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Dana Eveland

Rays To Release Dana Eveland

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The Rays are set to release veteran left-hander Dana Eveland, tweets SB Nation’s Chris Cotillo. The 33-year-old had been back with Tampa Bay on a minor league pact after spending the 2016 campaign in the Rays organization. Now, he’ll look to latch on elsewhere with a team in need of left-handed bullpen help.

Eveland allowed a run on six hits and a walk with three strikeouts in 4 2/3 innings this spring. The 2016 campaign was not a positive one for him in the Majors, as he yielded 23 runs on 32 hits and 19 walks (three intentional) with 21 strikeouts in 23 innings of work. His results in Triple-A last season, however, registered on the opposite end of the spectrum, as he posted a superlative 0.30 ERA in 29 2/3 innings of work with a 21-to-6 K/BB ratio.

Last year marked the 11th big league season for the journeyman southpaw, who has appeared in the Majors as a member of 10 different teams. In total, he’s logged 446 1/3 innings in the Major Leagues and pitched to a 5.46 ERA with 6.2 K/9, 4.5 BB/9 and a 50.2 percent ground-ball rate.

Rays, Dana Eveland Agree To Minor League Deal

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The Rays and left-hander Dana Eveland agreed to a new minor league contract, as was first noted on the MiLB Roster Tracker Twitter account. (MLBTR has confirmed the move.) The 33-year-old was outrighted off the 40-man roster following the season but told MLB.com’s Bill Chastain shortly thereafter that he was likely to return to Tampa Bay on a new minor league pact.

Eveland totaled 23 innings out of the Tampa Bay ’pen this season but was tagged for 23 runs on 32 hits and 19 walks in that time. He did manage 21 punchouts and a solid 47.4 percent ground-ball rate in that brief Major League stint as well. Furthermore, his minor league work was considerably more encouraging, as the veteran southpaw registered a pristine 0.30 ERA with 21 strikeouts against six walks in 29 2/3 innings of work. Eveland’s return will give the Rays a depth piece that has experience in parts of 11 MLB seasons dating back to 2005. In 446 1/3 innings in the Majors, Eveland has a 5.46 ERA with 308 strikeouts against 221 walks.

AL East Notes: Encarnacion, Eveland, Rays, Orioles

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In his latest column, FanRag’s Jon Heyman writes that while the Blue Jays offered Edwin Encarnacion only a two-year deal with a pair of options back in Spring Training (as has been previously reported), his huge season is expected to push the Jays to up their offer. Toronto “might consider” four years, per Heyman, though their preference would be to retain Encarnacion on a three-year pact. A three-year deal strikes me as a non-starter, as Encarnacion should be considered a lock for at least a four-year deal after seeing other defensively limited, mid-30s sluggers like Nelson Cruz ($57MM) and Victor Martinez ($68MM) pull in four-year pacts in recent offseasons. (For what it’s worth, I expect Encarnacion to top the total value of both of those contracts with ease.) The Blue Jays will make qualifying offers to both Encarnacion and Jose Bautista, per Heyman, though that’s long been the expectation for the pair of veteran sluggers.

More from the AL East…

  • The Rays outrighted left-hander Dana Eveland last week, and the veteran reliever recently elected free agency, but he’s expected to re-sign with the team, per MLB.com’s Bill Chastain. “That’s the plan,” Eveland told Chastain when asked about a return. Eveland said he expects to be back in the fold in the near future, presumably on a minor league deal. Though the 33-year-old allowed 23 runs in 23 big league innings this season, he was lights out at Triple-A Durham, where he posted a 0.30 ERA (one earned run) with a 21-to-6 K/BB ratio in 29 2/3 innings. Eveland has bounced all over the league since debuting as a 21-year-old with the Brewers in 2005, and while he’s had difficulty sticking in one place, he’s been appealing enough to MLB clubs to have appeared in the Majors in all but one season since that 2005 debut. (He spent the 2013 season pitching in Korea.) Eveland has a 5.46 ERA in 446 1/3 big league innings split between 10 teams.
  • Chastain also reports that the Rays informed longtime strength and conditioning coach Kevin Barr that they’re going in another direction next season. Barr offered praise for the organization and had kind words to say about his time there, but he joins former hitting coach Derek Shelton as members of the 2016 staff to be dismissed.
  • MASNsports.com’s Roch Kubatko examined the Orioles’ arbitration-eligible players following the release of MLBTR’s arbitration projections earlier this week. While Kubatko notes that the likes of Chris Tillman, Zach Britton, Manny Machado, Jonathan Schoop and Kevin Gausman will obviously be tendered contracts, things are less certain for utilityman Ryan Flaherty, left-hander T.J. McFarland and right-hander Vance Worley — each of whom could be deemed to expensive and could be a non-tender candidate. Caleb Joseph figures to be the backup catcher next season based on his modest $1MM projection, even though he struggled tremendously in 2016. (Joseph did not hit a home run all season and, somewhat amazingly, did not collect a single RBI.) Of course, it remains to be seen exactly who will be the primary backstop for the Orioles in 2017.

