Draft Links: Cole, Orioles, Phillies, Cardinals
The day of the First-Year Player Draft is finally upon us. Here's the latest news and rumors as tonight's event draws nearer …
- The Pirates, as has been speculated for several days, will take UCLA righty Gerrit Cole with the No. 1 overall pick, according to Jonathan Mayo of MLB.com.
- The Orioles have long been linked to prep pitcher Dylan Bundy out of Oklahoma with the No. 4 pick, but they may be shifting focus to Archie Bradley, another prep pitcher, writes Steve Melewski of MASNSports.com.
- Ed Barkowitz of Philly.com identifies TCU lefty Matt Purke as a possibility for the Phillies with their first pick, No. 39. Purke, who was a first-round pick of the Rangers in 2009 but didn't sign, has seen his stock tumble as a result of shoulder troubles.
- Because the Cardinals have only one pick on Day 1 of the draft and only two in the top 100, they're less likely to take risky players, writes Nathan Hart of the St. Louis Post Dispatch. The Redbirds are tentatively planning to take a position player, though that is not definite.
- The Rangers are looking at Massachusetts prep righty Tyler Beede, writes Jamey Newberg of the Newberg Report, noting how difficult it can be to accurately predict draft picks.
- The Rockies are still on Utah first baseman C.J. Cron at No. 20, according to Troy Renck of the Denver Post (via Twitter).
- It's never too late to draft a superstar, writes Jeff Passan of Yahoo!, who runs down some of the best steals in draft history.
- The Dodgers worked out Trevor Gretzky, Wayne's son, and Ryan Garvey, Steve's son, on Sunday, writes Ken Gurnick of MLB.com, though both players have committed to college.
- Red Sox outfielder Darnell McDonald has had a strange journey through the minors, which is why drafting two-sport stars is tricky, writes Mike Petraglia of WEEI.com. Ryan Hannable, also of WEEI.com, has tallied up the experts' projections for the Red Sox's draft picks.
- Owning the first overall pick in the draft does not guarantee future success, writes Rob Neyer of SBNation.com.
Quick Hits: Reyes, Pirates, Garvey-Hershiser
A few items of note for Sunday afternoon. On this day in 2008, the Tampa Bay Rays selected Tim Beckham with the No. 1 overall pick in the First-Year Player Draft.
- ESPN's Adam Rubin shares a video interview with Jose Reyes in which the Mets shortstop says he doesn't think about the constant trade rumors surrounding him because all he can control is his on-field performance.
- Mike Pelfrey told Mark Hale of the New York Post that it would be tough for him as an individual, tough for the team, and tough for the fans to lose Reyes, whom he deems irreplaceable.
- MLB.com's Jenifer Langosch covers the additional lefty relief options the Pirates have in Triple-A, and says that if a roster move needs to be made in order to appease manager Clint Hurdle's desire for another southpaw, Jose Ascanio is the most likely to be designated for assignment.
- A Dodgers sale is not yet imminent, but Orel Hershiser has joined Steve Garvey and others, forming the Garvey-Hershiser Group, in hopes of bidding on the team should it be put up for sale by MLB, writes Jeff Painter of the Los Angeles Daily News. The Dodgers could be made for sale if Frank McCourt can't make the next payroll payments, according to Painter. Reports of Garvey's interest in purchasing the Dodgers first surfaced when MLB seized control of the team in April.
- Red Sox right-hander Daisuke Matsuzaka, slated for Tommy John surgery this week, hopes to "come back to the game with the Red Sox uniform," writes Mike Petraglia of WEEI.com. Since it typically takes pitchers at least a calendar year to return from the surgery, Dice-K, whose six-year contract expires after 2012, may have played his last game for Boston and perhaps in MLB.
- The Phillies' debt situation is broken down by David Murphy of the Philadelphia Daily News in the wake of Friday's news that the Phils are one of nine teams in violation of MLB's debt service rules. The takeaway: The Phils are in relatively solid financial standing, as the franchise is paid off, with their current debt representing only a "momentary hiccup," writes Murphy.
