NL East Notes: Nationals, Kingery, Braves
Some rumblings from around the National League East…
- The Nationals would still like to add another Major League catcher to their roster, MLB.com’s Jon Paul Morosi reports. Catcher is the only true weak spot on Washington’s depth chart, due to Matt Wieters‘ rough 2017 season and Pedro Severino‘s lack of hitting at the MLB level (or even in the minors). Miguel Montero is also in camp on a non-roster invite but is also coming off a poor 2017. The Nats are known to have explored trade talks with the Marlins about J.T. Realmuto, and if Realmuto or another catcher can’t be obtained in a trade, D.C. could consider signing a catcher who becomes available in late-Spring Training roster shuffling, or perhaps a bigger-name free agent like the still-available Jonathan Lucroy.
- Scott Kingery is turning a lot of heads in the Phillies‘ spring camp, and there’s a chance the second base prospect could crack the Opening Day roster, Matt Gelb of The Athletic writes (subscription required). Manager Gabe Kapler considers Kingery capable of playing several different positions, so a super-utility role would get Kingery in the lineup even with Cesar Hernandez still the regular second baseman. Service time considerations, however, could keep Kingery at Triple-A to begin the season, though there are also some legitimate skills-related arguments to be made that the prospect still need more minor league seasoning.
- Though the Braves enjoyed a 47 percent increase in revenues from 2016 to 2017 thanks to the opening of SunTrust Park, the team projects to have a smaller payroll next season than it did in 2017, Tim Tucker of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution writes. The Braves had long intended to time the opening of their new stadium to coincide with the end of their rebuilding plan, though this offseason been a very quiet one for the team, save for a big payroll-shuffling trade with the Dodgers. Of course, Atlanta’s plans were entirely upended by the shocking departures of both former GM John Coppolella and former president of baseball operations John Hart, so perhaps it isn’t surprising that the franchise held back on any aggressive moves. New general manager Alex Anthopoulos even stated in December that he would likely take “a more cautious approach” in his first year running the front office.
Minor MLB Transactions: 3/4/2018
Rounding up the latest minor moves from around the baseball world…
- The Royals have outrighted Billy Burns to Triple-A after the outfielder cleared waivers, the team announced (via Twitter). Burns was designated for assignment earlier this week but will now return to Kansas City’s big league Spring Training camp. The 28-year-old finished fifth in AL Rookie Of The Year voting in 2015 after an impressive debut year with the Athletics, but has since hit just .233/.269/.293 over 338 plate appearances over the last two seasons. Burns appeared in just seven games for the Royals last year, as he spent much of the season with Triple-A Omaha.
A’s Designate Brandon Moss For Assignment, Claim Jairo Labourt
The Athletics have claimed left-hander Jairo Labourt off waivers from the Reds, the club announced. Veteran first baseman/DH Brandon Moss has been designated for assignment in a corresponding move to create room for Labourt on Oakland’s 40-man roster.
Moss was acquired by the A’s as part of a four-player trade with the Royals that essentially shook out as Oakland agreeing to take on a heavy chunk of Moss’ salary as the price for obtaining a cost-controlled young reliever in Ryan Buchter. Matt Olson and Khris Davis were already locked in at first base and DH for the A’s, leaving Moss without any clear path to regular playing time, and even a bench role seemed unlikely given the Athletics’ overall youth movement.
[Updated A’s depth chart at Roster Resource]
The Royals kicked in $3.25MM as part of the trade, leaving the A’s on the hook for the remaining $4MM of Moss’ 2018 salary, plus $1MM to buy out their end of Moss’ $10MM mutual option for 2019. A team that claims Moss within the 10-day DFA period would take on this salary commitment, so it seems much likelier than any clubs interested in the 34-year-old will wait until Moss is officially released. (A new team would owe Moss just a minimum salary in 2018, with Oakland responsible for the prorated remainder of that $5MM.)
It remains to be seen if any suitors will come calling for Moss given the number of other first base/DH types available in free agency, plus Moss’ own struggles in 2017. Moss hit 22 homers last year for Kansas City, but slashed just .207/.279/.428 over 401 plate appearances. His batting averages and on-base percentages have been in steady decline over the last five seasons and, given his lack of defensive value, Moss was a sub-replacement level player in 2017 as per both fWAR (-0.5) and bWAR (-1.0).
If Moss doesn’t land another MLB contract, the veteran plans to retire, he told Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle as part of an interview on the A’s Plus Podcast (to be released later today). “I totally understand the situation here. They [the A’s] had to get me to get a guy they really needed. That’s baseball, that’s the way it works,” Moss said. “But if I get cut, I can play by my own rules, I don’t have to do anything, and I won’t. If another team doesn’t pick me up, I’ve had a good career, more of a career than I ever thought I’d have.”
