Quick Hits: Murphy, Padres, O’s, Kazmir, Brewers, Astros
Here are a few odds and ends left over from the past 24 hours or so of Winter Meetings action.
- The Angels are open to a reunion with David Murphy as a backup plan in case they’re unable to sign a top free agent, Alden Gonzalez of MLB.com tweets. The 34-year-old Murphy hit .265/.281/.400 in 155 plate appearances after the Angels traded for him in July. If they do re-sign him, they’ll use him as the lefty half of a platoon.
- The Padres are still looking for a shortstop, but they’d like to make sure there aren’t any trades available before they head to the free-agent market to sign one, FOX Sports’ Jon Morosi tweets. Perhaps that makes sense — Ian Desmond (who didn’t have a very strong year by his standards) stands head and shoulders above the rest of the current group of free agent shortstops, and he’s followed by a number of veterans coming off weak seasons, like Jimmy Rollins, Stephen Drew and Alexei Ramirez.
- The Orioles are one of many teams interested in free agent starter Scott Kazmir, CBS Sports’ Jon Heyman tweets. With the departure of Wei-Yin Chen, the Orioles’ rotation is entirely right-handed, and they’re reportedly interested in a lefty to balance it. Kazmir would fit the bill.
- The Brewers will look to take at least one player in this morning’s Rule 5 Draft, Tom Haudricourt of the Journal Sentinel writes. As Baseball America’s J.J. Cooper previously noted, several potential Rule 5 picks come from the Astros‘ system (lefty Reymin Guduan, outfielder Teoscar Hernandez, catcher Roberto Pena, righty Chris Devenski). Haudricourt wonders if, with the fifth pick today, former Astros exec and new Brewers GM David Stearns could choose a player from his old organization.
Fernandez Notes: Marlins, Diamondbacks, Giants
The Marlins seem unlikely to trade Jose Fernandez, or make other major moves, before the end of the Winter Meetings, Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald writes. “I think that’s a possibility, and we’re not upset,” says Marlins executive Michael Hill over the possibility that they’ll leave Nashville mostly empty-handed. “I don’t think we’d be disappointed, because it’s not over.” Hill adds that the Marlins are looking for starting pitching, but could also pursue bullpen upgrades if they deem the cost of acquiring pitching too high. Here are a couple more notes on Fernandez and the trade rumors swirling around him.
- After making a very costly trade for Shelby Miller, Diamondbacks GM Dave Stewart should follow his plan to its logical conclusion and find a way to trade for Fernandez also, Yahoo! Sports’ Jeff Passan writes. The Miller trade and the Zack Greinke signing indicate that the Diamondbacks believe they can be competitive for the next three seasons, after which Miller and Patrick Corbin can depart. Arizona has an option on Paul Goldschmidt for 2019, and then he can leave, too. Stewart’s trade of Aaron Blair and 2015 No. 1 overall pick Dansby Swanson show that he lives in the moment, which makes Fernandez a perfect fit. The Diamondbacks could include Corbin, Braden Shipley, Archie Bradley and others in a five-for-one or six-for-one type of deal to make a trade happen, Passan suggests. (That might not be too farfetched, as the Marlins and Diamondbacks reportedly discussed a deal centered on Corbin and Swanson before the Snakes dealt Swanson to Atlanta.) That would give the Diamondbacks a top three of Greinke, Fernandez and Miller, making them terrifying — at least in the short term.
- The Giants are still looking for another starting pitcher. That pitcher could come via trade, and John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle tweets that the Giants would be “all in” on Fernandez (who they’ve recently discussed with the Marlins). The price for Fernandez appears, obviously, be extremely high, and the Giants don’t have an exceptionally strong farm system, so making a trade work would probably tricky even if the Marlins were clearly willing to make one.
Teams Considering Ian Desmond As An Outfielder
Some teams are considering the possibility of signing shortstop Ian Desmond and having him play outfield, ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick writes (Twitter links). Desmond is also attracting interest as a second baseman and third baseman.
