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Rangers To Consider Trading For Relief Help

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Rangers GM Jon Daniels says the team could consider making a trade to improve its bullpen, MLB.com’s T.R. Sullivan writes. “The bullpen is the area we’ll look at,” he says. “Other areas, it would have to be a pretty unique situation, because we feel good about our ballclub. You always look to do better, but realistically, what’s going to be out there and whether or not it fits, I don’t know.”

The Rangers’ 4.95 bullpen ERA this season ranks ahead of that of only the Reds, although the team’s current relief corps contains a number of pitchers in the midst of successful seasons, including Jake Diekman, Matt Bush, Tony Barnette and closer Sam Dyson. Daniels indicates he’s happy with that group. He also thinks Shawn Tolleson (whose awful start has been a key to the struggles of the bullpen as a whole) will pitch better than he has so far, and he looks forward to activating Keone Kela (elbow) and Tanner Scheppers (knee) from the disabled list at some point next month. As Sullivan points out, Justin De Fratus, Kyle Lohse, Luke Jackson and Jose Leclerc, all of them currently at Triple-A Round Rock, could also be candidates to help in the future. Daniels notes, though, that the team has relied heavily on its core group of relievers, and could use an extra arm to share the load.

It’s probably too early to speculate about who the Rangers might add. Daniels says that, as is typical at this early point in the year, only a few teams have determined that they’re clear sellers. Still, the Rangers’ potential pursuit of bullpen help will be worth watching as June turns into July.

Week In Review: 6/11/16 – 6/17/16

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Here’s a look back at the past week at MLBTR.

Key Moves

  • Teams signed their draft picks at a furious pace this week, with highlights including the Reds signing second overall pick Nick Senzel, the Rockies signing fourth overall selection Riley Pint, the Padres signing eighth overall pick Cal Quantrill, the Rays signing 13th overall selection Josh Lowe, and the Indians inking 14th overall pick Will Benson. To track other top draft signings, click here.

Signings

Trades

Top Prospect Promotions

Claims

Designated For Assignment

Outrighted

Released

Key Minor League Signings

Taking Stock Of 2017 Club Options

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We’re far enough into the 2016 season that it’s possible to begin to see where things might be headed in terms of 2017 club options. Team need is always a component of the decision, of course, and that can be tough to gauge at this stage. But if a player is valuable enough to warrant the exercise of the option, it’s generally possible to strike a trade.

Here’s a list of the players whose deals will force their teams to make a decision after the year:

(Note: we’re not considering mutual options or player options/opt-outs here, but will discuss players with vesting/club options. For a recent, closer look at whether their vesting provisions are likely to be triggered, click here.)

