Jacoby Ellsbury

Injury Notes: Price, Shoemaker, Ervin, Trumbo, Yankees

By Steve Adams | April 11, 2018 at 9:27pm CDT

Red Sox left-hander David Price exited tonight’s game after one inning for what the team called “precautionary” reasons due to a “sensation” in his left hand (Twitter link via Jason Mastrodonato of the Boston Herald). It was a night to forget for the lefty, who was hammered for four runs on three hits (one homer) and a pair of walks in his lone inning before being replaced by rookie southpaw Bobby Poyner. Elbow problems cost Price a substantial portion of the 2017 season, but he’d kicked off the 2018 campaign with a pair of scoreless, seven-inning gems against the Rays. Presumably, the Sox will have further updates on his condition after tonight’s game and/or tomorrow morning.

Some more injury news from around baseball…

The Angels announced tonight that right-hander Matt Shoemaker has been shut down for “a few weeks.” Shoemaker, on the DL for a forearm strain, underwent an EMG and a “nerve conduction study,” though the tests revealed no nerve irritation, per the announcement. Shoemaker is “treatment only” at this time as he awaits further testing. The Halos’ pitching staff has been hammered by injuries over the past couple of seasons, and they’ve already lost right-hander J.C. Ramirez for the season, as he’s likely to undergo Tommy John surgery to repair ligament damage in his right elbow. The Angels are on the verge of getting Andrew Heaney back, but they’ve already had to turn to 21-year-old prospect Jaime Barria, who is making his big league debut tonight. At present, it seems as if the Angels will deploy Shohei Ohtani, Garrett Richards, Tyler Skaggs and Heaney in their rotation moving forward, with righties Barria, Parker Bridwell and Nick Tropeano on hand as additional options. However, the loss of Ramirez and now an absence of undetermined length for Shoemaker, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see the Angels keep an eye out for some pitching depth.
Right-hander Ervin Santana has been cleared to begin a throwing program, per Mike Berardino of the St. Paul Pioneer Press. The Twins’ top starter, Santana has yet to pitch in 2018 after undergoing surgery to repair his right middle finger back in February. At last check, skipper Paul Molitor conceded that Santana was “a bit” behind schedule, though the start of a throwing program is a positive step for the 35-year-old. Berardino notes that Santana could require as much as six weeks to get back up to speed, however, so it seems as through the Twins will be without his contributions until at least mid-May.
The Orioles have halted Mark Trumbo’s rehab assignment, manager Buck Showalter told reporters, including Dan Connolly of BaltimoreBaseball.com. While Showalter wouldn’t state that Trumbo had a setback, he did reveal that Trumbo “wasn’t quite comfortable” going full speed in the first game of a rehab stint with Double-A Bowie. The team didn’t provide a new timeline for Trumbo. Pedro Alvarez and Danny Valencia figure to continue platooning at the DH spot in his absence.
It appears as though Aaron Hicks has completed his rehab assignment. The outfielder tells reporters that he’s excited to rejoin the Yankees tomorrow (Twitter link Conor Foley of the Scranton Times-Tribune). Hicks walked and doubled in his second Triple-A rehab game tonight. He’s been out for two weeks with an intercostal strain that he suffered in the season opener. Meanwhile, Bryan Hoch of MLB.com tweeted yesterday that Jacoby Ellsbury will be shut down for 72 hours after receiving a cortisone shot in his ailing hip, so it seems the Yankees will likely have an update on him later this week once he attempts to resume baseball activities.

AL East Notes: Machado, Cobb, Ellsbury, Sabathia, McKay

By Jeff Todd | April 6, 2018 at 9:20pm CDT

Faced with questions about his free agent plans next winter, Orioles shortstop Manny Machado mostly declined to offer much insight — and didn’t take the bait when asked about playing in New York. As Jon Meoli of the Baltimore Sun was among those to report, though, Machado did reiterate that he is only interested in signing as a shortstop, which is certainly notable given that he has just moved back to his accustomed position after lining up at third to this point in his MLB career. His decision to press for a return to short wasn’t about future financial considerations, Machado added. Rather, he says that’s “just where my heart is and has always been.”

