charliewilmoth | MLB Trade Rumors

Another Look At Flaws In The Waiver System

By charliewilmoth | May 3, 2015 at 11:35pm CDT

Yesterday, the Athletics claimed outfielder Alex Hassan from the Rangers, marking the fifth time in the past seven months that Hassan has been claimed. Since November, Hassan has been property of the Red Sox, then the Athletics, then the Orioles, then the Athletics again, then the Rangers, and then the Athletics for a third time.

To outside observers, Hassan’s lengthy recent transaction history is merely a curiosity, but as Brian MacPherson of the Providence Journal wrote in a lengthy piece that we highlighted earlier today, frequent claims and DFAs can be a significant problem for players, both personally and professionally. MacPherson writes that the MLBPA is likely to address the issue in negotiations for the next CBA, and it’s easy to see why the union is concerned. In recent years, players like Hassan, Adam Rosales, Gonzalez Germen and Alex Castellanos have been designated for assignment several times in short periods. While the waiver loop in which Hassan found himself is a minor problem in the grand scheme, it clearly was not a minor problem to him, and it served little purpose for all the teams that claimed and then designated him.

Some employment uncertainty is a necessary and understandable aspect of playing pro baseball, but players on the fringes of 40-man rosters have a particularly difficult time. Unlike players who are frequently moved back and forth between Triple-A and the Majors, players who are frequently designated and claimed often must move from one set of unfamiliar environs to another.

Also, while they’re in DFA limbo, they can’t play. That might not be a big deal for a player who is designated once, but it’s a problem for a player who is repeatedly designated in a short span of time. For example, as I noted in a post on this topic in early 2013, a series of DFAs prevented outfielder Casper Wells from playing in a game in 2013 until late April (April 23, to be exact), even though he was healthy. (Wells got designated for assignment again a week after I wrote that post.) The worst aspect of Wells’ situation was that he was in DFA limbo for a full ten days between when the Mariners designated him March 31 and the Blue Jays claimed him April 10, and another eight between April 14, when the Jays designated him, and April 22, when they finally traded him to the A’s.

One easy fix the MLBPA could consider suggesting, then, is to shorten the maximum DFA limbo period, as an MLBTR reader proposed in the comments to my 2013 piece. The current ten-day wait seems unnecessary and anachronistic. Even waiver periods in fantasy leagues usually only last a day or two. And teams shouldn’t need much time to collect information about a player they’re considering claiming once he’s in DFA limbo, because he’s no longer playing and thus cannot be scouted, except through video.

Unlike Wells, Hassan never had to spend anywhere near the full ten days in limbo. But he still felt behind in his routines, particularly since he bounced around so much since the start of Spring Training. “You’re just behind,” he tells MacPherson. “I’m like, ‘Man, honestly, it’s not my mechanics. It’s not anything like that. I just feel behind.’ The frustrating thing about that is that there’s no real fix for that other than going out and playing and getting the at-bats. … I can’t simulate that.”

This is especially unfortunate for Hassan, since the reason he and players like Wells keep getting designated and claimed is because they’re on the fringes. A series of odd breaks from their routines over the course of a month or two might not sound like an insurmountable obstacle, but for a fringe player, it might make or break his career. Equally problematic, as Hassan points out elsewhere in MacPherson’s article, is the fact that a player in his position must perform well immediately after being claimed, or risk being designated for assignment again.

At its best, the waiver system allows fringe players to find situations for which they’re best suited. A good recent example is that of Stolmy Pimentel, an out-of-options reliever who couldn’t break camp with the Pirates but got claimed by the Rangers, who had greater flexibility in their bullpen than Pittsburgh did. Pimentel has mostly performed well in Texas so far.

At its worst, though, the system is disruptive, and one potential problem is that a team can claim players it has no intention of using on its big-league roster and essentially take a free shot at trying to sneak them through waivers again and use them as minor-league depth. That might have been what the Blue Jays were trying to do with Wells and several other players during that period, and we might be seeing it again with, say, the Dodgers’ recent claims and immediate outrights longtime Reds farmhands Daniel Corcino and Ryan Dennick. The possibility of outrighting Hassan was surely at least part of the reason Hassan got claimed so many times. If it was, the teams who claimed him were behaving rationally, given the rules currently in place. They claimed him and tried to sneak him through waivers; as long as they didn’t mind him occupying a roster spot for a few days or weeks, they didn’t lose anything as a result of having claimed him, and were no worse for wear when their attempts to sneak him through waivers didn’t work.

