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Outrights: Shaw, Barnes, Ogando, Liberato

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A few players on postseason teams have cleared outright waivers after recently being designated for assignment.

  • The Guardians have outrighted reliever Bryan Shaw to Triple-A Columbus, according to his transactions log at MLB.com. While the veteran has more than enough service time to elect free agency while still collecting the remainder of his guaranteed salary, Tom Withers of the Associated Press tweets that he’ll accept the assignment. Shaw remains in the organization and could technically factor into the playoff mix as a result, but it’s unlikely he’ll do so after Cleveland took him off the 40-man roster. Re-signed to a one-year deal over the winter, the veteran righty soaked up 58 1/3 innings across 60 appearances. He’s long been a durable bullpen workhorse, but his 2022 results were disappointing. Shaw posted a 5.40 ERA with a below-average 19.9% strikeout rate against an elevated 10% walk percentage. Cleveland will owe the 34-year-old a $500K buyout on a 2023 club option, and he’ll head to free agency at the start of the offseason.
  • Yankees reliever Jacob Barnes has gone unclaimed and been outrighted to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, the team announced. It was a quick turnaround for the righty, who was promoted for his team debut on Saturday. He threw 1 2/3 scoreless innings but was immediately DFA as the club cycled through fresh arms at the back of the bullpen. Barnes had a tough run earlier in the season with the Tigers, allowing a 6.10 ERA across 20 2/3 frames. He’s previously been outrighted and has more than enough service time to refuse the minor league assignment, although he could choose to follow Shaw’s path and stick in the organization as a depth option. He’ll hit free agency at the end of the year regardless if not added back to the 40-man roster.
  • Rays righty Cristofer Ogando was outrighted to Triple-A Durham over the weekend, per his MLB.com transactions log. The 28-year-old reliever has garnered a pair of brief looks with Tampa Bay, his first taste of MLB action. Ogando has made three big league appearances, working 4 1/3 innings of two-run ball. He’s spent the vast majority of the season in Durham, serving as a multi-inning bullpen arm and compiling a 4.56 ERA with a 23.5% strikeout rate and 11.5% walk percentage over 53 1/3 frames. Tampa Bay has outrighted Ogando off its 40-man roster twice this season, giving him the right to refuse this assignment in favor of free agency.
  • Padres outfielder Luis Liberato also went unclaimed on waivers last week, according to the transactions tracker. He’s been assigned to Triple-A El Paso. Signed to a minor league deal last offseason after ten seasons in the Mariners system, the left-handed hitter spent most of his year in El Paso. He had an impressive .261/.354/.541 showing over 99 games there, briefly earning his first major league call last month. Liberato only tallied five hitless at-bats with the Friars before losing his 40-man roster spot, however. He’s never previously been outrighted and doesn’t have the requisite service time to refuse the assignment, so he’ll remain in the organization for the time being. That’s largely immaterial, as he’ll qualify for minor league free agency at the end of the season unless added back to the 40-man roster in the intervening time. Liberato’s quality work with the Chihuahuas should land him a number of minor league offers this winter.

Yankees Select Chi Chi González, Designate Jacob Barnes

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The Yankees announced a series of roster moves prior to today’s game, selecting right-hander Chi Chi González to the active roster while designating fellow right-hander Jacob Barnes for assignment. Additionally, infielder/outfielder Matt Carpenter was transferred to the 60-day injured list.

González, 30, has bounced around quite a bit this year. He signed a minor league deal with the Twins in March and briefly cracked the big league roster. After getting designated for assignment, he was claimed by the Brewers and spent just under a month with them before getting designated again. He signed a minors deal with the Tigers but opted out of it without getting a call to the big leagues, then signed a minor league deal with the Yankees in late August. Through all of that, he’s thrown 18 1/3 innings at the big league level with a 6.87 ERA. He’s fared much better in the minors, throwing 80 1/3 innings with a 4.03 ERA, 20.8% strikeout rate and 7.9% walk rate.

As for Barnes, 32, he’s had a fairly similar season to González, getting brief tenures on various rosters around the league. He signed a minor league deal with the Tigers in the winter, cracking the Opening Day roster but getting designated in June. He then signed a minors deal with the Mariners and joined their roster but was designated again without making an appearance. He went back to the Tigers but was released and signed with the Yanks at the same time as González. He was selected to New York’s roster just yesterday and pitched 1 2/3 innings of mop-up duty while they were beating the Orioles 8-0. He’s thrown 22 1/3 total MLB innings this year with a 5.64 ERA but, similar to González, has been more impressive on the farm. In 18 minor league innings this year, he has an ERA of 2.00, along with a 32.9% strikeout rate and 9.2% walk rate. Since he’s out of options, the club had to designate him for assignment in order to get a fresh arm onto the roster.

