Steve Adams | MLB Trade Rumors

Pirates Outright Nik Turley

By Steve Adams | October 4, 2018 at 8:19pm CDT

The Pirates have outrighted left-hander Nik Turley off the 40-man roster, per John Dreker of PiratesProspects.com. He’ll presumably become a minor league free agent.

The 29-year-old Turley was claimed off waivers from the Twins last November. He enjoyed an outstanding year with Minnesota’s Triple-A affiliate, pitching to a 2.66 ERA (2.84 FIP) with 10.5 K/9, 2.9 BB/9, 0.53 HR/9 and a 33.7 percent ground-ball rate in 67 2/3 innings. Turley was clobbered in his big league debut with the Twins, though that came in a small sample of 17 2/3 innings. Turley, though, has a history of stymieing left-handed opponents in the upper minors, and the Bucs likely viewed him as a potentially affordable bullpen option.

However, the organization never got much of a chance to see whether Turley could contribute. The left-hander was slapped with an 80-game PED suspension in late January after testing positive for Ipamorelin. Upon being reinstated from the restricted list, Turley was immediately placed on the 60-day disabled list due to an elbow strain. It’s not clear at this point whether he’s expected to be healthy enough to take the mound come Spring Training, but it’s certainly not surprising to see the Pirates jettison him from the 40-man roster after that lost season.

In further Pirates news, the team announced this afternoon that right-hander Edgar Santana underwent successful Tommy John surgery today. The organization announced late last month that Santana would require the procedure after an MRI revealed a torn ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow.

AL Central Notes: Molitor, Mauer, Iglesias, Rajai

By Steve Adams | October 4, 2018 at 6:35pm CDT

Though the Twins have offered recently dismissed manager Paul Molitor a new position with a “likely” focus on player development (per The Athletic’s Dan Hayes), USA Today’s Bob Nightengale tweets that Molitor’s preference is to continue coaching or managing at the big league level. The 62-year-old isn’t likely to accept the new role within the Twins organization, per Nightengale, who notes that Molitor is still owed a total of $3.2MM through 2020 as part of last October’s contract extension. There are several other managerial openings around the league — Orioles, Angels, Blue Jays, Reds — for which Molitor could potentially emerge as a candidate if he does indeed rebuff the Twins’ latest offer. He also has experience as a big league hitting coach, and both the D-backs and Pirates have announced they’ll be looking for a new voice in that role.

MLBTR Chat Transcript

By Steve Adams | October 4, 2018 at 2:00pm CDT

Click here to read a transcript of Thursday’s chat with MLBTR’s Steve Adams.

Hill: Marlins Plan To Discuss Extension With Realmuto

By Steve Adams | October 3, 2018 at 11:00pm CDT

J.T. Realmuto’s name has been at the center of Marlins trade rumors for the better part of a year, but Marlins president of baseball operations Michael Hill tells Joe Frisaro of MLB.com that he plans to approach Realmuto’s camp about a potential extension this offseason. As it stands, the Marlins control him for two more seasons.

“At the appropriate time, we’ll get to his representative and see if we can do something longer-term than the two years,” Hill said. “That time hasn’t happened yet, but it’s something we definitely want to pursue.”

As a quality young player in an organization known for its habitual sell-offs and rebuilding cycles, Realmuto has been in trade speculation for a few years, but his name emerged in earnest last offseason when new Marlins ownership embarked on the most aggressive tear-down in the past half-decade. Giancarlo Stanton, Christian Yelich, Marcell Ozuna and Dee Gordon were all shipped out in separate trades, leaving Realmuto as the last piece of that once-formidable offensive core standing. Understandably frustrated at the time, Realmuto reportedly requested a trade in December. When no deal materialized, his agent, CAA’s Jeff Berry, told Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald in early February that Realmuto still hoped to be traded to a potential contender.

It’s unclear now whether those feelings have changed. The Marlins’ season, as virtually everyone expected, resulted in a last-place finish in the NL East. Miami’s 63 wins were the fewest in the National League and the fourth-fewest in all of baseball, trailing only the Orioles, Royals and White Sox. Outfielders Lewis Brinson and Magneuris Sierra, key prospects acquired in the trades of Yelich and Ozuna, each hit under .200 with OBPs of .240 and .222.

