Cardinals Rumors

Pitching Notes: Santana, Gray, Estrada, Anderson, Gearrin

By Jeff Todd and Steve Adams | July 7, 2016 at 10:12am CDT

Potential trade candidate Ervin Santana tossed a complete-game shutout yesterday for the Twins, limiting the Athletics to two hits without a walk while tossing just 100 pitches. Santana dropped his ERA 44 points in the process and is now sporting a 1.63 ERA over his past four starts. Obviously, a nice four-start stretch isn’t going to undo all of the damage Santana did to his trade stock with a rocky start to the season, but 93 innings with a 4.06 ERA, 6.6 K/9, 2.5 BB/9 and a 42.9 percent ground-ball rate looks rather solid on the whole. He has about $6.5MM remaining on his salary in 2016 and is owed $13.5MM in each of the next two seasons, plus a $1MM buyout of a 2019 option. He’s not a cheap option, but given how few starters will be on the open market this winter, adding a durable mid-rotation cog could make sense for a number of contenders this summer.

Santana wasn’t the only starter of note in that contest, as Athletics righty Sonny Gray was also on the bump. Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports that the match-up drew attention from quite a few scouts, with representatives from the Blue Jays, Royals, Orioles, Marlins and Cardinals among those in attendance to see the two potential trade candidates throw. Oakland skipper Bob Melvin said that he felt Gray may be turning a corner after the showing, in which he battled through six innings with only one earned run on the board. Gray did allow four walks, but worked through some tough spots and, in Melvin’s words, “found a little of his mojo.” With Gray showing some life and the A’s continuing to muddle through the season, Slusser says that some rival executives feel there’s daylight for a deal on Oakland’s staff ace. There’s little question that the Twins would at least be open to moving Santana, and he’d represent a less costly addition for those organizations in need of rotation help (on the prospect side of the equation, at least; his contractual obligations would need to be worked out).
As the Blue Jays eye rotation pieces, the club is also taking a cautious route with All-Star right-hander Marco Estrada. The veteran expressed disappointment that he’ll need a DL stint to rest his ailing back, as Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca reports, particularly since it means he’s virtually certain not to appear in the mid-summer classic as a capstone to his remarkable tale. But he acknowledged that the move was prudent. “I haven’t had much sleep just knowing that there might be a possibility I don’t get the opportunity to pitch in this game. And I guess my worst nightmare unfortunately came true,” said Estrada. “But in the long run this is the right thing to do. And I think this is going to benefit me in the future.” Though the Jays’ staff has been a strength, it’s not hard to see why the club is on the hunt for more arms. In particular, there’s still no reason to believe that Toronto will back away from its plan to move Aaron Sanchez to the pen to limit his innings. Though Drew Hutchison represents a better-than-average insurance policy — he has had success in the past and has been effective this year at Triple-A — he may be needed to step into Sanchez’s shoes. As the club’s depth chart shows, that would leave the organization a bit thin behind its front five.
The Dodgers have no shortage of pitchers in various stages of the rehabilitation process, and you can add Brett Anderson to the list of those that could return this summer. Manager Dave Roberts told reports, including Andy McCullough of the Los Angeles Times (Twitter link), that the southpaw might make it back by the middle of August if he continues to progress from his back surgery.
Things haven’t gone smoothly of late for the Giants’ bullpen, and now the club will be without righty Cory Gearrin for at least two weeks. As Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle reports, Gearrin has been diagnosed with a strained right shoulder, though the expectation is that he won’t miss much (if any) time beyond the minimum. It helps, too, that the club has welcomed back Sergio Romo, but all in all it wouldn’t be surprising if San Francisco chases a big relief arm over the coming weeks.

NL Central Notes: Bruce, Price, Phillips, Carpenter, Pena, Stewart

By Jeff Todd | July 6, 2016 at 8:55pm CDT

Among the clubs looking at Reds outfielder Jay Bruce are the Dodgers and Nationals, both of whom have been tied previously to the slugger, as Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports writes. (Rosenthal previously reported those connections here and here.) Neither of those organizations has a critical need for an outfielder, though it’s possible to imagine both looking to add some thump to their lineups. Of course, those are likely to face competition for the revived veteran from other quarters. Bruce holds the top spot in MLBTR’s top twenty trade candidates list as he continues to put up monster offensive numbers.

