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Archives for August 2022
Matt Dermody To Sign With KBO League’s NC Dinos
Cubs left-hander Matt Dermody has agreed to sign with the NC Dinos of the Korea Baseball Organization, according to Steve Adams of MLB Trade Rumors (Twitter link). While Dermody was signed with the Cubs, it isn’t uncommon for teams to release players for opportunities overseas if that player isn’t in the team’s long-term plans.
Dermody is no stranger to pitching outside of affiliated baseball, as he pitched the independent Sugar Land Skeeters in 2020 and then in Japan with the Seibu Lions in 2021. (In between, he also made a few appearances in Dominican Winter League ball.) Returning to the MLB ladder on a minor league deal with the Cubs in January, Dermody made one appearance on the big league roster. Just this past Thursday, Dermody was the 27th man for the Cubs’ doubleheader against the Cardinals, and he tossed an inning in the second game.
That cup of coffee marked Dermody’s fourth appearance in a Major League season, with 27 1/3 total big league frames pitched — to a 5.60 ERA — since the start of the 2016 campaign. The southpaw had some decent numbers at Triple-A Iowa this year, with a 3.74 ERA, 51.2% grounder rate, and 5.2% walk rate over 79 1/3 innings (starting 13 of 20 games).
Mariners Reinstate Mitch Haniger From 60-Day IL
In between games of today’s doubleheader with the Angels, the Mariners reinstated outfielder Mitch Haniger from the 60-day injured list. Abraham Toro was optioned to Triple-A in the corresponding move.
Haniger has played in just nine games this year, due to both a two-week stint on the COVID-related IL to begin the season, and then this extended trip on the 60-day IL because of a Grade 2 high ankle sprain. Tonight’s game will mark just the second time Haniger has been able to take the field since April 15. 2022 has been another injury-plagued year for Haniger, who missed over half of the 2019 season and the entire 2020 season due to a ruptured testicle.
Haniger had emerged as a productive bat for the Mariners in 2017-18, and was named to the AL All-Star team in 2018. Returning from his long layoff last year, Haniger basically picked up right where he left off, hitting .253/.318/.485 with 39 home runs over 691 plate appearances and 157 games in 2021.
A healthy and in-form Haniger is an enormous boost to the Mariners’ chances of finally returning to the postseason for the first time 2001. It’s probably safe to assume that he’ll get a few extra DH days to ease back into the lineup, but Haniger’s return as the regular right fielder will move Adam Frazier back into full-time second base work. Julio Rodriguez is still recovering from a wrist injury, but a Seattle outfield featuring Rodriguez and Haniger is a much more daunting challenge for opposing pitchers.
With a little less than two months remaining in the regular season, Haniger will get at least some kind of a platform to post some numbers and add to his market as a free agent this winter. Between his injury history and his age (Haniger will be 32 on Opening Day), the outfielder will need a big finish to give himself a shot at a lucrative multi-year contract. With the qualifying offer now back in play for all free agents, Haniger could be an intriguing candidate to receive and perhaps accept a QO, presuming the Mariners are willing to make what would be a $18MM-$19MM investment in Haniger on a one-year deal.
Reds Place Hunter Greene On 15-Day Injured List
TODAY: It doesn’t appear as though Greene will need surgery, according to multiple reporters (including Bobby Nightengale of the Cincinnati Enquirer). The exact results of Greene’s MRI aren’t known, nor his timetable for a possible return.
AUGUST 5: The Reds announced they’ve placed righty Hunter Greene on the 15-day injured list, retroactive to August 2, with a strain in his throwing shoulder. Reliever Ryan Hendrix has been recalled to take his place on the active roster.
Greene, who turns 23 tomorrow, has spent the year in the rotation after breaking camp with the big league club. The former second overall pick has made his first 20 starts at the major league level, working to a 5.26 ERA across 102 2/3 innings. Only Josiah Gray has allowed more home runs than Greene’s 23, but he’s also flashed the promise that made him one of the sport’s top pitching prospects. He’s averaging an absurd 98.7 MPH on his four-seam fastball and eclipsing triple-digits with regularity. Unsurprisingly, Greene has missed bats on an above-average 13.5% of his offerings and is striking out an excellent 28.8% of opponents.