  • Matt Albers, RP, White Sox — $3MM club option with a $250K buyout: Albers isn’t exciting, but he’s throwing well enough that the option could end up being exercised. Really, it’s too soon to tell in his case and will be highly dependent on how the Chicago pen is shaping up heading into the winter.
  • Jay Bruce, OF, Reds — $13MM club option with a $1MM buyout: I’ve been casting aspersions at Bruce’s glove for some time now, but he’s hitting enough that it may not matter. It seems he’s headed towards having this payday picked up.
  • Clay Buchholz, SP, Red Sox — $13.5MM club option with a $500K buyout: Though the price isn’t too high for a pitcher who has been a quality rotation piece, Buchholz’s durability and reliability questions, combined with his abysmal start, probably put it above his value. But there’s still time and opportunity for a turnaround with Buchholz now returning to the Boston rotation.
  • Coco Crisp, OF, Athletics — $13MM vesting/club option with a $750K buyout: Crisp has been healthy and has shown flashes at times, but there’s little chance of Oakland putting this on its tab heading into his age-37 season (whether by allowing it to vest or by picking it up).
  • Wade Davis, RP, Royals — $10MM club option with a $2.5MM buyout: Barring a Greg Holland-like catastrophic injury situation, this one’s an automatic yes.
  • Alcides Escobar, SS, Royals  – $6.5MM club option with a $500K buyout: The 29-year-old is mired in his second consecutive season of terrible offensive production, and defensive metrics have soured on his fielding. There’s still time for a turnaround, and K.C. will think long and hard before cutting ties (especially without an obvious replacement lined up), but you have to wonder at this point if that’s possible with Escobar hitting an anemic .243/.267/.289. At such a reasonable price, though, it’s still fairly unlikely that he hits the open market.
  • Yunel Escobar, INF, Angels — $7MM club option with a $1MM buyout: Escobar keeps hitting and has some defensive flexibility. He may not be exciting, but he’s worth this kind of payday.
  • Jaime Garcia, SP, Cardinals — $12MM club option with a $500K buyout: He may be inconsistent, and he certainly comes with injury questions, but the peripherals still suggest that Garcia is a quality big league pitcher. Barring another run of significant arm issues, this probably gets picked up.
  • Gio Gonzalez, SP, Nationals — $12MM club option with a $500K buyout: Speaking of inconsistent lefties … Gonzalez continues to underperform his peripherals, but he’s almost certain to stay on the Nats’ books.
  • Jason Grilli, RP, Blue Jays — $3MM club option with a $250K buyout: Much like Albers, this is going to revolve around Toronto’s situation as well as the way Grilli throws the ball late in the year. He’s shown some new life since coming over, it’s worth noting.
  • Jason Hammel, SP, Cubs — $10MM club option with a $2MM buyout: Hammel would need to fall apart pretty badly in the second half to disrupt his return.
  • Ryan Hanigan, C, Red Sox — $3.75MM club option with an $800K buyout: He’s 35, he’s hurt, and he’s barely hitting. But there’s still time for Hanigan to revive his value, and Boston could see fit to keep him around as a veteran backup. Of course, there are plenty of scenarios where there’s no interest from the team’s perspective.
  • Derek Holland, SP, Rangers — $11MM club option with a $1MM buyout: He still isn’t quite 30 years of age, but Holland is struggling to return to form after dealing with some pretty significant injuries. Over the last two years, he’s allowed over five earned per nine across 127 innings. The price tag is starting to look a little steep.
  • Matt Holliday, OF, Cardinals — $17MM club/vesting option with $1MM buyout: Another interesting one! Holliday has yet to finish a season with a sub-.800 OPS, and he’s on pace to top that again. The power is back, too, though his top-notch OBP numbers are down a bit. That’s a big price for a guy entering his age-37 season, but it’s reasonable on a one-year deal for a player with that track record.
  • Ryan Howard, 1B, Phillies — $23MM club option with a $10MM buyout: Despite Howard’s many contributions to the Phils, this one is going to be declined.
  • Chris Iannetta, C, Mariners — $4.25MM club/vesting option: Even if Mike Zunino proves ready for another shot at the majors, he’ll need a partner and the team will want a back-up plan. Iannetta is putting up a productive .247/.348/.412 batting line, and if he can stay in that vicinity this’ll look like a very appealing price tag that the club will be glad to put on its books (in all likelihood, by allowing it to vest).
