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Rockies Reportedly Agree To Sign Santiago Casilla

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The Rockies have agreed to a deal with free agent righty Santiago Casilla, according to Robert Murray of The Athletic (Twitter links). It’s said to be a minor-league arrangement.

Casilla recently received his walking papers from the A’s, who’ll still pay him the $2MM or so left on his salary for the current season — less any pro-rated portion of the league minimum he earns with the Colorado organization. The 37-year-old has spent his entire career to this point with the two Bay Area organizations.

While Casilla had worked to a 3.16 ERA in his 31 1/3 innings this year in Oakland, he was carrying an ugly 22:20 K/BB ratio. He’s averaging about 94 mph on his fastball still, but the 38-year-old has also seen his swinging-strike rate drop to a personal-low 9.0%.

For now, Casilla will represent a depth option for the Rox. But he could certainly end up becoming an option at the MLB level if he shows well. Though the team has already made one bullpen upgrade, the relief unit is probably susceptible of further improvement.

Astros Acquire Martin Maldonado

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The Astros have struck a deal with the division-rival Angels to acquire backstop Martin Maldonado, as Jeff Fletcher of the Southern California News Group first reported (via Twitter). Young lefty Patrick Sandoval will go to the Angels along with $250K in international pool money.

With the move, Houston has bolstered its catching unit as it awaits the return of veteran Brian McCann from the DL. Maldonado will displace Tim Federowicz, who has been designated for assignment, per Jake Kaplan of The Athletic (via Twitter). The Astros’ new catcher will pair with the emergent Max Stassi to split up the work behind the dish for at least the next several weeks.

Maldonado is earning $3.9MM this year before qualifying for free agency at season’s end. He originally came to Los Angeles in the deal that sent fellow receiver Jett Bandy to the Brewers before the 2017 season.

Over the past two years, Maldonado has performed at the plate much as he did in his prior MLB action. He’s a weak on-base threat who only partially makes up for that with some pop. For his career, Maldonado owns a .219/.291/.347 batting line — good for a 72 OPS+ that he has matched almost exactly in both 2017 and 2018.

Clearly, the appeal lies more in Maldonado’s work with his gear on. The 31-year-old is a well-regarded all-around performer behind the dish. In particular, though he has not earned prime grades for his framing in 2018, Maldonado has in years past rated as one of the sport’s best at winning strikes for his pitchers.

If nothing else, the addition of Maldonado will give the Astros some much-needed insurance with McCann still working back from a knee surgery. Just how things will be sorted out in the postseason remains to be seen, but the Astros will surely feel confident they’ll have solid options available the rest of the way.

Meanwhile, the Halos are more or less acknowledging the obvious: this won’t be the year they break back into the postseason. The 21-year-old Sandoval represents something of a consolation prize for a disappointing campaign.

Sandoval was an 11th-round pick in 2015. He has turned in an impressive campaign thus far, working to a 2.56 ERA in 88 frames — most of them at the Class A level but his more recently at High-A. Sandoval has struck out 9.9 and walked just 1.5 batters per nine on the year. Baseball America recently wrote up the young southpaw, characterizing him as a legitimately interesting prospect.

Fletcher tweeted Sandoval’s inclusion. Joel Sherman of the New York Post (via Twitter) and MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand (Twitter link) had the international money.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Brewers Acquire Joakim Soria

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2:46pm: Chicago will send just over $1MM, per Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic (via Twitter).

12:23pm: The Brewers have officially agreed to a deal to acquire righty Joakim Soria from the White Sox, as first reportedy by MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand (via Twitter). Former first-round pick Kodi Medeiros is one piece in the deal, per Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com (Twitter link), with Feinsand tweeting that righty Wilber Perez is the other.

Per the announcement, the White Sox will pay down an unstated portion of Soria’s contract. He’s earning $9MM this year — some of it still paid for by the Dodgers, as part of the three-team deal that sent him to Chicago — with a $1MM buyout still to come on a $10MM 2019 mutual option.

While his name hasn’t been circulated much around the rumor mill, Soria ranked 12th on MLBTR’s recent list of the top 75 trade deadline candidates on the basis of his strong showing thus far. He becomes the sixth of the first 13 names on that ranking to be dealt in the past week or so.

