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Fernando Abad

Brewers Sign Fernando Abad To Minor League Deal

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The Brewers have signed left-hander Fernando Abad to a minor league deal, according to his transactions tracker at MLB.com. He’s been assigned to Triple-A Nashville.

Abad, 37, signed a minor league deal with the Rockies in the offseason and was selected to their big league roster twice, though both instances saw him get designated for assignment after a short period of time. He appeared in six games for the Rox with a 4.26 ERA. His 30 1/3 innings in Triple-A this year have resulted in a 3.86 ERA, with Abad striking out 27.8% of hitters while walking just 2.6%. But he allowed nine earned runs over his last five appearances and got released last week.

This is Abad’s 11th season seeing some time in the majors, having previously suited up for the Astros, Nationals, Athletics, Twins, Red Sox, Giants and Orioles prior to joining the Rockies this year. He has a 3.78 ERA over 406 appearances in that time, with a 19.3% strikeout rate, 8.3% walk rate and 41.7% ground ball rate.

The Brewers have operated for parts of this season with Hoby Milner as their only left-handed reliever, with various attempts to deploy a second lefty having gone poorly thus far. The club acquired Andrew Chafin prior to the deadline and has also given brief showings to Ethan Small, Clayton Andrews and Bennett Sousa. Amazingly, none of those four have an ERA south of 11.81 for the Brewers this year. Each case is a small sample of 5 1/3 innings or less, but it’s still a part of the roster that’s a bit shaky at the moment.

By bringing Abad aboard, the Brewers will add some veteran non-roster depth for their lefty relief mix. By joining the organization prior to September 1, he will be eligible to pitch for the Brewers in the postseason, if they were to qualify and he were to earn his way into a role. Rosters expand from 26 to 28 in September, which could perhaps open a spot for him, though he would need to be added to the 40-man roster.

Rockies Release Fernando Abad

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The Rockies have released veteran reliever Fernando Abad, according to his transaction page on MiLB.com. This is the second time he has been released by Colorado this season.

Since making his debut in 2010, Abad has pitched for the Astros, Nationals, Athletics, Twins, Red Sox, Giants, Orioles, and Rockies. From 2013-17, he was one of the more reliable middle relievers in the game, pitching to a 3.13 ERA and 3.75 SIERA in 275 games. Unfortunately, things began to go downhill in 2018. He sat out the season after being given an 80-game suspension for failing a PED test, and while he was back in 2019, he never quite returned to form. From 2019-21, he posted a 4.99 ERA and 4.66 SIERA in 37 games.

The southpaw seemed to have turned things around at the start of the 2023 season. Pitching for the Triple-A Albuquerque Isotopes on a minor league deal, he put up a 1.69 ERA in his first 13 games, striking out 20 and walking only two. He earned a promotion to the big league club in May, but there he struggled in three appearances. His turnaround was short-lived, and he was designated for assignment less than a week after his promotion.

Abad signed another minor league deal with the Rockies shortly thereafter and returned to play for the Isotopes in June. He looked every bit as good as before, striking out eight batters in eight games with a 0.93 ERA. The Rockies promoted him again, yet still he struggled to find a role in the major leagues. He was designated for assignment in mid-July, and this time around, he failed to recapture his magic at Triple-A. In 4 2/3 innings of work, he gave up nine runs on ten hits, ultimately prompting his release.

As a free agent, Abad has the opportunity to sign with a new club, perhaps before the September 1 deadline for postseason eligibility. While he has struggled to stick in the majors for the past few years, he could provide an option for a team in need of left-handed depth.

Rockies Designate Fernando Abad For Assignment

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The Rockies announced Wednesday that they’ve designated left-handed reliever Fernando Abad for assignment. His roster spot will go to fellow southpaw Brent Suter, who has been reinstated from the 15-day injured list after missing nearly a month due to an oblique strain.

Abad, 37, signed a minor league deal with the Rockies in the winter and has since bounced on and off their roster this year. He was selected in mid-May and was designated for assignment less than a week later. After being released, he re-signed another minors deal and got his roster spot back at the start of this month. Between those two stints, he’s tossed 6 1/3 innings with a 4.26 earned run average. That might seem passable at first glance but he’s struck out just 6.3% of hitters while stranding an unsustainable 98.2% of runners.

