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Jose Urena Receives Six-Game Suspension

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Major League Baseball announced today that Marlins righty Jose Urena has received a six-game suspension for plunking Braves outfielder Ronald Acuna last night. Atlanta first base coach Eric Young Sr. was also hit with a one-game ban for his role in the ensuing melee.

Depending upon one’s point of view — and everyone seems to have one on this particular subject — the suspension will likely seem appropriate or gallingly short. This is a rather typical MLB punishment for such a transgression. On the other hand, most MLBTR readers preferred a lengthier ban, with nearly three of four poll respondents this morning opining that Urena should miss ten or more games.

A major aspect of this debate, of course, relates to the unique nature of starting pitching. A six-game ban will mean that Urena won’t be able to make his next scheduled start, but he could just wait and throw a few days later. As many have pointed out over the years, then, such a punishment doesn’t seem to deliver much punch as a disincentive.

There is a bit of an intriguing quirk in the Miami schedule that is worth noting: if Urena does not appeal, he’ll first be eligible to return against the Braves. This being the National League, he’d also have to step up to the plate. While karmic thinking is tempting, though, that tends to further perpetuate the intentional plunking approach to self-policing supposed transgressions against the game of baseball.

Notably, the league’s announcement made clear that the commissioner’s office had determined Urena intentionally hit Acuna, who had led off each of the prior three games against the Marlins with a home run. While Urena has not admitted such an intention, and evidently told manager Don Mattingly he was only trying to work inside on Acuna, there really wasn’t much doubt in most minds as to his culpability. The umps working the game sent Urena packing, after all, for evidently trying to send some sort of misguided message. MLBTR’s Steve Adams provided full details on the situation this morning.

Poll: How Should MLB Punish Jose Urena?

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Marlins righty Jose Urena was the talk of the league last night, although not for reasons the organization would prefer. Urena was ejected after hitting red-hot Ronald Acuna on the elbow with a 97.5mph fastball — the hardest pitch he’s ever thrown, per Statcast — on the game’s first pitch. Acuna had led off three consecutive games with a home run. Yahoo’s Jeff Passan was among the many pundits who’ve excoriated Urena for his actions, calling them “cowardly” and imploring Major League Baseball to issue a suspension longer than the standard five games for Urena.

Intent, of course, is difficult to prove. However, it’s perhaps telling that Miami manager Don Mattingly seemed to acknowledge some disappointment in his right-hander. Via MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro:

“What we said with Jose is, ’I don’t want to see this kid get hit.’ He’s a great player,” said Mattingly of his talk with Urena after the ejection. “…For us, he’s beat us up, but this is not the way we want to handle that situation. Obviously, this is not something that we represent or believe in as an organization or myself, too. I would never want that kid getting hit and cause that kind of problem.”

Mattingly did tell reporters that Urena claimed to have only been trying to run a pitch inside on Acuna rather than hit him (per the Miami Herald’s Clark Spencer, whose column also has quotes from Urena), but the manager also spoke on multiple occasions about the need for Marlins players to be cognizant of how the organization wants to be represented moving forward.

Frankly, it’s difficult to side with or defend Urena. There’s a difference between throwing inside and uncoiling at max velocity with an intent to hit a batter, and it appears that Urena chose to do the latter in response to Acuna’s torrid series at the plate. There will always be traditionalists who extol the game’s “unwritten” (and outdated) rules and point to the fact that these incidents have been a part of baseball for decades. But “that’s the way it’s always been done” isn’t a good defense in most walks of life, and the game has clearly evolved.

Urena’s actions didn’t help his team; to the contrary, an already-overtaxed Marlins bullpen had to cover a complete game upon his ejection, and the Braves went on to complete a four-game sweep while Urena watched from the sidelines. And to those who might think that Urena’s teammates appreciate him making a statement, the Marlins’ best player, J.T. Realmuto, said after the game (via Frisaro) that hitting Acuna “worked out terrible for our team.” Realmuto pointed to Miami’s overworked relief corps and plainly suggested that the team could’ve used six or seven innings out of Urena.

Initial x-rays on Acuna, meanwhile, were thankfully negative (Twitter link via Gabe Burns of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution), but he’s still set to undergo a CT scan to further clarify the status of his elbow. Even if he avoids major injury, though, it seems quite likely that the league will bring forth a suspension against Urena, in accordance with previous situations where the intent of the pitcher has been fairly plain to see.

