Brandon Drury

East Notes: Machado, O’s, Yankees, Andujar, Drury, Phillies

By Connor Byrne | April 28, 2018 at 10:18pm CDT

The latest from the East Coast:

The Orioles will trade impending free-agent shortstop Manny Machado this year, but it’s not going to happen until closer to the July 31 non-waiver deadline, says FOX Sports’ Ken Rosenthal (video link). Despite Machado’s best efforts, the Orioles are off to a nightmarish start (7-20) and already sit 9.5 games out of a wild-card spot. Nevertheless, they’re not ready to consider dealing key pieces yet, according to Rosenthal. The team just spent a combined $76MM on free-agent pitchers during the offseason, after all, and has been without injured veterans in second baseman Jonathan Schoop, designated hitter Mark Trumbo and closer Zach Britton for most or all of the season. Both Schoop and Trumbo figure to come off the disabled list soon, which should give the O’s a better chance to climb back in the race, though they already looked like playoff long shots even before losing 20 of 27 to open the year.
More from Rosenthal, who notes (video link via Twitter) that the Yankees have an interesting situation developing at third base. It’s unclear how they’ll divide time at the position between hot-hitting rookie Miguel Andujar and Brandon Drury when the latter returns soon from the DL. Drury has been down with migraines since April 7, opening the door for the 23-year-old Andujar to come up and thrive. But Andujar could head back to the minors or even become trade bait with Drury around, Rosenthal observes. The Yankees are bullish on Drury, whom they had been pursuing for a while before parting with multiple prospects to acquire him from the Diamondbacks in February. Manager Aaron Boone confirmed the Yankees’ high opinion of Drury on Saturday, telling George A. King III of the New York Post and other reporters that they “view him as a front-line third baseman.” Drury’s still just 25 and under control for four years, including this one.
Phillies shortstop J.P. Crawford has a strained right forearm and could require a DL stint, manager Gabe Kapler informed Matt Breen of the Philly.com and other reporters Saturday. The club will know more Sunday when Crawford undergoes an MRI. Crawford left the team’s game Saturday with numbness in his arm, and he revealed afterward that the injury has been an issue for a few days. Breen wonders if it could help explain Crawford’s NL-worst five errors in the field. The former top prospect has also struggled offensively, having hit a paltry .188/.246/.328 (58 wRC+) in 71 plate appearances. Should Crawford go to the DL, the Phillies would likely recall Roman Quinn or Jesmuel Valentin from Triple-A to take his roster spot, per Breen.

Injury Notes: Kahnle, Drury, Shoemaker, Goodwin, Rendon, Burnette

By Jeff Todd | April 17, 2018 at 9:20pm CDT

As expected, Cubs first baseman Anthony Rizzo was activated from the DL after a minimal time away from the team. But plenty of other players are still hurting, so we’ll take a spin around the league to catch up on the latest injury news of note:

Yankees righty Tommy Kahnle is heading to the DL with shoulder tendinitis, as MLB.com’s Bryan Hoch reports. While the hope is there isn’t any kind of long-term problem at play, Kahnle has stumbled out of the gates in 2018. The 28-year-old, who turned in a breakout 2017 campaign, has not only been wild — a worrying turn for a pitcher with a history of control problems — but has lost about two-and-a-half ticks from his average fastball. Kahnle is still inducing plenty of whiffs, though, so perhaps a respite will allow him to get back to form.
In other Yankees-related injury news, third bagger Brandon Drury discussed the headache and vision problems he has been battling with reporters including ESPN.com’s Coley Harvey. The recent trade acquisition says he’s looking forward to finally figuring out what is causing the long-standing problem. While awaiting further information, Drury is beginning to perform some baseball activities. It still isn’t clear just when he can be expected to return. Meanwhile, outfielder Jacoby Ellsbury has yet another injury issue to deal with, as Lindsey Adler of The Athletic recently tweeted.
Things are looking up for Angels righty Matt Shoemaker, as Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times tweets. He’s hoping to begin throwing in relatively short order after experiencing “drastic improvement” in the nerve issue that has planted him on the DL. The Halos will certainly hope that Shoemaker can make steady progress once his rest period is over. Presumably, though, he’ll be given a long ramp given his injury history and the fact that he’ll have been down for some time.
The Nationals have made another DL placement as the organization continues to deal with a barrage of position-player injuries. As Byron Kerr of MASNsports.com reports, Brian Goodwin’s sore wrist has forced him onto the shelf. The expectation, though, is that it’ll be a short stint. Andrew Stevenson will replace him for the time being. In more hopeful news, skipper Dave Martinez says that third baseman Anthony Rendon is making steady progress from a toe injury suffered on a foul tip. That’s certainly good news for the Nats, who are currently going without several of their best players.
Rangers reliever Tony Barnette has been placed on the 10-day DL with what the team is calling right shoulder inflammation. His open roster spot will go to outfielder Ryan Rua, who was just optioned down but can come back before the usual ten-day minimum stay since he’s replacing an injured player. Barnette has endured a few minor maladies early in the year and has only appeared in two games thus far.

