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Angels To Place Jose Quijada On Injured List, Likely To Select Chris Devenski

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The Angels are going to place reliever José Quijada on the injured list tomorrow, writes Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register. Bullpen mate Chris Devenski is joining the major league club and appears likely to be formally selected onto the MLB roster before their evening matchup with Milwaukee.

Quijada woke up this morning with some discomfort in his throwing elbow. He told reporters he went for an MRI to determine the extent of the issue. More will be known once the imaging results come back but the southpaw is feeling enough discomfort he’ll be out for at least 15 days.

The 27-year-old Quijada has been a situational relief arm for the Halos since being claimed off waivers from the Marlins heading into the 2020 season. He owns a 4.89 ERA over 108 2/3 career innings in parts of five seasons. Quijada has allowed seven runs (six earned) in nine innings this year. All of that damage has been concentrated in his past two appearances, which have seen him shelled for seven combined runs after eight scoreless appearances to open the season. Quijada didn’t blame the injury for his rough recent results, telling Fletcher and other reporters he hadn’t experienced any elbow soreness until this morning.

With Quijada headed to the IL, a spot in the relief corps opens for Devenski. The Angels had to make a decision on the veteran right-hander soon, as he’s one of a number of players who could opt out of his minor league contract if not promoted by next Monday. The Halos will ward off his possible departure by installing him in the MLB bullpen.

Devenski, 32, has had a solid first month with Triple-A Salt Lake. He’s worked nine innings over seven appearances, allowing four runs with a 9:3 strikeout-to-walk ratio. He’s picked up swinging strikes on a quality 17.5% of his pitches. It was an impressive enough showing to get him a big league look for what’ll be an eighth consecutive year.

The Cal State Fullerton product was an elite multi-inning relief option for the Astros between 2016-17. Injuries — most notably a 2021 Tommy John surgery — intervened thereafter. He hasn’t posted a sub-4.00 ERA since 2017. He’s been hit particularly hard for the past three years, including a 2022 campaign split between the Diamondbacks and Phillies. Devenski allowed 14 runs over 14 2/3 MLB innings last season, in large part because of three home runs allowed. He didn’t miss many bats last year, though he only walked one of 67 opposing hitters to demonstrate excellent control.

Los Angeles will need to clear a spot on the 40-man roster. They can do so by transferring Logan O’Hoppe from the 10-day to the 60-day injured list; the rookie backstop will miss the majority of the season after undergoing labrum surgery.

Dodgers Place J.D. Martinez On Injured List, Activate Will Smith

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The Dodgers announced a handful of roster moves before tonight’s series opener with St. Louis. Will Smith has been reinstated from the concussion injured list, while Max Muncy and Brusdar Graterol are each back from paternity leave. In corresponding active roster moves, J.D. Martinez was placed on the 10-day IL while Luke Williams and Justin Bruihl were optioned to Triple-A Oklahoma City.

Smith missed a little under two weeks after sustaining a concussion on a series of foul tips off the mask. The Dodgers were originally planning to stretch his IL stay into this weekend but Martinez’s injury accelerated his return by a day or two. Smith won’t immediately hop back behind the dish; he’s in tonight’s lineup as the designated hitter in Martinez’s stead.

The Dodgers will stick with three catchers on the active roster for the time being. Smith’s injury led L.A. to sign Austin Wynns to a major league contract to back up Austin Barnes. Wynns can’t be optioned to the minor leagues, so the Dodgers would have to keep three catchers on the active roster if they don’t want to risk losing him.

Martinez’s IL placement was backdated to April 25, ruling him out for at least a week. He’s been hampered by back soreness in recent days; the club announced the issue as lower back tightness. The offseason signee is off to a strong start to his Dodger tenure. Through 23 games, he carries a .250/.306/.534 line with four home runs over 98 plate appearances.

Meanwhile, the decision to option Williams means L.A. will keep rookie Michael Busch on the MLB roster for now. The Dodgers promoted the top hitting prospect once Muncy hit the paternity list earlier this week. There was some thought it could be a temporary promotion but Busch will get more than the three games he’s logged so far. The North Carolina product has started his MLB career 1-11.

White Sox Outright A.J. Alexy

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The White Sox have sent right-hander A.J. Alexy outright to Triple-A Charlotte, tweets Scott Merkin of MLB.com. Since there’d been no indication that Alexy was designated for assignment, the move frees a spot on the 40-man roster. The roster count now sits at 39.

