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Minor MLB Transactions: 7/2/17

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Here are the latest minor moves from around baseball, with the newest transactions at the top of the post…

  • The Braves have released outfielder Sanders Commings, tweets Robert Murray of FanRag. Commings joined the Braves for a $100K bonus in February, which came after a short career in the NFL as a defensive back with the Kansas City Chiefs. A fifth-round pick out of Georgia in 2013, Commings saw action in two games that year. Those proved to be Commings’ only NFL appearances, as he broke his ankle during training camp in 2014 and was waived with an injury settlement a year later. Commings played high school baseball before turning to football, and he was so promising that the Diamondbacks drafted him in 2008 (in the 37th round). In his return to baseball this year, Commings, 27, has played at the rookie level and hit .154/.267/.231 in a meager sample size (15 PA).
  • The Reds purchased the contract of right-hander Asher Wojciechowski, as per a team announcement.  In corresponding moves, Brandon Finnegan was moved to the 60-day DL and righty Jackson Stephens was optioned to Triple-A.  This is Wojciechowski’s second stint with the big league team this season, having been DFA’ed and outrighted off Cincinnati’s roster last month.  Wojciechowski posted a 6.75 ERA, 7.6 K/9 and 4.5 K/BB rate over 21 1/3 IP, and he allowed six homers over that brief stay in the majors.
  • The Cardinals acquired outfielder Lane Thomas from the Blue Jays in exchange for international bonus pool money, as announced by the Cards’ Twitter feed.  Thomas, 21, was a fifth-round pick for Toronto in 2014 who has a .242/.321/.379 slash line over 1109 career PA, none above the high-A level.  The Jays entered the July 2 int’l signing period with $4.75MM bonus pool and they have already reportedly spent $2.15MM of that total on two notable prospects.

Rangers Acquire Jason Grilli

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The Rangers acquired veteran righty Jason Grilli and cash considerations from the Blue Jays in exchange for minor league outfielder Eduard Pinto, according to a Rangers media release.  In corresponding moves, right-hander Preston Claiborne was designated for assignment, righty Tanner Scheppers was optioned to Triple-A and right-hander Tony Barnette was activated from the disabled list.

All of these moves will address a Texas bullpen that ranks near the bottom of the league in most categories, and is particularly in flux after the demotion of closer Matt Bush.  It may be unlikely to expect Grilli to factor into the Rangers’ closer-by-committee situation given the veteran’s rough start to the 2017 season.  The 40-year-old has a 6.97 ERA over 20 2/3 IP, and despite some decent peripherals (10.02 K/9, 2.56 K/BB rate), Grilli has simply been unable to keep the ball in the park, surrendering a whopping nine home runs in his brief time on the mound this year.

It’s worth noting that Grilli also pitched poorly at the beginning of the 2016 season, though he improved greatly after being dealt to the Blue Jays in May 2016 and was a key cog in Toronto’s run to the postseason.  The Rangers are obviously hoping for a similar uptick in performance from a change in scenery for Grilli, who is making his second stint in the organization (he pitched in 30 games for Texas in 2009).

Grilli was still owed roughly $1.4MM for the rest of 2017, so the money Toronto is sending along in the deal likely makes up a good chunk of that remaining salary.  In exchange, the Jays add a 22-year-old outfielder in Pinto who has a .309/.367/.390 slash line over 1683 career PA in six pro seasons.  Pinto played 22 games at Double-A last season, his highest level achieved, and this year has a .311/.358/.446 slash line over 191 PA at high A-ball.

Claiborne had his contract purchased by the Rangers two weeks ago and he appeared in one game for the team, which marked Claiborne’s first taste of MLB action since 2014.  The right-hander missed all of 2015 due to a shoulder injury and spent 2016 pitching in the Giants’ minor league system.

