Dave Dombrowski Out As Tigers GM; Al Avila Named Replacement
7:23pm: Avila received a five-year contract that runs through the end of the 2020 season, reports MLive.com’s Chris Iott.
3:10pm: The Tigers have announced significant changes to their front office structure, with Al Avila taking over for Dave Dombrowski as GM and executive VP of baseball operations. In a statement, announcing the move, owner Mike Ilitch issued the following statement: “I’ve decided to release Dave from his contract in order to afford him the time to pursue other career opportunities.”
The sudden and abrupt departure unexpectedly brings to close a historic and successful tenure for Dombrowski as the Tigers’ top baseball operations decision-maker. While there’s been some speculation that Dombrowski would depart after the season, the fact that he was allowed to oversee franchise-altering transactions such as the David Price and Yoenis Cespedes trades led many to believe that Dombrowski would remain with the Tigers.
The 59-year-old Dombrowski’s experience as a general manager dates back to 1988, when he became GM of the Expos at the age of 31. (Notably, he worked with Angels interim GM Bill Stoneman in Montreal.) He’s since served as general manager of the Marlins — including in 1997 when the team won the World Series — and the Tigers.
Dombrowski has served as the Tigers’ GM since 2002 and helped to revitalize an organization that finished no better than third place in the AL Central in each of the division’s first eight years of existence. (Three of those were under Dombrowski’s watch.) His 2006 blockbuster trade to acquire Miguel Cabrera and Dontrelle Willis from the Marlins in exchange for Cameron Maybin, Andrew Miller, Burke Badenhop, Mike Rabelo, Frankie De La Cruz and Dallas Trahern looks, in hindsight, like one of the most lopsided swaps in recent history. Other notable transactions made under Dombrowski’s tenure include acquiring Max Scherzer and Austin Jackson in a three-team deal that sent Curtis Granderson to the Yankees as well as acquiring Doug Fister from the Mariners in exchange for Francisco Martinez, Casper Wells, Charlie Furbush and Chance Ruffin.
Of course, Dombrowski isn’t without fault, either. His trade of Fister to the Nationals in exchange for Robbie Ray, Steve Lombardozzi and Ian Krol hasn’t panned out as hoped, and the Tigers have seen trade acquisitions Shane Greene and Alfredo Simon struggle quite a bit in the rotation this season.
Dombrowski is one of the game’s most well-respected executives and should have no difficulty finding a position elsewhere. The Angels are currently without a permanent general manager, for instance, following Jerry Dipoto’s resignation. The Blue Jays took a long look at Orioles GM Dan Duquette as a potential replacement for retiring president Paul Beeston this offseason, and one can envision Dombrowski sliding into that role as well. Brewers GM Doug Melvin is rumored to be rising to the role of president this offseason, which would create a GM opening. Other very preliminary speculation has connected Dombrowski to both Seattle and Boston.
As for Avila, his Detroit tenure also dates back to the 2002 season. The father of Tigers catcher Alex Avila, he’s also worked in the front office of the Pirates and the Marlins. With the Marlins, Avila was involved in the signing of Cabrera as well as several of the drafts that helped form the foundation of a 2003 World Series Championship (after Avila had departed). “I’m very excited for this opportunity, and honored and grateful to Mr. Ilitch for having the faith and trust in me to run the ballclub in our continuing pursuit of a World Series championship,” said Avila in the press release. “…We’re confident we can make a strong push to win this year, and that we have the foundation in place to win next year and for years to come.”
Avila’s emphasis on winning in 2015 — a sentiment he echoed at today’s press conference, via MLive.com’s James Schmehl (on Twitter) — is an interesting development and one that could at least indicate some of the reasoning behind the executive shakeup.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Tigers Notes: Norris, Boyd, Dombrowski, Starters
Just acquired as the key piece in the David Price deal, new Tigers starter Daniel Norris showed plenty of promise in his first outing with his new club, as Anthony Fenech of the Detroit Free Press writes. Inserted directly into the big league rotation after the swap, the southpaw held the Orioles to one run in 7 1/3 solid frames. Norris, 22, opened the year in the Blue Jays rotation and put up solid numbers despite struggling with his control, and will surely look to continue to whittle down the free passes. According to Baseball America’s top fifty midseason list, Norris rates as the 18th-best prospect in the game. As Fenech writes, he impressed his new team with his calm demeanor, quick and confident work on the mound, and varied arsenal.
