Rosenthal’s Latest: Padres, Niese, Cubs, Jays
Here’s the latest from Ken Rosenthal, via a video at FOX Sports:
- At 36-40, the Padres have considered buying as well as selling at the trade deadline. They could pursue a shortstop and left-handed hitter if they buy. If they sell, they could consider dealing Justin Upton, James Shields and Craig Kimbrel. Upton is the only one of the three who’s eligible for free agency after the season, though, and the Padres might not want to tear down entirely, since they’re hosting the All-Star Game next year.
- The Cubs have considered dealing for Mets left-hander Jon Niese, although they might also aim higher. The salary remaining on Niese’s current deal (he’ll make $9MM next year, plus a $500K buyout or $10MM option in 2016) might also be a slight obstacle to trading him.
- The Blue Jays are interested in pitching, but also perhaps in outfield help. Acquiring an outfielder would help the Jays to keep top young player Dalton Pompey in the minors — he’s currently hitting very well for Double-A New Hampshire after struggling in both the big leagues and in Triple-A this year.
- Former Padres manager Bud Black could be a possibility for the Braves if they eventually decide to replace Fredi Gonzalez. Black worked for the Indians front office when current Braves GM John Hart was in Cleveland, and Braves president John Schuerholz traded for Black all the way back in 1982, when Schuerholz was GM of the Royals.
Cubs Designate Rafael Lopez For Assignment
The Cubs have announced that they’ve designated catcher Rafael Lopez for assignment. The move clears space on the Cubs’ 40-man for righty Donn Roach. To clear space on their active roster for Roach, the Cubs have optioned righty Yoervis Medina to Triple-A Iowa.
The 27-year-old Lopez earned a spot on the Cubs’ roster late in the 2014 season by hitting well at Double-A Tennessee and holding his own at Iowa, and he collected 14 big-league plate appearances last year. His hitting has failed to progress thus far this year, however — he’s currently batting .276/.333/.340 at Triple-A, with no home runs in 176 plate appearances. The depth Lopez represents is also less crucial than it was a year ago, with Miguel Montero and David Ross in the big leagues and Kyle Schwarber as another potential option.
AL Notes: Young, Aro, Smyly, Jaso
The Royals had little obvious need for veteran righty Chris Young heading into the season, but GM Dayton Moore had the team sign him anyway, Andy McCullough of the Kansas City Star writes. The Royals offered a big-league deal just as Young was strongly considering a minor-league offer from the Dodgers, even though the Royals didn’t have a clear spot for Young in either their rotation or their bullpen. “The analytical guys can’t understand me, either,” says Moore. Moore’s “impulse,” as McCullough puts it, has paid off so far — Young has performed better than anyone else in the Royals rotation, except perhaps Edinson Volquez. Young’s contract calls for a base salary of just $675K, but he’s already reached some roster benchmarks, and he looks likely to collect incentives that should get him close to a maximum $6MM. Here’s more from the American League.
- Red Sox righty Jonathan Aro‘s path to the big leagues was an unlikely one, Alex Speier of the Boston Globe writes. As a teenager, Aro twice contracted Dengue fever. He was already contemplating his life after baseball before finally signing at 20, a late age for a Dominican player, and for just $10K. “First of all, I signed as a 20-year-old. Secondly, I signed as a $10,000 guy. Thirdly, all the guys who signed in my class were high-dollar guys. I thought I was at the low end of the priority list,” says Aro through a translator. “So, in short, no — I didn’t think this was attainable.” Aro gradually made his way through the minors, though, and excelled for Double-A Portland and Triple-A Pawtucket this year, posting a combined 2.22 ERA with 9.9 K/9 and 2.2 BB/9 in 44 2/3 innings. He made his big-league debut Thursday.
- Rays lefty Drew Smyly will pitch from a mound for the first time on Saturday since heading to the disabled list in May with a torn labrum, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times tweets. In early May, it looked like Smyly was headed for season-ending surgery, but he currently appears set to rejoin the Rays at some point late this season.
- In other Rays injury news, DH John Jaso will start a rehab assignment Saturday with the Class A+ Charlotte Stone Crabs, Topkin tweets. Jaso has missed much of the season with a wrist injury. Jaso should provide the Rays with another reliable bat, although they’ve done well at DH this season, with Joey Butler and David DeJesus taking most the available plate appearances.
Cole Hamels Would Consider Trade To Any Team
Phillies ace Cole Hamels is “open-minded” to being traded to any team, including the Blue Jays and Astros, Jim Salisbury of CSNPhilly.com writes. “I have not been approached,” says Hamels. “When I’m approached, then I can make a decision and provide an answer about a team. But I’m open-minded on everybody and everything.”
