Heyman’s Latest: Dodgers, McCann, Napoli, Ichiro, Colon, Price
The Dodgers intend to pursue reunions with at least four prominent free agents, according to Jon Heyman of Fan Rag. Excellent third baseman Justin Turner, relief ace Kenley Jansen, late-breaking lefty Rich Hill, and veteran second baseman Chase Utley would all hold interest to Los Angeles, per the report, though age considerations and the presence of internal alternatives could limit the club’s willingness to top the market for those players. The 28-year-old Jansen may be the highest priority among this group, Heyman suggests. While the Dodgers haven’t exactly broken the bank on relief arms under president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman, it seems Jansen could warrant an exception given his unbelievable performance level. All said, Heyman suggests it would be surprising if L.A. doesn’t bring back at least two of those four players.
Here are some more of Heyman’s latest notes, from his weekly column:
- The Braves and Yankees have tabled any talks pertaining to catcher Brian McCann until the offseason, which may not bode well for New York’s chances to trade him to Atlanta. Heyman writes that the Braves have interest in Matt Wieters, Jason Castro and top free agent catcher Wilson Ramos, whom they’d love to snatch away from the division-rival Nationals. Atlanta is willing to pay half of the remaining $34MM McCann is owed from 2017-18. They’re also looking to add a rotation piece for 2017 and beyond, if not two, as a number of their top-ranked minor league arms are still a ways off from the Majors (which, of course, could make them appealing trade chips in an offseason where the free agent market is devoid of talented starters).
- Mike Napoli, who is enjoying a rebound season at the plate with the Indians, has said he’d like to remain in Cleveland, though the two sides aren’t engaged in talks. Napoli’s defense and baserunning have torpedoed his WAR totals, but he’s batted a well-above-average .259/.345/.494 with 29 home runs in his first season with Cleveland. His bat should draw plenty of interest this winter despite the fact that he’ll turn 35 on Halloween.
- Marlins outfielder Ichiro Suzuki hopes to play again in 2017 and would like to stay in Miami, per the report. With his club option valued at only $2MM, that may be a fairly easy pick-up for the organization. Playing in his age-42 season in 2016, Ichiro has compiled a useful .294/.365/.366 batting line over 296 plate appearances, continues to rate as an average or better fielder and overall baserunner, and has even cracked double-digit stolen bases for the 16th-straight season.
- Another aging veteran who intends to continue his career, says Heyman, is Mets righty Bartolo Colon. It’s not yet clear how his market will develop — we don’t know what level of interest New York will have, or whether the 43-year-old will be looking for multiple years — but there certainly ought to be ample interest given that Colon has provided 158 2/3 innings of 3.35 ERA pitching thus far in 2016. Even if the peripherals don’t quite line up with those bottom-line results, he’ll be among the more durable and effective pitchers available on a forthcoming seller’s market for starters.
- There’s no sense that the Reds are interested in making a change at manager, Heyman says. Skipper Bryan Price‘s contract does expire after the year, but with some positive signs in the second half — excluding a current four-game skid, at least — it seems he could be retained.
Indians Designate Collin Cowgill For Assignment
The Indians have designated outfielder Collin Cowgill for assignment, the team announced as part of a series of roster moves. Cowgill’s roster spot will go to catcher Adam Moore, whose contract has been selected from Triple-A Columbus. Cleveland has also activated Danny Salazar from the paternity list, officially added Coco Crisp to the roster and recalled Cody Anderson, Joe Colon and Erik Gonzalez from Columbus.
Cowgill, 30, received just 14 plate appearances with the Indians this season and spent the bulk of the year in Columbus, where he batted .236/.310/.326 with four homers and seven steals in 392 plate appearances. He’s known primarily for his glovework but has nonetheless managed to rack up 759 plate appearances over the past six seasons, including 293 trips to the plate with the 2014 Angels. That year marked the best season of Cowgill’s career, as he batted .250/.330/.354 with solid defensive work in the outfield.
As for Moore, 32-year-old will return to Cleveland for his second stint with the Indians. Moore picked up just four PAs with Cleveland last season but has 287 Major League PAs under his belt. He’s batted a sub-par .201/.241/.309 in that time but has sound numbers in Triple-A: a .275/.334/.421 slash in parts of seven seasons. The former top prospect will serve as a third catcher for the time being, joining Chris Gimenez and Roberto Perez in that regard. Cleveland also hopes to get injured starter Yan Gomes back before the season is over.
