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Minor MLB Transactions: 7/17/16

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Sunday’s minor moves from around baseball:

  • The Dodgers have released outfielder Donavan Tate, whom they signed in December, tweets Matt Eddy of Baseball America. Tate went third overall to San Diego in the 2009 draft, but the 25-year-old still hasn’t gotten past the Single-A level, having hit an ineffective .226/.331/.321 in 1,229 plate appearances. At his peak, Tate ranked as Baseball Prospectus’ 29th-best prospect and Baseball America’s 53rd overall prospect entering 2010.
  • The Royals have released right-hander Matt Alvarez, according to Jeffrey Flanagan of MLB.com (Twitter link). Alvarez, 25, had been in the Kansas City system since 2013. He posted a 5.04 ERA, 8.4 K/9 and 6.6 BB/9 in 157 minor league innings with the Royals.
  • The Indians have released infielder Grofi Cruz, per Tribeinsider (Twitter link). Cleveland signed Cruz, then 16, out of the Dominican Republic for $400K in July 2012. Cruz didn’t pan out, however, batting .222/.271/.259 across a combined 498 PAs in Rookie ball and Low-A.

Cafardo’s Latest: Encarnacion, Jays, BoSox, Moore, O’s, Royals

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Standout Blue Jays slugger Edwin Encarnacion is a pending free agent, and the division-rival Red Sox will have a designated hitter opening at season’s end if David Ortiz goes through with his retirement. The idea of the Red Sox signing Encarnacion in the offseason as Ortiz’s replacement has come up as a result, and Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe reports that the 33-year-old has some important fans in Boston. Manager John Farrell, bench coach Torey Lovullo and third base coach Brian Butterfield – all of whom were previously in Toronto – are Encarnacion supporters, which could factor into whether the BoSox pursue him. In regards to his future, Encarnacion offered, “We’ll see what’s going to happen. For now I’m with the Blue Jays and I’m just trying to contribute to us winning.”

More from Cafardo:

  • Left-hander Matt Moore is the likeliest Rays starter to end up on the move, team executives believe. Having posted a 4.33 ERA, 7.58 K/9 and 2.63 BB/9 through 116 1/3 innings, the 27-year-old is drawing interest from the Blue Jays, Dodgers, Royals, Red Sox, Orioles, Marlins and Rangers (notably, Rob Bradford of WEEI reported Saturday that the Rays aren’t open to dealing with division-rival Boston; the same might hold true with Baltimore and Toronto). Moore is reasonably priced via club options through 2019.
  • All-Star catcher Jonathan Lucroy offered some possible explanations as to why the Brewers haven’t traded him yet, despite incessant rumors.“There haven’t been that many catchers who have been injured this year so that’s one reason,” he said. “Some teams think it’s tough to bring a catcher in at midseason because they have to get to know a whole new set of pitchers. That’s not a huge factor for me. And then whatever it is you have to give up.” Considering his elite two-way production and cheap control through 2017, Milwaukee should be in line for a lofty return if it finally moves the 30-year-old before the deadline.
  • The Twins would willingly take a lesser return for right-hander Ervin Santana if it enables them to jettison the remainder of his $28MM salary. The Orioles and Royals, whom Santana previously pitched for, are potential fits for the 33-year-old. Santana has logged a 4.12 ERA, 6.68 K/9 and 2.58 BB/9 in 98 1/3 frames this year.
  • It’s unclear if the Angels will make right-hander Matt Shoemaker available, though their stated unwillingness to rebuild makes it unlikely. The 29-year-old’s decent 4.08 ERA across 106 innings belies the dominance he has displayed since mid-May, when he rejoined the Halos after a minor league demotion. Going back to May 21, Shoemaker has amassed 88 strikeouts against nine walks in 76 1/3 frames. In his latest outing, he threw a complete game, 13-K shutout against the White Sox on Saturday. Adding to Shoemaker’s value is that he won’t make his first trip through arbitration until after the season, meaning he has four full years of team control left.
  • Former big league skipper Ozzie Guillen, now a broadcaster for Latin American media outlets, would “absolutely” like another managerial job in the majors. Guillen hasn’t managed since Miami fired him in the wake of pro-Fidel Castro comments he made in 2012.

