Headlines

Go To Pro Hockey Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

Jacob deGrom Shut Down For Season, Likely To Undergo Right Elbow Surgery

By | at

The Mets have shut down Jacob deGrom for the remainder of the 2016 season, GM Sandy Alderson told reporters (including MLB.com’s Barry W. Bloom).  DeGrom will likely undergo surgery on his right ulnar nerve, though Alderson didn’t consider the surgery to be too serious in nature (via ESPN.com’s Adam Rubin).

DeGrom has been bothered by forearm and elbow soreness for the last two weeks and hasn’t pitched since September 1.  He was tentatively scheduled to start tomorrow and went through a successful bullpen session on Friday, though after deGrom felt pain while shagging fly balls, it isn’t any surprise that the club chose to shut down the 28-year-old.  Since surgery isn’t confirmed yet, Alderson didn’t provide any timeline, though Rubin notes that the general recovery period seems to range from three to six months.

Needless to say, losing deGrom is a big blow to the Mets’ postseason chances.  The right-hander has continued to post good results in his third MLB season, with a 3.04 ERA, 8.7 K/9, 2.19 BB/9 and 45.6% grounder rate over 148 innings.  DeGrom had suffered a loss of velocity over his last couple of starts, which is quite likely related to his injury.

The Mets roster has been plagued by injuries to major names all season, and yet the team is still hanging steady in the postseason race, beginning the day with a two-game lead on the Cardinals for the final NL wild card slot.  The Mets have won nine of their last 12 games thanks to unexpected contributors like young righties Robert Gsellman and Seth Lugo, who may now be tasked with playoff starts should New York get past the wild card game.  Steven Matz could possibly still be a factor, though he is facing his own health problems in the form of a shoulder injury and bone spurs in his elbow.

Royals Designate Chien-Ming Wang For Assignment, Activate Jason Vargas

By | at

The Royals have designated Chien-Ming Wang for assignment, the team announced via Twitter.  The move clears roster space for Jason Vargas, who was activated from the disabled list to start tonight’s game.

[Updated Royals roster at Roster Resource]

Wang was himself on the DL recovering from biceps tendinitis.  Before being sidelined at the end of August, Wang posted a 4.22 ERA, 5.1 K/9, 1.67 K/BB rate and 49.4% ground ball rate over 53 1/3 relief innings for K.C. this season.  It was Wang’s first taste of big league action since 2013, as he spent the previous two seasons bouncing around the minors with the Reds, White Sox, Braves and Mariners.  Never a big strikeout pitcher even his heyday as a starter with the Yankees, Wang allowed too much contact in the form of hits and homers over the last several years, though his modest numbers in those categories this season (1.01 HR/9, 10.1 H/9) still represented some improvement.  Wang also averaged 91.1 mph on his fastball, his highest velocity since 2009.

The 36-year-old signed a minor league deal with the Royals last season that guaranteed him a $1MM salary if he cracked the Major League roster.  Another $250K was reportedly available for Wang to earn via relief appearance bonuses, and one would think he likely surpassed or came awfully close to unlocking those bonuses given his substantial workload.

Vargas is making his first start since undergoing Tommy John surgery in July 2015.  Since signing a four-year, $32MM deal with Kansas City prior to the 2014 season, Vargas has a 3.76 ERA, 2.92 K/BB rate and 6.1 K/9 over 230 innings as a Royal.

No Extension Talks Between Rockies, Carlos Gonzalez

By | at

The Rockies haven’t been in contact with Carlos Gonzalez about a contract extension, the outfielder told Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post.  Gonzalez noted that he is interested in exploring his options as a free agent following the 2017 season, though it’s worth noting that he told Saunders last week that he is still open to the idea of an extension to remain with the Rockies.  Earlier this summer, Gonzalez denied asking for a trade and expressed excitement over the idea of remaining in Colorado to play alongside the young players who could lead the Rockies back into contention.

Almost all of the chatter about Gonzalez’s future in recent years has been centered around a possible trade, particularly after the Rockies dealt another high-priced cornerstone star in Troy Tulowitzki in 2015.  Gonzalez’s original extension (the seven-year, $80MM pact that runs through 2017) with the team raised quite a few eyebrows at the time, though it would be even more of a surprise if he re-upped for another long-term deal with the Rockies.  One would think the Rockies would have to show some significant progress on the field in 2017 to entice Gonzalez to stay, unless the team pays a premium to extend him this offseason and keep him from reaching the open market.

