AL Notes: Loup, Rays Stadium, Greene, Ackley
As the Blue Jays battle to stay alive in the ALCS, they’ll finally be able to turn to lefty Aaron Loup if the need arises. He’s been sporadically absent over the post-season, creating challenges for the team’s pen, but it turns out that much more important matters have arisen. His wife went into labor much earlier than expected, giving birth to a premature baby boy on Wednesday, as Jays play-by-play man Mike Wilner tweeted earlier this evening. Fortunately, Loup’s son is in stable condition. MLBTR extends its congratulations and very best wishes to Loup’s young family.
Here are some notes from the American League:
- There was some important news yesterday regarding the Rays‘ efforts to land a new stadium, as Charlie Frago and Tony Marrero of the Tampa Bay Times reported. After long and tough negotiations, the St. Petersburg City Council approved a deal to let the club seek new stadium sites in surrounding counties. Tampa Bay would still be required to pay significant break-up fees to get out of its lease at Tropicana Field, with some saying the cost will be too high for the Rays to participate, so the path to keeping the team in the area remains to be cleared.
- The Tigers face some tough questions with righty Shane Greene, who was an important trade acquisition last winter. As Chris Iott of MLive.com writes, the team expects to give him a shot to earn a spot with the club, but it’s not yet clear whether he’ll make the rotation. Greene had surgery on his shoulder, though it was for an “arterial issue” rather than some structural concern, and is set to be ready for the spring. But it was his rough season before that which leads to concern over his long-term outlook. “I can tell you right now that [Greene] is a starting pitcher,” said GM Al Avila. “But we feel that he can also go into the bullpen if we needed him to or because we think it’s the best thing for him and organization.” Something of the opposite is true of Alex Wilson, who Avila says will remain in the pen despite a history of starting in the minors.
- Chad Jennings of the LoHud Yankees Blog takes a close look at the Yankees‘ options with Dustin Ackley, writing that the deadline acquisition could take the bulk of the time at second base — being spelled frequently or occasionally against left-handed pitching — or end up in more of a super-utility role. Jennings also discusses the idea of replacing Ackley with a better version of himself — presumably, Ben Zobrist — while also utilizing youngsters Rob Refsnyder and Jose Pirela more heavily.
AL East Notes: Dickey, Schoop, Orioles, Osuna
Though R.A. Dickey‘s short start yesterday in a hugely important Game 4 of the ALCS led to quite a bit of negativity among Blue Jays fans, Richard Griffin of the Toronto Star opines that his $12MM club option for the 2016 season should still be exercised. Griffin points out that while the reactionary conclusion is to say the team should cut ties with the knuckeballer, that’s irrational. Dickey leads all Major League pitchers in innings dating back to 2012, and he was outstanding in the season’s second half, working to a 2.80 ERA over his final 15 starts. Dickey, in fact, logged a 3.11 ERA across his final 150 1/3 innings, dating back to June 2. Though his strikeout rate in that time (5.5 K/9) leaves plenty to be desired, he also averaged just 2.3 walks per nine innings. Two hundred league-average (or better) innings would be worth the $12MM total of his option, which really boils down to an $11MM decision, since the Jays have to pay him a $1MM buyout even if they’re cutting ties. At one year and $11MM, the Jays should keep Dickey around, especially with David Price, Marco Estrada and Mark Buehrle all potentially departing this winter as free agents.
More from the AL East…
- Rich Dubroff of CSNMidAtlantic.com feels that while the Orioles have a good deal of needs this offseason with several key free agents possibly departing and holes to plug in the rotation and bullpen, a long-term deal with second baseman Jonathan Schoop should still be on the team’s to-do list. As Dubroff points out, Schoop made offensive strides from a dismal 2014 campaign to 2015. Long one of the organization’s best prospects, Schoop batted .279/.306/.482, and while his plate discipline leaves plenty to be desired, he has quite a bit of pop for a middle infielder. I’ll add that while defensive metrics dinged Schoop this season after loving his glovework in 2014, he also missed nearly three months with a partially torn ligament in his knee, which likely hampered his range.
