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AL Notes: Zimmer, Fowler, Castro, Johnson, Coliseum

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The baseball world suffered a notable loss today with the passing of Rays senior advisor Don Zimmer. It would be impossible to honor Zimmer’s legacy adequately in a brief note, but suffice it to say that he has been said to have “come as close to seeing it all as a baseball man can possibly come.” And that was over a decade ago.

Here’s the latest out of the American League:

  • The Astros formally completed their acquisition of Dexter Fowler from the Rockies by picking up an additional $25K, Evan Drellich of the Houston Chronicle reported yesterday via Twitter. While that sum is obviously of marginal import, the results of that swap remain fascinating to follow. Fowler has put up a fairly typical (if less powerful than usual) .257/.375/.356 line as Houston’s everyday center fielder. Meanwhile, Jordan Lyles (3.46 ERA through 69 innings) and Brandon Barnes (.295/.339/.390 through 116 plate appearances) have both been productive, but have cooled of late.
  • Astros backstop Jason Castro said today that he has only had preliminary talks regarding an extension, none of which have been recent, reports Drellich. “It’s something you try not to think about obviously during the season, but you know, I would love to be a part of the Astros moving forward,” he said. “Obviously it’s an exciting tie, and we’ll see what happens moving forward.” Castro has cooled dowwn from his .835 OPS 2013, posting a .230/.306/.383 triple-slash through 206 plate appearances this season. He is earning $2.45MM in his first year of arbitration eligibility.
  • It was reported earlier today that the Athletics nearly shipped deposed closer Jim Johnson to the Marlins. Conflicting reports later emerged about the nature of Oakland’s intentions going forward, both via Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (Twitter links). While a rival rival executive told Rosenthal that the A’s were willing to eat all of Johnson’s remaining salary and had offered him to multiple clubs, an Oakland source later called that statement “a lie” and denied that Johnson was being shopped. Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle later reported that the club would indeed be interested in moving Johnson “in the right deal,” and that the A’s might consider picking up most of the $6.5MM tab still owed on the 30-year-old righty.
  • Athletics co-owner Lew Wolff said recently that the club is close to inking a ten-year lease that would keep the team at the O.co Coliseum, Carolyn Jones of the San Francisco Chronicle reports. What that actually means is somewhat more difficult to assess, and Mark Purdy of the Mercury News breaks down what is known and what is yet to come. There is too much to cover to treat it sufficiently here, but the bottom line, according to Purdy, is that it is much too early to say that a new contract would put an end to the team’s efforts to find a new ballpark deal (let alone the possibility of that stadium landing in San Jose). Purdy further detailed the exceedingly complex situation in an earlier piece.

Marlins, A’s Nearly Completed Jim Johnson Trade Last Week

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The Marlins raised some eyebrows by trading their Competitive Balance draft pick (No. 39 overall) to the Pirates last week in exchange for right-hander Bryan Morris and using the extra cash to sign Kevin Gregg. However, the team almost made an even larger acquisition, according to FOX Sports’ Ken Rosenthal, who reports that Miami nearly sent the pick to the A’s in exchange for fallen closer Jim Johnson.

Oakland was willing to make the deal, according to Rosenthal, and they were also willing to pay a chunk of the nearly $6.5MM remaining on Johnson’s salary, with Miami including another player and remaining on the hook for at least the $1.4MM total of the draft slot. Ultimately, however, the Marlins went a different route.

Rosenthal notes that the A’s aren’t shopping Johnson but were willing to move the right-hander when approached by the Marlins, who were “aggressively” pursuing bullpen help. The 30-year-old Johnson has disappointed in his first season with the A’s, who acquired him from the Orioles in the offseason.

