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East Links: Pastornicky, Braves, Sabathia, Mets, Sox

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Dan Uggla’s role with the Braves is becoming increasingly smaller, as MLB.com’s Mark Bowman writes that Tyler Pastornicky will be given the opportunity to serve as Atlanta’s everyday second baseman. Pastornicky has just two hits in 17 at-bats this season but has a solid Triple-A track record. Should he falter, the Braves also have Tommy La Stella waiting in the wings at Triple-A, though his strong OBP (.379) has been accompanied by a notable power outage, as he’s slugging just .328 with a .039 ISO. More from the game’s Eastern divisions…

  • Within that same notebook piece, Bowman notes that the Braves will utilize a six-man rotation at least through next week. Manager Fredi Gonzalez doesn’t like the idea, but the team feels it has little choice with six starting options that are throwing so well. The manager did concede that the six-man grouping might help later in the year by limiting the workload on Alex Wood and Gavin Floyd.
  • The Star Ledger’s Jorge Castillo reports that CC Sabathia’s visit to Dr. James Andrews confirmed that there’s no structural damage in his knee. The Yankees are hopeful that Sabathia will be able to return as soon as he is eligible to help an injury-plagued pitching staff.
  • Bud Selig isn’t concerned over reports that partial Mets owner Saul Katz is looking to sell his shares of the team, writes Christian Red of the New York Daily News. “
  • Jon Heyman of CBS Sports asked Red Sox chairman Tom Werner if the team is committed to using a Will Middlebrooks/Xander Bogaerts tandem on the left side of the infield and was told “for the moment” (Twitter link).

Minor Moves: Kottaras, Getz, Greene

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Here are the day’s minor moves:

  • Indians catcher George Kottaras has accepted his assignment to Triple-A, the club announced. He had the right to elect free agency, but will instead stay with the Cleveland organization.
  • Second baseman Chris Getz has cleared waivers and been outrighted to Triple-A, according to a tweet from the Blue Jays’ top affiliate announcing his activation (hat tip to MLB.com’s Gregor Chisholm). The 30-year-old has played in over 450 MLB games in parts of seven seasons, but saw action in just ten contests this year for Toronto before being cleared from the 40-man. Getz will pick back up in the upper minors with a .309/.382/.338 triple-slash (with 6 stolen bases) through 76 plate appearances.
  • The Braves have signed outfielder Justin Greene to a minor league deal, according to the MLB transactions page. Greene, a 28-year-old career farmhand, reached the Triple-A level with the White Sox organization in 2011 and 2012, but managed only a .244/.310/.395 line in 301 plate appearances there. Greene had a solid season for the Diamondbacks’ Double-A affiliate last year (.308/.377/.413 with 31 stolen bases), but was off to a rough .174/.245/.239 start in his first 102 trips to the plate in 2014.
  • As reflected in MLBTR’s DFA Tracker, Carlos Marmol (Marlins) is the only player currently in DFA limbo. George Kottaras (Indians) is still deciding whether or not to accept his outright assignment.

NL East Notes: Marlins, Alderson, Flores, Nats, Uggla

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In his latest piece for FOX Sports, Rob Neyer examines the hot starts of both the Marlins and Rockies to see if either club can sustain its success and make a playoff run. While Miami’s trio of Jose Fernandez, Nate Eovaldi and Henderson Alvarez is imposing, he also points out that the club’s hitters are playing over their heads. A year after finishing last in the Majors in scoring, Miami is second in the NL in runs after adding Jarrod Saltalamacchia, Garrett Jones and Casey McGehee but doing little else. As for Colorado, they’ve posted the NL’s lowest strikeout-to-walk ratio, and it’s tough to buy the starts of Charlie Blackmon and Brandon Barnes, Neyer believes.

