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AL Notes: Red Sox, Rangers, Orioles

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The Red Sox signed first baseman Mitch Moreland to a one-year, $5.5MM contract over the winter, passing on bigger names in the process, and it has worked out beautifully so far, observes Brian MacPherson of the Providence Journal. Boston probably would have gone a more expensive route had it not been so close to the luxury-tax threshold, which may have also cost the team a first-round pick, writes MacPherson. To this point, Moreland has held his own relative to more expensive offseason signings such as Edwin Encarnacion, Mark Trumbo, Kendrys Morales, Jose Bautista and Carlos Beltran. Moreland, an ex-Ranger, has slashed .280/.373/.480 with nine home runs in his first 260 plate appearances with the Red Sox. What’s more, the 31-year-old has transferred his strong work in the field from Texas to Boston, having racked up three Defensive Runs Saved and notched a 2.4 UZR/150.

A couple more American League-related items…

  • One of Moreland’s former teammates – free agent right-hander Colby Lewis – was unwilling to return to the Rangers on a minor league contract last offseason, and he explained why to T.R. Sullivan of MLB.com. “I didn’t want to fight for a position,” Lewis said. “Here I am, I have been here forever. I’ll be 38 this season, you want to make me fight for a spot? It was a bitter pill to swallow and still is. I always wanted to wear this uniform, this is where I wanted to be.” Lewis, a Ranger from 2002-04 and 2010-16 who pitched to a 3.71 ERA/4.81 FIP in 116 1/3 innings last year, isn’t ready to call it a career. However, it doesn’t seem as if he’ll take a minors deal anywhere. While Lewis contends he’s only five to six weeks away from being major league ready, it’s difficult to imagine anyone giving him a guaranteed contract.
  • Orioles shortstop J.J. Hardy’s wrist is “not good” after he took a 93 mph Lance Lynn fastball off it Sunday, manager Buck Showalter told reporters (via Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com). “We took an X-ray here, saw something that concerned us,” continued Showalter. “I know he’s got a scan in the morning and we’ll have a little more definitive idea there.” It’s likely Hardy will head to the disabled list, per Kubatko, meaning the Orioles would have two regular infielders on the DL (first baseman Chris Davis is the other). Ruben Tejada, Paul Janish and Luis Sardinas are the in-house options to fill in for Hardy, notes Kubatko, though Tejada’s the only one on Baltimore’s 40-man roster. The 34-year-old Hardy isn’t exactly an irreplaceable cog at this stage of his career, evidenced by his .211/.248/.308 batting line in 239 plate appearances. The only qualified hitter with a worse wRC+ than Hardy’s (43) is Royals shortstop Alcides Escobar (19).

Dodgers Claim Peter O’Brien, Designate Jason Wheeler

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The Dodgers have claimed outfielder Peter O’Brien off waivers from the Rangers, according to an announcement from Texas. To make room for O’Brien, the Dodgers have designated left-hander Jason Wheeler for assignment, tweets Ken Gurnick of MLB.com. Additionally, right-hander Dillon Gee, whom the Rangers designated on Friday, has cleared waivers and elected free agency.

The Dodgers are already the fifth organization of 2017 for the 26-year-old O’Brien, who spent time with the Diamondbacks, Royals and Reds before joining the Rangers in a waiver claim last month. O’Brien only collected 15 plate appearances with the Rangers’ Triple-A affiliate before the club designated him Saturday, and has stumbled to an overall minor league line of .167/.254/.301 in 209 PAs this year. Although he’s prone to striking out, teams continue to take flyers on O’Brien because of his prodigious power, as the former Yankees farmhand has swatted 122 minor league home runs – including six this season. He saw brief major league action with the D-backs in 2015 and ’16 and hit six long balls in 79 PAs, though he slashed just .176/.228/.446 with a 40.5 percent strikeout rate during that time.

