Angels To Sign Michael Bourn
The Angels have agreed to a minor-league deal with veteran outfielder Michael Bourn, according to SB Nation’s Chris Cotillo (Twitter link). He had recently opted out of his deal with the Orioles.
Los Angeles is building up its outfield depth in the wake of injuries to Mike Trout and Cameron Maybin, each of whom are on the DL. Bourn will head to Triple-A Salt Lake City, which just lost Eric Young Jr. and Shane Robinson to the MLB roster.
Bourn, 34, finished his 2016 season on a strong note in a productive 24-game run with the Orioles. But he had struggled earlier in the year with the Diamondbacks and hasn’t been a productive regular since 2013.
Still, it seems reasonable to hope that the fleet-footed veteran could function as a useful bench or platoon player. He was getting on base at an excellent .373 clip through 51 plate appearances at Triple-A in the Baltimore organization, though he was lagging in batting average (.220) and power (.317 slugging percentage).
Angels Pause Huston Street’s Throwing Program
The Angels have paused the throwing program for injured right-hander Huston Street, the team announced to reporters on Thursday night (link via Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register). Street was on a minor league rehab assignment with Triple-A Salt Lake but felt some tightness in his right triceps. He’s been out the entire year thus far due to a strained right lat muscle.
In the absence of Street and fellow righty Cam Bedrosian, the Angels have received some relatively surprising contributions from an unlikely collection of relievers that were acquired at a bargain rate. Veteran Bud Norris has stepped into the closer’s role and pitched quite well (last night’s lackluster outing notwithstanding), while Blake Parker, David Hernandez and Yusmeiro Petit have all made strong contributions out of the bullpen as well.
The 33-year-old Street is currently playing out the second season of a two-year, $18MM contract and is earning $9MM this year (plus a $1MM buyout of a 2018 option). The contract hasn’t worked out the way the Halos had hoped, to say the least. Last season, Street limped to a 6.45 ERA through 30 1/3 innings as he dealt with knee and oblique injuries that likely contributed to a career-worst 88.2 mph average fastball velocity.
It doesn’t seem especially likely that Street will be handed the reins to the ninth inning when (or if) he is ultimately deemed healthy enough to return. Norris has excelled in closer’s role, pitching to a 2.08 ERA with 24 strikeouts against nine walks in 17 1/3 innings since being asked to lock down his first save of the season. And while Norris’ success and affordable salary on a one-year commitment make him an obvious summer trade candidate, the much-younger Bedrosian looked every bit the part of a big league closer last year when logging a 1.12 ERA with 11.4 K/9, 3.1 BB/9 and a 49.6 percent ground-ball rate in 40 1/3 innings for the Angels.
Mike Trout Undergoes Thumb Surgery
May 31: The Angels announced today that Trout “underwent successful surgery to the ulnar collateral ligament of his left thumb as well as a repair of his dorsal capsule today.” The general timetable for his return is currently pegged at six to eight weeks, per the team.
May 29, 10:26pm: Trout will undergo surgery on Wednesday, the club announced. He is expected to miss approximately six to eight weeks.
6:33pm: The Angels will place superstar center fielder Mike Trout on the 10-day DL for the first time in his career, according to J.P. Hoornstra of the Southern California News Group (via Twitter). An MRI today revealed a torn ulnar collateral ligament in Trout’s left thumb, the team announced and Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times was among those to report (Twitter link).
Surgery is on the table at this point, though a decision has yet to be made. If the 25-year-old does end up going under the knife, he could be facing an extended absence for the first time in his already-storied career.
Los Angeles has selected the contract of veteran journeyman Eric Young Jr. to replace Trout on the roster. Young, who just turned 32, signed with the organization on a minor-league deal over the winter.
Injuries have hit the Angels rather hard through the first two months of the season, especially in the pitching staff, though the team has managed to hover around .500. That’s due in no small par to the otherworldly contributions of Trout, who entered today’s action with a ridiculous .337/.461/.742 batting line and a league-leading 16 home runs.
Trout had a less-than-sizzling start to his career upon a late-season call-up in 2011, his age-19 season, but has otherwise been utterly exceptional. He also has enjoyed more or less flawless health during his historic run since the start of 2012, playing in all but 45 of the Angels’ games until today.
