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Pirates Place Francisco Cervelli On 7-Day Concussion DL, Select Jacob Stallings’ Contract

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The Pirates have placed catcher Francisco Cervelli on the seven-day concussion DL, the team announced.  Catcher Jacob Stallings has had his contract selected from Triple-A in a corresponding move.

Cervelli suffered the injury on Tuesday night, leaving the game in the ninth inning after taking a foul tip off his mask.  He’ll be out of action for the minimum seven days as per MLB’s concussion protocol, though the catcher could possibly be out of action for a longer stretch, given the unpredictable nature of such injuries.  Cervelli also has a lengthy history of concussions already, so both he and the Pirates may want to take extra precautionary time before he rejoins the roster.

While known more for his strong defense, Cervelli has been an above-average hitter since joining the Pirates three years ago, and he was hitting .252/.343/.394 over 178 PA before his injury.  While his BABIP was an even .300, it could be argued that Cervelli was perhaps a bit unlucky to only be posting okay numbers, as his hard-hit ball percentage (40.7%) was far beyond his career average.

With Cervelli and Chris Stewart (hamstring) both on the disabled list, Pittsburgh finds itself short-handed behind the plate, with rookies Elias Diaz and Stallings holding down the fort.  Stallings, 27, made his big league debut last season, appearing in five games with the Pirates.  A seventh-round pick for the Bucs in the 2012 draft, Stallings has a .238/.316/.356 slash line over 1483 career plate appearances in the minors.

Quick Hits: Piersall, Rangers, Miller, Rays

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We at MLB Trade Rumors extend our condolences to the friends and family of Jimmy Piersall, who passed away on Saturday at the age of 87.  Piersall had a memorable 17-year playing career with the Red Sox, Angels, Indians, Senators, and Mets from 1950-67, winning two Gold Gloves and reaching two All-Star Games.  After retiring from the field, Piersall had two broadcasting stints calling Rangers and White Sox games, and then worked as an outfield instructor for Cubs minor leaguers.  Piersall is also remembered for his openness about his mental health issues, including a seven-week hospitalization after a nervous breakdown in 1952.  Piersall covered the topic in his autobiography Fear Strikes Out, which was adapted into an Anthony Perkins film of the same name in 1957.

Some news from around the baseball world…

  • It’s still too early for the Rangers to consider themselves deadline sellers, Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram opines.  Even if they did move some of their stars, Wilson is doubtful that the team would get its desired haul of young talent back for the likes of pending free agents Yu Darvish or Jonathan Lucroy.  Trading Adrian Beltre (who is under contract through 2018) also doesn’t seem likely given the veteran third baseman’s pursuit of 3000 hits.  Texas is four games out of a wild card spot but that would likely be the club’s only route into the postseason, given how the Astros already have a 13.5-game lead in the AL West.
  • Now that Brad Miller is back from the disabled list, the Rays don’t seem to have an everyday role for a player that hit 30 homers last year, the Tampa Bay Times’ Marc Topkin writes.  Miller has only hit .199/.341/.309 over 167 PA, which isn’t nearly enough thump for the Rays to put up with his subpar defense at second base.  Tampa also has several other left-handed bats (Corey Dickerson, Logan Morrison, Colby Rasmus) hitting well and taking up spots at DH, first base and left field.
  • Also from Topkin, Rays shortstop Matt Duffy isn’t likely to return until the end of the month or perhaps even the All-Star break as Duffy continues his lengthy recovery from Achilles tendon surgery last September.  This will lead to more playing time for Tim Beckham, who Topkin argues has earned regular at-bats in a utility role once Duffy is healthy.

5 Key Stories: 5/27/17 – 6/3/17

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Here are the week’s biggest stories here at MLBTR…

Mike TroutMike Trout undergoes thumb surgery.  The Angels superstar will miss six-to-eight weeks due to a torn UCL in his left thumb, an injury suffered while making a headfirst slide into second base.  It’s a devastating loss for both the Halos and for baseball fans in general, as Trout was putting together a season (.337/.461/.742 with 16 homers in 206 plate appearances) for the ages, even by his high standards.  With Trout gone until mid-July at the earliest, the absence of their best player could push the Angels towards being sellers at the trade deadline.

