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East Notes: Mets, Bautista, Rays, Hechavarria

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The latest on a pair of East Coast franchises…

  • Even if the Mets trade Jose Bautista this month, it’s “likely” they’ll attempt to re-sign the soon-to-be free agent prior to next season, Mike Puma of the New York Post hears (Twitter link). Signing Bautista, whom New York added May 22 shortly after the division-rival Braves released him, is one of the few moves that have paid off in a disastrous season for the Mets. The Blue Jays legend has slashed a useful .215/.364/.390 with six home runs in 214 plate appearances during his two-plus-month run with the Amazins. If he does continue his career in 2019, Bautista – who has primarily lined up in the outfield with the Mets after a short-lived third base experiment with the Braves – will play his age-38 campaign.
  • The belief is Rays shortstop Adeiny Hechavarria has cleared waivers, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times tweets. If true, the Rays could trade Hechavarria to any team. Tampa Bay designated Hechavarria this week after watching the 29-year-old offer his usual blend of weak offense and strong defense in 2018. Hechavarria hit just .258/.289/.332 in 237 PAs, but he did total four Defensive Runs Saved in the field. He’s due around $1.9MM for the rest of the season, Topkin notes.
  • Back to the Mets, who are in the midst of increasing catcher Kevin Plawecki’s playing time as they look toward 2019, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com writes. Plawecki started for the fourth time in five games Saturday and, per DiComo, is a lock to return to the Mets next season. The only question is whether the 27-year-old will start or serve as a backup. Current starter Devin Mesoraco is set to hit free agency in the offseason, meaning he’ll cede playing time to Plawecki down the stretch. The Mets can still control catcher Travis d’Arnaud for another season via arbitration, but injuries have long haunted the 29-year-old – including in 2018, which ended for him in early April on account of a UCL tear in his right elbow. Shortly after, the Mets lost Plawecki to a hairline fracture in his left hand, but he was able to return in late May. Injury aside, this has been a decent offensive season for Plawecki, who has slashed .231/.345/.372 in 142 PAs. Plawecki is scheduled to go through his first of four potential trips through arbitration over the winter.

Deadline Chatter: Beltre, Outfielders, Starters, Bucs/Friars, Romo

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Here are the latest rumors from around the game on the eve of the non-waiver trade deadline:

  • The Red Sox and Braves have each at least held talks with the Rangers on third baseman Adrian Beltre, per Evan Drellich of NBC Sports Boston and Morosi. It’s not at all clear, though, that either club is going to push hard enough to get Texas to move the veteran. Indeed, talks with Atlanta may already have sputtered, MLB.com’s TR Sullivan tweets. He adds that there is some indication the Red Sox aren’t actually all that inclined to go after Beltre, so much as the future Hall of Famer likes the idea of going back to Boston, and Rob Bradford of WEEI.com hears there’s not much of a connection between the clubs (Twitter link). In addition to other hurdles, Beltre’s no-trade rights present an obstacle. ESPN.com’s Jerry Crasnick notes on Twitter that Beltre may not wish to go somewhere if he isn’t going to receive regular playing time. In any event, to this point, Beltre has not been presented with any possible trades to consider, Joel Sherman of the New York Post tweets.
  • When it comes to rental outfielders, there aren’t a huge number of appealing options. But there are certainly some veterans drawing interest. The Yankees and Phillies have put out feelers on Curtis Granderson of the Blue Jays, per Morosi (Twitter link). Granderson isn’t the only notable name on the Phils’ radar, as Heyman connects the organization to the Mets and Jose Bautista, via Twitter. Meanwhile, the Marlins are still dangling outfielder Cameron Maybin, per Jon Heyman of Fancred (via Twitter). Among the clubs that are at least considering him are the Indians, Yankees, and Mariners.
  • Some of the most interesting potential trade candidates, of course, won’t end up going anywhere. Indications are that some top hurlers will stay at home. It does not appear that any rivals have made a real push to force the Mets to part with righty Jacob deGrom, per Jon Heyman of Fancred (on Twitter). Despite “some late action” on Noah Syndergaard, Andy Martino of SNY.tv tweets, it still seems there’s nothing brewing there. Meanwhile, the Orioles don’t appear to have been enthused with trade offers for top pitchers Kevin Gausman and Dylan Bundy (or their other controllable players), Heyman indicates in a tweet.
  • The Pirates and Padres appear to have quite a lot to talk about, as Ken Rosenthal and Rob Biertempfel of The Athletic report (in a tweet) that the Pittsburgh organization has “aggressively pursued” pitching from San Diego. It’s not evident which hurler the Bucs are eyeing, though Rosenthal suggests that veteran Craig Stammen could be a sensible target. Stammen and Kirby Yates appear to be the likeliest remaining trade chips in the Padres’ pen, owing to their quality output and relatively short remaining control rights (one year and two years, respectively).
  • While the present focus is on another member of the Rays pitching staff, reliever Sergio Romo is drawing quite a lot of looks, per Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times (via Twitter). Romo is affordable ($2.5MM salary), battle-tested in October, and still capable of getting outs in the majors at 35 years of age. Romo’s swinging-strike rate is down to 12.6%, his lowest since 2009, but he’s carrying a 3.69 ERA through 46 1/3 innings on the season.
  • If you’re looking for more reading, check out the latest column from Jerry Crasnick of ESPN.com. He runs through a variety of situations, including the Giants’ in-between position, the Twins’ struggles to market Brian Dozier, and more. Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports also has quite a bit of chatter in his latest column, some of which we’ve already highlighted on the site. Among other items of interest, Passan checks in on the Brewers’ efforts to find a starter, suggesting they are a prime suitor for Zach Wheeler of the Mets.

Trade Chatter: Braves, Eovaldi, Indians, Mets, Harvey, Moose

