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AL West Notes: Mariners, Astros, Aybar, Martin, Napoli, Jennings

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The Mariners have continued to express interest in catcher Chris Iannetta, Bob Dutton of the Tacoma News Tribune reports on Twitter. Iannetta, 32, hit the open market after four years with the Angels — which was, of course, also the most recent stop of new Seattle GM Jerry Dipoto. The M’s have also reached out to Jarrod Saltalamacchia as the team weights its options for veteran additions behind the dish, SB Nation’s Chris Cotillo tweets.

Here’s more from the AL West:

  • The Astros could aim to achieve “balance” with their roster moves, Evan Drellich of The Houston Chronicle writes. Adding some high-octane arms to the pen and some contact bats to the lineup might prove beneficial, though GM Jeff Luhnow notes that his primary concern is with achieving production through whatever means necessary (and, presumably, at a good value).
  • In other news, also via Drellich, Luhnow says that he’s not inclined to move catcher Jason Castro and center fielder Carlos Gomez, even though both players are a year away from free agency.  “I think Gomez right now is our center fielder and Castro’s our catcher and those guys are hard to replace,” Luhnow said. “We could be looking at a situation next year where either or both of those are in the qualifying offer camp as well, so. If you trade ’em, you’re potentially giving up opportunity to keep them on a one-year deal after next year. Or a draft pick if they choose to sign elsewhere. That’s a valuable situation. But most importantly for us, I think Gomez and Castro are key parts of our team next year.”
  • Similarly, the Angels are not terribly concerned with the contract status of shortstop Erick Aybar, Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register tweets. The Halos have several other priorities, and aren’t currently focused either on working out a new contract with the 31-year-old or finding his replacement.
  • The Rangers will tender a contract to outfielder Leonys Martin, GM Jon Daniels made clear to the media today. As Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News reports, Daniels called that outcome “100%” to occur. There had been at least some questions about the 27-year-old’s status after a tough season, but it seems Texas still sees plenty of value. MLBTR projects Martin to earn $1.6MM in his first season of arbitration eligibility, which is hardly an overwhelming number.
  • While the free agent market has had its draws for the Rangers in recent years, the club has also struck several major trades and is focused on talks with other teams this winter, MLB.com’s Brian McTaggart reports. “I think there’s a little bit of confidence going into the offseason as far as [having] an experienced core, and even the young guys now have experience on a big stage,” Daniels told McTaggart. “You feel you can try to add a couple of pieces and [not] need to reinvent the wheel and totally change over the club. You don’t want to get complacent either, but there’s a confidence, especially [considering] where we were a year ago, and we’ve gotten some real positive answers [for] some of our injured guys.”
  • The Rangers do, however, have interest in bringing back right-handed slugger Mike Napoli, Daniels added. If that happened, the club would look for him to work out in left field during camp to see if he could provide an option there alongside Josh Hamilton (who, it should be noted, just underwent another minor knee surgery).
  • The Rangers have expressed interest in bringing former Marlins GM Dan Jennings into their front office, Jerry Crasnick of ESPN.com reported last week on Twitter. Jennings has reportedly drawn fairly wide interest since he was cut loose after a long run in Miami.

Latest On Mariners’ Search For Center Fielder

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Several reports emerged early this morning suggesting that new Mariners GM Jerry Dipoto is hard at work canvassing the market for center field options. Here’s the latest:

