Latest On Luke Heimlich
AUGUST 10: Per CPBL Stats (via Twitter), the league has now officially rejected the contract.
AUGUST 8: The Lamigo Monkeys, a Taiwanese professional team, recently announced the signing of former Oregon State pitcher Luke Heimlich. It’s not yet clear, however, that the contract will go into effect.
The CPBL Stats website has tracked the league’s reaction to the announcement. It seems that the league has given varying indications, at one point saying it would require termination of the contract but later indicating the matter was still under review. To this point, the Lamigo announcement is still accessible online and there is no indication that the contract has formally been rescinded.
By now, most MLBTR readers are surely familiar with Heimlich’s background. Many, no doubt, have formed strong opinions on what it means for his future as a professional baseball player. In brief, Heimlich pled guilty as a teenager to sexually molesting a child, a fact which emerged in the middle of his tenure as a standout collegiate ballplayer. Regardless of one’s viewpoint, it’s worth reviewing this recent assessment of the situation from Kurt Streeter of the New York Times.
Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports reported during this year’s draft that Heimlich was nearly certain to join a MLB organization. Indeed, the Royals even publicized their possible interest (see here and here), while other organizations were also said to be considering a highly controversial move to bring in an undeniably talented player with a deeply concerning past.
As it has turned out, though, Heimlich was not selected in the draft and has not joined an affiliated club as a free agent. The fact that he has not found a willing team to this point perhaps indicates that it won’t happen — at least, in the near-term.
Instead, it seems he and his representatives have turned their attention to opportunities abroad, perhaps hoping that he’ll have an opportunity to earn some money and build some momentum toward an eventual move to a MLB organization. The outcome of that initiative, too, remains uncertain at this point in time.
MLBTR Chat Transcript: August Trades, Braves, Giants, More
Click here to read a transcript of today’s chat with host Jeff Todd.
Minor MLB Transactions: 8/9/18
This post will house the minor MLB transactions of the day:
- The Rangers announced that southpaw Brandon Mann has been outrighted to Triple-A after clearing waivers. He was designated for assignment recently. This year, Mann became one of the older rookies you’ll ever encounter when he reached the majors for the first time at 34. He earned his way up after carrying a 2.70 ERA through 43 1/3 frames at Round Rock, though he managed only 7.7 K/9 and 4.6 BB/9 in that span. In 7 1/3 big-league innings, Mann allowed five earned runs on four hits while recording two strikeouts against four walks.
The Best Minor League Signings Of 2018: Position Players
Early this season, we checked in on the players that were playing notable MLB roles after settling for minor-league deals over the winter. (Position players; starting pitchers; relievers.) It was small samples galore.
Unsurprisingly, many of the names that featured in the initial look have faded, while other minor-league signees have emerged. Accordingly, we’ll reexamine this year’s crop of budget acquisitions to see which players have provided real utility over the course of the season to date.
We’ll begin, as we did the last time around, with position players. Frankly, as is typical, there haven’t been many significant contributors from among the MiLB contract ranks. But these five are all worthy of note:
- Alen Hanson, Giants: Once a notable prospect, Hanson has made the most of his first extended MLB opportunity this year in San Francisco. Driven by a surprising .194 isolated slugging mark, the out-of-options 25-year-old owns a .276/.301/.469 slash with six home runs and five stolen bases through 208 plate appearances. While defensive metrics aren’t in love with the glove, Hanson’s versatility has been of use and he adds value on the bases, too. He seems like a keeper for the Giants, who control him through the 2022 season.
- Mark Reynolds, Nationals: The 35-year-old languished on the market before landing with the Nationals, but has proven he can still draw a walk and hit for power. On the year, he carries a .269/.359/.537 slash with 11 home runs in 156 plate appearances. That certainly helped keep the Nats afloat as injuries derailed the team’s original plans, though certainly Reynolds remains severely limited by his defensive limitations and poor baserunning.
