez both struggled considerably in Triple-A Colorado Springs last season — a notorious hitters’ haven — thus prompting the Brewers to slot them in Double-A. In writing about the move, MLB.com’s Adam McCalvy notes that Jungmann righted the ship in Biloxi last season, so perhaps the friendlier environment will be advantageous. This, McCalvy adds, is Jungmann’s final option year, so it’s a fairly pivotal season for the former first-round pick.

Minor MLB Transactions: 4/6/17

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Here are the latest minor moves from around the game, all via Matt Eddy of Baseball America unless otherwise noted:

  • The Blue Jays announced on Thursday that right-hander Mike Bolsinger has cleared waivers and been sent outright to Triple-A Buffalo. The 29-year-old was designated for assignment on Sunday after a shaky Spring Training and a down year in 2016. Last year, Bolsinger logged a 6.83 ERA in 27 2/3 big league innings due largely to a troubles with the long ball. He did have solid K/BB numbers in both the Majors and the minors last year, but control issues contributed to a 6.23 ERA this spring. Bolsinger had a strong season in the Majors as recently as 2015, when he logged a 3.62 ERA with 8.1 K/9, 3.7 BB/9 and a 53.1 percent ground-ball rate in 109 1/3 innings for the Dodgers. He’ll stay on hand as a depth piece in Toronto and could very well resurface in the Majors later this season.

Earlier Moves

  • Lefties Nick Maronde and Caleb Thielbar have been released by the Marlins, who are going with an all-righty pen to open the year. Maronde hasn’t seen the majors since 2014, but did work to a 3.19 ERA over 48 Triple-A innings last year. The 30-year-old Thielbar, once a mainstay in the Twins’ bullpen, got good results last year in an indy ball stint.
  • The Phillies have released infielder Taylor Featherston. The 27-year-old, who had already been outrighted off of the 40-man, slashed .254/.311/.428 with 13 home runs in his 439 Triple-A plate appearances last year. But he didn’t have much of an avenue to contributing at the major league level in Philadelphia.
  • Outfielder Jake Goebbert has been released by the Diamondbacks. The 29-year-old saw action in the majors back in 2014 with the Padres, but hasn’t been back since. He slashed just .217/.301/.356 in 399 Triple-A plate appearances last year with the Rays organization, well shy of his usual productivity in the upper minors.
  • The White Sox have cut ties with righty Mayckol Guaipe. He has spent time in the majors in each of the past two years with the Mariners, but wasn’t able to earn more than temporary time.
  • The Red Sox evidently didn’t see enough to keep veteran slugger Carlos Quentin around in the minors for the upcoming season, though it could be he wasn’t interested in taking an assignment. Either way, as Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe reports on Twitter, Quentin was released from the minor-league deal he signed over the offseason. The 34-year-old hasn’t played in the majors since 2014 and received only minimal Grapefruit League action during camp.
  • Righty Chris Anderson is heading to the Twins on a minors deal, Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN tweets (confirming what reader Jerry Anderson had heard). He was released recently by the Dodgers after struggling in recent campaigns, including a messy effort in the Arizona Fall League. Anderson hails from Minnesota.

Orioles Acquire Andrew Faulkner, Release Dariel Alvarez

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The Orioles announced that they’ve acquired left-hander Andrew Faulkner from the Rangers and released outfielder/pitcher Dariel Alvarez to clear a spot on the 40-man roster. Baltimore will send cash or a player to be named later to the Rangers to complete the swap. The Orioles have optioned Faulkner to Triple-A Norfolk.

Faulkner, 24, has seen time in the Majors in each of the past two seasons, totaling 16 1/3 innings with the Rangers and pitching to a 4.41 ERA with an 11-to-7 K/BB ratio and a 43.4 percent ground-ball rate. He spent the bulk of the season in the bullpen with the Rangers’ Triple-A affiliate, tossing 45 1/3 innings with a 3.97 ERA 7.7 K/9 and 4.0 BB/9. MLB.com rated Faulkner as the No. 30 prospect in the Rangers’ system at the time of the swap, noting that he lost a couple of miles off his fastball in 2016.

When at his best, however, Faulkner is tough on left-handed opponents, as evidenced by the .175/.291/.238 line posted by opposing lefties (including both the Majors and minors) in 2015. The former 14th-rounder (2011) does have some experience in the rotation — nearly half of his 165 minor league appearances have been starts — but he’s worked primarily out of the bullpen across the past couple of seasons.

As for the 28-year-old Alvarez, it was reported earlier today that the outfielder-turned-pitcher is likely to require Tommy John surgery after suffering an elbow injury. The Cuban defector has been in the Orioles organization since the 2013 season but received just 35 plate appearances in the Majors. Alvarez has spent significant time at the Triple-A level in each of the past three seasons, and while he’s hit fairly well, he hasn’t exactly dominated the level; in 304 games with Norfolk, Alvarez has batted .285/.317/.409. Speculatively speaking, the O’s could re-sign Alvarez to a minor league deal, allowing him to rehab with the team and then to continue making his transition to the mound once he returns to health.

