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Rangers Notes: Calhoun, Daniels, Martin

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The Rangers are not totally buried in the American League postseason hunt, but have already fallen eight games back of the division-leading Astros. Particularly with a variety of notable players on the DL, it’s increasingly difficult to see the Rangers contending in 2018. Here’s the latest from Texas:

  • Some Rangers fans are displeased with the fact that top prospect Willie Calhoun is plying his trade at Round Rock rather than with the Rangers. GM Jon Daniels bristled at the notion that Calhoun was being held down due to service-time considerations, as Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram writes. Rather, says Daniels, Calhoun is still at Triple-A because “he’s still working on his defense.” It probably does not help that Calhoun isn’t off to the best start at the plate, though nobody doubts his bat is ready for the majors. Daniels says he’s “really encouraged” by what he has heard about Calhoun’s defensive work thus far, but indicated that it will need to get up to snuff before the call is made.
  • More broadly, Daniels certainly sounds like a man who’s well aware of the uphill climb facing his team this year. As Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News reports, the team’s top baseball exec acknowledges that “injuries have certainly eroded what depth there was.” That’s obviously sub-optimal, but he does say there are still benefits to the situation. “The upside is that a lot of guys are getting valuable experience they wouldn’t otherwise get,” Daniels said. “That doesn’t do a whole lot for the fans who want to see immediate returns, but long-term we’re going to benefit from experiences [young players] are getting.”
  • The Rangers have placed righty Chris Martin on the 10-day DL, per a club announcement. He’s dealing with irritation in his right forearm. Fellow right-hander Nick Gardewine will take his spot on the active roster. That represents another blow to the team’s MLB roster. Though Martin owns a 5.14 ERA on the year, that’s due mostly to the disastrous recent outing that came in advance of the DL placement. Otherwise, he has generally been effective, carrying a solid combination of 8.4 K/9 against 1.9 BB/9 while showing a mid-nineties fastball.

Free Agent Stock Watch: A.J. Pollock

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The expectation had been that the 2018-19 free agent class would feature superstars at a variety of areas: starting pitcher (Clayton Kershaw), closer (Craig Kimbrel), corner outfield slugger (Bryce Harper), shortstop (Manny Machado), third baseman (Josh Donaldson), and center fielder (Charlie Blackmon). But the Rockies hammered out a deal with Blackmon that will keep him in Colorado.

Perhaps it was somewhat overlooked, though, that another top-shelf, up-the-middle outfield talent was (and still is) a part of this free-agent gold mine. Diamondbacks center fielder A.J. Pollock, who is over a year younger than Blackmon, is also slated to test the open market after the 2018 campaign. And his early showing this season suggests he could step right into Blackmon’s shoes as the featured center fielder.

It’s important to emphasize that Pollock is not just some flash in the pan. He has been a MLB powerhouse before. Back in 2015, the then-27-year-old turned in a stunning campaign for the D-Backs, slashing .315/.367/.498 while driving twenty home runs, swiping 39 bags, and providing top-end glovework in center.

That output, which followed an excellent but injury-shortened 2014 effort, was valued in the range of 7 WAR. A career year? Perhaps. But nothing stood out as particularly unsustainable; Pollock carried a healthy but hardly otherworldly .338 batting average on balls in play. Ultimately, that kind of output over a full season just isn’t possible without supreme talent.

Pollock, really, was Blackmon before the bearded wonder came into his own as a power-speed force. Then came a terrible elbow injury that cost Pollock almost all of the 2016 season. He returned with a quality showing in 2017 — a league-average (park-adjusted) .266/.330/.471 slash with 14 home runs and twenty steals — but produced more as a high-quality regular than a superstar and missed nearly a third of the season with a groin injury.

At the outset of the current season, MLBTR’s Tim Dierkes graded Pollock the ninth-best free agent on the upcoming market. Health, he rightly emphasized, would be a major factor in Pollock’s market. Dierkes certainly did not short Pollock’s talent in suggesting he could conceivably play his way into a deal in the range of the five-year, $80MM deal signed by Lorenzo Cain. Perhaps, though, there’s greater potential earning upside even than that for a player who has already established a lofty ceiling and who is still relatively youthful.

