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Wei-Yin Chen

Wei-Yin Chen, Dan Straily Nearing Return To Marlins’ Rotation

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The Marlins could soon be installing a pair of veteran arms into their struggling young rotation. Craig Mish of SiriusXM reports that lefty Wei-Yin Chen will be activated to start Saturday’s game against the Rockies (Twitter link), and it seems that right-hander Dan Straily won’t be far behind (link via Doug Padilla at MLB.com). Straily tossed 88 pitches in yesterday’s rehab assignment and, so long as his arm feels good today, his next outing will likely be at the big league level.

Late last season, the Marlins organization expressed uncertainty as to whether Chen, who had a minor tear of the ulnar collateral ligament in his left elbow, would be able to pitch at all in 2018. However, he’s made multiple rehab starts in extended spring camp and Class-A Advanced and is now set for his 2018 debut. MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro tweets that a scout who was at Chen’s most recent start felt he looked ready to return to the big leagues. Chen allowed one run on five hits and a walk with 11 strikeouts in 7 2/3 innings in his two Class-A rehab appearances.

A healthy Chen would have to be considered a huge bonus for the Marlins, who have routinely trotted out a collection of inexperienced arms thus far in the season. Jose Urena is the most seasoned arm in the Marlins’ rotation at present, with rookies Caleb Smith, Trevor Richards and Dillon Peters following him up. Lefty Jarlin Garcia technically isn’t a rookie, but this is his first big league season as a starter and just his second year in the Majors overall.

The 32-year-old Chen, unsurprisingly, forwent the opt-out clause in his five-year, $80MM contract this offseason, as opting out would’ve meant leaving $52MM on the table. That enormous financial commitment remains immovable for a Miami team that tore down the vast majority of its roster this offseason, and that’s highly unlikely to change regardless of how Chen performs. If Chen rounds into form, though, perhaps we’ll see Miami offer to eat a notable chunk of the remaining salary on his contract this July in an effort to at least partially unburden themselves — though a lot will need to go their way for that to even be possible.

Miami inked Chen prior to the 2016 season in large part due to the durability he displayed with the Orioles. While he never cleared the 200-inning mark in the regular season, Chen averaged 29 starts per year (30 if you count his postseason work). Since signing in Miami, however, he’s pitched a total of just 156 1/3 innings over two seasons combined, due to the previously mentioned elbow issues.

Straily, on the disabled list for the first time in his big league career, has also been working his way back via minor league rehab appearances after his 2018 debut was delayed by a forearm injury. Unlike Chen, he’ll immediately become a relatively desirable trade asset, assuming good health. Controlled for two seasons beyond 2018 and earning a modest $3.375MM this season, Straily has made 64 starts and pitched to a combined 4.01 ERA over the past two seasons combined. Straily drew plenty of interest on the trade market last summer, and it stands to reason that he’ll be in demand again as one of the few controllable starters available in trade.

NL East Notes: Blair, Chen, Glover, Pivetta

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Braves righty Aaron Blair is dealing with a shoulder injury and is headed to see Dr. James Andrews for an evaluation on Monday, tweets David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. O’Brien’s colleague, Gabe Burns, had previously tweeted that Blair could miss “significant time” with the injury, though the specifics of the issue aren’t yet known. The 25-year-old Blair was viewed as a largely MLB-ready starter when the Braves picked him up from the D-backs alongside Ender Inciarte and Dansby Swanson in the Shelby Miller blockbuster, but he’s struggled to a 7.89 ERA in 73 big league innings thanks largely to shaky control and a susceptibility to home runs. Blair has a career 4.36 ERA with 7.6 K/9 against 3.9 BB/9, and while he may not have been viewed as an immediate piece of the rotation, a notable absence will thin out Atlanta’s rotation depth to an extent.

