Mark Polishuk | MLB Trade Rumors

Mike Trout Suffers Minor Calf Strain

By Mark Polishuk | July 15, 2019 at 10:22pm CDT

MONDAY: An MRI revealed a “small” calf strain, Hoornstra was among those to tweet. Trout’s day-to-day.

SUNDAY, 6:52PM: Trout’s injury isn’t considered to be serious, manager Brad Ausmus told J.P. Hoornstra of the Southern California News Group (Twitter link). Still, Trout will undergo an MRI on Monday to determine the extent of his calf problem.

5:31PM: Mike Trout left today’s game after two innings due to what the Angels described as right calf tightness, and the star outfielder’s condition is day-to-day. The injury seemingly wasn’t caused by any obvious play on the field — Trout softly lined to first base in his only at-bat of the game, and he didn’t make any defensive plays during his two innings of work. Trout was replaced in center field prior to the beginning of the third inning.

While the removal could have simply been precautionary in nature, any type of injury to baseball’s best player is certainly worth noting. Trout is in the midst of yet another incredible season, with 30 homers and a .305/.455/.666 slash line over 402 plate appearances. He leads the league in any number of categories, including wRC+ (191), fWAR (6.5), offensive bWAR (5.9), on-base percentage, runs created, and walks. (In fact, Trout’s 77 walks top his 70 strikeouts.)

Los Angeles entered today’s action with a 47-46 record, five games behind Oakland for the final American League wild card slot. Needless to say, the Angels’ playoff chances would take a big hit should Trout have to go on the injured list for any lengthy amount of time. He is such a singular driving force in his team’s success that, if the worst-case scenario occurs and Trout does indeed need a significant IL stint, his absence could convince the Angels front office to explore selling veterans at the trade deadline.

Cardinals Move Michael Wacha Back To Bullpen

By Mark Polishuk | July 14, 2019 at 11:56pm CDT

The Cardinals have removed Michael Wacha from their rotation for the second time this season, Wacha told Rick Hummel of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and other reporters. Daniel Ponce de Leon will now take Wacha’s spot in the rotation and start on Wednesday against the Pirates.

Wacha had been originally slated to start on Tuesday, then Wednesday as the Cards juggled their pitching staff coming out of the All-Star break. After back spasms forced Adam Wainwright out of a scheduled outing last Friday, Ponce de Leon pitched well in spot duty, earning him a longer look as a starter. Ponce de Leon now slots in alongside Wainwright, Miles Mikolas, Jack Flaherty, and Dakota Hudson in the starting five.

This leaves Wacha as the odd man out, continuing what has been a frustrating season for the 28-year-old. Injuries have plagued his ability to become a consistently productive member of the St. Louis rotation in recent years, though while Wacha had a brief IL stint due to a knee problem in April, his biggest problems have been a huge spike in home runs allowed (2.1 HR/9) and a continued decline in fastball velocity. After averaging 95.1 mph on his heater in 2017, Wacha saw that total drop to 93.5 mph last season, and 92.6 mph this year. While Wacha has never been a big strikeout pitcher, his 7.31 K/9 is a career low, while his 4.6 BB/9 is a career high.

The result is a 5.54 ERA over 76 1/3 innings for Wacha this season. After a rough start on May 22, the right-hander was first shifted into the bullpen, where he made two relief appearances before returning as a starter on June 10. While Wacha has a 4.10 ERA over his last five starts, the inconsistency has continued, as he was hit hard in two outings while posting quality starts in the other three. Despite the role change, Cardinals manager Mike Shildt left the door open for Wacha to potentially start again, saying that the righty will work out of the pen “until another need arises.”

That said, Hummel raised the possibility that Wacha could be nearing the end of his time with the organization, and could be on the move before the July 31 trade deadline. Wacha doesn’t project as a long-term piece of the Cards’ future given that he’s a free agent after the season, and while his current struggles don’t make him a premium trade chip, St. Louis could add him into a larger package or simply swap him in a more low-profile trade. Rival teams could have interest in seeing if a simple change of scenery is required for a pitcher who has generally been a pretty solid rotation arm when healthy.

Working as a spot starter and reliever, Ponce de Leon has shown some intriguing stuff in his two MLB seasons, posting a 2.37 ERA, 9.6 K/9, and 2.88 K/BB rate over 64 2/3 career innings. Opposing batters have managed only a .243 xwOBA in 31 2/3 innings against Ponce de Leon this season. With the Cardinals fighting to stay close in both the uber-competitive NL Central race and the NL wild card hunt, the team decided it was better to go with a hot hand in Ponce de Leon than continue to give Wacha time to get on track.

