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Dusten Knight

Guardians, Dusten Knight Agree To Minor League Deal

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The Guardians have agreed to a minor league deal with reliever Dusten Knight, reports Paul Hoynes of Cleveland.com. Assuming he passes a physical, he’ll get a non-roster invitation to MLB camp. Knight is represented by Big League Management Company.

Knight, 32, has spent a decade in the professional ranks since being drafted by the Giants in 2013. He reached the majors for the first time in 2021 as a member of the Orioles, pitching seven times and tallying 8 2/3 innings. Knight signed a non-roster deal with the Rays last winter after Baltimore ran through him waivers. He bounced on and off Tampa Bay’s active roster on a few occasions, ultimately getting into six contests and tossing 11 innings.

Over his two seasons, the Oklahoma native has worked 19 2/3 frames of 18-run ball. He’s fanned 20 hitters, walked nine and picked up swinging strikes on a roughly average 11% of his offerings. Knight’s fastball only checked in at 89.5 MPH on average last season, though he leaned more frequently on an upper-70s changeup and mid-80s cutter.

While Knight hasn’t carved out a consistent role in a big league bullpen, he’s allowed fewer than four earned runs per nine innings in each of the last two Triple-A seasons. He posted a 3.05 ERA over 35 outings with Baltimore’s top affiliate in 2021 and put up a 3.42 mark through 55 1/3 frames for the Rays’ affiliate in Durham last season. Knight induced grounders at a decent 47.8% mark and struck out an impressive 27.7% of opponents for Durham, though that came with an alarming 13.4% walk percentage.

Knight still has two minor league option years remaining. If he cracks the Guardians 40-man roster at any point, they can bounce him between Cleveland and Triple-A Columbus for the next couple seasons. He joins Michael Kelly, Touki Toussaint, Luis Oviedo, Peyton Battenfield, Caleb Baragar and Phillip Diehl among the non-roster pitchers who have some MLB experience in Cleveland’s camp.

15 Players Elect Free Agency

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As the postseason rolls along, players hit minor league free agency daily. It’s customary each offseason for dozens of players to hit the open market, separate from the players who reach MLB free agency at the end of the World Series based on the expiration of their contracts while having six-plus years of MLB service time.

Any player who is not on his team’s 40-man roster at season’s end but has three-plus years of MLB service, multiple career outright assignments and/or seven-plus seasons in the minor leagues has the right to elect free agency. Everyone in today’s group falls under that umbrella. The majority will take minor league deals over the winter, although one or two could find a big league deal as a bench piece or middle-inning reliever.

MLBTR covered 34 players who qualified for minor league free agency last week. We’ll periodically provide updates as plenty more hit the open market, as reflected on the MiLB.com transactions log.

Pitchers

Infielders

Outfielders

Rays Outright Dusten Knight

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Sep. 25: Knight has cleared waivers and accepted an outright assignment to Triple-A Durham, reports Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times.

Sep. 23: The Rays announced a series of roster moves Friday, with right-hander Dusten Knight being designated for assignment and lefty Ryan Yarbrough hitting the 15-day injured list due to a strained right oblique. In their place, the Rays have selected the contract of righty Cristofer Ogando from Triple-A Durham and recalled righty Calvin Faucher.

Knight, who turned 32 earlier this month, has tossed 11 innings out of the Tampa Bay bullpen in 2022, yielding seven earned runs on 11 hits and four walks with nine strikeouts. Four of those hits have left the yard, contributing to Knight’s 5.73 ERA on the season. He’s had better results in Durham where he’s notched a 3.48 ERA in 54 1/3 innings with a 27.3% strikeout rate — albeit with an unsightly 13.7% walk rate. Knight, who made his MLB debut with the 2021 Orioles, has a 3.23 ERA in parts of four Triple-A seasons.

Yarbrough’s injury will bring his regular season to an end. A fixture on the Rays’ staff from 2018-21, he’s been shuttled back and forth between the big leagues and Durham this season, tossing a total of 80 innings of 4.50 ERA ball in the Majors. Given the up-and-down nature of his 2022 season and the fact that he’ll be owed a raise on this year’s $3.85MM salary, it’s feasible that the Rays could look to either move Yarbrough in the winter or decline to tender him a contract. For now, he’ll hope to rehab and contribute to the Rays in the postseason.

Ogando, 28, made his big league debut as a replacement player with the Rays during their series in Toronto earlier this season. He was optioned to Durham following that series but stuck on the 40-man roster for a few weeks after that debut before being designated for assignment and outrighted in late July. The former Marlins and D-backs farmhand has pitched to a 4.56 ERA with a 23.5% strikeout rate and 11.5% walk rate in 54 1/3 innings with the Rays’ Durham affiliate this season.

