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Aroldis Chapman

Dodgers Notes: Chapman, Turner, Jansen, Grandal

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The Dodgers’ decision to back out of last December’s agreed-upon Aroldis Chapman trade wasn’t solely the mandate of ownership but was a collective consensus between the baseball operations staff and the ownership group, writes Jon Heyman in his latest notes column at FanRag Sports. By the time the baseball operations staff reached out to managing partner Mark Walter about the domestic violence allegations with which Chapman was faced, they’d already decided the deal should no longer be pursued, and Walter agreed. Heyman also adds that the three prospects that would’ve gone to Cincinnati in that deal ultimately wound up in the Reds organization anyhow, as the proposed package was Jose Peraza, Scott Schebler and Brandon Dixon for Chapman. Those three all went to the Reds in the three-team trade that sent Todd Frazier to the White Sox. (The Dodgers received Trayce Thompson, Micah Johnson and Frankie Montas from the Sox in that deal.)

A few more notes on the Dodgers…

  • Heyman also reports that there have been some “very preliminary contract talks” between the Dodgers and impending free agent Justin Turner, though there’s been nothing serious enough to indicate that Turner will forgo the open market this winter. Turner has said he’d love to remain with the Dodgers, but on the heels of a monster season, he should find widespread demand for his services. The 31-year-old (32 in November) batted .275/.339/.493 with 27 homers in 151 games this season and erased a dreadful first April/May with a torrid four-month stretch to close out the season. He also grades out as a premium defender at the hot corner, all of which contributed to his 4.9 rWAR and 5.6 fWAR in 2016. He’s also been a brilliant performer thus far in his short postseason career, hitting .405/.519/.667 in 52 plate appearances. While that doesn’t necessarily do much for his free-agent stock, it certainly can’t hurt him and figures to be brought up by his agents as they seek the best deal possible for their client this winter.
  • Manager Dave Roberts tells Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports that he told Kenley Jansen before the 2016 season even began that he planned to get him at least a half-dozen outings in which he pitched more than one inning over the life of the regular season as a means for preparing him for the postseason, and that indeed played out. Jansen was also candid with Rosenthal in explaining that he felt his trust was betrayed when former GM Ned Colletti signed Brandon League to a three-year deal in the wake of Jansen being diagnosed with and treated for an irregular heartbeat. He didn’t mind the possibility of the Dodgers adding Chapman this winter, stressing that he only asked that Friedman be up front with him about what might happen. And it should be noted that former teammate A.J. Ellis also spoke to Rosenthal about how frank Jansen is when discussing free agency. Ellis compared him to Zack Greinke in some respects, noting that Jansen feels he’s earned his one opportunity at a lucrative free-agent deal and figures to go to the highest bidder.
  • Yasmani Grandal’s struggles at the plate this postseason are reminiscent of his offensive woes last year in the playoffs, after which he underwent shoulder surgery, but the catcher tells Pedro Moura of the L.A. Times that he’s not injured this time around. Grandal isn’t letting his lack of offense so far get to him, as he clearly laid out to Moura that his priorities are his defensive work/game-calling behind the plate, then drawing walks, then slugging at the plate. “I’m hitting seventh, and there’s a reason why they have me hitting seventh,” he said. “They want me to make sure I run the pitching staff like it’s supposed to be ran.” Grandal also talked about his frequent visits to the mound this October, explaining that the Dodgers are keenly aware of which players on opposing teams can relay signs to hitters at the plate when they’re standing on second base.

