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NL Central Notes: Iribarren, Kang, Pina/Marinez, Williams

By Jeff Todd | March 23, 2017 at 12:39pm CDT

Hernan Iribarren has enjoyed a largely unremarkable major league career, but he still has an interesting personal tale to tell C. Trent Rosecrans of the Cincinnati Enquirer. Once a reasonably notable prospect, Iribarren hasn’t quite yet appeared in fifty MLB games. And at 32 years of age, he’s unlikely to make a significant on-field impact for the Reds organization even if he does crack the MLB roster. Still, writes Rosecrans, Iribarren’s presence will continue to be felt, as he has provided invaluable mentoring to a variety of Cincinnati players — most notably, fellow Venezuelan infielders Jose Peraza and Eugenio Suarez.

Here’s more from the NL Central:

GM Neal Huntington suggested that the Pirates are basically resigned to the fact that third baseman Jung Ho Kang will not be available on Opening Day, Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reports on Twitter. There still has not been any movement on Kang’s visa application following his conviction for driving drunk in his native South Korea. Even assuming he’s able to make it over in short order, there’ll probably be at least some time required for him to get up to speed.
The Brewers have informed catcher Manny Pina and righty Jhan Marinez that they’ll be on the active roster to open the year, MLB.com’s Adam McCalvy reports (Twitter links). Both were among the many Milwaukee 40-man members who enter the year without any options, so the news means that the club will avoid the need to expose them to waivers. Pina, 29, has a thin MLB track record but will share duties behind the plate with either Jett Bandy or Andrew Susac; the latter is currently dealing with neck and back issues, clouding his outlook, though both still have options. As for Marinez, he will have a chance to follow up on his solid 2016 season, in which he threw 62 1/3 innings of 3.18 ERA ball with 7.2 K/9 and 3.0 BB/9.
Meanwhile, the Brewers received some disappointing news on the farm, as righty Devin Williams is headed for Tommy John surgery, per Jim Callis of MLB.com (via Twitter). In the most recent prospect rankings of the MLB.com team, Williams takes the 18th spot among Milwaukee farmhands. The 22-year-old, a second-round pick in 2013, reached the High-A level last year and is said to carry future mid-rotation upside.

AL East Notes: Red Sox, Betts, Leon, Donaldson, Boxberger, Beckham

By Jeff Todd | March 23, 2017 at 11:10am CDT

In an interesting look inside the Red Sox front office, Tim Britton of the Providence Journal reports on the team’s analytical upgrade efforts. While the organization has long been associated with number-crunching and information hoarding, it has only recently ramped up its full-time staff to launch a new database effort and keep pace with other clubs. It’s an interesting look at the process behind and purposes of the team’s next steps in analytics.

Here’s more from Boston and the rest of the AL East:

In a look at Red Sox star Mookie Betts, Alex Speier of the Boston Globe delves into the role of off-field earning opportunities in determining the contractual path of Betts and other young stars. “[Getting endorsements] kind of eliminates things I’ve wondered as far as contracts go and the business part of the game,” says Betts. “[But] everything I can ever desire is going to start from me taking care of business on the field.” Whether that precludes a long-term deal — or, at least, drives up the potential price — remains to be seen.
Sandy Leon seems on track to open the season with the lion’s share of the time behind the dish for the Red Sox, skipper John Farrell told reporters including Jason Mastrodonato of the Boston Herald (via Twitter). But the manager made clear that he doesn’t intend to rely too heavily on any one man at the catching position, suggesting it’ll be a fairly evenly shared platoon situation between Leon and Christian Vasquez — at least to start the season.
Star Blue Jays third baseman Josh Donaldson took the field in Grapefruit League action for the first time yesterday, as MLB.com’s Paul Hagen writes. All indications were that his calf issue didn’t hold him back, so it seems that Toronto can still look forward to Donaldson’s presence on the Opening Day roster.
Rays righty Brad Boxberger isn’t going to be ready for Opening Day, but does hope to be contributing in the majors during the month of April, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times tweets. His lat issue will still require at least a week-long layoff before he beings a new throwing program.
The career of former top Rays prospect Tim Beckham has continued its roller-coaster path, Topkin writes. After a rough end to 2016, Beckham now seems ascendant yet again, with a strong showing in spring and unexpected opportunity at shortstop with Matt Duffy still on ice. Beckham is drawing rave reviews from manager Kevin Cash and veteran players for his commitment and performance, perhaps suggesting there’s still some hope the 27-year-old can turn the corner at the game’s highest level.