Injury Notes: Ozuna, Gyorko, Winker, Longoria

By Mark Polishuk | July 14, 2019 at 11:16pm CDT

The latest on some injury situations from around baseball…

Marcell Ozuna isn’t sure when he’ll be able to return to the Cardinals lineup, MLB.com’s Anne Rogers writes, as the outfielder is still battling swelling in his right hand. As a result, Ozuna “hasn’t been able to test his grip strength much.” Ozuna suffered a fractured middle finger (and also jammed several other fingers) in late June, and there isn’t a clear idea as to when he’ll be ready to play again, though the team is hopeful the slugger will be back before the end of July. Ozuna had hit .259/.331/.515 with 20 homers over his first 326 plate appearances this season.
Also from Rogers’ piece, Cardinals manager Mike Shildt told reporters that Jedd Gyorko will be out of action until at least the middle of August, and potentially not until the start of September. While a back problem was the initial cause of Gyorko’s injured list that began on June 8, his return was delayed by a left calf strain, and then minor surgery on his right wrist. He also started the year on the IL due to a right calf strain suffered during Spring Training. With only 38 games and 62 plate appearances under his belt for the year, it’s beginning to look like a lost season for Gyorko in what might well be his final season in St. Louis. The Cardinals will surely take the $1MM buyout of their club option on Gyorko’s services for 2020 rather than pay him $13MM.
Reds outfielder Jesse Winker left today’s game in the middle of an at-bat due to injury. After swinging at a pitch, Winker told reporters (including MLB.com’s Mark Sheldon) that “my lower left back, side area tightened up. I was feeling some tightness in my right rib cage as well.” The problem first arose during his initial swing in the plate appearance, Winker added. He will undergo tests tomorrow to further access the damage, though if Winker has suffered an oblique injury, he would be facing an absence of several weeks. The 25-year-old has a .250/.328/.462 slash line and 13 home runs over 290 PA with Cincinnati this season, playing mostly against right-handed pitching (and with some drastic splits, including a .428 OPS in his only 39 PA against lefties). Should Winker miss time, a platoon of Derek Dietrich and Phillip Ervin in left field would seem to be the Reds’ likeliest response.
X-rays were negative on Evan Longoria’s left foot after the third baseman left after four innings of today’s Giants game due to plantar fasciitis. Longoria told Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle and other reporters that he has been dealing with the nagging problem since last season. The Giants are scheduled for a double-header against the Rockies on Monday and Longoria hopes to play in the second game, though he will get an MRI in the morning to access the damage. Plantar fasciitis could explain Longoria’s overall struggles since coming to San Francisco in the 2017-18 offseason, though he has quietly been roughly a league-average (102 OPS+, 101 wRC+) hitter this year in the wake of a recent hot streak. While a .241/.318/.446 slash line is a marked improvement over Longoria’s 2018 numbers, it still ranks as disappointing considering his track record and hefty contract.

AL West Notes: Astros, Bailey, Santana, Rangers

By Mark Polishuk | July 14, 2019 at 10:11pm CDT

Pitching is on the Astros’ mind as the AL West leaders approach the trade deadline, and both starters or relievers could be on the menu, GM Jeff Luhnow told The Athletic’s Jake Kaplan (subscription required). “It all depends on whether or not we’re able to acquire a starter and what that means for the rest of the rotation and maybe when [Brad] Peacock’s going to come back and be healthy and all of that,” Luhnow said. “So, there are a lot of variables. But we’ve never ruled out looking at relievers. In fact, several of the pitchers that we have on our wish list are relievers.”

As Luhnow mentioned, Peacock’s injury status adds another question mark to a rotation that was already in need of at least one more starter. While Houston has been linked to any number of big-name starters on the rumor mill, acquiring a reliever would add pen depth, and also perhaps allow the Astros to experiment with using an opener and bulk pitcher for one of the rotation spots, rather than a full-time starter. For the short term, Luhnow figured his team will have to get though something of a pitching crunch over the next few days, though “we talked to a couple clubs about some players who might fit in.”

