This Date In Transactions History: From Cleveland To Cincinnati
We’ve reached the 14-year anniversary of a pivotal Reds-Indians trade that was hardly a headline-grabber at the time. It was on April 7, 2006, that the Reds acquired 24-year-old second baseman Brandon Phillips from the Indians for a player to be named later. That player turned into right-hander Jeff Stevens, whom Cincinnati sent to Cleveland in June of that year.
Phillips entered the pro ranks as a high draft selection of the Montreal Expos, who picked him in the second round (No. 57) in 1999. He was later part of a Montreal-Cleveland deal that had a massive impact, as the Expos sent Phillips, Grady Sizemore, Cliff Lee and Lee Stevens to the Indians for Bartolo Colon and Tim Drew. Sizemore and Lee became stars in Cleveland, but Phillips didn’t amount to much there in 462 combined plate appearances from 2002-05.
Phillips spent the majority of his final season as a member of the organization with the Indians’ then-Triple-A team in Buffalo, where he put up a .734 on-base plus slugging percentage. Unimpressed, the Indians and former general manager Mark Shapiro soon gave up on Phillips. That proved to be a mistake, at least when you consider what they received for Phillips. Stevens never even pitched for the franchise, instead throwing a combined 37 1/3 innings with the Cubs from 2009-11 after the Indians traded him as part of a deal for utilityman Mark DeRosa (notably, that transaction also saw Chris Archer head to Chicago). While DeRosa was effective for the Indians in ’09, that was his lone season with the club. The team later sent him to to St. Louis in a trade for reliever Chris Perez.
Perez had his moments in Cleveland, but they don’t match up to Phillips’ impact in Cincinnati. “Dat Dude” was a productive Red from the jump and eventually became a franchise icon – someone who was instrumental in breaking their 14-year playoff drought in 2009. The Reds went on to earn two more playoff berths while Phillips was in their uniform. His long tenure with the franchise concluded in February 2017 with a trade to the Braves, but not before Phillips racked up a laundry list of personal accomplishments. As a member of the Reds, Phillips made three All-Star teams, won four Gold Gloves and batted .279/.325/.429 with 191 home runs, 194 stolen bases and 28.1 wins above replacement over 6,899 plate appearances. He’s currently eighth in Reds history in games played (1,614) and PA and 10th in hits (1,774), runs scored (877) and total bases (2,722), to name just a few key statistics.
Phillips, now 38 years old, hasn’t played in the majors since 2018. But he’ll always be a part of the Reds’ rich history, and his acquisition was no doubt one of the shining moments of former Reds GM Wayne Krivsky’s stint. It’s also another bit of proof that you shouldn’t sleep on any transaction, no matter how minor it may seem at the time.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Prospect Faceoff: May v. Sanchez
There is no question that Marlins right-hander Sixto Sanchez and Dodgers righty Dustin May are among the most promising pitching prospects in baseball. Outlets such as MLB.com, Baseball America and FanGraphs each rank them as two of the 50 best prospects in the game. The only site that puts much of a gap between the two is FanGraphs, which has May at No. 14 and Sanchez 48th. They’re otherwise neck and neck – MLB.com places Sanchez 22nd and May 23rd, while BA also gives Sanchez a bit of an edge (16th to May’s 20th).
As we continue comparing the two, it’s worth taking a look at their professional careers to this point. Now 22 years old, the 6-foot-6, 180-pound May joined the Dodgers as a third-round pick in 2016. His quality repertoire consisting of a fastball that can reach the upper 90s, a cutter and a curveball has helped him mow down the competition so far. He got to the Triple-A level for the first time last season and thrived over 27 1/3 innings, notching a 2.30 ERA with 7.9 K/9, 2.96 BB/9 and a 60 percent groundball rate. That’s obviously not a large sample of work (just five starts), but it was enough to convince the Dodgers to promote May to the majors on the final day of July.