Overpaying to lock up a player with a significant injury history for his age-32 season and beyond may not be a great idea for a team with a limited budget like Colorado.  Elsewhere in Saunders’ mailbag piece, however, he floats the idea of the Rockies re-signing Gonzalez and then using him as a first baseman (with occasional outfield work).  The move would help keep Gonzalez healthy while also freeing up a crowded Colorado outfield situation that also includes Charlie Blackmon, David Dahl and Gerardo Parra.

Gonzalez rebounded from several injury-plagued seasons to deliver healthy and very productive campaigns in both 2015 and 2016, and he looks to be one of the top hitters available in the 2017-18 free agent class.  J.D. Martinez leads the market, though other available bats (Eric Hosmer, Lorenzo Cain, Mike Moustakas and potentially Justin Upton if he opts out of his Tigers contract) carry some health question marks or lack Gonzalez’s strong track record.  The market could shift if Jose Altuve, Ian Kinsler or Logan Forsythe become available, though all seem like no-brainers to have their club options exercised.

NL West Notes: Jansen, Drury, Rockies

By | at

Here’s the latest from around the NL West…

  • Dodgers closer Kenley Jansen is dealing with some wrist stiffness but he doesn’t intend to miss any time with the minor injury, MLB.com’s Ken Gurnick writes.  Jansen was wearing a removable brace on his right wrist in the clubhouse after last night’s game, and he said the stiffness fades when he’s warmed up and pitching but is present before and after outings.  He dismissed the issue as nothing serious, though any type of arm problem is probably worth noting given Jansen’s importance to the Dodgers’ postseason hopes and his pending free agency this winter.
  • Diamondbacks GM Dave Stewart tells Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic that “he couldn’t see himself” trading Brandon Drury this offseason, though Piecoro thinks Drury could be a very interesting trade chip for the Snakes.  Drury is blocked at third base by Jake Lamb, though the D’Backs could continue to use Drury in a super-utility role all over the diamond, including spelling Lamb against some left-handed pitching.  The 24-year-old Drury is hitting an impressive .280/.326/.450 with 14 homers over 438 PA in his rookie season and if Arizona did trade him, it would only be for a high price.  For instance, John Harper of the New York Daily News speculated earlier this summer that if the Mets asked about Drury, the D’Backs would want someone like Zack Wheeler back in return.  (Harper’s item came prior to the news of Wheeler’s subsequent arm problems.)  Piecoro also notes that Drury’s status as a trade candidate could also vary greatly if the Diamondbacks replace Stewart and other members of the front office.
  • In the latest edition of the On The Rox podcast, Patrick Saunders and Jeff Bailey of the Denver Post discuss several Rockies-related topics, including what the team should do this offseason to sustain what Saunders feels is a slim window to contend.  Other discussion points include the Rockies’ ill-fated bullpen acquisitions last winter, Walt Weiss’ future in Colorado and the possibility of Bud Black as a managerial candidate.

Padres Front Office Split On A.J. Preller

By | at

Major League Baseball’s 30-day suspension of Padres general manager A.J. Preller for a failure to disclose medical information in the Drew Pomeranz/Anderson Espinoza trade has led to controversy both around the league and in San Diego’s front office.  According to ESPN’s Buster Olney (subscription required), “there is a split of opinion” within Padres upper management about Preller.  Owner Peter Seidler and team president/CEO Mike Dee both strongly support Preller, while executive chairman Ron Fowler supports Preller publicly but is “asking hard questions about him behind the scenes.”

Questions arose about Preller’s job security in the wake of the suspension, though a club official told USA Today’s Bob Nightengale that Preller wouldn’t face any further punishment from the Padres, nor was he in danger of being fired.  Nonetheless, it isn’t surprising that the Padres are taking some degree of self-analysis of their baseball operations department, given how (as Olney puts it), “this situation has caused enormous tension and concern” within the club.

Fowler made headlines earlier this summer when he described the Padres’ play as “very embarrassing” during a radio interview.  Fowler took responsibility on behalf of management for the Padres’ struggles in recent years, assigning a share of the blame to Preller while also praising him at the same time.  “I don’t think there’s a brighter GM out there. I don’t think anyone works harder, but the results are not there, and I think A.J. would be the first one to tell you that,” Fowler said.

