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Mitch Moreland Starts Rehab Assignment

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Injured Red Sox first baseman Mitch Moreland started a rehab assignment at the Triple-A level on Thursday, Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com reports. Moreland, who has been out for several weeks, may be in for a somewhat “lengthy” stint in the minors as he works his way back to the bigs, per Cotillo.

Moreland got off to a fine start this season, slashing .225/.316/.543 (116 wRC+) with 13 home runs and an eye-opening .318 ISO in 174 plate appearances, but multiple ailments have derailed his year since late May. The 33-year-old landed on the 10-day IL with a lower back strain May 29, and though he made a quick return, Moreland went back to the shelf June 8 after suffering a right quad strain.

The lefty-hitting Moreland and righty Steve Pearce opened the season in a timeshare at first base for the Red Sox. Pearce has been down since June 1, though, and knee troubles will prevent him from returning in the near future. The long-term absences of Moreland and Pearce have left first almost exclusively to Michael Chavis, who has enjoyed a respectable rookie year. Chavis had been Boston’s primary second baseman before the injuries to its first basemen. Brock Holt and Marco Hernandez have offered good production there in Chavis’ stead, so it’s unclear how the club will divvy up playing time between first and the keystone once Moreland returns.

Moreland’s comeback figures to have negative consequences for either the optionable Hernandez or veteran infielder Eduardo Nunez, who Cotillo suggests could become a DFA candidate at that point. Although the Red Sox would owe Nunez the balance of his $4MM salary in getting rid of him, he hasn’t justified a roster spot this season. A .233/.249/.313 line (40 wRC+) in 170 PA has relegated Nunez to a bench role.

Red Sox Release Tyler Thornburg

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The Red Sox have released righty Tyler Thornburg, per a club announcement (via Alex Speier of the Boston Globe, on Twitter). That was the anticipated outcome after the reliever declined an optional assignment.

Thornburg will be now take to the open market in search of a bounceback opportunity elsewhere. He’s promised a $1.75MM salary from the Boston organization regardless. Other clubs can consider bringing him aboard for nothing more than the league-minimum rate of pay for whatever time he spends at the major-league level. While Thornburg hasn’t been a productive big league pitcher in quite some time, he’s still only 30 years of age and is sure to catch on with a rival team (likely on a minors pact).

The trade that brought Thornburg to the Red Sox stings quite a bit in retrospect. Travis Shaw ended up giving the Brewers two quality seasons; while he has struggled this year, the Milwaukee org also just called up the other key piece of the swap — infielder Mauricio Dubon. While he isn’t seen as a blue-chipper, the 24-year-old has handled the bat well at Triple-A and is generally viewed as a valuable prospect.

Tyler Thornburg Rejects Minor League Assignment

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Right-hander Tyler Thornburg has refused an optional to Triple-A Pawtucket with the Red Sox and is “trending toward being released” by the organization, Rob Bradford of WEEI.com reports (via Twitter). The Red Sox recalled Thornburg’s rehab assignment yesterday, triggering a 48-hour window to either bring him to the big leagues or option him to the minors. As a player with more than five years of MLB service, however, Thornburg has the right to reject a minor league assignment.

Thornburg, 30, has been on the shelf since late May due to a hip impingement. He’s pitched 18 2/3 innings out of the Boston ’pen this year, but despite picking up 22 strikeouts in that time, he’s scuffled to a 7.71 ERA thanks to the 10 walks and four homers he’s allowed.

Injuries have decimated Thornburg’s tenure with the Red Sox since Boston acquired him from the Brewers in the December 2016 trade that sent Travis Shaw to Milwaukee. At the time, Thornburg was coming off an excellent season, having given the Brewers 67 innings of 2.15 ERA ball with a gaudy 90-to-25 K/BB ratio. Controllable for another three seasons, Thornburg looked like a potential long-term late-inning option in the Boston relief corps.

Instead, he missed the entire 2017 season due to shoulder troubles that eventually culminated in surgery to alleviate the dreaded thoracic outlet syndrome. TOS surgery has proven considerably more problematic for pitchers than Tommy John surgery in recent years, and like many others before him, Thornburg has struggled in the wake of that procedure. He’s pitched just 42 2/3 innings with the Red Sox in total, working to a 6.54 ERA while yielding an average of 2.1 homers per nine innings pitched. Thornburg’s velocity actually bounced back a bit this season, albeit not quite to his pre-surgery levels (93.7 mph vs. 94.2 mph).