Some more notes from the division…

  • The Marlins announced last night that left-hander Wei-Yin Chen was able to throw three shutout innings in an extended Spring Training game. Chen didn’t allow a hit or a walk and picked up one strikeout as he tossed 35 pitches in the rehab outing. The results, of course, are largely inconsequential. The key takeaway, rather, is simply that Chen is throwing at all. The southpaw suffered a partial tear of the UCL in his left elbow back in 2016 and was limited to just 33 frames by injury in 2017. Late last season, skipper Don Mattingly revealed that the organization wasn’t sure whether Chen would be able to pitch in 2018 at all. The Marlins owe the veteran lefty more than $50MM over the next three seasons, so any progress toward a return to the hill is significant plus for the team. It’s also worth noting that J.T. Realmuto caught three innings and took three at-bats in an extended spring game, per the team. He’s reportedly eyeing a return to action next week.
  • MASNsports.com’s Byron Kerr tweets that Nationals reliever Koda Glover is making some progress in his return from shoulder troubles. Glover, who was briefly the team’s closer in a 2017 season marred by back and hip injuries, opened the year on the 60-day DL after a spring MRI revealed inflammation in his right shoulder. He’s now throwing from 75 feet though, which is at least a step in the right direction for a young power arm for whom the organization has quite a bit of hope. The outlook on Joaquin Benoit is less optimistic, as Kerr notes that the veteran has yet to begin throwing. Washington added Benoit late this spring — not long after Glover’s MRI, in fact — but he quickly went down with a forearm strain and opened the season on the DL himself.
  • Phillies righty Nick Pivetta has somewhat quietly been one of the team’s biggest surprises of the year thus far, as Jim Salisbury of NBC Sports Philadelphia observes. The right-hander spoke after his most recent quality outing about how last year’s struggles — a 6.02 ERA in 133 innings — have helped prepare him for better success in 2018. “I worked hard with [pitching coach Rick Kranitz] and everybody not trying to be so perfect in the strike zone,” said Pivetta. “I think that really has carried over this year and it’s been good so far.” Manager Gabe Kapler praised Pivetta for improving his concentration level since the beginning of Spring Training, his willingness to attack up in the zone with his fastball and his ability to throw his curveball for a strike when needed.

Quick Hits: Kingery, Phillies, Chen, Tigers, Maitan

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It was on this day in 2013 that the Brewers signed Kyle Lohse to a three-year, $33MM contract, ending Lohse’s extended stay in the free agent market.  The 2012-13 offseason was the first to feature the qualifying offer in its original form, and the draft pick compensation (a first-round pick, or the highest available pick for a team with one of the top ten draft spots) attached to Lohse’s services seemed to chill the market for the veteran right-hander.  Lohse became the first of several notable players whose free agency was impacted by the QO in the coming years, and even in its adjusted form under the new collective bargaining agreement, the qualifying certainly still acted as a seeming deterrent for several free agents this offseason.  The Brewers, it should be noted, ended up getting a pretty solid return on their investment, as Lohse posted a 3.45 ERA and 3.28 K/BB rate over 397 innings in 2013-14 before declining in the final year of the contract.

