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Rosenthal’s Latest: Yankees, Marlins, Rays, Rockies, Braves

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Here’s the latest from Ken Rosenthal, via a pair of videos on FOX Sports.

  • The Yankees will be willing to deal pending free agents Aroldis Chapman and Carlos Beltran if they’re not in serious contention for a playoff spot by the August 1 deadline, Rosenthal says. They do not want to trade Andrew Miller right now, however. It’s also possible they could deal starting pitchers like CC Sabathia, Nathan Eovaldi and Michael Pineda, but they are not in active discussions to sell right now and they could wait to deal members of that trio this offseason, since all are under control in 2017.
  • The Marlins would deal Adeiny Hechavarria and replace him at shortstop with Miguel Rojas if they could get a top starter like Chris Archer of the Rays in return, Rosenthal says. From this vantage point, that sounds like a lot to ask for a shortstop who has hit .238/.274/.336 this season (although Hechavarria is a stellar defender), and one would think Hechavarria would have limited value in a deal for an ace, even as part of a package. Rosenthal unsurprisingly notes that the Rays aren’t interested in trading Archer for a package that has Hechavarria as its centerpiece. The Marlins are also very interested in Archer’s fellow Rays starters Jake Odorizzi and Matt Moore, although their weak minor league system poses difficulties in lining up a trade.
  • The Rockies don’t seem overly motivated to trade Carlos Gonzalez and have passed on opportunities to do so, Rosenthal says. Gonzalez’s contract runs through 2017, coinciding with the end of GM Jeff Bridich’s deal, and Rosenthal implies it might be in Bridich’s best interest to keep Gonzalez around to increase the Rockies’ chances of being competitive until then.
  • The Tigers aren’t likely to make big moves before the deadline, with a large payroll that will limit their flexibility and a number of tough-to-move contracts on the books. They could, however, become a seller if they do especially poorly in the next two weeks, potentially dealing Francisco Rodriguez and/or other relievers.
  • Braves GM John Coppolella continues to insist his team will not deal Julio Teheran, Rosenthal says. Coppolella believes Teheran (who is under team control through 2020) can be a key player on the next contending Braves team, although he acknowledges that won’t happen this season.

Rosenthal’s Latest: Archer, Chapman, CarGo, Rangers, Managers

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While the Rays are fielding some calls on righty Chris Archer, the kinds of offers coming through the line have been good only for “comedic value,” a source tells Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (via Twitter). The report certainly suggests that Tampa Bay isn’t interested in the kind of buy-low offers it is apparently receiving. The young righty hasn’t quite been himself this year, but remains quite talented and controlled at a very cheap rate.

Here’s more from Rosenthal:

  • The Yankees are discussing the possibility of trying to extend closer Aroldis Chapman, according to Rosenthal. Talks to this point are just internal and haven’t been raised with Chapman’s representatives, but the club isn’t set on selling off big league assets over the next few weeks. Team president Randy Levine maintained to Rosenthal that the Yankees like their team and won’t make a call on trading away veterans until much closer to the Aug. 1 non-waiver trade deadline.
  • Carlos Gonzalez is perhaps the best player among current trade candidates, but the Rockies don’t feel the need to get out from underneath his contract in the same manner they did with Troy Tulowitzki, so he’s far from a lock to be moved. CarGo is batting an excellent .318/.367/.557 this season, and it’s interesting to note that over the past 365 days, he’s hitting .304/.354/.592 with a hefty 46 homers in 156 games played. His $17MM salary in 2016 and $20MM salary in 2017 are both reasonable sums for that level of production.
  • The Rangers were in on Drew Pomeranz before his trade to the Red Sox, and they’re in on Rich Hill now that Pomeranz is off the market. The Rangers could also use an upgrade behind the plate, writes Rosenthal, who notes that Jonathan Lucroy would be preferable to Derek Norris, but the latter of the two is available as well. The Rangers, though, “probably do not view” any of the available trade candidates as worthy players to surrender top-tier young talent like Jurickson Profar or Joey Gallo.
  • Some within the industry have told Rosenthal that Diamondbacks manager Chip Hale “could be in imminent danger” of losing his job, but D-backs sources denied the notion when asked, he continues. Rosenthal lists Bryan Price and Walt Weiss as skippers that are safe for now but may be seeking new employment come season’s end, and he notes that Robin Ventura, Brad Ausmus, John Farrell and Terry Collins could all be in the same boat if their clubs finish the season poorly.

