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Phillies Place Edubray Ramos On DL

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The Phillies announced that they’ve placed reliever Edubray Ramos on the 10-day disabled list with a left patella tendon strain. To take his roster spot, the team reinstated fellow reliever Luis Garcia from the DL.

At 54-43 and tied with the Braves for the NL East lead, the Phillies have been among the majors’ surprise teams this season. The 25-year-old Ramos has been partially responsible for their success, having logged a 1.91 ERA/3.21 FIP with 9.0 K/9 and 3.55 BB/9 in 32 2/3 innings.

Ramos has joined Seranthony Dominguez, Victor Arano, Tommy Hunter and Pat Neshek to comprise a formidable quintet in relief. Nevertheless, the Phillies have been on the lookout for bullpen help in advance of the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline, and losing Ramos for at least 10 days could further influence general manager Matt Klentak to upgrade his team’s relief corps.

Sonny Gray Drawing “A Bit Of Interest”

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Sonny Gray was part of a trade deadline deal last year, and the right-hander may end up on the move again this season. Gray, whom the Yankees acquired from the Athletics last July, is generating “a bit of interest” with July 31 nearing, Jon Heyman of Fancred tweets. Heyman casts doubt on the Yankees shipping out Gray, though, noting that the playoff shoo-ins are more interested in adding starters than subtracting them.

The Gray experiment hasn’t worked out thus far for New York, and as a result, Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe reported Saturday that some teams believe the Yankees do want to move him. The 28-year-old Gray has been a quality mid-rotation starter for the majority of his career, but he’s now amid his second-worst season in terms of both ERA (5.34) and FIP (4.41). While Gray has managed the second-best strikeout rate of his major league tenure (8.53 K/9), he has partially offset that with a personal-worst walk rate (3.94 BB/9). He has also generated the fewest ground balls of his career (a still-respectable 47.6 percent), racked up just 96 innings in 19 starts and totaled only seven quality starts.

As poorly as Gray has pitched this year, he’s still one of the Yankees’ five best starting options right now, to which Heyman alluded. Despite their excellent record (63-34, 4 1/2 games behind AL East-leading Boston), the Yankees haven’t gotten much from any starters but Luis Severino and CC Sabathia – the latter of whom is a 38-year-old with past knee problems. One of Gray’s fellow established starters, Masahiro Tanaka, has also had difficulty preventing runs. Meanwhile, Jordan Montgomery is out for this year and at least some of 2019 on account of Tommy John surgery, rookie Domingo German hasn’t been part of the solution, and fellow first-year man Jonathan Loaisiga didn’t offer length during his first four starts before succumbing to shoulder troubles.

Given their obvious starting pitching issues, the Yankees are known to be on the hunt for rotation help in advance of the deadline. The problem is that no front-line starters appear destined to move, which could leave the Yankees to choose from uninspiring hurlers who, like Gray, bring clear flaws to the table. One such option is righty Dan Straily, whom the Yankees have spoken with the Marlins about, according to Heyman. But the teams “don’t appear to be close” to a deal, per Heyman, and Straily certainly wouldn’t represent a slam-dunk upgrade over Gray.

As a result of the weak pitching market, Gray may at least finish the season as a Yankee, and then the team will have to decide whether to retain him in 2019. Gray, who’s on a $6.5MM salary this season, is slated to go through arbitration one more time.

Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Hand, Harper, Brewers, Gennett, Castellanos, Mets

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This week in baseball blogs…

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Royals Acquire Brian Goodwin

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The Royals have acquired outfielder Brian Goodwin from the Nationals for minor league reliever Jacob Condra-Bogan, Washington announced. The Nats also recalled reliever Sammy Solis to take Goodwin’s roster spot.

A National since they chose him in the first round (34th overall) of the 2011 draft, Goodwin never became a full-time player with the club. He debuted in 2016 with a short stint and amassed a career-high 278 plate appearances last year, when he impressed by posting a .251/.313/.498 line (105 wRC+) with 13 home runs, six steals and a stellar .247 ISO. Goodwin had difficulty in the outfield, however, as he combined for minus-7 Defensive Runs Saved and a minus-4.6 Ultimate Zone Rating.