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Braves GM Alex Anthopoulos suggested today that he’s not looking only to make a minor addition or two. Rather, as Jim Bowden of MLB Network Radio on Sirius XM tweets, the Atlanta executive says his club “can afford to add a starter and reliever and a bat.” And the organization won’t just be considering adding supplemental temporary pieces; rather, per Anthopolous, “we are looking for acquisitions on players we can control rather than rentals.” Needless to say, those comments tend to expand the conceivable array of possibilities for the Braves. With a healthy array of prospects available to deal from, the Braves could certainly make a run at a player who’d be viewed as a major present and future asset.

Here’s more trade chatter from the day …

  • MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand pegs the Cubs as a possible Nathan Eovaldi suitor. It’s easy to see the connection: the Rays right-hander holds out some real promise of being a weapon down the stretch, but his injury history and thin recent track record will likely limit the return the Tampa Bay organization can achieve. Meanwhile, the Cubs are arguably well-positioned to take a risk on a dynamic arm, as they have a decent array of at-least serviceable hurlers already on hand and also perhaps lack the upper-level prospect capital to chase down a more valuable commodity.
  • Unsurprisingly, Feinsand further reports, the Indians are working hard to make an outfield addition. The club would prefer a player that’s capable of playing both center and right field, he notes. Perhaps the slate of targets depends most of all upon the degree to which the club feels it needs innings up the middle. Certainly, there are quite a few outfield possibilities listed among MLBTR’s top 75 trade deadline candidates. Among them, though, only a few really have significant experience in center. And the most obvious candidates that do — Curtis Granderson and Adam Jones — perhaps aren’t optimal up-the-middle defenders at this stage. (That’s not to say that either of those two names is currently of interest to Cleveland, though the organization has previously been tied to Jones.)
  • While the focus is on the pitching staff, the Mets are getting some hits on mid-season acquisitions Jose Bautista and Devin Mesoraco, per Mike Puma of the New York Post (via Twitter). Both players are headed for the open market at season’s end, though they are in different contractual situations otherwise. Bautista is playing for the league minimum, while the Mets owe Mesoraco some real cash. (Per reports at the time Mesoraco was acquired for Matt Harvey, the Reds sent money sufficient to pay down the difference in the two players’ salaries, suggesting that the Mets still are responsible for the balance of a $5.6MM annual salary.) It seems reasonable to anticipate that both players will be moved. Since joining the Mets, Bautista has produced a strong .235/.396/.432 batting line and Mesoraco has sported a league-average bat while lining up behind the dish.
  • Speaking of Harvey, he’s also a potential trade chip after a mostly sturdy showing thus far with the Reds. ESPN.com’s Jerry Crasnick runs down the latest on his market, noting that the Mariners and Brewers have poked around a bit on the former ace. Both teams, presumably, see Harvey as a potential upgrade over internal options, though certainly there’s not much to commend him as a front-line hurler at this stage. Through 68 frames in Cincinnati, Harvey is carrying a mid-nineties heater. But he still hasn’t rebounded in the swinging-strike department and owns only a 4.50 ERA with 6.8 K/9 and 2.0 B/9.
  • The Brewers are evidently open to being rather creative, as MLB.com’s Jon Morosi tweets that they have actually considered the idea of bumping Travis Shaw to second base to facilitate the acquisition of Royals third baseman Mike Moustakas. That’s a bit of an eyebrow-raising concept at first glance, given that Shaw — who’s listed at 6’4 and 230 pounds — has never lined up at second base as a professional. While Moustakas figures to help out some contending organization, it’s not as if he’s a unique piece on the market. And there are quite a few accomplished hitters available who have experience up the middle.