Minor MLB Transactions: 10/10/16

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Here are today’s minor moves:

  • Righty A.J. Achter and outfielder Nick Buss were outrighted to Triple-A by the Angels after clearing waivers, per a club announcement. Achter, 28, carried a 3.11 in 37 2/3 innings last year but did so with a 14:12 K/BB rate. Having previously been outrighted, he’ll have the chance to elect free agency. As for the 29-year-old Buss, he is coming off of a solid campaign at Triple-A. But after putting up a .290/.345/.462 slash in 372 trips to the plate at the highest level of the minors, Buss failed to hit in a limited stint in the bigs. He’s also eligible to take free agency given his accumulation of minor league service time.
  • Left-hander Dana Eveland elected free agency after being outrighted by the Rays, according to Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times (via Twitter). The 32-year-old has seen action in eleven major league campaigns, but this one was awfully rough. In 23 innings, he coughed up 23 earned runs on 32 hits while recording 19 walks to go with his 21 strikeouts. On the other hand, Eveland was lights-out at Triple-A, allowing just one earned in 29 2/3 frames.

Minor MLB Transactions: 9/11/16

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Here are the latest minor moves from around the game, all from Matt Eddy of Baseball America unless otherwise credited.  Check out Roster Resource for updated roster information for the teams cited here and every other team in the majors.

  • The Rays have outrighted Hank Conger to Triple-A Durham, after the catcher was designated for assignment earlier this week.  Conger managed just a .194/.265/.306 slash line and three homers over 137 plate appearances for Tampa this season.  Perhaps even most ominously, Conger’s struggles worsened after he was optioned to Triple-A in July, as he has managed just a .503 OPS over 116 PA for Durham.
  • The Rays have selected the contract of veteran southpaw Dana Eveland, the team announced.  He’ll take the 40-man roster spot of Tyler Sturdevant, who was DFA’ed earlier today.  Eveland has himself been designated for assignment twice this season by the Rays (accepting outright assignments both times), and the lefty has an 8.55 ERA, 8.1 K/9 and 6.8 BB/9 over 20 relief innings out of Tampa Bay’s bullpen this season.
  • The Blue Jays outrighted third baseman Matt Dominguez to Triple-A, the club announced last week.  Dominguez was designated for assignment on September 2.  He owns a .269/.315/.421 slash line and 18 homers over 514 PA for Triple-A Buffalo this season, plus he also appeared in five games for the Jays to clock his first big league action since 2014.  Once a well-regarded prospect, Dominguez enjoyed a 21-homer season with Houston in 2013 but has hit only .231/.273/.371 in 1369 career PA in the majors.
  • The Blue Jays released outfielder Quintin Berry.  The base-stealing specialist just signed a minor league pact with the Jays on August 31, potentially putting him in line for a reprise of his past role (with the Tigers and Red Sox) as postseason pinch-running depth.  Berry appeared in just 31 MLB games in 2013-15 and he hasn’t played in the bigs in 2016, spending much of the year with the Angels’ Triple-A affiliate.
  • The Braves released right-hander Wilfredo Boscan.  The 26-year-old made his Major League debut this season, tossing 15 1/3 innings over six games (one of them a start) for the Pirates and posting a 6.46 ERA.  Atlanta claimed Boscan off waivers in August and then outrighted him off the 40-man roster to make room for September call-ups.
  • The Braves have selected the contract of catcher Blake Lalli from Triple-A, the team announced.  Lalli will replace A.J. Pierzynski, who hit the 15-day disabled list earlier today.  Lalli, who has 22 big league games under his belt, will be looking for his first taste of MLB action since 2013 when he was a member of the Brewers.  He has since played in the Diamondbacks and Braves farm systems.
  • The Marlins released right-hander Andre Rienzo.  The Brazilian hurler posted a 2.85 ERA, 10.1 K/9 and 2.3 K/BB rate over 41 innings split between four levels of the Miami farm system, though 32 1/3 IP came at the Triple-A level.  Control was again an issue for Rienzo, as it was during his 140 1/3 career MLB innings with the White Sox and Marlins from 2013-15 when he had a 4.7 BB/9 (not to mention a 1.6 HR/9 that contributed to his 5.90 ERA).

