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Dodgers Sign Cuban Outfielder Yordan Alvarez

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JUNE 16: Baseball America’s Ben Badler has a free scouting report on Alvarez posted, though he notes that because of the 18-year-old’s lack of experience in Cuba’s Serie Nacional, his looks at Alvarez have been somewhat limited. Alvarez once had a lean build but has now filled out his 6’5″ frame and weighs in around 220 pounds. Badler notes that scouts who have seen him more praise his bat control and give him average to above-average power grades, but he’s a bit stiff and has limited flexibility at first base. The whole report is well worth a look and contains some video of Alvarez at the plate as well.

JUNE 15: The Dodgers have agreed to a $2MM bonus with Cuban outfielder/first baseman Yordan Alvarez, MLB.com’s Jesse Sanchez reports on Twitter. Because the Dodgers have already gone over well over their allotted spending pool, they’ll face a 100 percent tax on the 18-year-old Alvarez, meaning the signing will cost them $4MM in total.

Not much information is available publicly on the latest Los Angeles target on the international market. He appeared in Cuba’s Serie Nacional in 2013-14, beginning at just 16 years of age, and compiled a .279/.342/.327 batting line over 239 plate appearances.

Given his age, Alvarez is subject to international signing restrictions. That explains the timing of the move, as today marks the end of the 2015-16 international signing period, and the Dodgers are set to serve a two-year ban on $300K+ bonuses of such players in the 2016-17 class (which begins on July 2 following a two-week quiet period). The organization continues to plunk down big money on prospects out of Latin America and elsewhere, though their ability to do so for the next two years will now be significantly limited due to this past international signing period. They’ll still be able to bid on players that are exempt from bonus pools, of course, including players like Cuban third baseman Yulieski Gurriel, Cuban second baseman Jose Miguel Fernandez and others that are made available via the posting systems from Korea and Japan.

Draft Signings: 6/16/2016

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There are a lot of notable draft deals to work through from the last two days. Among them:

  • Blue Jays second-rounder Bo Bichette announced that he’s signed a deal, which Chris Cotillo of SB Nation tweets is for a $1.1MM bonus. A son of long-time big leaguer Dante Bichette, the high-school shortstop landed above the $978,600 value at the 66th overall pick. Fellow second-rounder J.B. Woodman inked for $975K, Callis adds on Twitter. An outfielder from Mississippi, he also will deliver some savings to Toronto. The 57th selection came with a $1.124MM slot value. The Jays also added third-round pick Zach Jackson, Callis tweets. The Arkansas righty signed for $540K, leaving the team with $45,100 in savings.
  • Another second-round pick who’s ready for a minor league assignment is C.J. Chatham, who goes to the Red Sox for $1.1MM, per MLB.com (via Twitter). Chosen 51st overall, the Florida Atlantic shortstop rated just outside the top 100 per Baseball America. His signing saves the club $132,800 against the slot value.
  • The Brewers agreed with second-rounder Lucas Erceg for $1.15MM, Callis reports on Twitter. The Menlo College third baseman rated 47th on the draft board of ESPN.com’s Keith Law. He was taken 46th overall, which came with an allocation of $1,386,900.
  • The Twins are in agreement with second-rounder Ben Rortvedt on a $900K bonus, per another Callis tweet. Minnesota saves $241,600 against the slot value while adding the Wisconsin high school backstop. Cotillo tweets that Twins third-rounder Griffin Jax, a righty from the Air Force Academy, has agreed to an at-slot, $645.6K bonus.
  • The Dodgers agreed to a $590,800 bonus with second-round pick Mitch White, MLB.com’s Jim Callis tweets. The Santa Clara righty ended up going for over $400K less than the 65th pick’s pool allocation, so Los Angeles can put that money to work in other areas.
  • Rays third-round choice Austin Franklin signed for a $600K bonus that falls a bit shy of the $676,200 slot value, Callis tweets. Franklin is a high-school righty out of Florida.
  • The Royals have an above-slot deal with third-rounder Khalil Lee, SB Nation’s Chris Cotillo tweets, though the exact bonus isn’t known. Taken with the 103rd selection, the Virginia high school outfielder rated 121st on BA’s board.
  • The Athletics have locked up third-rounder Sean Murphy for an at-slot, $753,100 bonus, Callis tweets. Baseball America had rated him 63rd among draft-eligible prospects, but Oakland got him with the 83rd pick.
  • Bryson Brigman appears to be in agreement with the Mariners for $700K, just under the $708,200 slot value, per a tweet from Bob Dutton of the Tacoma News Tribune. A shortstop from the University of San Diego, Brigman went 87th overall.
  • The Giants have given an at-slot, $625,900 bonus to Heath Quinn, Callis tweets. The power-hitting Samford outfielder was taken with the team’s third-round selection.
  • The Cardinals signed fourth-rounder Jeremy Martinez, a catcher from the University of Southern California, for $600K, Chris Cotillo of SB Nation tweets. That lands over the $421,600 allocation that came with the 136th selection in the draft.
  • Brewers fourth-round selection Corbin Burnessigned for a slot bonus of $536,400, Callis tweets. A righty from St. Mary’s, Burnes took the 57th slot on the Baseball America draft chart on the basis of improving velocity and the possibility of sticking as a starter.

