Mariners Rumors

AL Injury Notes: Flynn, Tillman, Richards, Perkins, Smith, Cishek, Doubront

By Jeff Todd | February 14, 2017 at 2:41pm CDT

Royals lefty Brian Flynn is expected to miss eight weeks of action due to injuries suffered in a fall through the roof of his barn, as Rustin Dodd of the Kansas City Star reports on Twitter. A broken rib seems to be the main injury to the 26-year-old, who turned in 55 1/3 innings of 2.60 ERA ball last year for Kansas City. Though Flynn will clearly now be delayed, there’s no indication that there are any long-term concerns, and the organization’s recent signing of Travis Wood will help restore any lost early-season depth.

Here are some more injury situations developing around the American League:

The Orioles may be without righty Chris Tillman to start the year, as the veteran starter undertook a PRP injection in his shoulder in December, Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com was among those to report (Twitter links). Tillman is said to be about three weeks behind, though he isn’t expected to miss significant time at this point. Still, there’s little chance he’ll be ready to take the ball on Opening Day, which would break a string of three-straight appearances in the first game of the season. It seems there’s no particular reason to worry about Tillman’s outlook for the season, though it’s fair to wonder whether the shoulder issue will gum up any attempts by the team to lock him up to a long-term deal this spring. Tillman is earning $10.05MM this season before hitting the open market.
Angels righty Garrett Richards reported feeling normal after his pen session on Friday, as Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register tweets. That represents a positive start to the spring for a pitcher who once seemed destined for Tommy John surgery. Richards instead elected stem cell and PRP therapy, returning to the hill over the fall before taking his winter rest. The hope remains that he’ll be able to undertake a normal spring and open the season in the rotation. Meanwhile, the Halos are still waiting to see how first baseman Albert Pujols will progress in his return from foot surgery. The high-priced slugger expressed cautious optimism, but wasn’t willing to say for sure whether he’ll be ready by the start of the year, as Fletcher further reports.
Twins lefty Glen Perkins felt good after a short, 15-pitch bullpen session, Mike Berardino of the St. Paul Pioneer-Press tweets. He’s on track to take the hill again late this week. If you like, you can take a look at the former closer’s progress for yourself, as Berardino has uploaded a video of him throwing to YouTube.
Red Sox right-hander Carson Smith is expected to throw off of a mound for the first time since his Tommy John surgery on or around March 10th, as Brian MacPherson of the Providence Journal tweets. That would presumably set up Smith for a mid-season return; if he’s able to remain on track, he could provide a nice boost to the BoSox pen in advance of the trade deadline.
It seems that Mariners righty Steve Cishek has a bit more to overcome than just the hip labrum tear that was previously reported, as Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times reports (Twitter links). The reliever also needed a microfracture procedure, and now acknowledges that an Opening Day return is optimistic. Though Cishek is only just beginning light throwing, fellow relief candidate Tony Zych will soon progress to 120-foot throwing, Divish adds on Twitter.
Athletics lefty Felix Doubront threw a pen for the first time today since his Tommy John surgery about ten months back, as Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports on Twitter. It’s not clear as yet what kind of timeline can be expected for the southpaw, though it’s certainly promising that he was deemed ready to get on the hill. Doubront re-signed with the A’s on a minor-league pact this offseason.

Rays Acquire Jesus Sucre From Mariners

By Steve Adams | February 8, 2017 at 1:31pm CDT

The Mariners announced that catcher Jesus Sucre has been traded to the Rays in exchange for a player to named later or cash. The 28-year-old Sucre had recently been designated for assignment and outrighted off the 40-man roster, so he’ll head to camp with the Rays as a non-roster invitee.

Sucre has hit for average in the minors, batting .279/.312/.341 across parts of four Triple-A seasons, but he’s never been able to produce at the plate in the Majors. In parts of four seasons with Seattle, he owns a collective .209/.246/.276 batting line in 264 trips to the plate. There may be some temptation to assume that the pitcher-friendly Safeco Field has played a role in those struggles, but Sucre’s .640 OPS at home in his career dwarfs his .415 road mark.

Though he’s struggled at the plate, Sucre has proven to be an adept defender, throwing out 35 percent of attempted base thieves in his big league career. He’s routinely received average to above-average grades for his pitch-framing skills as well. Dating back to his prospect days with the Braves, Sucre has been touted as a strong overall defender, with Baseball America previously calling his arm a “cannon” and rating him as the best defensive backstop in Atlanta’s system in 2010.