Hamels’ contract allows him to block trades to all teams except the Braves, Cardinals, Cubs, Dodgers, Mets, Nationals, Padres, Rangers, and Yankees. Previous reports had suggested he would block trades to the Blue Jays and Astros if given the chance, but that apparently isn’t the case.
Hamels adds that he didn’t foresee the Astros’ strong performance this year when he failed to mark them for inclusion on his list of approved teams. “They just didn’t make the nine-team list,” he says. “When I made the list in October –- who knew?”
The Phillies owe Hamels about $86MM guaranteed through 2018, including a $6MM buyout on his vesting/club option for 2019. As Salisbury notes, the absence of certain teams (such as the Red Sox, although it now appears less likely that the Red Sox would acquire him after their underwhelming start) from Hamels’ approved-trade list could give him leverage to ask the team acquiring him to pick up his option. Hamels has lately been connected to the Yankees and Rangers as well as the Blue Jays.
Red Sox Outright John Cornely
The Red Sox have outrighted righty reliever John Cornely and assigned him to Double-A Portland, Brian MacPherson of the Providence Journal tweets. Boston acquired Cornely from Atlanta for cash considerations after the Braves designated him for assignment last month.
The 26-year-old Cornely has appeared in just one inning in the big leagues, an April outing with Atlanta. The fly ball pitcher has spent most of this season in the high minors, where he’s posted a 4.35 ERA, 10.5 K/9 and 4.4 BB/9 in 31 innings.
Athletics Sign Phil Coke To Minor League Deal
The Athletics have signed lefty Phil Coke to a minor league deal with a July 10 opt-out, according to Class A+ Stockton Ports broadcaster Zack Bayrouty (on Twitter). Coke has been assigned to Stockton. He is a client of Full Circle Sports Management.
Earlier this week, Coke declined an optional assignment and became a free agent after 2 2/3 innings with the Blue Jays. Previously this season, he had pitched for the Cubs, who released him in late May.
The opt-out in Coke’s new deal suggests both he and the A’s think he has a shot to get back to the big leagues quickly. Coke has struggled to a 5.68 ERA in the big leagues this season, but with reasonable strikeout and walk numbers (12 strikeouts and five walks in 12 2/3 innings) and a strong 59.0 ground ball percentage that suggests the 32-year-old might have more gas left in his tank. For his career, much of which he’s spent with the Yankees and Tigers, Coke has a 4.20 ERA, 7.7 K/9 and 3.1 BB/9.
East Notes: Phillies, Marlins, Red Sox
Ryne Sandberg’s sudden resignation raises questions about who, exactly, is charge of the Phillies, David Murphy of the Daily News writes. Team president Pat Gillick said “I can’t really comment on that” yesterday in response to a question about who would be in charge of hiring the next Phillies manager. The team will reportedly hire Andy MacPhail for a front-office position, but it’s unclear whether that’s Gillick’s idea or ownership’s, and even if it’s the latter, it’s not clear who speaks for the ownership. Here’s more from the East divisions.
- The Marlins‘ loss of Giancarlo Stanton to a broken hamate bone has led to speculation that the team could become sellers at the trade deadline, but the team is unlikely to make wholesale changes, writes Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald. In the past few months, team president David Samson has repeatedly spoken about the organization’s need for “stability,” so while it’s possible the Marlins could trade a few older players (possibly including Dan Haren or Mat Latos), they won’t make dramatic moves, as they did in 2012 when they shipped Hanley Ramirez to the Dodgers.
- The Red Sox are mistaken in their apparent belief that they’re contenders, Scott Lauber of the Boston Herald writes. They’re currently nine games below .500 and eight games out of first in the AL East. They do have plenty of interesting young players in Mookie Betts, Xander Bogaerts, Blake Swihart and Eduardo Rodriguez, but the Red Sox’ recent choice to place Justin Masterson, rather than young lefty Brian Johnson, in their rotation suggests that they’re not yet focused on the future, as Lauber believes they should be.
Cardinals Sign Second-Rounder Denton For $1.2MM
Yesterday, we noted (via Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch) that the Cardinals have signed third baseman and second-round pick Bryce Denton. Today, MLB.com’s Jim Callis tweets that Denton will receive $1.2MM, significantly above the $935,400 pool value for the No. 66 pick. Denton had been committed to Vanderbilt.
ESPN’s Keith Law ranked Denton the No. 67 prospect in the draft, while MLB.com rated him 74th. Baseball America ranked him 95th, noting that he has good raw power and bat speed but could eventually move to one of the corner outfield positions.
Via MLB.com’s Signing and Bonus Tracker, Denton is the fourth over-slot signing the Cardinals have made in the first ten rounds, also reaching for Comp Round A pick Jake Woodford, supplemental pick Jordan Hicks and eighth-rounder Ian Oxnevad. Cardinals top pick Nick Plummer‘s bonus fell right in line with MLB’s recommendations, with the Cards instead finding dollars for their over-slot signings in part by drafting three college seniors elsewhere in the top ten rounds.
