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Dalier Hinojosa

Retirement Notes: Pelfrey, Capuano, Hinojosa

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We’ll use this post to round up some recent news from a few veteran hurlers whose playing days appear to be at an end:

  • Right-hander Mike Pelfrey appears to be moving on from his days on the mound, as Wayne Cavadi of NCAA.com reported recently (thanks to alert reader Alex Hudson for the tip). Pelfrey, who played at Wichita State University and is finishing up his degree there, has agreed to join the baseball coaching staff of another local school, Newman University. After a dozen years in the majors, the former ninth-overall pick says that teaching pitching was a natural progression. “After a couple of surgeries and I felt like the last couple of years that my abilities were declining, I got more into that mentor role,” says Pelfrey. Assuming this is indeed the end of the line, Pelfrey will finish his big-league run with 1,476 1/3 innings of 4.68 ERA pitching. After a long stretch with the Mets, the sinkerballer spent three seasons with the Twins before finishing things off with the Tigers and White Sox over the past two campaigns. The above-linked post features an extensive chat with Pelfrey and is well worth a look for those with interest in the big righty.
  • It seems that another dozen-year big-league veteran, southpaw Chris Capuano, is in the same boat. In an interesting chat with Garry Brown of The Republican earlier this year, the southpaw indicated that he’s finished with his pitching career. Instead of continuing the grind, as had previously seemed possible, Capuano plans to pursue a master’s degree and perhaps ultimately work with the MLB Player’s Association in some capacity. Like Pelfrey, Capuano tossed over fourteen-hundred frames at the game’s highest level. Even as he battled through injuries and bounced between six organizations, Capuano was a model of stability on the mound. He compiled a solid lifetime 4.38 ERA and rarely strayed too far from that level of pitching. Capuano will no doubt be best remembered for his six seasons with the Brewers; the lefty found early-career success in Milwaukee and finished his playing career there in 2016.
  • It seems that another former MLB hurler, Dalier Hinojosa, is also finished with his playing career, as he recently told Francys Romero of Ciber Cuba. Hinojosa, 32, long played for the Guantanamo entrant in Cuba’s Serie Nacional. He came to affiliated ball in 2014, reaching the majors in each of the next two seasons. While he only has thrown 35 2/3 MLB innings, most of them with the Phillies, Hinojosa will finish his brief MLB career with a shiny 1.51 ERA. Despite posting those solid numbers, bringing a fastball that sat at 94 mph, and getting swings and misses with about one out of every ten pitches, Hinojosa was outrighted by the Phillies after the end of the 2016 season and was later released. He did not appear in 2017 after shoulder issues arose.

Minor MLB Transactions: 5/23/17

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Here are the latest minor moves from around the game:

  • The Blue Jays announced that catcher Michael Ohlman has cleared outright waivers and accepted an assignment to Triple-A Buffalo. Ohlman had the option to elect free agency, having been previously outrighted in his career, but he’ll return to Buffalo in hopes of another big league opportunity with the Jays. The 26-year-old went 2-for-9 in his brief MLB debut with Toronto this year, and he’s slashed a more impressive .246/.388/.594 with seven homers and three doubles through 23 Triple-A contests.

