NL East Notes: Gillick, Gee, Hill, Marlins
Cole Hamels gave a thumbs-up following a bullpen session this morning, MLB.com’s Todd Zolecki reports, so the ace southpaw is on pace to pitch on Wednesday afternoon against the Yankees. Hamels missed his last start due to a tight hamstring, and while the injury wasn’t thought to be serious, any concerns about Hamels’ health would impact his trade value. Here’s some more from the NL East…
- Phillies president Pat Gillick told reporters (including Bob Brookover of the Philadelphia Inquirer) that the team will “probably” hire a new club president “somewhere in the not-too-distant future.” Gillick wouldn’t immediately step aside for his replacement, as the plan is to let the new president spend the rest of the season evaluating the roster and club personnel before fully taking over in October. The Phillies face an extensive rebuild, and Gillick admitted that it might take longer than 2017 or 2018 to return to contention, as he estimated when he stepped into the interim role.
- The future of GM Ruben Amaro and manager Ryne Sandberg are two of the top questions facing the new Phillies president, though Gillick reiterated his support for both men, saying they’re going a “good job” despite the difficulties on the field.
- “Teams weren’t exactly knocking on the door” to acquire Dillon Gee when the Mets designated righty for assignment, Mike Puma of the New York Post tweets. The Mets put Gee on outright waivers today and plan to send him to Triple-A if he goes unclaimed by Tuesday.
- The Marlins have a logjam brewing in their rotation but president of baseball operations Michael Hill says he won’t be trading from the team’s strength to alleviate it. “We are fortunate we have some players who are flexible, that we can move to the bullpen,” Hill said, according to Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald. “We have some young players who may have to go back (to the minors).”
- Hill also shrugged off the notion that the Marlins might look to trade veterans such as Martin Prado and Michael Morse before the deadline. “Any pieces that are under control aren’t even considerations to do anything. We aren’t building this team for 2015. We’re building this for ’15 and ’16 and ’17. We’re trying to build a perennial contender,” Hill said.
- In NL East news from earlier today on MLBTR, the Braves signed first-rounder Mike Soroka, and pundits overwhelmingly felt the Braves got the better of their controversial trade with the Diamondbacks that brought Touki Toussaint and Bronson Arroyo to Atlanta.
Minor Moves: Nelson, Grube, Moreno, Rumbelow
Here are today’s minor transactions from around baseball, with the newest moves at the top of the post…
- The Nationals signed free agent third baseman Chris Nelson to a minor league deal, according to MLB.com’s transactions page. Nelson, 29, was released by the Brewers just last week. He has moved around quite a bit since his promising run with the Rockies in 2012 as he also saw time with the Yankees, Angels, Padres, and Phillies. This year, Nelson posted a .202/.256/.290 slash line in 133 plate appearances at Triple-A Colorado Springs.
- Also from MLB.com’s transactions page, the Indians signed right-hander Jarrett Grube to a minor league deal. Grube has spent 2015 pitching in the Mexican League, where he has a 2.98 ERA, 7.5 K/9 and a whopping 8.33 K/BB rate over 60 1/3 innings (11 starts). The 33-year-old Grube was a 10th-round pick of the Rockies in the 2004 draft and he’s also spent time in the Mariners and Angels farm systems. He made his MLB debut last season, appearing in one game for the Angels.
- The Yankees have selected the contracts of right-handers Diego Moreno and Nick Rumbelow, the club announced. In corresponding moves, Jose De Paula and Danny Burawa were optioned to Triple-A while Sergio Santos was placed on the 60-day DL. Moreno reaches the Show after eight pro seasons in the minors with the Pirates and Yankees, and the 27-year-old has a 2.27 ERA, 3.63 K/BB rate and 7.3 K/9 in 35 2/3 Triple-A innings this season. LSU product Rumbelow was a seventh-round pick for New York in the 2013 draft and he’s posted a 2.79 ERA, 4.73 K/BB rate and 142 strikeouts in 116 1/3 innings in the minors, all as a reliever.
MLBTR Originals
A look back at the original reporting and analysis found on MLBTR the last seven days:
- On this week’s installment of the MLB Trade Rumors podcast, host Jeff Todd spoke with Steve Adams to discuss the growing departure from traditional “buyers” and “sellers” in baseball. Jeff then theorized about the Reds moving Aroldis Chapman. A new episode of the MLB Trade Rumors Podcast will be released every Thursday and can be accessed on iTunes, SoundCloud, and Stitcher.