Here’s more from Cincinnati and the rest of the NL Central:

Reds manager Bryan Price isn’t at risk of dismissal, president of baseball operations Walt Jocketty tells Rosenthal. Price says that the removal of pitching coach Mark Riggins was done as part of an effort to add “a different perspective, different approach” to address the club’s pitching woes.
Rosenthal also notes that the Reds could conceivably look to give youngster Jose Peraza more time at second while reducing the role of veteran Brandon Phillips, who has struggled at the plate. Jocketty acknowledges that Peraza’s current super-utility role is “not the most ideal way to develop a guy,” but says “that’s what [the Reds] have” at present. Rosenthal wonders whether the organization could re-approach Phillips about waiving his no-trade clause, which he has been unwilling to do thus far, though Jocketty says the organization isn’t considering that at the moment. Generally, Jocketty says that trade chatter still isn’t “that active right now.”
Cardinals third baseman Matt Carpenter left tonight’s game with what has been diagnosed as an oblique strain, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch was among those to report (Twitter links). He’s headed for an immediate assessment of the injury as the team seeks to get out ahead of things, and manager Mike Matheny says there’s a “high level of concern.” It’s obviously not possible to assess how much time he might miss at this point, let alone whether a DL stint will be required, but the manner in which the Cards are proceeding suggests some pessimism. St. Louis just lost Brandon Moss, so it’s not an optimal time for another position player to be dealing with an injury issue.
Meanwhile, Cardinals catcher Brayan Pena is headed to the DL with knee inflammation not long after being activated, as MLB.com’s Jenifer Langosch reports on Twitter. 11-year minor-league veteran Alberto Rosario will get his first big league call to replace Pena as the backup receiver, but that’s probably not what St. Louis was hoping for. The team recently lost Eric Fryer on waivers while attempting to outright him to clear space for Pena.
Pirates reserve catcher Chris Stewart will attempt to play through knee soreness, head athletic trainer Todd Tomczyk told reporters including Bill Brink of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (Twitter link). An MRI showed “wear and tear” to the joint, which could ultimately require surgery, but it seems that Stewart will at least make an effort to avoid going under the knife.

Cardinals Place Brandon Moss On DL, Recall Randal Grichuk

By Jeff Todd | July 5, 2016 at 5:41pm CDT

The Cardinals have placed slugger Brandon Moss on the 15-day DL with an ankle injury, per a team announcement. He’ll be replaced by Randal Grichuk, who had been working out some kinks at the Triple-A level on optional assignment.

[Related: Updated Cardinals Depth Chart]

Moss has been fantastic this year after a down 2015 campaign, swatting 17 home runs and posting a strong .251/.340/.562 slash over 250 plate appearances. St. Louis has utilized him at first base and the corner outfield, making him a reasonably versatile piece as well. Though Moss doesn’t add value with the glove, he has been a major contributor for St. Louis.

It’s not yet clear how long Moss will be out, but the injury doesn’t sound terribly significant and he’ll get to rest up over the All-Star break. St. Louis will miss the bat, of course, but it has options on hand to pick up the slack.

Matt Adams has enjoyed a nice bounceback season as well, and figures to take the bulk of the load at first base. And Grichuk is a better call-up candidate than most teams have handy for the outfield, though he’ll need to effect his own recovery after a difficult first half.

Grichuk entered the year as the Cards’ regular center fielder, fresh off of a highly-promising season. But he’s been nearly half as productive at the plate as he was in 2015, slashing just .206/.276/.392 over 225 plate appearances. Since being demoted, the 24-year-old has hit for plenty of power in his fifty turns at the plate at Triple-A. But he still ran up a meager .280 on-base percentage and will need to continue to develop in that area if he’s to regain a regular role.

Cardinals Surveying Bullpen Market

By Steve Adams | July 5, 2016 at 1:37pm CDT

The Cardinals have endured their share of bullpen woes this season, with closer Trevor Rosenthal’s demotion and control problems looming large among the team’s relief troubles. St. Louis has also seen Kevin Siegrist diagnosed with mononucleosis, and right-hander Jordan Walden has yet to throw a pitch for the big league club this season. Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch spoke to general manager John Mozeliak, and Goold writes that while the GM said he has not yet been “knee-deep” in the market for relievers, the Cardinals are indeed surveying the market.

