Mariners Outright Justin Ruggiano
JUNE 13: Ruggiano has cleared waivers, and the Mariners have outrighted him to Triple-A Tacoma, Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times tweets.
JUNE 4: The Mariners have designated outfielder Justin Ruggiano for assignment in order to clear a 25-man roster spot for backup catcher Jesus Sucre, the team announced (relayed by 710 ESPN’s Shannon Drayer, on Twitter). Seattle needed to clear a spot on the roster for a catcher after trading Welington Castillo to the Diamondbacks yesterday in the six-player Mark Trumbo trade.
The decision to designate Ruggiano is a somewhat curious one, as the veteran outfielder was acquired from the Cubs this offseason with the hope that he could form one half of a right field platoon along with Seth Smith. Ruggiano’s overall numbers don’t look particularly appealing, but he’s hit left-handed pitching well in 2015, as he has throughout his career. In 43 plate appearances versus lefties this season, Ruggiano is hitting .263/.349/.474 with a pair of homers. That slash line gels with his career marks — a .266/.331/.505 line against southpaws.
Though Ruggiano has not hit especially well as a whole this season, his .214/.321/.357 has been roughly league-average production when accounting for his pitcher-friendly home ballpark (99 wRC+, 97 OPS+). Teammates Rickie Weeks and Dustin Ackley, however, have been markedly worse performers at the dish, with Weeks hitting just .169/.273/.260 and Ackley hitting a mere .190/.231/.331. In terms of defensive value, Ruggiano is better suited to play the outfield than Weeks, who is still learning the position.
Ruggiano is earning $2.505MM this season after avoiding arbitration this winter. He’s under control through the 2016 season and will be arb-eligible once more this offseason if he accumulates a full year of service time in 2015. I’d imagine that Ruggiano could generate some interest in trades, particularly if the Mariners are willing to absorb some of the remaining salary. From a speculative standpoint, the Reds could be a fit, as they are on the lookout for corner outfield options after seeing Marlon Byrd go down with a fractured wrist earlier in the week.
Mariners Designate Rickie Weeks For Assignment
The Mariners have designated Rickie Weeks for assignment, Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times tweets. The move clears space for the Mariners to recall reliever Danny Farquhar, who will provide help for a Mariners bullpen that had to pitch 7 2/3 innings in a blowout against the Astros yesterday.
The Mariners signed Weeks to a one-year, $2MM deal in the offseason, and he was a disappointment, hitting .167/.263/.250 with just three recorded line drives (according to Fangraphs’ batted-ball data) in 95 plate appearances with the club. The 32-year-old Weeks had rebounded from a poor 2013 season to have a quality 2014 in a part-time role in his final season in Milwaukee, but that success obviously didn’t continue this year as a right-handed bench bat with the Mariners. Weeks also struggled defensively at second base in his last few seasons with the Brewers, and the Mariners used him exclusively in left field, where his bat played even worse than it would have at second. The result was that Weeks posted -0.7 fWAR in his brief time in Seattle.
Weeks isn’t far removed from some effective seasons with the Brewers, and he’s a career .260/.382/.445 hitter against lefties, so he’ll probably eventually make it back to the big leagues. His salary will likely be an obstacle to any team claiming him right now, however.
Heyman’s Latest: Twins, Mariners, Draft, Viciedo
Jon Heyman of CBS Sports’ latest column contains notes on every team throughout baseball. Here are a few highlights.
- The Twins are surprise contenders this year, and they’re open to acquiring a middle-of-the-order hitter, possibly an outfielder, Heyman writes. They could also seek relief help.
- After trading for Mark Trumbo, the Mariners seem to lack budget flexibility, which might be the reason they weren’t a serious contender for Rafael Soriano despite Fernando Rodney‘s poor performance this season.
- The Astros are expected to sign No. 37 overall pick Daz Cameron for about $4MM, Heyman notes. Cameron, who is committed to Florida State, fell in the draft due to signability concerns.