A five-game ban for a starting pitcher has been standard operating procedure in these instances, though it’s clear that such punishments haven’t completely dissuaded pitchers from intentionally plunking opponents. Perhaps they never will, but there’s an argument to be made that steeper penalties ought to be put into place in an effort to at least lessen the likelihood of a recurrence. Even if Acuna is back in the lineup tonight, he’ll be in there after perhaps avoiding a serious injury by a matter of millimeters. Should it really take a serious injury to one of MLB’s most exciting young players to invoke change, or have we reached the point where a more proactive approach should be taken? (Link to poll for Trade Rumors app users)

Marlins Place J.T. Realmuto, Dan Straily, J.T. Riddle On Disabled List

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TUESDAY: Realmuto and Riddle have indeed been placed on the DL, MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro reports (Twitter links).  Realmuto has a bone bruise, though the problem doesn’t sound too serious, as Frisaro said he is just “not being rushed” to be ready for Opening Day.

SATURDAY: The Marlins have placed right-handed starter Dan Straily on the 10-day disabled list, according to a report from Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald. In a separate tweet, Spencer notes that catcher J.T. Realmuto and shortstop J.T. Riddle are also likely to begin the season on the DL.

Straily was recently diagnosed with a “slight elbow strain” after experiencing some elbow inflammation.While Straily has told reporters that he doesn’t feel any pain (h/t Joe Frisaro of MLB.com), he’ll reportedly refrain from throwing for the time being. His early-season absence is terrible news for an already-thin Marlins rotation that’s now projected to feature Jose Urena as its opening day starter. Roster Resource assumes that non-roster invite Jacob Turner and Rule 5 pick Elieser Hernandez will be forced into rotation roles at the season’s outset. The Marlins recently optioned offseason acquisition Sandy Alcantara to Triple-A, but it’s fair to think he could be next in line if any of the club’s starting five struggle out of the gates or suffer an injury.

Beyond rotation implications, Straily’s elbow troubles are of serious concern to a Marlins club that held onto him amidst an offseason fire sale of its top players. With Miami clearly beginning a full-scale rebuild, Straily was considered one of the club’s top remaining trade assets. Whether or not the club had any thoughts about trading him prior to this year’s deadline, a serious injury to his elbow would figure to take that option off the table.

Speaking of injured trade candidates, Realmuto hasn’t played since suffering a back contusion on March 11th. The Marlins catcher collided with Gleyber Torres on a pickoff play in the fourth inning of a Grapefruit League game. The injury hasn’t been described as serious in any outlets, so it’s certainly feasible that the club might simply be taking a cautious path with their most valuable asset. Still, a report that he’s likely to go on the DL means that any remaining chance him being traded prior to the season has reduced to near zero.

If Realmuto does end up going on the DL, non-roster invite Bryan Holaday could be called upon to fill in alongside usual backup Tomas Telis. Chad Wallach is already on the 40-man roster after being claimed from the Reds in November, so he presents another option for the Fish.

As for Riddle, he’s yet to play in a game this spring. Joe Frisaro of MLB.com recently reported that he was “a little sore” after ramping up throwing activity. Riddle underwent season-ending surgery last August after suffering a slap-tear in his left shoulder, but figured to be a part of the Marlins’ opening day roster. The odds of that are beginning to look grim. Reserve infield options for the club are few and far between, with non-roster invite Peter Mooney presenting the best option at present.

 

NL East Notes: Braves, Nats, Harris, Jennings, Marlins

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Here’s the latest from around the NL East…

  • The Nationals granted the Braves permission to speak to Nats assistant GM Doug Harris and special assistant Dan Jennings about Atlanta’s general manager vacancy, David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports (Twitter link).  Earlier this week, Chelsea Janes of the Washington Post reported that Nats GM Mike Rizzo contacted Braves upper management to give Harris a recommendation.  Harris was originally hired as Washington’s farm director in 2010 and has since risen to the AGM and VP of player personnel roles, as well as overseeing the Nationals’ minor league system.  He has also worked with John Hart before, as Harris was a Rangers scout when Hart was Texas’ general manager.  Jennings, of course, is best known for his long stint with the Marlins, most notably as their general manager and then on-field manager.  In another tweet, O’Brien hears from the Braves that their GM search “will likely be slow developing,” which isn’t surprising given the abrupt nature of the team’s front office shakeup earlier this week.
  • The Marlins’ top trade chips are analyzed by former GMs Dan O’Dowd and Jim Bowden in a piece by the Miami Herald’s Barry Jackson.  Christian Yelich and Marcell Ozuna have the most trade value, though the two ex-GMs disagree on Dee Gordon’s value.  Both would move Dan Straily if the Fish can get a good young arm in return, essentially reversing the deal that saw Miami acquire Straily from the Reds last winter for Luis Castillo.  Giancarlo Stanton is obviously a major asset, though his no-trade clause and huge contract greatly limits his list of possible suitors, and limits what the Marlins can reasonably expect back in return.  In general,
  • A trade of Jose Urena or Kyle Barraclough would be “highly unlikely,” Jackson reports, and J.T. Realmuto or Justin Bour would only be dealt if the Marlins could get multiple good prospects back in return.  In Bowden’s opinion, the Marlins “have to listen on anyone.  If you are challenged economically like they are, you are looking for controllable, inexpensive players that are not eligible for arbitration yet.”

