Rangers Claim Mike Kickham
The Rangers have claimed lefty Mike Kickham off waivers from the Mariners, club executive VP of communications John Blake announced. Outfielder Ryan Rua was transferred to the 60-day DL to create space.
Per the release, Kickham will be optioned to Triple-A to start his tenure with Texas. The 26-year-old has struggled badly with his control in the early going this year, issuing 28 walks in just 21 innings for Triple-A Tacoma.
With the Rangers, Kickham will have a chance to get back to being the swingman option he was earlier in his career with the Giants. He has 30 1/3 big league innings under his belt, all with San Francisco, over which he struck out thirty hitters while walking eleven. But the long ball has proved problematic thus far, as nine batters have left the yard against Kickham in his brief MLB time.
Blue Jays Designate Jayson Aquino
The Blue Jays have designated lefty Jayson Aquino for assignment, Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet.ca reports on Twitter. His 40-man spot will go to Chris Colabello, with Jonathan Diaz being optioned to open a place on the active roster.
Aquino, 22, was acquired from the Rockies this winter in exchange for fellow southpaw Tyler Ybarra. Previously rated as one of Colorado’s ten best prospects, the youngster had something of a rough 2014.
Sent to repeat the High-A level with Toronto, Aquino was off to a solid start. Over 25 2/3 innings, he owns a 2.81 ERA with 5.6 K/9 against 2.1 BB/9.
Marlins Release Jarrod Saltalamacchia
Miami has announced the release of struggling catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia. The Marlins were not able to find a trade partner for the recently-designated backstop, as Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reported on Twitter. He will hit the open market after clearing release waivers.
The news rates as at least a mild surprise. Miami had hoped to find a team to pick up at least some of the approximately $6MM left on his 2015 salary, to say nothing of the $8MM owed next year. Several clubs were reported to be in talks with the Fish, but apparently none were willing to offer enough value to warrant a deal.
Salty is a virtual certainty to clear release waivers and reach free agency, given that any claiming team would need to take on his contract. That will afford the clubs with prior interest an opportunity to add him at a pro-rated portion of the league minimum salary.
It has been a swift fall from grace for Saltalamacchia, who like several recent free agents before him simply never panned out in Miami. He has slashed a meager .209/.310/.351 over his 468 plate appearances since joining the club, a far cry from his .243/.307/.455 output over four seasons with the Red Sox.
Despite his troubles on offense and generally poorly-regarded work behind the plate, Saltalamacchia has a rare track record of useful production from the left side of the plate. The switch-hitter managed a .707 OPS last year against right-handers, making him a potentially appealing platoon mate for multiple teams around the league.
While several young backstops (J.T. Realmuto, Austin Hedges, Blake Swihart) have been promoted in recent weeks, there is still a dearth of offensively-useful catchers in the game. Among those who have seen at least twenty turns at bat this year, just 19 have registered above-average batting production. Meanwhile, injuries to players such as Matt Wieters, Travis d’Arnaud, Ryan Hanigan, and Christian Vazquez have sapped the overall depth around the game.
Quick Hits: Blanton, Farnsworth, Winston, July 2, Venezuela
Royals righty Joe Blanton has rejected several opportunities to play in Asia, tweets MLBTR’s Tim Dierkes. The 34-year-old veteran, who has an opt-out date of May 15, remains committed to working his way back to the big leagues for the first time since 2013. Blanton has produced a 3.71 ERA with 6.8 K/9 and 2.4 BB/9 through 26 2/3 Triple-A innings this year with Omaha.
- Another long-time big league right-hander, Kyle Farnsworth, has other athletic endeavors in mind. As Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports, the 39-year-old former reliever is now suiting up on the defensive line for the Orlando Phantoms — and is credited with 11 sacks, the second-highest tally in the Florida Football Alliance. (Attentive fans will recall that Farnsworth showed some gridiron promise at times on the diamond.)
