Steven Souza To Undergo Hip Surgery
Rays right fielder Steven Souza will undergo surgery to repair an impingement in his left hip on Wednesday, reports Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times (Twitter link). Souza visited a specialist to have his hip looked at today and told Topkin recently that he’s been playing through discomfort since June.
The 27-year-old Souza had a solid season at the plate and in the field even in spite of the ailment, hitting .247/.303/.409 with 17 homers, 17 doubles and six stolen bases in a career-high 468 plate appearances. He graded out as an above-average defender even in spite of a hip impingement that one would assume impacted his mobility to some extent in the field.
From a big picture standpoint, the surgery doesn’t change too much for the Rays. Topkin notes that Souza is expected to be ready for Spring Training, so he’ll presumably be penciled in as the team’s primary right fielder once again, barring some form of significant setback in his offseason recovery. The Rays will undoubtedly hope that a healthier hip can lead Souza to capitalize more effectively on the combination of power, speed and defense that makes him such a tantalizing talent.
As it stands, the Rays have the least to show at the big league level for the three-team blockbuster that brought Souza to St. Petersburg in the first place, as Trea Turner and Joe Ross look like cornerstone pieces for the Nationals while Wil Myers has enjoyed an excellent breakout season in San Diego. However, they also have Class-A lefty Travis Ott and Double-A first baseman/right fielder Jake Bauers making their way through the minor league ranks. And, of course, Souza won’t even be arbitration-eligible this winter and has an additional four years of club control remaining, so there’s ample opportunity for the Rays to receive more Major League value from that swap.
Minor MLB Transactions: 9/19/16
Here are the day’s minor moves, each coming courtesy of Baseball America’s Matt Eddy unless otherwise noted…
- The Rays have outrighted Tyler Sturdevant to Triple-A Durham. The right-handed reliever was designated for assignment last week despite a solid 3.93 earned run average and a 14-to-6 K/BB ratio in 18 1/3 innings. That small sample represented the first Major League work of the 30-year-old Sturdevant’s career. The former Indians farmhand signed a minors pact with the Rays last offseason and had a nice run with Tampa Bay’s Triple-A affiliate, posting a 3.66 ERA with 11.2 K/9 against 2.7 BB/9 in 39 1/3 frames. Set to turn 31 this December, Sturdevant can again opt for minor league free agency this winter.
- Lefty reliever Jack Leathersich will forgo minor league free agency and re-up with the Cubs on a minors pact for the 2017 season. The former Mets reliever had a successful debut in 2015 when he posted a 2.31 ERA in 11 2/3 innings, but Tommy John surgery derailed his rookie campaign. The Cubs picked him up on waivers this past November, but he wound up being removed from the 40-man roster and re-signing a minors deal with Chicago. The 26-year-old Leathersich made it back to a minor league mound this year and tossed 23 1/3 innings of 1.93 ERA ball with a hefty 34 strikeouts, though he also issued 13 walks and hit a batter as well. Control has never been a strong point for Leathersich, but he’ll work on reining in the walks as he hopes to bring his career 15.0 K/9 rate back to the Majors at some point next season.
- Eddy’s post contains several players from teams all throughout the league that elected to skip minor league free agency and sign 2017 deals with their 2016 organizations, though Leathersich is the only one of the bunch with MLB experience under his belt.
AL East Notes: Teixeira, Souza, Hanley
With his career winding down, Yankees first baseman Mark Teixeira took some time to sit down with Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports and reflect on his 14 seasons in the Majors. In an excellent Q&A, Teixeira discusses with Rosenthal the feeling of being traded on two different occasions, including an amusing story of a ruined cell phone on a fishing trip with former teammate David Dellucci that prevented him from learning about his trade to the Braves as quickly as he otherwise might have. The switch-hitting slugger candidly discussed his lone trip through free agency, stating that he “didn’t enjoy it at all” and also explaining how he very nearly signed with the division-rival Red Sox that winter before agreeing to terms with the Yankees. He also discusses the differences of being in a pennant race as an expected contributor and as a veteran role player. I’d highly recommend checking out Rosenthal’s piece, as it pulls back the curtain a bit on free agency and trades and also contains a number of interesting anecdotes from Teixeira.
Here’s more from the AL East…
- Rays right fielder Steven Souza Jr. is seeing a specialist in Nashville to have his hip evaluated today, per Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. Souza has been playing through lingering discomfort in his left hip that has limited him in the weight room and other non-baseball activities. Souza describes the feeling as a pinching sensation that is stemming from an irregular bone growth in his hip. The possibility of surgery is on the table for the 27-year-old, who has batted .247/.303/.409 with 17 homers and six steals while playing above-average defense in spite of the hip troubles this year.
