- 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.
[SOURCE LINK]
Marlins Rumors
Latest On Athletics
Plenty of eyes will be on left-hander Rich Hill on Sunday as he makes what could be his final start with the Athletics, writes Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle. Scouts from a handful of playoff-contending clubs – the Red Sox, Rangers, Orioles, Marlins and Tigers – will be in attendance to observe Hill’s home outing against the Blue Jays.
Hill, 36, has unexpectedly established himself as a hot commodity leading up to the Aug. 1 trade deadline since his torrid stretch as a member of the aforementioned BoSox last September. Dating back to that four-start run, the journeyman has performed like an ace over a 105-inning sample, having recorded a 2.06 ERA, 10.8 K/9, 2.83 BB/9, 49.6 percent ground-ball percentage and 17.9 percent infield fly rate. As a result, the A’s are hoping to land a haul similar to the one they received from Houston for southpaw Scott Kazmir last year (two prospects, right-hander Daniel Mengden and catcher Jacob Nottingham), according to Slusser, who notes that a Hill trade isn’t necessarily a sure bet.
If the A’s can’t find a deal to their liking for Hill, they could retain him through the season and then tender the free agent-to-be a qualifying offer, which will be worth in the $17MM neighborhood. Should Hill accept, that would give him roughly $23MM over two years with the A’s (including $6MM this season), which, considering his performance, wouldn’t be an unreasonable cost for his services. However, the A’s are much less likely to keep Hill and qualify him than they are right fielder Josh Reddick, per Slusser. Reddick – another pending free agent – is drawing pre-deadline interest around the league, as Slusser reported last weekend, and he and the A’s are far apart on contract extension talks.
In the event Oakland does shop one or both of Hill or Reddick, it won’t try to attach designated hitter Billy Butler and his contract to either, adds Slusser. The A’s are more worried about maximizing the return for their best trade assets than taking less just to throw Butler’s $15MM overboard. Since signing a three-year, $30MM deal with the A’s in November 2014, the ex-Royal has become an afterthought. In 163 plate appearances this season, the 30-year-old Butler has hit .253/.307/.380 with two home runs. His poor output could lead Oakland to eventually designate him for assignment, Slusser writes.
Interestingly, third baseman Danny Valencia is another designation candidate, reports Slusser, even though he has batted a fantastic .295/.348/.507 with 30 home runs in 659 PAs going back to last year. Despite that production and his cheap team control through next season, Valencia is not garnering interest, relays Slusser. With the out-of-contention A’s looking to evaluate their younger talent, the 31-year-old Valencia could end up designated – as he was with the Royals last season – if Oakland can’t find a taker for him. Whether Valencia is open to positions other than third and how he handles a decrease in playing time might keep the A’s from giving him his walking papers, however, according to Slusser.
Rosenthal’s Latest: Yankees, Marlins, Rays, Rockies, Braves
Here’s the latest from Ken Rosenthal, via a pair of videos on FOX Sports.
- The Yankees will be willing to deal pending free agents Aroldis Chapman and Carlos Beltran if they’re not in serious contention for a playoff spot by the August 1 deadline, Rosenthal says. They do not want to trade Andrew Miller right now, however. It’s also possible they could deal starting pitchers like CC Sabathia, Nathan Eovaldi and Michael Pineda, but they are not in active discussions to sell right now and they could wait to deal members of that trio this offseason, since all are under control in 2017.
- The Marlins would deal Adeiny Hechavarria and replace him at shortstop with Miguel Rojas if they could get a top starter like Chris Archer of the Rays in return, Rosenthal says. From this vantage point, that sounds like a lot to ask for a shortstop who has hit .238/.274/.336 this season (although Hechavarria is a stellar defender), and one would think Hechavarria would have limited value in a deal for an ace, even as part of a package. Rosenthal unsurprisingly notes that the Rays aren’t interested in trading Archer for a package that has Hechavarria as its centerpiece. The Marlins are also very interested in Archer’s fellow Rays starters Jake Odorizzi and Matt Moore, although their weak minor league system poses difficulties in lining up a trade.
- The Rockies don’t seem overly motivated to trade Carlos Gonzalez and have passed on opportunities to do so, Rosenthal says. Gonzalez’s contract runs through 2017, coinciding with the end of GM Jeff Bridich’s deal, and Rosenthal implies it might be in Bridich’s best interest to keep Gonzalez around to increase the Rockies’ chances of being competitive until then.
- The Tigers aren’t likely to make big moves before the deadline, with a large payroll that will limit their flexibility and a number of tough-to-move contracts on the books. They could, however, become a seller if they do especially poorly in the next two weeks, potentially dealing Francisco Rodriguez and/or other relievers.
- Braves GM John Coppolella continues to insist his team will not deal Julio Teheran, Rosenthal says. Coppolella believes Teheran (who is under team control through 2020) can be a key player on the next contending Braves team, although he acknowledges that won’t happen this season.
Latest On Marlins' SP Search
- 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.
