AL East Notes: Robertson, Rays, Escobar
Jonathan Papelbon's four-year, $50MM contract now stands as cautionary tale to all teams thinking making a significant investment in their closer. That puts the Yankees in an interesting position with David Robertson, writes Joel Sherman of the New York Post. Robertson's reps want him to be paid like a closer even though he is just rising to the job now and the Yanks want to treat him like a set-up man. But, because this is his walk year, the Yanks have to make a long-term decision on him in the near future. Here's more out of the AL East..
- Rays Executive VP Andrew Friedman knows the importance of building through trades, orchestrating 53 deals and acquiring 74 players since taking over after the 2005 season. Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times sifted through all of them to identify the Rays' best six deals over that stretch.
- More from Topkin, who notes that the two-year extension for shortstop Yunel Escobar isn't necessarily a sign the team has given up on prospect Hak-Ju Lee, but an opportunity to maximize value in Escobar, who could end up being traded at some point. The Rays continue to believe that Lee has considerable upside, but last year's severe knee injury caused understandable pause.
- The new deals for Escobar and pitcher Chris Archer will help to sustain success for the Rays organization, writes Roger Mooney of The Tampa Tribune. “The runway of talent and maintaining a good core group of players is something that’s really important,” Friedman said. “We always talk about how, first and foremost, our goal is having as good of a 2014 season as we can, but also about sustaining it, and these two moves (last) week put us in a better position to sustain it than a week ago.”
- The Yankees are looking to their new big contracts to save them while the old ones break down, writes Mike Lupica of the New York Daily News.
Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Mariners, McGowan, Orioles
On this date in 1970, president Richard Nixon was unable to throw the ceremonial first pitch in the Senators home opener at RFK Stadium thanks to a scheduling conflict. In his stead, David Eisenhower, his son-in-law and the grandson of the former president, threw out the first pitch. Here’s this week’s look around the baseball blogosphere..
- Mariner Brainstorm looks at the gap between Seattle and everyone else in 2013.
- Blue Jays Plus marvels at Dustin McGowan‘s incredible sameness.
- Camden Depot looks at the Orioles and wonders if defense is overrated.
- Pinstripe Pundits examines the effects of catcher framing on pitcher tendencies.
- Inside The Zona says Gerardo Parra is breaking the mold in right field.
- Hidden Vigorish worries about the Pirates’ future talks with Pedro Alvarez or Gerrit Cole.
- A’s Farm has the Opening Day roster for all of Oakland’s affiliates.
- The Baseball Stance runs down the Yankees’ roster.
- i70 Baseball says the Cardinals have reasons to be optimistic.
- Outside Pitch weighs the value of Mike Trout versus Miguel Cabrera.
If you have a suggestion for this feature, Zach can be reached at ZachBBWI@gmail.com.
Quick Hits: Angels, Rays, Astros
Though he's arguably already baseball's best player, Mike Trout is working to improve his arm strength, Alden Gonzalez of MLB.com writes. Some might say Trout's arm is the weakest of his five tools, which has produced "a little chip on his shoulder," according to Angels bench coach Dino Ebel. While the outfielder was once a fringe-average thrower, he's improved the tool so that it's now average or better, Ebel says. Here are more Saturday night Major League links:
- The Rays are known for aggressively locking up their young stars long term, but the team increasingly shows a willingness to go multiple years with veterans, notes Adam Berry of MLB.com. Today's Yunel Escobar extension the most recent example, but the club has also recently given a two-year deal to David DeJesus and a three-year commitment to catcher Ryan Hanigan. "I think the common denominator is that they're three guys that we like a lot, that fit us well, that will help us win games in the current," GM Andrew Friedman said.
- Lance Berkman and Roy Oswalt both signed one-day contracts and officially retired as members of the Astros organization today. Alyson Footer of MLB.com has the details on a pregame ceremony in which the two greats were given personalized rocking chairs and custom Stetson cowboy hats.
Quick Hits: Rangers, Braves, Pirates, Giants, Nats
Rangers amateur scout Jay Heafner is on hand for Nick Martinez's major league debut against the Rays tonight, and discussed scouting him as an amateur with MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan. Heafner liked "the way the ball came out of his hand, the way his delivery worked and his presence" when watching Martinez, then an infielder, work out of the bullpen. Texas ultimately selected him in the 18th round of the 2011 draft. Recognizing the right-hander's potential from limited looks as a reliever has to be considered a major win for the Rangers' scouting corps. Here's more from around the majors:
- Braves righty Cory Gearrin will seek a second opinion before submitting to Tommy John surgery, reports MLB.com's Mark Bowman. Both team doctors and Dr. James Andrews have recommended that Gearrin undergo the procedure.
