Nationals Make Big Trade: Hot Stove: 12/18

News

Veteran infielder Mark Teahen retired after seven major league seasons.

Dodgers designated Brian Wilson for assignment.

Free Agent Signings

Royals signed Edinson Volquez (13-7, 3.04 ERA, 1.23 WHIP, 2015 age: 31-32) to a two year, $20 million deal.

Marlins signed Michael Morse (16 HR, 61 RBI, .279 AVG, 2015 age: 33) to a two year, $16 million deal.

Royals signed Alex Rios (4 HR, 54 RBI, .280 AVG, 17 SB, 2015 age: 34) to a one year, $11 million deal.

Giants resigned Sergio Romo (6-4, 3.72 ERA, 0.95 WHIP, 23 SV, 2015 age: 32) to a two year, $15 million deal.

Royals signed Kris Medlen (15-12, 3.11 ERA, 1.22 WHIP, 2015 age: 29) to a two year, $8.5 million deal.

Yankees signed Chris Capuano (3-4, 4.35 ERA, 1.39 WHIP, 2015 age: 36) to a one year, $5 million deal.

Padres signed Brandon Morrow (1-3, 5.67 ERA, 1.65 WHIP, 2015 age: 30-31) to a one year, $2.5 million deal.

Indians signed Gavin Floyd (2-2, 2.65 ERA, 1.25 WHIP, 2015 age: 32) to a one year, $4 million deal.

Orioles signed Wesley Wright (0-3, 3.17 ERA, 1.39 WHIP, 2015 age: 30) to a one year deal.

Cubs signed Jason Motte (1-0, 4.68 ERA, 1.52 WHIP, 2015 age: 32-33) to a one year, $4.5 million deal.

Rockies signed Daniel Descalso (0 HR, 10 RBI, .242 AVG, 1 SB, 2015 age: 28) to a one year, $3.6 million deal.

The signing of Edinson Volquez to a relatively modest deal of $20 million will be a great move for the Royals team that lost James Shields to free agency. Volquez may be extremely inconsistent, but he is coming off the best year of his career and the Royals are banking on him remaining in top form. The 31 year old went 13-7 with a 3.04 ERA and a 1.23 WHIP in 32 games (31 starts) for the Pirates last year, in stark contrast to a 2013 where he went 9-12 with a 5.71 ERA and a 1.59 WHIP. If he can continue to pitch like 2014 Edinson, then he will be a great front man for a rotation that includes Yordano Ventura, Kris Medlen, Jeremy Guthrie, and Danny Duffy.

I’m usually not a fan of what the Marlins do, but this Michael Morse deal will be great for them. The 32 year old Morse may be at the point in his career where he is simply a right handed power bat off the bench or a fill in guy, but he’s got the big time pop it takes to get the ball out of Marlins Park. For the affordable price of $8 million per season, a big bat like Morse’s is a great thing to have. He can fill in at first base for Garrett Jones as well as be a fourth outfielder behind Giancarlo Stanton, Marcell Ozuna, and Christian Yelich. Morse has struggled to stay healthy, but he did have a bounce-back season in 2014 after hitting 16 home runs, driving in 61, and batting .279 in 131 games, his highest total since 2011. 2011 was clearly his best season, as the 29 year old hit 31 home runs, drove in 95, and batted .303 in 146 games with the Nationals. He likely won’t put up those numbers with the Marlins, but he has not failed to hit 13 home runs in a season since 2009. The 6’5”, 245 pound slugger’s first home run in a Marlins uniform will be his 100th.

Trades

Three team trade: Padres get: Wil Myers (6 HR, 35 RBI, .222 AVG, 6 SB, 2015 age: 24), Ryan Hanigan (5 HR, 34 RBI, .218 AVG, 1 SB, 2015 age: 34), and minor leaguers Gerardo Reyes (2-1, 4.09 ERA, 1.24 WHIP, 3 SV at Low A, 2015 age: 21) and Jose Castillo (0-0, 3.86 ERA, 1.07 WHIP at GCL, 2015 age: 19) from Rays.

Nationals get: Minor leaguers Trea Turner (5 HR, 24 RBI, .323 AVG, 23 SB at Low A and A, 2015 age: 21-22) and Joe Ross (10-6, 3.92 ERA, 1.26 WHIP at High A and AA, 2015 age: 22) from Padres.

Rays get: Steven Souza (2 HR, 2 RBI, .130 AVG, 2015 age: 26) and minor leaguer Travis Ott (1-4, 3.93 ERA, 1.35 WHIP at Low A and A, 2015 age: 19-20) from Nationals as well as Rene Rivera (11 HR, 44 RBI, .252 AVG, 0 SB, 2015 age: 31-32), Burch Smith (missed 2014, 1-3 in 2013, 6.44 ERA, 2015 age: 25), and minor leaguer Jake Bauers (8 HR, 64 RBI, .296 AVG, 5 SB at A, 2015 age: 19).

Rays traded Matt Joyce (9 HR, 52 RBI, .254 AVG, 2 SB, 2015 age: 30-31) to the Angels for Kevin Jepsen (0-2, 2.63 ERA, 1.05 WHIP, 2 SV, 2015 age: 30-31).

Cubs traded Justin Ruggiano (6 HR, 28 RBI, .281 AVG, 2 SB, 2015 age: 33) to the Mariners for minor leaguer Matt Brazis (4-1, 2.36 ERA, 1.00 WHIP, 6 SV at High A and AA, 2015 age: 25).