- Hanley Ramirez has redeemed himself in Boston after a dreadful first year with the Red Sox, and Alex Speier of the Boston Globe spoke to the slugger about his transformation at the plate. Ramirez feels that a shoulder injury sustained when crashing into the left field wall early last season hindered his ability to catch up with fastballs “a lot,” and Speier examines Ramirez’s complete rebound against heaters in 2016. Ramirez hit just .236 against fastballs last season, with only eight of his 19 homers coming against them. He didn’t hit a single homer off a pitch that was thrown 94 mph or greater, but he’s done so four times in the past three weeks alone, including last Thursday’s walk-off blast against Dellin Betances. Ramirez, whose batting line rests at a magnificent .294/.364/.517 (28 homers), discussed the various changes he’s made to his approach at the plate, specifically a lowered hand position that shortens his swing and increases the power. Manager John Farrell raved about Ramirez to reporters following last night’s two-homer performance (via MLB.com’s Ian Browne). “His comeback, his resurgence, it has been a major factor for where we stand today,” said Farrell.
Submit Your Questions For This Week’s Mailbag
Last week’s MLBTR Mailbag featured questions on Clayton Richard‘s surprising performance since signing with the Padres, the Mets’ likelihood of retaining a trio of free agents, potential free-agent targets for the Giants and Ivan Nova‘s earning power on the heels of his incredible run with the Pirates.
If you have a question on the upcoming offseason, free agency, the playoff race, postseason awards or anything else and would like to hear MLBTR’s take, let us know: mlbtrmailbag@gmail.com. We can’t get to every question, of course, but we’ll try to diversify the teams/subject matter as best we can. If you miss out on having your question answered, remember that you can always ask during one of our three weekly live chats — Tuesday afternoons with myself, Wednesday evenings with Jason Martinez and/or Thursday afternoons with Jeff Todd. Mailbag questions are welcome throughout the week, so feel free to send them in at any time.
Mets Notes: Lucroy, Bruce, Conforto, Walker
Despite the glut of injuries that have hit the Mets’ pitching staff and lineup, and despite the slumps from several expected contributors, the Mets currently have a one-game lead for the top Wild Card spot in the National League. And with 10 of their 13 remaining games coming against the two worst teams in their division (the Phillies and Braves), New York has put itself in position for a return trip to the postseason. Fangraphs puts the Mets’ playoff odds at 88.9 percent, while Baseball Prospectus pegs them at 89.5 percent.
A few notes on the current NL Wild Card favorites…
- John Harper of the New York Daily News spoke to a Mets official who admitted that the Mets badly wanted to acquire Jonathan Lucroy at the non-waiver trade deadline but found the asking price to be too substantial. The Brewers were insistent that any package for Lucroy be headlined by one of Michael Conforto or top shortstop prospect Amed Rosario, and the Mets simply weren’t comfortable trading either player. “We knew how much Lucroy would help us, but we couldn’t do it,” the unnamed source told Harper. “And looking back now, it was still the right decision. Conforto and Rosario are young, cornerstone players.”
- Conforto, of course, is receiving scarce playing time because the Mets’ apparent fallback option, Jay Bruce, has occupied right field regularly since being acquired on Aug. 1. Bruce, though, hasn’t hit at all for the Mets, and Harper writes that his struggles have been pronounced enough that the team could have to consider buying out his $13MM option rather than exercising it. If anything, Harper argues, the struggles of Bruce in New York illustrates how badly the Mets need to retain Yoenis Cespedes, and shedding Bruce’s $13MM commitment could help them to achieve that end.
- Interestingly, Harper also writes that there’s a “faction” among Mets decision-makers that would like to see Conforto shift over the first base full-time in 2017, but there’s still no consensus as to whether the Mets will retain Lucas Duda. The 30-year-old Duda was just activated from the disabled list yesterday after missing months due to a stress fracture in his back. He hasn’t been able to take the field much this season (41 games) and is due a raise on his $6.7MM salary in his final scheduled trip through arbitration this winter. I’m of the belief that a $7-8MM salary for a healthy Duda is a no-brainer, but only the Mets know how likely it is that Duda’s back issues will pose a lingering problem into the 2017 season.