As for Carpenter, this move is mostly a formality. He will be ineligible to return until 60 days from his initial IL placement, which was August 9, meaning he can return October 8. The Yanks already secured a bye through the first playoff round and will be playing in the ALDS beginning October 11. It was recently reported that the club plans to get him some at-bats with Double-A Somerset before returning to the big league club. Prior to fracturing his foot, he was having a comeback season for the ages, hitting 15 home runs in 47 games and slashing .305/.412/.727. The club will have the next week or so to decide if he’s healthy enough to earn a spot on their postseason roster.

Yankees Select Jacob Barnes, Place Zack Britton On 60-Day IL

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2:56PM: Though Britton’s season is over, his time in New York could continue, as ESPN’s Marly Rivera reports that “Britton and the Yankees are already engaged in preliminary conversations” about a new contract.

10:59AM: The Yankees announced they’ve selected reliever Jacob Barnes onto the major league roster. In a corresponding move, veteran southpaw Zack Britton has been placed on the 60-day injured list. His season is over after he left last night’s appearance with shoulder fatigue.

Barnes cracks a major league roster with a third different team of the 2022 campaign. The 32-year-old broke camp with the Tigers and pitched in 22 games, working to a 6.10 ERA through 20 2/3 innings. Barnes only struck out 11.2% of batters faced on a personal-worst 7.7% swinging strike percentage. Barnes did induce ground-balls at a career-best 51.5% clip, but the lack of swing-and-miss led the Tigers to designate him for assignment in June.

The veteran reliever signed a minor league deal with the Mariners and briefly made the major league roster in July. He spent a few days on the active roster but didn’t make an appearance before being let go. Barnes returned to Detroit on a minor league deal, spent a month in Triple-A and then was granted his release. He signed a minor league deal with New York at the end of August and pitched in ten games for their top affiliate in Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.

While Barnes hasn’t had much major league success this season, he’s pitched 18 innings of 2.00 ERA ball at the Triple-A level. Barnes has punched out 32.9% of opponents there against a 9.2% walk rate, and he’s missed plenty of bats at the big league level in years past. He punched out upwards of 30% of opponents with the Angels in 2020 and had an above-average 25.8% strikeout rate as recently as last season.

Because Barnes was in the organization by August 31, he’d be eligible for the Yankees postseason roster. He wasn’t on the 40-man roster at the end of August, but New York can still petition the commissioner’s office for him to be playoff-eligible as an injury replacement for Britton. Injury exemptions are a common occurrence each season, so the Yankees shouldn’t have an issue carrying Barnes for the playoffs if they desire. Now that he’s back on a 40-man roster, Barnes is technically arbitration-eligible for next season, but it’s probable the Yankees will take him off the roster at the end of the year and allow him to hit minor league free agency.

It seems unlikely they’d carry Barnes given his struggles at the big league level this year, but the Yankees pitching staff is navigating a number of injuries. Closer Clay Holmes has a shoulder strain, manager Aaron Boone revealed last night. New York won’t place him on the injured list and rule him out as an option for the AL Division Series, but he’s not expected to pitch again in the regular season. Bryan Hoch of MLB.com relays that the Yankees are hopeful Holmes will be ready for the start of the ALDS, but it’s hard to know for sure whether that’ll be the case.

Meanwhile, trade deadline acquisition Frankie Montas doesn’t look as if he’ll be an option for the ALDS. New York placed Montas on the IL with shoulder inflammation two weeks ago, and Boone said this morning that it appears he won’t be ready for the Division Series (Hoch link). Montas is playing catch today and the Yankees haven’t officially ruled him out for the ALDS, but Boone suggested it’s more likely he’d return as a relief option for the ALCS if the Yankees qualify.

Britton is certainly no longer a playoff option, with the 60-day IL placement ending his year. It could bring an unceremonious end to his four-plus year tenure as a Yankee. Acquired from the Orioles midway through the 2018 campaign, Britton was an elite late-game weapon for his first few seasons in the Bronx. He pitched to a 2.14 ERA over 105 1/3 innings through the end of the 2020 season, including grounders at an incredible 76.3% clip. The Yankees preemptively exercised a $14MM option on his services for 2022 at the end of that year to prevent Britton from triggering an opt-out that’d have allowed him to test free agency.

