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Logan Kensing

Tigers Sign Omar Infante, 13 Others To Minors Deals

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The Tigers have announced a barrage of minor-league signings, most notably including a reunion with former Detroit infielder Omar Infante. Other players receiving Spring Training invites include pitchers Ruben Alaniz, William Cuevas, Logan Kensing, Dustin Molleken, as well as catcher Miguel Gonzalez.

Infante, who’ll soon turn 35, enjoyed two prior runs in the Motor City. His most recent stint came in 2012-13, with a strong final season leading him to land a four-year deal with the Royals. Things didn’t go well in Kansas City, where Infante scuffled to a .238/.269/.328 batting line over 1,179 plate appearances. He was cut loose in the middle of last year, leaving the Royals still on the hook for his $8MM salary this season.

The team also reached agreement on minors deals without a non-roster invite with a variety of other players: pitchers Johan Belisario, Endrys Briceno, Jeff Ferrell, Santiago Garrido, and Arcenio Leon along with infielders Argenis Diaz and Gustavo Nunez.

Minor MLB Transactions: 4/20/16

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Here are the day’s minor moves:

  • The Padres have selected the contract of second baseman Jemile Weeks and transferred lefty Buddy Baumann to the 60-day disabled list, per a club announcement. Weeks will step into the roster spot of infielder Cory Spangenberg, who has been placed on the 15-day disabled list due to a left quad strain. Weeks, 29, is a former first-round pick and the younger brother of veteran infielder Rickie Weeks, who is currently suiting up for the division-rival Diamondbacks. The younger Weeks was a fairly promising prospect with the A’s but hasn’t panned out at the big league level. He’s followed up a promising rookie campaign (.303/.340/.421 in 437 PAs in 2011) with a combined .226/.307/.311 in 574 plate appearances in parts of four seasons since that time.

Earlier Moves

  • Righty Logan Kensing has accepted an assignment to Triple-A with the Tigers after clearing outright waivers, MLB.com’s Jason Beck reports on Twitter. The veteran reliever hasn’t seen much MLB action of late, and only lasted 4 2/3 with Detroit before losing his roster spot. But the 33-year-old obviously feels as if another call-up could be in the future, as he could have elected free agency and looked for another organization. Over parts of nine MLB seasons, Kensing has compiled 181 2/3 innings of 5.70 ERA pitching with 7.8 K/9 against 4.9 BB/9.

Tigers Designate Logan Kensing For Assignment

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The Tigers have designated right-hander Logan Kensing for assignment in order to clear a spot on the roster for lefty Blaine Hardy, who was activated from the disabled list today, as MLB.com’s Jason Beck tweets.

The veteran Kensing, 33, appeared in three games with the Tigers, allowing a run on eight hits and two walks with one strikeout in 4 2/3 innings of work. The longtime Marlins hurler was absent from Major League Baseball from 2010-12, during which time he pitched in indy ball and the minor leagues with the Pirates and Yankees. He’s totaled just 20 2/3 innings in the Majors since his return in 2013, working to a 4.79 ERA. Kensing has also pitched at the Triple-A level for parts of nine minor league seasons, putting together a 3.46 ERA with 8.6 K/9 against 3.7 BB/9 in 276 innings.

Hardy, 29, gives the Tigers a solid left-handed arm to join manager Brad Ausmus’ bullpen. He’s spent the past two seasons as an effective reliever in Detroit, working to a 2.87 ERA in 100 1/3 innings. He’s averaged 7.7 K/9 against 3.8 BB/9 in that time while holding opposing left-handed batters to a pedestrian .227/.302/.301 batting line (202 plate appearances).