Earlier Moves

  • Right-hander Al Alburquerque has cleared waivers and been outrighted to Triple-A Omaha, the Royals announced on Tuesday. Kansas City designated the veteran 30-year-old for assignment over the weekend after just four innings with the big league bullpen. Alburquerque has totaled just six innings in the Majors over the past two seasons after serving as a regular in the Detroit ’pen from 2013-15. The hard-throwing Alburquerque has no trouble missing bats but has long been prone to control issue as well. Alburquerque has the option to reject the assignment in favor of free agency.
  • Per an Orioles announcement, catcher Francisco Pena has been outrighted to Triple-A after clearing waivers. The out-of-options 27-year-old has seen limited action in the majors in recent years, but has slashed .249/.295/.452 in his 1,221 career plate appearances at Triple-A. While he’s a highly regarded defender, Pena may need to boost his on-base abilities before he’ll earn a full shot at the majors.
  • The Phillies have released southpaw Mario Hollands, per Jim Salisbury of CSNPhilly.com (via Twitter). Once a promising young reliever, Hollands seemingly never fully recovered from Tommy John surgery. The 28-year-old has produced middling results in the upper minors over the past two seasons since sitting out all of 2015. This year, he has allowed a dozen walks in his 13 frames at Double-A.
  • Also hitting the open market is former Phillies righty Dalier Hinojosa, per Matt Eddy of Baseball America. The 31-year-old worked to a 1.51 ERA with 7.8 K/9 and 3.5 BB/9 through 35 2/3 MLB frames in 2015-16, but clearly hadn’t convinced teams that was sustainable. Hinojosa hasn’t yet pitched this year due to a shoulder injury.
  • It seems that righty Daniel Bard is back at a career crossroads, as he has been released by the Cardinals, according to Eddy’s report. Bard, once an elite bullpen arm with the Red Sox, ran up 19 walks in 8 2/3 outings at the Double-A level as he has continued to struggle to stay in the zone.
  • The Braves released veteran minor-leaguer Blake Lalli, per BA. The 34-year-old catcher saw a bit of action at the major league level last year, but he has mostly plied his trade in the upper minors in recent seasons. He was off to a rough start at the plate this year at Triple-A, with a .167/.226/.271 batting line through 53 plate appearances.
  • Outfielder Tyler Holt has been released by the Dodgers, Eddy reports. Holt has seen action in each of the last three major league campaigns and appeared in 106 games last year with the Reds, but he’s slashing just .228/.306/.274 in 318 plate appearances at the game’s highest level. The 28-year-old was struggling badly in the upper minors with the Los Angeles organization, but will surely hope to regain some lost momentum with another organization.
  • The White Sox have snapped up righty Jake Johansen, who was released recently by the Nationals, according to Eddy. A second round pick back in 2013, Johansen had failed to make the jump to the upper minors and was cut loose after allowing eight earned runs in 11 2/3 innings at Double-A this year.
  • Veteran infielder Chris Nelson has joined the Royals on a minors deal, per Eddy. Once a semi-regular player with the Rockies, Nelson has bounced around in recent years and hasn’t seen any major league action since 2014. He spent time in 2016 at Triple-A with the Rockies organization, slashing .232/.273/.310 in 218 plate appearances.
  • Finally, the Reds have added MLB veteran Vin Mazzaro on a minors deal. He had been working in indy ball, throwing six scoreless frames for the Somerset Patriots, but will now try to crack the bigs for the ninth consecutive year. Mazzaro had a nice run with the Pirates in 2013, but has not seen much MLB action since. He did work to a 3.22 ERA over 67 Triple-A frames last year, with 5.8 K/9 and 3.6 BB/9, though obviously he didn’t convince many teams with his underlying skills.

Agent Bart Hernandez Convicted In Cuban Smuggling Case

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Agent Bart Hernandez and trainer Julio Estrada have been convicted by a Florida jury after being indicted on charges of human trafficking in February 2016, reports Curt Anderson of the Associated Press. Hernandez, once a prominent player representative, worked with Estrada in bringing players such as Leonys Martin, Jose Abreu, Raisel Iglesias and Jorge Soler to the United States.

The Miami Herald’s Linda Robertson reported earlier this week that two of the four counts of smuggling against Hernandez were dismissed, as U.S. District Judge Kathleen Williams ruled that the prosecution lacked sufficient evidence to prove that Hernandez smuggled Abreu or Phillies right-hander Dalier Hinojosa into the country. Hernandez still faced charges for smuggling Martin into the country, per Robertson, while Estrada faced three counts of smuggling players into the country.

According to Anderson, Hernandez is facing between three and 15 years in prison, while Estrada faces between five and 35 years of incarceration. The pair is also facing the forfeiture of $15.5MM. Sentencing has been set for July 11, and the defense attorneys have “promised there would be appeals,” Anderson adds.

Martin and Abreu have both shared eye-opening stories of their departure from Cuba during the trial. A previous report from Yahoo’s Jeff Passan back in 2013 revealed that upon leaving Cuba, Martin and his family believed they were being transported to safety and were instead held hostage, at gunpoint, while Martin’s initial five-year deal with the Rangers was negotiated. And as Anderson wrote last month, Martin’s testimony included details of one evening in Mexico in which eight to nine men broke into his apartment with a crowbar and pressured him to leave with them. There were also abduction attempts made on the men who were aiding in smuggling Martin out of Cuba, and beyond that, Martin was forced to initially agree to pay 35 percent of his United States earnings to the smuggling group on top of the more standard five percent to Hernandez for negotiating his deal with teams.