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

Orioles righty Alex Cobb is now planning to take another outing in extended spring training on Monday, as Meoli further reports. While there had been some suggestion he might be activated at the end of the weekend, it seems Cobb prefers to continue a measured build-up before going at full bore. The Baltimore rotation could use an early season shot in the arm, which is why Cobb was signed in the first place, though clearly there’s little sense in rushing him onto the mound with a long season (and three more seasons under contract) still ahead.
The Yankees may be cool again, but they are dealing with some hip issues in the season’s early going. Outfielder Jacoby Ellsbury is now slated to visit a specialist to address a problem that arose while he was already on the DL, as Bryan Hoch of MLB.com reports (Twitter links). And veteran lefty CC Sabathia is slated for an MRI on his right hip after leaving his start early today with some soreness. The Yankees aren’t yet in desperate straights from an injury perspective, but have already endured enough dents and dings that they have had to dip into much of their best depth options already. Starting pitching is perhaps the area the team can least afford to endure any major losses, though at this point there’s no reason at all to think Sabathia will miss time.
While it wasn’t clear just how hard the Rays and Brendan McKay would push for the recent first-rounder to make it to the majors as a two-way player, that certainly seems to be the current intention. As Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times writes, though, plenty of uncertainty still remains. McKay impressed more on the hill than at the plate in his 2017 short-season debut, though as Topkin rightly notes, the real test will come in performing both functions in full-season ball. His dual developmental course has already required some attentive scheduling and — given that it is largely unprecedented — is likely to trigger some novel questions over the years to come. The piece is well worth a full read, not only for Rays fans but for anyone who’d like to learn more about this interesting experiment as it really gets underway.

Injury Notes: Giants, Shoemaker, Lamb, Mariners, Gyorko, Ellsbury

By Jeff Todd and Steve Adams | April 3, 2018 at 6:47pm CDT

Giants lefty Madison Bumgarner thinks he’ll be ready before the early June target time frame set by the club, he tells reporters including Kerry Crowley of the Bay Area News Group (Twitter link). Calling the estimate “conservative” for a pinky fracture, Bumgarner noted that he’s due for a check-up in a few weeks’ time. If he is ready to ramp back up earlier than had been expected, that’d be most welcome for an organization that has had to scramble a bit after suffering some health troubles late in camp. Fellow starter Jeff Samardzija seems to be well on his way to a return after throwing a thirty-pitch pen session today, Andrew Baggarly of The Athletic also notes via Twitter.

Here’s more injury news from San Francisco and elsewhere…

Meanwhile, Giants southpaw Will Smith is readying to pitch competitively next Monday, Crowley adds on Twitter. He could soon begin an official rehab assignment, which would start the thirty-day clock on his return to the majors. The 28-year-old, who was picked up in a 2016 deadline deal, missed all of 2017 recovering from Tommy John surgery. He’s just now past the one-year anniversary of the procedure, so he has largely progressed on a typical timeline to this point.
Right-hander Matt Shoemaker has been placed on the 10-day DL by the Angels due to a strained right forearm, the team announced tonight. Anaheim has called righty Parker Bridwell up to take his spot in the rotation for now. Obviously, it’s a concern for Shoemaker, who had two separate forearm-related injuries in 2017 before ending his season to undergo surgery which repositioned the radial nerve in his forearm. The Angels didn’t give a timetable for Shoemaker’s return to action.
The D-backs announced tonight that third baseman Jake Lamb is hitting the disabled list with a sprained AC joint in his shoulder, though manager Torey Lovullo tells reporters that he’s hopeful the young slugger can return to the lineup after the minimum 10-day allotment (Twitter link via The Athletic’s Zach Buchanan). Righty Matt Koch has been called up to take Lamb’s spot on the roster for the time being, which will give Arizona some additional depth in the bullpen on the heels of a 15-inning game. The D-backs are well covered in terms of depth around the infield. Deven Marrero got the start at the hot corner tonight, though Daniel Descalso and Chris Owings also seem like possible options there.
The Mariners have placed slugger Nelson Cruz on the 10-day DL with an ankle sprain, the club announced. The move was backdated to April 1st. As Ryan Divish of the Seattle notes (links to Twitter), with two upcoming tilts with National League foes, it was fairly painless for the team to put Cruz on the shelf for a bit. And manager Scott Servais believes Cruz won’t miss more than the minimum, if that. Clearly, the M’s can ill afford any kind of extended absence from Cruz, who has raked since coming to the club on a four-year deal that expires after the present season. In other M’s news, Mike Zunino could be headed in the other direction, as Servais says his top catcher isn’t likely to require an extended absence for his oblique strain (also via Divish, on Twitter). Indeed, the skipper indicated that he believes Zunino will be ready to join the team at some point during its eight-game road swing.
Also heading to the DL is Cardinals infielder Jedd Gyorko, as Rick Hummel of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported. His hamstring issue is not believed to be a serious one, but the team may need to make the move to bolster the bench in the meantime. For now, then, it seems likely just to be a temporary blip for a player who’ll likely take the lion’s share of the time at third this year in St. Louis. Outfielder Harrison Bader has been recalled to take the open roster spot.
Already on the DL with an oblique issue, Yankees outfielder Jacoby Ellsbury has now been set back by a hip injury, as Bryan Hoch of MLB.com tweets. While it seems there’s not a lot of concern with this new malady, it only adds to the laundry list of aches and pains that have plagued Ellsbury of late. While his contract is obviously under water, Ellsbury remains a useful MLB asset and is in greater need than anticipated due to the Yanks’ other outfield injuries. At this point, it seems, fellow outfielder Aaron Hicks will likely be activated first from his own DL placement for an intercostal strain.

