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AL East Notes: Sox, Cueto, Parmelee, Reimold

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It was only a couple of weeks ago that the AL East boasted only one team with a winning record.  Now, the Yankees, Rays and Blue Jays are over the .500 mark and the Orioles are right on the line with an even 31-31 record.  The only team yet to turn things around are the Red Sox, who have lost six in a row to drop to 27-37 on the season (tied with the Marlins for the fourth-worst record in baseball).  Here’s some news from around the division…

  • Though the Red Sox have continued to struggle, manager John Farrell and GM Ben Cherington “remain safe for now,” Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe reports.  Earlier this month, owner John Henry said both men were in no danger of being fired.
  • The Red Sox, Yankees and Tigers each had a scout at Johnny Cueto’s last start, FOX Sports’ Jon Paul Morosi reports (Twitter links).  As Morosi notes, it’s hard to see Boston buying at the trade deadline given their current record, and Cueto isn’t a fit on a non-contender since he’s only under contract through 2015.
  • Chris Parmelee is thought to have a June 15 opt-out date in his minor league deal with the Orioles, FOX Sports’ Ken Rosenthal reports (via Twitter).  Parmelee, owner of a .709 OPS over 901 PA with the Twins from 2011-14, took a .319/.388/.454 slash line over 260 Triple-A plate appearances into today’s action.  If the Orioles don’t promote Parmelee and he opts for free agency, Rosenthal lists the Rays as a team that could be interested the first baseman/outfielder’s services.
  • Nolan Reimold’s agent and some family members thought a “fresh start” might be best for the outfielder rather than rejoining the Orioles last offseason, but he tells MASNsports.com’s Steve Melewski that he wanted to return to Baltimore.  Reimold signed a minor league deal with the O’s and returned to the bigs last Tuesday, already delivering two homers and a 1.232 OPS over his first 16 plate appearances.

Giants Scouting Reds’ Mike Leake

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Over the weekend, we learned that Giants executives Brian Sabean and Lee Elder were on hand at Wrigley to watch the Reds take on the Cubs, ostensibly to take a closer look at Reds starter Johnny Cueto.  It turns out that they stayed in Chicago on Saturday night too in order to scout fellow Reds starter Mike Leake, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (Twitter links).

The Giants saw Leake give up five hits and three earned runs with one strikeout over the course of five innings.  It wasn’t Leake’s best start of the season, but the right-hander has been pretty decent on the whole, pitching to a 4.35 ERA with 5.2 K/9 and 2.5 BB/9 in 13 starts this season.  The 27-year-old had even stronger numbers prior to this year.  From 2010 to 2014, Leake posted a 3.92 ERA with 6.2 K/9 and 2.3 BB/9.

The Reds are staring at a sizable 12.5 game gap between them and the first place Cardinals, leading many to speculate that they will be sellers in July.  Cueto and even Aroldis Chapman have been mentioned in trade rumors, but Leake could also make sense for a contending team such as the Giants.

One AL scout recently told Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe that Leake should be able to “pitch in either league with no problem.”  That same scout speculated that there could be more bites on Leake than any other hurler at the deadline, but that remains to be seen.  Leake is earning $9.775MM this year and will be eligible for free agency after the season, making him a possibility for a short-term rental or more.  The Reds did not try to sign Leake to an extension this offseason and that reportedly did not sit well with the pitcher.

Reds Release Jason Marquis

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The Reds have released pitcher Jason Marquis, according to the MLB.com transactions page.  Marquis was designated for assignment to make room for right-hander Jon Moscot earlier this month.

Marquis, 36, posted a 6.46 ERA in 47 1/3 innings with the Reds across nine starts.  Though his 7.0 K/9 rate and 2.7 BB/9 rate are both markedly better than his career numbers in those categories, Marquis was very homer-prone.  He’s also seen his typically excellent ground-ball rate dip back to about the league average, so the increase in the percentage of fly-balls against him that leave the yard has been magnified by the fact that he’s giving up fly-balls at a higher rate in previous years.

