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AL Notes: Gio, Armstrong, Herrera, Tepera/Axford

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Newly minted Yankees lefty Gio Gonzalez says it was an easy choice to join the New York organization, as George A. King III of the New York Post and MLB.com’s Bryan Hoch cover (Twitter links). The offer from the Yanks “was pretty much” the only one he got all winter long, says the veteran southpaw. It has been quite some  time since Gonzalez has had to fight for a roster spot and a big-league paycheck, but he says it’s “a pretty great opportunity” that he “can’t be ungrateful” for. If he cracks the roster, Gonzalez will play for a $3MM base salary and would also take home $300K for each game started.

Here’s more from the American League …

  • Mariners righty Shawn Armstrong is heading to the injured list with a grade 1 oblique strain, MLB.com’s Greg Johns reports. He says he’ll be patient in allowing thing to heal, but didn’t hide his anger at hitting the shelf just before the season began. (Anderson flew to Japan believing he would be ready to roll, but the issue was worse upon arrival.) Armstrong, 28, is still hoping that this’ll be the season he fully establishes himself in the majors. He has seen action in four seasons but has yet to be entrusted with more than 21 appearances in a given campaign. Armstrong turned in sub-2.00 ERA performances at both Triple-A (in 56 innings) and the majors (14 2/3 innings) in 2018.
  • The White Sox may not go long without new reliever Kelvin Herrera, Daryl Van Schouwen of the Chicago Sun-Times writes. The veteran hurler, who’s working back from a Lisfranc fracture in his left foot, hasn’t yet fully ramped things up but seems on track to get back to being a high-powered relief arm early in the new season. “I will probably be in full shape by April something or May,” he says.
  • It seems there’s some new potential for late-camp movement with the Blue Jays roster. Skipper Charlie Montoyo says that righty relievers Ryan Tepera and John Axford have turned up with elbow pain that is being looked at more closely, as Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca reports (Twitter link). Those injuries are among the factors that could leave the Toronto organization with more 40-man roster room to work with — but also more 25-man roster needs to address — than had been anticipated, MLB.com’s Gregor Chisholm notes on Twitter.

AL East Notes: Pedroia, Norris, Orioles

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Red Sox second baseman Dustin Pedroia will open the season on the injured list, manager Alex Cora announced to reporters today (link via WEEI’s Rob Bradford). Cora stressed that there have been no setbacks for Pedroia in his return from the knee issues that limited him to three games last season. Rather, the veteran is simply still in the process of building up to be able to handle a full workload. He’ll play in games every other day for the remainder of exhibition games before returning to extended Spring Training to continue building up strength. Pedroia, Bradford writes, feels he will be sufficiently built up but didn’t voice frustration with the team’s decision to proceed with caution. Based on his comments, it doesn’t sound like he’s looking at a particularly lengthy absence to open the year. “It’s only, I think, a week or something, the plan that they set,” said Pedroia. “If it’s being smart for a week and we make sure I respond great to everything thrown at me then it’s a good decision.”

Here’s more from the AL East…

  • After signing a late minor league deal with the Blue Jays, right-hander Bud Norris doesn’t have the benefit of a full spring audition for a roster spot, but Gregor Chisholm of MLB.com writes that Norris’ early work has impressed manager Charlie Montoyo. “He looked to me like a closer, a late-inning guy, pitching yesterday,” Montoyo said after Norris’ Jays debut, in which he struck out a pair of opposing hitters and reached the mid-90s with his fastball in a perfect inning. Righty Ken Giles is penciled in as the closer in Toronto, though Norris has no shortage of experience there after spending parts of the past two seasons as a closer in Anaheim and St. Louis, racking up a combined 47 saves in that role. He’ll reportedly earn a $3MM salary if he makes the roster.
  • Orioles skipper Brandon Hyde still isn’t ready to make any declarations about which young players will make the Opening Day roster, writes Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com. Citing the Orioles’ active approach on the waiver wire and the multiple Rule 5 players in camp, Hyde said he likely wouldn’t make any such announcements to his players until March 25. The outfield mix, several bullpen spots and the team’s catching situation have all yet to be defined. Hyde did speak well of the versatility that both Cedric Mullins and Joey Rickard bring to the outfield, though neither has received any assurances yet, and there are also non-roster options like Eric Young Jr. still in the mix for a job.

