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Central Notes: Tribe, Cubs, Brewers, Royals

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Indians shortstop Francisco Lindor and second baseman Jason Kipnis will open the season on the 10-day injured list, per Paul Hoynes of cleveland.com. It’s disappointing but not surprising news for Lindor, who’s working back from the right calf strain he suffered in early February. Kipnis is also dealing with a right calf strain, one that has forced the Indians to shut him down for seven to 10 days. Lindor’s absence will leave shortstop to the unheralded Eric Stamets, a 27-year-old with no major league experience. while Max Moroff could fill in for Kipnis. However, the Indians are in the market for second base help, according to Hoynes, who names free agent Brad Miller as a possibility. Miller opted out of his contract with the Dodgers on Thursday.

More from the majors’ Central divisions…

  • Having demoted Ian Happ to the minors on Saturday, the Cubs are looking for a center fielder via the trade and waiver markets, Bruce Levine of 670 The Score reports. Additionally, the Cubs remain in the market for depth at catcher, Levine relays (Twitter links). Happ had been the Cubs’ projected season-opening starter in center field, but that role could now go to Albert Almora Jr. Meanwhile, lacking an experienced backstop behind Willson Contreras and Victor Caratini, the Cubs have prioritized the position in recent months. They came up short in attempts to sign Brian McCann and Martin Maldonado dating back to the offseason.
  • More on the Cubs, who announced that they’ve assigned infielder Cristhian Adames to minor league camp. The recipient of a minors deal in January, Adames had been competing for a place on the Cubs’ bench prior to his demotion. He made a case for a roster spot by slashing a stellar .386/.440/.705 with three home runs in 44 exhibition at-bats, though the 27-year-old hasn’t been nearly as successful in meaningful major league action. Adames combined for 343 PAs as a Rockie from 2014-17 and hit an unsightly .206/.283/.278 with a pair of homers.
  • Righty Jimmy Nelson, still on the mend from a September 2017 surgery to repair both labrum and rotator cuff in his right shoulder, felt “some elbow soreness” after throwing in a side game Thursday, tweets MLB.com’s Adam McCalvy. The club still believes Nelson will begin his AAA rehab stint on schedule, per McCalvy, but it’s nonetheless a concerning development for the one-time Brewer ace. Milwaukee set its early-season rotation yesterday, with the high-upside Corbin Burnes/Freddy Peralta/Brandon Woodruff trio bookended by the iffy combination of Jhoulys Chacin and Zach Davies, whom the club seem higher on.
  • Royals lefty Danny Duffy told Jeffrey Flanagan of MLB.com this week he’d “love” to shift to a relief role eventually. For now, though, Duffy remains a starter. “We’ve had discussions, but they haven’t gone further than that. As long as I’m helping the team in some capacity, that’s all I want and that’s all they want,” said Duffy, who’s likely to start the season on the IL because of shoulder tightness. Shoulder issues were also a problem last year for Duffy, who didn’t take the mound past Sept. 4. It was an underwhelming season before that for Duffy, as the 30-year-old only managed a 4.88 ERA/4.70 FIP with 8.19 K/9, 4.06 BB/9 and a 35.4 percent groundball rate over 155 innings. Still, given the success Duffy has had as a starter (which helped him net a five-year, $65MM extension in January 2017), it’s an eye-opener that he’s so willing to change roles. Duffy has thrived in 34 2/3 frames as a reliever, though, having registered a 2.08 ERA/2.02 FIP with 11/42 K/9 and 2.6 BB/9.

Royals Sign Lucas Duda

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The Royals have inked veteran first baseman Lucas Duda to a minor-league deal, per a club announcement. He had been cut loose recently by the Twins.

Duda, 33, played with Kansas City last year. Though he failed to return to his prior levels of output, he turned in a nearly league-average slash line (.241/.313/.418) and obviously left a good impression before he was traded late in the year to the Braves.

In 3,462 plate appearances with the Mets, the left-handed-hitting slugger put up a strong .246/.343/.457 output and knocked 125 home runs. He was a substantially above-average bat as recently as the middle of the 2017 campaign.

