Steve Adams | MLB Trade Rumors

NL West Notes: LeMahieu, Rockies, Giants, Duggar, Buchholz

By Steve Adams | June 11, 2018 at 9:22am CDT

Rockies second baseman DJ LeMahieu is a free agent at season’s end, but he tells Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post that his hope is to remain with the organization. LeMahieu cites his relationship with teammates and manager Bud Black, as well as the city of Denver and several up-and-coming young talents as reasons he hopes to stick around. GM Jeff Bridich tells Saunders he’ll leave the door open, but adds that there haven’t been any recent discussions and that the team (like many players) prefers not to negotiate during the season. (Although the Rockies did sign Charlie Blackmon to a six-year deal after Opening Day.)

Saunders takes a look at the roadblocks to retaining LeMahieu, noting several large commitments for 2019 (e.g. Ian Desmond, Wade Davis, Bryan Shaw, Jake McGee), the looming presence of Brendan Rodgers in the upper minors and Nolan Arenado’s own free agency after the 2019 season. In addition to LeMahieu and Bridich, Saunders spoke with Blackmon about LeMahieu’s importance to the Rockies.

Here’s more out of Denver and out of the NL West…

The Rockies’ bullpen has been a disaster in recent weeks, but Bridich suggested over the weekend that the team remains more focused on fixing their internal options than pursuing relievers from outside the organization, per MLB.com’s Thomas Harding. “There are some very, very good pitchers in that bullpen, very talented guys, who just are not performing consistently to their potential and their talents,” the GM said. “We need to continue to help them reach their potential — even the level of past performance that they have exhibited — before we think much about what else is out there.”
The Giants are still “slightly” underneath the $197MM luxury tax barrier, tweets Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic. Rosenthal notes that while the numbers over on Cot’s Contracts indicate that organization is roughly $2MM north of that line, he’s confirmed that San Francisco is narrowly avoiding taxation at this point. The exact amount with which the Giants have to work remains unclear, though the apparent proximity to that threshold would seemingly make it difficult for the Giants to do much at the non-waiver trade deadline without jettisoning some payroll in a trade or receiving substantial cash considerations along with any player they acquire.
While outfield prospect Steven Duggar has been on a hot streak in Triple-A, the Giants are still in no rush to bring him up to the Majors, writes John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle. GM Bobby Evans explains to Shea that the Giants not only want to see Duggar “put pressure” on the front office to call him up and adds that it’s also a matter of “the opportunity being here.” Shea notes that Mac Williamson is the only outfielder on the big league roster with options remaining, and he’s been seeing regular left field work since returning from the DL. Cutting ties with either Hunter Pence or Austin Jackson, of course, would open a spot, though either speculative move would come with some notable financial and clubhouse considerations for the front office.
Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo chatted with Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe about the role that familiarity played in the organization’s decision to sign Clay Buchholz, as well as the importance of what Buchholz has done in the rotation since signing. Lovullo, GM Mike Hazen and AGM Amiel Sawdaye were all with the Red Sox when Buchholz was drafted, and that preexisting relationship helped to facilitate the signing. “Mike and [assistant GM] Amiel [Sawdaye] and I got together and we said, ‘Why not Clay?’ ” Lovullo recalled. “The reports on him were very good and so we said, ‘Let’s do it.’ And he’s been outstanding for us.” Lovullo was cautious about making any definitive proclamations about his rotation moving forward but did say that Buchholz “deserves” to remain in the mix. It’s hard to argue, as the 33-year-old has posted a 1.88 ERA with a 21-to-3 K/BB ratio through 24 innings (four starts) with the D-backs so far.

Mariners Place Nicasio, Altavilla On Disabled List, Select Morin

By Steve Adams | June 10, 2018 at 10:26am CDT

SUNDAY: Altavilla has a Grade 1 flexor mass strain in his right forearm, manager Scott Servais told Greg Johns of MLB.com and other reporters Sunday. He’ll “be down a little while” as a result, Servais added (Twitter link).

FRIDAY: The Mariners announced Friday that they’ve placed right-handers Juan Nicasio and Dan Altavilla on the disabled list, recalled first baseman Dan Vogelbach from Triple-A Tacoma and selected the contract of right-hander Mike Morin. Nicasio is dealing with right knee effusion, while Altavilla’s injury is more troubling: a sprained right ulnar collateral ligament.