Assuming Thornburg does ultimately end up being cut loose, he’ll become a free agent who can sign with any club. Given the number of teams in search of bullpen help throughout the league, he should latch on elsewhere as he looks to reestablish himself as a viable bullpen piece.

J.D. Martinez Discusses Opt-Out Possibility

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After a months-long standoff between the Red Sox and then-free agent J.D. Martinez prior to the 2018 season, the team finally landed the slugger on a five-year, $110MM guarantee in February. The contract has worked out brilliantly so far for the Red Sox, whom Martinez helped to a World Series title to cap off an incredibly productive 2018. While Martinez hasn’t been as excellent this season, the designated hitter/outfielder has still managed outstanding production for the sixth straight year.

Once the season concludes, Martinez will have a decision to make on whether to stick with his contract or opt out of it and test free agency again. Martinez will be 32 years old by then, and vacating the deal would mean passing on a guaranteed $62.5MM for a free-agency mystery box. However, Martinez doesn’t seem ready to rule out taking the gamble. Asked Monday if he’d consider opting out, Martinez told Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com it’s in agent Scott Boras’ hands.

“For me, I just listen to him,” Martinez said. “That’s what I pay him for. He gives me his opinion, he gives me his advice and it’s up to me after that to make my decision. We’re really not there yet, where he’s given me his opinion and his advice. So I think we have to see how it plays out.”

Back when Boras and Martinez were negotiating with Boston, medical concerns on the team’s behalf helped hold up an agreement. Martinez appeared in just 119 games in 2017 as a Tiger and Diamondback after a Lisfranc injury in his right foot kept him from debuting until mid-May. The issue led to wariness from the Red Sox, which left Martinez “very confused.” The club eventually got Martinez to accept making the last two years of his pact (2021-22) mutual options should he suffer a Lisfranc injury or other significant right foot complications. But Martinez has been durable as a Red Sox, and he expressed confidence to Cotillo that concerns about his foot rest with their doctor – not other doctors around the league.

If other teams aren’t worried about Martinez’s foot, it could influence whether he revisits the open market in a few months. That said, $60MM-plus would be a lot to leave on the table for a defensively limited 30-something who’d be saddled with a qualifying offer. Players who check one or two of those boxes, let alone three, haven’t fared great in free agency in recent years. It could be all the more concerning to clubs that Martinez’s offensive numbers, while still impressive, have dropped precipitously compared to 2017-18. In fairness to Martinez, though, he posted a 1.000-plus OPS in each of the previous two second halves. A similar tear this season could give the three-time All-Star and Boras something to think about once Boston’s season ends.

Latest On Market For Madison Bumgarner

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We’ll continue our evening trip around the summer starting pitching market in San Francisco, where top rental rotation piece Madison Bumgarner resides. Earlier today, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic (subscription link) updated the market for the burly southpaw, cataloging a variety of suitors.

The Astros, Braves, and Brewers are newly added entrants to the mix, joining the already reported Twins and Yankees. We’ve certainly seen many or all of these teams cited as possibilities — among others, as MLBTR’s Connor Byrne explored a month back — but this is the clearest indication yet of the kind of competition that could be developing.

All that said, there are limits to Bumgarner’s appeal, as Rosenthal explores. We’ve hashed out many of the pluses and minuses of late; suffice to say that there are good reasons to think the long-time star still has some gas in the tank, but no real reason to believe he’s the stud he once was.

Beyond that, there are also some clear alternatives floating around who’ll also draw attention from contenders. On the rental side, the Mets’ Zack Wheeler (latest rumors) has emerged as a younger, lower-salaried, and arguably higher-upside possibility. Teams that prefer future control could look to Marcus Stroman (latest rumors), Matt Boyd (latest rumors), and perhaps even Trevor Bauer (latest rumors).

Bumgarner’s no-trade rights could certainly play into the equation here, as he’ll have the ability to block deals to most of the interested teams. As Rosenthal originally reported a few months back, the savvy veteran put his eight-team list to full use by naming a host of clear contenders (Braves, Red Sox, Cubs, Astros, Brewers, Yankees, Phillies, Cardinals).

As Rosenthal rightly notes today, there’s also not much reason to think that MadBum would decline to facilitate a move. Beyond the obvious appeal of another shot at postseason glory after a few seasons away, the 29-year-old stands to shed the qualifying offer entering free agency.