The Rays signed Wilson Ramos earlier this offseason with the hope that he can eventually shoulder the load behind the plate following last September’s ACL tear. He’ll miss at least a couple of months of the 2017 campaign, leaving Curt Casali and Luke Maile to handle the bulk of the catching duties early in the year. Sucre could conceivably challenge that pair for playing time in Spring Training, or he could simply head to Triple-A as a defensive-minded depth piece.

There have also been rumors connecting the Rays to free-agent catcher Matt Wieters, although at this point there’s been nothing to suggest that Tampa Bay is in serious pursuit of the former Oriole or that any form of offer has been made.

Cafardo’s Latest: Fister, Hosmer, Hammel, Mariners, Victorino

By Mark Polishuk | February 4, 2017 at 3:49pm CDT

Twelve rookies have drawn attention as potential impact players in 2017, Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe writes in his latest notes column. Several baseball people give their input on the players, ranging from Red Sox left fielder Andrew Benintendi to “rookie” (though a longtime veteran of Cuban baseball) Astros first baseman Yulieski Gurriel. Here’s some hot stove news from Cafardo…

The Royals have interest in veteran right-hander Doug Fister. Kansas City is known to be looking for rotation help since the tragic death of Yordano Ventura. Fister (who celebrates his 33rd birthday today) posted a 4.64 ERA, 5.74 K/9 and 1.85 K/BB rate in 180 1/3 innings with the Astros last season. The Padres, Marlins, Pirates and Mariners have all been linked to Fister at various times this winter, though several of those clubs have made other additions to their rotation and may no longer have interest.
The Royals have several notable players hitting free agency next winter, and “the feeling is the Royals will re-sign at least one of their key hitters, likely Eric Hosmer,” Cafardo writes. Hosmer is a somewhat surprising name to potentially be staying put given that he is represented by Scott Boras, who would usually put a price tag on his client that would be out of reach for the mid-market Royals. Then again, Cafardo also notes that while Kansas City has the pieces to be a contender this season, “if they’re out of the hunt at the trade deadline…look for a major fire sale.” To tie those two items together, the Royals could free up money to re-sign Hosmer if they dealt some other pricey contracts. (One would think Hosmer would also want to be assured that the Royals’ deadline deals were made with an eye towards reloading for 2018 or 2019.) K.C. already locked up one long-term piece by signing Danny Duffy to a five-year extension last month.
Jason Hammel would also be a fit in Kansas City but Fister would seem to have a much lower price tag at this point, as “Hammel believes he should receive at least a three-year deal.” Given the lack of clarity in Hammel’s market this winter, it would be quite surprising to see a team make that long a commitment to the right-hander, who is entering his age-34 season.
The Mariners were linked to Hammel earlier this winter, and Cafardo reports that Seattle offered Hammel a one-year deal with a $10MM option for 2018. This offer came “very early” in the free agency process and no longer appears to be on the table. The M’s have since acquired Yovani Gallardo and Drew Smyly, so they no longer seem like candidates for Hammel’s services.
Shane Victorino recently underwent minor surgery to remove a cyst under his arm, which has put the veteran outfielder’s plans to pursue a comeback attempt via a minor league contract “on hold.” Cafardo reported three weeks ago that a team had offered Victorino a contract but he hadn’t yet informed his agent whether or not to accept.

Minor MLB Transactions: 2/1/17

By Steve Adams | February 1, 2017 at 1:29pm CDT

Here are the day’s minor moves from around the league…

The Mariners announced that right-hander Jonathan Aro and catcher Jesus Sucre, each of whom had been designated for assignment over the past week, have been sent outright to Triple-A Tacoma. Both will be in Major League camp as non-roster invitees come Spring Training. Aro, 26, lost his roster spot when the Mariners claimed Tuffy Gosewisch from the Braves. He’s tallied 11 big league innings between the Red Sox and Mariners in the past two seasons and had a solid showing in Triple-A last year, tossing 36 1/3 innings with a 2.48 ERA. In 88 career Triple-A innings he has a 2.86 ERA with 8.0 K/9 against 2.0 BB/9. As for Sucre, the 28-year-old backstop was out of options and lost his 40-man spot when Seattle acquired Dillon Overton from Oakland. A solid defensive backstop, Sucre has never hit much in the Majors or minors and owns a .209/.246/.276 in 264 big league plate appearances.

