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Payton Henry

Danny Jansen Diagnosed With Small Fracture In Right Wrist

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Blue Jays catcher Danny Jansen has been diagnosed with a fracture of the pisiform bone in his right wrist, manager John Schneider revealed to reporters today (X links via Keegan Matheson of MLB.com). He was hit by a pitch during the Jays’ Grapefruit League game earlier this week. The team currently expects him to miss a “couple weeks,” though he has a follow-up appointment today that could reveal more information.

That could point to a season-opening stint on the injured list, though the team has yet to specifically state as much. Sportsnet’s Hazel Mae tweets that the Jays will likely lean on non-roster catchers Payton Henry and Brian Serven to back up starting catcher Alejandro Kirk in the interim. If Jansen indeed opens the season on the injured list, Toronto will need to clear a 40-man roster spot to select the contract of either player.

It’s not an ideal start in what’ll be Jansen’s walk year before free agency. The soon-to-be 29-year-old backstop has been a steadily above-average offensive contributor — particularly relative to his position — over the past three seasons but routinely been hit with injuries along the way.

Since 2021, Jansen carries a stout .237/.317/.487 batting line with 43 home runs in 754 trips to the plate. He’s walked at a respectable 8.6% clip along the way, and his 19.9% strikeout rate is a few ticks lower than the league average. By measure of wRC+, Jansen’s been 21% better than an average hitter over the past three seasons. Considering the average catcher has been about 11-12% worse than average at the plate, Jansen’s contributions with the bat are all the more impressive.

From a defensive standpoint, Jansen is solid. He typically draws average or slightly better marks for his pitch framing at both FanGraphs and Statcast. He’s been a bit below average in terms of controlling the running game (career 22% caught-stealing rate), but Statcast rates Jansen (and Kirk, for that matter) as one of the game’s best at blocking balls in the dirt.

Both Henry and Serven joined the Jays organization in the offseason. The former inked a minor league deal after spending his career to date with the Brewers and Marlins. He hit .294/.341/.454 in 255 Triple-A games last season with the Brewers. He’s yet to make his MLB debut. Serven was a waiver claim who’s played his entire career in the Rockies organization. He appeared in 62 games with the 2022 Rockies and another 11 games last year, batting a combined .195/.248/.314 in 228 trips to the plate. In 534 career Triple-A plate appearances, he’s a .238/.305/.450 hitter.

Blue Jays, Payton Henry Agree To Minor League Contract

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Catcher Payton Henry has agreed to a minor league contract with the Blue Jays, he announced on X over the weekend. He’ll presumably receive an invitation to big league camp.

Henry spent the entire 2023 season in Triple-A with the Brewers. Milwaukee had outrighted him off the 40-man roster a couple weeks into the regular season. The Brew Crew had acquired the right-handed hitting backstop from the Marlins last offseason. That marked his second stint with the Milwaukee organization, as Henry had been drafted by the Brewers before being dealt to Miami in a 2021 trade that landed reliever John Curtiss in Wisconsin.

The 26-year-old hit .294/.341/.454 in 65 minor league contests this year. That’s roughly league average offense in a hitter-friendly International League setting. Henry struck out at an average 23.1% clip while walking less than 5% of the time. He has never had great strikeout and walk numbers, but prospect evaluators have credited the former sixth-round pick with strong raw power potential for a depth catcher.

Henry has 20 major league games under his belt split between the 2021 and ’22 seasons in Miami. He’s a .264/.331/.410 hitter in a little under 500 career Triple-A plate appearances. Barring injury, Henry is unlikely to secure a season-opening spot on a Toronto team that rosters Danny Jansen and Alejandro Kirk. The Jays recently lost third catcher Tyler Heineman on waivers, so Henry projects as non-roster depth who can open next year with their top affiliate in Buffalo.

Brewers Outright Payton Henry

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The Brewers announced Monday that catcher Payton Henry, whom they designated for assignment last week, went unclaimed on waivers and has been assigned outright to Triple-A Nashville. He doesn’t have a prior outright assignment or three years of big league service, so Henry doesn’t have the option of rejecting the assignment.

