Cheslor Cuthbert

Central Notes: Twins, Cubs, Tilson, Royals

By Steve Adams | October 24, 2017 at 6:48pm CDT

Carl Willis’ name has been oft-mentioned in the Twins’ search for a new pitching coach, tweets FanRag’s Jon Heyman. The 56-year-old Willis has held that same position with the Red Sox since the 2015 campaign, but Boston’s coaching staff under now-former manager John Farrell was given the opportunity to explore opportunities with other teams. Willis is no stranger to the Twins organization, as he spent five seasons pitching for Minnesota in the early 90s and enjoyed a career year with the World Champion ’91 Twins. Heyman also notes that the Twins have interviewed former Rays pitching coach Jim Hickey, but Hickey’s ties to Cubs skipper Joe Maddon are strong. The Cubs also have a pitching coach vacancy after dismissing Chris Bosio following their exit from the NLCS.

More from baseball’s Central divisions…

Cubs president of baseball operations Theo Epstein recently spoke about the team’s 2018 rotation and acknowledged a need, writes CSN Chicago’s Patrick Mooney. Epstein characterized left-hander Mike Montgomery as someone who will likely stretch out as a starter in Spring Training but “probably start the year in the bullpen” barring spring injuries. “And then at the end of the regular season, when you look up, he’ll have somewhere between 10 and 20 starts. And you’ll say: ‘Wow, Mike Montgomery was really valuable this year,'” said Epstein. As for splurging on the free-agent market, Epstein was non-committal when discussing a pursuit of Yu Darvish or a reunion with Jake Arrieta. “…I wouldn’t rule it out completely, and I wouldn’t rule it in,” said Epstein of pursuing a high-priced free-agent pitcher. “I would just say it’s not our preferred method.”
Ankle surgery has not yet been firmly ruled out for White Sox center fielder Charlie Tilson, writes Scot Gregor for Baseball America (subscription required and recommended). Tilson has been beset by injuries since being acquired from the Cardinals in exchange for Zach Duke in a 2016 deadline deal. He tore his hamstring in his MLB debut with the ChiSox in Aug. 2016, and he missed the 2017 campaign after suffering an offseason stress fracture in his right foot and a broken right ankle in June. Tilson was at last able to play in the instructional league this month, and he tells Gregor that those games were a “test” for the health of his right foot. “There’s always surgical possibilities, but I’m just trying to take it a day at a time and keep doing the things that are working for me,” said Tilson. He’ll have some new competition next spring, as Adam Engel and Leury Garcia will be in Chicago’s center field mix as well.
The Royals have been discussing contingency plans for the potential departure of Eric Hosmer and/or Mike Moustakas, writes MLB.com’s Jeffrey Flanagan. One possibility is for prospect Hunter Dozier to slide across the diamond from third base to first base, with Cheslor Cuthbert manning the hot corner. Dozier has seen occasional time at first base in recent seasons and could see some additional time there playing winter ball in Mexico, though assistant GM J.J. Picollo tells Flanagan that Dozier’s goal in winter ball is just to get as many at-bats as possible regardless of position. If Hosmer and Moustakas do depart, it’s also possible that Cuthbert could play first next year with Dozier playing his natural third base, says Picollo, calling it “a matter of how we line up best defensively.”

Royals Roster Notes: Moylan, Mondesi, Soler, Gore

By charliewilmoth | March 27, 2017 at 3:57pm CDT

A number of Royals moves on Monday moved the team closer to setting their 25-man roster for the start of the season, as Rustin Dodd of the Kansas City Star and other reporters have noted. Here’s the breakdown of where the Royals’ roster stands:

First, the team optioned lefty Scott Alexander and outfielders Billy Burns and Peter O’Brien to Triple-A Omaha and assigned catcher Zane Evans, infielder Humberto Arteaga and relievers Yender Caramo, Eric Stout, Al Alburquerque and Malcom Culver to minor-league camp. The moves left veteran righty Peter Moylan as the Royals’ clear choice for the last spot in their bullpen. (Another veteran, Seth Maness, remains in camp, but he is recovering from injury and will not be ready for Opening Day.) Moylan’s minor-league deal with the Royals contains an opt-out clause tomorrow, so the team seems likely to place him on their 40-man roster shortly. Moylan allowed just one run in eight Spring Training innings, striking out six and walking one.
Royals manager Ned Yost also announced that Raul Mondesi would serve as the team’s starting second baseman, beating Whit Merrifield, Christian Colon and Cheslor Cuthbert. Cuthbert will make the team, while Merrifield and Colon are still competing for a bench job. The 21-year-old Mondesi was the surprise winner of the job after batting just .185/.231/.281 in 149 plate appearances in his rookie season in 2016, but he was previously a top prospect and had a very strong spring, batting .378/.391/.623.
Finally, Jorge Soler, who had been projected to start in right field, suffered a strained oblique this weekend and appears likely to begin the season on the disabled list. It’s only a grade I strain, MLB.com’s Jeffrey Flanagan tweets, and Soler may be able to begin resuming baseball activities in a week, so perhaps he can avoid a lengthy absence. That means Paulo Orlando will likely begin the season as the team’s right fielder, with Brandon Moss also occasionally helping at the position. Terrance Gore, who the Royals value for his speed and defensive ability, now seems likely to occupy a bench spot with Soler on the shelf.

AL Central Notes: White Sox, Royals, Romero, Jimenez

By Steve Adams | February 28, 2017 at 4:49pm CDT

In an interview with MLB.com’s Scott Merkin, White Sox GM Rick Hahn again stated that there’s “no economic pressure” and “no timing pressure” to trade left-hander Jose Quintana. “It’s more about making sure if we were to make a major move, that we are getting an appropriate return,” Hahn continued. While the Sox have had numerous trade discussions centering on Quintana this winter, Hahn noted that there’s yet to be an offer presented to the team that made the front office think, “Boy we better move now or we are going to be kicking ourselves.” The South Side GM also once again touched on a few significant trades that fell through at the eleventh hour, noting that the “frustration lingers a little longer than the satisfaction of getting a deal done.”

More from the American League Central…

Rustin Dodd of the Kansas City Star writes that the Royals’ competition at second base — which features Cheslor Cuthbert, Whit Merrifield, Christian Colon and Raul Mondesi — won’t necessarily produce one everyday option at the position. Manager Ned Yost acknowledged yesterday that the Opening Day second baseman “probably” would not play there on an everyday basis this coming year, unless one of the candidates outright runs away with the job this spring. Yost also noted that Cuthbert, who is out of minor league options, could be an especially important piece for Kansas City in April, as the team is planning to incorporate some extra days of rest into Mike Moustakas’ schedule following last year’s season-ending ACL tear.
The Twins have unearthed a surprising pitching prospect in righty Fernando Romero, LaVelle E. Neal III of the Star-Tribune writes. A 22-year-old power pitcher who is expected to open the season at Double-A, Romero has opened eyes with his big arm at camp. Injuries have limited his professional time, but Romero has already shown plenty to make the organization glad that it invested a relatively meager $260K to sign him — a deal that was struck within half a day after the club first saw him throw. The Dominican righty logged a sensational 1.89 ERA with a 90-to-15 K/BB ratio in 90 1/3 innings across two Class-A levels last season. And while he didn’t receive an abundance of fanfare on prospect rankings, ESPN’s Keith Law did tab Romero as the game’s No. 65 overall farmhand (subscription required/recommended).
Speaking of prospects in the AL Central, MLB.com’s Jason Beck writes that the Tigers aren’t planning on rushing 22-year-old righty Joe Jimenez to the Majors. Manager Brad Ausmus called Jimenez, who posted a 1.51 ERA, 13.1 K/9 and 2.9 BB/9 across three minor league levels last season, “an extreme long shot” to make the Opening Day roster in Detroit this season. Jimenez’s fastball plays well enough to be a Major League offering right now, Ausmus elaborated, but the young righty is still “honing and working on” his secondary offerings. As we recently noted when breaking down the Tigers’ Spring Training battles, Jimenez is one of several candidates for what could be just one vacant bullpen spot in Detroit.