Playing time was harder to come by in D.C. this season for the 27-year-old Goodwin, who was stuck behind fellow lefty-swingers Bryce Harper, Juan Soto and Adam Eaton – not to mention the righty-hitting Michael A. Taylor – in the team’s outfield pecking order. Each of Harper, Eaton and Taylor missed time because of injuries in 2017, while Soto wasn’t even in the majors – all of which opened the door for Goodwin.

With no clear path to action this season, Goodwin racked up just 79 PAs in his final run with the Nationals and batted .200/.321/.354. Along the way, he showed significantly less power (three HRs, .154 ISO) and raised his strikeout rate from 24.8 percent last year to 32.9 percent. Goodwin did increase his walk rate, which climbed from 8.3 percent in 2017 to 12.7, but that wasn’t enough to lift his offense to a respectable level.

Because Goodwin’s out of options and superfluous to the Nats’ roster, the logical move was to deal him. The rebuilding Royals are apparently in position to take a chance on Goodwin, who won’t be eligible for arbitration until after next season and is controllable through 2022. Kansas City has Alex Gordon and Jorge Bonifacio entrenched as corner outfield starters, but Goodwin could perhaps supplant the struggling Rosell Herrera in center. They’ll have to figure out how to deploy those players and right fielder Jorge Soler when he returns from the left toe fracture he suffered in mid-June. Soler is likely to come back in August, Rustin Dodd of the Athletic suggests.

To land Goodwin, the Royals gave up the hard-throwing Condra-Bogan, whom Maria Torres of the Kansas City Star profiled in June. The Royals signed Condra-Bogan, 23, out of the Frontier League in January, and he has since shown off 99 mph heat “without losing command of the strike zone,” per Torres. The righty has tossed 27 innings at the Single-A level this season and notched a 2.08 ERA with incredible strikeout and walk rates (13.5 K/9, .70 BB/9).

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Sean Doolittle Has “Stress Reaction” In Foot

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Nationals closer Sean Doolittle underwent an MRI on Saturday that revealed a “stress reaction” in his left foot, Mark Zuckerman of MASNsports.com tweets. There’s no timetable for Doolittle’s return, but he’s expected to miss “weeks, not months,” according to Zuckerman.

Doolittle has already been out since July 7, though the Nationals were surely hoping the left-hander would return after a minimum stay on the 10-day disabled list. Instead, the latest news on Doolittle is yet another negative development for Washington. Expected to contend for a World Series at the beginning of the season, the Nationals have limped to a 48-49 record, placing them 6 1/2 games out in the National League East and six behind a wild-card spot.

Now, considering how poorly their season has gone, it’s unclear just how aggressive the Nationals will be leading up to the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline. There are plenty of relievers set to change hands in the coming days, and the Nats could perhaps be involved in that market if they choose to buy. Of course, they already made a major addition to their bullpen last month in acquiring Kelvin Herrera from the Royals. Herrera hasn’t been close to as effective in Washington as he was in Kansas City for the season’s first couple months, but as an experienced closer, he’s the logical replacement for Doolittle in D.C.

The 31-year-old Doolittle’s void certainly isn’t an easy one to fill, given that he has posted outstanding results since debuting with the A’s in 2012. Doolittle was better than ever this year before going on the DL, as he logged a 1.45 ERA/1.97 FIP with 11.81 K/9 and .72 BB/9 in 37 1/3 innings. He also locked down nearly half of the Nats’ wins, saving 22 of 23 opportunities.

Trade Rumors: Abreu, Brewers, BoSox, Twins, Royals, Dodgers, Brach, Treinen

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As an established veteran on a cellar-dwelling team, White Sox first baseman Jose Abreu has come up often as a speculative trade candidate, but the club’s “strongly inclined” to retain him, Bob Nightengale of USA Today tweets. The 31-year-old hasn’t exactly boosted his trade value this season, having hit a career-worst .250/.312/.435 (101 wRC+, compared to 139 from 2014-17) and accounted for a replacement-level WAR across 407 plate appearances. Regardless of whether the White Sox keep Abreu, he’s slated to go through arbitration once more over the winter. In the meantime, he’s on a $13MM salary this season.

