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Cafardo On Wright, Puig, Red Sox, Angels

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In today’s column, Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe backed Commissioner Rob Manfred’s optimism about possibly expanding.  The last time baseball expanded was in 1998 with the additions of the Rays and D’Backs and Cafardo feels that MLB is due.  Manfred recently acknowledged there’s been interest from a few cities, including Montreal (former home of the Expos), Charlotte, and Portland.  Cafardo goes on to list other potential spots for expansion franchises, including Vancouver, Las Vegas, Nashville, northern New Jersey, and Brooklyn.  Of course, with those last two, there are obvious territorial issues to consider.  Here’s more from today’s column..

  • If third baseman David Wright doesn’t look like himself when he comes back or if he doesn’t come back at all in 2015, the Mets will give some thoughts to acquiring a pair of hitters.  One of those players, Cafardo writes, would likely be a shortstop.  There’s currently a feeling in the organization that the Mets will make a move for a hitter in the coming days with pitcher Jon Niese being the outgoing asset.
  • There is more and more talk of Yasiel Puig losing popularity with his Dodgers teammates, a major league source tells Cafardo.  Puig was once viewed an untouchable player because of his talent, but the new regime does not feel that way at this time. Cafardo wonders aloud if they would move the slugger for a pitcher and pondered him as a match in a Cole Hamels deal with the Phillies.
  • There’s “a buzz in the ownership/management community” that chairman Tom Werner could be more involved in the Red Sox’s day-to-day operations, with president and CEO Larry Lucchino being less involved. Werner’s pace-of-play ideas have worked out well so far and he is being viewed as a more influential figure both in Boston and throughout the game.  There have been rumblings of Lucchino losing power in Boston for some time now.
  • Former Padres skipper Bud Black has a great relationship with owner Arte Moreno and manager Mike Scioscia and Cafardo feels that talk of him becoming the Angels’ GM bears watching.
  • Meanwhile, Angels assistant GM Matt Klentak, he writes, may get strong consideration from both the Angels and the Phillies.  He worked for Andy MacPhail in baseball’s Labor Relations Department, so he has an in with Philly.  MLBTR wrote that Klentak was a strong GM candidate all the way back in 2011.

Trade Notes: Angels, Mets, Orioles, Diamondbacks

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The Angels are actively attempting to acquire another bat to bolster their offense, tweets Mike DiGiovanna of the L.A. Times, but the feeling among the front office team is that the asking prices of selling teams is currently too high. The Halos’ present plan is to wait until the market comes back down to Earth a bit, as the belief at this time is that there’s quite a bit of posturing among selling teams. The first-place Angels have received poor production at a number of spots in the lineup, most notably in left field, at DH and at catcher. Chris Iannetta, at least, is showing signs of life in July. After a dreadful April, he slashed .264/.328/.491 in May, but his production again tanked in June, when he hit .190 without an extra-base hit. He’s on the upswing in July, batting .250/.419/.542 through a tiny sample of 31 plate appearances. Matt Joyce, on the other hand, has struggled nearly all season long — a strange turn of events for a usually very strong platoon option in the outfield. It should be noted, of course, that following GM Jerry Dipoto’s abrupt resignation, interim GM Bill Stoneman (a former Angels GM himself) will be overseeing the team’s baseball operations this summer.

The trade market will heat up substantially in the coming two weeks, and here are a few more trade rumors from around the league…