The veteran Marquis won a spot in Cincinnati’s rotation this spring when Tony Cingrani was shifted to the bullpen. While Cingrani has taken well to pitching in relief, Marquis has did not experience that same level of success in the rotation.

Marquis, a client of ACES, spent much of the 2014 campaign recovering from Tommy John surgery.  He ultimately signed a minor league deal with the Phillies, but he also worked out in front of Reds scouts.  He circled back to Cincinnati when he signed with the Reds in January, but his stay did not last through the summer.

For his career, Marquis owns a 4.61 ERA with 5.4 K/9 and 3.5 BB/9 over the course of 15 seasons.

Rosenthal’s Latest: Reds, A’s, Orioles, Marlins

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The Reds are doomed by injuries and an 11.5 game deficit, says FOX Sports’ Ken Rosenthal in his latest video. However, owner Bob Castellini is not yet ready to concede. The baseball operations staff understands that the club needs to convert veterans and soon-to-be free agents into future talent – they just have to convince their boss.

  • The A’s have performed well by run differential as well as the BaseRuns metric used by FanGraphs. However, they are 13 games below .500 and 10 games back in the AL West. The bullpen is a serious issue. Other clubs are looking to snipe players like Ben Zobrist and Tyler Clippard. Expect GM Billy Beane to jump on a properly enticing offer.
  • The Orioles have nine impending free agents. They should act as both buyers and sellers at the trade deadline. The club needs a power hitting corner outfield. They could trade a starter like Bud Norris.
  • The Marlins may also look to deal a starter. Jarred Cosart will return from the disabled list soon. Jose Urena or Tom Koehler are candidates to be optioned. However, there will be a surplus once Jose Fernandez returns from Tommy John surgery. At that point, the club could look to trade Dan Haren or Mat Latos. The Marlins are currently nine games below .500 but just six back in a weak NL East.
  • If Cincinnati shops Aroldis Chapman, count the Marlins among the potential suitors. The club is always a fit for Cuban talent. Personally, I’m not sure if Chapman is the best use of Miami’s resources. Reliever A.J. Ramos has ably replaced Steve Cishek as the closer, but he has bouts of wildness in his track record. However, Carter Capps is standing by should Ramos falter.

California Notes: Dipoto, Ethier, Giants

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Months ago, the Angels exercised their 2016 option on GM Jerry Dipoto’s contract, Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register tweets. That news had not been reported until now. The option is the last one on Dipoto’s original contract, a three-year deal that included two options. That the organization has not extended Dipoto to this point might or might not be notable. The Angels have not always quite lived up to lofty expectations in the last few seasons, and Dipoto’s tenure has been shaped in part by an unfortunate contract and ugly dispute with Josh Hamilton (which, to be fair, were both at least partially the fault of owner Arte Moreno), but the team is coming off a 98-win 2014 campaign. Here are more notes from the West Coast.

  • Outfielder Andre Ethier has reestablished himself this year after a winter in which the Dodgers couldn’t trade him, Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register writes. “I don’t think anybody wanted me either,” says Ethier. “It takes two to tango like in a lot of things. … At the same time, maybe they knew what they were doing. Maybe the reason it didn’t happen was because they were asking more than other teams were willing to give.” Now, Ethier is in the midst of a resurgent .287/.369/.506 season, and Plunkett points out that, as the dollars remaining on Ethier’s contract continue to shrink (he’s currently owed about $49MM more through 2017, including a buyout for 2018), it might become a lot easier for the Dodgers to trade him than it was last winter.
  • Giants executives Brian Sabean and Lee Elder were on hand to watch today’s Reds/Cubs game in Chicago, FOX Sports’ Ken Rosenthal writes (all Twitter links). As Rosenthal points out, the natural conclusion is that Sabean and Elder were in town to watch Reds starter Johnny Cueto — Cueto will be a sought-after trade target this summer, and the Giants need rotation help. It could be, though, that the pair were at Wrigley for other reasons.
  • Giants outfielder Hunter Pence is headed to the disabled list with wrist tendinitis, as Rosenthal tweets. Pence has not played since June 2, so he should be able to return within a week if he’s ready. To take Pence’s place on the active roster, the Giants selected the contract of righty Mike Broadway today after promoting an outfielder, Jarrett Parker, earlier this week.