AL East Notes: Blue Jays, Pedroia, Orioles

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Some rumblings from around the AL East…

  • The Blue Jays are preparing a pay increase of more than 50 percent for every player on Toronto’s eight minor league affiliates, Emily Waldon and Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic report (subscription required).  “It puts us right now up at the top of the scale in the industry,” VP of baseball operations Ben Cherington said.  “My hope is it doesn’t stay that way. My hope is other teams eventually do the same….We just feel like it’s consistent with our values of trying to be a player-centered organization and give them every resource possible to be at their best.”  The decision comes at a time when Major League Baseball has come under increasing scrutiny for the low salaries paid to minor leaguers, the large majority of whom didn’t receive signing bonuses nor will eventually go on to receive big contracts in the Show.  The Athletic’s John Lott provides an estimated breakdown the Jays’ raise structure in another piece.
  • It isn’t yet clear if Dustin Pedroia will be on the Opening Day roster, or if the longtime Red Sox second baseman could get more Spring Training prep time, MLB.com’s Ian Browne writes.  Pedroia missed all but three games last season due to knee problems, first recovering from October 2017 surgery and then another knee procedure last July.  With this in mind, the veteran has been brought along slowly this spring, appearing in four games and accumulating only seven plate appearances.  Pedroia did play five innings in the field on Saturday, however.
  • Between an eye towards his young Orioles roster, plus players who might come available as waiver pickups or minor league free agents, GM Mike Elias told reporters (including Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com) that “we want to really delay final roster decisions as much as possible because we’re still gleaning information and we’re cognizant of the fact that all of that stuff is going to happen over the next seven days.”  Elias has a particular interest in adding more pitching, though is generally just looking for whatever talent can be found at any position.  After eight more cuts today, the Orioles are down to 39 players in their Major League camp.

Blue Jays Acquire Jason Adam; Devon Travis, Mark Leiter Jr. Undergo Surgery

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The Blue Jays have acquired right-hander Jason Adam from the Royals for cash considerations, Scott Mitchell of TSN reports. Additionally, the Blue Jays announced notable injury news regarding second baseman Devon Travis and right-hander Mark Leiter Jr., Shi Davidi of Sportsnet tweets. Travis underwent arthroscopic surgery “to address a small meniscus tear in his left knee” and will be reassessed in four to six weeks, while Leiter will miss the season after undergoing Tommy John surgery.

Adam, a Kansas native, is leaving the Royals via trade for the second time since they selected him in the fifth round of the 2010 draft. They previously dealt Adam to the Twins in 2014 for slugger Josh Willingham, only to bring him back on a minor league contract in 2017 following a stint with the Padres. After overcoming multiple serious injuries to his arm, as ESPN’s Keith Law explained last May, Adam made his major league debut in 2018 and recorded a subpar 6.12 ERA/6.16 FIP over 32 1/3 innings and 31 appearances. At the same time, though, the 27-year-old did manage playable strikeout and walk numbers (10.3 K/9, 4.18 BB/9).

As is the case with Adam, injuries have been a major problem during Travis’ pro career. Left knee inflammation sidelined the 28-year-old for a couple weeks before he underwent surgery, making it the latest lower body issue for a player who hasn’t appeared in more than 103 games in a major league season since debuting in 2015. Notably, Travis totaled just 50 appearances in 2017 on account of right knee surgery. He didn’t perform well last year in a 378-plate appearance return, over which he hit just .232/.275/.381 (77 wRC+). As a result, the Jays weren’t guaranteeing a starting job to Travis entering camp. It’s a moot point now, though, as Lourdes Gurriel Jr., Freddy Galvis and Richard Urena appear likely to open the season as the Jays’ top middle infield options.

Leiter, 28, joined Toronto last September via waivers from the Phillies, but the Blue Jays ended up designating him for assignment and then outrighting him over the winter. While Leiter garnered extensive experience with the Phillies in 2017, when he amassed 90 2/3 innings and put up a 4.96 ERA/5.14 FIP, a flexor strain helped limit him to just 51 2/3 frames between the majors and minors last year. In 23 1/3 innings divided between Philly and Toronto, he only managed a 7.71 ERA/6.98 FIP.

Blue Jays Reassign Vladimir Guerrero Jr. To Minors Camp

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The Blue Jays have reassigned third baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. to minor-league camp, the club announced and Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet was among those to cover (via Twitter). That news brings an official end to the MLB camp experience of baseball’s best hitting prospect.

Guerrero, 19, had already likely wrapped up his spring work owing to the intervention of a recent oblique injury. That nixed any remaining chance that he’d open the season on the active MLB roster — an opportunity that likely wasn’t available anyway, given the front office’s established position on his readiness.

Toronto president Mark Shapiro recently discussed things further, as Nicholson-Smith reported. The club would like to see a “light bulb going off” for the exceptionally talented youngster, who’s expected to be a franchise centerpiece for years to come.