Rays Release David Carpenter

By Jeff Todd | March 23, 2017 at 10:12am CDT

The Rays have released veteran righty David Carpenter, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports on Twitter. Also cut loose from the organization was fellow right-hander Jeff Walters.

Signed to a minors deal over the winter, the 31-year-old Carpenter was hoping to make it back to the majors for the first time since 2015. He had struggled to gain traction last year, too, while attempting to work back from shoulder issues that derailed his MLB career.

Carpenter worked to a 2.63 ERA with 10.0 K/9 and 2.6 BB/9 over 126 innings over the course of the 2013-14 seasons, making him a high-quality setup option. But he was not the same pitcher in the following campaign, striking out just 5.5 batters per nine in an injury-shortened year.

The righty has actually been pretty good this spring, allowing three earned runs on seven hits over 8 2/3 innings. He recorded six strikeouts and didn’t issue a single walk in that span. Clearly, though, the Rays still didn’t see quite enough reason to expect he’d be able to contribute in the majors this year, so Carpenter will presumably go searching for another opportunity.

As for Walters, 29, it once seemed likely he’d contribute to the Mets pen. But he struggled with consistency and turned in a down year in 2016 at Triple-A, where he worked to a 5.89 ERA with 6.6 K/9 and 3.8 BB/9 over 65 2/3 innings. Walters landed in MLB camp with the Rays, but struggled in his 4 2/3 frames of Grapefruit League action.

Offseason In Review: Oakland Athletics

By Connor Byrne | March 23, 2017 at 8:28am CDT

Check out all the published entries in our Offseason in Review series here.

After finishing among the American League’s bottom three teams in both wins (69) and run differential (minus-108) in 2016, the low-payroll Athletics tried to make a splash in free agency. Oakland’s attempt to land first baseman/designated hitter Edwin Encarnacion went for naught, though, and the club ultimately emerged from the offseason having made several modestly priced signings.

Major League Signings

Matt Joyce, OF: Two years, $11MM
Santiago Casilla, RP: Two years, $11MM
Rajai Davis, OF: One year, $6MM
Trevor Plouffe, IF: One year, $5.25MM
Adam Rosales, IF: One year, $1.25MM
Total spend: $34.5MM

Trades And Claims

Acquired RHP Paul Blackburn from Mariners for IF/OF Danny Valencia
Acquired IF Jordan Tarsovich from Dodgers for OF Brett Eibner
Acquired C Jason Goldstein from Mariners for LHP Dillon Overton
Claimed RHP Josh Smith from Reds
Claimed LHP Giovanni Soto from Cubs (lost later on waivers to White Sox)

Notable Minor League Signings

Alejandro De Aza, Ross Detwiler, Ryan Lavarnway, Chris Parmelee, Jaff Decker, Felix Doubront, Matt McBride, Andrew Lambo

Extensions

None

Notable Losses

Valencia, Eibner, Overton, Fernando Rodriguez

Oakland Athletics Depth Chart; Oakland Athletics Payroll Information

Needs Addressed

The offseason didn’t unfold the way many thought it would for Encarnacion, whose five-year run in Toronto as an elite hitter didn’t lead to the nine-figure contract that seemed attainable at the outset of free agency. Encarnacion went without a deal for nearly two months before agreeing to join the Indians on a three-year contract with $60MM in guarantees. It was surprising that Encarnacion landed with the Tribe, but it was more of an eye-opener that the A’s were Cleveland’s main competition. After all, the richest contract on the A’s belongs to reliever Ryan Madson, who’s on the second season of a three-year pact worth $22MM. Encarnacion would have averaged $25MM per annum, likely over two years, had he taken the A’s offer. Reeling in the slugger would have been a boon for Oakland, which scored the fewest runs in the AL last season and has a starting first baseman, Yonder Alonso, who brings almost no offensive punch to the table.