- Speaking of football-baseball crossover, top overall NFL pick Jameis Winston will not be appearing on a mound any time soon, according to Darren Heitner of Forbes (via Twitter). Winston, a promising righty at Florida State, has a clause in his deal that will preclude him from pitching while under contract with the Buccaneers.
- MLB.com’s Jesse Sanchez takes a look at this year’s top July 2 prospects. Some of the names will be familiar not only to international prospect followers, but also to general baseball fans. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. has already received plenty of attention, but Vlad Sr.’s nephew Gregory Guerrero and Fernando Tatis Jr. are also among the top 30 prospects with big league bloodlines.
- Meanwhile, the Mariners are indeed pulling the plug on their operations in Venezuela, per Brian Costa of the Wall Street Journal. The move had been reported back in March, though the team declined comment at that time. Costa takes an interesting, but sobering, look at the decline of the academy system in the struggling country. Nationals catcher Wilson Ramos expressed dismay at the diminishing opportunities for hopeful young ballplayers from his home nation. Of course, Ramos himself endured a terrifying kidnapping ordeal in Venezuela after reaching the big leagues. Now, he says he is applying for a green card in hopes of establishing permanent U.S. residency.
AL Notes: Rosario, Cobb, Blue Jays, White Sox
Yesterday, the Twins promoted outfielder Eddie Rosario from Triple-A Rochester, with Oswaldo Arcia headed to the disabled list due to a right hip flexor strain. (TwinsDaily.com’s Seth Stohs first tweeted word of Rosario’s promotion.) In Rosario, the Twins are recalling a former fourth-round pick that ranked in the organization’s Top 10 prospects per Baseball America, Baseball Prospectus, MLB.com and ESPN’s Keith Law. Rosario, in fact, was considered a Top 100 prospect by B-Pro heading into the 2014 season, but he served a suspension for a drug of abuse and didn’t hit much in his return to Double-A. After a promising stint in the Arizona Fall League this past season, Rosario is off to a slow start in Triple-A, but he still, interestingly, gets the call over Aaron Hicks. The 25-year-old Hicks has spent parts of the past two seasons with the Twins in an attempt to establish himself as their everyday center fielder, but the former first-round pick and top 30 prospect has looked overmatched in the Majors. However, he’s hitting quite well to open the year in Triple-A, making it somewhat surprising to seem him passed over. It may only be a short-term look, though I’d think that given Jordan Schafer‘s struggles, there’s at least a chance for Rosario to impress enough to stick on the roster once Arcia is healthy.
Here are some more notes from the American League…
- The Rays are increasingly concerned with righty Alex Cobb after he suffered a setback this weekend, as Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports. Cobb, 27, had started to throw again after suffering a forearm strain this spring. Now, per Topkin, Cobb will be shut down for several days and could eventually be a candidate for platelet-rich plasma treatment or even surgery. Cobb has contributed 309 2/3 innings of 2.82 ERA pitching over the last two seasons, making his fate critical to the team’s hopes this year.
- Blue Jays general manager Alex Anthopoulos says he does not expect any significant trade activity until after the draft, as Ben Nicholson-Smith reports on Twitter. That is obviously the usual course of events, in spite of some discussion that this year could see earlier activity. Toronto is looking up in a tightly-packed AL East after a rough start to the year from its pitching staff. While an early move holds some facial appeal, however, a significant addition would likely require a premium return.
- It is indeed early, but not too early for the White Sox to begin planning for a summer sale, Dave Cameron of Fangraphs opines. Chicago rode into the year on a wave of optimism, even if projection systems never bought the team as an obvious playoff club, but is off to a dreadful start. With multiple holes on the big league roster, says Cameron, GM Rick Hahn should be ready to be nimble in cashing in assets. In particular, Cameron suggests that marketing free agent-to-be Jeff Samardzija before other appealing arms join the market could be the best way to maximize his value.
Notes On The Brewers’ Managerial Change
The Brewers announced late last night that they’ve relieved manager Rob Roenicke of his duties, and shortly after, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reported that longtime Major League infielder Craig Counsell, who has been serving as a special assistant to GM Doug Melvin, would be tabbed as the new skipper in Milwaukee. The club took home a tough-fought win tonight in Counsell’s first game at the helm.
