Orioles Rumors

Braves Claim Christian Walker From Orioles

By charliewilmoth | February 25, 2017 at 1:18pm CDT

The Braves have claimed 1B/OF Christian Walker from the Orioles, the Orioles have announced. The O’s designated Walker for assignment last week when they acquired Richard Bleier from the Yankees.

Walker was once a well-regarded prospect in the Orioles’ system, winning the team’s minor league player of the year award after a strong 2014 season spent mostly at Double-A Bowie. He has since struggled to get much traction at Triple-A Norfolk, however, batting a decent but modest .264/.321/.437 there last season. Walker had little chance at a roster spot with the Orioles once the team re-signed Mark Trumbo this past winter.

Walker does, however, have an option remaining, and he’s relatively young, at 25. While his Triple-A numbers haven’t been impressive, they also haven’t been horrific, so it seems possible he could yet emerge as a viable big-leaguer with a bit of improvement. If he does, his ability to play both first base and left field should give the Braves or some other organization at least a couple ways to use him. The Braves, of course, have Freddie Freeman at first, but it’s possible to see Walker helping the team out as a backup and in the outfield (where he could potentially serve as a right-handed caddy for Nick Markakis) at some point this season.

Heyman’s Latest: Villar, Lucroy, Tigers Veterans, Utley, Weaver, Lincecum, Clevenger

By Jeff Todd | February 23, 2017 at 1:43pm CDT

After grading every team’s offseason, Jon Heyman of Fan Rag provided a bevy of information on a variety of situations around the league in his latest notes post. Some is mostly of historical interest, and there’s lots more in the article, but these are some of the highlights with transactional ties:

The Brewers “floated” an extension offer to infielder Jonathan Villar, says Heyman, but he wasn’t interested. The club’s initial offer, at least, would only have guaranteed him around $20MM. While Villar had a relatively undistinguished career before landing in Milwaukee, he was rather excellent last year and hasn’t yet turned 26. On the other hand, he won’t reach arbitration eligibility until next fall and still has to prove he can repeat that effort. Though Milwaukee owner Mark Attanasio may have been willing to green-light pursuit of Matt Wieters, it seems that the front office wasn’t enthusiastic about that possibility.
While the Rangers haven’t yet opened extension talks with catcher Jonathan Lucroy, it’s still expected that a deal will at least be explored. GM Jon Daniels has acknowledged as much, though it’s unclear just when the discussions will get underway. If nothing comes together, Lucroy promises to be one of the game’s most widely pursued free agents next winter. Texas, of course, is also chatting with starter Yu Darvish and second baseman Rougned Odor.
The Dodgers explored a deal with the Tigers involving star righty Justin Verlander, per Heyman, who notes that “nothing got close.” Verlander’s hefty salary obligations were considered a barrier, though it seems his no-trade protection may not have been. The veteran righty has suggested he’d be amenable to consider a swap, and his relationship with Kate Upton would likely make Los Angeles an appealing destination. While the Dodgers have a quite a few starters on hand, it’ll be interesting to see whether the pursuit of the resurgent Verlander is rejoined at some point.
Speaking of the Tigers, the organization evidently considered quite a few other deals before largely holding pat. The Mets “seriously discussed” giving up Michael Conforto for the final season of control over star slugger J.D. Martinez, but ultimately backed down. While the Astros reportedly checked in on Miguel Cabrera, they were asking for “more than half of the $150 million remaining on Cabrera’s contract” to be paid by Detroit and apparently never offered enough for the front office to bring a deal to ownership. And both the Twins and Padres made inquiries on shortstop Jose Iglesias, but clearly nothing developed with either team.
Though the Indians had real interest in Chase Utley, the team’s offer was shy of the ultimately successful bid from the Dodgers. Still, it seems that Cleveland very nearly landed him before L.A. “stepped in late,” per Heyman.
While the Reds have said they are done adding to their MLB roster, Heyman suggests the organization could make a play for some of the veteran pitchers still available. Cincinnati may even have outbid the Padres for Jered Weaver, who earned $3MM, though it’s not clear whether the club ever did so.
Veteran righty Tim Lincecum is drawing some interest as he prepares for a showcase, according to Heyman, though surely he won’t draw as much intrigue as he did last year. It’s unclear what’s next for catcher Steve Clevenger, who has attempted to rehabilitate his image in an interview with Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports. His former team, the Orioles, at least considered offering him a minor-league pact, but ultimately decided against it.

