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Miguel Montero

Agency News: Stewart, Cobb, Howard, Montero

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Former Diamondbacks general manager Dave Stewart has returned to his family-run agency – Sports Management Partners – which he’ll operate with his wife, Lonnie Murray, according to Bob Nightengale of USA Today (Twitter link). Stewart previously represented Matt Kemp and Chris Carter, among others, but he had to leave the business when the D-backs hired him in 2014. The fact that Murray remained with the agency while Stewart served as a GM led to conflict-of-interest questions, as Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic detailed last March.

Now for a few updates on notable agency changes that have happened this week:

  • One year before he’s scheduled to hit the open market, Rays right-hander Alex Cobb has switched agencies from ACES to Beverly Hills Sports Council, tweets Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. Cobb was a high-end starter from 2013-14, but he missed all of 2015 thanks to Tommy John surgery and posted ugly results in his return last season. Over an admittedly small sample size (22 innings), the 29-year-old logged an 8.59 ERA to go with 6.55 K/9 – his lowest since 2011. It’s possible Cobb will spend his platform season in a different uniform, as the Rangers have expressed interest in acquiring him.
  • Free agent first baseman Ryan Howard has departed CAA Sports for Excel Sports Management, reports Jon Heyman of FanRag (via Twitter). Regardless of his representation, the longtime Phillie will have difficulty securing a decent deal this offseason as part of a market laden with first base/designated hitter types, Heyman contends. Howard won the National League MVP award in 2006 and scored a five-year, $125MM extension in 2010, but his output declined significantly after he inked that deal. To the left-handed slugger’s credit, he is coming off a 25-home run season, though that accompanied a subpar .196/.257/.453 batting line in 362 plate appearances. Unsurprisingly, the Phillies bought the 37-year-old Howard out for $10MM last month instead of keeping him for $23MM in 2017.
  • Cubs catcher Miguel Montero has left Octagon for Rep 1 Baseball, per Jerry Crasnick of ESPN (Twitter link). Next season is the last one left on the five-year, $60MM extension Montero signed with the Diamondbacks in 2012. He’s set to make $14MM in 2017 as the backup to Willson Contreras. Montero is coming off perhaps the worst offensive campaign of his career, having hit just .216/.327/.357 in 284 PAs, though his strong defensive reputation remains. Both Baseball Prospectus and StatCorner gave his pitch-framing work rave reviews.

MLBTR’s Agency Database contains representation information on more than 2,500 Major League and Minor League players. If you see any errors or omissions, please let us know via email: mlbtrdatabase@gmail.com.

NL Central Notes: Cubs, Montero, Mozeliak, Stearns

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The Cubs’ celebration of their World Series win took them to the Saturday Night Live stage, as Anthony Rizzo, Dexter Fowler and David Ross made two cameo appearances on last night’s show.  The players first appeared in a sketch as (of all things) dancers at a bachelorette party, and the trio returned later in the show to sing “Go Cubs Go” alongside SNL legend and Cubs superfan Bill Murray.  Since Fowler officially elected to become a free agent last evening (slightly before SNL went on the air), this may mark the last time we see the outfielder in a Cubs uniform.  Here’s the latest from Wrigleyville and elsewhere around the NL Central…