Wheeler, 26, has only been in the Los Angeles organization for two-plus weeks. Since the Dodgers acquired him from the Twins for cash considerations on June 2, Wheeler has thrown 8 2/3 frames of 10-earned run, 16-hit ball with their Triple-A affiliate. Wheeler made his major league debut with Minnesota earlier this season and surrendered three earned runs on six hits and four walks, with no strikeouts, causing the Twins to boot him from their 40-man roster before dealing him to the Dodgers.

As for Gee, the only somewhat established big leaguer of the three, he made four appearances (one start) for Texas this year and tossed 13 innings of 4.15 ERA ball, but he yielded 17 hits and walked six during that short span. Gee fared better with their Triple-A affiliate, logging a 3.88 ERA, 7.59 K/9 and 2.29 BB/9 across 51 frames. The Rangers originally added Gee on a minor league deal over the winter, which came after a 2016 in which he racked up 125 frames of 4.68 ERA pitching with the Royals and then underwent thoracic outlet syndrome surgery. The 31-year-old has spent the majority of his career with the Mets and owns a 4.13 ERA, 6.47 K/9, 2.85 BB/9 and a 45.1 percent ground-ball rate in 817 1/3 big league frames.

Rosenthal’s Latest: Wilson, Madson, Nats, Cutch, Lynn, Darvish

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Some hot stove tidbits from FOX Sports’ Ken Rosenthal in his latest Full Count video…

  • The Nationals have yet to engage in serious talks with the Tigers about Justin Wilson or with the Athletics about Ryan Madson, though the relievers are “two of the Nationals’ prime bullpen targets.”  There isn’t any indication yet that Detroit is open to moving Wilson, however, since the team is still in the race.  If the Tigers do become sellers, however, they’ll get plenty of interest in the southpaw, who took over from Francisco Rodriguez as closer earlier this season.  Wilson has a 2.67 ERA, 3.55 K/BB rate and 39 strikeouts over 27 innings.
  • The Pirates aren’t likely to deal Andrew McCutchen if they feel they can contend, though Rosenthal reminds us that the Bucs dealt Mark Melancon last season despite being just three games out of a wild card spot.  This season, it looks like Pittsburgh’s best path to the postseason is through the NL Central; the Bucs are just five games out of first place despite their 31-37 record (they’re 11.5 games back in the wild card race).  Trading McCutchen also wouldn’t necessarily mean that the Pirates would give up hope of contending this year, as Rosenthal notes that the club actually played better after dealing Melancon before a swath of September injuries ruined their chances.
  • The Cardinals are one of several teams that could be both buyers and sellers at the deadline.  For instance, St. Louis could consider trading Lance Lynn (a pending free agent) and then replace him in the rotation with one of the organization’s several young arms.  After missing all of 2016 due to Tommy John surgery, Lynn has rebounded to post a 2.69 ERA, 8.67 K/9 and 2.37 K/BB rate over 73 2/3 IP this season.  Peripheral numbers (.207 BABIP, 86.5% strand rate) indicate that Lynn has perhaps been a bit fortunate, as his ERA indicators (4.75 FIP, 4.40 xFIP, 4.35 SIERA) are well above his actual 2.69 ERA.
  • While plans could change if the Rangers fall out of the race, a Yu Darvish deadline trade seems pretty unlikely right now since the team is playing better.  There are also longer-term considerations in play, as Texas wants to re-sign the star right-hander when Darvish hits free agency this winter and “the relationship between the Rangers and Darvish is deeper than most,” Rosenthal reports.  There’s also the interesting wrinkle that Darvish’s presence could help the Rangers in their pursuit of Shohei Otani, as Otani idolizes Darvish.

Rangers Place Andrew Cashner On DL, Designate Peter O’Brien

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The Rangers have announced that they’ve placed righty Andrew Cashner on the 10-day DL with a left oblique strain. They’ve also purchased the contract of veteran righty reliever Ernesto Frieri to take his place on the 25-man roster. To clear 40-man space for Frieri, they’ve designated 1B/OF Peter O’Brien for assignment.

