Trade Rumblings: Braves, Archer, Quintana, Gray, Red Sox
The Braves are once again in the market for controllable starters, reports David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Atlanta was linked to names like Chris Archer, Jose Quintana and Sonny Gray last season and throughout the winter, and the Braves still have interest in that group of pitchers, according to O’Brien. While they’ve scouted Gray’s recent outings for the Athletics, it’s Archer and Quintana that sit atop Atlanta’s wish list, O’Brien continues. The White Sox, of course, are known to be open to moving Quintana, but there’s no guarantee that the Rays would even consider moving Archer. To the contrary, Tampa Bay is two games above .500 and currently sits just one game back of an American League Wild Card spot and three games back in the AL East. Archer currently holds a 3.88 ERA with 10.9 K/9, 2.9 BB/9 and a 42.5 percent ground-ball rate through 104 1/3 innings, and he’s controllable through the 2021 season with just $33.7MM remaining on his contract following the 2017 campaign. It would presumably take a staggering package to even get the Rays to consider moving Archer, given the current state of their team.
A bit more on the trade market…
- Atlanta is far from the only team to scout Gray’s most recent starts. Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports that in addition to the Braves, the Cubs, Blue Jays and Mariners all had multiple scouts/execs on hand for Sunday’s start, and the Red Sox had a scout there as well. Slusser notes that some clubs have been scouting infielder Jed Lowrie as well, adding that it’s “all but certain” that the Athletics trade Lowrie before the non-waiver deadline. Boston is one team that’s likely to have interest in Lowrie, she adds.
- Yahoo’s Jeff Passan spoke to one source that said the Red Sox are “keen” for Gray, though they’re also considering aiming for a power-hitting third baseman and acquiring another reliever rather than bolstering the rotation. Stacking another arm alongside Joe Kelly and Craig Kimbrel at the back of the ‘pen could give Boston a trio similar to the three-headed monster similar to the 2014 Royals (Kelvin Herrera, Wade Davis, Greg Holland) or the 2016 Yankees (Dellin Betances, Andrew Miller, Aroldis Chapman). That was the idea in acquiring Tyler Thornburg this past offseason, but Thornburg will mis the entire year due to thoracic outlet surgery. The Sox, could, however, get righty Carson Smith back, though it’s difficult to know exactly what to expect from him after losing a season and a half to Tommy John surgery.
- White Sox GM Rick Hahn spoke to Ken Davidoff of the New York Post about lefty Jose Quintana, acknowledging that he’s been involved in “various conversations” with other clubs and that the ChiSox are “very open-minded” about dealing him. It’s been reported previously that Quintana’s rough start may not have much of an adverse impact on his trade value, and that’s how Hahn is approaching talks. “For the guys with extended track records, I think that’s probably the most important factor in terms of determining their value as well as the contractual control and obligations going forward,” said Hahn. “…He’s the same guy. The same guy in terms of how he goes about his business.” Rough start aside, Quintana entered tonight’s game with a pristine 2.25 ERA and 24-to-8 K/BB ratio through 24 June innings, and he’s held the Yankees scoreless through six innings tonight as of this writing. Davidoff notes that the Yankees could very well look into rotation upgrades, speculating that Quintana and Gray will be among the names they explore.
Rockies Acquire Zac Rosscup From Cubs For Matt Carasiti
The Rockies and Cubs have announced a swap of pitchers, with the Rockies adding the southpaw Zac Rosscup out of DFA limbo. Heading to Chicago in return is right-hander Matt Carasiti.
The 29-year-old Rosscup will provide Colorado with a potential lefty specialist. Over his career, he has struggled against righties (and with his command) while dominating opposing lefties to the tune of a .162/.303/.284 slash. He has spent most of the current season at Triple-A, posting 17 strong appearances there (12.7 K/9, 2.6 BB/9, 2.60 ERA).
