Drew Rucinski

A’s Decline Option On Drew Rucinski

By Anthony Franco | November 2, 2023 at 10:18pm CDT

The Athletics are declining a $5MM option on right-hander Drew Rucinski, reports Ari Alexander of KPRC 2 (X link). That was the expected decision.

Oakland signed Rucinski to a $3MM guarantee last offseason. It was a low-cost flier after the 34-year-old had turned in a 2.97 ERA with the Korea Baseball Organization’s NC Dinos. Injuries derailed his effort to establish himself as an MLB starter. Rucinski made only four starts, allowing 22 runs (18 earned) across 18 innings. He walked 14 while striking out just six.

Rucinski landed on the injured list in mid-May. The team announced the problem as a stomach illness. A bit thereafter, the team announced he was dealing with a degenerative back condition. Rucinski underwent a surgical procedure in July. Alexander notes the rehab is expected to carry into 2024, leaving it unclear when he might be able to take the mound.

Athletics’ Drew Rucinski, Yacksel Rios Require Season-Ending Surgery

By Steve Adams | July 18, 2023 at 6:04pm CDT

Athletics right-handers Drew Rucinski and Yacksel Rios will see their 2023 seasons draw to a close early due to injury, per MLB.com’s Martin Gallegos (Twitter links). Rios underwent surgery yesterday to repair an axillary branch aneurysm in his right shoulder. Rucinski will require back surgery to address what was described by the team in late June to be a degenerative condition. Both players are on the 60-day injured list already.

Rucinski, 34, had hoped to establish himself in the big leagues this season after starring in the Korea Baseball Organization for the past several years. The journeyman righty had just 54 big league innings under his belt prior to this season, all coming between 2014-18. He didn’t pitch particularly well in that time (5.33 ERA) but spent the 2019-22 seasons with the NC Dinos of the Korea Baseball Organization, pitching to a combined 3.06 ERA in 732 2/3 innings of work. The right-hander displayed remarkable consistency overseas, with his ERA sitting between 2.97 and 3.17 in all four of his KBO campaigns.

When his latest contract with the Dinos expired after the 2022 campaign, Rucinski set his sights on a return to North American ball. The A’s, hoping to find similar success to the D-backs (Merrill Kelly) and Mariners (Chris Flexen) in their own KBO dealings, signed Rucinski to a one-year deal worth a guaranteed $3MM.

Clearly, things haven’t gone as hoped. Rucinski pitched just 18 innings for Oakland, missing time first with a stomach illness, then with a knee sprain and now this current back injury. He was perhaps never at 100 percent, as the righty was tagged for 18 runs on 27 hits and 14 walks with just six strikeouts in his 18 frames for the A’s. His contract has a $5MM option for the 2024 season, though that’ll surely be bought out.

Rios, acquired in a cash deal with the Braves last month after he triggered an upward mobility clause in his contract, pitched in just three games for the A’s. In a total of 1 2/3 frames, he yielded seven runs on three hits and six walks. It was a substantial downturn from the excellent 2.49 ERA, 30.3% strikeout rate and 8.1% walk rate the hard-throwing Rios had posted in Triple-A with the Braves.

Rios has seen time in parts of six big league seasons, pitching to a combined 6.32 ERA in 98 1/3 frames. He throws hard, misses bats and has had decent results in Triple-A (4.12 ERA in six seasons), so he should get another look as a depth option somewhere in the offseason. For now, he’ll accrue Major League service time and salary on the 60-day IL. That’ll take him over three years of MLB service, making him eligible for arbitration this winter. He’ll be a non-tender candidate for the A’s following the season.

Injury Notes: Wilson, Rucinski, Stewart

By Darragh McDonald | June 28, 2023 at 2:25pm CDT

Brewers left-hander Justin Wilson began a rehab assignment yesterday, per Adam McCalvy of MLB.com. The lefty required Tommy John surgery in June of last year and Milwaukee signed him knowing that he would miss the first half of 2023 even in a best-case scenario. He’s making $850K this year and the club has a $2.5MM option for next season with a $150K buyout.

