AL Central Notes: No. 1 Pick, White Sox, Karns, Gose
2017/05/al-central-notes-no-1-pick-white-sox-karns-gose.htmlGreene has drawn quite a bit of fanfare over the past calendar year, due largely to his ability to reach triple digits with his fastball. … The Twins are leaning toward passing on high school right-hander/shortstop Hunter Greene with the top overall pick in the upcoming MLB draft, writes Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports.
Athletics Place Sean Doolittle On 10-Day DL, Designate Cesar Valdez
2017/05/athletics-place-sean-doolittle-on-10-day-dl-designate-cesar-valdez.html18 prospect, per MLB.com) will bring an upper-90s heater that occasionally reaches triple digits to the Oakland 'pen. … "We've seen this over the course of the last couple of years, that when this pops up, we need to be careful with him," said Melvin.
AL Notes: Mariners, Astros, Twins, White Sox
2017/01/al-notes-mariners-astros-twins-white-sox.htmlDiaz, a reliever capable of hitting triple digits on the radar gun, tossed 60 1/3 innings at the Low-A level last season. … While Mariners outfielder Mitch Haniger wasn't the headliner in the November trade that saw him go from Arizona to Seattle, the M's have high hopes for the 26-year-old, writes Bob Dutton of the Tacoma News Tribune.
Marlins Acquire Dan Straily
2017/01/reds-trade-dan-straily-marlins.htmlThe hard-throwing righty is said to have a fastball that can touch triple digits and sits in the upper 90s, and he's fresh off an excellent season with Miami's Class-A Advanced affiliate in the Florida State League (plus a brief Double-A appearance late in the year). … The trade represents a significant flip for the Reds, who acquired Straily free of cost when they claimed him off waivers from the Padres last spring.
Minor MLB Transactions: 1/18/17
2017/01/marlins-sign-brandon-cunniff-minors.htmlCordier has long battled control issues but has shown a consistent ability to hit triple digits with his fastball in the past. … The Pirates have announced the signing of first baseman/outfielder Joey Terdoslavich to a minor-league deal that includes an invitation to MLB camp.
Free Agent Faceoff: Boone Logan vs. Jerry Blevins
2016/12/free-agent-faceoff-boone-logan-vs-jerry-blevins.htmlIt has been a good year to be a left-handed reliever on the free-agent market -- even if your name isn't Aroldis Chapman and you don't work routinely in the triple digits with your fastball. … Brett Cecil and the Cardinals kicked things off with a four-year, $30.5MM pact that even includes no-trade protection.
Poll: Boston’s Catcher Of The Future
2016/12/poll-bostons-catcher-of-the-future.htmlBA's most recent scouting report on Vazquez cites "sneaky" pop that could yield an annual home-run total in the low double digits, and he did hit 18 homers at Class-A back in 2011, though that's the lone pro season in which he's demonstrated significant power, and it's quite a ways in the rear-view mirror at this point. … His outfield experiment is seemingly over, meaning he'll return to his original position of catcher and remain there exclusively for the foreseeable future.
Padres Have Held Talks With Jake Peavy
2016/12/padres-have-held-talks-with-jake-peavy.htmlThough he sat at a personal low of 88.9 mph with his average fastball, Peavy's swinging-strike rate rebounded to double digits (10.5%) for the first time since 2009. … The Padres have held discussions with free-agent righty Jake Peavy about a possible reunion, according to Dennis Lin of the San Diego Union-Tribune.
Red Sox Acquire Chris Sale In Exchange For Yoan Moncada, Michael Kopech, Two Others
2016/12/red-sox-to-acquire-chris-sale.htmlNonetheless, Kopech regularly works in the triple digits with his fastball and reached Class-A Advanced as a 20-year-old in 2016, where he pitched to a dominant 2.25 ERA with 14.2 K/9, 5.0 BB/9 and a 42 percent ground-ball rate. … In one of the biggest Winter Meeting blockbusters in recent history, the Red Sox and White Sox have announced a trade that will send Chris Sale from Chicago to Boston in exchange for prospects Yoan Moncada, Michael Kopech, Luis Alexander Basabe and Victor Diaz.
Rockies Looking To Upgrade Bullpen
2016/10/rockies-looking-to-upgrade-bullpen.htmlMcGee's average four-seam fastball velocity also fell to 93.4 after sitting at 96.4 just two years ago, as Saunders notes, and his swinging strike percentage that was comfortably in the double digits from 2012-15 plummeted to 8.6 this season. … "I think that we are going to do everything that we need to do in the offseason to see if there are ways to making us better in the ‘pen," Bridich told Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post.
Padres Promote Margot, Renfroe, Hedges, Asuaje
2016/09/padres-promote-margot-renfroe-hedges-asuaje.htmlthough MLB.com's report on him does mention his "surprising" pop and give him a chance to crack double digits in homers. … With the Triple-A postseason now complete, the Padres announced late Tuesday night that they have promoted top outfield prospects Hunter Renfroe and Manuel Margot as well as catcher Austin Hedges, second baseman Carlos Asuaje and lefties Buddy Baumann and Jose Torres in a final wave of September call-ups.
Marlins Designate Bryan Morris
2016/09/marlins-designate-bryan-morris.htmlMorris suffered a velocity drop this year, fell into single digits in swinging strike rate for the first time, and also lost some grounders over his 17 2/3 frames. … The 29-year-old has missed most of the year after undergoing back surgery.
