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MLBTR Podcast: Trade Deadline Recap

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The latest episode of the MLB Trade Rumors Podcast is now live on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and wherever you get your podcasts! Make sure you subscribe as well! You can also use the player at this link to listen, if you don’t use Spotify or Apple for podcasts.

This week, host Darragh McDonald is joined by Tim Dierkes, Steve Adams and Anthony Franco of MLB Trade Rumors to discuss…

  • Were the prospect prices high in this year’s trades? Is this a new normal due to the expanded playoffs creating a seller’s market? (2:15)
  • The three-team trade involving the Dodgers, White Sox, Cardinals, Erick Fedde, Miguel Vargas and others (15:40)
  • The Rays and Cubs, the buy-sell tightrope and the trade involving Isaac Paredes and Christopher Morel (29:30)
  • The Astros acquire Yusei Kikuchi from the Blue Jays for a three-player package and the connection to the the Dodgers acquiring Jack Flaherty from the Tigers but the Yankees reportedly being scared off by his medicals (48:00)
  • The Guardians acquire Alex Cobb from the Giants and acquire Lane Thomas from the Nationals (58:35)
  • The Orioles acquire Trevor Rogers from the Marlins and acquire Zach Eflin from the Rays (1:09:10)
  • Will teams have to be more aggressive in the offseason going forward if the expanded playoffs will make less good players available at the deadline? (1:20:35)
  • The Rockies and Angels held onto a lot of trade candidates (1:23:35)
  • The Marlins leaned in hard to seller status (1:31:40)
  • The Padres built a super bullpen (1:44:50)
  • The Braves acquire Jorge Soler from the Giants (1:47:40)
  • The Royals acquire Lucas Erceg from the Athletics (1:54:40)

Check out our past episodes!

  • Trade Deadline Preview – listen here
  • Top Trade Candidates, Hunter Harvey To KC And The Current State Of The Rays And Mets – listen here
  • Brewers’ Pitching Needs, Marlins Rumors And The Nats Prepare To Sell – listen here

The podcast intro and outro song “So Long” is provided courtesy of the band Showoff.  Check out their Facebook page here!

Pirates Acquire Jalen Beeks From Rockies

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The Pirates announced the acquisition of lefty reliever Jalen Beeks from the Rockies for minor league reliever Luis Peralta. Pittsburgh had an open spot on their 40-man roster after this afternoon’s trade with the Red Sox.

Colorado claimed Beeks off waivers from the Rays over the winter. Tampa Bay was evidently not planning to tender him a contract for his final season of arbitration. Rather than allow him to hit the market, Colorado took a flier and agreed to a modest $1.675MM salary. Beeks has had a generally productive season. He’s second on the Rox with 49 1/3 innings out of the bullpen and has pitched in their highest-leverage spots overall.

Beeks has worked to a 4.74 ERA in 45 appearances. He’s carrying a career-low 18% strikeout rate and 9.2% swinging strike percentage. Beeks has a league average 8.5% walk percentage and 44.7% grounder rate. He somewhat bizarrely had far more success at Coors Field than he did on the road for the Rox.

A former 12th round pick of the Red Sox, Beeks had a solid run as a long reliever for Tampa Bay between 2019-22. He combined for a 3.70 ERA with average strikeout and walk numbers in 184 2/3 frames over that stretch. Beeks allowed nearly six earned runs per nine last season, though, leading the Rays to move on.

Pittsburgh plugs him behind Aroldis Chapman as the second lefty in Derek Shelton’s bullpen. They’re assuming roughly $500K in salary for the stretch run. Beeks will surpass the six-year service threshold in September and hit free agency at the beginning of the offseason. Colorado didn’t have much incentive to keep him, so they’ll cash him in for an intriguing bullpen prospect.

Peralta, 23, is the younger brother of Brewers staff ace Freddy Peralta. The 5’11” southpaw signed with Pittsburgh out of the Dominican Republic in 2017. Peralta has divided his season between High-A and Double-A, turning in a 0.91 ERA over 39 2/3 innings. He’s striking out an eye-opening 41% of batters faced against an elevated 11.5% walk rate. Baseball America had Peralta as the #24 prospect in the Pittsburgh system, writing that he relies heavily on a mid-90s fastball with good life at the top of the strike zone. He’d be eligible for the Rule 5 draft this winter if Colorado doesn’t select him onto the 40-man roster.

MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand first reported the terms of the deal. Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.

