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Twins Shuffle Bullpen In Series Of Roster Moves

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10:25pm: The Twins are selecting the contract of right-hander Alex Wimmers and recalling left-hander Randy Rosario to fill the two spots in the ’pen, as respectively first reported by Seth Stohs of TwinsDaily.com (Twitter link) and Mariana Guzman of 95.7 FM radio (Twitter link).

Wimmers wasn’t on the 40-man after being previously outrighted, but the former first-round pick will receive another chance to establish himself in the Majors. Minnesota plucked Wimmers out of Ohio State University with the 21st overall pick back in 2010, and though he was touted as a polished starter that could move quickly through the minors, injuries derailed his first several seasons as a pro. Now working out of the bullpen, Wimmers has a 3.94 ERA with a 13-to-7 K/BB ratio through 16 innings in Rochester.

The 23-year-old Rosario, who will be making his MLB debut, has torn through Double-A hitters this year, logging a 1.90 ERA with 7.6 K/9, 2.3 BB/9 and a 54.8 percent ground-ball rate. As noted by Stohs, he posted an 18-to-2 K/BB ratio with just four hits and one earned run allowed in 13 2/3 May innings. MLB.com rates him as Minnesota’s No. 27 prospect, praising his upper-90s fastball but calling his slider inconsistent.

4:33pm: The Twins have designated left-hander Jason Wheeler for assignment and optioned right-hander Ryan Pressly to Triple-A Rochester, the team announced to reporters following today’s loss (Twitter link via Phil Miller of the Minneapolis Star Tribune). Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN had first tweeted that Pressly would be optioned. A pair of corresponding roster moves will be announced tomorrow.

Wheeler, 26, saw his contract selected just yesterday and made his MLB debut on Tuesday. However, the former eighth-round pick struggled through a pair of relief appearances over the past two days, yielding three runs on six hits and four walks in three innings of work. Generally speaking, the Twins’ abysmal bullpen performance in a three-game sweep at the hands of the Astros (28 runs allowed) necessitated a shuffling of the pitching staff, which undoubtedly contributed to Wheeler’s quick loss of his 40-man spot.

Pressly’s significant struggles this season have been one of the primary reasons that the Twins rank last in the Majors in bullpen ERA. The right-hander had pitched to a 3.36 ERA over his past 131 1/3 Major League innings prior to the 2017 campaign and has steadily seen his fastball velocity rise over the years. Pressly is averaging nearly 96 mph on his heater this season and entered the day with a considerably above-average 13.4 percent swinging-strike rate. However, despite his knack for missing bats, Pressly has been exceptionally home-run prone and has also had quite a bit of poor fortune on balls in play (.356 BABIP). He’s yielded five homers in just 18 innings this season after surrendering eight in 75 1/3 innings last year.

Minor MLB Transactions: 5/31/17

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Here are today’s minor moves from around the league…

  • The Orioles announced today that they’ve selected the contract of catcher Francisco Pena from Triple-A Norfolk to replace Welington Castillo, who’s been placed on the 10-day DL due to a groin injury. Pena made the Baltimore roster out of Spring Training in part due to the fact that he’s out of minor league options, but the team ultimately decided that it could not carry three catchers and designated the 27-year-old for assignment. Pena cleared waivers and was outrighted to Triple-A, where he’s batted .229/.260/.375 in 50 plate appearances since clearing waivers. Pena has shown power but a penchant for strikeouts in his brief big league time, though he’s a strong-armed catcher that is regarded as a solid all-around defender.
  • Righty William Cuevas was outrighted to the Tigers’ Triple-A affiliate, as first noted on the club’s transactions page at MLB.com. Cuevas was designated over the weekend, with his 40-man spot going to fellow righty Arcenio Leon. The 26-year-old Cuevas made one appearance for Detroit this season and surrendered four runs in one-third of an inning. He has a 4.06 ERA in nine starts (44 1/3 innings) for the Tigers’ Triple-A affiliate this season and a career 3.87 ERA with 6.5 K/9 against 3.0 BB/9 in 216 1/3 Triple-A innings.

