Giants Acquire Marlon Byrd
3:40pm: Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reports that Byrd had cleared waivers as opposed to being claimed by the Giants (Twitter link).
3:25pm: The Giants announced that they have acquired veteran outfielder Marlon Byrd and cash considerations from the Reds in exchange for Double-A right-hander Stephen Johnson.
The addition of Byrd will provide the Giants with some desperately needed outfield depth, as their starting outfield has been ravaged by injuries his year. While Nori Aoki is slated to return from a concussion today, starting center fielder Angel Pagan and starting right fielder Hunter Pence are both on the disabled list. Byrd, presumably, will see time in one of the outfield corners (he’s played left field this year but has recent experience in right field as well), with Aoki manning the other spot.
Byrd, 37, suffered a small fracture in his wrist in early June but made a somewhat surprisingly quick return from the disabled list, returning to action less than three weeks later. Even more surprising than his quick return is the absence of ill effects that he’s shown from a wrist injury; Byrd homered in his first game back from the DL and is slashing .258/.286/.454 with nine homers in 203 plate appearances since being activated. While that OBP obviously leaves something to be desired, he’s shown plenty of pop and managed to hit for a respectable average. He should serve as a relatively productive piece in the middle of the Giants’ ailing lineup, and he could either slide down the order or serve as a nice bench piece down the line once everyone is healthy.
Byrd is earning $8MM this season as part of a two-year, $16MM contract originally signed with the Phillies. Philadelphia picked up $4MM of the tab when he was traded to the Reds in the first place, so there’s only about $1MM remaining for the Giants and Reds to worry about. Byrd is 172 plate appearances shy of triggering an $8MM vesting option for the 2016 season. He’d need to average 3.85 plate appearances per game over the Giants’ remaining 42 contests to reach the 550 plate appearances he needs, which is an attainable rate if he plays every day. Of course, he won’t be with the team for tonight’s game (he’ll join them Friday), and the Giants, though certainly justify benching Byrd against right-handed pitching once everyone is healthy. He’s slashed just .224/.268/.433 against righties this year compared to .280/.344/.500 versus left-handed pitching.
San Francisco selected Johnson, now 24 years old, in the sixth round of the 2012 draft. Baseball America ranked him as the Giants’ No. 21 and 28 prospect following the 2012 and 2013 seasons, but he’s dropped off their Top 30 since and didn’t make MLB.com’s midseason Top 30 for the Giants, either. Kiley McDaniel of Fangraphs mentioned him in his preseason look at the Giants’ prospects, noting that he hit 100 mph with Division-II St. Edwards College (TX) but has settled into the mid-90s. He’ll flash an above-average curve at times, but he has some command and delivery issues. McDaniel (Twitter link) and BA’s John Manuel (Twitter link) both offered similar takes to that report in the minutes following the trade. Reds GM Walt Jocketty said (via the Cincinnati Enquirer’s John Fay, on Twitter) that Johnson has a “big arm” and the organization projects him as a reliever. He’ll go Cincinnati’s Double-A affiliate. Johnson had a 3.41 ERA with 10.6 K/9 against 4.5 BB/9 in 58 innings for the Giants’ Double-A affiliate his year.
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Rangers Acquire Will Venable, Designate Michael Choice
The Rangers have acquired outfielder Will Venable from the Padres in exchange for minor league catcher/outfielder Marcus Greene and right-hander Jon Edwards (who was included as a player to be named later), per a team announcement. In order to clear space on the roster for Venable, the Rangers have designated have designated outfielder Michael Choice for assignment.
Venable, 32, will give the Rangers some additional outfield depth and could immediately step into left field, if Josh Hamilton‘s injury troubles continue. Hitting .258/.318/.378, Venable is in the process of bouncing back from perhaps the worst season of his career — a 2014 campaign in which he batted just .224/.288/.325 in the first campaign of a two-year, $8.5MM extension. He’s earning $4.25MM this season as part of that contract, of which about $1.11MM remains. Venable will be a free agent at season’s end, making him a pure rental for the Rangers as they push to bridge either the three-game gap separating them from the AL West lead or the one-game gap sitting between their team and a Wild Card slot.
