• Blue Jays lefty Jeff Beliveau has cleared waivers and been outrighted to Triple-A, per a club announcement. He had been designated for assignment recently after posting rough results over 19 MLB innings. The 30-year-old did manage 9.8 K/9 during his time in the majors, and was striking out over a dozen per nine at Triple-A this year. But he allowed four long balls in just 15 2/3 innings and had not generated much soft contact. The announcement seemingly suggests that Beliveau will take the assignment at Buffalo, though he’s not yet listed on the roster and would have the right to choose free agency.

Earlier Updates

• Righty Lucas Harrell has accepted an assignment with the Blue Jays’ top affiliate, per a club announcement. Depending upon the team’s deadline moves, perhaps it won’t be a lengthy detour. Harrell, 32, was knocked around in 6 1/3 big league innings this year after making nine useful starts last year at the game’s highest level.
• The Mets added righty Jonathan Albaladejo on a minors deal, the team announced (h/t Marc Carig of Newsday, on Twitter). The former big leaguer had been pitching for the indy ball Bridgeport Bluefish. Now 34, Albaladejo hasn’t tasted the majors since a brief showing in 2012. Over 66 total appearances in the big leagues, he owns a 4.34 ERA with 6.6 K/9 and 3.8 BB/9.
• The Rockies have acquired lefty Will Lamb from the White Sox, with an announcement confirming a tweet from Robert Murray of Fan Rag (via Twitter). It’s not known what Chicago will receive in return, but it’s surely reflective of Lamb’s struggles. While the former second-rounder has produced good results in brief stops at Double-A in recent years, he has been knocked around at the highest level of the minors. Over 120 1/3 total Triple-A frames, Lamb carries a 6.06 ERA with 7.8 K/9 and 4.6 BB/9.

• Righty Jumbo Diaz is a free agent after rejecting an outright assignment from the Rays, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports on Twitter. The bulky 33-year-old had a solid 2016 campaign but scuffled upon arriving in Tampa Bay. In his thirty innings, he was touched for a 5.70 ERA with 8.4 K/9 and 4.5 BB/9.
• The Blue Jays have outrighted righty Lucas Harrell to Triple-A, per a club announcement. He’ll have the option of rejecting that assignment. Harrell, 32, turned in six solid starts at Triple-A before earning a call-up, but was knocked around in his four appearances with the Jays.
• Right-hander Tyrell Jenkins has been released by the Padres, according to the MLB.com transactions page. Jenkins, who just turned 25, had a 14-appearance taste of the majors last year with the Braves, but struggled badly. He had generally performed quite well in the upper minors previously, but coughed up 71 earned runs on 111 hits in his 82 1/3 Triple-A frames in the Padres organization this season.
• The Diamondbacks have inked righty David Carpenter to a minors deal, per a club announcement from the indy ball Bridgeport Bluefish. Once a quality MLB reliever, Carpenter washed out of the majors with arm issues. He posted a 1.91 ERA and racked up 45 strikeouts in his 37 2/3 innings on the year.
• Catcher Steve Clevenger has signed with the Atlantic League’s Lancaster Barnstormers, Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com reports (Twitter link). Clevenger lost his job with the Mariners last year after a Twitter controversy. The 31-year-old will be looking to earn his way back into the affiliated ranks.
• The Twins have added righty Michael Kohn on a minors deal, LaVelle E. Neal III of the Star Tribune reports (Twitter links). He’ll continue rehabbing a rotator cuff injury that has kept him off the mound since 2015. Kohn previously turned in 115 innings of 3.52 ERA ball — but with 6.2 walks to go with his 8.7 strikeouts per nine — in parts of five seasons of MLB action.
• Outfielder Michael Choice is heading to the KBO, as the Brewers announced they’ve sold his contract to the Nexen Heroes. Still just 27 years of age, the former top prospect was released by the Orioles after struggling early this year at Triple-A. But he has found his groove at Double-A Biloxi, slashing .272/.349/.503 over 195 plate appearances.