  • Seattle has engaged with the Yankees in preliminary talks regarding Brett Gardner, Joel Sherman of the New York Post reports. The 32-year-old faded down the stretch, but nevertheless ended the season with a typically productive overall effort. He’s owed $38MM over three years (including a buyout of a 2019 option), which isn’t exactly cheap but is probably below Gardner’s open-market value. Sherman indicates that New York is in search of controllable starters, and says that the M’s have indicated they are willing to discuss lefty James Paxton in trades. It’s not apparent from the report, though, whether he would play any role in talks on Gardner.
  • The trade route to a center fielder seemingly holds appeal for Dipoto and his staff, writes Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. (Of course, the club could also just be exploring its options on that market before turning to free agency.) Rosenthal suggests a variety of possible trade targets: Jon Jay and Peter Bourjos of the Cardinals, Leonys Martin of the Rangers, and Jackie Bradley Jr. of the Red Sox. It’s not clear whether the M’s have specific interest in any of these players, let alone whether actual trade chatter has taken place. It’s worth noting, also, that an acquiring team would likely feel the need to supplement any of these players with a capable reserve option (if not an outright platoon mate, in some cases). It’s not yet clear whether Seattle is inclined more towards that kind of scenario as opposed to a single solution.
  • Free agent Gerardo Parra represents another possibility, Jon Morosi of FOX Sports writes. Dipoto heaped praise on the 28-year-old, noting that he was coming up through the Diamondbacks system when Dipoto was in Arizona. “Love him,” Dipoto said of Parra. “Gerardo’s a great kid. Love his attitude. He plays hard. He’s coming off a very good year. The version of what Gerardo did this year in Milwaukee is what we could have dreamed he was going to be when we had him at 18, 19 years old in the Diamondbacks system. He can really play defense. He can really throw. And he can rake right-handed pitching.” Of course, that doesn’t necessarily mean Seattle will pursue Parra. It’s worth bearing in mind that the left-handed hitter not only carries rather pronounced platoon splits, but has spent most of his time in the corner outfield — especially in recent seasons. Morosi doesn’t make a suggestion for how the M’s could theoretically deploy Parra, but he might make more sense as a heavily-used fourth outfielder than a regular in center.

Trade Notes: Plouffe, Storen, Papelbon, Rangers, Rays

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If the Twins are able to work out a contract with Korean first baseman Byung-ho Park, the Angels are expected to pursue a trade of third baseman Trevor Plouffe, assuming their third base vacancy hasn’t already been filled by that time, tweets Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register. The Twins are intrigued by some of the Angels’ power bullpen arms, including Cam Bedrosian, Fletcher further reports. As he notes, the Twins wouldn’t part with Plouffe solely for Bedrosian, though the Angels certainly have other pieces that could entice Minnesota.

A few more notes pertaining to the trade market as executives discuss swaps at the 2015 GM Meetings…

  • Nationals GM Mike Rizzo says that he’s yet to receive any inquiries on right-hander Stephen Strasburg but has received calls on both Drew Storen and Jonathan Papelbon (via Jon Morosi of FOX Sports (Twitter link). James Wagner of the Washington Post, however, adds (via Twitter) that Rizzo says he won’t move either reliever unless he receives a “real baseball offer.” Many have speculated that the Nats will sell low on Papelbon following his altercation with Bryce Harper and will be forced to do the same with Storen after the Papelbon acquisition strained his relationship with the team. Rizzo’s comments, on the surface, suggest that that’s not the case, though he clearly wouldn’t come right out and say he was looking to move either right-hander.
  • The Rangers are receiving interest in both center fielder Leonys Martin and oft-injured shortstop prospect Jurickson Profar, GM Jon Daniels told reporters, including Stefan Stevenson of the Fort Worth Star Telegram and Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News (links to Twitter). Daniels notes that teams are looking to buy low on both players, though, which isn’t an ideal time to deal a formerly valuable asset. Grant notes that Profar, in particular, is still viewed highly by the organization.
  • The Rays are receiving considerable trade interest in both Brad Boxberger and Jake McGee, tweets Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times, but the general sense is that they’d need to be offered “a LOT” for the Rays to deal either reliever. Boxberger is not yet arbitration eligible, so it makes sense that Tampa Bay would value him very highly. However, with McGee slated to earn $4.7MM in arbitration this year (via MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz), one can imagine the cost-conscious Rays being reasonably open to offers on McGee.

Quick Hits: Martin, Fowler, Phillies, Padres, D’Backs

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It was on this day in 1948 that the Cleveland Indians clinched the World Series with a Game Six victory over the Boston Braves.  This marks the Tribe’s last Series championship, the second-longest title drought in baseball behind only the Cubs (who still have a shot at breaking their curse this year).  Here’s some news from around baseball as we head into another four-game day of postseason action on Monday…

