12:05pm: The Blue Jays, Mets and Marlins will be among the teams in attendance, per respective reports from MLB Network’s Jon Morosi, SNY’s Andy Martino and SportsGrid’s Craig Mish.
8:45am: Free-agent right-hander Trevor Rosenthal is holding a showcase for Major League clubs at St. Thomas University in Miami Gardens today, tweets Jon Heyman of the New York Post. It stands to reason that scouts from the majority of teams will be in attendance to gauge the former All-Star’s readiness to return to a big league mound.
A healthy Rosenthal can be one of the game’s most effective relievers, as he’s shown at multiple times in the past. Unfortunately, good health has eluded him in recent years. Rosenthal underwent Tommy John surgery partway through the 2017 season, which wiped out the entirety of his 2018 campaign. He returned with the Nats and Tigers in 2019 and had lost all semblance of control over the strike zone, walking 26 of the 85 hitters he faced that season (30.6%) and plunking another four.
On the heels of that alarming season, Rosenthal settled for a minor league deal with the Royals heading into the 2020 season and quickly reestablished himself as a dominant late-inning powerhouse. He pitched just 23 2/3 innings due to the shortened 60-game schedule, but Rosenthal overwhelmed opponents with a 1.90 ERA, an elite 41.8% strikeout rate and a strong 8.3% walk rate — all while averaging 98.1 mph on his heater.
Despite that dominant showing, Rosenthal didn’t find the weighty multi-year deal he sought early in free agency, and he eventually took a one-year, $11MM from a surprise suitor: the A’s. Unfortunately for Oakland and for Rosenthal, injuries again derailed his 2021 season. A groin strain slowed Rosenthal early in Spring Training, and shoulder troubles shelved him to begin the season. Eventually, it was revealed that Rosenthal required surgery to alleviate thoracic outlet syndrome. Over the summer, while working toward what he hoped would be a late-season return, a torn labrum in his hip required yet another surgery.
Rosenthal’s career numbers — 3.36 ERA, 132 saves, 31.2% strikeout rate, 11.3% walk rate, 44.3% grounder rate, 98.1 mph average fastball — all speak to the sheer talent in his right arm. (It’s a 2.91 ERA and 10.1% walk rate if you toss out the anomalous 2019 season.) However, he’s now pitched just 39 innings since undergoing Tommy John surgery way back in Aug. 2017.
Bullpen help is always in demand, and virtually every contending team (and likely several non-contenders) will want to get a look at Rosenthal in hopes of bolstering their relief corps for the season’s second half. Given the lengthy injury layoff, he’s unlikely to command a multi-year pact, so signing Rosenthal figures to be — at worst — a short-term risk with plenty of upside. It’s not clear just yet when Rosenthal would be ready to step onto a big league mound. He’ll presumably require a minor league tune-up to reacclimate to game settings and build additional arm strength, but if he’s ready to audition for MLB clubs, he and agent Scott Boras can’t feel he’s too far off.
Twins
Please, Phillies Rosenthal could help that bullpen if he’s healthy.
A big if. With a third of the season done, the risk is lesser. Could help almost any team if he can remain off the IL.
Sweet Baby Jesus & the orphans. “Hosting”?
Will Boras work the room with the hors d’oeuvres? Is the entre in honour of Trevor’s French heritage – the derriere du canard – double roasted ducks arse on wild rice & livid gorilla.
The wine by the way is a German Reisling – Count von Strickennarm.
Cardinals
No thanks
Pat Ragazzo
@ragazzoreport
Trevor Rosenthal’s showcase today:
Looked strong but not in pitching shape, cut bullpen short and did not speak to scouts after. Seemingly landed awkwardly on final pitch, which looked like a cramp, but unknown
Fastball: 95-96 mph
Slider: 83-84 mph
Changeup: 84-86 mph
LOL
Thanks Al Hirschen.
Most of the comments below are about which team should sign him. All done without knowing which team sent reps to watch him, or what the general results of his workout was.
Typical.
He is really talented, but a serious liability. If he stays healthy longer than a month that would be amazing.
This has Phillies regret all over it.
Comment of the year
If he looks good and a bidding war doesn’t start, the Padres could sure use some bullpen help.
for sure, bring Rossy back!
I feel like Castillo’s coming back soon..and when Johnson comes back, it’ll pretty much be full..
Not to mention Pomeranz should be back shortly
True. I guess because there is so much uncertainty with all three of those guys, and the bullpen has been awful, they need all the help they can afford. But he’ll likely be over-valued so maybe the Pads should hold pat.
