MLBTR Chat Transcript: Giants, Cobb, Holland, Cubs
Click here to read a transcript of today’s chat with host Jeff Todd.
Minor League Baseball Announces Pace Of Play Rules Changes
We’ve already covered the much-discussed rules changes at the MLB level relating to pace of play. That is certainly the most pertinent recent development in the rules arena, which has emerged as a point of no little controversy between the league and player’s union.
Today, though, the minor-league rule book received some changes of its own, as MLB.com’s Matt Kelly was among those to report, with some notable differences. While these regulations obviously won’t be seen in major-league games, they presumably could be considered for the game’s highest level in the future.
Mound visits will now be limited in the minors, much as is set to occur at the MLB level. The already-existing pitch clocks in the upper minors will be sped up. That, perhaps, is the next frontier for the majors, though the clock is not slated to be implemented there in 2018.
What has raised the most eyebrows, surely, is a rather notable change in extra innings. In a measure that’s sure both to shorten contests and engender consternation among purists, teams will start each inning with a baserunner on second from the tenth frame on. (The runner will be the player that occupies the spot in the order prior to the one that’s due to lead off the inning.) This procedure was utilized with less-than-enthusiastic reviews at the most recent World Baseball Classic.
Clearly, there’s more justification for utilizing this sort of procedure in the minors, where development is still the primary purpose. And it’s far from clear whether there’s any real inclination to pursue such a game-altering approach in the majors. Still, it’s quite a modification and one that’s sure to impact minor-league games across the country in the coming season.
Reds Hire John Farrell
The Reds have hired former Red Sox skipper John Farrell, though he won’t be joining the coaching staff of Cinci manager Bryan Price. Rob Bradford of WEEI.com first tweeted news of the hiring.
Farrell will function as a scout with the Cincinnati organization, per C. Trent Rosecrans of The Athletic (Twitter link). It seems the focus will be on pitching, with Farrell beginning his tenure by examining the Reds’ own system, as Peter Gammons explains on Twitter.
It certainly makes sense that Farrell will be focused on pitching, as he’s a former big league hurler who made his mark as a pitching coach. He went on to manage the Blue Jays and Red Sox.
Farrell’s tenure in Boston came to a close after 2017. Though he had guided the team to consecutive AL East crowns, in addition to a 2013 World Series title, Sox president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski elected to fire Farrell and (eventually) replace him with Alex Cora. It stands to reason that Farrell will be considered for future managerial openings.
Mariners Outright Mike Morin
The Mariners have outrighted right-hander Mike Morin, according to Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times (via Twitter). Evidently, he has already cleared waivers and been removed from the 40-man roster, leaving the organization with two openings.
It does not seem that Seattle has imminent plans to fill those cleared roster spots, Perhaps the club felt this was an opportune time to put Morin through waivers. Regardless, the M’s will now have some additional flexibility to pursue MLB upgrades or interesting projects as teams make roster moves late in camp.
Morin, 26, has a lifetime 4.61 ERA in 170 MLB innings. He has managed a solid combination of 8.5 K/9 and 2.5 BB/9, with a strong 12.9% swinging-strike rate, during his time in the big leagues. The results just weren’t there last year, however, leaving Morin to spend much of the year at Triple-A. Morin also showed reduced fastball velocity when he was in the big leagues in 2017.
The M’s still felt Morin was worth a chance, claiming him from the Royals in December. Clearly, though, the team hasn’t seen enough to think he’ll earn an active roster spot. Morin has been knocked around this spring, coughing up seven earned runs on nine hits over 4 1/3 frames.
AL West Notes: Calhoun, Blackburn, Cotton, Cruz, Romine, Felix
The Rangers optioned Willie Calhoun to Triple-A Round Rock yesterday after the top prospect struggled to a .243/.282/.324 slash through 39 Cactus League plate appearances. The 23-year-old seemed to have at least an outside chance of cracking the big league roster after impressing with a .300/.355/.572 slash in Triple-A last season, but he’ll instead head to the minors and continue to hone his defense (as Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News suggests on Twitter). Calhoun got 20 days of big league service last September, so it seems unlikely that service time implications are a prevailing factor in the decision. But, that could be an added benefit for the Rangers. Calhoun would need 152 days of service time in 2018 to reach a full year, meaning he’d reach a full year if he’s up in the Majors on or before April 27 this season and is not optioned back down to the minors. With Calhoun in Round Rock, Ryan Rua and Drew Robinson could be in line to open the season in a left-field platoon. Utilityman Jurickson Profar also has a bit of experience in left.
