Headlines

Go To Pro Hockey Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

Orioles Rumors

AL East Notes: Red Sox, Rodriguez, Orioles, Yankees

By | at

Red Sox president/CEO Larry Lucchino told WEEI’s Dennis & Callahan this morning that he still thinks it’s “too early to put a definitive conclusion to this season” or to make a final evaluation as to whether the team’s offseason moves were wise. That being said, he also acknowledged that at least some judgments will need to be made in short order, as the trade deadline looms.

Here’s the latest out of Boston and the rest of the American League East:

  • As the Red Sox come out of the break, hopeful of maintaining a recent surge, the club faces tough questions regarding the management of Eduardo Rodriguez’s workload, writes Rob Bradford of WEEI.com. Rodriguez has been a huge boon to the team’s chances, but has yet to top 145 innings as a professional. Boston has yet to arrive at a number that the 22-year-old will be allowed to approach this year, according to pitching coach Carl Willis, but expects to at some point. “We’ve looked into it, really just scratching the surface, looking at his innings, looking at the schedule going forward to kind of be prepared when that time starts to present itself,” says Willis. “Knowing how to manage it, whether it be moving him back in the rotation, or utilizing off days. Obviously how we’re playing as a club factors in, but the most important of the equation is Eddie and keeping him going through the end of the season, wanting him to pitch through to the end. Collectively [manager] John [Farrell], myself, [GM] Ben [Cherington], we’ll look at that. But his best interest takes precedence.” While Boston wants to be mindful of the hope of having him in the postseason, per Willis, it has a long road even to get there.
  • The Orioles do not seem to have the same overall chemistry that they have in years past, Peter Schmuck of the Baltimore Sun writes. While Baltimore has frequently utilized roster moves in recent seasons to squeeze value out of its payroll, without ill effect, Schmuck now sees signs of friction. As he puts it, the “emotional equation” is different this year with several veterans being cut loose and numerous others playing in contract years. (Two examples cited are the roster-driven Wei-Yin Chen optional assignment and the question of moving Bud Norris to the pen.) It’s an interesting piece regarding a hard-to-assess element of the transactional process.
  • One area that has not worked out as hoped for the Orioles is the outfield, as Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun explains. It was never going to be easy for the team to fill in for departed veterans Nelson Cruz and Nick Markakis, but the team’s efforts have obviously not quite panned out — as demonstrated by the fact that both Alejandro De Aza and Delmon Young ended up on the DFA ledger. Now, despite having a variety of options still on the roster, executive VP Dan Duquette indicates to Connolly that an outfield addition is on the table.
  • Looking ahead by looking back, the Yankees are more likely to attack the deadline with their purse than their prospects, writes Joel Sherman of the New York Post. Taking on big contracts in exchange for lesser-regarded prospects has become a Brian Cashman MO, says Sherman. And the team has also tended to eschew the acquisition of major stars in favor of adding useful pieces to deepen its roster. Sherman says he expects a quiet deadline this time around.

AL East Notes: Bogaerts, Porcello, Stroman, Hoffman, O’s

By | at

As Alex Speier of the Boston Globe writes, agent Scott Boras recently addressed the progress of client Xander Bogaerts, who struggled in his first full big league season but enters the 2015 All-Star break hitting .304/.338/.411. As Speier notes, Bogaerts is currently on pace to hit free agency entering his age-27 season — a rare occurrence for any player. Boras noted that rarity, making sure to point out that fellow client Bryce Harper will have an early taste of free agency, but denied that he discourages his clients from signing long-term deals before free agency. Boras maintains that he’s “absolutely” open to long-term deals for clients. Said Boras: “With our clients, we give them a lot of information. I always tell teams, I don’t know of any players we have that haven’t signed a deal that they felt was a value deal for them.” For his part, Bogaerts said that he loves playing in Boston and hopes to remain there, although clearly he’s quite a ways from having to face the possibility of playing elsewhere.

