Central Notes: Molina, Walden, Rosenthal, Mesoraco, Reds, Plouffe
The Cardinals will increasingly need to consider a long-term replacement for Yadier Molina, to say nothing of preparing for a season in which he’ll be looking to return from two thumb surgeries, as Ben Frederickson of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch writes. Frederickson spoke with two potential future options behind the dish, Michael Ohlman and Carson Kelly. He adds that St. Louis GM John Mozeliak is still looking to add another veteran option to the mix this spring for depth purposes. While the Cards remain confident that Yadi will be ready to go for 2016, he’s still sporting protection for his thumb at present. Of course, the club still seems committed to relying on Molina — along with new backup Brayan Pena — for the bulk of its backstop duties this year.
Here’s more from the game’s central divisions:
- MLB.com’s Jenifer Langosch provides some notable Cardinals pen updates in a reader mailbag post. Reliever Jordan Walden is expected to go through a normal spring ramp-up, though she says there’s still uncertainty in his shoulder. The organization does not appear to have any immediate interest in extension talks with closer Trevor Rosenthal, Langosch adds, though there’s little urgency since he only just reached arbitration.
- Reds backstop Devin Mesoraco says that he’s feeling well and looking forward to a return after undergoing hip surgery last summer, MLB.com’s Mark Sheldon reports. “I’m good. I’m anxious to get back out on the field here,” Mesoraco said. “It’s been a long haul with rehabbing and working out. Everything is feeling the way that it should, the way that we planned.”
- There’s no shortage of left field options for the Reds as camp approaches, Sheldon writes, listing Yorman Rodriguez, Adam Duvall, Scott Schebler, Jake Cave, and Kyle Waldrop. “Those are the guys,” said GM Dick Williams. “Some of those guys can play multiple positions. There are guys that can play multiple outfield spots. [Juan] Duran will be in camp, and [Tyler] Holt. [Jesse] Winker, Waldrop and some of the younger guys, too.”
- The Twins never had serious conversations with third baseman Trevor Plouffe about a long-term deal while negotiating his arb salary this year, Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN tweets. Of course, there’s plenty of time to chat this spring if there’s interest, but it’s not clear that Minnesota would or should pursue a lengthy pact with the 29-year-old, who remains under team control for one more year via arbitration.
- Meanwhile, the Twins are not interested in southpaw reliever Eric O’Flaherty, Mike Berardino of the St. Paul Pioneer Press reports on Twitter. O’Flaherty was said to be showcasing for scouts yesterday, but it seems that Minnesota won’t be one of the clubs taking a closer look.
Central Notes: Fowler, Mesoraco, Tomlin, Twins, Cardinals
The White Sox and Cubs continue to monitor the market for free agent center fielder Dexter Fowler, writes Bruce Levine of 670thescore.com/CBS Chicago. Both clubs are checking in on Fowler’s market on a daily basis, Levine adds. Levine spoke to one executive from another team that called the Cubs the likeliest landing spot for Fowler, though based on the anonymous quote, that appears to be purely speculative as opposed to any form of definitive knowledge. The report notes that Fowler could settle for a one- or two-year deal (possibly with a player option, in keeping with the offseason’s opt-out trend), although that, too, appears to be fairly speculative in nature. While Levine and the unnamed exec feel that Fowler should have accepted the qualifying offer, it’s easy to make such claims with the benefit of hindsight, and I’d contest that no such claims can be made until the parameters of Fowler’s eventual deal are known. Even if Fowler comes in at a number lesser than the value of the qualifying offer, the upside in testing the market (tens of millions of dollars) significantly outweighed a possible difference of a few million dollars, in my eyes.