  • Though a report from Wednesday cast some doubt on the possibility, Marc Carig of Newsday hears from a source that the Mets haven’t ruled out adding an outfielder via trade (Twitter link). Michael Cuddyer’s knee isn’t healthy, notes Carig, nor is the throwing arm of Juan Lagares. Both have struggled this season at the plate and in the field, and a versatile outfielder would give the club some insurance should either player miss time.
  • The Orioles, too, could end up trading for an outfielder, writes Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun. GM Dan Duquette admitted to Connolly that acquiring an outfielder is a consideration, though Connolly notes that there’s a very limited number of pieces the O’s would consider dealing. The lack of production from the team’s corner outfield, particularly left field (.223/.286/.352, collectively) underscores the fact that the contingency plans for the departure of Nelson Cruz and Nick Markakis haven’t worked, Connolly writes. When both players signed elsewhere, Duquette and skipper Buck Showalter noted that the Orioles had a good deal of outfield depth, including Alejandro De Aza, Delmon Young, Travis Snider, David Lough, Steve Pearce, Nolan Reimold and Dariel Alvarez. De Aza and Young have departed by way of DFA, while others have struggled. Alvarez, Duquette said, is a consideration for the second half. He’s leading the Triple-A International League in total bases at the age of 26 and has a strong arm, but as Connolly notes, he’s also walked just seven times this year.
  • Diamondbacks chief baseball officer Tony La Russa spoke with the Arizona Republic’s Zach Buchanan about the upcoming trade deadline, and while many of his comments were vague (deliberately so, one would think, so as not to tip his hand), La Russa made it clear that his club had no interest in acquiring any type of pure rental player despite being just five games back in the Wild Card race. “It’s got to be somebody that fits in and is going to be a part of what we do going forward,” said La Russa of any possible trade addition. “The rent-a-player doesn’t work for us.” La Russa went on to say that adding a player with a significant financial commitment attached to his name probably isn’t a realistic option for the team either.

Rangers Unlikely To Land Cole Hamels

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Rumors connecting the Rangers to Phillies ace Cole Hamels have been circulating for months, dating back to Yu Darvish’s Tommy John surgery. However, a club source tells MLB.com’s T.R. Sullivan that such an acquisition is improbable. “If we were going to do that trade, we would have already done it by now,” said Sullivan’s source. There’s currently “no traction” between the two clubs, Sullivan hears.

Similarly, when asked about the team’s approach to buying or selling at this year’s deadline, GM Jon Daniels told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram’s Jeff Wilson: “…I don’t think you’re going to see us on either extreme end. My mind-set is always wanting to add to the club and always wanting to win, but you’ve got to pay attention to the realities of the standings.”

The Rangers, according to Sullivan, dislike Hamels’ contract as well as the asking price in terms of prospects. Previous reports linking the two sides had noted that Philadelphia covets catching prospect Jorge Alfaro and outfield prospect Nomar Mazara, though Mazara’s stock, in particular, has risen in 2015. The 20-year-old is slashing .285/.361/.446 with 10 homers at Double-A in 2015, despite being quite young for the level. That strong play landed him 34th on Baseball America’s midseason Top 50 prospects list and as high as sixth on Keith Law’s new list a ESPN.com.

Two players who very well could become available, however, are Wandy Rodriguez and Carlos Corporan, Sullivan reports. Texas is open to moving Corporan and pairing Tomas Telis with Robinson Chirinos behind the dish. As for Rodriguez, multiple teams have told the Rangers that they consider the veteran lefty a fallback option if they’re unable to secure other targets in trades.

The fate of Yovani Gallardo, Sullivan writes, will be determined closer to the trade deadline. The Rangers won’t want to move him if they’re still in the hunt for the division title, but poor performances in pre-deadline matchups against the Angels and Astros could cause him to become available.

If Texas performs well in those two intra-division series, however, it does remain possible that Daniels and his staff will make some incremental moves to bolster the roster. Wilson lists a right-handed bat to balance out the lineup (noting that someone of Justin Upton’s caliber simply is not realistic) as well as another reliable reliever to pair with closer Shawn Tolleson and solid rookie setup man Keone Kela. Daniels himself mentioned earlier this week that the Rangers would pursue such targets.

Quick Hits: Angels, Beachy, Cardinals

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Angels interim GM Bill Stoneman didn’t make many big midseason deals as the team’s GM from 1999 through 2007, but he’s open to making moves this month, Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register writes. “It doesn’t matter if it’s July or January, if it helps you, you do it,” says Stoneman. “If it’s not going to help you, you don’t do it just because people are hoping you do something.” It probably isn’t surprising that Stoneman’s comments sound a bit broad — not only do GMs tend to be circumspect this time of year, but Stoneman will be sharing duties with assistant GM Matt Klentak since he’s so new to the job. Here’s more from throughout the big leagues.