AL Notes: Romney, Brantley, Hamilton, O’s, Frazier, Red Sox

By Jeff Todd | February 23, 2017 at 12:20pm CDT

After moving on from a potential effort to buy the Marlins, Mitt Romney and his family are eyeing the purchase of a share of the Yankees, according to Jon Heyman of Fan Rag. In this case, though, the high-profile politician and businessman would only be looking at obtaining a small portion of the franchise’s highly valuable ownership stake.

Here’s more from the American League:

There’s ongoing concern in the Indians organization regarding the health of outfielder Michael Brantley, Heyman futher reports. Though Cleveland is expressing at least some degree of optimism publicly, the most important steps remain to be taken. Hopes that Brantley could be ready to take the field on Opening Day “have waned just a tad,” says Heyman, though clearly the most important issue isn’t so much when he’s ready as it is ensuring that there isn’t another major setback when he does return to action.
It seems that Josh Hamilton will be able to resume his quest to crack the Rangers roster, as he T.R. Sullivan was among those to tweet that a knee exam yesterday revealed no new structural damage. For the time being, it seems, the discomfort will slow him down somewhat, though presumably he’ll be back in action as soon as the oft-injured joint allows.
The Orioles continue to receive positive signs on two key pitchers who are dealing with some early-spring health questions, as Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com reports (Twitter links). Though Zach Britton still has “a little discomfort in [his] left side,” he says it’s getting better. And starter Chris Tillman says that his right shoulder “feels great” as he continues to throw long toss. It’s not yet clear when the two hurlers will get back on the mound.
White Sox third baseman Todd Frazier, meanwhile, is dealing with what he describes as a minor oblique issue, as Dan Hayes of CSN Chicago reports. Frazier, who is considered day-to-day for the time being, says he’ll likely just sit for a few days while the tightness hopefully subsides. “It’s something I’ve dealt with before,” says Frazier, who remains a potential trade chip in his final year of team control. “But at the same time, from what I’ve heard they’re not anything to mess with. So let’s take a couple days and see how it is after a couple days and go from there.”
As the Red Sox have moved to cash in prospect assets for talented major leaguers since the arrival of president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski, the remaining young players have seemingly taken on added importance to the club’s future. As Rob Bradford of WEEI.com writes, the Sox refused to part with third baseman Rafael Devers in the deal that ultimately netted Chris Sale. He and first baseman Sam Travis — who missed a significant chunk of 2016 due to knee surgery — aren’t expected to head north with the club out of camp, but could play a major role not long from now. As Dombrowski observes: “The best clubs are constantly breaking in young players on a consistent basis, year in, year out. And you also need it from a cost basis perspective.”

Orioles Re-Sign Michael Bourn

By Jeff Todd | February 22, 2017 at 5:17pm CDT

FEB. 22: Bourn’s deal also comes with up to $3.5MM worth of incentives based on plate appearances, reports Crasnick (Twitter link). In total, the contract can max out at $5.5MM with enough playing time.

FEB. 20: The Orioles have reached agreement on a contract with outfielder Michael Bourn, as Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com first reported (via Twitter). It’s a minor-league pact that comes with a camp invite, Jon Heyman of Fan Rag tweets. Bourn would earn $2MM if he cracks the MLB roster, per Heyman.

Bourn, who is a client of Lagardere Sports, will have a chance to opt out of his deal if he isn’t added to the 40-man late in camp, though there’s a bit of discord on the date. ESPN.com’s Jerry Crasnick (via Twitter) has it as March 25th, while Kubatko tweets that it’s actually the 27th. Regardless, the veteran will be able to seek greener pastures if the team decides not to commit to him.

At 34 years of age, Bourn is no longer the player he once was when starring in center field for the Braves. But he showed that there’s still some gas left in the tank during his stint late last year with the O’s, earning plaudits from the Baltimore front office and field staff.

Over 55 plate appearances in Baltimore, Bourn slashed .283/.358/.435 and drew six walks against nine strikeouts. Those numbers compared favorably to his best full seasons in the majors, when he was rarely much more than a league-average hitter but nonetheless added significant value with the glove and on the bases.

Of course, that’s rather a small sample, and the broader recent picture isn’t as favorable. Bourn’s offensive production has lagged since he signed on with the Indians in advance of the 2013 season, and he has struggled in particular over the last two seasons.

