Tigers Sign Zach McAllister, Designate Jacob Turner
The Tigers announced today that they have signed a MLB pact with righty Zach McAllister. To create roster space, the club designated fellow right-hander Jacob Turner.
McAllister just wrapped up a lengthy tenure with the Indians, who released him after designating him for assignment. Now he’ll head to the division-rival Tigers to finish out the year before reaching free agency at season’s end.
The 30-year-old hurler has overseen declines in both his peripherals and his results this season. McAllister provided the Indians with 183 1/3 innings of 2.99 ERA ball from 2015-17, but his fortunes have turned. Through 41 2/3 frames in 2018, he has coughed up seven long balls and is allowing 4.97 earned runs per nine with 7.3 K/9 versus 2.2 BB/9.
Turner, of course, is a former first-rounder turned journeyman who found his way back to Detroit recently. He was shelled in a recent start, lasting only one inning. In eighty frames this year, he carries a 4.50 ERA with 6.5 K/9 and 3.2 BB/9.
Quick Hits: Bumgarner, Strasburg, Correa, Happ
Kerry Crowley of The Mercury News boldly calls Madison Bumgarner‘s contract situation the Giants’ “elephant in the room”. Crowley wonders whether Bumgarner must be traded in order to spark a rebuild for the club, who failed to make any significant moves at the trade deadline and now sit at 57-58 on the season after struggling to the league’s worst record last year (tied with the Tigers, of course). Whether the club ultimately decides to “rebuild or remodel”, Bumgarner’s the only player on the roster whose contract might warrant teams forking over a significant prospect return; something an aging Giants team could certainly use. Crowley describes Bumgarner’s future as “uncertain” in the amidst a mediocre team with a gargantuan payroll.
More on a few interesting items from around MLB this evening…
- The Nationals received some welcome news on Stephen Strasburg today, as the right-hander reportedly “felt good” after tossing a 42-pitch bullpen session. According to Jorge Castillo of the Washington Post, he’s likely to throw another one tomorrow and could potentially embark upon a rehab assignment soon thereafter. He’s been on the DL since June 26th with a cervical nerve impingement, but on the bright side he was cleared of any structural damage in his shoulder shortly thereafter.
- The Astros appear to be even closer to getting a valuable asset back on the field, as Carlos Correa was spotted at Minute Maid Park today, with Christian Boutwell of MLB.com among those eye witnesses. Though he was inactive for today’s game, the former Rookie of the Year shortstop believes he could be back on the field as soon as tomorrow. Correa’s having a down season by his standards, hitting .268/.352/.480 with a slightly-bloated 24.4% strikeout rate.
- The Yankees, for their part, already got a notable player back from the DL. J.A. Happ was activated today, filling the roster spot left vacant after they optioned Chance Adams to Triple-A last night. Happ’s been on the DL with hand, foot and mouth disease for the past week plus, but will return to the rotation and attempt to provide the value the Bombers envisioned when they traded Brandon Drury and Billy McKinney in order to obtain him. Happ’s posted a 4.05 ERA through 21 starts
Tigers Acquire Nick Tepesch From Blue Jays
The Tigers have acquired right-hander Nick Tepesch from the Blue Jays for cash considerations, Evan Woodbery of MLive.com reports on Twitter. Tepesch will head to Double-A Erie with his new organization, Woodbery adds.
Tepesch, now 29, is best known for his run with the Rangers from 2013-14. He turned in 42 appearances (39 starts) and 219 innings of 4.56 ERA/4.66 FIP pitching in that span, notching a career-best 126 frames in 2014. Tepesch walked just 2.92 hitters per nine in his Texas tenure, but he only managed a 5.42 K/9 along the way, thus limiting his effectiveness.
