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Braves Trying To Deal At Least One Of Michael Bourn, Nick Swisher

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The Braves are looking to trade at least one of Michael Bourn or Nick Swisher before Opening Day and they’re willing to “to eat a significant portion of the salary” owed to either player to facilitate a deal, MLB.com’s Mark Bowman reports.

Given how aggressive Atlanta has already been on the trade market this winter, it’s no surprise that the rebuilding club is exploring getting at least some of the money owed to those two veterans off the team’s books.  Swisher is owed $15MM in 2016 and he has a $14MM vesting option for 2017 that will be guaranteed if he makes 550 plate appearances next season and passes an end-of-year physical.  Bourn is owed $14MM in 2016 with a $12MM vesting option for 2017 that also becomes guaranteed at the 550-PA plateau.  Of the $29MM owed to the duo in 2016, however, $10MM will be covered by the Indians as part of the trade that brought both men to Atlanta in exchange for Chris Johnson last August.

Neither of those options seem particularly likely to vest while the two players are on Atlanta’s roster given how Freddie Freeman is locked in at first base and the starting outfield is slated to consist of Hector Olivera, Ender Inciarte and Nick Markakis.  Emilio Bonifacio is also on hand as a low-cost backup center fielder, so Bowman thinks Bourn could be more expendable than Swisher, who can theoretically provide more value as a backup at first and both corner slots.

The big question about Swisher, however, is whether he’d be productive (or even able to play) over a full season given his surgically-repaired knees, even on a part-time basis.  It’s worth noting that Bourn has also had his share of injury problems, as hamstring issues have undoubtedly played a role in his declining defense and stolen-base statistics over the last two seasons.

Between the injuries and struggles at the plate, Bourn (0.4 fWAR in 2014-15) and Swisher (-2.3 fWAR) are far from sterling trade candidates.  It’s not completely out of the question, however, that the Braves could find a trade partner since they’re willing to eat some money.  If the Braves are willing to pay as much as half of either player’s salary, and assuming Cleveland’s $10MM contribution is being split equally, Swisher and Bourn now cost in the neighborhood of $5MM and $4.5MM, respectively, for 2016.  Those could be palatable prices for clubs looking for experienced veterans in backup roles, especially if there’s a team that believes Bourn or Swisher could rebound in a new environment.

East Notes: Encarnacion, Nationals, Rollins, Cabrera, Braves, Howard, Giles

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Blue Jays slugger Edwin Encarnacion will not entertain extension talks into the regular season, WEEI.com’s Rob Bradford reports. If a new deal isn’t worked out, of course, Encarnacion would stand to reach free agency after the 2016 season, where Bradford says he could draw interest from Boston. Toronto executive Tony LaCava said today that he’s not been informed of that stance by Encarnacion’s camp, but would respect the request if it’s made, per MLB.com’s Gregor Chisholm (via Twitter). LaCava also said “it’s possible” that the Jays could reach new deals with both Encarnacion and fellow power bat Jose Bautista, Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet.ca tweets. As MLBTR’s Mark Polishuk recently explained in breaking down the extension candidacy of Bautista, however, it’s worth wondering whether the team will be willing and able to commit to both players.

Here’s more from the game’s eastern divisions:

