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Fernando Salas

Diamondbacks Release Fernando Salas

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The Diamondbacks have released veteran right-hander Fernando Salas, the team announced. The 33-year-old was designated for assignment last week when fellow righty Randall Delgado returned from the disabled list.

Salas got off to a strong start in 2018 after making the D-backs’ roster as a non-roster invitee in Spring Training. The former Cardinals/Angels reliever posted a 1.56 ERA and 3.30 FIP through the end of April and possessed solid season-long numbers through the end of June. To that point, Salas had a 3.58 ERA with 6.9 K/9, 2.6 BB/9 and 0.96 HR/9 to go along with a 43.2 percent ground-ball rate. ERA alternatives weren’t quite as bullish but felt he’d pitched reasonably well (3.85 FIP, 4.29 xFIP, 4.06 SIERA).

Salas, though, was tagged for runs in each of his three appearances in July, ultimately yielding five runs in 2 1/3 innings to balloon his ERA up to 4.50. Generally, while he hasn’t exactly pitched poorly in 2018, he’s taken a step back in a few key areas, most notably in his overall strikeout percentage (21.3 percent in 2017 compared to 17.7 percent in 2018), his swinging-strike rate (12.9 percent to 9.3 percent) and in his average fastball velocity (91.1 mph to 90.5 mph).

He’ll now be available to latch on with any club on a new contract, and given his 3.90 ERA over the life of 487 big league innings dating back to 2010, Salas should at the very least find an opportunity to report to a new organization’s Triple-A affiliate and attempt to work his way back up to the MLB roster.

Diamondbacks Activate Randall Delgado, Designate Fernando Salas

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The Diamondbacks announced today that they have reinstated righty Randall Delgado from the 60-day DL. To clear a roster spot, the team designated right-handed reliever Fernando Salas for assignment.

Delgado, 28, has been shelved all year by an oblique injury. But he is now ready to go after throwing 16 rehab frames — over which he allowed six earned runs on ten hits with 16 strikeouts and eight walks.

The Snakes will hope that Delgado can get back to being a useful swingman. In 2017, he provided the club with 62 2/3 innings of 3.59 ERA ball with 8.6 K/9 and 2.0 BB/9. He’s earning $2.25MM this season before hitting the open market this fall.

The 33-year-old Salas signed a minors deal over the offseason that included a $1.5MM salary in the majors. He has thrown forty frames for the D-Backs this year, allowing twenty earned runs while recording 6.8 K/9 against 2.9 BB/9. He’ll now hope to follow the pattern of the prior two seasons, when he bounced back from slow starts by turning in strong finishes after mid-season organization changes. (Salas went from the Angels to the Mets in 2016, then did the reverse in 2017.)

NL West Links: Lamet, Giants, Salas, Dodgers

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Padres right-hander Dinelson Lamet is headed for the disabled list after leaving Sunday’s outing after just six batters due to elbow pain, Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune reports.  There doesn’t appear to be any structural damage to Lamet’s elbow and a source tells Acee that the righty will miss just “minimal time,” though that absence looks like it could last into May.  “The hope is he will miss only the season’s first month,” Acee writes, which is a somewhat ominously vague timeframe for a pitcher who was expected to play a big role in San Diego’s rotation.  Lamet posted a 4.57 ERA, 2.57 K/BB rate and a whopping 10.9 K/9 over 114 1/3 innings in his rookie season, displaying some control and home run-allowance issues but impressing many with his ability to miss bats.