Week In Review: 6/20/15 – 6/26/15
Here’s a look back at this week at MLBTR.
Key Moves
- Ryne Sandberg resigned as manager of the Phillies.
- The Braves acquired pitchers Touki Toussaint and Bronson Arroyo from the Diamondbacks for infielder Philip Gosselin.
- This week’s draft signings include Alex Bregman (Astros – link), Phil Bickford (Giants – link) and D.J. Stewart (Orioles – link). The rest of MLBTR’s draft signing coverage can be found here.
Trades
- Rays – acquired 1B Marc Krauss from Angels for P Kyle Winkler
- Orioles – acquired P Richard Rodriguez from Astros for cash considerations
Top Prospect Promotions
- Mets – P Steven Matz (link)
- Twins – P Alex Meyer (link)
Claimed
- Athletics – OF Jake Smolinski (from Rangers – link)
Designated For Assignment
- Marlins – P Vin Mazzaro (link), C Jhonatan Solano (link)
- Red Sox – C Erik Kratz (link)
- Indians – P Scott Atchison (link)
Outrighted
- Mets – P Dillon Gee (link)
- White Sox – P Hector Noesi (link)
- Yankees – P Jorge De Paula (link)
- Red Sox – UT Jeff Bianchi (link)
- Phillies – P Phillippe Aumont (elected free agency), P Dustin McGowan (link)
- Padres – P Eury De La Rosa (link)
- Indians – P Shaun Marcum (link)
Elected Free Agency
Released
- Mariners – OF Rickie Weeks (link)
East Notes: Scherzer, Red Sox, Marlins, Braves
Saturday afternoon, Nationals starter Max Scherzer no-hit the Pirates, losing a perfect game with two outs in the ninth when Jose Tabata leaned down to allow himself to get hit in the elbow — in a 6-0 game. The ending aside, it was a dominant performance by Scherzer, who is, improbably, having the best season of his career in the first year of his contract in Washington. 14 starts in, Scherzer has cut his walk rate in half compared to last season, during which he was already clearly an elite pitcher. After today’s ten-strikeout performance, he’s also whiffed 123 batters in 102 1/3 innings. Tabata’s HBP dashed Scherzer’s chances of a perfect game today, but if he keeps pitching this brilliantly, there might be more shots in his future. Here’s more from the East divisions.
- In 2012, the Red Sox made a franchise-changing trade, dealing Adrian Gonzalez, Carl Crawford, Josh Beckett and Nick Punto to the Dodgers and freeing up salary in the process. That deal ended up helping them win the 2013 World Series. Now, the 2015 Red Sox look a little bit like the 2012 version, and Tim Britton of the Providence Journal, following up on a column by Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports, wonders whether they ought to consider dumping players yet again to give themselves more flexibility. Britton suggests, though, that it would be difficult to find a trade partner as perfect for their current situation as the Dodgers (who willingly took on heaps of money to get a good player in Gonzalez) were in 2012. Red Sox GM Ben Cherington, meanwhile, is withholding judgment on the new contracts of players like Pablo Sandoval and Hanley Ramirez. “We’ve had plenty of examples of guys who five or 10 percent of the way through their contracts, there was an adjustment period and they didn’t take off quite yet and then in time they do,” said Cherington earlier this week. “I’m not going to make any judgments on any specific decision or player based on that short amount of time.” Here are more notes from the East divisions.
- Despite his unusual background, former GM Dan Jennings is settling in as the Marlins‘ new manager, CBS Sports’ Jon Heyman writes. When Jeffrey Loria broached the subject of Jennings taking the managerial job, Jennings had the same reaction as much of the rest of the industry: “Have you lost your mind?” After beginning Jennings’ tenure with five straight losses, the Marlins are 13-12. “It’s starting to normalize. The boys are playing well, and I’m proud of the way we’ve responded,” says Jennings. “I’m having a blast.”
- Acquiring high-upside talent in the draft can be difficult, so the Braves have tried to acquire talented, if tarnished, pitchers in trades, Ray Glier writes for Baseball America. Those include Manny Banuelos, Chris Withrow, Arodys Vizcaino, Max Fried and Tyrell Jenkins, all of whom have had significant injuries. The Braves’ top 2015 draft pick, Kolby Allard, likewise fell to them because of an injury. “Before you know it, the end of 2015 will be here and it will be 2016, and we will have a lot of fresh, healthy pitchers,” says GM John Hart. As Glier notes, sometimes injury recoveries don’t go smoothly. But Hart insists the Braves are being careful. “For every guy we have acquired I can honestly say we have another 10 to 12 we didn’t bite down on because we didn’t get good enough medical information that allowed us to pull the trigger,” Hart says.