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Blue Jays Acquire Aledmys Diaz

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The Blue Jays have struck a trade to acquire shortstop Aledmys Diaz from the Cardinals, per an announcement from the Toronto organization (h/t Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca, on Twitter). Outfield prospect J.B. Woodman is heading back to St. Louis in return.

[RELATED: Updated Blue Jays Depth Chart]

This time last year, such a deal would not have seemed possible. In 2016, Diaz turned in a sparkling rookie campaign. Over 460 plate appearances, he slashed .300/.369/.510 with 17 home runs. Diaz went down on strikes just sixty times while drawing 41 walks.

Alas, he was not able to sustain that surprising outbreak in his sophomore season. Diaz limped to a .259/.290/.392 batting line in 301 trips to the plate. He was ultimately demoted to Triple-A, where he watched as Paul DeJong took off and dashed any hopes of a near-term return.

Beyond the questions at the plate, there are also some questions regarding Diaz’s defensive work, at least at short. He has drawn mixed reviews from UZR and DRS which, in the aggregate, paint him as at least a somewhat below-average defender at that challenging spot.

For the Jays, Diaz represents a possible solution to the team’s depth issues up the middle. While Troy Tulowitzki and Devon Travis will likely enter camp as presumptive starters, they have each struggled with significant injury issues in recent years. Diaz, then, not only adds another option but also represents a potential buy-low candidate.

In exchange, Toronto parted with its second-round pick from the 2016 draft. Woodman, a left-handed-hitting outfielder who’ll soon turn 23, had a solid debut season at the low A level but struggled upon reaching Class A in 2017. In 414 plate appearances, he slashed just .240/.320/.378 while striking out 157 times. Needless to say, his offensive game will require quite a bit of polishing, but the Cards can certainly afford to be patient with him.

NL Central Notes: Kang, Pirates, Lester, Arrieta, Diaz

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Pirates infielder Jung Ho Kang discussed his attempt to return to the majors with Jee-ho Yoo of Yonhap (here and here). Kang derailed his career when he drove under the influence of alcohol in his native Korea — the third time he has been arrested for a DUI — with a subsequent conviction leaving him unable to obtain a visa to work in the United States. Now, as he prepares to play in the Dominican Winter League, Kang says he hopes “to become a better person and a better player.” Whether or not he’ll be able to return to action in the majors — in 2018 or beyond — will ultimately depend upon the U.S. government.

  • In a piece that’s not altogether unrelated to Kang’s situation, Bill Brink of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette analyzes the thin margin of error the Pirates front office has to work with in light of the team’s still-limited payroll. GM Neal Huntington notes the need to find “significant value outside of the free-agent market” as well as the imperative to “get more than just a dollar-for-dollar value” in free agency. The piece highlights the challenges facing the just-extended executive as he seeks to position the Bucs for contention once again.
  • Needless to say, the Cubs have seen some ups and downs from their rotation this year. Now, it’s key lefty Jon Lester who is struggling to find answers, as Patrick Mooney of CSNChicago.com writes. The battle-tested veteran has not been very effective since returning from the DL at the start of September; things came to a head last night, as he allowed seven earned runs on eight hits and three hits without recording a strikeout. Lester declined to blame any physical limitations and says he’s “not worried about” the middling results, noting that he simply needs to make adjustments as he has over the course of his successful career.
  • The Cubs will hope that Jake Arrieta is sharper when he makes his own return from the DL. Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times writes that the veteran righty, who went on the shelf right as Lester came back, feels his arm strength may actually have improved after getting some rest due to a hamstring injury. Arrieta is scheduled for two more regular-season outings, though Chicago will wait to make any final calls on the last few games of the year.
  • Shortstop Aledmys Diaz is back with the Cardinals after an extended run at Triple-A, but as Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch writes, his role with the organization — now and in the future — is quite uncertain. Diaz has moved around the infield a bit at Triple-A, perhaps creating some new versatility, though he continued to struggle at the plate. With Paul DeJong now seemingly ensconced at short, Diaz will need to carve out a new role or wait for an opportunity to open with the Cards or, perhaps, some other organization.

