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Shawn Kelley

NL East Links: Marlins, Kelley, Adams, Braves

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There have been reports that the Marlins could consider dealing such major names as Christian Yelich, Marcell Ozuna or J.T. Realmuto at the deadline, though Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald writes that the Fish thus far “haven’t shown an inclination” to make a big roster shakeup.  A source tells Jackson that the Marlins are still a couple of weeks away before deciding on trading some players, including closer AJ Ramos.  Much is still in flux due to the potential sale of the team, of course, as Jackson notes that the front office would need to talk to both the new ownership group and Major League Baseball before exploring a big-ticket trade involving Giancarlo Stanton.

Here’s more from around the division…

  • The Nationals placed righty Shawn Kelley on the 10-day DL with a right trapezius strain.  The placement is retroactive to June 17 and A.J. Cole has been called up from Triple-A in a corresponding move.  This is Kelley’s second DL stint of the year, as he also missed some time with a lower back strain.  Kelley’s struggles have been a big contributor to Washington’s bullpen problems this season, as the veteran right-hander has a 7.00 ERA and a whopping nine homers allowed over 18 innings.
  • The Braves will go to a six-man rotation when Bartolo Colon returns from the disabled list next week, David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution writes.  The Braves want a longer look at rookie Sean Newcomb while they’re also not ready to release the struggling Colon, who is owed a little over $7MM for the rest of the season.  It remains to be seen how long Atlanta will deploy the six-man rotation, though things could return to normal if a starter (such as Jaime Garcia) is dealt at the trade deadline.
  • Matt Adams has done nothing but mash since joining the Braves, though the first baseman knows he could be on the move again once Freddie Freeman returns from the DL, Adams tells Rick Hummel of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.  While he enjoys playing in Atlanta, “whenever Freddie comes back, wherever the next spot may be…I either finish out the season with Atlanta or go somewhere else,” Adams said.  “I’m open to anything right now. I’m taking it day by day.”  The interview is well worth a full read, as Adams discusses his time with the Cardinals and his reaction to being dealt last month.  Adams has a whopping 1.013 OPS and nine homers over just 114 plate appearances in a Braves uniform, making him a very attractive potential trade chip if Atlanta indeed does look to swap him again at the deadline.

Nationals Activate Koda Glover, Shawn Kelley

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The Nationals have activated righties Koda Glover and Shawn Kelley, per a club announcement. A.J. Cole and Matt Grace were each optioned back to Triple-A to create roster space.

The absence of Glover and Kelley had left a void at the back of the Nats’ bullpen. Washington has struggled to find an order of priority in the late innings as most of the relief unit has scuffled, but the righty pairing seemingly sits atop the closing depth chart at present.

Glover, 24, has been said at times to possess the stuff to handle the role and may be the club’s next homegrown closer. But it’s not clear he’s ready to handle the role now. Before going down with a hip impingement, Glover carried solid, though hardly dominant, numbers. He permitted four earned runs on seven hits over 8 2/3 innings, striking out six and walking one.

As for Kelley, he has landed among the league’s best in generating swinging strikes in recent years. But the 33-year-old is seen as requiring regular rest and careful handling given his history of elbow problems, so he may not be a standalone option in the ninth. Kelley has allowed five home runs in his first ten frames, but otherwise has been his typically dominant self, with 13 strikeouts against three walks.

It remains to be seen, of course, whether either of these pitchers can provide enough certainty in the ninth inning to foreclose the addition of a more-established closer at the trade deadline. If nothing else, though, their return will hopefully reduce the need to consider more drastic moves to shore up the the lead-protection unit far in advance of the summer trade period. Odds are, the Nats will be among the game’s most aggressive pursuers of quality relievers this summer.

Nationals Place Shawn Kelley On 10-Day DL

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The Nationals have placed righty Shawn Kelley on the 10-day DL with a lower back strain. Kelley has been out with illness, but his “back flared up” while he was warming up to see if he felt well enough to pitch tonight, Mark Zuckerman of MASNsports.com explains. He’ll be replaced on the active roster by southpaw Matt Grace.

While it seems reasonable to hope that Kelley wont be out for too long, the news means the team will be without its de facto closer for at least another week. The DL placement was backdated to May 2. Of course, now that the move has been made, the Nats will no doubt make sure he’s not activated until fully healed.

The Nats’ closing situation is as questionable as ever. While Kelley has been unusually homer prone through his ten innings, he has looked himself in the K/BB department (13:3) and is probably the team’s best option. But it has never been the organization’s preference to utilize him in that capacity.