AL International Signings: 7/2/17

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Here are some notable American League international signings not yet covered elsewhere on MLB Trade Rumors.  All signing information can be found in these invaluable compilations of the initial flurry of July 2 action from Baseball America’s Ben Badler and MLB.com’s Jesse Sanchez; the information here is from those sources unless otherwise credited…

  • The Yankees have agreed to sign Venezuelan outfielder Everson Pereira and shortstop Roberto Chirinos.  Pereira will receive a $1.5MM bonus, while Chirinos gets $900K.  The Yankees are also seen as the favorites to sign Dominican shortstop Ronny Rojas, with Sanchez projecting a $1.05MM bonus.  Badler tweets that Rojas isn’t eligible to officially sign until August, when he turns 16 years old.
  • The Blue Jays have reached agreement with Brazilian right-hander Eric Pardinho on a $1.4MM bonus, as well as signing Dominican shortstop Miguel Hiraldo to a $750K deal.
  • The Tigers agreed to sign Venezuelan shortstop Alvaro Gonzalez for a $1MM bonus.
  • The Indians have reached deals with Venezuelan shortstop Aaron Bracho ($1.5MM) and Dominican outfielder George Valera ($1.3MM according to Sanchez, $1.2MM according to Badler).
  • The Angels signed Bahamanian outfielder Trent Deveaux, with Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register reporting that Deveaux will receive a $1.2MM bonus.
  • The Mariners have a $1.75MM agreement with Dominican outfielder Julio Rodriguez, as well as a $1.225MM agreement with Venezuelan shortstop Juan Querecuto.
  • The Rangers agreed to nine-figure deals with a trio of prospects.  Venezuelan outfielder Wilderd Patino will receive a $1.3MM bonus, while Venezuelan shortstop Keyber Rodriguez and Mexican right-hander Damian Mendoza each get bonuses worth $1MM.

Blue Jays Designate Ian Parmley, Select Lucas Harrell

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The Blue Jays announced that they’ve designated outfielder Ian Parmley for assignment and selected the contract of right-hander Lucas Harrell.

Parmley, whom the Blue Jays chose in the seventh round of the 2012 draft, made his major league debut last week but failed to reach base in any of his four plate appearances. The 27-year-old has spent nearly the entire season at Triple-A Buffalo, where he has hit .289/.332/.369 with one home run and 11 stolen bases in 205 PAs.

Unlike Parmley, Harrell has a fairly extensive big league track record. The 32-year-old is now set to put on his fifth major league uniform since debuting with the White Sox in 2010. The majority of Harrell’s action has come in Houston, where he pitched from 2011-14 and turned in two seasons of 150-plus innings. At his best, Harrell registered a 3.76 ERA, 6.51 K/9, 3.62 BB/9 and a 57.2 percent ground-ball rate across 193 2/3 frames in 2012.

After his run with the Astros ended, Harrell spent 2015 with the LG Twins of the Korea Baseball Organization. He resurfaced stateside last season and pitched in both the majors and minors with the Rangers and Braves organizations. In nine starts and 47 big league innings, Harrell logged a 4.21 ERA, 6.89 K/9, 4.79 BB/9 and a 44.3 percent grounder rate. He signed a minor league deal with the Jays over the winter and has combined for 27 2/3 frames between Double-A and Triple-A this season.

Trade Chatter: A’s, Giants, Yankees, McCutchen, Avila, Dodgers

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Though Sonny Gray has garnered most of the headlines in Athletics trade rumors, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle writes that Jed Lowrie, Sean Doolittle and Ryan Madson are all drawing interest as well. The A’s are hoping to move Lowrie to clear a spot for prospect Franklin Barreto to play in the Majors on a full-time basis, she notes. Barreto is currently getting at-bats, but Oakland also has Marcus Semien on the mend and returning perhaps in a week or more. Doolittle and Madson are both in the midst of strong seasons, although the injury-prone Doolittle has been limited to 14 2/3 innings. Madson, meanwhile, looks even better than he did in his 2015 comeback; he’s averaging 9.8 K/9 against 1.9 BB/9 with a 54.4 percent ground-ball rate, leading to a 2.35 ERA. Of course, he’s also earning $7.5MM this year and next, and his contract calls for incentives for finishing games, which could make the price even more steep. The Rangers, Cubs, Blue Jays, Red Sox, Braves and Astros have all been scouting Oakland recently, according to Slusser.

