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Reds Acquire Luis Cessa, Justin Wilson From Yankees

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In a surprise transaction, the Yankees announced they’ve traded relievers Luis Cessa and Justin Wilson to the Reds in exchange for a player to be named later. Cincinnati designated Ashton Goudeau and Edgar García for assignment to open 40-man roster space.

The appeal for the Reds is in the addition of Cessa, who was a dependable bullpen arm throughout much of his time in the Bronx. The right-hander is capable of working multiple innings and has been an effective pitcher over the past few years. Since the start of the 2019 campaign, Cessa has tossed 141 innings of 3.64 ERA/4.34 FIP ball. He’s been even more effective this season, working to a career-best 2.82 ERA over 38 1/3 frames.

Cessa doesn’t have the bat-missing stuff of most relievers. His 19.3% strikeout rate is well below the 24.5% league average for bullpen arms, and his swinging strike rate is similarly underwhelming. That’s basically been true throughout Cessa’s entire big league tenure, though, and he’s found a fair amount of success by throwing strikes and avoiding especially damaging contact. The 29-year-old is inducing ground balls at a massive 56.8% clip this year, and Statcast shows he’s been among the top twenty percent of pitchers in suppressing opponents’ average exit velocity, hard contact and barrels.

While the Reds don’t look particularly likely to make the playoffs in 2021, the acquisition of Cessa gives Cincinnati a potential multi-year piece for a bullpen that has been one of the league’s worst this year. The 29-year-old is earning just $1.05MM this season (less than $400K of which remains to be paid), and he’s controllable through 2023 via arbitration. With the Reds no doubt hoping to contend in 2022 (and not yet giving up hope of a late push this season), picking up an affordable, long-term bullpen piece holds obvious appeal.

Wilson has a long track record of productivity, but he’s in the middle of a disappointing campaign. The southpaw put up an ERA below 4.00 each season from 2017-20, but he’s only managed a 7.50 mark through 18 frames so far this year. Wilson’s velocity has gone backwards, and his typically lofty strikeout rate has plummeted to 18.1%. Given their own bullpen struggles, Cincinnati figures to give him an opportunity to right the ship, but it’s likely the Reds agreed to take on Wilson’s salary to incentivize the Yankees to part with Cessa.

New York signed Wilson over the winter to a somewhat complex contract. The southpaw is making $2.85MM this year (about $1MM of which remains). He has a $2.3MM player option for next season. If he declines, Cincinnati would hold a $7.15MM club option ($1.15MM buyout) on his services. Given Wilson’s struggles this year, it seems he’d be trending toward exercising his player option — but doing so would entitle the Reds to a 2023 club option worth just $500K north of that year’s league minimum salary.

Goudeau bounced around waivers throughout last offseason. He now seems likely to wind up back on the wire after making five MLB appearances for the Reds this year. He’s tossed 31 innings across eight appearances (five starts) with Triple-A Louisville, working to a 4.65 ERA with a below-average 16.1% strikeout rate. García has also spent most of the campaign with the Bats. He’s been quite good in Triple-A but hit hard over his five big league outings.

From the Yankees perspective, the deal frees some payroll space and clears a pair of spots on the 40-man roster. In addition to getting themselves off the hook for Wilson’s 2022 player option, New York shaves around $1.4MM off their luxury tax ledger in 2021. With the Yankees just a few million dollars shy of the $210MM threshold, the extra breathing room could enable the front office to pursue upgrades before Friday’s trade deadline. Ken Rosenthal of the Athletic (Twitter link) suggests New York could look around the league for bullpen and/or shortstop additions, with a particular focus on left-handed bats.

Tyler Anderson Talks Between Phillies, Pirates Hit Late Obstacle

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10:22 pm: The Pirates have raised some concerns about Hernandez’s medical evaluation, reports Jim Salisbury of NBC Sports Philadelphia. It remains possible a deal sending Anderson to Philly still gets done, although that might require “modifications” to Pittsburgh’s return, per Salisbury.

