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NL Rumors: Brewers, Giants, Cards, Phillies

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The Brewers have gone a horrid 9-17 since the All-Star break, yet they’re still only two games behind the Cubs for the National League Central lead. As such, general manager David Stearns remains on the hunt for potential upgrades, writes Adam McCalvy of MLB.com. The Brewers “are constantly monitoring the waiver wire,” revealed Stearns, who’s optimistic that he’ll be able to add outside help in the coming weeks. “I wouldn’t put it as a definite, but I certainly think it is a possibility that between now and the end of August we are able to pull something off,” he said. Milwaukee is specifically looking to breathe life into its sputtering offense, according to McCalvy, which aligns with their reported interest in Tigers second baseman Ian Kinsler. The veteran might not even make it to the Brewers via waivers, though, and McCalvy relays that the team has failed in its attempts to add players via claims this month. When the Brewers have claimed players, clubs ahead of them in the waiver pecking order have either beaten them to the punch or the players’ teams pulled them back.

More from the NL:

  • In an effort to put a disastrous 2017 behind them and return to relevance next year, the Giants could make big offseason changes, according to Bob Nightengale of USA Today. Manager Bruce Bochy admitted that the Giants must add to their offense, telling Nightengale, “We really need a big bopper in that lineup, just to take the pressure off everybody else.’’ In response, Nightengale lists free agents-to-be J.D. Martinez and Jay Bruce as potential targets for the outfielder-needy Giants. The club could also explore trades involving the likes of first baseman Brandon Belt and second baseman Joe Panik, relays Nightengale, though moving either or both would not signal a rebuild. “We’ve had a lot of heavy lifts over the years in the 25-year history of this investor group, but we don’t believe we have to have a tear-down,” said CEO Larry Baer. “We’re not fearful, but actually very optimistic we’ll turn this around. Our history shows us that if we have a down year, we bounce back.”
  • The surging Cardinals are now within a game of the Cubs, and they’re largely content with their roster as a result, tweets Jon Morosi of MLB Network. The Redbirds do have interest in trading for a reliever, though, Morosi adds. St. Louis’ bullpen has already been a bright spot this year, as the group entered Thursday seventh in the majors in ERA and 10th in fWAR. Cardinals relievers have been even better in the season’s second half, having posted a 2.83 ERA with 9.99 K/9 against 1.9 BB/9. In any event, if they do look to further bolster their bullpen, MLBTR’s Steve Adams just named some relievers who could change homes this month.
  • Newly promoted slugger Rhys Hoskins will initially play left field for the Phillies, but he’ll shift to his natural position – first base – when Aaron Altherr returns from the disabled list in a few weeks, reports Todd Zolecki of MLB.com. That will relegate first baseman Tommy Joseph to the bench. The Phillies were unable to find a taker for Joseph before the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline, and they’re likely to resume their efforts to move him in the offseason, notes Zolecki. As for other Phillies prospects, neither second baseman Scott Kingery nor shortstop J.P. Crawford are shoo-ins for season-opening spots in the club’s lineup in 2018. The Phillies instead seem content to continue with Cesar Hernandez and Freddy Galvis if they win spring training position battles. GM Matt Klentak doesn’t believe Hernandez or Galvis have reached their peaks yet, so he’s fine with keeping the soon-to-be 28-year-olds around in prominent roles.

MLB Daily Roster Roundup: Frazier, Hicks, Hoskins

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IMPACT ROSTER MOVES

  • LAA: INF/OF Jefry Marte recalled from minors; SP Troy Scribner optioned to minors. | Angels Depth Chart
    • Marte played 3B and hit 6th in Thursday’s game versus a left-handed starter.
    • No word on who replaces Scribner in the rotation. Andrew Heaney is reportedly close to returning from the disabled list.

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FUTURE EXPECTED MOVES

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MINOR TRANSACTIONS 

 

AL Notes: Sale, Hardy, Orioles, Twins

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It’s possible the Red Sox will open contract extension talks with superstar left-hander Chris Sale during the upcoming offseason, writes Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe. Sale has two more option years remaining at a combined $26MM, which is an absolute bargain relative to his production, but Cafardo wonders if the Red Sox should give the 28-year-old a raise in an act of good faith. While Sale certainly belongs in the elite tier of pitchers in terms of salary, the Red Sox may be reluctant to hand out a second David Price-type blockbuster deal that takes a pitcher through his 30s, Cafardo suggests. Ultimately, the Sox may choose to wait another year and then override the 2019 option with an extension if Sale is his typical self next season, notes Cafardo.