  • In a recent interview on ESPN 1000’s Waddle and Silvy Show (hat tip to Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune), Miguel Montero admitted that he frustrated by his diminished playing time during the season and wished he had received more input from Joe Maddon about his role on the team.  Montero appeared in 86 games and hit .216/.327/.357 over 284 plate appearances, with Ross and Willson Contreras getting an increasingly large share of the catching workload throughout the year and in the postseason.  Though Montero is owed $14MM next season, he’ll likely still be limited to backup duties behind Contreras and possibly Kyle Schwarber if the Cubs still consider the slugger an option behind the plate.  As Gonzalez notes, Montero’s large salary will make him a tough sell on the trade market unless the Cubs are willing to eat some of the money.
  • Exercising Jaime Garcia’s club option gives the Cardinals rotation depth and some possible breathing room to make a trade, GM John Mozeliak tells Benjamin Hochman of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.  “As we look to the trade market as we get to the GM meetings, we want to be able to not have our hands tied.  For example, if we had not picked up the option, and all of a sudden we feel there’s a trade that might make sense for us that’s going to have to include a starter, then we’re left with having to backfill,” Mozeliak said.  “Given what Jaime was able to accomplish last year, clearly it didn’t end the way he would’ve liked it to, but he still ate a lot of valuable innings for us.  When I think about what’s out there on the free-agent market, I still think it’s an asset to have….And what if we have to move someone else? It would be nice to still have the depth in our rotation.”  Hochman figures the Cards will be more active on the trade market than in free agency this winter, and he thinks the team will look at upgrading the defense in the wake of club-wide defensive metrics ranging from middling to below-average.
  • Brewers GM David Stearns doesn’t expect as busy an offseason as last winter’s roster overhaul, Todd Rosiak of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel writes.  “I think the amount of transactional volume that we had over the past 12 months was probably unprecedented.  It would be tough for me to imagine that we would see a similar-type volume,” Stearns said.  The GM also spoke of the importance of keeping a flexible 40-man roster, so the club has the opportunity to make additions if they unexpectedly arise.

Miguel Montero Thought Cubs Would Release Him

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Catcher Miguel Montero’s tie-breaking, eighth-inning grand slam made him the hero of the Cubs’ 8-4 win over the Dodgers in Game 1 of the NLCS on Saturday. The 33-year-old didn’t expect to be in that position, however, as he told FanRag Sports’ Jack Magruder after the game that he thought the Cubs might release him during the season. The Cubs never indicated that was a possibility, though, according to Magruder.

Montero’s currently slated to return to Chicago next season with a hefty salary – $14MM – to conclude the five-year, $60MM extension he signed with the Diamondbacks in 2012. The Cubs reportedly considered shopping Montero last offseason, which was before the two-time All-Star’s playing time markedly declined during arguably a career-worst year. Montero appeared in 86 games, his fewest since 2010, and batted a meager .216/.327/.357 in 284 plate appearances. Both rookie Willson Contreras and veteran David Ross took playing time from Montero during the regular season, and that has continued in the playoffs. Montero’s grand slam was his first hit of this year’s postseason, in which he has collected just five at-bats. He came to the plate Saturday as a pinch-hitter and is out of the Cubs’ lineup Sunday.

Going forward, Ross’ forthcoming retirement seems to bode well for Montero to remain with the Cubs in 2017. Ross’ departure will leave Montero as the Cubs’ only veteran backstop. The team also has Kyle Schwarber on track to come back from a knee injury that cost him almost all of this season. He conceivably could fall directly behind Contreras on the Cubs’ catcher depth chart next year, though there are questions about Schwarber’s defense. For his part, the 23-year-old slugger is “adamant” about factoring in heavily behind the plate, Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune reported in September.

On dividing his time between catcher and the outfield, Schwarber told Gonzales, “I want to get back to that point where it’s 50-50 on each side now and not 60-40.”

Regardless of Schwarber’s goal, the fact that full tears to his ACL and LCL cost him a year to develop further as a catcher might help Montero’s chances of finishing his contract as a member the Cubs. Notably, president of baseball operations Theo Epstein praised Montero’s pitch-framing and game-calling skills after last season, attributing some of the pitching staff’s success to his defensive work. Montero has indeed been an excellent framer throughout his career, which Baseball Prospectus and StatCorner indicate has again been the case in 2016.

We’ll know what 2017 holds for Montero soon enough. In the meantime, he’ll spend the next couple weeks trying to help the Cubs win their first World Series since 1908.

“I probably had a bad year, but I might be the MVP of the World Series,” he told Magruder. “I’m being kind of sarcastic, but in reality you never know. Baseball is kind of crazy. Anything can happen, and then nobody is going to remember what I did in the regular season.”

