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Eric Sogard: Face Of MLB [Trade Deadline]?

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You remember Eric Sogard. He once rode his rec spec-chic good looks and charmingly scrappy play to internet stardom, nearly winning the memorable “Face of MLB” contest through a thrilling hijacking effort launched by the crafty A’s faithful.

The good times didn’t last in Oakland. Sogard was a solid contributor in 2013, but his high-contact, low-power approach fizzled as he turned in consecutive sub-70 wRC+ seasons at the plate. There was a second act in Milwaukee in 2017, when Sogard turned in a remarkable combination of 45 walks against 37 strikeouts despite a near-total absence of power (.104 ISO). But he collapsed in the following campaign, carrying a ghastly .134/.241/.165 slash in 113 plate appearances for the Brewers.

Thus it was with little fanfare that the Blue Jays inked Sogard to a minors pact this past offseason. He was a solid depth piece, destined to open the year at Triple-A. At most, Jays fans might have hoped they’d finally have an organizational replacement for fan-favorite Ryan Goins, a utility infielder who was feted as a hero upon his return to Toronto. He had been dumped unceremoniously the winter prior after appearing in a career-high 143 games, sneaking the ball over the right field wall nine times and producing 62 ribbies. (That last state is the one that Jays announcer Buck Martinez chose to support his questionable assertion, in the above-linked video, that Goins had a “great year” in 2017. Goins slashed .237/.286/.356.)

As it turns out, Sogard was called upon by the Jays when youngster Lourdes Gurriel Jr. got the yips. Sogard had hit well at Triple-A, mostly by hounding young pitchers into walks. He drew seven free passes against just four strikeouts in 38 plate appearances while socking a dinger and a pair of doubles among his eight base knocks.

There was nothing remarkable about any of this … until the ghost of Goins inhabited Sogard’s spectacles. Those nine long balls Goins hit in his legend-making campaign? Well, Sogard has matched him already in nearly half the tries. The 33-year-old journeyman is now through 261 plate appearances of .294/.364/.478 hitting in Toronto, handily topping even mid-prime Goins in output. He’s hitting well against righties but doing even more damage against same-handed pitching (137 wRC+).

Just what is going on here? Is it remotely sustainable? Is Sogard a legit deadline trade chip for the rebuilding Toronto team?

This Goins-Sogard thing has had far longer legs than I anticipated when I sat down to write this, but it will help illustrate one more point. In large part, it seems Goins just happened to loft a few over the course of the season. His nine homers averaged 400 feet with a 27.6 degree average launch angle. Otherwise, he averaged only an 8.3 degree launch angle that season and has typically sat lower even than that.

Sogard? Much as with his predecessor, every single one of his homers has gone down the right field line — two-thirds of them at the Rogers Centre. They’re likewise flying on fairly lofty flight paths — moreso, in fact. Sogard’s mean dinger is taking a parabolic path of 29.6 degrees, placing him 122nd on the list of all home run hitters in the majors this year, sitting comfortably among between a bunch of double-digit dinger men.

That’s about where the similarities end. Sogard is producing some true wall-scrapers. His long balls are averaging just 380 feet, good for 399th of 452 players registered by Statcast. They have left the bat at a meager 96.5 mph average exit velo. That’s just 445th of 456 players in the database; you have to run up the board to Yuli Gurriel (14 homers at a 99.4 mph average exit velo) to find another hitter with more long balls.

The baseball may not be juiced, per se, but it sure is flying like never before. And Sogard is taking full advantage, maxing out his meager power to the breaking point. He currently owns a .184 isolated power mark — more than double his career average (.090) — despite a meek 20.7% hard-hit rate, 85.3 mph average exit velocity, and grand total of three barreled balls this season. Oh, and he’s also sending the ball skyward like never before, with a hefty 19.2 degree average launch angle.

Now, I’m not going to sit here and tell you that Sogard absolutely can’t keep things going like this. But Rogers Centre has borne witness to more long balls than any other MLB stadium this year. The Jays’ pitchers are playing their part in that, to be sure. But let’s just say that teams weighing a move for Sogard will want to do some ballpark dimension overlays before pulling the trigger.

Even if many of his dingers would’ve snuck out elsewhere, it seems wise to bake in a healthy amount of anticipated regression. Sogard does possess undeniable mastery of the strike zone and outstanding contact ability. He carries a 3.7% swinging-strike rate this year and sits under four percent over his career. This isn’t a player selling out to put the ball over the wall. But it’s also not one who’s newly stinging the sphere.

