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Archives for March 2019

West Notes: Verlander, Kershaw, Rangers

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Astros righty Justin Verlander chatted yesterday about his pending free agency with Jon Heyman of MLB Network (all links to Twitter). While he’s keeping an open door to remaining in Houston, it doesn’t sound as if there’s any expectation of reaching a deal this spring. Verlander, who’s still at the top of his game at 36 years of age, reiterated his previously stated intention to pitch well into his forties. That expectation won’t lead him to chase the longest-possible guarantee in free agency, though. Having already secured career earnings in the hundreds of millions of dollars, Verlander says he’ll prioritize annual salary and other considerations while remaining “cognizant” of how his contract fits in the larger market picture. Further to that point, the veteran notes that big deals for this winter’s very best free agents have tended to mask the down-market struggles and number of teams that are not seeking to compete.

More from the western divisions …

  • Dodgers lefty Clayton Kershaw threw to a catcher today from flat ground, J.P. Hoornstra of the Southern California News Group reports in a series of tweets. That still counts as notable progress for the vaunted hurler, who also long-tossed and does not seem to have reported any issues. Shoulder issues have slowed Kershaw thus far in camp, but he has seemed to be on the upswing of late. Filling in for him early on shouldn’t be a problem for a Dodgers club that has a deep staff to call upon, but the early health issues are of greater concern given the recent history. Kershaw, who’ll soon turn 31, has now missed starts in each of the past three seasons and is under contract for three seasons and $93MM.
  • While the Rangers recently worked out a new deal with reliever Jose Leclerc, Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram writes that it’s far from clear they’ll land any other extensions this spring. Joey Gallo and Nomar Mazara appear to be hypothetical candidates, but both say they’re not presently engaged with the club. That could still change; Gallo and Mazara each say they are willing to listen and are interested in remaining in Texas. Otherwise, it’s tough to identify any reasonable candidates on the roster.

Trevor Oaks Undergoes Hip Surgery

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Royals righty Trevor Oaks has undergone surgery to repair a tear in his hip labrum, MLB.com’s Jeffrey Flanagan reports on Twitter. The news was largely expected by this point, though it remains a disappointing outcome for the 25-year-old.

Oaks was primed to compete in camp for a rotation spot — or, more likely, a place on the depth chart at Triple-A. Having debuted in the majors last season, his first with the Royals after an early-2018 trade, he was certainly a candidate to see substantial time in a K.C. rotation that will enter the season with loads of uncertainty.

Instead, Oaks will miss most or all of the coming season while working back from a procedure that turned out to be “a little more extensive” than originally anticipated. It is believed that he’ll be able to get back to baseball activities in four months’ time, though the timeline up to and past that point will depend upon his actual progression.

Whether Oaks will return to competitive action in 2019, let alone do so at the MLB level, remains to be seen. The Royals will surely prioritize his long-term health as the rehab unfolds. Though Oaks is not regarded as a particularly high-upside pitching prospect, he has had some success in the upper minors with a groundball-heavy approach. Through 275 1/3 innings at the Triple-A level, Oaks carries a 3.30 ERA with 6.2 K/9 and 2.3 BB/9.

Astros, Dallas Keuchel Have Had Recent Discussions

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4:59pm: The Astros have made multiple offers to Keuchel, per Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic (via Twitter), including both one and two-year scenarios.

10:26am: The Astros are still in touch with free-agent lefty Dallas Keuchel about a potential return to Houston, per MLB Network’s Jon Heyman (Twitter link). ESPN’s Buster Olney hears similarly, tweeting this morning that the two sides have talked recently but, as of last night, were not close to agreeing to a deal. Heyman notes that the Phillies remain interested on a short-term pact, while MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand wrote Tuesday that Keuchel is still seeking a multi-year pact.

Houston currently has Justin Verlander, Gerrit Cole, Collin McHugh and Wade Miley penciled into the top four spots in the rotation, with Brad Peacock and Framber Valdez vying for the fifth spot in camp (a rotation battle recently explored by The Athletic’s Jake Kaplan). Re-signing Keuchel would push Peacock back into the multi-inning relief role in which he excelled last season. Beyond that, though, bringing Keuchel back into the mix would address the looming rotation void facing the Astros beyond the current season. Each of Verlander, Cole, McHugh and Miley will be a free agent following the 2019 season. Houston has top prospect Forrest Whitley looming in Triple-A and will ideally get Lance McCullers Jr. back from Tommy John surgery in 2020, but the absence of even a single current member of the rotation on the books in 2020 does lead to some longer-term uncertainty.