Trade Chatter: Britton, Merrifield, Mets, Beltre, Braves

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Zach Britton’s most recent outing was an encouraging one for scouts, writes Jon Heyman of Fancred in his latest notes column. One scout tells Heyman that the Orioles’ closer was finally beginning to look like himself in a recent save against the Yankees. Heyman notes that Britton was throwing 96-98 mph, although data from both Fangraphs and Brooks Baseball isn’t quite as bullish as that scout’s radar gun was. Certainly, though, Britton’s past few outings have been encouraging. In five scoreless frames, he’s averaged a slightly improved 95 mph on his heater and posted a strong 66.7 percent grounder rate with four strikeouts against one walk. Britton has thrown a first-pitch strike to just 41 percent of the hitters he’s faced in that time, and his ground-ball rate, velocity and swinging-strike rate are all still shy of his peak levels. Nonetheless, he’s certainly trending in the right direction — a welcome sight for the Orioles. Heyman notes that the Astros are believed to once again have interest in Britton after the Orioles backed out of a trade involving him last season, which would’ve sent Colin Moran and a Double-A outfielder to Baltimore.

Some more Thursday night trade rumblings…

  • Heyman also notes that he’s heard the Red Sox mentioned in connection with Royals second baseman Whit Merrifield. The 29-year-old has reportedly drawn interest from the Phillies and from the Brewers already, and the Sox would be a logical addition to that market, depending on the status of Dustin Pedroia. As Heyman notes, Merrifield is particularly enticing for the Sox given his minimal salary and their proximity to the top tier of luxury tax penalization. He’s shown, too, that he can play a number of positions, which would make him ideal for a utility role if the Sox get everyone healthy. That said, there’s no characterization of particularly strong interest in the report, the Sox have a thin farm system, and the Royals are under no urgency to trade Merrifield, who is controlled through 2022. Bullpen help has been rumored to be Boston’s primary focus on the trade market so far.
  • One more from Heyman, who notes that the Mets aren’t especially anxious to listen to offers on lefty Steven Matz. New York will certainly entertain offers on its entire roster, as they’re at least listening on Jacob deGrom and Noah Syndergaard, but it sounds like Matz is closer to that pair than to the more available Zack Wheeler. The report also indicates that offers for Asdrubal Cabrera, to this point, have been underwhelming and that the Mets have actually received some inquiries about Jose Bautista, who was hitting .230/.389/.425 in 144 PAs for the Mets before homering in tonight’s contest.
  • Sticking with the Mets, Mike Puma of the New York Post reports that the team actually hasn’t received much in the way of inquiries on eiher deGrom or Syndergaard as of late (Twitter link). The general sense that the asking price would be overwhelming could be a factor; as Puma terms it, some teams may have sticker shock “without even seeing the sticker.” Puma also tweets, though, that the Mets are “confident” they’ll find a trade partner for Cabrera. That, he adds, would open a spot for 26-year-old Jeff McNeil — a potentially late-blooming prospect who has batted a combined .346/.417/.634 with 18 homers in 336 plate appearances between Double-A and Triple-A.
  • Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News takes a look at the situation in which the Rangers find themselves with Adrian Beltre. The third baseman has full no-trade rights and has not yet given indication about whether he’d prefer to play out the season with a contender, though he has said he wants to play with the Rangers again in 2019. “His value to the organization is above how we would normally consider trade acquisitions,” GM Jo Daniels tells Grant. “For us to consider anything, it’s got to be mutually beneficial, good for all parties involved.” Beltre, 39, hasn’t shown much pop but is hitting .288/.349/.401 on the season. He’s been DHing more of late in an effort to keep his legs healthy.
  • Though the Braves have a number of wants on the trade market — specifically upgrades to the pitching staff — they’re reluctant to trade any prospects of note for a rental piece, reports Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic within his latest notes column (subscription required). Rosenthal also notes that a right-handed-hitting center field option to pair with Ender Inciarte would be appealing, though Inciarte’s glovework is so good that it lessens the blow of his 2018 struggles against lefties.

Mets Could Demote Michael Conforto

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Mets outfielder Michael Conforto looked like one of the brightest young stars in baseball last season, his age-24 campaign, when he slashed .279/.384/.555 with 27 home runs and racked up 4.3 fWAR. Conforto piled up those stellar numbers over just 440 plate appearances before undergoing season-ending left shoulder surgery in early September, and because of that injury, the Mets went into the winter unsure of what he’d provide in 2018.

To Conforto’s credit, he worked his way back to the Mets’ lineup a few weeks earlier than expected, making his season debut on April 5. At that point, New York was amid a red-hot start that would see the team collect 11 wins in its first 12 games. Two months later, the Mets are a lowly 27-34, owners of the third-worst record in the National League and the NL’s second-worst offense by runs scored (235).

Even though he owns the majors’ 11th-best walk percentage (15.1), Conforto hasn’t really been part of the solution, having hit an uninspiring .219/.340/.365 line with seven homers in 212 PAs. The Mets even pinch-hit for him in the ninth inning of a one-run loss to the Yankees on Saturday, electing to sit the left-handed Conforto in favor of the righty-swinging Devin Mesoraco with southpaw Aroldis Chapman on the mound.

Unfortunately for Conforto, there may be a more significant demotion on the way if he doesn’t turn his season around soon. The Mets have considered sending Conforto to Triple-A Las Vegas to work through his issues, Joel Sherman of the New York Post reports. The likelihood of that has decreased over the past day, Sherman notes, given that fellow outfielder Yoenis Cespedes suffered a setback in his injury rehab on Saturday. Had Cespedes remained on track, New York may well have optioned Conforto upon the veteran’s return. For his part, Conforto – whom the Mets previously sent to the minors during a disappointing 2016 – doesn’t believe he’d benefit from another trip to Vegas.

“Triple-A is not an answer. I’ve been through that,” he said. “I have done all I can do down there. I play at this level, that’s it.”

While Conforto understandably wants to remain in the majors, the Mets may have an outfield logjam on their hands when Cespedes does come back. He and the emergent Brandon Nimmo will be guaranteed starting jobs, manager Mickey Callaway informed Sherman, leaving one everyday spot for the struggling Jay Bruce (in the first season of a three-year, $39MM contract) and Conforto. Both players are lefty hitters, so the Mets wouldn’t be able to simply platoon them, and Conforto has options remaining. As such, the Mets may send him down so he’ll continue receiving consistent at-bats.

