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Dan Duquette Discusses Orioles’ Offseason Plans

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Orioles executive VP Dan Duquette held an interesting discussion on 105.7 The Fan today, as Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com documents. Pitching is, of course, still the key to the winter. Duquette talked about his desire to add at least one lefty to the rotation. He also indicated a need to be “resourceful” in adding arms. There’s plenty more to unpack from the interview and it’s well worth reading through the full story. Here are a few of the highlights:

  • Broadly, Duquette suggested there isn’t much appetite in the organization to embark upon a rebuild. “We still have a pretty good core group,” he said. “And I’ve got to tell you, that rebuilding, that’s not very much fun.” Duquette did credit other organizations for making good choices when they did undergo a full teardown, but said he’d rather deal with the challenges of remaining competitive year-in, year-out. “[F]rankly, I’d just as soon draft late and have a good ballclub and do as good as we can with the players that we have,” said Duquette. Many outside observers have suggested it’s time for the Orioles to think about prioritizing the future, particularly with a few key players entering their walk years. But the club is heavily invested in a few big names for the future — Chris Davis, in particular — and understandably is hesitant to give up a chance at putting together a competitive roster now even if it means foregoing an opportunity to gather up significant prospects. And it’s fair to note that a mid-season pivot is always a fallback possibility.
  • One major element of the team’s long-term plans, of course, is star third baseman Manny Machado, who’s set to reach the open market at the end of the 2018 season. Duquette says that the O’s have to decide “this offseason” whether Machado is “going to be a long-term fixture in [the team’s] lineup.” Of course, even if the team decides to make a real effort at striking a big new contract, they’ll face an uphill battle to convince Machado to sign on for a palatable rate. The 25-year-old was not at his best in 2017, but still managed to hit more than thirty home runs for the third-straight season and is widely viewed as one of the game’s most talented overall players. Machado certainly does not need to give up his shot at the open market to secure significant earnings; he played for $11.5MM last year and MLBTR projects that he’ll cost $17.3MM through arbitration for the season to come.
  • Closer Zach Britton was understandably a key topic of conversation, as his trade availability has arisen early in the offseason after the O’s explored talks over the summer. Duquette says he thinks it’s likely that Britton will remain with the organization to open the 2018 campaign, though he said “there’s a lot of interest in him” and acknowledged that the organization “was looking at some options around the trade deadline” involving Britton. All said, the take-away seems to be that Baltimore remains willing to discuss its star reliever but also isn’t exactly aching to move him. The central issues for the Orioles, with regard to Britton, seems to be resource allocation and risk. If he can return to his 2016 levels of dominance, he’d be a screaming bargain at his projected arb salary of $12.2MM. But his contract rights could be turned into other useful assets and his payroll space allocated to other areas of need. And it’s at least arguable that other organizations are better equipped to take on the uncertainty that arose during Britton’s injury-limited, less-than-stellar 2017 campaign.
  • There was some chatter yesterday that the Orioles could be looking into a long-term deal with second baseman Jonathan Schoop, who had a big 2017 campaign. But even as he cited one source that indicated contract talks had begun, MLB.com’s Jon Morosi shortly thereafter cited another to deny that “anything of substance” had yet occurred (Twitter links). Duquette further downplayed that idea, at least in the near term. While he credited Schoop and said the team would “love to have him for the best part of his career,” Duquette also said that a long-term deal is “a conversation for another day.” Of course, many extension talks occur during Spring Training, and this could still be a matter to be revisited, but it certainly sounds as if there are no immediate plans for a push. Schoop is yet another player who is about to receive a big arb payout — we project him at $9.1MM — which reduces the team’s leverage with two seasons to go until Schoop qualifies for free agency.

Giants Meet With Giancarlo Stanton’s Representatives

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10:42pm: The meeting should not be read as an indication that a deal is about to go down, MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro cautions on Twitter. Rather, he says, “a trade is not considered imminent” and the Marlins “remain engaged with other clubs” regarding Stanton.