Reds Sign Tyler Stephenson

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The Reds have announced that they’ve signed catcher and 11th overall draft pick Tyler Stephenson. Stephenson has been assigned to short-season Billings. MLB.com’s Jim Callis tweets that Stephenson will receive the allotted value of the pick, which is $3,141,600. Stephenson, from Kennesaw Mountain High School in Georgia, had been committed to Georgia Tech.

MLB.com notes that Stephenson appears capable defensively, with soft hands, a strong arm and good agility given his size (6-foot-4, 225 pounds). He also has good power, although his ability to make contact is a concern. Baseball America (subscription required) ranked Stephenson the 15th-best prospect in the draft, noting that his defensive ability would buy him time to work through any offensive issues that might arise. Stephenson is the third catcher the Reds have selected with a first-round pick in the past decade, joining Devin Mesoraco (2007) and the since-traded Yasmani Grandal (2010).

Nats, Reds Have Discussed Aroldis Chapman Trade

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The Nationals and Reds have discussed a trade involving Aroldis Chapman, although no deal appears imminent, Jon Morosi of FOX Sports tweets. (In a separate tweet, Morosi characterizes the talks as “very preliminary.”) Earlier today, Morosi wrote that the Nationals were looking for late-inning bullpen help. Chapman would obviously fit the bill, even though the Nats don’t have any specific need for a closer in particular, with Drew Storen performing well.

The 27-year-old Chapman has struggled with his control a bit more this year than in years past, with 5.6 BB/9. As usual, though, his eye-popping stuff and strikeout numbers (14.8 K/9) have been more than enough to paper over any minor control issues. Chapman’s fastball remains otherworldly, clocking in at an average velocity of 99.5 MPH this year, and his slider is very much a plus pitch as well.

Chapman is making $8.05MM this season. He is eligible for free agency after 2016. Given his dominance, he represents a bargain at his current salary. The prospect cost the Reds could command for him ought to be substantial, particularly given that he has a year of control remaining beyond this one.

Trade Market Notes: Top Targets, Papelbon, Jays, Mets, Cueto

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Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com ranks the top forty trade candidates around the league, adding observations and notes on each. Though he notes that clubs like the Red Sox and Orioles could potentially end up moving assets, Heyman restricts things to clubs that seem more likely than not to sell at this point. Cole Hamels of the Phillies lands in the pole position; though some top suitors remain unwilling to part with the top players targeted by Philadelphia, one GM tells Heyman that the club will probably be able to land a premium prospect for the lefty. He also argues that a deal involving Dodgers outfielder and Angels starter C.J. Wilson looks good on paper, though the teams have not discussed such an arrangement. You’ll need to read the whole post to take it all in, of course.