Yankees Notes: Salazar, Darvish, Wade, Ellsbury, Machado

By Mark Polishuk | March 20, 2018 at 9:20pm CDT

Some items from the Bronx…

Indians right-hander Danny Salazar was one of several pitchers the Yankees considered as potential trade targets last winter, Joel Sherman of the New York Post writes. Salazar is controlled via arbitration through the 2020 season and he has shown excellent promise when healthy, posting a 3.82 ERA, 10.5 K/9, and 3.27 K/BB rate over 587 1/3 career innings with the Tribe. Unfortunately, Salazar has also been bothered by shoulder and elbow problems over the last two years, and he looks to miss at least a bit of time at the start of the 2018 season due to rotator cuff inflammation. Despite the health risks, Salazar has been a popular trade target for multiple teams, with the Cubs and Brewers both being linked to the righty this offseason.
Also from Sherman’s piece, he doesn’t blame the Yankees for jumping at the unique opportunity to land Giancarlo Stanton, though in terms of pure payroll allocation, rotation help was more of a need than another big bat. Aside from re-signing C.C. Sabathia, the Yankees didn’t do much to address possible questions in the rotation, though they did explore trades for the likes of Salazar and Gerrit Cole. New York was only on the periphery of the Yu Darvish hunt, with GM Brian Cashman telling Sherman that “We talked about Darvish with [his agent] Joel Wolfe, but it never got off the ground. We kept seeing if his market collapsed and it didn’t.” Cashman also noted that “Darvish was never a choice for us, in terms of length [of contract request] with a pitcher,” which Sherman interprets as the Yankees no longer being comfortable handing out major long-term deals to pitchers in their 30’s and/or with notable injury histories.
Tyler Wade will be on the Yankees’ Opening Day roster, manager Aaron Boone told MLB.com’s Bryan Hoch and other reporters. Wade’s multi-positional versatility will help a New York team that is only planning to have a three-man bench for now, in order to deploy an eight-man bullpen. Wade’s roster opportunity may come at the expense of Jacoby Ellsbury, who Boone said isn’t likely to be ready for the start of the season as the veteran outfielder continues to recover from an oblique injury.
The Yankees have long been considered a prime suitor for Manny Machado when the Orioles star hits free agency next winter, though Mike Axisa of the River Ave Blues blog questions whether the two sides are an ideal fit. For one, New York has solid-to-very good shortstop and third base options both at the big league level (Didi Gregorius, Brandon Drury, Wade) and coming up in the minors (Gleyber Torres, Miguel Andujar), so even though Machado is an elite player, the Yankees might prefer to spend their money on pitching instead of the left side of the infield. To that same end, Axisa wonders if the Yankees will, as rumored, once again far exceed the luxury tax level for big-money free agents like Machado, given Hal Steinbrenner’s desire to keep payroll relatively in check, at least by the Yankees’ standards.

