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Red Sox Acquire Garrett Cooper

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5:24pm: The deal is now official, as noted by Alex Speier of The Boston Globe. The Red Sox transferred Casas to the 60-day injured list to make room for Cooper on the 40-man roster.

2:39pm: The Red Sox have acquired first baseman Garrett Cooper, the Miami Herald’s Craig Mish writes (via X).  MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo reported (X link) earlier this afternoon that the Sox were “closing in on” a deal for Cooper’s services, and Cotillo and Sean McAdam report that the Cubs will receive cash considerations in return.

Chicago designated Cooper for assignment earlier this week, and today’s trade officially ends Cooper’s time in Wrigleyville after 12 games and 41 plate appearances.  Cooper signed a minor league deal with the Cubs during the offseason and made the Opening Day roster, then hit a respectable .270/.341/.432 with one home run over those 41 PA.

The Cubs intended to use Cooper as a veteran complement to Michael Busch at first base, but Busch has hit so well that the Cubs simply couldn’t take him out of the lineup, limiting Cooper’s playing time to mostly DH and pinch-hitting work.  Cooper was also DFA’ed so Chicago could add Matt Mervis to the active roster, as Mervis was on such a heater at Triple-A that the Cubs wanted to give him more of a look in their lineup, leaving Cooper as even more of an odd man out.

While Cooper’s avenues to playing time were closed off in Chicago, the Red Sox had an unwelcome vacancy created at first base when Triston Casas went on the 15-day IL.  Casas’ recovery timeline is still very fluid, as Casas stated that estimates have ranged from anywhere from 3-9 weeks.  Boston had interest in Cooper back in January when he was still a free agent, and the Sox have now finally landed their man perhaps a few months later than expected.

Over eight MLB seasons, Cooper has hit .268/.337/.435 over 1854 career plate appearances, with 57 home runs.  Translating to a 111 wRC+, Cooper tended to fly under the radar as a member of a rebuilding Marlins team for much of his career, and his playing time was further limited by injuries.  He even made the All-Star team in 2022, though Cooper’s production dipped to a modest .251/.304/.419 over 457 combined PA with Miami and San Diego in 2023.

Cooper made a pair of appearances in left field for the Cubs this season, marking his first bit of outfield work since 2021.  While not exactly a versatile player, Cooper can at least chip in as an outfielder in a pinch, extending his value to the Red Sox even after Casas eventually returns.  With Cooper now on the roster, Bobby Dalbec (acting as the interim first baseman) is probably getting sent back to Triple-A, as Dalbec has struggled badly at the the plate this season.

NL West Notes: Glasnow, Cobb, Sewald

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Dodgers right-hander exited today’s game against the Blue Jays after being visited by the team trainer and manager Dave Roberts following the sixth inning. While the circumstances of Glasnow’s departure were surely concerning for fans in Los Angeles, Glasnow told reporters (including Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register) that he was dealing with cramping in his right calf and right hand when he left the game. Glasnow added that he believed the incident was due to dehydration from unexpectedly humid conditions in Toronto this afternoon. Roberts went on to confirm to reporters (including Jack Harris of the L.A. Times) that the club does not have “any level of concern” regarding Glasnow’s health going forward.

The news surely comes as a relief for Dodgers fans, as Glasnow has struggled to stay healthy throughout his career. The righty made a career-high 21 starts with the Rays last year after pitching just 212 2/3 combined innings for the Rays between 2019 and 2022. Aside from his injury history, any injury scare for Glasnow would be particularly unwelcome for the club given the fact that he’s led the club’s rotation to this point in the season. Including today’s start, Glasnow has a 2.72 ERA in 43 innings of work across seven starts for the club this season with a 31.5% strikeout rate.

That dominance has been particularly welcome given the Dodgers’ lengthy list of starting pitching injuries. Each of Clayton Kershaw, Bobby Miller, Walker Buehler, Dustin May, Tony Gonsolin, Emmett Sheehan, and Kyle Hurt are currently on the injured list, and of that group only Buehler appears to be particularly close to returning. Fortunately, it appears that Glasnow should be fine to make his next start, remaining the club’s rotation mix alongside Yoshinobu Yamamoto, James Paxton, Gavin Stone, and Landon Knack.

