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Mets Sign Jared Hughes

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7:44pm: Hughes’ contract is worth a prorated $700K (about $260K over a 60-game season), DiComo tweets.

7:05pm: The Mets have signed reliever Jared Hughes to a major league contract, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com was among those to report. Financial details of the deal aren’t yet known, but Hughes will join the Mets’ 60-man player pool. The right-hander is a client of ISE Baseball.

Hughes, who will turn 35 on July 4, was most recently with the Astros, but he opted out of his minor league contract with them in March. He divided 2019 between the Reds and Phillies, with whom he combined for a 4.04 ERA/5.29 FIP with 6.81 K/9, 3.41 BB/9 and a bloated home run-to-fly ball percentage of 28.9 across 71 1/3 frames.

Last season was the first time Hughes was victimized by the home run ball over a large sample of work. He has long been adept at inducing ground balls, having done so at a 61.5 percent clip during a 519-inning major league career that has also included runs with the Pirates and Brewers. Hughes’ ability to keep the ball out of the air has led to a 13.9 percent HR-to-FB rate and a quality 2.88 ERA, despite an underwhelming K/9 of 6.07.

While Hughes has never flashed the most exciting skill set, he looks like a worthwhile flyer for the Mets, who are banking on a better performance from a bullpen that was a major disappointment in 2019. Along with Hughes, they’ve since added Dellin Betances and Brad Brach to the unit.

Athletics To Trade Jorge Mateo To Padres

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In the first trade since MLB’s transaction freeze has lifted, the Padres are set to acquire infield prospect Jorge Mateo from the A’s, Jeff Passan and Kiley McDaniel of ESPN report (Twitter link). Oakland will receive a player to be named later in return. San Diego has announced the trade.

Jorge Mateo | Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports

Long regarded as one of baseball’s more promising prospects due in no small part to his 80-grade speed, Mateo has yet to debut in the Majors. The 25-year-old was a central piece in the trade that sent right-hander Sonny Gray from Oakland to New York, but he hasn’t been afforded a chance in the Majors with either the Yankees or the A’s. He has, however, been on the 40-man roster of both clubs long enough to have exhausted all of his minor league options. In other words, he’ll have to make the Padres’ Opening Day roster or else be designated for assignment.

Mateo was one of several players in the mix for playing time at second base in Oakland, vying with Franklin Barreto, Tony Kemp and Rule 5 pick Vimael Machin for that role. Now in San Diego, he’ll once again be looking up at Jurickson Profar — a former ballyhooed prospect himself — and hoping to find his way into the mix for at-bats. Mateo does have a bit of center field experience as well, having logged 247 innings there back in 2017.

It’s easy to see why Mateo was so well-regarded back in 2015-16. He split the 2015 campaign between Class-A and Class-A Advanced at just 20 years of age and slashed a combined .278/.345/.392. He only homered twice, but Mateo added 23 doubles, 11 triples and an unheard-of-in-today’s-game 82 stolen bases in just 117 games. His stock dipped a bit with a mediocre showing in 2016, but 2017 saw Mateo bounce back with a .267/.322/.459 slash and 52 steals. A shortstop with that type of output piqued the Athletics’ interest, and the A’s sent Gray to the Bronx in exchange for Mateo, Dustin Fowler and James Kaprielian in a trade that now hasn’t really panned out for anyone involved.

Mateo’s numbers cratered in 2018, and while last year’s .289/.330/.504 slash in Triple-A were a nice rebound, the bounceback effort wasn’t quite as strong as it’d appear on the surface. That slash line translated to just a 96 wRC+ in the supercharged offensive environment in the Triple-A Pacific Coast League (where Mateo’s home park in Las Vegas is particularly hitter-friendly).

Tigers Agree To Terms With Spencer Torkelson

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The Tigers have agreed to terms with top overall draft choice Spencer Torkelson, according to Jim Callis of MLB.com (Twitter link). He’s set to receive a hefty $8,416,300 bonus.

Spencer Torkelson | Arizona State Media Relations/Jeremy Hawkes

While he only topped the 1-1 draft slot allocation by a nominal amount ($1K), it’s still quite a notable number. Per Callis, this is the biggest draft bonus ever given. It’s also the first time a first overall pick has reached the full slot value since the current draft system (with prohibitive penalties for excessive spending) went into effect.

Torkelson entered the draft as the consensus top overall talent, so it came as no surprise when he went first overall. The Tigers have enjoyed quite a lot of good years from Miguel Cabrera, who may overlap in Detroit if Torkelson moves as quickly as many expect.

Over his three seasons at Arizona State, Torkelson carried a prodigious .337/.463/.729 batting line. He not only launched 54 home runs over his 628 trips to the plate, but walked more often than he struck out. As you might expect, Torkelson was more dominant than ever during the truncated 2020 season, solidifying his position as the top available player.