More from the American League:

  • Orioles shortstop J.J. Hardy sees the writing on the wall in Baltimore after it acquired his likely replacement, Tim Beckham, at last month’s non-waiver trade deadline, details Rich Dubroff of PressBoxOnline. But Hardy, who has been on the disabled list with a broken wrist since June 18, has still served as a mentor to Beckham. Asked if having Beckham around has been awkward, Hardy replied: “To be honest, no. I’m really, really aware of what’s going on around me, maybe to a fault. I’ve seen it. I know what’s going on. There’s really nothing that I can do. You just have to remember the business part of it.” Hardy struggled mightily this season before the injury, and the O’s are sure to decline his $14MM club option for 2018 in favor of a $2MM buyout, but the soon-to-be 35-year-old isn’t ready to retire. “I’m not saying that I’m done playing. I just know what’s going on in this organization,” said Hardy, who has been an Oriole since 2011.
  • Unlike Hardy, fellow Orioles shortstop Paul Janish is seemingly on the verge of ending his playing career. Janish is likely to join Rice University’s coaching staff next season, reports Mark Berman of FOX 26 (on Twitter). The defensively gifted Janish played at Rice before the Reds chose him in the fifth round of the 2004 draft. The 34-year-old has been with the Baltimore organization since 2015 and has worked almost exclusively at the Triple-A level with the franchise. Janish has only amassed 99 plate appearances with the Orioles, including 28 this year.
  • The Twins’ first-year front office heads, chief baseball officer Derek Falvey and general manager Thad Levine, continue their organizational shakeup, per Mike Berardino of the Pioneer Press (all Twitter links). After firing several scouts last week, Minnesota has now let go of pro scout Greg Orr, who had just joined the team in January, and major league scout Wayne Krivsky. Changes to the Twins’ international scouting department are next on the docket, according to Berardino.

Heyman’s Latest: Yanks, Mets, Darvish, Astros, Twins, Bucs

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The Yankees showed interest in Mets second baseman Neil Walker before the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline, according to FanRag’s Jon Heyman. The crosstown rivals actually had a deal for Walker in place, tweets Mike Puma of Newsday, but it fell through over medical concerns. Walker suffered a partially torn hamstring in mid-June and returned shortly before the deadline. At that point, the Yankees had recently lost second baseman Starlin Castro to a hamstring injury of his own, but he’s now nearing a rehab assignment, per Bryan Hoch of MLB.com (Twitter link). As for Walker, the impending free agent has already cleared revocable waivers this month, making him eligible for a trade, though he’s owed sizable sum (around $6MM) through season’s end.

More from Heyman via a trio of columns, all of which are worth reading in full:

  • The Rangers don’t expect to reunite with Yu Darvish in free agency, suggests Heyman, who adds that they decided a couple days before the non-waiver deadline that they were going to trade the ace. Texas ended up dealing Darvish to the Dodgers right before the clock ran out. The Astros were a rumored Darvish suitor leading up to then, but they didn’t make a real effort to land him, reports Heyman.
  • Speaking of the Astros, their talks with the Tigers regarding Justin Verlander are all but dead, per Heyman, which jibes with a report from USA Today’s Bob Nightengale. “It never got close,” a personal familiar with the discussions told Heyman, and that source expects Verlander to still be in a Tigers uniform when the 2018 season begins. Houston was unwilling to deal any of its best prospects for the expensive, aging Verlander (or any of its other deadline targets), but a Tigers official told Heyman, “You’re trading an icon, you’ve got to get something back.” The Astros have been conservative in terms of making acquisitions this summer, surely because a 71-42 team doesn’t need a ton of help, but GM Jeff Luhnow’s lack of bold moves has led to frustration within the organization, writes Heyman. Ace Dallas Keuchel voiced some displeasure immediately after the club’s quiet deadline (only scuffling lefty Francisco Liriano came aboard), and outfielder Josh Reddick followed suit Thursday in an interview with MLB Network Radio (Twitter link). Astros players were “down in the dumps” after the deadline, Reddick revealed.
  • The Twins reportedly listened to offers for righty Ervin Santana in advance of the deadline, but their interest in dealing the solid mid-rotation starter was minimal, relays Heyman. Santana is under control through next season on fair $13.5MM salaries (his deal also features a $14MM club option for 2019), making it unlikely he’d go unclaimed on waivers this month, notes Heyman.
  • Although GM Sandy Alderson is in the last year of his contract, people around the Mets expect him to return in 2018. There’s less certainty surrounding manager Terry Collins, who’s also in a contract year. Heyman lists Mets bench coach Dickie Scott, Dodgers bench coach Bob Geren (who previously held that post with the Mets) and Athletics third base coach Chip Hale as potential replacements for Collins if he’s not back next year.
  • Meanwhile, both Pirates GM Neal Huntington and skipper Clint Hurdle appear safe. As long as the two want to return in 2018, the Pirates will exercise their options.
  • The White Sox would like to deal veteran hurlers Derek Holland, Miguel Gonzalez and Tyler Clippard, which isn’t surprising considering they’re impending free agents on a rebuilding team. Given the seasons they’re having, Holland and Gonzalez probably won’t carry much appeal to rotation-needy contenders, though Clippard has put up six straight scoreless appearances out of Chicago’s bullpen. Across that seven-inning span, Clippard allowed three hits and three walks, with nine strikeouts. MLBTR’s Steve Adams noted Wednesday that Clippard’s a prime August trade candidate.
  • The Diamondbacks were in on reliever Joe Smith before the Blue Jays dealt him to the Indians, but David Hernandez “seemed to be” Arizona’s top target, Heyman writes. The D-backs ended up acquiring Hernandez from the Angels, making this his second stint in Arizona. Hernandez has only thrown 2 2/3 innings in his return to the club, but they’ve been spotless (no runs, hits or walks allowed).