More from the NL West…

  • The Giants recently transferred veteran hurler Alex Cobb to the 60-day injured list in the wake of the right-hander being slowed in his return from offseason hip surgery by a bout of shoulder inflammation. Per Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle, Cobb received a cortisone shot in his shoulder on Friday and a subsequent MRI on his shoulder showed enough improvement that the club is hopeful his discomfort will fade in the coming days. Presumably, Cobb will resume throwing once the discomfort subsides. The righty will first be eligible to return from the injured list on May 27, and manager Bob Melvin indicated last week that the a minimum stay on the shelf was a “realistic” timeline for the veteran. Cobb, 36, has pitched to a 3.80 ERA with a 3.41 FIP across 56 starts with the Giants the past two seasons.
  • Diamondbacks fans received some disappointing news regarding injured closer Paul Sewald this evening, as MLB.com’s Steve Gilbert relayed that (according to GM Mike Hazen) the right-hander’s rehab process is going to be “slowed” after Sewald experienced some soreness in the aftermath of his most recent rehab appearance. Hazen added that an MRI of Sewald’s oblique showed that he’s made good progress in his recovery but that the team will be cautious to avoid aggravating the injury. Sewald, 34 next month, was acquired by Arizona from Seattle prior to last year’s trade deadline and posted a 3.12 ERA and 3.57 FIP with 34 saves in 65 appearances between the Mariners and DBacks last year. Veteran righty Kevin Ginkel has handled the closer’s role in Sewald’s absence, with Ryan Thompson and Bryce Jarvis also contributing to the late-inning mix.

NL Central Notes: Wicks, Junis, Carlson

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The Cubs are in for their second bullpen game in as many days tomorrow, as Meghan Montemurro of the Chicago Tribune was among those to relay that left-hander Jordan Wicks has been scratched from his scheduled start tomorrow due to forearm tightness. Right-hander Hayden Wesneski will start the game in Wicks’s place just three days after pitching 2 1/3 scoreless frames against the Astros Thursday afternoon.

It’s not currently clear how serious Wicks’s injury is or if a stint on the injured list will be required, but a lengthy absence would be a major blow to the Cubs. The club’s first-round pick in the 2021 draft, Wicks has pitched solidly for the Cubs through five starts this season, posting a roughly league average 4.70 ERA and a much stronger 3.25 FIP in 23 innings of work. An trip to the shelf for Wicks would further exacerbate Chicago’s early-season injury woes. Hurlers Justin Steele, Kyle Hendricks, Drew Smyly, and Julian Merryweather are all currently on the injured list (though the former may be back soon) while the positional corps has lost both Seiya Suzuki and Cody Bellinger from its outfield mix.

The laundry list of injuries has left the Cubs somewhat thin in terms of rotation options, with both Ben Brown and now Wesneski stepping in to make starts after previously pitching out of the bullpen for the big league club. Chicago signed veteran right-hander Julio Teheran to a minor league deal in earlier this month, and the 33-year-old righty and lefty Thomas Pannone among the club’s top non-roster depth options for the rotation.

More from the NL Central…

  • Brewers right-hander Jakob Junis suffered a scary incident earlier this week when he was struck by an errant fly ball during the club’s pregame workouts prior to a game against the Pirates in Pittsburgh. Fortunately, Junis is back traveling with the team and spoke to Todd Rosiak of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel yesterday. The right-hander noted that he underwent an MRI and CT scan, both of which came back clean, before he was released from the hospital. Now that he’s back with the team, it appears Junis is set to continue rehabbing from the shoulder impingement that has cost him most of the season to this point. Per MLB.com’s Adam McCalvy, Brewers manager Pat Murphy recently indicated that the club may look to bring Junis back into the fold as a reliever rather than build him up to start. It’s something of a surprise given the recent injuries suffered by lefties DL Hall and Wade Miley, though it’s possible that a multi-inning relief role could allow the Brewers to maximize Junis’s innings in the short-term.
  • Cardinals outfielder Dylan Carlson has missed the entire season to this point after suffering a sprained AC joint in his left shoulder just before Opening Day. Fortunately, however, it appears that the 25-year-old could be nearing his season debut. According to MLB.com’s Injury Tracker, Carlson is set to begin a rehab assignment in the near future if he comes out of a hitting session today pain-free. The return of Carlson would be most welcome for St. Louis, as the club recently optioned struggling youngster Jordan Walker to the minor leagues. With Carlson and Tommy Edman both on the injured list, that’s left the club to rely on Michael Siani and Alec Burleson as major contributors to the outfield mix alongside Lars Nootbaar and Brendan Donovan.