More trade-related items as the countdown to the July 31 deadline continues…

  • The Brewers’ interest in Royals second baseman/outfielder Whit Merrifield has been known for a while, and Robert Murray of The Athletic (subscription required) explores the possibility of Milwaukee acquiring him. The Brewers haven’t pursued Merrifield as aggressively as they did during the winter, according to Murray, who hears he’d be rather expensive to pry out of Kansas City. Landing Merrifield would require “three higher-end prospects, at least,” an executive told Murray. Milwaukee happens to have a quality farm system, though it’s unlikely to trade its best prospect – second baseman Keston Hiura – suggests Murray, who goes on to run down farmhands the team could deal for Merrifield. The 29-year-old Merrifield has upped his stock during a terrific season in which he has hit .305/.375/.429 with five home runs and 17 steals through 412 PAs. Adding to his appeal, Merrifield’s on a near-minimum salary this season and won’t even be eligible for arbitration until after the 2019 campaign.
  • The Red Sox sent a high-level executive, senior vice president of baseball operations Frank Wren, to scout the Royals–Twins game on Friday, per Mike Berardino of the Pioneer Press. It’s unclear which players Wren focused on, though it’s worth pointing out that Boston has shown reported interest in both Merrifield and Royals teammate Mike Moustakas. And with the Twins likely to sell at the deadline, Buster Olney of ESPN doesn’t rule out the Red Sox pursuing second baseman Brian Dozier.
  • Along with Baltimore’s closer, Zach Britton, the reliever-needy Dodgers are interested in Orioles setup man Brad Brach, according to Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times. The Dodgers have also scouted the Marlins and Rays and “monitored” Athletics closer Blake Treinen, Shaikin adds, though it seems improbable he’ll go anywhere with the A’s making a major push for a playoff spot. Conversely, as a pending free agent on a rebuilding team, the 32-year-old Brach is a good bet to end up in another uniform in the coming weeks. The problem for Baltimore is that Brach is in the midst of his least effective season in a while, with a 4.34 ERA/3.61 FIP and a 4.34 BB/9 in 37 1/3 innings. On the positive side, Brach has struck out upward of nine hitters per nine and generated swinging strikes at a solid clip (13.2 percent).

Cafardo’s Latest: Yanks, Drury, Gray, O’s, Jays, Donaldson, Hamels, Marlins, Straily

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Third baseman Brandon Drury was in the package the Yankees offered the Orioles for shortstop Manny Machado, Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe reports. The Yankees’ proposal didn’t suffice for the Orioles, who sent Machado to the Dodgers for a five-player return on Wednesday. Drury has also been part of a 2018 trade, an offseason deal in which he went from the Diamondbacks to the Yankees, but he hasn’t been able to find steady playing time in New York. After entering the season as the Yankees’ starting third baseman, the 25-year-old Drury headed to the disabled list with migraines in early April, paving the way for rookie Miguel Andujar’s emergence at the hot corner. While Drury also offers a fair amount of experience at second base and in the corner outfield, the Yankees have set starters in those spots.

Thanks largely to the presences of Andujar, Gleyber Torres, Aaron Judge, Giancarlo Stanton and Brett Gardner, Drury has amassed just 54 plate appearances with the Yankees and spent most of the season in the minors. Drury hasn’t done much in his limited work with New York, as his .184/.259/.286 batting line demonstrates, but he has posted a .294/.403/.447 slash in 233 Triple-A plate appearances. He’s also not far removed from a decent showing with Arizona, where he batted .275/.323/.453 with 29 HRs in 979 PAs from 2016-17, and comes with a cheap salary ($621,900) and three years of arbitration eligibility. Perhaps the Yankees will find a taker for Drury in the near future, then, though they’re surely not in a hurry to give away any depth.