- Sticking with the Orioles, Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com tweets that the entire coaching staff will return for the 2016 season. Kubatko had previously written that all coaches other than pitching coach Dave Wallace were on board, but he’s now apparently agreed to terms as well.
- Roberto Osuna has been outstanding this year for the Blue Jays at just 20 years of age, but as Chris Mitchell writes for Fangraphs, it’s far from certain that he’ll build upon that early success. Relievers tend to decline more rapidly than do starters, and many other quality young arms have fizzled out early. There are some more promising examples, as pitchers like Huston Street and Jonathan Broxton have had fairly long and productive careers, and some in-progress careers (such as Drew Storen) that probably can’t yet be evaluated. But the overall historical record isn’t terribly promising. Of course, the comparison sample is small given Osuna’s remarkably young age, and he might well end up back in the rotation before long anyway.
AL East Notes: Chen, Britton, Murphy, Blue Jays
While many are anticipating that the Orioles will have difficulty in retaining their free agents, Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com cautions against simply dismissing the possibility that Baltimore can find a way to retain some combination of Wei-Yin Chen, Chris Davis, Matt Wieters and Darren O’Day. Of the four, Kubatko considers Chen the least likely to return, but he notes that the O’s had an organizational meeting last Friday which included managing partner Peter Angelos. One source later termed the meeting “productive” when speaking to Kubatko. The MASN scribe also hears from a source that Angelos wants to not only re-sign Chen but also is showing a willingness to add a free agent starter beyond the longtime Baltimore lefty. Of course, Kubatko also points out the possibility that Chen’s demotion to Class-A ball this season — a more or less procedural move that bought the Orioles some time to sort out a roster crunch — strained the relationship between player and team.
From my own vantage point, history hasn’t shown that the Orioles would be willing to spend at the necessary levels to sign Chen. A four-year deal is almost certainly there for him this winter, and he has a case for a fifth season at an annual rate in excess of the $12.5MM on Ubaldo Jimenez‘s four-year deal with Baltimore. As Kubtako notes, Baltimore “shocked” many in the industry with that Jimenez contract; either a five-year deal or a significantly larger four-year pact for Chen strikes me as unlikely.
A few more items pertaining to the AL East…
- Kubatko’s colleague, Steve Melewski, writes that fans who feel the Orioles should try Zach Britton back in the rotation are misguided. Britton would be unable to jump from about 70 innings per season to the 175 to 200 necessary out of the rotation, and more importantly, he’d almost certainly be less effective in the rotation. Moving to a starting role would make it more difficult for Britton to hold his velocity, and hitters would benefit from second and third looks at his incredible sinker. He’d also need to throw more secondary pitches than he presently does, and the move would further weaken a bullpen that will already be an area of need for Baltimore this winter.
- Daniel Murphy signing with the Yankees is an unlikely scenario but can’t be completely ruled out, writes Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News. Second base is the Yankees’ most uncertain position on the diamond at present, and while many believe Rob Refsnyder will get a long look next year, Murphy’s swing fits Yankee Stadium well. The Yankees are in the midst of their pro scouting meetings and beginning to plot a course for the offseason, so Murphy’s name figures to at least be mentioned. Feinsand spoke to a pair of sources that estimated Murphy can land a deal similar to Chase Headley‘s four-year, $52MM contract on the heels of a big postseason performance.
- Joel Sherman of the New York Post looks back on the trade that sent R.A. Dickey, Josh Thole and Mike Nickeas to the Blue Jays in exchange for Travis d’Arnaud, Noah Syndergaard, John Buck and Wuilmer Becerra. While there were other pieces in the trade, the core of the trade — Dickey for Syndergaard/d’Arnaud — looks excellent for the Mets, in hindsight. Sherman spoke with Jays GM Alex Anthopoulos, who explained the the team had a win-now approach back in that 2012 offseason, with the goal of maximizing the prime years of Jose Bautista and Edwin Encarnacion. Both d’Arnaud and Syndergaard were years from contributing, and Toronto felt it could get four years of control of a win-now pitcher to help its near-term playoff hopes. The Jays also talked to the Rays about James Shields and had interest in free agent Anibal Sanchez at the time, but Tampa Bay didn’t want to move Shields within the division and Sanchez preferred Detroit to Toronto, Sherman adds.