Here are some notes arising out of the switch…
- Roenicke himself expressed surprise and disappointment at the decision, writes MLB.com’s Adam McCalvy. “I told Doug I wished it would have happened a week ago,” Roenicke said, referring to the club’s back-to-back weekend victories over the division-rival Cubs. “I would have understood it better then.” Melvin said that he feels he gave Roenicke every opportunity that he could to right the ship, but ultimately making a change felt like the right thing to do.
- In a second piece from McCalvy, Roenicke says that he would like to manage again and is open to coaching roles as well. He says his one regret is that the Brewers didn’t win more games to open the season, but he knew when he took the job that this type of situation was possible. “When you go to manage, you know that’s a real good possibility,” said Roenicke. “It’s going to happen, it’s just a matter of when. You know you have a couple of years, three years, to prove that you can do the job, and if you don’t and the team’s not winning, you’re going to be fired.”
- Roenicke’s early departure is somewhat unusual, but not without precedent, as MLB.com’s Tracy Ringolsby writes. Only 19 managers have been fired within a season’s first 25 games, says Ringolsby, who notes that the earliest-ever hooks were made by the 1988 Orioles (Cal Ripken, Sr.) and 2002 Tigers (Phil Garner).
- Milwaukee felt comfortable giving Counsell a three-year contract due in part to his knowledge of the organization’s minor league system, McCalvy tweets. A potential “reset” at the big league level would be easier to accomplish given that familiarity, according to GM Doug Melvin.
- In an appearance on MLB Network this morning (video link), Counsell discussed the opportunity to manage his hometown team means to him. He said that attention to detail and dedication to understanding the game are the kinds of lessons he hopes to impart upon his club on a day-to-day basis. Counsell stressed that he does not foresee instituting wholesale change, but rather will focus on the “little things.”
- Counsell has been advised that he can add to the club’s coaching staff, tweets McCalvy. Understandably, given the timing, Counsell is still weighing that decision.
Hanley Ramirez Day-To-Day With Sprained Left Shoulder
9:40pm: The club has received promising initial indications on Ramirez’s shoulder, as Brian MacPherson of the Providence Journal reports on Twitter. Manager John Farrell called Ramirez “day to day,” saying that it is not yet clear that he’ll need a DL stint.
8:24pm: Red Sox outfielder Hanley Ramirez suffered what the team is calling a sprained left shoulder during tonight’s action. He crashed into the left field wall attempting to make a catch down the line.
It is obviously far too soon to know how severe the injury is, but the somewhat innocuous terminology (“sprain”) could potentially belie its seriousness. Shoulder sprains come in different grades, of course. And Ramirez has already undergone two procedures on his left shoulder.
The 31-year-old has hit a robust .283/.340/.609 over 103 plate appearances this year, providing the middle-of-the-order presence that Boston hoped for. While his poorly-rated work in his first season as an outfielder has held down his value, the club will certainly miss his bat for whatever time he misses.
Of course, the Red Sox are particularly loaded in the outfield, even with Shane Victorino already on the DL. Allen Craig and Daniel Nava are already on the big league roster, while Rusney Castillo and Jackie Bradley Jr. are patrolling the outfield at Triple-A Pawtucket. Then again, the Red Sox promised Ramirez $88MM over four years in hopes that he would help anchor a potent lineup, and every game counts in a tight division.
If the injury keeps Ramirez down for a significant stretch, the biggest impact, in the end, could be on Boston’s flexibility to deal over the summer. Outfield depth seemed among the more likely places from which the club could draw in adding pieces to its rotation, which has struggled to a 5.66 ERA.
Luhnow, Astros Look Ahead To Summer Trade Market
It’s still early, of course, but with a seven-game lead in the AL West entering the evening’s action, the Astros (like the rest of the league) now look like a buyer on the summer trade market. As Evan Drellich of the Houston Chronicle reports, GM Jeff Luhnow says that the club is looking at where it might improve, with starting pitching at the top of the list.