It’ll be interesting to see if there are any near-term roster moves from Colorado that help explain the move. The club already has two power, late-inning lefties in the pen in Jake McGee and Mike Dunn, though the latter has been hit hard. And converted starter Chris Rusin, another southpaw, continues to post excellent numbers in a relief role.
As for Carasiti, 25, he lost his MLB roster spot after making his debut last year. He hasn’t been called back to the majors in 2017, but has been awfully impressive at Triple-A. Over 30 1/3 innings, he owns a 2.37 ERA with 12.8 K/9 against 3.9 BB/9.
Injury Notes: Conforto, Russell, Anderson, Keuchel, Meadows
Here’s the latest on some developing injury situations around the game…
- X-rays were negative on the left hand of Michael Conforto after the Mets outfielder was hit by a Matt Moore pitch today (the SNY MetsBlog has the details). Conforto remained in the game after being hit but was replaced in the field during the next half-inning. Conforto is day-to-day with a hand contusion and he said he feels he’ll be able to play by Tuesday, when the Mets next play. Needless to say, losing Conforto the DL would be yet another major blow to the injury-riddled Mets, as Conforto is in the midst of a big breakout year, entering today with 14 homers and a .288/.406/.553 slash line in 266 PA.
- Addison Russell left Sunday’s game due to “sharp, pinching pain” in his right shoulder, as he told CSN Chicago’s Patrick Mooney and other reporters. The Cubs shortstop has been bothered by shoulder problems since Spring Training, which could be a reason for his below-average wRC+ (83) and his .232/.300/.408 slash line through 250 PA. It isn’t yet known if a DL stint is required to give Russell an opportunity to fully rest the injury, as manager Joe Maddon described the problem as “kind of a nagging thing” that has “never been debilitating.”
- Rockies southpaw Tyler Anderson was forced to leave during the third inning of today’s start due to an apparent injury to his left knee, MLB.com’s Thomas Harding was among those to report. This was Anderson’s first start back since hitting the DL in late May due to inflammation in that same knee, though he made a one-inning relief appearance earlier last week. Advanced metrics indicate that Anderson has pitched better than his 6.11 ERA would indicate, as he has been plagued by home runs (a whopping 25% homer rate) and bad BABIP luck (.337) over his 63 1/3 IP this season.
- Astros ace Dallas Keuchel isn’t likely to return from the disabled list until after the All-Star Break, Jake Kaplan of the Houston Chronicle writes. The left-hander was placed on the DL on June 8 due to neck discomfort, the second time Keuchel has been sidelined this season due to neck problems. The team was known to be taking a very conservative approach to Keuchel’s rehab, and he has yet to begin throwing off a mound, though he has doing some long-tossing at a 120-foot distance. As Kaplan notes, there isn’t any huge rush to get Keuchel back given the Astros’ big AL West lead, as the team obviously wants to ensure its star lefty is fully recovered and ready for the postseason push.
- Top Pirates prospect Austin Meadows will miss up to four weeks after receiving a PRP injection for a torn hamstring, Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reports (Twitter link). The injury compounds what has already been a difficult season for Meadows, who has hit just .248/.313/.358 over 281 PA at the Triple-A level in 2017. There had been speculation that Meadows could make his MLB debut sometime this year (possibly if Andrew McCutchen was traded), though that seems less likely in the wake of his lengthy absence and his lack of Triple-A production. Of course, Meadows still just 22 years old and is regarded as one of the game’s better prospects, so there isn’t any reason yet for long-term concern.
