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Danny Duffy

Royals Notes: Moore, Duffy, Merrifield, Barlow

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The Royals parted ways with Danny Duffy yesterday, trading the veteran left-hander to the Dodgers for a player to be named later.  Given Duffy’s long history with the Royals, it was a tough call for GM Dayton Moore, who told reporters (including Lynn Worthy of The Kansas City Star) that Duffy was “a family member” for the organization.

It remains to be seen if more difficult decisions are in store for Moore and company, as the Royals have a number of interesting trade chips.  However, Moore indicated that the club would be more apt to move rental players, as opposed to players who are controlled beyond the 2022 season.  By name, Moore said that the team didn’t want to move any of Whit Merrifield, Carlos Santana, or Mike Minor, though said the Royals would remain “open” to ideas.

The Royals signed both Santana and Minor as part of a rather busy offseason, indicating that the team felt it was to some extent on the other end of its semi-rebuild phase.  After a hot start, Kansas City has since faded to a 45-56 record, though it makes sense that the Royals wouldn’t want to deal all their veterans and entirely start from scratch heading into 2022.

Merrifield’s name has been floated in trade rumors, as the Royals have reportedly been at least a little more willing than in the past to hearing what other clubs had to offer for the multi-position speedster.  However, the Royals were known to be putting a hefty price tag on Merrifield, and MLB Network’s Jon Heyman reports that Merrifield “is likely” to remain in K.C. beyond today’s deadline.

Given Moore’s hesitations about moving veterans controlled for just one more season, it seems even more far-fetched that Kansas City would trade a player like Scott Barlow, though The Athletic’s Jayson Stark hears that multiple clubs have some interest in the right-hander.  Barlow has a 2.70 ERA/3.36 SIERA and a 31% strikeout rate over 50 innings out of the Royals’ bullpen this season, and has been generally solid since making his MLB debut in 2018.  Barlow is controllable through the 2024 season, so the Royals could demand for quite a bit in a reliever-hungry trade market, assuming they’re inclined to deal Barlow at all.

Dodgers Acquire Danny Duffy From Royals

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The Royals parted ways with one of the faces of their franchise this evening, announcing a trade to send Danny Duffy to the Dodgers in exchange for a player to be named later. Kansas City will include an undisclosed amount of cash to offset some or all of his remaining salary. To create 40-man roster space, the Dodgers designated outfielder DJ Peters for assignment.

Duffy had full no-trade rights as a 10-and-5 player (one with ten years of major league service, the five most recent having been with the same team). However, Joel Sherman of the New York Post reported a few weeks ago the Southern California native might be willing waive that protection to facilitate a deal to a West Coast club. That has indeed proven to be the case. The southpaw is currently on the 10-day injured list with a flexor strain in his throwing forearm, but Kansas City general manager Dayton Moore told reporters this week he’d be able to return at some point this season, perhaps near the end of August.

The move brings to an end — at least temporarily — Duffy’s long tenure in the Royals organization. Kansas City selected him out of high school in the third round of the 2007 draft. He made his big league debut in 2011 and has been with the club for over a decade, crossing the ten-year service milestone last month.

It was an unequivocally successful Kansas City tenure for Duffy, who emerged as a fixture in the rotation for almost the entirety of that time. He’s pitched to a 3.95 ERA across 1172 1/3 innings over the course of his career. A key piece of the Royals’ 2015 World Series championship team, Duffy signed a five-year, $65MM extension in January 2017.

That deal expires at the end of the season, though. With the Royals in fourth place in the AL Central, there’s plenty of sense in moving his final few months of team control to add some younger talent. For Duffy, the trade serves him well geographically and gives him an opportunity to pitch in a pennant race at the end of the year.