Sogard, a poster boy? In a sense, yeah. Teams considering him will need to closely parse the changes to the broader state of play and try to assess how he’ll fit in moving forward. Can Sogard keep tucking balls into the front rows of the right field bleachers? That depends not only upon a look at Sogard, but other matters. Can pitchers find a way to adjust to these universal changes? Will the baseball undergo further physical change? Likewise, other deadline targets — those performing well and those struggling to adapt, hitters and pitchers alike — will be viewed with one eye on the ever-flying long ball.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Mets Have Discussed Noah Syndergaard With At Least 6 Teams

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10:37pm: The Mets have recently discussed Syndergaard with no fewer than six teams, Tim Healey of Newsday reports. Unsurprisingly, though, there’s “minimal urgency” on the Mets’ part to trade Syndergaard, whom they’d need to be “wowed” to move, Healey writes.

12:19pm: The Padres have checked in recently on the availability of Mets starter Noah Syndergaard, according to MLB.com’s Jon Morosi (Twitter link). The big righty was a known target of the San Diego organization over the winter, though the sides obviously failed to line up at the time.

It’s not at all clear that the two organizations have engaged in substantive trade dialogue to this point. And there are other teams also showing attention to the 26-year-old Syndergaard. It’s still far from certain at this point that the Mets will move him, let alone where.

There are some tough calls ahead for the scuffling New York org. Sitting at ten games under .500, there’s not much hope of digging out of the hole this season. But the club’s balance sheet is set up to continue the pursuit of contention in 2020. Syndergaard would have obvious value to the team then, as he’s controllable for two more seasons via arbitration.

Selling Thor likely won’t make sense for the Mets if it means settling for a return that reflects his 2019 output. Syndergaard carries only a 4.68 ERA through 105 2/3 innings. There certainly seems to be some sequencing and batted-ball misfortune mixed in — he has a slightly depressed 67.0% strand rate; Statcast credits him with a .280 xwOBA-against that’s far better than his .314 wOBA-against — but he’s also carrying career-low levels of swinging strikes (11.9%) and chases out of the zone (31.5%).

Given the levels of early interest being shown, it’s obvious that other organizations still see plenty of skill in Syndergaard’s powerful right arm. He’s still averaging over 98 mph with his fastball. His release point has wandered this year, which could reflect a concern, an attempt at an adjustment, or an area to target for correction.

The key question may ultimately be whether a team is willing to put enough talent on the line to force the Mets’ hand on the matter. For the Friars, adding Syndergaard now would significantly enhance the immediate outlook, though with a yawning gulf in the division that’d be a dubious strategy. Such a move would mostly be about his potential to anchor the rotation next season, with an extension perhaps also a possibility. The San Diego organization is laden with young talent, so there’s no shortage of conceivable pieces that could be included in a deal.

Red Sox Release Tyler Thornburg

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The Red Sox have released righty Tyler Thornburg, per a club announcement (via Alex Speier of the Boston Globe, on Twitter). That was the anticipated outcome after the reliever declined an optional assignment.

Thornburg will be now take to the open market in search of a bounceback opportunity elsewhere. He’s promised a $1.75MM salary from the Boston organization regardless. Other clubs can consider bringing him aboard for nothing more than the league-minimum rate of pay for whatever time he spends at the major-league level. While Thornburg hasn’t been a productive big league pitcher in quite some time, he’s still only 30 years of age and is sure to catch on with a rival team (likely on a minors pact).

The trade that brought Thornburg to the Red Sox stings quite a bit in retrospect. Travis Shaw ended up giving the Brewers two quality seasons; while he has struggled this year, the Milwaukee org also just called up the other key piece of the swap — infielder Mauricio Dubon. While he isn’t seen as a blue-chipper, the 24-year-old has handled the bat well at Triple-A and is generally viewed as a valuable prospect.

Latest On Kyle Freeland

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Rockies starter Kyle Freeland could soon be ready for a return to the majors, if he isn’t already, Nick Groke of The Athletic explains (subscription link) in the course of an excellent examination of the demoted southpaw.

There’s still no formal indication whether and when the Colorado organization will elect to call back Freeland. But the club is badly in need of a boost after dropping six-straight contests heading into the All-Star break. And Freeland says he’s ready to roll.