Since his time with the Rangers ended in 2016, Tepesch has been a member of a few other organizations, but he hasn’t seen significant big league action over the past couple years. Tepesch has spent this year exclusively in the minors, combining for 89 1/3 innings with the Blue Jays’ Double-A and Triple-A affiliates. He struggled at both levels with Toronto, especially as a member of its Triple-A team in Buffalo, where he put up a lofty 7.90 ERA with 4.39 K/9 and 2.85 BB/9 in 41 frames.
Poll: Which Of These Tigers Is Most Likely To Be Traded?
Earlier today, we learned that three prominent Detroit Tigers (Jose Iglesias, Francisco Liriano and Jordan Zimmerman) have cleared trade waivers, meaning that each is eligible to be traded at any time during the remainder of the season. For any of the three to be eligible for postseason play, he would need to be shipped off to another team before the end of the month.
Each of the three aforementioned players have varying levels of value in relation to their respective salaries for 2018 (and money owed beyond this season). However, it’s not hard to imagine any of the three as a plausible trade candidate; there are certainly plenty of contending teams who could use a shortstop or a starting pitcher. The Tigers would likely have to eat some of the remaining salary owed to any of these three players in the event an agreement is struck with a contending team, but I want to explore the plausibility of each player being dealt, not his overall contract value.
Jose Iglesias, SS- The bulk of Iglesias’ value is locked up in his defensive capabilities. Though he’s hit just .276/.306/.391 over the course of the 2018 season (a batting line that’s not too far off from his career averages), Iglesias owns a Fangraphs defensive rating of 13.7 due in part to the accrual of four Defensive Runs Saved and an Ultimate Zone Rating of 8.9 to this point on the year. That, combined with a below-average wRC+ of 88, has earned him a 2.2 fWAR mark- the highest of any player on this list. Infielders with Iglesias’ defensive capabilities are in short supply, so it’s easy to imagine there would be more than one suitor for the 28-year-old should the Tigers pay down some of his $6.3MM arbitration salary.
Francisco Liriano, LHP- Liriano’s served as a starter for the bulk of his career, and although he’s been largely unspectacular over the course of his 13-season MLB career, he’s shown flashes of brilliance. Most notably, Liriano put up a 3.26 ERA across the 2013-2015 seasons while with the Pirates, notching 9.58 K/9 against 3.78 BB/9 while managing a 52% ground ball rate. While it seems likely that those days are behind him, Liriano could still prove a useful asset to a contending team should he figure out how to regain some semblance of control (he’s walked more than five batters per nine innings on the season). It could be tough to find a taker, considering he owns a 4.37 ERA in 17 starts on the season that seems lucky when compared to his 5.23 FIP, but it’s worth mentioning that the Astros acquired him down the stretch last season in order to utilize him as a reliever, and there’s more than one team that might benefit from adding a lefty to its bullpen.
Jordan Zimmerman, RHP- Zimmerman’s case is the most curious of these three, particularly considering the massive amount of money he’s owed beyond 2018 ($50MM) and the fact that he has a full no-trade clause as part of his contract with the Tigers. Still, after a pair of horrific seasons since signing with Detroit and an equally-rough start to the 2018 season, Zimmerman’s returned to some semblance of usefulness. In eight starts after coming off the disabled list on June 16th, the righty’s managed to compile 41 strikeouts against a stingy seven walks. The result has been a reasonable 3.91 ERA across 46 innings, and he’s lasted at least five innings in all but one of his eight contests. A pitcher of that caliber would certainly be useful to a number of contending teams looking for a fourth starter in October. The tricky part of any negotiation would be deciding upon exactly how much of Zimmerman’s remaining salary ought to be paid down, and that’s without even considering what it might take to convince him to waive his no-trade clause after he chose to sign with the Tigers in part due to Detroit’s geographic location.
It’s no certainty that any of these three will be dealt. But it’s not an impossibility that all three could be moved prior to August 31st, either. Who do you think is most likely to be on the move this season? Here’s a link to the poll for those using the app.
Which Of These Tigers Is Most Likely To Be Traded?