“We knew we’d face some headwinds going in,” executive vice president Billy Beane said after losing the Encarnacion sweepstakes. “But again, we saw this as a unique player. … [W]e thought was that type of player who would have served as a real good anchor point with our young pitching and some of our other young players.”

Nearly a month before Encarnacion made his decision, the A’s partially addressed their offensive issues by awarding a two-year, $11MM guarantee to free agent outfielder Matt Joyce. That commitment has a chance to go down as one of the offseason’s biggest bargains, as the lefty-swinging Joyce has typically been a quality hitter and is coming off a career year. Then with the Pirates, Joyce slashed a terrific .242/.403/.463 in 293 plate appearances. The 32-year-old led all batters with at least 250 PAs in walk rate (20.1 percent, a notable improvement over his career 12.5 percent), which was the product of being far more selective than ever. Between 2008, his rookie campaign, and 2015, Joyce hadn’t swung at under 24.7 percent of pitches outside the zone in any individual season. Last year, though, he offered at only 18.2 percent of such pitches. He also showed some of the best power of his career, having logged his highest ISO (.221) since 2010.

It’s fair to be skeptical of Joyce going forward – he slashed a ghastly .174/.272/.291 in 284 PAs with the Angels only two years ago, and he’s a lifetime .185/.265/.310 hitter against lefties. However, as FanGraphs’ Jeff Sullivan wrote in November, Joyce made intriguing adjustments last season, including lowering his hands and becoming less reliant on pulling the ball. Even if those gains don’t stick, though, the A’s should at least have a capable, reasonably priced platoon right fielder on their hands in Joyce, who has batted .252/.353/.449 in 2,686 career plate trips against righties.

Another newcomer, 36-year-old center fielder Rajai Davis, will join Joyce and primary left fielder Khris Davis to comprise the A’s main alignment in the grass. This isn’t the first go-around in Oakland for Davis, who was previously with the team from 2008-10. As an Indian last season, Davis wasn’t significantly better offensively than either of the A’s top two center fielders, Coco Crisp and Jake Smolinski, but he is a weapon when he gets on base. Davis is coming off a year in which he racked up an American League-high 43 steals – just seven fewer than the A’s 26th-ranked team total (50). He also finished second in the majors to Billy Hamilton in FanGraphs’ BsR metric, a stat in which Oakland ranked dead last. And while Davis was a mixed bag in center last season (minus-five Defensive Runs Saved, 3.6 UZR/150 in 595 innings), he has typically been passable there and should at least be a clear upgrade over Crisp, who registered minus-11 DRS and a minus-37.7 UZR/150 in 290 innings.

After adding Joyce and Davis to their outfield, the A’s sought to upgrade their infield and came away with third baseman Trevor Plouffe and utilityman Adam Rosales on one-year accords. A careerlong Twin until they outrighted him in November, Plouffe isn’t far removed from combining for a .251/.317/.429 line and 6.0 fWAR in 1,214 PAs from 2014-15. That type of production would be welcome for Oakland, though Plouffe struggled in the other five seasons of his career, having registered minus-0.8 fWAR largely because of subpar defensive metrics. That includes last season, when Plouffe was a negative at third (minus-four DRS, minus-17.1 UZR/150 in 519 innings) and hit a below-average .260/.303/.420 in 344 PAs. The 30-year-old does deserve some benefit of the doubt for his latest output, however, as he endured an injury-riddled campaign that featured three trips to the disabled list.

Healthy again, Plouffe will serve as the A’s No. 1 option at the hot corner, meaning Ryon Healy will mostly divide his time between designated hitter and first base. As a rookie last season, Healy played all 72 of his games at third, where he posted Plouffe-like numbers (minus-two DRS, minus-17.5 UZR/150) over 637 innings. Those struggles took away somewhat from the offensive excellence displayed by Healy, who put together a .305/.337/.524 mark in his 283-PA debut.

