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Submit Your Questions For This Week’s MLBTR Mailbag

By Jeff Todd | August 3, 2017 at 12:25pm CDT

We’re bringing back the MLBTR mailbag for the month of August — which could be a busy one with many potential candidates to be traded. (Read more on how August trades work.) Send your questions on recent swaps, trades that could still take place in the coming month, or any other topic to mlbtrmailbag@gmail.com, and we’ll answer as many as we can.

Remember, you can also pose questions to our writing team during our three weekly live chats — Tuesdays at 2pm CST with Steve Adams, Wednesdays at 6:30pm with Jason Martinez, and Thursdays at 2pm with Jeff Todd.

Mets Notes: Asdrubal, Bruce, Wright

By Steve Adams | August 3, 2017 at 10:04am CDT

Heartened by the improved play of Asdrubal Cabrera at third base and the versatility it adds to his repertoire, the Mets are “warming” to the idea of exercising Cabrera’s 2018 club option, reports Newsday’s Marc Carig. As Carig points out, Cabrera’s $8.5MM option comes with a relatively notable $2MM buyout, so the decision on him effectively comes down to a one-year, $6.5MM call. The Mets had been shopping Cabrera more aggressively earlier in July but actually backed off a bit leading up to the non-waiver deadline, according to Carig. New York is hardly closed off to the idea of trading Cabrera, but with the possibility of receiving only a marginal return in an August deal, the Mets may also simply elect to plan for him to play multiple positions at a reasonable rate in 2018. Cabrera, 32 in November, is hitting .262/.338/.405 with nine homers in 2017.

Jose Bautista On Revocable Trade Waivers

By Steve Adams | August 3, 2017 at 8:59am CDT

The Blue Jays have placed right fielder Jose Bautista on revocable trade waivers, reports MLB Network’s Ken Rosenthal (on Twitter).

As we emphasized yesterday when Justin Verlander was reportedly put through the same process, Bautista’s placement on revocable waivers isn’t at all surprising. Most players will be placed on revocable waivers this month, but the timing of such moves are at least worth noting, as it gives some insight into the point at which a player can be marketed to other clubs (or can no longer be marketed, in the event that they’re claimed and pulled back). Bautista’s waiver period will last 47.5 hours, and his salary makes him a virtual lock to clear. If and when he does clear, the Jays will be able to discuss trades involving Bautista with all 29 other teams, free of restriction.

[Related: How August Trades Work]

Like Verlander, Bautista has full no-trade protection. As such, he could reject not only any trade that the Blue Jays present him but also another team’s claim off of trade waivers (however unlikely that scenario might be).

The 36-year-old Bautista is hitting just .216/.325/.381 with 16 homers thus far in 2017. While he looked every bit of his vintage self in May, slashing a Herculean .317/.412/.644 that month, he’s batted .200 or lower with an OPS of .638 or lower in each of April, June and July. With $5.9MM remaining on this season’s $18MM salary, plus a $500K buyout of a 2018 mutual option still owed to him, Bautista looks immovable unless the Blue Jays are willing to pay down some of the remaining money on that contract.

The Jays may well seek to do that, but Bautista will likely need to show some signs of life at the plate before any club expresses interest. There should be no shortage of corner bats available this month after so few moved off the market prior to the non-waiver trade deadline, so teams on the lookout for such players will have options that are more productive and less expensive than Bautista.

Giants Designate Conor Gillaspie For Assignment

By Steve Adams | August 3, 2017 at 7:47am CDT

Following last night’s game, the Giants designated third baseman Conor Gillaspie for assignment and optioned infielder Jae-gyun Hwang back to Triple-A Sacramento, as Alex Pavlovic of CSN Bay Area writes. In their place, the Giants have recalled infield/outfield prospect Ryder Jones from Sacramento and activated outfielder Jarrett Parker from the disabled list.