How much time May will spend with the Dodgers in 2020 (if there is a season) remains to be seen, but the man known as “Gingergaard” made a compelling case that he’s a major league-caliber hurler during his initial MLB action. May totaled 14 appearances (four starts) and logged a 3.63 ERA/2.90 FIP with 8.31 K/9, a stunningly low 1.3 BB/9 and a respectable 44.4 percent grounder rate across 34 2/3 innings. Maybe he won’t realize his potential this year, but May has “All-Star, mid-rotation” upside, FanGraphs’ Eric Longenhagen wrote in February.
The Dominican-born Sanchez, 21, has been a much-needed ray of hope for the Marlins since he joined the franchise in a blockbuster trade in February 2019. Sanchez was the headlining prospect the Marlins received from the division-rival Phillies for star catcher J.T. Realmuto, and continued to boost his stock in his first year with the Miami organization. He carved up the competition during his first try in Double-A, where he recorded a 2.53 ERA/2.69 FIP, struck out almost a hitter per inning, walked fewer than two per nine and induced grounders at a 47.9 percent clip in 103 frames. Sanchez can throw very hard, even reaching triple digits on occasion, though Longenhagen cautions that his “fastball plays beneath its velocity right now because it has sub-optimal underlying components.” There are also concerns about Sanchez’s injury history, but thanks in part to great secondary offerings and plus command, there’s front-of-the-rotation potential if he stays healthy.
Sanchez and May certainly count as a pair of the most exciting young pitchers in the game. But if you can only take one, which one would you choose? (Poll link for app users)
Dustin May or Sixto Sanchez?
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May 68% (2,864)
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Sanchez 32% (1,370)
Total votes: 4,234
Trade History: Reds’ Dick Williams
Dick Williams has spent more than 15 years in the Reds organization, working in a variety of roles on both the business and baseball ops side of the club prior to being named assistant GM in 2014. A year later, Williams was promoted to general manager as former GM Walt Jocketty ascended to president of baseball operations. At the time of the promotions, though, Jocketty made clear that his days as the club’s top decision-maker were numbered, plainly stating that the much younger Williams was being “groomed” for that post.
[Related: Dick Williams discusses his path to a front office in MLBTR’s College Series]
A year later, in December 2016, that became official when Jocketty moved into an advisory role and formally handed baseball operations autonomy over to Williams, who was named president of baseball operations. Let’s take a look at his track record since that promotion…
2016-17 Offseason
- Acquired RHPs Luis Castillo and Austin Brice and OF Zeek White from the Marlins in exchange for RHP Dan Straily
- Acquired LHP Andrew McKirahan and RHP Carlos Portuondo from the Braves in exchange for 2B Brandon Phillips (Reds paid $13MM of Phillips’ $14MM salary)
2017 Season
- Acquired INF/OF Darnell Sweeney from the Dodgers in exchange for cash
- Acquired 1B Nick Longhi from the Red Sox in exchange for $2.75MM of international bonus pool space
- Acquired OF Scott Van Slyke and C Hendrik Clementina from the Dodgers in exchange for LHP Tony Cingrani
2017-18 Offseason
- Acquired RHP Miguel Medrano from the Rangers in exchange for $350K of international bonus pool space
2018 Season
- Acquired RHP Zach Neal and 1B Ibandel Isabel from the Dodgers in exchange for RHP Ariel Hernandez
- Acquired RHP Matt Harvey from the Mets in exchange for C Devin Mesoraco (Reds paid remainder of Mesoraco’s $13.125MM salary; Mets paid remainder of Harvey’s $5.6MM)
- Acquired C Curt Casali from the Rays in exchange for cash
- Acquired RHP Tommy Bergjans from the Phillies in exchange for cash
- Acquired OF Lorenzo Cedrola from the Red Sox in exchange for $1.5MM of international bonus pool space
- Acquired RHPs Aneurys Zabala and James Marinan from the Dodgers in exchange for RHPs Dylan Floro and Zach Neal and international bonus pool space
