Pirates Rumors: Kingham, Keller, Outfield, Vazquez
The Pirates’ rotation in 2019 has been unexpectedly weak. Injuries to Jameson Taillon and Trevor Williams and some alarming regression for Chris Archer have overshadowed solid performances by Joe Musgrove and offseason signee Jordan Lyles. Longtime prospect Nick Kingham entered the year out of minor league options and struggled so greatly that the team begrudgingly designated him for assignment last week and now seems likely to lose the righty.
Pittsburgh isn’t currently certain who’ll start for the organization on Wednesday this week, but general manager Neal Huntington told reporters that the Pirates will “look externally” to see if there are any palatable options available (links via Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette and Adam Berry of MLB.com). Top prospect Mitch Keller is a candidate to make that start, but the Bucs have already recalled and optioned Keller once this season. The next time Keller is called up to the Majors, Huntington noted, the team would like it to be a permanent promotion. Adding an external option would allow the team to give Keller a bit more time in Triple-A, where he has 100 1/3 total innings since last season, but the Bucs won’t find a more talented option than Keller to plug in for that Wednesday outing.
In the meantime, the Pirates will explore the trade market to see what kind of interest there is in Kingham. Huntington noted that players with that type of prospect pedigree “tend to get traded” if they’re designated for assignment and expressed optimism that he will “be able to get something for him” even in spite of his considerable 2019 struggles. Kingham allowed an incredible 38 runs on 54 hits and 17 walks in 34 2/3 innings to begin the 2019 season, but he has a solid Triple-A track record and was long viewed as a potential big league starter. A rebuilding club like the Orioles, Blue Jays, Tigers, Royals or Giants could be intrigued by seeing how he fares in a change of scenery. An injury-plagued team like the Angels or Athletics could make some sense, too.
Perhaps a more intriguing source of trade speculation surrounding the Pirates, however, resides in the outfield. Corey Dickerson returned from the IL to join a mix that already had Bryan Reynolds, Starling Marte and Melky Cabrera playing well. Gregory Polanco has posted roughly average numbers at the plate since returning from shoulder surgery and has a solid track record prior to this season. With all five healthy, it’ll be tough to sort out playing time Huntington unsurprisingly declined to go into specifics but did at least acknowledge the possibility of a trade, stating that while the Pirates like all five outfielder, they’re “always open to opportunities to make this club better.”
That said, with the team slipping in the National League Central, it’s only natural that there’ll be increased speculation about the possibility of trades in the coming weeks — particularly when dealing from a position of strength like the outfield. Moving an outfielder, even to another contender (probably not within the division) could potentially net some help for a pitching staff that hasn’t performed up to expectations so far. If the Pirates surge back into contention — they’re seven back in the NL Central and five and a half back of a Wild Card spot — moving a short-term piece like Dickerson for another veteran could boost the staff. If their slide in the standings worsens, the Bucs could even entertain offers on Marte, who is controlled through 2021 by way of a pair of club options ($11.5MM in 2020, $12.5MM in 2021). Doing so could reap prospect value while opening a long-term spot for the cost-controlled Reynolds.
Also of interest in a selling scenario would be whether the Pirates make standout closer Felipe Vazquez available, but the fact that he is cheaply controlled through the 2023 season would make it extremely difficult to bite the bullet on a deal. “The ask will be big, and they won’t move from it,” one rival executive told ESPN’s Buster Olney when asked about a potential Vazquez deal (subscription required).
That’s probably an understatement. Vazquez has a 2.30 ERA with 14.2 K/9, 2.6 BB/9, 0.99 HR/9 and a 34.4 percent ground-ball rate in 27 1/3 innings so far in 2019. He’s being paid $4MM this year, $5.25MM in 2020 and $7.25MM in 2021 before the team will be able to decide on a pair of club options in 2022 and 2023 — both valued at $10MM. That’s four and a half seasons of control over Vazquez, who’ll turn 28 in July, for a shade under $35MM.
For the time being, it’s likely that the Bucs will find some kind of deal for Kingham (or that he’ll be claimed on waivers) and monitor the market for at least a potential spot-start option Wednesday. There’s sure to be more afoot over the next several weeks, as the Pirates will soon have to give a long-term audition to one of the game’s best overall prospects (Keller) and perhaps resolve an outfield logjam on the trade market. Whether that move is made with an eye toward 2019 or an eye toward 2020 and beyond will probably be dictated by the team’s performance in the near term.
