Royals Option Yordano Ventura
The Royals have optioned young righty Yordano Ventura, Andy McCullough of the Kansas City Star reports on Twitter.
Ventura, 24, established himself as one of the game’s more interesting young arms last year. He threw 183 innings of 3.20 ERA ball, with 7.8 K/9 against 3.4 BB/9 and a 47.6% groundball rate. Ventura then contributed another 25 1/3 frames, with an identical earned run average, to the team’s World Series run.
That excellent campaign led Kansas City to lock him up for the foreseeable future in early April. Ventura received a five-year, $23MM guarantee while also giving the Royals two option years at $12MM apiece.
It’s been something of a different story this year, at least in terms of results. Ventura has permitted 5.19 earned per nine over the 76 1/3 innings he’s worked thus far.
His average fastball velocity is down by a decent bit, but that does not seem to explain things. The peripherals all look the same: Ventura has struck out 7.7 and walked 2.9 batters per nine while inducing grounders at a 52.0% clip, all the same or better than last year.
Indeed, Ventura’s FIP (3.69), xFIP (3.68), and SIERA (3.71) all suggest that there has been something else at play. He has allowed a .321 BABIP while carrying a 64.8% strand rate, both of which suggest a fair dose of bad luck.
Regardless, the Royals obviously felt it was time for a break from the big leagues, as Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports suggested was possible this morning on Twitter. Things certainly have taken a turn for the worse of late, as Ventura has not lasted more than five innings in a start since the end of May (while also missing time with a hand injury). He’s permitted one earned run per inning pitched over that stretch. The return of lefty Jason Vargas created the need for a rotation spot, and Ventura will head down to Triple-A to work out whatever issues the team has identified.
Pirates Showing Interest In Zobrist, Barmes, Pennington
With both Josh Harrison and Jordy Mercer out for six to seven weeks, the suddenly injury-plagued Pirates have reached out to the Athletics, Padres and Diamondbacks to express respective interest in Ben Zobrist, Clint Barmes and Cliff Pennington, reports Bill Brink of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
Of the names in question, Zobrist is clearly the most high-profile addition. The switch-hitting 34-year-old missed a little more than a month earlier this year after undergoing arthroscopic knee surgery, but he’s shown little in terms of ill effects at the plate. Since his activation from the DL on May 26, Zobrist is hitting a very solid .264/.358/.429 in 190 plate appearances.
In addition to a strong offensive track record, Zobrist is coveted by many clubs due to his defensive versatility. It should be noted that defensive metrics are down on his work in 2015, but we’re looking at a small sample of work there, and it’s certainly possible that the knee operation has had some lingering effects on his range at this year’s primary positions — second base and left field. (Zobrist has also made three errors in left, which is perhaps to be expected as he adjusts after serving far more time in right field during his Rays tenure.)
At $7.5MM in 2015, Zobrist’s contract is hardly prohibitive from a financial standpoint, but because of the sheer demand for his services and the affordable nature of that salary, an acquiring club would likely have to pay a relatively steep prospect price for a player that is a pure rental; Zobrist will hit free agency for the first time following the season.
Both Pennington and Barmes are strict rentals as well, though the price on either would be markedly lower than with Zobrist. Pennington has spent the past three seasons serving as a utility man for the D-Backs. He’s getting on base but showing little power this year, hitting .245/.322/.292. (Much of those on-base skills are likely attributable to the fact that 40 percent of his plate appearances have come in the eighth slot, in front of the pitcher.)
Pennington is known as a solid defensive player at shortstop, third base and second base, so he could provide the Pirates with some versatility even as their roster mends. He’s earning $3.275MM in 2015, and about $1.38MM of that sum remains.
Pirates executives, coaches, players and fans alike are all familiar with Barmes, who spent the 2012-14 seasons in a Pirates uniform. Known primarily as a defensive specialist at shortstop, Barmes is actually enjoying quite a strong season at the plate in his first year with the Padres after signing a one-year, $1.3MM contract this winter. In 144 plate appearances, he’s hitting .284/.324/.440 with three homers. Of course, he’s been allowed to see nearly half of his at-bats against left-handed pitching and slashed .317/.388/.500 in such situations, and he may not have that same platoon luxury in a return to Pittsburgh.
