MLB Owners Expect To Elect Commissioner Thursday
AUG. 13: Major League Baseball owners are confident that they will emerge from tomorrow’s vote with a new commissioner, tweets Bob Nightengale of USA Today.
However, in a full-length column earlier this morning, Nightengale explained the divide between frontrunners Manfred and Werner, with some Manfred supporters telling Nightengale they feel they have at least 20 owners committed to Manfred. Sources in the Werner camp tell Nightengale that there will be at least 11 votes for Werner, and another eight were undecided.
Brosnan, too, has his supporters, according to Nightengale, but they fear that he doesn’t have a realistic chance at winning the vote. If Brosnan doesn’t receive enough votes on the first ballot, he could bow out and throw his support to Werner. In that scenario, Brosnan could end up serving as deputy commissioner to Werner.
In the video atop his article, Nightengale speculated that no consensus would be reached. All of this speculation, of course, came prior to each finalist giving a one-hour presentation to MLB owners today at their quarterly meetings, so things may have changed.
Sources have also told Nightengale that there was to be a fourth candidate among the finalists — former Yale University president Richard C. Levin. However, Levin withdrew his name late in the process. Nightengale wonders if MLB will try to convince Levin to reconsider in the event that the owners aren’t able to reach a vote tomorrow.
AUG. 5: The search committee formed to identify a successor for Major League Baseball commissioner Bud Selig has narrowed the candidates down to a list of three finalists, reports USA Today’s Bob Nightengale. MLB chief operating officer Rob Manfred, MLB vice president of business Tim Bronson and Red Sox chairman Tom Werner are the candidates, according to Nightengale.
MLB owners will vote on the trio at next week’s quarterly owners meetings, and if 23 or more owners can agree on a candidate, that candidate will be named as Selig’s successor. Of course, Selig is set to remain in office through the end of his term — January 24, 2015. He is expected to remain involved in baseball in a limited capacity, Nightengale writes.
Shortly after the committee formed back in May, reports indicated that White Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf — a longtime Selig backer — was surprisingly resistant to the idea of Manfred succeeding Selig as commissioner. Manfred has long been thought to be Selig’s preferred choice as a successor.
Giants president Larry Baer, Disney chief executive Bob Iger, Braves chairman Terry McGuirk, Tigers GM Dave Dombrowski and MLB Advanced Media CEO Bob Bowman have all been thought to be candidates at various points since the committee has formed.
Cubs Request Release Waivers On Nate Schierholtz
AUG. 13: The Cubs have placed Schierholtz on release waivers, tweets Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune. He will officially be a free agent when he clears on Friday.
AUG. 6: The Cubs have designated outfielder Nate Schierholtz for assignment, tweets Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune. With the move, roster space was created for Kyuji Fujikawa‘s activation from the 60-day DL.
Schierholtz, a 30-year-old left-handed hitter, was playing on a $5MM salary this season in his final year of arbitration eligibility. Unless Chicago can find a taker for all or part of that figure, they’ll be on the hook for most (if not all) of the money left owing.
The veteran of eight MLB campaigns had struggled to a .192/.240/.300 slash through 341 plate appearances this year, after posting a strong .251/.301/.470 line in 503 trips to bat in 2013. He had actually turned in three straight seasons with above-average OPS marks before hitting a wall this year.
Yankees Designate Chris Leroux For Assignment
The Yankees have designated righty Chris Leroux for assignment, the club announced via press release. His roster spot will go to Michael Pineda, who was activated from the 60-day DL for today’s start.
This is the third time in DFA limbo on the year for Leroux, who most recently was designated and then outrighted just over two weeks ago. Despite all that activity, he has made only two appearances with New York on the year. The 30-year-old has been knocked around in the two innings he has tossed, surrendering seven hits and five earned runs while striking out three and walking two. A veteran of parts of six MLB seasons, Leroux has fared better in the minors thus far in 2014 (4.01 ERA in 49 1/3 innings).
Pirates Claim Ramon Cabrera
The Pirates have claimed catcher Ramon Cabrera off waivers from the Tigers, Jason Beck of MLB.com reports on Twitter. Cabrera was placed on waivers after being designated for assignment to create 40-man space for the promotion of spot starter Buck Farmer, Beck adds.
The 24-year-old backstop came to Detroit from Pittsburgh in a winter swap for starter Andy Oliver. Now he’ll head back to the organization that signed him out of Venezuela. For the Tigers, the loss of a young player like Cabrera represents one of the somewhat under-appreciated downsides to being surprised with the need to add a player to the 40-man.
The Pirates should have a good handle on the player they are getting back, since he spent five years in their system. Cabrera was rated Detroit’s 27th-best prospect coming into the year by Baseball America, with the publication calling him a high-contact, low-power, low-speed offensive player who is still below average behind the dish. According to BA, his upside is to produce along the lines of Josh Thole. Over 431 plate appearances at the Double-A level this year, Cabrera owns a .277/.329/.358 triple-slash.
Blue Jays Claim Colt Hynes
The Blue Jays have claimed lefty Colt Hynes off waivers from the Dodgers, Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times reports on Twitter. Hynes, 29, was designated for assignment on Sunday to clear roster space for Kevin Correia.
Hynes has spent the entire season to date at Triple-A, working to a 4.08 ERA across 53 innings of relief, with 7.8 K/9 against 1.7 BB/9. He has limited MLB experience, with just 22 appearances to his credit last year with the Padres. Unsurprisingly, Hynes was much better against same-handed hitters, though the actual split (.602 OPS by lefties; 1.260 OPS by righties) is rather dramatic.
