AL East Notes: Dombrowski, Blue Jays, Red Sox
Top Yankees prospect Luis Severino is elated to be a part of the club’s playoff push, Grace Raynor of MLB.com writes. There has been a ton of hype surrounding the pitcher in New York, but skipper Joe Girardi says that Severino is taking it all in stride.
“Going into the game, I thought that he was a young man that really wasn’t fazed by his surroundings in Spring Training, was able to relax and go about his business,” Girardi said. “I think that that’s what I saw last week. It’s kinda what I expected to see. I’m sure I’ll learn a lot more about him as time goes on — and you see him make starts and how he responds to certain situations and adversity. But, for the most part, that was kind of what I expected.”
Here’s more out of the AL East..
- Indications are that former Tigers GM Dave Dombrowski is more likely to wind up with the Blue Jays or the Mariners than the Red Sox, Brian MacPherson of The Providence Journal writes. Still, MacPherson says that doesn’t mean that the Red Sox can’t learn from Dombrowski by looking at how he built a winner in Detroit. Dombrowski’s Detroit teams had structural flaws, but he took them from a team void of stars to a powerhouse organization with aggressive trades. Boston has worked to hang on to its young talent in recent years rather than moving it for established players, but many of those prospects have failed to live up to expectations.
- Red Sox GM Ben Cherington is open to change in the front office if that means improving the team, Michael Silverman of the Boston Herald writes. “I don’t think it’s threatening at all” to bring in a new voice in baseball operations, Cherington said late last week. “Whatever stake you have in the Red Sox, after what you’ve been through the last two years, you don’t even have a choice but to try to find solutions to this after awhile of doing it our own way. It’s going to mean different things to different people, but that’s what we’re trying to do around here.” With Larry Lucchino on his way out, Cherington may have to answer to whoever his replacement will be.
- Orioles GM Dan Duquette likes cheap reclamation projects and has caught some lightning in the past, but things just didn’t work out that way with Travis Snider, Peter Schmuck of The Baltimore Sun writes. Snider, who came over from the Pirates this winter to help replace the departed Nelson Cruz and Nick Markakis, was designated for assignment on Friday.
Minor MLB Transactions: 8/8/15
Here are today’s minor moves from around the league.
- Blue Jays outfielder Ezequiel Carrera has accepted his outright assignment to Triple-A, tweets Chris Cotillo of SB Nation. The 28-year-old was designated for assignment after Toronto acquired Ben Revere at the trade deadline. Carrera has managed a solid .279/.327/.374 line with three home runs and two steals in 164 plate appearances.
- Lefty Aaron Laffey has accepted the Rockies‘ outright assignment and will head to Triple-A Albuquerque, SB Nation’s Chris Cotillo tweets. Colorado designated Laffey for assignment last week. He has pitched 7 1/3 innings for them this season.
- The Phillies have released veteran righty Juan Gutierrez, MLBTR’s Steve Adams tweets. Gutierrez’s camp is negotiating with at least two teams, including one with whom it’s deep in talks. The 32-year-old Gutierrez has posted a 3.66 ERA, 7.3 K/9 and 3.1 BB/9 in 51 2/3 innings this season at two Triple-A affiliates. He spent last season in the Giants bullpen.
- The Orioles have outrighted OF/1B Chris Parmelee, Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun tweets. The O’s designated Parmelee for assignment when they acquired Gerardo Parra at the trade deadline. He hit .216/.255/.433 in 102 plate appearances with Baltimore.
- The Mets have outrighted lefty Alex Torres to Triple-A Las Vegas, ESPN New York’s Adam Rubin tweets. The Mets designated him for assignment when they acquired Eric O’Flaherty last week. Torres has posted a 3.15 ERA and 9.2 K/9 in 34 1/3 innings with the Mets this year, but with 6.8 BB/9.
- Catcher Eric Fryer has accepted the Twins‘ outright assignment and will report to Triple-A Rochester, the Pioneer Press’ Mike Berardino tweets. The Twins designated Fryer for assignment on Thursday. He’s played very sparingly in parts of five seasons with Pittsburgh and Minnesota, batting .235/.316/.324 in 152 plate appearances in his big-league career.
