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Mets Announce Changes To Coaching Staff

By Steve Adams | October 3, 2017 at 8:49am CDT

The Mets formally announced on Tuesday what has been widely expected and reported for weeks: Terry Collins is out as the team’s manager and has accepted a role as a special assistant to general manager Sandy Alderson (as Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reported over the weekend). Beyond that, the Mets made formal the decision to dismiss pitching coach Dan Warthen, and they’ve also cut ties with head trainer Ray Ramirez. The rest of the team’s training and conditioning staff will return, and Warthen has been offered another role in the organization.

The Mets will retain hitting coach Kevin Long and assistant hitting coach Pat Roessler as well as third base coach Glenn Sherlock. The team hasn’t cut bench coach Dick Scott, first base coach Tom Goodwin or bullpen coach Ricky Bones, but each will be granted permission to speak with other teams once a new manager is selected. Notably, Mike Puma of the New York Post reported earlier this morning that the Mets will begin their managerial search, in earnest, this week.

Among the top external candidates, as previously reported by Puma and others, are Astros bench coach Alex Cora and Dodgers bench coach Bob Geren (who formerly served as the Mets’ bench coach under Terry Collins). The Mets, Puma writes, may try to get permission to interview Cora and Geren this week before their respective teams begin postseason play in the divisional series. He also suggested that Scott could be given the opportunity to interview as Collins’ replacement.

Regarding the pitching coach vacancy, Puma wrote that Bones is a top candidate to step into that role, which could open an opportunity for former Mets closer John Franco to interview as the team’s new bullpen coach. The 57-year-old Franco, who spent 14 seasons pitching for the Mets, has interest in coaching for his former team, according to Puma.

Ramirez’s dismissal as head trainer comes on the heels of one of the most injury-plagued seasons for any team in recent memory. While it’s certainly not fair to pin the entirety of the team’s injury woes on him, it’s long seemed possible that the staggering amount of Mets injuries this year would have some type of ramifications on the training/medical staff.

Noah Syndergaard missed most of the season with a torn lat muscle that was suffered after his now infamous decision to refuse an MRI. The Mets were also without Steven Matz, Seth Lugo, Matt Harvey and Zack Wheeler for much of the season due to various arm injuries (including a partial tear of Lugo’s UCL), while Yoenis Cespedes, Neil Walker, T.J. Rivera and Michael Conforto all suffered injuries on the position-player side of the equation. All of that is in addition to a season-long absence for David Wright, though his health has been an ongoing issue for the past couple of seasons as he tries to work his way back from shoulder and neck surgeries.

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Houston Astros Los Angeles Dodgers New York Mets Alex Cora Bob Geren Terry Collins

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NL Notes: Brewers, Scherzer, McCutchen, Cards, Dodgers

By Connor Byrne | October 1, 2017 at 4:50pm CDT

The Brewers’ impending free agents – infielders Neil Walker and Eric Sogard, reliever Anthony Swarzak and starter Matt Garza – spoke about their futures Sunday with Adam McCalvy of MLB.com and other reporters. Walker, the most noteworthy of the bunch, suggested that he’s keen on testing the open market in the offseason, though the August trade acquisitions did note that Milwaukee “is the type of team I’m going to be looking at. One that’s ready to win now and one that I can help.” Sogard and Swarzak made it clear they’d like to return to the Brewers, meanwhile, with the latter saying: “There’s still room to get better, and hopefully everybody in Brewers Nation gets to see a better Anthony Swarzak next year, because I want to stay here. I want to make another push here.”

While there’s clearly more baseball ahead of Walker, Sogard and Swarzak, the elder statesman of the group, Garza, admitted that his career could be at an end. The soon-to-be 34-year-old Garza acknowledged that he has struggled over the past couple seasons and said he’s “not expecting much” in the way of offers during the winter. Garza is wrapping up the four-year, $50MM contract he inked with the Brewers prior to the 2014 campaign. The righty made 96 appearances (93 starts) as a Brewer and logged a 4.65 ERA/4.38 FIP with the team.

