The Yankees have placed Alex Rodriguez on the 60-day DL to clear room on the 40-man roster for the recently-acquired Shawn Kelley, the team announced. It’s just a procedural move, A-Rod isn’t expected to return form his left hip surgery until after the All-Star break.
Yankees acquire Shawn Kelley for Abe Almonte
The Yankees had a surplus of Double-A and Triple-A outfielders, so they turned one of them into a serviceable big league reliever. New York traded Abe Almonte to the Mariners for right-hander Shawn Kelley, the team announced. Alex Rodriguez was placed on the 60-day DL to clear a 40-man roster spot.
Kelley, 29 in April, was designated for assignment by the Mariners when they signed Joe Saunders six days ago. Buster Olney confirmed Kelley has a minor league option remaining, meaning he’s likely ticketed for the Triple-A bullpen to start the season. He and Cody Eppley figure to ride the Scranton-Bronx express this summer. Kelley will earn $935k in 2013 following his second trip through arbitration as a Super Two. He can’t become a free agent until the 2015-2016 offseason at the earliest.
A two-time Tommy John surgery survivor, Kelley owns a 3.52 ERA (4.12 FIP) in 128 big league innings spread across the last four seasons. He misses bats (career 8.58 K/9 and 22.6 K%) with a low-to-mid-90s fastball and a power mid-80s slider, and his walk rate (2.74 BB/9 and 7.4 BB%) is strong as well. Ten of his 39 walks as a big leaguer were intentional, so that walk rate is inflated a little bit. Kelley is a fly ball pitcher (29.5% grounders) and homer prone (1.34 HR/9 and 9.7% HR/FB), which is not ideal. As long as he’s working low-to-mid-leverage innings, it won’t be the end of the world.
Almonte, 23, did not make my annual Top 30 Prospects List. He hit .276/.350/.392 (106 wRC+) with 30 steals in 359 plate appearances for Double-A Trenton last summer. Once an infielder, Almonte moved to the outfield full-time in 2008 and has experience in all three spots. He re-signed with the team after becoming a minor league free agent in October, then went unclaimed in December’s Rule 5 Draft. With Slade Heathcott, Tyler Austin, and Ramon Flores ticketed for Double-A and Zoilo Almonte, Melky Mesa, and Ronnie Mustelier in line for Triple-A — don’t forget about Adonis Garcia and Thomas Neal either — Almonte was completely expendable.
The big league bullpen is pretty much set at this point, but extra arms are always going to be needed. The Yankees used 17 different relievers just last season, for example. Kelley adds some depth and they traded a player they won’t even notice is gone thanks to all the outfielders at the upper levels. I wouldn’t say it’s something-for-nothing, but they definitely used their minor league surplus to help the big league club.
Open Thread: 2/13 Camp Notes
Some notes from the first workout for pitchers and catchers down in Tampa…
- Chad Jennings has the day’s bullpen and batting practice assignments. Phil Hughes, Hiroki Kuroda, Andy Pettitte, Mariano Rivera, David Aardsma, and Clay Rapada were the projected big leaguers to throw while all the catchers took their hacks.
- The Yankees will allow Rivera to shag fly balls during batting practice this season despite last year’s knee injury, Joe Girardi confirmed. Rivera will wear a knee brace this year, though I’m not sure if that means during games or just pre-game workouts. [Jack Curry & Bob Nightengale]
- Remember when I said David Phelps and Michael Pineda changed numbers yesterday? Scratch that. Phelps went back to #41 and Pineda went back to #35. This is serious business, folks. [Mark Feinsand]
- Cervelli answered questions about his connection to Biogenesis, the performance-enhancing drug hub in South Florida. He said he went there and met with Anthony Bosch once, but did not take or receive any drugs. No player or agent referred him. [Dan Barbarisi & Nightengale]
Here is your open thread for the evening. Both the Knicks and Nets are playing, so talk about those games or anything else here. Have at it.
Pettitte undecided about pitching beyond 2013
I think most of us have assumed that the 2013 season would be Andy Pettitte’s last as a player, but apparently that may not be the case. Pettitte told Dan Barbarisi and Jack Curry that he will make a decision about his pitching future next winter, though he made sure to mention that he wants to finish his career strong. We sat through a few weeks of “will he or won’t he pitch?” this past offseason and it looks like we might be in store for some more in a few months. I love Andy, but I hate that part about him.
