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Latest On Marlins’ Deadline Plans

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The Marlins, owners of a 34-40 record, have plenty of baseball to play before committing as a buyer or seller at the August 2nd Trade Deadline. Given that record however, Barry Jackson and Craig Mish of the Miami Herald spoke with Miami GM Kim Ng about the club’s upcoming plans given their likely status as deadline sellers.

Ng, like most front office members in June, didn’t throw the towel in on the season, but admitted the team will need to close the gap in the NL East (13 games back of the Mets) or Wild Card race (7 games back of the Cardinals) if her club is to pursue veteran additions at the deadline: “[Y]ou want to be within striking distance. I hope we get there. The club is playing a lot better this month than they were last month. We’re getting healthier.” 

Ng also added that the club will be ready to increase its payroll in the right scenario: “If we feel that we’re within that striking distance, I think [owner Bruce Sherman] will continue to be supportive.” That striking distance won’t be easy to obtain, of course, as two competitive clubs in the Giants and Phillies are currently blocking Miami from even sniffing the Wild Card spots held by the Padres, Braves, and Cardinals.

Should the club end up selling in a month’s time, Mish and Jackson speculate that the team has a few bullpen arms that will be in high demand. The most likely candidates include Anthony Bass (1.74 ERA in 31 innings) and lefty Steven Okert (2.28 ERA in 23 plus innings), two relievers in their thirties with club control that extends beyond this season. Given the club’s crop of pitching on the farm and several other arms of note already in the bullpen, either veteran reliever figures to be expendable if it helps strengthen the club next season.

Interestingly, Mish and Jackson cite the back of the bullpen as an area to improve via trade if the club heats up in the next month. As buyers the club also figures to target “a high-end center fielder,” per the report, though center field will likely be an area to watch even if the team is selling, thanks to the underperformance and misalignment of the team’s current outfield unit. Center field has been an area of focus for Miami dating back to the offseason, but they’ve yet to find a sufficient everyday solution and have instead regularly trotted out a carousel of miscast corner bats.

The Marlins currently hold a 3.9% chance of making the playoffs in the eyes of FanGraphs, but plenty of time remains for the club to turn into bullpen buyers over Steven Okert sellers. Turnarounds from 2021 All-Star Trevor Rogers plus offseason acquisitions Avisail Garcia and Jacob Stallings could go a long way in bolstering a club that is otherwise receiving sneakily elite production atop its rotation and throughout its lineup.

Blue Jays Showing Interest In Andrew Benintendi

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MLB’s August 2nd Trade Deadline is more than a month away, but the Blue Jays are already showing early interest in Royals outfielder Andrew Benintendi according to Jon Morosi of MLB Network. Morosi further speculates that Kansas City’s bullpen arms may be of some interest to Toronto, whose crop of relievers currently sport the game’s 24th best ERA.

The Blue Jays for their part are hardly hurting on offense, as the team currently sports the best OPS in all of baseball. At the rate he’s producing, however, Benintendi and his .303/.368/.391 (116 OPS+) slash would be a boon to any lineup. The reigning Gold Glove winner may also be viewed as a more reliable candidate to man left field than Lourdes Gurriel Jr., who has drawn more divisive reviews of his glovework in recent seasons.

A left-handed bat his been on the Blue Jays wishlist since last offseason, though to date the only left-handed hitters to grace the Jays lineup this season with some regularity have been Cavan Biggio, backup catcher Zack Collins, and light-hitting outfielder Raimel Tapia. A hypothetical Benintendi acquisition would represent a way to diversify the handedness of the Jays’ lineup, though doing so would likely relegate Gurriel Jr. to an overqualified bench role or indirectly infringe on Biggio’s playing time.

It’s worth noting that Benintendi wouldn’t be a lock to start every game for an acquiring team, as his platoon splits, particularly this year, have painted him as much more adept hitter against right-handed pitching. Acquiring Benintendi then, who is a free agent at the end of the season, would improve the team’s outfield defense, lineup balance, and bench in one shape or another for what figures to be a minimal prospect cost.