Blue Jays Claim Pat Venditte, Designate Darwin Barney
The Blue Jays announced today that they’ve claimed switch-pitcher Pat Venditte off waivers from the Athletics. To clear a spot on the 40-man roster, Darwin Barney has been designated for assignment. Venditte isn’t eligible to pitch in the postseason with Toronto.
As an ambidextrous pitcher, the 30-year-old Venditte grabbed quite a few headlines in Oakland when he made his big league debut earlier this season. Venditte logged 28 2/3 innings with the A’s in the Majors, totaling a 4.40 ERA with 7.2 K/9, 3.8 BB/9 and a 32.9 percent ground-ball rate. Venditte was hit hard by right-handed hitters — particularly in the few instances where he had to face them as a left-handed pitcher. However, he excelled in lefty-lefty matchups, limiting opponents to a .116/.188/.256 batting line in such situations.
Formerly a 20th-round pick by the Yankees in 2008, Venditte also grinded his way through eight minor league seasons before emerging at the Major League level in Oakland this year. His minor league track record is exceptional, as he’s worked to a 2.39 ERA, averaging 10.0 K/9 against 2.5 BB/9 along the way. Venditte doesn’t throw particularly hard, averaging just 84.6 mph and sitting in the mid-80s from each side. However, that hasn’t limited his effectiveness in the minors, and the Blue Jays will hope that he can be a contributor for him in future seasons. If nothing else, he’s a nice depth piece for a team that is currently slated to lose LaTroy Hawkins and Mark Lowe to free agency.
The 29-year-old Barney, a fixture in the Cubs’ infield from 2010-14, came to the Blue Jays by way of trade from the Dodgers in September. Toronto had a need at second base with Devon Travis again sidelined by injuries, and Barney was picked up to fill that role despite the fact that being acquired after Sept. 1 made him ineligible for the postseason. Barney spent most of the season in Triple-A with the Dodgers, where he batted .277/.325/.354. While those numbers don’t exactly leap off the page, Barney’s calling card has long been his defense at second base, where he won a Gold Glove in 2012. He also has experience at shortstop and third base.
Buehrle: No Decision Made On Retirement
Though some reports have indicated that left-hander Mark Buehrle may very well call it quits after the 2015 season, the veteran innings eater tells ESPN Chicago’s Doug Padilla that he hasn’t made any decision one way or the other. If anything, Buehrle implied that he could very well suit up for a 17th big league season, as he told Padilla that he’ll listen to offers this winter.
The 36-year-old Buehrle saw his incredible streak of 200-inning seasons come to a close this year, as he finished the year at 198 2/3 innings, denying him 15th consecutive year with 200 or more innings. Though his amazing streak came to an end, Buehrle nonetheless had a quality year on the mound, pitching to a 3.81 ERA with 4.1 K/9, a league-leading 1.5 BB/9 and a solid 45.9 percent ground-ball rate. Buehrle admitted to Padilla that he was indeed bothered by shoulder problems this season. He received a cortisone shot late in the season, though he also said he’d welcome the opportunity to be added to Toronto’s postseason roster and compete once again. Shoulder problems are nothing new, Buehrle said, noting that he’s worked through shoulder pain for much of his career.
One thing Buehrle said he won’t be doing is signing a minor league deal, though I can’t imagine a scenario in which multiple teams aren’t interested in Buehrle on at least a one-year Major League deal. Buehrle will technically be eligible for a qualifying offer, though given his age and shoulder problems late in the year, the Blue Jays probably won’t be keen on risking a $15.8MM price tag on him in order to collect a compensatory draft pick.