While an understandable move at the time, that decision proved very regrettable in hindsight. Britton was tagged for a 5.89 ERA in 18 1/3 frames last season, battling injury issues throughout the year. He eventually underwent Tommy John surgery last September, an issue that kept him on the injured list until last week. Britton made it back on September 22 and made three appearances, but he walked six of the nine batters he faced before yesterday’s injury.

Britton will hit the open market this winter coming off two virtually lost seasons. His fastball velocity was down in his very brief look this month, and he obviously battled extreme rust from a strike-throwing perspective. The 34-year-old hasn’t seemed fully healthy for two years, which’ll obviously deal a hit to his market value.

Yankees Sign Chi Chi Gonzalez, Jacob Barnes To Minor League Deals

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The Yankees have signed a trio of pitchers — Chi Chi González, Jacob Barnes and Wilking Rodríguez — to minor league contracts, tweets Conor Foley of the Scranton Times-Tribune. All three have been assigned to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.

González and Barnes were recently together in the Tigers system, but both were each granted their release from non-roster pacts with Detroit. González has now joined four organizations this year. He began the season with the Twins, bouncing on and off the major league roster twice. Claimed off waivers by the Brewers, he combined to work 18 1/3 innings over six appearances (four starts). González posted a 6.87 ERA — his third consecutive season with an ERA north of 6.00 — between the two clubs, and he was eventually outrighted off Milwaukee’s roster.

The 30-year-old righty signed a minor league deal with Detroit in late July. He spent a month in the system but didn’t get a big league call, and he triggered an opt-out clause last week. Between the Twins and Tigers top minor league affiliates, González has worked to a 4.19 ERA through 58 Triple-A innings this season. He has plenty of starting experience in both the majors and upper minors, giving the Yankees a multi-inning depth arm.

Barnes is on his third organization of the season. The right-hander broke camp with Detroit after signing an offseason minor league deal. He appeared in 22 games but was tagged for a 6.10 ERA over 20 2/3 innings. He racked up grounders on over half the batted balls against him, but he only struck out 11.2% of batters faced. The lack of swing-and-miss was bizarre, as Barnes posted above-average strikeout rates in 2020 and ’21 and was still averaging a robust 95.5 MPH on his fastball.

Detroit took Barnes off their big league roster in mid-June. The 32-year-old signed a minor league deal with the Mariners and was briefly called up, but he didn’t appear in an MLB game with Seattle before being designated for assignment. Barnes again cleared waivers, elected free agency, and returned to Detroit on a minor league deal in late July. He spent a month in Triple-A before being granted his release. While his MLB production this year has been lackluster, Barnes has an excellent 17:3 strikeout-to-walk ratio while allowing just two runs in ten Triple-A innings.

Rodríguez, 32, makes a long-awaited return to the affiliated ranks. The right-hander has the briefest of major league experience, having come out of the bullpen twice for the 2014 Royals. He hasn’t played for an MLB organization since a seven-game Triple-A stint with the Yankees in 2015, as he’d primarily played winter ball over the past six years. Rodríguez has spent 2022 in the Mexican League, posting a 2.01 ERA over 44 2/3 innings and apparently impressing Yankees evaluators with his arsenal.

All three pitchers would be eligible for New York’s postseason roster if they impress enough to warrant a spot in October. Players need to be within an organization by September 1 to suit up for that club in the playoffs. Any player on a 40-man roster or MLB injured list by the end of August is automatically postseason-eligible (unless they’d been suspended for a performance-enchancing drug violation that season). Those within the organization but not on the 40-man at the start of September can still be added to the postseason roster to replace a player on the injured list via petition to the commissioner’s office.

Jon Heyman of the New York Post first reported González was signing with the Yankees.

Tigers Sign Daniel Norris, Jacob Barnes To Minor League Deals

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The Tigers announced agreement with relievers Daniel Norris and Jacob Barnes on minor league contracts. Detroit also confirmed the signing of righty Chi Chi González to a non-roster deal, which was first reported over the weekend. Chris McCosky of the Detroit News reported (Twitter links) both of today’s signings before the club announcement.

