Red Sox Rumors

D-Backs Assistant GM Jared Porter Traces His Path to Arizona

By brettballantini | March 8, 2017 at 6:55pm CDT

A 69-win season spelled an abrupt end for the D-backs front office regime that was led by chief baseball officer Tony La Russa (who remains in the organization in another capacity), general manager Dave Stewart and senior vice president De Jon Watson.

Enter new Arizona GM Mike Hazen, who tapped former standout Boston execs Amiel Sawdaye and Jared Porter, along with former Red Sox bench coach Torey Lovullo, to remake a franchise that may have lost its way.

We caught up to Porter, Arizona’s senior vice president and assistant GM, in order to get a peek into the changes the Diamondbacks are implementing this season.

But in part one of this interview, Porter traces his remarkable fortune in the game so far, including four championships (three in Boston, one with the Chicago Cubs). Is he a lucky charm? Well, Diamondbacks fans can be heartened that in his first seasons in Boston and Chicago, he helped the clubs snap World Series droughts of 86 and 108 years, respectively:

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Much is made of the Boston roots of Mike Hazen, Amiel Sawdaye, you, and even new manager Torey Lovullo. Given the different roles you all played with the Red Sox, did you conceive of a time when you might all be together again, with commensurate promotions?

I’m very fortunate to have been able to learn from and work with so many talented executives in Boston. It’s one of those things where you don’t realize just how much your career can be shaped by who you work for and learn from early on—and it’s immeasurable.

In my case, I happened to get an internship working with and for the best executive in baseball history, Theo Epstein. The culture that Theo created in Boston (and now in Chicago, with Jed Hoyer) is so unique. I feel like I’ve been part of an incredible and captivating baseball operations think tank ever since I started as an intern with Boston in 2004, with everybody working as hard as they can and trying to learn as much as they can, with the freedom and comfort to express opinions and explore both old and new ways of thought with regards to player evaluation, acquisition, development and analysis. I’m forever grateful to Ben Cherington, for hiring me and giving me my first opportunity.

That think tank culture is certainly something we are going to try as hard as we can to replicate in Arizona. Along with others such as Theo, Jed, Ben, Raquel Ferreira, Brian O’Halloran, Jason McLeod, and Allard Baird, Mike and Amiel were big parts of that culture, with their fingerprints all over Boston’s World Series championships and current roster.

Did you have an inkling that you were valued to such a degree by Mike that he would seek you out in Arizona as he did? When you left Boston after the 2015 season, leaving them behind for a year, was there any sort of exit interview/between the lines/wink-wink where you had a sense you might work together again down the line?

Things never seem to happen in a linear manner when it comes to a career path, so there was never any sort of “wink-wink,” but Mike, Amiel, and myself have always been very close and have always enjoyed working together. With that said, the preexisting relationships I had when I went to the Cubs along with some very strong ones I developed over the year-plus I spent in Chicago made it a very tough place to leave, on both a personal and professional level.

I think the Cubs will be just fine without me, though!

What was your adjustment moving from a Ben Cherington front office in Boston to Theo’s in Chicago? Given the enormous successes both teams have had, there must be a lot of similarities. But is there a single contrast that stands out?

We all worked together for so many years in Boston, making the front offices very similar in style and goals. It was a smooth transition from Boston to Chicago, given the similar styles and scouting/development infrastructures coming from what Theo instilled in all of us in Boston.

The biggest difference between the two front offices is that the Cubs have really pressed forward with regards to analytics and new forms of data analysis, because Theo was able to pick up from he left off in Boston while starting from scratch in Chicago. Data analysis is nonstop for them, with a perfectly designed platform to access all of this information. From minor league coaches, to scouts, to major league coaching staff, the analytics make everyone more efficient and knowledgeable. It’s an area that we have already started, and will continue to press forward with, on the Diamondbacks.

Does Theo give you crap for walking into a 103-win team and cherry picking a ring?

[Laughing] No, he doesn’t. But I give it to myself!

Admittedly, it was great timing for me. I’m really lucky that he and Jed gave me the chance to be a part of winning a World Series with the Cubs. The ring is a nice bonus, but the amount I was able to learn being around those guys again for another year-plus, and being ingrained into the great culture they (along with manager Joe Maddon) have created in Chicago is my biggest takeaway. Theo’s probably given me more crap for cherry picking from the culture, and I don’t blame him. They have a great thing going there.