More from the AL West…
- Rangers righty Clayton Blackburn is awaiting word on an elbow MRI, Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News tweets, but it doesn’t sound as if there’s much room for optimism. Even in the best-case scenario, Blackburn will be expected to miss the entire first half of the season. The 25-year-old was expected to be an important part of the pitching depth in Texas, even if he had only an outside shot at opening the season in the majors. As Kevin Sherrington of the Dallas Morning News explains, there’s plenty still left to be resolved in the Rangers’ pitching staff even after a winter spent collecting arms.
- The Athletics are holding their breath as right-hander Jharel Cotton undergoes an MRI on his right elbow after experiencing soreness in his most recent spring outing, writes MLB.com’s Jane Lee. Manager Bob Melvin acknowledged that “there’s some concern” over the test results rather than painting the MRI as any sort of precautionary measure. The skipper also noted that Cotton’s velocity has declined in his prior outing. At minimum, Cotton will not make his next start. He’d been largely penciled in for a rotation spot, however, so a significant injury would have a dramatic impact on Oakland’s rotation mix.
- Nelson Cruz is the latest Mariners player to be hobbled by injury in Spring Training, as he exited yesterday’s game with a strained quadriceps, writes Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times. He’ll also likely receive an MRI for further evaluation. Cruz laced a liner into the gap but pulled up on his sprint and eased his way into first base on what should have been a double, as Divish explains. Beyond Cruz, presumptive utilityman Andrew Romine suffered an injury to his left shoulder when lunging to apply a tag at third base in the ninth inning. Manager Scott Servais indicated that the shoulder “might have popped out or something,” and Romine, too, will be sent for further evaluation.
- In more positive Mariners news, Divish also writes that Felix Hernandez threw more than 20 pitches in a bullpen session yesterday — his first mound work since being hit on the elbow/forearm by a line drive back on Feb. 26 — and reported no issues. Hernandez was originally slated to throw only fastballs but talked his way into throwing a few curveballs and changeups. He’ll likely have another bullpen session before making his return to a game setting with the M’s this weekend. King Felix is hoping to start on Opening Day with the Mariners, though his current trajectory might not make that possible. Even if he’s not the Opening Day starter, though, it seems likely that Hernandez would likely be ready to go at some point in the team’s first turn through the rotation.
Minor MLB Transactions: 3/13/18
We’ll track the day’s minor moves with this post:
- Backstop Brett Nicholas is back in camp with the Rangers after clearing waivers and being outrighted, Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News tweets. He’ll still have a shot at earning the organization’s back-up catching job, though obviously it seems he is behind others in the competition. Nicholas, 29, has been a strong offensive performer at Triple-A, where he owns a .283/.333/.427 slash in 1,669 lifetime plate appearances, and helpfully hits from the left side. But his defensive abilities are not generally considered as polished, reducing his appeal as a reserve receiver.
Braves To Sign Ezequiel Carrera
The Braves have agreed to terms with outfielder Ezequiel Carrera, per Jon Heyman of Fan Rag (via Twitter). It’s a minor-league deal, per MLB.com’s Mark Bowman (Twitter link). Carrera can earn $650K in the majors, Bob Nightengle of USA Today tweets.
Carrera was recently released by the Blue Jays, sending him onto the open market in the middle of Spring Training. That move allowed the organization to avoid most of the $1.9MM arbitration salary it had agreed to with Carrera at the outset of the offseason.
As Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet.ca reminds us on Twitter, current Braves GM Alex Anthopoulos was responsible for bringing Carrera to Toronto back when he ran the Jays’ baseball operations. Clearly, Anthopoulos is a believer, though it’s not clear whether Carrera will have a real shot at earning a roster spot over the final weeks of Spring Training.
Carrera, 30, did have a strong 2017 season in which he posted a .282/.356/.408 batting line with eight home runs and ten steals over 325 plate appearances. Whether now or at some point during the campaign to come, he could be an option as a reserve/platoon outfielder in Atlanta. Currently, the team appears to be slated to utilize fellow left-handed hitter Preston Tucker in a similar role.