Goold lists D-backs right-hander Brad Ziegler as a potential option for the Cards and also notes that Yankees lefty Andrew Miller has been of interest to the Cardinals in the past, though demand for Miller would of course be extreme and the asking price figures to be exorbitant. It’s not entirely clear that either will be available, as D-backs GM Dave Stewart has expressed interest in extending Ziegler, while the Yankees haven’t given any indication of selling just yet and control Miller for another two seasons at a reasonable rate.

Mozeliak did voice some confidence that the club would eventually have a healthier Siegrist to help the relief corps, and he acknowledged top prospect Alex Reyes as “the most dynamic thing that we could add to this club with the least acquisition cost, for sure.” Optioning Rosenthal to sort out his control issues isn’t yet on the Cardinals’ radar, per Mozeliak, although as Goold points out the club hasn’t been afraid to take that type of measure with either Kolten Wong or Randal Grichuk this season.

If the Cardinals do ultimately decide that the trade market is the best avenue by which to upgrade its relief contingent, there will be no shortage of options available. A number of the players listed on Jeff Todd’s most recent collection of the league’s top 20 trade candidates are of the relief variety, as are several of the 10 under-the-radar trade candidates he profiled just yesterday. While a number of clubs haven’t yet made a firm determination as to whether they’ll be buyers or sellers on the summer trade market, the Padres and Braves have already sold off big league pieces, while the Twins, Phillies, Brewers, Reds, Athletics and Angels could all follow suit to varying degrees in the weeks leading up to the Aug. 1 non-waiver deadline. The Cardinals don’t always dive headfirst into the trade market with high-profile additions, but the team has a history of adding bullpen pieces as necessary. In recent years, St. Louis has added pieces such as Jonathan Broxton, John Axford and Steve Cishek on the summer trade market.

In light of Rosenthal’s struggles, offseason signee Seung-hwan Oh has been shifted into the closer’s role. They’ve also received quality innings from right-handers Broxton and Matt Bowman as well as lefties Siegrist and Tyler Lyons. Regardless, there’s room for some improvement, as the team’s overall bullpen has a 3.78 ERA that is weighted heavily by Oh’s dominant 1.71 ERA.

NL Central Notes: Riggins, Mozeliak, Cubs, Middlebrooks

By Mark Polishuk | July 4, 2016 at 6:33pm CDT

Here’s the latest from around the NL Central…

The Reds have dismissed pitching coach Mark Riggins, as per a club announcement. Bullpen coach Mack Jenkins will take over the job, with Triple-A pitching coach Ted Power moving up to replace Jenkins in the pen. Cincinnati is at or near the bottom of every notable pitching category this season, and their pitching as a whole has been worth a cumulative -3.9 fWAR. This was Riggins’ first season as the Reds’ pitching coach after four years as the organization’s minor league pitching coordinator, and he hardly came into a comfortable situation — not only were the rebuilding Reds going with a young rotation, but injuries hit nearly every member of the staff.
Cardinals GM John Mozeliak isn’t yet sure what his team will target at the deadline, MLB.com’s Jenifer Langosch writes. “I haven’t been knee deep in the reliever market,” Mozeliak said, though that could stand out as the most clear area of need for St. Louis. Langosch notes that the Cards could address their bullpen from within by using Triple-A starters Alex Reyes and Mike Mayers as relievers to break them into the big leagues.
The bullpen is the only “real problem” facing the Cubs, ESPN.com’s Jesse Rogers opines. The rotation and lineup have had some recent issues, though those can be excused by injuries or perhaps simply some expected regression after the Cubs’ blazing-hot start to the season. The relief corps, on the other hand, needs some depth, as “even a casual observer can see that manager Joe Maddon only has faith in a few guys, because only a few guys are worthy of it.” Chicago is known to be scouting for bullpen upgrades, particularly the Yankees’ big relief trio of Aroldis Chapman, Andrew Miller and Dellin Betances.
Will Middlebrooks’ minor league deal with the Brewers included an assignment clause for July 1, MLB.com’s Adam McCalvy writes. Milwaukee was required to offer the third baseman to the other 29 teams if Middlebrooks wasn’t on the big league roster by July 1, and given how the Brewers purchased his contract yesterday, McCalvy figures at least one team had interest in Middlebrooks’ services.