On the other side of the coin, the Marlins did see signs of encouragement from young pitchers Sandy Alcantara (acquired in the Ozuna deal), Pablo Lopez, Trevor Richards and Caleb Smith (before a lat tear ended Smith’s season). Starlin Castro and Derek Dietrich had solid years at the plate, while rookie Brian Anderson quietly enjoyed a terrific debut campaign (.273/.357/.400, 3.9 rWAR, 3.7 fWAR). At the very least, one can imagine Realmuto feeling more optimistic about the team’s outlook than he did a year ago when those names were largely unknown to him.

For the time being, Realmuto’s camp can likely focus on his upcoming arbitration case. The 27-year-old had a career-best season at the plate even though he missed much of the opening month due to a back injury, hitting .277/.340/.484 with 21 homers, 30 doubles and three triples while plating 74 runs. Those numbers should give him a nice platform as he seeks a raise from 2018’s modest $2.9MM salary in his second trip through the arbitration process.

In the case of Realmuto, the timing of the talks will be of particular interest. The majority of offseason extension talks tend to take place in Spring Training, once teams have concluded most of their offseason shopping and once arbitration has been completed. At that point, clubs have a better idea of their long-term payroll outlook than they would when negotiating deals early in the offseason. But if the two sides are far enough apart that an agreement isn’t deemed realistic, Realmuto would once again emerge as a fairly clear-cut trade piece. The Marlins aren’t going to compete in 2019 and likely won’t in 2020, either; if Realmuto can’t be extended, it’s only rational to maximize his trade value.

It’d be more prudent, then, for the two sides to get a general feel of asking price and comfort zones sooner rather than later. That way, if Realmuto’s asking price is simply leagues beyond what the Marlins are comfortable offering, they’d have the ability to market him to other clubs this offseason before those teams have completed their shopping in the spring. With two seasons of club control remaining, a steady progression of improvement both on offense and defense and a still-modest salary, Realmuto would once again become one of the game’s most coveted trade assets. Miami could, of course, elect to carry Realmuto into the 2019 season even if no long-term arrangement can be reached, but doing so only shortens the amount of control an acquiring team would have over him while also welcoming the risk of injury or decline.

Cubs Notes: Maddon, Offense, Hamels, Bullpen, Bryant

By Steve Adams | October 3, 2018 at 9:35pm CDT

Despite a morning report of possible tension between Cubs president of baseball ops Theo Epstein and manager Joe Maddon, Epstein said at today’s end-of-season press conference that Maddon’s “status remains unchanged” and firmly stated that he’s happy to have Maddon as his manager (video link via MLB.com). “I know there was a sort of high-profile report this morning,” said Epstein. “That was not accurate. … There were some claims that he and I had personal friction. Not true at all. We have a terrific working relationship. We don’t agree all the time about baseball issues, and that’s the way it should be. I don’t want a ’yes man’ as a manager, and I don’t want a ’yes man’ relationship working the other way, either. I think there should be discord and debate and healthy, trusting relationships where you can work together to make the organization better.”

Epstein added that the team’s loss in the Wild Card game was “not on [Maddon]” and left little to no doubt about his status, saying he looks forward to Maddon coming back in 2019. As for the rest of the coaching staff, the Cubs have not made any firm decisions (video link), but Epstein cautioned against making changes to the staff just for the sake of making changes, stressing the importance of continuity.

Dan Duquette Won’t Return To Orioles; Team Will Hire New GM From Outside Organization

By Steve Adams | October 3, 2018 at 7:10pm CDT

7:10pm: The Orioles have announced that neither Duquette nor Showalter will be retained for the 2019 season. Director of player development Brian Graham will oversee baseball operations while the team conducts a search for an outside hire. He’s been with the team since 2007 and previously served as an interim GM for the Pirates as well.

“The club will hire an executive from outside of the organization to lead the Baseball Operations department,” the Orioles said in tonight’s press release. “Once in place, this individual will have the final determination on all baseball matters that he or she believes will make the Orioles successful on the field, entertaining to fans, and impactful in the community.”

5:06pm: The Orioles have indeed moved on from Duquette, tweets Fancred’s Jon Heyman.

4:59pm: Not only will the Orioles reportedly part ways with manager Buck Showalter, they’re also “expected to let go” executive vice president/general manager Dan Duquette, reports Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic (Twitter link).

Like Showalter, Duquette’s contract expires at the end of the 2018 season. However, while reports in recent weeks had largely indicated that Showalter was likely to depart, the general sense was that the organization would hang onto Duquette. Instead, it now seems that the Orioles will be looking for both a new field manager and a new head of baseball operations this offseason.