More from around the NL West…

  • A Giants trade for starting pitching help is “not likely” as of tonight, a source tells MLB.com’s Jon Paul Morosi (Twitter links), though the team is considering adding a starter with Madison Bumgarner and Jeff Samardzija both on the DL.  Morosi cites the Astros’ Brad Peacock and Collin McHugh as arms that could be available, though these could be speculative names rather than pitchers the Giants are directly targeting.  San Francisco doesn’t have much luxury tax room to afford taking on any significant salary, nor does the club have much in the way of prospect depth to trade away, so it will be interesting to see how (or if) the Giants can adjust to these devastating early-season rotation losses.
  • Fernando Salas’ minor league contract with the Diamondbacks will pay him $1.5MM in base salary now that he has made the team’s Opening Day roster, The Athletic’s Zach Buchanan reports (Twitter link).  The right-hander can also earn some additional money via performances bonuses.  Salas posted an 0.90 ERA, 7.2 K/9, and just two walks over 10 spring innings for the D’Backs, an impressive performance that won him a slot on the 25-man roster.
  • Even though the Dodgers made moves to get under the luxury tax threshold this winter, ESPN’s Buster Olney (subscription required) isn’t certain that this team will use the reset of their tax penalties to pursue a big-name free agent like Manny Machado or Bryce Harper.  Splurging on a decade-long contract for Machado or Harper would seem to run counter to how president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman works, though Olney wonders if Friedman could pursue a tactic like offering a shorter-term deal but with a higher average annual value.  Of course, L.A. could also spend in different ways next winter, such as acquiring an expensive player in a trade, or (most importantly) exploring an extension for Clayton Kershaw, who can opt out of his current deal after the season.

Article XX(B) Free Agents Update: Saturday

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Major League Baseball’s collective bargaining agreement contains a provision that allows certain free agents who are signed to minor league contracts to receive a $100K retention bonus if they are not on the team’s 25-man roster or the Major League disabled list five days prior to the season.

Free agents who qualify for this distinction are those who have at least six years of Major League service time and had a Major League contract expire at the end of the previous season, but signed a minor league deal ten or more days prior to Opening Day.

The deadline for teams to decide on these players is today at 11am central time. By the deadline, teams with these players in camp need to decide whether to:

  1. Add the player to their 25-man roster or Major League disabled list (or agree to do so in writing).
  2. Pay the player a $100K retention bonus to keep him in the organization beyond the deadline and send him to the minors.
  3. Grant the player his outright release from the minor league contract so that he may pursue opportunities with other teams.

We’ll use this post to keep track of the Article XX(B) free agents whose respective teams have elected option one or two; in other words, players who won’t be released for the time being. The most recent updates are on top.

  • Miguel Montero has been informed that he’ll make the Nationals as the club’s backup catcher, according to Jamal Collier of MLB.com. He’ll earn a $1.3MM base salary, as outlined in the details of the pact he signed with the club on February 1st. Montero beat out young backstop Pedro Severino in a camp battle for the role.

Earlier…

NL West Notes: D-backs, Salas, Cimber, Padres, Giants, Cabrera

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Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic breaks down the race for some open spots in the Diamondbacks’ bullpen, noting that minor league signee Fernando Salas has outperformed the rest of the competition in terms of pure results. The eight-year veteran has tossed 6 2/3 shutout frames with a 6-to-1 K/BB ratio this spring, though competitors Neftali Feliz, Michael Blazek and Rule 5 pickup Albert Suarez (from the Giants) have all pitched well. Piecoro notes that there appear to be two or three spots up for grabs due to the fact that right-hander Randall Delgado is likely ticketed for the disabled list to open the year because of a left oblique injury. Piecoro also checks in on injured righty Shelby Miller, who had positive reports following a bullpen session and could return from Tommy John surgery in June or July.

One more item of note from Piecoro is that because Suarez has been previously outrighted off a 40-man roster in his career, the D-backs wouldn’t have to offer him back to the Giants if he clears waivers; he could instead elect free agency.

