Quick Hits: Diaz, Rays, Prospects, Stanek, Black
Edwin Diaz‘s struggles may finally be loosening his grip on the Mets‘ closing job, as manager Mickey Callaway told reporters (including Newsday’s Tim Healey) that “I don’t think we can lock ourselves in to one thing” in terms of who pitches the ninth inning. “Moving forward, it’s just something that we’re going to do whatever we can to win a game that night,” Callaway said. After a dominant 2018 season with the Mariners, Diaz’s first season in Queens has been a borderline disaster, with a 5.44 ERA inflated by a 22.2% home run rate and a huge increase in the righty’s hard-hit ball rate. Just when it seemed like Diaz might have been turning a corner by tossing six scoreless innings over a seven-game stretch in July, he proceeded to allow at least one earned run in each of his last four outings.
This would seem to open the door for Seth Lugo to receive save opportunities, as Callaway said that Lugo also isn’t operating out of an assigned role. Lugo has been the Mets’ best reliever this season, and could be shifted into closer duties or (if the Mets strayed from the traditional closer role) be saved only for highest-leverage situations, whether those are in the ninth inning or earlier in the game.
Here’s more as we begin a new week…
- The Rays‘ busy trade deadline is explored by Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times, who includes the detail that the club wasn’t willing to discuss moving many of their top prospects, including Wander Franco, Brendan McKay, Vidal Brujan and Matthew Liberatore. Jesus Sanchez was the only member of that top tier who seemed to be on the block, and indeed it was Sanchez who was dealt along with Ryne Stanek to the Marlins in exchange for Trevor Richards and Nick Anderson.
- Meanwhile, Stanek’s erstwhile role as an opener factored into the Rays‘ decision to trade the right-hander. Interestingly, Topkin writes that the Rays “shed the uncertainty of his opener-influenced arbitration case in 2021,” which promises to be a fascinating test case for how an arbiter could put a financial precedent on a new role within the game. As Topkin notes, Stanek has been much better as an opener (2.71 ERA in 83 innings) than in a normal relief role (4.73 ERA in 59 innings).
- The Brewers believe they might have a hidden gem in trade deadline acquisition Ray Black, as president of baseball operations David Stearns told Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that Black has “as good…stuff as any reliever in the game.” Black had only a 6.04 ERA over 25 1/3 career Major League innings as a member of the Giants, due in part to five homers allowed in that brief stint. However, he also struck out 38 batters with his blazing fastball, and also posted a 3.70 ERA, 2.83 K/BB rate, and 16.8 K/9 over 153 1/3 career frames in the minors. Between that live arm and those strikeout totals, Stearns thinks Black can blossom in Milwaukee, and pointed to a relatively healthy season for Black in 2019 as a positive development after multiple years shortened by injuries. “The most important thing for him is keeping him on the field….He has changed some of his training regimens over the last year, and that seems to have helped. We’re hoping and optimistic that we can help keep him healthy,” Stearns said.
Injury Notes: Cano, Chirinos, Sanchez, Suter
Robinson Cano went 3-for-3 in the Mets‘ 13-2 win over the Pirates today, though the veteran infielder’s big day was tarnished by a left hamstring strain. Cano had to be removed from the game after suffering the injury while running the bases during a fourth-inning single. An MRI is scheduled for Monday, and it seems likely that Cano will face the third injured-list stint of the season due to his left leg — a pair of quad injuries sidelined the veteran second baseman earlier in the year. While Cano is still hitting only .252/.295/.415 over 346 PA this season, he was in the midst of a hot streak at the plate, as Sunday marked his fourth consecutive multi-hit game.
We’ve already had quite a bit of injury news from around the game today, and here are updates on some other situations…
- Yonny Chirinos‘ start was cut short after five innings and 63 pitches today due to right middle finger inflammation. Chirinos will undergo tests on Monday, though the Rays right-hander told MLB.com’s Juan Toribio and other reporters that he doesn’t think his finger is a major concern. Today’s outing boosted Chirinos to a 3.62 ERA and 7.82 K/9 (against just a 1.99 BB/9) over 126 2/3 innings this season, as Chirinos has increasingly been used in a traditional starting pitching role rather than as the “bulk pitcher” behind an opener. Chirinos’ emergence has helped a Rays rotation that has continued to rely heavily on openers and bullpen games, particularly with Blake Snell and Tyler Glasnow both on the injured list.