- Speaking of back issues, Neil Walker tells Kristie Ackert of the Daily News that he considers the Mets a “good fit” for him, but he’s remaining open to all possibilities in free agency as he heals from season-ending back surgery. Walker is already pain-free in his back and can walk and perform resistance-band exercises, but he says it’ll be three months before he can resume baseball activities. Walker adds that his agent doesn’t believe the injury will severely hamper his free agent stock. “To be honest with you, I have been playing with this for over two-and-a half-years, this has been something I have been living with,” the second baseman said. “I can tell you the last three days, I’ve gotten out of bed and my back hasn’t hurt and I haven’t had that for about two-and-a-half years.”
Diamondbacks To Part Ways With De Jon Watson
SEPT. 19: In an updated version of his story, Piecoro now reports that while it was La Russa who made the announcement about Watson, the decision to let him go came from ownership and not from La Russa and Stewart.
“In talking with De Jon when his option was not picked up at the end of August,” La Russa explained, “he asked about how long it would take because if it wasn’t going to work out, he’s got contacts to make so he can land on his feet. That kind of sped the process up in his case.”
La Russa went on to offer praise for Watson but suggested that there may be some redundancies within the roles occupied by Watson, himself and Stewart, thus leading to the idea of “consolidating” some of the front office duties. “As we’ve worked through a couple of years, there’s more communication like I’m having with scouting and player development, and Stew is having the same,” said La Russa. “It’s not that there’s not a role for someone like De Jon, but that’s a possibility that there’s some duplication.”
SEPT. 18: The Diamondbacks will not pick up senior vice president of baseball operations De Jon Watson’s contract for 2017, reports Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic. The decision to cut ties with Watson was made by chief baseball officer Tony La Russa and general manager Dave Stewart, a source told Piecoro. La Russa and Stewart are facing uncertain futures in Arizona, which could move on from one or both in the coming weeks.
The D-backs announced the hirings of Stewart and Watson on Sept. 25, 2014, which came a few months after they tabbed La Russa to lead their baseball department. The trio has since come under fire for a slew of questionable moves that have helped contribute to the last-place club’s 62-86 record this year. Among the front office’s panned transactions have been the big-money signings of Cuban free agents Yoan Lopez and Yasmany Tomas. Watson was instrumental in those additions, per Piecoro, as he was an important figure in their international scouting efforts.
Lopez, a right-hander whom the Diamondbacks gave a then-record $8.27MM bonus as an international free agent in 2014, has scuffled in the minors and has even contemplated giving up baseball. Inking Lopez at such a high cost has prevented the D-backs from landing any international free agent for more than $300K over the past two signing periods.
Unlike Lopez, Tomas has cracked the majors, but the six-year, $68.5MM deal Arizona signed the third baseman-turned-outfielder to before the 2015 season hasn’t exactly been a bargain. The 25-year-old Tomas has hit a below-average .269/.306/.456 with 38 home runs, including an impressive 29 this season, in 943 major league plate appearances. Thanks largely to the big-bodied Tomas’ inability to make positive contributions as a defender or baserunner, he has posted a minus-1.6 fWAR with the D-backs.
While the moves he helped guide the Diamondbacks to haven’t gone as planned, Watson also didn’t get along well with farm director Mike Bell, according to Piecoro. Bell told the team’s higher-ups in July that he couldn’t work with Watson anymore. If Bell continues with the organization past this season, Watson will no longer serve as a hindrance to him.
Quick Hits: Ramirez, Kazmir, Strasburg
In his second season in Boston, Hanley Ramirez is settling into a leadership role, Michael Silverman of the Boston Herald writes. In the piece, Ramirez addresses a variety of topics, but perhaps the most interesting is his view of the Red Sox and Marlins franchises. “It’s way different,” he says. “Down there, we were just happy to be there and make it to the big leagues. We didn’t have that kind of pressure. Here, it’s about winning, it’s about success and winning.” Ramirez also describes how Mookie Betts looks to him for advice. Lately, of course, Ramirez has mostly led with his bat, hitting .356/.415/.746 in September even before his two-homer outburst today against the Yankees. After a torrid second half in which he’s run his season line up to .290/.361/.503, Ramirez’s current four-year, $88MM contract looks wildly more successful than it did this time last season. Here’s more from around the big leagues.