A bit more out of the NL West…

  • Padres skipper Andy Green tells the San Diego Union-Tribune’s Kevin Acee that right-hander Adam Cimber has pitched his way into consideration for a spot in the team’s Opening Day bullpen. Cimber, 27, spent Spring Training 2017 in minor league camp and by Green’s own admission wasn’t near the top of the team’s list headed into big league camp this year. A sidearming righty, Cimber has hurled six shutout innings with two hits, no walks and five strikeouts. Recently, he’s been facing high-profile hitters such as Edwin Encarnacion, Kris Bryant, Anthony Rizzo and Willson Contreras and still finding success, Acee notes. The opportunity before him isn’t lost on the former ninth-rounder, who signed for a $5K bonus in 2013. Cimber discusses the opportunity to finally earn a big league salary playing the game he loves, as well as some of the ups and downs that come with being a minor league relief prospect.
  • Andrew Baggarly of The Athletic reports that Giants outfield prospect Gustavo Cabrera has elected to retire (Twitter links). As Baggarly chronicled in a harrowing story for the San Jose Mercury News in March 2016, Cabrera could have lost his right hand at 17. Then a vaunted prospect who had received a $1.3MM signing bonus a year prior, Cabrera was simply bracing his hand on a glass table as he bent to pick up a spilled glass of water, but he slipped on the wet floor and sent his arm crashing through the table, severing nerves and causing catastrophic damage. Baggarly details the frantic process of saving Cabrera’s limb and his ultimate return to the baseball field in a must-read story. As for Cabrera’s decision to retire, Baggarly notes that the physical challenges simply became too much for his reconstructed wrist/hand. He adds that while the Giants do have a recourse to claim a portion of that $1.3MM bonus due to Cabrera’s early retirement, the organization has no plans to do so. Best wishes to Cabrera in his post-playing days.

Diamondbacks To Sign Fernando Salas

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The Diamondbacks have reached a minor-league deal with righty Fernando Salas, according to SB Nation’s Chris Cotillo (Twitter link). Additional terms are not yet known, but it seems fair to presume he’ll receive an invitation to the MLB side of spring camp.

Salas, 32, has bounced between the Angels and Mets over the past two seasons, moving once in each direction. In each case, he recovered from early struggles to post strong finishes to the season.

In 447 total frames at the game’s highest level, Salas carries a 3.85 ERA with 8.9 K/9 and 2.7 BB/9. Owing to a three-pitch mix (fastball/change/curve, he has long been tough not only on righties but also on lefties, who carry a meager .241/.300/.383 slash against Salas for his career.

While Salas ended the 2017 season with an ugly 5.22 ERA, there were some positives. The results weren’t helped by a 63.1% strand rate and .337 BABIP-against. And he did manage a career-high 47.5% groundball rate and 12.9% swinging-strike rate that matches a personal best.

All told, it seems Salas ought to have a solid shot at breaking camp on the Arizona roster. The D-Backs have sought relief depth at a palatable price, so it’s not hard to understand the match here.

Notable September Call-Ups

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September 1 marks the date on which regular-season rosters expand from 25 to 40 in Major League Baseball. While the merit of that rule and its impact on games are a source of debate — MLB games tend to increase considerably in length in September as managers can more freely make pitching changes with deeper bullpens — the fact remains that there could be more than 100 players promoted to the big leagues today as the first wave of call-ups arrives.

Many September call-ups are players that have experience already under their belt. Journeyman big leaguers with exceptionally specific roles (e.g. pinch-running and defensive specialists) become a luxury that teams can now afford, and many teams will bring up a third catcher or additional bullpen arms for depth, even if a long-term MLB role isn’t likely for said players.

Some promotions, though, are more notable than others. Big league teams will often use the month of September to get a look at their top organizational prospects, and in some instances September can provide a potential audition for former stars seeking to reestablish themselves. (The Orioles, for instance, were reported last night to be bringing slugger Pedro Alvarez up from Triple-A for the season’s final month.)

All that said, here are some of this year’s more notable September promotions (we’ll update throughout the day as more moves are announced)…

