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Red Sox Sign Carlos Marmol To Minor League Deal

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The Red Sox announced today that they’ve signed right-hander Carlos Marmol to a minor league deal with an invite to Major League Spring Training. He’ll compete for a spot alongside Koji Uehara and Carson Smith as a right-handed setup option for Craig Kimbrel.

Marmol, 33, made a name for himself as the Cubs’ closer from 2009-12, posting gaudy strikeout numbers that helped to cover up highly suspect control. In that stretch, Marmol saved 107 games and recorded a 3.33 ERA with 12.9 K/9 but a woeful 6.7 BB/9 rate. As Marmol’s strikeout rate dipped, so too did his effectiveness. Marmol averaged a sky-high 7.3 walks per nine innings in 2012 and repeated that number in a 2013 season that was split between the Cubs and Dodgers. His last Major League action came in 2014, when he tossed 13 1/3 innings with the Marlins. That season, Marmol yielded an 8.10 ERA and posted a 14-to-10 K/BB ratio before the club cut ties with him.

Marmol spent the 2015 season with Cleveland’s Triple-A affiliate, where he posted a brilliant 2.03 ERA in 31 innings but showed the same control issues that have plagued him throughout his career, walking 27 batters in those 31 frames (albeit, against an impressive 48 strikeouts). The problem continued in the Dominican Winter League, where he walked a dozen hitters in seven innings. It’s unlikely that he’ll ever take a meaningful step forward in terms of control, but Marmol’s penchant for missing bats means he’ll likely continue to get opportunities, at least as a depth option.

Koji Uehara: No Current Plans To Retire

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Red Sox reliever Koji Uehara said today that he has no current plans for retirement, Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe reports (links to Twitter). He added that his surgically-repaired wrist is doing well and hasn’t prevented him from beginning a throwing program.

Though he’s coming off of injury, entering the final year of his contract, and set to turn 41 the day before Opening Day, Uehara indicated that he still has an open-ended timeline ahead of him. “I will keep pitching unless I am terrible and no team wants me,” Uehara said with a laugh.

Ultimately, Uehara has every confidence in his ability to perform into his fifth decade. “Age is a number,” he said. “Bring me a present that day.” On the whole, the statistics certainly support that (brilliantly-stated) attitude from the Japanese star.

Outside a bit of a rough stretch last June, Uehara put up a strong overall campaign after signing a two-year, $18MM deal just before the start of 2014-15 free agency. He ended the year with a 2.23 ERA over 40 1/3 innings, with 10.5 K/9 against 2.0 BB/9. That K:BB ratio fell well below his typical rate — which has paced the rest of the league by a comical margin. But he still fell within the top twenty pen men in the game by that measure as well as by K%-BB%.

Boston won’t be asking quite as much from the standout veteran this year as it has in the past, as Craig Kimbrel is set to move into the closer’s role. But he’s still a key piece of the pen, and continued dominance from both of those pitchers could give the club one of the game’s best late-inning combos. Of course, this season will also set Uehara’s trajectory as he nears open-market eligibility for the offseason to come.

Extension Notes: Strasburg, Harvey, Encarnacion, Buchholz

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Spring training is also extension season, and Steve Adams and I previewed things on a recent edition of the MLBTR Podcast. Several players have inked arb-only deals, and there have been a pair of interesting contracts for injury-risk relievers, but thus far only Dee Gordon (Marlins) and Brandon Crawford (Giants) have landed truly significant contracts this winter. There are already rumblings about some big names who could dabble with long-term negotiations, many of whom pose significant questions to their organizations.

Here are a few links to the latest extension chatter:

