International Notes And Signings: Hacker, Brigham, Morel, Cordier, Matsuda
We’ve heard a lot about N.C. Dinos slugger Eric Thames, who was just crowned the MVP of the Korea Baseball Organization. He continued to rack up awards, but was joined in the trophy room by teammate Eric Hacker, who picked up the KBO’s “Golden Glove” for pitching. As Yonhap’s Jee-Ho Yoo explains, it goes to the best player at each position, unlike the more familiar precious metal-and-leather award utilized in the majors. Hacker, 32, has logged 18 MLB innings but has been a fixture in the Dinos’ rotation for the last three campaigns. He worked to a strong 3.13 EAR with 7.2 K/9 against 1.6 BB/9 over 204 innings — quite an impressive feat in the hitter-friendly KBO.
Here’s more on the international market, including some recent player movement from the U.S. to Asia:
- Righty Jake Brigham is headed to Japan’s Rakuten Golden Eagles, ESPN.com’s Jerry Crasnick reports on Twitter. The 27-year-old cracked the big leagues for the first time last year with the Braves, but was hit hard in a doze appearances. He did, however, put up a solid 3.46 ERA with 6.8 K/9 against 2.1 BB/9 in his 91 Triple-A frames (including 15 starts).
- In addition to adding Brian Bogusevic, the NPB’s Orix Buffaloes have inked deals with Brent Morel and Erik Cordier, NPB Tracker’s Patrick Newman tweets. Morel, a 28-year-old third baseman, has seen action in each of the last six MLB seasons but hasn’t exceeded 35 games played since back in 2011. He slashed .286/.337/.448 over 472 Triple-A plate appearances last year with the Pirates and Athletics organizations. Cordier, a fireballing righty who’ll soon turn 30, has thrown 18 1/3 frames with the Giants and Marlins but has never harnessed his big heater enough to be seen as a consistent MLB pen piece. He was, however, rather dominant last year in the highest level of the minors.
- The Padres have long been said to be among the teams with the strongest interest in Japanese third baseman Nobuhiro Matsuda, and Dennis Lin of the San Diego Union-Tribune tweets that the club could be weighing a multi-year offer. Though Matsuda may be interested in seeing how his market develops, Lin suggests that the Pads might be willing to make a two-year commitment — or, at least, one guaranteed year plus an option.
Fernandez Notes: Marlins, Diamondbacks, Giants
The Marlins seem unlikely to trade Jose Fernandez, or make other major moves, before the end of the Winter Meetings, Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald writes. “I think that’s a possibility, and we’re not upset,” says Marlins executive Michael Hill over the possibility that they’ll leave Nashville mostly empty-handed. “I don’t think we’d be disappointed, because it’s not over.” Hill adds that the Marlins are looking for starting pitching, but could also pursue bullpen upgrades if they deem the cost of acquiring pitching too high. Here are a couple more notes on Fernandez and the trade rumors swirling around him.
- After making a very costly trade for Shelby Miller, Diamondbacks GM Dave Stewart should follow his plan to its logical conclusion and find a way to trade for Fernandez also, Yahoo! Sports’ Jeff Passan writes. The Miller trade and the Zack Greinke signing indicate that the Diamondbacks believe they can be competitive for the next three seasons, after which Miller and Patrick Corbin can depart. Arizona has an option on Paul Goldschmidt for 2019, and then he can leave, too. Stewart’s trade of Aaron Blair and 2015 No. 1 overall pick Dansby Swanson show that he lives in the moment, which makes Fernandez a perfect fit. The Diamondbacks could include Corbin, Braden Shipley, Archie Bradley and others in a five-for-one or six-for-one type of deal to make a trade happen, Passan suggests. (That might not be too farfetched, as the Marlins and Diamondbacks reportedly discussed a deal centered on Corbin and Swanson before the Snakes dealt Swanson to Atlanta.) That would give the Diamondbacks a top three of Greinke, Fernandez and Miller, making them terrifying — at least in the short term.