Henry, 25, was originally selected by the Brewers in the sixth round of the 2016 draft but found himself traded to the Marlins in exchange for reliever John Curtiss in July of 2021. Miami traded him back to Milwaukee this past offseason, with the Brewers sending minor league righty Reminton Batista back to the Fish to complete the swap.

A thumb injury that required surgery cost Henry much of the 2022 season. He was limited to just 44 games across four levels, including 15 big league games with Miami, during which he posted a .143/.314/.143 slash in 35 plate appearances. Henry has just 51 trips to the plate at the Major League level and just 251 in Triple-A, where he’s a .227/.319/.352 hitter. He’s yet to appear in the Majors this season but got out to a 3-for-15 start with a pair of walks in 17 plate appearances at Nashville. The Brewers dropped him from the 40-man roster last week when they needed to clear space for righty Colin Rea.

Now that he’s cleared waivers, Henry will return to Nashville and continue to work toward a return to the big leagues. Henry doesn’t have standout numbers at the plate in the minors, but he blocks pitches well, has a strong 35% caught-stealing rate across all professional levels, and is generally regarded as a solid defender behind the dish. He could still carve out a role as a backup to William Contreras somewhere down the line, but he also has enough minor league service time to opt for minor league free agency at season’s end if he’s not added back to the 40-man roster.

Brewers Select Colin Rea, Designate Payton Henry

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The Brewers announced that they have selected the contract of right-hander Colin Rea. Fellow righty Janson Junk was optioned to Triple-A Nashville to open a spot on the active roster. To get Rea onto the 40-man, catcher Payton Henry was designated for assignment.

Rea, 32, has 36 games of scattered big league action with the Padres, Marlins, Cubs and Brewers. Most of that came back in 2015 and 2016, as he’s only tossed 20 innings in the bigs since then. He has a career ERA of 4.90 in 154 1/3 innings overall.

He spent last year pitching for the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks in Japan, posting a 3.96 ERA over exactly 100 innings. He returned to North America this winter by signing a minor league deal with the Brewers. He’s already made a couple of starts in Triple-A, throwing seven innings without allowing an earned run.

The Brewers needed to address their rotation when Brandon Woodruff was placed on the injured list earlier this week with shoulder inflammation. They also intended to give their regular starters a breather by pushing them back a day, per Curt Hogg of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, meaning they needed a couple of fresh arms. Junk was recalled to make a spot start yesterday but has now been quickly optioned to make room for Rea.

Henry, 26 in June, has spent most of his career in the Brewers’ organization, having been drafted by them in 2016. He was dealt to the Marlins in July of 2021 but then was traded back to Milwaukee in November of last year. He has 20 games of major league experience, all of it with the Marlins in between those two trades. He hit .186/.314/.209 in 51 plate appearances, which is a tiny sample but it tracks with his reputation as a glove-first catching prospect. He’s hit .200/.294/.267 in five Triple-A games so far this year.

The Brewers will now have one week to trade Henry or pass him through waivers. Catching depth tends to be in demand throughout the season given the high number of injuries at the position. Since Henry has options remaining, he doesn’t even need to be given an active roster spot. The Brewers now have just two catchers on their 40-man roster in William Contreras and Victor Caratini. They have some non-roster depth with players like Alex Jackson and Brian Navarreto, though Henry would join them if he clears waivers. He doesn’t have a previous career outright or three-plus years of service time, meaning he won’t have the right to reject an outright assignment.

Brewers Acquire Payton Henry From Marlins

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The Brewers have acquired catcher Payton Henry from the Marlins, per team announcements. Minor league outfielder Reminton Batista is headed back to Miami. The Fish used the vacated 40-man roster spot to select the contract of left-hander Sean Reynolds.

Henry, 25, made the Marlins major league roster out of spring training but only appeared in 15 games before being optioned back to Triple-A on May 26. He went just 4-for-28 – all singles – with eight strikeouts in that small sample. He injured himself not long after returning to the minors, requiring surgery on his thumb and spending around two months out. He returned in early August and hit .239/.325/.324 with a single home run across 83 plate appearances.