Here’s more from Detroit:
- The Tigers will get a look at another young lefty that came over in the Price trade, as the team announced that Matt Boyd will take a start tomorrow. Boyd has thrived this year in the upper minors, putting up a 1.65 ERA over 114 2/3 innings with 8.5 K/9 against 2.1 BB/9, though he scuffled through two prior starts with the Jays.
- After striking a trio of big deals in which the Tigers parted with pending free agents to bolster their talent pool, GM Dave Dombrowski was looking ahead in his recent comments to reporters. As Fenech notes, though he is not currently under contract past the present season, Dombrowski spoke like a man who intended to continue on with the organization. There has been increasing speculation that other teams, such as the Red Sox, could look to make a run at bringing in the highly-respected executive, though we’ve yet to hear anything concrete on where things could be headed.
- Dombrowski explained that the deals he struck make for “a much stronger organization going into next year.” Though the club added several notable arms, Dombrowski said that he does not expect to stand pat on the club’s rotation, which could be in need of several other pieces. “Our starting pitching will be addressed in the wintertime,” he said. “I assure you that our goal going into next year will be to try to win a world championship.”
- It seems clear that the Tigers organization will continue to try to build around its veteran core in the near-term — after all, the team only traded players who were destined for free agency anyway — and a glance at the club’s future commitments reveals both needs and opportunities to match affordable young talent with a high-profile set of aging All-Stars. The club owes over $110MM to just five players (including pay-outs to the Rangers for Prince Fielder), and will lose several other important pieces to free agency. But arbitration shouldn’t be too terribly expensive — J.D. Martinez and Jose Iglesias are both in line for nice raises, but don’t have significant salaries to build off of — and the organization carried an Opening Day payroll over over $170MM, so there ought to be room to add.
NL Notes: Phillies, Cosart, Latos, Moss
The Phillies finally moved star lefty Cole Hamels at the trade deadline, ending a long saga in which the organization was often criticized for waiting to act. But as MLB.com’s Todd Zolecki reports, Philadelphia’s front office feels that it accomplished what it set out to do in dealing Hamels, as well as Jonathan Papelbon and Ben Revere. “This was as well prepared as we’ve been,” said GM Ruben Amaro Jr. “There were no shortage of suitors, and when you’re talking about five or six teams to cover all those players and all those prospects … we started to target some of those guys during the offseason. The scouting and the addition of the analytics portion of these evaluations put us in the best position to be ready to make the trades.” The club sought to balance the desire for quality with the need to add a number of young players with promising outlooks, and outgoing president Pat Gillick praised the job of Amaro and his staff. “He did an excellent job,” said Gillick. “He’s going to do things in a professional manner. He’s going to do things he thinks are in the Phils’ best interest. People might think he’s doing something to save his job, but I’ve always said I have confidence in him that he’s going to carry out his responsibilities in a professional manner.”
Here’s more from the National League:
- The Marlins seem to have finally diagnosed the underlying issue that has sidelined righty Jarred Cosart for long stretches this year, MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro reports. Cosart, a significant trade acquisition last summer, has a disorder in his inner ear that has caused him difficulties with his balance. It’s not hard to imagine how significant an impact that may have had on the 25-year-old, who has struggled this year. The hope is that he’ll be able to receive treatment to ameliorate the issue and return to the bump later this year.
