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Post-Draft Links: Aiken, Schwarber, Davidson, Verdugo

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The first day of the 2014 draft is complete, and as many expected, the Astros selected high school left-hander Brady Aiken with the No. 1 overall pick. The team is in no hurry to sign Aiken, however, the Houston Chronicle’s Evan Drellich reports (Twitter links). Still,the Astros are understandably excited about the player they drafted. “This is the most advanced high school pitcher I’ve ever seen in my entire career,” says GM Jeff Luhnow. “He has command like I’ve never seen before.”

Here’s more from the draft’s first day…

  • The Cubs turned some heads by selecting Indiana catcher/outfielder Kyle Schwarber with the fourth overall pick, but scouting director Jason McLeod told reporters that Schwarber was No. 2 on the team’s draft board all along. ESPN Chicago’s Jesse Rogers quotes McLeod (on Twitter) as saying that Schwarber trailed only Aiken on their board, though as the Chicago Sun Times’ Gordon Wittenmyer tweets, McLeod did acknowledge that the pick will save them some money. The Cubs are expecting him to sign quickly.
  • Braves top pick Braxton Davidson says he will sign rather than attending UNC, tweets David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Davidson’s slot — No. 32 overall — carries a $1.7054MM value, per Baseball America. I spoke with Davidson as part of MLBTR’s Draft Prospect Q&A series.
  • Chris Cotillo of MLB Daily Dish hears that the Dodgers and No. 62 overall pick Alex Verdugo already have an agreement in place, and the ASU commit will not be attending college (Twitter link). VP of amateur scouting Logan White tells MLB.com’s Ken Gurnick that Verdugo, a two-way prospect, will start as a center fielder and convert to pitching if he doesn’t hit well (Twitter link).
  • MLB.com’s Corey Brock spoke with Padres scouting director Billy Gasparino and got the impression that the team will shift its focus on jump on some arms tomorrow (Twitter link). San Diego drafted a pair of bats today in UNC shortstop Trea Turner and prep outfielder Michael Gettys.

Charlie Wilmoth contributed to this post.

Draft Notes: Negotiations, Mocks, Wall, White Sox, Twins, Padres

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As noted last night, the exchange of information between teams and draftee advisers is a widespread, critical component of the MLB amateur draft process. It is also, of course, one that takes place in something of a gray area, owing largely to the NCAA rules that threaten the amateur status of players who retain advisers. Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports has obtained and published an interesting memorandum sent by MLB to its member clubs, which was later forwarded by the MLBPA to certified agents, setting forth the rules by which parties are expected to engage one another. According to the memo, clubs cannot enter into pre-draft agreements or understandings. Teams are permitted to ask what a player would sign for, but cannot condition a selection on a promise that the player will accept a certain bonus. Likewise, advisers are forbidden from saying that a player has a deal with another club or threaten to do so if demands are not met. Passan calls the document “a farce,” writing that “both parties drawing up these rules ignore them fundamentally.”

Here’s the latest as the hours tick down to the draft, which is set to begin at 6:00 central time (with the Astros’ first overall pick expected to be made at 6:12 CST):

  • The MLB.com prospect team has published its latest mock draft, with both Jonathan Mayo and Jim Callis agreeing that Brady Aiken, Carlos Rodon, and Tyler Kolek will go 1-2-3. They disagree on the next choice, with Mayo tabbing catcher Kyle Schwarber to the Cubs and Callis predicting that Chicago will instead go with outfielder Michael Conforto. (Each prognosticator predicts just the opposite result with the Rockies’ in the eighth slot.)
  • In its latest iteration, the Baseball America mock largely concurs with MLB.com through pick eight, but begins to differ at that point.The biggest disconnect occurs at the tenth slot, where BA expects the Mets to take high school second baseman Forrest Wall. MLB.com sees Wall lasting until the Rangers select 30th overall, while noting that he could be nabbed by New York.
  • White Sox pitching coach Don Cooper says that he likes all four of the arms rated most highly by the team, including the three mentioned above along with Aaron Nola, but prefers Aiken, reports Dan Hayes of CSNChicago.com. “I liked them all,” said Cooper. “I liked the kid Aiken maybe the best. But a high school kid, that’s going to be a little longer. The closest to the big leagues Rodon and the second closest was Nola. It’s hard not to like the stuff coming out of the hand of Kolek. Those high school kids, there’s work to be done there.”
  • Expectation is building that the Twins will go with shortstop Nick Gordon at fifth overall, with Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN reporting (Twitter links) that the team has seen him more than any other. Indeed, two key team executives have watched him in action more than ten times apiece, says Wolfson.
  • The Padres are eyeing a position player with the 13th overall pick, likely from the college ranks, reports MLB.com’s Corey Brock. “We’ve tried to go back and get to know and see these college players more,” said scouting director Billy Gasparino. “We have been really aggressive with high school guys, but this year feels like a good college crop.” Of course, as Brock notes, the team’s ultimate direction remains very much dependent upon who goes before they are on the clock, and it would not be surprising to see the club add an arm.
  • If you haven’t already, remember to check out MLBTR’s Q&A sessions with top draft prospects Braxton Davidson, Aaron Nola, Jacob Gatewood, Michael Chavis, Nick Gordon, Nick Burdi, and Bradley Zimmer.