4:52pm: Despite multiple reports indicating the deal had been finalized, the trade now looks to have hit a “snag,” tweets Jon Heyman of MLB Network. Mackey tweets that Anderson is now in Pirates gear and throwing in the Pittsburgh bullpen. The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal tweets that there’s some sort of issue with one of the two prospects in the deal.

That said, Anderson still isn’t starting tonight’s Bucs game. Pittsburgh has announced Luis Oviedo will make his first MLB start in place of Anderson. There’s no indication yet that the trade sending Anderson to Philadelphia is completely off, and it remains possible that the two parties could simply amend the deal to push it across the finish line. The Post-Gazette’s Mike Persak tweets that righty Max Kranick is at PNC Park, likely to replace Anderson on the roster, though he may have been summoned before any late obstacles arose.

3:07pm: The two sides are in agreement on a trade, reports Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (Twitter link). The Phillies are sending 21-year-old catcher Abrahan Gutierrez and 20-year-old righty Cristian Hernandez to the Pirates in return. The deal is “final,” per Mackey.

2:42pm: The Pirates and Phillies are in “serious” talks on a trade that would send left-handed starter Tyler Anderson from Pittsburgh to Philadelphia, reports Jayson Stark of The Athletic (Twitter link). The deal in question would send a pair of prospects back to Pittsburgh. FanSided’s Robert Murray first noted talks between Philly and Pittsburgh. Mike Persak of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette tweets that Anderson has been scratched from tonight’s start, which certainly suggests a move is imminent.

Tyler Anderson | Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

The potential return isn’t yet clear, though Stark characterizes the prospects being discussed as “second tier” and notes in a second tweet that catching prospect Rafael Marchan is not part of the proposed package.

That’s not exactly surprising, as while Anderson is a solid starter, he’s more the type of arm to stabilize a rotation than to push it to new heights. A free agent at season’s end, Anderson is playing on a one-year, $2.5MM contract and is still owed about $901K of that sum between now and the end of the year.

Anderson, 31, has made 18 starts for the Buccos this season and pitched at least five innings in all of them. That may not seem like a high bar, but the Phillies have routinely received short starts from the likes of Chase Anderson, Vince Velasquez and Matt Moore. A reliable source of five to six solid innings per outing is something the club could badly use — particularly with right-hander Zach Eflin currently on the shelf.

Thus far, Anderson has given the Pirates 103 1/3 innings of 4.35 ERA ball, although he’s been a bit more consistent than that number might appear at first glance. The lefty was shelled for nine runs in five frames against the Braves back on May 21 but has yielded three or fewer earned runs in 15 of his 18 starts. Setting aside that awful night against the Braves, Anderson carries a 3.75 ERA in his other 17 appearances.

Anderson doesn’t miss tons of bats (20 percent strikeout rate) or induce tons of grounders (37.3 percent), but Anderson has excellent control (5.8 percent walk rate) and has induced plenty of weak contact in the air. Among the 276 pitchers who’ve had at least 100 batted balls against them so far in 2021, Anderson’s average exit velocity of 91.7 mph on balls in the air sits in the 86th percentile.

When the Phils are at full strength, Anderson would step in as the team’s fourth starter behind Zack Wheeler, Aaron Nola and the aforementioned Eflin. He may not be locked in as a postseason starter, should Philadelphia qualify, but he could be a multi-inning option in a short postseason series or potentially a Game 3 starter, depending on the health elsewhere in the rotation. He also takes one target off the board for the division-rival Mets, who are eyeing rental starters and had been connected to Anderson as recently as this morning.

Turning to the Pirates’ end of the deal, they’ll receive some far-off but promising youngsters who joined the Phillies via international free agency. Gutierrez was originally signed by the Braves but reentered the free-agent market after Atlanta was penalized for international signing violations. He’s climbed as high as Class-A in 2021 and is enjoying an excellent season there, batting .285/.418/.424 with five homers, nine doubles and a solid 30 percent caught-stealing rate in 48 games.