Quick Hits: Groome, Red Sox, Lucroy, Chapman

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With Friday’s deadline to sign 2016 amateur draft picks creeping up, the Red Sox and first-round selection Jason Groome are in a dispute over how much the left-hander is worth, reports Jon Heyman of Today’s Knuckleball. Boston is currently offering Groome $3.5MM – which is $372K more than the 12th overall selection’s $3,192,800 slot value – according to Heyman, who adds that the 17-year-old had a pre-draft agreement with the Padres to sign for $5MM had he fallen to them at No. 24. The Red Sox have in the neighborhood of $400K remaining in their pool and could up their offer to Groome, Heyman notes, and he expects the two to eventually reach a deal.

More from Boston and a few other major league destinations:

  • An unusually high number of scouts (18) recently took in a Class-A Rookie League Game for the Rangers, leading FOX Sports’ Ken Rosenthal to wonder if a trade is on the way. Specifically, the Rangers and Brewers could match up in a deal for catcher Jonathan Lucroy, Rosenthal suggests, with a scout informing him that Milwaukee has been observing Texas’ system. Brewers general manager David Stearns has not been averse to acquiring teenage prospects in the past, writes Rosenthal, who lists 17-year-old outfielder Leody Taveras and 18-year-old shortstop Anderson Tejada as a couple of the Rangers’ top Arizona League players. The Rangers have drawn connections since the offseason to Lucroy, an All-Star backstop who’s signed for cheap through next season.
  • Prior to his late-season major league breakout last year, Red Sox center fielder Jackie Bradley Jr. garnered the attention of several GMs while he was thriving in the minors, according to agent Scott Boras. “I had six different general managers calling me, because he was just killing the ball in Triple-A,” Boras said (via Jason Mastrodonato of the Boston Herald). Boras added that he doesn’t ask GMs to trade his clients, so he didn’t request a deal out of Boston for Bradley – who has been outstanding for the Red Sox since last August. The 26-year-old earned his first All-Star trip this season on the strength of a .296/.378/.548 batting line with 14 home runs in 344 trips to the plate. In addition to his prowess with the bat, Bradley has been among the majors’ premier base runners this year, as FanGraphs shows.
  • The Yankees’ playoffs odds at FanGraphs sit at a measly 7.5 percent, which Joel Sherman of the New York Post cites while arguing that it would be “terrible business” for the .500 team to retain lefty closer Aroldis Chapman past the Aug. 1 trade deadline. With World Series contenders like the Cubs, Rangers and Nationals looking to augment their bullpens, Sherman believes the Yankees are in prime position to orchestrate a bidding war for Chapman, whom they acquired from the Reds for an underwhelming group of prospects over the winter. Chapman was then dealing with a troubling domestic violence incident off the field, but he served a month-long suspension to begin the year and has continued dominating on the mound since. Even if the Yankees do trade Chapman, that wouldn’t preclude them from making a push to re-sign the pending free agent in the offseason, Sherman points out.

NL Notes: Lucroy, Giants, Cards, Dodgers

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Brewers catcher and eminently valuable trade chip Jonathan Lucroy said Monday that he and the team are not engaging in contract extension talks (Twitter link via Chris Cotillo of SB Nation). “I want to be competitive. I want to be on a team that is playing for a championship,” Lucroy told Jon Heyman of Today’s Knuckleball. “If that’s the Brewers, great. If not, not. It’s a tough situation.” With a relatively insignificant $4MM salary this year and a $5.25MM club option for 2017, Lucroy is currently on one of the most team-friendly contracts in baseball. That should help the Brewers land a quality haul for the All-Star if they deal him by the Aug. 1 trade deadline. The 30-year-old has rebounded from an injury-plagued 2015 to hit .304/.361/.491 with 11 home runs in 324 plate appearances this season. Defensively, Lucroy has thrown out a terrific 39 percent of attempted base stealers while rating near the top of the league in the pitch-framing department.

