AL East Notes: Morales, O’s, Francisco, Yankees
Orioles executive VP Dan Duquette appeared on Buster Olney’s podcast today and discussed a variety of topics, including Kendrys Morales (Duquette appears around the 27:00 mark). Asked by Olney about the speculation that Morales could help his team, Duquette replied, “We don’t have any plans to add anybody to our ball club right now … Matt Wieters, with the issue he has in with his elbow, is going to take some at-bats in our DH position, so we’re all set. When we signed Nelson Cruz, that pretty much closed the door on that speculation.” Duquette also talked about his team’s strong start to the year in spite of several injuries as well as Manny Machado‘s elite defense. More from that interview and the rest of the AL East below…
- Duquette also fielded questions on the contract status of Wieters and Chris Davis (around the 36:20 mark), noting that the club has twice tried to extend Wieters and once tried to extend Davis as well. “I like Chris and Matt on the ball club, but having said that, we’ve already made that effort, and I’m not really going to be discussing that this year during the season with those players.” Both Wieters and Davis are Scott Boras clients, which makes the task of hammering out a long-term deal a more difficult one, as Boras typically encourages his players to go year-to-year and test the open market.
- Shifting gears from the O’s to the Blue Jays, MLB.com’s Gregor Chisholm tweets that the main reason behind Juan Francisco choosing to sign in Toronto was a recruiting pitch from Edwin Encarnacion. After Francisco was cut by the Brewers in Spring Training, Encarnacion called his countryman and pitched Toronto, and the result has been a .311/.403/.623 batting line with five homers in 72 PAs for Francisco.
- In a special piece for ESPN New York, Danny Knobler writes that the perception of the Yankees as an “old-school” team is misleading. Knobler spoke with Astros GM Jeff Luhnow, who called the Yankees “way more [progressive] than people think.” Knobler also points out that the Yankees trail only the Astros in terms of infield shifting this season, a fact that isn’t lost on division rival Joe Maddon. The Rays skipper told Knobler: “They’re exceeding us. It doesn’t surprise me. It disappoints me. I much preferred when they thought we were nuts, that we were bastardizing the game.”
Minor Moves: Raul Valdes, Nik Turley, Ryan Searle
Here are the day’s minor moves:
- Astros lefty Raul Valdes has accepted his outright assignment to Triple-A rather than electing free agency, tweets Chris Cotillo of MLBDailyDish.com. Valdes was designated and then outrighted after an ugly eight-appearance stint in Houston this year (five earned in 3 2/3 with four strikeouts and three walks).
- The Yankees have agreed to re-sign lefty Nik Turley to a minor league deal, reports Cotillo (Twitter link). The 24-year-old was recently released to clear a 40-man roster spot. Turley has dealt with arm issues and is yet to throw a competitive pitch this year, but has posted intriguing strikeout totals across his time in the minors since being taken in the 50th round of the 2008 draft. Last year, working mostly as a starter at the Double-A level, Turley threw to a 3.79 ERA with 8.8 K/9 and 4.7 BB/9 over 145 innings.
- Australian righty Ryan Searle has been given his release by the Cubs, Bruce Miles of the Daily Herald reports on Twitter. The 24-year-old had been working at the Double-A level this year, pitching to a 6.63 ERA in 19 innings with 8.1 K/9 against 4.3 BB/9.
- As reflected in MLBTR’s DFA Tracker, the following players remain in DFA limbo: Elliot Johnson (Indians), Heath Bell (Rays), Xavier Nady (Padres), George Kottaras (Indians), and Omar Quintanilla (Mets). Joining that group today is Buddy Boshers of the Angels.
East Notes: Knuckle-Curve, Roberts, Strasburg
In an interesting piece for FOX Sports, Dan Rozenson of Baseball Prospectus looks at the increasing proliferation of knuckle-curveballs around the game, and suggests that the pitch could be a better weapon than a traditional hook — especially for hard throwers — due to its more fastball-like release point and typically greater speed. While A.J. Burnett of the Phillies is one of the game’s better-known practitioners of the pitch, many others are less well-publicized and have only recently been identified in the PITCHf/x system.
Here are a few more brief notes from the game’s eastern divisions to start off the morning …
- When Brian Roberts joined the Yankees as their starting second baseman, he not only left the only organization he had known (the Orioles) but stood to replace one of the game’s best players in Robinson Cano. Adapting to his new environs and dealing with that pressure may have explained some of Roberts’s early-season struggles, writes Brendan Kuty of NJ.com. “I think it was more self-inflected than anything,” Roberts said of his slow start. “You try hard, I think. I’ve always said it’s got to be hard for guys to switch teams all the time. I was always so comfortable. It was like riding a bike every year.”