  • Leonys Martin has declined to report to the Rangers’ instructional league team, Gerry Fraley of the Dallas Morning News reports.  The club kept some players in training should they be needed for a postseason call-up, though GM Jon Daniels said that Martin “apparently was miffed” over being left off the playoff roster in the first place.  Given how Martin struggled this season and lost the center field job to Delino DeShields, you wonder if this incident could lead to the Rangers non-tendering Martin; the outfielder is projected by MLBTR to earn $1.6MM in his first year of arbitration eligibility.
  • Dexter Fowler is focused on the NLDS and isn’t thinking about his pending free agency, and Cubs GM Jed Hoyer agrees that “it’s not the right time to talk about it.”  Still, Hoyer tells the Chicago Tribune’s Paul Sullivan that “we’d love to have him (back). We’ve loved everything about his game and the way he has gone about his business for us.”  Fowler hit .250/.346/.411 with 17 homers, 102 runs and 20 steals over 690 plate appearances for the Cubs in 2015, though his center field defense was below-average according to the UZR/150 (-1.9) and Defensive Runs Saved (-12) metrics.
  • The seven players outrighted off the Phillies roster earlier this week aren’t necessarily out of the club’s plans, interim GM Scott Proefrock tells MLB.com’s Todd Zolecki.  “I can’t tell you we would rule out resigning any of these guys,” Proefrock said.  “We’re just trying to clear up space on the roster. These guys were the first group that we decided to take off.”  Ken Roberts is the only one of the seven who will automatically remain in Philadelphia’s system; Jordan Danks, Chase d’Arnaud, Justin De Fratus, Erik Kratz, Adam Loewen and Jonathan Pettibone can all elect to become either Major League or minor league free agents.
  • The Padres will add a left-handed bat this winter or else MLB.com’s Corey Brock “would be stunned” (Twitter link).  San Diego’s lineup tilted heavily to the right last season and the paid for it, finishing at or near the bottom of several offensive categories against right-handed pitching.
  • The Diamondbacks are expected to target a front-line starting pitcher and a back-end reliever this offseason, MLB.com’s Steve Gilbert writes in a position-by-position look at the team.  The club has to step carefully with regard to top-tier free agents like David Price due to budget concerns, but they have plenty of trade pieces available if they preferred dealing for an ace.  (It has already been reported that Mike Leake could be a D’Backs target this winter.)  Gilbert notes Patrick Corbin as the lone lock for a rotation spot but there are a lot of players competing for spots behind him.
  • The Diamondbacks are happy with Brad Ziegler (who’s likely to see his club option exercised) in a late-inning role but they want more depth around him, Gilbert writes.  A trade for Reds closer Aroldis Chapman remains a possibility for if the Snakes want to make a big upgrade to the bullpen.

MLBTR’s Brad Johnson also contributed to this post

Injury Notes: Martin, Sabathia, Affeldt, Stanton

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Rangers center fielder Leonys Martin will have surgery tomorrow to remove the hamate bone from his right hand, reports Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram (on Twitter). Martin was optioned to Triple-A in early August due to severe struggles in the Majors but had batted .297/.372/.541 with a pair of homers in nine Triple-A contests. Per Wilson, he’ll be able to play defense again in two weeks’ time and could hit in four to six weeks. Martin most likely would’ve rejoined the Rangers’ active roster on Sept. 1, but it seems that his return to the active roster will be delayed.

A few more injury notes from around the game…

  • Upon meeting with doctors, CC Sabathia learned that he won’t need surgery to repair his arthritic knee, writes George A. King III of the New York Post. Sabathia hopes he can return in early September, and the lefty tells King he’ll pitch with the Yankees in any capacity upon his return, as his main priority is helping the team win. “If that means pitching out of the bullpen, it is what it is,” said Sabathia. “I am not here to make that decision, that’s not for me to make.” Sabathia did add that he feels like he could start, if healthy. Manager Joe Girardi said yesterday that there was a chance Sabathia would be out for the season, but that now seems unlikely.
  • The Giants’ injury troubles continued today, as lefty reliever Jeremy Affeldt landed on the 15-day disabled list due to a subluxed left knee sustained when playing with his children, per an Associated Press report. The 36-year-old Affeldt hasn’t been himself this season, struggling to a 5.46 ERA with 5.7 K/9 against 4.0 BB/9 in 31 1/3 innings. His injury nonetheless thins out the bullpen for the Giants, who have turned to Triple-A right-hander Mike Broadway.
  • Giancarlo Stanton believes he’s about 10 days away from returning to the lineup, writes MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro, meaning he’d tentatively come off the disabled list on Sept. 4. Stanton has been absent from the Marlins since breaking his hamate bone on June 26 and undergoing surgery two days later.