Venable’s career numbers (.252/.316/.410) don’t leap off the page, but he has superior numbers against right-handed pitching and away from Petco Park — the stadium which he’s called home for the entirety of his career. He’s a career .257/.323/.425 hitter against righties and a .269/.330/.431 hitter on the road.
Greene, 20, is recovering from Tommy John surgery that he underwent this June. He began the season at the Class A level, where he hit .218/.365/.500 with five homers, 16 walks and 23 strikeouts in 96 plate appearances before suffering his injury. He did not rank among the Rangers’ Top 30 prospects, but Baseball America gave him a favorable write-up upon being selected in the 16th round of the 2013 draft. Per BA, Greene’s best tool is arm strength, but he also comes with raw power upside and a solid makeup.
The 27-year-old Edwards first had to pass through revocable waivers before he could be included in the deal. He has thrown 14 1/3 big league innings over the last two seasons, working to a 5.02 ERA with 9.4 K/9 against a troubling 8.2 BB/9. But he’s been excellent this season at Triple-A, compiling a 1.42 earned run average while striking out 44 batters and issuing just eight walks over 31 2/3 frames.
Choice is a former Top 100 prospect that the Rangers acquired prior to the 2014 season in the trade that sent Craig Gentry to Oakland. Though the 25-year-old has a solid .279/.363/.463 slash line throughout his minor league career, he’s mustered just a .188/.253/.320 slash in 300 plate appearances between the Rangers and Athletics.
For the Padres, this marks the first piece that GM A.J. Preller has traded away. The first-year general manager took some heat from the media for his decision to stand pat at last month’s non-waiver deadline despite facing a significant gap in the division and Wild Card standings. It’s conceivable that this could be the first of a few trades made by the Padres, who also stand to lose Justin Upton, Ian Kennedy and Joaquin Benoit (though he does have a club option) to free agency this winter. Of that group, only Upton would be a lock for a qualifying offer, although Kennedy has pitched markedly better as of late. Right-hander James Shields has also cleared waivers and will probably see his name kicked around the rumor mill a bit more before the end of the month.
Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram first reported on Twitter that Edwards was the PTBNL.
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Dodgers Acquire Chase Utley
TODAY, 7:48am: The precise financial terms are contingent upon performance bonuses and the Dodgers’ decision on Utley’s option, Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com tweets, but Philadelphia is expected to owe about $3.7MM of the remainder of Utley’s deal.
YESTERDAY, 10:25pm: The Phillies announced that Sweeney will step directly onto the big league roster to fill Utley’s roster spot.
9:47pm: Another franchise icon is out the door in Philadelphia, as the Phillies announced tonight that they have traded Chase Utley and cash considerations to the Dodgers in exchange for minor leaguers Darnell Sweeney and John Richy. L.A. will reportedly receive about $4MM, meaning the Phillies will save a bit less than $2MM.
Reports earlier afternoon indicated that Utley was likely to either be dealt today or remain with the Phillies for the rest of the season. The veteran has drawn interest from multiple clubs in need of a veteran presence down the stretch. With full no-trade rights, Utley had the ability to dictate if he was traded and to where he was traded, and the Dodgers fit his preference of a Southern California team.
Utley, 36, has been one of the game’s very best players of the last decade. Over his 6,617 career plate appearances, he has produced at a 124 wRC+ clip. With stellar defense also a key component of his value, Utley has racked up over 60 WAR in 13 seasons.
But that outstanding production slowed somewhat last year and fell off a cliff in 2015 as Utley dealt with nagging ankle issues. He ultimately hit the DL for a stretch as his performance continued to suffer. All told, Utley carries a career-worst .617 OPS on the season.
Things have been trending up, however, since Utley returned from the DL. He’s slashed a robust .484/.485/.742 over 31 plate appearances in the month of August. That’s a small sample, of course, but it does suggest he’s healthy, and Utley obviously has an outstanding and lengthy track record of success.
