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Archives for July 2024

Domingo German Opts Out Of Pirates Deal

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Right-hander Domingo German was released by the Pirates this week, per the transaction log at MiLB.com. He’d been pitching with their Triple-A affiliate in Indianapolis. Robert Murray of FanSided reports that German exercised an opt-out clause in his contract, prompting the release. The Bucs remain open to bringing him back, per Murray — presumably on a new minor league pact.

German, 31, has started ten games in Indy and pitched to a 5.36 ERA with a below-average 20.6% strikeout rate and a bloated 12.6% walk rate. However, a good portion of the damage against German came in one brutal outing that saw him yield eight runs (seven earned) in just five frames. In six starts since that ugly outing, he’s logged a more palatable 3.60 ERA with slightly improved strikeout and walk rates of 22.7% and 10.9%.

German’s entire big league career has been spent in a Yankees uniform. He pitched parts of six seasons in the Bronx, logging 522 1/3 innings of 4.41 ERA ball while working primarily out of the starting rotation. He’s had a fair bit of big league success but also saw his time with the Yankees marred by off-the-field issues.

In 2020, German was suspended for 81 games under the MLB-MLBPA joint domestic violence policy. He did not pitch in the shortened 2020 season as a result. German also missed the final portion of the 2023 season after “voluntarily submitting to inpatient treatment for alcohol abuse” (as announced by the Yankees at the time) following an incident in which he was reportedly intoxicated in the clubhouse. Earlier in the 2023 season, he also served a 10-game suspension in 2023 after an umpire ruled that the pitcher had violated MLB’s foreign substance policy on the mound.

The Pirates are relatively deep in rotation options, even with Jared Jones, Bailey Falter and Johan Oviedo currently on the injured list. Pittsburgh’s rotation currently includes Paul Skenes, Mitch Keller, Martin Perez, Quinn Priester and Marco Gonzales. Righty Luis Ortiz and top prospect Braxton Ashcraft give the Bucs further options, with Ashcraft in particular in the midst of a breakout season between Double-A and Triple-A. Falter is on the shelf with tendinitis in his left triceps and isn’t presently expected to be in for a lengthy absence. Jones was shut down for two weeks in early July after being diagnosed with a Grade 2 lat strain. It’s not yet clear when he’s expected to resume throwing off a mound, let alone return to the big league staff. Oviedo underwent Tommy John surgery in the offseason and will be out until 2025.

Longoria: Not Officially Retired, But Unlikely To Continue Playing

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Evan Longoria suited up for just the third organization of his career in 2023 when he signed with the D-backs and helped the club make an improbable run to the World Series. He hasn’t signed a new contract since then but also hasn’t formally filed any retirement paperwork. The longtime Rays and Giants third baseman, however, told Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times and others this past weekend that he’s all but officially retired.

“I waited long enough to know that I was done,” Longoria said before detailing some of the physical toll his 16-year playing career took during his final seasons. “…And then, being able to go to the World Series, have the experience that I had, it made it a pretty easy decision for me going into the offseason.”

Longoria did leave the door for one final run ever so slightly cracked. The 38-year-old said it would “depend on what team” called him and their chances of reaching a postseason. He listed both the Rays and D-backs as clubs he’d at least consider if he got the itch to take one more chance at winning a World Series.

“One of the only things I haven’t accomplished is winning a World Series,” said Longoria. “So if you said I would go hit .080 for the rest of the season, but the team would win the World Series, then I’d go do it. But that’s probably about the only thing I’d want to do.”

It’s a candid and broad-reaching interview that fans of Longoria and his former clubs, in particular, will want to check out in full. Some of the many topics touched on include how no Ray has worn his iconic No. 3 since he was traded, the slugger’s thoughts on a potential new stadium for the Rays, his life at home now that he’s been able to focus on being a full-time dad, and his hope to eventually return to the game in some capacity.

