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Tanner Scott

Orioles Make Three Roster Moves

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The Orioles placed left-hander Tanner Scott on the 10-day injured list due to a left knee sprain.  Fellow lefty Keegan Akin has been reinstated from the COVID-related injury list to take Scott’s place on the active roster, while right-hander Thomas Eshelman was designated for assignment to open up a 40-man roster spot.

Scott has a 3.95 ERA/4.12 SIERA over 41 innings out of Baltimore’s bullpen this season, with a very strong 31.4% strikeout rate.  However, Scott’s 16.5% walk rate is one of the worst in baseball, continuing the control problems that have plagued the southpaw over his 143 career innings in the Show.  Despite these free passes, Scott still drew a lot of attention prior to the trade deadline, as rival teams were intrigued by his high fastball velocity and the fact that Scott isn’t eligible for free agency until after the 2024 season.

This is the third time in as many seasons that the Orioles have DFA’s Eshelman, with the previous two designations resulting in the right-hander being outrighted to Triple-A.  All 92 of Eshelman’s career Major League innings have come with Baltimore in those three seasons, with the righty posting a 5.87 ERA and only an 11% strikeout rate.  The swingman has been mostly used in the rotation in 2021, as Eshelman has started five of his six games.

Two Orioles Lefties Commanding Trade Interest

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Baltimore left-handers Paul Fry and Tanner Scott aren’t household names, but both are drawing ample trade interest as Friday afternoon’s deadline approaches, per both Dan Connolly of The Athletic and Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com. Right-handers Cole Sulser and Dillon Tate have also drawn some interest, but they’re both controlled four more years after the current season and won’t even be arbitration-eligible until the 2022-23 offseason at the earliest.

The 29-year-old Fry and 27-year-old Scott both offer plenty of club control in their own right. Both pitchers have an additional year of MLB service time over Sulser and Tate, making both arb-eligible this winter and controllable through the 2024 campaign. Either pitcher would make for an affordable upgrade who could impact his new club for several years down the road, and both pitchers have become increasingly appealing as the market context has changed this week.

This summer’s trade market was never particularly deep in high-quality left-handed relief help. But the injury to Minnesota’s Taylor Rogers, recent struggles for Washington’s Brad Hand, and the Athletics’ Monday acquisition of Andrew Chafin from the Cubs can only make the pair of Baltimore lefties all the more appealing.

Fry (60 2/3 innings) and Scott (61 innings) have near-identical innings totals over the past two seasons and have been similarly effective, relying on well above-average strikeout and ground-ball rates. Scott’s 2.51 ERA in that time has the edge on Fry’s 3.12 mark, but Fry has the edge in strikeout percentage (31.9 to 30.9) and ground-ball percentage (54.6 percent to 52.2 percent). Fry’s walk rate of 10.8 percent is worse than the league average but considerably lower than Scott’s mark of 14.3 percent. Scott, however, offers a blazing heater that has averaged 97 mph in 2021 and generates far more swinging strikes than Paul and his 93 mph fastball. It’s easy to see a club dreaming more on Scott’s stuff, but Fry’s demonstrably better control of the strike zone is a major point in his favor.

Naturally, Connolly suggests that there’s a split in other teams’ opinions on the pair of southpaws. Some figure prefer Fry’s less-dynamic repertoire but steadier control. Others will be drawn to Scott’s power arsenal. Kubatko reports that the Phillies, who have several former O’s execs in their front office, have been keeping tabs on the Baltimore bullpen. He also lists the Padres as a possibility.

Generally speaking, Fry and Scott are two of the market’s most appealing lefty relievers. The aforementioned Hand is sure to be available as the Nationals pivot to selling, but he’s also earning a $10.5MM salary this season and has surrendered eight runs in his past nine innings of work. It’s feasible that the Angels could move veteran Tony Watson, but their deadline direction remains unsettled and he’s a free agent at season’s end. Chasen Shreve, having a solid but unspectacular year in Pittsburgh, would also be a rental. Miami’s Richard Bleier is a quietly effective name who could likely be had in a trade, and even with Rogers down, the Twins have another interesting lefty in Caleb Thielbar. Both Bleier and Thielbar are 34 and lack even average fastball velocity, however.

Fry and Scott arguably offer the best combination of bottom-line results, quality stuff, age and remaining club control on the market at this point. That makes them more expensive in terms of prospects than rental veterans like Hand, Watson or Shreve, of course, but either would be a quality get for a contender’s relief corps.

Orioles Designate Nate Karns, Promote Dillon Tate, Place John Means On IL

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The Orioles announced multiple pitching moves this evening. One player is now likely headed out of the organization, as righty Nate Karns was reinstated from the 60-day injured list and designated for assignment.

Young hurler Dillon Tate, the former fourth overall pick, was promoted for his first attempt at the majors. Righty Evan Phillips will accompany Tate onto the active roster.

Unfortunately, the O’s also announced that southpaw starter and rookie All-Star John Means was placed on the 10-day injured list with a biceps strain. Lefty Tanner Scott was optioned down to create the other necessary roster opening.