As long as we’re talking Cubs, can you give me your personal Game 7 experience?

Oh man, what an incredible game and series. [Ex-Cubs pitcher and current team exec] Ryan Dempster said it best on the bus ride from Progressive Field to the airport after the game, something to the effect of, “There’s no way the Cubs were going to win their first World Series in 108 years without some sort of dramatic story within the game.”

And it’s true. The twists and turns throughout the Series and specifically in Game 7 were captivating and gut-wrenching. The Indians were and are a great team; it could have gone either way. I’ve been fortunate to be a part of a few world champions over the years, so the best part for me is seeing players, coaches, front office executives and scouts win one for the first time. To me, that provides an incredible amount of gratitude. It serves as a reminder of how tough it is to be part of a team that wins it, and also how lucky all of us who work in baseball are to be a part of it.

Speaking of breaking 108-year droughts, do you practice any particular superstitions in spite of being an analytics-driven kind of fella?

I don’t want to say too much here—and acknowledging that it’s the players who win games on the field—but we’ll do just about anything in the front office suite during a game to change our luck and try to will the team to get a few runs. Typically it involves a lot of hot dogs, chocolate cake, and even the occasional vegetable crudité and tapenade combo.

Part two of this Q&A, which focuses on Porter’s preferred statistics/metrics for player evaluation, his front-office responsibilities in Arizona and the Diamondbacks’ 2017 roster, will run tomorrow afternoon.

Follow Brett Ballantini on Twitter: @PoetryinPros.

Photo courtesy of Sarah Sachs / Arizona Diamondbacks communications department.

AL East Notes: Alvarez, Tillman, Britton, Price, Sandoval

By Jeff Todd | March 8, 2017 at 12:17pm CDT

Meanwhile, the Orioles are engineering a position change for former outfielder Dariel Alvarez, as Meoli further reports. The live-armed 28-year-old will go to minor-league camp and hopefully earn a job in the low minors as a reliever. Baltimore has had success with such transitions in the past, having done the same with current MLB hurler Mychal Givens — which also provides the team with a blueprint for Alvarez. While Alvarez will continue to spend some time working on his bat — he fell off in the power department last year but has been productive at times in the upper minors — the focus will turn to the mound. The timing of the move was driven by Alvarez’s contract situation, manage Buck Showalter suggested. “[L]ooking at the landscape, we don’t want his optionable status to come and go,” said Showalter. “Someone is going to do this at some point. We’ve got this year and next year to option him. Perfect world, he’s knocking on the door as a pitcher next year.”

Here’s more from the AL East:

Key Orioles hurlers Chris Tillman (shoulder) and Zach Britton (oblique) appear to be progressing as hoped. As Jon Meoli of the Baltimore Sun tweets, the pair of hurlers just completed bullpens without issue, though it’s still not known when they’ll be ready for competitive action. Needless to say, the O’s are counting heavily on both pitchers, and will hope to see them take the mound in a spring contest sooner than later. For the time being, though, it’s encouraging that they’re continuing to maintain forward momentum.
Much the same situation holds true with regard to Red Sox southpaw David Price, who recently was diagnosed with a flexor strain and bone spurs. While it has only been a few days, he could be ready to throw again as soon as Friday if he feels up to it, manager John Farrell told reporters including Michael Silverman of the Boston Herald (via Twitter). It still seems hard to imagine that Price will be able to ramp up in time to be ready for Opening Day — at least, while maintaining a sufficiently cautious approach — but the Red Sox are no doubt concerned more with avoiding any hiccups on his way back.
The Red Sox aren’t yet ready to declare Pablo Sandoval the starting third baseman, but Silverman argues the team ought to go ahead and acknowledge that fact. While the club couldn’t have been sure what it would see from Sandoval this spring, he has not only shown up in shape but has provided evidence that he’s ready to return to being an effective player. Whether Farrell is using the situation to maintain motivation, or has other reasons, he’s not ready to say that Sandoval has regained his job at the hot corner. And that’s just fine with Sandoval, who says that’s not his primary objective. “I do have goals, but my goals are to be healthy,” Sandoval tells Silverman. “If I’m healthy and continue to work, I think I can help my team win games.”