Heyman’s Latest: Miller, Marlins, Cole, Tigers, Agency Changes

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Last August, USA Today’s Bob Nightengale reported that the Diamondbacks and Marlins were in talks regarding a possible Shelby Miller trade that was ultimately vetoed by D-backs owner Ken Kendrick. Roughly nine months later, FanRag’s Jon Heyman adds some more context to the story, noting that the two sides were in talks regarding right-handers Luis Castillo, Jose Urena and Austin Brice were all being discussed as potential pieces for Arizona to acquire, as was left-hander Dillon Peters (not necessarily all four, though Castillo and Urena were likely the centerpieces). One D-backs source tells Heyman the trade was never close, though Heyman cites others who agreed with Nightengale’s report, stating that Kendrick did indeed veto the deal when it was close to fruition. Miller, of course, remained with the D-backs and looked better in 2017 than he did in 2016 before suffering a torn UCL and undergoing Tommy John surgery.

Heyman’s weekly American League and National League Notes columns reveal a few more interesting hot stove items…

  • Despite the fact that multiple reports suggest the bidding price for the Marlins is around $1.3 billion, some have suggested to Heyman that the team’s lack of revenue and significant financial commitments to Giancarlo Stanton, Wei-Yin Chen, Martin Prado and others will ultimately lower the sale price after a full financial examination. Heyman adds that despite prior reports, he’s been told that Alex Rodriguez was never actually offered a spot in the Tagg Romney/Tom Glavine group that is vying to purchase the Marlins. Whether A-Rod was made an offer or not, the key takeaway is that it appears he won’t be involved in the sale.
  • Rival executives believe that Pirates ace Gerrit Cole could land on the trade market this summer, per Heyman. The former No. 1 overall pick would make for an extremely interesting addition to the summer trade market, though Bucs certainly needn’t feel compelled to trade him. Cole is controlled through the 2019 season and is earning a perfectly reasonable $3.8MM this season (though that number will spike in his second trip through arbitration this winter). Nonetheless, with two and a half years of club control left, Cole would fetch a significant haul of young talent if he were actually made available. It seems quite likely that the Bucs will listen on Andrew McCutchen and Tony Watson this summer (Watson, like Mark Melancon last year, is a pending free agent), but Cole would have the most significant value of the bunch.
  • Even if a closer upgrade were available to the Tigers at the moment, they don’t have the money to make an addition (or at least wouldn’t be willing to spend it). Detroit recently demoted Francisco Rodriguez from the ninth inning in favor of Justin Wilson following a brutal start to the season for K-Rod, and their bullpen has once again been a weak spot. Heyman notes that GM Al Avila at one point made a trip to Triple-A Toledo and “read the riot act” to right-hander Bruce Rondon, who has responded by dropping 15 pounds. Rondon was once viewed as a potential closer of the future, but he’s yet to establish himself and has had issues with his conditioning and effort level.
  • Heyman also reports a pair of agency changes, noting that Red Sox top prospect Rafael Devers is now a client of Rep 1 Baseball, while Dodgers top prospect Yadier Alvarez is now repped by Wasserman. Neither has made his MLB debut yet, though both are considered among the game’s top 25 to 50 prospects and could theoretically surface in the Majors within the next calendar year or so (Devers, who is already in Double-A, appears closer than Alvarez, who has just 18 innings in High-A). Both changes are now reflected in MLBTR’s Agency Database, which contains representation info on roughly more than 2,500 Major League and Minor League players. If you see any inaccuracies or omissions, please let us know via email: mlbtrdatabase@gmail.com.