Phil Hughes Undergoes TOS Revision Surgery

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Twins right-hander Phil Hughes underwent thoracic outlet syndrome revision surgery on Thursday, tweets Mike Berardino of the Pioneer Press. Hughes has been on the 60-day disabled list since July 18 thanks to a recurrence of thoracic outlet syndrome symptoms, but the hope was that he’d avoid having to go under the knife.

This will go down as the second injury-marred campaign in a row for Hughes, who underwent TOS surgery in June 2016. That concluded a rough year for Hughes, who also struggled in his return this season. The 31-year-old tossed 53 2/3 innings before his DL placement and logged a 5.87 ERA, 6.37 K/9 and 2.18 BB/9. And while Hughes has historically had difficulty generating ground balls, he posted a career-low 30.4 percent mark this year.

In all, it has been an ugly stretch for Hughes since what looked like a breakout 2014 campaign for the ex-Yankee. That year, his first with the Twins, Hughes racked up 209 2/3 innings of 3.52 ERA pitching, ranked sixth among starters in FIP (2.65) and set an all-time record with an 11.63 K/BB ratio, striking out 188 hitters and walking only 16. The Twins awarded Hughes an extension after that season, but he has since recorded an unsightly 5.04 ERA in 268 frames. He’s due to make $13.2MM per year through 2019, the last season of his deal.

Troy Tulowitzki Out For Season

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THURSDAY: Tulowitzki will miss the rest of the season, writes Gregor Chisholm of MLB.com. He should be ready for spring training next year.

WEDNESDAY: The Blue Jays announced Wednesday that they’ve selected the contract of right-hander Nick Tepesch and cleared space on the 40-man roster by moving Troy Tulowitzki to the 60-day disabled list. Left-hander Matt Dermody was optioned to Triple-A to clear a spot on the active roster.

As Sportsnet’s Ben Nicholson-Smith points out (via Twitter), Tulo’s initial DL placement came on July 29, so this move makes it extremely unlikely that the shortstop will return to the field in 2017. He’ll technically be eligible to return on Sept. 27, though there will be little in the way of incentive for the Jays to push Tulowitzki by that point.

Whether Tulo returns for the season’s final week or not, 2017 has been a severely disappointing campaign for the five-time All-Star. A strained hamstring cost him more than a month earlier this year, and ligament damage in his right ankle will now cost him at least two months. In the 66 games that he’s been healthy enough to take the field, Tulowitzki has slashed a sub-par .249/.300/.378 with seven homers through 266 plate appearances.

Getting Tulowitzki back to full health in 2018 will be imperative for the Jays, as he’s still owed $20MM in both 2018 and 2019 before earning $14MM in 2020 (plus a $4MM buyout on a 2021 club option). All indications are that despite lackluster results in 2017, the Jays’ aim is to contend in 2018, and a healthy Tulowitzki would go a long way toward that end. While Tulo hasn’t played at his former superstar level since 2013-14, he nonetheless played a well-above-average shortstop and swatted 24 homers in 2016, generating roughly three wins above replacement in the process.

As for Tepesch, the 28-year-old will make his Blue Jays debut as tonight’s starter. Toronto acquired the former Rangers hurler from the Twins in exchange for cash earlier this year, and he’s posted a 3.00 ERA in 12 innings with seven strikeouts against one walk for the Blue Jays’ Triple-A affiliate in Buffalo. Tepesch held a fairly regular spot in the Texas rotation in 2013-14 but has seen only sparse big league action since. All told, he has a 4.69 ERA with 5.5 K/9 against 2.9 BB/9 in 224 2/3 big league innings.