  • Sticking with the Yankees, Cafardo relays that teams are scouting right-hander Sonny Gray, and some clubs are under the impression New York wants to trade him. The Yankees paid a high price to the A’s for Gray at last year’s trade deadline, but the move hasn’t worked out as hoped for the Bombers. Gray has taken sizable steps backward this season, with a 5.34 ERA/4.42 FIP in 96 innings, and may not be worthy of trusting in a playoff series should the Yankees get to that point. The 28-year-old’s making $6.5MM in 2018 and is only controllable via arbitration for one more season.
  • The Blue Jays “hope” to trade pending free-agent third baseman Josh Donaldson this summer, according to Cafardo. A superstar with Oakland and Toronto from 2013-16, Donaldson’s amid his second straight injury-plagued year and has only appeared in 36 games this season. Not only has Donaldson been on the DL twice (including since May 29 because of calf tightness), but he hasn’t offered his usual excellent production when healthy. The 32-year-old has hit a middling .234/.333/.423 in 159 plate appearances, helping to hurt his value on the trade market and hamper his future earning power. In the event Donaldson returns in the coming weeks, he could wind up as an August trade piece, though his injury problems, decline in production and lofty salary ($23MM) would make it difficult for Toronto to get much back in a deal.
  • It’s “likely” the Rangers will find a trade partner for left-hander Cole Hamels, writes Cafardo, who adds that the Phillies, Yankees and Braves undoubtedly have interest. The Red Sox may also be among teams with Hamels on their radar, per Cafardo. Phillies general manager Matt Klentak doesn’t seem keen on dipping into the trade market for starters, though, and it’s no lock Hamels would even be part of the solution for them or any other team. The 34-year-old’s struggles this season are well known, and his $22.5MM salary for 2018 and $6MM buyout for 2019 don’t help matters.
  • Marlins righty Dan Straily is drawing interest, per Cafardo. The 29-year-old’s not having a particularly good season (4.02 ERA/5.27 FIP with 7.24 K/9, 4.25 BB/9 and a 33.5 percent groundball rate over 78 1/3 innings), but he’s affordable and controllable. Straily’s on a $3.37MM salary this season and has another two years of arbitration eligibility remaining.

Quick Hits: Cano, Mets, Familia, D-backs, S. Miller, White Sox

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Mariners second baseman Robinson Cano has been out since mid-May on account of both an 80-game suspension and a fractured right hand. In his absence, the Mariners have deployed Dee Gordon at second, and they’re not going to waver from that upon Cano’s return. “We are looking at Dee as our second baseman,” general manager Jerry Dipoto said Friday (via Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times). “There may be a time, especially mid-August to the end of the season where he slides out to center field for a day. But primarily he’s going to play second base.” With Gordon poised to continue at second, it seems Cano will primarily handle first base when he comes back. Although the 35-year-old Cano has never lined up at first, he certainly has the bat for the position. If Cano’s his usual self at the plate, he’ll be an easy upgrade over Seattle’s current starting first baseman, Ryon Healy, though the former’s suspension means won’t be eligible for the postseason if the contending Mariners earn a spot.

Here’s more from around the game…

  • The Mets pulled off a major trade Saturday in sending pending free-agent closer Jeurys Familia to the Athletics for third baseman William Toffey, right-hander Bobby Wahl and $1MM in international bonus money. Keith Law of ESPN (subscription required) isn’t impressed with the Mets’ half of the deal, writing that Toffey and Wahl are “two fringe-at-best prospects” and lambasting the big-market club for its penny-pinching ways. Law, who credits the A’s for paying next to nothing for a proven reliever, goes on to offer in-depth assessments of Toffey and Wahl in his piece.
  • If Diamondbacks right-hander Shelby Miller returns this season from elbow inflammation, he may work as a reliever, manager Torey Lovullo told reporters (including Zach Buchanan of The Athletic) on Friday. For now, Miller’s in the midst of a 10- to 14-day shutdown period, Buchanan notes, though he doesn’t have any UCL damage. Miller, out since July 12, endured a nightmarish few starts before going on the DL. In his first action since undergoing May 2017 Tommy John surgery, Miller yielded 19 earned runs on 24 hits and seven walks in 15 innings (four starts).
  • White Sox reliever Nate Jones suffered a setback in his recovery from a pronator muscle strain and will be shut down for two weeks, Scott Merkin of MLB.com tweets. The team still expects Jones to come back this year, Merkin adds, though it seems too late for him to emerge as an in-season trade chip. The 32-year-old Jones has already been out for more than a month, making this his second straight injury-shortened campaign. Jones, whom elbow problems limited to 11 2/3 innings last year, has thrown 24 2/3 frames this season and registered a 2.55 ERA/4.61 FIP with 9.85 K/9 and 5.11 BB/9.

