Cardinals Void Contract Of Kendry Flores
The Cardinals have voided their minor league deal with Kendry Flores after the right-hander did not pass his physical, reports Jenifer Langosch of MLB.com (on Twitter). Langosch reported earlier this week that the righty was headed for an MRI after experiencing shoulder discomfort.
Once a well-regarded prospect in the Giants organization, the 25-year-old Flores has seen minimal MLB action over the past two years with the Marlins, posting a 4.02 ERA in his 15 1/3 innings while recording ten strikeouts and seven walks. He has much more experience at Triple-A, with 150 frames of 3.78 ERA ball under his belt, though his peripherals have hardly been overwhelming (7.0 K/9 and 3.2 BB/9).
Though losing Flores is nowhere near the biggest blow the Cards’ pitching staff has endured in the past few days — that nod goes to Alex Reyes, who’ll unfortunately miss the season after Tommy John surgery — he had figured to play a role in the depth situation. With experience as both a starter and reliever, Flores might have been called upon had a need arisen for an arm during the season.
MLBTR Chat Transcript: 2/16/17
Click here to read a transcript of today’s chat with host Jeff Todd.
NL East Notes: Nationals, Kelley, Gomez, Wheeler
Nationals manager Dusty Baker doesn’t yet know who his closer will be in 2017, but he won’t be using a committee approach to the ninth inning, writes Chelsea Janes of the Washington Post. The second-year Nats skipper flatly said that he doesn’t like the committee approach, “because when the phone rings I want guys to know, mentally, when they might be in the game.” Baker, though, expressed concerns over various internal candidates. Shawn Kelley has had two Tommy John surgeries under his belt, and Baker suggested that he was wary of damaging hard-throwing Blake Treinen‘s confidence. “I’ve seen guys’ confidence get destroyed, too, and I’m going to call upon my past and what I’ve seen,” said the manager. More vaguely, he suggested that young righty Koda Glover, who is far less experienced than Treinen, could be “too bold” for the role, though he didn’t elaborate on. Baker is also intrigued by non-roster invite Joe Nathan, whom he managed 15 years ago with the Giants, though the Nationals need to see what they have in camp with the former All-Star, who has two TJ operations in his past as well (one quite recent).
A few more notes on the NL East…
- Kelley is more than up for the challenge of closing games for the Nationals, the reliever tells Yahoo’s Tim Brown, though he’s willing to pitch in any role he’s asked. ““If we came into spring training and they said there’s this kid from A-ball who throws 115 miles an hour, he’s gonna be the closer, I’ll embrace him,” Kelley tells Brown. “If Dusty needs me, then I’ll be the guy right there to answer for it.” Kelley is very arguably the best in-house option for the Nats, having posted a 2.55 ERA with a 143-to-26 K/BB ratio (which includes six intentional walks) in 109 1/3 innings across the past two seasons. But, Kelley does have the previously mentioned pair of Tommy John surgeries in his rear-view mirror, and he only pitched on three consecutive days once in 2016.
- Sticking with the NL East closer theme, Phillies skipper Pete Mackanin feels that right-hander Jeanmar Gomez “deserves” to be the team’s closer, writes Matt Gelb of the Philadelphia Inquirer. Mackanin acknowledged that Gomez had a dreadful drop-off in production late in the 2016 season but likened his faith in Gomez to the faith former manager Charlie Manuel showed in Brad Lidge back in 2009. “Charlie showed [Lidge] confidence and stayed with him,” Mackanin said, referencing a dismal season for Lidge (7.21 ERA in 58 1/3 innings). “I think it was the right thing to do.” Mackanin did acknowledge that both Hector Neris and Edubray Ramos have “shown closer’s stuff,” but he stressed that Gomez is the current closer. The 29-year-old Gomez carried a 2.97 ERA into the 2016 season’s final month before being shelled for 17 earned runs in his final eight innings.
