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Chasen Shreve

Yankees Acquire Luke Voit From Cardinals

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11:48pm: New York received $1MM in international money in the swap, Jesse Sanchez of MLB.com tweets. Sanchez echoes Badler in noting that the Yankees will likely use that money to sign Rodriguez, whom they’re expected to land for $1.1MM.

10:09pm: The Yankees have acquired first baseman Luke Voit and international signing bonus pool money from the Cardinals for relievers Chasen Shreve and Giovanny Gallegos, per an announcement from New York.

The 27-year-old Voit joins Tyler Austin as the second right-handed-hitting first baseman at the Triple-A level for the Yankees. Voit, who has a minor league option remaining, has racked up 137 major league plate appearances since 2017 (just 13 this year) and batted .240/.307/.432 with five home runs. He has been far better as a member of Triple-A Memphis this year, with which he has hit .299/.391/.500 with nine homers in 271 PAs. It’s unclear whether Voit will get a big league shot immediately with the Yankees, though they could arguably use some offensive help after losing superstar slugger Aaron Judge to the disabled list Friday.

The most proven major leaguer in this swap is Shreve, whom the Yankees deemed redundant after adding fellow lefty Zach Britton to an already loaded bullpen earlier this week. Shreve, 28, saw extensive action with the Yankees in each season from 2015-18 and combined for a 3.88 ERA/4.89 FIP with 10.42 K/9, 4.56 BB/9 and a 43.7 percent groundball rate over 173 2/3 innings. He has posted similar numbers through 38 frames this year, with a 4.26 ERA/4.98 FIP, 10.89 K/9, 4.26 BB/9 and a 46.7 percent grounder rate.

The long ball has haunted Shreve this season, as he has allowed homers on 23.5 percent on fly balls, and has given up an unappealing .240/.356/.551 line to left-handed hitters. Nevertheless, the Cardinals seem to be banking on a turnaround from the out-of-options Shreve as they radically reconstruct their bullpen. The additions of Shreve and Gallegos are the latest moves to make over a relief unit that said goodbye to relievers Greg Holland, Sam Tuivailala and Tyler Lyons on Friday. Shreve could be a multiyear solution for the Cards, who will be able to control him via arbitration through 2021. He’s making a meager $825K this season.

Gallegos, 26, still has a pair of options left. The right-hander has amassed 30 1/3 major league innings since 2017 (including 10 this season) and recorded a 4.75 ERA/3.98 FIP with 9.49 K/9, 2.37 BB/9 and a 36.5 percent grounder percentage. Most of Gallegos’ year has been spent at Triple-A Scranton, where he has accumulated 27 2/3 frames and registered a 3.90 ERA/1.68 FIP with tremendous strikeout and walk rates (13.34 K/9, 2.28 BB/9).

Along with saying goodbye to Voit to reel in both Shreve and Gallegos, the Redbirds dealt an undisclosed amount of international bonus pool money. That’s likely not a big deal to St. Louis, which is barred from spending more than $300K on any individual prospect, whereas the Yankees could use their added cash to sign high-end Cuban pitching prospect Osiel Rodriguez and/or fellow countryman Carlos Verdecia, a shortstop, Ben Badler of Baseball America notes on Twitter.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Yankees Reportedly Interested In Jurickson Profar

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10:57am: Most teams have at least checked in on Profar’s availability, per Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News (on Twitter). Grant, however, adds that he finds it likelier that Profar would be part of a larger deal than this and/or that the Rangers would wait until deeper into the offseason to make a move.

10:01am: The Yankees have interest in swinging a deal for Rangers infielder Jurickson Profar in the next few days, reports Joel Sherman of the New York Post. The Yanks are a surprising entrant into Profar’s list of potential suitors given their considerable infield depth. New York has Didi Gregorius at shortstop, Starlin Castro at second base and Chase Headley at third, with Ronald Torreyes in a utility role and well-regarded prospects Gleyber Torres and Miguel Andujar on the cusp of MLB-readiness. Young Tyler Wade represents another utility option that is already on the 40-man roster.