Minor MLB Transactions: 7/9/16

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Here are today’s minor moves from around the league.

  • Veteran lefty Tom Gorzelanny has declined his outright assignment with the Indians and is now a free agent, the team has announced. The Indians designated Gorzelanny for assignment on Monday after he allowed seven runs in three innings for them. Gorzelanny, who turns 34 this week, has a career 4.40 ERA, 7.3 K/9 and 3.9 BB/9 in parts of 12 seasons with the Pirates, Cubs, Nationals, Brewers and Tigers in addition to the Indians.
  • The Cardinals have announced that they’ve allowed outfielder Carlos Peguero to depart for the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles in Japan. They will receive cash considerations in return. The 29-year-old Peguero has played with the Mariners, Royals, Rangers and Red Sox in parts of five big-league seasons, but has never stuck, accumulating just 319 career plate appearances. He’s shown big power in the minors, though, with 95 home runs and a .277/.346/.520 in the equivalent of about three full seasons at Triple-A.
  • The Rays have signed reliever Casey Coleman to a minor league deal, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times tweets. Coleman opted out of his deal with the Mariners last week after posting a 2.08 ERA, 8.8 K/9 and 2.8 BB/9 in 39 strong innings with Triple-A Tacoma.
  • One of Coleman’s new Durham Bulls teammates is lefty Dana Eveland, who was designated for assignment this week. Via SB Nation’s Chris Cotillo (on Twitter), Eveland has accepted the Rays’ outright assignment. He posted an 8.55 ERA, 8.1 K/9 and 6.8 BB/9 in 20 innings of relief with the Rays this season.
  • The Pirates have outrighted catcher Jacob Stallings, as the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s Bill Brink tweets. The Bucs designated the defensive specialist for assignment last week. The 26-year-old has batted just .200/.235/.326 this season, but he received a brief callup because of a rash of injuries to Pirates catchers.

Rays Designate Dana Eveland For Assignment, Release Ryan Webb

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The Rays have designated left-hander Dana Eveland for assignment in order to clear a spot on the 40-man and 25-man rosters for right-hander Dylan Floro, per a club announcement (links to Twitter via Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times). Additionally, the team announced that Ryan Webb has cleared waivers and been released following his DFA late last month.

[Related: Updated Rays Depth Chart]

Eveland, 32, has surrendered 19 runs in 20 innings with the Rays this season. He’s punched out 18 hitters in that time, but he’s surrendered a troublesome 27 hits and 15 walks, leading to his bloated earned run average. The Rays will have 10 days to trade, outright or release the left-hander. If outrighted, he’ll have the ability to reject the assignment in favor of free agency, although he’s already been designated for assignment and accepted an outright assignment once this season. Eveland has a 5.42 ERA in parts of 11 seasons at the big league level, though he’s totaled just 443 1/3 innings in that time.

In his place, the Rays will turn to the 25-year-old Floro, who has put up strong numbers in Triple-A this year. While Floro doesn’t come with the gaudy strikeout totals that are often associated with up-and-coming relief prospects, he’s demonstrated stellar control throughout his minor league career since being selected in the 13th round of the 2012 draft. He’s saved seven games for the Rays’ Triple-A affiliate in Durham this season, posting a 2.81 ERA and averaging 7.1 K/9 against 1.5 BB/9 along the way. Floro didn’t rank among the Rays top prospects on the lists put out by Baseball America, MLB.com or Fangraphs this season but has emerged as an intriguing bullpen option for Tampa Bay.