Should the Bucs elect to bring Barmes back to PNC Park, he’d likely play shortstop, with Jung Ho Kang remaining the club’s primary third baseman as both Harrison and Mercer heal. A return for Barmes would no doubt be well received by a large portion of the Pirates fan base, who greeted Barmes with a warm ovation in his return to PNC Park as a member of the Padres while the team honored him by playing his old walk-up music (video link).
Tigers May Deal David Price, Yoenis Cespedes
The Tigers are preparing for the possibility of dealing ace David Price and outfielder Yoenis Cespedes at the deadline, according to a report from Bob Nightengale of USA Today.
GM Dave Dombrowski tells Nightengale that the team has yet to reach a final decision. But other sources inside and outside the organization reportedly say that Detroit will market those free agents-to-be unless owner Mike Ilitch intervenes with a “veto.”
Dombrowski certainly left open the possibility of a sell-off in his comments to USA Today. “At this point, our focus is trying to win right now,” he said. “We’re trying to do everything we can to qualify for the playoffs. Things can turn dramatically over a 10-game period. But you have to play well, at some point, on a consistent basis. We’re at a point where we have to do what’s best in our heart for the franchise.”
The addition of Price and/or Cespedes to the trade market would certainly represent a dramatic alteration of the market. Both are 29 years of age and in the midst of highly productive campaigns.
Price is an undisputed ace, and would immediately join (and arguably displace) Johnny Cueto and Cole Hamels at the top of the starting pitching market. He owns a 2.32 ERA over 132 innings, with 8.7 K/9 against 1.8 BB/9. Those numbers are right in line with — or, in the case of his bottom-line results, even better than — his outstanding career numbers.
Cespedes, meanwhile, is in the midst of the best overall campaign of his career. His 120 wRC+ paces any batting line he’s carried over a full season since his debut year. And he has earned career-best defensive ratings for his work in left. All told, Cespedes has already racked up 3.1 fWAR on the year.
It is not clear whether the Tigers will consider moving other players whose control is up after the year, to say nothing of longer-term assets. Closer Joakim Soria, starter Alfredo Simon, catcher Alex Avila, and outfielder Rajai Davis are among the members of the current roster who are slated for free agency. Soria and Davis have both enjoyed quality seasons, while Simon and Avila have been less productive, but all of those players would figure to draw varying levels of interest.
If Detroit moves some of its key veterans, it appears that it will do so with the intention of getting near-term value from those expiring assets. “We’re not thinking of rebuilding,” said Dombrowski, “but if we have to, it would be a case of regrouping.” The long-time executive emphasized that he believes the organization has a better stock of “good young players than people think,” making clear that he sees plenty of cause for hope in 2016.
Prior to the All-Star break, Dombrowski maintained that the team was focused on the present. But having entered play today ten-and-a-half games back of the division-leading Royals, the Tigers seem less optimistic of their immediate outlook. The loss of Miguel Cabrera for much of the second half, obviously, also tells large in that assessment.
Angels Prioritizing Control In Search For Bat
The AL West-leading Angels have long been said to be searching for a bat, and MLB.com’s Alden Gonzalez provides additional details on the club’s thinking. Though the deadline is less than two weeks away, the team is still “casting a wide net.”
Los Angeles does prefer a left-handed bat that can slot in left field, but is even more concerned with obtaining a player that can be controlled past this season. With numerous big league positions set to open up in 2016, it seems that the team is interested in utilizing the deadline as an opportunity to find some answers for the present and the near future.
While the Angels will consider a rental acquisition, says Gonzalez, Justin Upton of the Padres is not among the players being considered. He could be the biggest bat dealt, and the Angels feel that San Diego has placed too high a price tag on the soon-to-be free agent.
The club’s preferred angle, per the report, would be to move starter C.J. Wilson as part of a deal. Though Wilson has been a fairly steady presence in the rotation, the organization would like to move some of his big salary in order to free space under the luxury tax line for the coming offseason.
With the club playing quite well of late, assistant GM Matt Klentak said that it will not be pressed into a move it doesn’t believe in just to get something done. “We will continue to survey the trade market for possible upgrades that we feel make sense, but we don’t feel pressure to make a move just for the sake of making a move,” said Klentak. “We believe in the group we have.”
Jordy Mercer Out Six Weeks With MCL Sprain
The Pirates announced today that shortstop Jordy Mercer has been placed on the disabled list with a sprained medial collateral ligament in his left knee as well as a lower leg contusion. The injury, which comes with a recovery time of approximately six weeks, per the team, was sustained on a controversial takeout slide (video link) by Brewers center fielder Carlos Gomez.