While things have turned south since, Duda still seems a reasonable candidate to reemerge as a quality option against right-handed pitching. That said, it’s tough to see where he fits on a Kansas City roster that features another left-handed-hitting first baseman in Ryan O’Hearn.

Royals Shift Ian Kennedy To Bullpen

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The Royals announced yesterday that they will utilize veteran right-hander Ian Kennedy as a reliever this year, as Lynn Worthy of the Kansas City Star was among those to report.

Kennedy, 34, says he’s up for the switch despite having made only a pair of prior relief appearances way back in 2008-09. In the intervening nine seasons, Kennedy has taken the ball to open 277 MLB contests.

Last year was the first season since 2009 in which Kennedy failed to make thirty starts. It also represented a confirmation of his struggles from the season prior. In total, over his past 273 2/3 innings, Kennedy has mustered only a 5.06 ERA with 7.8 K/9, 3.3 BB/9, and 1.8 HR/9.

Kennedy’s still throwing as hard as before and appears to be getting similar movement on his pitches, but the league has clearly figured him out. His swinging-strike rate has dwindled down to 8.2% and opposing hitters have made hard contact on about four in ten balls in play over the past two seasons.

Frankly, these developments aren’t altogether surprising for a hurler who hit the 2015-16 market as a highly durable but rarely dominant middle/back-of-the-rotation arm. Kennedy was an accomplished hurler and drew mid-3 ERA equivalency grades from xFIP and SIERA in the two seasons before he reached free agency. Still, he had long battled home run problems that led to inconsistent results despite generally excellent K/BB numbers.

Even in that very different market setting — several other pitchers secured very large deals that winter with less-than-dominant track records — Kennedy’s five-year, $70MM contract was surprising. As former MLBTR scribe Charlie Wilmoth put it, “the financial outlay of the deal looks rather generous even before considering the opt-out.” Entering the offseason, we had predicted four years and $52MM.

The Kansas City organization knew the risks, but understandably wanted maximize its chances of winning another World Series after capturing a crown in a magical 2015 season. Kennedy did manage nearly two hundred innings of 3.68 ERA ball in the first year of his deal, but the peripherals told a different story.

Now, the Royals are paying what’s left of the tab for doubling down on a historic contention window. Kennedy accounts for two hefty line items: $16.5MM salaries in 2019 and 2020.

Looking at the present roster, bumping Kennedy will somewhat ironically open the door for Homer Bailey to join the starting staff. The oft-injured hurler is still due $23MM this year along with a $5MM buyout on what was once a 2020 option. Bailey was cut loose by the Dodgers entering the final year of the big extension that he signed with the Reds and which was shipped to Los Angeles this winter. The K.C. org will owe him only the MLB minimum.

Bailey will get a shot at redemption in Kansas City. Kennedy, meanwhile, will try to carve out a second act as a reliever while remaining available as a depth option should a rotation need arise.

AL Central Notes: Adrianza, Twins, Salazar, Royals, Beckham

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With eight games until the end of Spring Training, infielder Ehire Adrianza isn’t assured of a spot on the Twins’ Opening Day roster, writes LaVelle E. Neal III of the Minneapolis Star Tribune. Adrianza is out of minor league options, so if he doesn’t break camp with the club he’d be exposed to outright waivers. Minnesota’s addition of Marwin Gonzalez and the emergence of Willians Astudillo have left Adrianza without a clear role. Gonzalez will open the season as the primary third baseman while Miguel Sano rehabs a foot injury, but the Twins could go with a bench consisting of catcher Mitch Garver, outfielder Jake Cave, first baseman Tyler Austin (also out of minor league options) and Astudillo. Cave has options remaining, and Gonzalez can play the outfield, but they’d be rather thin on outfielders if Cave opened the year in Triple-A. Adrianza has enjoyed a nice spring, but he’s in a tough spot at the moment. He’s set to earn $1.3MM after avoiding arbitration, but they’d only owe him about $315K of that sum if they cut him loose between now and Opening Day. If he hits waivers, another club would have to take on that $1.3MM salary in order to claim him.