As for Webb, he’ll hit the open market in search of a new opportunity. The 30-year-old signed a one-year, $1MM contract with Tampa Bay this winter but totaled just 17 1/3 innings of 5.19 ERA ball before being designated. Webb’s ground-ball rate dipped to a still-solid 48.4 percent, but he displayed strong control during his time with the Rays (two unintentional walks) and has a track record of limiting walks and racking up ground-balls. Webb doesn’t light up the radar gun, but he’s been a solid middle relief option for a number of years, as he’ll carry a 3.43 career ERA with per-nine-inning averages of 6.2 strikeouts and 2.8 walks to the open market along with his career 56.1 percent ground-ball rate.

Minor MLB Transactions: 6/19/16

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Here are the latest minor moves from around baseball, with the newest transactions at the top of the page…

  • The Rockies acquired lefty Pat McCoy from the Blue Jays, according to the Jays’ Triple-A affiliate (Twitter link).  McCoy has pitched in four different organizations during a pro career that began in 2007, and his Major League experience consists of 14 relief innings with Detroit in 2014.  McCoy has a 4.43 ERA, 7.6 K/9 and 2.63 K/BB rate over 491 2/3 career minor league frames, with 288 of his 312 games coming as a reliever.
  • The Pirates selected the contract of catcher Jacob Stallings from Triple-A and added him to both their Major League and 40-man rosters.  Jason Rogers was optioned to Triple-A in a corresponding move.  Stallings will give the Bucs some depth behind the plate with Francisco Cervelli on the DL and Chris Stewart also battling an ankle injury.  A seventh-round pick in the 2012, Stallings has a .675 OPS over 1266 career minor league PA and wasn’t listed on Baseball America’s ranking of the Pirates’ top 30 prospects.
  • The Mariners have sent right-hander Steve Johnson outright to Triple-A Tacoma, the team announced. Johnson has been outrighted in the past, so he’ll have the option of declining in favor of free agency. The Mariners designated him for assignment Friday after he totaled a 4.32 ERA and 11 walks over 16 2/3 innings.
  • The Rays have outrighted lefty Dana Eveland to Triple-A Durham, according to the club. Eveland, like Johnson, has been outrighted previously. The 32-year-old has racked up 16 2/3 frames of 7.56 ERA ball at the major league level this season.
  • Minor league Red Sox reliever Anthony Varvaro has retired, per a club announcement. Varvaro, 31, concluded his career by recording a 2.83 ERA, 9.73 K/9 and 4.08 BB/9 in 28 2/3 innings for Triple-A Pawtucket this year. Prior to tossing 11 frames at the major league level for the Red Sox in 2015, he was a member of the Braves, with whom he had a pair of standout seasons from 2013-14. Varvaro combined for 128 innings of 2.74 ERA pitching in that span, also posting a 6.54 K/9, 2.67 BB/9 and 48.2 percent ground-ball rate.  Over the course of 183 2/3 innings in the majors with the Mariners, Braves and Red Sox, Varvaro logged a 3.23 ERA, 7.35 K/9 and 3.43 BB/9.
  • The White Sox have signed first baseman K.J. Woods, whom the Marlins released, and outfielder Slade Heathcott to minor league deals, reports Matt Eddy of Baseball America (Twitter link). The Marlins used a fourth-round pick in 2013 on Woods, who hit .239/.326/.386 in 872 minor league plate appearances with their organization. Heathcott, the more notable player of the two, was the Yankees’ first-rounder (29th overall) in 2009. BA ranked him as baseball’s 63rd-best prospect entering the 2013 season, but injuries and disappointing production led the Yankees to release him last month. Heathcott did perform well during his first taste of major league action last year, though, collecting 10 hits – including two home runs and a pair of doubles – in 30 PAs.

Rays Designate Dana Eveland

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The Rays have designated lefty Dana Eveland for assignment, as Chris Cotillo of SB Nation first tweeted. The club has selected the contract of outfielder Jaff Decker to take his spot on the active roster, as Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reported earlier on Twitter.