“I feel back to myself,” says Freeland, who was optioned at the end of May after a brutal start to the season. That came on the heels of a stirring 2018 performance in which he landed fourth in the National League’s Cy Young voting. While there was cause to anticipate some regression, it seemed at the time that the Denver native was destined to be a rotation stalwart for years to come.

After allowing more than seven earned runs per nine innings in a dozen MLB starts, Freeland has coughed up almost a run per frame in his half-dozen outings at Triple-A. With 28 strikeouts against 16 walks, he’s not exactly posting dominant K/BB numbers against second-level competition.

But those numbers only tell part of the tale, Groke writes. When Freeland was demoted, the prevailing sense was that he was in good shape physically and mechanically. The issue, rather, was that he had become predictable to big-league hitters. The Rox initially told Freeland to rely exclusively on his fastball and change. He wasn’t working on big fixes; as he puts it, “it was just getting back to being myself.”

That’s approximately the same characterization that skipper Bud Black puts on the situation. He expressed confidence, saying he anticipates Freeland will “exhibit confidence in his pitch mix” and “be more dimensional.” It’s all but impossible to really say what that will look like on the mound. As Groke explains, though, that’s due to Freeland’s nature as a pitcher who succeeds by mixing, matching, and adapting constantly with his expansive repertoire.

While Freeland may feel himself, it remains to be seen whether he can again pitch anything like the version of himself that was capable of a full season of sub-3.00 ERA ball at Coors Field. He was bombed in his last Triple-A outing of the month of June, coughing up nine earned runs in 3 1/3 innings, but then bounced back with a sterling outing just before the break (9 strikeouts, 2 walks, four hits, 1 earned run in 7 innings).

There’s loads of uncertainty, but the Rockies have little choice but to give Freeland another shot — likely in the relatively near future. Groke says the club is inclined to call up Chi Chi Gonzalez for an upcoming doubleheader spot start, but anticipates a need for a fifth starter later this month. That’s only part of the picture, though, as the club’s current four-man rotation mix is not without broader issues. German Marquez and Jon Gray have been sturdy; otherwise, the Colorado club has received shaky output. Antonio Senzatela (who has been destroyed by lefty hitters) and newcomer Peter Lambert (nine home runs allowed in 29 2/3 innings) haven’t thrived any more than did Freeland, Jeff Hoffman, Tyler Anderson, and Chad Bettis. If the Rox are to hand in the Wild Card race, they’ll need to get more consistency from their starting staff.

Nationals Activate, Option Kyle Barraclough

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The Nationals announced today that they have activated righty Kyle Barraclough from the 10-day injured list. Rather than bringing him back onto the MLB roster, the club optioned Barraclough to Double-A.

Barraclough had been sidelined since mid-June with nerve irritation in his right forearm. The 29-year-old, acquired over the offseason, is earning $1.725MM this year in his first season of arbitration eligibility.

Before hitting the shelf, Barraclough had struggled to a 6.39 ERA in 25 1/3 innings. Despite a solid 30:12 K/BB ratio, the righty reliever was touched for seven long balls. Statcast has in the past credited Barraclough with maintaining low hard-hit rates, helping to offset his typically hefty walk numbers. But opposing hitters have jumped him for 43.6% hard contact this year as he has continued to shed fastball velocity (from an early-career peak of 96.6 mph down to 93.7 mph in 2019).

The Nats may well need to call upon Barraclough again later in the season, but they’ll first see if they can find more consistency from other arms. The D.C. relief unit still lacks much in the way of stability, though it is no longer performing at historically awful rates after an unbelievably poor start to the year.

7 Top Prospects Who Could Spur Their Teams Down The Stretch

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Every now and again, a young player arrives in the majors relatively late in the season and immediately functions as a key cog for a contender. Think Corey Seager in 2015. It takes a combination of talent, readiness, and opportunity all coming together. We’ll be focused in no small part on that last prong here; it’s always possible that injuries will create new openings, but our attention will fall on already foreseeable chances at playing time.

Here are a few top prospects who have yet to make their MLB debuts but could be positioned to make a splash for possible contenders in the second half:

Jo Adell, OF, Angels: If the Halos are to make a charge — into the Wild Card picture, if not that of the division — they’ll need everything they can get. While Brian Goodwin has been a nice surprise, he’s best suited to functioning as a fourth outfielder. Overcoming adversity for a surprise run may require a bold bet on Adell’s talent; after a late start to the year, he has shattered Double-A pitching.