AL Central Notes: Cuthbert, Royals, Frazier, Gimenez

By Steve Adams | February 17, 2017 at 12:11pm CDT

Though he lacks experience at the position, Cheslor Cuthbert will be in the mix for the Royals’ second base job this spring, writes Rustin Dudd of the Kansas City Star. The 25-year-old Cuthbert is out of minor league options, so the Royals will need to carry him on the roster this season or risk losing him on waivers. Cuthbert worked out with Royals special assistant Rafael Belliard this offseason to familiarize himself with the new position, and he played about 15 games at second base in winter ball in his native Nicaragua as well, per Dodd. Even if he’s not a long-term answer at second, the Royals likely want to keep Cuthbert as a potential long-term option at third base. With Mike Moustakas slated to hit the open market next winter, Cuthbert could inherit the team’s everyday job at the hot corner as soon as 2018. Cuthbert hit .274/.318/.413 with a dozen homers and 28 doubles in 510 plate appearances last season as he played third base regularly in lieu of the injured Moustakas.

Quick Hits: Royals, Keuchel, Alvarez

By Connor Byrne and charliewilmoth | January 29, 2017 at 10:22pm CDT

The Royals aren’t yet ready to wrap up their offseason after agreeing to sign Brandon Moss, per FOX Sports’ Ken Rosenthal, who reports they’re still looking for help in their rotation and bullpen (Twitter link). It’s worth noting that the Boston Globe’s Nick Cafardo linked the top free agent starter remaining, Jason Hammel, to Kansas City on Saturday. Here are more quick notes from around the big leagues.

Speaking of Moss, his presence on the Royals could complicate Cheslor Cuthbert’s role for 2017, writes Rustin Dodd of the Kansas City Star. Cuthbert was a candidate to spend time at designated hitter before Sunday, but that could be difficult with Moss in the fold. Cuthbert broke in last year at third base, though that opportunity only came as a result of Mike Moustakas’ injury-shortened campaign. Moustakas is set to return from a torn ACL, so Cuthbert probably won’t play much at third, and Dodd contends that a lack of range could prevent him from manning second base. Moreover, Cuthbert is out of minor league options, meaning the Royals are either going to have to keep him on their 25-man roster or subject the 24-year-old to waivers if they try to send him down.
On Thursday, Astros lefty Dallas Keuchel will throw off a mound for the first time since August, Jake Kaplan of the Houston Chronicle writes. Keuchel missed more than a month at the end of last season due to shoulder trouble. Keuchel feels like he’s in good shape heading into the season. Last year, his innings pitched dipped from 232 in his Cy Young 2015 season to 168, but this year he’s had extra time off due to the injury, and he feels healthy as Spring Training approaches. He avoided arbitration with the Astros two weeks ago and will make $9.15MM in the penultimate season before he’s eligible for free agency.
Shoulder problems limited right-hander Henderson Alvarez to 22 1/3 innings in 2015 and kept him from taking a major league mound at all last season, but he’s nonetheless drawing plenty of interest in free agency. “Many” clubs have requested Alvarez’s medicals, tweets FanRag Sports’ Jon Heyman, who adds that the soon-to-be 27-year-old should be ready for game action by May. Unfortunately, the ground-ball and control artist’s career has gone off the rails since he tossed 187 innings of 2.65 ERA ball with the Marlins in 2014. The Fish non-tendered Alvarez after the 2015 campaign, and the Athletics outrighted him this past October. The A’s guaranteed Alvarez to $4.25MM last winter, but he only gave the organization 33 innings – all in the minors – before undergoing arthroscopic shoulder surgery in September.

