The Weekly Rundown: 3/10/24 - 3/16/24
Gerrit Cole goes down, Dylan Cease to San Diego, and more.
Good morning and happy Sunday!
Let the countdown begin. We’re only 11 days from Opening Day and with the weather warming up, it’s finally starting to feel like baseball season.
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Thanks! Now let’s jump into the biggest stories in MLB from the past week…
Cease to San Diego
Right-hander Dylan Cease had spent the last few months as the most notable pitcher on the trade market. The New York Yankees were considered the frontrunners to land him, especially following reigning AL Cy Young winner Gerrit Cole’s injury, which we’ll get to below.
Instead, the Chicago White Sox sent Cease to the San Diego Padres in a surprise move. The Padres acquired the 2022 Cy Young runner-up in exchange for prospects Drew Thorpe (Padres’ No. 5 prospect), Samuel Zavala (No. 7), and Jairo Iriarte (No. 8) as well as MLB reliever Steven Wilson.
It’s a surprising trade for two reasons. No. 1, that seems like far less than what the reported asking price has been for Cease since last summer. No. 2, the Padres had not been connected to Cease throughout the entire free agency sweepstakes.
Nonetheless, the 28-year-old is headed to San Diego to take Blake Snell’s spot atop the rotation, which still includes Yu Darvish and Joe Musgrove along with recently acquired Michael King. Cease is hoping to return to form after a down season in which he posted a 4.58 ERA and 1.42 WHIP in 33 starts (177 innings). I’d attribute some of those struggles to playing for a dysfunctional White Sox club. He’s a strong bounce-back candidate.
As for the prospects, Thorpe is the 85th-ranked prospect in baseball, according to MLB Pipeline. He went 14-2 with a 2.52 ERA over 23 minor league starts in the Yankees organization last season.
Zavala, a 19-year-old outfielder, notched a .391 OBP with 14 homers, 23 doubles, and 21 stolen bases between Low-A and High-A last season. Iriarte, 22, recorded a 3.49 ERA and 1.28 WHIP between High-A and Double-A. He has a shot at cracking the White Sox’ Opening Day roster given their depleted pitching staff.
Down Goes Cole
The Yankees took a major hit with reigning AL Cy Young winner Gerrit Cole sustaining a right elbow injury. While there’s no set timetable for his return, there’s reason for optimism as he isn’t expected to need Tommy John surgery.
Cole received the positive news after seeking a second opinion on the injury. As of now, the plan is for him to be shut down for at least the next month and then reevaluate. If all goes well, the hope is Cole will be ready to return to the mound in 10-12 weeks.
Losing Cole for an extended period would be a massive blow to New York’s rotation. After a disappointing 2023 campaign, the Yankees were active in the offseason by adding slugger Juan Soto to the lineup and right-hander Marcus Stroman to slot in behind Cole in the rotation. Now, Stroman may have to assume the role of the ace in the Bronx, especially if Carlos Rodon can’t return to form as a top-of-the-rotation arm.
There are still free-agent options for the Yankees if they aren’t feeling optimistic about Cole’s injury. Jordan Montgomery and Blake Snell remain on the market, though Montgomery may not want to return to the team that gave up on him a few years back, and Snell has turned down offers from the Yankees throughout the offseason, per reports.
Rapid Fire
Outfielder Adam Duvall signed a one-year, $3 million deal with the Atlanta Braves. This will be Duvall’s third stint in Atlanta, following 2018-20 and 2021-22.
OF Michael A. Taylor is joining the Pittsburgh Pirates on a one-year, $4 million deal. The former Gold Glover spent last season with the Minnesota Twins
Also heading to Pittsburgh is ex-Yankees right-hander Domingo German, who was placed on the restricted list in August for alleged alcohol abuse after allegedly having confrontations with Yankees teammates while intoxicated in the clubhouse. It’s a minor-league deal for German.
Third baseman J.D. Davis signed a one-year, $2.5 million deal with the Oakland A’s.
Outfielder Kole Calhoun announced his retirement after 12 big-league seasons. The 36-year-old Gold Glover spent eight years with the Los Angeles Angels, two with the Arizona Diamondbacks, one with the Texas Rangers, and his final season with the Cleveland Guardians.
The St. Louis Cardinals signed manager Oli Marmol to a two-year contract extension.
Milwaukee Brewers star reliever Devin Williams will miss around three months with back fractures.
The Rumor Mill
The Houston Astros are in “serious pursuit” of reigning NL Cy Young winner Blake Snell, per The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal. Houston’s rotation has taken hits with Lance McCullers and Luis Garcia set to start the season on the injured list, and Jose Urquidy left his Friday start early due to pain in his right elbow.
With Cole to miss time, the Yankees are interested in free-agent right-hander Michael Lorenzen, per Jon Heyman of the New York Post. Rosenthal reported earlier in the week the Chicago White Sox were interested.
The Angels and New York Mets remain connected to free-agent DH J.D. Martinez, according to Heyman.
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