Robert Coello Opts Out Of Contract With Giants
Right-hander Robert Coello has opted out of his minor league contract with the Giants, MLBTR has learned. Coello’s deal had a June 1 out clause, and he’ll now be able to sign with a new organization as a free agent.
The 30-year-old Coello has spent most of his career as a reliever, but the Giants used him in the rotation at Triple-A Sacramento this season with good success. In 11 starts that spanned 64 1/3 innings, Coello has worked to a 3.50 ERA with 6.9 K/9 and 3.9 BB/9.
Coello, a client of Octagon/Jay Alou, last appeared in the Majors with the 2013 Angels, pitching to a 3.71 ERA with 23 strikeouts against eight walks in 17 innings. He has a history of missing bats in both the Majors and the minors, as evidenced by a 12.1 K/9 rate in the bigs and a mark of 9.8 in the minors. His strikeout rate is notably higher when working out of the bullpen, which isn’t surprising — pitchers will typically work at a greater velocity in the bullpen. Coello does have occasional trouble throwing strikes, as he’s walked just over four hitters per nine in his minor league career and has walked 17 hitters in 29 big league innings.
Coello is the second pitcher to exercise an opt-out clause from San Francisco’s Triple-A affiliate in as many days, as Kevin Correia also elected free agency yesterday. It’s possible that we’ll see a third pitcher test the open market, too; right-hander Juan Gutierrez also has a June 1 opt-out, as MLBTR previously reported.
Cueto’s Agent Discusses Trade Possibility
The Reds are five games below the .500 mark and currently sit 10.5 games back in the NL Central — a poor start that has many anticipating that the Reds will be sellers come the trade deadline. Bryce Dixon, the agent for Johnny Cueto, tells MLB Network Radio’s Jim Bowden that while the team hasn’t indicated they’re ready or willing to trade Cueto, that scenario is probably the most reasonable for the team, barring a turnaround. Says Dixon (audio link):
“They’ve made no indications to Johnny that they want to trade him, but reading the tea leaves, if they fall out of contention, it seems to make sense from their end. If they ride the season out with him and don’t make the playoffs, then they’re stuck with a compensation pick. And, from where I sit, I think they can probably get more than that on the trade market.”
Dixon has somewhat of a biased point of view, as a trade would make Cueto ineligible for a qualifying offer and strengthen his upcoming free agent stock to an extent. Cueto, however, is the type of free agent that will be so highly sought after that the qualifying offer has a relatively negligible impact on his stock; a club willing to shell out $150MM+ for a player is not likely to be overly swayed by the potential loss of a draft pick.
Cueto currently sits at No. 3 on MLBTR’s Free Agent Power Rankings, but as Tim Dierkes noted on that list, there’s an argument to be made that Cueto is actually a better pitcher than David Price, who currently ranks second. While Cueto’s injury-shortened 2013 season — he threw just 60 2/3 innings — is an unquestionable strike against him, he topped 200 innings in 2012 and led the NL with 243 2/3 innings last season. Dating back to 2011, Cueto has an incredible 2.53 ERA, and his K/9 rate has increased from 6.0 in 2011 to 7.1 in 2012, 7.6 in 2013 and 8.9 in 2014. He’s at 8.3 in 2015 and has, to this point, shown the best control of any season in his career. If Cueto finishes the year with 200-plus innings and a fifth-consecutive season of a sub-3.00 ERA, he’ll at least have a claim as the market’s top free agent. Max Scherzer comparisons will be made.
I’d agree with Dixon’s assessment that the team will do better to trade Cueto than to take an extra pick at the end of next year’s first round. While Cueto is a pure rental, he’s an affordable one in terms of salary, making a reasonable $10MM in 2015. He’s also a difference-maker for any club looking to push into Wild Card contention or to bolster a likely playoff rotation. The benefit of giving Cueto the postseason starts that would otherwise go to a club’s current No. 3 or No. 4 starter is enormous, and it also allows a team to upgrade the bullpen by bumping its least effective relief pitcher for said No. 3/4 starter.
Dixon’s comments are also interesting in that they seem to indicate that he expects his client to sign with a new club this offseason. The notion that Cincinnati won’t be able to afford re-signing Cueto isn’t a new one, but it’s telling to hear Dixon eventually say that while Cueto would love to remain with the Reds, “…he’s pitched so well, that he’s going to command such a high price, that he might have priced himself out a market like Cincinnati.”