  • Brandon Beachy will make his 2015 debut as the Dodgers’ starter on Saturday, as Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports notes (on Twitter). It will be Beachy’s first start since August 2013 with the Braves. He’s had Tommy John surgery twice since 2012. The Dodgers signed Beachy to a one-year, $2.75MM deal last offseason knowing he would miss the start of the season. The deal also includes a 2016 option for a base of $3MM, a total that will increase by $500K when Beachy takes the mound tomorrow. The value of the option will increase another $500K with Beachy’s fifth, tenth, 15th, 18th and 21st starts. Too much of the season has gone by for Beachy to start 18 or 21 games, unless the Dodgers do something highly unusual with their rotation. He could, however, make 15 starts, which would increase the value of the option to a total of $5MM. Also, he’ll get a $250K buyout tied to the option when he completes ten innings of work this year.
  • Texas US Senator John Cornyn asked the Department of Justice about the Cardinals’ hacking scandal in a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing Wednesday, Evan Drellich of the Houston Chronicle writes. “I hope that FBI and DOJ will take the ongoing investigation into any criminal activity seriously and ensure that any wrongdoing is fully investigated and prosecuted,” Cornyn said, according to a press release from his office. The Cardinals have already fired scouting director Chris Correa in the wake of the scandal, and the FBI continues to investigate. A Cardinals employee or employees reportedly accessed the Astros’ data system repeatedly and without their consent.

Angels, A’s Talked Reddick, Zobrist Before Dipoto Resignation

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10:16pm: The A’s gave the Halos “a flat ’no'” when Reddick was brought up, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports adds. Notably, per the report, Los Angeles also inquired about Ben Zobrist, adding to the laundry list of teams with at least some interest in the useful veteran.

5:44pm: The Angels have been on the lookout for corner outfield help, and MLB.com’s Alden Gonzalez reports that the team had discussions with the Athletics regarding Josh Reddick prior to the resignation of now-former Angels GM Jerry Dipoto (all links to Twitter). According to Gonzalez, the Angels tried to get the Red Sox involved to act as a liaison — acting in a similar fashion to the Dodgers in the team’s essential three-team Howie Kendrick trade this winter — but Boston wasn’t interested.

Specific names that were discussed haven’t been revealed, but Gonzalez reports that talks never got too far off the ground. However, the report is interesting in light of Reddick’s more recent comments regarding the Athletics’ front office and his playing time (or lack thereof) against left-handed pitching. Via CSN Bay Area’s Joe Stiglich, Reddick expressed frustration recently that he’s been held out of the lineup against left-handed pitching. In a radio appearance with Ray Fosse on 95.7 The Game in Oakland, Reddick was not shy about voicing some displeasure:

“It doesn’t come from anywhere in this clubhouse. Everybody knows what situations our general manager puts up there. … There’s probably so many numbers they could dig into their computers with and try to find one just to keep me out of the lineup. … I know [manager] Bob [Melvin]’s in there fighting for me. The other day I was supposed to play against De La Rosa, and Bob texts me at around 1:30 and told me he had been ‘trumped,’ was the word he used. I understood right away. … It still frustrates me beyond belief when I don’t play.”

Melvin told Stiglich that he is the one responsible for the lineup card, not the front office, and that he “got ahead of himself” in telling Reddick he’d be playing that day. “…I backtracked and told him you’re not playing now. And maybe to an extent he thought I was so-called trumped.”

Reddick did walk his comments back slightly, as Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports, though he did not waver from his feelings on playing time. “Bottom line, I want to be out there every day, no matter who’s on the mound,” said Reddick. “That was the message. How it came out may not have been how I wanted it to come out. Some miscommunication between me and Bob. I probably just assumed too much. … Who knows at this point how things are worked out? But I talked to Bob and we got a handle on it between the two of us.”

