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J.A. Happ

AL Notes: Yankees, Angels, Indians, Twins, Rays

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The Yankees’ rotation took a serious shot Wednesday when it was announced that they’ll go without left-hander James Paxton for three to four months on account of back surgery. General manager Brian Cashman discussed the news with Joel Sherman of the New York Post, saying Paxton first complained of back discomfort in his final regular-season outing Sept. 27. That didn’t stop Paxton from making three playoff appearances, though, and Cashman noted surgery was a “last resort.” The timing of the procedure’s not ideal, but the Yankees didn’t want to rush into a decision, according to Cashman.

One of Paxton’s fellow Yankees lefties, J.A. Happ, was a trade candidate earlier this offseason, but Cashman revealed Paxton’s injury “certainly” played a part in the team’s decision to keep him. However, there was trade interest in Happ, Cashman told Sherman. “There was a lot of knocking on our door about it,” he said.

Here’s more from the American League…

  • Angels infielder Luis Rengifo appears to be on the verge of going to the Dodgers in a trade for outfielder Joc Pederson. It’s not the first time Rengifo’s name has come up in trade talks this offseason, though. Rengifo was part of the discussions between the Angels and Indians when the two teams were weighing a Corey Kluber swap back in December, per Paul Hoynes of cleveland.com. The two clubs couldn’t come to an agreement, and the Indians ended up trading Kluber to the Rangers a few days later.
  • Twins righty Jake Odorizzi decided to forgo free agency this offseason in favor of the team’s $17.8MM qualifying offer. Odorizzi may have done better on the open market – MLBTR predicted a three year, $51MM payday – but he doesn’t regret his choice to stick with Minnesota on a short-term deal. “Not a bit,” he told Phil Miller of the Star Tribune. “I made my decision based on the best knowledge we had at the time. Money started flying around pretty quick, and the market got pretty hot, but nobody predicted that.” Indeed, there has been far more money distributed in free agency than many anticipated when the offseason began. Odorizzi’s now left to hope the cash will continue flowing next winter if he gets to free agency, though Miller writes that he remains “open to” a long-term pact with the Twins.
  • Rays outfield prospect Josh Lowe underwent right shoulder debridement surgery in November and “likely” won’t return to action until late May, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times writes. The 22-year-old Lowe, a 2016 first-round pick and the younger brother of Rays first baseman Nate Lowe, ranks as the team’s 11th overall prospect at MLB.com. Josh Lowe enjoyed a strong season at the Double-A level last year, when he slashed .252/.341/.442 with 18 home runs and 30 stolen bases in 519 plate appearances.

Brian Cashman: J.A. Happ To Open 2020 In Yankees’ Rotation

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There has been no shortage of offseason trade speculation centering on Yankees left-hander J.A. Happ, especially in the wake of the team’s blockbuster Gerrit Cole signing. If we’re to believe general manager Brian Cashman, though, Happ isn’t going anywhere. Cashman told Meredith Marakovits of the YES Network (video link) that Happ will open 2020 as the Yankees’ fifth starter behind Cole, Luis Severino, James Paxton and Masahiro Tanaka.

Whether you want to take Cashman’s statement at face value is up to you, but it does appear Happ would be a challenge to trade. The normally solid Happ is coming off a subpar season, set to enter his age-37 campaign, owed a significant salary, and has an unappealing vesting option baked into his contract.

Happ, who pitched to a 4.91 ERA/5.22 FIP with 7.81 K/9 (down from 9.78 the prior year) in 2019, will earn $17MM this season. Worsening matters, he’ll make another $17MM in 2021 if he racks up 165 innings or 27 starts this year – two figures he has typically approached or surpassed over the past several campaigns.

Getting Happ’s money (or at least some of it) off the books would help the Yankees from a luxury-tax standpoint, as they’re currently projected for a whopping $261MM-plus total. That said, there’s a case it would benefit them to keep Happ around and hope for a bounce-back showing.

Happ, despite an overall disappointing year, did end last season on a high note with a strong September. He’s also the most logical candidate to eat innings from the back of a Yankees rotation that will go awhile without righty Domingo German, whom MLB handed a suspension for domestic violence that will cost him the first 63 games of 2020. Meanwhile, southpaw Jordan Montgomery – the Yankees’ next most experienced starter – barely pitched over the previous two years after undergoing Tommy John surgery.

Beyond German and Montgomery, New York’s looking at mostly unproven 40-man options, albeit some intriguing ones including Deivi Garcia, Jonathan Loaisiga, Albert Abreu and Mike King, as well as minor league signing Nick Tropeano. One or more of them could factor into the Yankees’ starting staff during the season, but for now, it appears they’ll take a backseat to Happ.

