NL News & Rumors: Cueto, Padres, Maybin, Dodgers
Giants right-hander Johnny Cueto missed two-plus months earlier this season on account of a a sprained pitching elbow. Now, less than a month after his return from the disabled list, Cueto may be headed back to the shelf. After making his fourth straight subpar start on Saturday, when he allowed four earned runs in as many innings in a loss to Milwaukee, the 32-year-old told Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area and other reporters that his elbow issues haven’t subsided. “I keep telling you guys and keep telling myself I’m fine, but in reality I’m not,” said Cueto, who will meet with doctors Sunday, per Pavlovic.
In the early stages of his DL stint in the spring, Cueto feared he’d require Tommy John surgery. That wasn’t the case then, but it’s now unclear whether he’ll continue to be able to avoid the procedure. Needless to say, elbow surgery would be a disastrous outcome for Cueto and the Giants, who signed him to a six-year, $130MM guarantee entering 2016. Cueto then racked up his third straight 200-inning season in the first year of the deal, during which he posted a 2.79 ERA across 219 2/3 frames, though injuries have beset him since then. He only tossed 147 1/3 innings of 4.52 ERA ball in 2017, and while Cueto has been much better at preventing runs this season (3.23 ERA), he has totaled just 53 frames and registered his highest FIP (4.71) since his rookie year in 2008.
More from the National League…
- Padres relievers Craig Stammen and Kirby Yates have drawn attention from Red Sox scouts, Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe reports. Boston’s among many teams eyeing Stammen and Yates, it seems, as Dennis Lin of The Athletic (subscription required) relays that interest in the two pitchers is “significant.” That’s to be expected, as both Stammen and Yates have been tremendous this year and come with affordable team control. Stammen’s in the first season of a two-year, $4.5MM contract, while Yates is making a bit over $1.06MM and still has a couple of arbitration trips remaining. Trading one or both of them would continue a major bullpen makeover for the Padres, who sent relievers Brad Hand and Adam Cimber to the Indians for catcher prospect Francisco Mejia earlier this month.
- Unsurprisingly, the rebuilding Marlins have made pending free-agent outfielder Cameron Maybin available for trade, according to George A. King III of the New York Post. Whether teams are interested in Maybin isn’t clear, but he has been useful for the Marlins this season after signing for $3.25MM during the winter. The 31-year-old has taken 284 plate appearances in 2018 and batted .250/.338/.339 with three home runs and eight stolen bases (though he has also been caught five times). Defensively, Maybin has seen time at all three outfield spots and shined overall, having recorded eight Defensive Runs Saved, a 4.7 Ultimate Zone Rating and five Outs Above Average.
- The Dodgers plan to use left-hander Julio Urias as a relief weapon when he returns in the coming weeks, Andy McCullough of the Los Angeles Times tweets. In the meantime, the 21-year-old Urias is continuing to work back from June 2017 shoulder surgery, and the Dodgers “have no idea” what they’ll get from him when he rejoins them, McCullough writes. Before undergoing that serious procedure, Urias had been among the game’s highest-regarded young hurlers, particularly in 2016 – a 77-inning debut in which he pitched to a 3.39 ERA/3.16 FIP with 9.82 K/9 against 3.62 BB/9 over 18 appearances and 15 starts.
Cafardo’s Latest: Tribe, Cubs, Dodgers, Bucs
Blue Jays outfielder Curtis Granderson, Reds center fielder Billy Hamilton and Marlins utilityman Derek Dietrich are on the Indians’ “radar”, according to Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe. Either Granderson or Hamilton would add a much-needed upgrade to Cleveland’s outfield, which lost Tyler Naquin to the disabled list Saturday, while Dietrich may be able to help both at the keystone and in the outfield. Dietrich has spent the majority of his career at second base, but the 29-year-old – who happens to be a Cleveland native – has amassed 84 appearances in left field this season. Dietrich’s amid his best offensive season, having hit .283/.348/.454 with 13 home runs in 388 plate appearances.
More from Cafardo…
- The Cubs and Rangers have already made a pair of trades in recent weeks, as Chicago acquired both Jesse Chavez and Cole Hamels from Texas. That may not be the end of the two teams’ dealings, though, with Cafardo writing that the Cubs are “looking at” Rangers relievers Jake Diekman and Keone Kela.