Rosales, meanwhile, will back up Plouffe, Healy and the rest of the A’s infielders, and he could be especially useful at second base. Starter Jed Lowrie has dealt with injury troubles throughout his career, including a left foot issue that limited him to 87 games last year, and hasn’t stood out offensively since a career year in 2013. Rosales, who was with the A’s from 2010-13, is coming off his own personal-best season. A Padre in 2016, the 33-year-old journeyman was a radically different hitter than he had been from 2008-15. Along with his best-ever batting line, .229/.319/.495 (in 248 PAs), the right-hander accrued highs in home runs (13), ISO (.266, up from a career .140), walk rate (11.7 percent) and hard contact rate (36.9 percent, far above his lifetime 26.4 percent figure). As evidenced by those numbers, not to mention a career-high fly ball rate (46.2 percent) and a bloated strikeout percentage (35.5), it’s clear Rosales sold out for gains in the power department last year. Even if his 2016 proves to be a mirage, Rosales should still give the A’s both a usable option against southpaws (.241/.318/.395 in 644 PAs) and, if Lowrie goes down again, a credible defensive second baseman (13 DRS, 6.6 UZR in 1,007 lifetime innings).

Click to continue…

Questions Remaining

Both Oakland’s low-cost pickups in free agency and better luck in the health department (the team used the DL a franchise-record 27 times last year) should lead to an improved club this season. However, the A’s are still chock full of question marks. Offensively, runs may still prove hard to come by, as there’s little of intrigue in place after Khris Davis, Healy, a potential Joyce/Mark Canha platoon and slugging shortstop Marcus Semien. Further, although Rajai Davis is now in the fold, Oakland still lacks in the baserunning department. The only other likely starter on the roster who should be any kind of a threat on the bases is Semien, who stole 10 bags last season. At the same time, catcher Stephen Vogt, Khris Davis, Healy, Joyce, Lowrie, Plouffe and Alonso combined for a paltry six.

Speaking of Alonso, it’s certainly conceivable the A’s could have upgraded over him during the offseason; instead, they kept the historically light-hitting first baseman for $4MM. They’ll now hope Alonso’s new fly ball-first approach, which FanGraphs’ Eno Sarris recently covered, will lead to a breakout for the soon-to-be 30-year-old and former top prospect. If not, Beane and general manager David Forst might end up sorry that they didn’t jettison Alonso in favor of an affordable free agent like Steve Pearce, Luis Valbuena, Chris Carter or Brandon Moss (the latter two are former A’s). They also could have retained corner infielder Danny Valencia, who slashed .288/.346/.477 in Oakland over the previous two seasons. There have been behind-the-scenes issues with Valencia, however, which would explain why the A’s got rid of the 32-year-old and why dealing him only returned right-handed pitcher Paul Blackburn, who barely cracks the club’s top 30 prospects list on MLB.com.

Defensively, the A’s didn’t markedly upgrade a unit that placed last in both DRS and UZR in 2016. None of the A’s offseason signings are aces in the field, though it’s possible replacing Valencia with Plouffe at third will go a long way toward bettering their defense (Valencia recorded a woeful minus-18 DRS and an even worse minus-25.6 UZR/150 at the hot corner last year). A bounce-back campaign from Alonso would also help Oakland’s cause. Alonso had been a terrific defender from 2010-15 (29 DRS, 11.2 UZR), but he went backward in 2016 (minus-3 DRS, minus-1.1 UZR).

A better defense would obviously assist the A’s rotation, which features no shortage of uncertainty even as the front office continues to express confidence in the group it has assembled. The questions start at the top, where Sonny Gray, a bona fide ace from 2014-15, went on the DL twice last season and posted a 5.69 ERA and 4.67 FIP in 117 innings. Now battling a lat strain that could keep him out for all of April, Gray’s guaranteed another injury-shortened year. Aside from Gray, back-end starter Kendall Graveman and second-year man Sean Manaea, who certainly encouraged as a rookie, no other season-opening rotation candidate saw much major league action in 2016. Jharel Cotton and Andrew Triggs clearly possess plenty of promise, though, and the out-of-options Raul Alcantara, 24, dominated across 45 2/3 Triple-A frames a year ago. And then there’s Jesse Hahn, who had been an effective big leaguer prior to a miserable 2016 spent between Oakland and Triple-A Nashville. Over 170 innings with the Padres and A’s from 2014-15, Hahn paired a 3.23 ERA with a 51.7 percent ground-ball rate.