Youngster Koda Glover is nearing his own return from the DL, and may be the favorite to take over the ninth when he’s back. Until he’s activated, the club could be forced to turn over their ninth-inning leads to Enny Romero, Matt Albers, or one of the team’s two struggling relievers (Blake Treinen and Joe Blanton) who had been expected to handle high-leverage work.

It’s arguable that the injury could increase the pressure on the Nats front office to strike an earlier-than-usual deal for a replacement. With the team playing well anyway, though, paying a major premium to get a closer now still seems unlikely. At some point, though, Washington figures to boost its late-inning mix via trade.

Nationals Remove Blake Treinen From Closer’s Role

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The Nationals will no longer utilize Blake Treinen as the closer for the time being, manager Dusty Baker told reporters including Dan Kolko of MASNsports.com (Twitter links). Washington will utilize Shawn Kelley and Koda Glover in some form of ninth-inning time share.

A move in the late-inning mix seemed inevitable after Treinen struggled to find the zone last night. He has struggled quite a bit in the early going, allowing five earned runs on ten hits while allowing six free passes to go with his seven strikeouts.

Though Treinen is still working in his typical velocity range and producing loads of grounders, the contending Nats evidently don’t feel he’s ready to turn it around in the ninth. Presumably, the club will look to utilize him in the setup role in which he thrived last year.

Kelley and Glover could each stake an individual claim to the job, but the preference seems to be for a mix-and-match approach. The former has continued to rack up an outstanding K/BB ratio — presently, 13.5 K/9 against 3.0 BB/9) — but the Nats have long said they don’t view Kelley as a regular closer option due to his history of multiple Tommy John surgeries. Baker says the team prefers not to use him on consecutive nights, as Mark Zuckerman of MASNsports.com tweets.

That could leave the door open for Glover to grab the job and run with it, if he’s able to succeed in the opportunities he receives. The skipper is still hoping to utilize a single closer at some point, MLB.com’s Jamal Collier notes on Twitter. But the 24-year-old Glover won’t get the nod outright at this stage. He not only lacks substantial MLB experience, but has dealt with some minor injury issues (per Baker’s suggestion today).

NL East Notes: Tebow, Mets, Kelley, Ramos, Washington

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The Mets not only gave former quarterback Tim Tebow a $100K bonus, but handed him a cherished spot in the Arizona Fall League, and ESPN.com’s Keith Law argues (Insider link) that both were mistakes. Tebow, 29, lacks the baseline skill of his fellow entrants in the prospect-heavy offseason competition, Law opines after taking an in-person look. The prospect guru panned Tebow’s contact ability at the plate and his instincts in the field, and took no prisoners in assessing the totality of the situation: it was, in Law’s words, “a craven, mercenary move befitting an independent-league team desperate for the added revenue from ticket sales, not something a major league team with postseason aspirations should be doing.”

Here’s more from the NL East:

  • Mets GM Sandy Alderson and manager Terry Collins sat down with Ken Davidoff of the New York Post this spring, talking through the season to come with the understanding that their comments wouldn’t be published until year end. At the time, none of the challenges that sprung up during the 2016 campaign were really evident, but both leaders noted the variability inherent in the game and acknowledged that the health of the rotation and lineup could never really be assured.
  • Outgoing Nationals free agent Wilson Ramos had successful surgery today to repair ACL and meniscus tears in his right knee, as the team announced and Jon Heyman of Fan Rag first reported. Estimates of his recovery timeline are ranging between six and eight months — which would obviously push into the early or middle portion of the 2017 season. Given that uncertainty, but also Ramos’s young age (he just turned 29) and top-level production (.307/.354/.496 batting line, 22 home runs in 2016), his free agent case will be among the more interesting in recent memory.
  • The Nationals not only suffered yet another heartbreaking NLDS exit last night, but also watched key reliever Shawn Kelley leave with what looked to be a potentially significant arm injury. He said after the game that he lost feeling in his hand after throwing his final pitch, but there seems to be hope that a major problem has been averted, as MLB.com’s Bill Ladson reports. Kelley suggested that he hopes “it’s just a nerve thing,” explaining that he experienced worsening numbness rather than suffering an acute injury. Kelley is owed $11MM over the next two years and just wrapped up an excellent 2.64 ERA showing in 2016, with 12.4 K/9 against 1.7 BB/9 over 58 frames. Needless to say, he’s an important part of the Nats’ relief corps, and the organization already will likely be hunting for a big pen arm with mid-season closer acquisition Mark Melancon hitting free agency.
  • Newly-inked Braves third base coach Ron Washington thought at one point he’d land the team’s managerial job, as John Hickey of the Bay Area News Group reports. “I thought my interview was good to the point I got that I had the [managerial] job, no doubt in my mind,” Washington said. “But you never know what the other side is thinking and how it will go. They offered me a different job in the organization.” Though he missed on the top post, and could’ve earned the same money on a two-year deal to stay with the Athletics in a coaching capacity, Washington chose to take a position that would put him closer to home.

