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Tigers Notes: Verlander, Avila, Wilson

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Some trade rumblings out of the Motor City…

  • The Tigers are reportedly willing to pay the rest of Justin Verlander’s remaining 2017 salary in order to facilitate a deal, Anthony Fenech of the Detroit Free Press reports.  This works out to roughly $10.89MM.  Reports earlier this week indicated that Detroit was open to including some money as part of a Verlander deal, though according to rival executives who have spoken with Fenech, the Tigers would need to bump that figure up to $25MM-$30MM if the club hopes to receive a good prospect return for Verlander.  The former Cy Young Award winner’s future salary obligations ($28MM in each of the next two seasons, and a $22MM vesting option for 2020) and his struggles in 2017 have greatly limited his trade value, though Fenech notes that teams like the Cubs and Dodgers still had scouts at Verlander’s most recent outing.
  • The Cubs have expressed the most interest in catcher Alex Avila, USA Today’s Bob Nightengale reports (Twitter links), and Nightengale feels Avila will be the next notable Tiger to leave Detroit now that J.D. Martinez has been traded.  Nightengale figures the Tigers would “ideally” receive a mid-level prospect in exchange for Avila, who is enjoying a career year just before hitting free agency this winter.  Detroit is reportedly getting a lot of interest in Avila, though the Cubs and Blue Jays are the only teams specifically linked to the catcher (and Toronto has since acquired Miguel Montero).
  • Also from Nightengale, he reports that the Brewers “have been aggressive” in their pursuit of Tigers closer Justin Wilson.  The Astros, Nationals, Rays and Red Sox are among the other teams known to be checking in on Wilson, who has only elevated his stock since taking over the ninth inning for Detroit.  Milwaukee has been linked to any number of relievers and controllable starters, with Wilson joining such names as Brad Hand, Addison Reed and Sonny Gray.

Cubs Interested In Yu Darvish

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1:30pm: There hasn’t been much progress in talks between the Rangers and Cubs, Morosi tweets.  While the Cubs continue to have interest in Darvish, they’d still prefer to add a starter who is controlled beyond just this season.

9:18am: The Cubs have checked in with the Rangers about Yu Darvish, according to MLB.com’s Jon Morosi.  Earlier today, Yahoo Sports’ Jeff Passan reported that Texas was open to at least discussing its ace with other teams, even if a trade doesn’t seem imminent.

Given that Chicago has been so aggressively pursuing starting pitching this summer, it isn’t any surprise that Theo Epstein and company have looked into Darvish.  Even after landing Jose Quintana in a blockbuster deal with the White Sox, the Cubs have continued to seek out arms, asking about such names as Chris Archer, Marcus Stroman, and (perhaps most seriously) Sonny Gray.  The Cubs were still interested in Gray as of last night, Morosi reports.

[Related: MLBTR’s Chicago Cubs Facebook page]

A Darvish trade, however, would represent a shift in Chicago’s thinking.  The Cubs have been looking into controllable pitchers that can sustain the rotation over the long term since Jake Arrieta and John Lackey will be free agents this winter.  Darvish is a free agent himself in the offseason, so he would be a pure rental for the Cubs.  After already surrendering several top prospects in the deals for Quintana and for Aroldis Chapman last July, the Cubs are likely wary about giving up even more top minor leaguers for just two-plus months of Darvish’s services.  Then again, since Darvish would clearly be the best rental pitcher on the market, the Cubs may be willing to take the plunge in this specific case in order to emerge from the crowded NL Central race and take a run at another world championship.

With Darvish’s short-term status in mind, it is possible that a Rangers/Cubs deal could expand to more than just the star right-hander.  For instance, Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News “would not be surprised” if Jonathan Lucroy also became involved in trade talks between the two clubs, as the Cubs have been looking for a catching upgrade since parting ways with Miguel Montero.

