Trade Rumblings: Braves, Wilson, Martinez, Carter
The Braves are still looking at trading for an ace even after adding Bartolo Colon, R.A. Dickey and Jaime Garcia to their rotation this winter and are specifically focused on White Sox lefty Chris Sale and Rays right-hander Chris Archer, per ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick (all Twitter links). The Braves prefer Sale to Archer despite the potentially higher asking price and shorter amount of club control remaining on his contract, Crasnick adds. Atlanta is receiving quite a bit of interest in top prospect Ozzie Albies (in general and not specifically from the White Sox or Rays), Crasnick adds, but they’re expressing a good deal of reluctance to part with him. The Braves don’t seem especially enamored of Athletics right-hander Sonny Gray on the heels of a down season in 2016, according to Crasnick.
Some more trade chatter from around the league…
- The Tigers have been receiving plenty of calls about their veterans as they look to get younger and cut some payroll this winter, but MLB Network’s Jon Morosi tweets one name that has been drawing considerable interest without generating many headlines: lefty reliever Justin Wilson. Per Morosi, Detroit has “perhaps the largest number of inquiries” on Wilson as teams look to bolster their left-handed relief corps. The arbitration-eligible Wilson is projected by MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz to earn just $2.7MM next season, so he wouldn’t trim much payroll of the Tigers’ books. But, he could certainly fetch a nice prospect or two, allowing the Tigers to get a bit younger in the process. Wilson, 29, posted excellent peripherals that suggest his marginal 4.14 ERA will improve in 2017 and beyond (10.0 K/9, 2.6 BB/9, 54.9 percent ground-ball rate, 3.02 SIERA).
- Morosi also tweets that the Phillies are seeking a short-term outfield bat and have inquired with the Tigers about J.D. Martinez, but talks didn’t advance much, he notes. Martinez has been one of the most talked-about trade candidates of the offseason and seems to have a decent chance of landing elsewhere this winter, but the asking price on him is apparently quite high at the moment. Newsday’s Marc Carig reported yesterday that Michael Conforto‘s name came up in talks with the Mets before New York re-signed Yoenis Cespedes. (Unsurprisingly, talks died quickly once Detroit mentioned Conforto, per Carig.)
- The Brewers are trying to trade recently-designated-for-assignment slugger Chris Carter before tonight’s 8pm ET non-tender deadline tweets Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports. The Orioles, who just claimed a player with a potentially similar skill set in Adam Walker, aren’t likely to make a play for Carter, per Heyman (whose tweet came prior to the Walker claim). Carter’s current scenario is somewhat reminiscent of last year’s Mark Trumbo situation, as he’s a player with prodigious power that the league isn’t valuing at his arbitration number due to defensive concerns, high strikeout tendencies and a questionable on-base percentage. The Mariners were able to get a nominal return for Trumbo rather than non-tendering him, but MLB.com’s Adam McCalvy tweets that Milwaukee shopped Carter around for a month before designating him, so it seems unlikely that a trade will materialize in the next six hours.
Heyman’s Latest: Sale, Encarnacion, Astros, Martinez, Mets, Yankees, CarGo
The Nationals, Astros, Red Sox, Rangers and Braves are at the forefront of the Chris Sale market, reports FanRag’s Jon Heyman in his latest notes column. However, an exec with one of those clubs that spoke to Heyman still said he’s not sure that Sale is moved at all due to the exorbitant nature of the White Sox‘ asking price. The Nationals, for instance, have been asked for Trea Turner as part of the package but have balked at the idea, Heyman notes, with one Washington source calling the budding star “too valuable” to part with. It’s similarly difficult to envision a player like Alex Bregman or Dansby Swanson being moved for Sale as well. The White Sox do like Dodgers prospect Cody Bellinger, writes Heyman, but L.A. has yet to show a significant inclination to pursue Sale, he adds. (And, from my vantage point, the Dodgers would need to add quite a bit more than Bellinger to a Sale package anyhow.)
A few more highlights…
- The Yankees, Astros and Blue Jays all remain in the mix for Edwin Encarnacion, but Heyman joins others in writing that Twitter reports of a deal between Houston and Encarnacion were premature. The Astros are being aggressive on Encarnacion, according to Heyman, though agent Paul Kinzer told him that there are “a couple” of other teams in the mix beyond this group as well. Perhaps signaling their desire to add an impact bat, the Astros made a legitimate run at Yoenis Cespedes both this offseason and last winter, Heyman adds, noting that last winter’s pursuit flew largely under the radar.