More from the National League:

  • The MRI that Nationals ace Max Scherzer underwent on his right hamstring after he exited Saturday’s start only showed a minor tweak, Chelsea Janes of the Washington Post was among those to report (Twitter links). The Cy Young hopeful is unsure if he’ll be able to take the ball for Game 1 of the NLDS against the Cubs on Friday, but he looked “normal” when playing catch before the Nationals’ game Sunday, Janes observes.
  • Andrew McCutchen will remain in center field if he’s still on the Pirates next year, general manager Neal Huntington told Adam Berry of MLB.com and other media Sunday. From 2009-16, McCutchen lined up exclusively in center field, but after an especially poor showing in the grass last year, the Pirates shifted him to right in favor of Starling Marte. McCutchen took over again in center after Major League Baseball gave Marte an 80-game suspension in April for using performance-enhancing drugs and never relinquished the position. For the fourth year in a row, advanced metrics gave unfavorable reviews to McCutchen’s work in center (minus-14 Defensive Runs Saved, minus-4.4 Ultimate Zone Rating), but he did have a bounce-back season at the plate after a down 2016. Looking ahead to the offseason, picking up McCutchen’s $14.5MM club option for 2018, his final year of team control, should be a no-brainer for the Pirates. However, it’s possible they’ll shop him again after doing so last winter.
  • Cardinals righty Adam Wainwright will undergo arthroscopic surgery on his pitching elbow on Tuesday, per Rick Hummel of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. The procedure won’t jeopardize Wainwright’s spring training availability or his spot in the Redbirds’ rotation next year, according to manager Mike Matheny. Wainwright went on the disabled list with an elbow impingement Aug. 18 and only pitched one more time in 2017, on Sept. 23. The former ace finished the season with a career-worst ERA and walk rate (5.11 and 3.28, respectively) over 123 1/3 innings.
  • The Dodgers won’t have left-handed reliever Luis Avilan for their NLDS matchup with the Diamondbacks or Rockies, Ken Gurnick of MLB.com tweets. Avilan has been shelved since Sept. 21 with a sore shoulder. He contributed 46 innings of 2.61 ERA ball and posted 10.17 K/9 against 4.3 BB/9, with a 53.8 percent groundball rate, during the regular season. Avilan was particularly tough on same-handed hitters, holding them to a .195/.290/.280 line.
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Los Angeles Dodgers Milwaukee Brewers Pittsburgh Pirates St. Louis Cardinals Washington Nationals Adam Wainwright Andrew McCutchen Anthony Swarzak Eric Sogard Luis Avilan Matt Garza Max Scherzer Neil Walker

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Who Will Win The World Series?

By Connor Byrne | October 1, 2017 at 1:01pm CDT

Aside from Marlins right fielder Giancarlo Stanton’s pursuit of 60 home runs, the final day of Major League Baseball’s regular season won’t bring much drama. Colorado on Saturday became the last team in the majors to clinch a playoff spot and will be one of 10 clubs vying for World Series glory over the next month-plus. Here’s a rundown of the participants by league and seeding:

National League

1.) Los Angeles Dodgers (record: 103-58; most recent title: 1988): The Dodgers are loaded with stars and depth, which explains how they easily exceeded the 100-win mark despite enduring a 1-15 stretch from Aug. 26 through Sept. 11. They recovered from that nightmarish 16-game showing over the season’s final couple weeks and once again look formidable entering the postseason. While the Dodgers have scored the second-fewest runs of this year’s playoff teams, they’ve still managed to pace all NL clubs in position player fWAR. Plus, with a Clayton Kershaw-fronted rotation and a Kenley Jansen-led bullpen, their staff is atop the NL in pitching fWAR.