It’s another hit to the Seattle bullpen depth, which serves to underscore the importance of their early acquisition of Alex Colome in last month’s swap with the Rays. Nicasio and Altavilla will join David Phelps (Tommy John surgery), Nick Vincent (strained groin) and Erasmo Ramirez (strained Teres major) on the shelf for the time being. Seattle also recently just bit the bullet on an ill-fated two-year deal for left-hander Marc Rzepczynski, cutting the veteran southpaw loose and eating the remainder of this year’s $5.5MM salary in the process.

There’s no indication that Nicasio’s injury is especially serious, though the Mariners neglected to disclose a timeline on either newly injured hurler. An “effusion,” though, refers to swelling and a build-up of fluid around the knee joint. For Altavilla, the perils of any UCL injury are well known, and while the categorization of a sprain is better than news of a full or significant tear, a “sprain,” by definition, would indicate that there’s at least a minor degree of tearing/stretching in that ligament.

Altavilla has given the Mariners 20 2/3 innings of 2.61 ERA ball with a 23-to-15 K/BB ratio, while Nicasio has been mostly solid but had a pair of meltdowns that skew his numbers (two outings of four runs allowed). He’s sporting an ugly 5.34 ERA but a 2.56 FIP and a brilliant 37-to-2 K/BB ratio in 28 2/3 frames this year.

Seattle will turn to the 27-year-old Morin in an attempt to patch the latest bullpen holes. The right-hander debuted with the Angels in 2014 and turned in a brilliant rookie season (2.90 ERA, 8.2 K/9, 2.9 BB/9, 43.9 percent grounder rate in 59 innings), but he’s struggled in the Majors ever since. Seattle plucked him off waivers from the Royals back in December and later outrighted him to Tacoma. He’s been quite good there to open the season, logging a 3.24 ERA with 28 punchouts against six walks while allowing just one homer in 25 innings of work. The addition of Morin gives the Mariners a full 40-man roster.

Vogelbach, meanwhile, returns to the Mariners for another look at big league pitching. He’s struggled in limited looks at MLB opponents but has crushed Triple-A pitching at a .304/.445/.643 clip through 146 plate appearances so far in 2018.

Free Agent Stock Watch: Eduardo Escobar

By Steve Adams | June 9, 2018 at 12:01pm CDT

Eduardo Escobar wasn’t supposed to get this much playing time in 2018. Heading into the season, he was set to be a utility player extraordinaire, backing up Twins shortstop Jorge Polanco, third baseman Miguel Sano and second baseman Brian Dozier — perhaps with an occasional day at DH or a brief foray into an outfield corner. But an 80-game suspension for Polanco following a failed PED test and an early injury for Sano thrust Escobar into the lineup with regularity. And more surprisingly, Escobar’s sensational performance has thrust him into the cleanup spot for the Twins more often than not.

There are undoubtedly readers out there who literally don’t know who Escobar is. He’s long been a quality utility piece for the Twins, but he’s taken his offensive game to new heights over the past two seasons. Now, four months away from free agency, he looks potentially poised for a payday that would’ve sounded unthinkable for him entering the 2017 season.

Escobar, 29, is off to a ridiculous .286/.340/.562 start to the 2018 season (143 OPS+, 139 wRC+). The switch-hitter already belted a dozen home runs and racked up an incredible 24 doubles through his first 238 trips to the plate. It’s an excellent followup to last year’s career-high 21 homers, and he’s already just nine long balls and 11 doubles shy of his career-bests with about 60 percent of the season still to play.

While it’s not always obvious to see the areas from which a player’s offensive breakout stems, Escobar has made some very noticeable changes to his approach at the plate. He looks to be one of the many success stories from 2017’s “fly-ball revolution,” having increased his launch angle from 15 degrees in 2016 to 17.5 degrees in 2017 to 20.8 degrees in 2018. Back in 2016, Escobar was putting the ball on the ground nearly 40 percent of the time he made contact. But his fly-ball rate jumped from 37.4 percent in 2016 to 45.3 percent last season. This year, it’s sitting at a career-high 47.9 percent. His average exit velocity of 87.6 mph isn’t elite, but it’s steadily risen by about 1 mph in each of the past two seasons.

