Nationals Acquire Howie Kendrick
9:33pm: The teams have announced the trade. Philadelphia is sending Kendrick and cash to the Nats in exchange for Mills and additional international bonus money.
9:23pm: The Nationals have struck a deal to acquire infielder/outfielder Howie Kendrick from the Phillies in exchange for minor league left-hander McKenzie Mills, reports PhillyVoice.com’s Ryan Lawrence (Twitter links). Ken Rosenthal of MLB Network first reported that the Nats were working on a deal to land Kendrick (on Twitter).
The 34-year-old Kendrick hasn’t had his healthiest season, but he’s been extremely productive when on the field. Through 156 plate appearances, he’s posted a brilliant .340/.397/.454 batting line with a pair of homers, eight doubles, a triple and eight steals (in 11 attempts). Once a pure second baseman, Kendrick took on more of a super utility role with the Dodgers in 2016 and has played corner outfield with the Phillies in 2017. Over the past two seasons, he’s spent time at second base, third base, first base and in left field.
Kendrick is earning $10MM this season, though $5MM of that is deferred until 2019, per Cot’s Contracts. The Phillies are paying Kendrick’s contract down to the pro-rated league minimum, tweets Chelsea Janes of the Washington Post, so the Nats are only taking on the hook for about $187K for Kendrick, who will hit free agency following the 2017 season.
The Nationals are banged up at the moment, with left fielder Jayson Werth, Michael Taylor, Ryan Raburn and Chris Heisey all on the disabled list. That’s pushed Brian Goodwin into center field and Adam Lind into left field, so Kendrick will provide the club with an option in left as well as some veteran bench depth — and a postseason upgrade over the likes of Raburn and Heisey — once everyone is healthy down the stretch. Kendrick is currently dealing with a bruised left hand after getting hit by a pitch, though clearly Washington isn’t concerned that the injury will have any long-term effects.
Mills, 21, ranked as the Nationals’ 18th-best prospect on the recently released midseason top 30 list of Jim Callis and Jonathan Mayo at MLB.com. He’s pitched to a 3.01 ERA with a ridiculous 118-to-22 K/BB ratio (10.1 K/9, 1.9 BB/9) through 104 2/3 innings for Class-A Hagerstown this season. Callis and Mayo peg him for an above-average fastball and curveball with an average changeup. Their report gives him a back-of-the-rotation ceiling but also noted that some in the Nats organization felt there was more upside than that with Mills.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Orioles In On Jeremy Hellickson
9:22pm: The Orioles are “active” on Hellickson, tweets Rosenthal. That’s a rather surprising development, given that the Orioles are seven games back in the AL East and six back in the Wild Card race. Most of the talk on them has involved the Orioles selling off pieces in recent weeks, though many have been skeptical that owner Peter Angelos would ultimately give GM Dan Duquette the green light on selling off some veteran assets.
5:55pm: Zolecki also tweets that the field conditions were a significant factor, though he tweets that the Phillies are in “serious” trade talks involving Hellickson.
5:45pm: MLB Network’s Ken Rosenthal tweets that Hellickson “has not been traded — yet,” adding that the Phils are in active trade discussions involving the right-hander and did not want to take any chances with rainy, sloppy conditions on the field tonight.
5:41pm: The Phillies have scratched right-hander Jeremy Hellickson from tonight’s start, tweets MLB.com’s Todd Zolecki. While Zolecki notes that no trade has yet been finalized, “something’s cooking” with Hellickson and a yet-unreported club.
Hellickson, 30, accepted a qualifying offer from the Phillies this past offseason, locking him in at a $17.2MM salary for the 2017 season. He’s still owed about $6.1MM of that total through season’s end, though reports have indicated that the Phils would be willing to pay down some of the remaining commitment.
After an uninspiring start to the season, Hellickson has upped his strikeout totals in recent starts, working to a 4.33 ERA with 7.9 K/9, 1.8 BB/9 and a 36.1 percent ground-ball rate in 35 1/3 innings. That uptick in strikeouts is especially notable, as Hellickson averaged a league-worst 3.97 K/9 through his first 14 starts of the season.