Minor MLB Transactions: 1/31/17

By Steve Adams | January 31, 2017 at 8:12pm CDT

It’s been nearly two years since Wily Mo Pena’s name has come up at MLBTR, but the outfielder has agreed to a minor league pact with the Indians that will pay him $700K if he cracks the Major League roster, according to FanRag’s Jon Heyman (Twitter link). Now 35 years of age, Pena hasn’t appeared in the Majors since 2011. As a young slugger with the Reds, Pena belted 26 homers back in 2004 and was traded to the Red Sox a year later in the deal that sent right-hander Bronson Arroyo to Cincinnati. Pena never demonstrated enough ability to make contact or draw walks to carve out consistent playing time in Boston, though, and he ultimately found the most success of his career overseas in Japan. Pena spent the 2012-15 seasons in Nippon Professional Baseball, and while he struggled in 2013, he OPSed better than .800 in each of the three other campaigns and hit a combined 71 homers in his Japanese career.

Here are the rest of the day’s minor moves from around baseball…

The Braves announced that slugging outfielder Adam Walker, who was designated for assignment last week, has cleared waivers and been sent outright to Triple-A Gwinnett. That marks the end of a whirlwind winter for Walker, who was placed on outright waivers by the Twins in November and then bounced from Minnesota, to Milwaukee, to Baltimore, to Atlanta on waivers. He’ll now remain with the Braves organization but will not occupy a spot on the 40-man roster. Atlanta did not announce whether Walker will receive an invite to Major League Spring Training, but he’s likely to open the season in Triple-A. The former third-round pick has displayed enormous power in the Twins’ minor league system in recent years but also posted prodigious strikeout totals. He’s limited to left field and possibly first base from a defensive standpoint, so he’ll need to curb the strikeout tendencies to give himself a chance to stick on a big league roster.
Atlanta also inked lefty Michael Kirkman to a minors pact, tweets Heyman. Kirkman, who will make $600K if he cracks the roster, has a 5.28 ERA in 109 Major League innings and most recently appeared with the Padres and Brewers in 2016 (though he totaled just 2 1/3 innings). Kirkman has consistently demonstrated an ability to miss bats in both the Majors and minors but has also struggled with control.
Southpaw Nick Hagadone has joined the Mariners on a minor-league pact, as Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times first reported on Twitter. The former Indians left-hander hasn’t pitched since 2015 due to an elbow fracture that required surgical repair. Hagadone struck up a minor league deal with Atlanta last winter but had the contract voided due to concerns in his physical. He didn’t pitch at all in 2016 but will aim to prove he’s healthy enough for a big league look with Seattle in 2017. Hagadone, 31, posted a 3.55 ERA with a 55-to-18 K/BB ratio in 50 2/3 innings with Cleveland from 2014-15 and was once well-regarded enough as a prospect to be ranked in the Top 100 of both Baseball America and Baseball Prospectus. He was also one of three pieces sent from the Red Sox to the Indians in the 2009 Victor Martinez swap.
The Yankees announced their invitations to Major League Spring Training today, and the list includes infielder Donovan Solano and right-hander Nick Rumbelow, each of whom re-signed to a minor league deal. (Others on the list have already been noted at MLBTR in recent months.) Solano, 29, hit .227/.261/.455 with a homer and a pair of doubles in 23 plate appearances with the Yankees last season. Capable of playing second base, shortstop and third base, Solano also slashed .257/.307/.328 over the life of 1145 plate appearances across parts of four seasons with the Marlins prior to his time with the Yankees. As for Rumbelow, the 25-year-old had Tommy John surgery last season. He’d made his Major League debut in 2015 and tossed 15 2/3 innings of 4.02 ERA ball as a followup to 52 2/3 innings with a 4.27 ERA in Triple-A. Rumbelow has averaged better than 10 strikeouts per nine innings in the minors while also walking just 2.4 batters per nine frames.

Minor MLB Transactions: 1/30/17

By Steve Adams | January 30, 2017 at 9:51am CDT

Here the day’s minor moves from around the league, each from Baseball America’s Matt Eddy unless otherwise noted…