For Los Angeles, of course, the interest in Utley is tied in large part to the club’s loss of second baseman Howie Kendrick to a hamstring strain. The left-handed-hitting Utley will now rejoin long-time middle infield mate Jimmy Rollins, though presumably both will share time with Kike Hernandez down the stretch.
Hernandez, of course, could also see time in center as the Dodgers work to maximize the platoon advantage. Playing Hernandez in the outfield would likely mean exposing Utley to left-handed pitching. While the long-time All-Star has fared well historically against opposing southpaws, he’s also shown much wider splits in the last several seasons.
Utley has a vesting option that would’ve triggered at $15MM were he to reach 500 plate appearances, but he’s no longer a candidate to hit that mark. Instead, it will become a team option with a price tag of between $5MM and $11MM, depending upon precisely how many days he ends up tallying on the DL.
In Sweeney and Richy, the Phillies will receive the Dodgers’ No. 13 and No. 29 prospects, respectively, per MLB.com. Sweeney has spent most of his time in center field this season but also has experience at both middle infield positions. He’s hitting .271/.332/.409 with nine homers and 32 steals at the Triple-A level this season. Jim Callis and Jonathan Mayo over at MLB.com feel that he’s a fringy option at shortstop but can play an adequate second base or center field. He lacks a standout tool but possesses more power than most middle infielders and has “solid” speed.
Richy, 23, was L.A.’s third-round pick in 2014. He has a four-pitch mix with a fastball that tops out at 94 mph. He’s able to throw strikes and projects as a potential back-of-the-rotation starter, per MLB.com. Fangraphs Kiley McDaniel also wrote up both players in his preseason look at the Dodgers’ farm system. Baseball America ranked Sweeney 16th among Dodgers farmhands and ranked Richy 24th prior to the season
MLB.com’s Todd Zolecki first reported that the Dodgers were moving closer to a deal. Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports tweeted that two minor leaguers would go to the Phillies, with about $4MM going to the Dodgers. Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com tweeted that the deal had been agreed to. Zolecki reported that Sweeney was in the deal (Twitter link). Rosenthal reported that Richy was the other minor leaguer (Twitter link).
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Dodgers Designate Alberto Callaspo For Assignment
The Dodgers announced that they have designated infielder Alberto Callaspo for assignment tonight, which will clear room on the 40-man and 25-man rosters for newly acquired Chase Utley.
Acquired from the Braves earlier this season, Callaspo saw an uptick in production following his move to L.A., but his .262/.338/.303 batting line was still considerably below the league average. Callaspo signed a one-year, $3MM contract with Atlanta this offseason and figures to go unclaimed if placed on waivers, as he’s still owed $770K through season’s end. The switch-hitter served as a solid utility piece from 2009-13 with the Royals, Angels and A’s, but his production has declined over the past two seasons, as he’s totaled just a .227/.300/.286 batting line in 711 plate appearances.
Mets Release Cesar Puello
The Mets have released former outfield prospect Cesar Puello, tweets Jared Diamond of the Wall Street Journal.
Now 24 years old, Puello ranked as highly as third among Mets prospects at one point, per Baseball America, who also ranked him 77th among all prospects prior to the 2010 season. Puello, however, provided little in the way of offense from 2010-12 at the Class-A level. Hie numbers ticked upward in 2013 at Double-A, but he was also suspended for PED use that season in connection with the Biogenesis clinic. Puello hit just .252/.355/.393 in a very hitter-friendly environment at Triple-A Las Vegas the following season upon his return.
The Mets placed Puello on outright waivers prior to the season, and the out-of-options outfielder cleared, though the team had to rescind the outright assigmnent and place him on the big league 60-day disabled list after an x-ray revealed a stress fracture in his back. He’s accrued Major League service time while on the 60-day DL this year.