More from the AL East…

  • Rick Porcello spoke with WEEI.com’s John Tomase about his disastrous first half and the importance of trying to take away some positives from the season’s first few months. Porcello, who will spend the All-Star break decompressing at his family’s home in southern Vermont, maintained that he was not feeling the pressures that can come along with signing a large contract. “They brought me over here because of what I’ve done and who I am,” said Porcello. “That’s the most important thing. There’s no added pressure on myself. I am who I am. I can’t try and be somebody else or do something I’m not capable of doing. So that hasn’t factored into it at all.”
  • The Blue Jays are “regularly being asked for Marcus Stroman” as a return in trades for pitching, reports Shi Davidi of Sportsnet. Despite the fact that Stroman won’t contribute to the team in 2015 after tearing his ACL this spring, the Blue Jays won’t be trading him, Davidi writes. Looking at the trade history of GM Alex Anthopoulos, Davidi notes that it’s probably more likely to see the Blue Jays acquire someone with some team control remaining. He lists the Padres as a speculative trade partner, noting that both Andrew Cashner and Tyson Ross would fit that mold. Acquiring a starter or two would allow the Blue Jays to transfer Aaron Sanchez to the bullpen to help fix the team’s relief woes, though trade possibilities exist there, too. Jonathan Papelbon said at yesterday’s All-Star festivities that he considered the Jays a “good fit” and would waive his no-trade clause to go there.
  • As Alykhan K. Ravjiani of Postmedia first tweeted, the Blue Jays have promoted top prospect Jeff Hoffman to Double-A. Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet notes that the promotion comes at a time when the Jays are on the hunt for pitching, and Hoffman is likely to be asked about frequently, perhaps along with prospects Daniel Norris and Matt Boyd. Hoffman was a candidate to be selected first overall in the 2014 draft but fell to the Blue Jays with the ninth pick after undergoing Tommy John surgery. Now healthy, Hoffman has a 3.21 ERA through his first 11 starts with Class-A Advanced, where he’s averaged 6.1 walks against 2.4 walks per nine innings.
  • Though man Orioles fans believe the team’s diminished run production to be a reason for the club’s struggles, MASNsports.com’s Steve Melewski opines that questionable starting pitching is the greater culprit. While the decisions to let Nelson Cruz and Nick Markakis leave via free agency has had a negative impact on the offense, poor performances from Chris Tillman, Bud Norris and more recently, Miguel Gonzalez, have left Baltimore with a 4.20 ERA from its rotation.

Orioles Will Not Trade Chris Davis While In Contention

By | at

After internal consideration of the idea of trading slugger Chris Davis, the Orioles front office decided that it will not look to move the first baseman/right fielder, Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun reports. The club has said as much publicly, but it’s particularly interesting to note that the concept was at least explored.

That stance could change if the team takes a significant dive over the next few weeks, Connolly adds. But he stresses that Davis will likely remain in the fold unless the O’s truly feel they have slipped out of contention.

Of course, as Connolly rightly explains, the club’s math necessarily factors in the strong possibility that it will make Davis a qualifying offer after the season. Though he’s been something of an enigmatic hitter in recent campaigns, ranging from putting up the slash line of a mediocre power bat to that of a legitimate superstar, Davis is still just 29 and seems a good bet to decline the one-year offer if it is extended.

A declined qualifying offer would put Baltimore in line for a draft compensation, so the team already has a strong expectation of getting future value out of the pending free agent. The gap between what it can achieve for him at the trade deadline and the value of the compensatory pick is not, presumably, significant enough to warrant sacrificing the ability to field Davis in the lineup the rest of the way.

AL East Notes: Orioles, Refsnyder, Kaprielian, Red Sox

By | at

Confirming expectations, Orioles executive VP Dan Duquette made clear that he has every intention of pushing for the post-season, as Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com reports. He expects a “seller’s market,” as do most observers, because “just a handful” of clubs profile as true sellers. But don’t expect Baltimore to take that opportunity to cash in any of its expiring contracts. “Our pending free agents, the most value they could have would be to this year’s ballclub and their contribution to this year’s team,” said Duquette. “So any pending free agents, we’d like to see them play their best for the Orioles and help us accomplish our goals. That has been our focus all year. … “We have some pretty solid depth to the team and within our organization. Our club is in the hunt and we want to stay in the hunt and we’re going to do what we can to supplement our major league club.”

Here’s more from the American League East:

  • The Yankees plan to keep young second baseman Rob Refsnyder on the big league roster after the All-Star break, John Harper of the New York Daily News reports. Refsnyder, 24, has only logged two big league games, but could take time away from veteran Stephen Drew as the team continues to evaluate its middle infield options ahead of the trade deadline.
  • Meanwhile, the have yet to sign 16th overall draft pick James Kaprielian, but multiple reports suggest that a deal is likely to get done. Sources tell Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com (Twitter link) that the righty is likely to head to New York rather than returning to UCLA for a final year. And MLB.com draft guru Jim Callis, who has broken a significant portion of the draft signings this year, tweets that he anticipates an agreement — while adding that the Yankees will likely be forced to max out their spending right up to the line of giving up a pick in next year’s draft.
  • Red Sox skipper John Farrell says that he sees good reason to acquire more pitching before the deadline, as Jason Mastrodonato of the Boston Herald reports on Twitter. Though Farrell indicated that he is confident in the current staff, he went on to say that “to add some arms to the group that we have … would go a long way to stabilize things.”