Nationals Sign Shawn Kelley

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After days of conflicting reports, the Nationals have officially announced the signing of right-hander Shawn Kelley to a three-year contract. The Frye McCann Sports client is said to have received a $15MM total guarantee over three years, with salaries of $4MM (2016) and $5.5MM (2017 and 2018).

Jun 30, 2015; San Diego, CA, USA; San Diego Padres relief pitcher <a rel=

Kelley, who turns 32 in April, posted a 2.45 ERA and 63 strikeouts (against just 15 walks) in 51 1/3 relief innings for the Padres in 2015.  This fine performance was backed up by metrics like FIP (2.57), xFIP (2.91) and SIERA (2.55). Kelley also pitched well according to those advanced statistics in 2013-14 as a reliever for the Yankees but wasn’t as lucky on the ERA front, posting a 4.46 ERA in those two seasons.

It was certainly an opportune time for Kelley to post the best of his seven Major League seasons.  Kelley has a career 3.67 ERA, 3.33 K/BB rate, 10.2 K/9 over 284 1/3 career innings.  He has only a 33% ground ball rate for his career, but he improved greatly in that category last season with a career-best 42.7% number.  He’s been effective against hitters on either side of the plate, and Kelley’s career splits indicate he’s actually been better against left-handed batters (.666 OPS) than right-handed batters (.711 OPS).

Between Kelley and left-hander Oliver Perez, Washington has now agreed to contracts with two notable relievers within the last week.  The two deals are a big step towards the bullpen overhaul many expected for the Nats this offseason.

And since the news of the Kelley signing first broke, the Nats added two more pen arms. After agreeing to terms with veteran righty Yusmeiro Petit, the club shipped Yunel Escobar to the Angels for 23-year-old flamethrower Trevor Gott. All told, the Nats’ pen will features at least four new faces, though more change could still be to come.

It remains to be seen what the Nationals will end up doing in terms of high-leverage arms. Closer Jonathan Papelbon and setup man Drew Storen are both reportedly on the trading block, but it’s not clear what direction the organization could take in terms of acquisitions with Darren O’Day headed to the Orioles and Aroldis Chapman’s status in limbo.

Reports surfaced recently that Kelley’s market was heating up, so it’s no surprise that the reliever has now landed a new contract. Kelley was rated 44th on MLBTR’s Top 50 Free Agents list, with Tim Dierkes projecting him to land a two-year, $12MM deal.

ESPN.com’s Jerry Crasnick tweeted the financial parameters of the deal, with Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports tweeting details. Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com tweeted that the deal would go through. Jack Curry of the YES Network originally reported the signing (via Twitter) on December 8, though later reports suggested agreement was not yet finalized.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Bullpen Notes: Wilson, Melancon, Twins, Bastardo, Blanton

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The Tigers are interested in Yankees left-hander Justin Wilson and have, in fact, had trade talks with the Yankees about their lefty setup man, reports Marly Rivera of ESPN (via Twitter). It’s not clear how far talks between the two sides progressed, but the Tigers have a known need for a left-handed reliever, and the Yankees have been open-minded about dealing almost any player on their roster. Wilson, who has three years of club control remaining, is in his prime at 28 years of age and has a lifetime 3.03 ERA with 8.7 K/9 against 3.7 BB/9 in 199 1/3 innings between the Pirates and Yankees.