NL Notes: Phillies, Marlins, Cards, Rox, Cubs
The last-place Phillies will be open for business at the trade deadline, reports Todd Zolecki of MLB.com. While free agents-to-be like Pat Neshek, Howie Kendrick, Jeremy Hellickson, Joaquin Benoit and Daniel Nava stand out as obvious trade candidates, Zolecki suggests that the Phillies could also listen to offers for some controllable players. That list includes first baseman Tommy Joseph, injured second baseman Cesar Hernandez and shortstop Freddy Galvis. Joseph is currently on a minimum salary and won’t even be eligible for arbitration until 2020, but moving him would enable the Phillies to open up first base for prospect Rhys Hoskins, who’s destroying Triple-A pitching. Hernandez, meanwhile, is on a $2.55MM salary and has three arbitration-eligible years remaining. However, he’s blocking another hot-hitting prospect – Scott Kingery, who’s at Double-A. Galvis is the most expensive of the three right now ($4.35MM) and only has another year of arbitration eligibility remaining. Behind him is J.P. Crawford, who hasn’t hit much at Triple-A since debuting there last year. Nevertheless, he still ranks as Baseball America‘s 19th-best prospect.
The latest on a few other NL teams…
- The Marlins probably won’t trade any major pieces as long as their ownership situation is in flux, tweets Joe Frisaro of MLB.com. If true, that would rule out deals involving the likes of Giancarlo Stanton, Christian Yelich, Marcell Ozuna and J.T. Realmuto, all of whom have been part of rumors this year. However, Frisaro notes that trades featuring lesser players (including Adeiny Hechavarria, Tom Koehler and certain relievers) remain possible.
- The Cardinals will recall outfielder Randal Grichuk, whom they demoted to the minors May 29, according to Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. The Redbirds sent down Grichuk after he batted a paltry .222/.276/.377 with a 29.8 percent strikeout rate in 181 plate appearances. He fared better at Triple-A, slashing .270/.313/.603 in 67 PAs, but struck out even more frequently (29.9 percent) and only posted a 4.5 percent walk rate. It’s unclear how often Grichuk will play in his return to St. Louis, at least initially, as the team has gotten terrific production in his spot (left field) from Tommy Pham. The Cardinals also have Dexter Fowler and Stephen Piscotty as everyday outfielders, of course, so there’s no obvious fit for Grichuk in a starting role.
- Right-hander Jon Gray will make his long-awaited return to the Rockies’ rotation during their series against Arizona next weekend, per Nick Groke of the Denver Post (Twitter links). Gray entered the season as the de facto ace of Colorado’s staff, but he has been out since mid-April with a stress fracture in his left foot. Still, the Rockies have stormed out of the gates at 47-30, and Gray’s return should only help the team’s already high playoff odds. The Rox will deploy a five-man rotation when Gray comes back, meaning someone will have to exit the group, observes Groke.
- Cubs righty Kyle Hendricks threw Saturday for the first time since going on the disabled list June 8, and he told reporters – including Glenn Sattell of MLB.com – that it was a pain-free session. “The arm felt good. I’ve been doing a lot of shoulder work. It took a few throws to find the arm slot and actually felt pretty normal,” said Hendricks. “I was actually surprised by it.” A return isn’t imminent, though, with manager Joe Maddon noting, “It’s probably aggressive to think he’d be back by the All-Star break, but I don’t want to rule anything out.”
Draft Signings: Pirates, Twins, Blue Jays, Cubs, Orioles, Marlins, Angels
Here are the latest notable signings from the 2017 amateur draft. You can check out scouting reports and analysis of all these players via the draft prospect rankings from MLB.com, Fangraphs, Baseball America and ESPN’s Keith Law (the latter two links are subscription-only).
- Pirates second-round pick Steven Jennings will receive a $1.9MM bonus, according to MLB.coms Jim Callis (via Twitter). The high-school hurler was taken 42nd overall, which comes with a $1,635,500 allocation.
- The Twins will save a bit of cash on 37th overall pick Landon Leach, per Mike Berardino of the St. Paul Pioneer Press (via Twitter). He’ll take home just under $1.5MM, per the report, below the $1,846,100 assigned slot price.
- Some of the Twins‘ savings will be directed toward third-rounder Blayne Enlow, per MLB.com’s Jim Callis (Twitter link). Reports after the draft suggested that Enlow would receive a bonus in the $2MM range to entice him away from a commitment to LSU. Callis reports that Enlow will receive $2MM on the dot, a major increase from the slot price ($755.5K) for the 76th overall selection.