Chicago added Alexy off waivers from the Twins in January. He’d bounced around the league last offseason, going from the Rangers to the Nationals to Minnesota before landing in Chicago. All those transactions were via waivers aside from the move from Washington to Minnesota, which saw the Twins send a minor league pitcher to the Nats in a small trade.

Alexy held his roster spot with the Sox into the regular season. He was optioned to Charlotte in Spring Training. The 25-year-old has started four games for the Knights but been hit hard in ten innings. He’s allowed 17 runs, largely thanks to a staggering 18 walks out of 54 batters faced (exactly one third). Alexy has been an inconsistent strike-thrower throughout his career but has never battled his control to this extent. The Pennsylvania native has walked 12.8% of opponents over 406 1/3 career innings in the minor leagues.

While Alexy hasn’t pitched at the MLB level this season, he got there with Texas between 2021-22. Over 30 innings, he worked to a 6.30 ERA as a swingman. Alexy averaged north of 94 MPH on his fastball but had more walks than strikeouts in that brief look. He’d punched out a decent 23.5% of batters faced with a 5.91 ERA in 96 Triple-A frames last year.

Alexy has never previously been outrighted and doesn’t have three years of major league service. He therefore won’t be able to elect free agency. He’ll stick with Charlotte and look to get his strike-throwing back on track to put himself on the radar for an MLB look later this season. Alexy would qualify for minor league free agency at the end of the year if he’s not on the 40-man roster by that point.

White Sox Sign Clint Frazier, Bryan Shaw To Minor League Deals

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The White Sox have signed outfielder Clint Frazier to a minor league contract, per James Fegan of The Athletic. Frazier has been assigned to Triple-A Charlotte. Fegan also relays that the club has signed right-hander Bryan Shaw to a minor league deal. Shaw will report to Arizona before eventually making his way to Charlotte.

Frazier, 28, signed a minor league deal with the Rangers over the winter but didn’t make the club out of Spring Training. He reported to the Triple-A Round Rock Express and got into 15 games but was released earlier this week, reportedly a mutual decision between him and the club. Prior to the release, he walked in 11.7% of his plate appearances but also struck out in 30% of them. His .250/.350/.442 batting line looks solid at first glance but is actually subpar in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League, translating to a 91 wRC+.

Frazier was a fifth overall draft pick back in 2013 and a top 100 prospect in the next few seasons but he hasn’t been able to live up to that billing as of yet. He seemed to be cementing himself as a viable big league hitter with the Yankees from 2018 to 2020, hitting .267/.351/.485 in that time for a 123 wRC+. But he struggled badly in 2021, hitting .186/.317/.317 before getting placed on the injured list with vertigo in July. He didn’t return in the second half and was released at the end of the year. He signed with the Cubs last year but was designated for assignment after just 19 games.

He’s now a few years removed from his last really strong showing but there’s no risk for the White Sox in bringing him aboard and seeing if he can get back on track. They have Luis Robert Jr., Andrew Benintendi, Óscar Colás and Eloy Jiménez getting most of the playing time in their outfield and designated hitter mix right now but Colás is hitting just .221/.284/.294 through his first 22 major league games. Frazier will give the club another non-roster depth option alongside Billy Hamilton, Jake Marisnick, Stephen Piscotty and Victor Reyes. Frazier has a little over four years of major league service time, meaning he won’t be able to get to the six-year mark this year. If he happens to get back into a groove and make the club, they could retain him for next year via arbitration because he won’t automatically qualify for free agency.

Shaw, 35, is a veteran who has appeared in each of the past 12 seasons, spending time with Arizona, Cleveland, Colorado and Seattle. He has a career 3.92 ERA in 753 appearances over that span. He signed a minor league deal with the Sox in February but didn’t make the club at the end of Spring Training. He was released at the end of March but now returns to the organization on another deal. Since he’s been out of action for about a month, he’ll go to the club’s facilities in Arizona to get back into game shape before joining the Knights to provide the club with some bullpen depth.

14 Veterans With Upcoming Opportunity To Opt Out Of Minor League Deals

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As part of last year’s collective bargaining agreement, MLB and the Players Association agreed to a few automatic opt-out dates for some veteran players on minor league contracts. Article XX(B) free agents — players with over six years of MLB service who finished the preceding season on a big league roster — who sign minor league contracts more than ten days before Opening Day now receive three uniform chances to retest free agency if they’re not added to the majors.

