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Pitching Notes: Lincecum, Musgrove, Wheeler

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A few pitching notes from around the majors…

  • Rangers right-hander Tim Lincecum’s ongoing blister issues forced him to postpone a bullpen session Sunday, according to TR Sullivan of MLB.com. Given that he didn’t pitch at all last season and then went without a contract until March 7, Lincecum was already behind schedule before the blister on his right middle finger cropped up last month. It’s now unclear whether he’ll be ready by the beginning of May, the Rangers’ target for him entering the season.
  • Pirates righty Joe Musgrove is eligible to come off the 10-day disabled list Monday, but that’s not going to happen, manager Clint Hurdle told Jerry Dipaola of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review and other reporters Sunday. Musgrove, who’s dealing with a muscle strain in his right shoulder, will first need to make multiple rehab starts, per Hurdle. Right now, though, he’s in a “no-throw” period, the skipper revealed. Musgrove, 25, was arguably the headliner in the Pirates’ return for righty Gerrit Cole, whom they traded to the Astros over the winter. Cole’s thriving in Houston, yet the 7-2 Pirates have held their own without him thus far.
  • The Mets will recall righty Zack Wheeler for a start in Miami this upcoming Wednesday, Mike Puma of the New York Post was among those to report on Twitter. It’ll be the first time the ballyhooed quintet of Noah Syndergaard, Jacob deGrom Steven Matz, Matt Harvey and Wheeler have taken consecutive turns through New York’s rotation, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com notes. Wheeler, whose career fell off track after undergoing Tommy John surgery in 2015, opened the year in the minors and tossed five innings of six-strikeout, one-run ball in his initial Triple-A start of 2018 on Friday. He’s likely to be a short-term fill-in for the Mets, who are awaiting the season debut of Jason Vargas. The southpaw underwent surgery on his right hand last month.

Heyman’s Latest: Harper, Rangers, Bruce, Lagares, Cosart

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Bryce Harper’s free agent market receives an early preview by FanRag Sports’ Jon Heyman, who lists the eight teams he feels have the best chance at signing the star outfielder when he hits the open market after the season.  The Nationals and other big-market usual suspects are cited, though the Braves are a new addition to the list of candidates, as both Sirius XM Radio’s Steve Phillips and an unnamed friend of Harper’s feel Atlanta is a logical possibility.  It should be noted that the Braves are only being named here as a “makes sense on paper” type of candidate, as it isn’t known whether Harper himself would consider the Braves, or if the club is actually preparing for a run at the outfielder.  Still, a case can be made — Atlanta is known to be preparing for the end of its rebuild, with a large array of young players that could position the team as a contender for years to come.  Signing Harper would certainly be about the biggest splash possible in announcing a return to contention, though it remains to be seen if the Braves would be open to spending the record-setting contract Harper will seek in free agency.

Here’s some more from Heyman, in his weekly notes post covering all 30 teams…

  • With Delino DeShields Jr. on the disabled list due to a broken hamate bone, the Rangers are looking for center field depth.  Drew Robinson and Rule 5 draft pick Carlos Tocci have been platooning in center field with DeShields out, though that may not be a tenable situation given that DeShields could be sidelined into the middle of May.  Jose Cardona and Brett Eibner are available in the minors, but Texas would have to create a 40-man roster spot for either player.
  • Heyman provides some new details on Jay Bruce’s free agent market, reporting that the Indians offered Bruce a two-year, $18MM deal while the Blue Jays discussed a one-year deal in the range of $5MM-$7MM.  It’s interesting to note that both teams ended up signing somewhat similar veteran left-handed bats for similar price points — Cleveland inked Yonder Alonso for two years and $16MM in guaranteed money, while Toronto signed Curtis Granderson to a one-year, $5MM deal.  The Jays didn’t actually make Bruce an offer, however, and neither did the Astros, though they also had some talks with Bruce about a two-year deal.  Heyman speculates that Houston may have been considering Bruce only if top prospect Derek Fisher was dealt, and thus the Astros’ interest waned since they were able to acquire Gerrit Cole without parting ways with the young outfielder.  As it turned out, Bruce ended up landing a three-year, $39MM deal to return to the Mets.
  • Speaking of the Mets, Heyman writes that the team would still be willing to deal Juan Lagares if a trade partner could be found.  Lagares had been a frequent subject of trade rumors over the winter, and the Mets’ outfield situation has once again become overly crowded now that Michael Conforto has returned from the disabled list.  With Conforto and Brandon Nimmo both capable of playing center field, Lagares’ contract ($16MM guaranteed in 2018-19) and lack of hitting makes him expendable, though Lagares is a superb defender.  It’s possible the Mets could find an interested team later in the season as injuries or pennant race needs emerge, though one would think New York would have to eat at least some of the contract to make a deal happen.  On the flip side, Lagares could provide valuable depth if the Mets are again hit with injuries, or if Bruce is needed at first base in the event that Adrian Gonzalez can’t hold up over regular playing time.
  • Jarred Cosart will soon throw for teams in a showcase, as the free agent righty looks to catch on with another team.  Elbow surgery limited Cosart to just 24 MLB innings in 2017, and the Padres outrighted him off their roster after the season rather than pay him a projected $1.3MM via the arbitration process.

