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Central Rumors: Royals, Pirates, Frazier, Indians, Ramirez

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Royals general manager Dayton Moore said Monday that they have held “international discussions” in regards to an extension for slugging outfielder Jorge Soler, Alec Lewis of The Athletic tweets. To this point, though, the Royals have not talked with Soler’s representation about a possible extension, but as Jeffrey Flanagan of MLB.com reports, they are keeping some of their limited payroll space available in the event a new deal does come together. The 27-year-old Soler, fresh off a breakthrough season in which he slammed 48 home runs and then hired new representation, is slated to earn $11.2MM in 2020 – his penultimate arbitration-eligible campaign. He’ll first have to opt out of his $4MM salary for 2020 in order to reach arbitration, though that seems like a given.

Along with a possible Soler contract, the Royals are keeping some ink dry for fellow outfielder Alex Gordon. It’s unknown whether the career-long Royal, 35, will continue his career in 2020. But the team’s prioritizing a Gordon re-signing, according to Moore (Twitter links here via Lewis and Flanagan).  Meanwhile, although the likes of Soler, Whit Merrifield, Danny Duffy and Tim Hill have garnered trade interest this offseason, Moore indicated he’s not looking to move any of them. In the case of Hill, a reliever, Moore said that the Royals want to “add to the bullpen, not detract from it.”

More from the game’s Central divisions…

  • The Pirates have gotten calls on second baseman/outfielder Adam Frazier, Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette relays. It’s unclear how open the Pirates, led by new general manager Ben Cherington, are to trading the soon-to-be 28-year-old Frazier. He’s under control via arbitration for the next three seasons, and is projected to make an affordable $3.2MM in 2020. Frazier, roughly a league-average hitter since he debuted in 2016, is coming off a year in which he recorded a career-high 2.2 fWAR and batted .278/.336/.417 with 10 home runs across 608 trips to the plate.
  • Southpaw Brady Aiken is taking time off from baseball, and the Indians are unsure whether he’ll resume his career when the spring rolls around, per Anthony Castrovince of MLB.com. Aiken’s a two-time former first-round pick, but his career hasn’t gotten off the ground to this point, in part because of injuries. He wound up with the Indians in 2015, when he went 17th overall, a year after the Astros made him the first selection in the draft. However, Aiken elected against signing with Houston, which chose now-superstar third baseman Alex Bregman at No. 2 in 2015 with the compensatory pick it landed for failing to reel in Aiken. Meanwhile, the 23-year-old Aiken hasn’t advanced past the Single-A level thus far.
  • Sticking with the Indians, president Chris Antonetti indicated Monday the team’s preference is for Jose Ramirez to remain at third base – not move to second – in 2020, Mandy Bell of MLB.com reports. If that proves true, the club could “maybe add at second,” Antonetti stated. The Indians don’t look primed to spend a lot this winter, but there are plenty of satisfactory free-agent second basemen whom they should be able to afford.

AL Central Notes: Colome, Ramirez, Twins

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In the wake of the Nationals’ dramatic NLDS victory over the Dodgers last night, it is perhaps fitting that October 10 marks another red-letter day in Washington baseball history….not to mention Minnesota baseball history.  It was on this day back in 1924 that the Twins won their first World Series, though they were still several decades away from becoming the Twins, as the franchise played in D.C. as the Washington Senators from 1901-1960.  The Senators beat the New York Giants in a dramatic Game Seven that lasted 12 innings, with the legendary Walter Johnson earning the win after tossing four shutout innings in relief.  1924 marked the franchise’s only Series title in Washington, as the Senators/Twins wouldn’t again win it all until 1987.