Injury Notes: Syndergaard, Cespedes, Holland, Montero, Cole

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The Mets were hit with a pair of troubling injuries today, as Noah Syndergaard exited the game after six innings because his right elbow “flared up” (via MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo) and Yoenis Cespedes exited with a wrist injury (per ESPN New York’s Adam Rubin). Both players are being evaluated by doctors this afternoon, and the extent of their respective injuries remains unclear for the time being. However, manager Terry Collins conceded to Rubin that the Cespedes issue “is a concern,” as Cespedes dealt with a similar issue in 2015. And, as DiComo points out, Syndergaard has already experienced elbow discomfort once this season, although he didn’t miss a start. Certainly, the loss of either player for even a couple of weeks would be a notable blow to the Mets, who currently trail the Nationals by four games in the NL East.

As we await further word on the Mets, here are some more notable injury storylines from around the game…

  • The Rangers announced today that Derek Holland has been placed on the 15-day disabled list due to inflammation in his left shoulder. Texas didn’t include any sort of timeline, though the press release announcing the move did reference the fact that he’s eligible for activation on June 6. Holland has struggled quite a bit of late, and his 5.20 ERA is especially troubling due to the fact that his K/9 rate (5.3), BB/9 rate (3.1), ground-ball rate (36.2 percent) and average fastball velocity (91.8 mph) have all trended in the wrong direction this season. Knee and shoulder injuries have plagued Holland over the past two seasons; this year’s 72 2/3 innings are already the most he’s thrown in a big league season since 2013. The Rangers brought up right-hander Luke Jackson to take his place on the active roster.
  • UPDATED: Manager Joe Maddon said following today’s game that Cubs catcher Miguel Montero checked out OK after being forced to exit the contest with a knee injury (via ESPN Chicago’s Jesse Rogers, on Twitter). Montero initially sustained a right knee injury after Brandon Moss slid into home on a play at the plate following a chopper to third base. (That’s not to say Moss’ slide was dirty, as he slid into the lane left open by Montero, as can be seen in the MLB.com video of the play.) Montero was able to walk to the mound and back to home plate under his own power, though he was visibly limping and wincing. Willson Contreras, who was recently promoted from Triple-A Iowa, entered the game in Montero’s place and hit a two-run homer in place of Montero. An injury to Montero would’ve likely opened the door for more playing time for the top prospect, but Contreras will continue to be worked in alongside Montero and veteran David Ross.
  • MLB.com’s Adam Berry tweets that Gerrit Cole will not be rejoining the Pirates on the first day that he’s eligible to be activated from the DL. Cole has been playing catch but has yet to throw off a mound as he works his way back from a strained triceps muscle. Cole’s DL stint was backdated to June 11.

Cubs Designate Ryan Kalish For Assignment

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The Cubs have designated lefty-hitting outfielder Ryan Kalish for assignment, Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune tweets. The move clears space on the team’s active roster for catcher Miguel Montero, who’s returning from a back injury.

The 28-year-old Kalish made ten plate appearances for the Cubs this season. His last significant big-league experience came in 2014, also with the Cubs, when he batted .248/.295/.347 in 130 plate appearances. He did not play in 2015 after a minor-league pact with the Blue Jays fell apart. Kalish was once a top prospect in the Red Sox organization, but a series of injuries presented obstacles in his path to big-league success. He’s now played in parts of four big-league seasons, but has never appeared in two consecutive ones, also sitting out most of 2011 and all of 2013.

Central Notes: Rios, Montero, Federowicz, Contreras, Reds

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Since finishing out his contract with the Royals, veteran outfielder Alex Rios has remained conspicuously absent from the rumor mill. And with nearly a month of the season in the books, he has yet to sign. But the 35-year-old isn’t necessarily retiring, per Jon Heyman of MLB Network (Twitter link). Rios had offers to play for teams, says Heyman, but has held out for a “significant role.” Of course, it seems unlikely that such an opportunity will suddenly present itself while Rios waits at home — particularly since he slashed a meager .255/.287/.353 last year — so it may well turn out that we’ve seen the last of him in the majors.