- Gary Sanchez is tentatively scheduled to return to the Yankees’ lineup during their series with the Blue Jays from August 8-11, MLB.com’s Bryan Hoch tweets. Sanchez is on the verge of beginning a rehab assignment, in the wake of a left groin strain that sent him to the IL on July 24. At the time of the injury, Sanchez was suffering through a brutal slump that had seen him post only a .370 OPS over his previous 93 plate appearances, which dropped his season slash line to .229/.299/.508 over 328 PA.
- After beginning a minor league rehab assignment for the Brewers‘ rookie league affiliate, left-hander Brent Suter will continue the process at Double-A, Todd Rosiak of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel writes. Suter underwent Tommy John surgery in late July 2017 and is still hopeful of returning to the hill for the Brewers before the season is over. The soft-tossing Suter posted a 3.91 ERA, 3.54 K/BB rate, and 7.2 K/9 over 204 2/3 innings for Milwaukee from 2016-18, overcoming his lack of velocity by becoming a master at generating soft contact from opposing batters.
Mets Claim Donnie Hart
The Mets have claimed lefty Donnie Hart off waivers from Milwaukee and optioned him to Triple-A Syracuse, the team reports.
Hart, a longtime Oriole, spent much of this season with Triple-A San Antonio, where he posted a 4.10 ERA/4.29 FIP with a 55.4% grounder rate in 37 1/3 IP. Like most low-slot lefties, Hart’s been much better against same-side bats (.312 career wOBA against, compared to .334 against righties), though he’s walked nearly four of them per nine over his career. The lefty’s set down just 5.83 men per nine in 88 career big-league innings, and relies heavily on his 87 MPH sinker to generate grounders for his outs.
It’s possible Hart will soon displace the ineffective Luis Avilan as the second lefty in the Mets’ pen, though judging by the team’s high-leverage deployment of the eight-year vet, it seems higher on him than most. Lefty Justin Wilson makes up the other half of the contingent, though he can be hardly counted on to throw strikes, and fielder-independent metrics (4.66 FIP, -0.1 fWAR) haven’t been fans of his performance to date.
East Notes: Nats, Scherzer, Jays, Mets, A. Rosario
A quick look around the East Coast…
- Nationals ace Max Scherzer is eligible to come off the injured list Monday, though that’s unlikely to happen, per Mark Zuckerman of MASNsports.com. Back troubles have limited Scherzer to one start since July 6, but he is making progress in his recovery. The three-time Cy Young winner began a throwing program Friday, tossing 25 balls at 70 feet on flat ground.
- One of Scherzer’s new Nationals teammates, just-acquired reliever Roenis Elias, suffered a right leg injury running down the first base line Friday, as Jesse Dougherty of the Washington Post was among those to cover. “He was told not to swing, about as many times as I could tell him in Spanish and English,” manager David Martinez stated. “But he’s competitive, you know? He said sorry to me.” While Elias suggested it’s not a serious ailment, he’s unsure if he suffered a hamstring pull or just a cramp. The Nationals will re-evaluate him Saturday. In better news, the left-hander did contribute to the Nationals’ victory over the Diamondbacks where he’s supposed to – on the mound – as he retired both batters he faced.
- This has been an injury-ravaged year for Blue Jays left-hander Ryan Borucki, whom elbow issues prevented from making his 2019 debut until July 22. Borucki’s season is only two starts old, but he’s already back on the IL with elbow inflammation. The Blue Jays now plan to consult with famed orthopedist Dr. James Andrews in regards to Borucki, Shi Davidi of Sportsnet writes. Andrews performed Tommy John surgery on Borucki in 2013, and the hurler required another procedure to remove bone spurs from the joint in 2015. The 25-year-old’s latest injury has stopped him from building on a solid 2018 in which he pitched to a 3.87 ERA/3.80 FIP in his 17-start, 97 2/3-inning major league debut.