Gillaspie, 30, returned to the Giants organization for a second stint in 2016 and hit ..262/.307/.440 in 205 regular-season plate appearance before emerging as a postseason hero and cementing himself in Giants lore. With the Giants and Mets locked into a scoreless Madison Bumgarner vs. Noah Syndergaard pitching duel, it was Gillaspie who eventually broke the deadlock with a dramatic one-out, three-run homer in the ninth inning against New York closer Jeurys Familia. Gillaspie would later have a 4-for-4 showing in the decisive Game 4 of the NLDS, though the Giants nonetheless dropped that game and series to the eventual World Champion Cubs.

This season, however, has been entirely different for Gillaspie. He’s spent roughly two months of the year on the disabled list due to ongoing back spasms and back discomfort, and when he’s been healthy enough to take the field, he’s been unproductive in a limited role. Through 87 plate appearances, he’s hitting .163/.218/.288 with a pair of homers.

Notably, Pavlovic suggests that Jones will get the opportunity to establish himself as an everyday player in the wake of Wednesday’s late-night moves. The 23-year-old former second-round pick (2013) has enjoyed an excellent season in Triple-A, hitting .312/.396/.574 with 13 homers, 19 doubles and a pair of triples through 273 plate appearances. He didn’t get a lengthy look in his initial audition with the Giants earlier in 2017, but it seems that San Francisco decision-makers are prepared to see what they have on their hands in Jones as they seek to evaluate their needs for the 2018 campaign.

Jones also has experience in the outfield corners and at first base, so he could settle in as a versatile semi-regular, even if Christian Arroyo returns in 2018 and lays claim to the third base role. However, Pavlovic explains that Arroyo, like fellow prospects Austin Slater and Tyler Beede, may not make it back to the field at all in 2017 due to injury. Arroyo suffered a fractured hand when he was hit by a pitch in Triple-A earlier this month.

Central Notes: Twins, Lopez, Winker, Reds

By Jeff Todd and Steve Adams | August 2, 2017 at 11:19pm CDT

A pair of Twins pitchers are set to resume throwing tomorrow, according to statements from each via Twitter. Righty Trevor May, who is contributing at MLBTR while working back from Tommy John surgery, says he will begin his march back in earnest. That drew a reply from southpaw Hector Santiago, who says he’ll do the same; he has been out for nearly a month with what the team called upper thoracic back pain and discomfort. There’s no expectation that May will return during the 2017 season, as his procedure took place this March. But Santiago conceivably could. The 29-year-old has every incentive to do just that, as he’s slated to hit the market this fall and would surely like a chance to improve upon the subpar results he has produced during his time in Minnesota.

More from the game’s Central divisions…

While the Twins had some other possible trade chips to move, the team never came close to making any deals beyond those it completed, assistant GM Rob Antony tells Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN (Twitter link). There was little in the way of rumors surrounding shorter-term assets like Ervin Santana, Brian Dozier or Eduardo Escobar prior to the deadline, so perhaps the team’s preference was simply to engage with other clubs on impending free agents such as Jaime Garcia and Brandon Kintzler. Speculatively speaking, righty Matt Belisle could be a name to watch in August. He’s playing on an eminently affordable one-year, $2.05MM deal and rebounded from an awful month of May with a solid June and a scoreless 12 2/3 frames (with a 13-to-2 K/BB ratio) in July.
White Sox prospect Reynaldo Lopez, acquired in the offseason Adam Eaton trade, is forcing his way into the team’s big league plans, general manager Rick Hahn tells Dan Hayes of CSN Chicago. “He’s forcing the issue,” said Hahn. “He’s had several starts in a row that have been very impressive.” Indeed, Lopez has turned in a 2.16 ERA with a 54-to-11 K/BB ratio in his past 41 2/3 innings. Hahn also offered praise for Lucas Giolito’s recent work, though those numbers are skewed by a pair of drubbings in an otherwise solid run of 11 starts. Lopez recently appeared on the latest installment of Jason Martinez’s “Knocking Down the Door” series here at MLBTR and seems to be nearing his first Major League look with the ChiSox.
Reds outfield prospect Jesse Winker, who was recalled from Triple-A this week, is in line for regular playing time in the Majors now, per Zach Buchanan of the Cincinnati Enquirer (Twitter link). The Reds tabbed Winker with the 49th overall pick in the 2012 draft, and he’s been considered among the game’s top 100 or so prospects for much of the past three years. Winker had a cup of coffee earlier this season but returned to Triple-A in short order, where he ultimately put together a .314/.395/.408 showing. Wrist injuries have led to a power outage for Winker over the past two seasons, but he looks to be regaining some of the pop he showed from 2013-15, as he’s homered in consecutive games for the Reds (including tonight).
Buchanan also provides some updates on a trio of injured Reds players in a full column. Outfielder Scott Schebler, whose absence has helped create an opening for Winker, was diagnosed with a bruised rotator cuff following an MRI exam. He’s out for at least the next two to three weeks, per Buchanan. Injured righty Scott Feldman, meanwhile, threw a three-inning simulated game today, though the timeline on his return to the Majors isn’t yet clear. And second base prospect Dilson Herrera, who had a bone spur removed from his shoulder recently, will be cleared to begin throwing in three to four months. Buchanan’s column has more quotes and context from manager Bryan Price and Reds team doctor Timothy Kremchek, so Reds fans should take a look for more details.