AL East Notes: Red Sox, Bautista, Yankees, Rutherford

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With the Red Sox looking far and wide for third base help, a couple of creative solutions are proposed by ESPN’s Scott Lauber and FOX Sports’ Ken Rosenthal (writing on his Facebook page).  Lauber suggests that Boston could explore a deal for the Athletics’ Yonder Alonso (14 games as a third baseman over his eight-year MLB career) while Rosenthal’s suggestion is perhaps even more outside-the-box: the Tigers’ Ian Kinsler, who has played all of two innings at third in his 12 years in the Show.  Both suggestions, it should be noted, are based on only speculation from the two writers.  Rosenthal reports that the Red Sox and Tigers haven’t mentioned Kinsler in trade talks between the two clubs, while WEEI.com’s Rob Bradford (Twitter link) reports that Boston isn’t considering Alonso to fill its third base gap.  Still, as per Rosenthal, Dombrowski is apparently considering several infielders who could switch positions and play third, so the Sox might yet end up with a unique choice before the deadline.

Some more from around the AL East…

  • The Blue Jays have received “some feelers” about Jose Bautista, ESPN.com’s Jerry Crasnick reports (Twitter links).  Much of Toronto’s trade discussions to this point have focused around their pending free agents (i.e. Marco Estrada, Francisco Liriano, Joe Smith) though Bautista probably falls into this category as well, since the Jays seem unlikely to exercise their half of a $17MM mutual option for 2018.  Bautista’s production has fallen off this season, as the veteran slugger is hitting just .227/.340/.402 with 16 homers over 415 PA.  A trade is further complicated by Bautista’s trade veto rights as a 10-and-5 player, though one would think he would be interested in joining a contender.
  • The Yankees’ seven-player trade with the White Sox may be New York’s only really big move before the deadline, Joel Sherman of the New York Post writes.  The Yankees are still looking for a left-handed hitting first baseman and lefty reliever, though “they do not appear to have urgency in those areas,” and certainly not to the degree it would take to move a significant prospect to address either need.  After missing out on Jose Quintana, the Yankees also don’t look like they’re willing to give up a notable prospect package to acquire a starter, since they were particularly enamored with Quintana’s durability and team-friendly contract.  While New York has been linked to Sonny Gray, Sherman reports that Gray’s injury history is a concern for the Yankees.  Similar concerns also scuttled the Yankees’ interest in Sean Doolittle before the Athletics dealt Doolittle to the Nationals.
  • Also from Sherman, he spoke to five rival personnel men who felt the Yankees made a very good move in swinging the Todd Frazier/David Robertson/Tommy Kahnle deal with the White Sox.  Blake Rutherford, the outfield prospect who headlined the minor league package sent to Chicago, received less-than-stellar reviews from the five executives, who questioned Rutherford’s power potential and his ability to stay as a center fielder.  One NL executive felt the Yankees may have sold high on Rutherford “when the buzz was still good” about his potential.  Incidentally, Sherman reports that Rutherford was also part of the Yankees’ offer to the White Sox for Quintana.

Mariners Acquire Marco Gonzales From Cardinals For Tyler O’Neill

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The Mariners have acquired left-hander Marco Gonzales from the Cardinals in exchange for minor league outfielder Tyler O’Neill, as per a Mariners press release.

[Related: updated Cardinals and Mariners depth charts at Roster Resource]

[Related: MLBTR’s Cardinals news and rumors page on Facebook]

The 25-year-old Gonzales is only just making his way back from a pair of injury-plagued seasons.  Gonzales missed a good chunk of 2015 due to shoulder problems and then all of 2016 due to Tommy John surgery.  The southpaw posted a 2.90 ERA, 3.35 K/BB rate and 7.5 K/9 over 11 starts and 68 1/3 IP at the Triple-A level this season, and Gonzales made it back to the big leagues for one start this season, a 3 1/3-inning outing on June 13.