- A.J. Ellis, Padres: Long a respected presence behind the dish, the 37-year-old Ellis has contributed with the bat as well in 2018. As usual, his most notable offensive skill is his plate discipline — his 15.0% walk rate even exceeds his peak levels — but Ellis has also hit for more average than usual thus far. While the .370 BABIP gives cause for skepticism as to sustainability, Ellis has been one of the game’s biggest on-base threats this year among players with at least 100 plate appearances.
- Max Muncy, Dodgers: Okay, this is cheating a bit. Muncy signed with the Dodgers in 2017, after all. But he did not appear with the organization at the MLB level until the present campaign, and the results have been too good not to warrant mention. True, Muncy has come back to earth of late, slumping out of the All-Star break, but he still owns a stunning .253/.380/558 slash line with 24 home runs on the season. Better still, he has not only received good marks on the basepaths, but has mostly drawn average marks for his fielding while lining up at five different positions.
- Jose Bautista, Mets: Yup, I’m bending the rules here again. Joey Bats signed onto the MLB roster with New York, but he squeezes onto the list because he initially inked a minors pact with the Braves. You also have to put up some blinders on his early showing in Atlanta. Since going to the Mets, though, Bautista has contributed a .208/.360/.372 slash. The once-prodigious power just isn’t there, and he’s striking out at twice his mid-prime rate, but a 17.5% walk rate has allowed Bautista to rate as an above-average offensive player despite a sub-Mendoza batting average for the season.
- Niko Goodrum, Tigers: With a hat tip to MLBTR commenter JosephofMichigan for the suggestion, we’ll add the 26-year-old switch-hitter here as well. Goodrum is swinging and missing too much and only has a .294 on-base percentage through 340 plate appearances, but he’s showing good pop (.188 ISO, ten home runs) and adding value on the bases (3.1 BsR, eight steals). As with Hanson, the metrics are somewhat bearish on Goodrum’s glovework, but he has been asked to play all over the infield along with both corner outfield spots.
Did I miss a worthy player? Let me know in the comments.
Central Notes: Martin, Cutch, Bucs, Hamilton, Carpenter
The Indians announced today that recently acquired center fielder Leonys Martin is headed to the 10-day DL owing to a stomach ailment. It’s unclear at this point how long he’ll be sidelined, MLB.com’s Jordan Bastian adds on Twitter. The club will surely hope the issue resolves itself in short order, as Martin is expected to play a significant role in the team’s outfield rotation down the stretch and into the postseason. The 30-year-old had been off to a productive start in his first six games in Cleveland.
Here’s more from the central divisions …
- Bob Nightengale of USA Today took an interesting angle on the Pirates‘ deadline moves recently, discussing them with former star Andrew McCutchen. The veteran outfielder, who was dealt to the Giants in the winter, said he was surprised that the Pittsburgh organization decided that this was the summer to push hard for improvements. It’s an interesting story, particularly for fans of these two clubs, in no small part because McCutchen discusses the feeling within the clubhouse of going through the trade deadline. Referring to his past experiences with the Bucs, he explained: “We felt we had a good team to compete, but then you see other teams making those moves, getting the key pieces to their team to make them stronger, and you feel like, “Dang, we’ve got to do something, too.'”
- In a recent post with notes on several ballclubs, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic presents one potential explanation for the timing of the Pirates‘ moves. (Subscription link.) He writes that an executive with another team posits that the acquisitions of Chris Archer and Keone Kela were driven in some part by the team’s slumping attendance. That’s not the case, per president Frank Coonelly, who says instead the swaps were made out of a “desire to improve the club for this 2018 stretch run and for the next several years.” Coonelly also cited prospect depth as a factor that enabled the maneuvers. That certainly seems to be a fair explanation, but there’s also little doubt that the team has an eye on the bottom line as well. As Rosenthal writes, perhaps there’s some evidence here of “the power of a disgruntled fan base to effect change.”