Of course, nothing stops the Royals from pursuing a reunion with Duffy this winter. He’s beloved amongst team personnel and fans. It seems that’s reciprocated, as the 32-year-old has gone on record in the past about his affinity for the organization and the city. The Royals haven’t been shy about pursuing free agent reunions with members of their mid-2010’s teams in recent years, and it’s possible they’ll take a similar course of action with Duffy during the upcoming offseason.

For the stretch run, the Dodgers are adding a pitcher who quietly had a fantastic start to the year — one that contributed to the Royals’ league-best record over the first few weeks of the season. Through his first seven starts, Duffy tossed 41 2/3 innings of 1.94 ERA/2.34 FIP ball. He struck out a lofty 28.2% of opposing hitters in that time against a tiny 7.1% walk rate and looked to have returned to the mid-rotation form he showed during his peak seasons.

Duffy landed on the IL with a flexor strain on May 17 and missed around five weeks. He built back arm strength on the fly upon his return, working shorter stints at the big league level rather than embarking upon a rehab assignment. Duffy stretched back out to five innings by early July, but he eventually went down with the same injury and landed on the IL on July 20.

It’s not clear how much volume Los Angeles can expect from Duffy, given that he won’t have much time to rehab from his latest injury. The Dodgers have been known to be on the hunt for starting pitching, but it’s also possible they activate Duffy as a multi-inning relief weapon. Whatever the role, the hope is he’ll be able to help the Dodgers in their battle with the Giants and Padres for the NL West and during their postseason run. The Duffy addition didn’t deter the Dodgers from putting together a prospect package likely to land Max Scherzer from the Nationals.

Duffy is making $15.5MM this season, around $5.4MM of which remains to be paid. It’s not precisely clear how much of the tab the Royals are picking up. Duffy’s luxury tax figure (calculated by the contract’s average annual value, not actual salary) is $13MM — so he carries an approximate $4.5MM luxury number the rest of the way. The Dodgers have already exceeded $260MM in luxury tax obligations, according to Jason Martinez of Roster Resource. That puts them in the highest bracket, so they’ll pay a 62.5% tax on any expenditures they take on this summer (on Duffy’s contract and other potential acquisitions).

To determine their return, the Royals will be free to choose from an agreed-upon list of players in the Dodgers’ system. They’ll have up to six months to make a decision, with the PTBNL setup particularly helpful for teams to continue to evaluate prospects after last year’s minor league season was canceled. Players selected in the 2021 draft cannot be traded as players to be named later until after the season is finished.

Peters has long been considered one of the more interesting position player prospects in the Dodgers organization. His combination of big raw power and speed has impressed scouts, and he’s generally been productive at the minor league level despite a sky-high strikeout rate. That hasn’t been the case this season, though, as the right-handed hitter has stumbled to a .223/.319/.372 line over 204 plate appearances with Triple-A Oklahoma City.

The Dodgers could trade Peters before tomorrow’s deadline. If they don’t, he’ll find himself on waivers. Between his proximity to the big leagues (Peters actually made a brief debut this year), decent prospect pedigree, and pair of remaining minor league option years, it wouldn’t be a surprise if he finds himself on another roster in the coming days.

Jeff Passan of ESPN first reported that Duffy was being traded to the Dodgers. Mark Feinsand of MLB.com reported the Royals would receive a player to be named later. Jon Heyman of MLB Network reported the inclusion of cash in the deal.

AL Central Notes: Duffy, Dodgers, Ramirez, Twins

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The Dodgers have interest in injured Royals southpaw Danny Duffy, MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand reports (via Twitter).  This completes the trio of NL West contenders looking at Duffy, since the Padres and Giants have also been linked to the veteran left-hander.  San Francisco is known to be interested despite Duffy’s injury, and it can be assumed that the Dodgers are in the same position, considering that Duffy has been on the 10-day injured list for five days now.