It would be unusual for a team to fire a GM after slightly more than two years on the job, though it could be argued that little has been normal about Preller’s entire tenure in San Diego, ranging from the payroll splurge in the 2014-15 offseason, to the lack of movement at the 2015 trade deadline to his current suspension.  As Fowler noted during his interview, however, Preller was hired in part because of his ability to acquire young talent — the Padres had a wide array of picks in last June’s amateur draft and they have already far exceeded their international spending limits to land several highly-touted names from this year’s international class.

Of course, it was the acquisition of Espinoza (one of the game’s top pitching prospects) that eventually led to Preller’s suspension.  Several executives and evaluators from around baseball, however, tell Olney that the punishment was insufficient.  One evaluator said that despite the controversy, Preller still “won” because at the end of the day, Espinoza is still a Padre.  As both Olney and Fangraphs’ Dave Cameron observed, there appears to be little explanation for the Padres’ system of internal medical records for their own use and separate records to be shared with other teams unless there was some intentional gamesmanship at play.  “The Padres basically got told to stop reaching into the cookie jar while being allowed to continue eating the cookie they were already holding,” Cameron writes.

Minor MLB Transactions: 9/17/16

By | at

Here are the latest minor moves from around baseball…

  • The Rangers outrighted left-hander Michael Roth to Triple-A after he accepted the assignment, club executive VP of communications John Blake tweets.  Roth was designated for assignment earlier this week.  The southpaw appeared in just one game for the Rangers this season (allowing six ER over 3 2/3 relief innings) while posting a 2.97 ERA, 2.24 K/BB rate and 5.8 K/9 over 145 1/3 innings at Triple-A, with 23 of his 28 outings coming as a starter.
  • The Braves selected the contracts of utilityman Emilio Bonifacio and third baseman Rio Ruiz from Triple-A Gwinnett, the team announced.  Catcher A.J. Pierzynski and righty Rob Whalen were shifted to the 60-day DL in corresponding moves to create roster space.  Bonifacio was outrighted off Atlanta’s 40-man roster earlier this summer, and the veteran has appeared in just 15 games for the Braves in 2016.  Ruiz, 22, is getting his first taste of the majors after hitting .271/.355/.400 with 10 homers and 24 doubles over 533 Triple-A plate appearances this season.  MLB.com ranked Ruiz as the 15th-best prospect in the Braves’ system.

No Extension Talks Currently Planned Between Orioles, Zach Britton

By | at

Scott Boras, agent for star Orioles closer Zach Britton, doesn’t think the club will be looking to pursue an extension with his client in the near future, Dan Connolly of BaltimoreBaseball.com reports.  Britton has two more years of arbitration eligibility before he hits free agency in the 2018-2019 offseason.

With so much team control remaining, it perhaps isn’t surprising that the O’s are prioritizing other business before getting around to a long-term deal with Britton.  Extending Britton now would also be something of a buy-high move given that the closer is in the midst of perhaps his most dominating season yet — an 0.60 ERA, 9.8 K/9 and 3.57 K/BB rate over 60 1/3 innings, plus a stunning 80.4% ground ball rate and a career-best 96.3 mph average fastball velocity.  Britton is a perfect 44-for-44 in save opportunities in 2016.

Needless to say, Britton will be getting a healthy raise in his third year of arbitration eligibility.  Britton and the O’s avoided arbitration in his first two arb years by agreeing to salaries of $3.2MM for 2015 and $6.75MM for this season.  As a Super Two player, Britton is on track for yet another big arbitration payday following the 2017 campaign; if he continues on his current pace, he could be looking at a 2017 salary in the neighborhood of $12-13MM.

Having already achieved quite a bit of financial security, Britton has some negotiating leverage on his side.  It could also help he (and Boras) in waiting to discuss an extension until after this offseason, as Aroldis Chapman and Kenley Jansen are poised to set new standards for reliever contracts.

From Baltimore’s perspective, there are some arguments for exploring an extension now.  Locking Britton up to even a two-year deal through his remaining arb years would get the team some cost certainty.  The Orioles have traditionally been wary about signing pitchers to a significant multi-year deals, though they’re more comfortable doing so when it’s an arm they’re already familiar with (i.e. Darren O’Day’s four-year contract last winter).  Britton also doesn’t carry a significant health risk; as MLBTR contributor Bradley Woodrum outlined in his study of Tommy John injuries earlier this year, there is a well below-average chance Britton will eventually require TJ surgery.