MLBTR Chat Transcript: Mets, Bailey, Stroman, Twins, Yankees, Greinke

By Mark Polishuk | July 14, 2019 at 9:20pm CDT

Click here to read the transcript of the Sunday evening baseball chat, moderated by Mark Polishuk of the MLB Trade Rumors writing staff

Indians Notes: Bauer, Otero, Salazar

By Mark Polishuk | July 14, 2019 at 7:19pm CDT

Here’s the latest from Progressive Field…

While an extra year of control is generally considered as a boon to a player’s trade value, this may not necessarily be the case for Trevor Bauer, as Ken Rosenthal explains in his latest video report for FOX Sports. Bauer has one year of arbitration eligibility remaining in 2020, though Rosenthal notes that some potential trade partners could be wary of acquiring Bauer due to the high price tag he’ll earn next season. After defeating Cleveland in an arb hearing in February, Bauer collected a $13MM salary for 2019, and his aggressiveness in seeking out maximum value on an annual basis makes it likely he’ll go to yet another hearing for another big salary next winter. This could push Bauer’s potential earnings into the $20MM range, which is too costly for some clubs. There is some comparison between Bauer’s situation and David Price’s situation in 2014, Rosenthal notes, as the Rays’ ability to get a big trade haul for the ace lefty was somewhat limited by the big payday awaiting Price via arbitration in the 2014-15 offseason. Of course, with the Indians in the playoff hunt, it remains to be seen if the Tribe will trade Bauer whatsoever, or potentially wait until the offseason to further trades (though there’s already a lot of speculation about Bauer being on the move this July).
Dan Otero will begin a minor league rehab assignment, manager Terry Francona told MLB.com’s Mandy Bell and other reporters. The righty hasn’t pitched since May 30 due to right shoulder inflammation, and Otero’s time on the injured list was extended due to a setback in his recovery process. The ground-ball specialist had a 54.9% grounder rate, 3.33 K/BB rate, 3.8 K/9, and 4.56 ERA over his first 23 2/3 innings for Cleveland this season, with that ERA largely inflated by five earned runs over his last 2 2/3 frames of work prior to his IL stint.
Francona also discussed Danny Salazar’s rehab, as the right-hander continues to make his way back to a big league mound for the first time since October 2017. Salazar has been working as a starter during his rehab outings, though Francona said it’s too soon to say whether Salazar will continue in the rotation should he return to the Tribe’s MLB roster. “I don’t know how you can forecast a month down the road,” Francona said. “We might need three starters by then….There’s a lot of things we need to find out. Information that we don’t have yet.” Keeping Salazar on a regular five-day schedule as a starter could be beneficial to his bothersome shoulder, though a similar argument could be made that limited bullpen innings would be preferable to a starter’s workload.

Astros’ Brad Peacock Has Setback In Injury Rehab

By Mark Polishuk | July 14, 2019 at 5:57pm CDT

Brad Peacock and the Astros were hoping that the right-hander was ready to return to the starting rotation tomorrow, though Peacock will now instead visit with team doctors after feeling soreness in his throwing shoulder, manager A.J. Hinch told reporters (including The Athletic’s Jake Kaplan). Peacock reported the setback a day after a bullpen session on Friday.

Peacock had a 4.13 ERA, 9.4 K/9, and 3.56 K/BB rate over 85 innings for Houston when he first hit the injured list on June 28 due to shoulder inflammation. Aside from a troubling 1.4 HR/9, Peacock has delivered thoroughly solid results at the back of Houston’s rotation this season, holding opponents to just a .295 xwOBA.

The Astros were already known to be looking to add starting pitching at the trade deadline, and today’s news will only intensify that search. Gerrit Cole, Justin Verlander, and Wade Miley provide a lot of strength atop the rotation, though aside from Peacock, the Astros’ other starters have struggled. In the short term, Kaplan notes that Framber Valdez (he of the 5.28 ERA over 46 frames this season) is likely to pitch on Monday or Tuesday as either a starter or as a bulk pitcher behind an opener, with Houston going with a bullpen day for the other game.

Rays Place Chaz Roe On 10-Day IL, Activate Diego Castillo

By Mark Polishuk | July 12, 2019 at 2:20pm CDT

TODAY: These moves are now official.

YESTERDAY, 5:20pm: Hunter Wood will likely be recalled from Triple-A to take Alvarado’s roster spot, Topkin tweets.

4:01pm: The Rays will place right-hander Chaz Roe on the 10-day injured list prior to tomorrow’s game due to a flexor strain, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports (Twitter links). Righty Diego Castillo will be activated from the injured list himself on Friday to take Roe’s 25-man roster spot, though Tampa will still need to make one more move since Jose Alvarado is also now on the IL. Ji-Man Choi is expected to soon rejoin the team after recovering from a sprained ankle, Topkin tweets, but not until Saturday or Sunday.

