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Josh Reddick A Possible Target For White Sox?

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We’ve already checked in with the Boston Globe’s Nick Cafardo once today, with his report that the White Sox and Angels could both be looking to acquire one of several notable outfielders before this summer’s trade deadline.  Here’s some more from Cafardo’s weekly Sunday notes piece and a separate column…

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  • Josh Reddick is another addition to the list of left-handed hitting outfielders who could be targeted by the White Sox, or perhaps even the Cubs given Reddick’s past history with Theo Epstein.  Reddick will be a free agent this winter and there doesn’t appear to be much progress between he and the Athletics on an extension.  The A’s are 14-18 after today’s loss in Baltimore and Reddick stands out as a big trade candidate should Oakland continue to lag behind in the AL West race.

White Sox To Land Established OF Bat?

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  • The White Sox have $13MM to spend as a result of Adam LaRoche’s March retirement and are in need of another left-handed bat, which means they’re a potential fit for outfielders Jay Bruce, Brett Gardner, Carlos Gonzalez, Seth Smith and Nick Markakis, according to Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe. The Angels could also be in on those players, per Cafardo. It’s difficult to imagine a pitching-devoid team with a barren farm system dealing assets for an outfielder, however, especially considering the respective price tags those five players carry. The least expensive player of the group is Smith, who is making $6.75MM this season and has a $7MM club option for 2017, but he’s a solid part of a first-place Seattle team that’s trying to break a 14-year playoff drought and fend off the Angels, among others, in the AL West.

White Sox Notes: Petricka, Kahnle, Johnson, Danks

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The White Sox have placed right-hander Jake Petricka on the 15-day disabled list with a left hip impingement, the club announced. Petricka’s DL stint is retroactive to May 2, though there’s no immediate timetable for his return. The 27-year-old has battled control problems all season and is currently sporting a 4.50 ERA with eight walks against seven strikeouts in eight innings of work. Ugly as those numbers may be, a lengthy absence for Petricka would be no small blow to the Sox bullpen, as he’d previously worked to a very solid 3.24 ERA in 144 1/3 innings from 2013-15. Chicago announced that right-handers Tommy Kahnle and Erik Johnson have been recalled from Triple-A Charlotte to take the place of Petricka and left-hander John Danks, whose 10-year run with the Sox came to an end when the team designated him for assignment.

  • Speaking of Danks’ pending release, the veteran southpaw told reporters, including MLB.com’s Scott Merkin, that he has no hard feelings toward the White Sox organization and is supportive of the team’s decision. “The way my April went and the way the team is playing, I can’t fault anybody with the decision they made,” said Danks. “It’s a win-now league, and I wasn’t helping the team win. You can’t go out there with four-fifths of a rotation. I totally understand that. It all starts with pitching.” Danks heaped praise onto the clubhouse environment and the camaraderie felt among the Sox players, wishing his former teammates luck and thanking the organization in a gracious exit. “I’m a Sox fan for sure,” he said.

Sox Seek Rotation Help, Lefty Bat

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The White Sox are on the lookout for a left-handed bat and an addition to the starting rotation, reports Bruce Levine of CBS Chicago/670thescore.com (via Twitter). Per Levine, GM Rick Hahn and his staff have been “very active” to this point. Levine expands on that statement a bit toward the end of his latest column, noting that the Sox figure to look for a replacement for John Danks, who was designated for assignment earlier today, both internally and via trade. The Sox are turning to Erik Johnson to make Danks’ upcoming start, and the club has other internal options in the form of Miguel Gonzalez, Jacob Turner and Chris Beck. As for the search for bats, Levine writes that the Sox are “kicking the tires” on quality left-handed bats. Levine speculates that Carlos Gonzalez, who could be moved by this year’s Aug. 1 trade deadline, would make sense and could fit into the budget after the Sox saved $13MM with Adam LaRoche’s retirement. I’d add that lefties Jay Bruce and Nick Markakis both figure to be available in trades this summer, though neither is as strong a hitter as Gonzalez.

