Braves Release Eric O’Flaherty
The Braves have released lefty Eric O’Flaherty, per a club announcement. He had been on the 10-day DL.
A roster spot was needed so that catcher Anthony Recker could be brought up. Kurt Suzuki is on the bereavement list, creating the need for another backstop.
The 32-year-old O’Flaherty has continued to find work over the past several seasons, but hasn’t really been the same since undergoing Tommy John surgery in 2013. In 18 1/3 innings this season, he struggled to a 7.85 ERA with 7.4 K/9 and 4.4 BB/9.
Mariners Acquire Marco Gonzales From Cardinals For Tyler O’Neill
The Mariners have acquired left-hander Marco Gonzales from the Cardinals in exchange for minor league outfielder Tyler O’Neill, as per a Mariners press release.
[Related: updated Cardinals and Mariners depth charts at Roster Resource]
[Related: MLBTR’s Cardinals news and rumors page on Facebook]
The 25-year-old Gonzales is only just making his way back from a pair of injury-plagued seasons. Gonzales missed a good chunk of 2015 due to shoulder problems and then all of 2016 due to Tommy John surgery. The southpaw posted a 2.90 ERA, 3.35 K/BB rate and 7.5 K/9 over 11 starts and 68 1/3 IP at the Triple-A level this season, and Gonzales made it back to the big leagues for one start this season, a 3 1/3-inning outing on June 13.
St. Louis drafted Gonzales 19th overall in 2013 and both Baseball America and Baseball Prospectus ranked him as one of the top 52 prospects in the sport prior to the 2015 season. BA ranked him as the #1 prospect in the Cardinals’ farm system that year, giving particular praise to Gonzales’ outstanding changeup. The Cardinals thought enough of Gonzales that they promoted him to the majors barely a year after drafting him, and the lefty even made the Cards’ postseason roster in 2014, not allowing a run in five of his six outings in the playoffs.
Seattle was known to be looking for young pitching, and while Gonzales doesn’t project as an immediate upgrade for the current M’s rotation, he still possesses quite a bit of upside. Beyond his potential on the mound, Gonzales also offers over six remaining years of team control; he isn’t eligible for arbitration until after the 2020 season, and won’t be a free agent until after 2023. With Drew Smyly scheduled to miss most or all of 2018 recovering from Tommy John surgery and Hisashi Iwakuma and Yovani Gallardo both questionable to have their club options exercised for next season, Gonzales projects to be an important rotation piece for the 2018 Mariners.
In acquiring Gonzales, the M’s gave up a well-regarded young player in O’Neill, who was comfortably positioned within preseason top-1oo prospect lists from MLB.com (36th), Baseball America (38th), Baseball Prospectus (53rd). Power is O’Neill’s calling card, as he has 89 homers over 1794 minor league plate appearances, including 19 this season at the Triple-A level. O’Neill got off to something of a slow start in his first taste of Triple-A action, though he has recovered to post a .244/.328/.479 slash line through 396 PA. He has cut down on his strikeouts over the last two seasons, though he still gets more than his share of whiffs, with 108 strikeouts this season. O’Neill’s plate discipline and average corner outfield defense are also works in progress, though the 22-year-old Canadian has so much raw power and overall hitting potential that the Cardinals are surely willing to tolerate some growing pains.
O’Neill joins several other interesting young outfielders in the St. Louis farm system, and USA Today’s Bob Nightengale speculates that the Cards could now look to move an outfielder from their MLB roster in the offseason. This could imply that Randal Grichuk or Stephen Piscotty could become trade chips, though the Cardinals would be selling low on either player in the wake of lackluster 2017 seasons.
Athletics Sign Chris Carter
FRIDAY: The A’s officially announced the signing.
WEDNESDAY: The Athletics have agreed to sign free-agent slugger Chris Carter, according to Jon Heyman of Fan Rag (via Twitter). It’s a minor-league deal for the veteran first baseman/DH.