- The Mets have placed Zack Wheeler‘s throwing program on hold after the right-hander experienced some “tenderness” in his elbow during a bullpen session this week, pitching coach Dan Warthen told reporters (via MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo). The Mets don’t consider it a setback, as Wheeler’s initial physical revealed his elbow to be in seemingly fine condition. Rather, the current belief is that Wheeler’s mild discomfort comes from scar tissue and won’t be a longstanding issue. Warthen said the Mets are treating Wheeler “with kid gloves” after he missed each of the past two seasons following 2015 Tommy John surgery. Even if he is fully healthy, Wheeler will be limited to roughly 100 innings in 2017, DiComo writes.
Blue Jays Sign Mat Latos To Minor League Deal
12:15pm: Latos’ deal comes with a $1.5MM base salary if he makes the Major League roster, and he can earn up to $500K worth of incentives based on a mix of starting- and relief-based milestones, per Sportsnet’s Shi Davidi (Twitter link).
11:15am: The Blue Jays announced that they have indeed signed Latos. He receives a minor league contract with an invite to Major League camp this spring.
10:00am: The Blue Jays have agreed to a deal with right-hander Mat Latos, reports Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet (via Twitter). Nicholson-Smith reported yesterday that the two sides were in negotiations. Latos is represented by the Bledsoe Agency.
Latos, still just 29 years of age, will add some depth for both the rotation and the bullpen in Toronto. The Jays figure to have Aaron Sanchez, Marcus Stroman, J.A. Happ, Marco Estrada and Francisco Liriano in their starting five this coming season, but Estrada dealt with a herniated disk in his back in 2016 while Liriano had an up-and-down season between Toronto and Pittsburgh. Latos, coming off a down season himself, at the least provides an experienced arm should one of those five struggle or sustain an injury.
Latos opened the 2016 season with the White Sox and got off to a strong start, logging a stellar 0.74 ERA through his first 24 1/3 innings with the South Siders. That excellent mark was buoyed by a .167 BABIP, though, and the 13-to-7 K/BB ratio that Latos logged in those four starts also served as a bad omen. Over the next six weeks or so, Latos posted a 7.25 ERA with 18 walks against 19 strikeouts before being released in mid-June. He’d later hook on with the Nationals and toss 9 2/3 innings, during which he yielded seven runs on 11 hits and five walks with 10 strikeouts.
The past couple of seasons have been a struggle for Latos, and it’s possible that the root of his problems can be traced back to Spring Training knee surgery three years ago with the Reds. While Latos returned from that operation to enjoy solid bottom-line results in 2014 (3.25 ERA in 102 1/3 innings), his velocity was down about two miles per hour following the surgery. In the two seasons since that time, he’s never fully recovered the life on his fastball, and despite a solid 15-start stretch in the middle of the 2015 campaign, he’s logged a collective 4.93 ERA in 186 1/3 innings across the past two big league seasons.
Prior to the 2015 season, however, Latos was among the game’s most consistently excellent young arms. From 2010-14, he posted a 3.50 ERA or better each season with the Padres and Reds, averaging 8.2 K/9 and 2.6 BB/9.
Latos could also provide a bullpen option for the Blue Jays, whose primary right-handed options at this time are closer Roberto Osuna and setup men Jason Grilli, Joe Biagini and Joe Smith. While the majority of Latos’ career has been spent as a starter, he’s made relief appearances in each of the past two seasons. He could conceivably look to earn a spot as a multi-inning reliever in the ‘pen or hope that switching to shorter, one-inning stints could help him to regain some of the lost zip on his fastball.
Randy Choate Retires
Veteran left-hander Randy Choate, who spent part of the 2016 season in the minor league ranks with the Dodgers and last appeared in the Majors in 2015, tells WFAN’s Sweeny Murti that he has decided to retire. Choate didn’t receive any solid offers to continue playing in 2017, Murti writes, and the 41-year-old southpaw simply said that he “figured it was kind of time to move on.”
Originally a fifth-round draft pick by the Yankees back in 1997, Choate epitomized the “LOOGY” (left-handed one out guy) role and embraced his role as a specialist, he tells Murti: “In the seventh inning with two outs and men on first and second or bases loaded, and you’ve got to get out David Ortiz? Those are crucial moments, and there’s very little room for a mistake.”