Padilla notes that it’s not in Buehrle’s nature to make a flashy departure from the league when he finally does decide to hang it up. Somewhat playfully referring to his status as a former 38th-round draft pick, Buehrle told Padilla, “I snuck into this league, and I’m going to sneak out.”
ALDS Notes: Glass, Moore, Cueto, Cecil, Andrus, Carter
Last night’s exciting end to the American League Division Series set up an intriguing matchup between the Royals and the Blue Jays. And it provides us an opportunity to take a look at some notes on the teams that just finished playing in the ALDS:
- The Royals‘ bold trade deadline moves paid off big in the ALDS, writes Vahe Gregorian of the Kansas City Star. “This year, we believed we had a chance to do it, and to do it right and to fix what we didn’t get done last year,” said club owner David Glass. Mid-season trade acquisition Johnny Cueto was masterful last night, of course, while Ben Zobrist has been his steadily excellent self. “It’s difficult to give up the prospects, but … you go for it when you have a chance,” Glass added, explaining that he placed trust in GM Dayton Moore.
- Glass heaped praise on Moore, explaining that the organization’s leaders always envisioned the creation of a multi-year contention window, as Jeffrey Flanagan of MLB.com writes. “When we hired Dayton, that was the plan all along,” he said. “We weren’t interested in just getting there one year and not getting back. That required a lot of patience on his part, along with [club president] Dan [Glass], despite the criticism to the contrary from some people in the media. He stood in there and built something that is here to last.”
- While Kansas City’s window should remain open for some time after this season, as Glass suggested, tough decisions are never far away. There was a slightly wistful moment in Glass’s comments, which came when discussing the need to seize the moment. “One of these days,” he said, “you’ve got some guys on this team we’re not going to be able to afford. That’s sad but true. Hopefully, we’ll keep them together for some period of time, the core group, but that’s real life with small markets.”
- Speaking of Cueto, his performance over the final games of the year could go some way toward setting up his hard-to-predict upcoming free agent case. His struggles down the stretch for the Royals are well-documented, but going eight strong innings last night — with eight strikeouts and no walks — was exactly the kind of performance that the team and prospective suitors were looking for. Cueto’s overall body of work is unassailable, of course, but he has a chance to tamp down any concerns with the status of his valuable right elbow.
- Blue Jays lefty Brett Cecil, who tore his left calf just days ago, is going to try his best to return to playoff action, writes Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca. There’s no chance that he’ll be ready for the next round, so the only way he’d possibly make it back is if Toronto makes it into the World Series.
- If there was a goat in last night’s action, it was Rangers shortstop Elvis Andrus, who committed two key errors in the unbelievable seventh inning against Toronto. While that obviously represents a sour end to his season, it should not be forgotten that Andrus did a lot to restore his standing in 2015. The 27-year-old batted a sturdy .277/.320/.398 in the season’s second half while reversing some of the defensive decline that metrics saw last year. That’s hardly world-beating stuff, but it’s critical to Texas that Andrus can at least represent an average option at short given that he’s still owed over $100MM going forward.
- We already addressed Astros outfielder Colby Rasmus in a bullet this morning, but another Houston player who continued to build his stock is slugger Chris Carter. He ended up with a .294/.400/.529 batting line over twenty plate appearances, continuing to build off of the .240/.328/.558 batting line and nine home runs that he put up over his final 120 plate appearances. MLBTR projects Carter to earn $5.6MM in his second of four trips through arbitration. That’s not cheap — remember, dingers pay — but it’s nothing compared to what power will cost on the open market. After seeming like a non-tender candidate several months back, Carter will once again be an interesting possible trade target to keep an eye on this winter.