Marlins Designate Asher Wojciechowski, Sign Cole Figueroa
The Marlins have designated right-hander Asher Wojciechowski for assignment and signed free agent second baseman Cole Figueroa, per a team announcement. Figueroa received a major league contract, though the Marlins have optioned him to Triple-A New Orleans.
Wojciechowski, 27, threw a combined 18 innings between Double-A and Triple-A for the Marlins after they claimed him off waivers from the Astros in May. He was previously a highly regarded prospect for both the Astros and Blue Jays. Houston picked up Wojciechowski in 2012 as part of a 10-player trade that included J.A. Happ (going to Toronto) and Francisco Cordero (going to the Astros). The 41st overall selection in the 2010 draft, Wojciechowski ranged from seventh to 28th on Baseball America’s Top 30 prospect rankings between the two organizations from 2011-15. Wojciechowski totaled 16 1/3 innings last season in the majors, his only big league experience, and allowed 13 runs on 23 hits and seven walks against 16 strikeouts. As a minor leaguer, he owns a 4.13 ERA with 7.1 K/9 against 2.7 BB/9 in 674 innings.
Figueroa became a free agent earlier this week after rejecting an outright assignment to Triple-A from the Dodgers. Los Angeles designated the 29-year-old for assignment July 8 despite claiming him off waivers from the Pirates only two weeks prior. Figueroa has picked up just 84 major league trips to the plate, but he has produced a respectable .288/.356/.376 line in nearly 2,000 Triple-A PAs.
Marlins, First-Rounder Braxton Garrett Agree To Deal
9:57am: Garrett’s bonus is $4,145,900, according to Callis (Twitter link). That’s the maximum amount of money the team was able to pay without being hit with a luxury tax, he notes in a followup tweet.
8:50am: The Marlins and first-round pick Braxton Garrett, the lone remaining unsigned first-rounder, have agreed to terms, tweets Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports. Garrett, he adds, is in Miami right now to take his physical with the club. The deal comes in just under the wire, as the deadline to sign 2016 draftees is today at 5pm ET.
Garrett, a high school left-hander from Alabama, rated third among this year’s draft prospects in the eyes of ESPN’s Keith Law, while MLB.com (link) and Baseball America (link) each rated him 10th on their respective rankings. Law wrote that Garrett already has an average fastball that he commands well in addition to a plus curveball. BA praises not only his plus curve but also a changeup that shows “excellent promise,” noting that he could ultimately end up with three above-average pitches. Jim Callis and Jonathan Mayo of MLB.com agree that the changeup could develop into a plus offering and add that Garrett has the upside of a No. 2 starter in the Majors.
Specific terms of Garrett’s agreement remain unclear at this juncture, though his No. 7 overall slot came with a $3,756,300 value. Assuming all goes well on Garrett’s physical, the Marlins will have signed all of their picks within the top 10 rounds of the draft.
Mets Prioritizing Bullpen In Trade Talks
The Mets have seen their vaunted young rotation display its mortality this season, particularly with the loss of Matt Harvey, and have also suffered a number of injuries throughout the starting lineup — most notably, David Wright and Lucas Duda. Nevertheless, the team feels that another relief arm is its top need at the moment, according to Mike Puma of the New York Post.
New York’s National League entrant isn’t necessarily prioritizing a premium closer or setup man, per the report. Puma lists Ryan Buchter and Brad Hand of the Padres, Chris Withrow of the Braves and John Axford of the Athletics as plausible targets for the Mets. (For what it’s worth, the guess here is that Buchter would require quite a bit more than the other names, given his skyrocketing strikeout rate and lengthy, cheap control.)
The report also names Jeremy Jeffress as a possibility in the event that the Mets wish to pursue another club’s closer, although the asking price on Jeffress is said to be quite high. One name that GM Sandy Alderson and his staff did not pursue, according to Puma, was Fernando Rodney — who recently went from the Padres to the Marlins in an early July swap.
While some fans may prefer to see the Mets pursue some help for their ailing rotation, the club’s current plan is to use Logan Verrett in the rotation until Zack Wheeler is able to return to next month. Should Verrett falter, Puma lists Triple-A righty Gabriel Ynoa as an alternative option. Any further setbacks for Wheeler could also change the calculus.
Having already moved to shore things up in other areas, and having cashed in some notable trade chips during last season’s run, it’s not surprising to see attention move to the pen. The unit rates quite well by most measures, but that’s mostly driven by late-inning righties Jeurys Familia, Addison Reed and Hansel Robles, who are joined by southpaw Jerry Blevins to form a solid core. Beyond that foursome, though, the results have been uneven. Alderson was quite successful in rescuing Reed a summer ago, and may be on the lookout for another chance to harness a talented arm at a reasonable price.
Latest On Marlins’ Rotation Search
The Marlins have been linked to rotation upgrades for the majority of the summer, and Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald adds Rich Hill’s name to the list of potential targets for the Fish. Additionally, Jackson notes that the Marlins continue to show interest in Tampa Bay right-hander Jake Odorizzi and San Diego lefty Drew Pomeranz.
