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Archives for January 2020

Carlos Beltran’s Role In Astros Scandal Poses Tough Questions For Mets

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2:54pm: There’s “legitimate concern” for Beltran’s job at the moment, Puma tweets.

7:36am: When Carlos Beltran was hired to manage the Mets on November 1st, his stint as a veteran anchor of the 2017 World Series-winning Astros was one of his better resume lines. With two other managers now fired for their roles in the Houston sign-stealing scandal, and Beltran cited as a participant in the report on the scheme, his time with the ’Stros now represents a stain that calls into some doubt his future in New York.

Beltran won’t be suspended by the commissioner Rob Manfred since he was a player at the time of the rules violations. And there is no specific indication at this point that Beltran’s new job is in jeopardy. But with Alex Cora following A.J. Hinch onto the unemployment rolls, it’s inevitable that the Mets will need to reach a decision on Beltran and address it with the media.

When the Astros scandal broke, Mike Puma of the New York Post notes on Twitter, Mets GM Brodie Van Wagenen was rather dismissive  of the idea that it would have any impact on Beltran’s status. “I have no idea if anything did or did not,” said Van Wagenen, “but at this point I don’t see any reason why this is a Mets situation.”

The GM didn’t know then that Beltran would specifically be cited as a chief protagonist (alongside Cora) in the perpetration of the Houston rules violation scheme. And the magnitude of the scandal wasn’t yet clear. It also now seems that Beltran lied in his prior comments on the subject to the media.

At the moment, the Mets are taking a deliberative approach, per SNY.tv’s Andy Martino (Twitter link). While the Red Sox acted quickly to dump Cora, his departure was more obviously mandated by recent developments (including the fact of a separate investigation into the Boston organization). Beltran is at the moment preparing for his first Spring Training in the managerial seat, per Martino.

Indeed, we’re just a month out of the opening of camp, which will officially kick off a rather momentous year for the Mets organization. As Ken Davidoff and Joel Sherman of the New York Post explain in their worthwhile summation of the subject, there’s a reasonable concern that the high-profile situation will create quite the distraction for the Mets. That’s all the more true given that Hinch and Cora will be sitting out spring camp; Beltran will be scheduled to engage with the media on a daily basis and was already sure to attract close coverage.

There’s also the question whether an ethically compromised figure still ought to be trusted with the keys to the roster, a topic that the Post duo also broach. And perhaps there’s still some thirst around the game (and in the public sphere) to see further punishment meted out. That consideration doesn’t change the moral equation for the Mets, but does create added potential practical difficulties. On the other hand, making a change at this point obviously comes with a host of other risks.

It’s a tough spot for the Mets, who otherwise had no connection whatsoever to this scandal. How Van Wagenen navigates the situation could well weigh heavily on his own long-term job security.

Diamondbacks Sign Travis Snider To Minor League Deal

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Outfielder Travis Snider has agreed to a minor league contract with the Diamondbacks, per a recent announcement from Arizona’s Triple-A affiliate, the Reno Aces. Snider will head to Spring Training as a non-roster invitee to big league camp.

At this point, it’s been close to a half decade since Snider, once one of the game’s elite prospects, appeared in the Majors. Now 31 years old, Snider was the No. 14 pick in the 2006 draft and was ranked among the game’s top 10 overall prospects by Baseball America and Baseball Prospectus heading into the 2009 season. However, despite some encouraging results in partial seasons — often in a platoon role — Snider has amassed just a .244/.311/.399 slash on the whole in 1971 MLB plate appearances.

Snider has bounced between the Pirates, Royals, Mets, Rangers and D-backs systems since his last MLB appearance, most recently spending the 2019 campaign in Reno. He’ll return to the Aces for a second season after posting a huge .294/.402/.497 slash with 11 homers, 22 doubles, four triples and a gaudy 15.2 percent walk rate through 368 plate appearances in 2019. The Diamondbacks’ MLB outfield consists of David Peralta, Ketel Marte and Kole Calhoun, with fleet-footed Tim Locastro penciled in for fourth outfield duties at the moment.

There’s no immediate path back to The Show for Snider, but if he repeats his ’19 performance and the Snakes suffer some injuries to their starters, perhaps his four-year grind through the minors and the independent circuit will culminate in a big league return.