Rumors: Mets, Marlins, Dodgers, Archer, Rangers

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Although the Mets’ bullpen entered Saturday ranked sixth in the majors in ERA (3.20) and seventh in K-BB percentage (16.4), the team is in the market for right-handed relief help, according to Marc Carig of Newsday. An addition might not necessarily come by the Aug. 1 trade deadline, per Carig, who reports that the Mets nearly signed righty Kevin Jepsen before he inked a free agent deal with Tampa Bay earlier this week. Further, the Mets are skeptical of paying a significant price for a reliever via trade, which could rule out someone like the Brewers’ Jeremy Jeffress, notes Carig. As of now, the Mets have three quality late-game right-handers in closer Jeurys Familia, Addison Reed and Hansel Robles.

More of the latest rumors:

  • While the Marlins are aiming to upgrade their rotation in advance of the deadline, they’re reluctant to trade anyone from their roster for a starter, per Joe Frisaro of MLB.com. Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reported earlier Saturday that the Fish would move shortstop Adeiny Hechavarria for a top starter like the Rays’ Chris Archer, but that might be unrealistic, as Frisaro suggests.
  • Speaking of Archer, the Dodgers were among the clubs scouting his start Friday against Baltimore, relays Ken Gurnick of MLB.com. Archer has a connection to Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman, who was formerly the Rays’ GM and acquired the right-hander in a trade with the Cubs in 2011. Archer has disappointed this year, but given his track record of excellence from 2013-15, age (27) and extremely team-friendly contract through 2021, he’d likely command a hefty return.
  • In the weeks leading up to the deadline, various reports have linked the Rangers to several starting pitchers and Brewers backstop Jonathan Lucroy. Rangers president and GM Jon Daniels spoke about that Friday and declared that he’s looking to improve his club’s rotation more than its catcher situation. “We’re a lot more focused on the pitching side,” Daniels told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram’s Rodger Mallison, who writes that the Rangers’ goal is to acquire a starter who’s under control beyond this season.

NL Notes: Niese, Vizcaino, Cubs, Giants, Dodgers

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In an appearance on Pittsburgh’s 93.7 The Fan, Pirates GM Neal Huntington admits that the winter swap of Neil Walker for Jon Niese was a mistake. “We felt that that was our best return, and it has not played out that way, and that’s a challenge,” Huntington said. “We own that. We accept that.” Reports have suggested that the Bucs are hoping to trade Niese. For the time being, he’s headed for bullpen duties, as Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review tweets. Though Huntington expressed hope that Niese can turn things around, he was unusually forthright in acknowledging the faulty trade (while also hinting at the team’s alternatives in shopping Walker). “In hindsight, maybe the two fringe prospects and trying to figure out where to reallocate the money might have been a better return,” he said.

