Starting pitching is in the news this morning, with several notable names being discussed. But there are a whole lot of other moving pieces out there. Let’s run down the latest chatter on the pitching market:
- The Brewers have chatted with the Rays about their potential rotation trade pieces, according to Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel (via Twitter), who cautions that there’s no indication to this point that “any traction was made.” It’s not immediately clear which Tampa Bay hurlers have piqued the interest of the Milwaukee front office, though surely they’d have the trade pieces necessary to swing a deal for just about anyone. Chris Archer remains the big name to watch, though we don’t yet know whether he’s truly available. The Brewers could conceivably have interest in other pitchers, too, including veteran Jake Odorizzi, but it’s all speculation at this stage.
- Meanwhile, the Brewers are said to have interest in righty Jesse Chavez, Haudricourt also tweets. We heard yesterday the veteran swingman was likely to find a new home this week.
- Veteran closer Fernando Rodney has met with the Rangers and Twins, per MLB.com’s TR Sullivan (via Twitter) and Mike Berardino of the St. Paul Pioneer-Press (via Twitter). It’s not clear at this point how serious the interest is, though Rodney might conceivably be an option for either club, both of which have largely unsettled ninth-inning plans.
- Another interesting possibility on the rotation market is Royals lefty Danny Duffy. He has drawn interest from the Cubs, per Robert Murray of Fan Rag. Indeed, K.C. has been contacted by rivals on Duffy and a few other notably interesting assets, MLB.com’s Jeffrey Flanagan tweets. It’s entirely unclear at this point what kinds of scenarios might be pondered on Duffy, but the Royals will surely want a significant return for a player they only recently extended. His contract runs through 2021 and promises him $60MM. While a DUI arrest and elbow surgery introduce some uncertainty into the situation, from a pure on-field perspective Duffy remains a valuable asset as he nears his 29th birthday.
- The Mets are among the organizations with interest in free agent righty Juan Nicasio, according to Tyler Kepner of the New York Times (via Twitter). The 31-year-old pitched quite well throughout 2017, both before and after an odd series of August transactions. He ended the year with a 2.61 ERA over 72 1/3 innings, with 9.0 K/9 and 2.5 BB/9.
- We’ve heard some possibility that the Nationals could have interest in free agent righty Jake Arrieta, and ESPN.com’s Jerry Crasnick tweets that agent Scott Boras is working to sell that potential fit to the team’s ownership. Then again, Chelsea Janes of the Washington Post characterizes the Nationals’ interest as “tepid” in a tweet. The division-rival Phillies are reportedly also a possibility, along with several other teams, as we covered this morning. Given that the Nats have an opening in their rotation, it isn’t at all surprising to hear that Boras is pushing for it to be filled by Arrieta; after all, his connection to the organization’s ownership is quite well-established by this point. Of course, adding yet another high-priced starter would carry some pretty notable risk for the organization, so it stands to reason that the club will explore other possibilities before deciding whether to join the pursuit of the 31-year-old Arrieta. Crasnick also takes a broader look at Arrieta’s still-developing market, including an extensive examination of Boras’s marketing strategy.
- While there is action at the top of the pitching market, the Blue Jays seem to be taking a patient approach, as Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet.ca writes. While GM Ross Atkins says there’s a lack of depth in the rotation market, he also has indicated no interest in pushing hard to strike a deal. It seems the organization’s inclination remains to seek value in bolstering the rotation depth.
- For the Diamondbacks, meanwhile, the team may at least be preparing to consider deals involving some fairly surprising players. Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic runs down the team’s options for trade candidates who might free up some payroll space and enable the team to achieve future value. At the top of the list are center fielder A.J. Pollock and lefty Patrick Corbin. Meanwhile, the D-Backs are certainly still looking to field a competitor in the near term as well. They are one team with some level of interest in reliever Seung-Hwan Oh, according to Murray. Oh was not able to match his compelling MLB debut season in 2017, but still posted 8.2 K/9 against 2.0 BB/9 while carrying a 4.10 ERA over 59 1/3 innings.
skrockij89
Odorizzi to the M’s would make sense.
angelsfan4life
And exactly what would the M’s trade? Do they have anyone left in the minors? I thought Jerry Dipsnot traded everyone in the minors already.
Realtexan
Nah Odorizzi needs to head to either the Astros or the Rangers. That makes a lot more sense
kaido24
Oh sucks. unless he can be had for cheap he isn’t worth it.
brewcrew08
2 of his last 4 years he’s pitched to sub 3.70 ERA ball while making at least 28 starts all 4 years. Not to mention a career 4.1 isn’t terrible nowadays. Is he a 1,2 or even 3? No. Plug him in as a 4-5 type starter who will give you 180 innings and he’s worth it. not to mention a move to the NL would only help his value.
Joe Kerr
Ha, I thought he was talking about the relief pitcher from the Cardinals.
kaido24
Referring to the Cardinals former closer.
