- Madison Bumgarner will be activated from the 10-day injured list to start the Diamondbacks’ game with the Cubs on Friday, according to multiple reporters (including The Athletic’s Zach Buchanan). Bumgarner has been out of action due to shoulder inflammation since June 3, continuing what has thus far been a disastrous tenure in Arizona for the veteran lefty. Since signing a five-year, $85MM free agent deal in the 2019-20 offseason, Bumgarner has battled injuries and posted only a 6.04 ERA over 101 1/3 innings. It is very unlikely that a team will come calling about Bumgarner at the deadline given the size of his remaining contract, so the left-hander’s second half will just be about staying healthy and posting some solid numbers as a platform for better things next year.
Diamondbacks Rumors
D-backs Outright Nick Heath
Outfielder Nick Heath, whom the Diamondbacks designated for assignment earlier in the week, has cleared waivers and been assigned outright to Triple-A Reno, according to the club. Arizona originally acquired Heath from the Royals earlier this year in a trade that sent minor league righty Eduardo Herrera to the Kansas City organization.
Heath, 27, draws 70 and 80 grades on the 20-80 scouting scale for his pure speed, but he struggled considerably at the plate with the Diamondbacks in a limited sample this year and with the Royals in 2020. Through 57 plate appearances in the Majors, Heath carries only a .146/.255/.188 line with a 36.8 percent strikeout rate.
Things have gone a bit better for Heath in Triple-A, where he’s posted a .289/.385/.434 line in 91 plate appearances this year. The extraordinarily hitter-friendly environments in Triple-A, however, render that production about four percent better than league-average, by measure of wRC+. That matches Heath’s output in 97 Triple-A plate appearances with the Royals back in 2019. Overall, Heath is a career .268/.351/.366 hitter in parts of five minor league seasons. He’s only hit 15 minor league home runs, but his 17 triples and 167 steals (in 208 attempts — an 80.3 percent success rate) highlight his impressive speed.
Diamondbacks Place Asdrubal Cabrera On 10-Day IL
Infielder Asdrubal Cabrera has been placed on the 10-day injured list due to a right hamstring strain, the Diamondbacks announced. Utilityman Andrew Young was called up from Triple-A to take Cabrera’s spot on Arizona’s active roster.
Cabrera is hitting .240/.332/.385 with five homers over 223 plate appearances this season, and this is already his second IL trip of the year due to his bothersome right hamstring. An earlier strain kept him out of action for three weeks in May and early June, and if this latest injury has a similar recovery timeline, it will greatly decrease Cabrera’s chances of being dealt prior to the July 30 trade deadline. Reports from earlier this week indicated that the Mets had interest in a reunion with Cabrera, who played in New York from 2016-18.
It’s certainly possible the Mets or another team might still acquire Cabrera if they’re confident he’ll be back shortly after July 30, or if he has only played in a game or two prior to the deadline. The injury factor would decrease Arizona’s return in a potential trade, though since Cabrera is a veteran rental player having a decent unspectacular season, the Diamondbacks likely weren’t expecting to net a huge return anyway. Speculatively, the D’Backs could attempt to combine Cabrera with another veteran player in a multi-player swap, so the other team gets more than just Cabrera as a potential injury question mark, and Arizona gets more value back in a prospect package.
Cabrera has mostly played third base this season, though his ability to play all over the infield would make him an interesting bench addition for a number of contending teams. There isn’t much to like about his Statcast numbers apart from a solid walk rate, yet Cabrera has still managed a respectable 96 wRC+ in his age-35 season.
Diamondbacks Reinstate Kole Calhoun From Injured List, Designate Nick Heath
The Diamondbacks announced that outfielder Kole Calhoun has been reinstated from the 60-day injured list. In corresponding moves, righty Taylor Widener was optioned to Triple-A and outfielder Nick Heath was designated for assignment. As noted by The Athletic’s Zach Buchanan, Widener’s demotion is likely just an on-paper move due to the All-Star break, and he’ll be back in Arizona’s rotation when the second half begins.
Calhoun underwent hamstring surgery in late April, which followed another surgery to fix a torn meniscus during Spring Training. After clocking only 51 plate appearances in between his two injury absences, Calhoun will now return for what could potentially be his last few weeks in an Arizona uniform.
If Calhoun can get hot at the plate and stay healthy, he’d certainly look like a decent trade chip for a D’Backs team that is open to selling. The 33-year-old isn’t a pure rental player, as there is a $9MM club option on his services for the 2022 season that carries a $2MM buyout. Owed an $8MM salary for 2021, Calhoun would have roughly $2.7MM remaining of that total if he was dealt on July 30, so between that and the $2MM buyout, it isn’t an unreasonable price for teams looking for a veteran outfield bat. (The D’Backs could also include money in a trade.)
Since joining the Diamondbacks on a two-year, $16MM free agent deal in December 2019, Calhoun has hit .239/.337/.517 with 18 home runs over 279 PA. Generally an above-average hitter over his 10 big league seasons with the Angels and D’Backs, the left-handed hitting Calhoun has pretty even splits against both right-handed and left-handed pitching. In addition, he has played solid-to-strong defense as a right fielder, highlighted by a Gold Glove back in 2015.