AL Notes: Rays, Miller, Stroman, Ellsbury, Tigers

By Connor Byrne | March 17, 2018 at 11:42pm CDT

The Rays are likely to continue with first baseman Brad Miller, which would seem to rule out potential pursuits for either free agent Adam Lind or just-designated Twin Kennys Vargas, per Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. It’s unclear, though, whether Miller will primarily occupy first, second base or the designated hitter spot this season, Topkin adds. Miller on Saturday saw his first action since Feb. 23 (he was out with a toe injury), so he may not be ready for Opening Day. He also struggled mightily a year ago (.201/.327/.337 across 407 plate appearances) and is on an arbitration awarded salary of $4.5MM that the Rays would be able to escape without much consequence prior to the season. Nevertheless, it seems they’ll stick with Miller.

Yankees Notes: Second Base, Frazier, Ellsbury, Rotation

By Connor Byrne | March 10, 2018 at 8:09pm CDT

The latest on the Yankees:

New York’s second base battle is likely down to Gleyber Torres, Tyler Wade and Danny Espinosa, as Jace Peterson and Ronald Torreyes haven’t gotten enough reps this spring to realistically end up with the job, Brendan Kuty of NJ.com posits. Yankees manager Aaron Boone indicated he could wait until the end of spring to name a starter. The 23-year-old Wade dealt with an injury scare to his left wrist Saturday, but it seems he avoided any serious issues, Bryan Hoch of MLB.com relays.
Concussed young outfielder Clint Frazier isn’t recovering as quickly as hoped (via Hoch). Frazier, who suffered the injury Feb. 24, revealed Saturday the concussion is “affecting my driving,” and he’s even “calling my cats the wrong names at times. But they look the same, so it’s hard.” Added Frazier, 23, “I’m not reacting as quickly to things.” But Frazier’s statements came after some light baseball activities, when Yankees general manager Brian Cashman “said symptoms are particularly heightened,” Marc Carig of The Athletic writes (subscription required). “It probably puts him at a disadvantage, to be honest,” Cashman contended.
While Frazier looked like a long shot to earn a spot on the outfielder-loaded Yankees even before his injury, that’s not the case for center fielder Jacoby Ellsbury, who will make the team if healthy. But Ellsbury isn’t a certainty for Opening Day because of a right oblique injury, according to Cashman (via Hoch). Injury troubles aren’t anything new for Ellsbury, who sat out a combined 115 games during a disappointing first three years with the Yankees (including 50 in 2017). When healthy, Ellsbury is likely the Yankees’ No. 5 outfielder, behind Aaron Judge, Giancarlo Stanton, Brett Gardner and Aaron Hicks. That’s despite having upward of $68MM left on his contract.
No real surprise, but the Yankees are opening the season with left-hander Jordan Montgomery as their fifth starter, Boone announced Friday (per George A. King III of the New York Post). As was the case last year, Montgomery will slot in after Luis Severino, Masahiro Tanaka, Sonny Gray and C.C. Sabathia. That means right-hander Chad Green, whom the Yankees were considering for a starting role, will continue as a reliever. Green was utterly dominant out of the bullpen in 2017, when he recorded a 1.83 ERA with 13.43 K/9 and 2.22 BB/9 over 69 innings. Montgomery wasn’t nearly that effective, but he was quite respectable as a rookie nonetheless, with a 3.88 ERA and 8.34 K/9 against 2.95 BB/9 across 155 1/3 frames.

AL Notes: Moose, Royals, Rays, Dickerson, O’s, Mauer, Ellsbury

By Connor Byrne | February 18, 2018 at 9:51am CDT

The Eric Hosmer era is over in Kansas City, and free agent third baseman Mike Moustakas could become the next Royals cornerstone to head elsewhere. Although general manager Dayton Moore said earlier this month that Moustakas hasn’t prioritized re-signing with the Royals this offseason, it’s still possible he’ll re-up with KC, according to Jon Heyman of FanRag (Twitter link). Now that the Royals are out of the running for Hosmer, they have the funds to bring back Moustakas, Heyman notes. There hasn’t been a strong market for the 29-year-old Moustakas’ services this offseason, but if the qualifying offer recipient does leave the Royals, they would net a compensatory pick in this year’s draft. They’re already in line to receive two, thanks to the departures of Hosmer and Lorenzo Cain.