Clearly, there’s no replacing Trout, but the Halos are set up about as well as could be hoped to weather an absence up the middle. Cameron Maybin and Ben Revere each have significant experience in center, and Young has spent a good bit of time there as well.
Young has seen action in each of the last eight MLB seasons, though he made it into only six games in 2016. While he has never hit much at the game’s highest level, Young is slashing a robust .354/.419/.528 with five home runs and 15 steals through 201 Triple-A plate appearances this year.
Angels Designate Daniel Wright, Select Contract Of Shane Robinson
The Angels announced today that they’ve selected the contract of outfielder Shane Robinson and designated right-hander Daniel Wright for assignment in order to clear a spot on the 40-man roster. Righty Parker Bridwell was optioned to Triple-A Salt Lake to clear a spot on the active roster.
[Related: Updated Los Angeles Angels depth chart]
Robinson, 32, saw action in 65 games with the Halos last season and hit .173/.257/.235 over the life of 111 plate appearances. The veteran outfielder has seen action in each of the past six big league seasons, though the resulting .227/.298/.302 batting line has clearly been sub-par. Robinson, though, has plenty of experience at all three outfield positions and has routinely delivered above-average ratings in left field, center field and right field. He’ll give the Halos a defensive-minded reserve in the absence of Mike Trout, as Cameron Maybin and Ben Revere each see an uptick in playing time while Trout recuperates.
The 26-year-old Wright, meanwhile, has pitched just 17 1/3 innings with Anaheim this season after logging 39 2/3 frames between the Reds and Angels last year. Through 57 Major League innings, Wright owns a 5.84 ERA with 5.1 K/9, 2.4 BB/9 and a 37.1 percent ground-ball rate. Wright has a respectable track record in Double-A but has struggled in both Triple-A and the Majors across the past two seasons. He does have a pair of minor league options remaining, so a club in need of optionable pitching depth could pick him up and send him to the minors without once again exposing Wright to waivers.
Injury Notes: Trout, Kendrick, Happ, Liriano, Gray
Updates on some injury situations around baseball….
- Mike Trout sprained his left thumb while sliding into second base in today’s game against the Marlins, which led to the Angels superstar to leave the game an inning later. (Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register was one of many with the details.) X-rays were negative on the injury, though more will be known once Trout undergoes an MRI tomorrow. Trout has never been on the disabled list in his career, though he did miss a few games earlier this month with a hamstring issue. Needless to say, losing Trout would be an enormous blow to an Angels team that is hanging in in the AL wild card race despite a plethora of pitching injuries and a lack of team hitting, Trout’s incredible .337/.461/.742 slash line notwithstanding.
- Howie Kendrick is expected to be activated from the DL tomorrow, MLB.com’s Todd Zolecki tweets. The veteran was off to a good start in his first 10 games with the Phillies before hitting the DL in mid-April with an oblique strain. He was the starting left fielder in all 10 of his games, though one might expect the versatile Kendrick to be moved around the diamond since Aaron Altherr has broken out since taking over in left.
- The Blue Jays could get both J.A. Happ and Francisco Liriano back from the DL this week, Sportsnet’s Shi Davidi writes. Happ could be activated as early as Tuesday for a start against the Reds, as though he may be limited to 65-70 pitches, the Jays bullpen could pick up the slack (assuming Marcus Stroman doesn’t have an abbreviated start on Monday, of course). Happ has been sidelined since mid-April due to elbow inflammation, while Liriano hit the DL earlier this month due to shoulder inflammation. Liriano is scheduled for a rehab start tonight and is tentatively slated to return to the Jays for a start against the Yankees on Friday.
- Rockies righty Jon Gray threw a bullpen session today as he continues his recovery from a fractured left foot. Manager Bud Black told the Denver Post’s Nick Groke and other reporters that Gray will undergo leg-strengthening exercises this week in order to allow for fielding practice, and then Gray will embark on a rehab assignment. Despite this rough outline, there is “no timetable for when he returns to a game,” Black said. Gray made only three starts before suffering his stress fracture, though his absence hasn’t stopped the surprising Rockies from posting the National League’s best record.
