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MLBTR Podcast: Fallout From The Trade Deadline And Mike Trout Injured Again

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The latest episode of the MLB Trade Rumors Podcast is now live on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and wherever you get your podcasts! Make sure you subscribe as well! You can also use the player at this link to listen, if you don’t use Spotify or Apple for podcasts.

This week, host Darragh McDonald is joined by Steve Adams of MLB Trade Rumors to discuss…

Check out our past episodes!

The podcast intro and outro song “So Long” is provided courtesy of the band Showoff.  Check out their Facebook page here!

Phillies Sign Ryan McKenna To Minor League Deal

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The Phillies have signed Ryan McKenna to a minor league contract, reports Matt Gelb of The Athletic. The outfielder was recently released by the Giants, who claimed him off of waivers from the Orioles in May. He will report to the Triple-A Lehigh Valley IronPigs.

McKenna, 27, made his MLB debut with the Orioles in 2021, six years after the team selected him in the fourth round of the 2015 draft. Across 284 games and 508 plate appearances with Baltimore from 2021-23, McKenna slashed .221/.299/.318 with a 75 wRC+. While his bat was underwhelming, he stole eight bases on nine attempts thanks to well-above-average sprint speed. He also provided 7 OAA with his glove while spending time at all three outfield positions. Ultimately, however, he could never secure a full-time position with the big league club, and the Orioles shuttled him back and forth between Baltimore and Triple-A Norfolk several times each year.

Out of options in 2024, McKenna was designated for assignment on Opening Day and sent outright back to the Norfolk Tides. The Orioles selected his contract less than a month later, but despite his impressive performance in a brief stint with the club (3-for-8 with two home runs), he was DFA’d again in mid-May. The Giants claimed him off of waivers, but his cup of coffee with San Francisco wasn’t nearly as productive; McKenna went o-for-6 over four games before the Giants, too, designated him for assignment. This time, however, he passed through waivers and accepted an outright assignment to Triple-A. Unfortunately, things continued to go downhill for McKenna after that. He missed some time with an injury, and when he was healthy, he hit just .227/.308/.348 with a 62 wRC+ for the Sacramento River Cats. He played his last game in the organization on August 1.

McKenna will provide the Phillies with a bit of additional outfield depth at Triple-A. His ability to play all three outfield positions could make him an asset on the bench in case of an injury.

Orioles To Acquire Gregory Soto

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The Phillies traded reliever Gregory Soto to the Orioles, reports Jim Salisbury (on X). Pitching prospect Seth Johnson is going to Philadelphia, reports Kiley McDaniel of ESPN (X link). Pitching prospect Moises Chace is also going to the Phils, reports Todd Zolecki of MLB.com (on X).

Soto, a 29-year-old lefty, has a 4.08 ERA, 26.7 K%, 12.1 BB%, and 50% groundball rate in 35 1/3 innings for the Phillies this year.  Manager Rob Thomson has moved Soto down the bullpen depth chart in recent months, well before the club added Carlos Estevez and Tanner Banks in recent trades.  Still, Soto averages 98.4 miles per hour on his fastball and is under team control next year as an arbitration eligible player.  He’s earning a decent salary of $5MM on the season.  Soto, who came up with the Tigers, joined the Phillies in a January 2023 trade.

With the Phillies’ CBT payroll sitting right around the second luxury tax threshold of $257MM, perhaps he was a luxury in a bullpen with Jeff Hoffman, , Matt Strahm, Orion Kerkering, Jose Alvarado, and Estevez.

Just four days ago, the Phillies shipped reliever Seranthony Dominguez to the Orioles for outfielder Austin Hays.  It’s been an interesting pair of swaps between first-place clubs, and with the Orioles turning to the Phillies to supplement their bullpen behind Craig Kimbrel and Yennier Cano.  The Orioles, who also added starters Zach Eflin and Trevor Rogers in deadline deals, don’t share the Phillies’ payroll concerns.

