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East Notes: O’s, Hellickson, Mets, Cabrera, Phillies

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Although the Orioles need multiple starting pitchers, they’re unlikely to re-sign Jeremy Hellickson, Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com relays. Hellickson, whom the O’s acquired from Philadelphia in July, told Kubatko and other reporters that he has “loved” his time in Baltimore. The 30-year-old hasn’t looked like part of the solution since the trade, though, having pitched to an ugly 6.97 ERA with just 31 strikeouts in 51 2/3 innings (10 starts). And manager Buck Showalter seems prepared to lose Hellickson, saying: “I’m sure he’s got some things planned for next year as a free agent. I know what he was like in Tampa. Nobody’s the same three or four years later. Everybody changes somewhat. I’m not going to get into some of the challenges that I think he’s faced here and this season. Hopefully, he’ll get them behind him and be a good pitcher for somebody next year.”

More from Baltimore and two other East Coast cities:

  • The Mets are “nearly certain” to pick up infielder Asdrubal Cabrera’s option for 2018, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com writes. Whether to bring back Cabrera amounts to a $6.5MM decision for the Mets, who must choose between exercising the $8.5MM option or buying him out for $2MM. Cabrera, 32 in November, has posted solid production during his two years as a Met, including his respectable .273/.346/.422 batting line in 530 plate appearances this season. He has also played upward of 30 games this year at second base, shortstop (a position that now belongs to Amed Rosario) and third base.
  • Phillies manager Pete Mackanin continues to lobby for the team’s front office to acquire starting pitching in the offseason. “I think it would behoove us to get a bona fide starting pitcher,” Mackanin said Wednesday, adding that “I think we need a stabilizer at the top” (via Todd Zolecki of MLB.com). The Phillies aren’t close enough to contention to vie for the absolute best soon-to-be free agent starters – Yu Darvish and Jake Arrieta – notes Zolecki, who suggests that second-tier hurlers such as Alex Cobb, Lance Lynn and Jhoulys Chacin are more realistic possibilities.
  • Adding a left-handed bat will be an offseason priority for the Orioles, especially with outfielder Seth Smith likely to depart via free agency, according to Kubatko. Smith and Chris Davis have been the only lefty-swinging regulars this year for a Baltimore team that has managed a middling .260/.313/.436 line against right-handed pitchers.
  • Former Mets utilityman Joe McEwing has emerged as a potential successor to soon-to-be-ousted manager Terry Collins, per Mike Puma of the New York Post. McEwing, who played with the Mets from 2000-04, has been a coach in the White Sox’s organization since 2008. He served as their third base coach from 2012-16 before earning a promotion to bench coach prior to this season.

Orioles’ Owner Gives Approval To Explore Trades Of Relievers, Smith

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JULY 18: Rosenthal now reports (via Twitter) that Angelos has indeed given Duquette his approval to explore trades involving the team’s top relievers as well as Smith.

JULY 16: As long as Orioles ownership approves, executive VP of baseball operations Dan Duquette has told other teams that he is open to trading three of his top relievers (Zach Britton, Brad Brach and Darren O’Day) as well as outfielder Seth Smith, Ken Rosenthal reports via his Facebook page.

Also noteworthy in Rosenthal’s report is the list of names the O’s apparently aren’t willing to trade.  The club isn’t listening to offers for Manny Machado or Adam Jones, and though Mychal Givens is receiving interest from rival clubs, the O’s also don’t plan on dealing the righty, who is controllable through the 2021 season.

This would indicate that the Orioles aren’t approaching the deadline with an eye towards a full-blown rebuild.  Dealing a controllable player like Givens (who is likely being groomed for a larger role should one of the veteran relievers be dealt) or moving cornerstone players like Machado or Jones would imply that Baltimore wasn’t planning on contending in 2018.  Instead, the team looks to be attempting to free up some payroll space in the form of pricey relief contacts, and move some excess pieces in the bullpen and bench with an eye towards reloading for next season.  With this in mind, Rosenthal opines that Welington Castillo could also be a trade chip, as the catcher can become a free agent this winter if he doesn’t exercise his player option for 2018.

All this trade talk assumes, of course, that Orioles owner Peter Angelos is willing to green-light the proposed deadline moves.  Rosenthal points out that Angelos hasn’t permitted his team to make significant trades of veterans at the deadline since 2000, though the O’s are only on the fringes of contention this year.  The Orioles entered the day tied with the Blue Jays for fourth place in the AL East with a 42-48 record, 8.5 games out of first place and five games out of a wild card berth.