If Longoria is indeed done as a player, he’ll wrap up an outstanding career with a .264/.333/.471 batting line. He played in parts of 16 big league seasons, garnering MVP votes in six of them. Longoria made three All-Star teams, was named American League Rookie of the Year, won three Gold Gloves and took home one Silver Slugger Award.

Longoria piled up 1930 hits, including 431 doubles, 26 triples and 342 home runs, tying him with Hall of Famer Ron Santo for 104th on the all-time home run leaderboard. Those 431 doubles currently rank 142nd all-time. The former No. 3 overall pick also scored 1017 runs and knocked in 1159 (the latter ranking 185th all-time). FanGraphs credits Longoria with a hefty 55.2 wins above replacement. Baseball-Reference is even more bullish at 58.6 WAR. He earned more than $150MM in salary over the course of his 16 years in the big leagues. Along the way, he carved out a reputation as an excellent and beloved teammate.

“Longo is one of the best teammates I’ve ever had,” Guardians manager Stephen Vogt told the AP’s Mark Didtler. “This guy’s a pro’s pro. This guy’s the epitome of what a professional baseball player looks like. Evan Longoria is everything that’s good about our game, and what a wonderful career he had.”

Phillies Among Teams With Interest In Tommy Pham

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The Phillies are among the teams with some interest in White Sox outfielder Tommy Pham, writes Jon Heyman of the New York Post. Philadelphia is known to be on the hunt for some outfield help in the run-up to the July 30 trade deadline, and while they’ve been more heavily rumored to be seeking a true center fielder, the 36-year-old Pham could still give them a solid bat in left field (pushing Brandon Marsh to center with more regularity) or a bat off the bench who could be paired with a true center field addition. The Royals have also been linked to Pham.

While Pham doesn’t offer the defensive excellence of current Philadelphia outfielders Johan Rojas and Cristian Pache, he can handle center field in a pinch. He also brings quite a bit more offense to the table than either player. Pham’s bat has cooled since a hot start to the season, but he’s still sporting a solid .264/.339/.368 slash line on the season (103 wRC+). This is Pham’s tenth full big league season and the eighth in which he’s provided at least average offense.

The Phillies recently released veteran Whit Merrifield, who’d played 25 games in left field for them (in addition to 14 at second base and a dozen at the hot corner). The hope had been that he could be a vital bat for them against lefties, but that didn’t prove to be the case. He hit just .190/.238/.329 in 84 plate appearances against southpaws. Pham, on the other hand, has pummeled lefties, hitting .260/.383/.480 when holding the platoon advantage. He’s posted a solid .265 average and .325 on-base percentage against righties but hasn’t hit for any power in right-on-right situations, slugging just .337.

Pham’s contractual status also likely appeals to a Phillies club that is already in the second tier of luxury tax penalization. He’s playing the season on a $3MM salary, with about $1.21MM of that sum yet to be paid out as of this writing. (He’d be owed a $500K assignment bonus upon being traded and can unlock an additional $1.5MM in salary based on plate appearances.) Because the Phils are paying the tax for a third straight year and in the second tier of penalty ($20MM to $40MM over the $237MM tax threshold), they’ll pay a 62% tax on any dollars added to the payroll.

Adding Pham and the remainder of his modest base salary would result in an additional $750K of tax penalties, bringing his theoretical luxury hit for the club to $1.96MM (the exact number will be impacted by which team pays the assignment bonus and the actual timing of a potential trade, of course). That’s of particular benefit to the Phillies, who would see their top pick in the 2025 draft pushed back 10 places if they reach $277MM in tax considerations. At present, RosterResource projects the Phils at $261.6MM worth of luxury obligations. With the Phillies surely eyeing multiple upgrades ahead of the deadline, assuring that at least one of those pickups comes with a relatively minimal salary commitment could be extra importance.

