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Padres Outright Sean O’Sullivan

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Here are Friday's minor moves from around the league…

Minor Moves: Arturo Lopez

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Here are Wednesday's minor moves from around the league…

  • The Padres have acquired left-hander Arturo Lopez from the Mexican League's Diablos Rojos del Mexico, according to the Pacific Coast League transactions page. Lopez has reported to Triple-A Tucson. The 30-year-old Lopez has been in the Mexican League for the past three seasons but spent parts of five seasons with the Padres organization previously. He earned a call-up in 2009 but allowed five runs in 2 1/3 innings. In 85 innings for los Diablos this season, Lopez had a 3.50 ERA with 8.3 K/9 and 3.6 BB/9, though he did allow more hits than innings pitched.
  • As can be seen in MLBTR's new DFA Tracker, three players are in DFA limbo: Sean O'Sullivan of the Padres, Wade LeBlanc of the Astros and Jeff Francoeur of the Giants.

Quick Hits: Morneau, Matsuzaka, Red Sox, Padres

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We'll round out the evening with some links from around baseball:

  • With a big night at the plate putting an exclamation point on his torrid run over August, Twins first baseman Justin Morneau is drawing increased attention on the trade market, 1500ESPN.com's Darren Wolfson reports on Twitter. According to a source, the resurgent Yankees are "back in" on Morneau, which could also increase the pressure on the Orioles to make a move on the veteran slugger. The Yanks are now just one game back of Baltimore, though both clubs have significant ground to gain in both the AL East and Wild Card hunt.
  • Recently-released pitcher Daisuke Matsuzaka expects to link up with a new team shortly with the hopes of returning to the big leagues, tweets Scott Miller of CBSSports.com. In a series of tweets, Miller quotes Indians GM Chris Antonetti: "We didn't have an immediate opportunity. Dice-K was throwing well in Triple-A and thought he may have a better opportunity." 
  • One team that will not be in on Matsuzaka is the Brewers, reports Adam McCalvy of MLB.com. GM Doug Melvin did say that Dice-K's agent, Scott Boras, had reached out to Milwaukee. "I told Boras I didn't have a spot for him," said Melvin. "We already have six starters for September."
  • Looking ahead at the first base position for the Red Sox in 2014, Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe says he expects the club to "stay in-house" rather than chasing a new player such as Jose Dariel Abreu. Cafardo opines that the club is most likely to shift Will Middlebrooks to first or employ a platoon of Daniel Nava and Mike Carp. Cafardo finds it less likely that Mike Napoli will be re-signed, but says a big September could lead the club in that direction.
  • Mike Dee, the new president and CEO of the Padres, says that the club is poised to "invest more in the team moving forward," reports MLB.com's AJ Cassavell. Emphasizing that dealing with the team's less-than-perfect TV situation will be "a priority," Dee said that the baseball operations focus will be "to draft well and to develop [the team's] own talent." For his part, GM Josh Byrnes explained that more money did not just mean more big league spending: "Payroll is certainly part of it. But it's also investment spending, whether it's player development, medical or the international side; anything that we can do to give ourselves a better chance to produce talent."

Placed On Waivers: Chase Headley

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We'll keep tabs on any notable players hitting the revocable waiver wire right here …

  • The Padres have placed third baseman Chase Headley on waivers, reports Jon Heyman of CBS Sports (on Twitter). One of last year's biggest breakout players, Headley has been the subject of repeated trade and extension rumors. He is playing on a $8.575MM contract this year, just under $2MM of which still remains to be paid, and will enter his final year of arbitration eligibility next season. Thus far in 2013, Headley has failed to live up to his big 2012 campaign. After missing time early in the year due to injury, Headley has managed only a .237/.328/.368 line in his 472 plate appearances to date. Nevertheless, the 29-year-old figures to appeal to a variety of clubs, though the Padres would surely require a substantial return to let him go.

For a reminder on how revocable trade waivers and August trades work, check out MLBTR's August trades primer.

Padres Designate Sean O’Sullivan For Assignment

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The Padres announced on Twitter that they have designated right-hander Sean O'Sullivan for assignment to clear a roster spot for fellow righty Brad Boxberger, who will be recalled from Triple-A Tucson.

O'Sullivan, 25, signed a minor league contract with the Friars this offseason after the Blue Jays released him last November. The right-hander was drafted by the Angels and traded to the Royals along with Will Smith in exchange for Alberto Callaspo. Toronto later acquired him from Kansas City for cash considerations.

O'Sullivan posted a 3.96 ERA in 25 innings with the Padres this season but walked more batters (14) than he struck out (12) in the process. In 218 2/3 Major League innings, the San Diego native has a 5.89 ERA with 4.2 K/9, 3.6 BB/9 and a 40.1 percent ground-ball rate.