Central Notes: Jorge, Diaz, Montero, Petricka

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With the Twins set to play 20 games in a 19-day span heading into the All-Star break, including four games against the Royals this weekend, they’ll dip into the minors and call on prospect Felix Jorge to make his MLB debut tomorrow, reports Mike Berardino of the St. Paul Pioneer Press. The 23-year-old Jorge currently sits eighth among Minnesota farmhands, per Jim Callis and Jonathan Mayo of MLB.com, and also ranked eighth among Twins prospects entering the season, per Baseball America. The right-hander doesn’t overpower opponents but has walked just 1.7 hitters per nine innings dating back to 2015. He currently has a 3.26 ERA with 6.4 K/9, 2.3 BB/9 and a 50.4 percent ground-ball rate through 85 2/3 Double-A frames. Both scouting reports peg Jorge as a fourth or fifth starter, noting that he’s added some bulk to his slender frame and sits in the low 90s with a bit of sink on his heater while also offering an above-average changeup. Jorge is already on the 40-man roster, so there won’t be a DFA or 60-day DL move required to add him.

More on the game’s Central divisions…

  • Aledmys Diaz was caught off-guard by the Cardinals’ decision to option him to Triple-A, writes Rick Hummel of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. However, the 26-year-old offered a professional attitude to the media following the move’s announcement, telling reporters that he’s happy to do whatever is best for the Cardinals in the long run. General manager John Mozeliak also weighed in on what he labeled a difficult decision, telling the media: “What we really want to see is that he’s able to take a deep breath and go down and work on some things offensively, as well as his whole game. … (Diaz) hasn’t been picking the ball up (at the plate) and he’s been chasing a lot of balls outside the zone.” Mozeliak also noted that injured second baseman Kolten Wong won’t be back with the team until after the All-Star break.
  • Cubs manager Joe Maddon spoke candidly about the organization’s decision to designate Miguel Montero for assignment following the catcher’s blasting of Jake Arrieta and the Cubs’ pitching staff, Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune writes. “(There are) too many young guys in (the clubhouse) who are impressionable,” said Maddon. “…With this young impressionable group, to me, and a really good group that’s going to be together for a long time, you don’t want to foster, nurture, condone (Montero’s) kind of message.” President of baseball operations Theo Epstein was alerted to Montero’s comments by GM Jed Hoyer on Tuesday night this week, per Gonzales, and the two reached the decision to move on from Montero after speaking with Maddon late that night. Epstein stresses that Montero shouldn’t be viewed as any kind of scapegoat for the team’s overall struggles, though he said they felt Montero was “not being a good teammate” and demonstrated a lack of accountability in such a public manner that they were forced to act.
  • The White Sox announced yesterday that righty Jake Petricka has been placed back on the disabled list due to a right elbow strain. Fellow righty Juan Minaya was summoned back from Triple-A just a day after being sent there. The elbow issue is the latest in a slew of injuries for Petricka, who has missed time due to a forearm strain, hip surgery and a lat strain in recent years. The 29-year-old’s hard sinker has led to a sizable 63 percent ground-ball rate, though Petricka has averaged just 6.5 K/9 against 4.0 BB/9 as a big leaguer. Nonetheless, that huge ground-ball rate has helped him post a 3.70 ERA through 163 innings in the Majors. No timetable was given for a return to the mound.

Cardinals Option Aledmys Diaz

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The Cardinals announced that they’ve optioned shortstop Aledmys Diaz to Triple-A Memphis and selected the contract of infielder Alex Mejia in a corresponding roster move. (Jen Langosch of MLB.com first reported the news, on Twitter). The move to option Diaz, who sandwiched a productive month of May between an ugly June and an uglier April, comes just about a month after St. Louis also optioned the struggling Randal Grichuk.

