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Astros Promote Yordan Alvarez

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TODAY: Alvarez is in today’s lineup as a DH, hitting fifth.  In corresponding moves, southpaw Reymin Guduan has been optioned to Triple-A and Lance McCullers Jr. was shifted to the 60-day IL, as per multiple reporters.

SATURDAY: The Astros are set to promote top infield/outfield prospect Yordan Alvarez from Triple-A Round Rock in advance of Sunday’s game, Jake Kaplan of The Athletic reports. Alvarez isn’t on the Astros’ 40-man roster, which is full, so they’ll need to make a corresponding move to create a spot for him.

Alvarez, a soon-to-be 22-year-old from Cuba, joined the Astros in an August 2016 trade with the Dodgers for reliever Josh Fields. Since then, Alvarez has developed into one of baseball’s premier prospects. The lefty-swinging Alvarez has slashed a ridiculous .343/.443/.742 (175 wRC+) with a minor league-leading 23 home runs and 49 walks (including 11 intentional passes) against 50 strikeouts in 253 plate appearances at the Triple-A level this season.

MLB.com is among the outlets with a high opinion of Alvarez, ranking him as the game’s 23rd-best prospect while lauding his offensive upside. At the same time, MLB.com notes the 6-foot-5, 225-pound Alvarez won’t provide much (if any) defensive value. Alvarez has lined up at first base and left field in the minors, and he’s likely to divide his time between LF and designated hitter in his first taste of the majors, per Kaplan. The Astros are in excellent shape in left with Michael Brantley, though they haven’t gotten much production from primary DH Tyler White.

Despite White’s paltry output, the Astros’ offense entered Saturday with the majors’ sixth-most runs and its second-highest wRC+. They also boast the American League’s top record (44-22) and a nine-game lead in their division. However, injuries to Jose Altuve, George Springer, Carlos Correa and Aledmys Diaz have taken a bite out of the Astros’ lineup of late, so Alvarez could help in that regard.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Braves Sign Dallas Keuchel

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FRIDAY, 9:07pm: The Braves have announced the agreement. To make room for Keuchel on their 40-man roster, they transferred reliever Darren O’Day to the 60-day injured list. Atlanta plans to activate Keuchel after he makes two starts in the minors, Mark Bowman of MLB.com tweets.

6:32pm: Keuchel has passed a physical, per Gabe Burns of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution (via Twitter). The signing is expected to be announced tonight.

THURSDAY, 9:02pm: Keuchel’s contract is indeed for one year, reports Yahoo’s Tim Brown (Twitter link). He’ll be paid $13MM between now and season’s end, which is a bit more than the $11.16MM he’d have made on a prorated deal worth the same amount as the $17.9MM qualifying offer. (ESPN’s Jeff Passan adds that his base salary is technically around $20MM, and the $13MM represents the prorated version of that sum.) Keuchel will take a physical tomorrow, and he’ll jump right into the fray with Triple-A Gwinnett when he makes a start there on Saturday.

8:18pm: The Braves have agreed to terms with left-hander Dallas Keuchel, reports David O’Brien of The Athletic (Twitter link). It’s “likely” a one-year deal, O’Brien adds. Keuchel is represented by the Boras Corporation.

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As was the case with Craig Kimbrel, Keuchel will see his prolonged free-agent saga come to a close just days after the draft-pick compensation that has hung over his head was lifted. The terms of the contract will surely be only a fraction of what the former Cy Young winner had eyed when rejecting a $17.9MM qualifying offer from the Astros back in November, but but a short-term arrangement will allow Keuchel the opportunity to once again test free agency — this time without the burden of a qualifying offer and likely with some lower expectations; Keuchel and Boras reportedly sought a contract of five years and more than $100MM in the early stages of free agency.

