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Archives for November 2019

Nick Kingham Signs With KBO’s SK Wyverns

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Right-hander Nick Kingham has signed with SK Wyverns of the Korea Baseball Organization, Rob Biertempfel of The Athletic reports. The deal comes with a $500K salary, a $200K signing bonus and a $200K option, per Dan Kurtz of MyKBO.net.

The 28-year-old Kingham is best known for his tenure with the Pirates, who chose him in the fourth round of the 2010 draft. Kingham eventually became a top 100 prospect, but the 6-foot-5 hurler has fallen flat in the majors since debuting in 2018. Across 131 2/3 innings in the bigs divided between Pittsburgh and Toronto, Kingham has managed a less-than-stellar 6.08 ERA/5.58 FIP with 7.86 K/9, 3.49 BB/9 and a 39.5 percent groundball rate.

The soft-tossing Kingham, who has averaged less than 92 mph on his fastball, has been better in Triple-A ball. Kingham has posted a 4.00 ERA with 7.5 K/9 and 2.5 BB/9 over 297 frames at that level. He’ll now try to outdo those figures and rebuild his stock in Korea.

Minor MLB Transactions: 11/27/19

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The latest minor moves from around baseball…

  • The Dodgers have re-signed catcher Rocky Gale to a minor league contract, Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com tweets. The 31-year-old Gale, a 24th-round pick of the Padres in 2010, has barely factored into the equation in the majors thus far. Gale has totaled a meager 37 plate appearances at the game’s highest level, including 15 with the Dodgers last season. But Gale does own plenty of experience at the Triple-A level, where he has amassed 1,784 trips to the plate. He’s a .279/.316/.359 hitter in Triple-A ball.

Yankees Reportedly Among Teams Interested In Royals’ Tim Hill

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There is “plenty of trade interest” in Royals submarining left-hander Tim Hill, Mark Feinsand of MLB.com writes. The Yankees are among Hill’s most ardent suitors, according to Feinsand.

While he didn’t debut in the majors until 2018 and hasn’t posted lights-out results since then, it’s still not hard to see Hill’s appeal. He’s a respectable reliever who comes with several years’ team control, as he’s not slated to reach arbitration until after the 2021 season or free agency until the conclusion of the 2024 campaign.

The groundball-heavy Hill’s coming off a season in which he induced worm burners at a 57.3 percent rate, struck out 8.85 batters per nine and walked 2.95. Those solid numbers helped the soon-to-be 30-year-old to a 3.63 ERA/3.84 FIP across 39 2/3 innings. And the relatively soft-tossing Hill, owner of a 90.2 mph average fastball velocity this past year, proved capable of retiring same- and right-handed hitters. Granted, Hill was markedly better against lefties (.217 wOBA) than righties (.316).

For the Yankees, adding Hill would seemingly give an already strong bullpen a third sturdy lefty to go with Zach Britton and Aroldis Chapman. The club’s bullpen is facing the departure of righty Dellin Betances in free agency, though injuries prevented him from factoring in during its 103-victory, AL East-winning campaign in 2019.

Pirates Outright Three Pitchers

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Pirates pitchers Montana DuRapau, Williams Jerez and Luis Escobar have all cleared waivers and been outrighted to Triple-A Indianapolis, Rob Biertempfel of The Athletic tweets. The three were designated for assignment a week ago. Nobody from this group has been outrighted in the past, nor do they have enough service time to opt for free agency, so they’re all slated to remain with the Pirates.

Among the trio, the 27-year-old DuRapau was the busiest at the major league level in 2019. He totaled 14 appearances and 17 1/3 innings, during which opposing hitters lit him up for 18 earned runs on 27 hits, four home runs and nine walks (against 22 strikeouts).

Jerez, also 27 and the lone left-hander of the troika, divided the season between the Pirates and Giants, with whom he combined to surrender five earned runs on 12 hits, nine walks and nine strikeouts in 10 1/3 innings. He was much more successful in 56 Triple-A frames, logging a 3.86 ERA/4.03 FIP with 9.8 K/9 against 2.57 BB/9.