NL West Injury Notes: Parra, Maeda, Cain, Ross

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Rockies outfielder Gerardo Parra was removed from tonight’s game on a medical cart after suffering an apparent leg injury, as MLB.com’s Thomas Harding reports. The injury occurred in a scary collision with shortstop Trevor Story, who wasn’t hurt. Parra’s outlook appears to be better than feared, as manager Walt Weiss told reporters that the preliminary diagnosis was a sprained ankle. (Via Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post; Twitter link.) His reaction to the impact suggested a more serious injury, but hopefully nothing more is revealed over the coming days.

Here’s the latest from other injury situations in the NL West:

  • The Dodgers got fairly promising preliminary news on righty Kenta Maeda, who exited his outing tonight after being struck by a sharply-hit ball in his right leg. The club announced that X-rays were negative, though certainly Maeda will need additional evaluation after he needed help to make it off of the field. Los Angeles will hope that it’s not a significant problem, as Maeda has been the club’s most productive starter outside of ace Clayton Kershaw.
  • Giants righty Matt Cain is headed back to the DL with a re-aggravation of his hamstring strain, as Alex Pavlovic of CSN Bay Area was among those to tweet. San Francisco will recall Chris Stratton for the time being, but the move raises yet more questions about the back of the rotation. Cain is still just 31, but it’s far from clear whether he’ll be a reliable member of the Giants’ staff this year or beyond. In 118 innings over the past two seasons, he has managed only a 5.57 ERA as he has dealt with a growing list of injury troubles.
  • Padres righty Tyson Ross may be ready to throw off of a mound this weekend, Dennis Lin of the San Diego Union-Tribune reports on Twitter. It’s still unclear whether he’ll be able to ramp up in time to make himself into a real deadline chip for the Pads. Regardless, it’s certainly promising to hear that Ross is still progressing.

Dodgers Sign Will Venable

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The Dodgers have agreed to a deal with outfielder Will Venable, as MLB.com’s Ken Gurnick first reported (via Twitter). He has been signed directly onto the major league roster, with Los Angeles optioning Austin Barnes to free a roster spot.

[Related: Updated Los Angeles Dodgers depth chart]

Venable previously signed deals with the Indians and Phillies, neither of which were willing to give him a crack at the majors. The 33-year-old did compile 149 plate appearances at Triple-A in the Philadelphia organization, hitting just .205/.304/.307 in that span before opting out of his deal.

A left-handed hitter, Venable could step into the role vacated by Carl Crawford, who was released recently. Venable is generally viewed as a quality defender and good baserunner, and while his bat has been inconsistent, he does have a strong .256/.324/.422 batting line against right-handed pitching.