Labourt will now be joining his third organization in less than two weeks, as the southpaw was designated by the Tigers in the wake of their signing of Francisco Liriano, and the Reds then claimed Labourt just two days ago. Buchter and Danny Coulombe are the only other left-handers on Oakland’s 40-man roster, so Labourt has at least a shot at winning a job out of Spring Training. Despite some significant control issues throughout his seven-year pro career, Labourt posted some strong results after becoming a full-time reliever in 2017, and his performance even led to Labourt making his Major League debut in a six-game cup of coffee with Detroit last season. Labourt has a 3.61 ERA, 8.8 K/9, and 1.74 K/BB rate over 481 minor league innings.
Nolan Arenado Doesn’t Expect Rockies Extension This Season
The prospect of an extension between the Rockies and star third baseman Nolan Arenado doesn’t seem likely in the near future, as Arenado tells MLB.com’s Thomas Harding (Twitter links). “I don’t think anything is going to happen until after the season. We have a good team and our focus is on winning — as it should be,” Arenado said. He also added “and that’s what everyone wants,” which could indicate that both he and the Rockies are content to table negotiations for the time being.
There has been some inevitable speculation about Arenado’s future as he gets closer to free agency, and Colorado GM Jeff Bridich said in December that “there definitely are conversations that will happen” between the team and the player about a potential extension. That said, there also isn’t yet any pressing need for talks between the two sides given that Arenado is controlled through the 2019 season. The third baseman will earn $17.75MM in 2018 as per the terms of a two-year deal signed in January 2017 that covered two years of Arenado’s arbitration eligibility. He is eligible for arbitration one more time next winter before hitting the open market in the 2019-20 offseason.
The Rockies have historically shown a willingness to spend big to keep star players in-house, as evidenced by past extensions for Todd Helton, Troy Tulowitzki, and Carlos Gonzalez. It is worth noting that all of those deals were made during the tenure of former general manager Dan O’Dowd, though Bridich has certainly been behind his own share of hefty contracts (i.e. Ian Desmond, Wade Davis) in his time running Colorado’s front office.
An Arenado extension certainly projects as the largest contract in franchise history given the third baseman’s durability, youth (he turns 27 in April) and outstanding play both offensively and defensively. Given the huge money that would be involved in locking Arenado up, one can’t blame the Rockies for wanting one more season of information before fully exploring a $200MM+ deal. The Rox also have Charlie Blackmon and DJ LeMahieu scheduled for free agency next winter, and re-signing either could be difficult if a huge future commitment has already been made to Arenado.
From Arenado’s own perspective, he has already achieved enough financial security that he may not feel much urgency to complete a long-term deal. He has already banked $5MM in his first year of arbitration eligibility, $29.5MM via that two-year agreement, and he’ll be in line for a salary worth $20MM in his final arb-eligible season.
MLBTR Originals
Here’s the roundup of the original content from the past week on MLB Trade Rumors…
- With several big names still on the open market, Steve Adams ranked the top nine remaining free agents and speculated on which teams could be fits for these notable players.
- Three of the top five names on that list (Jake Arrieta, Lance Lynn, Alex Cobb) are starting pitchers, and thus teams with rotation needs have a particularly strong set of options to choose from if they decide to splurge on pitching. Jeff Todd asked the MLBTR readers which team has the most urgent need for one of those top arms, with 23.51% of respondents citing the Brewers.
- In another MLBTR poll, Kyle Downing asked the readership to predict where Carlos Gonzalez will play this year. Given the veteran slugger’s rough 2017 numbers and lack of firm interest within his free agent market, it perhaps isn’t surprising that the most votes (19.5%) actually went towards “nobody,” as in readers felt CarGo wouldn’t land a contract before Opening Day.
- Jason Martinez has the full list of MLB veterans who are currently in Spring Training camps as non-roster invitees. This listing will be updated throughout March as players come and go from teams’ rosters.
- Live from a hotel hallway, Tim Dillard is back with his latest Inner Monologue post, detailing some of the trials and tribulations of a veteran player at minor league Spring Training camp. After reading, you might also start using “W.W.N.R.D.” as a mic drop-style conversation-ender.
- March usually isn’t a big month for free agent signings, though that will certainly change this year. As Steve Adams notes, it seems a near-lock that we’ll see a record amount of money spent on March signings given all of the name talent available to be signed.
