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Heyman On Pitching Market, Astros, Angels, Hamels, Jays

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Though many consider this to be a sellers’ market, Jon Heyman of CBS Sports kicks off his latest Trade Buzz column by writing that the starting pitching market could swing in favor of buyers. Only four teams are in desperate need of a rotation upgrade, he notes — the Blue Jays, Royals, Astros and Dodgers — and new names are being added to the pitching market as the deadline nears. Many executives, however, still wonder if the Tigers will really sell. Several throughout the game expect David Price to stay put with the Tigers, Heyman writes. Here are some highlights from his notes on the pitching market as well as the rest of the trade market…

  • It’s likely that the Rangers will end up trading Yovani Gallardo, and Heyman points out that an NL team would consider Gallardo a bonus, as he’s hit 13 homers in his career as at the plate. The Rangers could also end up trading Colby Lewis, who could step into the back of a rotation for a club in need of some stable innings.
  • The Astros are determined not to trade outfield prospect Brett Phillips, who one Astros-connected person referred to as “an absolute stud” when talking to Heyman. Houston is also interested in virtually every pitcher on the market, though one notable exception is Mike Leake, as the club’s evaluators aren’t particularly high on the Reds right-hander.
  • The Angels’ recent offensive surge has calmed their search for a left fielder, but they still have some interest in both Jay Bruce and Ben Revere. There are concerns among decision-makers, however, that Bruce fits the same streaky profile that the departed Josh Hamilton embodied. Carlos Gonzalez isn’t on the Halos’ radar at this time.
  • Scouts that spoke to Heyman don’t seem overly concerned with a pair of poor outings for Cole Hamels. Instead, some believe that he may be feeling the rigors of being on the trade block for more than a year. One AL scout said of Hamels’ last start: “He looks fine. It was 100 degrees. He’s playing for a miserable team. And it may be hard to get motivated.” A pair of AL execs opined that the Phillies will be able to get back at least one “huge prospect.”
  • The Giants need to bolster their bench, but a reunion with Juan Uribe isn’t likely. Uribe wasn’t amenable to a bench spot the last time he was with San Francisco, and part of the reason he was dealt from Los Angeles to Atlanta was to get more playing time.
  • The Blue Jays’ interest in Jonathan Papelbon is “fairly limited” at this point, as the club’s focus at this point is primarily on adding to the rotation.

Trade Notes: A’s, Gallardo, Reds, Jays, Padres, Victorino

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The sense among the industry is that the Athletics are now “open for business,” tweets ESPN’s Buster Olney. The A’s, Olney notes, have pieces that figure to draw widespread interest, including free-agents-to-be Scott Kazmir and Ben Zobrist. I’d add that Tyler Clippard is another impending free agent, and right-hander Jesse Chavez is a relatively short-term asset that’s broken out over the past 18 months as well. (Chavez is controlled through 2016.) Josh Reddick has drawn inquiry from the division-rival Angels, although reports at the time indicated that Oakland had no interest in moving its right fielder.

We’re nine days from the trade deadline, so trade action should escalate rapidly in the coming week. Here’s more from around the league…

  • FOX’s Ken Rosenthal wrote last night that the Rangers aren’t motivated to trade Mitch Moreland, and ESPN’s Jayson Stark hears the same thing (Twitter link). According to Stark, the only player that the Rangers are strongly marketing is right-hander Yovani Gallardo — another player who is eligible for free agency at season’s end. Gallardo is having a nice rebound season in his first year with Texas, and Moreland’s strong season has gone somewhat unheralded; the 29-year-old is batting .287/.333/.529 with 16 homers. He’s still struggling against lefties, though a bit less so than in previous years.
  • Via MLB.com’s Mark Sheldon (Twitter link), Reds general manager Walt Jocketty has spoken with a number of clubs about trades but has yet to receive what the Cincinnati front office considers to be a compelling offer. Said the veteran GM: “We’ve been talking with a lot of different people but we haven’t been receiving offers that have us wanting to commit.”
  • Jon Morosi of FOX Sports tweets that the Blue Jays and Padres have had recent discussions about pitchers — both relievers and starters. San Diego starters Tyson Ross, Andrew Cashner, James Shields and Ian Kennedy have all seen their names surface on the rumor mill of late, though it would seem that Shields, at least, is too expensive for Toronto from a financial standpoint. Joaquin Benoit stands out, to me, as the most obvious trade candidate for the Padres in the bullpen.
  • Though the Mets are in need of outfield help, a source tells Rob Bradford of WEEI.com (Twitter link) that the Red Sox’ Shane Victorino is of no interest to them. That’s not exactly shocking to hear, given Victorino’s $13MM salary and meager .247/.333/.306 batting line in 2015.

