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NL East Notes: Nimmo, Conforto, Cooper, Sanchez

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The imminent return of Michael Conforto could force one of his deserving Mets teammates out of a job, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com writes. Specifically, leadoff hitter Brandon Nimmo (who reached base four times on opening day) could end up being displaced to the bench, as the Mets also have Yoenis Cespedes and Jay Bruce at the outfield corners. Nimmo, who was the club’s first-round selection in 2011, leapfrogged Juan Lagares on the depth chart with a fantastic spring. However, he doesn’t carry the upside of Conforto or the track record of Bruce or Cespedes. DiComo adds that the Mets are not considering shifting Bruce to first base, as the club seems content with Adrian Gonzalez at that position for the time being. For his part, Nimmo isn’t thinking about the outfield crunch at this time. “When Conforto comes back, we’ll deal with that,” he said. “But as far as right now, I’m just going to try to be me, and be the best me I can.”

Other items from the NL’s eastern teams…

  • In other Mets news, Anthony Swarzak left today’s game with an apparent injury. Said injury was later described as a “sore oblique”, and he’s considered day-to-day for the time being (h/t Anthony DiComo of MLB.com). For Swarzak’s part, he’s “not panicking” about the soreness and is hoping it’ll disappear tomorrow.
  • After being hit by a pitch on the wrist in yesterday’s 17-inning marathon, Marlins outfielder Garrett Cooper was replaced by fellow outfielder Cameron Maybin. After the game, the club described the injury as a “wrist contusion”, writes MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro. It’s good news for Miami to hear that Cooper’s wrist isn’t broken, but he’s day-to-day for the time being, and it’s unclear when he’ll return to the lineup. “I took the sleeve off, and it was pretty purple,” Cooper said of the injury. “No fracture. Just day-to-day right now. I can move it around. Just a little swollen.”
  • The Braves currently have three catchers on the roster, but manager Brian Snitker says that one of them could give way to right-hander Anibal Sanchez soon. David O’Brien of the Atlantla Journal-Constitution writes that while Sanchez has been tabbed for the fifth spot in the rotation (when necessary) for some time, the club may add him sooner than that in case they need to deploy him as a reliever. Sanchez pitched to a horrific 5.67 ERA across 415 2/3 innings across his last three seasons with the Tigers, though his strikeout (8.14 K/9) and walk (2.84) ratios remained generally good during that time.

Braves Designate Akeel Morris

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The Braves have designated right-hander Akeel Morris for assignment. Morris’ 40-man spot will go to Josh Ravin, whose contract the club has purchased from Triple-A Gwinnett. Left-hander Rex Brothers has been optioned to make room for Ravin at the big-league level.

Morris, 25, made his big league debut with the Mets in 2015, but didn’t appear again in the majors until last July. He struck out nine hitters and allowed just one earned run across 7 1/3 innings for the Braves during his second stint, though he did walk four hitters. Even in Triple-A last season, the righty only managed a 32% ground ball rate and sported a 4.44 BB/9 mark.

Similarly, the right-handed Ravin walked nine hitters in just 16 2/3 innings with the Dodgers last season, and ended the campaign with a bloated 6.48. He did, however, manage to strike out 10.62 batters per nine innings. That’s where the 33-year-old’s upside lies; he had a whopping 14.01 K/9 across 35 1/3 Triple-A innings last season.

Braves Place Tyler Flowers On DL, Select Contract Of Miguel Socolovich

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Braves catcher Tyler Flowers has been placed on the 10-day DL with a strained left oblique muscle, the team announced. No timeline for his return was given, but oblique issues tend to sideline a player for a month or more. In a pair of corresponding moves, Atlanta has selected the contract of right-hander Miguel Socolovich and transferred left-hander Jacob Lindgren to the 60-day DL. Lindgren recently underwent Tommy John surgery.

The 32-year-old backstop suffered the injury in his first at-bat of the season in yesterday’s opener. As Gabriel Burns of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution noted yesterday after Flowers exited the game, he’d been slowed by a groin issue in Spring Training that created enough concern for the Braves to carry three catchers to begin the season. Veteran Chris Stewart made the Braves’ roster after signing a non-guaranteed big league deal this offseason, and he’ll now likely serve as the backup to Kurt Suzuki for the foreseeable future, as Suzuki steps into the role of manager Brian Snitker’s primary catcher.

