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Misc. Spring Training Transactions 3/20-3/22
Boston Red Sox
Optioned RHP Michael Bowden to Triple-A Pawtucket. Reassigned RHP Daniel Bard to minor league camp. Both pitchers are held in high regard and may see time in the majors at some point this season. (Possibly with another team.)
Houston Astros
Reassigned RHPs Clay Hensley to minor league camp. This officially ends his run at the 5th starter spot.
St. Louis Cardinals
Recalled non-roster INF David Freese from Minor League camp. With Joe Mather not impressing much, Freese is getting another chance to claim the temporary job of replacing Troy Glaus at third.
New York Yankees
Optioned RHP Phil Hughes to Triple-A. If he was on the Royals, Hughes would likely have a regular starting job.
Washington Nationals
Signed catcher Josh Bard to a minor league contract. He’ll be a decent backup catcher for the team.
Houston Astros
Signed catcher Ivan Rodriguez to a one-year contract. Ivan proved that he can still hit in the WBC, but at the major league level? It should be a decent signing for the Astros, who need someone behind the plate to pull together the rag-tag pitching staff.
Kansas City Royals
Optioned 1B Kila Ka’aihue to Triple-A Omaha. Kila held his own in spring training, but never had a chance to make the team (although he’s nearly ready).
New York Mets
Optioned LHP Jon Niese to the minor leagues. Livan Hernandez will likely take the 5th starter spot, giving Niese a little more time to develop in the minors.
Trade Bait: Taschner for Paulino
The Philadelphia Phillies, who just acquired catcher Ronny Paulino this off-season, have now traded him away.
With Chris Coste solidifying his spot this spring in the backup catcher spot behind Carlos Ruiz in the lineup, the Phillies no longer had a need for Paulino’s services. They couldn’t just stuff him away at Triple-A either as they need to give at-bats to prospect Lou Marson. (Who may be up by mid-season anyway)
Paulino has been shipped out to San Francisco in a trade for lefty reliever Jack Taschner. Ronny will likely take over back up catcher duties behind Bengie Molina, bumping Steve Holm out of the spot. Although Paulino has hit just .194 with 12 strikeouts in 13 games this spring, he still has a significant amount of major league experience compared to Holm and so GM Brian Sabean couldn’t keep his mitts off of him.
Taschner hasn’t been any better this spring as he has posted a 6.23 ERA in 8 2/3 innings, allowing 10 hits and 12 walks. He hasn’t held left-handed batters at bay that well over the past couple seasons either. That is something that is doubtful will change much either this season.
Jack will become the second lefty out of the pen for the Phillies as lefty J.C. Ramero serves a 50-game suspension for steroids. Instantly speculation has sprouted up that fellow left-hander J.A. Happ will now likely head to the rotation, placing Chan Ho Park in the pen. The Phillies have stated that this 5th starter battle hasn’t been decided, but it looks good for the young hurler nonetheless. It is your time to shine Happ.
Essentially, the Phillies have traded Jason Jaramillo for Jack Taschner. In the end, I believe the Pirates have come out on top. Both Paulino and Taschner could be in the minors by mid-season and Jaramillo could emerge as a decent backup catcher eventually.
UPDATE: Paulino was flipped to the Florida Marlins for a minor league pitcher. He will likely back up starting catcher John Baker. The Giants will get pitcher Hector Correa, a starter in A-Ball.
Future Fish has some decent background on Hector Correa. He may have decent upside, once he’s switched to relief, but he’ll have to prove that he’ll stay healthy.
USA Exists WBC Early….Again
Once again the United States, the team from where the game of baseball originated, has exited the World Baseball Classic early. Team USA was trounced last night by a very good looking Japanese team. This is yet another poor showing by the USA baseball team that couldn’t win the last Olympic medal in the sport and haven’t taken the WBC since its inception either.
The Japanese team then took on the Koreans and won the final of the WBC. Neither team was heavily stocked with major league talent like the US or latin teams were. But they are fundamentally sound teams that know how to do the little things to win. These teams are no strangers to each other either. They’ve played each other at least twice in each round of the WBC.
By the way, I must reiterate (for the millionth time) that I cannot stand to listen to Joe Morgan. Amongst his many comments that made me roll my eyes, he had a statement that manager Davey Johnson put Evan Longoria in just to get him some playing time, making everyone happy. Longoria is an emerging star that, at the time of his first at-bat, could have tied up the game with one swing. The USA lives and dies by the three-run-homer style of play and Longoria fit that mold better than Shane Victorino.
Congrats to the Japanese team. It is a well deserved two WBC titles in a row. There is much for the American team to learn from this. There is much for the baseball world to learn from both the WBC tournaments.
Misc. Spring Training Transactions: 3/17/09
Houston Astros
Optioned RHP Felipe Paulino to Triple-A Round Rock. Paulino was a candidate for the rotation now that he’s recovered from an injury that had him sit out much of 2008. He had a decent 2007, but will likely work on refining his pitches at Triple-A as he still had an option left.