More links pertaining to the Senior Circuit’s Eastern division…

  • Though the perception is that Omar Minaya left a mess in New York for Mets GM Sandy Alderson, Joel Sherman of the New York Post writes that the remnants of that mess are keeping the Mets afloat. He states that one could argue the team’s best players this season were acquired during Minaya’s tenure. Sherman calls Matt Harvey Minaya’s “parting gift” to the team, adding that the trades of Carlos Beltran and R.A. Dickey were made possible because Minaya’s regime brought them in to begin with. He notes that “this is not a final report card” as Alderson hasn’t been in charge long enough for a total transformation, but also points out that none of Alderson’s draftees have made the Majors yet.
  • Baseball America’s Matt Eddy profiles Wilmer Flores for Mets fans as the team prepares to install him in its infield, noting that his bat is his ticket to the Major Leagues, but fans shouldn’t expect him to come close to replicating the .318/.357/.524 batting line he’s compiled in the PCL. He also has defensive flaws, as “his slow first step and well-below-average speed make him an imperfect fit at any spot but first base,” says Eddy.
  • The Nationals have weathered injuries to Bryce Harper, Doug Fister and Wilson Ramos in large par due to a dominant bullpen, writes the Washington Post’s Adam Kilgore. Kilgore notes that offseason acquisition Jerry Blevins has been dominant to this point, and indeed, Blevins has a sub-3.00 ERA with the best strikeout rate (11.15 K/9) of his career in this season’s small sample.
  • Despite his well-documented struggles, Dan Uggla isn’t likely to be released by the Braves, writes MLB.com’s Mark Bowman. The Braves don’t appear comfortable biting the bullet on his remaining $24MM, but they also aren’t comfortable with him as their starting second baseman. Atlanta is likely to evaluate its other options — Ramiro Pena and Tyler Pastornicky — in the coming weeks before turning to prospect Tommy La Stella for assistance, adds Bowman.

Braves Expect Major Revenue Boost From Reworked TV Deal

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While prior reports have indicated that the Braves re-negotiated aspects of their oft-bemoaned television rights package, the magnitude of the impact remained unknown until today, as Tim Tucker of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports. Greg Maffei, the CEO of Liberty Media (the Braves’ publicly-held corporate owner), said on a quarterly conference call today that the renegotiated contracts would add “probably in the order of $500MM of incremental revenue over the life of the contracts of value to us.”

The original set of contracts was never fully publicized, but were often referred to — even by team executives — as sub-market in comparison to the more recent mega-deals being locked up around the league. “They were at-market deals when they were done, but the market has changed,” team chairman and CEO Terry McGuirk said in early 2012. “We will have to look elsewhere for the increases that we will need in revenue to continue to build this franchise. It’s what the owners at the time decided to do, so we have to live with it.” While the situation may not have been crippling, it imposed an obvious limitation on the team’s spending capacity.

It now appears that the Braves will not have to live with those out-of-date TV revenue streams — for the most part. Maffei noted in his remarks that the original contracts ran through 2027, but did not specify the timeline of the reworked terms. A key aspect of the ultimate, bottom-line impact of the renegotiation thus remains unknown; as Maffei said, the estimated $500MM revenue boost is a sum that will be spread across the still-unreported “life of the contracts.” Much as in the case of a pre-arb player giving up future free agent seasons, it seems implicit that the Braves may have sacrificed some future years to find relief from a set of deals that reportedly included no mechanisms to force a renegotiation.

For some context, consider that the Phillies’ recent TV deal came in at $2.5B over 25 years (and also gave the Phils certain equity and ad revenue rights). As I explained at the time, that contract (unsurprisingly) did not spread that revenue evenly, but rather increased it year-over-year. From a present-value perspective, of course, the greater future annual payouts would take a larger hit. Likewise, in the Braves case, Maffei hinted at a similar situation. Calling the reworked rights situation “very positive,” he noted that it “adds a lot of value even on a present value basis to the Braves.”

Even if the down-the-line earning potential is not a full half-billion dollars in today’s money, though, it is clear that the impact on the club’s bottom line is substantial. If nothing else, that $500MM figure represents a solid 20% of the total rights fees achieved in the Phillies deal, which seems impressive given the limitations facing the organization.

And, of course, we know that Atlanta has already embarked on a rather remarkable extension spree. In the first five months of 2014, Atlanta has guaranteed over $300MM to six already-controlled players over a total of 30 seasons. Prior to this run of new deals, the Braves had not extended a player with less than five years of service during the six-year term of GM Frank Wren. The team also paid up for Ervin Santana at the last minute after an early spate of pitching injuries threatened the chances of contention this year.