That seems like a deliberate focus on putting the ball in the air and hitting for more power, and it’s somewhat predictably come with some other, more negative changes. Escobar has traded some contact for his newfound power, striking out at a career-worst 22.7 percent so far in 2018. He’s chasing a whopping 40.4 percent out-of-zone pitches, and his swinging-strike rate is a career-worst 12.7 percent as well. That said, his strikeout rate is far from egregious, and he’s also sporting career-bests in hard-contact rate, line-drive rate and barreled-ball rate. His .327 average on balls in play is a bit north of his career .299 mark, but that can be somewhat explained by his increase in barreled balls and quality contact. In short, he looks like a legitimately improved hitter.

Defensively, Escobar is more of a mixed bag. He has extensive experience at both positions on the left side of the infield in addition to 348 innings at second base and 275 innings in the outfield (eight in center and 267 in left field). That’s desirable versatility, but he’s not exactly a standout defender anywhere. Third base has been his best position in the Majors, and by measure of both Ultimate Zone Rating and Defensive Runs Saved, he’s a serviceable defender at the hot corner. DRS pegs him at -5 runs 1735 innings, while UZR/150 has him at -0.4. His ratings at shortstop, particularly in 2018, are far less appealing (-8 DRS in 168 innings, -2.1 UZR), but he’d graded out passably (even favorably, per UZR) at the position in prior seasons.

At the very least, a team would likely feel comfortable installing Escobar at shortstop once or twice per week, knowing he could be re-positioned elsewhere in a late defensive switch by a superior defender. And it stands to reason that most clubs would feel comfortable with his glove at third base.

The question for Escobar in free agency, of course, will be one of how exactly he’ll be valued by other clubs. Escobar isn’t going to sustain a .276 isolated power mark (that is, slugging percentage minus batting average). By his own admission, many of his doubles are of the “hustle” variety (such as this one), and his 15.2 percent homer-to-flyball ratio is well above his career norm. Still, at least much of the gains he’s made in the power department seem legitimate. He’s also sporting a modest increase in walk rate (career-high 7.6 percent) to go along with his improved contact and defensive versatility. Some teams figure to value him in as a high-end utility player, while others yet may feel he’s capable of shouldering an everyday workload.

Looking for recent comparables, there aren’t many examples of bat-first utility players that stack up nicely with Escobar’s case. Ben Zobrist’s four-year, $56MM contract was signed when Zobrist had a considerably lengthier track record and seems too ambitious a comparison for Escobar. On the other hand, former teammate Eduardo Nunez’s modest deal to return to the Red Sox this year feels like it can be similarly dismissed, given Nunez’s late knee injury and lack of power. Luis Valbuena’s two-year, $15MM contract feels too low, given Escobar’s ability to play some shortstop, his switch-hitting capability and his superior offensive output. Jed Lowrie’s three-year, $23MM deal with the A’s may even be light. That contract began when Lowrie was 32 years of age and came on the heels of a season in which he played in just 69 games. Escobar will turn 30 next January.

Perhaps, then, Escobar will forge his own path, to an extent. He’s experiencing an offensive breakout similar to the one that Zack Cozart exhibited in his two years leading up to a three-year, $38MM deal from the Angels, though Cozart was considered a premium defensive shortstop who could provide significant defensive value at third base as well. Then again, he hadn’t been as healthy as Escobar and was two years older. That could serve as something of a ceiling for Escobar, and perhaps a four-year deal at a lower annual rate (something in the vein of Omar Infante’s admittedly dated four-year, $30.25MM deal with Kansas City) shouldn’t be entirely ruled out, given Escobar’s relative youth.