While the A’s starters are largely unproven, their bullpen is loaded with experience. Madson, Santiago Casilla, Sean Doolittle and John Axford are all over the age of 30, and each has vast closing experience. All four have also been lights-out in the past, but those days seem gone in the cases of Madson and Axford. The still-effective Casilla is coming off his worst year since 2010 (more on him in a bit), while the good-when-healthy Doolittle only combined for 52 2/3 innings over the previous two seasons. Still, with Liam Hendriks and Ryan Dull joining those four as the A’s top relief options, their bullpen looks solid on paper. It’s potentially concerning that the group is almost exclusively right-handed (Doolittle is the exception), though only Casilla was particularly vulnerable against left-handed hitters last season.

Deal Of Note

Santiago Casilla ” width=”214″ height=”300″ />

The 36-year-old Casilla began his professional career with the A’s in 2000, when he signed as an international free agent who went by the name Jairo Garcia, and stayed with the franchise through the 2009 season. Casilla remained in the Bay Area with the Giants over the past seven years, and he could be in position to finish in Oakland and bring his career full circle. Casilla stands as the only pitcher to whom the A’s handed a major league deal during the winter, and his $11MM guarantee ties Joyce’s deal as the richest they doled out.

In 336 2/3 innings between his first and second A’s tenures, Casilla compiled a 2.42 ERA, 8.3 K/9, 3.5 BB/9 and a 51.7 percent ground-ball rate. He also saved 123 games as a Giant, though he wasn’t exactly a shutdown closer in San Francisco. Manager Bruce Bochy stripped Casilla of the role last year, when he totaled a league-worst nine blown saves and recorded his highest ERA (3.57) since 2009. Given his age, it’s possible Casilla is amid a steep decline, but there are still reasons for his optimism. For instance, Casilla did notch a career-best strikeout percentage (27.0) and his second-best walk percentage (7.9) in 2016. He also exceeded 50 innings for the seventh straight year (58), recorded a respectable grounder rate (47.6 percent) and didn’t experience a drop in velocity.

While Casilla didn’t come at a prohibitive cost, the A’s took a risk in giving a multiyear contract to an aging reliever. Taking that same tack a year ago with Madson and Axford didn’t work out great in either case last season. It’s also worth noting that Casilla’s pact seems rich relative to the ones given to fellow right-handed, over-35 setup men in ex-Giants teammate Sergio Romo (one year, $3MM; Dodgers), former Athletic Joe Blanton (one year, $4MM; Nationals) and Koji Uehara (one year, $6MM; Cubs). In fairness to both the A’s and Casilla, though, he arguably represents the most appealing investment (in terms of recent performance and durability) among the four.

Overview

The Athletics appear to have improved over the winter, but the same can be said for the majority of their AL West rivals. With that in mind, the A’s are likely to have difficulty avoiding a third straight last-place finish in the division. Still, there is quality youth on hand and more potentially on the way. Prospects such as middle infielder Franklin Barreto and third baseman Matt Chapman could overtake the likes of Lowrie and Plouffe sometime this season, which would immediately make the A’s a far more interesting team to watch. More importantly, their introductions could help lay the groundwork for an eventual contender – something the A’s haven’t been since 2014.

What’s your take on the Athletics’ winter? (Link for app users.)

Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

West Notes: Diamondbacks, Angels, Rockies

By Connor Byrne | March 22, 2017 at 10:32pm CDT

Diamondbacks right-hander Archie Bradley has worked solely as a starter at all three minor league levels and the majors, but the team is considering moving him to the bullpen, according to Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic. The 24-year-old is open to making the switch. “With the way I’m throwing the baseball right now, the way I feel, the way the ball is coming out, I’m comfortable in any role, in any capacity,” Bradley said. “Just put me on this team.” Bradley, whom Baseball America once regarded as a top 10 prospect, made 26 starts for the D-backs last year and managed a 5.02 ERA, 9.08 K/9, 4.26 BB/9 and a 45.1 percent ground-ball rate over 141 2/3 innings. Now, he’s behind Zack Greinke, Taijuan Walker, Robbie Ray, Shelby Miller and Patrick Corbin in Arizona’s rotation pecking order, per Piecoro.

