The Atlanta Braves and pitcher Julio Teheran have agreed to a six-year extension that will keep him under team control through the 2019 season, the team announced Friday. Teheran also receives an option for the 2020 season. The Atlanta Braves have been locking up young stars recently, also giving first baseman Freddie Freeman and outfielder Jason Heyward extensions as well. The 23-year-old Colombian native went 14-8 with a 3.20 ERA and a 1.174 WHIP in 2013 with the Braves, his first full campaign of his career. The #4 overall prospect by MLB.com (pre-2012) was able to toss 185 2/3 innings with the Braves in 2013, also racking up 170 strikeouts. Teheran's success led him to finishing fifth in the NL Rookie of the Year voting. Teheran was coming off of a season in 2012 where many people doubted him as a top prospect. Teheran posted a 5.08 ERA in 131 innings pitched with the Braves Triple-A affiliate. His stock fell greatly, going from the #4 prospect to the #31 prospect (MLB.com). However, Teheran bounced back, and the Braves will hope that he can continue to progress into the future. Julio Teheran and this relatively inexperienced pitching staff will likely be a large part of the Braves success. Tim Hudson, the ex-Braves veteran, will no longer be able to help this staff. They will have to rely on Kris Medlen, Mike Minor, and Julio Teheran to get the job done. In 2013, the Braves rotation finished sixth in the MLB in ERA and third in innings pitched.
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The Washington Nationals and Tampa Bay Rays completed a trade on Thursday. The Rays sent catcher Jose Lobaton, lefty Felipe Rivero, and outfielder Drew Vettleson to the Nationals in exchange for right-hander Nate Karns.
The Nationals acquire the backup catcher for Wilson Ramos in Lobaton that they have been coveting for the past few weeks. They also gain two notable minor-leaguers. In return, they give up Nate Karns, a pitcher with a ton of potential and a very good skill set. Many thought that with a good Spring Training, Karns could take the fifth rotation spot. Now, he'll be headed to Tampa, where he will be put into a similar situation. The 29-year-old Lobaton posted a 100 OPS+ in 311 plate appearances with the Tampa Bay Rays in 2013. He triple-slashed a .249/.320/.394 with 7 home runs and 32 RBI. In 76 starts at catcher, Lobaton was serviceable, posting a -8 fielding runs above average. The Nationals will be getting a good hitting catcher (which can be a rarity), who can make a good start once in awhile. Lobaton can call a good game as well; Rays pitchers posted a 3.73 ERA in his starts. Nate Karns, 26, is the Rays only player return. He, in 12 Major League innings in 2013, went 0-1 with a 7.50 ERA and a 1.917 WHIP with the Nationals. In 23 minor-league starts, Karns went 10-6 with a 3.26 ERA in 132 2/3 innings pitched. The Nationals will also be receiving Felipe Rivero and Drew Vettleson. Rivero, 22, has a career 3.45 ERA in 386 minor league innings in the Rays system. In 2013, he went 9-7 with a 3.40 ERA in 127 innings (25 games, 23 starts) at the Rays High Single-A affiliate. Vettleson, 22, is a former first round pick. He has a .760 OPS in 1,345 plate appearances. In 2013, Vettleson hit a triple slash of .274/.331/.388 in 516 plate appearances at the Rays High Single-A affiliate. The Baltimore Orioles and South Korean pitcher Suk-Min Yoon have agreed on a three-year, $5.25 million deal, according to reports.