- The Nationals are increasingly setting loose ace Stephen Strasburg, writes Tyler Kepner of the New York Times. “I mean, he’s our horse,” said manager Matt Williams. “He’s a guy that can go 120 [pitches].” While Strasburg’s fastball velocity is down and his results have lagged somewhat in the early going — thanks in large part to giving up lots of early runs — he is striking out batters at a ridiculous 12.2 K/9 rate and advanced metrics love his work. Strasburg has thrown 47 1/3 frames through his first eight starts, which lags Adam Wainwright‘s league-leading 58 innings in as many outings. But if the 25-year-old can continue working late into games, he could well make his first push past 200 innings. That could deliver a big bump in arbitration earnings for Strasburg, who netted a relatively modest $3.975MM in his first trip through the process.
Minor Moves: David Nick, Daniel Moskos, Chris Leroux
Here are today’s minor transactions from around the league…
- Outfielder David Nick has signed a minor league deal with the Braves, according to the MLB.com transactions page. The 24-year-old had spent his entire career in the Diamondbacks organization after being taken in the fourth round of the 2009 draft, but never rose above Double-A. He has just a .241/.294/.339 line in 568 plate appearances at that level.
- The Dodgers have released lefty Daniel Moskos, according to the PCL transactions page. Moskos, 28, had struggled to a 6.52 ERA in 9 2/3 innings of relief at the Triple-A level. The fourth overall choice in the 2007 draft, Moskos had a productive half year with the Pirates back in 2011 (2.96 ERA in 24 1/3 frames), but has not seen the show since.
- Though he had the opportunity to elect free agency, right-hander Chris Leroux has accepted his outright assignment from the Yankees, tweets Chris Cotillo of MLB Daily Dish. Leroux has a decent amount of big league experience and posted strong results for the 2011 Pirates, but he’s had difficulty sticking in the Majors.
- A look at MLBTR’s DFA Tracker reveals an unusually veteran crop of players in DFA limbo: Xavier Nady (Padres), Heath Bell (Rays), George Kottaras (Indians) and Elliot Johnson (Indians) are all currently waiting to learn their fate.
Minor Moves: Mustelier, Valdes, Leroux
Here are some of today’s minor moves from around the league…
- The Yankees have released third baseman Ronnier Mustelier, according to Bryan Hoch of MLB.com (via Twitter). Mustelier, 29, signed with the Yankees out of Cuba, but never saw minor league action until he was 26 years of age. He raised some eyebrows at the Triple-A level in 2012, when he put up a solid .303/.359/.455 line in 385 plate appearances. Mustelier took a slight step backward last year (.272/.319/.398), however, and failed to earn an invitation to MLB camp during the spring.
- The Astros announced that lefty Raul Valdes has cleared waivers and been outrighted to Triple-A Oklahoma City after being designated for assignment over the weekend. Valdes, 36, was sent to DFA limbo after the team recalled lefty Darin Downs. Because he’s been outrighted before, Valdes can reject the assignment in favor of free agency. He has a rather unsightly 5.13 ERA in his big league career, but he’s averaged 9.4 K/9 and 3.1 BB/9 throughout his career, which could intrigue some clubs in need of lefty relief.
- The Yankees have outrighted Chris Leroux to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, according to the team’s transactions page. The 30-year-old right-hander was designated for assignment over the weekend when the team purchased the contract of Alfredo Aceves. Leroux has previously been outrighted and can therefore elect free agency, as he did last April when the Pirates outrighted him. Leroux has a 6.03 ERA with 8.3 K/9 and 4.4 BB/9 in 71 2/3 innings but has a strong Triple-A track record.