Eveland, 32, had struggled to a 7.56 ERA in his 16 2/3 innings on the year. He has averaged better than a strikeout per innings, but his swinging strike rate is down and he has also issued 13 free passes in that span.

[RELATED: As the Roster Resource depth chart shows, Tampa Bay still has two other southpaws in the pen.]

Decker will get another shot at the majors after brief stints in each of the past three years. He may be needed to help cover for Steven Souza, who suffered a hip injury last night. Decker owns a .233/.351/.358 batting line over 232 Triple-A plate appearances on the year.

Roster Notes: Brewers, Weeks, Abad, Phillies, Ramos, Pena

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Here’s a roundup of today’s notable roster decisions….

  • The Brewers announced that the contracts of right-hander Blaine Boyer and left-hander Chris Capuano have been selected.  Both pitchers were told they had made the team earlier this week, and the moves are now official that Milwaukee has created some corresponding roster space.  Sean Nolin and Yhonathan Barrios were both moved to the 60-day DL, while Will Smith was placed on the 15-day DL.
  • The Diamondbacks selected Rickie Weeks’ contract, the team announced.  Weeks, looking to rebound from a disastrous 2015 season, signed a minors contract with Arizona last month.  The D’Backs placed A.J. Pollock and Josh Collmenter on the 15-day DL in corresponding moves.
  • The Twins selected the contract of Fernando Abad, the team announced.  The southpaw signed a minor league deal with Minnesota in December after the A’s non-tendered him.  Abad posted a 4.15 ERA last season, with some unfriendly advanced metrics and uncharacteristically poor results against left-handed hitters.
  • The Phillies finalized their 25-man roster, announcing that they have selected the contracts of lefty James Russell, infielder Emmanuel Burriss and outfielder Cedric Hunter.  In corresponding moves, Cody Asche and Michael Mariot were put on the 15-day DL retroactive to March 25, and Matt Harrison, Aaron Altherr and Mario Hollands were each placed on the 60-day DL.
  • Left-hander Cesar Ramos has accepted an assignment to the Rangers’ Triple-A affiliate to begin the season, Rangers executive VP of communications John Blake tweeted.  Ramos signed a minor league deal with Texas in January after being somewhat surprisingly non-tendered by the Angels.
  • Cardinals backup catcher Brayan Pena will begin the season on the DL and will require surgery to remove a body from his left knee, MLB.com’s Jenifer Langosch writes (Twitter links). That means the Cardinals will add minor-league signee Eric Fryer to their roster to serve as their backup catcher until Pena can return, which should take two to four weeks. The 30-year-old Fryer played most of last season with Triple-A Rochester in the Twins system, batting .293/.367/.360. He’s appeared in bits of five big-league seasons with the Pirates and Twins.
  • Outfielder Jabari Blash, a Rule 5 pick from the Mariners, has made the Padres’ Opening Day roster, AJ Cassavell of MLB.com tweets. The 26-year-old Blash batted an impressive .271/.370/.576 and 32 homers in a 2015 season split between Double-A Jackson and Triple-A Tacoma, then followed that with a decent spring in which he hit .204 but with four homers and eight walks in 59 plate appearances. The Padres also announced that fellow outfielder Travis Jankowski has made the team.
  • The Rays have selected the contract of lefty Dana Eveland and optioned righty Andrew Bellatti and outfielder Mikie Mahtook, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times writes (Twitter links). The moves also mean righty Danny Farquhar has made the team. The 32-year-old Eveland pitched only briefly in the Majors last season, but got good results for three different Triple-A teams, posting a 1.95 ERA, 7.3 K/9 and 2.3 BB/9 in 55 1/3 innings.
  • The Braves have announced their Opening Day roster. The Braves were already in MLBTR’s pages today as they designated Michael Bourn and Emilio Bonifacio for assignment and selected the contracts of Drew Stubbs and Alexi Ogando. In addition, they reassigned Jhoulys Chacin to Triple-A Gwinnett. The idea, via David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution (on Twitter), is that he’ll make one start there and then join the Braves when they need a fifth starter, which should be April 12. Notable names who made the team include righty Dan Winkler, a 2014 Rule 5 pick, along with rookie righties Jose Ramirez and John Gant.
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