Because of his specialized role, Choate never boasted a significant workload in terms of innings pitched. His career-high was 50 2/3 frames in a single season, though he did twice top 80 appearances in a season. Choate led the American League with 85 appearances in 2010 and led the National League with 80 appearances two years later, though in a testament to the limited nature of his role he logged just 44 2/3 innings and 38 2/3 innings, respectively, in those two campaigns.
That said, the Florida State product was unequivocally one of the best when it came to retiring same-handed opponents. In his career, Choate faced 1036 left-handed opponents and held them to a putrid .195/.276/.274 batting line with just 10 homers.
Overall, Choate’s career will come to a close with a 16-14 record, a 3.90 ERA, 112 holds and a 348-to-175 K/BB ratio in 408 regular-season innings. He earned more than $13MM during his career, per Baseball-Reference.com. And beyond his regular-season work, Choate was fortunate enough to have pitched in the postseason on five occasions in his career. He was a member of the 2000 Yankees that won a World Series Championship. He reminisces fondly about the time spent playing alongside icons Derek Jeter and Mariano Rivera in his interview: “…when you get down to the end, you just realize how great the beginning was.”
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Yankees Sign Chris Carter
After a lengthy trip through free agency, first baseman/designated hitter Chris Carter has found a new home. The Yankees announced on Thursday that they’ve signed the Sports Management Partners client to a one-year deal, confirming previous reports of the agreement. Carter will reportedly be guaranteed $3.5MM on the new contract. The deal is also reported to contain up to $500K worth of incentives; Carter will earn $100K for reaching each of 250, 300, 350, 400 and 450 plate appearances.
[RELATED: Updated Yankees Depth Chart]
New York is adding the National League’s 2016 co-leader in home runs in Carter, who swatted 41 long balls as a member of the Brewers. Despite that, Milwaukee elected to non-tender Carter in late November after it couldn’t find a taker for him via trade. Carter would have made a projected $8.1MM this year via arbitration, so the Yankees are landing him at a discounted rate after he sat on the open market for over two months.
The Yankees will be the fifth organization for the 30-year-old Carter, a 2005 White Sox draft pick who debuted with the Athletics in 2010 and has hit no fewer than 24 homers in any individual season since 2013, his first full campaign in the majors. Along with his prodigious power (he also led the NL in ISO last season), Carter provides above-average patience, having drawn walks at an 11.6 percent clip in his career.
Power and patience aside, there’s no value to be found elsewhere in Carter’s game, as he has registered strikeout percentages in the low-30s and contact rates in the mid-60s in each of his big league seasons. Both his difficulty putting the ball in play and lack of speed have helped lead to a low batting average (.218) and underwhelming on-base percentage (.314) in 2,645 PAs. In the field, Carter has accounted for minus-19 Defensive Runs Saved and a minus-15.5 Ultimate Zone Rating in 3,400-plus innings at first base.
Despite his defensive issues, Carter seems likely to be a prominent part of the Yankees’ equation at first base, as fellow free agent pickup Matt Holliday is set to be their primary designated hitter. The right-handed-hitting Carter is clearly a more established option than likely starter Greg Bird, a lefty-swinger who could platoon with Carter. And it remains to be seen how Bird will bounce back after missing all of last season because of a shoulder injury. The Yankees also have another homegrown first baseman in righty Tyler Austin, but he has a pair of minor league options remaining and could head to the Triple-A level now that Carter’s in the fold.
Although Carter’s deal is only for a single year, the Yankees can actually control him through the 2018 season if they want. Carter, after all, still has another season of arbitration eligibility remaining. For now, he’ll join catcher Gary Sanchez, Holliday, Bird and outfielder Aaron Judge as the Bombers’ best power threats.
USA Today’s Bob Nightengale first reported the agreement (Twitter links). FanRag’s Jon Heyman added financial details.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Yankees Designate Richard Bleier For Assignment
The Yankees announced on Thursday that they’ve designated left-hander Richard Bleier for assignment in order to clear a spot on the 40-man roster for slugger Chris Carter, whose one-year deal is now official.
