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AL Injury Notes: Robert, Lakins, Urquidy

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Luis Robert could be roughly four weeks out from a rehab assignment, per The Athletic’s James Fegan (via Twitter). Assuming all goes well for Robert — a significant assumption this far out — and the White Sox could hope to have their star centerfielder back in the lineup for the stretch run late in August. The club itself has not put an exact timetable on his return, however. Still, an update of any kind is a positive sign for the first-place Sox. If Robert avoids any hiccups in the next few weeks, the White Sox could be emboldened enough to stick with their current roster, rather than make a move to add another centerfielder before the deadline. In the meantime,Brian Goodwin has been the latest replacement to man center, joining Billy Hamilton and Adam Engel as fill-ins.

Elsewhere in the American League, there were a couple notable injuries in last night’s games to check in on…

  • The Astros/Orioles game saw a couple of pitchers leave early due to injury. Both starters, Jose Urquidy and Travis Lakins, left their respective outings in the second inning. The Orioles expect to have the results of an MRI on Lakins sometime today, per Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com. Lakins was making his first start of the season.
  • As for Urquidy, he left with shoulder discomfort after 1 2/3 innings. For those wondering if this was a return of the shoulder discomfort that sidelined Urquidy for a couple weeks in May, that does not appear to be the case. The pain that forced Urquidy from Tuesday’s start was in a different area than his prior injury, per MLB.com’s Brian McTaggart. Urquidy has been a big part of the Astros’ strong first half, pitching to a 3.38 ERA/4.00 FIP across 14 starts while totaling 77 1/3 innings — more than five innings per outing.

Blue Jays Acquire Adam Cimber, Corey Dickerson

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In one of the first deals of the summer trade season, the Blue Jays announced they’ve right-handed reliever Adam Cimber and left-handed-hitting outfielder Corey Dickerson from the Marlins in exchange for infielder Joe Panik and minor league righty Andrew McInvale. The swap comes barely a week after Toronto GM Ross Atkins acknowledged a desire to add bullpen help (and after the team was reported to be seeking left-handed bats on the trade market).

It’s a bit of a surprise move on a number of levels. Dickerson is presently on the 10-day IL with a foot injury, and it’s unclear when he’ll return to the field (although he’s eligible at any time having already spent more than 10 days on the shelf). Sportsnet’s Ben Nicholson-Smith tweets that Dickerson is still in a walking boot but feeling good as he progresses through rehab. Meanwhile, it’s a bit unexpected to see the Fish taking back a struggling veteran infielder such as Panik, but Miami does have a pair of infielders (Brian Anderson, Jose Devers) on the injured list at the moment.

Corey Dickerson

What’s not surprising, from a broader perspective, is that the Marlins would be seeking a trade partner for Dickerson. The 32-year-old has been a roughly league-average bat since signing a two-year, $17.5MM deal with Miami in the 2019-20 offseason and is hitting .263/.324/.380 through 225 trips to the plate in 2021. But the Marlins have multiple young outfielders they’d like the chance to evaluate for the remainder of the 2021 season, including Jesus Sanchez, who now figures to get the bulk of the time in left field. The 23-year-old decimated Triple-A pitching, slashing .349/.400/.643 with nine homers, five doubles and three triples through 140 plate appearances prior to his promotion. He now has a clearer path to everyday at-bats in Miami than he would’ve with a healthy Dickerson eventually returning from the injured list.

For the Blue Jays, Dickerson figures to slide into a part-time outfield role. Toronto currently has Lourdes Gurriel Jr., George Springer, Teoscar Hernandez and Randal Grichuk in the mix for outfield and DH at-bats, but all four bat right-handed. Dickerson’s left-handed bat makes for a nice fit, particularly given his longstanding platoon splits. He’s held his own against lefties in his career, hitting .268/.305/.408, but has thrived against right-handers with a .287/.333/.514 output.

While Dickerson is the more recognizable name of the two going back to the Jays in this deal, Cimber is perhaps the key piece of this trade for the Blue Jays. The 30-year-old sidearmer has pitched in 34 1/3 innings so far with the Marlins and notched a 2.88 ERA — albeit primarily in low-leverage situations.

Adam Cimber

Cimber doesn’t miss many bats, but that’s often the case with sidearm and submarine pitchers. He’s posted just a 15.9 percent strikeout rate so far in 2021 — about nine percent lower than league-average — but also sports better-than-average walk and ground-ball percentages (7.9 and 49.5, respectively). He rarely gives up premium contact, sitting in the 81st percentile of MLB pitchers in terms of opponents’ average exit velocity and the 96th percentile in terms of opponents’ barrel rate, per Statcast.