Draft Links: Royals, Pirates, Phillies
Here's the latest as we close in on Monday's First-Year Player Draft …
- The Royals will be tempted to take prep outfielder Bubba Starling from Kansas with the No. 5 overall pick, writes Rustin Dodd of the Kansas City Star. The Royals are thought to covet a polished pitcher so that he can help the big league team sooner than later, according to Dodd, but they've smarted over missing out on local products Albert Pujols and Logan Morrison in the recent past, and GM Dayton Moore has discussed the importance of snatching up local talent.
- The Pirates' indecision about which pricey college player to take select at No. 1 overall — Gerrit Cole and Anthony Rendon are represented by Scott Boras, while Danny Hultzen is reportedly seeking $13MM — has some baseball people wondering whether they'll take a prep player like Starling or Dylan Bundy in order to preserve their draft budget and overpay for tough-to-sign players at later picks, writes Phil Rogers of the Chicago Tribune. Also within that piece, Rogers examines some of the crucial selections of the past 10 drafts.
- The Phillies are charged with restocking their farm despite making their first pick at No. 39, writes Bob Brookover of Philly.com. The fact that many of the Phils' core players are homegrown and others were acquired with prospects is a testament to the scouting and development departments, according to Brookover.
- The Royals could also select UConn right-hander Matt Barnes with the fifth overall pick, writes Stephen Goff of the Houston Examiner. Within that piece, Goff explains Barners' unforeseen ascent to likely top-10 selection.
- The Astros were once interested in Texas A&M righty John Stilson at No. 11, according to Goff, but the hurler has generally slipped out of first-round consideration due to a shoulder injury. As a result, Stilson is now a deep sleeper, writes Goff.
- Jonathan May of MLB.com published his latest mock draft today, with Cole, Rendon and Hultzen going at Nos. 1, 2 and 3 to the Pirates, Mariners and D'Backs, respectively.
- Four of six industry experts polled said they prefer Cole to Trevor Bauer of the two UCLA Bruins, but it's closer than you think, writes Tom Krasovic.
Draft Notes: Starling, Phillies, Bauer, Bradley
Peter Gammons of MLB Network runs through some of the most intriguing 'what-ifs' in the history of the draft at MLB.com. Here are more draft links, as we wonder what would have happened if the White Sox had drafted Barry Bonds in 1985…
- Florida prep shortstop Francisco Lindor's workout with the Diamondbacks was scheduled for today, tweets Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic. The Monteverde (Fla.) Academy product is a candidate for their pick at No. 7.
- Kevin Goldstein of Baseball Prospectus (via Twitter) has received more pre-draft bonus demand letters. Wyoming's Brandon Nimmo is seeking $3MM, first baseman Dan Vogelbach wants $1.65MM, and Pennsylvania outfielder Derek Fisher is eyeing a bonus of $2.25MM.
- Chris Cox of MLB.com profiled University of South Carolina outfielder Jackie Bradley Jr., who is unsure of where he'll land after suffering a wrist injury. Bradley, who has garnered comparisons to Jim Edmonds, will likely wind up being selected in the supplemental round.
- Right now there's not a whole lot of clarity in the top 15 of the draft, writes Keith Law of ESPN.com (Insider subscription required). Law has Anthony Rendon pegged to go No. 2 to the Mariners though he believes that outfielder Bubba Starling could wind up going in that spot also.
- More from Law (via Twitter) as he hears that the White Sox are potentially looking at Stanford left-hander Chris Reed as a sandwich round pick.
- Phillies scouting director Marti Wolever suggested to Todd Zolecki of MLB.com that the Phils will be looking for offense this year. "I always love to get bats, but that's kind of what we're looking at," Wolever said.
- Steve Henson of Yahoo Sports shows that UCLA right-hander Trevor Bauer is talented, feisty and unorthodox. Could he be the next Tim Lincecum? One American League scout says he "could be as good as [Lincecum] or better."