- Acquired RHPs Lucas Sims and Matt Wisler and OF Preston Tucker from the Braves in exchange for Adam Duvall
2018-19 Offseason
- Acquired RHP Ryan Lillie from the Marlins in exchange for $750K of international bonus pool space
- Acquired RHP Tanner Roark from the Nationals in exchange for RHP Tanner Rainey
- Acquired LHP Alex Wood, OFs Matt Kemp and Yasiel Puig, INF/OF Kyle Farmer and $7MM from the Dodgers in exchange for RHP Homer Bailey, SS Jeter Downs and RHP Josiah Gray
- Acquired RHP Sonny Gray and LHP Reiver Sanmartin from the Yankees in exchange for 2B Shed Long (immediately flipped to Mariners) and Competitive Balance Draft pick (Round A)
- Acquired RHP Jordan Johnson and cash from the Giants in exchange for 1B/3B/OF Connor Joe
2019 Season
- Acquired RHP Diomar Lopez from the Padres in exchange for RHP Matt Wisler
- Acquired INF/OF Rob Refsnyder from the D-backs in exchange for cash
- Acquired RHP Tristan Archer from the Brewers in exchange for cash
- Acquired LHP Tyler Jay from the Twins in exchange for cash
- Acquired RHP Justin Grimm from the Dodgers in exchange for cash
- Acquired RHP Trevor Bauer from the Indians in a three-team deal that sent OF Taylor Trammell to the Padres; Reds also sent OF Yasiel Puig and LHP Scott Moss to the Indians
2019-20 Offseason
- Acquired RHP Jose De Leon from the Rays in exchange for cash
- Acquired cash from the Rays in exchange for OF Brian O’Grady
- Acquired RHP Justin Shafer from the Blue Jays in exchange for cash
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How do MLBTR readers feel about the work of Williams? (Link to poll for Trade Rumors mobile app users.)
Grade Dick Williams' trades with the Reds:
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B 49% (1,858)
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C 30% (1,140)
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A 12% (470)
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D 7% (286)
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F 2% (70)
Total votes: 3,824
Curious to look back on additional GMs and their trade histories? We’ve already polled on Diamondbacks GM Mike Hazen, recently fired Astros president Jeff Luhnow, Brewers president of baseball ops David Stearns, Angels GM Billy Eppler, Rockies GM Jeff Bridich, Tigers GM Al Avila, Braves GM Alex Anthopoulos, Blue Jays GM Ross Atkins, Mariners GM Jerry Dipoto, Phillies GM Matt Klentak, Padres GM A.J. Preller, Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman, Rays GM Erik Neander, ex-Red Sox front office leader Dave Dombrowski and Mets GM Brodie Van Wagenen.
Shohei Ohtani Close To Throwing Off Mound
Angels right-hander/slugger Shohei Ohtani has progressed to long tossing from a distance of 180 feet and is following those sessions up with higher-intensity throws from 60 feet, pitching coach Mickey Callaway told reporters on Tuesday (Twitter links via Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register and Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com). The next step for the righty would be to throw off a mound, and while Callaway didn’t put a specific timetable on when that might happen, he noted that it should be “soon.”
Ohtani, 25, hasn’t pitched in a game since Sept. 2, 2018, due to Tommy John surgery that wiped out his entire 2019 campaign — at least on the mound. He, of course, was able to return as the team’s primary designated hitter for much of the season and turned in a generally excellent year, hitting .286/.343/.505 with 18 home runs and a dozen steals in 425 plate appearances.
To this point, it seems as though things are generally on track with expectations put forth just prior to camp. At the time, it was believed that the Angels had been targeting a mid-May return to the big league rotation for the two-way star, and a move to mound sessions in the near future seemingly keeps him on that timeline. With fellow righty Griffin Canning resuming a throwing program after a UCL scare of his own, the Angels are trending in the direction of a full-strength rotation featuring Ohtani, Canning, Andrew Heaney, Julio Teheran and Dylan Bundy to begin the year.
