Indians Agree To Terms With First-Rounder Daniel Espino
The Indians have agreed to a $2.5MM bonus with first-round choice Daniel Espino, according to Paul Hoynes of the Plain Dealer (via Twitter). He was selected with the 24th overall pick, which came with a $2.83MM slot allocation.
Espino is a right-handed hurler who’ll launch his pro career after wrapping up his high school tenure in Georgia. He was selected just about where most pundits valued him. MLB.com and ESPN.com’s Keith Law both placed him in the 23rd slot, while Baseball America had him at #25.
Many see limitless upside in Espino’s powerful right arm, particularly since he shows promising secondary stuff. But there’s also quite a lot of risk in his profile: an exceptionally hard-throwing high-schooler who lacks a big frame or pristine mechanics. The Fangraphs prospect crew rated him 33rd overall, even while acknowledging the potentially massive value.
Cody Anderson Undergoes Surgery On Flexor Tendon
Indians righty Cody Anderson has undergone surgery to repair an injury to his flexor tendon, manager Terry Francona told reporters including MLB.com’s Mandy Bell (via Twitter). It is not yet clear how long he’ll be sidelined.
It’s the latest bad news for Anderson, who has managed only 69 2/3 MLB innings since a promising debut showing back in 2015. He took a long road back from Tommy John surgery and finally seemed to be back at health this year.
Though he was able to get back to professional pitching, sitting at 95 mph with his fastball, Anderson had struggled prior to the renewed arm problems. He was tagged for nine earned runs in 8 2/3 MLB innings. In 23 2/3 frames over six Triple-A starts, he carried a 4.56 ERA with 8.0 K/9 and 2.7 BB/9.
Anderson is earning $641,500 on an arbitration deal, so it’s not a huge financial loss for the club. But it is another dent in the club’s rotation depth, which has already been tested quite a bit to this stage of the season.
Fortunately, some of the team’s stars are beginning to filter back. Mike Clevinger returned sooner than anticipated from the IL. And Corey Kluber is making progress in his own rehab, as Bell also tweets, though he’s still limited to strengthening exercises and remains a long ways off from the majors.
Seranthony Dominguez Will Attempt To Rehab UCL Injury
Phillies righty Seranthony Dominguez has avoided Tommy John surgery — for the time being, at least. He instead will rehab through an injury to his ulnar collateral ligament after receiving a platelet-rich plasma treatment, MLB.com’s Todd Zolecki reports on Twitter.
Dominguez is expected to receive four to six weeks of rest before trying to ramp back up. That means he could have a ball in his hand by late July, potentially making him an option down the stretch for the Phils.
It’s promising to hear that this course of treatment was recommended. Dominguez headed out to Dr. James Andrews expecting the worst, but “hoping for a miracle.” He’ll still need to respond well to treatment and avoid further injury, but it seems he’ll have a shot at avoiding TJS and its year-plus rehabilitation timeline.
The news provides another glimmer of hope for a Philadelphia relief unit that has been racked by injury. The team won’t be able to assume much of anything regarding Dominguez, and will surely be on the hunt for relief additions this summer regardless, but it should have some sense whether Dominguez is likely to be a late-season option while it weighs deadline moves.
Pirates To Select Dario Agrazal
The Pirates will select the contract of righty Dario Agrazal, per a club announcement. He has been tapped to start the club’s game tomorrow.
Agrazal was added to the Pittsburgh 40-man roster in the fall of 2017, but lost his spot this January. He remained in the organization after clearing waivers.
With the Bucs struggling to fill innings, Agrazal will now receive his first shot at the majors. He has pitched to a 3.27 ERA in 74 1/3 upper minors innings thus far in 2019, carrying 7.0 K/9 against 1.2 BB/9.
Marlins Place Jose Urena On 60-Day IL
3:14pm: An MRI revealed a herniated disc in Urena’s back, Wells Dusenbury of the Sun Sentinel was among those to tweet.
1:07pm: Marlins right Jose Urena is hitting the shelf for the foreseeable future, with the club announcing that he’s going to the 60-day injured list. Urena is said to be dealing with a left lower back strain.
It’s a bit of a surprising turn of events for the starting pitcher, who had been scheduled to start on Wednesday before hitting the 10-day IL. At the time, there wasn’t much indication that he’d be sidelined for a lengthy stretch. The injury is evidently more severe than is apparent from the basic description of a lower back issue.
Given the timing, Urena won’t be eligible to return from the IL until mid-August. That all but eliminates him as a summer trade target. The 27-year-old hadn’t been in top form, with a 4.70 ERA in 74 2/3 innings, but he turned in consecutive sub-4.00 ERA campaigns in the prior two seasons. With his steady mid-to-upper nineties fastball velocity, Urena could have been an interesting swingman for the right contender.
Urena is earning $3.2MM this year as a 3+ service-class arbitration player. That leaves two more arb-eligible campaigns to come. The injury will sap his ability to procure a significant raise next fall, so it’s still plausible to imagine the Marlins tendering him a contract. Whether that’ll be a sensible approach will depend upon Urena’s recovery and showing upon his return,
This move represents the corresponding 40-man roster transaction for the club’s previously reported decision to select the contract of Yadiel Rivera. He’ll help fill in for Martin Prado while the veteran infielder is sidelined.
Rangers Acquire Jake Petricka
The Rangers have struck a deal with the Brewers for reliever Jake Petricka, per a club announcement. Cash or a player to be named later will go back in return. Robert Murray and Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reported the news (via Twitter).
Petricka, 31, signed a MLB deal with a minor-league split salary. He is optionable this season but was outrighted off of the Milwaukee 40-man roster. The Rangers have assigned Petricka to Triple-A to begin his tenure with the organization.