Platoons have long been commonplace in Oakland, and it seems that players there generally buy into the idea of part-time roles, though it’s not surprising to hear that any player would want to be in the lineup on a more regular basis. Reddick’s struggles against left-handed pitching, though, have been extensive. He’s batting .329/.384/.527 against righties this year but just .159/.227/.232 in 75 plate appearances against lefties. While a 75-PA sample is far too small to make a full assessment, Reddick’s lifetime slash line against same-handed pitching is .220/.283/.379, and the vast majority of that production came back in 2011-12. It’s certainly possible that fewer reps and more limited exposure to left-handed pitching have caused his skills in that regard to diminish, of course, but dating back to 2013, Reddick is hitting .198/.276/.296 in 328 turns at bat vs. lefties.

To what extent the Angels will remain interested following the abrupt departure of Dipoto isn’t known. The team still has a need to acquire left-handed bats and has received only a collective .220/.279/.319 batting line from its left fielders in 2015. Reddick is primarily a right fielder — and a good one at that, though defensive marks are a bit down on him in 2015 — so perhaps Kole Calhoun could slide to left field in the event that the division rivals match up down the road.

As for the A’s, it remains to be seen how interested the club will be in dealing away Reddick if it comes time to sell. The 28-year-old is controllable for another season through arbitration after earning a rather reasonable $4.1MM this year. Players like Ben Zobrist and Scott Kazmir have received more attention as possible trade pieces, in large part because they will become free agents after the season. But Oakland will surely at least entertain the possibility of a move involving Reddick, who could be in fairly high demand.

AL West Notes: Wilhelmsen, Crane, Angels

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The Mariners officially demoted Tom Wilhelmsen to Triple-A prior to today’s game in the wake of the right-hander’s recent struggles.  Wilhelmsen has been a fixture in Seattle’s bullpen for the last five seasons and served as closer prior to Fernando Rodney’s acquisition, yet he had allowed nine runs over his last 6 2/3 innings of work (over seven games).  Wilhelmsen has a 4.68 ERA, 10.1 K/9 and 2.55 K/BB over 25 IP this season, though a .413 BABIP may explain why is ERA is so much higher than his indicators (2.68 FIP, 3.50 xFIP, 3.32 SIERA).  Here’s some more from around the AL West…

  • Astros owner Jim Crane tells MLB.com’s Brian McTaggart that GM Jeff Luhnow and his staff is “working hard” to find rotation help.  “If we can get the right move, I’m sure Jeff will pull the trigger.  He has the ability to do that if he wants to do it,” Crane said.  “It will depend on what kind of contract it is and how long it is and who it is and what we need, but I know it’s something a lot of teams are looking at right now.”
  • The conflict between Mike Scioscia’s coaching staff and Jerry Dipoto’s front office was “no clash of Ivy League nerds vs. old-school baseball men,” Grantland’s Jonah Keri writes.  Dipoto, assistant GM Scott Servais and pro scouting director Hal Morris were all long-time MLB veterans.  Keri suspects Servais could also soon leave the Angels given his issues with Scioscia and the coaches.  Keri’s piece outlines some of the disagreements between the Angels’ executives and coaches, including (as FOX Sports’ Ken Rosenthal initially reported earlier in the week) seemingly routine team matters as how scouting information was being presented to the players.
  • In other AL West news from earlier today, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reported on some Angels/Brewers trade talks and speculation that Bud Black could be a favorite to be Anaheim’s new general manager.