The one thing that could submarine both Cueto’s trade stock and free agent stock would be if a seemingly minor elbow ailment turns out to be more significant. Cueto missed his most recent start due to some stiffness in his right elbow, but an MRI revealed no structural damage. Via MLB.com’s Mark Sheldon, Cueto tossed a bullpen session yesterday and said that “every single pitch was good.” He’s slated to pitch tomorrow for the Reds, so the status of that elbow should become clear sooner rather than later.
Phillies Open To Taking On More Of Cole Hamels’ Salary In Trades
The Phillies are willing to cover more of the approximately $88.5MM remaining on Cole Hamels‘ contract in a possible trade than they were earlier in the season, WEEI.com’s Rob Bradford reports. What hasn’t changed, however, is Philadelphia’s demand for elite prospect talent in exchange for the ace left-hander.
The shift in negotiating stance is not a surprise, as many pundits assumed that the Phils would eventually bend from their initial demand that a team take on all of Hamels’ salary and also part ways with multiple blue-chip prospects. Bending on the salary demand rather than the prospect return makes sense for a wealthy franchise like the Phillies; adding impact minor league talent is of greater import to a rebuilding team than saving money.
In offering to take on a bit more salary, the Phillies may also be widening the Hamels market to medium-payroll teams who previously may have been unable to absorb the southpaw’s contract. This is purely my speculation, but perhaps this description could fit teams like the Royals or Orioles, or maybe even surprise contenders like the Twins or Astros. The amount of salary the Phillies offer to cover, as well, could vary depending on the team, or what prospects they’d be getting back.
Bradford touches on the Red Sox and notes that the Sox and Phillies have been scouting each other’s major and minor league teams, as Boston has been widely linked to Hamels for months now. Salary wasn’t the main obstacle to a Boston/Philly trade, however, but rather the fact that the Sox were refusing to trade the likes of Mookie Betts or Blake Swihart to Philadelphia. While the Red Sox have several other impressive prospects, it remains to be seen if the Phillies would accept a Sox deal without one of those two players, or if the Phils would turn elsewhere to find their desired prospect return.
Ironically, this news of the Phillies slightly lowering their asking price comes at a time when their bargaining position may be better than ever, considering the number of big-name teams looking for pitching help in the wake of injuries to star hurlers. Additionally, the likes of Johnny Cueto and Scott Kazmir have faced some recent injury problems, which only helps Hamels’ case as possibly both the healthiest and the most accomplished potential trade chip on the pitching market as we approach the July 31 deadline.
Hamels is set to earn roughly $15MM for the remainder of this season, $22.5MM in each of 2016, 2017 and 2018, and the Phillies hold a $20MM club option on his services for 2019 that can be bought out for $6MM (the 2019 option can also vest if Hamels avoids the arm injuries and reaches innings thresholds). Hamels has a 20-team no-trade list, and it has been speculated that he could seek to have his 2019 guaranteed in order to okay a deal to any of those 20 clubs. By this token, the Phillies’ offer to cover more salary could be a way of facilitating some of that extra $14MM for 2019.
NL Notes: Paco, Pirates, Frandsen, Mets
The Dodgers have been aggressively pursuing bullpen depth and their search could well continue now that southpaw Paco Rodriguez has been placed on the 15-day DL with a strained left elbow. Rodriguez will return to Los Angeles to visit with the team doctor and undergo an MRI this week to determine the extent of the injury. Rodriguez has a 2.61 ERA, 7.0 K/9 and 2.67 K/BB rate over 10 1/3 relief innings this season, and he’ll join other Dodger pitching notables as Hyun-jin Ryu, Brandon McCarthy, Brandon League and Joel Peralta on the injured list. Here’s some more from around the National League…
- The Pirates are getting on track after a slow start, in large part because of several fairly inexpensive but productive offseason additions have helped, Fangraphs’ Jeff Sullivan writes in a piece for FOX Sports. A.J. Burnett is throwing like a Cy Young candidate, Jung Ho Kang has been a power bat at short, Arquimedes Caminero and Rob Scahill are pitching well out of the bullpen and Francisco Cervelli has essentially replaced Russell Martin‘s elite pitch-calling at a fraction of Martin’s price tag.
- Kevin Frandsen is excited to be joining the Giants, telling Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle (Twitter links) that he was eager to join a team that valued utility players. The veteran will join the Giants’ Triple-A affiliate after signing a minor league contract earlier today.