Though he didn’t express any concern with Guerrero’s work ethic, conditioning, or dedication, Shapiro did discuss a need for him (and other young players) to learn how to “live your life with intent.” It’s understandable that the Jays would like Guerrero to seize his full potential with a committed “intent to get better,” though a cynic might be inclined to turn the tables on the front office’s own intentions here. There’s ample reason to believe that Guerrero would be a high-quality major leaguer right now, even if he’s not a fully developed all-around player. And it’s at least fair to question whether his skills and habits will be honed faster in Buffalo rather than in Toronto.

There was one other aspect of Shapiro’s commentary that seems worthy of further attention. The veteran executive said:

“The reality is there’s 50 decisions throughout the day that you can control. If you start to control 38 or 40 of those 50 decisions every day, you’re going to make decisions for Ross (Atkins). Ross isn’t going to have to make them. What you’re ultimately hoping to do is hand the development over to the player.”

We’re all accustomed to hearing pretext for service-time-driven decisions. Some of it has some grounding in reality. Shapiro’s views on players owning their own careers surely have some merit and grounding in good intentions. Vlad Jr. can surely improve his glovework and baserunning as well. But it seems awfully disingenuous to suggest that off-field dedication by a player can “make decisions” for a front office even as teams decline even to acknowledge the often-dispositive influence of long-term player control and financial considerations in promotional decisions.

Mark Shapiro Discusses Blue Jays’ Financial Situation

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Blue Jays president Mark Shapiro discussed his organization’s financial situation in a chat with MLB.com’s Gregor Chisolm (links to Twitter). The veteran baseball executive commented upon a few matters of both near and long-term interest.

Most immediately, Shapiro made clear that the Jays haven’t tapped into all of their available 2019 payroll. Per Shapiro, “It’s just a question of where and when do these opportunities present themselves and, if we do bring in veteran players, how [sic] is that offset our ability to continue to foster and develop the younger core talent on the team?” It would be a bit of a surprise to see the Toronto organization make any significant expenditures the rest of the winter, given that the team has largely eschewed financial commitments this offseason, though it’s interesting to see an acknowledgement that there’s more funding available.

Broadly, the organization is preparing for a point — not too far in the future, it surely hopes — when it makes sense to ramp up spending. Per Shapiro, “there is a multi-year plan in place” regarding spending, with “an understanding of where we are now and an understanding of where we’re going to go” once the club is back “at the brink of contention.”

When and how that build-up will occur isn’t clear. But there should be ample room to work with when the time comes. The Jays opened each of the prior two campaigns with over $160MM in payroll commitments. The club sits in the $115MM range at present for 2019, with just over $30MM in total commitments past that point on its books.

There’ll be a time, Shapiro says, when “payroll will outpace our revenues.” The baseball operations department doesn’t need to stash cash now to make that possible, though. Shapiro says the organization doesn’t plot out specific future payroll levels and allow its ops unit to save funding space for the future. Rather, there’s “a mutual and common understanding of what the general plan looks like.”

Shapiro also discussed the revenue side. After generally defending the television rights-fee agreement between the Blue Jays and Sportsnet (also owned by Rogers Communications) and noting some differences between the Canadian and American TV markets, Shapiro said the bottom line is that there’s ample money to be made selling baseball in Toronto. “I don’t think there is any excuse or reason why we shouldn’t have among the best revenues when we’re the team that we need to be,” he said. “That’s already been demonstrated materially in the last few years.”

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. Suffers Oblique Strain

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Prized Blue Jays prospect Vladimir Guerrero Jr. has suffered a Grade 1 left oblique strain, Shi Davidi of Sportsnet reports. The team estimates Guerrero will need three weeks to recover, Davidi adds.

The injury to Guerrero officially takes him out of the running to open the season in Toronto, though he wouldn’t have stood much chance to crack its roster even if he remained healthy. Not only will the Blue Jays gain an extra season of control over Guerrero by keeping the 19-year-old in the minors until mid-April, but general manager Ross Atkins indicated last month that the big-bodied third baseman’s not yet suited for a major league promotion. Since then, Guerrero has batted a meager .211/.250/.316 in 19 spring at-bats.

Despite his struggles over a small sample of exhibition plate appearances, Guerrero’s an all-world hitter who’s widely regarded as the game’s best prospect. As such, few took Atkins’ comments at face value, instead believing Toronto would demote him to manipulate the player’s service time. It’s now a moot point in light of the injury, though, as Davidi notes Guerrero would have been ticketed for a season-opening rehab assignment anyway. The hope now is that the injury won’t linger beyond the team’s estimated timeline, as is often the case with oblique issues.

Regardless of whether Guerrero’s back within the three-week window, he’ll see more time at Triple-A Buffalo before earning his first call-up to the majors this season. Guerrero garnered his first Triple-A experience late last year and slashed a phenomenal .336/.414/.564 (175 wRC+) with six home runs and more walks (15) than strikeouts (10) over 128 PAs, further cementing himself as an elite young player.