This massive, eleven player deal probably includes more guys that you’ve never heard of than any trade in recent memory (scroll to second paragraph to see what the Nationals got). Of course, you’ve probably heard of the centerpiece of the trade, Wil Myers. Myers is a 24 year old former top overall prospect who had a big rookie season in 2013 before struggling with injuries in 2014. With the acquisition of Myers, the Padres went from having a weak outfield to having Myers, Matt Kemp, Cameron Maybin, Carlos Quentin, Seth Smith, and Will Venable in a now loaded outfield. Myers burst onto the scene with a monster 2012 in the minors, batting .314 with 37 home runs and 109 RBI for AA Northwest Arkansas and AAA Omaha before being flipped to the Rays in the James Shields trade. He didn’t disappoint in his rookie 2013, batting .293 with 13 home runs and 53 RBI in an 88 game debut. With high expectations for 2014, he missed a lot of time to injury, and batted just .222 with six home runs and 35 RBI in 87 games. Hopefully for Myers and the Padres, he can get back on track for 2015. San Diego also picked up 34 year old catcher Ryan Hanigan, who has spent his entire career as a capable back-up. With Rene Rivera and Yasmani Grandal being traded away, Hanigan and Tim Federowicz will split time as backups for the newly acquired Derek Norris.. Hanigan’s best season was 2010, when he batted .300 with five home runs and 40 RBI in 70 games as Ramon Hernandez’ backup on the Reds. He batted .274 as recently as 2012, but he will likely not be a starting option after hitting .198 in 2013 and .218 in 2014, totaling seven home runs over the two seasons. San Diego also picked up a pair of minor league relievers. Gerardo Reyes is a 21 year old righty who pitched well in his first season at Class A Short Season Hudson Valley in 2014 (4.09 ERA, 1.24 WHIP, 39 strikeouts in 33 innings), while Jose Castillo is an 18 year old lefty with just 15 professional appearances under his belt, carrying 5.60 ERA and a 1.33 WHIP in the Gulf Cost League.

Personally, I love this deal for the Nationals. The main return is Trea Turner, the 13th overall pick in the 2014 Draft out of N.C. State University. Turner could be a long term solution at shortstop if Ian Desmond leaves, or he could move to second base. Either way, this guy is good. Playing 46 games at Class A Fort Wayne, he knocked four home runs while hitting a sizzling .369 with four home runs and 14 stolen bases. This kid is right out of college and is slated to start the season at High Class A at the age of 21. He is an excellent defender with blazing speed, so the .369 batting average is just part of the equation for this guy. I cannot tell you how excited I am to have him in our farm system. Also going to the Nationals is the 25th overall pick in the 2011 draft, 21 year old pitcher Joe Ross. Ross will probably start out with AA Harrisburg, but he could be an option for the major league rotation a little later into the season if all of the major league starters suddenly drop with injuries. Across three levels in 2014, he went 10-6 with a 3.92 ERA and a 1.26 WHIP, striking out 106 batters while walking just 29 in 121.1 innings. It is also important to note that he pitched most of his games in the hitter-friendly California League in High Class A.

The Rays got a lot of guys back in the trade for their prized outfielder, but none have more name recognition than Steven Souza. The 2014 International League (AAA) MVP made the play of the year by laying out to end Jordan Zimmermann’s historic no-hitter. A slight downgrade from Myers, he allows the Rays to upgrade in other areas while still keeping a young outfielder. The late-bloomer suddenly started mashing in 2012, batting .297 with 23 home runs, 85 RBI, and 25 stolen bases in 97 games across two minor league levels. Last year, he won the International League MVP Award by batting .345 with 18 home runs, 77 RBI, and 28 stolen bases in 100 games for AAA Syracuse. Aside from making the play of the year, the 25 year old struggled at the plate in the majors, batting just .130 while homering twice in 21 games. Replacing Ryan Hanigan will be Rene Rivera, acquired from the Padres. Rivera, who spent his whole career bouncing between the majors and the minors, had a breakout season in 2014, ten years after he made his major league debut. In 103 games, he batted .252 with 11 home runs, 44 RBI, and 18 doubles. He could be the Rays’ answer for a starting catcher behind the plate after Jose Molina left. Burch Smith is a 24 year old starter who missed almost the entire 2014 season to injury. After going 6-3 with a 2.63 ERA and a 1.04 WHIP at AA San Antonio and AAA Tucson in 2013, he shot up prospect lists and made the majors. However, he struggled in ten games (seven starts), goi 1-3 with a 6.44 ERA and a 1.65 WHIP. He may be able to break the Rays rotation in 2015. 19 year old Jake Bauers had a huge breakout season in 2014, batting .296 with eight home runs and 64 RBI in 112 games for Class A Fort Wayne. The incredibly young first baseman won’t be 20 years old until October, meaning he may reach AA as a teenager. The Rays have a lot to look forward to in this young bat. Lastly, Travis Ott is going to Tampa from Washington. Ott, also a teenager, reached Class A Hagerstown in 2014. Most of his starts came with Class A Short Season Auburn, where he went 1-2 with a 3.05 ERA and a 1.24 WHIP, but he struggled at Hagerstown. Hopefully he can gain a little command when he starts the 2015 season at Class A, still 19.

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HR: home runs. RBI: runs batted in. AVG: batting average. SB: stolen bases. ERA: earned run average. WHIP: walks/hits per innings pitched.

Zack Silverman