Rockies Unlikely To Extend Cal Quantrill

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Right-hander Cal Quantrill’s first season in Colorado has gone quite well, but Patrick Saunders of The Denver Post wrote recently that the club does not appear intent on keeping the hurler in Colorado long-term. Per Saunders, the club has not approached Quantrill regarding an extension and is unlikely to do so. That might result in his Rockies tenure being a fairly short one given that Saunders also notes that the Rockies have received calls on Quantrill ahead of the impending trade deadline, though they hadn’t received any firm offers as of Friday afternoon.

Quantrill, 29, was a first-round pick by the Padres back in 2016 and was shipped to Cleveland as a headliner in the package that brought Mike Clevinger to San Diego at the 2020 trade deadline. He was a clearly above average starter with the club from 2021 to 2022 with a 3.16 ERA and 4.10 FIP in 336 innings of work during that time despite a lackluster 18% strikeout rate. Quantrill suffered a down season last year as he struggled to a 5.24 ERA in 19 starts as he posted a career-worst 13.1% strikeout rate against a then career-worst 7.9% walk rate while surrendering eleven homers in just 99 2/3 innings of work.

That brutal performance left the Guardians to designate Quantrill for assignment back in November prior to the non-tender deadline. The club shipped him to the Rockies shortly thereafter, and the right-hander avoided arbitration with his new club by signing a one-year, $6.55MM deal ahead of the 2024 campaign. Things can hardly have been expected to go better for Quantrill during his first year with the Rockies, as he’s posted a 4.10 ERA in 114 1/3 innings of work that’s actually 10% better than league average by ERA+ thanks to the righty calling Coors Field home this year. Quantrill’s strikeout rate has crept back up to a more respectable 17.8% this year, although he’s walking a career-worst 8.9% of opponents so far. Most importantly for a pitcher in Colorado, Quantrill has seen his groundball rate tick up significantly to 46.4%, the best of his career.

Given Quantrill’s solid bounce back year while pitching in such a tough environment, it would hardly be a surprise if the Rockies wanted to retain the right-hander, who is controllable via arbitration next season, long-term. Saunders suggests that’s unlikely to be the club’s plan, however, noting that while Quantrill has expressed openness to the possibility of an extension, he also hopes to pitch for a contender and would likely want a three-year deal that the Rockies are hesitant to offer. A three-year pact would guarantee the right-hander a contract through his age-32 season, and Saunders suggests that the club believes they have pitching prospects currently developing in the system who will be ready to step into the rotation within the next two years.

That’s a somewhat surprising stance to take given the rarity of starting pitchers who have proven they can handle home games at Coors Field, but if the Rockies don’t intend to keep Quantrill long-term it’s hardly a surprise that they’re listening to offers on the righty. Given Quantrill’s relatively affordable price tag, extra season of team control, and experience pitching out of both the rotation and the bullpen in his career, the right-hander would surely be an attractive addition to several rotations in need of depth around the league.

While no specific names have been connected to Quantrill to this point, the Twins, Padres, and Brewers are among the clubs known to be in the market for starting pitching that could be restricted by financial limitations, a possibility that would make Quantrill a more attractive option given his aforementioned $6.55MM salary this year. The Guardians are another club that falls into that category, though it’s fair to wonder how realistic it is to think that Cleveland would give up significant prospect capital for a player they parted ways with just eight months ago.

Rockies To Designate Ty Blach For Assignment

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The Rockies are selecting reliever John Curtiss onto the MLB roster and designating left-hander Ty Blach for assignment, tweets Thomas Harding of MLB.com. Colorado will recall righty Jake Bird to take the bullpen spot vacated by the Nick Mears trade and bring up Tanner Gordon as the 27th man for today’s doubleheader against San Francisco.

Blach, 33, has pitched in parts of seven MLB seasons and spent each of the past three years with the Rockies. He’s split time between the bullpen and the rotation in a swing role ever since the club selected him to the roster back in April but has struggled badly in the role with a 6.36 ERA and a 5.72 FIP in 63 2/3 innings of work. While Blach has walked just 5.4% of batters, he’s struck opponents out at a paltry 11.5% clip and has struggled badly to keep the ball in the park with nearly two homers allowed per nine innings this year. Those numbers are worse than even his prior difficult seasons with Colorado, where he posted a combined 5.66 ERA with a 4.99 FIP in 122 1/3 innings of work between the 2022 and ’23 campaigns.

