Daniel Norris

Tigers Place Jordan Zimmermann, Alex Wilson On DL; Purchase Contract Of Pete Kozma

By Jeff Todd | May 7, 2018 at 10:59pm CDT

The Tigers announced a series of roster moves this evening. Starter Jordan Zimmermann and reliever Alex Wilson are both heading to the DL. Meanwhile, the club purchased the contract of infielder Pete Kozma — with Daniel Norris moving to the 60-day DL to open a 40-man spot — and have also recalled righty Zac Reininger.

Zimmermann is said to be dealing with a shoulder impingement, which is certainly not what anyone hoped to hear. That said, there’s no indication that it’s a terribly serious new injury for a player who has had some significant health problems of late.

Soon to turn 32, Zimmermann has been off to another ugly start in the results department, with a 4.88 ERA over 31 1/3 innings. But there had finally been some signs of life for a pitcher who has struggled mightily since signing with Detroit. He’s carrying 9.2 K/9 against 2.6 BB/9 on the year, representing a drastic improvement over his strikeout rate in the past two campaigns. Zimmermann is earning $24MM this year and has another $50MM coming over the ensuing two seasons.

As for Wilson, a left plantar fascia strain will sideline him for an unknown stretch. He’s carrying a 4.58 ERA in 19 2/3 frames to start the season. Though Wilson is carrying 7.3 K/9 against 2.7 BB/9, numbers that compare favorably to his career rates, he has allowed four home runs already.

The 30-year-old Kozma is a light-hitting utility player who’ll appear in his seventh MLB campaign. Reininger, 25, is back for a second attempt at the majors after a rough debut last year. He has generally been effective thus far at Triple-A in 2018, allowing four earned runs on 18 hits and four walks, while recording 15 strikeouts, in 13 2/3 innings.

Daniel Norris Requires Groin Surgery, Will Miss Eight To Twelve Weeks

By Steve Adams | April 30, 2018 at 3:23pm CDT

The Tigers announced today that left-hander Daniel Norris has been placed on the 10-day disabled list due to a left groin strain. Manager Ron Gardenhire further explained to reporters that Norris will undergo surgery to alleviate pressure in the area, and Norris himself revealed that he’ll miss the next eight to 12 weeks as a result of the procedure (Twitter links via MLB.com’s Jason Beck). He’ll have the surgery Thursday, tweets Katie Strang of The Athletic. Left-hander Chad Bell was recalled from Triple-A to take Norris’ spot on the roster for now.

Norris, who turned 25 last week, was a feel-good story back in 2016 when he returned from thyroid cancer and tossed 69 1/3 innings of 3.38 ERA ball in 13 starts with Detroit. The Tigers originally picked up Norris, Matthew Boyd and Jairo Labourt in the 2015 David Price blockbuster with the Blue Jays in hopes of landing multiple long-term rotation pieces. Norris at one point looked to be on his way to become that mid-rotation fixture they’d coveted, but he’s stalled out a bit over the past 13 months. Since Opening Day 2017, he’s posted an unsightly 5.38 ERA with 8.0 K/9, 4.1 BB/9 and 1.2 HR/9 in 117 innings (20 starts, seven relief appearances). Norris also missed time last season with a strained left groin, so it stands to reason that the injury has been a significant part of his recent struggles.

[Related: Detroit Tigers depth chart]

While the injury could sideline Norris into July or even August, there’s till ample time for him to rebound back to health and prove he can be a viable piece of the pitching staff moving forward. The Tigers control Norris all the way through the 2021 season, although he will be out of minor league options next year, so he’ll need to stick in the Majors beginning next spring at the latest. Nonetheless, given the upside the former top prospect possesses and given the Tigers’ rebuilding status, there’s no reason to think he won’t be given every opportunity to solidify himself as a Major League contributor once he returns from injury.

With Norris now out of the picture for the foreseeable future, the Tigers will utilize Michael Fulmer, Francisco Liriano, Mike Fiers, Jordan Zimmermann and Boyd in the starting rotation.