- After being shipped from Miami to the Dodgers, starter Mat Latos will be pitching both to help drive Los Angeles into the post-season and to set himself up for free agency. As Steve Dilbeck of the Los Angeles Times writes, Latos has confirmed that early-season knee issues were a huge factor in his struggles. Since having his knee inflammation rained and undergoing a strength regimen to improve it, Latos says he’s noticed a vast improvement. “I got with the right people,” he said. “They put me on the right program and I’ve stuck with it. I think the results have showed. … Imagine having a lot of fluid in your knee, a lot of pain. That’s my landing foot, so I’m putting all my weight shifted onto that knee. It’s allowed me to clear over my front side and drive the ball down. My velocity has gone up.” Set to hit the open market in advance of his age-28 season, Latos will certainly present an interesting free agent case, especially if he can continue to put up top-of-the-rotation numbers in his new home and put the injury and performance concerns further in the background.
- Another recent deadline mover, new Cardinals slugger Brandon Moss, says he’s very happy with where he ended up, as MLB.com’s David Cobb reports. “I feel really blessed to have the opportunity to be here,” he said. “There’s 28 places I could have gone if I was going to be traded and to be able to come here, I’ve said it a few times, it’s like winning the lottery.”
Red Sox Release Ronald Belisario
The Red Sox have released reliever Ronald Belisario, the club’s Triple-A affiliate announced on Twitter. It has not been reported whether or not Belisario exercised an opt-out clause of some kind to precipitate the move.
Since joining the Boston organization in the middle of last month, Belisario has thrown 6 1/3 scoreless innings, allowing just four hits but permitting three walks to go with his two strikeouts. But the results have been there all year at the Triple-A level. Including his time in the Rays organization, Belisario has tossed 36 2/3 frames of 2.70 ERA baseball at the minors’ highest level.
Belisario was somewhat less productive in a brief stint with Tampa Bay earlier in the year, allowing seven earned runs in eight frames. More concerning, perhaps, is that he showed a marked decreased in velocity. After averaging better than 94 mph on his fastball for his career, Belisario showed a sub-92 mph offering with the Rays.
While he also struggled to keep runs off the board last year for the White Sox, and has not posted above-average run prevention numbers since 2012, Belisario continues to fare well in the eyes of ERA estimators. He carries a lifetime 3.26 SIERA and has never ended a MLB season with a mark of over 3.46 in that metric.
It stands to reason that another organization will give the veteran a shot, particularly with the trade market now complicated by the need to pass players through waivers.
AL Notes: McCullers, Red Sox Front Office, Wilson
The Astros will option righty Lance McCullers Jr. to Triple-A after his rough outing last night, Jose de Jesus Ortiz of the Houston Chronicle reported on Twitter and the team later announced. Manager A.J. Hinch says that the team is hoping to provide a break to the rookie, who may not even take the hill while he’s down, as Ortiz adds (Twitter links). McCullers has been outstanding since receiving an aggressive promotion to the big leagues at age 21, putting up 76 2/3 innings of 3.17 ERA pitching with 9.3 K/9 against 3.3 BB/9, but that line looked even better prior to yesterday’s dud, in which McCullers allowed seven hits and six earned runs while recording only one out. That’s just one game, of course, and McCullers still surely features in the team’s plans the rest of the way. But Houston does need to manage his innings, as he’s already exceeded his prior career high for a single campaign, so it could be that the club will use this as an opportunity to save some bullets. There could be down-the-line implications as well, though it’s not likely a driving consideration since the team needs a fully available staff. McCullers has only picked up 78 days of service on the year thus far, and will be held under 130 total days even if he comes back right after the minimum ten day stay on optional assignment. That makes him a somewhat marginal future Super Two candidate, with any further time away from the big leagues decreasing his odds.
- It was time for the Red Sox to nudge departing President and CEO Larry Lucchino out the door, writes Steve Buckley of the Boston Herald, who says that undertones in the recent announcement suggest that ownership decided upon a change in direction. Buckley does credit Lucchino with a huge amount of credit for Boston’s successes (on and off the field) over his tenure.
- With Lucchino heading out, there could be more changes in store for the Red Sox front office, the Herald’s Michael Silverman writes. The baseball operations department is unlikely to carry forward without at least some modifications, says Silverman, who reports that a new executive could well be placed on top of or alongside GM Ben Cherington.