AL East Notes: Cashman, Rays, Davis, Wieters, Orioles

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Here’s the latest from around the AL East…

  • Yankees GM Brian Cashman talks to John Harper of the New York Daily News about the trades of Aroldis Chapman to the Cubs and Andrew Miller to the Indians, deals that took quite a bit of preparation on the Yankees’ part as they looked to get maximum value for the two star relievers.  Yankee scouts targeted certain players within the farm systems of the many organizations that had interest in Chapman and Miller, and Cashman wasn’t willing to budge from his high, and specific, asking prices.  The two relievers are playing big roles in the postseason, and Cashman is rooting for a Chicago/Cleveland World Series matchup.  “I want the teams that stepped up and made those trades to be rewarded for doing so.  It would justify the action they took,” Cashman said.  “I have absolutely no regrets about the deals we made — other than being in the position we were in. We did what we had to do, and hopefully everybody wins.”
  • The Rays’ view of the postseason has to be more bittersweet, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times writes, given that Joe Maddon and Andrew Friedman have their new teams fighting for the NL pennant.  Both left following the 2014 campaign, and the Rays have since suffered two losing seasons.  It’s still too soon to judge manager Kevin Cash or baseball operations president Matt Silverman, though Topkin wonders if the front office would’ve been better off under a traditional “baseball guy” type of executive, or at least a singular voice in charge rather than Silverman’s penchant for group decisions amongst his top lieutenants.
  • Also from Topkin, he notes that Rays prospect Josh Lowe has been playing center field in Instructional League action and could take over the position on a full-time basis.  Lowe, a Georgia high schooler selected 13th overall by the Rays in the 2016 draft, taken as a third baseman but has often been considered athletic enough to potentially handle an outfield role.  Lowe was also a very accomplished pitcher, and MLB.com (which ranks Lowe as Tampa’s fourth-best prospect) notes in its scouting report that a return to the mound could be a possibility if Lowe doesn’t develop as a position player.
  • Red Sox hitting coach Chili Davis stands out as a future managerial candidate, though as Evan Drellich of the Boston Herald notes, the path to a big league managerial job isn’t an easy one for minorities.  Drellich’s piece is well worth a full read, as it details both Davis’ coaching history and how Major League Baseball is taking steps to ensure that teams are giving minority candidates a fair look in hiring.  Davis is under contract to the Red Sox for 2017, Drellich notes, though that wouldn’t be a big obstacle if one of the teams looking to hire a new skipper this winter made him an offer.
  • The Orioles should issue a qualifying offer to Matt Wieters, CSNmidatlantic.com’s Rich Dubroff opines.  Though Wieters had another below-average offensive year, Dubroff figures that he will still look to land a multi-year deal in free agency, especially now that Wilson Ramos’ injury has made Wieters the top catcher on the open market.  There’s a chance Wieters could again accept the QO, and while $17.2MM is a high price tag for a catcher who has produced as little as Wieters has in recent years, Dubroff could see Wieters and Caleb Joseph providing a one-year bridge until prospect Chance Sisco develops as the longer-term answer behind the plate.  If Wieters leaves, Dubroff suggests that the club could sign former Oriole Nick Hundley to team with Joseph.
  • The Orioles should pursue an extension with Zach Britton rather than consider a trade, MASNsports.com’s Roch Kubatko writes.  Britton’s price tag will continue to rise through his final two arbitration years so there is some logic in dealing him now to both save money and sell high in the wake of Britton’s excellent season.  On the flip side, Britton has been so tremendous as Baltimore’s closer that he could lock down ninth innings for the O’s for years to come.

Free Agency Poll: Aroldis Chapman Or Kenley Jansen?

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This year’s NLCS between the Cubs and Dodgers is underway, and electrifying closers Aroldis Chapman and Kenley Jansen figure to be among the series’ most important players. That was already the case for the two teams in the NLDS, when Chapman saved all three of the Cubs’ wins over the Giants – including two one-run affairs – and blew a save in Chicago’s only loss. Jansen had an ugly Game 2 showing against the Nationals, but he was otherwise tremendous, racking up saves in a pair of one-run contests before his all-important hold in a memorable Game 5. Jansen entered in the seventh inning Thursday and tossed 2 1/3 frames of 51-pitch, one-hit ball to preserve a 4-3 lead, which ace Clayton Kershaw closed out by retiring back-to-back hitters in the ninth.

One of Chapman or Jansen could very well secure the final out of this year’s World Series, after which the late-game aces are scheduled to become free agents. Given both their dominance and the ever-increasing importance of bullpens, Chapman and Jansen are in line to score the most valuable contracts ever awarded to relievers. The four-year, $50MM contract Jonathan Papelbon signed with the Phillies in 2011 is the record, but that deal’s days at the top are numbered. Now it’s a matter of figuring out whether Chapman or Jansen will land the richer pact.