  • Jonathan Lucroy, C, Brewers — $5.25MM club option with a $25K buyout: Probably the surest “yes” on this list.
  • Cameron Maybin, OF, Tigers — $9MM club option with a $1MM buyout: It would be rash to put too much stock into his excellent first 110 plate appearances with Detroit, but since the start of last year Maybin has shown life in his legs, a league-average bat, and a capable glove in center. That’s probably worth the $8MM gap between the yay and the nay, especially for a team without a real alternative.
  • Matt Moore, SP, Rays — $7MM club option with a $2.5MM buyout: Things haven’t gone smoothly since Moore returned from Tommy John surgery, but his strikeout rate and velocity are rising and there’s still no reason not to pay him the $4.5MM over the buyout price.
  • Pat Neshek, RP, Astros — $6.5MM club option with a $500K buyout: Neshek has been solid enough for Houston, but this feels a bit steep given that he’s nearing 36 years of age. His current 2.66 ERA has benefited from a .149 BABIP and 96.5% strand rate.
  • Jon Niese, SP, Pirates — $10MM club option with a $500K buyout: Niese is still getting grounders and is running typical K:BB rates, but he has been torched by the long ball. This isn’t a huge price for a 30-year-old starter, though, so I’m still guessing it ends up being exercised.
  • Yusmeiro Petit, RP, Nationals — $3MM club/vesting option with a $500K buyout: Petit has been quite solid for the Nats and seems a reasonable bet to make a match again next year, but he’s another reliever who could really go either way. He’s already logged 31 innings, which puts the 80-inning vesting mark in play; Washington might be just fine with letting that happen.
  • Fernando Rodney, RP, Padres — floating $2MM+ club option with a $400K buyout: Rodney has been aces, but it’s worth remembering that his option could cost as much as $7MM depending upon what incentives he triggers this season (with $5MM more in incentives available for 2017). Still, if he can keep putting up the results of a quality late-inning reliever, he’ll probably be worth it.
  • Francisco Rodriguez, RP, Tigers — $6MM club option with a $2MM buyout: K-Rod hasn’t quite had the results this year, and his velocity and swinging-strike rates are trending down, but ERA estimators still view him as a solidly above-average pen arm and it’s only a $4MM decision. It seems pretty likely he’ll be worth that, and that Detroit will have a need.
  • Carlos Ruiz, C, Phillies — $4.5MM club option with a $500K buyout: Ruiz started fast but has fallen off since; he’s almost certain to join Howard in receiving a fond farewell from Philly.
  • CC Sabathia, SP, Yankees — $25MM vesting option with a $5MM buyout: Here’s another clear example of an aging, former star who … wait, what’s that? Since the calendar flipped to May, Sabathia has thrown 44 innings over which he’s allowed just four earned runs. Odds are this won’t quite last, as Sabathia’s velocity is still down along with his swinging strike rate, and it’s pretty unlikely that New York will want to pay this rate for a guy who’ll be entering his age-36 season. But unless he comes down with a shoulder issue, there may not be any choice involved. If nothing else, the vesting outcome isn’t looking so bad for the Yanks at this point; we’ve seen quality veterans land one-year deals for just over the qualifying offer level before, and this may not end up looking too different.
  • Carlos Santana, 1B, Indians — $12MM club option with a $1.2MM buyout: Santana remains a high-quality hitter and this looks like a perfectly reasonable price for him.
  • Seth Smith, OF, Mariners — $7MM club option with a $250K buyout: Smith has rather quietly been rather productive in Seattle. He’s getting a bit long in the tooth, and isn’t an everyday player, but this is the market rate for top platoon outfielders and it’s only a one-year commitment.
  • Ichiro Suzuki, OF, Marlins – $2MM club option: Ichiro has been asked to take a more-or-less everyday role in Miami at 42 years of age, and he has responded with a .410 on-base percentage. (That was another way of saying that the price is looking right.)
  • Kurt Suzuki, C, Twins — $6MM vesting option: He’s been pretty marginal with the bat over the past two seasons, and that price tag is higher than most solid second catchers got on the market last winter. Looks like a pass if it doesn’t vest; that seems unlikely with only 149 plate appearances on his ledger thus far.
  • Jordan Walden, RP, Cardinals — $5.25MM club option with a $250K buyout: This once looked like a pretty likely pick-up for a quality pen arm, but Walden has disappeared with injuries.