Pitching Notes: Harvey, Hunter, D. Norris, Nicasio

By Connor Byrne | April 22, 2018 at 9:23am CDT

The Mets informed right-hander Matt Harvey on Saturday that he was moving to the bullpen, after which the 29-year-old told Tim Healey of Newsday and other reporters, “On a scale of 1 to 10, obviously I’m at a 10 with being [ticked] off.” The former ace went on to acknowledge that he has struggled, though, and both Harvey and manager Mickey Callaway are hopeful he’ll work his way back into the club’s rotation. “It’s inevitable that he’s going to make more starts for us this year. That’s how baseball goes,” Callaway said. “As of right now, we think that indications are that he’s going to go down there and try to be the best Matt Harvey he can be.” Harvey, whose descent from top-of-the-rotation status began in 2016, has pitched to an ugly 6.57 ERA/6.07 FIP in 113 2/3 innings since last season.

The Phillies optioned left-hander Hoby Milner to Triple-A on Saturday, paving the way for right-hander Tommy Hunter’s activation from the disabled list on Sunday. Hunter, whom the Phillies signed to a two-year, $18MM deal in the offseason, opened the year on the DL because of a hamstring strain. The 31-year-old will join a bullpen that has been effective thus far (3.21 ERA/3.70 FIP in 67 1/3 innings) despite a lack of contributions from him and fellow free-agent pickup Pat Neshek, who’s on the DL with shoulder inflammation.
Tigers southpaw Daniel Norris has only made one start in three appearances this year. For now, the team will continue deploying Norris as a reliever in the majors, as opposed to having him start in the minors, manager Ron Gardenhire told Jason Beck of MLB.com and other reporters. The former high-end prospect’s lone start so far came Friday, when he only allowed one run in 4 2/3 innings against the Royals. However, Norris’ fastball velocity – which was in the low-90s in previous years – averaged just 88.6 mph, per Beck. The 24-year-old’s above-average spin rate helped make up for it, Beck notes, and Norris expects that to serve him well if his missing velocity returns. “I haven’t thrown this slow since I was a sophomore in high school, so I’m figuring something out and I’m learning how to pitch,” Norris said. “And when it does come back, I’m going to be a lot better for it.”
As is the case with Norris, Mariners reliever Juan Nicasio has dealt with a decline in velocity early this season. While Nicasio insists he’s not having any health issues, it’s nonetheless alarming that the offseason investment’s fastball velocity is averaging 93.2 mph after clocking in at 95.7 in 2017, Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times writes. Nicasio’s velo did increase last season, which is cause for optimism, though it also started out at a higher level (upward of 95 mph), Divish points out. In 2017, his first year as a full-time reliever, Nicasio was terrific with three clubs (the Pirates, Phillies and Cardinals). The Mariners then awarded him their richest contract of the winter in free agency (two years, $17MM), but with five earned runs allowed in 9 2/3 innings, he has gotten off to a slow start.

AL Notes: Rays, Miller, Stroman, Ellsbury, Tigers

By Connor Byrne | March 17, 2018 at 11:42pm CDT

The Rays are likely to continue with first baseman Brad Miller, which would seem to rule out potential pursuits for either free agent Adam Lind or just-designated Twin Kennys Vargas, per Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. It’s unclear, though, whether Miller will primarily occupy first, second base or the designated hitter spot this season, Topkin adds. Miller on Saturday saw his first action since Feb. 23 (he was out with a toe injury), so he may not be ready for Opening Day. He also struggled mightily a year ago (.201/.327/.337 across 407 plate appearances) and is on an arbitration awarded salary of $4.5MM that the Rays would be able to escape without much consequence prior to the season. Nevertheless, it seems they’ll stick with Miller.

AL Notes: Alford, Bard, Vargas, Fiers

By Steve Adams | March 16, 2018 at 9:16am CDT

Blue Jays outfield prospect Anthony Alford will miss the next three to six weeks with a Grade 2 hamstring strain, writes Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet. Obviously, that takes the highly touted 23-year-old out of consideration for a spot on the Opening Day roster, though he was likely facing an uphill battle in that regard anyhow, given the crowded outfield mix in Toronto and a presumptive desire for Alford to get everyday at-bats. A third-round pick in 2012, Alford has been lauded as one of the game’s top 100 prospects by virtually every major outlet in the past three seasons. He’s viewed as a key piece of the Blue Jays’ future, although despite making his MLB debut last season, he still has just three Triple-A games and 68 Double-A games on his minor league resume. The injury could cost him as much as a month of the season, but it still seems quite plausible that he could return to the big leagues late in the 2018 season with more minor league seasoning.

