Headlines

Go To Pro Hockey Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

Nationals Notes: Rendon, Robles, Taylor

By | at

Here’s the latest from the Nationals, who take a 2-0 series lead into tomorrow’s Game Three of the NLCS….

  • Could Anthony Rendon be open to the idea of a relatively short-term contract for a high average annual average?  “Some friends of Rendon believe that he’s more interested in a shorter-term deal…because he might not be devoted to the idea of playing for as long as he possibly can,” ESPN’s Buster Olney writes, which Olney feels could make Rendon even more of an attractive target for a team like the Dodgers.  Los Angeles reportedly had interest in such a short-term deal with Bryce Harper last winter, though such efforts fell short since Harper was specifically looking for a very long-term contract.  A premium free agent like Rendon showing interest in only a very pricey deal of four or five years would be a fascinating wrinkle, as clubs would no longer have to worry about a late-30’s decline if Rendon is only under contract through his age-33 or age-34 season.  (The third baseman turns 30 next June.)  It could also create a ripple effect for future superstar free agents around the game, and the players’ union may also not be pleased at one of its top names taking what teams would certainly adopt as a precedent-setting model.  Then again, Rendon’s agent Scott Boras has long aimed to garner maximum money at maximum years for his clients, and Rendon reportedly already turned down a seven-year extension offer from the Nats worth $210-$215MM.
  • Victor Robles is expected to take part in batting practice and some running drills on Monday, manager Davey Martinez told reporters (including MASNsports.com’s Byron Kerr).  Robles also did some running today and underwent treatment on his bothersome right hamstring, which was tweaked in Game Two of the NLDS.  The injury has kept Robles out of action, though there is some optimism he will be able to return for Monday’s game.  “I’m not going to anticipate anything until he comes in tomorrow. But he’s progressing and hopefully he will be ready tomorrow,” Martinez said.
  • Robles will regain the regular center field job when he is ready to play, Martinez noted.  This will send Michael A. Taylor back to the Nats’ bench, though Taylor has performed well (.300/.333/.450) in 21 plate appearances since filling in for Robles.  It marked a nice turn-around for Taylor, the Washington Post’s Sam Fortier writes, as Taylor’s early-season struggles led to a demotion to Double-A, before he finally got his swing back on track in the final days of his minor league assignment.  “I was finally able to get that feeling.  I just tried to repeat over and over,” Taylor said about a hot streak that saw him post a 1.191 OPS over his last 52 PA in the minors.  Though he was at one point a top prospect and seemed to be breaking out at the MLB level as recently as the 2017 season, Taylor has been inconsistent over his six big league seasons, but now stands as a very valuable bench asset as the Nationals continue their postseason run.

Latest On Carlos Beltran

By | at

Former star outfielder Carlos Beltran has emerged as a popular candidate in managerial searches around the league, though Beltran has only one particular destination in mind.  Speaking to reporters (including Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe and Newsday’s Anthony Rieber) today, Beltran said that he was only interested in managing in New York, to the point of turning down interview requests from other teams.  It was already known that Beltran declined to speak to the Padres about their managerial vacancy, and he revealed today that he had also passed on a chance to interview with the Cubs.

This leaves the Mets as Beltran’s only potential landing spot if he does indeed make a move into the dugout.  He reportedly interviewed for the position last Thursday, though he didn’t officially confirm this during today’s media session.  SNY’s Andy Martino notes that the lack of confirmation could have to do with the Mets “putting high priority on secrecy” during their managerial search (though several names have already been linked to the Mets job).

Though Beltran has long expressed an interest in continuing to work in baseball after hanging up his cleats, he has been particular about which opportunities he has pursued.  It’s clear that his particular interest in remaining in New York has influenced those decisions — beyond his current connection to the Mets’ job, Beltran interviewed for the Yankees’ managerial vacancy after the 2017 season that was eventually filled by Aaron Boone, and has spent the last year working as a special advisor in the Yankees’ front office.  Obviously, Beltran has longstanding ties to the Big Apple after playing for the Mets from 2005-11, and then for the Yankees in 2014-16.