More from the game’s Central divisions…
- Reds catcher Devin Mesoraco tells MLB.com’s Mark Sheldon that his surgically repaired hip is 100 percent, and he’ll be ready to go when pitchers and catchers report for Spring Training. Mesoraco suffered a hip impingement in the first month of a four-year contract extension and was limited to 23 contests last year before undergoing surgery in June. However, the 2014 All-Star says he’s been hitting for “a couple of months” and has also progressed to catching drills, including blocking/receiving pitches, throwing across the diamond. Mesoraco says in terms of work behind the plate he is doing “just about everything with no pain.”
- Right-hander Josh Tomlin, who signed a two-year deal with the Indians yesterday (including a club option for a third season), spoke to MLB.com’s Jordan Bastian about the decision to sign the contract. “I didn’t really look towards the free-agent part,” said Tomlin, who would’ve hit the open market next winter had he not signed the deal. “I’ve been a Cleveland Indian since 2006. When they approached my agent about that contract, it was something that excited me and it got me looking forward to the season and I appreciated it. It’s something we talked about and we were able to reach an agreement that I was happy with, that they were happy with. I wasn’t really looking toward the future and seeing, ‘OK, these guys are getting this much money. I could potentially have that kind of money.’ That never entered into my head. It was, ‘Cleveland Indians wanted to give me a shot and I’m all about it.'” GM Mike Chernoff tells Bastian that the plan for 2016 is for Tomlin to pitch in the rotation. Assuming that Corey Kluber, Carlos Carrasco, Danny Salazar and Trevor Bauer all remain healthy, that would seem to leave right-hander Cody Anderson, who was solid in his big league debut this past season, without a spot in the starting five. Then again, virtually no team makes it through a season with only five starters, so Anderson and others should have chances to start throughout the year.
- There were no real discussions of a long-term pact between the Twins and Trevor Plouffe‘s representatives at CAA before the two sides agreed to a $7.25MM salary for the 2016 season, per 1500 ESPN’s Darren Wolfson (Twitter link). As it stands, Plouffe will be eligible for free agency following the 2017 campaign. He was an oft-speculated trade candidate earlier this winter due to the emergence of Miguel Sano and the signing of Korean slugger Byung-ho Park, who will push Sano away from the DH spot. Minnesota plans to use Sano in right field for the time being, though Plouffe’s future with the club and Sano’s positioning on the diamond figure to remain connected, as Sano has spent the bulk of his minor league career at third base.
- Mike Berardino of the St. Paul Pioneer Press spoke to Twins GM Terry Ryan about the steps that the club is taking to make Park’s transition from Korea to the United States as smooth as possible. Minnesota has hired a translator of Park’s choosing and has also been in contact with several Pirates officials about the transition process for Jung Ho Kang in 2015 in an effort to make the process as seamless as possible for their new DH. Ryan notes that the fact that both Kang and Park are represented by Octagon’s Alan Nero also helps, as Nero adds another person familiar with the adjustment process to the fold.
- The Cardinals aren’t exactly certain of when Yadier Molina will be healthy enough to make his 2016 debut, writes Ben Frederickson of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, which creates opportunities for internal options like Michael Ohlman and Carson Kelly to make the roster as a backup to offseason signee Brayan Pena. Non-roster invites such as veteran Eric Fryer also could find themselves with a greater opportunity to see some Major League time due to the uncertainty. However, even though Ohlman has only been with the Cardinals organization for a little less than a year, he outlined Molina’s importance to the roster when speaking to Frederickson. “He controls the clubhouse,” said Ohlman. “It’s his team.” Molina underwent thumb surgery back in October and had to undergo a second operation in December after the first one did not fully correct the ligament issue.
Arroyo Has Minor League Offer From Nats; Four Other Teams Interested
Veteran right-hander Bronson Arroyo has a minor league offer on the table from the Nationals and is receiving interest from four other clubs, including the Reds, reports MLB.com’s Mark Sheldon. In addition to that pair of teams, the Marlins, Pirates and Padres all have interest, though the interest of those three clubs does not appear to be as serious as the interest in Cincinnati and D.C. Sheldon tweeted earlier today that the Reds could make an offer soon, and in his column he notes that Arroyo expects to make a decision in the near future.