While the lefty was once a solid swingman for the Giants early in his career, posting a 4.36 ERA and 4.14 FIP in 299 1/3 innings of work from his debut in 2016 to the end of the 2018 season, he’s struggled to keep a role in the big leagues since then with a cumulative 6.81 ERA in 51 appearances from 2019 onwards. Assuming the Rockies don’t work out a trade involving Blach prior to the upcoming deadline on Tuesday, they’ll attempt to pass him through waivers at some point in the next seven days. Should he go unclaimed, they’ll have the opportunity to outright him to Triple-A, though he could reject that assignment in favor of free agency should he so choose.

Joining the 40-man roster in Blach’s place is Curtiss, who already appeared in a Rockies uniform for the first time earlier this year. The righty appeared in a game between Colorado and Philadelphia back in May but struggled badly in the appearance, allowing two runs on three hits while recording just one out. Prior to that earlier stint on Colorado’s 40-man roster, Curtiss was a journeyman reliever who had previously pitched for the Twins, Angels, Rays, Marlins, Brewers, and Mets across parts of six seasons in the majors. He’s mostly posted solid results in that time with a 3.81 ERA and 3.98 FIP in 106 1/3 innings of work entering the 2024 season.

Most of that success came in Florida, as he posted an excellent 1.80 ERA in 25 innings with the AL champion Rays during the shortened 2020 season before heading to Miami in 2021 and delivering a 2.48 ERA in 40 frames for the club that year. He’s struggled since leaving the south, however, with eight runs (six earned) allowed during a 4 1/3 inning stint with Milwaukee late in the 2021 campaign and a 4.58 ERA in 15 appearances for the Mets last year before his rough outing with the Rockies back in May. Going forward, Curtiss seems likely to be used in middle relief alongside Bird, Peter Lambert, and Justin Lawrence for the Rockies.

Brewers Acquire Nick Mears From Rockies

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The Brewers acquired reliever Nick Mears from the Rockies. Colorado gets right-hander Bradley Blalock and minor league pitcher Yujanyer Herrera in return.

Mears is third among Colorado relievers with 45 1/3 innings. His 5.56 earned run average makes him an odd trade pickup at first glance, but Milwaukee is intrigued by his swing-and-miss ability. Mears has fanned more than 28% of batters faced and gotten whiffs on nearly 12% of his offerings. His fastball averages 96.7 MPH, while opponents have had very little success against his slider. While batters have teed off on his curveball, the fastball-slider combination makes him an interesting upside play.

If not for a .366 average on balls in play against him, Mears’ bottom line numbers would be a lot more impressive. ERA estimators like SIERA (3.37) and FIP (2.59) are a lot more bullish on his performance. While Mears has excellent stuff, his command is questionable. He has walked 10.3% of batters faced this season and an even 13% of opposing hitters in 95 career innings. Throwing strikes consistently is probably his biggest hurdle to assuming a high-leverage role.

Milwaukee placed late-inning southpaw Bryan Hudson on the 15-day injured list this afternoon. He’s dealing with an oblique strain that’ll keep him out for an unknown amount of time. Manager Pat Murphy told reporters that the team would have a clearer picture of Hudson’s timetable after he goes for imaging (X link via Todd Rosiak of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel). The team expects him back this season, but that’s a hit to their relief group in the short term.

Mears slots in alongside Joel Payamps, Trevor Megill, Elvis Peguero and Hoby Milner in the relief corps. The Brewers could welcome star closer Devin Williams back in a few weeks — he’s on a rehab stint with Triple-A Nashville — and should have a fairly strong setup corps. The 27-year-old Mears will qualify for arbitration for the first time next winter and comes with three additional seasons of club control.

Colorado initially grabbed Mears off waivers from the Rangers during the 2022-23 offseason. That proved to be a nice pickup for GM Bill Schmidt and his front office. They’ve cashed him in for a pair of pitchers who could factor into the rotation or long relief roles in the future. Blalock, 23, has a decent chance to pitch at Coors Field this year. He’s already on the 40-man roster and made a brief big league debut last month, tossing a scoreless inning against San Diego.

The 6’2″ righty has otherwise worked out of the rotation for Milwaukee’s Double-A team in Biloxi. He carries a 4.08 ERA in 75 innings spanning 16 starts. His 20.2% strikeout rate is below average, but his 8.5% walk percentage is solid. The Brew Crew acquired Blalock from the Red Sox for Luis Urías last summer. He’s in his first of three option years and could be a back-end starter.