AL West Notes: Chavez, Smyly, Beltre, Fowler

By Steve Adams | August 2, 2017 at 8:39pm CDT

The Angels are moving right-hander Jesse Chavez from the rotation to the bullpen, reports Pedro Moura of the Los Angeles Times (Twitter links). That in and of itself is somewhat noteworthy, but the timing of the move is more interesting. As Moura points out, Chavez is one start away from unlocking a significant boost in his contract’s incentives package and could earn as much as $1.7MM between now and season’s end. While the timing of the move probably won’t sit well with Chavez, he certainly hasn’t helped his own cause as of late. The 33-year-old has allowed 25 runs on 40 hits and 16 walks over his past 32 2/3 innings, making for a 6.89 ERA in his past seven starts. Right-hander Troy Scribner will step into the rotation in place of Chavez, according to Moura.

A few more notes from the division…

The Mariners acquired Drew Smyly this past offseason in hopes of a breakout over the course of his remaining two years of control, but last month’s unfortunate diagnosis of a torn ulnar collateral ligament means he may not throw a single regular-season pitch for the Mariners. Smyly is almost certain to be non-tendered this winter due to his Tommy John operation, but manager Scott Servais tells Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times that he hopes the front office will look to retain Smyly (presumably on a more affordable deal) so that he can eventually impact the rotation down the line. “I still would love to have him going forward,” said Servais. “Those are deals that Jerry (Dipoto) and his agent have to work out. But I still think there’s a very good fit for him here. … I did say to [Smyly], ‘I’d like to see what you could do pitching in Seattle for a year,’ and he smiled and said, ‘I’d like to see it too.'”
Adrian Beltre didn’t sugarcoat his words in telling the media that he wasn’t pleased with the Rangers’ trade of Yu Darvish, writes Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News. Beltre acknowledged that he understands the business side of the game but still hadn’t given up on the 2017 season when Texas flipped its ace to the Dodgers in exchange for three prospects. The future Hall of Famer, playing at the age of 39, also made clear that he’s not interested in playing for a rebuilding club, if that’s the direction the Rangers go. “At this stage of my career, I’m not here for a rebuild,” said Beltre. “But I don’t think it will be. I think there is a possibility of this team playing better this year.” Beltre said a rebuild would “absolutely” change his mind about wanting to remain in Texas, though GM Jon Daniels downplayed the notion that such a path is even under consideration. Asked if the Darvish trade was the onset of a lengthier rebuild, Daniels replied: “I don’t look at it that way at all.”
Though he won’t play again this season due to the freak knee injury he suffered in his MLB debut with the Yankees, Dustin Fowler is expected to compete for the Athletics’ Opening Day center field spot in 2018, writes John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle. Manager Bob Melvin offered strong praise for the type of player he hopes to be getting in the 22-year-old Fowler. “He looks to be exactly the type of athlete we’re looking for,” said the skipper. “We need to get a little bit more athletic within our system. He’s a good start for that, and it looks like [Jorge] Mateo is as well.” Both Fowler and Mateo were acquired (alongside righty James Kaprielian) in Monday’s Sonny Gray blockbuster.