- Along with the previously reported Brad Brach, the Dodgers have been scouting Tigers reliever Shane Greene, according to Cafardo. The 29-year-old Greene has pitched to a 4.19 ERA/3.98 ERA with 9.63 K/9, 2.3 BB/9 and a 43.5 percent groundball rate in 43 innings this season. He’s on a meager salary this year ($1.95MM) and scheduled to go through arbitration one more time.
- The resurgent Pirates seem intent on addressing their bullpen, as they’ve targeted both Kela (previously reported) and Brach to bolster their relief corps, per Cafardo. Brach, a 32-year-old who will be a free agent at season’s end, has logged a 4.85 ERA/4.01 FIP with 8.77 K/9, 4.38 BB/9 and a 46.5 percent groundball rate in 39 innings.
Frisaro’s Latest: Straily, Ziegler, Barraclough, Realmuto
Following this past offseason’s fire sale of MLB assets, the Marlins are likely to ship out a few more players in the coming days prior to the non-waiver trade deadline. MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro has some updates on the market for a wide number of Miami assets as we approach July 31st.
- An Athletics scout paid a visit to Marlins Park this past Thursday, and Frisaro reports that he was there to watch right-hander Dan Straily pitch. Straily fell just short of a quality start in that outing, allowing three runs in 5 2/3 innings with six strikeouts against three walks. Astonishingly, Straily’s been able to hold together a 4.07 ERA this season despite a cataclysmic 5.41 FIP. After flashing improved control across the past two seasons, Straily has relapsed back to a 4.29 BB/9 and dealt with right forearm inflammation at the outset of the season, so it remains to be seen whether he’d be an attractive trade target to the A’s organization that drafted and developed him.
- After a rough start to the season that saw him lose his job as the team’s closer, sidewinder Brad Ziegler has rebounded nicely to post a 3.08 ERA in 39 appearances since the start of May (though peripherals paint a worse picture). The Marlins have plenty of potential suitors for the right-hander, Frisaro says, and lists the Cubs, Indians, Red Sox and A’s as potential fits. It’s worth noting that the latter two clubs are already familiar with Ziegler, as he’s spent time pitching for both organizations. The 38-year-old has already been traded twice in his lengthy career, and is playing out the final months of a two-year, $16MM deal.
- Ziegler’s not the only reliever fielding interest, Frisaro notes, as nearly a dozen scouts have been in Miami recently to watch Kyle Barraclough, Drew Steckenrider and Adam Conley pitch. Last we heard, the Marlins had placed a high price on each of the three, but it’s still certainly plausible that many teams would be willing to pay that price for relievers that come with such controllable relief arms; each of the aforementioned three is under team control through at least 2021.
- The Nationals still aren’t having any luck trying to pry catcher J.T. Realmuto from the hands of the Marlins. Frisaro reports that Miami’s NL East rival once again checked in on the club’s best trade asset, but were told that any package for Realmuto would require Washington to fork over both outfield prospect Victor Robles and shortstop prospect Carter Kieboom, both of whom are generally seen as top 100 prospects. Unsurpringly, conversations didn’t go far.
NL West Notes: Padres, Archer, Giants, Shark, Evans, Dodgers
Reports yesterday indicated the Padres were checking around about a potential Chris Archer trade with the Rays, and MLB.com’s Jon Paul Morosi sheds a bit more light on those talks. San Diego is reportedly willing to move one or two of Francisco Mejia, Luis Urias, and Cal Quantrill in an Archer deal, though its top two prospects (Fernando Tatis Jr. and MacKenzie Gore) are not available. Even without Tatis or Gore on the table, dealing any of those other highly-touted prospects would be a major concession on San Diego’s part, and a big score for the Rays. Mejia was only just acquired by the Padres as the return for Brad Hand and Adam Cimber, so in my opinion, it could be that the team sees the young catcher as somewhat “found money” — put another way, the Padres would be essentially dealing Hand and Cimber for Archer, which is a deal the club would’ve happily made. Then again, the Padres are so deep in minor league talent that they can afford to move top names like Mejia, Urias, or Quantrill and still have one of the game’s better farm systems.
