MLBTR Chat Transcript
Click here to read a transcript of Tuesday’s chat with MLBTR’s Steve Adams.
AL Injury Notes: Flynn, Tillman, Richards, Perkins, Smith, Cishek, Doubront
Royals lefty Brian Flynn is expected to miss eight weeks of action due to injuries suffered in a fall through the roof of his barn, as Rustin Dodd of the Kansas City Star reports on Twitter. A broken rib seems to be the main injury to the 26-year-old, who turned in 55 1/3 innings of 2.60 ERA ball last year for Kansas City. Though Flynn will clearly now be delayed, there’s no indication that there are any long-term concerns, and the organization’s recent signing of Travis Wood will help restore any lost early-season depth.
Here are some more injury situations developing around the American League:
- The Orioles may be without righty Chris Tillman to start the year, as the veteran starter undertook a PRP injection in his shoulder in December, Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com was among those to report (Twitter links). Tillman is said to be about three weeks behind, though he isn’t expected to miss significant time at this point. Still, there’s little chance he’ll be ready to take the ball on Opening Day, which would break a string of three-straight appearances in the first game of the season. It seems there’s no particular reason to worry about Tillman’s outlook for the season, though it’s fair to wonder whether the shoulder issue will gum up any attempts by the team to lock him up to a long-term deal this spring. Tillman is earning $10.05MM this season before hitting the open market.
- Angels righty Garrett Richards reported feeling normal after his pen session on Friday, as Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register tweets. That represents a positive start to the spring for a pitcher who once seemed destined for Tommy John surgery. Richards instead elected stem cell and PRP therapy, returning to the hill over the fall before taking his winter rest. The hope remains that he’ll be able to undertake a normal spring and open the season in the rotation. Meanwhile, the Halos are still waiting to see how first baseman Albert Pujols will progress in his return from foot surgery. The high-priced slugger expressed cautious optimism, but wasn’t willing to say for sure whether he’ll be ready by the start of the year, as Fletcher further reports.
- Twins lefty Glen Perkins felt good after a short, 15-pitch bullpen session, Mike Berardino of the St. Paul Pioneer-Press tweets. He’s on track to take the hill again late this week. If you like, you can take a look at the former closer’s progress for yourself, as Berardino has uploaded a video of him throwing to YouTube.
- Red Sox right-hander Carson Smith is expected to throw off of a mound for the first time since his Tommy John surgery on or around March 10th, as Brian MacPherson of the Providence Journal tweets. That would presumably set up Smith for a mid-season return; if he’s able to remain on track, he could provide a nice boost to the BoSox pen in advance of the trade deadline.
- It seems that Mariners righty Steve Cishek has a bit more to overcome than just the hip labrum tear that was previously reported, as Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times reports (Twitter links). The reliever also needed a microfracture procedure, and now acknowledges that an Opening Day return is optimistic. Though Cishek is only just beginning light throwing, fellow relief candidate Tony Zych will soon progress to 120-foot throwing, Divish adds on Twitter.
- Athletics lefty Felix Doubront threw a pen for the first time today since his Tommy John surgery about ten months back, as Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports on Twitter. It’s not clear as yet what kind of timeline can be expected for the southpaw, though it’s certainly promising that he was deemed ready to get on the hill. Doubront re-signed with the A’s on a minor-league pact this offseason.
N.L. Injury Notes: Rodriguez, Wright, Goeddel, Schwarber, Flores
Braves GM John Coppolella spoke with Bill Shanks of The Macon Telegraph in a wide-ranging interview (audio link) that has plenty of interesting info for Atlanta fans. For our purposes, the most notable segment involved the team’s addition of second baseman Brandon Phillips after the terrifying car crash involving recently added infielder Sean Rodriguez. Per Coppolella, the organization reignited prior talks with the Reds shortly after learning of the accident. It seems that Atlanta isn’t sure as yet just when Rodriguez will be able to join the organization. “We hope that Sean’s family can heal and get right,” said the GM. “… [W]e don’t know when Sean’s going to be back, it’s going to be a long time.”