AL East Notes: July 2 Spending, Blue Jays, Jeter
The American League East is about as tightly clustered as possible at this point, with just 1.5 games separating the field. With plenty of interesting situations developing in the division’s five organizations, it should (as usual) be a fascinating race to watch — both on the field and in the transactional rumor mill. Here’s the latest:
- In a preview — or, in some respects, a roundup — of the July 2 prospect signing period, Ben Badler of Baseball America says that the American League East figures to lead the way in spending. We have already heard about the Yankees‘ plans to blow well past their bonus limits on this year’s international prospect market, but Badler says that the division-rival Rays and Red Sox also appear poised to incur the maximum penalties for going beyond their pool allocations. (In an earlier report, Scout.com’s Kiley McDaniel reported upon many of the verbal agreements and rumored matches that form the basis of Badler’s piece.) If that holds true, then each of those three AL East competitors — and, potentially, the Brewers — would not only pay a 100% tax on any over-bonus spending, but would also sacrifice the right to sign any July 2 player to more than a $300K bonus next year.
- Blue Jays GM Alex Anthopoulos spoke today about several current topics involving his club, with MLB.com’s Gregor Chisholm among those present (links to Twitter). Anthopoulos made clear that there were no active trade discussions taking place at present with rival front offices, which is surely unsurprising at this stage of the season.
- Anthopoulos also provided new information on two situations that we touched upon last night. First, he said that injured starter Brandon Morrow was expected to avoid surgery and could return around the All-Star break, meaning that he may still contribute in 2014 and could conceivably pitch well enough to entice Toronto to pick up his 2015 club option ($10MM/$1MM buyout). Meanwhile, the GM threw cold water on the idea of permanently transitioning Brett Lawrie to second base to free playing time for Juan Francisco. Of course, that still leaves other possibilities for the Jays to keep Francisco in the fold when Adam Lind returns from injury.
- With Yankees infielder Brendan Ryan making his way back to the club, manager Joe Girardi will face an increasingly complicated situation, writes Joel Sherman of the New York Post. Of course, Derek Jeter remains entrenched at short for the time being, but the living legend has struggled at the plate and in the field. New York GM Brian Cashman recently confirmed that Girardi has full authority to determine who plays and where they hit in the lineup. And Sherman notes that the manager has made several moves — both with respect to former catcher Jorge Posada and, more recently, involving Jeter himself — that hint he is not afraid to ruffle some feathers if necessary to win. With the division shaping up to go down to the wire, Sherman says that Girardi may need to “play[] bad cop” in dividing playing time going forward.
AL East Notes: Morrow, Francisco, Cruz, Santana, Sabathia
With Blue Jays starter Brandon Morrow going to the 60-day DL with a torn tendon sheath, the Star’s Richard Griffin writes that Morrow may well have thrown his last pitch for the club. As Griffin notes, the 29-year-old’s $10MM club option (which comes with a $1MM buyout) seems unlikely to be exercised at this point after yet another significant injury. Here’s more from Toronto and the rest of the AL East:
- Indications are that the Blue Jays will look to keep power-hitting corner infielder Juan Francisco in the fold after Adam Lind is activated, tweets Brendan Kennedy of the Toronto Star. Discussing the situation, MLB.com’s Gregor Chisholm writes that Toronto could conceivably drop one of its eight relievers or shift Brett Lawrie into the club’s regular second base role.
- Orioles slugger Nelson Cruz discussed his difficult last year with MLB.com’s Britt Ghiroli, saying that it was hardest on his family. As for the qualifying offer situation, Cruz said he probably would have grabbed it had he known what was in store. “But it’s something that you risk and you trust your instincts,” said Cruz. “In this case, it wasn’t what I expected. But I’m happy with my decision and happy with where I am now. That’s the only thing that matters.” From the O’s perspective, executive VP Dan Duquette said that the deal was made when Cruz’s camp “adjusted what they were looking for in terms of the term” (i.e. length) of the deal. Cruz if off to a hot start, of course, posting a .294/.369/.596 triple-slash with nine home runs in his first 122 plate appearances with Baltimore.
- A less-consequential decision for the Orioles front office was the low-risk signing of one-time ace Johan Santana, who has been working his way back to full strength on a minor league contract. Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com reports on Twitter that Santana’s fastball has reached the 88-89 mph range, with his slider in the low-80’s and change in the mid-70’s. While that obviously represents a significant drop from his peak years, Santana posted an average fastball velocity of just 89.6 mph in his 2.98 ERA, 199-inning 2010 season.
- In a chat today, ESPN.com’s Jerry Crasnick touched upon the situation of Yankees starter C.C. Sabathia. A scout recently told Crasnick that Sabathia’s offerings are “very fringy,” and that he will need impeccable control to be effective going forward. On the other hand, Crasnick opines that Sabathia has actually delivered decent value to New York on his massive contract. For what it’s worth, Sabathia’s unsightly 5.75 ERA through his first 40 2/3 innings in 2014 is much worse than his 4.16 FIP, 2.95 xFIP, and 2.92 SIERA marks. Indeed, while Sabathia has been hurt by the long ball (21.9% HR/FB rate) and a .361 BABIP, he is sporting 9.74 K/9 against just 1.99 BB/9 while generating a 50.8% ground-ball rate.
