Royals Designate Tony Cruz; Tim Collins Elects Free Agency
The Royals have designated catcher Tony Cruz for assignment, per a club announcement. The team also says that lefty Tim Collins has elected free agency.
Meanwhile, Kansas City has added four players to its 40-man roster, filling it to capacity. Righties Andrew Edwards and Jake Junis, catcher Cam Gallagher, and first baseman Samir Duenez all had their contracts selected.
MLBTR had projected Cruz to earn $1MM in arbitration, with Collins in line for a $1.5MM salary. Instead, both will likely find their way to other organizations. Cruz, 30, saw scant action last year in the majors but hit .264/.347/.387 in his 363 plate appearances at Triple-A. Collins hasn’t appeared since 2014, as he has required consecutive Tommy John surgeries.
AL Notes: Weaver, Vazquez, Yanks, Chisenhall
Angels righty and former ace Jered Weaver, who’s coming off a career-worst season in which his fastball velocity sat in the low 80s, made his 2016 debut Sunday and threw six innings of one-run ball in a 3-1 win over Texas. Weaver allowed seven base runners (six hits, one walk), struck out four, and was encouraged afterward. “It makes me look forward to the future in baseball as opposed to thinking about shutting it down,” he told reporters, including Alden Gonzalez of MLB.com (Twitter link). Weaver’s fastball resided in the 82 mph range Sunday and he didn’t generate many grounders (a common career trend), but he effectively used his curveball and changeup to keep Rangers hitters at bay. Whether he can continue to get by that way is up for debate, but Weaver seems confident, saying, “Haters equals motivation for me. I feed off of it.”
More from the American League…
- Red Sox catcher Christian Vazquez is recovering well from Tommy John surgery and could rejoin the team by the end of the month, Tim Britton of the Providence Journal reports. “Everything points to [the 20-day rehab timeline] being more than enough time for him right now,” manager John Farrell said Sunday. Vazquez’s rehab assignment with Triple-A Pawtucket lasts until April 28, at which point the big league club will either have to call up the 25-year-old or option him to the minors. The Red Sox currently employ two capable catchers in Blake Swihart and Ryan Hanigan, though the latter has been mentioned as a trade candidate in the past.
- The Yankees, who opened the season in less-than-ideal weather in the Bronx and then went to frigid Detroit for their second series, have already had two games postponed (one of which was made up). Manager Joe Girardi isn’t pleased with the schedule makers’ decisions, per Brendan Kuty of NJ Advance Media. “I’m not sure why it happens,” he said in regards to MLB’s choice to start the Yankees in cities prone to poor conditions. “I’d really like to see us start within (the American League East) in the first month as much as you can and I know there’s five teams, and those games you try to go to warmer cities. It didn’t happen and we’ll have to deal with it,” he added.
- Bad weather is also serving as an annoyance to the Indians and slowing right fielder Lonnie Chisenhall‘s comeback from a left wrist impingement, writes Jordan Bastian of MLB.com. Before beginning his rehab assignment Sunday with Triple-A Columbus, Chisenhall hadn’t played since March 27 – thanks in part to the postponement of Columbus’ previous three games. Chisenahll, who went hitless in three at-bats Sunday, is eligible to return from the 15-day disabled list early in the upcoming week. However, the Indians might not activate him until Thursday because they face lefty starters Tuesday and Wednesday. Chisenhall owns an uninspiring career line of .241/.288/.371 against lefties.
- Royals southpaw reliever Tim Collins will undergo his second Tommy John surgery since March 2015 on Friday, Jeffrey Flanagan of MLB.com tweets. The news that Collins needed the surgery after his previous elbow graft failed was revealed last month. Collins, 26, posted a 3.54 ERA, 9.4 K/9 and 5.2 BB/9 in 211 relief innings for the Royals from 2011-14.
Tim Collins To Undergo Second Tommy John Surgery
Royals left-hander Tim Collins will require a second Tommy John procedure after his previous elbow graft failed, the team announced to the media (including Rustin Dodd of the Kansas City Star). Collins underwent his first TJ surgery in March 2015 and subsequently missed the entire season.
Collins was limited to just 21 innings in 2014 due to a strained flexor tendon in his left elbow. Between that injury and two Tommy John surgeries, it’s fair to wonder if Collins’ pitching career is in serious jeopardy. Though he won’t be able to pitch until late in the 2017 season (at the earliest), Collins isn’t giving up, telling Dodd and other reporters that he’s ready to once again go through the arduous rehab process. “I’m still young. I’m 26,” Collins said.
The southpaw posted a 3.54 ERA, 9.4 K/9 and 5.2 BB/9 in 211 relief innings for the Royals from 2011-14. Despite his control issues, Collins had good splits against both right-handed (career .675 OPS) and left-handed (.702 OPS) batters and held all hitters to a modest .226/.334/.353 slash line.
