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Heyman’s Latest: Managers, White Sox, Yunel, Dodgers, Puig, Norris, Rangers

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Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports kicks off his weekly Inside Baseball column with a look at the job security of a number of managers, noting that Mets skipper Terry Collins, D-backs manager Chip Hale and White Sox manager Robin Ventura could all be on the hot seat, while Braves interim manager Brian Snitker doesn’t seem especially likely to shed the interim label and keep his post. Other names mentioned include Mike Scioscia (Angels), Brad Ausmus (Tigers), Kevin Cash (Rays), Paul Molitor (Twins), Bryan Price (Reds) and Walt Weiss (Rockies), but none from that group seems to be eminently in danger of losing his job even at season’s end, per Heyman.

Some highlights from the lengthy column…

  • White Sox GM Rick Hahn was far more in favor of a deadline sale than owner Jerry Reinsdorf, Heyman writes, but the Sox ultimately held onto nearly all of their tradeable assets, with the exception of left-hander Zach Duke, suggesting that Hahn ultimately wasn’t given the go-ahead to operate as he might’ve wished. The Sox haven’t put Chris Sale on trade waivers yet, Heyman notes, though that decision is a moot point. He’d be claimed by the first team available — the Twins, as things currently stand — and pulled back off waivers. Chicago had interest in Gary Sanchez when the Yankees were looking at Sale, he adds, though that’s not much of a surprise. Catcher has long been a weak spot in Chicago, and Sanchez is among the more highly regarded prospects in all of baseball.
  • There wasn’t much chatter pertaining to Yunel Escobar prior to the non-waiver trade deadline (and there’s been less in August), but Heyman writes that Escobar did draw interest in July. However, the Angels like what he’s been able to give to the club offensively, batting .316/.365/.397 in 474 plate appearances. I’m not sure I see the logic behind not being willing to move Escobar but trading a similarly priced and very arguably more valuable asset with the same amount of club control (Hector Santiago) for what amounted to an injured prospect, but perhaps the Halos simply didn’t receive an offer to their liking for Escobar.
  • The Dodgers “love” Rich Hill and were planning to pursue him last winter until Brett Anderson accepted the team’s qualifying offer, per Heyman. Those two don’t seem like they should’ve been mutually exclusive — the Dodgers went out and signed Kenta Maeda and Scott Kazmir following Anderson’s acceptance of the QO, after all — but perhaps the Dodgers either couldn’t guarantee a rotation spot or didn’t find the notion of two starters with such recent injury woes to be palatable. Either way, if the Dodgers are as fond of Hill as Heyman indicates, it seems likely that they’ll be in the mix to re-sign him come the offseason.
  • One executive from a non-Dodgers club opined to Heyman that no team will claim Yasiel Puig if and when he’s placed on revocable waivers and added, “…if they do, they’re going to get him.” Furthermore, Heyman writes that it isn’t likely that Puig will rejoin the Dodgers at any point this season, as he has “turned off” many of his teammates. It seems difficult to fathom that the Dodgers wouldn’t bring him back in the month of September when rosters expand, but we’ll find out in just a few weeks — if Puig isn’t dealt first.
  • The Padres have yet to put Derek Norris on trade waivers, and Heyman calls him a more likely offseason trade candidate. The Indians showed mild interest but ultimately decided that their internal options were preferable to Norris, who is once again struggling tremendously following a strong showing at the plate from May 1 through the All-Star break. Heyman also notes that the Padres are interested enough in Puig to at least be thinking about it and points out the connection between pro scouting director Logan White and Puig. White was the Dodgers VP of amateur scouting prior to his Padres gig and was one of the execs that recommended Puig to his colleagues.
  • The Rangers weren’t able to swing a deal for any of the big-name starters they pursued, but that’s in part due to the asking prices they received. The Rays asked the Rangers for Jurickson Profar and other pieces in exchange for Matt Moore, while Rougned Odor’s name was suggested by the Rays in Chris Archer talks and by the White Sox in talks for Chris Sale.