- Blue Jays second-rounder Hagen Danner is in agreement on a bonus that will land right around $1.5MM, according to Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca. The deal is pending a physical. Danner’s bonus represents a healthy bump over the $1,043,200 slot value for the 61st overall pick. Davidi notes that once Danner’s deal is finalized, Toronto will have signed all of its picks from the first ten rounds except for first-round selections Logan Warmoth and Nate Pearson.
- Cubs second-rounder Cory Abbott lands a slot-value, $901.9K bonus, according to MLB.com’s Jonathan Mayo (via Twitter). The Loyola right-hander was drafted 67th overall.
- The Orioles will pay a $1.3MM bonus to Adam Hall, according to Mayo (on Twitter). It’s an above-slot deal for Hall, who had a slot value of $1,068,700 as the 60th overall pick.
- The Orioles will also add supplemental second-round selection Zac Lowther for the $779.5K slot value of the 74th overall pick, Callis tweets.
- Marlins second-rounder Joe Dunand will take home a $1.2MM bonus, Callis tweets. The N.C. State shortstop was taken 51st overall, so Dunand’s bonus lands a bit blow the $1,326,800 assigned price.
- The Angels have agreed to a $1MM bonus with third-rounder Jacob Pearson, Hudson Belinsky of Baseball America reports on Twitter. Pearson, another LSU commit, will instead begin his pro career after receiving a bonus well beyond the $656.3K assigned to the 85th overall pick.
Cubs Designate Zac Rosscup For Assignment
The Cubs have designated left-hander Zac Rosscup for assignment, the team announced to reporters (Twitter link via CSN Chicago’s Patrick Mooney). Rosscup’s DFA will open a spot on the 40-man roster for outfielder Mark Zagunis, whose contract was selected from Triple-A Iowa today.
Rosscup, 29, made just one appearance for the Cubs this season and recorded two outs. However, he logged a fairly significant amount of time with the club from 2013-15 and has totaled 47 1/3 innings as a member of the Chicago ‘pen dating back to that 2013 season. In that time, the former 28th-round pick owns a 5.32 ERA with 10.8 K/9 against 6.1 BB/9. Rosscup has had his share of troubles against right-handed opponents (.287/.384/.611), but he’s been very good against left-handed opponents, limiting them to a terrible .162/.303/.284 batting line in 90 career plate appearances.
Cubs Option Kyle Schwarber, Place Jason Heyward On DL
11:03am: Chicago will also place outfielder Jason Heyward on the DL with a left hand injury, Patrick Mooney of CSN Chicago tweets. Outfielder Mark Zagunis and righty Dylan Floro are expected to take the open roster spots.
Zagunis, 24, has followed up on a strong 2016 campaign with a .249/.399/.474 slash through 268 plate appearances at Triple-A this year. He has drawn 48 walks against sixty strikeouts thus far. As for Floro, he’ll look to improve upon his first 6 1/3 innings with the Cubs, over which he allowed six earned runs on 13 hits.
10:59am: In a surprising move, the Cubs have decided to option young outfielder/catcher Kyle Schwarber to Triple-A, according to David Kaplan of CSN Chicago (via Twitter). The expectation is that it won’t be a lengthy assignment, but it’s still a notable decision for the defending World Series champs.
Schwarber, 24, turned in an outstanding rookie campaign in 2015 and seemed primed for more last season. Instead, he lost almost the entire regular season after a devastating knee injury. But he came back in near-miraculous fashion to join the team for the Series — turning in a .412/.500/.471 batting line in twenty trips to the plate.