A bit more from around the American League:

Right-hander Luke Bard is turning some heads in Angels camp as he vies for a spot in the big league bullpen, writes Mike DiGiovanna of the L.A. Times. The younger brother of former Red Sox setup man Daniel Bard, Luke was selected by the Angels out of the Twins organization in the Rule 5 Draft back in December. The 27-year-old was a supplemental first-rounder back in 2012 but has had his development slowed by shoulder and hip surgeries. Finally healthy in 2017, Bard turned in a 2.76 ERA with 13.6 K/9, 3.3 BB/9 and a 32 percent ground-ball rate in 65 1/3 innings between Double-A and Triple-A. Bard’s spring ERA is skewed by one outing where he was rocked for five runs in just a third of an inning, but he’s impressed manager Mike Scioscia in the remainder of his outings and expressed a willingness to work multi-inning stints out of the ’pen. “His stuff is good, he spins the ball well, and hopefully he’s going to be a multi-inning guy,” Scioscia tells DiGiovanna. “With the makeup of our club, multi-inning [relievers] are really important.”
The signing of Logan Morrison made switch-hitting Kennys Vargas somewhat of an odd man out with the Twins, writes MLB.com’s Rhett Bollinger. According to Bollinger, Vargas is expected to be placed on outright waivers at the end of camp, and the Twins are hopeful that he can clear and stick with the organization. The switch-hitting 27-year-old is listed at a towering 6’5″, 275 pounds in this year’s media guide, and while he’s shown some power in the bigs (.185 ISO, 35 homers in 859 PAs), he’s also whiffed at a 29.2 percent clip and posted a meager .311 OBP. Given the manner in which clubs have begun to devalue OBP-challenged sluggers with limited defensive capabilities — Vargas is strictly a first baseman/DH — there’s perhaps a possibility that he could make it through waivers and remain with the club.
Right-hander Mike Fiers’ struggles this spring haven’t yet put his rotation spot in jeopardy, though Tigers manager Ron Gardenhire suggested that the 32-year-old offseason signee would be well-served to show some positive signs in the final weeks of camp (via Anthony Fenech of the Detroit Free Press). “We’re planning on this guy being in,” Gardenhire said of Fiers, who has been torched for 12 runs (including four homers) in 11 1/3 frames this spring. “…But at the end of the day, when we get down to the end here, we have to make some decisions and we’re going to go with the guys that are getting it done and right now, he’s just gotta fight through it because he’s a veteran.” Gardenhire later added that Fiers’ veteran status will buy him a bit more leeway than the team’s younger arms. As Fenech notes, Fiers has been unequivocally outpitched by lefty Daniel Norris, but Norris has a minor league option remaining and could head to Triple-A to open the season.

Central Notes: Royals, Liriano, Cobb, Brewers

By Steve Adams | March 12, 2018 at 7:32pm CDT

The Royals would still like to add help in either the rotation or the bullpen, tweets USA Today’s Bob Nightengale, but their payroll is elevated to the point where they have very little room for further additions. As such, a reunion with still-lingering free agent Greg Holland seems “extremely remote,” Nightengale adds. Over the past couple of weeks, the Royals have signed Lucas Duda ($3.5MM), Jon Jay ($3MM) and Mike Moustakas ($6.5MM) in a late trio of additions, pushing their payroll up into the $122MM range.

AL Central Notes: Twins, Tigers, Abreu

By Kyle Downing | December 2, 2017 at 12:21pm CDT

Darren Wolfson of KSTP tweeted today that while the Twins remain “engaged and interested” in regards to a few big name free agent pitchers, there’s no indication yet that they are “in heavily” on anyone. While that can change quickly, Wolfson acknowledges that the trade market is also a very real possibility. It would seem that Minnesota is in a position to take their time in exploring all possible options. It makes plenty of sense to wonder whether the Twins might wait to see where Shohei Ohtani signs before making any significant pitching acquisitions. The market for pitching is likely to hold fast until the two-way Japanese sensation picks a landing spot, and on the off-chance that he chooses Minnesota, they might be able to focus their resources on other areas of the roster. A particularly weak bullpen comes to mind as another area the Twins will need to improve upon if they expect to contend again in 2018.

