Nationals Rumors

Trea Turner Diagnosed With Fractured Index Finger

By Steve Adams | April 3, 2019 at 9:41am CDT

TODAY: Turner is officially going on the 10-day injured list. Infielder Adrian Sanchez will take his spot on the active roster for the time being. Since Sanchez already has a 40-man spot, no further moves will be necessary.

YESTERDAY: The Nationals received bad news on shortstop Trea Turner tonight, as X-rays revealed that he sustained a fractured right index finger on a bunt attempt, manager Dave Martinez revealed following tonight’s loss (Twitter link via ESPN’s Buster Olney). He’ll be out for a yet-to-be-determined period of time.

Turner, looking to bunt his way aboard in the first inning of tonight’s game, left too much of his hand exposed and caught the brunt of a 92 mph Zach Eflin fastball on his right index finger. He was replaced by Wilmer Difo without finishing the at-bat and could very well be replaced by Difo for the foreseeable future with a trip to the injured list surely around the corner. Alternatively, the Nats have one of the game’s best infield prospects in Carter Kieboom, though the 21-year-old is not yet on the 40-man roster and has only played in 62 games above A-ball.

The loss of Turner comes at time when the Nats have opened the season 1-3 and been outscored by opponents at a 26-16 clip. Swapping out Turner, one of the team’s best offensive players, for the light-hitting Difo won’t do the lineup any favors. There’s little available on the open market at present, though the A’s did just cut veteran middle infielder Cliff Pennington loose if Washington is eyeing some veteran minor league depth from outside the organization.

East Notes: Hot Seat Managers, Orioles, Bundy, Pedroia

By George Miller | March 31, 2019 at 1:45pm CDT

Following an offseason that featured an arms race between several of the NL East’s contenders, expectations are higher than ever for the Braves, Mets, Nationals, and Phillies. For that reason, writes Joel Sherman of the New York Post, there will be no excuses for managers Gabe Kapler, Dave Martinez, and Mickey Callaway this time around. The trio of rookie managers all endured disappointing 2018 seasons, but with their ballclubs making significant additions in the winter, the new year comes with heightened pressure to deliver and win now. It bears mentioning that first-year Mets general manager Brodie Van Wagenen was not part of the front office that hired Callaway prior to last season. Though it’s still early to speculate about managerial turnover, the developing bloodbath in the NL East will be a story to watch throughout the season and into the winter.

Here are some other notes from the East…

Orioles right-hander Dylan Bundy, once an uber-prospect with tantalizing potential, has undergone well-documented struggles in recent years, culminating in his surrendering 41 home runs last season. Jon Meoli of The Baltimore Sun details new pitching coach Doug Brocail’s plan to implement changes that will help Bundy return to the form that brought him success earlier in his career, including his career-best 2016 season.
Also in Baltimore, new skipper Brandon Hyde has thus far refrained from anointing a closer and does not intend to do so anytime soon, writes Meoli. Though Mychal Givens, who finished the 2018 season in the closer role after the midseason trades of Zack Britton and Brad Brach, appeared the best candidate to close, Hyde’s Orioles are comfortable sticking to a committee approach for the foreseeable future.
Red Sox second baseman Dustin Pedroia, who has been dealing with left knee inflammation and began the season on the IL, will begin a rehab assignment on Thursday with the Class-A Greenville Drive, per Pete Abraham of the Boston Globe. Pedroia has been receiving at-bats in extended spring training; the timetable for his return to MLB action is yet unknown.