That’s a very small sample size and Abad and spent a larger amount of time in Triple-A this year, posting a 1.40 ERA in 25 2/3 innings there. His numbers there are also being helped by a 100% strand rate but his 30.8% strikeout rate at that level is much more impressive.

The veteran has a lengthy track record that consists of 406 major league appearances dating back to 2010. He had a strong stretch from 2013 to 2017, registering a 3.13 ERA over 275 appearances in that time. But he’s been more of an emergency option since then, tossing just 37 total innings since the end of 2017 with a combined 4.86 ERA.

The Rockies will now have a week to trade Abad or pass him through waivers. He has more than enough service time to reject an outright assignment and elect free agency. It’s possible that Abad is released and returns to the club on a new minor league deal, the same sequence of events that took place a couple of months ago, though that’s not guaranteed in any way.

As for Suter, he was having a strong season before suffering that oblique strain. He has a 2.81 ERA on the year, keeping the ball on the ground at a 41.7% clip. As an impending free agent on a non-contending club, Suter figures to draw trade interest in the coming weeks, especially if he returns that same level of effectiveness. The Rockies are usually reticent to part with logical trade candidates but manager Bud Black recently indicated that could be different this year.

Rockies Select Fernando Abad

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The Rockies announced today that they’ve selected the contract of left-hander Fernando Abad. In corresponding moves, right-hander Peter Lambert was optioned to Triple-A while shortstop Connor Kaiser was designated for assignment.

Abad, 37, made his MLB debut with the Astros back in 2010. The veteran journeyman pitched also pitched for the Nationals, A’s, Twins, Red Sox, Giants, and Orioles throughout his career before landing in Colorado on a minor league deal back in January. Abad was selected to the roster back in May and made three appearances with the Rockies before being designated for assignment and re-signing with the club on a new minor league deal shortly thereafter.

The veteran sports a career 3.82 ERA and 4.31 FIP in 351 innings of work, though most of that success came from 2010-17. Since the end of the 2017 season, Abad has recorded just 33 1/3 innings of work at the big league level with a 5.40 ERA and 5.09 FIP. The lefty has posted impressive numbers with Colorado’s Triple-A affiliate in Albuquerque, however, with a sterling 1.40 ERA in 25 2/3 innings of work. Those run prevention numbers are especially impressive considering the heightened offensive environment in Triple-A’s Pacific Coast League.

Going forward, Abad will look to re-establish himself at the big league level with the Rockies as part of a bullpen that currently contains Daniel Bard, Brad Hand, Justin Lawrence, and Pierce Johnson as late-inning options. Abad joins Hand and Ty Blach as left-handed options in the bullpen for manager Bud Black.

Making room for Abad on the 40-man roster is shortstop Connor Kaiser, who appeared in just three games with the Rockies when selected to the roster back in June while Ezequiel Tovar was on the paternity list. A third round pick by the Pirates in the 2018 draft, Kaiser posted a roughly league average slash line of .263/.357/.485 in 224 plate appearances at the Triple-A level with the Rockies this season. Still just 26 years old, Kaiser seems likely to be placed on waivers, where any club will have the opportunity to claim him. Should he go unclaimed, the Rockies will have the option to assign Kaiser outright to the minors where he would continue to serve as infield depth for the club.

Clearing space on the active roster, on the other hand, is Lambert. The 26-year-old righty was a second round pick by the Brewers in the 2015 drat and once seemed like a promising prospect, but injuries and ineffectiveness have dogged him in recent years. In 2023, Lambert has posted a 6.29 ERA and a 5.99 FIP in 34 1/3 innings of work at the big league level. As noted by MLB.com’s Thomas Harding, Lambert is expected to pitch out of the rotation in Triple-A, providing the club with additional starting depth going forward.

Rockies Re-Sign Fernando Abad To Minor League Deal

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The Rockies have re-signed left-hander Fernando Abad to a minor league deal, according to his transactions tracker at MLB.com. He’s been assigned to the Triple-A Albuquerque Isotopes.

Abad, 37, signed a previous minor league deal with the Rockies in the winter and began the year with Albuquerque. He got out to a great start there, tossing 16 innings in 13 appearances with a 1.69 ERA. His .206 batting average on balls in play and 97.6% strand rate were unsustainably lucky, but he was striking out 34.5% of batters faced while walking just 3.4%.

Those encouraging results got him back to the big leagues for the first time since 2021, as the Rockies selected his contract on May 15. His first two appearances went well but the Rangers put three runs on the board in his third outing, leading to a 10.13 ERA in a small sample of 2 2/3 innings. He was designated for assignment less than a week after being selected and then released shortly thereafter.