Rangers Notes: Holland, Darvish, Martin, Mazara

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The Rangers looked like future buyers when they dealt for Cole Hamels at the trade deadline, but the team now finds itself right in the mix for the postseason. Here’s the latest out of Texas:

  • Left-hander Derek Holland is set to return from the DL on Wednesday, executive VP of communications John Blake announced on Twitter. Holland, 28, has seen very little time on the bump at the MLB level over the past two seasons as he’s dealt with knee and shoulder issues. He’s not only an important piece of the team’s current efforts to crack the playoffs, but will be entering a critical campaign in 2016. Guaranteed $10MM next year, the southpaw can be controlled by a pair of options thereafter, but will need to prove both health and effectiveness for the club to exercise them.
  • Staff ace Yu Darvish also hit a milestone in his recovery from Tommy John surgery, though he remains a ways off. As Stefan Stevenson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram tweets, the outstanding righty began a throwing program today and did not experience any discomfort afterwards. Darvish remains a huge key to the club’s near future, and will surely look to stay on track to be a significant contributor next season.
  • Outfielder Leonys Martin, meanwhile, is set to visit with a specialist to determine the source of pain in his hand, Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News reports. The club is worried that he may have broken his hamate bone, which would end his season. Martin has struggled at the big league level this year, though he’d been playing well since his demotion to Triple-A. If nothing else, his speed and high-quality defense would make him a very useful player to have up with expanded rosters in September.
  • With Martin out, top prospect Nomar Mazara has been bumped up to the Triple-A level, Grant adds. The 20-year-old outfielder owns a .284/.357/.443 slash with 13 long balls over 470 plate appearances at Double-A on the year. He’ll now slot in alongside fellow prized youngster Joey Gallo in the Round Rock lineup.

West Notes: Martin, Harrison, Bradley, Giants

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Here’s the latest from the game’s western divisions:

  • Rangers outfielder Leonys Martin may be fighting for his roster spot over the next week, Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News writes. The speedy outfielder is sporting a .270 OBP on the year, and with Delino DeShields and Josh Hamilton set to return before long, the club may soon have viable replacements in center. Martin can still be optioned, so Texas can give him some time in the minors to work things out if it wishes.
  • The Rangers also have new options in the rotation with Matt Harrison seemingly nearing readiness for a big league start, Grant further writes. A six-man rotation is possible, says manager Jeff Banister, as is the potential of resting one of the current rotation members with a DL stint. Regardless of the team’s course of action, it’s remarkable that we’re at this point, as it once seemed that Harrison might never pitch again.
  • Diamondbacks hurler Archie Bradley is headed for a visit with Dr. James Andrews for a second opinion on his balky right shoulder, Nick Piecoro reports (Twitter links). The club’s physician found only tendinitis, but Bradley continued to feel discomfort in his latest rehab outing. It’s far too soon to speculate, of course, but at a minimum it seems it’ll be a while longer until Arizona gets Bradley back into its rotation.
  • The Giants are working hard on the July 2 market, Kiley McDaniel of Fangraphs tweets. San Francisco is “trying hard” to land Bahamian shortstop Lucius Fox and may be the single team most closely pursuing Eddy Julio Martinez, says McDaniel. But the sense in the industry is still that the Dodgers will get both players, he adds.

13 Role Changes That Have Impacted Earning Power

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Each offseason, teams and fans alike spend the winter projecting a 25-man roster on paper in an attempt to plot out as accurately as possible the way in which a season will progress. Oftentimes, a roster is more or less set from an early standpoint. Those expectations fluctuate based not only on player movement — trades and free agency, of course, have a strong impact on roster construction — but also on elements such as spring performances, injuries and early season success/struggles. Rarely do rosters, and the roles occupied by the players on that roster, shake out the way in which most pundits expected.

In many cases, the changes within a roster can come with significant financial implications for the players who find themselves in a more prominent role. Those who find themselves receiving the short end of the stick, of course, can see their future fortunes diminished.