- As many as eight of the 15 NL teams could be trade deadline sellers, according to what the New York Post’s Joel Sherman has been hearing from league executives, though the Reds, Padres and Marlins may hold out from trades as long as possible out of a refusal to give up on the season. The Mets seems to be one of the buyers, and Sherman lists four big-name players (Aroldis Chapman, Martin Prado, Justin Upton and Ben Zobrist) who could help New York’s playoff chances. The versatile Prado and Zobrist could help all over the diamond given some of the Mets’ unsettled injury situations, Upton would add another big bat and Chapman’s addition would solidify the Mets’ bullpen and thus take pressure off the rotation. While any of this quartet would certainly be upgrades for the Mets, it remains to be seen, however, how much (if any) money the club is willing to spend for in-season additions.
AL Notes: Beltre, Tigers, Twins, Featherston
The Blue Jays‘ acquisition of Josh Donaldson now appears to be one of GM Alex Anthopoulos’ better moves, Sportsnet’s Ben Nicholson-Smith tweets. The third baseman has 15 homers and an outstanding .312/.372/.604 slash line through his first 227 plate appearances, and Donaldson’s 3.0 fWAR (entering today’s action) is topped only by Bryce Harper. Donaldson is controlled through 2018 and looks to be a cornerstone piece for the Jays both now and in future seasons. Here’s some more from around the American League…
- Adrian Beltre left today’s game with a sprained left thumb and while x-rays were negative, he’ll very likely be placed on the 15-day disabled list, MLB.com’s Dave Sessions writes. The Rangers have enough internal infield options that they aren’t likely to explore outside help unless Beltre is forced to miss an extended period of time. The 36-year-old Beltre has been having a down season (.257/.294/.408 in 221 PA) but was still providing his customary excellent third base defense.
- The much-maligned Tigers bullpen has become a strength for the team, Mlive.com’s James Schmehl writes. Detroit’s relievers entered Sunday with a 2.91 ERA, the seventh-lowest bullpen ERA in baseball. Advanced metrics (3.69 FIP, 4.07 xFIP) paint a more pessimistic view of the bullpen’s performance, yet the Tigers will happily take it after some frustrating relief breakdowns in recent years.
- Twins GM Terry Ryan told reporters (including Mike Berardino of the St. Paul Pioneer Press) that his team will make the sixth overall pick in the amateur draft based on talent, and won’t be scared off from taking a player due to injury concerns. This could be a reference to Brady Aiken or Michael Matuella, two top draft prospects who recently underwent Tommy John surgery. ESPN1500’s Darren Wolfson tweets that the Twins and other clubs recently received some new information about Aiken and that Minnesota was “very high on” Aiken last year.
- Rule 5 Draft pick Taylor Featherston is appreciating his time in the majors as a learning experience, though as Fangraphs’ David Laurila points out, having Rule 5 status isn’t necessarily a good thing for a player’s development. Featherston has just one hit in 33 PA with the Angels and has appeared in just 25 games for the club. He must remain on the Halos’ Major League roster all season or else be offered back to his old club (the Rockies) for $25K.
- Also from Laurila’s notes piece, veteran catcher Eddy Rodriguez had more or less called it a career and planning to take a year away from the game before being offered a minor league contract from the Yankees. “When the pinstripes come calling, it’s hard to say no,” Rodriguez said. He is already unofficially working as a player-coach and mentor at the Triple-A level and seems a lock to find a coaching job once he finally hangs up his cleats.
Rockies’ Top Prospect David Dahl To Undergo Splenectomy
SUNDAY: Dahl will undergo surgery on Monday to have his spleen removed, according to tweets from his agents at Sosnick Cobbe Karon. Dahl chose the procedure in the hopes that he’ll be able to return to action this season, though a splenectomy “also brings other challenges,” as SCK’s tweet notes. Charlie Drysdale of the Purple Row blog details a few of the longer-term health issues that Dahl could face in the wake of his operation, though with such a severely-damaged spleen, it’s also possible Dahl may not have been able to continue playing baseball whatsoever.
FRIDAY: Center fielder David Dahl, widely regarded as one of the two best prospects in the Rockies organization, will miss the remainder of the 2015 season after undergoing surgery to repair a “massive laceration” on his spleen, reports Yahoo’s Jeff Passan (Twitter links). As Passan reported yesterday, Dahl suffered a serious spleen injury as well as a likely concussion in a truly frightening outfield collision. He will have to wear some form of protective padding for the rest of his career as a result of the injury, according to Passan.