West Notes: Gray, Halos, Lamet, Hand, Shelby
Sonny Gray‘s two most recent starts for the Athletics have altered his stock in a hurry, writes ESPN’s Buster Olney. Gray’s struggles over the past 13 to 14 months have been tied not only to injury but to a (quite possibly related) drop in his swinging-strike rate, but he’s racked up swings-and-misses in his each of his past two outings thanks to a revitalized breaking pitch. Gray’s velocity spiked in his most recent start, as well — an outing in which he completed seven one-run innings and whiffed 11 Marlins hitters on just 88 pitches. Olney suggests that Gray could emerge as the top trade target on the market if this trend continues much longer, as the A’s are typically willing to deal earlier than most clubs, there are motivated buyers already (e.g. Cubs, Yankees, Astros) and Oakland may wish to cash in while Gray is looking impressive.
More from the game’s Western divisions…
- Injured Angels relievers Huston Street, Mike Morin and Cam Bedrosian are all making good progress in their recoveries, writes Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register. And while Morin has minor league options remaining and isn’t a lock to return to the big league club right away, the returns of Street and Bedrosian will give manager Mike Scioscia some interesting decisions when it comes to late-inning bullpen usage. Bud Norris has been outstanding in a ninth-inning role, but Bedrosian has been the team’s best reliever for a year, and Street is has the track record and salary of a veteran closer. Fletcher notes that the Angels only have two relievers with minor league options at present, one being left-hander Jose Alvarez, who won’t be going anywhere. As such, it seems that another 40-man move could be necessary. Bedrosian is set to start a rehab assignment within the next week or so.
- Dennis Lin of the San Diego Union Tribune takes a look at right-hander Dinelson Lamet‘s unlikely path to the Major Leagues in advance of the 24-year-old’s MLB debut. Lamet, who will start for the Padres tonight, is the rare Dominican-born prospect that did not sign until after his 20th birthday, Lin notes. Most Dominican ballplayers that show big league potential are snatched up beginning at age 16 and possibly a year or two later, but Lamet signed less than two months before turning 22 and is now set to debut less than three years later. As Lin writes, Lamet was poised to sign with the Phillies, but a documentation issue torpedoed that deal. Lin chats with former Padres exec Randy Smith about what the team saw in Lamet as an amateur and how they went about closing the deal.
- Padres manager Andy Green won’t name Brad Hand his new closer despite the lefty’s save in last night’s win over the Mets, but he did tell reporters that Hand and former closer Brandon Maurer will both be in the mix for saves (link via MLB.com’s AJ Cassavell). “It’s going to be looking at the game and seeing what’s best for the group of guys we have at that point in time,” says Green. “I think we’ll just bounce guys around and utilize them in the best way possible going forward right now. Wouldn’t be shocked at all to see Brandon Maurer in that situation in the ninth. Wouldn’t be shocked to see Brad Hand back in that situation.” Hand, of course, saw his name pop up as a trade target in a couple of reports last night and figures to be an oft-rumored trade candidate in the months leading up to the non-waiver deadline. For that matter, though, Maurer could also generate interest, though he’d first need to distance himself from a rough stretch of games through which he struggled in mid-May.
- Jack Magruder of FanRag Sports adds some context to Shelby Miller‘s recent Tommy John surgery, tweeting that Miller was diagnosed with a 50 percent tear of the ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow. The extent of the tear doesn’t necessarily change Miller’s timeline for recovery, of course. He’ll still miss the remainder of the 2017 season and hope to return to the D-backs‘ rotation at some point in the first half of the 2017 campaign.
10 Minor-League Free Agent Relievers Off To Strong Starts
There’s no more fickle existence in Major League Baseball than that of a relief pitcher. Teams are generally more willing to tinker with their bullpens than their benches, and often need to make changes to account for overworked staffs.
But the tumult also brings opportunity. Relievers who are throwing well at the right moment can find themselves right back in the majors. And there are often wide-open Spring Training battles to be joined and won.