  • If the Nationals can’t draw Ben Zobrist to D.C., the club could consider Jimmy Rollins as a lower-cost bridge to prospect Trea Turner at short, ESPN.com’s Buster Olney tweets. In his comments today, GM Mike Rizzo said that he doesn’t feel compelled to add at the shortstop position, whether or not Zobrist is brought on board to play second. “I have a comfort level that if today were opening day, we have a shortstop on the roster and feel good about it,” said Rizzo, via Chelsea Janes of the Washington Post.
  • The Nationals’ head baseball executive also noted that there’s been some interest in veteran Yunel Escobar, who could factor at short or elsewhere in the infield if he’s not dealt. “There’s been several teams that have inquired about Escobar,” Rizzo said. “He’s a versatile player that’s a good hitter and a really good big-league player, so there have been several teams that have interest in him.” Escobar could be expendable if an
  • The Yankees have at least some level of interest in infielder Asdrubal Cabrera, Jon Morosi of FOX Sports reports on Twitter. It’s unclear as of yet how much cash New York will dedicate to free agency, but Cabrera could be an option at second for the club, per Morosi.
  • While the Braves are interested in signing a center fielder, the club isn’t keen on giving up a draft choice to get Dexter Fowler and could find Austin Jackson too expensive, ESPN.com’s Jerry Crasnick reports (Twitter links). Atlanta could instead pursue the trade route, with a fallback of platooning Michael Bourn with a cheaper free agent in the mold of Drew Stubbs.
  • New Phillies GM Matt Klentak sat down recently with first baseman Ryan Howard and his agent to discuss his role with the organization, MLB.com’s Todd Zolecki reports. “Everybody was very honest with each other, and he seemed genuinely excited and energized looking forward to next year,” said Klentak. “If Ryan Howard is performing, Ryan Howard is going to play,” Klentak went on to say. “If he’s not, he’ll play less. And that’s not specific to Ryan, that’s true to everyone on our club and probably just about everyone in baseball.”
  • Klentak also acknowledged that the Phillies are drawing plenty of interest in closer Ken Giles, as Jim Salisbury of CSNPhilly.com reports. Philadelphia is “taking it day by day” in assessing whether to move Giles, but doesn’t — and, in my view, shouldn’t — feel any pressure to force a move. “I don’t know how much I really want to say about that, but, yeah, there’s a lot of interest in him because he’s good, and because he’s young and because he’s cheap,” said Klentak. “We’ll see. I don’t know how that’s going to shake out, [but] if he’s with us we’ll be very happy he’s still with us.”

Coppolella: “We Are Not Trading Freddie Freeman”

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The Braves have come under quite a bit of fire, with many stating that the team is tanking in order to accelerate its rebuild in the wake of last week’s Andrelton Simmons trade. Freddie Freeman’s name has come up in frequent trade speculation over the past week, Braves GM John Coppolella adamantly denied to USA Today’s Bob Nightengale that the Braves will even entertain the notion of trading their first baseman.

“I cannot make it any more clear: We are not trading Freddie Freeman,” Coppolella said. “We are not. I’d give my right arm before we trade Freddie Freeman. It is not happening.”

While Twitter skeptics will undoubtedly have their fun by responding to that quote saying Freeman will be traded by this coming weekend, that type of on-record, absolutist statement is rare for a top-ranking baseball ops exec to make. (For instance, there’s a misconception that A’s president Billy Beane said last offseason that he wouldn’t trade Josh Donaldson, but the comments pertaining to Donaldson were made by an anonymous team official.)

Of course, a team could still completely bowl the Braves over with a trade proposal for Freeman that would put Coppolella and president of baseball operations John Hart in a tough position, but the strong likelihood in light of a statement of this magnitude is that Freeman will indeed remain in Atlanta. The reason for hanging onto Freeman, Coppolella explains, is that the “tanking” crowd has a fundamental misunderstanding of the Braves’ intentions.

“If we truly were going to tank, we wouldn’t have had [Erick] Aybar come back in the [Simmons] trade,” said Coppolella. “If we were trying to tank, we wouldn’t have signed A.J. Pierzynski. If we were trying to tank, we would have traded [Cameron] Maybin at the deadline last year, and we had plenty of offers.”

Coppolella maintains that the Braves strongly want to win in the near future and urges critics not to judge the results of the trades immediately upon their completion but rather to wait a couple of years. The Atlanta GM acknowledges that his club won’t win 100-plus games in 2016 but voices a strong belief that the team can win more next season than it did in 2015.

