Trade Rumors: Rangers, Smith, Lowrie, Blue Jays, Frazier, Cubs
The Athletics aren’t the only AL West team interested in Jed Lowrie‘s services, as the Rangers have been in talks with the Mets about a deal that would send both Lowrie and Dominic Smith to the Lone Star State, The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal reports (subscription required). However, “talks to this point have failed to progress” between the two clubs. It’s fair to guess that Smith was the Rangers’ real target in these negotiations, as Smith would be the sweetener added to the deal in exchange for the Rangers assuming most or all of the remaining $12MM on Lowrie’s contract. New York is reportedly trying to create payroll space by shopping high-priced names like Lowrie or Jeurys Familia to other teams.
Smith is perhaps a bit of a curious fit for the Rangers, given that Texas already has a plethora of left-handed hitting first base/DH/corner outfield types, and only just dealt from that surplus in sending Nomar Mazara to the White Sox. Still, adding a 24-year-old with five seasons of control has obvious value for the Rangers, as Shin-Soo Choo‘s contract is up after the 2020 campaign, and Ronald Guzman could become expendable in the event of Smith joining the roster. While Lowrie missed virtually all of 2019 due to injury, he also offers more to Texas than just a salary dump if he’s able to stay healthy. If Lowrie was able to recapture anything close to his 2017-18 form, he’d represent a good third base answer if the Rangers weren’t able to sign Josh Donaldson.
More trade talk as we near the end of the Winter Meetings…
- Though the Blue Jays have been mostly linked to free agents this winter, the club is apparently being just as diligent on the trade front, Sportsnet.ca’s Shi Davidi writes. In addition to Toronto’s known interest in Yankees southpaw J.A. Happ, the Jays have checked in with the Red Sox about David Price and Jackie Bradley Jr., and with the Pirates about right-hander Chris Archer and Joe Musgrove. It doesn’t seem like any of these particular options are close, however, as Davidi notes that “the cost in both dollars and prospect capital remains too high” for Price, Bradley, and Happ. The Jays and Pirates have been speculatively linked as trade partners since Ben Cherington recently went from Toronto’s front office to the GM chair in Pittsburgh, though this familiarity may not necessarily be a plus. As Davidi puts it, Cherington “may think too similarly to his former colleagues for a deal to be struck.”
- As the Pirates weigh a lot of interest in Adam Frazier, the Athletics are involved but perhaps no better than Pittsburgh’s third option as a trade partner, the San Francisco Chronicle’s Susan Slusser reports (Twitter link). The left-handed hitting Frazier would be an ideal fit to help balance out Oakland’s heavily right-handed lineup, and would provide some experience to a young collection of second base candidates. Frazier isn’t old himself (he is a few days away from his 28th birthday) and is still controllable through three years of arbitration eligibility.
- While the Cubs are reportedly working hard towards swinging some (potentially major) trades, the possibility exists that the 2020 roster will look a lot like last year’s edition, president of baseball operations Theo Epstein told Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times and other media. “The makings of a very good team is currently under control on our roster, with a chance to win a division. And do that, and you have a chance to have a great October,” Epstein said, though “status quo is not a bad option, but we’re obviously out there looking to make changes and change the dynamic and improve.” It could be that the Cubs won’t become big players in the trade market until most or all of the top free agents have selected their new teams. In the case of Kris Bryant, for example, “officials from two teams aggressively trying to fill third-base needs…said the Cubs were asking too much for Bryant to seriously consider him while other options remained available,” Wittenmyer writes.
Athletics Interested In Jed Lowrie
Second baseman Jed Lowrie is only a year removed from leaving the Athletics for the Mets in free agency, but the A’s are now interested in bringing him back via trade, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports. However, for that to happen, the Mets would have eat the majority of Lowrie’s $10MM salary for 2020, according to Slusser.
Lowrie joined the Mets on a two-year, $20MM contract, but it was one of multiple prominent offseason moves that didn’t go their way in 2019. The oft-injured 35-year-old sat out all but nine games, in which he totaled a mere eight plate appearances, as he dealt with a series of leg problems throughout the season. It’s now unclear where Lowrie fits on the Mets’ roster, as they already have what looks like a set infield with Robinson Cano at second, Pete Alonso at first, Amed Rosario at short and Jeff McNeil and J.D. Davis as third base possibilities.