  • Niese’s former club, the Mets, surely didn’t envision a scenario where the lefty could hold appeal in 2016, but Marc Carig of Newsday writes that the club isn’t ruling out a reunion. New York is still prioritizing pen help, but seems increasingly open to the idea of bringing back a pitcher who had a good deal of success over his time with the club. The 29-year-old has been hit hard in Pittsburgh, but carried a 3.91 ERA in over 1,000 innings through eight years with the Mets.
  • Braves closer Arodys Vizcaino left tonight’s action with what appeared to be an oblique issue. As MLB.com’s Mark Bowman tweets, the preliminary expectation is that he’ll require a DL stint. The injury comes at an inopportune time for Vizcaino’s trade chances, as he has already missed action of late and has struggled when he has been available. Over his last five appearances, Vizcaino has allowed five earned runs on eight hits and seven walks while recording only a pair of strikeouts. Once viewed as one of the best relief arms on the market, it seems increasingly likely that he’ll end up staying in Atlanta for the rest of the season.
  • Cubs president of baseball operations Theo Epstein says the his club will be flexible in the build-up to the deadline, as Bruce Levine of CBS Chicago reports. “I don’t think its productive to pigeonhole yourself into thinking you have needs in just one specific role as the key to improving this club,” Epstein said. “There are so many variables. Things change. The way you look now may not be the way you look in mid-September. We are going to be open-minded to adding talented players knowing that could happen.” Epstein did discuss the idea of adding a starter, though Chicago’s rotation has been quite solid. “We are always looking to add long-term starting pitching,” he noted. “Sometimes the trading deadline can be a better forum for that than the offseason. Sometimes it is not. It is important to stay focused this time of year on this year’s club. You still want to keep one eye on opportunities that can help you down the road as well.”
  • The Giants are seeing solid progress on some injured players, as Andrew Baggarly of the Mercury News reports. Outfielder Hunter Pence is set to begin a rehab assignment, where he’ll test his surgically-repaired hamstring. And second baseman Joe Panik has passed a concussion test, meaning he could soon be cleared to start his own brief rehab stint. Righties Cory Gearrin and Matt Cain are also nearing readiness; the former has extended his throwing distance while the latter reached 93 pitches in an outing tonight (though he was also touched for 10 runs).
  • The division-rival Dodgers also got some injury news, though it’s not necessarily all positive. Outfielder Trayce Thompson has lower back pain that could land him on the DL. Fellow outfielder Andre Ethier is now looking like he’s more likely to make it back in mid-August, about two weeks later than had been targeted, though the team is still awaiting the results of a bone scan on his injured leg before it gets a clearer picture.
  • While the Dodgers think they’ll utilize prized lefty Julio Urias at the major league level again later this year, manager Dave Roberts says he’ll work at the pen at Triple-A for the time being. (Via MLB Network Radio on Sirius XM; Twitter link.) Los Angeles has been understandably cautious with his workload, and seemingly hopes to keep him fresh while also tamping down the innings for the time being.

Minor MLB Transactions: 7/15/16

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Here are the day’s minor moves:

  • Utilityman Cole Figueroa has elected free agency from the Dodgers after clearing outright waivers, J.P. Hoornstra of the Los Angeles News Group tweets. After bouncing from the Pirates to the Dodgers via the waiver wire, Figueroa will have a chance to choose his next opportunity. He hasn’t done much in limited chances at the major league level over the last three years, but does own a .309/.350/.447 slash over 101 Triple-A plate appearances on the season.
  • The Giants have released catcher George Kottaras, as Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle reports on Twitter. The 33-year-old hasn’t been to the big leagues since 2014, but does have 858 MLB plate appearances over seven season, with a useful .215/.326/.411 batting line in that span. Kottaras had seen limited action at Triple-A this year, and was hitting just .155/.290/.224.
  • Meanwhile, the Giants have sold the contract of Triple-A righty Mike Broadway to Japan’s Yokohama BayStars, the Chronicle’s John Shea tweets. The 29-year-old has had brief and unsuccessful stops in San Francisco in each of the last two years. Pitching at the highest level of the minors this year, he owns a 3.94 ERA with 9.1 K/9 against 3.3 BB/9 over 29 2/3 frames.

Minor MLB Transactions: 7/13/16

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Here are the day’s minor moves and outright assignments:

  • Outfielder Will Venable has cleared waivers been outrighted to Triple-A by the Dodgers, according to the transactions page at MLB.com. While Venable has enough service time to reject the assignment in favor of free agency, he’ll instead accept the assignment and head to Oklahoma City, reports MLBTR’s Steve Adams (via Twitter). Venable was designated for assignment by the Dodgers for the second time earlier this month after signing a minor league pact with L.A. in mid-June. He’s collected just one hit in 19 plate appearances this season but has a lengthy track record of hitting right-handed pitching well. The 33-year-old will look to get another shot with the big league club later this season.