- The Marlins are close to signing first baseman Josh Naylor, the No. 12 overall pick in the draft.
- The Dodgers might have a tough time signing No. 35 overall pick Kyle Funkhouser. The righty could head back to Louisville for his senior season, much as Mark Appel spurned the Pirates a few years back so he could complete his degree at Stanford and re-enter the draft the following year.
- Free agent and former White Sox outfielder Dayan Viciedo has received offers for minor-league deals, but he’s holding out for a big-league contract, Heyman reports.
- MLB might think about moving the draft from Secaucus, New Jersey to a different location, perhaps Omaha. That would allow more top prospects to attend.
Cubs Sign Rafael Soriano
FRIDAY: Soriano’s deal does, in fact, include an opt-out clause that allows him to become a free agent if he’s not in the Majors by the All-Star Game in mid-July, CBS Sports’ Jon Heyman writes.
TUESDAY: The Cubs have signed veteran reliever Rafael Soriano to a minor league deal, adding another option to the team’s late-inning mix. He’ll earn the pro-rated portion of a $4.1MM base salary and can add up to $4MM in incentives (based upon games finished and appearances).
It rates as a surprise that Soriano signed a minors pact, of course. After all, he landed at 37th on the top-fifty free agent list of MLBTR’s Tim Dierkes, who explained that Soriano was still a plenty capable reliever last year. Now, he becomes the final name on that list to sign.
On the other hand, as I wrote back in October, the righty faced plenty of competition in his segment of the market. And while technically a minor-league arrangement, his new pact comes with expectations of a relatively quick call-up as well as a significant salary upon his addition to the MLB roster. Early and frequent opt-out clauses would also seem likely, though they remain unreported.
Soriano’s new deal comes not long after he changed representation. Still on the market with two months of the season in the books, Soriano switched from the Boras Corporation to Octagon Baseball. He indicated then that he hoped to sign in fairly short order, and he had been set to hold a showcase later this week.
Of course, it remains to be seen what Soriano has left in the tank. He faded down the stretch last year after a nice start, ending up with a 3.19 ERA with 8.6 K/9 and 2.8 BB/9 over 62 innings. All said, Soriano has produced solid (but not spectacular) results over the last two years despite a loss of fastball velocity.
Looking further back, the former All-Star has been fairly consistent in terms of his end-of-year production, if not his game-to-game results. Going back to the 2006 campaign, Soriano has thrown at least 60 frames seven times and only once ended a year with an earned run average higher than last year’s final mark. While his save tallies may have boosted his prominence beyond his true talent, Soriano has been one of the more reliably useful pen arms in the game for some time.
Chicago currently sits at 20th in the league in terms of reliever ERA, and its late-inning options (such as Hector Rondon, Pedro Strop, and Jason Motte) have been short of dominant. With Neil Ramirez still working back from injury, it is easy to see the need for another quality arm.
By adding Soriano now, the Cubs will gain some time to assess their pen in advance of the trade deadline. It remains possible that the club will be in the market for higher-end relief talent, though the return of Ramirez will hopefully deliver additional punch from the right side.
Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times reported that a deal was close. Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com tweeted that the deal was done. James Wagner of the Washington Post tweeted the contract details.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Draft Signings: Koch, Allen, Moore, Rainey
The 2015 MLB Draft is in the books, and over the coming weeks we’ll see plenty of picks agree to terms with their new clubs. With so many players selected in the draft, there’s no way to cover all of them, but we’ll run down some of the more notable picks — either due to the size of their signing bonus, the round they were selected or a significantly over-slot/under-slot deal — as they’re reported. Here are today’s notable mid-round signings (with all slot values coming courtesy of Baseball America)…
- Righty Brandon Koch has signed with the Rays, the club announced. Financial terms remain unreported. The Dallas Baptist product was taken with the club’s fourth round pick (118th overall), which carries a $479,200 slot value. Baseball America was most bullish on Koch, rating him the 94th available prospect, crediting the collegiate closer with an outstanding slider.