Orioles Outright David Banuelos

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The Orioles announced this afternoon that catcher David Bañuelos has accepted an outright assignment to the minor leagues and was assigned to Triple-A Norfolk. Bañuelos had previously been designated for assignment earlier this week in a flurry of roster moves that saw top prospect Jackson Holliday optioned back to the minor leagues.

Bañuelos, 27, was a fifth-round pick by the Mariners in the 2017 draft and was traded to the Twins in a minor deal that winter. He reached the Triple-A level in Minnesota late in the 2021 season but stalled out at the level with a wRC+ of just 70 in 295 trips to the plate at the level with the Twins between 2021 and 2022. Those deep struggles at the plate saw Bañuelos demoted back to Double-A for the 2023 season. He hit well in his return to the level with a .270/.369/.526 slash line in 48 games but did not remain with the Twins after hitting minor league free agency this past winter.

Instead, Bañuelos took a minor league pact with the Orioles and entered the season as upper-level catching depth behind the club’s big league tandem of Adley Rutschman and James McCann. It didn’t take long for Bañuelos to get the call to the big leagues this season, appearing in just two Triple-A games before his contract was selected earlier this month. While Bañuelos remained on the roster for two weeks, he ultimately made just one plate appearance in the majors, flying out in his lone big league at-bat. The 27-year-old was then designated for assignment to make room for outfielder Ryan McKenna on the club’s 40-man roster.

Now that Bañuelos has cleared waivers and accepted an assignment to the Triple-A level, he’ll continue to be among the club’s top options for a depth catcher at the big league level alongside fellow minor league signing Michael Perez. With no catchers besides Rutschman or McCann on the 40-man roster, it’s easy to imagine Bañuelos making his way back to the majors with the Orioles in the event that either member of their catching tandem suffers an injury at some point this season. In the meantime, he’ll remain in Triple-A as non-roster depth.

Mariners “Indefinitely” Shut Down Matt Brash’s Rehab

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Mariners right-hander Matt Brash has been shut down indefinitely from his rehab process, GM Justin Hollander told reporters this evening (including Ryan Divish of The Seattle Times). The righty had thrown yesterday ahead of a rehab assignment that was expected to begin this weekend, though now he’ll visit Dr. Keith Meister to determine next steps.

Brash, 26 next month, was shut down due to elbow inflammation early in Spring Training amid concerns that he may miss the entire 2024 season. Following his diagnosis with elbow inflammation, however, Brash was cleared to resume throwing in early March and has been rehabbing the injury ever since. Per Hollander, that injury has taken a turn for the worse in recent days as he’s begun to feel “tightness” in the aftermath of bullpen sessions that has begun to last longer after each throwing session.

The ominous update is a potentially brutal blow for the Seattle bullpen, which has been without Brash and fellow set-up man Gregory Santos all season. Brash made his debut with the Mariners as a starter back in 2022 but struggled in the role and was quickly moved to the bullpen, where he’s been nothing short of dominant ever since. Across 112 relief innings in his career, the flamethrower has posted a sterling 2.84 ERA with an even better 2.18 FIP eye-popping 34.5% strikeout rate in 101 1/3 innings of work. That’s good for the ninth-highest strikeout rate and second-lowest FIP of any reliever with at least 80 innings of work over the past two seasons.

Given Brash’s utter dominance out of the bullpen throughout his career, he was all but certain to act as the primary set-up man to closer Andres Munoz this season, forming perhaps the strongest one-two punch of relievers in the majors. Those plans will have to be put on hold for an uncertain amount of time, however, with Brash expected to meet with Meister for the second time this season in the coming days. Seattle has relied on Ryne Stanek and Gabe Speier to set up for Munoz in the absence of Brash and Santos.

While elbow issues of any kind bring to mind the possibility of Tommy John surgery for many fans, there’s been no indication of damage to Brash’s UCL to this point, however and it won’t be clear exactly what the prognosis is for Brash and what his timetable for return could look like until he meets with Meister. With all that said, it seems fair to expect the Mariners to be without their top set-up man for quite some time given the right-hander’s difficulties bouncing back between throwing sessions nearly two months after being cleared to resume a throwing program.