Minor MLB Transactions: 8/2/17

By Jeff Todd | August 2, 2017 at 7:14pm CDT

We’ll use this post to track the day’s minor moves…

Mets left-hander Josh Edgin, who was designated for assignment in advance of the non-waiver trade deadline, has cleared waivers and been assigned outright to Triple-A Las Vegas, tweets James Wagner of the New York Times. The 30-year-old southpaw missed the 2015 season due to Tommy John surgery and returned to throw 10 1/3 innings in the Majors for the Mets last season. He’s posted a 3.65 ERA through his first 37 frames in 2017, but that seemingly solid mark came with an uninspiring 6.6 K/9 and 4.4 BB/9. He’s also surrendered a .280/.374/.400 line to opposing left-handed batters, which assuredly didn’t help his cause.

Earlier Moves

The Padres have released righty Logan Bawcom, per Ken Rosenthal of MLB Network (via Twitter). While the 28-year-old has yet to earn a promotion — with San Diego or in his prior stints with the Dodgers and Mariners organizations — he once held a 40-man spot in Seattle and has at times produced interesting results in the upper minors. Thus far this year, he carries a 2.70 ERA with 9.1 K/9 against 4.2 BB/9 in his 53 1/3 innings over 36 appearances at Triple-A El Paso. It seems, then, that this move was made to allow Bawcom to seek an opportunity with another organization; Rosenthal notes that he’s expected land elsewhere in the next day or two.

MLBTR Chat Transcript

By Jason Martinez | August 2, 2017 at 6:29pm CDT

Click here to view the transcript for MLBTR Chat With Jason Martinez: August 2, 2017

8 Impending Free Agent Hitters With Slipping Stock

By Connor Byrne | August 2, 2017 at 5:50pm CDT

Major League Baseball’s 2017 non-waiver trade deadline passed this week, which means we’re unlikely to see a significant amount of high-profile players change hands from now through season’s end. The current campaign is down to its final three months, though, so the offseason and its action-packed free agent period are on the horizon. Unfortunately for many impending free agents, 2017 has been a struggle. Here, we’ll highlight several established hitters who are in the midst of mediocre or worse platform seasons.

Carlos Gonzalez, RF, Rockies | Salary: $20MM

Raise your hand if you expected the well-regarded CarGo to rank last among position players in fWAR at the outset of August. It’s hard to believe, but at minus-1.8, no one has been less valuable than Gonzalez this season. A career .291/.347/.521 hitter entering 2017 (albeit with help from Coors Field), Gonzalez has slumped to an unfathomable .228/.301/.333 line through 349 plate appearances this year.

Gonzalez’s plate discipline numbers look normal, but his ground-ball rate is at a personal-worst 51.7 percent (up from a career 45.8 percent mark) and his power has abandoned him. The lefty-swinger has swatted between 22 and 40 home runs six times since 2010, his first full season, yet has left the yard on just six occasions this year and posted a horrid .109 ISO – representing nearly a 100-point drop-off from his 2016 figure (.207). Statcast data doesn’t paint an optimistic picture of the 31-year-old Gonzalez’s performance, either, as Baseball Savant shows his expected weighted on-base average (.282) aligns with his subpar wOBA (.287).