Orioles Acquire Dwight Smith, Designate Josh Osich

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The Orioles have acquired outfielder Dwight Smith Jr. from the Blue Jays, the Baltimore organization announced. International pool money will go to Toronto in return, with Scott Mitchell of TSN Sports tweeting the Jays will pick up half a million dollars in spending capacity. The O’s designated lefty Josh Osich to open a 40-man roster spot.

With the move, the O’s add an optionable 26-year-old player who has hit well in 104 MLB plate appearances. He owns a solid (albeit modest) .271/.354/.401 batting line in his 810 trips to the plate at the highest level of the minors. A left-handed hitting outfielder who can at least serve as a reserve in center.

It seems the Baltimore org had some competition for Smith, who was recently designated for assignment. The cost is relatively stout for an acquisition of a player out of DFA limbo. $500K in international spending availability is nothing to sneeze at in a world where hard caps tamp down the overall outlay. In this case, the O’s likely did not feel they had terribly productive places to invest their leftover funds, which were accumulated in an ultimately unsuccessful pursuit of top young international free agents Victor Victor Mesa and Sandy Gaston.

As for Osich, he’s the second southpaw removed from the Baltimore 40-man in recent days. The club lost Donnie Hart on waivers; it remains to be seen whether Osich will pass through. Now 30 years of age, Osich is looking to regain his form after a series of rough campaigns. He owns a 5.01 ERA with 7.9 K/9, 4.6 K/9, and a 51.8% groundball rate in 120 1/3 career innings in the majors.

Blue Jays Designate Dwight Smith Jr., Announce Buchholz Signing

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The Blue Jays have announced a pair of corresponding transactions. Outfielder Dwight Smith Jr. was designated for assignment in order to clear roster space for righty Clay Buchholz, whose previously reported deal is now official.

Smith, 26, has spent most of the past two seasons at Triple-A, where he carries a .271/.354/.401 slash with 14 home runs over 810 plate appearances. Notably, the left-handed-hitter has shown good plate discipline, with a combination of 91 walks and 124 strikeouts at the highest level of the minors.

It’s hardly a world-beating profile for a player who has mostly lined up in left field. But Smith has performed well in his limited opportunities at the game’s highest level, even if it’s hard to glean much from 104 plate appearances. And he has logged significant innings at the other two outfield spots, increasing his viability as a big-league bench option. With an option season still remaining, perhaps another organization will see cause to work out a trade or put in a claim.

Blue Jays Notes: Top FAs, Stroman, Travis

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The latest on the Blue Jays, all of which comes courtesy of Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet:

  • The Blue Jays “checked in” on prominent Scott Boras clients Bryce Harper, Dallas Keuchel and Marwin Gonzalez in free agency, but talks didn’t get serious in any of the three cases, Nicholson-Smith reports. Regarding Harper, there were “not a lot of conversations” on the Jays’ side, a source told Nicholson-Smith. “Some, but not a lot.” Toronto was never strongly connected to Harper during his drawn-out trip to free agency, which finally ended this week when he accepted the Phillies’ 13-year, $330MM offer. The 31-year-old Keuchel’s still available, meanwhile, though it doesn’t seem the Jays – who aren’t expected to contend in 2019 – are in position to sign a 30-something pitcher to a lucrative contract.
  • While right-hander Marcus Stroman has frequented trade rumors in recent months, Nicholson-Smith suggests nobody has approached Toronto’s asking price yet. For now, “trade talks are relatively quiet,” Nicholson-Smith writes, though he notes that could change if a starter-needy team loses out on Keuchel and pivots to Stroman as a Plan B. Stroman, who’s in his second-last year of team control, made headlines last month when he expressed frustration toward the Blue Jays for neither extending his contract nor being more active in free agency (they’ve since agreed to deals with fellow righties Clay Buchholz and Bud Norris, which could assuage Stroman to some degree). Whether he opens 2019 with Toronto or another club, Stroman will attempt to bounce back from an uncharacteristically poor 2018 season, during which he notched a 5.54 ERA with 6.77 K/9 and 3.17 BB/9 over 102 1/3 innings.
  • Oft-injured second baseman Devon Travis will sit out at least the next few days because of left knee inflammation, Nicholson-Smith relays. Manager Charlie Montoyo isn’t exactly pushing the panic button over the issue, but it nonetheless continues a discouraging run of lower-body issues in recent years for Travis, who’s coming off a disastrous campaign in which he slashed .232/.275/.381 and recorded minus-0.5 fWAR in 378 plate appearances. Should Travis begin 2019 on the injured list, Lourdes Gurriel Jr. would likely assume the reins at second, leaving a utility infield spot for Eric Sogard or Richard Urena, per Nicholson-Smith.
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