Scouts from the Padres and Diamondbacks (and, from outside the division, the Phillies and Cubs) watched Archer’s start last Sunday. A source tells Morosi that at least eight teams have recently been in touch with the Rays about Archer’s availability, and while there still isn’t clear sign Tampa is considering a trade, this deep interest is one of the reasons “a deal involving Archer is more likely now than at any point in recent memory,” Morosi writes.
Here’s more from around the NL West…
- There’s still no timetable for the Giants to welcome back righty Jeff Samardzija, though it’s not looking particularly promising. Per Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle, via Twitter, the veteran hurler is “not returning anytime soon.” Rather, he’ll continue to rest his ailing shoulder before heading out for some amount of rehab work. This continues to be a lost season for the 33-year-old, who owns a 6.25 ERA in 44 2/3 innings
- Though Samardzija’s ongoing injury issue is one of several less-than-promising signs for the Giants, indications are that they aren’t interested in packing up and waiting for next year. GM Bobby Evans says in a chat with Joel Sherman of the New York Post that the front office is “bent toward helping our current club.” Though Evans expressed at least some willingness to consider moving bullpen pieces, such a move wouldn’t really serve the team’s interests, particularly after the Giants previously gave up young talent to shed salary. While the team is still within reasonable striking distance in the NL West, its place in the trade deadline picture remains unclear — though Evans did shut down any thought that the team would make a last-minute decision to make star lefty Madison Bumgarner available.
- The Dodgers sent scouts to watch pitchers on both the Marlins and Rays when the two Florida rivals faced off last weekend, the Miami Herald’s Clark Spencer reports (Twitter link). L.A. could have interested in any number of relievers or perhaps even starting pitchers on either roster, given how many Miami and Tampa players have been cited in trade rumors. Interestingly, Spencer’s tweet was linked to a tweet from Michael J. Duarte of NBC Los Angeles, who said that the Marlins had scouts watching Yadier Alvarez‘s most recent Double-A outing. A consensus top prospect headed into the 2017 season, Alvarez didn’t crack the preseason top-100 lists for Baseball America or MLB.com this year (though Baseball Prospectus still had him 41st) in the wake of an unimpressive season. Alvarez has continued to struggle in 2018, with a 5.85 ERA and 25 walks in 20 frames for Double-A Tulsa, though he’s still missing a lot of bats with his 100-mph fastball.
Crasnick’s Latest: Moustakas, Ziegler, Ramos, Orioles, Hamels
“The Braves‘ interest in Mike Moustakas is minimal at best,” ESPN.com’s Jerry Crasnick writes in a tweet, following up on an earlier report which stated that Atlanta was looking at the Royals third baseman. Moustakas and the Braves have been linked in rumors even dating back to last offseason due to Atlanta’s lack of third base depth, though the team is reportedly satisfied with Johan Camargo at the hot corner. Interestingly, Crasnick notes that the Braves weren’t sure “how Moustakas would adapt to a bench role,” implying that the team would have platooned the duo at third base. Moustakas has long has problems against left-handed pitching, while the switch-hitting Camargo has crushed lefties (1.008 OPS in 156 PA) and struggled against righties (.701 OPS in 382 PA) in his brief Major League career.
Here’s more trade buzz from Crasnick in a pair of longer pieces (link one, link two)…
- The Mariners are one of the teams who have recently called the Marlins about Brad Ziegler. After a tough start to the season that saw him lose his closer’s job, Ziegler has pitched much better over the last two months and has reignited some trade interest. Ziegler is a free agent this winter and is still owed around $3.2MM of his $9MM salary for the 2018 season. Among other Miami relievers mentioned as trade candidates, interest in lefty Adam Conley is “picking up steam” since other southpaws like Brad Hand and Zach Britton are no longer available, according to one source.
- Wilson Ramos could be on the verge of a minor league rehab assignment, as the Rays catcher is ahead of schedule in his recovery from a hamstring strain. There’s still a chance Ramos could be moved before the July 31 trade deadline, if he continues to progress and is on pace for a return early in August.