- The Giants are still looking for another starting pitcher. That pitcher could come via trade, and John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle tweets that the Giants would be “all in” on Fernandez (who they’ve recently discussed with the Marlins). The price for Fernandez appears, obviously, be extremely high, and the Giants don’t have an exceptionally strong farm system, so making a trade work would probably tricky even if the Marlins were clearly willing to make one.
NL East Notes: Harper, CarGo, Ozuna, Fernandez, Cabrera
Agent Scott Boras says that if the Nationals want to extend Bryce Harper, they’ll have to initiate talks, Nats Insider’s Mark Zuckerman writes. “I think those are club dynamics,” Boras said Wednesday. “Whenever any team approaches me about any player, obviously we have dialogue with them. But at this point in time, Bryce is going to be there for three more years, very happy there. So we’ll just go forward.” The Nats control Harper through 2018, and GM Mike Rizzo recently suggested that extending him wasn’t the most pressing issue for him right now. “We’ve got quite a bit of control left on him,” said Rizzo earlier this week. “I’m sure that’ll be a discussion with myself and ownership in the future.” Of course, signing Harper long-term would be incredibly difficult, given his agent, his free agency timeline and the difficulty of establishing what an extension for a player so talented and so young ought to look like. There also doesn’t seem to be any progress toward an extension for starting pitcher Stephen Strasburg, Zuckerman writes. Here’s more from the NL East.
- The Nationals had interest in a trade involving Carlos Gonzalez of the Rockies at one point, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports tweets. There is currently nothing brewing between the two teams, however. The Rockies are reportedly willing to deal Gonzalez, as well as Corey Dickerson and/or Charlie Blackmon.
- The Marlins aren’t currently actively looking to trade Marcell Ozuna, ESPN’s Jayson Stark tweets. They’re still open to offers, but it now appears more likely Ozuna will remain with the organization than that he’ll depart. Earlier this week it was reported that seven or more teams had interest in Ozuna, and the outfielder has been the subject of trade rumors for some time now, although Marlins exec Michael Hill recently denied that his team was shopping Ozuna. In any case, if the Marlins do ultimately decide to part with Ozuna, there will surely continue to be significant interest, since he’s barely 25, has lots of raw power, can play center field, and has held his own in parts of three big-league seasons.
- The Marlins continue to discuss Jose Fernandez with “five or six teams,” a source tells FOX Sports’ Jon Morosi (who reports the news on Twitter). The Marlins’ price for Fernandez unsurprisingly and understandably remains high, and the team doesn’t appear to be particularly close to a trade. Here’s more on Fernandez.
- The Braves had interest in infielder Asdrubal Cabrera before Cabrera ultimately agreed to terms with the Mets, Morosi tweets. It’s unclear where Cabrera would have fit with the Braves, but there surely would have been ample playing time in shaky infield that currently features Jace Peterson, Erick Aybar and Adonis Garcia as potential starters at second, shortstop and third, respectively. The Braves added utilityman Emilio Bonifacio today, and 3B/2B Gordon Beckham last week.
Reported Asking Prices For Jose Fernandez
TODAY: The Marlins “discussed a deal” with Arizona that would have brought back Corbin, Swanson, Inciarte, Blair, and infielder Brandon Drury, Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald writes. That deal only “collapsed” when Arizona struck its trade with the Braves, he says, and the talks could illustrate a real willingness to trade Fernandez.
Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports adds (Twitter links) that at some point in the talks, Miami sought a six-player return that would’ve included Corbin and three other players who played in the majors last year for Arizona.
YESTERDAY: The asking price on Jose Fernandez is known to be sky-high, but reports tonight in the wake of the D-backs’ Shelby Miller blockbuster further illustrate the unlikely nature of a Fernandez trade. According to Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald, the Marlins were working on a trade with the Diamondbacks that would’ve included Patrick Corbin and Dansby Swanson in talks for Fernandez (Twitter link). Beyond that already-steep starting point, the Marlins asked that three other prospects be included in the deal, he adds.
Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Repbulic tweets that the package the D-backs sent to Atlanta to pry Miller away — Swanson, Ender Inciarte and Aaron Blair — “would not have come close” to what the team would’ve needed to acquire Fernandez from Miami, citing D-backs officials.
Similarly, Joe Frisaro of MLB.com reports (also on Twitter) that the Marlins asked the Dodgers to include not one or two but all three of Julio Urias, Joc Pederson and Corey Seager in addition to another pair of players. While reports earlier today indicated that L.A. was attempting to get a third team involved to find a creative means of acquiring Fernandez, that price tag seems like such a lofty starting point that it’s tough to even imagine talks becoming serious in nature.
Many will scoff at the reported asking prices listed here, but the Marlins have little incentive to trade Fernandez now without an offer that is impossible to refuse. We also don’t know whether other pieces were in play that would’ve gone from Miami to those clubs.
Realistic asks or not, the Marlins are placing an almost unmatchable asking price on Fernandez, it would seem, which lines up with most reports from the past few days. While he’s an oft-mentioned name, the most common refrain connected to Fernandez is that the Marlins aren’t trying to move but are instead simply open to being overwhelmed by an offer for their young ace. It’s easy to forget that Fernandez is still just 23 years old — younger than NL Rookie of the Year Kris Bryant. And, to this point in his career, Fernandez has pitched to a 2.40 ERA with 10.5 K/9, 2.7 BB/9 and a 44.6 percent ground-ball rate.
Three years of affordable control over a 23-year-old starter with that track record of dominance ranks among the most valuable commodities in all of baseball, although one can only wonder how high the asking price would’ve been had the Marlins kept Fernandez in the minors for a couple of weeks to open the 2013 season. Because Fernandez was a 20-year-old that hadn’t pitched above Class-A Advanced at the time, no one would’ve questioned the move, and Miami could have subsequently delayed Fernandez’s free agency until after the 2019 season. Instead, Fernandez received a full year of service time in 2013 and is now on track to become a free agent after 2018.
Outfield Rumors: Giants, Cespedes, Ozuna, Royals, D-Backs, Angels
The Giants are monitoring the market for outfielders, tweets Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. San Francisco is prioritizing Jason Heyward, Alex Gordon and Dexter Fowler over Justin Upton and Yoenis Cespedes for defensive reasons, Morosi adds. That rationale is a bit odd, considering the fact that Cespedes is generally regarded as a stellar defender in left field. Heyward and Fowler, of course, are better fits to see occasional or even regular time in center field than Cespedes would be. But, with Angel Pagan under contract for 2016 and Hunter Pence entrenched in right field, left field would seem to be an area of need.
Here are a few more notes on the outfield market…
- Joel Sherman of the New York Post reports that the Giants, Angels, Tigers and Royals have been the most interested clubs in Cespedes’ market thus far in the offseason. However, Sherman adds that the Royals quickly came to realize that Cespedes is going to be beyond four years. It should be noted, of course, that Detroit general manager Al Avila said yesterday that his team is not in the mix for either Cespedes or Gordon. (Though that doesn’t mean there wasn’t some earlier talk between the two sides, and, as Sherman notes, the Tigers could circle back if Cespedes’ market doesn’t pick up.)
- Marlins outfielder Marcell Ozuna has drawn trade interest from “at least seven to 10 teams,” Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald reports. Spencer adds that an eventual trade of Ozuna seems to be likely.
- Royals GM Dayton Moore told reporters today that the club feels Jarrod Dyson will likely get a chance to hold down a regular job in the corner outfield, MLB.com’s Jeffrey Flanagan tweets. Filling one corner outfield spot from within would obviously reduce the team’s needs and potentially increase the team’s flexibility to spend on another outfielder.
- Diamondbacks outfield prospect Socrates Brito is “getting some play” at the Winter Meetings, Jack Magruder of FanRag Sports tweets. The 23-year-old reached the majors last year, slashing .303/.324/.455 in just 34 plate appearances, and has shown an intriguing power/speed combo in the minors.