AL Notes: Yanks, Happ, Astros, Harris, White Sox, Robert

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Here’s an early morning look around the American League…

  • Even after losing right-hander Domingo German to an 81-game suspension for a violation of the league’s domestic violence policy, the Yankees “remain open to trading” lefty J.A. Happ, Ken Davidoff of the New York Post writes. The Yankees were of the belief German would serve a significant suspension all along, so the league’s decision hasn’t affected their plans regarding Happ. The big question continues to be whether they’ll be able to find a taker for Happ, who’s 37 years old, coming off a poor season and due $17MM in 2020. Happ also has a $17MM option for 2021 that will vest if he amasses 165 innings or totals 27 starts this year.  He posted back-to-back 30-start seasons from 2018-19.
  • The Nationals reeled in the top reliever left in free agency on Thursday, agreeing to a three-year, $24MM contract with righty Will Harris. The 35-year-old entered free agency off a long and fruitful run in Houston, but Harris explained to Mark Berman of Fox 26 that the Astros “were eliminated pretty early on in the process” because they weren’t prepared to approach his asking price. “They weren’t in that ballpark, no. They had kind of admitted to me they would’ve liked to have done more, but they weren’t able to.” Harris is now the latest key Astro to leave last season’s AL pennant-winning club, joining Gerrit Cole and Wade Miley. Robinson Chirinos could be the next to go.
  • In another of Thursday’s major news items, the White Sox locked up center field prospect Luis Robert to a six-year, $50MM guarantee. The two sides began negotiations back in September, and those talks gained steam at last month’s Winter Meetings, according to general manager Rick Hahn (via Scott Merkin of MLB.com). Now that Robert’s long-term future is settled, there’s no reason for the White Sox to worry about his service time, so it appears likely he’ll crack their roster out of camp. Robert’s fully confident that will happen. “I’m 100 percent convinced I’m going to be on the Opening Day roster,” the 22-year-old said.

Trade Rumors: Rangers, Smith, Lowrie, Blue Jays, Frazier, Cubs

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The Athletics aren’t the only AL West team interested in Jed Lowrie’s services, as the Rangers have been in talks with the Mets about a deal that would send both Lowrie and Dominic Smith to the Lone Star State, The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal reports (subscription required).  However, “talks to this point have failed to progress” between the two clubs.  It’s fair to guess that Smith was the Rangers’ real target in these negotiations, as Smith would be the sweetener added to the deal in exchange for the Rangers assuming most or all of the remaining $12MM on Lowrie’s contract.  New York is reportedly trying to create payroll space by shopping high-priced names like Lowrie or Jeurys Familia to other teams.

Smith is perhaps a bit of a curious fit for the Rangers, given that Texas already has a plethora of left-handed hitting first base/DH/corner outfield types, and only just dealt from that surplus in sending Nomar Mazara to the White Sox.  Still, adding a 24-year-old with five seasons of control has obvious value for the Rangers, as Shin-Soo Choo’s contract is up after the 2020 campaign, and Ronald Guzman could become expendable in the event of Smith joining the roster.  While Lowrie missed virtually all of 2019 due to injury, he also offers more to Texas than just a salary dump if he’s able to stay healthy.  If Lowrie was able to recapture anything close to his 2017-18 form, he’d represent a good third base answer if the Rangers weren’t able to sign Josh Donaldson.

More trade talk as we near the end of the Winter Meetings…

  • Though the Blue Jays have been mostly linked to free agents this winter, the club is apparently being just as diligent on the trade front, Sportsnet.ca’s Shi Davidi writes.  In addition to Toronto’s known interest in Yankees southpaw J.A. Happ, the Jays have checked in with the Red Sox about David Price and Jackie Bradley Jr., and with the Pirates about right-hander Chris Archer and Joe Musgrove.  It doesn’t seem like any of these particular options are close, however, as Davidi notes that “the cost in both dollars and prospect capital remains too high” for Price, Bradley, and Happ.  The Jays and Pirates have been speculatively linked as trade partners since Ben Cherington recently went from Toronto’s front office to the GM chair in Pittsburgh, though this familiarity may not necessarily be a plus.  As Davidi puts it, Cherington “may think too similarly to his former colleagues for a deal to be struck.”
  • As the Pirates weigh a lot of interest in Adam Frazier, the Athletics are involved but perhaps no better than Pittsburgh’s third option as a trade partner, the San Francisco Chronicle’s Susan Slusser reports (Twitter link).  The left-handed hitting Frazier would be an ideal fit to help balance out Oakland’s heavily right-handed lineup, and would provide some experience to a young collection of second base candidates.  Frazier isn’t old himself (he is a few days away from his 28th birthday) and is still controllable through three years of arbitration eligibility.
  • While the Cubs are reportedly working hard towards swinging some (potentially major) trades, the possibility exists that the 2020 roster will look a lot like last year’s edition, president of baseball operations Theo Epstein told Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times and other media.  “The makings of a very good team is currently under control on our roster, with a chance to win a division.  And do that, and you have a chance to have a great October,” Epstein said, though “status quo is not a bad option, but we’re obviously out there looking to make changes and change the dynamic and improve.”  It could be that the Cubs won’t become big players in the trade market until most or all of the top free agents have selected their new teams.  In the case of Kris Bryant, for example, “officials from two teams aggressively trying to fill third-base needs…said the Cubs were asking too much for Bryant to seriously consider him while other options remained available,” Wittenmyer writes.