Thus far in 2018, after all, Pollock has had that 2015 look about him. He has already blasted ten long balls and stolen seven bags. He’s sporting an excellent .292/.356/.689 slash despite only carrying a .296 BABIP. Statcast numbers (.422 wOBA vs. .405 xwOBA) largely support his output. And the early returns from defensive metrics suggest that Pollock is still a well-above-average fielder in center — an area he shines in relation to Blackmon and perhaps even Cain, whose grades have trended more toward average in recent years.

No matter how things turn out, Pollock’s somewhat worrying history of elbow surgeries will likely weigh on his market. And the holes in his track record won’t be closed up retrospectively. Still, if Pollock can sustain a substantially above-average offensive performance over the duration of the 2018 campaign — and, of course, remain healthy along he way — he could have a free-agent case that is in many ways as compelling as the one Blackmon decided to forego.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

AL East Notes: Montgomery, Jones, Hechavarria

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Yankees left-hander Jordan Montgomery exited tonight’s start against the Astros due to tightness in his left elbow and is traveling back to New York for an examination, as MLB.com’s Bryan Hoch writes. Manager Aaron Boone said of the injury that the Yankees didn’t have any concern prior to Montgomery’s start, though he acknowledged that there is, of course, some degree of concern any time a pitcher exits with elbow or forearm tightness. Montgomery threw a perfect first inning and has a 3.62 ERA through 27 1/3 innings this season, but it’s worth pointing out that his average fastball has hovered at 90.3 mph this season after he averaged 92 mph on his heater in last year’s strong rookie campaign. Hoch adds (via Twitter) that Boone says Montgomery is in a “pretty good frame of mind” and is optimistic that he’s avoided a serious injury.

Elsewhere in the division…

  • ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick has a lengthy feature on Adam Jones and the possibility of whether he’ll remain with the Orioles beyond the 2018 campaign. Crasnick speaks with Jones, manager Buck Showalter, GM Dan Duquette and Jones’ teammates in highlighting how important Jones has been to the organization and to the city of Baltimore as one of the faces of the franchise for a decade. Jones noted that given his impending free-agent status, he’s “obviously” hoping to put up big numbers but emphasized that his focus is on trying to right the ship in Baltimore after an ugly start to the season for the O’s. Duquette tells Crasnick that the team “absolutely” considers things like charisma, appeal to fans and intangibles such as leadership when placing a valuation on a player and praised Jones’ impact on the organization and Baltimore community. One anonymous GM noted to Crasnick, though, that Jones is the type of player who could be the “type of guy who gets to free agency and is a little disappointed” — a reference to Jones’ questionable OBP skills and declining defensive ratings in center field. O’s fans in particular will want to check out the column, as it gives a terrific look back at Jones’ legacy in the Charm City.
  • Following Corey Seager’s season-ending injury, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times writes that the Rays will likely approach the Dodgers to gauge their interest in a trade for defensive standout Adeiny Hechavarria. Tampa Bay figures to trade Hechavarria at some point this season, Topkin notes, and moving him would open a clear path to the big leagues for surging infield prospect Willy Adames. Hechavarria, who is hitting .283/.317/.359 with a pair of homers through 102 plate appearances this season, has consistently graded out as a plus defender at short and is earning $5.9MM in 2018, with about $4.54MM of that sum yet to be paid out. Tampa Bay GM Erik Neander, of course, knows Dodgers president of baseball ops Andrew Friedman quite well from the pair’s days in the Rays’ front office, and they’ve lined up on a handful of deals in recent years (Logan Forsythe, Sergio Romo and Xavier Cedeno among them).