Keuchel, 31, has seen his results tail off since his brilliant Cy Young campaign back in 2015, but he’s still a quality arm who should provide some much-needed stability to a Braves rotation that hasn’t functioned according to plan (or anywhere close) in 2019. Top starter Mike Foltynewicz missed several weeks to open the season and has struggled considerably in his return from the injured list, while Sean Newcomb has been moved to the bullpen and Kevin Gausman is lugging around a 6.15 ERA. Julio Teheran has posted solid bottom-line results, but fielding-independent pitching metrics forecast him as a regression candidate.

Mike Soroka has been far and away the team’s best starter, putting himself not only in the Rookie of the Year race but in the Cy Young race early in the season. Soroka, however pitched just 56 1/3 innings between the Majors and minors last season and figures to have some degree of workload restriction facing him down the line. Lefty Max Fried has also emerged as a largely solid option, but he tossed only 111 innings last year and could see his own innings monitored a bit late in the year.

Last season, Keuchel racked up 204 2/3 innings while working to a 3.74 ERA with 6.7 K/9, 2.6 BB/9, 0.79 HR/9 and a 53.7 percent ground-ball rate. Keuchel’s strikeout and ground-ball rates have dipped in recent seasons, particularly in 2018, and he also saw both his 2016-17 seasons shortened a bit by injuries. All of that has taken some of the shine of the lefty, but it’s also a fact that he’s posted a sub-3.00 ERA in three of the past five seasons. Even when throwing out his Cy Young campaign, Keuchel has a 3.77 ERA with a premium ground-ball rate and above-average control through his past 518 1/3 innings.

Based on that track record, there’s little doubt that he’ll be an upgrade for the Braves — especially when considering who he’ll likely replace. Gausman would appear to be the odd man out in this situation, as he’s struggled through the worst season of his career and could very well be bullpen-bound. If he can manage to find success in that admittedly presumptive new role, the benefit to the Braves would be twofold; not only would they get another quality arm in the ’pen, they’d have a starter working deeper into games (Keuchel) and thus not forcing the bullpen into action as frequently.

Keuchel drew interest elsewhere around the league, with the Yankees in particular being mentioned as an aggressive pursuer. However, Joel Sherman of the New York Post reports that the Yankees had a very clear cutoff with their offer and were not willing to budge beyond paying Keuchel the prorated portion of the $17.9MM qualifying offer (Twitter link). That base salary would’ve paid Keuchel about $11.16MM through season’s end — assuming a deal is completed tomorrow. The Cardinals, Twins and Rays were all mentioned as interested parties, to varying extents, although Juan Toribio of MLB.com tweets that Tampa Bay was never strongly after the lefty. Those teams will instead have to turn to the trade market in order to find rotation upgrades, as Keuchel was the open market’s lone realistic difference-maker.

The Braves, too, still figure to be active on the trade market moving forward. Even after adding Keuchel to the rotation, the Atlanta bullpen has been shaky and could stand to be improved upon. The team has been relying on Luke Jackson in the ninth inning as well as a host of converted starters and a series of low-cost fliers on veterans (e.g. Jerry Blevins, Anthony Swarzak). Newcomb has shown well in that role, as has Touki Toussaint, which makes the situation a bit less dire, but it’d nevertheless be a surprise if the Braves didn’t add at least one more reliable arm to the relief corps. Keuchel may very well be the highest-profile addition made by Atlanta between now and July 31, but he’s unlikely to be the only one.

Cubs Sign Craig Kimbrel

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June 7, 6:44pm: The team has formally announced the contract.

Jon Heyman of MLB Network has further details. (Links to Twitter.) Games-finished escalators can boost the option buyout value from the $1MM base; Kimbrel can add another $1MM apiece by reach 53 games finished in 2020 and 2021. The option vests if Kimbrel finishes 110 total games between 2020 and 2021, at least 55 of which come in the latter season, and a doctor determines that he does not have a “non-temporary” injury (the details of which are surely defined in the contract).

Kimbrel also picks up no-trade protection. He can’t be dealt this season without his approval. He’ll have an eight-team no-trade list for the 2020 season. The deal does not provide any limitations thereafter.