The greatest bit of intrigue on draft day came not with the calling of Torkelson’s name, but the Tigers’ announcement that they viewed him as a third baseman. Most anticipate the big slugger will end up at first base by the time he arrives in Motown. But the Tigers will at least give him a shot at settling in at the hot corner, where his monster bat could have even greater value.

Torkelson’s polish is all the more impressive given that he still hasn’t reached his 21st birthday. It’ll certainly be interesting to see how swiftly he forces his way up the farm system. No doubt the Tigers are hopeful that Torkelson will catch up to the many intriguing power pitchers already lining up for MLB opportunities.

Photo courtesy of Arizona State University Athletic Department.

Angels Add Reid Detmers To 60-Player Pool

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The Angels are adding left-hander Reid Detmers, the tenth overall pick in last month’s draft, to their 60-man player pool, general manager Billy Eppler told reporters today (Twitter link via MLB.com’s Rhett Bollinger). That brings their player pool up to a total of 56.

Detmers, 20, was regarded as one of the most polished arms in this year’s draft class and is considered by many to be a potentially fast mover. He boasted a ridiculous 215-to-39 K/BB ratio in 135 1/3 innings with Louisville from 2019-20 and is lauded for plus command that’s well ahead of most of his draft peers. Detmers doesn’t have the power fastball and arsenal of plus secondary pitches to be considered a future ace, but most scouting reports tab him as a strong bet to be a mid-rotation arm. Detmers’ curveball, in particular, is a formidable offering that FanGraphs’ Eric Longenhagen called “arguably the best pitch in the entire draft.”

Obviously, Detmers being added to the Angels’ pool doesn’t mean that he’ll jump right into the big leagues. Most teams are including their most promising prospects on their 60-player pools in order to afford them some developmental opportunities at alternate camp sites. Players not on the active Major League roster will continue to train together and participate in simulated games with instruction from club personnel and minor league coaches, so it’s understandable that the Angels want Detmers to have that benefit.

Still, given the polished nature of his arm and the seemingly perennial injuries that plague the Angels pitching staff, it’s hard not to wonder whether Detmers could skyrocket to the big leagues and debut just months after being drafted.

Phillies Release, Re-Sign Anthony Swarzak

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The Phillies included just 53 players in their initial pool over the weekend, but right-hander Anthony Swarzak will soon be added as the 54th player, per The Athletic’s Matt Gelb (Twitter link). General manager Matt Klentak revealed to reporters that the Phils released and re-signed the veteran Swarzak to a new minor league contract.

Swarzak, 34, was one of many veterans in Phillies Spring Training on a non-roster deal prior to the league’s shutdown. He’ll vie for a spot on the Phillies’ expanded pitching staff after a pair of rough seasons split between the Mets, Mariners and Braves. An oblique strain in 2018 and shoulder issues in both 2018 and 2019 likely contributed to some of Swarzak’s recent struggles. Over the past two seasons, he’s pitched to a combined 5.08 ERA in 79 2/3 frames, although he’s managed to strike out more than a batter per inning in that time.

Swarzak’s results did improve following a trade from Seattle to Atlanta last year, as he gave the Braves 39 2/3 innings of 4.31 ERA ball — albeit with shakier peripherals. Consistency has been an issue for Swarzak throughout his career, but he’s had his share of success in the big leagues. He was a multi-inning bullpen workhorse for the Twins back in 2013 (2.91 ERA, 3.28 FIP in 96 innings of relief) and was a dominant setup man for the ChiSox and Brewers as recently as 2017 (2.33 ERA, 2.74 FIP, 91-to-22 K/BB ratio in 77 2/3 frames).

Orioles Sign Heston Kjerstad

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The Orioles have signed second overall draft pick Heston Kjerstad, per a team announcement. The University of Arkansas product will receive a $5.2MM bonus, per MLB.com’s Jim Callis (Twitter link).

Kjerstad was expected to go near the top of the draft, but not with the second selection. The O’s obviously liked him quite a bit, but also saw an opportunity to save some bonus pool capacity to draft and sign other talented players in later rounds. The club was able to reapply over $2.5MM of the second overall slot value.

As things stand, the Orioles are known to have deals in place with five of their six selections. Jordan Westburg (30th overall) and Hudson Haskin (39th) secured at-slot bonuses. High schoolers Coby Mayo and Carter Baumler were lured with over-slot promises, though their deals aren’t yet official. That leaves Ole Miss infielder Anthony Servideo, the team’s third-round choice, left without a pact (so far as is publicly known).