MacKenzie Gore, LHP, Padres: Ditto the Friars, who have shown zero hesitation to promote top young hurlers but still haven’t settled on a sustainable rotation mix. There isn’t much reason for the San Diego org to go wild with rental additions at the deadline, but it could remain in the Wild Card hunt and would have less to lose by rolling the dice on its own prospect assets. Gore is the most talented of all the team’s pre-MLB hurlers. He only just earned a promotion to the Double-A level after mowing down High-A batters, so bringing the 20-year-old to the show would be rather aggressive, but it could be intriguing to consider the possibility depending upon how things shake out (for both Gore and the team) over the next month or so.

Ian Anderson, RHP, Braves: The Atlanta organization has likewise cycled through a whole host of young arms of late, with the sort of mixed results you’d expect. Anderson has yet to get the call but has made a compelling case. He’s now through 86 2/3 innings of 2.91 ERA ball at Double-A — the same level he finished the ’18 season — with 11.7 K/9 and 4.5 BB/9. Having reached 119 1/3 total frames last year, Anderson ought to have some availability left in the tank. The Braves could conceivably call upon him as a rotation piece, late-inning reliever, or multi-inning flex hurler.

Alec Bohm, 3B, Phillies: It’s a parade of former third overall picks! Bohm, who followed Gore (’17) and Anderson (’16) in that draft slot, only recently made it to the Double-A level. But he was selected as an accomplished collegiate player and is nearly 23 years of age. Bohm has exhibited exceptional plate discipline and good power this year. Meanwhile, the Phils have sunk in the standings as third bagger Maikel Franco has faded at the plate.

A.J. Puk, LHP, Athletics: We’ve long known of this possibility. Puk, a long-hyped southpaw, is coming back from Tommy John surgery just in time to give another boost to the streaking A’s. Unfortunately, he has been walk-prone in his rehab work and may need some more polishing before making his MLB debut. But the upside here is too tantalizing to ignore, even if it could come initially in relief work. We’re not forgetting about two other high-end A’s prospects — Jesus Luzardo and Sean Murphy — but both are still working through injury issues.

Nico Hoerner, 2B, Cubs: As with Bohm, Hoerner is a quick-moving 2018 first-rounder. While he was ahead of his classmate to begin the year, opening at the penultimate level of the minors, Hoerner was sidelined by a wrist injury that he returned from only recently. But it’s not hard to imagine him jumping onto the MLB radar in the relatively near future. Through 95 plate appearances this season at Double-A, Hoerner carries a .305/.371/.486 slash line. Meanwhile, at the major-league level, the Cubs have featured an underperforming carousel of players at Hoerner’s position.

Dustin May, RHP, Dodgers: While Gavin Lux seems ready for an impact, there just isn’t much immediate opportunity in a loaded Los Angeles infield mix. Instead, we’re featuring May, a 21-year-old hurler who could make an impact in any number of ways on the Dodgers pitching staff. Having already twice topped 130 innings in prior seasons, May could be asked to work as a starter. It’s more likely, perhaps, that the L.A. club would consider him as yet another flex piece. May was just bumped up to Triple-A after throwing 79 1/3 innings of 3.74 ERA ball, with 9.8 K/9 and 2.3 BB/9, for Double-A Tulsa.

All-Star Break Opt-Out Updates

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The opt-out clause is now a permanent fixture in the large-contract toolkit. Not every deal has one, but they’re a common mechanism to allow players and teams to tweak otherwise rigid structures to find accord. Fortunately for hot stove watchers, opt-out clauses — really, glorified player options — create added layers of complexity and intrigue for significant players.

Let’s check in on the opt-out decisions forthcoming at the end of the 2019 season:

Elvis Andrus, SS, Rangers: Three years, $43MM: Andrus is in an interesting spot as he nears his 31st birthday. He’s posting league-average numbers at the plate thus far in 2019 with a blend of a high batting average, scant walk rate, and decent power. Statcast indicates he has overperformed a bit, which was also the assessment based upon the batted-ball data in his successful 2016 and 2017 campaigns. (The opposite was true last year, a down season at the plate.) There’s a split on the defensive side between UZR (which grades Andrus as excellent) and DRS (the opposite); given his long history, it seems fair to say Andrus is still plenty capable of handling short. He’s ticking up on the basepaths, having already swiped 19 bags after taking just five last year. It’s still possible to imagine this situation going one way or the other, depending upon how Andrus finishes out the year and what his personal preferences are. On balance, it doesn’t seem likely that he’ll have much greater earning power than the existing contract — particularly since he’d assuredly be dragging draft compensation if he opts out (which would make it an easy choice for the Rangers to issue him a qualifying offer).