Coco Crisp’s 2017 Option Won’t Vest
Indians president of baseball operations Chris Antonetti tells Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer that he had an honest, upfront discussion with Coco Crisp prior to yesterday’s trade to explain that he wouldn’t receive enough playing time in Cleveland for his option to vest if the deal went through.
“We were pretty candid with Coco about that,” said Antonetti. “…The way he’ll likely be used here and the way he’ll integrate into our team, he won’t get enough plate appearances or games to have that vest. Coco was good with that, he understood.”
Crisp would’ve needed to appear in a hefty 28 of the Indians’ 31 remaining games or to tally another 116 plate appearances (3.74 per game) for the option to vest, so it never seemed all that likely that he’d see next year’s $13MM salary automatically trigger. But, Crisp had publicly expressed some displeasure over the fact that he was losing playing time in Oakland, likely to prevent the option from triggering, so Antonetti’s candor was probably appreciated by the veteran outfielder.
Cleveland, of course, could technically still pick up the $13MM option, but it seems far likelier that they’ll elect to pay Crisp a $750K buyout instead. The 36-year-old switch-hitter was a plus contributor at the plate with Oakland from 2010-14, batting .261/.329/.406 in 558 games. However, he’s struggled over the past two seasons, missing the majority of the 2015 campaign with a neck injury and hitting .234/.299/.399 in 434 plate appearances this season. He’s still performing fairly well as a left-handed hitter, though, as he’s batted .239/.307/.419 from that side of the dish. That type of production will come in handy should the Indians hold onto their division lead and make it to the postseason, as Abraham Almonte will not be eligible for the playoffs due the 80-game suspension he served for a failed PED test earlier this year. That, according to Antonetti, was a significant factor in the team’s thinking when deciding to make the trade.
Crisp, then, will have occasional at-bats in the month of August and what both he and the Indians will hope to be a substantial number of postseason at-bats that he can use to boost some of his free agent stock. He figures to enter into a left-field market that is headlined by Yoenis Cespedes and also features Michael Saunders, Ian Desmond (depending on how he markets himself this winter) and Angel Pagan, among others.
Indians Acquire Coco Crisp
2:43pm: In total, the Indians will pay around $500K of the tab for Crisp, Jon Heyman of Fan Rag tweets.
2:15pm: Cleveland will receive $1,673,497 in cash from Oakland in the deal, per Tom Withers of the Associated Press (via Twitter). By my count, Crisp has just under $2MM remaining in salary the rest of the way, so clearly the bulk will be retained by the A’s. It isn’t clear who is on the hook for a $750K buyout of next year’s $13MM option.
10:33am: The Indians and Athletics have announced a deal that sends veteran outfielder Coco Crisp to Cleveland in exchange for lefty Colt Hynes. MLBTR’s Steve Adams first reported that a deal was nearing and that Crisp had waived his no-trade protection (Twitter links), and John Hickey of the Bay Area News Group reported that the swap was finalized.
Crisp is a 36-year-old, switch-hitting outfielder who is set to hit the open market after the season — assuming that he doesn’t reach the 550 plate appearances or 130 games played that he’d need for his $13MM option to vest. Odds are, that won’t occur at this stage, particularly since Crisp is likely ticketed for part-time duty in his new home.
Though he understandably isn’t playing at his career-best levels, Crisp has managed to put up just-below-average overall offensive production with a .234/.299/.399 slash and 11 home runs over 434 plate appearances. Defensive metrics no longer view him as a plausible option in center, but Defensive Runs Saved credited him with average glovework in left this season.
As has long been the case, and as a glance at Cleveland’s current depth chart shows, the organization has made do thus far with a somewhat surprising mix of players in the outfield. Lonnie Chisenhall, Tyler Naquin, Abraham Almonte, Rajai Davis, Brandon Guyer, and Michael Martinez are all on hand as options, though one wonders whether the switch-hitting Martinez would lose his roster spot if Crisp is brought in.
Covering for the loss of Michael Brantley hasn’t been easy, but that group has rather remarkably combined to post the third-highest fWAR tally of any outfield in the game. Crisp will deepen the mix down the stretch and potentially provide another bat in the postseason.
For the A’s, facilitating a playoff run for a veteran while freeing up playing time for younger players appear to have been the primary considerations. The 31-year-old Hynes has been a popular waiver wire target at times, but still has only limited time in the majors. He is carrying 9.9 K/9 against just 1.7 BB/9 this year over 47 1/3 minor league frames, but he didn’t impress enough to receive a call-up from either the Blue Jays or the Indians.