AL East Notes: Rasmus, Drury, Rays

By Mark Polishuk | April 7, 2018 at 4:44pm CDT

Some items from around the AL East…

The Orioles placed outfielder Colby Rasmus on the 10-day DL due to a left hip flexor strain, the team announced prior to today’s game. Right-hander Jimmy Yacabonis was called up from Triple-A to take Rasmus’ spot on the active roster. Rasmus has battled hip problems in the past, and the latest injury apparently was caused several days ago when he was hit in the hip with a cleat. This could account for Rasmus’ slow start to the year, as he has just two hits in his first 23 plate appearances for the O’s. Rasmus’ injury will cost Baltimore one of the few left-handed bats in their lineup; switch-hitter Anthony Santander is now likely to get more playing time in right field against right-handed pitching.
Brandon Drury has been bothered with migraines and blurred vision since early in Spring Training, the Yankees third baseman told reporters (including the New York Post’s Zach Braziller). Drury was placed on the 10-day DL due to the problem, which led him to be removed from Friday night’s game against the Orioles. This newest issue seems to be the latest manifestation of an ongoing problem for Drury, as he told the team last night that he has been dealing with similar symptoms for the last six years. This came as news to the Yankees, according to GM Brian Cashman — Drury was known to have suffered a migraine while playing for the Diamondbacks in 2016, though an MRI at the time came back clean. Cashman said that Drury will receive “an entire assessment” on Monday: “All I care about is finding out what’s going on. He’s in a great city and we’ll give him the best medical care that New York City has to offer. I can’t say what my level of concern is at this point.”
The Rays’ plan to use a three-man rotation and frequent “bullpen days” to fill the remaining starts has already run into obstacles, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times writes. Nathan Eovaldi’s injury thinned the rotation from a four-man unit down to just three regular starters, and any lack of effectiveness from the established rotation members creates a ripple effect of usage for the rest of the week. Topkin’s piece was written prior to today’s game, though it represents a perfect example — starter Jake Faria lasted just 1 2/3 innings in a 10-3 loss to the Red Sox, forcing the bullpen to eat a lot of innings. (Infielder Daniel Robertson was even called in for an inning of mop-up work.) The lack of flexibility has also impacted how the Rays use their short and long relievers. Topkin feels that making multi-inning reliever Yonny Chirinos into a full-time starter would help add more stability to the pitching situation.

Yankees Place C.C. Sabathia, Brandon Drury On 10-Day DL

By Mark Polishuk | April 7, 2018 at 8:42am CDT

The Yankees have placed left-hander C.C. Sabathia and infielder Brandon Drury on the 10-day disabled list, the team announced. Sabathia has been sidelined with a right hip strain, while Drury is suffering from severe migraines. Right-handers Domingo German and Luis Cessa were recalled from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre in corresponding moves. Righty Jonathan Holder was also optioned to Scranton/Wilkes-Barre to create more 25-man roster space for infielder Jace Peterson, who has been signed to a Major League contract and selected from Triple-A.