Kansas City may seem an odd fit for reliever shopping, as their bullpen has uncharacteristically struggled to worse run prevention numbers than the Jays’. The unit is led by one of the more unheralded closers in the league however, as right-hander Scott Barlow has posted a 2.36 ERA with strong peripherals dating back to last year (107 innings). The Royals are under no obligation to ship the 29-year-old Barlow anywhere, sought after as he likely will be, due to his additional three years of team control.

With a 13-game gulf between the second-place Jays and the first-place Yankees there’s likely little expectation that a modest outfield upgrade or bullpen improvement will be the driving forces behind a second half surge. Still, the team is currently nestled atop a tight Wild Card race, with Boston, Tampa Bay, and Cleveland no more than 3.5 games back and only three playoff spots to split between them. Any acquisitions the Jays make within the next month figure to help the club field a more competitive team come October and, more pressingly, stave off a number of clubs who are a hot-streak away from upending the Wild Card race altogether.

Juan Lagares Elects Free Agency

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Outfielder Juan Lagares has elected free agency after clearing waivers and being designated for assignment by the Angels last week, per the organization. With more than five years of service time under his belt the 33-year-old Lagares had the right to reject his outright assignment to the minors and head to the free agent market instead.

The Halos signed Lagares to a minor league pact in May, the second consecutive offseason deal Lagares agreed to with the team. In a brief taste of Triple-A at-bats this season the centerfielder hit .308/.379/.462, but since being called up in late May he has hit just .183/.210/.250 (31 OPS+) as part of a strong Angels outfield.

With souring (but still league average-ish) defensive metrics and speed, the former Met farmhand is best suited for fourth outfielder duty at this stage in his career. With center field playability on his side it seems likely another organization will take a flyer on Lagares as bench or upper minors depth in the coming days.

Cubs Release Jonathan Villar

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The Cubs have officially released infielder Jonathan Villar, per MLB.com’s transaction tracker. This move comes in the wake of the team designating Villar for assignment last Friday. The 31-year-old infielder is now a free agent eligible to sign with any team for the league minimum, with the remainder of this offseason’s $6MM deal stuck on the Cubs’ books.

Despite jockeying for last place in the NL Central, the Cubs offense has actually been a middle-of-the-pack unit by numerous offensive metrics this season. As his release a few months into the season indicates, however, Villar was not contributing much to that silver lining. Through 46 games the switch hitter slashed .222/.271/.327 (67 OPS+) with just two home runs, a far cry from his usually solid career numbers of .256/.324/.399.

With David Bote’s return from the IL and team-controlled infielders like Patrick Wisdom and Nico Hoerner outproducing the lame duck Villar, it appears there was little incentive for Chicago to keep carrying a veteran with minimal trade value. The same can be said for Chicago’s other veteran infielder signing this past offseason, Andrelton Simmons. The 32-year-old Simmons has limped to a feeble .188/.212/.188 (14 OPS+) slash line this year, though shoulder issues are likely to blame for some of that showing. Given Simmons’ ongoing aptitude with the glove and almost inevitable regression to the mean, the team likely found more utility in hanging onto Simmons over Villar.

Despite the substandard first half, Villar’s profile should still hold appeal for other clubs. Even with declining speed, the infielder’s calling card has always been his penchant for steals, and that remained the case this year with a perfect 6-for-6 showing in that department. Additionally, while the Cubs ran out of patience for their offseason acquisition to turn a corner there are likely some hitting coaches out there who feel they can coax more production out of Villar’s bat. After all, he’s only a year removed from a solid 18-home run, 101 OPS+ showing with the Mets and has an average exit velocity not seen since his breakout season with the Brewers in 2016.