Things have not gone as hoped early in 2017, however. Schwarber, who has spent the vast bulk of his time in left field, currently owns a .171/.295/.378 batting line in 261 plate appearances. Though he has cracked a dozen home runs, and is carrying strikeout and walk numbers that are virtually identical to his prior marks, Schwarber has managed only a .193 batting average on balls in play. More soft contact at the expense of hard contact likely has played a role, as has a growing flyball rate (including quite a few more infield pops), though it seems reasonable to believe there’s also some misfortune baked into the results.
The move seems designed to give Schwarber a chance to get his bat on track at Triple-A — a level he barely stopped at on his way to the majors. In his stead, the Cubs still have plenty of options. Ben Zobrist seems likely to return from the DL soon, joining Ian Happ as an option in left. Both players can also line up at second base, of course, where the Cubs can also play Javier Baez and Tommy La Stella.
Cubs Agree To Terms With Brendon Little
The Cubs have agreed to a $2.2MM signing bonus with first-rounder Brendon Little, reports MLB.com’s Jim Callis (via Twitter). That comes in just below the $2,373,300 slot value of Little’s No. 27 overall selection.
Little, a junior college lefty out of Florida, is listed at 6’2″ and 195 pounds, and he’ll turn 21 this August. He entered the draft ranked 18th among draft prospects in the estimation of ESPN’s Keith Law. Other outlets weren’t quite so bullish, as Little rated 36th on the lists of both MLB.com and Baseball America in addition to a No. 46 ranking from Fangraphs.
Law opines that Little has the draft’s best curveball and notes that his fastball has been up to 97 mph. Law also notes that he feels there’s at least a chance that Little pans out as a starter, while each of the other reports on the southpaw suggest that inconsistencies in his delivery and command have many scouts believing that Little will be a reliever in the long run. His curveball and fastball get above-average to plus ratings across the board, though his third offering, a changeup, is said to need more refinement.
Health Notes: Pollock, Smith, E-Rod, Villar, Hughes, Zobrist, AGon, Semien, Werth, Flaherty
Diamondbacks outfielder A.J. Pollock has suffered a new injury while on a rehab assignment, as Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic tweets. Pollock, who is working back from a groin strain, is now said to be day-to-day with tightness in his right quad. The severity isn’t yet known, though the presence of another lower-body muscle issue will surely cause the organization to proceed with caution. With the Snakes locked in a surprising and increasingly fascinating battle in the NL West, they will be anxious to get Pollock back, though clearly the long view is required for such an important player with such a checkered injury history.
Let’s check in on a few more injury situations from around the game:
- The Blue Jays placed righty Joe Smith on the 10-day DL before today’s game, per a club announcement. He is dealing with shoulder inflammation. That’s a big loss for a Toronto club that has made huge strides after a woeful start to the year. Smith has been quite effective while maintaining a heavy workload; through 34 appearances, he carries a 3.41 ERA. More impressively, Smith has nearly doubled last year’s strikeout rate (13.4 K/9) while maintaining a 13.0% swinging-strike rate that dwarfs any of his prior single-season marks.
- While the Red Sox wait to learn more about the status of second baseman Dustin Pedroia, who took a pitch to the ribcage on Sunday, the club has continued to receive good news on lefty Eduardo Rodriguez. As Rob Bradford of WEEI.com tweets, skipper John Farrell says that Rodriguez will face live hitters this week and possibly head out for a rehab assignment thereafter.
- Things are clearing up for Brewers infielder Jonathan Villar as well, as MLB.com’s Adam McCalvy tweets. Villar, who has struggled in the wake of a breakout 2016 season, says that his lower back is feeling so much better that he might be ready for a rehab stint soon. Milwaukee may well need a healthy and more effective Villar if it hopes to continue to outpace the rest of the NL Central.
- In other forthcoming rehab stints, Twins righty Phil Hughes is scheduled for a start at Triple-A on Wednesday, as Mike Berardino of the St. Paul Pioneer Press reports. It seems that he has avoided the worst-case scenario after experiencing some symptoms akin to those that led to thoracic outlet surgery. Minnesota is also giving a rehab start to lefty Hector Santiago, who seems likely to avoid a lengthy DL stint for his shoulder issue.