Dahl’s father, Mike, told Mark Inabinett Mobile Press-Register that during a collision with second baseman Juan Ciriaco, his son was kneed in the spleen and was also hit in the face. “He probably has a minor concussion, I would imagine, because he doesn’t remember much about what happened,” said Mike Dahl.
The 21-year-old Dahl was the 10th overall selection in the 2012 draft out of Oak Mountain High School in Birmingham, Ala. Entering the season, he ranked as the game’s No. 22 overall prospect, according to Baseball America. Baseball Prospectus, meanwhile, ranked him 24th, while he was No. 27 per ESPN’s Keith Law, No. 31 on Fangraphs’ Top 200 and No. 59 on MLB.com’s Top 100. This will be the second season that Dahl has had significantly shortened by injury, as a torn hamstring limited him to 10 games in 2013.
A slow start in his first taste of Double-A leaves Dahl with a .269/.296/.379 batting line in 189 plate appearances this season, but he hit .299/.335/.492 with 14 homers and 21 steals in 119 games across two Class-A affiliates last year. All of that, of course, takes a back seat to the fact that Dahl appears to have avoided a number of potentially worse outcomes in a very precarious scenario. MLBTR wishes Dahl a speedy recovery and continued success once he is able to return to the playing field in 2016.
Minor Moves: Wagner, Cooper, Baltz
Here are some minor league transactions from around baseball…
- The Brewers purchased the contract of right-hander Tyler Cravy from Triple-A, the team announced. Cravy, a 17th-round pick in 2009, has a 3.71 ERA, 2.97 K/BB rate and 8.7 K/9 over 460 2/3 career minor league innings.
- In a corresponding move, the Brewers sent down righty Tyler Wagner, whose contract was just purchased earlier today so Wagner could start Milwaukee’s game against Arizona. Wagner allowed five ER on nine hits over 3 2/3 innings in his first Major League appearance and start, yet his debut was a memorable one as the Brewers eventually beat the D’Backs in a 17-inning marathon. The long game necessitated the need for Cravy’s fresh arm in the bullpen for the Brewers’ game tomorrow.
- The Mets have released first baseman David Cooper earlier this week, Lynn Worthy of the Binghamton Press & Sun-Bulletin reports (Twitter link). Cooper plans to retire, ending an eight-year pro career that began when he was picked 17th overall by the Blue Jays in the 2008 draft. The 28-year-old Cooper hit .293/.370/.451 over 2575 career plate appearances in the Jays, Indians and Mets farm systems, and he also appeared in 72 Major League games with Toronto in 2011-12. We at MLBTR wish Cooper the best in his retirement.
- The Padres released outfielder Jeremy Baltz, Baseball America’s Matt Eddy reports (via Twitter). Baltz was San Diego’s second-round pick (68th overall) of the 2012 draft, and he hit .267/.351/.436 over 1293 minor league PA, topping out at the high A-ball level.
Cafardo’s Latest: Yankees, Leake, Craig, BoSox
While all five AL East teams have clear roster needs, Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe observes that the division is so closely-packed (and overall mediocre) through two months that one team could break away from the pack simply by getting healthy and playing up to expectations, rather than by making a big trade or two. Here are some hot stove items from Cafardo’s latest Sunday Notes column…
- “I don’t see us making a major acquisition for a pitcher [at this time] but I’m not going to say I wouldn’t do it,” Yankees GM Brian Cashman said. As Cafardo notes, the returns of Masahiro Tanaka and Ivan Nova could bolster the rotation, and prospect Luis Severino could also provide some late-season help.
- Reds right-hander Mike Leake is considered by one AL scout to be able to “pitch in either league with no problem” and at the trade deadline, “there might be more action on him than any pitcher out there.” The Reds could be looking to deal the free agent-to-be since they didn’t discuss an extension with him during the offseason.
- Leake’s trade value may be improved by the fact that teammate Johnny Cueto and the Athletics‘ Scott Kazmir (two more pending free agents) have recently been dealing with elbow and shoulder problems, respectively. Teams will need to see a few healthy outings from both pitchers before their trade interest can be rejuvenated.
- The Dodgers were scouting the Red Sox during their series with the Twins last week. Cafardo notes that L.A. is looking for relief help.
- With Matt Adams gone for possibly the entire season and the Cardinals in need of first base help, Cafardo opines that Allen Craig could be a possible trade fit. Craig’s contract, of course, is a major obstacle, not to mention the fact that St. Louis felt comfortable dealing Craig away last summer. Craig is hitting well at Triple-A but Cafardo writes that it might take “another two weeks of good hitting” for Craig to earn a call-up back to the Red Sox.
