TRADE: Grapes Land Ace from Goutfish for 3rd Rounder

The Asti Grape Stompers were expected to turn their rotation over to young arms like Emmet Sheehan and Shane Baz, but with both set to start 2024 on the Injured List, GM Terry Shelley was forced to the trade market. They found an ace Wednesday, agreeing to a deal with the Lake Merced Goutfish for left-hander Framber Valdez (2/$48) in exchange for a 2024 3rd Round Pick (38th Overall).

Valdez ranked 8th in scoring in 2023 with 485.0 points as the co-ace of the RDBL Champion Goutfish.  He has worked the fifth-most innings of any starting pitcher over the past two seasons trailing only Sandy Alcantara, Gerrit Cole, Logan Webb, and Miles Mikolas. The lefty has returned three consecutive seasons of double digit wins, strong ratios, and a voluminous strikeout total and even threw in a no-hitter this season against Cleveland. Valdez was 9-7 with a 3.07 ERA and a 1.07 WHIP after completing that no-hitter on August 1st but was just 3-4 with a 4.29 ERA and a 1.24 WHIP from then on, which does not even include his very disappointing postseason where he allowed 12 earned runs and lost all three of his starts. 

He will step in immediately as the frontline starter in the Grapes rotation with Pablo Lopez, Hunter Greene and activation Kyle Harrison expected to follow him.

The third round pick acquired will be the third such selection owned by the Goutfish entering the 2024 Draft.

TRADE: Stacks Give Up Trio and Picks for Hayes in Deal with Fish

The Alamo Short Stacks long pursuit of third baseman Ke'Bryan Hayes (3R/$5) ended Tuesday as the club announced a deal with the Spokane Fightin' Fish. Hayes will head to the Stacks for right-hander Brayan Bello (2FA/$5), infielders Jeff McNeil (3/$7) and Gavin Lux (2D/$5) as well as 6th, 7th and 8th Round Picks (80/95/110 Overall).

Hayes had a rollercoaster season in 2023, but finished on a tear that the Stacks are banking on turning into a breakout season in 2024. Hayes took forever to get things going hitting .221 with just 2 homers through the end of May before waking up to hit .337 with 3 homers in June alone. An early back injury in July shelved him until mid-August and he returned with aplomb hitting .299 with 10 homers the rest of the way. His 15 homers in 2023 were just three fewer than he hit from 2020-2022. He made positive gains in elevating the ball more frequently while not sacrificing his ability to make contact as he lowered his strikeout rate for a fourth consecutive season and has carried that over with an eye-opening Spring Training.

The Red Sox just inked Bello to a six-year contract extension with the right-hander in contention for the Opening Day nod in Boston. Bello was the team's best starter for much of last season before tiring in September, when a sub-4.00 ERA ballooned to 4.24. A strong sinker-slider combination allows Bello to leverage a high groundball rate into deep starts with his slider potentially unlocking a new level of production for 2024.

McNeil has quietly produced a pair of 400+ point seasons in the last four years and is fresh off a strong 341.0 effort in 2023. His .298 average ranks fourth among all active hitters, giving him a strong floor to pair with both second base and outfield eligiblity.

Lux rounds out the player return for the Fish while holding contractual control through 2025. A case of the yips has moved him from shortstop to second, but the bat continues to impress as he continues his return from a knee injury that cost him all of 2023. He retains second base, shortstop and outfield eligibility for 2024.

Spring Training Notebook: Maulers Holding Breath on Cole

The news of the day and possibly Spring is that Mission Viejo Maulers ace Gerrit Cole (2/$70) had an MRI on his elbow after reportedly not recoving well between throwing sessions. Cole will receive multiple opinions on the status of his elbow, and the Yankees don’t expect to announce a prognosis today or even tomorrow, tweets Bryan Hoch of MLB.com.

Cole was the 2023 RDBL Pitcher of the Year for the Maulers, leading all pitchers in full season scoring with 573.0, posting a 2.85 ERA and 1.02 WHIP.

The Maulers entered the off-season with substantial pitching depth and could still turn to other options if the news is enough to push Cole off the Maulers Keeper Roster. The club dealt away Tarik Skubal earlier this Winter, but have Yusei Kikuchi (2FA/$5) and Ranger Suarez (2FA/$5) standing by as options to fill in behind Luis Castillo, Jose Berrios and Zach Eflin. They could also elect to retain Edwin Diaz (2/$12) in the bullpen or shift salary cap to Alex Bregman (3/$36) or Matt Chapman (3/$14) who have recently been shopped.

Around the RDBL

• The San Mateo Oppo Tacos have been among the teams engaged on Bregman who enters the final season of a $36 deal for the Maulers. The Maulers have been linked to third baseman Josh Jung (2R/$3) in recent weeks according to sources.

• Despite a red-hot Spring Training, the Burlingame Blue Ducks plan to retain Wyatt Langford (Minors) in the Minor Leagues for 2024 according to GM Ryan Walsh. Langford collected a pair of hits Monday to raise his average to .379 with a 1.300 OPS through 29 Spring Training at-bats and looks poised to break camp in the middle of the Texas Rangers lineup for Opening Day.

• The Nashville Aristocrats are holding their breath on Gavin Williams (Minors) after he reported some elbow soreness after weighted ball work over the weekend. Williams doesn't appear to be in need of an MRI with hope that he will be able to throw again in a few days. The 'Crats enter 2024 as one of the league's most exciting young teams to pair with substantial cap space. The club will have a week to decide whether or not to activate young phenoms Jackson Chourio (Minors) and Jackson Holliday (Minors) with both looking likely to receive Opening Day jobs.

• The Honolulu Hammerheads continue to shop starting pitchers Reese Olson (2FA/$5), Kutter Crawford (2FA/$5) and Chase Silseth (2FA/$5) according to sources. All three have impressed in Spring Training thus far with Olson working four innings of one-run ball Monday. He posted a 1.45 ERA and 0.77 WHIP over his last five starts in 2023, finishing the full season with a 3.99 ERA in 103 2/3 innings of work. Crawford might have the highest upside of the trio and remains in the mix for a Keeper spot on the Heads. He posted another strong start Saturday and holds a 1.13 ERA through eight Spring Training innings after posting a 4.04 ERA in 129 1/3 IP last season. Silseth rounds out the group as he enters 2024 with a solidified spot in the Angels rotation. He's been dominant this Spring with a 1.08 ERA over 8.1 innings after posting a 3.96 ERA in 52 1/3 innings last season.

• The Alamo Short Stacks don't appear to be finished with the club reportedly still seeking upgrades in their infield after adding Marcus Semien and Nico Hoerner this off-season. The club has had several hits on right-hander Bryan Bello (2FA/$5) who appears to be the odd man out after Monday acquisition of Justin Steele who is expected to slot in behind Skubal, Bryan Woo and Logan Gilbert.