Even if it would be optimistic to expect Bourn’s late-2016 work at the plate to carry over, there’s reason to hope he can make a strong contribution. The veteran still rates well on the bases, and rates as at least a roughly average fielder. While the O’s already have two lefty platoon outfielders penciled into their roster, Seth Smith and Hyun Soo Kim, neither is capable of playing center. Bourn figures to compete with Joey Rickard and minor-league signees Craig Gentry and Logan Schafer for a bench spot in camp.

Injury Notes: Elbow Therapy, Hamilton, Britton, Cishek, Wright, Wheeler, Braves, Gibson

By Jeff Todd | February 22, 2017 at 10:09am CDT

With elbow health continuing to generate headlines, Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports takes a look at the variety of new treatments — generally grouped under the header of orthobiologics — that pitchers, teams, and medical professionals have turned to in an effort to avoid the necessity of going under the knife. Stem-cell therapy and platelet-rich plasma treatments are now increasingly being deployed throughout the game, though it remains to be seen whether they’ll prove effective. You’ll certainly want to give this piece a full read to understand the state of the science. Those interested in the general subject will also want to read up on the surgical alternatives to the traditional Tommy John approach to torn ulnar collateral ligaments, as we recently discussed here.

Here’s the latest on some injury and health matters around the league:

Veteran Rangers slugger Josh Hamilton is headed for a visit with his surgeon after feeling pain in his recently repaired left knee, as Jeff Wilson of the Forth Worth Star-Telegram was among those to report on Twitter. It’s unclear as yet how serious a concern the latest knee issue is, though it’s far from the first time that Hamilton has dealt with problems in that joint. The 35-year-old, who last appeared in 2015, is in camp on a minor-league deal. He has been expected to compete for a reserve role as a left-handed-hitting option in the corner outfield, at first base, or in the DH slot.
There’s promising news on Orioles closer Zach Britton’s potential oblique issues, which came to light yesterday. He told reporters, including Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com (links to Twitter), that he’s not overly concerned with the issue and would still be available to throw were it the regular season. Britton’s comments largely echo those made yesterday by manager Buck Showalter, serving to further reduce the volume on the alarm bells. The key southpaw adds that he finds it encouraging that he has not experienced any pain while throwing.
Mariners righty Steve Cishek has picked up a ball for the first time since his hip surgery last fall, as MLB.com’s Greg Johns reports. For now, he’ll only throw lightly off of flat ground every other day, though hopefully he’ll ramp up from there. “It felt pretty good, surprisingly,” said Cishek. “There’s some discomfort, but the joint has to get used to that motion again. I was surprised how good it actually felt.”
Likewise, Mets third baseman David Wright is only beginning to throw the ball, though in his case too it represents an important first step. As Mike Puma of the New York Post reports, manager Terry Collins says it’s likely that Wright won’t take to the field until the middle of March as he continues to work back slowly from serious back and neck issues. Wright is expected to receive opportunities to hit, likely on the minor-league side of camp, in the interim. New York is understandably taking a cautious approach to the veteran. While it still seems unlikely he’ll be ready for Opening Day, the hope may be that he can return to strength in time for MLB action in a relatively early stage of the coming season.
Mets righty Zack Wheeler is back on the bump and was able to throw thirty pitches today without incident, as Kristie Ackert of the New York Daily News tweets. He, too, will surely be handled with kid gloves after a slower-than-hoped return from Tommy John surgery and some elbow discomfort earlier this month. It’s a good sign that Wheeler has been able to return to the mound relatively swiftly, though it remains anyone’s guess just how much the club will get from him in 2017.
There’s some cautious optimism in Braves camp about the health of lefty Paco Rodriguez, as MLB.com’s Mark Bowman reports. Though Rodriguez “has understandably shown occasional signs of rust” as he works back from his own TJ procedure, writes Bowman, the health signs have been encouraging. Atlanta agreed to a $637,500 salary with Rodriguez to avoid arbitration, seemingly leveraging the possibility of a non-tender to secure a deal that fell below MLBTR’s projection of $900K.
Likewise, Braves righty Dan Winkler is attempting a return, though in his case it’s from a somewhat scarier elbow fracture, as David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution explains. The 27-year-old, who had already battled back from Tommy John surgery, faced a much different recovery process after his second procedure. Now, he’s working on refining his delivery to avoid future problems. Because of the time he’s missed, the 2014 Rule 5 draftee still must stay on Atlanta’s active roster for about two months in order for the organization to take full control of his rights.
Twins righty Kyle Gibson is also seeking to make mechanical changes this spring, as Mike Berardino of the St. Paul Pioneer-Press reports. The 29-year-old, who’s set to earn $2.9MM through arbitration, is seeking to tamp down persistent shoulder problems. As Berardino writes, a new training regimen has been designed in order “to teach Gibson’s arm to pronate properly at the end of his delivery” and thus “keep the humerus from rubbing on the shoulder’s connective tissues.”