2.) Washington Nationals (record: 97-64; most recent title: never): The Nationals cruised to an NL East crown this year despite losing center fielder Adam Eaton in April and having to go without arguably their best player, right fielder Bryce Harper, from mid-August until late September. Harper suffered a knee injury that looked like a season-ender when it happened, and while the missed time derailed his MVP chances, he’s back to lead a lineup that also includes other standouts in Anthony Rendon, Daniel Murphy, Trea Turner and Ryan Zimmerman. On the pitching side, it seems ace and Cy Young candidate Max Scherzer avoided a serious hamstring injury during his start on Saturday. If that’s the case, Scherzer, Stephen Strasburg and Gio Gonzalez could be the premier starting trio in the playoffs. They’ll hand off to a bullpen that has featured offered plenty of shaky performances in 2017, though midseason additions Sean Doolittle, Ryan Madson and Brandon Kintzler have helped stabilize the Nationals’ relief corps.

3.) Chicago Cubs (record: 92-69; most recent title: 2016): At this time a year ago, Chicago was putting the finishing touches on a 103-win regular season and preparing to enter the playoffs as the odds-on favorite. Ultimately, the Cubs lived up to the billing last fall and broke a 108-year title drought in an unforgettable World Series against the Indians. They haven’t been as sharp this year, owing in part to worse performances from their pitching and defense, but are still laden with talent. There’s no shortage of quality position players on hand, including reigning MVP Kris Bryant and Anthony Rizzo, but the Cubs will need more from their staff – particularly Jake Arrieta, who’s dealing with a hamstring issue right now, and Jon Lester.

4.) Arizona Diamondbacks (record: 92-69; most recent title: 2001): One of this year’s surprise teams, the Diamondbacks rode an underrated starting staff and a top 10 offense (by runs scored) to a playoff berth. Starters Zack Greinke, Robbie Ray, Zack Godley, Patrick Corbin and Taijuan Walker have all turned in good to great seasons, which is why the D-backs’ starters lead the NL in fWAR. They also have a pair of offensive superstars in first baseman Paul Goldschmidt, though he had a horrid September that likely ruined his MVP chances, and outfielder J.D. Martinez. The latter has been a revelation since coming over from the Tigers in a July trade, having smashed 29 home runs in 61 games and batted .304/.369/.746 in 255 plate appearances. If you’re looking for a potential Achilles’ heel, no playoff entrant has a worse wRC+ (84) against left-handed pitchers than Arizona. That doesn’t seem to bode well for a team that will face the Dodgers, whose southpaws include Kershaw, Rich Hill, Alex Wood, Tony Cingrani and Tony Watson, if it wins the NL wild-card game.

5.) Colorado Rockies (record: 87-74; most recent title: never): Primarily on account of NL MVP candidates Nolan Arenado and Charlie Blackmon, the Rockies are near the top of the league in runs scored, which is what you’d expect from a team that plays half its games at Coors Field. The Rockies managed to break a seven-year playoff skid this season largely because of an improved pitching staff that sits eighth in the majors in fWAR. Still, despite the presence of Jon Gray, their rotation doesn’t look particularly imposing relative to other playoff teams’ staffs. They do, however, feature a few highly capable relievers in Greg Holland, Chris Rusin, Pat Neshek and Jake McGee.

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American League

1.) Cleveland Indians (record: 101-60; most recent title: 1948): At 48-45, the reigning AL champions were a mere three games above .500 on July 18. Since then, they’ve run roughshod over the rest of the league en route to a 53-15 mark, including a historic 22-game winning streak from Aug. 22 to Sept. 14. The Indians lost a meaningless game to the White Sox on Saturday, but that was just their fourth defeat in the past 35 contests. Needless to say, they’re heading into the playoffs on a roll. As you’d expect, Cleveland’s roster is chock-full of excellence. MVP hopeful Jose Ramirez and all-world shortstop Francisco Lindor are at the helm of a talent-rich offense, one that supports what could be an all-time great pitching staff from top to bottom. Ace/Cy Young candidate Corey Kluber, righty Carlos Carrasco and super reliever Andrew Miller, one of the faces of last year’s postseason, deservedly grab the most headlines, but good luck finding any weak links among the other pitchers the Tribe will use in the playoffs.