More out of the NL:

  • While the NL West-leading Giants have come up as a possible fit for either Aroldis Chapman or All-Star Andrew Miller in advance of the deadline, the Yankees don’t regard San Francisco as a match for either, according to Hank Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle (Twitter link). Notably, five Giants – right-handers Phil Bickford (No. 50) and Tyler Beede (No. 81), shortstop Christian Arroyo (No. 56), first baseman Chris Shaw (No. 83) and lefty Adalberto Mejia (No. 91) – are on Baseball America’s Midseason Top 100 Prospects list. The lefty-swinging Shaw, 22, would seem to make sense for the Yankees, offers Schulman, though it seems they disagree.
  • Cardinals All-Star infielder Matt Carpenter hopes to make a four-week recovery from the oblique strain that sent him to the disabled list July 7, writes Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Carpenter has a “significant” tear along his right side, he said Monday, and the 30-year-old had a similar injury in 2012 that kept him out four weeks.  Prior to going on the shelf, Carpenter slashed a tremendous .298/.420/.568 with 14 homers and nearly as many walks (58) as strikeouts (61) in 351 PAs.
  • Agent Scott Boras is “happy” with the way the Dodgers have handled 19-year-old phenom Julio Urias, he told Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register on Monday (Twitter link). The Dodgers are monitoring the workload of the left-handed Urias, who is currently with Triple-A Oklahoma City and could factor in as both a reliever and starter in the majors down the stretch. Between OKC and LA, Urias has thrown 78 1/3 innings, which is just 9 1/3 fewer than the career-high 87 2/3 frames he amassed in 2014.

Cafardo’s Latest: BoSox, Royals, O’s, Jays, Yanks, Rays, A’s, Phils, Twins, Angels

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Scouts from the Red Sox, Royals, Orioles and Blue Jays were on hand to watch Athletics left-hander Rich Hill’s Thursday start, according to the Boston Globe’s Nick Cafardo, who writes that the 36-year-old would likely prefer a return to Boston. With the help of ex-major league pitcher Brian Bannister at Triple-A Pawtucket, Hill began reviving his career as part of the Red Sox organization late last summer after a stint in the independent Atlantic League.“Brian pointed out that (Clayton) Kershaw threw his curveball 45 percent of the time,” said Hill. “He basically emphasized that, take what you think are your best pitches and use them correctly. So with me, it was not only throwing the curveball but throwing it at different speeds, changing the shape of it as well as manipulating the spin on the fastball.” Hill took Bannister’s advice and has relied almost exclusively on his curveball and fastball since the Red Sox called him up last September. The results? Ninety-nine innings of 2.06 ERA ball to accompany a 10.8 K/9, 2.83 BB/9, 49.6 percent ground-ball rate and 17.9 percent infield fly mark. Hill could soon end up as the premier starter dealt by the Aug. 1 deadline, and the pitching-challenged Red Sox – who added Bannister to their coaching staff earlier this week – seem like a logical fit. For now, Hill is scheduled to start again Friday for the A’s, who bought low on him in the offseason (one year, $6MM) and have reaped the rewards.

More from Cafardo:

  • In the event the Braves shop right-hander Julio Teheran, one major league source told Cafardo, “The Braves don’t want anyone’s B- list. It’s got to be at the top of anyone’s prospect list, and it just looks complicated.” As a strong, in-his-prime performer who’s controllable through 2020 on an extremely team-friendly contract, Teheran is one of rebuilding Atlanta’s best assets.
  • The Red Sox recently sent senior vice president of baseball operations Frank Wren – their top talent evaluator – to St. Petersburg, Fla., to observe division-rival Rays righty Jake Odorizzi. Last-place Tampa Bay is considering shopping Odorizzi, who should draw plenty of interest given his cheap salary ($520,700) and three years of arbitration eligibility remaining. The 26-year-old has compiled a 4.33 ERA, 8.49 K/9, 2.98 BB/9 in 99 2/3 frames this season. He previously combined for 337 1/3 innings of 3.74 ERA pitching and similar strikeout and walk rates from 2014-15.
  • The water-treading Yankees would want a far better return for dominant lefty closer Aroldis Chapman than the one they gave up for him during the winter. The Bombers sent prospects Eric Jagielo, Tony Renda, Rookie Davis and Caleb Cotham to Cincinnati for Chapman amid his domestic violence allegations last December. Chapman ended up sitting out the first month-plus of the season because of a suspension related to that incident, but the soon-to-be free agent has continued his reign as one of baseball’s premier relievers since.
  • As of earlier this week, the Red Sox were scouting Phillies 29-year-old right-hander Jeremy Hellickson, a pending free agent who has posted a 3.92 ERA, 7.92 K/9 and 2.3 BB/9 in 105 2/3 innings this season. Preparing for a possible trade, the Phillies have reciprocated by scouting Boston’s farm system.
  • Various major league executives think highly of Twins righty and potential trade piece Ervin Santana as a mid-rotation option. While Santana has a suspension for performance-enhancing drugs in his past, the 33-year-old has long served as a respectable starter. That includes this year, in which has logged a 4.06 ERA, 6.58 K/9 and 2.52 BB/9 over 93 innings. Santana is signed through 2018 at $13.5MM per annum, so he wouldn’t be a rental.
  • The Red Sox considered trading for Athletics infielder Jed Lowrie before acquiring Aaron Hill from the Brewers on Thursday. But Hill’s relationship with Red Sox infield coach Brian Butterfield helped tip the scales in his favor. Lowrie played in Boston from 2008-11 after the franchise drafted him 45th overall in 2005.
  • The Angels are likely to deal right-handed setup man Joe Smith, whom many teams are eyeing. The 32-year-old has pitched poorly this season, though, with a 4.80 ERA, 6.6 K/9 and 3.9 BB/9 across 30 innings. Smith, who’s on a $5.25MM salary, entered the year off five straight strong campaigns and is set to become a free agent at season’s end.

Heyman’s Latest: Diamondbacks, Martinez, Mariners, Rays, Odor, Jays

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Jon Heyman kicks off his latest Inside Baseball column for FanRag sports by making a few predictions on some popular trade candidates. While he forecasts Sonny Gray to be the best pitcher that is seriously discussed in trades, he ultimately believes Gray will stay put, and teammate Rich Hill will be the top arm moved at this year’s non-waiver deadline. On the bullpen side of the equation, Aroldis Chapman has a “pretty good” chance to be moved, whereas teammate Andrew Miller was given a “less than one percent chance” to be traded by one Yankees-connected official, per Heyman.