Some items from around the AL Central…

  • Though Alex Colome is projected to earn $10.3MM in salary next year, the Athletic’s James Fegan (subscription required) doesn’t think the high arbitration price tag will prevent the White Sox from bringing the closer back in 2020.  GM Rick Hahn indicated after the season that the performances of Colome and Aaron Bummer as Chicago’s late-game duo “makes you feel real good about their spot going forward,” and Fegan notes that the Sox likely wouldn’t have acquired Colome from the Mariners last winter if they were worried about paying him in 2020, given how save totals predictably lead to big raises for closers in the arbitration process.  Both advanced metrics (.215 BABIP, and a 2.64 wOBA that was far below his .324 xwOBA) and ERA predictors (4.08 FIP, 4.61 xFIP, 4.38 SIERA) indicated that Colome was rather fortunate to post his 2.80 ERA over 61 innings last season, so a non-tender or a trade is perhaps feasible if the White Sox felt a bigger course correction was on the way next year.
  • Jose Ramirez is open to playing either second base or third base next season, though he has told Indians management that he doesn’t want to shift between the two positions, Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer writes.  Ramirez played exclusively at third base in 2019 and spent most of his time at the hot corner in 2018, though he moved over to second base late in the year to accommodate the Tribe’s acquisition of Josh Donaldson.  Ramirez also more or less split time between third (736 2/3 innings) and second (577 1/3 innings) in 2017 due to an injury to regular second baseman Jason Kipnis.  Over the last three seasons in question, Ramirez has been an above-average defender at third base as per the UZR/150 and Defensive Runs Saved metrics, while UZR/150 has been a bit less impressed with his work as a second baseman, though the 27-year-old is still overall pretty solid at the keystone.  “I think we’re comfortable that Jose can play both at a premium defensive quality,” manager Terry Francona said.  “I agree with him, going back and forth is hard, especially at this point in his career.”  Ramirez’s ability to handle either infield role gives Cleveland some flexibility in pursuing infield help this winter, assuming the team doesn’t rely on some combination of Yu Chang, Mike Freeman, Christian Arroyo, or Andrew Velazquez to handle the other position in 2020.
  • The Twins are already planning to chase some front-of-the-rotation pitchers this offseason, and Jim Souhan of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune opines that outfielder Eddie Rosario could be “the logical trading chip” to try and land an arm.  Rosario hit .276/.300/.500 with 32 homers over 590 PA for Minnesota last season, and he has 83 total home runs over the last three seasons.  After posting a decent .326 OBP in 2017-18, however, Rosario had much more difficult getting on base this past year, and he also didn’t have a good defensive year as a left fielder (though he did fare much better defensively in 2018).  Trading Rosario would result in a projected starting outfield of Max Kepler, Byron Buxton, and Marwin Gonzalez, with top prospects Royce Lewis, Alex Kirilloff and Trevor Larnach all potentially available as late-season call-ups.  More veteran outfield depth could also be added at a lower price than Rosario, who is projected to earn a hefty arbitration raise to $8.9MM, up significantly from his $4.19MM salary in 2019.

Indians Activate Jose Ramirez

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Sept. 24: Cleveland has officially reinstated Ramirez from the injured list, per a club announcement.

Sept. 23: The Indians are expected to activate infielder Jose Ramirez from the injured list on Tuesday, manager Terry Francona told reporters this weekend (link via Mandy Bell of MLB.com). He’s been out since Aug. 26 due to a fractured hamate hook in his right hand, but he’ll beat even the optimistic end of his initially projected recovery period (five to seven weeks).

A healthy Ramirez — or even a mostly healthy Ramirez — will be a notable jolt to an Indians lineup that has been utilizing Mike Freeman, Ryan Flaherty, Andrew Velazquez and Yu Chang in the infield with both Ramirez and Jason Kipnis sidelined. (Kipnis suffered a hamate fracture of his own last week and will undergo surgery tomorrow.) While Ramirez started the season in a dreadful slump, he heated up along with the weather and has turned in a sensational .313/.360/.643 with 16 home runs, 22 doubles and three triples in 253 plate appearances since seeing his OPS bottom out at .586 in mid-June. In fairness to Freeman, he’s certainly held his own at the dish (.269/.366/.391 in 192 plate appearances), but few can stack up against Ramirez when he’s at his best.