More out of the American League:

The Rays would’ve been the biggest story in baseball last night if not for the Hosmer news, having designated outfielder Corey Dickerson for assignment in an eye-opening move, acquired first baseman C.J. Cron from the Angels and traded righty Jake Odorizzi to the Twins. It wasn’t at all surprising that the Rays dealt Odorizzi, who had been in trade rumors for months, but it was unexpected that they only received a borderline top 30 Twins prospect (Single-A shortstop Jermaine Palacios) in return. General manager Erik Neander addressed that, telling Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times and other reporters that the Rays “probably have him valued quite a bit higher than some of the public publications.” Ultimately, with the Rays set to begin full-squad workouts on Monday, parting with Odorizzi and Dickerson was something they had to do, according to Neander. “You just don’t want a cloud of uncertainty hanging over our group,” he said. “It was time to move forward.” Even if the Rays end up cutting Dickerson and getting nothing back, they’ll justify it as essentially trading two years of control over him for three of Cron and saving money in the process, per Topkin. After parting with Odorizzi and Dickerson, the club could use its added “financial flexibility” to “reinvest” in free agency, Neander said Sunday (Twitter link via Topkin).
A Dickerson trade was not imminent as of last night, Jon Morosi of MLB.com reported (Twitter link), but a deal could come together with the AL East rival Orioles, Eduardo A. Encina of the Baltimore Sun suggests. The Orioles, who have been on the lookout for a lefty-hitting outfielder for months, “will undoubtedly inquire about Dickerson,” Encina writes. Dickerson has impressed Orioles manager Buck Showalter in the past, relays Encina, who adds that being in the same division hasn’t stopped the Rays and O’s from swinging deals at previous points (Baltimore acquired infielder Tim Beckham from Tampa Bay last season, for instance).
Set to wrap up his eight-year, $184MM contract this season, Twins icon Joe Mauer tells Phil Miller of the Star Tribune he and the team haven’t engaged in any extension talks. But Mauer plans to continue his career in 2019 “if I can still contribute,” and the first baseman is hopeful he’ll still be in a Twins uniform then. “This is where I want to be. This is where my family is, where my daughters are growing up,” said the St. Paul native. “I have no intention of going anywhere else. Hopefully it doesn’t come to that.” The former superstar catcher enjoyed a strong year at the plate in 2017 with a .305/.384/.417 line in 597 PAs.
Yankees center fielder Jacoby Ellsbury was somewhat popular in the rumor mill during the winter, but he informed Jack Curry of the YES Network and other reporters Sunday that the team never approached him about waiving his no-trade clause (Twitter link). It would’ve been (and would still be) a tall order for the Yankees to move Ellsbury, who hasn’t delivered as hoped during his four-year Bronx tenure and still has another $68MM left on his contract. He’ll spend the spring trying to reclaim his old job as New York’s starting center fielder, a role Aaron Hicks usurped in 2017.

AL East Notes: Brach, Orioles, Ellsbury, Yankees, JDM

By Mark Polishuk | January 7, 2018 at 4:48pm CDT

Trade rumblings around Orioles righty Brad Brach have settled down in the wake of Zach Britton’s Achillies injury, as Baltimore will be turning to Brach as closer for at least half of the 2018 season. As Brach explained in an appearance on 105.7 The Fan’s “Orioles Hot Stove Show” (hat tip to MASNsports.com’s Roch Kubatko), however, he doesn’t mind being part of the speculation.

“I definitely pay attention to it and it’s easy to do in the offseason because it’s not affecting your work,” Brach said. “You don’t have to go in the mornings and go to MLBTradeRumors or turn on MLB Network and see your name and go to the park that night and pitch. The offseason you have all day and all night to kind of just sit there and mess around. And being from New Jersey, a lot of my friends are my fans, and as soon as my name got brought up I had a group text message and there were probably 50 text messages sent to me in about three minutes, so it’s hard to ignore it and especially in the offseason. I kind of like it. It’s fun. It kind of makes these winter months not drag as much.”