Fallout Notes After Gerrit Cole Signing: Blue Jays, Angels, Pettitte, Dodgers, Bumgarner

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Much will come to light in the coming days now that the Yankees have officially given Gerrit Cole the largest deal in league history for a pitcher – but even now, mere hours from the revelation, the news is starting to sink in. The rest of the pitching market could unstick rather quickly, and the Blue Jays are having to factor in their new reality of having to face Cole four or five times a year for the next decade, writes Ben Nicholson-Smith of sportsnet.ca. Of course, what better way for Vlad Guerrero Jr., Bo Bichette and friends to push themselves to reach their massive potentials than by facing off with the best of the best. Of greater concern for Toronto is who will take the mound on their side in 2020. With the biggest names now off the board, interest will pick up for the next tier of free agent starters, guys like Hyun-Jin Ryu and Dallas Keuchel, in whom Toronto has shown interest. Those who missed out on Cole may up the ante for the next round, however, putting the Blue Jays’ realistic options more in the field of Tanner Roark, Rick Porcello, or Wade Miley. They could even lend a helping hand to the Yankees by taking back J.A. Happ if a prospect(s) came along with him. Let’s see what else folks are saying here in the wee hours of life in our bleak new post-Cole-sweepstakes reality…

  • The winners and losers of Cole’s mega contract are fairly obvious, but The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal makes the rounds anyway, starting with the Yankees – the biggest winners here (besides Cole and maybe Scott Boras) for finally reeling in their “white whale.” The Angels come away from the Cole saga disappointed, but it’s not all bad for the Halos. They have more need than could have been filled by Cole alone. As tantalizing a talent Cole is, they may be better off spreading their money around. Now that the Giants took Zack Cozart’s deal off their hands, they might have enough resources to buy a supporting cast for Mike Trout.
  • It’s easy to view the Yankees’ winning bid as a harkening back to the days of New York as the evil empire, but the reality is actually much more frightening, per The Athletic’s Marc Carig. He writes, “The Yankees are well-run, well-heeled and well-schooled in the art of reeling in the big fish.” True enough: this was no impulsive spending spree. The Yankees, like much of the league, have curbed their shopping addictions and learned to spend wisely. As a result, they should enter 2020 as favorites to win the American League. Oddly, for years it was expected that Bryce Harper and Manny Machado’s free agency would wake the dormant goliaths from their winter slumber, but it turned out to be Cole who not only made the notoriously judicious Andrew Friedman plead his case for the Dodgers, but who prompted the Yankees to shake off the rust and woo their western rival’s star player like the old days.
  • Speaking of: Andy Pettitte played a role in evangelizing on behalf of New York’s lifestyle benefits. He encouraged Cole about playing in New York as a benefit for his peace of mind, per Joel Sherman of the New York Post. Pettitte’s point was that Cole could focus himself on the task of winning titles, as the playoffs should be an annual guarantee (or at least strong possibility). Of course, the Dodgers and Astros could have made the same argument about their squads.
  • The Dodgers, it’s worth noting, made a real push for Cole. Among 324 million other reasons, however, Cole came away from his meeting with New York impressed with new pitching coach Matt Blake, who appealed to Cole’s interest in the intellectual side of the game, noted Carig. Of course, Cole also grew up a Yankees fan, which might have tipped the scale in the Yankees’ favor in a way that the Dodgers simply couldn’t answer. Now that the dust has settled, the Dodgers are moving on to the goal of convincing Madison Bumgarner to make the heel turn and join an already strong rotation in Chavez Ravine, tweets Rosenthal.