- The Diamondbacks plan to select the contract of righty-hitting infielder/outfielder Jamie Romak, agent David Sloane tells MLBTR. The 29-year-old Romak hit .289/.373/.554 with 22 home runs in 458 plate appearances for Triple-A Reno after the D-backs signed him to a minor-league deal last offseason. He played briefly for the Dodgers in 2014 but has spent most of the past several years in the high minors. In parts of 13 seasons, Romak has also played in the Braves, Pirates, Royals and Cardinals organizations, and he has a career .255/.344/.463 line in the minors. He has played outfield, first base and third base throughout most of his career, but this year he has also appeared in 24 games at second base.
Orioles Release Bud Norris
AUGUST 8: The Orioles have announced that they’ve released Norris. They’ll therefore be on the hook for most or all of the remainder of his $8.8MM 2015 salary. He is now free to sign elsewhere.
JULY 31: The Orioles announced that they have designated right-hander Bud Norris for assignment in order to clear space on the 40-man and 25-man rosters for newly acquired outfielder Gerardo Parra.
Norris came to the Orioles two years ago to the date in a deadline deal that sent Josh Hader and L.J. Hoes to Houston. After delivering a season and a half of solid results for Baltimore, the 30-year-old has taken an alarming step backwards in 2015. Norris has a 7.05 ERA on the season to go along with diminished strikeout (6.8 K/9) and walk (3.4 BB/9) rates. Norris has always been a bit homer prone, but the 14 homers he’s served up in just 66 1/3 innings this season are particularly troublesome.
Norris is slated to hit the open market this winter as a six-year free agent, so the timing of his struggles was unfortunate. He’s earning $8.8MM this year, making him a lock to clear waivers. He’ll have the option to reject an outright assignment without forfeiting the remainder of his salary as a player with five-plus years of service time, and the Orioles could conceivably also ask for his consent to option him to Triple-A (another right that is afforded to five-plus players).
East Notes: Braves, Albies, Craig, Jennings, Garcia
Earlier today, the Braves shipped third baseman Chris Johnson to the Indians for Michael Bourn and Nick Swisher. Atlanta had long been said to be shopping Johnson, who expressed relief to MLB.com’s Mark Bowman (Twitter link) that his status was finally resolved. Meanwhile, Swisher indicated that he, too, is excited to get started “right away” with a new organization, as Paul Hoynes of the Plain Dealer tweets.
- Top Braves prospect Ozhaino Albies will miss the rest of the season after breaking his thumb, Bowman tweets. The 18-year-old shortstop has been solid this year at the Class A level, slashing .310/.368/.404 with 29 steals. While he’ll lose a bit of development time, the injury doesn’t seem to be much cause for concern given his young age.
- After dealing Mike Napoli to the Rangers, Red Sox GM Ben Cherington said today that he “expects there will be another opportunity” for Allen Craig at the big league level this year, as Scott Lauber of the Boston Herald tweets. It’s not yet clear when that will occur, but Craig isn’t exactly knocking on the door. He’s slashed .274/.379/.341 over 298 plate appearances at Triple-A since his demotion, continuing a notable power outage that dates back to the start of 2014.
- Marlins sources say that GM-turned-skipper Dan Jennings is expected to return to the club’s front office after the year, Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald reports. If and when the club enters the managerial market, says Jackson, it could consider names like Mike Lowell, Bud Black, Dusty Baker, Terry Kennedy, and Doug Mientkiewicz.
- While Mychal Givens was strong in his first few outings with the Orioles, the club is demoting him to provide another shot to Rule 5 pick Jason Garcia, as Rich Dubroff of CSNBaltimore.com writes. Garcia, 22, is back from an extended DL stint after allowing nine earned runs (and eight strikeouts against 11 walks) in his first 13 2/3 innings with Baltimore. In spite of those difficulties, the club seems fairly committed to locking up Garcia’s future rights by keeping him on the active roster the rest of the way.
Orioles Designate Travis Snider
The Orioles have designated outfielder Travis Snider for assignment, the club announced. He’ll be replaced on the active roster by the just-acquired Junior Lake.
It had seemed that Snider was on his way out with the acquisition of Gerardo Parra, but the club ultimately decided instead to part with Chris Parmelee. Snider did not hang on for much longer, though, ultimately ceding his spot on the ballclub to Lake, who was acquired in return for Tommy Hunter.