Theoretically, Desmond’s ability (or apparent ability — he hasn’t appeared in a game anywhere other than shortstop since 2010) could widen the field of teams interested in signing him, which is probably why it emerged last month that his representation was marketing his ability to play multiple positions. As MLBTR’s Jeff Todd noted at the time, though, much of Desmond’s value at this point is tied to his ability to play a decent defensive shortstop, in spite of his high error totals. Desmond’s 2015 line (.233/.290/.384) would have been weak for an outfielder, but as a shortstop, Desmond was still able to accumulate 1.7 fWAR.
It might be, however, that Desmond’s apparent willingness and ability to move around the diamond might provide a team planning on signing him long-term with a way to hedge its bets. If Desmond is able to play the outfield and other defensive positions, he might be able to move from shortstop into a different role if his defense slips over the course of his next contract.
Blue Jays Likely To Keep Drew Hutchison, Add To Pitching Depth
Blue Jays president Mark Shapiro says that righty Drew Hutchison has attracted trade interest from numerous teams, Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportnet tweets. The Blue Jays expect Hutchison to rebound from a tough 2015 campaign. In a full article on the topic, however, Nicholson-Smith notes that the Blue Jays aren’t necessarily looking to deal Hutchison, who remains relatively cheap and should provide valuable depth next season.
Nicholson-Smith does explore the reasons there’s a market for Hutchison, who pitched 150 1/3 innings in 2015 and posted an ugly 5.57 ERA. Jeff Samardzija just got a $90MM contract after a 4.96 ERA season, demonstrating clearly that teams increasingly rely on scouting reports and advanced stats more heavily than traditional stats. Hutchison’s 2015 peripherals (7.7 K/9, 2.6 BB/9, 39.6% ground ball rate) weren’t outstanding, but they were much better than his ERA was, so teams might see him as a buy-low candidate. Hutchison is also young, at 25, and has made 60 starts in the past two seasons.
Further down, Nicholson-Smith notes that, in addition to potentially keeping Hutchison, the Blue Jays are looking for mid-range options to improve their pitching staff. They could attempt to improve their rotation depth by adding pitchers who could also pitch out of their bullpen, and along those lines, they’ve been in touch with representatives of Joe Blanton and Craig Stammen recently. They were also in discussions with Yusmeiro Petit, although Petit now has a deal in place with the Nationals. They’ll also look to fill out their rotation at Triple-A Buffalo via trades or non-roster invites or by optioning pitchers from the Majors.
NL East Notes: Harper, CarGo, Ozuna, Fernandez, Cabrera
Agent Scott Boras says that if the Nationals want to extend Bryce Harper, they’ll have to initiate talks, Nats Insider’s Mark Zuckerman writes. “I think those are club dynamics,” Boras said Wednesday. “Whenever any team approaches me about any player, obviously we have dialogue with them. But at this point in time, Bryce is going to be there for three more years, very happy there. So we’ll just go forward.” The Nats control Harper through 2018, and GM Mike Rizzo recently suggested that extending him wasn’t the most pressing issue for him right now. “We’ve got quite a bit of control left on him,” said Rizzo earlier this week. “I’m sure that’ll be a discussion with myself and ownership in the future.” Of course, signing Harper long-term would be incredibly difficult, given his agent, his free agency timeline and the difficulty of establishing what an extension for a player so talented and so young ought to look like. There also doesn’t seem to be any progress toward an extension for starting pitcher Stephen Strasburg, Zuckerman writes. Here’s more from the NL East.
- The Nationals had interest in a trade involving Carlos Gonzalez of the Rockies at one point, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports tweets. There is currently nothing brewing between the two teams, however. The Rockies are reportedly willing to deal Gonzalez, as well as Corey Dickerson and/or Charlie Blackmon.