NL Notes: Knebel, Phillies, Cain, Garcia

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Recently-minted Phillies manager Rob Thomson told Jim Salisbury of NBC Sports Philadelphia today that Corey Knebel is out as the team’s closer, for the time being. Signed to a one-year $10MM deal this past offseason, Knebel hasn’t demonstrated the same sharpness he did in last year’s campaign with the Dodgers. While this season’s 3.24 ERA through 25 innings is plenty respectable, his 20.7% strikeout rate is far from his career average while his 14.4% walk rate ranks amongst the worst in the league. Knebel’s four blown saves also stand as the highest mark in the league at the moment.

After a messy May, the Phillies have surged with an 11-2 record thus far in June, bringing their season record above .500 to 32-31. Despite the recent hot stretch, the Phillies remain eight and a half games back of the first place Mets in their division and three and a half games back of the last NL wild card spot. A closer-by-committee approach figures to help the team stay in their groove, with Seranthony Dominguez and Brad Hand representing steadier options than Knebel thus far.

Some other Wednesday items from the Senior Circuit…

  • After optioning Mickey Moniak on Tuesday, the Phillies appear set to roll with a platoon of Matt Vierling and Odúbel Herrera in center field. The Athletic’s Matt Gelb speculates how the team may upgrade that arrangement given the feeble production from the first two players thus far, plus the questions that have plagued Herrera dating back to his 2019 suspension. Gelb lists Michael A. Taylor, Ramón Laureano, and Victor Robles as realistic trade targets for the club should they seek to plug a defense-first option between corner outfielders Kyle Schwarber and Nick Castellanos. The center field platoon’s production will be worth monitoring through the summer, as the Phillies have holes in the infield and bullpen as well but may not possess enough financial or prospect capital to address all three areas.
  • One center fielder who isn’t an option for the Phillies, or perhaps for any team much longer, is Lorenzo Cain. Speaking with Andy McCullough of The Athletic, the 36-year-old Brewer acknowledged the likelihood that this season may very well be his last in the major leagues. The two-time All-Star remains a strong defensive player and as affable a clubhouse personality as any, but admits to difficulties in elevating his offense at the ten-year mark of his career. To that end, a .168/.223/.226 showing through 41 games has already begun to cost him some playing time this season. For now though, President of Baseball Operations David Stearns remains in Cain’s corner, citing Cain’s defense and contributions to four straight years of playoff baseball in Milwaukee as reasons to exhibit patience.
  • Nationals manager Dave Martinez has an update on another 2015 World Series champ, stating that Opening Day shortstop Alcides Escobar will return in a utility role when he completes his current rehab assignment. 22-year-old Luis García will be given some leash at the position after his hot start to the year at the Triple-A (.899 OPS in 42 games) and Major League (.829 OPS in 13 games) levels. Neither player profiles as a defensively elite shortstop at this point in their careers, so Escobar’s current OPS of .552 figures to cut into the playing time of other slow-starting veterans’ around the infield (Maikel Franco, .669 OPS; Cesar Hernandez, .646 OPS) over the youngster looking to establish himself.

Kevin Kiermaier Leaves Game With Achilles Inflammation

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Longtime Rays outfielder Kevin Kiermaier was replaced in the third inning of tonight’s matchup against the Yankees. Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports that left Achilles inflammation was the reason Kiermaier was unable to return to the field. The club is likely to reveal more details about the injury in the coming days.

While tonight’s exit may go down as little more than a hiccup in what has been a generally healthy season for the center fielder, any injury news concerning a player with as checkered an injury past as Kiermaier is worth mentioning. The timing of these tendon troubles, should they linger, comes at a fairly inopportune for the 32-year-old as well. Through 52 games the veteran has slashed .225/.260/.385 (90 OPS+) with a surprising seven home runs and five stolen bases (in six attempts).

While that offensive output measures up surprisingly well to the other generally cold bats around the league, there’s no doubt Kiermaier and the Rays have hoped for offensive numbers closer to his career norms. More concerning however, is how the former Platinum Glove winner is faring defensively. Defensive metrics ranging from Outs Above Average to Defensive Runs Saved all peg Kiermaier as a middling to slightly above average center fielder this season, a far cry from his elite 2021 play. There’s plenty of time left in the season for defensive metrics, which are notoriously high variance, to paint the portrait of Kiermaier as an elite defensive outfielder. Still, any lower body injury figures to negatively affect Kiermaier’s top-of-the-charts speed and defensive performance.