- Earlier today, MLBTR was the first to learn that Royals catcher Erik Kratz was claimed off waivers. Minutes later, the Red Sox announced that they were the claiming team.
- If you haven’t already, sign up for the MLB Trade Rumors newsletter today! Every week, site owner Tim Dierkes delivers an exclusive article to newsletter subscribers. The most recent entry is entitled, “How The Red Sox Should Have Rebuilt Their Rotation.” To check out the next in-depth piece, simply provide us with your email address. We will never sell your email address or market anything to the mailing list, and you can unsubscribe easily.
- In this week’s edition of the MLBTR chat, Steve Adams fielded a ton of questions, including inquires about the Padres’ managerial opening, Ryne Sandberg’s job security, Johnny Cueto‘s trade candidacy, the possibility of a Bryce Harper extension, and more. You can chat with Steve every Tuesday on MLBTR at 2pm CT.
AL East Notes: Blue Jays, Masterson, Santos
Blue Jays GM Alex Anthopoulos told MLB Network Radio on SiriusXM (audio link) that he’s zeroing in on fixing the starting five before addressing the relief situation. “That’s probably more our priority,” Anthopoulos said. “We could use both, but if I did have to prioritize it I’d say rotation first, bullpen would be next.” Pitcher Aaron Sanchez is expected to join the rotation upon returning from a lat strain, but the GM went on to say that he wouldn’t rule out using Sanchez in the bullpen if he were able to acquire two superior starters via trade. Here’s more out of the AL East..
- It doesn’t sound like we should expect the Blue Jays to pull off any deals anytime soon. “Very few teams are willing to do anything early…Really we might be the only one willing to do anything now,” Anthopoulos said (via SiriusXM on Twitter).
- Red Sox hurler Justin Masterson won’t specifically say that he’ll ask for a trade, but he did acknowledge the possibility, as Jason Mastrodonato of the Boston Herald writes. “I dont know if it’s in my nature to do that, to say, ‘Beat it guys, trade me or put me in [the rotation],’” he said. “No, I don’t think that’s the time right now. Especially the way I see this team going and the way I believe in this team too.” Masterson, who is signed to a one-year, $9.5MM deal, could conceivably draw interest from a team in need of a starter. For his part, Masterson would much rather start than pitch in relief.
- The Yankees announced that reliever Sergio Santos will undergo season-ending Tommy John surgery, as Grace Raynor of MLB.com writes. Santos made two appearances with the Yankees after signing a minor league pact earlier this month. Over parts of six MLB seasons, Santos owns a career 3.98 ERA with 11.2 K/9 and 4.3 BB/9.
- Yankees manager Joe Girardi suspects that Ivan Nova‘s next start will be in the big leagues, Ryan Hatch of The Star-Ledger writes. Nova last pitched in the majors in April 2014 and underwent surgery on his elbow shortly afterward.
- Tim Britton of The Providence Journal looked at why the Red Sox have been underperforming their projections despite an active offseason.
Outrighted To Triple-A: McGowan, De La Rosa
Today’s outright assignments…
- The Phillies outrighted Dustin McGowan to Triple-A Lehigh Valley, according to the MLB.com transactions page. The 33-year-old has struggled with his control this season, leading to a 6.94 ERA in 23 1/3 innings. McGowan’s 21 strikeouts in that time are a solid mark, but he’s also walked 20 hitters, and his ground-ball rate is down significantly from its peak — a trend that began last year in Toronto and has continued in 2015.
- Padres left-hander Eury De La Rosa cleared waivers and has been outrighted to Triple-A El Paso, according to the San Diego Union-Tribune (via Twitter). De La Rosa, 25, has pitched exclusively at Triple-A this year, working to a 4.03 ERA with 6.9 K/9 against 5.6 BB/9 over 22 1/3 frames. That represents a career-worst K:BB ratio in his professional career.
- As we passed along earlier today, Mets pitcher Dillon Gee was also placed on outright waivers. As the DFA Tracker shows, that leaves six players in DFA limbo: Jhonatan Solano, Phillippe Aumont, Andy Parrino, Hector Noesi, Jeff Bianchi, and Rickie Weeks.