AL East Notes: Estrada, Orioles, Rasmus, Young
Fangraphs’ Tony Blengino examines Marco Estrada‘s curious skill set, pointing out that metrics such as FIP don’t give the soft-tossing righty full credit for his unrivaled ability to limit line-drives. Additionally, hitters league-wide do less damage on fly-balls hit off pitches thrown between 75 and 94 mph, Blengino notes, so Estrada’s lower velocity and extreme fly-ball tendencies actually work reasonably well together. With a lack of line-drives, more weak contact than average on grounders and limited damage on his glut of fly-balls, Estrada could be a huge bargain this winter if he can he had on a two- or three-year deal worth $8MM or so per year, Blengino writes. Blengino notes that Estrada “lives on the head of a pin,” and even minor changes in his arsenal could be significant detriments, but with a relatively minimal price tag, he concludes that Estrada is worth the risk in the aforementioned price range.
More from the AL East as the Blue Jays look to rally back against the Rangers in the decisive Game 5 of the ALDS…
- The Baltimore Sun’s Eduardo A. Encina writes that Orioles GM/executive vice president Dan Duquette and manager Buck Showalter laughed off reports of tension between the two when asked about their reportedly strained relationship. Duquette characterized such reports as little more than gossip, while Showalter said that it’s healthy for the two to disagree. “We better disagree about some things and kick things around,” said Showalter. “I disagree with my coaches. They disagree with me. That’s the least of our challenges. Throughout the organization we have a healthy draw of opinions, almost too much sometimes.” Encina went on to look at some of the things that went wrong this year, noting that many within the clubhouse were furious to see Tommy Hunter traded shortly after the team strengthened the roster by adding Gerardo Parra. Players felt it was a cost-cutting measure when the team should be striving for the playoffs.
- The Orioles made a run at Colby Rasmus as a replacement for Nick Markakis and Nelson Cruz last winter, writes Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun. Baltimore was willing to match Rasmus’ 2014 salary of $7MM on a one-year deal but didn’t want to go beyond that point. When the Astros offered $8MM, the Orioles backed out of the pursuit. While many will look at Rasmus’ postseason heroics and chalk it up as another missed opportunity for Baltimore, Connolly points out that Rasmus’ marginal regular season production wouldn’t have been enough to make a big impact on Baltimore’s bottom-line results this season anyway.
- The Orioles have offered 2016 contracts to each member of their 2015 coaching staff, Duquette told reporters, including MASNsports.com’s Roch Kubatko (Twitter link). The Orioles are hoping to finalize each of those deals this week, he adds.
- Outfielder Chris Young had a strong rebound season as a platoon outfield option for the Yankees in 2015, but the free-agent-to-be told Dan Martin and George A. King III of the New York Post a few days ago that it’s still too soon to tell whether he’ll be back in 2016 or not. Young said that he being with the Yankees from late 2014 through the 2015 season and made some adjustments in the Bronx that helped revive his production. However, I’d point out that as a free agent this time around, he’ll have a much stronger case than last winter. Fourth outfield types such as Rajai Davis and Nate McClouth have signed two-year deals worth between $10-11MM in total over the past few seasons, so Young will certainly be looking at an increase on his $2.5MM base salary from 2015.
Quick Hits: Hawkins, Padres, Rockies
LaTroy Hawkins, 42, is the oldest active player in the game, but he nearly walked away before his career got started, writes Tracy Ringolsby of MLB.com. Hawkins is expected to retire after the season with the 10th most appearances in major league history – 1,042 regular season games. Hawkins was upset when the Twins sent him back to rookie ball to start the 1992 season, but his grandfather talked him out of quitting with a typical grandfatherly quote, “Where you going to stay? I don’t let quitters stay in my house.” Hawkins was also peeved after the club sent him back to Triple-A early in the 1995 season. Despite a 21 season career, Hawkins has yet to win a World Series. He’ll need the Blue Jays to recover from their two-game deficit in the ALDS.
- Padres GM A.J. Preller will need a new bag of tricks this offseason, writes Corey Brock of MLB.com. Last year, Preller memorably traded many of San Diego’s top prospects for major league reinforcements like Justin Upton, Craig Kimbrel, and Matt Kemp. The highly visible approach did not pay dividends, and now the club must retool (mostly) without the help of prospect chips. The team is likely to lose Upton and Ian Kennedy via free agency, but most of the core is under contract for 2016. Preller indicated that left-handed bats, left-handed pitching, and a true shortstop may be among the top priorities.