Signed to a minor league pact this offseason, the 32-year-old Harrell made his way to the Jays’ big league roster earlier this month and made four appearances out of the bullpen. In 6 1/3 innings, Harrell yielded five runs on 10 hits and four walks with six strikeouts, resulting in an unsightly 7.11 ERA. He’s had a nice season for the Jays’ Triple-A affiliate in limited action, though, pitching to a 2.11 ERA with a 15-to-8 K/BB ratio through 21 1/3 innings.

Harrell logged a 4.21 ERA in 47 innings between the Braves and Rangers last season and has totaled 455 big league innings to date. In that time, he has a career 4.81 ERA with 6.1 K/9 and 4.5 BB/9 between the White Sox, Astros, Braves, Rangers and Jays. The veteran seems fairly likely to make it through waivers, at which point he could either accept or reject an outright assignment back to Triple-A. However, a team in need of some short-term rotation depth or long relief could opt to grab Harrell and plug him into the 25-man roster.

Parmley, whom the Blue Jays chose in the seventh round of the 2012 draft, made his major league debut last week but failed to reach base in any of his four plate appearances. The 27-year-old has spent nearly the entire season at Triple-A Buffalo, where he has hit .289/.332/.369 with one home run and 11 stolen bases in 205 PAs.

Unlike Parmley, Harrell has a fairly extensive big league track record. The 32-year-old is now set to put on his fifth major league uniform since debuting with the White Sox in 2010. The majority of Harrell’s action has come in Houston, where he pitched from 2011-14 and turned in two seasons of 150-plus innings. At his best, Harrell registered a 3.76 ERA, 6.51 K/9, 3.62 BB/9 and a 57.2 percent ground-ball rate across 193 2/3 frames in 2012.

After his run with the Astros ended, Harrell spent 2015 with the LG Twins of the Korea Baseball Organization. He resurfaced stateside last season and pitched in both the majors and minors with the Rangers and Braves organizations. In nine starts and 47 big league innings, Harrell logged a 4.21 ERA, 6.89 K/9, 4.79 BB/9 and a 44.3 percent grounder rate. He signed a minor league deal with the Jays over the winter and has combined for 27 2/3 frames between Double-A and Triple-A this season.

[Related: Updated Toronto Blue Jays Depth Chart]

The 31-year-old Harrell returned to the Majors in 2016 after spending the 2015 season with the LG Twins of the Korea Baseball Organization. Last year, after inking a minor league contract with Atlanta, Harrell reemerged in the Majors and tossed 47 innings of 4.21 ERA ball with 6.9 K/9, 4.8 BB/9 and a 44.3 percent ground-ball rate in nine starts between the Braves and Rangers.

Harrell’s best season came with the 2012 Astros, when he hurled 193 2/3 innings of 3.76 ERA ball and averaged 6.5 K/9 against 3.6 BB/9 to go along with a sensational 57.2 percent ground-ball rate. He’s lost about a mile on his fastball since that time, however, and his ground-ball tendencies last season were clearly diminished.

Toronto’s rotation is largely set (barring any spring injuries), with Aaron Sanchez, Marcus Stroman, J.A. Happ, Marco Estrada and Francisco Liriano tabbed to comprise manager John Gibbons’ starting five. Harrell, though, could compete for a multi-inning relief role in a currently murky bullpen picture. Beyond closer Roberto Osuna, sophomore Joe Biagini and veteran Jason Grilli, there’s little certainty among the Blue Jays’ relief corps. Alternatively, Harrell could head to Triple-A to open the season, where he could function as a reserve for the big league rotation. Estrada, after all, pitched much of the 2016 season with a herniated disk in his back, and injuries to a starting staff are virtually inevitable over the course of a Major League season.

The drop-off for Tolleson is somewhat startling. Entering the season, the 28-year-old had established himself as the Rangers’ closer after turning in a terrific 2014 season in a setup role and stepping into the ninth inning in a similarly excellent 2015 season. From 2014-15, Tolleson tossed 144 innings and logged 35 saves, averaging 9.1 K/9 and 2.8 BB/9 with a 41.4 percent ground-ball rate. The 2016 season, however, yielded dreadful results, as he limped to a 7.68 ERA with a dramatically diminished 7.2 K/9 in just 36 1/3 innings. Tolleson was at one point optioned to the minors, and his season came to a close on Aug. 23 when a back injury landed him on the 60-day disabled list.