Jake Arrieta, RHP, Phillies: One year, $20MM (unless Phillies exercise two-year, $40MM option for 2021-22): Unless Arrieta completely flips the script hard down the stretch, there’s almost no way it’ll make sense on paper for him to opt out. His useful but uninspiring 2018 effort has given way to a messy 2019 campaign, with the problem areas of the past few seasons coming fully to roost. Arrieta is through 108 innings in 18 starts, so he remains a dependable rotation piece, but he’s coughing up 4.67 earned per nine with just 7.1 K/9 against 3.3 BB/9. While he is again drawing grounders on over half the balls put in play against him, he’s also allowing dingers on one in five flies. At 33 years of age, Arrieta seems to be on the career arc of James Shields moreso than that of Zack Greinke.

Aroldis Chapman, LHP, Yankees: Two years, $30MM: We initially missed this one when we rounded up the year’s opt-out opportunities. That stings doubly since Chapman arguably has the best case for bailing on the rest of his contract. 32 next February, the southpaw remains a force at the back of the Yanks’ bullpen. Through 34 2/3 innings this year, Chapman carries a 1.82 ERA with 13.0 K/9 and 3.1 BB/9. While many other pitchers are seeing their dinger rates rise, he has allowed only a single ball to leave the yard. His swinging-strike rate is down to a personal-low of 12.3%, and Chapman is averaging only 98.2 mph with his average four-seam fastball — though he’s still over 100 with a sinker that he has utilized more than ever. There’s some market competition from excellent lefty Will Smith, and Chapman can be issued a qualifying offer by the Yankees, but there’s plenty of reason to think Chapman would be hotly pursued in free agency.

Yu Darvish, RHP, Cubs: Four years, $81MM: Darvish is consistently making starts, which is more than could be said last year, but the Cubs’ Arrieta replacement has not been anywhere close to good enough to spurn those remaining earnings. As he closes in on his 33rd birthday, Darvish is giving up free passes (4.5 BB/9) and long flies (1.86 per nine, 25.3% HR/FB) by the bucketful. There are some positive signs that leave the door open for a turnaround — his 93.9 mph average fastball and 12.2% swinging-strike rate sit right at his career means — but they aren’t going to change the contractual outcome here.

Jason Heyward, OF, Cubs: Four years, $86MM (assuming he makes 550 PAs): Heyward still hasn’t reached his 30th birthday and is in the midst of a bit of a renaissance at the plate. After two brutal campaigns, he crawled back to league-average production in 2018. Now, he’s slashing .266/.355/.457 (110 wRC+) with 14 home runs and a career-high 12.0% walk rate through 332 plate appearances in 2019. We haven’t seen this kind of pop from Heyward since way back in 2013. There are some limits to the good vibes, however. Heyward continues to grade well defensively in right field, but metrics have panned his work in center. And he has been abysmal against left-handed pitching, cobbling together a .188/.246/.281 slash without the platoon advantage. That profile isn’t going to command a payday that comes close to what Heyward already has in hand.

Kenley Jansen, RHP, Dodgers: Two years, $38MM: Much like teammate Clayton Kershaw, Jansen is now merely excellent, rather than exceptional. The veteran closer looks much the same this year as he did last, with still sparkling K/BB numbers (11.8 K/9 vs. 1.7 BB/9) but a vulnerability to the long ball that did not exist at his peak. Over his past 108 1/3 innings, dating to the start of the ’18 campaign, Jansen has allowed more than 1.5 dingers per nine with a HR/FB rate of greater than 15 percent. Though his swinging-strike rate has trended back up this year (to 16.0%, just over his career average but below his ceiling), his average fastball velocity has continued its inevitable descent (now to 92.0 mph). Jansen will turn 32 at the very end of the season. There’s still a possibility that he could secure a slightly larger overall contract on the open market if he finishes strong, particularly since Jansen can’t be hung with a qualifying offer. Wade Davis got $52MM over three years at the same point on the age spectrum. But that possibility may not be worth the risk, particularly after Craig Kimbrel fell shy of expectations in free agency.