Managerial News & Rumors: Collins, Cash, Ventura

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Here’s the latest on the job security of a trio of big league managers…

  • The Mets have no plans to make a managerial change, a front office source tells Peter Botte of the New York Daily News.  There had been some whispers about Terry Collins’ job security in the wake of the club’s underwhelming season, though in fairness to Collins, he has been hampered by a lackluster offense and some key injuries (most notably to Matt Harvey and David Wright).  The Mets are 59-58 after today’s victory but they’re just two games behind Miami for the last NL wild card slot, and the Marlins got some bad injury news themselves today.
  • Rays owner Stuart Sternberg gave manager Kevin Cash a strong vote of confidence, telling Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times that there is “zero” chance of Cash’s job being in danger.  The Rays are just 127-151 under Cash, who is in the second year of a five-year deal to manage the club.  It was an unusually strong commitment for a first-time manager, yet it was a sign of the confidence Sternberg and team executives had in Cash.  Even in regards to the team’s recent struggles, “to go through these sort of times will only make [Cash] a better manager,” Sternberg said.  “We knew coming in, he was here as a long-, long-term guy….But he handled things extraordinarily. As I would expect he would. And it makes him even more valuable going forward.”
  • Robin Ventura wants to return as the White Sox manager in 2017, though he tells Daryl Van Schouwen of the Chicago Sun-Times that “you have to have somebody ask you to do it and all that. That’s stuff that happens after the season is over, if you get there.”  The Sox are on pace for the fourth straight losing season of Ventura’s tenure, and the skipper is in the last year of his contract.

Rosenthal’s Latest: Archer, Chapman, CarGo, Rangers, Managers

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While the Rays are fielding some calls on righty Chris Archer, the kinds of offers coming through the line have been good only for “comedic value,” a source tells Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (via Twitter). The report certainly suggests that Tampa Bay isn’t interested in the kind of buy-low offers it is apparently receiving. The young righty hasn’t quite been himself this year, but remains quite talented and controlled at a very cheap rate.

Here’s more from Rosenthal:

  • The Yankees are discussing the possibility of trying to extend closer Aroldis Chapman, according to Rosenthal. Talks to this point are just internal and haven’t been raised with Chapman’s representatives, but the club isn’t set on selling off big league assets over the next few weeks. Team president Randy Levine maintained to Rosenthal that the Yankees like their team and won’t make a call on trading away veterans until much closer to the Aug. 1 non-waiver trade deadline.
  • Carlos Gonzalez is perhaps the best player among current trade candidates, but the Rockies don’t feel the need to get out from underneath his contract in the same manner they did with Troy Tulowitzki, so he’s far from a lock to be moved. CarGo is batting an excellent .318/.367/.557 this season, and it’s interesting to note that over the past 365 days, he’s hitting .304/.354/.592 with a hefty 46 homers in 156 games played. His $17MM salary in 2016 and $20MM salary in 2017 are both reasonable sums for that level of production.
  • The Rangers were in on Drew Pomeranz before his trade to the Red Sox, and they’re in on Rich Hill now that Pomeranz is off the market. The Rangers could also use an upgrade behind the plate, writes Rosenthal, who notes that Jonathan Lucroy would be preferable to Derek Norris, but the latter of the two is available as well. The Rangers, though, “probably do not view” any of the available trade candidates as worthy players to surrender top-tier young talent like Jurickson Profar or Joey Gallo.
  • Some within the industry have told Rosenthal that Diamondbacks manager Chip Hale “could be in imminent danger” of losing his job, but D-backs sources denied the notion when asked, he continues. Rosenthal lists Bryan Price and Walt Weiss as skippers that are safe for now but may be seeking new employment come season’s end, and he notes that Robin Ventura, Brad Ausmus, John Farrell and Terry Collins could all be in the same boat if their clubs finish the season poorly.