Pirates Designate Jayson Aquino

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The Pirates announced a series of roster moves that include the designation of lefty Jayson Aquino for assignment, as Stephen Nesbitt of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports on Twitter. Infielder Pedro Florimon is headed to the active roster, while Wilfredo Boscan was optioned to Triple-A.

Pittsburgh added Aquino in a minor trade with the Blue Jays back in May. The 22-year-old has bounced around quite a bit in the last year after seeing his prospect stock fall. He’s thrown 78 2/3 innings at the High-A level with the Pittsburgh organization, working to a 3.78 ERA with 5.7 K/9 against 2.2 BB/9.

Obviously, the Pirates felt it was necessary to get another infielder onto the active roster after losing both Josh Harrison and Jordy Mercer to injuries. Though he’s never hit much, Florimon offers a quality glove up the middle.

Blue Jays Claim Ty Kelly From Cardinals

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The Blue Jays have claimed infielder/outfielder Ty Kelly off waivers from the Cardinals, Toronto announced (h/t to Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet.ca, on Twitter). Kelly was designated for assignment yesterday.

The 27-year-old Kelly has not yet seen action at the big league level despite occupying a 40-man spot. Over parts of four seasons at Triple-A, he owns a .261/.381/.379 slash across 1,110 plate appearances.

But those numbers are down since St. Louis acquired the switch-hitter in an offseason deal with the Mariners. In his 269 plate appearances this season at Memphis, he’s slashed just .203/.317/.286. And after swatting 15 home runs last year, Kelly has managed only two long balls thus far in 2015.

Latest On Phillies: Hamels, Papelbon, Utley

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The Phillies are honing in on a decision on lefty Cole Hamels, Jayson Stark of ESPN.com writes. There is at least some consideration being given to holding onto Hamels, per the report.

“This isn’t do-or-die for us,” says GM Ruben Amaro Jr. “In the end, it’s about, ’What is the return?’ and, ’Is this the right return?’ If it is, we’ll move forward. And if it’s not, we won’t.” 

There are about six clubs still in talks with Philadelphia on the club’s staff ace, per Stark. But sources from other teams indicate that they believe the Cubs, Dodgers, Red Sox, and Rangers are most likely to land him. We heard yesterday that the Astros were also still in the mix, along with Los Angeles and Texas.

Regarding the interest of the Dodgers, Stark says that Philly has asked for as many as six quality prospects in a package that would not include top youngsters Corey Seager and Julio Urias. While Los Angeles won’t give up that volume, per the report, the industry consensus is that the Dodgers are in the lead.

As for the Cubs, rival executives tell Stark that Chicago is offering a deal centered around Starlin Castro and/or Javier Baez (though it’s unclear whether both would conceivably be included together). But Philadelphia is not enthused about either player. The Red Sox, meanwhile, just sent top evaluator Allard Baird to watch Hamels throw and obviously have a stacked farm from which to deal. While they (like the Rangers) don’t really profile as a traditional buyer, Boston could still act with the future in mind.

