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Archives for September 2021

Minor MLB Transactions: 9/13/21

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Some minor moves from around the league that were announced Monday…

  • The Royals announced this morning that they’ve reinstated right-hander Ronald Bolanos from the 60-day injured list and optioned him to Triple-A Omaha. Kansas City had a pair of open spots on the 40-man roster already, so a corresponding transaction was not required. A forearm strain has limited Bolanos, who turned 25 last month, to just 40 1/3 innings between the big leagues and the minors combined in 2021. He came to the Royals alongside Franchy Cordero in the 2020 trade that sent left-hander Tim Hill to the Padres but hasn’t yet gotten much of a look. Bolanos served up 17 earned runs in 16 1/3 innings on a minor league rehab assignment, so it’s not too surprising that the Royals want him to get some more work in the minors. Bolanos still has a minor league option remaining beyond the current season.
  • Right-hander Sal Romano went unclaimed on waivers after he was designated for assignment, the Yankees announced Monday. He’s been sent outright to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre and is no longer on the 40-man roster. The 27-year-old signed a minor league deal with the Yanks back in May and has been added to the big league roster and removed thrice now. He’s pitched in three games and totaled three innings with one run allowed on five hits, a walk and four strikeouts. Romano has logged a 3.56 ERA in 30 1/3 innings with the team’s Triple-A affiliate as well. He hasn’t had much big league success since his rookie season back in 2017 (4.45 ERA in 87 innings/16 starts with Cincinnati), but he’s been a solid depth add for the Yankees thus far.

Reds Designate Brad Brach For Assignment

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The Reds announced Monday that they’ve designated veteran right-handed reliever Brad Brach for assignment in order to open a spot on the roster for infielder Kyle Farmer, who has been reinstated from the paternity list.

Brach, 35, joined the Reds earlier this year on a minor league pact and got out to a brilliant start with his new club. Through his first 20 innings in Cincinnati, Brach pitched to a 2.25 ERA with a strong 28.6 percent strikeout rate and a hefty 54.9 percent ground-ball rate. His 10.7 percent walk rate was a bit worse than league average but far from egregious.

It’s been a swift decline for Brach since that time, however. Over his past 15 appearances he’s managed only 10 innings and yielded 16 earned runs on 17 hits and nine walks with nine strikeouts (16.4 percent strikeout and walk rate alike). Brach missed nearly a month with a shoulder impingement along the way, which surely played no small part in his downfall after that hot start.

Brach was one of the game’s steadier setup men during his 2012-18 peak with the Padres and the Orioles. In 449 innings during that time, he logged a 3.05 ERA, fanned more than a quarter of the batters he faced (at a time when the league-wide strikeout rate was lower than it presently is) and averaged fewer than a homer allowed per nine innings pitched (0.92 HR/9) — no small feat given that five of those seasons were spent calling Oriole Park at Camden Yards his home stadium.

Brach has since spent time with the Cubs, Mets and Reds — in addition to a minor league deal with the Royals this past spring. He pitched quite well down the stretch for the ’19 Mets and parlayed that into a 2020 return to Queens, but he was hit hard in 12 1/3 innings last year. The consistency he once enjoyed has begun to elude him, but Brach’s work prior to the shoulder injury this season suggests he’s still a capable reliever when he’s right.

The Reds will place Brach on outright waivers or release waivers in the coming days, and any club will be able to claim him for the final few weeks of the regular season. He’s a free agent at the end of the year.

Clint Frazier Won’t Return In 2021

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Clint Frazier has been on the injured list since the end of June, and Yankees skipper Aaron Boone revealed to reporters last night that the 27-year-old outfielder won’t make it back to the team this season (Twitter link via Sports Illustrated’s Max Goodman).

It’s been a brutal season for Frazier, who looked like a breakout candidate from 2019-20 when he posted a combined .267/.347/.497 batting line with 20 homers, 20 doubles and a triple in 465 plate appearances. He appeared in just 66 games this season and tallied 218 plate appearances with a woeful .186/.317/.317 output in that time.

More concerning than his bottom-line performance, however, have been the health issues that have plagued him. Frazier has been on the injured list with blurred vision, dizziness and other vertigo-like symptoms that remain unresolved. Those are troubling on their own but particularly alarming for a player who missed significant time in 2018 with a concussion. Frazier looked to be on the upswing in mid-August when he set out on a minor league rehab assignment and went 4-for-10 in his first three games. However, he pulled himself from that assignment prior to the fourth game, Boone noted at the time, because he was “not quite feeling where he needed to.” He hasn’t played at any level since.