East Notes: Kolek, Owens, Bautista, Gurriel

By Jeff Todd | March 6, 2017 at 11:01pm CDT

Righty Tyler Kolek, who the Marlins selected second overall in the 2014 draft, remains an important part of the club’s long-term plans — even though Tommy John surgery and performance questions cloud his outlook. As Tim Healey of the Sun Sentinel reports, Kolek is embarking upon the all-important ramp up back toward competitive pitching. He’s frustrated by the inevitably slow progress, but seems to be putting in all the work that has been demanded of him. Miami farm director Marco DelPiano says he still believes that Kolek has the talent to excel in the majors, though clearly there’s a long way to go to realizing that potential.

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

The Red Sox continue to see less-than-ideal results from lefty Henry Owens, as Tim Britton of the Providence Journal writes. Once a highly regarded prospect, and still an important part of the organization’s rotation depth, Owens most recently coughed up four free passes in an inning of work. Though the 24-year-old got a head start on throwing over the offseason, in hopes of a smooth launch with his mechanics, he acknowledges that “it hasn’t carried over yet.” Manager John Farrell says it’s a continuation of a long-known issue. “It’s something we talked about before camp,” he said. “The improved command is a primary objective. Today it wasn’t there.”
Jose Bautista spurned a much bigger contract offer to return to the Blue Jays, according to Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports. The veteran outfielder could have scored a three-year deal with “well over $50MM in guaranteed money,” per the report, but chose to head back to Toronto for one year at a $18.5MM guarantee (combined with a mutual and then a vesting option). While it’s not clear from where it issued, the offer is said to have materialized in mid-January, which is particularly notable when considering the oft-discussed narrative that sluggers like Bautista weren’t able to generate much interest this winter. Bautista, 36, says he considered all relevant factors. Ultimately, he says, “this is here I’m happy and comfortable.”
Meanwhile, John Lott of The Athletic takes an interesting look at one of Bautista’s newest teammates in the Blue Jays organization, youngster Lourdes Gurriel. Though he’s not expected to factor at the MLB level this year — it’s still not even clear where he’ll end up in the field, though he’ll start out as a shortstop — the 23-year-old had a significant role in the club’s offseason approach. Gurriel ultimately turned down an offer from the Cardinals that was similar to the $22MM he got from Toronto. Of course, he’ll have to pay the people who brought him out of Cuba out of that contract; Gurriel says the cost is “in the millions.” Lott explores the interesting path taken by Gurriel (and older brother Yulieski) in a story that’s well worth a full read.

Offseason In Review: Boston Red Sox

By Mark Polishuk | March 6, 2017 at 5:15pm CDT

This is the latest entry in MLBTR’s Offseason In Review series.

You can’t really call it a “quiet” offseason when you swing perhaps the winter’s biggest blockbuster, though the Red Sox seem to be counting on internal pieces just as much as their few new faces in order to defend their AL East title.

Major League Signings

Mitch Moreland, 1B: One year, $5.5MM
Total spend: $5.5MM

Trades And Claims

Acquired SP Chris Sale from White Sox for 2B Yoan Moncada, SP Michael Kopech, OF Luis Alexander Basabe and RP Victor Diaz
Acquired RP Tyler Thornburg from Brewers for 3B/1B Travis Shaw, SS Mauricio Dubon, RHP Josh Pennington and cash/player to be named later
Acquired 2B Josh Tobias from Phillies for SP/RP Clay Buchholz
Claimed 1B/OF Steve Selsky off waivers from Reds
Claimed IF Josh Rutledge from Rockies in the Rule 5 Draft

Notable Minor League Signings

Brian Bogusevic, Dan Butler, Cesar Cabral, Erik Cordier, Matt Dominguez, Kyle Kendrick, Junior Lake, Edgar Olmos, Mike Olt, Carlos Quentin, Hector Velazquez

Extensions

None

Notable Losses

David Ortiz (retirement), Koji Uehara, Brad Ziegler, Junichi Tazawa, Buchholz, Moncada, Kopech, Shaw, Ryan Hanigan, Bryan Holaday

Red Sox roster; Red Sox payroll information

Needs Addressed

After signing David Price last winter and trading for Rick Porcello in December 2014, the Red Sox made yet another offseason splash to upgrade their rotation, and arguably the biggest one yet in Chris Sale. The southpaw has been nothing less than one of baseball’s best pitchers over the last five seasons, posting a 3.04 ERA, 5.08 K/BB rate, 10.0 K/9 and 27.6 bWAR over 1015 2/3 innings. Not only is Sale still apparently at the top of his game heading into his age-28 season, he also offers ace production at a relative bargain price, as he is owed $12MM this year and then $12.5MM in 2018 and $13.5MM in 2019 (assuming the Sox exercise club options on those last two seasons).