Reds Outright Dilson Herrera
Reds infielder Dilson Herrera has been outrighted to Triple-A after clearing waivers, per C. Trent Rosecrans of The Athletic (via Twitter). The Reds have since announced the move. Herrera will remain in MLB camp for the time being but obviously will not be expected to make the active roster out of Spring Training.
Circumstances have combined to change Herrera’s once-promising outlook in the Cincinnati organization. He struggled to a .264/.312/.397 slash in 264 Triple-A plate appearances last year before shoulder surgery ended his season. In the meantime, the club not only oversaw the surprising emergence of Scooter Gennett but has also seen the development of other infield talent.
That said, Herrera is still just 24 years of age and should have every opportunity of regaining his trajectory. He has mostly produced quality offensive numbers in the upper minors, including a .289/.345/.460 slash in over a thousand total trips to the plate at Triple-A.
Herrera, who was acquired in the 2016 deal that sent Jay Bruce to the Mets, will now have too earn his way back onto the MLB roster. The Reds will no doubt be glad to have held onto Herrera, who is out of options, after deciding not to keep him in the majors to open the year.
Follow @pfrumors On Twitter For The Latest NFL Free Agency News
NFL free agency doesn’t officially begin until Wednesday, but the league’s top free agents are already negotiating with teams and lining up new deals. Our sister site Pro Football Rumors has all the latest breaking news and rumors to keep you up to date.
Already, some of this year’s marquee free agents are primed to change teams. Prized quarterback Kirk Cousins is reportedly on the verge of an unprecedented fully guaranteed three-year contract with the Vikings, leaving the Jets and Cardinals to scramble for other options. Minnesota’s own standout quarterback, Case Keenum, has agreed to join the Broncos. The Bears, meanwhile, are adding this year’s top wide receiver in Allen Robinson, as well as No. 1 free agent tight end Trey Burton. Sammy Watkins, an accomplished receiver in his own right, is headed to the Chiefs.
And that’s not all. Tons of names on PFR’s list of 2018’s top 50 free agents remain on the market! To keeps tabs on all the latest NFL offseason news and rumors, be sure to visit Pro Football Rumors and follow along on Twitter @PFRumors.
NL East Notes: Phillies, Conforto, AGon, Robles
As the Phillies introduce Jake Arrieta today, the organization is now much more clearly in a competitive posture than it was at the outset of the winter. But the pedal won’t be fully pressed down, it seems, despite the presence of a few other notable free agents who’d improve the near-term outlook in Philadelphia. GM Matt Klentak says that he does not anticipate any further additions before the start of the season, as MLB.com’s Todd Zolecki tweets.
More from the NL East:
- The Mets continue to have cause for optimism on outfielder Michael Conforto, whose scary shoulder injury made for quite an offseason concern. He’s now nearing game readiness, Mike Puma of the New York Post tweets, and anticipates getting into a spring game next week. That doesn’t mean that Conforto will be on the Opening Day roster, but certainly suggests he’s on track to return relatively early in the season. In other injury news, via MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo (Twitter links), the Mets say that outfielder Yoenis Cespedes has a sore wrist. Though there’s no indication at present that it’s a worrying injury, he has undergone an x-ray and is waiting for the results. Meanwhile, veteran third baseman David Wright is no closer to a return; rather, he’ll hold off on baseball activities for at least eight weeks after being examined recently.
- New Mets first baseman Adrian Gonzalez discussed his fresh start and unusual offseason with Mike Puma of the New York Post. Notably, Gonzalez says he was initially resistant to the Dodgers‘ request that he waive his no-trade protection to go to the Braves in a contract-swapping move that ultimately left him landing in New York. But Los Angeles “sweetened the deal every single time” he met with the team, says the veteran, who acknowledged there was compensation involved.
- Pete Kerzel of MASNsports.com examines the Nationals‘ decision-making process with top prospect Victor Robles, who is impressing in camp despite a middling stat line in Grapefruit League action. The 20-year-old is ready for the majors, by all accounts, though the organization certainly has plenty of good reasons not to carry him out of camp. First and foremost, the organization has a solid center field combo already lined up in Michael Taylor and the out-of-options Brian Goodwin; in that sense, then, promoting Robles would mean parting with depth. Service-time considerations are also a factor; since Robles picked up 25 days of service last year, he’s just 147 days away from a full year of service. If the Nats wish to delay Robles’s eventual entry onto the open market, they’ll need to keep him down until early May; keeping him from potential Super Two status would likely mean waiting to bring him back up until the middle of the summer.