Minor Moves: Irwin, Chang, Teahen, Jacobs
Today's minor moves…
- The Pirates placed right-hander Phil Irwin on the 60-day disabled list, the club announced. Irwin made his Major League debut this season, allowing four earned runs over 4 2/3 innings in a start on April 14. Irwin, a 21st-round draft pick in 2009, has a 2.97 ERA and 5.03 K/BB rate over 423 2/3 minor league innings.
- The Indians signed Taiwanese shortstop Yu-Cheng Chang for $500K, reports Ben Badler of Baseball America. The Tribe has been one of the more active teams in Taiwan in recent years, notes Badler. Chang doesn't have a plus tool currently, hears Badler, and projects as a doubles hitter who may have to move off shortstop.
- The Diamondbacks outrighted righty Eric Smith off the 40-man roster, tweets Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic. The 24-year-old former second-round draft pick has a 7.29 ERA in 21 Double-A innings.
- The Royals opened a 40-man roster spot for Salvador Perez, who returned from bereavement, by transferring lefty Danny Duffy to the 60-day DL, tweets Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star.
- Mark Teahen was released from the Rangers' Triple-A club yesterday, according to the Pacific Coast League transactions page. He'd been signed to a minor league deal on May 23rd, after asking for and being granted his release from the D'Backs a few days prior. Teahen, 31, has a .198/.293/.226 line in Triple-A this year across 123 plate appearances. He was a key figure in the June 2004 trade that sent Carlos Beltran to the Astros from the Royals.
- Speaking of the D'Backs' Triple-A affiliate, the Reno Aces signed first baseman Mike Jacobs, according to that same transactions page. Jacobs, 32, last appeared in the Majors with Arizona briefly last year. He signed a minor league deal with the Mariners in January but was released in March and subsequently played in the Mexican League this year. Jacobs, a 38th round draft pick of the Mets in 1999, joined the Marlins in the November 2005 Carlos Delgado trade. In October 2008, the Royals acquired Jacobs from the Marlins for reliever Leo Nunez, who is now known as Juan Carlos Oviedo.
- Six players currently reside in DFA limbo: Mark Lowe of the Angels, Tyler Greene of the White Sox, Vinnie Catricala of the Mariners, Tyler Robertson of the Twins, and Zach Duke and Henry Rodriguez of the Nationals.
Romero Opts Out With Nats; Nearing Deal With Indians
TUESDAY: Romero's deal with the Indians will become official if he passes a physical, MLB.com's Jordan Bastian reports (Twitter link). Romero will report to Triple-A Columbus on Thursday.
MONDAY: Left-hander J.C. Romero has opted out of his minor league contract with the Nationals and is working to finalize a new minor league deal with the Indians, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (on Twitter).
Romero, who turns 37 tomorrow, had a 2.84 ERA with 16 strikeouts and four walks in 12 2/3 innings for Washington's Triple-A affiliate this season. According to Rosenthal, Romero would likely be ticketed for Cleveland's Triple-A affiliate in Columbus. Amanda Comak of the Washington Times notes (on Twitter) that Romero is on the minor league disabled list.
In parts of 14 Major League seasons, Romero has a 4.16 ERA with 7.2 K/9 and 5.1 BB/9. He's held opposing lefties to a .220/.314/.298 in his career. Most of his 661 1/3 career innings were spent with the Twins, who selected the Puerto Rico native in the 21st round of the 1997 draft. Romero is the only player with a significant MLB career to come from that round, although outfielder Mike Colangelo saw some brief time in the big leagues as well.
Free Agent Stock Watch: Scott Kazmir
The rise and fall of Scott Kazmir was a well-known tale when he signed a minor league deal with the Indians this offseason. After being infamously traded for Victor Zambrano in one of the more lopsided trades of the past 10 years, he quickly ascended to ace status with the Rays. He began to lose velocity in the 2008 season, and his control became increasingly problematic. 
Kazmir was traded to the Angels, and things only got worse for him in Anaheim. 2010 would be the last full season he threw in the Major Leagues, and he posted a ghastly 5.94 ERA in 150 innings with a fastball that had lost more than two miles per hour from his peak. Despite speculation that he lost arm strength, Kazmir told David Laurila of Fangraphs that wasn't the case:
“I didn’t really ever lose arm strength, it’s more I lost my ability to use my body. I lost my ability to use my lower half — everything was upper body — and everything started swinging side to side; I didn’t have a good direction to the plate."
