Meet a Prospect Special Edition: Zach Britton

The New York Yankees not only bolstered their bullpen for the stretch and postseason run on Tuesday, but they also kept two of their biggest rivals in the American League from doing the same all in one big move acquiring Zach Britton from the Baltimore Orioles for three prospects. While many may have thought that giving up a trio of young pitchers up in the deal others would argue that the fact that the acquisition kept Britton out of the bullpen for the Boston Red Sox and the Houston Astros make the cost worth it. Will Britton, a true rental, be worth the cost of RHP Dillon Tate, RHP Cody Carroll and LHP Josh Rogers? Before we begin to even think about answering that question we first have to meet the man, so let’s do it. This is Meet a Prospect Special Edition: The Zach Britton Edition.

Zachary Grant Britton was born on December 22, 1987 in California and was raised as the youngest of three brothers in Santa Clarita, California. Britton attended Canyon High School before his family moved to Texas. It was in Texas where the left-hander attended Weatherford High School and played as an outfielder and a pitcher for the school’s team. While pitching there the Baltimore Orioles drafted him as a starting pitcher in the third round of the 2006 MLB First Year Player’s Draft, 86^th overall. Britton had offer sheets for scholarships from Texas A&M University but ultimately decided to forego his commitment and begin his professional career with the Orioles immediately by accepting a $200,000 signing bonus.

Britton spent parts of the 2006 – 2010 seasons in the minor league system for the Orioles before finally getting a true shot with the club in 2011. Britton was sent down to Triple-A to start the 2011 season but an injury to starter Brian Matusz led the team to call up Britton to fill in for him. Britton spent time down in Triple-A later in the season, many wondered if it was because the Orioles were trying to manipulate his service time in order to gain an extra season of team control before he hit free agency but ended his season with 28 starts with the Orioles amassing a 4.61 ERA, a 1.45 WHIP and an 11-11 record.

Britton had to wait until July of 2012 before he could begin his sophomore season after heading to the disabled list with a left shoulder impingement. Britton suffered a bit of a sophomore slump in 2012 posting a 5.07 ERA in 12 games, 11 as a starter, with a 5-3 record. The Orioles optioned Britton back down to Triple-A to begin the 2013 season and would only pitch in eight games for the Orioles Major League club, seven of them starts, pitching to a 2-3 record in just 40 innings of work. The Orioles begun the process of converting Britton to a bullpen arm rather than a starter after another tough campaign for the young left-hander.

Britton made the Orioles Opening Day roster in 2014 as a relief pitcher and eventually as their closer where he converted 37 of 41 save opportunities while pitching to a 1.65 ERA. Britton would help the Orioles sweep the Detroit Tigers in the 2014 American League Division Series before losing in the American League Championship Series. After a strong 2014 season the Orioles and Britton agreed to a $3.2 million deal for the 2015 season thus avoiding an arbitration hearing. Britton rewarded the Orioles that season with 36 saves in 40 opportunities, a 1.92 ERA and his first MLB All-Star Game selection.

Britton once again avoided arbitration with the Orioles in 2016 after signing a one-year deal worth $6.75 million and once again earned a trip to the All-Star Game with Baltimore that season as well. Britton converted his first 33 saves to start the season setting a new MLB record for the most consecutives saves to start a season by a left-handed pitcher and matched the seventh longest stretch of all-time to start a season. Later that season Britton set the MLB record for the most consecutive relief appearances without allowing an earned run, 39 appearances at that point. Britton pitched in 43 straight appearances without giving up a run that season before allowing a run to the Washington Nationals on August 24. Britton pitched in 69 games that season and allowed just four runs all season, which equated to a 0.54 ERA. This mark broke the MLB record for the lowest single-season ERA by a pitcher with at least 50 innings pitched and helped the Orioles lefty convert all 47 of his save opportunities on the season.

In 2017 Britton saved his first game that season, a victory over the Toronto Blue Jays, which gave him his 50^th straight save dating back to October of the 2015 season. Britton would end up converting 55 straight saves to set an American League record before blowing a save on August 23^rd against the Oakland Athletics. Britton would only make 38 appearances in 2018 due to spending time on the disabled list with left forearm tightness twice and would ultimately suffer a ruptured Achilles tendon after the season which kept him out of action for six months.