Jose Bautista, RF, Blue Jays | Salary: $18MM

Technically, Bautista isn’t an impending free agent, but he’ll reach the open market when – not if – the Blue Jays decline their half of his $17MM mutual option for 2018. Before re-signing with Toronto last January, Bautista surprisingly went without a team for two-plus months. The Jays legend’s offensive output went in the wrong direction in 2016, which somewhat explained his difficulty in free agency. However, Bautista was still an above-average producer at the plate, and as sabermetrician Tom Tango tweeted in January, there were reasons to expect a revival this year. Instead, though, Bautista has continued going backward during his age-36 campaign, closely resembling the lackluster form he showed prior to his stunning breakout in 2010.

An offensive marvel in his heyday, Bautista has batted a paltry .216/.326/.383 in 466 trips to the plate this season, thanks in part to increasing swing-and-miss tendencies. Bautista’s strikeout percentage (23.4) is the highest of his career, and both his contact and swinging-strike rates are at their lowest since his 96-PA debut in 2004. Bautista’s underwhelming offense, poor numbers in the outfield (minus-10 defensive runs saved, minus-2.2 Ultimate Zone Rating) and dreadful work on the base paths each represent serious red flags. All that considered, the former superstar looks like an over-the-hill player who’s in for a far less successful return trip to the market than even last winter’s tepid showing.

Carlos Beltran, DH, Astros | Salary: $16MM

The Astros have easily been the top team in the American League throughout the season, so Beltran’s woes have flown under the radar nationally. But the big-money offseason pickup and potential Hall of Famer has looked his age at the plate (40), having hit .244/.297/.423 in 367 PAs during his second stint with the Astros. Further, Beltran’s xwOBA sits at a measly .280 – one point above light-hitting Angels outfielder Ben Revere’s, to cite one name in his company – which doesn’t indicate his results have been the product of unluckiness. While it’s unknown if Beltran will look to continue his career past 2017, another high-paying pact should be out of the question if he does.

Matt Holliday, DH, Yankees | Salary: $13MM

This is the second consecutive year in which Holliday has logged so-so offensive results, which is all the more concerning when you consider the ex-outfielder’s sole function nowadays is to help a team with his bat. Of course, it’s worth noting that the former Cardinal was a boon to the Yankees’ offense through the first few months of this year. Holliday then went on the disabled list June 28 with a viral infection and has recorded miserable numbers since returning in mid-July. Pre-illness, the 37-year-old gave the Yankees a stellar .262/.366/.511 line and was seemingly on pace to reel in another nice offseason contract. Holliday’s now at an unspectacular .235/.326/.441 in 353 PAs – though his .342 xwOBA (compared to a .329 wOBA) is encouraging – and looking like someone whose next payday won’t approach the one New York gave him last winter.

Carlos Santana, 1B, Indians | Salary: $12MM

After scuffling during the first few months of the season, the switch-hitting Santana has raked over the past several weeks and boosted his line to a respectable .249/.350/.442 in 443 PAs. One problem for his earning power, however, is that fellow soon-to-be free agent first basemen Eric Hosmer, Logan Morrison, Yonder Alonso and Lucas Duda have each enjoyed markedly better years than Santana. As such, those players could negatively affect Santana’s market as he seeks a multiyear contract in the offseason. A lack of demand for defensively limited sluggers might also prove to be a hindrance for him and others, as it was for Santana-esque players last winter. So, while Santana has been good and durable since he debuted in 2010, the 31-year-old may be in for a letdown when he gets to free agency.

Matt Wieters, C, Nationals | Salary: $10.5MM

Wieters and Bautista could have empathized with each other last winter during their drawn-out unemployment periods. Wieters’ lasted several weeks longer than Bautista’s, though, as the longtime Oriole didn’t land a contract until the end of February. Fortunately for Wieters, agent Scott Boras was able to secure a $10.5MM player option for 2018 in the deal, meaning the catcher can still rake in a sizable sum next season. Judging by the 31-year-old’s .242/.291/.369 line through 323 PAs, he’d be wise to exercise that option in lieu of pressing his luck again in free agency. This is the second straight uninspired season at the plate for the switch-hitting Wieters, whose bat has never really lived up to the immense hype it generated when he was a prospect. As a defender, Baseball Prospectus has pegged Wieters as a minus framer for the past several years, but he’s now suffering through his worst season in that facet. Considering he’s oversized for his position, the 6-foot-5 Wieters may have trouble turning it around in the framing department as he continues aging, as FanGraphs’ Travis Sawchik wrote last week.