Sale came at a heavy prospect cost, though Boston has enjoyed such incredible minor league depth in recent years that the club could justify trading blue chippers like Yoan Moncada and Michael Kopech. An established ace like Sale is naturally more help for a win-now team like the Sox than Kopech would be in the rotation, while Moncada was blocked at his natural position (second base) by Dustin Pedroia and blocked in the outfield by Mookie Betts, Jackie Bradley and rookie Andrew Benintendi (the consensus top prospect in baseball). Even with the uncertainty at the hot corner, Moncada was still somewhat expendable given that prospect Rafael Devers may be a year or two away from becoming the third baseman of the future.

Speaking of third base, the Sox dealt starter Travis Shaw to Milwaukee as part of another multi-player deal that saw righty reliever Tyler Thornburg come to Fenway Park. Thornburg enjoyed a big year out of the Brewers pen in 2016, and he is both considerably younger and harder-throwing than veterans Koji Uehara and Brad Ziegler, who left in free agency. Thornburg projects to be Craig Kimbrel’s top setup option, though Spring Training may decide if Joe Kelly has a share of that role or if the Sox could simply use both men in the eighth inning on a situational basis. (Carson Smith could factor in the late innings, too, when he finally returns from Tommy John surgery.)

Adding Sale to an already somewhat crowded rotation picture allowed the Sox to trade Clay Buchholz to the Phillies. Injuries and inconsistency kept Buchholz from ever truly living up to expectations, though the righty certainly had his share of impressive moments over his decade in Boston. The Red Sox chose to exercise their $13.5MM option on Buchholz last fall rather than simply let him walk, a decision that allowed the club to net some return for him when Philadelphia took on all of Buchholz’s salary and still gave up an interesting infield prospect in Josh Tobias.

The Red Sox were linked to several notable first base/DH-type sluggers to fill David Ortiz’s big shoes, but decided against pursuit of a star name. Boston instead inked Mitch Moreland to a one-year deal. The move allows Hanley Ramirez to take most of the DH duties, as Ramirez will likely only play first when the Sox face a lefty pitcher, with Chris Young spelling Moreland in the lineup as the designated hitter. Signing Moreland also doesn’t create a long-term roadblock at the position since the Sox think very highly of minor league first baseman Sam Travis, who missed much of last season due to a torn ACL but could reach the majors by late 2017 if he continues hitting.

Questions Remaining

It isn’t a coincidence that the Red Sox saved the bulk of their offseason business until after the new collective bargaining agreement was finalized in late November. The new luxury tax rules were of particular importance to the team. Since the tax threshold was raised to $195MM this season, the Sox were able to emerge from the offseason a few million dollars beneath the the limit. If they can stay there through year’s end, the club can “reset its clock” in the calculation of overage penalties (which penalize repeat offenders at a higher rate, and are also more costly under the new CBA).

As a result, the offseason saw the Red Sox show some financial restraint, which annoyed some fans who felt bigger moves were necessary in the wake of Ortiz’s departure and the team’s abrupt postseason exit. Moreland ended up being the answer at first base instead of Edwin Encarnacion, Jose Bautista, Carlos Beltran or Mike Napoli; while the Sox at least checked in on these and other notable 1B/DH names, the club chose future financial flexibility over making an “all-in” move to win in 2017.

Given the amount of core talent on the Sox roster, it can be argued that Boston didn’t really need to make such a big splash now when they’re well-positioned to contend for the next several years. (Plus, getting under the tax threshold now will save millions, and potentially set the Red Sox up to be larger players in the star-studded 2018-19 free agent market.) The Sox also have enough potential at their so-called question mark positions that these spots might not end up being problems at all, though there’s definitely some uncertainty in a few areas.