Duffy is out of action with his second left flexor strain of the season, so he might not be available until at least early September, based on the timeline of his last IL visit.  Since the NL West teams currently have a big lead on the rest of the National League for the two wild card positions, the Dodgers can be reasonably comfortable of reaching the postseason in one form or another, so Duffy could be saved as a late-season reinforcement.  While it can certainly be argued that Los Angeles should spend its prospect capital on a healthy pitcher, the Royals’ asking price for Duffy probably isn’t very high, considering his injured status.  Duffy controls his trade destiny thanks to 10-and-5 rights, and the California native might be willing to waive those rights to join a team in his home state.  (If this is the case, the Angels and Athletics would also seem like hypothetical fits for a Duffy trade.)

More from the AL Central…

  • It remains to be seen if the Indians will be buyers, sellers, or a bit of both at the trade deadline, but there don’t appear to be any plans to move Jose Ramirez.  MLB Network’s Jon Morosi (Twitter link) reports that Cleveland isn’t having “active talks” about a Ramirez deal with any rival team, which perhaps isn’t surprising considering the big-picture ramifications of such a trade.  Moving a star player with such an affordable contract would seemingly indicate a turn towards a rebuild for the Tribe, who haven’t given any indication they’re not planning to contend again in 2022.  Unsurprisingly, “the asking price is extremely high” for Ramirez, Morosi writes.
  • The Twins are considering all options as the trade deadline approaches, including the possibility of including two or more players together in a single trade.  In an interview on MLB Network Radio on SiriusXM earlier today, Twins chief baseball officer Derek Falvey told Jon Morosi and company that such a package deal is “something we have talked about.”  Possibilities abound for such trades, though since the Twins are reportedly not keen to move players controlled beyond 2021, however, I would think a package deal might be more suited as a way of generating a greater return for rental players.  Someone like Andrelton Simmons or Michael Pineda alone might not bring back much in the way of prospects, but putting the two veterans into one deal might get a team to budge on a slightly higher-tier minor leaguer.  Conversely, the Twins could also look into packaging a rental player with someone with more control (i.e. Byron Buxton or Taylor Rogers).

Latest On Padres’ Trade Targets

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Locked in a tight NL West race, the Padres are known to be looking for starting pitching and lineup help at the deadline.  This leaves a wide range of possibilities open for an aggressive general manager like A.J. Preller, and Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune hears that Preller’s front office has “has talked with other teams about scenarios ranging from the seemingly obvious to the implausible.”

That gamut might be reflected in two hitters Acee links to the Padres, as he reiterates that the club continues to be interested in Joey Gallo, long mentioned as a target for San Diego.  Beyond Gallo, however, Acee also notes that the Padres were one of the NL teams who had an interest in Nelson Cruz, before Minnesota sent the veteran slugger to the Rays in a trade earlier tonight.  It would’ve been bold to put Cruz (a DH-only player for the last three seasons) back in line for regular outfield duty, which might be why the Twins ultimately found the most interested suitor in an AL team that could deploy Cruz in his normal DH spot.

On the pitching front, the Padres are looking for multiple arms to aid a rotation that had been hit with injuries.  Acee writes that the targets are “both a potential innings eater and a starter who could be a viable option to start early in a playoff series.”  The Padres’ talks with the Rangers and Twins also involved such names as Kyle Gibson, Jordan Lyles, and Kenta Maeda.  San Diego has also had interest in Rockies right-hander Jon Gray and Royals left-hander Danny Duffy, though it is unclear if Duffy is still a consideration after he was placed on the 10-day injured list earlier this week.

Gray, Duffy, and Lyles are all pure rentals, as free agents after the season.  Duffy and Gray have pretty comparable overall metrics, and while Duffy’s 2.51 ERA is significantly better than Gray’s 3.68 ERA, Gray has 93 innings pitched to Duffy’s 61, as Duffy is in the midst of his second IL stint of the season.  Duffy also has full no-trade protection but the California native might be open to agreeing to be dealt back to his home state.  Gray has no such trade protection, though the Rockies’ willingness to move a notable player to a division rival could be a potential obstacle.