  • The Blue Jays and Phillies have not discussed Jonathan Papelbon in the last week, Joel Sherman of the New York Post reports (Twitter links), adding that Toronto is looking at other arms at the moment. One name to watch, says Sherman, is Tyler Clippard of the Athletics, who Toronto had in-depth discussions about over the winter.
  • It’s academic at this point, but Clippard also drew significant interest from the Astros over the offseason, Sherman further tweets. Indeed, Houston was “very close” to acquiring the veteran reliever, says Sherman, which raises the interesting question of what the Nationals would have received in return. Ultimately, the club took infielder Yunel Escobar in return, though that deal did not occur until a month after the Astros had already spent big on free agent bullpen arms, which could indicate that the prospective Clippard acquisition might have been contemplated earlier in the winter.
  • Mets GM Sandy Alderson indicated that the club will not rely on a return from David Wright in making its summer moves, David Lennon of Newsday writes. Alderson said the club would not continue providing regular updates on Wright’s status, and said he would not be restricted in making moves. “Would we consider a third baseman who can’t do anything else?” Alderson queried. “Under the circumstances, yeah, we probably would. But we’re not just looking for any third baseman. It has to be something we think is an improvement that doesn’t cost us significantly.” The veteran GM continued to throw cold water on the idea of a move in the near-term, noting that the market was “narrow” and generally features underperforming players at this stage.
  • C. Trent Rosecrans of the Cincinnati Enquirer discusses the Reds’ current predicament, with Zack Cozart out for the season, Devin Mesoraco likely to join him in that regard, and Marlon Byrd sidelined for a significant stretch. Cincinnati should not allow its hosting of the All-Star game to slow its efforts to deal Johnny Cueto, opines Rosecrans, who suggests that the team could reap a larger reward by moving him now (both by selling more starts and, perhaps, by getting ahead of the market). Dealing Cueto, of course, would also increase the appeal of shipping out Mike Leake and Aroldis Chapman. Rosecrans concludes: “At this point, the organization doesn’t need to think about the All-Star Game, or even 2016. This is a long-term move and needs long-term thinking.”
  • Though he’s a rental, Cueto is a true ace and should bring back a healthy return — even if it won’t be near what the Reds might have achieved last year (as Rosecrans explains). There should be no shortage of suitors, but MLB.com’s Phil Rogers lists the five most plausible landing spots: the Blue Jays, Red Sox, Dodgers, Rangers, and Padres.

Trade Notes: Sellers, Dodgers, Papelbon, Jays, Twins

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Dave Cameron of Fangraphs opines that we may be headed for the “most extreme sellers’ market in years” given the unprecedented parity in the American League and a lack of sellers in the National League. Only 8.5 games separate the best team in the AL and the second-worst, Cameron notes, and the worst club (the Athletics) can be reasonably expected to turn things around if one believes in the estimation of a context-neutral system like BaseRuns (of course, Oakland’s hole may be too deep to escape even if their luck turns). In the NL, only the Phillies and Brewers are clear sellers, and even potential sellers like the Diamondbacks and Marlins are loaded with young, controllable players as opposed to appealing veteran assets. The Reds and Rockies may eventually sell also, but they’re close enough to .500 at this time that they may wait until late in trade season to market their players. Cameron adds that if the Rox “really won’t trade Tulowitzki in this market, where there might not be another significant power hitter available, then they should just never trade him.” I’m inclined to agree that it’s difficult to imagine a better market for Colorado to move Tulowitzki, particularly if he continues a torrid hot streak that is silencing any previous concerns about his health.

A few more trade-related notes as we begin to get the time of year when teams will shift their focus to improving the 25-man roster…