Some more trade chatter from around the game…

  • The Giants aren’t looking to rebuild so much as they’re looking to reload, president Larry Baer tells Alex Pavlovic of CSN Bay Area. Baer acknowledged that the 2017 campaign hasn’t been anything close to what the organization had hoped, but he also indicated that even if the front office moves some veterans this summer, the ultimate goal will be to return to contention in 2018. “Directionally it’s, ‘How can we get right back there in 2018,” said Baer. “It’s not how can we get right back there in 2022 or 2021.” Pavlovic notes that it’s possible the Giants could try to trade Johnny Cueto and still re-sign him this winter if he exercises his opt-out clause with a new team, and Baer wouldn’t rule out that possibility, simply stating that it was “possible” but declining to speculate too heavily.
  • The Yankees are looking for bullpen help “right now,” writes FanRag’s Jon Heyman as part of his weekly American League Notes column. The duo of Aroldis Chapman and Dellin Betances is formidable in the late innings, but the recent struggles of Tyler Clippard and others have GM Brian Cashman on the lookout. Cashman told Heyman that the Yankees aren’t looking for a first baseman at the moment, though recent injury news regarding Tyler Austin and Greg Bird, of course, could change that line of thinking in a hurry.
  • There’s been no serious talk between the Pirates and other clubs regarding Andrew McCutchen just yet, reports MLB.com’s Jon Morosi. Part of the reason for that is the parity that exists in Wild Card races, as many teams that could eventually add some veteran pieces remain uncertain that they’ll be in the hunt a month from now.
  • Also via Morosi, Tigers catcher Alex Avila is “on the radar” of the Cubs and the Blue Jays. Avila has had a staggering turnaround in his return to Detroit, hitting a ridiculous .315/.431/.586 with 11 homers while earning just a $2MM salary on a one-year deal. While many fans are understandably skeptical of Avila’s turnaround, I’ll point out that Avila’s 57 percent hard-hit rate leads all players with at least 190 plate appearances, and he entered play Thursday tied with teammate J.D. Martinez for the third-highest average exit velocity in baseball (93.7 mph), trailing only Aaron Judge and Miguel Sano. Avila has always had a massive walk rate, as well, and that’s been the case once again in 2017 (16.4 percent). There’s some regression coming, of course, as even with his batted-ball profile he’s probably not going to sustain a .426 BABIP.
  • One more from Morosi, who notes that the Dodgers’ primary focus remains on starting pitching at this time. They’re considering controllable options rather than rental pieces, with Morosi linking Los Angeles to the the Tigers’ Justin Verlander, the Athletics’ Sonny Gray, the White Sox’ Jose Quintana and the Pirates’ Gerrit Cole.
  • For those still looking for more trade-related content to peruse, Heyman penned a column highlighting nearly 100 possible trade candidates, ranging from valuable-but-unlikely-to-move names (e.g. Josh Donaldson, Gerrit Cole) to bad contracts that current teams would like to escape in a potential salary dump (e.g. Junichi Tazawa, Matt Cain). There are some quotes from scouts, general managers and other league execs mixed in throughout.

Draft Signings: 6/29/17

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Let’s round up the latest significant draft signings:

  • Both of the Blue Jays’ top picks are under contract, per a team announcement. Both Logan Warmoth and Nate Pearson will receive above-slot bonuses, per Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca (on Twitter), though neither went much over. MLB.com’s Jim Callis tweets that Warmoth will receive $2,820,200 ($25K over slot), while Pearson gets $2,452,900 (that’s $150K over the value of the 28th pick). Sportsnet’s Ben Nicholson-Smith has the story on the deal from the team’s perspective. Warmoth, taken 22nd overall, received top-20 billing from Baseball America and Fangraphs. ESPN.com’s Keith Law was even higher on the UNC shortstop, crediting him with a top-level hit tool, good speed, and a strong chance to stick at short in the long run. Similarly, Pearson drew a consensus as being a top-30-ish prospect, but earned a higher grade from one outlet. BA ranked him 13th, noting that the JuCo righty has made huge strides in developing his arsenal and controlling it.
  • The Astros announced the signing of second-rounder Corbin Martin, a right-hander from Texas A&M. He’ll receive a $1MM bonus, per MLB.com’s Jim Callis (via Twitter), which lands a bit shy of the $1,178,600 allotment for the 56th overall selection. MLB.com was highest on Martin, ranking him 32nd, noting that some inconsistencies have clouded the status of a pitcher who has a promising array of pitches.
  • Indians supplemental second-round pick Tyler Freeman, a high-school shortstop from California, will get the slot value of $816,500, Callis tweets. He cracked the top 100 on BA’s list. While he’s said not to possess loud tools, Freeman is credited as a well-rounded player with a sense for the game and quality makeup.