Some items from around baseball…

  • Talks about Scott Kingery’s precedent-setting extension with the Phillies came together within the last few days, The Athletic’s Matt Gelb writes (subscription required).  The team had been planning to keep Kingery at Triple-A long enough (April 13) to limit his service time and thus gain and extra year of control over his services.  At a guaranteed price of $24MM over six years, the Phillies see the contract “as a no-risk transaction,” as it isn’t too heavy a sum to eat if Kingery doesn’t live up to expectations as a big leaguer, though the organization is very high on the prospect as an important building block.
  • Of course, the Kingery deal was bound to generate some controversy given that he could be leaving a lot of future money on the table should he play well.  Speaking to The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal (subscription required), one rival agent described the contract’s three club options as “offensive,” given that the Phillies could control Kingery’s first three free agent years at a total price of $42MM, which surely won’t match the rate of market inflation by 2024-26.  Rosenthal’s notes piece is well worth a full read, as he catches up on some of the bigger stories of the past six weeks that he missed while recovering from back surgery.  (On behalf of all of us at MLBTR, it’s great to see Ken recovered and ready to go for the start of the season!)
  • Wei-Yin Chen faced live hitters in a 16-pitch batting practice session today, and the Marlins southpaw told reporters (including MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro) that it “felt like the old days,” prior to the elbow problems that have plagued him over the last two seasons.  Chen has been gradually moving through the recovery process, with today’s session being his first test against actual batters.  Without any injury setbacks, Chen could begin a proper ramp-up to the season and potentially return to Miami’s rotation by May, at the earliest.
  • The Tigers aren’t planning to make a trade to account for Mike Fiers’ potential DL stint, MLB.com’s Jon Paul Morosi tweets.  The team already has Daniel Norris as an in-house replacement, plus Fiers isn’t expected to miss much time recovering from the back problems that have hampered him all spring.
  • Kevin Maitan’s prospect stock was already dimming after a difficult first full pro season, and the former Braves prospect has continued to draw mixed reviews from scouts in his first Spring Training with the Angels, Baseball America’s J.J. Cooper writes.  Though Maitan is still just 18 years old, scouts already believe his body type won’t allow him to remain at shortstop, and he may also be too big even to handle third base.  This puts more pressure on Maitan to hit if he isn’t going to play at a premium defensive position, and evaluators also have some questions about Maitan’s swing. pessimistic

NL East Notes: Norris, Lagares, Stewart, Prado, Chen, Straily, Quinn

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The latest from around the NL East…

  • The Mets had Bud Norris “on their board” before the veteran right-hander signed with the Cardinals, The Athletic’s Marc Carig reports (Twitter link).  Norris’ versatility as both a reliever and a potential swingman or spot starter intrigued the Mets, who may or may not be still looking for rotation depth.
  • Juan Lagares’ name has surfaced in some trade rumors over the offseason, though MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo (Twitter link) doubts the Mets would part with the defensively-gifted outfielder.  The team is thin on outfield depth as it is, and Lagares is penciled in as the starting center fielder until Michael Conforto is healthy.  Dealing Lagares (who is owed $15.5MM over the next two seasons) would free up some payroll space for the Mets, and he hasn’t hit much over the last three years, with injuries playing a role in his struggles at the plate.  Nevertheless, DiComo writes that “the Mets are super bullish on” Lagares and even plan to use him against both left-handed and right-handed pitching.
  • Braves GM Alex Anthopoulos discussed his team’s signing of Chris Stewart with reporters (including David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution), admitting that Stewart’s addition is “not a clean fit right now” since the team is set behind the plate with Tyler Flowers and Kurt Suzuki.  The hope is that Stewart will accept an assignment to Triple-A at the end of Spring Training to provide additional depth at catcher behind the MLB duo.  The Braves would’ve preferred to sign Stewart to a minor league deal, though Stewart was insistent on receiving a Major League contract, even if his deal isn’t guaranteed.
  • The idea of players asking for trades is “a little radical” for Martin Prado, the veteran infielder told reporters, including Clark Spencer and Andre C. Fernandez of the Miami Herald.  Unlike several Marlins teammates who are still with the team (J.T. Realmuto, Starlin Castro) or have since been dealt (Giancarlo Stanton, Christian Yelich), Prado said he would never request a trade, though he “respected” those players’ decisions.  While Prado may have not have asked for a deal, Miami reportedly looked into trading the infielder and $28.5MM remaining on his salary as part of the team’s latest payroll slash.
  • Wei-Yin Chen won’t be ready to be on the Marlins’ Opening Day roster, manager Don Mattingly told media, including Spencer and Fernandez.  Chen is beginning a throwing program during Spring Training as he continues to recover from the elbow problems that limited him to only 33 innings in 2017.  Mattingly didn’t put a timetable on when Chen is expected to be ready, other than to say that he expects the southpaw to be in the rotation at some point.
  • Also from the Spencer/Fernandez piece, Dan Straily’s arbitration hearing with the Marlins will take place tomorrow.  The two sides will face the arb panel despite a rather small difference in submitted figures; Straily is asking for a $3.55MM salary in 2018, while the Fish countered with an offer of $3.37MM.  Miami has already gone to arbitration hearings twice this winter, winning one (against Realmuto) and losing the other (to Justin Bour).
  • With the Phillies stressing defensive versatility, the team will work Roman Quinn out at shortstop this spring, Matt Breen of the Philadelphia Daily News writes.  Manager Gabe Kapler said the team won’t try Quinn at shortstop in an actual game before they see how he handles infield drills, though Kapler noted that “we’d be foolish not to look under that stone” given Quinn’s athleticism.  Quinn was originally drafted as a shortstop the Phillies took him in the second round in 2011, but was shifted to the outfield after some early-career defensive struggles.  Quinn can already play all three outfield spots, though adding shortstop to his defensive repertoire would only help his chances of winning a spot on what could be a short Phillies bench.