Nonetheless, Sherman notes, the Yankees are intrigued by the idea of adding the game’s former No. 1 overall prospect in exchange for some of the pitchers on the fringes of their 40-man roster as they look to set that 40-man roster in advance of the Rule 5 Draft. The deadline to add players to the 40-man roster in advance of the Rule 5 Draft will come on Monday. Names like Bryan Mitchell, Caleb Smith, Luis Cessa and Chasen Shreve are among those listed by Sherman as possible players on the Yankees’ 40-man bubble.

[Related: New York Yankees depth chart & Texas Rangers depth chart]

Profar has long been an obvious trade candidate. The Rangers have Elvis Andrus at shortstop and Adrian Beltre at third base, and they committed to Rougned Odor as their long-term second baseman last offseason by signing him to a $49.5MM extension. While both Beltre and Andrus could leave the Rangers after next season — Beltre’s contract runs through 2018, while Andrus has an opt-out next offseason — the Rangers don’t have much of a spot for Profar in the interim. He’s out of minor league options and hasn’t thrived in a utility role in recent seasons.

The Rangers, furthermore, need starting pitching depth more than almost any other club in the Majors. Their rotation options beyond Cole Hamels and Martin Perez (neither of whom was impressive in 2017) are sparse, at best. If the Yankees like the idea lessening their 40-man crunch by condensing two arms into a single player with greater individual upside, then Profar certainly makes some degree of sense.

Of course, it remains to be seen just how Profar would fit into their plans. He’s controllable for another three seasons but cannot be optioned to the minors, meaning he’d leapfrog one of Torreyes or Wade on the current depth chart. Neither Torreyes nor Wade has proven himself to be an especially potent bat in the Majors, though the same can be true of Profar. That said, Profar was once considered baseball’s best prospect before a pair of shoulder surgeries wiped out two years of his career, and he did hit .287/.383/.428 in 383 Triple-A plate appearances this season. The Yankees may very well relish the notion of acquiring a player they can slot in at any position on the infield if he comes with greater offensive upside than either of their currently projected utility candidates.

AL East Notes: Buchholz, Yankees, Shreve, Matusz

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It would appear that Clay Buchholz’s spot in the Red Sox rotation is in jeopardy. Tim Britton of the Providence Journal tweets that following tonight’s loss, manager John Farrell conceded that Buchholz’s spot will be under discussion once Eduardo Rodriguez is healthy enough to return to the Majors. The Herald’s Michael Silverman tweets that Farrell made it sound as if Buchholz will leave the rotation, though the manager did emphasize that no decision has been made at this time. Buchholz had a perfect trip the order to open tonight’s game against the Rockies, but he quickly melted down, allowing a two-run homer to Carlos Gonzalez in the fourth inning. By the time his evening was finished, Buchholz had yielded six runs in five innings, causing his ERA to balloon to 6.35. Buchholz was accountable when speaking to reporters after the game. Via Britton (links to Twitter), he offered the following comments: “I’m here to pitch. If I don’t have a spot, that’s part of it. If I don’t like it, pitch better. I’m not demoralized. The team’s still winning. I’m basically the only one that’s struggling.” The Red Sox hold a $13.5MM club option on Buchholz for the 2017 season.