In another scenario, Sherman points out that Bruce and/or Cespedes could see time at first, which would perhaps spell the end of the Adrian Gonzalez era. The Mets brought Gonzalez in over the winter as a league-minimum free agent, but it hasn’t worked to this point. They’re mulling how much longer they want to go with Gonzalez, Jose Reyes and Jose Bautista – three mid-30-somethings whose best days appear long gone. Moving on from some or all of that group instead of demoting Conforto would seem to make more sense for a New York club that doesn’t look as if it’s going to contend this season, though it seems Conforto’s going to have to make a case for a roster spot as the team awaits Cespedes’ return.

While Conforto’s bottom-line production has declined this year, his underlying numbers have also worsened. After running up a .385 expected weighted on-base average a year ago, he’s at .332 this season. That’s still above the .321 league average, though it’s not the borderline elite figure he posted in 2017, when he averaged a 95.2 mph exit velocity on fly balls/line drives and made 95 mph-plus contact on 43.2 percent of batted balls. This season, Conforto has posted a 92.3 mph mean on flies/liners and seen his rate of 95 mph-plus contact drop to 32.8. Further, Conforto’s line drive rate has dropped off considerably since 2017 (from 24.4 percent to 17.7), while both his groundball percentage (37.8 to 41.9) and infield fly rate (10.1 percent to 14.0) have increased to discouraging degrees.

All of the above has helped add up to Conforto’s subpar start and may lead to a minor league demotion sometime soon. For now, he and his team, losers of eight straight (all at home), are left to dig out of a deep hole. Having scored just 10 runs this month, during which Conforto has batted .080/.207/.200 in 29 PAs, the Mets sit 8.5 games out in both their division and a crowded NL wild-card race.

Mets Sign Jose Bautista

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The Mets have signed Jose Bautista to a one-year, Major League contract, the team announced via Twitter.  The veteran slugger has already been added to the Mets’ roster and is available for tonight’s game; Phillip Evans was optioned to Triple-A in a corresponding move.  MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo reported earlier today that the two sides were progressing towards a contract, and FanRag Sports’ Jon Heyman reported that an agreement had been reached.  The deal will pay Bautista a Major League minimum salary, Heyman tweets.

With Yoenis Cespedes and Todd Frazier both on the DL, Bautista provides a right-handed bat capable of playing both third base and in the corner outfield.  Bautista could also spell Adrian Gonzalez and Jay Bruce (both lefty swingers) at first base, to boot.  The Mets’ media release about the signing (as noted by The Athletic’s Tim Britton) made particular mention of Bautista’s .913 OPS against southpaw pitching during his recent stint with the Braves, so it could be that New York will specifically deploy Bautista as a lefty masher.

Bautista only hit .143/.250/.343 overall during his brief time with Atlanta, with his success in 20 PA against lefties counterbalanced by a measly .308 OPS against right-handed pitchers.  It’s hard to draw too many conclusions from such a small sample size, of course, though given that Bautista didn’t get a proper Spring Training (he only signed with the Braves in mid-April) and he is coming off a sub-replacement year with the Blue Jays in 2017, it certainly seems like the 37-year-old might best be suited for part-time duty at this stage in his career.

This is technically Bautista’s second stint in the Mets organization, as he was initially acquired by the team back on July 30, 2004 in a trade with the Royals for righty Justin Huber.  On that very same day, however, Bautista was dealt as part of a three-player package to the Pirates for Kris Benson and Jeff Keppinger.  One can’t really fault for the Mets for not knowing what they had at the time, as it wasn’t until 2010 that Bautista broke out as one of the game’s premier sluggers with a 54-homer season for the Blue Jays.

That was the first of six superstar-level years for Bautista in Toronto, and he was still a solidly above-average bat as recently as 2016, though he was starting to show some of the signs of the decline that led to his ruinous 2017 campaign.  Since the Mets needed some right-handed hitting, though, there isn’t much risk on the team’s end in signing Bautista to the low-cost deal to see if he can recapture any of his old form, particularly if Bautista’s exposure to right-handed pitching is limited.