- While Angels lefty C.J. Wilson will seek a second opinion on his left elbow, MLB.com’s Alden Gonzalez reports, but it seems unlikely at this point that he’ll decide against season-ending surgery. Though the team has floated the idea of a rehab plan that could get him back in action late in the year, says Gonzalez, Wilson does not seem favorably disposed toward that option after battling with bone chips all year. “In the meantime, I’m working out and staying in shape, just in case they come up with some other magical course of action,” Wilson said. “But it seems more like a Hail Mary at this point. I want to pitch — that’s why I’ve pitched this whole time.”
Poll: Best Trade Deadline Moves By A Buyer
There are many ways to break out the bunches of deals we see at the trade deadline every year, and the division of teams into buyers and sellers may no longer mean quite what it did before the addition of a second Wild Card. But it nevertheless remains clear that a good number of teams can be placed into those two camps, at least now that the moves are in the books, and we didn’t really see any club pull off the balleyhooed “buy and sell” (even if some tried).
Let’s focus here on the buy-side. Adding players for the stretch (and a possible post-season run) requires teams to identify needs, evaluate internal options, and value their own future assets in structuring deals. Needless to say, there’s far more to it than just getting the best or best-known player you can.
So, here’s the poll question: looking at the teams that made moves to bolster their current rosters, which one made the best additions, all things considered? I’ll organize the teams into rough groupings for ease of reading:
High-Cost Rentals
Two teams pushed their trade chips squarely toward the present, acquiring multiple players who will all become free agents after the season.
Royals acquire Johnny Cueto, Ben Zobrist — This seemed like the moment to push the chips in for GM Dayton Moore, and he did just that, adding two of the most hotly-pursue players. But those big adds came at the cost of appealing arms like Brandon Finnegan and Sean Manaea.
Mets acquire Yoenis Cespedes, Tyler Clippard, Juan Uribe & Kelly Johnson — After adding some solid pieces in areas of need, GM Sandy Alderson pulled the trigger on a marquee rental in Cespedes. The Mets’ overall mix looks much better right now, but they won’t own the rights to the futures of young pitchers Michael Fulmer and Casey Meisner.
Major Moves – Rent And Buy
Those weren’t the only clubs that paid high prices for rentals, but these teams also picked up significant players who will be controllable after 2015.
Astros acquire Scott Kazmir, Carlos Gomez & Mike Fiers — We’ve seen GM Jeff Luhnow as an accumulator of young talent; now, we got to see him spend it. He opted to add a high-upside rental arm, a year and a half of the excellent Gomez, and a controllable arm in Fiers, dealing from the team’s young depth (including high-rated youngsters like Brett Phillips, Josh Hader, and Jacob Nottingham) to do so.
Cardinals acquire Brandon Moss, Steve Cishek, Jonathan Broxton — While the relievers were available for little more than some salary relief, the reasonably affordable and controllable Moss cost highly-regarded pitching prospect Rob Kaminsky. But nobody knows young arms like St. Louis, and they filled a clear need with the slugger.
Blue Jays acquire Troy Tulowitzki & LaTroy Hawkins, David Price, Ben Revere, Mark Lowe — Toronto added some big names despite facing a large deficit in the AL East, and parted with a long list of pitching prospects to get things done, including highly-regarded young hurlers Daniel Norris and Jeff Hoffman.
Dodgers acquire Mat Latos, Alex Wood, Jim Johnson & Luis Avilan — Los Angeles took on a good bit of salary to add a group of solid arms to the big league roster (while also picking up future years of Wood as well as prospect Jose Peraza), and gave up Hector Olivera in the process.
Multiple Veteran Pieces
These teams bulked up on depth pieces who will fill particular roles on their clubs, generally keeping the acquisition costs down in the process.
Angels acquire David Murphy, David DeJesus, Shane Victorino — Los Angeles added three veteran platoon candidates to address its need for bats. It was an interesting strategy, but certainly added plenty of experience and clubhouse presence at a reasonable price.