Indians Plan To Explore Extension With Carlos Santana

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The Indians have been active in extension talks of late, reaching multi-year agreements with infielder Jose Ramirez (five years, $26MM) and catcher Roberto Perez (four years, $9MM) in addition to making an effort to hammer out a deal with star shortstop Francisco Lindor. They may not be done just yet, either, as Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports reports that the Indians will explore an extension with first baseman/designated hitter Carlos Santana in attempt to prevent him from reaching free agency following the 2017 season.

Santana, 31 this weekend, has long been one of the most productive and durable hitters in the Cleveland lineup. Dating back to the 2011 campaign, he’s been on the disabled list just once: an 11-day absence on the 7-day DL in 2014 due to concussion symptoms. Since Opening Day 2011, Santana has averaged 153 games and 654 plate appearances per season. In that time, his bat has been above the league average in each year, and his collective .247/.363/.443 batting line in that time has translated to a 121 OPS+ and a 124 wRC+ (meaning, essentially, that he’s been 21 percent to 24 percent better than the league-average hitter after accounting for league and park).

While Santana was a catcher for much of his early career and had a brief experiment as a third baseman in 2014, he’s largely limited to first base and designated hitter duties at this stage of his career. He played only those two positions during the regular season in 2015-16 (plus two left field appearances in the World Series), and it doesn’t seem especially likely that a team would feel comfortable playing him elsewhere with any sort of regularity.

It’s certainly possible to envision Santana preferring to remain with the only team he’s ever known and one that looks to be very well-positioned for the near future. However, a significant discount on an extension may not be likely with free agency just six months away. His initial contract — a five-year, $21MM extension — already looks to be a feather in Cleveland’s cap, after all, even with his 2017 option elevating his total earnings to $31.8MM over six years.

Then again, Santana will hit the open market heading into his age-32 season and with the memory of a free-agent market that was not kind to defensively limited sluggers fresh in his mind. From my vantage point, he’s a definite qualifying offer candidate at season’s end, which wouldn’t do any favors for his market. (Although Santana may not face the same hurdles as others have in recent years now that the new collective bargaining agreement has lowered the penalty for signing a player that rejected a QO.)

Cleveland entered the 2017 season with a club-record $128MM payroll, but the Indians only have about $77MM committed to the 2018 payroll. That sum could rise depending on the fate of outfielder Michael Brantley ($11MM club option), left-hander Boone Logan ($7MM club option) and Josh Tomlin ($3MM club option). There will also be arbitration raises on the horizon for Cody Allen, Danny Salazar, Trevor Bauer, Lonnie Chisenhall, Zach McAllister and Dan Otero, further complicating the financial outlook. That said, if ownership is comfortable with a payroll in this range once again in 2018, the Indians could probably fit a Santana extension into the payroll — especially were it to be backloaded in nature.

Blue Jays Claim Luke Maile

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1:09pm: Maile was claimed, per MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand (via Twitter).

12:47pm: The Blue Jays are set to acquire catcher Luke Maile from the Rays, according to Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. Maile was designated recently, but it’s not apparent at this point whether he is moving via trade or waiver claim.

Maile, 26, has struggled badly at the plate in his brief MLB time, striking out 44 times while drawing just four walks and slashing a meager .214/.234/.338 in 161 total plate appearances. And he hasn’t shown much more at Triple-A; in 551 trips to the plate at the highest level of the minors, he owns a .221/.302/.314 batting line.

That said, Maile did provide more offense earlier in his minor-league career. And he has shown fairly well defensively in the majors. Last year, he rated well as a framer and cut down seven of 18 would-be base-stealers, which suggests he could be a useful depth piece. Maile will likely join Juan Graterol as 40-man members stashed at Triple-A in the Toronto organization.

Braves To Sign Ryan Howard

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The Braves have agreed to a minor-league deal with veteran slugger Ryan Howard, according to MLB.com’s Mark Bowman (Twitter link). He’ll head to extended Spring Training before taking a minor-league assignment. Howard will earn at a palatable $750K annual rate if he makes it to the majors, Jon Heyman of Fan Rag tweets.

Howard, 37, had a quiet offseason after the Phillies paid him a $10MM buyout rather than picking up their club option following the 2016 campaign. But he’s now headed to a division rival after wrapping up a 13-year run in Philly.

Whether Howard will ever see the majors with Atlanta remains to be seen, of course. He’s not exactly a clear fit for a National League roster that features Freddie Freeman at first base. Perhaps, though, he’ll function as an insurance policy while burnishing his resume should another opportunity arise. It’s also possible that Howard could ultimately take a spot as a bench bat for the Braves.

The market was not kind to lumbering power hitters this winter. With younger, somewhat more defensively capable players signing for far less than expected or even taking minors deals, Howard faced an uphill path to earning a MLB job. Veteran DH Billy Butler has still yet to sign.