Snider came over from the Pirates this winter as Baltimore sought to mix and match pieces to fill in for the departed Nelson Cruz and Nick Markakis. There was never much hope of fully replicating their collective production, but the O’s have nevertheless largely been disappointed by their Opening Day corner outfield platoon, leading the team to add Parra.
For Snider, still just 27, the 2014 season looked like something of a breakout, as he slashed .264/.338/.438 with 13 home runs, seemingly making good on his former top-prospect ratings. But he was not able to carry that forward in Baltimore, as his current .659 OPS attests.
Heyman’s Latest: Padres/Reds, Gausman, Cubs, Rox, Cespedes, Marlins
In his latest Inside Baseball column, Jon Heyman of CBS Sports provides a laundry list of free agent and trade-related info. He kicks off the piece with a lengthy look at the curiously passive approaches of two teams that were seen as likely to be active sellers: the Reds and Padres. San Diego GM A.J. Preller told Heyman that his team discussed a number of deals and felt that, ultimately, the long-term nature of most of the Padres’ trade chips outweighed the value they were offered. The one notable exception is Justin Upton, who, as first reported by Buster Olney, could’ve fetched Michael Fulmer from the Mets. Regarding Upton talks, Preller told Heyman: “…the evaluation was what we’re being offered versus the value of the pick and having Justin for the rest of the year. There were offers right on the line, but none that made us move.” As for the Reds, Heyman notes that many are questioning the team’s decision to hang onto Aroldis Chapman, who is controlled through 2016, when the Reds may not be competitive until 2017. The Reds backed out of a Jay Bruce-for-Zack Wheeler swap, a source tells Heyman, with a second source telling him that Cincinnati simply “got cold feet” when it came to dealing Bruce. He also spoke to a number of executives who expressed disbelief that neither team was more active at the deadline.
Some more highlights from his column, though there’s far more in the full article than can be summarized here, so it’s worth reading in its entirety…
- The Diamondbacks are still seeking an elite closer after coming up empty in their pursuit of Aroldis Chapman, and they might pursue him again this winter. Heyman lists their priorities as: a closer, a starting pitcher (someone below the tier of Johnny Cueto/David Price) and a bat to slot behind Paul Goldschmidt in the order. The Snakes talked about deals for Jeremy Hellickson, Oliver Perez and Cliff Pennington. They came the closest to trading Hellickson, who drew interest from the Pirates and Blue Jays, he adds.
- Kevin Gausman‘s name was very popular in trade talks with the Orioles, as he was asked for by the Rockies (in exchange for Carlos Gonzalez), the Tigers (Yoenis Cespedes) and Padres (Justin Upton). The Orioles also talked to the Dodgers about Carl Crawford (for a lesser package) but found his injury history and contract too risky.
- Others are “convinced” that the Cubs will land one of the top starting pitchers on the market this winter, with Price as a leading candidate but Zack Greinke, Jordan Zimmermann and Cueto all landing on Chicago’s radar as well. The Cubs are expected to shop both Starlin Castro and Javier Baez this winter. The Padres‘ interest in Baez has been reported many places, though they do have some reservations about Baez’s approach at the plate (as, I would imagine, most teams do).
- The Blue Jays, Astros and Giants all expressed interest in White Sox righty Jeff Samardzija, but the White Sox‘ winning streak plus so-so offers led the team to hold onto the right-hander. Heyman hears that the return would’ve been similar to the one the Reds ultimately got in exchange for Mike Leake, so the Sox simply held onto Samardzija. (Speaking of Leake, he adds that industry consensus pegs Leake as the most likely rental to stay with his new club — perhaps not surprising given Leake’s ties to California and the Giants’ history of retaining such pieces.)
- The Indians received interest not only in Carlos Carrasco, but also in Danny Salazar, Trevor Bauer and Corey Kluber. The Dodgers, Cubs and Red Sox all tried for Carrasco.
- The Rockies were always more motivated to trade Troy Tulowitzki than Carlos Gonzalez, as the drama surrounding Tulo had become soap-opera-esque. The team didn’t shop Jose Reyes after the Tulo deal but did have his name come up in talks; Heyman writes that the Yankees are one club that “may have fit,” as they could’ve used him at second base.