A few of the more notable items from his lengthy column…

  • Brad Ziegler, Daniel Hudson and Tyler Clippard are generating the most trade interest among D-backs players, per Heyman. Arizona considers Paul Goldschmidt, Jake Lamb and perhaps Brandon Drury to be among its untouchables in trade takes even if the club does elect to sell off some parts.
  • The Marlins continue to hunt for starting pitching and have interest in Rays starters Jake Odorizzi and Matt Moore but also recognize that they don’t have much in the way of prospect capital to offer up for controllable arms of that nature. Miami could turn to Jarred Cosart if a rotation alternative is needed, though Cosart is sporting a pretty pedestrian 3.92 ERA with 6.0 K/9 and 4.6 BB/9 in eight starts (39 innings) since being demoted to the minors earlier this year.
  • The Cardinals are considering a long-term deal for rising young right-hander Carlos Martinez, per Heyman, though there’s no indication of any serious talks between the two sides from his report. Martinez is a logical extension candidate as a 24-year-old former top prospect that has made good on that hype with a 2.97 ERA across his past 282 innings. However, he’s also on track to hit arbitration for the first time this offseason, which does eliminate some of the urgency to take a club-friendly deal from Martinez’s camp. That, of course, doesn’t mean that an agreement can’t be reached, but Martinez is already in line for a sizable payday this winter, and buying out free-agent seasons would be expensive considering the platform he’s in the midst of building.
  • The Mariners could look to upgrade at closer in the coming weeks. Steve Cishek has been a nice pickup for the team (though he did blow a save tonight), but Joel Peralta didn’t pan out in Seattle and Joaquin Benoit has struggled. Heyman notes that GM Jerry Dipoto is a big fan of Angels setup man Joe Smith, which isn’t a big surprise considering Dipoto signed him to a three-year deal when he was the Halos’ GM. Smith, though, doesn’t really fit the description of the closer upgrade Heyman initially mentioned. That’s not meant to downplay Smith’s ability to help the Mariners, but I’d imagine a more powerful arm would be the type of target the club would pursue if looking to upgrade over Cishek.
  • The Rays are getting quite a bit of interest in Moore, Odorizzi and Chris Archer, but there’s no sense that any of the three are available yet. Other teams do expect Tampa Bay to move at least one pitcher, though Heyman notes that it’s highly unlikely that Archer would be moved.
  • The Rangers have exchanged numbers with Rougned Odor’s camp in extension talks, but the two sides aren’t believed to be close to a deal yet. Odor won’t be arbitration eligible until after the 2017 campaign, so he’s a ways off from his first significant salary. We’ve previously seen several second basemen in his service bracket — between two and three years of service once the season is up — sign extensions, so there are a fair number of comparables from which to draw. Brian Dozier signed away his arbitration year for a total of $20MM, while Matt Carpenter and Jason Kipnis each signed away their arb years and a pair of free-agent seasons for about $52MM in total, as can be seen in MLBTR’s Extension Tracker.
  • The Blue Jays may try to add some left-handed pop and could be a landing spot for Jay Bruce, per Heyman. Toronto was known to be interested in Bruce back in Spring Training and even had a reported three-team trade with the Reds and Angels fall through after some medical reports on minor leaguers that were set to change hands derailed the deal. That, of course, looks quite fortuitous for the Blue Jays right now, as Michael Saunders would’ve gone to the Angels in that deal. The bullpen is also a likely area of focus for the Jays, he notes, which makes more sense than a run at Bruce, who doesn’t strike me as a great fit for their roster.

Heyman’s Latest: Yankees, Pirates, Teheran, Marlins

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There appear to be different viewpoints in the Yankees front office about how to approach the deadline, Jon Heyman of todaysknuckleball.com writes. GM Brian Cashman may actually be more inclined to sell some assets than is the ownership and upper-level management, per the report.

After a long look at that situation, Heyman goes on to provide some other notes from around the game:

  • Some within the Yankees think there’s a very good chance that Aroldis Chapman will be around for the long-term, whether that comes about via extension or a re-signing over the winter. Meanwhile, a team official says the price on Andrew Miller is so high that the odds he’ll be dealt are miniscule.
  • The Pirates could sell off a few short-term pieces if the club isn’t in contention come late July, but a broader sale isn’t expected. Heyman suggests Francisco Liriano, Mark Melancon, David Freese, and perhaps Tony Watson as plausible trade chips. You could probably also throw names like Matt Joyce, Sean Rodriguez, and Juan Nicasio into the mix as well.
  • Julio Teheran may be pitching his way out of a trade for the Braves, says Heyman. Rival executives suggest that they see a trade as unlikely, and also gave some endorsement of his value. Heyman cites three who believe Teheran is a better trade piece than Sonny Gray of the Athletics at this stage.
  • There’s plenty of demand on the starting pitching market, which is perhaps one reason to think that some arms could end up being pried loose. Heyman lists the Orioles, Red Sox, Dodgers, Tigers, Rangers, Blue Jays, Astros, Mariners, and Yankees as looking for rotation pieces.
  • The Marlins are also reputed to be looking for starting pitching, with Drew Pomeranz on the wish list. But a Miami source tells Heyman that the team finds it “hard to trust Pomeranz” given his relatively thin track record.
  • The Padres “at least took a look” at Jose Reyes before he signed with the Mets, per Heyman. It isn’t clear what sort of opportunity San Diego was interested in offering, but it’s not surprising to hear that the organization is looking for low-cost ways to seek value.

AL East Notes: Miller/Chapman, Yankees, Floyd, Young, Sox

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While there have yet to be any firm indications that the Yankees will shop Andrew Miller and Aroldis Chapman this summer, ESPN’s Buster Olney writes that some executives from other clubs are becoming more and more convinced that the Yankees will indeed hold a “two-tiered auction” on their imposing lefties. In Miller’s case, the belief is that the Yankees will name a specific price for interested organizations (e.g. Kyle Schwarber from the Cubs) and tell the teams to take it or leave it. Chapman’s status as a free agent at season’s end gives him a lower price tag, Olney notes. He goes on to list the Nationals, Dodgers, Rangers, Cubs and Red Sox as teams with potential interest in late-inning bullpen help, though I personally have a tough time envisioning the Sox and Yankees connecting for a trade of that magnitude.