After a few days on the open market, the two sides have now reunited. It’s understandable why the Rockies would want to keep a veteran like Abad around, given the state of their pitching staff. Building a solid stable of arms in Colorado is challenging in the best of times, given that its hitter-friendly nature makes it fairly unappealing for free agents. They’ve also been hit hard by the injury bug this year, with eight hurlers currently on the injured list.

Abad has 403 major league appearances under his belt now, going back to the 2010 season. He has a 3.82 ERA in that time, along with a 19.4% strikeout rate, 8.4% walk rate and 41.6% ground ball rate. He’s a few years removed from that level of effectiveness, as he didn’t make it to the majors 2020 or 2022 and had a 5.60 ERA in the season between those two. However, his Triple-A numbers from earlier this year suggest that he can still get some outs. He’ll provide the club with an experienced bit of non-roster depth and could get called up again the next time they need a fresh arm.

Rockies Release Fernando Abad

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The Rockies have released lefty Fernando Abad, per the team’s transaction log at MLB.com. Colorado had designated the 37-year-old veteran for assignment over the weekend.

Abad appeared in three games with the Rox, tossing a combined 1 2/3 innings of scoreless ball between his first two outings before being tagged for three runs in one inning during his final appearance. He’d signed with the club on a minor league deal over the winter, and he opened the year pitching brilliantly in a hitter-friendly Triple-A setting; through 16 frames with the Rockies’ Albuquerque affiliate in the Pacific Coast League, Abad allowed just three runs (1.69 ERA) on nine hits and two walks with 20 strikeouts. He whiffed 34.5% of his opponents against just a 3.4% walk rate.

The Rockies were the eighth big league team for the well-traveled Abad, who’s now pitched in parts of 11 Major League seasons. His big league work has been infrequent over the past four years — just 33 1/3 total innings — but Abad was a quality and heavily used bullpen arm from 2013-17 with the Nats, A’s, Twins and Red Sox. During that time, he pitched to a 3.13 ERA in 233 frames, and on the whole he carries a career 3.82 ERA with 48 holds, two saves, a 19.4% strikeout rate and an 8.4% walk rate in 351 big league innings.

The Rockies could’ve tried to pass Abad through outright waivers, though he’d either have been claimed or had the ability to reject his assignment based on Major League service time. (He reached seven total years of service during his brief stint with Colorado.) He’ll now carry that excellent start to his season in Triple-A back to the market as he looks for other opportunities.

Rockies Select Matt Carasiti, DFA Fernando Abad

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The Rockies announced a pair of roster moves Sunday morning, as the club selected the contract of right-hander Matt Carasiti. To clear room for Carasiti on the active and 40-man roters, the club also announced they have designated left-hander Fernando Abad for assignment.

A sixth-round pick by the Rockies in the 2012 draft, Carasiti made his debut for the club in 2016, though he struggled to a 9.19 ERA in 15 2/3 innings of work that was 46% worse than league average by measure of ERA+. Carasiti wouldn’t return to the majors until three years later, when he appeared in 11 games for the Mariners, posting a 4.66 ERA in 9 2/3 innings of work. In five seasons at the Triple-A level, Carasiti owns a 4.06 ERA in 139 2/3 innings with a 25.6% strikeout rate. Carasiti figures to factor into the bullpen for the struggling Rockies pitching staff, which currently has nine of its pitchers on the injured list.

Clearing room for Carasiti on the roster is Abad, a 37-year-old veteran currently in his eleventh season in the majors. From 2010-2017, Abad was a reliable left-handed option for middle relief in the majors, with a 3.65 ERA and 4.22 FIP in 317 2/3 innings of work over that eight year period. Since then, however, Carasiti has managed just 33 1/3 innings in the big leagues across parts of three seasons, with a 5.40 ERA and 5.09 FIP. That includes his difficult stay in Colorado this season, where he allowed three runs on two homers in just 2 2/3 innings of work. Assuming he goes unclaimed on waivers, Abad figures to return to free agency, where he will look to latch on with another club on what would almost certainly be a minor league deal.