- As Rosenthal further reports in that post, the Reds‘ decisionmaking on center fielder Billy Hamilton continues to be influenced by the views of owner Bob Castellini, who has gone on record as a proponent of the exceedingly speedy but light-hitting player. Hamilton didn’t feature as a particularly likely August trade candidate regardless, though perhaps there’s some hypothetical plausibility to such a scenario. But the report suggests the organization may still be rather reluctant to part with the 27-year-old, who is set to enter his final season of arbitration eligibility after earning $4.6MM this year. Perhaps there’s still a way the front office can make this all work in a sensible manner. Hamilton, after all, is a useful MLB player — he’s a great defender and baserunner, and has at least been somewhat better historically against right-handed pitching — who is simply miscast in an everyday role. He could still make sense on what’s hoped to be a competitive 2019 roster, at least if the organization makes a supplemental addition in center and commits to leaning less heavily on Hamilton.
- It seems like it was just yesterday we were preaching patience in response to chat questions from irate Cardinals fans about Matt Carpenter‘s struggles. But a turnaround of this magnitude remains a surprise. As things stand, he’s among the most productive hitters in baseball — even including his meager opening performance — with a .281/.393/.598 slash and 31 home runs through 476 plate appearances. It’s a fascinating situation for a variety of reasons, to be sure. Carpenter himself evidently feels that way, too, as MLB.com’s Joe Trezza tweets. “It’s just not who I am,” says the 32-year-old Carpenter of his exploits. “It’s not who I was. It’s not the hitter I’ve ever been. I’m developing into somebody I’ve never dreamt of or tried to be like. I don’t have an explanation for it.”
Ben Cherington Open To Pursuing GM Opportunities
Blue Jays VP of player development Ben Cherington, formerly the GM of the Red Sox, discussed his past and future in an interesting recent chat with Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe. While he says he loves working in Toronto, Cherington also indicated an openness to pursuing other opportunities.
As the offseason approaches, it seems likely that Cherington will at least be discussed as a potential candidate for whatever GM positions open up. Indeed, he has already been tied to the Mets. It’s worth noting, though, that there aren’t many other organizations that seem likely at this point to be hiring new top decisionmakers in the coming offseason.
Cherington certainly did not sound like he’s eager to end his tenure with the Jays. To the contrary, he says he’s “completely focused” on his work there, crediting the “collaborative effort.”
But when asked about the possibility of pursuing another shot at a GM role, Cherington acknowledged that he’s “not shutting the door on anything.” He explained that, “if something is presented to me, I’ll evaluate it and see if it’s something I want to do.”
That seems to represent a shift in thinking for Cherington. Per Cafardo, the exec has not pursued opportunities to interview for other GM openings since his time with the Red Sox ended in the middle of the 2015 season.
Red Sox and Blue Jays fans, especially, will want to read the full article, as it covers topics of interest on the AL East rivals. Among other things, Cafardo discusses Cherington’s role in compiling (or, at least, not trading away) key members of the current Boston core. And Cherington expressed confidence that the Blue Jays’ prospect base has improved under his supervision.
Minor MLB Transactions: 8/8/18
We’ll track the latest minor moves in this post:
- The Royals have released right-hander Michael Mariot, Jeffrey Flanagan of MLB.com tweets. The 29-year-old Mariot had been in his second stint as a member of the Royals, with whom he initially pitched from 2014-15 after they chose him in the eighth round of the 2010 draft. Mariot, who was with the Phillies from 2016-17 and the Padres earlier in 2018, threw 37 2/3 innings between the Royals’ Double-A and Triple-A affiliates this year. The majority of that work came with the latter club, as Mariot recorded a 3.81 ERA with 9.85 K/9 and 2.22 BB/9 in 28 1/3 innings (18 appearances, two starts).
Earlier updates:
- The Indians announced that they have released righty Zach McAllister, who had recently been designated for assignment. Though he cleared waivers, due in no small part to his $2.45MM salary, the 30-year-old ought to draw interest on the open market. After all, he had been quite a useful reliever for the Indians over the prior three seasons before hitting some bumps this year. McAllister is throwing strikes and getting swings and misses at the same levels as before. Though he’s giving up a fair bit of hard contact, he did that in 2017 as well. Of course, he had been outperforming ERA estimators in recent years. With a 68.5% strand rate and 1.51 homers per nine in 2018, some of the prior issues have finally shown up on the earned-run ledger. McAllister will qualify for free agency at season’s end, having already exceeded six full years of MLB service.