2.) Houston Astros (record: 100-61; most recent title: never): With a league-high 892 runs and a 121 wRC+, it’s a wonder how anyone gets the Astros out. Much of the damage has come from AL MVP front-runner Jose Altuve and Carlos Correa, the latter of whom missed significant time earlier this season, but ancillary pieces such as Marwin Gonzalez, Alex Bregman, Josh Reddick and Yuli Gurriel have all been no worse than very good at the plate. And then there’s the one-two pitching punch of recently acquired ace Justin Verlander and Dallas Keuchel, not to mention a deep starting staff/bullpen behind them. If there’s one big concern here, it’s that Houston may be the worst defensive team in the playoffs.

3.) Boston Red Sox (record: 93-68; most recent title: 2013): This year’s Red Sox have deviated from past Boston teams that used the likes of David Ortiz and Manny Ramirez to pound opponents into submission. In fact, this is the first playoff-bound Red Sox club since 1995 to qualify for the postseason without scoring at least 800 runs. Nevertheless, they have several especially well-rounded position players (Mookie Betts, Jackie Bradley Jr., Andrew Benintendi and the banged-up Dustin Pedroia, to name a few) who have done enough in the field to make Boston an elite defensive outfit. That defense supports the AL’s foremost southpaw, Chris Sale, and superstar closer Craig Kimbrel. Boston is entering the playoffs with some concerns in its rotation, though, including the recent struggles of Sale and the yearlong issues 2016 Cy Young winner Rick Porcello has had. Fortunately for the Sox, starter Drew Pomeranz quelled some late-season concerns with an encouraging start against the Astros on Saturday.

4.) New York Yankees (record: 90-71; most recent title: 2009): Baby Bombers Aaron Judge and Gary Sanchez have more than lived up to the hype this season, combining for 85 home runs and 11.7 fWAR in 1,203 PAs. Fifty-one of those long balls have come from Judge, an OPS machine and an AL Rookie of the Year shoo-in whose 8.2 fWAR leads the majors. The rest of the Yankees’ offense isn’t exactly subpar, either, as a laundry list of their other hitters have notched above-average seasons at the plate. And New York’s pitching staff could be built for October, with an incredibly strong bullpen and a rotation that features perhaps the AL’s third-best starter, Luis Severino. One of the major questions regarding the Yankees is which versions of Sonny Gray and Masahiro Tanaka will show up in the postseason – if the team gets by the wild-card game, that is. Gray allowed between four and six earned runs in three of five September starts, while Tanaka was a mixed bag throughout the regular season. He did conclude the slate with a seven-inning, 15-K shutout against the Blue Jays on Friday, though.

5.) Minnesota Twins (record: 84-77; most recent title: 1991): In terms of teams, there probably hasn’t been a better story during the regular season than the Twins, who were 103-game losers and owners of the majors’ worst record a year ago. Adding to the improbability of their Cinderella run to the playoffs, the Twins were sellers at this year’s trade deadline, when they dealt starter Jaime Garcia to their wild-card opponent, the Yankees, and Kintzler to the Nationals. However, Brian Dozier, Byron Buxton, Eddie Rosario, Joe Mauer & Co. were undeterred in the face of those deals and the late-summer absence of slugging third baseman Miguel Sano, who missed over a month with a left shin injury but just returned this week. Given its relatively underwhelming pitching staff, Minnesota is obviously a long shot to claim its first World Series in 26 years. For now, the Twins are focused on the Yankees, who have historically owned Minnesota in the playoffs. But New York’s past triumphs came during series. The wild-card round is a one-off, increasing the odds of an upset. The Twins’ No. 1 starter, Ervin Santana, allowed two or fewer runs in 20 of 33 starts during the regular season. If he’s that stingy against the Yankees on Tuesday – an admittedly tall order – an upset could be in the offing.