- The Mets had been considering using shortstop Amed Rosario in center field, but that’s off the table for the time being, Tim Healey of Newsday reports. Rosario will stick at short because his recent performance at the position has encouraged the club, manager Mickey Callaway said Friday. Fielding metrics haven’t liked Rosario dating back to last year, his first full campaign in the majors, as the former top prospect has combined for minus-31 Defensive Runs Saved (minus-15 in 2019) and a minus-11.2 Ultimate Zone Rating (minus-6.0 this season). The 23-year-old Rosario has at least upped his offensive production this season, though, having hit a respectable .276/.316/.438 (99 wRC+) with 11 home runs and 12 steals (18 attempts) in 432 plate appearances.
Quick Hits: Salazar, Dodgers, Mets, Asdrubal
Oft-injured Indians right-hander Danny Salazar took a major league mound for the first time since 2017 on Thursday, but it wasn’t a triumphant return. Salazar lasted just four innings, in which he allowed two earned runs on four hits and three walks (with two strikeouts), in a 7-1 loss to Houston. It turns out Salazar was attempting to pitch through a groin issue, Joe Noga of cleveland.com was among those to cover. Salazar, who had been out with shoulder troubles, threw mostly changeups during his 66-pitch comeback and never exceeded 88.3 mph on the radar gun. That’s an enormous drop for a hurler who often overpowered hitters with 95 mph average fastball velocity from 2013-17. Salazar expressed confidence after the game that he’ll be fine, but the Indians will re-evaluate him Friday. It’s a situation that bears watching with the wild card-leading Indians’ rotation now much shallower in the wake of this week’s Trevor Bauer trade.
More on a couple other franchises…
- The Dodgers’ Joc Pederson first base experiment is over for at least the time being, manager Dave Roberts told Jorge Castillo of the Los Angeles Times and other reporters Thursday. The outfielder has picked up 20 appearances at first this year, and during that 149-inning span, Pederson has made six errors and posted minus-3 Defensive Runs Saved. Right fielder Cody Bellinger will now shift to first against right-handed starters, while Pederson will take left, A.J. Pollock center and Alex Verdugo right in those situations. Max Muncy could handle first on occasion versus lefties, according to Roberts (Tyler White manned the position versus Padres southpaw Joey Lucchesi on Thursday).
- More from Castillo, who writes that just-acquired Dodgers infielder Jedd Gyorko will begin a rehab assignment at the Double-A level Saturday. Gyorko, whom the Dodgers picked up in a trade with the Cardinals on deadline day, has been out since June 8 because of back and wrist issues. He’s eligible to come off the 60-day injured list next week, though he’ll first need to amass around 40 to 50 minor league at-bats, per Roberts.
- Infielder Asdrubal Cabrera enjoyed a successful stint with the Mets from 2016 until they traded him to the Phillies last summer. Cabrera, who signed with the Rangers over the winter, is about to become a free agent after they designated him for assignment Wednesday, but the Mets don’t appear to have interest in a reunion, Mike Puma of the New York Post tweets. Based on his subpar 2019 production, Cabrera wouldn’t be an upgrade over Mets No. 1 third baseman Todd Frazier. The rest of the club’s starting infield is spoken for with Pete Alonso at first, Robinson Cano at second and Amed Rosario at short, and reserve Adeiny Hechavarria is regarded as a much steadier defensive option than Cabrera.
Details On The Twins’ Trade Deadline Talks
Sam Dyson and Sergio Romo represented the sum total of the Twins’ midseason additions as the club tries to hold its lead atop the AL Central. While Dyson and Romo address needs in the bullpen, Minnesota was also very aggressive in looking for starting pitching, though ultimately came up short in reinforcing the rotation.
Rival teams continually asked the Twins about top prospects Royce Lewis and Alex Kirilloff, with the Mets among the multiple clubs who asking for both youngsters. New York wanted both Lewis and Kiriloff in discussions about Noah Syndergaard, and if premium minor league talent wasn’t available for the ace, the Mets were also focused on adding Major League players, to the point of asking Minnesota about Byron Buxton in a possible Syndergaard deal.