Knocking Down The Door: Bregman, Healy, De Leon, Renfroe, Lively

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This is the debut of my weekly “Knocking Down the Door” series here at MLBTR. The purpose is to identify players in Triple-A or Double-A who are doing everything in their power to earn a big league call-up in the very near future.

For the most part, I’ll try to include players who could make a significant impact soon after arriving to the majors, if not right away. So unless it’s a really slow week for potential impact prospects, I will not be telling you about the pending arrival of the next great middle reliever, spot starter or fourth outfielder.

Here are five players to keep an eye on …

Alex Bregman, 3B, Houston Astros (Double-A Corpus Christi): The Houston Astros might be the most disappointing team in baseball. And while the next Carlos Correa probably isn’t waiting in the wings—check back in another decade or so—it’s possible that Alex Bregman can give them a much-needed spark before their season goes completely down the drain.

Correa did make a quick stop in Triple-A before he was called up to the majors last season, but the fading Astros might not be able to wait much longer on the 22-year-old Bregman if they think he can help them out.

The 2nd overall pick in the 2015 draft, Bregman has been a man among boys in Double-A with a 1.007 OPS to go along with 13 homers and more walks (27) than strikeouts (20), which is a good sign that he can handle himself against big league pitching. He’s only played seven games at third base, although a move from shortstop shouldn’t be a difficult transition.

Houston Astros Depth Chart

Ryon Healy, 1B, Oakland Athletics (Triple-A Nashville): The A’s have plenty of incentive to continue giving at-bats to Yonder Alonso, who was acquired in the offseason for All-Star candidate Drew Pomeranz, and Billy Butler, who is in year two of a three-year, $30MM deal.

But at some point very soon, they’ll need to move on from at least one of the two—Alonso does have 13 hits in his last eight games to boost his OPS to .642; Butler is coming off of a three-hit game that increased his OPS to .683—and reward first base prospect Ryon Healy for the damage he’s done to Double-A and Triple-A pitching this season.

The 24-year-old Healy has nine hits, including three homers, in his last 22-at-bats to give him an overall slash line of .343/.404/.615 in 60 games between the two levels.

Oakland Athletics Depth Chart

Jose De Leon, SP/RP, Los Angeles Dodgers (Triple-A Oklahoma City): After a breakout season in 2015, Jose De Leon has fallen a bit off the radar due to multiple injuries that have limited him to only three Triple-A starts this season.

While this makes it unlikely that he’ll be able to make an impact in the Dodgers’ rotation anytime soon—he’s made a pair of three-inning starts since returning from the disabled list earlier this month—the 23-year-old right-hander is an intriguing option for a bullpen that does not have a reliable power arm to bridge the gap to closer Kenley Jansen.

In 11 innings, De Leon has allowed three earned runs on four hits with three walks while striking out 21 batters. Sounds like a power arm to me.

Los Angeles Dodgers Depth Chart

Hunter Renfroe, RF/LF, San Diego Padres (Triple-A El Paso): Top outfield prospect Hunter Renfroe is doing his part to earn a big league promotion with a robust .598 slugging percentage after recently belting his 13th and 14th homers of the season. Now he just needs general manager A.J. Preller to do his part and create a spot for him.

Preller has his work cut out for him as he works the phones and tries to find takers for outfielders Matt Kemp and Melvin Upton Jr. and at least some of the remaining salary due on their contracts. Trading free agent-to-be Jon Jay, who is having a nice bounce back season, shouldn’t be difficult. It should only take one trade, though, for the 24-year-old Renfroe to get the call, where the big league coaching staff will hopefully introduce him to something called “plate discipline.”

Renfroe’s Kemp-esque 7-to-45 walk-to-strikeout ratio is a concern. However, in what should be a rebuilding season, it would be great if a key part of the team’s future can get regular at-bats against big league pitching.