After back-to-back 50-save seasons, Johnson has pitched to a 6.55 ERA in 22 innings and lost the closer’s job to Sean Doolittle. Johnson has seen his walk and strikeout rates trend in the wrong direction, but he’s also been plagued by a .390 BABIP. His ground-ball rate remains elite, and his velocity hasn’t declined, so the Marlins likely figured that he could rebound to something closer to his previous form with the O’s. Indeed, sabermetric ERA estimators such as FIP (3.65), xFIP (4.42) and SIERA (4.10) all feel that he’s been vastly better than his ERA indicates. A move to the National League likely would be of benefit as well.

Perhaps the Marlins felt that they’d prefer to save some money and take a chance on two relievers rather than one. They may have thought the player going back to Oakland in the proposed deal was too steep a price to pay in the end. Their ultimate line of thinking isn’t clear, but Rosenthal’s report does suggest that the 30-28 Marlins do feel they can compete even without the likes of Jose Fernandez in the rotation.

AL Notes: Royals, Yankees, Athletics

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The Royals have once again shuffled their coaching staff in hopes of sparking a dormant offense, reports Andy McCullough of the Kansas City Star (via Twitter). Dale Sveum will take over for Pedro Grifol as the hitting coach, with Grifol becoming the catching instructor and Mike Jirschele taking over at third. Oddly, the news comes just one day shy of the anniversary of the club’s shake-up last year, in which Hall of Famer George Brett temporarily took over as the batting instructor. (For what it’s worth, the Royals had a 21-29 record when they tapped Brett — who held the role for about two months — and ended up finishing the year ten games over .500.)

Here’s more from the American League:

  • Contrary to popular opinion, the Yankees have the prospect pieces necessary to pull off one or more significant trades, rival GMs tell ESPN.com’s Jim Bowden (Insider subscription required). Bowden says he expects the team to be most interested in adding rotation help, and lists a few hypothetical targets. On the other side of the ledger, says Bowden, New York can offer up young power arms like Dellin Betances and Adam Warren, though those players are obviously useful at the MLB level. Otherwise, potential trade pieces include catchers Gary Sanchez and Peter O’Brien, 20-year-old righty Luis Severino, and the team’s three first-round picks from last year’s draft.
  • The Athletics have essentially done the opposite of the prevailing turnaround model of collecting and developing prospects, then selling them off when they get expensive, writes R.J. Anderson for FOX Sports. Since the end of 2012, Oakland GM Billy Beane has repeatedly swapped top prospects for useful, non-star big leaguers who generally did not come with extended team control. While that could lead to a talent deficit in future years, Anderson says that the club should be applauded for aggressively seeking to build a winner rather than waiting and hoping that its young talent pans out.

Padres Acquire Ronald Herrera To Complete Kyle Blanks Trade

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The Athletics announced (on Twitter) that they have traded right-hander Ronald Herrera to the Padres as the player to be named later in the Kyle Blanks trade. That deal, which was reached on May 15 this month, also sent outfielder Jake Goebbert to San Diego.

Herrera, 19, has spent the season in the rotation for Oakland’s Class-A affiliate in Beloit, pitching to a 3.38 ERA with 6.2 K/9 and 1.8 BB/9 in 50 2/3 innings of work. The Venezuelan hurler ranked 16th in the A’s farm system, according to MLB.com. Baseball America ranked Herrera 17th among A’s prospects prior to the 2014 campaign.

The A’s signed Herrera for just $20K out of Venezuela back in 2011 (as MLB.com’s Jonathan Mayo notes in his free scouting report on Herrera). Mayo writes that Herrera is exceptionally polished for his age and features three pitches, including a fastball that touches 94 mph despite his small frame (he is listed at 5’10” and 168 pounds). Mayo also writes that Herrera’s changeup shows more promise than his curveball, and his fastball features some nice sink. Baseball America agreed in their 2014 Prospect Handbook, noting that Herrera has outstanding command and “has the makings of a solid big league starter” down the line.

