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Aaron Judge Placed On Disabled List; Yankees Promote Mason Williams

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8:00pm: Judge has been diagnosed with a Grade 2 oblique strain and has been placed on the 15-day disabled list, the team told reporters (Twitter link via MLB.com’s Bryan Hoch).

9:17am: Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge is unlikely to return from an oblique injury suffered last night, Sweeny Murti of WFAN reports on Twitter. Fellow young outfielder Mason Williams will be called up to take his place.

[Related: Updated Yankees Roster]

Judge, 24, made his highly-anticipated major league debut this year after a strong run at Triple-A. Over 410 plate appearances at the highest level of the minors, the massive slugger posted a .270/.366/.489 batting line with 19 long balls.

The first taste of the majors hasn’t been quite as smooth for Judge, who has whiffed 42 times in 95 plate appearances. His .179/.263/.345 slash leaves quite a bit to desire, though he has launched four big league homers.

Really, the early struggles aren’t of particular concern; it’s worth noting, too, that Judge needed time to adapt at Triple-A. And the injury isn’t likely to be a major problem. But it will prevent him from getting some more plate appearances under his belt, and could conceivably interrupt offseason training or winter ball plans.

It’s not clear that the injury will really impact the offseason plans of the Yankees, who likely already viewed Judge as a work in progress heading into 2017. GM Brian Cashman has already suggested that the club won’t look to add outfielders over the winter.

That approach is based in some part on the availability of other potentially useful players such as Williams, a former top prospect who only just turned 25. His prospect star has faded in recent years, with injuries playing a limiting role, so the move won’t come with much fanfare. This will be Williams’s second run at the majors — he had a nice, but very brief, call-up last year — and it comes on the heels of a 31-game stint at Triple-A in which he slashed .296/.313/.376.

AL Notes: Gomes, Pearce, Despaigne, Judge, Sale, Medlen

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The Indians expect to welcome back catcher Yan Gomes on Friday, Paul Hoynes of the Plain Dealer reports on Twitter. Gomes had been sidelined with a separated shoulder that was considered a threat to end his campaign, but it seems he’ll have a chance to come back online in advance of a likely postseason berth. That’s welcome news for Cleveland, which has struggled to find production from the catching position. Of course, Gomes himself has scuffled to a .165/.198/.313 batting line, but the club can at least hope he’ll return to providing quality glovework while hopefully swinging out of his malaise.

Here’s more from the American League:

  • Orioles utility slugger Steve Pearce is set to visit Dr. David Altchek tomorrow for his arm injury, Eduardo Encina of the Baltimore Sun reports. Pearce’s elbow/forearm issues have failed to abate, leaving the club unsure of his status as the postseason push intensifies. The 33-year-old has managed only 70 trips to the plate since he was picked up at the trade deadline, with his production trailing off with the injury.
  • Meanwhile, the Orioles have placed righty Odrisamer Despaigne on waivers, per Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com (Twitter links). Given that Despaigne was designated on the fifth, Kubatko suggests that the O’s were trying to work out a deal before settling for the wire. The 29-year-old carries a 5.60 ERA over his 27 1/3 innings on the year, with 5.6 K/9 against 4.9 BB/9, so he doesn’t figure to hold much appeal at present.
  • The Yankees have ordered an MRI for outfielder Aaron Judge after he came down with an oblique injury, Jack Curry of YES Network reports (Twitter links). It remains to be seen whether the 24-year-old will be able to make it back to finish out his late-season promotion. He has struggled thus far in the majors, with 41 strikeouts in 93 plate appearances, and New York will surely hope to get him as much work as possible to assess his readiness to contribute in 2017.
  • White Sox ace Chris Sale has already seen his name tossed around quite a bit in trade talks, and he figures to be an intriguing trade candidate this winter, but he tells Bruce Levine of CBS Chicago that he hopes to stay in Chicago. “I don’t worry about that stuff,” Sale said. “That will shake out on its own. I wear this uniform with a lot of pride. I hope I can continue to do that.” Of course, the South Siders will not part with the star southpaw lightly, if at all. The 27-year-old has turned in another strong campaign, putting up a 3.03 ERA with 9.1 K/9 and 1.9 BB/9 over 201 2/3 innings.
  • Righty Kris Medlen hopes to return to the Royals in 2017, MLB.com’s Jeffrey Flanagan reports on Twitter. The former standout hurler struggled badly in limited action this year, and hasn’t pitched since May owing to shoulder issues. That makes it an easy decision for the team to pay him a $1MM buyout rather than picking up his $10MM option, but something else could be worked out if Kansas City sees cause for optimism. “I feel like I’m not done yet with this team,” said Medlen. “I feel like I owe them something.”