- Red Sox eighth-rounder Logan Allen says that he is in verbal agreement with the club on an above-slot deal between $725K and $750K, Andrew Pearson of the Citizen-Times reports. The 231st pick came with just a $175,100 bonus allocation. Kiley McDaniel of Fangraphs had the IMG Academy southpaw, who was a South Carolina commit, rated as the 100th-best draft-eligible player coming in.
- The Mariners have signed Competitive Balance Round B pick (No. 72 overall) Andrew Moore to an $800K bonus that is $52K under slot, reports SB Nation’s Chris Cotillo (via Twitter). Baseball America ranked the Oregon State right-hander 125th among draft prospects, while MLB.com’s Jim Callis and Jonathan Mayo ranked him 137th, and Fangraphs’ Kiley McDaniel ranked him 130th. BA notes that Moore has an 87-91mph fastball with the potential for a pair of average secondary offerings (curve and change) in addition to plus command. MLB.com notes that he could be quick to the big leagues and has fourth or fifth starter upside.
- Cotillo tweeted last night that the Reds had agreed to terms with right-hander Tanner Rainey, and Callis tweeted today that Rainey received $432,950, or half the value of his No. 71 overall slot. Though he received half his slot, Rainey is still an expensive senior sign with a chance to start, Callis notes. ESPN’s Keith Law ranked Rainey 58th, while BA had him at 93, McDaniel had him at 118 and MLB.com had him at 122. ESPN referred to Rainey as a pure reliever who works in the mid-90s with an above-average slider to complement the heater. He’s a two-way player who has an intriguing bat but received more interest as a pitcher.
Mariners Have Shown Interest In Ben Revere
3:29pm: Asked whether he had in fact sought Paxton or Walker from the Mariners in exchange for Revere, Amaro told Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (in no uncertain terms) that he had not.
“Typically we would not comment on rumors,” said Amaro. “But when they reach this level of ridiculousness, I can say unequivocally that what has been written is false.”
1:35pm: Bob Dutton of the Tacoma News Tribune reports that the Mariners did indeed contact the Phillies regarding Revere, but talks quickly halted due to the unreasonable asking price of James Paxton or Taijuan Walker.
This early in the trade season, it makes sense for Amaro and other sellers to aim high when discussing players they’re not under any pressure to trade. However, a pitcher of Paxton or Walker’s caliber is clearly far too steep a price for Seattle. Dutton notes that the Mariners’ interest could pick back up if the Phillies lower their asking price, and I’d expect that to happen over the coming weeks.
8:39am: Though they’ve already made what they hope will be an upgrade to their offense by acquiring Mark Trumbo from the Diamondbacks, the Mariners also scouted Ben Revere during the Phillies’ recent series with the Reds, reports Jim Salisbury of CSNPhilly.com. Seattle is “still monitoring the market for hitters” even after the Trumbo trade, per Salisbury (mention of Revere is near the end of the linked piece).
Revere has been displaced in left field by Cody Asche, who has transitioned to the position after moving off of third base to accommodate Maikel Franco. In center field, the Phillies have continued to utilize Rule 5 pick Odubel Herrera despite lackluster offense and somewhat below-average defense. While Herrera’s struggles — he’s hitting .255/.286/.370 and has been worth -1.5 runs per UZR — could have been enough to cost him a spot on a contending club, the rebuilding Phillies can afford to keep him on the 25-man roster to keep him in the organization. It’s also understandable, then, if the Phillies prefer to continue giving him at-bats as opposed to stashing him on the bench and costing him reps at the plate and in the field that could be beneficial down the line.
Right field hasn’t been the Phillies’ most productive position, with veterans Jeff Francoeur and the recently released Grady Sizemore seeing most of the action there this season. But, Revere’s sub-par throwing arm makes left field a better fit than right field, and there’s still the potential that Domonic Brown could receive another look.