Here’s more from the AL East…

  • Joel Sherman of the New York Post writes that Yankees manager Joe Girardi appears frustrated by a mismatched roster that features too many players best-suited for DH duties. Both Alex Rodriguez and Carlos Beltran are ill-equipped for regular time on the field, but with A-Rod serving as a strict DH, Beltran is forced into right field. The Yankees’ roster is caught in an odd state of flux, with several young players in an effort to build for the future — e.g. Didi Gregorius, Aaron Hicks, Starlin Castro — and a slew of aging veterans who are no longer healthy enough or defensively competent enough to warrant everyday placement in the lineup.
  • The Yankees placed left-hander Chasen Shreve on the 15-day disabled list due to a sprained AC joint in his left shoulder, the club announced tonight. As Nick Suss writes for MLB.com, an MRI revealed the injury, and Shreve received  a cortisone injection to treat the issue. He won’t pick up a baseball for the next seven days. Girardi says that Shreve’s shoulder has been bothering him for a few days, though the lefty’s struggles have been ongoing for most of the season. Shreve has a 5.21 ERA on the year and has allowed a troubling seven homers in 19 innings of work.
  • Brian Matusz reflected on his time with the Orioles in an interview with MASNsports.com’s Roch Kubatko and offered nothing but praise for the organization that drafted him back in 2008. Matusz, who was traded to the Braves and promptly designated for assignment by Atlanta earlier this week (the Braves absorbed his contract as a means of persuading Baltimore to part with a Competitive Balance Draft Pick), tells Kubatko that he knew when he got the call informing of the trade that there was a chance he’d be designated quickly. “Obviously, a new team and I was excited,” said Matusz. “But I also realized before the trade happened that a designation was a possibility, so it wasn’t a complete surprise. Just understanding that it’s part of the business, where I was at in terms of how I’ve been throwing the ball.” Kubatko writes that Matusz never wanted to move from the rotation to the ’pen in the first place but played the role of the good soldier when asked to relieve. Asked about the possibility of starting again, he replied: “It’s tough to say right now. … But having the ability to start and be a reliever are two nice assets to have.”

AL East Notes: Vazquez, Rays, O’s, Marmol, Shreve

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Red Sox catcher Christian Vazquez seems to be ahead of schedule in his rehab from Tommy John surgery, writes WEEI.com’s Rob Bradford.  Vazquez tells Bradford that he had a scare last week when he felt some discomfort in his surgically repaired right elbow, but the doctors informed him that it stemmed from muscle pain and scar tissue as opposed to any sort of notable setback in his recovery.  Vazquez is already throwing to bases from behind the plate, though Bradford notes that it’s unclear if he’ll be ready for game action when games kick off on Feb. 29.  Here’s some more from around the AL East…

  • Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times writes that the Rays’ focus on adding bats this winter will not only help the offense, but also help the pitching staff and bullpen by theoretically sparing them from so many close games.  “When we’re playing in one-run games every night, it’s tough. It’s tough to piece together the innings and make sure that we keep everyone fresh,” president of baseball operations Matt Silverman said.
  • There’s no reason to worry about Yovani Gallardo passing his physical with the Orioles, based on what Eduardo Encina of The Baltimore Sun hears.  Encina also points out that though Gallardo turns 30 later this month, the righty has a strong track record of durability.  Gallardo’s physical is said to have taken place around noon today, so the deal could potentially be finalized and formally announced by the team at some point this afternoon.
  • The Orioles have been heavily connected to Dexter Fowler, though they’re also looking at other position player options, MLB Network’s Jon Heyman tweets.  Pedro Alvarez, who was rumored as a Baltimore target earlier this offseason, is still being considered by the team.
  • The Red Sox believe that Carlos Marmol can be a relief force again after correcting a flaw in his delivery, WEEI.com’s John Tomase writes.  Marmol’s already-shaky control was worsened by a high arm slot over the last two years, as observed by Boston director of pitching analysis and development Brian Bannister.  If this theory is correct and Marmol can get back on track, the Sox may have landed a big strikeout reliever at the cost of just a minor league deal.
  • The Yankees’ big three bullpen aces have drawn much of the attention this winter, though the rest of New York’s relief corps will also play an important role in the team’s success.  To this end, Chasen Shreve will be a big figure for the Yankees, though his late-season fade is a concern, Joel Sherman of the New York Post writes.  Fatigue or over-thinking may have played a role in Shreve’s late-season struggles, though Brian McCann feels that Shreve was tipping his pitches.

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