Thanks for the shoutout, Brad, even if MLBTR might not be causing quite as many text explosions in the near future. Some more from around the AL East…

“The Orioles actually like (Jacoby) Ellsbury a little,” Joel Sherman of the New York Post writes, though several hurdles stand in the way of the Yankees managing to deal the veteran outfielder. New York would have to eat the big majority of the $68.5MM remaining on Ellsbury’s contract, and he may prefer to only waive his no-trade protection for a deal that would send him closer to his home in Arizona. Ellsbury-to-Baltimore was first floated by the Yankees as part of trade talks about Manny Machado, though obviously the O’s would need a lot more than Ellsbury for such a deal given how Ellsbury has struggled in each of the last three seasons. While the Orioles’ interest in Ellsbury may be muted, his addition would bring more left-handed balance to Baltimore’s lineup and also perhaps open the door for Adam Jones to shift to right field.
Ellsbury’s deal is the biggest obstacle facing the Yankees in their desire to both make further upgrades (including some potential big names) to their roster while also staying until the $197MM competitive balance tax threshold. Since an Ellsbury trade could be a tall order, Sherman writes that David Robertson might be the biggest trade chip “within reason” that would allow the Bronx Bombers to both move a large salary and score a quality return. Robertson is owed $13MM in 2018, his final year under contract, and Sherman wonders if a closer-needy team like the Cardinals would part with MLB-ready young talent for Robertson’s services. This does seem to be speculation, however, as Sherman notes that the Yankees have shown no willingness to trade from their loaded bullpen, plus Robertson is a closer-in-waiting should Aroldis Chapman get injured.
The Red Sox are reportedly wary of giving J.D. Martinez more than five guaranteed years, which is a justifiable stance given how often longer-term contracts have backfired on teams (including the Sox themselves). WEEI.com’s Rob Bradford, however, presents the counterpoint, noting that an elite hitter like Martinez is a safer investment for a six- or seven-year deal since clubs like the Red Sox can eventually move him to a DH role. Boston has a clear need for a middle-of-the-order bat now, which Bradford feels Martinez can certainly fill in the short term given that the slugger (despite some recent injuries) has shown no signs of slowing down at the plate. MLBTR’s Top 50 Free Agents list predicted that Martinez would indeed land a contract beyond the five-year threshold, pegging him for six years and $150MM.

Yankees Rumors: Cole, Darvish, Ellsbury

By Steve Adams | December 21, 2017 at 9:04am CDT

It seems the Yankees and Pirates have lost momentum toward a prospective deal involving righty Gerrit Cole. Per Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic, via Twitter, talks have “cooled” since the Winter Meetings wrapped up. While Cole’s talent would be a welcome addition to just about any big league rotation, the Bucs are reported to have a lofty asking price on the former No. 1 overall pick, and the Yankees don’t necessarily need to feel urgency to finalize a deal. New York has already agreed to bring CC Sabathia back on a one-year pact, and he’ll join Luis Severino, Sonny Gray, Masahiro Tanaka and Jordan Montgomery in a mix of quality rotation options (with prospects Justus Sheffield and Chance Adams looming in the upper minors).

A few notes out of the Bronx…

Rosenthal also writes in a notes column (subscription required/recommended) that despite that group of starting options, the Yankees have some interest in free-agent righty Yu Darvish. A serious pursuit could require shedding some other salaries, as the Yankees have a known preference to dip under the luxury tax threshold and surely would like to enter the season with some degree of leeway in that regard, should the need for in-season additions on the trade market arise.
While Darvish may seem a curious fit given that quality group of options, George A. King III of the New York Post also hears that the Yanks do have some degree of interest. New York is monitoring the Darvish market to see if his price comes down at all, per King, who adds that the Yankees do still want to add another starter even with the aforementioned arms in tow. Even if Darvish’s price drops to a lower level than expected, the Yankees would likely still need to move Jacoby Ellsbury’s salary (or a significant portion of it) in order to work him into the mix and remain under the tax barrier.
Jacoby Ellsbury “might consider” waiving his no-trade clause for a few teams, reports Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports, who suggests the Giants as a possibility in that regard. That’s probably music to the ears of many Yankees fans, though it’s worth noting that there’s no indication that the Giants would want any part of Ellsbury’s enormous contract. San Francisco has a need for a center fielder, but the Giants have their own luxury tax concerns. Even if the Yankees are willing to absorb a significant amount of the remaining $68MM+ that Ellsbury is owed, there’s no indication that the Giants view him as an upgrade. San Francisco could, for instance, simply sign a player in the Jarrod Dyson mold to a considerably shorter-term deal, knowing that he’d be a vastly superior defensive option with lesser financial risk.