Quick Hits: Brewers, Kimbrel, Keuchel, Astros, Correa, A’s, Nats

By Connor Byrne | March 30, 2019 at 10:49pm CDT

The Brewers have reportedly engaged in “pretty serious” negotiations of late with closer Craig Kimbrel, who remains available even after the start of the season. Now, having lost closer Corey Knebel to season-ending Tommy John surgery, a union between the Brewers and Kimbrel looks even more plausible on paper. However, barring a massive drop in asking price, the Brewers aren’t in position to sign Kimbrel or the majors’ other big-ticket free agent, starter Dallas Keuchel, according to Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Both Kimbrel and Keuchel rejected a $17.9MM qualifying offer from their previous team at the outset of the offseason. But even if they wind up settling for one-year contracts, odds are those deals will approach or exceed the worth of the qualifying offer. The Brewers, for their part, probably don’t even have half the value of the QO left in their budget, Haudricourt relays, as they’re already sporting a franchise-record Opening Day payroll. As a result, Haudricourt posits they’re more likely to rely on in-house reinforcements such as injured reliever Jeremy Jeffress and on-the-mend starter Jimmy Nelson than splurge on one of the two star free agents sitting on the open market.

Nationals Select Jake Noll

By Steve Adams | March 27, 2019 at 5:42pm CDT

The Nationals announced Wednesday that they’ve selected the contract of infielder Jake Noll, who will occupy a bench spot and make his MLB debut when he first gets into a game. Washington also announced that righty Koda Glover (forearm strain), Howie Kendrick (left hamstring strain) and Michael A. Taylor (left knee/hip sprain) have all been placed on the 10-day injured list.

Noll, 25, was Washington’s seventh-round pick back in 2016 and impressed the organization with a strong spring effort: .320/.393/.520 with a pair of homers and four doubles in 56 plate appearances. A right-handed hitter, Noll split the 2018 campaign between Class-A Advanced and Double-A, slashing a combined .291/.341/.412 in 549 plate appearances. Defensively, he’s spent time at first base, second base and third base, so he’ll be a candidate to back up several spots around the diamond and give manager Dave Martinez a bit of versatility. Noll will join a Nationals bench that also includes first baseman/left fielder Matt Adams, infielder Wilmer Difo, catcher Kurt Suzuki and outfielder Andrew Stevenson.

As for the trio of Nats now officially on the injured list, there’s no clear timeline as to when any of the bunch will return. Kendrick is staying down in extended Spring Training after appearing in only five Grapefruit League contests. Glover was originally shut down due to said forearm strain in late February after tossing just a third of an inning in his lone spring appearance. Taylor is expected to miss a “significant” amount of time with his injury.

NL Notes: Chen, Gyorko, d’Arnaud, Kendrick

By Connor Byrne | March 24, 2019 at 12:58pm CDT

Left-hander Wei-Yin Chen will open the year in the Marlins’ bullpen, Wells Dusenbery of the Sun Sentinel tweets. It’s the latest less-than-ideal development in what has been a subpar Marlins tenure for Chen. The 33-year-old did take this setback in stride, though, per Dusenbery. Now in the fourth season of a five-year, $80MM contract, Chen has pitched to a 4.75 ERA/4.38 FIP with 7.33 K/9 and 2.49 BB/9 in 289 2/3 innings since going from Baltimore to Miami. Fifty-three of Chen’s 57 Marlins appearances have come as a starter, including all 26 last season.

Elsewhere in Miami’s staff, the club has shut down Rule 5 pick Riley Ferrell because of biceps tendinitis, according to Joe Frisaro of MLB.com. The Marlins had been leaning toward keeping the 25-year-old right-hander, whom they plucked from Houston in December. Ferrell could factor into the Fish’s bullpen plans this season if he’s healthy and retained.

The latest on a few other NL teams…

Cardinals infielder Jedd Gyorko is likely to start 2019 on the 10-day injured list, which will lead to roster spots for Yairo Munoz and Drew Robinson, Jenifer Langosch of MLB.com reports. Gyorko has been dealing with a calf problem throughout the month. He’ll be an important bench player for the Cardinals when he returns, having posted three straight above-average offensive seasons with the club over a combined 1,321 plate appearances.
Likewise, Mets catcher Travis d’Arnaud seems ticketed for the IL, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com relays. The oft-injured d’Arnaud is still working back from the Tommy John surgery he underwent on his right elbow last May. With d’Arnaud out and Devin Mesoraco having failed to make the team, it appears Tomas Nido will open the season as Wilson Ramos’ backup. Aside from d’Arnaud and Ramos, Nido is the lone catcher on the Mets’ 40-man roster.
Infielder/outfielder Howie Kendrick won’t begin the year on the Nationals’ roster, according to Mark Zuckerman of MASNsports.com. Kendrick will instead remain in Florida to continue rehabbing from the hamstring strain he suffered two-plus weeks ago. It’s unclear when Kendrick will rejoin the Nationals, but when he does, he’ll be in line for his first major league action since incurring a ruptured right Achilles last May. That catastrophic injury derailed what was shaping up to be another quality offensive campaign for Kendrick.