St. Louis drafted Gonzales 19th overall in 2013 and both Baseball America and Baseball Prospectus ranked him as one of the top 52 prospects in the sport prior to the 2015 season.  BA ranked him as the #1 prospect in the Cardinals’ farm system that year, giving particular praise to Gonzales’ outstanding changeup.  The Cardinals thought enough of Gonzales that they promoted him to the majors barely a year after drafting him, and the lefty even made the Cards’ postseason roster in 2014, not allowing a run in five of his six outings in the playoffs.

Seattle was known to be looking for young pitching, and while Gonzales doesn’t project as an immediate upgrade for the current M’s rotation, he still possesses quite a bit of upside.  Beyond his potential on the mound, Gonzales also offers over six remaining years of team control; he isn’t eligible for arbitration until after the 2020 season, and won’t be a free agent until after 2023.  With Drew Smyly scheduled to miss most or all of 2018 recovering from Tommy John surgery and Hisashi Iwakuma and Yovani Gallardo both questionable to have their club options exercised for next season, Gonzales projects to be an important rotation piece for the 2018 Mariners.

In acquiring Gonzales, the M’s gave up a well-regarded young player in O’Neill, who was comfortably positioned within preseason top-1oo prospect lists from MLB.com (36th), Baseball America (38th), Baseball Prospectus (53rd).  Power is O’Neill’s calling card, as he has 89 homers over 1794 minor league plate appearances, including 19 this season at the Triple-A level.  O’Neill got off to something of a slow start in his first taste of Triple-A action, though he has recovered to post a .244/.328/.479 slash line through 396 PA.  He has cut down on his strikeouts over the last two seasons, though he still gets more than his share of whiffs, with 108 strikeouts this season.  O’Neill’s plate discipline and average corner outfield defense are also works in progress, though the 22-year-old Canadian has so much raw power and overall hitting potential that the Cardinals are surely willing to tolerate some growing pains.

O’Neill joins several other interesting young outfielders in the St. Louis farm system, and USA Today’s Bob Nightengale speculates that the Cards could now look to move an outfielder from their MLB roster in the offseason.  This could imply that Randal Grichuk or Stephen Piscotty could become trade chips, though the Cardinals would be selling low on either player in the wake of lackluster 2017 seasons.

Cardinals Add Grichuk, Kelly, Duke To 25-Man Roster; Designate Eric Fryer

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The Cardinals announced a series of roster moves prior to today’s game.  Outfielder Randal Grichuk and lefty Zach Duke were both activated from the 10-day and 60-day DL, respectively, while catcher Carson Kelly was recalled from Triple-A.  Righty Sam Tuivailala and outfielder Magneuris Sierra were optioned to Triple-A last night to open up two roster spots, and catcher Eric Fryer was designated for assignment today in another corresponding move.

[Related: MLBTR’s Cardinals News & Rumors page on Facebook]

Fryer signed a minor league deal with St. Louis this winter and has hit .155/.277/.197 over 83 PA serving as Yadier Molina’s backup.  This is Fryer’s second stint with the Cards, having originally joined the club on another minors deal in the 2015-16 offseason and then spending part of last season with the Pirates after being claimed off waivers.

Kelly, a consensus top-100 prospect in baseball, will replace Fryer in the backup catcher role.  Kelly made his big league debut last year, a 14-plate appearance cup of coffee that saw him appear in 10 games for the Cardinals.  The 23-year-old Kelly has only added to his lofty prospect status by hitting well in his first full season at Triple-A, batting .283/.375/.459 over 280 PA.

With Molina freshly signed to an extension though the 2020 season and Kelly seemingly ready for an extended look in the big leagues, it is possible that this callup could be Kelly’s audition for teams interested in a trade for the young catcher.  He would certainly be a major trade chip for a Cards team that may be looking to land some controllable but established MLB talent for 2018, or even still make a run at the NL Central.

Grichuk returns after a brief stay on the disabled list due to a back strain.  He’ll add depth to a Cardinals outfield that is still missing Stephen Piscotty, though Grichuk is still looking for consistency during a disappointing 2017 season that has included a minor league demotion.  Grichuk has continued to struggle since returning from the minors, and is batting just .215/.270/.408 in 241 PA.