More from the AL East…

  • The Yankees received positive news on Carlos Beltran, who exited last night’s contest with a hamstring injury, writes ESPN New York’s Andrew Marchand. An MRI revealed no damage to the muscle, and the organization’s hope is that he’ll only miss a day or two. In the event of a setback, Marchand notes that the Yankees could hand right field to the combination of Aaron Hicks and Rob Refsnyder with Alex Rodriguez again receiving regular DH at-bats, or the team could elect to give Aaron Judge a long-awaited look in the Majors. GM Brian Cashman recently suggested that Judge had more work to do at the minor league level, however. The Yankees will hope to not have to even ponder such options, however; Beltran has been the club’s best hitter in 2016, batting .297/.336/.570 with 19 home runs. If the Yanks do end up selling veteran pieces, as Olney speculated above, Beltran’s bat would surely be in demand.
  • Yankees prospect James Kaprielian, the team’s first-round pick in the 2015 draft, has been diagnosed with a strained right flexor tendon, reports Newsday’s Anthony Rieber. He’s headed to Los Angeles this week to meet with renowned surgeon Dr. Neal ElAttrache. Kaprielian, a product of UCLA, has been limited to three games this season but has posted impressive numbers in his 29 innings since being drafted. The 22-year-old has a 1.55 ERA with a 36-to-5 K/BB ratio in that time.
  • The Blue Jays also received some bad news on the injury front, as Brendan Kennedy of the Toronto Star writes that Gavin Floyd’s torn lat muscle will cost the right-hander eight to 12 weeks of action. While Floyd’s injury doesn’t require surgical repair, that timeline could sideline Floyd until anywhere from mid August to late September. The 33-year-old hasn’t been one of manager John Gibbons’ highest-leverage relievers, but Floyd has delivered 31 innings of 4.06 ERA ball with a 30-to-8 K/BB ratio. His loss further thins out a bullpen that currently has Brett Cecil on the disabled list and has seen struggles from Drew Storen all season long. (You can check out the Jays’ updated depth chart here.)
  • Red Sox manager John Farrell tells Brian MacPherson of the Providence Journal that outfielder Chris Young underwent an MRI in Boston on Monday, and the test revealed “a little bit more injury” than Young’s initial tests did (Twitter link). What that means for Young’s return is not yet clear; the outfielder hit the disabled list with a hamstring strain on June 24. Boston has been using the inexperienced Bryce Brentz and Ryan LaMarre in left field since Young hit the disabled list.
  • Alex Speier of the Boston Globe reports that Red Sox prospect Christopher Acosta has been placed on the restricted list after he left the club’s extended Spring Training facility to travel to the Dominican Repbulic without permission. Since returning to the Dominican, Acosta hasn’t reported to the team’s academy there despite being asked to do so. Boston signed the now-18-year-old Acosta in July 2014 and gave the Dominican native a $1.5MM signing bonus, Speier notes. The reasons for his actions aren’t clear, though Speier adds that Acosta doesn’t intend to quit baseball.

Marlins Discussing Aroldis Chapman, Fernando Rodney

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The Marlins are known to be exploring the relief pitching market, and they’ve had internal discussions about both the Yankees’ Aroldis Chapman and the Padres’ Fernando Rodney, according to ESPN’s Buster Olney (in his latest subscription-only column).  It isn’t known if these discussions reflect genuine interest, as teams routinely go over many options in the leadup to the trade deadline.

There has been quite a bit of speculation about the Yankees trading at least one of Chapman, Andrew Miller or Dellin Betances should the team fall out of contention.  Chapman is a free agent this winter and moving Miller would free up some payroll room, though the controllable Betances would probably bring back the biggest return of the trio.  Some have argued that New York could deal from their uber-bullpen even if they’re still in the race, as they would still have a powerful end-game answer with just two of those excellent relievers, and trading the third would address needs in the rotation or lineup.  Still, it’s rather hard to see a contending Yankees team breaking up their dominant relief trio given how the rest of their bullpen has been unimpressive.