MLB Daily Roster Roundup: Cueto, Middleton, Sano, Soroka

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ROSTER MOVES BY TEAM
(May 1st)

NATIONAL LEAGUE

  • SAN DIEGO PADRES | Depth Chart
    • Placed on 10-Day DL: C Austin Hedges (elbow tendinitis)
    • Recalled: C Raffy Lopez 
      • Lopez is expected to be the starting catcher while Hedges is out.

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AMERICAN LEAGUE

  • NEW YORK YANKEES | Depth Chart
    • Reinstated from 4-game suspension: 1B Tyler Austin
      • Austin played 1B and batted 8th on Tuesday.

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FUTURE EXPECTED MOVES

Brewers Select Wade Miley’s Contract, Designate Oliver Drake

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The Brewers announced that they’ll formally select the contract of left-hander Wade Miley prior to tomorrow’s game and designate right-hander Oliver Drake for assignment to open a spot on the 40-man roster. Miley, who signed a minor league deal with the Brewers but opened the season rehabbing a groin injury, will be added to the Brewers’ rotation now that his rehab assignment has been completed.

The 31-year-old Miley has made three rehab starts with Milwuakee’s Double-A affiliate, totaling 11 2/3 innings and allowing four earned runs on a dozen hits and two walks with 14 strikeouts. The former D-backs/Red Sox/Mariners/Orioles southpaw is coming off a dreadful stint with the O’s, having limped to a 5.75 ERA  in a season-plus in Baltimore, but he’s posted a 35-to-10 K/BB ratio in the Brewers organization between Spring Training and his rehab stint (31 2/3 innings).

[Related: Milwaukee Brewers depth chart]

He’ll join a Milwaukee rotation that includes Chase Anderson, Zach Davies, Jhoulys Chacin and Junior Guerra for the time being as they await the return of Jimmy Nelson from shoulder surgery. Miley is stepping into the rotation spot of fellow southpaw Brent Suter, who has already been moved to the bullpen in advance of the widely anticipated addition of Miley to the starting mix.

Drake, meanwhile, has gotten off to a miserable start to his 2018 season, yielding nine runs on 14 hits and eight walks in 12 2/3 innings. To his credit, he’s punched out 15 hitters in that time and induced grounders at a well-above-average 52.9 percent clip while not allowing a home run. The righty has totaled 102 1/3 innings in the Majors between the Orioles and Brewers, averaging better than 10 strikeouts per nine innings with solid ground-ball tendencies, though he’s been haunted by shaky control and a strand rate that falls quite a bit below the league average.

Twins Reportedly Agree To Minor League Deal With Paco Rodriguez

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The Twins have agreed to a minor league contract with left-handed reliever Paco Rodriguez, reports Robert Murray of FanRag Sports (via Twitter). Rodriguez is represented by MVP Sports.

Now 27 years of age, Rodriguez was a second-round pick by the Dodgers back in 2012 and made his MLB debut just three months after being drafted out of Florida. Rodriguez played a pivotal role in the Dodgers’ bullpen over the next couple of seasons but spent most of the 2014-15 seasons in the minor leagues and ultimately underwent Tommy John late in the year in 2015. In all, he has a career 2.53 ERA with 9.6 K/9 against 3.2 BB/9 and 0.6 HR/9 with a 47.2 percent ground-ball rate in 85 1/3 innings at the Major League level.

Rodriguez struggled with the Orioles’ rookie-level affiliate in nine appearances in 2017 as he worked his way back from that injury, and he opened the 2018 season with the independent Sugar Land Skeeters of the Atlantic League. Rodriguez made just one appearance before convincing Twins scouts that he was worth scooping up, however. It’s not clear what level he’ll report to, though if he can prove his health after a few injury-ruined seasons, he could provide the Minnesota organization with an intriguing left-handed bullpen option later in the season.

Braves Re-Sign Peter Bourjos To Minor League Deal

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The Braves re-signed outfielder Peter Bourjos to a new minor league contract after releasing him over the weekend, the team’s Triple-A affiliate announced. Outfielder Jaff Decker was released to open a spot. Bourjos is represented by Dishman Sports Group. He’ll remain on hand as a depth option for the Braves after opening the year on their big league roster.