Tolleson’s bottom-line results were awful, but there’s also reason to express optimism. He maintained his velocity, averaging 93 mph on his heater, and his control (2.5 BB/9) was once again solid. Furthermore, he recorded a career-best 52 percent ground-ball rate. The primary reasons for Tolleson’s downfall were a .372 BABIP and, more alarmingly, a 24.2% homer-to-flyball rate that resulted in an average two home runs per nine innings pitched. While those numbers aren’t appealing, a HR/FB rate at that level is almost certain to regress in future seasons. And Tolleson will pitch all of next season at the age of 29, so there’s little reason to assume that his sudden and rapid decline was related to his age. A team that signs Tolleson would be able to control him for both the 2017 and 2018 seasons, as he’s still arbitration eligible.

Harrell, meanwhile, joined the Rangers in a fairly curious summer trade with the Braves. The Rangers shipped prospect Travis Demeritte to Atlanta in exchange for Harrell and left-hander Dario Alvarez (who remains in the organization), and the returns on Harrell weren’t pretty. The 31-year-old, who spent the 2015 season pitching in the Korea Baseball Organization, made just four starts for Texas and surrendered 11 earned runs in 17 2/3 innings before he, too, incurred a season-ending injury (groin strain). All told, he finished up the season with a 4.21 ERA, 6.9 K/9, 4.8 BB/9 and a 44.3 percent ground-ball rate in 47 innings of work between the two teams. Harrell should find interest as a depth option this winter, though given his rocky 2016 and lack of a track record — 4.77 ERA in 448 2/3 innings — it doesn’t seem likely that he’ll be promised a rotation spot anywhere heading into the 2017 season.

YESTERDAY: The Rangers have outrighted right-handed pitchers Lucas Harrell and Shawn Tolleson, according to an announcement from VP of communications John Blake. Both pitchers ended the year on the 60-day DL, and now have the option to elect free agency.

Harrell, 31, returned stateside after spending 2015 with Korea’s LG Twins. He didn’t pitch well at Double-A with the Tigers organization, but got a shot with the rebuilding Braves and turned in five useful starts for Atlanta.

That led to a trade to the Rangers, but things didn’t quite pan out in Texas. In his four outings, Harrell managed only 17 2/3 innings, coughing up 11 earned runs and permitting 13 walks to go with his 15 strikeouts. His year ended with a groin strain.

As for Tolleson, 28, the 2016 campaign was a bit of a nightmare. He had been quite a productive member of the Rangers bullpen for the two prior seasons, racking up 144 frames of 2.88 ERA ball and taking over the closer’s role. But he fell off of a cliff this year, allowing a 7.68 ERA over 36 1/3 innings.

While he still managed 7.2 K/9 versus 2.5 BB/9 in 2016, Tolleson allowed 53 hits and eight long balls in his partial-season work for the Rangers. Tolleson didn’t show any velocity decline, and was perhaps unlucky in some respects (.372 BABIP, 24.2% HR/FB rate). He was ultimately placed on the 60-day DL due to back issues. With a projected $3.6MM arbitration salary, Texas decided to move on.

It’s certainly possible that either of these hurlers could end up returning to the Rangers, though they’ll have a shot to test the open market first. Both figure to garner their fair share of interest: Harrell may at least represent a rotation depth option, while Tolleson’s recent history as a quality late-inning arm is intriguing.

• The Nationals announced today that southpaw Sammy Solis is headed to the 15-day DL with shoulder inflammation, as Chelsea Janes of the Washington Post reports. Soreness and a velocity decline led the team to take a closer look at Solis, who previously missed time with a knee injury. The Nats’ pen is pressed at the moment, though rookie Koda Glover was recalled to provide a fresh arm. Still, he doesn’t throw from the left side, leaving only the scuffling Oliver Perez as a southpaw option at present. With Felipe Rivero traded away in the Mark Melancon deal, Washington’s depth in that area isn’t quite what it was, and it is possible to imagine the club hunting for an option via trade.