It would appear, then, that at least some payroll impact has already been felt. The club had carried a payroll in the low-to-mid $90MM level since breaking nine figures back in 2008, but that mark jumped to over $112MM for 2014. And the team’s future salary obligations, which stood at 24th in the league heading into the offseason, have increased more than five-fold in the meantime. (As I noted at that time, the Braves had among the lowest ratios of future commitments to recent high payroll.)

Of course, the television component is only part of the overall picture. When Atlanta’s recent spending began, it seemed that the primary driver was the recently-announced Cobb County ballpark and development project. Maffei acknowledged the role of that deal as well, saying that “the new stadium and the complex around it … are going to create a lot of value for the Braves.” With management having “created a great product with a controlled payroll,” said Maffei, the Braves “have been a profitable team” and are an “asset [that] has gone up quite nicely in value over the last several years.”

Minor Moves: David Nick, Daniel Moskos, Chris Leroux

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Here are today’s minor transactions from around the league…

  • Outfielder David Nick has signed a minor league deal with the Braves, according to the MLB.com transactions page. The 24-year-old had spent his entire career in the Diamondbacks organization after being taken in the fourth round of the 2009 draft, but never rose above Double-A. He has just a .241/.294/.339 line in 568 plate appearances at that level.
  • The Dodgers have released lefty Daniel Moskos, according to the PCL transactions page. Moskos, 28, had struggled to a 6.52 ERA in 9 2/3 innings of relief at the Triple-A level. The fourth overall choice in the 2007 draft, Moskos had a productive half year with the Pirates back in 2011 (2.96 ERA in 24 1/3 frames), but has not seen the show since.
  • Though he had the opportunity to elect free agency, right-hander Chris Leroux has accepted his outright assignment from the Yankees, tweets Chris Cotillo of MLB Daily Dish. Leroux has a decent amount of big league experience and posted strong results for the 2011 Pirates, but he’s had difficulty sticking in the Majors.
  • A look at MLBTR’s DFA Tracker reveals an unusually veteran crop of players in DFA limbo: Xavier Nady (Padres), Heath Bell (Rays), George Kottaras (Indians) and Elliot Johnson (Indians) are all currently waiting to learn their fate.

NL East Links: Gonzalez, Kendrick, Phils, Uggla, Mets

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Phillies right-hander Miguel Alfredo Gonzalez threw three innings in an extended Spring Training appearance and ramped his fastball up to 95 mph, GM Ruben Amaro Jr. tells CSN Philly’s Jim Salisbury: “This was the first time we’ve seen [95 mph] since we signed him. He was really bringing it. It’s a good sign. He’s progressing.” Amaro said the plan for his team is to keep Gonzalez in the rotation, though many scouts do feel he is eventually ticketed for bullpen work. Here are some additional links on the Phillies and the rest of the division…

  • David Murphy of the Philadelphia Daily News looks at the Phillies’ biggest two flaws: their weakness outside the No. 3 through 6 spots in the lineup and a bullpen that lacks power arms. As Murphy points out, the No. 7 through 2 hitters in last night’s game entered with a combined five extra-base hits in 217 plate appearances, and only four of the bullpen’s arms are strikeout pitchers. Though the team is currently 15-15, one injury could significantly dampen the club’s outlook.
  • If Kyle Kendrick can continue his current pace — a 3.58 ERA with 5.5 K/9, 2.4 BB/9 and a 52.7 percent ground-ball rate — he could do quite well for himself in free agency next winter, writes CSN Philly’s Corey Seidman. Seidman notes that while Kendrick wouldn’t be in the top two tiers of free agent starters, he could be one of the better third-tier options available. He looks at contracts such as the ones signed by Scott Feldman and Phil Hughes in noting that Kendrick would fetch a multi-year contract worth something similar to this season’s $7.675MM value.
  • Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez wouldn’t comment on specifics regarding his second base dilemma when asked by Mark Bowman and Joe Morgan of MLB.com. However, the MLB.com duo reports that some Braves players have privately voiced the opinion that Tyler Pastornicky could be a productive replacement, and Bowman and Morgan add that there’s a chance the team could promote the hot-hitting Tommy La Stella from Triple-A as well. That move, however, could require the Braves to think long and hard about the possibility of biting the bullet on the remaining two years of Uggla’s contract.
  • Andy Martino of the New York Daily News spoke with a veteran scout and asked about the Mets’ top young arms — namely Jacob deGrom and Rafael Montero — to see if they could help the team’s floundering bullpen. The scout pegged deGrom as more of the relief type than Montero: “That’s the one who seems like he has a better chance. As a starter, I see him throw 94, touch 95. The he settles in around 92-92. If you bring him in for an inning, he could just blow it out.”