Castillo has actually been lights out in his rehab assignment. I could see him being activated in the near future.
Agreed @dmaciel. Castillo’s had 15 appearances, and has yet to give up a run..As it is, they’re gonna have to cut bait with a couple of Stammen, Suarez, Hill, Garcia, or Wilson just for roster space sake..I’m guessing Wilson goes down, and at least 2 of the above are dealt in the OF search..
That’s how I feel Brew, if the 3 aforementioned came back and were able to pitch to their abilities, the pen would be in good shape, but I am not holding my breath on that.
Remember also..Morejon and Baez are on their rehab assignments too..
I know Castillo has been great the last 3 weeks, but he’s had a terrible run of injuries the last few years. Let’s hope by some miracle he stays healthy and finally can perform at a high level. That would be quite a comeback story.
And quite the addition to the Padres bullpen!
Agreed Brew..I’d say pitch him no more than once or twice a week or so in El Paso, then if he’s still healthy and doing well, bring him up mid August with the hope that he’ll be good for a playoff run..if he’s anywhere near what he was, he could be a real difference maker in the playoffs..
@ tippen and beersy. So far he’s showing no discomfort in the TJS arm and the reconstructed tendon in the middle finger. Castillo’s stuff is elite, and as ya’ll know at one time he was projected as a closer (and a great one). They will take it slow with him. He’s still just 26 yrs old. They removed him from the 40-man roster, but then (amazingly) were able to pick him up on a minor league contract. Grateful for the one last opportunity he said “I have a debt to pay to San Diego”. Pads will have to clear a spot for him on the 40-man.
Shouldn’t be a problem clearing a spot..I’m guessing AJ wheels and deals around the deadline. The Pads have way too many highly desirable pieces for him to not get a couple of bats..I’ve got a feeling that either Snell or Darvish (for salary relief), Stammen, Campusano, at least one other big league reliever, and at least a couple of prospects not named Hassel or Abrams end up getting moved.
Yeah they’ll make a move. Hopefully none as dumbfounding at the Frazier trade last year. If they can move Snell I would be shocked but they should try. OFers are hard to find though.
Personally, I’d like to see them work something out for Benintendi and Merrifield. It’d give them more OF depth, and I could see Merrifield being a nice change of scenery candidate, as well as being able to push Cronenworth over to first when Hosmer inevitably goes through one of his 1-25 streaks..
Both? wow that would be bold. I can see Benintendi as relatively inexpensive a rental (Hassell, Wood, Ruiz, Mears lurking in minors)
Have to admit I didn’t see Morejon getting the call this soon. He was lights out last night throwing 98 mph gas and they’re slotting him in as a lefty reliever. Wow, this is potentially really significant for Pads.
When people accuse the A’s of not spending money – THAT is exactly what happens when they do.
So when they do spend money it’s on bad decisions. Got it.
There’s a certain “What’s wrong with them?” vibe when a free agent signs with Oakland. Very tricky over the recent past. Frank Thomas made a comeback. Cespedes was good while he lasted.
Find me an Oakland fan that said “Hey let’s sign Rosenthal and NOT even extend Semien or Hendriks a QO!”.
The A’s made an offer to Semien, he declined and also wouldn’t move from SS. He’s now making $25 Million a year to be terrible and play 2B.
A Qualifying Offer was more than what Hendricks signed for and the A’s signed Rosenthal for 2/3 of that.
The A’s made a low ball offer to Semien, not a QO. Why he went on to Toronto – where he was an AL MVP finalist. My gripe wasn’t that we didn’t sign Semien to a contract for hundreds of millions of dollars – it was that we didn’t offer him a QO for a season that led to a 3rd in MVP.
I’m lost on the Hendricks comment? He signed a 3/54. Basically the White Sox signed him for about QO value over 3 years. Which was basically a gift to Hendriks by A’s (and Semien) not offering FA with a QO attached. Yes, Rosenthal signed for about 2/3 of a QO but was far riskier than Hendriks.
Hendriks almost for sure wouldn’t have accepted the QO, but we would have gotten draft compensation. Semien may have, which is almost a best case scenario to most teams.
Most contending teams would love an integral team coming back to their team at a reasonable rate on a one year deal. Or, draft pick compensation if they leave.
Enter John Fisher.
On top of that Semien played 2B in Toronto and is currently as well in Texas. No idea where the wouldn’t move off of SS came from, but on top of that A’s would have wanted him at SS anyways.
Case could be made that he owes Oakland a bit of a discount, or at least the opportunity to trade him at the deadline for some sort of prospect.