Soria, 34, has worked as the White Sox’ closer and carries a 2.56 ERA through 38 2/3 innings on the season. He’s sporting an impressive combination of 11.4 K/9 and 2.3 BB/9, buttressed by a career-best 14.6% swinging-strike rate.

There’s a lot to like about the way the veteran hurler is throwing right now. Soria is getting whiffs both by drawing quite a few more chases out of the zone (35.6%) than ever before and by holding opposing hitters to a 77.3% contact rate on pitches in the zone, which is also a career-best rate.

Soria carried sparkling peripherals last year, too, though he only ended the season with a 3.70 ERA, so he seems to be on something of a late-career run of excellence. The long-time late-inning hurler has tamped down on the home runs quite a bit over the past two seasons, allowing only three balls in total to leave the yard in that span.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Yankees Nearing Deal For J.A. Happ

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There was quite a lot of chatter yesterday surrounding Blue Jays lefty J.A. Happ, with a run of rumors that certainly suggests negotiations are building toward a conclusion. The Toronto organization has seemingly decided it’d rather move Happ now than let him take the ball this weekend, and Jon Heyman of Fancred tweets that the team is sending that message to interested rivals.

We’ll use this post to track today’s developments on the veteran southpaw, a pure rental player who’s earning $13MM this year:

  • The Yankees appear to be zeroing in on Happ. The club is said by Sherman (Twitter links) to be “getting closer” to a deal structured around Drury. Jon Heyman of Fancred has it even closer to the finish line, tweeting that the Yanks and Jays are working to finalize a swap.

Earlier Updates

  • As of this morning, it seems there are still multiple organizations in the mix. Largely reflecting the state of play last night, as reported by Joel Sherman of the New York Post, Bob Nightengale of USA Today suggests on Twitter that the Brewers and Yankees are still the two likeliest landing spots, with the Cubs also still “in the mix.”
  • Meanwhile, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic tweets that, as Sherman also previously suggested, infielder Brandon Drury has arisen in talks between the division-rival Jays and Yanks. That “could lead to [an] expanded deal,” Rosenthal notes, with the Yankees perhaps also eyeing some catching depth. New York GM Brian Cashman said yesterday that he’s open to bolstering his group of receivers with Gary Sanchez on the shelf. The phrasing of the report doesn’t really appear to suggest that high-priced veteran (and former Yankee) Russell Martin is a target. The more obvious candidate seems to be reserve Luke Maile, who has been a solid performer this year in Toronto, though there’s no direct reporting to establish any particular connection.

Cubs Place Kris Bryant On 10-Day DL

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The Cubs have announced that third baseman Kris Bryant is heading to the 10-day disabled list with left shoulder inflammation. He’ll be replaced on the roster by infielder David Bote.

The move was made retroactive to July 24th, so Bryant will be eligible to return as soon as August 3rd. It’s not clear at this point, though, whether he’ll be in a position to do so. This is the second time that shoulder troubles have forced a respite.

There’s still no reason to believe that Bryant is dealing with a significant injury. Given that fact, along with the team’s position-player depth, there’s also no cause to think the move will impact the organization’s deadline plans.

Still, it hurts to lose a player who’s among the very best in the game. Bryant hasn’t hit quite at his prior levels thus far in 2018, but still sports a strong .276/.380/.474 batting line. He has been decidedly less productive since raking his way through the first two months of the season, so perhaps this layoff will help him get back in form for the stretch run.

It’s hardly the primary concern for all involved, but it’s worth noting that Bryant’s future arbitration earnings are now likely to take a hit based upon how the season has played out. He set out on a record-setting pace after receiving a whopping $10.85MM as a Super Two, so he’ll be building off of a big starting point. To this point in 2018, though, Bryant has only recorded 11 home runs and 44 runs batted in through 358 plate appearances, so his counting stats likely won’t support a major raise this winter.

Nationals Select Tommy Milone, Designate Jose Marmolejos

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9:15am: Washington has announced the move, along with a corresponding decision to designate first baseman/outfielder Jose Marmolejos for assignment. The 25-year-old had struggled at the plate this year at Triple-A.