Quick Hits: Towers, Cron, Johnson, Tigers

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Kevin Towers of the Diamondbacks isn’t sure whether he’ll still have his job when his team turns its fortunes around, Barry M. Bloom of MLB.com writes. “When you spend $110 million and you’re 9-22 at the end of April, I wouldn’t be happy, either,” says Towers. “I’m also disappointed, but I still believe in the core group. I think they will get better. Will I be around to see it? I don’t know.” Towers also says the team’s poor start must have managing partner Ken Kendrick wondering if the Diamondbacks have the right GM and manager in place. Here’s more from around the big leagues.

  • The Angels have promoted first baseman C.J. Cron, who is in their lineup tonight as their DH, Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register tweets. Baseball America’s Prospect Handbook 2014 rated Cron the Angels’ second-best prospect. The 2011 first-round pick got off to a great start this season for Triple-A Salt Lake, hitting .319/.369/.602 in his first 122 plate appearances there.
  • The Braves feel like they’re getting a good deal in third baseman Chris Johnson’s recent three-year extension, MLB.com’s Mark Bowman writes. “He was looking for stability and we were looking to have a solid player at a tough position to man,” says GM Frank Wren. “When this contract is over, he’s 32. We all feel like that is when they’re in their prime. So it was another example of tying up a player long term, but not extending beyond their prime.” Johnson will earn $4.75MM in his first year of arbitration eligibility this season, and the $23MM deal buys out Johnson’s last two years of arbitration eligibility, plus one year of free agency, with a reasonable option for a second.
  • The Tigers aren’t yet sure what they’ll do to address their shortstop position, reports MLB.com’s Jason Beck. “We really haven’t approached those specific topics yet,” says GM Dave Dombrowski. Beck suggests that reinforces the perception that it’s unlikely the Tigers will sign free agent Stephen Drew before the draft in early June.

NL Notes: Frandsen, Despaigne, Framing, Floyd

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Here are some notes out of the National League:

  • Kevin Frandsen returned to Philadelphia for the first time tonight after his surprising, late-spring departure from the Phillies. Now with the division-rival Nationals, Frandsen told reporters, including Todd Zolecki of MLB.com, that he enjoyed his time in Philly but was “blindside[d]” when he was outrighted. Frandsen said that he took a “leap of faith” in declining his outright assignment (and giving up his $900K salary), but that “a bunch of teams” called when he became available.
  • The Padres’ signing of Cuban righty Odrisamer Despaigne was indeed delayed by the need for a visa and physical to seal the deal, writes MLB.com’s Corey Brock. Echoing a scouting report obtained by MLBTR’s Tim Dierkes, GM Josh Byrnes said that Despaigne profiled as a creative, deceptive, “old generation” Cuban hurler. Brock says that San Diego’s new arm will start out at Double-A, in part to avoid the high-scoring PCL to start his career, but could well rise to the majors this year.
  • If and when he joins the big league club, Despaigne may benefit from the one area in which the Padres have paced the bigs this year, according to Fangraphs’ Jeff Sullivan (in a piece for FOX Sports): an expansive strike zone for San Diego pitchers. The club leads the league with 52 called strikes than expected, thanks largely to the receiving efforts of its backstops. That was an area of priority for the club, as it put resources into improving the skills of incumbents Yasmani Grandal and Nick Hundley while adding Rene Rivera due in large part to his abilities behind the dish.
  • The Braves are set to activate hurler Gavin Floyd from the DL this weekend, after the veteran righty worked his way back from Tommy John surgery. Of course, the expectation when Floyd signed his $4MM, incentive-laden pact with Atlanta was that he would join the rotation. That seemed all the more likely when the club suffered a shocking run of injuries to key starters. But with Mike Minor back from his own rehab stint and the team’s current starting five firing on all cylinders, MLB.com’s Joe Morgan writes that Floyd could open in the pen.