8:42pm: The Giants have sent executives to meet with representatives of star Marlins outfielder Giancarlo Stanton, according to Craig Mish of Sirius XM (Twitter links). It is not clear whether the meeting, which is said to be taking place in Los Angeles, will also include Stanton himself. Top organizational figures are on hand for the Giants, though,with president of baseball operations Brian Sabean, GM Bobby Evans, and skipper Bruce Bochy all trekking south.

Obviously, such a sit-down could only occur if the Marlins have authorized the discussion. In all likelihood, it seems, permission would only be given if the teams believed they could potentially finalize a deal involving Stanton, whose approval would be needed for any swap given his full no-trade rights.

Earlier today, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch discussed the parameters of possible interactions between Stanton and his pursuers. Of course, he was addressing the point in reference to the Cardinals’ efforts to land the star performer, and it’s not clear at this point whether the St. Louis organization will be afforded such an opportunity.

Throughout the offseason, rumors have surrounded the possibility of the Marlins dealing Stanton — their biggest star, and also the league’s highest-paid player. The west coast native is believed to prefer to play close to his Los Angeles home, but the hometown Dodgers have only operated at the fringes of the market thus far.

Some have suggested of late that the situation — which has seemingly backed into something of a stalemate since the end of the GM Meetings — could end up playing out more slowly. Both Stanton and the Marlins, perhaps, would prefer to see the Dodgers enter the fray. Or, perhaps, other organizations could join the Giants and Cardinals, the clear top two pursuers to this point.

There has been some discussion of possible trade scenarios between the teams, but on the whole it is not clear just what kind of package could be contemplated if the San Francisco brass can convince Stanton to join on. MLB.com’s Jon Morosi discussed a potential return for Stanton in an article earlier today, but also made clear that MLB.com had not confirmed that any of the rumored players had actually been formally offered or asked for. And others — such as Bob Nightengale of USA Today, on Twitter — have cast doubt on the idea that the true potential trade package has yet been stated publicly. There is, however, indication from some quarters that the Giants are willing to take on the bulk or even all of Stanton’s contract, as Jon Heyman of Fan Rag tweets.

With respect to the talks between Stanton’s representatives and his would-be new employers, it’s possible to imagine any number of topics being discussed. No doubt Stanton will be interested to learn more about the organization’s plans to return to contention after a disastrous 2017 campaign. As Nightengale notes in another tweet, though, it’s also possible there could be some contractual negotiations. Because Stanton would stand to take a hit to his bottom line by playing half his games in California, his representatives might conceivably request some kind of compensation.

Minor MLB Transactions: 11/30/17

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Here are the day’s minor moves:

  • Joining the Orioles on a minors deal is righty Perci Garner, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (via Twitter). Soon to turn 29, Garner struggled in limited action in an injury-limited 2017 season. But he did show a 95 mph heater and 14.4% swinging-strike rate in his brief foray into the majors in 2016, and worked to a 1.83 ERA with 8.0 K/9 and 2.5 BB/9 in 78 2/3 frames in the upper minors that year. Notably, too, Garner’s innings tally came in just 41 relief appearances, suggesting that the former starter could have some multi-inning potential.
  • Infielder/outfielder Jimmy Paredes has joined the KBO’s Doosan Bears, as Korea’s Naver Sports reports (Korean language link; h/t to Dan Kurtz of MyKBO.net, via Twitter). He’ll receive a $800K salary for the 2018 season. Paredes has seen just over a thousand MLB plate appearances in parts of six seasons, slashing only .251/.286/.369. He spent the 2017 campaign with Japan’s Chiba Lotte Marines, where he produced a .219/.270/.364 slash with ten home runs in 289 trips to the plate.