Injury Notes: Hamilton, Reed, De La Rosa, Anderson, Kazmir, Oh, Marte

By | at

The Reds announced this morning that outfielder Billy Hamilton and left-hander Cody Reed have been placed on the disabled list due to a left oblique injury and lower back spasm, respectively. The moves are retroactive to Sept. 5, but given the fact that rosters are currently expanded, the DL placements likely end the season for the pair of promising young talents. Hamilton, who turned 26 a week ago, enjoyed what has been his best overall season at the Major League level in 2016, hitting .260/.321/.343 in 460 plate appearances. While those numbers certainly don’t stand out, especially not when considering Hamilton’s home park, the .321 OBP is a career-best and represents a marked step forward for a player that posted just a .285 on-base percentage from 2014-15. Of course, he’s also a top-flight defender (13 runs above average per both Defensive Runs Saved and Ultimate Zone Rating) and the game’s best baserunner (he easily leads the league with 12.9 runs above average on the basepaths, per Fangraphs). Though he’s dealt with some bumps and bruises this year, things are pointing up for Hamilton as he reaches arbitration eligibility this fall. As for the 23-year-old Reed, his debut campaign wasn’t quite what he might’ve hoped. He did manager to strike out 8.1 batters per nine innings, against 3.6 walks, but compiled only a 7.36 ERA over 47 2/3 frames in ten starts. It remains to be seen whether he’ll be able to earn a rotation spot out of camp for 2017.

Here are some more injury notes from around the game:

  • It had seemed that Diamondbacks righty Rubby De La Rosa would be shut down for the year due to ongoing elbow soreness, but that may no longer be the case. As Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic tweets, manager Chip Hale says there’s still a chance that De La Rosa could return at the tail end of 2016. He’ll throw side sessions and perhaps even sim games while the team assesses both the health of his elbow and his command, per the skipper. “Maybe the last week of the season we get him in a game to see what he looks like,” said Hale.
  • The Dodgers put Brett Anderson on the hill tonight in the Triple-A playoffs and he provided five solid frames, as MLB.com’s Ken Gurnick reports. He is working back from a blister, and showed well with five strikeouts and zero free passes while allowing just one run on three hits. With the victory, Triple-A Oklahoma City stayed alive, meaning that fellow southpaw Scott Kazmir will take his own turn at a rehab outing, per Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register (via Twitter). Kazmir has been battling thoracic spinal inflammation, and his timeline has remained murky. It’ll be interesting to see whether either or both starters play a role down the stretch or in the postseason for the Dodgers. Kazmir is likely not to opt out of his contract regardless, but Anderson will be looking to show that he’s at full health entering another run at free agency. Still just 28 years of age, back issues have limited Anderson to just a pair of major league outings thus far — neither of which went well at all.
  • Cardinals closer Seung-hwan Oh is back in action after resting a groin injury, MLB.com’s Jenifer Langosch tweets. Oh has been a tremendous find for St. Louis, providing 72 1/3 innings of 1.87 ERA ball on the year, and his return will be critical with just two weeks to go. His 2017 option is already guaranteed — he has accumulated exactly the thirty games finished that he needed — but the team was already surely excited to pick it up at just $2.75MM.
  • The Pirates are still awaiting the return of outfielder Starling Marte, who has dealt with back spasms. Skipper Clint Hurdle says that he believes Marte will be ready to go tomorrow, as Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review tweets. Unfortunately, it’s likely too late for the talented outfielder to impact the team’s postseason chances; Pittsburgh sat 5.5 games out of Wild Card position entering play today. The multi-talented 27-year-old has turned in another high-quality campaign, with a .311/.362/.457 batting line, nine home runs, and 47 steals, and his extension continues to look like an outstanding investment.

J.P. Crawford Undergoes Knee Surgery; Aaron Nola Nearing Attempt To Throw

By | at

There were some notable reports on two important Phillies players today. Highly-touted shortstop prospect J.P. Crawford underwent knee surgery recently, MLB.com’s Todd Zolecki reports on Twitter. And the club is nearing a critical phase of Aaron Nola’s recovery from an elbow injury, as Zolecki further reports.

Crawford’s procedure was to remove a loose body from his knee. It’ll require a four-week resting period, but doesn’t seem likely to pose any limitations heading into the 2017 season. A consensus top-ten league-wide prospect, Crawford didn’t quite make it to the majors this year but figures to get his shot at some point next season.