To fill Mercer’s spot on the roster, the Pirates selected the contract of Brent Morel. First baseman Corey Hart was transferred to the disabled list to make room for Morel on the 40-man roster.
The loss of Mercer further depletes Pittsburgh’s infield depth. Starting third baseman Josh Harrison is already on the shelf for up to six more weeks with a torn ligament in his thumb, which has caused offseason pickup Jung Ho Kang to shift into a full-time role at the hot corner. Presumably, Kang will now take over as the club’s shortstop, with Morel playing third base. As Travis Sawchik of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review tweets, acquiring a right field upgrade probably becomes a luxury for the Pirates, with the focus shifting to a third base upgrade.
The list of third base candidates believed to be available is relatively limited, with Aramis Ramirez from Milwaukee standing out as the most oft-mentioned possibility. Atlanta’s Chris Johnson, of course, is available, though his contract has stood as a significant road block. His Braves teammate, Kelly Johnson, is a versatile bat that could potentially play some third base in the short term. Utility options such as Cliff Pennington and Clint Barmes, who was with the Pirates from 2012-14, could potentially be acquired to step in at shortstop, with Kang remaining at third base.
Blue Jays Showing “Strong Interest” In Mike Fiers
The Blue Jays are showing “strong interest” in Brewers right-hander Mike Fiers, reports Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (Twitter links). Nothing’s close between the two sides at this time, Rosenthal notes, and the Brewers aren’t especially motivated to part ways with the righty.
Milwaukee’s reluctance to trade Fiers stems from the fact that he’s not yet arbitration-eligible. Fiers is earning $513K in 2015 — a no doubt appealing fact to a Blue Jays team that has roughly $5-8MM worth of payroll wiggle room, per multiple reports. Fiers wouldn’t even be arbitration eligible until after the 2016 season, and he can be controlled through 2019 via the arb process. That team control is one of the reasons that Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet listed him as a potential fit for the Blue Jays last week.
Despite his controllable nature, Fiers isn’t particularly young. The former 22nd-round pick didn’t make his big league debut until the age of 26, and he didn’t see any significant MLB action until his age-27 season. As such, he’s already 30 years old. His status as a late bloomer notwithstanding, Fiers has been more or less effective as a big league starter. In 330 2/3 innings dating back to 2012, he has a 3.62 ERA with a 334-to-102 K/BB ratio (9.1 K/9, 2.8 BB/9).
Upon first glance, Fiers would seem to be an imperfect fit for Toronto’s Rogers Centre. He’s a right-hander that averages just 89 mph on his fastball and is considered an extreme fly-ball pitcher. However, I had similar questions about the fit when the Jays acquired Fiers’ former teammate, Marco Estrada, this past offseason. Estrada has been outstanding for the Blue Jays in 2015, and while that certainly doesn’t mean that Fiers would enjoy similar success, Fiers hasn’t been as homer-prone as Estrada over the course of his career and in general fits into a similar profile.
According to Rosenthal, the Brewers would want multiple pieces as a return in any trade of Fiers. He’s an atypical trade candidate due to the four remaining seasons of control he brings, but the more traditional trade pieces in Milwaukee’s rotation don’t currently hold much appeal. Kyle Lohse, a free agent at season’s end, has struggled greatly in 2015. So, too, has the now-injured Matt Garza, who comes with two more years of a $12.5MM salary.
Should Toronto elect to get more serious about its pursuit, the team has a nice stable of prospects that are close to the Majors as well as some high-upside prospects further down the pipeline. GM Alex Anthopoulos has mentioned in the past that he’s willing to deal from his big league roster as well. This is purely speculative, but with Francisco Rodriguez and Neal Cotts pitching well, perhaps the Blue Jays would be interested in securing a package consisting of Fiers and a bullpen upgrade. I’ve also previously opined that the Brewers should be open to trading a controllable relief arm such as Will Smith.
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Orioles Interested In Upton, Gomez
4:08pm: The O’s have also inquired on Brewers outfielder Carlos Gomez, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports tweets. As Rosenthal writes, it’s questionable as to whether the Orioles have the prospects necessary for a big move.
Rosenthal reported on Saturday that the Astros have also scouted Gomez. Late last week, Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com reported that the Brewers are now showing a willingness to trade both Gomez and Jean Segura.