Duquette, 60, has been with the O’s since the 2011 season and helped to orchestrate three postseason appearances, including an AL East division title in 2014. That said, Duquette’s fingerprints are also on the 2018 season’s MLB-worst 47-115 team — the fewest wins in franchise history. Not all of that disappointment can be placed on Duquette alone, as owner Peter Angelos has had his own detrimental impact on the organization at times. While Angelos gave the front office plenty of payroll capacity with which to work, he also reportedly had little interest in investing on the international amateur free agent market and was also said to be instrumental in bringing back Chris Davis on what is perhaps baseball’s worst contract at this point.

Duquette’s tenure with the O’s featured some notable successes — e.g. signing Nelson Cruz when his market collapsed in the 2013-14 offseason, extending J.J. Hardy, the initial acquisition of Mark Trumbo for pennies on the dollar — but there were as many, if not more missteps along the way as well. Free-agent deals for Ubaldo Jimenez and Yovani Gallardo proved to be busts, and the trade sending Jake Arrieta to the Cubs will go down as one of the more lopsided swaps in recent history, even if Arrieta had plenty of chances in Baltimore and was considered to be a project at the time of the deal.

Whoever steps into the GM chair in Baltimore, be it vice president Brady Anderson or an outside hire, will take over a rebuild that Duquette kicked off in earnest this past summer with the trade of Manny Machado to the Dodgers. The Orioles netted five prospects in that trade and, not long after, had also shipped out Jonathan Schoop, Zach Britton, Brad Brach, Kevin Gausman and the remainder of the injured Darren O’Day’s contract — netting a combined 13 new prospects and some significant international funds to aid their reported pursuit of Cuban phenom Victor Victor Mesa.

The Orioles’ farm system has improved with those deals and with the success of some recent draft picks, but the organization still faces a long road back to contention in a stacked AL East division that features a pair of powerhouses in the Red Sox and Yankees, plus a surprising 90-win Rays team that has an impressive young core of stars around which to build.

Qualifying Offer Value Set At $17.9 Million

By Steve Adams | October 3, 2018 at 4:53pm CDT

The qualifying offer value for the upcoming offseason has been set at $17.9MM, reports Joel Sherman of the New York Post (via Twitter). That value, which is determined by taking the average of the game’s 125 highest-paid players, represents a $500K increase from last offseason’s mark of $17.4MM.

Any team wishing to receive draft compensation for the loss of a free agent will first have to make that free agent a one-year offer worth that $17.9MM value. Qualifying offer recipients will have 10 days to decide whether to accept or reject the offer and are free to talk with other clubs during that window as they get an early sense of their market value. If a player accepts, he is considered signed for the 2019 season at that rate. Like other free-agent signings, that player would be ineligible to be traded, without his consent, prior to June 15 of the following season.

Only players who spent the entire 2018 season with the same organization are eligible to receive a qualifying offer; midseason trade acquisitions and signings cannot receive one. Additionally, the 2017-21 collective bargaining agreement also added the stipulation that players can only receive one qualifying offer in their career. That distinction primarily impacts Nelson Cruz, as the rest of the players who have received previous qualifying offers have either already been traded (e.g. Daniel Murphy) or haven’t performed well enough to be a candidate for a second qualifying offer anyhow (e.g. Neil Walker). Cruz would quite likely have been a candidate to receive a second qualifying offer, but the new CBA makes that impossible.

MLBTR’s Mark Polishuk took a recent look at the upcoming free-agent class, writing that Bryce Harper, Clayton Kershaw (if/when he exercises his opt-out clause), A.J. Pollock, Craig Kimbrel, Patrick Corbin, Dallas Keuchel and Yasmani Grandal can be considered among the locks to receive a qualifying offer (I’d agree with all of those and add Charlie Morton to that bucket as well). Mark also took an in-depth look at a number of borderline cases throughout the league.

Draft compensation under the new system is more complicated than it was under the 2012-16 CBA, as both luxury tax spending and revenue sharing are now factored in to determine the specific penalty and compensation associated with qualified free agents. Each team’s top overall draft pick is protected, but teams with multiple first-round picks can lose their late first-rounders in some cases. Here’s a crash course/reminder.

For teams that signs a qualified free agent…

A team that received revenue sharing the previous season will forfeit its third-highest selection upon. Signing a second qualified would result in the loss of that team’s fourth-highest selection. Signing a third would result in the loss of its fifth-highest selection.
A team that did not receive revenue sharing and also did not pay any luxury tax penalties would lose its second-highest selection as well as $500K of the league’s allotted international bonus pool. Signing additional qualified free agents would result in forfeiting the third-highest selection and another $500K of international allotments.
A team that paid luxury tax penalties must forfeit both its second- and fifth-highest selections in the 2019 draft and forfeit $1MM of international funds. Signing a second would result in the loss of that team’s third- and sixth-highest picks, plus another $1MM in international funds.