Marlins Notes: Realmuto, Chen, Ziegler, Outfield, Starlin

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Marlins catcher J.T. Realmuto told reporters today that he’s had multiple conversations with president of baseball operations Michael Hill and manager Don Mattingly about whether or not he’ll be traded, but he hasn’t gotten a firm answer one way or the other (hat tip to Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald). He also said that he has not spoken with part-owner Derek Jeter directly about the subject. That Realmuto hasn’t gotten a firm answer is entirely unsurprising; he’s a valuable trade asset, and the team can’t guarantee that anyone will rise to meet their asking price. They’ve been fielding offers on him for quite some time, and the countdown to opening day has now dwindled to under two months. Realmuto, of course, has been vocal throughout the offseason in his desire to be traded to another club. It was reported that the backstop requested a trade out Miami as early as mid-December, at which point the Fish had already shipped out Giancarlo Stanton, Dee Gordon and Marcell Ozuna. Recent comments from his agent indicate that his stance hasn’t changed, and an arbitration defeat at Miami’s hands certainly won’t do anything to budge that stance.

A few other items out of Miami…

  • Hill says that lefty Wei-Yin Chen has been cleared to throw, and projects to be in the Marlins’ rotation (h/t Joe Frisaro of MLB.com). Whether or not he’ll be ready for the start of the season is uncertain. The 32-year-old Chen missed the bulk of last season due to recurring elbow issues, and is owed $60MM through the 2020 season. If he can remain healthy, he’ll likely slot in as the number two starter behind Dan Straily.
  • Hill also mentioned that Brad Ziegler is the team’s closer headed into spring training camp. Ziegler took over as the team’s closer last season following a trade of A.J. Ramos to the Mets, saving ten games for the club. His overall performance, however, left much to be desired; the soft-tosser’s 4.79 ERA isn’t indicative of a high-leverage reliever, and his 4.98 K/9 was the fourth-lowest among MLB relievers with at least 30 innings pitched. However, having Ziegler in a ninth-inning role will prevent young strikeout artists Kyle Barraclough and Drew Steckenrider from accruing saves that would otherwise boost their future arbitration raises.
  • Mattingly has Derek Dietrich “penciled in” as the starting left fielder (h/t Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald). The rest of the outfield picture, however, is “wide open.” The Marlins, of course, traded their entire starting outfield from last season; Stanton, Ozuna and Christian Yelich will all suit up for other clubs, leaving the team with a significant void to fill. Count recent outfield acquisitions Lewis Brinson and Magneuris Sierra among the players who will compete for those jobs in camp.
  • Despite trade speculation earlier in the offseason, infielder Starlin Castro says he expects to be with the club come opening day (hat tip again to Jackson). The former Yankee adds that he is “happy to be here,” and is not looking to be traded now. Castro figures to open the season as the team’s second baseman. He put up a .300/.338/.454 slash line while playing for New York last season (good for a 110 wRC+), and chipped in a pair of stolen bases.