The Opener: Trade Season, Musgrove, White Sox

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On the heels of the American League emerging victorious from last night’s All-Star game, here are three things we’ll be keeping an eye on around the baseball world throughout the day today:

1. It’s trade season!

With the 2024 Amateur Draft complete, front offices around the game are now set to fully turn their attention to augmenting their rosters ahead of the July 30 trade deadline. A few notable trades have already occurred this month, such as the Rays flipping right-handers Aaron Civale and Phil Maton to the Brewers and Mets, respectively. The most recent trade of note occurred this past weekend, when the Royals acquired righty Hunter Harvey from the Nationals. If you haven’t already taken a look at MLBTR’s Top 50 Trade Candidates For The 2024 MLB Trade Deadline, it offers an opportunity to brush up on some of the names most likely to be dealt in the coming weeks. Harvey was the 15th player on the list, and other top names who could be on the move this summer include Garrett Crochet of the White Sox (2nd) and Jazz Chisholm Jr. of the Marlins (5th).

2. Musgrove takes step towards return:

The Padres have been without right-hander Joe Musgrove since late May as the veteran deals with inflammation in his elbow caused by a bone spur. He’s set to make a major step towards his return today, however, as MLB.com’s Injury Tracker notes that he’ll throw the first bullpen session of his rehab today. If that goes well, it will be followed by more intense bullpen sessions throughout San Diego’s road trip after the break. While the 31-year-old has struggled in 10 starts this year with a 5.66 ERA across 49 1/3 innings of work, the Padres are hoping he’ll return to his typical form as a frontline starter when healthy. Entering the 2024 campaign, Musgrove owned an excellent 3.05 ERA and 3.62 FIP in 459 2/3 innings of work since first donning a Padres uniform back in 2021. In Musgrove’s absence, the club is currently deploying a four-man rotation of right-handers Dylan Cease, Michael King, Matt Waldron, and Randy Vasquez.

3. White Sox 40-man roster move incoming:

Last night, it was reported that the White Sox and infielder Nick Senzel are in agreement on a big league deal. Senzel, 29, hit .209/.303/.359 (89 wRC+) while playing third base for the Nationals this year but was released just before the All-Star break began. Even that below-average pace would be an upgrade over struggling ChiSox infielder Lenyn Sosa, who has posted a 74 wRC+ in 52 games while splitting time between second and third base. Chicago’s 40-man roster is currently full, so they’ll need to make a move to open a spot before games resume Friday.

With no obvious candidates to be placed on the 60-day IL who haven’t already been transferred there, it’s possible the club will be forced to designate a player for assignment in order to make room for Senzel on the roster. On the other hand, the White Sox figure to be one of the most active sellers in the league this trade season. Given that, it would hardly be a surprise to see the club make a sell-side trade in the coming days, a move that could organically open a 40-man spot and allow them to add Senzel.

White Sox, Nick Senzel Agree To Major League Deal

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The White Sox are reportedly in agreement with free agent infielder Nick Senzel on a major league contract. Senzel, a client of the Boras Corporation, was released by the Nationals last week. Chicago will need to open space on the active and 40-man rosters once the move is finalized, which might not happen until after the All-Star Break.

As MLB’s clearest rebuilding team, the Sox are a sensible fit for Senzel. No team has gotten less from its third basemen this year. Through 371 plate appearances, Sox third basemen are hitting .206/.246/.315 with six home runs and a 4.6% walk rate. That’s in part because Yoán Moncada has been on the injured list since the second week of the season. Yet even with Moncada on a minor league rehab stint and nearing a return, there’s ample opportunity for Senzel around the Chicago infield.

The Sox have turned to Nicky Lopez, Paul DeJong and Lenyn Sosa as their primary options alongside first baseman Andrew Vaughn. DeJong has popped 16 homers and would certainly be dealt if the Sox can drum up any level of trade interest over the next two weeks. Sosa and Lopez have been well below-average hitters.

DeJong and Moncada are impending free agents. (The latter has a $25MM club option that certainly isn’t getting exercised.) Lopez would be due a raise on this year’s $4.3MM salary in his final year of arbitration, so he could be a non-tender candidate. Chicago’s infield could look quite a bit different next year.