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Francisco Liriano 51% (5,042)
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Jose Iglesias 36% (3,504)
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Jordan Zimmerman 13% (1,292)
Total votes: 9,838
Jose Iglesias, Francisco Liriano, Jordan Zimmermann Clear Trade Waivers
Three prominent Tigers players have cleared revocable trade waivers, according to Anthony Fenech of the Detroit Free-Press. Infielder Jose Iglesias, lefty Francisco Liriano, and righty Jordan Zimmermann can all now be traded freely for the rest of the season.
Of course, deals need to be struck by the end of the month for any player to have postseason eligibility with a new organization. And any preexisting limitations — such as Zimmermann’s no-trade rights — remain in full force.
Of these players, the former two seem to be likely trade candidates. Both are pending free agents earning reasonably significant money. Iglesias, 28, is playing on a $6.275MM salary, while the 34-year-old Liriano is owed a total of $4MM.
Teams interested in upgrading their infield defense will surely consider Iglesias, who’s among the game’s best fielders at short. He’s also producing at a respectable rate at the plate for a defender of his quality, with a 88 wRC+ for the season. Liriano, meanwhile, likely won’t be pursued as a starter, as metrics don’t really support his 4.37 ERA. That said, he has handcuffed lefty hitters this year and it certainly doesn’t hurt that he’s stretched out.
As for Zimmermann, he’s earning $24MM this year and $50MM total for the following two seasons. That’s a big chunk of change. Plus, Zimmermann has full no-trade rights during the present campaign. (They’ll revert to partial rights at season’s end.)
While similar roadblocks did not stop the club from dealing franchise cornerstone Justin Verlander last August, Zimmermann hasn’t pitched well enough to force the issue in the manner of his former teammate. The 32-year-old Zimmermann has certainly fared better this year than at any prior point in his tenure with the Tigers, with a 4.31 ERA over 77 1/3 innings and improved mix of 8.5 K/9 and 1.9 BB/9. But he has also had some health concerns and still likely won’t be valued at anything close to his remaining contract. Plus, there’s still no reason to believe he’d be interested in waiving his no-trade protection, as geography played a role in bringing him to Detroit in the first place.
Tigers To Purchase Contract Of Jacob Turner
The Tigers will purchase the contract of righty Jacob Turner, Evan Woodberry of MLive.com tweets. He’s expected to start tomorrow in place of the just-traded Mike Fiers.
Turner, 27, has seen action in parts of seven seasons. But his career hasn’t gone as hoped when he debuted in Detroit at just twenty years of age. The former first-rounder has spent time with four other organizations since that time and owns only a 5.26 ERA over 368 career innings.
Most recently, Turner was knocked around in four outings with the Marlins earlier this season. The Tigers nabbed him on a minors deal and sent him to Triple-A Toledo. Turner has been effective there thus far, carrying a 4.01 ERA with 6.3 K/9 and 3.1 BB/9 in 58 1/3 frames over 11 starts.
Athletics Acquire Mike Fiers
The A’s have acquired right-hander Mike Fiers from the Tigers in exchange for cash considerations or two players to be named later, the team has announced (Twitter link). Left-hander Jeremy Bleich has been designated for assignment to create room for Fiers on Oakland’s roster.
Fiers drew attention from multiple clubs prior to the trade deadline, with the Athletics reportedly making a strong bid to land the 33-year-old on deadline day itself. Less than a week later, the A’s finally landed the righty to help reinforce its injury-plagued starting staff, with Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reporting that Oakland put a claim on Fiers while he was on revocable trade waivers.
After being non-tendered by the Astros last winter, Fiers signed a one-year, $6MM deal with the Tigers and did a solid job of rebuilding his stock after a rough 2017 season. Fiers posted a 3.48 ERA, 6.58 K/9, and 3.35 K/BB rate over 119 innings (21 starts) for Detroit, and has been particularly effective after a slow start to the season, as Fiers has a 2.57 ERA over his last 70 frames.