  • It does not appear that the Nationals and Stephen Strasburg have any intentions of making a real effort at a new contract, as Jon Morosi of FOX Sports reports. Agent Scott Boras had high praise for the Washington organization and its handling of the prized righty, but his comments suggest that a pre-season deal would come as a major surprise. “We amicably agreed to a one-year deal (for 2016),” Boras said. “He’s going to pitch, and we’ll see where it goes from there. It’s something we’ll be discussing at the end of the year.” None of that comes as much of a surprise, of course, as Strasburg has a chance at a huge contract if he can put up a healthy and productive campaign.
  • There may be slightly more daylight for an extension in the case of another NL East, Boras-repped ace — Matt Harvey of the Mets — according to a report from ESPNNewYork.com’s Adam Rubin. Unlike Strasburg, Harvey can be controlled for two more seasons after 2016, so there’s quite a bit more ground to cover before he hits the open market. Harvey said he hasn’t heard any talk of negotiations, but indicated he would be willing at least to consider a long-term arrangement. Boras, meanwhile, provided a trademark analogy to explain his stance: “Expectations of an extension are like dinner invitations. They are always politely considered until you know the restaurant.”
  • The Blue Jays have yet to open talks with slugger Edwin Encarnacion, his agent Paul Kinzler tells Morosi. That’s not surprising with camp still on the horizon, but the new Toronto front office has made clear it intends to make an effort to reach agreement with Encarnacion (and fellow star Jose Bautista). Kinzer indicated that he believes there’s plenty of time to work something out, with Encarnacion very open to the idea of foregoing free agency for the chance to cement his legacy with the balllub.
  • Red Sox starter Clay Buchholz says that he doesn’t think the time is right to discuss a new deal, as Jason Mastrodonato of the Boston Herald reports. “I still think I have some stuff to prove before we even get into [extension discussions],” Buchholz told Mastrodonato. Boston probably feels similarly, particularly given that the roller-coaster righty is already controllable for 2017 (his age-32 season) by way of a $13.5MM club option. 

AL East Notes: Red Sox, Castillo, Trumbo, Cash

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Despite the team’s poor finish in 2014, there are few spots on the Red Sox roster that are up for grabs this spring, writes Scott Lauber of the Boston Herald. The starting lineup is set, and the bench will consist of backup catcher Ryan Hanigan, offseason signee Chris Young, Brock Holt and Travis Shaw. Craig Kimbrel, Koji Uehara, Carson Smith, Junichi Tazawa and Robbie Ross ar locks for the ’pen, and the final two spots could be somewhat influenced by the fact that lefty Tommy Layne and right-hander Steven Wright are out of minor league options. Lauber lists four players that could make strong impressions on decision-makers and end up factoring into the team later in the year — left-hander Brian Johnson, right-hander Pat Light, first baseman Sam Travis and outfielder Brennan Boesch, the latter of whom had his best years on the Tigers, when Dave Dombrowski was general manager.

Here’s more from the AL East…

  • The potential upgrade from deploying Rusney Castillo in left field over Hanley Ramirez is striking, writes Brian MacPherson of the Providence Journal. Acknowledging the extreme sample-size caveat, MacPherson points out that Castillo rated at +9 runs in 200 innings, per Defensive Runs Saved, whereas Ramirez rated at -19 DRS. While the 90-run difference resulting from extrapolating those numbers isn’t a realistic expectation, it does highlight the potentially dramatic improvement that could result from improved outfield athleticism.
  • The potential addition of Pedro Alvarez to the Orioles’ lineup would push Mark Trumbo into right field, though Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com spoke to a scout who has a more optimistic take of Trumbo in the outfield than most reports. The scout to whom Kubatko spoke graded Trumbo as a 50 on the 20-80 scale in the outfield (average). “He’s not going to hurt you out there,” the scout said. “He’s athletic in the outfield. He’ll be fine. He’s got a good arm, he’s a good athlete, he’s a good fielder.” Trumbo, though, has long drawn poor reviews from scouts in the outfield and rates considerably below average in the outfield corners per DRS and Ultimate Zone Rating.
  • Roger Mooney of the Tampa Tribune spoke to Rays manager Kevin Cash about the difference heading into his second season as a manager. Cash said that he learned a seemingly incalculable number of lessons from his first year on the job and stressed the importance of communicating to some of his pitchers that weren’t particularly pleased with the short leashes they were afforded last year. “That’s my job,” Cash explained. “You’ve got to be able to communicate that. I’m learning this on the fly. I never had to be that guy. Now it was, ‘OK, go tell someone why he’s getting taken out of the ballgame and explain that.’ I don’t know if you ever have a perfect message. But you get more comfortable with experience.” Cash drew rave reviews from his predecessor, Joe Maddon, especially considering that last season was Cash’s first managing at any level. “I couldn’t have done the job he did last year,” said Maddon. “I had all those years in the minors, all those experiences at all those outposts, nobody watching.” Cash also drew quite a bit of praise from Evan Longoria, who spoke very positively

Red Sox Notes: Vazquez, Swihart, Bullpen

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Here’s the latest out of Boston as the club prepares for what should be a mostly predictable Spring Training:

  • Christian Vazquez is working his way back from Tommy John surgery, writes Alex Speier of the Boston Globe. He went under the knife last April and will have to prove he can regularly catch to make the roster. Pitchers generally take 14 to 15 months to recover from the surgery while position players can pursue an accelerated timeline. Not many catchers are available for comparison. Matt Wieters is a recent example. He went under the knife in mid-June 2014 and returned to regular action in early-June 2015. If Vazquez follows the same timeline, he could be ready just in time for the regular season.
  • If Vazquez is healthy, the Red Sox have a roster crunch behind the dish, per Speier. Veteran Ryan Hanigan and touted youngster Blake Swihart are also set to compete for playing time. Both Vazquez and Swihart have club options, but they’re also viewed as the future of the franchise. If they look sharp during the spring, Hanigan could be shopped on the trade market. More likely, Vazquez will be given extra time to recover from injury or develop his bat. The club could also opt to have Swihart work on his defense.
  • Speier also looks at how the team’s pitchers performed with each catcher. In small samples, Eduardo Rodriguez was best with Swihart. Rick Porcello had similar numbers with Swihart and Hanigan. Clay Buchholz was much better with Vazquez as was Joe Kelly. All in all, the analysis is interesting but thoroughly inconclusive.
  • The Red Sox know the plan for the late innings, write Rob Bradford of WEEI.com. Junichi Tazawa, Carson Smith, and Koji Uehara will form the bridge to Craig Kimbrel. The other three bullpen jobs are open to competition. The favorite for the long relief role is Roenis Elias. He’s had modest success as a major league starter in Seattle. Knuckleballer Steven Wright is also in the picture, and he’s out of club options. The club reportedly liked Robbie Ross’ performance late last season, but he does have options. Bradford thinks Tommy Layne (out of options), is the favorite for a LOOGY role. The club is reportedly on the lookout for other lefty specialists too. Bradford also highlights a few dark horse candidates to track.

Prospect Notes: Montas, Rankings, Moncada, Angels

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Dodgers pitcher Frankie Montas is out for two to four months after having rib surgery, Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times tweets. Montas was a key to the Dodgers’ end of the seven-player swap that sent Todd Frazier to the White Sox and prospects to the Dodgers and Reds. Now, it appears Montas will miss a portion of the season. Last year, Montas posted a 2.97 ERA, 8.7 K/9 and 3.9 BB/9 in 112 innings with Double-A Birmingham, also pitching 15 innings in his first exposure to the Majors. Here are more notes on prospects.

  • It’s prospect list season, and this week Baseball America and ESPN’s Keith Law (1-50, 51-100; subscription required and recommended) published lists of the top 100 prospects in baseball. Both lists feature the Dodgers’ Corey Seager and the Twins’ Byron Buxton at the top, and there’s plenty more agreement in the top ten, with Lucas Giolito (Nationals), Julio Urias (Dodgers), J.P. Crawford (Phillies), Alex Reyes (Cardinals) and Orlando Arcia (Brewers) all figuring in both top tens. From there, though, there’s plenty of divergence — for example, BA rates Yoan Moncada of the Red Sox the third-best prospect in baseball, whereas Law ranks him at No. 17, noting that Moncada might not have the power that was expected of him when the Red Sox signed him last year. Law still projects Moncada will be an above-average everyday player, however. Law is more bullish on another top Red Sox prospect, Rafael Devers, who he says could produce 30 to 35 home runs per season while playing solid defense at third base.
  • Both BA and Law (again, Insider only) also recently published rankings of the best farm systems by organization. The Braves, Dodgers, Phillies, Brewers, Rangers, Rockies, Twins, Red Sox and Pirates all fare well on both lists, and the Braves, Dodgers and Twins have seven players apiece in Law’s top 100. Both BA’s and Law’s rankings feature the same bottom five — the Tigers, Orioles, Mariners, Marlins and Angels. Law says the Angels have “by far the worst system I’ve ever seen,” noting that the Angels have no one who even came close to placing in his top 100.

Marlins To Sign Craig Breslow To Minors Deal

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The Marlins have agreed to a minor league pact with veteran southpaw Craig Breslow, WEEI.com’s Rob Bradford reports. He would earn $1.5MM if he can crack the MLB roster.

Though he had kicked around the idea of seeking a starting opportunity, Breslow will reportedly chase a pen slot in Miami. He also considered offers from the Cubs, Blue Jays, and Red Sox.