Keuchel, 31, may not be the ace-caliber arm that he was when he took home the American League Cy Young Award in 2015, but he’s still very clearly a solid starter who’d improve just about any rotation in the Majors. Slowed a bit by neck and back injuries in 2016-17 — he still made 49 starts over those two seasons — Keuchel once again crossed the 200-inning threshold in 2018. Last season, he tossed 204 2/3 frames of 3.74 ERA ball with 6.7 K/9, 2.6 BB/9, 0.79 HR/9 and a 53.7 percent ground-ball rate. Even excluding his pair of sub-3.00 ERA campaigns in 2014-15 (and that 2015 Cy Young nod), Keuchel has worked to a 3.77 ERA in 518 2/3 innings over the past three years.

Whether his lofty asking price has dropped to the point where the Astros would consider re-signing their homegrown lefty still isn’t clear, though recent talks between the two sides suggest that Houston is hardly closed off to the general concept. Re-signing Keuchel wouldn’t cost the Astros a current draft pick, but it’d prevent them from receiving the compensatory draft selection they’d receive if they allowed him to sign with another club.

Retirements: Charlie Furbush, Jon Moscot

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A pair of former MLB hurlers have decided to give up their comeback efforts and move on from the game …

  • In a Twitter post, southpaw Charlie Furbush says that he underwent numerous procedures and rehabilitation efforts over the past few seasons but just couldn’t get back to full health. Soon to turn 33, Furbush has missed virtually all of the past three seasons after his career was knocked off track by rotator cuff surgery. Before that, though, he turned in several quality relief seasons for the Mariners after initially breaking into the bigs with the Tigers. Furbush wraps up his career with a 3.97 ERA and 9.3 K/9 against 3.1 BB/9 over 260 2/3 total frames at the game’s highest level.
  • Another former fourth-round draft pick, righty Jon Moscot, is calling it quits at just 27 years of age. He explains in an Instagram post that he’s now halting what had been a lengthy effort to recover from mid-2016 Tommy John surgery. Understandably, Moscot says it was an emotionally difficult decision to make. After all, he cracked the majors at 23 years of age and surely thought he’d receive plenty of opportunities in the future. Moscot ultimately took the ball just eight times at the game’s highest level. Prior to a rough ’16 campaign that ended with the aforementioned procedure, Moscot had thrown 221 innings of 3.34 ERA ball at Triple-A.

Martin Maldonado Hires MVP Sports Group

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Veteran catcher Martin Maldonado, who remains unsigned despite the fact that Opening Day is just three weeks away, has made a change in representation and hired Dan Lozano of the MVP Sports Group as his new agent, Mark Feinsand of MLB.com reports (via Twitter). Maldonado had previously been with the Boras Corporation after hiring them at the end of August.

That Maldonado remains unsigned has seemed an oddity in recent weeks; while he’s unequivocally a below-average hitter, the 32-year-old is also among the game’s premier defenders at his position. As I noted about three weeks ago when Maldonado was linked to the Mariners, the 2016 Gold Glover ranks third among all active catchers in Defensive Runs Saved dating back to the 2012 season, trailing only Buster Posey and Yadier Molina — each of whom has caught at least 2000 more innings than Maldonado in that span. He’s also a perennially strong pitch framer with a career 38 percent caught-stealing rate, including a ridiculous 49 percent mark in 2018 (17-for-35).

It’s true that Maldonado’s lifetime .220/.289/.350 batting line is unsightly, and his career 73 OPS+ lines up identically with the 73 OPS+ he’s posted over the past two seasons. Teams know that while Maldonado has a bit of pop, he’s generally going to be a weak spot in the lineup. Still, given his exceptional defensive prowess, that seems a worthwhile trade-off — at the very least in a backup role.

Maldonado’s recent asking price remains unclear, though the Seattle Times’ Ryan Divish reported in late February that the holdup between Maldonado and the Mariners was merely over a guaranteed MLB deal. If Maldonado has indeed struggled to so much as find a guaranteed contract this winter, that’d be a fairly stunning revelation. It’s possible, of course, that the initial ask was perceived to be steep, and many clubs throughout the league have now either addressed their catching situation in alternative fashion or have limited funds. That said, bringing Maldonado aboard as a backup at what figures to be a moderate price would seem an easy upgrade for many clubs.