I’m sure Oakland would have shown the same player courtesy. There’s a case maybe not to pitch in the cool late nights there
@Dock – minimalist haiku…
He didn’t.
Pitch at all.
In Oakland.
A’s Fan in London… How’s about some straight up prose.
I was referring to signing there now with his current health concern potential.
Very true lol
They would have just traded him around the deadline anyways and saves half the contract.
As it appears we will eventually suggest all 30 clubs, I will add the Angels to the mix.
Two weeks or so ago, I would have said the Angels already have a great pen and don’t need Rosenthal. Now, all of a sudden, that good pen is struggling. I don’t understand why, but here we are. So yeah. Why not the Angels?
Indeed. You guys reaped the benefits of the Angels bullpen struggles this past weekend.
Hard to believe Rosenthal is only 32 years old. With his history and still fairly young age I believe a team will bite and give him another MLB contract if he shows he has anything left.
I’d be more interested if his agent wasn’t PT Barnum.
I think it’s become clear that the Angels are in desperate need for bullpen help.
But can he pitch?
On paper, that Angels pen looks great. All of a sudden, it’s struggling mighty. As a Phillies fan, I can definitely tell you that bullpens are frustrating and hard to fix. You can sign all the right pieces and sometimes it just doesn’t work out.
Need to find out what the Rays’ “secret sauce” is.
Their secret sauce is never winning the World Series despite being the best regular season team
rememberthecoop;
LOL
The Rays’ “secret sauce” is that they work with a pitcher and he produces – or the pitcher goes and someone else takes the roster spot.
In 2021 they went through 27 relief pitchers – used guys that were starters out of the bullpen at times, and had 3 position players throw an inning.
I would say Boston, but that would make too much sense for them. I think he goes to Philadelphia.
The Mets should be all over him, our bullpen has been attrocious. And for those that say “What are you talking about? All the Mets relievers have ERA’s in the 3s”, ERA is misleading. Our relievers do well when we are up or down by about 5-6 runs. In close games, they all do terrible except for Diaz and Ottavino. Take Drew Smith and his 2.40 ERA for example. Every time he comes in with runners on in a close game he gives up a homerun and hes only charged with 1 earned run instead of what should be 2 or 3. They need to get Rosenthal and then swing a trade for Bednar of the Pirates if they are really serious about winning the World Series this year
Thank you. I’ve been saying how ERAs are so misleading for relief pitchers for a long time. Need to look at other data points, such as strand rate, for ex., to really get a better handle on their performance.
Ignoring ERA, the Mets bullpen is still fine. In no way is it horrific.
@lfgmets
Great analysis of our ‘pen, sir.
Drew Smith earned a shot at a more important role, but has faltered. Let him go back to his lower stress innings.
Holderman has looked really good in Smith’s old role.
Ottavino bothers me. He seems to be a lot like Familia in that he pitches himself into trouble.
Trevor May, he has just been disappointing since signing. Just fastball is way too straight and very hittable.
We are still searching for a guy to replace Loup. I don’t think it’s Shreve or Rodriguez.
Lugo is Lugo, but you can’t expect him to be Mike Marshall. Rosenthal, if healthy, would take some pressure off Lugo and allow for some days off.
Plain and simple, Rosenthal fits in this bullpen with his experience. Should Diaz stumble, he could offer an option here and there. Nothing to lose by signing him except a spot on the 40 man roster.
Things to lose by signing Rosenthal:
1. Whatever player gets jettisoned to open the spot for him.
2. The $ that his contract costs. Ask Oakland if they could have used those dollars elsewhere.
3. The respect of PT Barnum. Once Boras sells you a client, he will forever consider you the sucker.
I woundn’t mind sending Medina back to the minors and it’s worth Steve’s money if we’re buying a chance at getting a dominant reliever in the mix.
Last time he came back from injury, he wasn’t asking for that much money. I don’t think he’s going to demand more than a couple million maybe. It’s worth a shot.
Medina????? Medina just struck out the heart of the lineup of the best team in the NL in a playoff environment.
I disagree if it is as bad as you say we wouldn’t be in first place.. You’re betting on receiving the good Rosenthal not the wild Rosenthal that couldn’t get anyone out. Also T. may will be back .
.
@metvibes Exactly. Every fan thinks their bullpen is the worst. The Mets bullpen by most metrics is middle of the road. They have an excellent WHIP (top 6 in the majors). As far as Diaz goes, he’s one of the better closers in the league. This isn’t the Rivera era anymore. Every closer stumbles on occasion.
Nice cross over promotion. Having baseball players on The Price Is Right seems like a fun idea, Snoop Dogg was suspiciously good when he was on. And I know Drew is a big Guardians fan.