Rivera not yet ready to discuss plans beyond 2013
Mariano Rivera has made up his mind regarding his future beyond the 2013 season … but he isn’t telling anyone. “Yes, I have (made a decision) … But I won’t give it up until I’m ready,” said Mo to Jack Curry. Rivera, 43, did say he will made an announcement before Opening Day. I think most of us have assumed it will be his final year, and a pre-Opening Day announcement reinforces that a bit. I don’t think Rivera would commit to playing in 2014 without first seeing how 2013 went.
Reviewing the Yanks’ 2012 international signings
The Yankees relied on the international market to build their farm system for decades. The ability to spend freely gave them a natural advantage because they had more money than everyone else, plus the global appeal of the Yankees brand practically sold itself. The team used the international market to produce scores of big leaguers and trade chips over the years.
The new Collective Bargaining Agreement, implemented last winter, changed that. Teams were given a $2.9M spending pool to spend internationally last summer, with rather harsh bonuses for exceeding that amount. The Rays became the first team to exceed the pool and get hit with penalties according to Ben Badler, so they won’t be allowed to sign any players for more than $250k this year. Clearly, MLB has achieved its goal of keeping big spenders like the Rays in check.
Anyway, the Yankees spent almost their entire $2.9M pool on three 16-year-olds — Venezuelan catcher Luis Torrens ($1.3M), Venezuelan outfielder Alex Palma ($800k), and Dominican shortstop Yancarlos Baez ($650k) — last July 2nd, the first day of the international signing period. You can read more about those three players right here. There’s a good chance Torrens will make his stateside debut with the Rookie Level Gulf Coast League affiliate this summer. Palma might as well.
The Yankees spent their last bit of pool money on 16-year-old Nicaraguan left-hander Corby McCoy, who signed for $150k. The team also used a $50k exemption — each club gets six — to sign 17-year-old Nicaraguan lefty Luis Garcia. McCoy is the better prospect, but he’s a pure projection guy at 6-foot-3 and 170 lbs. His fastball sits anywhere from the mid-80s to low-90s, and his breaking ball is very much a work in progress. Garcia’s another big guy — listed at 6-foot-4 and 185 lbs. — with mid-80s heat.
New York was able to do quite a bit of damage before the spending restrictions kicked in on July 2nd. The largest bonus they agreed to hand out went to 18-year-old Cuban left-hander Omar Luis Rodriguez. He signed for $4M, but back in December we heard the contract was still pending a visa and not yet official. Listed at 5-foot-11 and 205 lbs., Rodriguez has a five-pitch mix — 88-92 mph fastball and mid-70s curveball, plus a cutter, slider, and changeup — and throws plenty of strikes. He stands out for his poise on the mound and has a strong track record in international play.
Ben Badler (subs. req’d) says the Yankees signed two other Cubans as well. One was outfielder Adonis Garcia ($400k), who spent time with Double-A Trenton last year. You can read more about him right here. The other was 27-year-old outfielder Yeral Sanchez, whose $400k bonus did not count towards the spending pool because of his age. Badler says he “has a chiseled 6-foot-1 frame with an aggressive approach and solid power … is around an average runner with an arm that’s average to a tick above-average that should play in right field.”
Prior to July 2nd, the Yankees also signed 23-year-old Dominican right-hander Manolo Reyes ($600k) and 17-year-old Dominican shortstop Jorge Mateo ($250k) according to Badler. Reyes had previously signed with the Braves, but his contract was terminated and he was suspended for a year because of issues with his paperwork. He has a huge arm though, running his fastball into the mid-90s and touching 99. His breaking ball and splitter are inconsistent but have shown potential. Reyes is awaiting a visa before his contract can become official, so he hasn’t been able to pitch in official games and is very raw for his age.
Mateo is listed at 6-foot-0 and 185 lbs. He earns high grades for his speed and athleticism, which give him a chance to be an above-average defender at shortstop according to Badler. Mateo is a right-hander hitter with something resembling a plan at the plate, but he’s still learning how to handle breaking balls. Badler says his “athleticism would make him an exciting prospect if his bat develops” while noting that some actually preferred him over Baez.
Dominican lefty Carlos Diaz, 17, signed for $100k last March, then got hit with a 50-game suspension after testing positive for a banned substance. He is listed at 6-foot-2 and 170 lbs., and Badler says he has “an unconventional low three-quarters arm angle (that) gives him good armside life on his fastball, which parks in the high-80s and reaches 90-91.” His slider and overall control need work.
The Yankees used two of their other exemptions to sign 19-year-old Dominican right-hander Simon DeLaRosa ($50k) and 16-year-old Venezuelan shortstop Thairo Estrada ($49k). DeLaRosa pitches in the low-to-mid-90s with a promising curveball while Estrada has a line drive swing and fast-twitch athleticism. Badler calls both guys potential sleepers.
