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Spring Training has begun, and it’s time to check out the free MLB Trade Rumors Newsletter!  The newsletter is written by Cliff Corcoran, who has an extensive resume contributing to Sports Illustrated, The Athletic, Baseball Prospectus, and other outlets.  Cliff will take you through the hot stove highlights of the previous day, boiling down MLBTR’s posts into the essential stories.  It’s a great morning read that will help you stay on top of the biggest MLB stories.

 

This free newsletter arrives via email Monday through Friday in the morning.  Be sure to check your inbox and click the link in the confirmation email.  If you’re not seeing the box to input your email, you can simply click this link to sign up.

Read The Transcript Of Our Chat Hosted By International Scout And Former Pitcher Ryan Sadowski

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Ryan Sadowski was drafted in the 12th round in 2003 by the Giants out of the University of Florida.  He broke into the Majors in 2009 as a 26-year-old, tossing six scoreless frames against the Brewers at Miller Park.  The magic continued in Ryan’s next start against the Astros.  By the time he was scored upon in his third start, Sadowski had opened his career with 16 scoreless innings, a San Francisco Giants record.

Sadowski’s six starts in ’09 represented the entirety of his MLB career.  He jumped to the Lotte Giants in 2010, ultimately spending three years in KBO and making 79 starts.  As he put it in an interview with Bill Francis, “When you’re 26 and you’ve kind of kicked around the minor leagues and gotten a little bit of play in the major leagues and then this opportunity from Asia comes around in a league that had just won a gold medal in the Olympics and had performed in the top two in the WBC the year before, you gotta take it if you’re in my position.”

When his playing days were done, Ryan made a name for himself in international scouting by producing a report that helped the Netherlands beat South Korea in the 2013 World Baseball Classic.  A few years later, he was hired by the Lotte Giants in an international scouting position.  He later moved to KBO’s Kia Tigers.

Currently, Ryan serves as President of Baseball International Group of Scouts, BIGS for short.  As Ryan puts it, “BIGS is a scouting group focused on identifying and providing scouting reports and projections to MLB, NPB, KBO and CPBL teams on the the AAAA players who have not stuck in the major leagues but have found success in AAA. BIGS scouts also evaluate players in the NPB, KBO, and CPBL who are candidates to move to MLB or switch leagues.”  You can follow Ryan on Twitter @incugator.

Ryan held an insightful live chat with MLBTR readers, discussing the differences between MLB and baseball in Asia, emerging markets around the world for baseball talent, which American players are most likely to succeed in Asia, and much more.  Click here to read the transcript.

Read The Transcript Of Our Chat Hosted By Former MLB Hitting Coach Rick Eckstein

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Rick Eckstein’s playing career ended with the 1996 Florida Gators, where he played alongside his younger brother David.  Rick moved directly into a coaching role at the University of Florida, the beginning of what has become a respected career.

Eckstein eventually worked his way up the ladder to become the Nationals’ big league hitting coach for nearly five years, working under manager Davey Johnson from 2009-13.  Nats players Adam LaRoche, Ian Desmond, Ryan Zimmerman, and Stephen Strasburg won Silver Slugger awards under Eckstein’s watch.  After a stint with the Angels as player information coach, Eckstein became an assistant coach at the University of Kentucky.

Following a few years as the Twins’ minor league hitting coordinator, Eckstein was hired as the Pirates’ Major League hitting coach under managers Clint Hurdle and Derek Shelton.  He served in that job for nearly three years.  Rick currently serves as a consultant to MLB hitters, given his vast knowledge and experience in the game.

Rick joined MLBTR readers today for a live chat, covering the new shift rule, working with Davey Johnson, and much more.  Read the transcript here.

Read The Transcript Of Our Live Chat Hosted By Former MLB Scout Tim Kissner

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Today’s chat guest, Tim Kissner, has 22 years of experience as an MLB scout.

Tim was born in Homer, Alaska, and grew up in Juneau.  He played baseball at Mendocino Community College and Oregon State and has a masters degree from Eastern Oregon State College.