Pitching Notes: Santana, Cobb, Felix, Cards, Red Sox, Eovaldi

By Jeff Todd | July 4, 2016 at 1:37pm CDT

The Rangers “took a hard look” at Twins righty Ervin Santana during his most recent outing, according to LaVelle E. Neal III of the Star-Tribune (via Twitter). Texas is in need of rotation depth, as its current depth chart shows, and that may well remain an area of interest even if the club is able to add a higher-end starter. While the veteran Santana doesn’t come with a ton of upside at 33 years of age, he has long been a solid pitcher and would deliver some much-needed dependability. He has averaged over 180 innings annually dating back to his rookie campaign in 2005, and is still working with the same velocity and generating about the same swinging strike rate that he has for much of his career. Santana is owed $13.5MM this year and the two to follow, though, so there’d be some financial negotiating to work through.

Here are some more notable developments as the pitching market continues to take shape:

Rays righty Alex Cobb will make his first rehab start on Wednesday, per a club announcement (h/t to Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times, via Twitter). Cobb, who is working back from Tommy John surgery, can remain on assignment for 30 days. His timeline probably isn’t a determining factor, but so long as he remains on track it certainly would make it easier for Tampa Bay to move a starter.
Mariners righty Felix Hernandez is set to throw three simulated innings on Wednesday, Bob Dutton of the Tacoma News Tribune tweets. If all goes well, it seems that he could soon begin a rehab stint — which could help Seattle assess its rotation needs as the deadline draws into focus.
Asked about the possible need for pen reinforcement, Cardinals GM John Mozeliak said today that his club “can’t ignore anything,” Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch tweets. St. Louis figures to be among many teams eyeing relievers over the next month. With Trevor Rosenthal losing his closing gig and Kevin Siegrist hitting the DL, an already somewhat-questionable unit has increasing concerns.
The Red Sox are still angling to shift Joe Kelly into their big league bullpen, Jason Mastrodonato of the Boston Herald reports on Twitter. A final move won’t be made until after the All-Star break, once he’s completed his rehab stint. Clay Buchholz, too, could be moving back to the relief corps after failing to impress upon his return to the rotation, as Mastrodonato writes.
The Yankees have temporarily bumped righty Nathan Eovaldi to the bullpen, Chad Jennings of the Lo Hud Yankees Blog reports. It appears that he’ll be replaced in the rotation by Chad Green for now, but expectations are that Eovaldi will be back among the starting five after the All-Star break. Skipper Joe Girardi explained that the move was motivated by the team’s need to have arms ready for relief work, though clearly Eovaldi’s distinct struggles of late play a major role in the decision.

Pirates Claim Eric Fryer From Cardinals, Designate Rob Scahill

By Connor Byrne | July 3, 2016 at 3:33pm CDT

3:33pm: The Pirates have announced both the Fryer claim and right-handed reliever Rob Scahill’s designation for assignment. Scahill threw 16 1/3 innings for the Pirates this year prior to the designation and recorded a 4.41 ERA, 7.16 K/9, 3.31 BB/9 and 58 percent ground-ball rate. In 104 big league innings, the 29-year-old owns a 3.89 ERA, 6.23 K/9, 3.72 BB/9 and 52.7 percent grounder rate.

[RELATED: Updated Pirates depth chart]

1:32pm: The Pirates have claimed catcher Eric Fryer off waivers from the division-rival Cardinals, reports Chris Cotillo of SB Nation (Twitter link). The 30-year-old became available when the Redbirds designated him for assignment Tuesday, though they were hoping he’d sneak through waivers and remain in the organization.

This will be the second stint in Pittsburgh for Fryer, who was previously with the Bucs from 2010-12. He looks poised to take the place of Chris Stewart – who could head to the disabled list, Adam Berry of MLB.com tweets. Stewart would then join starting backstop Francisco Cervelli as the second Bucs catcher on the DL, leaving the position to Fryer and Erik Kratz.

In parts of six major league seasons, Fryer has totaled 199 trips to the plate and hit .270/.347/.354. Forty-one of those PAs came this year in St. Louis, with which Fryer slashed an outstanding .368/.415/.421. Those numbers are vastly superior to the .237/.328/.328 line Fryer has compiled in 935 Triple-A plate appearances, so regression is clearly on the way. Defensively, Fryer has graded respectably as a pitch framer and thrown out 29 percent of base stealers during his minor league career.

NL International Signings: 7/2/16

By charliewilmoth | July 2, 2016 at 10:29am CDT

Here’s a roundup of key National League international signings not yet covered elsewhere on MLBTR.