Some roster-shuffling was expected in the wake of the Yankees’ 14-inning marathon with the Orioles on Friday, particularly since the two teams have a quick turn-around for this afternoon’s 12:05PM CT start. Cessa and German will provide some fresh arms to a New York bullpen that had to work 10 innings last night after Sabathia’s start was limited to just four innings due to his injury.

He told reporters (including MLB.com’s Bryan Hoch) that “It was sore, and I never felt that spot before, ever, throwing a baseball.” An MRI revealed no serious damage, however, and since the Yankees are off on Monday, Sabathia could end up missing just one start if he spends only the minimum 10 days on the DL. Given Sabathia’s lengthy injury history, the DL placement could be something of a precautionary move on New York’s part, particularly since a roster spot was needed for an extra reliever.

Drury also had an early exit from last night’s game, leaving in the sixth inning due to migraines and impaired vision. Such injuries are often difficult to attach to a timeframe, though it’s possible Drury could also be facing a minimal DL stint.

The Yankees have been hit hard by injuries in the early going, with Sabathia and Drury joining Greg Bird, Aaron Hicks, Jacoby Ellsbury, Clint Frazier, Ben Heller, and Billy McKinney on an already-crowded disabled list. If that array of names wasn’t lengthy enough, Gary Sanchez and Tyler Wade also left Friday’s game due to a calf cramp and flu-like symptoms, respectively, though there isn’t yet any word on their status. Sanchez obviously wasn’t going to start today anyway after catching 13-plus innings yesterday, though Austin Romine is the only other available catcher on New York’s active roster.

Cessa or German could potentially make a spot start in Sabathia’s place, while Drury’s spot will be filled more directly by Peterson, who originally signed a minor league deal with the Yankees in January. That original minors pact would have guaranteed Peterson $900K if he reached the big leagues (it’s fair to assume that his new MLB contract contains similar terms). The four-year veteran has a .234/.319/.331 slash line over 1278 career plate appearances with the Padres and Braves. Peterson’s left-handed bat allows him to platoon with righty-swingers Ronald Torreyes and Miguel Andujar at third base, plus he could also see some action at second base depending on Wade’s status.

AL East Notes: Walker, Rays, Red Sox

By Steve Adams | March 1, 2018 at 9:00am CDT

Neil Walker tells Billy Witz of the New York Times that his camp held fairly extensive talks with the Yankees before they acquired Brandon Drury (all links to Twitter). Walker said he and his agents felt that they were “fairly close” to hammering out a deal with the Yanks, who instead swung a trade to bring in Drury for added infield depth. The 32-year-old switch-hitter felt the Yankees were a strong fit, as he knows the rigors of playing in the New York media market and was “certainly willing” to bounce around the infield and play multiple positions. Walker was hoping for a multi-year deal with the Yankees, though, and suggests that the team ultimately “decided to hang onto money for midseason,” when they could be in the market for adding veterans via trade.

AL East Notes: Drury, JDM, Rasmus, Travis

By Steve Adams | February 22, 2018 at 10:18am CDT

While Brandon Drury may be the favorite, at present, to open the season as the Yankees’ third baseman, GM Brian Cashman made clear in speaking with the New York Post’s George A. King III that there will still be a competition for that spot. “Nothing has been handed to anybody, so the competition will play its way out,” said Cashman. “…You have horses coming into races as favorites and I think the experience that Drury has along with his abilities should give him a leg up going into this process. But we will wait and see what it looks like and how it plays out.” Miguel Andujar will still be given a chance to win the job this spring, per the GM, who also notes that the team still views Andujar as a player who will have a major long-term role with the Yankees. Both Cashman and new skipper Aaron Boone suggested that they’ll focus on third base as Drury’s primary position for now. Drury spent most of the 2017 season playing second base in Arizona, but the hot corner is his natural position.

AL East Notes: Red Sox, Blue Jays, Tulo, Rays, Drury

By Steve Adams | February 20, 2018 at 9:11pm CDT

With J.D. Martinez heading to Boston, the Red Sox are facing somewhat of a roster crunch, writes Evan Drellich of NBC Sports Boston. It is not, however, at first base as many have suggested. Manager Alex Cora suggested Tuesday that he views Hanley Ramirez as his No. 3 hitter and primary first baseman, even though the team re-upped Mitch Moreland on a two-year deal this winter. As Drellich points out, though, each of Moreland, Ramirez and Martinez have dealt with injury issues in recent years, so Moreland still figures to get his share of at-bats.