Earlier Moves

  • The Phillies have outrighted recently-designated lefty Mario Hollands, per a club announcement. He’ll be assigned to Double-A. The 27-year-old was a regular contributor to the 2014 Phils’ bullpen, but he hasn’t been back since missing 2015 while recovering from a Tommy John procedure. While moving back up through the Philadelphia farm system this year, Hollands has thrown 26 13 innings of 3.76 ERA ball, with 8.5 K/9 against 2.4 BB/9.

West Notes: Bregman, Jansen, Pomeranz, Rockies

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The Astros are “expected to call up top prospect Alex Bregman as early as this weekend,” reports Jim Bowden of ESPN and MLB Network Radio on SiriusXM (Twitter link). Bregman, selected with the No. 2 overall pick in the 2015 draft, has obliterated minor league pitching all season long and recently moved up to Triple-A without missing a beat. The 22-year-old is hitting .389/.421/.889 with five homers in eight Triple-A games and a combined .309/.416/.603 with 19 home runs between Double-A and Triple-A this season. The 22-year-old is a natural shortstop but has been playing third base as of late. As MLBTR’s Jason Martinez speculated yesterday in his latest Knocking Down The Door installment, Bregman could slot into third base for the Astros, with Luis Valbuena shifting across the diamond to first base and A.J. Reed moving into a platoon at DH with Evan Gattis. If he does indeed get the call this coming weekend, Bregman would be the first first-rounder from last year’s draft to make his MLB debut and could provide a jolt in the arm of an Astros club that has surged back into both the Wild Card and AL West race.

More from the West divisions…

  • As Kenley Jansen hopes to get the opportunity to pitch in tonight’s All-Star Game, Andy McCullough of the L.A. Times looks a bit further into the future and writes that the Dodgers’ closer is in line for a record-setting payday relative to his relief-pitching peers. Multiple executives to whom McCullough has spoken consider Jonathan Papelbon’s current record — a four-year, $50MM contract — to be “the floor” for Jansen in the offseason. As McCullough notes, Jansen has better marks in ERA, WHIP, K/9 and K/BB ratio than either Papelbon or David Robertson had in their three-year platforms to free agency. We’re inclined to agree at MLBTR, as Tim Dierkes has noted throughout the year in his free-agent power rankings. Jansen has a legitimate case for five seasons on the free-agent market, and he shouldn’t have to sacrifice much in the way of average annual value to achieve that height. A guarantee in the vicinity of $70MM seems plausible for Jansen, who currently boasts a 1.16 ERA with 11.9 K/9 and 1.4 BB/9 in 38 2/3 innings.
  • Dodgers president of baseball ops Andrew Friedman tells McCullough that his “hope and expectation” is that Jansen will be wearing a Dodgers uniform for a long time. McCullough notes, in fact, that the Dodgers could pursue both Jansen and Aroldis Chapman this winter, though that comment comes in seemingly speculative fashion.
  • Drew Pomeranz, who just entered the All-Star Game in relief for the National League, wouldn’t have had a rotation job this spring at all if he hadn’t initiated a conversation with Padres manager Andy Green, writes MLB.com’s A.J. Cassavell. Pomeranz saw early in camp that he wasn’t in the same workout group with the team’s starting pitchers and made the bold move to go to his new manager and tell him that he’d been working on a third pitch and wanted a crack at the rotation. Pomeranz said that Green appreciated how straightforward he was and gave him a chance to earn that job. The rest, of course, is history, as Pomeranz is now the Padres’ best starter, having turned in a 2.47 ERA in just over 100 innings this season.
  • There’s been “no sign so far” that the Rockies and manager Walt Weiss are discussing an extension, per Nick Groke and Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post in their midseason Rockies podcast. Saunders notes that while Weiss is well-liked by his players overall, there are some within the clubhouse that wish he was a bit tougher and demanded more from his team. Weiss’ current contract runs through the end of the 2016 season. Groke is later joined by Benjamin Hochman from the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, and the two discuss the possibility of the Rockies and Cardinals matching up on a trade for Charlie Blackmon.