Roe has missed a lot of bats (11.9 K/9) over his 27 1/3 relief innings this season, though an ungainly 6.6 BB/9 and .368 BABIP have resulted in a 5.27 ERA. That walk rate represents a concerning re-emergence of the control problems that hurt Roe earlier in his career, though he had seemingly put the free passes behind him after posting just a 2.9 BB/9 as part of his overall solid 2018 season (3.58 ERA over 50 1/3 IP) out of the Rays’ bullpen.

Castillo has been sidelined since June 23 due to a shoulder impingement, and the return of the 25-year-old and his 98mph fastball will provide a boost to Tampa Bay’s ninth-inning efforts. Castillo has earned seven saves as part of the Rays’ unofficial closer-by-committee system, with Alvarado (seven saves) and Emilio Pagan (five saves) also receiving the bulk of late-game save opportunities.

Mets Likely Won’t Trade Syndergaard, Matz Unless “Overwhelmed” By Offer

By Mark Polishuk | July 11, 2019 at 7:34pm CDT

While it is becoming increasingly likely that the Mets will be sellers at the deadline, the team won’t be going into a full fire sale. Noah Syndergaard and Steven Matz are two of the names that aren’t likely to be going anywhere before the July 31st deadline, as Mike Puma of the New York Post hears from an industry source that the Mets “would likely have to be overwhelmed by a trade proposal” to deal Syndergaard or Matz.

The Mets’ reluctance to move Syndergaard is well-known, despite the fact that at least three teams (the Brewers, Astros and Padres) have shown interest already, and several more would surely join the bidding if the man they call Thor was actually shopped. We haven’t heard much about Matz as a trade candidate this summer, and it’s interesting that he is seemingly in the same boat as the more heralded Syndergaard, though New York would have largely the same reasons to want to keep either pitcher.

Matz has a 4.89 ERA, 2.69 K/BB rate, 46.9% grounder rate, and 8.7 K/9 over 81 innings this season. Despite some pretty decent overall advanced metrics, Matz has been once again undone by problems with the home run ball. After posting a 1.5 HR/9 in 2017-18, that number jumped even higher to a full 2.0 HR/9 in 2019, as 20.9% of all fly balls allowed by Matz have left the yard. Matz’s struggles peaked in June, as a string of poor outings led the Mets to remove him from the rotation, though he is slated to start on July 17 against the Twins.

Now in his fourth season as a regular, Matz has shown some flashes of brilliance for the Mets but injuries and his propensity for the home run ball have limited his value. After generating 2.4 fWAR in his 2016 rookie season, he has been little more than a replacement-level pitcher since, with 1.3 total fWAR over his next 301 2/3 innings. Matz hasn’t approached the type of ace-level ability Syndergaard has shown at his peak, though like Syndergaard, the Mets would arguably be selling low on Matz if they dealt him now.

Matz is in his first year of arbitration eligibility, earning $2.625MM for the season and thus in line for cost-effective salaries in both 2020 and 2021 even if Matz has a breakout next year. Syndergaard also has two-plus years of team control remaining, though at a higher price (he is earning $6MM in 2019). Between the control and the lack of payroll strain caused by either hurler, the Mets don’t have any particular reason to make a trade, especially since neither is pitching particularly well.

Brewers Sign Shelby Miller To Minors Deal

By Mark Polishuk | July 11, 2019 at 6:45pm CDT

The Brewers have signed right-hander Shelby Miller to a minor league contract, The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal reports (Twitter links).

After being released by the Rangers last week, Miller will now return to the National League as he tries to once again revive his career. Miller posted an 8.59 ERA over 44 innings for Texas, recording almost as many walks (29) as strikeouts (30), and eventually losing his rotation job due to his inability to his ongoing struggles.

The 44 innings represents the most Miller has pitched in the last two seasons, as Tommy John surgery and a separate set of elbow problems limited the right-hander to just 38 innings total in 2017-18. Before those two injury-ravaged seasons and his poor 2016 debut year with the Diamondbacks, Miller was considered one of the more promising young arms in baseball, coming off three impressive years with the Braves and Cardinals from 2013-15.

Miller is still just 28 years old and still averages close to 95mph on his fastball, making him a risk worth taking for the Brewers on a flier of a minor league deal. Milwaukee will owe Miller only the prorated minimum salary if he reaches the club’s MLB roster, as the Rangers are on the hook for the remainder of the one-year contract he signed last winter ($2MM in guaranteed salary, and $400K in achieved incentives).

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