NL Notes: Rendon, Freeman, Dodgers, Padres

By Connor Byrne | March 24, 2019 at 8:42am CDT

Even though it’s extension season in Major League Baseball, a new deal between the Nationals and contract-year third baseman Anthony Rendon doesn’t appear imminent. General manager Mike Rizzo said Saturday there isn’t anything new to report vis-a-vis Rendon, nor does the recent flood of extensions across the majors have any effect on the two sides’ talks, Jesse Dougherty of the Washington Post tweets. Rendon spoke about his future earlier in the week and didn’t sound particularly optimistic about an extension coming together. As things stand, Rendon’s on track to be one of the rare high-end players available in next winter’s free-agent class, which has rapidly lost its shine because of the extension trend.

Roster Notes: Rox, Brewers, Phils, Nats, Reds, Marlins

By Connor Byrne | March 23, 2019 at 7:31pm CDT

The latest on several teams’ rosters…

First baseman Mark Reynolds will make the Rockies’ roster, Nick Groke of The Athletic tweets. A Rockie from 2016-17, Reynolds rejoined the club on a minor league deal this past January after spending last season with the Nationals. In his return to Colorado, the 35-year-old Reynolds will back up the team’s headlining offseason acquisition, Daniel Murphy.
More from Groke, who reports catcher Brett Nicholas has requested and received his release from the Rockies. However, it’s possible the Rockies will try to keep Nicholas, Groke adds. An ex-Ranger, with whom he totaled 110 plate appearances from 2016-17, Nicholas signed a minors pact with the Rox in November. He has always faced an uphill battle to make the team, though, considering it has Chris Iannetta, Tony Wolters and Tom Murphy on its 40-man roster.
Catcher Erik Kratz won’t crack the Brewers’ roster, leaving him to await his trade/waiver fate, per Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. This had been the expected outcome for Kratz, who’s stuck behind Yasmani Grandal and Manny Pina on Milwaukee’s depth chart.
Infielder Philip Gosselin won’t make the Phillies, Jim Salisbury of NBC Sports Philadelphia relays. It seems the 30-year-old will remain on hand as minor league depth, however. The journeyman has accrued 579 major league PAs, though he didn’t play much at the MLB level from 2017-18, and batted .263/.314/.361.
The Nationals have informed left-hander Vidal Nuno he won’t make their roster, per Jesse Dougherty of the Washington Post. Nuno now has six days to decide whether to opt out of the minor league deal he signed in January. The 31-year-old has logged solid results this spring, having allowed two earned runs in 5 2/3 innings while recording six strikeouts against one walk. Nuno was similarly effective across 33 innings with Tampa Bay last year, when he put up a 1.64 ERA (with a much less impressive 4.46 FIP) and 7.91 K/9 against 2.73 BB/9.
The Reds have sent right-hander Anthony Bass to minor league camp, according to Mark Sheldon of MLB.com. Bass had been competing for a bullpen spot with the Reds after they signed him to a minors deal in December. He owns a 4.51 ERA/4.20 FIP with 6.07 K/9 and 3.31 BB/9 and a 47.9 percent groundball rate in a combined 299 1/3 innings with the Padres, Astros, Rangers and Cubs.
The Marlins are “expected” to retain Rule 5 pick Riley Ferrell, Joe Frisaro of MLB.com reports. The club took the right-hander fourth overall from the Astros in December, and he has since pitched well over 6 2/3 spring innings (two earned runs allowed on five hits and five walks, with 10 strikeouts). Eric Longenhagen and Kiley McDaniel of FanGraphs regard the 25-year-old Ferrell as “at least a big league-ready middle reliever with a chance to be a set-up man.”