Padres Acquire Brett Nicholas From Rangers

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The Padres announced that they’ve acquired catcher Brett Nicholas from the Rangers in exchange for a player to be named later or cash. Nicholas, 29, was outrighted off the Rangers’ 40-man roster late in Spring Training and recently was further displaced by Texas’ signing of Cameron Rupp to a minor league contract. The Padres have assigned him to Triple-A El Paso.

Nicholas has appeared in 36 games for the Rangers over the past two seasons, tallying 110 plate appearances and hitting .252/.300/.446 with four homers in that brief sample. He’s halted just two of 15 stolen-base attempts against Rangers pitching in that time, though he’s been more effective (27 percent) in parts of eight minor league seasons. Baseball Prospectus doesn’t view his pitch framing in either the Majors or the minors too highly, but Nicholas is a lifetime .283/.333/.427 hitter in 1669 Triple-A plate appearances.

Padres general manager A.J. Preller is plenty familiar with Nicholas, as he was an assistant GM with the Rangers back in 2010 when Texas drafted Nicholas in the sixth round out of Missouri. The left-handed-hitting Nicholas will give the Friars some additional depth behind catchers Austin Hedges and A.J. Ellis, and he also comes with some experience at first base. It seems likely that Nicholas will team with Raffy Lopez to handle the bulk of the catching duties in Triple-A.

Rangers Notes: Hamels, Colon, Rupp

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While we’re still months from the non-waiver trade deadline, MLB.com’s Jon Morosi reports the details on Cole Hamels’ limited no-trade clause (Twitter link). It’s already known that Hamels can block deals to 20 teams, but Morosi adds the nine teams to which Hamels can be traded without his consent: the Mariners, Cardinals, Nationals, Astros, Cubs, Phillies, Royals, Rays and Braves. Obviously, the inclusion of some teams in that list of nine is largely a moot point; the Royals and Rays in particular wouldn’t take on Hamels’ salary, for instance. The 34-year-old Hamels is earning $22.5MM this season and is also guaranteed at least $6MM in the form of a buyout on a $20MM club option for the 2019 season. The four-time All-Star and former NLCS and World Series MVP is looking for a rebound campaign after posting a career-low 6.4 K/9 and the second-highest ERA (4.20) of his career in an injury-shortened 2017 campaign.

A couple more notes out of Arlington…

  • Rangers GM Jon Daniels tells Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram that he’s “leaning” toward keeping Bartolo Colon on the team’s roster as a means of preserving some rotation depth. Texas needs to open a 25-man roster spot for Martin Perez to come off the 10-day DL on Thursday, but they can’t make that move with Colon unless they designate him for assignment, at which point he’d be exposed to waivers and could reject an outright assignment even if he clears. “This early in the season, I’m more of the mind-set to add to our depth rather than to take it away,” said Daniels. The 44-year-old Colon held the A’s to one earned run on seven hits and a walk with four strikeouts through six innings in his Rangers debut yesterday.
  • Though the Rangers added Cameron Rupp on a minor league deal earlier today, the move wasn’t made due to any concern over the team’s current big league tandem of Robinson Chirinos or Juan Centeno, manager Jeff Banister tells MLB.com’s T.R. Sullivan. Rather, Texas simply felt it was a valuable opportunity to add a depth piece with plenty of big league experience. “I don’t think our catching is an area of concern, but I don’t think you can have enough quality catching,” said Banister. “…We know on any given night, one of these guys can go down.” Banister spoke highly of Rupp’s offensive ability and his throwing arm, citing several first-hand looks at Rupp from his days on the Pirates’ coaching staff.