The Cardinals are completing a $2.3MM deal with Cuban outfielder Jonathan Machado, and will also sign Venezuelan outfielder Victor Garcia for $1.5MM and Cuban righty Johan Oviedo for $1.9MM, MLB.com’s Jesse Sanchez writes. MLB.com ranks Machado the No. 10 prospect available this signing season, noting comparisons to Kenny Lofton and Ichiro Suzuki. The speedy 17-year-old was widely expected to sign with the Cardinals. MLB.com ranks Garcia the No. 12 prospect available, praising his big raw power but noting that his plate approach could use work. Oviedo is a somewhat off-the-grid signing, at least from the perspective of the available public information — he doesn’t rank in MLB.com or Baseball America’s top prospects lists. Sanchez had previously tweeted, though, that the 18-year-old Oviedo is 6’6 and 235 pounds, and already throws 94-96 MPH, touching 98. It’s not hard to see why teams would be interested in such a player. The Cardinals have the smallest bonus pool of any organization, at $2,027,300, and these three signings alone would send the team way past it.
The Rockies have agreed to sign Venezuelan lefty Alfredo Jose Garcia for $1M, Sanchez tweets. Garcia does not figure in either the MLB.com or Baseball America lists. There’s little information on him available online, although he appears to be the pitcher in this video.

Cardinals Designate Eric Fryer For Assignment

By Steve Adams | June 28, 2016 at 4:48pm CDT

The Cardinals announced today that they have designated backup catcher Eric Fryer for assignment and activated fellow backstop Brayan Pena off the 15-day disabled list.

Cardinals manager Mike Matheny said yesterday that the 30-year-old Fryer has been a “pleasant surprise” for his team in 2016, but a DFA has looked increasingly likely as Pena has neared the completion of a minor league rehab assignment for a knee injury. While Fryer worked in a very highly limited role in support of Yadier Molina, he’s been quite solid at the plate, slashing .368/.415/.421 through 41 plate appearances this season. He’s also prevented four of the six stolen bases attempts against him.

Fryer doesn’t come with a lengthy track record at the big league level, but he’s authored a solid .270/.347/.354 batting line in 199 Major League plate appearances across parts of six seasons between the Pirates, Twins and Cardinals dating back to 2011. Based on his .237/.328/.328 line in 935 plate appearances in Triple-A, it’s fair to expect some regression in his overall big league production, but as a mostly solid pitch-framer with a 29 percent caught-stealing rate throughout his minor league career, Fryer is certainly an appealing depth option.

Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch tweets that the Cardinals will attempt to get him to Triple-A Memphis, though they’ll first need to pass Fryer through outright waivers. Fryer has been outrighted in the past (meaning he could elect free agency even if he does clear), but given the paucity of quality catching options around the league, it should never simply be assumed that a backstop in the midst of a productive season will go unclaimed.

As for Pena, he’ll be making his Cardinals debut when he suits up for the first time. St. Louis signed him to a two-year, $5MM contract this offseason, but he underwent surgery to remove a loose body from his left knee in early April and has yet to be healthy enough to take the big league field. The switch-hitting 34-year-old is a lifetime .260/.300/.352 hitter at the Major League level and has compiled a more impressive .271/.313/.354 line in 982 PAs over the past three seasons with the Tigers and the division-rival Reds.

NL Notes: Nationals, Cardinals, Phillies, Marlins

By Steve Adams | June 27, 2016 at 11:35am CDT

With Stephen Strasburg’s recent placement on the disabled list, the Nationals need a starter for Tuesday, and Pete Kerzel of MASNsports.com writes that it looks like Triple-A right-hander Austin Voth and Double-A righty Lucas Giolito (the game’s top prospect according to MLB.com and ESPN) are the likeliest candidates. Neither pitcher is on the 40-man, though Kerzel points out that the Nationals can create room simply by transferring Taylor Jordan, who is recovering from Tommy John surgery, to the 60-day disabled list. Kerzel notes that Giolito could potentially force his way into the rotation in place of the struggling Gio Gonzalez even when Strasburg returns, but he also notes that Giolito is on an innings limit and figures to be capped just shy of 140 innings. He’s already tossed 71 frames this season, so turning to him for three full months of starts may not be an option. Kerzel runs down the cases for and against a Giolito promotion, and the analysis is well worth a look for Nats fans or prospect chasers in fantasy leagues.

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