Reactions To Braves’ Acquisition Of Touki Toussaint
The acquisition of Touki Toussaint was a coup for the Braves, Jim Callis of MLB.com writes. Braves president of baseball operations John Hart managed to add last year’s No. 16 overall pick by giving up Phil Gosselin and assuming the balance of Bronson Arroyo‘s $9.5MM salary (plus buyout). The move sacrificed a bit of the present for Atlanta, but it significantly brightened its future, Callis writes. Here’s a look at some more reactions to yesterday’s surprising trade..
- The Braves have discussed Toussaint with the D’Backs for more than a month, but he wasn’t trade eligible until recently (June 12th), Mark Bowman of MLB.com tweets.
- The move will cost the Braves some cash, but it was a deal they felt they had to make. “We felt the payoff down the line would be too good to just let it go,” Braves assistant GM John Coppolella said (via Bowman on Twitter).
- The D’Backs sold Toussaint for $10MM, five months after paying $16MM (with tax) for Yoan Lopez, who is not as good, Ben Badler of Baseball America tweets. On top of that, signing Lopez prevents them from any signings above $300K for the next two years (link). Meanwhile, the Braves paid $10MM to add a Top 100 prospect and might blitz the international market in 2016 (link).
- With spending restricted everywhere but free agency, eating cash for a great talent like Atlanta did for Toussaint is a no-brainer, Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports tweets.
- The Diamondbacks are getting criticized quite a bit for the deal, but Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports isn’t ready to condemn them just yet. Toussaint could have a bright future ahead of him, but he is still in his first full season of professional baseball and is likely years away from the majors. Even then, he’s hardly a sure thing.
- Steve Adams of MLBTR (on Twitter) can’t recall a deal being this universally panned for one side.
- Arroyo said that he is disappointed that he didn’t deliver on the contract he was given by Arizona, as Nick Piecoro of The Arizona Republic tweets. “The most difficult part, really, honestly, is the fact that I pitched for 10, 12 years for other ball clubs and gave them their money’s worth,” Arroyo said. “And nobody could ever say that Bronson Arroyo kind of shorted the team. But coming here, I gave these guys, I don’t know, 14 starts and seven wins. For a two-year deal, that was pretty expensive. That was definitely disappointing on my part. But that’s just the way it is.”
- Arroyo says he’s hoping he’s to return in mid-August, but he also acknowledged there’s a chance he won’t be able to pitch at all this season, Piecoro tweets.
- When you total up the D’Backs’ dealings with the Braves this year, they have traded Trevor Cahill, Arroyo, Toussaint, and this year’s No. 75 overall pick to save about $15MM, Piecoro tweets.
- Toussaint took to Twitter to thank his former club. “Thank you @Dbacks everything you guys have done for my family and I. The memories made this past year are unforgettable. I appreciate it!“
A’s Claim Jake Smolinski From Rangers
The A’s have claimed outfielder Jake Smolinski off waivers from the Rangers, according to Texas PR man John Blake (on Twitter). Smolinski was designated for assignment by Texas on Friday.
Smolinski, 26, had hit just .133/.270/.200 in 74 plate appearances at the big league level this year. But he’s had plenty of success in other recent stints. Smolinski has obliterated Triple-A pitching in 2015, putting up a 1.280 OPS in 50 turns at bat, and slashed a strong .349/.391/.512 over 92 trips to the plate in his first run at the majors last year.
Both of those big state lines were fueled by huge BABIP numbers, however, and Smolinski’s history is more of sturdy reliability than significant pop. He has never finished a full campaign in the upper minors with an OPS over the .800 mark.
So far this afternoon, we have seen Smolinski claimed by Oakland, Royals catcher Erik Kratz claimed by the Red Sox, and Dillon Gee outrighted by the Mets. As the MLBTR DFA Tracker shows, that leaves eight players in DFA limbo: Jhonatan Solano, Phillippe Aumont, Eury De La Rosa, Andy Parrino, Dustin McGowan, Hector Noesi, Jeff Bianchi, and Rickie Weeks.
Red Sox Claim Erik Kratz Off Waivers
12:56pm: The Red Sox announced that they have claimed Kratz off waivers. Kratz will provide the team with depth now that Blake Swihart is listed as day-to-day with a sprained left foot.
12:28pm: Erik Kratz has been claimed off waivers by an unknown team, MLBTR has learned. The catcher was designated for assignment by the Royals on June 11th.
The claiming team is currently unknown, but the Mets and Red Sox both saw catchers leave the game with injury yesterday. The Mets, however, already have depth behind the plate in Kevin Plawecki and Anthony Recker, so the Red Sox might be the more probable destination.