East Notes: Gordon, Orioles, Hamels, Clippard

By | at

The Marlins will be without All-Star second baseman Dee Gordon for at least two weeks, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. Gordon dislocated his thumb sliding headfirst into first base. There was no ligament damage or broken bones per Rosenthal. Gordon will be replaced on the All-Star roster by Troy Tulowitzki. Fellow Rockie DJ LeMahieu will now start for the NL All Stars.

Here’s more from the East divisions:

  • Miami is weighing trades ahead of the deadline, writes Joe Frisaro of MLB.com. The club is 10.5 games back in the NL East and 14 games below .500. They will probably have to get hot in the next couple weeks to change the current plan. As MLBTR readers are well aware, pending free agents Mat Latos and Dan Haren are trade candidates. The Marlins have also received interest in former closer Steve Cishek and swing man Brad Hand.
  • The Orioles could be primed for a quiet trade deadline, writes Peter Schmuck of the Baltimore Sun. The club already has a host of impending free agents. It could be ill-advised to deal controllable assets like they did last season. Dan Duquette dealt Eduardo Rodriguez for Andrew Miller, a trade he may now regret given Rodriguez’s success in Boston. Additionally, top prospects Dylan Bundy and Hunter Harvey are sidelined with injuries. Mike Wright showed some promise but ultimately struggled in two stints with the club.
  • It’s imperative that the Phillies trade Cole Hamels before the end of the month, opines Jake Kaplan of the Philadelphia Inquirer. While the club could find it easier to swap Jonathan Papelbon or Ryan Howard over the offseason, a robust group of free agent starters will hurt Hamels’ value in the winter. In my opinion, it would be quite shocking if the Phillies held Hamels for the rest of the season. If they did fail to find a deal to their liking, they could position Hamels as a cost effective alternative to aces like Johnny Cueto and David Price.
  • Phillies GM Ruben Amaro is excited about the state of the farm system, writes Todd Zolecki of MLB.com. “I would put our farm system up against anybody’s,” said Amaro. He specifically mentioned Aaron Nola and Aaron Altherr, both of whom are finding success at the Triple-A level. It’s widely assumed that Nola will soon join the club. Trades could also open the door for Altherr. Nola is not on the 40-man roster, but Altherr already has a spot.
  • The Yankees and Mets should consider adding Athletics closer Tyler Clippard, suggests Andy Martino of the New York Daily News. Even though neither club technically needs relief help, Martino references the Royals dominant trio of relievers from last October. Their ability to shorten the game is critical in October. Particularly with the Yankees, a trio of Clippard, Dellin Betances, and Miller would be intimidating.

Orioles Release Delmon Young

By | at

The Orioles have released outfielder Delmon Young, the club announced. Young had been designated for assignment on July 1.

Baltimore had indicated that it was optimistic of finding a trade partner for Young, as it did previously with Alejandro De Aza. Despite the fact that the veteran is only owed a shade over $1MM the rest of the way, the O’s were apparently not able to find a taker for a piece of that contract.

Young will surely draw interest on the free agent market. Though the 29-year-old is in the midst of a mediocre .270/.289/.339 campaign at present, he slashed a highly useful .302/.337/.442 in part-time play last year.

AL East Notes: Rays, Smyly, Cueto, Jays, Napoli

By | at

Rays GM Matthew Silverman says that he remains confident in his club despite its recent slide, and indicated that he does not see the need for significant deadline additions, as Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports. “If we’re a healthy team there isn’t a glaring need for us at the deadline,” said Silverman.