- One general manager who has spoken to the Tigers about a J.D. Martinez trade tells Heyman that he believes Martinez is “all but certain” to be traded. Detroit, Heyman points out, is now the somewhat surprising MLB payroll leader with several Dodgers hitting free agency and with the Yankees trading Brian McCann.
- The Mets would like to add not one but two left-handed relievers to their bullpen, Heyman writes. They’re interested in a reunion with southpaw Jerry Blevins, who spent the past two seasons in the organization, but other reports have indicated that Blevins is likely to receive a multi-year deal that will exceed the Mets’ comfort zone. The Mets might also consider adding catching help, though that’s not characterized as a priority in this report, which also notes that the team considers Michael Conforto to be close to untouchable in trade talks.
- The Yankees have spoken to other teams about third baseman Chase Headley and outfielder Brett Gardner but received minimal interest in that pair. Headley has $26MM in guaranteed money remaining on his deal and quietly rebounded from a disastrous start to post a solid overall season in the Bronx last year, while Gardner is owed a similar $25MM through 2018 and also has a club option for the 2019 season on his deal. Gardner would seem to have more trade value to me, and perhaps teams would show more interest later in the winter once some of the free-agent options in the outfield have come off the board.
- There’s been no formal extension offer made by the Rockies to Carlos Gonzalez, who said last week that the team has expressed interest in an extension. According to Heyman, that could be due to the fact that initial suggestions were deemed “too low” by Gonzalez’s camp to even merit an official offer. CarGo is just one year away from free agency and could be an appealing trade piece for the Rox this summer if the team doesn’t contend in 2017.
NL East Notes: Mets, Volquez, Hammel, Marlins, Nationals
The Braves have already grabbed headlines tonight by acquiring lefty Jaime Garcia from the Cardinals in a four-player trade, but here are a few other notes from around the division…
- While domestic violence charges against Mets closer Jeurys Familia may soon be dropped, that doesn’t mean he won’t face league discipline. That possibility must be considered by the organization as it charts its offseason, GM Sandy Alderson says, as ESPNNewYork.com’s Adam Rubin reports. Of course, it still seems unlikely that the club will be motivated to spend big on a new late-inning arm, particularly with Addison Reed capable of filling in for the ninth inning after an excellent 2016 season. It’s possible that a reliever, or perhaps some array of young talent, could end up moving to New York if (or, more likely, when) the team deals one of its left-handed-hitting corner outfielders, MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo reports. The Mets’ strong preference is still to trade Jay Bruce rather than Curtis Granderson; it seems that the latter player may be expected to share time in center with Juan Lagares.
- Alderson also said in an appearance on MLB Network Radio today (Twitter link) that he’d be “surprised” if the Mets got involved with a top-level center fielder in free agency due not only to the draft pick they’d have to forfeit (referring to Dexter Fowler and Ian Desmond) and also due to the fact that the team has other needs on the roster. Following the re-signing of Yoenis Cespedes, the Mets are looking to move an outfielder, with reports indicating that Jay Bruce is the name they hope to shed. However, Curtis Granderson is reportedly drawing more interest, and FanRag’s Jon Heyman reports that the Orioles are among the teams with interest in Granderson (Twitter link). Baltimore doesn’t appear to have much interest in Bruce, however, he adds.
- The Braves put in a strong pursuit of righty Edinson Volquez before he went to the Marlins, ESPN’s Buster Olney tweeted yesterday. The team’s interest in Volquez came after it had already landed both R.A. Dickey and Bartolo Colon, but the Braves have been said to be focused on acquiring short-term assets in the rotation or front-of-the-rotation arms that would require enormous trade packages. As such, it’s possible that Atlanta only had interest in Volquez on a one-year deal, but he received two years and $22MM from the Marlins. Atlanta acted quickly to grab another short-term rotation commodity with tonight’s Garcia trade.