Ramirez has experience at second base, but Francona was clear about the fact that he’ll remain at third base once he returns. “When he comes back, we’ll have six games left,” Francona said. “We’re just going to leave him right at third. That’s a big ask. That’s another transition that we don’t need to do.”

With the Twins’ magic number down to three and six game remaining, the Indians are in a virtual Wild-Card-or-bust scenario. They’re two games behind the A’s for top Wild Card billing and currently in a tie (92-64) with the Rays for the second spot. The Indians will finish out the year with three games in Chicago against the White Sox and three in D.C. against the Nationals. The Rays, meanwhile, have one more game to host against the Red Sox, two to host against the Yankees and will finish the year with a three-game set in Toronto. Oakland has two road games against the Halos and four in Seattle. The Twins play three in Detroit followed by three in Kansas City.

Latest On Jose Ramirez, Corey Kluber

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For those in need of further evidence that Indians infielder Jose Ramirez is composed of superlative DNA, consider that, according to today’s report from Mandy Bell of MLB.com, the injured star may be back in the lineup for tomorrow’s game against the Phillies (link). Before Saturday’s game, Ramirez took live batting practice, which could represent the final step in his recovery.

Just two days ago, MLBTR relayed that Ramirez–who fractured a hamate bone in late August–may have been ready to return for next week’s series against the White Sox. That the 27-year-old would make it back even sooner than that is a testament to both his toughness and some impressively resilient bones. Though he hasn’t played at the halcyon level we saw from him in 2018, Ramirez has still graded out as an above-average regular to this point in 2019, with a .254/.325/.463 slash line, 20 homers, and 24 steals through 126 games.

Team prez Chris Antonetti also gave an update to Bell on the progress of ailing starter Corey Kluber, who long-tossed from 120 feet on Friday. In short, the club isn’t ruling out Kluber’s return this year–even if their playoff rotation remains unsettled in a heated race for the AL Wild Card.

“Yes, [Kluber] could fit in,” Antonetti told Bell. “I think how far [the season] goes obviously has an impact on that…I’d love for him to be pitching Game 7 of the World Series. That’s a good outcome for us.”

Kluber, 33, fractured his forearm on May 1 and suffered a strained left oblique in his comeback bid on Aug. 18. The former Cy Young winner has pitched to a 5.80 ERA (4.06 FIP) through 35.2 innings this year, with 9.59 K/9 and 3.79 BB/9 marks.

Latest On Jose Ramirez

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The Indians took a massive hit in late August when third baseman Jose Ramirez fractured the hamate bone in his right hand. Now, with the Indians fighting for a wild-card spot in the American League, Ramirez is working toward a regular-season return. There’s at least a possibility he’ll back for the team’s road series against the White Sox next week, Mandy Bell of MLB.com writes. That would give Ramirez a chance to play in the final six games on the Indians’ schedule.

The injury to Ramirez has been part of a long line of health issues for this year’s Indians, who look as if they will fail to take the AL Central for the first time since 2015. Ramirez’s aggregate production hasn’t come close to where it was from 2017-18, which is one reason they’re four games back of the Twins in their division, though he did recover from a brutally slow start this season before landing on the injured list. The 27-year-old switch-hitter owns a .254/.325/.463 line with 20 home runs, 24 stolen bases and 3.0 fWAR in 532 plate appearances, so he has certainly remained a quality player in 2019.

To its credit, Cleveland has more than hung in the AL playoff race sans Ramirez, having gone 13-9 dating back to his Aug. 24 injury. The Indians just defeated the Tigers, so they’ll be tied with the Rays for the AL’s last wild-card spot heading into Friday.

The Ramirez-less Indians have largely turned to Yu Chang at third base with Mike Freeman and Ryan Flaherty also seeing time at the position. Nobody from that trio comes with a ton of upside, though, and with the Indians having lost second baseman Jason Kipnis to a season-ending hamate fracture this week, it’s all the more important for their infield to get Ramirez back as soon as possible.