Johnson, a 25-year-old righty, sports a 2.63 ERA, 22.6 K%, 13.0 BB%, and 40.4% groundball rate in 18 Double-A starts.  Drafted 40th overall by the Rays in 2019, Johnson went to the Orioles at the trade deadline two years ago in a three-team deal involving Trey Mancini and Jose Siri.  MLB.com gave him a 45 grade, noting, “He maintains the ceiling of a mid-rotation starter, though his age and placement on the 40-man roster could push Johnson into a bullpen role in the short term.”  Prior to the season, Baseball America assigned Johnson a 50 grade and had a similar outlook.

Chace, 21, has mostly had 3-4 inning outings in High-A this year.  He’s missed a healthy amount of bats with a 34.2 K%, but allowed plenty of walks with a 13.5 BB%.  Chace’s pitching coach, Jordie Henry, said to Baseball America’s Jon Meoli, “Even when he does have those [command] hiccups, knowing that we already know his ceiling at this level is really, really exciting.”

Phillies Acquire Tanner Banks

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The White Sox have traded left-handed reliever Tanner Banks to the Phillies. Philadelphia is sending 19-year-old infield prospect William Bergolla to Chicago in return.

Banks, 32, has been a solid middle reliever for the White Sox over the past three seasons, with a 3.89 ERA and 3.67 SIERA in 162 innings pitched. He has an unremarkable 4.13 ERA this year, but his 26.8% strikeout rate, 3.23 xERA, and 3.12 SIERA are the best marks of his career. Of further note, Banks has gone multiple innings in 16 of his 41 appearances this season. Matt Gelb of The Athletic notes he will be a multi-inning arm out of the Phillies’ bullpen and “could return to starting at some point.” The southpaw has also been a menace against same-handed opponents this season, with a 33.7% strikeout rate and a 1.90 FIP. Lefties have hit just .184 against him.

The Phillies had already made one big bullpen acquisition ahead of the deadline, trading for Angels closer Carlos Estevez over the weekend. However, Ken Rosenthal of the Athletic noted on Monday that Philadelphia was still seeking bullpen help. After adding the righty Estevez, it stood to reason they would seek a southpaw, especially given José Alvarado’s recent struggles. The move to add Banks makes even more sense given the news that the Phillies have traded fellow left-handed reliever Gregory Soto to the Orioles, which broke shortly after the report that the Phillies had acquired Banks. Soto has put up solid underlying numbers throughout his season and a half with Philadelphia (3.63 SIERA), but his 4.42 ERA over 95 2/3 innings pitched is less inspiring. Evidently, the Phillies decided they saw more that they liked in Banks. Not only does he have better splits against left-handed batters this season and a proven ability to pitch multiple innings, but as a pre-arb player, he is significantly less expensive than Soto and comes with significantly more team control.

Bergolla signed with the Phillies as an international free agent in January 2022. Entering the season, he was the team’s No. 10 prospect according to Baseball America and No. 13 according to FanGraphs. Keith Law of The Athletic was not as high on the young infielder, leaving him off of his list of the top 20 prospects in the Phillies’ system. Ultimately, different evaluators disagree about Bergolla’s throwing arm, speed, and power potential, but just about everyone seems to agree that his ability to put the ball in play is his most important skill. He had a 7.5% strikeout rate at Single-A last season, and he is currently running an 11.2% strikeout rate at High-A in 2024.

Robert Murray of FanSided was the first to report that the Phillies were acquiring Banks from the White Sox. Scott Merkin of MLB.com first suggested that Bergolla could be headed back to the White Sox, and Todd Zolecki of MLB.com later confirmed the report.

Garrett Crochet Rumors: Deadline Day

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White Sox ace Garrett Crochet has been the hottest name on the trade market this month, both because of the Sox’ own failed attempt to extend him and because his camp has since indicated that the left-hander wants an extension before pitching in October for a new club. Crochet’s 114 1/3 innings this season have already eclipsed his prior career total. He’s said to be against a move to the bullpen, believing that staying on a starter’s routine is best for his health, and aiming for financial security before pushing his workload even deeper into postseason waters.