Minor Moves: Nakajima, Robinson, Hayes

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Today's minor moves from around the league…

  • The Athletics have outrighted Hiroyuki Nakajima off their 40-man roster, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle tweets.  Nakajima will remain with Triple-A Sacramento, where he has spent the entire season.  The Japanese infielder signed a two-year, $6.5MM deal with Oakland in December and posted a .282/.336/.368 line in 324 minor league plate appearances.
  • The Padres purchased the contract of catcher Chris Robinson from Triple-A Tucson, the team announced.  In corresponding moves, Nick Hundley was put on the paternity list and Jason Marquis was transferred to the 60-day DL.  Robinson, 29, was dealt from Baltimore to San Diego in June.  The London, Ontario native was a third-round pick of the Tigers in the 2005 draft and has a .275/.320/.355 line in 2326 PA over nine minor league seasons.
  • The Royals have outrighted catcher Brett Hayes to Triple-A Omaha, according to the Pacific Coast League transactions page. Hayes, 29, was designated for assignment after appearing in just three big league games for Kansas City this season. He's batted .231/.280/.441 in 68 Triple-A contests and is a career .219/.366/.364 hitter in 146 games at the Major League level — all of which came with the Marlins prior to his brief stint with the Royals.
  • With Hayes having been outrighted, just two players are currently in DFA limbo: Ryan Roberts of the Rays and Elliot Johnson of the Royals. Both were designated for assignment yesterday.

NL West Notes: Betancourt, Fowler, Headley

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The Rockies (57-65) and Padres (54-67) are playing out the string on the 2013 season and already looking ahead to 2014.  Here's the latest from these two NL West clubs…

  • Rafael Betancourt is set to come off the disabled list and Troy Renck of the Denver Post (Twitter link) speculates that the Rockies could put Betancourt on waivers to gauge trade interest in the closer.  Colorado and Betancourt have a $4.25MM mutual option for 2014 and through the 38-year-old has two separate stints on the DL this year, he has still pitched effectively.  With a younger and cheaper closing option in Rex Brothers, however, the Rockies may want to make a change.
  • Dexter Fowler should be made available on the trade market this winter, The Denver Post's Mark Kiszla opines.  Fowler is hitting .268/.376/.428 with 12 homers, 67 runs scored and 18 steals in 430 PA, and has spent time on the DL with hand and wrist injuries.  As Kiszla notes, the Rockies shopped Fowler last offseason but didn't find any takers after asking for a big return.  Fowler signed a two-year, $11.6MM deal with Colorado in February and the 27-year-old still has one final year of arbitration eligibility following the 2014 season.
  • Chase Headley's disappointing season has left the Padres with a bit of a conundrum this winter, Bill Center of the San Diego Union-Tribune writes.  Rumors have been rampant over the last year that the Padres would either sign Headley to a long-term extension or trade him, though the Padres would be selling low if the moved Headley now.  Center speculates that the Padres might try to lock Headley up to a bargain of an extension and then re-explore the trade market if he returns to form next season.
  • Also from Center, he notes as part of his weekly Padres chat that he expects the Padres actively pursue trades this winter.  Center sees the Friars offering packages of a young pitcher and a position player, and says the club will certainly pursue corner outfield help.  Third base could also be a possibility given Headley's situation.

Quick Hits: A-Rod, Desmond, Padres, Zimmermann

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Alex Rodriguez's public battle with the Yankees took another turn today when the slugger denied a report that the club intends to fine him a day's pay for conduct during his recent rehab assignment. According to ESPNNewYork.com's Andrew Marchand, a hand-delivered letter written by Yankees GM Brian Cashman informed A-Rod that the club plans to punish him for seeking a second opinion on his quadriceps injury and also for failing to appear at Yankee Stadium last month after meeting with MLB officials to discuss the Biogenesis investigation. In an article by Bryan Hoch and Josh Vitale of MLB.com, however, A-Rod denied receiving the letter. "Maybe they sent it to my lawyers," Rodriguez said. "But I'm not really going to talk about that." More Saturday night MLB links…

  • Neither Ian Desmond nor Jordan Zimmermann appear close to contract extensions with the Nationals, Bill Ladson of MLB.com reports. Zimmermann, 27, said his camp and the Nationals broached the subject in the offseason but didn't come close to an agreement. "I'm not going to give a huge team discount," Zimmermann warned. "Just something fair is all I ask."Meanwhile, Desmond recognizes that he has two years of arbitration remaining and doesn't appear to be in a hurry to put together a deal, according to Ladson.
  • Everth Cabrera's recent suspension has reinforced the fact that the Padres' farm system is thin on shortstop talent, Jeff Sanders of the San Diego Union-Tribune says. “You’d like to have a shortstop at every level that you feel is a prospect – has a chance to be an everyday guy,” assistant GM Chad MacDonald said. However, as Sanders notes, the club's best prospects at the position remain in the lower minors. For now, former first-round pick Logan Forsythe figures to get an extended look at short for the Friars.
  • Astros top prospect George Springer may finish the season at Triple-A, Brian McTaggart and Chris Abshire of MLB.com say. Springer, 23, is hitting .303/.410/.597 with 38 stolen bases across stops at Double-A and Triple-A this season. However, Astros manager Bo Porter didn't give any indication of when Springer might be called up to the major league club when discussing the outfielder today.
  • Will Middlebrooks was called up to man third base for the Red Sox because he has more experience at the hot corner than Xander Bogaerts, Scott McLaughlin of WEEI.com reports. Many speculated that Bogaerts, who's hit .300/.392/.487 in 481 minor league plate appearances this season, would get the call, but manager John Farrell says the team prefers that he continue to take reps at third in the minors. The Sox want Bogaerts to be ready in case Middlebrooks struggles or hits the disabled list, according to McLaughlin.