Revere himself acknowledged recently that he might be squeezed out of a spot with the Phillies, telling Salisbury late last month: “This is a business. When [Cody] Asche and [Domonic Brown] come back we’re going to have a lot of outfielders and someone might be out. I just have to prepare to help my team win whether it’s here or somewhere else. Just bust my tail and try to stay in the lineup.”
Of course, Revere hasn’t hit as well in 2015 as he did in his first two years with the Phillies, perhaps making him a tougher sell to teams looking at his bat. After hitting .306/.329/.358 in 2013-14 with Philadelphia, he’s batting just .270/.312/.352 in 2015. He remains a plus on the basepaths, but with 12 steals, Revere is not on pace to match 2014’s total of 49 steals. There are other ways to add value on the bases, to be sure, but Fangraphs valued Revere at +10.8 runs on the bases in 2014, compared to just +0.9 in 2015. At the very least, Revere is hitting quite well in June, though 10 days of improved offensive performance likely has little impact on his overall trade value.
Then again, Revere’s cumulative production to this point would represent an upgrade over what Seattle has received from its left fielders, who have combined to bat .199/.283/.328 this year. More troubling is the fact that said batting line includes 60 strong plate appearances from Seth Smith while serving as a left fielder. Regular left fielder Dustin Ackley is hitting just .198/.257/.328, and projected platoon-mate Rickie Weeks has batted just .163/.264/.250 in addition to turning in poor defense. It’s possible that Revere could form somewhat of an unconventional platoon with Smith, supplanting both Ackley and Weeks in left field. Though both Revere and Smith hit left-handed, Revere has handled left-handed pitching better than right-handed pitching throughout his career (.685 OPS vs. .655 OPS).
The 27-year-old Revere, who led the NL with 184 hits in 2014, is earning $4.1MM in 2015 after avoiding arbitration for the second time this past offseason. As a Super Two player, he’ll be arb-eligible twice more before becoming eligible for free agency following the 2017 season.
Draft Notes: Stephenson, D’Backs, Twins, Rays
The Diamondbacks announced that starting with this week’s draft, they will name their annual 34th round selection the “Cory Hahn 34th pick,” Jake Rill of MLB.com writes. Hahn, who works in Arizona’s scouting department, suffered a fractured vertebrae after playing just three games as a freshman with Arizona State. Before hiring him, the D’Backs selected Hahn with their 34th round pick (for his No. 34 jersey) in 2013. “This is an extremely humbling gesture and an honor for not only myself, but my family as well,” Hahn said in a press release. “I’m beyond grateful to be a part of the D-backs family.”
Here’s a look at the latest draft news as we get set for Monday night…
- High school catcher Tyler Stephenson has made a swift rise up many draft boards, including some speculation that the Diamondbacks may take him with the first overall pick. Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic profiles Stephenson, who said that he has attended pre-draft workouts for the D’Backs, Braves and Phillies.
- The revised slotting system instituted in 2012 has added another layer of difficulty for drafted high schoolers trying to decide if they’ll start their pro careers or play college ball, Bill West of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review writes. Pirates starters Gerrit Cole and Vance Worley chose to attend college, while Max Moroff, a 16th-round pick in 2012, decided to go pro early and accepted a $300K bonus from the Bucs.
- In a retrospective piece, ESPN.com’s Christina Kahrl chooses the top player chosen in each of the 50 previous amateur drafts. While most of Kahrl’s choices came from the first couple of rounds, you can never tell where the next superstar might come from in any given draft, as evidenced by late choices like Albert Pujols, Ian Kinsler, Mark Buehrle or (most famously) Mike Piazza.
Earlier Updates
- Scouting director Deric Ladnier says the Diamondbacks have settled on who they’ll take No. 1 overall tomorrow, but he’s not tipping his hand as to who it’ll be, Nick Piecoro of The Arizona Republic tweets. Ladnier says the club has reached out to five players to let them know they’re in consideration, but none of them have been notified as to whether they’ll be the pick (link). That group almost certainly includes the likes of Vanderbilt shortstop Dansby Swanson and Florida high school shortstop Brendan Rodgers.