Britton posted one of the best years of any closer in baseball history in 2016, though he has only pitched 13 innings for Baltimore this season due to a pair of forearm strains.  Despite the worrying nature of such injuries, Britton’s track record ensures that he would be a prized commodity at the deadline, with such teams as the Dodgers and Astros already showing some interest.

Britton’s rise to elite closer status has coincided with his arbitration years, as he is playing this season on an $11.4MM salary.  Though his injury woes will probably limit the size of his raise in his fourth and final trip through the arb process this winter, Britton still has another $12MM+ salary coming his way in 2018, and there were whispers all winter that the O’s could move Britton and go with a less-expensive option at closer.

Brach, for instance, is only earning $3.05MM this season and is controlled through the 2018 season.  This contract situation and Brach’s own strong performance this year as Britton’s replacement at closer has put Brach perhaps even in higher demand than Britton.  It probably isn’t likely that both Britton and Brach would be dealt, as the club likely sees one or the other as their closer in 2018.

The veteran O’Day missed some time due to a shoulder strain this year and was hampered by injuries in 2016, though he had continued to post his usual solid numbers when healthy.  O’Day has a 3.77 ERA, 11.3 K/9 and 2.79 K/BB rate over 31 frames for Baltimore this year.  O’Day is owed $9MM in both 2018 and 2019 and has roughly $3MM remaining salary for this year.  The veteran also has a partial no-trade clause in his contract that allows him to block deals to seven teams, so O’Day has some control over his destiny if the Orioles do want to trade him.

Smith was acquired in a trade with the Mariners last winter to boost the Orioles’ left-handed hitting outfield depth, and he has a solid .259/.328/.436 slash line through 244 PA.  Trey Mancini has stepped into an everyday corner outfield role, so the O’s could use a platoon of Joey Rickard and Hyun Soo Kim in the other corner spot should Smith be dealt.

Mariners Seeking Reliever, Open To Adding Rotation Depth

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The Mariners shuffled their roster on Friday, respectively swapping outfielder Seth Smith and right-hander Nate Karns in separate trades for right-hander Yovani Gallardo and outfielder Jarrod Dyson. Even after making those moves, however, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports writes that Seattle would still like to add another bullpen arm. He also notes that the Mariners plan to use a “revolving door” approach to the fifth spot in their rotation and are open to adding some inexpensive depth to accompany current candidates Ariel Miranda, Rob Whalen and Chris Heston.

As GM Jerry Dipoto explained last Friday (via Bob Dutton of the Tacoma News Tribune), the organization effectively looked at their pair of trades as a four-player swap that did not significantly impact the 2017 payroll. “We still have the capacity to be creative in looking to add,” Dipoto said at the time.

The April ownership shuffle in Seattle came with talk of a potential payroll increase, and that’s already transpired to some extent. The $151MM mark at which they’re currently projected would surpass last season’s Opening Day payroll by about $9MM. Further additions could still materialize, though it sounds like they’d be made on the free-agent market rather than via trades. In speaking to Rosenthal, Dipoto stated: “At this point, we won’t move anything off our major-league club.” The gels with Dipoto’s comment in the above-linked Dutton column, in which the GM noted that the team is “always looking for ways to get deeper and a little more versatile.”

Dipoto also spoke to Rosenthal about his Friday swaps, explaining that since taking over as the Seattle GM in Aug. 2015, he’s worked to develop a more athletic mix of players. “Granted, last year (Safeco Field) was favorable to the home-run ball, but we play in a ballpark that really lends itself to running it and catching it in the outfield and creating activity on the bases…” Dipoto explained. Rosenthal notes that Dipoto believes he has five outfielders — Dyson, Leonys Martin, Mitch Haniger, Ben Gamel and Guillermo Heredia — that are capable of playing center field. That represents a significant departure from the 2015 Mariners that saw both Nelson Cruz and the now-departed Smith log significant innings in the outfield. (Cruz, of course, is still in the fold but figures to be heavily limited to DH duties in 2017.)

Regarding the Smith trade, Rosenthal writes that the flood of corner bats on the market made it difficult to trade him for any form of prospect. Seattle no longer wanted Smith’s glove in the outfield, he explains, but the presence of players like Brandon Moss and Michael Saunders in free agency made it tough to deal Smith and his $7MM salary even for a marginal prospect. Rather than dump Smith’s salary and reallocate those dollars to a bounceback candidate in free agency, then, Seattle simply dealt Smith for a pitcher it feels has a chance of returning to form (Gallardo).