Rays Select Dusten Knight, Place Jalen Beeks On IL

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The Rays announced a series of roster moves prior to today’s game, selecting the contract of right-hander Dusten Knight. He will take the active roster spot of left-hander Jalen Beeks, who has been placed on the 15-day IL due to lower leg tightness, retroactive to September 18. To create room on the 40-man roster, right-hander Nick Anderson was recalled and placed on the 60-day IL due to plantar fasciitis.

The loss of Beeks will be a notable one for the Rays, as the southpaw has somewhat quietly been having an excellent season. After missing all of 2021 while recovering from Tommy John surgery, Beeks has thrown 61 innings here in 2022 with a 2.80 ERA, 28% strikeout rate, 8.8% walk rate and 45.8% ground ball rate. This is the second time he’s landed on the IL this year due to his leg and this one will keep him out of action until the final days of the regular season, at least.

Knight, 32, signed a minor league deal with the Rays in the offseason and has bounced on and off the roster since then. This is the third time the club has selected his contract, with the previous two instances resulting in him being designated for assignment before clearing waivers and being outrighted. He’s thrown eight innings in the big leagues with a 4.50 ERA but had a more substantial showing in Triple-A. He’s thrown 54 1/3 innings for the Bulls with a 3.48 ERA, 27.4% strikeout rate and 48.5% ground ball rate, but an unfortunate 13.7% walk rate.

The move for Anderson is a formality, as it had already been reported that he would miss the remainder of the season. By placing him on the 60-day IL, the Rays have freed up a roster spot for Knight but will now pay Anderson a major league salary for the final two weeks of the season, with Anderson also earning service time for that stretch.

Rays Reinstate Pete Fairbanks, Outright Dusten Knight

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July 20: The Rays announced that Knight has cleared waivers and accepted an outright assignment to Triple-A Durham, as relayed by broadcaster Neil Solondz.

July 17: The Rays have announced some roster moves prior to today’s game, starting with right-hander Pete Fairbanks being reinstated from the 60-day injured list. To make room on the active roster, lefty Jalen Beeks was placed on the 15-day IL due to right lower leg tightness. To open a spot on the 40-man roster, righty Dusten Knight was designated for assignment.

Fairbanks, 28, has emerged as a key reliever for the Rays over the past couple of seasons. Acquired from the Rangers for Nick Solak in 2019, he threw 26 2/3 innings of 2.70 ERA ball in the shortened 2020 campaign. That came with an excellent 33.3% strikeout rate, though a walk rate on the high side at 12%. He moved up the bullpen charts enough to earn seven holds that year. He followed that up with similar results in 2021, throwing 42 2/3 innings with a 3.59 ERA, 29.6% strikeout rate and 11.1% walk rate. Again, he was called on for important assignments, logging 14 holds and five saves.

He was expected to be a key part of the Rays’ bullpen again this year but tore a lat muscle in Spring Training. He’ll make his season debut as soon as he gets into a game. The absence of Fairbanks has been just one of many subtractions from their relief corps this year. While Fairbanks is coming off, the Rays still have four notable relievers on the 60-day IL: Nick Anderson, J.P. Feyereisen, JT Chargois and Andrew Kittredge.

With all of those options sidelined, the club has leaned on a committee approach for their high leverage innings this year. Eight different pitchers have at least one save but no one has more than six. Fairbanks should now step into the mix as well, alongside hurlers like Colin Poche, Jason Adam and Brooks Raley. Despite those bullpen setbacks, and many injuries elsewhere, the club is 50-41 and currently in possession of the top American League Wild Card spot.

Knight, 31, made his MLB debut with the Orioles last year but joined the Rays on a minor league deal in the offseason. He was selected to the big league club in April but designated for assignment one day later. After being outrighted, he was selected again in May. He’s pitched just eight innings at the MLB level this year, spending most of his time with the Durham Bulls. In 30 2/3 Triple-A innings, he has a 3.82 ERA, with a strong 25.7% strikeout rate but a 16.7% walk rate that’s double the current MLB average of 8.3%. The Rays will have a week to trade him, pass him through waivers or release him.

Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times announced the moves prior to the official announcement (Twitter links).

Rays Select Dusten Knight, Place Andrew Kittredge On IL

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The Rays announced that they have selected the contract of right-handed pitcher Dusten Knight, with fellow righty Andrew Kittredge landing on the 15-day injured list due to low back tightness. In order to open a spot for Knight on the 40-man roster, righty J.T. Chargois was transferred to the 60-day IL.