- “The Orioles are willing to engage” teams in discussions about Kevin Gausman and Jonathan Schoop. We’ve heard both players be mentioned in trade talks, though this is the first confirmation that Baltimore is open to moving either. Schoop has one more year of arbitration eligibility remaining while Gausman has two, so these players have more value to the rebuilding O’s than other recently-moved stars like Manny Machado and Britton. As one scout tells Crasnick, Gausman and Schoop are “the real rebuild pieces.”
- The Rangers have only received “a couple of nibbles” in Shin-Soo Choo, and aren’t generating much more interest in either Cole Hamels or their bullpen trade chips. Part of the issue is that the Rangers’ players aren’t standing out amidst a deep market for relief options, and Hamels’ poor performance over his last five starts has raised concerns among rival evaluators. Some Rangers officials believe Hamels’ struggles may be influenced by stress over the trade rumors.
Trade Chatter: Archer, Rockies, O’s, Astros, Steckenrider, D-backs, Kela
With the Padres‘ lengthy rebuilding moving ever closer to its conclusion, the team has been inquiring about controllable MLB pieces to add to its rotation. They’ve already been tied to Noah Syndergaard on the rumor mill, and they reportedly asked the Yankees about Miguel Andujar during Brad Hand talks. Adding to that line of thinking, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic writes today (subscription required) that an executive that is with neither the Padres nor the Rays tells him that San Diego is pursuing a Chris Archer trade. Rosenthal is careful to stress that neither the Friars nor the Rays confirmed as much, though the two sides have had at least some level of discussions regarding Archer, he notes. As Rosenthal explores at length, however, there are myriad roadblocks to a deal.
Whether San Diego’s interest in Archer is serious or more along the lines of due diligence, it’s an interesting look at the calculus both the Padres and Rays need to consider when weighing future-oriented moves. And it’s certainly another notable data point suggesting that Padres GM A.J. Preller and his staff are beginning to look at improving the big league roster with pieces that could be controlled beyond the 2020 season.
Some more trade talk from around the league…
- In addition to the Rockies‘ previously reported interest in Zach Britton, Colorado has also asked the Orioles about right-handers Dylan Bundy and Kevin Gausman, Jon Morosi of MLB.com reports (via Twitter). There’s no momentum in talks regarding Bundy and Gausman, however, Morosi adds. To this point, it’s not at all clear whether the O’s would even consider moving Gausman (controlled through 2020) or Bundy (through 2021). There’s little reason for the Orioles not to seriously entertain offers, from my vantage point, as they’re not likely to contend in either 2019 or 2020 with the Yankees and Red Sox both poised for long-term success. Obviously, that’s not to say they should simply take the best offer presented before July 31, but the Orioles should be amenable to moving just about anyone on the roster for a strong enough return.
- The Athletic’s Jayson Stark cites execs from teams that have spoken with the Astros in reporting (via Twitter) that Houston has been “adamant” about hanging onto its very top tier of prospects in trade talks (e.g. Forrest Whitley, Yordan Alvarez). The Astros’ farm system is plenty deep, of course, and it stands to reason that any of the rental targets they’re pursuing — they’ve been oft-linked to Zach Britton, for instance — would come with a lower price tag than that anyhow.
- The Marlins‘ ask on its controllable relievers appears to be quite high, with Morosi tweeting that Miami indicated to the Red Sox that Jay Groome or Michael Chavis alone would not be enough to land Drew Steckenrider. (Morosi doesn’t suggest that either was ever offered up by the Red Sox — only that the Marlins wouldn’t have considered a one-for-one swap in either case.) While Groome and Chavis are generally regarded as Boston’s top two prospects, Groome underwent Tommy John surgery earlier this summer. Chavis, meanwhile, missed the first 80 games of the season due to a PED suspension and has only logged 10 games since being activated.
- Morosi also tweets that the Diamondbacks have shown interest in Rangers relievers Keone Kela and Jose Leclerc. There’s no indication that talks between the two sides are serious, but the Rangers are reportedly open to moving Kela, who is controlled through the 2020 season. The 25-year-old is currently sporting a 3.18 ERA with 10.9 K/9 against 3.2 BB/9 through 34 innings of work and has a 2.97 ERA with better than 11 K/9 dating back to 2017. Leclerc would be tougher to pry away, as he’s controlled for another four seasons beyond the current campaign and currently boasts a 2.06 ERA with a 51-to-18 K/BB ratio through 35 innings.