In my 2013 post, I suggested that a team claiming a player should have keep him on its 40-man roster for 30 days before designating him again. That would have been an improvement over the current system, but upon reflection, it might not have given teams an appropriate amount of flexibility, since injuries can crop up at any time and force teams to change their plans.

An alternate possibility, then, might be to make every player designated for assignment eligible for free agency if he has previously been claimed in a specified time frame — say, the last 60 days. Such a player could also again receive the right to opt for free agency if he’s outrighted as a result of that DFA, even if he’s being outrighted for the first time. That would free the player to sign wherever he liked, as quickly as he liked, and allow him to find the situation and contract that fit him best. It would also disincentivize the practice of claiming a player purely to try to sneak him into the minors.

AL Notes: Soria, Pirela, Jimenez

By charliewilmoth | May 3, 2015 at 10:34pm CDT

In Joakim Soria, the Tigers have found the top-quality closer they’ve lacked in the past several seasons, James Schmehl of MLive.com writes. Soria has been successful in all ten of his save chances this season while allowing just two runs in 11 2/3 innings. Over the past several years, the Tigers have leaned on the often unreliable Jose Valverde and Joe Nathan, with a strong partial-season performance from Joaquin Benoit in 2013 providing a few months of respite. The Tigers bullpen was a problem last year, and Schmehl notes that much of it is still shaky. But for now, their closer problem seems to be solved. Here’s more from the American League.

Jose Pirela’s terrific hitting on a rehab assignment for Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre this weekend has the Yankees considering promoting him to the big leagues, Chad Jennings of the Journal News writes. Pirela, who’s returning from a concussion suffered in Spring Training, has had three or more hits in three straight games. Jennings notes that Gregorio Petit currently serves as the Yankees’ righty bench infielder, but that Pirela could provide more offense.
Infielder Luis Jimenez, who the Red Sox claimed from the Brewers this weekend, allows Boston to use their other bench players more flexibly, manager John Farrell says (via Jason Mastrodonato of the Boston Herald). “Righthanded utility guy, we like the defense, particularly at third, if that comes into play,” says Farrell. “It gives us some more flexibility with Brock (Holt) and Daniel Nava, and hopefully a chance to get back to 13 position players.” Jimenez rates as a plus defensive third baseman and could prove to be a valuable backup for Pablo Sandoval. Jimenez can also play elsewhere in the infield.

Padres To Promote Austin Hedges

By charliewilmoth | May 3, 2015 at 10:02pm CDT

The Padres will promote top catching prospect Austin Hedges, Dennis Lin of the San Diego Union-Tribune tweets. It’s uncertain how much he’ll play with the Padres, however, since their current starting backstop, Derek Norris, is in the midst of a strong season, and first baseman Yonder Alonso and the Padres’ outfielders have all played well too, so there’s nowhere else to move Norris (who has little big-league experience at any position besides catcher anyway). The team does have a brief series in Seattle next week that could allow Hedges to catch while Norris plays DH. Wil Nieves is the Padres’ current backup catcher, and Lin suggests Nieves could be designated for assignment, with Hedges taking over in a backup role.

Hedges is ranked as the No. 23 prospect in baseball by Baseball Prospectus, No. 50 by MLB.com, and No. 74 by ESPN’s Keith Law (Insider-only). Hedges’ defensive ability wins widespread acclaim from nearly all prospect analysts. MLB.com praises his receiving, arm, and potential game-calling ability, while Law notes that framing pitches should prove to be a strength as well. Hedges wins less praise for his hitting — he batted a weak .225/.268/.321 at Double-A San Antonio last year. He’s off to a much better start in 2015 for Triple-A El Paso this year, however (.343/.413/.552 in 75 plate appearances), and his strong standing among prospect analysts suggests he might be so valuable defensively that he won’t need to hit much.

If Hedges manages to stick in the big leagues, he’ll likely be in line to become eligible for arbitration as a Super Two player following the 2017 season. He could then become a free agent after 2021.

Brewers Fire Ron Roenicke

By charliewilmoth | May 3, 2015 at 9:24pm CDT

The Brewers have announced that they’ve fired manager Ron Roenicke. The team says it will announce his replacement at a press conference at 10:30am Monday. The Brewers will not make any further changes to their coaching staff at present, Adam McCalvy of MLB.com tweets.