Rockies Select Fernando Abad, Place C.J. Cron On IL

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The Rockies announced they’ve selected the contract of left-hander Fernando Abad and recalled infielder/outfielder Michael Toglia from Triple-A Albuquerque. In corresponding moves, first baseman C.J. Cron was placed on the 10-day injured list while right-hander Nick Mears was placed on the 15-day IL, retroactive to May 12, due to a left oblique strain. There was already a vacancy on the club’s 40-man roster for Abad, meaning no corresponding move will be necessary in that regard.

Abad gets back to the big leagues for the first time in two years. The veteran southpaw signed a minor league deal over the winter after spending 2022 in Triple-A with the Mariners. He went to Albuquerque and has performed exceptionally well in one of affiliated ball’s toughest parks for pitchers. Abad has thrown 16 innings of three-run ball, fanning 20 hitters while walking just a pair.

Now 37, Abad has pitched in parts of 10 big league campaigns. He carries a 3.77 ERA over 348 1/3 innings, striking out a below-average 19.6% of opposing hitters but keeping his walks to a reasonable 8.3% clip. He joins Brent Suter and Brad Hand as veteran left-handed options for manager Bud Black in relief.

Black told reporters yesterday the struggling Cron was likely to hit the IL with back spasms. Toglia comes up for the first time this season to at least factor into the first base mix. The former first round pick is hitting .257/.364/.493 over 37 games with the Isotopes. He had a tough go in his first major league action last season, putting up a .216/.275/.378 line over 120 trips to the plate.

Rockies, Fernando Abad Agree To Minor League Deal

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The Rockies have agreed to a minor league contract with free-agent lefty Fernando Abad, tweets Jon Heyman of the New York Post. Abad, a client of the MAS+ Agency, will be invited to Major League Spring Training.

Abad, 37, spent the 2022 season with the Mariners organization but didn’t reach the big leagues with Seattle. That marked just the third time since the lefty’s 2010 debut with the Astros that he did not pitch a single Major League inning in a season. That said, Abad was effective in Triple-A Tacoma, where he notched a 3.56 ERA with a 17.8% strikeout rate and 6.7% walk rate in 43 innings of relief.

The most recent big league experience for Abad came with the 2021 Orioles, although the results weren’t pretty. He tallied just 17 2/3 innings out of the Baltimore ’pen and was knocked around for a 5.60 ERA with just a 12.2% strikeout rate against an 8.5% walk rate. Part of that was due to an inflated .344 average on balls in play, and it’s worth noting that Abad yielded just one home run and generally did a strong job of limiting hard contact by his opponents.

From 2013-19, Abad was a strong middle relief option in the Majors. He was never a team’s primary closer or go-to setup man in that time, evidenced by just a pair of saves and 30 holds, but Abad nonetheless pitched to a 3.18 ERA while fanning 21.2% of his opponents against an 8.2% walk rate.

The Rockies project to have a pair of lefties in the bullpen as things stand, with both waiver claim Brent Suter and homegrown Lucas Gilbreath nearly assured of spots, health permitting. Gilbreath does have minor league options remaining, however, and his command in the Majors has been shaky. Abad will give him some competition for a spot in camp, and if all three lefties pitch well, there’s enough uncertainty among the final few spots in the Colorado relief corps that all three southpaws could find themselves in the Opening Day ’pen.

Mariners Sign Fernando Abad To Minors Contract

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The Mariners have signed left-hander Fernando Abad, as announced earlier today by Saraperos De Saltillo, Abad’s Mexican League club.  It appears to be a minor league contract, as Triple-A Tacoma broadcaster Mike Curto reported that Abad will pitch for the affiliate tonight.

After not landing a contract with an MLB club over the offseason, Abad’s 2.25 ERA over four innings of Mexican League action was enough to get the Mariners’ attention.  Anthony Misiewicz is the only left-hander in Seattle’s current bullpen, so there’s some opportunity for Abad to win a job if he performs well at Triple-A.

The 36-year-old Abad has suited up for seven different teams over his 10 MLB seasons, plus some stints in independent ball as well as the Mexican League.  There have been plenty of ups and down over Abad’s long career, but he has generally been a pretty solid bullpen arm, able to deliver good results against both left-handed and right-handed batters.

Despite a lack of velocity and big strikeout totals, Abad has a 3.77 ERA over 348 1/3 career innings in the bigs.  However, only 30 2/3 of those frames have come over the last four seasons, as Abad didn’t see any MLB action in either 2018 or 2020.  Most recently, he posted a 5.60 ERA over 17 2/3 innings with the Orioles last season.

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