Kissner began his MLB career as a part-time scout with the Phillies in 1999.  After a few years with the Indians, Kissner moved back to the Phillies, eventually serving as the team’s Pacific Rim coordinator.  Kissner spent time as the Cubs’ West Coast crosschecker, then joined the Mariners as director of international scouting.  Kissner’s next step was as a special assignment scout with the Mets.  He finished his MLB career back with the Phillies.

In terms of amateur scouting, Kissner signed players such as Travis d’Arnaud, Kyle Kendrick, Vance Worley, Scott Mathieson, Andrew Carpenter, Anthony Gose, and Justin De Fratus.  Tim’s Latin American signings include big leaguers Julio Rodriguez, Freddy Peralta, Luis Rengifo, Enyel De Los Santos, and Guillermo Heredia, as well as top prospect Noelvi Marte.  By Tim’s count, the Mariners traded more than 20 of the players he signed there.

Deciding it was time for something new after a career spent scouting all around the world, Tim returned home to become a police officer in Juneau about a year ago.  Tim chatted today with MLBTR readers for nearly two hours, sharing Julio Rodriguez stories, many aspects of the scouting profession, and much more.  Click here to read the transcript.

Read The Transcript Of Our Live Chat Hosted By Former MLB Pitcher Deck McGuire

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Deck McGuire was drafted 11th overall in 2010 by the Blue Jays as a starting pitcher out of Georgia Tech, signing for $2MM.  Baseball America ranked him 95th among all prospects shortly after that.  At the time, BA felt that McGuire’s “good stuff and polish” and college resume would result in a quick path to Toronto’s rotation.

Things went off track for McGuire in 2012 at Double-A, however.  Eventually, the Blue Jays traded McGuire to the A’s for cash considerations in July 2014.  He signed a minor league deal with the Dodgers in 2015, and another one with the Cardinals after that season.  McGuire continued finding Triple-A jobs, signing with the Reds prior to the 2017 campaign.

After a strong 2017 season as a starter at the Double-A level, the Reds rewarded the tenacious McGuire with a September call-up.  He made his MLB debut at the age of 28, entering a bases loaded situation against the Cardinals and inducing a double play off the bat of Harrison Bader.  McGuire even got to finish that season with a start at Wrigley Field, tossing five scoreless with only two hits allowed and a strikeout of Kris Bryant.

Following the ’17 season, McGuire moved back to the Jays on a minor league deal.  By May, he was working out of the bullpen for the team that had drafted him eight years prior.  In June of that year, the Rangers claimed McGuire off waivers, trading him to the Angels shortly thereafter.  He made it back to the bigs for a few spot starts, also working out of the Halos’ bullpen that year.

After being part of three MLB organizations in 2018, McGuire signed a deal with KBO’s Samsung Lions.  He made 21 starts for that club, including the 14th no-hitter in KBO history.  McGuire landed with the Rays on a minor league deal in February 2020.  That minor league season was lost to the pandemic, and McGuire moved to the Rakuten Monkeys of the Chinese Professional Baseball League for ’21.

McGuire started the ’22 season in the Atlantic League, which he parlayed into another minor league deal with the Reds.  McGuire wrapped up his pitching career last December, writing on Twitter, “For 12 years I got to live out my dream of being a professional baseball player.”

McGuire’s journeyman career was not what anyone expected when the Blue Jays drafted him 11th overall, but his perseverance got him to the Majors for 51 2/3 innings with the Reds, Blue Jays, and Angels.  Even in that brief time he struck out Bryant, Jose Altuve, Rafael Devers, and Ryan Braun, among many others.  McGuire pitched for seven different MLB organizations while also spending multiple seasons overseas.

Asked about his post-retirement plans, Deck wrote in an email, “As of right now my plans are to stay in the game somehow. I’m currently working with some guys and youth teams in my area of Colorado. I’m gonna head back to Georgia Tech in the fall to graduate and be around the program.”  You can follow Deck on Twitter @deckmcguire.

Today, Deck chatted for over an hour with MLBTR readers, talking about the differences between KBO and MLB, the pressure of being a high draft pick, dealing with hecklers, and much more.  Read the transcript here.

MLBTR Is Seeking A Podcast Producer

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As you may recall, MLBTR had a podcast that launched in October 2014 and ran for about a year and a half.  It was hosted by the esteemed Jeff Todd, and we had a lot of fun.