Working for Boston last year, the 35-year-old carried a 4.15 ERA over 65 frames with 6.4 K/9 against 3.2 BB/9. While the results were improved after a tough 2014, Breslow wasn’t able to show quite the same form that led to a 2.82 earned run mark over his first 402 MLB frames over the span of 2005 to 2013.

The veteran’s groundball rate is down and his home run susceptibility is up, and it’s reflected in advanced metrics, which do not put a positive spin on his past two seasons. While he has long outpaced ERA estimators, and did so again in 2015, they are increasingly sour on his work (5.27 FIP, 5.07 xFIP, and 4.51 SIERA last year).

On the other hand, Breslow still pitches with about the same fastball velocity (he averaged 90.0 mph with his four-seamer last year) as he always has. And he boosted his swinging strike rate into double digits for the first time since 2012. He ought to have every opportunity to earn a job this spring in a Miami pen that was in need of options behind top southpaw Mike Dunn.

Red Sox Considering Free Agent Lefty Relievers

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The Red Sox have been largely dormant since acquiring Carson Smith and Roenis Elias from the Mariners during the Winter Meetings, but Pete Abraham of the Boston Globe tweets that the team is considering some of the remaining left-handed relief options on the open market, naming Neal Cotts and former Red Sox hurler Franklin Morales as a pair of the options currently being discussed.

Boston currently has Robbie Ross, Tommy Layne and Elias as left-handed relief options on the 40-man roster. Layne, though, struggled with his control in 2015, and Elias has hasn’t done much in the way of relief work in the Majors or minors (five relief appearances dating back to 2011), so the team may prefer to keep him as a starting pitcher and stash him at Triple-A for depth purposes.

Morales, who turned 30 last month, spent parts of three seasons with the Red Sox from 2011-13, working to a 3.90 ERA in 134 total innings as a member of the Red Sox organization. However, he struggled quite a bit upon being traded back to the Rockies and had to settle for a minor league deal with the Royals last offseason. That proved to be a shrewd pickup by GM Dayton Moore, who was rewarded when Morales turned in 62 1/3 innings of 3.18 ERA ball, averaging 5.9 strikeouts and 2.0 walks per nine innings. Most of Morales’ work did come in low-leverage situations, but he nonetheless held left-handed opponents to a paltry .192/.245/.313 batting line with the Royals en route to his second World Series ring in three years.

Cotts, 36 in March, was absent from baseball for three full seasons before a resurgent campaign with the Rangers in 2013. Since his return to the bigs, he has a 3.03 ERA and a 186-to-63 K/BB ratio in 187 innings split between Texas, Milwaukee and Minnesota. He was abnormally homer-prone in 2015, allowing 12 homers in 63 1/3 innings, but still managed a 3.41 ERA with solid strikeout and walk rates while holding opposing lefties to a .178/.243/.330 batting line. Right-handed batters crushed Cotts, though, and his velocity dropped notably from its 2013-14 levels, as he averaged 89.9 mph on his heater after sitting at 91.6 over the previous two-year span.

It’s not clear from Abraham’s report whether the team is consider Major League or minor league contracts in free agency, but we’re at the point of the offseason where some players coming off solid overall seasons will likely need to settle for minor league pacts (in some cases with notable big league base salaries in the event that they land on the 25-man roster at the end of camp). Other names on the free-agent market Craig Breslow (a familiar face in Boston), Manny Parra, Brian Duensing, Matt Thornton and Eric O’Flaherty, who is said to be nearing a decision on where to sign for the 2016 season.

AL East Notes: Gallardo, Buchholz, Ortiz, Kendrick

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Russell Wilson’s history with baseball is well-documented, though the Orioles were the first team to make a play for the future Seahawks quarterback out of high school when they made him a 41st-round pick in the 2007 amateur draft.  As O’s scout Dean Albany tells MASNsports.com’s Steve Melewski, Baltimore had Wilson graded as good enough to be picked within the top 10 rounds, and he only fell due to his commitment to play football at NC State.  The Orioles were impressed enough with Wilson that they offered him $350K to sign, a higher bonus than the O’s offered any draft pick that year except for Matt Wieters and Jake Arrieta.  Here’s more from around the AL East…