Henry was actually drafted by the Brewers in the sixth round of the 2016 draft, but was flipped to the Marlins in 2021 in a deadline deal for John Curtiss. His prospect reports rated him as a solid defender with good raw power but lacking in the hitting department. He did display that home run power early on in the minors with Milwaukee, but it dropped off after reaching the Double-A level. The Brewers have Victor Caratini and Alex Jackson on their major league roster, and given Henry has minor league options remaining, he figures to join them as catching depth in 2023.

Going back the other is Batista, a 17-year-old outfield prospect out of the Dominican Republic. He hit .252/.348/.333 for the Brewers affiliate in the Dominican Summer League. He didn’t show much power, but did swipe 18 bags across 46 games.

The trade allows the Marlins to add Reynolds to the 40-man roster, protecting him from the Rule 5 draft. Reynolds was drafted in the fourth round of the 2016 draft, and initially started his career as a hitter, but he never had much success and he’s been pitching as a reliever in their system since 2021. He struck out 33.6% of batters against a 12.1% walk rate on the way to a 3.25 ERA across 27 2/3 innings at High-A in 2022. He struggled a bit once promoted to Double-A, seeing his strikeout rate dip to 25.2% and tossing 24 2/3 innings of 5.11 ERA. Given it’s only his second season pitching in their system, the Marlins clearly believe there’s enough potential here that’s it worth having him occupy a 40-man spot to avoid losing him to other teams in next month’s Rule 5 draft.

Marlins Sign Billy Hamilton To Minor League Deal, Acquire Ryan Lavarnway From Tigers

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The Marlins announced a pair of veteran additions to the upper levels of the farm system this evening (as relayed by Christina De Nicola of MLB.com). Miami signed center fielder Billy Hamilton to a minor league contract and assigned him to Triple-A Jacksonville; they’ve also acquired non-roster catcher Ryan Lavarnway in a trade with the Tigers.

Hamilton has appeared in the majors in every season between 2013-21. One of the fastest players in the sport, he stole between 56 and 59 bases in each of his first four full campaigns with the Reds. That athleticism was also on display on defense, as Hamilton consistently rated as an elite gloveman in center field. The baserunning and defense kept him in the everyday lineup for five seasons, but his bat has never developed as hoped.

The former second-round pick is a career .240/.293/.327 hitter in more than 3200 major league plate appearances. He’s particularly struggled in recent seasons, putting up a .213/.269/.299 line since the start of the 2019 campaign. Hamilton has taken on more of a journeyman role, suiting up with each of the Royals, Braves, Mets, Cubs and White Sox over the past three years.

Hamilton signed a minor league deal with the Mariners over the winter. He appeared in 22 games with their top affiliate in Tacoma, mustering only a .168/.263/.209 mark. He triggered an opt-out clause in that deal on June 1, and he’ll head to Florida after finding his latest opportunity. The Fish will add an experienced glove-first depth option behind a rather thin collection of center fielders.

Miami has given the bulk of the playing time at the position to Jesús Sánchez and Bryan De La Cruz, but both are probably stretched there defensively. Hamilton will need to show signs of life at the plate in Jacksonville to get a major league look, but he at least offers the potential for a complementary profile if he can work his way onto the MLB roster.

Lavarnway, meanwhile, has spent the entire season with the Tigers’ top affiliate in Toledo. The 34-year-old backstop has had a good showing with the Mud Hens, posting a .281/.385/.459 line through 174 plate appearances. He’s walked at an excellent 13.2% clip this year and generally has a strong upper minors track record.

A quintessential third catcher, Lavarnway got to the big leagues in ten of the eleven seasons between 2011-21 (2016 being the lone exception). Only twice has he exceeded 100 plate appearances, though, and he’s not reached ten games in a season since 2015. He continues to bounce around the league as a valued depth option, spending time in 11 different organizations — including a five-game stint with Miami two years ago.