J.D. Martinez, DH/OF, Red Sox: Three years, $62.5MM: This one could be interesting, particularly given that several of the most productive potential free agents decided to avoid the market by inking extensions. Martinez is going to have a fairly limited potential pool of suitors, which will impact the decisionmaking. He’s also a candidate to receive a qualifying offer, which won’t help. It doesn’t sound as if he much of an idea yet whether he’ll trigger the opt out. The second-half performance will be key here. Martinez has now fallen off of the phenomenal levels of offensive production he carried in the prior two seasons. Through 357 plate appearances, he owns an impressive (but mortal) .304/.376/.541 batting line with 18 home runs. Statcast has some mixed news: Martinez is exhibiting clear declines in hard contact but still seems like a candidate for positive regression (.383 wOBA vs. .416 xwOBA). Edwin Encarnacion took down $20MM annually over a three-year term entering his age-34 season, so there’s a realistic possibility that Martinez (32 in August) could beat the earnings he already has secured.

Stephen Strasburg, RHP, Nationals: Four years, $100MM: As he nears his 31st birthday, Strasburg continues to turn in excellent work on the mound. He has underperformed his peripherals again in 2019, but has been in good health (knock on wood) with 116 1/3 frames over 18 starts. Stras carries a 3.64 ERA with 10.7 K/9 against 2.2 BB/9 and a strong 52.4% groundball rate. He’s sporting career-best marks in swinging-strike rate (14.2%) and chase rate (38.6%) despite losing a tick on his average four-seamer, so the stuff is still plenty crisp. The opt-out chance — there’s another next winter as well — could well prove tantalizing so long as Strasburg keeps up his present pace and stays healthy down the stretch. It’s important to bear in mind that the contract’s deferrals reduce its present-day value. Still, it’s a big number to top in free agency. And while the upcoming class was severely weakened by pre-season extensions, it does feature some strong rotation competition — particularly the more youthful Gerrit Cole, but also including Zack Wheeler, Madison Bumgarner, Rick Porcello, Kyle Gibson, and Cole Hamels.

MLBPA Chief Tony Clark Discusses CBA, Juiced Ball

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MLB Players Association executive director Tony Clark chatted with the media today as part of this week’s All-Star festivities. The Twitter feeds of Alex Speier of the Boston Globe and Eric Fisher of the Sports Business Group feature many of the key comments. Those interested in reading more about the labor situation should also read this interesting look at the efforts of Clark and other union leaders from Tyler Kepner and James Wagner of the New York Times.

Clark emphasized just now notable it was that the union and league have launched negotiations now, well in advance of the expiration of a collective bargaining agreement. He didn’t shy away from a lofty goal, stating: “We are interested in restoring meaningful free agency.”

The MLBPA is chasing other goals as well, including putting a stop to service time manipulation, increasing the marketing of players, and boosting compensation for young players that haven’t yet reached arbitration eligibility. On that last score, Clark says that “a young player needs to be fairly compensated for what he’s doing.”

As ever, the question remains just what alternatives can be proposed to create the desired outcomes. In part, MLB teams’ collective shift away from free agent spending is a reflection of the volume of young talent now rising to the majors. That speaks in favor of boosting pre-arb spending, but the capital side of the equation surely won’t boost the compensation of such players unless there are corresponding savings elsewhere.

Clark notes that the $555K league minimum is only that. “You can pay players more,” he says. “Teams are choosing not to.” But it isn’t clear why organizations would come forward with across-the-board raises for young players when there’s nothing compelling it. And it’s also fair at least to note that some teams have gone well over the minimum, especially for star players. That they have done so on an essentially ad hoc basis reflects the simple fact that the current CBA does not require more.

It still isn’t clear just what universal approach the players would like to accomplish, not that they necessarily want to put forth a complete vision at this stage. That’ll ultimately be necessary if Clark and co. want younger players to grab a bigger slice of the pie — or, perhaps, get the piece of the action that the owners seem to have taken away from free agency (not that they’d see it that way). Perhaps there are ways to find some extra cash to bring to the players’ coffers; Clark did note the ongoing influx of gambling money (and potential problems along with it).