[Related: Updated Nationals Depth Chart]

• The Cubs have placed righty reliever Joe Smith on the 15-day DL with a hamstring strain, as Jason Martinez of MLB Depth Charts and MLBTR tweeted earlier. That’s doubly concerning because Smith missed time earlier this year with the same injury. He had been acquired at the deadline in hopes that he’d bolster Chicago’s setup ranks, but the 32-year-old has surrendered three earned runs just one strikeout against four walks in his six appearances with his new club. Fellow righty Trevor Cahill will stay on the roster after coming back from the DL as the 26th man for yesterday’s doubleheader, but he may be needed in the rotation if John Lackey requires his own time away for injury. With Pedro Strop also sidelined at present, there’s an argument to be made that Chicago ought to look around for another righty.

[Related: Updated Cubs Depth Chart]

• Rangers righty Lucas Harrell will head out for his own DL stint after suffering a strained groin. The club has called up fellow right-hander Nick Martinez to fill the void, and Derek Holland still seems to be nearing a return, but the loss of Harrell takes away another depth option from a Texas rotation that is thinner than the team would probably prefer. After all, the Rangers pursued all manner of starting pitching upgrades before the deadline, but ultimately backed away after adding only the innings-eating Harrell. Whether or not the club rejoins that effort remains to be seen, but there was already reason to believe that the Rangers would look at adding arms during August.

[Related: Updated Rangers Depth Chart]

A few other items pertaining to the division…

• The Astros promoted Yulieski Gurriel to Triple-A Fresno yesterday, as MLB.com’s Brian McTaggart writes. The previous expectation had been that Gurriel would make his big league debut this week, but after he struggled considerably at the Double-A level, the organization made the decision to give him some additional time to get up to speed and bumped him up another level. General manager Jeff Luhnow told McTaggart that there’s “no specific timeline” for Gurriel to be promoted to the Majors at this point but did add that the infielder “is getting close.” Gurriel collected just two hits in 19 plate appearances at the Double-A level, but he went 3-for-4 with a double and a home run in yesterday’s Triple-A debut.
• Athletics prospect Chad Pinder has been told he’ll be joining the team on Wednesday, reports Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle. It’s not entirely clear yet how Pinder will be utilized, Slusser notes, and he could potentially be a short-term sub while Marcus Semien departs on paternity leave. However, Slusser also notes that fellow right-handed-hitting infielder Tyler Ladendorf is mired in a dismal 0-for-19 slump and is 0-for-26 against left-handed pitchers this season, so Pinder could replace him on the roster. The 24-year-old Pinder was Oakland’s second-round pick in 2014 and has batted .258/.310/.425 in 465 Triple-A plate appearances this season. He rates ninth among Oakland farmhands, per MLB.com, and sixth per Baseball America.
• The Rangers’ injury woes seem to have continued, as Gerry Fraley of the Dallas Morning News writes that righty Lucas Harrell is likely ticketed for the DL due to a groin strain that forced him to exit last night’s start after two innings. Harrell hasn’t performed well since being acquired by the Rangers (5.60 ERA in 17 2/3 innings) but was nonetheless occupying a spot in the rotation and will now force Texas to scramble a bit. Nick Martinez is likely to be brought back to the Majors to serve as a long reliever today, per Fraley, and the Harrell injury will have an impact on Texas’ decision as to when Derek Holland will be activated from the 60-day DL. He’s eligible to join the team this coming Saturday, and Holland himself tells Fraley that feels “very confident” in where he’s at in terms of recovery. Holland last tossed 75 pitches over four innings in a minor league rehab start. Manager Jeff Banister wouldn’t commit to exactly when Holland will rejoin the team, and Fraley points out that a pair of upcoming off-days gives the Rangers some flexibility with the rotation.

[Related: Updated Texas Rangers Depth Chart]

Harrell, 31, signed a minor league contract with the Tigers this offseason and opened the year pitching with Detroit’s Triple-A affiliate. After hitting the open market in late May, Harrell inked another minors pact, this time with the Braves, and worked his way up into Atlanta’s big league rotation, where he’s posted a 3.38 ERA with 6.4 K/9, 3.7 BB/9 and a 44.2 percent ground-ball rate in 29 1/3 innings spanning five starts.