Orioles Notes: Castillo, Alvarez, Jackson, Andino

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The Orioles placed catcher Welington Castillo on the 10-day DL this afternoon after he suffered a groin injury that stemmed from a ball that deflected off the foot of Didi Gregorius when Gregorius was hit by a pitch yesterday. As MASNsports.com’s Roch Kubatko writes, Castillo spent several hours in the emergency room yesterday, though the injury is “not nearly as serious” as the testicular injury suffered by Caleb Joseph last year that cost Joseph a month of the season and required surgery. “He’s got a hematoma there in his groin that we’re going to monitor and see how it progresses,” manager Buck Showalter told reporters (via Kubatko). The O’s debated whether they should even put Castillo on the DL, per Kubatko, as the current belief is that he won’t require 10 days.

A few more notes on the Orioles…

  • Kubatko also points out (on Twitter) that Pedro Alvarez has an opt-out clause in his contract tomorrow. The 30-year-old slugger entered play today hitting just .219/.293/.443 through 51 games, though he belted his 12th homer of the season in today’s game. That continues an outrageous tear for Alvarez, who has now homered eight times in his past 13 games and is hitting well over .300 in that stretch. Alvarez has been trying his hand in right field with Baltimore’s Triple-A affiliate in Norfolk, though most teams would likely still view him as a first base/designated hitter candidate.
  • I’ll also point out that the minor league deal that veteran right-hander Edwin Jackson inked with the Orioles back in April reportedly contained a June 1 opt-out provision as well (according to Eduardo A. Encina of the Baltimore Sun). While Jackson has had issues with his control down in Norfolk, he’s logged a 3.86 ERA with 14 strikeouts through 16 1/3 innings. Of course, he’s also issued 10 walks, hit two batters and uncorked a pair of wild pitches, so there are plenty of red flags with the mercurial righty.
  • The league announced today that veteran infielder Robert Andino, who was playing with Baltimore’s Triple-A affiliate, has been hit with a 50-game suspension after testing positive for Amphetamine. The 33-year-old Andino logges his first 13 games in the Majors since 2013 last season and was off to a .234/.282/.375 start through 2016 plate appearances in Triple-A.

Pirates Place Alen Hanson On Waivers

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The Pirates have placed infielder Alen Hanson on waivers, according to Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. Additionally, infielder Gift Ngoepe has been optioned to Triple-A Indianapolis. A pair of corresponding moves will be announced tomorrow, Biertempfel notes, adding that infielder Max Moroff is one candidate to be added to the big league roster.

Hanson, 24, long rated as one of the Bucs’ top prospects and at one point was a consensus top 100 prospect in the game. However, his offensive production began to trail off upon reaching Triple-A, and he’s batted just .205/.239/.261 in a combined 92 plate appearances between the 2016 and 2017 seasons. The bulk of his time in the field as a big leaguer has come at second base, though defensive metrics such as Ultimate Zone Rating and Defensive Runs Saved don’t paint a favorable picture.

Hanson broke camp with the Pirates due largely to the fact that he’s out of minor league options, and that same fact may at least give Pittsburgh hope of passing him through outright waivers. Any club placing a claim on Hanson would have to be prepared to carry him on its 25-man roster (or simply attempt to run him through waivers once again with the hope that he’d clear a second time around).

Ngoepe, the first African-born player ever to reach the Major Leagues, made his big league debut earlier this season and has seen action in 27 games with the Pirates. In 63 plate appearances, the 27-year-old has batted .222/.323/.296 with a pair of doubles and a triple. Ngoepe turned in strong defensive marks in a small sample of 110 innings at second base and also saw time at shortstop (26 innings) and third base (14 innings). However, he struck out in 41 percent of his trips to the plate, demonstrating that there’s still more for him to work on at the dish.

Mike Trout Undergoes Thumb Surgery

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May 31: The Angels announced today that Trout “underwent successful surgery to the ulnar collateral ligament of his left thumb as well as a repair of his dorsal capsule today.” The general timetable for his return is currently pegged at six to eight weeks, per the team.

May 29, 10:26pm: Trout will undergo surgery on Wednesday, the club announced. He is expected to miss approximately six to eight weeks.