- The Marlins, too, still appear to be shopping for arms, as Heyman reports that they have potential interest in free-agent right-handers Jason Hammel and Doug Fister. The Fish are also looking for bullpen help, Heyman notes, which has been a priority in Miami for much of the offseason. Tim Healey of the Miami Sun-Sentinel writes that Miami is hoping to keep right-hander David Phelps in the bullpen following his dominance in that role in 2016. “Ideally, if we can keep a deep bullpen, we can keep him as that multi-inning effective bridge to the back-end guys,” said president of baseball ops Michael Hill to Healey. “He impacts more games for us that way. But we know he has the versatility if he has to move into the rotation to do that seamlessly and not miss a beat.”
- The Nationals are still looking for a closer, tweets Heyman, but it’s likely that they consider Aroldis Chapman to be too expensive. The Nats are interested in a reunion with Mark Melancon, however, he notes, adding that Washington “loved” Melancon’s clubhouse presence in his short stint with the team following a trade-deadline rental this past summer.
Braves Acquire Jaime Garcia
6:04pm: Both teams have announced the trade via press release.
5:20pm: The Braves have been one of the most active teams of the offseason thus far, and that continued on Thursday as the team reportedly struck a deal to acquire veteran lefty Jaime Garcia from the Cardinals in exchange for minor league infielder Luke Dykstra and young right-handers John Gant and Chris Ellis.
[Related: Updated St. Louis Cardinals Depth Chart and Atlanta Braves Depth Chart]
Garcia, 30, has long been a steady member of the Cardinals’ rotation but struggled a bit in 2016, working to a career-worst 4.67 ERA with 7.9 K/9, 3.9 BB/9 and a very strong 56.7 percent ground-ball rate in 171 2/3 innings. He’s controllable only through the 2017 season, as the Cardinals exercised his $12MM option at season’s end. Despite the fact that St. Louis picked up that option, though, trading Garcia has long seemed like a highly plausible outcome. The Cards already have Carlos Martinez, Adam Wainwright, Mike Leake and Alex Reyes in the fold in addition to right-handers Michael Wacha and Lance Lynn returning from injuries.
As for the Braves, Garcia will be the third veteran arm they’ve added to their rotation already this winter. He’ll join fellow newcomers Bartolo Colon and R.A. Dickey in the Braves’ rotation behind right-handers Julio Teheran and Mike Foltynewicz. Like Colon and Dickey, Garcia is a one-year commitment that can function as a reasonable stopgap to upper-level arms in the Braves system like Sean Newcomb while also give young righties Aaron Blair and Matt Wisler, who have struggled in the Majors, additional time to develop in Triple-A.
Despite Garcia’s 2016 struggles, he’ll bring to the Braves a career 3.57 ERA with 7.3 K/9, 2.6 BB/9 and a 56.5 percent ground-ball rate in 896 innings as a Major Leaguer. Shoulder injuries have limited him throughout his career, and he missed time with a groin strain as well in 2016, but he’s averaged 151 innings in 2015-16 and made a total of 50 starts in that time.
While the Braves have been connected to Chris Sale and other front-of-the-rotation names in trade chatter, the addition of Garcia lessens the chances of that hope becoming a reality for Atlanta fans, though it doesn’t eliminate the possibility. Both Mark Bowman of MLB.com and Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports note (Twitter links) that the Braves still intend to pursue front-line starters. The rotation certainly looks full at the moment, but it’s possible that as a young right-hander with a fair bit of MLB experience under his belt, Foltynewicz himself could be added to a trade package to help bring in a significant upgrade (though that’s merely speculation).
Each of Ellis (No. 17), Gant (No. 21) and Dykstra (No. 29) appeared on MLB.com’s midseason list of the Braves’ Top 30 prospects. Ellis, who turned 24 in September, was acquired with Newcomb in last year’s Andrelton Simmons trade. The former third-rounder posted a strong 2.75 ERA in 78 innings at the Double-A level this year, averaging 7.0 strikeouts against 4.0 walks per nine innings before moving up to the Triple-A level. He struggled in 67 2/3 innings with Triple-A Gwinnett, though, working to a 6.52 ERA. He did register an improved 8.6 K/9 mark, though he also averaged 6.9 walks per nine innings there as well. MLB.com’s report on Ellis notes that he has the size, strength and repertoire to become a No. 4 starter with three average to above-average offerings but slightly below-average command.