This is the second time Heath has been designated for assignment this season, and when the Royals DFA’ed the outfielder back in April, the D’Backs stepped in to arrange a trade that brought Heath to the desert. Originally a 16th-round pick for Kansas City in the 2016 draft, Heath has appeared in 20 games for the Diamondbacks, with just a .402 OPS over 39 plate appearances.
Minor MLB Transactions: 7/7/21
Today’s minor transactions:
- Left-hander Ryan Buchter has cleared outright waivers, the Diamondbacks announced. Arizona designated the veteran reliever for assignment earlier in the week. Buchter was a generally productive middle innings arm between 2016-19, but he didn’t see much action in 2020 and has had a poor season in 2021. Buchter tossed 14 2/3 innings with the D-Backs, pitching to a 5.52 ERA with 13 strikeouts and walks apiece. As a player who has previously been passed through outright waivers, he has the right to reject a minor league assignment in favor of free agency.
- The Red Sox have released left-hander Bobby Poyner, reports Chris Cotillo of MassLive (Twitter link). Poyner tossed 34 innings out of the Boston bullpen between 2018-19, working to a 4.50 ERA/3.68 SIERA. Boston passed him through outright waivers in January 2020, and he’d spent the 2021 campaign with Triple-A Worcester. Poyner has struggled in 13 innings at the minors’ highest level this year, allowing 15 runs on 22 hits (including six homers), two walks and three hit batsmen.
- Nationals infielder Humberto Arteaga has apparently cleared outright waivers after being designated for assignment over the weekend. Arteaga has been back in action for the Nats Triple-A affiliate in Rochester the past two nights. He’s spent most of the year with the Red Wings but was selected to the major league roster for a day last week, going 0-3 with a sacrifice fly. Arteaga was waived after the Nats acquired Alcides Escobar from the Royals to fill their vacant utility infield role.
D-backs Claim Jordan Weems, Designate Ryan Buchter
The Diamondbacks announced Monday that they’ve claimed right-hander Jordan Weems off waivers from the Athletics. Veteran lefty Ryan Buchter was designated for assignment in a corresponding roster move.
Weems, 28, was designated for assignment himself over the weekend. He’s allowed three runs in 4 1/3 frames for Oakland this season and, dating back to last summer’s debut, has yielded a total of eight runs on 12 hits and 10 walks with 22 strikeouts in 18 1/3 frames.
A third-round pick of the Red Sox back in 2011, Weems never made it to The Show in Boston before reaching minor league free agency and latching on with the A’s. He posted solid numbers with Oakland’s MLB club last summer, albeit in 14 1/3 innings, but has been hit hard in a trio of brief stints at the Triple-A level: 6.67 ERA in 29 2/3 innings.
Weems averages better than 95 mph with his heater, however, and turned in a solid 13.1 percent swinging-strike rate in 2020. The Diamondbacks, starved for bullpen help, are surely hoping he can rediscover some of that 2020 form in a change of setting. Weems also has all three minor league options remaining, so he’s a flexible piece both for now and in future seasons if he indeed sticks on the 40-man roster.
As for the 34-year-old Buchter, he’ll now either be traded, placed on outright waivers or released in the next week. He’s tossed 14 2/3 innings of relief out of the Arizona bullpen so far but hasn’t had anywhere near the level of success he’s had for the majority of his big league career.
Buchter entered the season with a 2.90 ERA, a 26.8 percent strikeout rate and an 11.2 percent walk rate but has served up nine earned runs in 14 2/3 innings (5.52 ERA) with as many walks as strikeouts (19.1 percent apiece). His fastball, which averaged 92.6 mph in each of the past three seasons, is down to an average of 90.9 mph in 2021. Buchter’s 7.9 percent swinging-strike rate is also the lowest of his career.
Mets Interested In Asdrubal Cabrera
The Mets have been scouting Diamondbacks infielder Asdrubal Cabrera, USA Today’s Bob Nightengale reports. Cabrera would be a pure rental pickup for New York, as the veteran signed a one-year, $1.75MM contract with the D’Backs last winter.
This lack of long-term control makes Cabrera one of the likelier players to be dealt prior to the July 30 trade deadline, as the Diamondbacks are clearly in seller mode and are willing to move (almost) anyone on the roster. Cabrera is also a known quantity for the Mets, having played in Queens from 2016 until July 2018, when he was sent to the Phillies as part of another deadline swap.
Cabrera enjoyed a lot of success in his previous stint in a Mets uniform, and he has continued to be an above-average player even in his age-35 season, despite missing three weeks due to a hamstring strain. Entering today’s action, Cabrera has hit .251/.348/.402 with five homers over 210 plate appearances, good for a 106 wRC+ and OPS+.
However, the Statcast numbers are less appealing, as Cabrera isn’t making much hard contact and he has only a .304 xwOBA, well below his .322 wOBA. Cabrera’s 12.4% walk rate is the largest of his 15-year MLB career, though that might have more to do with pitchers avoiding Cabrera within a lackluster D’Backs lineup than any particular newfound patience at the plate.