Arroyo tells Sheldon that he threw a bullpen session with Reds catching coach Mike Stefanski on Friday this past week. Sheldon adds that while the Reds didn’t have other personnel present to watch the session, they’ve received video and are determining a course of action. Arroyo sounds like his hope is to return to the Reds, though he doesn’t explicitly state that. He does, however, say that he hopes the Reds make an offer today, and he also adds: “I wanted to give the Reds every opportunity to keep me. Bryan Price has told me he’d love to have me in their locker room. I think it benefits both sides. It’s an opportunity for me to come into a less-stressed situation after a surgery and help young guys on the staff. If we can get something that’s in the ballpark [financially], I’d be happy.”
It’s unclear if Cincinnati, or any team, would be comfortable guaranteeing Arroyo a spot on the 40-man roster, though a minor league deal with a decent base salary and plenty of incentives could easily afford Arroyo several million dollars by season’s end if he remains healthy and proves capable of replicating anything close to his previous levels of performance. Arroyo does tell Sheldon that his arm feels 100 percent, though he admits that it took a full 16 months to get to that point, and he’s also frank in stating that he’s uncertain what to expect in terms of workload. “I’d be lying if I said I knew I could throw 200 innings with this arm,” said Arroyo. “I just don’t know.”
Arroyo, 39 next month, spent the 2006-13 seasons in a Reds uniform, pitching 199 innings or more in each of those eight campaigns. In total, he amassed a 4.05 ERA in 1690 1/3 innings, averaging 5.9 strikeouts and 2.3 walks per nine innings pitched. However, he underwent Tommy John surgery in July 2014 and missed the entire 2015 season as he worked his way back. The Nationals currently project to have a rotation consisting of Max Scherzer, Stephen Strasburg, Gio Gonzalez, Joe Ross and Tanner Roark, while Cincinnati’s rotation is far more in flux. Homer Bailey is recovering from his own Tommy John surgery, while Anthony DeSclafani and Raisel Iglesias seem like easy calls for starting gigs. Beyond that, Brandon Finnegan, John Lamb, John Moscot and Michael Lorenzen will compete for jobs in the rotation. Top prospect Robert Stephenson could eventually join that mix as well, though he has just 55 2/3 innings above the Double-A level.
Clearly, the Nats offer a better shot at contending than do the rebuilding Reds, and Washington can also offer a reunion with Arroyo’s former manager, Dusty Baker. However, Arroyo knows the Cincinnati organization quite well and has a clearer path to a rotation spot there. Additionally, as Sheldon notes, Arroyo’s girlfriend lives in Cincinnati, adding to the appeal for him on a personal level. The other three clubs, of course, have their merits as well, but they’re characterized more as secondary considerations than prime suitors by Sheldon for the time being.
NL Central Notes: Liriano, Pirates, Brewers, Cardinals, Tanking
Francisco Liriano embodies the rising trend of pitchers throwing fewer pitches in the strike zone than ever, writes Fangraphs’ August Fagerstrom. In 2014-15, Liriano recorded to two lowest single-season zone percentage marks (the number of pitches thrown in the designated strike zone) since the stat began being tracked. However, he also coerced opposing hitters into chasing more than a third of his out-of-zone pitches, yielding high quality results in his third year with the Pirates. As Fagerstrom notes, though, the decrease of pitches in the strike zone is not confined to Liriano’s left arm but is rather a league-wide phenomenon. And, despite the rapidly decreasing number of pitches thrown in the zone, hitters are failing to adjust and continuing to chase. While it’s not the case with Liriano specifically, Fagerstrom hypothesizes that the record levels of velocity throughout the game mean hitters must be more geared up for velocity than ever before, thereby limiting their ability to recognize and lay off breaking pitches out of the zone. Additionally, he speculates that the fact that umpires are continuing to expand the strike zone creates a greater urgency within hitters to protect themselves at the plate. It’s an interesting analysis that’s well worth reading in its entirety. (Additionally, while his column doesn’t state this, Fagerstrom’s analysis reminds how strong Liriano’s work was in the first season of a three-year, $39MM investment that right now looks to be an excellent move for the club.)
