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Brandon Barnes

Rockies Release Brandon Barnes

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The Rockies have released outfielder Brandon Barnes, SB Nation’s Chris Cotillo tweets. They had outrighted him early last month after David Dahl’s arrival in the big leagues made him expendable.

Barnes would have been eligible for free agency following the season unless the Rockies had again added him to their 40-man roster, at which point he would have become eligible for arbitration. It’s little surprise, then, that they’re willing to part ways with him.

The 30-year-old Barnes has been useful in the past due to his ability to play solid defense at all three outfield positions, but his career seems to have hit a wall of late. He batted a meager .220/.250/.320 in 109 plate appearances this season, well below his career mark of .242/.289/.356. He also wasn’t terribly impressive in the good hitting environment of Triple-A Albuquerque, batting .282/.323/.416 in 255 plate appearances there this year.

Rockies To Promote David Dahl

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The Rockies will call top outfield prospect David Dahl up to the majors tomorrow for the beginning of the team’s series with the Orioles, Nick Groke of the Denver Post reports.  In a corresponding move, outfielder Brandon Barnes will be designated for assignment to create a roster spot.

Dahl was the 10th overall pick of the 2012 draft, but his path to the big leagues was slowed by a very serious injury in May 2015.  A collision with a teammate in the outfield left Dahl with a concussion and lacerated spleen, and Dahl underwent a splenectomy to remove the damaged body part entirely so he could return to action in 2015, rather than undergo surgery to repair his spleen and face a longer layoff.  It appears as though Dahl emerged from that scare relatively unscathed, as he has torn up Double-A and Triple-A pitching to the tune of a combined .314/.394/.569 line and 18 homers over a combined 400 plate appearances.

Entering the season, the 22-year-old Dahl scored impressive rankings on top-100 prospect rankings from Baseball Prospectus (who ranked Dahl 31st), Baseball America (39th), MLB.com (46th) and ESPN.com’s Keith Law (58th).  The 2016 BA Prospect Handbook ranked Dahl as the second-best prospect in Colorado’s system, describing him as having “the potential to be a five-tool center fielder.”  Dahl already possesses speed, a strong throwing arm and defensive ability in center, and he has quick hands and gap power at the plate, with some scouts believing he has the ability to hit 20-25 homers.

With the Rockies falling well behind in the NL West, it makes sense that Dahl would get an extended look.  The timing of the promotion means that Dahl wouldn’t be able to earn enough service time to gain Super Two status if he stays on the MLB roster for the rest of the season, so if he isn’t demoted, the Rockies are on track to control Dahl through the 2022 season.  As Groke notes, now that Dahl is in the mix for playing time, it will only intensify rumors that Colorado could create room in the outfield by trading Carlos Gonzalez or Charlie Blackmon. For now, Dahl looks to take over in left field while Gerardo Parra is still on the DL.  As Jason Martinez recently wrote in his “Knocking Down The Door” feature for MLBTR, Dahl’s importance to the Rockies’ future means that Parra should probably “be a very expensive fourth outfielder” unless a trade happens.

Barnes, 30, came to Colorado as part of the Dexter Fowler trade package from Houston in December 2013.  Barnes has hit .249/.295/.376 over 703 PA with the Rockies while getting extensive time at all three outfield positions.

Rockies Avoid Arbitration With Brandon Barnes

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The Rockies have agreed to a one-year deal with outfielder Brandon Barnes to avoid arbitration, the club announced. Terms of the deal were not announced.

MLBTR projected Barnes, 29, to command $1.2MM in arbitration in his first season of eligibility. But as I wrote in assessing Colorado’s offseason outlook, he seemed like a reasonably plausible non-tender candidate given his recent struggles.

Barnes was demoted for part of the 2015 campaign and ended up contributing only a .251/.314/.341 slash over 281 plate appearances. Given that he benefited from playing at Coors Field, that translated to a meager 68 OPS+. He also hasn’t drawn terribly favorable ratings from defensive metrics.

Rockies Option Drew Stubbs, Recall Brandon Barnes

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The Rockies have optioned struggling outfielder Drew Stubbs to Triple-A, Nick Groke of the Denver Post reports (Twitter links). Taking his place on the active roster is Brandon Barnes.

