Latest On Aaron Judge, Giancarlo Stanton
Had the regular season started when it was supposed to in late March, the Yankees would have had to go without the face of their franchise, right fielder Aaron Judge, for a lengthy period of time. A right rib fracture and a punctured lung slowed Judge during the first version of spring training this year, but the slugger now has a chance to be in the Yankees’ season-opening lineup in a month, Erik Boland of Newsday reports.
Judge, whose injury problems first cropped up in February, has finally returned to hitting off a tee, per Boland. While that doesn’t mean he’ll be ready for Game 1 of the Yankees’ season, it’s still a a positive development for the club, which would have opened a normal season without three of its best outfield options in Judge, Giancarlo Stanton and Aaron Hicks. Each player was shelved with injuries during the spring, though we now know Hicks expects to return from his October 2019 Tommy John procedure once the season starts.
Like Hicks, Stanton – who dealt with a calf strain during the spring – is a near certainty right now to be part of New York’s opener, according to Boland. Injuries have been a major problem dating back to last season for Stanton, whose second year as a Yankee consisted of a mere 18 games.
Aaron Hicks ‘Ready To Play’ If MLB Season Returns
Yankees center fielder Aaron Hicks would be “ready to play” if the MLB season returns in July, he tells George A. King III of the New York Post. Hicks underwent Tommy John Surgery last October.
It seems Hicks has progressed as hoped throughout rehab. The procedure initially called for an eight to ten month recovery time, and the 30-year-old looks to be coming in at the early end of that timetable. He has been taking batting practice for two months without issue, he tells King, and has progressed to throwing from 160 feet and taking outfield drills.
Myriad challenges (coronavirus upticks in certain states, a messy labor dispute) remain for there to be a season at all, of course. If MLB were to get games off the ground, the Yankees would certainly be thrilled to welcome Hicks back. A flexor strain helped limit Hicks to 255 plate appearances over 59 games last season, the first of the seven year, $70MM extension he signed last February.
Injury-plagued 2019 notwithstanding, Hicks had emerged as one of the league’s better outfielders over the prior two seasons. Between 2017-18, he hit .255/.368/.470 (128 wRC+) over 942 plate appearances with slightly above-average defensive metrics in center.
Four Members Of Yankees Organization Test Positive For COVID-19
Four people in the Yankees organization have tested positive for the coronavirus, reports George A. King III of the New York Post. Training in Tampa, the Yankees are the latest team based in Florida to have reported positive tests, along with the Phillies (Clearwater) and the Blue Jays (Dunedin).
After administering tests on Friday, further results are pending and the number of cases in the organization could very well climb in the coming days. Needless to say, Yankees facilities in Tampa have been closed and private workouts held at George M. Steinbrenner Field have been suspended.
According to King III, at least three of the people who have contracted are staff members, two of whom work at Steinbrenner Field while the other two “have ties to the nearby minor league complex.” In March, two players in the Yankees minor league system tested positive for the virus shortly after Spring Training was put on hold.
Earlier today, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo announced that any potential continuation of spring training for the Yankees and Mets will take place in their home ballparks in New York rather than their typical stations in Florida. While New York has seen a lower infection rate than other states, Florida is in the midst of a substantial increase in cases.
It’s worth mentioning that the Mets have had one player test positive for the virus in recent months—as reported by Andy Martino of SNY—though that player was away from the team’s spring training facility in Port St. Lucie, so as of today there is no requirement for further testing of those at the camp. Nonetheless, they will transition their workouts back to their home ballpark, and quite soon: Cuomo stated that the organization will move forward with a “soft training camp reopening” next week.
Quick Hits: Spring Training Sites, James Loney, Alex Cora
Given the spike of coronavirus cases in Florida and Arizona, the Mets and Yankees are both planning on moving their spring facilities to New York for the time being, per MLB Network Insider Jon Heyman. Any potential 2020 season is likely to be heavily dependent upon regional play, so it makes a certain amount of sense for both New York franchises to get settled into their home state (especially considering the rash of breakouts that caused all 30 teams to shut down their training facilities for the time being). The Mets and Yankees might not be the only clubs making this move, as USA Today’s Bob Nightengale tweets that all MLB clubs will be moving their spring training to their home cities. Nightengale does add the caveat that the Blue Jays may stay in Florida for the time being, and there were as many as five teams on Friday with thoughts of staying in Florida (Twitter links).