The Indians Have Some Difficult Decisions Looming
The Indians didn’t leave themselves much margin for error heading into the 2019 campaign. Ownership mandated payroll cuts in the offseason while delivering a candid and ominous “enjoy him” message to fans in reference to franchise shortstop Francisco Lindor. Cleveland’s Opening Day lineup looked more like the type you’d expect to see in early Spring Training than that of a division favorite earnestly putting forth its best options. An injury to Lindor weakened the product, but the holes throughout an order that featured Tyler Naquin hitting third were glaring.
A questionable offense was a known trade-off, though, as the Indians were built on the foundation of perhaps the game’s best collection of starting pitchers. Two-time Cy Young winner Corey Kluber was again joined by co-aces Carlos Carrasco and Trevor Bauer, while younger righties Mike Clevinger and Shane Bieber rounded out a rotation that would make nearly any team envious.
Fast forward a bit more than 10 weeks, and only Bauer and Bieber are healthy — neither with the results one might’ve expected of them. Clevinger made two starts before going down to a teres major strain that still has him on the injured list (though he’s nearing a return). Kluber suffered a fractured arm when he was struck by a comebacker. Most concerning of all, Carrasco is on the injured list due to a blood condition that has rendered him lethargic and likely contributed to some disappointing on-field results of his own. Even the Indians’ top depth option, Jefry Rodriguez, landed on the IL last week.
The result is an Indians club that trails the surprising Twins by 10.5 games in the AL Central. At 33-32, the Indians are still within 1.5 games of the second AL Wild Card spot, but it’s a tight race. Both the Yankees and the Rays are at 40-24, jostling for the AL East division lead. They’re six games up on another surprising club, the Rangers, and one of New York or Tampa Bay appears quite likely to claim that top Wild Card position. The Red Sox, Indians, Athletics, White Sox and Angels are all within four games of Texas for that second spot. Each of the Rangers, Red Sox and Athletics rather handily tops Cleveland’s -6 run differential.
The Indians are clear Wild Card contenders with a (much) longer shot to fight back into the division race, but for a club that entered the year as a strong favorite in the AL Central, their outlook is unexpectedly bleak. And given the obvious payroll constraints they faced in the offseason, it’s worth questioning whether ownership will dub the 2019 campaign somewhat of a transitional year and look to further cut some costs.
The Indians have just $48.4MM committed to next year’s payroll (via Jason Martinez of Roster Resource). That seems plenty manageable, but the number won’t stay at that level. Kluber’s $17.5MM option seems likely to be exercised even with his injury and some unexpected struggles (5.80 ERA in 35 2/3 innings). Lindor and Bauer headline an expensive arbitration class. Lindor already received a $10.55MM salary in his first trip through the process, and while we can’t know precisely what he’ll earn, last year’s Kris Bryant and Mookie Betts cases provide somewhat of a range. Both players earned similar numbers to Lindor in their first arbitration campaigns; Bryant had an injury-hindered year in 2018 and was bumped up to $12.9MM while Betts won the AL MVP and vaulted to $20MM. Lindor will probably check in somewhere near the midpoint — perhaps closer to Betts given that he’s been quite productive since returning from the IL. Bauer, meanwhile, will get a raise on a $13MM salary and could approach the $20MM mark.
The aforementioned $48.4MM figure could balloon to the $100MM vicinity when accounting for the salaries of Lindor, Kluber and Bauer alone. Add Clevinger’s first arbitration salary, the need to supplement the roster in other areas (one of second/third base, the bullpen, the outfield) and several league-minimum players, and it’s easy to see the payroll approaching or even exceeding the current $124MM mark despite a drop in attendance from 2018. All of this is to say that the Indians enter the summer not as the clear-cut buyers that many anticipated but as a team that could plausibly walk the line between a sell-off and some measured upgrades to the roster.
Players like Bauer and Brad Hand will be highly attractive assets who could command sizable returns. Cleveland knows it won’t sign Bauer long-term. The right-hander has been open on multiple occasions about his plans to play out his career on a series of one-year contracts (thus maximizing his salary on a year-over-year basis while also incurring a good bit of risk).