Howie Kendrick's Trade Status In Question After HBP
- Recent indications are that Mets infielder Asdrubal Cabrera will be dealt, and he’s still drawing interest from at least a trio of rivals, per Mike Puma of the New York Post (via Twitter). The odds that he’ll be targeted perhaps also increased with an injury suffered on Wednesday by Phillies infielder/outfielder Howie Kendrick. As MLB.com’s Todd Zolecki writes, Kendrick did not suffer a fracture when he was hit by a pitch on the hand. But it’s not yet known if he’ll miss time. Given that he has already missed two extended stretches with other health issues, Kendrick will perhaps need to reenter the lineup and show he’s at full speed to factor into the deadline shopping spree. (Even if he doesn’t, he’d be a candidate to move in August.)
Rockies Acquire Pat Neshek
The Rockies announced that they’ve acquired right-hander Pat Neshek from the Phillies in exchange for minor league infielder Jose Gomez and minor league right-handers J.D. Hammer and Alejandro Requena. Lefty Tyler Anderson has been moved to the 60-day DL to clear a roster spot.
[Related: Updated Colorado Rockies depth chart and Philadelphia Phillies depth chart]
Neshek, 37 in September, has proven to be a strong offseason pickup for the Phillies, who effectively acquired the side-armer and his $6.5MM contract in a salary dump. Through 40 1/3 innings out of the Philadelphia bullpen, Neshek has averaged 10.0 K/9 and 1.1 BB/9 with a 37 percent ground-ball rate en route to a pristine 1.12 ERA. Neshek’s 13.6 percent swinging-strike rate is the best mark he’s posted since his rookie year with the Twins way back in 2006, and the paltry 24.5 percent hard-contact rate he’s allowed ranks as the 24th-best out of 163 qualified relievers.
In Neshek, the Rockies are adding a rental arm — Neshek is a free agent at season’s end — to a relief corps that has looked to show signs of fatigue in recent weeks. Colorado had a top-heavy bullpen that posted middle-of-the-pack results in April and May but has fallen off considerably since the calendar flipped to June. Over the past 30 days, Rockies relievers have posted a 4.74 ERA and a 4.92 FIP, each of which rank among the worst collective marks in baseball. Adam Ottavino and Jordan Lyles, in particular, have struggled as of late, but adding Neshek to the mix will give first-year manager Bud Black another quality arm to pair with the likes of Greg Holland and Jake McGee, taking some pressure off other arms further down the pecking order.
The 20-year-old Gomez ranked 21st in a deep Rockies farm system on the recently released midseason top 30 prospect list from Jim Callis and Jonathan Mayo of MLB.com. He’s played all over the infield but profiles best at second base in the long run, per that report, though he’s a ways off from the Majors anyhow after spending the bulk of the season in Class-A. Gomez is hitting .324/.374/.437 with four homers, 20 doubles and a pair of triples thus far in 2017. He’s also swiped 18 bases, though he’s been caught on another 11 attempts, suggesting that he needs further refinement in that area if he’s to be much of a threat on the bases later in his pro career.
In addition to having an excellent name, the 23-year-old Hammer boasts an outstanding strikeout rate thus far through the first year-plus of his professional career. The Marshall University product was Colorado’s 24th-round pick in the 2016 draft and has pitched to a 3.15 ERA with 12.3 K/9 against 2.6 BB/9 since joining the Rockies organization. Hammer, who has also posted a ground-ball rate north of 50 percent as a pro, has worked exclusively out of the bullpen, though he’s pitched in Class-A this season and is older than much of his competition. Fangraphs’ lead prospect analyst Eric Longenhagen tweets that Hammer possesses a plus fastball and average curveball but presently has below-average control.
Requena, 20, has worked as a starter at the Class-A level this season, totaling 117 innings across 19 starts with 7.5 K/9, 1.9 BB/9 and a 47.5 percent ground-ball rate. He’s demonstrated very strong control throughout his professional career to date and is enjoying solid results in his first year of full-season ball despite being nearly two years younger than the average age of his competition.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Phillies Place Daniel Nava On 10-Day DL
The Phillies have placed outfielder Daniel Nava on the 10-day DL with a hamstring injury, per a club announcement. His roster spot will go to Aaron Altherr, who was activated from his own time on the disabled list.