Sonny Gray Drawing “A Bit Of Interest”
Sonny Gray was part of a trade deadline deal last year, and the right-hander may end up on the move again this season. Gray, whom the Yankees acquired from the Athletics last July, is generating “a bit of interest” with July 31 nearing, Jon Heyman of Fancred tweets. Heyman casts doubt on the Yankees shipping out Gray, though, noting that the playoff shoo-ins are more interested in adding starters than subtracting them.
The Gray experiment hasn’t worked out thus far for New York, and as a result, Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe reported Saturday that some teams believe the Yankees do want to move him. The 28-year-old Gray has been a quality mid-rotation starter for the majority of his career, but he’s now amid his second-worst season in terms of both ERA (5.34) and FIP (4.41). While Gray has managed the second-best strikeout rate of his major league tenure (8.53 K/9), he has partially offset that with a personal-worst walk rate (3.94 BB/9). He has also generated the fewest ground balls of his career (a still-respectable 47.6 percent), racked up just 96 innings in 19 starts and totaled only seven quality starts.
As poorly as Gray has pitched this year, he’s still one of the Yankees’ five best starting options right now, to which Heyman alluded. Despite their excellent record (63-34, 4 1/2 games behind AL East-leading Boston), the Yankees haven’t gotten much from any starters but Luis Severino and CC Sabathia – the latter of whom is a 38-year-old with past knee problems. One of Gray’s fellow established starters, Masahiro Tanaka, has also had difficulty preventing runs. Meanwhile, Jordan Montgomery is out for this year and at least some of 2019 on account of Tommy John surgery, rookie Domingo German hasn’t been part of the solution, and fellow first-year man Jonathan Loaisiga didn’t offer length during his first four starts before succumbing to shoulder troubles.
Given their obvious starting pitching issues, the Yankees are known to be on the hunt for rotation help in advance of the deadline. The problem is that no front-line starters appear destined to move, which could leave the Yankees to choose from uninspiring hurlers who, like Gray, bring clear flaws to the table. One such option is righty Dan Straily, whom the Yankees have spoken with the Marlins about, according to Heyman. But the teams “don’t appear to be close” to a deal, per Heyman, and Straily certainly wouldn’t represent a slam-dunk upgrade over Gray.
As a result of the weak pitching market, Gray may at least finish the season as a Yankee, and then the team will have to decide whether to retain him in 2019. Gray, who’s on a $6.5MM salary this season, is slated to go through arbitration one more time.
Trade Rumors: Abreu, Brewers, BoSox, Twins, Royals, Dodgers, Brach, Treinen
As an established veteran on a cellar-dwelling team, White Sox first baseman Jose Abreu has come up often as a speculative trade candidate, but the club’s “strongly inclined” to retain him, Bob Nightengale of USA Today tweets. The 31-year-old hasn’t exactly boosted his trade value this season, having hit a career-worst .250/.312/.435 (101 wRC+, compared to 139 from 2014-17) and accounted for a replacement-level WAR across 407 plate appearances. Regardless of whether the White Sox keep Abreu, he’s slated to go through arbitration once more over the winter. In the meantime, he’s on a $13MM salary this season.
More trade-related items as the countdown to the July 31 deadline continues…
- The Brewers’ interest in Royals second baseman/outfielder Whit Merrifield has been known for a while, and Robert Murray of The Athletic (subscription required) explores the possibility of Milwaukee acquiring him. The Brewers haven’t pursued Merrifield as aggressively as they did during the winter, according to Murray, who hears he’d be rather expensive to pry out of Kansas City. Landing Merrifield would require “three higher-end prospects, at least,” an executive told Murray. Milwaukee happens to have a quality farm system, though it’s unlikely to trade its best prospect – second baseman Keston Hiura – suggests Murray, who goes on to run down farmhands the team could deal for Merrifield. The 29-year-old Merrifield has upped his stock during a terrific season in which he has hit .305/.375/.429 with five home runs and 17 steals through 412 PAs. Adding to his appeal, Merrifield’s on a near-minimum salary this season and won’t even be eligible for arbitration until after the 2019 campaign.