Danny Duffy to the DL with an oblique strain.  Speaking of teams that could be shopping their players at the deadline, the Royals took a blow with the news that Duffy will miss six-to-eight weeks with a strained oblique.  Without Duffy (and his 3.54 ERA, 7.1 K/9 and 2.16 K/BB rate), it will be even harder for K.C. to make up ground in the AL Central.

Rangers designate, look to trade Sam Dyson.  With the former closer suffering through a horrendous season, the Rangers designated Dyson for assignment with an eye towards trading the right-hander.  Texas has already received interest in Dyson from multiple teams, with the Twins and Rays linked in reports.  Since Dyson is earning $3.52MM this season, however, clubs could wait for him to pass waivers and then look to sign him, leaving Texas on the hook for the large majority of that salary.  Dyson has an ungainly 10.80 ERA through 16 2/3 IP this year, with more non-intentional walks (nine) than strikeouts (seven).

Jeb Bush no longer looking to buy the Marlins.  The former Florida governor had joined forces with Derek Jeter to put together an ownership group, but Bush left the bidding this week amidst reports that he and Jeter clashed over the Yankees legend’s desire to be in control of the bid.  Jeter is reportedly still hoping to find other investors to continue his pursuit of the team.

Cardinals release Jonathan Broxton.  A little over six months after signing the veteran reliever to a two-year, $7.5MM contract, St. Louis parted ways with Broxton after he posted a 6.89 ERA through his first 15 2/3 innings of 2017.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Injury Notes: Werth, Travis, Verlander

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Updates on some developing injury situations from today’s action….

  • Jayson Werth fouled a ball off his left foot on Saturday and was seen on crutches in the Nationals clubhouse following today’s game.  Manager Dusty Baker told MASNsports.com’s Mark Zuckerman (Twitter link) and other reporters that X-rays were negative on Werth’s foot but the situation was “not looking good for” the veteran outfielder.  After two down seasons, Werth has rebounded to hit .262/.367/.446 over 196 PA this year, and a DL stint would further hamper a Washington outfield that has already lost Adam Eaton for the season.
  • X-rays were negative on Devon Travis’ left hand after the Blue Jays second baseman was hit by a Luis Severino pitch in the seventh inning of today’s 3-2 Jays victory.  Travis finished the inning on the basepaths and then left the game.  The club will monitor the situation to see if Travis requires a DL stint, though he seems likely to miss at least a couple of games given his painful description of the injury.  “I thought I broke it. It was really scary. My hand was throbbing so bad, I couldn’t really open it or close it — and I definitely wasn’t about to slide on it and lift myself up on it,” Travis told MLB.com’s Keegan Matheson and other media.  Travis has a .257/.285/.437 overall slash line for his roller-coaster of a season, as he followed up a dreadful April (.388 OPS) with a red-hot May (1.019 OPS).
  • Justin Verlander left during the third inning of today’s 7-4 Tigers win due to groin tightness, a move manager Brad Ausmus said was precautionary in nature (as per MLive.com’s Evan Woodbery and other reporters).  Verlander will undergo an MRI just to make sure there isn’t any significant damage, and Ausmus feels the ace should make his next start, though it could be pushed back a day due to an off-day in Detroit’s schedule.  Verlander is off to a slow start to the 2017 season, with a 4.63 ERA and career highs in BB/9 (4.24) and hard-hit ball rate (34.2%) through 70 innings.

Orioles Acquire Ruben Tejada

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The Orioles acquired infielder Ruben Tejada from the Yankees for cash considerations, as per announcements from both teams.  Tejada will be assigned to Baltimore’s Triple-A affiliate in Norfolk.

Tejada signed a minor league deal with the Yankees over the winter and entered today’s play hitting a solid .269/.345/.462 in 148 PA at the Triple-A level.  As Joel Sherman of the New York Post tweets, Tejada became an expendable infield piece with the recent promotion of top prospect Gleyber Torres, not to mention Tyler Wade, Donovan Solano, and the likelihood that Rob Refsnyder will soon be optioned back to the minors.  The Orioles’ Norfolk depth chart also features some familiar MLB names (Chris Johnson, Johnny Giavotella, Luis Sardinas) so it is possible a further move could be forthcoming to create space, or the O’s simply want to add even more veteran depth on the farm.