Draft Links: Padres, Ryan, Phillies, Jays

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The 2014 amateur draft is only three days away, so here’s the first batch of what will surely be a ton of draft-related items this week…

  • The Padres won’t draft Jeff Hoffman or Erick Fedde with the 13th overall pick, sources tell Jeff Sanders of the San Diego Union-Tribune.  Both college right-handers recently underwent Tommy John surgery and though the team “briefly kicked the idea around” of taking one of the highly-touted pitchers in hopes of a full recovery, the risk seemed too high at that point in the first round.  “We want to take someone who is healthy. There are too many good options on the board,” assistant GM Chad MacDonald said.
  • The Twins are likely to again focus on pitching in this draft, general manager Terry Ryan tells Jim Crikket of the Knuckleballs blog.  “We’ll draft a lot of pitching just because of the attrition. We need to make sure we have numbers and competition,” Ryan said.  “Actually the depth and some of the talent in our organization is starting to lean toward pitching….But we won’t have enough, so we’ll take a bunch more.”  This doesn’t necessarily mean that Minnesota will draft a pitcher with the fifth overall pick, as Ryan says the team is just focused on drafting the best possible player.  I’d recommend reading the entire interview, as Ryan also touches on such topics as his health and the Twins’ performance this season.
  • The Phillies could be altering their draft strategy of taking good athletes with high ceilings by instead opting for more proven players who are closer to making the majors, CSNPhilly.com’s Jim Salisbury writes as part of an interview with Phillies scouting director Marti Wolever.
  • Recent comments from Blue Jays GM Alex Anthopoulos hint that his team could also be taking a somewhat more cautious approach to their draft process, Sportsnet’s Shi Davidi reports.  “I’d say a big part of refining our process is maybe we’re starting to examine the level of risk we’re willing to take….It doesn’t mean we’ll be risk-averse, but maybe not take the same level of risk,” Anthopoulos told Sportsnet Magazine.  “We’re just trying to balance it out a little bit more as we’re going through it. That’s not to say we’re not looking for talent, upside, all that kind of stuff. We’re trying to balance it.”

Quick Hits: Lane, Francoeur, Rays, Astros

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Jason Lane is a former outfielder who’s now a pitcher, and Jeff Francoeur is an outfielder who occasionally pitches. Both of them are with the Padres’ Triple-A affiliate in El Paso, trying to get back to the Majors, Tyler Kepner of the New York Times reports. Lane, the former Astros outfielder, converted to pitching two years ago and is still working on it as a 37-year-old, posting a 4.36 ERA with 3.9 K/9 and 2.0 BB/9 in 64 innings so far this season. He also pinch-hits. Francoeur, who played for the Royals and Giants last season, is hitting .278/.309/.450 for the Chihuahuas and occasionally taking his turn as a reliever, appearing in six games on the mound so far this season. Kepner notes that Francoeur is “pitching for fun,” so presumably he won’t be looking for a similar role in the Majors. Also, he still has hope as an offensive player. “If I keep hitting like this, I’ve got a chance to go to the Futures Game!” he says. Here are more notes from around the big leagues.

  • At 23-34, the Rays’ season hasn’t gone as planned, but owner Stuart Sternberg isn’t ready to throw in the towel just yet, Bill Chastain of MLB.com writes. Sternberg certainly isn’t ready to commit to selling at the trade deadline — not that there’s much urgency on that front at this point. “[I]f you think you’re in striking distance, and more importantly, if you have confidence in the guys here that they’ve got a good stretch of baseball in them, in a week or two, you look back and you could be in a different position,” he says.
  • Astros GM Jeff Luhnow is pleased with the results of a recent trip to Japan with pro scouting coordinator Kevin Goldstein, writes MLB.com’s Brian McTaggart. Luhnow and Goldstein met with Japanese teams and interviewed candidates for a scouting position in Japan. “[W]e really felt like this is an important first step for us in re-engaging our activity in Japan and hopefully, eventually signing some good Japanese players,” says Luhnow, who says one motivation for the trip was that the Yankees had a scout watching all of Masahiro Tanaka’s starts in Tanaka’s last two years in Japan.