  • Within that column above, Levine has quotes from Hahn about the difficult decision to designate Danks, the White Sox’ longest-tenured player, for assignment. “There is no doubt in my mind that after the shoulder surgery he was not the same guy,” said Hahn of Danks. “That was zero fault of John Danks because he did everything in his power to fight back. Really giving the extent of the surgery, it was impressive how much he was able to contribute.” Levine also spoke to Sox stars Jose Abreu and Chris Sale about the move, with Sale plainly stating that “it stinks” to see a close friend that means so much to the clubhouse dismissed from the team. “He definitely left his mark on me and a lot of guys in here,” said Sale. Levine also tweeted following Danks’ DFA that the Sox offered him a chance to go to the minor leagues, but he declined.

Latest On Tim Lincecum Showcase

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We learned recently that free agent righty Tim Lincecum is preparing for a long-awaited showcase on Friday. Once one of the best pitchers in the game, Lincecum has been slowed by a variety of injury and performance issues more recently — including, particularly, hip surgery this past September — and is looking to show that he’s back to full health before signing.

Here’s the latest, with links to the Twitter account of MLB Network’s Jon Heyman unless otherwise noted:

  • The showcase will be held at Scottsdale Stadium, the Giants’ spring home, per Heyman. While Lincecum has availed himself of his long-time team’s facilities during his ramp-up, it shouldn’t be supposed that a return to San Francisco is particularly likely. As we’ve covered before, the Giants are said to be interested in Lincecum as a bullpen option, while he’s hoping to find a shot as a starter.
  • This particular event was always going to draw more fanfare than a typical bullpen session for a free agent who hasn’t posted a sub-4.00 ERA since 2011, but it appears that it could be made into a bigger spectacle than anyone would have foreseen. ESPN may be on hand to broadcast the outing, Heyman tweets, which would certainly lend an interesting combine-esque quality to the proceedings.
  • Beyond the Giants, we heard previously that the Orioles, Padres, and Athletics plan to have a scouting presence on hand. The White Sox, too, will be there, per Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune (Twitter link), as will the Angels, according to Alden Gonzalez of MLB.com (via Twitter). And the Blue Jays will also take a look, John Lott tweets.
  • Heyman also adds several more clubs that plant to send eyes (links: 1; 2; 3; 4). The Dodgers, Cubs, Nationals, and Marlins will be there from the National League side of things. And American League teams with at least one scout in the stands will include the Rangers and Astros.

Minor MLB Transactions: 5/1/16

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Here are today’s minor transactions from around baseball:

  • The Indians have placed catcher Roberto Perez on the disabled list with a thumb injury and recalled Adam Moore from Triple-A to take his place, according to ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick (Twitter link). Perez, Yan Gomes’ backup, was a 1.7-fWAR player in just 70 games last year, but he has only appeared in four contests this season, going without a hit in 15 PAs. In 287 big league PAs, the 31-year-old Moore and has hit a weak .201/.241/.309.
  • The Nationals activated catcher Wilson Ramos from the bereavement list before their game against the Cardinals on Sunday and optioned backstop Pedro Severino to Triple-A, per Mark Zuckerman of MASNsports.com (on Twitter). Ramos, a career .259/.301/.413 hitter over 1,839 big league PAs, batted a solid .316/.328/.491 with two home runs and threw out four of eight base stealers in April. Severino appeared in only one game and logged three PAs in Ramos’ absence.
  • The White Sox have activated closer David Robertson from the bereavement list and optioned right-hander Tommy Kahnle to Triple-A, reports Dan Hayes of CSN Chicago (Twitter link). Robertson, who hasn’t pitched since Wednesday, has converted eight of nine save opportunities this season in dominant fashion. The 31-year-old has racked up 13 strikeouts in 10 1/3 innings of work while surrendering a single run. Kahnle threw an inning for the White Sox prior to today and walked two batters.
  • The Braves recalled utilityman Emilio Bonifacio from Triple-A and optioned right-handed reliever Chris Withrow on Sunday morning. However, because of a rule technicality the Braves were unaware of, they can’t activate Bonifacio today, tweets David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Specifically, the Braves need to wait 30 days from the date they released Bonifacio (April 6) to activate him, per O’Brien (Twitter link).  Atlanta brought back the switch-hitting Bonifacio on a minor league deal after it released him. He owns a career .259/.316/.337 line in 2,807 major league plate appearances and will lengthen the Braves’ bench if he’s ultimately activated. Atlanta needed reserve depth after it had utilized a 13-man pitching staff over the last couple weeks, as Mark Bowman of MLB.com wrote Saturday. Withrow, a former Dodger, threw seven innings with the Braves prior to today, striking out four and allowing three earned runs on five hits and five walks. Those seven frames were Withrow’s first in the majors since 2014, as he underwent Tommy John surgery that year and later required surgery on a herniated disk in his lower back.