Report: Yankees “Actively” Trying To Trade J.A. Happ

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DECEMBER 10: The Blue Jays have explored the possibility of a reunion with Happ, Andy Martino of SNY.tv reports (Twitter links). The Brewers are said to be among the National League clubs with some level of interest.

DECEMBER 9: Twelve months ago, the Yankees made veteran left-hander J.A. Happ one of their key offseason signings. After a solid 2018 divided between the Blue Jays and Yankees, New York re-upped Happ to a two-year, $34MM contract. Now, the club is “actively” seeking a taker on the trade market for the 37-year-old Happ, Joel Sherman of the New York Post reports.

The fact that the Yankees want to get out of the Happ deal isn’t particularly surprising, considering he’s slated to count $17MM against the luxury tax next season. If the Yankees succeed in signing right-hander Gerrit Cole, the No. 1 free agent on the board and someone who has a shot at a $300MM-plus contract, moving some portion of Happ’s money could help them avoid the highest level of the luxury tax ($248MM). As things stand, it seems probable they’ll blow past the first level of $208MM and likely surpass the second penalty of $228MM, Sherman notes.

In moving Happ, the Yankees would obviously be selling low. While Happ has long been a quality starter in the majors, things didn’t go well last season. Even though Happ did close on a good note during the final month of the regular campaign, he still ended the year with a subpar 4.91 ERA/5.22 FIP and 7.81 K/9 against 2.73 BB/9 over 161 1/3 innings. Going forward, Happ’s contract includes a $17MM vesting option for 2021 if he totals 165 innings or 27 starts next year. With those factors in mind, the Yankees don’t figure to have an easy time finding someone to take Happ off their hands.

Jordan Montgomery To Make Season Debut This Weekend

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Yankees left-hander Jordan Montgomery hasn’t taken a major league mound since May 1, 2018, but he’s on the verge of making a long-awaited return. Montgomery is expected to make his season debut “in some capacity” this Sunday, James Wagner of the New York Times reports. Meanwhile, fellow lefty J.A. Happ just had a cortisone shot in his biceps, but manager Aaron Boone said he should make a start next week.

Considering he hasn’t pitched in the majors in almost two full seasons, Montgomery has become somewhat of a forgotten Yankee. But before Montgomery underwent Tommy John surgery in June 2018, he looked like a quality homegrown arm for New York. Montgomery, a fourth-round pick of the Yankees in 2014, debuted in 2017 and proceeded to amass 182 2/3 innings and 35 starts of 3.84 ERA/4.09 FIP ball with 8.23 K/9 and 3.1 BB/9 through last season.

Now, with the playoffs just a couple weeks away, it’s unclear whether Montgomery will factor into the Yankees’ plans when they try to charge toward a World Series in October. On the other hand, a healthy Happ will definitely be someone the team counts on during the fall. Happ exited his start Thursday with a biceps issue, but it seems the Yankees – whom injuries have haunted all season – dodged a serious problem in his case.

Yankees Notes: Sanchez, Happ

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Sept. 13: Regarding Happ, Ken Davidoff of the New York Post writes that the Yankees had already been planning for him to head to New York to get some treatment — possibly a cortisone shot — for his ongoing biceps discomfort. Happ has made the organization aware of the issue but has deemed it to be manageable for the most part. The biceps issue hasn’t been particularly debilitating for Happ, who carries a 3.48 ERA with 35 punchouts over his past 31 innings (six starts).

Sept. 12, 7:53pm: Sanchez told Hoch and other reporters that his newest groin injury feels “very similar” to his previous one. He’ll head back to New York for testing (Twitter links).

6:34pm: Stop us if you’ve heard this before: The Yankees are dealing with a couple potential injuries. Catcher Gary Sanchez left the second game of the team’s doubleheader against the Tigers on Thursday with left groin tightness, Bryan Hoch of MLB.com tweets. And left-hander J.A. Happ, who started Game 1, is heading back to New York to get his biceps tendinitis checked out, per Erik Boland of Newsday. Happ’s issue isn’t one the Yankees are overly concerned about, according to manager Aaron Boone, but they nonetheless want to take a look at it.

Groin injuries often lead to weeks-long absences, which is obviously something the first-place Yankees don’t need as they gear up for a potential World Series run. It’s especially troubling for Sanchez considering he missed 16 games earlier in the season with a left groin strain. The 26-year-old spent time on the injured list because of that issue and has also missed time with a calf strain in 2019. When healthy, Sanchez has slashed .233/.318/.531 (118 wRC+) with 34 home runs in 440 plate appearances, making him one of the game’s most effective offensive catchers. The Yankees have gotten good production from backups Austin Romine and Kyle Higashioka this year, though.