Here are a few notes from the central divisions:

  • The Cubs have placed catcher Miguel Montero on the 15-day DL to give him a chance to rest his back. Expectations are that Montero won’t be out for long, and he says that he believes the issue stems from a chronic bulging disk, via Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times (Twitter link). Chicago has gone with Tim Federowicz to pair with David Ross for the time being. As Jesse Rogers of ESPNChicago.com tweets, the veteran call-up is likely to get a fair bit of playing time; Ross, after all, has been a career reserve and is in his final season. The 28-year-old Federowicz didn’t see any major league action last year after a four-year run with the Dodgers, but has been off to a hot start at the plate at Triple-A-.
  • As Joe Maddon told reporters, including Patrick Mooney of CSNChicago.com, it wasn’t quite the right time to give top prospect Willson Contreras a shot at the major league level. Maddon cited his “overall development” as an imperative, particularly with only a short fill-in likely needed. “In your mind’s eye,” said Maddon, “if you’re putting this whole thing together, with a guy like Willson, you’re probably going to wait until the second half, hopefully, to get him involved here. Or the latter part of the season to really get him here (and) get his feet on the ground.”
  • The Reds are on the verge of getting some much-needed rotation help, writes MLB.com’s Mark Sheldon. Right-handers Homer Bailey and Anthony DeSclafani are each nearing the end of their minor league rehab assignments, as is left-hander John Lamb, who tossed eight innings in a rehab outing on Wednesday. Raisel Iglesias and Brandon Finnegan figure to remain in the rotation regardless, but Alfredo Simon and Jon Moscot could find themselves on the outside looking in, Sheldon notes. With righty Robert Stephenson and left-hander Cody Reed also on the precipice of MLB readiness, the Cincinnati starting unit could see a significant amount of turnover, which could have some positive trickle-down effects into what has been a dismal bullpen so far in 2016.

NL Central Notes: Castro, Montero, Kazmir, Walker, Lucroy

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With the Cubs contending and enjoying skyrocketing revenues, Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times wonders why these added resources haven’t translated to extra payroll for the baseball operations department.  It’s possible payroll won’t truly rise to the level of other big-market teams until the Cubs renegotiate their next TV contract, which is due to expire in four years.  With revenues booming, Wittenmyer reports that president of business operations Crane Kenney has signed a contract extension that will keep him with the organization through at least the 2020 season.  Here’s some more from around the NL Central…

  • Starlin Castro was told after the season that he wouldn’t be traded, Wittenmyer reports, as the Cubs believe him to be a major building block for their 2016 roster.  Castro’s name has swirled in trade rumors for the last two years, most recently in discussions with the Yankees for Brett Gardner just a few weeks ago.  If the Cubs indeed do plan to keep Castro (barring an unexpectedly great offer, of course), that would seem to make Jorge Soler the team’s top trade chip among position players.
  • Miguel Montero could also be a trade candidate, as Wittenmyer hears from a source that the team is now considering the possibility of moving the catcher to free payroll space.  Moving the $28MM remaining on Montero’s deal through 2017 could save enough money for the team to make a big-ticket splurge on the likes of a Jason Heyward.  The issue with dealing Montero is that it leaves the Cubs very thin at catcher, as the slugging Kyle Schwarber is still very much a work in progress behind the plate.
  • While the Pirates have been interested in Scott Kazmir in the past, Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review (Twitter link) believes the rising costs of free agent pitching will put the lefty out of the Bucs’ price range.
  • In another tweet from Biertempfel, he hears that the Mets and Orioles “still have at least lukewarm interest” in Neil Walker.  Pittsburgh and Baltimore have discussed Walker “off and on” during the winter, while New York is a new player in connection with Walker’s services.  The Mets are likely to have a hole at second base with Daniel Murphy’s departure, though Walker’s MLBTR-projected $10.7MM salary in arbitration may be as much of an issue for the budget-conscious Mets as it is for the Pirates.
  • The Rangers have shown interest in Brewers catcher Jonathan Lucroy, Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports.  The Brewers are receiving “plenty of action” on Lucroy from several teams but it would take a huge offer to entice Milwaukee to part with the former All-Star.
  • From that same piece, Haudricourt opines that it would make sense for the Brewers to trade Jean Segura sooner rather than later.  Dealing Segura would open the door for prospect Oswaldo Arcia at the shortstop, and the Crew could use Jonathan Villar and Yadiel Rivera at short until Arcia was ready for the majors.  That said, Haudricourt feels Adam Lind is the far more likely Brewer to be dealt during the Winter Meetings.