- Dodgers starter Scott Kazmir developed a blister on his finger after pitching a simulated game Sunday, MLB.com’s Ken Gurnick writes. Manager Dave Roberts says he doesn’t yet know how serious the blister is, but it has to be an annoying development for both player and team. Kazmir has been out since late August with neck inflammation, and the Dodgers are trying to decide who will start for them in the playoffs besides Clayton Kershaw, Rich Hill and Kenta Maeda. Kazmir has a 4.59 ERA, 8.9 K/9 and 3.5 BB/9 in 135 1/3 innings so far this season.
- Another injured starter trying to return to action, Stephen Strasburg of the Nationals, played catch on flat ground Saturday, writes MLB.com’s Bill Ladson. Strasburg suffered a flexor mass strain earlier this month and later told reporters he wasn’t sure if he would be able to return for the postseason. Playing catch on flat ground is dramatically different from pitching in a game, but it appears he’s at least taken a first step toward coming back. The 28-year-old has a 3.60 ERA, 11.2 K/9 and 2.7 BB/9 in 147 2/3 innings in 2016.
Steven Matz Could Soon Return From DL
Mets lefty Steven Matz, who’s been out for over a month with shoulder trouble, could return this week, ESPN’s Roger Rubin writes. Matz threw a successful 30-pitch bullpen session Saturday, then took a scheduled day off today.
Today against the Twins, the Mets had rookie Gabriel Ynoa make his first big-league start after five bullpen outings. The Mets hope Matz will be a candidate to pitch when that turn in the rotation comes up again on Friday, although they note that they will monitor his workload.
“We have no plans yet. Nothing’s written. Steven Matz’s name certainly will be in the mix,” says manager Terry Collins. “But Steven, when he gets here, is going to be a guy with a limit in workload that he has. So to get him built up and get him where we want, I am not sure we have the starts available.”
Every game is crucial right now for the Mets, who are battling with the Giants and Cardinals for two Wild Card spots. And, of course, Matz’s return could impact the team in the playoffs should the Mets advance to play a full series. (Should the Mets play in the NL Wild Card game, Noah Syndergaard would be the obvious option to start.) The 25-year-old Matz has posted a 3.40 ERA with a strong 8.8 K/9 and 2.1 BB/9 in 132 1/3 this year in his second full season in the big leagues.
Starlin Castro Strains Hamstring, Could Miss Rest Of Season
Yankees infielder Starlin Castro suffered a Grade 1 hamstring strain while running the bases Saturday and could miss the rest of the season, as MLB.com’s Bryan Hoch notes. Grade 1 strains are the least severe type of strain, but could require a two-week recovery time. The Yankees are likely to use Ronald Torreyes and Donovan Solano at second base in Castro’s absence. The Yankees promoted Solano today after a .319/.349/.436 season for Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.
The loss of Castro is a tough one for the Yankees, who are currently 3 1/2 games back in the AL Wild Card race. Castro has batted .273/.304/.439 in 593 plate appearances in his first season in pinstripes, but he’s been hot down the stretch, hitting .313/.333/.571 in August and .310/.328/.483 in September.
The 26-year-old Castro will, of course, remain under team control for the foreseeable future, with the Yanks paying him a total of $30MM over the next three years, plus either a $16MM 2020 option or a $1MM buyout, as per the terms of the pre-arbitration extension he signed with the Cubs in 2012.
Mark Reynolds Has Broken Bone In Hand, Will Miss Rest Of Season
Rockies first baseman Mark Reynolds has a broken bone in his left hand and will be out the rest of the season, MLB.com’s Thomas Harding tweets. Reynolds left today’s game after being struck by a fastball from Jose Dominguez of the Padres, as Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post tweeted earlier today.
Reynolds spent time on the 15-day DL last month due to a hamate bone injury in his left hand before making a remarkably quick return. It’s unknown whether the injuries are related, but it isn’t much of a stretch to guess that they are. Gerardo Parra has collected playing time at first base over the past few weeks, and seems likely to continue to do so with Reynolds out and with David Dahl, Charlie Blackmon and Carlos Gonzalez manning the outfield positions.
The Rockies signed Reynolds to a one-year, $2.6MM deal last offseason, and heading into today, he had batted .281/.354/.442 in 438 plate appearances in Colorado. Those look like fine numbers, but they’re far from outstanding for a player in Coors Field, particularly one without much defensive value. Ominously, Reynolds — once one of the league’s most prolific home-run hitters — swatted just 14 long balls (including one today). It remains to be seen, of course, how his hand injury will affect his power, but the possibility of a further power decline surely will be on teams’ minds this offseason when they think about whether to acquire Reynolds.