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NL East Notes: Pill, Ruiz, Marlins, Glover

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The Mets are promoting Triple-A righty Tyler Pill to join their pitching staff, MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo reports (Twitter link). It’s not clear exactly what role Pill will have with the club, though DiComo does note that Jacob deGrom is healthy and is making his start tonight, so Pill won’t be stepping directly into the rotation. Pill, who turns 27 this weekend, has done a nice job keeping runs off the board in a tough Las Vegas environment this year, tossing 46 innings with a stellar 1.96 ERA. His secondary stats aren’t as encouraging, as he’s averaged just 4.5 K/9 against 2.7 BB/9 with a 43.4 percent ground-ball rate. Pill isn’t on the Mets’ 40-man roster, meaning New York will have to make some type of move in order to formally select his contract from Triple-A.

Elsewhere in the NL East…

  • Rio Ruiz wasn’t called upon when Adonis Garcia hit the disabled list last week, but after being promoted in the wake of Freddie Freeman’s injury, the 23-year-old corner infielder has impressed the Braves enough that he’ll likely remain their primary third baseman upon Garcia’s activation, MLB.com’s Mark Bowman reports. Atlanta still has some questions about Ruiz’s strikeout tendencies and ability to hit lefties, but his .320/.393/.480 start to his career and .262/.305/.447 effort thus far in Triple-A have apparently earned him some trust. (It probably doesn’t hurt Ruiz’s case that Garcia was struggling to a dismal .237/.278/.348 batting line at the time he was placed on the DL.) With Garcia nearing activation from the DL, the roster spots of Emilio Bonifacio and Danny Santana could be at risk, Bowman adds.
  • The potential price tag in a sale of the Marlins could dip further below the reported $1.3 billion mark that both the Derek Jeter/Jeb Bush and Tom Glavine/Tagg Romney groups were said to be willing to exceed, reports FanRag’s Jon Heyman. Heyman spoke to one person with knowledge of the Bush-Jeter group in particular and said that group is still short of the necessary capital to formally make such a bid. He adds that some potential suitors for the Marlins have backed away after looking “under the hood,” so to speak, which gels with previous reports that the team’s lack of revenue and long-term payroll commitments could be negatively impacting the sale process.
  • Though he’d already been operating in such a capacity without the title, Koda Glover has been officially labeled the Nationals’ closer by manager Dusty Baker, writes MASNsports.com’s Mark Zuckerman. “We wanted to break him in slowly because this guy’s … shoot, he’s only a year-and-a-half out of college,” said Baker. “So he had said that’s the job he wanted, and so it’s his now.” Glover took the reins from veteran righty Shawn Kelley after Kelley blew a save recently and has excelled since being activated from a minor DL stint. The 24-year-old hasn’t been scored upon in his past five appearances and has been the Nationals’ most effective reliever in 2017, tossing 14 innings with a 2.57 ERA, 7.1 K/9, 1.3 BB/9 and a 47.6 percent ground-ball rate.

Latest On The Marlins’ Potential Sale

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Here’s the latest surrounding the potential sale of the Miami Marlins…

  • Derek Jeter and former Florida governor Jeb Bush, who are leading one of the groups bidding for the Marlins, believe the team “has been spreading misinformation including the terms of the bid,” Ken Davidoff and Josh Kosman of the New York Post report.  Jeter and Bush “were exasperated” by apparently inaccurate reports from earlier this week saying they had reached a general agreement to buy the Marlins, as the Jeter/Bush group is still trying to line up investors.  A source tells Davidoff and Kosman that Jeter and Bush may eventually decide to not bid altogether: “These are not guys who can afford a vanity acquisition.  My guess is they will back out,” the source opines.  The Jeter/Bush group has enlisted the help of New York hedge fund financier Anthony Scaramucci as an advisor to bring some new investors into the bid, though Scaramucci himself won’t be joining the ownership group.
  • Joel Sherman of the New York Post breaks down the economics behind the potential sale, which goes well beyond the $1 billion-plus price tag.  Some in the game say the Marlins are $400MM in debt, and a new ownership faces losses in the range of $150-$200MM over its first few years of operations since the club lags behind in such revenue-generating streams as attendance, sponsorships, and a local TV contract.  “Some creative bookkeeping” will be required to work out the sale price no matter which competing group ends up buying the Marlins, and current owner Jeffrey Loria “will accept the fastest deal that meets his requests and he believes will be approved by the other owners” in order to get out from under this financial burden.
  • Given these costs involved in buying the Marlins, Sherman raises the possibility of another fire sale as a way that a new ownership group could cut costs.  Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe also raises the possibility, particularly in regards to trading Giancarlo Stanton.  The slugger is owed $63MM through the 2019 season, and then, if he doesn’t exercise his opt-out clause following that year, a whopping $244MM through the 2027 season.  Even though Miami would surely have to eat some of this contract in a trade, Cafardo still wonders if a deal could be reached given Stanton’s injury history and less-than-elite production in 2016.
  • Also from Cafardo’s piece, he reports that the ownership group led by Tom Glavine and Tagg Romney appears to have all of the investors arranged behind its $1.1 billion bid.  A source tells Cafardo that it doesn’t appear as though as of Glavine and Romney’s investors would leave the bid to join the Jeter/Bush group.
  • Marlins manager Don Mattingly and catcher A.J. Ellis are no strangers to performing under an ownership change, Bill Shaikin of the L.A. Times writes, as both were with the Dodgers during that team’s perhaps even more tumultuous sale from Frank McCourt to the Guggenheim Baseball ownership group.  “That uncertainty, at this stage, is definitely hanging,” Ellis said.  “There’s so many guys here who have been with the Marlins their whole life. That’s all they’ve ever known. It could be a huge life change for them.”