It’s early in the 2015 season, but already we’ve seen some shifts in role and/or playing time that will make some players considerably wealthier in arbitration, as well as some that figure to severely damage a player’s arbitration case.

Rising Earning Power

Adam Ottavino: Typically, players like Ottavino are the ones that the Cardinals find rather than let go, but St. Louis tried to get the now-29-year-old Ottavino through waivers in 2012 and lost him to the Rockies. Ottavino has been a revelation in the Colorado bullpen, boosting his velocity and ditching his changeup for a devastating slider that has turned him into a late-inning weapon. Ottavino was recently named the new closer by manager Walt Weiss, and he’ll have a chance to head into his second trip through arbitration with a bucket of saves under his arm. The difference between entering arb as a setup man and entering as a closer could be worth millions.

Jeurys Familia: The same role change that benefits Ottavino will do the same for Familia, who entered the season setting up for Jenrry Mejia. However, an 80-game suspension for Mejia and Bobby Parnell’s recovery from Tommy John surgery have opened the door for Familia to take the reins in the ninth inning. He’s notched a 6-to-1 K/BB ratio in his first 4 2/3 innings this season, and while he hasn’t necessarily secured the job through season’s end — Parnell or Mejia could reclaim the job later in the year — a season resembling last year’s 2.21 ERA in the ninth inning would yield a significant arbitration payday. Zach Britton, for example, parlayed one elite season as a closer into a $3.2MM payday this year, though the two aren’t perfect comparables. (Britton was a Super Two and didn’t have multiple strong seasons under his belt, as Familia theoretically will.) Ottavino landed a $1.3MM salary his first time through arb after a strong season of setup work, however, giving a rough idea of the potential gap between the two roles.

Lorenzo Cain: Entering last season, Cain was the Royals’ No. 8 hitter and didn’t get into the lineup on an everyday basis, as he split time with Jarrod Dyson in center field. Cain didn’t hit higher in the batting order than sixth until June 17 last season, but he’s batted third every day and started in center each game for the Royals this year. Cain doesn’t have the power one would typically expect from a No. 3 hitter, but his preposterous defense will keep him in the lineup every day, and hitting in the heart of the order will lead to plenty of RBI opportunities. A Gold Glove and a career-high in RBIs (which wouldn’t be hard to come by, as it currently stands at 53) will go a long way toward bolstering his $2.725MM salary.

Evan Gattis: The transition from catcher/outfielder in the National League to DH/outfielder in the American League should afford Gattis with the opportunity to see more playing time and therefore accumulate more counting stats to pad his first arbitration case this winter. While it’s true that he probably has more value behind the plate — that type of offense from a catcher is indeed quite rare — defense isn’t as highly rewarded via the arbitration process as good old fashioned homers and RBIs. Gattis has struggled to open the year, but career-highs in home runs, RBIs and most other counting stats wouldn’t be much of a surprise.

Leonys Martin: Martin’s role may not appear different on the surface, as he still figures to man center field on an everyday basis if healthy. However, Martin received just 40 games in the leadoff spot in 2014, spending the bulk of his time occupying the 7th and 8th slots in the Rangers lineup. Manager Jeff Banister declared Martin his leadoff hitter and voiced confidence in his ability to handle the role, even after struggling out of the gate in 2015. Martin’s dropped to eighth in each of the past two games, but Banister said that decision was “tinkering” to give the lineup “a different look,” rather than anything permanent. Martin averaged 3.76 plate appearances per game in 2014 but has averaged 4.4 per game in 2015. Over the course of 150 games, that comes out to an extra 150 to 155 games, that’d be an extra 96 to 100 plate appearances for Martin — a valuable increase in opportunities to boost his counting stats as he wraps up a five-year, $15.5MM contract and heads into arbitration for the first time.

Jordan Schafer: The former top prospect broke camp with the Braves as a reserve outfielder in 2014 and started just 13 games all season before the Twins claimed him on waivers in early August. Schafer impressed the Twins enough that there was never any real thought to non-tendering him (despite a marginal track record), and he outplayed Aaron Hicks in Spring Training to earn a regular role in center field to begin the season. Schafer is in a platoon with Shane Robinson, and he’ll have to hold off Hicks, Eddie Rosario and perhaps even Byron Buxton to keep his playing time, but he’s unquestionably been presented with a better financial opportunity than he was in Atlanta.