Let’s check in on other news from around the game…
- Former Dodgers first baseman James Loney has been hired by the GEM Agency in an advisory role, tweets Robert Murray. GEM launched in October 2019 based out of Dallas, Texas. They rep current big leaguers Justin Turner, Tommy Pham, and Roberto Osuna – which are all tracked in MLBTR’s Agency Database. Loney played 11 seasons in the big leagues, with his most productive years coming with the Dodgers from 2006 to 2012. He was eventually traded to the Boston Red Sox in the Dodgers’ monster deal for Adrian Gonzalez, Josh Beckett, Carl Crawford, and Nick Punto. Loney would play just half a season in Boston before going on to post a pair of productive years with the Rays. He finished his playing career in 2016 as a 32-year-old with the New York Mets. For his career, the southpaw first baseman put up a line of .284/.336/.410 with 108 home runs in 5,487 plate appearances.
- Alex Cora will be eligible to return to Major League Baseball in 2021, and the former Red Sox skipper would love to return to the managing ranks, Dan Shaughnessy of the Boston Globe writes. How soon there will be interest in Cora as a manager remains to be seen given his role in the investigations into both the Astros and Red Sox sign-stealing allegations. Still, he has a tremendous track record in his short time as the Red Sox manager. Like many of us, Cora remains in wait-and-see mode for the time being. Said Cora, “If this was a regular time and they were playing games, I would say yes [to managing in 2021]. I would love to be back in 2021 in some capacity. I love managing at the big league level. But right now, I’m still kind of like putting my game plan together. It’s not where I want it to be. But obviously with everything that’s going on, with my daughter going into her senior year of high school, we as a family have to see what we want to do.”
Undrafted Free Agent Signings: 6/17/20
Here are the latest undrafted free agent signings from around the majors. Reminder: $20K is the maximum an unpicked player can receive this year…
- Lamar infielder J.C. Correa will sign with the Astros, according to Brian McTaggart of MLB.com. He’ll join his brother, star shortstop Carlos Correa, in the Houston organization. The Astros drafted J.C. Correa in 2018 (33rd round) and ’19 (38th), but he decided not to sign on those occasions because he wanted to earn his degree first. He slashed .315/.368/.469 and swatted 10 home runs over 304 plate appearances at Lamar.
- Indiana University outfielder Elijah Dunham announced Wednesday that he has signed with the Yankees. Dunham, who didn’t sign after the Pirates selected him in the 40th round in 2019, cracked the top 250 pre-draft rankings of ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel this year and checked in at No. 186 on Baseball America’s list. BA writes that Dunham carries a “balanced offensive profile in a corner outfield spot.”
- The Braves have added a local product in University of Georgia shortstop Cam Shepherd, Baseball America tweets. He was BA’s top available undrafted senior, and the outlet ranked him as the 298th-best prospect entering the draft. His stock has fallen in BA’s eyes from a year ago, though, as it had Shepherd as the 97th-rated pre-draft prospect then. The Rays took Shepherd in the 20th round in 2019, but he opted against signing.
- The Indians have signed Fresno State left-hander Jaime Arias for $20K, Paul Hoynes of cleveland.com tweets. Primarily a reliever in college, Arias pitched to a 3.56 ERA with 9.3 K/9 and 1.9 BB/9 in 139 innings.
- The Red Sox have added Grand Canyon University first baseman Cuba Bess, Pete Abraham of the Boston Globe reports. Bess slashed .313/.425/.517 with 12 home runs in 348 PA as a collegian.
- The Marlins have picked up Air Force outfielder Ashton Easley, per Craig Mish of Sports Grid. Easley was a .301/.364/.512 hitter with 17 homers across 619 PA in school. The club has also signed VCU infielder Brett Norwood, who batted .303/.425/.440 with seven HRs in 299 college PA.