If the Mariners do want to add a veteran arm that can work either in relief or out of the fifth spot in the rotation, there’s no shortage of arms available. Travis Wood, Yusmeiro Petit, Bud Norris, Scott Feldman, Jorge De La Rosa and Vance Worley are among the names on the market that have recent MLB experience in both roles.

Orioles, Mariners Swap Yovani Gallardo For Seth Smith

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SUNDAY: The Orioles’ $4MM in savings will be spread over the next three seasons, per Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com (Twitter link).

FRIDAY, 12:30pm: Eduardo A. Encina of the Baltimore Sun tweets that the Orioles will save about $4MM in total on the deal. That would suggest that about $2MM is headed to Seattle alongside Gallardo, who is guaranteed $13MM ($11MM salary + $2MM option buyout) to Smith’s $7MM.

12:11pm: The Mariners have acquired right-hander Yovani Gallardo and cash from the Orioles in exchange for corner outfielder Seth Smith, the teams announced today. The move fills an on-paper need for both clubs, as the Mariners have been seeking a starter to fill out their rotation, while Baltimore has been in search of a left-handed-hitting corner outfielder.

Yovani Gallardo

From the Orioles’ standpoint, that they were able to jettison Gallardo in exchange for a fairly useful role player comes as a surprise on the heels of a dismal, injury-plagued season for Gallardo. Set to turn 31 next month, Gallardo missed roughly two months of the 2016 season with shoulder injuries. While that’s concerning in and of itself, his contract with the Orioles was dropped from a three-year agreement to a restructured two-year pact following his physical due to shoulder concerns, so there’s perhaps elevated cause for concern.

[Related: Updated Seattle Mariners Depth Chart and Baltimore Orioles Depth Chart]

When on the field, Gallardo limped to a 5.42 ERA with 6.5 K/9 against a career-worst 4.7 BB/9 and a 43.2 percent ground-ball rate in 118 innings. Though Gallardo was able to make 23 starts despite the time he missed, he’s now showed a diminished ability to work deep into games in each of the past two seasons, averaging under 5 2/3 innings per start in 2015 with the Rangers and less than 5 1/3 innings per start last year in Baltimore. Gallardo has a guaranteed $13MM remaining on his contract, although $1MM of that sum is deferred without interest.

It should, of course, be noted that prior to his woeful season in Baltimore, Gallardo was long a steadying presence in the rotation for the Brewers and Rangers. Though he displayed plenty of red flags in his lone season with Texas — diminished strikeout rate and velocity, increased walk rate — Gallardo averaged 32 starts per year from 2009-15, totaling 1339 1/3 innings of 3.69 ERA ball with 8.2 K/9 against 3.3 BB/9. His heater has dipped about three miles per hour from its 92.7 mph peak, but he does bring a track record of useful results to the table. Clearly, the Mariners are hoping that a move to a larger park will help to quell some of the home-run problems that plagued Gallardo in 2016, when he posted a 1.2 HR/9 rate that dwarfed the 0.9 mark he carried into the season.

If Gallardo is able to rebound in 2017, he comes with an affordable $13MM option for the 2018 campaign ($3MM of that sum would be deferred, without interest, as well). If not, they’ll pay him a $2MM buyout on top of his $11MM salary for the upcoming season. He’ll slot into a rotation that also includes Felix Hernandez, Hisashi Iwakuma, James Paxton and Nate Karns, with Ariel Miranda representing an additional southpaw option for manager Scott Servais.

The Mariners have been shopping Smith since at least early December, so it’s not entirely surprising to see them move on from the 34-year-old. Swapping him out for a starter that struggled to Gallardo’s level last year, however, is somewhat of surprise, as Smith is coming off a characteristically solid season at the plate. Last year’s .249/.342/.415 is more or less in line with the cumulative .258/.343/.435 triple slash he’s posted dating back to the 2011 season.

Seth Smith

The Mariners, though, have placed a premium on outfield defense, and Smith’s previously average defensive ratings took a notable tumble in 2016. Smith is limited to the outfield corners, and Defensive Runs Saved pegged him at an unsightly -8 in just 257 2/3 innings in left field last year, while Ultimate Zone Rating pegged him at -6.3. (His work in right field drew more typically neutral ratings.)

Smith has long been limited from an offensive standpoint as well. Though he’s handled right-handed pitchers with aplomb throughout his Major League tenure (.272/.355/.472), his perennial struggles against left-handed pitching have resulted in a paltry .202/.282/.312 output.