Taking Inventory: Miami Marlins

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In an effort to cut payroll, the new Marlins ownership group (headlined by Derek Jeter) has already kicked off a fire sale of major league assets. They’ve traded three significant players so far in Giancarlo Stanton, Dee Gordon and Marcell Ozuna, and only the latter of the three netted any significant prospect haul. Miami has succeeded in getting big salaries off the books, but their farm system still looks bleak and lacks top-rated prospects (though some pitchers in their system have upside).

So while the team has already completed its stated salary-slashing objective, the moves made so far have put the franchise in an in-between kind of state. Miami finished last season with a 77-85 record, and then traded away three players who were worth a combined 15 fWAR. The only major league asset who came back in return was Starlin Castro, who was worth about 2 fWAR in 2017. All told, the Marlins’ roster looks about 13 wins worse than last season, which in theory would make them about as good as last year’s Tigers club.

Of course, it doesn’t exactly work that way, but the writing on the wall here is that the Marlins aren’t going to do a whole lot of winning next season. They’d face enormous odds in challenging the Nationals for the NL East crown. Aside from that, their farm system is dwarfed by those of the division-rival Braves and Phillies, both of whom are on the rise. Clearly the club isn’t planning on improving the team through free agency, as that would counteract the enormous effort the team made to reduce payroll. As such, there appears to be no reason to stop selling now. There are a few players on the roster who could help the Fish add significant prospects to their minor league ranks and improve the organization’s future outlook…

Two Years of Control

Starlin Castro, 2B ($22MM owed through 2019, including $1MM buyout of $16MM option for 2020): When Castro came to Miami in the Stanton deal, trade speculation began immediately. There’s probably some surplus value to be had in the 27-year-old’s contract considering his reasonable salary and the fact that he’s still in his prime. With the Marlins having already met their payroll-related goals, they probably even have the flexibility to pay some of his salary in order to get better prospects in exchange. Castro is coming off a .300/.338/.454 season, but poor defensive play at second limits his value to an extent.

Longer-Term Assets

J.T. Realmuto, C ($4.2MM projected arb salary for 2018): MLBTR has already talked about Realmuto’s trade candidacy at length this month (including an in-depth piece on his market), so I’ll keep this short. Realmuto has already requested a trade, and although he doesn’t have any real leverage in the matter, he seems a likely candidate to be wearing another uniform even before he hits free agency following the 2020 season. The Marlins catcher was worth at least 3.5 fWAR in each of the past two seasons, and plenty of contenders and up-and-comers would love to have that kind of value coming from a premium position on the diamond. It would, however, take a reportedly “huge overpay” to pry him out of Miami’s hands.

"<strongChristian Yelich, OF ($44.5MM owed through 2021, including $1.25MM buyout of $15MM option for 2022): Yelich has also been one of the more common names to pop up in trade rumors this offseason. He’s easily the Marlins’ most valuable asset; the former first round pick has been worth about 16 fWAR across the past four seasons combined. With five more years of team control, however, there’s at least a chance he could be part of the next winning Marlins club at a very reasonable price, so there’s less of a reason for the team to move him there is to move other assets. Among the plusses for Yelich are good defense in the outfield, a 10.7% career walk rate and improved baserunning ability.

Dan Straily, RHP ($4.6MM projected arbitration salary for 2018): While Straily isn’t as talented (or receiving as much trade attention) as elite options like Michael Fulmer, Chris Archer and Gerrit Cole, he’s a league-average MLB talent who could be made available in a thin and expensive market for pitching. Straily posted a 4.26 ERA in 2017 along with a 2.83 K/BB ratio and comes with three years of team control.