A few more notes on the relief market…

  • The Nationals had dialogue with the Pirates about closer Mark Melancon, though nothing is serious at this time, Bill Ladson of MLB.com tweets. Before Washington could even acquire Melancon, they’ll probably have to move at least one of Jonathan Papelbon or Drew Storen to free up some room.
  • Twins GM Terry Ryan says the team is unlikely to bring back relievers Brian Duensing and Blaine Boyer, as Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com writes. Minnesota is eyeing left-handed relief help in Nashville and is interested in both Tony Sipp and Antonio Bastardo, per Bollinger. The Twins also checked in on veteran Matt Thornton, but their preference is a more strikeout-oriented arm, says Bollinger, so Thornton may not be a fit.
  • Mike Berardino of the St. Paul Pioneer Press hears that teams have reached out to the Twins about All-Star closer Glen Pekrins in their search for left-handed relief, but talks didn’t get far (links to Twitter). Perkins is owed a reasonable $12.8MM over the next two seasons and has a $6.5MM club option for the 2018 campaign. That option becomes a player option if he’s traded.
  • The Cubs meeting with the agents for Bastardo, according to Robert Murray of Baseball Essential (on Twitter). The Cubs have been very active over the past 24 hours and are known to be seeking bullpen upgrades.
  • Shawn Kelley’s agent, Mike McCann, told Joel Sherman of the New York Post (on Twitter) that his client has yet to pick a team.  The Nationals are among “multiple clubs” in “active discussions” with McCann.
  • Right-hander Joe Blanton is drawing interest from a wide number of teams after a strong 2015 showing in the bullpen, tweets Sportsnet’s Ben Nicholson-Smith. Blanton could be a candidate for a multi-year deal after his excellent bounceback campaign.
  • Multiple reporters, including J.P. Hoornstra of the L.A. News Group, have tweeted that Todd Coffey is in Nashville hoping to latch on with a club as he eyes an MLB comeback. Coffey, 35, hasn’t pitched in the bigs since 2012 but was excellent at Triple-A as recently as 2014.

Shawn Kelley’s Market Heating Up

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Right-hander Shawn Kelley’s market has begun to heat up, reports ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick, who adds that Kelley is likely to be one of the next relief pitchers to come off the board (Twitter link). While Kelley’s name hasn’t frequented headlines this offseason, he’s nonetheless coming off a quietly brilliant season in San Diego. His track record of missing bats and serving as a durable source of innings should serve him well in what has been an aggressive market for relievers.

Kelley, 31, pitched to a 2.45 ERA with 11.1 K/9, 2.6 BB/9 and a career-best 42.7 percent ground-ball rate in 51 1/3 innings for the Padres this past season. Over the past four seasons, Kelley has worked collectively to a 3.68 ERA and averaged 11 strikeouts against 3.3 walks per nine innings pitched. Fielding independent pitching metrics are significantly higher on his work than his ERA, with SIERA in particular pegging Kelley in the 2.60 range to do his solid control and abundance of missed bats.

Kelley doesn’t throw exceptionally hard, averaging about 92 mph on his fastball, but he throws a huge number of sliders — more than half his pitches have been sliders over the past three seasons — and has generated a swinging-strike rate of 14.8 percent over the past two seasons as a result (league average in that time is about 9.7 percent).

Considering the strong market for relief arms — Ryan Madson has agreed to a three-year, $22MM deal and Mark Lowe has agreed to a two-year, $13MM deal in the past day and a half — I’d imagine that Kelley is potentially in line for a three-year deal. He’s represented by the same agency that brokered Lowe’s deal with the Tigers, Frye McCann Sports, so agent Mike McCann has very likely been discussing both clients with multiple clubs over the course of the offseason.

Bullpen Notes: Tigers, Mariners, Astros/Rays, Sipp, Soria

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The Tigers are known to be casting a wide net in their search for relievers, and ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick tweets that their targets include Ryan Madson, Shawn Kelley and Tommy Hunter in addition to previously reported links to Darren O’Day and Joakim Soria. As Crasnick further notes, Hunter was a teammate of GM Al Avila’s son (and former Detroit backstop) Alex Avila in college, giving Hunter a bit of an in with the organization. The Tigers would like to add a pair of bullpen arms, and Avila said yesterday that he’s not concerned with pitcher handedness but instead just focused on general upgrades (via the Detroit Free Press’ Anthony Fenech, on Twitter).

A few more notes on the developing free-agent and trade markets for bullpen upgrades…