Elite Sports Network NY credit image

Britton would ultimately sign a one-year deal worth $12 million to avoid arbitration in his final season of eligibility before beginning the season on the 60-day DL due to the Achilles tendon. Britton made his debut off the disabled list on June 12 and notched his first save 11 days later on June 23. Now Britton, a left-handed closer that possesses a 99 MPH sinker, a four-seam fastball that sits around 96 MPH, and a curveball that ranges in the 82-83 MPH range, is a member of the New York Yankees after being acquired by the team late on Tuesday night.

Welcome to the organization Zach and welcome to the family… even if it is temporary!

Great Britton Has Joined the War...

Yanks acquire elite Reliever for Stretch Run…

I am not sure how I felt when I first heard that trade negotiations were heating up between the New York Yankees and the Baltimore Orioles.  In 2016, there was not a more dominant reliever in baseball than Zach Britton. He was 2-1 with 47 saves and was virtually unhittable with 0.54 ERA (giving up only four earned runs in 67 innings pitched). He struck out 74 batters and was only touched for one home run. He thrust his name in the arena of elite closers, but then the last couple of years have been injury-filled. After accumulating 120 saves between 2014 and 2016, he has only 19 this year and last. By comparison, the interim closer for the O’s, Brad Brach, has 29 saves for 2017 and YTD 2018. 

When healthy, there are not too many pitchers better than Britton. Plus, he’s a lefty so that’s huge plus for Yankee Stadium. Hopefully this means that Chasen Shreve’s days are numbered. When Britton returned from the DL, he was generally effective although his ERA was torched by a bad outing in Atlanta on June 22^nd when he gave up 4 runs on 5 hits while recording only a single out. But in July, he’s been his dominant self, allowing no runs over 7 innings and striking out 13. He shut down the Yankees for an inning on July 10^th (the two-homer game by former Oriole Manny Machado), picking up the win on the walk-off single by Jonathan Schoop. He struck out the last two Yankees he faced (Miguel Andujar and Greg Bird). 

I am in favor of the Britton trade, but I think I was as grateful he wasn’t traded to the Houston Astros or the Boston Red Sox as I was with the thought of him restoring the three-headed beast in the bullpen that has been missing since the Yankees traded away Andrew Miller and Aroldis Chapman in 2016 (with no offense to David Robertson, who remains one of my favorite Yankees). 

Yesterday must have been weird for Britton.  His team was playing the Boston Red Sox at Camden Yards in Baltimore. When the game started, Britton and the Orioles were 42 ½ games behind the Red Sox in the AL East Standings. By the time the rain-delayed game ended, Britton had gained 37 ½ games on the Red Sox, thanks to his new Pinstripes. Britton first became aware of the potential Yankees trade during the rain delay when he was met with countless messages and texts on his cell phone so it must have been bittersweet for him to watch his teammates defeat the Red Sox when play resumed. Part of me wished that the O’s had brought Britton out one last time (nothing better than to see him defeat the Red Sox), but the Orioles were not going to risk potential injury to jeopardize the trade. So Brad Brach came in to close it out and nearly blew the game in the rain-marred 9^th inning. But in the end, he left the game-tying and -winning runs stranded on base by inducing the great Mookie Betts to hit into a game-ending double play. The win allowed Britton to walk away from Camden Yards on a positive note. 

So, welcome to the New York Yankees, Zach Britton! Whether your stay is only for a few months or long-term should you decide to sign with the Yankees in the off-season, we are glad to have you. With Chapman’s knee issues, I am sure that there will be save opportunities for you. Looking forward to watching you send AL hitters home frustrated with that deadly sinker. 