We have decided to relaunch the MLB Trade Rumors podcast!  This time, it will be hosted by Simon Hampton.  In this 30-minute weekly show, Simon will bring on members of the MLBTR writing staff to analyze MLB transactions and to dig in on the sorts of topics we cover regularly on this site.  We’ll be featuring some outside guests as well.

The show is not ready yet, because we need a producer.  We’re seeking someone with experience as a podcast producer.  This person will help us record the show, edit it, and put it on the various platforms.  If you’re interested, please email us at mlbtrhelp@gmail.com and include your qualifications.

If you’re a podcast listener, we’d love your thoughts in the comments about what you’d like to hear (or not hear) in this show.

Read The Transcript Of Our Chat Hosted By Former Yankees Pitcher Humberto Sanchez

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If you were a diehard Yankees fan or prospect watcher about 15 years ago, you likely know the name Humberto Sanchez.  A native of the Bronx, Sanchez was a 31st round pick by the Tigers in 2001, signing for $1MM as a draft-and-follow.  Sanchez started for the World Team in the Futures Game in 2006, and in November he became the key piece in the trade that saw the Yankees send Gary Sheffield to the Tigers.

Before the 2007 season, Baseball America ranked Sanchez the 57th-best prospect in baseball, calling him “the young power arm New York lacked in Triple-A.”  However, by April of 2007, Sanchez needed Tommy John surgery.  Yankees GM Brian Cashman said, “I knew there was a chance [his elbow] needed to be fixed. But we looked at it long term and in 12 months we will have him back.”  As it turned out, Sanchez would need a second procedure six months later, extending his recovery timeline.

17 months after the initial Tommy John surgery, Sanchez made it to The Show.  He told Sean Brennan of the New York Daily News, “When you have surgery, it feels like your dream has died. After surgery you’re thinking your career is pretty much in jeopardy and (getting the call) seems out of reach. You don’t know if you’re going to come back.”  Sanchez made his MLB debut at Yankee Stadium, entering in the top of the eighth with his team ahead by eight runs.  He pitched a scoreless inning, striking out Paul Phillips and getting Jerry Owens and Jim Thome to ground out.

Sanchez entered another game out of the Yankees’ bullpen a week later.  Though no one knew it at the time, Sanchez had thrown his last Major League pitch at the age of 25.  He battled forearm tightness the following year, and the Yankees released him in April ’09.  He re-signed on a minor league deal and picked up 35 2/3 innings across various minor league affiliates.  Sanchez went on to pitch in the Chinese Professional Baseball League, later pitching in the Mexican and independent leagues.  Facing eight batters was not the MLB career Sanchez or anyone else envisioned, but it can be a brutal game and at least he can say he pitched in the Majors.

For the past four years, Sanchez worked as a pitching coach for the Dominican Summer League Red Sox.  At present, he’s preparing to start a logistics venture with his brother.  You can find him on Instagram @Humbe528.  Humberto chatted with MLBTR readers today, talking about his experience playing alongside Yankees legends, what his MLB debut felt like, what it was like being traded, and much more.  Read the full transcript here.

If you’re a current or former MLB player and you’d like to chat with MLBTR readers, contact us here.  It’s fun and easy, and you get to choose which questions you publish and answer.

Read The Transcript Of Our Chat Hosted By MLB Outfielder Brent Rooker

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After being drafted by the Twins in the 38th round out of Mississippi State, Brent Rooker went back to college for another year.  That move paid off, as the Twins took him again in the first round in 2017.  At the time, Baseball America ranked the outfielder/first baseman as a top 100 prospect in the game, writing, “He projects as a middle-of-the-order weapon with power as a strong carrying tool.”

Rooker reached Triple-A in 2019.  The minor league season was cancelled in 2020, but Rooker was able to make his MLB debut in September of that year.  In his sixth game in the Majors, he went deep off the Cardinals’ Daniel Ponce de Leon.  Unfortunately, Rooker’s forearm was fractured on a hit-by-pitch not long after that.

The surgery for that injury went well, and Rooker was back in the bigs in April of ’21.  The left fielder showed promise that year, popping nine home runs in 213 plate appearances for the Twins.  One highlight: a four-hit effort against the Rays, including a home run off Evan Phillips.