The Royals avoided arbitration with Collins by agreeing to a one-year, $1.475MM salary for the coming season, and MLB.com’s Jeffrey Flanagan reports that K.C. will have to eat that salary since the club doesn’t insure one-year contracts. Collins also earned $1.475MM for his lost 2015 season, so you can count on that same figure for Collins’ third and final trip through the arb process next winter if Kansas City decides to hold onto the lefty. Since Collins could be out until 2018, however, the Royals could look to re-sign him at a lower salary after a non-tender.
Royals Avoid Arbitration With Tim Collins
The Royals have agreed to contract terms with lefty Tim Collins to avoid arbitration, the club announced. Collins will earn $1.475MM for the 2016 season, Jeffrey Flanagan of MLB.com reports on Twitter.
That’s exactly what he made last year and what MLBTR predicted for the coming campaign. The reason: Collins, 26, missed all of 2015 after undergoing Tommy John surgery in March.
Truth be told, it’s now been some time since Collins has been at his best. He also dealt with forearm and elbow issues in 2014, throwing only 21 big league frames while watching his strikeout rate plummet to a personal low of 6.4 batters per nine. (Collins did get about twice as much work in Triple-A that season, putting up much better numbers there.)
Obviously, though, the Royals believe in his arm. While he’s small in stature, Collins still delivers his average fastball in the 92 to 93 mph range. And between 2012 and 2013, he logged 123 innings of 3.44 ERA ball with 10.6 K/9 against 4.5 BB/9. Most importantly, perhaps, Collins has actually been slightly better against right-handed batters.
With age still on his side, there’s still plenty of potential value there for the defending World Series champs, who haven’t shied from taking injury risks on relievers in recent years. It’s not entirely clear when Collins will be ready for full action, but Kansas City will probably be looking for other southpaw pen additions regardless of when that’s expected. The club’s only two southpaws to top twenty innings out of the pen last year — Franklin Morales and Brandon Finnegan — have been lost to free agency (at least for the time being) and trade, respectively.
Minor Moves: Collins, Morgan, Matthews
Here are the latest minor transactions from around the baseball world, with the newest moves at the top of the post…
- The Royals moved lefty Tim Collins from the 15-day disabled list to the 60-day DL, the team announced. The move was an expected one, as Collins will miss the entire 2015 season after undergoing Tommy John surgery in March.
- Outfielder Nyjer Morgan has been released by the Korean Baseball Organization’s Hanwha Eagles, Han Lee of Global Sporting Integration reports. Morgan signed a one-year, $700K contract with Hanwha in the offseason and hit .273/.405/.333 over 42 plate appearances, but as Lee reports, Morgan had some personality clashes with the coaching staff. The seven-year MLB veteran appeared in 15 games with the Indians in 2014.
- The Rangers released left-hander Kevin Matthews, Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reports. Matthews was picked 33rd overall by the Rangers in the 2011 draft but has only pitched 132 1/3 career minor league innings due to multiple injuries. Wilson notes that Texas probably could’ve parted ways with Matthews later in the season, though his release may have been quickened after the southpaw was charged with a DWI on Wednesday.
Tim Collins Undergoes Tommy John Surgery
Royals southpaw Tim Collins underwent Tommy John surgery yesterday and will miss the 2015 season, tweets the Kansas City Star’s Andy McCullough. The operation was a known possibility after an MRI last week revealed damage to his ulnar collateral ligament.
The 25-year-old Collins has been a fixture in the Royals’ bullpen over the past four years since being acquired in a trade that sent Rick Ankiel and Kyle Farnsworth to the Braves. In 211 career innings — all with Kansas City — Collins has a 3.54 ERA with 9.4 K/9 and 5.2 BB/9. Though he’s struggled with his control, clearly, he’s also held opponents to a .226 average in his career and been reasonably effective against both right- and left-handed batters. Collins also missed much of the 2014 season with a strained flexor tendon in his throwing elbow.
The loss of Collins for the year likely opens an opportunity for a non-roster invitee or perhaps top prospect Brandon Finnegan to earn a slot in manager Ned Yost’s bullpen. The Royals may want to continue developing Finnegan, their first-round pick from 2014, as a starter in the Minors, but he did surface as a strong bullpen option for Yost late last season and into the playoffs.
Franklin Morales, Joe Paterson and Chris Dwyer are all non-roster options that are in camp with the Royals. Of that group, Morales has far and away the most big league experience, though Paterson does have 40 Major League innings to his credit. Other options that are already on the 40-man roster include Brian Flynn, who was acquired in the Aaron Crow trade with the Marlins this winter, and former top prospect John Lamb. Both Lamb and Flynn are typically deployed as starters, though that certainly doesn’t preclude them from being converted to the bullpen.