“He’s seen so many specialists, trying to get answers,” Boone said of Frazier last night. “…Right now we just want him to get to a point where he’s well and able to get back to playing full bore.”

The player’s health and general well-being are clearly the primary concerns in an injury situation with this much uncertainty. The Yankees will face some kind of decision on Frazier this offseason, as he’ll be arbitration-eligible for the second time as a Super Two player after taking home a $2.1MM salary in 2021.

Any decisions of that nature will be informed by whatever doctors are able to glean regarding his health over the next couple of months. The Yankees control Frazier for three more years beyond the current season, and he even has a minor league option year remaining, so if he is indeed able to get back on track, he could yet have a role with the club in the future. For now, the focus remains on determining the source of the ongoing issues and then, hopefully, getting Frazier to the point where he’s able to take the field again.

Brewers Place Rowdy Tellez On 10-Day Injured List

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The Brewers placed first baseman Rowdy Tellez on the 10-day injured list due to a right patella strain.  Catcher Luke Maile was called up from Triple-A to fill Tellez’s spot on the active roster.

Tellez has been bothered by the knee problem for a while, manager Craig Counsell told media last night after Tellez was removed during the second inning of Milwaukee’s 3-0 win over the Indians.  Brewers president of baseball operations David Stearns told reporters (including Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel) today that the team felt the IL was necessary for Tellez even as the team awaits the results of an MRI.

With only three weeks remaining in the regular season, Tellez and the Brewers are certainly hopeful that the slugger’s knee will be ready to go for the postseason.  Tellez has become the Brew Crew’s everyday first baseman in the second half of the season, and while he has been rather streaky over his three-plus months in Milwaukee, Tellez has been good enough to stabilize a shaky first base situation.

Since being acquired in a trade from the Blue Jays on July 6, Tellez has hit .270/.329/.474 with seven home runs over 167 plate appearances, good for a 112 OPS+.  That would be a significant bat to lose for the playoffs if Tellez’s injury proves serious enough to sideline him into October, though that scenario might not yet be a consideration, at least until Tellez’s MRI results are known.

Daniel Vogelbach can step in as another slugging left-handed first base bat while Tellez is out of action, though Vogelbach’s inconsistency was one of the reasons the Brewers acquired Tellez to shore up first base.  Utilityman Jace Peterson and infielder Eduardo Escobar are also options, with the switch-hitting Escobar likely to get some looks at first base when a left-handed pitcher is on the mound.

Injury Notes: Snell, Boyd, deGrom, Nimmo

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The big storylines from today’s Padres-Dodgers game all revolve around Max Scherzer. Not only did he become just the 19th pitcher in Major League history to reach 3,000 career strikeouts, he also threw an immaculate inning and carried a perfect game into the eighth inning. However, the opposing clubhouse didn’t have nearly as much to celebrate. Padres reliever Austin Adams tied a modern-day record for hit batsmen in a season and Blake Snell left the game after just 11 pitches with what the club later announced as “left adductor tightness”, also known as a groin injury.

This is very unfortunate timing for both the club and Snell, as they are in a crowded playoff race and he was just starting to turn his frustrating season around. Following a miserable outing against Oakland on July 28th, Snell was sitting on an ERA of 5.44 through 84 1/3 innings, with an elevated walk rate of 14.3%, well above this year’s league average of 8.7%. However, since that time, the lefty seemed to have got into a groove and righted the ship, throwing 43 2/3 innings with 65 strikeouts and an ERA of 1.85, along with a much-improved walk rate of 8.6%.

The severity of the injury isn’t clear at this point. But with the club currently tied with the Reds for the last National League Wild Card spot, with the Cardinals just a game back and other teams looming, every remaining game is tremendously important. Rotation health has been an ongoing issue for the club in the past few months, so much so that the club signed Jake Arrieta a few weeks ago to try and paper over the injuries. However, Arrieta landed on the IL himself and hasn’t been terribly effective in his two appearances with the Friars. Losing Snell for any amount of time, especially when he was throwing so well, would surely be a blow to their chances.