Hand is controlled through 2021 ($7.6MM in 2020, $10MM club option in 2021), and every contender in the game would love the opportunity to add him to its bullpen. His value right now is arguably as high as it was when the Indians acquired him a year ago; Hand has career-bests in ERA (0.98), FIP (1.70), xFIP (2.82) and HR/9 (0.33) at the moment and is eminently affordable. ESPN’s Buster Olney wrote yesterday (subscription required) after chatting with executives around the league that other teams expect Cleveland to trade Hand with his value nearing its apex.
Moving Hand or Bauer wouldn’t do the Indians’ playoff chances any favors, but doing so could yield controllable, near-MLB-ready talent while simultaneously providing the front office with a substantial increase in payroll flexibility this winter — dollars that could be reallocated to putting forth a more complete roster. And selling either or both players wouldn’t totally eliminate the team from contention, given the rather mediocre nature of the AL Wild Card race at the moment and the rebuilding nature of the bottom of the AL Central. It’s even plausible that the Indians could trade one of those players and acquire a more affordable replacement.
For now, the focus will surely remain on narrowing the gap between them and the Twins, and it’s certainly worth highlighting that their upcoming schedule is weak. They’ll play a combined 12 games against the Royals, Tigers and Orioles between now and the All-Star break. That presents a nice opportunity to make up some ground, although the Twins also have seven games against the Royals, three against the Mariners and three against the White Sox in that same span. The Indians and Twins will meet for a three-game set in Cleveland to open the second half.
The Indians needn’t embark on a full-scale rebuild like the ones that are taking place in Kansas City and Detroit — though if they ever did go that route, the price on a player of Lindor’s caliber would be staggering — nor do they even need to throw in the towel for the 2019. But the way the season has played out thus far makes it increasingly plausible that they’ll listen to offers for Bauer or Hand — a scenario few expected back in March.
Adam Wainwright Leaves Start Due To Hamstring Tightness
Cardinals right-hander Adam Wainwright left Sunday night’s start after 4 1/3 innings due to an injury later diagnosed by the team as tightness in his left hamstring. The injury occurred when Wainwright was running the bases after doubling in the previous inning, as per Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (Twitter links). Manager Mike Shildt told Goold and other media that Wainwright will miss at least one start, and the veteran righty will go to St. Louis on Monday for further tests to determine the severity of the injury.
Wainwright ended up allowing three runs to the Cubs during his abbreviated start on Sunday, giving the 37-year-old a 4.46 ERA, 7.77 K/9, and 48.8% grounder rate over 70 2/3 frames this season. He has already far surpassed the 40 1/3 innings he tossed in an injury-marred 2018 season, and while his one-year contract to return to the Cards carried a number of incentives related to relief pitching, Wainwright has been deployed solely out of the rotation.
Never a particularly hard-thrower, Wainwright’s 89.5mph average fastball velocity this season is a new career low, and his 42.1% hard-hit ball rate is far and away the highest of his 14 MLB seasons. Still, all that hard contact hasn’t hurt Wainwright to any huge extent, as his .327 xwOBA is actually lower than his .333 wOBA.
All told, Wainwright is on pace for a decent bounce-back season, though his overall unspectacular numbers are par for the course within a Cards rotation that has been pretty average across the board. If an IL stint is required, all eyes will turn to top pitching prospect Alex Reyes as a potential fill-in candidate, as Reyes is reportedly close to a return to the big leagues even though his Triple-A numbers this season leave a lot to be desired.
Genesis Cabrera or Daniel Ponce de Leon could also make spot starts, or the Cardinals could experiment with bullpen games or an opener. A decision will have to be made quickly, however, as the Cards are in the midst of a tough stretch of schedule that sees them play 18 games in as many days.
West Notes: Leake, D’Backs, M’s, Hampton, Padres, Alvarez
Some rumblings out of both the AL and NL West divisions…
- The Mariners and Diamondbacks discussed a potential trade earlier this week that would’ve sent Mike Leake to Arizona, though in the words of FOX Sports’ Ken Rosenthal (video link), these negotiations “never got serious.” As we heard on Thursday, Leake was never contacted about the trade, which would’ve been a necessary step since Leake has a no-trade clause in his contract. Given that the M’s have shown a willingness to eat money in trades of their veteran players, Leake could have been (and perhaps even still is) a particularly attractive option to a D’Backs team that doesn’t have a ton of payroll room. In Leake’s case, Seattle would also be sharing the financial burden with the Cardinals. As per the terms of the trade that brought Leake to the Mariners from the Cardinals, St. Louis was responsible for $9MM of the $36MM owed to Leake over the 2019-20 seasons.