Unlike Gallardo, Smith is controllable only through the 2017 season, so he’s a short-term option that will still require the Orioles to pick up a platoon partner. However, he’ll bring a quality on-base presence and a needed left-handed bat to a lineup that was heavy on right-handed hitters (Jonathan Schoop, J.J. Hardy, Manny Machado, Adam Jones, Welington Castillo) and light on lefties (Chris Davis, Hyun Soo Kim).

In the rotation, the Orioles still have five starters upon which to rely in Chris Tillman, Kevin Gausman, Dylan Bundy, Wade Miley and Ubaldo Jimenez, although the latter two on that list struggled every bit as much as the now-departed Gallardo in 2016.

From a bigger-picture standpoint, the addition of Smith has to lessen the likelihood of a reunion with Mark Trumbo and the Orioles, although it shouldn’t close the door entirely, as the O’s could still find plenty of at-bats between the outfield and designated hitter. It does, however, look to definitively eliminate the Orioles as a potential landing spot for Jay Bruce, to whom the O’s had been linked in trade rumors for much of the winter.

As for the Mariners, while they may now feel set in the rotation following the addition of a veteran starter, the outfield now looks to have even more uncertainty. Seattle will again deploy fleet-footed Leonys Martin as its primary center fielder, but the corners are currently occupied by a combination of unproven names like Ben Gamel and Mitch Haniger, with veteran Danny Valencia on hand to platoon with Gamel. (Though Valencia has limited outfield experience after spending most of his career at third base.) Nelson Cruz, too, can see occasional time in the outfield, but he’ll be the primary DH in Seattle next year and has long been considered a negative asset with the glove. As such, a further outfield addition for the Mariners — one with fewer platoon issues and/or one with superior defensive acumen — seems like a reasonable expectation as Spring Training nears.

Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

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.

Mariners Notes: Pomeranz, Smith, Smyly, Bautista

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Some Mariners rumblings, in two separate pieces from Bob Dutton of the Tacoma News Tribune…

  • Red Sox left-hander Drew Pomeranz is believed to be on the Mariners’ list of rotation trade targets.  This presumes, of course, that Boston is actually willing to deal Pomeranz, as Dutton notes that the Sox “sent mixed messages” about the southpaw’s availability during the Winter Meetings.  Pomeranz posted a 3.32 ERA, 9.8 K/9 and 2.86 K/BB rate over 170 2/3 innings with the Padres and Red Sox last season, though the bulk of his best work came in San Diego.  This is just my speculation, but as Jon Heyman reported that the M’s were apparently quite close to dealing Seth Smith to Boston, perhaps Pomeranz was also a part of that proposed trade.  (If that was the case, the two teams will have to go back the drawing board, as Boston has since signed Mitch Moreland to address their need for a left-handed bat.)
  • Speaking of Smith, Dutton hears from a source that the Rays have shown interest in Smith in the past.  The Mariners and Rays have been linked in trade talks this winter, with Seattle reportedly looking at Tampa’s available starting pitchers.  Dutton suggests that Drew Smyly could be the likelier fit for the M’s, as the Rays would require a lesser return for Smyly than for Chris Archer or Jake Odorizzi.  The Mariners and Rays are no strangers to each other, as Dutton notes that the two clubs have made two multi-player deals in the 15 months since Jerry Dipoto became Seattle’s general manager.
  • There has been virtually no indication that the Mariners have any interest in signing Jose Bautista, Dutton reports.  Bautista’s age, the draft pick compensation tied to his services via the qualifying offer, his injury-plagued 2016 season and subsequent drop in production have combined to create a rather unclear market for the veteran slugger.  If Smith was traded for a pitcher, Dutton opines, a veteran bat like Bautista could become more of a possibility for the Mariners.  Right now, the M’s are planning to use several inexperienced players (i.e. Ben Gamel, Dan Vogelbach, Mitch Haniger) in regular outfield or first base roles.

Mariners Reportedly Shopping Seth Smith

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DEC. 7: FanRag’s Jon Heyman tweets that the Mariners are more than simply open to the idea of moving Smith and are actually shopping him around. Seattle would like to free up some money to further invest in its rotation, per Heyman, who also reports that Smith nearly went to the Red Sox before Boston agreed to a deal with free agent Mitch Moreland.

DEC. 5: The Mariners are listening to offers on outfielder Seth Smith, reports Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times. Indeed, the M’s have long been willing to consider moving the veteran, who’ll earn $7MM this year after his club option was picked up, according to the report.