Earlier Updates

  • The Tigers announced that they have completed their summer swap with the Cubs by acquiring cash rather than a player to be named. That deal sent Jeimer Candelario and Isaac Paredes to Detroit in exchange for veterans Justin Wilson and Alex Avila. The amount of cash that’s now changing hands isn’t known. Obviously, the key to this deal from the Tigers’ perspective was Candelario. The 24-year-old had an impressive initial showing upon reaching the majors with his new organization, slashing .330/.406/.468 in 106 plate appearances.
  • Anthony Gose is joining the Rangers on a minors deal, per Anthony Fenech of the Detroit Free Press (Twitter links). He’s expected both to function as a left-handed reliever — as he did last year in the minors — and to play the outfield — as he long did previously, including at the major-league level. Gose, who’s still just 27, recorded 14 strikeouts and six walks while allowing nine earned runs in 10 2/3 innings at the High-A level in 2017. Elbow issues halted his season at that point. Though Gose never showed quite enough bat in the majors, which is why he ended up attempting the conversion, he does have a useful skillset — quality speed and defense — that would make him a hypothetically interesting roster piece if he can develop sufficiently on the mound.
  • Joining the Twins on minor-league pacts are outfielder Ryan LaMarre, catcher Bobby Wilson, righty Myles Jaye, and catcher/infielder Willians Astudillo, MLB.com’s Rhett Bollinger tweets. LaMarre has reached the majors very briefly in each of the past three seasons; he spent most of last year at Triple-A with the Athletics and Angels organizations, slashing just .247/.328/.300 in 194 plate appearances. The 34-year-old Wilson, an eight-year MLB veteran, hit .243/.318/.428 for the Dodgers’ top affiliate lat year and will likely head to Rochester for depth. Jaye, who’ll soon turn 26, struggled in his first chance at the game’s highest level last year but has also compiled three consecutive sub-4.00 ERA seasons in the upper minors. The versatile Astudillo — the only member of this group that hasn’t tasted the bigs — posted great numbers in limited action at Triple-A last year but is a lifetime .750 OPS hitter in the minors.
  • The Marlins have added righty Drew Rucinski on a minors deal, per SB Nation’s Chris Cotillo (Twitter link). Rucinski, who turns 29 at the end of December, has seen minimal action in three MLB campaigns. He transitioned to full-time relief in 2017 for the first time since his earliest work in the low minors, with fairly promising results. In 63 frames at Triple-A, Rucinski compiled a 2.57 ERA with 8.1 K/9 and 1.4 BB/9.

Braves Avoid Arbitration With Rex Brothers

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The Braves have avoided arbitration with lefty Rex Brothers, according to David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. It is a non-guaranteed deal, per the report.

MLBTR had not considered Brothers as an arb-eligible player owing to a club option, but O’Brien says the team was able to tender him a contract after declining that option. The end result will seemingly be somewhat similar, as Brothers will receive a split contract that pays him at a $1.1MM rate for time spent in the majors and a $450K rate for time spent in the minors, per ESPN.com’s Buster Olney (via Twitter). (That’s an unusually healthy payday on the minor-league side, it’s worth noting.)

Brothers is still optionable for the coming season, as Olney notes, which helps explain his appeal. He’s also still fairly youthful — he’ll turn 30 in a few weeks — and showed an average 95.8 mph fastball in the majors last year, representing a bounce back to his early-career heat after he experienced some shoulder woes. Similarly, Brothers managed a 13.3% whiff rate that hearkened back to his 2011-13 levels, when Brothers was a healthy and effective reliever for the Rockies.

Of course, it remains to be seen whether Brothers will be able to stay healthy and continue to avoid the free passes that have plagued him in recent seasons. He averaged 4.6 BB/9 to go with a healthy 12.6 K/9 in 23 2/3 innings in 2017. That’s not exactly a desirable walk tally, but is at least in the same range he once worked in better years. Brothers did also cough up 7.23 earned runs per nine on the season, though that’s likely due in large part to some sequencing misfortune and a few too many run-ins with righty hitters. He mowed down southpaw swingers, though, as he has done for much of his career.

Angels Acquire Jim Johnson, International Bonus Money From Braves

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6:40pm: Indeed, Angels GM Billy Eppler forthrightly acknowledges that the team sought the spending capacity “with an eye toward” pursuit of Ohtani, as Fletcher tweets. That the market now also features some notable potential consolation prizes in the form of younger international talent surely made it easier for the Halos to justify the gambit.