Remarkably, Duke is back in action after undergoing Tommy John surgery just over nine months ago, far outpacing the procedure’s usual recovery timeline of 12-15 months.  Duke has posted strong numbers as a reliever for the Cards, Brewers, White Sox and Reds over the last four seasons, and he’ll join Brett Cecil, Kevin Siegrist and Tyler Lyons as left-handed options out of the St. Louis bullpen.  With this much lefty depth on hand, the Cards could potentially shop one of their southpaws to needy teams at the deadline.

Athletics Have Discussed Extensions With Marcus Semien, Khris Davis

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The Athletics have held at least exploratory talks about multi-year deals with both shortstop Marcus Semien and outfielder Khris Davis, according to Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle.  The club discussed an extension of up to five years with Semien during the offseason, though the shortstop tells Slusser that the two sides haven’t revisited talks since the spring.

Semien is open to revisiting negotiations, though he acknowledged that he isn’t sure if the A’s feel the same in the wake of his rough 2017 season.  The shortstop missed almost three months due to wrist surgery, and he has hit just .151/.300/.247 in 90 plate appearances.  There’s still obviously quite a bit of time for Semien to get back on track this year, not to mention the fact that some extra recovery time is usually needed in the case of wrist injuries.

Semien, who turns 27 in September, hit 27 homers last season but posted just a .238/.300/.435 slash line over 621 PA, making him an exactly league-average hitter (100) as per both the OPS+ and wRC+ metrics.  Semien has below-average defensive metrics at shortstop over his career, and there has long been speculation whether he has enough glove to remain at short, or if a move to second base is in the cards once Oakland permanently calls up prospect Franklin Barreto.

In either case, the extension talks would seem to hint that the A’s indeed see Semien as part of their future in the middle infield.  Had a five-year extension been reached last winter, it would have covered Semien’s final pre-arbitration season, his three arb years and his first free agent season.  Unless Semien can turn things around at the plate over the final two-plus months of 2017, his lack of production will certainly hurt his first arbitration number, which could mean a lower price tag for an extension on the Athletics’ part, if the club is indeed still interested.

A Davis extension, meanwhile, would be a much costlier investment, as the left fielder is putting up another big power season — 27 homers and a .246/.334/.526 slash line through his first 392 PA, putting Davis on pace to match or surpass his career-high total of 42 home runs in 2016.  Despite that prodigious amount of power, Davis is also prone to strikeouts and is a defensive liability in left field, so the A’s could have concerns about how he’ll age (Davis turns 30 in December) over the course of a long-term contract.

Davis is earning $5MM this season and is in line for a nice raise in his second time through the arbitration process this winter.  Slusser says that the A’s just “briefly talked” with Davis about a long-term contract, so it would seem that more in-depth negotiations have yet to take place.

Usually, the rising cost of a player like Davis would lead to speculation that the low-payroll Athletics would be exploring trade options.  While the A’s have again looked to move veterans this summer (such names as Sonny Gray and Yonder Alonso are trade candidates and Oakland has already moved Ryan Madson and Sean Doolittle to the Nationals), executive VP of baseball ops Billy Beane recently stated that the team is hoping to get past this trend of constant player turnover and start locking in some key players to multi-year deals.  Since this latest rebuild effort is tied to the Athletics’ still-unsettled quest to get a new ballpark, however, it remains to be seen if the timeline will match up so that Semien and Davis would be part of his first wave of long-term talent, or if they could eventually be the last members of the current generation of players dealt.