- In the words of one Padres official, there is still an “outside chance” that the club could ink 23rd-round draft pick Maurice Hampton, Jeff Sanders of the San Diego Union-Tribune writes, despite Hampton’s commitment to play both baseball and football at LSU. Hampton reportedly wanted a $2.75MM bonus to begin his pro baseball career, and while the team believes this asking price may have dropped, it still represented a hefty enough demand that Hampton fell to the 23rd round despite a consensus top-50 prospect ranking in the eyes of draft evaluators. Since Hampton was taken beyond the top ten rounds, any contract he signs worth more than $100K would see that excess money subtracted from San Diego’s $10,758,900 draft pool, leaving the Padres with less money to sign their other picks. However, the team has been trying to create extra financial space within their pool — the Padres took four college seniors (who have less negotiating leverage) with their picks in the seventh thru tenth rounds, and saved almost $543K when sixth overall pick CJ Abrams agreed to a below-slot bonus.
- Yordan Alvarez enjoyed a dream debut in the majors today, going 1-for-3 with a walk and his first MLB home run, a two-run blast that proved to be the winning score in Houston’s 4-0 win over Baltimore. The young Astros slugger is considered one of the game’s most promising young bats, though there is far from a consensus on his overall value as a prospect, The Athletic’s Jake Kaplan writes (subscription required). Alvarez is largely seen as a bat-only player, with limited defensive value as a left fielder or first baseman despite some solid athleticism for a man of his size (6’5″, 225 pounds). “Any projection of Alvarez’s future value will take a hit by an evaluator who doesn’t believe he can stick in left,” Kaplan writes, and he speaks to several writers from sites such as Baseball America, Baseball Prospectus, Fangraphs, and MLB.com about why Alvarez received a pretty wide range of rankings.
Minor MLB Transactions: 6/9/19
The latest minor moves from around the baseball world…
- The Mets have outrighted Aaron Altherr to Triple-A, as per MLB.com’s official transactions page. Altherr was designated for assignment earlier this week, the third different time this season that Altherr has entered DFA limbo. This was the first time that Altherr’s designation, however, hadn’t resulted in a change of teams, after he went from the Phillies to the Giants, and then from San Francisco to New York on waiver claims. Now that Altherr seems to be settled at Triple-A for the time being, he can focus on getting his bat on track after posting just a .245 OPS over 42 big league plate appearances this season.
- The Lotte Giants of South Korea’s KBO League have released right-hander Jake Thompson and claimed righty Brock Dykxhoorn off waivers from the SK Wyverns. (Hat tip to Dan Kurtz of MyKBO.net) Thompson was a second-round draft pick for the Phillies in 2012 and was considered a top-100 prospect in all of baseball prior to both the 2015 and 2016 seasons, though he posted only a 4.87 ERA, 6.3 K/9, and 1.33 K/BB rate over 116 1/3 innings for the Phils from 2016-18. After a brief stint in Milwaukee’s farm system last year, Thompson signed with Lotte last winter and posted a 4.74 ERA over 62 2/3 frames for the KBO side. Dykxhoorn is also in his first year in South Korean baseball, after delivering a 4.37 ERA over 490 1/3 innings in the Astros’ minor league system after Houston made him a sixth-round pick in the 2014 draft.
Yankees Have Shown Interest In Stroman, Bumgarner
7:56pm: “The Yankees might not be enamored enough with Bumgarner to pay the necessary price,” MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand writes. The potential return of Severino could also impact the Yankees’ deadline plans, though as one executive points out, it wouldn’t be surprising if Severino has some rust after his long layoff, so the Yankees might not have enough time before the deadline to evaluate if they can rely on him to be the rotation help they need.
11:28am: The Yankees are known to be looking into starting pitching options, and their explorations have included two of the arms most likely to be moved before the July 31st trade deadline. According to the New York Post’s Ken Davidoff, the Yankees have been in touch with the Blue Jays about right-hander Marcus Stroman, and have also had scouts watching Madison Bumgarner‘s outings for the Giants.