- Veteran Cubs infielder/outfielder Ben Zobrist got some good news, as Jeff Arnold of the Chicago Sun-Times writes. An MRI came back clean, leaving the club hopeful that the veteran will be able to return as soon as Friday. That said, Zobrist acknowledged that he still needs to test out the wrist at full speed, noting that “we’re not going to push it.”
- Dodgers skipper Dave Roberts provided an update on first baseman Adrian Gonzalez, as Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times was among those to tweet. The veteran has received an epidural to treat his lower back issues, says Roberts, with the organization hopeful that Gonzalez will be able to return sometime around the All-Star break next month.
- The Athletics will send shortstop Marcus Semien out on a rehab assignment later this week, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle tweets. He has been participating in baseball activities to test his surgically repaired wrist, and it seems the progress is sufficient to allow him to take the next step.
- Meanwhile, the going is somewhat slow for Nationals outfielder Jayson Werth. As Dan Kolko of MASNsport.com tweets, manager Dusty Baker says that the veteran is still not ready for baseball activities. Instead, he’s still focused on taking care of his bruised left foot.
- The Orioles don’t appear likely to welcome back infielder Ryan Flaherty any time soon, as Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun reports on Twitter. His balky shoulder didn’t respond well to an attempt to ramp up a throwing program, so the team will slow things down. Were it not for the injury, Flaherty would likely have represented part of the plan for dealing with the more recent DL placement of J.J. Hardy.
Rosenthal’s Latest: McCutchen, Cole, Hand, Cubs
In his latest notes column, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports writes that while there’s a pretty good chance of an Andrew McCutchen trade this summer, the Pirates aren’t by any means planning a full tear-down of the roster. As such, Rosenthal notes that right-hander Gerrit Cole isn’t likely to be traded, considering he’s controllable for two more years beyond the current campaign. Trading McCutchen, whose bat has come to life over the past few weeks, wouldn’t be done as a means of waving a white flag on the 2017 campaign. Rather, the team could look to replace him in the lineup with a more affordable and/or controllable trade acquisition, as the Bucs did last year when replacing Melancon and Francisco Liriano with Felipe Rivero and Ivan Nova. McCutchen has a club option for the 2018 season that is valued at $14.5MM, and he’ll be a free agent thereafter.
A couple more highlights…
- The Padres are seeking a “Will Smith” type of return for lefty setup man Brad Hand, one rival executive tell Rosenthal. The Brewers traded Smith to the Giants last season in exchange for right-hander Phil Bickford, who at the time was 14 months removed from being a first-round pick, and catcher Andrew Susac — a former top prospect with MLB experience already under his belt. The Padres, of course, needn’t look to mirror that exact structure, but it seems fair to believe that GM A.J. Preller and his staff are hopeful of acquiring one near-MLB-ready asset and another highly touted young prospect in any deal for Hand, who is controllable through 2019. A pair of recent rough outings have made Hand’s numbers look a bit more mortal, but he’s still sporting a strong 2.84 ERA with 11.4 K/9, 2.8 BB/9 and a 50 percent ground-ball rate through 38 innings.
- Rosenthal also writes that fans shouldn’t expect to see the Cubs trade any of their young MLB-level hitters this summer. He suggests that Kyle Schwarber, Willson Contreras, Albert Almora and even the less-experienced Ian Happ are all unlikely to be moved, though Chicago certainly has a number of upper-level prospects that would entice rival teams to part with talent that could help turn around the season for the reigning World Series champions. Rosenthal also spoke with right-hander Jake Arrieta at length in an interesting interview about his struggles this season. While the former Cy Young winner conceded that his workload in 2015-16 may be having more of an effect on him than he’d like to admit. As Rosenthal notes, virtually every member of the Cubs’ rotation that pitched into the World Series has had some level of struggle this season, and the same is largely true of the Indians.