Rather, Drellich observes, the bigger crunch will be on the bench. Sandy Leon is the favorite to serve as the backup catcher, and one of Moreland or Ramirez will be on the bench most days. The Sox have two out-of-options players in Deven Marrero and Blake Swihart that are current bench options, but they also have Brock Holt who agreed to a $2.2MM arbitration salary earlier this winter. That deal, like the vast majority of arb deals, is non-guaranteed, but Holt’s versatility has been valuable for the Sox in recent seasons and he seems unlikely to be cut loose. Holt does have minor league options remaining, though obviously paying him to play in Triple-A is suboptimal as well.

A bit more on the Sox and their division…

The Red Sox are unlikely to trade Jackie Bradley after signing J.D. Martinez this week, tweets MLB.com’s Jon Morosi. That’s not much of a surprise, as Bradley’s name hasn’t come up on the rumor circuit much in recent months, and the trio of Bradley, Andrew Benintendi and Mookie Betts should be among the best defensive outfield units in all of baseball.
The Blue Jays are still seeking upgrades after last week’s signing of lefty Jaime Garcia to round out the rotation, and GM Ross Atkins suggested to Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet that there’s a strong likelihood that they’ll make a move before Opening Day (Twitter links). Atkins somewhat candidly said he felt there’s about a 90 percent chance the Jays have another addition in store, citing a reliever as the likeliest pickup. Notably, Atkins added that improving at backup catcher, where light-hitting Luke Maile projects as the reserve behind Russell Martin, “is less likely at this point.”
Troy Tulowitzki is making progress from last year’s ankle injury, which included torn ligaments in his foot as well as a compression factor, writes Nicholson-Smith in a full column. However, he has yet to begin running this spring. Tulowitzki’s goal is to be ready for Opening Day, though the 33-year-old veteran said he’s not putting any timelines on his recovery and won’t risk a setback by pushing himself too far. He fielded grounders thrown to him by the coaching staff today, though the drills “weren’t designed to test his range too much” just yet, per Nicholson-Smith. Even if Tulo isn’t ready for Opening Day, the Blue Jays are much better prepared from a depth vantage point up the middle, where they’ll have offseason trade acquisitions Yangervis Solarte and Aledmys Diaz backing up Tulowitzki and Devon Travis.
Following the trade of Jake Odorizzi to the Twins, the Rays plan to use a four-man rotation of Chris Archer, Nathan Eovaldi, Jake Faria and Blake Snell for the first six weeks of the season or so, manager Kevin Cash tells Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. The increased amount of off-days in the schedule this year due to the season’s earlier start will allow the club to use fifth starter Matt Andriese as a multi-inning reliever. The Rays, unsurprisingly, plan to keep top prospects like Brent Honeywell in the minors to begin the season, which will allow them to gain extra control and avoid Super Two status for arbitration purposes.
The most likely scenario for the Yankees and newly acquired Brandon Drury is that Drury opens the season as the team’s starting third baseman, writes Joel Sherman of the New York Post. That’d allow the Yankees to go with either Ronald Torreyes or veteran Danny Espinosa at second base and avoid rushing prospects Miguel Andujar or Gleyber Torres early in the season. Interestingly, despite the fact that Torres missed half the 2017 season with Tommy John surgery (in his non-throwing arm), the Yankees view Torres as closer to the Majors, per Sherman. Andujar is nearly two years older than Torres and has twice the Triple-A experience, though neither has even appeared in 60 games at the top minor league level yet.

Yankees Acquire Brandon Drury, D-Backs Acquire Steven Souza In Three-Team Trade With Rays

By Steve Adams | February 20, 2018 at 6:30pm CDT

The Rays, Yankees and D-backs have agreed to a significant three-team trade that will send outfielder Steven Souza from Tampa Bay to Arizona, infielder/outfielder Brandon Drury from Arizona to New York and prospects to Tampa Bay. The Rays will receive left-hander Anthony Banda and two players to be named later from the D-backs as well as minor league second baseman Nick Solak from the Yankees. Additionally, the Yankees will send right-hander Taylor Widener to the Diamondbacks. The teams have announced the trade.