Kazmir ultimately wound up pitching for the Sugar Land Skeeters in 2012 as he contemplated his future. He had thrown just 1 2/3 Major League innings since 2010 when he signed with Cleveland, but it looks like he could be in for a full season of work. He's thrown 40 1/3 innings for the Tribe over eight starts. His 5.13 ERA isn't all that impressive, but he's averaging 91.7 mph on his fastball. Sabermetric stats like FIP (4.56), xFIP (3.96) and SIERA (3.79) all feel that Kazmir has been unlucky. Indeed, his .362 BABIP and 14.9 percent HR/FB both seem due for a correction.
Kazmir is still just 29 years old and won't be 30 until next January. If he's able to keep himself off the disabled list and see his BABIP and HR/FB regress toward the league averages (.292 and 11.0, respectively), Kazmir should draw significant interest on the free agent market. Paul Maholm figures to be the best lefty on the market, but Kazmir could stake his claim as the second-best free agent lefty.
Another enigmatic left-hander, Francisco Liriano, was able to secure a two-year deal worth $12.75MM with the Pirates this offseason despite posting an ERA over 5.00 from 2011-12 (he later had to re-work his deal after breaking his non-throwing arm). Even if Kazmir continues at his current rate, Liriano's deal seems attainable. If he can lower his ERA while maintaining his 9.1 K/9 and 3.3 BB/9, a higher annual salary or a third year could be in store.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Cafardo On Lee, Papelbon, Sizemore, Rios
In today's column, Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe wonders if George Brett is being groomed to be the Royals' next manager now that he has committed to being with the team every day as hitting coach. Dennis Gilbert, who represented Brett as an agent and who has fallen short in bids to purchase the Dodgers, Padres, and Rangers, would have installed Brett as manager had he landed one of those clubs. Brett could very well be Ned Yost’s eventual replacement if he boosts Kansas City's offense, but there’s also a lot of sentiment for Jim Fregosi, who has ties to GM Dayton Moore. Here's more from today's column..
- Cafardo spoke to a couple dozen executives, scouts, and players over the past few days about who the top player on the trade block will be and the consensus was Phillies left-hander Cliff Lee. The Red Sox, Orioles, Indians, Angels, and Rangers would really like to have Lee and there are many more clubs who could be in the mix, including the Dodgers and the Yankees, who say they can’t swing it but have the means to do it. One American League exec indicated there would be 20 teams lined up for Lee. Lee might be the last guy Ruben Amaro Jr. wants to trade, but he'd yield the greatest return.
- The Phillies have another interesting piece in Jonathan Papelbon and if they decide they are retooling, they probably don’t need a top closer. Several baseball people say the Tigers would be a tremendous fit for Papelbon since pairing him with that starting rotation would be rather formidable. He would also be an option for the Angels and Red Sox, but the Sox want to give Andrew Bailey every chance to do the job. The Indians would also be a possibility.
- It shouldn’t be long before a long list of teams start to inquire about free agent Grady Sizemore. Sizemore has begun baseball activities after being sidelined by knee surgeries and so far he’s had no setbacks. Cafardo suggests the Mets could be a fit as they are in need of outfield help.
- The White Sox, Blue Jays, and Twins might hold some of this year's top trade chips. “Alex Rios, Jose Bautista, Edwin Encarnacion, and you can add Justin Morneau, are definitely the major guys scouts are focusing on,” said one AL GM.
- After Red Sox outfielder Jacoby Ellsbury stole five bases Thursday night against the Phillies, it started to dawn on people — including some in the Philadelphia organization — that Ellsbury would be a nice piece in the Phillies’ lineup next season. However, he also hurt his groin during the game, and the injury question popped up.
2014 Vesting Options Update
With two months of baseball in the books, here's a look at the players who have vesting options for the 2014 season..
- Kurt Suzuki, Nationals: $9.25MM option vests with 113 starts in 2013. Suzuki was slated to split time behind the plate with Wilson Ramos this season, but Ramos' hamstring has forced the club to give the veteran catcher 39 starts thus far (counting tonight's game). The most recent update on Ramos, courtesy of the Washington Post's Adam Kilgore, says that he'll be sidelined until around July 1st. If Ramos heals up and takes starts away from Suzuki, it will be a club option worth $8.5MM with a modest $650K buyout.