Howard certainly still has some pop left in his bat. Last year, he swatted 25 long balls in just 362 plate appearances. He also struck out 31.5% of the time and slashed just .196/.257/.453, though that was driven in part by a meager .205 batting average on balls in play.

That said, Howard did make hard contact 45.9% of the time he did put bat to ball, a level he hadn’t reached since way back in 2009 — his last season as a high-quality regular. Being limited almost exclusively to facing right-handed pitching probably influenced that figure, though. Howard has long been much more successful when hitting with the platoon advantage, with more than .200 OPS points separating his career splits, and it’s hard to imagine him squaring up against southpaws much at all from this point onward.

West Notes: Richards, Trout, D-Backs, Leyba

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Angels righty Garrett Richards completed his remarkable return to the major league hill, but he had to leave early with what has been diagnosed initially as a biceps cramp, as Pedro Moura of the Los Angeles Times reports. The club says that the fireballing righty was pulled for “precautionary reasons,” and Richards says that “everything’s fine” with his elbow. For the time being, at least, he won’t even undergo an MRI; indications are that he could be able to take his next scheduled start.

  • Speaking of Richards, you’ll want to read the interesting piece that Moura penned recently regarding his stem-cell therapy to treat a partially torn UCL. Taking that course rather than electing surgery is perhaps not as unique as is publicly known, the article explains, with other players quietly undergoing the treatment during the offseason. It wasn’t an easy call, explains Angels team doctor Steve Yoon, but the combined approach has led to “dramatic” improvement in his ligament.
  • Angels fans will also want to take a look at Moura’s excellent look back at how the organization landed Mike Trout in the 2009 draft. Richards went to Los Angeles in the same draft, as did a host of other major leaguers. But landing Trout with the 25th choice was one of the greatest heists in Rule 4 history.
  • The Diamondbacks are lining up a significant investment in their operations in the Dominican Republic, as Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic reports. CEO Derrick Hall explains that investing in a facility — either through renovation or new construction — could help the team draw quality youngsters under the new international spending rules, which won’t allow organizations to exceed their pool allocations.
  • Diamondbacks prospect Domingo Leyba is slated to miss about two months of action with “a small tear” in the anterior capsule of his right shoulder, Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic reports (Twitter links). Leyba, who came to Arizona as a part of the three-team deal that also delivered Robbie Ray, with the D-Backs sacrificing Didi Gregorius, is considered one of the organization’s top prospects. The 21-year-old infielder put up solid numbers last year at the High-A and Double-A levels after a disappointing 2015 campaign. Over 548 total plate appearances, he slashed .296/.355/.429 with ten home runs.

East Notes: Lugo, Price, Cabrera, De Leon, Rays

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While Mets righty Seth Lugo doesn’t believe he’ll ultimately require surgery for his partially torn UCL, GM Sandy Alderson is calling it “a possibility,” as MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo reports. The veteran executive also notes that there’s optimism from the medical experts that Lugo can avoid going under the knife, but it does seem notable that the potential for a procedure is being publicly acknowledged. New York will hope for the best — Lugo could resume throwing in as few as two weeks — but will need to account for the possibility of a more significant absence. The club will at least keep an eye out for some starting pitching depth after learning of the partial UCL tear suffered by righty Seth Lugo, according to Marc Carig of Newsday (via Twitter).

Here’s more from the game’s eastern divisions:

  • Red Sox lefty David Price is back on the mound, though it doesn’t seem he’s back to pitching yet, as Evan Drellich of CSNNE.com reports. After a long-toss session, he took the hill to throw to a standing catcher, which represents the latest step forward. “The most encouraging thing is each throwing session he goes through, he comes out feeling good physically,” says Farrell, who added that the team will continue to push Price forward incrementally.
  • Braves righty Mauricio Cabrera has been cleared to begin throwing, MLB.com’s Mark Bowman tweets. The high-octane youngster has been dealing with arm fatigue, relegating him to the DL to open the year. It’s still unclear how long it’ll take to get him back to the majors, but it seems there’s continued optimism that the layoff isn’t anything to worry about in the long run. Still, the Braves will likely continue to take a cautious course before adding Cabrera back to the late-inning mix.
  • The Rays have placed righty Jose De Leon on the minor-league DL, as Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports. Flexor mass discomfort is to blame, though the club says the issue has already been resolved. Still, with De Leon set to face an innings limit in his first season with his new organization, he’ll ramp up slowly before heading on assignment to Triple-A.
  • St. Petersburg mayor Rick Kriseman laid out the city’s plan for the Rays to build a new ballpark on the existing site of Tropicana Field, as Charlie Frago and Mark Puente of the Tampa Bay Times report. As the story notes, “financial details” remain unknown, though Kriseman suggested that the money side can be managed. The plan set forth is based upon the premise that broader development of the Trop site, in conjunction with a new park, could open avenues for revenue for the club, the municipality, and local businesses.

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