Beyond the Mariners, Maldonado has been tied to the Royals since it became clear that Salvador Perez would require Tommy John surgery. MLB Network’s Jon Heyman linked Maldonado to the Rockies earlier this morning, as well.

Maldonado’s switch in representation will be reflected in MLBTR’s Agency Database. If you see any errors or omissions within that database, please let us know via email: mlbtrdatabase@gmail.com.

AL East Notes: Yankees, Karns, Rays’ Rotation

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It doesn’t sound as though the Yankees are giving much thought to carrying both Luke Voit and Greg Bird on the active roster this season, as manager Aaron Boone told reporters today that it’s “tough to envision” rostering multiple first basemen (Twitter link via Bryan Hoch of MLB.com). Boone noted that DJ LeMahieu figures to serve as a backup at first base, among numerous other positions, so it seems one of Voit or Bird will be ticketed for Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre to open the season. Both players have enjoyed productive spring showings thus far, though it’s hard to imagine that Voit doesn’t have the inside track after last season’s Herculean .333/.405/.689 slash and 14 home runs in just 148 plate appearances with the Yankees.

Here’s more from the division…

  • Right-hander Nate Karns is generally healthy but may not be stretched out in time to factor into the Orioles’ Opening Day rotation, per Jon Meoli of the Baltimore Sun. The Orioles’ lone free-agent rotation addition, Karns missed the 2018 season while recovering from 2017 thoracic outlet surgery. He’s made a pair of appearances this spring but only pitched one inning in his most recent outing, prompting new manager Brandon Hyde to cast doubt on Karns’ ability to start games early in the year. “We’re not going to put him in any position to get hurt, and we’re not going to try and push through any kind of injury or any kind of soreness right now,” said Hyde of Karns. Whether Karns will open the season in the ’pen remains to be seen, though it’s worth noting that he does have a minor league option remaining, so the O’s could potentially send him to Norfolk for a couple of outings to continue building arm strength.
  • The Rays are planning to use a three-man rotation consisting of Opening Day starter and reigning Cy Young winner Blake Snell, offseason signee Charlie Morton and 2018 trade acquisition Tyler Glasnow, Juan Toribio of MLB.com writes. From there, they’ll use a pair of openers in the would-be fourth and fifth slots of a traditional rotation; Ryne Stanek, Emilio Pagan, Colin Poche and Hunter Wood are among the candidates to function in that capacity. Candidates to follow the team’s openers include Ryan Yarbrough, Jalen Beeks, Jake Faria and Yonny Chirinos. As has been widely expected, it appears that the Rays will continue an aggressive means of pioneering what was a polarizing but increasingly accepted tactic throughout the league in 2018. Stanek was the team’s most frequent and successful opener in 2018, while Yarbrough was the most prolific followup arm (147 1/3 innings pitched despite making just six starts). Presumably, they’ll reprise those roles this year, with Tampa Bay shuffling the rest of the pitching mix based on matchups, workload and other factors.

AL Central Notes: Maldonado, Indians, Tigers

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While the Royals have spoken to Martin Maldonado since learning they’d be without Salvador Perez for the 2019 season due to Tommy John surgery, MLB Network’s Jon Heyman tweets that there’s “a gap” between the two sides, adding that Kansas City decision-makers aren’t optimistic of agreeing to terms. Maldonado surprisingly remains unsigned despite long standing out as one of baseball’s premier defenders behind the dish; given that the Seattle Times’ Ryan Divish reported late last month that the holdup between Maldonado and the Mariners was simply that Maldonado was holding out for a Major League deal, it’s difficult to imagine any gap being all that sizable. Still, it appears Kansas City is content to proceed with the inexperienced duo of Cam Gallagher and Meibrys Viloria behind the dish with Perez on the shelf, leaving Maldonado in search of another fit.