Bourjos, 31, hit just .120/.185/.160 in a minuscule sample of 27 plate appearances, starting only two of the 18 games in which he appeared for Atlanta. He’ll head to Triple-A Gwinnett for now and could eventually give the team another right-handed-hitting option to pair with lefties Ender Inciarte and Nick Markakis in the outfield. Preston Tucker is currently Atlanta’s fourth outfielder behind Markakis, Inciarte and wunderkind Ronald Acuna Jr., though Tucker has never played center as a pro and has seen his production at the plate plummet after a hot week to open the season (.192/.222/.327 in his past 54 PAs).

As for Decker, the 28-year-old opened the season with a .271/.407/.458 batting line through 59 PAs, though that came with a lofty .429 BABIP and a 32.2 percent strikeout clip. Strikeouts haven’t typically been an issue for him (career 20.1 percent), however, and he’s also displayed a keen eye at the top minor league level with a 12.7 percent walk rate. Decker, a former supplemental-round pick of the Padres (No. 42 overall, 2008), is a career .268/.364/.402 slash in parts of six Triple-A seasons.

Injury Notes: Middleton, Bumgarner, Mariners, Hedges, Orioles, Chirinos

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The Angels announced today that they’ve placed right-hander Keynan Middleton on the 10-day disabled list, retroactive to April 29, with inflammation in his right elbow. It’s not immediately clear how long the team expects Middleton to be sidelined, though the loss comes as a notable hit to the Halos’ bullpen. Middleton, 24, has handled much of the Angels’ closer responsibilities in 2018, saving six games while pitching to a 2.40 ERA with a 15-to-7 K/BB ratio in 15 innings of work. With Middleton on the shelf, Cam Bedrosian, Blake Parker and (especially) Jim Johnson have experience closing games out at the big league level, though Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register suggests that rookie Justin Anderson could step into the ninth inning spotlight (Twitter link). Eduardo Paredes has been recalled from Triple-A Salt Lake to take Middleton’s roster spot for now.

Some more injury news from around the league…

  • Giants manager Bruce Bochy told reporters today that Madison Bumgarner could begin throwing off a bullpen mound in a couple of weeks (Twitter link via Chris Haft of MLB.com). Bumgarner, of course, will need multiple bullpen sessions and some rest days between them before he can build up to the point where he’d be able to go out on a minor league rehab assignment. A mid-May target for bullpen sessions and, presumably, multiple outings in a rehab assignment would figure to put Bumgarner in line for a return at some point in June.
  • The Mariners announced today that both Dan Altavilla and Erasmo Ramirez are headed to the 10-day disabled list, with outfielder Guillermo Heredia and right-hander Casey Lawrence coming up from Triple-A Tacoma to take their spots. Altavilla, who has occupied a setup role for the M’s over the past couple of seasons, has inflammation in his right AC joint, whereas Ramirez will return to the DL with a Teres Major strain after only a brief activation period. Seattle didn’t provide timelines for either right-hander’s return, though Ramirez could be facing the longer recovery time of the two. Michael Pineda and Clayton Kershaw have both missed four-plus weeks in the past with similar injuries.
  • Catcher Austin Hedges has been placed on the 10-day DL with tendinitis in his right elbow, per a club announcement from the Padres, with Rafael Lopez coming up from Triple-A El Paso to fill his roster spot. The defensively sound Hedges has had another slow start to the season with the bat, hitting at just a .173/.235/.293 pace through 81 trips to the plate thus far. Veteran receiver A.J. Ellis figures to step up as San Diego’s primary backstop in Hedges’ absence. Lopez, 30, hit .222/.306/.463 in a career-high 63 PAs for the Blue Jays last season and is hitting .300/.372/.657 with a whopping seven homers through just 79 Triple-A PAs. He hit 12 homers in Triple-A last year through 223 PAs.
  • The Orioles announced that they’ve activated Mark Trumbo from the 10-day DL for his season debut, though they also had to place infielder Luis Sardinas on the DL in his place due to a strained lower back. Sardinas’ DL placement is retroactive to April 29, and defensive specialist Engelb Vielma is up from Triple-A to take over Sardinas’ infield duties for now. Pedro Alvarez’s resurgence at the plate could prompt Trumbo to see some time at the outfield in order to keep Alvarez in the lineup at designated hitter. Jace Peterson figures to get starts at second base until Jonathan Schoop returns.
  • Tampa Bay righty Yonny Chirinos has landed on the disabled list with a right forearm strain, per Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times (Twitter links). The Rays have brought lefty Ryan Yarbrough back up from Triple-A Durham to take his spot on the roster. It’s not clear yet how long Chirinos will be expected to miss, though Topkin suggests that the organization doesn’t believe the injury to be serious. Chirinos had stepped up as the team’s de facto fourth starter following a series of injuries that initially led the Rays to open the season with three starters and a pair of bullpen days in place of a traditional five-man rotation. Yarbrough has been pitching in multi-inning relief stints with the Rays and could be looked at as a starting option himself in Chirinos’ absence.

