Luiz Gohara

Angels Release Luiz Gohara

By Connor Byrne | June 1, 2020 at 8:08pm CDT

The Angels released 39 minor leaguers last week, Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic relays (click here for the full list). Left-hander Luiz Gohara may be the most notable player the Angels subtracted.

Now 23 years old, the Brazil-born Gohara was once a premium prospect as a member of the Braves, who acquired him from the Mariners in a January 2017 trade that saw outfielder Mallex Smith go to Seattle (though the M’s quickly flipped Smith to Tampa Bay). Gohara mowed down minor league hitters that year, combining for a 2.62 ERA with 10.7 K/9 and 3.2 BB/9 in 123 2/3 innings, and ended up making his major league debut. That was the first of two straight seasons in which Gohara appeared in the majors, and though has only amassed 49 frames of 5.33 ERA pitching at the game’s highest level so far, he has managed nine strikeouts per nine against 2.94 walks.

It’s now anyone’s guess whether Gohara will make it back to the bigs. Shoulder problems prevented Gohara from pitching professionally last season, when the Braves released him in early August. Gohara caught on with the Angels a few weeks later, but his Halos tenure is now over before he ever threw a meaningful pitch as part of their organization.

Angels Sign Luiz Gohara

By Connor Byrne | August 28, 2019 at 10:05pm CDT

The Angels have signed former Braves left-hander Luiz Gohara to a minor league contract, Roster Roundup reports.

Gohara had been on the open market since the Braves released him Aug. 2, which came shortly after they designated him for assignment. It came as a surprise at the time that Atlanta decided to cut ties with Gohara, who was once a high-ranking prospect with the organization. However, physical problems have undermined the 23-year-old this season. A shoulder issue has prevented Gohara from taking the mound since 2018, and he won’t pitch at all this year as a result of the injury.

Last season was difficult at both the major and minor league levels for Gohara, but he did show positive signs in 2017. Gohara debuted in the majors that year and tossed 29 1/3 innings (five starts) of 4.91 ERA/2.75 FIP ball with 9.51 K/9 and 2.45 BB/9, averaging 96 mph on his fastball in the process. He also amassed 123 2/3 frames of 2.62 ERA pitching and notched 10.7 K/9 with 3.2 BB/9 across three levels in the minors.

Regardless of whether Gohara’s able to return to his old form, it’s worth it from the pitcher-needy Angels’ perspective to take a risk-free flier on him. The out-of-contention club figures to place a great deal of emphasis this offseason on improving its staff heading into 2020, when Gohara might be able to help its cause.

Braves Release Luiz Gohara

By Jeff Todd | August 2, 2019 at 12:41pm CDT

The Braves announced today that they have released lefty Luiz Gohara. He had been dropped from the 40-man roster as part of the team’s series of deadline moves; obviously, he ultimately cleared waivers.

Gohara, who just turned 23, has shown quite a bit of talent but has been limited by health and personal issues in recent seasons. He has been sidelined all year long and is presently rehabbing a shoulder procedure that is expected to cost him the remainder of the campaign.

It has been a roller-coaster ride for Gohara and the Braves ever since he landed in Atlanta in early 2017. The burly southpaw turned in a superlative 2017 campaign, dominating in a spring through the minors and showing quite a lot of promise in a five-start MLB debut.

Entering the 2018 season, it seemed Gohara would help anchor the Atlanta rotation. But the youngster endured a difficult time emotionally that coincided with arm issues and a battle with his weight. The talent was still evident, but Gohara was not able to have the anticipated impact at the MLB level.

Accordingly, Gohara came into camp this year in search of a rebound. There was cause for hope at the outset, but his balky shoulder proved unwilling. No doubt multiple MLB organizations will show interest in helping the Brazilian hurler try to find his way back to the majors, now that there’s no need to place him on a 40-man roster to do so.

Braves Designate Luiz Gohara

By Connor Byrne | July 31, 2019 at 4:32pm CDT

The Braves have designated left-hander Luiz Gohara for assignment.

This isn’t much of a birthday present for Gohara, a former high-end prospect who turned 23 today. But health issues, including shoulder problems this year, have dogged Gohara. He hasn’t pitched at all this season, nor will he, having undergone arthroscopic shoulder surgery earlier this month.

When Gohara did take the mound from 2017-18, he totaled 49 major league innings with an unsightly 5.33 ERA. He did, however, log a far superior 3.47 FIP and post terrific strikeout and walk rates (9.0 K/9, 2.94 BB/9) during that span. Gohara spent the majority of last season at the Triple-A level, where he recorded a 4.94 ERA/4.45 FIP with 9.05 K/9 and 2.47 BB/9 in 54 2/3 frames.