There are some red flags about his performance, however, most notably the career-low (over a full season) strikeout rate and swinging strike rate (8.3 %). Fiers is getting away with allowing some hard contact, as evidenced by the gap between his .321 wOBA and his .345 xwOBA, and he has also benefited from an 83.1% strand rate and a .277 BABIP. Advanced metrics such as FIP (4.66), xFIP (4.82) and SIERA (4.54) all sit over a run higher than his real-world ERA.
Even if a bit of regression is in order, Fiers will likely still represent an upgrade for an A’s rotation that has posted middling numbers over the course of the season (though they have been dominant as of late). Fiers joins ace Sean Manaea and veterans Brett Anderson, Edwin Jackson, and Trevor Cahill in the Athletics’ starting five, and Fiers is also an option for the 2019 staff, as he is controlled via salary arbitration. It’s worth noting that Fiers left his last start after just two innings after being hit in the shin with a line drive, though the injury isn’t thought to be particularly serious, and obviously the A’s weren’t concerned enough to hold off on making the trade.
As per Slusser, the Tigers have the option of taking money back for Fiers, or selecting two names from a list of prospects. It’s safe to assume that none of Oakland’s top minor leaguers are on that list, though Detroit should still get some kind of decent return on their $6MM investment in Fiers in the offseason.
Bleich made his Major League debut this season, appearing in two games for the A’s though getting through just one-third of an inning. A supplemental first-round pick (44th overall) for the Yankees in the 2008 draft, Bleich has pitched for five different organizations over 10 professional seasons and he also played for Team Israel in the 2017 World Baseball Classic. Bleich has a 3.92 ERA, 7.2 K/9, and 2.06 K/BB rate over 601 1/3 career minor league innings.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
AL Central Links: Drake, Pineda, Chernoff, Herrera, Tigers
Oliver Drake earned an unusual spot in the record books upon making his Twins debut on Saturday, as the right-hander became the first player in history to pitch for five different MLB teams in a single season. After three waiver claims and a trade, the well-traveled Drake has now taken the hill for the Twins, Blue Jays, Angels, Indians, and Brewers since the start of the 2018 campaign. “It’s definitely been a long year,” Drake told MLB.com’s Rhett Bollinger and other reporters. “It’s always a good thing to be wanted in this game. My wife definitely would appreciate being a little more settled. She’s been moving around a lot with me, and it’s kind of chaos. But it’s all part of it, it’s the lifestyle we live, and we’re just making the best of it.” Drake had already taken a long journey of a different sense just to reach the Show, as he was a 43rd-round pick for the Orioles in the 2008 draft and didn’t crack the big leagues until 2015. Ironically, Drake had a pretty stable run for much of his pro career, as he was a member of Baltimore’s organization until he was dealt to Milwaukee in April 2017.
Here’s more from around the AL Central…
- Also from Bollinger’s piece, Michael Pineda will officially begin his rehab assignment with the Twins‘ Gulf Coast League affiliate today. This will mark the right-hander’s first action since undergoing Tommy John surgery in July 2017. Minnesota signed Pineda to a two-year, $10MM contract last winter, with $8MM of that deal owed in 2019 as the team sees him as a potential rotation contributor when healthy. If all goes well in his rehab, Pineda is slated to get some Major League innings under his belt when rosters expand in September.
- Indians GM Mike Chernoff talks to The Athletic’s Zack Meisel (subscription required) about how a front office prepares for the trade deadline, as well as managing the hectic, last-minute flurry of calls and messages from other teams on deadline day itself. Cleveland had already acquired Brad Hand and Adam Cimber to reinforce the bullpen earlier in July, leaving the team with one less positional target to worry about as July 31 approached. “There have been times at the deadline where we’ve had multiple needs and you’re juggling a lot of different things at the same time….Because we addressed the bullpen much earlier in the process, we could really shift our focus to, ‘How do we help the outfield?’ “, Chernoff said. The piece is well worth a full read for an insight into the many factors that every team must juggle as it looks to make any trade, let alone multiple deals at the busiest time of the year for transactions.