Knocking Down The Door: Fowler, Guerrero, Staumont, Stewart, Urias

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“Knocking Down the Door” is a regular feature that identifies minor leaguers who are making a case for a big league promotion.  

Dustin Fowler, CF, Athletics (Triple-A Nashville) | Athletics Depth Chart

Despite a devastating leg injury that occurred during the first inning of his MLB debut last June, many still expected Fowler to be the starting center fielder on Opening Day. While health did not appear to be a major factor—he had 47 plate appearances in 19 games this spring—the 23-year-old was understandably rusty at the plate. He hit just .222 with two walks and 13 strikeouts in the Cactus League. As a result, his Oakland A’s debut would have to wait until he began to show the form that catapulted him up prospect lists with the Yankees last season (.871 OPS, 13 HR, 19 2B, 8 3B, 13 SB in 70 Triple-A games). If the last seven games are any indication, he is getting close.

With 14 hits in his past 33 at-bats, including his first two homers of the season, a trio of three-hit games, three doubles and a pair of triples, Fowler has boosted his batting average over the .300 mark. He also has six stolen bases, which is a good indication that he’s recovered from his injury. The versatile Mark Canha has been productive while getting the majority of starts in center field as of late, but he’ll move back into a part-time role once Fowler arrives.

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Vladimir Guerrero Jr., 3B, Blue Jays (Double-A New Hampshire) | Blue Jays Depth Chart

A 19-year-old with only a few weeks of Double-A experience has no business being on this list. Or being this good, even if his father is a Hall of Famer. But Vladimir Jr., after just 96 plate appearances, is making it clear that he has no business being at this level for much longer. The right-handed hitting third baseman is slashing .380/.442/.582 with two homers, eight doubles, 10 walks and 10 strikeouts in his first 20 games. He was also 7-for-13 in MLB camp during an impressive spring that he capped off with a walk-off homer in an exhibition game in Montreal.

The only question for now is whether he makes a stop in Triple-A before he begins his MLB career. Once he’s in the Majors, he’ll be in the lineup on a regular basis. With Josh Donaldson expected back soon from the disabled list after missing time with shoulder discomfort, it’s possible that Guerrero spells him at third base a few days per week and serves as the designated hitter on other days. The odd man out would be Kendrys Morales, who is hitless in his last 21 at-bats and is 8-for-50 on the season.

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Josh Staumont, RP, Royals (Triple-A Omaha) | Royals Depth Chart

Entering 2017 as one of the Royals’ best prospects, Staumont flopped in his first full season in the upper minors with a 5.56 ERA and 7.0 BB/9 in 124 2/3 innings between Triple-A and Double-A. A move to the bullpen has him back on track so far in 2018.