Senzel is a long shot to emerge as a key piece himself, but there’s minimal risk for Chicago in taking a look at the former #2 overall pick. The one-time top prospect hasn’t met expectations on either side of the ball over his five-plus MLB seasons. He’s a career .235/.302/.368 hitter in just over 1600 big league plate appearances. Most of that came in one of the sport’s most favorable home hitting environments in Cincinnati’s Great American Ball Park.

Injuries perhaps played some role in diminishing Senzel’s production. He has never topped 420 plate appearances in a season and battled knee and toe issues during his time with the Reds. Cincinnati also bounced him around the diamond without much success in trying to expand his defensive versatility.

After the Reds non-tendered Senzel last winter, he landed with the Nationals on a $2MM free agent deal. Washington moved him back to his customary third base position in the hope that a more stable defensive setup could allow him to unlock some of his offensive upside. That’s not how things played out. Senzel hit .209/.303/.359 with below-average defensive grades over 64 games. Washington decided to move on and turn third base over to rookie Trey Lipscomb.

The Nationals are on the hook for the majority of Senzel’s contract. The White Sox will only pay him the prorated portion of the $740K minimum for any time he spends in the big leagues (which comes out of Washington’s obligations). Senzel surpassed the five-year service threshold earlier this season. That means he can no longer be sent to the minor leagues without his consent. He would be eligible for arbitration for the 2025 campaign if he plays well enough to hold a roster spot down the stretch.

Jon Heyman of the New York Post first reported Senzel was signing with the White Sox. James Fegan of Sox Machine reported it was a big league deal.

Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.

Mariners Agree To Deal With First Rounder Jurrangelo Cijntje

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The Mariners are in agreement with first-round pick Jurrangelo Cijntje on a deal, pending a physical, reports Daniel Kramer of MLB.com. According to Kramer, the Mississippi State product will receive the full $4.8809MM slot value of the 15th pick. Seattle also reportedly agreed to an overslot deal with second-rounder Ryan Sloan last night.

Perhaps the most fascinating player in this year’s draft, Cijntje is a switch pitcher. A native of the Netherlands and one-time Little League World Series participant with Curacao, Cijntje is a natural lefty but throws much harder from the right side. Scouting reports credit him with a plus slider and mid-upper 90s velocity as a righty. Cijntje sits in the low-90s with a sweepy slider as a lefty, limiting his work there to specific matchups. He didn’t pitch left-handed against every lefty hitter and worked almost exclusively from the right side late in his draft season.

After posting an 8.10 ERA over 14 appearances as a freshman, Cijntje broke through with an excellent showing as a draft-eligible sophomore. He turned in a 3.67 earned run average through 90 2/3 innings. He fanned nearly 30% of batters faced with a solid 7.9% walk rate — a huge step forward after he’d walked more than 14% of opponents during his first college season.

Cijntje said at the draft that he hopes to continue developing from both sides. Kramer writes that the Mariners intend to give him that opportunity. There’s a good chance Cijntje surpasses former MLB reliever Pat Venditte as the most successful switch-pitcher in memory. Keith Law of the Athletic wrote before the draft that the 21-year-old had the upside of a #2 starter. FanGraphs wrote that Cijntje looks like a back-end starter as a righty in addition to his matchup work from the left side.

Law slotted Cijntje as the #15 prospect in the class, exactly matching his draft slot. Baseball America slotted him 24th, while FanGraphs put him 34th. The Mariners have had plenty of success with the college pitching demographic in recent years, snagging George Kirby, Logan Gilbert, Bryan Woo and Bryce Miller from those ranks. Cijntje was the third pitcher off the board this season.