The two will play their age-29 seasons in 2017, and their results have been similarly excellent since they debuted in 2011. In 377 combined innings with the Reds, Yankees and Cubs, Chapman has a 2.08 ERA, 15.18 K/9, 4.13 BB/9, 42.3 percent ground-ball rate, 12.8 infield pop-up percentage and 17.7 percent swinging strike mark. Across 408 2/3 frames with the Dodgers, Jansen has posted a 2.20 ERA, 13.92 K/9 and 2.62 BB/9 with a worse ground-ball and swinging strike percentages than Chapman (33.4 and 15.7), though he does have the superior infield fly rate (13.8). In terms of their ability to finish games, Chapman has a nearly 90 percent success rate (182 saves in 203 chances), while Jansen has converted more than 88 percent of his save chances (189 of 214).

There aren’t notable differences in their age or career outputs, though Chapman and Jansen do diverge in certain areas. Chapman is a left-hander and Jansen a righty, for starters. With the ability to occasionally hit 105 mph on the radar gun, Chapman is the hardest thrower in baseball, but Jansen can offer a lethal 98 mph cutter. Also of importance, there are no off-the-field red flags with Jansen. That isn’t true in Chapman’s case

Chapman was on track last offseason to join Jansen in the Dodgers’ bullpen, but a trade between them and the Reds fell through amid domestic violence claims. Chapman was alleged to have struck his girlfriend and discharged a firearm while alone in his garage last October. Criminal charges were never filed, so Chapman did not face a trial. Nevertheless, the league did suspend him for the first month of the season, and it’s conceivable that such a serious incident could damage Chapman’s earning power as a free agent. On the other hand, contenders lined up to acquire Chapman from the Yankees at this year’s trade deadline, and the Cubs eventually surrendered one of baseball’s top prospects – shortstop Gleyber Torres – in a package for him.

The fact that Chapman switched teams during the season means he’ll be ineligible to receive a qualifying offer, which will only boost his stock. The Dodgers will surely tender a QO to Jansen, meaning another club that signs him would have to give up a first-round pick in addition to the enormous contract it awards him. With other high-payroll teams like the Yankees, Giants and Nationals perhaps set to accompany the big-spending Cubs and Dodgers in the sweepstakes for Chapman and Jansen, they’re clearly going to earn sizable raises during the offseason. But which one will fare better on the open market?

(Poll link for Trade Rumors app users)

Evans, Sabean Discuss Bullpen, Cain, Posey, Arroyo, Coaches

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The Giants’ season ended in a devastating defeat that saw a gem from Matt Moore — two runs (one earned) on two hits and two walks with 10 strikeouts across eight innings — go to waste as five relievers turned a three-run lead into a one-run deficit in the ninth inning of Game 4 of the NLDS vs. the Cubs. In the wake of that stunning defeat, executive vice president of baseball operations Brian Sabean and general manager Bobby Evans spoke to the San Francisco media on Thursday, and Alex Pavlovic of CSN Bay Area has published three different stories on the media session. (Giants fans would do well to read each in its entirety, as they contain far more quotes and context than this overview.)

Sabean and Evans emphasized that the Giants will pursue late-inning relief help this winter. A top-flight closer appears high on the wishlist for the longtime San Francisco baseball ops duo, though as Pavlovic notes, there won’t be a complete overhaul of the bullpen. The Giants are encouraged by the overall output of Derek Law, Hunter Strickland, Josh Osich, Steven Okert and Will Smith, and Evans confirmed that right-hander George Kontos will be tendered a contract as well. However, as Evans explained, the Giants believe there’s a benefit to all members of the relief corps if there’s no question as to who will be closing out games.