Oakland knows what it’s getting in the lumbering Carter, who broke into the majors there back in 2010. But he took only 384 trips to the plate with the A’s before he was shipped to the Astros (along with now-flourishing righty Brad Peacock and catcher Max Stassi) in the deal that brought Jed Lowrie and Fernando Rodriguez to the bay.
Carter has continued to produce home runs and strikeouts at prodigious rates ever since. Last year, which he spent with the Brewers, there were enough of the former to make up for the latter; Carter led the National League in both categories. But things weren’t working with the Yankees, who signed Carter after he was non-tendered but received only a .201/.284/.370 batting line over his 208 plate appearances.
Clearly, the veteran is never going to shed the swing and miss. He’ll always hit for a ghastly average (.217 lifetime). But despite those flaws, he has typically been a productive overall hitter, due not just to his power but also his ability to draw walks at a better-than-league-average rate (11.5% for his career).
While the A’s currently employ a productive first baseman in Yonder Alonso, he is expected to be in another uniform by the end of the month. That could open an opportunity for Carter to ascend once more to the majors, giving the organization a near-term fill-in while affording him a chance to set himself up for another foray into free agency at the end of the year.
Cardinals Add Grichuk, Kelly, Duke To 25-Man Roster; Designate Eric Fryer
The Cardinals announced a series of roster moves prior to today’s game. Outfielder Randal Grichuk and lefty Zach Duke were both activated from the 10-day and 60-day DL, respectively, while catcher Carson Kelly was recalled from Triple-A. Righty Sam Tuivailala and outfielder Magneuris Sierra were optioned to Triple-A last night to open up two roster spots, and catcher Eric Fryer was designated for assignment today in another corresponding move.
[Related: MLBTR’s Cardinals News & Rumors page on Facebook]
Fryer signed a minor league deal with St. Louis this winter and has hit .155/.277/.197 over 83 PA serving as Yadier Molina‘s backup. This is Fryer’s second stint with the Cards, having originally joined the club on another minors deal in the 2015-16 offseason and then spending part of last season with the Pirates after being claimed off waivers.
Kelly, a consensus top-100 prospect in baseball, will replace Fryer in the backup catcher role. Kelly made his big league debut last year, a 14-plate appearance cup of coffee that saw him appear in 10 games for the Cardinals. The 23-year-old Kelly has only added to his lofty prospect status by hitting well in his first full season at Triple-A, batting .283/.375/.459 over 280 PA.
With Molina freshly signed to an extension though the 2020 season and Kelly seemingly ready for an extended look in the big leagues, it is possible that this callup could be Kelly’s audition for teams interested in a trade for the young catcher. He would certainly be a major trade chip for a Cards team that may be looking to land some controllable but established MLB talent for 2018, or even still make a run at the NL Central.
Grichuk returns after a brief stay on the disabled list due to a back strain. He’ll add depth to a Cardinals outfield that is still missing Stephen Piscotty, though Grichuk is still looking for consistency during a disappointing 2017 season that has included a minor league demotion. Grichuk has continued to struggle since returning from the minors, and is batting just .215/.270/.408 in 241 PA.
Remarkably, Duke is back in action after undergoing Tommy John surgery just over nine months ago, far outpacing the procedure’s usual recovery timeline of 12-15 months. Duke has posted strong numbers as a reliever for the Cards, Brewers, White Sox and Reds over the last four seasons, and he’ll join Brett Cecil, Kevin Siegrist and Tyler Lyons as left-handed options out of the St. Louis bullpen. With this much lefty depth on hand, the Cards could potentially shop one of their southpaws to needy teams at the deadline.
Angels Release Danny Espinosa
The Angels have announced that infielder Danny Espinosa has been released. He’ll hit the open market for the first time with the Halos set to pay the remainder of his $5.425MM salary.
Clearly, no other organizations were so motivated to add Espinosa that they struck a deal to get him while he was in limbo after being designated for assignment. And that’s not surprising, given the anemic .162/.237/.276 batting line he carries through 254 plate appearances on the year.
But Espinosa could still hold appeal. He has historically rated as a quality baserunner and up-the-middle defender. And while he’ll never hit for much average or reach base at a healthy clip, the bat has shown much more life in the recent past. The switch-hitter drove 24 home runs with a .169 isolated slugging mark last year, after all.