8:24am: The Nationals are set to select the contract of southpaw Tommy Milone to start tonight’s game. The TalkNats blog first tweeted that it appeared Milone would get the nod, with MLB.com’s Jamal Collier tweeting that was indeed the plan.

Milone will step into the rotation spot opened when Stephen Strasburg was sent back onto the disabled list. While an active roster spot is already accounted for, the Nats also seemingly need to make a 40-man move to accommodate the return of Milone. The veteran southpaw last pitched for the organization in his rookie campaign of 2011.

Milone has compiled 736 2/3 innings of 4.37 ERA ball in his seven seasons in the big leagues, but has struggled in recent campaigns. This will represent his first MLB action of the 2018 season.

Through twenty starts at the Triple-A level on the year, Milone carries a 4.19 ERA over 109 2/3 frames. He’s averaging 9.3 K/9 — well above his typical levels in the majors but right at his career mean at the highest level of the minors — along with a characteristically minimal walk rate of 2.0 BB/9.

Rockies Acquire Seunghwan Oh

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TODAY: The deal is now official. Former first-round pick Forrest Wall is also headed to Toronto, as Jon Heyman of Fancred tweeted just before the announcement. Bouchard is not in the pact, at least directly. In addition to Wall and Spanberger, the package includes a player to be named later, though it’s not known presently whether Bouchard is among the possibilities.

YESTERDAY, 8:02PM: Another first base prospect, Sean Bouchard, is also heading to Toronto in the deal, as per Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post.

7:54PM: Minor league first baseman Chad Spanberger is expected to be heading to the Blue Jays as part of the trade, Sportsnet.ca’s Shi Davidi reports (Twitter link).  A sixth-round pick for Colorado in the 2017 draft, Spanberger is ranked 24th on MLB.com’s list of the top 30 Rockies prospects, with the scouting report noting Spanberger’s big power potential but also quite a few strikeouts.

7:22PM: The Rockies and Blue Jays have agreed to a trade that will see right-hander Seunghwan Oh join the Colorado bullpen, with The Athletic’s Robert Murray tweeting that the trade is “a done deal.”  Steve Phillips of MLB Network Radio on Sirius XM reported earlier today that an Oh trade was close to happening, with MLB.com’s Jon Paul Morosi later adding the news that Colorado was the team involved in the deal.

Oh’s stock was down in the offseason, following a somewhat rough 2017 campaign that saw him lose his closer’s job with the Cardinals and struggle with the long ball to the tune of a 1.5 HR/9 rate.  This led to Oh signing a low-cost one-year deal with the Blue Jays worth $1.75MM in guaranteed salary and a $2MM club option ($250K buyout) for the 2019 season.

"<strongThat signing ended up being a nice bargain for the Jays, culminating in this flip of the 36-year-old for some prospect capital.  Oh has posted a 2.68 ERA, 10.5 K/9, and 5.50 K/BB rate over 47 innings for Toronto, looking far more like his “Final Boss” form from the 2016 season (his first year in Major League Baseball) than his less-impressive 2017 edition.  The advanced metrics have been pretty sold on Oh’s performance, as his .266 wOBA is nearly identical to his .264 xwOBA, and ERA predictors (3.03 FIP, 3.77 xFIP, 2.91 SIERA) mostly back up that impressive 2.66 real-world ERA.

He has also largely gotten over his home run issues, with only an 0.96 HR/9 and 8.2% homer rate this season.  This will be particularly important for Oh as he shifts to Coors Field, though he has managed to success in another hitter-friendly ballpark (Rogers Centre) despite just a 29.8% grounder rate.