  • The Mariners already made a substantial boost to their bullpen today by adding Joaquin Benoit in a trade with the Padres, but GM Jerry Dipoto isn’t content with the group just yet. Via Bob Dutton of the Tacoma News Tribune (Twitter link), Dipoto says the Mariners aren’t done bolstering their bullpen. For the time being, Dipoto isn’t committing to a role for Benoit (as noted by Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times, also on Twitter), perhaps indicating that the Mariners are open to adding relief arms of a higher caliber (though that’s just my own speculation).
  • Evan Drellich of the Houston Chronicle reports that the Astros and Rays had some discussions about Jake McGee and Brad Boxberger at the GM Meetings. Both excellent Rays relievers were said to be drawing wide interest, so it’s not a surprise to see Houston — a team that has been oft-connected to bullpen help dating back to July — checking in with Tampa Bay. Drellich also hears that Tony Sipp’s market is picking up, and the southpaw has interest not only from the Astros but from other teams within the AL West.
  • The Royals, too, have some interest in Sipp, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. Though Kansas City has a dominant bullpen, it could be in the need of some left-handed help. Franklin Morales, who was quietly excellent in 2015, is a free agent, and Danny Duffy could rejoin the rotation next season. Tim Collins will be back from Tommy John surgery, but the team can’t bank on a full return to form for the undersized southpaw. KC will also be without right-handers Greg Holland (TJ surgery) and Madson (free agent) in 2016, and Sipp has a track record of retiring both right-handers and left-handers alike.
  • SB Nation’s Chris Cotillo adds a team to the expanding market for Joakim Soria, tweeting that the Angels also have some interest in the right-hander. Given the other needs around the roster for the Halos, who have a deep supply of bullpen arms as it is, Soria would seem to be more of a luxury than an answer to a direct need.
  • Of course, Aroldis Chapman is the top name on the trade market for relief help right now, and he’s already had his name surface in rumors today. Peter Gammons reported earlier this morning that he spoke to four people who expect Chapman to be moved by the end of the weekend, and reports since that time have pegged the Red Sox as an interested party. We’re monitoring all of the latest Chapman rumors in a separate post.

Trade Notes: Chapman, Chavez, Shields, Dodgers, Gomez, Kelley, O’s, Nats

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The Reds are currently “examining offers” for closer Aroldis Chapman, tweets ESPN’s Buster Olney, but at this time, there’s no sense as to whether or not they feel “devoted” to finishing a trade as they did with Johnny Cueto over the weekend. Chapman’s name has been connected to the Nationals (who have since acquired Jonathan Papelbon), D-Backs, Blue Jays and others in recent weeks, but because he’s controlled through 2016, the urge to move him isn’t as great as the urge to move Cueto or teammate Mike Leake.

A few more general trade notes for all you late-night readers…

  • ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick gets the sense that the Athletics won’t move right-hander Jesse Chavez (Twitter link). I listed Chavez in my breakdown of the trade market for starting pitching, but as Crasnick notes, he’s controlled through 2016 at what should be a reasonable rate. Chavez is owed just $2.15MM in 2015 and should get a nice, but not enormous raise in arbitration this winter. Following today’s trade of Ben Zobrist, A’s general manager Billy Beane said that he didn’t plan on moving pieces that are controlled beyond the current season.
  • Sticking with the ESPN group, Jayson Stark noted in today’s roundup of trade rumors that one exec predicted to him that James Shields would end up with the Giants. However, Stark hears that the Padres have changed their stance on trading within the division and now may be hesitant to trade their top chips to a division-rival. San Diego, of course, made a huge intra-division trade by acquiring Matt Kemp from the Dodgers this offseason.
  • Speaking of the Dodgers, Stark also hears that L.A. could land two starting pitchers instead of one this week. He goes on to add that the Dodgers have a limited number of prospects they’re actually willing to deal, though, so if they can line up on a trade for a big name like Cole Hamels, they may not have the remaining pieces to add a second arm.
  • One executive tells Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports that he doesn’t think the Brewers particularly want to trade Carlos Gomez (Twitter link). The asking price on Gomez at this time is “very” high, the exec tells Rosenthal, adding that he thinks Milwaukee is hoping to get blown away but may otherwise hang onto the center fielder.
  • The Pirates have interest in Padres right-hander Shawn Kelley, reports John Perrotto of the Beaver County Times (on Twitter). A free agent following the season, Kelley has turned in a very strong 3.09 ERA with excellent strikeout-to-walk numbers in 2015. He’s averaged 10.9 K/9 against a minuscule 1.8 BB/9 in his first season with San Diego.
  • The Orioles’ interest in Carlos Gonzalez was characterized by one source as “mild,” tweets Jon Morosi of FOX Sports. However, Morosi tweets that the Orioles are still in the Justin Upton market. Baltimore is known to be looking for a corner outfield upgrade but has limited prospect depth from which it can deal to achieve that goal.
  • Morosi also notes (via Twitter) that the Nationals are interested in upgrading their bench, but the want to fully assess the health of Ryan Zimmerman and Jayson Werth, both of whom are now off the disabled list. He notes that an extra outfielder would be a nice pickup for the team, speculatively listing both Will Venable of the Padres and Gerardo Parra of the Brewers as fits.
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