The 35-year-old has plenty of experience as a solid left-handed reliever, having appeared in 527 career games with an ERA of 3.41. He’s struck out 25.9% of batters faced, walked 10.7% of them and kept the ball on the ground at a 46.8% rate. If he’s able to get healthy and back to his old self, he could give the club a second lefty in the bullpen alongside Hoby Milner.

Wilson will likely need some time to get into game shape, but the fact that he’s beginning a rehab assignment barely a year after going under the knife is an encouraging sign that things are progressing well. His health and performance down the stretch will undoubtedly impact how much interest the Brewers have in picking up that option.

Some other health notes from around the league…

Athletics right-hander Drew Rucinski has had a frustrating season in the health department and those frustrations seem to be continuing. He landed on the injured list in late May due to a stomach illness but that was followed by a low-grade MCL sprain in his right knee suffered during a bullpen session. Now Martín Gallegos of MLB.com relays that Rucinski will be undergoing MRIs on his left hip and lower back due to some apparent degenerative changes. That testing will hopefully shed some light on what’s ahead for the righty, whose return to North America isn’t going as hoped. He parlayed a strong performance in the KBO into a $3MM deal with the A’s plus a $5MM club option for 2024. He began the year on the IL due to a hamstring strain then got healthy enough to make four starts, allowing 18 earned runs in 18 innings before this recent cascade of setbacks. He’s already been transferred to the 60-day injured list and isn’t eligible to return until late July.
Twins right-hander Brock Stewart was placed on the 15-day injured list yesterday, retroactive to June 26, with right elbow soreness. His agent Joe Speed told Darren Wolfson of Skor North that it wasn’t a big issue and expressed confidence that Stewart would be able to contribute in the second half of the season. Manager Rocco Baldelli also seemed to think it wouldn’t be a huge problem, telling Bobby Nightengale of the Star Tribune that it appeared to be a minor bout of tendinitis. If it ultimately proves to be true that it’s no big deal, that’s a tremendous break for the Twins. Stewart has been utterly dominant this year, with an ERA of 0.70 through 25 2/3 innings, striking out 35.4% of opponents against an 11.1% walk rate. It’s been an incredible comeback story for a guy who is in the big leagues for the first time since 2019 and the club would undoubtedly be thrilled if he could make a quick return after the All-Star break.

Athletics Select Yacksel Ríos

By Darragh McDonald | June 20, 2023 at 1:25pm CDT

The Athletics announced that they have selected the contract of right-hander Yacksel Ríos. Fellow righty Chad Smith was optioned in a corresponding move. To open a spot for Rios on the 40-man roster, righty Drew Rucinski was transferred to the 60-day injured list.

Ríos, who turns 30 next week, signed a minor league deal with Atlanta in the offseason but was just acquired by the A’s on the weekend. It was reported at that time that he had a provision in his contract whereby Atlanta had to add him to their roster or else give the other clubs in the league the opportunity to do so, making this selection an expected development.

He has 89 games of major league experience from 2017 to 2021, posting an ERA of 5.77 in that time. He’s had to settle for minor league deals in each of the past two offseasons, however. He linked up with the White Sox for 2022 but never got called up, tossing 33 Triple-A innings with a 4.91 ERA. He’s been much stronger this year with a 2.49 ERA in 25 1/3 innings, striking out 30.3% of batters while walking 8.1%.

The A’s have had quite a poor bullpen this season, as their relievers have a collective 5.58 ERA that’s easily the worst in the majors. They’ll give Ríos a shot based on his hot start and see if he can take any of that to Oakland with him. He’s out of options but could be kept around for future seasons if he sticks on the roster all year long. In that scenario, he would cross just over the three-year service time marker and qualify for arbitration.