West Notes: Arenado, Rangers, Giants, Astros, A’s

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Rockies third baseman Nolan Arenado left this evening’s game with a left mallet finger fracture, the club announced on Twitter. The injury occurred to his left middle finger, tweets David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal Constitution. Team trainer Keith Duggers said that the best case is a four to six week layoff, though he’d be out longer if surgery is necessary, tweets Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post. Last year, Giants second baseman Marco Scutaro was able to play through a similar injury after missing just six games, but his featured only tendon damage and was not accompanied by a fracture. (Moreover, as Alex Pavlovic of the Mercury News notes on Twitter, Scutaro still required surgery, and playing through the pain contributed to an injury to another finger.) For now, at least, Colorado will call up Josh Rutledge to take Arenado’s place on the active roster.

Here’s more out of the game’s western divisions …

  • The Rangers’ incredible injury difficulties are no reason to panic, argues MLB.com’s Richard Justice. While the Athletics are well out in front of the division, Texas is hovering around .500 and is far from out of the Wild Card race. The team is fortunate to have an obvious replacement on the open market in Kendrys Morales, says Justice, and should seriously consider signing him. Otherwise, the club can still look for help from a series of young players — Justice mentions Luke Jackson, Alec Asher, and Alex Gonzalez — who can be asked to make the jump to the bigs earlier than expected.
  • That opinion is not shared by a pair of ESPN.com writers. Keith Law (Insider piece) says that the club should be able to acquire Morales for a song, but would be better suited by cutting their losses on the year. In addition to pending free agent relievers Joakim Soria, Neal Cotts, and Jason Frasor, Law says that the club could consider shopping Alex Rios and even star third baseman Adrian Beltre. Buster Olney joins with that general sentiment, writing (via Insider) that deciding to retool for next year would give the club a chance to free up some payroll space and add some young talent back into the system.
  • In the same piece, Olney suggests that the Giants could potentially make sense as a trade partner with the Cubs for pitcher Jeff Samardzija. San Francisco has been aggressive in dealing prospects for veterans in the past, notes Olney, and could add Samardzija with the hoping of eventually extending him (much as they did with Hunter Pence).
  • In a lengthy piece on the Astros’ front office, Evan Drellich of the Houston Chronicle provides details on the contract discussions that took place with third baseman Matt Dominguez and outfielder Robbie Grossman. The club offered Dominguez $14.5MM over five years in a contract that would have given the team two option years. Meanwhile, Grossman was made an offer of $13.5MM over six years, again with two options tacked on.
  • The key to the Athletics’ success this year has been achieving true depth, assistant GM Farhan Zaidi said in an interview with Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet.ca. “Whether it’s fatalistic or not you always think two injuries ahead,” said Zaidi. “You have a five-man rotation, but we always like to have seven or eight starting pitchers that we feel we could put in the mix if we needed to and still be able to compete.” The club builds in injury risk into its internal projection model, says Zaidi, who notes that manager Bob Melvin plays a role by maintaining contact with players at Triple-A throughout the season. Discussing the team’s propensity for exchanging players, Zaidi said that Oakland “tend[s] to be pretty targeted in players that we go out and try to trade for.” That means the club must also be willing to see a player find success in his new destination. “When you’re really targeting specific guys, rather than having teams approach you about players, you have to be willing to be aggressive and maybe overpay talent-wise to get the guy that fits your specific need,” he explained. Be sure to read the piece for plenty more great information.

West Links: Guerrero, Dodgers, A’s, Arencibia

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Dodgers infield prospect Alex Guerrero could miss up to five weeks after having part of his ear bitten off in an altercation with Triple-A teammate Miguel Olivo, reports Danny Knobler of ESPNLosAngeles.com. Agent Scott Boras told Knobler that Guerrero was taken to a hospital and had plastic surgery on the ear. GM Ned Colletti wouldn’t comment on potentially disciplining either player, though he expressed disappointment in the situation. Colletti said Guerrero is close to Major League ready, though the team wants him to continue to improve defensively. Obviously, that development will be on hold for awhile. As we process one of the most bizarre storylines in recent memory, here’s more from the game’s Western divisions…