San Diego Padres Depth Chart

Ben Lively, SP, Philadelphia Phillies (Triple-A Lehigh Valley): It’s Zach Eflin who is getting the call tomorrow to replace the injured Vince Velasquez, but it could’ve easily been Ben Lively or Jake Thompson. All three are pitching well. In fact, it was pretty much a coin toss between Lively and Thompson for this highly-coveted spot on the “Knocking Down the Door” list. With the 24-year-old Lively being nearly two years Thompson’s elder, I’m giving him the nod.

Acquired from the Reds for Marlon Byrd two offseasons ago, Lively has really stepped up his game after not making much of an impression in his debut season with the Phillies. After posting a 4.13 ERA in 25 Double-A starts in 2015, the 6’4″ right-hander has put himself on the prospect map with a 1.94 ERA, 2.6 BB/9 and 7.9 K/9 in 13 starts between Triple-A and Double-A. He’s also 10-0, which is probably meaningless, but impressive, nonetheless. Maybe he’s one of those guys who “just knows how to win.”

Philadelphia Phillies Depth Chart

Dodgers Release Carl Crawford

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The Dodgers have released outfielder Carl Crawford, as MLB.com’s Ken Gurnick tweets. Recently designated for assignment, Crawford obviously did not draw any interest on the waiver wire.

Crawford is still owed $35MM or so on the ill-fated contract he first signed with the Red Sox, after all, and there was no chance that was being taken over by another organization. That cash will remain on the Dodgers’ books, with other teams free to add Crawford at the league minimum rate.

Though the waiver clearance was fully expected, it would be surprising if there isn’t at least some interest in the 34-year-old veteran. He has struggled this year, and continues to deal with a variety of maladies, but Crawford still owns a useful .278/.320/.400 batting line in over 1,000 plate appearances over his four seasons in Los Angeles.

That’s solid league-average hitting, which is all the more appealing when combined with his other skills. Crawford continues to move well on the bases when healthy. And he’s long been viewed as a quality outfielder. The recent returns from defensive metrics aren’t as promising, but he’s only been seen as a negative in a small and injury-riddled sample.

The fleet-footed Crawford certainly isn’t the player he once was, but as an essentially free asset he makes for an interesting addition to the open market. Organizations interested in a left-handed-hitting outfielder could do a lot worse, at a much higher cost, so he could be pursued relatively broadly for a just-released player.

Yulieski Gurriel Declared Free Agent

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Cuban third baseman Yulieski Gurriel has been declared a free agent by Major League Baseball and is now free to sign with any team, reports MLB.com’s Jesse Sanchez (via Twitter). Gurriel, who just turned 32 last Thursday, is widely considered to be one of the top talents on the international market (if not the top talent). Because of his age and extensive professional experience in Cuba, Gurriel will not be subject to international spending limitations. He’s free to sign a Major League deal with the highest bidder, and Andy McCullough of the L.A. Times tweets that the Dodgers have expressed interest.

In parts of 15 professional seasons between Cuba and Japan, Gurriel is a .335/.417/.580 hitter with 250 home runs in 5491 plate appearances. Baseball America’s Ben Badler rated Gurriel as the No. 1 player in Cuba last spring, calling him an above-average defender at third base that had plus raw power as well as the ability to get on base at a high clip and hit for average. Badler noted that Gurriel has a 70-grade arm (on the 20-80 scouting scale) and is also capable of playing second base, even if he profiles best at the hot corner. While Gurriel is an MLB-ready talent, the lengthy layoff he’s had from playing in a game setting makes it likely that he’d require a tune-up at the minor league level before jumping into a Major League lineup.

While Gurriel’s advanced age may limit his earning power to some extent, as he’s most likely in the late stages of his prime, it seems that he should be able to secure a lucrative multi-year deal in free agency. Because he hasn’t been eligible to sign, there’s been very little talk about what type of contract his representatives at the Wasserman Media Group will pursue in negotiations with MLB teams, but today’s news should again bring Gurriel’s name to the forefront of the rumor mill. For some context, Hector Olivera inked a six-year, $62.5MM contract with the Dodgers at the age of 30, so there’s certainly precedent for a very significant payday for a Cuban free agent even if his 20s have passed. While Gurriel may not be able to challenge that type of contract length, there’s certainly reason to believe that he could look to achieve a similar, if not greater average annual value than Olivera ($10.41MM) or Jose Abreu ($11.33MM), though that’s purely my own speculation.