Todd Frazier, 3B, Yankees | Salary: $7.5MM

Admittedly, whether Frazier’s stock has dipped much since the start of the season is up for debate. But if the hope was that he’d return to his prior form — from 2012-15, Frazier batted a combined .258/.322/.465 and averaged 3.7 fWAR per year for the Reds — then it surely qualifies. Frazier’s .208/.331/.413 line is exactly league average, per wRC+, and has not really deviated in bottom-line productivity from last year’s .225/.302/.464 (102 wRC+). With 17 homers and a .208 ISO, Frazier’s power has dropped since last season’s 40-HR, .239-ISO outburst. At the same time, he’s running what’s easily a career-high walk rate (13.9 percent), thanks to personal-best chase and swinging-strike rates, and has a ridiculously low batting average on balls in play (.218) that should increase. In the field, Frazier, 31, has combined for five DRS and a 1.0 UZR while manning the hot corner for the White Sox and Yankees. Frazier’s performance this season has been acceptable, then, though he’s clearly not as effective as he was during his days in Cincinnati.

Jonathan Lucroy, C, Rockies | Salary: $5.25MM

Lucroy, one of Gonzalez’s newest teammates, is also in the throes of a shocking and precipitous decline. At the 2016 non-waiver deadline, both the Rangers and Indians agreed that the then-Brewer was worth a major return. The Rangers ultimately emerged with Lucroy, who chose not to waive his no-trade clause for Cleveland, acquiring him as part of a deal that cost them highly touted outfield prospect Lewis Brinson. Giving up Brinson for more than a year of control over the multi-talented Lucroy was understandable at the time, and he kept hitting after the trade last year, but the gamble hasn’t paid off in 2017 for Texas general manager Jon Daniels.

Lucroy was among Texas’ worst regulars this season before the sub-.500 club shipped him to the Rockies last week for a player to be named later. All told, Lucroy batted a meager .242/.297/.338 in 308 PAs and saw his ISO plummet from .208 during his 24-homer 2016 to .096 during a four-HR year with the Rangers. Alarmingly, Lucroy’s ground-ball rate has spiked from 37.2 percent to 56.2 percent since 2016, while his line drive rate has fallen from 24.2 percent to 17.1 percent. The 31-year-old’s problems also extend beyond the offensive side: The once-celebrated pitch framer ranks last in that category this season, per Baseball Prospectus and StatCorner.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Mariners Outright Evan Marshall

By Steve Adams | August 2, 2017 at 5:48pm CDT

The Mariners activated right-hander Evan Marshall from the 60-day disabled list and sent him outright to Triple-A Tacoma on Wednesday, Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times tweets.

Marshall, 27, was claimed off waivers out of the Diamondbacks organization back in early April and appeared in six games for the Mariners this season before landing on the shelf for a significant period of time due to a hamstring injury. In his 7 2/3 frames with Seattle this season, he surrendered eight runs on a dozen hits and five walks with four strikeouts.

It’s now been three years since Marshall enjoyed prolonged success in the Majors. As a 24-year-old rookie back in 2014, he worked 49 1/3 innings out of the Arizona bullpen and averaged a hearty 9.9 K/9 against 3.1 BB/9 with a sensational 60.7 percent ground-ball rate. Since that time, though, Marshall has just 36 1/3 Major League innings to his credit with a 7.93 earned run average. His ground-ball and strikeout rates have each plummeted since that promising rookie showing, and his walk rate has gone in the opposite direction as well.

Marshall, who has a career 4.30 ERA in parts of five Triple-A seasons, will look to get back on track in Triple-A with the hopes of getting another crack in the Majors later this year.

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