Giants Promote Tyler Beede
The Giants will hand the ball to pitching prospect Tyler Beede tonight, as Kerry Crowley of the Bay Area News Group was among those to report. Reliever Roberto Gomez was optioned to create space.
The righty had already joined the MLB team on its taxi squad, but the team’s precise plans were not clear. Skipper Bruce Bochy announced last night that the youngster will be activated for his first MLB start.
Beede, the Giants’ first-round pick in the 2014 draft, will make his debut about six weeks before his 25th birthday. The Vanderbilt University product has steadily moved up the ladder in the San Francisco farm since signing out of the amateur ranks.
The results have been mixed of late for Beede. He turned in a strong 2016 season at Double-A, working to a 2.81 ERA with 8.2 K/9 and 3.2 BB/9. But he failed to carry that forward last year, when he allowed 4.79 earned per nine (with 6.9 K/9 and 3.2 BB/9) in his 109 Triple-A innings.
While Beede entered camp this spring with at least some hope of forcing his way into the Opening Day roster mix, he labored through his four outings. Still, he’ll receive a shot now that there’s an opening. Fellow hurler Andrew Suarez might also have been considered, but Beede is a much simpler selection from a logistical standpoint since he already has a 40-man roster spot.
It’s not clear at this point whether Beede will have much hope of sticking in the rotation for the remainder of the year. With Jeff Samardzija not far from a return, it could be that Beede will only get a limited opportunity. If he impresses, though, perhaps there’s a chance he could stake a claim to a permanent job. It’s doubtful the Giants are looking too closely at Beede’s service situation, as he isn’t exactly considered a can’t-miss ace, but it’s worth noting that he could still accrue a full year of MLB service in 2018 if he sticks on the active roster from this point forward.
MLB Daily Roster Roundup: Bogaerts, Holland, Miller, Suarez
ROSTER MOVES BY TEAM
(April 9th)
NATIONAL LEAGUE
- CINCINNATI REDS | Depth Chart
- Placed on 10-Day DL: 3B Eugenio Suarez (fractured thumb), OF Scott Schebler (ulnar nerve contusion)
- Cliff Pennington played 3B and batted 7th on Monday. Phillip Ervin played RF and batted 6th, although Jesse Winker and Adam Duvall are expected to start most games at the corner outfield spots.
- Promoted: INF Alex Blandino, RP Zack Weiss
- Placed on 10-Day DL: 3B Eugenio Suarez (fractured thumb), OF Scott Schebler (ulnar nerve contusion)
- MILWAUKEE BREWERS | Depth Chart
- Promoted: OF Brett Phillips
- Optioned: RP Adrian Houser
- SAN DIEGO PADRES | Depth Chart
- Placed on 10-Day DL: RP Kirby Yates (ankle tendinitis)
- Craig Stammen will take over Yates’ role as the team’s primary setup man.
- Promoted: RP Buddy Baumann
- Placed on 10-Day DL: RP Kirby Yates (ankle tendinitis)
- ST. LOUIS CARDINALS | Depth Chart
- Promoted: RP Greg Holland
- After a disastrous debut on Monday (0.1 IP, ER, 4 BB, L; entered in the 10th inning of a 4-4 game), Holland will likely have to prove himself in a non-closer role before being handed the closer’s job.
- Optioned: RP Mike Mayers
- Promoted: RP Greg Holland
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AMERICAN LEAGUE
- BALTIMORE ORIOLES | Depth Chart
- Promoted: RP Hunter Harvey
- Optioned: RP Tanner Scott
- BOSTON RED SOX | Depth Chart
- Placed on 10-Day DL: SS Xander Bogaerts (small crack in talus bone)
- Eduardo Nunez could shift over to SS with Brock Holt filling in at 2B.
- Promoted: INF/OF Tzu-Wei Lin
- Placed on 10-Day DL: SS Xander Bogaerts (small crack in talus bone)
- SEATTLE MARINERS | Depth Chart
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- Placed on 10-Day DL: 1B Ryon Healy (sprained ankle)
- Daniel Vogelbach will play 1B while Healy is out.