As for Rucinski, he was placed on the injured list just over a month ago due to a stomach illness but then subsequently was diagnosed with a low-grade MCL sprain in his right knee. Just over a week ago, manager Mark Kotsay told MLB.com that there would be a shutdown period of two to three weeks. He’ll now be officially ineligible to return until mid-July, 60 days from his initial IL placement. Since he’s still at least a week away from throwing and then will require a ramp-up period, that makes this move fairly procedural.

AL Notes: Astros, Fleming, Hendriks, Rucinski

By Nick Deeds | June 11, 2023 at 1:20pm CDT

In a radio appearance today, Astros GM Dana Brown provided updates on the club’s pair of injured, lefty-swinging outfielders, as relayed by Chandler Rome of The Athletic and Mark Berman of Fox 26. Brown notes that there’s currently no timetable for the return of slugger Yordan Alvarez to Houston’s lineup, and that one isn’t expected to crystalize in the coming days, with the GM suggesting that it will take “at least a week” for the club to have confidence in a timetable for Alvarez. Any missed time for Alvarez is a severe blow to the Astros, as the slugger has posted another phenomenal season so far in 2023, slashing .277/.388/.589 in 57 games before hitting the injured list with what has been described as “right oblique discomfort.”

In more optimistic news, Brown notes that veteran outfielder Michael Brantley is making good progress in his rehab from shoulder inflammation after he was shut down last month. Brantley has yet to appear in a game this season after undergoing shoulder surgery last summer, but Brown notes that the veteran is playing catch and taking pain-free swings in the batting cage. While the update is certainly a positive one, it sounds as though Brantley is still a ways away from returning to the Astros, who would surely benefit from the boost the 36-year old could provide to their lineup.

More from around the AL…

The Rays placed left-hander Josh Fleming on the 60-day injured list yesterday, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times notes that Fleming is scheduled to meet with specialist Dr. Keith Meister later this week. When asked about the appointment, Fleming acknowledged to reporters that a ligament issue is possible, leaving a worst case scenario of Tommy John surgery on the table. That’s certainly a worrisome possibility for Tampa, as the club has seen their starting depth tested with as each of Jeffrey Springs, Drew Rasmussen, and Tyler Glasnow have spent significant portions of the season on the injured list.
White Sox reliever Liam Hendriks was placed on the 15-day IL with elbow inflammation earlier today, temporarily halting the closer’s inspiring return to the big leagues following his recovery from non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. As relayed by James Fegan of The Athletic, GM Rick Hahn said that Hendriks’s current ailment has similarities to a flexor strain he dealt with last season that left him on the shelf for just under a month. The club is hopeful that this current injury will have a similar timeline, though Hendriks will undergo an MRI to confirm that timetable. After a difficult first outing back from the injured list, Hendriks has posted a 2.25 ERA with a save and three strikeouts in his last four appearances.
The Athletics provided an update on right-hander Drew Rucinski, who has been on the injured list with a stomach illness since late last month. As noted by MLB.com’s Martin Gallegos, Rucinski’s stomach ailment has improved, but the right-hander is dealing with a low-grade MCL sprain in his right knee that occurred during a bullpen session. The injury will leave him shut down from throwing for 2 to 3 weeks. Rucinski signed with the A’s on a one-year deal with a club option for 2024 this past offseason, but has managed just four starts for the club, pitching to a 9.00 ERA in 18 innings of work with a whopping 14 walks allowed compared to jut six strikeouts.

Upcoming Club Option Decisions: AL West

By Anthony Franco | June 6, 2023 at 8:34pm CDT

Last week, MLBTR took an early look at offseason option decisions facing teams in the National League. We’re continuing our division by division series moving through the Junior Circuit. To round out the series, we move to the AL West. There are only five players in the division whose contracts contain options but they’re spread among every team aside from the Mariners.