The Rays have added former Braves/Yankees/Astros/Nationals right-hander David Carpenter on a minor league deal. The 31-year-old hasn’t pitched in the Majors since a 2015 season that was severely shortened by shoulder issues. Carpenter actually inked a minor league deal with Tampa Bay last March but wound up opening the year with the Angels. He pitched for the Halos’ Triple-A affiliate until his release in mid-June, which came on the heels of a 7.80 ERA in 15 innings of work. Carpenter then latched on with the Bridgeport Bluefish of the independent Atlantic League and pitched to a 3.28 ERA with a 39-to-16 K/BB ratio in 35 2/3 innings of work. At his best in the Majors, Carpenter tossed 126 innings with a 2.63 ERA, 10.0 K/9 and 2.6 BB/9 in 126 innings for the 2013-14 Braves.
Right-hander Jean Machi joined the Mariners on a minor league pact. Machi, who will turn 35 in two days, hasn’t pitched in the Majors since 2015 when he logged a 5.12 ERA in 58 innings between the Giants and Red Sox. He was a very useful relief arm in San Francisco from 2013-14, however, recording a collective 2.49 ERA with 7.7 K/9 against 2.3 BB/9 across 119 1/3 innings. Machi split the 2016 season between the Giants and Cubs organizations, pitching to a solid 3.65 ERA in 61 2/3 Triple-A innings.
Right-hander Matt Magill agreed to a minor league deal with the Padres, as SB Nation’s Chris Cotillo first tweeted. The 27-year-old returned to the Majors after a two-year layoff this past season, tossing 4 1/3 innings for the Reds. The longtime Dodgers farmhand has just 32 Major League innings to his credit but has a 4.05 ERA with a strikeout per inning to his credit in 752 minor league innings. Magill has some control issues as well, as evidenced by a 5.5 BB/9 rate and a 4.57 ERA in 226 career innings at the Triple-A level. He’ll give the Padres a potential depth option at either Triple-A or Double-A. (Magill pitched at both levels with the Reds organization last season before making his brief return to the bigs.)

Dipoto: Mariners “Plainly” In “Win-Now Mode”

By charliewilmoth | January 29, 2017 at 5:50pm CDT

The Mariners have been among MLB’s busiest teams this offseason, acquiring players like Jean Segura, Mitch Haniger, Drew Smyly, Jarrod Dyson, Yovani Gallardo, Danny Valencia, Carlos Ruiz and Shae Simmons in a long list of transactions. GM Jerry Dipoto stresses, perhaps unsurprisingly but in strongly worded language, that those moves have been made with a clear goal of winning in 2017, according to Bob Dutton of the Tacoma News Tribune.

“I’ll say it as plainly as I can,” says Dipoto. “When you have Robinson Cano, who arguably had the best year of his career last year and is playing in his mid-30s at an All Star level; when you have Nelson Cruz, who’s roughly led the league in homers for three years running; when you have Felix Hernandez at 31, a former Cy Young Award winner who last year failed to throw 200 innings for the first time in about a decade; when you have one of the preeminent third baseman (Kyle Seager) in the league who can do a lot of things offensively and defensively, and you’ve committed at roughly $75 million annually for those players, you are in a `win-now’ mode.”

Those players are among the few remaining on the Mariners’ 40-man roster that Dipoto inherited when he took the team’s GM job near the end of the 2015 season. By my count, the only other players on the Mariners’ 40-man who remain from that time are Hisashi Iwakuma (who Dipoto re-signed in the 2015-16 offseason), James Paxton, Tony Zych, Mike Zunino and Shawn O’Malley.

“It doesn’t shock me,” says Dipoto of the Mariners’ roster turnover. “It wasn’t necessarily by design but, again, we have not done this with pandemonium in mind.”

Dipoto’s trades have included a large number of young players and prospects, but Dipoto suggests that he hasn’t mortgaged the Mariners’ future. He’s kept top prospects like Kyle Lewis, Tyler O’Neill and Andrew Moore, as Dutton notes. And while many of Dipoto’s trades have privileged short-term assets rather than longer-term ones (like the trade that bought one year of control of Dyson for four of Nate Karns), Dipoto points out that he has also made trades that have featured players at similar points in their careers (including, perhaps, the one that sent former top prospect Alex Jackson and pitcher Tyler Pike to Atlanta for young starters Robert Whalen and Max Povse). Dipoto further notes that he has acquired several players with limited service time, including Haniger, Dan Vogelbach and Ben Gamel (the last two of whom the Mariners acquired during the 2016 season), who could make an impact in the big leagues in 2017.