More from the division…

  • Danny Salazar’s progress in his recovery from 2018 shoulder surgery has “skyrocketed” in the past 10 to 14 days, Indians manager Terry Francona said Monday (link via Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer). Salazar had slogged through a pair of “down weeks” but has quickly bounced back to the point where he’s playing long toss from a distance of 180 feet. There’s still no clear timetable as to when Salazar will reemerge as a bullpen option in Cleveland — Corey Kluber, Trevor Bauer, Carlos Carrasco, Mike Clevinger and Shane Bieber have rotation spots locked down — but if healthy, he’d add a big arm to a relief corps that is lacking in established arms behind closer Brad Hand.
  • The Royals are still trying to determine which of the several right field options they have in camp will make the roster, writes Rustin Dodd of The Athletic (subscription required). Manager Ned Yost has said that Jorge Soler will be in the lineup nearly everyday, splitting time between DH and right field, but the Royals still have Brian Goodwin, Brett Phillips and Jorge Bonifacio as candidates for significant innings in right. None of that trio has had a good spring, however, and Goodwin is out of minor league options. Terrance Gore, on the active roster after signing a big league deal this winter, is viewed as more of a bench option than a candidate to log many starts in the outfield. There will likely be occasional at-bats at the other outfield slots, but Alex Gordon and Billy Hamilton will get the bulk of the playing time in left field and center field, respectively. Dodd ultimately runs through the entire lineup and pitching staff in making his projections as to which 25 players will break camp and comprise the Opening Day roster.
  • Gordon Beckham spoke with Chris McCosky of the Detroit News about his transformation from lauded top prospect to a journeyman bouncing from minor league deal to minor league deal. In camp with the Tigers on a minor league pact, Beckham was candid in discussing his ups and downs and many of the difficult moments he’s faced in his career. Struggling for the first time in his career at the big league level with the White Sox, Beckham said the pressure to meet expectations “mentally crushed” him. He had even weighed whether he’d continue his playing career if he failed to land a big league job this spring, reflecting that it’s “crazy to think I have to make this decision.” However, as McCosky outlines, he actually may not have to make that decision. Manager Ron Gardenhire has been impressed by Beckham this spring, spoken fondly of the veteran infielder, and expressed a desire for additional veteran middle-infield depth. All of that seemingly bodes well for Beckham, who entered play Monday hitting .314/.429/.429 in 42 plate appearances this spring.

Blue Jays Acquire Jason Adam; Devon Travis, Mark Leiter Jr. Undergo Surgery

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The Blue Jays have acquired right-hander Jason Adam from the Royals for cash considerations, Scott Mitchell of TSN reports. Additionally, the Blue Jays announced notable injury news regarding second baseman Devon Travis and right-hander Mark Leiter Jr., Shi Davidi of Sportsnet tweets. Travis underwent arthroscopic surgery “to address a small meniscus tear in his left knee” and will be reassessed in four to six weeks, while Leiter will miss the season after undergoing Tommy John surgery.

Adam, a Kansas native, is leaving the Royals via trade for the second time since they selected him in the fifth round of the 2010 draft. They previously dealt Adam to the Twins in 2014 for slugger Josh Willingham, only to bring him back on a minor league contract in 2017 following a stint with the Padres. After overcoming multiple serious injuries to his arm, as ESPN’s Keith Law explained last May, Adam made his major league debut in 2018 and recorded a subpar 6.12 ERA/6.16 FIP over 32 1/3 innings and 31 appearances. At the same time, though, the 27-year-old did manage playable strikeout and walk numbers (10.3 K/9, 4.18 BB/9).

As is the case with Adam, injuries have been a major problem during Travis’ pro career. Left knee inflammation sidelined the 28-year-old for a couple weeks before he underwent surgery, making it the latest lower body issue for a player who hasn’t appeared in more than 103 games in a major league season since debuting in 2015. Notably, Travis totaled just 50 appearances in 2017 on account of right knee surgery. He didn’t perform well last year in a 378-plate appearance return, over which he hit just .232/.275/.381 (77 wRC+). As a result, the Jays weren’t guaranteeing a starting job to Travis entering camp. It’s a moot point now, though, as Lourdes Gurriel Jr., Freddy Galvis and Richard Urena appear likely to open the season as the Jays’ top middle infield options.