Declining Earning Power

Wilin Rosario: After spending the bulk of the past three seasons as Colorado’s everyday catcher, Rosario will now transition to a part-time role in which he’ll be used as an occasional first baseman against left-handed pitching. Rosario will also make sporadic appearances in the outfield and behind the plate. Rosario’s power has never been in question, but he’s regarded as one of the game’s worst defensive backstops and will be without a regular role of which to speak. The decrease in playing time is a critical blow to his earning potential, as his $2.8MM salary won’t be increasing by much if the early stages of the season are any indication of his playing time. Rosario has seven plate appearances in six games thus far.

Welington Castillo: Manager Joe Maddon can refer to the Cubs’ combination of Miguel Montero, David Ross and Welington Castillo as his “three-headed catcher,” but Castillo, formerly Chicago’s starting catcher, and his agent would likely describe the situation much more colorfully behind closed doors. Castillo took home a $2.1MM payday in his first trip through the arb cycle this winter, but like Rosario, he’s seen virtually no plate appearances in 2015. Castillo has appeared in four games and picked up seven PAs. Now that they’ve been through the arb process once, the raises awarded to Rosario and Castillo will be based almost solely upon their 2015 results, so their pay bumps figure to be rather paltry in nature.

Brett Cecil: Cecil was tabbed to as the Blue Jays’ closer to enter the season, but he relinquished those duties to 20-year-old Miguel Castro almost instantly. Cecil’s diminished velocity played a role in that decision, and while he may work his way back into the ninth inning, he looks like he’s tabbed for a setup role in the immediate future. A full season of saves would be a boon for next winter’s arbitration case, but that looks unlikely now.

Ruben Tejada: The Mets have had a hole at shortstop since Jose Reyes departed, and while Tejada got the chance to fill the void last year, it’s Wilmer Flores getting that opportunity this year. Tejada started 105 games in 2014, but it seems highly unlikely that he’ll come anywhere near that number in 2015, barring injuries around the diamond. Tejada’s light bat limited his earning power in the first place, but a lack of regular at-bats will further limit the raise he’ll receive on this year’s $1.88MM salary.

Peter Bourjos: Lights-out center field defense gave Bourjos a chance to pick up quite a few plate appearances early in his Cardinals tenure, but the club quickly departed from the notion of giving him more regular at-bats in 2014, promoting Randal Grichuk and giving more playing time back to Jon Jay. To this point, Bourjos has had just two plate appearances, though his glove has gotten him into five games. The complete evaporation of playing time makes a significant raise on his $1.65MM salary difficult to envision. Bourjos’ elite glove is strong enough that he could start for a number of teams, but it’s also a luxury and a late-inning weapon for St. Louis, so it’s difficult to envision them moving him into a more financially favorable situation.

Jesse Chavez: Despite the fact that he excelled in the rotation for Oakland last year, Chavez lost his starting spot midseason after the acquisitions of Jeff Samardzija, Jason Hammel and, eventually, Jon Lester. Many, myself included, believed he had a strong case for the rotation heading into 2015, but the final three spots behind holdovers Sonny Gray and Scott Kazmir went to Jesse Hahn, Drew Pomeranz and Kendall Graveman. Chavez’s 2014 breakout should indicate that he’ll be a perfectly useful reliever in 2015, but 20-30 starts would’ve done quite a bit more for his earning power.

Everth Cabrera: Cabrera’s fall in San Diego was somewhat remarkable, as he went from leading the NL in steals in 2012 and earning a 2013 All-Star nod to a 50-game suspension for PEDs, a dismal 2014 season and an eventual non-tender. He’s latched on in Baltimore and has been starting at shortstop with J.J. Hardy rehabbing from injury, but a reserve role is in the cards for E-Cab, making it difficult to envision a substantial raise on his $2.4MM salary, which was a slight decline from last year’s $2.45MM in the first place.

Note: This post isn’t including role changes for players who will not be arbitration eligible following the 2015 season. Players such as Carlos Martinez and Tony Cingrani, for example, will certainly see their future arbitration outlooks impacted if their recent role changes are permanent, but it’s difficult enough to know whether or not all of these changes will hold throughout the current season, let alone through the 2016-17 seasons.