Cubs Notes: Free Agent Starters, Payroll, Montero

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The Cubs are set to meet this week with the representatives of several top free agent starters, including David Price, Zack Greinke, and Jordan Zimmermann, according to Patrick Mooney of CSNChicago.com. That’s not exactly a surprise, as Chicago has long been rumored as a major factor in the upper-level pitching market, but it seems to confirm that the club is eyeing a major acquisition. It’s also interesting to consider that all three pitchers offer different blends of expectations and risk, as well as different anticipated years and dollars. MLBTR’s Tim Dierkes ranked all three within the top ten free agents on the market, predicting that Price (#1 overall) would end up with the Cubs.

Here are a few more notes on the Cubbies:

  • What the meetings probably don’t signify is any inclination by the Cubs’ brass to attempt to add two high-end free agents. As ESPNChicago.com’s Jesse Rogers reports, both president of baseball operations Theo Epstein and GM Jed Hoyer have recently downplayed that possibility. “If we want to do two things we have to get pretty creative,” Epstein said, referring to managing payroll. “Even if we do one really big thing we have to get creative. We have the ability to add a little bit from where we are right now. I don’t think we have room to do everything that’s been speculated in some areas.”
  • The front office appears set to continue trying to build a consistent contender rather than gunning for 2016 success at all costs, as Hoyer suggested yesterday and Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune reports (subscription required). “Baseball is a sport that does involve some randomness,” said Hoyer. “To me, the goal is to win a lot of games and get to the postseason. If you do that year in, year out, that’s how you end up being good.” He went on to explain: “But if you put yourself in to be there every year, that’s the goal. Would it be disappointing if we didn’t make the playoffs? Absolutely. … Would I say it’s ’World Series or bust?’ That’s (not) a fair thing to put on a team.”
  • While some analysts have floated the concept of the Cubs dealing catcher Miguel Montero, Epstein says that’s not been considered, as Rogers reports.“We haven’t talked about that at all,” Epstein said. “[Montero] was a big part of helping our run prevention last year. His framing, his pitch calling. We set a record for strikeouts, we were third in ERA. He was a big part of that. It’s not something we’re looking to disrupt at all.” The emergence of Kyle Schwarber last year made it fair to at least wonder whether Montero could be moved, particularly since his salary ($14MM a year over the next two seasons) might be allocated elsewhere. But it does seem premature for the club to rely on Schwarber regularly behind the plate.

Central Notes: Cubs, Castro, Diaz, Sierra, Williams, Tigers

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The Cubs will soon deal with a roster crunch, writes Bruce Miles of the Daily Herald. The returns of catcher Miguel Montero and infielder Tommy La Stella from the disabled list will force additional moves. Montero joined the lineup today. No transaction was necessary because David Ross was temporarily moved to the bereavement list. LaStella could return to the team tomorrow or Tuesday.