Indians Notes: Kluber, Ramirez, Hand, Naquin

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Cleveland’s crucial matchup against division-rival Minnesota was postponed Friday due to weather, so the Indians are still 3 1/2 games out in the American League Central race. The notable injuries the Indians have faced this season could help keep them out of the playoffs, though they’re just a half-game back of the AL’s second wild-card spot. Let’s check in on a few of the club’s banged up players…

  • Right-hander Corey Kluber has “a pretty long way to go in his rehab,” according to Zack Meisel of The Athletic. That jibes with a report last week which indicated Kluber probably wouldn’t return this season. The Indians have been without the two-time American League Cy Young winner since he suffered a fractured forearm May 1 – a start in which Kluber’s uncharacteristic early season struggles continued. The 33-year-old yielded a whopping 23 earned runs in 35 2/3 innings prior to his injury. Regardless of whether Kluber pitches again in 2019, the Indians will have to decide when the year ends whether to exercise his option for $17.5MM option or buy him out for $1MM after the season. As horribly as this season has gone for Kluber, it’s hard to believe the Indians will cut him loose without getting something in return.
  • Third baseman Jose Ramirez, another integral member of the club on the injured list, is now playing catch without a wrap on his wrist, per Meisel. However, whether he plays again this season will come down to an ability (or lack thereof) to swing a bat. Ramirez underwent surgery on a fractured right hamate bone Aug. 27, when it was reported he’d need five to seven weeks to come back. The former MVP candidate hasn’t come close to his previous production this year, but he began revisiting his prior form over the previous couple months. The Ramirez-less Indians have mostly turned to rookie Yu Chang at third, though the 24-year-old’s offensive numbers have paled in comparison to the work Ramirez did after he bounced back from his sluggish start.
  • Closer Brad Hand, who has been down with a tired arm since last weekend, won’t pick up a ball again until Sunday, Mandy Bell of MLB.com reports. It’s unclear how much more time Hand will miss after that, but this clearly isn’t overly promising news considering the importance of every game left on the Indians’ schedule. The 29-year-old has arguably been Cleveland’s best reliever this season, having recorded a 3.36 ERA/2.89 FIP with 12.94 K/9, 2.88 BB/9 and 34 saves on 39 attempts in 56 1/3 innings.
  • Outfielder Tyler Naquin, who tore his right ACL last month, underwent surgery Thursday, Meisel tweets. It’ll take Naquin seven to nine months to return to the majors, which means he’ll miss at least some portion of next season. In the meantime, Naquin will make his first trip through arbitration during the winter. The 28-year-old wrapped up his 2019 as one of the Indians’ top outfielders, as he batted .288/.325/.467 with 10 home runs and 1.5 fWAR in 294 plate appearances.

Jose Ramirez Out Five To Seven Weeks

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Aug. 27: Ramirez is expected to miss five to seven weeks recovering from the surgery, the Indians announced. That almost certainly puts an end to Ramirez’s regular season while still leaving open the possibility of a postseason return, should the Indians qualify.

Aug. 25: 10:08am: As is typical with fractured hamates, Ramírez needs to undergo surgery, tweets Zack Meisel of the Athletic. He’ll undergo the procedure tomorrow, at which point there’ll be a further update on his recovery timetable.

8:54am: The Indians announced today they’ve placed José Ramírez on the 10-day injured list with a fractured hamate bone in his right hand. Yu Chang has been recalled from Triple-A Coulmbus to take his place on the 25-man roster.

It’s dreadful news for a Cleveland club in the thick of the postseason mix. The Indians sit two and a half back of the Twins in the AL Central and are just one game clear of the Rays and A’s in a tight wild card race. They’ll now have to make that push without their second-best player.

The 26 year-old Ramírez got off to a stunningly bad start in 2019, but he’d started to come along the past few months. Since June 1 (an admittedly arbitrary cutoff date), Ramírez had hit .286/.332/.571 with 16 home runs in 292 plate appearances. Even that hot streak wasn’t quite at the superstar levels Ramírez had shown the past two seasons, but he again looked like an impact bat who continues to dazzle both on the basepaths and defensively. Unfortunately, an apparently long-simmering wrist discomfort came to a head yesterday, when Ramírez left the game in the first inning after a painful swing.