Gant, also 24, was acquired from the Mets in the 2015 Kelly Johnson/Juan Uribe trade and made his MLB debut last year, totaling 50 innings with a 4.86 ERA. Gant logged 49 strikeouts against 21 walks with a 42.1 percent ground-ball rate. He also worked to a 4.18 ERA with better than a strikeout per inning in 56 Triple-A innings. Jonathan Mayo and Jim Callis of MLB.com call Gant’s fastball, changeup and curveball each an average offering but also note that he has a tremendous feel for pitching. Nonetheless, they peg his ceiling as a back-end starter, albeit one that could conceivably join the Cardinals’ staff immediately out of Spring Training if necessary.
Dykstra, the son of former Mets/Phillies outfielder Lenny Dykstra, is a 21-year-old middle infielder that the Braves plucked with their seventh-round pick back in 2014. He went through his second stint in the Class-A South Atlantic League in 2016, hitting .304/.332/.363 with no homers and seven stolen bases in 81 games. Callis and Mayo call him a fringe defender with an average arm and note the he hasn’t shown any power to this point in his career, but his hit tool draws strong marks — and that skill is reflected in his career .300/.335/.385 batting line through parts of three minor league seasons.
ESPN’s Mark Saxon first reported that Garcia had been traded to the Braves. FanRag’s Jon Heyman reported (on Twitter) that three prospects were going to St. Louis in exchange. Joel Sherman of the New York Post reported that Dykstra and Ellis were in the deal (Twitter link). SB Nation’s Chris Cotillo reported Gant was the third piece (Twitter link).
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Braves Avoid Arbitration With Tuffy Gosewisch
TODAY: Gosewisch will earn $635K, Jon Heyman of Fan Rag tweets. His contract entitled him to either $625K or $100K over the new league-minimum rate, which has been set at $535K.
YESTERDAY: The Braves have struck a deal to avoid arbitration with catcher Tuffy Gosewisch, according to a team announcement. Terms of the deal were not announced; MLBTR projects him to command a $600K salary.
Atlanta just claimed Gosewisch off waivers from the Diamondbacks, suggesting that the team would look to hammer out a deal with him. It remains unclear just what this means for the team’s backstop mix. Tyler Flowers remains on the books and Anthony Recker is also eligible for arbitration.
Gosewisch, 33, has seen time in each of the last four major league campaigns. He has slashed just .199/.237/.286, with five home runs, but he’s obviously regarded as a trustworthy presence behind the plate. It’s fair to note, too, that Gosewisch hit a robust .342/.399/.553 in his 219 Triple-A plate appearances in 2016.
Braves Sign Sean Rodriguez
After acting quickly to add some stable innings to their rotation early this offseason, the Braves have bolstered their bench by signing infielder/outfielder Sean Rodriguez to a two-year deal, the team announced on Wednesday (confirming last week’s reports of his signing). Rodriguez will reportedly receive a guaranteed $11MM in the form of a $1.5MM signing bonus and annual salaries of $5MM in the 2017-18 seasons.
[Related: Updated Atlanta Braves Depth Chart]
Rodriguez, 32 next April, enjoyed a career year with the Pirates in 2016, hitting .270/.349/.510 with a career-best 18 home runs in 342 trips to the plate. A versatile right-handed hitter, Rodriguez spent more than 100 innings at shortstop, second base, first base and in the corner outfield, and he’s also no stranger to playing third base, with 652 Major League innings at the hot corner under his belt. Defensive metrics typically rate Rodriguez as an above-average contributor at second base and passable at the infield and outfield corners.
Rodriguez may not have one set position where he fits as a starter in Atlanta, but he could still play four to five times per week by spelling others and giving manager Brian Snitker a platoon option at multiple positions. Rodriguez will give the Braves a right-handed complement to Jace Peterson at second base while Ozzie Albies recovers from an elbow fracture and continues his development in the minor leagues. He can also see some action in right field against tougher lefties if the Braves want to limit Nick Markakis‘ appearances against southpaws on the heels of a .243/.303/.309 line against lefties. At third base, meanwhile, Adonis Garcia is the favorite for playing time but has just 761 MLB plate appearances (with a 95 wRC+) and will turn 32 next spring. Rodriguez can act as a safety net at the hot corner as well, and his ability to play all over the diamond will give the team an experienced fill-in at virtually any position other than center field or catcher in the event of an injury.