If there’s any silver lining for Mariners fans, it’s that the club’s bullpen has been performing just fine even without Brash in the mix. Seattle relievers rank first in the majors with a 2.40 ERA this season while they rank eighth with a 24.9% strikeout rate and ninth with a 3.68 FIP. That strong performance has involved almost universally solid numbers from the club’s relief corps: among the 11 players the club has used out of the bullpen so far this season, only right-hander Collin Snider and infielder Josh Rojas (the latter of whom pitched in a pair of blowout games early in the season) have posted an ERA above 3.09 entering play today. If the club’s relief corps can remain even close to that effective in the coming months, it’s possible the Mariners won’t miss Brash as much as it might seem on the surface even in the event of an extended absence.

Rays Notes: Lowe, Diaz, Aranda

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Rays outfielder Josh Lowe appeared to be nearing a return from the injured list after heading out for a rehab assignment earlier this month, but it appears the 26-year-old’s 2024 debut is once again on hold. Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reported earlier today that Lowe felt some tightness in his right hamstring and is now headed back to Tampa for an MRI, which is scheduled for Monday.

It’s another tough blow for Lowe, who impressed with a .292/.335/.500 slash line in 135 games with the Rays last season. It appeared Lowe was on track to be activated from the shelf as soon as this weekend to take over the everyday job in right field, but now those plans have been scuttled for at least a few days. Rays right fielders have hit an excellent .308/.361/.455 (145 wRC+) in Lowe’s absence, thanks primarily to surprisingly strong performances from Richie Palacios and Amed Rosario in a platoon at the position.

Even so, the return of Lowe to the club’s lineup would surely provide a boost for the Rays by allowing Rosario and Palacios to contribute elsewhere in the lineup, such as second base. The Rays have gotten minimal offensive production from the keystone this season, with their second basemen slashing a collective .227/.292/.299 (81 wRC+) so far this year while struggling youngster Curtis Mead has taken the lion’s share of starts at the position to this point.

Lowe isn’t the only big bat missing from the Rays lineup this weekend, as veteran infielder Yandy Diaz was absent from today’s lineup after being struck in the finger by a 99 mph pitch from right-hander Michael Kopech yesterday. Fortunately, Topkin reported last night that x-rays on Diaz’s hand were negative, indicating that the 32-year-old may be back in the club’s lineup in the near future. It’s been a tough start to the season for the veteran, as he’s slashed just .241/.303/.315 (87 wRC+) in his first 119 trips to the plate.

While his .278 BABIP to this point in the season is far below his career average of .323, Diaz’s 7.8% walk rate in 2024 would be a career low if maintained over the course of a full season and he’s offered little power with just five doubles and one homer to this point in the campaign. If the veteran can right the ship upon returning to the lineup and return to the form that earned him a sixth-place finish in AL MVP voting last year, it would be a huge boost for the Rays as they look to bounce back from a difficult start to the season that’s seen them go 13-14 while falling to fourth place in a crowded AL East division.

Also making his way toward a return to the big league lineup is infielder Jonathan Aranda, who’s been out for a little over a month after undergoing surgery to repair a broken finger back in March. As noted by MLB.com’s Injury Tracker, Aranda began a rehab assignment at the Triple-A level yesterday. It’s less than two weeks after Aranda had the pins removed from his finger thanks to the fact that Aranda was able to stay active throughout his rehab process.

If Aranda is nearing a return to action, it would give the Rays another left-handed option to complement the likes of Mead and Harold Ramirez both around the infield and at DH. Aranda hit a roughly league average .230/.340/.368 in 103 trips to the plate in the majors last year but impressed this spring with an excellent .371/.421/.571 line in 13 games prior to his injury.

Justin Steele To Begin Rehab Assignment Next Week

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The Cubs have been without left-hander Justin Steele since he was pulled from his Opening Day start against the Rangers in the fifth inning due to a hamstring strain last month. It appears that the club’s time without their staff ace may be nearing an end, however, as Maddie Lee of the Chicago Sun Times relayed this afternoon that (per manager Craig Counsell) Steele is set to join the club’s Triple-A affiliate in Iowa for a rehab assignment in the coming days. Counsell added that Wednesday is the likely target for Steele’s rehab appearance, with MLB.com’s injury tracker noting that the southpaw threw 47 pitches in an extended Spring Training game yesterday.

Steele, 28, has surprised in recent years by emerging as a front-of-the-rotation caliber arm in Chicago. The lefty was selected by the Cubs in the fifth round of the 2014 draft but did not make his big league debut until 2021, when he pitched to a mediocre 4.26 ERA and 5.52 FIP in 57 innings of work. When Steele returned to the club’s rotation the following year, however, it was clear he had taken his game to the next level: in 55 starts since the start of the 2022 campaign, Steele has pitched to an excellent 3.09 ERA (140 ERA+) with an even better 3.06 FIP.