- The Red Sox sent a high-level executive, senior vice president of baseball operations Frank Wren, to scout the Royals–Twins game on Friday, per Mike Berardino of the Pioneer Press. It’s unclear which players Wren focused on, though it’s worth pointing out that Boston has shown reported interest in both Merrifield and Royals teammate Mike Moustakas. And with the Twins likely to sell at the deadline, Buster Olney of ESPN doesn’t rule out the Red Sox pursuing second baseman Brian Dozier.
- Along with Baltimore’s closer, Zach Britton, the reliever-needy Dodgers are interested in Orioles setup man Brad Brach, according to Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times. The Dodgers have also scouted the Marlins and Rays and “monitored” Athletics closer Blake Treinen, Shaikin adds, though it seems improbable he’ll go anywhere with the A’s making a major push for a playoff spot. Conversely, as a pending free agent on a rebuilding team, the 32-year-old Brach is a good bet to end up in another uniform in the coming weeks. The problem for Baltimore is that Brach is in the midst of his least effective season in a while, with a 4.34 ERA/3.61 FIP and a 4.34 BB/9 in 37 1/3 innings. On the positive side, Brach has struck out upward of nine hitters per nine and generated swinging strikes at a solid clip (13.2 percent).
Cafardo’s Latest: Yanks, Drury, Gray, O’s, Jays, Donaldson, Hamels, Marlins, Straily
Third baseman Brandon Drury was in the package the Yankees offered the Orioles for shortstop Manny Machado, Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe reports. The Yankees’ proposal didn’t suffice for the Orioles, who sent Machado to the Dodgers for a five-player return on Wednesday. Drury has also been part of a 2018 trade, an offseason deal in which he went from the Diamondbacks to the Yankees, but he hasn’t been able to find steady playing time in New York. After entering the season as the Yankees’ starting third baseman, the 25-year-old Drury headed to the disabled list with migraines in early April, paving the way for rookie Miguel Andujar‘s emergence at the hot corner. While Drury also offers a fair amount of experience at second base and in the corner outfield, the Yankees have set starters in those spots.
Thanks largely to the presences of Andujar, Gleyber Torres, Aaron Judge, Giancarlo Stanton and Brett Gardner, Drury has amassed just 54 plate appearances with the Yankees and spent most of the season in the minors. Drury hasn’t done much in his limited work with New York, as his .184/.259/.286 batting line demonstrates, but he has posted a .294/.403/.447 slash in 233 Triple-A plate appearances. He’s also not far removed from a decent showing with Arizona, where he batted .275/.323/.453 with 29 HRs in 979 PAs from 2016-17, and comes with a cheap salary ($621,900) and three years of arbitration eligibility. Perhaps the Yankees will find a taker for Drury in the near future, then, though they’re surely not in a hurry to give away any depth.
- Sticking with the Yankees, Cafardo relays that teams are scouting right-hander Sonny Gray, and some clubs are under the impression New York wants to trade him. The Yankees paid a high price to the A’s for Gray at last year’s trade deadline, but the move hasn’t worked out as hoped for the Bombers. Gray has taken sizable steps backward this season, with a 5.34 ERA/4.42 FIP in 96 innings, and may not be worthy of trusting in a playoff series should the Yankees get to that point. The 28-year-old’s making $6.5MM in 2018 and is only controllable via arbitration for one more season.
- The Blue Jays “hope” to trade pending free-agent third baseman Josh Donaldson this summer, according to Cafardo. A superstar with Oakland and Toronto from 2013-16, Donaldson’s amid his second straight injury-plagued year and has only appeared in 36 games this season. Not only has Donaldson been on the DL twice (including since May 29 because of calf tightness), but he hasn’t offered his usual excellent production when healthy. The 32-year-old has hit a middling .234/.333/.423 in 159 plate appearances, helping to hurt his value on the trade market and hamper his future earning power. In the event Donaldson returns in the coming weeks, he could wind up as an August trade piece, though his injury problems, decline in production and lofty salary ($23MM) would make it difficult for Toronto to get much back in a deal.