[Related: Updated Texas Rangers Depth Chart]

Cashner’s injury is the latest for a Rangers rotation that has also recently endured injuries to Cole Hamels and A.J. Griffin, although MLB.com’s TR Sullivan tweets that the Rangers hope Cashner will only need to miss a start or two. Cashner has posted a 3.50 ERA and 49.8 GB% in 69 1/3 innings with Texas, albeit with 4.3 K/9 and 4.0 BB/9.

Frieri is set to return to the big leagues after last appearing in the bigs with the Rays in 2015. He sat out the 2016 season to work on his mechanics, signed a minor-league deal with the Yankees, then latched on with the Rangers after opting out. For the season, he’s posted a 2.86 ERA, 10.6 K/9 and 3.7 BB/9 in 22 Triple-A innings, perhaps indicating he’s recovered some portion of what made him successful as a closer for the Angels in 2012 and 2013 before he struggled with the Angels and Pirates in 2014.

The well-traveled O’Brien has already been a member of four organizations in 2017, heading from the Diamondbacks to the Royals to the Reds to the Rangers in a series of minor transactions. The 26-year-old has demonstrated impressive power, with 122 career minor-league home runs, but has always had trouble with strikeouts and this year has struggled to the tune of a .167/.254/.301 line in four minor-league stops. He briefly played in the big leagues with Arizona in 2015 and 2016.

Rangers Sign Top Three Draft Picks

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The Rangers have reached agreements with each of their top three picks from the recent Rule 4 draft, executive VP of communications John Blake announced on Twitter.

First selection Bubba Thompson was taken with the 26th overall pick, which comes with a roughly $2.45MM bonus allocation. He’ll get $2.1MM, per Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News (via Twitter). The Alabama high-schooler ranked as high as 21st on the boards of draft analysts, earning that mark from Eric Longerhagen of Fangraphs, and drew a strong consensus as a top-thirty prospect. Thompson is noted for his excellent speed, center-field-capable glove, and burgeoning power.

The views were decidedly more divergent on shortstop Chris Seise, who went just three picks later with a comp selection. He’ll get a $2MM bonus, per MLB.com’s Jim Callis (via Twitter), meaning that Texas will save $238,900 to allocate elsewhere. The Florida high schooler rated as low as 76th overall (ESPN.com’s Keith Law) due to a questionable bat, though the MLB.com analyst team placed him within the top 40 available players while expressing the view that his bat has “start[ed] to catch up to his other tools” as he has added strength.

Finally, with their second-round pick (#66, $926,500 allocation), the Rangers took righty Hans Crouse. The prep hurler, who had been committed to USC, out-ranked Seise on all the major pre-draft boards and drew consensus top-forty billing. While there’s still a need for some refinement, Crouse is said to possess a top-end power arm. He’ll take down an above-slot, $1.45MM bonus, per Grant (on Twitter) — essentially absorbing the savings from the prior two picks.

Rangers Designate Dillon Gee, Activate Tyson Ross, Option Jurickson Profar

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The Rangers announced that righty Dillon Gee was designated for assignment. The move was made to open a roster spot for Tyson Ross, who has been activated off of the 60-day DL to make his debut for the club.

Texas has announced a withering array of other moves as well. Former top prospect Jurickson Profar was optioned to Triple-A along with fellow utility option Ryan Rua, while righty Tony Barnette hit the DL with a sprained right ring finger. Those moves cleared space for the activation of Carlos Gomez and Mike Napoli, as well as the recall of southpaw Dario Alvarez.

Gee, 31, has helped Texas bridge the gap to Ross, who was signed after undergoing thoracic outlet surgery. The Rangers got 13 frames of 4.15 ERA pitching from Gee, though he didn’t inspire much confidence while on the hill. Gee allowed 17 hits and six walks while recording ten strikeouts during his stint.

