MLB Prospect Watch

Arodys Vizcaino Traded to the Cubs

The Atlanta Braves have traded pitching prospect Arodys Vizcaino, along with minor league reliever Jaye Chapman, to the Chicago Cubs in exchange for outfielder Reed Johnson and left-handed pitcher Paul Maholm.  The move bolsters the Braves major league roster for a playoff push while the Cubs continue their rebuilding process.

Johnson and Maholm are good fits in Atlanta, and their acquisition makes sense for the Braves.  Additionally, the Cubs aren't in contention this season, and don't expect to be next year, so even with Maholm's club option for 2013, neither veteran player was a part of the Cubs future.

The real story is Arodys Vizcaino, the centerpiece of this trade for the Cubs.

Acquired by the Braves before the 2010 season from the Yankees in the trade that sent Javier Vazquez to New York, Vizcaino has since been a part of what has been known as "The Big 3" within the Braves organization, coupling with fellow pitching prospects Julio Teheran and Randall Delgado to form a young trio of international fireballers that had Braves fans dreaming of a second coming of their success in the 1990's.

That scenario has yet to manifest itself, with Julio Teheran struggling in Triple-A this season, Randall Delgado taking on a bullpen role, and Vizcaino's 2012 season ending before it ever started after having Tommy John surgery in March.

With Tommy John surgery becoming more and more routine each year, that procedure alone would not be enough to derail the hopes of Vizcaino become the number two starter his stuff projects him to be, but this is not the first elbow-related injury for Vizcaino, who missed time in 2010 with a partially torn elbow ligament that was healed through rest and rehab rather than surgery.

Vizcaino had been a starter in the Yankees farm system and reprised the role in the Braves system when he took the field in 2010, but upon a promotion to Triple-A in 2011, he moved out to the bullpen.  The move was made by the Braves in part because of the team's organizational starting pitching depth, and in hopes that the transition might enable him to help the major league club during its playoff run.  Ultimately, Vizcaino did make 17 relief appearances in the majors last season.

Scouts envision Vizcaino as a number two or three starter, with his fastball sitting in the mid-90's as a starter.  As a reliever, it plays up a tick or two.  His curveball is another potential plus pitch, but his change-up is a work in progress, putting another notch in the "make him a reliever" column.

But the big question about Vizcaino's future role with his new team will be determined less by where his stuff plays the best and more by which he is physically able of performing.  Having had surgery in March, Vizcaino will not pitch for the Cubs this season at any level.  He should begin throwing this off-season and be on schedule to try and make the Cubs roster out of spring training.

Much of this question will be determined by how he responds to Tommy John surgery.  Some will suggest that given his injury history, starting is now out of the question and a relief role will be his only option.  The fact remains, however, that both of his significant injuries have been elbow related, and this surgery is supposed to eliminate that issue.  There is a real possibility that the Braves should have had him have the surgery when he had the partial tear in 2010 and that would have solved the problem once and for all.

There is no predicting how a player will respond to Tommy John surgery, but the Cubs are comfortable that regardless of hos he bounces bad, he will be able to contribute to their rebuilding process.  If he can't handle the rigors of starting, he could be a back-end reliever and potential closer.  If he responds well, he could make the Cubs starting rotation next spring and likely be on some kind of innings limit similar to what the Nationals have done the past two years with Jordan Zimmermann and Stephen Strasburg.

Regardless, the risk is a calculated one for the Cubs, who are taking a high-reward/low-risk type of gamble on Vizcaino, considering the pieces they gave up were doing nothing to help them win this year or next.

Here's what others are saying about the deal:

• John Sickels of MinorLeagueBall.com has scouting reports on all of the players involved, calling Chapman a potential ROOGY in the majors.
• TalkingChop.com loves the trade, saying the Braves traded "from an area of depth for two critical needs in the middle of a pennant race."
• Ben Duronio of FanGraphs.com says the Braves picked up two useful pieces.
• Bradley Woodrum of FanGraphs.com called the trade "a bit of a fleecing for the Cubs."

 

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Arodys Vizcaino Out for the Season

Atlanta Braves pitching prospect Arodys Vizcaino will miss the entire 2012 season while recovering from Tommy John Surgery, the Braves website reported today.  Vizcaino, one of the organization's top pitching prospect, was competing for a spot in the Braves bullpen this spring when he was shut down with soreness in his right elbow.  Vizcaino missed part of the 2010 season with a tear in the same elbow ligament, but the injury went away with rest and rehabilitation.  This time, surgery is necessary, and the procedure was done this morning.

