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Lance McCullers To Have Elbow Examined

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Houston’s the only team in the majors that has used the same five starting pitchers all season, but that may be on the verge of changing. Right-hander Lance McCullers Jr. left his start against the Dodgers on Saturday in the fifth inning with discomfort in his pitching elbow, the team announced. McCullers will head back to Houston on Sunday for a medical examination, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com was among those to report.

McCullers cruised during his abbreviated outing Saturday in what proved to be a rout for the reigning champion Astros, who rolled to a 14-0 victory over their World Series opponent from 2017. The 24-year-old tossed four innings of scoreless, two-hit ball, also notching five strikeouts against two walks. But McCullers was unable to throw a single pitch in the fifth, and he told reporters after the game that there was “some abnormal soreness and stiffness” around his forearm.

Forearm issues often serve as a precursor to Tommy John surgery, a procedure McCullers hasn’t undergone to this point. The fourth-year man hasn’t been the picture of durability in the majors, though, having dealt with elbow and shoulder troubles in 2016 before going on the disabled list twice on account of back problems last year. He has only gone past the 125-inning mark twice in a season, including his career-best 126 frames in 2018.

Despite his injuries, McCullers has always posted strong production, which has continued this year with a 3.93 ERA/3.57 FIP, 9.86 K/9 and 3.57 BB/9 and a 54.8 percent groundball rate. That type of output won’t be easy for the Astros to replace if McCullers does land on the shelf, though the team’s rotation would still be a loaded group without him, evidenced by the unit’s league-leading ERA (3.00) and fWAR (16.2). Statistically, McCullers has been the worst of the Astros’ starters this year, but that’s less a knock on him than a compliment to the work Justin Verlander, Gerrit Cole, Charlie Morton and Dallas Keuchel have done.

Now, if Houston does lose McCullers, it’s unclear how the team would fill out its rotation. Fellow Astros righties Collin McHugh and Brad Peacock each bring plenty of starting experience, but they’ve been entrenched in bullpen roles all season and, with a few exceptions, have typically worked a maximum of two innings per appearance. Other 40-man options include Triple-A starters Brady Rodgers and Francis Martes, though neither looks ready for the big leagues right now. Rodgers has struggled in his first action since undergoing TJ surgery last year, and Martes is on the mend from elbow issues of his own.

At the Double-A level and not on the 40-man roster, the Astros have one of the premier pitching prospects in baseball in towering righty Forrest Whitley. However, he’s also working back from an injury (a strained oblique) and has only amassed 35 2/3 innings above the Single-A level since 2017. Astros manager A.J. Hinch did suggest last week that Whitley could garner consideration for a September promotion, though (via Christian Boutwell and Alyson Footer of MLB.com). In the meantime, Houston’s hope is that McCullers won’t miss any time – let alone a substantial amount – as it continues trying to maintain or build on its five-game lead over the Athletics in the AL West.

Injury Notes: Deal Medicals, Matz, Devenski, Nicasio, Kinsler

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WEEI.com’s Rob Bradford took an interesting look at changes that have been made to the process of assessing health in trades. The 2016 Drew Pomeranz swap, and more particularly the fallout from it, sparked the development of a much more robust system for documenting and assessing medical matters. While thee’s obviously an advantage in enhancing the scrutiny, it also leads to what Bradford calls a “tremendously tedious process.”

Here’s the latest on some injury situations around the league:

  • The Mets announced today that they have placed lefty Steven Matz on the 10-day disabled list with a flexor pronator strain. That sounds a bit frightening, though indications are that it’s not a terribly concerning injury situation. Still, any arm troubles are somewhat more worrisome for a young hurler that has experienced so many already since his 2015 debut. Matz, who will be replaced on the active roster by right-hander Corey Oswalt, joins Phillip Evans on the shelf. The 25-year-old infielder suffered a non-displaced fracture of his tibia, though it is perhaps still possible he’ll be able to return to action this season.
  • The Astros have placed reliever Chris Devenski on the 10-day disabled list with left hamstring tightness, the club announced. He’ll be replaced on the active roster by southpaw Cionel Perez. Devenski had been cruising through another dominant season before he imploded very recently. Devenski had a 1.32 ERA as of July 1st, but has since allowed 13 earned runs in seven outings — including eight without recording an out over his past two appearances. Clearly, something isn’t quite right, so the ’Stros will give him a chance to get back to full health before the stretch run.
  • Also heading to the DL is Mariners righty Juan Nicasio, the team announced. He’ll be replaced by reliever Chasen Bradford. Knee problems have been an issue for the 31-year-old Nicasio this year. He’s now sporting a 6.00 ERA through 42 frames on the season, though he’s also carrying a sparkling 53:5 K/BB ratio.
  • Just-acquired Red Sox second baseman Ian Kinsler is likewise set to hit the DL after leaving tonight’s game with a tight hamstring, Bradford tweets. The seriousness isn’t yet apparent, but it doesn’t appear to be a major source of concern. Kinsler will be replaced for the time being by infielder Tony Renda.

Astros Acquire Roberto Osuna, Send Ken Giles To Blue Jays

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The Astros have struck a deal to acquire relief pitcher Roberto Osuna from the Blue Jays, as Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic first reported (links to Twitter). Former Astros closer Ken Giles is heading to Toronto along with righties Hector Perez and David Paulino. The Jays announced that they’ve designated righty Oliver Drake for assignment and moved Josh Donaldson to the 60-day disabled list in order to clear roster space for Giles and Paulino, each of whom is on the 40-man roster.

This is a rather jarring swap that’ll surely ignite quite a reaction. Both of these pitchers have been working at Triple-A recently, for rather different reasons,  despite generally excellent track records in the majors.

Osuna is currently pitching on a rehab assignment while serving a suspension under the MLB-MLBPA Joint Domestic Violence, Sexual Assault and Child Abuse policy. He is also still facing domestic assault charges in Canada for alleged crimes against his girlfriend.

Up until his arrest in early May, Osuna was widely regarded as one of the game’s most exciting and valuable young relief pitchers. He was in typically excellent form to begin the present season, as he has been ever since breaking into the majors at the start of 2015. Osuna has worked as the Toronto closer for much of that time, accumulating 104 saves in 223 innings.

Despite the fact that Osuna is still in legal limbo for a despicable alleged crime, the defending World Series champions have decided to add him to their relief corps. The 23-year-old will be eligible to return from his suspension on August 5th and will not be precluded from participating in the postseason. (Unlike the rules involving players banned for PEDs, domestic violence-related bans do not come with limitations on the playoffs.) That said, his legal situation could still theoretically impact his availability, owing to trial involvement, potential prison time, and travel issues.

Houston GM Jeff Luhnow and Osuna have each released statements (via Mark Berman of FOX 26, Twitter links). Luhnow says the team is “confident that Osuna is remorseful, has willfully complied with all consequences related to his past behavior, has proactively engaged in counseling, and will fully comply with our zero tolerance policy relate to abuse of any kind.” Notably, there’s no specification of just what “past behavior” is at issue. Osuna, meanwhile, stated that he is excited to play for the team, but did not even reference his alleged malfeasance.

As for Giles, 27, his recent problems have been tied more closely to his performance on the mound. He had maintained a typically strong mix of strikeouts and walks (31:3) in his 30 2/3 innings to open the season and only allowed a pair of long balls. Yet Giles was also tagged for 17 earned runs on 36 base hits.

The struggles came to a head earlier this month, as Giles was pulled from an appearance and perhaps offered some choice words for his skipper. Regardless of just what happened, the decision was made that some time in the minors was on order for a reliever who had limped to a 4.99 ERA. It didn’t help, surely, that Giles struggled during the Astros’ World Series run.