More notes out of the American League’s central division…

While the Tigers probably won’t be serious pursuers of big name free agents this offseason, Katie Strang of The Athletic provides a short list of potential bargain buys for a depleted Detroit rotation. Strang notes that Michael Fulmer is coming off elbow surgery, while veteran Jordan Zimmerman has spent the offseason overhauling his delivery in hopes to return to form after a disastrous 2017 season. Beyond them, Matthew Boyd and Daniel Norris aren’t sure bets to hold down rotation spots. Chris Tillman, Miles Mikolas and Clay Buchholz are some interesting names Strang suggests as options for the Tigers to explore. While none are particularly exciting, they all have some upside as comeback players and could eat innings for Detroit in 2018.
Although the Red Sox are players for White Sox slugger Jose Abreu, Scott Lauber of ESPN notes that the south siders are reportedly asking for “an arm and a leg” in exchange for their first baseman. Boston might not have the prospects necessary to swing a deal; the White Sox were able to land huge hauls for Chris Sale and Adam Eaton last offseason and might be holding out for a similar return for Abreu. The Cuban native has put up a .301/.359/.524 batting line for his four-year major league career. His slugging percentage and 124 home runs both rank 13th in the majors during that span, while his 410 RBI rank 5th. MLBTR’s Mark Polishuk recently detailed the trade market for Abreu.

Gammons On Cubs, Tigers, Verlander, Lowrie, Cole

By Mark Polishuk | July 9, 2017 at 9:15pm CDT

“This is the reality: there are a lot more sellers than buyers right now,” a club personnel director tells Peter Gammons in the writer’s latest piece for his Gammons Daily website. Not only are some teams still wondering if they can get back into the postseason race, other teams further back in the standings are looking to rebound in 2018 and thus won’t engage in full-scale selloffs at the deadline. It makes for a lot of speculation but little hard facts at this point in July. As one GM jokes, “the whole countdown to deadline day has become akin to stores putting Christmas decorations in their showcase windows on Labor Day.” Here are some hot stove items from Gammons…

“The Cubs have called almost every team” in search of starting pitching, including asking the Tigers about Michael Fulmer and Daniel Norris. It would take a blockbuster offer for Detroit to eve consider moving Fulmer, as he has already displayed frontline-starter capabilities over his year and a half as a major leaguer, and he has yet to even reach his arbitration seasons. Norris would come at a lesser but still substantial price since he is controlled through 2022, though the southpaw has battled both injuries and inconsistency during his four years in the bigs. The Cubs are known to be looking for controllable young arms, and may be willing to deal from their surplus of young position players to do so.
One Tigers pitcher that isn’t on the Cubs’ radar is Justin Verlander, as one Cubs official tells Gammons that “no one is going to pay $70MM for him, even though he may still be a very good pitcher.” Chicago reportedly at least asked about Verlander at one point, though with Detroit apparently wanting to both get top prospects and get Verlander’s salary off the books, it isn’t surprising that the Cubs’ interest in Verlander was described yesterday as “more smoke than fire” by the Detroit Free Press’ Anthony Fenech.
Billy Beane told Gammons earlier this week that he hadn’t received any serious interest in Sonny Gray prior to last weekend, and the same goes for any serious calls about Jed Lowrie. The veteran infielder is thought to be a good target for teams in need of middle infield help and the Athletics to find lineup space for prospect Franklin Barreto, though it appears that Lowrie’s market has yet to develop with over three weeks still to go until the deadline. MLBTR’s Connor Byrne examined Lowrie, Gray and other Oakland trade candidates in a Taking Inventory piece earlier today.
Returning to Gammons’ original point about teams not wanting rebuild when they feel they have a chance in 2018, Pirates GM Neal Huntington said that his team isn’t likely to trade young right-hander Gerrit Cole. “We haven’t had a real conversation about Gerrit, and I don’t see us doing so,” Huntington said. “We think we can be serious contenders next year….Our goal is to maintain a level of competitiveness every year, and not to have to jump back and build all over again.”

AL Central Notes: Royals, Verlander, Norris, Twins

By Steve Adams | July 6, 2017 at 9:27am CDT

While manager Ned Yost won’t be the one ultimately calling the shots prior to the non-waiver trade deadline, the Royals’ skipper didn’t mince words in a recent appearance with Casey Stern on MLB Network Radio on SiriusXM (Twitter link). Yost said the Royals are fully planning to function as buyers and not sellers over the next several weeks. “We’re going for this thing,” said Yost, whose Royals currently sit at 44-40 — a half-game back from the division-leading Indians. The Royals still have another 19 games before the non-waiver deadline, but they’ve certainly positioned themselves well over the past month or so, playing at a 22-10 pace since early June.