Pirates acquire Joakim Soria, J.A. Happ, Aramis Ramirez, Michael Morse, Joe Blanton — Pittsburgh added veteran rental pieces at the spots that were in need of shoring up, and didn’t have to part with its best young talent to do so.
Cubs acquire Dan Haren, Tommy Hunter — Chicago reportedly pursued some more impactful moves, but ultimately settled for veteran depth that did not require the team to part with significant future assets.
Single Shots
Several buyers made targeted buys of specific assets that, they hope, will fill a specific need.
Nationals acquire Jonathan Papelbon — It took some financial juggling and created a bit of controversy due to the presence of Drew Storen, but ultimately the Nats got a quality late-inning arm at the cost of some solid upper-level pitching depth (Nick Pivetta).
Giants acquire Mike Leake — San Francisco parted with righty Keury Mella and third baseman Adam Duvall to bolster its rotation with the reliable righty.
Twins acquire Kevin Jepsen — Despite its strong position in the standings, this was Minnesota’s only move. But giving up youth for veterans may not have made much sense, and the August trade market could present opportunities if the club stays in the hunt.
Orioles acquire Gerardo Parra — To add the solid Parra, who is currently in the midst of a career year, Baltimore gave up a good pitching prospect in Zach Davies.
Padres acquire Marc Rzepczynski — Do we call the Padres buyers? Their only move was to add a veteran middle-reliever, and they held multiple impending free agents, so it’s hard to give any other label.
Looking To The Future?
Rangers acquire Cole Hamels & Jake Diekman, Sam Dyson — It may not quite be fair to consider Texas here, since the main move was heavily driven by future considerations, but the club did have to beat out more obvious contenders to get Hamels. It took quite a haul, with top prospects Jorge Alfaro, Jake Thompson, and Nick Williams among the pieces moved.
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Best Deadline Moves By A Buyer
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Blue Jays 41% (9,137)
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Mets 16% (3,547)
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Dodgers 9% (1,931)
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Royals 8% (1,846)
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Astros 6% (1,430)
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Rangers 4% (958)
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Pirates 4% (826)
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Cubs 3% (646)
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Giants 3% (636)
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Cardinals 2% (512)
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Orioles 2% (399)
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Padres 1% (268)
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Angels 1% (162)
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Twins 0% (111)
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Nationals 0% (73)
Total votes: 22,482
Quick Hits: Deadline Prospects, Valencia, White Sox
Over at Fangraphs, Kiley McDaniel has placed current grades on all of the 58 prospects that he counts as changing hands at the deadline. Among the eight players to get a rating of 55 (on the 20-80 scouting scale), three went from the Rangers to the Phillies in the Cole Hamels deal: catcher Jorge Alfaro, outfielder Nick Williams, and righty Jake Thompson. No other club gave or received more than one such player at the deadline, in McDaniels’ estimation. It’s an interesting read and a great resource for assessing the summer prospect haul. Check it out before voting in tonight’s poll on which team made the shrewdest moves to build out their current roster.
A few more quick notes to round out he day:
- Athletics assistant GM David Forst explained that the club was happy to have a chance at claiming infielder/outfielder Danny Valencia off waivers from the Blue Jays, as Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle writes. The 30-year-old was a roster casualty after Toronto’s flurry of deadline moves, despite his strong season thus far. “Danny is having an excellent year offensively,” said Forst. “His defensive versatility and track record of success against left-handed pitching fit our roster very well.” As Slusser notes, there’s some down-the-line benefit for Oakland, which also recently picked up Felix Doubront as a Jays cast-off: Valencia can be controlled for two more seasons via arbitration after earning $1.68MM in his first trip through the process this year.
- The White Sox have promoted Nick Hostetler to the post of scouting director, as John Manuel of Baseball America writes. Previous director Doug Laumann will take a senior advisory role with the club. Hostetler has served in various scouting roles with the club since 2001.
Minor MLB Transactions: 8/3/2015
Here are the day’s minor moves:
- The Blue Jays have outrighted outfielder Ezequiel Carrera to Triple-A, Ben Nicholson-Smith reports on Twitter. The 28-year-old was recently designated for assignment after seeing his role taken by trade acquisition Ben Revere. Over 164 plate appearances for Toronto this season, Carrera owns a solid .279/.327/.374 with three home runs and two stolen bases. That represents his most significant big league action since his rookie campaign.