Stark goes on to discuss some other, less likely suitors as well as the impact of the team’s upper-level front office transition on trade talks. It’s a lengthy and information-packed piece that you’ll want to read in full for all the latest on Hamels.

Meanwhile, Philadelphia is obviously also listening to offers for closer Jonathan Papelbon. According to ESPN.com’s Jerry Crasnick (on Twitter), however, the Phillies are having trouble gaining “traction” on a deal. Papelbon’s $13MM option for next year, which is all but certain to vest at this point, “remains a sticking point,” per the report. Stark also adds (on Twitter) that, despite prior interest, the Blue Jays, Cubs, and Dodgers are not presently involved with talks regarding the reliever.

Meanwhile, Jim Salisbury of CSNPhilly.com provides an update on veteran second baseman Chase Utley, who says he is progressing as he works his way back from a sprained right ankle. As Salisbury notes, Utley could profile as an August trade piece if he can return to health and show increased productivity. While Philadelphia rebuffed the Dodgers and Marlins last winter when they asked about Utley, explaining that he was not interested in waiving his no-trade protection, Salisbury says that the 36-year-old “seems to have softened his position” on being dealt since that time.

Latest On Blue Jays’ Interest In Marlins Starters

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10:48am: Toronto has no interest in Latos but might consider Dan Haren, according to Jerry Crasnick of ESPN.com (Twitter links). He notes that the club is very aware of maintaining a healthy “clubhouse mix” in making any additions.

10:14am: Latos is little more than a back-up solution for the Jays, a team source tells Richard Griffin of the Toronto Star (via Twitter). The team has yet even to discuss any prospect names with Miami, says Griffin, indicating that talks have not progressed very far.

9:32am: While Toronto is “tracking” Latos, he’s not among the team’s “top targets,” Morosi clarifies on Twitter.

8:46am: The Blue Jays are one of multiple teams with current interest in Marlins starter Mat Latos, Jon Morosi of FOX Sports reports on Twitter. Bob Elliott of the Toronto Sun reported earlier in the month that Toronto was taking a look at Latos as a possible acquisition target.

Certainly, the more recent results have been impressive. As many others have noted, Latos has featured increased velocity and improved production since dealing with knee issues early in the year. He’s been particularly impressive in his last two outings, allowing five hits, three walks, and one earned run combined over 14 frames while racking up 23 groundball outs and 14 strikeouts.

Latos, of course, comes with some questions. Though he’s pretty much always produced positive outcomes when healthy, Latos also missed half of last year. And he isn’t cheap, playing on a $9.4MM salary, though the fact that he’s a pure rental eliminates any long-term injury risk. Obviously, an acquiring team would not be eligible to make Latos a qualifying offer.

Toronto has long been said to be pursuing one or more arms, with reports suggesting that the team is exploring a wide variety of possibilities. Latos is not as exciting as some of the top names that could be available, but he is relatively affordable from a salary perspective (compared, at least, to players like David Price and Cole Hamels) and likely won’t cost as much in terms of prospects as names like Johnny Cueto and Jeff Samardzija. That’s especially important for a Toronto club that reportedly has little payroll space available and is reluctant to part with young pitching (especially given that many of those arms factor into the present big league roster equation).

Blue Jays To Sign Joba Chamberlain To Minors Deal

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The Blue Jays have agreed to a minor league deal with reliever Joba Chamberlain, Joel Sherman of the New York Post reports on Twitter. The 29-year-old was released recently by the Tigers.

Chamberlain owns a 4.09 ERA in 22 innings on the year, but there were some suggestions that he may have been a bit unlucky in Detroit. Opposing hitters own a .360 BABIP against him, as well as a 21.7% HR/FB rate. While solid contact could explain those marks, Chamberlain’s fastball velocity is in line with his career numbers and he’s struck out 6.1 batters per nine while walked just 2.0.

Toronto has long been looking for ways to bolster its bullpen, and will at the very least pick up some depth in Chamberlain. It’s far from clear that the signing will keep the team out of the market for relief arms, but perhaps it reduces the need for the club to deal for a serviceable veteran in addition to whatever else it might get done.