Perhaps it’s easy to get caught up in the machinations and overlook Kjerstad’s own promise. While teams obviously see the appeal in spreading draft bonus pool availability over multiple players, they also aren’t generally inclined to spend premium draft choices on sub-premium talent.

All major draft pundits graded Kjerstad as one of the dozen or so top-available talents. Eric Longenhagen of Fangraphs had the highest ranking, listing him in the seventh slot.

Most agree on the profile here. Kjerstad is seen as a solid right fielder with big potential at the plate. He was drubbing high-end college pitching (.448/.513/.791) when the 2020 season was suspended. There are some concerns over his complicated swing and proclivity to strike out, but obviously the consensus is that Kjerstad will grow into a quality offensive performer at the game’s highest level.

Giants Outright Enderson Franco

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The Giants placed right-hander Tyler Beede on the 45-day injured list and outrighted fellow righty Enderson Franco to Triple-A Sacramento on Monday, per Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area.

[RELATED: Giants Announce Initial Player Pool]

The IR placement for Beede was a procedural move, as he won’t play this season after he underwent Tommy John surgery back in March. Beede won’t make his return until next spring or summer as a result of the operation. The 26-year-old, once a high-end prospect, was vying for a spot in San Francisco’s rotation before his injury and the coronavirus shutdown.

Franco, formerly a minor leaguer with the Astros, Rays, Marlins and Braves, signed with the Giants as a free agent prior to the 2019 campaign and went on to throw 113 innings of 5.97 ERA/5.91 FIP ball with Sacramento. The 27-year-old was more successful during his major league debut, albeit over a mere 5 1/3 frames, as he gave up two earned runs on four hits and one walk (four strikeouts) in San Francisco.

Pirates Outright Yacksel Rios

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The Pirates outrighted hurler Yacksel Rios to Triple-A Indianapolis over the weekend, Adam Berry of MLB.com was among those to report. Rios has not been outrighted previously, and he doesn’t have the necessary service time to reject the assignment, so he’ll stay with the Pirates.

A 12th-round pick of the Phillies in 2011, the right-handed, hard-throwing Rios debuted with Philadelphia in 2017, though he has since had immense difficulty preventing runs at the major league level. After Rios posted a 6.38 ERA/5.64 FIP over 55 innings and parts of three seasons in its uniform, Philadelphia designated Rios for assignment last summer.

When the in-state rival Phillies booted the 27-year-old Rios from their roster, the Pirates took a flyer on him via the waiver wire. Rios went on to throw 10 1/3 frames across 10 appearances as a Pirate in 2019, but he yielded six earned runs on 10 hits (including two homers) and five walks, also totaling 10 strikeouts.

Ian Desmond Opts Out Of 2020 Season

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Rockies outfielder Ian Desmond will opt out of playing in the 2020 MLB season. He provided a thoughtful explanation of his decisionmaking process in an announcement on Instagram.

Desmond explains that “the COVID-19 pandemic has made this baseball season one that is a risk I am not comfortable taking.” He says he’s compelled to stay home “with a pregnant wife and four young children who have lots of questions about what’s going on in the world.”

Fortunately for all of us that care about the future of the game, the widely respected Desmond says he intends to work with his local Little League (in Sarasota, Florida) while he’s not playing this year. He did not offer an indication of his future plans for returning to the diamond.

Desmond’s announcement is essential reading for all baseball fans. It’s a powerful call to action to deal with glaring inequity in the game, from its lowest to its loftiest levels.

Three other big leaguers preceded Desmond in announcing that they would not participate in the 2020 season. No doubt others will follow. It is not known whether Desmond had any personal medical issue that will allow him to opt out while still accruing salary and service time. If not, he will forego a pro-rated portion of his $15MM salary for the year. He remains under contract with the Rockies through 2021; the club also controls him in 2022 via club option.

Dodgers Sign 2nd-Rounder Landon Knack

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The Dodgers have signed second-round right-hander Landon Knack for $715K, Jim Callis of MLB.com reports. It’s an under-slot deal for the 60th overall pick – whose selection carried a recommended value of $1,157,400 – but may be a record bonus for a fifth-year college senior, Callis notes.

The 22-year-old Knack was previously at East Tennessee State, where he logged a 2.29 ERA with 10.7 K/9 and 1.3 BB/9 in 122 innings from 2018-19. Despite the dominant numbers he posted in school, Knack did not rank among the top 100 draft prospects available at MLB.com, Baseball America, ESPN.com, FanGraphs or The Athletic. BA, which placed Knack at No. 113, writes that he possesses a high-90s fastball but only “fringy” offspeed offerings.

Although he’s just a couple weeks removed from coming off the draft board, it’s possible Knack will make his major league debut sometime this year. At the very least, there’s a good chance Knack will end up in the Dodgers’ 60-player pool, Callis suggests.

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