Baseball America ranked Gutierrez 26th among Phillies farmhands prior to the season, calling him a line-drive hitter with average power and good knowledge of the strike zone. He landed 32nd on FanGraphs’ rankings of the Phillies system.

Hernandez is another player who didn’t rank prominently on preseason rankings of the Phillies’ system but has likely elevated his status with a strong 2021 showing. He’s pitched 56 2/3 innings at A-ball — presumably throwing to Gutierrez with regularity — and notched a 3.49 ERA with a big 31.2 percent strikeout rate and a 9.3 percent walk rate. MLB.com tabbed him 29th among Phillies prospects entering the season, noting that despite a modest $120K bonus when he signed, he might emerge as the best arm of Philadelphia’s 2017-18 signing class. Their report on him cites an above-average fastball that reaches 97 mph, a solid slider and a still-developing changeup as reasons to be optimistic about the 6’3″, 180-pound righty.

Bryant: “Absolutely” Willing To Return To Cubs In Free Agency If Traded

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With the Cubs selling off established players on the big league roster, Kris Bryant is one of the game’s most obvious trade candidates. The 29-year-old is slated to hit free agency this winter, and past extension discussions with the Cubs haven’t resulted in a deal.

Even if Bryant does wind up changing uniforms in the next few days, he’d remain open to returning to the North Side via free agency. “Oh yeah, absolutely,” Bryant replied when asked if he’d be willing to sign with the Cubs this winter if they trade him midseason (via Patrick Mooney of the Athletic). “Like I’ve said, I love this place. It’s all I’ve known. The familiarity of being here and this city and the people make it a lot easier to say, ‘Yeah, of course, I’d love to play here.”

That’s not to say such a situation is likely. The Cubs haven’t spent at particularly high levels in free agency over the past few seasons, and president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer has previously spoken about there being inevitable turnover on the roster in 2022 and beyond. Bryant also didn’t give any indication he’d take any sort of discount to return to Chicago.

Nevertheless, it’s at least a bit notable the former NL MVP would be happy to return to the Cubs after being traded if that situation happened to present itself. Bryant’s willingness to stay in Chicago beyond his initial window of team control has been the subject of some speculation since the Cubs held him in the minors to open the 2015 season in order to gain an extra year of control over his services. Bryant’s camp filed a grievance (which he ultimately lost), although the four-time All-Star has perennially maintained that situation would not preclude him from signing a long-term deal with the Cubs.

It remains to be seen where Bryant will end up for the season’s final couple months, although it seems a near certainty he’ll be traded. Jeff Passan of ESPN reported this morning that the Rays had had “preliminary discussions” about a potential Bryant acquisition.

At Least Eight Teams In The Mix For Max Scherzer

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As many as eight clubs are in the mix for Nationals ace and three-time Cy Young winner Max Scherzer, per Jayson Stark of The Athletic (Twitter link). The Dodgers, Giants, Padres, Red Sox, Rays, Blue Jays, Astros and Mets are all interested, according to Stark, who adds that the Yankees also inquired but were told Scherzer isn’t likely to waive his no-trade rights for a move to New York. That meshes with recent reporting from SNY’s Andy Martino, who wrote earlier this afternoon that Scherzer wouldn’t approve a trade to the Mets (nor would the Nationals be keen on dealing their ace to the current division leaders).

MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand reported earlier in the day that Scherzer preferred a West Coast club, though MLB Network’s Jon Heyman adds that the ostensible West Coast preference is more about Scherzer wanting to go to a team with a chance to win in 2021 and beyond. Scherzer prefers to go to “a team he could stay with” on a possible extension, per Heyman. Agent Scott Boras indicated as much earlier in the summer, although at the time Boras suggested an extension might be necessary in order for Scherzer to waive his no-trade protection at all. That no longer seems to be the case, but as evidenced by Scherzer’s unwillingness to go to a New York club, the no-trade rights can help him choose his eventual landing spot.

If the Nats are to ultimately trade Scherzer, tweets Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic, the team’s preference is to do so within the next 48 hours. Doing so would leave ample time to sort through the no-trade obstacles and any potential compensation for waiving those rights (e.g. alterations to deferrals, taxes, etc.).