Heyman’s Latest: White Sox, Marlins, Brewers, Yankees, Gurriel, Saunders

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FanRag’s Jon Heyman kicks off his weekly notes column by ranking the 20 best trades in the past two years, with the Blue Jays’ Josh Donaldson acquisition topping the list. Certainly a good deal of hindsight is used when crafting any such list, and the development of certain prospects could change the way we perceive some of these still-fresh deals, but many of the swaps listed do indeed look lopsided one way or another at the moment.

Some highlights from the column…

  • The White Sox never even put Chris Sale or Jose Quintana on trade waivers last month, knowing that there wouldn’t be time to negotiate a sufficient return in the limited 47-hour window after the respective aces were claimed. They’ll instead explored trade scenarios for both pitchers once again this winter, though owner Jerry Reinsdorf isn’t keen on rebuilding. Todd Frazier was claimed on trade waivers but pulled back, according to Heyman, whereas outfielder Melky Cabrera made it through waivers but remained in Chicago despite his above-average offensive production dating back to last June.
  • The Marlins will try to find a No. 2 type starter this winter to slot between Jose Fernandez and Wei-Yin Chen, but the usual caveats apply: this offseason bears a historically poor crop of free-agent starting pitching, and the Marlins’ paper-thin farm system makes it difficult to land a high-quality pitcher via trade. Per Heyman, the Marlins are frequently asked about Christian Yelich and J.T. Realmuto but are loath to part with either rising star. He also adds that manager Don Mattingly is strongly in favor of the team re-signing Martin Prado.
  • Jonathan Villar’s strong play for the Brewers this season has apparently created some wishful thinking among other clubs, as there’s been increased interest in top prospect Orlando Arcia, but the Brewers are “not entertaining offers” for the highly touted 22-year-old.
  • Aaron Judge’s struggles notwithstanding, the Yankees won’t seek outfield help this offseason, GM Brian Cashman told Heyman. In addition to Brett Gardner, Jacoby Ellsbury, Judge and Aaron Hicks, Cashman pointed out that the Yankees also have Clint Frazier and Mason Williams, commenting that players with Frazier’s level of talent can force their way onto the big league roster quickly. The GM also expressed confidence that Luis Severino can stick as a starting pitcher and talked about the rapid development of Gary Sanchez on the heels of the young catcher’s stunning late-season breakout.
  • Lourdes Gurriel Jr., the younger brother of Astros infielder/DH Yulieski Gurriel, will host a showcase for interested teams on Sep. 14 in Panama City, according to Heyman. The Cardinals are one of about 20 teams planning to go watch the young shortstop, he notes. While the showcase will allow teams to get a look at the younger Gurriel, I can’t envision him actually signing until his 23rd birthday passes on Oct. 19. At that point, Gurriel will no longer be considered an amateur, and thus will no longer be subject to international signing bonuses.
  • The Blue Jays will make the obvious decisions to extend qualifying offers to Edwin Encarnacion and Jose Bautista, and they’re also considering a QO for Michael Saunders. While that might’ve seemed like a highly implausible scenario a few months back, Saunders has been quite good in a full, healthy season. In 500 plate appearances, the 29-year-old is slashing .266/.348/.505 with 23 homers — though he hasn’t been as good in the season’s second half. Saunders’ injury history could at least create some pause, but given his quality offensive output and lack of a platoon split in 2016, I think he’d be able to secure a nice multi-year pact even if he turned down the sizable one-year offer.