The acquisition of Souza will be the second notable outfield pickup for the D-backs in as many days, as the Snakes added Jarrod Dyson on a two-year deal yesterday just minutes after losing out on J.D. Martinez, who signed a five-year deal with the Red Sox. Souza is a solid consolation price to that failed pursuit, as he’ll give the D-backs a right-handed bat with lesser power but superior defense to Martinez — and it’s certainly notable that he’s coming off a 30-homer season himself.

Souza, set to turn 29 in late April, hit .239/.351/.459 with 21 doubles, a pair of triples and 16 stolen bases in addition to his 30 home runs last season. While he can’t make up for the loss of Martinez’s bat on his own, he’s long shown plenty of pop at the plate and last season walked at a career-best 13.6 percent clip as well. He is, of course, not without red flags. Even if he’s able to sustain the uptick in walks, Souza figures to continue to hit for a questionable batting average so long as he continues to struggle with his overall contact skills. Souza whiffed at a 29 percent rate in 2017, and that actually represented an improvement over 2016’s alarming 34 percent strikeout rate.

That said, he comes to the D-backs with three years of club control remaining, meaning he’ll be a fairly long-term option for them in an outfield mix that also includes Dyson, impending free agent A.J. Pollock, David Peralta and Yasmany Tomas (though the D-backs would surely love to escape the remainder of Tomas’ onerous financial commitment).

Arizona will also add a former 12th-round pick, Widener, that turned in a strong season in Class-A Advanced last season when he tossed 119 1/3 innings of 3.39 ERA ball with a 129-to-50 K/BB ratio over the life of 27 starts. He’s had some durability issues in the past, with Jim Callis and Jonathan Mayo of MLB.com noting last summer that he had ulnar transposition surgery in 2015 and dealt with back and knee injuries in college. There’s starter potential for Widener, but he’ll need to prove capable of handling a regular workload in the rotation.

[Updated Depth Charts: Tampa Bay Rays, New York Yankees, Arizona Diamondbacks]

The 25-year-old Drury, meanwhile, will give the Yankees the infield depth they’ve been seeking as they currently make evaluations of Miguel Andujar at third base and Gleyber Torres at second base. After trading Chase Headley and Starlin Castro this offseason, the Yanks lacked certainty at both of those positions, but Drury presents a more experienced option than any of their infield prospect that has seen plenty of Major League action at both slots. If Andujar and/or Torres prove ready to handle a full workload in 2018, then Drury can shift into a super-utility role and provide depth at a number of spots around the diamond.

Drury is fresh off a solid, if unspectacular .267/.317/.447 slash with 13 homers through 480 plate appearances this past season. Since establishing himself as a regular in the D-backs’ infield/corner outfield rotation in 2016, Drury has batted .275/.323/.453 with 29 home runs. He’s controllable for another four seasons and should factor into the Yankees’ Opening Day lineup, though which position he plays will likely be determined over the course of Spring Training.

Drury, a rumored target for the Yankees dating back to December, comes to the Yankees with more than 1000 innings of MLB experience at second base and more than 300 innings at third base; that division of labor was flipped during his minor league career, as he logged more than 3000 innings at the hot corner in the minors and just 620 at second base prior to reaching the Majors.

He drew above-average marks from Defensive Runs Saved and Ultimate Zone Rating for his work in 947 innings at second base this past season, though both metrics feel his limited big league work at third base has been below average. Drury also has 700 innings of corner outfield work under his belt (where he’s drawn below-average marks as well) and has even played six innings at shortstop in the Majors.

The acquisition of Drury likely puts an end to the oft-speculated possibility of a Mike Moustakas signing for the Yankees. And, because he’s not eligible for arbitration until next winter, Drury allows the Yankees to maintain plenty of financial flexibility, leaving room for in-season moves, which was reported to be a priority for GM Brian Cashman.