While Steele’s 24.6% strikeout rate during a 2023 campaign that saw him make his first All Star appearance and finish fifth in NL Cy Young award voting was right around league average, his strong 5.0% walk rate and 50.3% groundball rate were both excellent according to Statcast, ranking in the 93rd and 83rd percentiles respectively. Steele will bring that well-rounded profile back to a Cubs rotation that has dealt with plenty of injuries to this point in the 2024 campaign. In addition to Steele, the Cubs have spent time this season without veteran right-handers Jameson Taillon and Kyle Hendricks. While the former has performed well in two starts since returning from the shelf, the latter struggled badly even when healthy enough to take the mound with a 12.00 ERA in four starts.

Fortunately for the Cubs, a quartet of unproven arms have handled things admirably in the absence of more established arms. Leading the charge has been 30-year-old lefty Shota Imanaga, who signed a four-year, $53MM contract with the Cubs over the winter after being posted by the Yokohama BayStars of Japan’s NPB. Imanaga has been sensational in the early going of his first MLB season, with a 0.98 ERA that leads all qualified MLB starters backed up by a strong 2.36 FIP in 27 2/3 innings of work.

Sophomore swingman Javier Assad has been joined by rookies Jordan Wicks and Ben Brown to fill out the rest of the club’s rotation, and the trio have performed admirably to this point with a combined 2.82 ERA in 60 2/3 innings of work in 12 starts. The Cubs are surely looking forward to Steele’s return even in spite of those strong performances, of course. With the lefty seemingly on track for a return in early May, it appears the most likely course of action for Chicago is to move Brown into a full-time bullpen role when the club’s ace is ready to go.

Brown’s debut season in the majors has gotten off to a solid start as he’s swung between the Chicago rotation and bullpen. After allowing six runs in just 1 2/3 relief innings against the Rangers during his MLB debut, Brown has settled in and dazzled with a 1.02 ERA, 1.88 FIP, and 27.0% strikeout rate in 17 2/3 innings of work across five appearances (two starts). Brown’s move to a full-time bullpen role would surely help a Cubs bullpen that recently lost long relief arm Drew Smyly to the injured list and saw closer Adbert Alzolay removed from the closer role last week after converting just three saves in seven opportunities so far this year.

Dodgers Select Nabil Crismatt’s Contract

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The Dodgers have selected the contract of right-hander Nabil Crismatt from Triple-A.  Right-hander Nick Ramirez was sent to Triple-A to make room on the active roster, and righty Kyle Hurt was moved from the 15-day injured list to the 60-day IL to create a 40-man roster spot.

After signing a minors deal with Los Angeles during the offseason, this is already Crismatt’s second time on the 26-man.  His contract was initially selected at the end of March, and he threw two scoreless relief innings (and earned the win) in the Dodgers’ 5-4 victory over the Cardinals on March 31.  L.A. then designated Crismatt for assignment the next day, and he chose to remain in the Dodgers organization even though he had the right to reject an assignment off the 40-man.

Since Ramirez threw two innings in yesterday’s 12-2 win over the Blue Jays, Crismatt will get another look as a fresh arm in the reliever corps over the weekend.  Ryan Yarbrough is slated to start Sunday’s game, though that could be more of a bullpen game that requires several pitchers available.  It wouldn’t be surprising if Crismatt is DFA’ed again in a few days’ time, though the righty is obviously hoping to bolster his case for an extended stay by throwing more successful innings.

The 29-year-old Crismatt had a 3.39 ERA over 148 2/3 innings with San Diego in 2021-22 before his performance dropped off sharply last season, in the form of an 8.31 ERA in 13 innings with the Padres and Diamondbacks.  A hip strain added to Crismatt’s woes, but the bigger issue was that the grounder specialist ran out of batted-ball luck.  Crismatt’s ungainly .381 BABIP wreaked havoc on a pitcher who has 50.5% career groundball rate, and between his injuries and his lack of time in the majors, it all added up to a rough season.