St. Louis has also released veteran infielder Jhonny Peralta over the past month, a move that was accompanied by a “no one is safe” message from general manager John Mozeliak, whose front office is clearly tired of the team’s lackluster play as of late. Diaz is hitting .260/.293/.396 on the season as a whole, but he’s collected just six hits in his past 30 plate appearances and hasn’t graded out well at shortstop, from a defensive standpoint (-9 Defensive Runs Saved, 0 Ultimate Zone Rating). More troubling, perhaps, is the fact that Diaz’s walk rate has been cut in half, while his chase rate on pitches outside the zone has soared by 10 percent (from 28.2 percent in ’16 to 38.6 percent in ’17).

The 26-year-old Diaz was a surprise breakout star last season — just months after being designated for assignment and being passed over by every other team in the league when he was on waivers. Injuries created an opportunity for Diaz last year, and he responded with a .300/.369/.510 batting line with 17 homers. The optional assignment for Grichuk earlier this year was similar to a surprising option of Kolten Wong a year prior in that both were relatively brief in nature.

Mejia, also 26, is a former fourth-round pick of the Cardinals (2012) that hasn’t hit much in the minors, but Baseball America rated him as the best defensive shortstop in the Double-A Texas League back in 2014. He’s batting .253/.309/.355 with three homers, 18 doubles and a steal through 293 plate appearances between Double-A and Triple-A this year.

Matt Carpenter Will Enter 2017 Season As Cardinals’ First Baseman

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The Cardinals have informed Matt Carpenter that he’ll be the team’s first baseman entering the 2017 season, GM John Mozeliak told reporters, including Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. While Carpenter played quite a bit of first base down the stretch in 2016, he also mixed in some appearances at second base and third base as well. That doesn’t seem like it’ll be the case now, as Carpenter appears poised for everyday duties there.

The 2017 alignment will see Kolten Wong take the reins at second base once again with breakout rookie Aledmys Diaz manning shortstop and serving as his double-play partner on a regular basis. That leaves Jhonny Peralta and Jedd Gyorko as third base options, though Mozeliak did note that Gyorko can move around the diamond and Peralta can occasionally spell Diaz at shortstop.

Nonetheless, the Cardinals’ infield arrangement does seem to lend itself to the possibility of trade scenarios. Peralta has already been an oft-speculated trade candidate as he enters the final season of a four-year $53MM contract that will pay him $10MM in 2017. First baseman Matt Adams, whose primary spot has now been filled by Carpenter, could also be shopped around. Neither player figures to have especially high trade value, though. Peralta missed several months in 2016 due to a thumb injury and batted .260/.307/.408 in 313 plate appearances when healthy. He also drew dismal Defensive Runs Saved/Ultimate Zone Rating marks for his work at third base (-7 and -9, respectively, in just 570 innings).

As for Adams, he batted .249/.309/.471 with 16 homers in 327 trips to the plate. While that power output represented the best of Adams’ career on a rate basis, the 28-year-old has poor overall numbers against left-handed pitching in his career (.212/.243/.352) and carries negative value on the basepaths. He’s also spent time on the disabled list due to myriad physical ailments dating back to the 2012 season, including shoulder inflammation (2016), a torn quad (2015), a calf strain (2014) and an oblique strain (2013). Adams has averaged just 107 games/349 plate appearances per season dating back to 2013 and is projected to earn $2.8MM through arbitration next winter. He’s controllable for two more seasons.

Cardinals Activate Aledmys Diaz From DL

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The Cardinals have activated shortstop Aledmys Diaz from the 15-day disabled list, per a club announcement. Diaz went on the DL on Aug. 2 with a hairline fracture in his left thumb.