“The bullpen performs at a much higher level when you know who your ninth-inning guy is,” said the GM. “It puts everybody at ease and helps [manager Bruce Bochy] as he defines roles. With ambiguity, it creates tension and unknowns that can add to or detract from performance and ultimately lead to struggles.” As for how he’ll go about acquiring a closer, Evans implied a no-stone-left-unturned approach, stating that he’ll be active in free agency, trades and even evaluating his internal options.

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Quick Hits: Scully, Trumbo, Yankees, Urshela, Cardinals

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Vin Scully’s final game behind the mic at Dodger Stadium was a memorable one, as the Dodgers clinched the NL West with a 4-3 win over the Rockies, fueled by a 10th-inning walkoff homer from Charlie Culberson.  The legendary announcer has already said he won’t be calling any Dodger postseason action, so the final three games of Scully’s 67-year career will come on September 30-October 2, when the Dodgers head to San Francisco for the last three games of the regular season.

Some stray items from around baseball…

  • 2016 is quietly on pace to be one of the biggest home run seasons in the game’s history, Yahoo Sports’ Jeff Passan writes in his weekly “Ten Degrees” column.  Hitters are on pace for the second-highest single-season homer total ever, behind only the 2000 season.  With power on the rise and more readily available than in recent seasons, Passan notes that Mark Trumbo’s free agent stock could be hampered.  Teams will look harder at Trumbo’s lack of defense or OBP if homers are no longer seen as quite a rare commodity.
  • The Yankees have been rumored to be interested in a reunion with Aroldis Chapman, and the New York Post’s Ken Davidoff notes that Dellin Betances’ recent struggles could exacerbate the Yankees’ need for another big bullpen arm.  Betances has only “struggled” since August 1 (3.48 ERA and a 32:9 K/BB rate in 20 2/3 innings) by his high standards, though fatigue could be an issue given how much Betances has pitched both this season and over the last three years on the whole.  Signing Chapman in free agency and moving Betances back to a setup role would again give the Yankees an elite end-game pairing, if not quite the uniquely great trio they had earlier in the season with Andrew Miller also in the mix.
  • As part of a reader mailbag piece, Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer opined that the Indians probably aren’t likely to shop Giovanny Urshela this season now that Jose Ramirez looks like an answer at third base.  Urshela is a gifted defender but he has posted just a .608 OPS over his 288 career PA in the majors and a .269/.302/.402 career slash line over eight minor league seasons.  Other teams may not be willing to give up much in a trade for a player who has shown so little at the plate.
  • The Cubs completely rebuilt their roster from scratch to become a powerhouse team both this season and potentially for years to come, though Cardinals GM John Mozeliak tells ESPN.com’s Mark Saxon that such an extensive rebuild would be unlikely for his club.  “They were able to do so without being overly concerned about how they finished for a couple years….I’ve always said St. Louis has been a place that demands winning,” Mozeliak said.  “[Owner Bill] DeWitt Jr. and myself, we’re not ever looking at a season where we want to take a timeout or two and try to reshuffle the deck.”  Mozeliak implied that the Cards would only explore such a strategy if their minor league system totally dried up, which doesn’t seem like an impending issue given how well St. Louis has drafted and developed young players over the last two decades.

Heyman’s Latest: Braves, Lincecum, Weaver, Chapman, Giants, Panik, Odor

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FanRag’s Jon Heyman kicks off his weekly notes column by recapping seven moves that turned the Cubs from cellar-dwellers into contenders, recalling the trades that netted the team Anthony Rizzo, Jake Arrieta, Kyle Hendricks and Addison Russell as well as the Rule 5 selection of Hector Rondon. Here are some highlights from his roundup of notes on all 30 big league clubs…