Photo Credit: Getty Images (Rich Schultz)

As for the guys the Yankees gave up, the one I probably hated to see leave the most was Cody Carroll. I’ve liked the reliever for the last few years but the loaded Yankees pen has kept him at Triple A. Although he has been assigned to the O’s Triple A club in Norfolk, there’s no doubt he’ll soon be making his Major League debut for his new club. Former Yanks like Richard Bleier and Yefry Ramirez (the winner pitcher in Baltimore’s win over the Red Sox yesterday) have done very well for the Orioles and I expect no less from Carroll. The headliner was Dillon Tate who has restored his stock as a quality prospect this year after once being selected fourth overall in the 2015 MLB Draft by the Texas Rangers. Tate, acquired in the trading deadline deal that sent Carlos Beltran to the Texas Rangers two years ago, may turn out to be a fine middle-of-the-rotation starter or a good setup reliever but he was never going to get that opportunity in New York. There are too many better guys in front of him. Josh Rogers has been a nice left-handed starter for the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders but I agree with one Yankees beat writer that labeled him as a “poor man’s Jordan Montgomery”. With so many players needing protection from the Rule 5 Draft in December, I have no problem clearing the board of some of the fringe prospects. The fact the Yankees got an elite reliever without giving up a player from the cream of their prospects is incredible. The Yankees paid more for Britton than the A’s paid for Mets closer Jeurys Familia but it was worth it. Casey Stern’s famous quote (“Prospects are cool…Parades are cooler”) is very appropriate in this situation. If the Yankees win the World Series, I am not going to worry about future damage that Tate, Carroll and Rogers may do to the Yankees just like Cubs fans do not regret the trade that sent the very talented young Gleyber Torres to the Yankees. 

There’s now less than a week to go to the non-waivers trading deadline next Tuesday. I still fully anticipate a trade for a proven starter although I do not feel the Yankees will be making any surprise stealth moves to acquire premium starters like Jacob deGrom or Madison Bumgarner. At this point, I probably feel more strongly than ever that J.A. Happ of the Toronto Blue Jays has a future in the Bronx. Given the Yankees are responsible for the full pro-rated balance of Britton’s one-year deal, I think they’ll tread lightly for luxury tax avoidance purposes. So, Happ makes more sense to me than Cole Hamels even though the latter has the better post-season resume. Although Happ has generally been awful for his last few starts, he held the Orioles to 1 run on 4 hits over 5 innings in his most recent start, striking out 9. He has shown the ability to beat the Astros and Red Sox so I’d have no qualms about adding him to the rotation. Zach Britton represents huge insurance and protection for Happ’s addition. 

Lost in the Britton trade was the dominating performance of Masahiro Tanaka last night as the Yankees took down the Tampa Bay Rays, 4-0. Tanaka pitched a complete game shut-out, giving up only three hits and avoiding his usual obligatory home runs. He walked a batter and struck out 9 while throwing 105 pitches and lowering his season ERA to 4.09. After watching Luis Severino fall down against the Rays the night before, the Yankees needed a solid effort from Tanaka and they got it. 

Photo Credit: Getty Images (Mike Ehrmann)

The win allowed the Yankees (64-35) to pick up a game on the Red Sox (71-32). The Yankees are 5 games behind the Red Sox entering play today and they are 5 games up on the Seattle Mariners in the AL Wild Card Standings. 

I haven’t heard yet when Britton will join his new team but I think it would be foolish to make him travel to Tampa, Florida for today’s game, particularly given its early start time. The Yankees bullpen is rested and they can afford to wait a day for Britton’s arrival. Therefore, I’d send Britton to New York in anticipation of Thursday’s game against the Kansas City Royals at Yankee Stadium. It would give Britton a breather to adjust to the change and to make temporary living accommodations. I’ve wondered if third base coach Phil Nevin will give up #53 for Britton. It’s not like he is married to the number. I guess we’ll soon find out.