The 29-year-old Bleier made his MLB debut last season and pitched quite well, logging a 1.96 ERA in 23 innings for the Yanks. Bleier averaged 5.1 K/9 against 1.6 BB/9 to go along with a 54.1 percent ground-ball rate, though his fastball checked in at just over 89 mph, on average. Bleier, a former sixth-round pick (Rangers, 2008), greatly outperformed his minor league numbers in his short big league stint with New York. He spent the rest of the year in Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, where he posted a 3.72 ERA with just 25 strikeouts in 58 innings (10 starts, two relief appearances).
The Yankees signed Bleier as a minor league free agent prior to the 2016 season, and while he proved a very useful depth option for the organization, his overall track record at Triple-A creates some doubt about his ability to sustain last year’s Major League performance. In 147 innings across parts of four Triple-A campaigns, Bleier has a 3.29 ERA but has averaged just 3.7 K/9 against 1.5 BB/9. While he clearly has pristine control and a penchant for inducing ground-balls, likely hurt his standing within the organization.
If Bleier is ultimately exposed to waivers and clears, he can remain in camp with the Yankees as a non-roster player and hope to once again surface in the Majors later this season.
Pirates Win Arbitration Hearing Against Tony Watson
The Pirates have won their arbitration hearing against left-hander Tony Watson, reports Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports (via Twitter). As can be seen in MLBTR’s 2017 Arbitration Tracker, Watson had filed for a $6MM salary, while the Pirates filed at $5.6MM. He’ll receive the lesser of those two sums, which comes in about $300K shy of the projection from MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz. Even with the loss, Watson still receives a healthy raise from last year’s $3.45MM salary.
The 31-year-old Watson stepped into the closer’s gig in Pittsburgh following the trade of Mark Melancon last summer and is the early favorite to reprise that role in 2017. He’s coming off a season in which he saved 15 games and logged a 3.06 ERA with 7.7 K/9 against 2.7 BB/9 in 67 2/3 innings out of manager Clint Hurdle’s bullpen.
Watson didn’t debut in the Majors until his age-26 season, but he quickly established himself as a quality bullpen arm. Since that time, he’s somewhat quietly emerged as one of the more successful setup men in the National League, pitching to an outstanding 2.22 ERA over the life of 292 innings in the past four seasons. Since the 2013 season, no reliever in Major League Baseball has thrown more regular-season innings than Watson’s 292, and no one has topped his 120 holds, either.
One more strong showing for Watson this coming season would be of particular importance for the southpaw, as he’s slated to hit free agency next winter. A strong performance could also make Watson a midseason trade candidate whether the Pirates contend or not, as was the case with Melancon a year ago. Pittsburgh assuredly won’t make a qualifying offer to Watson following the 2017 campaign, so moving him prior to this summer’s non-waiver trade deadline would be their only means of receiving some form of compensation for Watson’s potential departure.
The left-hander was reportedly available this offseason and had his name surface in trade rumors at times. A move this close to the season seems decidedly unlikely, though the Bucs reportedly aren’t completely closed off to the notion of moving veterans this spring.
Rangers Sign Mike Napoli
Mike Napoli is back for a third tour with the Rangers. Texas announced today that it has signed the slugging first baseman/designated hitter to a one-year contract that includes a club option for the 2018 season. The deal will reportedly guarantee Napoli $8.5MM in the form of a $6MM 2017 salary and a $2.5MM buyout on an $11MM option for the following season. Napoli is represented by Brian Grieper of Paragon Sports. The Rangers have an open spot on the 40-man roster after placing both Prince Fielder and Jake Diekman on the 60-day disabled list this week.