The first comes five days before the start of the season. For players who pass on that initial opt-out, they have additional windows to explore the open market on both May 1 and June 1 if they’ve yet to secure a spot on the 40-man roster. As that second opt-out date nears, it’s worth checking in on a few players with opt-outs under the CBA. We’ll also look at a few players who don’t meet those criteria but reportedly negotiated forthcoming opt-out dates into their own non-roster deals.

Anderson was an Article XX(B) player who passed on his first opt-out chance. The 35-year-old finished last season with nine outings (seven starts) for the Reds, allowing a 6.38 ERA in 24 innings. He returned to the organization and has started five games for their top affiliate in Louisville. He carries a 4.30 ERA over 23 frames with a modest 19% strikeout rate while walking 13% of opposing hitters. It’s not a great first few weeks but the Reds don’t have much certainty behind their top three starters. Connor Overton is on the injured list, while Luis Cessa has been rocked for 20 runs in 16 2/3 innings.

Devenski also forewent his Spring Training opt-out. The 32-year-old accepted a season-opening assignment to Triple-A Salt Lake, where he’s made seven relief outings. In nine innings, he’s allowed four runs with nine strikeouts and three walks. It’s a decent if not overwhelming performance. Devenski was an elite multi-inning relief option for the Astros between 2016-17 but he’s battled injuries and performance fluctuations since then. He threw 14 2/3 MLB innings between the Diamondbacks and Phillies last year, allowing an 8.59 ERA with a modest 17.5% strikeout rate but only walking one of the 67 hitters he faced. The Angels have a number of relievers who can’t be optioned to the minor leagues, perhaps reducing their flexibility to add another player of that ilk in Devenski.

Doolittle bypassed an opt-out chance in Spring Training after returning to Washington over the winter. He’s spent the year on the injured list as he continues to work back from last summer’s internal brace UCL surgery. The veteran threw a live batting practice session this week and could see game action in the not too distant future (via MLB.com injury tracker). It stands to reason he’ll stick with the Nats.

Duffy has spent the season on the injured list. He’s working back from forearm issues that have prevented him from throwing a major league pitch since July 2021. He already passed on a Spring Training opt-out and seems likely to do so again.

Ortega built an April 29 opt-out date into the minor league deal he signed with the Rangers earlier this month. He’d spent the spring in camp with the Yankees but didn’t crack New York’s roster and retested the market. Since signing with Texas, he’s played 17 games for Triple-A Round Rock. He carries a middling .219/.324/.313 line with one homer through 74 plate appearances. He’s drawing plenty of walks but not hitting for power and striking out a little more often than he has in recent seasons.

The lefty-hitting outfielder is coming off a reasonable .241/.331/.358 showing for the Cubs in 2022. He’s capable of playing all three outfield spots but is probably best suited for a corner. Texas has gotten strong early-season work from minor league signee Travis Jankowski and has Adolis García and Leody Taveras penciled into starting roles. The Rangers haven’t gotten much production from any of their left field options aside from Jankowski, though, and it’s questionable how long the journeyman can keep up anything approaching his current .340/.415/.447 pace.

Gamel, 31 next month, has been a decent left-handed platoon outfielder in recent seasons. He typically hits around a league average level, including a .232/.324/.369 line over 115 games with the Pirates last year. After signing with the Rays, he’s off to a .217/.316/.406 start in 79 plate appearances at Triple-A Durham. He’s walking at a customarily strong 12.7% clip but has gone down on strikes in more than 30% of his trips. Left-handed hitting outfielders Josh Lowe and Luke Raley have had excellent starts for Tampa Bay, which could make it hard for Gamel to play his way into the MLB mix anytime soon.

Hamilton, 32, returned for a second stint with the White Sox over the winter. He’s appeared in 14 games with Triple-A Charlotte but hasn’t produced, stumbling to a .150/.292/.175 batting line. The speedster has been successful on all three of his stolen base attempts but likely needs to show a little more at the plate to earn the pinch-running/defensive specialist role he’s played for a number of teams over the past four-plus seasons. The White Sox recently selected Adam Haseley onto the MLB roster to serve as a glove-first fourth outfielder.