It’s much more likely that the Padres would explore deals for Rodney, given how San Diego is currently in the NL West basement.  Rodney has a microscopic 0.31 ERA through 28 2/3 innings, with 10.4 K/9 and a 2.75 K/BB rate.  Obviously some good fortune is involved in Rodney’s near-perfect season (such as a .210 BABIP and a 92.6% strand rate) but he is still posting fine numbers even by ERA-indicator standards: 2.29 FIP, 3.22 xFIP, 3.04 SIERA.  Rodney has generally been a good-to-great reliever since 2012 except for last season, when his early-season struggles led to a midseason release from the Mariners, though he regained some of his form against signing on with the Cubs late in the year.

The Marlins had some interest in Rodney last winter before he signed with the Padres, so it’s no surprise that they’re looking at him again in the wake of his successful year.  It’s also not hard to believe that Miami is discussing Chapman, as any team in need of a bullpen upgrade would given his excellent track record.

With a thin farm system and a lack of interest in dealing Major League parts, the Marlins could offer to take on salary to facilitate a trade, though neither Chapman or Rodney represent a big payroll outlay.  Chapman is owed approximately $5.75MM over the rest of the year while Rodney has only around $850K in base salary this year and at least $400K to buy out a $2MM club option for 2017 (though these numbers can rise rather significantly based on incentives).  I’d guess it unlikely that Jeffrey Loria approves enough of a payroll boost to absorb one of several albatross contracts cluttering both the New York and San Diego rosters, so there might not a trade fit unless the Marlins have a prospect or two that the Yankees or Padres particularly like.

Reliever Notes: Cubs, Yanks, BoSox, Cardinals

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The latest reliever-related news from around the majors:

  • The Cubs continue to scout the Yankees’ dominant late-game trio of Aroldis Chapman, Andrew Miller and Dellin Betances, reports George A. King III of the New York Post. After sending Jason Parks to the Bronx to observe the troika earlier this month, the Cubs had a three-man contingent – including pro scouting director Jared Porter and pro scout Steve Boros – take in the performances of the lights-out relief aces over the past two days. Chapman, Miller and Betances combined for six shutout, one-hit innings during that span, also adding nine strikeouts against zero walks. The Yankees have won three straight and are at 37-36 –  just 2.5 games out of an AL Wild Card spot – so they certainly don’t look like surefire sellers at the moment. That could change prior to the Aug. 1 trade deadline, of course.
  • If the opportunity arises, Red Sox president Dave Dombrowski would be willing to make a trade with the archenemy Yankees, he told Brian MacPherson of the Providence Journal. Specifically, the Red Sox would have interest in the Yankees’ top relievers, notes MacPherson. The only trade the AL East rivals have made since 1997 came when the Sox dealt shortstop Stephen Drew to the Yankees in 2014, but that lack of history wouldn’t stop Dombrowski from trying to swing a deal with Brian Cashman. “If they’re in it and we’re in it, probably the odds are longer,” Dombrowski said in regards to a potential move. Boston, which possesses the top Wild Card position in the AL, is currently four games ahead of New York.
  • After Trevor Rosenthal yielded three earned runs and failed to record an out in a losing effort Friday, Cardinals manager Mike Matheny informed the right-hander Saturday that he’s out as the Redbirds’ closer, tweets Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. For now at least, the Cardinals will go with a combination of Seung-hwan Oh, Kevin Siegrist and Jonathan Broxton in save situations, Matheny said (Twitter link via Jenifer Langosch of MLB.com). Rosenthal took the reins as the Cardinals’ closer in 2014 and proceeded to save 93 of 102 opportunities and log a 2.65 ERA over a two-season, 139-inning span. This year has been a different story, though, as Rosenthal has offset excellent strikeout (13.5 per nine innings) and grounder rates (56.7 percent) with a 7.88 BB/9 (up from 4.34 from 2014-15) and a soaring home run rate. The 27-year-old’s ERA sits at an unsightly 5.63.
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