- The Angels made a brief run at Yoenis Cespedes but didn’t come close to landing him. Cespedes won the hearts of Mets fans in part by expressing an interest in signing long-term to remain in Queens, but as Heyman notes, Cespedes did the same in Boston and Detroit without any results. A long-term pact between the Mets and Cespedes is more likely than a reunion with the Tigers though, Heyman writes, as Detroit isn’t likely to enter a bidding war for the outfielder, let alone win one.
- The Dodgers showed more interest in Cole Hamels than they did in either Price or Cueto. They were completely closed off to the idea of trading either Corey Seager or Julio Urias, though. He adds that right-hander Jose DeLeon wasn’t available in talks for rental pieces, which could imply that he was at least attainable in Hamels talks.
- Dan Jennings is expected to be welcomed back to the Marlins‘ front office this winter, when the team will search for a long-term manager to replace him. The Marlins are also planning on trying to extend Dee Gordon and Adeiny Hechavarria this offseason, he hears. Talks for Hechavarria went nowhere last winter, and the shortstop’s batting line is nearly identical to its 2014 mark. Defensive metrics are far more impressed with Hechavarria’s work this season, though, for what it’s worth.
- While Rays relief aces Jake McGee and Brad Boxberger were oft-mentioned in rumors leading up to the deadline, other teams came away with the impression that Tampa Bay wasn’t that interested in moving either.
- There’s an “unhappy scene” surrounding the Nationals and manager Matt Williams, Heyman hears. Williams isn’t beloved by many of the team’s players, who feel that he’s “not loose” and “never relaxed.” There are those who have also questioned his bullpen usage, from the decision not to use Drew Storen/Tyler Clippard in the final game of last year’s NLDS to leaving both Jonathan Papelbon and Storen in the bullpen in close road games versus the Mets shortly after acquiring Papelbon (only to have both pitch with a five-run deficit in the next series). Heyman spoke to one Nats player who said the team is loose and has fun regardless of Williams’ demeanor. “I don’t think it affects us,” said the player. “That’s just how he is.”
East Links: Valencia, Lucchino, Utley, Espinosa
We’ve already had a collection of NL East Notes and Red Sox Notes earlier today on MLBTR, but there’s always more news flowing out of the two Eastern divisions…
- The Orioles, Rangers and White Sox are three of the likeliest teams to obtain Danny Valencia, an MLB source tells Chris Cotillo of SB Nation. Of these clubs, Chicago would have the inside track since they have the higher waiver priority than Baltimore or Texas (presuming, of course, that the four teams behind the Pale Hose don’t put in a claim of their own). Valencia was rather surprisingly designated for assignment by the Blue Jays and he isn’t expected to clear trade waivers.
- Larry Lucchino could one day land in the Hall of Fame, but the Red Sox have a very capable replacement for their President/CEO in Sam Kennedy, Peter Abraham of The Boston Globe writes. “This is Sam’s time,” one team source said. “Everybody in the building knows that.” Abraham writes that there have been internal concerns in the past that Kennedy would leave the Red Sox to become president of another team. Other teams and even businesses outside of baseball have recruited Kennedy over the years. Now, he’ll stay in Boston as he succeeds Lucchino.
- The AL East landscape changed at the trade deadline, Peter Schmuck of The Baltimore Sun writes. The Blue Jays stole all the headlines in the division, but Schmuck believes that the Orioles found better offensive chemistry with their acquisition of Gerardo Parra. Schmuck also gives his thoughts on the rest of the division, including the Yankees, who apparently hold their farm system’s best talent in very high esteem.
- Phillies second baseman Chase Utley, an August trade candidate, is making progress on his rehab assignment and could rejoin the big league club soon, as MLB.com’s Nick Suss writes. When he does get back, he’ll go straight to the starting lineup, even if he’s not in Philly for long. “There’s no way I’m just going to let him sit on the bench,” manager Pete Mackanin said. “Because he’s got value and I think he’s got a lot left.”
- Danny Espinosa has played a big role for the Nationals this season, but with their regular infield starters back, Espinosa is in a playing-time crunch, Chelsea Janes of the Washington Times writes. His versatility makes him a prime bench piece, however, and as Janes notes, Espinosa could well find regular time again if veterans need a rest or if the Nats suffer further injuries.