Some other injury updates…

  • Matt Boyd is meeting with elbow specialist Keith Meister, Tigers manager AJ Hinch tells Chris McCosky of The Detroit News. “He is scheduled to see Dr. Meister in Dallas and then we’ll get further evaluations and opinions and see what’s next for him,” Hinch said. While a meeting doesn’t necessarily spell doom, this is a potentially concerning development, given that Meister is often associated with Tommy John surgery. McCosky points out that Meister recently performed the procedure for Tigers catcher Jake Rogers, but the doctor has also recently taken the knife to Tyler Glasnow and many others. If any kind of serious surgery is required, it would be very poor timing, given that Boyd is currently slated to reach free agency after the 2022 season. The 30-year-old is playing this year on a $6.5MM salary and can be controlled for one more year via arbitration. Boyd’s name has been often mentioned as a trade candidate for the rebuilding Tigers in recent years, though a deal has yet to come to fruition. A lengthy surgery rehab could further dent any trade value he has left and also hurt Boyd’s chances to cash in on his quality career via free agency. Since the start of 2016, Boyd had given the Tigers 727 innings with an ERA of 4.75, accruing 10.2 fWAR in that time.
  • The Mets provided yet another vague update about Jacob deGrom, as manager Luis Rojas tells Anthony DiComo of MLB.com he is scheduled to throw off a mound, “maybe this week.” deGrom was on his way to a brilliant season before elbow issues put him on the shelf in July. Through 92 innings this season, he has an ERA of 1.08 with an excellent walk rate of 3.4% and an absurd strikeout rate of 45.1%. Given that there’s only three weeks remaining in the season, it seems that the chances of those winding up as his final numbers are growing.
  • In better news for the Mets, the prognosis for outfielder Brandon Nimmo seems to have improved. DiComo gives some details of the onfield workout Nimmo took part in today and says that Nimmo believes he can return to face Philadelphia, whom the Mets start a three-game series with on Friday. Going into tonight’s game against the Yankees, the Mets are 3 1/2 games out of a playoff spot and would surely love to get Nimmo back into the mix to help with their postseason push. In 77 games this year, the 28-year-old has hit .302/420/.415, an excellent wRC+ of 139.

Write For MLB Trade Rumors

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We’re looking to add to the MLBTR writing team, in a part-time position that pays hourly.  The criteria:

  • Strong weekday availability.
  • Exceptional knowledge of all 30 baseball teams, no discernible bias. Knowledge of hot stove concepts like arbitration, draft pick compensation for free agents, and the competitive balance tax.
  • A high school degree is required, and further education is preferred. Please include your highest completed level of education in your application.
  • Writing experience is necessary, and online writing experience is preferred.
  • Attention to detail and ability to follow the MLBTR style and tone.
  • Ability to analyze articles and craft intelligent, well-written posts summing up the news quickly and concisely.
  • Ability to use Twitter, Tweetdeck, and WordPress.
  • The job may include opportunities for supporting research and social media tasks.
  • If you’re interested, email mlbtrhelp@gmail.com and explain how you stand out and qualify in a couple of short paragraphs.  Please attach your resume to the email.  We often receive several hundred applications, so unfortunately we will not be able to reply to each one.

At the end of your application, please fill in the blank:  After the ____ season ends, assuming the CBA remains unchanged in this regard and he does not sign a contract extension or go to the minors, Pirates center fielder Bryan Reynolds will become a free agent.  Rather than give an explanation, simply write, “Reynolds question: [Year]” at the end.

Yankees Recall Clarke Schmidt, Option Andrew Velazquez

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The Yankees have recalled right-handed pitcher Clarke Schmidt to start tonight’s game against the Mets, according to a team announcement. Swapping places with him is infielder Andrew Velazquez, who has been optioned to Triple-A.

Schmidt is, at least temporarily, taking the rotation spot of Gerrit Cole, who left his start on Tuesday after 70 pitches over 3 2/3 innings because of tightness in his left hamstring, per Lindsey Adler of The Athletic. However, Cole himself said he’s good to go for this coming Tuesday, per Adler. That’s surely good news for the Yankees, who are suddenly out of playoff position. With the Blue Jays winning this afternoon, the Yanks are going into tonight’s contest a half game behind the Jays, as well as the Red Sox, in the Wild Card race. A healthy Cole is potentially a huge difference-maker in a race that tight. Overall, it’s yet another excellent season for the Yankees’ ace, as he has an ERA of 2.78 over 158 2/3 innings so far this year. He’s provided 5.2 wins above replacement, according to FanGraphs, better than every pitcher in the AL, and trailing just Corbin Burnes and Zack Wheeler overall.