[RELATED: Updated Cardinals Depth Chart]

Before suffering the injury, the 26-year-old Diaz was in the midst of one of the majors’ best rookie seasons. The Cuba native burst on the scene with a .423/.453/.732 batting line and a measly four strikeouts in 75 April plate appearances, and while the opening month was high-water mark prior to fracturing his thumb, his steady play continued through July. On the whole, Diaz has batted .312/.376/.518 in 401 PAs, swatted 14 homers and posted an outstanding 13.5 percent strikeout rate. While Diaz’s work in the field has left plenty to be desired (16 errors, minus-8 Ultimate Zone Rating, minus-3 Defensive Runs Saved), his bat has made him an eminently valuable commodity – which no one expected when the Cardinals designated him for assignment in July 2015.

In theory, Diaz’s return should be a welcome one for the 75-66 Redbirds, who are a half-game up on the Mets for the second wild-card spot in the National League. However, the club’s middle infield actually fared well without him, as Jedd Gyorko, Kolten Wong and Greg Garcia have each enjoyed productive seasons. It’s unknown how manager Mike Matheny will deploy the group going forward. For now, Diaz isn’t in the Cardinals’ lineup against the Brewers on Sunday.

“Just being healthy isn’t necessarily the answer to everything right now,” Matheny said Saturday (via Rick Hummel of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch). “We also have to get his timing right, get him confident with how he feels at the plate.”

NL Central Notes: Strop, Cards, Rosenthal, Iglesias

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Cubs setup man Pedro Strop suffered a left knee injury while sliding to make a play on a weakly hit grounder last night and had to be helped off the field, as MLB.com’s Carrie Muskat writes. Strop will undergo an MRI today, at which point the club will know more about the amount of time he’ll need to miss. The Cubs’ bullpen is a bit thin at the moment as it is, with right-hander Hector Rondon dealing with a triceps issue (though Rondon has not been placed on the disabled list). A significant injury to Strop would be a substantial blow to the Cubs’ late-inning relief corps, as Strop has turned in a very strong 2.89 ERA with 11.5 K/9, 2.7 BB/9 and a 59.6 percent ground-ball rate in 43 2/3 innings. His 50 relief appearances trail only Travis Wood for the team lead.

More from the NL Central…

  • MLB.com’s Jenifer Langosch provides an update on a number of injured Cardinals, noting that left-hander Tyler Lyons’ season could be in jeopardy. The 28-year-old has been diagnosed with a fracture in his right knee and recently received a platelet-rich plasma injection as part of the treatment. It’ll be another three weeks before he’s evaluated, though, and GM John Mozeliak candidly stated: “I definitely feel like his season may be in question.” Shortstop Aledmys Diaz is back with the team and currently sporting a splint on his fractured left thumb. He’ll meet with a hand specialist next Monday to further establish a timeline for his own return. Meanwhile, right-hander Jordan Walden, who has pitched just 10 1/3 innings as a Cardinal since coming over in the Jason Heyward/Shelby Miller trade, hopes to return in September, though the Cardinals are being more cautious about his potential availability.
  • Injured closer Trevor Rosenthal told Jim Hayes of FOX Sports Midwest (video link) that he’s dealing with a “pretty significant” flexor mass strain in his right forearm that has previously not been reported or acknowledged by the Cardinals. (Langosch notes in the above-linked piece that the team has still not confirmed that diagnosis.) Rosenthal is on the disabled list with inflammation in his right rotator cuff and recently received an PRP injection of his own, but the forearm issue, which Rosenthal says may have led to the inflammation in his shoulder, would be a new and possibly greater concern than the previously reported shoulder injury.
  • Raisel Iglesias recorded the first save of his big league career on Wednesday, and there could be quite a few more in his future, writes C. Trent Rosecrans of the Cincinnati Enquirer. “He’s stepped it up and I think we’re looking at a role that could be very comfortable for him and something we’ll have to weigh moving forward between starter and reliever,” said manager Bryan Price. Iglesias himself expressed an enormous amount of pride in being asked to take the ball in the ninth inning, explaining through a translator that he was as proud to pitch in that role as he was to be named Opening Day starter for the Reds. Said Iglesias: “I feel really proud because I’ve waited for this moment, this is what I’ve wanted to be on the team, this is what I want to do. I want to be the closer.” Iglesias looked like a highly intriguing rotation candidate entering the season, but a shoulder injury sidelined him for two months, and he’s pitched exclusively out of the bullpen since returning. Since being activated from the DL, Iglesias has a sensational 0.65 ERA with a 31-to-12 K/BB ratio in 27 2/3 innings.