It’s a tough blow for the Braves, who enjoyed a career year from Flowers in 2017. Long regarded as a quality defensive catcher, Flowers took his offensive game to new heights last season when he slashed .281/.378/.445 with a dozen homers in 370 trips to the plate. That marked a continuation of the improvements he showed in his first season of a two-year deal (plus a 2018 option) with the Braves, as Flowers has followed up seven underwhelming offensive campaigns with the White Sox to hit .276/.368/.433 for the Braves — the team that originally selected him in both the 2004 and 2005 drafts.

With Flowers on the shelf, Atlanta will look to Suzuki to build upon on his own career year from 2017. The 34-year-old Suzuki hit .283/.351/.536 with a career-best 19 homers last year in 309 PAs for the Braves. Rather than test the open market, Suzuki instead agreed to a one-year, $3.5MM extension with Atlanta late last September.

Socolovich, 31, has spent the past three seasons in the Cardinals organization, totaling 66 1/3 innings of relief work and posting a 3.80 ERA with 7.7 K/9, 2.6 BB/9 and a 44.1 percent ground-ball rate. Socolovich has averaged just 90.6 mph on his heater in that time but has gotten by thanks to a knack for limiting hard contact (27.8 percent hard-hit rate, 16.4 percent line-drive rate) and inducing pop-ups (14.4 percent infield-fly rate).

Jacob Lindgren Undergoes Tommy John Surgery

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Southpaw Jacob Lindgren will miss the 2018 season after undergoing Tommy John surgery, as David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution  reports. He had previously had the same procedure in August of 2016.

Lindgren, who recently turned 25, has opened plenty of eyes since he was taken in the second round of the 2014 draft. In 54 minor-league innings, he has racked up 85 strikeouts and allowed just 11 earned runs on 28 hits.

Though he cracked the majors in his second season as a professional, Lindgren’s career has hit the skids with elbow problems since. The Braves signed him to a major-league deal after the Yankees cut him loose, but Lindgren has yet to pitch competitively with his new organization.

Typically a second TJ surgery in close proximity requires a lengthier rehab process. In this case, then, it’s hard to know when the Braves might expect Lindgren to return. He can certainly be shifted onto the 60-day DL, though managing him on the 40-man roster through the 2018-19 offseason could prove difficult.

Braves Announce Roster Decisions

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1:02pm: Atlanta will also keep Chris Stewart as a third catcher, per Robert Murray of Fan Rag (via Twitter). The veteran receiver had signed a non-guaranteed MLB deal over the winter.

9:52am: The Braves have announced a series of roster moves that set up the team’s Opening Day, 25-man unit. Third baseman Rio Ruiz has been optioned while non-roster players including righty Anibal Sanchez, outfielders Ezequiel Carrera and Danny Santana, and infielder Sean Kazmar were reassigned out of MLB camp.

These decisions reflect some shifts in thinking over recent days. It had seemed that Ruiz would open up with a shot at third base due to an injury to Johan Camargo. But the organization ended up snagging Ryan Flaherty, who now is set up to get some run at the hot corner in concert with utilityman Charlie Culberson.

Likewise, Santana long seemed a likely candidate to take a utility role from the bench, but the recent signing of Peter Bourjos seems to have bumped Santana from the immediate plans. As MLB.com’s Mark Bowman suggested earlier today on Twitter, Santana (along with Carrera) can be stashed at Triple-A to begin the season. That’s preferable to boosting either player to the 40-man and perhaps then facing an early call when it comes time to add a fifth starter. Instead, Lane Adams will now likely take an Opening Day job, barring an intervening acquisition, though the out-of-options outfielder could now be vulnerable when the roster pressure arises.

Speaking of that fifth starter’s spot, it seems the expectation remains that Sanchez will ultimately ascend to the rotation. For now, though, he’ll be assigned to Triple-A. If and when he does come up, he’ll need to be added to the 40-man roster.

While this slate of moves allows the Braves to avoid any final decisions — since control rights have been maintained over all the team’s options — that doesn’t mean that some moments of reckoning won’t soon arise. As we discussed in our review of the club’s offseason, this roster seems primed to undergo a fair bit of turnover at the start and over the course of the 2018 season.

Latest On Ronald Acuna

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4:03PM: Acuna hasn’t been approached with any offers, the outfielder himself told David O’Brien and other reporters, and he and his representation hadn’t been engaged in any sort of talks about a potential $30MM deal.