More on Arizona and two other teams in the majors’ West divisions:

Miller, who endured a nightmarish, well-publicized 2016 with the Diamondbacks, continued to flash high velocity Wednesday, according to Anthony Castrovince of MLB.com. Miller’s four-seam fastball sat between 93 mph and 96 mph (and touched 97 mph), and “the industry is intrigued” by the improved stuff he has shown this spring, relays Castrovince. D-backs manager Torey Lovullo thinks the righty is “ready to do some special things this year,” while Miller says he’s “just trying to have a positive outlook on everything” and not dwell on last season.
Angels first baseman Luis Valbuena left the team’s game early on Wednesday as a result of right hamstring tightness, per Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register. While the severity is unknown, it’s worth noting that Valbuena missed a large chunk of 2016 with a right hamstring injury and underwent season-ending surgery in August. The Angels will turn to C.J. Cron as their primary first baseman if they lose Valbuena, who’s entering the first season of a two-year, $15MM deal.
Rockies left-hander Chris Rusin had been vying for one of their available rotation spots before suffering an oblique injury March 3. Rusin returned to throwing on Wednesday, in the form of a 25-pitch bullpen session, writes Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post. The 30-year-old hopes to return by Opening Day, but he no longer has a chance to earn a starting job. The Rockies will choose two of Antonio Senzatela, Jeff Hoffman, German Marquez, Harrison Musgrave and Kyle Freeland to fill out their rotation behind Jon Gray, Tyler Anderson and Tyler Chatwood.

Central Notes: Pirates, Indians, White Sox, Brewers

By Connor Byrne | March 22, 2017 at 8:52pm CDT

In an expansive Q&A with Mark Feinsand of MLB.com, Pirates general manager Neal Huntington discusses the challenges that accompany running a low-payroll club, noting that “large-dollar free-agent signs are not available to us,” so the Bucs must rely on developing cheap talent from within. As a result, Huntington has found it difficult to part with packages of prospects in trades for established major leaguers (Jose Quintana, for instance). “You can look around our entire club right how and anybody that came through our system, we could have traded somewhere along the way,” said Huntington. “Gerrit Cole, Jameson Taillon, Gregory Polanco, Starling Marte, Jordy Mercer, Josh Harrison, Josh Bell, Tony Watson; we could have traded any and of all of them at some point, and every single player we would have acquired wouldn’t be with the Pittsburgh Pirates anymore. They would have left for somewhere else because of free agency.”

Pitching Notes: Quintana, Ryu, Weaver, Iglesias

By Connor Byrne | March 22, 2017 at 6:54pm CDT

Pittsburgh has pursued a trade for White Sox left-hander Jose Quintana over the past several months, but Pirates general manager Neal Huntington found the asking price to be “well above where it made sense for us” (via ESPN’s Jim Bowden). With the Bucs seemingly out of the picture for Quintana, the Astros and Braves are the “best possibilities,” per Bowden, who notes that the White Sox “continue to work hard” to trade the 28-year-old. No deal is imminent, though, according to Bowden, who adds that the Astros would have to part with both right-hander Francis Martes and outfielder Kyle Tucker, two of Baseball America’s top 20 prospects, to acquire Quintana (all Twitter links). Houston balked at giving up a package of Martes, Tucker and righty Joe Musgrove for Quintana during the Winter Meetings.

For his part, White Sox GM Rick Hahn is content to wait until someone makes what he deems a satisfactory offer for Quintana, who’s reasonably priced and controllable through the 2020 season. “We’ve had conversations even this spring where if our asks was met, we’d make a move,” Hahn told Scott Merkin of MLB.com. “Obviously nothing has developed as of yet, but that could well change early in the season or it could take to the trade deadline or into the next offseason” (Twitter links).