Kiermaier remains under club control with the Rays through 2023 via a $13MM club option. The likelihood of that option getting picked up, or any free agent interest in the event it’s declined, figure to take a hit if tonight’s injury proves significant. Defensive wizards with passable bats can still collect on short-term deals, as Andrelton Simmons did with the Twins last season, but any prolonged injury would represent a disappointing conclusion to Kiermaier’s contract following last year’s strong campaign.

Latest On Angels’ Extension Talks With Ohtani

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Back in January it was reported that the Angels and two-way phenom Shohei Ohtani had yet to engage in long-term extension talks. In his latest piece, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reports that the Angels had “informal discussions” with Ohtani’s representatives late in spring training that may hint at what the hybrid player’s next contract looks like. Specifically, Ohtani’s camp indicated that any contract would have to award the reigning MVP a record average salary, currently held by Max Scherzer with an annual $43.3MM salary courtesy of the Mets.

Rosenthal notes that the Angels were, at the time, reluctant to offer a market value deal of length to Ohtani at the presumed apex of his value. The team may very well be running out of time to lock up another superstar, but he remains under control another year via arbitration and was always unlikely to accept a discounted extension on the heels of an 8.1fWAR season. It can certainly be reasoned then that the franchise is looking for Ohtani to come down from his great 2021 heights to make the hit of his next contract slightly less monumental.

Through 61 games this season the 27-year-old is off his MVP-pace from the year prior, but it would be disingenuous to suggest he’s hampered his value much with 13 home runs and a solid .260/.336/.481 (133 OPS+) batting line. Even his rotation work remains decidedly above average, with strong peripherals and an elite strikeout rate of 31.7% suggesting his 3.64 ERA is unluckily high.

In this regard, the Angels find themselves with a catch-22 on their hands. The more Ohtani performs, as he continues to do, the greater the team’s chances of reaching the playoffs for the first time in nearly a decade. As Ohtani’s two-way excellence continues, however, the team is faced with a greater price tag that they may be hesitant to pay given their already top-heavy payroll.

For context, any contract that buys out Ohtani’s first free agent year will begin in 2024 when the Angels will have nearly $92MM devoted to just three players: Mike Trout, Anthony Rendon, and Raisel Iglesias. When factoring in guaranteed salaries to both catcher Max Stassi and infielder David Fletcher that 2024 figure jumps to nearly $105MM, more than half of this year’s $190MM team payroll (per RosterResource). That leaves room for an eventual Ohtani contract, of course, though at a projected rate of $44MM+ it wouldn’t leave a ton of room to round out the rest of the roster.

Plenty of time remains until Ohtani secures an unfathomable payday, be it with the Halos or a competing club. Until then, the Angels and Ohtani have an unprecedented arbitration case to look forward to next offseason. And before that point, both parties will look to upend this season’ 29-34 record that can only serve to jeopardize a longer-term union between player and club.

Blue Jays To Promote Gabriel Moreno

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The Blue Jays are calling up top catching prospect Gabriel Moreno, as first reported by Daniel Álvarez-Montes of El Extrabase. Keegan Matheson of MLB.com adds that Moreno’s call-up is likely to coincide with Toronto’s upcoming weekend series in Detroit. No 40-man moves will be required to facilitate Moreno’s debut, as the young catcher was added to the team’s roster back in 2020.

Signed as an international free agent in 2016, the 22-year-old Moreno has seen his stock soar after an excellent 2021 showing. Entering the 2022 season both Baseball America and MLB.com ranked Moreno as the seventh best prospect in baseball after previously missing top prospect lists (and the 2020 season) entirely.

Through 32 games last season at Double-A, Moreno hit an otherworldly .373/.441/.651 with eight home runs and a manageable 22 strikeouts. A right thumb fracture limited the amount of regular season reps given to the Jays’ top prospect, but it didn’t stop him from receiving a promotion to Triple-A at the end of the year. An additional 100 plate appearances of .329/.410/.494 hitting in the Arizona Fall League, against older competition no less, only helped to reinforce the hype.