  • The Orioles are still weighing whether or not to sign Yovani Gallardo and surrender their first-round draft pick, MASNsports.com’s Roch Kubatko writes.  Another “shift in thinking” has taken place within Baltimore’s front office, and now the club may no longer be as hesitant to give up its pick, though “plenty of folks in the industry say Gallardo isn’t worth the 14th selection” in June’s draft.  If Gallardo’s price tag has indeed fallen to a large extent, however, there could be enough value added to make the signing.  “It could be argued that [Gallardo] carries more value with them than other teams who still may be in the running,” Kubatko writes, due to Baltimore’s need for reliable starting pitching.  Kubatko also opines that he would be willing to give up the 14th overall pick, since the O’s have five other picks within the first 100 selections of the coming draft.
  • The Red Sox made a bet on Clay Buchholz’s high ceiling rather than Wade Miley’s durability, Alex Speier of the Boston Globe writes.  Buchholz has battled injuries and several ups-and-downs in performance over his career, though he’s looked like an elite starter when at his best.  Miley, by contrast, has been more consistent than brilliant over his four full seasons as a big league starter.  Speier points out that Miley’s reliability might’ve given him more trade value than Buchholz, which could’ve been the reason Miley was the one dealt, though choosing Buchholz over the lefty could prove to be a key choice of the Red Sox season.
  • It couldn’t hurt the Red Sox or David Ortiz if the two sides firmly outlined the star slugger’s role in his final season, ESPN’s Buster Olney writes (subscription required).  This would allow both parties to avoid a potentially awkward situation if Ortiz experienced a sudden decline and the Sox then had to consider benching the franchise legend in his farewell season in order to better help the team win games.  Olney uses Derek Jeter’s final season as a cautionary tale, as the Yankees still used Jeter as a starting shortstop and number-two hitter throughout the year despite his sub-replacement performance.
  • Several Yankees topics are discussed in a mailbag piece by Mike Axisa of the River Ave Blues blog, including the team’s second base situation.  Axisa would’ve preferred the Yankees had Howie Kendrick on a two-year, $20MM deal and Adam Warren still in the pitching mix rather than Starlin Castro and the first-rounder it would’ve cost New York to sign Kendrick.  That said, Axisa doesn’t blame the Yankees for making the move to acquire Castro earlier in the offseason since two months ago, it would’ve seemed far-fetched that Kendrick could’ve been had at such a relatively low cost.

Sherman’s Latest: Cespedes, Ramirez, Castro, Sano

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Several teams are gambling on successful position changes for core players, writes Joel Sherman of the New York Post. While it’s not uncommon for a team to sign a player like Jason Heyward and shift him to a new position for a couple seasons, these transitions don’t always go swimmingly. Sherman examines some of the biggest names to watch this season, and we’ll touch upon a few of them here.

  • The Mets were wary about committing to Yoenis Cespedes in part because of his shaky history in center field. As Sherman writes, Cespedes’ top defensive attribute is his arm. However, in center, range tends to be more valuable than arm strength.
  • Last season, the Padres attempted to shift Wil Myers from an outfield corner to center. His experience could serve as a chilling example for Mets fans. When he wasn’t battling injury, Myers graded out as an atrocious center fielder. This season, San Diego plans to shift Myers to first base. It’s yet another position at which he has limited experience. Interestingly, Myers has moved all over the field in his professional career – he started out as a catching prospect, and he also has experience at third base.
  • Another failed outfielder moving to first base, Hanley Ramirez, will be critical to the Red Sox success this season. Ramirez was a disaster in left field, but there is hope he can be more focused and healthier in an infield role. David Ortiz occupies the designated hitter role. He’s expected to retire after the season, meaning Ramirez could be shifted to a bat-only role after 2016.
  • The Yankees are taking a gamble of their own on Starlin Castro. The former Cubs shortstop hit much better after a shift to second base, but his defense still graded out as below average. Unlike Cespedes, Myers, or Ramirez, Castro looked merely below average rather than nightmarish. The Yankees hope that more experience at the position and smoother actions can lead to defensive improvement in 2016.
  • In an attempt to manage their corner infield and designated hitter surplus, the Twins are going to try prospect slugger Miguel Sano in the outfield. Sano, a third baseman by trade, doesn’t have professional experience in the outfield. However, his shift will allow the club to start Sano, Joe Mauer, Byung-ho Park, and Trevor Plouffe. In my opinion, the Twins might have been smarter to move Plouffe into the outfield. He has experience as a utility man and an established bat. Sano will now need to learn a new position while adjusting to major league pitching.
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