NL Notes: Wong, Cubs’ Pen, Miller, Wood

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The Cardinals have recalled second baseman Kolten Wong from Triple-A Memphis after optioning him to the minors just 10 days ago. In his place, center fielder Jeremy Hazelbaker has been optioned to Memphis. Wong’s demotion was the culmination of a marked decline and came just three months after he’d signed a five-year, $25.5MM contract extension. After hitting just .222/.306/.286 through his first 144 plate appearances and losing the second base job — Matt Carpenter is manning that position with Jhonny Peralta handling third and rookie Aledmys Diaz playing shortstop — Wong went on an absolute tear in Triple-A; in 34 plate appearances there, he batted .429/.529/.929 with four homers while seeing quite a bit of action in center field. Hazelbaker was one of the most talked-about players in the Majors in April when he batted .317/.357/.683, but the 28-year-old has come back to earth and seen his playing time dwindle since.

Here’s more from the National League:

  • Cubs president of baseball operations Theo Epstein says that he “would love” to add a high-quality bullpen arm, MLB.com’s Cody Stavenhagen tweets. But the veteran executive also made clear that he won’t rush to the phones just because the bullpen has had some hiccups of late. Chicago looks to be set most everywhere else, so it makes sense that the club would look for ways to add impact in its relief corps, but there’s really no sense of urgency given the team’s excellent start.
  • Shelby Miller will return to the major league hill for the Diamondbacks on Monday, Steve Gilbert of MLB.com tweets. Miller had been on the DL for a finger injury, though he was also looking to right the ship after an abysmal start to his career in Arizona. If the club has any hope of clawing back into the postseason picture, it’ll need Miller to turn things around.
  • Dodgers lefty Alex Wood will begin throwing next week, a bit ahead of schedule, as JP Hoornstra of the Los Angeles News Group reports. The inflammation in his elbow has responded as hoped, it seems, though the real test will come as he ramps back up. Wood emphasized that he doesn’t have any structural issues. Still, he might not return to competitive action until mid-July, per the report, and that’s assuming he stays on a positive course. Presumably, it’ll be at least a bit longer before he’d be ready for the majors. Los Angeles has several key arms at various stages of the rehab pipeline.

Dodgers Agree To Terms With First-Rounder Will Smith

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The Dodgers have agreed to a $1.775MM bonus with 32nd overall pick Will Smith, Chris Cotillo of SB Nation tweets. That falls below the slot value of $1,940,700.

Los Angeles added this pick when Zack Greinke signed with the Diamondbacks after declining a qualifying offer. That provided an opportunity to add the Louisville catcher as well as to pad the organization’s bonus pool, with some savings to apply to other selections.

Smith rated as high as 59th on the pre-draft rankings of evaluators, with ESPN.com’s Keith Law giving him that placement. Smith delivers impeccable zone awareness and contact ability, but doesn’t wield a big stick. But he draws high grades for his work behind the dish and also has good wheels.

Others weren’t as impressed with that package, though. Baseball America ranked him 74th, with MLB.com dropping him out of the top 100 of its list at No. 110. Those outlets seem less wowed by Smith’s overall defensive package.

The Dodgers already locked up top pick Gavin Lux for pennies over his slot value, but went over the allocation for third-rounder Dustin May. Their top unsigned draft pick is Vandy right-hander Jordan Sheffield, who went 36th overall.

Minor MLB Transactions: 6/17/2016

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Here are the day’s minor moves:

  • The White Sox outrighted first baseman/outfielder Jerry Sands after he cleared waivers, Collen Kane of the Chicago Tribune tweets. Recently designated, Sands will provide some depth for Chicago at Triple-A — assuming, at least, that he accepts the assignment. (He has previously been outrighted, so could instead elect free agency.) The 28-year-old has seen sporadic MLB time over the past several seasons. In 58 plate appearances with the White Sox this year, he scuffled to a .236/.276/.291 batting line.
  • Likewise, the Blue Jays outrighted their own recent designee, southpaw Scott Diamond, per SB Nation’s Chris Cotillo (via Twitter). The 29-year-old only saw one game with the big club in his first MLB action since 2013.  He had been pitching well at Triple-A, carrying a 3.16 ERA with 4.5 K/9 and 1.7 BB/9 over 12 starts.
  • The Red Sox have signed first baseman Cody Decker, per Matt Eddy of Baseball America (via Twitter). Decker is still looking for his first major league hit after a brief stint last year with the Padres — he did, at least, record an RBI — but he’s got little to prove as a Triple-A hitter. In nearly 1,500 plate appearances at the highest level of the minors, the 29-year-old owns a .255/.333/.501 batting line with 74 home runs.
  • Recently released by the Cubs, righty Alex Sanabia is now set to join Mexico’s Tijuana Toros, Cotillo tweets. Sanabia has seen 138 2/3 innings of MLB action, all with the Marlins and none coming since 2013. Sanabia had allowed 39 earned runs in 55 1/3 innings at Triple-A for the Cubs on the year.