Kansas City Royals
Signed RHP Sidney Ponson to a minor league contract with an invitation to Major League Spring Training. Journalists have their cameras and pens at the ready in case Ponson makes the major league roster. Ponson and Jose Guillen in the clubhouse should be absolutely great for morale.
Minnesota Twins
Optioned Anthony Swarzak to Triple-A Rochester. Swarzak’s been ranked in the Twins’ top 10 prospects for the past four years. He had an ugly 2008 at Double-A, but shined late in the season at Triple-A last year. He could work his way into the Twins’ rotation by mid-season if he doesn’t have a repeat of his problems in Double-A.
San Diego Padres
Optioned LHP Wade LeBlanc and RHP Cesar Carrillo to Triple-A Portland. Keep an eye on these two pitching prospects. LeBlanc had a tough season in 2008, but rebounded late to put up good numbers in August. Carrillo was the team’s #1 prospect in 2006 and #2 in 2007, he may finally be back to healthy in 2009 and put up decent numbers.
Misc. Spring Training Transactions: 3/16/09
Colorado Rockies
Optioned RHPs Jason Hirsh and 2B Eric Young Jr. to Triple-A Colorado Springs. Injuries have limited Hirsh’s innings since he was traded from the Astros for Jason Jennings. He hasn’t pitched well in those innings either. But if you look at his 2006 season with the Astros Triple-A team (13-2, 2.10 ERA), you can’t give up on the kid.
Oakland Athletics
Optioned INF Eric Patterson to Triple-A Sacramento. His time to become a decent utility player is getting short.
Pittsburgh Pirates
Reassigned RHP Daniel McCutchen and 2B Shelby Ford to Minor League camp. McCutchen was stallar for the Yankees prior to 2008, drawing the Pirates’ interest in a deadline deal. But he’ll have to adjust to advanced hitters before jumping to the majors. But he will be up this season. To pare payroll, they Pirates may trade Freddy Sanchez at the trade deadline if Ford hits well in the minors. But he’ll have to cut down on his strikeouts and improve his walk rate to be worthwhile. But you have to wonder, is his middle name “Mustang”, or “Cobra”?
San Francisco Giants
Optioned IF Conor Gillaspie to Triple-A Fresno. Conor jumped to the majors last season after posting mediocre numbers in from low A-ball last season. Now they are shipping him off to Triple-A instead of letting him be able to tread water at a lower level first. Reason #34,533,453 why I’m not a fan of Brian Sabean and crew.
Tampa Bay Rays
Optioned RHP Wade Davis and RHP Mitch Talbot to Triple-A Durham. Talbot was obtained in a trade with the Astros. He’s more a middle reliever/long man out of the pen type anymore. He could be used as trade bait again. Wade Davis got off to a good start early this spring, but he’ll be sent down to Triple-A to hone his craft while the Rays decide whether to trade him or trade someone else to free up a spot for him on the roster. He’s nearly major league ready.
Misc. Spring Training Transactions: 3/15/09
Atlanta Braves
Released RHP Phil Stockman. This Aussie had a great arm with mid-to-upper 90s heat. But injuries have derailed his career and his back will likely need surgery.
Baltimore Orioles
Optioned RHP Jim Hoey and LHP Troy Patton to Double-A Bowie. Optioned LHP Brian Matusz to Single-A Frederick. It seems interesting that they optioned Hoey and Patton to Double-A instead of Triple-A. Neither pitched more than an inning in a game for the Orioles this spring, but they didn’t put up decent stats either. Hoey likely needs to hone his command more and Patton is still recovering from last season’s surgery. Matusz on the other hand dazzled with 4.2 innings of 2-hit, 1-walk, 5-strikeout work. He could move fast.
Milwaukee Brewers
Optioned RHP Nick Green to Triple-A Nashville. Nick was a former prospect of the L.A. Angels, recently claimed by the Brewers. Over at Future Angels.com they have a pretty good rundown of Nick Green and his stuff. He has an excellent change, but it looks like his mediocre fastball isn’t fooling anyone.
New York Yankees
Optioned RHP Ian Kennedy to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. After ripping through college and the minors, Kennedy can’t seem to stick with the Yankees. Like Green, his fastball is lacking and he’ll need to refine his control some more to break through.
San Diego Padres
Signed RHP Duaner Sanchez to a Minor League contract and invited him to Spring Training. Is there anything left? The Padres seem to be taking a chance on a few pitchers on the scrap heap.
Seattle Mariners
Claimed RHP Jesus Delgado off waivers from the Marlins. Delgado was one of the prospects in the Josh Beckett trade. Not expected to contend this season, the Mariners are likely to let him take his lumps with them as he comes back from major arm surgery.
Texas Rangers
Optioned RHP Thomas Diamond and LHP Kason Gabbard to Triple-A Oklahoma City. Diamond is the only one of the “DVD” trio that hasn’t busted out with a good season in the majors. I guess having a 22.50 ERA with a 6.00 WHIP in your only chance in Spring Training doesn’t give you much of a chance.