Trade Rumors: Hamels, Phillies, Rangers, Tigers, J. Iglesias, M’s, D-backs

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Rangers left-hander Cole Hamels has made it known he’d welcome a return to Philadelphia, where he pitched from 2008-15, but a reunion appears “unlikely,” Todd Zolecki of MLB.com writes. The Phillies are trying to stay away from the starting pitching market in general, according to general manager Matt Klentak, who said Friday that the team’s rotation “has been the strength of our team this year.” It’s doubtful Hamels would serve as a legitimate upgrade over any of the Phillies’ starters, especially at such a high price ($22.5MM salary this season and then a $6MM buyout in 2019). Formerly a front-end hurler, the 34-year-old Hamels has managed a 4.36 ERA/5.06 FIP with an equally unappealing home run rate (1.73 allowed per nine) over 109 1/3 innings in 2018.

  • More on the Rangers, whose relievers are drawing trade interest, per TR Sullivan of MLB.com. Closer Keone Kela and lefty Jake Diekman seem to be garnering the most attention from other teams, Sullivan suggests. That’s unsurprising – after all, both are inexpensive and effective, and they’ve reportedly been on the block for a month.
  • Tigers shortstop Jose Iglesias is of interest to “at least” one team, Anthony Fenech of the Detroit Free-Press reports. The 28-year-old, a pending free agent on a $6.275MM salary, is enjoying one of his most productive seasons at an opportune time. With 1.8 fWAR in 350 plate appearances, he’s on pace to surpass the 2.0 fWAR mark for the fourth time. The light-hitting defensive specialist owns a .269/.307/.385 batting line and an 8.9 Ultimate Zone Rating, which ranks second among shortstops.
  • Mariners GM Jerry Dipoto told Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times and other reporters on Friday that the M’s are hoping to address their pitching staff by the deadline. “We’ve certainly had our feelers out there on a variety of different things that would help our pitching staff, whether it be bullpen or starting pitching,” said Dipoto, adding that “we would prefer to focus on pitching.” Dipoto’s less concerned about upgrading the Mariners’ position player group, which will soon get the suspended Robinson Cano back, though Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports says (video link) the team’s “open to any upgrade” – even an offensive one. The same is true regarding the Diamondbacks, who are “exploring a wide range of possibilities,” Rosenthal reports. Although, the bullpen is the likeliest area that both Seattle and Arizona will address, per Rosenthal.

Injury Notes: Reds, Cespedes, Angels, Rangers

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Reds infielder Alex Blandino suffered a torn ACL in his right knee on Friday, John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer writes. Blandino will miss the rest of the season, though the length of the recovery period (five to six months, Fay writes) suggests his 2019 isn’t in jeopardy. A first-round pick (No. 29 overall) of the Reds in 2014, Blandino debuted in the majors this year and batted .234/.324/.289 in 147 plate appearances. Defensively, he saw action at several positions, logging double-digit appearances at second, third and shortstop.

A few more injury updates from around the game…

  • After returning Friday from a two-month absence, left fielder Yoenis Cespedes missed the Mets’ game Saturday while dealing with soreness, Tim Healey of Newsday reports. Cespedes, who revealed Friday that he has calcification in his heels and may need surgery, will meet with a foot specialist and have an MRI next week, per Healey. Despite that, the Mets haven’t ruled Cespedes out for Sunday’s game, according to manager Mickey Callaway.
  • The Angels activated right-hander Nick Tropeano from the disabled list and optioned fellow righty Eduardo Paredes to Triple-A Salt Lake on Saturday. Tropeano, who started the Angels’ game Saturday, missed just under a month and a half with inflammation in his pitching shoulder. He’s among a cavalcade of Angels who haven’t been able to get through the season unscathed, which helps explain their disappointing record (49-49). The 27-year-old entered Saturday with a 4.83 ERA/4.86 FIP, 7.33 K/9 and 3.33 BB/9 over a 10-start, 54-inning span.
  • Rangers catcher Jose Trevino has undergone season-ending left shoulder surgery, Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News reports, adding that he should be ready for spring training in 2019. The 25-year-old had a poor season at the plate at the Triple-A level (.234/.284/.332 in 201 trips), but he’s a well-regarded defender who ranks as the Rangers’ 21st-best prospect at MLB Pipeline. Trevino also earned his first major league promotion this season, collecting eight PAs.

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