The Marlins have Jacob Stallings and Nick Fortes on the MLB roster at the moment. Payton Henry is the only other backstop on the 40-man, but he’s been on the minor league injured list for the past two weeks. De Nicola tweeted this afternoon that Henry recently underwent surgery on his right thumb, necessitating the addition of another depth option at the position.

Marlins Announce Series Of Roster Moves

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The Marlins have the night off but announced a series of roster moves nonetheless, with Christina De Nicola of MLB.com being among those to relay the batch. (Twitter links)

Infielder Joey Wendle and left-hander Richard Bleier have each been reinstated from the injured list. To make room on the active roster, catcher Payton Henry and infielder Joe Dunand were optioned to Triple-A Jacksonville. Bleier was one of many Marlins to recently land on the COVID-related IL, with infielder Erik Gonzalez being his replacement. Gonzalez has been designated a COVID “substitute” and thus allowed to be subtracted from the roster without being exposed to waivers. Infielder Luke Williams, acquired in a trade earlier today, has been added to the 40-man roster but optioned to Triple-A. To make room for him on the 40-man roster, right-hander Paul Campbell has been transferred to the 60-day injured list. That series of moves involves three players being subtracted from the active roster and two being added, meaning another move should also be involved. Parsing the words of SportsGrid’s Craig Mish in this tweet, it seems like catcher Nick Fortes will also be recalled to even everything out.

Wendle was acquired from the Rays in an offseason trade and began the year on a heater before a hamstring strain put him on the shelf. Through 25 games, he was hitting .304/.368/.456 for a wRC+ of 139. He had been primarily slotting into third base before the injury, with Brian Anderson spending more time in the outfield corners. While Wendle was out, Anderson moved to the hot corner but will likely be spending more time on the grass again.

While the news on Wendle is encouraging for the Marlins, the news about Campbell is potentially ominous. He was placed on the IL April 18 with an elbow strain. He is now ineligible to return until 60 days from that initial placement, meaning the club doesn’t expect him to return in the coming weeks. He had been recalled from the minors just days before landing on IL without getting into a game. Although he’s yet to make his season debut at the MLB level, he was nonetheless in the big leagues at the time of his injury. That means he’ll earn service time and MLB pay for as long as he’s out of action. The 26-year-old came into this year with 93 days of service under his belt. No timeline has been provided for his expected recovery.

Don Mattingly On Marlins’ Catching Situation

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The Marlins continue to be in the market for a catching upgrade, reports the Miami Herald’s Barry Jackson. Skipper Don Mattingly more or less confirmed that’ll be a priority this winter, responding to questions about the team’s incumbent catching situation, noting that “It’s an area we’re looking at. It’s fairly safe to say it was some kind of message when we grabbed two catchers at the trade deadline.”

Mattingly’s rather plain assessment doesn’t bode well for the team’s current group of catchers, who combined for a wRC+ of 57 that ranked third-worst in all of baseball. Things weren’t much brighter on the defensive side of things either, as the unit posted -6 DRS.

Miami’s starting catcher, Jorge Alfaro, may find himself in the most trouble after posting -9 DRS and a 69 OPS+ over the past two seasons. The former Rangers and Phillies prospect has showed mixed progress in his tenure as a Marlin, as he has incrementally improved his year-over-year hard-hit rate and flashed a cannon that resulted in a 43% caught stealing rate. Still, Alfaro has regularly posted strikeout rates above 30%, has been walking less every year since 2018, and undid some of his defensive good by allowing a league-high 13 passed balls in 2021.

Further working against Alfaro is his rising salary through arbitration, for which he is eligible a second time this offseason. As a smaller market team, Miami is unlikely to dedicate a portion of its payroll to a player who is establishing a pattern of underperformance; a non-tender of Alfaro this offseason has seemed likely for quite some time.