Rookies to Look For: Taylor Teagarden
At the beginning of the off-season the Texas Rangers had four notable catchers essentially ready for major league play. Gerald Laird, Jarrod Saltalamacchia, Max Ramirez, and Taylor Teagarden all have, or should have, decent major league careers.
The player with the most service time, Gerald Laird, was traded to the Detroit Tigers to free up the payroll and a space on the roster so that at least two of the other players can be in the bigs this season.
Salty and Ramirez profile as offensive-minded catchers with much to learn defensively behind the plate. The third player, Taylor Teagarden, is already known for his defensive prowess. Rangers Farm Report has a little background on the young backstop.
The main question for Taylor has been if he’ll be able to hit for a decent average. Teagarden hit .169 in Double-A and .225 in Triple-A last season. Sure, he was recovering from injuries, but was there any hope for him to hit for a decent average in the majors? He answered his critics in a short stint in the majors late in the season, hitting .319/.396/.809 with six home runs in just 47 at-bats.
However, Ranger fans cannot expect him to hit anywhere near that level while in the majors. Although he’s had passable walk rates (and very good ones in the low minors), his strikeout rates have never fallen below 30% at any level. This is not a good indicator for success in the majors. In fact it is quite ugly and typically major league pitchers will eat up hitters like that.
There’s a wide spread of predictions for Teagarden this season. The batting averages range from .216 to .285 and his predicted at-bats range from 200 to 389. But the average seems to be around .240, which may be appropriate, especially for his first season. Although there’s a belief that Salty will get about 60% of the starts, Taylor may often come in as late-game substitution. A 300 at-bat season may be possible.
In the end, a .240/15/45 season may be about what we see out of Taylor’s rookie season. Although the home runs are nice, many team look towards to improving behind the plate if their catcher only hits .240 on the season. But I can see the Rangers trading Salty and either making Ramirez a DH or trading him as well. The have plenty of offensive talent already and they reside in a hitter’s paradice of a ballpark. They need a catcher with Teagarden’s great leadership and defense to lead their much maligned pitching staff.
Who knows, under hitting wizard Judy Jaramillo tutiledge, we could see him cutting down on his strikeouts to have a couple seasons of .275/25-30/75 offense out of him as well.
Misc. Spring Training Transactions: 3/14/09
Baltimore Orioles
The Orioles assigned non-roster invitees RHP Jake Arrieta and RHP Chris Tillman to Minor League camp. Both pitchers should move fast this season and may see some time in the majors at some point for the Orioles.
Kansas City Royals
The Royals optioned RHP Carlos Rosa to Triple-A Omaha. Rosa may be one of the first up to fill a spot in the pitching staff should injuries or inconsistancey hit. Kieth, over at The Royal Tower, has a very good analysis of Rosa, comparing him to the Braves’ Rafael Soriano.
New York Mets
Claimed RHP Fernando Nieve off waivers from the Astros. Nieve has been hit by the injury buy lately. He had Tommy John surgery in 2007 and a hamstring injury in 2008. As long as it truly takes pitchers to get over Tommy John, Nieve may be in a good position to pitch better this season. But the starting rotation is not a good spot for him. As a good analytical article posted by Beyond the Box Score states, he’s mainly a fastball/slider pitcher. Maybe the Mets can hone his skills for coming out of the bullpen.
Rainy Day Reading: Mike Aviles, Ichiro, and Haley’s Comet
In a new section here at The Baseball Opinion we are going to look at interesting articles from other bloggers and beat writers. This has been an aspect of the site that I’ve contemplated starting for a while, but it was the following article that pushed me over the edge. When I saw the article entitled, “Mike Aviles is historic, in a Haley’s Comet-meets-Ichiro kind of way“, I just had to read it.
The article by Sam Mellinger of the Kansas City Star briefly covers Mike Aviles baseball career, from college to the minors, to his rookie season. But it also compares Aviles’ OPS+ to past rookies. The most recent comparable for a rookie at the age of 27 or older was Ichiro, but before that it was Guy Curtwright.
Mellinger eventually gets to his point of:
The point here is that baseball just doesn’t see something like Aviles’ rookie year happen. Hardly ever. Aside from Ichiro, this is a bit like seeing Haley’s Comet.
Sam does admit that Avilles is due to regress some this season, as does most of the rest of the baseball analytical world. Most of the projections have him at about .280/14/70 with doubles in the mid 30′s for 2009. Still, not bad out of your shortstop.
2009 Season Preview
The 2009 Baseball Opinion Season Preview is here! Unlike many magazines out there, Baseball Opinion predicts the entire roster and gives you the insight that the others won’t. We review the rookies that can have an impact on the team, up and coming players that could take it up another level this season, the keys for each team’s success, and overall insight into what’s in store for each team. Download the preview for FREE here:
The Baseball Opinion
2009 Season Preview