NL East Notes: Collins, Mets, Marlins, Stanton, Harper, Belisle

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Mets manager Terry Collins missed today’s game due to illness and will remain in a Milwaukee hospital overnight for observation and further tests, ESPN’s Adam Rubin writes.  Collins left Miller Park around a half-hour before the start of today’s Mets/Brewers game, with bench coach Dick Scott serving as interim manager in the 5-3 Brewers victory.  Collins was already feeling a little better just before leaving for the hospital, though it isn’t yet clear if he’ll be ready to resume his duties on Tuesday when the Mets host the Pirates.  We at MLBTR wish Collins a quick recovery and hope to see him back in the dugout soon.  Here’s some more from around the NL East…

  • The Marlins have explored the trade market for veteran relief pitching, Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald reports, though they don’t have much to offer teams in return.  It’s no surprise that the Fish are looking for bullpen help, with Carter Capps and Bryan Morris both lost to season-ending injuries.
  • Also from Jackson’s piece, he writes that the Marlins aren’t yet overly worried about Giancarlo Stanton’s struggles and feel the outfielder “is simply [in] a slump.”  Stanton has 12 homers but only a .192/.299/.415 slash line over 225 PA, with a whopping 79 strikeouts.
  • There has been lots of buzz about Bryce Harper’s next contract crossing the $500MM threshold, though as Sportsnet’s Naoko Asano writes, some factors beyond pure baseball value could determine the final number, such as the terms of the next CBA or if broadcasting rights contracts stop growing over the next few years.  That latter factor could be particularly noteworthy given how the Nationals’ MASN broadcast revenues are limited by their ongoing dispute with the Orioles, though that hasn’t stopped Washington from making a number of big signings that contain deferred money.
  • Matt Belisle’s minor league rehab assignment can’t continue past June 22, so the Nationals will soon have a decision to make in their bullpen, MLB.com’s William Ladson writes.  Belisle went on the DL with a calf strain near the end of April and has been rehabbing at Double- and Triple-A for the better part of three weeks, and MLB pitchers can only spend up to 30 days on rehab assignments.
  • The Mets loaded up on pitching in this year’s draft, a strategy Ken Davidoff of the New York Post wonders is the first step towards the Mets shopping Matt Harvey this offseason.  There has been a lot of speculation that Harvey won’t re-sign with the Mets when he hits free agency after the 2018 season, so bolstering the system with young arms could allow the Mets to consider trading Harvey if they feel they have enough pitching depth.

Mets, Terry Collins Agree To Extension

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TODAY: The team has announced the deal, making it official.

YESTERDAY, 6:37pm: Collins’ will earn roughly $3MM over the life of the contract, reports Jon Heyman of CBS Sports (Twitter link).

3:42pm: The Mets have agreed to a two-year contract extension with manager Terry Collins, reports Kristie Ackert of the New York Daily News. Collins’ new contract, which provides the skipper with a raise, will be formally announced tomorrow, Ackert adds. Collins’ previous contract expired at the end of the 2015 season, but he’ll now have job security through the 2017 season. Collins reportedly doesn’t want to manage too much longer but was said to be open to continuing for at least the next two seasons.

The 66-year-old Collins is an oft-mentioned NL Manager of the Year candidate after leading the Mets to a surprising 90-win season and World Series run. He’s been managing the Mets since the 2011 campaign, though the 2015 season marked his first winning campaign. Collins dealt with a number of injuries early in the season plus questions as to when top prospects Noah Syndergaard, Steven Matz and Michael Conforto would be promoted, and he was also tasked with keeping the club focused during the Matt Harvey innings limit saga late in the season.

Collins has a lifetime managerial record of 838-850 and has seen time at the helm with both the Astros and Angels, though the Mets represent his longest stint as a big-league manager. Collins’ job security has been called into security many times over the past few seasons, but New York’s unlikely World Series run and his handling of the pressures of managing in a major market have earned him additional time to attempt to finish what he started in 2015.

NL East Notes: Phillies, Reed, Blevins, Collins, Conforto, Braves, Janssen

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The Phillies announced today that the team has hired Rick Kranitz as bullpen coach and John McLaren as catching coach. Those two veteran baseball men represent the first hirings for newly-named skipper Pete Mackanin. Per the announcement, the club has already reached agreement on deals with two incumbents — hitting coach Steve Henderson and pitching coach Bob McClure — and has also asked bench coach Larry Bowa and first base coach Juan Samuel to return.