NL West Notes: Mattingly, Cabrera, Young Jr.

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The red-hot Dodgers suffered just their third loss of the second half last night and have expanded their lead on the NL West to five games over the second-place Diamondbacks. Here's the latest out of the division…

  • It's easy to forget what a dreadful situation the Dodgers were in just two short months ago, but manager Don Mattingly offered a reminder when speaking to reporters, including Danny Knobler of CBS Sports. Mattingly said that team president Stan Kasten approached him and told him that they would have to let him go if things didn't turn around. There was plenty of speculation back in May regarding Mattingly's job security, but this is the first that either side has acknowledged how close he may have come to getting fired.
  • Suspended Padres shortstop Everth Cabrera gave an emotional, bilingual speech to his teammates, apologizing to them behind closed doors prior to Monday's game, writes MLB.com's Jamal Collier. Collier adds that Cabrera took a banned substance in the spring of 2012 to help heal a shoulder injury at the advice of former ACES employee Juan Nunez  – the same employee who was reportedly behind Melky Cabrera's web site scandal.
  • Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post writes that former Rockies outfielder Eric Young Jr. has no ill feelings towards Colorado after being traded to the Mets earlier this season. "I’m more appreciative they made the move they did, because I wouldn’t be in this situation if they didn’t," Young told reporters on Tuesday. Young has been outstanding with the Mets, hitting .270/.350/.362 with a home run (of the walk-off variety) and 15 steals in 19 attempts.

Looking At Everth Cabrera’s Suspension

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Earlier today, Padres shortstop Everth Cabrera was one of 12 players to accept a 50-game suspension for his involvement with the Biogenesis PED investigation. The Padres have exactly 50 games remaining this season, so they will lose their 26-year-old shortstop for the remainder of the 2013 campaign. The Padres issued the following statement on the Biogenesis suspensions:

“The Padres fully support Major League Baseball's policy and its efforts to eliminate performance-enhancing drugs from our game. The club will continue to stand behind the Commissioner’s Office to ensure the integrity of baseball.”

Cabrera is in the midst of the finest season of his career, hitting .283/.355/.381 with four homers and an NL-best 37 stolen bases. That stolen base lead comes in spite of a trip to the 15-day DL earlier this season and comes on the heels of his league-leading 44 swipes in 2012 (despite playing just 115 games). 

How does the suspension impact Cabrera's future, though? The Nicaragua native is earning $1.275MM this season after his first venture into arbitration in the 2012-13 offseason. As such, the financial penalty for Cabrera isn't nearly as steep as it is for other players. He'll lose roughly $383K in salary this year as a result of his suspension.

Because he's still going year-to-year through arbitration, however, Cabrera's suspension carries major financial implications for his future. The arbitration process heavily rewards counting statistics, and Cabrera will lose nearly one-third of his opportunities to accumulate those precious stats because of this discipline. MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz now projects Cabrera to earn $2.2MM in 2014. Swartz had originally projected Cabrera to earn $2.9MM next season, assuming he would have lived up to his ZiPS rest-of-season projection and finished with a .276 average, five homers, 42 RBIs and 50 stolen bases. All in all, this suspension figures to cost Cabrera roughly $1.083MM in salary from 2013-14 — no small sum for a player who has earned less than $2MM to date throughout his big league career.

The financial implications may not stop there, either. Cabrera entered the season with two years, 144 days of service time. Numerous shortstops — some of whom are solid comparables for Cabrera — have inked long-term deals at this point in their careers. As MLBTR's Extension Tracker shows, Elvis Andrus (three years, $14.4MM) and Alcides Escobar (four years, $10.5MM) signed long-term deals with between two and three years of service time. When I asked Padres GM Josh Byrnes how this disciplinary measure would impact the club's thoughts regarding a long-term deal for Cabrera on a conference call this afternoon, he offered the following response:

"Well, a lot of players over time have been disciplined. I think we'll know a few more facts as we go. You know, we control him for a few more years through the arbitration process. I think we'll sort of evaluate as we go, but I wouldn't foresee a long-term deal until we know more."

It will be interesting to see how the Padres handle Cabrera going forward. It's also worth noting that Cabrera isn't the only young Padres player to serve a suspension in the past year. Yasmani Grandal was suspended for 50 games following the 2012 season and later connected to the Biogenesis clinic. He missed the first 50 games of 2013 but was not disciplined further, as MLB ruled that he had already served his punishment with that previous suspension. Fautino De Los Santos, however, was also one of the 12 players earlier today who accepted a 50-game suspension.

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