Conversely, Oakland has a dearth of established options at second, having jettisoned 2019 starter Jurickson Profar in a trade with the Padres. Current choices Chad Pinder, Franklin Barreto, Sheldon Neuse and Jorge Mateo are all right-handed hitters, as Slusser notes, whereas Lowrie bats from both sides of the plate. He’d at least add some variety to the group, then, and it’s worth pointing out that Lowrie had the best seasons of his career in Oakland.
Already a two-time Athletic, Lowrie was one of the game’s most valuable second basemen from 2017-18, a 1,325-plate appearance span in which he slashed .272/.356/.448 with 37 home runs, 8.7 fWAR and an All-Star nod. Lowrie stayed healthy during that time, but injuries have so far wrecked his Mets tenure, which could end as early as this winter.
Brandon Nimmo, Eddie Rosario Reportedly Being Discussed In Trade Talks
While it was overshadowed entirely by a much bigger move, last night’s swap of Nomar Mazara from the Rangers to the White Sox also represented a notable bit of action in the outfield market. The landscape hasn’t changed much since the start of the offseason but could begin to come into focus now that the biggest starting pitching moves have been made.
It seems the Mets are still working things out in their outfield situation. Word is that they’re willing to consider parting with Brandon Nimmo, per SNY.tv’s Andy Martino (Twitter link). The New York org is reportedly still kicking around concepts with the Pirates regarding Starling Marte, one of the market’s top trade candidates. Some potential trade scenarios could involve the younger, cheaper, and more controllable Nimmo. It’s not specifically clear whether Nimmo is otherwise open for bidding, but it seems the New York org is doing everything it can to land a true center fielder — even if it means parting with the left-handed-hitting OBP machine.
Meanwhile, the Twins are discussing Eddie Rosario with several other clubs, according to MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand (via Twitter). The 28-year-old has been a mainstay in the Minnesota outfield but dipped a bit last year to a .276/.300/.500 batting line. He did launch 32 long balls and performed better in the on-base department in the prior two seasons. The Twins shouldn’t really need to move salary — Rosario is projected to earn $8.9MM with one more arb season to come — but may see an opportunity to pick up talent (especially in the pitching department) while reinvesting the payroll space and clearing the way for the near-term ascent of Alex Kirilloff.
The potential market for Rosario isn’t yet evident. The Marlins are among the teams with interest in Rosario, per Craig Mish of MLB Network Radio (via Twitter). But the Miami organization considers the Twins’ asking price “extremely high” at the moment. That was also the team’s stance with regard to Nomar Mazara, who ended up being dealt instead to the White Sox yesterday. The pursuit of Rosario and Mazara offers some insight into the thinking of the Miami organization. It seems obvious the organization is willing to take on a decent bit of salary and won’t limit itself to players with lengthy control rights. The club has a long-stated desire to add some corner pop and is also exploring the possibilities on the open market.
Latest On Mets, Starling Marte
The Mets somewhat addressed their need in center field last week when they acquired Jake Marisnick from the Astros, but they may not be done yet. New York remains in the mix to swing a trade for Pirates center fielder Starling Marte, per reports from Andy Martino of SNY and Jon Heyman of MLB Network. The club’s “working on” a Marte acquisition, according to Martino.
As one of the most valuable center fielders in baseball, Marte’s appeal is obvious. The fact that there’s a dearth of proven center fielders available in free agency should only add to his attractiveness on the trade market. He’s under control at more-than-reasonable prices for the next two seasons (including for a guaranteed $11.5MM in 2020 and a $12.5MM club option in ’21), so the Pirates don’t have to deal him. However, considering they appear unlikely to push for a playoff spot next season, there’s a case that it would make sense for the Bucs to sell off the 31-year-old this winter. For his part, new general manager Ben Cherington is reportedly open to fielding offers for Marte.
Should the Mets end up with Marte, it would add to an already crowded group of outfield-capable players for the team. Marisnick, Brandon Nimmo, Michael Conforto, Jeff McNeil, Dominic Smith, J.D. Davis and Yoenis Cespedes (if he returns from injury) are on hand as prominent players who have lined up in the grass. However, the Mets are “open” to parting with Nimmo to somewhat alleviate the logjam, per Martino. They shouldn’t have a tough time finding a taker for the 26-year-old, as he’s a quality major league hitter with three seasons of control remaining and is only projected to earn $1.7MM in 2020.