Plenty of relievers signed minor-league deals last winter. And a solid number of them ended up on MLB rosters within the first two months of the season. Despite failing to receive MLB guarantees on the free-agent market, these ten hurlers have provided quite a bit of value in the early going:
Matt Albers, Nationals: With the Nats’ pen struggling badly, Albers has been a desperately need source of reliable frames: 16 2/3 innings of 1.62 ERA ball. A strong 57.8% groundball rate and meager 1.6 BB/9 walk rate tend to support the results, though Albers isn’t getting enough whiffs (7.6 K/9) to keep up quite this level of pitching.
Craig Breslow, Twins: The lefty specialist has been everything the Minnesota front office hoped for when it bought into his new-look delivery over the winter. Like Albers, a minimal BABIP (.217 in this case) helps explain the sub-2.00 ERA, though in both cases the solid early work is enough to entrench these pitchers in their respective pens for the time being.
Jorge De La Rosa, Diamondbacks: A long-time starter, De La Rosa has averaged less than one inning per relief appearance in Arizona. But the results of that change in focus have been quite promising. It’s good enough that De La Rosa carries a 50% groundball rate with 8.8 K/9 and 3.5 BB/9, supporting a 2.35 ERA through 15 1/3 frames. But there could be more in the tank, as he’s also averaging a career-high 94.1 mph with his fastball and generating a huge 19.5% swinging-strike rate.
David Hernandez, Angels: Though he has completed just 11 innings thus far, after making his debut later than most of the names on this list, Hernandez has impressed. He’s showing the same kind of velocity and swinging-strike rates that made him a buy-low option last year for the Phillies, but the real question is whether he can continue to avoid the long balls that have plagued him in recent years.
J.J. Hoover, Diamondbacks: It was anyone’s guess whether the former Reds’ late-inning stalwart would rebound, but he’s showing well through fifteen frames in Arizona. Hoover is walking more than five batters per nine, but has also racked up 12.6 K/9 (on a career-high 12.6% swinging-strike rate) and owns a 3.00 ERA. So far, a new pitch mix (more two-seamers and sliders) seems to be working.
Jason Motte, Braves: After beating out Hernandez to become the next veteran reclamation project in Atlanta, Motte has ascended to the majors and helped stabilize the pen. His peripherals aren’t terribly inspiring — 6.4 K/9, 3.2 BB/9, 53.1% groundball rate — but the results (1.59 ERA) have been there through 11 1/3 innings.
Bud Norris, Angels: The crown jewel of the Halos’ impressive slate of finds, Norris has thrived in the closer’s role that he took over out of necessity. Through 23 2/3 innings, he carries a 2.66 ERA with 11.8 K/9, 3.4 BB/9, and a 44.2% groundball rate. Norris is bringing more velocity (94.1 mph fastball) and swinging strikes (13.2%) than ever before.
Yusmeiro Petit, Angels: The veteran long man has been stellar, delivering 28 1/3 staff-preserving innings of 2.54 ERA ball through 16 appearances. Petit is carrying 9.5 K/9 against 3.2 BB/9 on the year. (As if the trio of arms on this list weren’t enough, the Halos have also benefited from the strong work of Blake Parker, who had been outrighted off the 40-man roster over the winter.)
Anthony Swarzak, White Sox: There are some very strong performers on this list, but perhaps none has been quite as impressive as Swarzak. He has given the South Siders 19 2/3 breakout innings of 1.37 ERA ball, with 10.1 K/9 and just 0.9 BB/9 in that span. At present, he’s working at a 19.8% swinging-strike rate — about double what he carried over the prior two campaigns — making him quite an interesting potential trade candidate this summer.
Jacob Turner, Nationals: Though he isn’t carrying sparkly numbers, Turner has been an important contributor in D.C. He’s functioning in the swingman role that Petit occupied last year, providing 21 2/3 innings (over two starts and six relief appearances) of 3.74 ERA pitching thus far. While Turner is averaging only 5.8 strikeouts and 3.3 walks per nine, he is continuing to carry the velocity boost he showed last year. Interestingly, he is now working in the zone far more than ever before (50.2% versus 42.1% career average) — though it’s also important to note that his swings and misses are way down (4.8%).