Aledmys Diaz Placed On DL Due To Fractured Thumb

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The Cardinals have placed shortstop Aledmys Diaz on the 15-day disabled list with a hairline fracture in his left thumb that was suffered on Sunday when he was hit by a pitch, as Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch writes. “And it will likely be longer [than 15 days],” general manager John Mozeliak made when announcing the move.

As Goold writes, initial X-rays revealed only a deep bone bruise, but the fracture was revealed upon further testing after the swelling in his hand had reduced. While the Cardinals had the diagnosis prior to Monday’s non-waiver trade deadline, Mozeliak explained to Goold that the didn’t feel pressured to dive into the trade market in search of infield depth due to the fact that Jhonny Peralta will return from the DL tonight and Matt Carpenter will return by Friday. “You’re not going to go out and find that kind of impact player and the fact that we get Jhonny Peralta activated (Tuesday) I think he can slide in right there,” said Mozeliak. “…I think we’re covered. Trying to find a middle infielder that would have had some type of impact on this roster — I think it would be hard to top.”

The Cardinals entered the year expecting to utilize Kolten Wong at second base, Peralta at shortstop and Carpenter at third base. However, a Spring Training thumb injury sidelined Peralta into June, giving Diaz a chance to establish himself in the Majors. His performance was strong enough (and Wong’s struggles were great enough) that upon Peralta’s return to health, he played third base, with Carpenter displacing Wong at second base. Now, with both Carpenter and Peralta both returning from DL stints of their own, Peralta will man shortstop while Carpenter reclaims his original spot at third base, for the time being.

Suffice it to say, the Cardinals have plenty of depth in the infield to cushion the blow of losing Diaz for a fairly sizable portion of the remainder of the season. Nonetheless, it’s a notable loss, as Diaz has been nothing short of sensational at the plate, hitting .312/.376/.518 with 14 home runs in 401 plate appearances. His defense leaves plenty to be desired (16 errors, -8 UZR, -3 DRS), but Diaz’s bat has played a major role in the Cardinals’ 56-49 record, which currently has them just a half game out of the second Wild Card spot in the National League.

NL Notes: Padres, Cards, Reds, D-Backs

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The Padres had a chance to add righty Michael Fulmer from the Mets at last year’s trade deadline, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. Instead, San Diego held onto Justin Upton and recouped a draft pick via the qualifying offer, which the club will put to use alongside many other early picks in a few weeks. Fulmer, of course, ended up with the Tigers when New York cashed him in for Yoenis Cespedes. The jettisoned Carlos Gomez trade had already provided an interesting set of alternative history scenarios, and this deal-that-never-was only adds to the intrigue.

Here’s more from the National League:

  • The breakout performance of Aledmys Diaz has the Cardinals looking for ways to adapt the rest of the roster to a new full-time shortstop, as Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports. St. Louis has had discussions with both Jhonny Peralta and Matt Carpenter about occupying more versatile roles — something in the mold of, but less dramatic than, Ben Zobrist’s old position-less situation with the Rays. Both Peralta and Carpenter have played multiple positions in the majors already, but it seems that the variety and day-to-day volatility may increase somewhat. Meanwhile, GM John Mozeliak said that he has high expectations for Diaz. “[G]iven what you’re seeing out of Diaz at his age [25], you really need to see him develop at shortstop,” said the veteran executive. “When you look at what he’s been able to do, seeing him hold that spot for the next five or six years is reasonable to think.”
  • Reds president of baseball operations Walt Jocketty says that his organization has not been fielding calls on possible trade pieces, MLB.com’s Mark Sheldon reports. Jocketty says his expectation is that trade chatter won’t really pick up until late June. “It’s really hard to say,” said Jocketty. “I don’t think anything will happen much until after the Draft. That’s usually when it starts to happen, a couple of weeks after the Draft.” Of course, that’s not to say that there isn’t any action in the month of June; I recently looked back at some notable trades in recent years and we just saw a swap yesterday involving a veteran reliever.
  • Over at Fangraphs, Dave Cameron suggests that the Diamondbacks ought to consider what might be their boldest move yet: dangling the just-signed Zack Greinke in trade talks this summer. While the organization is committed to near-term contention, says Cameron, it may not have the flexibility it needs to address its many concerns over the winter. Dealing Greinke this summer in a market that looks light on arms would offer an opportunity to big-budget contenders to add a premium pitcher in advance of a free agent class that falls well shy of last year’s crop of talent. While Greinke hasn’t been as sharp as last year, and has posted far worse results, he’d certainly still draw interest, even if his huge salary would require some serious negotiating. All told, the scenario seems rather unlikely — as Cameron acknowledges — but is interesting to consider.

Central Notes: Cardinals, Indians, Royals

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The Cardinals’ Jhonny Peralta is nearing a return from thumb surgery, but he might not be their everyday shortstop when he comes back, reports Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. The Redbirds want to continue playing standout rookie shortstop Aledmys Diaz, possibly their long-term solution at the position, and have had conversations with both Peralta and third baseman Matt Carpenter about lining up at multiple spots. Peralta has been playing third (he has previous major league experience there) and short during his rehab assignment, while Carpenter could move back to his former position – second base – or first base, where he started Saturday. “I feel like it’s going to create a fresh opportunity for us, but I also feel like given what you’re seeing out of Diaz at his age (25) you really need to see him develop at shortstop,” said general manager John Mozeliak. “We want to keep him developing and also figure out the right combination to win games. We need to have at least one player moving around. We need one of the veterans to say, ‘Hey, I’m willing.’”

Now for some notes on a couple of teams from the AL Central…

  • Indians right-hander Carlos Carrasco, out since late April with a hamstring injury, is close to rejoining the club. He could make one more rehab start or get back on a big league mound even earlier than that, general manager Mike Chernoff told MLB Network Radio on Sunday (Twitter link). Prior to his injury, Carrasco pitched to an outstanding 2.45 ERA in 22 innings while putting up strong strikeout and walk ratios (8.18 and 2.05, respectively, per nine innings).
  • Having already lost Mike Moustakas for the season and Alex Gordon for an extended period of time earlier this week, the Royals suffered yet another scare to a cornerstone player Saturday when catcher Salvador Perez left their game against the White Sox after colliding with third baseman Cheslor Cuthbert. Fortunately, an MRI showed no structural damage (only a quad contusion), meaning Perez will miss just 7-10 days, manager Ned Yost told reporters (Twitter link via Rustin Dodd of the Kansas City Star). The Royals will not place Perez on the disabled list, tweets Dodd.
  • With Perez temporarily unavailable, the Royals have recalled catcher Tony Cruz from Triple-A Omaha and optioned reliever Peter Moylan, Dodd was among those to report (via Twitter). Cruz, who owns a .220/.262/.310 line in 633 career major league plate appearances, hit .278/.352/.417 in 122 trips to the plate with Omaha before today’s promotion. Moylan has thrown 7 1/3 innings of two-run ball for the Royals this year, striking out seven and walking two.
  • While the Indians have one of the majors’ lowest payrolls, salary has never been a deciding factor for them around the trade deadline, Chernoff said (Twitter link). “It’s almost always about players and the return you have to give up,” he stated.
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