It’s not clear how long the Reds anticipate Greene being out, but the mention of a shoulder injury certainly isn’t ideal. Cincinnati is looking ahead to 2023 as they sit near the bottom of the National League, so there’s no reason not to proceed with caution for a player so vital to the franchise’s long-term future.
Manager David Bell will have to patch things together on the mound. Along with Greene’s absence, Cincinnati shipped off Luis Castillo and Tyler Mahle within the past week. Nick Lodolo, Mike Minor and Graham Ashcraft have established rotation roles, while the club brought up Robert Dugger as at least a spot starter for tonight. They’ll need to do the same on Sunday against the Brewers, when Greene had been slated to take the ball.
AL Central Notes: Guardians, Hosmer, Kepler, Brieske
It was a quiet trade deadline for the Guardians, as Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer writes that the club “at times…felt they were close” to landing Sean Murphy from the Athletics, yet no deal was completed. Murphy was known to be a trade target for the Guards, though another somewhat surprising name was at least briefly on their radar, as Hoynes reports that Cleveland and San Diego had some talks about first baseman Eric Hosmer. However, those discussions didn’t get far, as the Guardians are one of the 10 teams on Hosmer’s no-trade list. Hosmer also used his no-trade protection to scuttle his involvement in the Padres’ blockbuster deal with the Nationals for Juan Soto, so the Padres instead moved Hosmer to the Red Sox.
San Diego dealt Hosmer and two prospects to Boston for lefty pitching prospect Jay Groome, and the Padres also covering basically all of the $44MM remaining on Hosmer’s deal (which runs through the 2025 season). It’s fair to guess that the Guardians might have had interest in something similar, with Hosmer joining Josh Naylor and Owen Miller as part of the first base/DH mix. Hosmer might have been viewed by the Guards as just a one-season fill-in now that the team is seemingly willing to part ways with Franmil Reyes, but with the Padres footing the bill, Cleveland could have kept Hosmer around as a veteran complement to their younger players.
More from around the AL Central…
- The Twins activated outfielder Max Kepler from the 10-day injured list, and optioned outfielder Mark Contreras to Triple-A. Kepler is making a relatively quick return from a fracture in his right baby toe, after he was hit by a pitch on July 24. Kepler has generated 2.0 fWAR over his 85 games this season, thanks to solid defense and an above-average (113 wRC+) offensive line of .244/.344/.390 in 337 plate appearances.
- Tigers right-hander Beau Brieske had a Triple-A rehab start yesterday, and manager A.J. Hinch told reporters (including The Detroit News’ Chris McCosky) that Brieske is perhaps on track to be activated from the 15-day injured list in time to start the Tigers’ game with the Guardians on Wednesday. Forearm soreness sent Brieske to the IL on July 18, but it appears as though the rookie has avoided any serious setback — a rare bit of good health news within an injury-plagued season for Detroit pitchers. All of these injuries open the door for Brieske to make his Major League debut, and the righty posted a respectable 4.19 ERA over his first 15 starts and 81 2/3 innings in the Show.
Blue Jays Place George Springer On 10-Day Injured List
The Blue Jays have placed outfielder George Springer on the 10-day injured list due to right elbow inflammation, with the placement retroactive to August 5. Utilityman Otto Lopez has been activated from the taxi squad to take Springer’s place on the active roster.
Springer has been dealing with a sore elbow for much of the season, with the injury apparently worsening over the last six weeks. The Jays have frequently rested Springer or used him as a DH, but since he has played in only two of Toronto’s last seven games, it seems as though a full IL stint was necessary to allow Springer to fully heal. Over his last 29 games and 130 plate appearances, Springer had a modest .226/.310/.409, so his bad elbow clearly seemed to be impacting his production.
A healthy Springer is critical to the Blue Jays’ chances of reaching the postseason and making a deep run into October, so the outfielder and the team can only hope that this IL trip will finally correct the elbow issue. Springer’s injury surely influenced the Jays’ decision to acquire Whit Merrifield at the trade deadline, and Merrifield now looks to get the bulk of center field time while Springer is out, with Raimel Tapia and backup Bradley Zimmer providing further depth.
Lopez could also be in the mix, as center field is one of four positions (along with left field, second base, and shortstop) he has played this season at Triple-A Buffalo. Lopez has also hit .267/.357/.424 over 246 PA with the Bisons. MLB Pipeline ranks Lopez as the fourth-best prospect in the Jays farm system, impressed by his plus speed and contact-hitting, even if Lopez seems to be lacking in power. The 23-year-old has appeared in exactly one MLB game in each of the 2021 and 2022 seasons.