With Moncada, Shaw and veteran Aaron Hill all no longer third base options, the Red Sox are putting a lot of faith in Pablo Sandoval’s ability to resurrect his career after a miserable 2015 and an injury-writeoff of a 2016 campaign. Sandoval has gotten himself in much better shape, though it’s hard to know what to expect from the Panda in the wake of two lost seasons. If Sandoval can’t produce, the Sox could turn to Brock Holt, Marco Hernandez and/or Josh Rutledge to handle third until the trade deadline, when you’d expect Boston to be in play for such potential trade candidates as Todd Frazier of the White Sox, the Royals’ Mike Moustakas or others.

The Sox stood pat at catcher, hoping that Sandy Leon can find an acceptable balance between his scorching-hot summer performance and his ice-cold September or that Christian Vazquez can develop some hitting to go with his outstanding defense. Former top prospect Blake Swihart is still a bit of a wild card due to his lack of a position; while he has the most value to the Sox if he can get a foothold as a catcher, Swihart developed a problem throwing balls back to the mound during spring camp. Needless to say, Swihart’s future as a catcher is still a work in progress, and he might end up spending much of 2017 at Triple-A working on his defense and making sure he’s fully recovered from his season-shortening ankle injury.

Price and the Red Sox received a big scare early in Spring Training when Price was shelved with elbow soreness, though fears of Tommy John surgery were allayed when the lefty was diagnosed with bone spurs and a mild flexor strain. Still, Price won’t throw for a couple of weeks and will almost certainly begin the season on the DL, which underscores a potential lack of depth in the Sox rotation.

Even with Price healthy, the three-pitcher battle between Drew Pomeranz, Steven Wright and Eduardo Rodriguez over the final two rotation spots carried its share of question marks. All three of those starters had injury issues in 2016, with Pomeranz and Wright perhaps the most concerning of the trio — Wright pitched just ten innings after August 9 due to a shoulder injury and Pomeranz received a stem cell injection in his throwing elbow after the season to battle some recurring soreness in the joint. It’s also worth noting that Wright and Pomeranz didn’t have much of a track record of success as starters prior to 2016 and Rodriguez has only shown flashes of his vast potential during his brief MLB career.

It’s probably unlikely that all three will struggle (be it from injuries or just poor performance) this season, though there’s suddenly much less room for error if Price ends up with a significant DL stint. Looking at the farm, the Red Sox could turn to Roenis Elias, Brian Johnson or Henry Owens, plus veteran Kyle Kendrick was signed to a minor league deal. While none of these names offer much in the way of stability, the fact that Boston has so many arms in the upper minors made it difficult for the club to attract much in the way of reliable veteran depth this winter.

Deal Of Note

While obviously no one expects Moreland to replicate Ortiz’s stunning production, Moreland has some dependability issues even as a platoon bat. The left-handed hitting Moreland has only been a solid (.258/.321/.457) rather than a standout performer against right-handed pitching over his career, and he managed just a .700 OPS against righty pitching last season. He enjoyed a big 2015 season that saw him hit .278/.330/.482 with 23 homers and a 117 wRC+ over 515 PA for the Rangers, but apart from that career year, Moreland has generated just 2.7 bWAR over his 641 career games played outside of the 2015 season.

As noted, however, there was sound financial logic behind Boston’s decision to sign Moreland instead of a pricier first base bat. On the field as well, Moreland makes sense as both a big defensive upgrade and a doorway to lineup flexibility. Moreland won a Gold Glove last year, posting a 9.2 UZR/150 and +7 Defensive Runs Saved that were far beyond Ramirez’s below-average grades in both metrics. By improving their first base defense, the Red Sox are guarding their infield against a probable defensive dropoff at third, as Shaw exhibited some very good glovework at the hot corner.

While more and more teams have preferred to rotate players through their DH spot in recent years in order to keep everyone fresh, the Sox didn’t really have that luxury due to Ortiz (though his bat more than made up for such drawbacks). While Ramirez will be the DH most days, the Red Sox can also give veterans like Pedroia or Sandoval a break while still keeping them in the lineup.