- Angels reliever Vinnie Pestano has also cleared waivers and been outrighted, MLB.com’s Alden Gonzalez tweets. The recently-designated, 30-year-old righty has tossed 11 2/3 innings of 5.40 ERA pitching on the year, though he has had more success in the past. Over 202 2/3 career frames, he’s allowed just under three earned per nine. While he’s continued to strike out better than ten batters per nine, control issues (6.2 BB/9) have limited Pestano’s effectiveness this season.
Cubs Designate Clayton Richard
The Cubs have designated lefty Clayton Richard for assignment, Jesse Rogers of ESPNChicago.com tweets. Outfielder Matt Szczur has been called up to take his roster spot.
This marks the second time that Chicago has DFA’ed the veteran since acquiring him from the Pirates earlier this year. Previously, Richard was designated off of the active roster (but not the 40-man). He was sent to Triple-A after clearing optional assignment waivers and accepting the assignment. It remains to be seen what precise transaction has taken place this time.
Richard came back up to start yesterday, twirling six innings of one-run ball, allowing only five baserunners to reach (all via base hits) and striking out three. Over 21 total innings on the season, he’s permitted ten earned runs and logged nine strikeouts against five walks. Richard has been quite strong at the Triple-A level this season, as he carries a 1.70 ERA over 69 frames.
Dodgers, Braves, Marlins Complete 13-Player Trade
AUGUST 1: The Dodgers are paying just $500K of the remainder of Arroyo’s deal, Mark Saxon of ESPN Los Angeles tweets. Arroyo is owed about $8MM, including his 2016 buyout, and it appears the Braves are paying almost all of that amount.
JULY 30: The Dodgers, Marlins and Braves have swung one of the most complex three-team trades in recent history. The “basic” structure of the deal (though there’s nothing basic about this move) is as follows: the Dodgers will receive right-hander Mat Latos and first baseman Michael Morse from the Marlins. They’ll also add top prospect Jose Peraza and pitchers Alex Wood, Bronson Arroyo, Jim Johnson and Luis Avilan from the Braves. Atlanta, in turn, will receive infielder Hector Olivera, lefty Paco Rodriguez and minor leaguer Zachary Bird from the Dodgers. The Braves are also picking up Miami’s Competitive Balance Round A pick in next year’s draft (No. 35 overall). The Marlins will come out of this deal with three minor league pitchers — Kevin Guzman, Jeff Brigham and Victor Araujo — plus the financial relief of shedding the remaining $14.3MM that is owed to Latos and Morse. Each team has announced the trade’s completion.
In making this trade, the Dodgers bolster their rotation not only for the remainder of the 2015 season but also potentially through the 2019 campaign. Latos, who is earning $9.4MM in 2015 and has $3.6MM of that sum remaining on his contract, is a free agent at season’s end, but Wood can be controlled for four years beyond the current campaign.
While he’s battled injuries and struggled early in the season, Latos has increased his velocity and upped his results since returning from a DL stint (as noted by MLBTR’s Steve Adams when examining his trade candidacy). All told, the 27-year-old Latos owns a 4.48 ERA with 8.0 K/9 against 2.5 BB/9 over 88 1/3 innings on the year. But ERA estimators view him more as a mid-3.00 ERA contributor, and that has shown up in his last seven starts, over which he’s allowed 15 earned runs in 45 2/3 frames with a 43:9 strikeout-to-walk ratio.
Wood is perhaps the more intriguing name here for the Dodgers, though. The 2012 second-round pick was never vaunted as a Top 100 prospect, but he’s emerged as a reliable cog in the Braves’ rotation over the past few seasons. Though many have expressed long-term health concerns with Wood and his numbers are down in 2015, his overall body of work is nonetheless impressive. Wood has a lifetime 3.10 ERA in 368 2/3 big league innings with very strong averages of 8.2 K/9 and 2.6 BB/9 to go along with a 46.5 percent ground-ball rate. Both Latos and Wood will join co-aces Clayton Kershaw and Zack Greinke in the Dodgers’ rotation, solidifying the starting five down the stretch. Those additions, however, demonstrate a different approach than many pundits expected, as L.A. was heavily rumored to be involved with the top names on the trade market.