1:55PM: Braves phenom Ronald Acuna has at least given some indication to the Braves that he would be interested in a long-term contract, according to MLB.com’s Mark Bowman. While some discussions have taken place, it seems there is no real indication at present that the sides are particularly likely to agree to a deal.

The report from Bowman arises after former ESPN Deportes blogger Arturo Marcano tweeted yesterday that Acuna had turned down a $30MM offer from the Atlanta organization. But both Bowman and David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution (Twitter link) reported in strong terms that no such offer had been issued by the team.

Acuna, who’s perhaps the highest-regarded pre-MLB player in baseball, was previously re-assigned out of major-league camp in anticipation of opening the year at Triple-A. First, though, he showed why he has drawn so much hype with a monster performance in the Grapefruit League.

A generally similar situation was unfolding with the division-rival Phillies, whose top prospect Scott Kingery pushed for a MLB role with a big performance in camp. He ultimately agreed to an extension before ever suiting up for a big-league game — a somewhat controversial contract model. That deal, while hardly unprecedented, has sparked some new discussion as to whether teams will increasingly attempt to lock up their best prospects quite early in their careers.

For the time being, anyway, it seems there’s not much likelihood of a similar outcome in Atlanta. The team would no doubt be quite willing to make a commitment to Acuna at the right price, but it’s far from clear whether the sides will see eye to eye — or even whether significant further discussions will take place.

Latest On Jose Bautista

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MARCH 26,11:17am: The Rays are “unlikely” to sign Bautista, according to Mark Feinsand of MLB.com.

10:28am: The Braves are no longer in the mix for Bautista, tweets FanRag’s Jon Heyman, who adds that it’s unclear if the Rays are still interested in him.

MARCH 25: Jose Bautista continues to discuss one-year contracts with multiple teams, ESPN.com’s Marly Rivera reports (Twitter link), with the Braves and Rays among the teams in talks with the veteran outfielder.  When last we checked in on Bautista’s market, he said he was considering several Major League offers, focusing on finding a good fit for his family and playing for a winning team as his primary criteria.

Neither the Rays or Braves seem like obvious contenders in 2018, with Atlanta still in (perhaps the final stages of) a rebuild and Tampa Bay shuffling the roster this winter to save money while still hoping to remain competitive in the AL East.  Both teams could be better fits from a personal standpoint, however.  Bautista lives in the Tampa area, and he has expressed interest in joining the club both this offseason and last winter during his previous trip through the free agent market.  Playing in Atlanta would also keep Bautista relatively close to home, plus he and Braves GM Alex Anthopoulos have a longstanding connection from their time together with the Blue Jays.

Bautista would fit the Rays’ desire to add a right-handed hitting outfielder, though Bautista’s right field defense has been below-average for the last three seasons.  He could also provide a platoon partner for Brad Miller at DH or first base, and perhaps even take the odd appearance at third base in a pinch.

There isn’t such an obvious path to playing time for Bautista on the Braves’ roster, and it could be that the team’s signing of Peter Bourjos to an MLB contract earlier today could have closed the door on Bautista’s chances with Atlanta.  Bourjos and Bautista offer almost entirely different skillsets, of course, though the Braves now have Bourjos, Lane Adams, and Preston Tucker in the left field mix alongside regular center fielder Ender Inciarte and right fielder Nick Markakis.  Elite prospect Ronald Acuna is also expected to be promoted possibly as early as mid-April (i.e. when the Braves can be sure of gaining an extra year of control on his services), leaving even less room in the outfield.  Freddie Freeman obviously has first base spoken for, plus the Braves don’t have a DH spot to offer.

It remains to be seen if Bautista has anything to offer in even a semi-regular role, given his sub-replacement level numbers in 2017.  Bautista hit just .203/.308/.366 over 686 plate appearances for the Blue Jays, and between that ugly performance and his already-declining numbers in 2016, it would be rather surprising to see Bautista rebound to anything close to his old form as he enters his age-37 season.  That said, given Bautista’s excellent track record prior to 2016, one can also understand why teams would consider taking an inexpensive, one-year flier to see if he has something left in the tank.

Braves Sign Peter Bourjos To Major League Deal

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The Braves have signed outfielder Peter Bourjos to a major league deal worth $1MM, MLBTR’s Steve Adams reports. Bourjos is a client of Dishman Sports Group.