AL East Notes: Tillman, O’Day, Rays, Green

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As the Orioles look to work their way back into first place in the American League East, they’ll soon be joined by a pair of key players that have been on the disabled list, per MASNsports.com’s Roch Kubatko. Baltimore’s top starter, Chris Tillman, is slated to throw one final bullpen session on Friday before making a return to the rotation against the Tigers on Sunday. Notably, manager Buck Showalter said that no one will come out of the rotation when Tillman returns, as Baltimore will instead go with a six-man starting staff. Meanwhile, setup man Darren O’Day, who has been out since early August with a rotator cuff strain, threw 26 pitches today and felt good. Like Tillman, he’s lined up for a Friday bullpen session, but he’ll require a few days of rest and then a simulated game before he’s cleared to return. The Orioles are hoping that will happen at some point next week, per Kubatko.

A couple more items from the division…

  • The Rays have dismissed longtime hitting coach Derek Shelton and promoted minor league hitting coordinator Chad Mottola to take his place, reports Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. Shelton had served as Tampa Bay’s hitting coach for the past seven seasons and spent five years as the Indians’ hitting coach prior to that. The timing of the move is somewhat strange, Topkin points out, but the thought process behind the switch is to allow Mottola to begin building his rapport with the Rays’ hitters as soon as possible. Mottola will serve as the team’s hitting coach at least through the end of the 2017 season, he adds. President of baseball ops Matt Silverman and manager Kevin Cash indicated to Topkin that perhaps Shelton’s message had grown stale. Said Silverman: “…the connections with the players, we think that there is a possibility and a hope that some of that can improve with a different person in that chair, with a different voice, different relationships, a fresh start.”
  • Chad Green won’t pitch again for the Yankees this season, but the rookie right-hander looks to have emerged relatively unscathed from a potential brush with Tommy John surgery, writes Chad Jennings of the Journal News. Green has a strained flexor tendon, but exams by team physician Dr. Chris Ahmad revealed that there was no damage to his ulnar collateral ligament. Green will spend the next several weeks rehabbing his flexor injury but is anticipating a normal offseason and plans to be ready for Spring Training. Acquired in the offseason trade that sent Justin Wilson to the Tigers, Green made his big league debut this season with the Yankees. While he posted very strong strikeout and walk rates  (10.3 K/9, 3.0 BB/9), the 25-year-old also had an issue with homers, surrendering 12 long balls in just 45 2/3 innings. The result was a 4.73 ERA, though metrics like xFIP and SIERA, which normalize a pitcher’s homer-to-flyball rate, feel that Green should’ve been in the 3.60 to 3.70 range in his brief sample.

Quick Hits: Murphy, Volquez, Yankees, Fernandez, Ruiz, Morneau

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The Mets felt comfortable in letting Daniel Murphy go in free agency for several reasons, a decision that ESPN New York’s Adam Rubin notes is certainly worth second-guessing given Murphy’s huge season with the Nationals.  Perhaps the biggest factor for the Mets was their belief that Murphy could deliver a good average but little else.  Murphy, of course, has contributed 25 homers and a .340/.383/.593 slash line, pretty resounding the Mets’ criticisms about his lack of power or plate discipline.  (He has also been above average on the basepaths, as per Fangraphs’ baserunning metric.)  Murphy is looking like a bargain signing for the Nats while second base is a question mark for the Mets heading into 2017.