Minor MLB Transactions: 8/10/17

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Thursday’s minor transactions from around baseball:

  • The Mariners announced that they’ve outrighted catcher Tuffy Gosewisch to Triple-A Tacoma. The team designated Gosewisch for assignment after its minor trade with the Rays last weekend. Gosewisch hadn’t suited up for the Mariners since May, a month in which he appeared in 11 games and struggled to an .071/.103/.071 line in 31 plate appearances. The 33-year-old has been better this season in Tacoma, albeit not great, with a .219/.310/.358 performance in 249 PAs. To Gosewisch’s credit, though, he has done a nice job holding would-be base stealers at bay throughout his pro career, and has caught 18 of 52 attempted thieves (35 percent) with the Rainiers this season.
  • Angels outfielder Shane Robinson was also outrighted to Triple-A. He’ll return to Salt Lake, where he has batted .338/.397/.436 in 298 trips to the plate this year, after hitting just .200/.276/.200 in 29 tries with the Angels. They designated him Monday.
  • Blue Jays right-hander Mike Bolsinger was outrighted, too, the club announced. The Jays designated Bolsinger last weekend for the third time this year. With a 6.31 ERA over 41 1/3 innings this season, Bolsinger hasn’t fared well at all in Toronto. The 29-year-old has been excellent with Triple-A Buffalo, though, having notched a 1.60 ERA, 6.95 K/9 and 1.07 BB/9 over 33 2/3 frames.
  • The Indians have re-signed righty Perci Garner to a minor league contract, tweets Jordan Bastian of MLB.com. Cleveland just released Garner, 28, a week ago. Injuries have limited him to 15 2/3 frames between Double-A and Triple-A this year.

Mets To Promote Dominic Smith

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The Mets will promote first base prospect Dominic Smith to the majors on Friday, general manager Sandy Alderson told reporters, including Marc Carig of Newsday (Twitter link). Smith will follow shortstop Amed Rosario as the second well-regarded prospect to join the out-of-contention Mets since the non-waiver trade deadline passed July 31.

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The extended wait for Smith came thanks in part to the Mets’ logjam of veteran position players, but they mitigated that in recent weeks by trading first base options Lucas Duda and Jay Bruce. When they dealt Bruce to the Indians on Wednesday, it became obvious that the 22-year-old Smith would be bound for the majors sooner than later.

Smith is among the game’s top 50 prospects, according to MLB.com and Baseball America, with the former noting in its free scouting report that he has lived up to the hype that accompanied him as a first-round pick in 2013. The lefty-swinger owns “a very advanced approach at the plate” with “outstanding defensive ability,” per MLB.com, which touts Smith as a potential everyday first baseman.

Smith got his first taste of Triple-A action this year and slashed a terrific .330/.386/.519 with 16 home runs in 500 plate appearances. While he had the benefit of playing in both the extremely hitter-friendly setting of Las Vegas and the offense-driven Pacific Coast League, Smith still posted a line 33 percent better than the PCL average, according to FanGraphs’ wRC+ metric. He was similarly effective at lower levels from 2013-16.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Royals Place Trevor Cahill On DL

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The Royals have placed right-hander Trevor Cahill on the disabled list with an impingement in his throwing shoulder and recalled fellow righty Kevin McCarthy from Triple-A, tweets Jeffrey Flanagan of MLB.com.

[RELATED: Updated Royals Depth Chart]

Cahill’s injury is the latest and most significant setback during what has been a difficult Royals tenure for the 29-year-old. Kansas City made an aggressive move to acquire Cahill, Brandon Maurer and Ryan Buchter in a late-July trade with the Padres, but the success Cahill had in San Diego over the season’s first few months hasn’t transferred to his new setting.

Cahill has made three starts with the Royals and failed to exceed 4 2/3 frames in any of those outings. Overall, he has tossed 11 innings since the trade and yielded 10 earned runs on 18 hits and nine walks, with just six strikeouts, helping to contribute to the Royals’ post-deadline skid. The club has dropped seven of nine this month to fall to 57-56, yet it’s still just one game out of a wild-card spot in a jam-packed American League race.

While it’s unclear exactly how long Cahill will be on the shelf, a shoulder impingement typically requires at least a few weeks to recover, and it comes at an especially inopportune time for the free agent-to-be. All the more troubling is that Cahill missed time earlier this season with shoulder issues.

As they await Cahill’s return, the Royals are likely to turn to righty Jake Junis, who’s currently in Triple-A, to grab the open spot in their rotation, per Rustin Dodd of the Kansas City Star (Twitter link).

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