According to Luhnow, the “only area that’s obvious [to explore acquisitions] is in the rotation.” While the unit owns a 3.64 collective ERA, that has been driven by the strong work from Dallas Keuchel and Collin McHugh at the top of the rotation. Roberto Hernandez and Scott Feldman have been serviceable, but hardly dominant, and the team has yet to settle on a fifth starter. As MLBTR’s Steve Adams explained earlier today, and as Tim Dierkes and I noted in last week’s MLBTR Podcast, Houston has the cash, prospects, and need to profile as an early and aggressive buyer.
The Stros’ head baseball decisionmaker did not shy away from acknowledging that situation. “[The club’s strong start] makes it more likely that we’re going to be making moves to have an immediate payback and potentially even moves that come at a cost long term,” said Luhnow. “The more we feel like we’ve got a chance to be relevant all summer and potentially be relevant in October, the more we can be focused on what we can do to bolster this team.”
That doesn’t necessarily mean that the Astros are looking to make a rare May strike for an arm, of course. “We’re constantly looking at it,” Luhnow explained. “It’s unusual for things to start this soon but we’re certainly doing our homework to get ready for it.”
If and when the time comes, though, it seems that Houston will be able to add to its still-low payroll. Luhnow said that he has spoken with owner Jim Crane about the club’s spending capacity, saying that “there are scenarios where we would continue to invest in this team as the year goes on in order to maximize our chances of not just getting to the playoffs, but being better in the playoffs.” Reading between the lines, the notion of bolstering the club’s playoff roster would suggest that an impactful starting acquisition is not out of the question.
This early look in at the Astros’ thought process should not be read as an assumption on the club’s part that it will continue to play this level of baseball. While acknowledging the rising expectations, Luhnow cautioned that a quick start is no assurance of continued success. “But, at the same time,” he said, “it’s never too early plan for the outcomes we’ve been trying to get towards.”
Jeff Karstens Announces Retirement
Former Pirates and Yankes right-hander Jeff Karstens took to Twitter yesterday to announce that he has officially retired from the baseball.
Karstens, still just 32 years of age, hasn’t pitched in the Majors since 2012, as a series of shoulder injuries that culminated in 2013 surgery to repair the labrum and rotator cuff in his right shoulder slowed and ultimately ended his career.
Originally a 19th-round selection of the Yankees in 2003 out of Texas Tech, Karstens was traded to the Pirates along with Daniel McCutchen, Jose Tabata and Ross Ohlendorf in the 2008 trade that sent Xavier Nady and Damaso Marte to New York. In 2011-12, the San Diego-born Karstens made 41 starts and eight relief appearances for the Bucs, pitching to a solid 3.59 ERA with 5.8 K/9 and 1.7 BB/9 in 253 innings of work.
Though injuries prevented Karstens from stepping onto a Major League mound following that injury-shortened 2012 season, he was still able to pocket roughly $7.8MM over the life of a career that spanned parts of seven seasons. We at MLB Trade Rumors extend our best wishes to Karstens, as well his family and friends, as he enters his post-playing days.
Mariners Designate Mike Kickham
The Mariners have designated lefty Mike Kickham, the club announced. Seattle needed a 40-man spot for the contract of Joe Beimel, who was promoted along with shortstop Chris Taylor.
Kickham, 26, was added in a minor deal with the Cubs this January. He has seen limited MLB action with the Giants, but did not crack the Seattle roster. Through 21 innings over five starts at Triple-A Tacoma, he had worked to a 7.29 ERA with just 5.1 K/9 against a troubling 12.0 BB/9.
Meanwhile, the Mariners will give the southpaw Beimel another shot at the bigs. He was a pleasant surprise to the team last year, but couldn’t find a major league deal and only rejoined the M’s after being released by the Rangers. Likewise, Taylor was quite useful last year — he posted 1.5 WAR in just 151 plate appearances — and figures to share time with Brad Miller.