NL Notes: Lucroy, Giants, Cards, Dodgers

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Brewers catcher and eminently valuable trade chip Jonathan Lucroy said Monday that he and the team are not engaging in contract extension talks (Twitter link via Chris Cotillo of SB Nation). “I want to be competitive. I want to be on a team that is playing for a championship,” Lucroy told Jon Heyman of Today’s Knuckleball. “If that’s the Brewers, great. If not, not. It’s a tough situation.” With a relatively insignificant $4MM salary this year and a $5.25MM club option for 2017, Lucroy is currently on one of the most team-friendly contracts in baseball. That should help the Brewers land a quality haul for the All-Star if they deal him by the Aug. 1 trade deadline. The 30-year-old has rebounded from an injury-plagued 2015 to hit .304/.361/.491 with 11 home runs in 324 plate appearances this season. Defensively, Lucroy has thrown out a terrific 39 percent of attempted base stealers while rating near the top of the league in the pitch-framing department.

More out of the NL:

  • While the NL West-leading Giants have come up as a possible fit for either Aroldis Chapman or All-Star Andrew Miller in advance of the deadline, the Yankees don’t regard San Francisco as a match for either, according to Hank Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle (Twitter link). Notably, five Giants – right-handers Phil Bickford (No. 50) and Tyler Beede (No. 81), shortstop Christian Arroyo (No. 56), first baseman Chris Shaw (No. 83) and lefty Adalberto Mejia (No. 91) – are on Baseball America’s Midseason Top 100 Prospects list. The lefty-swinging Shaw, 22, would seem to make sense for the Yankees, offers Schulman, though it seems they disagree.
  • Cardinals All-Star infielder Matt Carpenter hopes to make a four-week recovery from the oblique strain that sent him to the disabled list July 7, writes Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Carpenter has a “significant” tear along his right side, he said Monday, and the 30-year-old had a similar injury in 2012 that kept him out four weeks.  Prior to going on the shelf, Carpenter slashed a tremendous .298/.420/.568 with 14 homers and nearly as many walks (58) as strikeouts (61) in 351 PAs.
  • Agent Scott Boras is “happy” with the way the Dodgers have handled 19-year-old phenom Julio Urias, he told Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register on Monday (Twitter link). The Dodgers are monitoring the workload of the left-handed Urias, who is currently with Triple-A Oklahoma City and could factor in as both a reliever and starter in the majors down the stretch. Between OKC and LA, Urias has thrown 78 1/3 innings, which is just 9 1/3 fewer than the career-high 87 2/3 frames he amassed in 2014.

Minor MLB Transactions: 7/11/16

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Here are the day’s minor moves from around the league, each courtesy of Baseball America’s Matt Eddy unless otherwise noted…

  • Second baseman Cole Figueroa has elected free agency instead of an outright assignment to Triple-A from the Dodgers, per an announcement. Los Angeles designated the 29-year-old for assignment Friday after claiming him off waivers from the Pirates two weeks ago. Figueroa has picked up only 84 major league trips to the plate, but he has produced a respectable .288/.356/.376 line in nearly 2,000 Triple-A PAs.
  • The Red Sox have outrighted outfielder Ryan LaMarre to Triple-A Pawtucket, tweets Evan Drellich of the Boston Herald. Boston designated LaMarre for assignment when it acquired infielder Aaron Hill from the Brewers last week. Since the Reds took him in the second round of the 2010 draft, LaMarre has totaled just 32 major league plate appearances – six of which came earlier this year with the Red Sox. The 27-year-old has batted .265/.343/.379 over 2,469 trips to the plate in the minors.
  • The Reds have outrighted Juan Duran off their 40-man roster. The 24-year-old outfielder got a late start to his season and has struggled to a .191/.235/.255 batting line through 15 games and 51 plate appearances this season. Duran ranked among BA’s top 30 Reds prospects from 2008-11 but hasn’t appeared on that list since.
  • The Braves signed right-hander Maikel Cleto to a minor league contract. The hard-throwing 27-year-old has experience in parts of four big league seasons with the Cardinals and White Sox but hasn’t appeared in the Majors since 2014. He’s averaged an impressive 11.6 K/9 in the Majors but has also averaged six walks per nine innings and posted an unsightly 6.60 ERA in 45 innings. Cleto pitched 14 innings in the Mexican League and caught Atlanta’s eye it seems, perhaps due to a much-improved 16-to-1 K/BB ratio in that brief stint.
  • Right-hander Vinnie Pestano has been released by the Yankees. The 31-year-old opened the season at Scranton/Wilkes-Barre and enjoyed a strong April, pitching to a 3.38 ERA with 16 strikeouts and one walk in 10 2/3 innings but hasn’t pitched for the club since due to injury. Pestano has six seasons of big league experience and has worked to a 2.98 ERA with 10.8 K/9 and 3.9 BB/9 in 202 2/3 innings at the big league level.
  • The Marlins traded left-hander Tim Berry to the Padres in exchange for cash considerations. Berry, who was outrighted off Miami’s 40-man roster earlier this season, began the year in Double-A and was hit exceptionally hard, but he’s righted the ship after a stint on the disabled list and some time at Class-A Advanced, posting a 2.78 ERA over his past 22 2/3 innings (including one appearance with San Diego’s Class-A affiliate).