- Promoted: RP Chasen Bradford
- Placed on 10-Day DL: 1B Ryon Healy (sprained ankle)
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- TAMPA BAY RAYS | Depth Chart
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- Placed on 10-Day DL: INF Brad Miller (strained groin)
- C.J. Cron is expected to play 1B regularly while Miller is out. He had been playing primarily against left-handed starters.
- Promoted: RP Ryan Weber (contract purchased)
- Placed on 10-Day DL: INF Brad Miller (strained groin)
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FUTURE EXPECTED MOVES
- BAL: SP Alex Cobb will be recalled from the minors on Saturday April 14th to make his Orioles’ debut, according to Roch Kubatko of MASN.
- CHC: 1B Anthony Rizzo (lower back discomfort) will be placed on the 10-Day DL, according to Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun Times. Backup catcher Victor Caratini has played 1B in Rizzo’s absence for the past three games.
- LAA: SP Jaime Barria will be recalled from the minors on Wednesday April 11th to make his MLB debut, according to Jeff Fletcher of the Southern California News Group. Later in the thread, Fletcher names Nick Tropeano and Andrew Heaney as candidates to start on Thursday and Friday.
- NYM: SP Zack Wheeler will be recalled from the minors to make a start on Wednesday April 11th, according to Anthony DiComo of MLB.com.
- SFG: SP Tyler Beede will be recalled from the minors to start on Tuesday April 10th, according to Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area. It will be his MLB debut.
- SEA: DH Nelson Cruz and OF Ben Gamel could both be activated from the DL as early as Friday April 13th, according to Greg Johns of MLB.com.
- TEX: 2B Rougned Odor (strained hamstring) will likely be placed on the 10-Day DL, according to Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star Telegram. Jurickson Profar would fill in at 2B while Odor is out.
Minor MLB Transactions: 4/10/18
Here are the day’s minor moves:
- The Reds have agreed to a minor-league deal with outfielder Steve Selsky, per Evan Drellich of NBC Sports Boston (Twitter link). Selsky, 28, was cut loose by the Red Sox a few days back. He spent the 2017 season with the Boston organization but will return now to the team that originally took him in the 33rd round of the 2011 draft. Selsky has only seen minimal MLB time to date but has shown an interesting bat at times. He has not continued the pop he demonstrated at the High-A level earlier in his career, but has mostly been a high-average, solid-on-base hitter in the upper minors. In 2017, however, he limped to a .215/.270/.360 slash with atypically unsightly plate discipline numbers (30.1% strikeout rate; 5.6% walk rate).
Clayton Blackburn To Undergo Tommy John Surgery
Rangers right-hander Clayton Blackburn will undergo Tommy John surgery, as MLB.com’s TR Sullivan was among those to report on Twitter. The news comes after Blackburn dealt with elbow issues all spring long.
Blackburn, who was acquired this time last year from the Giants, was once a highly regarded prospect but has yet to earn his first MLB call-up. That may well have come in the current season, but the 25-year-old will instead spend the year rehabbing.
A former 16th-round draft pick, Blackburn has spent most of the past three seasons at the highest level of the minors. In his 355 1/3 innings at Triple-A, he owns a 4.00 ERA with 7.1 K/9 and 2.4 BB/9.
Blackburn still has an option year remaining and won’t burn it in 2018. He is already on the 60-day DL, so there are no immediate 40-man ramifications. But it remains to be seen whether the Rangers will be able to to carry him through next offseason, when there will inevitably be a variety of roster pressures to account for.
Marlins Release Brian Ellington
The Marlins have released right-hander Brian Ellington, as the MLB.com transactions page reflects. He had been designated for assignment recently after missing time in camp due to biceps tendinitis.
Ellington, 27, has a blistering fastball and increasingly showed an ability to miss some bats over his three years in the majors. But he also allowed more hard contact, home runs, and walks in 2017 than he had in the prior two campaigns.