Luis Cessa (1-1, 3.00 ERA) makes his return to the Yankees today for the start in the series finale with the Rays. He’ll be opposed by former (and maybe future?) Yank Nathan Eovaldi (3-4, 4.26 ERA). The Yankees are expected to activate Gleyber Torres before today’s game. It will be interesting to see the roster move made to open a spot for Torres. Cessa’s spot was opened by last night’s demotion of Giovanny Gallegos to Triple A. The most likely guy to join him with the RailRiders is Tyler Wade although Brandon Drury could certainly be an option if he needs a stint on the DL following his hand injury yesterday. Test results on the hand were negative but Drury’s hand is bruised and he could miss a few days.  A short stint on the DL might be good for him. Inevitably, I see the road coming to an end for Neil Walker but I don’t expect to see his name on the transactions wire today. Getting Torres back might be the single greatest “acquisition” the Yankees make this month. The Yankees have done a much better job winning with Gleyber’s name in the lineup than not so his presence is tremendous for the team.   

Today is a great day for a Yankees victory. Cessa, please make it happen. Go Yankees!

Update: Nasty Nate goes to Boston. The Red Sox acquired Nathan Eovaldi this morning so Ryne Stanek (1-2, 1.91 ERA) opens for the Rays.  

The 2018 Trade Deadline & The 2019 Rule 5 Draft

A lot of people may think I am looking ahead just a bit when I begin discussing the Rule 5 Draft that will not occur until sometime in December, after the 2018 regular season, but that couldn’t be the furthest thing from the case. In fact, I bet you that Brian Cashman, the Yankees general manager, also has his eye on the Rule 5 Draft when discussing potential trades for prospects at the July 31^st trading deadline. The Yankees have a nice collection of prospects that will need to be protected this winter or that will be made available for anyone and their mother to select in the draft, so it might be imperative to look at trading a few of these guys now, if possible, to get something for them now rather than essentially and potentially nothing for them later.

Here is the list of players that will need to be protected after the season. Now while this is not a 100% complete list, I have hit the high notes and put down the most notable who need protection.

LHP Justus Sheffield

RHP Dillon Tate

RHP Chance Adams

RHP Cody Carroll

LHP Josh Rogers

LHP Stephen Tarpley

RHP Juan De Paula

3B/1B Dermis Garcia

C Donny Sands

INF Kyle Holder

The only person on this list who is untouchable in my eyes is Justus Sheffield. No, I would not trade him for Jacob deGrom or Noah Syndergaard. No, I would not trade him for Madison Bumgarner. In fact, I am perfectly fine with adding him to the 40-man roster and calling him up on August 1^st much like the Yankees did with Luis Severino back in 2015, I feel that confident in his abilities. The rest of the list is expendable and trade bait in my opinion. I don’t believe that anyone would take Donny Sands or Dermis Garcia if the Rule 5 Draft were to go down today, but clearly a lot can change between now and December. I also have my doubts that anyone would take and be willing to give Dillon Tate a year on their MLB roster as well, but weirder things have happened in this game.

Adding Triple-A experienced and close to MLB ready caliber starting pitching like Josh Rogers and Chance Adams to a deal could make or break a blockbuster, while having a late inning reliever like Cody Carroll could also look useful to a team who is looking to rebuild, like the New York Mets or the San Diego Padres. Stephen Tarpley, originally acquired from the Pittsburgh Pirates in the Ivan Nova deal, and Juan De Paula, acquired in the Ben Gamel deal with the Seattle Mariners, could also be sold as potential options in the future for any team who has a couple years of rebuilding ahead of them.

Kyle Holder, while not a sexy name now, was considered Major League ready defensively when the Yankees drafted him, but he had some catching up to do offensively after fully committing himself to baseball. Holder could conceivably be a defensive replacement, pinch runner, and bench piece for a National League team today, and he could be especially attractive to a team that thinks they can wait out his development with the bat.

Now, keep in mind that none of these guys alone will net the Yankees that ace starting pitcher that everyone seems to want. Sheffield could, albeit not alone, but none of these other players could headline a blockbuster deal. If, and when, these players are traded they will be as a part of a package for a player in my opinion, so keep that in mind when tempering expectations this summer.

Hypothetical: Scranton RailRiders vs. New York Mets – Who Wins?

Hypothetical, but serious question. If the New York Mets were to play the Scranton-Wilkes Barre RailRiders in a seven-game series who do you think would win the series? Let’s analyze and discuss.