Cubs Acquire Jesus Tinoco From Royals

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The Cubs announced this evening that they’ve acquired reliever Jesús Tinoco from the Royals for cash (X link via Maddie Lee of the Chicago Sun-Times). Tinoco had signed a minor league deal with Kansas City three weeks ago and was not on their 40-man roster. Unless tonight’s trade was spurred by some kind of upward mobility clause in that contract, the Cubs don’t need to immediately place Tinoco on their 40-man.

Tinoco made six appearances for the Royals’ top affiliate in Omaha. He fired 6 2/3 frames of three-run ball, striking out 10 while issuing one walk. Tinoco also missed plenty of bats in Triple-A with the Rangers earlier this season, fanning 30.3% of batters faced across 21 1/3 innings. His control was quite a bit spottier than he showed in his small sample with K.C., as he walked upwards of 11% of opponents with the Texas affiliate.

The 29-year-old Tinoco has appeared in parts of five MLB seasons between the Rockies, Marlins and Rangers. He tossed a career-high 36 innings of 4.75 ERA ball for Colorado as a rookie in 2019. Tinoco saw more sporadic work over the following few years, only narrowly topping the 20 inning threshold once. He spent last season in Japan, working to a 2.83 ERA despite pedestrian strikeout and walk numbers for the Seibu Lions.

Tinoco returned to the affiliated ranks on a minor league deal with the Rangers over the winter. He made nine MLB appearances with Texas earlier in the season, allowing nine runs over 10 innings. That pushes his career earned run average to 4.58 through 76 2/3 MLB innings. He has a below-average 18.1% strikeout rate with a near-14% walk percentage over that stretch.

While Tinoco hasn’t had much success against big league hitters, his recent form in Triple-A evidently intrigued Chicago. The Cubs rank 16th in the majors with a 4.01 ERA from their relief group. They’re in the top 10 in strikeout rate, but only the Rangers and White Sox have issued more free passes.

The Cubs also have six relievers — Julian Merryweather, Adbert Alzolay, Colten Brewer, Yency Almonte, Keegan Thompson and Luke Little — on the injured list. Chicago optioned Daniel Palencia to Triple-A Iowa today, opening a spot in the major league bullpen. If they decide to install Tinoco directly into the MLB staff, they’d need to create a 40-man roster space.

Fantasy Baseball: It’s the 1st Annual Halfies!

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Hello friends.

Whether you're an old friend from the places I've written before or a new friend for whom our courtship has only recently begun, I think we can all agree on one thing - my writing comes with a certain level of gravitas, only appropriate for the most meditative and consequential discussions. If you won't take fantasy baseball seriously, what's even the point?

So, with irreverence banished far into the sea and with all tongues planted firmly away from any cheek, it's officially time for our most official award show of the year. Officially.

No time for any shenanigans, people - it's the Halfies!

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Royals Place MJ Melendez On Injured List

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The Royals announced that outfielder MJ Melendez has been placed on the 10-day injured list, retroactive to July 15, due to a left ankle sprain. No corresponding move was immediately announced as the club doesn’t play again until Friday due to the All-Star break.

Melendez, 25, departed the club’s most recent game on Sunday after apparently injuring himself running out a ground ball. Bally Sports Kansas City provided video of the play on X. Due to the off-days in the break, it’s possible he could return after only missing a handful of games, but the team will likely provide more information about his expected absence in the days to come.

It’s unfortunate timing for Melendez personally, as he was heating up a bit after an awful first half. He hit .181/.249/.353 through the end of June for a wRC+ of 64, indicating he was 36% worse than the league average hitter. He then put up a torrid line of .273/.314/.606 in 35 July plate appearances, but whatever momentum he was carrying into the break will now be put on ice.

It’s been a frustrating season in what has already been a disappointing big league career for Melendez. He was considered one of the top 100 prospects in the sport as he climbed towards the majors, with Baseball America putting him in the #42 overall spot heading into 2022. But he hit just .227/.314/.396 over 2022 and 2023 for a wRC+ of 95.