9:11am: Kimbrel has passed his physical, per Heyman (Twitter links), and an introductory press conference is set to take place prior to today’s game.

June 5, 9:06PM: The deal pays Kimbrel $10MM this season, and $16MM in both 2020 and 2021, ESPN.com’s Jeff Passan reports (Twitter link).  There is a vesting option for 2022 that pays Kimbrel $16MM if it vests, Heyman reports (via Twitter), while it becomes a club option if it doesn’t vest.  The buyout of the option year is $1MM.

Also from Passan, Kimbrel could potentially join the Cubs before June 20.  The closer “has been electric” in workouts in front of scouts.

8:21PM: Craig Kimbrel’s long wait in the free agent market is over.  The closer has agreed to a multi-year deal with the Cubs that will become official once Kimbrel passes a physical, The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal reports (links to Twitter).  Rosenthal originally reported the dollar figure as close to $45MM, and MLB Network’s Jon Heyman reports that Kimbrel will be paid $43MM (via Twitter) through the 2021 season.  Kimbrel is represented by SportsMeter.

Unsurprisingly, Kimbrel’s protracted time on the open market wrapped up shortly after the amateur draft.  Since Kimbrel turned down a one-year, $17.9MM qualifying offer from the Red Sox, any team that signed the veteran closer had to give up some type of compensation in the form of at least one draft pick, plus potentially international signing bonus money and even another pick depending on the identity of the team who landed Kimbrel.  However, this draft pick compensation no longer applied to Kimbrel (or fellow free agent holdout Dallas Keuchel) once draft day hit, removing one of the key hangups any interested team might have had about a signing.

As well, Kimbrel and his representatives aimed very high in their initial contract demands, reportedly looking for a nine-figure deal that would’ve set a new record for a free agent closer.  That said, it’s very common for free agents to hit the market with a big asking price as a starting point, yet Kimbrel’s market never seemed to really develop even as the offseason continued and his contract demands fell into the three-year range.

It could be that the market has simply shifted, and front offices are no willing to commit the type of long-term financial commitments (especially with draft and international market penalties involved) for free agent stoppers that were available to the likes of Aroldis Chapman, Kenley Jansen, or Mark Melancon just as recently as the 2016-17 offseason.  That said, it’s still a surprise to realize that over a third of the season elapsed before any club was willing to ink a player with as sterling a track record of ninth-inning success as Kimbrel.

With a career 1.91 ERA, 14.7 K/9, and 4.23 K/BB rate over nine seasons and 532 2/3 career innings, Kimbrel’s resume could very well eventually land him in Cooperstown down the road.  While 2018 wasn’t as dominant as some of his past years, Kimbrel still seemed to have a viable platform year with a 2.74 ERA, 13.86 K/9, and 3.10 K/BB over 62 1/3 frames for the World Series-champion Red Sox.

Beyond the surface numbers, however, there were some red flags.  It was hard to ignore Kimbrel’s increased struggles in the second half of last season, and then through Boston’s playoff run (a 5.91 ERA over 10 2/3 postseason innings).  Kimbrel has also had some control issues in two of the last three seasons, with a 4.48 BB/9 last year and a 5.09 BB/9 in 2016.  These issues could have been enough for teams to hesitate about guaranteeing five or six years to a pitcher in his 30’s (Kimbrel turned 31 in late May) when he was perhaps already showing some signs of slowing down.

Multiple teams were linked to Kimbrel’s market at various points over the last seven months, including several showing increased interest in the last couple of weeks as the draft (or, the qualifying offer expiration date) approached on June 3.  The Rays, Phillies, Braves, Brewers, Twins, Nationals, and Red Sox all had some degree of interest while Kimbrel was available.