Braves Extend Chris Johnson

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12:20pm: ESPN’s Buster Olney reports (via Twitter) that Johnson is guaranteed $23.5MM over the life of the deal, and the 2018 club option is valued at $10MM.

12:02pm: The Braves have suddenly become Major League Baseball’s most active team on the extension front, and they continued their rash of long-term deals on Friday by officially announcing a three-year deal for third baseman Chris Johnson. The contract will buy out two arbitration years and one free agent season, and the Braves hold a club option on a fourth year. Johnson, 29, is represented by Excel Sports Management.

MLB: Atlanta Braves at Washington Nationals

Johnson, a fourth-round draft pick of the Astros in 2006, was dealt to the Diamondbacks near the 2012 trade deadline.  He later joined the Braves in January 2013 along with Justin Upton, with Arizona receiving Martin Prado, Randall Delgado, Zeke Spruill, Nick Ahmed, and Brandon Drury.  So far Johnson has compiled a .307/.344/.438 batting line in 643 plate appearances spanning 167 games for Atlanta.  He was worth 2.8 wins above replacement last season, according to FanGraphs.

Johnson had three years and 144 days of Major League service prior to this season,  so he’s already been arbitration eligible twice (the first time as a Super Two player).  Johnson is earning $4.75MM this year, and the Braves previously had him under team control through 2016.

As MLBTR’s Extension Tracker shows, Johnson stands to become the sixth Braves player to sign a multiyear extension since February, after the team committed 27 years and $280.7MM to Jason Heyward, Freddie Freeman, Julio Teheran, Craig Kimbrel, and Andrelton Simmons.  Only Heyward’s two-year deal failed to extend team control.  Excel Sports Management represents Freeman,  Heyward, and Johnson.

MLBTR was the first to report that the two sides were finalizing an extension. Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reported (via Twitter) that it was a three-year deal with a club option.

Steve Adams contributed to this post. Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Quick Hits: Towles, Braves, Prospects

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There have been 23 perfect games in Major League history and 16 instances of a player hitting four home runs in one game, and both of these rare baseball events have taken place on April 30.  White Sox right-hander Charlie Robertson threw a perfecto against the Tigers on this day in 1922; 39 years later, the legendary Willie Mays homered four times as part of a 14-4 Giants rout of the Braves.  Incredibly, there have been two other instances of a four-homer game and a perfect game on the same day — July 18 (Pat Seerey in 1948 and David Cone in 1999) and May 8 (Josh Hamilton in 2012 and Catfish Hunter in 1968).

Here’s some news from around the majors as we head into May…

  • J.R. Towles is fully recovered from a home plate collision that ended his 2013 season and is receiving some interest from Major League teams, MLBTR’s Zach Links reports (Twitter links).  Considered a top-55 prospect headed into the 2008 season, Towles hit .187/.267/.315 in 484 PA with the Astros from 2007-11.  The catcher spent 2012-13 playing for the Triple-A affiliates of the Twins, Dodgers and Cardinals, and is currently hitting well for the independent Bridgeport Bluefish.
  • Three years ago, Jason Heyward was seen as the Braves’ signature star of the future while Freddie Freeman was projected to have a more modest ceiling, Sports Illustrated’s Ben Reiter writes.  Now, Freeman is emerging as one of the game’s best first basemen while Heyward has yet to truly break through thanks to both injuries and a hole in his swing.  Reflecting how the two players have switched roles, the Braves only locked Heyward up to a two-year commitment during their offseason extension frenzy, while Freeman was given an eight-year, $135MM contract.
  • In an Insider-only piece for ESPN.com, Jim Bowden looks at seven top prospects who could be making their Major League debuts sometime this season.
  • Fortitude is a quality that every scout wants to see in a pitcher, yet it’s one of those intangibles that is hard to both identify or even define, Jason Parks of Baseball Prospectus writes.
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