There’s still plenty to like about Giles, of course. He’s averaging about 98 mph with his fastball and maintaining an excellent 16.4% swinging-strike rate, in line with his career numbers. He has never before been so stingy with free passes. While there has certainly been a rise in the hard contact Giles has surrendered, the tools seem to remain in place for a turnaround.

Though the two players’ once-similar paths have diverged in other ways, they remain a near-perfect match in terms of contract situations. Both are headed for free agency after the 2020 season. Giles is earning a bit less than Osuna this year ($4.6MM vs. $5.3MM), but those salaries will likely even out this fall since the former will have logged quite a few more MLB innings than the latter.

From a baseball perspective, Osuna seems clearly to be the most talented player in this deal. He has no real blemishes on his pitching record and could well be a critical piece of the Astros’ attempt to hang another banner while still maintaining its store of prospect capital. Of course, there’s also an unsavory reason that the club was able to achieve such potential value.

It seems the Blue Jays, in the midst of a failed season, decided to get what they could for a disgraced player. Though the team suggested otherwise publicly, MLB.com’s Jon Morosi tweets that the Jays had decided already to trade Osuna rather than allow him back on their active roster.

Giles certainly seems a worthwhile player to take a chance on, but the other pieces are notable as well. Paulino will bring his own baggage up north, as his once-bright prospect star faded after a PED suspension last year. He also had bone spurs removed from his elbow last fall and has been limited to seven appearances in the minors. He has allowed 11 earned runs in 18 Triple-A frames, but has also recorded a healthy 23:5 K/BB ratio.

Perez is another fairly advanced hurler of note. He has handed out far too many walks during his time on the Houston farm, but has also shown some swing and miss ability. Perez recently moved up to the Double-A level. In 89 1/3 total frames on the year, most at High-A, he’s carrying a 3.73 ERA with 10.2 K/9 and 4.8 BB/9. While there’s obviously some polish still needed, Perez has drawn plaudits from prospect hounds who love his pure stuff and think he could potentially still harness his command enough to make it into a MLB rotation — or, if not, turn into a nice high-leverage bullpen piece.

As for the corresponding moves made by Toronto, the DFA of Drake comes as little surprise, given that the righty was only recently claimed off waivers last week and had made just two appearances with the Blue Jays — his fourth MLB organization of the season. He’ll be traded, outrighted or released within the week. Moving Donaldson to the 60-day DL is merely a procedeural move; he’s not expected back until next month anyhow and will have missed far more than the requisite 60 days in total by the time he’s ready for activation.

Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Indians Focused On Adding Center Fielder

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The Indians are “focused” on adding a center fielder in the 23 hours leading up to Tuesday’s non-waiver trade deadline, tweets ESPN’s Buster Olney. His colleague, Jerry Crasnick, offered plenty of additional insight into the matter earlier this morning as well (all Twitter links).

As Crasnick points out, the market for center field upgrades is fairly limited in nature. Adam Jones reportedly isn’t planning on waiving his 10-and-5 rights to approve a trade away from the Orioles, Billy Hamilton is once again having a dreadful season at the plate, and Leonys Martin has battled injuries while struggling at the plate recently. Crasnick lists Houston’s Jake Marisnick as a potential rebound candidate who could pique the Indians’ interest, though the Astros have no plans of merely giving him away, and Marisnick isn’t hitting well at all in 2018.

Looking beyond that group, the Rays and Marlins would surely be open to deals involving respective outfielders Carlos Gomez and Cameron Maybin, though neither is performing well at the plate this season (especially in Gomez’s case). Speculating further, the Padres have a number of outfielders on the roster, and 27-year-old Travis Jankowski could conceivably be moved given San Diego’s depth. He’s not hitting especially well in 2018, either, but has gotten on base at a respectable clip and has a solid defensive reputation.

The Cleveland outfield has been slammed by injuries in 2018, as Bradley Zimmer is done for the year due to shoulder surgery while Lonnie Chisenhall will be sidelined into September by a calf issue. The Indians also just lost Tyler Naquin to a hip injury, only furthering the team’s need to add to the outfield. While there’s been speculation about the possibility of Cleveland adding a second baseman such as Minnesota’s Brian Dozier in order to shift Jason Kipnis to center field, Olney suggests a conventional addition of a more experienced center fielder to be a likelier option.