Anthony Rendon On Contract Talks With Nationals

By Jeff Todd | March 20, 2019 at 10:59am CDT

The Nationals have held ongoing contract talks with third baseman Anthony Rendon, with optimism at times of reaching a long-term deal. But Rendon says he rejected an offer in late February (around the time that Nolan Arenado signed his new deal with the Rockies) and that talks have “kind of come to a halt lately,” as Todd Dybas of NBC Sports Washington reports.

It’s not known what the Nats dangled to Rendon when last the sides spoke in earnest. But the number “wasn’t to where we thought we should be,” per the 28-year-old.

While it seems that chatter hasn’t picked back up since, there’s still an opening to a possible deal. Rendon says that the Nationals told him “we’re going to continue to talk.” And it seems that he’s still open to working something out. But it’s now more clear than ever that Rendon will be demanding full market value for his future services and that he’s plenty willing instead to play out the 2019 season and hit the open market.

As Rendon put it: “If [an extension] happens, it happens, if it doesn’t it doesn’t.”

Even as the sides have batted around scenarios, other teams and players have lined up on deals. Several third-base price points have hit the books, in fact. It’s hard to draw much from the deal reached yesterday between the Astros and pre-arbitration infield Alex Bregman, but Manny Machado’s free-agent contract with the Padres (ten years, $300MM) and Nolan Arenado’s extension with the Rockies (seven years, $234MM) are plenty relevant.

While Rendon is older than both Machado and Arenado, he’s less than a year senior to the latter. Even if Rendon would need to take a shorter pact, the average annual values of those contracts — $30MM and $33.4MM, respectively — seem within reason for the long-time Nationals infielder. Both of his contemporaries are more visible players, to be sure, but Rendon has edged them both in fWAR over the past three seasons.

Prior indications were that Rendon sought a contract of the sort previously agreed to between Jose Altuve and the Astros (five years, $151MM). Whether that is in fact his asking price, and if so how close the Nats will come to reaching it, remains to be seen.

NL Notes: Nats, Brewers, Mets, Giants

By Connor Byrne | March 16, 2019 at 11:38pm CDT

With center fielder Michael A. Taylor on the shelf for a while, the Nationals “appear to be at least considering outside alternatives” capable of playing the position, Jon Heyman of MLB Network tweets. Free agency’s not exactly rife with options at this juncture, though, with 30-somethings Denard Span (an ex-Nat), Austin Jackson and Chris Young as the only experienced center fielders on the market. But Span hasn’t played center since 2017, when was among the majors’ worst outfielders; Jackson was similarly poor there last season; and Young hasn’t seen a lot of action at the position in recent years. So, if the Nationals want a legit center fielder to help make up for Taylor’s absence, they may have to turn to the trade market or hope a capable player hits the waiver wire in the coming weeks.

Even though he received a major league contract over the winter, Brewers infielder/outfielder Cory Spangenberg may open the season in the minors, Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel notes. The Brewers are likely to opt for a four-man bench which would include Hernan Perez, Manny Pina, Eric Thames and Ben Gamel, leaving Spangenberg – who has a minor league option remaining – on the outside. Not long ago, the former Padre looked like a strong candidate to rack up playing time at second base this year in Milwaukee. Unfortunately for Spangenerg, the Brewers’ late-February re-signing of Mike Moustakas – who’s shifting from third to the keystone – put the kibosh on that.
Right-hander Seth Lugo will work out of the bullpen again this season after emerging as one of the Mets’ best relievers in 2018, though the 29-year-old wants to return to a starting role at some point, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com writes. “I’m not content where I’m at, but I’m happy where I’m at, if that makes sense,” Lugo said. “Especially with the team we have now, I just want to be a part of it.” Lugo totaled 18 starts in 19 appearances back in 2017, but he functioned almost exclusively as a reliever last season, and that should be the case again this year.
The Giants have named Rob Dean as their designated interim control person to Major League Baseball, Andrew Baggarly of The Athletic tweets. Dean’s filling in for CEO Larry Baer, who’s on leave as MLB investigates a public altercation he had with his wife on March 1. Baer and the Giants haven’t been in contact during his absence, per Baggarly, who adds the club’s awaiting the league’s investigation before it takes any potential action with him.