Onto some other items pertaining more closely to the Pirates and their division…
- The Pirates will face a challenge in replacing Francisco Cervelli, who hits free agency next winter, writes Travis Sawchik of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. The Pirates have picked up a trio of excellent pitch-framers in Cervelli, Russell Martin and Chris Stewart in recent years, but the Martin contract shows what a premium the market now places on catcher defense, Sawchik notes, thus making it seem unlikely that they’ll re-sign Cervelli, who could end up as the market’s most valuable catcher. Sawchik sees no chance that the two sides will hammer out an extension, and he points out that while top prospect Reese McGuire draws strong praise for his glovework, he can’t be expected to be a contributor before 2018.
- Later in that same piece, Sawchik notes that the Pirates‘ front office has taken a number of significant hits this winter — the most recent of which is the loss of Tyrone Brooks to the Commissioner’s Office. Brooks, the former director of player personnel, oversaw the team’s international and pro scouting efforts and played a large role in the acquisition of Jung Ho Kang. The Pirates have also lost special assistants Jim Benedict (who was renowned for his work with the team’s pitchers) and Marc DelPiano — both of whom left the organization to take positions with the Marlins.
- There’s been little in the way of trade talk surrounding Brewers right fielder Ryan Braun, Jon Heyman tweeted recently. Milwaukee has made more of an effort with catcher Jonathan Lucroy to this point, per Heyman, perhaps due to the club’s recognition of what would be a limited market for Braun. The asking price on Lucroy is said to be high, though Lucroy himself is open to a deal. As for Braun, his five-year, $105MM extension begins this season, but his value has been tarnished by a PED suspension as well as offseason back surgery and a nerve issue in his thumb that twice required a cryotherapy treatment last year. Braun did enjoy a nice season at the plate, however, hitting .285/.356/.498 with 25 homers and 24 steals.
- Cardinals shortstop Jhonny Peralta‘s second-half decline may have been part of the impetus to trade for Jedd Gyorko, writes Rick Hummel of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. While Peralta himself said this past weekend that he doesn’t feel he wore down late in the year and always wants to play in as many games as possible, the 33-year-old batted just .247/.313/.305 over the season’s final two months. Hummel writes that Gyorko could be used to spell Peralta at third base despite a suspect glove at the position. Moreover, he notes that Aledmys Diaz, fresh off a monster second half and Arizona Fall League showing, could soon knock on the door to the Majors. “We’re excited where he is,” said GM John Mozeliak of Diaz. “I think you’ll probably see (Diaz) playing in the big leagues at some point this year, I wouldn’t rule that out at all and I welcome that.” Peralta expressed comfort with moving anywhere on the diamond, should the need arise, citing previous experience at third base and even at first base and in the outfield.
- “Tanking” has become a popular buzzword due to the number of rebuilding clubs in the National League, but Fangraphs’ Dave Cameron rejects the idea that any of the so-called tanking teams is actually trying to lose as many games as possible. The Brewers have held onto the likes of Lucroy and Will Smith thus far despite favorable contracts that appeal to other clubs, and they haven’t paid down a significant portion of Braun’s deal to move his bat, either — a reasonable expectation for a club gunning for the No. 1 pick. The Reds have prioritized proximity to the Majors over long-term upside in trades of veterans and haven’t made an effort to move their best player, Joey Votto, Cameron writes. The Braves have signed Nick Markakis and targeted MLB-ready help like Shelby Miller, Ender Inciarte and Hector Olivera in trades over the past 15 months, to say nothing of their Nick Markakis signing (and, I might add, the complementary signings of A.J. Pierzynski, Jason Grilli, Jim Johnson and others). The Phillies are the only team that could reasonably fit the definition of “tanking” we see in the NBA, writes Cameron, but the best players in baseball can’t influence a team in the same manner they can in basketball. And, he rhetorically asks, would baseball truly be better off if the Phillies followed the path the Rockies have for the past several years — staunchly refusing to trade veterans (prior to this summer’s Troy Tulowitzki deal) and remaining in a noncompetitive state as opposed to “bottoming out in the hopes of bouncing back to high levels?”