Justin Bour, 1B ($3.5MM projected arbitration salary for 2018): Amidst Marlins rumors, it’s somewhat of a surprise to me that Bour’s name hasn’t been mentioned more often. Miami’s left-handed-hitting first baseman enjoyed a breakout season in 2017 prior to an oblique injury. Upon his return in early September, he picked up right where he left off, and ultimately finished the season with an outstanding .289/.366/.536 slash line to go with 25 home runs across just 429 plate appearances. With the Rockies, Angels and Mariners still looking for first base help, it wouldn’t be a shock to see the market for Bour heat up at some point. He wouldn’t come cheap, though, as he’s cost-effective and controllable through arbitration from 2018-2020.

Kyle Barraclough, RHRP (League minimum salary for 2018): Barraclough has a sky-high career strikeout rate 12.05 K/9), but carries the downside of an equally absurd walk rate (5.52 BB/9). The net result is a sort of effectively-wild performance that’s led to fantastic career run-prevention numbers, headlined by a 2.87 ERA. With elite relievers becoming more and more in demand, it’s conceivable Barraclough could net a hefty return.

Derek Dietrich, INF ($3.2MM projected arbitration salary for 2018): Though he’s not a full-time player, Dietrich has managed to accrue at least 1.5 fWAR in each of the past two seasons, and can play both second and third base. He’d be a cheap utility infield option on a contending team, and comes with three years of team control. He hit .249/.334/.424 in 2017 with 13 homers, making him a nearly average offensive player at 99 wRC+.

Salary Dump Candidates

Wei-Yin Chen, LHP ($60MM owed through 2020, with a $16MM vesting option for 2021): Simply put, this offseason would be the worst possible time to trade Chen. After missing most of the season due to elbow issues, Chen returned to make just four appearances out of the bullpen in September prior to being shut down. While he was generally good when on the field (3.82 ERA, 3.73 FIP), the Marlins would have an incredibly difficult time trying to move any of his salary until he can settle concerns about his elbow.

Martin Prado, 3B ($28.5MM owed through 2019): Prado is coming off a dreadful 2017 season in which he was able to muster just 147 plate appearances due to multiple injuries. He posted just a 67 wRC+ across that time, and will enter the 2018 season at 34 years of age. There have been reports that the Marlins might try to attach Prado to a trade of a more valuable asset in order to clear his salary, but like Chen, it might be the wrong time to trade him. After all, he averaged 3 WAR from 2014-2016 thanks to a .295/.341/.407 slash line and elite defense at the hot corner.

Brad Ziegler, RHRP ($9MM salary for 2018): The issue with Ziegler is his recent inability to miss bats. The righty struck out fewer than five batters per nine innings in 2018 and experienced a steep drop in velocity on his sinker. All told, Ziegler was tagged for 25 earned runs in 47 innings. Perhaps he’s another candidate to re-established value prior to the trade deadline, but he’s also 38 years old; it’s also possible the Marlins could be better served simply trying to find a taker for as much of his salary as possible.

Junichi Tazawa, RHRP ($7MM salary for 2018): See Ziegler. Okay, not exactly, but Tazawa’s outlook isn’t much more promising other than the fact that he’s seven years younger. The righty is two years removed from his last respectable season. Last year was his worst performance yet: he was valued below replacement level thanks to a 5.69 ERA and 4.96 FIP. Miami’s best chance to move his salary would be to try to include him in a trade along with Realmuto, Yelich or another contract with significant excess value.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Quick Hits: Chen, Morton, Rays, Cardinals

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Left-hander Wei-Yin Chen informed the Marlins that he will not opt out of the remaining three years and $52MM on his contract, Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald reports. Considering the injury and performance issues he has had during his two-year Marlins tenure, there was no chance Chen would abandon his deal in favor of free agency. Elbow problems shelved the 32-year-old for long periods in each of the past two seasons, including for most of 2017, and he made just 27 starts and pitched to a 4.72 ERA during that 156 1/3-inning span. The five-year, $80MM contract the Marlins gave Chen prior to the 2016 season now looks like an especially damaging move for a franchise aiming to slash payroll.