For his career, Cimber has been far more effective against righties than lefties, but he’s been an absolute nightmare for left-handed opponents so far in 2021. It’s a sample of just 55 plate appearances, so the small-sample caveat certainly applies, but left-handed opponents have posted just a .196/.327/.283 slash against him. Right-handers, meanwhile, are slashing .269/.329/.333 against him.

Dickerson is a free agent at season’s end, so he’s a pure rental for the Blue Jays whenever he’s able to return to the field. Cimber, on the other hand, is controllable via arbitration through the 2024 season. He’s playing the current year on a $925K salary after avoiding arbitration as a Super Two player over the winter and will have three more trips through the arb process before he qualifies as a free agent. His inclusion in the deal gives the Jays a reliever with a career 3.69 ERA and 4.01 SIERA both for the remainder of the 2021 season and perhaps for multiple years to come.

Looking at the Marlins’ end of the swap, Panik will give them an experienced bench option and help provide some cover for those injuries and any others that may arise. (Both Miguel Rojas and Jazz Chisholm have already spent time on the IL in 2021.) He could also see increased time at third base, freeing versatile Jon Berti up to bounce around the diamond as he has in seasons past. Panik was productive in the first couple years of his career with the Giants, but he’s settled in as something of a journeyman utility player. Dating back to 2018, the former first-round pick is batting .246/.313/.332 — including a .246/.293/.351 hitter in 123 plate appearances so far in 2021.

Panik’s inclusion in the deal also serves as something of a financial counterweight to the Blue Jays’ additions of Dickerson and Cimber. The Marlins are also sending the Jays about $2.65MM as part of the trade. Overall, the Jays are adding about $4.4MM of Dickerson’s remaining salary and $482K of Cimber’s remaining salary, but shedding the remaining $982K on Panik’s deal and getting this $2.65MM in cash considerations. That leaves about a $1.3MM sum remaining to be added to the Toronto payroll.

As for the 24-year-old McInvale, he’ll add another arm to the upper levels of the Miami system. Although he was one of the Blue Jays’ final picks in 2019 (37th round and No. 1107 overall), McInvale has risen to Double-A and fared quite well this season. He’s pitched 20 2/3 innings out of the bullpen an impressive 31.8 percent strikeout rate and a massive 63.6 percent ground-ball rate. Command has been an issue, however, as McInvale has walked 13 batters (14.8 BB%), hit another pair and tossed three wild pitches.

McInvale didn’t rank among the Jays’ best prospects, as one would expect for a recent 37th-rounder who didn’t pitch in 2020. However, the Marlins are parting with an outfielder they’ve deemed superfluous and a right-hander they acquired from the Indians this past winter in exchange for cash ($100K, to be exact). Saving some of Dickerson’s salary and adding a pitcher who’s performed well at the Double-A level seems like a solid outcome to the whole gambit for them. As for the Jays, they’re effectively purchasing an experienced righty and rolling the dice on a veteran hitter with a strong track record against right-handed pitching. It’s not the flashiest of trades we’ll see this summer, but it’s one that ultimately feels fairly sensible for both clubs — even if it looks a little odd at first glance.

Craig Mish of the Miami Herald first reported that Dickerson was being traded to the Blue Jays and that the Marlins were sending some cash (all Twitter links). MLB Network’s Jon Heyman then added that Cimber, Panik and a Jays minor league pitcher were in the swap. The Athletic’s Kaitlyn McGrath first reported McInvale’s inclusion. Shi Davidi of Sportsnet reported (via Twitter) the Marlins’ inclusion of salary.

Minor MLB Transactions: 6/29/21

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Some minor moves from around the game…

  • The Twins have signed lefty reliever Sean Gilmartin to a minor league contract, per his MLB.com transactions log. He had been pitching for the Long Island Ducks of the independent Atlantic League. Gilmartin has seen big league action in each of the past six seasons, although he’s only made three appearances over the past two years combined. Gilmartin had a strong rookie campaign with the Mets, pitching to a 2.67 ERA/3.44 SIERA over 57 1/3 innings in 2015. He’s never managed to follow up on that success, though. In 54 2/3 frames since the start of 2016, the 31-year-old has a 6.09 ERA/6.71 FIP.
  • Catcher Ryan Lavarnway went unclaimed on outright waivers and has been assigned to Triple-A Columbus, per the Indians’ transactions log at MLB.com. Lavarnway has bounced all over the league for the past decade, logging big league time with eight different teams (primarily the Red Sox). He’s a career .216/.274/.344 hitter in 468 MLB plate appearances and a .271/.361/.432 hitter in parts of 10 different Triple-A seasons. Lavarnway has previously been outrighted (and also has the requisite three-plus years of service), so he can reject this assignment in favor of free agency if he chooses.