  • Four new youngsters are joining the Cardinals, the team announced. Outfielder Harrison Bader and infielder Alex Mejia were already on the 40-man, but the team has also gone ahead and added righty Sandy Alcantara and backstop Alberto Rosario. Alcantara is an interesting pitcher to keep an eye on, as he reputedly comes with a big arm and could contribute from the bullpen — though he’s still ironing things out as a starter after spending the year pitching to a 4.31 ERA at Double-A.
  • The Indians announced that they’ve recalled top catching prospect Francisco Mejia from Double-A Akron and selected the contract of outfielder Greg Allen from Akron, thus adding him to the 40-man roster. The 21-year-old Mejia is commonly regarded as one of the top 25 prospects in all of Major League Baseball and was reportedly the would-be centerpiece to the Jonathan Lucroy trade that Lucroy vetoed in 2016. Allen, too, was set to be a part of that trade but has instead remained in the Indians organization and will now join Mejia in donning a big league jersey for the first time this month.
  • Right-hander Fernando Salas will return to the Angels, who announced last night that his contract has been selected from Triple-A Salt Lake. Salas spent parts of three seasons as a useful bullpen arm for the Angels before a trade to the Mets last August. While he dominated for New York down the stretch, Salas was torched for a 6.00 ERA this year after re-signing with the Mets. He tossed three scoreless innings in Salt Lake City and will hope for a strong finish to bolster offseason interest.
  • The Blue Jays, too, will be getting another look at an old friend. Outfielder Michael Saunders is joining the Jays as a September call-up, tweets MLB.com’s Greg Johns. While Saunders is merely looking to show well in his return to the Majors after struggling badly with the Phillies earlier this season, another outfielder is looking to carve out a long-term role in Toronto; trade acquisition Teoscar Hernandez is also on his way to the Majors, per Johns. The 24-year-old Hernandez was acquired in the Francisco Liriano swap and has posted a combined .265/.351/.490 batting line in 456 Triple-A plate appearances this season.
  • The Mets are promoting right-handers Jacob Rhame and Jamie Callahan, tweets MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo. While neither reliever is considered to be among the game’s best prospects — they rank 23rd and 30th, respectively, on MLB.com’s list of the Mets’ top 30 prospects — both were recently acquired on the trade market. Rhame came to the Mets from the Dodgers as the return for Curtis Granderson, while Callahan arrived in Queens by way of the Addison Reed trade with the Red Sox. Both will be looking to make a strong impression as they seek to secure a long-term spot in the Mets’ bullpen.
  • The Tigers are getting their first look at left-handed reliever Jairo Labourt, per a team announcement. The 23-year-old was acquired alongside Daniel Norris and Matt Boyd in exchange fo David Price back in 2015. He’s turned in an excellent 2.17 ERA across three minor league levels this season and averaged better than 10 strikeouts per nine innings, albeit with some shaky control (4.5 BB/9).

Angels Sign Fernando Salas To Minors Deal

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The Angels have brought right-hander Fernando Salas back into the fold on a minor league pact, the team’s Triple-A affiliate announced this weekend (Twitter link). The 32-year-old Salas, who was recently released by the Mets after a down season, has already tossed a scoreless frame for the Angels’ Triple-A affiliate in Salt Lake City. He’s represented by Paragon Sports.

Salas is a known commodity for much of the Angels organization, having spent the better part of three seasons there from 2014-16. In 178 1/3 innings as a member of the Angels, Salas pitched to a 4.03 ERA with 9.1 K/9 against 2.3 BB/9. His first tenure with the club ultimately ended when he was flipped to the Mets in an August swap 53 weeks ago. That trade was initially a boon for the Mets’ relief corps, as Salas hurled 17 1/3 innings with just four runs allowed on 11 hits and no walks with 19 strikeouts.

That run of dominance prompted a return to Queens on a one-year, $3MM contract this offseason, but Salas’ second year with the Mets didn’t match the first. In 45 innings this season, he logged an even 6.00 ERA. Much of those struggles were due to a .379 BABIP that looks rather fluky, but Salas also averaged 4.0 walks per nine innings pitched — his worst mark since 2012 — and allowed hard contact at a 37.4 percent clip (the second-worst mark of his career). Conversely, Salas’ 9.4 K/9 rate was the second-highest mark in any of his eight MLB seasons, and his 45.1 percent ground-ball rate was easily a career-high.

The Angels will only owe Salas the pro-rated portion of the league minimum for any time he spends in the Majors, as the Mets will be on the hook for the remainder of his contract. With a solid showing in Triple-A, Salas could very well emerge as an option for the Angels in the season’s final month, perhaps helping to pick up some of the slack following Anaheim’s trade of fellow righty David Hernandez to the Diamondbacks.

Mets To Release Fernando Salas

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Aug. 15: The Mets have now requested release waivers on Salas, tweets DiComo. Assuming he clears waivers, Salas will be a free agent in 48 hours.