FU Billy Beane and a serious FU TO THE WORST OWNER IN SPORTS HISTORY, JOHN FISHER
Red Sox need to be all over him our bullpen is all over the place
This bullpen is a joke, but do you really think the FO would sign him? Of course not. Barnes can just continue to blow games. I laughed when Cora said he was hopeful Barnes could return soon.
The bullpen was impeccable last night.
Could be the Yankees replacement for Chad Green.
Why chad green? He’s been a quality guy, is he injured?
He’s done for the season. TJ surgery.
Since spring training, I was hoping the Mets would sign him. He would solidify that ‘pen and offer another experienced late game option.
Of course, Phils should be all over him, which means they won’t be.
There’s got to be several relievers available with his potential. He’s not really that good. He had a good 23 games two years ago. He’s not that likely to help anyones bullpen much.
If there are comparables out there, don’t be shy Cosmo2. Name them!
Gsellman. Basically anyone available. You are way overestimating rational expectations for Rosenthal. He’s been terribly up and down and his only recent success is a small sample size. Be as snarky as you want, what I’m saying is that Rosenthal isn’t that good.
Huh? Did you not read the article? Or watch him play before he got hurt the first time? He was a shut down closer who also did it in the post season. If he’s healthy, there’s a good chance he’s going to be very good, if not dominant.
Lyman: he was good in a small sample size in ‘20, didn’t play last year. Was TERRIBLE in ‘19, didn’t play in ‘18. That’s not a very impressive track record to me. Not in terms of future expectations.
He doesn’t have to be excellent and have a full return to his best form to help a bullpen though. Most contenders are going to look to add multiple relief arms. I don’t think teams are going to be looking at past statistical performance to make a decision. I think teams will look at the stuff at this showcase and physicals. Teams are basically shopping for 20 to 30 innings that are going to be better than what they are getting from the 5th or 6th best reliever they have. Teams that don’t have the ability to pull off multiple trades might prefer this route instead if they think the stuff can play. I don’t see a ton of risk.
If you think Rosenthal is going to be dominant you need to learn what it means when a player holds tryouts like this. He’s trying to prove he belongs at all. Dominance is not in the picture. You need to look at the stats again. He hasn’t been a shutdown closer in seven years. Dunno what sport you’re watching. He’ll be lucky to retain a job at all. The idea he’ll be dominant is a joke.
Cosmo2 is out here dropping truth bombs. You never should judge a player based on past performance, but rather what you think he’s capable of in the future.
I wouldn’t be against signing him but there are two red (or at least yellow) flags. #1 is Boras. #2 is thoracic outlet syndrome…
I’d add the lack of spring training as a 3rd. Rosenthal is a hail-mary gamble at best.
In the wise words of Bill Belichick:
“Seattle.”
Braves almost signed him last year but he went to the As so I think there in it again.
I love a good “damaged goods” sale!
Buyer beware, damaged goods. Good for a month or two.
blowsthemall, never forgotten
Does that mean *every single person* in the mall? Gonna take a while ….
do i have to break it down for you, joe?
blows them all
blown saves should be listed
If he can stay out of brothels, that would be a good start to his comeback road.
nottinghamforest13 – What are you talking about?!
Perhaps nottinghamforest13 thinks that if his team signs The Pope they’ll go to the WS this year.
Sounds like the perfect situation to join the Dodgers…
With all the need for bullpen help around the league, wonder if there is an Eckersley out there, a 31 year old seemingly on the downside coming off an 88 ERA+ 4.57ERA year as a starter that might be of better use for just one inning at a time and go on to a 5 year stretch of being one of the most dominant relievers in the game. I remember an interview after his Oakland years speaking of not having to think about fooling a hitter a 2nd or 3rd time and being able to use the full arsenal on every hitter to close. Madison Bumgarner has 5 pitches in his repitoire, and he relshes clutch situations, wonder what he would be like if he knew he only had to go one inning and could uncork everything on every batter.
I definitely see what you’re saying but Eck had a FIP of 3.45 that year. In this day and age I doubt anyone converts him, he’d actually be too valuable as a mid rotation starter. But there is definitely an idea there.
That was Smoltz too. There’s a LOT of starters with that potential. It’s just they have a lot of salary in the way too often. I thought maybe Tim Lincecum had some of that in him….but just too damaged.
As a rule of thumb, if you have to hold a showcase, you’re done. Scouts are just showing up for an expense write off
A’s Fan in London… How’s about some straight up prose.
I was referring to signing there now with his current health concern potential.