Happ, 36, has hardly enjoyed a banner year to this point. He owns a lofty 5.07 ERA/5.38 FIP with 7.75 K/9 and 2.86 BB/9 over 151 innings. That’s not the type of production the Yankees expected Happ would provide when they re-signed him to a two-year, $34MM contract last offseason. Still, the Yankees have continually run Happ out there, in part because he’s one of the few legitimate starters they have. Happ, Masahiro Tanaka, James Paxton, Domingo German and CC Sabathia have been mainstays in the Yankees’ shaky rotation throughout the year. No one in that group has come close to providing ace-caliber production as the Yankees have gone without injured No. 1 starter Luis Severino all year. Severino is nearing his season debut as the Yankees prepare for the playoffs, though. However, it’s now up in the air whether they’ll have Happ at full strength over the next several weeks.

Latest On Yankees Pitching Plans

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The Yankees rotation has long been a source of worry for fans of the club. While the concerns haven’t stopped the Yanks from dominating the AL East, the staff isn’t without question marks. MLB.com’s Bryan Hoch is among the reporters to pass along the latest from the team (in this report and these tweets).

Of most immediate concern was the news that veteran southpaw CC Sabathia will return to the active roster on Sunday. He’ll return following a brief respite for his problematic knee and look to improve upon his 4.78 ERA.

Even if Sabathia is able to get some positive momentum going, he doesn’t seem like an optimal postseason starter. The same holds for the club’s other aging lefty rotation piece, J.A. Happ, whose season-long struggles are well-documented. He’ll be looking for a turnaround outing today.

It’s interesting to think about the possible ways the Yankees could best utilize these veteran southpaws. Perhaps the most intriguing concept is some kind of piggyback arrangement involving a pair of high-octane young righties who may not quite be capable of handling full starter’s duties this season. Jonathan Loaisiga is just returning from injury and hasn’t yet established himself in the bigs, while Luis Severino is still working back. There’s optimism Severino will be a factor next month, though even a minor setback could end his season and he may not be able to ramp up fully so late in the year.

There are also at least some questions involving the late-season handling of the emergent Domingo German. As Hoch explains, German did not reach 100 frames last year and has never thrown more than 123 1/3 in a professional season (a high-water mark he reached in 2014). The club is not going to let him throw an unrestrained volume of innings this year, but also has decided not to publicize the limits.

Indeed, skipper Aaron Boone says that the organization has not “even honestly gotten deep into those conversations yet” as to when and how to pull back on German’s usage. Boone suggests that the return of other hurlers will help the club manage the 27-year-old’s workload. Fortunately, with a big division lead to work with, it seems the Yanks aren’t worried that they’ll miss out on any key innings. “[W]e feel like he’s strong right now and still has a lot left in the tank,” says Boone.

There is still one other intriguing possibility to keep an eye on as well. Tommy John rehabber Jordan Montgomery has thrown a two-inning sim game. Could he be an option late in the year and into the postseason? “We’ll see,” says Boone.

Yankees Place Aaron Hicks On IL, Activate J.A. Happ

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According to an official team release, the Yankees have placed center fielder Aaron Hicks on the 10-day injured list with a right flexor strain and have returned left-handed pitcher J.A. Happ from the paternity list.

For the Yankees, the injury woes continue unrelenting, with Hicks making his second trip to the injured list this season. The outfielder, playing out the first year of a seven-year extension signed this spring, has been limited to just 59 games this year. With an apparent elbow issue, his departure from last night’s game certainly inspired some nervousness in New York. However, as James Wagner of the New York Times notes, the silver lining in the situation is that there’s no damage to the ligament, meaning that Hicks will avoid Tommy John surgery. He’ll be shut down from throwing, with the Yankees hoping that a 2019 return is still in the cards.

Happ will be activated in time to start Sunday’s series finale against the Red Sox, with the Yankees seeking a sweep. He’ll be opposed by David Price, who was likewise activated from the paternity list on Sunday.

In this equation, another name that bears mentioning is Clint Frazier’s. Evidently, he isn’t the immediate replacement for Hicks, but he could get another shot down the stretch, depending on the extent of Hicks’s injury. As it stands, it’s hard to find room for the promising 24-year-old on the Yankees active roster. With Hicks out of commission, it appears that Brett Gardner will assume the center field duties, with Mike Tauchman slotting into left field and leaving Cameron Maybin as the team’s fourth outfielder. Both Tauchman and Maybin have been revelations, making it hard to justify demoting either.

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