While Coppolella is adamant that there’s a method to all of the Braves’ perceived madness and staunchly rejects the idea of trading Freeman, Nightengale does write that further trades from Atlanta could be on the horizon. The team still hopes to shed the contracts of Nick Swisher and Michael Bourn — two players acquired to accelerate the alleviation of the financial burden that Chris Johnson’s contract had presented — and a strong offer for Maybin could pry him away from Atlanta as well.

Likewise, Ken Rosenthal and Jon Morosi of FOX Sports reported tonight that the Diamondbacks and Braves had discussions about Shelby Miller, but the D-Backs balked at the asking price, which Rosenthal says would’ve come from Arizona’s big league roster and could have been standout center fielder A.J. Pollock (links to Rosenthal on Twitter).

NL East Notes: Minor, Braves, Ozuna, Mets, Speier

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The Braves are now uncertain whether or not they’ll tender lefty Mike Minor a contract, David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports. Signs had pointed to the team offering arbitration, with Minor likely to earn at or near the $5.6MM level that he set by winning his arbitration case with the team last year. But the 27-year-old has reportedly suffered a setback in his efforts to return from labrum surgery, and has yet to make it back onto a mound. “We think it could happen prior to the tender date,” said GM John Coppolella. “We want to see something, whether it’s off the mound or … we need to see something. We can’t just blindly tender him a contract and put the team at risk. Because every single dollar counts for us.”

  • The Braves suddenly find themselves with a surplus of outfielders after largely committing to shifting Hector Olivera to left field, as MLB.com’s Mark Bowman writes. If Atlanta finds it hard to shed any of the salary owed to Nick Swisher or Michael Bourn, says Bowman, the team may look closer at a trade of Cameron Maybin. But the club’s top executives continue to say they don’t feel pressure to trade Maybin, even after the Olivera move, as O’Brien tweets.
  • The Marlins are indeed interested in trading outfielder Marcell Ozuna, but not at anything less than his market value, MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro reports. Of course, as Frisaro notes, the team may find it necessary to trade him if it hopes to accomplish its apparent  goal of adding a quality, controllable pitcher.
  • Mets assistant GM John Ricco says that the club is receiving strong interest in its pitching, as Mike Puma of the New York Post reports on Twitter. That’s not surprising, given the depth and quality of arms present in the organization.
  • Ricco also said that the Mets could look to add an offensive player that is capable of filling in around the diamond, rather than seeking a regular at one spot, Puma tweets. Naturally, that statement calls to mind the possibility of signing Ben Zobrist, but there are other players — including, arguably, Daniel Murphy — who could function in a similar capacity.
  • It may be time for Mets third baseman David Wright to begin a transition across the diamond, Mark Simon of ESPNNewYork.com writes. The veteran and team leader made a thrilling comeback from serious back issues, but showed real difficulty throwing the ball across the diamond, and Rubin argues that now is the time to begin spelling him at the hot corner and working him in at first base.
  • The Nationals are set to add Chris Speier to their coaching staff, either as the third base or bench coach, according to a tweet from MLB.com’s Bill Ladson. The 19-year MLB veteran served as the bench coach under new Nats skipper Dusty Baker when he was with the Reds. Speier has continued on with Cincinnati as a special assistant to GM Walt Jocketty since Baker departed.

Notes On The Bourn/Swisher Trade

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Here are a few notes on the Indians’ recent trade of Michael Bourn, Nick Swisher and cash to the Braves for Chris Johnson.