The latest on a few other pitchers:

Remarkably, after missing almost all of the previous two years because of shoulder problems, Dodgers southpaw Hyun-Jin Ryu is making a strong case to crack their season-opening rotation, writes Ken Gurnick of MLB.com. Ryu threw four scoreless, one-hit innings against Milwaukee on Tuesday, giving him nine frames of one-run ball for the spring. Manager Dave Roberts made it clear afterward that the Dodgers want him in their rotation, saying: “When we look back a year, where he’s come from, he’s done nothing but allow us to be very optimistic. Every time he’s gotten better and we’re building him up to be a starter and break camp with us. That’s the plan on our end. He worked hard to put himself in a position where he’s at right now. We’re a better team if he’s in the starting rotation.” With Julio Urias likely to begin the season in extended spring training and Scott Kazmir looking for his lost velocity, two of Ryu, Brandon McCarthy and Alex Wood figure to claim the Dodgers’ available starting spots.
Padres righty Jered Weaver is dealing with a dead arm, tweets Dennis Lin of the San Diego Union-Tribune. Weaver has also battled that issue in previous springs, notes Lin, though it’s not exactly encouraging news for a soft-tossing 34-year-old who’s coming off the two worst seasons of his career. Weaver indicated last week that he’s physically “10 steps above” where he was last year, when he piled up 178 innings with the Angels and logged the fourth-worst ERA (5.06) and second-highest FIP (5.62) among the majors’ qualified starters. The former ace lasted two-thirds of an inning in his start against the Royals on Wednesday and yielded four runs on three hits. He also hit two batters.
Already sans their best starter, the injured Anthony DeSclafani, as Opening Day approaches, the Reds might also begin 2017 without top reliever Raisel Iglesias, who hasn’t pitched since March 14. An elbow issue has kept Iglesias out of action, but an MRI only showed a bone bruise, according to C. Trent Rosecrans of the Cincinnati Enquirer. “The good news is that it doesn’t look like it’s going to be a huge setback or there are any structural issues at all,” said manager Bryan Price. “The negative is that he’s going to have four more days off before he begins to throw again and we’ll have to see how comfortable we are by Opening Day or maybe before that.” A former starter, Iglesias was among the few bright spots in a historically inept Reds bullpen last year, when he posted a 1.98 ERA, 9.72 K/9 and 3.42 BB/9 in 50 innings as a reliever. Health permitting, the 27-year-old will serve as a high-leverage bullpen weapon this season.

MLBTR Chat Transcript

By Jason Martinez | March 22, 2017 at 6:29pm CDT

Click here to view the transcript for MLBTR Chat With Jason Martinez: March 22, 2017

East Notes: Green, Yankees, Nationals, Orioles

By Connor Byrne and Jeff Todd | March 22, 2017 at 5:32pm CDT

Former major league right-hander, manager and executive Dallas Green passed away Wednesday at the age of 82. The Phillies and Mets were among the teams for which Green played during his career from 1960-67, and he later managed those clubs and the Yankees. Most of his success as a manager came in Philadelphia, where he went 169-130 from 1979-81 and helped the franchise to its first World Series title in 1980. Green also served as the Cubs’ general manager from 1982-87. In Chicago, he was the driving force behind the team’s acquisition of now-Hall of Fame second baseman Ryne Sandberg in an ’82 trade with the Phillies.

“The game lost a great baseball man today,” stated Phillies chairman David Montgomery. “Dallas held many different positions in baseball and his passion and love for the game was evident in every role he played. He was a big man with a big heart and a bigger-than-life personality. Having known Dallas since 1971, he was one of my first phone calls upon becoming Phillies president because of his perspective and advice. All of us at the Phillies had tremendous respect for Dallas as a baseball man and friend. We will miss him dearly. Our thoughts and prayers go out to his wife, Sylvia, and his children, Dana, John, Kim and Doug.”

MLBTR joins the Phillies and the rest of the baseball world in sending our condolences to those close to Green.