As for Abreu, the White Sox slugger detailed in his testimony (via the AP) that he was advised by his main contact/fixer in Haiti (where he established residency upon departing Cuba) to destroy his fake passport while on his flight from Haiti to the United States. Abreu testified that he actually ate the page of the false documentation that contained his alias and photograph. Immigration policy at the time allowed Abreu to remain in the United States without proper travel documentation because he had already reached American land. Abreu stated that he feared that he needed to be at a meeting with the White Sox on a specific date or could see his contract fall through, and he could not risk being turned away due to forged paperwork.

As was the case with Martin, Abreu was forced to agree to part with an enormous amount of his U.S. earnings, 20 percent to the smuggling group plus five percent to Hernandez, in exchange for their illegal operations. Per Anderson’s latest story, Abreu testified that he had already paid Estrada more than $7MM of his career earnings.

According to Anderson, neither Estrada nor Hernandez testified over the six weeks during which the jury heard testimonies in the trial. Their defense sought to prove that the two men were running legitimate business operations.

Phillies Announce Six Outrights

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The Phillies have outrighted six players, per a club announcement. Infielder Emmanuel Burriss, outfielder Jimmy Paredes, lefty Patrick Schuster, and righties Frank Herrmann, Dalier Hinojosa, and Colton Murray all lost their roster spots.

It’s no surprise to see Philadelphia partaking in some aggressive roster trimming. The organization has been utilizing a variety of temporary options while its best young talent develops in the minors. With another offseason at hand, the Phils will need to protect a new round of players from the Rule 5 draft while also pursuing new additions from the group of players that will inevitable enter the open market as other organizations make their winter decisions.

Paredes, 27, struggled badly in his 150 plate appearances, posting a .217/.242/.350 slash a season after providing the Orioles with an approximately league-average bat last year in over 100 games of action. Likewise, Burris didn’t show much at all in his fifty plate appearances, which represent his most extensive MLB action since way back in 2012.

The southpaw Schuster, who is still just 25, was bombed in his two major league innings. But he showed quite well in 44 2/3 Triple-A innings on the year, allowing just six earned runs on 31 hits and 18 walks while punching out 46 batters.

As for the righties, Herrmann earned a return to the majors for the first time since 2012 but was hit hard in 15 frames. The 30-year-old Hinojosa held opponents to four earned runs in 11 innings, with eight strikeouts and three walks, and also carried a 2.86 ERA with 10.5 K/9 against 5.1 BB/9 in his 28 1/3 innings at the highest level of the minors.

Among these players, only Murray was drafted and developed by the Phils. He was coming off of two straight quality campaigns in the upper minors and continued to perform well at Triple-A, but didn’t impress in the bigs. Over 31 2/3 innings, Murray worked to a 6.25 ERA with 8.8 K/9 against 3.7 BB/9. Though ERA estimators suggest he was a bit unlucky, he was quite susceptible to the long ball and gave up a ton of hard contact (41.1%).

Phillies Place Dalier Hinojosa on DL, Recall Colton Murray

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The Phillies announced this evening that they have placed right-handed reliever Dalier Hinojosa on the disabled list retroactive to Friday with a hand contusion. To take his place on the roster, the team recalled fellow right-handed bullpen option Colton Murray from Triple-A Lehigh Valley.

Hinojosa, 30, totaled 11 innings in 10 appearances before a line drive struck him on the hand Thursday, compiling a 3.27 ERA to go with a 6.55 K/9 and 2.45 BB/9. He logged 19 appearances (18 with the Phillies, one with the Red Sox) last season, his first in the majors, and put up a stunning .73 ERA in 24 2/3 innings. However, Hinojosa’s K/BB ratio (2.09) was underwhelming, and an inflated strand rate (93.6 percent) and ultra-low batting average on balls in play (.212) aided in his great results.

The 26-year-old Murray got his first taste of big league action last season when he recorded 7 2/3 innings for the Phillies. Murray struck out nine, walked two and surrendered five earned runs during that stretch. He threw 10 1/3 frames in the minors this year prior to his call-up and fanned 14 while walking five and allowing seven earned runs. Murray owns a 3.39 ERA, 9.2 K/9 and 3.5 BB/9 over 321 career minor league innings.