The move represents something of a homecoming for Crisp, who began his major league career in Cleveland way back in 2002. From there, he moved on to the Red Sox, where he played under current Indians skipper Terry Francona, and stopped with the Royals before moving on to Oakland, where he has been since 2010. He is currently playing out the tail end of an extension he signed with the A’s in the spring of 2014.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
AL Central Notes: Garcia, Hunter, Strahm
The remaining games in the 2016 season could very well determine Avisail Garcia‘s future with the White Sox, writes Bruce Levine of CBS Chicago/670 The Score. The 25-year-old will be arbitration-eligible for the second time (as a Super Two player) but has once again delivered a sub-par performance at the plate, hitting just .243/.310/.380 in 332 plate appearances. Garcia disappointed in a full season last year (.257/.309/.365) but was tendered a contract due to the team’s hopes for improvement, ultimately settling on a $2.1MM salary. His lackluster play notwithstanding, Garcia will be due another raise on top of that sum. Garcia will probably never rate as a plus (or even average) defender, but a strong finish at the plate could seemingly hold a great deal of influence over Chicago’s thinking. White Sox hitting coach Todd Steverson spoke to Levine about the work they’ve put in on trying to alter the contact point and launch angle in Garcia’s swing in an effort to generate more fly-balls and line drives.
More from the AL Central…
- The timing of the Indians‘ release of Tommy Hunter yesterday looked strange on paper, as the right-hander was working toward a return from a back injury and was deep into a rehab assignment. However, Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer reports (links to Twitter) that the Indians looked at their potential September call-ups and decided that they had more options they wanted to evaluate than roster spots available. The veteran Hunter was the odd man out, they decided, so they elected to release him now in order to give the 30-year-old a chance to sign with a new club before Sept. 1 — thus allowing him to be postseason-eligible with a new organization. Hunter injured his back in a fall at his home over the All-Star break but had pitched well for the Indians prior to his injury, logging a 3.74 ERA with 7.1 K/9, 2.1 BB/9 and a 52.3 percent ground-ball rate in 21 2/3 innings.
- Rookie left-hander Matt Strahm has been sensational out of the Royals‘ bullpen since being promoted in the wake of Wade Davis‘ most recent injury — 0.84 ERA, 19-to-3 K/BB ratio in 10 2/3 innings — but GM Dayton Moore tells Rustin Dodd of the Kansas City Star that the organization views Strahm as a starting pitcher first and foremost. Strahm spent the season in the Double-A rotation, making a career-high 18 starts as he further distanced himself from 2013 Tommy John surgery, Dodd writes. In that time, the 24-year-old a 3.43 ERA with impressive rates of 9.4 K/9 against 2.0 BB/9, and that production, coupled with his excellence in the ‘pen, will have him in the mix for a rotation job next spring. The Royals will have Danny Duffy, Yordano Ventura, Ian Kennedy, Chris Young and Mike Minor in next year’s rotation mix, and there’s been speculation that they could try to bring Edinson Volquez back into the fold as well. Beyond that, lefty Jason Vargas figures to be recovered from Tommy John surgery and will be in the picture as well.
Cafardo’s Latest: Moreland, Leon, Red Sox, Gomez, Puig
The latest news and notes from Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe…
- The Astros have a lot of interest in Rangers first baseman Mitch Moreland, though Cafardo doubts a trade is likely given Texas’ lack of first base depth in the wake of Prince Fielder‘s retirement. (It would also be very unusual to see a trade between two division rivals in a pennant race, even if Houston has fallen well behind Texas in the AL West.) The Astros already have a left-handed hitting first baseman in rookie A.J. Reed, though Reed is still a work in progress despite some improved hitting over the last couple of weeks. While it doesn’t seem like Texas would deal Moreland, he has cleared trade waivers, so he can freely moved to any other club.
- The Nationals‘ trade of Sandy Leon to the Red Sox for cash considerations in March 2015 drew little attention at the time, though it has become an unexpectedly important deal given how Leon has blossomed in Boston. Leon entered the day with a stunning 1.088 OPS over 158 plate appearances this season, completely dwarfing anything he’d done at the major or minor league levels. “I personally signed Sandy Leon when he was 16½ years old…My name is on that one,” Nats GM Mike Rizzo said. “He was a good catch-and-throw kid, and what a kid. He’s one of the greatest young men I’ve ever been around. I’m so happy he’s doing well especially offensively, but I never saw it coming.”