Escobar, 23, got his first taste of the majors this past season, though he struggled in 5 2/3 frames, yielding five earned on 10 hits and four walks, and striking out just two hitters. Escobar fared better (albeit not great) at the minors’ highest level in 2019, as he managed a 4.09 ERA/5.06 FIP with 9.33 K/9 and 5.24 BB/9 across 55 innings.

Orioles Reportedly Place Jonathan Villar On Waivers

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The Orioles have placed infielder Jonathan Villar on outright waivers after being unable to find a trade partner for the fleet-footed switch-hitter, Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com reports (via Twitter). Villar’s projected $10.4MM arbitration salary apparently served as too substantial a roadblock to overcome when marketing him to other teams.

It’s an extreme cost-cutting measure for the tanking Orioles — one that frankly looks unnecessary. Even with Villar in the fold, the Orioles’ Opening Day payroll projects to come in south of $80MM, so it’s not as if there is (or should be) any real pressure to shed salary.

Beyond that is the simple fact that Villar has been a fine player in Baltimore — arguably the organization’s best in 2019. The 28-year-old batted .274/.339/.453 with 24 home runs, 33 doubles, five triples and a whopping 40 stolen bases (in 49 attempts) this past season. Defensive metrics soured on his work at second base but gave him passable marks at shortstop — and Villar does have a track record as a useful glove at second prior to the 2019 season.

Both FanGraphs and Baseball-Reference.com valued Villar at four wins above replacement this past season. Clearly the Orioles aren’t the only team in the league that doesn’t value Villar at his current price point — hence the lack of trade interest — but there’s virtually no way off spinning this as a move that makes Baltimore a better team in 2020.

Even if the Orioles reinvest that roughly $10MM sum, there’s little reason that with their current level of financial commitment they couldn’t simply have kept Villar and spent an additional $10MM anyhow. And it’s unlikely that Villar’s eventual replacement will give them superior on-field results. It looks to be a move designed to lose more games next season, and it’s surely a tough blow for a fanbase that has had few quality performances to cheer over the past couple of seasons.

Villar will be available for any club to claim at this point, though the new team would be on the hook for the same projected salary in arbitration. If he goes unclaimed, he’ll surely opt for free agency, at which point he’ll be able to sign with any team for any amount. Given the lack of trade interest in Villar, it’s certainly possible that he will indeed pass through waivers, but he should draw plenty of interest on Major League deals — perhaps even a two-year pact at a lower annual rate. For the Orioles, meanwhile, the optics of letting him go for no return aren’t great, and the move will be tough to sell to the fans.

Rangers, Rob Refsnyder Agree To Minor League Deal

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The Rangers have agreed to a minor league contract with infielder/outfielder Rob Refsnyder, Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com reports (via Twitter). He’s represented by PSI Sports Management.

Refsnyder, 29 in March, split the 2019 season between the Reds and D-backs organization but didn’t appear in a big league game. That marked the first time in five years that the versatile utilityman hadn’t appeared at the MLB level. Despite the lack of a big league call-up, Refsnyder was productive in the minors, batting a combined .312/.374/.492 with 10 homer, 22 doubles and a pair of triples across 88 games and 348 plate appearances.

At one point, Yankees fans had hope that Refsnyder could be a long-term piece at second base. Those days have long since passed, but Refsnyder has settled in as an up-and-down bench piece and an AL East veteran, logging big league time with both the Blue Jays and Rays in addition to his time with the Yankees. He’s a lifetime .218/.308/.302 hitter in 423 plate appearances as a Major Leaguer and has appeared at second base, first base, third base, left field and right field in the Majors.

The right-handed-hitting Refsnyder owns a career .296/.372/.436 line in parts of six Triple-A campaigns, making him a nice depth piece for Texas to have on hand. If the Rangers can strike gold with Refsnyder in the same manner they did with Danny Santana in 2019, he’d technically be controllable through the 2023 season.