While the Cubs always seemed like a good on-paper fit, they seemingly only emerged late in the game due to some unexpected luxury tax room opening up.  Ben Zobrist’s placement on the restricted list on May 8 means that his salary no longer counted towards Chicago’s luxury tax calculations, and if Zobrist misses the entire season (which seems increasingly likely at this juncture), the Cubs would have around $9MM to work with, money has seems to have fueled their push for Kimbrel.

Theo Epstein and company headed into the offseason with a need for bullpen help, with closer Brandon Morrow undergoing elbow surgery in November and still without a clear timetable to return.  Despite needs in the pen and elsewhere on the roster, however, the Cubs were very circumspect about their winter spending, due to a desire to stay under the maximum luxury tax threshold and team chairman Tom Ricketts’ controversial claim that “we don’t have any more” to spend.

Prior to the Kimbrel signing, Roster Resource projected the Cubs at just over $227.7MM in luxury tax payroll, putting the team in line for a 20% tax on every dollar spent above the $206MM luxury tax line, and then an additional 12% surtax for going more than $20MM over the line.  The average annual value of Kimbrel’s deal works out to $14.333MM per season, thus keeping the Cubs from exceeding the $246MM maximum penalty threshold.  Spending more than $246MM would cost the Cubs 62.5% surcharge on the overage, and their top draft pick in 2020 would be dropped by ten slots.

So it could be a win-win situation for Chicago, as the team looks to both avoid the top tax threshold while also getting a closer to bolster a bullpen that has generally been around the middle of the pack this season.  With Pedro Strop returning from the injured list and now Kimbrel’s addition, the Cubs suddenly have a much deeper pen to help them in their fight to win the NL Central.  Signing Kimbrel prior to June 3 would’ve cost the Cubs not only more money in salary, but also $500K in international bonus pool money and their second-highest pick in the 2019 draft (which ended up being the 64th overall selection).

For Kimbrel and his representatives, landing a multi-year contract represents some measure of a victory after the long wait, as several suitors were only interested in inking Kimbrel to a one-year deal for the remainder of the 2019 campaign.  While three years and $43MM is considerably less than Kimbrel expected at the start of the winter, the term isn’t far from four years/$70MM predicted by MLB Trade Rumors’ Top 50 Free Agents list back at the start of November, though nobody could’ve expected the wild path Kimbrel could take to eventually land his next contract.  If Kimbrel ends up pitching up to expectations, one suspects several teams will be kicking themselves over not signing Kimbrel when they had the chance.

The stopper is undoubtedly relieved to simply get his focus back on baseball, as he’ll now join a contender in pursuit of another World Series ring.  The question now is when Kimbrel will actually join the Cubs, as while he has been training on his own in preparation for the season, it remains to be seen how long it will take for him to ramp up to be ready for MLB hitters.  The other looming question could concern Kimbrel’s effectiveness, as other players whose qualifying offer-induced long waits in free agency (Stephen Drew and Kendrys Morales in 2014) both struggled badly after sitting out months of the season.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Seranthony Dominguez Weighing Surgery For Elbow Injury

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The Phillies received another unwelcome injury development, as news emerged today that reliever Seranthony Dominguez has an injury to his ulnar collateral ligament. MLB.com’s Todd Zolecki was among those to cover the announcement from GM Matt Klentak. (Twitter link.)

Ligament damage was said not to be a concern when Dominguez departed his most recent outing, but that optimistic assessment obviously changed after examination. A treatment course has yet to be determined, but Tommy John surgery is under consideration. Dominguez will receive a second opinion before deciding how to proceed.

That’s rough news for the Phils and the 24-year-old hurler. Even if he’s able to avoid surgery, Dominguez will surely require a lengthy rehab process. He has worked to a 3.27 ERA with 11.2 K/9 and 3.7 BB/9 over 82 2/3 total MLB innings since breaking into the big leagues last year.

Filling the void for the time being is lefty Ranger Suarez, who was recalled. He’ll be joined on the active roster by starter Zach Eflin. Reliever Yacksiel Rios was optioned to create another roster spot.