Here are a host of other notes on injury situations around the National League as pitchers and catchers report:
- Mets third baseman David Wright has yet even to throw a baseball since his season-ending neck surgery, Marc Carig of Newsday reports on Twitter. Though the club has seemingly given some consideration to trying him out at first base this spring, it seems that there are plenty of prior hurdles to clear before any position change is attempted. It remains unclear just what kind of timeline the veteran will take this spring, or whether there’s a realistic chance he’ll be ready for Opening Day.
- Meanwhile, the Mets are hoping that bone chip surgery for righty Erik Goeddel could help him return to the solid former he showed as a rookie in 2015. As Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reports, the reliever feels healthy after recovering from the procedure, which was performed to help relieve aching that wouldn’t go away. He’ll compete for a pen role this spring.
- The Cubs are set to find out today whether slugger Kyle Schwarber will be cleared to get behind the plate, though the organization plans to be cautious regardless. As Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune tweets, president of baseball operations Theo Epstein put it in colorful terms, saying that “we’ll walk before we squat.” Regardless, Schwarber is expected to spend the bulk of his time in left field while serving as at most a third catcher, as Bob Nightengale of USA Today tweets.
- Cardinals non-roster camp invitee Kendry Flores is heading for an MRI after reporting shoulder discomfort, according to MLB.com’s Jenifer Langosch (via Twitter). The 25-year-old was added on a minor-league deal over the winter, so was likely seen more as a depth piece than a key member of the staff. He owns a 3.78 ERA with 7.0 K/9 against 3.2 BB/9 in 150 career innings at Triple-A.
Ron Gardenhire Diagnosed With Prostate Cancer
Diamondbacks bench coach Ron Gardenhire has been diagnosed with prostate cancer, according to a team announcement. MLBTR joins all those around the game in wishing him the best of luck as he battles the condition.
Gardenhire, who joined Arizona’s overhauled field staff over the offseason, tells Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic (Twitter link) that he will undergo surgery in mid-April. He is expected to require up to a six-week leave of absence at that point, with expectations that he’ll return to the club at that point.
The former Twins skipper, a respected figure around the game, released a statement as part of the release. “I’m going to fight it and deal with it,” he said. “It’s a bump in the road and it’s not how I envisioned starting Spring Training with a brand new team but it’s part of life. With the backing of this ball club, we’ll get through it and I’ll get through it.”
Reds Claim Nefi Ogando
The Reds have claimed righty Nefi Ogando off waivers from the Pirates, according to Zach Buchanan of the Cincinnati Enquirer (via Twitter). He follows Lisalverto Bonilla in moving from Pittsburgh to Cincinnati via the waiver wire.
Ogando, 27, already swapped jerseys earlier this winter (on paper, at least) when the Pirates grabbed him from the Marlins in another waiver move. Now, he’s on the move to the Bucs’ NL Central rivals, who are obviously still looking to bolster their relief ranks after the unit turned in an unsightly overall effort in 2017.
The righty brings a big fastball and has shown strong groundball results in his limited time in the majors, though he has recorded just ten strikeouts against ten walks over his 19 2/3 MLB frames. Over his 52 2/3 innings at the highest level of the minors, Ogando owns a 3.08 ERA with 7.0 K/9 and 3.9 BB/9.
Starting Pitcher Arbitration Decisions Released
Arbitration decisions on several first-year arb-eligible starting pitchers have been released. According to prior reports, the outcomes of the pending cases were being held until all had been heard and decided, to avoid earlier results impacting later decisions.
Three starters won their cases:
- Collin McHugh, Astros: With his victory, McHugh will earn $3.85MM rather than the $3.35MM that the team had argued for, as Brian McTaggart of MLB.com first reported on Twitter.
- Jake Odorizzi, Rays: In another relatively high-dollar case, the right-hander will get his requested $4.1MM payday over the club’s $3.825MM submission, according to Jon Heyman of Fan Rag (via Twitter).
- Marcus Stroman, Blue Jays: Stroman takes home $3.4MM in his Super Two year instead of the team’s $3.1MM proposal, also via Heyman.
Teams prevailed against three others:
- Taijuan Walker, Diamondbacks: The new Arizona rotation member, who’s also a Super Two qualifier, will earn $2.25MM instead of his filing figure of $2.6MM, per Jack Magruder of Fan Rag (via Twitter).