The biggest issue with acquiring Lyles is likely that the 30-year-old simply hasn’t pitched well over his two years in Texas, posting a 5.84 ERA in 165 innings since the start of the 2020 season.  A change of scenery could help Lyles regain the effectiveness he displayed in 2018-19, and Lyles is a familiar face for Preller, as the righty pitched for San Diego during the 2017 and 2018 campaigns.

A trade could also help Maeda escape the doldrums of a tough 2021 season, though the right-hander far from struggled in his first year in Minnesota, finishing second in 2020 AL Cy Young Award voting.  Maeda missed a little over three weeks with a groin injury this year, and has pitched better over his last three starts, with a 1.69 ERA over his last 16 innings.

Maeda is no stranger to the NL West after spending his first four MLB seasons with the Dodgers, and he also has the most contractual control of any of the five pitchers known to be on San Diego’s radar.  Maeda is owed only $3MM in guaranteed money in each of the 2022 and 2023 season, but several millions more are available in incentives based on innings pitched and games started.  The overall price tag is still quite reasonable, and as much as Maeda hasn’t been a front-of-the-rotation type in 2021, his contract and his past track record make him a good trade chip.  Of course, this assumes that Minnesota would be open to a trade for anything more than a very generous offer, as the Twins are reportedly not very interested in dealing anything beyond rental players.

Gibson is also controlled beyond 2021, as he still has a full year remaining (worth $7MM) on the three-year, $28MM free agent deal he inked with the Rangers in the 2019-20 offseason.  With a 2.86 ERA over his first 107 innings, Gibson is on pace for a career year, and he already was named an All-Star for the first time in his nine MLB seasons.  Gibson doesn’t miss many bats, however, and both his Statcast profile and overall career numbers don’t much help the argument that he can keep up this borderline ace production over the course of a full season, or into 2022.

What the Padres would be willing to give up for any of these players (or any deadline target) is still up in the air.  The club is close to the $210MM luxury tax threshold already but they reportedly have the ability to cross that threshold, so money might not be the most pressing issue for deadline acquisitions.  In regards to moving prospects, Acee hears that the Padres aren’t willing to move any of their top four minor leaguers — presumably MacKenzie Gore, CJ Abrams, Luis Campusano, or Robert Hassell — and might even look to add some more young talent in deals, though obviously the Padres wouldn’t be “deadline sellers” by any stretch of the imagination.

Speculatively, San Diego could look into some type of complex multi-player deal that would see them acquire a package that includes at least one notable MLB player that can help them win now, as well as a minor leaguer or two.  The inclusion of prospects could perhaps make it easier for the Padres to move one of their better minor leaguers as part of a trade.

Giants Interested In Danny Duffy

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Though Danny Duffy was placed on the Royals’ 10-day injured list on Tuesday, the Giants still have trade interest in the veteran southpaw, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.  “Injuries don’t give San Francisco much pause in general,” Slusser notes, citing the team’s signing of John Brebbia in the offseason as Brebbia was recovering from Tommy John surgery.

Naturally, the Giants’ interest will hinge on just exactly how hurt Duffy is, considering that this is the second time he has visited the IL this season with a left flexor strain.  That earlier IL stint sidelined Duffy for close to six weeks, so if a similar recovery period is required, he won’t be available for the Royals, Giants, or any other club until the first week of September.  This still makes Duffy a potential difference-maker in a pennant race, though that assumes that he’ll still be effective after this latest layoff, and it also assumes that he won’t need a longer time to heal up considering that this is a recurring injury.

It adds yet another wrinkle to Duffy’s interesting case a trade candidate.  While the Statcast metrics haven’t been great for the 32-year-old, Duffy has strong bottom-line numbers, with a 2.51 ERA and an above-average 25.8% strikeout rate over 61 innings.  He is also a free agent after the season and thus a seemingly logical trade chip for the struggling Royals, though Duffy has full no-trade protection as a 10-and-5 player, and he has been public about his desire to remain with the Royals for the entirety of his career.