Hoffman didn’t sign early enough to receive the automatic opt-out for Article XX(B) free agents. He negotiated opt-out chances on both May 1 and July 1 into his April deal with the Phils. The righty has pitched seven times for their top affiliate in Lehigh Valley, allowing eight runs across 7 2/3 innings. He’s punched out 13 hitters but handed out five free passes. Hoffman had a reasonable 3.83 ERA through 44 2/3 frames for the Reds last season, missing bats at a league average rate but walking nearly 12% of his opponents. The Phils only have three out of eight relievers who can’t be optioned to the minors, giving them some room to add the veteran if they’re intrigued by Hoffman’s swing-and-miss capabilities.

Naquin was an Article XX(B) free agent who didn’t break camp with the big league club. He split the 2022 campaign between the Reds and Mets, combining to hit .229/.282/.423 over 334 trips to the plate. The left-handed hitting outfielder has played in 12 games for Triple-A Nashville, hitting .273/.319/.409. He’s not hitting for much power in the early going and has never been one to take too many walks. Naquin spent a bit of time on the injured list this month but was reinstated earlier in the week.

Milwaukee lost center fielder Garrett Mitchell to a season-threatening shoulder procedure and has gotten middling offensive production from rookie outfielder Joey Wiemer. They’re soon to welcome Tyrone Taylor back from the injured list, though, and Naquin’s serviceable but unexceptional Triple-A production may not force the front office’s hand.

Rosenthal has had his last couple seasons washed away by injury. He lost 2021 to thoracic outlet syndrome and hip surgery, while his ’22 campaign was wiped out by hamstring and lat strains. The Tigers took a look at the one-time star closer in Spring Training and kept him in the organization with their highest affiliate in Toledo. Rosenthal pitched twice in the season’s first week before being placed on the minor league IL with a sprained throwing elbow. Jason Beck of MLB.com tweeted yesterday that Rosenthal is headed for physical therapy, suggesting he won’t be ready for game action in the near future.

Ross is recovering from last June’s Tommy John surgery and will spend most of the year on the injured list. He bypassed his first opt-out chance in March and seems likely to do the same next week.

Sánchez’s May 1 opt-out was built into his contract, as he didn’t sign early enough to receive the automatic opt-out under the CBA. The general expectation was that the veteran backstop would play his way onto the big league roster. That was particularly true once San Francisco lost Roberto Pérez to a season-ending shoulder injury. Sánchez hasn’t done anything to force the issue with Triple-A Sacramento, though.

He’s hitting a woeful .191/.350/.213 without a home run and a 25% strikeout rate over 13 games. Sánchez connected on 16 longballs in the majors for the Twins last year but only reached base at a .282 clip. There’s a path to playing time behind the dish at Oracle Park. Still, Sánchez’s early performance hasn’t been what the organization envisioned. Promoting him would lock in the prorated portion of a $4MM salary for this season, which could prove a disincentive for the club.

Sanchez served a depth role for Minnesota last season, logging 60 innings over 15 outings (ten starts). He was tagged for a 6.60 ERA at the MLB level but performed well enough in Triple-A the organization brought him back. He’s started five games with St. Paul this season, logging 22 1/3 innings. While his 2.42 ERA is excellent, it belies a middling 19.2% strikeout percentage and a huge 17.2% walk rate. Minnesota has quite a bit more rotation depth than they did last summer and would probably look to players already on the 40-man roster (i.e. Simeon Woods Richardson and Louie Varland) before tabbing Sanchez if injuries necessitate.

Stammen suffered a capsule tear in his shoulder in Spring Training. The 39-year-old has spent the year on the injured list and has admitted the injury might unfortunately end his career.

Rockies Place Germán Márquez On IL With Elbow Inflammation

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3:50pm: Márquez spoke to reporters about his situation today, including Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post. He says that he thinks he will be out up to six weeks, though that seems to still be up in the air. Tommy John surgery is ruled out for now but he says he’s worried he’ll need it eventually. Further testing is still to come as he’ll see another doctor on Monday.

2:20pm: The Rockies announced that right-hander Germán Márquez has been placed on the 15-day injured list, retroactive to April 27, due to right elbow inflammation. Fellow righty Connor Seabold has been recalled in a corresponding move.

It’s been a frustrating season for Marquez, who made three starts before going on the injured list with a forearm strain. It seemed as though he avoided a significant absence when he returned this week and took the ball for Wednesday’s game. Unfortunately, he was removed after calling the trainers to the mound and revealed after the game that he had soreness in his triceps. He was set to get an MRI in Denver yesterday and it seems there’s enough concern to put him on the shelf for at least a couple weeks.