AL Notes: Mariners, Astros, Twins, White Sox

By Connor Byrne | January 29, 2017 at 11:15am CDT

While Mariners outfielder Mitch Haniger wasn’t the headliner in the November trade that saw him go from Arizona to Seattle, the M’s have high hopes for the 26-year-old, writes Bob Dutton of the Tacoma News Tribune. A 2012 first-round pick and former Brewers prospect, Haniger hit a below-average .229/.309/.404 in the first 129 plate appearances of his major league career last season, though his video game-like .341/.428/.670 line in 312 Triple-A PAs wowed Mariners general manager Jerry Dipoto. “By the numbers, (Haniger) was able to show that he was the best offensive player (last year) in the minor leagues at any level,” said Dipoto. “He’s also a right-handed batter, and we acquired him for that reason. Mitch is also the one that brings with him a skill set that includes power, and he’s got on-base ability.” Dipoto expects Haniger to serve as the Mariners’ everyday right fielder this year, which would leave Ben Gamel and Guillermo Heredia to fight for a reserve role.

Mariners Acquire Dillon Overton, Designate Jesus Sucre For Assignment

By Steve Adams | January 26, 2017 at 5:23pm CDT

The Mariners announced that they’ve acquired left-hander Dillon Overton from the Athletics in exchange for minor league catcher Jason Goldstein. To make room on the 40-man roster, Seattle designated catcher Jesus Sucre for assignment. Bob Dutton of the Tacoma News Tribune first reported that Overton could be on the way to Seattle (on Twitter). The A’s had just designated Overton for assignment earlier this week when they signed veteran infielder Adam Rosales to a one-year deal.

Oakland’s second-round pick in 2013, the 25-year-old Overton made his Major League debut in 2016 but struggled to an ERA of 11.47 in 24 1/3 innings. He did have a solid campaign in Triple-A Nashville last season, however, racking up 125 1/3 innings of 3.29 ERA ball. Overton also averaged 7.7 K/9 against 2.2 BB/9 to go along with a 34.9 percent ground-ball rate in his time at Triple-A.

As recently as the 2015-16 offseason, Baseball America ranked Overton as the Athletics’ No. 8 prospect, though their assessment noted that Overton’s success would be determined by how much velocity he could regain following 2013 Tommy John surgery. Overton worked in the mid-90s in college but was in the upper 80s following his operation. The velocity seemingly never returned, as he averaged just 88.3 mph on his heater last year.

Overton has performed well at every minor league stop, though, and he has minor league options remaining, meaning the Mariners can send him back to Triple-A for further refinement. The Mariners’ rotation is full with Felix Hernandez, Hisashi Iwakuma, James Paxton, Drew Smyly and Yovani Gallardo all occupying spots. Left-hander Ariel Miranda is also on hand as an option in the case of injury, though he’s probably ticketed for long relief work to open the season.

Goldstein, 22, was the Mariners’ ninth-round pick just last summer. The Illinois native opened his pro career with Seattle’s affiliate in the Rookie-level Arizona League and finished out the year in short-season Class-A. Goldstein had just 68 total plate appearances in his brief time, hitting .279/.328/.311 in that time. He also threw out seven of the 14 runners that attempted to steal against him. Heading into the draft, Baseball America noted that he had limited power but handles a pitching staff well. Goldstein is no stranger to catching high-caliber arms, as he was the battery mate of 2015 first-rounder Tyler Jay (Twins) and 2016 first-rounder Cody Sedlock (Orioles) in college at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Sucre, 28, was out of options and looked to be a long shot to make the Mariners’ roster with both Mike Zunino and Carlos Ruiz ahead of him on the depth chart. (Seattle also claimed catcher Tuffy Gosewisch off waivers from Atlanta earlier today.) Sucre has excelled at throwing out baserunners in his career (35 percent) and typically receives average to above-average marks for his pitch-framing skills. However, he’s yet to produce at the plate in parts of four seasons in the Majors, batting .209/.246/.276 in 264 PAs.

Mariners Claim Tuffy Gosewisch, Designate Jonathan Aro

By Jeff Todd | January 26, 2017 at 1:56pm CDT

The Mariners have claimed catcher Tuffy Gosewisch off waivers from the Braves, per a club announcement. To clear roster space, Seattle designated righty Jonathan Aro for assignment.

Gosewisch comes with a $635K arbitration salary that he already agreed to with Atlanta. He’ll add a defensively solid, experienced veteran to the Mariners’ catching mix. But Gosewisch has never done much with the bat at the MLB level. Over 416 career plate appearances, he owns a .199/.237/.286 batting line. He did turn things around last year at Triple-A, though, slashing .342/.399/.553 over 219 trips to the plate.

Aro came to Seattle from the Red Sox in the Wade Miley deal. The 26-year-old made a single MLB appearance and pitched to a 2.48 ERA over 36 1/3 Triple-A frames in 2016.

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