- Angels GM Billy Eppler has spoken to the agents for all of the major free-agent outfielders — including Heyward, Cespedes and Upton — according to Mike DiGiovanna of the L.A. Times (Twitter link). However, DiGiovanna cautions that we shouldn’t expect the Halos to set the market by being the first to agree to a major deal for an outfielder.
- Via, MLB.com’s Britt Ghiroli (Twitter link), Orioles GM Dan Duquette said that his club has been “aggressive” in its efforts to add a left-handed hitting corner outfielder.
- The Twins had interest in Rajai Davis two offseasons ago when he signed with the Tigers, and they have some interest again this winter, according to Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN (Twitter link). However, their interest is somewhat limited, he notes, as a fourth outfield type isn’t a high priority for the team right now. Davis is said to be in talks with the Indians.
Jose Fernandez Rumors: 12-8-2015
We’ve heard persistent rumors that the Marlins could still be willing to listen to trade offers for star righty Jose Fernandez, even if the asking price is incredibly steep. Though president of baseball operations Michael Hill said yesterday that Fernandez is “not available,” the rumors have carried over into the second day of the Winter Meetings.
Here’s the latest:
- The Dodgers have discussed trying to involve a third team in trade talks for Fernandez, according to Rosenthal (Twitter link).
Earlier Updates
- Marlins owner Jeffrey Loria says there’s “nothing I am thinking about doing at the moment” with Fernandez, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports tweets.
- Yankees sources tell Joel Sherman of the New York Post (Twitter links) that the team never offered Severino and isn’t interested in doing so. The club has not held “substantive talks” on Fernandez, per the report.
- About a dozen clubs have inquired on Fernandez, MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro reports (Twitter links). The Dodgers appear to be the best match, he says, if they’d part with Seager, Urias, and more. Needless to say, that’s a big “if.” The Yankees were willing to give up their best young arm, Luis Severino, per the report, but Frisaro adds that it doesn’t seem New York has enough to give for Fernandez even if it included first baseman Greg Bird.
- The Giants have also had conversations with Miami about Fernandez, Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com reports. Meanwhile, the Dodgers appear unwilling to involve Corey Seager in any deal but could consider including top pitching prospect Julio Urias in a package.
- Miami appears to be engaging in discussions on Fernandez more to gauge his future value than to structure a deal right now, Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald writes.
- A rival executive tells Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (Twitter link) that Miami still does not seem terribly willing to part with Fernandez. “They haven’t proposed anything reasonable enough to make people think they want to deal,” said the anonymous source.
- A source tells Evan Drellich of the Houston Chronicle (via Twitter) that the Astros aren’t the “mystery team” pursuing Fernandez.
- There’s a mystery team entering the picture on Fernandez with a “very strong” bid, ESPN.com’s Jayson Stark reports. Sources with “other clubs” tell Stark that the Astros are believed to be the shadowy pursuer. Stark also adds that a deal increasingly seems plausible, with Miami possibly holding off on pursing a Marcell Ozuna deal while the team explores the addition of an outfielder through a trade of Fernandez.
- As Stark notes in the story, he previously reported that the Dodgers, Diamondbacks, and Yankees have at least contacted the Marlins regarding Fernandez, though Arizona is said to have dropped out of the picture.
Yankees Notes: Davis, Marlins, Miller, Eovaldi
The Yankees aren’t known for having quiet offseasons, yet their relative lack of moves this winter isn’t just the calm before the storm, Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News writes. “There’s a reason they haven’t been attached to any big free agent. They’re not in on them,” one Major League executive tells Feinsand. Another exec says the Yankees are being truthful when they say they’re not planning to add to their payroll, as “that’s what they’ve been telling everybody publicly and privately.” Here’s some more from the Bronx…
- The Yankees “said they had a real interest in [Chris] Davis” earlier in the year, a source tells George A. King III of the New York Post, but backed off since “he wants Teixeira money.” Mark Teixeira‘s eight-year, $180MM deal would certainly seem to be well above the Yankees’ current comfort zone, and it could be a stretch in general as MLBTR’s Tim Dierkes projected Davis for a six-year, $144MM deal. (Then again, Davis’ agent Scott Boras was also the one who negotiated Teixeira’s contract back in 2008.) King hears that the Blue Jays have been linked to Davis in “chatter.”