All of this, of course, is predicated on Escobar sustaining a pace that at least approximates his current output. That’s far from a given, especially considering the fact that Polanco’s eventual return will cut into his playing time to some degree. But heading into the 2018 season, the general thought was that if there was one switch-hitting utility player poised for a significant payday, it’d be Houston’s Marwin Gonzalez. With Gonzalez struggling and Escobar thriving, that reality looks to have shifted. There are under-the-radar free agents who emerge from relative anonymity every season, and Escobar is making his case to become the latest such example with a strong start to the year.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Angels Place Shohei Ohtani On Disabled List With Grade 2 UCL Sprain

By Steve Adams | June 8, 2018 at 3:44pm CDT

3:40pm: Angels GM Billy Eppler provided further details on the situation, as Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register reports (Twitter links). Ohtani reported elbow stiffness after being removed from his most recent start for a blister, prompting the medical review. When asked whether Ohtani can avoid Tommy John surgery, Eppler responded: “We’re hopeful that he can, that it is completely treatable with the biologic prescription the doctors recommended.”

2:03pm: In an alarming announcement, the Angels revealed today that right-hander Shohei Ohtani has been placed on the 10-day DL with a Grade 2 sprain of the ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow. He’s already received platelet-rich plasma and stem-cell injections, per the Angels, and will be re-evaluated in three weeks.

The move comes as a brutal blow to an Angels staff that is without Matt Shoemaker indefinitely and without J.C. Ramirez for the balance of the season. It was reported shortly after Ohtani signed with the Angels that the young phenom had a Grade 1 sprain of his UCL when teams were courting him this offseason. Every organization was made aware of that information, and it obviously did little to dissuade clubs from embarking on an elaborate and high-profile courtship of the former NPB sensation. He also received a PRP injection for that injury at the time.

The preexisting elbow damage was either minimal enough or had healed to the point that Ohtani was able to pitch throughout Spring Training and quickly enter super-stardom in his first two months with the Halos. Not only has the 23-year-old pitched to a pristine 3.10 ERA with 11.1 K/9 against 3.7 BB/9 and 0.9 HR/9 in 49 1/3 innings, he’s also been one of the Angels’ best hitters. In 129 plate appearances, Ohtani has raked at a .289/.372/.535 pace with six homers, eight doubles and a triple. He’s walked at an 11.6 percent clip against a 25.6 percent strikeout rate, and he’s even stolen a base in his lone attempt.

With Ohtani out of commission for at least the foreseeable future, the Angels will have Garrett Richards, Andrew Heaney, Tyler Skaggs, Nick Tropeano, Jaime Barria and Parker Bridwell as rotation options. But any more significant absence for Ohtani, coupled with significant recent injury histories for a number of the currently-healthy members of the Angels’ rotation mix, could push the Angels out into the market for rotation upgrades later this summer. Despite their excellent 35-28 record, the Angels find themselves 4.5 games back of the surprising Mariners in the American League West, and they’re 3.5 games out of an AL Wild Card spot at present.

Athletics, Kyler Murray Agree To Terms

By Steve Adams | June 8, 2018 at 1:55pm CDT

FRIDAY: Murray will receive $4.66MM, per MLB.com’s Jim Callis (via Twitter), which checks in just below the $4,761,500 slot value. The sides have yet to put pen to paper, Callis notes.

WEDNESDAY: The Athletics have reached a deal with No. 9 overall draft pick Kyler Murray, reports Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports. The agreement will guarantee Murray close to $5MM and allow Murray to play quarterback at Oklahoma for one year, per Heyman. Murray, one of the country’s top multi-sport athletes, could step up as the Sooners’ starting quarterback in place of Baker Mayfield, who was selected with the top overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft.

Of course, Murray is hardly a slouch when it comes to the baseball diamond. Oakland selected the center fielder ninth overall, and scouting reports on him indicate that he has plus-plus speed in addition to promising bat speed the potential for average or better power, though he’s less polished than many college bats given that he has yet to fully commit to baseball.

Heading into the draft, Fangraphs ranked Murray as the No. 20 prospect in this year’s class, while ESPN’s Keith Law tabbed him 35th, MLB.com pegged him 36th and Baseball America rated him No. 77 among available prospects. Murray, who has yet to turn 21 years of age, is coming off a season in which he hit .296/.398/.556 with 10 homers and 10 steals in 51 games. His slot comes with an assigned pick value of $4,761,500, so it seems that his agreement with the A’s will pay him at that level or perhaps a bit more.