Minor MLB Transactions: 12/23/15

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We’ll track the day’s minor moves here:

  • Today’s Dodgers minor league additions include outfielders Alex Hassan and Rico Noel, the previously reported Lisalverto Bonilla, and righty Daniel Corcino, Eddy tweets. Hassan is an OBP specialist who bounced around quite a bit last year and has spent most of his time at the Triple-A level over the past several seasons. Noel, soon to turn 27, has big-time speed on the bases and cracked the Yankees’ roster late last year as a pinch runner. And the 25-year-old Corcino has at times looked like a reasonably promising young pitcher, but missed most of last year after Los Angeles claimed him off waivers from the Reds.
  • The Yankees have agreed to sign veteran righty Vinnie Pestano and catcher Sebastian Valle, Eddy adds on Twitter. Pestano, 30, has had some strong MLB campaigns in the past. But he only notched 11 2/3 big league frames last year with the Angels, though he’s posted impressive strikeout tallies at every level. Valle, a 25-year-old backstop from Mexico, spent most of his career in the Phillies organization before moving to the Pirates last year. He’s yet to reach the majors.
  • Joining the Mets on a minors deal is first baseman/outfielder Marc Krauss, per another Eddy tweet, along with pitchers Buddy Carlyle and Duane Below. Krauss has racked up 435 major league turns at the plate over the last three years, slashing .188/.255/.324. Carlyle, who just turned 38, has posted strong numbers in the upper minors and majors over the last several years.
  • The Padres have added pitchers Jose Dominguez and Carlos Pimentel on minor league deals, Eddy tweets. As Eddy notes, Dominguez has a live right arm while Pimentel was named the PCL’s pitcher of the year last season with the Cubs.

Earlier Updates

  • The Braves have added first baseman Nate Freiman on a minor league deal, Matt Eddy of Baseball America tweets. Recently released by the A’s, Freiman put up a meager .220/.279/.321 batting line last year at Triple-A but has shown more in recent years.
  • Heading to the Orioles on a minor league deal is outfielder Xavier Avery, Eddy also tweets. Avery, who’ll soon turn 26, spent time with three organizations last year at the Triple-A level and has yet to return to the majors since a 2012 debut in Baltimore.
  • Catcher Jhonatan Solano has signed a minor league deal with the Nationals that includes a major league camp invite, the club announced. Solano, 30, spent last year with the Marlins — his first season outside of the Washington organization. He’s never done much damage with the bat, but is a well-regarded receiver.
  • The Tigers also added several other players on MiLB pacts. In addition to making the Valdespin addition official, Detroit announced the signings of righties Logan Kensing, Melvin Mercedes, and Dustin Molleken as well as infielder Alberto Gonzalez and outfielder Nate Schierholtz. Mercedes and Molleken have spent the vast majority of their time in the minors, but the others all have ample big league experience. The 33-year-old Kensing allowed ten earned runs in 15 1/3 frames with the Mariners last year. Gonzalez, a seven-year MLB veteran, spent last year in the upper minors with the Detroit organization. And the 31-year-old Schierholtz failed to reach the majors last year after a string of eight seasons, playing instead for Japan’s Hiroshima Carp.
  • The Tigers have reached a minor league deal with infielder/outfielder Jordany Valdespin, Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com reports on Twitter. Valdespin, who turns 28 today, does not receive an invitation to major league camp, per MLB.com’s Jason Beck (also via Twitter). The Dominican utilityman has seen MLB action in each of the last four seasons, but made it into only two games with the Marlins last year. He slashed .291/.378/.371 over 457 plate appearances at the Triple-A level in 2015.

Mariners Claim Cody Martin From A’s, Release Logan Kensing

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The Mariners announced today that they’ve claimed right-hander Cody Martin off waivers from the A’s (Twitter link). To make room on the roster, right-hander Logan Kensing has been released.

The 26-year-old Martin began the year with the Braves and posted a 5.40 ERA in 21 1/3 innings there before being traded to Oakland in exchange for an international bonus slot in early July. Martin was hit hard in green and gold, though, yielding 14 runs across nine innings in four appearances (two starts). He does have a much better Triple-A track record, where he’s worked to a 4.02 ERA overall in parts of three seasons. Martin had a 2.88 ERA with the Braves’ Triple-A affiliate before struggling upon a move to the Pacific Coast League. He makes for a Major League ready depth piece for a Mariners team that could lose Hisashi Iwakuma to free agency and has seen both James Paxton and Taijuan Walker struggle with injuries.