- David Golebiewski of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review examined what allows Pirates reliever Mark Melancon to avoid home runs. Since joining the Pirates, the right-hander has increased his use of the cutter to 56.1 percent of all pitches thrown, which helped boost his ground ball rate to an amazing 60.3 percent in 2013.
- In addition to slimming down this winter, the Giants' Pablo Sandoval got instruction from Miguel Cabrera on his right-handed swing, CSNBayArea.com's Andrew Baggarly reports. "See if they can command the fastball in, because that tells you a lot," Sandoval said when asked what advice he received. "And early in the count, get a pitch to drive."
- Nationals third baseman Ryan Zimmerman discussed his throwing problems with Adam Kilgore of The Washington Post, commenting, "it’s hard to explain to people that have never played baseball." The early-season cold weather isn't helping matters, but Zimmerman hasn't felt right since 2012 shoulder surgery, which affected his mechanics. "I don’t like really saying things about [the issue] … everyone who plays baseball has something like that," Zimmerman said.
Astros Outright Chia-Jen Lo
The Astros have outrighted reliever Chia-Jen Lo to their Triple-A club after the right-hander cleared waivers, Jose de Jesus Ortiz of the Houston Chronicle tweets. Lo was already pitching at Triple-A, but the move takes him off Houston's 40-man roster.
Lo tossed 19 1/3 innings out of the bullpen for the Astros last season, posting an ERA of 4.19. He struck out 7.4 batters per nine innings but allowed a 6.1 BB/9. The 28-year-old has a strong track record of missing bats in the minors, averaging an even 10 strikeouts per 9 over 129 career innings there.
The Astros now have 39 players on their 40-man roster.
NL Notes: Puig, Braun, Cubs
Writing for ESPN The Magazine, Dan Le Batard observes that Dodgers outfielder Yasiel Puig's controversial off-the-field behavior isn't so different from other young Hispanic players who have had to grow up in the limelight. Some were quick to criticize the 23-year-old after he showed up late to batting practice on Friday. "We love rags-to-riches stories," Le Batard writes. "But rarely, in any walk of life, does it happen as fast and as extremely as it does to the Hispanic ballplayer — to go from soap stealing to multimillionaire in a flash." Here are more NL links:
- Nerve damage at the base of Ryan Braun's thumb continues to hobble the Brewers outfielder, Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports. "The analogy is if you touch a hot stove, no matter how badly you want to keep your hand there, the natural reaction will be to take your hand off it," Braun said. "That's kind of what happens every time I make contact."
- The Cubs made headlines today after acknowledging that they were seeking minority partners to support renovations for Wrigley Field, but selling such shares isn't so uncommon in professional sports, David Haugh writes for the Chicago Tribune. The Diamondbacks and Mets are among clubs who have recently sought minority ownership.
Rays Extend Yunel Escobar
The Rays have announced that they've signed shortstop Yunel Escobar to a two-year extension that guarantees him $13MM. The deal pays Escobar $5MM in 2015 and $7MM in 2016, and includes a $7MM club option with a $1MM buyout for 2017. Escobar is represented by Miami Sports Management.
Escobar will make $5MM in 2014 in the first option year of a two-year deal for 2012 and 2013 that included two options. His new contract will replace the $5MM team option for 2015 on his old one, so this new deal essentially locks the Rays in for that $5MM in 2015 while giving the Rays the rights to 2016 and potentially 2017 as well.
Escobar, 31, hit .256/.332/.366 for the Rays in 2013, but provided excellent value defensively — he posted a 10.7 UZR in 2013 and has been a consistently above-average defensive shortstop throughout his career. He typically provides little power but good on-base ability, with a .350 career on-base percentage to go with his strong defense. 2013 was Escobar's first season with the Rays, as the Blue Jays traded him to Miami in the Jose Reyes / Josh Johnson / Mark Buehrle blockbuster and the Marlins shipped him to Tampa for Derek Dietrich in December 2012.
The shortstop will enter the free agent market after his age-34 season if the Rays pick up the option. This is the second extension Tampa Bay has completed so far in 2014, having announced a six-year deal for pitcher Chris Archer this week.
Robbie Knopf of the Rays Colored Classes blog originally reported the deal. Roger Mooney of The Tampa Tribune was the first to report the value of the option and buyout (via Twitter).
Aaron Steen contributed to this post.