  • Brian Snitker, Terry Pendleton and Bo Porter are the Braves’ primary internal candidates to fill the managerial vacancy, while Heyman lists some potential outside candidates as Red Sox bench coach Torey Lovullo, former Padres manager Bud Black, former Twins manager Rob Gardenhire and Royals bench coach/former Mariners skipper Don Wakamatsu.
  • The Astros will seek rotation help this offseason even if Dallas Keuchel and Lance McCullers get back up to full strength from their respective shoulder and elbow issues. With Doug Fister hitting the open market and the Astros receiving lackluster production from Collin McHugh and Mike Fiers, that’s not exactly a surprise.
  • Both Tim Lincecum and Jered Weaver are determined to return in 2017, according to Heyman. He writes that Lincecum feels that he focused so much on strengthening his surgically repaired hip that he neglected to strengthen his arm enough, though a return to prominence for Lincecum always seemed like a fairly noted long shot after four down seasons and a significant surgical procedure.
  • The Yankees will make a run at re-signing Aroldis Chapman as a free agent this winter, Heyman writes, at least in part due to Dellin Betances’ recent struggles. While Betances’ slump has been magnified by the fact that it’s taken place in late September, he was excellent for the bulk of the time following the Yankees’ deadline sale, pitching to a 0.57 ERA in his first 15 2/3 innings following the deadline and allowing only one run in August. If the motivation to re-sign Chapman is simply to once again create an extraordinarily deep back of the bullpen, that certainly makes sense, but pursuing him in light of three poor September outings from Betances seems rather reactionary when looking at Betances’ body of work as a whole.
  • Second-half bullpen struggles have the Giants kicking themselves for not making a stronger push for Mark Melancon, Heyman reports. The Giants felt their offer was comparable to that of the Nationals, but Pittsburgh ultimately traded Melancon to D.C. in exchange for left-hander Felipe Rivero and minor league lefty Taylor Hearn. While the Giants made a run at Andrew Miller, as well, the Yankees asked for Joe Panik in exchange, which the Giants understandably found to be too steep an ask. GM Bobby Evans lamented not adding another established reliever to Heyman, and it seems likely that they’ll be in the mix for the top bullpen options this winter (Chapman, Kenley Jansen, Melancon).
  • Extension talks between the Rangers and Rougned Odor were put on hold earlier this season, as the two sides couldn’t get on the same page. Odor’s camp was seeking a deal larger than Gregory Polanco’s five-year, $35MM pact with the Pirates, and while the Rangers wanted two club options tacked onto their top offer, Odor’s reps were only willing to concede one option year. That, of course, doesn’t rule out a deal being reached further down the line, but Odor’s 31-homer season as a 22-year-old second baseman figures to give his side plenty of leverage in talks, even if that power comes with an OBP that’s barely scraping the .300 mark.

Latest On Andrew Miller

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1:15pm: A straight-up swap of Giolito wouldn’t be enough to get the Yankees to budge on Miller, Heyman tweets.

12:53pm: We’ve long heard about the Nationals’ interest in Yankees ace reliever Andrew Miller, but it has never quite been clear what the team would be willing to do to make that happen. Per MLB.com’s Jon Morosi, via Twitter, “sources who have spoken with the [Nationals] believe” they’d do a one-for-one swap of Miller for top pitching prospect Lucas Giolito.

That language certainly still leaves a bit of wiggle room, and it’s not clear that a firm offer has been proposed. There’s no question, though, that the towering righty would represent a tantalizing offer for New York — if he is in fact being placed on the table.

New York is looking for a massive return for its star lefty, Jon Heyman of Fan Rag reports (Twitter links). The club is said to want three times the total value it achieved in its trade of Aroldis Chapman, who netted one very good prospect in Gleyber Torres along with three other pieces with real value. While Chapman is a pure rental piece, Miller comes with two added years of club control at a reasonable (though not cheap) price tag of $9MM annually. Heyman also notes that it still seems unlikely he’ll change hands, though perhaps New York is open to being blown away by an offer.

Joining the Nats with ongoing interest in Miller are the Cardinals, Indians, Rangers, and Giants, according to Heyman. Certainly, all of those clubs could put together appealing packages, though none has a rotation prospect that quite reaches Giolito’s standing — with the Cards’ Alex Reyes being the closest thing (though, to be clear, we’ve heard no indication to this point that he could be had). Texas also has some premium assets that it could dangle, though they land mostly on the position-player side. And it’s far from clear whether those teams’ best pieces are on offer for Miller.