Though he maintained a 2.64 ERA through his first 58 MLB innings, that all hit the skids last year. In his 44 2/3 frames in 2017, Ellington worked to a 7.25 ERA with 9.7 K/9 but also 7.1 BB/9 while allowing seven home runs.
Pirates Reliever Felipe Rivero Changes Name To Felipe Vázquez
Pirates lefty Felipe Rivero will henceforth be known as Felipe Vázquez after undergoing a legal name change, Elizabeth Bloom of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports. That modification will be reflected on the back of his uniform in short order.
You’ll need to read the article for the back story, but the new surname will match that of the southpaw’s sister, Prescilla Vázquez. The siblings are very close; she is said to have played a notable role in advising her brother on his agency decisions and working out the long-term deal that he signed over the winter.
As the Bucs order up some new jerseys, they’ll hope that the newly renamed Vázquez can maintain the form he showed last year as Rivero. In 75 1/3 innings, the power lefty allowed just 14 earned runs on 47 hits while compiling an 88:20 K/BB ratio. He also racked up 21 saves after moving into the closer’s role.
That performance led to a four-year extension in January. The deal promises Vázquez $22MM for the 2018 through 2021 seasons and also leaves the club with two option years.
J.C. Ramirez Expected To Undergo Tommy John Surgery
The Angels announced today that righty J.C. Ramirez has been diagnosed with a torn ulnar collateral ligament, as MLB.com’s Maria Guardado was among those to report (Twitter link). His doctors have recommended that he undergo Tommy John surgery.
After some struggles with forearm tightness to open the year, following an offseason of stem-cell treatment for a partial UCL tear, this news isn’t exactly shocking. Still, it’s a disappointing development for a player who had been such a bright spot in 2017.
Ramirez, 29, had found little success in the majors until he threw well in a relief role down the stretch for the Angels in 2016. Still, nothing jumped off the page to foretell future success, with the exception of a healthy 54.9% groundball rate on the season.
Then came a 2017 campaign in which an injury-plagued Halos’ staff was desperate for innings. Ramirez ended up making 24 starts and providing 147 1/3 frames of 4.15 ERA ball. That’s hardly ace-level stuff, and the peripherals (6.4 K/9, 3.0 BB/9, 51.4% GB, 1.28 HR/9) did not exactly excite, but Ramirez certainly provided more than anyone had cause to expect.
While the elbow troubles at season’s end created some obvious cause for trepidation, the Angels decided it was worth the risk to keep Ramirez around. The club tendered the Super-Two-eligible hurler an arb contract and ended up paying him $1.9MM.
If Ramirez ends up going under the knife for a full UCL replacement, he likely won’t be ready to pitch competitively until this time next year (at the soonest). He would likely earn at an identical rate of pay if the team chooses to tender him a contract once again this coming fall.
Red Sox Place Xander Bogaerts On Disabled List
The Red Sox announced that they’ve placed shortstop Xander Bogaerts on the 10-day disabled list due to a “small crack in the talus bone in his left ankle.” Evan Drellich of NBC Sports Boston first reported that the Sox were going to place Bogaerts on the DL with a bone injury in his foot, adding that Bogaerts is in a walking boot (all Twitter links).
While any kind of broken bone is worrying, it seems this is rather a minor injury. Indeed, the Sox’ announcement indicates optimism that Bogaerts can return in 10 to 14 days. They’ve recalled infielder Tzu-Wei Lin from Triple-A Pawtucket in the meantime.
Nevertheless, it’s unfortunate to see Bogaerts face an obstacle after he had turned in a strong opening run to the 2018 campaign, with a .368/.400/.711 slash over his first forty plate appearances. Last season was a bit of a down year at the plate for Bogaerts, who is still just 25 years of age. He’s already earning a healthy $7.05MM salary this year and could command a big payday in his final season of arbitration eligibility if he can return in relatively short order and continue to be productive with the bat.