Oswaldo Arcia Changes Representation
Twins outfielder Oswaldo Arcia has switched agents and is now represented by Praver Shapiro Sports Management, reports Mike Berardino of the St. Paul Pioneer-Press. He had previously made multiple changes, most recently moving to the Legacy Sports Group over the winter.
The 23-year-old Arcia has hit at a roughly league-average rate since reaching the bigs last year. Over 629 total plate appearances, he has a .241/.305/.417 slash with 22 home runs. Those numbers have dipped a bit this year, but he still looks to be a solid young option for a rebuilding Minnesota club. Defensive metrics have looked more favorably upon his work in the corner outfield this year, though he has spent just 1,218 total innings in the field.
Arcia is set to reach arbitration in 2017, unless he is able to qualify as a Super Two. He could reach that status, as Berardino estimates he will have 1.131 days of service at year’s end (even after a brief minor league stint earlier this year), though of course it is far too soon to know.
Blue Jays Designate Brad Mills For Assignment
The Blue Jays designated lefty Brad Mills for assignment after last night’s game, MLB.com’s Gregor Chisholm reported on Twitter. Mills, 29, joined Toronto via waiver claim and has already been outrighted once by the club.
Though he provided three decent starts for the Athletics earlier in the year, Mills has been hit hard in his two appearances for the Jays. For Toronto, he’s allowed 13 earned runs in just 4 1/3 innings, striking out five but walking four. Mills has found much more success at the Triple-A level this year, where he carries a 1.81 ERA with 9.0 K/9 against 1.9 BB/9 over 89 1/3 frames, working mostly as a starter.
Reds Designate Ryan LaMarre To Clear Space For Raisel Iglesias
The Reds have designated outfielder Ryan LaMarre for assignment, according to a tweet from assistant director of media relations Jamie Ramsey. With the move, Cincinnati has cleared a 40-man spot for recently-signed Cuban hurler Raisel Iglesias, who will be introduced today after receiving his visa over the weekend, as C. Trent Rosecrans of the Cincinnati Enquirer reports (Twitter links).
LaMarre, 25, has missed much of the year due to injury after starting the year at Triple-A. Last year, over 529 plate appearances, mostly at the Double-A level, he put up a .245/.327/.368 slash with 10 home runs and 23 stolen bases (against 13 times caught stealing). The center fielder, a second round pick in 2010, was not ranked among the Reds’ top thirty prospects entering the year by Baseball America.
Meanwhile, Iglesias — who signed a seven-year, $27MM pact in late June — seems close to officially being added to the team’s 40-man roster. The righty is said to be capable of moving quickly to a big league bullpen, though the Reds reportedly intend to develop him as a starter. It remains to be seen at what level and in what role the club will initially deploy the 24-year-old.
“No Major Structural Damage” To Verlander’s Shoulder
An MRI brought good results for the Tigers’ Justin Verlander, whose shoulder has suffered “no major structural damage,” according to manager Brad Ausmus (via a tweet from Chris Iott of MLive.com). Some relatively minor inflammation was identified, which will require some rest and at least one missed start, but a DL stint is unlikely at this time.
In sum, the news was positive both for the team’s efforts to re-take the AL Central and the long-term return on Verlander’s massive contract. Though he has not been himself this year, with a 4.76 ERA and just 6.7 K/9 against 3.1 BB/9 (after yesterday’s brutal one winning of work), Verlander has still been a workhorse with 158 2/3 innings pitched. And Detroit will no doubt be relieved that it can expect to feed him innings rather than relying on unproven youngsters or being forced to go back to the trade market.
Verlander has tossed at least 200 frames a season every year since 2007, avoiding any time on the DL along the way, and it will be remarkable if he can yet again steer clear of going inactive. The absence of structural issues with his shoulder would seem to rule out some of the worst-case scenarios. Performance issues remain, however, as Verlander has not produced the results or peripherals of a pitcher who is guaranteed $140MM after the year.
Alfredo Simon Joins MVP Sports Group
Reds right-hander Alfredo Simon has changed agencies and is now represented by MVP Sports Group, according to Mark Sheldon of MLB.com (Twitter links). Simon, who had previously been with the Wasserman Media Group, interviewed four or five agents before deciding on MVP’s Dan Lozano, according to Sheldon.
The 33-year-old Simon, who is in the midst of his most successful season as a Major Leaguer, will be eligible for arbitration for the third and final time this offseason before being eligible for free agency the following winter. Simon wasn’t expected to be a long-term rotation piece this season, but injuries to Mat Latos and the struggles of Tony Cingrani opened a door, and he’s capitalized on the opportunity with 143 innings of 3.08 ERA ball to go along with 5.7 K/9, 2.5 BB/9 and a 48.5 percent ground-ball rate. Needless to say, he will be due a sizable raise on his relatively modest $1.5MM salary in his final trip through arbitration.
By joining MVP Sports Group, Simon will be enlisting the services of an agency that represents some of the game’s most notable players, including Albert Pujols, Joey Votto, Carlos Beltran, Manny Machado and Jimmy Rollins. For more info on 2,000+ Major League and Minor League players, check out MLBTR’s Agency Database. If you see any errors or omissions, please let us know via email: mlbtrdatabase@gmail.com.