East Notes: Mets, Zobrist, Smoker, Jays, Papelbon, Red Sox, Smyly

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Here’s the latest out of baseball’s eastern divisions:

  • New York remains in contact with the Athletics on the versatile Ben Zobrist, Kristie Ackert of the New York Daily News reports. The fit is obvious, and the teams have long said to be in contact, but Ackert says that things have progressed to the point that Oakland has made a specific prospect ask. Nevertheless, no deal is imminent, per the report.
  • The Mets are loath to part with outfielder Michael Conforto or shortstop Amed Rosario to add a bat, Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com hears (Twitter link), echoing a recent report. But the team is still certainly after a hitter, as Adam Rubin of ESPNNewYork.com tweets that Michael Cuddyer’s injury situation has led to a “seismic[] shift[]” in the ballclub’s deadline approach. We had heard earlier in the summer that the team was interested in offense even before Cuddyer’s knee troubles worsened, but at the time the focus seemed more on the infield.
  • Lefty Josh Smoker has opened eyes in the Mets organization, Mike Puma of the New York Post notes on Twitter. The 26-year-old was a first-round pick of the Nationals, but never gained much traction. Now, he’s said to be bringing big heat at Double-A and could be a candidate to see time in the New York pen.
  • The Blue Jays are primarily focused on adding a starter and are not presently discussing reliever Jonathan Papelbon with the Phillies, Heyman adds on Twitter. It could be that Toronto is allowing the development of its rotation plans drive the bus on whether (and how) it acts on the relief market.
  • The Red Sox have already made some moves focused on giving MLB time to younger players, notes Scott Lauber of the Boston Herald, who argues that Boston ought to do more of the same the rest of the way. One forward-looking deadline move, says Lauber, would be to resume pursuit of Cole Hamels, who per the report would not be inclined to trigger his no-trade clause just because an acquiring team is not in contention.
  • Rays lefty Drew Smyly is making good on reports indicating that he’d try to throw again, as Josh Vitale of the Charlotte Sun reports (Twitter links). After emerging from a 40-pitch live BP feeling well, Smyly says he’s hopeful of beginning a rehab stint soon. It remains to be seen how long he’ll take to work back to the big leagues, particularly with Tampa Bay likely to exercise quite a bit of caution with an important asset.

Heyman On Cueto, Uribe, Wilson, Brewers, Niese, Pirates, Gallardo

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In his latest notes column, Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com addressed a number of interesting deadline issues, starting with Reds starter Johnny Cueto. There have been suggestions over concern among buyers with the health of the star righty, but Heyman cites one scout from a team with interest who tells him that Cueto “looks fine.” As far as interest, Heyman pegs the Blue Jays, Royals, Yankees, Dodgers, and Astros as “the most likely and logical landing spots.”

Here are some other highlights from an info-packed piece (which you’ll want to read in full for even more notes):