The move likely eliminates Nava as a possible trade piece. He had seemed to be a possible bench bat target for some organizations, but now teams looking for an option against right-handed pitching will need to look elsewhere.
Of course, it’s still possible Nava could be moved in August, if he’s able to makeit back to health. Though he isn’t earning much money (just $1.35MM), Nava is not a long-term asset, so he could clear waivers or be dealt to a claiming team. The trade return likely wouldn’t be significant, though that was always the case.
The 34-year-old switch-hitter has knocked around opposing righties to the tune of a .358/.445/.495 slash in 128 plate appearances on the year, with 16 walks against 19 strikeouts. As usual, he has been far less effective (.475 OPS) against left-handed pitching, but it’s also worth noting that Nava has drawn strong grades for his glovework — albeit in a limited sample.
Latest On Pat Neshek
- We continue to hear of widespread interest in Phillies reliever Pat Neshek, though it remains unclear just how much he’ll draw in return. A few teams still looking hard at him are the Nationals, Dodgers, and Red Sox, according to MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand (via Twitter). Those three clubs are among several that seem to be looking over a variety of relief pitchers, of course.
Cubs, Dodgers Scouting Pat Neshek
- The Cubs and Dodgers recently had scouts watching the Phillies‘ Pat Neshek in action, ESPN.com’s Jerry Crasnick reports (Twitter link). Both teams have been known to be looking at other relievers, so it isn’t any surprise that Neshek is on their radar. Neshek, widely expected to be moved before the deadline, has been linked to several teams — Chicago and L.A. are the newest names on a long list that includes the Nationals, Royals, Red Sox, Yankees, Brewers and Rays.
Phillies Scouting Rays' Farm System
- The Rays are interested in acquiring reliever Pat Neshek from the Phillies, so Philadelphia is heavily scouting Tampa Bay’s farm system, according to Mark Feinsand of MLB.com (Twitter link). Neshek is among a host of relievers the bullpen-needy Rays have been eyeing with the deadline approaching.
Phillies Could Wait Until August To Trade Howie Kendrick
- The Phillies could still trade 2B/OF Howie Kendrick if they keep him through the non-waiver trade deadline, writes Ryan Lawrence of PhillyVoice, who argues that Pat Neshek is the Phillie most likely to be traded by the end of the month. Kendrick only recently returned from a hamstring injury, giving the Phillies a limited amount of time to showcase him before July 31. Lawrence argues Kendrick’s injury troubles and his approximately $3.3MM in 2017 salary he’ll have left beginning on August 1 make Kendrick a candidate to clear waivers and leave Philadelphia in August, just as Chase Utley and Carlos Ruiz did in years past. I’d argue that Kendrick’s .349/.403/.476 line this year could make that scenario somewhat unlikely, but there’s little doubt that the timing of his return could make dealing him a bit tricky for the Phils.
Phillies Notes: Kendrick, Neshek, Deadline
The Phillies announced that Howie Kendrick has been activated off the 10-day DL, with Brock Stassi heading down to Triple-A in corresponding move. Between this hamstring strain and a strained oblique earlier this season, Kendrick has been limited to just 33 games and 139 plate appearances in his first season in Philadelphia, though the veteran has been raking when he has been able to play. Kendrick is hitting .349/.403/.476 this year, and while some regression is surely baked into those numbers (his BABIP is a whopping .443), Kendrick’s bat, positional versatility and respected clubhouse presence make him a valuable trade chip for the Phillies. He’ll have 11 days to audition for other clubs and prove he is healthy before the deadline.
- Even before he has made his return, some teams have expressed interest in trading for Kendrick, MLB.com’s Todd Zolecki writes in a rundown of the Phillies‘ potential deadline plans. Jeremy Hellickson has also drawn interest. While these two veterans and first baseman Tommy Joseph are being shopped, sources tell Zolecki that reliever Pat Neshek is definitely the most likely — and maybe the only –Phillie to be moved prior to the deadline. Kendrick, Hellickson, Joaquin Benoit and Daniel Nava could still be dealt but not until the August waiver period.