  • It’s no secret that the Dodgers could use a quality starter, and Mark Saxon of ESPNLosAngeles.com writes that the club is looking at the very top of the market. The top Dodgers target is Nationals righty Jordan Zimmermann. Other preferred names include Johnny Cueto of the Reds and David Price of the Tigers. Of course, it’s far from clear what kind of deal would interest contenders like Washington and Detroit, and Saxon notes that Los Angeles has no reason to believe at this point that Zimmermann could be had via trade. While Cueto is obviously expected to be available, it’s hard to imagine the other two arms being dealt barring some significant change (e.g., loss of a major player to injury or a rather dramatic slide in the standings) or serious creativity in structuring a deal.
  • Phillies closer Jonathan Papelbon has seen his name in the news today, and ESPN.com’s Jayson Stark adds to the reports indicating that Philadelphia is increasingly interested in moving the veteran. Rivals think that the Phils may be looking to deal Papelbon sooner rather than later in order to get out ahead of other clubs that might sell off late-inning arms — namely, the Athletics (Tyler Clippard) and Reds (Aroldis Chapman).
  • It remains to be seen what kind of return the Phillies can achieve on Papelbon, but the club’s apparent willingness to keep some of the salary obligations will obviously help on the prospect side of the equation. Corey Seidman of CSNPhilly.com attempts to gauge Papelbon’s value by looking at recent deals involving late-inning arms, indicating that the club might be interested in bolstering its organization depth with multiple prospects if it can’t pry loose a single player that it really likes.
  • The Blue Jays undeniably have a need at the back of the pen, writes Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca, but the club does not seem any closer to reaching agreement on Papelbon. While the teams have indeed chatted recently, Davidi says that Philly is still not willing to take on enough of Papelbon’s salary to make an agreement palatable. And Toronto is not looking to part with its better minor league talent, perhaps buoyed by the fact that there is not a ton of demand for Papelbon. The Jays are definitely constrained by financial limitations, says Davidi, who sums it up thusly: “in all likelihood they have one, maybe two moves in them, so they can ill-afford a costly roll of the dice.”
  • Twins GM Terry Ryan says that the failure of last year’s mid-season Kendrys Morales  signing will not cause the team to pause in pursuing an upgrade this summer, as Derek Wetmore of 1500ESPN.com writes. “I would do it again if I had an opportunity,” Ryan said of the Morales move. “It just didn’t work.” He went on to say that the club is looking to see what it can do to take advantage of its nice start: “We’re doing pretty good and we certainly have to have our eyes open,” Ryan said. “We’re in contention, there’s no secret here. We have an opportunity to do some things and hopefully we’ll be able to.”

Draft Signings: Koch, Allen, Moore, Rainey

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The 2015 MLB Draft is in the books, and over the coming weeks we’ll see plenty of picks agree to terms with their new clubs. With so many players selected in the draft, there’s no way to cover all of them, but we’ll run down some of the more notable picks — either due to the size of their signing bonus, the round they were selected or a significantly over-slot/under-slot deal — as they’re reported. Here are today’s notable mid-round signings (with all slot values coming courtesy of Baseball America)…

  • Righty Brandon Koch has signed with the Rays, the club announced. Financial terms remain unreported. The Dallas Baptist product was taken with the club’s fourth round pick (118th overall), which carries a $479,200 slot value. Baseball America was most bullish on Koch, rating him the 94th available prospect, crediting the collegiate closer with an outstanding slider.
  • Red Sox eighth-rounder Logan Allen says that he is in verbal agreement with the club on an above-slot deal between $725K and $750K, Andrew Pearson of the Citizen-Times reports. The 231st pick came with just a $175,100 bonus allocation. Kiley McDaniel of Fangraphs had the IMG Academy southpaw, who was a South Carolina commit, rated as the 100th-best draft-eligible player coming in.
  • The Mariners have signed Competitive Balance Round B pick (No. 72 overall) Andrew Moore to an $800K bonus that is $52K under slot, reports SB Nation’s Chris Cotillo (via Twitter). Baseball America ranked the Oregon State right-hander 125th among draft prospects, while MLB.com’s Jim Callis and Jonathan Mayo ranked him 137th, and Fangraphs’ Kiley McDaniel ranked him 130th. BA notes that Moore has an 87-91mph fastball with the potential for a pair of average secondary offerings (curve and change) in addition to plus command. MLB.com notes that he could be quick to the big leagues and has fourth or fifth starter upside.
  • Cotillo tweeted last night that the Reds had agreed to terms with right-hander Tanner Rainey, and Callis tweeted today that Rainey received $432,950, or half the value of his No. 71 overall slot. Though he received half his slot, Rainey is still an expensive senior sign with a chance to start, Callis notes. ESPN’s Keith Law ranked Rainey 58th, while BA had him at 93, McDaniel had him at 118 and MLB.com had him at 122. ESPN referred to Rainey as a pure reliever who works in the mid-90s with an above-average slider to complement the heater. He’s a two-way player who has an intriguing bat but received more interest as a pitcher.
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