Moreno’s 2022 season hasn’t been quite as powerful as last season’s performance, but a .323/.377/.406 showing against Triple-A competition was clearly enough to impress Toronto’s top brass. Those 35 games will net Moreno his first big league call-up, but it remains to be seen what position he’ll be manning when the decision becomes official.

Primarily a catcher with a strong arm, Moreno has received the odd start at DH and third base in recent years to get his right-handed bat into teams’ lineups. With Alejandro Kirk producing at an elite level from behind the plate and offseason acquisition Matt Chapman locked in at third, there doesn’t appear to be a slam dunk place on the field for Moreno to helm.

Catcher Zack Collins was recalled just yesterday to fill in for injured catcher Danny Jansen (who was having a strong season in his own right), a move that perhaps signals the three catchers will shuttle between catcher and DH duties for the time being. If nothing else, Moreno’s call-up figures to place some pressure on a number of bench players and outfielders (who have seen reps at the DH position) who have underperformed offensively thus far.

Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.

Daulton Jefferies To Undergo Thoracic Outlet Surgery

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After receiving a second opinion, A’s right-hander Daulton Jefferies is scheduled to undergo thoracic outlet surgery on Monday per Matt Kawahara of The San Francisco Chronicle. Oakland will share more details about Jefferies’ recovery timetable after the surgery is completed.

The surgery decision comes as little surprise after the 26-year-old Jefferies was placed on the 15-day IL a few weeks ago. A subsequent move to the 60-day IL largely dashed any chance that the right-handed pitcher would return to the hill in short order.

For the time being, the A’s appear set to roll with a rotation headed by Frankie Montas, Cole Irvin, and Paul Blackburn who are all off to strong starts this season. James Kaprielian and Jared Koenig, who was called up this past Sunday, present a pair of interesting options to hold down the fort at the back of the rotation.

While that group will hardly stand in the way of Jefferies receiving future looks in the rotation— he has first-round pedigree and strong peripherals working in his favor— the last place A’s have no urgency to rush him back. More pressing for the organization is the recovery of a player under five additional years of team control.

As has been discussed ad nauseam when it comes to any major procedure like TOS surgery, nothing is guaranteed in terms of pitching success upon recovery. D-backs starter Merrill Kelly and Chris Archer of the Twins are both years removed from the procedure and having modest success out of the rotation this year. Past pitchers haven’t always rebounded as decently however, as former Padres starter Tyson Ross, for example, saw a promising career derailed by the procedure. More recently, Nationals reliever Will Harris underwent the procedure in May of 2021 but has yet to return this season.

Julio Teheran Signs With Mexican League’s Toros De Tijuana

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Right-handed pitcher Julio Teheran is set to sign with the Toros De Tijuana of the Mexican League reports the New York Post’s Jon Heyman. It’s the second contract of the 2022 season for the former Brave, who signed a contract with the Atlantic League’s Staten Island FerryHawks back in April.

Long one of baseball’s most consistent starters in Atlanta, Teheran last appeared in the majors in April 2021 with the Tigers. A shoulder injury limited his stint in Detroit to just one start, and no doubt influenced his lack of 2022 opportunities with major league clubs.

Based on his strong play in the Atlantic League this year, however, Teheran may yet find a summer suitor with a big league club if he continues to excel in the Mexican League.Through six starts and 33-plus innings with the FerryHawks, the two-time All-Star is sporting a 1.60 ERA with 35 strikeouts and only six walks.

While the quality of independent league hitters is not to be confused with major league caliber bats, it’s nonetheless noteworthy that Teheran’s strikeout-walk ratio is as good as it’s ever been, topping even the minor league numbers that made him a consensus top prospect a decade ago. A return to health is an equally important development, as even the post-peak, innings-eater version of Teheran was coveted enough to net him a $3MM contract last year.

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