March 24, 2015

Rumor Roundup

Olivera on the run/Driving in the sun/Looking out for Number 1

by Chris Mosch

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Caminero could force Holdzkom to the minors
John Holdzkom’s path from failing to make the roster of an indy ball team to becoming a valuable piece of the Pirates bullpen down the stretch all in one year was an improbable one for the lanky New Zealand native. However, it’s becoming increasingly likely that we'll have to wait some time before seeing the story continue in Pittsburgh, and that has little to do with any wrongdoing on his part.

Holdzkom wields a fastball with natural cutting action that sits in the mid-90s and can touch triple digits. During his short stint with the Pirates last season he relied on the pitch over 93 percent of the time while peppering in an ever-rare mid-80s palmball that got slider-like movement. He has carried over his brief success at the big league level into camp, striking out eight versus two walks in seven spring innings, but Travis Sawchik of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review writes that we shouldn’t be surprised if Holdzkom starts the year at Triple-A. He’s the lone man in a crowded Pittsburgh bullpen situation who still has minor-league options remaining and he could be the odd man out if the Pirates don’t want to cut ties with Vance Worley, Jeff Locke, Stolmy Pimentel, or the arm that has scouts buzzing this spring: Arquimedes Caminero.

Caminero, who was acquired from the Marlins during the offseason for cash consideration, has always been able to light up radar guns but his downfall to this point in his career has been a failure to consistently locate his pitches. But he has tightened up his fastball command this spring, walking just one and striking out 16 batters in 10 Grapefruit League innings, with one NL scout telling Sawchick that he would be “very surprised” if the 27-year-old doesn’t end up on the Pirates opening day roster. Sawchick spoke to Caminero after the Dominican right-hander tossed a pair of scoreless innings on Monday and Caminero credited pitching coaches Jim Benedict and Ray Searage with helping him identify mechanical flaws in the video room and simplifying his delivery this spring.

Sample size and spring training caveats clearly apply but if the Pirates are impressed enough by Caminero that they feel that he could turn into a valuable bullpen piece they won’t be letting him go for nothing. At the very least, this has made the final cuts at Pirates camp just a bit more intriguing.

Olivera decision could be finalized by Wednesday
The chase for the services of Hector Olivera is entering the homestretch and it is believed that the favorites to lock up the services of the Cuban infielder continue to hail from Southern California.

Strong sense Olivera is NL West fight between #Dodgers #Padres. Likely finalized by Wed. Likely 5- or 6-yr deal.

— Joel Sherman (@Joelsherman1) March 23, 2015

Jon Heyman of CBS Sports also writes that the Dodgers and Padres are believed to be “actively involved” in the bidding for Olivera but mentioned that the Giants, Braves and Athletics have still maintained interest. However, David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution tweeted over the weekend that the Braves are not willing to go to a sixth year on a deal, which Heyman reported last week was the detail that Olivera was holding out on.

The Marlins have also reportedly been involved in the bidding for Olivera; they reportedly pulled back a seven-year, $53 million offer earlier this month. Joe Frisaro of MLB.com reported over the weekend that the club has bowed out of the bidding process.

As I’ve speculated before, Olivera’s landing spot likely depends on how much the Dodgers actually covet him, given that Andrew Friedman and Farhan Zaidi have the financial resources to outmuscle A.J. Preller if they wish. The parties involved haven’t changed and Olivera would still represent a bigger upgrade in San Diego than Los Angeles given their respective infield depth charts and spots on the win curve. However, with the season now less that two weeks away it is encouraging that a final decision is close to being made; his status for the start of the season would presumably be in jeopardy if the bidding process were to stall any longer.

Chris Mosch is an author of Baseball Prospectus. Follow @chris_mosch
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