- As Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic explains, high school right-hander Archie Bradley faces a difficult decision: start at quarterback for the football-crazed University of Oklahoma or let his 100 mph fastball carry him to a seven-figure bonus and a baseball career. It sounds as though the affable Bradley will sign with an MLB team if he's offered enough money, since baseball is his first love.
- Check out Tim Dierkes’ writeup about Bradley from last month.
- Virginia left-hander Danny Hultzen has pitched his way up teams' draft boards and remains a candidate to go first overall to the Pirates, Jonathan Mayo writes at MLB.com.
The Phillies’ Approach To The 2011 Draft
The Phillies haven’t had the first overall pick in the amateur draft since 1998, when they selected Pat Burrell. This year, their first pick will be number 39 overall, but Phillies amateur scouting director Marti Wolever says it’s a good problem to have, since it means the Major League team has played well. Just don’t expect the Phillies to draft with an eye on their 2011 win total.
“You have to look down the road and I don’t think you can look for a quick fix necessarily,” Wolever said on a conference call with reporters. “Often if you look back at those [picks] they don’t work out the way you planned them to work out.”
The Phillies are eyeing catchers and middle infielders, though they will be ready to adjust since they realize many of their top targets may already have been selected by the time they make their first pick. It’s “one of the deeper drafts" in recent memory for position players, so Wolever will be looking out for bats, but he’ll also monitor pitchers, particularly southpaws.
“I love offensive players and I think everyone does,” he said. “But strong pitching certainly gets you to where you need to be when the bats aren’t going quite right.”
This draft features a strong group of college pitchers, some of whom the Phillies acknowledge they aren’t drafting. Though Wolever and his staff saw every elite prospect in preparation for Monday’s draft, the Phillies know that they have zero chance of obtaining certain players. Gerrit Cole, Trevor Bauer and Danny Hultzen are among the pitchers who figure to be long gone by the time the Phillies make their first selection.
Nine Teams In Violation Of Debt Service Rules
The Dodgers and Mets are among the nine MLB teams in violation of MLB’s debt service rules, according to Bill Shaikin of the LA Times. The regulations came into being in 2002 and are intended to limit a team’s debt to ten times its yearly earnings and ensure that each team can pay its bills. The Orioles, Cubs, Tigers, Marlins, Phillies, Rangers and Nationals are also in violation of the rules, according to Shaikin.
MLB executive VP of labor relations Rob Manfred says he isn’t “concerned about the overall economic condition of the industry" and a National League executive called the high number of teams out of compliance a “hiccup” for an otherwise healthy league.
Along with the competitive balance tax and revenue sharing, the debt service rule figures to be a major financial issue in the negotiations for a new Collective Bargaining Agreement between the players and the owners. The Phillies have confirmed that they are not currently compliant with the debt-service rule, according to Matt Gelb of the Philadelphia Inquirer.
Minor Deals: Brazoban, Reds, Rangers, Astros, Phillies
Once in a while, a minor move becomes more than just a footnote. For example, about six years ago the Rangers released outfielder Andres Torres, who found his way back to the Majors in '09 after several more stops and put up some big numbers for the Giants. Today's minor deals:
- Yhency Brazoban signed with the Diamondbacks after exercising his out clause with the Rangers, tweets Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. The 30-year-old former Dodger posted a 3.42 ERA, 10.6 K/9, 3.8 BB/9, and 1.7 HR/9 in 26 1/3 innings for the Rangers' Triple-A affiliate.
- The Reds acquired righty Chris Mobley from the Rangers for future considerations, writes Baseball America's Matt Eddy. The 27-year-old reliever has a 4.61 ERA in 27 1/3 innings across Double and Triple-A this year.
- The Astros signed righty Brad Hennessey, reports Eddy. The 31-year-old, who was drafted by the Giants in '01 17 spots before David Wright, has a 4.69 ERA in 360 2/3 career innings. He last pitched in the Majors in '08.