If Giolito is, in fact, available, it would seem to make the Nats a favorite to acquire Miller. Giolito is widely regarded as one of the game’s truly premier starting pitching prospects, and he has already reached the majors for D.C. Truth be told, he would represent a rather stunning return, even for a reliever of Miller’s undeniable excellence.

The Nats were said not to be willing to give up Giolito, or even some lesser prospects, in a deal for Chapman. But there’s obviously good reason to cough up more assets for the controllable Miller, and the team has a deep stock of appealing young arms. Plus, Washington’s need for a premium late-inning pen piece only continues to grow, with incumbent closer Jonathan Papelbon struggling more than ever.

Heyman’s Latest: Sale, Cashner, Royals, Brewers, Giants, Mariners, Nats

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Even though the Yankees made a forward-looking move by trading Aroldis Chapman for Adam Warren and three young prospects (highlighted by high-ceiling shortstop Gleyber Torres), they’ve at least placed a call to the White Sox to inquire on Chris Sale, writes Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports in his latest Inside Baseball column. GM Brian Cashman wouldn’t comment on Sale when asked, telling Heyman only that the Yankees call on virtually every player that’s available as a matter of due diligence. Heyman writes that there’s speculation among other clubs that the Yanks could make a legitimate run at Sale, possibly including Torres in the package, but there’s no indication yet to support that talk.

A few more highlights from the lengthy column…

  • The Astros called the Padres to inquire on Andrew Cashner but told San Diego about 48 hours later that they were no longer interested. Whether it’s because of the asking price or another reason isn’t entirely clear. Heyman adds that, unsurprisingly, Colby Rasmus won’t be getting another qualifying offer from the Astros this year after he accepted the QO last November and has underperformed in 2016.
  • The Royals will wait until the very last minute to decide if they’re going to sell off veteran pieces. Edinson Volquez, Kendrys Morales and Luke Hochevar — each of whom has a mutual option on his contract but is likely to hit the open market following the season — are among the team’s candidates to be traded if the Royals do sell. Interestingly, he also notes that there’s a belief that Kansas City will let Alcides Escobar go and replace him with Raul Mondesi Jr. I’d personally wonder if, even though he hasn’t performed well at the plate whatsoever, the Royals could generate some trade interest (either now or after the season) due to the $6.5MM club option ($500K buyout) on Escobar’s contract.
  • Angels GM Billy Eppler will at least listen to offers on both Hector Santiago and Matt Shoemaker, though each is controllable beyond this season (Shoemaker for another four years, Santiago through 2017), so there’s no definitive urge to move either. Yunel Escobar and Joe Smith are both trade candidates for the Halos as well, as has been noted frequently over the past couple of weeks.
  • The Brewers weren’t impressed at all by the Mets’ offer for Jonathan Lucroy, which centered around Travis d’Arnaud. Heyman cites Brewers sources as saying they’ve been offered better catchers than d’Arnaud and still passed on moving Lucroy just yet. Right-hander Junior Guerra, who is having a surprisingly strong season as a 31-year-old rookie, has generated some trade interest, but Heyman says there’s been little chatter on Chris Carter. It also seems that Ryan Braun isn’t being talked about much at this stage.
  • The Giants are interested in Minnesota’s Eduardo Nunez, who has also recently been connected to the Indians. The Twins figure to be wide open to trade scenarios in the coming days, and Nunez would give the Giants some cover at third base, shortstop, second base and in left field. Similarly, the Giants have a bit of interest in Alex Guerrero, who was released by the Dodgers earlier this year. However, Heyman points out that catcher Miguel Olivo, who is being sued by Guerrero after biting off a piece of Guerrero’s ear in a dugout altercation with the Dodgers’ Triple-A affiliate in 2015, is playing for San Francisco’s Triple-A affiliate.
  • The Cubs and Rangers have both called the Mariners about Taijuan Walker and James Paxton, but Seattle hasn’t shown any inclination toward moving either pitcher. Wade Miley is more likely to be moved, and Heyman adds that the Mariners are still open to adding some pieces for 2016 and have checked into Angels righty Joe Smith, whom GM Jerry Dipoto signed while serving as GM in Anaheim.
  • The Nationals turned down proposals centered around both Lucas Giolito and Joe Ross when negotiating with the Yankees about Aroldis Chapman. From there, the Yankees shifted to younger players and asked for a four-prospect package centered around pitching — though it’s not clear just who New York was targeting.  Washington never got close on a Chapman trade despite quite a bit of talk with the Yankees, per Heyman.