AL East Notes: Tulo, Orioles, Reynolds, Walker, Lind
It doesn’t look like Troy Tulowitzki will be in the Blue Jays‘ lineup on Opening Day, as manager John Gibbons told reporters (including Sportsnet.ca’s Arden Zwelling) today. “I don’t expect he’ll be ready. But he’s moving in the right direction,” Gibbons said, referring to Tulowitzki’s rehab from a severe ankle injury suffered last July. Toronto made a point of acquiring infield depth this winter given the lengthy injury histories of both Tulowitzki and Devon Travis this winter, and thus Yangervis Solarte or Aledmys Diaz are now the top shortstop candidates with Tulowitzki likely to miss at least some time at the start of the season.
Here’s some more from around the AL East…
- The Orioles are “intrigued” by Neil Walker and some in the organization see him as a potential bargain signing, MASNsports.com’s Roch Kubatko writes. Walker has been linked to teams like the Royals, Yankees, Mets, Brewers, Angels, and Pirates over the course of the winter, though with many of those teams addressing their second base needs in other ways, Walker is still looking for a new home as we enter March. The O’s have Jonathan Schoop locked in at the keystone, of course, though Walker could be an intriguing add as a third baseman. Tim Beckham is currently slated to get the bulk of action at the hot corner, though Beckham is unproven as an everyday player and the Orioles might prefer using him in a super-utility role. If Walker was signed, the two players could form a third base platoon, as the switch-hitting Walker has struggled against left-handed pitching during his career.
- Walker is just one of the names that could still be considerations for the Orioles given the vast number of notable players still available in free agency. Kubatko notes that the O’s have had some internal discussions about Mark Reynolds simply “because, well, he’s out there,” despite Baltimore’s current depth at first base and designated hitter.
- Newly-signed Yankees first baseman Adam Lind was one of the many veterans caught up in the offseason free agent freeze, as he tells NJ.com’s Randy Miller that his only two offers of the entire winter (both minor league offers) came within the last week. A big asking price didn’t seem to be an issue (“I was just looking for a J-O-B,” Lind said) but the veteran was clearly frustrated at the lack of interest given his strong .303/.362/.512 slash line over 301 plate appearances with the Nationals last season. “I talked to my wife about it. I told her, ‘What’s the point of doing well?’ What if I hit .280 this year? I probably won’t even get a big-league invite next year,” Lind said. “You think you’re a good player and then to have no one value you….it’s tough.”
White Sox Sign Robbie Ross To Minors Deal
The White Sox have signed left-hander Robbie Ross to a minor league contract, as announced by the team on Twitter. The deal contains an invitation to Chicago’s big league Spring Training camp.
Ross has been a durable and effective reliever in four of his six MLB seasons, apart from a disastrous 2014 campaign (that included 12 starts) and an injury-shortened 2017 season. Ross was limited to just 15 total innings last year (nine with the Red Sox and six in Triple-A) due to elbow inflammation and then a season-ending back surgery in August. Boston outrighted Ross off its roster following the season and the 28-year-0ld chose to become a free agent.
Over 330 2/3 innings with the Rangers and Red Sox, Ross has a 3.92 ERA, 7.5 K/9, 2.28 K/BB rate, and an impressive 52.2% grounder rate. He has been just about equally effective against hitters on both sides of the plate, holding left-handed batters to a .712 OPS and right-handed batters to a .723 OPS over the course of his career.
If Ross is healthy, he could be a very nice low-cost addition to a White Sox team that has aggressively shopped for relief help this offseason. Ross is one of many notable bullpen names (Xavier Cedeno, Jeanmar Gomez, Bruce Rondon, T.J. House, Rob Scahill, Chris Volstad, Michael Ynoa) in Chicago’s camp as a non-roster invite, plus closer Joakim Soria and Luis Avilan are also new additions to the White Sox roster. Avilan looks to be the top left-handed option, and thus Ross and Cedeno could be competing to be the second southpaw in the Sox pen, though Ross’ success against both batters doesn’t necessarily limit him to a LOOGY-type of role.
East Notes: JDM, Red Sox, Mets, A-Gon, Phillies
Newly signed Red Sox slugger J.D. Martinez figures to spend most of his time at designated hitter, though the team is planning how to set up its outfield when he does factor in as a defender. “At home he’ll play left field and if somehow he plays somewhere on the road here, he’ll play right field,” manager Alex Cora told Jason Mastrodonato of the Boston Herald and other reporters Saturday. Cora went on to reveal that right fielder Mookie Betts could move to center during road games in which Martinez plays the field. Of course, it’s unclear how often this will come up for Boston, which already has an excellent outfield trio of Betts, Jackie Bradley Jr. (center) and Andrew Benintendi (left). Unlike those three, Martinez has struggled of late in the field, where he has posted minus-27 Defensive Runs Saved and a minus-24.9 Ultimate Zone Rating since 2016.