Blue Jays Sign Michael Saunders

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The Blue Jays have signed outfielder Michael Saunders to a minor-league deal, per a club announcement. He had been released recently by the Phillies, who’ll pay all but a pro-rated portion of his $8MM salary for the rest of the season.

Saunders, 30, struggled badly after landing in Philadelphia over the winter. He ended his tenure there with 214 plate appearances of .205/.257/.360 hitting and six home runs. The Phils will also owe Saunders a $1MM payment to buy out his $11MM club option for 2018.

Toronto is obviously quite familiar with the veteran outfielder, as he posted a strong year therein 2016. Finally healthy for a full season, Saunders turned in a .253/.338/.478 batting line with 24 long balls over 558 plate appearances. Of course, he also fell off quite a bit in the second half after earning his first All-Star Game berth.

For the time being, Saunders will head to Triple-A. But it’s not hard to imagine him arriving back in the majors before too long. The Jays currently feature a corner outfield mix consisting of right-handed hitters Jose Bautista and Steve Pearce along with the lefty bats of Ezequiel Carrera and Ian Parmley. Adding Saunders to the mix could potentially allow the Jays to utilize Pearce at second base on occasion as well.

Trade Rumblings: Braves, Archer, Quintana, Gray, Red Sox

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The Braves are once again in the market for controllable starters, reports David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Atlanta was linked to names like Chris Archer, Jose Quintana and Sonny Gray last season and throughout the winter, and the Braves still have interest in that group of pitchers, according to O’Brien. While they’ve scouted Gray’s recent outings for the Athletics, it’s Archer and Quintana that sit atop Atlanta’s wish list, O’Brien continues. The White Sox, of course, are known to be open to moving Quintana, but there’s no guarantee that the Rays would even consider moving Archer. To the contrary, Tampa Bay is two games above .500 and currently sits just one game back of an American League Wild Card spot and three games back in the AL East. Archer currently holds a 3.88 ERA with 10.9 K/9, 2.9 BB/9 and a 42.5 percent ground-ball rate through 104 1/3 innings, and he’s controllable through the 2021 season with just $33.7MM remaining on his contract following the 2017 campaign. It would presumably take a staggering package to even get the Rays to consider moving Archer, given the current state of their team.

A bit more on the trade market…

  • Atlanta is far from the only team to scout Gray’s most recent starts. Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports that in addition to the Braves, the Cubs, Blue Jays and Mariners all had multiple scouts/execs on hand for Sunday’s start, and the Red Sox had a scout there as well. Slusser notes that some clubs have been scouting infielder Jed Lowrie as well, adding that it’s “all but certain” that the Athletics trade Lowrie before the non-waiver deadline. Boston is one team that’s likely to have interest in Lowrie, she adds.
  • Yahoo’s Jeff Passan spoke to one source that said the Red Sox are “keen” for Gray, though they’re also considering aiming for a power-hitting third baseman and acquiring another reliever rather than bolstering the rotation. Stacking another arm alongside Joe Kelly and Craig Kimbrel at the back of the ’pen could give Boston a trio similar to the three-headed monster similar to the 2014 Royals (Kelvin Herrera, Wade Davis, Greg Holland) or the 2016 Yankees (Dellin Betances, Andrew Miller, Aroldis Chapman). That was the idea in acquiring Tyler Thornburg this past offseason, but Thornburg will mis the entire year due to thoracic outlet surgery. The Sox, could, however, get righty Carson Smith back, though it’s difficult to know exactly what to expect from him after losing a season and a half to Tommy John surgery.
  • White Sox GM Rick Hahn spoke to Ken Davidoff of the New York Post about lefty Jose Quintana, acknowledging that he’s been involved in “various conversations” with other clubs and that the ChiSox are “very open-minded” about dealing him. It’s been reported previously that Quintana’s rough start may not have much of an adverse impact on his trade value, and that’s how Hahn is approaching talks. “For the guys with extended track records, I think that’s probably the most important factor in terms of determining their value as well as the contractual control and obligations going forward,” said Hahn. “…He’s the same guy. The same guy in terms of how he goes about his business.” Rough start aside, Quintana entered tonight’s game with a pristine 2.25 ERA and 24-to-8 K/BB ratio through 24 June innings, and he’s held the Yankees scoreless through six innings tonight as of this writing. Davidoff notes that the Yankees could very well look into rotation upgrades, speculating that Quintana and Gray will be among the names they explore.