Pitching Rumors: Chapman, Ervin, Hill, Hellickson, Ubaldo, Blue Jays

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Joel Sherman of the New York Post walks readers through the winding process the Cubs took to reach an agreement on an Aroldis Chapman trade with the Yankees. Per Sherman, the Cubs never wanted to pursue a rental pitcher but weren’t able to convince the Yankees to back down from their demand of Kyle Schwarber. Chicago then turned to the Royals, only to find the asking price on Wade Davis to be even higher than the asking price on Miller. The Cubs weren’t willing to deal from their big league roster to upgrade the ’pen but were willing to deal from their infield depth, parting with Class-A shortstop Gleyber Torres largely because of the presence of both Addison Russell and Javier Baez on the Major League roster. (Notably, Chicago also dealt from its first base depth in moving Dan Vogelbach for another left-handed reliever: Seattle’s Mike Montgomery.) Sherman adds that owner Hal Steinbrenner still wants to win in 2016 despite approving the Chapman swap, which calls into question whether the club would entertain even an overwhelming offer for Miller.

A few notes on the pitching market…

  • Twins interim GM Rob Antony has expressed an openness to moving Ervin Santana if approached with a strong offer, but he tells Phil Miller of the Minneapolis Star Tribune that he’s not shopping the right-hander (Twitter link). “I’ll be honest,” said Antony, “I’m not calling anybody trying to move him.” As Antony explained yesterday in a Q&A with MLB.com’s Rhett Bollinger, his feeling is that he couldn’t sign a pitcher of Santana’s effectiveness to a two-year, $27MM contract with a third-year club option (the remaining commitment on Santana’s deal after 2016) on the free agent market this winter and, as such, believes there to be enough value that he needn’t shop Santana to other clubs. Antony again stated that he’s not under any type of ownership mandate to trim payroll, suggesting that shedding Santana’s salary may not be all that appealing.
  • Pitching is the Twins’ biggest priority on the trade market this summer, according to Antony (Twitter link via Bollinger). While the club is clearly open to trading veteran pieces to acquire young pitching help, Antony said he’s also talked to other teams that are considered to be sellers about acquiring big league pitching — presumably MLB arms that are controllable well beyond the 2016 season.
  • Athletics southpaw Rich Hill believes he’ll be able to pitch on Sunday after throwing 50 pitches with protective covering over his blistered left hand and another 20 without the cover, tweets John Hickey of the Bay Area News Group. Hill has scarcely been able to pitch since late May due to a groin strain and this newfound blister issue, but he remains a highly intriguing rental option thanks to a 2.25 ERA with 10.7 K/9, 3.3 BB/9 and a 50 percent ground-ball rate through 76 innings out of the Oakland rotation this season. That would obviously give rival scouts just one more opportunity to look at Hill before Monday’s non-waiver deadline, but that could prove crucial given his limited recent exposure.
  • Both the Rangers and Orioles were in attendance for Jeremy Hellickson’s scoreless six innings for the Phillies against the Marlins last night, per ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick. (The Marlins — Hellickson’s opponents — also obviously had evaluators on hand and have long been linked to Hellickson.) There’s no clear frontrunner for Hellickson’s services, Crasnick notes, but it’s a “virtual lock” that he’ll change teams on or before next Monday.
  • The Padres asked the Orioles to include minor league left-hander Garrett Cleavinger and minor legaue righty Jhon Peluffo in the trade that would’ve sent Ubaldo Jimenez to San Diego in exchange for Melvin Upton Jr., according to MASNsports.com’s Roch Kubatko (on Twitter). However, FOX’s Ken Rosenthal tweets that the talks broke down over finances, and Bleacher Report’s Scott Miller adds (also via Twitter) that owner Peter Angelos had a late change of heart and altered the nearly agreed-upon deal — specifically the amount of money that would have changed hands. The Padres ultimately shifted course and sent Upton to the Blue Jays.
  • Blue Jays general manager Ross Atkins says he’s not done making moves after swooping in and acquiring Upton earlier this morning, via Sportsnet’s Ben Nicholson-Smith (links to Nicholson–Smith on Twitter). Atkins’ comments seemingly focused on pitching upgrades, with the GM indicating that the market for relief help is more robust than the market for starters at present. Atkins says he’s talked with all 29 other clubs on multiple occasions and is now focused on a smaller group of teams that could potentially upgrade his pitching staff. Asked specifically about the Padres — the Jays have been linked multiple times to Andrew Cashner, who tossed a quality start against them tonight — Atkins replied, “They have interesting pitching as well.”