- With Trevor Plouffe playing well as the Twins‘ regular third baseman, Cafardo wonders if Minnesota would consider a position change for star prospect Miguel Sano. There has already been a lot of speculation that Sano might be not be able to handle playing third over the long term, though Plouffe is also not a great defensive option. Of greater concern for the Twins right now is Sano’s recovery from Tommy John surgery, and the early results are pretty good, as Sano is hitting .247/.346/.488 over 191 Double-A plate appearances.
Twins Notes: Hunter, Garcia, Radcliff
Few expected the Twins to be in contention this season, yet after today’s 6-5 win over the Blue Jays, Minnesota (30-19) now owns the best record in the American League. The Twins have been boosted by a 20-7 record in May, the first time the club has won 20 games in a single month since June 1991. Here’s some more from the Gopher State, courtesy of 1500 ESPN’s Darren Wolfson (all Twitter links)…
- There has been “no movement” between Torii Hunter and the Twins on a contract extension, though Wolfson guesses a deal will come at some point during the season. Hunter signed a one-year, $10.5MM deal with Minnesota last winter and has openly discussed both how he wants to eventually work in the Twins’ front office and how he’s undecided about playing in 2016. If performance is a factor, Hunter has been playing well, hitting .280/.332/.458 through his first 184 plate appearances. I would wonder if an extension would even be necessary this early, since as Wolfson notes, it’s “not like he’s going anywhere.”
- The Twins were one of the 20 teams who attended Cuban infielder/outfielder Yosvani Garcia‘s showcase earlier this week.
- Garcia isn’t subject to the international bonus pools, yet the Twins also have great interest in the 2015-16 international free agent market, as team VP of player personnel Mike Radcliff tells Wolfson that the new class of July 2 international players is “one of the best we’ve ever seen.” The Twins are prepared to spend up to $4MM on a single player, and Wolfson notes in a follow-up tweet that the player in question is Dominican shortstop Wander Javier. Fangraphs’ Kiley McDaniel reported in March that the Twins and Javier are “widely believed” to already have an agreement in place once the signing period opens on July 2. The Twins’ international bonus pool is just over $3.948MM, so if they wanted multiple players, they would have to trade for some extra space (unless they were willing to overspend in this int’l class and be limited to $300K signings in the next two classes).
- Radcliff also said that Minnesota may sign fewer amateur draft picks than usual, as their “system is pretty full” of players already. As Wolfson notes, most teams generally sign around 25 of their 40 picks; for comparison’s sake, the Twins signed 30 of their 40 picks in the 2014 amateur draft.
This Date In Transactions History: Roger Clemens
Roger Clemens went out in style in 2003. After announcing that he would be retiring earlier in the year, Clemens went out and earned both his 300th career win and 4,000th career strikeout. His farewell tour also included warm receptions from rival crowds, including the faithful at Fenway Park. Clemens even got to make his final start in the World Series, notch a strikeout in his final at-bat, and receive a standing ovation from the Marlins’ crowd as he walked off.
Everyone wants to leave on a high note, but that’s easier said than done. In 2004, Clemens inked a one-year deal to join up with the Astros. In 2005, Clemens once again toyed with the idea of retirement, but was coerced to return to Houston with a one-year, $18MM deal. After yet another World Series appearance, that was believed to be the end of the road for Clemens.
On this date in 2006, Clemens signed a deal to pitch for the Astros for the remainder of the season. The pact was technically a record-setting one-year, $22MM deal, but because it was a prorated contract, Clemens received a little over half of that. Even in his age 43 season, Clemens showed that he had plenty in the tank. In 19 starts, the veteran pitched to a 2.30 ERA with 8.1 K/9 and 2.3 BB/9. Had he pitched that way starting in April, there’s little doubt that the right-hander would have earned his fourth consecutive All-Star appearance.
Of course, this wasn’t Clemens’ final comeback. In 2007, the Rocket showed up in George Steinbrenner’s box at Yankee Stadium to let everyone know that he’d be joining the Bombers. “Thank y’all,” Clemens said to the Bronx crowd. “Well they came and got me out of Texas, and I can tell you its a privilege to be back. I’ll be talkin’ to y’all soon.” Clemens would reemerge with the Sugar Land Skeeters in 2012, but the ’07 season would mark his last in Major League Baseball.