- The Twins have inked UNC-Wilmington southpaw Zarion Sharpe, La Velle E. Neal III of the Star Tribune writes. Sharpe stayed in school despite going to the Cardinals in the 19th round a year ago, and he tossed 20 2/3 frames of 2.18 ERA ball with 8.7 K/9 against 3.5 BB/9 this season.
Yankees President Levine Calls For Resumption Of MLB-MLBPA Negotiations
While his own history on the job includes some less-than-friendly interactions with labor, Yankees president Randy Levine believes ownership and the players can and should reach an amicable resolution of their present standoff regarding a resumption of the 2020 season. He tells David Lennon of Newsday that a deal “can get done,” calling players “the heart and soul of the game” and saying he believes both sides still have the will to get play underway.
So, what’s the path? As Lennon explains, it seems Levine — and perhaps the upper reaches of the league office — are accepting that players will stand on their demand for pro rata pay. Working from that premise, says Levine, removes “the contentious issues” and creates space for the sides to “get in a room and negotiate.”
The MLBPA’s “when and where” bargaining tactic — and associated public relations blitz — seems at least to have succeeded in gaining some level of clarity. Per Levine: “The commissioner now has the right, as long as the players get to 100% pro rata [salaries], to put a schedule together. So I don’t think that the money and the schedule — the number of games — is the issue anymore.”
While there are still important points to be negotiated regarding the way a 2020 season would function, Levine says he thinks they all can be managed in talks. And what of the suggestion we’ve seen floated that some substantial number of owners will balk at playing a season at all? Levine says he hasn’t heard that message in his talks with other clubs.
It’s far from clear that Levine’s general optimism and outlook are shared in the upper reaches of other organizations. Certainly, the league’s most prominent and valuable franchise may have a different outlook than other organizations. But the Yankees hold quite a lot of sway, both within and without league circles, so it seems rather a notable development that Levine — who says he’s in communication daily with commissioner Rob Manfred — holds these views and is willing to communicate them publicly.
Undrafted Free Agent Signings: 6/16/20
This year’s five-round draft left a lot of deserving players looking for deals on the open market. Here’s a roundup of some of the many recent undrafted players who have reached agreements with MLB organizations:
- White Sox (link)
- Ty Madrigal, LHP, St. Mary’s
- Rangers (link)
- Fernando Amaro, C, HS (PR)
- Nick Krauth, RHP, Connecticut
- DJ McCarty, RHP, HS (CA)
- Connor Sechler, RHP, Drury
- Brady Smith, C, Florida
- Colton Snyder, RHP, Concordia
- Josh Stephan, RHP, South Grand Prairie
- Mets (link)
- Austin Faith, RHP, Lamar
- Dylan Hall, RHP, Central Oklahoma
- Brandon McIlwain, OF, California
- Drake Nightengale, RHP, South Alabama
- Joe Suozzi, OF, Boston College
- Nationals (link)
- Jackson Coutts, 1B/OF, Rhode Island
- Gio Diaz, INF, Saint Mary’s
- Raymond Torres Jr., C, San Jacinto JC
- Astros (link)
- Peter Zimmermann, Missouri
- Cesar Gomez, Texas
- Jimmy Endersby, RHP, Concordia
- Justin Dirden, OF, Southeast Missouri State
- Kyle Gruller, RHP, Houston Baptist
- Jonathan Sprinkle, RHP, Central Missouri
- Zack Matthews, RHP, Oklahoma
- Cody Orr, OF, Tiffin
- Yankees (link)
- Carson Coleman, RHP, Kentucky
- Ocean Gabonia, RHP, Everett Community College
- Trevor Holloway, RHP, Central Florida
- Jarod Lessar, RHP, BYU
- Phillies (team announcement)
- Chase Antle, RHP, Coastal Carolina
- Jordan Fowler, LHP Central Missouri
- Jonathan Hughes, RHP, Georgia Tech
- Sam Jacobsak, RHP, Northeastern
- Jake McKenna, LHP, Ocean City HS (NJ)
- Noah Skirrow, RHP, Liberty University
- Billy Sullivan, RHP, Delaware
- JP Woodward, LHP, Lafayette College
- Orioles (link 1; link 2)
- Ryan Watson, RHP, Auburn
- JD Mundy, 1B, Radford
- Brandon Young, RHP, UL-Lafayette
- Thomas Girard, RHP, Duke
- Isaiah Kearns, RHP, Pitt-Johnstown
- Cubs (link)
- Matt Mervis, 1B/RHP, Duke
- Marlins (link)
- Antonio Velez, RHP, Florida State
- Cardinals (link)
- Jacob Buchberger, RHP, Davenport
- Matt Chamberlain, OF, New Haven HS (CT)