  • The Braves are shopping the recently-acquired Juan Uribe, says Heyman, with the asking price of a “mid-range prospect” and full unloading of the approximately $3MM left on Uribe’s deal. Atlanta has had communications with at least the Mets, per the repor.
  • While the Orioles had been looking at adding a starter, Heyman reports that the team now may instead be prioritizing bats. Though the report doesn’t specify a position, we’ve heard in the past that Baltimore had interest in adding to its corner outfield mix.
  • Heyman writes that it’ll be interesting to see if Angels lefty C.J. Wilson becomes “even more available” now that Jerry Dipoto has resigned as the general manager. Per Heyman, Wilson was close with Dipoto, and the Wilson signing (five years, $77.5MM) was the one significant free agent pickup that Dipoto was actually responsible for. Angels owner Arte Moreno was behind the Albert Pujols and Josh Hamilton signings, as many other reports have indicated over the years.
  • The Brewers are officially open for business and “may be considering a rather big sale,” one competing team exec tells Heyman. Interest in Jean Segura is down due to his poor play since an early 2013 breakout, but Gerardo Parra’s big year has lots of clubs asking about him. Mike Fiers, Wily Peralta and Francisco Rodriguez are drawing interest, and the Brewers are open to packaging some of those players to improve the return.
  • The Jon Niese saga continues, as Heyman hears that the lefty now doesn’t seem particularly available, with one Mets person telling Heyman that Niese never really was. In other Mets news, Heyman hears that the team floated the idea of a Rafael Montero-for-Ben Zobrist swap when Montero was still healthy, but Montero, of course, has since been injured. The Mets have also talked about Uribe, but there are other names higher on their list.
  • While some have connected the Pirates to Ben Revere and Jeff Francoeur, the Bucs might be aiming a bit higher, looking at Marlon Byrd of the Reds and Aramis Ramirez of the Brewers — both former Pirates. Heyman lists Ben Zobrist as a target for the Bucs as well. Earlier today the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s Bill Brink linked Pittsburgh to Zobrist, Cliff Pennington and Clint Barmes.
  • Yovani Gallardo could hit the trade market if the Rangers end up selling short-term pieces, and he’s not interested in springing for an early extension with his hometown team. Agent Bobby Witt has apparently told the Rangers that Gallardo is looking forward to testing the free agent market.

AL East Deadline Notes: Jays, Sox, Yankees, Rays

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Blue Jays fans are watching the coming trade deadline with as much anticipation as any group of supporters, as GM Alex Anthopoulos has spoken quite a bit about the club’s intention to look hard at making impactful additions. As Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca writes, it’s worth considering the club’s summer trade history both to gain some insight into how the organization operates and to better appreciate the reasonable expectations. Toronto faces a “tricky time,” says Davidi, who provides a lengthy overview of past deals. Likewise, Tim Britton of the Providence Journal breaks down the recent deadline work of Red Sox GM Ben Cherington, who faces tough questions as his club has stumbled coming out of the All-Star break.

Here’s more from the AL East:

  • Yankees GM Brian Cashman indicated that he does not expect to strike a major deal this summer, as Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News reports. “I would predict it more likely not doing anything than doing something significant,” Cashman said. “We’re making our phone calls, talking to all clubs involved. We’ve practically analyzed everything.” In addition to citing his belief in the club’s current options, Cashman said that the “the acquisition costs might be prohibitive or that unicorn might not exist.”
  • Going into further detail, Cashman indicated that the Yankees are unlikely to go get a big-time arm to add to their staff, as Feinsand further reports. “Are there available starters that are better? Yes, but the acquisitions cost are certain players that I have no intention of moving at this stage,” Cashman said. “I would say the smarter play would be to hold off on shooting any of those particular bullets.”
  • Neither do the Yankees seem likely to be aggressive in attempting to upgrade at second base. Cashman said that the infield market was particularly thin, noting that it was hard even to identify available options that could theoretically provide better production than incumbent Stephen Drew. Cashman also addressed the decision to send down young second baseman Rob Refsnyder, saying he preferred that approach to designating another player for assignment. “I can get Refsnyder back,” he said. “As we approach the trade deadline, I think it’s better to have all assets in play to give us as much flexibility as we can have.”
  • Rays owner Stuart Sternberg indicated that his club will also likely rely primarily on internal options rather than making a deadline splash, as Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports. “People say, ’Buyer? Seller?’ It will be no different than we’ve done in years past,” said Sternberg. “I think we’re in almost precisely the same spot we’ve been in every year since ’08. Which is, we’re close, we feel we have a really good team. We’d like to see our team on the field all at once. And we’ll try to be opportunistic.” Though the team has obviously scuffled of late, and will be prepared to sell if it falls too far back, the Tampa Bay owner said he hopes to remain in contention and believes the current roster is good enough — especially with players returning from injury — to stay in the mix.
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