Angels Option C.J. Cron To Triple-A
The Angels announced on Monday that they’ve optioned first baseman/designated hitter C.J. Cron to Triple-A Salt Lake and recalled infielder Nolan Fontana in his place.
Entering the season, Cron was a popular trade candidate once the Angels signed Luis Valbuena, as it was reported that Valbuena would spend quite a bit of time at first base. The 27-year-old Cron, though, injured his left foot late in Spring Training and has hit poorly in 90 plate appearances since being activated: .232/.281/.305 with just one homer (a grand slam in yesterday’s game).
[Related: Updated Los Angeles Angels depth chart]
Slow start notwithstanding, Cron’s demotion comes as a mild surprise. He spent the entire 2016 season on the Angels’ Major League roster and hasn’t been optioned to the minors since early June of the 2015 campaign. And from the time of his recall from that most recent Triple-A stint through the end of the 2016 season, Cron slashed an impressive .281/.325/.481 with 31 long balls over the life of 735 Major League plate appearances. While that’s not quite elite production, it’s considerably better than the league average (121 wRC+).
From a service time vantage point, however, the move isn’t likely to impact Cron one way or another. He entered the year with two years, 110 days of Major League service time, meaning he needed just 62 days in the Majors to reach his third full year of service, thereby keeping him on track to reach free agency following the 2020 season. While he hasn’t quite reached the requisite 62 days, he needs just 12 more days of service time in order to do so. Even if Cron were to spend the bulk of the season in Triple-A, he’d still accrue those final 12 days as a September call-up, so the only real way this would delay his free agency would be if he were to incur a season-ending injury in the minors and finish out the year on the disabled list.
With Cron in the minors and Yunel Escobar on the disabled list, it seems likely that Valbuena will spend a considerable amount of time at third base, with Jefry Marte handling duties at first base. Albert Pujols could see a bit of action at first as well, though he’s played in the field just twice in 40 games this season, so the team doesn’t appear to view him as a regular option there.
Angels Sign Doug Fister
12:15pm: Fletcher reports that Fister also has an out clause in his contract and will be released if he’s not in the Majors by June 21 (Twitter link). Cotillo noted that the contract has up to $1.2MM worth of incentives available, and as the Associated Press reports, $1MM of those incentives are tied to starting, while $200K are tied to relief work. According to the AP, Fister will earn $100K for making each of his eighth, 10th and 12th starts as an Angel. He’d also earn $150K apiece for reaching 14, 16 and 18 starts, plus another $250K if he starts a 20th game. The deal also has $200K worth of relief incentives — $50K for his 25th and 30th appearances plus $100K for his 35th.
MAY 22, 7:38am: Cotillo reports that Fister will received a pro-rated $1.75MM base salary in the Majors. Fister’s salary is not guaranteed, Fletcher tweets.
MAY 20: The Angels have made the signing official, with Fister inking a one-year deal (hat tip to Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register). He will be assigned to Class-A ball in order to get himself ready for big league action. In a corresponding move to create 40-man roster space, Andrew Bailey was shifted to the 60-day DL.
MAY 18: The Angels are in agreement with free-agent right-hander Doug Fister on a Major League contract, reports SB Nation’s Chris Cotillo (via Twitter). Fister is a client of PSI Sports Management.
As of last week, the 33-year-old Fister was said to be close to signing, and Cotillo listed the Angels as one of five clubs in the mix for him at that time. Presumably, though his contract is of the Major League variety, the veteran Fister has consented to be optioned to the minors in order to ramp up to the point where he’s big league ready. Due to the fact that he didn’t sign a contract this past offseason, Fister hasn’t been pitching competitively anywhere and isn’t likely to be ready to step right onto a big league pitching staff.
Pitching depth is a clear area of need for the Halos, who entered the season with Andrew Heaney and Nick Tropeano mending from Tommy John surgery and have since lost Garrett Richards (biceps strain) and Tyler Skaggs (oblique strain) to long-term injuries. (Skaggs, who is expected to miss more than two months, could be moved to the 60-day DL to create room for Fister on the 40-man roster).