- The Giants released outfielder Terry Evans, notes Eddy. Evans quickly signed with the Phillies, tweeted Reading Royals beat writer Jason Guarente yesterday. Back in July of '06, the Cardinals sent Evans to the Angels for eventual World Series hero Jeff Weaver, plus cash.
- Eddy reports that the Mariners signed lefty Tony Butler, one of the players they sent to the Orioles for Erik Bedard back in February of '08.
- The Blue Jays released righty Chris Malone, writes Eddy. Malone was the player the Jays acquired from Colorado for Brad Emaus in April, and they only needed eight innings to decide they didn't need him. Emaus, meanwhile, is hitting .355/.419/.645 in 87 plate appearances for the Rockies' Triple-A affiliate, playing mostly second base.
- Andrew Miller has a June 15th out clause in his contract with the Red Sox, so Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe wonders if the Red Sox will consider calling him up to replace Rich Hill, especially given Miller’s recent success (Twitter link). Brian McPherson of The Providence Journal talked to Miller, who isn't thinking about his opt-out.
East Notes: Marlins, Anderson, Encarnacion, Phillies
Here's the latest from the eastern side of the baseball map…
- Marlins president of baseball operations Larry Beinfest tells MLB.com's Alden Gonzalez that the team wants to "concentrate on the season right now" and wouldn't comment on whether the Fish would offer Edwin Rodriguez a contract extension before the year is up. Rodriguez, who took over as Florida's manager last June, is only on a one-year deal.
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The Yankees released Trenton Thunder reliever Brian Anderson, according to Thunder reporter Mike Ashmore (on Twitter). The former outfielder was on the DL with a biceps issue.
- The Yankees also released southpaw Andrew Sisco, according to the International League's transactions page. Sisco posted a 5.18 ERA in 151 relief appearances for the Royals and White Sox between 2005-07 and hasn't been back to the majors since undergoing Tommy John surgery in 2008. Sisco, 28, had a 1.88 ERA and a 9.4 K/9 rate in 16 games at Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre this season, though he'd also allowed 12 walks in 14 1/3 innings pitched.
- Dave Cameron of Fangraphs calls for the Blue Jays to release Edwin Encarnacion or at least permanently relegate him to the bench. "[Encarnacion is] an absolute disaster in the field, and his bat simply doesn’t even come close to making up for it," Cameron writes.
- J.C. Ramirez, one of the prospects the Phillies received in the Cliff Lee trade, has pitched well at Double-A this season, writes Jim Salisbury for Baseball America.
- It looks as if Domonic Brown will remain with the Phillies when Shane Victorino returns from the DL, reports Matt Gelb of the Philadelphia Inquirer. This could mean the Phils send John Mayberry Jr. down to the minors, or perhaps Rule 5 draft pick Michael Martinez, who would of course have to be offered back to the Nationals.
- The Orioles are expected to release right-hander Ryan Drese, reports Steve Melewski of MASNsports.com. Drese, 35, last pitched in the majors in 2006 and currently has a 6.55 ERA in nine games (six of them starts) for Triple-A Norfolk.
- Overpaying for a designated hitter is "a new market inefficiency," writes Jason Collette of the DRaysBay blog. Collette suggests the Rays (and other teams) should look to fill the DH spot with the same low-cost approach that the Rays used to rebuild their bullpen this winter.
MLBTR's Ben Nicholson-Smith also contributed to this post
On-Base Problems And Possible Solutions
As a group, MLB players tend to reach base approximately one third of the time, but this year has been different. It has been more than a decade since hitters posted an on-base percentage as low as .319, the current MLB mark.
That means the Rockies’ .319 mark isn’t as bad as it seems and makes the Cardinals’ .360 mark doubly impressive (especially when you consider how mediocre their best player has been).