The Royals gradually moved him from the catcher position to the outfield in that time. He was blocked by Salvador Perez anyway but the Royals likely hoped that a less-demanding defensive position could perhaps help him develop offensively, but that hasn’t really materialized. Even with his recent hot streak, he’s still hitting just .192/.257/.385 on the year overall for a 75 wRC+ and his career-long performance leads to a line of .219/.303/.393 and a 92 wRC+.

Despite the struggles of Melendez, it’s been a good season for the club overall. They went 56-106 last year but have almost matched that win total already. They are currently 52-45 and just two games out of a playoff spot. That’s been largely in spite of their horrendous production on the grass, as Melendez and his fellow outfielders have hit .216/.276/.361 on the year for a 76 wRC+, dead last in the majors.

Adding to the outfield is an obvious target area for the club prior to the July 30 deadline and general manager J.J. Picollo has admitted that it’s something they will be exploring. For now, the group consists of Hunter Renfroe, Kyle Isbel and Dairon Blanco, with infielders Adam Frazier and Garrett Hampson capable of moving out there as well. With Melendez hitting the IL, the club could recall someone like Nelson Velázquez, Drew Waters or Nick Pratto to take his spot.

It’s distinctly possible that group gets a significant shakeup via trades in the next few weeks and looks completely different by August. If Melendez returns from the IL and finds himself squeezed from playing time, he does still have options and could be sent to the minors if the club so chooses.

Rob Manfred Hints At Changes To Rules On Trading Draft Picks

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Major League Baseball commissioner Rob Manfred spoke on various topics today, including possibly loosening the rules on trading draft picks. Per J.J. Cooper of Baseball America, Manfred suggested the owners have some openness to allowing teams more freedom to trade picks but he also noted that changes would have to be collectively bargained with the MLB Players Association.

Under the current rules, teams can only trade competitive balance picks. Only the clubs with smaller markets/revenues get those and they make up a small portion of the overall number of picks in the draft.

Plenty of other sports allow the trading of draft picks, which adds an element of excitement to the draft itself as well as trades during the rest of the year. Many have argued for MLB to follow suit and allow picks to be traded, but the counterargument has been that teams might send away too many picks and doom themselves to years of fielding ineffective teams.

The counter to that argument has usually been that teams can already do themselves plenty of harm by trading away prospects and that things wouldn’t meaningfully change by adding draft picks to the equation. Furthermore, it has been argued that teams should be subject to the consequences of their own actions as opposed to being preemptively protected from them. This latter point seems to be something that Manfred is receptive to.

“The positions the clubs have taken over time in terms of what they want us to do at the table has been a product of a balance between flexibility in terms of utilizing the resources available to you on the one hand and paternalism on the other—that is I’m going to prevent you from doing acts because I think it would be stupid,” Manfred said. “I don’t think we have that many stupid clubs. We’ll see how it shakes out. We will go through our (collective) bargaining prep,” he continued. “The clubs are really sophisticated now. I do think that there’s a really good argument for allowing them to decide how to use their resources.”

The MLBPA clearly has some level of concern about tanking, the practice of teams intentionally making themselves worse in the present in order to improve their chances of winning in the future. They have tried to push back against the practice by looking for things in CBA negotiations like a salary floor or draft lottery, successfully getting the latter but not the former.

A team that hamstrung itself by trading away numerous draft picks could perhaps impact free agent earning power, as such a franchise might get into such a poor long-term state that they effectively sit out free agency for a while. But as mentioned, that’s not too similar from a team under the present system that has traded away significant prospect capital and spend many years in rebuilding mode. It could also be argued that such a club may be incentivized to sign free agents who could then be traded for draft picks, making up for those that were traded away in previous years.

Whether the two sides can agree to change the rules will be known in the next few years, as the current CBA extends through the 2026 season. They will have many other issues to address, such as the competitive balance tax, minimum salaries, TV/streaming revenue plans, expansion and other topics, but perhaps there’s a glimmer of hope for those who want to see draft picks trade hands in the future.

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