While Rodriguez himself doesn’t come with an especially consistent track record, he’s been above or near the league average in three of the past four seasons, per OPS+, and most of his year-to-year fluctuations at the plate have come against right-handed opponents. Dating back to the 2012 season, he’s hit lefties at a solid .243/.334/.404 clip. And it’s fair to note that, while he enjoyed a lofty .344 BABIP last year, he did so with a lofty 43.1% hard-hit rate that was sixth-best in all of baseball among players with at least 300 plate appearances. Those numbers are hardly dominant, but given his modest salaries, Rodriguez need only perform as a sturdy bench option to for Atlanta to find good value in this deal.
Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports first reported the agreement (Twitter link). FanRag’s Jon Heyman provided the financial breakdown (also on Twitter).
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Braves Acquire Alex Jackson
The Braves have struck a deal to acquire outfield prospect Alex Jackson from the Mariners, per club announcements. Righties Rob Whalen and Max Povse are headed to Seattle in the deal, in which Atlanta will also pick up a player to be named later. The Mariners designated righty Ryan Weber to create 40-man roster space.
Jackson, the sixth overall pick in the 2014 draft, is still just twenty years old and has only played two professional seasons. But GM Jerry Dipoto — who wasn’t at the helm in Seattle when Jackson was selected — evidently didn’t see enough evidence of his future potential.
Despite a tough 2015 debut year, Jackson received some top-100 leaguewide billing entering the 2016 campaign. He did show some improvement at the Class A level, but ended with a relatively meager .243/.332/.408 batting line and 11 home runs over 381 plate appearances. Jackson also went down on strikeouts 103 times while drawing 34 walks.
[RELATED: Updated Braves & Mariners Depth Charts]
Whalen, 22, received his first five major league starts last year, allowing a 18 earned runs and a dozen walks but also limiting opposing batters to twenty base hits while compiling a healthy 25 strikeouts. He was much better in his first attempt at the upper minors, too. Across 120 total frames split between Double-A and Triple-A, Whalen compiled a 2.40 ERA with 8.4 K/9 and 3.3 BB/9. The righty originally came to Atlanta from the Mets along with John Gant in the 2015 deadline deal for Kelly Johnson and Juan Uribe.
Though Whalen figures to play a role in Seattle’s pitching depth, Povse may be the real get here for the M’s. The 23-year-old is a consistent strike thrower despite his 6’8 frame. Working last year at the High-A and Double-A levels, he ran up 158 innings of 3.36 ERA pitching with 7.9 K/9 against 1.7 BB/9 — though his strikeout numbers drooped following his promotion.
In adding two players to their roster, the Mariners had to clear a spot. That will mean exposing the 26-year-old Weber to waivers. Actually, Weber landed in Seattle from Atlanta earlier this month through a waiver claim after providing 64 2/3 innings to the Braves over the last two seasons. Though he’s also a low-walk hurler, having averaged just 1.5 free passes per nine in the majors, he has managed only a 5.15 ERA in the bigs while logging 5.8 K/9. Weber has posted sub-3.00 earned run averages in the upper minors in each of the past two seasons, while working mostly in a relief capacity.
East Notes: Yankees, Rodriguez, Rays
The Yankees are in the closing stages of Hal Steinbrenner’s rebuilding plan, and they should not deviate from it now, Joel Sherman of the New York Post writes. That means they must give young players the opportunities they need, both in the minors and in the big leagues. Sherman cites the example of Aaron Judge, a flawed but interesting player who might need extensive development time in the Majors before he hits his ceiling. The Yankees have a number of big-league players, like Greg Bird, Luis Severino and Luis Cessa, who will also require patience to develop, along with a very talented group of minor leaguers. Sherman notes that teams like the Cubs and Red Sox made their aggressive pushes only when it was clear they had a core of young talent that was ready to help. The Yankees should also be looking to accumulate financial flexibility, so that, in a couple years, when they’re a bit older and players like Bryce Harper, Manny Machado, Josh Donaldson and Shohei Otani are available as free agents, the Yankees will be in the best possible position to add them to their own strong core. Here’s more from the East divisions.