- The Red Sox could fill David Ortiz‘s big shoes by DH at pursuing free agents Edwin Encarnacion, Jose Bautista, Carlos Beltran, Mike Napoli or Mark Trumbo this winter, as Cafardo feels the team will look for an external solution. The simplest move would be to move Hanley Ramirez to DH, though that leaves both corner infield spots up in the air given the uncertainty around Pablo Sandoval‘s weight, Travis Shaw‘s ability to play every day and the development of prospects Yoan Moncada and Sam Travis.
- Carlos Gomez drew interest from several teams before signing with the Rangers, with Cafardo adding the Indians and Blue Jays to the list of clubs already known to have been looking at the veteran outfielder. Gomez likely would’ve served as platoon partner for Tyler Naquin in center for the Tribe, though despite Michael Brantley missing virtually the entire season, Cleveland’s outfield has actually been pretty solid thanks to unexpected contributions from Naquin, Rajai Davis and (when he hasn’t been at third) Jose Ramirez. Gomez could’ve filled in the Jays outfield while Bautista and Kevin Pillar are on the DL, though his role would’ve been rather unclear once both returned.
- Yasiel Puig “is considered toxic at the moment” and it seems unlikely that another team will take him off the Dodgers‘ hands. One Dodgers official isn’t entirely closing the door on Puig remaining in L.A., saying “At some point, the talent, the maturity is going to take hold. Someone will benefit from it. We hope it’s us, but it’s hard to envision it right now.”
Indians Outright Tyler Olson
Here are today’s minor moves:
- The Indians announced that lefty Tyler Olson has been outrighted to Triple-A after clearing waivers. Olson, 26, will go on the minor league DL with an undisclosed illness as he heads out of DFA limbo. The Indians are the third team he has played for this season. Olson received one appearance at the major league level with the Yankees but has pitched mostly at the highest level of the minors, also spending time in the Royals organization. Things haven’t gone terribly well there, as Olson owns a 5.27 ERA with 6.4 K/9 against 3.3 BB/9 over 41 innings on the year.
Heyman’s Latest: Managers, White Sox, Yunel, Dodgers, Puig, Norris, Rangers
Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports kicks off his weekly Inside Baseball column with a look at the job security of a number of managers, noting that Mets skipper Terry Collins, D-backs manager Chip Hale and White Sox manager Robin Ventura could all be on the hot seat, while Braves interim manager Brian Snitker doesn’t seem especially likely to shed the interim label and keep his post. Other names mentioned include Mike Scioscia (Angels), Brad Ausmus (Tigers), Kevin Cash (Rays), Paul Molitor (Twins), Bryan Price (Reds) and Walt Weiss (Rockies), but none from that group seems to be eminently in danger of losing his job even at season’s end, per Heyman.
Some highlights from the lengthy column…
- White Sox GM Rick Hahn was far more in favor of a deadline sale than owner Jerry Reinsdorf, Heyman writes, but the Sox ultimately held onto nearly all of their tradeable assets, with the exception of left-hander Zach Duke, suggesting that Hahn ultimately wasn’t given the go-ahead to operate as he might’ve wished. The Sox haven’t put Chris Sale on trade waivers yet, Heyman notes, though that decision is a moot point. He’d be claimed by the first team available — the Twins, as things currently stand — and pulled back off waivers. Chicago had interest in Gary Sanchez when the Yankees were looking at Sale, he adds, though that’s not much of a surprise. Catcher has long been a weak spot in Chicago, and Sanchez is among the more highly regarded prospects in all of baseball.
- There wasn’t much chatter pertaining to Yunel Escobar prior to the non-waiver trade deadline (and there’s been less in August), but Heyman writes that Escobar did draw interest in July. However, the Angels like what he’s been able to give to the club offensively, batting .316/.365/.397 in 474 plate appearances. I’m not sure I see the logic behind not being willing to move Escobar but trading a similarly priced and very arguably more valuable asset with the same amount of club control (Hector Santiago) for what amounted to an injured prospect, but perhaps the Halos simply didn’t receive an offer to their liking for Escobar.
- The Dodgers “love” Rich Hill and were planning to pursue him last winter until Brett Anderson accepted the team’s qualifying offer, per Heyman. Those two don’t seem like they should’ve been mutually exclusive — the Dodgers went out and signed Kenta Maeda and Scott Kazmir following Anderson’s acceptance of the QO, after all — but perhaps the Dodgers either couldn’t guarantee a rotation spot or didn’t find the notion of two starters with such recent injury woes to be palatable. Either way, if the Dodgers are as fond of Hill as Heyman indicates, it seems likely that they’ll be in the mix to re-sign him come the offseason.