It’s rubbed many fans the wrong way to see such a business-like approach, and it’s taken many in the industry aback — White Sox GM Chris Getz included, apparently. Via Sox Machine’s James Fegan, Getz spoke with reporters yesterday and acknowledged that he was “surprised and taken back” by how Crochet’s camp handled the situation, particularly as he’d had a conversation with the left-hander’s agent at CAA just the night before.

“I think most fans and even players without knowing everything, it makes sense,” said Getz. “We understand why a stance would be taken. Now how you go about expressing that is what was a bit hurtful, quite honestly, considering I felt like we could have handled it a little bit differently and still I think everyone accomplished what they wanted to accomplish. … But Garrett and I are fine, we are good. I’ll continue to be one of his top supporters. In regard to how it affects the coming days, tough to tell.”

We’ll round up today’s Crochet chatter here and break out any major developments into their own posts…

  • USA Today’s Bob Nightengale reports that the White Sox have become increasingly optimistic that they’ll find someone to meet their asking price on Crochet even in the wake of his extension revelation. Per Nightengale, the Sox believe that they’ll trade Crochet between now and the 5:00pm CT deadline but expect to hang onto center fielder Luis Robert Jr. — as was reported to be the case regarding Robert just last night.
  • Both Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic and Bruce Levine of 670 The Score suggest that Crochet’s market remains strong. Rosenthal lists the Padres, Dodgers, Braves, Phillies, Red Sox and Orioles as teams with varying levels of interest. Levine echoes much of that same list and quotes an executive from a rival AL club stating the relative obvious: “You don’t get a chance to find a top pitcher like that often. You must get creative.”
  • The Yankees inquired on Crochet at some point but were told in those initial talks that the two parties “didn’t match up” in a trade, reports Jon Heyman of the New York Post. The Yankees could always revisit talks, particularly with so many alternative rotation options off the board. New York has been tied to Tigers righty Jack Flaherty as well, and the Yankees are seeking a rotation upgrade as they simultaneously explore the possibility of moving Nestor Cortes in a separate deal.

Phillies Still Exploring Bullpen Market

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The Phillies landed arguably the best reliever on the market when they sent two highly-regarded pitching prospects to the Angels for closer Carlos Estévez. That hasn’t stopped the front office from continuing to search for bullpen help. Ken Rosenthal of the Athletic wrote Monday afternoon that the Phils remain engaged in the relief market.

Philadelphia’s relief group has been around average overall, but their 6.08 ERA this month is better only than the Red Sox’s 6.38 mark. Estévez should solidify the ninth inning, but the Phils could try to get another setup option to pair with Jeff Hoffman, Matt Strahm and Orion Kerkering. The Phils subtracted some of their middle relief depth with the trade sending Seranthony Domínguez to Baltimore for Austin Hays. Philadelphia has José Ruiz and Yunior Marte in low-leverage roles at the moment.

The Phils have arguably the strongest all-around roster in MLB. President of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski and his staff are among the league’s most aggressive front offices. They continued that trend in the Estévez trade. They don’t have many obvious holes beyond the bullpen. Center field is arguably a weak point, but it’d be a thin market if the White Sox do indeed hold Luis Robert Jr.

Tanner Scott is the top reliever who is almost certain to move by tomorrow evening. The Phils probably aren’t going to land both of the best rental closers on the market. ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel very loosely tied the Phillies to A’s flamethrowing setup man Lucas Erceg this morning. Estévez’s old teammate (and former Phillie) Luis García should move, as could John Brebbia and Austin Adams.

Lucas Erceg “Drawing Significant Interest”

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Hard-throwing Athletics righty reliever Lucas Erceg is “drawing significant interest,” according to Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic.  Erceg, 29, is controllable for five seasons beyond this one.

Erceg, a second round pick by the Brewers back in 2016, had served as a two-way player in college but didn’t get serious about pitching until 2021.  This year, his second for the A’s, Erceg has cut his formerly worrisome walk rate down to 8.3%.  That’s paired with a healthy 26.3 K% and a 98.8 average fastball velocity that ranks 13th in MLB.  Erceg also has a strong 50.5% groundball rate and excellent barrel and hard-hit rates, so the ingredients are in place for an ERA lower than his current 3.68 mark.