DMV Notes: Mejdal, O’s Rotation, Brocail, Difo

By TC Zencka | March 16, 2019 at 11:54am CDT

The Orioles offseason has consisted largely of the esoteric behind-the-scenes work being done by a newly-minted braintrust, offering the Baltimore fanbase little in terms of concrete evidence of a team on the rise. MLBTR readers rendered a decidedly nonplussed verdict of the O’s offseason by handing out a failing grade as the most common response in our Offseason In Review Series poll. Hope for an improved future for the AL’s foremost cellar dweller is dependent largely on conjecture tied to the resumes of the men brought in to run the organization, namely GM Mike Elias and field manager Brandon Hyde. The first significant evidence of Elias’ progress, however, is being seen all over spring camp, per MLB.com’s Joe Trezza. Spin axis seminars, high-speed Edgertronic cameras and “the long list of players championing the exposure to extra information they weren’t privy to before” are a few of the promising signs of growth coming out of O’s camp. Baltimore’s data infusion can be credited to new assistant general manger of analytics Sig Mejdal, a former NASA engineer and blackjack dealer whom Elias coaxed to Baltimore from their former employer in Houston. But that’s not all of the news coming from the D.C.-Maryland-Virginia corridor…

Hyde has already announced Alex Cobb as the Opening Day starter, but the only certainty beyond day one is the presence of Cobb, Andrew Cashner and Dylan Bundy in the rotation. In what order they’ll line up after Cobb, and who pitches in the fourth and fifth rotation spots is still very much up in the air, per the Baltimore Sun’s Jon Meoli (via Twitter). Using an Opener at times is definitely on the table, as is tweaking the rotation depending on the matchup. More clarity could come soon to O’s camp, as another round of roster cuts is planned for tomorrow, per Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com (Twitter link). Free agent signee Nate Karns certainly hopes to lay claim to one of those spots, but it’ll likely be a dynamic roster-crunching process in Baltimore right up until (and beyond, really) Opening Day.
The names that will populate Baltimore’s pitching staff remain unknown, but for commentary on those auditioning, the Athletic’s Dan Connolly turned to Doug Brocail, Baltimore’ forthright, 51-year-old pitching coach. The challenge facing Brocail is developing a shared language for his staff, while finding new ways to communicate on an individual level. For example, in giving instruction to righty Jimmy Yacabonis, Brocail’s message to “Hold your posture” wasn’t registering. Recognizing the need to break though this particular platitude, Brocail conveyed his point this way, “Right at hill strike, then let the rotation of the other half take over,” and the message sunk in. Give Connolly’s conversation with Brocail a full read for more insight into the mind of the Orioles’ pitching coach, including his thoughts on Cobb, Bundy and Cashner.
At the other end of the Baltimore-Washington Parkway, Nationals’ manager Dave Martinez is grooming Wilmer Difo for a super-utility role in 2019, per Mark Zuckerman of MASNsports.com (via Twitter). This is not in response to the Michael A. Taylor injury, as there’s no plan at present to give Difo starts in center. Seeing some time in the outfield remains likely, as Difo boasts small-sample experience at all three outfield spots over the last two seasons. Difo will also likely serve as the team’s emergency catcher, a more pertinent responsibility on the Nats than most teams given Martinez’s stated desire to use the non-starter from the duo of Yan Gomes and Kurt Suzuki as a pinch-hitter. Were Martinez to stick Difo behind the dish at some point during the season, the move would at the very least be on brand for a disciple of the ever-tinkering Joe Maddon.

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