Marlins, Nats, Reds Interested In Bronson Arroyo
JAN. 25: MLB Network’s Peter Gammons reports that the Marlins, too, have interest in adding Arroyo as a veteran option in their rotation (Twitter link). Miami has been said to be seeking a veteran to add to the rotation even after signing Wei-Yin Chen to a five-year deal. To this point, they’ve been connected to names like Doug Fister, Cliff Lee, Tim Lincecum, Alfredo Simon and Kyle Lohse.
JAN. 24: The Nationals and Reds are interested in veteran starting pitcher Bronson Arroyo, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. We heard rumors earlier today that Arroyo had recently visited Cincinnati’s Great American Ball Park. As Rosenthal reminds us (via Twitter), Arroyo bounced around three teams last season – the Diamondbacks, Braves, and Dodgers – while recovering from Tommy John surgery.
The right-handed starter will turn 39 in one month. From 2004 through 2013, he was arguably the most durable pitcher in the game. Nobody made more starts than Arroyo over those 10 seasons (326 starts). Only CC Sabathia and Mark Buehrle threw more than his 2,074 innings. While never the most dominating pitcher in the league, Arroyo provided consistent value with a contact oriented, low-walk approach (career 5.81 K/9, 2.44 BB/9).
Cincinnati’s interest in Arroyo makes perfect sense. The club has a rotation chock full of unproven youngsters, giving Arroyo room to serve as a much needed veteran and inning-eater. The team also has plenty of experience with him – he pitched for the Reds from 2006 through 2013. In terms of opportunity for Arroyo and value to the Reds, there appears to be a strong fit.
Arroyo’s former manager Dusty Baker now manages the Nationals. The club would seemingly view Arroyo as depth. Tanner Roark and Joe Ross appear to have a claim on the final two rotation jobs, although neither pitcher is guaranteed to pitch well. Initially, Arroyo would likely have to compete with Yusmeiro Petit for a long relief role. In wooing Arroyo, the Nationals do have one major advantage over the Reds – they’re a contender.
Central Notes: Arroyo, Indians, Twins, Hawkins
Free agent starter Bronson Arroyo was recently at Great American Ballpark, John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer tweets. Robert Murray of Baseball Essential also recently reported that Arroyo threw for the Reds in Cincinnati. These reports, while somewhat circumstantial, point toward a possible reunion between Arroyo and the team for which he pitched from 2006 through 2013. Previous reports had suggested that the Reds were among the teams that had interest in the right-hander, although much would depend on Arroyo’s recovery from Tommy John surgery. The 38-year-old last pitched in the big leagues in June 2014, when he was with the Diamondbacks. Here’s more from the Central divisions.
- The Indians were smart to sign Corey Kluber and Carlos Carrasco to long-term deals before this offseason, Paul Hoynes of Cleveland.com writes. This winter has seen a number of what Hoynes implies are exorbitantly expensive pitching contracts, from the top end of the market (Johnny Cueto) to the upper middle (Jeff Samardzija, $90MM; Ian Kennedy, $70MM) to the lower middle (Mike Pelfrey, $16MM). Meanwhile, Kluber is controlled through 2021 at $14MM or less per season, and Carrasco through 2020 at $9.5MM or less per season. Of course, as Hoynes notes, Kluber and Carrasco weren’t free to negotiate with other teams when they signed those contracts. And, obviously, the Indians aren’t the only team signing top young pitchers to long-term deals. But both contracts delay their recipients’ free agency by up to three years, and when contrasted with the prices of free-agent pitching, they do contribute to a compelling case for locking up talented youngsters early.