- Chase Anderson, Brewers: Anderson, the final Super Two member of this bunch, will settle for the team’s $2.45MM proffer rather than the $2.85MM he sought, according to Heyman.
- Michael Wacha, Cardinals: In his first year of eligibility, Wacha will take home $2.775MM, falling shy of his $3.2MM request, per Heyman.
Rockies Re-Sign Mark Reynolds
FEBRUARY 14: Reynolds would earn $1.5MM if he makes the roster, and can add up to $2MM via incentives, per Heyman (via Twitter).
FEBRUARY 1, 7:50pm: Colorado has announced the deal, noting that it unsurprisingly includes an invitation to MLB camp.
7:05pm: The Rockies have agreed to a minor-league deal with first baseman Mark Reynolds, according to Jon Heyman of Fan Rag. His potential salary and opt-out opportunities remain unreported at this time.
Perhaps it shouldn’t come as a surprise, at this stage at least, that Reynolds couldn’t find a 40-man spot. There just wasn’t enough demand to account for all of the available power-hitting, first base/DH types that were on the market. Righty sluggers Mike Napoli and Chris Carter remain unsigned, as do a variety of lefty bats.
That said, Reynolds has also put together a string of relatively disappointing seasons. He hit at an approximately league-average rate in his 441 plate appearances for Colorado — the .282/.356/.450 batting line was obviously influenced by the altitude — but launched only 14 long balls and didn’t quite capitalize on his opportunity at regular playing time. It was an improvement, at least, over the prior two seasons, when Reynolds combined for a .213/.301/.396 slash over 865 plate appearances with the Cardinals and Brewers.
[RELATED: Updated Rockies Depth Chart]
For the Rockies, the low-risk addition creates some interesting possibilities. When a southpaw takes the hill, the club can now utilize Reynolds at first while bumping Ian Desmond into the outfield in place of one of the team’s many lefty-swinging outfielders. (It should be noted, though, that Reynolds carries minimal lifetime platoon splits and actually struggled against southpaws last year.)
Of course, Reynolds will need to make the roster first. Though he’s no longer the prolific home run hitter he once was, Reynolds still packs some punch. And he does typically draw solid defensive ratings for his glovework at first base. But he also offers nothing in the way of defensive versatility, meaning that the organization may have to decide between carrying a bench bat or an extra reliever as camp draws to a close.
Twins To Sign Craig Breslow
FEBRUARY 14: Breslow will earn $1.25MM if he makes the MLB roster, per Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN (via Twitter). The deal includes $1MM in available incentives, per Mike Berardino of the St. Paul Pioneer-Press (via Twitter). Breslow will have an opt-out opportunity, too, with Berardino tweeting that the clause can be exercised “around 10 days before Opening Day.”
FEBRUARY 8: The Twins have agreed to a minor-league deal with lefty Craig Breslow, the veteran hurler tells Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (via Twitter). Terms are not known at this time, though Breslow suggests he turned down potentially more lucrative offers from other organizations.
Breslow, 36, may have preferred Minnesota for its open staff opportunities, though it probably doesn’t hurt that he first fully established himself in the majors there back in 2008. After stops with the Padres, Red Sox, and Indians, Breslow checked in with the Twins before moving on to the Athletics. He threw well for three years in Oakland before moving to the Diamondbacks and then back to Boston, where he stayed for four years.
Most recently, Breslow contributed 14 frames to the 2016 Marlins. He allowed seven earned runs on 21 hits, with seven strikeouts and four walks, before being designated for assignment. Though he did not end up signing on with another MLB organization in 2016, Breslow spent the offseason overhauling his delivery in an attempt to stage a late-career renaissance.
While it may be optimistic to expect those new mechanics to spur a full-blown revival, Breslow tells Rosenthal that he hopes to be able to function as a force against left-handed hitters. And it’s only fair to note that the southpaw has long defied expectations. Chosen in the 26th round out of Yale, Breslow has accumulated over 500 innings of 3.35 ERA pitching across 11 MLB seasons.
[RELATED: Updated Twins Depth Chart]
For Minnesota, Breslow represents both another depth piece and a respected voice in camp. The club surely is in need of southpaw relievers, and Breslow figures to battle for a roster spot this spring with pitchers such as Taylor Rogers, Buddy Boshers, Ryan O’Rourke, and Mason Melotakis.