Astros Place Jose Altuve On DL

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The Astros have placed second baseman Jose Altuve on the 10-day disabled list, retroactive to July 26, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com tweets. Altuve has been dealing with right knee soreness over the past few days.

Altuve hasn’t played since Wednesday, thus depriving the reigning world champion Astros of their much-ballyhooed double-play tandem of him and shortstop Carlos Correa, who’s also on the DL. A back injury has kept Correa out of action for just over a month, and he’s unlikely to return until sometime next month. Nevertheless, at 67-39, Houston continues to boast a 4 1/2-game lead over second-place Seattle in the American League West.

As has been the case over the past few seasons, the Astros’ success this year has come thanks in large part to Altuve. Last year’s AL MVP winner, Altuve has batted .329/.392/.464 with nine home runs and 14 stolen bases over 454 plate appearances in 2018. He’s also in the midst of his fifth straight season of at least 4.0 fWAR, having notched exactly that amount thus far. Altuve’s loss is obviously significant for Houston, then, though the 28-year-old suggested to reporters (via McTaggart) that his injury isn’t serious. Regardless, this marks Altuve’s first trip to the DL since the six-time All-Star debuted in the majors in 2011, and it should open the door for Marwin Gonzalez to handle second for as long as he’s out.

Astros To Acquire Ryan Pressly

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The Astros have officially struck a deal to acquire reliever Ryan Pressly from the Twins, as Ken Rosenthal and Robert Murray of The Athletic first reported (Twitter links). Prospects Jorge Alcala and Gilberto Celestino are going to Minnesota in the deal, as first mentioned by Jon Heyman of Fancred (via Twitter).

Pressly, 29, has taken a big step forward this year after showing solid peripherals — but generating only a 4.70 ERA — in his 61 1/3 innings last year. Through 47 2/3 innings in the present campaign, the right-hander is sporting a 3.40 ERA with an eye-opening 13.0 K/9 against 3.6 BB/9.

Better still, Pressly is earning just $1.6MM this year with another season of arbitration eligibility left to go. While the ’Stros were likely not overly concerned with cost, they obviously valued the additional season of control and surely were not unaware of the fact that it’ll come at a manageable price tag.

Just how things will shake out at the back of the Houston pen remains to be seen. For now, usual closer Ken Giles remains at Triple-A. Despite his increasingly interesting output, Pressly has not recorded any saves this year and only has eight holds. It seems likely, then, that Hector Rondon will remain the top option in the ninth, barring another move or a return to grace for Giles.

Despite his relative lack of late-inning experience, Pressly will represent another weapon for a relief unit that’s already among the best in baseball. Long noted for his impressive spin rate, Pressly has finally put it all together. This year, he’s sporting a dominant 17.9% swinging-strike rate while mixing a slider and curve off of his 96+ mph four-seamer. Much of the bump in the swing-and-miss has come from his slider, though the contact rate on that pitch has trended up over the course of the season.

While the Twins didn’t need to move Pressly, it seems the market interest was enough to force the club’s hand. Whether or not other non-rental assets will be parted with remains to be seen. Clearly, after previously moving Eduardo Escobar, there’ll be more moves to come. Infielder Brian Dozier and relievers Fernando Rodney and Zach Duke seem likeliest to end up on other rosters.