- It’s “likely” the Rangers will find a trade partner for left-hander Cole Hamels, writes Cafardo, who adds that the Phillies, Yankees and Braves undoubtedly have interest. The Red Sox may also be among teams with Hamels on their radar, per Cafardo. Phillies general manager Matt Klentak doesn’t seem keen on dipping into the trade market for starters, though, and it’s no lock Hamels would even be part of the solution for them or any other team. The 34-year-old’s struggles this season are well known, and his $22.5MM salary for 2018 and $6MM buyout for 2019 don’t help matters.
- Marlins righty Dan Straily is drawing interest, per Cafardo. The 29-year-old’s not having a particularly good season (4.02 ERA/5.27 FIP with 7.24 K/9, 4.25 BB/9 and a 33.5 percent groundball rate over 78 1/3 innings), but he’s affordable and controllable. Straily’s on a $3.37MM salary this season and has another two years of arbitration eligibility remaining.
NL East Rumors: Mets, Braves, Phillies, Realmuto
While the Mets have received substantial interest in both Jacob deGrom and Noah Syndergaard, a trade of either still seems unlikely to happen, per James Wagner of the New York Times (all links to Twitter). The Mets are seeking elite prospects and/or young MLB-ready talent for both pitchers, and it’s been tough to find a fit. Contending clubs, such as the Braves and Yankees, have that type of talent but are reluctant to include it in deals. Other contenders, like the Giants and Diamondbacks, don’t necessarily have the type of pieces the Mets are seeking in return. As Wagner notes, many of the best prospects in baseball are on non-contenders/rebuilding teams, such as the White Sox, Blue Jays and Padres — clubs that are spending more effort to trade pieces away at the moment. Wagner adds that he hears the Padres like Syndergaard, though, and hope to contend in the near future, so they could pursue him this offseason. For now, however, Asdrubal Cabrera, Jeurys Familia and Zack Wheeler are the likeliest Mets to be moved.
More from the NL East…
- Adding a reliever or two appears to be the Braves‘ top priority prior to the July 31 non-waiver deadline, tweets David O’Brien of The Athletic. Atlanta could alter that approach and pursue a rotation option, but there’s a considerably larger supply of available relievers, even after this morning’s blockbuster sending lefty Brad Hand and right-hander Adam Cimber from the Padres to the Indians. General manager Alex Anthopoulos recently suggested that the team would be reluctant to part with too much young talent in order to acquire a rental player.
- It’s not entirely clear what the Phillies were offering in their efforts to acquire Manny Machado prior to the trade that sent him from Baltimore to L.A., but Jayson Stark of The Athletic tweets that the Orioles did “extensive background work” on right-hander Adonis Medina, outfielder Adam Haseley and left-hander JoJo Romero. Ultimately, though, the Orioles believed that the Phillies couldn’t (or perhaps weren’t willing to) match the upside that existed in headliner Yusniel Diaz, which prompted the O’s to ship Machado to the Dodgers.
- Though many Phillies fans are disheartened to see Machado head to the Dodgers, Jim Salisbury of NBC Sports Philadelphia writes that the club will remain active on the trade market. Salisbury lists Twins shortstop Eduardo Escobar, another impending free agent in the midst of a strong season, as a potential target for the Phils. Escobar, 29, is hitting .271/.327/.507 with 14 homers and an MLB-leading 35 doubles to this point in the 2018 season. He’s better at third base than at shortstop but has substantial experience at both positions. On the pitching side of things, Salisbury suggests that Jeurys Familia, Felipe Vazquez and J.A. Happ could all emerge as targets for the Phils. Adding Happ could allow the team to move Vince Velasquez or Nick Pivetta to the ‘pen, Salisbury adds.
- It’s been suggested that if the Marlins don’t trade All-Star catcher J.T. Realmuto this summer, the team could approach him about a long-term contract in the offseason. Realmuto spoke with Andre C. Fernandez of the Miami Herald about that possibility, and while he stressed that his current emphasis is on the 2018 season, he’s not closed off to the idea even after last offseason’s reported request for a trade. “If they approached me, I wouldn’t be opposed to having the conversation,” said Realmuto about a possible extension. “…The fact that they would think of me that way, to build around me, is an honor.” Realmuto acknowledged the Marlins’ improved play recently — they’re 21-18 over their past 39 games — and expressed confidence that the club will continue to improve over the season’s second half.