Dodgers Place Clayton Kershaw On Injured List, Reinstate Chris Taylor
TODAY: Kershaw’s MRI didn’t reveal any serious damage, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts told The Athletic’s Fabian Ardaya (Twitter links) and other reporters. As Roberts put it, this is the “best-case scenario” for Kershaw’s injury, though the southpaw also received an epidural injection in his back. A timetable still isn’t known for Kershaw’s return.
AUGUST 5: The Dodgers announced they’ve placed Clayton Kershaw on the 15-day injured list, citing low back pain. Utilityman Chris Taylor is back from his own IL stint to take the vacated active roster spot. Los Angeles also recalled reliever Reyes Moronta from Triple-A Oklahoma City and optioned outfielder James Outman.
Kershaw lands on the IL for the second time this season. He lost around a month between early May and June with inflammation in his right hip area. The future Hall of Famer returned and went on to make ten more starts before yesterday’s outing. After throwing four innings of two-run ball in an eventual win over the Giants, Kershaw went out to the mound for his warm-up tosses to start the fifth. He pulled himself from the game after experiencing some pain in his lower back, and that issue will apparently keep him out of action for at least the next few weeks.
The team hasn’t provided a timetable on Kershaw’s return, and the announced diagnosis of “low back pain” remains nebulous. They’ll surely be cautious with the 34-year-old, particularly since he’s landed on the injured list at least once in each season since 2016. That included stints for back issues every year between 2016-18. With a 12 1/2 game lead over the Padres in the NL West, the Dodgers can feel comfortable playing things slowly with key players for the final couple months.
While Kershaw no longer takes on the kind of workloads he did during his prime, he’s still among the sport’s best pitchers on a rate basis. Through 85 1/3 innings this season, the three-time Cy Young winner carries a 2.64 ERA with an above-average 26.2% strikeout rate and 48.5% ground-ball percentage. Kershaw’s fastball is sitting in the 90 MPH range, but he owns arguably the game’s best command and hasn’t walked more than 6% of batters faced in a season for a decade.
Kershaw’s trip to the IL leaves Julio Urías, Tony Gonsolin, Tyler Anderson and Andrew Heaney as the rotation’s top four for the time being. Ryan Pepiot and Michael Grove are depth options at Triple-A, and the club seems likely to welcome hard-throwing righty Dustin May back in the not too distant future. Manager Dave Roberts told MLB Network Radio on SiriusXM this afternoon that May is likely to return by the club’s August 19-21 series against the Marlins (Twitter link). The 24-year-old has been out all season recovering from May 2021 Tommy John surgery, but he’s been on a rehab stint since mid-July. Roberts indicated he’s likely to make two more starts in Oklahoma City before returning to the big league club, although he left open the possibility May rejoins the MLB team after just one more Triple-A appearance.
Taylor makes his return to the starting lineup, exactly a month after fracturing his left foot. It’s a quick bounceback for an injury of that magnitude, and Roberts suggested he’ll get the nod at second base tonight. It’ll be Taylor’s first infield appearance of the season, as he’s worked exclusively on the grass this year. Taylor has logged 502 innings in left field, along with 57 and 56 frames in center and right, respectively.
Of course, Taylor made a name for himself with his defensive flexibility in previous seasons. He’s capable of playing virtually everywhere on the diamond other than catcher, and it seems the club is content to get him back onto the infield on occasion. Gavin Lux and Trea Turner make for an excellent middle infield duo, with Max Muncy playing primarily third base as Justin Turner landed on the IL on Tuesday. Taylor will presumably spend the bulk of his time in the outfield still, but the ability to log some action on the dirt will allow Roberts more flexibility in managing infield reps. The 31-year-old will try to get going offensively after his month away, as he carries a .238/.319/.409 line with a huge 35.4% strikeout rate across 285 plate appearances on the year.
Phillies Release Odubel Herrera, Jeurys Familia
The Phillies have released outfielder Odubel Herrera and right-hander Jeurys Familia. Righty Ryan Sherriff has also been outrighted to Triple-A. All three players were designated for assignment earlier this week.