Dodgers Designate Sergio Romo
The Dodgers have designated righty Sergio Romo for assignment, per a club announcement. His roster spot was needed for the team’s activation of lefty Grant Dayton.
Romo, 34, moved south to Los Angeles over the winter after a nine-year run with the Giants. But things have not gone quite as hoped with the team he grew up rooting for.
Over 25 innings, Romo has coughed up 17 earned runs. While he’s generating plenty of strikeouts — 11.2 K/9 on a robust 14.8% swinging-strike rate — the veteran has also surrendered a dozen walks and seven home runs.
With only a $3MM salary, it’s conceivable another organization could take on some or all of his contract. Romo has mostly been outstanding over his MLB career, and still seems to carry most of the skills that have driven a lifetime 2.77 ERA. Whether or not a trade can be worked out, Romo figures to represent an interesting bounceback candidate for one of the many teams currently jockeying to add relief arms at the trade deadline.
For the Dodgers, it’s possible to see this decision as further indication that the team is lining up to grab a premium relief arm at the deadline. Whether or not that occurs, though, the talent-rich organization obviously felt good about the rest of its pen mix — particularly with the emergence of Brandon Morrow.
Rays Release Danny Farquhar
The Rays have released righty Danny Farquhar, according to Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times (via Twitter). He had previously been outrighted off of the 40-man roster and was pitching at Triple-A Durham.
Farquhar, 30, turned in a strong 2016 season with Tampa Bay, although he was quite prone to the long ball. But he stumbled in his first 35 frames in the current campaign. While Farquhar reversed the dinger problems, he allowed 5.7 free passes per nine while recording only 8.5 K/9 after topping eleven per nine in the prior year.
That said, there were reasons to hope for improvement. In particular, Farquhar was still getting swings and misses on over 14% of his pitches. But he went on to allow three earned runs and three walks over his four appearances at Durham.
The Rays are looking for relief options, but evidently felt Farquhar wasn’t a possible solution. In a move that likely holds at least some connection to today’s decision, the team just picked up Chaz Roe — who carries a generally similar profile — to stash at Triple-A. Other organizations, though, may still see the potential in Farquhar, who has at times been quite effective at the game’s highest level.
Rangers Designate Pete Kozma For Assignment
The Rangers announced that they’ve activated Keone Kela from the disabled list and designated infielder Pete Kozma for assignment in order to clear a spot on the roster.
The 29-year-old Kozma has appeared in 39 games between the Yankees and Rangers this year — his first big league action since the 2015 season in St. Louis. His offensive struggles have continued, though, as he’s batted a combined .111/.200/.178 through 51 plate appearances between those two clubs (41 with Texas). Kozma has always been a glove-first player, but teams have had a hard time justifying carrying his bat on the Major League roster (with the exception of the 2013 Cardinals).
In parts of six Major League seasons between the Cards, Yankees and Rangers, Kozma is a .212/.282/.285 hitter through 740 plate appearances.
Mariners Acquire David Phelps
12:02pm: The trade is now official, as the Marlins and Mariners have announced the swap.
10:40am: The Mariners and Marlins have reportedly agreed to a trade that will send right-handed setup man David Phelps from Miami to Seattle in exchange for a package of four prospects. Center field prospect Brayan Hernandez is the headliner, while the other names in the deal reportedly include right-handers Brandon Miller, Pablo Lopez and Lukas Schiraldi.
Seattle has been playing well of late, getting back to the .500 mark and drawing within 1.5 games of an American League Wild Card spot. However, the Mariners are also 15.5 games back from the Astros in the AL West, which has reportedly led them to look for assets that can be controlled beyond the current season, as their best playoff hope in 2017 is a one-game playoff.
[Related: Updated Seattle Mariners and Miami Marlins depth charts]
The 30-year-old Phelps fits the bill, in that sense, as he’s controlled through the 2018 campaign via arbitration. He’s earning $4.6MM in 2017, with about $1.86MM of that sum yet owed to him through season’s end.