  • From the Braves’ perspective, one key to the deal was the financial flexibility they’ll add as they open their new stadium in 2017, GM John Hart tells David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “I think for us, a part of it was the flexibility we’re going to have going into ’17. That’s going to be extra dollars that we’re going to be able to have then,” says Hart. “And I think for Cleveland, even though they’re paying a significant piece to fill the large gap (in salaries), I think this gives them a little more flexibility to do some things in ’16.” Bourn and Swisher are both likely to become free agents after 2016 (both have options that are unlikely to vest), whereas Johnson doesn’t become a free agent until after the 2017 season.
  • The trade provides the Indians with “roster flexibility,” Bud Shaw writes for the Northeast Ohio Media Group. The Indians won’t have roster spots locked down for two players to whom they feel obligated to give chances. The Indians saved a bit of money in the deal too, Shaw notes, but not so much that it’s likely to make them big players in the free agent market this winter.
  • In a Q+A addressing a variety of questions about the Indians’ recent moves, the Northeast Ohio Media Group’s Paul Hoynes writes that the Indians’ trades are unlikely to make their attendance much worse. Hoynes notes that the Indians’ attendance to this point has been better than only that of the Rays, so it isn’t as if they can fall much further. It might also be worth noting that while the trades of Brandon Moss and David Murphy might hurt the Indians a bit in the short term, the departures of Bourn, Swisher and Marc Rzepczynski should have little negative on-field impact on the team. The Indians have retained most of their core players, like Corey Kluber, Jason Kipnis, Michael Brantley, Carlos Carrasco, Danny Salazar, Francisco Lindor and Cody Allen.

Braves Acquire Nick Swisher, Michael Bourn For Chris Johnson

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SATURDAY: The Indians will send closer to $15MM, not $10MM, to the Braves, MLB.com’s Anthony Castrovince tweets. Swisher and Bourn are owed about $38MM combined for the remainder of their contracts, while Johnson is owed about $19.5MM, so it appears the Indians will save between $3MM and $4MM total on the deal.

FRIDAY: The Braves and Indians have announced a swap of three bad contracts that will send Nick Swisher, Michael Bourn and cash considerations (reportedly about $10MM) to the Braves in exchange for third baseman Chris Johnson.

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Both Swisher and Bourn are in the third season of significant four-year pacts ($56MM and $48MM, respectively). Swisher is owed $15MM in 2016, whereas Bourn is owed $14MM next season. Both players have 2017 vesting options, but neither figures to accrue the necessary 550 plate appearances in 2016 to trigger the additional year.

Johnson’s contract calls for him to earn $19.5MM through the end of the 2017 season, so the roughly $10MM included by the Indians will balance out the money on the two contracts.

In this week’s MLBTR Newsletter, I examined the possibility of a Johnson-for-Bourn swap. This expanded iteration of the deal, in essence, boils down to a swap of bad contracts that will allow the Braves to free up some money in 2017 (when they reportedly plan to push for contention in their new stadium, SunTrust Park) and give Cleveland more immediate roster flexibility at the cost of paying some of the remaining salary up front.

Swisher, 34, underwent arthroscopic surgery on both of his knees last August in an effort to correct pain that had caused a rapid decline in his production at the plate. However, Swisher has followed up a .208/.278/.331 campaign in 2014 with a .198/.261/.297 batting line in 30 games this season. Inflammation in his left knee has again landed Swisher on the disabled list, though he was on a rehab assignment at the time of the deal. The Braves’ key motivation in making this deal is to move around some finances, but they’d undoubtedly be pleased if Swisher were able to return to anything resembling the form he showed in 2006-13, when he batted .257/.362/.464 and averaged 26 homers per season.

Though Swisher is on the disabled list, MLBTR has confirmed that players on the disabled list can be sent through revocable trade waivers if their minimum period of inactivity has passed and if they’re healthy and able to play at their accustomed level. Because Swisher has been on the 15-day for more than 15 days and is on a rehab assignment at Triple-A, he was eligible to go on waivers.

Bourn, 32, has seen a similar downturn in his production since signing in Cleveland, as he’s batted just .257/.315/.345 in 1388 plate appearances. Like Swisher, he’s been hampered by injuries, though his have primarily been of the hamstring variety. Bourn underwent surgery on his left hamstring in 2014 and has been sidelined by a strain in that same hamstring this season. The leg injuries have significantly slowed him down, as he’s swiped just 46 bases in 331 games with Cleveland after stealing 42 in his final season before free agency. (A season that he, coincidentally, spent with the Braves.)