The timeline for Gurriel’s younger brother, Lourdes Gurriel Jr., to be declared a free agent remains unclear. The 22-year-old reportedly left Cuba at the same time as his older brother and hired the same representation, but there has yet to be any report that he’s secured free agency from MLB as well. Unlike his older brother, Lourdes would be subject to international spending limitations, although if he signs after his 23rd birthday (October 19), that would no longer be the case. There’s been some talk in the past about the possibility of the brothers signing as a package deal, but Yulieski’s earlier timeline to free agency could conceivably make that less realistic.

Quick Hits: July 2 Market, Giants, Dodgers, Ubaldo

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Some news from around baseball as we wrap up the weekend…

  • With the next international signing window opening on July 2, Baseball America’s Ben Badler profiles (in two separate pieces) 10 youngsters likely to receive seven-figure bonuses.  Kevin Maitan is perhaps the mostly highly-touted player of the entire 2016-17 class, as the 16-year-old Venezuelan shortstop is rumored to be in line for a bonus north of $4MM, most likely from the Braves.  “Nobody is a can’t miss but it’s hard to see him missing,” one scout says of Maitan.  As always, it’s well worth getting a BA subscription to read the full scouting reports and news, including how the Braves, Padres and A’s are connected to two players each, with others rumored to be signing with the Nationals, Astros, Rockies and Mariners.
  • The Giants and Dodgers both pursued some major free agent arms last winter, and the results of that hunt are being seen this season, Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times writes.  After missing out on Zack Greinke, the Giants pivoted to Johnny Cueto and Jeff Samardzija, who have both been workhorses for the club.  The Dodgers weren’t interested in either Cueto or Samardzija at the price of their respective contracts with the Giants, and according to Cueto via an interpreter, the Dodgers never offered him a contract at all.  “They were telling me to wait,” Cueto said.  After missing out on Greinke, L.A. made two less-expensive signings in Kenta Maeda and Scott Kazmir, though as Shaikin notes, the Dodgers’ main issue this season has been a lack of offense.
  • Ubaldo Jimenez was rocked for five runs in just a third of an inning today, the shortest start of his Major League career.  Jimenez now has a 6.89 ERA over 62 2/3 IP this season, leading Eduardo A. Encina of the Baltimore Sun to wonder just how much longer the Orioles can continue using him in the rotation.  Jimenez can’t be sent with the minors without his permission, and releasing him isn’t likely with roughly $21MM owed to him through the 2017 season.
  • If the Orioles do replace Jimenez in the rotation, Dylan Bundy won’t be a candidate, as Encina details in another Baltimore Sun piece that the O’s are focusing on slowly rebuilding Bundy’s arm strength with an eye towards having him contend for a starting spot next spring.  Buck Showalter said the aim is to have Bundy throw 60-75 innings out of the bullpen this season.  Bundy, the fourth overall pick of the 2011 draft, has had his career delayed by several injuries, including Tommy John surgery.
  • Robinson Cano’s decision to sign with the Mariners after the 2013 season led to shockwaves throughout the second base market that could still be felt in some of this past offseason’s moves, the New York Post’s Joel Sherman writes.  Of the six teams (the Cubs, Nationals, Mariners, Pirates, Mets and Yankees) Sherman ranks as the most impacted by Cano’s signing, the Yankees are ranked last, as it is still unclear as to whether Starlin Castro is the club’s long-term answer at the keystone.