Although he’s unavailable this year, it’s conceivable someone will take a chance on Gohara now that he’s in DFA limbo. After all, he’s young, controllable, optionable, and isn’t far removed from a run as a coveted prospect.

NL East Notes: Kimbrel, Conforto, Braves Pitching

By Jeff Todd | March 9, 2019 at 12:55am CDT

The Nationals and Braves “are not ’in’ on” free agent closer Craig Kimbrel, according to Jim Bowden of The Athletic (via Twitter). Whether that’s a truly definitive statement on those two clubs’ engagement with Kimbrel isn’t clear; each has been linked (his former team in Atlanta, especially) over the course of the winter and would surely be interested at the right price. The arms race in the NL East has continued all offseason long and has not really halted with the start of Spring Training. Financial considerations make several teams in the division conceivable suitors for Kimbrel, as MLBTR’s Steve Adams examined in depth.

Braves Notes: Rotation Health, Revenue Growth

By Jeff Todd | February 28, 2019 at 11:26am CDT

To this point of the spring, the biggest health questions in Braves camp have surrounded youngster Mike Soroka and his balky shoulder. There’s nothing new yet on Soroka, who’ll face something of a test when he throws today. But there are some other health issues of note, as well as an update on the state of the club’s finances. Let’s have a look:

Key righty Mike Foltynewicz was scratched from his next scheduled start due to elbow soreness, skipper Brian Snitker told reporters including MLB.com’s Mark Bowman (Twitter links). Initial indications are that this isn’t considered serious, with Snitker saying that Foltynewicz wouldn’t have missed a regular season outing. Still, the club has set up a medical review for the weekend to take a closer look. It’s obviously tough to say whether there’s any real cause for concern here. As Bowman notes, some minor elbow issues have bothered Foltynewicz in recent season. On the one hand, that suggests some history in the joint; on the other, it didn’t prevent him from turning in a breakout 2018 campaign.
Meanwhile, fellow starters Luiz Gohara and Kevin Gausman are each dealing with some shoulder woes, Bowman further tweets. Both hurlers are throwing, which is certainly a good sign, though they’re each being handled with care. Whether they’ll be deemed ready to open the season in the MLB rotation will presumably be dictated by how their shoulders respond in the coming days, as they’ll need to begin building innings up to do so. In Gohara’s case, of course, he will also have to win a spot or take advantage of an opening.
It’s still theoretically possible that the Braves will choose to add to their existing pitching mix. The rotation was a secondary topic of conversation for the club’s top decisionmakers in a recent interview in which they discussed the decision (to this point) not to dedicate further payroll space to the 2019 roster. While the Braves insist they have untapped spending capacity, there are those who think they should be more eager both to spend what has been allocated and open the pocketbook yet further. Today’s disclosures from owner Liberty Media add yet more fuel to the flames. As Eric Fisher of Sports Business Journal was among those to note (via Twitter), the ballclub reported a year-over-year jump from $7MM to $94MM in operating income before interest and depreciation. As the above-linked interview suggested would be the case, the club has indeed driven down its debt load, though Fisher notes it’s primed to take on more in loans to further build out its property investments surrounding SunTrust Park. Tim Tucker of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution covered some other numbers from the team’s revenue report.

NL East Notes: Gohara, Harper, Eickhoff, Hernandez

By Jeff Todd | February 19, 2019 at 8:16am CDT

If the Braves are to repeat their 2018 division title, they’ll likely require significant contributions from some talented young players. Gabriel Burns of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution examines the status of still-youthful lefty Luiz Gohara, who has shown immense ability but is now looking to reestablish himself after a difficult 2018 both on and off the field. Gohara is said not only to be in much-improved physical condition, carrying less weight and with a healthy shoulder, but also to possess a newfound focus on his craft.

Here’s more from the NL East:

As part of an interesting look at what it’s like to sit and wait through a long stay on the open market, Britt Ghiroli of The Athletic drops a few nuggets regarding the Nationals and still-unsigned star free agent Bryce Harper. (Subscription link.) Word reached some in the organization recently that the club was “out of the running” to bring back Harper, per the report, though Ghiroli also cautions that there’s still nothing approaching certainty there. After all, Nats ownership and agent Scott Boras have a well-established knack for finding a way to line up on big contracts.
Phillies righty Jerad Eickhoff is back on the bump in camp, making for a notable step in his comeback effort. As Jim Salisbury of NBC Sports Philadelphia reports, it was an emotional moment for the 28-year-old and others in he organization. Eickhoff still has quite a few tests ahead of him as he looks to put his finger troubles behind him. As Salisbury explains, there doesn’t seem to be a clear path right back into the Phillies rotation, but it’s also not hard to imagine Eickhoff forcing himself into the picture. There’s still some flexibility to work with as well, as Eickhoff could open the season on the DL and has an option year remaining.
In other Phillies health news, second baseman Cesar Hernandez is coming back from a broken foot that he played through late last season, as Matt Breen of the Philadelphia Inquirer writes. Hernandez, who struggled after suffering the injury, now says that “it affected me in every single way.” The team was aware of the injury and did what it could to limit the strain; it was determined that Hernandez could play without risking further injury. Still, it’s not hard to imagine how it limited the switch-hitter, who saw his OPS fall by over 100 points from the first half of the season to the second. He was also just five-of-nine in stolen base attempts down the stretch. It’d be a nice boon for the 2019 Phils if Hernandez can get back to reaching base at the .370+ clip he carried in the two and a half seasons before his injury.

Braves Activate Arodys Vizcaino, Place Luiz Gohara On 60-Day DL

By Steve Adams | September 14, 2018 at 12:30pm CDT

The Braves announced Friday that they’ve activated right-hander Arodys Vizcaino from the 60-day disabled list. In order to open a spot on the 40-man roster, Atlanta reinstated lefty Luiz Gohara from the minor league disabled list, called him up to the Majors, and placed him on the MLB 60-day DL due to shoulder soreness of his own.

Vizcaino, 27, was in the midst of a dominant season when he hit the disabled list due to shoulder inflammation in mid July. That injury cost him two months of the season, but he’ll return to finish off a season he began with 32 2/3 innings of 1.65 ERA ball. Along the way, Vizcaino picked up 15 saves and averaged 9.4 K/9, 3.3 BB/9 and 0.55 HR/9 with a 32.9 percent ground-ball rate. His return will give the Braves another power arm to add to the relief corps at a time when top relievers A.J. Minter and Dan Winkler have had some struggles.

The Braves, at this point, have all but locked up the National League East, as they hold a 7.5 game lead over a rapidly fading Phillies club that has won just twice in its past 10 contests. A healthy Vizcaino, though, should better position Atlanta for success in an eventual NLDS appearance that few would’ve predicted prior to Opening Day.

As for Gohara, he’ll receive an extra 18 days of big league service that he may not have been expecting when he landed on the minor league disabled list in late August. He’ll still finish out the 2018 season with under a full year of service time, though he’ll be paid at the MLB rate for the final few weeks of the year even though his season is now definitively over.

Trade Rumors: Brach, Braves, Cubs, Wheeler, Harvey, Marlins, Cards

By Connor Byrne | July 29, 2018 at 1:09pm CDT

Both the Braves and Cubs are making pushes for Orioles reliever Brad Brach, Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com tweets. Brach, a pending free agent on a $5.165MM salary, looks like a shoo-in to move prior to Tuesday’s non-waiver deadline. The 32-year-old has endured an uncharacteristically mediocre season, however, with a 4.85 ERA/4.01 FIP and unexciting strikeout and walk rates (8.77 K/9, 4.38 BB/9) over 39 innings.

More rumors with the deadline nearing…

No fewer than six teams have shown legitimate interest in Mets right-hander Zack Wheeler, though New York doesn’t feel it has to trade him, Mark Feinsand of MLB.com reports. Wheeler, who’s making just $1.9MM this season, still has another year of affordable control remaining. As such, “there’s no urgency for the Mets to move him,” a National League talent evaluator tells Feinsand.
Meanwhile, ex-Met and current Reds righty Matt Harvey is likely to move by Tuesday, per Feinsand. Harvey has pitched better in Cincinnati than he did in New York this season, but the soon-to-be free agent still hasn’t come close to replicating his halcyon days. As a result, teams aren’t showing much excitement over the 29-year-old, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic relays.
More from Feinsand, who observes that the Marlins shouldn’t have difficulty finding a taker for pending free-agent reliever Brad Ziegler. In the end, though, it may be a relatively quiet deadline for the Marlins, who are “intent on keeping their crop of controllable players, including their young, talented bullpen pieces,” Feinsand writes. That may rule out trades involving the likes of Kyle Barraclough, Drew Steckenrider and Adam Conley, each of whom has come up in the rumor mill this summer. Unlike those three, Ziegler hasn’t enjoyed a strong season overall (4.06 ERA/4.69 FIP with 6.18 K/9 and 3.0 BB/9 in 51 innings), but the 38-year-old has gotten much better results since June and is continuing to induce ground balls at a ridiculous clip (74.5 percent). Ziegler has approximately $3.5MM coming his way through season’s end. The Cubs, Indians and possibly the Red Sox are among the teams with interest in Ziegler, Joe Frisaro of MLB.com reports.
There have been rumblings about the Braves trading young left-hander Luiz Gohara for relief help, but that’s not going to happen, according to Rosenthal. Rather, Atlanta’s only going to move Gohara (or pitching prospect Kolby Allard) if it gets controllable starting pitching in return.
“A few teams” have interest in Cardinals minor league third baseman Patrick Wisdom, per Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Regardless of whether Wisdom’s dealt this season, Goold regards him as a lock to be out of the Cardinals organization by next year. The Cardinals spent the 52nd overall pick on Wisdom back in 2012, but he still hasn’t made it to the majors. The 26-year-old has shown some promise of late at the Triple-A level, where he homered 31 times and posted a .263 ISO in 506 plate appearances last season. That power came with a so-so .243/.310/.507 slash, which Wisdom has improved on in 2018 (.293/.373/.485 in 370 PAs).