Virtually every aspect of the Yankees’ roster has been hit hard with injuries this season, with the rotation being no exception. Luis Severino has yet to pitch this season and won’t be back until after the All-Star break, while James Paxton, C.C. Sabathia, and (just today) Domingo German have all spent time on the injured list. Between these issues and some struggles at the back of their bullpen, Davidoff figures that the Yankees will prioritize pitching upgrades as the deadline approaches.
To this end, New York has undoubtedly done some preliminary evaluation (whether it’s scouting or direct conversations with rival front offices) about many pitchers beyond just Stroman and Bumgarner. It remains to be seen if the Yankees’ inquiries represent due diligence or a genuinely strong interest, though these two pitchers naturally stand out due to their high-profile nature, and each would come with some interesting factors to consider before any deal is completed.
Stroman has bounced back nicely this season following an injury-plagued down year in 2018, and isn’t a rental piece, as he is under team control through the 2020 season. While he’ll be in line for an arbitration raise on his $7.4MM salary for this season, Stroman will still bring a ton of value to any rotation if he keeps pitching at his current level. If Stroman did end up in the pinstripes, this extra year of control would make him a natural candidate to replace the retiring Sabathia in next season’s rotation, and thus the Yankees would have one less item to address on their offseason to-do list.
That said, Toronto will demand a big return for Stroman’s services. MLBTR’s Connor Byrne recently explored the Stroman trade market, with the Yankees cited as one of a whopping 22 teams who could be plausible fits for the right-hander — Stroman’s extra year of control makes him a target even for clubs like the White Sox, Diamondbacks, or Reds, who might not be contenders this season but are looking ahead to 2020.
Though the Blue Jays and Yankees are division rivals, the two teams combined for a high-profile pitching swap last summer when J.A. Happ was dealt to New York for Brandon Drury and Billy McKinney. Since Happ was a pending free agent at the time of that trade, and is over eight and a half years older than Stroman, the Jays figure to ask for quite a bit more from the Yankees in trade talks this summer.
Bumgarner’s situation is quite a bit different, as the former World Series MVP is a pure rental, headed to free agency after the season. Many of the same teams looking to acquire Stroman will also be in the hunt for Bumgarner (as Connor outlined in another post), though even with only two-plus months and potential postseason innings on offer, the Giants are likely to aim high in their trade demands. With so many of their other high-priced veterans struggling, battling injuries, or limited by full or partial no-trade clauses, Bumgarner represents San Francisco’s best chance of adding some solid prospects as the team looks to get younger.
Bumgarner himself has some no-trade protection, with the ability to block trades to eight teams. The Yankees are one of the teams on that list, though this doesn’t mean that the southpaw would necessarily reject a potential trade to the Bronx, but rather that Bumgarner was simply giving himself some extra leverage (perhaps in the form of a cash bonus to waive his clause) in the event that a trade offer emerged from one of those eight clubs.
MLBTR Chat Transcript: Will Smith, Keuchel, Cardinals, Yankees
Click here to read the transcript of Sunday night’s baseball chat, moderated by MLBTR’s Mark Polishuk
White Sox To Select Odrisamer Despaigne’s Contract
The White Sox will select the contract of veteran right-hander Odrisamer Despaigne from Triple-A prior to tomorrow’s game, according to Francys Romero of Las Mayores (Twitter link). Another move is forthcoming to create space for Despaigne on both the 25-man and 40-man rosters.
Despaigne is lined up to start Chicago’s game against Washington on Monday, as the 32-year-old is set to get his first taste of Major League action in the 2019 season. Despaigne joined the White Sox in mid-May on a minor league contract, just days after opting out of another minors deal with the Reds signed last winter. Over 59 1/3 combined inning for both clubs’ Triple-A affiliates, Despaigne has produced some pretty solid numbers — a 3.34 ERA, 8.5 K/9, and 2.8 K/BB rate.
The White Sox were already thin on MLB-caliber pitching talent to begin the season, and they’ve seen that depth further stretched due to injuries; Carlos Rodon was lost to season-ending Tommy John surgery and Dylan Covey hit the 10-day injured list just earlier today with shoulder inflammation. Despite a breakout performance from Lucas Giolito, the Sox rotation as a whole still ranks at or near the bottom in most cumulative starting pitching categories.
With this in mind, there’s plenty of opportunity for Despaigne to win himself some regular work, and try to firmly establish himself as a starter in his sixth big league season. Despaigne has a career 4.94 ERA, 5.6 K/9, and 1.76 K/BB rate over 349 2/3 career frames in the majors, spending time with the Angels, Marlins, Orioles, and Padres since 2014.