3:50pm: The Astros also have interest in Upton, Morosi tweets. The Astros are on their way to a 51-43 record as they lead the Rangers by a wide margin.
3:45pm: The Orioles have expressed interest in trading for Padres outfielder Justin Upton, sources tell Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports (on Twitter). The O’s have been looking to add an outfielder this season.
The Orioles aren’t the first team to show interest in Upton this summer. The Mets are reportedly aiming high in their pursuit of outfield help and Upton is high on their list. Upton, who is in his first year with the Padres, is owed the prorated portion of a $14.5MM salary for the rest of the season. Through 370 plate appearances this season, Upton owns a slash line of .252/.331/.426 with 15 homers plus 17 stolen bases.
For his part, Upton said recently that he hopes to stay in San Diego.
“At this point, I haven’t given up on the team,” said Upton late last week. “I really like the guys, and I like the clubhouse. We still have some time to change the minds of the front office. In a perfect world, we play well over the next two or three weeks and [GM] A.J. [Preller] pumps the brakes on dismantling the team.”
The Orioles are 46-45 after topping the Tigers earlier today, putting them 4.0 games behind the first place Yankees in the AL East.
Angels Interested In Jay Bruce
2:00pm: The Angels doing their due diligence on a number of Reds players, Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times tweets. There’s no trade brewing at this point with Bruce or any other Reds player.
1:33pm: The Angels are interested in Reds outfielder Jay Bruce, according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports (via Twitter). Morosi adds that the Halos have a scout in Cincinnati watching the Reds take on the Indians.
It was reported on Saturday that the Reds have opened the doors on a fire sale and Bruce was among the many players listed as possibilities to be shopped. Through 86 games this season, Bruce has hit .255/.342/.474 with 14 home runs.
Bruce, who is owed about $19.5MM through 2016, has a $13MM club option for 2017 on his contract as well. He underwent knee surgery early last season but rushed back in less than a month, which some believe to be a significant factor in his diminished play in 2014 and early 2015. Bruce can reportedly block trades to the D-Backs, Red Sox, Marlins, Twins, Yankees, A’s, Rays and Blue Jays.
Even though Bruce has only come up in trade rumors in recent weeks, ESPN’s Buster Olney heard that the Reds have had the outfielder “available for awhile.” For his career, Bruce owns a .251/.325/.467 slash line through eight seasons with the Reds.
D-Backs, Brandon League Do Not Have Agreement
6:02pm: Eddy now tweets that he’s been informed by the D-Backs’ baseball operations department that they are not in agreement with League on a contract (Twitter link). League, then, remains a free agent.
5:36pm: The Diamondbacks have agreed to a minor league pact with right-hander Brandon League, reports Baseball America’s Matt Eddy (Twitter link). League was designated for assignment by the Dodgers about two weeks ago and released by the team last week. He’s represented by ACES.
Now 32 years old, League’s three-year, $22.5MM contract with the Dodgers (signed under the previous front office’s watch) was widely panned from day one. That’s not to say League had necessarily been a poor pitcher, but perhaps not one deserving of such a hefty commitment. The Dodgers picked up League in a trade with the Mariners midway through the 2012 season, and he rode a stretch of 27 1/3 solid innings (2.30 ERA, 8.9 K/9, 4.2 BB/9) to that contract.
League’s first full year with the Dodgers was a notable disappointment, as he worked to a 5.30 ERA and saw his strikeout rate plummet to 4.6 K/9. League did log 54 1/3 innings that season, but he quickly lost the closer’s role to Kenley Jansen and spent much of his time late in the year working in mop-up duty. League does deserve credit for the second year of that contract, however, as he quietly enjoyed an excellent rebound campaign. Last year, League tossed 63 innings of 2.57 ERA ball, averaging 5.4 K/9 and 3.9 BB/9 with an outstanding 67.3 percent ground-ball rate.
A shoulder impingement prevented League from logging a single Major League inning this season, but he had very good results in a minor league rehab stint, yielding just one earned run on 10 hits and two walks with eight strikeouts in 10 2/3 innings. League will give the D-Backs an experienced depth piece that could factor into their bullpen in the second half. His addition could become more significant if Arizona parts with some pieces from its current bullpen in trade over the next two weeks; fill-in closer Brad Ziegler has been speculatively mentioned as a trade candidate, and Addison Reed is said to be available as well.