This will be Knight’s second stint on the Rays’ roster this year, as he had his contract selected in the middle of April but was designated for assignment after just a single appearance. After being outrighted, he’s thrown 16 2/3 innings in Triple-A, putting up an ERA of 3.24 along with a strong 30.6% strikeout rate but elevated 13.9% walk rate.

The loss of Kittredge is an unfortunate one for the Tampa bullpen, as he’s emerged as a key cog in the relief corps. Last year, he threw 71 2/3 innings with a 1.88 ERA, 27.3% strikeout rate, 5.3% walk rate and 53.5% ground ball rate. He racked up eight saves and seven holds on the year as he increasingly earned higher-leverage assignments. This year, however, things have gone in the wrong direction, perhaps due to this back injury. Over 18 innings, his ERA is an even 3.00, with a 19.7% strikeout rate and 44.2% grounder rate, though he’s limited walks to just 1.5% of batters faced. The club will surely hope that a few weeks of downtime can help him recuperate and regain the form he showed last year.

As for Chargois, he was only able to make a single appearance this year before being placed on the injured list with left oblique tightness. He recently made an attempt to start a rehab assignment, appearing for the Triple-A Durham Bulls on Friday. However, he left after throwing just a single pitch, with Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times relaying that he suffered a strain of that same oblique. He’ll now be ineligible to return until 60 days from his initial April 12 IL placement, though it doesn’t seem like he’s close to a return given this unfortunate setback.

Rays Select Phoenix Sanders

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Apr. 17: Knight has cleared waivers and accepted an outright assignment to Triple-A, per Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times.

Apr. 14: The Rays have selected right-hander Phoenix Sanders onto the major league roster, tweets Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. In a corresponding move, reliever Dusten Knight was designated for assignment.

Sanders, 26, is getting a big league call for the first time. He was a 10th-round senior sign out of South Florida in 2017, signing for just $7.5K. The overwhelming majority of players in that demographic don’t advance to the majors, but Sanders earned his way there with an excellent five-year run in the minor leagues.

Aside from a rookie ball stint late in his draft year, Sanders hasn’t posted an ERA above 3.29 at any stop. He’s backed that up with excellent strikeout and walk numbers, routinely punching out upwards of 30% of opponents while only once dishing out free passes at a higher than average clip. Sanders, who has worked almost exclusively in relief, owns a 1.81 ERA in 49 2/3 Double-A innings and a 3.19 mark in 79 frames over parts of three seasons with Triple-A Durham. He’s fanned 31.1% of batters faced against a meager 4.6% walk rate at the top minor league level.

Sanders has never appeared on an organizational prospects ranking at either Baseball America or FanGraphs, but his consistently strong production caught the attention of the Tampa Bay front office. He’ll offer a fresh arm in the middle innings for manager Kevin Cash, having not pitched for Durham since last Friday.

Knight loses his roster spot just a day after being selected back to the majors. He’s a quick casualty of roster churn as the Rays shuttle through bullpen arms to cover a stretch of 13 games in as many days to open the regular season. The righty tossed 42 pitches in last night’s loss to the A’s, likely knocking him out of commission for the next day or two. Tampa Bay will now risk losing him on waivers to add to the immediate bullpen options at Cash’s disposal.

The 31-year-old Knight has logged big league time in each of the past two seasons. He struggled over seven appearances with the Orioles last year, allowing ten runs in 8 2/3 innings. He had a nice showing with Baltimore’s top affiliate, though, posting a 3.05 ERA in 38 1/3 frames with a 26.2% strikeout rate. Knight hasn’t allowed a run in four innings with Durham in 2022 and struck out three batters in 2 1/3 innings of one-run ball against Oakland yesterday.

Rays Select Dusten Knight, Transfer Luis Patino To 60-Day Injured List

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The Rays announced Wednesday that they’ve selected the contract of right-hander Dusten Knight from Triple-A Durham and opened a spot on the 40-man roster for the by transferring righty Luis Patino from the 10-day injured list to the 60-day injured list. Patino is currently out with a strained left oblique, and he’ll now be ineligible to return until early or mid-June. Tampa Bay also optioned Ralph Garza Jr. to Durham to open a spot on the active roster for Knight.

The loss of Patino for upwards of two months is particularly notable for the Rays, who had hoped that the former top prospect could hold down a critical rotation job in 2022. Acquired in the trade that sent Blake Snell to San Diego, Patino worked to a 4.31 ERA in 77 1/3 frames. Still just 22 years of age, Patino ranked as highly as the game’s No. 18 prospect (per Baseball America) back in 2020, and it was hard to argue that based on his dominant minor league performance. Patino graduated to the Majors at just 20 years of age but nevertheless climbed as high as Double-A and, in 263 1/3 minor league frames, has a 2.43 ERA with a 29.9% strikeout rate.