Royals Release Jorge Bonifacio

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Nov. 27: Bonifacio has cleared waivers and is now a free agent. Additionally, the team announced that catcher Nick Dini and right-handers Conner Greene and Arnaldo Hernandez, who were designated for assignment at the same time as Bonifacio, have cleared waivers and been outrighted to Triple-A Omaha.

Nov. 25: The Royals announced that they’ve requested unconditional release waivers on outfielder Jorge Bonifacio. He was designated for assignment last week.

Bonifacio, 26, was the team’s primary right fielder in 2017 and gave fans some cause for optimism, hitting .255/.320/.432 with 17 homers, 15 doubles and a triple in that rookie campaign. He’s since been tagged with an 80-game PED suspension, however, and has generally struggled to produce at the plate. Over his past 291 plate appearances in the Majors, Bonifacio hit .234/.317/.371.

Were he a proficient defender in the outfield, perhaps the Royals would’ve been more inclined to keep Bonifacio in the fold. However, he’s limited to the corners and has posted -6 Defensive Runs Saved and -7 Outs Above Average in his big league career to this point. He’s also out of minor league options, meaning he’d need to break camp with the team in Spring Training or else be designated for assignment then. The Royals opted not to wait to make that move, thus giving themselves more 40-man roster flexibility this winter.

If Bonifacio goes unclaimed, he’ll become a free agent in 48 hours.

Mariners Sign Patrick Wisdom To Major League Deal

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The Mariners announced that they’ve signed infielder/outfielder Patrick Wisdom to a Major League contract. Seattle’s 40-man roster is ow up to 39 players.

Wisdom, 28, has minimal MLB experience, having appeared in 32 games for the Cardinals in 2018 and nine games for the Rangers in 2019. He’s a career .224/.306/.408 hitter in 86 MLB trips to the plate, but the former No. 52 overall draft pick (Cardinals, 2012) has a solid track record in Triple-A. Wisdom has played in parts of four Triple-A campaigns and posted a .252/.328/.478 batting line with 82 home runs in 1674 plate appearances.

Most of Wisdom’s career has been spent as a corner infielder, but he also appeared at all three outfield positions with the Rangers’ Triple-A club last season. He also has minor league options remaining, so the move to get him on the 40-man roster is likely more about adding some versatile depth with power upside — he hit 31 home runs in 107 Triple-A games in 2019 — than it is about penciling him in as a lock for the 2020 roster.

Padres, Brewers Agree To Four-Player Trade

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2:00pm: The Brewers have formally announced the deal. They’ll also receive a player to be named later or cash from the Padres, per a team press release.

9:57am: The Padres and Brewers have broken open a quiet trade market with an interesting swap of young big leaguers. Outfielder Trent Grisham and righty Zach Davies are heading to San Diego, with second baseman Luis Urias and southpaw Eric Lauer going to Milwaukee in exchange.

This is a rare need-for-need, value-for-value trade. For the Friars, Grisham could pair with Manuel Margot in center field and ultimately move to a corner spot when top prospect Taylor Trammell is ready. Both he and Urias have debuted but not yet accrued a full season of MLB service. Meanwhile, Davies will represent a sturdy rotation piece. He’s projected to earn $5.0MM in his second-to-last season of team control.

On the other side, the Brewers now appear to have a double-play partner for Keston Hiura. Indications are that the club will utilize Urias at shortstop. Whether there’s still room for Orlando Arcia remains to be seen. The 24-year-old Lauer could deliver solid innings for years to come. While he’s not as established as Davies, the southpaw has shown well early in his career and remains under control through the 2024 season.

For the most part, 2019 was a bit of a dream season for Grisham. The former first-rounder finally turned the corner at the plate, raking in the upper minors (.300/.407/.603) to earn his way up to the majors.