Tejada was a regular in the Mets’ infield from 2010-15 before being released by the team in March 2016.  The 27-year-old caught on with the Cardinals but then immediately suffered a hamstring injury, leading to a lost season that saw Tejada bounce from St. Louis to San Francisco and only manage a .489 OPS over 78 plate appearances.  Never much known for his hitting (Tejada has a .252/.327/.320 career slash line in 2263 PA), Tejada will now give the O’s some versatile depth at shortstop, third and second base.

MLBTR Originals

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Here’s the past week’s original content from the MLB Trade Rumors writing staff…

  • As potential buyers and sellers prepare for the trade deadline, MLBTR will be previewing some potential names who could be changing uniforms on or before July 31 in our Trade Candidate series.  First up, Mark Polishuk looked at the Phillies’ Howie Kendrick and Connor Byrne examined Pirates right-hander Gerrit Cole.
  • While most of the deadline dealing will come in July, it isn’t too unusual to see a big trade swung in June.  Jeff Todd looks back at some notable June trades from the last five seasons.
  • Also from Jeff, he listed nine veteran players who are putting up big numbers after signing low-cost one-year contracts.
  • Logan Morrison is another player who took a modest contract (one year, $2.5MM) last winter and is now positioning himself for a much bigger free agent payday this coming offseason.  “LoMo” entered today’s action with 16 homers and a .243/.347/.551 slash line in 219 plate appearances for the Rays.  Jeff breaks down Morrison’s season and looks at his open market earning potential in our latest Free Agent Stock Watch piece.

Minor MLB Transactions: 6/3/17

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Here are today’s minor moves from around baseball, with the newest transactions at the top of the page…

  • The Angels have signed outfielder Cesar Puello to a minor league contract, as their Triple-A roster in Salt Lake indicates.  Puello, 26, hit free agency when he exercised an opt-out clause in his deal with the Rangers on Friday. That came after Puello hit .247/.307/.420 in 179 plate appearances with their Triple-A affiliate. Although Puello ranked as Baseball America’s 77th-best prospect after the 2010 season, when he was with the Mets, he still hasn’t debuted in the big leagues. The majority of his work has come at Triple-A, where he owns a .261/.365/.403 line in 839 trips to the plate.
  • The Rays have released outfielder Dayron Varona, the Tampa Bay Times’ Marc Topkin reports (Twitter link).  After a very impressive seven-year stint in Cuba’s Serie Nacional, Varona signed a minor league deal with the Rays in May 2015 and struggled in his first stint at Triple-A last season.  The 29-year-old Varona had posted a .268/.325/.479 slash line over 77 PA this year, though he spent much of May assigned to Tampa’s short-season A-ball affiliate in Hudson Valley.

Cafardo’s Latest: Yankees, Dodgers, Cubs, Quintana, Cueto, Samardzija, Rangers, Cozart

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Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe looks at nine teams who are trending upward this season and nine teams who are on the downward swing in his latest notes column.  These rankings (and Cafardo’s piece in general) contain several hot stove items as teams look to be buyers or sellers at the trade deadline.  The highlights…

  • The Yankees are looking for a third baseman, according to league sources.  Chase Headley got off to a hot start but scuffled badly in May, posting just a .446 OPS in 90 plate appearances last month.  Top prospect Gleyber Torres has been getting some reps at third base in the minors amidst rumors that he could be promoted later this season, though New York could prefer a more proven veteran for the hot corner if the team is chasing a pennant.  Headley is still owed $21.6MM through the end of the 2018 season, though the Yankees have shown a willingness to reduce the playing time of other highly-paid veterans in the past if they aren’t producing.
  • “Most talent evaluators” believe the Dodgers will make a play for the top starter available at the deadline.  The Dodgers’ rotation has combined for 6.2 fWAR (second in baseball) and a 3.94 ERA (third in baseball), though given the number of injury concerns within their staff, it wouldn’t be a shock if L.A. pursued yet another notable arm.
  • Cafardo also suggests that the Cubs will look to acquire a top starter, even if they’re one of the teams on the “trending down” list.  Cafardo believes the retirement of clubhouse leader David Ross has had a bigger impact on the Cubs than the team is willing to admit.
  • Some teams that were in on Jose Quintana have cooled their interest thanks to the southpaw’s rough start to the season.  There has been some questions about whether Quintana is healthy, though the White Sox say he is healthy.  Quintana has a 5.60 ERA in 64 1/3 innings, with career highs in BB/9 (3.36) and homer rate (13%) combining with a career-low 37.8% ground ball rate.  On the plus side, he also has a career-best 8.96 K/9 and ERA indicators are all over a run lower than his 5.60 real-world ERA.
  • “Don’t look for major subtractions” from the Giants, even if the team doesn’t make any additions at the deadline.  Cafardo doesn’t expect the Giants to deal the likes of Johnny Cueto or Jeff Samardzija.  I would imagine San Francisco is hoping to make a quick return to contention next season, though if Cueto gives them an indication that he’ll opt out of his contract this winter, a trade could be explored.
  • The Rangers are also a team that won’t go into full-scale selling mode, so Cafardo expects them to wait and see if they should pursue starting pitching help for a run at a wild card slot.
  • Zack Cozart has often been mentioned in trade rumors over the last couple of years as the Reds have been rebuilding, though one AL GM wonders why Cincinnati hasn’t instead explored an extension with the veteran shortstop.  The Reds’ long-term plan is to have Jose Peraza at short and Dilson Herrera at second, so on paper, Cozart makes more sense as a trade chip than a building block.  While Cozart is mashing the ball and playing his usual excellent defense, he also turns 32 in August and may be declining by the time the Reds are again ready to contend.