Rangers Sign Cameron Rupp

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The Rangers have inked catcher Cameron Rupp to a minor-league deal, per a club announcement. He’ll head to Triple-A for now but can earn at a $1MM annual rate in the majors, Jon Heyman of Fan Rag tweets. Rupp is already receiving just over half a million dollars from the Phillies after he was released from his arbitration deal late this spring.

It’s not surprising to see this match, which made sense on paper and was previously suggested to be of actual interest to the Texas organization. If anything, it had seemed possible that Rupp might command a major-league roster spot upon signing, but he’ll instead settle for a minor-league placement that seems to leave him a good shot at making his way back to the majors before long.

Rupp, 29, has been a heavily used and plenty useful MLB backstop for the past three seasons. He’s not much of an on-base threat with the bat, but has good power and has carried an 86 wRC+ and swatted 39 home runs through 1,127 plate appearances at the game’s highest level.

Of course, offense isn’t everything, particularly for a catcher. Rupp had received roughly average framing grades before he turned southward in 2017. He has been solid in controlling the running game and handling balls in the dirt.

Rupp will be hoping to displace Juan Centeno as the second receiver in Texas. Centeno has a thinner track record in the big leagues, though he does offer some added platoon possibilities as a left-handed hitter. It certainly would not be surprising to see Rupp join starter Robinson Chirinos on the Rangers roster in relatively short order.

Rangers Select Contract Of Bartolo Colon; Tommy Joseph Accepts Outright Assignment

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The Rangers announced Monday that they’ve selected the contract of veteran right-hander Bartolo Colon and optioned fellow righty Nick Gardewine to Triple-A. To clear a spot on the 40-man roster for Colon, Texas moved righty Ricardo Rodriguez from the 10-day DL to the 60-day DL. Additionally, Texas announced that Tommy Joseph has cleared waivers and accepted an outright assignment to Double-A Frisco.

Texas will turn to Colon, 44, to start tonight’s game in Oakland. The timeless veteran inked a minor league pact with the Rangers this offseason and delivered strong results in Spring Training, working to a 3.00 ERA with a 10-to-2 K/BB ratio in 18 innings of work. He’ll join Cole Hamels, Mike Minor, Doug Fister and Matt Moore in the Texas rotation as he looks to continue a career that, upon taking the hill tonight, will have spanned parts of 21 seasons.

Colon split the 2017 season between the Braves and the Twins, struggling badly in Atlanta before rebounding, to an extent, in Minnesota. “Big Sexy” turned in a 3.94 ERA and a 38-to-11 K/BB ratio through his first 10 starts with the Twins before fading and yielding 19 runs in his final 18 1/3 frames (over the life of five starts).

While the season, on the whole, wasn’t a good one for Colon, the popular righty is only a season removed from tossing 191 2/3 innings with a 3.43 ERA, 6.0 K/9 and 1.5 BB/9 with the 2016 Mets. In fact, from 2013-16 with the A’s and Mets, Colon averaged 195 innings per season with a 3.59 ERA, twice making the All-Star team (2013 and 2016) and twice pacing his league in BB/9 (2015-16). He’s one of many veteran arms the Rangers bought low on in the offseason in hopes of catching some lightning in a bottle.

For Colon, the opportunity is not without significance. He’s spoken many times about what it would mean to him to tally another four wins and move into the all-time lead for wins by a Dominican-born pitcher, overtaking Hall of Famer Juan Marichal. Colon is also less than two months away from his 45th birthday, and if he can keep his remarkable career going to that point, he’ll fulfill a promise to his late mother in which he told her he’d pitch until age 45.

Joseph, meanwhile, has struggled to get on base in each of his two big league seasons and saw his overall offensive output decline in 2017. In total, he’s a .247/.297/.460 hitter in 880 PAs, but as an OBP-challenged slugger with significant defensive limitations, his appeal around the league was unsurprisingly somewhat limited. He’ll give Texas some depth at first base, though with Joey Gallo and Ronald Guzman ahead of him on the depth chart at first base and Shin-Soo Choo slated for regular DH work, it might take an injury or two to create a clearer opportunity for Joseph to return to the Majors.