Grisham ended up seeing significant time in the big leagues for the postseason-qualifying Brewers. He wasn’t exactly an instant star, but turned in a palatable .231/.328/.410 slash in 183 plate appearances while contributing highly graded defense. Unfortunately, the season ended on a sour note, as Grisham committed a costly error that cemented the Brewers’ Wild Card meltdown.

It feels funny to treat Davies as a secondary piece in this deal; that’s certainly not the case. Still just 26 years of age, he spun 159 2/3 innings of 3.55 ERA ball last year. True, Davies wasn’t exposed often to lineups for a third time. And there’s probably some good fortune embedded in those results. Davies will never be much of a strikeout pitcher, with a career K rate of 6.4 per nine. But he has proven over the years that he can produce good results despite his limitations, with a 3.91 ERA in 614 1/3 career innings.

In Urias, the Brewers see a compelling young hitter that just hasn’t quite found his footing in the majors. He’s just 22 years of age and carries a .305/.403/.511 slash over 887 Triple-A plate appearances. Urias has succeeded largely with his strong plate discipline (108 walks, 172 strikeouts) and excellent bat-to-ball skills. But there’s a bit of pop in the bat as well, as he has 28 long balls during his time at the highest level of the minors.

That said, there are some questions — there’s a reason that Urias has spent so much time at Triple-A while some other Padres players have breezed through and never returned. The initial MLB returns were tepid. Urias owns a .221/.318/.331 batting line in 302 plate appearances in the bigs. It seems reasonable to suppose he’ll improve upon that, but to what extent remains to be seen.

There are also some questions whether Urias can handle the shortstop position with sufficient aplomb at the game’s highest level. He spent the majority of his time in the minors at second base and has graded better there than at short in his limited MLB time at both spots. But the Brew Crew has been willing to rely upon its infield placement to help cover up any range issues.

It’d be easy to lose sight of Lauer here, but he’s a notable asset in his own right. The former first-rounder has thrown 261 2/3 MLB innings over the past two seasons, working to a cumulative 4.40 ERA. Nothing jumps off the page about him — 8.2 K/9, 3.3 BB/9, 38.9% groundball rate, 1.20 HR/9 — but he could bring steady innings at a cheap rate. The Brewers will likely plan to utilize Lauer in a somewhat flexible role to maximize his utility, as they have other hurlers that might not quite warrant traditional starter usage.

Jon Morosi of MLB.com (Twitter link) broke the deal, with Jeff Passan of ESPN.com (via Twitter) and Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic (Twitter link) adding key details.

Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports.

Cubs Claim C.D. Pelham

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The Cubs announced that they’ve claimed left-hander C.D. Pelham off waivers from the Rangers. The move brings Chicago’s 40-man roster to a count of 38 players. Texas has also announced the move, adding that right-hander Taylor Guerrieri went unclaimed on waivers and has accepted an outright assignment to Triple-A Nashville.

Pelham, 24, boasts a blistering fastball that averaged better than 96 mph in his 2018 MLB debut, but the former 33rd-round pick struggled through a poor season in the upper minors in 2019. Pelham allowed 43 runs in 32 1/3 innings between Double-A and Triple-A this season and walked more batters (40) than he struck out (37).

The waiver claim is likely about the appealing nature of Pelham’s raw pitch arsenal, but there’s clearly an enormous amount of work to be done in order to refine the lefty. Still, with a pair of open spots on the 40-man roster, there’s little harm in placing a claim — and the Cubs could always try to pass Pelham through waivers themselves in order to keep him in the organization without committing a 40-man spot.

As for Guerrieri, he once ranked as one of the game’s premier pitching prospects in his days with the Tampa Bay organization, but injuries have largely derailed much of the promise he once showed. The 26-year-old (27 next week) posted a 5.68 ERA in 26 1/3 innings at the MLB level in 2019, although his 3.47 ERA, 9.7 K/9, 3.8 BB/9 and 55.7 percent grounder rate in Triple-A offer more encouragement.

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