The team has picked up some interesting new assets to go with the youthful pieces added in the deal it completed earlier today. Alcala, who turns 23 tomorrow, is a pure flamethrower who’s still working to refine his secondary offerings. He has turned in 79 1/3 innings of 3.29 ERA ball with 9.3 K/9 and 4.0 BB/9 this year, splitting his time between High-A and Double-A, and graded as Houston’s tenth-best prospect on MLB.com’s most recent list. Celestino checked in at #15 on that ranking and was recently noted by Baseball America as the Astros’ top defensive outfield prospect. The 19-year-old has hit quite well this year at the low-A level, posting a .317/.383/.476 slash with four home runs.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Pitching Market Rumors: Stroman, Wheeler, Harvey, Yankees, Giles

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The Braves are known to be in the market for rotation upgrades, and Jon Morosi of MLB.com reports that GM Alex Anthopoulos has reached out to his old team, the Blue Jays, to discuss a potential Marcus Stroman trade. However, Morosi also adds that there’s “no evidence of progress in those negotiations.” Anthopoulos has suggested recently that he’s not interested in surrendering significant talent to acquire a rental, so it’s not surprising to see Atlanta exploring the possibility of adding a pitcher who is controlled through the 2020 season. The Jays, of course, have been active on the trade market in the past 24 hours, dealing Seunghwan Oh to the Rockies and J.A. Happ to the Yankees. But GM Ross Atkins downplayed the possibility of moving players controlled beyond the 2018 season earlier today, per Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet (Twitter link). “We’re not aggressively having those discussions,” Atkins replied when asked about moving some of his more controllable assets.

Some more chatter on the market for pitchers…

  • Morosi also tweets that the Brewers and Mets have discussed a possible Zack Wheeler trade, though they’re not close to a deal. The Brewers, who acquired Joakim Soria from the White Sox earlier today, have been tied more to infield upgrades than rotation help in recent days, though they’ve generally been tied to myriad upgrade possibilities. Wheeler would affordably slot into the Milwaukee rotation both this year and next, before reaching free agency, and he’s been raising his profile as of late. In his past 10 starts, he’s worked to a 3.50 ERA with 7.8 K/9, 3.1 BB/9, 0.56 HR/9 and a 40.2 percent ground-ball rate through 64 1/3 innings. Of course, the Brewers are hardly alone in their interest. Mike Puma of the New York Post tweets that there are eight to 10 teams that’ve shown some level of interest in acquiring Wheeler.
  • Reds president of baseball operations Dick Williams spoke to MLB.com’s Mark Sheldon about the looming non-waiver trade deadline, and while he declined to go into too many specifics, Williams acknowledged his ongoing Matt Harvey negotiations with other clubs. While Harvey was shelled for eight runs in his most recent outing, that one poor showing didn’t do much to hinder interest. “I certainly didn’t have anybody call and drop out after that,” Williams told Sheldon. “…I think the body of work is there that shows that he’s been a good, consistent Major League pitcher since we acquired him. And the potential for him to help a team down the stretch is certainly there.”
  • Prior to the their acquisition of J.A. Happ, the Yankees also spoke to the Twins about Ervin Santana “and others,” per Jon Heyman of Fancred (via Twitter). Both Jake Odorizzi and Kyle Gibson are controlled through the 2019 season and could theoretically emerge as trade candidates, while Lance Lynn is a free agent at season’s end and is quite likely already available (though he has not fared well at all in 2018). It seems likely, though, that New York’s pickup of Happ will end their looks at the Twins’ available starters.
  • Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reports in his latest notes column (subscription required) that some executives within the industry believe the Astros would sell low on recently demoted closer Ken Giles. Rosenthal adds that one team approached the Mariners about the possibility of a three-team trade, believing that they could get Giles and flip him to Seattle. While the M’s had interest, however, talks failed to progress. The Astros maintain that they’re not shopping Giles, however, per the report.

Astros Acquire Martin Maldonado

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The Astros have struck a deal with the division-rival Angels to acquire backstop Martin Maldonado, as Jeff Fletcher of the Southern California News Group first reported (via Twitter). Young lefty Patrick Sandoval will go to the Angels along with $250K in international pool money.

With the move, Houston has bolstered its catching unit as it awaits the return of veteran Brian McCann from the DL. Maldonado will displace Tim Federowicz, who has been designated for assignment, per Jake Kaplan of The Athletic (via Twitter). The Astros’ new catcher will pair with the emergent Max Stassi to split up the work behind the dish for at least the next several weeks.