Minor MLB Transactions: 4/2/18

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

  • The Red Sox picked up catcher Mike Ohlman from the Rangers in exchange for cash, Baseball America’s Matt Eddy reports in a comprehensive rundown of late-spring releases, trades and signings. The 27-year-old made his Major League debut with Toronto last year but collected just 13 plate appearances over the life of seven games. An 11th-round pick of the Orioles back in 2009, Ohlman has logged a respectable .758 OPS in 518 Triple-A plate appearances thus far in his minor league career. He’ll give Boston some depth behind the plate, though the Sox are largely set in that capacity with Christian Vazquez, Sandy Leon and Blake Swihart all on the 25-man roster.
  • Veteran right-hander Logan Ondrusek is joining the Dodgers on a minor league contract, per Eddy. The 33-year-old didn’t pitch professionally in 2017 but does have 277 big league innings under his belt, spanning the 2010-16 seasons. Ondrusek last appeared in the Majors with the 2016 Orioles, when he allowed seven runs in a tiny sample of 6 1/3 innings. For his career, he has a 4.03 ERA, 7.1 K/9 and 3.7 BB/9 in the Majors, though he’s posted much better numbers in Triple-A and in Japan.
  • Eddy also notes that the Dodgers have cut ties with righty Jordan Jankowski. The 28-year-old got his first taste of the big league in 2017, tossing 4 1/3 frames for the Astros before landing with the Dodgers via waiver claim. Jankowski has averaged 11.9 strikeouts per nine innings in 177 1/3 Triple-A frames in his career, though he’s struggled with control since being selected in the 34th round of the 2012 draft as well.

Delino DeShields To 10-Day DL With Broken Hamate Bone

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1:30pm: The Rangers have officially placed DeShields on the 10-day disabled list, tweets John Blake, the club’s Executive Vice President of Communications. DeShields is expected to miss four to six weeks. Right-hander Nick Gardewine has been recalled from Triple-A Round Rock to take his place on the roster in the immediate term.

12:51pm: A source close to Evan Grant of SportsDay tells him that Delino DeShields has a broken hamate bone, though the Rangers haven’t made any official announcement on the subject.

If the report is true, it represents a huge blow to the Rangers, or as Grant puts it, “a lineup-changing, alignment-shaking injury situation.” DeShields left Friday’s game with discomfort in his hand after a swing during the eighth inning; he’s set to undergo an MRI today after experiencing significant swelling. The loss of their center fielder for any length of time would not only subtract their leadoff hitter and most significant threat on the basepaths, but dramatically affect the club’s outfield defense as well.

As things stand at present, Rule 5 pick Carlos Tocci is the club’s next-best defensive option in center field; he’s got just 54 plate appearances above Double-A to speak of. It remains to see whether the Rangers would be willing to deploy the 22-year-old Tocci in a full-time role (indeed, Grant adds that the club doesn’t believe he’s ready to do so), though it’s worth noting that they did the same thing with DeShields himself in 2015 after taking him in the Rule 5 draft. At this point, it’s worth noting that no viable center field options remain on the free agent market, with Ben Revere having signed a minors deal with the Angels just earlier today.

Rangers Designate Tommy Joseph, Select Kevin Jepsen

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The Rangers announced Thursday that they’ve selected the contract of veteran reliever Kevin Jepsen, who was in camp on a minor league contract. In a corresponding move, the Rangers designated first baseman Tommy Joseph for assignment. Texas claimed him off waivers from the Phillies last week. Additionally, Martin Perez, Tony Barnette and Tim Lincecum have been placed on the 10-day DL.

Once a top-ranked catching prospect, Joseph moved to first base due to concussion issues and broke into the Majors with a solid showing in 2016 (.257/.308/.505). However, Joseph has struggled to get on base in each of his two big league seasons and saw his overall offensive output decline in 2017. Overall, he’s a .247/.297/.460 hitter in 880 PAs, but as an OBP-challenged slugger with significant defensive limitations, he was squeezed out in Philadelphia and could have a tough time finding a regular role elsewhere.