East Notes: Smith, Castillo, Howard, Gomez, Chacin

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Red Sox righty Carson Smith will return to the mound for work on Sunday, MLB.com’s Ian Browne reports. Smith, who is on the DL with a strained flexor mass muscle, seems to be on track to avoid a lengthy absence. Manager John Farrell said that Smith has had an “encouraging” week and is “progressing at a good rate right now.” The club plans to handle Smith’s build-up with care, as you’d expect with a young pitcher who is both an important future and near-term asset, but his return will be important for the Red Sox relief corps.

Here’s more from the eastern divisions:

  • Though he’s not in line for much playing time at present, Red Sox outfielder Rusney Castillo will remain with the major league club for the time being, Farrell tells Jason Mastrodonato of the Boston Herald. “I won’t rule out that it might come up in conversation as we go forward,” said Farrell, “but we’re not there yet.” The Boston manager acknowledged that it’s “a tough spot” for the 28-year-old, who lost a chance to seize upon a significant role this spring. At some point, if he’s stuck to the bench, the Sox will presumably need to consider a minor league assignment to give Castillo some consistent plate appearances.
  • Phillies first baseman Ryan Howard is staying positive despite his own part-time role, Ryan Lawrence of the Philly Voice writes. The veteran slugger says that he understands the team’s position, explaining that “the only thing you can do is stay positive and take advantage of your opportunities when you get them.” Manager Pete Mackanin says that the club will open the year with a traditional platoon of the left-handed-hitting Howard and righty Darin Ruf, but plans to remain flexible in allowing performance to dictate things as the season progresses.
  • Though it’s early, the Phillies are already moving through the line of possible closers, with Jeanmar Gomez likely next up for a chance, MLB.com’s Todd Zolecki reports. Dalier Hinojosa and David Hernandez have both failed to hold late-inning leads in the early action, leaving Gomez as the next man up — at least for now. “We’re auditioning,” Mackanin said. “We’ve got to find out. It’s a daily question. Why not Gomez? Let’s see what he can do.”
  • The Braves plan to add righty Jhoulys Chacin to the active and 40-man roster in time to make a start on Tuesday, David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports. As expected, Atlanta had been carrying an extra reliever while waiting for the fifth starter’s spot to come due.

NL East Notes: Giolito, Braves, Upton, Phillies

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The Nationals have reassigned top pitching prospect Lucas Giolito to minor-league camp, but they’re expecting to see him in the big leagues soon after a strong performance in Spring Training, James Wagner of the Washington Post writes. “He’s close to being big-league ready,” says GM Mike Rizzo. “I think the bulk of his developmental curve is complete. But he needs to work on the smaller, little details of preparation, participation and performance in trying to get major-league hitters out.” Giolito whiffednine batters while walking three and allowing three runs in 6 1/3 innings this spring. In the short term, the Nats are planning to go with a rotation of Max Scherzer, Stephen Strasburg, Gio Gonzalez, Tanner Roark and Joe Ross, and it should be noted that Giolito’s experience is limited — he was dominant last season, but spent the bulk of the year at Class A+ and only made eight starts at the Double-A level. He’s also just 21 and has an injury history that includes Tommy John surgery. Still, the future seems very bright for one of the Nats’ best young talents. Here’s more from the NL East.

  • The Braves were seriously interested in signing Justin Upton for a return engagement this past winter, Jon Heyman reports (Twitter links). The Braves were willing to sign Upton for six years, although they knew they couldn’t match the Tigers’ $22.125MM-a-year offer and never made a formal offer themselves. They were, however, believed to be willing to offer Upton a nine-figure contract. On the surface, the Braves signing Upton would not have made much sense, but they did have a protected draft pick, and Upton would have been a marketable player for them during their rebuilding phase, as well as being young enough (28) to still be productive once the team was ready to contend.
  • Andrew Bailey seems to be the front-runner for the Phillies’ closer role, writes MLB.com’s Todd Zolecki. That would be quite a promotion for a pitcher who’s missed much of the past two seasons due to shoulder trouble and has only thrown 8 2/3 big-league innings since 2013, although Bailey was, of course, once a closer for the A’s. “I want to see more velocity out of him,” says manager Pete Mackanin. “I know he can pitch. He’s a true competitor. He has that good curveball and cutter. But I want to see more velocity.” Dalier Hinojosa, who pitched well for the Phillies down the stretch last year, appears to be in the mix as well. David Hernandez might be another possibility, but he’s battled triceps tendinitis. Bailey, Hinjosa, Hernandez, Jeanmar Gomez, Edward Mujica and Brett Oberholtzer look likely to win bullpen jobs, with a seventh reliever yet to be determined.

