NL West Notes: Withrow, Black, Billingsley, Romak, Rockies
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
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
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
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.”
Quick Hits: Blanks, Despaigne, Collins, Syndergaard
Monday was Kyle Blanks‘ first home game as a member of the Athletics, perhaps finally ending a very long stretch of suitcase living, Joe Stiglich of CSNBayArea.com writes. When Blanks was playing for Triple-A El Paso at the start of the season, there was construction at El Paso’s stadium, so the team played on the road. Then he got promoted to the Padres, where he lived in a hotel. Then he got traded to the A’s right at the beginning of a road trip to Cleveland, Tampa and Toronto. “In El Paso, we were on the road for 25 days and then came home,” Blanks says. “Then I went up to San Diego, so I’ve been everywhere. I’m just trying to decompress and take a deep breath.” Here are more notes from around the big leagues.
- The Padres have promoted Cuban pitcher Odrisamer Despaigne, who they signed in early May, to Triple-A El Paso, according to MiLB.com. Despaigne was impressive in two starts for Double-A San Antonio, posting a 1.17 ERA while striking out 12 batters and walking five in 7 2/3 innings.
- Despite the Mets‘ recent release of Jose Valverde and firing of hitting coach Dave Hudgens, manager Terry Collins is “in no danger,” Andy Martino of the New York Daily News tweets. Collins received a two-year extension at the end of last season.
- Mets top prospect Noah Syndergaard has been placed on the disabled list with an elbow injury, Adam Rubin of ESPN New York notes. The Mets say they believe the injury is “mild,” but Syndergaard is headed to New York for further examination. Syndergaard, 21, was a key part of the R.A. Dickey trade following the 2012 season. He currently has a 4.02 ERA with 9.6 K/9 and 3.2 BB/9 in 53 2/3 innings for Triple-A Las Vegas.
NL Notes: Taveras, Cardinals, Padres, Davis
The Cardinals are currently determining how to find big-league playing time for top outfield prospect Oscar Taveras, Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch writes. “I actually think from a baseball standpoint he could play in the big leagues,” says GM John Mozeliak. “But we’ve got to determine playing time up here with the current roster. Are we at a point where we’re willing to take away at-bats from the current roster and give them to somebody else?” If the Cardinals were to promote Taveras to play regularly, they would have less playing time for some combination of Allen Craig, Matt Adams, Peter Bourjos and Jon Jay. Taveras is currently hitting .319/.369/.527 in 198 plate appearances for Triple-A Memphis. Here are more notes from the National League.
- While the Cardinals don’t have playing time for their Triple-A outfield talent right now, Strauss writes that they simply don’t have as much Triple-A pitching talent as they’ve had in recent years. Of course, that’s mostly because they’ve graduated so many talented pitchers in the past few seasons, including Michael Wacha, Shelby Miller, Carlos Martinez, Trevor Rosenthal, Kevin Siegrist, and Seth Maness. If the Cardinals want to add another strong pitching option this season, Strauss argues, they’ll have to do it via a trade.
- There are rumors that the Padres could fire manager Bud Black, but Tom Krasovic of the San Diego Union-Tribune suggests that it might be worth remembering GM Josh Byrnes’ history firing his manager when he was the GM of the Diamondbacks. In 2009, Byrnes fired Bob Melvin and replaced him with A.J. Hinch. Melvin had a terrific third act as manager of the Athletics, and both Byrnes and Hinch were fired a little more than a year later. Like Byrnes, Hinch is now in the Padres’ front office.
- Now that first baseman Ike Davis is hitting, life with the Pirates is different than it was with the Mets, MLB.com’s Tim Healey reports. “Going to get coffee, I don’t get hitting tips,” says Davis. “I don’t know if that’s a good or bad thing. But I don’t need to think about my stance at 9 in the morning.” Davis is back in New York as the Pirates play at Citi Field this week.
Padres Designate Buckner, Boyer For Assignment
The Padres announced on Twitter they have designated right-handers Billy Buckner and Blaine Boyer for assignment. The Padres needed to clear roster space for left-lander Troy Patton, who was acquired from the Orioles yesterday for catcher Nick Hundley. San Diego also recalled first baseman/outfielder Tommy Medica.
Buckner’s stint as a Padre was extremely short – less than one day. He was added to the roster yesterday to start against the Cubs and tossed 5 2/3 innings allowing three runs on six hits with four strikeouts and four walks.
Boyer also wasn’t long for San Diego as he had his contract selected just this past Thursday and made his first MLB appearance in three years that same night tossing two scoreless innings of relief against the Cubs.