East Notes: Wieters, Rays, Mets, Phillies, Orioles

By Connor Byrne | February 21, 2017 at 8:01pm CDT

The offer the Rays made to catcher Matt Wieters before he agreed to join the Nationals on Tuesday fell well short of Washington’s $21MM guaranteed proposal, reports Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. The Rays were willing to hand Wieters $6MM in guarantees and give him a chance to exceed the $10MM mark via incentives on a one-year contract. While Tampa Bay would have been happy to reel in Wieters at that price, it’s not too broken up about losing out on his services, per Topkin. As the Rays await the return of injured free agent signing Wilson Ramos, they’ll be “very content” with Curt Casali, Luke Maile and Jesus Sucre as their top options at catcher, manager Kevin Cash said Tuesday.

Orioles Acquire Richard Bleier, Designate Christian Walker

By Jeff Todd | February 21, 2017 at 12:57pm CDT

The Orioles have acquired lefty Richard Bleier from the Yankees, per a club announcement, with cash or a player to be named later heading back in return. Baltimore designated first baseman/outfielder Christian Walker for assignment to create roster space.

Bleier, 29, had been designated for assignment recently by New York. The soft-tossing southpaw managed a strong 1.96 ERA in his 23 MLB frames with the Yankees last year, but managed only 5.1 K/9 to go with strong walk (1.6 BB/9) and groundball (54.1%) rates.

While that’s obviously rather promising for a debut campaign, Bleier hasn’t compiled the minor-league record to suggest its entirely sustainable. He worked to a 3.72 ERA in his 58 Triple-A innings in 2016, notching just 25 punchouts along the way. And though he has recorded an over 3.29 earned run average in 147 frames at the highest level of the minors, exhibiting excellent command along the way, he has an anemic 3.7 K/9 in that span.

As for Walker, the move rates as a disappointment after indications earlier in the offseason that he could contend for a roster spot. That hope largely came to an end when the O’s brought back Mark Trumbo, though it seemed there was at least some possibility with a big spring — until now. The 25-year-old, a fourth-round pick in the 2012 draft, has received only minimal time in the big leagues with Baltimore. Over three seasons of work at Triple-A, he slashed .260/.324/.429. Though he split his time last year between first base and the outfield, that represented his first look on the grass.

East Notes: Bourn, Hellickson, Prado, Locke

By Jeff Todd | February 20, 2017 at 10:46pm CDT

Veteran outfielder Michael Bourn seems fairly likely to make the Orioles’ Opening Day roster, Dan Connolly of BaltimoreBaseball.com writes. His chief attributes — speed and defense — are areas where the club is lacking, and Bourn could conceivably not only lead off against righties, but also spell Adam Jones in center from time to time. Of course, his presence makes it less likely both that last year’s Rule 5 pick, Joey Rickard, makes the MLB roster and that the team is able to keep this year’s Rule 5ers (outfielders Aneury Tavarez and Anthony Santander).

Here’s more from the game’s eastern divisions:

The Phillies seem inclined to hand the ball to righty Jeremy Hellickson when they start play this season, as Matt Gelb of the Philadelphia Inquirer writes. “He’s probably got the best chance to be our Opening Day starter,” said manager Pete Mackanin. Hellickson, who took the organization’s $17.2MM qualifying offer rather than testing the open market, will be aiming to replicate a solid 2016 season and then test free agency without being saddled with draft compensation. (Under the new CBA, he won’t be eligible to receive a second qualifying offer.)
Another player who steered clear of the open market, Marlins third baseman Martin Prado, discussed his decision to take an extension last fall. As Tim Healey of the Sun-Sentinel reports, Prado wasn’t sure he wanted to consider a new deal with just a few weeks left in the season. But the terms (three years and $40MM) were favorable enough for him to consider it, and he says he ended up preferring to stay in place after bouncing around a fair bit in prior seasons. As Healey writes, Prado had reasons both personal and professional for remaining in Miami. “I know I could probably get more money somewhere else if I go to a different team,” said Prado, “but I truly believe in this group of guys. They have fun. They play hard. I feel comfortable.”
Meanwhile, Marlins lefty Jeff Locke is dealing with biceps tendinitis, as Healey further reports in the above-linked post. A few days’ rest is all that’s required at present, with Locke calling the brief shut-down a matter of taking a precaution early in camp. The southpaw struggled to a cumulative 4.90 ERA over the past two seasons, allowing the Marlins to grab him for $3.025MM on a one-year deal. While it seems reasonable to hope that the ailment won’t limit Locke, he already faces something of an uphill battle to win a rotation spot; Jason Martinez of MLBTR and RosterResource.com currently projects Locke to end up in the Miami pen to start the year.