Minor Moves: Korecky, Simunic, Reineke, Overbeck

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Here are Sunday’s minor moves from around MLB:

  • Pitcher Bobby Korecky has cleared optional waivers and remains on the Blue Jays’ 40-man roster, Brendan Kennedy of the Toronto Star tweets. The Blue Jays designated Korecky for assignment on Friday. He is headed to Triple-A Buffalo. Korecky appeared in just one game for Toronto this year and has spent most of the year with Buffalo, posting an 0.29 ERA with 9.3 K/9 and 2.3 BB/9 in 31 innings there.
  • Outfielder Andy Simunic has been released from the Astros’ Triple-A affiliate, per the Pacific Coast League’s transaction page. The 28-year-old, Houston’s 17th-round selection in 2008, batted .263/.333/.347 in 106 plate appearances (30 games) for Oklahoma City. Simunic, who tore the ligament in his right elbow pitching in a blowout loss last year (his recovery was chronicled recently by Evan Drellich of the Houston Chronicle), slashed .276/.358/.340 during his seven-year minor league career, all spent in the Astros’ organization. 
  • Right-hander Chad Reineke has been released from the Reds’ Triple-A affiliate, per the International League transactions page. The 32-year-old made 11 appearances (four starts) for Louisville compiling a 9.20 ERA, 5.6 K/9, and 4.2 BB/9 in 30 1/3 innings of work. Reineke last pitched in a MLB game in 2011 for Cincinnati.
  • The Padres have announced they have signed first baseman Cody Overbeck to a minor league deal. Overbeck, a 2009 ninth-round selection of the Phillies, was playing for the Bridgeport Bluefish of the independent Atlantic League where he posted a slash of .276/.326/.528 in 132 plate appearances through 32 games. 
  • Per MLBTR’s DFA Tracker, there are four players in DFA limbo: Vin Mazzaro (Pirates), Blake Wood (Indians), Jeremy Horst (Phillies) and Wade LeBlanc (Angels).

Charlie Wilmoth contributed to this post.

Minor Moves: Ramirez, Ayala, Adams, Simmons

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Here are today’s minor moves from around baseball.

  • The Orioles have agreed to terms with pitcher Ramon Ramirez, MASNsports.com’s Steve Melewski tweets. Ramirez will report to Sarasota before heading to Triple-A Norfolk. Ramirez had previously made four appearances this year for the Mariners’ Triple-A affiliate in Tacoma. He played sparingly for the Giants last season and spent most of the year at Triple-A Fresno, where he had a 3.46 ERA with 10.7 K/9 and 4.5 BB/9. In addition to that of the Giants, the righty has also pitched out of the Rockies, Royals, Red Sox and Mets bullpens.
  • Reliever Luis Ayala is opting out of his minor-league deal with the Orioles, MLB Daily Dish’s Chris Cotillo tweets. Ayala pitched 5 1/3 innings for Double-A Bowie, striking out five and walking two while allowing three runs. He pitched for the Braves and Orioles in 2013, posting a 2.90 ERA with 5.8 K/9 and 3.8 BB/9 in 31 innings.
  • Outfielder Brian Adams, the Padres’ eighth-round pick in the 2012 draft, has retired, MLB.com’s Corey Brock tweets. In 410 career plate appearances at the Class A level, Adams hit .219/.262/.356. Brock notes that Adams will go back to the University of Kentucky to finish his degree.
  • The Braves have announced that they’ve purchased the contract of pitcher Shae Simmons from Double-A Mississippi and optioned pitcher Ian Thomas to Triple-A Gwinnett. Simmons, 23, shined at Double-A, posting an ERA of 0.78 to go with 11.7 K/9 and 2.3 BB/9.
  • The Marlins have signed 18-year-old Colombian pitcher Cristian Olmos, Joe Frisaro and Maria Torres of MLB.com write. Olmos is 6-foot-2 and 180 pounds, and he throws as hard as 94 MPH and has the makings of a good curveball. He will start the season in the Dominican Summer League.