Herrera, a 6’3″ right-hander, ranked 28th among Milwaukee prospects at Baseball America. The outlet credits him with a mid-90s fastball and an above-average slider. A subpar changeup could point to a bullpen future. The 20-year-old Venezuela native has started nine of 16 outings between the two A-ball levels this season. He owns a 2.91 ERA with an above-average 27.2% strikeout percentage and an 8.1% walk rate. He’d be eligible for the Rule 5 draft next offseason if not added to the 40-man roster. There’s a good chance the Rox select his contract next offseason.

Colorado prioritized starting pitching in their trades last summer. They could do the same this year if they move players like Cal Quantrill, Jalen Beeks, Austin Gomber, Elias Díaz and Jacob Stallings.

ESPN’s Jeff Passan first reported the terms of the trade. Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.

MLBTR Podcast: Trade Deadline Preview

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The latest episode of the MLB Trade Rumors Podcast is now live on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and wherever you get your podcasts! Make sure you subscribe as well! You can also use the player at this link to listen, if you don’t use Spotify or Apple for podcasts.

This week, host Darragh McDonald is joined by Tim Dierkes, Steve Adams and Anthony Franco of MLB Trade Rumors to discuss…

Check out our past episodes!

The podcast intro and outro song “So Long” is provided courtesy of the band Showoff.  Check out their Facebook page here!

Notable Draft Signings: 7/22/24

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We’ve already covered a few significant draft bonuses this evening. A few more $2MM+ signings from Monday:

  • The Phillies are signing second-rounder Griffin Burkholder for $2.5MM, reports Jim Callis of MLB Pipeline (X link). Philadelphia had to go well beyond the approximate $1.35MM slot value associated with the 63rd overall pick to sign him away from a commitment to West Virginia. Burkholder is a righty-hitting outfielder out of a Virginia high school. Pre-draft scouting reports at Baseball America (where he ranked #50 in the class) and from Keith Law of the Athletic (who ranked him 71st) credit Burkholder with excellent speed and the potential for plus raw power at his peak. The question is whether he’ll develop an adequate hit tool in pro ball. He’s a developmental flier for the Phils.
  • Royals second-round pick David Shields landed a $2.3MM bonus, Callis reports (on X). That’s in line with the 41st overall pick’s $2.28MM slot value. Shields is a 6’2″ left-handed pitcher from a Pennsylvania high school who had been committed to Miami. One of the younger pitchers in the class, Shields is a projection arm with good athleticism and low-90s velocity at present. Law ranked him 43rd on his pre-draft list, crediting the southpaw with good curveball feel and a loose arm action.
  • The Rockies agreed to a $2MM bonus with 42nd overall pick Jared Thomas, reports Carlos Collazo of Baseball America (X link). That’s slightly under slot, which was around $2.22MM. Thomas is a lefty-hitting outfielder from the University of Texas. He hit .349/.435/.635 with 16 homers and 18 steals as a draft-eligible sophomore. Thomas split most of his defensive work in Austin between first base and center field, though he’ll likely get a shot at the latter position in pro ball. FanGraphs and ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel each had him as a top 50 player in the class. Thomas draws praise for his solid power and athleticism, although BA’s scouting report raises questions about his propensity to chase pitches off the plate. Thomas struck out in 20.6% of his plate appearances during his draft year. While that’s a little better than the MLB average, it’s likely to rise in pro ball.

Rockies Place German Marquez On Injured List

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The Rockies placed starter Germán Márquez on the 15-day injured list, retroactive to July 19, due to elbow inflammation. Colorado recalled right-hander Noah Davis to take the open spot on the active roster.

Márquez heads back to the shelf one week after making his return from Tommy John surgery. The right-hander only made one start, tossing four innings of three-run ball against the Mets the day before the All-Star Break. A quick return to the injured list with another elbow issue is cause for concern, but it seems the Rox expect to avoid the worst. Manager Bud Black told reporters that the team hopes to have Márquez back within a couple weeks (link via Kyle Newman of the Denver Post).

Colorado is well out of playoff contention, so the priority is making sure Márquez gets through the ’24 campaign healthy. The Rockies signed the Venezuelan hurler to a two-year, $20MM contract last September. Márquez is making $10MM annually on a deal that was mostly geared towards 2025. Colorado knew that the former All-Star would miss a good chunk of this season as he finished his rehab. This season is largely about building his innings count so he can hold up over a full schedule next year.