Trade Rumors: CarGo, Beltran, Pirates, Angels, Tigers, Athletics

By Steve Adams | July 31, 2016 at 12:30pm CDT

The Rockies aren’t planning on moving Carlos Gonzalez or Charlie Blackmon, reports FanRag’s Jon Heyman. While CarGo is a perennial trade candidate, the Rockies’ excellent play since the All-Star break has the team back at .500 and within a stone’s throw of a Wild Card playoff berth. Whether the Rockies will actually remain in the hunt remains to be seen, especially as other clubs in the race move to fortify their rosters, but Colorado has looked impressive as of late and could always extract value in trades of Gonzalez and/or Blackmon in the offseason if the club falls shy this season and wishes to add more pitching to its minor league ranks over the winter.

Some more trade rumors from around the league with the non-waiver deadline just over 24 hours away…

The Yankees are listening to offers on right fielder/designated hitter Carlos Beltran, tweets ESPN’s Buster Olney. However, executives from other clubs tell Olney that they consider the asking price on Beltran to be “beyond their reach.” As a free agent at season’s end, Beltran represents a logical trade candidate for the Yankees, who are walking a tightrope and trying to balance a desire to remain competitive in 2016 with a desire to build their farm system for the long haul. The Yankees have already traded both Aroldis Chapman and Andrew Miller, but they’ve also added righties Tyler Clippard and Adam Warren in an effort to keep the bullpen fairly stable. Beltran is hitting .301/.342/.538 with 21 homers on the season and is earning $15MM in the final season of a three-year, $45MM contract. He’s still owed about $5.34MM of that sum, and while his defense may cause some NL clubs to shy away, American League teams that can give him some occasional time at DH undoubtedly would be intrigued by adding the 39-year-old’s still-productive bat to their lineups.
Pirates GM Neal Huntington said after yesterday’s trade of Mark Melancon that he’s still looking to add talent before the non-waiver deadline (Twitter link via MLB.com’s Adam Berry). Berry noted that the Bucs scouted the Rays and Yankees last night in a matchup of Drew Smyly vs. Nathan Eovaldi. Meanwhile, the Post-Gazette’s Bill Brink tweets that the Pirates asked the Braves about Julio Teheran but were told the right-hander isn’t moving.
The Angels have received the most trade interest in right-hander Cam Bedrosian, tweets MLB Network’s Peter Gammons. However, Gammons implies that a Bedrosian trade isn’t likely, suggesting that the Halos view him as a future closer. The 24-year-old is in the midst of an incredible season, having pitched to a 0.92 ERA with a 48-to-11 K/BB ratio and a 50.5 percent ground-ball rate. He’s controllable through the 2021 season, so it’s understandable that the Angels would strongly prefer to hang onto him. Then again, elite relief arms are commanding strong results, and while Bedrosian doesn’t have the track record that Ken Giles brought into the offseason, it’s possible that the Halos could get some meaningful pitching talent to add to their system if they did market him.
ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick tweets that the Tigers have been checking in on fourth/fifth starter types, including Jeremy Hellickson of the Phillies, Wade Miley of the Mariners, Edinson Volquez of the Royals, Hector Santiago of the Angels and Erasmo Ramirez of the Rays. Detroit is looking to bolster its rotation and doesn’t seem keen on dealing away any potential long-term options in the rotation, as Crasnick’s colleague Jayson Stark tweets that clubs who have spoken to the Tigers say they’ve repeatedly turned away offers including Daniel Norris and Matt Boyd. (Notably, Stark mentioned the refusal to include Boyd and Norris in connection to some speculation on Jonathan Lucroy, but Detroit’s reluctance to part with either left-hander is worth mentioning all the same.)
MLB Network’s Peter Gammons reported earlier this week that the Dodgers have asked the Athletics about a package including both Rich Hill and Josh Reddick, and now Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports tweets that the Blue Jays have done the same. Toronto did acquire Melvin Upton Jr. earlier this week, potentially lessening the need for an outfield upgrade. But, Reddick would help to balance out a very right-handed lineup, and adding Hill to the mix would give the team a top-tier arm (if he can get healthy) to replace Aaron Sanchez if he is ultimately moved to the bullpen.
The Indians held some interest in Athletics lefty Marc Rzepczynski as of last night, per Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle (on Twitter). Of course, Slusser’s report was prior to the Indians’ blockbuster acquisition of Andrew Miller, so it’s not entirely certain that they’ll be in the market for another lefty. However, they’ve regularly trotted out an entirely right-handed relief corps this season, so adding a more situational lefty like Rzepczynski to complement Miller, who dominates everyone and needn’t be limited to specialized matchups, makes some sense.

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