Ohtani has still started just 10 games in his MLB career, although the 51 2/3 innings he tossed were quite promising. During that time, he logged a 3.31 ERA with 11.0 K/9, 3.8 BB/9, 1.05 HR/9 and a 39.2 percent ground-ball rate. Ohtani also turned in a stellar 15.2 percent swinging-strike rate that trailed only Max Scherzer, Chris Sale and Patrick Corbin among starters with at least 50 innings pitched.
Video: Could MLB Start In May?
MLB and the players are considering starting the season as early as May, playing games in the Phoenix area without fans present. Jeff Todd unpacks the pros and cons of the idea in today’s video.
MLBTR Chat Transcript: Next Year’s Free Agents
Click here to read a transcript of this week’s chat with MLBTR’s Steve Adams.
The Cardinals’ Outfield Carousel
No doubt you’ve heard it said that the Cardinals have gone through quite a few outfielders in recent years. That puts it mildly. The organization is now awaiting the readiness of top prospect Dylan Carlson, with hopes that he’ll not only blossom into a star but bring some long-term stability.
Churning through players isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Every deal is an opportunity, of course. But it’s quite remarkable how much turnover the Cards have had over the past five seasons. Teams play around 1400 innings a year … over seven thousand frames have been played in that span by the St. Louis team, but no single outfielder has come close to appearing in half of them.
Here’s a log of the players who have come and gone (or who remain on hand). They’re ordered by the number of innings played in the outfield, with all statistical accumulations provided for only the seasons in question (2015-19).
Dexter Fowler (2017-19)
- Originally acquired: Signed five-year, $82.5MM free agent contract
- Output: 2,720 1/3 total OF innings; .233/.335/.410 (97 OPS+)
- Outcome: Still on roster
Stephen Piscotty (2015-17)
- Originally acquired: 2012 1st round draft pick
- Output: 2,588 2/3 total OF innings; .268/.346/.438 (109 OPS+)
- Signed six-year, $33.5MM extension
- Outcome: Traded to Athletics for Yairo Munoz, Max Schrock
Tommy Pham (2015-18)
- Originally acquired: 2006 16th round draft pick
- Output: 2,535 2/3 total OF innings; .271/.365/.463 (121 OPS+)
- Outcome: Traded with international bonus money to Rays for Justin Williams, Genesis Cabrera, Roel Ramirez
Randal Grichuk (2015-17)
- Originally acquired: Acquired with Peter Bourjos from Angels for David Freese, Fernando Salas
- Output: 2,529 total OF innings; .249/.297/.488 (107 OPS+)
- Outcome: Traded to Blue Jays for Dominic Leone, Conner Greene
Marcell Ozuna (2018-19)
- Originally acquired: Acquired from Marlins for Sandy Alcantara, Magneuris Sierra, Zac Gallen, Daniel Castano
- Output: 2,395 1/3 total OF innings; .262/.327/.451 (106 OPS+)
- Outcome: Declined qualifying offer; Signed with Braves as free agent
Harrison Bader (2017-19)
- Originally acquired: 2015 3rd round draft pick
- Output: 2,013 total OF innings; .236/.320/.393 (90 OPS+)
- Outcome: Still on roster
Jason Heyward (2015)
- Originally acquired: Acquired with Jordan Walden from Braves for Shelby Miller, Tyrell Jenkins
- Output: 1,268 1/3 total OF innings; .293/.359/.439 (117 OPS+)
- Outcome: Declined qualifying offer; signed with Cubs as free agent
Jose Martinez (2016-19)
- Originally acquired: Acquired from Royals for cash considerations
- Output: 1,199 1/3 total OF innings; .298/.363/.458 (119 OPS+)