  • The timing of the Guerrero/Olivo scuffle couldn’t be much worse for Guerrero or the Dodgers, as MLB.com’s Ken Gurnick writes that Juan Uribe could be headed to the DL. Gurnick looks at alternatives on the 40-man roster but also notes that with the Dodgers needing a roster spot for Hyun-jin Ryu, the team may not call up an infielder right away.
  • MLB.com’s Anthony Castrovince points out that the Athletics’ only two homegrown (i.e. drafted and developed) players on the current active roster are Sonny Gray and Sean Doolittle. The team signed Yoenis Cespedes after he defected from Cuba, every other player was acquired via trade or signed as a free agent from another club. Castrovince looks at the team’s offense and their usage of platoons, which led rival skipper Terry Francona to sing the praises of manager Bob Melvin.
  • Rangers catcher J.P. Arencibia has been optioned to Triple-A Round Rock, and the team has purchased the contract of veteran Chris Gimenez, Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram tweeted last night. Arencibia signed a one-year deal with Texas after being non-tendered by Toronto last winter, but he batted just .133/.182/.233 in 66 PA. No team has gotten less offense from the catcher position than Texas this season, and it wouldn’t surprise me to see them pursue upgrades on the trade market.

Minor Moves: Barton, Kroenke, Lerew

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We’ll keep tabs on the day’s minor moves here …

  • Athletics first baseman Daric Barton has accepted his assignment to Triple-A rather than electing free agency, tweets Chris Cotillo of MLBDailyDish.com. Barton was recently designated for assignment and then outrighted after the A’s added Kyle Blanks via trade.
  • The Nationals have purchased the contract of lefty Zach Kroenke from the independent Somerset Patriots, the Atlantic League club announced on Twitter. Kroenke, a fifth-round pick of the Yankees back in 2005, appeared in seven games over the 2010 and 2011 seasons with the Diamondbacks. The 30-year-old, who has spent time starting and in relief, worked to a 4.51 ERA in 129 2/3 innings with the Brewers’ top affiliate last year.
  • Righty Anthony Lerew’s contract has been purchased by the Angels from the York Revolution, the independent league club announced on Twitter (hat tip to Jason Bristol of CBS 21 News Harrisburg). The 31-year-old has seen action in parts of five big league seasons with the Braves and Royals, but hasn’t cracked the majors since 2010. Once considered a top-100 prospect with Atlanta, Lerew has managed just a 7.48 ERA in 61 1/3 MLB frames, though he has compiled a 3.90 mark in 330 1/3 Triple-A innings (most of them as a starter). Lerew saw some action in Japan and Korea over 2011-13 before returning to the United States this year with the Revolution, for whom he had thrown 24 innings of 2.25 ERA ball.
  • As MLBTR’s DFA Tracker shows, two players remain in DFA limbo at present, both of whom figure to draw some interest: Jeff Keppinger (White Sox) and Justin Maxwell (Royals).

Athletics Claim Jeff Francis Off Waivers From Reds

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3:39pm: Savery will be optioned to Triple-A rather than simply being placed on paternity leave, tweets Slusser, with the idea of utilizing Francis as a long man.

2:47pm: The Athletics have claimed lefty Jeff Francis off waivers from the Reds, reports Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle (Twitter links). Francis had been designated for assignment on Friday.

Francis, 33, got just one start with Cincinnati before he hit the wire, allowing three earned over five innings. He had been working effectively at Triple-A, tossing 48 2/3 frames with a 3.33 ERA, supported by a solid 8.3 K/9 against 2.2 BB/9.

As Slusser explains, the A’s will place recently-promoted southpaw Joe Savery on paternity leave. Francis will take his place on the active roster, though the club’s plans from that point forward remain unclear.

Outrighted To Triple-A: Rodriguez, Germano

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We’ll keep track of today’s outright assignments here..