Starting this year the pool values will be scaled so that teams with bad records can spend more while teams with good records get to spend less. The Yankees finished with the third best record in baseball last season and are expected to have just $1.5-1.7M to spend internationally this year, which is nothing. Those six $50k exemptions are going to be important, they’re going to have to dig up some hidden gems with them.
David Aardsma: The Bullpen Wildcard
The Yankees will have familiar faces holding down important bullpen roles this season. Mariano Rivera is slated to close for the 17th consecutive season while David Robertson and Joba Chamberlain handle the primary setup duties. Boone Logan, entering his fourth season with the Yankees, will be the primary left-hander. Second lefty Clay Rapada and likely swingman David Phelps were with the club last year. The last spot is going to a relatively new face, or at least as new as a face can be when the player is entering his second year with the team.
David Aardsma, the 31-year-old former Mariners closer, joined the Yankees last spring on a bargain one-year contract worth just $500k. The deal included a $500k club option for a second season, which the team exercised back in November. Incentives could put another $1.5M in his pocket, but that’s still a super low-risk contract. Aardsma was rehabbing from Tommy John surgery when he signed the deal and was not expected to return until midseason. A setback pushed his return back further, and ultimately he was only able to appear in one game in late-September.
“I felt good, but I wasn’t fully back into pitching mode,” said Aardsma to Dan Martin about his one-inning outing against the Blue Jays. “It feels good to be getting ready for a real Spring Training for once.”
It’s easy to forget that Aardsma is coming back from not just one injury, but two. He had surgery to repair a torn labrum in his left hip in January 2011, and it was during his rehab from that procedure that he blew out his elbow and needed the reconstruction. Prior to his one-inning cameo in September, he had not appeared in a big league game since September 2010. That’s an awful lot of rust to shake off this spring.
Before the injuries hit, Aardsma was a very good but not great reliever with Seattle. His save total — 69-for-78 from 2009-2010 — was impressive, but otherwise he pitched to a 2.44 ERA (3.44 FIP) with 9.6 K/9 (25.9 K%) and 4.39 BB/9 (11.9%) in 121 innings during his two healthy seasons with the Mariners. Prior to that he’d pitched to a 5.29 ERA (4.90 FIP) in 144.2 innings with the Giants, Cubs, White Sox, and Red Sox from 2004-2008.
Strikeouts have always been Aardsma’s thing, evidenced by his career 9.08 K/9 and 23.0 K%. Hitters have swung and missed at his pitches approximately 11.4% of the time during the PitchFX era according to Brooks Baseball, which is comfortably above-average. Walks and fly balls are also this thing, unfortunately. Aardsma’s career walk rate (5.06 BB/9 and 12.8 BB%) is scary, though it was a bit better with Seattle. His career 35.2% ground ball rate is very low, but it has helped him maintain a low BABIP — .244 with Seattle and .287 career — since fly balls are easily converted into outs. They also make him a bit homer prone (career 0.95 HR/9 and 8.8% HR/FB), which is not ideal in Yankee Stadium.
Aardsma is a three-pitch reliever, sitting in the 92-96 mph range with his fastball and backing it up with low-to-mid-80s splitters and sliders. He threw all three pitches during his one-appearance cameo in September according to PitchFX, and all three showed up at their pre-injury velocity (or thereabouts). The slider is for righties and the split for lefties, so he hasn’t shown a big platoon split — .243 wOBA with a 25.4 K% against righties and .283 and 26.4% against lefties while with the Mariners, respectively. His career split is tiny.
Coming off two lost years, we really have no idea what to expect from Aardsma in 2013. The right-hander told Martin that he’s already thrown four bullpen sessions leading up to Spring Training and hasn’t had any problems with the hip or elbow, which is great. Being healthy is the important first step. Having swing-and-miss stuff is a solid foundation, though the walks — I foresee a lot of “effectively wild” statements in the coming weeks and months — and fly balls are a concern. For a guy slated to start the season in a low-to-mid-leverage middle relief role, they aren’t they end of the world. A concern, but not a dealbreaker.
In essence, Aardsma will be taking over the Cory Wade role. The were both fly ball and homer prone right-handers without long track records of success, but the similarities stop there. I’m skeptical that Aardsma can replicate Wade’s success — at least Wade’s success before he completely imploded in late-May last summer — and that will be worth watching early in the season. If he’s missing bats and keeping the walk rate somewhat reasonable, he should be fine. If not, the Yankees will probably wind up testing that Triple-A bullpen depth before long.