That said, a trade taking place prior to Thursday’s game would put an acquiring team in a tough spot. Scherzer was scratched from his weekend start due to a triceps issue and is set to return to the mound Thursday. A recent MRI came back clean, and any team acquiring Scherzer would obviously have access to the results from that imaging and other testing. Still, a clean MRI may not inspire as much confidence as seeing Scherzer go out and actually perform. If interested clubs prefer to wait until Scherzer has taken the mound, there’d be fewer than 24 hours between the conclusion of Thursday’s start and Friday afternoon’s deadline.

Any trade involving Scherzer is going to be financially complicated, but looking at Stark’s list of interested parties, there are a few particularly complex scenarios. The Dodgers are already into the final luxury-tax bracket, meaning they’d pay a 62.5 percent overage penalty on any additional money added to the books. For Scherzer, whose remaining luxury hit clocks in at roughly $10.03MM post-deadline and $10.49MM as of this writing, that’d mean paying between $6.27MM and $6.56MM on top of the approximately $12.2MM he’s still owed in actual 2021 salary. (Luxury tax is calculated based on a contract’s average annual value, but Scherzer’s backloaded contract comes with a $35MM salary in 2021 — albeit with much of that sum deferred.)

The Padres are reportedly just above the luxury tax threshold, but are still considering moves that could take them back under that line. A Scherzer acquisition, however, would push them well above the mark. That’s also true of the Astros and the Red Sox, who are both within just a few million of the $210MM threshold. The Rays, of course, have an entirely different sort of financial obstacles to consider (namely, their perennially cellar-level payroll). The Jays and Giants, as teams with deep pockets and no real luxury concerns of which to speak, ostensibly represent the “cleanest” fits of the bunch.

That’s not to say that the Dodgers, Padres, Astros, Rays or Red Sox shouldn’t be considered legitimate contenders for Scherzer. (Although if Scherzer is hoping to stay with the club that acquires him, the low-payroll Rays are an admittedly tough fit.) Most clubs this summer have voiced some iteration of a “we’d exceed the threshold for the ’right’ player” stance. It’s hard to imagine a player who fits that billing more than a bona fide ace and three-time Cy Young winner who has a 2.92 ERA in 49 1/3 postseason innings with the Nats since 2016. But with the Nats theoretically negotiating with a rapidly ticking clock, any complicated financial elements of a deal are magnified.

Mariners Designate Vinny Nittoli For Assignment

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The Mariners announced they’ve designated right-hander Vinny Nittoli for assignment. The move is apparently made with a trade in mind, as MLB Network’s Jon Morosi reported (Twitter link) shortly before the team announcement that Nittoli was likely to be designated to buy time before he’s officially traded.

Seattle general manager Jerry Dipoto acknowledged that another deal(s) was in the works after acquiring infielder Abraham Toro and reliever Joe Smith from the Astros for relievers Kendall Graveman and Rafael Montero this evening. Because Montero had previously been designated for assignment, the Mariners needed to clear a 40-man roster spot before tonight’s game against Houston. With Nittoli seemingly imminently headed elsewhere, there’s no harm for Seattle in removing him from the 40-man before that deal gets done.

The Mariners selected Nittoli to the roster last month, allowing him to make his major league debut on June 23. Other than that one appearance, he’s spent the season with Triple-A Tacoma. Through 28 2/3 innings with the Rainiers, the 30-year-old pitched to a 4.40 ERA with stellar strikeout and walk rates (31.7% and 5.0%, respectively).

Trea Turner Tests Positive For COVID-19

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Nationals star shortstop Trea Turner has tested positive for COVID-19, the team announced. Turner was removed from this evening’s game against the Phillies in the first inning after the result came in. Fellow infielder Luis Garcia is likely to be recalled from Triple-A Rochester to replace Turner on the active roster, reports Jesse Dougherty of the Washington Post (Twitter link).