Astros’ Jairo Solis Undergoes Tommy John Surgery

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Astros right-handed pitching prospect Jairo Solis underwent Tommy John surgery yesterday, the team told reporters (including Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle). That obviously ends any chance of Solis pitching in 2021 and it’ll sideline him for most or all of the 2022 campaign.

It’s a horrible development for Solis, who also underwent Tommy John surgery late in 2018. That kept him out of action for all of 2019, and he obviously didn’t get an opportunity to pitch in a game last year because of the canceled minor league season. Solis also had a procedure to remove loose bodies from his elbow earlier this year, so he hasn’t pitched this season. If he’s indeed out through 2022, he’ll be looking at a staggering four straight years without game action.

In between the injuries, Solis has flashed impact upside. Entering the year, Eric Longenhagen of FanGraphs credited him with four average or better pitches and ranked him as Houston’s #3 prospect. Longenhagen’s colleague, Kevin Goldstein, wrote that Solis could emerge as a top 100 overall prospect with a breakout performance this summer. Unfortunately, repeated elbow troubles will keep him from getting that opportunity.

The Astros added Solis to the 40-man roster last winter in advance of the Rule 5 draft. He’s spent all of 2021 on the minor league injured list. Players on the minor league IL continue to count against the 40-man roster, so today’s surgery could create a difficult decision for the front office. They surely wouldn’t want to part with a pitcher of his caliber, but it’s possible a roster crunch could force their hand. Houston could add Solis to the major league 60-day injured list to open 40-man roster space during the season, but that’d require paying him a major league salary and he’d still need to be activated from the IL over the offseason.

Ng: Marlins Have Begun Extension Talks With Starling Marte

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The Marlins have been in talks with outfielder Starling Marté about a potential contract extension, general manager Kim Ng told reporters (including Craig Mish of SportsGrid) this afternoon. Unsurprisingly, she didn’t elaborate on how far along those discussions were or handicap their odds of ultimately resulting in a deal.

Nevertheless, the presence of any midseason talks with Marté are notable, given Ng’s prior comments. Earlier this month, she told reporters the team hadn’t approached the star outfielder about a potential long-term deal. Marté suggested then that his preference was to come to an agreement with the Marlins on a contract that took him through the end of his career. It seems the front office and his representatives at Rep 1 Baseball have now at least opened those talks.

Marté is on track to hit free agency at the end of the season, and he’s presently amidst a career year at the plate. He’s hitting .293/.402/.473 with six home runs across 179 plate appearances. The resulting 148 wRC+ is the best mark of his nine-plus seasons. Excepting 2017, Marté has been an above-average hitter in every year of his career, but he’s getting on base at an unprecedented level this season.

Before 2021, Marté had never drawn walks in more than 6.1% of his plate appearances. This year, he’s bumped his walk rate to a stellar 13.4%. That seems to reflect a deliberate decision to be more patient, as the right-handed hitter is swinging at a career-low 46.5% of pitches he sees. (He’s also swinging less often than ever at pitches outside the strike zone). That increased selectiveness hasn’t resulted in any sort of uptick in strikeouts or impacted his power potential.

Marté presents something of a tricky evaluation for the Marlins (or potential free agent suitors). He’s always been productive, but he looks to have revamped his approach nearly a decade into his career. Whether he’ll continue to be this patient after such a long run of being a highly-aggressive hitter is unknown.

There’s also the matter of Marté’s age to consider. He turns 33 years old in October, which could give Miami some pause. He hasn’t shown much sign of slowing down, though. Marté’s not quite as fast as he was in his 20’s, but he still has 86th-percentile peak speed, according to Statcast. His defensive metrics in center field remain positive. And his rate of hard hit balls (those that leave the bat over 95 MPH) is at 36.2%, right in line with his career mark. A handful of mishits have brought down his average exit velocity to a career-worst 85.6 MPH, but there’s no indication he’s suffered any sort of drop in bat speed or raw power.