Hopes are high for Ross, who was once a top-quality starter for the Padres. He’ll take the MLB mound for the first time since Opening Day of 2016, looking to make good on the $6MM commitment he received over the winter from the Rangers while also trying to set himself up for another foray into free agency.

Ross’s rehab had been slowed by lower-back tightness, which extended his DL stint past what had originally been anticipated. He also wasn’t very successful in four outings at Triple-A Round Rock, coughing up 16 earned runs on 23 hits with as many walks (11) as strikeouts through 18 2/3 innings.

Otherwise, the day’s maneuvering is most notable for the 24-year-old Profar. The former top prospect has struggled mightily this year, slashing an anemic .137/.279/.137 in 62 plate appearances. While his defensive versatility remains appealing, the ongoing failures at the plate have significantly clouded Profar’s future in Texas.

Trade Chatter: Pitching Market, Nats, Quintana, Rangers, Rox, A’s

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The market for starting pitchers has more question marks than certainties this summer, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports observes. Rosenthal runs down a number of potentially available arms, noting that injuries and/or significant contracts make many of them tough sells. Regarding Zack Greinke, Rosenthal notes that while his contract always made an in-season trade seem like a long shot, the fact that the D-backs are contending and are in current possession of a Wild Card spot all but eliminates the possibility that he’ll be traded this summer.

With the draft out of the way, trade talk should slowly begin to heat up in the coming weeks. Here are a few more items of potential interest…

  • FanRag’s Jon Heyman runs down a number of possible needs on clubs that are in contention, beginning with the Nationals. While there’s been much made of the team’s obvious need for bullpen help, Heyman suggests that the Nats won’t simply acquire a closer and consider their relief corps to be fixed. “We don’t need just one big reliever, we need two,” a Nationals source tells Heyman. One potentially available name on which the Nationals don’t appear to be especially keen, however, is closer A.J. Ramos of the division-rival Marlins. Heyman reports in his weekly National League roundup that Ramos is a ways down Washington’s list of potential targets.
  • On the American League side, Heyman focuses on the White Sox, who have quite a few interesting trade pieces, as recently examined by MLBTR’s Jeff Todd. He suggests that there are indications the Sox do intend to move lefty Jose Quintana this summer — and they don’t think they’ll need to accept a sub-par return despite his struggles so far. There’s some “belief” that Chicago could be hoping to draw interest in Quintana from the Dodgers, Heyman notes in the N.L. post. Meanwhile, the organization isn’t as interested in fielding offers for first baseman Jose Abreu, per the report.
  • Prior to trading designating Sam Dyson for assignment and trading him to the Giants, the Rangers also gave consideration to cutting right-hander Jeremy Jeffress loose, Heyman writes. However, Texas deemed Jeffress more likely to rebound from his struggles and kept him on the roster. I’d imagine that as was the case with Dyson, Jeffress would draw trade interest elsewhere based on his track record and 2016 success.
  • Nick Groke of the Denver Post fielded some Rockies trade questions in his latest chat with readers, noting that there’s virtually no chance that the Rockies would even consider moving top shortstop prospect Brendan Rodgers this summer. Groke does, however, feel that outfielder Raimel Tapia is a plausible trade chip. The 23-year-old outfielder entered the season widely ranked among baseball’s top 100 prospects and is hitting .286/.375/.357 through a small sample of 32 plate appearances in a limited role.
  • With the Athletics progressing into a youth movement, John Hickey of the San Jose Mercury News writes that top infield prospect Franklin Barreto likely isn’t far from getting his first big league promotion, though Hickey suggests that in order to create playing time for Barreto, Oakland would first have to trade Jed Lowrie. Hickey also notes that the A’s feel confident that Trevor Plouffe, who was designated for assignment yesterday to clear a spot for top third base prospect Matt Chapman, will catch on with another club. It’s not clear, though, if the A’s expect to trade him or are preparing to release the 31-year-old.