There’s more to offense than on-base percentage, but there’s something to be said for not making outs, so teams with poor OBPs may look to fortify their respective offenses this summer. Here’s a look at which potential contenders may look to acquire on-base help and which players they could target to boost scoring (all stats are entering the day's action):
Oakland Athletics (27th in MLB with a .303 OBP)
The A’s, a team many of associate with high-OBP hitters, aren’t doing much better than the tepid offenses in Minnesota and San Diego when it comes to getting on base. Mark Ellis (.243 OBP), Kevin Kouzmanoff (.238) and Andy LaRoche (.295) have been Oakland’s primary culprits. Ellis’ career mark of .332 gives the A’s some hope at second, but LaRoche hasn’t done much better than Kouzmanoff since taking over at third, so GM Billy Beane may have to consider some other possible solutions. Wilson Betemit (.383 OBP), Chase Headley (.381) and the surprising and versatile Ryan Roberts (.395) are potential third base targets for the A’s, whose offensive woes aren’t limited to OBP.
San Francisco Giants (25th in MLB with a .308 OBP)
No team in baseball has scored fewer runs than the Giants (164) and their low OBP doesn’t help. The primary culprits so far? Aubrey Huff (.280 OBP) and Miguel Tejada (.241). Brandon Belt (.484 OBP at Triple-A) awaits another shot at big league pitching, but improving the offensive output at shortstop won’t be so easy or cheap. Possible solutions include Stephen Drew (.352 OBP) and, of course, Jose Reyes (.365).
Atlanta Braves (T-24th in MLB with a .309 OBP)
Dan Uggla (.256 OBP) and Alex Gonzalez (.295) are the primary culprits, but they appear to be entrenched as everyday players. Perhaps the Braves would have interest in a middle infielder out of the Eric Hinske mold – someone who can play multiple positions and get on base at a decent clip. Possible solutions include Roberts, Jamey Carroll (.371 OBP), Robert Andino (.368) and Marco Scutaro (.316).
Tampa Bay Rays (T-24th in MLB with a .309 OBP)
Rays shortstops have combined for a .244 OBP and the team’s catchers have combined for a .256 mark. Reid Brignac (.210 OBP), Elliot Johnson (.306), John Jaso (.279) and Kelly Shoppach (.247) are the primary culprits. If the Rays decide Jaso and Shoppach aren’t going to return to their respectable career levels, they could explore a deal for Miguel Montero (.358 OBP), Wilson Ramos (.339) or Ryan Doumit (.354). The shortstops listed above also represent possible solutions, though OBP is just one of many considerations for such a demanding defensive position.
Philadelphia Phillies (19th in MLB with a .314 OBP)
It seems weird to say so, but the Phillies have had a below-average offense so far this year (20th in MLB with 189 runs scored). Phillies second basemen (.264 OBP) and center fielders (.305) have been the primary culprits so far. But Chase Utley (.380 career OBP) has returned from the disabled list and Shane Victorino (.343 OBP in 2011) could be back as soon as next Friday, so the Phillies may not have to explore the trade market for possible solutions.
Minor Deals: Zumaya, Red Sox, Reds, Blue Jays
Troy Patton, who was designated for assignment by the Orioles last week, cleared waivers and has been optioned to Triple-A, according to Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltimore Sun (on Twitter). Here are the rest of today’s minor moves:
- The Tigers released Richard Zumaya, the younger brother of Major Leaguer Joel Zumaya, according to Matt Eddy of Baseball America (on Twitter). The 21-year-old right-hander struggled in the lower minors in 2010 and 2011.
- The Red Sox signed right-hander Chris Huseby, who once signed a seven-figure deal with the Cubs, according to Kevin Goldstein of Baseball Prospectus (on Twitter). The 23-year-old hasn't pitched this year but he has a 3.58 ERA with 8.7 K/9 and 4.1 BB/9 in 158 1/3 innings of pro ball.
- The Reds acquired righty Brandon Hynick from the White Sox and the Phillies acquired Niuman Romero from the Blue Jays, according to Eddy (on Twitter). The White Sox and Blue Jays obtained cash considerations in return for their respective prospects.
- The Reds also signed righty reliever Steven Jackson after the Dodgers released him, according to Eddy (on Twitter).
- The Braves signed right-hander Steven Shell to provide depth at Triple-A, according to Eddy (on Twitter).