NL East Rumblings: Rendon, Nats, Martinez, Cespedes, Mets, Hatcher
Now that Stephen Strasburg has been re-signed to an expectations-shattering $245MM contract, it doesn’t seem like the Nationals could manage another mega-deal to bring back Anthony Rendon…or could they? Both Nats GM Mike Rizzo and agent Scott Boras (who represents both Rendon and Strasburg) told MASNsports.com’s Mark Zuckerman and other reporters that the third baseman could still potentially return to Washington, despite owner Mark Lerner’s recent comments about his club not being able to afford both free agents. “Well, when you look at those comments, and then you look at the structure of this particular deal and the structure of deals we’ve had getting up to where we are right now, I think that Mark realizes that there’s ways to fit players in,” Rizzo said, in reference to the deferral-heavy nature of both Strasburg’s contract and several other major Nats contracts in recent years.
Boras also spoke of how Strasburg “directed me to negotiate and create a value, a fair-market value for him, but also a structure that allowed the team to continue at a championship level.” Naturally, it wouldn’t be good business for Boras to create any impression that a wealthy suitor had dropped out of the running for Rendon, though the fact that he has had such a long history of negotiating deals with the Nationals perhaps gives his comments some added weight. “I think when you go to do these contracts — in fairness to Mark and everyone else — is you really don’t know what can be done inside a contract to create opportunities so that aspects of the team can be looked at a little differently than was even anticipated,” Boras said.
More rumblings from around the NL East…
- Not that a World Series-winning manager should necessarily be worried about job security, but Dave Martinez tells NBC Sports Washington’s Todd Dybas that he isn’t concerned about entering the final guaranteed year of his contract. The Nationals hold a club option on Martinez for the 2021 season, though just making through 2020 would make Martinez (somewhat incredibly) the first person to manage three full seasons for the Nats since the club moved from Montreal prior to the 2005 season. Martinez didn’t give any indication of extension talks, though even with the Nationals’ unusual history of managerial hirings and firings, it looks like stability might have finally come to the dugout.
- Yoenis Cespedes is hoping to return to the field in 2020, and Mets GM Brodie Van Wagenen told reporters (including MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo) that the outfielder has begun throwing and running programs. A series of leg injuries forced Cespedes to miss the entire 2019 season, and limited him to just 119 games in 2017-18. Naturally, Van Wagenen was cautious about the possibility of a comeback for the outfielder, saying “We have to be smart and not assume anything from anyone and try to create talent on our roster and try to create impact. If he’s at his best, he’s a high-impact performer. We’ll have to see how that plays out.”
- In other news from Van Wagenen’s media briefing, he said finding depth for both the rotation or bullpen is a main focus for the Mets. The club may also look at adding a backup infielder and backup catcher. The latter could spell some trouble for current backup catcher Tomas Nido, who was one of the game’s better defensive catchers in 2019 but hasn’t shown any hitting prowess during his three MLB seasons (albeit over only 244 career plate appearances).
- The Marlins have hired Billy Hatcher as the team’s new first base coach, MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro reports. Hatcher brings 21 years of coaching experience to Miami, after long stints with both the Rays (1998-2005) and Reds (2006-18). Trey Hillman will move from first base coach across the diamond to coach third base next season, to accommodate Hatcher. In other Marlins staff news, assistant hitting coach Eric Duncan has been promoted to hitting coach.
Minor MLB Transactions: 12/9/19
The Kia Tigers of the Korea Baseball Organization have inked right-hander Drew Gagnon to a $650K contract with a $200K signing bonus, Dan Kurtz of MyKBO.net reports. The Tigers also re-signed outfielder Preston Tucker on a $550K salary with a $300K bonus. The Mets released the 29-year-old Gagnon in late November, which came after a couple brief but rough seasons in New York. Gagnon pitched to a 7.32 ERA across a combined 35 2/3 innings as a Met, but he did have a productive 2019 at the Triple-A level. Tucker, also 29, didn’t hit much in major league stints with the Astros, Braves or Reds, though he performed well after leaving the White Sox’s Triple-A affiliate last May to head to Korea. In his first year as a Tiger, Tucker batted .311/.381/.479 with nine home runs in 399 plate appearances.
Now for the latest minor moves from the bigs…
- The Angels announced that right-hander Jose Rodriguez cleared waivers and was outrighted to Triple-A Salt Lake. The move leaves the Angels with one open spot on their 40-man roster. The 24-year-old Rodriguez made his major league debut in 2019, and though he managed a 2.75 ERA during that 19 2/3-inning span, he also totaled almost as many walks (11) as strikeouts (13). Furthermore, Rodriguez had difficulty across 44 1/3 frames at the Triple-A level, where he stumbled to a 6.29 ERA with 9.14 K/9 and 4.47 BB/9.