More from around the majors:

  • The Astros made one of the savviest signings of last offseason when they inked right-hander Charlie Morton to a two-year, $14MM contract, but they may have been able to land him for less, per ESPN’s Buster Olney. When discussing the Astros’ offer with his agent, Morton inferred that their proposal was worth a total of $7MM – an amount he was “thrilled with,” Olney writes. Morton was “astounded” to find that the Astros were willing to give him twice that figure, and he jumped at the chance to sign with the club. A year later, the Astros are World Series champions, thanks in no small part to Morton’s contributions.
  • In the wake of their fourth straight sub-.500 season, the Rays are tasked with trying to improve while reducing their already minuscule payroll, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times writes. The Rays opened 2017 with a payroll of around $70MM, the second-lowest mark in baseball, and ended it near $80MM. There will be cost-cutting trades this offseason, suggests Topkin, who points to righty Jake Odorizzi, left fielder/designated hitter Corey Dickerson, closer Alex Colome and infielder Brad Miller as potential movers. Those four are projected to earn around $23MM through arbitration in 2018.
  • With a glut of outfielders in both the majors and minors, the Cardinals are in position to “dominate” that segment of the trade market, Kyle Glaser of Baseball America observes (subscription required and recommended). Glaser goes on to break down the likelihood of the organization trading any of its top 11 outfielders, including Dexter Fowler, Tommy Pham, Stephen Piscotty, Randal Grichuk and Jose Martinez.

Marlins Shut Wei-Yin Chen Down Due To Recurrence Of Elbow Discomfort

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TODAY: After meeting with Dr. ElAttrache, Chen received a good diagnosis and won’t require surgery, FanRag Sports’ Jon Heyman reports.  While Chen’s elbow ligament is inflamed, it is believed that the PRP injection he already received is the only treatment required for the time being.

TUESDAY, 7:40pm: Chen’s injury status sounds even more ominous with full context from manager Don Mattingly. As Mattingly tells Tim Healey of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel, not only will Chen not pitch again in 2017, there’s a possibility that he won’t pitch in 2018, either. “I’m not really sure if he’s going to be able to get back next year,” said Mattingly. “We know [the tear] is there. It keeps coming back, it kind of gets extended a little bit.”

Per Healey, Chen will visit with renowned surgeon Dr. Neal ElAttrache in the coming days. Certainly, given the known presence of a partial UCL tear, one would imagine that Tommy John surgery will eventually become an option (though some pitchers have managed to pitch through partial tears of the UCL and avoid going under the knife).

6:33pm: Wei-Yin Chen’s season for the Marlins is over as the result of additional concerns about the southpaw’s left elbow, tweets Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald. Chen will have yet another examination on the elbow, and his future is “up in the air,” per Spencer.

Chen, 32, made just five starts for the Marlins earlier this season before missing the majority of the year due to troubles in his left elbow. Chen was reportedly diagnosed with a partial tear of his left ulnar collateral ligament last summer and ultimately pitched just 123 1/3 innings in his first season with the Marlins. This year, he’s been limited even more dramatically, totaling just 33 innings between the rotation and the bullpen.

The difficulties with Chen’s elbow are particularly problematic for a low-payroll Marlins club that signed the southpaw to one of the largest free-agent deals in franchise history. Chen is just two seasons into a five-year, $80MM contract and, while the agreement contains an opt-out clause following the current season, there’s obviously no way that he’ll be forgoing the remaining $52MM he’s owed through 2020 to reenter the open market.