For Schmidt, this will be his first major league action of the season. He began the year on the injured list and only started a rehab assignment towards the end of July. Since then, he’s logged 27 1/3 innings across four different levels of the minors, with an ERA of 2.96, a strikeout rate of 29.3% and walk rate of 6.9%. His only MLB experience thus far was a small sample of 6 1/3 innings in 2020, where he had an ERA of 7.11.

Velazquez was originally selected by the Yankees August 9th, when the club was dealing with a vast COVID-19 outbreak that saw multiple players test positive and miss time. The infielder became something of a fan favourite in that time, at least partially because of his Bronx roots. However, he didn’t provide enough offense to hold onto a roster spot, hitting .234/.246/.375 with a tiny walk rate of 1.5% and hefty strikeout rate of 32.3%. However, this is over a small sample of just 65 plate appearances. He’s fared much better in 277 Triple-A plate appearances this year, slashing .283/.367/.471.

Minor MLB Transactions: 9/12/21

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Some minor moves from around the league:

  • The Marlins have released left-hander Ross Detwiler, according to the MLB.com transactions page. Detwiler had been designated for assignment on Tuesday. The release is largely a formality, as Detwiler had the ability to reject an outright assignment. The 35-year-old will now see if there are any offers available for him on the open market. He would not be eligible to appear in the playoffs with any new club, since it is after the August 31st deadline. But he could potentially help a team absorb some innings down the stretch. In 45 1/3 innings this year, he has an elevated ERA of 4.96. However, his 28% strikeout rate is a career high, though that’s also come with a career-low ground ball rate of 39.7%.
  • The Cardinals reinstated minor-league righty Johan Quezada from the 60-day injured list, according to a team announcement. Right-hander Junior Fernandez is going the other direction, landing himself on the 60-day injured list, according to Jeff Jones of the Belleville News-Democrat. Quezada was acquired from the Phillies in the offseason but hasn’t been able to pitch much this year due to injuries. The 27-year-old has thrown 16 2/3 innings between the Florida Complex League and Double-A. As for Fernandez, this IL placement will end his season. He racked up a lot of mileage shuttling between Triple-A and MLB this year, being recalled and optioned five times. He’ll finish the season with an ERA of 5.66 over 20 2/3 innings in the big leagues, along with identical strikeout and walk rates of 15.5%. In 14 1/3 Triple-A innings, his ERA is higher, 6.28, but with much better strikeout and walk rates of 33.3% and 7.6%, respectively.

Diamondbacks Outright Jake Hager

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The Diamondbacks have outrighted Jake Hager to Triple-A Reno, thus removing the utilityman from the team’s 40-man roster.  Hager has spent much of his Arizona tenure in the minors, appear in only nine MLB games since the D’Backs claimed him off waivers from the Mariners on July 30.

The waiver wire has essentially been Hager’s second home for the last four months, as he has been a member of four different organizations in that time.  After beginning the season with the Mets, he has been designated for assignment and then claimed three times, going from the Mets to the Brewers to the Mariners before finally landing with the Diamondbacks.

Hager made his MLB debut this season while playing with the Mets, and the 28-year-old’s rookie season has seen him amass 14 games and 30 total plate appearances (batting .115/.233/.115) with New York and Arizona.  Drafted 32rd overall by the Rays back in 2011, Hager has hit .258/.313/.385 over 3508 career PA in the minor leagues, with the bulk of that time coming in Tampa and Milwaukee farm systems.

COVID Notes: 9/12/21

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The latest updates on coronavirus situations around baseball…

Latest Moves

  • The Red Sox placed yet another player on the COVID list, as right-hander Phillips Valdez tested positive for the virus (MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo was among those to report the news.)  Right-hander Brad Peacock will join the active roster in Valdez’s place after Peacock’s contract was selected from Triple-A Worcester.  Between Pivetta’s activation and Valdez joining, Boston’s COVID list remains at 10 players.

Earlier Today

  • The Red Sox reinstated right-hander Nick Pivetta from the COVID-related injury list today, and optioned righty Connor Seabold to Triple-A.  Pivetta will get the start today against the White Sox after recovering from a case of COVID-19 that sidelined him on September 5.  (As per league regulations, Pivetta was cleared to return after seven days because he was fully vaccinated earlier this season.)  It has been something of an up-and-down season for Pivetta, and the righty is looking to bounce back after posting a 10.13 ERA over 10 2/3 innings pitched in his last three starts.

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