There was at least some positive reliever health news as well. Klentak says that the club anticipates returns later this month from a few of its injured hurlers. (Via Scott Lauber of the Philadelphia Inquirer, on Twitter.) The Phils expect Edubray Ramos, Adam Morgan, Pat Neshek, and Tommy Hunter to be back within the next three weeks or so, with David Robertson following behind them.

Yankees Activate Didi Gregorius

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June 7: Gregorius has officially been reinstated from the injured list, per an announcement from the Yankees. Estrada has indeed been optioned to Triple-A, while Tulowitzki was transferred to the 60-day injured list to open a 40-man spot. Tulo has already been on the 10-day injured list for more than 60 days, so his transfer is nothing more than a formality.

June 6, 9:54pm: The Yankees have optioned Estrada to make room for Gregorius on their 25-man roster, Hoch was among those to tweet.

7:39pm: The Yankees are expected to reinstate shortstop Didi Gregorius from the injured list tomorrow, writes MLB.com’s Bryan Hoch. He’s sat out the entire season to this point as he recovers from last October’s Tommy John surgery. His activation will require a 40-man and 25-man roster move, as he’s currently on the 60-day injured list.

Gregorius has been well ahead of schedule on his rehab assignment. Original projections by the team specified merely that the Yankees hoped for a “summer” return, but he’s obviously on the very early end of even that broad range. Gregorius has already logged eight games of duty on a minor league rehab assignment, and while he’s batted only .156/.206/.250 through 34 plate appearances across a pair of minor league levels, the Yankees have clearly seen enough to feel confident in his ability to return.

The return of Gregorius will add a high-profile player to what has been somewhat of a patched-together infield. The Yankees’ offseason addition of DJ LeMahieu has proved to be a godsend, as he’s helped to cover the absences of not only Gregorius but Miguel Andujar and Troy Tulowitzki. With Gregorius back in the fold, he’ll see semi-regular action at shortstop, with Gleyber Torres splitting time at the two middle-infield spots and LeMahieu perhaps sliding over to third base. It’ll likely mean a decrease in playing time for the red-hot Gio Urshela, who has unexpectedly erupted with a .325/.371/.455 slash through 170 plate appearances (entering play today).

If there’s a member of the infield mix who appears particularly in jeopardy, it would appear to be Kendrys Morales, who hasn’t hit much since being acquired by the Yankees. Like the more productive Luke Voit, Morales is limited to first base when playing defense, thus limiting manager Aaron Boone’s infield flexibility. If Morales is pushed out by the return of Gregorius, that’d open up some additional at-bats for the mix of Voit, Gregorius, LeMahieu, Torres and Urshela as well. Alternatively, the Yankees could option Thairo Estrada back to Triple-A, keep Morales for the time being and move either Tulowitzki or Giancarlo Stanton from the 10-day injured list to the 60-day injured list. Both have already been on the IL for more than 60 days anyhow.

Blue Jays Extend GM Ross Atkins

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The Blue Jays have signed general manager Ross Atkins to a contract extension, Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet reports. The exact length of the deal is unknown, but it’ll keep Atkins in place through “at least” the 2020 campaign, according to Nicholson-Smith.

Toronto’s in its fourth season with Atkins, a former Indians executive who joined the Blue Jays in December 2015. He assumed his post a few months after the Blue Jays hired Mark Shapiro as their president. Atkins and Shapiro previously worked together in Cleveland, and they were at the helm of a Toronto franchise which earned a playoff berth in their first season at the controls. The Blue Jays, who were coming off an American League Championship Series bid in the prior season, made it back to the ALCS in Atkins’ first year with the franchise. However, they’ve gone into a rebuild since and are all but guaranteed to extend their playoff drought to three years in 2019.