Cardinals Place Michael Wacha On DL, Promote Alex Reyes
2016/08/alex-reyes-promoted-cardinals-wacha-dl.htmlReyes, 21, rates as one of the game's top overall pitching prospects in the eyes of Baseball America, MLB.com, Baseball Prospectus and ESPN thanks largely to a fastball that touches triple digits, a very highly regarded curveball and a solid third offering in his changeup. … The Cardinals announced today that they've placed right-hander Michael Wacha on the 15-day disabled list due to inflammation in his right shoulder and purchased the contract of top prospect Alex Reyes to fill Wacha's spot on the roster.
Mariners Acquire Arquimedes Caminero From Pirates
2016/08/mariners-acquire-arquimedes-caminero-from-pirates.htmlThe 29-year-old Caminero is one of baseball's hardest throwers -- his average fastball velocity this season has been 97.7 MPH, and he routinely touches triple digits. … MLB.com's Adam Berry suggests (via Twitter) that Caminero's departure could clear space in the bullpen for Jeff Locke, who could be bumped from the rotation in favor of a younger option like Chad Kuhl, Steven Brault or Tyler Glasnow.
Nationals Acquire Mark Melancon
2016/07/nationals-to-acquire-mark-melancon.htmlHe works in the 91 to 92 mph range with his average fastball and carries a swinging strike rate in the low-double digits. … 3:54pm: FanRag's Jon Heyman reports that the Pirates sent about $500K to the Nationals as part of the deal (Twitter link).
Nationals To Promote Reynaldo Lopez
2016/07/nationals-to-promote-reynaldo-lopez.htmlLopez complements a mid-90s fastball that can touch triple digits with a powerful, whiff-inducing curveball and a still-developing changeup, per BA (subscription required), which notes that he has dealt with inconsistencies in his delivery and must throw more quality strikes. … The Nationals are promoting right-handed pitching prospect Reynaldo Lopez to the majors, reports Jesse Sanchez of MLB.com (on Twitter).
Steven Matz, Noah Syndergaard Both Pitching With Bone Spurs
2016/06/steven-matz-diagnosed-with-bone-spur-in-left-elbow.htmlThough Syndergaard was working in the triple digits in his outing against the Nationals, he seemed to be struggling with control. … Though he denied that in his comments after his start tonight, multiple other reports suggest that it is indeed an issue, and Mike Puma of the New York Post tweets that the club is not acknowledging the spur at the pitcher's preference.
Mariners Sign Tom Wilhelmsen
2016/06/mariners-to-sign-tom-wilhelmsen.htmlWorking off of a fastball sitting at 95, his slider and curve drove a swinging strike rate that consistently ran into the double digits. … The Mariners have officially agreed to a contract with right-hander Tom Wilhelmsen, as Bob Dutton of the Tacoma News Tribune first reported.
Marlins To Sign Craig Breslow To Minors Deal
2016/02/marlins-to-sign-craig-breslow-to-minors-deal.htmlAnd he boosted his swinging strike rate into double digits for the first time since 2012. … Though he had kicked around the idea of seeking a starting opportunity, Breslow will reportedly chase a pen slot in Miami.
Dodgers To Re-Sign Howie Kendrick
2016/01/dodgers-finalizing-deal-with-howie-kendrick.htmlIt's been a while since Kendrick put up his career best of 18 long balls, but he's a reasonable bet to approach or exceed double digits in that area. … The Dodgers have reached agreement on a two-year deal with second baseman Howie Kendrick, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (Twitter links).
Twins Avoid Arbitration With Kevin Jepsen
2016/01/twins-avoid-arbitration-with-kevin-jepsen.htmlThen again, his swinging strike rate was still in the double-digits, and he still ran up his fastball at a sturdy 94.5 mph average. … While the season was a success on the whole, it wasn't all roses: Jepsen's K rate dropped (he had struck out better than a batter per inning in each of the prior two campaigns) and he lost just over one full tick on his average heater.
Yankees Acquire Aroldis Chapman
2015/12/yankees-aroldis-chapman-trade-reds.htmlthrows strikes but doesn't command the pitches within the strike zone) and could be best suited for a relief role, where his velocity could approach triple digits. … After months of trying to add a third dominant reliever to their bullpen, the Yankees on Monday announced the acquisition of left-hander Aroldis Chapman from the Reds in exchange for a quartet of minor leaguers.
Phillies To Sign Ernesto Frieri To Minors Deal
2015/12/phillies-to-sign-ernesto-frieri-to-minors-deal.htmlHis swinging strike numbers have unsurprisingly also plummeted, landing in the single digits for the first time ever last year. … The Phillies have agreed to sign free agent righty Ernesto Frieri to a minor league pact, Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com reports on Twitter.
Free Agent Profile: Yoenis Cespedes
2015/12/free-agent-profile-yoenis-cespedes.htmlAnother indicator of the qualify of contact is the infield fly, and Cespedes dropped to single digits in that mark for the first time ever. … There's no denying that Cespedes just put up a full season of superstar production.
Red Sox Acquire Craig Kimbrel
2015/11/red-sox-to-acquire-craig-kimbrel.htmlHis power is still developing, but Margot has shown the ability to tally in the double digits over a full season (2014) and swiped 39 bags last year. … It's a stunning move for new president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski, whose club will now have both Kimbrel and ace reliever Koji Uehara to lock down the late innings.