Mets Notes: Cabrera, M’s, Reed, Brewers, Szapucki

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With several veterans for sale, the Mets will be one of the most closely-watched teams in baseball as we approach the trade deadline.  Scouts from the Mariners, Indians, Cubs and Royals were on hand to see the Mets play on Thursday, Mike Puma of the New York Post reports, and surely those teams and more will be checking in with GM Sandy Alderson in the days leading up to July 31.  The latest from Citi Field…

  • Reports seem to be mixed on Asdrubal Cabrera’s trade value.  Puma reports that the veteran infielder has “several suitors” on the trade market, while Kristie Ackert of the New York Daily News hears from an industry source that the Mets have received a “pretty light” amount of interest in Cabrera.  That same source notes that the Red Sox, a team previously linked to Cabrera, had “yet to show any real interest.”  It may be that Cabrera will need to show that he can handle playing third base before his market really takes off, or any clubs currently interested may have an eye on Cabrera at his usual shortstop position (or at second base).
  • As cited in Puma’s report, Joel Sherman of the New York Post reports that the Mariners are one of the teams interested in Cabrera.  Since Seattle has Robinson Cano, Jean Segura and Kyle Seager entrenched in everyday roles, it would seem that the M’s would be looking at Cabrera as a multi-position bench option.  Taylor Motter has filled that role for the Mariners this season, though Motter hasn’t delivered much at the plate and he lacks Cabrera’s track record of performance.
  • The Brewers are one of a half-dozen teams who have asked the Mets about closer Addison Reed, Newsday’s Marc Carig reports.  Reed is getting the most attention of any Mets player likely to be dealt prior to the deadline, with other reports linking the right-hander to the Red Sox and Yankees.  While Reed would be a setup man for those teams with established closers, there’s at least a chance Reed could share the ninth-inning job with Corey Knebel, who has been dominant for much of the season but has blown two of his last five save chances.  Milwaukee has been on the search for starting and relief pitching, with Brad Hand, Pat Neshek and Justin Wilson among the names known to be considered by the Brew Crew as bullpen upgrades.
  • Left-handed pitching prospect Thomas Szapucki underwent Tommy John surgery on Wednesday, MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo and others reported.  Szapucki, a fifth-round pick for the Mets in the 2015 draft, was rated by Baseball Prospectus as the 69th-best prospect in the sport in BP’s preseason rankings.  MLB.com and Baseball America weren’t quite as bullish, though they still rated the southpaw as the fourth- and eighth-best prospect, respectively, in New York’s farm system.  Given the surgery’s usual recovery timeline of 12-15 months, however, Szapucki is now in danger of missing the entire 2018 season.

Orioles’ Owner Gives Approval To Explore Trades Of Relievers, Smith

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JULY 18: Rosenthal now reports (via Twitter) that Angelos has indeed given Duquette his approval to explore trades involving the team’s top relievers as well as Smith.

JULY 16: As long as Orioles ownership approves, executive VP of baseball operations Dan Duquette has told other teams that he is open to trading three of his top relievers (Zach Britton, Brad Brach and Darren O’Day) as well as outfielder Seth Smith, Ken Rosenthal reports via his Facebook page.

Also noteworthy in Rosenthal’s report is the list of names the O’s apparently aren’t willing to trade.  The club isn’t listening to offers for Manny Machado or Adam Jones, and though Mychal Givens is receiving interest from rival clubs, the O’s also don’t plan on dealing the righty, who is controllable through the 2021 season.

This would indicate that the Orioles aren’t approaching the deadline with an eye towards a full-blown rebuild.  Dealing a controllable player like Givens (who is likely being groomed for a larger role should one of the veteran relievers be dealt) or moving cornerstone players like Machado or Jones would imply that Baltimore wasn’t planning on contending in 2018.  Instead, the team looks to be attempting to free up some payroll space in the form of pricey relief contacts, and move some excess pieces in the bullpen and bench with an eye towards reloading for next season.  With this in mind, Rosenthal opines that Welington Castillo could also be a trade chip, as the catcher can become a free agent this winter if he doesn’t exercise his player option for 2018.

All this trade talk assumes, of course, that Orioles owner Peter Angelos is willing to green-light the proposed deadline moves.  Rosenthal points out that Angelos hasn’t permitted his team to make significant trades of veterans at the deadline since 2000, though the O’s are only on the fringes of contention this year.  The Orioles entered the day tied with the Blue Jays for fourth place in the AL East with a 42-48 record, 8.5 games out of first place and five games out of a wild card berth.