It’s an interesting arrangement for Murray, who’ll lose NCAA eligibility in baseball but (clearly) not in football now that he’s agreed to a deal with a Major League organization. The agreement points to the likelihood that Murray’s future lies on the diamond and not on the gridiron, though it’s sure to be a complex arrangement. It’s not known at this time what sort of contingencies are in place in the event that Murray incurs a severe injury while playing football, though it seems likely that the A’s will have some form of safeguards in place, given the size of their investment in Murray and the level of risk that comes with allowing him to play NCAA football.

Pro Hockey Rumors: Your Source For NHL Draft Day Coverage

By Steve Adams | June 8, 2018 at 1:50pm CDT

Just two weeks remain until the June 22nd NHL Entry Draft, and our sister site Pro Hockey Rumors is all you need to stay up to date on the latest rumblings around the league. The draft floor is shaping up to be a busy one, with several teams looking to move key assets and change their fortunes for 2018-19.

Will Mike Hoffman and Erik Karlsson be sent packing by the Ottawa Senators? Is Ryan O’Reilly part of the long-term future in Buffalo? What will the Carolina Hurricanes do with Jeff Skinner? PHR has you covered by bringing you the most reliable sources and information.

Not only is the draft on the horizon, but the buyout window opens in just a week’s time and free agency is right around the corner. June is one of the busiest times for NHL front offices, so make sure to check in regularly at Pro Hockey Rumors, follow @prohockeyrumors on Twitter and set your notifications accordingly in the Trade Rumors mobile app for iOS and Android!

NL West Notes: Giants, Alexander, Dodgers, Jay, D-backs

By Steve Adams | June 8, 2018 at 1:33pm CDT

Giants general manager Bobby Evans joined Jim Bowden and Mike Ferrin on MLB Network Radio on SiriusXM today (Twitter link, with audio). Evans sidestepped some questions about potential interest in Bryce Harper as a free agent — “Our focus right now is on getting him out … we’ll certainly be aggressive and appropriate with our interest.” — but he did more broadly discuss the organization’s perennial “win-now” philosophy. At a time when more and more teams are pursuing aggressive tear-downs, Evans stated that it’d be a “big adjustment” to ever even consider embarking on a rebuild.

“We want to compete to win every year,” Evans says of his Giants. “That’s our goal. That’s our plan. You get bumps in the road — problems, challenges at times — but I think it’s challenging no matter which route you take. I think when you have such a strong core, with [Brandon] Crawford, [Brandon] Belt, [Buster] Posey, [Johnny] Cueto, [Madison] Bumgarner — it makes it a lot easier to choose to compete. … Building a [minor league] system has never been our ultimate goal. Our ultimate goal is to have success at the big league level, which a strong system helps with, but it doesn’t solve.”

Red Sox Select Contract Of Justin Haley

By Steve Adams | June 8, 2018 at 11:18am CDT

The Red Sox announced Friday that they’ve selected the contract of right-hander Justin Haley from Triple-A Pawtucket and optioned lefty Jalen Beeks back to Pawtucket in his place. Boston’s 40-man roster is now up to 39 players.

While this will mark the Red Sox debut for Haley, whom the club selected in the sixth round of the 2012 draft, it won’t be his MLB debut. Haley was selected by the Twins in the 2016 Rule 5 Draft and broke camp in Minnesota last year, but he was ultimately designated for assignment and returned to the Sox after posting a 6.00 ERA over 18 innings as a seldom-used long reliever.

Things have gone much better for the now-26-year-old Haley in Triple-A, where he owns a career 3.28 ERA with 7.3 K/9 against 2.3 BB/9 in 203 1/3 innings. That production is right in line with his marks so far in 2018: a 3.18 ERA, 8.3 K/9, 2.5 BB/9 and a 44 percent ground-ball rate in 56 2/3 innings out of the Pawtucket rotation.

The 24-year-old Beeks, meanwhile, will head back to Triple-A for continued development. He was called upon to make a spot start last night against the Tigers and was ambushed for five runs in his first Major League inning, though he settled down and allowed just one run over the next three innings. While it wasn’t a great debut, Beeks should still have ample opportunity to factor into Boston’s long-term plans. The former 12th-rounder owns a 3.38 ERA with 10.5 K/9 against 2.8 BB/9 in 152 Triple-A innings.