For teams who lose qualified free agents…

A draft pick after Competitive Balance Round B will be awarded if the team losing the free agent did not receive revenue sharing or if the free agent in question signed a contract worth less than $50MM in guaranteed money.
A draft pick after Round 1 will be awarded if the team losing the free agent received revenue sharing and the free agent in question signed for more than $50MM.
A draft pick after Round 4 will be awarded if the team losing the free agent paid luxury tax penalties in the preceding season.

Reds Outright Gabriel Guerrero, Tim Federowicz

By Steve Adams | October 3, 2018 at 4:01pm CDT

The Reds announced Wednesday that catcher Tim Federowicz and outfielder Gabriel Guerrero have cleared waivers and been outrighted from the 40-man roster. Both will likely become free agents.

Guerrero, 24, was once considered to be one of the Mariners’ best prospects but has seen his production evaporate since reaching the Double-A level. Since 2015, he’s been with the Mariners, D-backs and Reds organizations but never produced at an elite clip in the minors. The Reds did give him his first taste of the Majors in 2018, and he managed to connect on his first big league homer in a brief 14-game stint with Cincinnati. On the whole, though, he went 3-for-18 with eight strikeouts and no walks in his first MLB cup of coffee. There’s certainly reason to believe that a player with Guerrero’s bloodline can improve; he’s the nephew of Hall of Famer Vladimir Guerrero and the cousin of Blue Jays uber-prospect Vladimir Guerrero Jr.

The 31-year-old Federowicz, meanwhile, went 2-for-6 with a homer in his five games as a Red this season and also spent 10 games with the Astros, where he batted .206/.229/.294 in 35 plate appearances. Dating back to 2011, “Fed-Ex” has appeared in the Majors in every season except 2015, serving mostly as a backup and a short-term replacement in the case of injury. He’s a career .199/.247/.323 hitter in 360 MLB plate appearances but does boast a tremendous .303/.374/.501 batting line in nearly 1900 career plate appearances at the Triple-A level.

Addison Russell Receives 40-Game Suspension

By Steve Adams | October 3, 2018 at 3:20pm CDT

3:20pm: The League announced that Russell has been suspended without pay for 40 games. That suspension is retroactive to Sept. 21, the date he was placed on administrative leave. That ban will carry over into 2019, rendering him ineligible to play for the season’s first month or so. Russell will not appeal the suspension, per the announcement.

3:06pm: Cubs shortstop Addison Russell will be suspended under Major League Baseball’s domestic violence policy, reports Jesse Rogers of ESPN Chicago (via Twitter). The precise length of his ban is not yet certain, though Rogers suggests it’ll be between 25 and 40 games.

Russell, 24, was placed on administrative leave in September after allegations of physical and verbal abuse were brought forth by his ex-wife, Melisa Reidy. Commissioner Rob Manfred had already conducted an investigation into Russell last year after a friend of his ex-wife made allegations at the time, via social media. Reidy didn’t cooperate with the investigation at the time — a decision which she explained to Rogers in an interview that is well worth a full read for those who’ve yet to gather the full details of this situation.

The 25- to 40-game length of the ban will make Russell’s suspension one of the lighter punishments handed out by Manfred under the current policy. Earlier this season, Roberto Osuna received a 75-game suspension, and other high-profile cases have included Hector Olivera (82 games), Jose Reyes (51 games) and Aroldis Chapman (30 games). Suspensions for Olivera, Reyes and Osuna all came after criminal charges were pressed, however (resulting in jail time for Olivera; charges against Reyes were eventually dropped, while Osuna agreed to a one-year peace bond as the charge was withdrawn).

Criminal charges have not yet been brought forth against Russell, and there’s no clear indication that they ever will. Regardless, the suspension severely clouds Russell’s future with the organization. The Athletic’s Patrick Mooney recently reported (subscription required) that there has been a “sense around the team” that Russell has played his final game as a Cub.

Should the Cubs elect to retain Russell, he’ll be under club control through the 2021 season (this suspension’s length won’t impact his free-agent timeline). He’d be due a raise on this season’s $3.2MM salary after posting a dismal .250/.317/.340 batting line through 465 games. If not, he can be non-tendered and sent out into free agency, with Javier Baez likely sliding over to assume regular shortstop duties.