Of course, as Jackson notes (and has pointed out in the past), the Marlins are thin on enticing trade chips due to a lack of impact prospects in the farm system. Miami’s prospect depth took a further hit a couple of weeks ago when the club picked up Fernando Rodney in a trade that sent promising Class-A right-hander Chris Paddack to the Padres.
While Hill certainly doesn’t have a lengthy track record of health or the type of dominance he’s displayed since last September, he’s arguably the top rental pitcher on this summer’s trade market and should command a rather strong return. He’s pitched to a 2.25 ERA with 10.7 K/9, 3.3 BB/9 and a 50 percent ground-ball rate in 76 innings. He did miss the month of June with a strained groin, and he’s already pitched more Major League innings in 2016 than he did in 2013-15 combined. However, given his strong performance and modest $6MM salary — to say nothing of a report from FOX’s Ken Rosenthal that Hill could potentially be extended by a new club — Hill is a lock to draw widespread interest. That’s not great news for the Marlins, who would likely have a tough time topping the offers of rivals with considerably deeper farm systems.
Jackson writes that in the absence of a trade to acquire a starting pitcher, the club could turn to right-hander Jarred Cosart, who was formerly one of the top prospects in baseball and was hoped to become a key piece of the Miami rotation. Instead, Cosart has persistently struggled in the Major Leagues and was demoted to Triple-A earlier this season. He spent a month on the minor league DL with an oblique strain and has pitched to a combined 4.02 ERA with 5.7 K/9 against 4.0 BB/9 in 47 innings between Triple-A and a brief rehab stint in the organization’s lower levels this year.
If not Cosart, the Marlins have veteran righty Jeremy Guthrie pitching for their Triple-A affiliate, though he’s struggled with the Padres’ Triple-A affiliate this season and has surrendered 15 runs in 15 innings with the Marlins’ Triple-A affiliate. Jose Urena and Justin Nicolino are other rotation options, as can be seen on their depth chart. For the time being, the Marlins have Jose Fernandez, Wei-Yin Chen, Adam Conley and Tom Koehler lined up to make their first four starts out of the break. Miami doesn’t have the luxury of an off-day next Monday, which would’ve allowed the team to skip the fifth spot in its rotation and extended the club’s window to pursue outside additions.
Minor MLB Transactions: 7/11/16
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).
NL Notes: Jeffress, Bell, Nationals, Braves
The bullpen market has been picking up some steam lately, with the Red Sox acquiring Brad Ziegler from the D-backs and the Marlins landing Fernando Rodney in a trade with the Padres. Miami was apparently in the market for some more controllable bullpen help prior to landing Rodney, though, as MLB Network’s Peter Gammons reports (on Twitter) that the Marlins also spoke with the Brewers about Jeremy Jeffress. Milwaukee had a significant asking price on its closer, however, as Gammons hears that the Brewers asked for right-hander Chris Paddack (the pitcher Miami traded to get Rodney) and two more prospects in exchange for Jeffress. MLBTR’s Jeff Todd has long listed Jeffress on his weekly rankings of trade candidates, noting that it’s understandable for the Brewers to have a steep ask with another three years of club control remaining beyond 2016.
More from the NL…
- Josh Bell has been quite impressive in his limited big league experience, going 2-for-2 with a walk and a monstrous grand slam in three pinch-hit appearances over the weekend. However, Ron Cook of the Pittburgh Post-Gazette writes that the Pirates will option Bell back to Triple-A in spite of his strong first impression, as the team informed him from day one that he was being promoted for the weekend only. “I don’t see moving him to first base in front of [John] Jaso right now with the job [Jaso] has done,” said manager Clint Hurdle to Cook. “I think down the line we’ll see what a little bit more [of Bell] would look like. I don’t know when down the line is.” General manager Neal Huntington tells Cook that he still kicks himself for rushing Gregory Polanco and Pedro Alvarez to the Majors and doesn’t want to make the same mistake with Bell.
- Nationals GM Mike Rizzo tells Chelsea Janes of the Washington Post that he doesn’t see a glaring need anywhere on his roster that needs to be addressed at the trade deadline. “That’s not to say that we’re a perfect team and we couldn’t upgrade if the right possibility comes,” says Rizzo of his club, however. As far as payroll is concerned, Rizzo adds that the Nationals would be able to take on payroll in order to lessen the prospect cost of a trade.
- Braves catcher Tyler Flowers is having an MRI on his hand today after aggravating an injury that he sustained a week ago when he was hit by a pitch against the Marlins, writes MLB.com’s Mark Bowman. If a trip to the disabled list is necessary, the Braves could turn to Triple-A backstop Blake Lalli, though doing so would require a 40-man roster move. Bowman has updates on a number of injured Braves, noting that right-hander Shae Simmons has seen improvements in his shoulder since he resumed throwing off a mound. He’s been sidelined all season recovering from Tommy John surgery and twice had setbacks involving his right shoulder.