In the Jays’ first four offseasons under their current regime, they made noteworthy free-agent investments in J.A. Happ, Kendrys Morales, Marco Estrada, Lourdes Gurriel Jr., Jose Bautista, Steve Pearce, Jaime Garcia, Curtis Granderson and Freddy Galvis. Each of those players secured at least $5MM in guaranteed money, but as you’d expect with free-agent signings, some of those moves didn’t work out. Gurriel, who was a much-ballyhooed international prospect when the Blue Jays signed him, and Galvis are the only players from that group who are on Toronto’s 2019 roster.

Gurriel’s one of many promising young players whom the Jays have developed during Atkins’ run with the organization. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is the most obvious example, though he signed with the organization shortly before Atkins and Shapiro came aboard. Seven of the team’s other top 10 prospects at MLB.com – including Bo Bichette and Cavan Biggio – have joined the Jays since Atkins did, and the club now boasts one of the majors’ highest-rated farm systems.

Aside from Guerrero and Biggio, all of Toronto’s absolute best prospects are in the minors. It’s anyone’s guess how the team’s big league roster will look when more members of its system start pouring into the majors. Atkins & Co. may ship out key veterans Marcus Stroman, Aaron Sanchez, Justin Smoak and Ken Giles this summer, as all are potentially valuable trade chips with dwindling club control. With the exception of Giles, whom Toronto acquired from Houston last summer for disgraced closer Roberto Osuna, all of those players were in the organization well before Atkins came on the scene. He did help oversee a shrewd extension for Smoak in 2016, though.

In other notable moves under Atkins, the Jays acquired outfielder Randal Grichuk in a January 2018 trade with the Cardinals, picked up righty Trent Thornton in a deal with the Astros last November, and sent third baseman Josh Donaldson to the Indians last August. To this point, the five-year, $52MM extension the Blue Jays gave Grichuk in April ranks as the largest financial commitment they’ve made to a player since Atkins’ hiring.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Brewers Call Up Jimmy Nelson From Triple-A

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TODAY: Nelson has been officially recalled, as per the Brewers’ official Twitter feed.  Righty Taylor Williams was optioned to Triple-A to create roster space.

SUNDAY: Jimmy Nelson will make his long-awaited return to the majors on Wednesday, as Brewers manager Craig Counsell told reporters (including MLB.com’s Adam McCalvy) that Nelson will be promoted from Triple-A to start the Brewers’ game against the Marlins.

Wednesday happens to be Nelson’s 30th birthday, making it double the cause for celebration as the right-hander will appear in a Major League game for the first time since September 8, 2017.  At the time, Nelson was in the midst of a breakout season that saw him post a 3.49 ERA, 10.2 K/9, and 4.15 K/BB rate over 175 1/3 innings, numbers that earned him a ninth-place finish in NL Cy Young Award voting.

Labrum surgery put Nelson on the shelf, however, and the recovery process lingered long enough that hopes of a midseason return (or even a late-season return to boost the Brewers’ pennant run) in 2018 were dashed.  Through the long rehab, a couple of setbacks due to soreness, extended Spring Training outings, and five recent appearances for Triple-A San Antonio to further regain his game-readiness, Nelson is finally set to take the ball for Milwaukee.

The return could hardly come at a more opportune time for the Brewers, who lost both Gio Gonzalez (arm fatigue) and Jhoulys Chacin (back strain) to the IL within the last two days.  Needless to say, the team will surely be careful about managing Nelson’s workload, and return to his 2017 form may be optimistic, but Nelson should be a boost to a Milwaukee rotation that has been looking for consistent results.  Brandon Woodruff and Zach Davies have been solid all year, with Gonzalez and Chase Anderson playing increasingly large roles over the course of the season, though the Brew Crew has again been leaning on its deep bullpen to carry the pitching load as the team battles for the NL Central title.

How Nelson holds up in the coming weeks will be a factor in the Brewers’ trade deadline plans, as pitching depth would surely seem to be an obvious need perhaps even if Nelson does perform well.  It should be noted that the Brewers have been linked to Dallas Keuchel’s market, though Milwaukee will be one of many teams vying for the free agent starter once Keuchel loses the compensatory draft pick (via the qualifying offer) attached to his services tomorrow.  If Keuchel proves to be too pricey, the Brewers could explore lower-cost options in trades.