- Former Twins pitchers LaTroy Hawkins and Rick Aguilera are likely to join the team to help work with pitchers in Spring Training, Charley Walters of the Pioneer Press tweets. Hawkins spent the first nine seasons of his career with the Twins. The reliever had a strong season with the Rockies and Blue Jays in 2015, but he’s now retired, having announced prior to the season that he intended it to be his last. Aguilera spent parts of 11 seasons with the Twins and last pitched in the big leagues in 2000. The three-time All Star was elected to the Twins Hall of Fame in 2008.
NL Central Notes: Bastardo, Pirates, Rosenthal, Lucroy, Peraza
The Pirates made an effort to re-sign left-hander Antonio Bastardo, tweets Baseball Essential’s Robert Murray. Pittsburgh was willing to offer the lefty a two-year, $8MM contract to return to the bullpen, but he eclipsed that mark fairly handily in landing a total of $12MM over the life of his two-year deal with the Mets. Bastardo reportedly drew varying levels of interest from the Dodgers, Orioles, Blue Jays and Twins in addition to Pittsburgh and New York. From my vantage point, given the willingness to go to two years on Bastardo and the lack of internal options on the 40-man roster beyond excellent setup man Tony Watson and DFA reclamation Kyle Lobstein, the Pirates make sense as a landing spot for a veteran lefty on a one-year deal.
Elsewhere in the NL Central…
- The upcoming wave of collective bargaining negotiations will be a critical one for small-market teams like the Pirates, writes USA Today’s Bob Nightengale, who spoke to Pirates owner Bob Nutting for the column. Nutting spoke about how he’d “love to see [Andrew McCutchen] stay with us forever,” though as Nightengale notes, that’s a difficult proposition considering Pittsburgh’s payroll constraints and the robust free agent prices (specifically, Nightengale references Jason Heyward‘s deal, though comparing a 26-year-old to McCutchen, who will be entering his age-32 season when hitting the open market after 2018, is somewhat of an imperfect analogy). Revenue sharing and possible alterations to the luxury tax in an attempt to level the playing field, to some extent, will both be topics of discussion, Nightengale notes, though as he points out, it’s unlikely that the Pirates, Brewers, Indians and other small-market clubs will ever be able to spend at the level of the Dodgers, Yankees and Red Sox. Nutting feels this CBA will be “critically” important to small-market clubs and hopes steps are taken to give such teams greater access to talent acquisition.
- Cardinals closer Trevor Rosenthal tells Ben Frederickson and Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch that there have been no talks of a long-term deal with the team at this point. “As far as contractual, multi-year type things, I guess we haven’t had any talks,” said Rosenthal. “I don’t know what they’re thinking, what we’re thinking. I don’t know how any of that looks because I haven’t gone through it. Going through the arbitration process was pretty good. Smooth. I’m happy with how it ended up.” That’s a perhaps unsurprising revelation, as Rosenthal is represented by Scott Boras, whose clients rarely take contract extensions prior to hitting the open market. Beyond that, Rosenthal is already earning significant money in arbitration, having agreed to a $5.6MM salary for the 2016 season last week.
- Brewers catcher Jonathan Lucroy, who candidly expressed his frustration with the team’s rebuilding process yesterday, tells Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel that he’s working to avoid further concussions after suffering a serious one late in the 2015 season. Specifically, Lucroy explained that doctors and team trainers have preached neck strengthening exercises, as studies have shown that neck strength can help to limit the impact of a concussion.