White Sox GM Rick Hahn Q&A: Part Two
This is the second half of an interview with White Sox GM Rick Hahn, conducted by MLBTR contributor Brett Ballantini. Click here to read Part I.
In the second part of the conversation, Hahn addresses the disappointing 2016 season that drove his team’s rebuild, the Hall of Fame chances for all-time favorite Mark Buehrle, and a truly unexpected text received last July:
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You were best in the bigs along with the crosstown Chicago Cubs on May 9, but plummeted from there, as the seventh-worst team in the majors after May 9. Was there a specific moment during the free-fall where the brain trust said, “we know what we have to do,” or did the season end with you still unsure whether it would be another all-in winter?
We knew what we wanted to accomplish [as of] last July. However, we did not feel the opportunities were quite robust enough at that time to pull the trigger on multiple fronts. The desire to make dramatic moves to more rapidly further this rebuild was strong. But we had to resist the urge to make deals that might have declared that we were embarking in a new direction, but really didn’t provide us with what we felt were adequate returns for some of the players we were discussing back then.
When the team got off hot, what were you feeling? Was it, “Jeez, this is great, smiles all around,” or are you more a worrywart concerned that Mat Latos’ BABIP is unsustainable?
I don’t want to make it sound like we did not enjoy the 23-10 start last year. We did. We were winning a lot of ballgames late and were getting some tremendous pitching performances up and down the staff. However, all of us are trained to kind of be prepared for what could go wrong.
Even in the midst of that run, we made the decision to let John Danks go. Even while six games up [in first place], we felt that the back end of our rotation needed some sort of further reinforcement beyond the addition of Miguel Gonzalez, and that the bullpen was getting severely taxed. We were concerned about some areas of depth where we lacked sufficient reinforcements in the minors. Unfortunately, each of those areas of concern turned out to be valid as spring turned to summer.
Noting that injuries did not help matters, was the 2016 White Sox catching production anything more than a black hole scenario from your perspective? Framing appeared to crush the starting staff, particularly lefties Chris Sale, Jose Quintana, and Carlos Rodon. Clearly releasing a plus-framer in Tyler Flowers on the hunch that Alex Avila and Dioner Navarro would be an overall-plus move did not work out. Has your analysis of catchers/catching changed or evolved coming out of 2016?
We obviously did not get what we were hoping for out of our catching last season, but that extended beyond a framing issue. I do have to say, for all the abuse that Tyler took from certain segments while he was with us, it is nice that he is at least now getting some credit for his framing ability, which he worked very hard at.
The decision last offseason was based upon a desire to inject some added run-scoring ability into an offense that badly needed it, without too many feasible avenues open to doing such. We knew that would come at the expense of some of the framing numbers, but we also view a catcher’s defensive contributions more broadly. Framing is certainly important, but so is the ability to throw out runners, block balls in the dirt, know our pitchers, and adjust game plans on the fly, among other things. In the end, we did not get as much out of the change as we anticipated because we did not get the performances that we expected—not because we were oblivious to the exchange we were attempting to make.
When we talked a year ago, you acknowledged that one regret about your former first-rounder Gordon Beckham is that he never tasted failure until the majors, which ultimately worked against him. Tim Anderson was expected to play all of 2016 in Charlotte, but got the call at midseason and impressed across the board. Assuming that players getting a taste of failure is a key element in your decision to give him the call up to the White Sox, it can’t be as simple as waiting until a guy has a 15-K week or gets bombed in two straight starts. Is there an element of a player’s makeup that most impacts your decision to “rush” him to the bigs?
The makeup element to this is huge. You are correct that we, like most clubs, view failure in the minors as part of a player’s development. More precisely, learning to respond to adversity outside of the glare and scrutiny of the majors will likely serve a player well once he inevitably encounters similar hardships in the big leagues.
With Tim, he did have some small slumps during his time in the minors, and he certainly had to make some adjustments along the way. But from an ability standpoint, it was clear he was ready for the final stages of his development, which occurs at the big league level. Prior to bringing him up, we had a number of conversations with Buddy Bell, Nick Capra (who was our farm director at the time), and others in player development about whether anyone had any doubts that Timmy could handle it. Everyone believed in Timmy’s makeup and ability to cope with the adjustments required as any player makes that transition. Obviously, his performance was strong, but how he handled himself was even more impressive.