With Patino sidelined, Shane Baz still recovering from arthroscopic elbow surgery, and Ryan Yarbrough on the shelf owing to a groin injury, the Rays’ rotation doesn’t look quite like they drew it up. Shane McClanahan, Corey Kluber and Drew Rasmussen are locked into spots, but the Rays could now lean on prospect Tommy Romero and lefty Josh Fleming more than anticipated — at least for the time being. Tampa Bay, of course, has a deep farm and a knack for developing out-of-the-blue success stories on the mound, so it shouldn’t come as a surprise if they’re able to weather the early storm of injuries.

Knight, 31, made his big league debut with the Orioles this past season after spending parts of eight seasons in the minors. A former 28th-round pick by the Giants (2013), Knight parlayed a strong Triple-A showing — 1.30 ERA, 27-to-12 K/BB ratio in 27 2/3 frames at the time of his promotion — into his first call to the big leagues. Things didn’t go as smoothly in Baltimore, however, as Knight yielded a pair of runs in one inning during his debut effort. He appeared in a total of seven games and was ultimately tagged for 10 runs (nine earned) on 11 hits and five walks with 11 strikeouts through 8 2/3 frames.

Rocky showing in his debut season notwithstanding, Knight has a solid track record in Triple-A, where he’s posted a 3.11 ERA with a 23% strikeout rate and 10.6% walk rate in parts of three seasons — a total of 104 1/3 innings. On the whole, in Knight’s eight minor league seasons, he’s surrendered just 32 home runs in 397 innings of work while whiffing more than 27% of his opponents against an 8.5% walk rate.

Rays, Dusten Knight Agree To Minor League Deal

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The Rays have agreed to a minor league contract with free-agent righty Dusten Knight, per the team’s official transactions log.

Knight, 31, made his big league debut with the Orioles this past season after spending parts of eight seasons in the minors. A former 28th-round pick by the Giants (2013), Knight parlayed a strong Triple-A showing — 1.30 ERA, 27-to-12 K/BB ratio in 27 2/3 frames at the time of his promotion — into his first call to the big leagues. Things didn’t go as smoothly in Baltimore, however, as Knight yielded a pair of runs in one inning during his debut effort. He appeared in a total of seven games and was ultimately tagged for 10 runs (nine earned) on 11 hits and five walks with 11 strikeouts through 8 2/3 frames.

Rocky showing in his debut season notwithstanding, Knight has a solid track record in Triple-A, where he’s posted a 3.11 ERA with a 23% strikeout rate and 10.6% walk rate in parts of three seasons — a total of 104 1/3 innings. On the whole, in Knight’s eight minor league seasons, he’s surrendered just 32 home runs in 397 innings of work while whiffing more than 27% of his opponents against an 8.5% walk rate.

Orioles Claim Joey Krehbiel, Designate Manny Barreda

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The Orioles have claimed right-hander Joey Krehbiel off waivers from the Rays and designated right-hander Manny Barreda, per a club announcement. The O’s also announced that righty Dusten Knight, who was designated for assignment over the weekend, has cleared waivers and been assigned outright to Triple-A Norfolk.

Krehbiel, 28, pitched a scoreless inning during his lone appearance with the Rays this season, whiffing a pair and issuing a walk. He’s spent the rest of the 2021 season with Tampa Bay’s Triple-A affiliate, logging a 4.19 ERA with a sizable 29.5 percent strikeout rate and a tiny 5.1 percent walk rate through 43 innings. It’s the fourth season that Krehbiel has logged some time in Triple-A, and he’s fanned 26.1 percent of the opponents he’s faced at that level in his career. Krehbiel has just four big league innings under his belt, but he’s yet to allow a run in that time.

Barreda, 33 next month, recently had his contract selected and made his big league debut. He allowed four runs in 2 2/3 innings over the life of three appearances prior to today’s DFA — a brief debut for a player who has grinded through parts of 11 minor league seasons as well as five full seasons pitching in Mexico. He’s posted a 3.89 ERA in 39 1/3 innings between the Double-A and Triple-A affiliates for the O’s, and he carries a career 3.45 ERA in just over 500 minor league innings.

Like Barreda, Knight was another 30-something rookie who made his big league debut in 2021. He’s notched an even 3.00 ERA in 36 Triple-A frames this season but was tagged for 10 runs (nine earned) in 8 2/3 frames during his own brief look at the MLB level. He’ll remain with the Orioles organization for the remainder of the year, at least, but he’ll be a minor league free agent at season’s end.

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