As GM Jed Hoyer pointed out, a deep roster meshes with manager Joe Maddon’s disposition. The young players on the roster are showing some signs of fatigue in their first major league season. Additional depth along with Maddon’s penchant for tinkering should keep everybody fresher. As for who might go, Chicago has already said that prospect Kyle Schwarber will remain with the team. It’s just my guess, but I suspect Jonathan Herrera and Matt Szczur will wind up holding the short straws.

Here’s more from the Central divisions:

  • The Cubs have removed Starlin Castro from the starting lineup with Addison Russell sliding over to shortstop. If Castro is asked to play another position, he would request to speak with front office personnel, tweets Bruce Levine of 670thescore.com. Per Levine, Maddon prefers to have one shortstop rather than a rotation. With La Stella returning soon and Schwarber getting pushed to the outfield by the return of Montero, Castro may see limited playing time in the weeks ahead.
  • The Twins have been scouting Cuban talent, tweets Darren Wolfson of 1500ESPN. Yesterday, representatives of the club attended a showcase in the Dominican Republic. Outfielder Yusniel Diaz was the headliner per Wolfson. The 18-year-old was viewed as the probable Rookie of the Year in Cuba’s Serie Nacional, but he defected immediately after the season. He is subject to international spending limits. The Twins will also watch pitcher Yasiel Sierra today. Sierra, 23, will be exempt from the international bonus pool once he’s declared a free agent.
  • Brewers pitching prospect Taylor Williams will have Tommy John surgery, tweets Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. He’ll likely miss the entire 2016 season. Williams, a 2013 fourth round pick, entered the year as the 11th ranked prospect in the Brewers system per FanGraphs’ Kiley McDaniel. Over the last two seasons, he has a 3.09 ERA with 9.2 K/9 and 2.3 BB/9 in 174 innings split between the lower minors. He did not appear this year.
  • The Tigers have shuffled their front office titles following the promotion Al Avila to GM, tweets Jason Beck of MLB.com. David Chadd is now the new Assistant GM, and Scott Bream will now serve as VP of Player Personnel.

Central Notes: Cueto, Tigers, Pirates, Indians, Garza, Cubs

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At least one executive of a club with interest in Reds starter Johnny Cueto saw significant concern in his latest outing, Jayson Stark of ESPN.com reports on Twitter. Though he only allowed four hits and two runs, Cueto walked six and lasted just four innings, marking his second consecutive start of five innings or less. He also generated a season-low three groundball outs. Given Cueto’s status as one of the premium rental trade pieces on the market, and some pre-existing injury questions, his next appearance could be one to watch.

Here’s more from the game’s central divisions:

  • We heard yesterday that the Tigers were gearing up to sell, but Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports writes on Twitter that multiple GMs tell him they have yet to be informed that Detroit will sell. Per Rosenthal, it’s still up in the air whether the Tigers will move quality veteran assets such as David Price and Yoenis Cespedes.
  • The Pirates are not only looking at possible shortstop acquisitions but continue to seek an addition at first base, Stark tweets. Pedro Alvarez has provided only average offensive production while struggling mightily with the glove. Of course, the first base trade market is not exactly overflowing with obvious upgrade candidates.
  • Indians GM Chris Antonetti says his team plans to be an “opportunistic” and “open-minded” participant on the trade market, as Paul Hoynes of the Plain Dealer reports. One thing the team likely won’t do, however, is deal from its array of quality, controllable starting pitchers. “We are not motivated at all to do that,” said Antonetti.
  • The Brewers will welcome back righty Matt Garza from the DL tonight, Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel reports. That means he ought to have two starts to show his health and regain some trade value, though Garza’s big contract makes him a viable August trade piece as well (since he’d very likely clear waivers).
  • The Cubs got promising news on the injury front, as Patrick Mooney of CSN Chicago reports (Twitter links). Backstop Miguel Montero has only a sprained left thumb, rather than something more serious, though he is still set to rest for two weeks before being evaluated again. And minor league infielder Javier Baez may appear in game action this week. That makes the high-upside prospect a more viable trade piece if the Cubs decide to pursue a significant upgrade.
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