The Brewers posted a solid 342-331 record in four-plus seasons with Roenicke at the helm, and he led the Brewers to an NL Central division championship in 2011. The team also had winning records in 2012 and 2014, although it collapsed badly down the stretch last season. It exercised its 2016 option on Roenicke in Spring Training, and GM Doug Melvin said less than two weeks ago that he and owner Mark Attanasio weren’t even considering firing Roenicke.

The Brewers were off to a dreadful 7-18 start this season, however, that led to plenty of reports and speculation about a major shakeup within the organization. The team began its year with four straight losses and hasn’t gotten back on track, dealing with an injury to star catcher Jonathan Lucroy and subpar performances from a number of key players. The Brewers did, however, win their last two games, perhaps suggesting (as the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel’s Tom Haudricourt tweets) that they had already decided to fire Roenicke before this weekend.

USA Today’s Bob Nightengale (via Twitter) and others have already speculated about the possibility that Craig Counsell, who has worked with the Brewers front office since retiring as a player, could be Roenicke’s replacement. There’s also been speculation about former Twins manager Ron Gardenhire, although SB Nation’s Chris Cotillo tweets that Gardenhire will not be replacing Roenicke.

“This has been a difficult start to the season, something that we certainly didn’t anticipate,” says Melvin. “We appreciate all that Ron has done for our organization, and he has handled his duties with great professionalism and dedication.”

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Dodgers Acquire Andy Wilkins

By charliewilmoth | May 3, 2015 at 9:23pm CDT

The Blue Jays have announced that they’ve traded first baseman Andy Wilkins to the Dodgers for cash considerations. The Jays designated Wilkins for assignment this weekend. The Dodgers also formally announced that they have designated Scott Baker for assignment.

Wilkins, 26, collected 45 plate appearances with the White Sox in 2014, but he’s done most of his damage at the Triple-A level in recent years, hitting .283/.333/.499 in 848 career plate appearances there and hitting 30 home runs in Triple-A Charlotte last year. With Adrian Gonzalez playing first at the big league level, though, it looks likely Wilkins won’t get an extended chance to show what he can do in the Majors unless there’s an injury.

Dodgers Designate Scott Baker For Assignment

By charliewilmoth | May 3, 2015 at 7:52pm CDT

9:56pm: The Dodgers have formally announced that they’ve designated Baker for assignment and acquired first baseman Andy Wilkins from the Blue Jays for cash considerations.

7:52pm: The Dodgers will designate veteran righty Scott Baker for assignment, Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register tweets. The move will likely clear a roster spot for another reliever, who will be needed after the team used seven relievers in their 13-inning win over the Diamondbacks today. The Dodgers will continue to use Carlos Frias to their rotation, and it seems like they’ll have to add someone else, perhaps an arm from Triple-A, for what would have been Baker’s next start Wednesday against the Brewers.

The Dodgers signed the 33-year-old Baker last month after the Yankees cut him near the end of Spring Training. He made two starts for Los Angeles, allowing seven runs while striking out eight and walking three in 11 innings. In parts of ten seasons in the Majors, Baker has a 4.26 ERA with 7.1 K/9 and 2.1 BB/9.

NL Notes: Brewers, Pirates, Rockies

By charliewilmoth | May 3, 2015 at 7:30pm CDT

There have been numerous reports about the Brewers trading veteran players and rebuilding. But they aren’t likely to do so this early in the season, if only because it’s hard to find trading partners, Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel writes. If the Brewers don’t start trading immediately, though, it doesn’t sound like it will be because of any lack of eagerness on their part. “Very few teams are open to taking on money at this time of year. You get similar answers: ’We’re still looking at our club right now,'” says GM Doug Melvin. “The frustrating part is you would like to make some moves and do some things. But, early in the year, the only thing you can do is (between) your club and Triple-A.” Here are more notes from the National League.

Brewers first baseman Adam Lind could make a good trade target for the Pirates, ESPN’s Buster Olney tweets. The Pirates could certainly use more offense, but they already have a left-handed first baseman in Pedro Alvarez, and he’s one of a handful of players on the team not hitting poorly. The Bucs could also move Alvarez to third base and have Josh Harrison go back to a utility role, although that seems unlikely, given Alvarez’s extreme problems with throwing last season.
The Rockies have struggled in part because they haven’t been bold enough in their pursuit of starting pitching, Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post writes. The team has been reluctant to make big commitments to starting pitchers since their deals with Mike Hampton and Denny Neagle went south, Saunders writes. Of course, one problem is that it’s very difficult to get free agent starting pitchers to play half their games in Coors Field. Instead, Saunders suggests the Rockies could make a bold trade for a top starting pitcher, the way the Royals did with James Shields.