However, there has been some indication that Duffy (born in Goleta, California) might be willing to accept a trade to the West Coast.  As such, teams like the Padres, Dodgers, and now the Giants have reportedly been linked to Duffy, though it remains to be seen if the other California teams also wouldn’t balk at acquiring an injured player.  As Slusser notes, Duffy’s injury surely lowers the Royals’ asking price in a trade, so a team like San Francisco could potentially see him as something of a buy-low lottery ticket acquisition.

In other Giants trade rumblings, Slusser reports that the Cardinals and Rangers have had scouts recently watching the Giants, so some potential trade chips on those teams (if St. Louis indeed decides to sell at the deadline) could be on San Francisco’s radar.  On the pitching end, Kyle Gibson, Kwang Hyun Kim, or even longtime Cardinal Adam Wainwright stand out.  Slusser notes that the outfield is a target area for the Giants, so Rangers slugger Joey Gallo would be a major fit.

Royals Place Danny Duffy On Injured List

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The Royals announced Tuesday that they’ve placed left-hander Danny Duffy and right-hander Brady Singer on the 10-day injured list. Duffy is dealing with a left flexor strain, while Singer is dealing with right shoulder fatigue. Righty Tyler Zuber and first baseman/outfielder Ryan McBroom were recalled from Triple-A in a pair of corresponding moves.

Duffy, 32, spent May 12 through June 23 on the injured list with this same injury. He’d returned to post a 3.72 ERA in 19 1/3 innings across five starts and one relief appearance. Overall, he’s pitched to a 2.51 ERA with a 25.8 percent strikeout rate and an 8.7 percent walk rate through 61 innings this season.

Given the Royals’ poor season and Duffy’s status as a pending free agent, there was some speculation that he could be moved in the coming days. Between Duffy’s health in 2021, his previously vocal stance on spending his whole career in Kansas City, and the fact that he can veto any trade as a 10-and-5 player, a trade might not have been especially likely anyhow. However, this latest IL stint seems to all but eliminate the possibility of a deal coming together.

With the elimination of August trade waivers, there’d be no possibility of Duffy changing hands following the July 30 deadline. He’ll play out the final season of a five-year, $65MM contract extension he signed prior to the 2017 season and reach the open market. That said, the Royals will be in the market for pitching help this winter and could very well look to bring Duffy back on a new contract as a free agent — assuming the current flexor strain doesn’t prove to be too severe, of course.

It’s been an up-and-down season for the 24-year-old Singer, who was hit hard in his season debut before settling into a nice groove. Singer posted excellent numbers in April, struggled immensely in May, and had a solid-but-unspectacular showing in June. That had all balanced out to a 4.52 ERA and a 3.84 FIP through July 7. However, Singer was blown up for seven runs in two innings against the Orioles in his most recent outing, sending his season ERA soaring to 5.13.

The obvious hope for Singer and the Royals is that this does prove to be nothing more than fatigue. While they’re 18 games under .500 and clearly not postseason contenders in 2021, Singer is a former first-round pick and top prospect who is viewed as a key long-term piece for the Royals’ rotation. He logged a 4.06 ERA in 12 starts last year in his Major League debut and is controlled all the way through the 2025 season.

Latest On Danny Duffy

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While the Royals began the year well, their performance has dropped off precipitously over the past couple months. They’ll come out of the All-Star Break a dismal 36-53, sitting in last place in the AL Central. Despite making some efforts last offseason to compete, the Royals have fallen flat.

With a postseason berth obviously out of the question, Kansas City would seem to be an obvious seller. However, the bulk of the roster is either controllable next season or performing badly enough to mute potential trade chatter (i.e. Jorge Soler, Greg Holland and Wade Davis). As a franchise, the Royals have shied away from a full-scale teardown and rebuild, so it might be a relatively quiet deadline season in K.C.