Indians Place Carlos Carrasco On 10-Day IL Due To Blood Condition

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The Indians announced that right-hander Carlos Carrasco has been placed on the 10-day injured list, due to a non-baseball-related blood condition.  With Carrasco on the IL and outfielder Greg Allen sent down to Triple-A Columbus, right-handers Nick Goody and Jon Edwards have been called up from Triple-A to fill the two open roster spots.

The full statement from the team on Carrasco’s situation…

“Carlos was recently diagnosed with a blood condition following several weeks of feeling lethargic. While in the information-gathering stage, Carlos is stepping away from baseball activities to explore the optimal treatment and recovery options, the details of which will be conveyed at the discretion of Carlos and his family. We do not know when Carlos will rejoin the club but expect him back at some point this season. At this time, our primary concern is Carlos’ health and we will respect his wishes to keep this a private matter. We ask everyone to keep Carlos and his family in their thoughts during his challenging time.”

As by recently noted by MLBTR’s Connor Byrne, Carrasaco was enduring a tough season, with a 4.98 ERA thanks to huge spikes in his hard-contact, fly ball, and home run rates.  While the exact timeline of Carrasco’s illness isn’t known, he tossed 12 innings of shutout ball over starts on May 9 and May 14 before allowing 14 earned runs over his next three outings (17 2/3 IP).

The fact that Carrasco is expected back on the mound this season is certainly good news, and we at MLBTR join the rest of the baseball world in wishing Carrasco and his family all the best.  This isn’t the first health issue that the 32-year-old Carrasco has faced, as he dealt with a heart condition in 2015, as well as a pair of major baseball-related major injuries (Tommy John surgery in 2011, a broken hand at the end of the 2016 season that sidelined him for Cleveland’s postseason run).

The Indians went into the season counting on being carried by arguably the game’s best rotation, though that starting five has now lost Carrasco, Corey Kluber, and Mike Clevinger for extended periods.  Clevinger is close to beginning a rehab assignment after missing almost two months due to back problems, though Carrasco is out indefinitely and Kluber is still a long ways from a return after suffering a fractured forearm in early May.  Yefry Rodriguez had made eight starts for the Tribe filling in for Kluber, though Rodriguez himself went on the IL yesterday with a shoulder strain.

This leaves Trevor Bauer, Shane Bieber, and rookie Zach Plesac as the only healthy members of Cleveland’s rotation.  Cody Anderson and Adam Plutko have made starts for the Tribe this season and could again be recalled from Triple-A, plus Chih-Wei Hu and Asher Wojciechowski are also available in the Columbus rotation as further depth.  Cleveland currently has a 10-man bullpen, and could also deploy an opener to account for at least one of those open rotation spots rather than a regular starter.

As the injuries continue to mount, it will increase speculation that the Tribe could be sellers rather than buyers at the trade deadline.  Though the Indians entered today’s action just a game out of a wild card spot, Cleveland has a 30-30 record, a minus-13 run differential, and is already staring at a 10.5 game deficit behind the surprising Twins in the AL Central.  The Tribe were already aggressive in cutting salary over the offseason, and rather than go all-out in pursuit of a one-game playoff, the team could continue to move payroll to streamline its roster and perhaps reload for another shot at contending in 2020.

Cubs Making Push For Craig Kimbrel

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The Cubs are “pushing hard” to sign free-agent closer Craig Kimbrel, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reports (via Twitter). He’d obviously be a much-needed upgrade for a Cubs ’pen that has been without closer Brandon Morrow all season and has endured numerous other injuries so far in 2019.