Though Cubs president of baseball operations Theo Epstein has indicated he would “have a greater comfort for someone” with past managerial experience, Beltran is one of several potential first-time managers who have been on the Cubs’ radar during their own search.  Mark Loretta, David Ross, and Will Venable have never managed at the Major League or minor league levels before, though the Cubs are also slated to meet with a very experienced former MLB skipper in Joe Girardi.

Dave Roberts To Return As Dodgers’ Manager In 2020

By | at

After losing to the Nationals in Game Five of the NLDS last night, the Dodgers will be missing the World Series for the first time since 2016.  The heartbreaking nature of Wednesday’s defeat has already led to some speculation among fans and pundits that a change could (or should) be coming to the Dodgers’ dugout, though none seems to be on the way.  Jorge Castillo of the Los Angeles Times reports that Dave Roberts will indeed return as the team’s manager in 2020, “according to two people with knowledge of the situation.”

Roberts has an outstanding 393-256 record over four seasons as the Dodgers’ skipper, a resume that includes two National League pennants, four consecutive NL West titles, and a 106-56 regular season mark in 2019 that ranks as the winningest season in the Dodgers’ 136-year history.  Despite all of this success, however, a World Series championship has remained elusive.  L.A. dropped the 2017 Series to the Astros in seven games and then absorbed a five-game loss to the Red Sox in 2018, before making an unexpectedly early exit in this year’s postseason.

There were also whispers about Roberts’ future employment after last year’s Series loss, though the Dodgers exercised their option on his services for 2019 and ultimately signed him to a three-year extension that runs through the 2022 season.  While Dodgers ownership certainly has the resources to eat the money owed on three years of a manager’s contract if a change was deemed necessary, that recent long-term commitment made it seem pretty unlikely that Roberts would be fired, despite the controversy over the last 24 hours.

Of course, nothing short of a World Series will ultimately satisfy Los Angeles fans, especially since the most common complaint directed at Roberts (his late-game bullpen management) perhaps reached its apex in Game Five against Washington.  Dodgers supporters will forever bemoan the decisions to bring Clayton Kershaw out of the bullpen, and then to leave Joe Kelly on the mound for a second inning of work — just as they’ll always wonder why Roberts removed a dominant Rich Hill after 6 1/3 frames during Game Four of the 2018 Series.  Roberts’ heavy focus on platoon switches and lefty-righty matchups have also received criticism, though this would seem like a more specific organizational focus rather than something Roberts is personally responsible for (and, this same flexible roster depth is a major reason the Dodgers have won so many games in the first place).

There are already eight teams looking to hire new managers this offseason, and while there is some debate over which of those jobs is the most attractive, one would imagine the Dodgers’ opening would have immediately zoomed to the top of the list if Roberts had indeed been replaced.  The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal, as part of a subscription-only piece wondering about Roberts’ future with the Dodgers, also made the point that Roberts would surely be a sought-after candidate for one of those eight other open jobs, given his track record and ties to other executives on those manager-needy franchises.

Indians Release Dioner Navarro

By | at

The Indians have released catcher Dioner Navarro, Baseball America’s Kegan Lowe reports.  Navarro signed a minor league deal with the Tribe last winter, and hit .211/.339/.274 over 115 plate appearances (in 29 games) for Triple-A Columbus.

It marked a return to affiliated baseball for Navarro, who sat out the 2017 season entirely due to family health reasons and whose 2018 action was limited to 20 games with the Long Island Ducks of the independent Atlantic League and 22 games in the Venezuelan Winter League.  He’ll turn 36 in February, and seems to be in line for another minors contract this offseason in another veteran depth role.

Navarro hit .250/.309/.370 over 3351 Major League plate appearances for seven different teams from 2004-16.  The bulk (458) of his 1009 games came with the Rays, a stint that included an All-Star Game selection in 2008, though Navarro also saw regular or semi-regular duty as a member of the Dodgers, Cubs, and Blue Jays.

Athletics’ Sean Murphy Undergoes Knee Surgery

By | at

Athletics catcher Sean Murphy underwent a lateral meniscal debridement procedure on his left knee today, as per a team announcement.  The surgery addresses the meniscus problems that plagued Murphy this season (leading to a pair of stints on the Triple-A injured list), and the young backstop “is expected to be ready for Spring Training.”

