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AL West Links: Rangers, Tepesch, Blanks, Sipp, McHugh

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The surprising outbreak of injuries to Rangers pitchers has forced GM Jon Daniels to turn his attention from an underperforming offense to the gaping holes in the rotation, writes MLB.com’s T.R. Sullivan. Texas will rely on Colby Lewis, Nick Tepesch, Robbie Ross and Nick Martinez to fill in behind ace Yu Darvish for the time being, with Scott Baker representing an alternative as Joe Saunders and Derek Holland mend. Daniels’ preference is to remain in-house, writes Sullivan, who also briefly notes that the Rangers have scouted Kendrys Morales to help the offense, but don’t want to meet his asking price.

Here are some more links pertaining to the Rangers’ pitching woes and the rest of the AL West…

  • Over at Fangraphs, Dave Cameron compares injured Rangers lefty Martin Perez to his likely replacement — Nick Tepesch. Cameron points out that despite Perez’s prospect status and the perception that Tepesch doesn’t have as much ceiling, the two have had remarkably similar results in their short careers. Tepesch’s ERA looks worse due to a high BABIP with runner in scoring position, but aside from that, they compare favorably. While Tepesch’s numbers have come in a smaller sample, his recent work at Triple-A and his MLB track record cause the ZiPS and Steamer projection systems to project that he’ll be as good or better than Perez over the rest of the season.
  • Joe Stiglich of CSN Bay Area was among the reporters to speak with Athletics GM Billy Beane about his acquisition of Kyle Blanks. The A’s were looking for a right-handed bat that could capably play both first base and the outfield, and Beane feels that Blanks fits that bill “exactly,” adding that “there aren’t many out there.” As Stiglich notes, Tommy John surgery and shoulder surgery have slowed what once looked to be a promising career for Blanks. Said Beane: “He was a pretty highly thought of prospect coming through the minors. It looked like he was going to be that guy in the majors until injuries derailed him.”
  • The Astros have gotten big contributions from lefty Tony Sipp and right-hander Collin McHugh in the season’s early stages, but Evan Drellich of the Houston Chronicle reports that the team’s first attempts to acquire each player failed. The Astros pursued Sipp this offseason and made an offer before he elected to sign with the Padres, and GM Jeff Luhnow told Drellich he tried to acquire McHugh from the Mets and Rockies in trades last season.
  • Within that same piece, Luhnow discussed the early success of left-hander Dallas Keuchel, which has come as no surprise to him. Each member of the Astros front office made a “pick to click” during Spring Training this year, writes Drellich, and Luhnow’s was Keuchel, and the GM certainly makes it sound like Keuchel is viewed as a long-term rotation piece. “He’s never been handed a job … I think after this year he will put himself in a position where that’s no longer a question.”

Quick Hits: Draft, Coffey, Hill, Bradley, Rockies, Gomes

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Baseball America has released its list of the top 100 amateur prospects for this year’s draft. Interestingly, both Jeff Hoffman and Erick Fedde are still listed in the top ten, despite the fact that the pair of collegiate righties will enter the draft fresh off of Tommy John surgery. Here are some notes from around the game:

  • Free agent reliever Todd Coffey impressed in a workout today, throwing his fastball consistently in the low-90s, reports Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports (Twitter links). He could sign by the weekend, according to Passan. Twelve to fifteen clubs were represented at the showcase today, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. Chris Cotillo of MLBDailyDish lists some of the clubs in attendance. From the American League, the Tigers, Mariners, Astros, Athletics, and Orioles sent scouts, while the Braves and Diamondbacks were among the NL clubs on hand.
  • Reliever Rich Hill of the Red Sox has an opt-out date from his minor league deal tomorrow, tweets Cotillo. The nine-year MLB veteran has been strong at Triple-A, throwing to a 2.84 ERA through 19 innings pitched with 10.4 K/9 against 4.7 BB/9.
  • Diamondbacks top prospect Archie Bradley is set to begin throwing and move towards a return to the rubber, reports Jack Magruder of FOX Sports Arizona (via Twitter). GM Kevin Towers said that the club does not have any further medical tests planned at present for the young hurler. Given his current situation, it seems that the club will exercise plenty of caution in promoting the 21-year-old.
  • With the Rockies off to a hot start, Mark Kiszla of the Denver Post opines that the club should act decisively to seize the momentum by exploring a trade for Cubs pitcher Jeff Samardzija. While the price will surely be steep, Kiszla sas that the team should be willing to deal either of the team’s two prized young prospect arms — Jonathan Gray and Eddie Butler — to make a deal.
  • The Blue Jays never saw in Yan Gomes the potential that has been unleashed since he was dealt to the Indians, writes Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca. In some part, says Davidi, that could be due to the fact that Gomes was buried in the minor league depth charts, such that he never caught more than 58 games in a single season. “Ultimately you wonder if we didn’t have other prospects that were so talented, if Yan had played more, would the development path have changed, would we have had a better feel for him?” Jays GM Alex Anthopoulos said. “We were finding places for him to play, but he was never the everyday catcher because there was always someone else who was there.” Gomes, of course, has excelled (and been rewarded with an extension) in Cleveland after coming over with Mike Aviles in exchange for reliever Esmil Rogers. “We always liked Yan,” said Anthopoulos. “Clearly he’s become a better player sooner than we would have expected. That’s not a slight against him, that’s a full credit to him.”

AL Notes: Keppinger, Zobrist, Singleton, De Vries

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Earlier today, the White Sox made the tough decision to designate infielder Jeff Keppinger for assignment, despite the fact that his contract calls for a $4MM salary in 2014 and a $4.5MM salary in 2015. GM Rick Hahn spoke to reporters about the move (Twitter links to MLB.com’s Scott Merkin) about the decision: “We are focusing on the future as opposed to trying to justify a decision from the past. … [Keppinger’s signing] didn’t work. That’s on me.”

Here’s more from the American League:

  • Versatile Rays infielder/outfielder Ben Zobrist suffered a dislocated left thumb in today’s action, reports Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times (links to Twitter). A brief trip to the DL seems likely, though the injury does not appear to be a long-term concern. Through 177 plate appearances, Zobrist owned an effective (but low for his standards) .258/.352/.364 line with three home runs and three stolen bases. Discussing the struggling Tampa club in a piece for Grantland earlier today, Jonah Keri wrote that Zobrist, who is earning just $7MM this year, could potentially become a trade piece if the Rays cannot turn things around. His contract, long one of the most team-friendly in the game, includes a club option for next season at $7.5MM (with a $500K buyout).
  • The Astros are still deliberating on when to call up first baseman Jon Singleton, per a report from Mark Berman of FOX 26 Houston (Twitter links). “We have seen the reaction the fans have to bringing up a prospect like [George Springer],” said Luhnow. “I would say Singleton is on deck.” While Singleton, 22, has mashed at Triple-A this year (.293/.401/.629 with 12 home runs in 167 plate appearances), Luhnow did not commit to a timeline. “I think he will play up here this year,” he said. “When, that remains to be seen.” Singleton entered the year as a consensus top-100 prospect. (MLB.com placed him 44th; ESPN.com’s Keith law ranked him 78th; and Baseball America put him at 82nd.)
  • Former Twins pitcher Cole De Vries has officially retired, reports Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN via Twitter. The 29-year-old righty threw to a 4.11 ERA in 87 2/3 innings (most of them as a starter) back in 2012, with 6.0 K/9 against just 1.8 BB/9. He was less successful last year, however, giving up 18 earned runs in just 15 frames. De Vries became a minor league free agent after the year, but said that he is trying his hand at commercial real estate rather than looking for another crack at the bigs.