The Royals do have one impending free agent having a strong season, though: Danny Duffy. That’d generally make him a straightforward trade candidate, and Joel Sherman of the New York Post writes that some rival executives do indeed expect the 32-year-old to change uniforms in the coming weeks. Certainly, Duffy’s 2.53 ERA/4.09 SIERA across 57 innings suggest he’d be an upgrade for most or all contenders’ rotations.

Duffy’s situation, though, could make a trade more difficult to pull off than appears at first glance. A flexor strain in his forearm knocked him out of action for more than a month earlier in the year. Duffy returned in late June, and he’s progressively building his workload at the major league level rather than embarking on a rehab assignment. He’s only once worked more than four innings since being activated, topping out at five frames and 77 pitches on July 8 against the Indians. There’s still a little more than two weeks before the deadline for him to continue to build back up, but some clubs might still harbor concerns about Duffy’s ability to shoulder a regular starter’s workload in the second half.

There’s also the personal implications to consider. Duffy’s a career-long Royal who hasn’t been shy about voicing his affinity for the organization in the past. He also exceeded ten years of major league service time last month. Players with ten years of MLB service, the past five of which have come with their current team, are entitled to full no-trade protection. If Duffy is completely set on finishing the year in Kansas City, he can block any deal. Sherman hears that Duffy, a California native, would prefer to be dealt to a West Coast club if he’s moved; that could suggest he’d be willing to waive his no-trade rights to facilitate the right deal, but it’s not entirely clear whether he’d need some type of concession to do so or whether he’d only approve a trade that involved a West Coast destination.

Duffy’s impending free agency adds another factor to the situation. A midseason trade wouldn’t foreclose the Royals from pursuing Duffy as a free agent this winter. Indeed, the organization has shown a proclivity for bringing back players — Holland, Davis, Mike Minor, Ervin Santana and Jarrod Dyson among them — who were one-time Royals who had since gone elsewhere. A trade could allow Kansas City to recoup some prospect value and give Duffy an opportunity to play in a 2021 pennant race without preventing the sides from reuniting in 2022.

Nevertheless, it remains to be seen whether the demand from contenders will be sufficient to make that kind of deal worthwhile. It’s also still an open question whether Duffy’s amenable to a midseason move, making his trade candidacy more complicated than is normal for impending free agents having productive seasons for non-contending teams.

MLBTR Poll: How Should The Royals Proceed With Danny Duffy?

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Royals left-hander Danny Duffy made his return from the injured list this evening, starting tonight’s game against the Yankees. The 32-year-old tossed two scoreless innings in a purposely brief appearance, his first action in a little more than a month. Before going on the IL with a left flexor strain, Duffy had gotten off to a very strong start to the season. Through seven starts totaling 41 2/3 innings, he worked to a pristine 1.94 ERA/2.35 FIP/3.65 SIERA.

Over the season’s first month-plus, he punched out a well above-average 28.2% of opposing hitters, a career-best mark, while walking only 7.1%. On a pitch-by-pitch basis, Duffy generated swings and misses at a 14.2% clip, also a career-best figure that’s well above the league average of 11.4%. His average fastball, slider and curveball velocity were all up between one and two ticks relative to last season. He held that increased pitch speed in today’s start, a welcome development considering there could’ve been some concern about potential lingering effects of the injury and accompanying layoff.

Because of the injury, his body of work remains a fairly small sample. Duffy’s had better month-plus stretches in his career, but he hasn’t had a seven-start run at this level since late in 2017, his last season posting an ERA below 4.00. Duffy’s not going to sustain an ERA below 2.00, but he certainly looks to have bounced back from his middling 2018-20 form. Between 2016-17, the veteran worked to a 3.64 ERA with above-average strikeout and walk numbers- solid mid-rotation production. Given his improved raw stuff and early-season peripherals, it’s not unreasonable to think he can approximate that kind of performance moving forward.