Manager Bud Black said the club would like to keep both players and have them pitch for Triple-A El Paso, reports MLB.com’s Corey Brock. The Padres now have ten days to either trade, release, or outright the pair.
Quick Hits: Indians, Hundley, Utley, Drew
Scott Atchison says he isn’t bothered by being in a closer-by-committee with the Cody Allen, Bryan Shaw, and Marc Rzepczynski, writes Paul Hoynes of the Plain Dealer. “I think everyone has handled it well, while still being ready to pitch whenever we’re needed in the game,” the Indians reliever said. “We all understood that if we think the right guy for the big outs is in the seventh, then we’re going to put that guy in and worry about the ninth when we get to the ninth. I think we’ve done well with it and it hasn’t disrupted our bullpen a whole lot.” More from around baseball..
- Catcher Nick Hundley told reporters this morning that if he had to be traded, he’s glad he ended up with the Orioles, tweets Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com. He spoke highly of the O’s, mentioning their winning atmosphere and “storied manager” in Buck Showalter.
- Hundley will be missed in the Padres clubhouse, writes Dennis Lin of the Union-Tribune. “Nick has such a great heart and was a great Padre,” said manager Bud Black. “He was truly on board from a team aspect. That was a tough one.“
- If the Phillies are selling, they would consider dealing Cliff Lee (if healthy), Jimmy Rollins, Marlon Byrd, Carlos Ruiz, Jonathan Papelbon, and others, but there’s no evidence that they’re willing to move Chase Utley, writes Jim Salisbury of CSNPhilly.com. The Phillies, he points out, signed Utley to a multi-year contract extension last summer with the intention of keeping him to lead a transitioning roster.
- While Stephen Drew may not be a middle-of-the-order threat or Gold Glove defender, he brings some very necessary attributes to the Red Sox, writes John Tomase of the Boston Herald. The Red Sox won just ten of their first 28 games against right-handed starters and Drew should help balance things out in that regard.
Showalter On The Troy Patton / Nick Hundley Deal
Earlier today, the Orioles sent lefty reliever Troy Patton to the Padres for catcher Nick Hundley and cash. Orioles manager Buck Showalter says Matt Wieters‘ health was the driving force behind the deal, Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com reports. The team is still waiting to determine whether Wieters will need season-ending elbow surgery.
“We still hope Matt doesn’t need anything,” Showalter says, but adds that the team needs brace itself for the worst. “You’ve always got to prepare for what-if.”
With Wieters on the disabled list, the Orioles had been using Steve Clevenger and 27-year-old rookie Caleb Joseph behind the plate. “We think Caleb and Steve have done a capable job. We like Brian Ward down below. He’s having a good year. And [prospect Michael] Ohlman is learning his trade,” Showalter says. “But [the Padres] had a surplus there.”
The Padres had three catchers in Yasmani Grandal, Rene Rivera and Hundley, plus a catching prospect at Double-A in Austin Hedges, so they had plenty of depth from which to deal. Patton gives them another bullpen lefty to pair with Alex Torres.
Showalter says he’s sad to see Patton go. “Troy did a lot of good things for us here. It’s kind of tough parting with someone you’ve been around that long. A good teammate, good friend to a lot of guys, but there’s a need that, him being wanted somewhere, could potentially serve.”
Padres, Orioles Swap Troy Patton, Nick Hundley
The Orioles have announced the trade of lefty reliever Troy Patton to the Padres for catcher Nick Hundley and cash considerations. (MLB.com’s Corey Brock tweets that the Orioles will receive under $2MM.) The Orioles also promoted Steve Lombardozzi from Triple-A Norfolk.
With Matt Wieters on the disabled list, the O’s were playing Steve Clevenger and Caleb Joseph behind the dish. They had been rumored to be shopping Patton for another option at catcher.
Patton, 28, has struggled in nine outings so far this season and has already served a 25-game suspension for Adderall use, but he was a reliable contributor for the Orioles from 2011 through 2013, and he has a 3.28 career ERA with 7.1 K/9 and 2.3 BB/9. He is making $1.28MM this season in his second year of arbitration eligibility as a Super Two player.
Hundley, 30, hit .271/.271/.373 in 59 plate appearances for the Padres this season. In his absence, the Padres will go with Yasmani Grandal and Rene Rivera at catcher. Hundley got 408 plate appearances in 2013, hitting .233/.290/.389. He is in the last year of a three-year, $9MM deal that pays him $4MM in 2014, which likely partially explains why the Orioles are receiving cash in the trade. Hundley’s contract also contains a $5MM option for 2015, with no buyout.