Royals Notes: Cain, Gee, Orlando, Cuthbert

By Mark Polishuk | October 2, 2016 at 8:20pm CDT

The Royals’ defense of their World Series title ended today as the club finished with an even 81-81 record. Here are some season-ending notes as K.C. looks ahead to a rebound year in 2017…

Lorenzo Cain won’t hit for the next two months, but he tells Rustin Dodd of the Kansas City Star (Twitter link) that he otherwise expects a normal offseason training routine. Cain reiterated that his bothersome right wrist won’t require surgery. The outfielder missed almost all of September with the bad wrist, capping off an injury-plagued season that saw Cain play just 103 games. The health problems undoubtedly contributed to Cain’s .287/.339/.408 slash line over 434 PA, a below-average showing give how well he performed in the previous two seasons. Cain is a free agent after 2017, so a return to good health and good form will be very lucrative for him.
Right-hander Dillon Gee will undergo thoracic outlet syndrome surgery, Rustin Dodd of the Kansas City Star writes. The procedure usually carries a recovery time of 4-6 months, so Gee could be ready for the start of Spring Training. Gee signed a minor league deal with the Royals last winter and posted a 4.68 ERA, 6.4 K/9 and 2.41 K/BB rate over 125 innings, working as both a starter and a reliever. He has another year of arbitration eligibility before hitting free agency following the 2017 campaign.
Paulo Orlando has emerged as a bit of a late bloomer in the Royals’ eyes, MLB.com’s Jeffrey Flanagan writes. The outfielder just delivered his best offensive season at age 30, though manager Ned Yost would like to see Orlando develop some more power. Some other holes exist in Orlando’s game (a 2.7% walk rate, and perhaps an overall inflated slash line due to a .382 BABIP) but he has put himself into the conversation for at least a part-time outfield role in 2017.
Cheslor Cuthbert is on his way to the Instructional League to get some second base work, GM Dayton Moore told FSKC’s Joel Goldberg (Twitter link) during the pregame show of today’s Royals broadcast. Though Cuthbert had a solid rookie season, he could be fighting for a roster spot next year since the Royals will have Mike Moustakas returning at third base, and Raul Mondesi, Christian Colon and Whit Merrifield all in the mix at second. Learning to play multiple positions, of course, is an obvious boost to Cuthbert’s chances. He has appeared in a handful of games at second in the majors and minors and also played some first base, beyond his primary third base position.

Royals Notes: Cuthbert, Burns, Morales, International Market

By Steve Adams | September 26, 2016 at 1:32pm CDT

The Royals are on the cusp of mathematical elimination from the postseason, causing many fans to shift their focus to the club’s chances in 2017. With that in mind, a few notes on the reigning World Series champions…