MLB Places Addison Russell On Administrative Leave

By Steve Adams | October 2, 2018 at 7:18pm CDT

OCT. 2: MLB expects to reach a decision on Russell’s case “shortly,” perhaps before the end of the playoffs, commissioner Rob Manfred said Tuesday (via Patrick Mooney of The Athletic; subscription required). Interestingly, Mooney reports there’s a “sense around the team” that Russell has played his final game as a Cub.

SEPT. 28: In her first interview, Reidy discussed her experiences with Jesse Rogers of ESPNChicago.com. Explaining that she “wasn’t ready” to talk to investigators when first contacted last year, in the wake of her split with Russell, Reidy says she was also advised by counsel to hold off on telling her own story until she was fully prepared.

Ultimately, Reidy decided to wait until her divorce had been finalized before finally electing to publicize her experiences.

“It wasn’t sitting right with me,” she said of the fact that she had yet to speak out. “I took it upon myself to do what I needed to do regardless what could happen, financially. I know that I’m going to be OK … I shouldn’t have to feel like I can’t speak out to help someone else, in order to protect someone that hurt me.”

Russell’s administrative leave has been extended through to the end of the regular season, as Rosenthal recently reported on Twitter.

SEPT. 25: The league’s decision to place Russell on administrative leave was based not only on the recently released allegations, but on “additional credible information” that has been gathered, according to Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic (subscription post). Since prior claims of domestic abuse by Russell arose last year, the league has interviewed Reidy as well as “numerous other witnesses,” Rosenthal adds.

Notably, too, Rosenthal reports that Russell does not intend to challenge the exercise of the administrative leave authority, though he is still not precluded from doing so.

SEPT. 21: Melisa Reidy, the ex-wife of Cubs shortstop Addison Russell, has released a detailed account of the events that led to the couple’s separation and eventual divorce, alleging that Russell abused her verbally, emotionally and physically over the course of a short and tumultuous marriage. In the wake of that statement, Major League Baseball announced that Russell has been placed on paid administrative leave, as is typical during investigations under the MLB-MLBPA Join Domestic Violence Policy.

It’s the second time that allegations have been brought forth against Russell. The first instance came when a friend of Reidy spoke out on Instagram; Reidy, in the process of separating and filing for divorce at the time, did not cooperate with MLB’s investigation. Now, it stands to reason that this latest account from the alleged victim herself will bring forth a second and more serious investigation from the league. It’s unclear whether the relevant law enforcement authorities are investigating the allegations and/or whether criminal charges could be pursued.

Reidy describes multiple instances of Russell becoming physically violent, alleging that he “[laid] his hands on [her]” and “physically mistreated” her. She also details a series of verbal and emotional abuse, including intimidation via the threat of physical force. Needless to say, the allegations against Russell are serious and disturbing. At the very least, they’ll fall under the purview of Major League Baseball’s domestic abuse agreement, which gives commissioner Rob Manfred the authority to issue punishment even in the absence of criminal proceedings. (Presently, it’s not clear if Reidy plans to press charges, though the allegations could carry criminal implications as well.)

The Cubs offered the following statement:

“We take allegations of domestic violence seriously and support the League’s decision to place Addison Russell on administrative leave given new details revealed today. We will continue to cooperate with the League’s investigation so the appropriate action can be taken.”

Cubs owner Tom Ricketts and president of baseball operations Theo Epstein each addressed the matter in greater detail, as Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Tribune covers. Both expressed agreement with the league’s decision to place Russell on leave while indicating that he had denied the allegations to them in a meeting held this morning.

Russell has issued a statement through the MLB Players Association, asserting:

“These allegations are completely false. I made that clear to Major League Baseball last year and reiterated it to the Cubs today. I’m confident any full and fair investigation will fully exonerate me. The protection of my children is foremost in my mind so I will have no further comment.”

Notably, per Wittenmyer, the organization’s expectation is that Russell will not appear on the field again this season, though there has been no formal determination to that effect. It is common for such leave to be extended throughout the duration of an investigation, though we’ve not previously seen these type of allegations surface in such close proximity to the postseason. With that in mind, it’s worth noting that a regular-season suspension under the league’s domestic violence policy, in and of itself, does not preclude a player from participating in the postseason. (PED-related suspensions do preclude postseason participation, by rule.) It’s also worth bearing in mind, though, that league investigations are often lengthy endeavors; Roberto Osuna, for instance, was on administrative leave for roughly six weeks before Manfred and the league made a determination.

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