Quick Hits: Cuban Smuggling, Martin, Jackson, Howard, Castillo

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While news of Cuban ballplayer Rusney Castillo continues to dominate the news cycle, the human trafficking side of Cuban imports also made headlines. Eliezer Lazo entered a guilty plea in connection to the smuggling of over 1,000 Cubans, including Rangers outfielder Leonys Martin, reports Curt Anderson of the Associated Press. The article covers some of the sordid details involved in this human trafficking case.

  • In related news, a lawsuit brought against Martin by a Mexican baseball academy associated with Lazo will likely be dropped as a result of the criminal case. The Estrellas baseball academy alleged that Martin agreed to pay them up to 35% of his major league contract, but Martin only paid $1.2MM of his $15.5MM deal.
  • The Braves and Cubs discussed a proposal that would have sent Edwin Jackson to Atlanta in return for B.J. Upton, writes Bob Nightengale of USA Today Sports. The deal would have served as a straight swap of albatross contracts. The sides apparently weren’t close to finalizing a trade but could re-open talks over the offseason. It appears this was probably the rumored trade first reported on August 9.
  • In what is likely to become an ongoing “will they, won’t they” story, David Murphy of the Philadelphia Inquirer speculates about moving on from Ryan Howard. The club currently has Darin Ruf taking the occasional start in left field while Howard blocks his playing time at first base. Philadelphia seemingly needs to decide which of three players possess the higher upside – Howard, Ruf, or left fielder Domonic Brown. Given Howard’s age, 34, and rapidly diminishing numbers – he had a .678 OPS before today’s home run – it’s fair to wonder if Howard should be the odd man out. Corner infield prospect Maikel Franco could also figure in the mix before long.
  • We at MLBTR seek to find answers for the pressing questions such as “Does Rusney Castillo know Jay-Z?” Castillo, who is represented by Jay-Z’s Roc Nation Sports and Brodie Van Wagonen of CAA, does indeed know the mogul, according to the Boston Herald’s Scott Lauber.

AL West Notes: Crisp, Martin, Kuo, Luetge

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Mike Napoli could bring a bit of added intensity to the plate when he faces C.J. Wilson this season.  Wilson recently posted Napoli's phone number on Twitter, a response to an alleged comment made by Napoli about how he was looking forward to homering off of Wilson this season.  Napoli was not amused by the joke and, though he didn't recall making the initial statement, vowed to indeed try and take Wilson yard.  Eighty years after Babe Ruth hit his famous "called shot" in the World Series, if Napoli does indeed homer off of Wilson this season, can we call it the Prank Called Shot?

Some (more serious) news from around the AL West…

  • Coco Crisp said he wouldn't have re-signed with the Athletics had he known he was going to be moved to left field, reports USA Today's Bob Nightengale.  Yoenis Cespedes will start the year as Oakland's center fielder, and Crisp said the promise of the center field job was one of the reasons he signed with the A's over the Rays, who couldn't promise Crisp regular time in center due to B.J. Upton's presence.  Crisp did say that he was glad to be back with the A's and, in regards to the position switch, says he has to "go out here and just accept it."
  • The Rangers feel Leonys Martin needs more development and are "concerned about [his] lack of instincts," tweets Jim Bowden of MLB Network Radio on SiriusXM, though the club still recognizes his talent.  The Cuban outfielder signed a five-year, $15.5MM deal with Texas last May and hit .295/.362/.421 in 343 minor league PAs, going all the way from rookie ball to an eight-plate appearance cup of coffee with the Rangers in September.
  • Hong-Chih Kuo was released earlier today by the Mariners, though if the southpaw clears waivers, Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times believes the M's could re-sign Kuo to a minor league contract.
  • Also from Condotta, the Mariners are still figuring out what to do with Lucas Luetge, a left-handed reliever taken from the Brewers in last winter's Rule 5 draft.  Kuo's release could help Luetge find a spot in the Mariners' bullpen, though the M's also have Charlie Furbush, Cesar Jimenez and George Sherrill competing for roles as left-handed relief options.
  • For some news about the Angels, check this compilation of Los Angeles Notes from earlier tonight on MLBTR.
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