Norris and Barnes have each previously been members of the organization. The former spent six seasons in Detroit. Acquired from the Blue Jays as the centerpiece of the David Price deadline deal in 2015, Norris spent his first few years in the rotation. His tenure was up-and-down, and the Tigers kicked him to the bullpen starting with the shortened 2020 campaign. The left-hander posted a 3.25 ERA through 27 2/3 frames as a multi-inning type that year. Norris struggled to keep runs off the board in the first half of the following season, but he had impressive enough strikeout and ground-ball numbers the Brewers acquired him for pitching prospect Reese Olson last summer.

That deal didn’t pan out for Milwaukee, as Norris’ ERA never bounced back. He qualified for free agency and signed a $1.75MM guarantee with the Cubs this spring. The 29-year-old tossed 30 innings for the North Siders but allowed nearly seven earned runs per nine. He struck out an excellent 32.1% of opponents, but a lofty 15.7% walk percentage and marked home run issues led Chicago to release him last week. The Tigers would only owe Norris the prorated portion of the $700K league minimum salary if he makes it back to the majors.

Barnes was a Tiger as recently as last month. The right-hander broke camp with Detroit and made 22 appearances, managing only a 6.10 ERA across 20 2/3 frames. Typically a high-strikeout arm, Barnes generated swinging strikes on a meager 7.7% of his offerings this season. The Tigers cut him loose last month. The 32-year-old signed a minor league deal with the Mariners, briefly reached the majors but didn’t make an appearance, and was then outrighted off Seattle’s roster. He elected free agency and now returns to his first organization of the season in hopes of getting back to the big leagues.

González has already suited up for two MLB teams this year. He began the season on a non-roster pact with the division-rival Twins, making a pair of starts. The Brewers claimed him off waivers and deployed him four times before outrighting him off the roster. The 30-year-old has a 6.87 ERA in 18 1/3 big league innings this season, although he posted a much more palatable 3.44 mark in Triple-A. Unlike Morris and Barnes, González can serve as rotation depth.

The additions to the pitching depth come at a time when the Tigers are widely expected to move multiple hurlers off the big league staff. As MLBTR’s Steve Adams recently explored, veteran relievers Andrew Chafin, Michael Fulmer and Joe Jiménez are among the league’s more obvious candidates to change teams before next Tuesday’s trade deadline.

Outrights: Barnes, Inciarte

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Updates on a couple of players who were recently designated for assignment…

  • Right-hander Jacob Barnes has cleared waivers and elected free agency, per his transactions tracker at MLB.com. He was designated for assignment by the Mariners last week. The 32-year-old is in his seventh season of MLB action, having signed a minor league deal with the Tigers and then cracking their Opening Day roster. Despite striking out over 25% of batters faced in both 2020 and 2021, his rate plummeted to 11.2% this year. Although his ground ball rate jumped a few ticks to 51.5%, he still registered an ERA of 6.10 on the year before getting designated for assignment in June. After reaching free agency, he landed with the Mariners on a minor league deal and eventually got selected to the big league club. However, he was designated assignment again the next day, without getting into a game for the M’s. He will now return to the open market and look for his next opportunity.
  • Outfielder Ender Inciarte, designated for assignment by the Mets last week, has cleared waivers and been outrighted to Triple-A Syracuse, per his transactions tracker at MLB.com. Inciarte, 31, signed a minor league deal with the Yankees in the offseason but was released in mid-June. He latched on with the Mets on another minors deal, eventually making the big league club but lasting just over two weeks on the roster. He filled a bench/defensive substitute role for the team, getting into 11 games but making only eight plate appearances. Despite strong defense, his offensive output at the MLB level has declined in recent years. He hit at a decent clip in his time in the Yankees’ system this year, slashing .252/.336/.408, wRC+ of 101. As a veteran with more than five years of MLB experience, he has the ability to reject an outright assignment without forfeiting any salary, though it’s unclear whether he’s done so or not.

Mariners Designate Jacob Barnes For Assignment

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The Mariners announced that righty Erik Swanson has been reinstated from the paternity list. To make room for him on the active roster, fellow righty Jacob Barnes has been designated for assignment.

Barnes, 32, is a veteran in his seventh season of MLB action, having previously pitched for the Brewers, Royals, Angels, Mets and Blue Jays, before signing with the Tigers in the offseason on a minor league deal. He made Detroit’s Opening Day roster and threw 20 2/3 innings out of their bullpen, but saw his strikeouts mysteriously evaporate. Prior to this year, he had a career strikeout rate of 24.4% but saw that drop to just 11.2% this year. Given that development and his unsightly 6.10 ERA, the Tigers designated him for assignment about a month ago.

