- Veteran lefty Travis Blackley has announced via Twitter that he’s signed a deal with the Tigers, presumably of the minor league variety. (Hat tip to Evan Woodbery of the MLive Media Group for the tip.) Last season, the 34-year-old Blackley pitched for Puebla in the Mexican League, posting a 3.92 ERA, 5.1 K/9 and 3.9 BB/9 over 110 1/3 innings as a starter. Since last pitching in the big leagues in 2013 (when he appeared with the Astros and Rangers), Blackley has also pitched for the Rakuten Golden Eagles in Japan, for the Triple-A New Orleans Zephyrs in the US, and for Brisbane in his native Australia.
Tigers Rumors
Tigers Ink Three To Minor League Deals
- Outfielder Juan Perez, third baseman Zack Cox and right-handed reliever Waldis Joaquin have joined the Tigers on minor league deals. Perez’s only major league experience came as a member of the Giants, with whom he batted .224/.267/.316 in 246 plate appearances from 2013-15. All of his time in 2016 was spent with the Cubs’ Triple-A affiliate in Iowa, where he slashed .276/.310/.444 with nine home runs and 16 steals in 412 trips to the plate. Cox went to the Cardinals in the first round of the 2010 draft (25th overall), but he didn’t get to the majors with either them or his second organization, the Marlins. The 27-year-old hit .290/.348/.452 in 460 PAs with Wichita of the independent American Association last season. Joaquin, who spent the past few seasons pitching in Mexico and his native Dominican Republic, was with the Giants from 2007-11. He notched 21 2/3 big league innings of 5.40 ERA ball during that period, also adding matching strikeout and walk rates of 7.06 per nine.
Tigers To Sign Brendan Ryan
- The Tigers have a minor-league deal with infielder Brendan Ryan, per Jon Heyman of Fan Rag (via Twitter). The 34-year-old can earn $625K in the big leagues. Once a slick-fielding, semi-regular shortstop with the Cardinals and Mariners, Ryan has received just 241 MLB plate appearances over the past three seasons, slashing just .188/.231/.251 in that span. He spent the bulk of 2016 at the Triple-A level in the Nationals and Angels organizations.
Tigers, Alex Presley Agree To Minors Deal
The Tigers have agreed to a minor league contract with outfielder Alex Presley, tweets SB Nation’s Chris Cotillo. Presley will receive an invite to Major League Spring Training as well.
[Related: Detroit Tigers Depth Chart]
The 31-year-old Presley returns to Detroit after finishing the 2016 campaign in the Tigers organization. He appeared in just three Major League games with the Tigers last year, but he also saw time in 47 games with the Brewers in a limited role. Collectively, he batted .198/.269/.289 in 134 plate appearances between the two teams. Presley has a better track record than that, as he’s a career .253/.295/.382 hitter in 379 big league games (1239 plate appearances) split between the Pirates, Twins, Astros, Brewers and Tigers. He’s capable of playing center field and also has experience in both outfield corners, so he’ll have a chance to compete for a bench job or possibly more, depending on the team’s other moves this winter. J.D. Martinez has been an oft-speculated trade candidate, and dealing him would create further opportunity for Presley to earn a role with the team.
Tigers Looking For Center Field Help "On Every Front"
- Having traded Cameron Maybin to the Angels earlier this offseason, the Tigers are looking for center field help “on every front,” general manager Al Avila told Evan Woodbery of MLive.com. “Maybe we can get that guy in a trade,” Avila said. “Maybe we can wait until January and get a guy to be a temporary fix. Maybe we can plug that hole with a sixth-year minor league free agent.” The Tigers have in-house center fielders Tyler Collins, JaCoby Jones and Anthony Gose set to compete for jobs, but they’d like for Jones to develop further at Triple-A Toledo. Gose spent most of his time last season in Toledo, where he got into a dispute with then-manager and now-Tigers hitting coach Lloyd McClendon. That rift is now “water under the bridge,” according to Tigers skipper Brad Ausmus. Gose is unlikely to reunite with McClendon in Detroit, writes Woodbery, who points out that Gose has no minor league options remaining. As a result, he might end up joining another organization via waivers if he doesn’t crack the Tigers’ roster. Collins is also devoid of options, though he’s a better bet than Gose to stick with the Tigers, suggests Woodbery.
Tigers Rumors: J.D. Martinez, Alex Avila
- The Tigers are continuing to shop J.D. Martinez, one of the majors’ best offensive outfielders, but they’re having difficulty finding a fit, reports Jerry Crasnick of ESPN (Twitter link). Detroit is looking for “young, controllable” talent in a Martinez package, according to Crasnick. Martinez is only under contract for another season, though, which helps explain why teams aren’t eager to trade major league-caliber youth for him.
- Speaking of the Tigers, they “would love” to sign free agent catcher Alex Avila, but it’s unlikely he’d fit into their budget, tweets Crasnick. Avila, of course, was with the Tigers from 2009-15 and is the son of their general manager, Al Avila. The younger Avila spent last season as a member of the AL Central rival White Sox, with whom he batted .213/.359/.373 in 209 plate appearances and made $2.5MM. A similar amount would price him out of Detroit’s range, relays Crasnick. If the lefty-swinging Avila were to return to Detroit, he’d platoon with right-handed-hitting backstop James McCann. Righties held McCann to a woeful .201/.243/.268 line in 240 PAs last season.