- Twins GM Terry Ryan told reporters, including Mike Berardino of the Pioneer Press (on Twitter) that he doesn’t know who the team will take with the No. 6 overall pick yet. “Not yet. Somebody is going to fall,” Ryan said.
- The Rays know that they have to draft better this year than they have in recent years, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times writes. Tampa Bay owns the No. 13 pick in tomorrow night’s first round of the draft, their highest pick since taking Tim Beckham No. 1 overall in 2008. Within the article, Topkin looks back at the Rays’ 2011 class, which was supposed to shape the future of the franchise. To date, that hasn’t been the case.
- The Mariners don’t have a first round pick, but they expect plenty of talent to be there at No. 60, as Greg Johns of MLB.com writes.
Heyman’s Latest: Astros/Hamels, Reds, Matz, Zobrist, Ackley, Soriano
In this week’s edition of his Inside Baseball column, Jon Heyman of CBS Sports begins by examining the possibility of the Astros making a run at the Phillies‘ Cole Hamels. Houston is seeking a top-of-the-rotation starter, and Hamels is on their radar, Heyman hears, even though he’s something of a long shot. The Astros are seeking a No. 1 or No. 2 starter, one person told Heyman, though Houston GM Jeff Luhnow indicated they’d be interested in any arm that could start Games 1-3 of a playoff series. The Phillies are said to be intrigued by outfield prospects Preston Tucker and Brett Phillips, among others, Heyman notes. Houston won’t part with top prospect Carlos Correa or impressive rookie right-hander Lance McCullers Jr., and they’d prefer to keep righty Vincent Velasquez as well. Heyman adds that it’s uncertain whether or not Hamels would approve a trade to Houston, with one source indicating that they didn’t find the scenario likely. If Hamels were to approve the trade, he’d likely ask that his 2019 option be exercised, and the Phillies would almost certainly have to pay down some of the $24MM he is owed annually, per Heyman.
Some more highlights…
- The Reds are currently reluctant to sell any pieces according to rivals who have reached out to the team. That may simply be due to the fact that the team is set to host the All-Star game this year and doesn’t want to begin a potential fire sale before that game. However, other execs have indicated to Heyman that owner Bob Castellini prefers to see how his big-money investments in Joey Votto and others will play out rather than commencing a rebuilding effort.
- Both Dillon Gee and Jon Niese remain widely available, as the Mets would prefer to add promising lefty Steven Matz to their six-man rotation. One scout that spoke to Heyman said Matz is better than any pitcher in the rotation aside from Matt Harvey, which is high praise, particularly considering Jacob deGrom‘s brilliant start to the season and the flashes of brilliance displayed by Noah Syndergaard.
- The Yankees are interested in the Athletics‘ Ben Zobrist as an option at second base and also still like Dustin Ackley despite his struggles with the Mariners. New York has been surprised by Jose Pirela‘s troubles to this point, and they still have questions about Rob Refsnyder‘s glove at second base. Heyman adds that the Yankees don’t expect to be big players on Cole Hamels this winter, and they were worried about Mark Teixeira enough this offseason that they checked in on Ryan Howard, though clearly those concerns have dissipated in light of Teixeira’s excellent resurgence.
- The Cardinals, Blue Jays and Cubs are the three teams that Heyman mentions as most realistic options for right-hander Rafael Soriano. He calls the Cards “a surprise entry” into the Soriano mix, adding that the Jays have not given up the idea of signing him but will need to see what his price tag is now that he’s switched representatives.
- The Mariners will probably see a need to add a veteran catcher after trading Welington Castillo to the D-Backs in order to land Mark Trumbo. Heyman spoke to someone close to the Mariners who described the team as “desperate” to add offense prior to the Trumbo deal, as they’ve received struggles from many of their outfielders and, surprisingly, Robinson Cano.