The Padres were drawn to Rooker, as they acquired him along with Taylor Rogers in the April 2022 trade that sent Chris Paddack and Emilio Pagan to Minnesota.  After a few brief big league looks for San Diego, the Padres traded Rooker to the Royals in August of ’22 for Cam Gallagher.  Finally, in November of last year, the A’s claimed Rooker off waivers from the Royals.

A whirlwind 2022 season saw Rooker as a member of four different organizations.  He still managed to hit 28 home runs in 365 plate appearances at Triple-A.  Rooker joins an A’s team that currently projects to have Ramon Laureano and Seth Brown at the outfield corners and Aledmys Diaz at DH.  The 28-year-old Rooker appears to have little left to prove at Triple-A and is in a good place to compete for playing time as a right-handed power bat.

As Brent notes, he’s at least above replacement level at Twitter, and you should follow him @Brent_Rooker12.  Brent volunteered to chat with MLBTR readers today, and we’re happy to have him!  Click here to read the transcript of the chat, where Brent talks about everything from the mental weight of a serious injury, the biggest gaps between Triple-A and the Majors, his favorite teammates/toughest opponents, clubhouse food spreads and more!

Trade Rumors Front Office: Q&A

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In past polling about our Trade Rumors Front Office subscription service, it became clear a lot of MLBTR readers don’t know what it is or what the benefits are.  In the reliable format of asking myself questions and then answering them, here we go!

What is Trade Rumors Front Office?

Trade Rumors Front Office is our paid subscription service, which we launched in July 2020.  Click here to subscribe.

What are the specific benefits as compared to the free site?

  • The removal of ads when you’re browsing this website and using our Trade Rumors app
  • Exclusive weekly articles from Steve Adams and Anthony Franco.  These articles feature analysis from Steve and Anthony.  Recent examples include “It’s Time For The Reds To Explore Long-Term Deals With Their Young Core” and “The small-market team that rebuilt without going into an actual rebuild.”  Steve and Anthony also analyze recent major transactions, such as the Rafael Devers extension.
  • Exclusive live chats with Anthony every Friday
  • During fantasy baseball season (starting this month), weekly articles from fantasy expert Brad Johnson.  Brad also holds fantasy baseball chats for subscribers every other week during this time.
  • Early access to our chats with MLB players.  Subscribers are first to know about these chats and have the chance to submit questions early.

How are the chats different if you’re a subscriber?

In a typical chat open to everyone on MLB Trade Rumors, the host is able to answer about 5% of the questions that come in, due to the high volume.  In Anthony’s subscriber chats, since there are fewer participants, he’s able to answer about 70-90% of the questions asked.  If that number consistently drops below 70%, we plan to add a second weekly subscriber chat.

How much does it cost?

$29.89 per year or $2.99 per month.

How do I access it?

To remove the ads, subscribers just need to be logged in when they’re on the site or app.  All the other benefits are sent via email.

What if I sign up, try it for a while, and decide it’s not worth my money?

I’ll refund 100% of your money!

What if I get everything I need from the free site?

That’s perfectly fine.  We’re glad to have you here.

What if I don’t like paying for baseball news?

We’re not offering additional news with this service.  We are offering analysis from our writers beyond what free MLBTR has, plus live chats with a much higher likelihood of getting your questions answered.

What if this subscription doesn’t fit into my budget?

We respect that and we’re happy we’ve been able to offer a free, ad-supported website for 17 years and counting.

Are you going to make the free website worse or paywall it in some way?

No, and we’ve actually got all sorts of plans to make the free website even better.  It can be a tough needle to thread, but Trade Rumors Front Office is for those who have the means, would like to support us directly, and want to go even deeper with our writers in terms of analysis and interaction.

Don’t you make money off the ads on the free site?

Yes, ads represent the vast majority of our revenue.  In that sense, the website isn’t completely free, as you’re letting us show you ads (assuming you’re not using an ad blocker).

We don’t have an ad sales team going out and negotiating deals with advertisers.  Instead, we plug in code from the major online ad middlemen (like Google), and they take a cut.  So, we don’t control the specific ads that appear on the site.  We also don’t control the rates at which those ads pay.  2022 was our worst year for ad rates in a decade, with the exception of 2020.  There are a few levers I can try to pull, but I also think it’s good for the company long-term to grow the subscription service.