Erceg spent a couple weeks on the IL for forearm tightness earlier this season.  He’s shown no ill effects with his fastball velocity, but did struggle for a couple of weeks upon his return.  Erceg’s past three outings have been scoreless, however, including a save Friday in Los Angeles.

Erceg’s bullpen-mate Mason Miller, one of the few relievers in baseball who throws harder, fractured his left pinkie a few days ago.  That moves Erceg up in the pecking order for A’s manager Mark Kotsay, along with fellow trade candidate Scott Alexander.  According to Rosenthal, the A’s have also “exchanged names” with teams on Alexander, a veteran lefty who bears little resemblance to Erceg as a pitcher.

Michael Kopech, who sits just above Erceg on the velocity rankings, landed with the Dodgers in a three-team deal Monday afternoon.  ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel connected the Phillies to both relievers earlier today, though he was unsure how the Phillies’ acquisition of Carlos Estevez affects their interest. Erceg, who will not be arbitration-eligible 2026 at the earliest, could be of particular appeal to teams with competitive balance tax concerns.

Phillies Acquire Carlos Estevez

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The Phillies are acquiring right-hander Carlos Estevez from the Angels, according to The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal. ESPN’s Jeff Passan reports that the Phillies are sending pitching prospects George Klassen and Samuel Aldegheri to Anaheim in return for Estevez. Both teams have since announced the trade.

Estevez, 31, first joined the Angels on a two-year deal prior to the 2023 season on the heels of a breakout season with the Rockies where he posted a 3.47 ERA despite playing half his games at Coors Field. It’s a deal that’s gone quite well for Anaheim, as the righty was an All-Star in 2023 with a sterling 1.80 ERA in the first half last year. Estevez’s overall season numbers took a dive after he struggled badly to a 6.59 ERA with a 4.46 FIP in 27 1/3 innings of work after the All-Star break last year, but he’s rebounded in a big way in 2023 to become one of the most attractive rental relief arms on the market.

This year, Estevez has collected 20 saves as the Angels’ closer in 34 innings of work while posting a strong 2.38 ERA in that time. While his 25.8% strikeout rate actually comes in a tad below his 27.8% figure from last year, he’s taken a major step forward in terms of command this year. After walking 11% of batters faced last season and entering the 2024 campaign having offered free passes to 9.3% of opponents in his career, Estevez has cut his walk rate to a clip of just 4% this year.

In conjunction with just three home runs allowed this season, it’s left the right-hander with a strong 2.85 FIP, a 2.67 xERA, and a 3.35 SIERA that all indicate he’s been one of the league’s best late-inning relief arms.

In trading for Estevez, the Phillies have not only replaced right-hander Seranthony Dominguez in their bullpen after shipping him to Baltimore yesterday in order to acquire outfielder Austin Hays, but they’ve found a bonafide closer to pitch the ninth inning after the struggles of southpaw Jose Alvarado left him replaced by right-hander Jeff Hoffman in recent weeks. The addition of Estevez should allow Alvarado, Hoffman, and lefty Matt Strahm to pitch in leverage spots earlier in games, deepening a bullpen that has posted a middling 3.96 ERA (16th in the majors) this year as the club gears up for a playoff run.

In return for Estevez’s services, the Phillies are sending a pair of pitching prospects to the Angels. Both rank within the top ten of the Philly system as of Baseball America’s most recent update, with Klassen ranked fifth in the system while Aldeghri currently ranks seventh. Klassen in particular was highlighted by BA’s Josh Norris earlier this month as a notable riser in the club’s system following his promotion to High-A earlier this year. The club’s sixth-round pick in the 2023 draft, the 22-year-old dominated Single-A pitching to the tune of a 0.71 ERA in nine starts prior to his promotion. While he’s struggled a bit more following his move to the next level with a 4.22 ERA in five starts, he’s still striking out an impressive 35.2% of batters faced even in High-A. A 10% walk rate raises some mild control concerns, but it’s easy to imagine the righty moving quickly through an Angels organization that tends to be aggressive in promoting youngsters.