- In another Angels transaction, the club signed lefty Hoby Milner to a minor league contract, Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com tweets. While Milner spent the previous two seasons with the Rays, the ex-Phillie didn’t log much major league time in either campaign. But the 28-year-old amassed plenty of impressive innings last season as a member of Triple-A Durham, with which he worked to a 3.06 ERA and recorded 12.99 K/9 against 1.9 BB/9 over 61 2/3 frames.
- The Marlins have picked up infielder Gosuke Katoh on a minors deal, Wells Dusenbury of the Sun Sentinel writes. His agreement comes with an invitation to big league spring training. Notably, there are now members of the Miami front office who were in New York’s FO when the Yankees picked Katoh in the second round of the 2013 draft. Evidenced in part by his high selection (No. 66), Katoh was once a highly promising prospect. While Katoh hasn’t made it to the majors since then, the 25-year-old did have a nice season in 2019. In his first action at the Triple-A level, Katoh slashed .279/.382/.443 with 11 homers and eight steals in 308 PA.
- The Mets have signed catcher David Rodriguez to a minors pact with an invitation to MLB camp, per Anthony DiComo of MLB.com. Rodriguez, 23, spent his first seven professional seasons in the Rays’ system, making it to the Double-A level in each of the past two years. He hit .225/.303/.366 with seven homers over 295 PA in 2019.
Red Sox Notes & Rumors: JBJ, Mookie, Porcello, Holt, Front Office
The Red Sox are “actively” attempting to trade center fielder Jackie Bradley Jr., Pete Abraham of the Boston Globe tweets. The Mets had been among the teams in on Bradley, per Abraham, but they addressed their need in center field last week with the addition of Jake Marisnick from the Astros. Bradley’s a fine player who has generally performed well with the Red Sox, but moving him (and his projected $11MM salary for 2020, his last year of team control) would help the team shave payroll in an effort to get under the $208MM luxury tax next season. Newly minted chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom said Monday that it remains a goal for the franchise to spend below the threshold in 2020, per Christopher Smith of MassLive.com.
More from Boston…
- Like Bradley, fellow Red Sox outfielder Mookie Betts is going into his final season of arbitration control. Betts, who’s projected to make a whopping $27.7MM in 2020, has made it known in the past that he intends to test free agency next winter. However, that hasn’t stopped the Red Sox from being in touch with Betts “multiple” times in regards to a long-term contract, according to Julian McWilliams of the Boston Globe. This is setting up as a fascinating offseason for the 27-year-old Betts, a one-time AL MVP who looks like an extension candidate and perhaps a trade candidate.
- Right-hander Rick Porcello and utility player Brock Holt are among the Red Sox’s most prominent free agents. Even though a report Sunday suggested the Red Sox are at least interested in a reunion with Porcello, Abraham downplays the possibility he or Holt will be back with the club next season. The Red Sox have simply kept tabs on Porcello and Holt, and they’re not “actively involved with” those two or any of their other free agents.
- The Red Sox announced extensions for key front office personnel Raquel Ferreira, Eddie Romero and Zack Scott on Monday. Each received multiyear deals, and they’ll all hold the title of Executive Vice President/Assistant General Manager. Those duties will come with “expanded responsibilities within the baseball operations department,” per the team. Those three, along with now-GM Brian O’Halloran, helped steer the ship in Boston between the end of president of baseball ops Dave Dombrowski’s run in early September and the hiring of Bloom just under two months later.
Mets Add Hensley Meulens, Tony DeFrancesco To Coaching Staff
The Mets officially announced their coaching staff for the upcoming season, which included a few new faces in the mix. Hensley Meulens will be the bench coach, confirming previous reports that Meulens was the favorite for the job. Jeremy Hefner‘s role as the new pitching coach was made official after news broke of his hiring two weeks ago, while Tony DeFrancesco will join the staff as first base coach.
Meulens has spent the last two seasons as the Giants bench coach, and the previous eight years as the club’s hitting coach. That long stint in San Francisco included a brief period working with Mets manager Carlos Beltran, who played for the Giants over the last two months of the 2011 season. The 52-year-old Meulens has long been considered as a potential manager himself, and was seen as a potential heir apparent to Bruce Bochy, though Meulens wasn’t hired after being interviewed by the Giants this fall. Meulens also reportedly came close to joining the Marlins’ coaching staff this offseason, though he will now work in New York for the second time in his professional career — Meulens’ first five seasons as a player were spent with the Yankees from 1989-1993.