More from the East Coast…
- Mets shortstop Amed Rosario exited their game Saturday with left knee irritation, but it seems he dodged a serious injury, Tim Healey of Newsday relays. Both manager Mickey Callaway and Rosario indicated afterward that pulling the 22-year-old was merely a precautionary measure. Relatively minor injuries have been the story early this spring for the Mets, who have seen a few key players (including Rosario, Jacob deGrom, Yoenis Cespedes and Juan Lagares) deal with various issues. The team as a whole trudged through a disastrous, injury-plagued campaign in 2017, during which the highly touted Rosario debuted with a .248/.271/.394 showing across 170 plate appearances.
- Like his new team, Mets first baseman Adrian Gonzalez went through a season to forget in 2017. Back problems limited the then-Dodger to 252 PAs and a .242/.287/.355 batting line. Despite his recent struggles and his age (he’ll be 36 in May), Gonzalez said he drew interest from other teams and had “secure options” before signing a low-cost deal with the Mets in January, per Joel Sherman of the New York Post. Gonzalez is the Mets’ top first base choice for now, but if he gets off to a slow start, that might not last for long, Sherman notes. In the event Gonzalez doesn’t rebound, the Mets could shift outfielder Jay Bruce to first once Michael Conforto comes back from shoulder surgery. Bruce hasn’t worked at first this spring, though, and he doesn’t believe he’d be be adept at the position without getting more practice there. “I believe I can be a quality first baseman,” Bruce said. “Do I think I am right now? Absolutely not.”
- Last season didn’t unfold as hoped for Phillies outfield prospect Mickey Moniak, who struggled to a .236/.284/.341 line in 509 Single-A plate appearances a year after going No. 1 in the draft. Moniak has plummeted in prospect rankings as a result (MLB.com dropped him from 19th to 88th, for example), though the 19-year-old isn’t sweating it. Rather, Moniak told Todd Zolecki of MLB.com and other reporters Saturday, “I’m actually grateful for last season, because it’s the first time in my life that I had to bear down after struggling for a while.” As for his prospect luster somewhat wearing off, Moniak declared: “I’m kind of happy about that. Leading up to the draft, people didn’t buy into what I was as a baseball player, and right now, people aren’t fully sold on me, so I’m definitely using that as fuel. I’m excited for this year.” The Phillies are exercising patience with Moniak, writes the Philadelphia Inquirer’s Matt Breen, who points out that he was among the youngest players in his league last season.
Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Braves, Bucs, Nats, Tribe
This week in baseball blogs…
- MLB & Fantasy Baseball Analyzed tries to determine whether five highly effective hitters from 2017 will be able to repeat or improve on that success this season.
- Big Three Sports explains why Dansby Swanson could be in for a better year after a disappointing 2017.
- The Point of Pittsburgh wonders if team morale will improve now that Andrew McCutchen is not in the clubhouse.
- District On Deck lists five X-factors for Bryce Harper in his contract year.
- Always The Jake previews Francisco Lindor‘s season.
- The First Out At Third names five dark-horse Cy Young candidates for 2018.
- Chin Music Baseball reacts to the Twins’ Logan Morrison signing.
- NY Yankees Digest runs down the best trades in franchise history, while Bronx Bomber Ball ranks the Yanks’ all-time best players at each position.
- The Junkball Daily identifies the trickiest strike three pitcher in baseball.
- BP Toronto ponders whether Justin Smoak‘s late-2017 struggles are worth worrying about.
- A’s Farm breaks down the Oakland A’s and Triple-A Nashville Sounds’ likely rosters for 2018.
- Rox Pile forecasts the Rockies’ opening-day roster.
- Pirates Breakdown teases “Pirates Guide,” its season preview book for the team.
- Baseball Census scouts free agent pitchers Jair Jurrjens and Daniel Schlereth, both of whom have pitched against KBO teams this week.
- Motor City Bengals examines the Tigers’ second base options.
- Pro Sports Fandom (links: 1, 2) makes a slew of predictions for this season.
- Real McCoy Minor News highlights the early spring performances of a few young players.
- Jays From the Couch is optimistic Seung-hwan Oh will bounce back this year.
- Underthought takes a look at four of the best hitter performances and asks readers to vote on who had the best day during the 2017 season.
- Ladodgerreport hopes the club stretches out Kenta Maeda.
- The Runner Sports (links: 1, 2) delves into Yankees prospect Miguel Andujar‘s red-hot spring and how it could affect Brandon Drury, and writes about what Houston’s Alex Bregman has done to get in better shape.