As for Johnson, he signed a three-year, $23.5MM contract prior to the 2014 season. Then 29 years old, Johnson was coming off a career year in which he batted .321/.358/.457 with 12 homers. However, much of that production was the result of a .394 batting average on balls in play, and his overall numbers have come back down to Earth as his BABIP regressed to his career norm.

Over the past two seasons, Johnson has batted .257/.288/.352. He’ll probably get a fair chance at playing time in Cleveland, though, as Lonnie Chisenhall has been moved to the outfield after struggling again in 2015, and rookie Giovanny Urshela hasn’t hit much in his debut. Cleveland is lacking in MLB-ready options at the hot corner, so Johnson could find semi-regular at-bats and a chance at redemption. If nothing else, he’s proven to be a useful platoon bat over the course of his career; Johnson is a .313/.349/.439 hitter in 692 plate appearances versus lefties.

Yahoo’s Tim Brown first reported (via Twitter) that Swisher was about to head to Atlanta. Jon Heyman of CBS Sports tweeted that an agreement was in place. Joel Sherman of the New York Post reported that Bourn and cash considerations would round out the deal (Twitter links). Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports tweeted the financial details on the swap.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

AL Central Notes: Rodon, Chen, Bourn, Rios

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Top White Sox prospect Carlos Rodon will make his first career big league start on Saturday. Rodon has pitched from the pen in the early going, but will get a chance to take the hill to open the game due to the five-game suspension of Jeff Samardzija. It remains to be seen what the team’s plans are the rest of the way with their highly-touted rookie, who was taken in last year’s draft out of N.C. State, but there seems to be at least a chance that he could pitch himself into a starting role given the struggles the team has had at the back end of the rotation.

  • Speaking of interesting Saturday starters, the Indians will purchase the contract of journeyman lefty Bruce Chen to face the Twins this weekend, MLB.com’s Jordan Bastian tweets. Chen inked a minor league deal with Cleveland and chose to stay with the organization rather than opting out when he did not make the Opening Day roster. The team will need to clear space on both its 40-man and 25-man rosters.
  • Of broader concern for the Indians, GM Chris Antonetti and manager Terry Francona are facing their biggest challenge of their combined tenure, Paul Hoynes of the Plain Dealer explains. Expectations were high heading into the year, of course, and the club has roundly struggled thus far. The sense of urgency is evident, says Hoynes, as demonstrated by the team’s decision not to play center fielder Michael Bourn against lefties. As Hoynes rightly points out, the Bourn contract looked like a nice value when it was signed, but has hardly worked out for the Indians. Bourn has not only struggled offensively this year, but is not even providing the anticipated positive contribution in the field and on the bases. (Both UZR and DRS rate him as a negative in center over last year and this season’s early going.)
  • Royals skipper Ned Yost says that he hopes outfielder Alex Rios will be back from his hand injury in about two weeks, per ESPN News Services. But the veteran just started swinging a bat again and does not have a precise timeline, per a tweet from Andy McCullough of the Kansas City Star. His replacements — Paulo Orlando and Jarrod Dyson — have actually been pretty good, at least if you buy into a short sample of defensive metrics. Both fWAR and rWAR value the pair at nearly one combined win above replacement.

Quick Hits: Mariners, Holdzkom, Indians, Furcal

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The Mariners have unfinished business heading into the new year, Bob Dutton of the Tacoma News Tribune writes. They’ll need to find a platoon partner for righty Justin Ruggiano in right field, with Seth Smith of the Padres as one possibility. They could also move Brad Miller to the outfield if he loses the shortstop job to Chris Taylor. The M’s could also find a catcher in the Humberto Quintero mold to provide depth at Triple-A Tacoma. Here are more notes from around the big leagues.