Injury Notes: Fernandez, Cisnero, Garcia, Belt, Buxton, Beltran

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Injuries continue to dominate the headlines around the league, led of course by the most impactful UCL tear in a year already full of them. The news that star Marlins hurler Jose Fernandez is likely to undergo Tommy John surgery has capped off a difficult stretch of pitching injuries, leading to reactions from around the game. Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports says that understanding and addressing the rash of elbow injuries is in its infancy, and could be decades away from any kind of satisfying resolution. Buster Olney of ESPN.com (Insider link) writes that the club did not mishandle Fernandez, and that the lesson teams have drawn from the rash of TJ procedures is to maximize the innings of young arms before they hit the open market. And Tom Verducci of SI.com argues that the issue is not use at the major league level so much as years of added stress before players become professionals, and explores various possible solutions.

Let’s run through the latest injury news that carries potential hot stove implications:

  • A beleaguered Astros bullpen (collective 5.91 ERA) will be without young righty Jose Cisnero for the rest of the year as he recovers from Tommy John surgery, tweets MLB.com’s Brian McTaggart. The 25-year-old threw just 4 2/3 ineffective innings in 2014, but tossed 43 2/3 frames of 4.12 ERA ball in his debut season last year. Entering 2013, Cisnero was rated Houston’s 15th-best prospect by Baseball America, which noted that he could become an innings-eating starter.
  • Cardinals starter Jaime Garcia has seemingly defied the odds and worked himself back to the point that he is now a candidate to receive a big league start this weekend, tweets Jenifer Langosch of MLB.com. Garcia’s most recent problems have been in the shoulder, though he has previously undergone TJ surgery. Garcia, still just 27, has logged just 177 innings under his four-year, $27MM contract, which runs through 2015 and includes club options for the two following seasons ($11.5MM and $12MM, respectively, each with a $500K buyout).
  • The Giants will be without first baseman Brandon Belt for at least six weeks after successful thumb surgery, reports Andrew Baggarly of CSNBayArea.com (on Twitter). It appears that the team will utilize a mix of Michael Morse and Hector Sanchez at first while Belt recovers.
  • Twins minor leaguer Byron Buxton — the game’s consensus top overall prospect — learned today that he has re-aggravated the wrist injury that cost him most of the early portion of the season, reports MLB.com’s Rhett Bollinger (Twitter links). Though the team does not believe the wrist is any worse than when it was first injured, but another extended absence would obviously further delay the 20-year-old’s final development push.
  • Outfielder Carlos Beltran, one of the major offseason signings by the Yankees, has been diagnosed with a bone spur in his right elbow. As MLB.com’s Bryan Hoch reports, the club will see if a cortisone show can allow Beltran to avoid surgery. “They believe it’s an old bone spur,” said manager Joe Girardi. “It’s aggravating his elbow now. If in a couple of days he doesn’t feel better, then my level of concern would be pretty high.”

Extension Notes: Springer, Polanco, Sandoval, Ramirez

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Here are some notes on past, present, and future extension situations around the game:

  • The Astros’ extension offer to then-unpromoted prospect George Springer actually would have guaranteed him just $7.6MM over four years, reports Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. This news represents a correction of Rosenthal’s original report, which cited a $23MM guarantee over seven years. In fact, says, Rosenthal, the $23MM would only have been reached through the exercise of three club options, which would have covered years five through seven of the deal. While this certainly changes the nature of the cost/benefit equation that Springer faced, he would have been subject to team control through 2020 regardless — as is the case at present.
  • Likewise, Rosenthal clarifies some details of the offer made by the Pirates to fellow top outfield prospect Gregory Polanco, reporting that the team’s offer would have guaranteed six or seven years in the range of $20MM to $25MM. The length and total guarantee would have shifted based upon whether or not Polanco qualified for an additional year of salary arbitration as a Super Two player. (In that respect, then, the offer looks to be quite similar to the terms agreed upon by the Rays with Chris Archer. As MLBTR reported, Archer’s $25.5MM guarantee hinges upon whether he reaches Super Two status, as expected; if he does not qualify, he would be promised just $20MM.)
  • Rosenthal also touches on the situation of free agent-to-be Pablo Sandoval of the Giants. Though talks are currently not taking place, the club is not “ruling out” making another run at an extension for the third baseman. On the other hand, Rosenthal notes that San Francisco could consider adding a different player at the hot corner through free agency or could look to piece together a platoon. Sandoval, who landed in the ninth slot in MLBTR’s first 2015 Free Agent Power Rankings, has struggled to a .191/.262/.294 start through his first 149 plate appearances in 2014.
  • Dodgers GM Ned Colletti says that he is still interested in trying to lock up another pending free agent, shortstop Hanley Ramirez, according to Dylan Hernandez of the Los Angeles Times. Ramirez took the top spot in MLBTR’s list of the top 2015 free agents heading into the year. While he has struggled at the plate recently, Ramirez still owns a .257/.339/.447 slash with five home runs and three stolen bases through 171 plate appearances, though defensive metrics have been down on his work in the field in the early going. “He’s still somebody we’d love to have back,” said Colletti, who noted that he has conveyed that continued interest to Ramirez’s representation.

Badler On Top July 2 Prospects

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We’re less than two months from the kickoff of the 2014-15 international signing period, during which Major League clubs will spend a combined hundreds of millions of dollars on amateur talents from Latin America, Europe, Australia and Asia. Many of these players will be as young as 16 years old, and Ben Badler of Baseball America has penned a pair of articles in the past two days highlighting some of the top players and their potential landing spots. A subscription is required and highly recommended in order to read the full scouting report that Badler has on each player. Here are a few of the highlights from his work…

  • Huascar Ynoa, the younger brother of A’s righty Michael Ynoa, could land also land a seven-figure bonus and has been scouted by White Sox vice president Kenny Williams and GM Rick Hahn. The Red Sox have also been tied to Ynoa, and some sources of have told Badler that they expect the Twins to be involved as well. One scout told Badler that Ynoa has the tools to be a frontline starter but lacks consistency. Badler points out that his older brother’s $4.25MM signing bonus from Oakland reduces some of the urgency for Ynoa to sign immediately on July 2.
  • The Blue Jays look like the strong favorites to ink Venezuelan right-hander Juan Meza, who could command a bonus as large as $1.5MM. Meza works out at Carlos Guillen’s baseball academy in Venezuela and has a three-pitch mix (fastball, changeup, curveball).
  • Fellow Venezuelan right-hander Frankin Perez is also likely to land seven figures and has been most prominently linked to the Astros. Houston is also oft-connected to Venezuelan shortstop Miguel Angel Sierra, whose bonus could reach $1MM, and Dominican outfielder Rafael Ronny, who could be the second-most expensive Dominican outfielder in this year’s class, writes Badler.
  • The Yankees, who are reportedly planning to shatter the international spending limitations this signing period, are heavily linked to Venezuelan catcher Miguel Flames, Venezuelan outfielder Jonathan Amundaray and Venezuelan shortstop Diego Castillo, says Badler. Flames and Amundaray should top $1MM, while Castillo could get close to that figure, he adds.

Quick Hits: Jocketty, Uehara, Kolek, Mets

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The Reds’ quiet offseason included few depth signings, and now that lack of roster depth is being tested given the number of key players currently on the team’s disabled list.  Cincinnati GM Walt Jocketty tells Fangraphs’ David Laurila that “there weren’t a lot of moves to make” and warned against too much roster turnover, though finances also played a part in the Reds’ uneventful winter.  “It wasn’t just [will we have money later], it was also ‘Do we have enough money now?,’ Jockett said.  “We’d have loved to have [Shin-Soo] Choo back, but we couldn’t afford him. And there really wasn’t anything else we felt we could do — that we felt we could financially do. Once your club is set, it’s pretty hard to make changes.”