Britton posted one of the best years of any closer in baseball history in 2016, though he has only pitched 13 innings for Baltimore this season due to a pair of forearm strains.  Despite the worrying nature of such injuries, Britton’s track record ensures that he would be a prized commodity at the deadline, with such teams as the Dodgers and Astros already showing some interest.

Britton’s rise to elite closer status has coincided with his arbitration years, as he is playing this season on an $11.4MM salary.  Though his injury woes will probably limit the size of his raise in his fourth and final trip through the arb process this winter, Britton still has another $12MM+ salary coming his way in 2018, and there were whispers all winter that the O’s could move Britton and go with a less-expensive option at closer.

Brach, for instance, is only earning $3.05MM this season and is controlled through the 2018 season.  This contract situation and Brach’s own strong performance this year as Britton’s replacement at closer has put Brach perhaps even in higher demand than Britton.  It probably isn’t likely that both Britton and Brach would be dealt, as the club likely sees one or the other as their closer in 2018.

The veteran O’Day missed some time due to a shoulder strain this year and was hampered by injuries in 2016, though he had continued to post his usual solid numbers when healthy.  O’Day has a 3.77 ERA, 11.3 K/9 and 2.79 K/BB rate over 31 frames for Baltimore this year.  O’Day is owed $9MM in both 2018 and 2019 and has roughly $3MM remaining salary for this year.  The veteran also has a partial no-trade clause in his contract that allows him to block deals to seven teams, so O’Day has some control over his destiny if the Orioles do want to trade him.

Smith was acquired in a trade with the Mariners last winter to boost the Orioles’ left-handed hitting outfield depth, and he has a solid .259/.328/.436 slash line through 244 PA.  Trey Mancini has stepped into an everyday corner outfield role, so the O’s could use a platoon of Joey Rickard and Hyun Soo Kim in the other corner spot should Smith be dealt.

Latest On Todd Frazier, David Robertson

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The Red Sox are “moving closer” to a deal with the White Sox that would send third baseman Todd Frazier to Boston, USA Today’s Bob Nightengale reports (Twitter link). Both the Red Sox and archrival Yankees, who are 2.5 games behind AL East-leading Boston, sent scouts to Chicago on Sunday to observe Frazier and teammate David Robertson, according to FanRag’s Jon Heyman. However, it seems the teams have different motives. While the Red Sox are more interested in landing Frazier than Robertson, it’s the other way around for the Yankees, per Heyman.

[Related: Red Sox and Yankees news and rumors on Facebook]

If the White Sox move Frazier prior to the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline, the soon-to-be free agent’s unlikely to bring back a big return, with Nightengale suggesting he’d net the White Sox a “fringe prospect.” Moreover, Chicago would probably have to eat some of the remaining $5MM-plus left on Frazier’s contract, adds Nightengale (on Twitter). The 31-year-old would offer an acquiring team a competent everyday player, though, as he’s in the midst of his sixth straight respectable full season. Overall, the slugger has hit .210/.330/.483 with 16 home runs in 330 plate appearances. Those numbers are clearly superior to the production the Red Sox have gotten from their slew of third basemen, who have batted a woeful .234/.292/.327 with seven homers in 494 PAs.

While Frazier to Boston may be “almost inevitable,” as Ken Rosenthal of MLB Network reported Saturday, there are other third basemen on the Red Sox’s radar, ESPN.com’s Jerry Crasnick tweets, with a source describing their search as “wide open.”  One other possible candidate could be A’s second baseman Jed Lowrie, whom the BoSox have been scouting, Crasnick relays (Twitter link). Heyman lists the Padres’ Yangervis Solarte and the Marlins’ Martin Prado (previously reported) as other possibilities.