- One executive from a non-Dodgers club opined to Heyman that no team will claim Yasiel Puig if and when he’s placed on revocable waivers and added, “…if they do, they’re going to get him.” Furthermore, Heyman writes that it isn’t likely that Puig will rejoin the Dodgers at any point this season, as he has “turned off” many of his teammates. It seems difficult to fathom that the Dodgers wouldn’t bring him back in the month of September when rosters expand, but we’ll find out in just a few weeks — if Puig isn’t dealt first.
- The Padres have yet to put Derek Norris on trade waivers, and Heyman calls him a more likely offseason trade candidate. The Indians showed mild interest but ultimately decided that their internal options were preferable to Norris, who is once again struggling tremendously following a strong showing at the plate from May 1 through the All-Star break. Heyman also notes that the Padres are interested enough in Puig to at least be thinking about it and points out the connection between pro scouting director Logan White and Puig. White was the Dodgers VP of amateur scouting prior to his Padres gig and was one of the execs that recommended Puig to his colleagues.
- The Rangers weren’t able to swing a deal for any of the big-name starters they pursued, but that’s in part due to the asking prices they received. The Rays asked the Rangers for Jurickson Profar and other pieces in exchange for Matt Moore, while Rougned Odor‘s name was suggested by the Rays in Chris Archer talks and by the White Sox in talks for Chris Sale.
Assessing The Indians’ Options At Catcher
The Indians are in first place in the American League Central, yet they possess one of the most glaring weaknesses of any contender in the game. Cleveland catchers this season — Yan Gomes (currently injured), Roberto Perez and Chris Gimenez — have combined to bat a staggering .172/.225/.296 in 457 plate appearances. The company line has been that they’re high on the defensive capabilities of each backstop, but no club in all of Major League Baseball has received worse production out of its catchers. How best to remedy that situation — or whether they even need to — is up for debate.
Obvious Trade Candidates
Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer writes today that Cleveland has had some discussions with the division-rival Twins about Kurt Suzuki in the past, but “there’s nothing happening at the moment.” Suzuki cleared trade waivers yesterday, making him a logical candidate for any club in need of catching help. The main sticking point for Cleveland, it seems, is that Suzuki isn’t regarded as a strong defender, and he would obviously be tasked with learning an entirely new pitching staff in a short amount of time in the event that the Indians made a move. That’s a tall order for any catcher, and it could conceivably lead to further difficulty in framing/blocking pitches if he’s not fully familiar with the full arsenal of each pitcher he’s catching. Then again, Suzuki is affordable (owed $1.5MM through season’s end) and hitting .281/.321/.435 — an enormous upgrade over the offensive deficiencies that have plagued Cleveland catchers in 2016.Read more
Michael Brantley Undergoes Shoulder Surgery
AUG. 16: The Indians announced today that Brantley underwent a 45-minute operation, commonly referred to as “bicep tenodesis,” to correct chronic biceps tendinitis in his right shoulder. Surgeons Keith Meister and Mark Schickendantz confirmed that Brantley’s surgically repaired labrum is still intact and projected a four-month recovery for Brantley following this operation (Twitter link via MLB.com’s Jordan Bastian).
AUG. 13: Indians manager Terry Francona says outfielder Michael Brantley will have season-ending surgery on Monday, MLB.com’s Jordan Bastian and other reporters have tweeted. The specifics of the surgery have yet to be announced, and the timeline of his recovery isn’t yet clear, but Brantley had been dealing with shoulder and biceps issues and already appeared unlikely to return in 2016.
Brantley had shoulder surgery last November and began the season on the disabled list, then had persistent problems with the shoulder throughout the season. He was also diagnosed with biceps tendinitis in June, and he had surgery last month to remove scar tissue from his biceps tendon.
In the midst of all that, Brantley has collected just 43 plate appearances this season, batting a mere .231/.279/.282. That’s a far cry from the numbers he posted in his healthy 2014 and 2015 seasons, when he hit a combined .319/.382/.494 and rated among the American League’s best players. The Indians have fared quite well in the outfield without Brantley, getting very strong performances from a patchwork group of outfielders led by Rajai Davis, Tyler Naquin, Lonnie Chisenhall and Jose Ramirez. It is, however, hard for a team not to miss a player of Brantley’s caliber.
As Francona explained today (via Cleveland.com’s Paul Hoynes on Twitter), the timing of Brantley’s surgery now is geared toward getting him healthy for next season and presumably beyond. Brantley remains under contract with the Indians for 2017, and his contract contains a team option for 2018.