It’s a shocking development for a player who recently surfaced in trade rumors. Upon Turner’s mid-game exit, plenty of speculation emerged about a potential deal being in the works. Instead, his removal is a result of a positive test.

Placement on the COVID IL doesn’t come with a minimum stint, although the fact that Turner tested positive suggests he’s likely to miss at least ten days while quarantining. Players on the injured list can still be traded, so tonight’s news doesn’t entirely eliminate the possibility of a midseason deal.

That always seemed a bit unlikely, though, given Turner’s star play and the Nationals’ desire to compete again in 2022 (and perhaps to not throw in the towel on the 2021 season). Uncertainty about his health status only figures to complicate any trade talks, casting even more doubt on the possibility of Turner changing teams by Friday.

Obviously, Turner’s health is of paramount importance. The Nationals haven’t offered further comment beyond the news of his positive test result, but it’s notable that Turner felt well enough to take the field tonight before his positive test became known to the organization.

Mariners, Astros Swap Kendall Graveman For Abraham Toro In Four-Player Trade

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In a rare and rather stunning swap between a pair of division rivals who are both in contention, the Mariners have traded closer Kendall Graveman and recently designated-for-assignment righty Rafael Montero to the Astros in exchange for young infielder Abraham Toro and veteran righty Joe Smith, according to both clubs. The trade is even more eye-opening when considering that the two clubs are gearing up to play each other in the second game of a three-game set tonight.

Trading Graveman at all registers as a moderate surprise, given the Mariners’ recent climb in the standings and stated desire to improve the 2021 roster. To see him traded to the division-leading Astros while the two squads are playing one another is downright jarring. That said, Graveman is a free agent at season’s end, and in Toro, the Mariners are acquiring five seasons of control over an infielder who has been considered one of Houston’s more promising young prospects for the past few years.

In speaking to the media about the trade, Seattle general manager Jerry Dipoto plainly acknowledged that as a standalone transaction, it’s a head-scratching move. But Dipoto also emphasized some patience, suggesting this move is but one of a sequence of trades designed to improve the Mariners’ chances both in 2021 and over the long-term down the road (Twitter thread via MLB.com’s Daniel Kramer). Dipoto suggested a subsequent trade or trades could come together as soon as tonight or in the coming days, but it seems as though this is but one of a series of moves for which the Mariners are angling; time will tell just how the moves look when judged in their totality.

Toro, 24, hasn’t yet pieced things together in limited big league action, but he’s decimated Triple-A pitching (.392/.497/.600 in 33 games) and posted strong numbers in pitcher-friendly Double-A settings (.282/.369/.468 in 148 games). The switch-hitting Toro provides the Mariners with a possible long-term option at third base, but he’s also logged considerable time at second base — another area where the Mariners have been known to be seeking help. That long-term fit isn’t likely to matter much to the clubhouse, however, and Divish rather unsurprisingly tweets that the decision to trade Graveman to their top division rival was not well-received among Seattle players.

That’s understandable on Seattle’s end, given just how dominant Graveman has become since transitioning to the bullpen late in the 2020 season. The former Athletics starter has bounced back from an injury-lost 2019 season to emerge as one of the American League’s more effective relievers. In 33 innings this season, Graveman has pitched to a 0.82 ERA with a 28.1 percent strikeout rate, a 6.6 walk rate and a 53.9 percent ground-ball rate. Dating back to his shift to the bullpen in 2020, he’s compiled 43 innings of 1.47 ERA ball.

Graveman is likely all the more appealing to the luxury-conscious Astros because of his affordable salary. He’s playing on a one-year, $1.25MM contract. Incentives have already boosted that base salary by $400K, and the contract overall contains a total of $3MM in reachable incentives. That said, $1.5MM of those are tied up in games finished, and manager Dusty Baker has already indicated that Ryan Pressly is likely to continue as his closer. Graveman could still collect six more stray games finished to reach his first of three would-be $500K bonuses tied to games finished, but it’s unlikely he reaches the 30 and 40 games finished needed to unlock the next pair of $500K bonuses. In all, the contract will likely top out paying him somewhere in the range of $2.65MM based on incentives tied to days on the roster, games finished and total innings pitched.