The 33-year-old Jepsen didn’t pitch in the Majors last season after posting a dismal 5.98 ERA in 49 2/3 frames between the Twins and Rays in 2016. He spent last year with the Nationals’ Triple-A affiliate but endured similar struggles, logging a 5.32 ERA in 23 2/3 innings of work. Jepsen has long shown the ability to miss bats, however, and was an effective closer for the Twins as recently as 2015. From 2012-15, he posted a 2.93 ERA with 8.7 K/9 against 3.2 BB/9 in 215 1/3 innings between the Angels, Rays and Twins.

AL Notes: Dozier, Rays, Tucker, Lincecum, Royals

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Extension talks between the Twins and Brian Dozier are “dead,” reports ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick, who notes that the slugging second baseman has no intention of discussing a long-term deal during the season and will hit the open market next offseason (Twitter link). That much has looked apparent for much of the spring, as Dozier has reportedly been disheartened by Minnesota’s lack of engagement in extension negotiations despite a vocal desire on his behalf to remain in the Twin Cities for the long haul. A lack of an extension, of course, doesn’t mean Dozier’s days in Minnesota are numbered; he’ll assuredly receive a qualifying offer if he has a characteristically strong season in 2018, and the Twins will likely keep up with his market in free agency next winter. It seems probable that Dozier will remain with the Twins for the bulk of the season, as the AL Central features three rebuilding clubs — the Royals, Tigers and White Sox — and looks to be largely a two-horse race between Cleveland and Minnesota even before the season begins in earnest.

More from the American League…

  • The Rays were already planning on a four-man rotation with a somewhat regular “bullpen day” before getting news of Nate Eovaldi’s need for surgery to remove loose bodies from his elbow, and Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports that they’ll now deploy an even more radical strategy. Tampa Bay will lean on Chris Archer, Blake Snell and Jake Faria as its top three starters, and there’s no current plan to replace Eovaldi with another starter. The Rays’ early reaction, per Topkin, is to stick to their plan and see how things go; there are enough off-days early in the year that they can get by with only one required bullpen day for the first several turns through the rotation. It’s tough to imagine that they won’t eventually need to put Matt Andriese back in the rotation or turn to youngsters like Ryan Yarbrough or Yonny Chirinos, however. Tampa Bay’s depth is being tested to extreme levels, as they’ve lost both Brent Honeywell and Jose De Leon to Tommy John surgery after already having traded Jake Odorizzi to the Twins.
  • Jake Kaplan of The Athletic tweets that Astros top prospect Kyle Tucker will open the season in Triple-A despite possessing only a half season’s worth of experience at the Double-A level. The former No. 5 overall draft pick looks to be on the fast track to the big leagues, having slashed .265/.325/.512 in 72 Double-A games as a 20-year-old last year in addition to a robust .409/.438/.818 slash in 48 spring plate appearances with the ’Stros this year. Tucker entered the year as a consensus top 20 overall prospect and is considered to be a key long-term cog for an already youthful Astros organization.
  • Tim Lincecum has been slowed by a blister on his middle finger but will play catch tomorrow, tweets Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. The two-time NL Cy Young winner, hoping for a career renaissance in the Rangers’ bullpen, didn’t pitch in a game this spring and believes that May 1 is a realistic target for his Texas debut. It’s been a half-decade since “The Freak” was a substantial big league contributor, but this, of course, will be his first season as a full-time reliever — a role that could lead to greater success for the former ace.
  • With Salvador Perez sidelined for four to six weeks due to an MCL tear, Cam Gallagher will pair with veteran Drew Butera to comprise the Royals’ primary catching tandem, writes MLB.com’s Jeffrey Flanagan. But the Royals won’t announce their Opening Day roster until tomorrow morning as they make the final deliberations regarding their bullpen. Non-roster invitee Blaine Boyer looks to have a spot locked up behind Kelvin Herrera, Brandon Maurer, Justin Grimm and Rule 5 pick Brad Keller, per Flanagan, who also notes that Ryan Goins will likely make the team as a utility infielder. With Goins and Boyer both in camp as non-roster players, the Royals will need to clear at least a pair of 40-man roster spots, though further moves could certainly be made.
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