Previous posts: NL East, NL Central, NL West, AL East, AL Central

Houston Astros

Hector Neris: $8.5MM club option ($1MM buyout); converts to player option with 40 appearances in 2023

Neris’ option is presently a club provision, but it’s not likely to be for much longer. His free agent deal with the Astros allowed him to convert the third-year option into a player provision in a few ways — one of which was by making a combined 110 appearances between 2022-23. The bullpen workhorse pitched 70 times last year, leaving him just 40 shy of the mark entering 2023. (As is common for provisions like these, he’ll also have to pass a physical at season’s end.)

Manager Dusty Baker has already called upon Neris 25 times this season. He needs just 15 more outings to turn this into a player provision. That’s a lock barring a major injury, with Neris potentially triggering the mark by the All-Star Break.

That could prove lucrative, as he’s building a strong case for another multi-year free agent deal. Neris carries a 1.13 ERA over 24 frames. While he’s obviously not going to keep preventing runs at quite that pace, he’s fanning over 31% of opponents and picking up swinging strikes on a huge 15.4% of his offerings. Even nearing age 34, Neris could push for a two-year deal in the $15-20MM range, where the likes of Joe Kelly and Chris Martin have landed in recent seasons.

Los Angeles Angels

Aaron Loup: $7.5MM club option ($2.5MM buyout)

The Halos signed Loup to a two-year, $17MM free agent deal over the 2021-22 offseason. He was effective enough in year one, though the Angels probably expected better than a 3.84 ERA with a 20% strikeout rate over 58 2/3 innings. That’d be a marked improvement over Loup’s early results this year, however. The 35-year-old has allowed 12 runs (10 earned) with 11 strikeouts and six walks over 13 1/3 frames. Los Angeles looks likely to take the buyout.

Oakland A’s

Drew Rucinski: $5MM club option (no buyout)

Oakland took a low-cost flier on Rucinski last winter. They signed him to a $3MM guarantee with a promised rotation spot after he’d been an effective starter in South Korea for four seasons. The 34-year-old righty hasn’t had a chance to get on track. He began the year on the injured list with a hamstring strain. He returned to make four starts and was tagged for 22 runs with a ghastly 6:14 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 18 innings. Rucinski went back on the IL a few weeks ago with an illness. It’s been a disastrous first couple months and the option is trending towards a declination.

Manny Piña: $4MM club option (no buyout)

The A’s acquired Piña as a veteran complement to Shea Langeliers in the Sean Murphy trade. He’d been limited to five games last year thanks to a left wrist injury that required surgery. Complications with the wrist flared up in Spring Training and he’s spent this season on the IL as well. The A’s are likely to cut him loose at year’s end.

Texas Rangers

José Leclerc: $6.25MM club option ($500K buyout)

At his best, Leclerc looks like a quality high-leverage reliever. He misses tons of bats and routinely pushes or exceeds a 30% strikeout rate. Yet he’s paired those whiffs with plenty of free passes. Control has become especially problematic this year, as he’s dished out walks to almost 16% of opponents. Leclerc is carrying a sub-3.00 ERA but benefitting from a .256 average on balls in play.

Leclerc started slowly last season after working back from Tommy John surgery. He caught fire down the stretch, leading Texas to exercise a $6MM option for 2023. There’s still time for him to repeat that pattern but he’ll have to dial in the strike-throwing to do so.

A’s Place Drew Rucinski On 15-Day Injured List

By Simon Hampton | May 20, 2023 at 2:49pm CDT

Drew Rucinski has landed on the 15-day IL (retroactive to May 17) with a stomach illness, the A’s announced. In his place, the team has recalled right hander James Kaprielian, who is scheduled to start tomorrow’s match.

Rucinski, 34, returned to the US on a one-year, $3MM deal with a $5MM club option for next season after a successful time in Korea. It hasn’t been an enjoyable return though, as the veteran has made just four starts for Oakland, working to a 9.00 ERA. He’s struck out just 6.3% of batters and walked 14.7%, while giving up five home runs in 18 innings. It’s a disappointing return for a player who worked to a 3.05 ERA over 121 starts in four seasons in Korea.