Montero’s inclusion in the trade is likely a pure accounting measure. The combined salaries of Montero and Graveman ought to clock in somewhere in the same ballpark as Smith’s $4MM salary and luxury-tax hit, though depending on the status of Graveman’s incentives, the Astros could come out either a bit ahead or a bit behind where they were previously projected.

Montero opened the season as the closer in Seattle but struggled early and has been mired in a catastrophic slump of late, yielding 16 runs in his past 11 innings. The ’Stros may have their own ideas on how to help a reliever who was quite good with the Rangers in 2019-20 right the ship, but Montero’s inclusion doesn’t appear to be a key part of the swap. At best he’s a roll of the dice, and at worst he’s a financial counterweight who could be cut loose quickly if his struggles persist.

The same is largely true of Smith, who opted out of the 2020 season after signing a two-year deal in Houston and has been clobbered for a 7.48 ERA in 21 2/3 innings this year. Some of that has been attributable to a sky-high .413 batting average on balls in play, but Smith is sporting a career-low strikeout rate, a grounder rate that’s well off his peak levels and has also been quite homer-prone. As with Houston and Montero, perhaps the Mariners have an idea or two about how to get the veteran righty back on track, but the trade is much more about Graveman and Toro than about the struggling relievers accompanying those two players.

Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times first tweeted that Toro and a reliever were going to the Mariners in exchange for two players. MLB.com’s Brian McTaggart provided the full context on the trade.

Yankees Activate Aaron Judge

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The Yankees have reinstated Aaron Judge and Kyle Higashioka from the Covid-19-related injured list, per a club announcement. They’ve also added recent trade acquisition Clay Holmes to the active roster. In a series of corresponding moves, the Yankees placed righty Yoendrys Gomez on the Covid list, optioned outfielder Estevan Florial and righty Albert Abreu to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, and transferred right-hander Michael King to the 60-day injured list.

Judge returns to the Yankees’ lineup batting second and will hope to help spur a rally in the standings for a Yankees club that currently trails the Red Sox by nine and a half games. The Yankees are a much more-manageable three and a half games out of the second Wild Card spot in the American League. The 29-year-old Judge has had another excellent season when he’s been on the field, batting .282/.375/.526 with 21 home runs in 360 trips to the plate.

Higashioka, meanwhile, has given the Yankees some power and a strong walk rate in a limited role as a backup. His .196/.278/.433 slash doesn’t exactly jump out, but he has more pop and a better walk rate than most reserve catchers you’ll find around the league.

King’s transfer to the 60-day IL rules him out until early September. He went on the 10-day IL back on July 8, and his 60-day minimum stay on the IL is retroactive to the date of the initial placement. In 48 1/3 innings this season, King has pitched to a 3.72 ERA with a 47-to-21 K/BB ratio.

Mets Select Jerad Eickhoff, Designate Roel Ramirez

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The Mets announced Tuesday that they’ve re-signed Jerad Eickhoff and selected him to the Major League roster. Right-hander Roel Ramirez has been designated for assignment in order to open a spot on the roster. Eickhoff is in line to start tonight’s game against the Braves.

It’s been a tumultuous year for Eickhoff with the Mets. He’s been designated for assignment twice and elected free agency both times — only to quickly re-sign a new deal with the Mets and return to the MLB roster. Tonight will mark his third stint and fourth start of the season with the Mets. To this point, he’s given then 16 1/3 innings of 4.96 ERA ball with nine strikeouts and five walks. Given the Mets’ current search for rotation options and the looming return of Carlos Carrasco, it’s possible this will be another short stint for Eickhoff.

Speaking of short stints, the 26-year-old Ramirez was claimed off waivers from the Cardinals just six days ago. He made only one appearance with Triple-A Syracuse, yielding a pair of runs in an inning of work. He was a depth pickup for the Mets but will now likely hit waivers again within the next week following today’s DFA (if he’s not traded prior to Friday’s deadline).

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