Yankees Designate Chris Leroux For Assignment
The Yankees have designated pitcher Chris Leroux for assignment, Chad Jennings of LoHud.com tweets. The move clears space on the Yankees’ active roster for Alfredo Aceves.
The Yankees promoted Leroux from Triple-A Scranton / Wilkes-Barre earlier this week, and he allowed five earned runs in the 14th inning of a 10-5 loss against the Rays yesterday. The Yankees’ bullpen threw 9 2/3 innings in that loss, so they could use a fresh arm in the bullpen. Aceves had pitched well in Triple-A, striking out 14 batters and walking five in 13 2/3 innings there.
Leroux, 30, had previously pitched in the big leagues with the Pirates in 2013, having pitched parts of four seasons in Pittsburgh. He has also pitched for the Marlins, and with the Yakult Swallows in Japan.
Latest On Joel Hanrahan
THURSDAY: Despite the early struggles of Edward Mujica, it doesn’t appear likely that the Red Sox will end up signing Hanrahan, reports Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe (via Twitter).
WEDNESDAY: The Rockies, Rangers, Red Sox, Yankees and Tigers are among the teams showing strong interest in free agent reliever Joel Hanrahan, reports Jon Heyman of CBS Sports. Hanrahan impressed scouts from as many as 20 teams at a showcase two weeks ago, hitting 93 mph on the gun and appearing to be in good shape. The 32-year-old Hanrahan is roughly two weeks shy of the one-year anniversary of his Tommy John surgery.
The teams listed by Heyman have all seen some degree of bullpen struggles with the exception of the Red Sox, whose collective 3.25 bullpen ERA ranks eighth in the Majors. The other four teams are each in the bottom half of the Majors in terms of reliever ERA, with the Tigers (5.48) and Rangers (4.45) displaying the most troubles in run prevention. Each of the clubs mentioned by Heyman has been relatively stable in the ninth inning to this point, meaning that Hanrahan would likely be ticketed for a setup role should he latch on with any of the five.
Recent reports have indicated that the Mets are also interested in Hanrahan, to an extent, but they aren’t sure whether or not they’ll be making him an offer.
AL Notes: Abreu, Carbonell, Astros, Baker
2014 looked like a rebuilding year for the White Sox, but with Jose Abreu bursting onto the scene to become a star power bat, could the Pale Hose contend this season? GM Rick Hahn told reporters (including CSN Chicago’s Dan Hayes and MLB.com’s Scott Merkin) that “it really is a balancing act. You don’t want to pass on a chance to win. They are sacred. At the same time, this is a long-term proposition we are trying to build here, sustain over an extended period, and we don’t want to hamper our ability to do that.” It’s still too early in the season to make “short-sighted” moves, Hahn said, yet if the Sox are in the race in a couple of months, the team will re-evaluate its goals for the season.
Here’s some more from around the junior circuit…
- White Sox executive VP Kenny Williams talked to Daryl Van Schouwen of the Chicago Sun-Times about his experience scouting Abreu and then his discussions with owner Jerry Reinsdorf about raising the club’s bid for the heavily-courted slugger. It was Reinsdorf, Williams said, who actually endorsed paying more for Abreu. The extra push seems to have paid off, judging by Abreu’s huge April performance.
- The Yankees are interested in Cuban outfielder Daniel Carbonell, according to media outlet Diario de Cuba (hat tip to Mike Axisa of River Ave Blues). The Yankees scouted Carbonell during a February workout. The switch-hitting 23-year-old is a free agent and can be signed for any price as long as he signs before July 2.
- Astros amateur scouting director Mike Elias discusses his team’s scouting process, current top prospects and the upcoming 2014 amateur draft with Sportsnet.ca’s Ben Nicholson-Smith.
- It looks like Scott Baker will indeed stay with the Rangers‘ Triple-A affiliate, sources tells Chris Cotillo of MLB Daily Dish (Twitter link). Cotillo previously reported that Baker would only use his May 1 opt-out clause if he could find a Major League deal with another team, and the White Sox and Indians had some interest in Baker’s services.