(Poll link for app users)

 

And now for the most important question (poll link for app users)…

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Arizona Diamondbacks Boston Red Sox Chicago Cubs Cleveland Guardians Colorado Rockies Houston Astros Los Angeles Dodgers MLBTR Originals MLBTR Polls Minnesota Twins New York Yankees Washington Nationals

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Minor MLB Transactions: 9/29/17

By Steve Adams | September 29, 2017 at 5:55pm CDT

Here are Friday’s minor moves from around the game…

  • The Dodgers have selected the contract of infielder/outfielder Tim Locastro, as per a team announcement.  Outfielder O’Koyea Dickson was placed on the 60-day DL due to a shoulder injury to create space on the 40-man roster.  Manager Dave Roberts told Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register and other reporters that the Dodgers are evaluating Locastro as a possible pinch-running specialist for the postseason, to the point that Locastro won’t receive any at-bats during his call-up.  Locastro, a 13th-round pick for the Blue Jays in the 2013 draft, has a solid .293/.372/.402 slash line over his 2066 career minor league PA but has shown particular aptitude on the basepaths, stealing 143 bases out of 178 attempts.
  • The Blue Jays announced that they’ve selected the contract of right-hander Taylor Cole for the final series of the season, with righty Aaron Sanchez shifting from the 10-day DL to the 60-day DL to clear a spot on the 40-man roster. He’ll give the team an additional bit of bullpen depth for the final three games, though he’s already been removed from the 40-man once this season, so he’ll again be a candidate come off once the regular season ends. The 27-year-old Cole missed much of the regular season due to injury in the minors but threw 12 2/3 innings of scoreless ball across three levels before being promoted for his big league debut in early August. Cole was rocked for four runs on six hits in one inning of work in his lone big league appearance. He suffered a broken toe in that appearance and landed on the MLB 10-day DL before being released and re-signed to a new minor league deal once his DL stint was up.
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Los Angeles Dodgers Toronto Blue Jays Transactions Aaron Sanchez Taylor Cole Tim Locastro

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NL Notes: Marlins, Dodgers, Phillies, Padres

By Connor Byrne | September 28, 2017 at 1:11pm CDT

This weekend could go down as the the final time outfielders Giancarlo Stanton, Christian Yelich and Marcell Ozuna take the field together for the Marlins, Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald observes. While all three enjoy playing with one another, each realizes the organization is in flux, which might bring about the end of their successful partnership. “I think everyone is kind of aware of the situation,” said Yelich, the center fielder. “We really don’t know what’s going to happen, [but] we realize what the possibilities could be. Everybody knows that.” The only member of the trio who could block a trade is Stanton, he of 57 home runs in 2017 and a $295MM contract that runs through 2028 (or 2020, depending on an opt-out decision). The 27-year-old MVP candidate suggested that he wouldn’t be keen on embarking on a rebuild, something Miami might have to do in order to slash payroll and restock a weak farm system. “What else are you here for? I don’t do this just to show up. I’m here to try to win, get a ring,” the right fielder said (via Tim Healey of the South Florida Sun Sentinel). “There’s a point otherwise, but that’s your ultimate goal.”

More from the NL:

  • An ailing back continues to trouble the Dodgers’ Adrian Gonzalez, leading the club to shut him down for the year, manager Dave Roberts announced Wednesday (via Kevin Baxter of the Los Angeles Times). Gonzalez played in just 71 games this season and batted a career-worst .242/.287/.355 for the NL’s top seed, though he did hit a home run Tuesday in what proved to be his last contest of 2017. The 35-year-old felt tightness in back on Wednesday, however, which forced the Dodgers to bring his season to a close prior to the playoffs. Regarding 2018, the final year of Gonzalez’s contract (in which he’ll make $21.5MM), he said: “My plan is to be an everyday player again and give it a go to have a really good season. Like I expected for this year.”
  • Phillies right-hander Clay Buchholz has been out of action since suffering a partial tear of the flexor pronator mass in his pitching arm on April 11, but the 33-year-old expects to be ready for spring training, per Todd Zolecki of MLB.com. He’ll start throwing Oct. 9, roughly a month before he’ll be eligible to depart Philadelphia as a free agent. “It’s my first go around with the whole free-agent deal,” Buchholz said of the upcoming offseason. “I’ll have to prove that I’m ready to go and I’m healthy, I’m sure. But I’m looking forward to it.” While Buchholz will go down as a failed on-field pickup for the Phillies, who acquired him from Boston last winter, he did mentor their young pitchers behind the scenes, as Zolecki details.
  • Third baseman Christian Villanueva has hit four homers in 10 games since the Padres selected his contract Sept. 18, putting him in position to compete for a 25-man spot next spring, AJ Cassavell of MLB.com writes. The offseason minor league signing and former top 100 prospect with the Cubs will have an opportunity to win a starting job at second or third base in the spring, relays Cassavell, who notes that he could at least be a useful right-handed hitter off the bench. While Villaneuva, who was once part of trade involving Kyle Hendricks and Ryan Dempster, has slashed .333/.333/.778, his success has come over a minuscule amount of PAs (27). Manager Andy Green needs to see more, saying that “I don’t think you prove anything in September in such a short sample.”
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Los Angeles Dodgers Miami Marlins Philadelphia Phillies San Diego Padres Adrian Gonzalez Christian Villanueva Christian Yelich Clay Buchholz Giancarlo Stanton Marcell Ozuna

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Dodgers Acquire Connor Joe From Braves

By Connor Byrne | September 28, 2017 at 12:33pm CDT

SEPT. 28: Atlanta received $500K in international money in the deal, FanRag’s Jon Heyman reports.

SEPT. 24: The Dodgers have acquired infielder/outfielder Connor Joe from the Braves for international bonus pool space, according to Dodger Insider (Twitter link).

This is the second trade of the year involving Joe, a 2014 first-round pick who went from Pittsburgh to Atlanta for utilityman Sean Rodriguez last month. The 25-year-old Joe went on to hit just .135/.233/.154 in 61 plate appearances with the Braves’ Double-A affiliate. He was far better this season at the Double-A level with the Pittsburgh organization, though he still only managed a modest .240/.338/.330 line in 282 trips to the plate.

It’s unclear how much money is involved in this swap, but both the Dodgers and Braves are in the penalty and unable to spend more than $300K on any single international prospect this year.

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West Notes: Athletics, Giants, Mariners, C. Seager

By Jeff Todd | September 19, 2017 at 10:59am CDT

While the Athletics still face an uncertain path to finally landing a new ballpark, the club’s announcement of a target site has gained some support from the business community, Kimberly Veklerov of the San Francisco Chronicle writes. It certainly seems as if there’s some public relations jockeying going on as the ballclub attempts to ramp up its efforts. As Veklerov notes, some of the initial political response was less than fully supportive. And as the Chronicle further reports, there may be some environmental concerns with the site under consideration.

More from out west:

  • Across the bay, the Giants have stumbled through a disastrous season. CEO Larry Baer discussed the state of affairs as the campaign comes to an end with Andrew Baggarly of the Mercury News reports. It’s an interview you’ll certainly want to read in full, as Baggarly pushed the executive on some interesting subjects. Baer emphasized that the organization can hope for turnaround efforts from some key players, noting in particular that the club got much less than anticipated from key pitchers. He explained: “I’m not proclaiming that’s what is going to happen, but I am saying that we believe with the talent level, we can get back.” In addition to discussing the state of the organization’s finances and the ongoing fan support (and, thus, revenue), among other topics of note, Baer also addressed the role of GM Bobby Evans with his predecessor, Brian Sabean, still a figure in the organization. Baer says he’s still confident in the front office “structure,” explaining that it’s a “pretty collaborative” unit that consists mostly of “all the same people” that built the club’s recent, better-performing rosters.
  • Mariners skipper Scott Servais discussed his team’s season in comparison to that of the division-leading Astros, as Greg Johns of MLB.com writes. Though Servais notes that he’s not focused on what the Houston organization is up to, he acknowledges that it has “set the bar” for the rest of the division. The second-year skipper believes his own ballclub needs to continue to “get more athletic and be able to defend” over the winter — though, of course, he also notes that the M’s haven’t given up on sneaking back into Wild Card position this year.
  • The Dodgers are continuing to monitor the balky elbow of star shortstop Corey Seager, as skipper Dave Roberts told reporters including MLB.com’s Ken Gurnick (Twitter links). While it still seems some sort of offseason procedure may be required, the joint is in “playable” condition. Dealing with the pain and preventing any compensation-related problems are surely some of the factors at play here; an injection, though, isn’t considered an option, Roberts notes.
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Los Angeles Dodgers Oakland Athletics San Francisco Giants Seattle Mariners Bobby Evans Brian Sabean Corey Seager

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Quick Hits: Utley, Hutchison, Int’l Market

By Mark Polishuk | September 17, 2017 at 11:36pm CDT

It was on this day in 1941 that Stan Musial played in his first Major League game, beginning what turned into a legendary 22-year career.  It could be said that the Cardinals legend was “The Man” from day one, going 2-for-4 in his first game and posting an 1.023 OPS over his first 49 plate appearances in the bigs.  That didn’t end up being too far off from the .331/.417/.559 slash line that Musial contributed over his entire career, cementing his place as one of baseball’s all-time greats.  Here’s some notes from around the league…

  • Chase Utley still enjoys playing but is realistic about the fact that his career is approaching its end, the veteran tells Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register.  Utley said he has been approaching his career on a year-to-year basis, and acknowledging that while he still has the desire to play, “I know the market nowadays isn’t that friendly to older players.  I guess we’ll have to wait and see.  But I feel personally there’s still plenty of ways I can contribute.”  Utley turns 39 in December, and he entered the day with a .234/.324/.406 slash line in 328 PA for the Dodgers, which includes an .806 OPS in 162 PA at Dodger Stadium.  While his days as an everyday player are over, Utley has been regarded as a major behind-the-scenes contributor, with teammates and coaches praising his clubhouse leadership.
  • The Pirates’ decision to outright Drew Hutchison was simply due to a pitching surplus, GM Neal Huntington told Stephen J. Nesbitt of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette and other media.  “It was more things beyond Drew’s control.  We traded for him with the idea that he was a controllable, young starter that could fill a rotation spot for years to come,” Huntington said.  “We just also decided this year that the growth and development of our guys put them ahead of him….we felt like we had guys that we wanted to give the innings to at the Major League level ahead of him.  Time will tell if that was the right call.”  Huntington praised Hutchison and said that cutting ties with him now will give the young righty more time to find another team, rather than waiting until December to be non-tendered.
  • Thanks to the strict bonus money cap on international signings in the new collective bargaining agreement, teams are already lining up agreements with international players at younger and younger ages, Phil Miller of the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports.  While none of these agreements are technically binding at this point, “teams generally are reluctant to ’raid’ each other’s committed players,” Miller writes, so some deals are being struck years in advance of when these players become eligible to be signed.  “Teams are agreeing with players for 2020 now, that’s how far out it is,” Twins VP of player personnel Mike Radcliff said. “Almost all of the best guys for next [July] are locked up already and off the market….It feels like we spend almost as much time trying to find out who’s still available and who’s not as we do going to scout players.  And it’s impossible to know what a 13-year-old is going to turn into.  Did you know what you would be when you were 13?”
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NL Notes: Brewers, Mackanin, McCarthy