Tom Glavine Part Of Group Working To Purchase Marlins

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Hall of Fame pitcher Tom Glavine may be part of the Marlins’ next ownership team. The former Brave and Met is a member of a faction that has put in a bid to purchase the franchise from owner Jeffrey Loria, reports Scott Soshnick of Bloomberg. Solamere Capital co-founder Tagg Romney, son of 2012 Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney, is at the helm of the group. Notably, Mitt Romney is not involved in this venture.

The exact price of the Romney group’s bid isn’t known, though Soshnick relays that offers for the Marlins currently range between $1.2 billion and $1.3 billion – an enormous increase over the $158MM Loria paid in 2002. Fifteen years later, Loria “wants to get out of it,” Glavine told Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe. Glavine added that he feels “very good” about the Romney offer, though the 51-year-old declined to disclose whether he’s committed to putting forth any money (Glavine made just under $130MM as a player, per Baseball Reference). Glavine’s also unsure of how long a potential sale might take to go through, but he did reveal that his main purpose has been to woo investors to the Romney side.

The 305-game winner went into further detail in his discussion with Cafardo, saying: “It’s been a lengthy process. I was contacted a couple of years ago by some people to ask whether I’d have an interest in doing something along these lines, and I certainly did. This Marlins situation came about last summer. After casual conversations and kicking tires it became apparent we could put people together and raise money.”

If the Romney-led team does succeed in buying the Marlins, it’s unclear which role Glavine would take with the franchise, but he would “certainly want” some sort of position.

“I’m not going to say I’m the GM, but I know the game pretty well,” said Glavine. “I understand it. There’s a lot on the business side that I don’t understand, so I’m open-minded about what the best role for me would be and what I like to do the most.”

Glavine informed Cafardo that he believes at least three groups have made efforts to secure the Marlins. Quogue Capital founder Wayne P. Rothbaum is at the helm of one, per reports from both Soshnick and Douglas P. Hanks of the Miami Herald. However, Soshnick’s information differs from Hanks’ with respect to a couple of other prospective buyers, ex-Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter and former Florida Governor Jeb Bush. Those two have teamed up to buy the Marlins, according to Hanks, but Soshnick notes that’s not yet the case. Instead, as of now, Jeter and Bush have only discussed working together, per Soshnick.

Odds & Ends: Dye, Mets, Lincecum, Vazquez, Colon

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Some links for your Friday afternoon…

Glavine To Retire, Takes Job With Braves

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Tom Glavine is expected to retire and take a job as a special assistant to Braves president John Schuerholz, writes MLB.com's Mark Bowman. The future-Hall of Famer will help his former team with baseball and business projects and contribute to radio and TV broadcasts.

Glavine will retire with a pair of Cy Young Awards and a 3.54 ERA in over 4400 innings of work. The ten-time All Star and 1995 World Series champion won a total of 305 games, thanks in part to five 20-win seasons. Glavine didn't pitch in the majors last year, so he will likely enter the Hall of Fame in the same class as longtime rotation-mate Greg Maddux.

The Braves signed Glavine to an incentive-laden deal last year, one that would have paid the lefty $1MM for making the team. The Braves released Glavine instead and the pitcher contemplated a grievance before taking the rest of the year off in spite of interest from other clubs.

Cafardo’s Latest: Red Sox Shortstop Options, Griffey, Suppan, Mulder, Glavine

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The Red Sox have been trying to find a long term solution at shortstop ever since the Nomar Garciaparra trade back in 2004, and while the recent pickup of Alex Gonzalez has provided some stability, the team still needs to find a solution for next year and beyond. Nick Cafardo of The Boston Globe says that first, the Sox have to decide if "they can afford to carry a light-hitting, great-fielding shortstop or sacrifice a bit of defense to aim for a more balanced lineup."