- Jamey Carroll, Twins: $2MM option vests with 401 plate appearances. Carroll has 105 PAs in 27 games this season. The veteran has had more than his needed total in each of the last three seasons with 500+ plate appearances in each of the last two years.
- Wilson Betemit, Orioles: $3.2MM option vests with 324 plate appearances (combined 700 between 2012 and 2013). Betemit underwent arthroscopic knee surgery on March 26th and a late May update (from Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com) indicates that he still hasn't been cleared for baseball activities.
- Lance Berkman, Rangers: $13MM option vests with 550 plate appearances. So far, Berkman has 199 plate appearances to his credit and is on pace to lock in his 2014 option with ease. In 2011, his last full season, the slugger racked up 587 PAs.
- Roy Halladay, Phillies: $20MM option vests with 259 innings pitched (combined 415 innings pitched between '12 and '13). This was a longshot to begin with, but shoulder surgery earlier this month makes this one impossible.
- Brett Myers, Indians: $8MM option vests with 200 innings pitched in 2013 and a passed physical after the season. After logging 21 and 1/3 innings in 2013, Myers was sidelined with tendinitis and a mild ligament sprain in his right elbow and has yet to return. When he does come back, it's possible that the Tribe will move him to the bullpen.
- Barry Zito, Giants: $18MM option vests with 200 innings pitched. Zito has racked up 62 and 2/3 innings through eleven starts this season. It's far from a lock, but as it stands the veteran still has a chance at securing his 2014 salary. His numbers are strong as he has a 3.88 ERA with 5.6 K/9 and 3.3 BB/9.
- Johan Santana, Mets: His $25MM option could have vested with 215 innings pitched or winning the 2013 Cy Young Award, but he won't have a chance at that thanks to a season-ending tear in his pitching shoulder.
It's also worth noting that Pirates pitcher Francisco Liriano has a $8MM club option for 2014, but it can vest at any of three levels – $5MM, $6MM, or $8MM – based on the number of days he is not on the DL this year with a recurrence of his right arm injury. It's not known how many days the hurler must steer clear of right arm trouble in order to trigger each level of his option, however. The left-hander made his season debut on May 11th.
Minor Moves: Ortiz, Robinson, Pirates, Green, Wimberly
Here are your minor moves from around the league for Friday…
- The Blue Jays have announced that Ramon Ortiz and Clint Robinson cleared waivers and were outrighted off the 40-man roster, per Sportsnet's Ben Nicholson Smith (on Twitter). Ortiz was outrighted to Triple-A Buffalo, while Robinson was outrighted to Double-A New Hampshire. Both were designated for assignment earlier this week.
- Brian MacPherson of the Providence Journal tweets that the Pirates have acquired Triple-A right-hander Graham Godfrey from the Red Sox in exchange for cash considerations. The 28-year-old Godfrey has amassed 46 Major League innings — all with the Athletics – and posted a 5.09 ERA with 4.5 K/9 and 2.2 BB/9.
- The Pirates have acquired Triple-A lefty Atahualpa Severino from the Royals in exchange for cash considerations, tweets Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star. Severino, 28, has a 3.40 ERA, 7.9 K/9 and 5.4 BB/9 in 156 1/3 career innings at Triple-A. He received a brief taste of the Major Leagues with the Nationals back in 2011, totaling 4 2/3 innings of relief.
- The Marlins have outrighted infielder Nick Green to Triple-A New Orleans, according to the PCL's Transactions page, meaning that he cleared waivers after being designated for assignment Wednesday.
- The Braves released minor league outfielder Corey Wimberly, according to the International League Transaction log. The 29-year-old hit .234/.268/.351 in 25 games (83 plate appearances) for Triple-A Gwinnett this season.
- The Indians announced (via Twitter) that they have signed right-hander Chris Jakubauskas and assigned him to Triple-A Columbus. The 34-year-old has a 5.58 ERA in 166 big league innings and last saw the Majors with the Orioles in 2011. Jakubauskas spent 2012 in the D-backs and Blue Jays organizations, and he appeared in eight Triple-A games for the Brewers this season. He has a 3.75 ERA in 175 career innings at Triple-A.