While 15 days out seems like quite a bit for a stomach illness, it’ll at least give the A’s and Rucinski some time to work on any issues he’s been experiencing that’s led to this poor start in Oakland. He’ll be eligible to return to the team in early June.

Kaprielian’s put up similarly disappointing numbers, working to a 10.17 ERA in 23 big league innings this year. The 29-year-old former top-100 prospect has performed a lot better in a limited sample at Triple-A, giving up just a single earned run in 8 1/3 innings at the highest level of the minors.

A’s Move Shintaro Fujinami To Relief

By Anthony Franco | April 24, 2023 at 11:09pm CDT

The Athletics are moving right-hander Shintaro Fujinami from the rotation to a relief role, manager Mark Kotsay told reporters before tonight’s game against the Angels (relayed by Martín Gallegos of MLB.com). Kotsay left open the possibility for an eventual move back to the starting staff but suggested the club would first “assess” Fujinami in shorter stints.

Oakland signed Fujinami to a one-year, $3MM deal over the winter. It was one of the more intriguing low-cost dice rolls of the offseason. Fujinami had shown excellent arm speed and quality strikeout stuff at times in his career in Japan. That had often been paired with huge walk totals to the point that his NPB club, the Hanshin Tigers, frequently moved him between the top roster and their minor league club.

The A’s gave Fujinami a crack at a rotation job to bring him to Oakland. The 6’6″ hurler issued 17 walks in 18 2/3 innings in Spring Training, yet the A’s stuck with the plan to keep him in the Opening Day starting staff. Fujinami has taken four times through the rotation but has yet to find any success. He’s allowed 24 runs in only 15 innings, walking 12 batters and surrendering 19 hits. Fujinami only once made it past the fifth inning and took the loss in all four outings.

It’s obviously not how the team nor the 29-year-old had envisioned his first few weeks in the majors. They’ll hope for better results in short stints, where Fujinami’s power arsenal could be more effective. He’s averaged just under 97 MPH on his fastball and gotten a decent number of swinging strikes on both his splitter and slider. He’s issued far too many walks and given up plenty of hard contact out of the rotation though.

The A’s lost a member of their relief corps to injury, as righty Adrián Martínez landed on the 15-day injured list with a strain in his throwing elbow. Kotsay told repairers that Martínez underwent an MRI and is shut down from throwing for the next few days while the club awaits imaging results (Gallegos link). A more specific timeline will be dependent on the MRI but it’d seem likely he’ll be out beyond two weeks.

Fujinami and recent trade acquisition Sam Long offer the ability to work multiple innings in relief. Meanwhile, it seems as if another offseason pickup — KBO signee Drew Rucinski — could take the vacated rotation spot. Rucinski has been on the IL all season due to a hamstring issue. He’s now made three rehab starts with Triple-A Las Vegas, reaching five innings and 72 pitches yesterday. It wouldn’t be a surprise if he’s reinstated to make his A’s debut later this week.

California Notes: Walsh, Padres, Dahl, Engel, Cruz, Morejon, Pomeranz, A’s, Blackburn, Rucinski

By Mark Polishuk | April 9, 2023 at 10:09am CDT

Jared Walsh has yet to suit up for the Angels this season, as he has been on the 10-day injured list recovering from insomnia and recurring headaches. Manager Phil Nevin provided media (including MLB.com and J.P. Hoornstra of the Southern California News Group) with an update on Walsh’s condition, saying that “He’s doing okay. He feels like he’s making a lot of progress, getting some clarity on what’s going on.” The recovery process has included a two-week stint with a specialist in Utah, which has limited Walsh’s baseball-related training activity mostly to weekends with the Angels’ Triple-A affiliate in Salt Lake City.