- Also from King, the Marlins “have liked” Yankees pitchers Bryan Mitchell and Adam Warren, with Miami looking at Mitchell as a starter and Warren in the bullpen. While both arms are interesting trade chips, King notes that it would obviously take a lot more for the Yankees to obtain a major Marlins player like Marcell Ozuna.
- If the Yankees are to meet their goal of obtaining a quality starter in his pre-arb years, an AL executive tells King that dealing Andrew Miller might be the only way. “Nobody else they have, especially if they aren’t going to trade their top prospects, brings that young starter back but Miller,” the exec said. Joel Sherman of the New York Post opines that in return for Miller, the Bombers would demand a pitcher at least as well-regarded as Eduardo Rodriguez, who the Red Sox obtained for Miller at the 2014 trade deadline.
- Also from Sherman’s piece, he hears from a rival executive who asked the Yankees about Nathan Eovaldi this winter, though “talks did not progress far.” The fact that GM Brian Cashman was willing to discuss Eovaldi at all is a sign, Sherman opines, that the club is truly open to hearing all options to upgrade the roster.
- Sherman notes that the Cubs still consider Brett Gardner one of several backup options if they’re unable to land another center field target. A Gardner-for-Starlin Castro rumor surfaced last month though the Yankees were said to want pitching in a Gardner deal.
Marlins’ Michael Hill: Jose Fernandez “Not Available”
10:16pm: The Diamondbacks are “out” of any effort to pry Fernandez from Miami, tweets Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com. Miami was seeking two of Arizona’s “best” players as well as “top prospects,” per the report.
8:06pm: Despite Hill’s comments, Stark reports (Twitter link) that the Marlins “think they’re making progress” on a deal with an “unspecified team.” He adds that a trade still seems unlikely.
6:18pm: Marlins president of baseball operations Michael Hill told Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald (Twitter links) that Fernandez is “not available.” Here’s the full quote: “He’s not available. We haven’t made him available. But, it doesn’t stop the phone calls from happening.”
5:56pm: A source tells ESPN.com’s Buster Olney that the odds of a Fernandez deal appear to have dramatically increased over the course of the day. (Twitter link.) What seemed like a negligible possibility at the outset of the Winter Meetings could now be nearing even odds, per Olney’s source.
5:25pm: The Yankees have joined the two other clubs in “digging” for information on Fernandez, Stark reports. That could indicate that those organizations are looking to size up what they’d be willing to offer, of course, though it hardly suggests that Miami’s understandably steep asking price will fall to a palatable level.
10:12am: The Marlins also spoke to the Diamondbacks about Fernandez, reports Rosenthal (via Twitter), but Miami asked for a return of Patrick Corbin plus other pieces. The chances of a deal between the two sides are “slim,” per Rosenthal, who says Arizona is likely to look at lesser pitchers in trades after these seemingly brief talks.
8:11am: Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports tweets that the Marlins asked the Dodgers for both Julio Urias and Corey Seager in exchange for Fernandez, illustrating the fact that the Marlins aren’t shopping him but only looking to move him if they can receive an overwhelming return. Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports asked one rival exec what he thought the Dodgers would need to part with in order to acquire Fernandez, and the exec said Urias, Seager and Scott Van Slyke — an even more sizable haul.
2:52am: The Dodgers and others have checked in on Fernandez but MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro reports (Twitter link) that “no serious talks” have taken place. Frisaro says Miami will listen to teams but he reiterates that a Fernandez trade isn’t likely to happen.
12:48am: Despite public protestations, the Marlins are holding trade discussions regarding prized righty Jose Fernandez, Jayson Stark of ESPN.com reports. Talks have been had with the Dodgers and at least two other teams, one of which appears to be the Diamondbacks, per the report.