Health Notes: Reds, Wood, Cedeno, Diaz, Fletcher
On Saturday, Reds southpaw Alex Wood threw a bullpen session for the first time since April, writes Mark Sheldon of MLB.com. Wood has been dealing with lower back spasms since he was acquired in the same trade that sent Yasiel Puig and Matt Kemp to Cincinnati, and setbacks suffered in March and April led to the lefty being shut down for about a month. While there is no timetable for his return to an MLB field and his Reds debut, it’s promising that Wood is once again throwing and feeling well enough to move forward with his recovery. As Sheldon notes, Wood will still need to build up a foundation before he can return to the field, a process that likely includes several more bullpen sessions followed by facing live hitters, and finally a minor-league rehab assignment. Barring any further setbacks, completing those steps will allow Wood to join a Reds team that has actually fielded one of the National League’s best pitching staffs. To be sure, Wood, who has some experiencing working out of a bullpen role with the Dodgers, would represent a luxury for the last-place Reds even if there is not a spot for him in the starting rotation.
- Cubs left-hander Xavier Cedeno, out since May 21 with left wrist inflammation, will begin a rehab assignment today with the Triple-A Iowa Cubs, according to Jordan Bastian of MLB.com. Cedeno, who also began the season on the injured list, has managed just two innings for the Cubs, largely functioning as a lefty specialist. While he’s yet to allow a run, the 32-year-old has walked three batters and has struck out just one. Cedeno was signed by the Cubs last winter to a one-year deal worth up to $900k.
- Astros shortstop Aledmys Diaz, who is currently rehabbing from a left hamstring strain, has suffered a setback, according to Jake Kaplan of The Athletic. It’s unknown how long the setback will keep Diaz, who hasn’t played since May 26, on the shelf, but with Carlos Correa out of the lineup, the Astros would like to get Diaz healthy sooner than later. By and large, it’s been Myles Straw and Jack Mayfield seeing the most action at short with both Diaz and Correa sidelined, and while they have filled in capably, neither can match Diaz’s above-average .831 OPS.
- The Angels‘ David Fletcher was out of the lineup for the second consecutive game today due to left shoulder soreness, tweets Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com. However, he adds that manager Brad Ausmus said that a stint on the injured list looks unlikely at this time. It’s good to hear for an Angels team that has had to endure injuries to other infielders Zack Cozart and Andrelton Simmons, especially considering that Fletcher has arguably been the team’s second-best player this season.
Braves Agree To Terms With First-Rounder Shea Langeliers
The Braves have agreed to terms with their first-round (ninth overall) selection Shea Langeliers and will pay the 21-year-old catcher a $4MM bonus, reports Jon Heyman of the MLB Network. The deal allows Atlanta to save a notable chunk of funds in its overall draft pool, as the ninth overall pick carries a recommended slot price of $4,949,100.
Baseball America, MLB.com, ESPN’s Keith Law, and Fangraphs all placed Langeliers in the upper tier of this year’s draft class, as the catcher was rated between 9th (BA) and 14th (Fangraphs) overall in all four outlets’ respective prospect rankings.
The Baylor product is lauded first and foremost for his stellar defense behind the plate, including a strong, accurate throwing arm and elite pop times, a combination that allowed him to cut down 70 percent of prospective basestealers in his sophomore season, per MLB.com. While his bat lags behind top catcher Adley Rutschman, his offense took a step forward this year and many scouts believe his defense alone could carry him to be an average regular at the Major League level. Eric Longenhagen and Kiley McDaniel of Fangraphs describe Langeliers as featuring budding power, though he favors a contact over power approach at the plate.
The Braves’ farm system is already one of the deepest in baseball, ripe with young pitchers who figure to contribute in some fashion at the highest level. In Langeliers, the Braves now have a catcher who looks as if he offers the defensive tools to assist those pitchers not only in the minor leagues, but also as they advance through the ranks and graduate to the Majors. If Langeliers pans out, his career could coincide with a staff that consists of the likes of Mike Soroka, Max Fried, Kyle Wright, Touki Toussaint, and others.
It bears mentioning that Langeliers was selected with the compensation pick the Braves received for failing to sign last year’s first round choice, Carter Stewart.