As for Aldegheri, the lefty signed out of Italy with the Phillies back in 2019 but has raised his stock somewhat this year in 78 innings split between the High-A and Double-A levels. The 22-year-old sports a 3.23 ERA on the year with an excellent 34% strikeout rate against a 10% walk rate across fifteen starts. While BA suggests that the lefty lacks an obvious plus pitch, solid command and a five-pitch mix could nonetheless make him a viable starter in the big leagues. The pitching-heavy return for Estevez should be helpful for an Angels club that lacks much certainty in the rotation going forward, especially if veteran southpaw Tyler Anderson is also dealt before the deadline.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Phillies Notes: Hays, Marsh, Green, Arozarena

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The Phillies and Orioles completed an intriguing trade Friday that saw Baltimore land Seranthony Dominguez and Cristian Pache in exchange for Austin Hays, which represented something of a lengthy pursuit for Phils president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski.  The executive told reporters (including The Athletic’s Matt Gelb and The Philadelphia Inquirer’s Scott Lauber) that “I’ve actually tried to acquire him the last two trading deadlines, and [the Orioles] were asking for much more than we wanted to give.”

The O’s finally budged, perhaps due to both Dominguez addressing Baltimore’s bullpen needs, and Hays’ increasingly expendable nature within a crowded Orioles outfield.  An ice-cold start to the season and then a four-week IL stint due to a calf strain led to Hays’ playing time being reduced, though he has hit quite well in a more limited capacity over the last two-plus months.  Even with the first six weeks of the season essentially being a wash, Hays has gotten his offensive production back above league average, delivering a 102 wRC+ from a .255/.316/.395 slash line over 175 plate appearances.

It isn’t too far removed from the 108 wRC+ Hays posted over 1677 PA with Baltimore from 2021-23, and his recent hot streak indicates that Hays could certainly still match or surpass that number over the rest of the 2024 campaign.  Hays’ numbers against right-handed pitching are far below his career norms, so if those stats in particular pick up, Hays will certainly put himself in line for more of a regular role in the Phillies’ lineup.

“We don’t think he’s just in a position where he has to be platooned by any means,” Dombrowski said about Hays, who for now seemingly will join with the left-handed hitting Brandon Marsh as part of a timeshare in left field.  Marsh could also be moved to center field to split time with the righty-swinging Johan Rojas should Hays force his way into everyday duty in left field.  As Lauber notes, Marsh’s own splits have cut into his playing time — Marsh has been crushing righties but struggling badly against lefties this season, thus necessitating the Phillies’ need for a right-handed bat for the outfield picture.

Addressing that need cost the Phils an experienced reliever in Dominguez, which was no small matter for a Philadelphia team that was already known to be looking for bullpen help prior to the trade.  “We just felt that for us to get a right-handed hitter we had to give up something,” Dombrowski said, and the club will now target “somebody who can pitch innings late in a game that are important innings for us, like our other guys do.”

Carlos Estevez, Tanner Scott, Kyle Finnegan, and Michael Kopech are some of the more prominent relievers linked to Philadelphia’s trade pursuits in recent weeks, and Blue Jays right-hander Chad Green is also “one of the Phillies’ top targets,” in the words of MLB Network’s Jon Morosi (X link).  Green is generally considered to be available given how the struggling Jays will be selling to some extent at the deadline, though Toronto is reportedly focusing on selling pending free agents, whereas Green is under contract through the 2025 season.

As per the unusual multi-option terms of the deal Green signed in January 2023, he ended up earning $21MM over the 2024-25 seasons, once the Blue Jays exercised the two-year version of their club option last fall.  This translates to $10.5MM in 2025 and roughly $3.5MM left in salary this season.  This is no small matter to a Phillies team that is on pace to exceed the luxury tax threshold for the third straight season, and would ideally like to avoid the third penalty tier of $277MM.  RosterResource has the Phils at roughly a $262.3MM tax number right now, and crossing the $277MM line would give the Phillies a 95% tax on any overages, plus their first pick in the 2025 draft would be dropped back by 10 spots.