Phillies Claim Dalier Hinojosa From Red Sox

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The Phillies have claimed righty Dalier Hinojosa off waivers from the Red Sox, Philadelphia announced. Boston had designated Hinojosa for assignment on Saturday.

Hinojosa came to the Red Sox as a free agent out of Cuba back in 2013, signing for a $4.25MM bonus. The 29-year-old ultimately made just one appearance from the Boston pen. He owns a 3.56 ERA with 9.0 K/9 against 4.3 BB/9 over 103 2/3 Triple-A innings.

Given that he racked up those innings over just 60 appearances, all from the pen, Hinojosa obviously offers the possibility of contributing multiple innings. Philadelphia will start him off at Triple-A, but he could provide some flexibility for its struggling pitching staff in the season’s second half.

Red Sox Designate Dalier Hinojosa For Assignment

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The Red Sox have made room for lefty Brian Johnson on their 40-man roster by designating righty Dalier Hinojosa for assignment, Brian MacPherson of the Providence Journal tweets. Johnson is taking Clay Buchholz’s spot on the active roster as Buchholz deals with a flexor strain.

The Red Sox signed Hinojosa to a $4.25MM minor league contract following the 2013 season after he pitched for many years in Cuba’s Serie Nacional, but the 29-year-old has struggled to make an impact in Boston’s system. He’s spent most of the past two seasons with Triple-A Pawtucket, tossing 103 2/3 innings of relief with a decent 3.56 ERA and 9.0 K/9, but with a too-high 4.3 BB/9. Still, it looked like he might be able to find a role in middle relief in the big leagues. He appeared in one game with the Red Sox this season, pitching 1 2/3 scoreless innings but walking three batters and hitting another.

AL East Notes: Cash, Hamels, Swihart, Orioles

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The Red Sox have received some impressive performances from non-roster invitees like Mitchell Boggs, Dana Eveland, Dalier Hinojosa, and Noe Ramirez, but they probably won’t crack the 25-man roster due to the numbers crunch, as Rob Bradford of WEEI.com writes.

Here’s more from the AL East:

  • Rays manager Kevin Cash will earn $5MM over the life of his five-year deal, according to Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com recently reported Cash’s deal was for a lengthy five years, giving him more security than a lot of other skippers around the majors. The pact ties Cash with current Cubs skipper Joe Maddon for the lengthiest remaining guarantee in the game. Of course, the financial terms aren’t exactly the same as Maddon will earn a reported $25MM over the same length of time.
  • The addition of Cole Hamels would undoubtedly separate the Red Sox from the rest of the AL East, but to what degree the club feels pressure to establish that space is what will determine whether they pull the trigger, Michael Silverman of the Boston Herald writes. Right now, the Phillies are insisting Boston part with Henry Owens and either Blake Swihart or Mookie Betts while taking on Hamels’ monster deal, so the Red Sox feel that they can live without him. Silverman lays out the pros and cons of Boston waiting on a Hamels trade.
  • Swihart started against the Phillies today going 2-for-3, including a RBI single, and found the timing pure coincidence. “I think people are looking into it too much,” he told reporters, including Tim Britton of the Providence Journal. “It’s just my turn to catch right now.” Swihart also addressed the interest shown in him by the Phillies. “It’s an honor that other teams think highly of you. Ultimately, I want to be here (Boston) and to play for this team. Anything I can do to help this team is what I want to do.“
  • Orioles GM Dan Duquette spoke with MLB Network Radio (audio link) about how the O’s can replace the offensive production of their free agent losses. Baltimore, of course, saw Nick Markakis, Nelson Cruz and Andrew Miller head elsewhere this offseason.
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