  • Signing Robinson Cano to a $240MM contract last offseason helped the Mariners press the reset button, Dutton writes. Led by Cano and their pitching staff, the Mariners improved by 16 games in 2014, although they just missed the last AL Wild Card berth.
  • The remainder of the offseason could feature plenty of trades for outfielders, Jon Morosi of FOX Sports writes. The Phillies, Reds, Rays, Padres, Rockies, Diamondbacks, Dodgers, Indians and Angels could all have outfielders available, with about the same number of teams looming as potential buyers. Still, it might take time for the market to resolve itself — the key to the outfield market could be the rumors about the Padres trading a package centered around Wil Myers to the Phillies for Cole Hamels, and that might not be resolved until Max Scherzer and James Shields sign.
  • Pirates reliever John Holdzkom has been released “five or six” times, he tells MLB.com’s Tom Singer. Some of those releases were no doubt even more depressing than such transactions usually might be. “I got released without the team even calling me. I looked on the Internet and saw my name next to ’Transactions’ — five days before I was supposed to report,” says Holdzkom. “Yeah, that was bad.” And that team wasn’t even a Major League organization, but the independent Laredo Lemurs. Holdzkom emerged seemingly from out of nowhere to become a key part of the Pittsburgh bullpen down the stretch in 2014.
  • The Indians’ signings of Nick Swisher and Michael Bourn haven’t worked out so far, at least not from a baseball perspective. But they were still the right moves, Terry Pluto of the Plain Dealer writes. The signings prevented a big drop in the Indians’ season-ticket sales and helped them increase revenues while also helping make them more relevant. Bourn’s presence also allowed Michael Brantley to move to left field.
  • Infielder Rafael Furcal has a torn hamstring and will miss Winter League playoffs in the Dominican, Dionisio Soldevila of ESPNDeportes.com tweets. Furcal had hamstring issues in the 2014 regular seasona and only made 37 plate appearances with the Marlins, so this latest injury could affect his attempt to come back next season.

Indians Notes: Swisher, Bourn, Masterson, Hamels

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MLB.com’s Jordan Bastian and Paul Hoynes of the Northeast Ohio Media Group cleared out their inbox this weekend answering readers’ questions about possible moves for the Indians this offseason. Here are the highlights:

  • Bastian downplays a Nick Swisher–Ubaldo Jimenez swap of bad contracts. Cleveland could afford the move (Jimenez is due $38.75MM through 2017 while Swisher is owed $30MM through 2016 with a 2017 vesting option worth $14MM), but Bastian feels the odds of Swisher rebounding in 2015 is a better bet than three years of Jimenez.
  • If the Indians are looking to shed a bad contract, Hoynes thinks Michael Bourn would be easier to trade, but adds that doesn’t mean Cleveland wants to deal him.
  • Bastian and Hoynes both agree the Indians have interest in Justin Masterson on a one-year pillow contract, but feel the right-hander will find a multi-year pact elsewhere.
  • Trading for Cole Hamels is an interesting thought, according to Bastian, because the left-hander is cheaper ($90MM through 2018) than the top free agent rotation arms on the market and the Indians have the type of prospects the Phillies covet. Ultimately, though, Bastian sees Hamels’ annual salary and the potential prospects lost will be too steep of a price for the franchise to pay.
  • While noting manager Terry Francona’s penchant for strong bullpens, Hoynes doesn’t see the Indians investing in any of the high profile free agent relievers, especially with Zach McAllister waiting in the wings.
  • Does Francona’s new contract extension contain the same opt-out clause allowing him to leave if President Mark Shapiro or GM Chris Antonetti are fired? Antonetti did not provide details when asked that question, but Hoynes imagines the opt-out provision is included in the extension.
  • Bastian expects right-handers Carlos Carrasco and Trevor Bauer to have break out seasons for the Indians in 2015.

Indians Rumors: Jimenez, Outfielders

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The Indians are reportedly open to trading Justin Masterson and have been in contact with the Yankees, but there are reportedly no legs to those talks and Cleveland isn't near a trade of any player. A couple of other Tribe notes…

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