6:33pm: The Angels will place superstar center fielder Mike Trout on the 10-day DL for the first time in his career, according to J.P. Hoornstra of the Southern California News Group (via Twitter). An MRI today revealed a torn ulnar collateral ligament in Trout’s left thumb, the team announced and Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times was among those to report (Twitter link).

Surgery is on the table at this point, though a decision has yet to be made. If the 25-year-old does end up going under the knife, he could be facing an extended absence for the first time in his already-storied career.

Los Angeles has selected the contract of veteran journeyman Eric Young Jr. to replace Trout on the roster. Young, who just turned 32, signed with the organization on a minor-league deal over the winter.

Injuries have hit the Angels rather hard through the first two months of the season, especially in the pitching staff, though the team has managed to hover around .500. That’s due in no small par to the otherworldly contributions of Trout, who entered today’s action with a ridiculous .337/.461/.742 batting line and a league-leading 16 home runs.

Trout had a less-than-sizzling start to his career upon a late-season call-up in 2011, his age-19 season, but has otherwise been utterly exceptional. He also has enjoyed more or less flawless health during his historic run since the start of 2012, playing in all but 45 of the Angels’ games until today.

Clearly, there’s no replacing Trout, but the Halos are set up about as well as could be hoped to weather an absence up the middle. Cameron Maybin and Ben Revere each have significant experience in center, and Young has spent a good bit of time there as well.

Young has seen action in each of the last eight MLB seasons, though he made it into only six games in 2016. While he has never hit much at the game’s highest level, Young is slashing a robust .354/.419/.528 with five home runs and 15 steals through 201 Triple-A plate appearances this year.

Angels Designate Daniel Wright, Select Contract Of Shane Robinson

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The Angels announced today that they’ve selected the contract of outfielder Shane Robinson and designated right-hander Daniel Wright for assignment in order to clear a spot on the 40-man roster. Righty Parker Bridwell was optioned to Triple-A Salt Lake to clear a spot on the active roster.

[Related: Updated Los Angeles Angels depth chart]

Robinson, 32, saw action in 65 games with the Halos last season and hit .173/.257/.235 over the life of 111 plate appearances. The veteran outfielder has seen action in each of the past six big league seasons, though the resulting .227/.298/.302 batting line has clearly been sub-par. Robinson, though, has plenty of experience at all three outfield positions and has routinely delivered above-average ratings in left field, center field and right field. He’ll give the Halos a defensive-minded reserve in the absence of Mike Trout, as Cameron Maybin and Ben Revere each see an uptick in playing time while Trout recuperates.

The 26-year-old Wright, meanwhile, has pitched just 17 1/3 innings with Anaheim this season after logging 39 2/3 frames between the Reds and Angels last year. Through 57 Major League innings, Wright owns a 5.84 ERA with 5.1 K/9, 2.4 BB/9 and a 37.1 percent ground-ball rate. Wright has a respectable track record in Double-A but has struggled in both Triple-A and the Majors across the past two seasons. He does have a pair of minor league options remaining, so a club in need of optionable pitching depth could pick him up and send him to the minors without once again exposing Wright to waivers.

Cardinals Release Jonathan Broxton

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The Cardinals have released struggling right-hander Jonathan Broxton, GM John Mozeliak told reporters (Twitter link via Benjamin Hochman of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch). Right-hander John Gant has been recalled from Triple-A Memphis to take his spot in the St. Louis bullpen.

Broxton, who’ll turn 33 in a little more than two weeks, has been roughed up for a 6.89 ERA with the Redbirds through 16 1/3 innings this season. In that time, the former Dodgers closer has yielded 12 earned runs on the strength of 23 hits and 11 walks (two intentional).

Broxton’s 42.6 percent ground-ball rate is the second-lowest mark he’s posted in any full season of his big league career, as well. His 11.9 percent swinging-strike rate is his best since 2009, however, and he’s still averaging better than 94 mph on his heater, which helped him tally 16 punchouts in those 16 1/3 frames. That, of course, is a modest silver lining, though it does at least create a bit of optimism that the veteran could at least resurface as a serviceable relief arm.