With those four arms on the shelf, the Halos have been utilizing Ricky Nolasco, Matt Shoemaker, J.C. Ramirez, Jesse Chavez and Alex Meyer in the starting rotation. Fister could conceivably step into the spot of either Chavez or Meyer, though he could also begin the year in a long relief role if the Halos’ incumbent starters are performing well by the time he’s ready to join the staff.
It came as something of a surprise when Fister went unsigned this winter. Perhaps the veteran was holding out in hopes of securing a MLB roster spot, as he has now done. Whatever the reason, there ere plenty of organizations that surely would’ve liked to bring him in to compete in camp. After all, he was a high-quality starter as recently as 2014, when he gave the Nationals 164 innings of 2.41 ERA pitching.
That’s not to say that Fister had entered the open market on a high note. He inked a one-year, make-good deal with the Astros last year after struggling (and losing velocity) in 2015. Things did not go as hoped, as Fister ended with a 4.64 ERA with 5.7 K/9 against an uncharacteristically high 3.1 BB/9.
Looking underneath the hood a bit, that 2016 effort doesn’t look a whole lot better. Fister worked out of the zone less than ever (46.1% versus 52.3% career) even as he drew less chases than he had previously (28.9% versus 32.0% career). His typically strong groundball rates have fallen somewhat over the past two years, with Fister also allowing more dingers (over 1.2 per nine) than he had during his peak years.
If there was a positive to be found in Fister’s 2016 campaign, it was definitely in the health department. He made it through 32 starts for the first time since 2013 and did rebound a bit in the velocity department — though he still averaged about a tick less with the fastball than he did in 2014. If Fister can build on that, with an extra-long winter rest under his belt, then perhaps there’s a resurgence still to be found for the respected veteran.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
AL West Notes: Astros, Diaz, Weber, Angels
The Astros are lining up to pursue pitching at the trade deadline, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports writes. Houston has its sights set on a quality starter and left-handed reliever, per the report. That hasn’t really changed since the winter, of course, though the team has posted the best record in baseball to this point even without having made the desired upgrades. Rosenthal discusses some possible targets, but it seems that the ‘Stros haven’t yet fixed on any particular paths to adding these pieces. General manager Jeff Luhnow did recently tell MLB.com’s Brian McTaggart that the team doesn’t feel any urgency to rush into early trades thanks to its excellent start to the season, so the Astros may well wait to see how the full landscape of the trade market develops before pursuing upgrades.
Here’s more from the American League West:
- As the Mariners continue searching for solutions in the pen, the team has at least temporarily taken Edwin Diaz out of the closer’s role. As Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times writes, though, Steve Cishek did not succeed last night after being pressed into duty just after being activated. Fellow righties Nick Vincent and Tony Zych could also be options going forward, though the latter is also still being handled with care after a long injury layoff. For the time being, it seems, the ninth inning is in flux for Seattle.
- Meanwhile, Mariners righty Ryan Weber, who is among the organization’s many players on the 10-day DL, has been diagnosed with a “stretch of the musculocutaneous nerve,” per a club announcement. Details are sparse, but that nerve services the arm and plays a key role in elbow function. At present, it’s not known how long Weber could miss, but his absence removes yet another depth option from an injury-ravaged Seattle staff.
- The Angels may be charting a whole new course with their pitching staff, Rick Souddress of SB Nation observes. Numerous Halso pitchers are utilizing their four-seam fastballs at career-low levels, Souddress points out. Matt Shoemaker, David Hernandez, J.C. Ramirez, Bud Norris, Yusmeiro Petit and Cam Bedrosian (prior to his injury) are among Angels hurlers that have moved away from their four-seamers, and each has experienced success since doing so. The change is not unique to 2017, either; the 2016 season saw Shoemaker drop his ERA from 9.00 to 3.88 upon making that type of switch, while Bedrosian had a breakout year and Ramirez found success late in the campaign. It’s not clear whether the move away from four-seamers is a strategy implemented by GM Billy Eppler, pitching coach Charles Nagy or others in the organization, though Souddress rightly notes that the decrease correlates with Eppler’s arrival as general manager. Last year’s collective fastball usage of 52.3 percent was the Halos’ lowest rate since 2002, and this year’s 47.9 percent usage rate is their lowest (and fourth-lowest in all of baseball, per Fangraphs).