Injury Notes: Darvish, Minor, Collins, Edgin, Turner, Wieters
There is a silver lining to the Yu Darvish injury for the Rangers, as Dave Cameron of Fangraphs writes. In short, if Darvish undergoes a UCL replacement, he will be nearly certain not to trigger any of the award-based opt-out provisions in his contract. Thus, while Texas would lose his services for 2015, they would in all likelihood gain him for 2017 — when, it might be hoped, the team will be in better shape for contention.
We have already seen significant injury news relating to four other pitchers today, and that’s not all:
- The Braves got a positive update on starter Mike Minor as Dr. James Andrews concurred with club orthopedist Javier Duralde that an MRI showed no structural issues with Minor’s left shoulder, as David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports. Minor will nevertheless sit out at least two weeks to rest his arm, and president of baseball operations John Hart says that the team will likely turn to internal options to fill in.
- Andrews will take a look at another arm tomorrow when Tim Collins of the Royals checks in, Andy McCullough of the Kansas City Star tweets. An MRI has already showed ligament damage to his left elbow. The final determination of whether he’ll undergo Tommy John surgery could have fairly significant ramifications for the club not only this year but into the future, as youngster Brandon Finnegan could be pressed back into relief duty.
- Another club with a possible LOOGY issue is the Mets, whose top southpaw reliever Josh Edgin will undergo an MRI after experiencing a velocity drop and elbow soreness, as The Record’s Matt Ehalt reports. Missed time from Edgin would figure to pose difficulties given the team’s relative dearth of southpaw depth. As Ehalt explains, Scott Rice is in on a minor league deal and provides an option, while Rule 5 pick Sean Gilmartin is joined by fellow youngsters Jack Leathersich and Dario Alvarez on the 40-man roster.
- Jacob Turner of the Cubs has been shut down with a flexor strain and bone bruise in his right elbow, as ESPNChicago.com’s Jesse Rogers tweets. The out-of-options Turner was probably destined for the Chicago ‘pen after the club claimed him off waivers late last year and picked up his $1MM option for 2015. It would appear that a DL stint will likely be in the cards for the start of the year, which in some ways gives the team more flexibility to give Turner a chance to start during a rehab period.
- Orioles backstop Matt Wieters is just one week away from getting back behind the dish for a spring game, as Rich Dubroff of CSNBaltimore.com reports. Nearing a full return from Tommy John surgery, Wieters has already advanced to throwing to second at as much as 80% in practice. Given the rehab process he has just endured, the free agent-to-be says that his next contract is not where his focus is at present, as Peter Schmuck of the Baltimore Sun writes.
MRI Reveals Ligament Damage In Tim Collins’ Elbow
An MRI on the left elbow of Royals reliever Tim Collins has revealed ligament damage in his elbow, reports Randy Covitz of the Kansas City Star (on Twitter). The team is seeking a second opinion, but the news obviously lends the possibility that Collins will ultimately require Tommy John surgery to repair the issue.
The 25-year-old Collins has been an integral part of the Kansas City bullpen over the past four seasons, working to a 3.54 ERA with 9.4 K/9, 5.2 BB/9 and a 40 percent ground-ball rate in 211 innings (228 appearances). Though he struggles with his control, Collins has held opponents to a .226 average in the Major Leagues and has been reasonably effective against both right- and left-handed hitters.
Should Collins require surgery, the Royals would be down a left-handed option in their bullpen, and the odds of a non-roster invitee such as Franklin Morales or Joe Paterson making the team would increase. Kansas City also has 2014 first-rounder Brandon Finnegan as an option. Finnegan proved to be a weapon for the Royals down the stretch and in the postseason as the team marched all the way to Game 7 of the World Series. However, the Royals’ preference for Finnegan in the long run is likely for him to develop as a starter.
AL Central Notes: Moss, Collins, Twins, Coke
Indians outfielder Brandon Moss nearly retired from baseball in 2012, writes MLB.com’s Jordan Bastian. Moss had nine days left before an opt-out clause in his minor league deal with the A’s and planned on playing out the season in Japan — on a more lucrative deal. His plans were then to join a high school friend as a firefighter in his native Georgia. However, Moss was called up to the A’s on June 6 that year and, after initially struggling, proceeded to mash five homers in a four-game span. That burst of power set the tone for Moss, who stuck with the A’s through this offseason when he was traded to Cleveland. Over the past three seasons, the late-blooming Moss is a .254/.340/.504 hitter with 76 home runs. Bastian’s article has several interesting quotes from Moss, his former coaches/managers and his friends and is well worth the read.