Rangers Designate Kyle Bird, Jeffrey Springs

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The Rangers have designated lefties Kyle Bird and Jeffrey Springs for assignment. Their roster spots were needed to make way for the now-official signings of catcher Robinson Chirinos and infielder Todd Frazier.

Bird, 26, was hit hard in his MLB debut last year, surrendering five home runs and 15 walks in a dozen outings as he struggled with fastball command. But he has posted strong results in the upper minors, including a run of 2.86 ERA ball (with 10.1 K/9 and 3.9 BB/9) in his 34 2/3 innings last year at Triple-A. And he has shown a high-level spin rate that could hold appeal to other organizations.

As for the 27-year-old Springs, he turned in solid results in 2018 but took a bit step back in his sophomore campaign. Over 32 1/3 frames, he surrendered 6.40 earned runs per nine with 8.9 K/9 and 6.4 BB/9. While he hasn’t really shown it at the MLB level, Springs has at times carried eye-popping strikeout numbers in the minors. And he did record a 12.5% swinging-strike rate in 2019.

Angels Hire Dylan Axelrod As Pitching Coordinator

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Former MLB hurler Dylan Axelrod is joining the Angels organization in the position of pitching coordinator, he announced today. Axelrod had worked as a pitching instructor and now becomes the latest such figure to step into a notable role with an MLB organization.

Axelrod ended with only a 5.27 ERA in his MLB career. But he threw over 200 innings over five campaigns — no mean achievement for a 30th round draft pick. Just getting to the point of being drafted was an achievement, given that Axelrod had to throw at a community college before even gaining a chance with a D-I outfit.

It probably won’t be surprising to hear that, in addition to his time with Peak Performance Project, Axelrod has some background with Driveline Baseball, the institution that has helped many pitchers discover or rediscover a formula to add velocity and harness spin rate and other tools to get on the MLB map. Driveline has spun employees out to affiliate teams in player development roles similar to Axelrod’s. Among others, Driveline founder Kyle Boddy signed on with the Reds and Rob Hill recently joined the Dodgers.

Padres Sign Jerad Eickhoff

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The Padres have agreed to a minor-league deal with righty Jerad Eickhoff, the former Phillies hurler recently told Aaron Hancock of Indiana’s 14 News. Eickhoff adds that he received an invitation to participate in the MLB side of Spring Training.

Now 29 years of age, Eickhoff broke into the majors with aplomb back in 2015. He was again effective in the ensuing season, when he threw 197 1/3 innings of 3.65 ERA ball with 7.6 K/9 and 1.9 BB/9. To that stage of his career, Eickhoff seemed like he’d be a solid rotation piece for years to come for the Philadelphia organization.

As it turned out, things would turn south from there. Eickhoff dipped in 2017, with a 4.71 ERA over 128 innings, which he accumulated while dealing with a variety of injury issues. The health problems continued in the following campaign, with a lat injury turning into numbness in his fingers that was eventually diagnosed as carpal tunnel syndrome.

Eickhoff has worked hard to get on the bump as much as possible, but he has managed only 63 2/3 MLB innings over the past two seasons. And though he managed a useful 62:18 K/BB ratio in that span, Eickhoff was tagged for 19 home runs. He also struggled in minor-league work in 2019.

The Padres will try to help Eickhoff rediscover his former promise. Tamping down the persistent hand issues will obviously be a key. At worst, Eickhoff figures to function as experienced depth; perhaps there’s also a glimmer of upside remaining for him and the San Diego organization. Padres GM A.J. Preller is amply familiar with Eickhoff, having helped draft the hurler in his former capacity as assistant GM of the Rangers.

MLBTR Poll: Grading The Josh Donaldson Signing

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After a lengthy and complicating matchmaking process, the Twins have reportedly come away with elite veteran third baseman Josh Donaldson. It’s a momentous occasion for the Minnesota organization, which is looking to fend off the Indians and White Sox to repeat as AL Central champ.

Though a big strike for Donaldson wasn’t necessarily the club’s very top choice, it became a priority when righty Zack Wheeler decided to head to the Phillies. The Donaldson contract is quite a different proposition in many regards: he’s an older position player, while Wheeler is a younger pitcher. But both players come with similar mixes of lofty ceilings and fairly significant risk factors. And they’ll play for generally equivalent money, with the far senior Donaldson receiving one less guranteed season.