- Fangraphs’ Jeff Sullivan examines the decline in Lucroy’s pitch-framing marks over the past four years and whether or not the Brewers (or an acquiring team) should expect him to bounce back in that regard. Sullivan’s research finds that catchers that see their pitch-framing numbers decline rarely experience a rebound in that particular metric, and perhaps more troubling, finds that Lucroy’s decline has been the most rapid of virtually any catcher in the league. As Sullivan notes, quantifiable pitch-framing metrics are relatively new, so there are some uncertainties with the information and there could be elements not being considered. Nonetheless, the initial returns on his examination don’t paint a particularly bright picture.
- Because Brandon Phillips elected not to waive his no-trade rights earlier this offseason, Reds fans could see newly acquired prospect Jose Peraza at a number of positions in 2016, writes MLB.com’s Mark Sheldon. “I think it’s important to remember that Peraza has played a lot at shortstop,” GM Dick Williams tells Sheldon. “He has played center field. There’s a chance we could see him in different spots. I don’t think getting playing time for him will be an issue. We’d gladly take an approach where we get him some time at different areas and see where he can be of assistance to the team.” Sheldon notes that one means of enticing Phillips to approve a trade would be to reduce his playing time somewhat in favor of Peraza, though that could result in some clubhouse problems by making a still-productive veteran feel slighted by the organization.
Marlins Made Marcell Ozuna Trade Offers To Rangers, Reds
The Marlins made separate trade offers to the Rangers and Reds for Marcell Ozuna earlier this winter, Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald reports. The Fish wanted starting pitching back in both proposed deals, and it seems as if there was little-to-no room for further negotiations in these offers; Jackson writes that the Marlins “decided internally that they would trade [Ozuna] only if those teams met their exact asking price.”
It should be noted that these offers were both made before Miami signed Wei-Yin Chen, so the team’s need for rotation help is no longer quite as dire. Still, as the Marlins feel “a team can never have enough pitching,” Jackson thinks the Fish would revisit trading Ozuna if Texas or Cincinnati agreed to their demands.
Ozuna has been mentioned in rumors for months as a major trade chip Miami could use to acquire at least one solid young rotation piece. Marlins owner Jeffrey Loria reportedly had developed some bad blood with Ozuna and agent Scott Boras over Ozuna’s demotion to Triple-A (which Boras claimed was done to stall Ozuna’s service time and not for developmental reasons) so it was seen as just a matter of time before a trade was finalized.
While at least 10 teams showed interest and at least one deal (with the Mariners) was heavily discussed, however, the tide had seemingly turned towards Ozuna staying in Miami. Personal issues aside, Loria and the front office were insisting on a very big return for Ozuna and weren’t willing to just give such a promising young outfielder away. New manager Don Mattingly and new hitting coach Barry Bonds were also lobbying to keep Ozuna, which undoubtedly played a factor. Since Chen is also a Boras client, it stands to reason that relations between Loria and the agent have also somewhat improved.
The Rangers have been connected to Ozuna in trade rumors for months, though it’s something of an imperfect fit since while Texas has some intriguing young arms (i.e. Chi Chi Gonzalez, Nick Martinez), they could use those reinforcements themselves in the Major League rotation. Delino DeShields also emerged as a good center fielder for the Rangers in 2015 so they didn’t have a huge need at the position, though Ozuna would’ve been an upgrade.
This is the first time we’ve heard of the Reds attached to Ozuna, though their interest makes sense given their outfield needs. Right fielder Jay Bruce is entering his last guaranteed year under contract and is available for trades, while the Reds are currently planning to use a platoon of unproven youngsters in left. Of course, Billy Hamilton is already Cincinnati’s regular center fielder, and he’s shown such a spectacular glove that if Ozuna did join the Reds, he’d be the one moving to left.