Here are a few more notes from the NL East:

  • The Mets have more important matters at hand, but offseason decision aren’t far away. One such call involves reliever Addison Reed, who Marc Carig of Newsday says could be tendered a contract through arbitration. The club initially expected only to keep him for the present season after adding him over the summer, with his salary ($4.9MM this year) representing an obstacle, but Reed has performed quite well since coming to New York.
  • Another relatively recent Mets bullpen trade addition who could be retained is lefty Jerry Blevins, per Carig. Though he missed most of the season due to injury, the organization has “some interest” in a reunion, depending upon how he progresses in his rehab from his most recent forearm fracture.
  • Mets manager Terry Collins has told friends he’ll most likely be hoping for a two-year contract this winter, Jon Heyman of CBSSports reports (in a notes column filled with other bits of information). There’s little doubt at this point that he’ll be asked back, and might have enough pull to demand a longer deal, but Collins seemingly does not intend to remain in the demanding role for too much longer.
  • The Mets intend to use Michael Conforto as their everyday left fielder next year, says Heyman. That’s no surprise, given his productivity thus far, but it speaks to the difficulty of clearing the way for a reunion with Yoenis Cespedes. New York also has Curtis Granderson, Michael Cuddyer, and Juan Lagares under contract for next year (or beyond).
  • While the Braves are expecting somewhat less turnover this winter than last, the front office is nevertheless working hard to get ready for the offseason, MLB.com’s Mark Bowman writes. “We feel we’re going to be significantly better going into 2016 than we were going into 2015,” said president of baseball operations John Hart. “We have a lot of work to do as we go through the winter. We don’t know how it’s all going to play out. When we go into our meetings, it’s not like we’re facing no dollars, no options and no flexibility. Also with some of the deals we’ll be making, we won’t be trying to move away from bad contracts. That in itself will put us more in the open field running.”
  • Nationals reliever Casey Janssen says that he expects a turnaround in 2016, as James Wagner of the Washington Post reports. While Wagner says that it’s unlikely the club will pick up its end of a $7MM mutual option, Janssen says he believes “you can make a case either way” for how the team should proceed. He took his share of the blame for a rough year, but noted that he often faced heavy usage. Looking ahead, Janssen expressed optimism. “There’s no doubt in my mind I’m gonna have a great season next year,” he said. “You take out the three or four games that I didn’t pitch my best I had a solid year after that. Obviously you can’t take those away. Those are real. But, there’s no doubt in my mind that the passion is there and the ability is there. There’s going to be a ton of drive there for me this offseason to not let that happen again and get back to what I know and get back to be the pitcher that I know I can be.”

Heyman’s Latest: Williams, Collins, ChiSox, Keuchel, Halos, Dietrich

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In today’s edition of his weekly Inside Baseball column, Jon Heyman of CBS Sports begins by highlighting the fact that the NL East division title race will determine the fate of Nationals manager Matt Williams and Mets manager Terry Collins. Heyman writes that while Nats GM Mike Rizzo has repeatedly backed Williams, Rizzo is something of a “chorus of one” — publicly, at least. Ownership is extremely frustrated with the team’s recent play, and Heyman points out that it may also be telling that amid multiple reports of players disliking his rigid demeanor, not one player from the Nats has stepped forward to defend Williams. Ownership has already discussed dismissing Williams, Heyman adds. Collins, on the other hand, is in line for a new contract if and when the Mets reach the postseason. Falling behind the Nats and missing the playoffs, though, would harken back to 2007’s epic collapse and almost certainly cost Collins his job. Then again, the Mets have remaining series against the Reds, Braves, Phillies and Marlins, as Heyman points out, so a collapse seems particularly unlikely.