The veteran Kensing, 33, has seen just 16 Major League innings since 2009 — 15 1/3 of which came with the Mariners this season. He allowed a 5.87 ERA in his return to the Majors. Kensing was up and down with the Marlins from 2004-09 posting a similar 5.81 ERA in 161 innings.

Mariners Designate Fernando Rodney For Assignment

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The Mariners have designated former closer Fernando Rodney for assignment, the club announced following Saturday’s loss to the White Sox.  In corresponding moves, the M’s also optioned righty Danny Farquhar to Triple-A, called up southpaw Roenis Elias and purchased the contract of right-hander Logan Kensing.

Thanks in large part to a 1.42 HR/9 (more than double his career average) and his lowest K/9 total (7.6) in four seasons, Rodney posted a 5.68 ERA over 50 2/3 IP this season, a performance that cost him his job as the Mariners’ closer.  It’s probably unlikely that Rodney will be claimed or traded during his DFA period given that he already cleared revocable trade waivers last week.  Rodney is still averaging 94.8mph on his fastball (same as last season) so it’s possible another team could look to sign the 38-year-old veteran as bullpen depth before the rosters expand on September 1.

The Mariners are responsible for the approximately $1.5MM in salary still owed to Rodney for the remainder of the season, except for the pro-rated portion of the minimum salary should Rodney sign elsewhere.  The right-hander signed a two-year, $14MM free agent deal in the 2013-14 offseason and performed extremely well in the contract’s first year, posting a 2.85 ERA, 10.3 K/9 and 2.71 K/BB rate over 66 1/3 innings en route to a league-best 48 saves.  Rodney and his new agents will undoubtedly point to his 2012-14 dominance when the righty looks for a new contract in free agency this year, though obviously this year’s numbers will greatly diminish his market.

Kensing has spent the last two seasons with the Mariners’ Triple-A affiliate, and he has a 2.30 ERA, 6.6 K/9 and 2.56 K/BB rate over 31 1/3 innings this season.  Kensing has appeared in just one Major League game since 2009, pitching two-thirds of an inning for the Rockies in 2013.

Minor Moves: Brignac, Kensing, Forsythe, Beltre

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Here are today’s minor moves:

  • Infielder Reid Brignac has accepted the Marlins’ assignment to Triple-A, SB Nation’s Chris Cotillo tweets. Brignac could instead have elected free agency upon being outrighted. The 29-year-old produced a hit and three walks in 17 MLB turns at bat this year. He owns a .219/.266/.310 slash over 922 career plate appearances at the major league level.
  • Righty Logan Kensing has signed a minor league deal with the Mariners, the club announced. Kensing, 32, worked to a 3.58 ERA last year in 88 frames at Triple-A Tacoma, registering 8.1 K/9 against 3.4 BB/9. Despite a single appearance with the Rockies in 2013, Kensing has not seen regular big league action since back in 2009. All said, he owns a 5.79 earned run average over his 161 2/3 innings in the majors.
  • Catcher Blake Forsythe is headed from the Athletics to the Phillies via trade, per Nashville Sounds broadcaster Jeff Hem (via Twitter; h/t Matt Rappa of Philliedelphia.com). The 25-year-old reached the Triple-A level for the first time this year after spending each of the last two seasons at the Double-A level with the Mets and then A’s organizations. He figures to provide organizational depth behind the dish for a club that is proceeding cautiously with former top prospect Tommy Joseph, who is being monitored for concussion symptoms.
  • The White Sox have released outfielder Engel Beltre, according to a tweet from Triple-A Charlotte. Beltre, 25, signed a minor league deal with Chicago over the winter. He had risen to the major league level in 2013, earning 42 plate appearances after putting up solid-enough numbers (for a speedy center fielder) in the upper minors in 2012-13. But Beltre was sidetracked by a broken leg last year, and was off to a slow start (.234/.268/.312) at Charlotte.