Rosenthal On Fregosi, Upton, Indians, Rockies
The hiring of Royals legend George Brett as the team's new hitting coach could buy manager Ned Yost some extra time, a rival executive tells FOX Sports' Ken Rosenthal, as Royals executives will want to see how Yost adjusts to such a notable change to his coaching staff. If the Royals do fire their manager, however, scouts have rumored that Jim Fregosi could be Yost's replacement. Fregosi's son is a special assistant to Royals GM Dayton Moore.
Here's more from Rosenthal, via his latest Hot Corner video…
- In the wake of B.J. Upton's five-year, $75.25MM deal with the Braves last November, Rosenthal said a number of veteran players expressed surprise about the deal. The general consensus was summed up as, "How can that guy get this much money? He really hasn't proven all that much." Upton's .146/.232/.247 line makes him Rosenthal's biggest disappointment thus far in the 2013 season.
- Orioles first baseman Chris Davis, meanwhile, is the most improved player of the 2013 season. Dan Duquette attributes Davis' success to his swinging at more strikes and being more selective at the plate.
- The Indians and Rockies are somewhat surprising contenders and the big question for both clubs is if they'll have the pitching to stay in their respective pennant races. Rosenthal figures Cleveland is the slightly more likely of the two to acquire another starter, as Colorado has Roy Oswalt and Double-A right-hander Chad Bettis as possible internal reinforcements.
- The Indians' and Rockies' ability to add players and payroll at the trade deadline will mostly be determined by how much revenue they can generate through attendance in the next two months.
AL Notes: Blanton, Rangers, Indians
Joe Blanton will start for the Angels against the Dodgers Tuesday night, and with the imminent returns of Jered Weaver and Tommy Hanson, it would appear to be a crucial start. But that's not how Blanton sees it, Alden Gonzalez of MLB.com reports. "I don't have anything to prove," says Blanton. "This is my ninth [full season]. If I have to prove something my ninth year … you know, obviously I want to throw the ball well." Blanton has a 6.19 ERA with 5.7 K/9 in 56 2/3 innings, although he has only walked 2.1 batters per nine. "I feel like I've pretty much thrown the ball the way I want to throw. Stuff's been fine, and they've just hit balls where people aren't," Blanton says. Here are more notes from the American League.
- Shohei Otani made his NPB debut as a starting pitcher last Thursday, and a member of the Rangers' front office was in attendance, Sponichi reports. "I was aware of him, but his pitching really left an impression," Scott Littlefield, a special assistant to Rangers GM Jon Daniels, said. "I think he's got a bright future ahead of him if he can stay healthy." Otani, who at one point seemed likely to sign with an MLB team directly out of high school, gave up two earned runs over five innings in his debut, striking out two and walking three. Sponichi also notes that Littlefield was on hand to watch Masahiro Tanaka's start on Wednesday. Tanaka, 24, has a career 2.47 ERA with 7.8 K/9 and 1.5 BB/9 in seven seasons for Rakuten.
- The Indians' bullpen is a bit banged-up right now, but with the trade deadline still two months away, GM Chris Antonetti is optimistic about the relievers he has, the Plain Dealer's Paul Hoynes reports. Closer Chris Perez headed to the disabled list Monday with a shoulder injury. "Losing your closer is never easy, but we still feel the solutions are in our clubhouse," says Antonetti. Perez's replacement, Vinnie Pestano, has had lower velocity since his own return from the disabled list two weeks ago. Still, trading for a reliever at this early point in the season would be a little unusual. Hoynes mentions signing Brian Wilson as a possibility, but Wilson had Tommy John surgery last year and hasn't pitched in 2013.
Aaron Steen contributed to this post.
Quick Hits: Angels, Montero, Gomes, Dodgers
Miguel Cabrera might have been hitting home runs in Anaheim if the Angels had been able to swing a deal for him in 2007, Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times reports. The Marlins had Cabrera on the trade market, and the Angels offered Howie Kendrick, Jeff Mathis and either Ervin Santana or Nick Adenhart. But the Marlins wanted both Santana and Adenhart, and the Angels changed their minds about dealing Kendrick, and the trade fell through. Had the deal worked out, Shaikin says, Cabrera could have joined with fellow 2012 MVP candidate Mike Trout in the Angels' lineup. (Of course, Trout was acquired with the No. 25 pick in the 2009 Draft, which was a compensation pick for losing Mark Teixeira. If the Angels had acquired Cabrera, they might not have acquired Teixeira, which means it's possible they wouldn't have drafted Trout. They also would have had to sign Cabrera to a long-term deal, the way the Tigers did. Reimagining history can be complicated.)