[Related: Miami Marlins depth chart]

With Chen’s future now looking even more uncertain, Miami faces an uphill battle in rounding out its rotation with competitive arms next year. Opening Day starter Edinson Volquez, signed through the 2018 season, underwent the second Tommy John surgery of his career last month and is likely to miss most of, if not all of the 2018 season. The Marlins’ current rotation features Dan Straily, Adam Conley, Jose Urena, rookie Dillon Peters and former Padres/Orioles swingman Odrisamer Despaigne. Miami’s farm system, generally regarded as one of the weakest in the game, offers little in terms of upper-level options to step into a starting role, beyond the aforementioned Peters.

Marlins Activate Wei-Yin Chen

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After an absence of a bit more than four months, Marlins left-hander Wei-Yin Chen has been activated from the 60-day disabled list, Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald reports (Twitter links). He’ll head to the bullpen for the time being.

Chen’s return is not insignificant for a Marlins club that has ridden a historic Giancarlo Stanton hot streak back to the fringes of the National League Wild Card race. While they’re still five games out of the second Wild Card spot (with three teams to vault), the Marlins have at least managed to make things interesting down the stretch.

Of course, what the Fish could really use right now is a quality starting pitcher. That’s just what the team thought it was getting when it signed Chen to a five-year, $80MM deal before the 2016 season.

Instead, Chen has worked to a 4.85 ERA over just 150 1/3 innings since arriving in Miami. He has made only five starts this year, spending most of the season rehabbing through a partial UCL tear.

There’s no chance at this point that Chen will opt out of the remaining $60MM over three years left on his contract. Hopefully for both he and the team, however, he’ll at least be able to get back on track late in 2017 and come into camp healthy for the 2018 season.

NL Notes: Padres, Brewers, Rockies, Marlins

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The Padres fired hitting coach Alan Zinter on Friday, Dennis Lin of the San Diego Union-Tribune tweets. Zinter lasted less than two seasons in the position, having taken the job in November 2015. The Padres’ offense ranked toward the bottom of the majors during Zinter’s run, but he didn’t exactly have a world of proven talent at his disposal. Manager Andy Green explained to Lin that he’s seeking a “different voice” for the role. Meanwhile, GM A.J. Preller told AJ Cassavell of MLB.com that the Padres will begin searching for a successor immediately, but he indicated there’s no rush to hire a replacement (Twitter link).

Here’s more from the National League:

  • The Brewers’ rotation was rife with question marks entering the season, but it now appears the surprise contenders have at least three legitimate building blocks in Jimmy Nelson, Chase Anderson and Zach Davies, Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel observes. The emergence of that cost-controlled trio has been especially important to a team that’s not able to spend big on free agents, and Haudricourt points out that the Brewers may even have a couple more promising young starters on hand (Brandon Woodruff and Josh Hader). It’s possible they’ll go into 2018 with those five comprising their rotation, Haudricourt notes.
  • Rockies outfielder David Dahl is resigned to the fact that he won’t be able to contribute this year, Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post writes. Dahl hasn’t appeared in a major league game this season, and he hasn’t played in a minor league contest since July 31, thanks to the rib injury he suffered during spring training. Now, Dahl doesn’t expect to swing a bat again until December, according to Saunders. “The thing I really need is rest, to let it heal completely, because every time I would start swinging, I would start feeling it again,” said the 23-year-old Dahl, who excited the Rockies last season with a .315/.359/.500 batting line in a 237-plate appearance rookie campaign.
  • A partial UCL tear in Wei-Yin Chen’s left elbow has kept him from taking the mound since May 1, but he’ll return to the Marlins in the coming days, Tim Healey of the South Florida Sun Sentinel reports. While Chen will finish 2017 as a reliever, the Marlins expect to slot him back into their rotation next season. After this fall’s World Series, Chen will be able to opt out of the remaining three years and $52MM left on the five-year, $80MM contract he signed with the Fish in January 2016. That’s obviously not going to happen, though, as the ex-Oriole has struggled with injuries and turned in mediocre results during his two years in Miami.
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