The Mets wouldn’t necessarily need Cabrera to be an everyday contributor, as their troubled third base picture will eventually start to get more clarity once Jonathan Villar and J.D. Davis return from the injured list. Villar is expected to be activated tonight and Davis is on a minor league rehab assignment, though since Davis is a defensive question mark at best at third base, the Mets could prefer to deploy him in the outfield. This would open the door for Cabrera and Villar to share time as a switch-hitting platoon at third base, and provide depth all over the infield. A shortstop for much of his career, Cabrera has played all three other infield spots almost exclusively since the start of the 2019 season.
Welington Castillo Retires
Former big league catcher Welington Castillo is retiring from baseball, reports Jesse Dougherty of the Washington Post (Twitter link). He’ll hang up his spikes having appeared for five teams in parts of ten major league seasons.
Castillo began his professional career with the Cubs, signing out of the Dominican Republic in 2004 and reaching the majors by 2010. He went on to spend the next four-plus years on the North Side of Chicago, hitting fairly well as the Cubs regular catcher from 2013-14. Chicago traded him to the Mariners in May 2015, and Seattle flipped him to the Diamondbacks as part of a deal to acquire Mark Trumbo a little more than a month later.
The right-handed hitting backstop spent the next year and a half in Arizona, working as the D-Backs primary backstop before being non-tendered. He signed on with the Orioles for the 2017 campaign, again offering his typical blend of quality offense and fringy but playable defense behind the dish. He then returned to Chicago — this time on the South Side — on a two-year deal with the White Sox.
Unfortunately, Castillo’s White Sox tenure didn’t go as hoped. He was suspended for eighty games after testing positive for a banned substance midway through the 2018 season, and he struggled at the plate for the first time in his career in 2019. While Castillo signed minor league deals with the Nationals in each of the past two offseasons, he didn’t make it back to the majors. The 34-year-old opted out last season due to COVID-19 concerns and has spent this year with Washington’s Triple-A affiliate.
While Castillo’s career didn’t end the way he’d likely envisioned, there’s little doubt he had a solid run. Castillo tallied 2701 plate appearances over his ten big league campaigns, compiling a .254/.313/.426 line that betters the .243/.311/.390 mark managed by the league average catcher between 2010-19. Castillo picked up 626 hits (including 98 home runs), drew 183 walks, scored 251 times and drove in 339 runs. Baseball Reference estimates he was worth around 12 wins above replacement. (FanGraphs, which accounts for his generally poor pitch framing metrics, pegs him closer to five wins). B-Ref tallies his career earnings at just north of $28MM. MLBTR congratulates Castillo on a fine career and wishes him all the best in his future endeavors.
Diamondbacks Place Zac Gallen On Injured List
The Diamondbacks announced they’ve placed right-hander Zac Gallen on the 10-day injured list due to a right hamstring strain. Catcher Bryan Holaday has been selected to replace him on the active roster. The D-Backs had a vacancy on the 40-man roster after this week’s trade of outfielder Tim Locastro to the Yankees.
It’ll be the second IL stint of the year for Gallen, who earlier missed a month with a minor sprain of the UCL in his throwing elbow. It doesn’t seem there’s a ton of cause for concern this time around. The righty told reporters (including Zach Buchanan of the Athletic) he’d been diagnosed with a “very mild” strain that was of the Grade 1 (least severe) variety. Indeed, Gallen said he’s not even in pain currently.
Nevertheless, there’s little reason for the 23-61 Diamondbacks to take any chances with a core player. Gallen qualifies, having pitched to a 3.16 ERA/3.78 FIP across 156 2/3 innings since the D-Backs acquired him from the Marlins at the 2019 trade deadline. Gallen hasn’t been that effective this year, but there’s little doubt the organization remains bullish on his long-term upside.
Holaday is now set to appear in the majors for a tenth consecutive season. The right-handed hitter’s most extensive run came early in his career with the Tigers, and he’s also seen action with the Rangers, Red Sox, Marlins and Orioles over the past couple seasons. All told, the 33-year-old owns a .238/.283/.333 line across 768 MLB plate appearances. Signed to a minor league deal over the winter, he’s hit .263/.315/.579 in 108 trips to the dish with Triple-A Reno. That’s solid but unspectacular output in the hitter’s paradise that is Triple-A West.
Zac Gallen Leaves Start With Hamstring Tightness
- Zac Gallen was removed from yesterday’s start due with what the Diamondbacks described as right hamstring tightness. He’ll have an MRI done today. The Athletic’s Zach Buchanan provides video of the pitch that took Gallen out of the game. It’s yet another setback for Gallen in what was supposed to be a breakout season. He missed the beginning of the season with a hairline fracture in his forearm, then went back on the injured list for another 39 days with an elbow sprain. Speculatively speaking, another IL stint appears likely here. Especially given the state of Arizona’s season, they are likely to be cautious with Gallen. When has has been healthy, he’s been effective, making eight starts with a 3.69 ERA/3.75 FIP in 72 innings with a strong 27.3 percent strikeout rate, slightly high 10.7 percent walk rate, and 44.6 percent groundball rate.