The Indians didn’t announce a timetable for Ramírez’s return, although we’ve seen recent hamate fractures come with an initial four to six week timeline. Cubs catcher Víctor Caratini missed four weeks with a hamate fracture back in April, while Rangers outfielder Joey Gallo has yet to return from a July 25 hamate injury of his own. To be clear, though, there’s no indication as of yet whether Ramírez’s injury is equally, more, or less severe than those sustained by Caratini and Gallo.

With Ramírez down, the Indians will again turn to the 24 year-old Chang. The Taiwanese infielder gets solid-average tools grades across the board from scouts and ranks as Cleveland’s #10 farmhand at Fangraphs. Chang impressed last year in the Arizona Fall League, but he’s been a bit underwhelming this season at Columbus. In 282 plate appearances as a Clipper, he’s slashed .254/.323/.429 with nine home runs, failing to take advantage of the introduction of the MLB baseball to Triple-A the way some other hitters have. He’ll nevertheless give the Indians a capable defensive option on the dirt.

This will be Chang’s second MLB promotion. He was up for two games while Ramírez was on paternity leave in late June. He and Mike Freeman, who replaced the injured star yesterday, each started one game at the hot corner in Ramírez’s absence then, so it’ll be interesting to see how Terry Francona juggles playing time down the stretch.

Jose Ramirez Removed From Game, Undergoes MRI

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It was in the first inning of tonight’s game with the Royals that Indians third baseman Jose Ramirez swung and missed on a high fastball from pitcher Glenn Sparkman. That, in and of itself, wouldn’t be news–except for the fact that Ramirez signaled for trainers following his swing and was promptly removed from the contest.

Shortly thereafter, the Columbus Clippers–the Indians Triple-A affiliate– removed infielder Yu Chang from their lineup in a game against the Toledo Mud Hens. If you’re reading tea leaves, the conjunction of these two events would seem to be related, and a tweet from MLB.com’s Anthony Castrovince confirms that Chang will be called up in the event of an IL placement for Ramirez (link). Castrovince goes on to reveal that Ramirez underwent an MRI on his right wrist tonight, but that it doesn’t appear as if the team will issue a “substantial” update this evening. Meanwhile, Ryan Lewis of the Akron Beacon Journal heard from manager Terry Francona tonight that Ramirez has been dealing with wrist discomfort for “a while” (link).

A sustained absence for Ramirez would seem to spell some level of doom for the Tribe. After back-to-back poor halves to close last season and open this one, Ramirez has reemerged this summer as an offensive beast. His .327 batting average, 13 home runs, and 6 steals through 40 second-half games have gone a long way toward maintaining the team’s position atop the AL Wild Card race–despite a 3-7 record in their last 10 games entering play Saturday. At time of posting, the Indians sit in a three-way tie with the Tampa Bay Rays and the surging Oakland Athletics in a battle for the postseason’s two final play-in spots.

 

AL Central Notes: Ramirez, Indians, Tigers, Jones, Eloy

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The Indians received a scare when Jose Ramirez fouled a ball off his left knee during the third inning of today’s game against the White Sox.  Ramirez had to be carted off the field, though it seems as though the worst was avoided, as x-rays came back negative on the injury.  (ESPN.com’s Jeff Passan was among those to report the news.)  It isn’t clear if the knee contusion could still cause Ramirez to miss regular-season time or even require an IL stint — if the latter, it would another big blow to a Tribe infield that is already without Francisco Lindor and Jason Kipnis for the start of the season.  As per the team’s official Twitter feed, Ramirez will remain at the Tribe’s Spring Training camp for treatment, and his status is undecided for Opening Day.