2:26pm: Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register reports that the Angels do indeed plan to use the extra funds in order to enhance their pitch to Ohtani. Further, he tweets that Johnson is technically only owed $4.5MM through the end of his contract, not $5MM, due to a $500K signing bonus that has already been paid out.

1:53pm: Jonathan Mayo of MLB.com reports (via Twitter) that the Angels will receive all of the Braves’ remaining pool space: a total of $1.21MM. While the CBA mandates that pool money must be traded in blocks of $250K, it also outlines an exception in the event that the club’s remaining pool space is less than $250K (which would apply to the $210K that remained after the first million).

As Mayo notes, this now gives the Angels a total of $1.315MM that they can offer Ohtani (or another international free agent, such as former Braves prospect Kevin Maitan).

1:13pm: The Braves announced today that they’ve traded right-hander Jim Johnson to the Angels in exchange for minor league lefty Justin Kelly. The Angels also pick up a yet-undetermined amount of international bonus money in the deal, per each club’s announcement.

Jim Johnson | Jason Getz-USA TODAY Sports

Johnson, 34, parlayed a strong 2016 season into a two-year, $10MM contract with the Braves but flopped to the tune of a 5.56 ERA in the first season of that deal in 2017. The former Orioles closer and two-time American League saves leader logged 56 2/3 innings with 9.7 K/9, 4.0 BB/9 and 1.27 HR/9 in what proved to be his worst season since the 2014 season. Johnson’s once sky-high ground-ball rate (62.3 percent at his peak) sat at a solid but unremarkable level of 48.5 percent in 2017.

Despite the rough year, though, Johnson’s season wasn’t devoid of reason for optimism. His 9.7 K/9 rate was the best of his career, as was his 9.4 percent swinging-strike rate. His fastball maintained its 93-94 mph velocity, and metrics like xFIP (3.98) and SIERA (3.87) were considerably more bullish on his output. Johnson also isn’t far removed from a strong season; as previously alluded to, he turned in a 3.06 ERA with 9.5 K/9, 2.8 BB/9, 0.4 HR/9 and a 55 percent grounder rate in 64 2/3 frames as recently as 2016. For an Angels club that has already lost Yusmeiro Petit and also saw relievers Bud Norris, Andrew Bailey, Huston Street and (in a summer trade) David Hernandez depart, Johnson will give them a rebound option to soak up some of the lost innings.

Of course, Johnson is a bit pricey for a bullpen rebound candidate, earning $5MM in 2018. However, the Halos will also pick up some coveted international funds that they’ll add to what was a reportedly depleted total of $150K in their international bonus pool. International pool space must be traded in increments of at least $250K, per the collective bargaining agreement, so Anaheim will nearly triple its available resources even if they received only the minimum $250K. Those funds, of course, can be used as part of a pitch to Shohei Ohtani or to some of the Braves’ recently lost prospects, who are all subject to international pools.

[Related: Updated Angels Depth Chart and Braves Depth Chart]

Kelly, 25 in April, was a 33rd-round pick out of UC Santa Barbara in 2016 and spent the bulk of his first full professional season in the Class-A Midwest League. In 29 2/3 innings there, Kelly pitched to a strong 2.43 ERA with 7.9 K/9, 3.3 BB/9 and a 44.4 percent ground-ball rate. The Halos gave him brief looks in Class-A Advanced, Double-A and Triple-A late in the season, though none of those three cameos produced enviable results.

Overall, Kelly’s season wrapped up with a composite 3.53 ERA, 8.1 K/9 and 4.1 BB/9 in 63 2/3 innings (six starts, 19 relief appearances). Considering he’s the return in a move that amounts to a salary dump from the Braves, it’s not especially surprising that Kelly wasn’t ranked among the Angels’ top 30 farmhands. He could head to the bullpen for the Braves’ Class-A Advanced affiliate to open the 2018 campaign.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Crasnick’s Latest: Power Bats, Jay, Miller, Gattis, Slow Offseason

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A record 117 players hit 20 or more homers in the 2017 season, ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick writes in his latest column, and 16 of those players are now free agents. Crasnick speaks to a number of high-ranking execs, including Indians GM Mike Chernoff, Cardinals president John Mozeliak, Red Sox president Dave Dombrowski, Angels GM Billy Eppler and Rays senior VP Chaim Bloom about baseball’s home run boom and whether it’ll dramatically impact the value of home runs in free agency.