Pirates Designate Pedro Florimon For Assignment
The Pirates have designated shortstop Pedro Florimon for assignment in order to clear space on the roster for right-hander Josh Wall, tweets Travis Sawchik of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. The move comes less than 24 hours after the 28-year-old defensive specialist delivered some late-inning heroics with a walk-off triple in the 15th inning.
Florimon has appeared in 15 games with the Buccos but received just 21 plate appearances, as much of his work has come as a defensive replacement. He logged 134 games as the Twins’ primary shortstop back in the 2013 season, hitting .221/.281/.330 with nine homers and outstanding defense, but he’s never hit consistently enough to stick in the Majors for a stretch of multiple seasons. Florimon’s batted just .095/.181/.147 in 107 plate appearances since his lone season as a regular in 2013.
Defensively speaking, Florimon is a gifted shortstop. Defensive Runs Saved pegs him at +21 in a little more than a full season’s worth of innings (1716), and UZR/150 has him at 3.6 runs above average. He also has above-average speed, having delivered positive value on the bases throughout his career, including 24 steals in 31 attempts (77.4 percent).
Pirates To Sign Travis Snider To Minors Deal
The Pirates have agreed to a minor-league deal with outfielder Travis Snider, Chris Cotillo of SB Nation reports on Twitter. Snider, 27, was recently released by the Orioles.
With the move, Pittsburgh brings back a player that it dealt just last winter. Snider had a breakout 2014 campaign with the Pirates, slashing .264/.338/.438. But he struggled in his time with Baltimore, hitting a disappointing .237/.318/.341 in his 236 turns at bat.
Snider’s strong work last year earned him a $2.1MM arbitration salary, though the O’s will remain on the hook for that tab (less the pro-rated portion of the league minimum salary for whatever time Snider spends in the big leagues). He comes with an additional season of control via arbitration.
Red Sox Release Justin Masterson
AUGUST 19: Boston has requested release waivers on Masterson, Alex Speier of the Boston Globe tweets. As Speier notes, that represents the first decision of Dave Dombrowski’s tenure with the club.
AUGUST 9: The Red Sox have designated Justin Masterson for assignment, Brian MacPherson of The Providence Journal tweets. Masterson was among several Red Sox players placed on revocable waivers last week, but there were no takers for the hurler.
Masterson is earning $9.5MM in 2015 after inking a one-year deal with Boston back in December. The 30-year-old fell off significantly last year after a three-year run in which he averaged 205 frames and a 3.86 ERA (that included outstanding campaigns in 2011 and 2013 sandwiched around a dud in 2012). In 2014, he scuffled to a 5.88 ERA in 128 2/3 innings last year, striking out 8.1 and walking 4.8 batters per nine while dealing with a variety of shoulder, knee, and back issues.
After injuries held him back, Masterson settled for a one-year deal rather than the long-term deal he probably envisioned for himself. Unfortunately, he wasn’t able to get back on track in 2015 to reassert his value. Back in June, he admitted that he was open to a trade if it meant starting elsewhere.
“I dont know if it’s in my nature to do that, to say, ‘Beat it guys, trade me or put me in [the rotation],’” he said. “No, I don’t think that’s the time right now. Especially the way I see this team going and the way I believe in this team too.”
In nine starts and eight relief appearances this season, Masterson owns a 5.55 ERA with 7.4 K/9 and 4.0 BB/9. To keep track of Masterson and everyone else in DFA limbo, check out MLBTR’s DFA Tracker.
Cubs To Sign Trevor Cahill
The Cubs have agreed to a minor league deal with righty Trevor Cahill, according to the MLB.com transactions page (with Chris Cotillo of SB Nation confirming the information on Twitter).
Cahill, 27, opted out of his deal with the Dodgers last week. Chicago now becomes his fourth organization of the year. He was dealt from the Diamondbacks to the Braves earlier in the year, with Atlanta releasing him before he signed with Los Angeles. (The D’Backs and Braves are on the hook for Cahill’s $12MM salary.)