Injury Notes: Shields, Walker, Harvey, Johnson, Zobrist, Skaggs, Hamels, Cosart, Urias

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The White Sox will activate righty James Shields to make a start on Sunday, as JJ Stankevitz of CSN Chicago reports (Twitter links). That’ll leave plenty of time for the veteran to show not only that he’s back from a lat strain, but also that he still has some gas left in the tank. Shields, 35, turned in three solid starts to open the year after a terrible 2016 season. Possible trade suitors will be looking to see whether he can manage extended productivity between now and the deadline.

Here’s more on the injury front:

  • Mets second baseman Neil Walker appeared to suffer a left hamstring injury while trying to leg out a bunt single in tonight’s game. The club did not reveal any details in an official announcement, though the team did state that Walker is already slated to undergo an MRI tomorrow. Not coincidentally, perhaps, infielder Gavin Cecchini was removed from the Triple-A Las Vegas lineup, as Betsy Helfand of the Las Vegas Review Journal tweets.
  • There were also some fresh concerns on the pitching side of the equation for the Mets. Matt Harvey was hooked after four innings and 58 pitches, as David Lennon of Newsday reports (Twitter links). He’ll head in for a medical check tomorrow after what he called a “fatigued” outing in which his fastball velocity dropped as low as 87 mph — a level that, per Harvey, he hadn’t visited since he was a freshman in high school. Also, before the game, the Mets placed lefty Josh Smoker on the DL with a left shoulder strain. New York was forced to lean on the reliever for four innings and 81 pitches last night. Righty Rafael Montero will return to the majors in his stead.
  • The Red Sox saw another starter leave with an injury tonight, as southpaw Brian Johnson exited with what the team is calling left shoulder discomfort, as Jen McCaffrey of MassLive.com reports. While all involved expressed hope that the issue wouldn’t turn out to be anything significant, Johnson will be given a full checkup in Boston tomorrow to be sure.
  • The Cubs are weighing a DL move for Ben Zobrist, as Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune was among those to report. His left wrist isn’t healing up as hoped, so Zobrist will be looked at more closely tomorrow. If he’s not able to suit up, then a DL placement seems likely.
  • There’s some positive news on Angels southpaw Tyler Skaggs. As Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register tweets, the 25-year-old is heading to the team’s spring complex with an eye on making back to the majors by early July. Hell be hoping to finally put an end to the string of injuries that have slowed his promising career. Skaggs is currently working back from an oblique strain.
  • Also now looking toward a return is Rangers lefty Cole Hamels. As Stefan Stevenson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reports, Hamels could take a rehab start on Friday — the same day that Tyson Ross is set to make his Rangers debut. That could potentially line Hamels up to return to the majors before month’s end. That’s promising news for a Texas team that is off to a middling start to the season. The Rangers are also likely to welcome back first baseman Mike Napoli and outfielder Carlos Gomez in the coming days.
  • Things aren’t looking as promising for Padres righty Jarred Cosart. According to AJ Cassavell of MLB.com, on Twitter, Cosart has been diagnosed with a flexor strain. He’s not yet ready to begin throwing and will partake in some rehab efforts at the club’s spring facility.
  • Finally, the Dodgers are holding their breath as prized young lefty Julio Urias reports to Dr. Neal ElAttrache for a look at his shoulder. As Andy McCullough of the Los Angeles Times reports (Twitter links), soreness in the joint has forced the 20-year-old to the DL at Triple-A. Things haven’t gone as hoped this year for Urias, who showed immense promise in 2016. He largely struggled in five MLB starts and was carrying higher-than-usual walk totals at Triple-A.