Some other highlights from the column…

  • Jeff Samardzija and another unknown White Sox player were both claimed on the same day that the Yankees claimed David Robertson, Heyman reports. However, the Samardzija claim was, like the Robertson claim, primarily a blocking tactic. Heyman notes that while Samardzija has had a very poor contract season, scouts still love his build, athleticism and competitiveness.
  • Dallas Keuchel and the Astros have tabled extension talks until after the season, per Heyman. Houston hopes to lock its ace up on at least a four-year deal — that’d cover his arbitration years and one free agent season — though as I noted when word of discussions between the two sides broke, Keuchel’s currently slated to hit the open market heading into his age-31 season. Delaying his free agency by even one year would probably put a five-year max on the free-agent deal Keuchel could secure, as teams rarely guarantee pitchers’ age-37 seasons in long-term deals.
  • Regarding the Angels’ GM vacancy, Heyman characterizes recent interviews of internal candidates Matt Klentak and Scott Servais (both assistant GMs) as “perfunctory,” believing an outside hire to be the probably outcome. Klentak could stay on in a role similar to his own, whereas Servais is said by Heyman to be more at odds with manager Mike Scioscia. Kevin Towers, Ned Colletti and Yankees AGM Billy Eppler are all listed as speculative candidates by Heyman.
  • The Dodgers took on about $150K of the remaining $450K on Justin Ruggiano’s salary when they acquired him from the Mariners.
  • The Marlins are coming around on the idea of Derek Dietrich as a Ben Zobrist/Josh Harrison type of player that can play everyday in part due to his versatility. While Dietrich’s defense isn’t on the same level as that highly valuable duo, the Marlins see him as an athletic bat with 25-homer upside. The 26-year-old Dietrich is hitting .263/.359/.514 in spite of a cavernous home park (138 OPS+) and has smashed 10 homers in 64 games while seeing time at first base, third base and in the corner outfield. None of those are even his natural position, but he’s blocked at second base by Dee Gordon, of course.

NL East Notes: Ozuna, Marlins, Collins, Utley

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Marcell Ozuna’s 33-game stint in Triple-A was “like a jail” to the outfielder, as he tells Adam Zuvanich of the Miami Herald.  The Marlins demoted Ozuna in July ostensibly due to his early-season struggles, though agent Scott Boras believed the Fish were keeping Ozuna in the minors to deny his client MLB service time and prevent his arbitration eligibility.  “I know what happened when they sent me down. I knew that’s coming,” Ozuna said.  “I don’t go there for work, because they know me. I don’t need the work. One for 36, 1 for 100, every big-league player has it. I have it and everybody has it.”  Ozuna rejoined the Marlins this weekend after Christian Yelich went on the disabled list.

Here’s more from Miami and elsewhere around the NL East…

  • Some in the Marlins front office want to keep Ozuna rather than explore trades for him this offseason, the Miami Herald’s Barry Jackson reports, though “at least one prominent Marlins person is open” to moving the outfielder.  Ozuna drew trade interest from several teams (including the Indians) prior to the deadline.
  • Also from Jackson’s column, he writes that the Marlins want to wait until after the season to make their intended managerial change so that they know the full pool of candidates before making a decision.  This will allow the team to include any current managers in their search should those skippers be fired; Jackson cites the Dodgers’ Don Mattingly as an example.  Jackson adds that there’s no front-runner for the job, though previous managing experience will be an important criteria.
  • Mets manager Terry Collins isn’t concerned about his contract status, telling Newsday’s Steven Marcus that he has “no idea” if the club will discuss an extension with him while the season is still going.  “I’m telling you, I don’t think about it. I think about playing golf in November. That’s the only thing on my mind right now,” Collins said.  Collins’ deal expires at the end of the season though the Mets hold an option on his services for 2016.  A team spokesman tells Marcus that the Mets will “address [a possible extension] at the proper time,” which I would presume refers to after the season is over.
  • Assuming the Mets make the postseason or fall just short, Matthew Cerrone of Metsblog.com suspects the team will exercise their 2016 option on Collins and extend his deal through the 2017 season.  It would “border on disrespectful,” Cerrone feels, if the Mets didn’t have Collins extended before next Spring Training given how the skipper has exceeded expectations since being hired as somewhat of a transitional manager.
  • The Mets need to acquire yet another bullpen arm to address their still-struggling relief corps, Joel Sherman of the New York Post opines.
  • Phillies interim manager Pete Mackanin admitted that it’s difficult to find playing time for trade candidate Chase Utley, as Andrew Gruman of MLB.com writes.  “I mean, yeah, we like ’Ut’. It is an issue for me, because I have to try to play everybody, and the guys that deserve to play, like [Cesar] Hernandez and so forth, I want them to play. But I want Utley to play, too. It is not an easy task for me, but we’ll do what we can,” Mackanin said.
  • Nationals assistant GM Doug Harris is profiled by James Wagner of the Washington Post.  Harris oversees the club’s farm system and manages the Nats’ pro scouting department in addition to other duties, and is seen as a potential future general manager by many around baseball; just earlier today, the Boston Globe’s Nick Cafardo tabbed Harris as a contender to be the Brewers’ next GM.