The veteran Broxton is playing out the second season of a two-year, $7.5MM contract with the Cardinals, which guarantees him $3.75MM this year. The Cards will be on the hook for the remainder of that salary even if Broxton signs with another club after formally clearing release waivers. A new team would only be responsible for the pro-rated portion of the league minimum for any time Broxton spent on its Major League roster. (That sum would be subtracted from the remaining $2.54MM that the Cardinals owe Broxton.)

Gant, 24, was one of three prospects acquired by the Cardinals this offseason in the trade that sent left-hander Jaime Garcia to the Braves. He struggled a bit in 50 big league innings with Atlanta last season but has pitched to a very strong 2.19 ERA with 8.0 K/9, 3.6 BB/9 and a 50 percent ground-ball rate through three starts (12 1/3 innings) with the Cardinals’ Triple-A affiliate this year. He missed the first several weeks of the season due to a groin strain.

NL Notes: Franco, Capps, Stephenson, Gsellman

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The Phillies have at least held internal discussions about giving third baseman Maikel Franco some time at Triple-A, manager Pete Mackanin told reporters including Jim Salisbury of CSNPhilly.com. Though nothing has been decided, and Mackanin was non-committal, that’s certainly a notable development. Franco, 24, has long been viewed as a building block for the Phils. But he took a step back last year after an excellent 2015 season, and currently owns a disappointing .209/.268/.349 slash through 190 plate appearances in the current campaign.

Here’s more from around the National League:

  • It’s still not clear just when righty Carter Capps will make his Padres debut. As Dennis Lin of the San Diego Union-Tribune reports on Twitter, skipper Andy Green indicated that the reliever “drew mixed reviews” for his work on the bump yesterday. He’s scheduled to throw against live hitters in another controlled scenario on Friday. Capps, who missed all of 2016 due to Tommy John surgery, has struggled in eight rehab appearances thus far.
  • The Reds have optioned righty Robert Stephenson to Triple-A, C. Trent Rosecrans of the Cincinnati Enquirer tweets. He’ll be replaced by fellow right-hander Jackson Stephens. Things have not gone as hoped for the former first round draft pick. Through 24 2/3 innings in 13 appearances, he carries an 8.03 ERA. Stephenson has been knocked around for 33 hits (including seven long balls) while recording 27 strikeouts against 16 walks. It remains to be seen whether he’ll return to starting upon his return to the minors.
  • With several starters nearing returns, the Mets may again have a bit of extra rotation depth. That will likely force righty Robert Gsellman to the pen — and possibly, into quite a prominent role there. As Kevin Kernan of the New York Post writes, some within the Mets organization believe Gsellman’s stuff and attitude make him a good fit for the closer’s role. Addison Reed is currently filling in for the injured Jeurys Familia in the ninth.

MLB Announces Suspensions For Harper, Strickland

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TODAY: Harper’s ban was knocked down to three days upon appeal, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports tweets.

YESTERDAY: Following last night’s brawl, Major League Baseball has announced suspensions for Giants righty Hunter Strickland and Nationals outfielder Bryce Harper. As Joel Sherman of the New York Post first tweeted, Strickland will receive a six-game ban, while Harper will miss four contests.

Both players have appealed their sentences. They’ll also each pay undisclosed fines, per the league announcement.

The fracas occurred when Strickland plunked Harper in the hip in the first pitch of his plate appearance. The latter charged the mound, with both players landing punches before things were broken up.

While the two hadn’t even squared off in years, the last time they did it was under dramatic circumstances. Harper, of course, swatted two long home runs off of Strickland in the 2014 NLDS.

While Strickland did not admit to any intent after the game, the commissioner’s office nevertheless found that he had intentionally struck Harper with the pitch. Per the league’s announcement, his actions were responsible for “inciting the bench-clearing incident and fighting.” As for Harper, one of the game’s most visible players, the ban was announced for “charging the mound, throwing his helmet and fighting.”

While Harper will officially sit for less games, the punishment will hurt the Nats more than it does the Giants. The former will lose a fair bit of production from one of the game’s best hitters, while the latter will miss out on only a few innings from a quality reliever. That imbalance is ripe for some criticism, though it’s also something of a matter of perspective. If the punishment is intended primarily for the player rather than the team, then perhaps it’s not as skewed as it might otherwise appear. The bigger question, perhaps, is whether suspensions of this length provide sufficient deterrent value at all.

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