Lewis and Kirilloff were also on the mind of the Blue Jays’ front office, as Toronto was looking for either of the prospects in exchange for Marcus Stroman. Minnesota turned down this initial request, and The Athletic’s Dan Hayes reports that the Jays never called back with any other offers before trading Stroman to the Mets. This would seem to indicate that the Jays were only interested in Lewis and Kirilloff specifically, though Hayes writes that “the Twins were disappointed when Toronto didn’t give them a chance to match an offer they believed they could have outdone.”
Beyond the prospects, Hayes tweeted that Luis Arraez was “everyone’s favorite ask” amongst teams who were offering rental players to Minnesota. Arraez has been a revelation for the Twins over his first 43 Major League games, as the rookie is hitting .349/.422/.445 over 166 plate appearances. Arraez has long boasted strong averages and on-base numbers in the minors, and while regression is inevitable, his .361 xwOBA isn’t far off his .388 wOBA. With this much potential, it isn’t hard to see why the Twins were reluctant to part with a 22-year-old, multi-positional talent for only a rental player (or potentially anyone).
Hayes reports that the Twins were considering both Robbie Ray and Mike Minor, though concerns about Ray’s durability and Minor’s July struggles diminished the interest. On the relief front, the Twins also had interest in Pirates closer Felipe Vazquez.
“It was one of the most unique trade deadlines I’ve ever experienced,” Twins GM Thad Levine told Hayes and other reporters. “One error I made was assuming that early in the trade cycle that the leverage was towards the seller. I assumed that there was going to be a little bit of a shift of that see-saw back to the buyer as we got closer to the deadline. I’m not sure we ever saw the shift in the see-saw. The sellers felt pretty emboldened. They set the prices high, which is very normal in a trade deadline. But I’m not sure they moved off of those high asks at any point, and as a result, there were just a finite number of players that meaningfully changed the fortunes of playoff-contending teams.”
Early talks with the Giants involving multiple players (including Dyson, Madison Bumgarner, and Will Smith) did result in the late Dyson trade. Minnesota and San Francisco re-engaged in talks just 45 minutes before the 3pm CT deadline, medicals on the four players in the deal were exchanged at 2:50pm, and the trade was finalized with just five minutes to spare.
Mozeliak On Cards’ Quiet Deadline
Even as their NL Central rivals landed improvements in the midst of a tight race, the Cardinals came away empty at yesterday’s trade deadline. Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch broke down the fruitless negotiating effort and the ensuing comments of Cardinals president of baseball operations John Mozeliak.
The Cards “explored starting pitching first and foremost,” said Mozeliak, with an eye to improving an underwhelming rotation. Presumably, they continued to engage on lefty relievers. There’s no indication whether the team contemplated position-player improvements, though there was certainly an argument to be made for some exploration on that front. The Cards are loaded with options, but the production at second and third base has been sporadic and center field has been a bit of a black hole this season.
While the St. Louis front office is no doubt keenly interested in breaking a four-year string of seasons that ended without postseason appearances, it wasn’t willing to bet the farm on 2019. Per Goold, the club wasn’t willing to give up outfielders Tyler O’Neill or Harrison Bader to rent Zack Wheeler down the stretch, as the Mets demanded. Neither were the Cards amenable to parting with top prospects Dylan Carlson and/or Nolan Gorman in order to pry loose a quality hurler with 2020 contract control, such as Robbie Ray or Mike Minor.
Given those stances, perhaps it’s less than surprising that nothing got done. Gorman and Carlson were obvious targets for other teams to pursue when the Cards came calling on good starters. The club’s other best prospect, catcher Andrew Knizner, is on the MLB roster at present and likely was also off limits. While we had seen indication that the Cardinals were dangling some young outfielders, including O’Neill and the just-promoted Lane Thomas, it seems that those pieces were not available under all circumstances.