Nationals Recently “Checked In” On J.T. Realmuto

By Steve Adams | June 8, 2018 at 10:32am CDT

The Nationals “checked in” on the availability of star Marlins catcher J.T. Realmuto within the past couple of weeks, reports Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports in his latest notes column, though it sounds as if little has changed since the offseason. The Marlins are still seeking a “haul” in exchange for Realmuto, which only makes sense given the 27-year-old’s brilliant start to the season. Heyman suggests that the Nats aren’t willing to meet the price at this time.

MLBTR’s Jeff Todd profiled Realmuto’s trade candidacy at length about a month ago, and Realmuto has maintained his strong play since that was written. Realmuto missed nearly a month to open the season thanks to a lower back issue, but he’s been among the game’s best-hitting catchers (if not the best-hitting catcher in the Majors) since being activated. In 179 plate appearances, he’s hitting .311/.376/.534 with six homers, 12 doubles and three triples. He’s also halted eight of 19 stolen-base attempts against him (42 percent) and turned in strong framing and blocking numbers, per Baseball Prospectus.

Given that terrific all-around profile, a modest $2.9MM salary in 2018 and an additional two years of club control beyond the current season, it’s no surprise that the Marlins were seeking a package of multiple young players headlined by an elite talent in the offseason. Reports at the time indicated that Miami was interested in both Victor Robles and meteoric rising star Juan Soto, who has shocked baseball by soaring from Class-A to the Majors in two months and raking at a .346/.443/.538 pace in his first 16 big league games — all at the age of 19. It’s hard to imagine that the asking price on Realmuto has done anything but increase.

Heyman writes that, perhaps unsurprisingly, the Nationals are currently planning to keep Soto in the Majors even when the rest of their outfield is healthy. Washington was loath to part with either Soto or Robles in a Realmuto deal this offseason, and one would have to imagine that Soto, at least, has firmly entrenched himself as an untouchable young talent in the eyes of the D.C. front office. Robles, meanwhile, has played in only four games this year due to a hyperextended elbow, but the Nats have to be dreaming of a controllable outfield anchored by that pair of exciting potential stars beginning no later than 2019.

Other clubs, too, seem likely to gauge the asking price on Realmuto as the trade deadline approaches. The Twins are without Jason Castro for the rest of the season following knee surgery, while more definitive contenders like the Rockies and Brewers have received little in the way of production from their backstops. The market will likely bear other options — Wilson Ramos chief among them — but barring another injury, Realmuto will inevitably be the prize of the trade market in terms of available catching talent. Of course, because the Marlins control him for another two seasons, they also have the luxury of holding onto him should no offers to their liking materialize. Realmuto’s trade value will scarcely diminish from July to November, and rival teams would again line up to express interest should the Marlins hang onto him and market him in the offseason.

Indians Release Richie Shaffer

By Steve Adams | June 8, 2018 at 8:26am CDT

The Indians announced that they’ve released corner infielder Richie Shaffer from their Triple-A affiliate in Columbus. The 27-year-old former first-round pick had been in his second season with the organization.

Selected 25th overall by the Rays back in 2012, Shaffer logged fairly pedestrian numbers in the low minors before breaking out with a big 2015 in which he batted .267/.357/.539 in 108 games between Double-A and Triple-A as a 24-year-old. Tampa Bay brought him to the Majors late that season, but he managed just a .213/.310/.410 slash with five homers in 142 plate appearances with the Rays from 2015-16. The Rays traded Shaffer and Taylor Motter to the Mariners in exchange for three minor league pitchers (including Andrew Kittredge) that offseason, and he bounced around the waiver wire before settling in with Cleveland prior to the 2017 campaign.

Shaffer notched an .802 OPS with 30 homers for Cleveland’s top affiliate in 2017, but he’s off to an ugly start in 2018, having batted .164/.216/.310 through 125 PAs in his second season with Columbus. He’s primarily been a third baseman in the minors but also has significant experience at first base and in both corner outfield slots.

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