- The Marlins aren’t currently actively looking to trade Marcell Ozuna, ESPN’s Jayson Stark tweets. They’re still open to offers, but it now appears more likely Ozuna will remain with the organization than that he’ll depart. Earlier this week it was reported that seven or more teams had interest in Ozuna, and the outfielder has been the subject of trade rumors for some time now, although Marlins exec Michael Hill recently denied that his team was shopping Ozuna. In any case, if the Marlins do ultimately decide to part with Ozuna, there will surely continue to be significant interest, since he’s barely 25, has lots of raw power, can play center field, and has held his own in parts of three big-league seasons.
- The Marlins continue to discuss Jose Fernandez with “five or six teams,” a source tells FOX Sports’ Jon Morosi (who reports the news on Twitter). The Marlins’ price for Fernandez unsurprisingly and understandably remains high, and the team doesn’t appear to be particularly close to a trade. Here’s more on Fernandez.
- The Braves had interest in infielder Asdrubal Cabrera before Cabrera ultimately agreed to terms with the Mets, Morosi tweets. It’s unclear where Cabrera would have fit with the Braves, but there surely would have been ample playing time in shaky infield that currently features Jace Peterson, Erick Aybar and Adonis Garcia as potential starters at second, shortstop and third, respectively. The Braves added utilityman Emilio Bonifacio today, and 3B/2B Gordon Beckham last week.
Minor MLB Transactions: 12/10/15
Here are today’s minor moves from around the game.
- Outfielder Brian Bogusevic has signed with the Orix Buffaloes in Japan, CBS Sports’ Jon Heyman tweets. Bogusevic is a client of Beverly Hills Sports Council. The 31-year-old Bogusevic has played parts of five big-league seasons with the Astros, Cubs and Phillies. Last year, he hit .259/.295/.414 in 58 plate appearances with Philadelphia, also batting .296/.359/.424 in 515 plate appearances with Triple-A Lehigh Valley while playing all three outfield positions.
Law On Walker, Giles, Lind Trades
Here are a few of Keith Law of ESPN’s takes on some of Wednesday’s key transactions. Law’s articles are Insider-only and contain significantly more detail that we’ll present here. We highly recommend subscribing.
- The trade for Neil Walker was a good one for the Mets, although Law is puzzled by the team’s addition of Asdrubal Cabrera. Cabrera’s deal would make sense if he were a second baseman, but with Walker in the fold, Cabrera will play shortstop, a position he can no longer play well. The Walker trade reflects the Mets’ skepticism that Dilson Herrera can take over second base next season, but Walker is a consistently solid player, and the Mets only gave up Jon Niese, who didn’t figure to play an important role for them going forward. Niese will allow the Pirates to move top prospect Tyler Glasnow along slowly, although Law notes that Niese’s lack of strikeout ability makes him a back-end starter and writes that Niese will have to improve next season to justify the Bucs picking up the first of his two options.
- In Ken Giles, the Astros got a strikeout reliever who will be a good addition to a bullpen that did register enough Ks in 2015, Law writes. They’ll also get five years of control, making Giles a valuable asset. The Phillies, however, did get plenty in return, including Vincent Velasquez, who Law thinks can stick as a starter, and Brett Oberholtzer, a back-of-the-rotation lefty who can soak up innings as the Phillies continue their rebuild.
- Adam Lind isn’t much of a defensive first baseman, Law writes, but for the Mariners, he’s still an upgrade over the recently traded Mark Trumbo. Platooning the left-handed Lind with the right-handed Jesus Montero would be a good plan, Law suggests. The Brewers, meanwhile, got three young pitchers who are possible future relievers. None of them are outstanding talents, but Milwaukee did well to get something in return for a player they didn’t really need in 2016.
Central Notes: White Sox, Frazier, Cubs, Indians, Pearce
Even after adding Brett Lawrie, Alex Avila and Dioner Navarro, GM Rick Hahn wants to continue to upgrade the White Sox‘ offense, Dan Hayes of CSNChicago.com writes. “We’re pleased with the improvements we’ve made thus far, but in our minds we hope to continue and don’t feel we’re done,” says Hahn. The White Sox finished last in the AL in runs scored last season, with 622. One potential trade target who could provide a big boost to the White Sox is Todd Frazier of the Reds, about whom CSN Chuck Garfien reports the White Sox have had talks (on Twitter). Right now, however, there doesn’t seem to be much traction between the two sides, with the White Sox believing the Reds are asking for too much. A Frazier acquisition doesn’t necessarily seem likely, but if it were to occur, Lawrie would likely move to second base, one of several positions where the White Sox struggled last year. The Reds are reportedly shopping Frazier aggressively. Here are more quick notes from the Central divisions.