Is there a way I can support MLBTR without getting a paid subscription?

Yes!  Tell your MLB fan friends to visit mlbtraderumors.com or download the free Trade Rumors app, and share our stuff on social media like Twitter and Facebook.

If you do want a Trade Rumors Front Office subscription, click here!

Read The Transcript Of Our Chat Hosted By Former MLB Pitcher Brandon Beachy

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Over 1,500 players were taken in the 2008 MLB draft, and Indiana Wesleyan University third baseman and closer Brandon Beachy was not one of them.  Braves scout Gene Kerns signed him as an undrafted free agent for $20,000, and later remarked, “He’s just a young man with a lot of talent that no one discovered.”

After Beachy led the minors with a 1.73 ERA as a starting pitcher in 2010, he could no longer be ignored.  He got the call at age 24, and in his second big league start Beachy struck out nine in an outing against the Nationals.  He made the Braves’ NLDS roster against the Giants, but didn’t get into a game in that series.

Beachy broke camp in the Braves’ rotation in 2011 and had an excellent season.  He put up a 3.68 ERA in 25 starts, leading all of MLB in strikeout rate among those with at least 140 innings.  Beachy’s 169 punchouts set a Braves rookie record, until Julio Teheran topped it by one two years later and Spencer Strider flew past both of them last year.  And keep in mind, 2011 was a time when the average MLB starter had a 17.6 K%, as opposed to 21.6% in 2022.  Beachy put up a 28.6 K% that year, in his first full season.

Beachy was still riding high on June 16th, 2012, leading the Majors with a 2.00 ERA after 13 starts.  Unfortunately, at that point Beachy wound up needing Tommy John surgery.  Only 13 months later, Beachy was back on a Major League mound with Atlanta.  His ascent was again derailed when it was discovered he’d need a second Tommy John procedure the following spring.

Non-tendered by the Braves after 2014, Beachy signed a deal with the Dodgers in February 2015.  He made it back for a couple starts in July of 2015, but sadly, those would be the last of Beachy’s MLB career.  He made one appearance for the Arizona League Dodgers in 2016, and didn’t resurface again until signing with the independent league New Britain Bees in August 2018.  Beachy parlayed that into a minor league deal with the Giants in 2019.  He made one appearance for the Sugar Land Skeeters in 2020 before calling it quits at age 34.  As Beachy puts it in an email to MLBTR, “Fear of what was next led to a few comeback attempts (some indy ball and minors) I probably shouldn’t have made.”

Unfortunately, the realization around MLB that pitchers need more than 13 months to recover from Tommy John surgery came after Beachy first received the procedure.  His story serves as a reminder that a return to form is far from guaranteed after this serious surgery.

It was surprising that Beachy made it to the Majors in the first place, and then after he established himself it was surprising that he only made 48 career starts.  However, he can still say that at some point 11 or 12 years ago, he was one of the very best pitchers in MLB.  In 2011, Beachy punched out 10+ batters on three separate occasions.  And in 2012 against the Marlins, he authored a complete game, 122-pitch shutout.

Once one of the faces of the Braves franchise, Brandon is now into franchising in a different sense.  In explaining his post-playing career, Beachy says, “Franchising was for me. I could use the skills that I developed through a life in sports (hard work, self-motivation, resilience, teamwork and leadership) and apply them to a proven system to be successful.”  That led Brandon to a company called FranChoice, where he offers “a free service of educating other former players, and people of all walks of life too about franchising and then after getting to know them, match them with businesses that would be fits for them and their goals, guiding them through that process.”  You can check out Brandon’s LinkedIn page here.

Brandon chatted with MLBTR readers for nearly two hours today, regaling us with some fantastic baseball stories.  The one about his hijinks at Wrigley Field is a classic.  Brandon also discussed his former Braves teammates, his Tommy John experience, pitching against former stars of the game, and much more.  Read the transcript here.

If you’re a current or former MLB player, we’d love to have you on for a chat!  It’s quite easy to do, and you get to pick which questions to publish and answer.  Reach out if you’re interested!

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