  • The Rays expect to welcome back both outfielder Desmond Jennings and lefty Drew Smyly in August, Silverman added. While the former has been expected to return this year, it was not at all clear that Smyly would do so. Per a Topkin tweet, there is some chance that the labrum tear identified in Smyly’s pitching shoulder is an old injury, and the team is reasonably optimistic of getting him back in 2015.
  • Among the teams watching Johnny Cueto throw yesterday were three AL East clubs — the Yankees, Orioles, and Blue Jays — per a tweet from Joel Sherman of the New York Post. All three line up as possible acquirers of pitchers, of course, so it’s not at all surprising to hear that they would be interested in taking a look at the prized righty (as, no doubt, are plenty of other teams). Who’ll land Cueto remains a hot topic; be sure to check out MLBTR’s Instagram post on just that topic.
  • Blue Jays GM Alex Anthopoulos continues to publicly address his teams’ needs with some regularity, this time in an appearance on Sportsnet 590 The Fan (via Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet.ca; Twitter links). Anthopoulos certainly did not leave the impression that he is plotting a run at Cueto, saying that the market for pure rental players is “the last aisle that I’d want to shop in.” Rather than going after a single player, it seems, Toronto is exploring a number of possible options. “Anybody that’s going to be out there in trades, we’re going to have interest in,” he said.
  • Mike Napoli increasingly looks like an odd man out with the Red Sox, but it’s far too soon to tell where things are headed. Tim Britton of the Providence Journal writes that the first baseman has already lost time with the team playing David Ortiz and rookie Travis Shaw at first, while colleague Brian MacPherson explains the appeal of utilizing Ortiz at first in order to slot Hanley Ramirez as the DH. Manager John Farrell says that he is “not turning from” Napoli, as WEEI.com’s Justin Pallenik reports. And Ortiz himself hardly seems interested in anything more than spot duty in the infield, as Rob Bradford of WEEI.com reports. While it remains at least theoretically possible that Boston could look to move Napoli, his $16MM annual salary and lack of an obvious replacement make that a complicated proposition.

Orioles Seek Pitching, Still Working To Trade Young

By | at

Orioles executive VP of baseball operations Dan Duquette said today that the club is once again looking to add arms at the deadline, Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com reports (Twitter links). “Our pitching we’re looking to upgrade for sure,” said Duquette. He indicated that the club could be looking to improve both its rotation and its pen.

Baltimore paid a big price last year to acquire ace reliever Andrew Miller. The southpaw helped charge the team’s late-season success, but left promising young starter Eduardo Rodriguez playing elsewhere in the division. Baltimore has also dealt for pitchers like Scott Feldman and Bud Norris in recent years, evidencing the front office’s willingness to add arms over the summer.

The Orioles have received good results from starters such as Ubaldo Jimenez, Wei-Yin Chen, and Miguel Gonzalez, though the latter two especially have outperformed their peripherals by a wide margin. And while young hurler Kevin Gausman is now slotting in at the back end, the aforementioned Norris and Chris Tillman have both struggled to provide good innings. All said, there’s definitely room for improvement in the rotation.

It’s less apparent that the relief staff is an area of need, though the club obviously saw the value of installing another dominant arm last year. Baltimore’s pen has combined to rate sixth in both reliever ERA and fWAR to date. Late-inning arms Zach Britton and Darren O’Day continue to excel, while the O’s have received quality contributions (at least, in terms of results) from pitchers such as Brad Brach, Chaz Roe, and Brian Matusz.

Duquette added that he still hopes to work out a deal for recently-designated outfielder and bench bat Delmon Young. “We’re still working with a couple of teams and hopefully it will come together,” he explained. Young, who’s playing on a $2.25MM deal this year, was designated on July 1, meaning that Baltimore still has a few days to get something done.

Minor MLB Transactions: 7/4/15

By and | at

Here are today’s minor moves from around the game.