- The Cubs and Indians discussed a trade that would have sent either Carlos Carrasco or Danny Salazar to Chicago, FOX Sports’ Jon Morosi tweets. In return, the Indians would have received a package including outfielder Jorge Soler. Talks between the two sides appear to have stalled, however, so it does not seem a deal is imminent.
- The Indians have had interest in Steve Pearce, tweets Paul Hoynes of the Plain Dealer. Pearce is coming off a .218/.289/.422 season in Baltimore, but he was terrific in 2014 and is capable of playing first base or either corner outfield spot, plus second base in a pinch. That sort of flexibility would surely be valuable to Cleveland, although he’d likely mostly play outfield there. Pearce’s market has mostly been quiet this winter (although he’s been connected to the Rangers). As MLBTR’s Jeff Todd noted in September, it’s difficult to tell how teams will value Pearce, given his unusual skill set and the strange manner in which his career has unfolded.
Relief Notes: Rodney, Sipp, Astros, Twins, Soriano
Here are a few notes on teams’ searches for bullpen help.
- The Padres are trying to lure Fernando Rodney with an incentive-based deal, Jon Heyman of CBS Sports reports (on Twitter). The Cubs and other teams are also possibilities for Rodney. The 38-year-old former closer posted a 4.74 ERA, 8.3 K/9 and 4.2 BB/9 overall in a tough season in 2015, although he fared well after a late-August trade from Seattle to Chicago.
- GM Jerry Dipoto says the Mariners are likely to add at least one big-league free agent reliever, Bob Dutton of the Tacoma News Tribune tweets.
- The Astros have already landed Ken Giles, but they aren’t done making moves to improve their bullpen, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports tweets. Lefty free agent Tony Sipp, who posted a 1.99 ERA, 10.3 K/9 and 2.5 BB/9 in a terrific season for Houston in 2015, remains on the Astros’ radar.
- The Twins are looking for a lefty reliever, but are unlikely to pursue Sipp or Antonio Bastardo, LaVelle E. Neal III of the Star Tribune tweets. That means they could turn to the trade market. Twins exec Terry Ryan says he would prefer to acquire a lefty capable of working multiple innings and is not interested in a LOOGY, Mike Berardino of the Pioneer Press notes (on Twitter).
- The Yankees are among the teams that have been in touch with Rafael Soriano‘s representation, Heyman tweets. The 35-year-old Soriano missed most of the 2015 season, not signing until June and then dealing with shoulder troubles, and the Cubs released him in early September. Prior to that, however, he had two relatively successful seasons as the Nationals’ closer and was terrific in ninth-inning work for the Yankees in 2012.
Brewers Interested In Pedro Alvarez
The Brewers have interest in free agent slugger Pedro Alvarez, Jon Morosi of FOX Sports tweets. Alvarez would take over for the recently departed Adam Lind at first base. Alvarez is Brewers bench coach Pat Murphy’s son-in-law, Morosi notes.
The Pirates non-tendered the 28-year-old Alvarez after he hit .243/.318/.469 with 27 home runs in 491 plate appearances in 2015. Despite a proliferation of strikeouts, those offensive numbers were clearly fine, and Alvarez’s already-impressive power numbers might be even better in homer-happy Miller Park. Alvarez’s non-tender resulted largely from his struggles to learn first base — he made 23 errors and struggled to handle balls hit to his right, leading to a horrific -13.8 UZR and plenty of speculation that he would wind up as a DH in the American League. A Brewers team that doesn’t figure to contend in 2016 would have little to lose from playing Alvarez at first, however, and could conceivably trade him in July if he’s able to improve defensively.