Cafardo’s Latest: Revere, Kennedy, Hamels, Jays

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The Angels were first linked to Ben Revere in trade rumors in May but the rumors almost became a reality.  Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe reports that the Phillies and Angels came close a few weeks ago on a trade that would’ve sent Revere to Anaheim for right-hander Trevor Gott.  The Phils thought the deal was done but the Halos “pulled out of the deal at the last minute and tried to redirect the Phillies toward a starting pitching prospect.”  Talks fell through after that.  Here’s some more from Cafardo’s weekly notes column, with a particular focus on news from Toronto…

  • Ian Kennedy has a 2.31 ERA over his last six starts and the Padres right-hander has begun to generate some trade interest in his services.  Kennedy had an ugly 7.15 ERA over his first eight starts and owns a 4.86 ERA for the season, though his peripherals (8.51 K/9, 3.04 K/BB rate, 3.74 xFIP, 3.70 SIERA) are are pretty solid, aside from a 22.1% homer rate that more than double his career average.  Kennedy is a free agent this winter and would be a natural trade chip for San Diego if the Friars decided to sell.
  • Cole Hamels has publicly said he’s willing to consider deals to any team but is reportedly unlikely to waive his no-trade clause if he’s dealt to the Astros or Blue Jays.  Cafardo wonders if Hamels would remain adamant against a move to Houston or Toronto, however, if those were the only deals on the table and his only avenues away from the rebuilding Phillies.
  • Attracting free agents north of the border has long been an issue for the Blue Jays, as Cafardo cites higher taxes, customs delays and the Rogers Centre’s artificial surface as factors that can sometimes make Toronto a tough sell.  (Josh Donaldson and Jose Reyes both praised their city, though Reyes admitted he isn’t a fan of the turf.)  The bigger problem for the Jays, however, is that they have barely contended since their last playoff appearance in 1993.  “It just seems GM Alex Anthopoulos has to go through corporate layers to OK big expenditures, slowing the process considerably,” Cafardo writes.  “Players always want to know that their ownership is doing all it can to produce a winner.”
  • Braves closer Jason Grilli is one of the Blue Jays’ targets as the team looks for bullpen help.  Grilli would cost less in both salary and trade chips than Jonathan Papelbon or Francisco Rodriguez, two closers who have also been connected to the Jays this summer.  Atlanta isn’t yet looking to move Grilli, however, as the team is still in the race.
  • Other have asked the Blue Jays about several players in trade talks, including young talent like Miguel Castro, Daniel Norris, Roberto Osuna, Kevin Pillar, Dalton Pompey, Aaron Sanchez and Devon Travis.
  • “Every indication is that” R.A. Dickey is in his last year with the Blue Jays, as the team will either use their $1MM buyout of Dickey’s $12MM club option for 2016 or Dickey may just retire.  The 40-year-old knuckleballer had a tough start today against the Tigers and now owns a 5.02 ERA over 107 2/3 innings this season.
  • Jeff Samardzija “may be the first starting pitcher moved ahead of the trading deadline” since “scouts are constantly at his games,” Cafardo writes.  The White Sox aren’t ready to start selling yet, but they’ll find a strong market for Samardzija’s services that includes the Royals, Astros and Tigers.  (Cafardo cited several more teams in the Samardzija market in his column last week.
  • “Nobody knows what the Red Sox are going to do because they don’t know what they’re going to do,” one NL executive said.  Boston has played modestly better as of late, winning 10 of its last 16 games, though the Sox are still just 38-45 on the season.  Koji Uehara is cited by the executive as one of “a few players teams would want” if the Red Sox decided to start selling.  The team is known to be looking for young pitching on the trade market.

Rosenthal On Angels, Black, Parra, Samardzija

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FOX Sports’ Ken Rosenthal shares several hot stove items in his weekly “Full Count” video…