- Gianluca Dalatri, RHP, North Carolina
- Matt Koperniak, 3B/OF, Trinity
- Mac Lardner, LHP, Gonzaga
- Nick Raposo, C, Wheaton
- Omar Sanchez, LHP, B-You Prospects Academy (PR)
- Nick Trogrlic-Iverson, RHP, Gonzaga
- Indians (link)
- Joe Donovan, C, Michigan
- Twins (link)
- Lucas Sweany, LHP, University of the Pacific
- Allante Hall, C, Pensacola State JuCo
AL Notes: Sox, Astros, Yankees
Checking in on a few American League franchises…
- White Sox first-round pick Garrett Crochet will arrive in Chicago sometime this week for a physical, Scott Merkin of MLB.com tweets. Crochet fully intends to sign with the club. “After we get the contract all buttoned up, I should be signing. Yeah, it’s not completely official, but should be here in a few days’ time,” said Crochet, a left-hander from Tennessee whom the White Sox chose 11th overall. His pick carries a recommended slot value of $4,547,500.
- The Red Sox turned to one of their most valuable players to help lure an undrafted free agent, Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com details. In an effort to land St. Joseph’s University right-hander Jordan DiValerio, Boston enlisted the help of ace Chris Sale. DiValerio told Cotillo he received a text Sunday from his agent, who said, ‘”Hey, expect a call from Chris Sale.’ I was like, ‘No way. Are you serious?’ And then, he told me if I got a call from a random number, to pick it up.” While DiValerio was already leaning toward the Red Sox at that point, the call from Sale only helped the club’s cause. “He said it’s one of the best, if not the best organization in baseball,” DiValerio stated. “He said once you get in, the family environment is really just incredible. He’s so happy to be a part of it. He told me I’m going to be happy to be in it as well.”
- Owner Jim Crane informed Astros employees Tuesday that the team will not lay off or furlough anyone through the end of October, Jake Kaplan of The Athletic tweets. However, any member of the staff who makes $100K or more will have to take a pay cut.
- The Yankees, meanwhile, have told their staff that they’ll continue with the status quo in terms of employment and pay, per James Wagner of the New York Times. The team had previously only committed to them through June 15.
Quick Hits: Bitsko, Tanaka, Moskos, Draft Prospects
Nick Bitsko was originally slated to be part of the 2021 draft class, so when the young righty took some extra courses to graduate high school after his junior year and thus become eligible for the 2020 draft, the Rays didn’t have a ton of fresh information available, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times writes. The Rays were limited to a three-inning showcase last August, “plus a 50-pitch March bullpen session at a small indoor facility and an hour-long Zoom call last week,” yet were still impressed enough to make Bitsko the 24th overall pick, just days before Bitsko’s 18th birthday.
Working largely off limited video from Bitsko’s high school games, some throwing-session footage posted by Bitsko himself online, and cellphone footage shot by scout Zach Clark during the bullpen session, the Rays became comfortable in the right-hander’s ability. Clark is still the only Rays employee to speak to Bitsko or his parents in person, as Bitsko’s next meeting with team officials came during the online conversation. “I think the Zoom call sent it over the top for our guys,” Clark said. “Listen to Nick talk about pitching, preparation, what he’s done in the past, you’re like, ‘Man, it’s really hard to believe you’re talking to a 17-year-old.’ ”
More from around baseball…
- Of the Yankees‘ three veteran impending free agent starters, Masahiro Tanaka is “the favorite to return” to the Bronx in 2021, George A. King III of the New York Post opines. Tanaka will turn 32 in November, though James Paxton shares almost the exact same birthday and will carry a much more checkered injury history into the open market, while J.A. Happ turns 38 in October and is coming off a rough 2019 season. Of course, there’s nothing stopping the Yankees from re-signing only one of these hurlers, and there’s also nothing to say that New York couldn’t let all three walk. The latter scenario seems less likely, however, as that would leave the team with quite a young and unproven rotation mix behind Gerrit Cole, unless the Yankees acquired another veteran starter.