Latest On Nationals’ Search For Late-Inning Reliever

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The Nationals were in the mix for Aroldis Chapman right up until the end of the Yankees’ negotiations with the Cubs, reports ESPN’s Jayson Stark, and general manager Mike Rizzo and his staff are still on the hunt for a relief ace that could anchor the back of the bullpen and provide an upgrade over Jonathan Papelbon. Citing rival clubs that have spoken with the Nationals, Stark reports that Andrew Miller, Wade Davis and David Robertson are all on the radar for the Nats.

The asking price on Miller and Davis is said to be otherworldly, of course, as evidenced by a recent report from Yahoo’s Jeff Passan which stated that the Royals kicked around Lucas Giolito’s name when internally discussing the notion of trading Davis. Beyond that, Stark reported yesterday that the package sent from the Cubs to the Yankees in exchange for Chapman — Gleyber Torres, Adam Warren, Billy McKinney and Rashad Crawford — wouldn’t have pried Davis away from Kansas City. The price on Miller, as has been the case since discussions about potentially trading him surfaced back in May, is exceptionally high. The Yankees were said to be fixated on Kyle Schwarber in talks pertaining to Miller, and Joel Sherman of the New York Post reports again emphasizes that the Yankees would want MLB-ready talent from the Nationals in exchange for Miller, suggesting that names like Giolito and Joe Ross could surface in talks.

According to Stark, the Nationals aren’t willing to part with Giolito, Trea Turner or Reynaldo Lopez in their quest to upgrade the bullpen, which makes the addition of either Miller or Davis seem decidedly unlikely. Robertson, on the other hand, would perhaps be another story given the facts that he’s owed roughly $29.15MM through the end of his contract and hasn’t seen his results with the White Sox match up with his otherwise pristine track record.

Robertson has managed an excellent strikeout rate both this year and last, and his 2016 ground-ball rate of 46.7 percent is the second-best of his career. However, he’s sporting a troublesome 4.46 ERA with the Sox this season and has a 3.82 mark since signing with the team. Robertson has struggled with location, leading to an increase in walks (4.7 BB/9) and home runs (1.3 HR/9, 14.3 percent homer-to-flyball ratio) in 40 1/3 innings this year. Optimists can point to the fact that 16 of the 20 runs yielded by Robertson since Opening Day have come across just four disastrous outings and he’s been otherwise excellent, but the bottom-line results haven’t been as consistent as the ChiSox would hope.

Beyond the prospects the Nationals would have to surrender, finances also have to factor into the equation. Washington reportedly struggled to attract free agents this offseason because the club had to factor deferred money into nearly all of its offers, in part due to the longstanding dispute with the Orioles over the shared MASN television network rights fees. (The Nats also convinced Papelbon to take a slightly lesser 2016 salary than his club option called for in exchange for exercising it immediately upon completion of last summer’s trade.) Robertson’s salary is the most prohibitive, but Davis is slated to earn $10MM next season via a club option, and Miller is owed $9MM in each of the next two seasons. None of the three is an insurmountable sum, but the finances involved with each reliever in question add another layer to the calculus of negotiating a trade.

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