The Marlins' side of the deal would have worked out a bit better, too. We'll never know what might have been with Adenhart, who died in an accident in 2009, and Mathis hasn't hit well. But Kendrick turned out to be a better player than any the Marlins got when they sent Cabrera and Dontrelle Willis to the Tigers for a package centered around Andrew Miller and Cameron Maybin.
Here are more notes from around MLB.
- After Jesus Montero's demotion, his role in the Mariners' future is unclear, Jon Morosi of FOX Sports writes. Mike Zunino now appears to be the Mariners' future catcher, and Montero will work on playing first base at Triple-A Tacoma. If Montero will play predominantly first base and designated hitter going forward, that puts him in an awkward position, because one of the reasons he was sent down in the first place was that his hitting wasn't particularly good even for a catcher. Still, the door remains open to Montero, Morosi notes, since Mariners first baseman Justin Smoak has not hit well, and main DH Kendrys Morales will be a free agent at the end of the season.
- Yan Gomes' play so far is creating a "pleasant problem" for the Indians, Sheldon Ocker of the Akron Beacon-Journal writes. Gomes, who arrived in Cleveland with Mike Aviles when the Indians sent Esmil Rogers to the Blue Jays last offseason, is hitting .311/.328/.672 with five home runs in 61 at bats so far. His performance suggests he might be able to one day become an everyday catcher, not just a utility player who catches occasionally, Ocker writes. Carlos Santana is, of course, the Indians' starting catcher, but if Gomes keeps hitting, the Indians will have to find a way to get him more playing time.
- The Dodgers were criticized for absorbing hundreds of millions of dollars in salary (and giving up five players, including prospects Allen Webster and Rubby De La Rosa) when they acquired Adrian Gonzalez, Carl Crawford, Josh Beckett and Nick Punto from the Red Sox last August. But, MLB.com's Lyle Spencer tweets, Gonzalez, Crawford and Punto have been the Dodgers' three best position players this year. Of course, that says more about the Dodgers' offense than anything else — the Dodgers are scoring just 3.39 runs per game, second-to-last in the National League.
AL Notes: Brantley, Indians, Hendrickson, Angels
While the Indians didn't get much for Cliff Lee, they did get one significant player in their 2008 trade of another Cy Young winner, C.C. Sabathia, Terry Pluto of the Cleveland Plain-Dealer argues. That would be outfielder Michael Brantley. Pluto stops short of defending that trade (which also included Matt LaPorta, Zach Jackson and Rob Bryson) but notes that Brantley's hitting has gradually improved — he's hitting .312/.366/.399 this season. Here are more notes from around the American League.
- With the fifth pick in the upcoming draft, the Indians would consider selecting Jonathan Gray, Mark Appel or Kris Bryant, if any of them fall that far, Paul Hoynes of the Plain-Dealer reports. That seems unlikely, however. Beyond that, Indians scouting director Brad Grant says Cleveland will "take the best available player," although he doesn't tip his hand about who that might be.
- Mark Hendrickson of the Orioles is busy in Triple-A trying to make it back to the major leagues at 38, Rich Dubroff of CSNBaltimore.com reports. Hendrickson signed a minor-league deal with the O's in February. Now he's pitching entirely as a sidearmer. Dubroff notes that Hendrickson has played for four NBA teams (the 76ers, Kings, Nets and Cavaliers) as well as five MLB teams (the Blue Jays, Rays, Dodgers, Marlins and Orioles). He last appeared in the big leagues with the Orioles in 2011.
- Angels manager Mike Scioscia is happy with his team's pitching depth, reports Robert Falkoff of MLB.com. Billy Buckner, who started on Saturday for the Angels, is the team's 10th starting pitcher of the season, and its 29th pitcher overall. "The organizational depth has been tested," says Scioscia. "It's an important part of what we need to do. I think we've seen the last couple of weeks that our pitchers have performed better. The fact that we've used so many is obviously not the template, but these guys are important to us."