While he allowed only three earned runs in his eight frames of big-league action with the Brewers, Petricka managed only three strikeouts to go with six walks. He has been much better during his time at Triple-A, where he carries a 1.89 ERA with a 22:4 K/BB ratio over 19 innings.
Phillies Select Brad Miller, Designate Phil Gosselin
The Phillies announced today that they have selected the contract of recently acquired infielder Brad Miller. In a corresponding move, Phil Gosselin was designated for assignment.
Just added in a low-cost trade, the 29-year-old Miller will take his next crack at the majors as a Philadelphia reserve. The versatile performer has experience all over the field, though he hasn’t always graded well with the glove. He’ll help to balance an otherwise all-righty infield mix while also bringing much more potential pop than the man he’ll replace.
Miller produced at a just-below-league-average rate (.250/.325/.417) in forty plate appearances to open the year with the Indians. He was bumped from the roster when the Cleveland organization got back to full health and landed with the Yankees’ top affiliate. In 163 plate appearances at Triple-A, Miller carries a .294/.399/.596 batting line with ten long balls.
It’s best to temper expectations, but Miller could certainly be a useful part of the roster. He has typically produced at around a league-average rate in the big leagues, occasionally showing more power or more on-base ability but rarely putting it all together. The Phillies can hope to squeeze out some added value by utilizing Miller almost exclusively against right-handed pitching; he has a career 108-71 wRC+ spread.
Gosselin, 30, has only a .245/.260/.306 slash in fifty plate appearances this year and has never rarely done much damage at the plate in 629 career trips to the MLB dish. The former fifth-round pick does keep receiving opportunities, so teams obviously trust his glove and feel he provides competitive at-bats. Having previously been outrighted, Gosselin will have the right to elect free agency if he isn’t traded or claimed.
Aaron Judge To Begin Rehab Assignment
The Yankees announced Friday that right fielder Aaron Judge will begin a rehab assignment with Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre tonight. Additionally, Giancarlo Stanton‘s rehab assignment will be moved up from Class-A Tampa to Triple-A as well.
It’s a breath of fresh air for a Yankees team that has been without its top two sluggers for nearly the entire season. Stanton has been on the injured list since April 1, while Judge was placed there alongside him 20 days later. The two have combined for just 23 games and 104 plate appearances between them, although that hasn’t stopped the Yankees from putting together the fourth-best record in the Majors as they jostle with the Rays for the AL East lead. The now-looming return of both Judge and Stanton only strengthens their position within the division.
Clint Frazier has had some misadventures patrolling right field in absence of Judge and Stanton, while the Yankees have turned to a host of others for shorter glimpses in right field and at designated hitter. Mike Tauchman, Kendrys Morales, Cameron Maybin and Mike Ford have all seen some time in one or both of those spots as New York has capably patched over the lineup in absence of arguably its two biggest bats.
There’s still no official timetable on the return of either Judge or Stanton. Given that Stanton’s already played a pair of games in Tampa, he seems likelier to return first, but it stands to reason that both will be back in the Yankees’ lineup within the next couple of weeks (barring any setbacks).
Marlins Expected To Place Martin Prado On IL, Select Yadiel Rivera
The Marlins expect Martin Prado to miss some time due to a hamstring injury, per MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro. It’s not clear yet just how serious an injury he’s sustained nor how long he’ll be out, but Frisaro tweets that Miami is expected to bring infielder/outfielder Yadiel Rivera up from Triple-A in Prado’s absence. Rivera isn’t on the Marlins’ 40-man roster, so they’ll need to make a 40-man move in order to formally select his contract.
Prado, 35, is in the final season of a three-year, $40MM extension that has not panned out as the organization had hoped. When he initially signed the extension, Prado was putting the finishing touches on a .305/.359/.417 campaign in which he took the field for 153 of the Marlins’ 162 games. Injuries, however, have not only limited Prado to just 142 total games dating back to the 2017 season — they’ve also dramatically reduced his productivity. He’s made just 519 plate appearances while playing on his current contract and has produced an unsightly .244/.277/.319 batting line in that time.
The 27-year-old Rivera appeared in a career-high 111 games with the Marlins in 2018 but was used primarily as a pinch-hitter, pinch-runner and defensive replacement. He accrued just 160 plate appearances in those 111 contests, batting .173/.269/.216. Rivera, though, is enjoying a strong start in Triple-A New Orleans, where he’s batted .318/.333/.516 in 233 trips to the plate.
Athletics, First-Rounder Logan Davidson Agree To Terms
The Athletics have agreed to terms with Logan Davidson, their top pick in the 2019 draft, according to Jim Callis of MLB.com (via Twitter). A shortstop out of Clemson, Davidson will receive the full slot value of his No. 29 overall selection — a $2,424,600 bonus.
Davidson, 21, hit .291/.412/.574 with 15 home runs, 18 doubles, two triples and 17 stolen bases (in 20 attempts) during his junior year at Clemson. This marks the second time he’s been selected in the draft, as the Phillies picked him in the 30th round back in 2016 but were unable to persuade him to forgo his college commitment.
Heading into the draft, the team at Baseball America was most bullish on Davidson, ranking him 19th on their Top 500. He checked in at No. 21 at MLB.com, No. 27 per ESPN’s Keith Law and No. 29 at Fangraphs. BA praises Davidson as a legitimate shortstop with power and speed while noting that there are questions surrounding his hit tool. Callis and colleague Jonathan Mayo wrote in their report at MLB.com that if scouts were convinced Davidson will hit with a wood bat, he might’ve been the first college shortstop off the board. Concerns surrounding Davidson’s performance with wood bats in last summer’s Cape Cod League are a recurring theme, but the general upside of his power, speed and glove at shortstop nonetheless made him a consensus first-round talent in pre-draft projections.