Maldonado is earning $3.9MM this year before qualifying for free agency at season’s end. He originally came to Los Angeles in the deal that sent fellow receiver Jett Bandy to the Brewers before the 2017 season.

Over the past two years, Maldonado has performed at the plate much as he did in his prior MLB action. He’s a weak on-base threat who only partially makes up for that with some pop. For his career, Maldonado owns a .219/.291/.347 batting line — good for a 72 OPS+ that he has matched almost exactly in both 2017 and 2018.

Clearly, the appeal lies more in Maldonado’s work with his gear on. The 31-year-old is a well-regarded all-around performer behind the dish. In particular, though he has not earned prime grades for his framing in 2018, Maldonado has in years past rated as one of the sport’s best at winning strikes for his pitchers.

If nothing else, the addition of Maldonado will give the Astros some much-needed insurance with McCann still working back from a knee surgery. Just how things will be sorted out in the postseason remains to be seen, but the Astros will surely feel confident they’ll have solid options available the rest of the way.

Meanwhile, the Halos are more or less acknowledging the obvious: this won’t be the year they break back into the postseason. The 21-year-old Sandoval represents something of a consolation prize for a disappointing campaign.

Sandoval was an 11th-round pick in 2015. He has turned in an impressive campaign thus far, working to a 2.56 ERA in 88 frames — most of them at the Class A level but his more recently at High-A. Sandoval has struck out 9.9 and walked just 1.5 batters per nine on the year. Baseball America recently wrote up the young southpaw, characterizing him as a legitimately interesting prospect.

Fletcher tweeted Sandoval’s inclusion. Joel Sherman of the New York Post (via Twitter) and MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand (Twitter link) had the international money.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Trade Chatter: Archer, Rockies, O’s, Astros, Steckenrider, D-backs, Kela

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With the Padres’ lengthy rebuilding moving ever closer to its conclusion, the team has been inquiring about controllable MLB pieces to add to its rotation. They’ve already been tied to Noah Syndergaard on the rumor mill, and they reportedly asked the Yankees about Miguel Andujar during Brad Hand talks. Adding to that line of thinking, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic writes today (subscription required) that an executive that is with neither the Padres nor the Rays tells him that San Diego is pursuing a Chris Archer trade. Rosenthal is careful to stress that neither the Friars nor the Rays confirmed as much, though the two sides have had at least some level of discussions regarding Archer, he notes. As Rosenthal explores at length, however, there are myriad roadblocks to a deal.

Whether San Diego’s interest in Archer is serious or more along the lines of due diligence, it’s an interesting look at the calculus both the Padres and Rays need to consider when weighing future-oriented moves. And it’s certainly another notable data point suggesting that Padres GM A.J. Preller and his staff are beginning to look at improving the big league roster with pieces that could be controlled beyond the 2020 season.