Orioles To Activate Alex Cobb On Saturday
Right-hander Alex Cobb will make his Orioles debut against the Red Sox in Boston this coming Saturday, the team told reporters (Twitter link via Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com). The right-hander had opened the season in extended Spring Training as he built up strength after waiting until late in Spring Training to sign with the O’s. Baltimore also announced that former top prospect Hunter Harvey has been recalled for tonight’s game and added to the bullpen, with lefty Tanner Scott heading to Triple-A in a corresponding move.
Cobb inked a four-year, $57MM pact that came as somewhat of a surprise after the market for him, Lance Lynn and Jake Arrieta looked to have largely collapsed. Rather than taking a short-term deal, as Lynn did, Cobb and his reps at Beverly Hills Sports Council instead found a contract that was largely commensurate with a number of November projections (and topped our $48MM estimate here at MLBTR).
Prior to revealing that Cobb would start on Saturday, the O’s announced that Cobb worked a six-inning outing in extended Spring Training today, allowing two runs (one earned) on six hits and a walk with eight strikeouts in six innings against Twins farmhands. Cobb tossed 93 pitches in that game, so it seems he should be stretched out enough to eclipse the 100-pitch mark if necessary.
Cobb will join Dylan Bundy, Kevin Gausman, Andrew Cashner and Chris Tillman in a revamped Orioles rotation, pushing right-hander Mike Wright Jr. out of the starting mix — presumably into the bullpen. The 30-year-old’s big league deal means he’s already on the 40-man roster, but the Orioles will still need to clear a spot on the 25-man roster for him.
As for Harvey, the former No. 22 overall pick in the draft (2013) rated as one of the best prospects in the game before arm injuries, including Tommy John surgery, severely hampered his development. It’s an aggressive promotion for Harvey, who’d never pitched above A-ball prior to this season, though it’s also quite likely to be short-term in nature, as the O’s presumably still want to see him stretch out as a starter in hopes that the 23-year-old can eventually be an option for them in the rotation. Harvey had been slated to start tonight in Bowie prior to his promotion to the big leagues.
Angels To Promote Jaime Barria
The Angels will promote top prospect Jaime Barria to make his Major League debut in a start against the Rangers on Wednesday, reports Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register (Twitter link).
Barria, 21, entered the season rated by ESPN’s Keith Law as the game’s No. 62 overall prospect (subscription link). The Panamanian-born righty is already on the Angels’ 40-man roster, so the team will only need to make a 25-man roster move to bring him up to the big leagues.
It’s been a quick rise through the minors for Barria, who opened the 2017 season in Class-A Advanced but ascended to Triple-A and finished out the year with a combined 2.80 ERA, 7.4 K/9 and 2.0 BB/9 through 141 2/3 innings. The 6’1″, 210-pound righty has been an extreme fly-ball pitcher in his minor league tenure, with last year’s fly-ball rates ranging from 48.1 percent in Class-A Advanced (65 1/3 innings) to 58.5 percent in Triple-A (14 2/3 innings). Law’s report describes Barria as a three-pitch, command-and-control oriented starter who lacks a true plus pitch but comes with a high floor as a fourth starter (with the potential to develop into more).
Barria’s promotion was largely necessitated by injuries to Angels starters Andrew Heaney, Matt Shoemaker and J.C. Ramirez. The start likely would’ve gone to Parker Bridwell, though he needs to spend at least 10 days in the minors after being optioned on the heels of his April 6 start for the Halos. As for Heaney (who is nearing a return) and Nick Tropeano, Fletcher tweets that that duo could be in line to start on Thursday and Friday for the Angels.
It’s not clear if he’ll remain in the big leagues beyond his initial start, though it seems likely that the Halos will option Barria back to the minors at some point. If Barria were to stick in the Majors for good beyond Wednesday’s promotion, he’d accrue just enough service time to qualify for free agency following the 2023 season. A bit more additional minor league time, however, would delay his path to free agency until the end of the 2024 campaign.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.