If Duffy continues to pitch at an above-average level while building back towards a starter’s workload, contending clubs figure to reach out about his potential availability. The Royals got off to a strong start but they’ve fallen off rather precipitously since the start of May. Now 33-39, Kansas City has fallen ten games back in the American League Central. They don’t seem like plausible postseason contenders in 2021. With Duffy slated to be a free agent at the end of the year- and the trade market for starting pitching shaping up to be thin- he’d be a fairly straightforward trade candidate in most organizations.

The Royals operate differently than many MLB teams, though. The front office has a reputation for being more loyal than most, and they’ve re-signed or reacquired many of the players who contributed to their pennant-winning clubs of the last decade. Trading away marquee players midseason hasn’t been their M.O.

In the past, Duffy has expressed a desire to stick in Kansas City for his entire career. In response to 2017 trade rumors, he rather famously tweeted “bury me a Royal” and expressed a strong affinity for the organization and the city. Even if the front office were willing to consider moving him near the deadline, Duffy could end those discussions. He entered the season with 9.085 years of MLB service, meaning he’ll have eclipsed ten years by July 30. Players with ten years of service, the most recent five with the same team, are granted full no-trade rights under the terms of the CBA. If Duffy has no interest in moving elsewhere midseason, he could exercise his 10-and-5 rights and block a move.

The Royals’ record and Duffy’s impending free agency could open a mutually-beneficial opportunity for a midseason deal, though. Trading Duffy (with his permission) before July 30 could give him an opportunity to play in a pennant race in 2021 and allow the organization to bring in some young talent. A midseason trade wouldn’t foreclose the two sides reuniting next winter. It’s not common for teams to sign players whom they traded away midseason in free agency the following offseason, but it’s not completely unheard of, either (the Cubs’ 2014 deal with Jason Hammel and the Yankees’ 2016 reunion with Aroldis Chapman being prominent examples). A trade would result in Duffy forfeiting his 10-and-5 rights, but the sides could agree on a no-trade clause as part of a free agent deal if he’s concerned about being moved again in the future.

It’s certainly possible the two sides work out a long-term deal during or after the year, with Duffy never changing uniforms. While it seems unlikely, there’s some chance the Royals hang onto Duffy all season but allow him to depart in free agency. But the opportunity also seems to exist for a trade that could appeal to both Duffy and the Royals, even if both sides want to continue the relationship over the long term.

We’ll turn things over to the MLBTR readership: how should and how will the Royals handle Duffy’s impending free agency? (poll links for app users)

How Should The Royals Proceed With Danny Duffy?
Trade Him Midseason And Attempt To Re-Sign Him This Winter. 74.85% (3,459 votes)
Discuss A Midseason Extension. 15.28% (706 votes)
Let Him Walk. 9.87% (456 votes)
Total Votes: 4,621

 

How Will The Royals Proceed With Danny Duffy?
Trade Him Midseason And Attempt To Re-Sign Him This Winter. 47.92% (1,346 votes)
Work On A Midseason Extension. 27.66% (777 votes)
Let Him Walk. 24.42% (686 votes)
Total Votes: 2,809

 

AL Injury Notes: Bregman, Ramirez, Duffy, Goodrum

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A left quad strain sent Alex Bregman to the 10-day injured list on Thursday, but the Astros star isn’t yet sure exactly when he’ll be back on the field.  “Honestly there’s no timetable really….It’s unfortunate,” Bregman told reporters, including Chandler Rome of The Houston Chronicle.  “I’m just going to trust the rehab process.  I don’t really know.  It’s going to be based on how I progress and how I feel.  But there’s no real timetable yet.”

There still seems to be some uncertainty about the severity of Bregman’s injury, as he said that he didn’t know if it was a Grade 1 or Grade 2 strain.  Manager Dusty Baker has said that Bregman will be out of action “for a while,” which would seem to indicate that the third baseman will miss well beyond the 10-day minimum.  On the plus side for Houston, the team has just kept on winning even without Bregman, as the Astros have rolled a six-game win streak to move within a game of the Athletics for the AL West lead.