Knee surgery isn’t exactly the best way to celebrate a birthday, as Murphy turns 25 years old today.  But, given how the youngster performed in his first taste of MLB action even while not at 100 percent, a clean bill of health makes Murphy seem like an even more intriguing prospect going forward, and a strong candidate to assume the everyday catching duties for the Athletics for next season.

Murphy hit .245/.333/.566 with four home runs over his first 60 Major League plate appearances, all but one of which took place in September.  With the A’s battling for a wild card berth, Murphy’s performance earned him an increasingly larger share of the playing time alongside veteran catcher Josh Phegley, and Murphy ended up getting the start in Oakland’s wild card game loss to the Rays.

After three impressive years at Wright State, Murphy was a third-round pick for the A’s in the 2016 draft and continued to impress as he worked his way up the minor league ladder.  Murphy hit .267/.341/.456 over 966 career PA in the minors, showing up strong offensive potential to go along with his highly-touted defensive skills.  Fangraphs ranks Murphy as the 29th-best prospect in baseball, with MLB.com (43rd) and Baseball America (52nd) also issuing strong placements on their top-100 prospects lists.

Giants Sign Drew Robinson To Minors Contract

By | at

The Giants have signed utilityman Drew Robinson to a minor league deal, as per Baseball America’s Kegan Lowe.  Robinson became a free agent after being released by the Cardinals in August.

Robinson appeared in only five MLB games for the Cards in 2019, a sharp dropoff after playing in 95 games (246 PA) as a bench player for the Rangers in 2017-18.  Originally a fourth-round pick for the Rangers in the 2010 draft, Robinson has a .202/.296/.369 slash line over his 253 career Major League plate appearances, but has hit a much more respectable .252/.362/.438 over 3686 PA at the minor league level.

Giants president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi made a habit of picking up depth pieces in his first full year running San Francisco’s front office, and Robinson becomes the latest to get a look from the team.  The 27-year-old brings a lot of defensive versatility, as he started multiple games at six different positions (second base, third base, left field, right field, shortstop, and primarily center field) in 2019, and also has experience as a first baseman.

AL Central Notes: Colome, Ramirez, Twins

By | at

In the wake of the Nationals’ dramatic NLDS victory over the Dodgers last night, it is perhaps fitting that October 10 marks another red-letter day in Washington baseball history….not to mention Minnesota baseball history.  It was on this day back in 1924 that the Twins won their first World Series, though they were still several decades away from becoming the Twins, as the franchise played in D.C. as the Washington Senators from 1901-1960.  The Senators beat the New York Giants in a dramatic Game Seven that lasted 12 innings, with the legendary Walter Johnson earning the win after tossing four shutout innings in relief.  1924 marked the franchise’s only Series title in Washington, as the Senators/Twins wouldn’t again win it all until 1987.