Even if Moreland has another blah year at the plate, the Red Sox will be satisfied if he can continue wielding a strong first base glove. While Sox fans may cringe whenever, say, Encarnacion or Beltran go yard for the Indians or Astros, they may also appreciate that Ortiz’s “replacement” (from an overall value standpoint, not hitting-wise) is actually in left field. Boston received a combined -0.1 bWAR out of the left field position in 2016, and everyone in baseball expects far more than that from the highly-touted Benintendi.

Overview

President of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski has historically been pretty bold about using young talent as trade chips, and the Sale deal goes near the top of the list of Dombrowski’s trades of prospects for established talent. As much as Sale, Thornburg or Moreland could be the final pieces of the puzzle, however, this season could be defined by how some players can solidify any weak spots on the roster. Scenarios like Benintendi living up to the hype, Price returning from injury with no ill effects, at least two of the three rotation candidates firmly earning the fourth and fifth starters’ jobs or Sandoval recapturing some of his old Giants form would go a long way towards a deeper postseason run for the Sox.

What’s your take on the Red Sox’ winter? (Link for app users.)

How would you grade the Red Sox offseason?

F 25.00% (2,436 votes)

B 24.32% (2,370 votes)

A 22.23% (2,166 votes)

D 15.86% (1,545 votes)

C 12.59% (1,227 votes)

Total Votes: 9,744

Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

AL East Notes: Torres, Saltalamacchia, Leon, Hardy

By Steve Adams | March 6, 2017 at 9:15am CDT

While there’s virtually no chance that Gleyber Torres will break camp with the Yankees, ESPN’s Buster Olney writes that the 20-year-old’s advanced play against much older competition is an indicator that he could be in the Majors far sooner than most would’ve expected. Torres hit .270/.354/.421 as a 19-year-old in Class-A Advanced last season, and was named the league MVP in this year’s Arizona Fall League as well. If Chase Headley struggles for the first few months of the 2017 season and Torres thrives in the minors, Olney opines that the Yankees could be tempted to bring him to the Majors this season to play second base, with Starlin Castro shifting to the hot corner. Of course, it’s worth noting that Headley rebounded from a disastrous start to the 2016 season to hit .269/.344/.426 over his final 445 plate appearances. With two years and $26MM remaining on his contract and that strong finish last year, Headley doesn’t seem likely to be on a short leash.

AL Notes: Rangers, Astros, Red Sox, Tigers

By Connor Byrne | March 5, 2017 at 2:08pm CDT

So far during their brief major league careers, Jurickson Profar and Joey Gallo have not lived up to the hype they received as prospects, and Rangers general manager Jon Daniels doesn’t believe the organization has put either player in proper position to succeed. “Don’t hold it against these players,” Daniels told Jerry Crasnick of ESPN.com. “That’s on us. We promoted them aggressively because they were advanced in a lot of ways, and when you get to Triple-A at age 19 or 20 years old and reach the big leagues at 20 or 21, that’s unusual. The guys that hit and perform immediately are on the fast track to the Hall of Fame discussion.” Considering they’re only entering their age-24 seasons, there’s certainly still time for Profar and Gallo to establish themselves in the infield or outfield. Texas, for its part, remain bullish on the pair. “The talent and the instincts haven’t gone anywhere,” Daniels noted. With their farm system having thinned out recently and several of their top players on the wrong side of 30, the Rangers have a lot riding on the development of Profar and Gallo, posits Crasnick.

AL East Notes: Jays, Rays, Red Sox, Orioles

By Connor Byrne | March 5, 2017 at 9:12am CDT

The Blue Jays have shown interest in outfielder Angel Pagan, one of the best free agents left on the market, but it’s unlikely he’ll end up in Toronto, according to Gregor Chisholm of MLB.com. The club is content to stick with Steve Pearce, Melvin Upton Jr., Ezequiel Carrera and Dalton Pompey as its left field options and doesn’t want to disrupt their competition by adding Pagan to the mix on a major league contract, per Chisholm.