“We all follow the trends,” says Chernoff. “At the same time, when we are actually evaluating players, we’re just looking at overall run production and prevention on both sides of the ball, offensively and defensively.” Bloom, meanwhile, suggested that his Rays will always seek value in areas of the market that may experience some depreciation in value. As Crasnick notes, that may partially explain why Tampa Bay swatted the sixth-most homers in baseball in 2017 but finished 22nd in OBP. It’s an interesting look at a some potential changes to the mechanics of player valuation that is packed with quotes from the executives who will ultimately have final say over those decisions.

A bit more from Crasnick…

  • The Mariners are still involved in the market for outfielder Jon Jay, Crasnick reports on Twitter. Indeed, Seattle is a “prime player” for the veteran, who doesn’t deliver much power at all but owns a lifetime .288 batting average and has long been a significant on-base threat. As a left-handed hitter who can play some center field, Jay would likely fit well on quite a few rosters, so it stands to reason that he’d field interest from other quarters.
  • Crasnick tweets that if the Rays don’t find a trade partner for infielder Brad Miller, they expect to tender him a contract at tomorrow evening’s 8pm ET deadline. Miller broke out with a 30-homer campaign in 2016 but was plagued by core muscle injury in 2017 and slumped to a .201/.327/.337 slash in 407 plate appearances. Crasnick’s tweet implies, of course, that the Rays do intend to shop Miller around to see if anyone has interest in the slugging utilityman, whom MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projects to earn $4.4MM in arbitration this offseason.
  • Also on the topic of non-tenders, Crasnick notes in the above column that the Astros are likely to tender a contract to slugger Evan Gattis tomorrow. MLBTR listed Gattis as a potential non-tender/trade candidate due to his projected $6.6MM salary, some diminished productivity and the fact that backup catcher/designated hitter are among the few clear areas for improvement on a stacked Astros roster. MLB.com’s Brian McTaggart suggested the same this week, but Crasnick and Jake Kaplan of the Houston Chronicle both report that indications are that Gattis is not at risk of a non-tender.
  • We’d also recommend circling back to Crasnick’s interesting recent column regarding the slow pace of transactions this winter. Though time has passed since it was written, we still have yet to see any truly significant transactions. Crasnick advances eight theories for why this particular market has been so sluggish — all of which, no doubt, are playing some role in the matter. Beyond the oft-discussed factors of Giancarlo Stanton and Shohei Ohtani, several of Crasnick’s points focus on this year’s particular class of free agents — many of whom share Scott Boras as an agent and others of whom are somewhat bunched up in a few positions. Luxury tax considerations, the anticipated super-class of 2018 free agents and a relative lack of selling organizations are among the other factors that have conspired to create drag, Crasnick posits.

Shohei Ohtani Rumors: Thursday

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The question of whether Shohei Ohtani can successfully lead a big league rotation and serve as a legitimate member of its offense on a semi-regular basis is one of the most fascinating storylines in recent memory, and Tim Brown of Yahoo Sports takes an excellent look at the viability of that scenario. Brown spoke to GM, scouts, coaches and players throughout the league, and though the prevailing opinion was that while it would be difficult and unlikely, there’s also a sentiment that those in the industry are nonetheless rooting for Ohtani to succeed at both.

Rays righty Chris Archer tells Brown that a successful two-way player would “change our perspective” on the game. Archer and free-agent outfielder Jayson Werth both chatted with Brown about their daily schedules and recovery programs, which Brown uses as a means of illustrating the challenges of Ohtani successfully serving as a starter and a DH/outfielder. Brown also talks with former pitcher/outfielder Rick Ankiel about the summer he spent as a starter and a DH in A-ball. Ankiel suggests that the true question isn’t one of whether Ohtani can physically handle a two-way role but rather one of whether Ohtani can thrive in both areas. “Can he be great at both here?” Ankiel asks rhetorically. “That depends on how good he really is.”