With Alfaro’s stock dipping and #2 catcher Sandy Leon unlikely to be retained as well, the Marlins have playing time to spare at the position. In-house candidates include the aforementioned deadline pickups: Alex Jackson and Payton Henry. The former wasn’t able to replicate his most recent 1.060 OPS Triple-A performance while the latter couldn’t build on a more modest .741 OPS performance across the minors last year. Another Miami catcher, Nick Fortes, impressed offensively in a 14-game debut but also carries a limited track record of offensive prowess in the minors.

General manager Kim Ng and CEO Derek Jeter suggested last week the club anticipated dipping into the free agent market to address the team’s lackluster offense. As MLBTR’s Darragh McDonald recently explored, however, the upcoming offseason offers a very thin crop of options behind the dish.

That could suggest Miami’s more likely to turn to the trade market to add help from outside the organization. The Fish had some discussions with the Cubs regarding Willson Contreras last offseason, and it wouldn’t be a surprise if the sides revisited those talks this winter with Chicago having torn down the big league roster substantially in recent months. Contreras is only one season away from free agency, though, and it’s arguable the Miami front office should focus more on longer-term options coming off a 67-95 campaign.

Turning to some other plausible trade candidates, teams figure to call the Diamondbacks regarding Carson Kelly and the Pirates about Jacob Stallings this winter, although it’s not clear either player will be made available. Both Arizona and Pittsburgh look hard-pressed to contend in 2022, but there’s no indication either of Kelly or Stallings proved attainable at this past summer’s trade deadline.

Kelly got off to a scorching start to the year before he fractured his wrist on a hit-by-pitch in mid-June. His production absolutely cratered upon his return, with the injury seemingly having a lingering impact on his power. It’d be relatively easy for Miami (or any other club) to talk themselves into Kelly regaining his early-season form after an offseason to recover, although the D-Backs’ front office may prefer to hang onto Kelly into next season in anticipation of a bounceback themselves. He’s entering his second of four years of arbitration eligibility and will be entitled to a raise on this season’s $1.7MM salary.

Stallings has been one of the game’s most reliable defensive catchers for the past few seasons. The 31-year-old rather remarkably didn’t commit a single passed ball in 892 innings last season (which would make for a marked change from Alfaro’s receiving issues). He also hit at a solid level for a catcher (.246/.335/.369 over 427 plate appearances). That’d make him an appealing trade target, but Stallings comes with an additional three seasons of arbitration control himself and Pittsburgh hasn’t seem inclined to move him in the past.

The Fish could also look into more creative trade possibilities. The Blue Jays have a glut of young catchers at or near the big league level; the Twins could make Mitch Garver available to open more regular playing time for Ryan Jeffers; the Mariners might listen on one of Tom Murphy or Luis Torrens with prospect Cal Raleigh at the big league level. It seems highly likely the Marlins will make some form of addition behind the plate, with Mattingly’s assessment of the situation only lending further credence to the idea of a forthcoming shakeup at the position.

Marlins Select Payton Henry, Nick Fortes

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The Marlins are selecting catchers Payton Henry and Nick Fortes to the big league roster, general manager Kim Ng told reporters (including Christina de Nicola of MLB.com). Jorge Alfaro is being placed on the 10-day injured list due to a left calf strain, while infielder Isan Díaz was optioned to Triple-A Jacksonville. To clear space on the 40-man roster, Miami transferred starter Pablo López and third baseman Brian Anderson from the 10-day to the 60-day injured list.

Henry was a sixth-round pick of the Brewers in 2016 coming out of a Utah high school. The right-handed hitting backstop has moved progressively up the minor league ladder in the years since. He’s hitting for a decent amount of power but struggled with strikeouts, perhaps not especially surprising for a player coming from a nontraditional baseball background.

Miami acquired Henry from the Brewers at the trade deadline in a deal that sent reliever John Curtiss to Milwaukee. Baseball America slotted the 24-year-old as the #29 prospect in the Marlins’ system after the deal, calling him a potential glove-first backup with some power potential. Henry has picked up his first high minors experience this season, hitting .315/.392/.405 over 125 Double-A plate appearances and posting a .223/.318/.377 mark after being bumped up to Triple-A.