AL East Notes: Ellsbury, Avisail, Blue Jays, JDM, Red Sox, Orioles

By Mark Polishuk | December 14, 2017 at 7:46pm CDT

Jacoby Ellsbury’s name was mentioned in trade talks between the Yankees and Diamondbacks, NJ Advance Media’s Brendan Kuty reports, and though “nothing is believed to be off the table,” Arizona didn’t have much interest in the veteran outfielder due to his big price tag. Ellsbury is owed over $63.3MM through the 2020 season, plus a $5MM of $21MM club option for 2021. He no longer has a starting job in the crowded New York outfield due to his underwhelming .261/.331/.372 slash line over the last three seasons, and it seems like the Yankees would surely have to eat some money to facilitate a trade, particularly with the D’Backs. Ellsbury can also block any deal due to his no-trade clause, though he does own a home in Arizona and he has a past relationship with D’Backs GM Mike Hazen from their time in the Red Sox organization.

Some more buzz from around the AL East…

The Blue Jays are one of the teams who have spoken to the White Sox about outfielder Avisail Garcia, USA Today’s Bob Nightengale reports (Twitter link). Chicago doesn’t seem to be close to a deal, however. Garcia would be a solid answer for the Jays’ hole in right field, as the 26-year-old is coming off an All-Star season that saw him hit .330/.380/.506 with 18 homers over 561 PA. This success has led the Sox to put a high asking price on his services, though the Jays and other clubs will have to weigh that against Garcia’s .392 BABIP and lack of production prior to 2017.
It was a pretty quiet Winter Meetings for the Blue Jays, though GM Ross Atkins tells Sportsnet.ca’s Ben Nicholson-Smith and other reporters that “it just feels like there’s momentum” towards some significant moves after some productive talks with other teams. Nicholson-Smith wonders if the rising prices in the free agent relief market could help Toronto, as the Jays have several much less-expensive middle relievers that could be available in trades. Joe Biagini figures to have received some interest from other teams, Nicholson-Smith speculates, though there hasn’t been any indication that the Jays would be looking to move the right-hander.
There is considerable interest in how many years J.D. Martinez will land in his next contract, Alex Speier of the Boston Globe writes. Many in the industry feel Martinez will easily net a five-year deal, though going beyond that for a player who just turned 30 last August could test the comfort zone of several teams, including the Red Sox. (MLBTR, for the record, predicted Martinez for a six-year, $150MM deal.) Scott Boras, Martinez’s agent, set an early asking price of seven years and $210MM for his client, which seems like a very optimistic number now but Boras has a penchant for waiting under deeper in the offseason until he can find his clients an acceptable deal. This has made Boston’s pursuit of Martinez feel like “a staring contest” between Boras and Red Sox president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski, ESPN.com’s Scott Lauber writes, as Dombrowski is traditionally more aggressive in quickly landing his desired targets.
The Orioles were again aggressive with Rule 5 selections, taking three players (left-hander Nestor Cortes and righties Pedro Araujo and Jose Mesa) in this morning’s draft, though they’ll now face a bit of a roster crunch, Eduardo A. Encina of the Baltimore Sun writes. With the O’s in need of southpaws in the pen, Cortes is the likeliest of the trio to actually spend the whole season on the team’s 25-man roster, which is required for Rule 5 picks to fully become property of their new teams. Araujo and Mesa are longer shots to take up valuable 25-man spots, though it’s possible Baltimore could work out trades with their original teams (the Cubs and Yankees, respectively) to officially acquire their rights.

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