It’s still not known exactly how much time he’s expected to miss, but it’s a blow to the Colorado rotation nonetheless. Márquez is the club’s best starting pitcher, having a 4.41 ERA through 176 appearances. Since he plays his home games at Coors Field, ERA estimators tend to agree that he deserves better, with his career FIP at 4.02 and his SIERA at 3.96. He has a 22.9% strikeout rate, 7% walk rate and 48.5% ground ball rate.

Any club would prefer to avoid losing its best starter, of course, but the Rockies will be especially challenged since their rotation hasn’t been a strong suit for them. Kyle Freeland, Noah Davis, Austin Gomber and Ryan Feltner are the remaining four in the club’s rotation, with Seabold now potentially joining them or perhaps serving a long relief role of the bullpen. He has 12 major league appearances under his belt but with an 8.81 ERA thus far.

Márquez is in the final guaranteed season of the extension he signed with the Rockies back in 2019. The club will have a $13.5MM decision to make on him at the end of the campaign, as they can trigger a $16MM option for 2024 or take a $2.5MM buyout. If his injury ends up being minor, then it should be a pretty easy call to keep him around for one more year at that price, but a more significant ailment could perhaps make it a bit trickier.

Aaron Judge Undergoing MRI; Jake Bauers On Yankees’ Taxi Squad

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3:35pm: Bauers is indeed heading to New York, Kirschner and colleague Brendan Kuty write in further detail, but his contract has not yet been formally selected. The team is waiting on the results of an MRI that Judge underwent and could keep him on the taxi squad for now, depending on the results of Judge’s imaging.

3:01pm: The Yankees are set to select the contract of first baseman/outfielder Jake Bauers from Triple-A Scranton, reports Chris Kirschner of The Athletic (Twitter link). New York will need to open space on both the 26-man and 40-man rosters in order to accommodate Bauers.

Bauers, 27, once ranked among the sport’s top prospects but never found his footing in Tampa Bay, Cleveland or Seattle, batting a combined .213/.307/.348 in 1126 plate appearances between the three teams from 2018-21. He signed a minor league pact with the Yankees back in December and opened the season in Scranton, where he’s been on an absolute tear.

Through his first 87 plate appearances with the RailRiders, Bauers has turned in a comical .319/.460/.812 batting line with nine home runs, five doubles, a triple, five stolen bases, a 20.7% walk rate and an 18.4% strikeout rate. Kirschner wrote about Bauers’ performance in Scranton yesterday, noting that he’s made substantial alterations to his swing path and approach at the plate. Manager Aaron Boone told Kirschner that Bauers “definitely caught our eye” and was someone the organization was paying close attention to while seeking ways to escape the offensive doldrums that have plagued the Yankee lineup for much of the season.

In his career, Bauers has logged nearly twice many innings at first base (5151) as in the outfield (2587). However, he’s spent 91 innings in the outfield corners this year compared to just 40 at first base. Given the Yankees’ woeful production in left field this year and Anthony Rizzo’s strong performance at first base, it stands to reason that Bauers will be viewed more as a left field option than as a complement to Rizzo at first.

So far in 2023, Yankees left fielders have been among the least-productive in baseball, batting a combined .209/.273/.308. The combination of Oswaldo Cabrera, Aaron Hicks and Franchy Cordero haven’t produced at all when lining up in left field, and the Yankees have also received sub-par production from Willie Calhoun in right field and at designated hitter. Cabrera certainly isn’t a candidate to lose his spot on the 40-man roster, but any of Calhoun, Cordero and perhaps even Hicks ostensibly have less secure grasps on their current roster spots.

Beyond the dearth of production in left field, Yankees slugger Aaron Judge is currently banged up. Judge exited yesterday’s contest with discomfort in his hip, and while initial indications were that he’ll avoid a stint on the injured list, the team will surely have more information today. Even if Judge is indeed just sidelined for a game or two, Bauers will give the Yankees another option in the outfield corners while the reigning AL MVP is on the mend.

Heath Hembree Elects Free Agency

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Right-hander Heath Hembree has cleared waivers and elected free agency, reports Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. The righty was designated for assignment earlier in the week.

