Baseball Chatter 02/20

The Red Sox could make a trade for Todd Frazier if Pablo Sandoval does not reestablish himself as a capable third baseman.

By the trade deadline the White Sox will only owe half of the $12.5 million owed to Frazier in the last year of his contract. Contending teams, as well as the rebuilding White Sox, will be salivating to make a deal by then.

Eric Gagne, 41, is considering making a comeback, even though he retired six years ago. He will pitch for Canada and claims he still throws a fastball 90 mph.

Adam Wainwright “looked great” while throwing to hitters for the first time Sunday but showed uncharacteristic control problems last season as evidenced by a 1.40 WHIP that equaled the second highest of his career.

Corey Kluber may not be ready to start on Opening Day. He has pitched more than 700 innings over the last three years, and manager Terry Francona is making every effort to protect Kluber’s arm this season, including imposing a strict innings limit this spring.

Kendrys Morales worked on his defense this off season as he prepares for a possible platoon at first base

Runners went 21-for-21 stealing bases against Dellin Betances last year, including 6-for-6 when Gary Sanchez‘s rocket arm was behind the plate. They’re 50-for-57 over the last three seasons. Runners have attempted a stolen base in 15.9% of their opportunities against Betances since 2014. It was 17.7% in 2016. The league average is 5.5%.

Matt Kemp came to camp early looking like he lost some weight and got in shape over the winter. He has been the talk of Braves camp so far as he is looking great in batting practice.

Kemp batted .280 with 12 home runs, 39 RBIs and a .519 slugging percentage in 56 games for the Braves after he arrived in late July.

Kemp is being undervalued in drafts at this point but not for long, so take advantage of the situation while you can!! Freddie Freeman should also benefit greatly now that he has some protection around him in the lineup.

Yandy Diaz has hit at every step of his minor-league journey, but his opportunity for playing time depends on the health of Michael Brantley. The Indians also have Abraham Almonte and Austin Jackson who are both qualified to play Left Field.

Gerardo Parra was out of shape last year when he reported to spring training after signing a three-year, $27.5 million contract last winter. On June 15 he suffered a high ankle sprain and missed 46 games. Upon his return, Parra played 39 games, including 19 as a fill-in first baseman. He hit .253 with a .271 OBP, both career lows. Was his ankle fully healed? Watch this spring.

Effector Opportunity

The Phillies could be an intriguing team to use the Effector this season. They have three potential closers with experience pitching multiple innings. Jeanmar Gomez, Hector Neris and Edubray Ramos – They also have Joaquin Benoit, who, at 39, probably can’t go multiple innings but can close it out in the ninth.

The Phillies have a rotation full of young pitchers who might not get through five or six innings every time they start a game. Rather than naming Gomez as the closer, the Phillies should take the opportunity to do away with classic bullpen roles, including a closer.

The ‘ninth inning closer’ model has bolstered the myth that the game is on the line only in that final inning. It certainly is more obviously on the line at that point, but the fact is, most games are decided before then. Somehow, teams managed to forget this at some point in the late ’80’s -Brian Kenny in his book, Ahead of the Curve

Tyler Glasnow has to become more adept with his changeup if he wants to earn the fifth spot in the Pirates rotation. Over the past couple of months, he has been obsessive about throwing it during his workouts.

 

Reds Mgr Bryan Price wants his back-of-the-bullpen relievers to get fewer appearances but deliver multiple innings. As has been telegraphed during the off season, the job will be shared among Raisel Iglesias, Drew Storen, Michael Lorenzen and Tony Cingrani.

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