Mets Close To A Deal With Jose Bautista

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4:34PM: A deal between Bautista and the Mets is “close,” according to SNY’s Andy Martino (Twitter link).

TODAY, 3:59PM: The two sides are still working towards a contract, MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo reports (Twitter link), and it seems if “they should have an answer one way or another as soon as today.”  There could also be more than one team interested in Bautista’s services.

YESTERDAY: The Mets are “showing interest” in veteran slugger Jose Bautista, according to Mike Puma of the New York Post (via Twitter). The 37-year-old is back on the open market after being released by the Braves over the weekend.

It is not clear at this point how the Mets would envision utilizing Bautista, if a deal comes together. The veteran had lined up at third base for Atlanta, though there won’t be an opening at the hot corner in New York once Todd Frazier returns from the DL. Bautista would potentially represent a right-handed-hitting corner outfield option while Yoenis Cespedes is on the shelf.

Of course, it could also simply be that the Mets see Bautista as a possible upper-level depth piece. Whether he’d be willing to sign without at least a plan in place to return to the majors, though, is not immediately clear.

Clearly, things did not turn out as hoped for Bautista with the Braves. He had managed only a .143/.250/.343 slash over forty plate appearances in a dozen games. Though he was drawing walks in over 12% of his plate appearances, Bautista had gone down on strikes in three of every ten trips to the dish — far above his typical levels in that regard.

All that being said, it’s clearly too small a sample for the numbers to say anything definitive, and the Mets’ front office may believe there’s still some cause for optimism for a player who was not long ago one of the game’s best hitters. Plus, the fact that he is up to speed at third, and could still be used at first base or the corner outfield, does give Bautista some added versatility. The right-handed-hitting Bautista could fit reasonably well on the Mets’ current roster, which features a lefty-heavy outfield and southpaw-swinging veteran Adrian Gonzalez at first base.

Braves Release Jose Bautista

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The Braves have released third baseman Jose Bautista, Mark Bowman of MLB.com tweets. In a corresponding move, the club recalled right-hander Lucas Sims from Triple-A to fill its vacant roster spot.

The Bautista experiment was a short-lived one for Atlanta, which signed the former superstar to a minor league deal on April 18. The move reunited Bautista with Braves general manager Alex Anthopoulos, who was the Blue Jays’ GM for some of the slugger’s highly successful tenure in Toronto. Bautista was primarily an outfielder during that period, but the Braves signed him to line up at third – a position he hadn’t played extensively since 2011.

To the 37-year-old Bautista’s credit, he worked his way to the Braves rather quickly, as they selected his contract on May 4. However, the six-time All-Star was unproductive in his two-plus weeks with the first-place club, hitting .143/.250/.343 with a 30 percent strikeout rate over a small sample of 40 plate appearances. And unsurprisingly, he also drew negative marks (minus-2 Defensive Runs Saved, minus-0.3 Ultimate Zone Rating) in his return to the hot corner, albeit over just 61 innings.

Although Bautista did display some of his signature power (two home runs, .200 ISO) as a Brave and post a respectable 12.5 percent walk rate, it’s fair to wonder if he’ll ever receive another big league opportunity. Not only has Bautista’s once-great offensive game fallen off a cliff since the end of the 2016 campaign, but he no longer seems capable of providing any value in the field or on the bases. Nevertheless, Bautista isn’t ready to retire, according to Anthopoulos, who added that the Braves would welcome him back at the Triple-A level if he’s interested in returning to Gwinnett (via David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution).

With Bautista out of the picture in Atlanta, the club will turn to Johan Camargo as its everyday third baseman, Anthopoulos revealed (per O’Brien). Along with the 24-year-old Camargo, who has logged above-average offensive results since debuting last season, the Braves have Ryan Flaherty, Charlie Culberson, Phil Gosselin and Rio Ruiz on hand as 40-man fallback options. The most talented third baseman in the organization may be 21-year-old prospect Austin Riley, who just ascended to Triple-A and could perhaps reach the majors at some point this season.