Blogs from around the web have their take on the injury, and its ramifications on both VIzcaino and the Braves:

• TalkingChop.com suggests that the spot in the bullpen that had been expected to go to Vizcaino could instead go to fellow pitching prospect Cody Gearrin, who fanned 25 batters in 18 1/3 innings of work in the majors last season.
• Dave Cameron of FanGraphs.com thinks that the time off will set Vizcaino's development back just enough to answer the question once and for all as to whether Vizcaino will be a starter or a reliever, and place him in the bullpen for good.
• Kevin Orris of CapitalAvenueClub.com also thinks the now-vacant spot will go to Gearrin, but also suggests Adam Russell as a possibility.

Ultimately, I agree with Cameron that this likely eliminates the possibility of a future with Vizcaino as a starting pitcher, which was probably a long shot anyway.  As a two-pitch pitcher with durability issues, he pretty much screamed reliever anyway.  Only 21-years-old, this is only a small setback long-term for Vizcaino's career.  As the Braves saw last year with Kris Medlen, this surgery likely only bumps back Vizcaino's timetable one year before he's back in Atlanta contributing in the bullpen, much like Medlen will likely do this year. 

The biggest impact will be felt in Atlanta this season, where Vizcaino was expected to join Johnny Venters and Craig Kimbrel at the back of the Braves bullpen, adding to an already impressive stable of bullpen arms.  The Braves have enough depth, however, that they should be able to replace Vizcaino without too much of a setback.

Injury Update - Bettis, Iglesias, Vizcaino

Each of the following injury links comes from MLB.com.

• Chad Bettis, the Rockies pitching prospect who has battled injuries throughout his professional career, may have been re-assigned to minor league camp this week, but he still got good news on his triceps injury that caused him to leave his last appearance early, says Owen Perkins.  The Rockies also have to take precaution with left-handed pitching prospect Drew Pomeranz, who left his last start early, and to be careful, the team is pushing Pomeranz back a few days before his next start, says Perkins.
• Jose Iglesias got an extra day off to deal with a strained groin, according to Evan Drellich, who notes that Iglesias likely could have played today but the Red Sox decided to give him an extra day off as a precaution.
• Braves pitching prospect Arodys Vizcaino heard the dreaded words "Dr. James Andrews" this week, but it's not the first time he's paid a visit there, and he made it out last time without Tommy John surgery, says Mark Bowman.

Prospect Potent Potables - Carpenter, Bundy, Vizcaino, Walker

• Cardinals fans are getting excited about the arrival of Matt Carpenter in the majors, but FutureRedbirds.net takes a deeper look at what fans should expect from the potential utility player and reminds them to temper their expectations.
• Dylan Bundy is throwing well enough in intrasquad matchups in camp to draw some impressive praise from his Orioles major league teammates, says Brittany Ghiroli of MLB.com.
• Bill Ballew of Baseball America discusses the potential makeup of the Braves bullpen, and the possible role Arodys Vizcaino might play in it.
• Keenyn Walker has more tools than anybody in the White Sox system, and Mike Newman of FanGraphs.com takes a look at how he is going to use them.

 

Position Battles - Iglesias, Hultzen, Braves

• Jose Iglesias could play short stop in the big leagues right now, but he's not going to make the Red Sox roster this spring, predicts Alex Speier of Baseball America.  The Red Sox may have traded away incumbent short stop Marco Scutaro, but based on what we saw from Iglesias' bat last season, he's not ready to face major league pitching.
• It's a long shot for certain, but that's not stopping Mariners officials from raving about Danny Hultzen so far in camp, notes Greg Johns of MLB.com.  Hultzen hasn't appeared in a minor league game yet, so his odds of making the Mariners out of spring training are limited, but the Reds did make a similar move with Mike Leake a few years back, so it's not completely unheard of.
• Bill Ballew of Baseball America discusses the major league readiness of the Braves big three pitching prospects, Julio Teheran, Arodys Vizcaino and Randall Delgado.  Despite being the most talented of the three, Teheran probably has the least chance of making the team out of spring training because the Braves won't want to use him in a relief role and don't have any available starting rotation spots.  Delgado has already proven his merit in the bullpen last year in the majors, and Vizcaino could grab a bullpen spot as well this March.