Draft Signings: Curtis Taylor, DJ Peters

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The 2016 MLB Draft is in the books, and over the coming weeks we’ll see plenty of picks agree to terms with their new clubs.  Rather than list all of the several hundred players, we’ll run down some of the more notable picks (either due to the size of their signing bonus, the round they were selected or a significantly over-slot/under-slot deal) as they’re reported. Here are today’s notable mid-round signings, with all slot values coming courtesy of MLB.com’s Jim Callis)…

  • The Diamondbacks have agreed to sign fourth-rounder Curtis Taylor for $496K, Bob Elliott of the Toronto Sun reports (Twitter link).  The bonus is just barely under slot for the 119th overall pick, which carries a $496.7K value.  Taylor is a 6’6″, 225-pound right-hander from the University of British Columbia who was ranked 130th on Baseball America’s top 500 list of draft prospects.  BA’s scouting report (available to subscribers) says Taylor has touched 96mph with his fastball.
  • The Dodgers have reached an agreement with fourth-round outfielder DJ Peters, as indicated by the Glendora Baseball Twitter feed (Peters’ high school).  Terms of the deal weren’t announced, though the 131st overall carries a $442.4K slot price.  A product of Western Nevada Community College, Peters was also selected in the previous two drafts (by the Cubs in 2014 and the Rangers in 2015, both in the 36th round) and was ranked by Baseball America as the 290th-best prospect in this year’s draft class.

NL Notes: D-backs, Dodgers, Pirates

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The Diamondbacks had their eyes on a playoff berth during the offseason when they signed Zack Greinke for $200MM-plus and traded a haul for fellow right-handed starter Shelby Miller. Things haven’t gone according to plan for Arizona so far this season, however, as the team has stumbled to a 27-37 start. The rotation, with its 5.00 ERA, has played a big role in the club’s fourth-place NL West mark. General manager Dave Stewart opened up about the starters’ struggles to Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic, saying, “I don’t think it’s any surprise that I am disappointed in the way that we’re pitching. I would imagine that at some point this is all going to pull together and the end result is going to be good.” Stewart added that he doesn’t think the Diamondbacks’ front office handled the assembly of the rotation poorly; rather, he believes the starters have simply underachieved. “No way I expected us to be 11 games below .500 or 11 games out of first place at this point based on what I know we are as a baseball team and what I know we are as a pitching staff,” he stated. Encouragingly, Greinke has rebounded from a rough start to resemble his usual ace self in recent outings, having combined for 16 straight scoreless frames over his previous two starts.

More from Arizona and two of its National League counterparts:

  • Miller is one more rehab start away from coming off the disabled list and rejoining the Diamondbacks, reports Jake Rill of MLB.com. Before going on the shelf May 27 with a right index finger sprain, Miller threw 45 innings of 7.09 ERA ball and struck out just 30 hitters against 29 walks. In a High-A rehab start Thursday, the 25-year-old fanned 11 and didn’t issue any free passes. “You’re facing A-ball guys, so you can’t really base too much off of what you do, but moreso past the numbers was how I felt, and I felt good mechanically,” Miller said. “Everything felt a little bit smoother and simpler.”
  • Dodgers right-handed prospect Frankie Montas has gone from a candidate to help their bullpen this year to a potential near-term rotation option, writes Buster Olney of ESPN.com. Montas, whom the Dodgers acquired from the White Sox over the winter, has performed brilliantly in multiple Triple-A starts and will continue to increase his workload at that level. If he keeps faring well, Montas could eventually join LA’s rotation and replace 19-year-old Julio Urias, who’s on an innings limit.
  • Thirty-five of the Pirates’ 41 draft picks this year are from the college or junior college ranks, and general manager Neal Huntington expects the Bucs to continue going in that direction in the future. “It’s not a strategy. It’s the reality of the new system,” he told Adam Berry of MLB.com. “It gets harder and harder to get high school players. As the industry shifts, you’ve seen high school players go earlier and earlier if they’re signable. You’ve got guys that are coming off the board earlier than they would in certain situations because they are signable high school players.” Pittsburgh did grab high schoolers early, drafting three with its first five selections.
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