- Outcome: Traded with Randy Arozarena and comp balance pick to Rays for Matthew Liberatore, Edgardo Rodriguez, comp balance pick
Matt Holliday (2015-16)
- Originally acquired: Acquired from Athletics for Brett Wallace, Clayton Mortensen and Shane Peterson; subsequently signed seven-year, $120MM free agent contract
- Output: 1,139 1/3 total OF innings; .259/.350/.442 (113 OPS+)
- Outcome: Signed with Yankees as free agent
Brandon Moss (2015-16)
- Originally acquired: Acquired from Indians for Rob Kaminsky
- Output: 586 2/3 total OF innings; .231/.311/.466 (106 OPS+)
- Outcome: Signed with Royals as free agent
Tyler O’Neill (2018-19)
- Originally acquired: Acquired from Mariners for Marco Gonzales
- Output: 552 1/3 total OF innings; .258/.307/.454 (101 OPS+)
- Outcome: Still on roster
Jon Jay (2015)
- Originally acquired: 2006 2nd round draft pick
- Output: 496 2/3 total OF innings; .210/.306/.257 (56 OPS+)
- Outcome: Traded to Padres for Jedd Gyorko and cash
Peter Bourjos (2015)
- Originally acquired: Acquired with Randal Grichuk from Angels for David Freese, Fernando Salas
- Output: 476 2/3 total OF innings; .200/.290/.333 (70 OPS+)
- Outcome: Claimed by Phillies
Jeremy Hazelbaker (2016) –
- Originally acquired: Signed to minor-league deal as free agent
- Output: 402 1/3 total OF innings; .235/.295/.480 (104 OPS+)
- Outcome: Claimed by Diamondbacks
Yairo Munoz (2018-19)
- 212 total OF innings
- Released
Magneuris Sierra (2017)
- 137 1/3 total OF innings
- Traded to Marlins with Sandy Alcantara, Zac Gallen, Daniel Castano for Marcell Ozuna
Kolten Wong (2016)
- 106 total OF innings
- Still on roster (primarily INF)
Tommy Edman (2019)
- 82 2/3 total OF innings
- Still on roster (primarily INF)
Lane Thomas (2019)
- 81 2/3 total OF innings
- Still on roster
Randy Arozarena (2019)
- 43 2/3 total OF innings
- Traded with Jose Martinez and comp balance pick to Rays for Matthew Liberatore, Edgardo Rodriguez, comp balance pick
Mark Reynolds (2015)
- 42 total OF innings
- Departed via free agency
Matt Adams (2017)
- 34 1/3 total OF innings
- Traded to Braves for Juan Yepez
Adolis Garcia (2018)
- 30 1/3 total OF innings
- Traded to Rangers for cash considerations
Others receiving OF playing time:
- Aledmys Diaz (2017) – 9 innings; since traded
- Pete Kozma (2015) – 7 innings; since departed via free agency
- Drew Robinson (2019) – 5 1/3 innings; since released
- Jedd Gyorko (2017) – 2 innings; since traded
MLBTR Poll: The Arizona Plan
Less than a month ago, Major League Baseball was hemming and hawing over whether to halt Spring Training. Now, the league is at least considering a rather wild approach to the 2020 season: holding all contests in the Phoenix area for at least a portion of the campaign. If you haven’t read up on this yet, you can do so here and here.
With its statement this morning, MLB has made clear that this is just one of several concepts under consideration. Perhaps this one will fade — at least, the notion of it launching as soon as May — as the situation continues to evolve.
I’ll be sharing some further thoughts on this in an MLBTR YouTube video, which you can look out for later today. But generally, it seems entirely appropriate for the league to make its best efforts to craft a plan to get the game going again. It’s just … is this one even a reasonable starting point?
Let’s see how MLBTR readers feel at this early stage (response order randomized; poll link for app users):
What do you think of a 2020 MLB season in Arizona?