Injury Notes: BoSox, Mets, Angels, Rox, Tigers, Braves

By Connor Byrne | March 4, 2017 at 6:10pm CDT

There was fear this week that Red Sox left-hander David Price would need elbow surgery, but those worries were put to rest Friday. It turns out that elbow experts Dr. James Andrews and Dr. Neal ElAttrache diagnosed Price with a mild flexor strain and some bone spurs, industry sources told Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe. That Price dodged a more serious injury surprised the doctors, the ace revealed. “They said it multiple times; we expected this to be a lot worse than what it really is,” said Price, who added that Andrews and ElAttrache informed him he has an “extremely unique” elbow. “It’s found a way to kind of heal itself,” he continued. “It’s pretty neat, bionic elbow.” Although Price avoided a season-ending issue, he’s still likely to begin the campaign on the disabled list and miss a to-be-determined amount of starts, according to Abraham. How much time Price misses will largely be up to him, though, as the doctors want the 31-year-old to map out his own recovery program. “I’ll know when I feel good enough to go out there and throw a baseball,” declared Price.

More pitcher-related injury updates:

Mets right-hander Jacob deGrom took the mound Saturday for the first time since last September, when he underwent elbow surgery, and dazzled in two scoreless innings, reports Dan Martin of the New York Post. DeGrom’s average fastball velocity fell from 94.9 mph in 2015 to 93.4 mph last year, but it clocked in between 96 and 97 mph at times Saturday. “When I saw the 97, I looked at (pitching coach) Dan (Warthen) and said, ‘That’s a little special,’” said manager Terry Collins. Naturally, deGrom also came away encouraged. “Last year, it was all I had to get to 92 [mph],” deGrom noted. “It has to do with repeating my mechanics. Last year, I flew open all the time and my arm was dragging.”
Unlike deGrom, Angels lefty Tyler Skaggs endured a rather poor spring debut Saturday, relays Pedro Moura of the Los Angeles Times (Twitter links). In his first outing since undergoing a major injury scare last September, the onetime Tommy John surgery recipient recorded only two outs against four walks. More alarmingly, Skaggs saw his fastball dip from 89 to 92 mph at the beginning of the inning to 86 to 88 mph by the end of it.
Southpaw Chris Rusin is attempting to claim the last spot in the Rockies’ rotation this spring, but those efforts will go on hold for an “extended period,” writes Barry M. Bloom of MLB.com. Rusin hurt his right side in his outing Friday, causing him to leave the game, and will “be out for a while,” manager Bud Black said.
Tigers righty reliever Adam Ravenelle departed the team’s game Saturday with elbow discomfort and will undergo an MRI, skipper Brad Ausmus announced (via Evan Woodbery of MLive.com). Ravenelle, a non-roster invitee whom Baseball America ranks as Detroit’s eighth-best prospect, underwent ulnar nerve surgery in his elbow in 2012, per Woodbery. More recently, the 24-year-old combined for 67 1/3 innings at three different levels last season. The plurality of his work came at Triple-A Toledo, where he put up a 4.85 ERA to go with 6.98 K/9 against 4.85 BB/9 in 29 2/3 frames.
Braves Rule 5 pick Armando Rivero has been dealing with shoulder soreness, though manager Brian Snitker said Saturday that there’s no sign of structural damage, tweets Mark Bowman of MLB.com. Braves doctors cleared the righty, previously with the Cubs, to continue throwing and vying for a job with Atlanta. Rivero, 29, pitched to a 2.13 ERA and recorded a sky-high 13.97 K/9 against a bloated 4.66 BB/9 in 67 2/3 innings with the Cubs’ Triple-A affiliate in 2016.

David Price Not Expected To Need Elbow Surgery

By Jeff Todd | March 3, 2017 at 3:26pm CDT

The Red Sox announced some very welcome news on lefty David Price, who was being evaluated for a worrying elbow injury. As Rob Bradford of WEEI.com was among those to report on Twitter, manager John Farrell says that Price is not expected to require surgery or other invasive treatments. Instead, he will be shut down for seven to ten days of treatment before being reevaluated.

It’s not immediately clear how soon Price can be expected back on the mound. The injury has been diagnosed as a strain, per Jason Mastrodonato of the Boston Herald (via Twitter), which presumably could have a wide variance in recovery process and timing. Clearly, though, the news comes as a relief to a Boston organization that has much at stake in Price’s left arm — this season and beyond.

Alarm bells rang yesterday when the Sox told reporters they were sending Price to be examined by elbow experts Dr. James Andrews and Dr. Neal ElAttrache. That decision showed that the team had real concern, and raised the specter of a season-ending surgery. Those two physicians, after all, are among the foremost practitioners of the Tommy John procedure. While a visit to their offices often precedes a TJ procedure, though, that’s not always the case.