Some other notes on the game’s most intriguing free-agent-to-be, who should be formally posted by Saturday…

  • The Athletics can only offer $300K to Ohtani after exceeding last year’s allotted international pool, but Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports a detailed account of their pitch to Ohtani. Oakland is will to not only let Ohtani hit but also play the outfield on occasion, she notes, and their sales pitch also centers around an emerging young core of comparably aged players to Ohtani — led by Matt Olson and Matt Chapman. The A’s hope to be in a new ballpark by 2023, if not sooner and are hoping to sell Ohtani on helping them usher in that new facility as one of the faces of the team. They also highlighted manager Bob Melvin’s relationship with Ichiro Suzuki and Hideki Matsui as well as Oakland’s relative proximity to Japan, among many other aspects.
  • Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register reports that the Angels have “earmarked” the $1.315MM they now have in their international pool after today’s trade with the Braves for a pursuit of Ohtani.

Earlier Updates

  • The Phillies haven’t been mentioned in connection with Ohtani, but MLB.com’s Todd Zolecki writes that they do plan to take their shot at landing him, even if they’re considered long shots. The Phils have $900K to offer Ohtani in terms of a signing bonus, and new skipper Gabe Kapler spent a season playing in Nippon Professional Baseball, giving him some familiarity with Japanese baseball and culture. Zolecki also notes that former Phillies skipper Charlie Manuel, a senior advisor in the front office, enjoyed an excellent six-year career in NPB and is likely a known name for Ohtani, even if Manuel wrapped up his playing career before Ohtani was born. Nonetheless, the Phils will also need to convince Ohtani that their rebuilding club is near contention, and Zolecki further notes that other markets like New York, Los Angeles and Seattle have considerably larger Japanese populations and communities.
  • Pennsylvania’s other MLB club may also be a long shot, but Pirates GM Neal Huntington still spoke optimistically in his team’s ability to make a competitive pitch for Ohtani in a recent appearance with Chris Mueller and Joe Starkey on 93.7 The Fan. “We are going to do everything in our power, and hopefully, have him honor us with the ability to get beyond the written presentation, get beyond the initial 30-club presentation and really dig into why it would be an honor for us to have him become a member of the Pittsburgh Pirates,” said Huntington. In terms of potential bonus offer, the Bucs are one of the better-positioned teams, with a bit more than $2.2MM to offer, but Ohtani is widely expected to make far more through endorsements than his initial signing bonus anyhow, so the bonus itself may not be an enormous separator.
  • David Kaplan of NBC Sports Chicago writes that the Cubs have sent scouts to Japan to watch Ohtani for weeks at a time in the past, and some rivals believe the Cubs to be a serious threat to land him. One exec remarks to Kaplan that president of baseball ops Theo Epstein and GM Jed Hoyer have success in setting up support systems for international stars thanks to their acquisition of Daisuke Matsuzaka with the Red Sox in the 2006-07 offseason. The Cubs are capped at a $300K signing bonus, though again, that doesn’t appear to be as significant a strike against them as it would be in the pursuit of a more traditional free agent.
  • Chelsea Janes of the Washington Post reports that the Nationals crafted a presentation in English, which international scouting assistant Taisuke Sato then translated to Japanese for Ohtani’s consumption. Janes notes that the Nationals, who are also capped at $300K, cannot compete financially in terms of signing bonus and don’t have previous experience in signing Japanese players under GM Mike Rizzo to demonstrate a proven plan for helping an NPB star transition to the Majors. That said, the team has very recently made a significant investment in its medical staff, boasts a new Spring Training facility and a fairly new ballpark in D.C., and can attempt to sell Ohtani on the allure of joining an immediate contender with an open rotation spot. Janes paints the Nats as long shots but notes that they, like all 30 other clubs, will at least perform their due diligence in attempting to entire Ohtani.