If a deal does indeed come to fruition, it’d represent a change of course for the Cubs, who spent the offseason making a series of small-scale additions due to ownership’s claim that the team simply didn’t have the resources to add to the team’s payroll. Kimbrel has been reported to be seeking a three-year pact, so it’s possible that the Cubs could backload a multi-year offer to ease up on the financial burden for the current season, but they’d still pay a 32 percent luxury tax on the average annual value of Kimbrel’s contract. The Cubs’ payroll already tops $213MM, and their luxury-tax payroll (calculated by the combined average annual values of all the contracts on the roster) checks in north of $227MM, per Roster Resources’ Jason Martinez.

Chicago recently welcomed Pedro Strop back from the injured list, and adding Kimbrel would be a second boon to the relief corps in a short period of time. Kimbrel won’t be ready to step directly into a game setting, of course, but he’s assuredly been throwing in preparation to join a team as soon as possible. In all likelihood, he’d build up over a relatively brief minor league stint and join his new team within a matter of weeks.

As soon as the calendar flipped from Sunday to Monday this week, Kimbrel and fellow free agent holdout Dallas Keuchel were freed from the burden of draft-pick compensation, so signing him would only cost the Cubs money at this point. He’s also been somewhat prominently connected to the Twins, although it’s quite arguable that the Cubs’ need is greater. Minnesota is enjoying a 10.5-game lead in the American League Central, whereas all four teams in the NL Central are within 5.5 games of the Cubs; the Brewers, in particular, are only a half game back of the Cubs in the standings.

The most common other suitors listed for Kimbrel have been in the NL East: the division-leading Phillies and Kimbrel’s original organization, the Braves. Philadelphia has reportedly only been interested in Kimbrel on a short-term deal, however (presumably, a one-year pact). As for the Braves, their interest in Kimbrel has clearly never aligned with the fanbase’s at times ravenous desire to see Kimbrel once again take the mound in Braves gear. The Atlanta faithful have gone so far as to audibly chant, “We want Kimbrel” during Braves games at SunTrust Park, but the front office has maintained a more measured approach to whatever interest it holds in bringing Kimbrel back to Georgia.

Andrew McCutchen Out For Season With Torn ACL

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The Phillies received a brutal injury blow Tuesday, as outfielder Andrew McCutchen was diagnosed with a torn left ACL and will miss the remainder of the season (Twitter link via The Athletic’s Matt Gelb). He sustained the injury yesterday in a rundown after the Padres let a Jean Segura pop-up drop.

Philadelphia signed McCutchen, 32, to a three-year contract worth $50MM in the offseason and was rewarded with two months of strong all-around play from the former National League MVP. In 262 plate appearances, McCutchen turned in a .256/.378/.457 batting line with 10 homers, 12 doubles, a triple, two steals and an NL-best 43 walks. He’d recently shifted over to center field after Odubel Herrera was placed on administrative leave by the league, but his injury will now leave the Phillies down two outfielders.

The Phillies flew 2017 first-rounder Adam Haseley to meet them for their upcoming series in the event of a serious knee injury for McCutchen, and he’ll now likely step into center field on a regular basis, with the newly acquired Jay Bruce manning left field. Bryce Harper will continue to patrol right field. In the long run, though, it seems quite likely that the Phils will be on the hunt for a potential upgrade in center field. Haseley has had an encouraging year in the minor so far (.275/.358/.466 in 204 plate appearances) but has only played six game above Double-A ball.

Roman Quinn is currently on the mend from a groin strain and could soon return to give the Phils another option in the outfield, but the fleet-footed 26-year-old has also yet to establish him as a big leaguer despite his long standing as a quality prospect. It’s a bit early for any legitimate center field upgrades to be available on the trade market, but the Phils will surely begin kicking the tires on some potential down-the-road options. Rebuilding clubs like the Orioles and Giants could make players like Keon Broxton or Kevin Pillar available, but neither has been productive in 2019 anyhow; seeing what they already have in Haseley and waiting for more appealing options to be made available is probably a preferable option for the Phillies.

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