This is the second time within the last year that the Phils have officially parted ways with Herrera, as they declined their $11.5MM club option last fall and then re-signed him for only $1.75MM in March. It would seem like today’s release will bring an end to Herrera’s run in the organization after seven-plus years, as Philadelphia is certainly hoping that trade deadline acquisition Brandon Marsh can be a long-term answer in center field.
Herrera hit .238/.279/.378 over 197 PA this season, seeing time in center field and left field. Familia was also struggling, with a 6.09 ERA in 34 innings after signing a one-year, $6MM free agent deal with the Phillies during the offseason.
Familia is still owed around $2MM of that salary, though a new team will have to cover just the prorated MLB minimum salary, while the Phillies absorb the rest. The same is true of the roughly $580K owed to Herrera on the remainder of his deal. Claiming either player off DFA waivers would have put the new team on the hook for the rest of the remaining salary, so while neither Herrera or Familia represents a huge financial outlay, it is still understandable why other teams would prefer to stick the Phillies with much of the bill.
It wouldn’t be surprising to see either player catch on elsewhere, though Familia is seemingly the likelier of the two to land with a new club. Herrera hasn’t been a terribly effective player since 2017, while Familia still had solid bottom-line numbers with the Mets as recently as 2021. With pretty much all of Familia’s secondary metrics trending downward, however, clubs must have concerns over what the 32-year-old still has in the tank.
Braves Claim Daniel Young, Outright Jesus Cruz
The Braves claimed left-hander Daniel Young off waivers from the Mariners and outrighted right-hander Jesus Cruz to Triple-A Gwinnett, the team announced today. The Mariners had designated Young for assignment earlier this week.
Young had a 7.36 ERA over 2 2/3 innings with Seattle this season, marking his first appearance in the big leagues. Originally an eight-round pick for the Blue Jays in the 2015 draft, Young is now reunited with Braves GM Alex Anthopoulos, who was Toronto’s general manager when Young’s pro career got underway.
The left-hander has a 3.79 ERA over 299 1/3 career innings in the minors, working as a reliever in all but one of his 230 games. A grounder specialist for much of his career, Young’s strikeout rate shot up to 33.9% over his 28 innings with the Mariners’ Triple-A affiliate this year, while still inducing grounders at a 55.7% rate. This improvement in his age-28 season earned Young his first cup of coffee in the majors, and now another fresh start in a new organization.
Cruz’s big league resume consists of a single inning with the Cardinals in 2020 and 8 2/3 frames with Atlanta this season, with a 7.45 ERA to show for that brief sample size. The righty has missed plenty of bats over five pro seasons, but he has had some problems with his control and (this season especially at Triple-A) keeping the ball in the park.
Giants Reinstate Brandon Crawford, Joc Pederson; Designate Dixon Machado
The Giants announced that shortstop Brandon Crawford has been activated from the 10-day injured list, while outfielder Joc Pederson is also back after being activated from the seven-day concussion IL. To create roster space, San Francisco optioned infielder David Villar to Triple-A and designated infielder Dixon Machado for assignment.
Crawford has been battling soreness in his left knee for most of the season, and the injury has resulted in two trips to the IL for the veteran shortstop within the last six weeks. This latest IL stint sidelined Crawford for a little over three weeks, and it is possible that the lingering nature of this problem could lead to Crawford getting a few more days off than usual over the final two months of the regular season.
Coming off a career year in 2021, Crawford’s knee issues could be partially to blame for his dropoff this season, as the shortstop is hitting only .215/.297/.332 over 279 plate appearances. There’s still time for Crawford to get on track and finish the year in more respectable fashion, even if it might be too late for the Giants to get back into the wild card race.
With the Giants moving some veteran players at the trade deadline, it is quite possible he might’ve been moved had it not been for his concussion symptoms. The good news, however, is that Pederson is able to make a quick return after hitting the concussion-IL on July 29, so he doesn’t appear to be dealing with any lingering after-effects. The slugger is hitting .242/.319/.492 with 17 home runs over 285 PA, and his first-half performance earned a slot on the NL All-Star roster.
It could be a very short stay in the Giants organization for Machado, who was just acquired in a trade with the Cubs on July 31. San Francisco was in a crunch for shortstop depth with Crawford and Thairo Estrada both on the IL, and thus Machado provided some short-term help. Machado’s five games with the Giants represented his first MLB playing time since 2018, as he has since been playing in the KBO League and with the Cubs’ Triple-A affiliate.