Leiter, 28, joined Toronto last September via waivers from the Phillies, but the Blue Jays ended up designating him for assignment and then outrighting him over the winter. While Leiter garnered extensive experience with the Phillies in 2017, when he amassed 90 2/3 innings and put up a 4.96 ERA/5.14 FIP, a flexor strain helped limit him to just 51 2/3 frames between the majors and minors last year. In 23 1/3 innings divided between Philly and Toronto, he only managed a 7.71 ERA/6.98 FIP.

AL Central Notes: Joyce, Clippard, Zimmer, White Sox

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The Indians have informed veteran outfielder Matt Joyce that he won’t make the roster, manager Terry Francona told reporters Friday (Twitter link via STO’s Andre Knott). The team is giving Joyce a bit of time to ponder his next step — presumably exploring other opportunities out there and weighing a potential assignment to Triple-A Columbus. The 34-year-old Joyce had a rough 2018 season with the A’s (.208/.322/.353 in 246 PAs) and is just 5-for-27 with seven punchouts and three walks thus far in Spring Training. However, he’s only one season removed from batting .243/.335/.473 with Oakland in 2017 and has generally functioned as a quality platoon bat over the past decade in the Majors. Of course, finding another opportunity could be tough, as there are still other veteran left-handed-hitting outfield bats looking for work on the market — including Carlos Gonzalez and Denard Span.

With Joyce out of the mix for the Indians, it seems they’ll lean on some combination of Greg Allen, Jake Bauers, Leonys Martin, Tyler Naquin and Jordan Luplow in the outfield. Once Bradley Zimmer has fully recovered from shoulder surgery, he’ll reemerge as an option as well.

Here’s more from the AL Central…

  • Another veteran in camp with the Indians on a minor league deal, Tyler Clippard, will be sidelined from baseball activities for three to four weeks due to a mild pectoral strain, the club announced. The Indians, however, would like to keep Clippard, per Francona. That seemingly suggests that the Indians view the right-hander as a legitimate part of their MLB pen this year, though it’s tough to know what the roster landscape will look like when he is ready to resume competitive action. The 34-year-old Clippard has appeared in three spring contests and tallied 2 2/3 scoreless innings with three strikeouts and a walk. Last year, in 68 2/3 frames with the Blue Jays, he logged a 3.67 ERA with 11.1 K/9 and 3.0 BB/9 against an alarming 1.70 HR/9 mark.
  • It seems there’s a realistic chance that Royals right-hander Kyle Zimmer will head north on the active roster, MLB.com’s Jeffrey Flanagan writes. He’s throwing in the mid-nineties and showing an impressive curveball, per skipper Ned Yost, who says that the progress throughout camp has been remarkable. The 27-year-old Zimmer, once the fifth overall pick in the draft, has yet to appear in the big leagues. He re-signed with the club on a MLB deal back in November but can still be optioned to Triple-A. Flanagan notes that the Royals are likely to carry an eight-man bullpen, though several spots are already earmarked for Wily Peralta, Brad Boxberger, Jake Diekman, Tim Hill, Kevin McCarthy and perhaps Rule 5 pick Sam McWilliams.
  • White Sox GM Rick Hahn discussed his team’s plans for its top prospects, as Madeline Kenney of the Chicago Sun-Times reports. Hahn cited a tepid spring showing at the plate as the basis for the decision to place exciting youngster Eloy Jimenez back at Triple-A. Jimenez slashed .355/.399/.597 in 228 plate appearances there last year. As for top pitching prospect Dylan Cease, Hahn says the righty is ready to succeed in the majors. But he’ll also head back to the upper minors as part of the team’s plan to “get him through an entire season strong.” Cease threw a career-high 124 innings last year and so likely won’t be asked to take 32 starts in the season to come. Hahn says he’ll likely join the MLB roster at some point during the summer.