Harrell broke into the Majors with the 2010 White Sox but didn’t find his first success until the 2012 season, when he tossed 193 2/3 innings of 3.76 ERA ball and made 32 starts for the Astros. Harrell looked at that point to have a chance at establishing himself as a long-term option at the back of the Houston rotation, but he struggled in two subsequent seasons and ultimately landed with the LG Twins of the Korea Baseball Organization in 2015, where he also struggled over a full season’s workload out of the rotation. Harrell, though, has pitched well at all of his minor league stops this season and looked useful enough in the Braves’ rotation to have reportedly garnered trade interest from a handful of teams.

Alvarez, too, was a midseason addition for the Braves, who claimed him off waivers from the Mets back on May 25. The 27-year-old hadn’t experienced much in the way of big league success prior to this season despite a lifetime 2.97 ERA in the minors, but he’s yielded just five earned runs on 11 hits and five walks with a whopping 28 strikeouts through 15 Major League innings since being claimed by the Braves. It’s a small sample, to be sure, but Alvarez’s velocity is up two miles per hour (averaging 93.5 mph) over his previous stints with the Mets, and he’s doubled the usage of his slider, which appears to have led to considerably improved results. The Rangers clearly were impressed by the gains he’s made in 2016, and if they prove to be sustainable, Texas will have control of Alvarez for another five years beyond the 2016 season, so there’s some long-term potential here.

That the Braves were able to turn a pair of May additions into Demeritte is a fairly notable surprise. While the 21-year-old doesn’t rank among the game’s top 100 prospects or even the top 10 farmhands within the Texas organization, the former first-round pick entered the season rated 20th among Rangers prospects per MLB.com and 28th per Baseball America. He struggled last season and was hit with an 80-game PED suspension but has had a rebound year with Texas’ Class-A Advanced affiliate, batting .272/.352/.583 with 25 home runs and 13 stolen bases. MLB.com notes that he has more power than a typical second baseman but has long been far too aggressive at the plate. That hasn’t changed this year, as Demeritte has whiffed in more than a third of his plate appearances in Class-A in spite of his power.

The 27-year-old Duffy, not to be confused with the Giants third baseman of the same name, was claimed off waivers out of the Astros organization last month. He’s a career .272/.340/.438 hitter in parts of three Triple-A seasons but has totaled just 12 plate appearances at the Major League level — all coming with Houston.

David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution first reported that Harrell and Alvarez had been traded. MLB.com’s Mark Bowman reported that the Rangers were getting each player. Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported that Demeritte was heading back to Atlanta in the deal.

Described by Daniels as “a sinker-baller who’s going well right now,”  the 31-year-old Harrell will be reunited with current Rangers pitching coach Doug Brocail, whom he knows from his days with the Astros. Daniels said that Brocail’s assessment of Harrell was “more of a confirmation of what we thought” and the expectation is that he’ll be a part of their rotation. After tossing six shutout innings in his final Braves start on Tuesday, Harrell is lined up for a home start against the Royals on Sunday.

In regards to his new lefty reliever, Daniels called the 27-year-old Alvarez, who has allowed five earned runs in his 15 innings of work with an amazing 28-to-5 strikeout-to-walk ratio, a “real interesting guy” with “deceptive delivery and plus velocity.” He also mentioned that this was Alvarez’s first time with an extended run in the Major Leagues. “Sometimes you have to take a chance before a guy’s a household name”, said Daniels, who did just that when he traded for Sam Dyson on the last day of the 2015 trade deadline and has seen him blossom into a successful late-inning arm.

Asked if he was done addressing his pitching staff and if there was a possibility that he would acquire a non-pitcher before Monday’s deadline, Daniels said that he wouldn’t rule anything out. “We’re still having additional conversations”, he said, adding that pitching remains his team’s top priority.

Given Markakis’ age, performance and salary, he’s a logical candidate to be moved, though his $11MM annual salary figures to pose a problem in trade talks. While Markakis is walking at a 10 percent clip for the second straight season and has shown a bit more pop in 2016 than he did in 2015 (.105 ISO vs. .080 ISO), he’s still a far cry from the 15- to 20-homer on-base machine that he was in his peak days with the Orioles. Markakis’ .296/.370/.376 batting line last season actually checked in above league average despite a lack of home runs, per OPS+ and wRC+, but he’s at a diminished .260/.337/.366 this season.