- Per the MLB transactions page, the Padres have selected the contract of righty Brett Kennedy. His forthcoming promotion was reported a few days back by Dennis Lin of the San Diego Union-Tribune (via Twitter). Though he isn’t generally cited among the organization’s best prospects, the 24-year-old Kennedy turned in strong results over 16 Triple-A starts this year, pitching to a 2.72 ERA with 8.1 K/9 against 2.3 BB/9 along with a 52.6% groundball rate.
Nationals Place Kelvin Herrera On DL, Recall Koda Glover
3:50pm: An MRI revealed no structural damage in Herrera’s shoulder, Chelsea Janes of the Washington Post tweets.
1:45pm: The Nationals announced today that they have placed reliever Kelvin Herrera on the 10-day disabled list with a right rotator cuff impingement. He’ll be replaced by Koda Glover, who’ll make his MLB season debut.
Needless to say, this represents a disappointing development for a Nats club that already failed to capitalize on a chance to make up some ground in the division yesterday. The club lost a game that Max Scherzer started, with Herrera surrendering the go-ahead runs before leaving the mound with a trainer.
The loss of Herrera is particularly worrying with first-choice closer Sean Doolittle already on the shelf. That said, the 28-year-old has not dominated to the extent expected when the Nationals picked him up earlier in the season from the Royals.
Over 17 innings in D.C., Herrera has allowed nine earned runs on 23 hits with 7.9 K/9 and 4.2 BB/9. His 1.824 WHIP sits quite a bit higher than the elite 0.818 mark he carried earlier in the year with the Kansas City organization.
This represents the latest change in the composition of the relief corps. Beyond the temporary absences of Herrera and Doolittle, the Nats recently parted ways with Brandon Kintzler and Shawn Kelley while adding Greg Holland and now Glover.
Though Glover has been seen as a potentially significant late-inning contributor by the organization, he has faced some roadblocks. He was carrying a 5.12 ERA last year, despite much more promising underlying numbers, when he went down with back and arm issues.
Glover’s next MLB appearance will be his first since June 10th of last year. He has shown some promising signs of late, however, throwing eight innings of 2.25 ERA ball with a 10:2 K/BB ratio thus far at Triple-A Syracuse.
Braves Outright Jason Hursh
The Braves announced today that they have outrighted righty Jason Hursh. He has already cleared waivers and been assigned to Double-A, leaving two openings on the club’s 40-man roster.
Hursh, 26, came to the club with the 31st pick of the 2013 draft. He opened his first full season in the minors at the Double-A level, but was bumped into a relief role in the ensuing campaign and has worked in that capacity since.
Though he briefly reached the majors in 2016 and 2017, Hursh has mostly plied his trade in the upper minors over the past several seasons. This year, he carries a 3.97 ERA in 56 2/3 innings, with 8.3 K/9 and 5.2 BB/9.
Reds Sign Tim Federowicz
The Reds have signed backstop Tim Federowicz to a minors deal, per the MLB.com transactions page (h/t to Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle). Indeed, the veteran has been with the organization for a few days already and is active at Triple-A.
Federowicz, who recently turned 31, spent some time in the majors this year with the Astros, but was cut loose in late July. This represented the seventh campaign in which he has seen some MLB action. Overall, Federowicz is a .197/.244/.311 hitter in 353 plate appearances at the game’s highest level.
Despite those struggles in limited opportunities with the bat in the majors, Federowicz has been a productive hitter at times in the upper minors. Indeed, he has produced .800+ OPS marks in each of the past three years at the Triple-A level. In 151 plate appearances at the Astros’ top affiliate this season, he produced a hefty .328/.404/.560 batting line.