Guaranteeing four years and $92MM to a 34-year-old player is virtually without precedent. As we recently explored, it’s an expansion of the commitments we’ve seen of late to other high-end older players. But the Twins are doing it with eyes wide open. And Donaldson is more than just a high-quality veteran.

If Donaldson can stay healthy and hold back father time just a bit, there’s good reason to hope for massive production. He posted a 132 wRC+ last year and will add yet more pop to an already potent lineup. And Donaldson was somewhere between good and excellent with the glove, depending upon whom you ask. That allows the Twins to unlock yet more value from this signing, as they’ll improve their overall glovework by shifting Miguel Sano over to first base.

That said, there’ll always be some level of trepidation regarding Donaldson’s age and recent history of leg issues. 34 in September, Donaldson may not have lost much to this point. But it’s tougher to overcome the physical ailments that do arise and we have seen plenty of players run into relatively steep declines. Of at least as much concern is the track record from the two seasons prior to his platform campaign. While he was healthy in, Donaldson was limited to 165 total contests over 2017-18 owing mostly to a lingering calf injury.

So … how do you grade this signing from the Twins’ perspective? (Poll link for app users.)

Red Sox Fire Alex Cora

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The Red Sox announced Tuesday evening that manager Alex Cora will not return as their manager in 2020. The news comes one day after MLB commissioner Rob Manfred announced the results of his investigation into the Astros’ sign-stealing scandal, wherein Cora was revealed to be one of the architects of Houston’s trash-can system. The Red Sox organization issued the following statement:

Today we met to discuss the Commissioner’s report related to the Houston Astros investigation.  Given the findings and the Commissioner’s ruling, we collectively decided that it would not be possible for Alex to effectively lead the club going forward and we mutually agreed to part ways.

The Red Sox’ usage of “mutually agreed to part ways” notwithstanding, there’s no way that Cora would’ve been ousted as manager were it not for his role in the sign-stealing scandal. It’s been extraordinarily difficult to fathom a scenario in which Cora would’ve stayed on as manager after Houston GM Jeff Luhnow and manager A.J. Hinch were fired by the Astros yesterday, given his involvement in the Astros’ scandal as well as the current investigation of the Red Sox’ 2018 . The now-former manager issued a statement of his own:

“I want to thank John, Tom, Sam, the players, our coaching staff and the entire Red Sox organization.  I especially want to thank my family for their love and support. We agreed today that parting ways was the best thing for the organization. I do not want to be a distraction to the Red Sox as they move forward.  My two years as manager were the best years of my life. It was an honor to manage these teams and help bring a World Series Championship back to Boston. I will forever be indebted to the organization and the fans who supported me as a player, a manager and in my efforts to help Puerto Rico. This is a special place. There is nothing like it in all of baseball, and I will miss it dearly.”

As was the case when Houston let go of its GM-manager tandem, this represents a stunning turn of mid-winter events for Boston. In terms of wins and losses, the two-year Cora era was especially fruitful for the Red Sox. As Cora mentioned, he helped the club to a championship in 2018 – his first year on the job and one in which it piled up a whopping 108 regular-season victories before steamrolling the Yankees, Astros and Dodgers in the playoffs. Of course, now that the league’s investigating Cora, there are perhaps questions about the legitimacy of that title.

Last season was far less successful for Cora and the Red Sox, though they were still an above-average team that won 84 games. Now, depending on how MLB disciplines Cora, that could go down as his final season as a manager in the league. Cora’s reportedly facing “harsh” punishment for his misdeeds, so the end of his Red Sox tenure seems likely to serve as a forerunner to a significant suspension.

The Boston organization, like Houston, now finds itself in the once-unimaginable position of suddenly having to find a new manager just weeks before pitchers and catchers report to camp. The responsibility rests with new chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom, who inherited Cora from ousted president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski.

This post was originally published on 1-14-20.

Check out our new video below (app users click here), as MLBTR’s Jeff Todd lays out the implications of Cora’s dismissal as well as the Twins’ signing of Josh Donaldson.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Checking In On Last Season’s Worst Rotations

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We checked in last week on what, if anything, the five lowest-scoring offenses of 2019 have done to improve themselves this winter. Let’s now take a look at whether any of the five starting rotations that posted the highest ERAs last year have gotten better this offseason. Free agency won’t offer much in the way of help at this point, so for the most part, what you see here is probably what you’ll get..