Blue Jays Designate Jason Grilli

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The Blue Jays announced that veteran reliever Jason Grilli has been designated for assignment. Righty Chris Smith has been called up to take his spot in the pen, as Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet.ca reported earlier today.

While Grilli proved to be an excellent reclamation project for Toronto last year, he fell off badly in 2017. The 40-year-old veteran has allowed 16 earned runs in his 20 2/3 frames. While he carries a respectable 23:9 K/BB ratio, Grilli has been touched for nine long balls already.

Teams weighing a move on the veteran will likely be deterred from a waiver claim by his $3MM salary. Despite the solid strikeout numbers, Grilli’s swinging-strike rate has dropped to 10.1% — well below his typical figure — though he is still sitting at 93 with his fastball.

Smith, meanwhile, will make his MLB debut as he nears his 29th birthday. He had pitched to a 3.93 ERA over 18 1/3 innings on the year at Tripe-A, where he recorded 7.4 K/9 against just 1.0 BB/9.

AL East Notes: Osuna, Rutledge, Rusney, Duda, Rays

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Blue Jays closer Roberto Osuna told Sportsnet’s Arden Zwelling and other reporters that he has been dealing with anxiety issues in recent days and is unsure as to when he’ll be back on the mound.  “I don’t really know how to explain it. I just feel anxious. I feel like I’m lost a little bit right now,” Osuna said via an interpreter. “This has nothing to do with me being on the field. I feel great out there. It’s just when I’m out of baseball. When I’m not on the field, I feel just weird and a little bit lost.”  This is the first time the 22-year-old has experienced such feelings, he said, noting “I’m just not myself right now.”  The organization’s head of mental performance, Paddy Steinfort, has been working with Osuna during this period and declined a interview on Osuna’s status.

Here’s some more from around the AL East…

  • The Red Sox placed Josh Rutledge on the seven-day concussion DL today, calling up Tzu-Wei Lin from Double-A to take his spot on the roster.  [Updated Red Sox depth chart at Roster Resource]  Troublingly, Rutledge may have originally suffered this concussion in late May, and it was only detected within the last couple of days.  Boston was already thin at third base with Pablo Sandoval, Marco Hernandez, and Brock Holt also on the DL, and Rutledge’s absence will only increase the likelihood of the Sox pursuing third base help at the deadline.
  • Rusney Castillo is playing well at Triple-A but isn’t a likely candidate for a return to the majors for contractual reasons, the Boston Globe’s Alex Speier writes.  Thanks to changes made in the new collective bargaining agreement, the Red Sox would have the average annual value of Castillo’s contract (around $10.4MM) counted on their luxury tax calculations through the end of the outfielder’s deal in 2020, even if they called up Castillo for even just one day or dealt him to another deal and ate part of the salary obligations.  Between this financial cost and the Sox already being pretty set in the outfield, Castillo may not have a clear path back to the bigs at all for over three years.
  • The Yankees and Mets are hardly frequent trade partners, though Newsday’s David Lennon suggests that Lucas Duda could be the answer to the Yankees’ need at first base.  With Tyler Austin and the still-injured Greg Bird both unproven commodities at first, Lennon argues that Duda is a proven slugger that can help fill that positional need for the Bronx Bombers, and he could be available if the Mets are indeed open to moving veteran players.  After an injury-plagued 2016, Duda has rebounded to hit .253/.365/.565 with 13 homers over 200 PA for the Mets.  As a free agent after the season, Duda also wouldn’t represent a long-term roadblock for Bird or Austin at the position.
  • The Rays are closing in on a winning record at the season’s halfway point, and the Tampa Bay Times’ Marc Topkin lists ten solid decisions made by the club both last winter and during the season that have positioned the Rays for playoff contention.
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