- Sean Rodriguez‘s big step forward last year was propelled by changes he made to his plate discipline against righties and to his launch angles, Eno Sarris of FanGraphs writes. Even if he doesn’t retain all of his 2016 improvement next season, though, he’s a good match for the Braves, Sarris opines. Rodriguez’s abilities to hit lefties and play several positions give the Braves platoon options at second base (with Jace Peterson) and the outfield (with Nick Markakis). Also, the relatively cheap $11.5 million guarantee limits the Braves’ downside if Rodriguez fails to live up to his surprising 2016 performance.
- The Rays haven’t yet made any significant moves this offseason, and some of the deals made by other teams might have thwarted them to a degree, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times suggests. Jason Castro and Brett Cecil stood out as potential fits for the Rays, but other teams signed them at relatively high costs. GM Erik Neander, though, says the opportunities available later in the offseason might turn out to be better for the Rays. “Early offseason signings are typically the result of a very competitive market for those players,” says Neander. “Sometimes it’s difficult to contend with that, but not always. Our job is to be prepared, try to do our evaluations correctly, wait for the right opportunity to arise and be in position to strike when it does.”
Minor MLB Transactions: 11/25/16
The latest minor moves from around the game, with the newest transactions at the top of the post…
- First baseman Balbino Fuenmayor has signed on with the Braves on a minor league deal, his agents at True Gravity tweeted. The former Blue Jays and Royals farmhand, who’ll turn 27 tomorrow, didn’t quite repeat his impressive 2015 season, in which he hit a robust .358/.384/.589 with 17 home runs over 378 plate appearances in the upper minors. Taking his first full-season crack at Triple-A, Fuenmayor managed a much more pedestrian .291/.325/.405 output with just a half-dozen dingers in 381 trips to the plate. He continued to post rather drastic platoon splits, and this time around posted a middling .626 OPS against righties. Fuenmayor is still looking for his first chance at major league action.
- The Mariners have signed catcher Steven Baron to a new minor league contract, Bob Dutton of the Tacoma News Tribune reports. Baron, 25, is back in the fold after the M’s designated him for assignment and released him earlier this month. He played 67 of his 68 games in 2016 at Double-A Jackson. Baron has a .234/.291/.341 slash line over 2179 career minor league plate appearances since Seattle took him 33rd overall in the 2009 draft, and the catcher also played in four big league games in 2015.
Trade Rumors: Braun, Greinke, Vogt
Some rumblings about major names who may or may not be shopped this offseason…
- Ryan Braun is struggling with the uncertainty of knowing whether the Brewers will trade him this offseason, according to the Associated Press. “Not knowing 100 percent where [I’ll] be playing is hard. It definitely complicates things,” he said. Brewers GM David Stearns, for his part, said he doesn’t have a trade involving Braun in the works. “I know that’s a big story this offseason, but I’m very happy that Ryan is a member of the Milwaukee Brewers. I expect him to be a member of the Milwaukee Brewers going forward,” Stearns said. Of course, the Brewers have already traded a long string of veterans as they’ve rebuilt, and Braun (who currently has 9.129 years of big-league service time) will acquire full no-trade protection after achieving 10-and-5 rights early in the 2017 season. There were also reported talks last summer about a deal that would have sent Braun to the Dodgers.
- Zack Greinke‘s massive contract leaves Diamondbacks GM Mike Hazen without much payroll space to work with, leaving ESPN.com’s Buster Olney (subscription required) to wonder whether Hazen can convince ownership to deal Greinke. Despite Greinke’s off year in 2016, Olney argues that he still has value to other teams, though the D’Backs will have to eat some money to make a deal happen (something ownership wasn’t willing to do in brief talks with the Dodgers last summer). If Greinke struggles again in 2017, however, then his value will plummet and the contract could become a total albatross for Hazen and the team.
- With the Braves looking for catching, the Athletics‘ Stephen Vogt makes some sense as a trade target but David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution (Twitter links) isn’t sure about a fit. The Braves prioritize game-calling and framing behind the plate, which is why they were pursuing Jason Castro before he signed with the Twins. Baseball Prospectus ranked Vogt near the bottom of the league in terms of both framing and blocking runs last season, so O’Brien isn’t sure Atlanta would offer much for Vogt despite his solid bat.