Some more trade talk from around the league…

  • In addition to the Rockies’ previously reported interest in Zach Britton, Colorado has also asked the Orioles about right-handers Dylan Bundy and Kevin Gausman, Jon Morosi of MLB.com reports (via Twitter). There’s no momentum in talks regarding Bundy and Gausman, however, Morosi adds. To this point, it’s not at all clear whether the O’s would even consider moving Gausman (controlled through 2020) or Bundy (through 2021). There’s little reason for the Orioles not to seriously entertain offers, from my vantage point, as they’re not likely to contend in either 2019 or 2020 with the Yankees and Red Sox both poised for long-term success. Obviously, that’s not to say they should simply take the best offer presented before July 31, but the Orioles should be amenable to moving just about anyone on the roster for a strong enough return.
  • The Athletic’s Jayson Stark cites execs from teams that have spoken with the Astros in reporting (via Twitter) that Houston has been “adamant” about hanging onto its very top tier of prospects in trade talks (e.g. Forrest Whitley, Yordan Alvarez). The Astros’ farm system is plenty deep, of course, and it stands to reason that any of the rental targets they’re pursuing — they’ve been oft-linked to Zach Britton, for instance — would come with a lower price tag than that anyhow.
  • The Marlins’ ask on its controllable relievers appears to be quite high, with Morosi tweeting that Miami indicated to the Red Sox that Jay Groome or Michael Chavis alone would not be enough to land Drew Steckenrider. (Morosi doesn’t suggest that either was ever offered up by the Red Sox — only that the Marlins wouldn’t have considered a one-for-one swap in either case.) While Groome and Chavis are generally regarded as Boston’s top two prospects, Groome underwent Tommy John surgery earlier this summer. Chavis, meanwhile, missed the first 80 games of the season due to a PED suspension and has only logged 10 games since being activated.
  • Morosi also tweets that the Diamondbacks have shown interest in Rangers relievers Keone Kela and Jose Leclerc. There’s no indication that talks between the two sides are serious, but the Rangers are reportedly open to moving Kela, who is controlled through the 2020 season. The 25-year-old is currently sporting a 3.18 ERA with 10.9 K/9 against 3.2 BB/9 through 34 innings of work and has a 2.97 ERA with better than 11 K/9 dating back to 2017. Leclerc would be tougher to pry away, as he’s controlled for another four seasons beyond the current campaign and currently boasts a 2.06 ERA with a 51-to-18 K/BB ratio through 35 innings.

Zach Britton Rumors: 7/24/18

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With the Orioles’ marketing efforts building toward a crescendo, lefty Zach Britton came up quite a bit in the rumor mill yesterday and also over the weekend. It appears that’ll again be the case today. With no comparable rental southpaws available on this year’s trade market, contenders that want a live-armed lefty are pushing for Britton, whose once-incomparable power sinker has regained some of its former luster.

The latest:

  • It seems there’s a good reason that we’re seeing a surge in the chatter on Britton. Andy Martino of SNY.tv suggested last night on Twitter that the Orioles are anxious to wrap things up, while Jim Bowden of The Athletic indicates on Twitter this morning that talks indeed appear to be entering their final stages. While there’s no specific timetable, it’s possible to imagine a deal coming together at any time. Britton appeared last night for the first time since the All-Star break and made it through unscathed, but there’s really not much reason for the club to take any risks.
  • The offers will likely drive the decisionmaking from the Orioles’ perspective, though, even if the preference is to make a near-term call. Multiple teams evidently remain involved in talks, so trade packages could yet change. Bowden characterizes the Astros and Yankees as being “in the lead” to get Britton. Of course, it only takes one call for a rival to leap across the track and cross the line first, and the O’s could always decide to extend the race.
  • Indeed, the Red Sox, Brewers, and Diamondbacks are also still in the mix, per The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal (Twitter links), who also notes that trade talks on Britton remain “fluid.” Both teams have been connected previously to the lefty, but it’s notable that they’re still hanging around the picture. The Boston organization has been rumored to be looking for a major bullpen addition; the need for a lefty and possibility of some notable American League rivals landing Britton instead will surely also increase the motivation. Meanwhile, the Milwaukee club surely has greater needs in other areas but no doubt would love to further improve its relief mix at the right price. As for the D-Backs, there are already three lefties in the current bullpen, but Britton would make for a significant upgrade over the struggling Jorge De La Rosa while freeing the other southpaws (Andrew Chafin and former teammate T.J. McFarland) for earlier-inning matchup work.
  • As yesterday’s roundup shows, there’s no shortage of possible suitors even beyond those. Indeed, Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com tweets that the Cubs are another organization considered a serious pursuer. Just two days ago, they seemed an emerging possibility. Rosenthal suggests (Twitter link), though, that the Cubbies may be chatting as much about Baltimore’s top two starting pitchers (Dylan Bundy and Kevin Gausman) as its best reliever. Meanwhile, ESPN.com’s Jerry Crasnick tweets that the Cubs are one of four teams that seem likeliest to land Britton, joining the aforementioned Astros, Red Sox, and Yankees.
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