Smith, 34, could certainly hold appeal to other organizations. Teams such as the Orioles and Blue Jays have been tied to left-handed-hitting corner outfield bats, and surely would like the idea of taking on a more limited commitment than might be found on the open market.

In all likelihood, rival teams would view Smith much in the same way the Mariners have — as a lefty platoon piece who might see 400+ plate appearances. He slashed .249/.342/.415 with 16 home runs over 438 plate appearances last year. That production fell a bit shy of his work over the prior two years, but is largely in line with his career numbers.

Mariners Exercise Seth Smith’s Option, Decline Option On Chris Iannetta

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The Mariners announced today that they’ve exercised their $7MM option on outfielder Seth Smith and declined a $4.25MM option on catcher Chris Iannetta. FanRag’s Jon Heyman first tweeted that Smith’s option would be picked up, and SB Nation’s Chris Cotillo tweeted that Iannetta’s would be declined.

Smith, who turned 34 at the end of September, proved to be a useful platoon bat for the Mariners, hitting .249/.342/.415 with 16 home runs and a healthy 11 percent walk rate on the season. To say that he was heavily shielded from facing left-handed pitching would be something of an understatement, as Smith received just 33 plate appearances against southpaws compared to 405 against righties. The reasoning behind the move isn’t hard to determine however; Smith has mashed at a .272/.355/.472 clip throughout his career when he holds the platoon advantage but has looked lost against left-handers, as evidenced by a career .202/.282/.312 slash against same-handed pitchers.

On the defensive side of the coin, Smith’s contributions to the team didn’t draw favorable reviews. Both Defensive Runs Saved and Ultimate Zone Rating pegged him as a poor left fielder and a roughly average right fielder. Smith has never been known for his glove, but this year’s poor marks in left field came in a fairly small sample, and he’s been largely adequate there over the bulk of his career per those same metrics.

As for Iannetta, the 33-year-old got off to a hot start with the Mariners in 2016 and looked to be working his way toward triggering a vesting option for the 2017 season based on his strong play through the season’s first two and a half months. As of June 16, Iannetta was batting a very respectable .247/.348/.412 through 198 trips to the plate. However, his production thereafter cratered, and as a result his playing time diminished. Iannetta received just 140 plate appearances from that point forth, in part due to the return of Mike Zunino but also due to the .160/.237/.216 slash line to which the veteran limped.

Iannetta was a well-above-average bat for the Rockies and Angels from 2008-14, but he’s now coming off a pair of dismal seasons at the plate that saw him bat a combined .199/.298/.332 in 655 plate appearances. Iannetta still possesses good discipline at the plate and a bit of pop from the right side of the dish, but he’ll probably have to entertain offers to be a backup catcher this winter after this 2015-16 run.

Mariners Notes: Cozart, Bullpen, First Base, Roster

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The Mariners’ main offseason needs and pending roster decisions are outlined by Bob Dutton of the Tacoma News Tribune…

  • The M’s are expected to revisit trade talks with the Reds about Zack Cozart.  The two clubs nearly agreed to a dealing deal that would’ve sent Cozart and a prospect to Seattle in exchange for minor leaguer Luiz Gohara and another prospect, but ran out of time prior to the August 1 deadline, in part because Cincinnati was busy with additional medical paperwork related to the Jay Bruce trade with the Mets.  Cozart is only under contract through the 2017 season, so the door is still open for Ketel Marte to be Seattle’s shortstop of the future.  Mariners officials think Marte “would benefit next season from taking a step back,” pointing to how James Paxton and Mike Zunino blossomed after taking a reduced role.
  • Beyond adding Cozart or another veteran shortstop, Dutton identifies a right-handed hitting first baseman and a hard-throwing lefty reliever as the Mariners’ other big areas of need.  Dan Vogelbach will form the left-handed side of the first base platoon, and Dutton speculates that the M’s could re-sign Dae-ho Lee to again serve as the right-handed first base bat.  For external options, Dutton believes free agent Steve Pearce is a good fit for the M’s — Pearce mashes southpaws and provides depth at not just first base but potentially several spots around the diamond.
  • In regards to the left-handed reliever, Dutton cites the Pirates’ Tony Watson as what the Mariners are looking for in a southpaw who is capable of filling a setup role or just situational work against left-handed hitters.  Acquiring Watson himself may not be in the cards, though Dutton notes that the Pirates could look to save some money with Watson getting more expensive through arbitration.  Internally, the M’s could use Ariel Miranda for this left-handed bullpen role, though the club prefers him as a starter for now.
  • In a separate piece that breaks down every player on Seattle’s 40-man roster, Dutton writes that the Mariners are likely to non-tender Charlie Furbush and let Drew Storen walk in free agency.  Tom Wilhelmsen, who is eligible for arbitration, also “could easily get squeezed out” given that he has fallen behind several other arms in the bullpen pecking order.
  • The Mariners probably won’t pick up Chris Iannetta’s $4.25MM club option, leaving them looking for a backup catcher.  Among internal options, Jesus Sucre is more affordable and has a good relationship with Felix Hernandez.
  • “A new deal seems reasonably likely” for longtime outfielder Franklin Gutierrez, who is headed for free agency.  The M’s also have an interest in re-signing Nori Aoki, even though his presence creates a bit of a logjam with Gutierrez possibly returning and Seth Smith’s club option almost certainly being exercised.  Dutton wonders if this could lead to Smith becoming a trade chip if Aoki is indeed brought back.