Colorado Rockies (5.87 ERA/5.31 FIP; current depth chart)

  • Assembling a competent starting staff has regularly been a problem for the Rockies, who are stuck playing half their games at the unkind confines of Coors Field. It was a different story in 2018, the year the Rockies boasted a high-end starting staff, but things took a sharp turn for the worse last season. Aside from German Marquez and Jon Gray, who continued their strong production, no one from the Rockies’ rotation performed well. Kyle Freeland suffered through a disastrous campaign after posting a Cy Young-caliber 2018, while Antonio Senzatela, Peter Lambert, Jeff Hoffman, Chi Chi Gonzalez, Tim Melville, Tyler Anderson, Chad Bettis and Rico Garcia combined for woeful numbers across a combined 83 starts. So what have the Rockies done since to address their starting group? Nothing of note. It seems they’ll count on a bunch of their holdovers to turn in better showings, though their staff will take a big hit in the event they deal Gray (a potential trade candidate) before the season.

Los Angeles Angels (5.64 ERA/5.41 FIP; current depth chart)

  • The Angels’ rotation suffered a terrible blow in the fall of 2018 when Shohei Ohtani underwent Tommy John surgery, costing him all of last season, and then tragedy struck last July when Tyler Skaggs passed away. Considering the circumstances, it’s not surprising the Angels’ staff reeled last season. Nevertheless, adding reinforcements was clearly in order for this winter. The problem is that the Angels still haven’t found a way to acquire a proven front-of-the-rotation type, which many expected to them to get when the winter began. Ohtani’s back, which is a major plus. Meanwhile, the acquisitions of innings-eaters Dylan Bundy and Julio Teheran should help matters, but they’re not going to frighten opposing offenses. The Angels figure to keep trying to better their rotation in the coming months, though the open market has dried up and teams seemingly aren’t champing at the bit to move big-time starters via trade now.

Baltimore Orioles (5.57 ERA/5.72 FIP; current depth chart)

  • Bundy, who led the O’s rotation in innings last season, is now gone. 2019 success story John Means remains in place, and Alex Cobb will be back in the wake of injuries that limited him to three starts. Those two aside, there’s little in the way of established starters for rebuilding Baltimore, though it wouldn’t be surprising to see the club try to find a cheap starter(s) in free agency before the season begins. The team did make an interesting move when it used the second pick of the Rule 5 Draft on 25-year-old righty Brandon Bailey, whom Eric Longenhagen of FanGraphs calls a “spin rate monster.”

Detroit Tigers (5.51 ERA/4.66 FIP; current depth chart)

  • Detroit’s rotation mix actually looks pretty promising, though it’s possible the team will weaken the mix by trading Matthew Boyd before the season. As of now, he’s back at the helm of a group that also got respectable performances from Spencer Turnbull and Daniel Norris last year. Stud prospects Casey Mize and Matt Manning are gaining on the majors, meanwhile, and Michael Fulmer should factor back in sometime this year after Tommy John surgery kept him away in 2019. Furthermore, the Tigers just signed the durable Ivan Nova to a cheap contract to serve as their resident back-end innings-eater. Jordan Zimmerman, arguably the weakest link in the chain, is also the most expensive. Mercifully for the Tigers, he’s finally entering the last season of what has been an albatross contract for the club.

Pittsburgh Pirates (5.19 ERA/4.78 FIP; current depth chart)

  • The Pirates, already without staff leader Jameson Taillon for most of last season, suffered a horrid blow when he underwent a TJ procedure in August. He won’t be part of the 2020 staff as a result, leaving holdovers Chris Archer, Joe Musgrove and Trevor Williams at the helm of an uninspiring-looking bunch. Barring a trade, the hope is that the once-terrific Archer will put a nightmarish first year and a half as a Pirate behind him. Archer was markedly better as last season progressed, so there does seem to be some hope for a full-season bounce-back effort. The unit will include some speculative candidates in Tommy John rehabber Chad Kuhl and talented 23-year-old Mitch Keller, who struggled as a rookie but remains a premium pitching prospect.

The original version of this post mistakenly indicated that Kuhl underwent Tommy John surgery in 2019. His procedure occurred in September of 2018.