Ken Williams: White Sox Have Moved Past LaRoche Saga

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  • White Sox executive vice president Ken Williams says the team has gotten over the Spring Training Adam LaRoche saga, which isn’t a surprise considering the club’s AL-best 17-8 record. “I had to do what was best for all parties. I’ve tried to stay above the fray and chose the road less traveled — the high road. We don’t talk about it anymore,” he told Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe. Williams, of course, took plenty of heat from White Sox players when he told LaRoche that his son had to spend less time in the clubhouse, leading the first baseman/designated hitter to retire in March with $13MM left on his contract.

Details On Allegations Against Jose Abreu's Former Agents

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Court records have provided new insight into allegations against the former representatives of White Sox first baseman Jose Abreu, as Jared Hopkins of the Chicago Tribune reports. The Cuban emigre is said to have paid his agents $5.8MM in the first year after signing as a free agent, after they successfully engineered his complicated and shadowy escape from his home island. Human trafficking charges have been brought against agent Bart Hernandez and others relating to the scheme, which allegedly involved as many as 15 other players.

  • After calling up veteran righty Miguel Gonzalez for a start yesterday, the White Sox haven’t yet decided whether he’ll stick in the rotation, manager Robin Ventura told reports including Colleen Kane of the Chicago Tribune (via Twitter). Gonzalez, 31, allowed five earned on 11 hits and two walks while recording six strikeouts over his 5 1/3 frames last night. That’s obviously not terribly promising, but Gonzalez did put up two solid outings at Triple-A and did show a 90 mph average fastball that wasn’t too far off of his prior years’ levels. And fellow veteran John Danks hasn’t exactly set a high bar in the fifth starter’s role, as he owns a 6.23 ERA with 6.2 K/9 against 4.7 BB/9 over 17 1/3 innings in three starts.

Todd Frazier Sought Extension With Reds Prior To Trade

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Prior to being dealt to the White Sox, third baseman Todd Frazier sought to reach agreement with the Reds on a deal to stay in Cincinnati for the long haul, Jon Heyman of MLB Network reports (Twitter links). Frazier was ultimate swapped in a three-team trade that brought Jose Peraza, Scott Schebler, and Brandon Dixon in from the Dodgers.

According to Heyman’s report, Frazier and his representatives at CAA “made many proposals” to the Reds, one of which looked something like the seven-year, $100MM pact between the Mariners and Kyle Seager. Indeed, Frazier met with ownership just before he was dealt in an effort to find a way to add years to his contract and stick with the Reds.

Certainly, it isn’t surprising that the organization decided it was time to move on. While some have criticized the quality of the return, the decision to part with Frazier — a 30-year-old who is set to reach free agency after the 2017 campaign — made sense for a team in transition. It certainly would have been difficult to take on another significant contract for an older player with so much already committed to pieces like Joey Votto and Homer Bailey.

It’s obviously not entirely clear what kind of arrangement Frazier might have settled for, but the Seager comp doesn’t exactly scream value. To be sure, the veteran has largely matched the production of his competitor in Seattle over the last couple of seasons. But Frazier is also about three years older than Seager was at the time of his deal, and the latter’s extra year of control doesn’t really close the gap all the way.

The report is mostly of historical interest now, of course, as Frazier is under control of the White Sox until qualifying for free agency before the 2018 campaign. But the information about Frazier’s price point and interest in a long-term deal could certainly become relevant again if the Sox are more inclined than were the Reds in a significant extension.

White Sox Promote Miguel Gonzalez

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  • The White Sox have recalled right-hander Miguel Gonzalez from Triple-A and optioned righty Erik Johnson in a corresponding move, tweets Scott Gregor of the Daily Herald. Gonzalez will start for the White Sox on Monday in Toronto. Gonzalez joined the Sox as a free agent earlier this month after the Orioles unexpectedly released him. The 31-year-old has made 95 career starts and owns a lifetime 3.82 ERA to go with a 6.47 K/9 and 2.96 BB/9.
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