Once he cleared waivers, the Tigers were on the hook for the remainder of his $1.13MM salary. As a veteran with over five years of MLB service time, Barnes has the right to reject an outright assignment and elect free agency while still retaining his rate of pay. Any team that picked him up would only owe him the prorated league minimum, with that amount being subtracted from what the Tigers pay.

Barnes latched on with the Mariners on a minors deal about a week later and joined the Triple-A Tacoma Rainiers. He threw four innings there and got an encouraging five strikeouts, though in a very tiny sample size. The M’s selected him to the big league club on Saturday for an extra bullpen arm but have now sent him into DFA limbo without getting him into a game. Since Barnes is out of options, this was the only way to get him off the roster to make room for Swanson.

Seattle will now have a week to trade Barnes, pass him through waivers or release him. Like his last DFA, the most likely scenario is that Barnes clears waivers and elects free agency again. He’ll then be free to work out a deal with any of the 30 teams, likely of the minor league variety.

Mariners Option George Kirby To Triple-A, Select Jacob Barnes

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TODAY: Mariners manager Scott Servais went into more detail on the Kirby option today, telling reporters (including Jen Mueller of Root Sports) that beyond saving Kirby some innings, it also allows the Mariners to add a fresh bullpen arm to the active roster.  Servais noted that the M’s will make a similar move with Kirby later in the season, to further preserve his arm.  Kirby is slated to make a short start for Triple-A Tacoma, and he’ll rejoin the Mariners after the All-Star break.

JULY 9: In addition to the six roster moves announced earlier today, the Mariners have also made two more transactions.  Right-hander George Kirby has been optioned to Triple-A Tacoma, while righty Jacob Barnes’ contract has been selected.

As noted by The Athletic’s Corey Brock and other reporters, Kirby’s demotion isn’t about performance, but rather the Mariners’ plans to manage his workload.  Between Seattle’s off-day Monday and then the July 18-21 All-Star break, Kirby’s next big league outing likely isn’t coming until late July, though he’ll probably get a couple of brief outings at Triple-A to stay warm.

This will actually be Kirby’s first time at Triple-A ball, as the M’s promoted him straight from Double-A in early May.  Between the majors and minors this season, Kirby has tossed 89 total innings — already the most he has tossed over four pro seasons.  While some pundits disagree about the old “Verducci Effect” rule of thumb about the dangers of a big inning increase for young arms, Kirby’s previous season high was 67 2/3 frames in 2021, and of course Kirby didn’t pitch in any official games at all in 2020 due to the canceled minor league season.

With a 14-3 record over their last 17 games, the Mariners have gotten back over the .500 mark and back into the hunt for a wild card berth.  Surely the team hopes Kirby can continue to be a big part of Seattle’s push to finally end its drought of postseason baseball, and that means picking and choosing when Kirby pitches in order to keep him as fresh as possible for big games in September (or, the M’s hope, even into October).

Some service-time elements could also be in play, in regards to Kirby’s future Super Two status.  The Mariners didn’t select Kirby to the MLB roster until May 8, so if he spends two weeks in Triple-A, that could put him on the borderline for future Super Two consideration if a future cutoff point is on the higher side.  Missing on a fourth arbitration-eligible year would cost Kirby some serious money, though he will be getting some bonus this year under the new collective bargaining agreement’s performance bonus program for pre-arb players.  As well, Kirby would automatically lock in a full year of service time and even more bonus money if he scores a top-two finish in AL Rookie Of The Year voting, though several other impressive AL rookies (including teammate Julio Rodriguez) seem favored for higher finishes in the balloting.

Kirby has looked good in his first taste of the big leagues, posting a 3.78 ERA/3.45 SIERA over 64 1/3 innings for Seattle.  The 20th overall pick of the 2019 draft has allowed a lot of hard contact and his Statcast numbers aren’t overly impressive, but Kirby has an elite 3.3% walk rate that ranks in the 99th percentile of all pitchers.

Barnes posted a 6.10 ERA over 20 2/3 innings with the Tigers this season before Detroit cut him loose in June, and the Mariners inked Barnes to a new minor league contract.  He has yet to pitch for the M’s at the big league level.  A solid relief arm with the Brewers in 2016-18, Barnes has been trying to recapture that form ever since, posting a 6.48 ERA over an even 100 innings with six different clubs over the last three-plus years.

