Re: Articles
Posted: Fri Nov 17, 2023 1:33 pm
Rockies Acquire Cal Quantrill
By Mark Polishuk | November 17, 2023 at 11:04am CDT
The Rockies announced that right-hander Cal Quantrill has been acquired in a trade with the Guardians. Cleveland will receive minor league catcher Kody Huff in return, and Colorado has designated right-hander Tommy Doyle to create room on the 40-man roster.
Some kind of move seemed imminent when the Guardians designated Quantrill for assignment earlier this week, whether or not that move was a trade or the Guards just releasing Quantrill as an early non-tender. The righty is projected to earn $6.6MM in the second of three arbitration-eligible years, which was perhaps a bit steep for a Cleveland team that traditionally has modest payrolls, and considering the fact that Quantrill struggled in 2023.
However, it was an acceptable price for a Rox team in dire need of starting pitching. Denver’s thin air has always put an extra burden on Rockies pitchers, but things went particularly sideways in 2023 when the club was hit with a long list of injuries to pitchers at the both the Major League and minor league levels. Colorado’s rotation wasn’t thought to be a strong group even going into the season, yet with injuries depleting the ranks, the Rockies’ pitching staff (both starters and relievers) finished at or near the bottom of the league in most statistical categories.
Health was a problem for Quantrill as well last year, as some nagging shoulder inflammation sent him to the injured list twice and limited him to 99 2/3 innings. This was a big drop from the 168 frames he averaged over the 2021-22 seasons, as well as a slide from his quality numbers in those previous two years. Quantrill posted a 3.16 ERA for Cleveland in 2021-22, but that number ballooned to 5.24 in 2023.
A glance at the secondary numbers is necessary, as Quantrill’s 4.50 SIERA in 2021-22 indicates that he was in some sense fortunate to deliver such a solid bottom-line ERA. Quantrill has always been a below-average strikeout pitcher who nevertheless had strong chase rates, yet his chase rate dropped off significantly to 26.5% last season, and his 13.1% strikeout rate in 2023 was almost the worst in baseball. The righty also allowed much more hard contact in 2023 than in past years.
Coors Field isn’t exactly the best ballpark for a pitcher in need of a rebound year, so Quantrill will face a difficult challenge on his new club. Simply staying healthy and eating some innings would be a decent outcome for both Quantrill and the Rockies, and Colorado’s ever-present need for pitching probably means that barring injury or a drastic downturn in performance, Quantrill stand a good chance of being tendered a contract for his final arbitration year.
By Mark Polishuk | November 17, 2023 at 11:04am CDT
The Rockies announced that right-hander Cal Quantrill has been acquired in a trade with the Guardians. Cleveland will receive minor league catcher Kody Huff in return, and Colorado has designated right-hander Tommy Doyle to create room on the 40-man roster.
Some kind of move seemed imminent when the Guardians designated Quantrill for assignment earlier this week, whether or not that move was a trade or the Guards just releasing Quantrill as an early non-tender. The righty is projected to earn $6.6MM in the second of three arbitration-eligible years, which was perhaps a bit steep for a Cleveland team that traditionally has modest payrolls, and considering the fact that Quantrill struggled in 2023.
However, it was an acceptable price for a Rox team in dire need of starting pitching. Denver’s thin air has always put an extra burden on Rockies pitchers, but things went particularly sideways in 2023 when the club was hit with a long list of injuries to pitchers at the both the Major League and minor league levels. Colorado’s rotation wasn’t thought to be a strong group even going into the season, yet with injuries depleting the ranks, the Rockies’ pitching staff (both starters and relievers) finished at or near the bottom of the league in most statistical categories.
Health was a problem for Quantrill as well last year, as some nagging shoulder inflammation sent him to the injured list twice and limited him to 99 2/3 innings. This was a big drop from the 168 frames he averaged over the 2021-22 seasons, as well as a slide from his quality numbers in those previous two years. Quantrill posted a 3.16 ERA for Cleveland in 2021-22, but that number ballooned to 5.24 in 2023.
A glance at the secondary numbers is necessary, as Quantrill’s 4.50 SIERA in 2021-22 indicates that he was in some sense fortunate to deliver such a solid bottom-line ERA. Quantrill has always been a below-average strikeout pitcher who nevertheless had strong chase rates, yet his chase rate dropped off significantly to 26.5% last season, and his 13.1% strikeout rate in 2023 was almost the worst in baseball. The righty also allowed much more hard contact in 2023 than in past years.
Coors Field isn’t exactly the best ballpark for a pitcher in need of a rebound year, so Quantrill will face a difficult challenge on his new club. Simply staying healthy and eating some innings would be a decent outcome for both Quantrill and the Rockies, and Colorado’s ever-present need for pitching probably means that barring injury or a drastic downturn in performance, Quantrill stand a good chance of being tendered a contract for his final arbitration year.