By charliewilmoth | September 16, 2017 at 4:41pm CDT

The Brewers’ rebuilding efforts have worked more quickly than most outside experts predicted, and GM David Stearns credits the team’s resilience, Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel writes. “Really, last year, while we maybe had a month or two that was disappointing, we never went on those prolonged losing streaks,” says Stearns. “That speaks to what has been a theme of this year – the resilience of this team. We talk about that a lot. A lot of the credit for that goes to the character of our players, and the culture and energy that Craig (Counsell) and his staff have instilled, going back to Spring Training of last year.” Of course, as Haudricourt notes, the Brewers’ success this year does not guarantee they won’t take a step backward in 2018. Stearns, though, has been careful to avoid specific season wins goals, either on the low end or the high end, and focus instead on assembling a talented group of players who can be competitive for the next several seasons. Here’s more from the NL.

  • The Phillies have struggled this season, but GM Matt Klentak still seems to have manager Pete Mackanin’s back, as MLB.com’s Todd Zolecki writes. The Phillies extended Mackanin through 2018, with an option for 2019, in May. “When we signed him to the extension, the intention was to take the drama out of both this year and next year,” says Klentak. “Beyond that we’ll have to see, but I think when we signed Pete, that was right in the beginning stages of our struggles. The fact that he and his staff were able to weather the storm and get us going on the right track was really important for us this season.” The Phillies are 57-90, but it seems Mackanin will return next season.
  • Dodgers manager Dave Roberts says righty Brandon McCarthy will rejoin the club next weekend, MLB.com’s Ken Gurnick writes. McCarthy has been out since late July with a blister issue. There won’t be space for McCarthy in the Dodgers’ crowded rotation (although Roberts isn’t ruling out the possibility McCarthy could start at some point), but there will in its crowded clubhouse — McCarthy will likely become the 40th active player on the Dodgers’ roster, and will pitch in relief. McCarthy has struggled to stay healthy this season, but has generally been effective when available, posting a 3.84 ERA, 6.9 K/9 and 2.6 BB/9 in 86 2/3 innings spanning 16 starts.
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Los Angeles Dodgers Milwaukee Brewers Philadelphia Phillies Brandon McCarthy Pete Mackanin

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Rosenthal’s Latest: Royals, Otani, Nationals, Dodgers

By charliewilmoth | September 16, 2017 at 3:53pm CDT

Here’s the latest from Ken Rosenthal, via a video from FOX Sports.

  • The Royals’ best course with potential free agents Mike Moustakas, Lorenzo Cain and Eric Hosmer might be to extend qualifying offers to all of them, Rosenthal opines. That would at least give them a windfall of draft picks if all three players were to sign big contracts elsewhere. The Royals seem to be running out of time to contend, and the extra draft picks would give them a head start on reloading.
  • There has been some chatter about the possibility that teams could circumvent posting rules to lure Shohei Otani by promising to sign him to a small deal now and a big extension in the future. Rosenthal, though, notes that the league would not allow such an arrangement. Of course, as FanGraphs’ Dave Cameron pointed out, the signing team would have plausible deniability if it waited to officially strike the second deal until after Otani had played in the Majors for a year, since teams frequently try to sign top young talents to extensions. Such a deal would have to fit in with established precedents, however.
  • The Nationals’ recent promotion of top prospect Victor Robles underscores just how many outfield options the team will have even if Bryce Harper departs via free agency following the 2018 season, Rosenthal says. In addition to Robles, they have Michael Taylor, Adam Eaton and Brian Goodwin, all of whom are under team control for the next several seasons, plus another top young prospect in Juan Soto.
  • The Dodgers’ outstanding depth could allow them to use lefty starter Alex Wood and righty Kenta Maeda as multi-inning relievers in the playoffs, Rosenthal notes. That means the Dodgers would be able to use quick hooks on any starter having a bad outing.
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Kansas City Royals Los Angeles Dodgers Washington Nationals Eric Hosmer Lorenzo Cain Mike Moustakas Shohei Ohtani

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