Orioles Acquire Vidal Nuno

By Connor Byrne | February 19, 2017 at 5:03pm CDT

5:03PM: The trade is official, as per a Dodgers press release.

4:23PM: The Orioles are close to acquiring left-hander Vidal Nuno from the Dodgers in exchange for minor league right-hander Ryan Moseley, reports Eduardo A. Encina of the Baltimore Sun.

If Baltimore does acquire Nuno, it would be the second trade involving the 29-year-old in the past three-plus months. The Dodgers previously sent catcher Carlos Ruiz to the Mariners in November for Nuno, who has three years of club control remaining and will make a paltry $1.125MM in 2017. The swingman would provide the Orioles someone with extensive experience as both a starter and reliever – something they lost when Vance Worley departed in free agency – and perhaps push out-of-options southpaw T.J. McFarland off their roster.

In stints with the Yankees, Diamondbacks and M’s, the soft-tossing Nuno has combined for 126 appearances (42 starts) of 4.02 ERA pitching with 7.38 K/9 against 2.32 BB/9. He has been particularly tough on left-handed hitters, having held them to a .217/.285/.356 line, while righties have slashed .270/.320/.479. Nuno’s currently coming off a two-year stretch in which he recorded a 3.66 ERA, 8.05 K/9 and 2.01 BB/9 over 147 2/3 innings, though he generated ground balls at just a 39.7 percent clip.

The Orioles will have to create 40-man roster space for Nuno, Encina notes, while Ken Gurnick of MLB.com tweets that dealing the pitcher will enable the Dodgers to open up a spot for newly signed outfielder Franklin Gutierrez. They’ll also pick up the 22-year-old Moseley, whom the Orioles selected in the eighth round of last June’s draft. Moseley disappointed in 2016 at Texas Tech, per Baseball America (subscription required/recommended), which lists a “power-reliever future” as the best-case scenario for the 6-foot-1, 190-pounder. Moseley debuted professionally in short-season ball last year and registered a 3.20 ERA, 8.24 K/9 and 4.12 BB/9 in 19 2/3 innings.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Minor MLB Transactions: 2/18/17

By charliewilmoth | February 18, 2017 at 6:49pm CDT

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

The White Sox are bringing back left-hander Scott Snodgress on a minors pact, tweets Zach Links of MLBTR and ProFootballRumors. The 27-year-old Snodgress went to the White Sox in the fifth round of the 2011 draft and broke into the majors with them in 2014, when he logged the only 2 1/3 innings of his big league career. He then spent 2015 with the Angels organization before playing independent ball last season.
The Red Sox have announced that they’ve purchased the contract of righty Hector Velazquez from the Piratas de Campeche in the Mexican League. The deal will be official once a physical is completed. The 28-year-old pitched well over the winter for the Mayos de Navojoa in the Mexican Pacific Winter League, with a 2.32 ERA and 87 strikeouts in 85 1/3 innings. He also fared well in the regular season for the Acereros de Monclova, with a 2.47 ERA, 8.2 K/9 and 1.1 BB/9 over 131 1/3 innings. He has spent his entire career in Mexico to this point.
The Orioles have announced that they’ve signed outfielder Craig Gentry to a minor-league deal with a big-league Spring Training invite. Once somewhat of a sabermetric darling for his outstanding outfield defense and on-base ability, the 33-year-old Gentry has fallen on hard times in recent seasons. Last year, he played only briefly for the Angels before landing on the DL with a right lumbar spine strain and ultimately being released. For his eight-year big-league career, he has a .261/.335/.333 line, including just .222/.290/.263 in 353 plate appearances over the last three seasons.

« Previous Page

Load More Posts

Show all

Headlines

Orioles Rumors

Navigation

MLBTR INFO

Connect