While Oh should help the Rockies’ relief corps, the fact that the bullpen was such a pressing trade deadline need represents a misfire for the team.  Colorado spent $106MM total in three-year free agent pacts for Wade Davis, Bryan Shaw, and Jake McGee, only to see all three fail to live up to expectations.  Shaw and McGee have particularly struggled, leading for the Rox to seek out another arm to bridge the gap to Davis in the ninth inning.  Oh will join Adam Ottavino (the pen’s one bright spot) as the Rockies’ chief setup options.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Trade Buzz: Wheeler, Harper, Liriano, Greene, Castellanos, Braves

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Scouts from at least a dozen teams watched Zack Wheeler’s start on Tuesday, SNY.tv’s Andy Martino reports.  There’s enough interest in Wheeler that the feeling is “he should net a top 10 prospect and more” for the Mets, and he “could move any minute,” as Martino puts it.  Beyond the Yankees and Reds, who were already known to be looking at Wheeler, the list of interested parties also included such clubs as the Rangers, Mariners, and Red Sox.  It isn’t any surprise that contenders like Seattle and Boston are checking in, though the Sox may have already addressed their rotation need with their acquisition of Nathan Eovaldi earlier today.  Texas is an interesting name, as the Rangers could’ve been doing their due diligence or (since Wheeler is under control through 2019) considering making an early move to upgrade next year’s pitching staff, which will be a clear offseason need for the club.

Here are more rumblings from around baseball as we’re less than a week away from the trade deadline…

  • “Something extreme would have to happen for us to consider moving [Bryce Harper],” Nationals GM Mike Rizzo told Joel Sherman of the New York Post.  While short of an outright denial, it doesn’t seem like a Harper trade is even a longshot possibility for the Nats.  If anything, Rizzo said the team is still looking to add (in the form of starting pitching and a catcher), though Sherman notes that the general manager didn’t rule out the possibility of eventually selling some impending free agents if Washington can’t get back into the pennant race.  Such moves would be lower-level veterans and not Harper, as Sherman runs through the rather limited and difficult market the Nationals would face if they did make him available.
  • Dodgers scouts have been watching Tigers closer Shane Greene both before and after Greene’s recent DL stint, Anthony Fenech of the Detroit Free Press reports.  Greene only missed 12 days due to some minor shoulder inflammation, and has since pitched in five games.  He has posted solid numbers (4.19 ERA, 9.63 K/9, 2.3 BB/9) despite some issues with allowing home runs (1.5 HR/9).  Kenley Jansen obviously isn’t going anywhere as the Dodgers’ ninth inning arm, so Greene would bolster the Los Angeles setup corps.
  • Also from Fenech’s piece, he reports that a Red Sox executive was recently in attendance to see Francisco Liriano in action, and notes that Liriano could be a fit as a left-hander out of Boston’s bullpen.  The Sox are currently going with eight right-handed relievers, with southpaws Bobby Poyner, Robby Scott, and Williams Jerez down at Triple-A, all of whom are far less experienced than a veteran arm like Liriano.  While Liriano has struggled overall as a starting pitcher for the Tigers this year, he has dominated left-handed hitters and would fit as a LOOGY in a return to relief work.
  • The Braves have a lot of trade options to consider, chiefly in adding starting and/or relief pitching, as MLB.com’s Mark Bowman explores in an overview of the team’s deadline plans.  If Atlanta does look for hitting, there is some speculation that Tigers third baseman Nick Castellanos could be a target, as Detroit has had scouts looking at the Braves farm system (though the Braves’ past interest in Michael Fulmer surely also played a role in those evaluations).  Castellanos may be available, if not outright shopped, in trade talks, though the Tigers have put a high asking price on the slugger.
  • Kyle Gibson could emerge as part of the talks between the Twins and Brewers, MLB.com’s Jon Paul Morosi tweets, should the two teams expand their negotiations beyond just infielders.  Milwaukee was in need of pitching even before recent bad injury news about Brent Suter and Zach Davies, and adding a controllable (through 2019) pitcher in the midst of a strong season like Gibson would be a major boost to the Brew Crew’s rotation.  Adding Gibson to the mix might help Minnesota get a better return in a trade, as Brian Dozier and Eduardo Escobar are only rental players.