Quick Hits: Astros, Baker, Bochy, Phils, Herrera, Ventura, Hudson

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The Astros, suddenly in need of a new manager after the suspension and firing of A.J. Hinch on Monday, “plan to open an outside search to find his replacement,” Bob Nightengale of USA Today writes. Nightengale names longtime manager Dusty Baker as someone with interest in the job, but it’s unclear whether the team will want to talk to him about the position. Although fellow veteran skipper Bruce Bochy has been mentioned in speculation, it appears he’s serious about taking time away from the game in the wake of his long run with the Giants. Bochy told Nightengale he’s hitting the “pause button.”

  • The Phillies designated center fielder Odubel Herrera for assignment Tuesday, which could pave the way for his release. However, the likelihood is that Herrera will still be a member of the organization when spring training rolls around, according to Matt Breen of the Philadelphia Inquirer. It’s unlikely anyone will take Herrera in a trade, the Phils don’t seem keen on releasing him and eating the $19.5MM left on his contract, and it’s improbable he’d reject an outright assignment and leave that money on the table. So, while Herrera’s no longer on the Phillies’ 40-man roster, it doesn’t appear his time with the organization is up just yet.
  • Former major league third baseman and ex-White Sox manager Robin Ventura has resurfaced at Oklahoma State as a student assistant, per Kendall Rogers of D1baseball.com. The Cowboys’ staff now boasts him and fellow former big leaguer Matt Holliday, whose brother, Josh Holliday, manages the team. The 52-year-old Ventura hasn’t coached in the majors since the White Sox let him go after the 2016 season. Ventura’s name came up when the Mets were seeking a manager in 2017, but he reportedly didn’t have interest in the position.
  • In more ex-MLBer/college baseball news, longtime right-hander Tim Hudson is joining Auburn as a pitching/volunteer assistant coach, Teddy Cahill of Baseball America reports. Prior to enjoying an excellent MLB career, Hudson starred at Auburn. In Hudson’s return to his old stomping grounds, Cahill notes that the 44-year-old will work with potential first-round righty Tanner Burns – who has drawn comparisons to Hudson.

Latest On Braves’ Third Base Plans

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The last elite free agent of the winter came off the board Tuesday when third baseman Josh Donaldson agreed to a four-year, $92MM guarantee with Minnesota. Not only does the addition strengthen an already power-happy Twins offense, but it’s also a significant blow for an Atlanta team that received outstanding production from Donaldson in 2019. The club’s situation at third, where Johan Camargo and Austin Riley are in-house front-runners to take over for Donaldson, now looks far less imposing sans Donaldson.

Camargo was effective as recently as two years ago, but his production nosedived during a season to forget in 2019. Riley’s not far removed from a run as a standout prospect, and he began his major league career well last season. However, thanks largely to a bloated strikeout rate (36.4 percent), he endured enormous struggles as 2019 progressed.

There aren’t any obvious answers left at third in free agency, so the Braves could begin the season with what they have at the position and opt for a power bat at another spot (Marcell Ozuna? Nicholas Castellanos?). On the other hand, there are two all-world trade chips in the Cubs’ Kris Bryant and the Rockies’ Nolan Arenado looming on that market.

While Bob Nightengale of USA Today tweets that the Braves are “expected” to revisit previous talks with the Cubs regarding Bryant, David O’Brien of The Athletic throws a bit of cold water on that. The Braves “haven’t been gung-ho on either,” per O’Brien. As was reported previously, the Braves have concerns over Bryant’s defense. And the former MVP’s contract status figures to help stand in the way of a trade with the Braves or anyone else for at least a little while longer. The Cubs and the rest of the league continue to await word on whether Bryant has one or two years of control left after he filed a service-time grievance in October.

Similarly, there are questions over how much longer it’ll be before Arenado becomes a free agent. Unlike Bryant, Arenado is on a long-term contract – a guaranteed $234MM over seven years – but he will be able to opt out of it after his age-30 season in 2021. The massive amount left on Arenado’s deal, his opt-out rights and a hesitance to surrender multiple prospects for him have led to wariness from the Braves, according to O’Brien.

As of last month, general manager Alex Anthopolous and the Braves were on the hunt for a middle-of-the-order hitter. The hope then was that Donaldson would take on that role again in 2020, but the two-time reigning NL East champions’ lineup suddenly looks much weaker now that he’s gone. With strong free-agent options dwindling, the Braves hardly shoo-ins to land either Bryant or Arenado, and their projected Opening-Day payroll ($140MM) already $5MM higher than last year’s season-ending outlay, it’s unclear where the Braves will go from here.

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