It’s been some time since Cahill has been an effective big leaguer. He has carried a 5.98 ERA in the majors over 137 innings since the start of the 2014 campaign. Cahill never cracked the bigs with the Dodgers, working instead to a 5.24 ERA over 34 1/3 Triple-A frames.
Red Sox Name Dave Dombrowski President Of Baseball Operations; Ben Cherington Steps Down As GM
The Red Sox announced tonight that they have hired Dave Dombrowski as their new president of baseball operations. Ben Cherington was given the opportunity to stay on as GM, but he’s chosen to step down instead. He will, however, assist Dombrowski in the transition process.
Dombrowski made an abrupt and unexpected exit from the Tigers’ front office following the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline, ending a 14-year tenure as the team’s general manager. One of the most respected baseball operations executives in the league, Dombrowski has overseen some of the most memorable (and successful) trades in recent history. He plucked Miguel Cabrera from the Marlins in a trade that sent Cameron Maybin, Andrew Miller, Dallas Trahern, Burke Badenhop, Mike Rabelo and Frankie De La Cruz to Miami — none of whom contributed much to the organization. Dombrowski also landed Anibal Sanchez and Omar Infante from the Marlins in exchange for Jacob Turner, Brian Flynn and Rob Brantly, and he acquired both Max Scherzer and Austin Jackson in a three-team deal that sent Curtis Granderson to the Yankees and Edwin Jackson to the D-Backs. Dombrowski, of course, isn’t without his misses; the recent trade sending Doug Fister to Washington and the acquisitions of Alfredo Simon and Shane Greene, for instance, have not panned out over the past year-plus. (You can check out a full list of Dombrowski’s moves by using MLBTR’s Transaction Tracker.)
In a statement announcing the move, Dombrowski made it clear that joining the Red Sox was his top option once he hit the open market (so to speak):
“Although I did have other potential options within baseball, there was no option that stood out as clearly as the chance to come to Boston and win with the Red Sox. Boston is a baseball city like no other and its history and traditions are unique in our game. I expressed to [owner] John [Henry] and [chairman] Tom [Werner] that Boston would be my absolute top choice and am honored to have the chance to serve Red Sox Nation.”
Notably, Dombrowski has a lengthy history with Henry, who employed Dombrowski more than a decade ago when he owned the Marlins for three years prior to selling the franchise to Jeffrey Loria.
The change brings to a close a fairly brief run as Red Sox GM for Cherington. That would’ve seemed a virtually unthinkable outcome just 18 months ago, as Cherington’s Red Sox won it all in 2013 based largely on a 2012 August blockbuster in which he shed the contracts of Carl Crawford, Adrian Gonzalez, Josh Beckett and, to a lesser extent, Nick Punto, setting up a highly successful venture into the free agent market. Cherington’s reshaped roster featured relatively short-term deals for Shane Victorino, Mike Napoli, Koji Uehara, Stephen Drew and Jonny Gomes — each of whom played a significant role in Boston’s World Series run that year.
However, the Victorino deal wound up going south following that season, and the recent moves to add Rick Porcello, Joe Kelly, Wade Miley and Justin Masterson have led to one of the game’s worst rotations. Taking on Allen Craig‘s contract (along with Kelly) in last summer’s John Lackey trade has also proved to be an ill-fated decision. (Cherington’s transaction history can also be viewed in the Transaction Tracker.)
Dombrowski, of course, is not the only new face in the Boston front office. Former Angels GM Jerry Dipoto, who resigned earlier this summer over reported differences with manager Mike Scioscia, has joined the Sox in a temporary capacity. He’s free to pursue other GM openings while working with Boston, but with Cherington’s departure, it’ll be interesting to see if Dipoto winds up getting consideration for the Sox’ GM post. Of course, Dipoto, like Cherington, is known as an analytical executive, whereas Dombrowski employs a more traditional approach. As such, it seems reasonable to expect a fair amount of turnover within the Boston front office. Many of the current lieutenants were hired by Cherington, and Dombrowski will undoubtedly want to have a say in who is at his side and contributing to the decision-making process.
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