Greg Bird has earned the Yankees starting first base job, manager Joe Girardi told reporters including ESPNNewYork.com’s Andrew Marchand (Twitter link). That’s not terribly surprising given his torrid spring — he hit two more bombs today following the news — and the equally subpar performance thus far from Chris Carter (.118/.231/.206). While it’s never wise to put too much stock in Spring Training stat lines, and Carter is far the more established MLB player, the Yanks have long believed in Bird’s talent and will gladly give him a chance to lock down as large a role as he proves capable of handling. The righty-swinging Carter will no doubt still find himself in the lineup against quite a few lefties; Bird was far more impressive with the platoon advantage in his strong (albeit brief) 2015 MLB debut and has shown rather wide splits in the upper minors.
The stress fracture Nationals ace Max Scherzer suffered in his right ring finger over the winter won’t cause him to miss any turns in the team’s season-opening rotation. While Scherzer won’t start on Opening Day, the reigning NL Cy Young winner is on track for the Nats’ third game of the season, according to skipper Dusty Baker (via Eddie Matz of ESPN.com). Wednesday was a notable test for Scherzer, who faced major league hitters for the first time this spring. The right-hander tossed 73 pitches against the Cardinals and hit 95 mph on the radar gun, per Matz. Scherzer was encouraged afterward, saying: “I’m getting through that injury. It’s behind me now.”
Manager Buck Showalter says the Orioles are focused on roster flexibility in shaping their bullpen, as Jon Meoli of the Baltimore Sun reports. With questions throughout the starting rotation and the inevitable need to fill gaps that arise during the season, Showalter stressed the organization’s improved set of optionable, upper-level pitchers. It’s still a wide-open competition to fill in for Chris Tillman in the rotation and settle on a long reliever in setting the Opening Day roster, and Meoli breaks down the hard-to-prognosticate state of play as camp enters its final phase.

Yankees Not Interested In Zack Cozart, Jose Iglesias

By Connor Byrne | March 22, 2017 at 4:25pm CDT

While the suddenly shortstop-needy Yankees have interest in acquiring the Diamondbacks’ Nick Ahmed, they’re not eyeing either the Reds’ Zack Cozart or the Tigers’ Jose Iglesias. In the wake of the shoulder injury Yankees shortstop Didi Gregorius suffered Saturday, Cincinnati gauged the Bombers’ interest in Cozart, and Detroit did the same with Iglesias. The Yankees turned down both teams’ overtures, reports George A. King III of the New York Post.

It’s unclear what the Reds and Tigers would have wanted in return for their shortstops, neither of whom carry ultra-cheap price tags. Iglesias is set to rake in $4.1MM this year, his penultimate season of team control, while Cozart will collect $5.325MM and then become a free agent next winter. Given that Gregorius could only miss the first month of the season, it likely wouldn’t make sense for the Yankees to add a somewhat expensive stopgap at short.

The rebuilding Reds have been trying to move the 31-year-old Cozart since at least last summer, when a near-trade with the Mariners fell through. Cozart has been a terrific defender since debuting in earnest in 2012 (54 Defensive Runs Saved, 42.2 Ultimate Zone Rating), and he has recently offered respectable production at the plate. Over the previous two seasons, Cozart combined to slash .254/.308/.435 with 25 home runs in 722 plate appearances. It’s somewhat surprising, then, that Cincinnati hasn’t been able to find a taker for Cozart, though many teams are set at shortstop, as FanGraphs’ Jeff Sullivan writes. By ridding themselves of Cozart, the Reds would be able to turn to a full-time middle infield consisting of the 22-year-old Jose Peraza and the 23-year-old Dilson Herrera, the latter of whom will begin the season at the Triple-A level.

Unlike the Reds, the Tigers aren’t rebuilding, making it an eye-opener that they’d dangle their starting shortstop prior to Opening Day. Iglesias, 27, has been a roughly average player dating back to his first full season, 2013, having accounted for 5.6 fWAR in 1,359 plate appearances since then. The light-hitting Iglesias is coming off his worst offensive season (.255/.306/.336 in 513 PAs), but he made up for it with his defensive chops (three DRS, 11.6 UZR) en route to a career-high 2.1 fWAR. If it were to deal Iglesias sometime this year, Detroit would presumably hand shortstop to a potentially similar player in prospect Dixon Machado. MLB.com describes the 25-year-old as “a defensive wizard who has improved enough physically and with the bat to be a big league regular.” Offensively, Machado hasn’t lit it up at the Triple-A level, where he has slashed .264/.331/.344 in 1,136 PAs, and has only taken 91 trips to the plate in the majors on account of Iglesias’ presence.

As for the Yankees, barring an Ahmed acquisition or a change of heart on Cozart or Iglesias, they’ll go into Opening Day with one of Starlin Castro, Tyler Wade, Ronald Torreyes, Pete Kozma or Ruben Tejada as Gregorious’ temporary replacement. If it’s Castro, who’s the Yankees’ starting second baseman, other members of the shortstop candidates group or utilityman Rob Refsnyder could fill in at the keystone.

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