Lowrie began his career in Boston, which selected him in the first round of the 2005 draft and dealt him to Houston in 2011 for reliever Mark Melancon. Now 33, Lowrie hasn’t seen significant action at third base since 2015, when he was still with the Astros, but his bat would bat be an upgrade over what the Red Sox’s hot corner choices have offered this year. The switch-hitter has slashed .273/.340/.448 with nine homers in 365 trips to the plate with the A’s, who are rebuilding and have no real reason to keep the $6.5MM man around through the season. With a $6MM club option (or a $1MM buyout) for 2018, Lowrie could be more than a rest-of-season stopgap for Boston, though the club might only need a Band-Aid at third with highly touted prospect Rafael Devers creeping closer to the majors.

Solarte, 30, carries even more team control than Lowrie. He’s due a guaranteed $6.5MM through 2018 ($2.5MM this season, $4MM next) and has two affordable club options after that ($5.5MM in 2019, $8MM in 2020). Also a switch-hitter, Solarte has slashed .268/.349/.425 with 10 long balls in 289 PAs this season. However, a strained oblique has kept him out of action since June 20.

While Lowrie to Boston would be a homecoming of sorts, the same would apply to Robertson going to New York. The Yankees drafted Robertson in 2006, in Round 17, and he developed into a shutdown reliever with the club a few years later. Robertson was so effective as both a setup man and closer with the Yankees that Chicago handed him a four-year, $46MM contract as a free agent in 2014.

Even though the Yankees let Robertson depart, they “always have” been bullish on the right-hander, a source told Heyman. His $12MM salary this year and $13MM guarantee in 2018 aside, any bullpen-needy team would love to have Robertson, who’s amid the best of his three seasons in Chicago and has posted a 2.78 ERA with 12.8 K/9 and 3.06 BB/9 over 32 1/3 innings. Robertson is the closer for the White Sox, but he’d return to his old setup job with the Yankees and form what would figure to be an elite game-ending trio with Dellin Betances and Aroldis Chapman. Robertson would also fill a seventh- or eighth-inning role with the Red Sox, who have an all-world closer in Craig Kimbrel.

Blue Jays “Highly Unlikely” To Trade J.A. Happ

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The Blue Jays are receiving interest from the Brewers and other teams in left-hander J.A. Happ, FOX Sports’ Ken Rosenthal reports (Twitter links), though it is “highly unlikely” that the Jays will trade the southpaw since Toronto plans to compete in 2018.

Milwaukee has been aggressive in pursuing deadline upgrades, as the team has been linked to such names as Sonny Gray, Brad Hand and (the since-traded) Jose Quintana in recent days.  GM David Stearns recently stated that his club’s strong preference is to obtain players who are under contract beyond just this season, and Happ fits that bill, owed $13MM in 2018 as well as roughly $4.7MM remaining on his 2017 salary.  While a controllable pitcher of Happ’s ability is naturally of interest to many teams in general, Rosenthal notes that teams are particularly looking at Happ in part because this winter’s free agent class is thin on front-of-the-rotation starters.

Happ was seen as more of a reliable innings-eater than as a possible ace when he signed a three-year, $36MM deal with Toronto in the 2015-16 offseason, though the left-handed enjoyed the best season of his 11-year career in 2016, posting a 3.18 ERA over 195 innings and finishing sixth in the AL Cy Young Award voting.  Elbow inflammation has limited to Happ to just 11 starts and 61 innings this year, though he has been on pace for even better numbers than in 2016, delivering a 3.54 ERA, 8.9 K/9 and 4.29 K/BB rate.

Blue Jays president Mark Shapiro suggested earlier this month that the Jays weren’t planning a major sell-off at the deadline, nor were they going to pursue rental players in an attempt at a postseason berth that is looking increasingly unlikely (the Jays took a 42-48 record into action today).  Recent reports suggest that Toronto will be open to moving pending free agents like Joe Smith, Marco Estrada, Francisco Liriano or J.P. Howell, but perhaps not any notable pieces who are under contract beyond this season.

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