White Sox Agree To Terms With Zack Burdi

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The White Sox have agreed to terms with their second selection from the amateur draft, Louisville righty Zack Burdi, per SB Nation’s Chris Cotillo (Twitter link). Taken with the 26th overall pick, Burdi will receive the full slot value of $2,128,500.

Burdi was a flamethrowing closer for the University of Louisville, much like his older brother, Twins prospect Nick Burdi. In addition to an upper-90s fastball, he delivers what Baseball America calls a plus change and a slider that has shown promise. BA rated him 21st among draft-eligible prospects, based in part on the idea that he could potentially be developed as a starter.

Other outlets were less optimistic on the idea of Burdi moving into a rotation long-term. ESPN.com put him in the 37th slot, while MLB.com rated him 41st. Even if he’s not a starter, Chicago will no doubt like the idea of plugging a potentially fast-moving, high-leverage arm into its system.

Rays Sign First-Rounder Josh Lowe

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The Rays have signed first-round draft selection Josh Lowe, with the team set to announce the deal tonight. MLB.com’s Bill Chastain first reported a deal was imminent yesterday on Twitter.

It’s an under-slot signing, per Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times (Twitter link), though details on the bonus remain unreported. The Georgia high school third baseman was taken 13th overall, a pick which came with a $3,098,900 slot value.

Baseball America and MLB.com each rated Lowe as the 17th-best draft-eligible prospect, while ESPN.com placed him 26th. He is highly regarded for his athleticism and baseball bloodlines, and features two-way talent. Tampa Bay will try him out as a hitter first, given Lowe’s big-time pop, good wheels, and big arm at the hot corner. His bat needs refining, as is often the case, and some wonder if he’ll be quick enough to stay at third, with a possible shift to right field possibly making sense down the line.

Tampa Bay has also agreed to terms with Ryan Boldt, its second-round pick and the 53rd overall player taken, per SB Nation’s Chris Cotillo (on Twitter). Boldt’s $1MM bonus will fall $195,500 shy of the slot allocation, so the club will save some additional money there, as it did with 90th overall pick Austin Franklin as well as its last two selections from the top ten rounds (college seniors Peter Bayer and Spencer Jones). Among the organization’s top choices yet to sign are comp B selection Jake Fraley (an LSU outfielder) and fifth-rounder Easton McGee (a high-school righty).

Mets Have Expressed Interest In Danny Valencia

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The Mets reached out to the Athletics recently to inquire about third baseman Danny Valencia, according to a report from Ken Davidoff of the New York Post. New York went on to acquire Kelly Johnson from the Braves, but as Davidoff notes, that move doesn’t necessarily rule out a continued pursuit of Valencia.

Johnson was added both to fill an immediate need and to provide a utility option the rest of the way. Valencia, though, would be a more significant target. It’s certainly arguable that he makes even more sense for New York now than he did a few weeks back, given that David Wright has elected to undergo neck surgery due to the lack of progress on his rest-and-rehab plan.

Valencia would represent more of a direct replacement for Wright, allowing Wilmer Flores to spend more time elsewhere in the infield and pushing Johnson into a fairly limited utility role. Though he isn’t regarded as a very good fielder, Valencia has seen the field at multiple other positions, with time at the corner outfield, first base, and even second base all on his resume.

That positional flexibility ought to increase Valencia’s appeal as a trade target, especially for a New York team that faces long-term questions with Wright and will lose second baseman Neil Walker to free agency after the season.

Valencia is greatly outperforming the $3.15MM deal he signed to avoid arbitration before the 2016 campaign. He is slashing .327/.370/.550 with ten home runs over 184 plate appearances on the year, adding to the already-impressive results from a season ago. In fact, in over a thousand trips to the plate since the start of 2013, Valencia has mashed to the tune of a .290/.334/.489 line.

If he can keep up anything approaching that level of production, Valencia would make for quite a nice replacement for Wright (or upgrade for any other team that might pursue him). Of course, Oakland might prefer not to trade him for the same reason, as he’ll be controllable one more time via arbitration after the season. The A’s may well hang a fairly substantial asking price on the one-time journeyman, who has risen to the number four spot on MLBTR’s most recent ranking of top trade candidates.

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