On some level, though, the discussion will have to involve moving resources from one class of player to another. It’s at least somewhat curious, then, that Clark also indicated it was “not yet” necessary for a radical overhaul of the general arbitration and free-agent systems of compensation — a system that he has said previously “doesn’t work” in its current form. He did say that he has broached the concept of ending the amateur draft, which would assuredly represent a dramatic change in approach (albeit one that seems quite unlikely to gain traction and that might result in undesirable side effects).

Clark also addressed the matter of the increasingly regular long balls finding their way out of the field of play. He declined to subscribe to any particular conspiracy theories, but did say that he has clearly noticed the jump: “I believe the ball suddenly changed, and I don’t know why.”

That matter is not directly related to the labor situation, but it has loads of potential to impact the transactional market and is certainly a subject in which the union will take great interest. Given the strange degree of intrigue surrounding the MLB ball in recent years, perhaps it’s also a subject that the union can utilize for a smidgen of public relations leverage. And the rise in dingers may actually create some opportunities to shake up the labor market. The arbitration system, for instance, will struggle to react. It’ll take some creativity and foresight to take advantage (and avoid disadvantage) on the union side from disruption of this sort.

White Sox To Promote A.J. Reed

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The White Sox will bring just-acquired first baseman A.J. Reed right onto their active roster, the young slugger tells Rick Semmler of Indiana’s WTHI (via Twitter). Reed had initially been assigned to Triple-A Charlotte but says he was informed he’ll meet the big league club in Oakland.

It’s not yet clear what the corresponding move will be for the Chicago organization, which snagged Reed from the Astros in a recent waiver claim. The White Sox were in need of another lefty bat after parting ways with Yonder Alonso, who struggled in brief action. Perhaps it’s unsurprising, then, that they’ll hand over an immediate opportunity to Reed.

The former second-round draft pick would obviously not have been freely available had he performed to expectations, but the White Sox can afford to have greater patience and perhaps offer a new perspective in attempting to draw out the long-evident talent. Now 26 years of age, Reed struggled in his only extended MLB action back in 2016.

While he has mostly performed well at Triple-A, Reed hasn’t forced his way onto a deep Houston roster and has clearly lost much of his prospect luster. This year has been a particular struggle, as he carries only a .224/.329/.469 slash line with a dozen long ball in 225 plate appearances at the highest level of the minors. In this booming offensive environment, that’s actually about ten percent below league-average productivity. Though he’s still walking at an even  12 percent clip, Reed has also gone down on strikes in nearly three of every ten trips to the dish.

Sonny Gray Reflects On Yankees Tenure

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Reds hurler Sonny Gray isn’t bitter about his tenure with the Yankees, but that doesn’t mean he’s in denial about his struggles there. As Ken Davidoff of the New York Post writes, the 29-year-old All-Star values his time in New York precisely because of the difficulties he faced.

Gray says his experience with the Yanks was “absolutely” a positive one, even though he ended up being left off the postseason roster on the heels of a brutal regular season (4.90 ERA in 130 1/3 innings).

“I think everyone kind of knows that New York wasn’t a great fit for me, place for me, last year,” says Gray. “It just didn’t seem to work out, for whatever reason. But looking back, I wouldn’t change one thing about it.”

Quite often, parting transactions leave at least one involved party with hard feelings. Not so here. Gray facilitated the three-team deal that delivered him to Cincinnati by agreeing to a three-year extension (plus option). That contract now appears to be quite an appealing one for the Reds, who also acquired lefty Reiver Sanmartin in the deal. But it also wasn’t a bad bit of security for Gray to achieve at the time, particularly given his wavering output in two of the three preceding seasons.

On the other side of the swap, the Yanks got some nice parting gifts. Outfielder Josh Stowers came aboard when the club shipped former Reds prospect Shed Long straight to the Mariners, who have already received big-league contributions from Long. And the New York organization just used the comp pick it received from the Cincinnati club to select southpaw TJ Sikkema. (The original deal to acquire Gray from the A’s also hasn’t stung the Bronx Bombers — not yet, at least.)

 

Gray says he’s stronger for the difficult experience. He certainly has bounced back with aplomb, slinging 90 1/3 innings of 3.59 ERA ball with 10.3 K/9 against 3.3 BB/9. By most metrics, he’s much the same pitcher as before. But Gray seems to be squeezing more out of his tools, inducing much less hard contact (33.9% after surrendering 39.5% last year, per Statcast) and generating a career-high 27.8% K rate despite continuing to sport similar swinging-strike marks.

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