Ultimately, the Cardinals did swing two deals with the Dodgers, adding recently designated reliever Zac Rosscup and sending out unwanted infielder Jedd Gyorko. They also claimed southpaw Adalberto Mejia in advance of the deadline. It’s tough to say that any of those acquisitions moved the needle, especially in comparison to the acquisitions of the rival Cubs (Craig Kimbrel, Nicholas Castellanos, David Phelps, Tony Kemp), Brewers (Drew Pomeranz, Ray Black, Jake Faria, Jordan Lyles), and even Reds (Trevor Bauer).
There certainly seemed to be room to improve. There’s an argument to be made that the Cards ought to have been more willing, in particular, to part with some of its young outfielders to make something happen. Then again, the winter St. Louis blockbuster has served to highlight some of the pitfalls in such moves. There will be a need for some of those players next season as well, with others perhaps still representing future trade fodder. And it’s hard to second-guess a team’s internal valuations on players it knows better than anyone might hope to from the outside.
As Mozeliak summed things up: “When you spend seven straight days in a room working on something, you tend to want to see something come out of it. So, there’s a high level of frustration, even for us. But we answer to people and have to be responsible for decisions that come out of it and we just didn’t feel we could get there.”
Wheeler, Vazquez, Bumgarner, Minor All Held At Deadline
Though deals can and will still trickle in after the formal end of the MLB summer trade period, there are specific reports indicating that several top trade candidates will not be changing hands.
- Mets righty Zack Wheeler is staying put, per Joel Sherman of the New York Post (via Twitter).
- The same is true of Pirates closer Felipe Vazquez, according to MLB.com’s Jon Morosi (Twitter link).
- There was no last-minute deal for Giants hurler Madison Bumgarner, The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal tweets.
- Mike Minor is staying in Texas, Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram tweets.
Rays Pursuing Zack Wheeler
Having lost Blake Snell to the injured list last week, the Rays are in pursuit of Mets right-hander Zack Wheeler, Andy Martino of SNY reports.
This isn’t the first time the Rays have been connected to Wheeler, though Snell wasn’t on the IL when Wheeler was initially said to be on the club’s radar. Snell underwent arthroscopic elbow surgery last week, which should shelve him for close to a month. His absence leaves a Rays team already low on traditional starters with Charlie Morton, Yonny Chirinos and the soon-to-be recalled Brendan McKay as its top options.
Despite their lack of conventional starters, the Rays are in possession of a 61-48 record and just a half-game behind a wild-card spot. Acquiring Wheeler may give the Rays the over-the-top push they’re seeking, though the Mets aren’t a sure thing to trade the 29-year-old soon-to-be free agent. They’ve climbed to within five games of a playoff spot thanks to a recent hot streak, and keeping Wheeler along with Jacob deGrom, Noah Syndergaard, Marcus Stroman and Steven Matz would give them one of the best rotations in baseball on paper. Wheeler has provided New York 124 innings of 4.71 ERA/3.65 FIP pitching with 9.92 K/9 and 2.46 BB/9 this year.
Mets Reportedly Plan To Keep Edwin Diaz
Mets closer Edwin Diaz has frequented the rumor mill this week, but it appears he’ll remain in place beyond the deadline. The “belief” is that the Mets will retain Diaz, Jon Heyman of MLB Network reports.
Several teams have shown interest in Diaz of late, but the Mets wouldn’t exactly be selling him when his value’s at its zenith. The Mets already bought high on Diaz last offseason, sending two top prospects – outfielder Jarred Kelenic and righty Justin Dunn – to the Mariners in a deal for Diaz and the $100MM left on second baseman Robinson Cano‘s contract. At the time, Diaz was coming off an otherworldly season in which he converted 57 of 61 save chances, logged a 1.96 ERA/1.61 FIP and posted 15.22 K/9 against 2.09 BB/9 in 73 1/3 innings.
This season hasn’t been the same story for the 25-year-old Diaz, who has blown five saves in 28 opportunities, recorded an ugly 5.05 ERA (with a better, albeit not great, 3.93 FIP) and 13.83 K/9 against 3.29 BB/9 over 41 frames. There’s still appeal in the hard-throwing Diaz, who’s making a near-minimum salary and under arbitration control for the next three seasons. But the suddenly surging Mets seem inclined to keep Diaz for at least the rest of the season to see if he can restore some of the value he has lost this year.