Pitching coach Don Cooper has had remarkable success with diagnosing even the smallest quirks preventing a pitcher from maximizing his potential. Is Lucas Giolito just a Coop camp away from resetting himself back into a breakout MLB arm?
Sure. I like that. Look, we’re excited to see all these new guys work with our coaches. Not just in the coming weeks in ML camp, but throughout the season. They each have some development left ahead of him, but we have the luxury of being patient with them, to allow our coaches to work with them, and to give the player time to be put in the best position to maximize their abilities.
Rick Renteria had a sneaky-great season managing the Cubs in 2014, and got a really tough break losing that job when Joe Maddon became available. Was Rick already on your radar by that time, as a guy who would project as a great pilot? What did he show you with the Cubs that made you want to get him in a White Sox cap—and how were your observations or hunches confirmed when he worked under Robin?
Ricky had a sterling reputation with coaches, players, and front office people alike going back to his San Diego Padres days, and was likely on a list somewhere in most front offices at that time. We had heard about his work ethic, ability to teach, passion for the game, openness to new ideas and debate, and communication skills over the years, but it is difficult to really appreciate that until you are working with him. Sox fans are really going to like and appreciate what he brings to dugout over the coming years.
You worked closely with Mark Buehrle for years, and in 2003 and 2007 you negotiated extensions with him in turbulent waters. With his almost-stealth efficiency, Buehrle comes in around 52 WAR across Baseball-Reference, FanGraphs, and Baseball Prospectus measures, with a no-hitter, perfect game, and win-save in the World Series. Is he a Hall-of-Famer?
I’m allowed to still be a fan sometimes, right? Good. Sure, Mark Buehrle is a Hall-of-Famer. I say that with complete bias and 100% based upon the fact that I loved watching him pitch. Objectively, I realize that the true answer may be a little different, but for these 30 seconds, I don’t care. Mark was a great White Sox, a tremendous teammate, and a joy for all of us to watch during his time with the club.
What is the weirdest moment you’ve had as GM?
One afternoon last summer, I was filling in as first-base coach for my son’s Little League team because one of his coaches had a conflict. It was playoff game, the team was making a nice late rally, and the whole thing was a great little escape for me.
Then my phone started blowing up. After a text from [manager] Robin Ventura that read, “No. Actually, he’s cut up all the jerseys,” I knew my little escape was over….
Follow Brett Ballantini on Twitter @PoetryinPros
Giants To Sign David Hernandez
10:07am: Hernandez would earn $1.5MM if he makes the MLB roster, Andrew Baggarly of the Mercury News reports on Twitter. He has already passed his physical.
9:18am: The Giants have agreed to a minor-league deal with righty David Hernandez, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (via Twitter). Other terms of the agreement remain unreported at this time.
Hernandez, 31, landed a $3.9MM deal last year with the Phillies, but he’ll need to earn a major league job in camp this time around. He ended up posting an up-and-down season, but did show that he was fully recovered from Tommy John surgery and capable of providing innings.
Over 72 2/3 frames in 2016, Hernandez worked to a 3.84 ERA with a healthy 9.9 K/9 to go with a sub-optimal 4.0 BB/9 walk rate. While he continued to generate few grounders (37.3% groundball rate) and allow a few too many home runs (1.36 HR/9 and 14.3% HR/FB), he also showed typically strong velocity (94.0 mph average four-seam fastball) and swinging-strike numbers (11.7% SwStr).
While that effort largely fell in line with Hernandez’s overall career numbers, perhaps there’s still some upside left in his right arm. He logged a 2.50 ERA with 12.9 K/9 and 2.9 BB/9 over 68 1/3 innings back in 2012, and still has much the same arsenal that he did then.
For San Francisco, the move puts another experienced late-inning arm in camp at a minimal commitment. Hernandez will likely compete with pitchers such as George Kontos, Cory Gearrin, and fellow minor-league signee Bryan Morris for a slot in the Giants’ relief corps.