Giants Sign Jerry Sands To Minors Deal

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The Giants have signed outfielder Jerry Sands to a minor league contract, Mike Ashmore of MyCentralJersey.com reports.  Sands had been playing for the independent Somerset Patriots, and the 29-year-old will now head to the Giants’ Double-A affiliate.

Sands has only a .670 OPS over 464 plate appearances with the Dodgers, Rays, Indians and White Sox during his big league career, though the right-handed hitter has produced a very solid .285/.335/.477 slash line against lefty pitching.  Much of Sands’ experience comes in the corner outfield slots and he has a handful of games at first base, so he brings a bit of defensive versatility.

Sands is the latest veteran outfielder signed by the Giants as the team tries to fix an already-thin outfield that has been further hampered by several injuries.  San Francisco has added the likes of Melvin Upton Jr., Drew Stubbs and Justin Ruggiano on minors deals, with little impact (Upton underwent wrist surgery and Ruggiano was recently designated for assignment).  Hunter Pence’ imminent return from the DL will be a big help for the Giants, but with left field still a question mark, there is certainly opportunity for Sands to return to the majors.

Reliever Notes: Jackson, Benoit, Smith

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The Orioles and Edwin Jackson have agreed to extend his opt-out date to Monday, Eduardo A. Encina of the Baltimore Sun reports (Twitter links).  The veteran righty’s original opt-out date on his minor league deal was June 1, but Jackson will now have 24 hours after 11:59pm ET on Monday to decide on exercising his out clause.  The O’s will then have 48 hours to either add Jackson to their Major League roster or release him.  Though Jackson has spent the bulk of his 14-year MLB career as a starting pitcher, he has only started one of his 11 games for Triple-A Norfolk this season.  Jackson has a 3.26 ERA in 19 1/3 IP, though with some rather middling peripherals (7.0 K/9, 4.7 BB/9).  Pedro Alvarez also arranged a short extension his opt-out date, so it seems like the Orioles are still trying to buy themselves time to decide if or how some of their minor league veteran depth pieces can be retained.

Here’s some more on some bullpen arms…

  • The Phillies have placed right-hander Joaquin Benoit on the 10-day DL (retroactive to June 1) with a left knee sprain, the team announced.  Benoit has a 3.68 ERA over 22 innings for the Phils, though his advanced metrics (such as a .167 BABIP, 7.77 K/9 and 4.91 BB/9) indicate some good fortune.  He had a short-lived stint at Philadelphia’s closer after Jeanmar Gomez’s struggles and before Hector Neris ultimately took over the role.  The veteran Benoit signed a one-year, $7.5MM deal with the Phillies last winter and projects as a trade candidate this summer, provided he makes a successful return from injury.
  • Carson Smith is scheduled to throw a bullpen session this weekend and a live batting practice sometime this week in advance of a minor league rehab assignment, CSNNE.com’s Evan Drellich reports.  As Smith tells Drellich, June was the target date for Smith’s return from his Tommy John surgery over a year ago, and the right-hander seems to be on track to finally make his Red Sox debut.

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