Stubbs, 30, avoided arbitration with a $5.825MM contract this year — his final before hitting the open market. Notably, given his 5+ service time, Stubbs both had to pass through revocable optional waivers and consent to the assignment.

This season has been nothing but hardship for Stubbs, who is slashing just .118/.182/.255 in 56 plate appearances. That represents a notable disappointment for him after a stellar 2014 campaign in which he put up a strong .289/.339/.482 batting line. Though he only took 424 plate appearances, strong baserunning and solid defensive marks let him with 2.6 fWAR and 2.7 rWAR.

Barnes, meanwhile, joined Stubbs as a pre-2014 acquisition for Colorado, but the 29-year-old did not enjoy quite as much success. He has been working at Triple-A this year, where he has put up a .205/.266/.364 slash over 143 turns at bat.

NL Notes: Russell, Hudson, D’Backs, Rockies

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Cubs prospect Addison Russell tells reporters, including MLB.com’s Jane Lee, that he “was a little shocked” and “confused” when he learned he had been traded by the Athletics last summer. “I was kind of flying through the farm system and playing well at each level and looked forward to playing with the A’s for several more years,” Russell said. “The trade just really surprised me. I wasn’t expecting it. It definitely would’ve been cool to play at the big league level with the team that drafted me.”

Here are a few more notes from the National League:

  • Diamondbacks righty Daniel Hudson still does not know what his role will be going forward, as Zach Buchanan and Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic report. Hudson is coming off of two consecutive Tommy John surgeries and rehab stints, and the team is still evaluating whether he will be able to continue ramping up his workload to open the year as a starter.
  • The Diamondbacks “have no urgency to go out and get anybody” at catcher, GM Dave Stewart says (quote via the above-cited piece). Arizona is still confident in its depth options and “encouraged by the improvement” shown by prospect Peter O’Brien.
  • It appears that the Rockies will have some tough decisions to make in rounding out their bench. GM Jeff Bridich said today that the club intends to carry thirteen arms, “maybe more often than not,” as Matt Eddy of Baseball America tweets. Rolling with a baker’s dozen on the hill likely means that the club will need to part with an outfield option, as Charlie Culberson, Brandon Barnes, and Drew Stubbs will presumably be allocated only two bench spots (with the other two going to Daniel Descalso and whichever catcher is off that day). As MLBTR’s Tim Dierkes reported earlier today, none of that trio is out of options, though Stubbs is a 5+ service time player so is not a candidate to be sent down. One player who does lack options, however, is backstop Michael McKenry, who would seemingly be on the outside looking in with just four position-player reserves — despite the fact that the team gave him just over $1MM to avoid arbitration.

AL East Notes: Robertson, Lester, Barnes, Pompey, Byrd

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The Yankees and standout closer David Robertson haven’t had any discussions about a contract extension, ESPN’s Buster Olney writes in his daily blog (Insider subscription required/recommended). The free-agent-to-be could end up being hit with a qualifying offer this winter, Olney writes, and given the declining willingness teams have shown to pay big money for relievers, he could be inclined to take the deal. Doing so would give the Yankees an elite arm at a decent price without assuming any long-term risk.

More from Olney’s blog and the rest of the AL East…

  • Red Sox GM Ben Cherington hasn’t made a formal offer to Jon Lester since the four-year, $70MM pact the team offered in Spring Training. Cherington wouldn’t be doing his due diligence if he didn’t at least listen to offers for his ace, in order to gauge whether or not a club like the Dodgers would offer up a top prospect like Joc Pederson or Corey Seager, Olney continues.
  • Brian MacPherson of the Providence Journal takes things a step further, writing that it is time for the Red Sox to trade Lester. MacPherson notes that the lack of a competitive offer shows a clear unwillingness to take that type of risk on the organization’s part. If the team wasn’t willing to go to $100MM or so in Spring Training, MacPherson asks, why then, would it vault into Zack Greinke territory by offering a market value extension or free agent contract? Collecting a draft pick and letting Lester walk is a “timid half-measure,” MacPherson concludes.
  • The Blue Jays have shown interest in Rockies outfielder Brandon Barnes, reports Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post. However, while the Jays have scouted Barnes extensively, they’ve yet to put together an offer.
  • Shi Davidi of Sportsnet reports (via Twitter) that Blue Jays top prospect Dalton Pompey has changed representation and is now a client of CAA Sports. The toolsy center fielder hit his way onto Baseball America’s midseason Top 50 prospect list, ranking 47th overall.
  • While the Yankees are focused on adding pitcher, John Harper of the New York Daily News opines that the team should turn its focus to Marlon Byrd. Injuries to Carlos Beltran and Mark Teixeira have left Brett Gardner looking like the most dangerous hitter in the lineup, Harper writes, and Byrd has more homers than the entire outfield of Ichiro Suzuki, Gardner and Jacoby Ellsbury combined. While there’s been no indication that the Yanks are interested, one executive tells Harper that GM Brian Cashman has gotten very good at keeping acquisitions under wraps.