In landing Johnson, the Dodgers are picking up a reliever that was serving as Atlanta’s closer and doing so quite well. Johnson led the AL in saves from 2012-13 before a down season in 2014. Atlanta snatched him up on a one-year, $1.6MM contract with enough incentives to carry the deal to $2.5MM if he maxes it out. He’s been an outstanding buy-low piece for the Braves and will carry a 2.25 ERA, 6.2 K/9, 2.6 BB/9 and 60.8 percent ground-ball rate into the Dodger bullpen, where he’ll help set up for Kenley Jansen.
The 26-year-old Avilan gives the Dodgers another left-handed relief option to pair with J.P. Howell and Ian Thomas, though it’s debatable whether he’s a long-term improvement over Rodriguez, who heads to Atlanta in the deal. Avilan has a 3.58 ERA on the season with a 31-to-10 K/BB ratio (though two of the walks were intentional) in 37 2/3 innings. He’s upped his velocity this season and his strikeout rate as well, but Avilan’s previous good fortune in terms of homer-to-flyball ratio has dried up this season, and he’s near the league average (above it, in fact) in that regard for the first time in his career. Avilan hasn’t missed a ton of bats throughout his career but does have strong overall totals against left-handed hitters.
Morse doesn’t really fit on the Dodgers’ roster and was likely included as a means of offsetting some salary, so it’s possible his stay with the Dodgers will be brief, at best. Los Angeles designated Eric Stults for assignment immediately upon acquiring him from the Braves earlier this year and did so with Ryan Webb as well, so there’s certainly precedent for them to flex their financial muscle as a procedural necessity and simply cut ties with the unwanted or superfluous players in a deal.
Arroyo serves as a second example of the Dodgers flexing their financial muscle. The veteran right-hander signed a two-year deal with the D-Backs prior to the 2014 season but underwent Tommy John surgery last summer and hasn’t pitched this season. Arizona unloaded his contract in a prior trade with the Braves, and that money will now go to the Dodgers, bringing the total amount of cash they’re eating in this deal to roughly $43.5MM. It’s possible, at least, that Arroyo could pitch at the back of the L.A. rotation down the stretch.
Dealing Peraza away was probably a tough pill to swallow for the Braves, who have long lauded him as one of their top prospects. The 21-year-old entered the season as a consensus Top 50 prospect in the game, and though his offensive numbers are down somewhat, that’s not necessarily a red flag for someone playing at the minors’ top level at the age of 21. That’s not to say, of course, that Peraza’s numbers are poor; he’s hitting .295/.319/.380 this season. Peraza ranks as the game’s No. 26 prospect on the midseason Top 50 from Baseball America and No. 30 on MLB.com’s midseason update to their own Top 100 prospect list. Peraza began his career as a shortstop and eventually moved to second base, but it’s not certain where the Dodgers project him in the future. He has little power but draws rave reviews for his speed and glove, and he’s swiped 149 bases over his past 310 minor league contests. I feel it should be noted that Peraza, too, could be a piece that the Dodgers will consider dealing, as they’re reportedly reluctant to part with their own top prospects: Corey Seager and Julio Urias.
As for the Braves, they’ll finally land a player they pursued extensively this offseason in the form of Olivera. Atlanta simply couldn’t match the Dodgers’ enormous $62.5MM offer to the 30-year-old infielder, but $28MM of that came in the form of a signing bonus that is to be paid in three installments. The Dodgers will pay the final two installments of Olivera’s signing bonus, tweets David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. That means the Braves are essentially taking on Olivera on a six-year, $32.5MM contract that began this season. He’s earning $2MM in 2015, of which about $754K remains, so their total financial commitment to him will be about $31.25MM over the course of five and a half years. That’s a much more palatable obligation for the Braves (who have notably shed significant payroll from their books by moving Melvin Upton Jr. and Craig Kimbrel since Olivera signed.)