Minor Moves: Satin, Kensing, Romak, Orioles, Billings, Avery

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Here are today’s minor moves from around the league…

Earlier Updates

  • The D’Backs have agreed to terms on a minor league deal and a Spring Training invite with infielder/outfielder Jamie Romak, MLBTR’s Tim Dierkes tweeted today. The 29-year-old Romak, a client of Taurus Sports’ David Sloane, made his big league debut with the Dodgers in 2014 and collected his first hit in the Majors. The former fourth-rounder is a lifetime .258/.324/.474 hitter at Triple-A.
  • The Orioles announced the signings of infielder Paul Janish, right-hander Terry Doyle and outfielder Quincy Latimore to minor league contracts and invitations to big league Spring Training. SB Nation’s Chris Cotillo was the first to tweet Janish’s agreement, and Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com had previously reported that the team was working on a deal with him. Janish is the only one of the bunch that comes with MLB experience; the 32-year-old defensive specialist is a career .214/.284/.288 hitter in 1206 plate appearances between the Reds and Braves.
  • The Nationals announced that they have signed right-hander Bruce Billings to a minor league contract with an invite to Major League Spring Training. The 29-year-old Billings pitched four innings for the Yankees last season and split the season between the Yankees and Dodgers organizations. Overall, the veteran posted a 5.27 ERA with 6. K/9 and 3.3 BB/9 in 95 2/3 innings.
  • Outfielder Xavier Avery has inked a minor league deal with the Tigers and will receive a Spring Training invite as well, tweets SB Nation’s Chris Cotillo. The 24-year-old Avery spent last season with the Mariners after being acquired from the Orioles in the 2013 Mike Morse trade. Avery hit .275/.344/.413 with 10 homers and 31 steals, appearing at all three outfield spots for Seattle’s Triple-A affiliate in 2014.

Minor Moves: Joe Beimel, Logan Kensing, Manny Pina

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There were a few minor moves from earlier today that got lost in the arbitration shuffle:

  • Seattle has also inked southpaw Joe Beimel, tweets Tim Brown of Yahoo Sports. The 36-year-old last pitched in the bigs in 2011, but Brown says his velocity has returned after making a full recovery from Tommy John surgery.
  • The Mariners have signed righty Logan Kensing and catcher Manny Pina to minor league deals with Spring Training invites, according to the club's non-roster invitee page. Kensing, 31, has a 5.79 ERA in 161 2/3 MLB innings. He made one appearance last year for the Rockies, but last saw the show in 2009. Pina 26, has had two brief cups of coffee with the Royals. At Triple-A last year for the Kansas City organization, he put up a .228/.274/.359 triple-slash in 325 plate appearances.
  • Only one player remains in DFA limbo at the moment, per MLBTR's DFA Tracker: Carlos Peguero of the Mariners.

Rockies Outright Chris Volstad, Logan Kensing

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The Rockies have announced that Chris Volstad and Logan Kensing have cleared waivers and accepted outright assignments to Triple-A Colorado Springs (Twitter link).

Volstad was placed on waivers in order to clear a roster space for Roy Oswalt. The 26-year-old allowed 10 runs in 8 1/3 innings this season. He posted a 4.79 ERA with 3.3 K/9 and 3.1 BB/9 in 47 innings at Triple-A so far this season.

The 30-year-old Kensing pitched just two-thirds of an inning for the Rockies this season — his first big league action since 2009. The former second-round pick has a 5.79 ERA in 161 2/3 career innings with 8.0 K/9 and 5.0 BB/9. He's fared significantly better in Triple-A, though, where he owns a career 3.67 ERA with 9.2 K/9 and 3.9 BB/9.

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