The Jays could potentially eat more of Green’s salary if the Phillies were to offer a better prospect return, so there are ways for the Phils to work around the payroll issue (while leaving room for other deadline upgrades) if they decide Green is their guy on the trade market.  The veteran righty has a 1.74 ERA over 31 innings for Toronto this season, though his 3.82 SIERA is perhaps a more accurate reflection of Green’s performance.  Green has benefited greatly from a 100% strand rate and a .187 BABIP, and his 23.1% strikeout rate is a little below average, while his 7.7% walk rate is pretty respectable.

In other trade roads not taken, Lauber and Gelb both wrote that the Phillies talked with the Rays about Randy Arozarena before the outfielder was dealt to the Mariners on Thursday.  Gelb noted that Tampa Bay wanted “a top prospect” in exchange for Arozarena, but the Phils weren’t willing to part with the unknown player.

Landing Arozarena would’ve certainly counted as more of a blockbuster move to address Philadelphia’s need for a right-handed hitting outfielder.  While Dombrowski has made a habit of trading prospects for established stars during his storied front office career, it could be that the PBO didn’t want to move whatever particular minor leaguer the Rays wanted, or Dombrowski was wary in general about depleting from the Phillies’ somewhat limited farm system.

Phillies Place Ranger Suarez On 15-Day Injured List

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The Phillies announced that left-hander Ranger Suarez has been placed on the 15-day injured list due to lower back soreness.  The placement is retroactive to July 24.  Left-hander Kolby Allard has been called up from Triple-A Lehigh Valley to take Suarez’s spot on the active roster.

Suarez’s back has been bothering him for some time, as he passed on playing in his first All-Star Game in order to rest up over the break and hopefully return to form.  This plan didn’t come to fruition, as Suarez allowed three runs on seven hits and a walk over 5 1/3 innings in his first start after the break, a 7-2 Phillies loss to the Twins on July 22.  Losing Suarez for a minimum of 15 days anyway now makes it easy to criticize the Phils’ plan in hindsight, yet with nine days in between starts, it is understandable why Suarez and the team thought he’d have enough time to put this back issue behind him.

Philadelphia’s nine-game lead in the NL East gives the team some flexibility with injuries, of course, and this IL stint now gives Suarez plenty of time to fully get healthy for the stretch run and into October.  With a 7.71 ERA in his last four starts and 21 innings, Suarez has seemingly been trying to pitch through discomfort for some time, though some regression was perhaps inevitable given his red-hot start to the 2024 season.

Even with his recent struggles, Suarez still has a 2.87 ERA across 119 1/3 innings, as well as barrel, walk, and hard-hit ball rates that rank among the league’s best.  After delivering solid numbers as a member of the Phillies’ rotation in 2022-23, Suarez’s emergence into a borderline ace has only added to the team’s enviable pitching depth.  Suarez, Zack Wheeler, Aaron Nola, and Cristopher Sanchez have all been good to great, and Spencer Turnbull and Tyler Phillips have also been good in some spot duty.

With Suarez, Turnbull, and Taijuan Walker all on the IL at the moment, Allard might get the next opportunity at filling a hole in the rotation.  Allard signed a split contract with the Phillies during the offseason, but the six-year MLB veteran hasn’t distinguished himself with a 5.60 ERA over 72 1/3 minor league innings.

Walker is slated to throw a live batting practice today as he works his way back from blister problems, but he won’t be an option for the rotation until August, and after he has banked a minor league rehab start or two.  This might put him roughly on the same timeline as Suarez assuming the back problem isn’t overly serious, so the Phillies could try to make do with Allard or Michael Mercado until reinforcements arrive.  It is possible the team might seek out some rotation depth at the trade deadline, but that might be more likely to come in the form of a swingman type that could easily transition to the bullpen once the regular starters are healthy.

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