He presents some possible solutions to their seemingly perpetual shortstop issues, so let's round 'em up…

  • Marco Scutaro: The 33-yr old has enjoyed a tremendous season for Toronto (.282/.380/.411), and projects to be a Type-A free agent. He made just $1.1MM this season, and it seems likely that the Blue Jays would offer him arbitration.
  • Hanley Ramirez: Cafardo mentions that it still remains to be seen if Hanley can stick at short long term, but there is no question that he's one of the five best players in the game today. Given his team friendly contract that will pay him $64.5MM between now and 2014, the Sox would have to offer a bounty of young talent just to get their foot in the door.
  • Miguel Tejada: A projected Type-B free agent this offseason, it seems unlikely that the Astros would offer him arbitration. He could be a one year stopgap at shortstop, and perhaps enjoy an offensive resurgence similar to Mike Lowell thanks to Fenway Park and the Green Monster.
  • J.J. Hardy: As Cafardo notes, it "would take a leap of faith to think that his horrid season is an aberration." However, he did hit .280/.333/.470 from 2007-2008, and they'd definitely be buying low.
  • Jose Reyes: We've seen plenty of talk that the Mets should trade Reyes, but it remains to be seen if they actually will. Can you imagine Reyes and Jacoby Ellsbury on the bases?
  • Troy Tulowitzki: Cafardo admits it's a long shot, but everybody has a price. Considering that Tulo is guaranteed just $29.25MM between now and 2014 and is hitting .283/.363/.526 this year, doesn't it seem like it might be easier to acquire Hanley?
  • Cafardo also throws out the names of several other possible options, including Adam Everett, John McDonald, Omar Vizquel, Stephen Drew, and Brandon Wood.

The Red Sox still have Jed Lowrie in-house, but he's missed considerable time this year with wrist problems. It would be a stretch to think that 19-yr old Cuban signee Jose Iglesias could fill in next year, but stranger things have happened. I'll throw the name of one more impending free agent out there: Felipe Lopez. He last played shortstop regularly in 2007, but it's at least worth considering.

Here's the rest of Cafardo's non-Red Sox rumors…

  • Ken Griffey Jr. would like to return to Seattle for another year, and "probably can if his price is right." Junior is hitting .218/.325/.393 in 382 plate appearances this year, almost exclusively as a DH.
  • The Brewers placed Jeff Suppan on trade waivers last week, and Cafardo says it'll be interesting to see "if any contending team still looking for an experienced starter puts in a claim or tries to make a deal for him." Considering there's still $14.5MM in guaranteed money left on his contract, I'd guess no one puts a claim in.
  • Hardy was also placed on trade waivers.
  • Free agent pitcher Mark Mulder has decided not to make a comeback this year even though he made progress with his throwing program. He's likely to play winterball though.
  • Agent Gregg Clifton says client Tom Glavine is unlikely to attempt a comeback next year, and has started to field calls about broadcasting opportunities.

Glavine Won’t Pitch In 2009

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Breaking news out of Atlanta: Tom Glavine told Buck Lanford of Fox 5 Atlanta that he won't pitch in 2009.

“I’m not going to pitch or do anything in baseball until at least next year.” Glavine stopped short, according to Fox 5, of announcing his retirement, saying he plans to be “a full-time dad.”

The decision leaves Pedro Martinez as the surefire Hall of Fame pitcher remaining in the free agent market. Glavine did not announce his retirement, though it is hard to imagine him returning after taking the rest of the season off.

The decision is surprising for a number of reasons. For one thing, Glavine had been so adamant about objecting to his treatment by the Braves, who released him following his final rehab start.

For another, who knew people Tom Glavine's age knew how to text?

Heyman On Bedard, Valentine, Glavine

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Jon Heyman of SI.com reports that the market for starting pitching continues to shrink as top pitchers encounter health issues. Here are the details, along with the rest of his rumors:

  • Unless Erik Bedard proves his shoulder is healthy, Brad Penny and Jarrod Washburn could be the most appealing starters on the market.
  • Theo Epstein, who traded Bronson Arroyo when the Red Sox seemed to have excess pitching, would rather have a pitching surplus than give Penny away.
  • The Phillies, who are still looking for a front-line starter, are a little "leery" of adding Bedard, according to one of Heyman's sources.
  • The Indians remain reluctant to deal Cliff Lee, who would be the best starter availabe if he hit the market.
  • One GM says the Nationals should add Bobby Valentine, but says they're "too cheap" to make the move.  
  • Tom Glavine's agent acknowledged that his client is becoming more likely to retire.
  • The asking price for Nick Johnson remains high.   

Daniels On Sheets, El Duque, Trade Deadline

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Rangers GM Jon Daniels answered questions in an online chat hosted by Richard Durrett of the Dallas Morning News. One thing becomes clear throughout the chat: Daniels will try to win this year:

  • Ben Sheets isn't far enough along to be talking contract, but the Rangers are in touch with his agent.
  • The Rangers could deal prospects away to improve their playoff chances this year, but Daniels doesn't suggest that's likely.  
  • Tom Glavine is "probably not" a fit.  
  • Orlando Hernandez could be ready for the majors by late July. 
  • Daniels says signing Matt Purke and Tanner Scheppers before July 31st wouldn't make him more likely to part with other prospects in a deal.
  • The Rangers talked with Luis Vizcaino before he signed with Cleveland.
  • Could the Rangers pick up a big-time starter? Daniels says "we'll see."  

Odds & Ends: Izzy, Baez, Nationals

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Some links to peruse as you realize how lame it is when your favorite team has a scheduled off day…

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