Olivera, a right-handed hitting third baseman/second baseman, was said at the time he signed to be a safe bet to post strong average and OBP marks due to his pure hitting abilities and a keen eye at the plate. The question was how much power he’d show in the Majors, but some felt that he could be a 20-homer bat on a yearly basis. He’s looked sharp to this point in the minors, hitting .348/.392/.493 across three levels and reaching Triple-A. The Braves undoubtedly consider him to be a major component of their long-term future in the infield, though the specific position he’ll play is yet an unknown.
In Rodriguez, they’ll pick up a left-handed reliever who could be out for the season but has pitched well when healthy. Rodriguez had surgery to remove loose bodies from his elbow in late June — a procedure that will sideline him for eight to 10 weeks. However, the former second-round pick has been excellent while on the mound. He was the first player from the 2012 draft to reach the Majors, debuting the same year he was drafted, and he sports a lifetime 2.53 ERA with 9.6 K/9 against 3.2 BB/9.
The 21-year-old Bird has largely unimpressive numbers in the minors — a 4.74 ERA in 351 minor league innings — but MLB.com rated him 15th among L.A. farmhands. Per their scouting report, he made big strides with his velocity late in 2014 and has gone from a low-90s heater to a mid-90s offering that “threatens triple digits” at times. He still needs to get a better feel for his offspeed pitches and has a long ways to go as a slider, they add.
With all that said, we’re at last to the Marlins’ portion of the trade, which looks meager. Of the three names in question, only Brigham ranks among L.A.’s top 30 prospects, per MLB.com, who rank him 28th. Brigham had Tommy John surgery in college in 2012 and missed all of 2013 before pitching himself into the fourth round, their scouting report notes. He’s 90-94 mph with his fastball and has shown shaky control, though some of that can be attributed to the surgery. He’s punched out 75 hitters in 75 innings this year but has also walked 38 and has a 5.52 ERA.
Guzman is a 20-year-old starter pitching at the Class A level who has notched a 3.90 ERA with 6.7 K/9 against 3.1 BB/9 in 83 innings this year. The 22-year-old Araujo is in his second stint with Class-A Advanced and hasn’t found very favorable results. He’s missed plenty of bats (55 strikeouts in 50 innings) with solid control (14 walks) but has been hittable and ultimately surrendered a 5.40 ERA this season.
The Marlins had a number of ways they could go in terms of dealing Latos, but it seems they either prioritized shedding the Morse contract or simply didn’t find that teams were willing to offer much in return given his rental status, health concerns and early struggles. In the end, while this trade started off being termed the “Mat Latos trade,” it will be more remembered as a deal that netted the Braves their second baseman or third baseman of the future in exchange for a promising young arm and one of their top prospects.
Gordon Wittenmeyer of the Chicago Sun-Times reported (on Twitter) that Latos and Morse were headed to the Dodgers. Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald (Twitter link) and MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro (Twitter link) reported the financial components for Miami/L.A. and the inclusion of the Marlins’ draft pick. Jim Bowden of ESPN and MLB Network Radio on SiriusXM tweeted that a third team was potentially being brought in. Frisaro reported the prospects going to Miami. Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reported the Braves’ inclusion (via Twitter). Joel Sherman of the New York Post said the Braves would get a young starter (Twitter links), and Rosenthal tweeted that Wood was the pitcher in question. Bowden tweeted Johnson’s inclusion. MLB.com’s Mark Bowman first suggested Peraza’s name (on Twitter) and Sherman confirmed his inclusion (via Twitter). Bowman also tweeted that Olivera was in the deal, and Bowden tweeted that Avilan was as well. Yahoo’s Jeff Passan tweeted that Bird was headed to Atlanta. Bowman added that Rodriguez was going to the Braves. Passan added the final wrinkle: Arroyo’s inclusion (Twitter links).
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.