The former Yankee initially went to Miami alongside Martin Prado as part of the trade that sent Nathan Eovaldi to New York. After spending much of his career as a starter and long reliever, Phelps’ career took off with a 2016 move to a late-inning role. The righty’s velocity ticked from the low 90s to an average in the 93-94 mph range, and he’s dramatically upped his strikeout rate while pitching in a setup capacity.
Dating back to Opening Day 2016, Phelps has worked to a 2.69 ERA with 11.1 K/9, 4.0 BB/9 and a 46.4 percent ground-ball rate through 133 2/3 innings. His strikeout rate is “down” in 2017, but he’s still averaging 9.8 punchouts per nine innings pitched. His arm will be a boost to a Mariners relief corps that currently ranks 13th in baseball with a 4.05 ERA but carries more troubling marks in both FIP (4.44) and xFIP (4.45). Those ERA alternatives come in at 25th and 21st in baseball, respectively, indicating that the Mariners are perhaps fortunate to have gotten the results they have out of their bullpen to date. (Then again, Seattle boasts a superlative defense, particularly in the outfield, so perhaps it should be expected that their pitchers would outperform fielding-independent metrics.)
The Seattle ‘pen is currently anchored by sophomore closer Edwin Diaz, who has been inconsistent in 2017 but can overpower opposing lineups with a triple-digit fastball and one of baseball’s best strikeout rates. Nick Vincent has also been brilliant in Seattle, working to a 2.04 ERA in 39 2/3 innings, while southpaw James Pazos has averaged nearly 11 strikeouts per nine innings en route to a 3.68 ERA. Former Mariners closer Steve Cishek represents another right-handed option, but health has been an issue for him in recent years as his numbers have declined.
Beyond that, Seattle has seen some of its anticipated setup men, particularly right-hander Dan Altavilla, take a step back in 2017. Phelps figures to pick up some of that slack and will join Diaz, Vincent, Pazos, Cishek, Tony Zych and Marc Rzepczynski in the Mariner bullpen.
Hernandez is the big get for the Marlins in the deal. The 19-year-old ranked as one of the 10 best international free agents in the 2014-15 crop and inked a $1.85MM bonus with Seattle at the time. Hernandez split the 2016 season between the Dominican Summer League and the Rookie-level Arizona League, hitting a combined .278/.325/.425, and he’s off to a .252/.306/.408 start with the Mariners’ short-season Class-A affiliate.
Jim Callis and Jonathan Mayo of MLB.com rank Hernandez as Seattle’ No. 6 prospect, noting that he flashes all five tools but is still projection over performance at the moment. He received 60 grades on his speed and arm from Callis and Mayo with a 55 on his glove, and their report notes that his overall offensive development will determine if he can reach his ceiling as an everyday center fielder. Baseball America rated him 16th among Seattle farmhands this past winter, agreeing that the defensive tools are impressive and praising his “solid, consistent contact” but also questioning his ability to generate power now or in the future.
The 22-year-old Miller has spent the season with the Mariners’ Class-A affiliate in the Midwest League, working to a 3.65 ERA with 8.4 K/9, 2.0 BB/9 and a 46.8 percent ground-ball rat in 101 innings/18 starts at that level. Callis and Mayo list his heater at 90-93 mph with good command of the pitch and give him credit for a plus slider, though reports indicate that he lacks an average third offering and could be destined for a bullpen role. He ranked 16th among Mariners prospects, per MLB.com, while BA pegged him 25th among Seattle prospects this offseason. Both reports tout his fastball’s exceptional spin rate. If all breaks right, Miller could pan out as a back-of-the-rotation starter.
Lopez is a 21-year-old starter that has spent the year in Class-A Advanced. While his 5.02 ERA through 100 innings doesn’t look appealing, he’s posted an excellent 89-to-13 K/BB ratio with a 49 percent ground-ball rate, creating some optimism that he’s been hit with some poor luck. (A .341 BABIP lends further credence to that notion.) MLB.com placed him 22nd in Seattle’s system and gave him three average offerings (fastball, curveball, changeup) but no plus pitch. He was 31st on BA’s offseason rankings, and their report notes that he has a 2014 Tommy John surgery in his history but is a “supreme strike-thrower” with impressive ground-ball tendencies.