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Intriguing possibility 50% (5,836)
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Worth considering ... just not beginning in May 25% (2,928)
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Not even worth considering 24% (2,831)
Total votes: 11,595
Latest On Potential 2020 Season
9:26am: MLB has issued a statement acknowledging that the league has “discussed the idea of staging games at one location” but emphasizing that it has “not settled on that option or developed a detailed plan.” The announcement makes clear that the league is exploring many possibilities for responsibly holding a 2020 season and has continued to “interact regularly with governmental and public health officials” in support of that mission.
Ultimately, per the statement, MLB is “not ready at this time to endorse any particular format for staging games in light of the rapidly changing public health situation caused by the coronavirus.”
12:16am: Because of the coronavirus, we already know that at least part of the 2020 Major League Baseball Season – if it occurs – could take part in Arizona. Jeff Passan of ESPN sheds more light on what may be a strange baseball season, writing that all 30 major league teams might play spectator-less games “in the greater Phoenix area,” including the Diamondbacks’ home stadium (Chase Field) and 10 nearby spring training venues, if not other facilities. Agent Scott Boras said that Chase Field could host as many as three games a day, Ronald Blum of the Associated Press reports.
Should this plan come to fruition, it might allow the league to begin its season sometime in May. The players wouldn’t be thrilled with possibly having to spend months away from their families, Passan notes, though the fact that they’d be receiving a paycheck is enticing. Plus, high-ranking members of the Major League Baseball Players Association talked Saturday “with health officials who offered the plan as the clearest way for baseball to restart,” writes Passan, who adds that the union and the league started discussing the idea Monday. Their talks on the matter are likely to continue this week.
If a season does take place, it would likely require a two- to three-week spring training tuneup beforehand, per Passan. And if someone from one of the organizations happens to contract the coronavirus then or during the season, “officials do not believe that a positive alone would necessarily be cause to quarantine an entire team or shut down the season,” Passan writes. Rather, the possibility may lead to expanded rosters and more players receiving major league service time, which is appealing to the union.
So, in the event that the campaign gets underway in Arizona, what might it entail? Passan lays it out in his piece: Owing to social distancing, we could see an electronic strike zone and no mound visits from catchers and coaches. There’s also a chance of seven-inning doubleheaders to increase the number of games played. Nothing about this is ideal, but for the league and its fans, it could be better than no baseball at all.
Bryce Harper Discusses Contract Situation Of Phillies, J.T. Realmuto
If you ask Phillies star Bryce Harper, the team needs to do what it takes to retain backstop J.T. Realmuto. Harper discussed that important contractual situation and other topics in a recent chat with Jim Salisbury of NBC Sports Philadelphia.
It’s debatable how best to interpret Harper’s comments — prediction or exhortation, or both — but not his underlying desire to see Realmuto stay with him in Philly. Harper lavished praise on Realmuto, saying: “I think the Phillies organization absolutely loves J.T. and our team absolutely loves him as well.”
Harper obviously isn’t negotiating contracts, but with twelve seasons left on his own monumental deal his opinion holds greater weight than those of your average veteran star. He says of Realmuto: “Us as an organization, we have to understand that he’s going to help us in the years to come and if you want the best catcher in baseball then we’ll make that happen.”
“I don’t think anybody should fear us not getting J.T. back,” Harper continued. “I want him more than anything, so I mean it’s something we need to make happen as an organization.”
That’s shy of a promise but something more than a mere expression of personal preferences. Harper did go on to say that the club will “hopefully” find a way to keep Realmuto around, and there’s no particular reason to believe he’s operating on inside information here, but it’s rather interesting to see how strongly he phrased things.
When last we looked, the Phillies and Realmuto had paused their discussions on a pre-season extension. Not long after, a leaguewide moratorium on contract discussions went into effect. Realmuto has reportedly sought a monster contract that would approach or even exceed the record catching deal of Buster Posey.
It’s fair to wonder whether the suspension of the 2020 season will have an impact on negotiations if and when they resume. Realmuto will certainly not have an opportunity at a typical platform year. And it’s anyone’s guess at this point how the 2020-21 free agent market will function.