Mets’ Alderson Expresses Support For Terry Collins

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Mets GM Sandy Alderson says manager Terry Collins and is not to blame for the team’s current troubles and that the Mets have no plans to fire him, Adam Rubin of ESPN New York writes. Alderson is traveling with the Mets on the team’s current West Coast road trip, but he says that’s unrelated to Collins’ status.

“We’re a .500 team. We haven’t been moving in the right direction,” Alderson says. However, he adds, “[w]e’ve had a lot of people hurt for long periods of time. … We’ve got some young guys in particular that are not hitting. We’ve got some older players that have had to try to carry the load. I think to put all of this on Terry would be grossly unfair.”

The Mets’ front office also had a meeting Thursday, although FOX Sports’ Ken Rosenthal indicates that the meeting was routine and that the organization did not discuss Collins’ status. Rosenthal notes,  however, that the next several weeks will be important ones for the team.

The Mets were 15-5 in late April, but since then they’ve gone 26-35 and are currently just one game above .500. Veteran hitters like Michael Cuddyer and Lucas Duda have struggled lately, along with relievers like Carlos Torres and Alex Torres. Cuddyer, David Wright and catcher Travis d’Arnaud are among a number of Mets players currently dealing with injuries.

East Notes: Franco, Buchholz, Collins, Napoli

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This one probably sounds worse than it is: the Yankees fell just $5K shy of landing Maikel Franco as an international free agent out of the Dominican Republic, as Jim Salisbury of CSNPhilly.com reports on Twitter. Franco ultimately received a $100K bonus from the Phillies, and of course ultimately rose to become quite a well-regarded young player. For his part, Yankees GM Brian Cashman indicated that he is not aware that the team fell just shy of picking up a winning lottery ticket, but neither did he deny that an offer may have been made, as Daniel Popper of the New York Daily News reports. Regardless of what really happened, of course, it would be awfully hard to lay much fault on the New York international scouting department for missing out on Franco, who was obviously not a premium prospect at that time (as his bonus indicates) and took some time to blossom as a professional. Philadelphia does certainly deserve some praise, however, for its investment: the now-22-year-old entered play today with a .319/.368/.604 slash and ten long balls over 155 plate appearances on the year.

Here’s a look at the latest from the AL and NL East..

  • The Red Sox have shown no interest in dealing pitcher Clay Buchholz, major league sources tell Rob Bradford of WEEI.com.   That’s no surprise given the way that Buchholz has pitched (3.87 ERA, 8.8 K/9 vs. 2.3 BB/9) and his team friendly deal, which allows for club options in both 2016 ($13MM) and ’17 ($13.5MM).  For his part, Buchholz wants to stay in Boston through the end of his deal.  “Yeah, unless something crazy happens I expect to be here,” he said. “I’ve always called this place home. [Trades] happen, and it’s happened to a lot of guys, where they walk in and they’re told their somewhere. That’s the business part of it and I think everybody understands that. I would love to be here throughout the next couple of years and everything goes well sign another extension. That’s sort of how I look at it.”
  • Could the struggling Mets make a managerial change?  As of right now, that doesn’t seem to be in the cards.  Talk of the Mets dismissing skipper Terry Collins is “very premature,” a source tells Marc Carig of Newsday (on Twitter). New York is mired in a six-game slide and has dropped back to .500, but it is certainly tough to blame Collins for the roster’s lack of offensive punch and variety of injuries.
  • If the Red Sox fall out of the race, Boston would almost certainly trade Mike Napoli or let him go, as Brian MacPherson of The Providence Journal writes.  The aging slugger is in his walk year and he doesn’t figure to be in the plans for next season and beyond.   Meanwhile, it remains to be seen what kind of market there would be for the 33-year-old in July.  His overall slash hasn’t been pretty, but he’s still doing well against lefties, hitting .226/.351/.516.  Recently, MLBTR’s Jeff Todd checked in on Napoli’s free agent stock.
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