- Rosell Herrera‘s rookie season has seen him go from the Reds to the Royals on a waiver claim, though now the 25-year-old looks to be shaping into a useful asset for his new club, the Kansas City Star’s Maria Torres writes. Herrera hasn’t shown much at the plate (.257/.291/.358 over 159 PA with Cincinnati and Kansas City), though he has displayed some versatility, lining up at second base, third base, and all three outfield spots this season. Torres details how Herrera, once a top-100 ranked prospect coming up in the Rockies’ system, first started playing the outfield since Colorado already had Nolan Arenado and Troy Tulowitzki on the left side of the diamond, and how wrist problems slowed his ascent through the farm system.
- The trade that sent J.D. Martinez to the Diamondbacks in July 2017 was the first of six major deals made by the Tigers as they began their rebuilding process, and MLive.com’s Evan Woodbery looks back on the prospect haul that Detroit has collected in those swaps. While it will obviously be several years before the impact of these deals can be fully assessed, the trade that sent Justin Wilson and Alex Avila to the Cubs at the 2017 deadline is already “a big win for the Tigers” since Jeimer Candelario has become a lineup regular.
Minor MLB Transactions: 8/4/18
We’ll use this post to keep track of some minor transactions throughout the day…
Latest…
- The Tigers have made their second minor deal of the day, this time acquiring righty Eric Villanueva from the Mets in exchange for cash considerations, Woodbery tweets. Villanueva, 20, had been with the Mets since they chose him out of Puerto Rico in the 30th round of the 2016 draft. During his time with the Mets, Villaneuva worked at the Rookie level and struggled to a 5.14 ERA with unsightly strikeout and walk rates (5.1 K/9, 11.2 BB/9) across 40 1/3 innings.
Earlier…
- The Yankees have acquired infielder Gio Urshela from the Blue Jays in exchange for cash considerations; Conor Foley of the Scranton Times-Tribune was first to take note of the transaction, and the move has since been announced by both organizations. The Jays designated Urshela for assignment on June 26th, about seven weeks after they claimed him off waivers from the Indians. The 26-year-old is widely known for his highlight-reel defensive plays, although he’s also error-prone on the big stage; Urshela made four errors while with Cleveland during last year’s ALDS. His tepid bat has been what’s really held him back, though. Urshela’s career batting line is .225/.274/.315 across 499 plate appearances with Cleveland and Toronto.
- The Indians announced that they’ve traded right-hander George Kontos to the Yankees in exchange for cash considerations; the Yankees in turn announced that the veteran has assigned to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes Barre. The 33-year-old has pitched in parts of every MLB season since 2011, though he’s never shuffled around the league quite this much. Kontos began 2018 with the Pirates before being shipped to Cleveland, and will now head to his third team of the year. He’s earned himself a 4.68 ERA across 25 innings thus far, and his FIP (5.93) suggests he’s been lucky to attain even that mediocre mark. However, if he can return to the form of the 3.12 ERA hurler he’s been across his career on average, he could yet prove a useful piece for the Bombers.
- The Tigers have acquired righty Christian Binford from the Orioles in exchange for cash considerations, per Evan Woodbery of MLive. Across 12 appearances this season (seven starts) with the O’s Double-A affiliate, Binford has pitched to a 4.95 ERA. While he’s walked just 1.28 batters per nine innings, he’s only managed to strike out a measly 5.59. However, his 4.35 xFIP suggests that he’s been slightly unlucky in terms of fly balls going for home runs. While Binford has remained at Double-A all season, he’s seen time at the minors’ highest level in each of the past two years (while with the Royals organization). In fact, prior to this season, the 25-year-old had never known any other organization outside of Kansas City, who selected him in the 30th round of the 2011 draft.