Here’s more from the AL Central…
- Royals lefty Tim Collins had an MRI on his left elbow yesterday after experiencing tightness Wednesday of this week, writes MLB.com’s Jeffrey Flanagan. The Royals and Collins remain hopeful that it’s just normal soreness that can often be expected of pitchers early in Spring Training. If not, the team does have other lefty options in camp, including Franklin Morales, Brian Flynn, Joe Paterson and top prospect Brandon Finnegan.
- Twins GM Terry Ryan told reporters, including MLB.com’s Rhett Bollinger, that his club isn’t hindered by payroll or revenue. Ryan’s goal, he says, is to reach the postseason this year, though he admits that a lot will need to go right for that to happen. Namely, the Twins will need to stay healthy and see a number of their younger players take their game to a new level.
- Phil Coke, who agreed to a minor league deal with the Cubs yesterday, told MLive.com’s Chris Iott that he’ll miss being a Tiger and enjoyed his time in the Motor City. Iott writes that while the Tigers never officially closed the door on re-signing Coke, his fate was more or less sealed once the team signed Tom Gorzelanny to his one-year, $1MM deal. Detroit didn’t want to carry a pair of veteran lefty relievers without options when it had a number of younger in-house options, such as Blaine Hardy, Ian Krol and Kyle Ryan, Iott explains. Iott adds that he, too, hears Coke rejected a Major League offer in favor of his minor league deal with the Cubs; it’s certainly possible that the relatively sizable $2.25MM salary Coke will be paid if he makes Chicago’s roster outweighs a more modest salary he received on a guaranteed deal.
Players Avoiding Arbitration: Friday
With the deadline to exchange arbitration figures set for noon CT, there figure to be a large number of agreements to avoid arb today, as there were yesterday. All arbitration agreements can be followed using MLBTR’s Arbitration Tracker, and we’ll keep track of today’s smaller agreements in this post, with all projections coming courtesy of MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz…
- Righty Henderson Alvarez agreed to a $4MM deal with the Marlins, Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com reported earlier today on Twitter. Alvarez had been projected to earn $4.5MM after putting up a huge 187-inning, 2.65 ERA campaign entering his first season of arb eligibility.
- The Athletics have agreed to a $1.4MM deal with righty Ryan Cook that includes, MLB.com’s Jane Lee reports on Twitter. Cook gets a slight increase over the $1.3MM he had been projected to earn. Oakland has also inked outfielder Sam Fuld to a $1.75MM deal, per Mike Perchik of WAPT (via Twitter). He too lands just above his projection, which was for $1.6MM.
- Outfielder Collin Cowgill avoided arbitration with the Angels for $995K, MLB.com’s Alden Gonzalez tweets. He was projected to earn $900K.
- Righties David Carpenter and Nathan Eovaldi both have deals with the Yankees, Andy Martino of the New York Daily News reports on Twitter. Carpenter will earn about $1.3MM while Eovaldi will take home $3.3MM
- The Rockies have a deal in place with lefty Rex Brothers, tweets MLB.com’s Thomas Harding. Brothers was projected to earn $1.3MM but will take home $1.4MM, Harding adds via Twitter.
- ESPN Chicago’s Jesse Rogers reports that the Cubs have settled with both Travis Wood and Luis Valbuena (Twitter links). Wood will receive $5.686MM — a bit north of his $5.5MM projection, while Valbuena will earn $4.2MM, per Bruce Miles of the Daily Herald (on Twitter). Valbuena was projected to earn $3.1MM.
- Mike Perchick of WAPT in New Jersey has a wave of arbitration agreements, starting with the Astros and Hank Conger settling on a $1.075MM, which is just $25K behind Swartz’s projection (Twitter link).
- Also via Perchick, the Athletics and Brett Lawrie settled on a $1.925MM contract (Twitter links). Lawrie, who had been projected at $1.8MM, was acquired by Oakland in the Josh Donaldson blockbuster.
- Rockies backstop Michael McKenry will earn $1.0876MM in 2015, via Perchick. McKenry was projected by Swartz to earn $1.5MM.
- Michael Pineda and the Yankees settled on a $2.1MM salary for the upcoming season, Perchick tweets, which is a direct match with Swartz’s projection.
- Domonic Brown and the Phillies settled on a one-year pact worth $2.6MM, via Perchick, which represents a difference of just $100K between Swartz’s projection and the actual figure. Jim Salisbury of CSNPhilly.com tweets that Ben Revere has avoided arbitration as well, and the club now announces that he’ll earn $4.1MM — $100K north of his $4MM projection.
- Red Sox setup man Junichi Tazawa agreed to a $2.25MM payday, according to Perchick. Swartz had pegged him for a $2MM contract.