- The Rockies have a familiar problem to address this offseason – starting pitching. Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post reports that the rotation was actually worse than the 2014 version. Rockies starters posted a league worst 5.27 ERA and 4.87 FIP this season. Last year, they were second worst with a 4.89 ERA although their 4.54 FIP was still ranked last. Colorado pitchers certainly work with a handicap (called Coors Field), but the club needs to eventually figure out a way to get better pitching. GM Jeff Bridich seems to be betting on the current staff, per Saunders. Agent Scott Boras offered his own opinion, saying “They have to find a top, veteran arm…They have good, young pitchers. But they have before, too. And they’re all three (years) and out.”
AL East Notes: Wieters, Orioles, Yankees, Hendriks
Only one World Series has ever ended on a caught stealing, and that rare event took place on this day in 1926. The would-be base thief? Of all people, it was Babe Ruth thrown out trying to steal second by Cardinals catcher Bob O’Farrell to end Game Seven and give the Cards their first World Series title. This was one of a whopping five World Series-deciding games the Yankees have played on October 10 — they clinched victories in 1937, 1951 and 1956, and came up short in 1926 and 1957.
Here’s the latest from the AL East…
- Will the Orioles issue a one-year, $15.8MM qualifying offer to Matt Wieters? The Baltimore Sun’s Eduardo A. Encina and MASNsports.com’s Steve Melewski each examine that question in separate pieces, as Wieters’ health status and underwhelming 2015 numbers could make $15.8MM too large a price tag for the O’s to potentially pay. Wieters could take the QO in order to prove his value in 2016 and elevate his free agent stock for next offseason, though no player has yet accepted a qualifying offer (and it could be a particular surprise if a Scott Boras client like Wieters was the first to do so). If Wieters did accept the QO, Encina notes that he’d be taking up budget room that could prevent Baltimore from re-signing Chris Davis or making another big free agent splash. “Some in the industry believe the Orioles” are willing to go with a Caleb Joseph/Steve Clevenger catching tandem in 2016 rather than Wieters, Melewski writes, though in not making Wieters a QO, Baltimore would lose the chance at a first-round draft pick as compensation for Wieters signing elsewhere.
- In another piece from Melewski, he cites Marco Estrada, Doug Fister and Ian Kennedy as possible fits for the Orioles this winter since it’s unclear as to whether the O’s will shop at the top of the free agent pitching market.
- Brian Cashman will have to “get creative” to upgrade the Yankees given the number of big contracts already on the books, Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News writes, such as how the GM added Didi Gregorius and Nathan Eovaldi last winter. Feinsand also suggests four more ways for the Yankees to improve next year, such as deciding on who plays second base, finding playing time for Greg Bird, signing Justin Upton and staying away from David Price.
- Liam Hendriks was a member of five different organizations between December 2013 and October 2014 but he has seemingly found some stability as an important member of the Blue Jays bullpen. The Australian righty talks to Fangraphs’ David Laurila about his move to relief pitching, his increased velocity and the stress of switching teams so often within that 11-month span.
Brett Cecil Suffers “Pretty Significant” Calf Tear
Blue Jays manager John Gibbons said that left-handed reliever Brett Cecil suffered a “pretty significant” calf tear during today’s post-season action, Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca tweets.
Cecil appeared to suffer the injury while participating in a run-down to record the third out of the eighth inning. While the team described the injury as calf tightness, an MRI apparently revealed the more significant issue.
It’s obviously too soon to know the prognosis, but Gibbons’ description did not seem optimistic in the short term. The 29-year-old would be a fairly significant loss for a Toronto club that needs to dig itself out of a huge hole in the American League Division Series.
Looking ahead, MLBTR’s arbitration projections like Cecil to take home a $3.4MM salary in his final season of eligibility. He was certainly worth that and more this year, as he recovered from an uneven start to finish with a 2.48 ERA with 11.6 K/9 against 2.2 BB/9 over 54 1/3 innings.