Mariners Claim Sam Moll

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The Mariners announced that they’ve claimed left-handed reliever Sam Moll off waivers from the Pirates, bringing their 40-man roster to a total of 37 players.

Pittsburgh had only just claimed the 25-year-old Moll off waivers from the A’s on Monday, but the Bucs apparently did so with the hope of then passing Moll through waivers themselves in order to keep him in the organization without committing a 40-man roster spot.

A former third-round pick of the Rockies, Moll made his big league debut in 2017, though he was tagged for eight earned runs in a small sample of 6 2/3 innings. His work in the minors, however, is more solid. In 54 1/3 innings between the Triple-A affiliates for the Rockies and the A’s, Moll pitched to a 3.64 ERA with 7.8 K/9 against 3.1 BB/9.

Moll has a history of missing bats and inducing grounders at an above-average rate through the Double-A level and will give Seattle a lefty with multiple minor league options remaining to compete for a bullpen spot next spring — assuming he makes it to camp with the Mariners and doesn’t land with another organization via waivers, of course.

Diamondbacks Acquire Brad Boxberger

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The D-backs announced today that they’ve acquired right-handed reliever Brad Boxberger from the Rays in exchange for minor league right-hander Curtis Taylor.

Brad Boxberger | Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

The trade of Boxberger to Arizona sheds one arbitration-eligible player for the Rays, who have a sizable arb class and many decisions to face as they look to trim payroll for the 2018 season. While Boxberger won’t be paid at an exorbitant rate — MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projects a $1.9MM salary in 2018 — Tampa Bay was facing arb decisions on 12 players, suggesting that further non-tenders or trades of second-tier players could be on the horizon for the Rays.

Boxberger, 30 in May, was an All-Star closer for the Rays back in 2015 when he saved 41 games and pitched to a 3.71 ERA with 10.6 K/9, 4.6 BB/9 and a 36.3 percent ground-ball rate. Arizona’s ninth-inning situation is currently murky after 2017 closer Fernando Rodney hit free agency at season’s end, and while Boxberger could compete for a high-leverage spot depending on the D-backs’ other offseason moves, he won’t simply be handed the job. For one thing, Archie Bradley could well be the in-house favorite to fill that role at present. Furthermore, the bullpen looks like one area for the D-backs to address this offseason, though they’ll face payroll challenges in doing so.

Beyond that, Boxberger hasn’t been closing in Tampa Bay in recent seasons anyhow, as he’s been plagued by groin and oblique injuries as well as a flexor strain in 2017. When healthy, however, he was quite effective this past season, as evidenced by a 3.38 ERA, 12.3 K/9 and 3.4 BB/9 in 29 1/3 frames. Boxberger has totaled just 53 1/3 innings over his past two injury-plagued seasons, though he’ll be a nice addition that the team can control through the 2019 season, via arbitration, if he can remain healthy next year. Boxberger adds to a massive D-backs arbitration class that now includes an astounding 15 players — though the Snakes have several non-tender/trade candidates in that mix themselves (e.g. Chris Herrmann, J.J. Hoover, T.J. McFarland).

[Related: Updated Diamondbacks Depth Chart & Rays Depth Chart]

As for the Rays, they’ll pick up a prospect that ranked 14th in a poorly regarded Diamondbacks farm system, per MLB.com. The 22-year-old Taylor (23 next July) spent the 2017 season with Class-A Kane County, where he pitched to a solid 3.32 ERA with 9.8 K/9, 3.3 BB/9, 0.6 HR/9 and a 43.6 percent ground-ball rate in 13 starts (62 1/3 innings).

Jim Callis and Jonathan Mayo of MLB.com note in their scouting report that the 6’6″ fourth-rounder (2016) has the potential for two plus offerings thanks to a 94-95 mph sinker and an upper-80s slider. Callis and Mayo note that there’s a belief that Taylor could end up in the bullpen ultimately, and Fangraphs’ Eric Longenhagen tweets the same. Per Longenhagen, Taylor has better control than most pitchers of his height and a potential plus slider, but his delivery is better suited for relief work.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

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