Owing to the unpredictable nature of his problem, there isn’t yet a timeline for Walsh’s return, as Nevin noted that the first baseman will need some level of a rehab assignment or a ramp-up period before he gets onto the field. Walsh was already making a comeback from an injury-hampered 2022 season, as he struggled to a .215/.264/.374 slash line in 454 plate appearances before undergoing surgery for thoracic outlet syndrome in September.

A’s Notes: Allen, Diaz, Noda, Oller, Sears

By Anthony Franco | March 27, 2023 at 11:48pm CDT

The A’s are planning to open the season with a platoon arrangement at shortstop, manager Mark Kotsay said over the weekend (link via Matt Kawahara of the San Francisco Chronicle). Aledmys Díaz will get the bulk of the reps, taking playing time against right-handed pitching. Nick Allen will work on the short side of the platoon, with the right-handed hitting Díaz moving to another infield position against southpaws.

Allen picked up 57 starts at shortstop and 35 games at second base last season. The defensive specialist rated highly with the glove at both positions. Longstanding questions about his offensive impact continued during his rookie season, however. The 24-year-old hit only .207/.256/.291 in his first 326 big league plate appearances. Allen made a decent amount of contact but rarely hit the ball with any kind of authority, at least against right-handed pitching. He mustered only a .179/.232/.226 line with one home run in 232 plate appearances without the platoon advantage. Allen connected on a trio of longballs with a .276/.315/.448 slash in 96 trips to the dish against southpaws.

Despite those glaring small-sample splits, it’s a little surprising a rebuilding Oakland club plans to limit Allen’s exposure against right-handed pitching. He’d need to take a significant step forward against northpaws if he’s to emerge as a potential bottom-of-the-lineup regular down the line. Nevertheless, the A’s are set to give the majority of the playing time to Díaz, who signed a two-year free agent deal over the winter. The seven-year MLB veteran has been a solid hitter against left and right-handed pitching alike in his career, though he’s never played particularly good defense at shortstop.

Díaz has rated as a solid gloveman at second and third base, where he figures to take some reps against left-handed pitching. Tony Kemp and Jace Peterson both hit from the left side and have struggled against southpaws in their careers. That’s also true of first base/corner outfield option Seth Brown.

Rule 5 draftee Ryan Noda also hits from the left side and will factor into the infield at first base. The club recently informed the former 15th-round pick he’s made the Opening Day roster, Kawahara tweets. Noda, who turns 27 on Thursday, will get an MLB crack after six seasons in the minors. He spent the 2022 campaign with the Dodgers’ top affiliate in Oklahoma City, hitting .259/.395/.474 with 25 home runs and a huge 16% walk rate over 574 trips to the plate. The Cincinnati product struck out in 25 of 52 at-bats this spring, but that wasn’t enough for the Oakland front office to look past his strong offensive track record against minor league pitching.

The A’s will have to carry Noda on the MLB roster or injured list for the entire season in order to permanently obtain his contractual rights. If Oakland decided to take him off the roster, they’d have to make him available on waivers and then offer him back to L.A. if he goes unclaimed.

Another question facing the coaching staff and front office this week is how to align the starting rotation. Paul Blackburn was already known to be headed to the injured list and Kotsay indicated over the weekend that Drew Rucinski would join him. The A’s have tabbed left-hander Kyle Muller as the Opening Day starter, with Ken Waldichuk, James Kaprielian and Shintaro Fujinami also in the rotation. The fifth spot is still up for grabs between Adam Oller and JP Sears, though Kotsay said tonight that both pitchers will be on the season-opening active roster (via Kawahara).

One of that duo will move to long relief, with Oller seeming the likelier bet. He’s come out of the bullpen for three of his six outings this spring, while Sears has started four of five appearances. Both pitchers made their big league debuts in 2022, with Sears having a better first crack. Oller surrendered a 6.30 ERA in 74 1/3 innings; Sears pitched to a 3.86 mark over 70 frames, albeit with a modest 17.7% strikeout percentage.

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