Optimists could look at Markakis, however, and note that his 33.1 percent hard-contact rate is the second-highest of his career, and his 22.4 percent line-drive rate is a marked improvement over his 2015 pace. Markakis is also popping up at the lowest rate of his career (four percent), and defensive metrics look favorably upon his work in 2016 (+3 DRS, +1.3 UZR/150). Silver linings aside, it seems quite likely that the Braves would have to absorb some of the salary owed to Markakis, especially if talks with the Royals gain any kind of traction. The Boston Globe’s Nick Cafardo linked the Royals to Markakis back in May but noted that his salary is “an issue” for Kansas City.

The Braves, Bowman writes, will be looking to add some power to their outfield over the winter. And with Inciarte and Smith set to line up in two of the three spots, adding a corner outfield bat with some home run pop would only be feasible in the absence of Markakis. One player who could also factor into the outfield again in a limited capacity, Bowman notes, is Jeff Francoeur. The Braves love Francoeur’s leadership and don’t plan on trading him barring a surprising offer and may even attempt to re-sign the 32-year-old. While needing to be “overwhelmed” for Francoeur at this stage of his career certainly sounds strange, one has to imagine that the offers would be fairly light in nature, and the Braves may prefer simply hanging onto him rather than picking up some cash or a low-level prospect of little note.

From the Royals’ side of the equation, adding Markakis would probably shift Jarrod Dyson into a true fourth outfield role and allow him to bounce around between all three positions as needed. Dyson has shared time with Paulo Orlando in right field this year, but Orlando’s unsustainable production through the first two months has quickly begun to fade. He’s hitting just .267/.293/.326 since June 1. The Royals appear to be open to adding a right field alternative of some nature, as Kansas City has also recently been linked to Josh Reddick.

Bowman’s column also discusses the Braves’ rotation, with GM John Coppolella once again stating that he will not trade his No. 1 starter, Julio Teheran. Coppolella says he’s turned away about a dozen general managers that have come calling on Teheran, and it doesn’t sound as if the team has any intentions of changing its stance as the Aug.1 non-waiver deadline gets closer. Per Bowman, the Braves have fielded calls from three clubs on right-hander Lucas Harrell, although the return on him would be minimal, as Harrell has made four starts with very mixed results for the Braves — 23 1/3 innings, 4.24 ERA, 17-to-9 K/BB ratio — and has a limited big league track record. Most clubs would probably look at him as a depth piece rather than a genuine option to upgrade their starting pitching.

A former starter for multiple teams, primarily the Astros, Harrell has pitched to a 4.84 ERA and an underwhelming 1.34 K/BB over 401 2/3 big league innings (62 starts). Harrell’s best showing came in 2012, when he amassed 193 2/3 innings of 3.76 ERA/3.75 FIP/3.89 xFIP pitching as a member of Houston’s rotation and posted a 6.51 K/9, 3.62 BB/9, and 57.2 percent ground-ball rate.

With a 54.2 percent career rate, Harrell has consistently generated grounders, but that wasn’t enough to keep him in the majors after poor showings in 2013 and ’14. Harrell spent last season in Korea and logged a lofty 4.93 ERA in 171 2/3 innings with the LG Twins, though it’s worth noting that the KBO is a tough environment for pitchers.

Harrell returned to the United States earlier this year when he signed a minor league deal with the Tigers. He threw a combined 29 2/3 innings (six starts) at the Double-A and Triple-A levels and put up a terrific 3.34 ERA, but his trend of posting below-average strikeout (6.1 per nine) and walk (4.9) rates continued. The Tigers subsequently released Harrell, who could nonetheless figure into the Braves’ rotation mix at some point this season.