While the walks are still an issue—he’s walked seven in 10 1/3 Triple-A innings—he’s allowed just one earned run and hasn’t walked more than one batter in seven of his eight appearances. The 24-year-old right-hander has also struck out 22 batters, including 10 over his past two outings (3 2/3 IP). Coincidentally, the Royals have one of the worst bullpens in the Majors. Their closer, Kelvin Herrera, isn’t part of the problem, but he’s expected to be traded to a contender by July 31st and probably sooner than that. Staumont should get a chance to prove that he can be a part of the team’s late-inning, post-Herrera relief crew.

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Christin Stewart, OF, Tigers (Triple-A Toledo) | Tigers Depth Chart

The Tigers had a fairly uneventful offseason, which wasn’t totally unexpected as they moved toward a rebuild. But with several free agents available at a discounted rate—Carlos Gomez, Carlos Gonzalez and Jon Jay are just a few examples—it was a bit surprising that they took a hard pass and began the season with Mikie Mahtook and Leonys Martin in their starting outfield. While it’s not clear whether the Stewart factored in to the decision—he hit 28 homers in Double-A in 2017, but also struck out 138 times—he could soon get the chance to show that he can be a part of the solution.

Not only has the 24-year-old left fielder continued to mash in the upper minors—he’s slashing .311/.404/.568 with four homers, five doubles and 11 walks in his first 89 Triple-A plate appearances—he’s also striking out at a much lower rate than in year’s past (24 % in ’17; 15 % in ’18). Playing alongside Miguel Cabrera and Victor Martinez should only help to continue that trend.

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Luis Urias, 2B, Padres (Triple-A El Paso) | Padres Depth Chart

Padres hitters continue to rack up strikeouts at a record pace. They lead the league with 309 whiffs in 1135 plate appearances and are on their way to surpassing the MLB single-season record of 1571. As a comparison, Urias has struck out 150 times in 1618 plate appearances in the minors. He also has 166 walks. The 20-year-old won’t be their savior in 2018, but he can certainly help this bunch.

Over his first 19 games in Triple-A, Urias is slashing .307/.416/.440 with two homers, four doubles, 13 walks and 15 strikeouts. He has nine hits, six walks and one strikeout over his last 22 plate appearances. The Padres moved quickly to fill two rotation spots with prospects—Joey Lucchesi and Eric Lauer both debuted in April—and now it’s becoming increasingly possible that Urias joins them to replace the struggling Carlos Asuaje (.576 OPS) as the starting second baseman.

Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Rays Acquire Two Prospects From D-Backs To Complete Steven Souza Trade

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3:49pm: The Rays and Diamondbacks have now announced the trade.

2:51pm: The Rays have acquired righty Sam McWilliams and southpaw Colin Poche from the Diamondbacks, according to Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic. That pair of hurlers will make up the final portion of the late-February swap that brought outfielder Steven Souza to Arizona.

The Tampa Bay organization had insisted it only relented to moving Souza because of the quality of the return. Today’s news does help to bolster that claim, as the two newcomers are not just throw-in assets.

McWilliams, 22, is a big right-hander who was tabbed as the 13th-best prospect in the Arizona system coming into the season by Baseball America. He has opened eyes since, turning in 25 2/3 innings of 2.10 ERA ball in his first turn at the High-A level. Importantly, he has drastically increased his strikeout rate (to 11.2 K/9, nearly double his career rate) while maintaining his typically reliable control (2.1 BB/9). Arizona had initially picked him up in the trade that sent right-hander (and former Ray) Jeremy Hellickson the Phillies, though McWilliams has raised his profile a bit since that time.

The 24-year-old Poche is closer to the Majors, though unlike McWilliams he does not carry the potential upside of working as a starter. He has enjoyed some success in the past, but nothing like what he has shown thus far this season at Double-A. In 11 shutout innings, Poche has allowed just three hits while compiling a whopping 23:2 K/BB ratio.

It seems reasonable to think that he could be on the MLB radar in the relatively near term — he was included on Jason Martinez’s first Knocking Down the Door feature of 2018 — if he can sustain anything approaching that level of production. Baseball America rated Poche 29th among Arizona farmhands this past offseason, though like McWilliams, his early work has likely elevated his status to an extent.

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