His salary breakdown has much of an escalator; Yoon will make $750 thousand in 2014, $1.75 million in 2015, and $2.4 million in 2016. Yoon can make up to $1.25 million in incentives every year if he is able to reach a set number of games-started. Yoon can ultimately make up to $13 million in his contract with the Orioles. It is hard to know what Yoon will bring to the table in the Major Leagues, thus the incentive bonuses with the Orioles. But, the 27-year-old was a very good pitcher in his team in the Korean Baseball Organization, going 73-59 with a 3.19 ERA and a 1.20 WHIP in his time with the Kia Tigers (2005-2013). Yoon won the KBO MVP in 2011, racking up 17 wins while posting a 2.45 ERA. That season Yoon also posted 178 strikeouts in 172 1/3 innings pitched. Yoon pitched for Korea in the 2009 World Baseball Classic, going 2-0 with a 1.13 ERA and 13 strikeouts in 16 innings pitched. The Orioles, needing starting pitching help, have been "in" on many different options this offseason, but Yoon is the first notable pitcher they have signed this off-season. The Orioles ranked 27th in starters' ERA in 2013, posting a 4.72 mark. They ranked 22nd in starters' innings pitched as well. The Philadelphia Phillies and starting pitcher A.J. Burnett have agreed to a one-year, $16 million deal, according to reports. Burnett decided that he would pitch in 2014 on January 28, making his decision over retirement. Earlier in the offseason, he reportedly only wanted to go to a club in close proximity to his Maryland home, making the Orioles, Phillies, and Pirates the ideal teams to sign the hurler. The Pirates, however, only paid $8 million of Burnett's $16.5 million (other $8.5 million paid by Yankees) in 2013. They were unwilling to match the $16 million Burnett wanted, thus not giving him a qualifying offer. Just a few days ago, the Orioles dropped out of the race, per reports. The Phillies also reportedly fell out of the race, but they returned when Todd Zolecki of MLB.com reported on his blog that the talks between the Phillies and the Pirates weren't done quite yet. Another thing to have noted is that the Phillies Assistant General Manager Scott Proefrock and Burnett are neighbors, and Burnett and other Phillies starting pitcher Cliff Lee share an agent. The 37-year-old Burnett last pitched with the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2013, going 10-11 with a 3.30 ERA and a 1.215 WHIP in 191 innings pitched (107 ERA+). Burnett led the National League in K/9 rate, posting a 9.8 mark. Over his past two years in Pittsburgh, Burnett has gone 26-21 with a 3.41 ERA and a 1.228 WHIP in 393 1/3 innings pitched (107 ERA+). He allowed 8.1 hits per nine innings while facing over 1,600 batters. Burnett has had his ups and downs during his career, but overall he has been a very solid starter. He won 18 games in 2008, while also leading the American League in strikeouts (231). His best season (based on ERA+) came in 2002 with the Florida Marlins, when Burnett went 12-9 with a 3.30 ERA in 204 1/3 innings pitched. He tossed a National League leading five shutouts that season. One trend the Phillies may be happy with is Burnett's American League stats versus his National League stats. His ERA+ in the American League is an average 100, but in the National League, Burnett is 9% better, posting a 109 ERA+. Burnett will join a Phillies rotation that, despite being led by Cole Hamels and Cliff Lee, posted the sixth-worst starters' ERA in all of the Major Leagues. A good Burnett could really help those matters. As for the signing, the Phillies did not overpay, but they did not underpay. Many felt that they needed to sign A.J. Burnett in order to contend this season, so their front office must believe they can. Now with a rotation of Hamels, Lee, Burnett, Kyle Kendrick, and Jonathan Pettibone, Roberto Hernandez, or Miguel Gonzalez, the Phillies may just be setting themselves up for a sneaky good 2014 campaign. We will have to wait and see how it all plays out. The New York Mets and relief pitcher Jose Valverde have agreed to a minor-league contract which includes an invite to Major League Spring Training, the team announced on Wednesday. Jon Heyman of CBS Sports reports that Valverde can make up to $1 million if he makes the Major League club.
The 35-year-old Valverde had trouble in his 20 games with the Detroit Tigers in 2013. He went 0-1 with a 5.59 ERA and a 1.241 WHIP (76 ERA+) in 19 1/3 innings pitched. Valverde has pitched well in the past, going 2-4 while posting a 2.24 ERA and a 1.189 WHIP (185 ERA+) in 75 games with the Tigers. This included an American League leading 49 saves. Over Valverde's career, he has 286 saves while posting a 138 ERA+ in 609 2/3 innings pitched with the Arizona Diamondbacks (2003-2007), the Houston Astros (2008-2009), and the Detroit Tigers (2010-2013). Valverde is a very good gamble for the Mets to take, especially on a minor-league contract. If he can revert back to even eighty percent of what he has been in the past, he could prove to be a very valuable signing come down the stretch for the Mets. If they are on the brink of punching a postseason, Valverde may be able to pitch and succeed when it is needed, in the late innings of close ballgames. |
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