Braves GM Anthopoulos On Payroll, Rentals, Pitching Staff

By Steve Adams | July 16, 2018 at 1:44pm CDT

Braves general manager Alex Anthopoulos recently sat down with Mark Bradley of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution for an extensive Q&A about a team that has exceeded even the most optimistic expectations and finds itself in the thick of a division race (Q&A Part 1, Part 2). Braves fans in particular will want to check out the full conversation, as Anthopoulos discusses some front office processes, the team’s minor league depth and quite a few other interesting topics at length.

With an eye toward the looming non-waiver trade deadline, though, Anthopoulos sheds a bit of light on how the Braves could operate moving forward. Perhaps most notably, Anthopoulos describes a recent MLB.com report suggesting that the Braves are close to their payroll maximum to be inaccurate. Anthopoulos recalls the manner in which he was handcuffed by financial constraints with the Blue Jays at the 2014 deadline, which prompted him to resist some late-offseason spending in order to keep some money set aside for summer moves in 2015. The 2018 season in Atlanta seems to be a similar case.

“So we’ve set some money aside from a big-league payroll standpoint, so we definitely have (it) for this moment,” said the GM of his team’s current financial outlook. “…[W]e saved some money and we have that available, and now – as the byproduct of the results – attendance is up, everything is up, the organization is doing much better.” Anthopoulos added that he’s already had conversations about the team’s spending capacity with chairman Terry McGuirk. Perhaps most notably, Anthopoulos plainly states that there is “no single player” the Braves cannot afford to add.

That said, he’s also careful to emphasize that that ability to spend doesn’t mean Braves fans should be counting the days to a splashy addition. Anthopoulos estimated that “90 percent” of the players available in trades at present are of the rental variety and expressed some notable reluctance about the possibility of acquiring such players.

“There’s a lot of pain that has gone into putting together this young talent,” Anthopoulos continued. “We’re not ready to throw that all away just because of one season. That said, I do think we owe it to the players and the fan base and the organization to make this team better, one way or another.”

Asked specifically about whether he has the depth of pitching to make it to the postseason, Anthopoulos confidently stated that the Braves do indeed have the necessary arms. Luiz Gohara is back in the Triple-A rotation and will be an option to start if need, and Max Fried is on the mend from the blister issues that are presently hampering him. Braves fans will be heartened to see Anthopoulos speak extremely favorably of top prospect Kolby Allard, noting that expects the lefty to get a chance down the line (though he understandably declined to specify precisely when).

As for the relief corps, the Braves are “definitely trying to add to that group,” according to Anthopoulos. While he characterizes the current group as one that could get the Braves to October, he also acknowledges that getting to the postseason and winning in the postseason when other teams can more aggressively leverage their top relievers (due to built-in off days in the schedule) are separate matters. “On the one hand, in October you don’t need as much depth,” said Anthopoulos. “You need three, four reliable guys. On the other, it’s a very young and inexperienced bullpen.” That, it seems, would suggest that the Braves are open to adding, if not actively striving to add a more experienced late-inning option to the mix — a need that could be viewed as even more pressing with Arodys Vizcaino now on the DL for shoulder inflammation for a second time.

Anthopoulos and Bradley also talk about his expectations for the team heading into the offseason, his thoughts on the rest of the NL East, the possibility of some of his young players hitting a wall as the season wears on and the fact that he is very cognizant of the fact that his team’s play is placing him under pressure as a first-year GM in a new organization.

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