  • Athletics first baseman Daric Barton cleared waivers and has been outrighted to Triple-A Sacramento, according to Joe Stiglich of CSNBayArea.com (on Twitter).  Barton, 28, has yet to repeat his outstanding 2010 campaign, when he played in 159 games and put up a .273/.393/.405 line while leading the league with 110 walks.
  • The Marlins announced that they have outrighted Henry Rodriguez to Triple-A New Orleans. Rodriguez, designated for assignment on Wednesday, displayed what have become typical command problems for him in 2014, walking five batters in just 1 2/3 innings pitched for the Fish.
  • The Rangers have outrighted Justin Germano to Triple-A Round Rock, according to the MLB.com transactions page.  Texas designated the right-hander for assignment on Wednesday to make room on the roster for Scott Baker.  Germano appeared in just two games for the Rangers, yielding seven runs in 5 1/3 innings of work. The veteran swingman has seen time in the Major Leagues in each of the past five seasons and owns a career 5.40 ERA in 330 innings pitched.

AL Notes: Beane, Solarte, Bell, Harrison

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Athletics GM Billy Beane may have outdone himself with his most recent round of immense production from unheralded players, writes MLB.com’s Richard Justice. Third baseman Josh Donaldson, who has continued his torrid pace since seemingly emerging out of nowhere last year, stood out to Beane with his somewhat hidden elite athleticism and extreme competitiveness. Now, reclamation project Jesse Chavez is taking the league by storm from the mound. “We liked him in the minor leagues,” Beane explained, “and felt he’d never really got an opportunity in the big leagues.” While Beane’s much-publicized success with statistical analysis has required consistent adaptation to maintain an edge, he says that the club identified Chavez through the same use of “objective numbers” that drove the Moneyball era. “We’ve had to reinvent ourselves a few times,” he explained. “There were things we were doing 10 years ago we weren’t able to continue to do. To constantly solve the challenges we have is not easy. It’s very self-satisfying for all of us.” Given Beane’s comments on Chavez’s lack of opportunity, it will certainly be interesting to see whether recent addition Kyle Blanks is able to harness his potential with healthy, consistent playing time in Oakland.

Here’s more out of the American League:

  • If Chavez is not the most surprising top performer through the season’s first quarter, that is only due to the emergence of 26-year-old journeyman Yangervis Solarte, who sports a .907 OPS in his rookie campaign. The Tigers were keen to sign Solarte before acquiring Ian Kinsler, reports Joel Sherman of the New York Post. With Detroit assistant GM Al Avila reportedly a big fan of Solarte, the team had also unsuccessfully pursued him as a minor league free agent before the 2011 and 2012 campaigns. Solarte’s agent, Peter Greenberg, says that Solarte chose to go to the Yankees because the team had an easier path to a big league opening and ultimately gave him a relatively robust $22K monthly salary in the minors (with three months guaranteed).
  • Orioles executive VP Dan Duquette addressed today’s signing of free agent reliever Heath Bell, who will look to revive his career by starting over at Triple-A. “Bell is a proven veteran pitcher with experience who has agreed to a Triple-A deal,” Duquette told Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com (Twitter link). “We believe he can help our major league club later this season.”
  • Injured Rangers starter Matt Harrison will undertake an epidural injection in hopes of quieting the pain from his back condition, but the next steps remain unclear, reports Anthony Andro of FOX Sports Southwest. “It’s kind of put me in the position where either I deal with it or have the surgery and get it fused together and try to make a comeback from that,” said Harrison. “It’s going to be even tougher than it was the last time but I’m willing to give it a try. I’m still trying to wrap my head around what’s going on at this point in time and trying not to let it sink in that it may have been my last game.” Ultimately, while he clearly hopes to do whatever it takes to return, Harrison indicated that he would keep his long-term future in mind with the dangerous condition he has. “Obviously your health is most important but I know there are guys who’ve come back before,” he said. “I’m going to give that a shot if I end up having it but if I come back and things are the same or worse as they were before it’s not worth the risk. It’s really not worth me being 29 years old and not being able to walk.”
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