NL East Notes: Nats, Syndergaard, Marlins

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Following the loss of Adam Eaton for what could be the remainder of the season, Yahoo’s Jeff Passan touched on the possibility of a Royals/Nationals trade in his latest Ten Degrees column. The Nationals, according to Passan, expressed interest in Lorenzo Cain this offseason before they acquired Eaton in the first place. While the two sides obviously didn’t line up on a deal at the time, Passan notes that the combination of Cain and closer Kelvin Herrera, whom FOX’s Ken Rosenthal tied to the Nationals over the weekend, could present the Nats with the ability to fill two needs with one trade. While multiple reports have suggested that the Royals aren’t yet ready to sell, Passan notes that Kansas City’s 7-15 record and -37 run differential are both the worst marks in baseball, which means that even a strong performance in May might not be enough to turn their season around entirely.

A bit more from the NL East…

  • Kristie Ackert of the New York Daily News spoke to a pair of sports orthopedists about the partial tear of Noah Syndergaard’s right lat muscle, discussing the ways in which it can be treated and the potential absence Syndergaard could face. While all of those factors are dependent on the severity of the tear, neither medical expert suggested that surgery was likely. Ackert offers quotes from both Dr. Anthony Maddalo and Dr. Kenneth Mautner (the latter of whom is a team physician with the Braves), with each going into detail on the nature of lat injuries. While a platelet-rich plasma injection isn’t a standard treatment for a torn lat muscle, both said it could theoretically help accelerate the healing process. Rest, rehab and stretching were also suggested as possibilities, with a program along those lines taking potentially up to six weeks, Ackert notes. There’s still no official word on a timeline from the Mets, though Sandy Alderson will address reporters at 4pm ET.
  • Syndergaard’s injury is obviously a severe problem for the Mets, but Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports opines that the injury is symbolic of a greater problem for baseball as a whole. The increased emphasis on velocity continues to put pitchers at risk, Rosenthal suggests, as young arms focus more on overpowering hitters than prioritizing durability. Rosenthal spoke extensively with Hall of Famer and current broadcaster John Smoltz on the matter. “(In the past), each pitcher was given the opportunity to learn what kind of pitcher they were going to be,” said Smoltz. “Now they’re all robots. … We’re getting dangerously close to every pitcher red-lining when he doesn’t really have to. They’re not preparing to learn how to pitch like it’s a six-gear car. They’re always in sixth gear. Never in fourth or fifth.”
  • Marlins skipper Don Mattingly spoke to Tim Healey of the South Florida Sun Sentinel about the importance of right-hander Jose Urena and lefty Jarlin Garcia to his bullpen. Mattingly suggested that even after Urena was roughed up in his most recent appearance on Friday, the righty has been vital in terms of keeping other relievers fresh (a point that righty David Phelps also emphasized to Healey). Asked if Urena could be a starting pitcher in the long run, as he was in the minors, Mattingly wouldn’t commit to a role for a long-term role for the 25-year-old. As for Garcia, Mattingly offered plenty of praise on the 24-year-old rookie, who made his MLB debut last month. “I think he thinks he’s ready to be here,” said Mattingly, “and that’s always really important for the younger guys. They believe that they can pitch here. Sometimes that takes a little while, gut Jarlin seems to think he belongs here.” Mattingly noted that having multiple southpaws would be preferable, though as Healey notes, the front office emphasized overall effectiveness over handedness this winter.

East Notes: Urena, Red Sox, Orioles

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The Marlins face a tricky decision with out-of-options righty Jose Urena, MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro writes. Urena posted a 6.13 ERA last season (albeit with a somewhat more palatable 6.2 K/9 and 3.1 BB/9) and has yet to establish himself in the Majors. At the same time, he has terrific velocity and a good prospect pedigree, so the Marlins likely don’t want to lose him. The Marlins’ additions of Edinson Volquez and Jeff Locke to their rotation and Brad Ziegler, Junichi Tazawa and Dustin McGowan to their bullpen means there’s limited space, however. A trade is a possibility, although Frisaro thinks that’s unlikely. Alternately, the Marlins could consider keeping 13 pitchers on their staff rather than 12, although that would limit their flexibility with their bench. Here’s more from the East divisions.

  • The Orioles’ acquisition of Seth Smith this week should not impact their potential pursuit of Mark Trumbo, writes MASN’s Steve Melewski. The Orioles could still use Trumbo at DH, and their savings of about $4MM in the deal could possibly free up a bit of extra capital to sign him. As for Smith, he’s a platoon player, and neither he nor Hyun Soo Kim have much of a track record against lefties. That means the Orioles will likely continue to look for outfielders, presumably of the right-handed variety.
  • Money and the potential loss of amateur talent were key reasons the Red Sox didn’t seriously pursue Edwin Encarnacion, Alex Speier of the Boston Globe writes. Getting under the luxury tax threshold will save the Red Sox money both now and in future seasons, particularly given the possibility that they could reset their threshold this season, thus limiting their penalties in the future. Also, the new CBA calls for teams that exceed the threshold and sign a player who declined a qualifying offer to forfeit their second- and fifth-round draft picks and portions of their international bonus pools.