In Price’s situation, it seems, other treatment outcomes were also seen as being on the table. Ferrell noted that the veteran southpaw won’t need an injection, which perhaps would have represented an alternative. As it turns out, the news represents a best-case scenario.

Unfortunately, even with that good news, it seems as if Price may fall behind a bit. Unless, perhaps, he’s cleared for a full resumption of this throwing program at the earliest opportunity, Price may need to spend at least a bit of time on the DL to start the season. That wouldn’t be particularly problematic were it not for the fact that Boston is facing similar timing questions already with pitchers such as Steven Wright and Drew Pomeranz, though perhaps a fill-in or even an outside addition could help bridge the gap if the need arises.

East Notes: Price, Norris, Gsellman, Wheeler

By Steve Adams | March 3, 2017 at 11:08am CDT

As the Red Sox await news on the fate of left-hander David Price, ESPN’s Buster Olney runs down the list of options for Boston in the event that Price is forced to sit out part of or all of the 2017 season (ESPN Insider subscription required and recommended). The Sox do still have five big league starters in the form of Chris Sale, Rick Porcello, Eduardo Rodriguez, Drew Pomeranz and Steven Wright, though each has come with recent injury troubles. Beyond that, the team is lacking in quality depth options, though Henry Owens, Brian Johnson, Roenis Elias and others are present in Pawtucket. Free agents such as Doug Fister, Colby Lewis and Jake Peavy are still on the market, and Jose Quintana, of course, looms on the trade market. Olney notes that the Red Sox would likely have to utilize top prospect Rafael Devers as the headliner in a theoretical Quintana deal, however.

Beyond that, the Sox could wait to see which of the Dodgers’ plethora of rotation options fails to secure a spot. Similar rotation crunches will arise organically around the league, so Boston could take a more patient approach and see which opportunities materialize as Opening Day draws nearer.

A few more notes pertaining to the game’s Eastern divisions…

Michael Silverman of the Boston Herald writes that the Red Sox’ lack of depth has been obvious all winter and opines that the team took an unnecessary gamble by relying so internal options and not signing more depth. President of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski suggested to him, however, that Boston’s glut of quality big league arms made it difficult to lure depth options to sign with the Red Sox this winter. Boston couldn’t guarantee any free-agent starter a spot in its rotation and couldn’t even offer much hope of being the first line of defense against an injury. Silverman notes that trading Clay Buchholz in a salary dump could come back to haunt the Sox, but Dombrowski said that even in light of a potential Price injury, he doesn’t regret moving Buchholz when he did. “You’re not going to just hold on to somebody in case things take place later on,” he told Silverman, also adding that it’s difficult to move that much salary this time of year.
The Nationals are trying to move Derek Norris but finding it difficult to drum up interest in the catcher at his current $4.2MM salary, writes Jorge Castillo of the Washington Post. Castillo reports that the Angels, White Sox and Brewers are all wary of paying that type of money to a catcher that slashed just .186/.255/.328 last season. As FanRag’s Jon Heyman suggested yesterday, the Nats could ultimately just release Norris, as they’d only be on the hook for one-sixth of his salary (about $688K) due to the fact that arbitration salaries aren’t fully guaranteed prior to Opening Day. As for Norris himself, he acknowledged to Castillo that his D.C. days might be numbered but said he’s simply preparing to play the 2017 season somewhere. “It doesn’t change much for me other than the fact that it may or may not be the teammates I’ll be playing with,” said Norris. “So on my end it’s control what I can control. Go out there and play my games and get ready for a season.”
Current indications are that right-hander Robert Gsellman is the leading candidate to occupy the fifth slot in the Mets’ rotation out of Spring Training, tweets the Record’s Matt Ehalt. A source also suggested to Ehalt that righty Zack Wheeler could very well open the year on the disabled list and head to extended Spring Training to continue to build up strength after missing the past two seasons while recovering from 2015 Tommy John surgery. If Gsellman is indeed in the rotation and Wheeler in XST, that’d leave either a long relief/spot starting role or a spot in the Triple-A rotation for Seth Lugo. One can imagine that the spring performances from here on out could still dictate which of Gsellman or Lugo ultimately claims that rotation gig, though. Both were impressive in the debut campaigns last year.

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