Here’s some more from around baseball…

  • For now, “the most logical scenario” between the Royals and Edinson Volquez is that the club will issue Volquez a qualifying offer that the righty will decline in search of a multi-year contract elsewhere, Rustin Dodd of the Kansas City Star writes as part of a reader mailbag piece.  It may seem odd that the Royals would risk issuing a one-year, $16.7MM deal to a 33-year-old with a 5.02 ERA through 166 2/3 innings, though the starting pitching market is so thin that Volquez may indeed be able to find a longer-term commitment.  If Volquez leaves, Dodd figures K.C. will pursue inexpensive free agent starters, or possibly look for a higher-caliber arm by trading one of its core roster players.
  • The Yankees heavily reloaded on blue chip minor leaguers with their deadline trades, and John Harper of the New York Daily News wonders if the club will try to deal from this newfound prospect depth to acquire a frontline starter this winter.  Jose Fernandez may be the most available ace on the market, given that the Marlins may not have the money to keep him before he hits free agency after the 2018 season.  Landing Fernandez would likely cost the Yankees Clint Frazier, Justus Sheffield, one of Jorge Mateo or Gleyber Torres and probably one more pitching prospect.  It might take an even biggest prospect package than that to acquire Chris Sale given Sale’s club-friendly contract, while the Athletics’ Sonny Gray or the Rays’ Chris Archer are coming off down years and may be too risky for the Yankees given the prospect cost it would take to acquire them.
  • Cuban second baseman Jose Miguel Fernandez and righty Norge Ruiz will play for Aguilas Cibaenas of the Dominican League this winter, Baseball America’s Ben Badler reports.  It will present both players with a valuable opportunity to perform in front of MLB scouts, particularly Fernandez since the infielder hasn’t in competitive games for almost two full years.  That long layoff may have contributed to Fernandez still being unsigned despite being declared a free agent in April, though Badler notes other factors like teams being pretty set at second base and scouts having questions about Fernandez’s power, fielding and speed.  Ruiz left Cuba in May 2015 but has yet to be officially declared a free agent, which Badler finds curious given how several Cuban players have been cleared by the league in far less time.
  • Justin Morneau hopes to play some first base if he plays in 2017, CSN Chicago’s Dan Hayes writes.  Morneau has only served as a DH since joining the White Sox, thanks to his rehab from elbow surgery and his lack of a Spring Training.  With a proper spring under his belt next season, Morneau feels he can return to his old position at least a couple of times per week.  It should also be noted that Morneau’s free agent value will obviously increase if he is able to play a position rather than be limited to a designated hitter role.

Season Over For Yankees’ Chad Green

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The Yankees will shut down rookie right-hander Chad Green for the season, reports Andrew Marchand of ESPN.com. Green lasted just 1 2/3 innings in his start against the Orioles on Friday and was subsequently diagnosed with a sprained right UCL and a strained flexor tendon.

While New York is losing a valuable arm in the middle of the American League wild-card race, the good news is that Green doesn’t expect to undergo Tommy John surgery.

“From what I know now, it is not worst case,” Green said.

Green now joins Nathan Eovaldi as the second Yankees starter to succumb to a season-ending elbow injury. Eovaldi underwent a Tommy John procedure last month and will miss all of next season as a result.

Along with fellow righty Luis Cessa, Green was one of two pitchers the Yankees acquired from Detroit for left-handed reliever Justin Wilson during the offseason. Green was dominant this year at Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, where he logged a 1.52 ERA, 9.16 K/9 and 2.00 BB/9 in 94 2/3 innings. He wasn’t nearly as successful with the Yankees, though the 25-year-old still showed promise. In 12 outings, eight of which were starts, he posted a 4.73 ERA, 10.2 K/9 and 3.0 BB/9.

Either Luis Severino or Bryan Mitchell is likely to take Green’s spot in the rotation for the time being, per Marchand. One of those two will get the ball Wednesday against Toronto.

AL East Notes: Sox Pen, Wright, Hicks, Holder, Liriano

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The Red Sox were thwarted in their efforts to bolster the bullpen during August, president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski said today, as Evan Drellich of the Boston Herald reports. That’s largely what the organization expected, he said, with blocking maneuvers becoming common in the revocable waiver trade period. “The one thing that comes to light on this is that we said after July 31, there’s been nobody that’s been making it through waivers,” Dombrowski explained. “So as we said at the time, you’re going to have to make your moves, try to help you, before the trading deadline. And that was really the case.”