[Related: Updated Texas Rangers Depth Chart]
Napoli spent 2016 with the American League-winning Indians, who signed him to a one-year, $7MM pact last January. The well-regarded clubhouse presence went on to mash 34 home runs and post an overall line of .239/.335/.465 in 645 plate appearances. As is the case with fellow 2016-17 free agent Chris Carter, Napoli brings an enticing power/patience mix to the plate, but both his tendency to strike out (he fanned 30.1 percent of the time last season) and issues on the base paths detract from his offensive value. Plus, the normally respectable defender is coming off a rough year at first, where he logged career worsts in Defensive Runs Saved (minus-4) and Ultimate Zone Rating (minus-4.4) over 859 1/3 innings.
Although flawed, the lifetime .252/.352/.480 hitter gives the Rangers an established first base/DH, which is an obvious need. The reigning AL West champions have been lacking at each position since Mitch Moreland and Carlos Beltran departed in free agency earlier this winter. In-house options to fill those spots include two 24-year-olds with limited major league track records — Jurickson Profar and Joey Gallo — as well as an unspectacular group of veterans consisting of Ryan Rua, James Loney and former superstar Josh Hamilton.
Napoli, of course, is hardly a foreign commodity for Rangers GM Jon Daniels and the Texas front office. The postseason veteran spent the 2011-12 seasons in Texas and hit quite well — slashing .275/.379/.552 in 221 total games before going on to spend most of the next three seasons in Boston. The Red Sox traded him back to Texas in August 2015, and Napoli will now return for yet another stint with the reigning AL West champions.
FanRag’s Jon Heyman reported that talks between the two sides were escalating (Twitter links). Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram first reported the one-year agreement (Twitter link). Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News added some context on the size of the eventual contract (Twitter links). Jim Bowden of ESPN and MLB Network Radio on SiriusXM reported the $8.5MM guarantee and the inclusion of an option (Twitter link). FOX’s Ken Rosenthal added details on the annual breakdown of the deal (Twitter link).
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Rays Have Made Offer To Matt Wieters
The Rays’ interest in free-agent catcher Matt Wieters is serious enough that they’ve made a formal offer, reports Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. However, the team’s offer is “likely for one year” and would be less lucrative than whatever figure Wieters and agent Scott Boras are still hoping to find in free agency. FanRag’s Jon Heyman first tweeted word of Tampa Bay’s offer to Wieters, though he cautioned that they may not be the front-runner to land his services.
Even a $10MM guarantee would be a fairly surprising sum for the Rays to offer, Topkin opines, though he notes that perhaps “creativity and incentives” could push the potential value of an offer beyond that threshold. Tampa Bay’s hope is that the switch-hitting Wieters will be enticed by the opportunity to work with a superior pitching staff and receive regular at-bats between catcher and, later in the year (when Wilson Ramos is healthy enough to take some of the time at catcher), designated hitter.
The question Wieters and Boras must now weigh is how long they’re willing to wait out the spring market. An injury to a contending club’s starting catcher would immediately create a new potential landing spot and could certainly lead to a larger offer (in terms of total dollars and/or years), but there’s certainly no guarantee of any such fit arising. Wieters’ camp could also look to drum up a bidding war between teams that are willing to sign him for one year; ESPN’s Jayson Stark tweeted yesterday that the Nationals still have interest in Wieters but wouldn’t be likely to offer anything more than a one-year pact. It’s not clear whether Boras and Wieters have dropped their asking price to the one-year range just yet, though I’d imagine that if they did, there’d be more clubs beyond the Rays and Nationals that were willing to try to make something work.
As it stands, the Rays will enter the season with Curt Casali and Luke Maile as their lead catchers on the 40-man roster, with veterans Michael McKenry and Jesus Sucre in camp as non-roster invitees. Ramos is reportedly eyeing a May return to the team, Topkin tweeted yesterday, but that’s an ambitious goal for a catcher who suffered his second career ACL tear late last September.
The 30-year-old Wieters is coming off a season in which he batted .243/.302/.409 with 17 home runs in 464 plate appearances. His at-bats were limited early on as he ramped back up to full durability after missing much of the 2014-15 seasons due to Tommy John surgery, but Wieters was catching a significant workload by September of last season. He routinely draws poor framing marks, however, and his market has seemingly been hampered by that fact this winter as teams place a continually growing emphasis on that ability when evaluating backstops.