40-Man Moves: D-backs, Dodgers, Indians, Mets, Mariners, Cubs, Marlins, O’s
This has been a trade-packed day across Major League Basbeall, meaning there are plenty of corresponding smaller moves that have been announced over the past couple of hours as teams make today’s agreed-upon deals official. Here’s a look at the DFAs, contract selections and other 40-man transactions that came along with today’s action…
- The Diamondbacks designated left-handed reliever Jorge De La Rosa to make room for newly added southpaw Jake Diekman, Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic tweets. De La Rosa, a longtime Colorado starter who’s in his second season in Arizona, switched to a full-time relief role upon changing teams and hasn’t produced inspiring results. The 37-year-old has logged a 4.38 ERA/4.98 FIP with 7.51 K/9, 4.17 BB/9 in 86 1/3 innings since joining the D-backs. On the bright side, De La Rosa has posted a 48 percent groundball rate and been tough on left-handed hitters. Considering he’s only owed the balance of a $2.25MM salary, perhaps a team will be interested in taking a flyer on De La Rosa.
- The Dodgers designated righty Ariel Hernandez for assignment to open a spot for John Axford, per the MLB.com transactions page. Hernandez, 26, scuffled through his first MLB action last year with the Reds and hasn’t made it back since. Over fifty frames this year in the upper minors, he’s carrying an appealing 2.52 ERA, but has also handed out 29 walks to go with his 49 strikeouts.
- The Indians announced that they’ve designated outfielder Johnny Field for assignment. His spot on the 40-man will go to newly acquired outfield prospect Oscar Mercado, whom Cleveland acquired in a rare all-prospects trade with the Cardinals (full details here). Field, 26, only recently landed with the Indians himself after spending most of the year (and his entire professional career to that point) with the Rays. Field posted a meager .213/.253/.373 batting line in his first 179 MLB plate appearances, all accumulated earlier this season.
- The Mets announced today that they’ve claimed infielder Jack Reinheimer, who was designated for assignment last week, off waivers from the Diamondbacks. A former fifth-round pick, Reinheimer received a cup of coffee with the D-Backs last year but hadn’t done much to force his way back to this point in 2018. In his fifty games at Triple-A, Reinheimer owns a .237/.312/.353 batting line. Additionally, outfielder Matt den Dekker cleared waivers and was sent outright to Triple-A Las Vegas. He’ll have the right to elect free agency now or at season’s end.
- Outfielder Isaac Galloway is on his way to the Majors to make his MLB debut with the Marlins, the club announced. It’s a long time coming for an eleven-year pro who has never before tasted the majors. Through 356 plate appearances this year at Triple-A, Galloway carries a .262/.315/.429 triple-slash.
- Galloway’s contract was selected following the trade of Cameron Maybin to the Mariners, who opened a spot for Maybin by moving right-hander Dan Altavilla from the 10-day DL to the 60-day DL in yet another 40-man move. Similarly, Cubs righty Justin Hancock was transferred to the 60-day disabled list in order to open a spot for Brandon Kintzler, who was acquired from the Nationals today.
- The Orioles are selecting the contract of right-handed reliever Cody Carroll, who will step into the roster spot of Kevin Gausman following today’s trade to Atlanta. Carroll landed with the Baltimore organization in the recent swap that sent reliever Zach Britton to the Yankees.
- First baseman Ryan O’Hearn had his contract selected by the Royals, per a team announcement. Infielder Cheslor Cuthbert moved to the 60-day DL to open a spot. It’s the first crack at the majors for O’Hearn, who’ll get the call despite tepid results (.232/.322/.391) this year at Triple-A.
- Righty Warwick Saupold cleared waivers and was sent outright to Triple-A by the Tigers. The Aussie hurler threw 34 1/3 innings of 4.46 ERA ball this year in Detroit, but managed only 16 strikeouts and a 6.1% swinging-strike rate in that span.