Here are some more items from around baseball…

  • Also from Laurila’s piece, Red Sox closer Koji Uehara wasn’t sure he was ready to pitch in North America when he was first eligible at age 24, though he would’ve liked to have arrived sooner than his age-34 season.  The issue for Uehara was that his Japanese club, the Yomiuri Giants, didn’t post their players and instead required them to fulfill the entirety of their contacts.
  • Right-hander Tyler Kolek regularly hits the 100-mph plateau and “is the hardest-throwing high schooler of the draft era,” scouts tells Baseball America’s John Manuel.  Kolek has been widely predicted to be at least a top-three selection in this year’s amateur draft.
  • As pitchers like Kolek are throwing faster and harder at increasingly young ages, evaluating these young arms has become “a convergence of fascination and fear,” for scouts, MLB.com’s Anthony Castrovince writes.  Teams are as interested in ever with hard-throwers, yet are also concerned with the injury risk attached with regularly throwing at such high velocities.
  • Mets fans are losing patience with the team’s rebuilding plan and Sandy Alderson’s front office has seemed either unwilling or unable to spend to make the Amazins more competitive, ESPN New York’s Adam Rubin opines.  Even the low-cost moves that were supposed to be Alderson’s forte have backfired, Rubin notes in regards to the club’s struggling bullpen.
  • Baseball America’s Ben Badler (BA subscription required) profiles five international prospects who have drawn the attention of the Yankees and Astros in the lead-up to the July 2 deadline.  New York has been linked to catcher Miguel Flames, shortstop Diego Castillo and outfielder Jonathan Amundaray, while Houston is interested in outfielder Ronny Rafael and shortstop Miguel Angel Sierra.
  • Should the Tigers use Robbie Ray as a much-needed southpaw reliever or send him back to the minors to get regular work as a starter?  Drew Sharp of the Detroit Free Press argues the former point while MLive.com’s Chris Iott argues the latter.
  • The revamped draft and free agent rules haven’t helped parity or benefited smaller-market teams, Peter Gammons writes for GammonsDaily.com.  Tying the draft directly to the free agent compensation system (in regards to qualifying offers) has created flaws in both areas, Gammons argues, and the real purpose of the new rules was “to lessen the power of agents and limit the money paid to amateur prospects.”

Orioles Discussed Astros’ Catchers

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Orioles executive VP Dan Duquette spoke with Astros GM Jeff Luhnow this past weekend “gauging whether there was a potential match” between the two clubs on a trade for a backup catcher, MASNsports.com’s Roch Kubatko reports.  The O’s are known to be looking for depth behind the plate with Matt Wieters on the DL, and Kubatko believes the Orioles could favor adding a right-handed hitting catcher to platoon with left-handed hitting Steve Clevenger.

Houston currently has catchers Jason Castro, Carlos Corporan and Max Stassi on its 40-man roster, with Stassi and Carlos Perez (both right-handed bats) at Triple-A.  It seems unlikely that the O’s would make a move for an everyday catcher like Castro, though there is some uncertainly about how long Wieters will be out.  The switch-hitting Corporan has only a .603 career OPS against southpaws and has mostly hit from the left side over his career, so he isn’t really a fit alongside Clevenger.  Perez has some solid on-base numbers in the minors but he is pretty comparable to Caleb Joseph, the right-handed hitting catcher already on the Orioles’ roster.

This is just my speculation, but Stassi might be the most intriguing option for Baltimore, as the 23-year-old posted an .863 OPS in 323 Double-A plate appearances last year.  The 2014 Baseball America Propsect Handbook ranked Stassi as the 12th-best prospect in the Astros’ system, noting that while Stassi has been plagued by injuries throughout his career, he has potential as an everyday starter in the bigs.  There were rumors last winter that the Astros could clear a path for Stassi by trading Castro to one of several interested suitors.  Adding a promising young catcher like Stassi could also give the O’s a future option should Wieters leave in free agency after the 2015 season.