More on other injury situations from around the American League…

  • Jose Ramirez left Friday’s game with a left foot contusion after being hit by a pitch, and he wasn’t in the Indians’ lineup on Saturday.  Speaking to The Cleveland Plain Dealer’s Paul Hoynes and other reporters, manager Terry Francona said that Ramirez “was a little more sore, I think, than maybe he anticipated and maybe we did” when he woke up on Saturday morning.  “He got hit right on that arch.  He’s doing OK.  He’s gonna be fine.”  The Tribe are 38-30 this season despite an overall lack of offense, but their chances of remaining in contention would take a big hit if their top hitter had to miss any time.  Ramirez is having another impressive season, batting .270/.354/.539 with 16 home runs over his first 277 plate appearances.
  • Danny Duffy “felt really good” in the aftermath of a 40-pitch bullpen session on Friday, indicating that the Royals southpaw could be nearing a return from the flexor strain that sent him to the injured list back on May 17.  As Duffy told Lynn Worthy of The Kansas City Star, the initial tightness he felt in his forearm is now “gone, everything’s gone.  It’s one of those things, modern medicine is a miracle.  We’ve got the right people who get their hands on us in the training room….On the MRI, they said my ligament is completely intact, so we’re good.  I’m not nervous about it at all. I’m ready to go.”  No plans have yet been made about any possible rehab assignment, though manager Mike Matheny indicated that Duffy could return sometime during the Royals’ upcoming 10-game road trip from June 22-July 1.  Duffy was off to a great start prior to his injury, posting a 1.94 ERA and above-average strikeout (28.2%) and walk (7.1%) rates over 41 2/3 innings.
  • The Tigers placed Niko Goodrum on the 10-day injured list yesterday due to a tendon injury in his left finger.  Goodrum suffered the injury while diving for a ball on Friday.  Tigers manager A.J. Hinch told reporters (including Chris McCosky of The Detroit News) that Goodrum is “seeing some doctors and they are sending films to some hand doctors around the country.  But essentially, he’s got an issue with the tip of his left index finger.  No surgery is required, but we have to get the swelling out of his entire hand.”  Goodrum has played mostly shortstop over the last two seasons but he has been a valuable utility piece for Detroit, playing all over the field during his four seasons with the Tigers.  While Goodrum was a Gold Glove finalist at shortstop in 2020, his defensive metrics have been subpar this year, and he has struggled at the plate for the second consecutive year — Goodrum has hit .202/.281/.332 in 398 PA since the start of the 2020 campaign.  Willi Castro, Harold Castro, and call-up Isaac Paredes will all see time at shortstop while Goodrum is sidelined, Hinch said.

Royals Place Danny Duffy On 10-Day IL

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MAY 18: Duffy told Lynn Worthy of the Kansas City Star and other reporters that he has a Grade 1 strain. He doesn’t expect to miss much time.

MAY 17: The Royals have placed southpaw Danny Duffy on the 10-day injured list (retroactive to May 14) with a left forearm flexor strain, Anne Rogers of MLB.com tweets. They’ll make a corresponding roster move Tuesday.

Whenever the phrase “forearm flexor strain” is used regarding a pitcher, it’s unsettling. So, the Royals can only hope this doesn’t make for a long absence or even Tommy John surgery for Duffy, who has been excellent this season. The 32-year-old has posted an elite 1.94 ERA with a 28.2 percent strikeout rate against a 7.1 percent walk rate over seven starts and 41 2/3 innings.

Duffy is in the final season of his contract, making this year all the more important for him. He’ll close out a five-year, $65MM deal when the season concludes. A Royal since they drafted him in Round 3 in 2007, Duffy owns a 3.95 ERA in 1,153 innings dating back to his 2011 debut.

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