Elsewhere in the AL Central…

  • Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer provides an update on a trio of important Indians injury situations: those to outfielder Bradley Zimmer, right-hander Danny Salazar and shortstop Francisco Lindor. Zimmer, recovering from surgery on his throwing shoulder, will begin throwing to the bases this week, per manager Terry Francona. Salazar, also recovering from shoulder surgery, is playing catch from 120 feet, while Lindor is taking grounders and batting practice but not yet moving laterally while he rehabs a calf strain. Lindor, among the game’s best players when healthy, is obviously the most crucial of the bunch, but both Zimmer and Salazar could be key contributors with a return to health. Cleveland’s outfield mix looks perilously thin at present, with Leonys Martin, Greg Allen and Tyler Naquin likely in line as starters (with Jake Bauers a possibility as well, depending on whether Hanley Ramirez makes the roster as a DH). Zimmer, a former first-round pick and elite prospect, could provide a substantial boost if he can tap into his potential. As for Salazar, the hard-throwing starter-turned-reliever carries major upside for an unproven mix of Cleveland bullpen options, though his shoulder has prevented him from pitching since late September of 2017.
  • Tigers Rule 5 pick Reed Garrett, selected out of the Rangers’ organization, is vying for one of what could be as few as two open bullpen spots, writes Chris McCosky of the Detroit News. Each of Shane Greene, Joe Jimenez, Blaine Hardy and Drew VerHagen seem likely to land spots, and righty Victor Alcantara seems a safe assumption as well given a solid 30-inning showing last season. VerHagen and fellow right-hander Buck Farmer are both out of minor league options, which could play into the ultimate structuring of the team’s bullpen, as well. McCosky chatted with Garrett and catcher John Hicks about the right-hander’s arsenal and the rapid manner in which he improved his profile — transforming from a struggling starter in 2016 to a somewhat unexpected breakout star at Double-A and Triple-A in 2018. Last year, between those two levels, Garrett worked to a combined 2.04 ERA with 8.9 K/9 against 2.9 BB/9 and a 50 percent ground-ball rate in 61 2/3 innings. Garrett attributes his ascension to added muscle and velocity as well as the adoption of a splitter after he’d originally struggled to succeed with a sinker/slider combination. Detroit successfully carried seldom-used Rule 5 outfielder Victor Reyes on the 25-man roster all last season, and given the status of their ongoing rebuild, it’s plausible that they could do the same with Garrett in 2019.

Rockies Notes: Arenado, Catchers, Welker, Tinoco

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Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic pulls back the curtain on the Rockies’ extension with Nolan Arenado, providing detail on the timing, structure and actual content of some of the meetings held between Arenado’s camp and organizational decision-makers (subscription required). While the two sides had hoped to avoid arbitration prior to exchanging figures on filing day, that didn’t come to pass, and at one point the sides even looked to be headed toward a hearing. Instead, the Rox agreed to a $26MM salary for the 2019 campaign (thus avoiding arbitration) under the pretense that Arenado’s agent, Joel Wolfe, would follow that up with a counter-offer to the team’s initial extension proposal.

Ultimately, it took a face-to-face meeting involving Arenado, Wolfe, Rockies GM Jeff Bridich and Rockies owner Dick Monfort for significant progress to be made on the extension — as well as a final call from Monfort to Wolfe urging that they put the finishing touches on a deal. Rosenthal’s column is rife with quotes from Wolfe, Bridich and Arenado himself — each detailing elements of negotiations and the thought processes of all parties involved at various points of talks. Rockies fans in particular will find it of great interest, of course, though a broader audience will surely appreciate the in-depth look of the inner-workings of one of the largest contracts in MLB history.