More from the A.L. East:

  • Red Sox knuckler Steven Wright may miss his next start as he continues to deal with shoulder discomfort, Michael Silverman of the Boston Herald tweets. A breakout ace in the first half, the righty has scuffled to a 5.06 ERA over his last seven starts. While a shift in fortune and some inevitable regression may be largely to blame, the balky shoulder appears to be an added concern moving forward.
  • The Yankees are likely to be without outfielder Aaron Hicks for all or most of the rest of the season after he was diagnosed with a grade 2 hamstring strain, MLB.com’s Bryan Hoch tweets. It’s still possible he’ll make it back in 2016, but Hicks won’t have much time to turn the tables on what has been a disappointing debut campaign in New York. He owns a .213/.273/.330 slash over 320 plate appearances, which won’t help his pending first trip through arbitration.
  • Meanwhile, the Yankees have promoted an interesting arm in Jonathan Holder, as Joel Sherman of the New York Post writes. GM Brian Cashman didn’t intend to add a player to the 40-man unless it was strictly necessary, because of potential complications for the team’s winter roster maneuvering, but says he changed his mind. Though Holder didn’t need to be added to the big league roster to be protected from the Rule 5 draft, Cashman says that the chance at a postseason berth was too important to hold down the righty. Moreover, said Cashman, “if he is what he has been this year, then he is going to be in our pen next year anyway.” Indeed, after blowing away opposing hitters in Double-A, Holder has been even more impressive in his 20 1/3 frames at the highest level of the minors — surrendering just two earned runs on seven hits while racking up 35 strikeouts without issuing a single free pass. His first MLB frame was a good one, too, as he set down the side in order.
  • Since they don’t need him right now in the rotation, the Blue Jays intend to utilize Francisco Liriano out of the pen for the time being, skipper John Gibbons told reporters including Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca (via Twitter). Things didn’t go well at all in his first relief outing tonight, as Liriano coughed up two earned runs on two hits without recording an out. The southpaw had been somewhat better over his four starts for Toronto, throwing 22 2/3 innings of 3.97 ERA ball with 9.1 K/9 against 4.0 BB/9.

Heyman’s Latest: Dodgers, McCann, Napoli, Ichiro, Colon, Price

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The Dodgers intend to pursue reunions with at least four prominent free agents, according to Jon Heyman of Fan Rag. Excellent third baseman Justin Turner, relief ace Kenley Jansen, late-breaking lefty Rich Hill, and veteran second baseman Chase Utley would all hold interest to Los Angeles, per the report, though age considerations and the presence of internal alternatives could limit the club’s willingness to top the market for those players. The 28-year-old Jansen may be the highest priority among this group, Heyman suggests. While the Dodgers haven’t exactly broken the bank on relief arms under president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman, it seems Jansen could warrant an exception given his unbelievable performance level. All said, Heyman suggests it would be surprising if L.A. doesn’t bring back at least two of those four players.

Here are some more of Heyman’s latest notes, from his weekly column:

  • The Braves and Yankees have tabled any talks pertaining to catcher Brian McCann until the offseason, which may not bode well for New York’s chances to trade him to Atlanta. Heyman writes that the Braves have interest in Matt Wieters, Jason Castro and top free agent catcher Wilson Ramos, whom they’d love to snatch away from the division-rival Nationals. Atlanta is willing to pay half of the remaining $34MM McCann is owed from 2017-18. They’re also looking to add a rotation piece for 2017 and beyond, if not two, as a number of their top-ranked minor league arms are still a ways off from the Majors (which, of course, could make them appealing trade chips in an offseason where the free agent market is devoid of talented starters).
  • Mike Napoli, who is enjoying a rebound season at the plate with the Indians, has said he’d like to remain in Cleveland, though the two sides aren’t engaged in talks. Napoli’s defense and baserunning have torpedoed his WAR totals, but he’s batted a well-above-average .259/.345/.494 with 29 home runs in his first season with Cleveland. His bat should draw plenty of interest this winter despite the fact that he’ll turn 35 on Halloween.
  • Marlins outfielder Ichiro Suzuki hopes to play again in 2017 and would like to stay in Miami, per the report. With his club option valued at only $2MM, that may be a fairly easy pick-up for the organization. Playing in his age-42 season in 2016, Ichiro has compiled a useful .294/.365/.366 batting line over 296 plate appearances, continues to rate as an average or better fielder and overall baserunner, and has even cracked double-digit stolen bases for the 16th-straight season.
  • Another aging veteran who intends to continue his career, says Heyman, is Mets righty Bartolo Colon. It’s not yet clear how his market will develop — we don’t know what level of interest New York will have, or whether the 43-year-old will be looking for multiple years — but there certainly ought to be ample interest given that Colon has provided 158 2/3 innings of 3.35 ERA pitching thus far in 2016. Even if the peripherals don’t quite line up with those bottom-line results, he’ll be among the more durable and effective pitchers available on a forthcoming seller’s market for starters.
  • There’s no sense that the Reds are interested in making a change at manager, Heyman says. Skipper Bryan Price’s contract does expire after the year, but with some positive signs in the second half — excluding a current four-game skid, at least — it seems he could be retained.