As for Wooten, this will be the reliever’s second stint with the Braves organization this season. The club released him May 9 after he threw 7 1/3 innings of three-run ball for Triple-A Gwinnett. Almost all of his career has been spent with the Brewers organization since going in the 13th round of the 2008 draft. The 30-year-old owns a 4.07 ERA with 8.3 K/9 against 2.3 BB/9 in 185 2/3 Triple-A innings and a 5.03 ERA, 7.0 K/9 and 2.9 BB/9 in 68 big league frames.

• The Tigers have signed former Astros right-hander Lucas Harrell to a minor league contract, Eddy reports. Harrell reportedly threw for Detroit earlier in Spring Training, prior to the club’s deal with Bobby Parnell. While the Parnell deal was, at the time, believed to be the final move on the pitching side of the coin for the Tigers in Spring Training, Harrell will now be coming on board after all. Harrell, 30, spent the 2015 season pitching in Korea and logged a marginal 4.93 ERA in 171 2/3 innings with the LG Twins, though it should be noted that the KBO is a notoriously hitter-friendly league. Harrell’s 171 2/3 innings showed the durability that he’s displayed for much of his pro career. His best season came with Astros in 2012, when he tallied a 3.76 ERA in 193 2/3 innings (32 starts) out of the Houston rotation.
• Also inking a minor league deal last week was right-hander Josh Roenicke, who inked such a pact with the Angels. The 32-year-old Roenicke (nephew of former Brewers manager and current Halos coach Ron Roenicke) last appeared in the Majors with the 2013 Twins, recording a 4.35 ERA across 62 innings of work. Though he was once a notable prospect in the Reds’ system, Roenicke never blossomed into a regular contributor in the rotation or bullpen at any of his big league stops. He’s spent the past two seasons with the Triple-A affiliates for the Rockies, Nationals and Brewers, recording a collective ERA north of 6.00.
• The Cubs have signed outfielder Ryan Kalish to a minor league pact. Formerly a top prospect with the Red Sox, Kalish is quite familiar to Cubs executives Theo Epstein, Jed Hoyer and Jason McLeod. The 27-year-old didn’t play in 2015 after a minor league deal with the Blue Jays reportedly fell through. Kalish saw his most recent professional action with the Cubs in 2014, when he logged 157 plate appearances with the big league club. He’s a lifetime .245/.293/.350 hitter in the Majors and a .257/.325/.405 hitter at the Triple-A level. He’ll serve as organizational depth with the Cubs, presumably, as the team already has a very crowded outfield picture at the big league level.
• Shortstop Justin Sellers and first baseman Josh Satin have both signed with the Padres on minor league deals. The 30-year-old Sellers spent a bit of time with the Pirates and White Sox organizations last year but didn’t produce much in the minors. Sellers didn’t appear in the bigs last year, but he logged Major League time each year from 2011-14, hitting .198/.280/.294 across 287 plate appearances. Satin, meanwhile, spent parts of those same 2011-14 seasons with the Mets, batting .243/.346/.351. He spent last season with the Reds’ Triple-A affiliate, where he batted .247/.347/.357. Satin has typically been considerably more productive against left-handed pitching, making him a useful platoon option for the Padres’ system.

• The Tigers were said to be looking around at depth arms to bring into camp, per MLB.com’s Jason Beck (Twitter links), with former big leaguer Lucas Harrell among those under consideration. But the team’s addition of righty Bobby Parnell likely rounds out the organization’s pitching moves heading into camp, per Beck. It seems that the 30-year-old Harrell will look to catch on with another club. He spent last year pitching in Korea, racking up 171 2/3 innings of 4.93 ERA pitching with 7.9 K/9 and 5.7 BB/9.
• Third base remains an area of focus for the Indians with camp opening, MLB.com’s Jordan Bastian reports. Cleveland is still monitoring the free agent market, with both Juan Uribe and David Freese potentially under consideration. As Bastian notes, Giovanny Urshela showed the ability to man the hot corner last year, but failed to demonstrate a similar readiness at the plate.
• Meanwhile, the Indians don’t appear to be expecting either Craig Stammen or Tommy Hunter to be ready for Opening Day, manager Terry Francona told reporters including Bastian (Twitter links). It seems that Stammen may actually be slightly ahead in his timeline than Hunter. Of course, he’ll still need to earn a roster spot since he signed a minor league deal.