More on the Rockies…

  • The Rockies have curiously declined to address their catching situation this offseason. The reason, per Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post, is that the organization is more concerned with glovework behind the dish than with offense. While there’s an acknowledgement from the club that it “needs more production from whoever plays,” says Saunders, it evidently still believes in its current options over the opportunities that were (and are) available on the market. The Rox are “generally pleased” with Tony Wolters from a defensive standpoint, which is supported by numbers that show he was an above-average framer and otherwise solid defender last year. Veteran Chris Iannetta has a spottier defensive record, though he has at times graded as a well-above-average framer. There’s also Tom Murphy — a former top prospect who has yet to establish himself at the MLB level and now finds himself out of minor league options. His power is more intriguing than his glove, though Murphy drew solid framing marks in ’18 and has generally controlled the running game at a roughly league-average level. In all, catching still looks like a weak spot for the Rockies, and the declaration that defense is valued more than offense seems an odd justification, as there were certainly options who could’ve provided both quality glovework and at least passable offense.
  • Third base prospect Colton Welker wasn’t disheartened to see the Rox commit to Arenado for the long term, writes Thomas Harding of MLB.com. Welker, a 21-year-old considered to be among the organization’s top five prospects, told Harding his current focus is simply on moving up the ladder in the system after a strong showing in Class-A Advanced last season. Furthermore, he explained that he almost expected the Rockies to do so. “Who wouldn’t sign that guy with the numbers he’s put up?” Welker asked rhetorically, adding that he relishes the opportunity to learn from a player of Arenado’s caliber in Spring Training. As the Rox have done with third base prospects Tyler Nevin and Josh Fuentes (the latter of whom is Arenado’s cousin), they’ve begun to give Welker some looks at first base with an eye toward the future. “Colton knew going into this past offseason that first base was going to be a focus in 2019, regardless of what happened with Nolan,” director of player development Zach Wilson told Harding. A fourth-round pick back in 2016, Welker crushed Class-A Advanced pitching at a .333/.383/.489 clip in 2018.
  • Minor league right-hander Jesus Tinoco will work as a reliever moving forward, manager Bud Black told reporters this morning (Twitter link via Saunders). The big righty, who was acquired in the trade that sent Troy Tulowitzki to the Blue Jays, struggled to the tune of a 4.79 ERA through 26 starts (141 innings) at the Double-A level last season and has yet to post an ERA south of 4.67 at any level in the Rockies organization. That said, Tinoco posted encouraging marks of 8.4 K/9 against 2.4 BB/9 last season and pitched well in 10 relief appearances in the Arizona Fall League last season.

Marlins Notes: Granderson, Romo, Neidert

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Veteran outfielder Curtis Granderson, in camp with the Marlins on a minor league contract, is expected to break camp with the team, per SiriusXM’s Craig Mish (Twitter link). Granderson has a March 15 opt-out clause in his contract, Mish reports, adding that the Marlins “will add him” to the roster by that point. Granderson, who turns 38 the day after that opt-out provision, split the 2018 season between the Blue Jays and the Brewers and posted a combined .242/.351/.431 batting line with 13 home runs, 22 doubles and a pair of triples in 403 plate appearances. He’ll join some combination of Lewis Brinson, Magneuris Sierra, Austin Dean and Peter O’Brien in the outfield now that Brian Anderson is slated to return to third base. Fellow non-roster options for the Marlins include the likes of Isaac Galloway, Harold Ramirez and Gabriel Guerrero. Prospects Monte Harrison and Victor Victor Mesa, meanwhile, are ticketed for further development in the minors.

Here’s more on the Fish…

  • Miami has yet to determine how veteran righty Sergio Romo will be utilized this season, writes Jordan McPherson of the Miami Herald. Romo is open to pitching in any role, and the Marlins aren’t closed off to the idea of using an “opener” in front of some of their younger rotation pieces, including Caleb Smith, Pablo Lopez and Trevor Richards, McPherson notes. Romo could also figure into high-leverage spots late in games, although McPherson notes that manager Don Mattingly has suggested the team may not utilize a traditional closer in 2019. The Rays bounced Romo between opening games, closing games and pitching in a setup role last season, and it seems the 36-year-old is in for more of the same this coming year.
  • Right-hander Nick Neidert is likely to open the 2019 season in Triple-A New Orleans, MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro writes, but the 22-year-old stands out as a candidate for an early promotion to the Majors this season. Neidert, acquired from the Mariners in the Dee Gordon swap, has yet to even pitch in Triple-A but notched a 3.24 ERA with 9.1 K/9, 1.8 BB/9 and a 45.9 percent ground-ball rate in 152 2/3 innings at the Double-A level last season. Though he doesn’t boast a power fastball, Neidert’s four-pitch mix, strong changeup and excellent control (career 1.7 BB/9 in the minors) help to make up for his lack of velocity. “Nick’s a guy who basically can hit all four quadrants, and he’s got different weapons for different guys,” said Mattingly of Neidert. At present, the Marlins have Jose Urena, Dan Straily, Wei-Yin Chen, Sandy Alcantara, Richards, Smith and Lopez as rotation options to open the season, though Smith is working his way back from surgery to repair a Grade 3 lat tear. Chen, meanwhile, has been clobbered thus far in camp after pitching to a 4.79 ERA in 133 1/3 innings last season. Given the level of uncertainty in the Miami rotation, Neidert (and others) could have ample opportunity to get a look in the Majors with a strong showing early in the year.

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