Like Henry, Fortes is coming up for his major league debut. He’s also a righty-swinging backstop whom the Fish selected in the fourth round of the 2018 draft out of Ole Miss. Fortes has also garnered his first high minors action this year, posting a .251/.338/.359 line over 226 trips to the plate in Double-A and hitting .237/.322/.378 in 152 plate appearances with Jacksonville. Fortes didn’t appear on Miami’s top 30 prospects at BA, but Eric Longenhagen of FanGraphs wrote in April that the 24-year-old’s defense and bat-to-ball skills give him a chance to be a capable reserve catcher.

Each of Henry and Fortes would have been eligible for the Rule 5 draft this winter if not selected to the 40-man roster. Miami will get an early look at both players over the season’s final couple weeks. The Marlins are generally expected to move on from Alfaro — who will be eligible for arbitration for the second time this offseason — and seek outside help behind the plate this winter. Neither Henry nor Fortes is the caliber of prospect who would likely deter the front office from seeking an external upgrade, but strong showings from one or both could give them an inside track at landing a season-opening reserve job in 2022.

López’s IL transfer is merely a procedural move. He’s already been on the IL for more than sixty days, so he’s eligible to return when first healthy. Ng told reporters (including de Nicola) that López will throw to batters tomorrow. The team still hopes he’ll be able to make it back this season. Anderson was already known to be out for the rest of the year after undergoing shoulder surgery.

Brewers Acquire John Curtiss

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The Brewers and Marlins have agreed to a swap sending right-handed reliever John Curtiss from Miami to Milwaukee in exchange for minor league catcher Payton Henry, the teams announced just prior to Friday’s trade deadline.

John Curtiss | Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

Curtiss, 28, was at one point a fairly well-regarded bullpen prospect in the Twins system but never panned out in Minnesota, Anaheim or Philadelphia after bouncing around in a series of transactions. Like so many others, however, he found a home with the Rays in 2020, pitching to a brilliant 1.80 ERA in 25 innings of relief and posting a 25.3 percent strikeout rate against a masterful 3.0 percent walk rate. The Rays nevertheless flipped Curtiss to the Marlins in a late offseason trade for minor league first baseman Evan Edwards — perhaps not sold on Curtiss being able to sustain his otherworldly command.

While Curtiss’ command has indeed backed up a bit — sustaining a three percent walk rate is a near impossibility for any pitcher — it’s still sitting at a brilliant 5.6 percent so far in what has been a terrific 2021 season. Curtiss pitched 40 innings for the Marlins and notched a tidy 2.48 ERA with a solid 24.8 percent strikeout rate.

Beyond his excellent production, Curtiss was no doubt appealing to the Rays due to the fact that he’s not yet arbitration-eligible and is controlled through the 2025 season. Curtiss won’t even reach arbitration until the 2022-23 offseason, so there’s potential for him to step up as a long-term bullpen piece for the Brew Crew.

The Brewers will gain those four and a half years of control at the expense of the 24-year-old Henry, whom they selected in the sixth round of the 2016 draft. Henry ranked among the Brewers’ top 30 prospects at Baseball America each season from 2018-20 but fell off this year. He’s still 25th among their farmhands over at FanGraphs, where Eric Longenhagen notes that he was a bat-first catcher in the draft who has made enough defensive gains to stick behind the plate. Henry’s raw power is his best tool.

So far in 2021, however, that pop hasn’t really been on display. He’s batted a combined .297/.372/.390 with just two homers between Double-A and Triple-A. That said, Henry has curbed his once-problematic strikeout rates by a wide margin this year; he fanned in 32 percent of his trips to the plate in Class-A as recently as 2018, but he’s down to an even 25 percent between Double-A and Triple-A this year (with fewer punchouts in Triple-A).

The Marlins are known to have been looking for potential long-term options behind the dish, and while Henry is a long shot to step up as their everyday option back there, he gives the Fish an upper-minors option who is producing at the dish and may not be too far from getting a shot in the big leagues.

MLB Network’s Jon Heyman first reported the deal (Twitter link).

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