- Despite selling off key pieces at the deadline, Marlins president Michael Hill says there will be brighter days ahead in Miami. “There’s optimism in South Florida,” Hill told MLB Network Radio (on Twitter). “We feel like we have a great core…We’re looking at an ace in Jose Fernandez and one of the best power hitters in Giancarlo Stanton.”
AL East Notes: Revere, Orioles, Red Sox, Jays
A look at the AL East..
- The Orioles came “very close” to acquiring Ben Revere from the Phillies before the Blue Jays swooped in and got him, Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com tweets.
- Orioles GM Dan Duquette said that designating Bud Norris for assignment was “a personal disappointment,” as Britt Ghiroli of MLB.com tweets. Baltimore explored trades with every team they talked to before DFA’ing him, so they’re not terribly optimistic now, she adds.
- The Red Sox didn’t make big moves today but GM Ben Cherington says he now has a better sense of what Boston could do in the offseason in terms of trades, Pete Abraham of The Boston Globe tweets.
- Rays President of Baseball Operations Matthew Silverman says he will continue to explore waiver deals in August, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times tweets.
- Red Sox manager John Farrell says he’s excited to see what he can get out of the newly acquired Ryan Cook, Scott Lauber of the Boston Herald writes. “This is a guy that’s been a closer in the past,” Farrell said. “I know that there’s been some change of role out in Oakland. As we did with (recently acquired reliever) Jean Machi to come in and take a look at him, this will be a similar situation.”
Orioles Designate Chris Parmelee
5:19pm: The Orioles have announced that they’ve actually designated Chris Parmelee, not Snider, to clear space for Parra. Parmelee, a lefty-hitting outfielder and first baseman, was hitting .216/.255/.433 in 102 plate appearances with the O’s. The Orioles signed him to a minor league deal last winter, and he hit well in 265 plate appearances for Triple-A Norfolk before being promoted in mid-June. Since then, his good power but low batting average and on-base percentage have been consistent with his performances over parts of four previous seasons with Minnesota.
2:07pm: The Orioles will designate outfielder Travis Snider for assignment, Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun tweets. He’ll lose his roster spot to make way for the just-acquired Gerardo Parra.
Snider, 27, had been hitting .239/.318/.344 in 233 plate appearances since arriving in a trade last winter. He was coming off a good season in a part-time role in Pittsburgh last season, but didn’t provide enough offense in Baltimore, particularly given that he’s purely a corner outfielder. The hot-hitting Parra, who also bats lefty, made Snider mostly superfluous. He’s making $2.1MM in his second season of arbitration eligibility, and the Orioles will be responsible for most or all of that amount unless he’s claimed.
Cubs Acquire Tommy Hunter For Junior Lake
The Cubs have acquired right-hander Tommy Hunter from the Orioles, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. ESPN’s Buster Olney adds that outfielder Junior Lake will go back to Baltimore in the deal.
[RELATED: Cubs Acquire Dan Haren]
Hunter, 29 this month, has a 3.63 ERA, 6.4 K/9, 2.2 BB/9, 0.60 HR/9, and 46.3% groundball rate in 60 2/3 innings for the Orioles this year. Hunter joined the Orioles four years ago along with Chris Davis, in a trade with the Rangers for Koji Uehara. Since 2013, he has a 3.05 ERA in 191 2/3 innings out of the Orioles’ bullpen. He’s earning $4.65MM this year, and will become a free agent after the season. He’s the lone addition to a Cubs bullpen that includes Hector Rondon, Pedro Strop, Jason Motte, Justin Grimm, Rafael Soriano, and James Russell.
Lake, 25, has struggled in the Majors with a .241/.283/.380 career line. He has played well at Triple-A this year, with a .315/.404/.472 line in 231 plate appearances. Prior to the 2013 season, back when Lake was still an infield prospect, Baseball America said he had “tantalizing tools and inconsistent performance.” If Lake does become a useful big leaguer, he’ll be a late bloomer. He’s the second outfielder the Orioles acquired today, as they made a bigger splash earlier by acquiring Gerardo Parra from the Brewers.