RailRiders 25-Man Roster:

C: Kyle Higashioka

1B: Tyler Austin

2B: Tyler Wade

SS: Thairo Estrada

3B: Brandon Drury

LF: Billy McKinney

CF: Shane Robinson

RF: Clint Frazier

DH: Mike Ford

BN: Wilkin Castillo

BN: L.J. Mazilli

BN: Ronald Torreyes

BN: Mark Payton

SP: Justus Sheffield

SP: Chance Adams

SP: Erik Swanson

SP: Josh Rogers

SP: Brady Lail

CL: Cody Carroll

RP: David Hale

RP: Tommy Kahnle
RP: J.P. Feyereisen
RP: Giovanny Gallegos

RP: Nestor Cortes

RP: Daniel Camarena  Oliver Perez

BOLDED players are currently on the Yankees 40-man roster

Mets 25-Man Roster:

C: Devin Mesoraco

1B: Wilmer Flores

2B: Asdrubal Cabrera

SS: Amed Rosario

3B: Todd Frazier

LF: Yoenis Cespedes

CF: Michael Conforto

RF: Jay Bruce

DH: Dominic Smith

BN: Brandon Nimmo

BN: Jose Reyes

BN: Kevin Plawecki

BN: Jose Bautista

SP: Jacob deGrom

SP: Noah Syndergaard

SP: Steven Matz

SP: Jason Vargas

SP: Zack Wheeler

CL: Jeurys Familia

RP: Jerry Blevins

RP: Anthony Swarzak
RP: Robert Gsellman
RP: Chris Beck

RP: Tim Peterson

RP: Drew Smith

Game 1

Jacob deGrom vs. Justus Sheffield

If the RailRiders were going to steal a game in this series I truly think it would be in Game One behind Justus Sheffield. The Mets would undoubtedly come into the series confident and would possibly overlook the Yankees Triple-A affiliate, so just because I am going to give Scranton the victory and the early 1-0 series victory.

Scranton leads series 1-0

Game 2

Noah Syndergaard vs. Chance Adams

Chance Adams has struggled throughout much of his Triple-A career with his command and control and that will be the key reason why Scranton will fall in Game Two. Syndergaard is a tough pitcher to give a lead to, but that is exactly what Chance would do presumably under the bright lights and in front of all the eyes watching on this big stage.

Series even 1-1

Game 3

Steven Matz vs. Erik Swanson

Erik Swanson has taken many by surprise this season with his great pitching. Swanson has seemingly come out of nowhere this season and has broken out leading the RailRiders to victory after victory, a trend that will continue tonight in Game Three. Swanson was dominant and Matz made that one mistake to Clint Frazier that cost the team the victory in the middle innings.

Scranton leads the series 2-1

Game 4

Jason Vargas vs. Josh Rogers

To be completely honest I had to Google who the Mets 4^th starter was, that’s how unimpressed with that other team from New York I am. Rogers has pitched well in Triple-A, but many wonder if his stuff will translate well into the Majors as a starter. Vargas did just enough to win behind a strong night from Jay Bruce and Yoenis Cespedes to even the series.

Series tied 2-2

Game 5

Jacob deGrom vs. Justus Sheffield

Sheffield cannot beat deGrom twice in a row, can he? Unfortunately, I have to say no. The RailRiders may have caught deGrom and the Mets by surprise in the first start, but I cannot see lightning striking twice. deGrom comes out with a victory and a bit of retribution.

Mets lead series 3-2

Game 6

Noah Syndergaard vs. Chance Adams

Chance Adams had a much better game in Game Six while Syndergaard matched him zero for zero late into the contest. Partly because we haven’t mentioned him yet, and partly because I want to see a seventh game in this hypothetical series, Brandon Drury comes up with the big home run late to send the series to a deciding and final game. RailRiders win.

Series tied 3-3

Game 7

Steven Matz vs. Erik Swanson

You didn’t really think I was going to let the New York Mets win, did you? Hell no. 13 runs later and another dominating performance by Erik Swanson later and the Scranton/Wilkes Barre RailRiders have just beaten the New York Mets in a seven-game series. How embarrassing.

Rosters are all assuming health and is all hypothetical. This post was written in fun, take it that way and enjoy.