In the event Riley doesn’t debut this year and the Braves don’t receive quality production from their veteran third basemen in the coming months, they may opt for an upgrade via trade. The up-and-coming Braves look as if they’ll remain in contention through the July 31 trade deadline, even though it’s still a ways off, and there should be some significant talent available then. Manny Machado, Josh Donaldson (whom Anthopoulos previously acquired in Toronto), Adrian Beltre and Mike Moustakas are among those who could pique the Braves’ interest in the next couple months.

Braves Activate Dansby Swanson, Option Matt Wisler

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The Braves have activated shortstop Dansby Swanson from the 10-day disabled list. In a corresponding move, they’ve optioned Matt Wisler to Triple-A Gwinnett.

Swanson hit the DL earlier this month due to left wrist inflammation. He was off to a solid start, hitting .289/.336/.430 prior to the injury, and the Braves will surely be hoping he can build on those numbers after a somewhat up-and-down start to his major league career. The former number one overall pick produced at about replacement level last season (according to fWAR) after a hot debut at the tail end of the 2016 season.

Swanson’s activation is likely to impact the playing time of Johan Camargo, Jose Bautista or both. Bautista has certainly been unimpressive to this point, posting a .143/.250/.343 slash line and serving as a defensive liability, but it’s fair to think he might get a longer look in the Braves’ lineup. Perhaps, then, Johan Camargo could slide into a utility role while the club waits to see if Bautista can heat up to his career norms.

Wisler has been shuttled back and forth multiple times already this season, most recently pitching 5 1/3 innings of two-run ball while striking out five Marlins. Once highly regarded enough to serve as the key return piece in the Craig Kimbrel trade, Wisler hasn’t lived up to expectations and now appears to be little more than a depth piece as multiple young starters have seemingly leapfrogged him on the depth chart.

Braves Select Jose Bautista’s Contract, Option Preston Tucker

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1:38pm: The Braves have now announced that Bautista’s contract has been select. Outfielder Preston Tucker was optioned to Triple-A to open a spot on the active roster for Bautista.

After a blistering start to the season, Tucker’s bat has unsurprisingly come back down to Earth in recent weeks. He’s posted a .218/.246/.364 slash over his past 57 plate appearances with the Braves.

9:32am: David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal Constitution tweets that the Braves are adding Bautista to the MLB roster today.

9:24am: The Braves are expected to add Jose Bautista to their lineup tonight, reports Mark Bowman of MLB.com (via Twitter). Atlanta will need to formally select the contract of Bautista, who signed a minor league deal with the Braves last month. Atlanta announced in April that the longtime Blue Jays star will play third base in their organization. The Braves currently have three openings on the 40-man roster, so they’ll only need to make a corresponding 25-man roster move to add Bautista.

Bautista, of course, was primarily a third baseman before breaking out with the Jays and settling in as their right fielder for the better part of a decade. He’s played just 38 innings at the position in the four years prior to signing with Atlanta, however, all of which came last year in Toronto. Bautista hasn’t seen even semi-regular action at the hot corner since 2011, and even then he logged just 205 innings at the position in that entire season.

The 37-year-old slugger has gotten off to a solid start with Atlanta’s top affiliate, hitting .250/.386/.361 with a homer, a double and six walks against eight strikeouts through 44 plate appearances. As Bowman notes, the home run and double came within the past few days, as Bautista’s bat has begun to heat up a bit as he’s shaken off some of the rust after sitting out Spring Training entirely.

Bautista will be looking to rebound from a dreary 2017 season in which he hit just .203/.308/.366. While Bautista still slugged 23 homers and walked at an above-average 12.2 percent clip, his strikeout rate jumped to a career-worst 24.8 percent as his contact rate plummeted from 80.2 percent to 73.3 percent. The biggest flaw for Bautista was a sudden inability to hit fastballs; a career .246/.374/.519 hitter against four-seamers, Bautista flailed ineffectively at four-seam fastballs in 2017, hitting just .198/.294/.365 against them.

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