Mariners, Jacob Barnes Agree To Minor League Deal

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The Mariners and reliever Jacob Barnes are in agreement on a minor league contract. He’ll report to Triple-A Tacoma, according to an announcement from Rainiers broadcaster Mike Curto (Twitter link).

Barnes was recently released by the Tigers. The righty cracked Detroit’s Opening Day roster after signing a minors pact over the winter, but the 2022 campaign has been a struggle. He tossed 20 2/3 innings across 22 outings but managed only a 6.10 ERA. Barnes’ 11.2% strikeout rate was the third-lowest mark among relievers with 20+ frames, and Detroit designated him for assignment last week.

Rough start notwithstanding, he’s a sensible depth add for the Mariners. Barnes’ lack of swing-and-miss in Detroit was surprising, as he’s typically been solid at missing bats. He fanned 25.8% of opponents last season between the Mets and Blue Jays. He’s two years removed from punching out over 30% of batters faced on a massive 15.2% swinging strike rate with the Angels. Control inconsistency and a propensity for hard contact led to grisly ERA totals in both seasons, but the swing-and-miss potential made him an intriguing middle innings option.

Barnes is still throwing his fastball (95.3 MPH) and cutter (88.9 MPH) quite hard, and the latter offering continued to miss bats at a decent rate this year. The four-seam was a major issue for Barnes in Detroit, but the M’s will take a no-risk look to see if they can tweak that offering to find better success.

Tigers Designate Jacob Barnes For Assignment

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The Tigers announced they’ve designated reliever Jacob Barnes for assignment and optioned outfielder Derek Hill to Triple-A Toledo. The moves open a pair of 26-man roster spots for right-hander Drew Hutchison and lefty Tyler Alexander, who will be added to the active roster tomorrow. Hutchison is being selected from Toledo, while Alexander will be reinstated from the 15-day injured list. Detroit’s 40-man roster count remains at 38.

Barnes signed a minor league deal over the offseason and broke camp with the club. The seven-year MLB veteran made 22 appearances for skipper A.J. Hinch, working primarily in lower-leverage situations. Barnes struggled to a 6.10 ERA through 20 2/3 innings, and of greater concern, saw his swing-and-miss propensity fall precipitously. He has generated swinging strikes on only 7.7% of his offerings, and his 11.2% strikeout rate is the fourth-lowest mark among the 160 relievers with 20+ innings pitched.

That’s a surprising development, as Barnes has typically posted solid strikeout and whiff numbers throughout his career. The velocity and spin on both his fastball and cutter are virtually unchanged relative to last season, but he’s simply not getting the kind of swing-and-miss to which he’s been accustomed. Barnes is out of minor league option years, so the Tigers had to designate him for assignment if they weren’t prepared to continue giving him opportunities to sort things out at the major league level.

Detroit will now have a week to trade the 32-year-old or place him on waivers. Given his rough start to the year, Barnes will probably land on the waiver wire. Even if he passes through unclaimed, he’d have the right to refuse a minor league assignment while still collecting the remainder of his $1.13MM salary by virtue of having surpassed five years of MLB service this season.

Hutchison returns to the big leagues for the second time in 2022. He made ten appearances earlier in the year after cracking the Opening Day roster, but Detroit designated him for assignment last month. Hutchison reached free agency after clearing waivers but re-signed on a minor league deal and worked his way back after five strong outings with the Mud Hens. The veteran has allowed only three runs in 9 2/3 innings with Toledo, punching out 13 batters with three walks.

A starting pitcher early in his career, the 31-year-old Hutchison has worked primarily in relief of late. That includes all of his early-season work in Detroit, where he tossed 15 2/3 innings of nine-run ball. Hutchison punched out 15 batters and issued 12 walks over that stretch, but he’s capable of shouldering multiple frames out of the bullpen and will presumably step into Barnes’ middle relief role.

Alexander, meanwhile, returns after a six-week absence. The southpaw started four times in April but suffered an elbow sprain that has kept him on the shelf since then. Originally targeted for a swing role, he’ll likely head right back into the rotation for a club that lost Casey Mize to a Tommy John procedure and has seen Matt Manning and Michael Pineda shelved due to long-term injury issues. Detroit will also be without Eduardo Rodríguez indefinitely as he attends to personal matters.

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