Dave 41
If Stearns wants to get traction in talks for Archer, he needs to include Lewis Brinson
brewcrew08
No he doesn’t. Hypothetically Corey Ray (#59), Ortiz (#70) and Diaz (#86) would get the rays interested
mp2891
Only in fantasy land would that package excite the Rays. The Rays turned down Houston’s offer of Tucker/Whitely/Paulino/2 others last year (a trade I think they would accept this year), which is an infinitely better package than that.
baumer16
Ya even as a Brewers fan I laughed at that package for Archer.
Joe Kerr
Archer will cost a lot, maybe to the point where it wouldn’t be worth it but if the team feels like they are 1 solid pitcher away then I can see it happening. IMO it would take at least 1 of Brinson, Ray or Phillips, and add in 2 of Hader, Woodruff and Ortiz, and probably another low minors player with decent upside. Like I said it would cost a lot and may not be worth it. in the long run. Any trade for a solid controllable pitcher on a very team friendly deal will hurt, if it doesn’t hurt then Tampa wont be getting enough to give him up, much like the Chris Sale trade last year.
pdxbrewcrew
I don’t think it would take two of the top pitchers, just one. One of Brinson/Ray/Phillips plus one of Hader/Woodruff/Ortiz/Burnes plus two or three other lesser prospects (Erceg plus a couple of pitchers from Carolina maybe).
11Bravo
I hope the Brewers pursue Odorizzi over
11Bravo
Damn cell phones. *pursue Odorizzi over Archer.
brewcrew08
So do I. Odorizzi for a few prospects then sign a starter/bullpen help
balloonknots
Odo 4 Santana – let’s do it
Brewers have a stud AA 3b I’m sure Rays are looking at him as Longo has to be traded
mp2891
The Rays would make that trade in a hearbeat (Odorizzi for Domingo Santana). No need to include your stud AA 3B, but we’ll take him too if you’re offering.
Joe Kerr
I’ve been saying for months now that I could see Duffy traded to the Cubs for Addison Russell and let Javier Baez take over at shortstop.
egrossen
Or Happ
wrigleywannabe
I’d give them Baez instead. If it takes more, throw in Almora. No more than that.
mlb1225
If The Nats pursue Arrieta, they shouldn’t offer him a large contract. He’s slowly declining, and will be on the wrong side of 30 before you know it.
Joe Kerr
He will be 32 for the entire season next year, so he is already on the wrong side of 30.
Kayrall
That’s almost everyone’s opinion with regard to arrieta.
mlb1225
I mean, it’s not wrong. If you look at his numbers, they’ve been trending the wrong direction.
jackt
Right. Just throwing this out there but I think Archer will require a large hall. See what we’re doing here?
stubby66
Think Ordorizzi and Duffy are really the only two players in pitchers the Brewers should try and get. Also this is out of leftfield but what is up with Brett Lawrie would take a chance on him for second base on a minor league deal
mp2891
How about Odorizzi for Burnes and either Hiura or Lutz?
Appbrewers
hiura is pretty much untouchable. best pure hitter in this year’s draft. Burnes is pretty high up on the prospect rankings so that seems heavily one sided for the Ray’s. no thanks
mp2891
I thought that was the game we played on this site – one sided trades. 😉
Seriously though, I would expect Odorizzi to yield a Top 100 prospect and a back-end prospect. The fact that two of the players I listed were drafted in 2017 does probably make them untouchable, but you never know. Anyway, thanks for the response. I like that Brewers fans are excited about Odorizzi, as I see the Rays trading Colome to either the Cubs or Cardinals (my preference would be the Cardinals, and I want to avoid package deals if at all possible). And then there’s Archer and Longo… What to do, what to do…
stubby66
Any team trading with the Brewers would be very smart to add Nathan Kirby in a deal he is primed to have a breakout year
firstbleed
Hiura can’t be traded until July of 2018.
mp2891
Well that takes care of that. I assume that probably includes Lutz too?
therealryan
Just a heads up, they changed that rule a couple of seasons back. You can now trade drafted players once the World Series ends.
Brewers39
The Brewers payroll is primed for a big FA. I would rather see them break the bank, even if it’s a bust. No need to break the farm. That has the makings of a historically bad trade.
jackt
Everything that Stearns has said so far should lead us to believe he won’t be making a big FA splash. More likely he trades for an Odorizzi type, or maybe even Corbin/Duffy. If he signs a FA I just see a 1 year deal for a guy looking to bounce back like maybe Hellickson. Hopefully he does both. Or maybe he’s just playing us!
ThePriceWasRight
translation on blue jays piece – We have no clue what we are doing. We want to compete but not be in on game changers, just pick up scraps. That will put us over the top
gav1
Do you think the Angels will get a third basemanor a 2nd baseman
mp2891
Want Longo?
Voice of Reason
No news on Darvish. He and his agent must be sitting out the winter meetings and hangin with Jeter.
Say Hey Now Kid
I’m so tired of hearing who the Mets “have interest” in. They’re not actually going after anyone. Just being interested in them
HubertHumphrey
If the Twins (or anyone) can land Rodney, I hope that they can force him to bend the brim of his cap. He always looks ridiculous.