The qualifying offer issue may not seem like a major factor for a player of Bumgarner’s stature, but the recent experience of Dallas Keuchel shows it’s still of real importance. Though he placed fourth on the latest free-agent power ranking from MLBTR’s Tim Dierkes, just edging Wheeler, Bumgarner still faces plenty of variability in his ultimate earning power.

Though Bumgarner left his last start with an elbow contusion, it seems he escaped a worrying injury. There’ll be plenty of time still in the run-up to the deadline for Bumgarner to show off his form to interested clubs, including those listed above.

Red Sox Among Teams With Interest In Zack Wheeler

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The Red Sox and Mets are engaged in preliminary talks regarding New York righty Zack Wheeler, according to Joel Sherman of the New York Post. Boston is said to be targeting a rotation addition after deciding to utilize Nathan Eovaldi in the bullpen.

Importantly, there’s no indication that a deal is close. And the Sox are far from alone in pursuit of Wheeler. The Braves, Brewers, and Yankees were all connected to him recently. Andy Martino of SNY.tv suggests that the Cubs are another possibility, though it’s unclear whether the clubs are in contact.

It’s unsurprising to hear tell of a robust slate of possible suitors for a pitcher who figures to be among the top rental arms available. That’s especially true given that Wheeler is earning just under $6MM this season, making him amply affordable for just about any team.

The salary factor is of particular note with regard to the Boston organization. While the club is one of the game’s most consistent spenders and is coming off of the bonanza of a World Series win, it is also walking a financial tightrope this year and doesn’t plan to extend its payroll much further.

It’s also notable to see the Fenway denizens connected at this stage to a top rental piece. The club isn’t exactly in prime position after a ho-hum start to the season. There’s a nine-game gap in the division, which is paced by a Yankees club that seems poised to make more impactful additions, and serious competition even for a Wild Card birth.

What’s most interesting of all here, perhaps, is the potential for a quick and active bidding situation. The Red Sox and Yankees are obviously aware of the implications of one or the other landing a particular player. With the Sox said to be looking to strike a relatively quick deal to bring in rotation help, they could conceivably force the market to move. If the Yanks see Wheeler as their preferred target, they might need to act decisively, setting up an intriguing dynamic involving the club’s chief on-field rival in Boston and its sole market competitor across the way in Queens.

Martino says the Mets “have shifted into a more aggressive sell mode,” which makes sense given their all-but-hopeless spot in the standings (ten games under .500, 13.5 out of the division lead, second-to-worst record in the National League). It may well behoove the team to get the jump on marketing its rental pieces, Wheeler in particular, while other teams try to wait until the last moment. But committing even to a limited sell-off — particularly this early, and especially if it involves the Yankees — would certainly represent a bitter pill for ownership and rookie GM Brodie Van Wagenen.

Red Sox Face Decision On Tyler Thornburg

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The Red Sox announced today that they have recalled the rehabilitation assignment of righty Tyler Thornburg. While the reliever remains on the injured list for the time being, the move begins a two-day period within which the club will have to decide whether to activate him or instead remove him from the MLB roster, as Alex Speier of the Boston Globe notes on Twitter.

Thornburg has been working back from a hip impingement since late May — the latest in a line of health issues that have significantly limited him since he came to Boston in the 2016-17 offseason. He has averaged 94.1 mph on his average fastball this year in the majors, but little else has gone according to plan.

Despite the return to a velocity level that sits just over his career average, Thornburg managed only an 8.6% swinging-strike rate over his 18 2/3 innings. He did record 22 strikeouts, but also handed over ten walks and gave up four long balls. If anything, it might be surprising the ball didn’t leave the yard more often. Opposing hitters tagged Thornburg to the tune of a 92.4 mph average exit velocity, 56.6% hard-contact rate, and 20.4 degree average launch angle.

In all, Thornburg coughed up 7.71 earned per nine in the majors. And his rehab showing at Triple-A hasn’t been any more promising. In 10 2/3 frames there, he was ambushed for a whopping 15 earned runs and five long balls.

It’s possible that the Sox will give Thornburg one more shot to make good at the MLB level. Odds are they’ll decide it’s time to cut bait, even with a relief unit that’s in need of supplementation. Other organizations will surely like to see if they can help the veteran get back to what once made him a quality reliever, though it’s hard to imagine any taking on the remainder of his $1.75MM salary.