Six Teams Set To Pay Luxury Tax
Six major league organizations will pay a luxury tax for exceeding the $189MM salary level, as the Associated Press reports (via Sportsnet.ca). With a new collective bargaining agreement set to go into effect, we’ve never seen more teams subject to the tax.
It’s no surprise which organizations lead the way yet again, but they’ll be joined by a few more others than usual. Here’s the full list:
- Dodgers, $31.8MM tax bill
- Yankees, $27.4MM
- Red Sox, $4.5MM
- Tigers, $4MM
- Giants, $3.4MM
- Cubs, $2.96MM
That’s four years in a row for Los Angeles and a remarkable fourteen straight for the Bronx Bombers, the AP notes. Also of note, this is the first time the Cubs have ever exceeded the luxury tax ceiling.
While the line will move up to $195MM next year, under the new CBA, the penalties will begin to rise — especially for consecutive offenders. Dipping back under the limbo stick may prove tough for the Dodgers, whose future obligations draw down more the following year. But the Yankees could well finally be set to re-set their luxury tax status this time next year.
Tigers Sign Zack Cox
- Anther pitcher seeking to make it back after a long run away from the majors is lefty Andy Oliver, who’ll try things out with the Brewers, per Heyman (via Twitter). Heyman adds that can opt out of his deal on June 15 if he’s not on the big-league roster, and Oliver also receives a foreign team inquiry clause. Oliver blitzed through the Tigers system after being taken in the 2nd round of the 2009 draft. He cracked the bigs briefly in 2010-11, but has plied his trade at Triple-A ever since. Oliver moved back to the rotation for half of his appearances last year with the Orioles’ top affiliate, which may have helped as he finally quelled some of his control issues. Oliver ended 2016 with a 3.43 ERA over 86 2/3 frames and 8.7 K/9 against 3.7 BB/9 (his lowest walk rate since his debut year in full-season professional ball).
- The Tigers added third baseman Zack Cox on a minor-league arrangement, the indy ball Wichita Wingnuts announced. Once a highly regarded prospect, Cox never earned a major league call-up during his time in the Cardinals and Marlins systems, but hit .290/.348/.452 last year in 460 plate appearances for Wichita.
Minor MLB Transactions: 12/15/16
Here are some minor moves to start the day:
- The Tigers added southpaw Anthony Vasquez on a minors pact, according to Jon Morosi of MLB Network (via Twitter). Vasquez, 30, made seven rough starts for the Mariners back in 2011 but hasn’t returned to the majors since. He was rather effective in the upper minors last year in the Phillies organization, throwing 172 1/3 innings of 3.08 ERA ball with 6.2 K/9 against 2.2 BB/9.
- Righty Matt Carasiti and outfielder Stephen Cardullo will each return to the Rockies on minor-league deals that include Spring Training invites, MLB.com’s Thomas Harding tweets. Both were non-tendered recently (though neither was eligible for arbitration) to clear 40-man spots. The 25-year-old Carasiti had an outstanding year at Triple-A, allowing just ten earned runs on thirty hits over 46 innings and carrying a sparkling 48:9 K/BB ratio, but was knocked around in his 19-game MLB debut. As for the 29-year-old Cardullo, who the Rox plucked from indy ball last year, a big showing at Triple-A (.308/.367/.522) earned him a surprise call to the majors. But he struggled in his 59 trips to the plate, logging a .214/.254/.411 slash with two homers.
- The Athletics have sold the contract of righty Ryan Brasier to the NPB’s Hiroshima Carp, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle tweets. Now 29, Brasier reached the majors briefly back in 2013 — and also showed nice peripherals at Triple-A that year — but ended up going under the knife for a Tommy John procedure. Last year, he worked at the highest level of the Oakland farm, throwing 60 2/3 innings of 3.56 ERA ball and posting an impressive 10.4 K/9 against 2.8 BB/9.
K-Rod Unlikely To Be Traded; Laird Hired As Minor League Manager
Tigers closer Francisco Rodriguez doesn’t appear to be on the trade block this winter, writes Anthony Fenech of the Detroit Free Press. While GM Al Avila didn’t definitively state that K-Rod won’t be moved this winter, he certainly implied to Fenech that the team isn’t seeking out trade partners for Rodriguez, whose $6MM club option was picked up following the season. However, Avila did state that if things go south for the Tigers in 2017, K-Rod would be a logical trade chip. “If things were right, if the timing was right, would he be a guy we’d look to trade?” the GM asked rhetorically. “Yeah. A veteran guy in the last year of his contract, there might be a good situation down the road.” Avila has publicly declared a desire to shed some payroll and work toward a younger roster, but for the time being it seems likelier that K-Rod opens the year in Detroit than elsewhere.
- The Tigers announced today that former Major League catcher Gerald Laird has been hired as the manager of the team’s Class-A affiliate in Connecticut. Laird, 37, hasn’t logged significant Major League action since the 2014 season, which he spent with the Braves. The former Tiger spent parts of 13 seasons in the Majors beginning in 2003, though, batting a collective .243/.305/.353 with the Rangers, Tigers, Cardinals, Braves and Diamondbacks. He won a World Series ring with St. Louis in 2011 and now looks to be embarking on the next level of his career in baseball. There’s been no formal word that he’s retired, though it seems clear that for the time being, he’s focused on other areas.