Heyman’s Latest: ChiSox, Santana, Cozart, Rockies, Davis, Brewers, Smith

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Jon Heyman of Fan Rag gives his odds on the postseason and provides a host of interesting information in his latest notes column. Here are a few highlights:

  • While there’s been some turnover in the White Sox’ dugout, as bench coach Rick Renteria has moved up to manager as a replacement for the departing Robin Ventura, changes to the field staff don’t figure to impact pitching coach Don Cooper, per Heyman. In fact, the South Siders have actually made an extension offer to their well-respected pitching coach, who is on the brink of entering his 16th season at that post.
  • While it’s hardly a surprise, Heyman notes that the Indians will exercise their $12MM option on Carlos Santana. For a player with a .259/.366/.498 with a career-high 34 homers, that decision was a no-brainer, even for a typically cost-conscious club like Cleveland.
  • The Rockies quietly made a run at Cincinnati’s Zack Cozart prior to the non-waiver trade deadline, knowing that Trevor Story, whose last game came on July 30, was ailing and could miss the remainder of the season. Talks continued into August, per Heyman, but Cozart’s own injury issues arose and made a deal more difficult. It’d have been interesting to see the Rox land Cozart, as he’d have once again become a trade chip for them in the offseason with Story expected to be ready to go for the 2017 season. While talks don’t seem likely to be revisited this winter, the note is another reminder that Cozart is a desirable trade chip for the Reds, who also had a near-swap that would’ve sent Cozart to the Mariners on Aug. 1. Heyman also reminds that longtime GM/president Walt Jocketty will step into an adviser role this winter, leaving GM Dick Williams as the top decision-maker in Cincinnati’s baseball ops department.
  • Sticking with the Rockies, Heyman chronicles the rift that grew and eventually became irreconcilable between now-former manager Walt Weiss and GM Jeff Bridich. Per the report, there was a near-total breakdown of communications between the two. Weiss expressed concern with owner Dick Monfort — who was seemingly preparing to give Weiss a two-year extension and tried to convince him to stay. But the skipper didn’t believe that the two leaders could co-exist, and Monfort ultimately stuck with his GM.
  • Tigers owner Mike Ilitch was serious about pursuing slugger Chris Davis in free agency last winter — so much so that he was willing to guarantee something approaching $200MM, says Heyman. Newly-installed GM Al Avila, however, recommended that the team take another course. Though Davis has been reasonably productive, he hasn’t produced at the levels that earned him his ultimate contract — a $161MM deal with the Orioles.
  • As the Brewers’ brass has suggested, Heyman says that the team is not inclined to utilize Jonathan Villar at third base. With Orlando Arcia seemingly set for his first full season at short, that may well mean that Villar is destined to shift over to second base. If that’s the case, it’s not clear just what role Scooter Gennett will have. The 26-year-old is entering his first season of arbitration eligibility after a posting a below-average .263/.317/.412 batting line in his 542 plate appearances in 2016.
  • Meanwhile, the Brewers may not be sold on the idea of tendering Chris Carter a contract. While the team has suggested he’s expected back, Carter’s 41 homers also make him a good bet to earn a rather significant arbitration raise.
  • The Mariners appear to be “leaning toward” picking up a $7MM option over outfielder Seth Smith. Smith, 34, isn’t quite an everyday player, but has received over 400 plate appearances in each of his two campaigns in Seattle. This year, he hit .249/.342/.415 with 16 home runs, just under his overall career marks. At $7MM, the M’s would be getting Smith for something like the going annual rate for a fourth outfielder, while limiting its commitment to a single season.
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