Some items from around the AL Central…

  • Though Alex Colome is projected to earn $10.3MM in salary next year, the Athletic’s James Fegan (subscription required) doesn’t think the high arbitration price tag will prevent the White Sox from bringing the closer back in 2020.  GM Rick Hahn indicated after the season that the performances of Colome and Aaron Bummer as Chicago’s late-game duo “makes you feel real good about their spot going forward,” and Fegan notes that the Sox likely wouldn’t have acquired Colome from the Mariners last winter if they were worried about paying him in 2020, given how save totals predictably lead to big raises for closers in the arbitration process.  Both advanced metrics (.215 BABIP, and a 2.64 wOBA that was far below his .324 xwOBA) and ERA predictors (4.08 FIP, 4.61 xFIP, 4.38 SIERA) indicated that Colome was rather fortunate to post his 2.80 ERA over 61 innings last season, so a non-tender or a trade is perhaps feasible if the White Sox felt a bigger course correction was on the way next year.
  • Jose Ramirez is open to playing either second base or third base next season, though he has told Indians management that he doesn’t want to shift between the two positions, Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer writes.  Ramirez played exclusively at third base in 2019 and spent most of his time at the hot corner in 2018, though he moved over to second base late in the year to accommodate the Tribe’s acquisition of Josh Donaldson.  Ramirez also more or less split time between third (736 2/3 innings) and second (577 1/3 innings) in 2017 due to an injury to regular second baseman Jason Kipnis.  Over the last three seasons in question, Ramirez has been an above-average defender at third base as per the UZR/150 and Defensive Runs Saved metrics, while UZR/150 has been a bit less impressed with his work as a second baseman, though the 27-year-old is still overall pretty solid at the keystone.  “I think we’re comfortable that Jose can play both at a premium defensive quality,” manager Terry Francona said.  “I agree with him, going back and forth is hard, especially at this point in his career.”  Ramirez’s ability to handle either infield role gives Cleveland some flexibility in pursuing infield help this winter, assuming the team doesn’t rely on some combination of Yu Chang, Mike Freeman, Christian Arroyo, or Andrew Velazquez to handle the other position in 2020.
  • The Twins are already planning to chase some front-of-the-rotation pitchers this offseason, and Jim Souhan of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune opines that outfielder Eddie Rosario could be “the logical trading chip” to try and land an arm.  Rosario hit .276/.300/.500 with 32 homers over 590 PA for Minnesota last season, and he has 83 total home runs over the last three seasons.  After posting a decent .326 OBP in 2017-18, however, Rosario had much more difficult getting on base this past year, and he also didn’t have a good defensive year as a left fielder (though he did fare much better defensively in 2018).  Trading Rosario would result in a projected starting outfield of Max Kepler, Byron Buxton, and Marwin Gonzalez, with top prospects Royce Lewis, Alex Kirilloff and Trevor Larnach all potentially available as late-season call-ups.  More veteran outfield depth could also be added at a lower price than Rosario, who is projected to earn a hefty arbitration raise to $8.9MM, up significantly from his $4.19MM salary in 2019.

Twins Discussing Extension With Derek Falvey

By | at

The Twins and Derek Falvey “could soon complete a new deal” to retain the executive VP/chief baseball officer beyond the end of his current contract, ESPN’s Buster Olney reports.  The specific terms of Falvey’s original deal weren’t released when he was hired by Minnesota after the 2016 season, though it was believed that he was signed through at least 2020.

Still only 36 years old, Falvey has enjoyed quite a bit of success since taking over the Twins’ baseball operations department.  Brought in to provide fresh perspective within an organization that had perhaps become too insular and old-fashioned, Falvey and GM Thad Levine have managed to both modernize the Twins’ front office while also leading the club to the playoffs twice in three seasons.  Minnesota won a wild card slot in 2017 and then captured the AL Central this year with 101 victories, the second-highest win total in the 119-year history of the Twins/Washington Senators franchise.  The only downside is an 0-4 record in the postseason, losing all four games to the Yankees (who have dominated the Twins for the better part of two decades).

Perhaps most importantly, Minnesota is well-positioned to remain in contention going forward.  Jorge Polanco and Max Kepler were signed to long-term extensions in the spring, and Falvey and Levine focused on acquiring only short-term assets last winter, several of whom (most notably Nelson Cruz) ended up being big contributors to Minnesota’s division title.  This leaves the Twins in position to spend more significantly this offseason, and Falvey said yesterday that “impact pitching” will be targeted to help a rotation that could be thinned out in free agency.

It isn’t surprising that the Twins would look to keep Falvey in the fold given his already-strong track record with the team, though Olney notes that the timing could also be related to the Red Sox, who currently the only team looking to fill a general manager vacancy.  Falvey is from Massachusetts, though as of last month, was reportedly “very happy” in Minnesota and seemingly not looking to take on another position elsewhere.

If a new contract for Falvey could be coming soon, it stands to reason that Levine might also be in line for an extension in short order.  Levine has been on the radar for other teams looking to make front office hires, though he turned down a request from the Mets to interview for their open GM position last year.

MLB Trade Rumors is not affiliated with Major League Baseball, MLB or MLB.com

Do not Sell or Share My Personal Information

hide arrows scroll to top