Yankees Acquire Eric Young Jr. From Brewers

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The Yankees announced that they’ve acquired outfielder Eric Young Jr. from the Brewers in exchange for cash considerations and assigned him to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.

Young, 31, is a veteran of seven big league seasons and is known for his standout speed. He’s a career .247/.314/.328 hitter in 1683 big league plate appearances and has 144 steals in 179 attempts over the course of 557 Major League contests (an 80.4 percent success rate). This season, he’s spent the entire year with Milwaukee’s Triple-A affiliate in Colorado Springs, batting .263/.338/.339 with 23 steals in 29 attempts over the life of 116 games. He’ll give the Yankees an option as a pinch-runner off the bench late in games in September as the club hopes to remain afloat in the race for the second American League Wild Card spot. New York is currently 3.5 games behind the division-rival Orioles for that spot, but they’d have to leapfrog the Royals, Astros and Tigers in addition to Baltimore in order to secure a postseason berth.

Mariners Acquire Ben Gamel From Yankees

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The Mariners have acquired outfielder Ben Gamel from the Yankees, reports MLBTR’s Tim Dierkes (via Twitter). Shortly after Dierkes’ report, the teams announced the trade, adding that they’re sending right-handed pitchers Jio Orozco and Juan De Paula to the Yankees in return.

Ben Gamel

The 24-year-old Gamel is the younger brother of former Brewers top prospect Mat Gamel and made his Major League debut with the Yanks earlier this year in May. He’s logged just 10 plate appearances at the big league level (eight official at-bats), collecting one hit and one walk, but turned in a very solid season at the Triple-A level with the Yankees’ Scranton/Wilkes-Barre affiliate. In 533 plate appearances, Gamel batted .308/.365/.420 with six homers and 19 stolen bases while appearing at all three outfield positions.

Prior to this trade, Gamel rated 24th among Yankees prospects in the eyes of Jim Callis and Jonathan Mayo of MLB.com. That duo praised Gamel’s line-drive, all-fields approach at the plate and rated both his hit tool and speed as above-average, noting that while he lacks the plus speed of some center fielders he makes up for some of that with terrific instincts and quick reads off the bat. Gamel hit a career-high 10 home runs but is more of a threat to rack up doubles and triples — a skill set that would seem to fit well in Seattle’s spacious home park. Gamel figures to, at worst, profile as a fourth outfield candidate for the Mariners but could play his way into a bigger role if he’s able to carry over the success he’s enjoyed in 245 career Triple-A games (.304/.361/.447).

Of the two arms going back to the Yankees in this deal, Orozco appears to be the headliner. The 19-year-old rated 20th among Seattle farmhands, per Callis and Mayo, who praise the teenager’s “advanced feel for three pitches,” referencing the former 14th-rounder’s fastball, curveball and changeup. At 6’1″ and 208 pounds, Orozco is a bit undersized but has a more advanced feel for pitching than most prospects his age, per the MLB.com report. In 70 professional innings since being drafted last year (all of which have come with Seattle’s rookie-level affiliate in the Arizona League), Orozco has a 3.73 ERA with 11.2 K/9 against 2.6 BB/9.

De Paula, 18, signed with the Mariners as an international free agent out of the Dominican Republic and made his debut in the Dominican Summer League last year. He’s pitched alongside Orozco in the Arizona League in 2016, working to an impressive 3.07 ERA with 11.6 K/9 against 2.4 BB/9 in 41 innings (seven starts, four relief appearances).

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

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