Some more from the AL Central…

  • Hanley Ramirez is looking like a strong bet to break camp with the Indians, as manager Terry Francona told MLB.com’s Mandy Bell and other reporters that “if we stay put” with roster moves, Ramirez will make the team.  Today was the opt-out date in the veteran slugger’s minor league contract with Cleveland, though it looks as if a quality Spring Training performance (.844 OPS in 38 PA) has earned Ramirez the opportunity to appear in his 15th Major League season.  Ramirez is something of a limited resource on the 25-man roster, as the team intends to use him only as a designated hitter, though his presence allows Jake Bauers to be spelled against tough left-handed pitching.  Assuming Ramirez does officially make the roster, he’ll earn $1MM in guaranteed salary.
  • JaCoby Jones will start the season on the IL after suffering a left shoulder sprain while diving for a ball on Saturday.  Speaking with media (including Chris McCosky of the Detroit News), Tigers manager Ron Gardenhire hinted at a rough 2-3 week timeline for Jones’ recovery, though Gardenhire’s estimate seemed speculative.  Jones and Mikie Mahtook were slated to share center field duties for the Tigers, though Niko Goodrum will now see some time in center with Jones out, plus outfielder Dustin Peterson could now factor into Detroit’s Opening Day plans.
  • Eloy Jimenez’s record-setting extension with the White Sox was almost completed last November at the GM Meetings, GM Rick Hahn told MLB.com’s Scott Merkin and other reporters, but the final details weren’t put into place until the two sides held face-to-face meetings over the last few days.  The result was a six-year, $43MM pact, the biggest extension ever given to a player who has yet to play a Major League game.  There has yet to be official word about whether or not Jimenez will be with the Sox on Opening Day, though there wouldn’t seem to be any service-time obstacles now that the White Sox control Jimenez for as many as his first eight big league seasons.

Braves Outright Lindgren, Ramirez, Adams, Tucker

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The Braves announced a variety of 40-man roster moves today. In addition to losing outfielder Michael Reed to the Twins via waivers, the team outrighted lefty Jacob Lindgren, righty Jose Ramirez, and outfielders Lane Adams and Preston Tucker after that quartet went unclaimed.

Each of those players will remain with the organization, having cleared waivers, though Adams has the right to declare free agency since he has previously been outrighted. With four other players returning from the 60-day DL and taking up posts on the 40-man, the Atlanta organization now has nine openings left to work with as the offseason gets underway.

The 25-year-old Lindgren was a second-round pick of the Yankees in 2014 and quickly rose to the Majors, debuting in 2015. However, his promising career has been derailed by a pair of Tommy John surgeries — the most recent of which cost him the 2018 season. Because of all the time he’s spent on the big league 60-day DL, he’d have been arbitration-eligible this winter despite only having tallied seven MLB innings. MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projected him to earn only a modest $600K salary through that arbitration process, though.

Ramirez, meanwhile, missed most of the 2018 season owing to shoulder troubles. He tossed just 6 1/3 innings at the big league level with the Braves this year, though he’s previously functioned as a quality middle reliever under manager Brian Snitker. From 2016-17, Ramirez totaled 94 2/3 frames of 3.33 ERA ball with 8.5 K/9, though he’s also struggled with his control (4.5 BB/9, nine hit batters).

Adams, 29 next month, hit .240/.345/.520 in a tiny sample of 29 plate appearances as a reserve outfielder this season. He tallied 122 PAs with Atlanta in 2017 and batted .275/.339/.468 with five homers and 10 steals in that time. Adams has a solid track record in Double-A but has struggled in Triple-A. He’s shown glimpses of talent in the big leagues, however, and is capable of playing all three outfield spots, so he should latch on elsewhere on a minor league pact as a quality depth piece with a very viable chance of returning to the Majors next year.

As for Tucker, the 28-year-old turned some heads with an early-season showing that saw him hit .288/.333/.538 with three homers in 57 plate appearances. But Tucker had never managed to hit at that level in the past, and his bat quickly deteriorated (as did his playing time). Over his next 70 PAs, Tucker hit only .231/.286/.369. Atlanta traded him to the Reds in the summer’s lackluster Adam Duvall swap, and after a similarly uninspiring stint in Cincinnati, Tucker landed back with the Braves to close out the season. In all, after that fast start to the season, he hit only .202/.283/.342.

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