Hurt was placed on the 15-day IL a week ago, with a backdated placement of April 17.  The move to the 60-man retains that original date, yet the righty’s bout of shoulder inflammation will now keep him out of action until at least mid-June.  Hurt has a 1.35 ERA over 6 2/3 innings and three appearances for Los Angeles this season, after making his MLB debut with two innings of work in 2023.  Regarded as one of the more interesting pitching prospects in the Dodgers’ system, Hurt seems to have at least a future as reliever if he can’t stick as a starter, given his big 36.6% strikeout rate over 188 2/3 career minor league innings.

Orioles Plan To Activate Kyle Bradish From Injured List This Week

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Kyle Bradish tossed 77 pitches over five innings of a Triple-A rehab start yesterday, which was his third rehab outing while recovering from a right UCL sprain.  It looks as though the Orioles are satisfied with the progress, as manager Brandon Hyde told BaltimoreBaseball.com’s Rich Dubroff and other reporters that Bradish will probably be activated from the 15-day injured list this week to make his official 2024 debut.

“Our medical team talked to him last night, the pitching guys as well. He feels great,” Hyde said.  “We’re just looking right now when to slot him in, but he’s going to be with us soon….He got to an innings spot and a pitch spot, the amount of pitches he threw where we feel like he’s ready.  Kyle was one of the best pitchers in the league last year, and we’re excited to have him back.”

It was a little more than two months ago that Bradish’s injury was revealed, which caused immediate speculation that the righty’s season could be in jeopardy if Tommy John surgery or an internal brace procedure was needed to address the UCL damage.  However, Bradish received a PRP injection that seemed to work wonders, as he was able to gradually increase his workload to the point that he was able to start his rehab assignment earlier than expected.  Though missing a month of the regular season is no small matter, that is a concession Bradish and the Orioles will happily take given the initial threat of a much longer layoff.

After making his MLB debut in 2022, Bradish quietly emerged as Baltimore’s ace in his second big league season.  The right-hander finished fourth in AL Cy Young Award voting after delivering a 2.83 ERA and above-average strikeout (25%) and walk (6.6%) rates across 168 2/3 innings.  He allowed a good deal of hard contact, but his 49.2% grounder rate limited the damage, and Bradish benefited from a .270 BABIP.

The addition of Corbin Burnes further bolstered the Orioles’ rotation this winter, pushing Bradish down to the projected No. 2 spot in the pitching staff.  The rotation took some more hits when John Means’ elbow soreness resulted in a season-opening stint on the IL, and Tyler Wells was also sidelined two weeks ago with elbow inflammation.  Hyde told Dubroff and company that Wells hadn’t yet started throwing, as “we’re just kind of slow playing him” and “making sure there’s no soreness in there.”

Means is much closer to a return, as his final Triple-A rehab outing is set for Sunday.  Assuming all goes well, both Bradish and Means could be activated in the next week, thus bumping Albert Suarez and probably Cole Irvin out of the starting mix.  That said, Hyde said “everything’s up on the table right now,” in terms of how the O’s might line up their starters, as the team has also considered using a six-man rotation.  Such a deployment would help ease Bradish and Means into action, and the Orioles’ upcoming off-days on May 6 and 9 would also allow for a potential reset after the club evaluates everyone through at least one start.

Mets Place Drew Smith On 15-Day Injured List

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Mets manager Carlos Mendoza announced to reporters (including Newsday’s Tim Healey) that right-hander Drew Smith has been placed on the 15-day injured list due to shoulder inflammation.  Outfielder Starling Marte has also been placed on the bereavement list, so New York has called up both infielder Mark Vientos and right-hander Dedniel Nunez to fill the two open spots on the 26-man.

Since Smith’s MRI didn’t reveal any structural damage, the hope is that the righty can be back in the bullpen after just the minimum 15 days.  The Mets’ relief corps has been a strength for the team this season, and Smith has contributed to the cause with a 2.70 ERA over 10 innings and 10 appearances.  His most recent game was last Tuesday, when he allowed two runs in an inning of work during New York’s 5-1 loss to the Giants.

The solid ERA hides some underlying concerns in Smith’s performance, most notably a hefty 14.9% walk rate.  Smith’s walk rate had already taken a sizeable jump from eight percent in 2022 (when he had a 3.33 ERA) to 11.9% last season, when Smith posted a 4.15 ERA over 56 1/3 frames.  On the plus side, Smith has an excellent 24.1% hard-hit ball rate, helping somewhat mitigate the bad luck of a .345 BABIP.  Smith has reincorporated a cutter into his arsenal this year with good results, though batters are having more success against his primary pitch, a four-seamer.

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