Minor MLB Transactions: 7/25/18

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Here are some minor moves from around the league, with the newest transactions at the top of the post…

  • The White Sox have signed right-hander Asher Wojciechowski to a minor league deal, as announced by the team’s Triple-A affiliate in Charlotte (Twitter link).  The 29-year-old opted out of his minors contract with the Orioles last week in order to test free agency, and he has quickly caught on with another organization.  Wojciechowski received his first significant amount of MLB experience last season, tossing 62 1/3 innings over 25 appearances (eight of them starts) with the Reds, posting a 6.50 ERA, 9.2 K/9, and 3.37 K/BB rate.  The inflated ERA was due in large part to 14 homers allowed, as the righty has continually been plagued by the long ball from the Triple-A level and upwards.
  • The Red Sox released right-hander Kyle Martin so he could pursue an opportunity to play in Japan, the Boston Globe’s Pete Abraham reports (via Twitter).  The 27-year-old made his Major League debut last season, appearing in two games for the Sox, but he hasn’t since made a return trip to the Show.  A ninth-round pick in the 2013 draft, Martin has a 3.55 ERA, 9.4 K/9, and 2.98 K/BB rate over 334 1/3 career innings in the minors, all as a reliever.

NL West Notes: Padres, Archer, Giants, Shark, Evans, Dodgers

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Reports yesterday indicated the Padres were checking around about a potential Chris Archer trade with the Rays, and MLB.com’s Jon Paul Morosi sheds a bit more light on those talks.  San Diego is reportedly willing to move one or two of Francisco Mejia, Luis Urias, and Cal Quantrill in an Archer deal, though its top two prospects (Fernando Tatis Jr. and MacKenzie Gore) are not available.  Even without Tatis or Gore on the table, dealing any of those other highly-touted prospects would be a major concession on San Diego’s part, and a big score for the Rays.  Mejia was only just acquired by the Padres as the return for Brad Hand and Adam Cimber, so in my opinion, it could be that the team sees the young catcher as somewhat “found money” — put another way, the Padres would be essentially dealing Hand and Cimber for Archer, which is a deal the club would’ve happily made.  Then again, the Padres are so deep in minor league talent that they can afford to move top names like Mejia, Urias, or Quantrill and still have one of the game’s better farm systems.

Scouts from the Padres and Diamondbacks (and, from outside the division, the Phillies and Cubs) watched Archer’s start last Sunday.  A source tells Morosi that at least eight teams have recently been in touch with the Rays about Archer’s availability, and while there still isn’t clear sign Tampa is considering a trade, this deep interest is one of the reasons “a deal involving Archer is more likely now than at any point in recent memory,” Morosi writes.

Here’s more from around the NL West…

  • There’s still no timetable for the Giants to welcome back righty Jeff Samardzija, though it’s not looking particularly promising. Per Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle, via Twitter, the veteran hurler is “not returning anytime soon.” Rather, he’ll continue to rest his ailing shoulder before heading out for some amount of rehab work. This continues to be a lost season for the 33-year-old, who owns a 6.25 ERA in 44 2/3 innings
  • Though Samardzija’s ongoing injury issue is one of several less-than-promising signs for the Giants, indications are that they aren’t interested in packing up and waiting for next year. GM Bobby Evans says in a chat with Joel Sherman of the New York Post that the front office is “bent toward helping our current club.”  Though Evans expressed at least some willingness to consider moving bullpen pieces, such a move wouldn’t really serve the team’s interests, particularly after the Giants previously gave up young talent to shed salary.  While the team is still within reasonable striking distance in the NL West, its place in the trade deadline picture remains unclear — though Evans did shut down any thought that the team would make a last-minute decision to make star lefty Madison Bumgarner available.
  • The Dodgers sent scouts to watch pitchers on both the Marlins and Rays when the two Florida rivals faced off last weekend, the Miami Herald’s Clark Spencer reports (Twitter link).  L.A. could have interested in any number of relievers or perhaps even starting pitchers on either roster, given how many Miami and Tampa players have been cited in trade rumors.  Interestingly, Spencer’s tweet was linked to a tweet from Michael J. Duarte of NBC Los Angeles, who said that the Marlins had scouts watching Yadier Alvarez’s most recent Double-A outing.  A consensus top prospect headed into the 2017 season, Alvarez didn’t crack the preseason top-100 lists for Baseball America or MLB.com this year (though Baseball Prospectus still had him 41st) in the wake of an unimpressive season.  Alvarez has continued to struggle in 2018, with a 5.85 ERA and 25 walks in 20 frames for Double-A Tulsa, though he’s still missing a lot of bats with his 100-mph fastball.

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