- Fangraphs’ David Laurila recently caught up with Daniel Moskos, the fourth overall pick of the 2007 draft and currently the pitching coach for the Yankees‘ A-ball affiliate in Charleston. Despite his lofty draft status, Moskos’ MLB career consisted of only 24 1/3 innings for the Pirates in 2011 before elbow problems and a Tommy John surgery took their toll. After bouncing around the minors, the Mexican League, and independent ball, Moskos followed the lead of several pitchers in recent years by visiting the Driveline facility to try and get his career on track. As it turned out, it led to a career change entirely, as Moskos retired in order to take a job as coach and trainer at Driveline. That position led to a lot of interest from other organizations about coaching roles, leading to Moskos being hired by the Yankees last November.
- While teams are now eligible to begin signing undrafted free agents, some notable players who weren’t selected have opted to go back to school rather than take a $20K offer. The Athletic’s Josh Tolentino reports (Twitter link) that right-hander Tommy Mace will return to Florida for his senior year, which isn’t surprising given that Mace was a consensus top-75 prospect as per this year’s draft projections. (The Athletic’s Keith Law ranked Mace as the 46th-best player in the class, with Fangraphs not far behind in placing Mace 47th.) As Tolentino notes, another good year from Mace could make him in the top-15 range for the 2021 draft.
- Infielder Darren Baker will also forego a free agent contract and return to Cal next season, John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle writes. Baker, the son of Astros manager Dusty Baker, was rated 184th in Baseball America’s draft prospect rankings.
Court Orders MLB, Yankees To Unseal 2017 Letter Regarding Rules Violations
A New York district court judge has ordered MLB and the Yankees to unseal a 2017 letter sent by MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred to Yankees GM Brian Cashman regarding rules violations that occurred in 2015-16, as first reported by Evan Drellich of the Athletic. As Drellich suggested, the Yankees are likely to appeal the ruling, hear Greg Joyce and Ken Davidoff of the New York Post. The suit, brought by a collection of daily fantasy players against MLB, the Astros, and the Red Sox, was dismissed in April and is pending appeal to the Second Circuit. The Yankees are not a party in the action.
Given the Astros’ and Red Sox’s high-profile sign stealing scandals that arguably called into question the legitimacy of their respective 2017 and 2018 World Series titles, many will immediately raise their eyebrows at hearing the sport’s most prominent organization tied to similar allegations. However, it is important to note that the court’s decision to unseal the letter appears to be standard litigation procedure, not any sort of indictment of the letter’s contents.
In 2017, the Yankees were fined by MLB for wrongfully using their dugout phone. The league also investigated claims by the Red Sox that the New York club had used YES Network cameras to steal opposing teams’ signs. MLB could not substantiate those allegations. It seems the plaintiffs’ hope is to find evidence MLB permitted rampant sign stealing leaguewide, arguing the letter shows the commissioner was aware that the Yankees “engaged in a more serious, sign-stealing scheme” than MLB publicly let on, writes the court. Beyond the plaintiffs’ allegations, there is no evidence of such a scheme.
Indeed, the court writes that “much of the letter’s contents have already been revealed in the 2017 Press Release” that announced the Yankees’ punishment for dugout phone misuse, relays Drellich. An attorney for the Yankees reiterates that position, arguing that “the press release is accurate and states MLB’s conclusions.”
As part of a robust discovery process, correspondence between the league and teams potentially relevant to the proceedings would typically be turned over. However, MLB and the Yankees maintained this letter should remain sealed, arguing that unsealing it could result in “significant reputational injury” to both the league and club. Exactly what injury they fear is unclear, but the court noted that any reputational harm suffered would be “modest at best,” Drellich says.
Surely, some fans will take interest in the result of the Yankees’ forthcoming appeal and the letter’s contents. However, there’s very little beyond the allegations of an interested litigant that the Yankees participated in a sign stealing scheme at all, much less one that rivals the Astros’ (and to a lesser extent, Red Sox’s) violations.