  • Righty Ben Rowen has opted out of his contract with the Orioles and is now a free agent, MASNsports.com’s Steve Melewski reports (via Twitter).  Rowen’s contract gave him the option of opting out if he wasn’t on the team’s MLB roster by July 1.  Rowen has a 2.41 ERA, 24 strikeouts and six walks over 37 1/3 Triple-A relief innings this season, and he appeared eight big league games with Texas in 2014.
  • Earlier this week, the Twins signed veteran righty Scott Atchison to a minor league contract, according to MLB.com’s official transactions page.  Atchison his the open market last week when he was released by the Indians.  Atchison posted a 6.86 ERA, 5.5 K/9 and a 3:1 strikeout-to-walk ratio over 19 2/3 innings out of Cleveland’s bullpen this season, though with strong numbers in 2011-14, it’s a no-risk signing by the Twins to see if Atchison can regain his form.
  • Reliever Ronald Belisario, who was recently outrighted by the Rays, has cleared waivers and elected to become a free agent, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times tweets. The Rays recently designated Belisario for assignment after he allowed seven runs in eight innings in a brief stint with the team covering two weeks in late June.
  • The Mariners have outrighted outfielder Julio Morban, MLB.com’s Greg Johns tweets. The move clears a spot on the Mariners’ 40-man roster, which now stands at 39. Morban, 23, had a pair of strong seasons in 2012 at Class A+ High Desert and in 2013 at Double-A Jackson. He has struggled with injury throughout his career, however, and his performance has tailed off significantly in the past two seasons. He only recently returned from a two-month stay on the restricted list due to personal reasons.
  • The Mariners have released righty Justin Germano and lefty Rafael Perez, Bob Dutton of the Tacoma News Tribune reports. Both of them had out clauses. Germano confirms (via Twitter) that he will head to Korea to pitch with the KT Wiz. The 32-year-old was in the midst of a good season for Triple-A Tacoma, with a 2.83 ERA, 6.6 K/9 and 1.4 BB/9 in 89 innings. The 33-year-old Perez had been on loan to Quintana Roo in the Mexican League and had not actually pitched in the Mariners system.
  • The Rangers have traded outfielder Jake Skole to the Yankees for cash, FOX Sports Southwest’s Anthony Andro tweets. Skole, the 15th overall pick in the 2010 draft, was hitting .218/.313/.335 for Double-A Frisco, consistent with his walk-heavy but generally unimpressive offensive performances throughout the minor league career.
  • Andy Oliver has opted out of his minor league deal with the Rays, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times tweets. The 27-year-old Oliver has good stuff, particularly for a lefty, but has struggled with control problems throughout his career. He had a 3.86 ERA and 10.3 K/9 but with 7.7 BB/9 in 28 innings for Triple-A Durham. The Phillies took him in the Rule 5 Draft last winter, but he elected free agency after they outrighted him in April.
  • The Giants have signed outfielder Xavier Avery to a minor league deal, Andrew Baggarly of the Mercury News tweets. The 25-year-old Avery opted out of his deal with the Tigers this week after hitting .305/.371/.393 for Triple-A Toledo. The Giants have assigned him to Triple-A Sacramento.
  • The Orioles have signed Cuban first baseman Yaisel Mederos, MASNsports.com’s Roch Kubatko tweets. The 25-year-old Mederos hit .268/.343/.402 in parts of four seasons in Cuba’s Serie Nacional. He only hit 12 home runs in 531 plate appearances, although Kubatko notes that Mederos has power potential.

Trade Market Notes: Zobrist, Hamels, Tulo, Orioles

By | at

We’ve already heard that the Mets and Athletics have had discussions regarding the former’s interest in utility man par excellence Ben Zobrist. And New York GM Sandy Alderson has said that he is “prepared to overpay” for the right piece to boost the club’s sagging offense. In a post today, Joel Sherman of the New York Post connected those two stories, reporting that the Mets are specifically willing to offer a premium return for Zobrist. As MLBTR’s Steve Adams explained in the above-linked piece regarding the Mets’ interest, it’s easy to see why that would be the case: he potentially offers a solution at second, third, and/or the corner outfield, all while delivering the type of on-base threat that Alderson prizes. As Sherman goes on to explain, however, in spite of New York’s apparent willingness to go past what it deems fair value for the veteran, Oakland has not made him available. With the team surging in the AL West, A’s GM Billy Beane “has tempered sell-off talks, at least for now,” per the report.

Here are some more recent trade deadline notes:

  • Despite recent public comments indicating that he’d consider a trade to any club, Cole Hamels of the Phillies has privately indicated to the team that he is not interested in going to the Blue Jays, Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com reports. Hamels also appears unlikely to waive his no-trade clause for a move to the Astros, Heyman notes. But he would be amenable to being sent to the Red Sox “and possibly a few others,” per the report.
  • Even if the Rockies are otherwise willing to move franchise star Troy Tulowitzki, writes Heyman, his value is down so far that a rival GM says he’s not sure another team would take on the rest of his contract — even before considering giving up pieces in return. And a source tells Heyman that owner Dick Monfort is exceedingly unlikely to keep a significant piece of that deal in order to get more value from Tulo. Yet another general manager said that Tulowitzki has not exhibited the same “lower half explosiveness” that he did before undergoing hip surgery last year.
  • Heyman has items from much of the rest of the league, with a particular focus on possible sellers, in the column. It’s well worth a full read.
  • After entering the year with eleven free agents-to-be on the roster, the Orioles have pared that down to eight after designating Delmon Young, Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com observes. The team still has little interest in moving any of those players in order to get some value back before they hit the market: as Kubatko puts it, “the Orioles are going for it again.” That makes deals involving lefty Wei-Yin Chen, slugger Chris Davis, or catcher Matt Wieters are highly unlikely, despite the fact that all are set to hit the open market. “[Chen] can help us win a championship and he’ll be here,” said manager Buck Showalter of his team’s best starter this season. “There aren’t many left-handed starters who are in the top 10 in ERA floating around and we couldn’t trade him for someone better.”
Show all

MLB Trade Rumors is not affiliated with Major League Baseball, MLB or MLB.com

hide arrows scroll to top