Rosenthal On Red Sox, Butler, Rangers, Angels

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Some say that the big-money closer is becoming extinct, but Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports argues that reports of the species' demise might be premature since the supply is overwhelming demand this offseason, depressing some free agent prices.  While Grant Balfour's two-year, $15MM was surprisingly low to some, Joe Nathan netted a two-year, $20MM deal at age 39.  Here's more from Rosenthal's latest column..

  • A trade remains possible for the Red Sox, who are checking in with teams that need starters, sources say.  Jake Peavy and Ryan Dempster appear the most expendable, but the Sox could get a bigger return if they moved John Lackey or Felix Doubront.
  • The Royals seem unlikely to trade designated hitter Billy Butler or any of their relievers after signing free-agent second baseman Omar Infante.  Royals GM Dayton Moore wants to pounce after adding Infante, left-hander Jason Vargas and outfielder Norichika Aoki and would love a shot at re-signing free agent Ervin Santana if his market somehow collapses.
  • The Rangers do not appear seriously involved in trade discussions for Rays ace David Price at the moment.  If they strike out on Shin-Soo Choo, Masahiro Tanaka, and Price, they simply would preserve their prospects and financial resources for later moves.
  • The Angels seem to be holding off on a DH like as Raul Ibanez until they know how much they will spend on a pitcher. That pitcher could be right-hander Matt Garza as they have heavy interest in him, sources say.  That pitcher could also be Tanaka.
  • The Rockies got more trade inquiries on Jordan Lyles than any player at the winter meetings and Brandon Barnes was a popular target, too, according to a source.

Astros Acquire Dexter Fowler

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The Rockies announced that they have traded outfielder Dexter Fowler and a player to be named later to the Astros in exchange for right-hander Jordan Lyles and outfielder Brandon Barnes.

Fowler-Dexter

Fowler, 28 in March, wasn't able to replicate his brilliant offensive performance in 2012, but he still enjoyed a strong season. The switch-hitter batted .263/.369/.407 with 12 homers and 19 stolen bases as Colorado's primary center fielder. A sore right wrist and a left knee sprain limited Fowler to just 119 games, but he's only one year removed from a .300/.389/.474 batting line.

Fowler has a strong walk rate and rarely strikes out, but he's not without his warts. Fowler isn't regarded as a strong defensive center fielder, owning negative career marks in Ultimate Zone Rating and Derfensive Runs Saved. He's also done most of his damage at Coors Field, posting an .880 OPS at home in his career compared to a .694 mark on the road. He's owed $7.35MM in 2014 and will be arbitration eligible for the final time before free agency the following offseason.

Lyles, who recently turned 23, has a career 5.35 ERA with 6.2 K/9, 2.8 BB/9 and 48.6 percent ground-ball rate. Those numbers certainly aren't impressive, but Lyles has consistently been one of the youngest pitchers in the Majors after debuting as a 20-year-old in 2011. The Astros selected him 38th overall in the 2008 draft, and he twice ranked on Baseball America's list of Top 100 prospects. Lyles appeared to be on the road to a solid breakout season, having posted a 4.02 ERA through July 10, but he faded down the stretch, posting a 7.67 ERA over his final 13 appearances. Lyles won't be eligible for arbitration until next offseason and is under team control through the 2017 season.

Barnes, 27, batted .240/.289/.346 with eight homers and 11 stolen bases. Though he offered little at the plate, Barnes played outstanding defense in the outfield. He was solid against left-handed pitching as well, batting .296/.354/.437. He's under control through the 2018 season and is not yet arbitration eligible.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

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