This bout of elbow inflammation represents an obvious setback, although it’s possible Márquez returns in August and can pitch for a few weeks down the stretch. There was never much of an expectation that Colorado would trade the 29-year-old this closely removed from surgery. Today’s IL placement seemingly slams that door shut.

Austin Gomber takes the ball tonight against the Red Sox in the series opener at Coors Field. Márquez had been slated to go on Tuesday. Newman writes that left-hander Ty Blach is likely to get the start instead. Blach has started nine of 16 appearances on the season, turning in a 5.46 ERA through 59 1/3 innings. He could step into the starting five behind Cal Quantrill, Kyle Freeland, Gomber and Ryan Feltner. The Rockies are reportedly willing to consider trade offers on Quantrill and Gomber, potentially opening up another rotation spot or two in the next week.

Notable Draft Signings: 7/21/24

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Sunday was a relatively quiet day for notable draft signings, although one deal of note did come together today:

  • The Rockies have agreed to terms with supplemental first-rounder Brody Brecht on a $2.7MM bonus, according to MLB.com’s Jim Callis. The deal comes in slightly above the $2,452,200 slot value of the 38th overall pick. Prospect evaluators were universal in their agreement that Brecht, a right-hander out of Iowa, is a top-30 talent in this year’s draft class. Baseball America was at the low end of the spectrum, placing him 28th in the class, while Fangraphs (13th) and The Athletic’s Keith Law (16th) both placed him in the top 20. Brecht, who stands a massive 6’4”, 235 lbs, receives praise from evaluators for his mid-to-upper 90s fastball that touches triple digits and a double-plus slider, though control issues and his lack of a strong third pitch have left some evaluators to suggest that he carries substantial relief risk in his profile. In 15 starts with Iowa this year, Brecht showed off his tantalizing upside with a 3.33 ERA and a 37.2% strikeout rate in 78 1/3 frames.

Rockies Agree To Terms With No. 3 Overall Pick Charlie Condon

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The Rockies and outfielder Charlie Condon, the third overall pick from the 2024 draft, have agreed to a $9.25MM signing bonus. That matches Chase Burns, who signed with the Reds earlier this week, for the largest signing bonus in MLB history and slightly above the $9.07MM slot value for the #3 pick. Both Condon and Burns are represented by Vayner Sports. Jeff Passan relayed the details of the agreement on X.

Condon, now 21, is coming off an absurd two-year run with Georgia. He hit 25 home runs in 56 games for them last year and slashed .386/.484/.800. Here in 2024, he took things to another level with 37 homers in 60 games and a batting line of .433/.556/1.009.

In addition to the power, Condon’s bat-to-ball abilities are also considered strong. He struck out 86 times over his two seasons with Georgia, a rate of 15.4%. He also drew 90 walks in that time, a rate of 16.1%.

He’s not considered a standout defender but has some versatility, having played the infield corners and all three outfield slots this year. His ultimate defensive home seems up in the air, with some suggesting he’s likelier to end up as a corner outfielder while other suggests third base is most likely.

But the bat is the real standout tool and that’s why he was considered one of the top players available in this year’s draft. Baseball America, ESPN and Keith Law of The Athletic all had him in the top spot. MLB Pipeline had him second behind Travis Bazzana, who was selected first overall by the Guardians. The report from FanGraphs is slightly more bearish, putting Condon fourth and expressing some worry that his uppercut swing will leave him vulnerable at the top of the zone, especially once he climbs to higher levels and eventually the majors.

While Condon’s power potential is exciting in a vacuum, the idea of him playing his home games at Coors Field is even more enticing. The Rockies have Ryan McMahon at third base, with his contract running through 2027. In the outfielder, Brenton Doyle seems to be emerging as a core piece in center, something that MLBTR’s Anthony Franco recently explored.

For Condon’s other possible positions, things get murky. Kris Bryant is under contract through 2028 but has hardly been able to stay on the field since coming to Colorado, even though the Rockies moved him to first base to try to lighten the wear and tear on him. Charlie Blackmon is 38 years old and on a one-year deal. Nolan Jones seemed to breakout last year but has stalled here in 2024.

The picture will undoubtedly change in time but the Rockies will surely be hoping for Condon to be a part of their roster in the future. His defense might require a bit of experimentation but perhaps his bat can vault him towards the majors quickly.

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