Health Notes: Duffy, Polanco, Hicks, Sabathia, Didi

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Here are the latest updates on a few health situations from around the game …

  • Royals lefty Danny Duffy is working through a mound progression, Jeffrey Flanagan of MLB.com reports on Twitter. Shoulder tightness has limited Duffy in camp and seems likely to prevent him from opening the season on the active roster. He’ll throw 25 to 30 pitches off the bump tomorrow, working in a few offspeed offerings in a session that ought to help the club assess his timeline.
  • Though Pirates outfielder Gregory Polanco hit in a minor-league game today, he’s still on a slow path back to the majors. Bill Brink of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette tweets that throwing is the major limiting factor at this point for Polanco, who’s working back from shoulder surgery. Still, the outlook seems much better now than might have been feared. Polanco could return in May, per Brink, which might make for a nice early-season boost.
  • Yankees outfielder Aaron Hicks has undergone a cortisone shot in hopes of resolving some lower back woes, Kristie Ackert of the New York Daily News reports. He called it a “lingering” problem that needed to be taken care of, but shouldn’t hamper his ability to play on Opening Day. Hicks believes he’ll only need to sit out a few days before getting back to action and finishing his preparation for the coming season — his first since inking a $70MM deal with the club earlier this spring.
  • In other Yankees news, southpaw CC Sabathia toed the rubber against hitters today for the first time in camp, Ackert tweets. Sabathia has been taking things slow after undergoing an angioplasty over the offseason. Shortstop Didi Gregorius is on an even longer timeline as he works back from Tommy John surgery. He’s currently taking dry swings with the bat, though, as MLB.com’s Bryan Hoch tweets. It’s good to see some tangible progress; Gregorius, though, still appears to be on a timeline to return in the middle of the season.

Central Notes: Moustakas, Boxberger, Lorenzen, Rupp

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The Brewers will press ahead with their unconventional plan for Mike Moustakas. Skipper Craig Counsell says the long-time third baseman will indeed line up at second base in Milwaukee, as Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel was among those to tweet. The move from the hot corner to second isn’t particularly common. And it’s all but unprecedented for a player to be handed the keys to an up-the-middle defensive position that he has never before played professionally. (Moustakas does have minimal experience at shortstop dating to his first two seasons as a pro.) The Brewers obviously feel the tools are there to allow Moustakas to succeed — once he has been positioned optimally, at least.

More from the central divisions:

  • Royals reliever Brad Boxberger was kept out of spring action with an unspecified leg issue, Lynn Worthy of the Kansas City Star reports (Twitter link). Manager Ned Yost would say only that the hurler had “tweaked” something. Fortunately, Boxberger was able to get back on the bump last night and now seems on track to be ready for the start of the season. Boxberger, who is earning $2.2MM on a one-year deal with the Royals, has been expected to serve as his new club’s closer.
  • The Reds trotted out Michael Lorenzen as a two-way player in Cactus League action today, as MLB.com’s Mark Sheldon writes. Dual deployment has long been anticipated, though it was — and remains — unclear how frequent he’ll be called upon to line up in the outfield. Lorenzen was in center field today. The 27-year-old hit a robust .290/.333/.710 with four home runs in 34 plate appearances last year, so it’s understandable that the club would like to see what he can do with more opportunities.
  • Baseball decisions can be tough to understand at times. Cameron Rupp’s recent history presents a bit of a puzzle, as Chris McCosky of the Detroit News explores. The Tigers’ newly added backstop played in at least half of the Phillies games annually from 2015 through 2017, producing just-below-average, power-driven offense. Rupp’s framing fell apart in 2017, but he had been a decent performer in that metric previously and otherwise was not a problem behind the dish. Despite being relatively youthful and continuing to turn in solid work at the plate, though, Rupp never got a call to the big leagues last year and is already on to his second organization this spring.

An earlier version of this post mistakenly indicated that Boxberger had not yet returned to game action.

Royals Sign Martin Maldonado

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March 11: The Royals have announced the signing. To make room on the 40-man roster, Perez has been placed on the 60-day injured list.

March 9: The Royals are in agreement with free agent catcher Martin Maldonado on a one-year, $2.5MM contract, per the Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal (via Twitter). Maldonado can earn up to $1.4MM in incentives. The deal is pending a physical.

This union was destined ever since the Royals lost starter Salvador Perez for the season to Tommy John surgery. The Royals were left with only Cam Gallagher and Meibrys Viloria atop their depth chart, which easily would have been the most inexperienced duo in the league. The Maldonado signing likely gives Viloria more time to season in the minors, as he had not appeared above High-A before getting 29 plate appearances with the Royals last season.