DeFrancesco has managed the Mets’ Triple-A affiliate for the last two seasons, and also interviewed for the big league managerial job before Beltran was hired. DeFrancesco has spent the majority of his 28 seasons as a coach and manager at the minor league level, though he also worked as the Athletics’ third base coach in 2008 and briefly served as the Astros’ interim manager in 2012.
Beyond the new hires and Jeremy Accardo‘s promotion from pitching strategist to assistant pitching coach, the rest of New York’s staff will return to their roles from the 2019 season. The returning group includes hitting coach Chili Davis, assistant hitting coach Tom Slater, third base coach Gary DiSarcina, quality control coach Luis Rojas, and bullpen coach Ricky Bones.
KBO’s Doosan Bears To Sign Chris Flexen
Right-hander Chris Flexen is set to join the Doosan Bears of the Korea Baseball Organization, reports Marc Carig of the Athletic (via Twitter). The Mets designated Flexen for assignment yesterday to make way for Brad Brach.
The terms of the deal aren’t yet known, but Flexen will presumably take home significantly more with the Bears than he would’ve had he cleared waivers and remained in the Mets’ system. The 25-year-old has made 27 appearances (11 starts) at the big league level for New York since 2017. They’ve not gone well, as Flexen has a cumulative 8.07 ERA with 49 strikeouts and 54 walks in 68 innings.
Disastrous MLB results aside, Flexen was solid this season with Triple-A Syracuse. In 78.2 innings across 26 games (14 starts) in the hitter-friendly International league, he worked to a 4.46 ERA with a strong combination of strikeouts (26.7%) and walks (6.1%). He also showed a velocity boost in his brief big league time in 2019, averaging 94.54 MPH on his four-seam fastball, up from 93.31 MPH the year prior, per Brooks Baseball.
Between his youth, arm speed and high minors results, it’s easy to see why the Bears are intrigued by Flexen. He’ll need to demonstrate better control in the KBO, but Flexen’s certainly young enough to pop back up on MLB teams’ radars in the future.
Mets Interested In Rick Porcello
With Zack Wheeler officially jumping ship to join a division rival, the Mets are exploring options on the starting pitching market, speaking with free agent right-hander Rick Porcello and his representatives, according to Jon Heyman of MLB Network.
At the outset of the offseason, MLBTR tabbed Porcello to receive a one-year deal worth $11MM. Coming off an awful 2019 season, the 30-year-old doesn’t have all that many factors working in his favor, but the sheer number of teams lacking depth in the starting rotation makes it a likely proposition that Porcello attracts his fair share of interest—especially given his durability; he’s never made fewer than 27 starts in any of his eleven big league seasons.
And while he can hardly be considered a direct substitute for Wheeler’s production, Porcello nonetheless represents an intriguing option with some potential. After a nice 2018 showing, Porcello regressed considerably last year, stumbling to a 5.52 ERA that ranked dead last among qualified starters. But his control and K:BB ratio makes him a viable candidate for a spot in the back end of a Major League rotation.
The question that defines Porcello’s market is how much teams buy into his ability to spin the baseball, which ranks among the best in baseball. Per Statcast, the spin rates Porcello generates on his curveball and fastball rank in the 89th and 74th percentiles, respectively, with his slider also grading out well. Teams who think they can transform that skill into on-field results might look to add Porcello on a relatively low-risk deal.
However, that profile glosses over his troubling inability to prevent home runs. Porcello ranks firmly below average in groundball rate and home run rate, and while that in itself isn’t a dealbreaker (he shares company with names like Jack Flaherty, Gerrit Cole, and Justin Verlander) it often spells bad news for a pitcher who doesn’t miss a lot of bats—Porcello saw his K/9 drop from a career-best 8.9 in 2018 to just 7.4 last year. The aforementioned trio of Cy Young contenders is distinguished from Porcello in that their opponents simply don’t put the ball in play enough to do real damage with the home run. It bears mentioning that New York’s Citi Field certainly offers a more pitcher-friendly environment that could mitigate Porcello’s weakness somewhat.
While the Cy Young Award on his mantle suggests otherwise, Porcello has never really been a bona fide ace. Still, he showed in 2018 that he can be a fine complementary rotation piece, filling out the Boston staff behind Chris Sale and David Price. Just one season removed from that 4.28 ERA/4.01 FIP year, Porcello could fill a similar role behind the Mets’ Jacob deGrom and Noah Syndergaard. And given the organization’s penchant for honing starters’ sliders, the Mets may aim to boost his slider (and curveball) usage at the cost of his fastball and sinker, which opposing hitters collectively mashed in 2019.