The 34-year-old right-hander spent many years as a reliable reliever for the Red Sox. From 2015 to 2019, he made 234 appearances with a 3.59 ERA in that stretch. However, he’s gone into journeyman mode in the past few years, bouncing from the Sox to the Phillies, Mets, Reds, Pirates, Dodgers and now the Rays since the start of 2020. He has a 6.55 ERA in that time frame.

The Rays signed him to a minor league deal in the offseason and selected his contract on Tuesday. He made one scoreless appearance of an inning and a third before getting the DFA treatment the very next day. He had made eight Triple-A appearances before getting called up, posting a 1.29 ERA at that level.

Any player with a previous career outright or more than three years of service time can reject an outright assignment in favor of free agency. Hembree qualifies on both accounts. He’ll now return to the open market in search of his next opportunity. Various clubs throughout the league have seen their pitching depth depleted by injuries and could be interested in an experienced veteran option like Hembree.

Cubs Designate Luis Torrens For Assignment

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The Cubs have reinstated outfielder Cody Bellinger from the paternity list, per Jordan Bastian of MLB.com. Catcher Luis Torrens was designated for assignment in a corresponding move.

Torrens, 26, has appeared in 13 games for the Cubs this season but tallied only 22 plate appearances. He’s 5-for-20 with a double, a walk and eight strikeouts in that time (.250/.318/.300).

Signed to a minor league deal back in January, Torrens has spent the past two-plus seasons with the Mariners after being sent from San Diego to Seattle alongside Ty France and Andres Munoz in the Austin Nola trade. He’s totaled 266 big league games and 799 plate appearances, batting .227/.289/.352 with 19 home runs, a 7.8% walk rate and a 26% strikeout rate. Torrens hasn’t made much hard contact in his limited plate appearances this year but showed a knack for it from 2020-22 when he averaged 91 mph off the bat and posted a hearty 45.7% hard-hit rate.

Defensively, Torrens has drawn below-average grades from Defensive Runs Saved and most pitch-framing metrics. He has a career 21.7% caught-stealing rate that’s below the league average, and he came up empty in his only attempt to throw a runner out with the Cubs. He did throw out nine of 28 attempted thieves (32.1%) as recently as last season.

The Cubs will have a week to either trade Torrens, attempt to pass him through outright waivers or release him. He was outrighted by the Mariners last August, and that prior outright assignment gives him the ability to reject a minor league assignment in favor of free agency if the Cubs place him on waivers and he goes unclaimed.

Marlins Designate Devin Smeltzer For Assignment

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The Marlins have designated lefty Devin Smeltzer for assignment and selected the contract of right-hander Johan Quezada, per the team’s transactions log at MLB.com (hat tip: Jordan McPherson of the Miami Herald on Twitter).

Smeltzer, 27, wore the brunt of the damage for the bullpen at the hands of the Phillies in early April after they ambushed reigning Cy Young winner Sandy Alcantara for 10 runs in four innings of work. Smeltzer came on in mop-up duty and was tagged for five more runs of his own, but he’s thrown well in his previous three outings, including a four-inning spot start. Since April 21, he’s pitched seven innings of one-run ball with a 5-to-3 K/BB ratio. He’s still at an ugly 6.75 ERA in 12 innings overall, however.

This is Smeltzer’s first season with the Marlins organization. The former Dodgers draft pick went to the Twins as part of a Brian Dozier trade and spent parts of four seasons with Minnesota, pitching to a combined 3.99 ERA in 140 innings of work. That includes 70 1/3 frames of 3.71 ERA ball last year, though that success came with a tepid 13.9% strikeout rate. Smeltzer has never missed many bats at the MLB level, evidenced by a career 16.4% strikeout rate, but he’s also only walked 6.4% of his opponents — a far better-than-average mark.

All told, Smeltzer has 152 innings of 4.20 ERA ball under his belt in the Majors. He’s made 20 big league starts and 39 more relief appearances, demonstrating the ability to pitch in just about any role asked of him. He’s out of minor league options, so any team that trades for him or claims him on waivers would need to carry him on the big league roster. The Marlins will have a week to try to trade Smeltzer or pass him through waivers.

As for the 28-year-old Quezada, he’ll be making his first MLB appearance since 2020 (also with the Marlins) if he gets into a game with the Fish. He’s yielded a pair of runs on five hits and three walks with eight strikeouts through his first 6 2/3 innings at the Triple-A level this season and carries a career 2.60 ERA in 34 2/3 innings there. He’s spent time with the Twins and Cardinals organizations in addition to the Marlins.

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