Most of Kratz’s career has been spent with the Phillies, but he’s also had brief stints in Toronto and Kansas City. All told, Kratz has shown nice power but low batting average and on-base capabilities, as evidenced by a .217/.270/.400 batting line. He’s also a skilled pitch-framer, however, and he’s thrown out 32 percent of attempted base-stealers in his big league career.
Kratz was scheduled to return from the 15-day disabled list earlier this month but was designated for assignment before he could be called back into action for KC. Kratz would have served as Salvador Perez‘s backup in Kansas City had he stayed on board, but that job has gone to Drew Butera instead.
Cafardo On Sale, Ramirez, Uehara, Papelbon
In today’s column, Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe suggests ten steps to help fix the Red Sox. The first item on the list is one that has been discussed quite a bit – Boston’s need for a true ace in the rotation. Beyond that, Cafardo would like to see the Sox trade Clay Buchholz, focus on acquiring players who can thrive in their environment, and hire an executive to oversee and question the moves of GM Ben Cherington. Here’s a look at some of the highlights from Cafardo’s Sunday offering..
- White Sox left-hander Chris Sale is on a strikeout tear and teams would surely like to add him this summer. However, team sources tell Cafardo that Sale is not available. Even though the White Sox are in last place, they see him as the cornerstone of their franchise. Sale, 26, has a 2.74 ERA with 12.1 K/9 and 2.0 BB/9 through 13 starts this season.
- There have been conflicting reports on the subject, but Cafardo hears that the Mets have made inquiries on Brewers third baseman Aramis Ramirez. Ramirez, who turns 37 this week, has hit just .220/.256/.405 in 211 plate appearances this season. However, some feel that a move to a contending club could get him back on track. Cafardo also writes that it wouldn’t be surprising if the Giants or Padres got in the mix on the veteran.
- Teams are watching Red Sox closer Koji Uehara and monitoring him to make sure that he’s free of serious injury concerns. At the same time, his $9MM salary for next season is a deterrent for rival teams. “There’s always going to be a holding of your breath to commit to him, but he’s still very good. Boston would have to pick up some of the salary. But I think teams will definitely inquire and make a push for him,” one AL evaluator told Cafardo.
- Jonathan Papelbon would seem to be a great fit for the the Blue Jays, but money continues to be an issue for Toronto. The Phillies could probably assume a lot of Papelbon’s deal for this year and some of the $13MM vesting option for 2016, but the sense is that Toronto wants to go even cheaper. Also, they don’t want to give up youngster Daniel Norris to find their late-inning solution.
Baseball Blogs Weigh In: A’s, Asche, Orioles
On this date in 1998, Michael Bouton penned an open letter to the Yankees in the New York Times, asking the franchise to reconsider their ban on his father, Jim Bouton. As Leo Panetta of NationalPastime.com writes, the Father’s Day letter worked when Bouton was welcomed back to Yankee Stadium the following month for Old Timers’ Day. Here’s this week’s look around the baseball blogosphere..
- A’s Farm spoke to A’s scouting director Eric Kubota about the team’s top draft picks.
- The Sports Esquires discussed Cody Asche and service time manipulation.
- Camden Depot delved into Wei-Yin Chen‘s hot streak.
- BASTA says it’s time to confront the Giants’ rotation dilemma.
- Maniac Ball examined the climb back from Tommy John surgery.
- Baseball Hot Corner wonders if the Astros should start worrying.
- Nolan Writin looked at the Rangers’ left field situation.
- From Duke 2 Joc wants to see Bud Black in Los Angeles.
- World Series Dreaming gave their thoughts on draft strategy and managing risk.
- Blue Jays Plus is okay with Josh Donaldson not starting at the All-Star Game.
- Grading On The Curve pitted top prospects against each other.
- Marlin Maniac spoke with Miami draft choice Giovanny Alfonzo.
- Astros County brought us a heartfelt tribute on Father’s Day.
- Swingin’ A’s looked at what adding Dayan Viciedo means for Coco Crisp.
- Royals Blue says KC fans are lucky to have Ned Yost.
- Reviewing The Brew says Brewers draftee Cody Ponce could ascend quickly.
- Baseball Essential ponders Cole Hamels as a fit for the Orioles.
Please send submissions to Zach at ZachBBWI@gmail.com.