MLB.com’s Jeffrey Flanagan discusses a number of 2017 roster decisions in his latest Royals Inbox, including multiple questions on Cheslor Cuthbert’s role next season. The 23-year-old has had a solid rookie season at the plate in Kansas City, slashing .277/.322/.415 with 11 homers. However, with Mike Moustakas set to return to the club next year after having suffered a torn ACL earlier this summer, Cuthbert won’t be getting everyday at-bats at the hot corner. Flanagan also writes that Cuthbert isn’t likely to move to second base, either, as the Royals plan to have internal options Raul Mondesi, Christian Colon and Whit Merrifield compete for that gig. Defensive prowess will be the most heavily weighted factor in that position battle next spring, per Flanagan, who writes that each of the three candidates he listed is considered to be a better defensive option than Cuthbert. All of that, it seems, would leave Cuthbert without a regular role on next year’s Royals, so perhaps his ultimate fate will be returning to Triple-A to try to hone his skills at the hot corner (Flanagan points out that Cuthbert has had issues consistently making accurate throws and issues charging balls as well). Moustakas, after all, is a free agent following the 2017 campaign.
Also included in Flanagan’s column is a look at next year’s right field mix, where both Billy Burns and Jarrod Dyson will be considerations. The Royals, he notes, love speed and contact-oriented players, and both Dyson and Burns fit that mold well. While there’s the potential for some redundancy there, Dyson doesn’t figure to be overly expensive from an arbitration standpoint this winter, and Burns won’t be arbitration eligible this offseason. As such, it doesn’t seem like the Royals need to make a “one or the other” type of decision, and Kansas City could also simply carry both on the roster, as the switch-hitting Burns would give manager Ned Yost some matchup options.
Yahoo’s Jeff Passan writes in his latest 10 Degrees column that the Royals will “almost certainly” make a qualifying offer to Kendrys Morales on the heels of his impressive summer power surge. I examined the possibility of that scenario last week when looking at Morales’ free-agent stock, noting that it’s a risk for the Royals, considering Morales’ history with the qualifying offer system. After being burned by a QO on the heels of a nice season with the Mariners in 2013, a now-older Morales strikes me as a likely candidate to accept. The downside of Morales on a one-year deal worth about $16.7MM isn’t crippling, but it’s an overpay in a market that has become less rewarding for players with such pronounced defensive limitations. Passan, too, notes that Morales may accept a QO if tendered such an offer by Kansas City.
While the Royals are restricted on the international market this year thanks to last summer’s spending spree, assistant GM Rene Francisco tells Rustin Dodd of the Kansas City Star that he’s still happy with the talent the Royals have been able to bring in for relatively marginal bonus figures. “I think we did good with what we got,” the AGM said. “We gave $50,000 here, $100,000, $75,000, $150,000 — we just kind of spread out the money.” And, as Dodd points out, the Royals have a history of landing premium talent for rather unremarkable bonuses. Salvador Perez, Yordano Ventura and Kelvin Herrera were each unearthed by the Royals’ international scouting department and signed for bonuses south of $100K. Kansas City will also be barred from signing players for more than $300K in the 2017-18 signing period.

AL Central News & Notes: Twins, Buxton, Ryan, Royals, Indians

By Mark Polishuk | August 8, 2016 at 6:25pm CDT

Here’s the latest from around the AL Central…

The Twins demoted Byron Buxton to Triple-A yesterday, the fourth time the heralded prospect has been sent back to the minors since his initial call-up in June 2015. Buxton has simply not been able to figure out big league pitching, hitting just .199/.248/.319 over 356 Major League plate appearances. It’s too soon to panic over Buxton, however, as Fangraphs’ August Fagerstrom notes in an analysis of Buxton’s various issues at the plate.
Braves director of baseball operations Billy Ryan is one of the names under consideration in the Twins’ general manager search, USA Today’s Bob Nightengale reports (Twitter link). Despite being in his mid-thirties, Ryan has an extensive resume in the game, working in the Commissioner’s office as well as in the front offices of the Rangers, Indians and Diamondbacks, including four seasons as Arizona’s assistant GM. As Nightengale notes, Ryan is one of “several young executives” on the Twins’ radar as a replacement for former GM Terry Ryan (no relation).
Cheslor Cuthbert has played well as Mike Moustakas’ replacement at third base, leaving the Royals with some depth options for next season, Rustin Dodd of the Kansas City Star writes. Beyond Moustakas and Cuthbert, top prospect Hunter Dozier is hitting well and getting close to a promotion. The hot corner is still slated to belong to Moustakas in 2017, as the others have more defensive versatility — Dozier has been action at first and in both corner outfield spots, plus the Royals feel Cuthbert is capable of handling several spots around the diamond. The DH spot could also be open if the Royals led Kendrys Morales go in free agency. Long-term, it seem as though K.C. could be prepared at third if Moustakas himself leaves as a free agent after the 2017 campaign.
In a mailbag piece, MLB.com’s Jordan Bastian feels the Indians won’t be too active in the August waiver trade market, though the club will keep an eye on potential bench or bullpen help. Yankees catcher Brian McCann is an unlikely fit, as while the veteran has cleared waivers, Bastian feels McCann is much too pricey for the Tribe’s liking (whereas trade target Jonathan Lucroy had a much less expensive contract).

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