As for the Rays, the trade sends the latest of several signals that the team is looking to retool its current group and scale back payroll. Souza avoided arbitration by agreeing to a one-year, $3.55MM deal earlier this winter, and he’ll now join Corey Dickerson ($5.95MM) and Jake Odorizzi ($6.3MM) as arbitration-eligible players whom the Rays have shipped out in recent days. The subtractions of Odorizzi and Souza leave the Rays with a projected payroll of just $78.77MM, and that’ll further drop once it’s determined how much (if any) of Dickerson’s salary they’ll need to pay in 2018. The Rays would owe Dickerson 30 days of his non-guaranteed arbitration salary for the 2018 season if he clears waivers and is released — roughly $975K — so this trio of moves should dip their payroll into the $73MM range.

Cost savings notwithstanding, the Rays also look to have bolstered their farm system in a meaningful way with today’s trade. Baseball America rated Banda second among D-backs farmhands (albeit in a weak minor league system), while the publication considered Solak to be the 10th-best second base prospect in the game.

The 24-year-old Banda entered the 2017 season as BA’s No. 88 overall prospect, but he struggled through a down year in 2017, pitching to a 5.39 ERA with 8.6 K/9, 3.8 BB/9 and a 42 percent ground-ball rate in 122 innings in the extremely hitter-friendly confines of Triple-A Reno. The former 10th-rounder also made his MLB debut in 2017, allowing 17 runs in 25 2/3 innings with a 25-to-10 K/BB ratio. Even with that rough run in Triple-A and the Majors, Banda still has a potential future as a mid-rotation starter, per BA, whose scouting report also noted that he also showed the skills to be a quality late-inning reliever.

Solak, meanwhile, batted .297/.384/.452 with 12 homers and 14 steals through 130 games / 538 plate appearances split between Class-A Advanced and Double-A in his first full season in 2017. He also displayed strong K/BB ratios, striking out at an 18.5 percent pace to go along with a quality 11.7 percent walk rate.

It remains to be seen whether the trades of Souza, Odorizzi and Dickerson will serve as the catalyst for a full-scale fire sale in St. Petersburg, where the Rays still have highly appealing assets such as Chris Archer and Alex Colome. Technically speaking, the Rays have MLB-ready assets that can plausibly step into the fold in the place of Odorizzi, given the presence of pitching prospects like Brent Honeywell, Jose De Leon, Banda and Ryan Yarbrough, among others. Mallex Smith, meanwhile, is an option to step into the outfield in place of Souza or Dickerson, while veteran Denard Span can handle another outfield spot.

But, it’s also true that the Rays face an uphill battle in a competitive AL East — especially following the subtraction of two of their better hitters from 2017 and a rotation mainstay in Odorizzi. Viewed through that lens, there’s good sense for the Rays to continue to at least explore trade possibilities for the likes of Archer and Colome as they look to bolster their farm, improve their draft/international pools for the 2019 season and establish a new wave of controllable, pre-arbitration assets that can help their lower-revenue organization form a core in the next competitive cycle.

That type of thinking has drawn the ire of agents and the Major League Baseball Players Association this offseason, given the diminished number of teams that are even entertaining the thought of signing veteran free agents. But, it’s also factual that the system, as currently constructed in the latest CBA, favors aggressive tear-downs more than it does trying to walk the line between rebuilding and contending — a reality that could conceivably push the Rays into further action on the trade market.

FanRag’s Robert Murray got the ball rolling on the story by reporting that Solak was headed to the Rays for an unknown return (via Twitter). FanRag’s Jon Heyman tweeted that Drury had been traded to the Yankees. Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic broke the three-team nature of the swap, including that Souza was going to the D-backs (Twitter link). Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports that Banda was coming to the Rays in the deal. Joel Sherman of the New York Post reported Widener’s inclusion in the deal (Twitter link). MLB.com’s Steve Gilbert added that there were a pair of PTBNLs going to the Rays in the swap as well (via Twitter).

Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

FA/Trade Rumblings: Yanks, Lynn, Odorizzi, O’s, D-backs, D. Santana

By Connor Byrne | February 10, 2018 at 8:33pm CDT

The Yankees, continuing to seek help for their rotation, have “monitored” free agent right-hander Lance Lynn’s marketplace this offseason, per Jon Morosi of MLB.com. However, a Lynn signing may be difficult for the Yankees because of their desire to stay under the $197MM luxury tax threshold in 2018. They have around $15MM to spend, Morosi notes, and Lynn’s next deal could pay him somewhere near that figure on an annual basis. At the beginning of the offseason, MLBTR predicted Lynn would receive $14MM per year.

More from New York and a few other major league destinations:

The Yankees have also shown offseason interest in Rays right-hander Jake Odorizzi, as have the AL East rival Orioles, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reports (subscription required). Odorizzi would represent an affordable option for the Yankees, Orioles or any of the other teams known to be pursuing him, as the 27-year-old will earn a bit north of $6MM in 2018 – his second-last year of arbitration eligibility. Although, given that Odorizzi’s an extreme fly ball pitcher, it’s debatable whether he’d be a good fit for either New York or Baltimore – both of which play their home games at home run-friendly venues.
The Diamondbacks and Brewers discussed outfielder Domingo Santana earlier this offseason, but the teams couldn’t work out a deal, Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe reports. Milwaukee was seeking starting pitching in return for Santana, per Cafardo, which you’d expect for a team that has been on the lookout for rotation help throughout the offseason. The D-backs, meanwhile, want another outfielder and have attempted to re-sign the top hitter available in free agency, J.D. Martinez, making their interest in Santana understandable. Santana won’t even be eligible for arbitration until next winter, so he’d obviously make far less of a dent in Arizona’s payroll than JDM.
In addition to the previously reported Yanks, the Mets asked the Diamondbacks about utilityman Brandon Drury at some point this offseason, Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic writes. Drury is still with the D-backs, though a deal could still come together before the season, Piecoro suggests. It probably won’t be with the Mets, though, considering they’ve signed third baseman Todd Frazier, outfielder Jay Bruce and infielder Jose Reyes in recent weeks.

Manny Machado Rumors: Monday

By Steve Adams | December 18, 2017 at 8:57am CDT

Just days after the Giancarlo Stanton trade saga came to an end, the Orioles reportedly made Manny Machado available and began asking teams around the league for offers on the 25-year-old superstar. Here’s the latest chatter on Machado as the Orioles field interest in the best player in recent franchise history…

Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic takes a lengthy look at the market for Machado (subscription required and strongly recommended), reporting that trade offers from interested parties improved over the weekend and that a deal could happen this week. Specific details on each club’s offers, of course, aren’t fully known, though Rosenthal reports that the D-backs included young infielder Brandon Drury as part of their package. Rosenthal provides an overview of how seven Machado suitors could make a deal work, though he notes that there’s still a general doubt among his sources that Orioles owner Peter Angelos would green-light a deal sending Machado to the Yankees.
Dan Connolly of BaltimoreBaseball.com paints a bit of a different picture regarding Angelos, writing that it’s possible Angelos could be swayed into approving a deal sending Machado the Bronx. Angelos, Connolly writes, solicits opinions from a wide array of trusted confidants and advisors — so many so that there are often conflicting opinions. A lack of consensus among that inner circle may have been what ultimately quashed this past July’s would-be Zach Britton trade to the Astros, per Connolly. However, Connolly hears that there’s a general sense within the organization that a deal will get done, and an organizational consensus could dissuade Angelos from interfering with any agreement, regardless of the trade partner in question. Within that same piece, Connolly also explores how the Machado situation could be slowing Baltimore’s other offseason endeavors.
The Cardinals have been oft-linked to Machado, though president of baseball operations John Mozeliak implied in an appearance on KMOX Sports radio in St. Louis this morning that he’d have a hard time making a deal for Machado (Twitter link via KMOX’s Tom Ackerman). Said Mozeliak: “If you’re trading away two to three prospects that have a combined 18 years of control… for one [year]? That doesn’t sit well with me.” That, of course, doesn’t preclude a deal from coming together — Mozeliak did trade four pieces for two years of Marcell Ozuna — but it does seem to suggest that the Cards would have a hard time deciding to outbid the field to secure the rights to Machado’s 2018 season.

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