Quick Hits: Agents, Trout, Kipnis
Spring training is time for players to get ready for the season, but it's also a busy time for agents, as agent Joshua Kusnick chronicles in a piece for Baseball Prospectus (subscription-only). This spring, Kusnick saw a number of significant career milestones or disappointments for lesser-known clients — Rule 5 pick Adrian Nieto stuck with the White Sox and fellow catcher Steve Clevenger made the Orioles out of camp, while pitcher Bobby Cassevah got released by the Rockies. Meanwhile, other clients headed to the independent Atlantic League. Kusnick's piece is a good remidner that the fortunes of players on the fringes of the big leagues can be fickle, especially in the spring. Kusnick also reveals that Manny Ramirez and Miguel Tejada both recently asked him about the possibility of representing them. Here are more notes from around the big leagues.
- Mike Trout's extension with the Angels angered some players throughout baseball, Barry Svrluga of the Washington Post writes. The idea is that Trout, by potentially leaving money on the table, violated a "code" throughout baseball that you don't take an under-market deal, for fear that it will negatively affect other players. Svrluga notes that, for example, Trout's deal could affect potential extensions for Ian Desmond and Bryce Harper of the Nationals.
- Jason Kipnis was smart to sign a long-term contract with the Indians, Terry Pluto of the Plain Dealer writes. Kipnis recently turned 27, which means that he's already in his prime. His new contract takes him through age 33, and he previously would have been eligible for free agency heading into 2018, his age-31 season. Pluto suggests, then, that Kipnis was smart to take $52.5MM in guaranteed money now.
Pirates Extend Neal Huntington, Clint Hurdle
The Pirates have announced that they've extended the contracts of general manager Neal Huntington and manager Clint Hurdle for three years each through 2017, with club options for 2018. Huntington and Hurdle had both been under contract through 2014, with team options for 2015. With Huntington and Hurdle's deals done, the Pirates are currently working on contracts for assistant GMs and coaches, Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review tweets.
"Neal and Clint have led a team of baseball professionals, in the front office and on the field, that has transformed the Pittsburgh Pirates into a club that again must be reckoned with in the National League," says team president Frank Coonelly. "We are extremely pleased that they will continue to lead this team in Pittsburgh."
Prior to 2013, the Pirates had five straight losing seasons under Huntington and two straight under Hurdle, who was hired prior to the 2011 season. (Huntington inherited a poor big-league team and farm system upon taking the Pirates' GM job in 2007, so the losing in the first several seasons was not primarily his fault.) The team endured second-half collapses in both the 2011 and 2012 seasons.
In 2013, however, Huntington and Hurdle led the Pirates to their first winning season and playoff berth since 1992, as the team won 94 games and beat the Reds in the NL Wild Card game before falling to the Cardinals in the NLCS. Huntington's offseason acquisitions of Russell Martin, Francisco Liriano and Mark Melancon were crucial to the Pirates' success. Hurdle led a shift-heavy defensive strategy that was a key component of the Pirates' surprising season, and he took the 2013 National League Manager of the Year award for his efforts.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Notes On Cubs Potentially Selling Minority Shares
Cubs owner Tom Ricketts says that the team is considering selling minority shares in order to raise cash for Wrigley Field renovations, MLB.com's Carrie Muskat reports. "Any time you're looking at privately financing a big project like this, you're going to look at all your different sources of potential financing," Ricketts says. "We're going to take a look at whether or not it makes sense to bring in outside investors." Here are a few notes on what that might mean.
- Warren Buffett is one potentially interested investor, Mike Ozanian of Forbes.com reports. Both Ricketts and Buffett have connections to the city of Omaha — Ricketts was raised there, and Buffett was once a minority owner of the minor-league Omaha Storm Chasers.
- The selling of minority shares of the team is unlikely to change the team's current approach to payroll, at least for the next several years, Patrick Mooney of CSNChicago.com reports. The Wrigley Field renovations will generate more cashflow for the team "in perpetuity," Ricketts says, and so the team is more focused on investing there than investing in particular seasons or players, the effects of which are more temporary.
- Minority owners could bring valuable perspective to the Cubs, GM Jed Hoyer tells the Chicago Sun-Times' Gordon Wittenmyer. "The other two organizations I’ve been in had a ton of minority owners. In a lot of ways, some of those guys added expertise from a business or from their careers that was helpful in other ways," Hoyer says. Hoyer does not address the question of how selling minority shares would affect the team's rebuilding process.
- The Cubs' TV deal with CSN expires following the 2019 season, and Cubs fans might have to wait until then to get a big boost to the team's payroll, Wittenmyer writes. "We’ll see," says Ricketts. "I mean, we’ll know a lot more about what our media-rights options are as the year goes forward. I’m not really sure."