Minor Moves: Blackley, Flores, Capps, Ciriaco

By charliewilmoth | May 2, 2015 at 8:55pm CDT

Here are today’s minor moves from around the league.

A pair of veterans are headed to the Marlins, per Matt Eddy of Baseball America (via Twitter). Lefty Travis Blackley and catcher Jesus Flores will join the Miami organization after being cut loose by other clubs earlier in the spring. Blackley, 32, has not seen big league action since 2013 and struggled in a brief stint in Japan last year. The 30-year-old Flores, meanwhile, has never returned to the majors since a five-year run with the Nationals. At Triple-A last year with the Royals, he slashed .230/.299/.373 over 271 plate appearances.
The Braves have released veteran reliever Matt Capps, according to the International League transactions page. Capps, a former closer for the Pirates, Nationals and Twins, last appeared in the big leagues in 2012. He pitched just 12 minor-league innings in the last two seasons in the Indians system while dealing with shoulder issues, and he had not yet appeared in a game in 2015.
The Braves have announced that they’ve purchased the contract of utilityman Pedro Ciriaco. To make space on their active roster, they’ve optioned lefty Ian Thomas to Triple-A Gwinnett. With Chris Johnson out with a hand injury, the Braves plan to go with Alberto Callaspo and Phil Gosselin at third base, and Ciriaco could provide extra help at third and elsewhere in the infield. The 29-year-old has a career .270/.299/.372 line in 498 plate appearances over five seasons with the Pirates, Red Sox, Padres and Royals. The Braves signed him to a minor-league deal in October.

NL Central Notes: Brewers, Lutz, Edwards

By charliewilmoth | May 2, 2015 at 5:20pm CDT

The Brewers’ decision to designate Luis Jimenez for assignment was mostly the result of Jimenez’s poor fit for the team’s current situation, MLB.com’s Adam McCalvy reports. The team had hoped to use Jimenez as a late-inning defensive replacement for the aging Aramis Ramirez, but there turned out to be few situations in which he came in handy. “Unfortunately, we thought the season would go differently so far and I would use him in a different role,” says manager Ron Roenicke. “Because we’re always behind, his role hasn’t become important.” Here’s more from the NL Central.

The Reds have announced that outfielder/first baseman Donald Lutz has had Tommy John surgery after sustaining an elbow injury last week. The 26-year-old Lutz was hitting .190/.292/.262 in 48 plate appearances for Triple-A Louisville and struggled in brief stints with the Reds in 2013 and 2014, although he’s generally hit for good power in the minor leagues. He remains on the Reds’ 40-man roster.
The Cubs are having pitching prospect C.J. Edwards (a key component of the 2013 Matt Garza deal) begin his season in the bullpen, Gordon Wittenmyer writes for Baseball America (subscription-only). The Cubs still could use Edwards as a starter in the future, however. “We certainly in no way, shape or form have given up on him as a starter, but we also realize we’ll probably have to manage his innings a little bit this year,” says GM Jed Hoyer. Edwards pitched only 53 2/3 innings last season while dealing with a shoulder issue (although he added 15 innings in the Arizona Fall League), and his innings will be limited again in 2015. Having him begin his season in the bullpen will allow the Cubs to determine later in the season whether to move him back into a starting role. Edwards has struggled so far at Double-A Tennessee, striking out 11 batters but walking ten in 9 2/3 innings.

Rockies Designate Jorge Rondon For Assignment

By charliewilmoth | May 2, 2015 at 4:17pm CDT

The Rockies have selected the contract of lefty Kenny Roberts and designated righty Jorge Rondon for assignment, Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post tweets. The Rockies claimed Rondon from the Cardinals last November, and he got good results in a handful of outings at Triple-A, but to say his two outings with Colorado went poorly would be an understatement. He had a disastrous night Friday in San Diego, allowing eight runs, seven of them earned, without recording an out. He also allowed three runs in an inning in his other outing, which came against the Diamondbacks last week.

The 27-year-old Rondon has struggled to establish himself in the big leagues despite tempting velocity — his fastball has averaged over 95 MPH in his brief stints with both the Rockies and with the Cardinals last season. He spent much of 2014 with Triple-A Memphis, posting a 3.03 ERA, 7.4 K/9 and 2.9 BB/9 in 62 1/3 innings.

Roberts, 27, had posted a 3.27 ERA so far this season had Triple-A Albuquerque, striking out eight and walking none. The lefty has a career 2.37 ERA in a slow climb through the Rockies’ minor-league system.

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