While Maldonado has a good chance of becoming a trade chip before the end of July – he’s a good one, one of the most accomplished defensive backstops in the game, and he should help buoy a young Royals staff.

As MLBTR’s own Steve Adams wrote just two days ago: “That Maldonado remains unsigned has seemed an oddity in recent weeks; while he’s unequivocally a below-average hitter, the 32-year-old is also among the game’s premier defenders at his position. As I noted about three weeks ago when Maldonado was linked to the Mariners, the 2016 Gold Glover ranks third among all active catchers in Defensive Runs Saved dating back to the 2012 season, trailing only Buster Posey and Yadier Molina — each of whom has caught at least 2000 more innings than Maldonado in that span. He’s also a perennially strong pitch framer with a career 38 percent caught-stealing rate, including a ridiculous 49 percent mark in 2018 (17-for-35).”

Considering the prevalence of time shares at the catching position these days, it was indeed surprising that it took Maldonado so long to find a home. With the Brewers, Angels and Astros, he has a career batting line of .220/.289/.350, but that shouldn’t have been much of a deterrent in an ecosystem that lacks elite offensive production from the catching spot. Playing devil’s advocate here, Maldonado’s 0.9 fWAR in 2018 places him tied for 25th among catchers last season, on par with names like Matt Wieters and Nick Hundley, both of whom had to settle for minor league deals this winter. Maldonado was rumored to have received a two-year, $12MM offer from the Astros early in the winter, but according to his former agent Scott Boras, they never received a formal offer from Houston, per MLB Network’s Jon Heyman (via Twitter).

Interestingly, the deal comes just a few days after Maldonado switched representation, hiring Dan Lozano of the MVP Sports Group. Maldonado had spent just a few months (since August) with the Boras Corporation. Still, it appears this contract was put in place before the switch, as Boras will collect commission on the deal. Rosenthal (via Twitter) quotes Boras as saying, “The Kansas City deal was in place and finalized without us knowing Maldonado had switched agents.”

Royals Trade Donnie Dewees To Cubs For Stephen Ridings

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The Royals have acquired right-handed pitcher Stephen Ridings from the Cubs in exchange for Donnie Dewees, the team announced (via Twitter).

Ridings, 23, was an 8th round draft pick of the Cubs in 2016. Last season for the Eugene Emeralds, the Cubs short season A-ball club, he went 3-3 with a 4.15 ERA in 34 2/3 innings across 22 relief appearances. In his short professional career, the 6’8″ product of Haverford College has shown the classic power-pitcher profile, missing bats (11.4 K/9) while struggling with command at times (3.9 BB/9).

The Royals originally acquired Dewees from the Cubs in February of 2017 in exchange for right-hander Alec Mills. Currently competing for a spot in the Cubs bullpen, Mills produced solid small-sample results for the Cubs in a swing role last season, a role he’s angling to reprise in 2019 – though he’s likely ticketed for the Triple-A rotation at least to start the season. In two starts and five relief appearances for the Cubs in 2018, Mills, 27, earned a 4.00 ERA in 18 innings at the big league level.

Dewees returns to for his second stint with the Cubs after struggling to hit for much power in the Royals system. The lefty outfielder hit .258/.310/.383 in Double-A and Triple-A last season. The Cubs selected him in the 2nd round in the 2015 draft, topping out in Single-A with a strong .282/.337/.414 with 15 doubles, 12 triples, and 3 home runs in the season before the Cubs sent him to KC.

He can capably handle all three outfield positions, though without a standout offensive skill, the 25-year-old lefty will probably begin the year in Triple-A. He’ll have a chance to crack the 25-man roster, as the Cubs don’t have a natural 5th outfielder on the roster. They are, however, flush with outfield options, as Kyle Schwarber, Ian Happ, Jason Heyward, Albert Almora Jr., Ben Zobrist, Kris Bryant, David Bote, and Daniel Descalso have all seen time in the outfield. Johnny Field, Mark Zagunis, Jacob Hannemann, and Jim Adduci fill out the next tier of outfielders that will compete with Dewees in his second stint with the Cubs.

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