If Marté and the Marlins don’t make progress on an extension in the coming weeks, he’d be one of the more obvious trade chips on the market. At 33-44, the Marlins don’t look likely to contend in 2021. They’re planning to move some of their impending free agents, a process they began this morning by sending outfielder Corey Dickerson (along with controllable reliever Adam Cimber) to the Blue Jays. As perhaps the premier center fielder who could be available, Marté would draw no shortage of interest, especially since he’s only due the balance of an affordable $12.5MM salary for the remainder of the season. The Marlins could offer Marté a qualifying offer if they hold onto him until the end of the year but don’t agree on an extension, but the value of a midseason trade package seems likely to exceed that of a compensatory draft pick.

Shortstop Miguel Rojas would also draw plenty of interest from contenders if made available, but it doesn’t seem the Marlins are particularly eager to move him. Ng suggested (via Mish) that Rojas was more likely than not to remain in Miami past the July 30 trade deadline. His contract contains a $5.5MM option for 2022 that vests if he accrues 500 plate appearances this season. He’ll need a manageable 271 trips to the plate over Miami’s final 85 games (3.19 PA per game) to lock in that money, although it seems likely the Marlins would exercise the option even if it doesn’t vest.

Rojas is a beloved member of the clubhouse who’s amidst a third consecutive productive season. The 32-year-old is hitting a league average .256/.328/.406 this year while playing quality defense at shortstop. That’s valuable enough even before considering his off-field importance to the organization.

Rangers Designate Shaun Anderson For Assignment

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The Rangers announced they’ve designated right-hander Shaun Anderson for assignment. The move creates 40-man roster space for the previously-announced selection of catcher John Hicks.

Texas claimed Anderson off waivers from the Twins two weeks ago. They promptly optioned him to Triple-A Round Rock, so it’s possible Anderson’s Rangers tenure will end without a big league appearance. He tossed three scoreless innings for the Express.

Anderson made his MLB debut with the Giants in 2019 and was traded to Minnesota over the winter. The 26-year-old allowed twelve runs (nine earned) in 8 2/3 innings with the Twins this year, bringing his career ERA to 5.48 in 120 big league frames. Anderson has a much better 3.61 mark across parts of three Triple-A seasons

Texas will have a week to trade Anderson or place him on waivers. Between his minor league track record and pair of minor league option years remaining, Anderson could hold some appeal to other clubs. The Rangers had the league’s fourth-highest waiver priority when they claimed Anderson, so it’s possible a team with a better record is hoping to have an opportunity to add him this time around.

Dan Altavilla Undergoes Tommy John Surgery

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Padres reliever Dan Altavilla has undergone Tommy John surgery, he announced on Twitter. That’ll obviously prevent him from pitching again in 2021, and he’s likely to miss most or all of the 2022 season given the procedure’s 12-16 month general recovery timetable.

Altavilla made two appearances this year before going on the 10-day injured list with right elbow inflammation. He was transferred to the 60-day IL in late May. Evidently, his attempts to rehab the injury without surgery proved unsuccessful.

The 28-year-old has pitched in the majors in each of the past six seasons. Altavilla broke in with the Mariners and went to San Diego before last summer’s trade deadline as part of the seven-player Austin Nola deal. In 116 MLB innings, the right-hander has worked to a 4.03 ERA/4.11 SIERA with an above-average 26.1% strikeout rate but an elevated 12.1% walk percentage.

Altavilla signed an $850K deal with the Friars to avoid arbitration over the winter. Since he barely pitched this year, he’d be in line for the same or marginally higher amount if tendered a contract for 2022. That’s hardly bank-breaking money, but it’s possible the Padres decide to non-tender Altavilla rather than devote a 40-man roster spot to him all winter. (Players have to be reinstated from the IL over the offseason). If San Diego does tender Altavilla a contract, he’d be controllable through 2023.

Rangers Select John Hicks

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The Rangers announced they’ve selected the contract of catcher John Hicks. Outfielder Jason Martin has been optioned to Triple-A Round Rock to clear active roster space. A 40-man roster transaction has yet to be announced.

Starting catcher Jose Trevino suffered a forearm contusion after he slipped and fell earlier today, notes Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News (Twitter link). With Trevino unavailable, Texas needed another backstop to pair with Jonah Heim. That’ll open up an opportunity for Hicks’ first big league run in two years. The right-handed hitter saw MLB action every season from 2015-19, the bulk of which came with the Tigers.