NL West Notes: Withrow, Black, Billingsley, Romak, Rockies

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Yet another name can be added to the long list of Tommy John victims this season, as Bill Shaikin of the L.A. Times tweets that Dodgers right-hander Chris Withrow has been diagnosed with a torn ulnar collateral ligament, and Tommy John is, unsurprisingly, the recommended treatment. The 25-year-old Withrow had a 2.95 ERA in 21 1/3 innings for the Dodgers this season, averaging 11.8 K/9 but also an unsightly 7.6 BB/9. His loss only further depletes a Dodger bullpen that entered Thursday with just the 22nd-ranked bullpen ERA in the Majors at 4.03. More from the NL West…

  • MLB.com’s Barry M. Bloom looks at what a stabilizing force manager Bud Black has been on the Padres since assuming the role in 2007. Bloom asked Black if his team being in a constant state of rebuilding or recovering from overwhelming injuries is taxing, to which Black replied: “It makes it tough in the short term. You hope you have some players who do find their way and become successful Major Leaguers. I mean, all of us want to win whether you’re in New York, L.A., Detroit or Texas.” As Bloom notes, Black has been a constant through three ownership groups, three GMs and multiple club presidents.
  • Dodgers right-hander Chad Billingsley is on the comeback trail from Tommy John surgery and took a positive step in his recovery by throwing a 30-pitch simulated game today, writes MLB.com’s Earl Bloom. Manager Don Mattingly said Billingsley could either have one more simulated game or head right to a minor league rehab assignment, depending on how his arm reacts to today’s work. Billingsley’s rehab is worth keeping an eye on, as he has a $14MM club option ($3MM buyout) and could be an interesting free agent if that option isn’t exercised.
  • It’s been a long road to the Majors for Dodgers outfielder Jamie Romak, writes Dylan Hernandez of the L.A. Times. Romak, who is in his 12th minor league season since being drafted in the eighth round by the Braves back in 2003, was called up to replace Carl Crawford on the active roster when Crawford hit the DL. He called the promotion a “dream come true.”
  • Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post wrote earlier in the week that the Rockies need to take action by promoting some of their highly touted Double-A Tulsa right-handers. Saunders wrote that the “Tulsa Trio” — Eddie Butler, Jon Gray and Daniel Winkler — are all near-MLB-ready and should be leveraged to give the Rox a shot at their first NL West title. He opines that the offense is good enough to win the division if the team can improve its 4.09 rotation ERA. Manager Walt Weiss told Saunders that when it comes to Butler “the development is behind him,” and he doesn’t have much to prove in the minor leagues.

Padres Acquire Ronald Herrera To Complete Kyle Blanks Trade

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The Athletics announced (on Twitter) that they have traded right-hander Ronald Herrera to the Padres as the player to be named later in the Kyle Blanks trade. That deal, which was reached on May 15 this month, also sent outfielder Jake Goebbert to San Diego.

Herrera, 19, has spent the season in the rotation for Oakland’s Class-A affiliate in Beloit, pitching to a 3.38 ERA with 6.2 K/9 and 1.8 BB/9 in 50 2/3 innings of work. The Venezuelan hurler ranked 16th in the A’s farm system, according to MLB.com. Baseball America ranked Herrera 17th among A’s prospects prior to the 2014 campaign.

The A’s signed Herrera for just $20K out of Venezuela back in 2011 (as MLB.com’s Jonathan Mayo notes in his free scouting report on Herrera). Mayo writes that Herrera is exceptionally polished for his age and features three pitches, including a fastball that touches 94 mph despite his small frame (he is listed at 5’10” and 168 pounds). Mayo also writes that Herrera’s changeup shows more promise than his curveball, and his fastball features some nice sink. Baseball America agreed in their 2014 Prospect Handbook, noting that Herrera has outstanding command and “has the makings of a solid big league starter” down the line.

Minor Moves: Ramirez, Brach, Newby, Buckner, Boyer, Lo

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We’ll keep tabs on the day’s minor moves right here …