While the Reds have been in rebuild mode by dealing Johnny Cueto, Mike Leake, Marlon Byrd, Aroldis Chapman and Todd Frazier in the last seven months, Ozuna (25) is young enough to fit Walt Jocketty’s plan to quickly reload and contend again by 2017. Even moreso than Texas, however, Cincinnati is lacking in pitching depth — they were using an all-rookie rotation for much of last season after Cueto and Leake were dealt. The Reds have righties Robert Stephenson and Keury Mella and southpaws Amir Garrett and Cody Reed among their top prospects, and the club may prefer to see if those young arms can develop into long-term pieces for their uncertain rotation rather than deal one or more of them for Ozuna.
Reds Sign Jordan Pacheco To Minor League Deal
The Reds have signed catcher/infielder Jordan Pacheco to a minor league deal, MLB.com’s Mark Sheldon writes. Pacheco is a client of Beverly Hills Sports Council.
Pacheco, who turns 30 later this month, collected 78 plate appearances with the Diamondbacks last year, batting .242/.333/.333. They then designated him for assignment in June. That Pacheco did not catch on in Arizona despite the Diamondbacks’ issues at the catcher position at the beginning of last season is perhaps revealing. Pacheco has caught only four of the 34 runners who have attempted to steal on him in his career, and he’s been a below-average pitch framer in each of the past several seasons, so he doesn’t rate as a strong option behind the plate. Also, Pacheco’s career batting line of .278/.317/.372 is skewed by the fact that he’s spent almost half his career plate appearances in Coors Field.
Nonetheless, Pacheco possesses the ability to play multiple positions — in addition to catcher, he has bits of experience at first and third, and he also appeared in 33 games at second base in Triple-A in 2015. That versatility could give him a shot at a bench job, particularly for a Reds team that will be thin on veteran players this year.
NL Notes: Parity, CarGo, Cubs, Reds, Appel
The National League has rather a pronounced divide between its better teams and its anticipated bottom-dwellers, ESPN.com’s Jayson Stark writes, and that poses a significant problem. While commissioner Rob Manfred says that the league’s less talented clubs are in a routine phase of the natural winning/rebuilding cycle, some rival executives believe that at least some organizations are looking to strip down their MLB rosters, pursue top draft picks, and aim for a relatively distant competitive timeline. There are a host of interesting quotes, particularly from Manfred, who says that outright tanking efforts would be “self-correcting” in that, “if too many teams try to follow this strategy, the effectiveness of that strategy will be naturally undermined.” The piece is well worth a read.
Here’s the latest out of the N.L.:
- Rockies GM Jeff Bridich has been in touch with veteran outfielder Carlos Gonzalez to tell him not to pay any heed to trade rumors, as Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post reports. While that’s hardly any guarantee, multiple rival GMs say they have received the impression that Colorado will not move its most recognizable player this winter, Jon Heyman tweets. Nevertheless, the recent signing of Gerardo Parra still seemingly leaves the club with good cause to move an outfielder. If it isn’t CarGo, of course, then the two obvious candidates would be Charlie Blackmon and Corey Dickerson.
- Chances are “slim” that the Cubs will make another major addition before the season, president of baseball operations Theo Epstein said today, as Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times reports on Twitter. We’ve heard plenty of suggestions of ways Chicago could look to add yet more impact after an already-busy offseason, but it certainly doesn’t appear as if the club really needs to do anything to its roster at this point.
- The Reds are still working on various trade scenarios, ESPN.com’s Jerry Crasnick reports (via TwitLonger). Jay Bruce seems the most plausible trade piece, Crasnick indicates, but his market is complicated by Colorado’s trio of possible left-handed bats for sale. And he arguably hasn’t performed to the standard of his rather expensive contract in recent years. “Once you start down this road, it is important to continue with the tough decisions and not pull up in the middle of the project,” said GM Dick Williams. “That being said, we cannot force deals so I cannot guarantee we will do more.’’
- New Phillies hurler Mark Appel has a lot to prove, Crasnick writes. But the 24-year-old says he is determined and able to live up to his former billing as a top-end pitching prospect.