- Red Sox higher-ups have an immense amount of respect for manager John Farrell, so while votes of confidence from ownership and executives often mean little, Heyman feels that Boston’s recent vote of confidence in Farrell has more weight behind it. However, Boston won’t be swayed by the fact that Farrell’s contract runs through 2017 if they do decide a change is needed down the line.
- Both Dodgers right-hander Jose De Leon and Yankees shortstop Jorge Mateo have hired Scott Boras to represent them. The pair of prospects is well-regarded within each organization.
AL West Notes: Rangers, Ruggiano, Trumbo, Astros, Hamilton
As Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News discussed with host Jeff Todd on yesterday’s MLBTR podcast, the Rangers are likely to be tempted mostly by high-quality arms at the deadline. Corey Seidman of CSNPhilly.com opines that Texas may be the Phillies‘ best match in terms of prospects. Seidman speculates that a package centering around Jorge Alfaro and Nomar Mazara — two names previously said by CBS Sports’ Jon Heyman to be of interest to Philadelphia — makes sense for Cole Hamels, as the Phillies are “desperate” to add a young catcher and would like an outfielder with some pop. Seidman wonders if including a rejuvenated Aaron Harang or paying a chunk of Jonathan Papelbon‘s contract and including him, too, would entice the Rangers. Of course, all of this boils own to speculation at this juncture, but the Rangers do seem to be a fit given their somewhat unexpectedly strong start. Texas is 28-26 after a win last night, but their ranks 19th in ERA (4.24), 24th in FIP (4.36) and 28th in xFIP (4.51).
More from the AL West to kick off your Friday morning…
- The decision to designate Justin Ruggiano for assignment over Rickie Weeks was not an easy one for the Mariners, writes Bob Dutton of the Tacoma News Tribune. “The particulars are not something I want to discuss,” manager Lloyd McClendon told Dutton. “Hopefully, this gives (Ruggiano) a chance to catch on with somebody else. It was a very difficult decision.” As Dutton notes, there was going to be an extreme lack of playing time for whoever remained on the roster, following the acquisition of Mark Trumbo. Dutton also points out that McClendon frequently used Dustin Ackley and Willie Bloomquist as late defensive replacements, rather than Ruggiano, perhaps indicating that the Mariners weren’t particularly enamored with his defense.
- Dutton also spoke with Mark Trumbo, the man whose acquisition led to Ruggiano’s DFA. Trumbo said that the news he’d been traded “was a lot to take, initially,” but that when he found out he was headed to Seattle, his mind eased. “I couldn’t have been happier,” said Trumbo. “I’ve loved coming here when I was with the Angels. It’s one of my favorite places in the country — or the world, for that matter.” Trumbo went 2-for-4 with a pair of singles and started at first base in his Mariners debut.
- Astros GM Jeff Luhnow told Evan Drellich of the Houston Chronicle yesterday that he believes Brady Aiken has joined Jacob Nix in not consenting to allow the Astros to draft him again in 2015, as is his right after not signing in 2014. When a Twitter follower asked Drellich whether or not 21st-round pick Mac Marshall, who also did not sign, had done the same, Marshall himself replied on Twitter to say that he had “no hard feelings” toward Houston and has given his consent to be drafted by the Astros again in 2015.
- Josh Hamilton tells Grant that he’s only had a hamstring injury of this significance one other time in his career in 2007 when he put an extreme amount of effort into rehabbing as he first got back into the Majors following four years of drug-related suspensions. Hamilton likely pushed too hard in his rehab in an effort to get back on the field with the Rangers but says he does not regret how he went about his rehab. Grant reports that he has received a platelet rich plasma injection in the injured area that the team hopes will accelerate the healing process.
Podcast: Evan Grant On Rangers; Talking Trumbo
Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News joins host Jeff Todd to discuss the Rangers‘ call-up of Joey Gallo and what moves the club could make this summer. Next, MLBTR’s Steve Adams returns to the show to discuss the Mark Trumbo trade from the perspectives of the Mariners and Diamondbacks.
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The MLB Trade Rumors Podcast runs weekly on Thursday afternoons.