It wasn’t a long stay on the open market for Bourjos, whom the Cubs released Friday after an unsuccessful bid to make their roster. Bourjos joined the Cubs in February on a minors deal, which came after he spent 2017 with the Rays and batted .223/.272/.383 with five homers and five steals in 203 plate appearances. Long a well-regarded defender, the 30-year-old Bourjos racked up six Defensive Runs Saved and a 1.2 Ultimate Zone Rating in 476 innings divided among all three outfield spots last season.

Although Bourjos’ offensive production has dropped off since his best season – 2011 – when he hit .271/.327/.438 in 552 PAs with the Angels, the righty-swinger was a useful option against lefties last year (.260/.310/.442). If that continues, he could be a factor as a reserve in Atlanta, which features a lefty-heavy outfield (depth chart). Of course, righty-hitting, all-world prospect Ronald Acuna should debut soon, which could impact Bourjos’ playing time.

Braves To Sign Ryan Flaherty To MLB Deal

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2:23pm: The contract should be worth around $750K, per Jerry Crasnick of ESPN.

12:57pm: The two sides have agreed to a major league deal, David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.

12:36pm: The Braves are attempting to sign free-agent utilityman Ryan Flaherty, Mark Bowman of MLB.com tweets. It’s unclear whether he’d get a major league contract, but Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com reported earlier Sunday that Flaherty is set to sign an MLB pact with someone. That may prove to be Atlanta.

The 31-year-old Flaherty was previously with one of the Braves’ NL East rivals, the Phillies, who added him on a minor league deal in the offseason. Flaherty ultimately decided to opt out of that contract on Thursday.

To this point, Flaherty has spent his entire major league career in Baltimore, where the left-handed hitter failed to pose a threat offensively (.215/.284/.355) over 1,270 plate appearances. He was versatile with the Orioles on the defensive side, though, as he lined up at every infield position (primarily second base) and also saw some time in the outfield.

Given the presence of rising star Ozzie Albies, the Braves are all set at the keystone, but Flaherty could back up him and shortstop Dansby Swanson. He could also function as depth at third base, where starter Johan Camargo will begin the season on the disabled list. For now, the Braves’ top reserve infielder is the out-of-options Charlie Culberson (depth chart).

Market Notes: Youth, Holland, Werth, Rays, D-backs

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The fans are more excited about youth than ever before, writes Grant Brisbee of SB Nation. That’s good news for the owners, as they’re getting rich off the youth movement flooding this era of baseball. Young players are cheap, and Brisbee points out why that matters in an example featuring the Astros’ World Series lineup. Their first five hitters were George Springer, Carlos Correa, Jose Altuve, Alex Bregman and Yuli Gurriel; the latter made about $5MM more in 2017 than the first four combined. Having elite young talent under control on relatively cheap salaries allows teams the financial flexibility to fill a few holes en route to a championship-caliber roster. As Brisbee notes, player salaries are determined more by circumstance than by talent nowadays, describing this fact as “the secret of baseball, the only part of Moneyball that really matters.” After seeing proof of concept from the Cubs and Astros in recent years, fans are actually getting excited about rebuilds and trades for prospects, which means ownership has less of a reason to spend money on players that Brisbee describes as “just a guy” types. This quote from his piece describes it best: “Prospects aren’t just future major leaguers; they’re memorable seasons and postseason runs that haven’t happened yet.”

A few more market-related items…

  • Jim Bowden of The Athletic confirms in a tweet that the Braves, Diamondbacks and Cardinals have all checked in on free agent reliever Greg Holland. However, none of them feel as though they can be competitive financially based on the right-hander’s current asking price. Bowden suggests that Holland should take the best offer on the table. With less than a week left until opening day, it’s hard to argue that point.
  • Jayson Werth is still looking to continue his career, as he tells Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic. The 38-year-old is currently working out and waiting for someone to give him an opportunity. He’s coming off a season in which he hit just .226/.322/.393 and missed nearly three months due to a toe injury, though he still managed double-digit homers in half a season’s worth of plate appearances. The fact that his walk rate has been above 10% in every season of his career could also make him worth a look.
  • Werth could be a good fit in theory for the Rays. The club is still on the lookout for a right-handed hitter who can play the outfield, according Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. Jose Bautista and Melky Cabrera represent the top remaining options on the free agent market. Players like Domingo Santana and Hunter Renfroe could potentially be had in a trade, though neither of them would come cheap.
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