  • Ex-Padres skipper Bud Black is well-liked by Angels owner Arte Moreno, manager Mike Scioscia and interim GM Bill Stoneman, and there has been “rampant” industry speculation that the Halos want Black as their next full-time general manager.  Several of Black’s friends, however, think he wants to manage again rather than run a front office.
  • Prior to Jerry Dipoto’s resignation, the Angels and Brewers were discussing Gerardo Parra and Adam Lind in trade talks.  No deal was ever close for Parra, however, and “ideally” the Angels want to add a bigger bat to the lineup.  Parra entered the day with a strong .303/.337/.466 line over 271 PA with Milwaukee, though he is known more for his defense than his bat (a .274/.326/.395 career slash line prior to this season).
  • Rosenthal describes Jeff Samardzija as “a perfect fit” for the Yankees.  Samardzija’s wife is from the New York area, Jim Hendry (the former Cubs GM who signed Samardzija) is in the Yankees front office, and Rosenthal feels the righty’s personality would thrive in the Bronx.  Acquiring Samardzija now would also presumably give the Yankees an edge in pursuing him as a free agent this winter.  This being said, Rosenthal notes that the White Sox haven’t decided to start selling yet and there haven’t been any talks between the two sides.
  • The Dodgers are looking for starting pitching depth and “don’t be surprised if they add multiple starters.”  Brett Anderson’s long injury history makes him a question mark to last the entire season, while Mike Bolsinger and Carlos Frias are better fits as depth options rather than regular members of the rotation (though Bolsinger has pitched well).  Even getting a mid-rotation starter would help L.A., though “in a perfect world” the Dodgers would land an ace like Johnny Cueto.

Angels Acquire Rafael Lopez From Cubs

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3:12pm: Chicago will receive the 120th slot, which carries $149,700 in spending capacity, Jesse Sanchez of MLB.com tweets.

1:56pm: The Angels and Cubs have agreed to a trade that will send minor league catcher Rafael Lopez to Anaheim in exchange for an international bonus slot and left-handed pitching prospect Manuel Rondon, the teams announced. Chicago had designated Lopez for assignment last week.

The 27-year-old Lopez debuted with the Cubs in 2014 and received 14 plate appearances. Lopez picked up a pair of hits in that brief cup of coffee, and he’s had a reasonable amount of success in the upper minors. In 107 games/410 plate appearances at the Triple-A level, Lopez is a .281/.359/.333 hitter and has caught 30 percent of attempted base stealers.  With Miguel Montero projecting as the team’s catcher for the foreseeable future and David Ross signed to a two-year deal, though, there was little hope of Lopez carving out a significant role in the Majors anytime soon. He was on the Cubs’ 40-man roster and has subsequently been added to the Halos’ 40-man roster as well. The Angels announced that Lopez has been optioned to Triple-A Salt Lake.

Rondon, 20, is a left-handed pitcher out of Venezuela that has spent the past two seasons pitching for the Angels’ affiliate in the Dominican Summer League. He worked to a 2.50 ERA with 8.0 K/9 against 3.8 BB/9 in 108 innings at that level over the past two seasons, though he’s not particularly young for the league. This season, Rondon has moved up to he Rookie league in Arizona, where he’s struggled in a small 8 1/3-inning sample, yielding eight runs on 13 hits and four walks with seven strikeouts. He will not turn 21 until next March.

In the past 24 hours, the Angels have added Lopez and right-handers Gaither Bumgardner and Jason Hoppe in exchange for international bonus slots. The Angels are restricted from signing any international amateur for more than $300K after blowing past their budget to sign Roberto Baldoquin last winter, rendering the slots largely inconsequential to them.

Mets Acquire International Bonus Slot From Angels

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The Mets have acquired an international bonus slot from the Angels in exchange for minor league right-hander Gaither Bumgardner, the teams announced. MLB.com’s Jesse Sanchez tweets that the Mets will add $239,400 to their pool with this move.

Bumgardner was the Mets’ 23rd-round pick back in 2013. Though he’s 24 years of age, Bumgardner has progressed to just the Class-A level. The South Carolina native has tossed 65 2/3 innings as a pro, working to a 3.84 ERA with 7.7 K/9 and 4.4 BB/9. He did not find himself ranked among the Mets’ top prospects entering the year.

The Mets entered this signing period with a bonus pool of $2,531,300, per Baseball America, and they reportedly have agreements in place totaling $2.7MM. Adding this bonus slot from the Angels will allow the Mets to stay within the confines of their now-$2.77MM bonus pool. As for the Angels, the team went well over its 2014-15 bonus pool to give Cuban infielder Roberto Baldoquin an $8MM signing bonus, so they’re restricted from spending more than $300K on an international amateur anyhow.

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