Quick Hits: Pitching, Teheran, Kershaw, Giants, Maeda, Prospect Trades

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Starting pitching is still “severely overpriced” on the trade market, according to scouts who spoke with ESPN.com’s Jerry Crasnick (Twitter link) at the Futures Game.  “You want to get a guy who’ll pitch for you in the postseason.  Teams want to trade you a No. 5 starter who might help you get to the postseason,” said one scout who works for a contending club.  Eight starters landed on the latest edition of the Top 25 Trade Candidates list from MLBTR’s Jeff Todd, though of that octet, only a few seem like they would be real difference-makers in a playoff series.  Here’s more from around baseball as we wrap up the first half…

  • In another tweet from Crasnick, he describes the chances of the Braves trading Julio Teheran as “not likely” unless Atlanta significantly lowers its asking price before the deadline.  Given that the Braves reportedly want more for Teheran than they received from the D’Backs in the already-infamous Shelby Miller trade, it’s not hard to see why teams are balking at such a huge asking price.  (And it’s also clear why Atlanta would demand so much for a controllable young arm with ace potential.)
  • Clayton Kershaw will miss at least one start after the All-Star break as the Dodgers’ ace is still recovering from his back injury.  L.A. manager Dave Roberts lined up his post-All-Star break rotation for reporters (including MLB.com’s Ken Gurnick) and Kershaw wasn’t in the mix, as the star lefty just threw off a mound today for the first time since June 26.  Early reports about his DL placement suggested Kershaw could miss up to a month, so while today’s news wasn’t necessarily a surprise, it’s possible he could return in the latter half of the 10-day road trip the Dodgers will face after the break.
  • Speaking of NL West stars on the DL, Bruce Bochy provided some updates to the media (including Andrew Baggarly of the San Jose Mercury News) about some notable Giants.  Joe Panik is recovering well from concussion symptoms and could be back for the Giants’ series with the Red Sox that begins on July 19, while Hunter Pence could begin a minor league rehab assignment next week as he recovers from surgery to fix a torn hamstring.  Matt Duffy’s strained Achilles tendon in his left foot is still causing him problems when he runs in a straight line, so his timeline is uncertain though Duffy can perform other baseball activities with no issues.
  • Kenta Maeda exceeded the 100-inning plateau in his start today, thus unlocking another $250K bonus in his Dodgers contract (hat tip to ESPN.com’s Doug Padilla).  Maeda is only guaranteed $3MM per season from 2016 through 2023, though he can collect significant bonuses based on innings pitched, starts and making the Opening Day roster.  Thus far, Maeda has received an extra $1.65MM in bonuses this season.  Even if he maxes out those bonuses over the eight years under contract, Maeda is already looking like a bargain for the Dodgers given how well he has pitched in his first MLB season.
  • With today’s MLB Futures Game in mind, ESPN’s Jim Bowden (subscription required) details seven prospects from the game who could be trade chips at the deadline.
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