Left-hander Troy Patton has been mentioned as possible trade bait for the Orioles, and Patton could help a Houston bullpen that ranks last in the majors with a 6.06 ERA.  The southpaw was originally drafted by the Astros in 2004 (going to Baltimore as part of the Miguel Tejada trade package of 2007) and has a 3.06 ERA, 3.21 K/BB rate and a 7.1 K/9 in 139 career appearances, all but two of them coming out of the bullpen.  Given Stassi’s potential, it may take more than just Patton to complete the trade if the Orioles indeed have the catcher in mind.

Prospect Notes: Buxton, Astros, Rodon, Polanco

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Byron Buxton, the Twins’ top prospect and perhaps the top prospect in all of baseball, re-injured his wrist today while sliding into third, Yahoo! Sports’ Jeff Passan tweets. The extent of the injury isn’t yet known, and Buxton will soon have an MRI. 2014 has likely been a frustrating season for Buxton — he injured his wrist in spring training and sat out the entire season until last week. He has played just five games so far this season, all at Class A+ Fort Myers. Here are more notes on prospects.

  • Astros GM Jeff Luhnow was in Raleigh yesterday to watch NC State pitcher Carlos Rodon, a candidate to be taken first overall in next month’s draft, MLB.com’s Brian McTaggart writes. Rodon struck out nine batters and walked one in seven innings. “We’re still gathering information,” says Luhnow. “I know where I personally stand, but I haven’t seen these guys near as much and seen nearly as many guys as everybody else.”
  • Calling up Gregory Polanco this weekend would have been a great move for the Pirates, Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review writes. Polanco continues his hot hitting for Indianapolis (he’s currently at .374/.434/.580), and the Pirates are short on outfielders, with Travis Snider serving a suspension (and with Starling Marte and Andrew McCutchen both currently out of Saturday’s game with injuries). The Pirates will also be on “Sunday Night Baseball” this weekend. Of course, Polanco’s arbitration status will likely be a factor in the Pirates delaying his promotion until mid-June, by which point he will be past the Super Two threshold.

AL Notes: Ramirez, Baker, Twins, Hoffman

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MLB is nearing agreement on a plan to send an All-Star squad off to Japan this November for a series against the Japanese national team, tweets Jon Morosi of FOX Sports. Of course, the league has a rich history of sending its best on tour to one of the world’s great ballplaying nations.

Here are some notes from around the American League:

  • Manny Ramirez is still looking for another opportunity, reports Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com. While recent contact with the Orioles failed to materialize into an offer, a scout who has seen Ramirez work out recently said that the 42-year-old slugger looks fit and was impressive with the bat. Agent Alex Esteban tells Heyman that most of the interest has come from American League teams, though several NL clubs have checked in as well. MLBTR’s Zach Links reported back in February that Ramirez had elected to join Miami Sports Management.
  • The Rangers regretted the need to designate Scott Baker for assignment after a brief call-up, reports MLB.com’s T.R. Sullivan. With Baker needing several days of rest after throwing 5 1/3 innings of relief in his only appearance, and the bullpen looking overworked, GM Jon Daniels said the move was an unfortunate necessity. “He did everything we asked,” said Daniels. “Unfortunately we are at a spot where the bullpen is taxed because our starters are not getting deep into games.” (Of course, the most recent Rangers starter — ace Yu Darvish — did manage to go deep in tonight’s game.) As for Baker’s fate, Daniels says that the club will “see if there is trade interest” but otherwise will place him on outright waivers.
  • With the fifth overall slot in the upcoming amateur draft, the Twins could be eyeing either high school shortstop Nick Gordon or college righty Aaron Nola, ESPN.com’s Keith Law wrote in a chat yesterday. Law also notes that the Blue Jays could be a player for injured righty Jeff Hoffman, who could also intrigue several other AL clubs (Law lists the Astros, Royals, and Red Sox, while also citing the Nationals as a possibility).
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