Marlins Looking To Acquire Starting Pitching

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The Marlins’ main objective is to upgrade their rotation during the offseason, but their limited budget will likely prevent them from chasing either of the best impending free agent starters, Rich Hill or Jeremy Hellickson, according to Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald.

The upcoming free agent market is largely devoid of quality starters, which means the Marlins could go the trade route to bolster their rotation. The team doesn’t plan to shop its two best outfielders – Giancarlo Stanton and Christian Yelich – or catcher J.T. Realmuto in an attempt to acquire pitching, though it’s willing to listen to potential offers for outfielder Marcell Ozuna, second baseman Dee Gordon, shortstop Adeiny Hechavarria and utilityman Derek Dietrich, Jackson reports.

In the wake of former ace Jose Fernandez’s tragic death last month, the Marlins are down to Adam Conley, Wei-Yin Chen and Tom Koehler as their top starters heading into the winter. That’s an uninspiring trio on paper, but president of baseball operations Michael Hill believes Conley possesses “top of the rotation talent.” Since debuting in 2015, the 26-year-old has posted a 3.82 ERA, 8.22 K/9 and 3.73 BB/9 in 200 1/3 innings. The Marlins are also optimistic about Chen, who was a letdown this season after signing a five-year, $80MM deal with them last winter. Chen recorded the best K-BB percentage of his career (14.6), but he logged a bloated 4.96 ERA – up from a personal-best 3.34 with Baltimore in 2015. The 31-year-old also totaled just 123 1/3 innings because of an elbow injury that kept him out from late July until the end of September.

Three of the Marlins’ four potential trade chips (Ozuna, Hechavarria and Dietrich) are on track to receive raises via arbitration during the winter, while Gordon is controllable through 2021 on the five-year, $50MM extension he signed last January. The speedy Gordon inked that deal off two straight terrific seasons, but his value has since taken hits from an 80-game suspension for performance-enhancing drugs and a stark decline in offensive production in the 79 contests he played this year.

Ozuna, who MLBTR projects will net $4.5MM in his first of three potential arbitration trips, was also on the block last offseason. The Mariners, Rangers and Reds were among the teams in on Ozuna, who was coming off a subpar season that included a demotion to Triple-A New Orleans. That 33-game minor league stint drew the ire of both Ozuna and agent Scott Boras, but in spite of the bad blood between them and the Marlins, no trade materialized. Ozuna then slashed .266/.321/.452 with 23 home runs in 608 plate appearances in a bounce-back 2016, which could put the soon-to-be 26-year-old on the radar of outfielder-needy teams. Ozuna has typically fared better in right field than center, where he ranked toward the bottom of the majors in Defensive Runs Saved and Ultimate Zone Rating this year.

While Hechavarria has been among the league’s premier defensive shortstops since last season, his below-average offense cratered this year (.238/.283/.311 in 547 PAs) and somewhat cancelled out his fielding prowess. MLBTR’s arbitration forecast for Hechavarria calls for a $3.7MM salary in 2017, which will be his penultimate year of club control. The fact that there are no starting-caliber shortstops set to hit the free agent market could help the Marlins’ cause if they shop him, though it’s certainly poor timing for them that Hechavarria had such a dreadful season at the plate.

Dietrich is in his first of four arbitration years, and he should make in the eminently affordable $1.8MM neighborhood in 2017. The 27-year-old spent time at first, second and third base this season, with the vast majority of his work coming at the keystone as a result of Gordon’s suspension. Dietrich also has experience in left field, but unless the Marlins deal Ozuna or Gordon, playing time could be difficult to come by for him in Miami. In addition to Gordon at second, the Marlins already have Justin Bour and Martin Prado locked in as their starting first and third basemen, thus limiting Dietrich to a bench role if the team’s lineup remains intact. Nevertheless, the Marlins regard Dietrich as someone who’s capable of starting, Jackson writes, and he made his case this season with a .279/.374/.425 line in 412 trips to the plate.

If the Marlins aren’t able to pick up a pair of starting pitchers from outside the organization during the offseason, swingman David Phelps could end up in the rotation next season, Hill told Jackson. Phelps, who was outstanding as both a reliever and starter this year, has made 64 starts with the Yankees and Marlins since cracking the major leagues in 2012. The Marlins also have Justin Nicolino and Jose Urena on hand as somewhat experienced options, but neither has been effective in the big leagues.

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