Aug. 10: The Mets have designated reliever Fernando Salas for assignment, reports Anthony DiComo of MLB.com (Twitter link). His spot will go to newly promoted first base prospect Dominic Smith.

Salas is in his second season with the Mets, who acquired him from the Angels at the end of August last year and saw the right-hander improbably turn into a key component in their run to a wild-card berth. Salas gave the Mets 17 1/3 innings of 2.08 ERA pitching last September and piled up 17 strikeouts against no walks, leading them to re-sign him to a one-year, $3MM over the winter. The wheels have come off this season, though, as the 32-year-old Salas has logged a 6.00 ERA over 45 frames.

The Mets will surely hope a taker comes along for Salas, who has less than $1MM left on his deal. Perhaps some bullpen-needy club will overlook his bloated ERA and focus on more hopeful numbers, including career-best ground-ball (45.1 percent) and swinging-strike (13 percent) rates. Salas has also yielded a lofty .379 batting average on balls in play and managed only a 64.1 percent strand rate, both of which could regress in his favor before the year’s out.

NL Notes: Weaver, Salas, Schebler, Holland

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The Cardinals announced that right-hander Luke Weaver was removed from today’s Grapefruit League contest due to back spasms (Twitter link). Weaver faced two hitters in the eighth inning of today’s game and retired both before his back acted up. As MLB.com’s Jenifer Langosch writes, manager Mike Matheny said he’s unaware of any previous back problems for Weaver, and the team will re-evaluate the top prospect tomorrow. Weaver is battling fellow righties Michael Wacha and Trevor Rosenthal for the final spot in the St. Louis rotation and is by far the least experienced of the group. So while there’s no indication that the injury is especially serious, any time lost this spring could have an adverse impact on Weaver’s chances of laying claim to that vacant starting job.

A few more notes from around the Senior Circuit as the evening winds down…

  • Right-hander Fernando Salas has a visa issue that is preventing him from pitching in spring games for the Mets, reports Newsday’s Marc Carig. Salas has already secured the necessary paperwork to pitch for Team Mexico in the upcoming World Baseball Classic, so that tournament could give him some needed in-game reps as he prepares for the season. Carig adds in a followup tweet that the Mets expect Salas’ current documentation issue to be resolved sometime next week, so he should be able to pitch with the team upon completion of the WBC, barring any further paperwork complications. Salas, 33, inked a one-year, $3MM deal to return to the Mets in early February on the heels of an excellent showing with the team following last year’s August trade. The veteran setup man tossed 17 1/3 innings with the Mets, yielding just four runs on 11 hits and no walks with 19 strikeouts.
  • The Reds considered Scott Schebler as more of a left fielder than a right fielder when he was acquired in the 2015 trade that sent Todd Frazier to the White Sox, writes MLB.com’s Mark Sheldon, but the 26-year-old has spent a great amount of time working to improve his throwing. As such, the team now views Schebler as a viable option in right field, and he’s in line to get a chance to cement himself as the team’s primary option there in 2017. “It’s one of the things I worked on for quite some time, and it’s getting there,” Schebler told Sheldon. “I would never say I have a cannon. I may never have one, but you work toward that and maybe you end up somewhere in the middle.” Manager Bryan Price said the team has emphasized to Schebler that its preference would be less air underneath his throws, even if it means one-hopping the catcher on throws to the plate. Price praised Schebler for improvements to his arm strength and accuracy — both of which he attributes to mechanical alterations.
  • Greg Holland won’t make his Cactus League debut for the Rockies until next week, at the earliest, writes Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post. The 31-year-old threw a 23-pitch simulated game on Tuesday of this week and will throw at least two more sim games before he’s cleared to get into an actual game with his new team, per Saunders. To this point, Holland hasn’t come out and thrown his fastball at 100 percent, though the former Royals closer said he’s building toward that point. Holland is clearly itching to get into a game, calling it “demoralizing” for any competitor to sit out as games are underway. “But you have to understand that there is a right way and there is a science behind this,” Holland told Saunders. “You have to stay patient with it, as hard as it is.” Holland inked a one-year, $7MM deal with the Rox this winter, and his contract also contains a vesting player option that’ll trigger at $15MM if he finishes 30 games or appears in 50 total contests.
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