Following a solid but hardly overwhelming showing at Double-A, the 21-year-old Crawford earned a promotion to the highest level of the minors. He stalled out there, however, posting only a .244/.328/.318 batting line with four home runs and seven stolen bases in eleven attempts. While he continued to show strong plate discipline, there’s obviously a fair bit of work remaining.

As for Nola, there’s more concern but also less clarity. Though GM Matt Klentak says that the prized righty is “on track,” he still has yet to test his elbow since undergoing a platelet-rich plasma treatment. Nola will likely attempt to throw within the next week or two, says Klentak, with the results of that effort expected to play a major role in assessing his near-term outlook, which the GM says “remains to be seen.”

“The idea is before he goes into his offseason, he’s been up on the mound, he’s thrown to hitters and everything feels good and he goes into his offseason feeling very confident,” said Klentak. “We’re hopeful we’ll be able to time that with instructional league, but if it stretches beyond that, we’ll have to figure it out.”

Though Nola only ended up with a 4.78 ERA over his 111 innings on the year before he was shut down, there were plenty of signs of promise. He racked up 9.8 K/9 against just 2.4 BB/9 along with a 55.2% groundball rate. And ERA estimators viewed his season far more favorably than the earned runs would suggest, with Nola likely dealing with some bad luck (as reflected in a .334 BABIP-against and 60.6% strand rate).

Red Sox Unhappy With MLB Decision On Pomeranz Deal

By | at

8:45pm: Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe has more on the Red Sox’ perspective. Boston became aware of the issues with Pomeranz after conducting an MRI on his shoulder and elbow, per the report, identifying “an injury he was receiving treatment for” that hadn’t been logged.

The club still felt it needed to move forward with the July 14th trade, and evidently didn’t feel the issue was severe enough to scuttle the deal. Still, though, Boston “sought compensation in the form of a player but didn’t succeed,” a source tells Cafardo. It is not immediately clear whether the team pursued that remedy directly with the Padres or through the league in some form.

7:55pm: Red Sox chairman Tom Werner had harsh words today for the decision of the commissioner’s office relating to withheld medical information in the summer trade for lefty Drew Pomeranz, as Tom Caron of NESN reports (Twitter links). (Video link via NESN.)

“We were extremely disappointed in the decision,” said Werner. “We felt that some wrong was committed and that it’s important to have a level playing field. The Padres didn’t play on it.”

After allegations from four teams arose regarding the Padres’ insufficient provision of medical investigation, the league opened an investigation. The league announced a 30-day suspension of Padres GM A.J. Preller yesterday, specifying that it related to the Pomeranz deal, but otherwise did not punish the San Diego organization or provide compensation to the Red Sox.

At the time the investigation itself was reported, indications were that Boston was not seeking any modification of the swap. Another Padres deal was partially unwound, with Colin Rea being traded back from the Marlins to San Diego. But that arrangement was apparently worked out between the teams. Since that time, reports have suggested that the Padres attempted to evade medical reporting requirements, suggesting to their trainers that doing so would help the organization to gain an advantage in trade talks.

It is not known whether the Red Sox specifically sought any particular recompense arising from the Pomeranz-related concerns. And it’s fair to note that Werner did not make clear whether that was the cause for his view on the suspension. Some have suggested that the Padres were handled less harshly in this instance than the Red Sox were recently, and the frustration could stem from that potential disparity. Boston was hit with a signing ban and was forced to give up its rights to several international free agent signees after a finding of a rules violation.

Meanwhile, Padres manager Andy Green defended his organization as well as Preller, as Dennis Lin of the San Diego Union-Tribune reports. Insisting that Pomeranz never had any issues of which he was aware, Green went into extensive detail on his view of the situation — which you’ll find in full in Lin’s report. “I see it as that we had all our files in one place and they were not where they needed to be and we accepted responsibility for that and paid honestly a steep price for that,” the first-year manager explained.

At base, Green asserted that there was no “malicious intent to deceive anyone in the process” by the San Diego organization. “There was never this belief that we’re trading anybody that was hurt,” he continued. “There was never this belief that we’re trying to pull one over on the rest of Major League Baseball. … [E]very mistake that’s been made was well-intentioned. Mistakes have been made. We’ve owned them.”

MLB Trade Rumors is not affiliated with Major League Baseball, MLB or MLB.com

Do not Sell or Share My Personal Information

hide arrows scroll to top