Schiraldi comes from good baseball genes, as his father, Calvin, played in the Majors for parts of eight seasons with the Mets, Red Sox, Padres, Cubs and Rangers. The younger Schiraldi didn’t crack any Mariners top prospect rankings but has a gaudy 15.2 K/9 rate in 37 1/3 innings of work at Class-A Advanced. However, he’s also not particularly young for the level at 23 years of age, and he’s worked to a 4.58 ERA with a 6.5 BB/9 rate.
Ultimately, the Marlins will secure four players in exchange for a year and a half of a quality setup man while also saving a bit of cash for the remainder of the 2017 season. While it’s tempting to look at the sheer volume of players and wonder how this will impact the market for other relievers — especially those that are controlled beyond the 2017 season, such as Brad Hand and Zach Britton — it’s also worth emphasizing that Seattle’s farm system is generally regarded as weak. That bit of context should absolutely be considered when debating the value of other relief arms, and it seems unlikely that the volume of the Phelps deal “raises the bar” for other relievers throughout the league.
MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand first reported that the Mariners were in talks to acquire a reliever and that Phelps was the target. MLB.com’s Jon Morosi termed the deal “fairly close,” and Yahoo’s Jeff Passan pushed it further to “imminent.” FanRag’s Jon Heyman tweeted that the trade was indeed finalized, while Joel Sherman of the New York Post tweeted that Seattle was sending multiple minor leaguers to Miami. Passan and Heyman added a bit more detail on the return (Twitter links), with Passan ultimately reporting Hernandez as the headliner. Sherman broke news of the other three players in the deal.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Red Sox Release Pablo Sandoval
July 19: The Red Sox announced that Sandoval has been released.
July 14: The Red Sox announced that they have activated struggling third baseman Pablo Sandoval from the disabled list and designated him for assignment.
Sandoval is midway through the third season of a five-year, $95MM contract that proved to be a fatal misstep for the organization. Signed on the heels of a six-and-a-half-year span during which he posted a very strong .294/.346/.465 batting line through 3533 plate appearances with the Giants (to say nothing of his terrific postseason work), Sandoval flopped in year one of the pact, hitting just .245/.292/.366 with 10 homers in 505 plate appearances. He made just seven plate appearances in 2016 before undergoing shoulder surgery, and his 2017 work has resulted in a dismal .212/.269/.354 slash through 108 PAs.
Boston will now be on the hook for the remaining $49.8MM that Sandoval is owed through the end of the 2019 season. With a trade effectively unfathomable, Sandoval can either be outrighted to Triple-A (if he accepts the assignment) or released, at which point any club will be eligible to sign him for the pro-rated portion of the league minimum.
Further exacerbating the pain that Sandoval has caused the Red Sox is the fact that his presence likely factored into the team’s thinking when it came to trading Travis Shaw to the Brewers this past offseason. Shaw, meanwhile, has broken out and been one of baseball’s most productive third baseman in his first half season with the Brewers.
For the time being, the Sox are deploying a makeshift platoon of Deven Marrero and Tzu-Wei Lin at the hot corner, and while that pairing leaves plenty to be desired from an offensive standpoint, it undoubtedly provides more defensive value than Sandoval brought to the table. Nonetheless, the Sox figure to be heavily linked to all of the third basemen that will be available on this summer’s trade market in the 17 days between now and the non-waiver trade deadline.
Of course, Boston also has a rapidly rising in-house option in the form of top prospect Rafael Devers, who ranks among the game’s five to 10 best overall prospects on most midseason rankings (No. 3 per ESPN’s Keith Law, No. 6 per Baseball America, No. 5 per Baseball Prospectus). Devers has yet to take an at-bat at the Triple-A level, and the team has said that he’ll head to Pawtucket before being promoted. That said, Devers has the potential to come up and impact the playoff race at some point in the season’s second half — particularly if president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski and his staff don’t acquire a more established option at the hot corner.