- STL Hat Trick sees Sam Tuivailala as a potential closer for the Cardinals.
- The K Zone focuses on the offseason’s managerial hires.
- Camden Depot tries to figure out who will lead off for the Orioles.
- Everything Bluebirds asks why the Blue Jays have been going after so many Cardinals.
- Mets Daddy explains how the team should divide playing time between catchers Travis d’Arnaud and Kevin Plawecki.
- Baseball Takes compares the careers of Derek Jeter and Lou Whitaker.
- Extra Innings UK (links: 1, 2) wraps up the week’s headlines and articles in international baseball, and offers its second weekly update of Europeans playing baseball at American universities.
- Sports Talk Philly has thoughts from manager Gabe Kapler on his stint as a player in Japan.
- Call to the Pen lists Kapler’s pros and cons.
Submissions: ZachBBWI @gmail.com
AL Notes: Walker, Royals, Moss, A’s, Rangers
The Royals tried to bring in free agent second baseman Neil Walker on a minor league deal with an invitation to big league camp, but he wasn’t receptive to that, Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe reports. As a member of the Royals, Walker could have pushed for a role at second (they already have Whit Merrifield and Adalberto Mondesi as possibilities there, however) or even the corner infield, where the team has lost first baseman Eric Hosmer (though it recently signed a replacement in Lucas Duda) and is likely to see free agent third baseman Mike Moustakas depart. It’s not surprising that Walker’s holding out for a major league pact, though, considering the successful career he has enjoyed with the Pirates, Mets and Brewers. The switch-hitting 32-year-old is coming off his seventh straight season with at least 2.0 fWAR. Despite Walker’s quality resume, he’s one of many accomplished free agents still sitting on the open market as the regular season draws closer, as MLBTR’s Steve Adams pointed out earlier this week.
Here’s more on Kansas City and a couple other AL clubs:
- Since winning a World Series in 2015, the Royals have posted back-to-back non-playoff seasons. Now, thanks in part to the losses of Hosmer, Lorenzo Cain and Mike Minor (and Moustakas’ potential exit), it appears they’ll be in for more lean years in the near future. Nevertheless, longtime general manager Dayton Moore explained to Joe Posnanski of MLB.com that he is bullish on the franchise’s direction “As an organization, you should know your players better than anyone else. We believe in our young players,” Moore said. “We have faith in our future. I know this may sound strange, but I have never felt more confident in what we are doing.” While the Royals’ next wave of talent isn’t highly regarded (Baseball America has their farm system 29th out of 30 in its latest organizational rankings), Moore isn’t fazed. “Nobody had [five-time All-Star] Salvador Perez on their Top 100 list,” he noted. “Nobody had Lorenzo Cain on their Top 100 list. Nobody had Greg Holland or Kelvin Herrera on their Top 100 list.”
- When Moore-led Kansas City traded Brandon Moss to Oakland in January, the slugger insisted he’d find a way to make the Athletics’ roster, even though there was no clear fit for him then. At that point, the A’s were reportedly interested in flipping Moss (whom they owe $5MM through next season), but nothing has come together yet. Still, the 34-year-old continues to be a long shot to earn a roster spot with the A’s, per Jane Lee of MLB.com. Moss’ positions – first base and designated hitter – remain spoken for in Oakland, which also has a “spillover on the bench,” Lee writes. Moss is hopeful he’ll stay an Athletic (he thrived with them earlier in his career), but either way, he has been working to rebound from a rough 2017 in which he hit just .207/.279/.428 in 401 plate appearances. The left-handed Moss had the majors’ highest pull percentage (53.0) among those with at least 400 PAs, so he’d like to become more of an all-fields hitter. “My batting average keeps going down further and further. The shift just gets more effective against me the slower I get, so I’m going to have to make some adjustments if I want to keep playing,” he observed. “I knew that coming into this year. Last year was just such a bad year. I hit the ball hard last year, but I can’t tell you how many times I would hit the ball into right field on a one-hop line drive and get thrown out at first by a guy halfway in the outfield because I’m not fast enough to beat it out anymore.”
- Although he worked out of their bullpen from 2016-17, the Rangers told right-hander Matt Bush to spend the offseason preparing to start. Now, even after the team added Minor, Doug Fister, Matt Moore and Bartolo Colon as rotation locks or candidates over the winter, Bush expects to be part of its starting staff this year. “I’m starting,” Bush declared Saturday (via Jeff Wilson of the Star-Telegram). Indeed, the likelihood seems to be increasing that Bush will be part of the Rangers’ rotation, Wilson suggests. The 32-year-old threw 2 2/3 innings Saturday as he attempts to stretch out for a starting role.