That being said, Stark emphasizes that the organization is putting such a huge asking price on the 23-year-old that it’s still considered “a long shot” that anything will get done. The Marlins are reportedly advising other teams that they’d need to a return that would make the team “better next season than they would be if they kept Fernandez,” while also improving the future outlook. That’s obviously a tall order.
Miami president of baseball operations Michael Hill said recently that there was no truth to rumors that the team was interested in considering a trade of the youthful ace. “Not sure where all of that came from,” Hill said. “He sits at the front of our rotation. We are not shopping Jose Fernandez. I don’t know what more I can say. He’s a good pitcher, one of the best in the league, so you’re going to get asked about him. But we are not shopping Jose Fernandez.”
To be fair, there’s a significant difference between “shopping” and “listening” in the baseball lexicon, and the Fish appear to be doing more of the latter than the former. But as Stark indicates, the discussions could suggest that Miami is more amenable to considering a deal than has previously been let on.
MLBTR projects Fernandez to earn just $2.2MM in his first of three arbitration-eligible seasons. That relatively meager sum is the result of his Tommy John surgery, which held him to just 116 1/3 frames over the past two seasons. While the elbow issue remains something of a concern, despite a strong comeback performance, in another sense it enhanced his value by tamping down his earning capacity.
Fernandez has been nothing short of dominant when on the hill, of course. All told, he’s thrown 289 innings of 2.40 ERA ball, with 10.5 K/9 against 2.6 BB/9. There’s little question that he’s one of the game’s most effective starters, with his low cost and youth making him one of the most intriguing assets in baseball.
Marlins “Making Progress” In Extension Talks With Dee Gordon
The Marlins held extension discussions today with Dee Gordon‘s representatives at Beverly Hills Sports Council, MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro reports on Twitter. The sides are “making progress,” per the report.
Gordon played at an extremely high level for Miami last year after coming over in a Winter Meetings swap from the Dodgers. He led the league with 58 stolen bases and a .333 batting average. He put up an overall 114 OPS+ for the season and drew rave reviews for his defense, making him worth about four to five wins above replacement.
The Fish control Gordon through 2018 via arbitration. MLBTR projects him to earn $5.9MM through the arb process in 2016. We learned yesterday that the sides were expected to explore a deal in Nashville.
Waiver Claims: Mike Strong, Daniel Fields, Danny Reynolds
With teams continuing to prune their 40-man rosters, possibly in anticipation of trades or free agent signings, there is plenty of waiver activity happening at the Winter Meetings. Here are today’s claims:
- Former Brewers lefty Mike Strong is now a member of the Marlins after he was snatched off waivers, Miami announced. The 27-year-old has not yet reached the majors, and struggled last year after a late-season promotion to Triple-A, but put up strong results at the Double-A level to earn that bump. Strong rated 29th among Brewers prospects heading into the season, per Baseball America, which called him a middle relief prospect who could reach the majors in short order.
- The Dodgers made a second claim, taking outfielder Daniel Fields from Milwaukee. Fields, 24, cracked the majors last year for one game with the Tigers after posting a .228/.335/.367 slash in 526 plate appearances at Triple-A. He was claimed earlier in the offseason by the Brewers after ranking among Detroit’s thirty best pre-MLB players for six straight winters.
Earlier Updates
- The Dodgers announced today that they’ve claimed right-hander Danny Reynolds off waivers from the Angels (Twitter link). The 24-year-old Reynolds is a former sixth-round pick of the Angels (2009) that reached Triple-A in 2009 but spent the 2014 campaign back in Double-A, where he posted a 4.57 ERA with 10.4 K/9 vs. 5.8 BB/9 in 43 1/3 innings of relief. Reynolds’ strikeout rate has trended significantly upwards since he was moved from the rotation into the bullpen. The control issues he battled in 2015 were the first notable problems he’s had with walks as a professional, so the Dodgers will hope that they’re able to correct the situation in 2015 and get him back on track.