Tendering Thornburg in his final season of arb eligibility has proven a regrettable decision for the Red Sox, though it’s understandable the organization sought to recoup some value. Despite turning in questionable results when he was able to pitch in 2018, Thornburg evidently showed enough for the club to think he could rediscover his form. Indeed, over the winter, the club even cited him as a possible member of the late-inning mix.

Red Sox “Pushing” To Add To Rotation

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The Red Sox are making a push to land a starting pitcher on the trade market and “prefer to act sooner rather than later,” reports Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic (via Twitter).

Boston is said to be casting the proverbial wide net in seeking an arm to slot into the starting five behind Chris Sale, David Price, Eduardo Rodriguez and the struggling Rick Porcello. The Red Sox re-signed Nathan Eovaldi on a four-year, $68MM contract this past offseason in hopes that he could round out the rotation behind that bunch, but Eovaldi underwent surgery to remove a loose body from his elbow in late April. He’s yet to return from that procedure, and even when he does, the organization plans to use him in the ninth inning to help fortify a beleaguered relief corps that went unaddressed in the offseason.

The market for starting pitching is thin but not barren. Madison Bumgarner is widely expected to be traded between now and July 31, although the Red Sox are known to be on his no-trade last. Division-rival Marcus Stroman is a likely candidate, too, as is Baltimore’s Andrew Cashner. Detroit’s Matthew Boyd is available for a high asking price, and it’s at least anecdotally worth pointing out that Red Sox president of baseball operations acquired Boyd for the Tigers when he previously served as their GM. Like Bumgarner, Zack Wheeler of the Mets is a free agent at season’s end and is a strong candidate to be traded this month. The Royals could potentially move southpaw Danny Duffy as well, and there will be other options beyond the group listed here.

As recently as last week, Red Sox owner John Henry publicly indicated that he didn’t anticipate adding “a lot of payroll” for the 2019 season. Boston is already the lone MLB team in the top luxury tax bracket, and any dollar that’s added to the team’s payroll will come with a 75 percent overage tax as a result. Boston can avoid paying a steep financial price by either acquiring a pre-arbitration arm or convincing a potential trade partner to pay down some of a veteran’s guaranteed salary, but either approach would require a steeper price tag in terms of prospects.

The Red Sox’ farm system isn’t considered to be particularly robust — although the oft-recited “don’t have the prospects to get something done” line is overstated. MLB.com’s most recent rankings of the Boston system credits the team with eight 50-grade prospects, while top organizational prospects Triston Casas and Futures Game participant Jarren Duran have both elevated their stock on Fangraphs’ midseason update.

Mitch Moreland Could Begin Rehab Assignment Next Week

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  • Red Sox first baseman Mitch Moreland could start a rehab assignment next week, according to Bill Koch of the Providence Journal. Moreland has already been on the IL twice dating back to late May, including since June 8. He first succumbed to a lower back strain and then suffered a right quad strain upon his return. A healthy Moreland has been among many major leaguers to demonstrate an increase in power this season. The 33-year-old boasts 13 HRs, a sky-high .318 ISO and a .225/.316/.543 line (116 wRC+) in 174 trips to the plate.

Red Sox Designate Oscar Hernandez For Assignment

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The Red Sox announced that they’ve designated catcher Oscar Hernandez for assignment in order to open a spot on the 40-man roster for right-hander Trevor Kelley, whose previously reported promotion is now official. Right-hander Mike Shawaryn was optioned to Triple-A to open a spot on the 25-man roster.

Hernandez, 25, was with the Red Sox earlier this season when Sandy Leon was on paternity leave, but he didn’t get into a game during his brief call to the Majors. He hasn’t appeared in the big league since 2016 with the Diamondbacks, who took him with the top pick in the 2014 Rule 5 Draft. Hernandez saw only minimal time with the D-backs over the next two seasons and hit .167/.239/.262 in a tiny sample of 47 plate appearances in the big leagues.

A defensive-minded catcher, Hernandez has regularly posted solid framing numbers in his minor league career and has thrown out 41 percent of potential base thieves. Solid as he is behind the plate, he’s not much of a threat in the batter’s box. Hernandez carries a paltry .190/.240/.344 batting line in 431 Double-A plate appearances and just a .204/.273/.286 slash through 277 career trips to the plate in Triple-A. Boston will have a week trade Hernandez, release him or attempt to pass him through outright waivers.

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