  • The Royals have signed catcher Max Ramirez to a minor league deal, reports Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com (via Twitter). Ramirez, 29, was once a top-100 prospect with the Rangers, but has only seen 140 career MLB plate appearances (all with Texas). He was the primary backstop for the Royals’ Triple-A affiliate from 2012-13, but posted an interesting .192/.382/.192 line in 68 plate appearance with the Reds’ top farm club this year before hitting the open market.
  • Two Somerset Patriots right-handers have been signed away to affiliated ball on minor league pacts, tweets Mike Ashmore of MyCentralJersey.com. Brett Brach has signed with the Nationals, while Kyler Newby will join the Angels. Brach, 26, had spent his career in the Indians organization, briefly reaching the Triple-A level. The 29-year-old Newby, who has spent ten seasons in the minors and owns a lifetime 9.9 K/9 against 3.3 BB/9, threw to a 2.70 ERA in 60 innings split between Double-A and Triple-A in the Athletics organization last year.
  • Billy Buckner and Blaine Boyer have each accepted assignments with the Padres’ Triple-A affiliate, Jeff Sanders of the San Diego Union-Tribune reports on Twitter. The pair of righties was designated for assignment (and, it turns out, exposed to outright waivers) on Sunday, in conjunction with a series of roster moves relating to the team’s acquisition of lefty Troy Patton.
  • The Astros have released righty Chia-Jen Lo, according to the PCL transactions page. The 28-year-old Taiwanese native tossed 19 1/3 big league innings and even notched two saves last year for Houston. He worked to a 4.19 ERA with 7.4 K/9 against 6.1 BB/9. Lo, who was outrighted off of the club’s 40-man early this season, had struggled to a 4.74 ERA in 19 Triple-A innings in 2014, getting hit hard while striking out 8.1 and walking 5.7 batters per nine.
  • MLBTR’s DFA Tracker shows several players in DFA limbo, with Blake Wood of the Indians joining Phil Irwin, Wandy Rodriguez, and Vin Mazzaro of the Pirates.

Rosenthal’s Latest: Royals, Collins, Padres, Rangers, Hardy, Amaro

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In his latest notes column for FOX Sports, Ken Rosenthal wonders just how long the Royals can stand behind GM Dayton Moore and manager Ned Yost given the team’s struggles to this point in the season. Moore called Yost a “consistent leader” when he spoke with Rosenthal and added that the team is only a hot streak or two away from a turnaround. Rosenthal writes that the entire team seems “too comfortable, waiting for a surge that might never come.” More from his column below…

  • On the other hand, Rosenthal doesn’t feel it’d be justified for the Mets to fire manager Terry Collins. Collins hasn’t been afforded the same talent that Yost has, he opines, and his front office has made some questionable decisions behind him regarding the bullpen and the underperforming crop of free agents the team brought in. He notes the team’s sparse spending despite their market, adding that it seems unlikely that Bud Selig would ever confront owner Fred Wilpon, with whom he is close friends.
  • Similarly, the Padres should hang onto skipper Bud Black, Rosenthal proclaims. Recent reports have indicated that he may be on the hot seat. Padres ownership too often has worried about alienating fans with personnel decisions, as they did when they neglected to trade Chase Headley after his 2012 season. Black is a highly regarded manager who has seen six of his pitchers hit the disabled list this season, though even Rosenthal admits that the offense’s follies have been virtually inexplicable.
  • The Rangers’ glut of middle infield depth could lead them to field trade offers for Elvis Andrus this summer. With Jurickson Profar, Rougned Odor and Luis Sardinas all representing possible starting-caliber infielders, Texas does appear to have a surplus. I, personally, would imagine that each of those players could hear his name circulating on the rumor mill in two months’ time.
  • One agent who isn’t affiliated with J.J. Hardy or Derek Jeter suggested to Rosenthal recently that he thought the former would be the latter’s successor with the Yankees. Hardy has a low-maintenance personality, steady glove and experience in the AL East.
  • As has been reported previously, the Astros tried to acquire Collin McHugh last summer when the Mets dealt him to the Rockies, but Rosenthal adds more light on the situation. The team’s scouting department felt McHugh was little more than a long reliever, but the team’s statistical analysts pushed hard for McHugh based on trends they’d seen dating all the way back to his minor league days in 2011. The Astros, of course, claimed McHugh off waivers from Colorado, and he’s cemented himself in their rotation. GM Jeff Luhnow said over the weekend he has no plans to trade McHugh or breakout lefty Dallas Keuchel.
  • Though Kendrys Morales could be a perfect fit for the Mariners’ offensive woes, rival executives say that the team is still showing the same payroll concerns that caused them to largely shut down spending after the signing of Robinson Cano this winter.
  • Phillies GM Ruben Amaro Jr. called the possibility of trading Chase Utley a “moot point,” noting Utley’s no-trade protection and desire to remain in Philadelphia. Perhaps of greater interest (and perhaps to the dismay) of Phillies fans, is the following quote from Amaro: “I don’t know if we’ll completely ’sell’ ever. We can revamp, but we can’t completely sell out. We have to have a contending team in 2015 or ’16 — or at least a competitive team.”
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