Injury Notes: Keuchel, Hendricks, Hamels, Triggs, Thornburg

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The Astros are being “very conservative” with ace Dallas Keuchel as the left-hander progresses through rehab for a neck injury, manager A.J. Hinch said in an appearance on MLB Network Radio on SiriusXM today (Twitter link). According to Hinch, Keuchel is currently in the midst of a seven-day total shutdown from throwing and won’t throw until this weekend at the earliest. “It doesn’t concern me yet, because that’s the plan we have in place,” said Hinch of the shutdown for Keuchel. Houston, of course, has a massive 12-game lead in the AL West, so the Astros can afford to be cautious with Keuchel’s rehab from recurring neck discomfort.

More notable injury updates from around the league…

  • Cubs right-hander Kyle Hendricks experienced discomfort when testing out his injured right hand today and has had his target return date pushed back, reports Patrick Mooney of CSN Chicago. Manager Joe Maddon wouldn’t offer much in the way of specifics, instead more vaguely stating, “There’s no definitive timeline, no finish line. It’s just that he’s not ready.” Hendricks was placed on the disabled list last week in what the Cubs hoped would be a short-term move due to tendinitis in his right hand, but it seems that he’ll have a lengthier absence than anticipated. Maddon said he “would not be surprised” if Hendricks’ injury was re-tested in the near future.
  • Cole Hamels is on the verge of embarking on a minor league rehab assignment, as Richard Dean writes for MLB.com. The Rangers southpaw tossed two sets of 15 pitches in a bullpen session today and “came out good,” per Texas skipper Jeff Banister. Hamels threw fastballs and breaking balls in today’s session and, depending how he feels in the coming days, may not require further bullpens before his rehab stint begins. He’s been sidelined since early May due to an oblique issue and was originally slated to miss roughly eight weeks.
  • Athletics right-hander Andrew Triggs underwent an MRI on his ailing right hip, which revealed some structural damage, per Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle. However, A’s manager Bob Melvin stressed that it’s not yet clear if the damage in Triggs’ hip is old or is a newer ailment that will require more attention. Triggs was hoping to miss a maximum of two starts, but there’s now no timetable for his return, according to Melvin, who adds that Triggs is also experiencing some back pain. The 28-year-old Triggs was sensational through his first eight starts, recording a 2.12 ERA with 6.8 K/9, 2.3 BB/9 and a 54 percent ground-ball rate. However, Triggs was shelled for 26 runs (20 earned) on 32 hits and seven walks with 15 strikeouts in 18 2/3 innings over his final four starts prior to landing on the DL. Of the 32 hits he yielded in that time, seven were home runs.
  • In what has unfortunately become a familiar refrain for Red Sox fans, right-hander Tyler Thornburg has suffered yet another setback in his recovery from a still-undetermined shoulder injury, writes Tim Britton of the Providence Journal. Thornburg had been long-tossing from 120 feet, but he’s now been shut down from that activity. Surgery has still not been recommended for Thornburg, manager John Farrell tells Britton. Fellow righty Carson Smith is targeting a rehab assignment this weekend, per Farrell, though a scheduled simulated game was pushed back from Tuesday to Wednesday. And, as Britton points out, the new CBA extends the rehab window for players coming back from Tommy John surgery from 30 days to 60 days, so Smith could have a lengthier rehab than most.

Rangers Acquire Joely Rodriguez

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The Rangers have acquired lefty Joely Rodriguez from the Phillies, per announcements from the organizations. Cash or a player to be named later will go back in return for Rodriguez, who was designated for assignment last week.

Rodriguez, 25, will head to Triple-A on optional assignment with his new organization. He’ll provide a depth option for a Texas club that has received strong contributions from southpaw Alex Claudio but may at some point see fit to add another lefty option to the pen.

After showing well in his first dozen major league games last year, Rodriguez opened the current season in the Phillies’ pen. But he struggled to a 6.33 ERA in 27 frames, coughing up 37 base hits while carrying a subpar 18:15 K/BB ratio. That said, Rodriguez has shown the capability to generate big groundball rates with his power sinker.

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