Hicks flashed some power during his time in Detroit, but he never drew many walks and has struck out in 30.1% of his career plate appearances at the highest level. The 32-year-old signed a minor league deal with Texas over the winter and has hit .275/.352/.440 with three homers across 122 plate appearances with Round Rock. That’s league average production in a hitter-friendly Triple-A West environment.

Cubs Place Ryan Tepera On Injured List, Select Adam Morgan

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The Cubs announced they’ve placed right-hander Ryan Tepera on the 10-day injured list with a left calf strain and optioned right-hander Trevor Megill to Triple-A Iowa. Righty Tommy Nance was recalled from Iowa, while southpaw Adam Morgan was selected to the big league roster. To create 40-man roster space for Morgan, infielder Matt Duffy was transferred from the 10-day to the 60-day injured list.

Tepera has been quite productive this season. Through 37 2/3 innings, the righty has worked to a 3.35 ERA/3.28 SIERA. He’s punched out a strong 28.3% of opposing hitters- his second consecutive season missing plenty of bats- against a solid 8.3% walk percentage. Tepera has been a key piece of a Cubs bullpen that has surprisingly been one of the game’s best. Chicago relievers have a 2.95 ERA that trails only the Padres’ 2.85 mark, and they’re also near the top of the league in strikeout rate (29%), strikeout/walk rate differential (17 percentage points) and SIERA (3.67).

Morgan will try to emulate that work in his first taste of big league action this year. The 31-year-old pitched in the majors each season between 2015-20 with the Phillies, and he’ll now get an opportunity for a seventh straight campaign. While Morgan was generally underwhelming early in his career as a starting pitcher, he proved fairly effective upon a move to the bullpen. He has a 4.07 ERA/4.22 FIP with decent strikeout and walk numbers (25.5% and 9.1%, respectively) in 150 1/3 career innings as a reliever.

Unfortunately, Morgan was forced to undergo flexor tendon surgery last October. The Phillies outrighted him and he signed a minor league deal with the Cubs in January. He’s been fantastic over 16 1/3 innings with Iowa, working to a 2.20 ERA with a 32.3% strikeout rate and a 4.6% walk percentage.

Duffy went on the IL with a low back strain on May 23. Today’s transfer rules him out for sixty days from the date of his original IL placement, so he won’t return until at least July 22. The 30-year-old infielder has hit a solid .278/.377/.356 through 106 plate appearances this season.

Brewers To Select Aaron Ashby

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The Brewers are planning to call up left-handed pitching prospect Aaron Ashby, reports Jeff Passan of ESPN (Twitter link). The 23-year-old is expected to work out of the bullpen initially, Passan notes. He isn’t on the 40-man roster, so a corresponding move is forthcoming.

Ashby is one of the game’s more exciting pitching prospects. Milwaukee selected him in the fourth round in 2018 out of Crowder Junior College, and his prospect status has steadily improved throughout his time in pro ball. Ashby had a strong couple months at Low-A during his draft year, and that continued the following season. Between Low-A and High-A in 2019, he worked to a 3.50 ERA with a strong 25.5% strikeout rate and an elevated 11.3% walk percentage.

Clearly, Ashby’s control can be an issue at times, but his low minors performance has impressed evaluators. Each of Baseball America, Keith Law of the Athletic and Eric Longenhagen of FanGraphs ranked Ashby among Milwaukee’s top ten prospects entering the season. BA suggested he’d likely settle in as a back-of-the-rotation starter, while Law noted Ashby had mid-rotation raw stuff but needed to develop better control to reach that ceiling. Longenhagen was arguably the most bullish, placing Ashby at #127 in his top overall prospects list, praising his mid-90s fastball and pair of quality breaking pitches and calling the southpaw a potential impact multi-inning reliever.

It’s been more of the same for Ashby in 2021, which he’s spent at Triple-A Nashville. Through 38 innings, he’s managed a 4.50 ERA with a stellar 33.3% strikeout rate but a very high 14.3% walk rate. Milwaukee is clearly comfortable enough with his bat-missing prowess to tolerate some potential control issues, as he’ll be thrust into a tight division race. The Brewers lead the Cubs by four games in the National League Central. Milwaukee dealt a pair of relievers (Drew Rasmussen and J.P. Feyereisen) in the Willy Adames trade last month, likely in anticipation of Ashby contributing at some point this season.

Even if he’s in the majors from here on out, Ashby won’t accrue a full season of MLB service. He’ll be controllable through 2027, and he’s unlikely to be eligible for arbitration until after 2024. Future optional assignments could obviously change that service time outlook.

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