Karns landed with the Baltimore organization over the winter. He threw 5 1/3 scoreless frames to open his tenure but hit the shelf early with a forearm strain. The 31-year-old struggled mightily on his rehab assignment, dishing out ten walks and recording only five strikeouts in 10 1/3 innings.

It’s also unwelcome news as concerns Means. It had already been a bit of a rough month, as his ERA has moved north from 2.50 to 3.12, but it’s never preferable to hear of any issues in the arm of a young pitcher. There’s no indication as of yet regarding the severity, but the club will surely hope it’s only a minor blip for the 26-year-old.

As he prepares to debut at 25 years of age, Tate won’t face the massive expectations he once did. Arm issues and inconsistencies have changed the trajectory of the twice-traded righty. He has been solid at Double-A, working to a 3.48 ERA with 8.0 K/9 and 2.4 BB/9 over 33 2/3 innings in 15 relief appearances and a pair of starts.

Orioles Option Tanner Scott

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Following today’s game, the Orioles have optioned left-handed pitcher Tanner Scott to Triple-A, reports Roch Kubatko of MASN on Twitter. Presumably, the move opens a roster spot for the club to add a starter for tomorrow night’s game, though specifics are not yet known.

Scott, just 24 years old, has functioned in a bullpen role for the Orioles this season. In his young career, the southpaw has displayed flashy strikeout stuff, notching 96 K’s in just 66 1/3 innings of work, good for a 13.0 average per nine innings. That’s the carrying tool for a youngster who profiles as a pure relief arm with potential to grow into a high-leverage role for the O’s, though he’s yet to actualize that potential: despite the high strikeout numbers, Scott has managed just a 5.56 ERA in his career, which has spanned parts of three seasons.

Though the corresponding move has not been officially announced, Kubatko additionally suggests (via Twitter) that Tom Eshelman could be the one to get the call for tomorrow night’s series opener against the Rays. Notably, though, Eshelman is not on the Orioles’ 40-man roster, meaning that an additional move would be required to clear a spot for him on the 40-man.

 

Orioles To Select Josh Lucas, Place Richard Bleier On Injured List

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The Orioles have lockers set up for right-hander Josh Lucas and lefty Tanner Scott this morning, per MASNsports.com’s Roch Kubatko (all Twitter links), indicating that both have been brought up to the Major League roster. Lucas isn’t on the team’s 40-man roster, so his contract will be formally selected prior today’s 12:35 ET starting time. Baltimore already optioned Josh Rogers to Triple-A Norfolk following last night’s game, creating one vacancy on the 25-man roster, and the other will be created by placing lefty Richard Bleier on the injured list.

Lucas, 28, signed a minor league pact with the Orioles back in late November. His experience at the MLB level is limited, though he’s appeared in each of the past two big league seasons: with the Cardinals in 2017 and the Athletics in 2018. He’s tallied just 21 2/3 frames in that time, working to a 5.40 ERA with a 21-to-13 K/BB ratio and a promising 54.8 percent ground-ball rate.

Lucas doesn’t throw particularly hard, sitting 91-92 mph with his fastball, but he’s induced a solid 11.4 percent swinging-strike rate and a strong 33.8 percent chase rate on pitches out of the strike zone. He’ll come to the O’s with a nice Triple-A track record, having logged a 3.32 ERA with 8.9 K/9, 2.6 BB/9 and above-average ground-ball tendencies.

Bleier, despite a lack of missed bats, was the Orioles’ most effective reliever from 2017-18. Through 4 1/3 innings this season, though, he’s already allowed as many runs (seven) as he did through 32 2/3 frames last year. Bleier’s 2019 season was cut short by a lat tear that required surgery, and it’s possible that he’s still dealing with some lingering effects from that procedure.

Prior to Opening Day, he’s totaled 119 innings in the Majors between the Yankees and O’s, pitching to an immaculate 1.97 ERA despite averaging 4.1 K/9. Bleier’s pristine control (1.6 BB/9) and knack for avoiding hard contact have helped him thrive to this point in his big league career. If he can get back on track between now and July, he’d stand out as a possible trade candidate; the late-blooming Bleier will turn 32 next week but has three years of team control remaining beyond 2019.

The 24-year-old Scott, meanwhile, is already on the 40-man roster after spending the bulk of the 2018 season with the Orioles. Last year, he logged a lackluster 5.40 ERA but did punched out 76 batters in just 53 1/3 innings of Major League relief. The flamethrower has averaged better than 97 mph on his heater at the MLB level with a gaudy 16.4 percent swinging-strike rate and 36.6 percent opponents’ chase rate on out-of-zone pitches. If Scott can rein in his control (4.7 BB/9), he has the makings of a quality late-inning reliever; fielding-independent pitching metrics are already quite bullish on him as it is (3.40 FIP, 2.96 xFIP, 3.18 SIERA in 2018).

Orioles Place Richard Bleier On DL, Select Corban Joseph, Designate D.J. Snelten

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SATURDAY: Bleier will indeed have season-ending surgery on Tuesday to repair a Grade 3 lat strain, as Eduardo A. Encina of the Baltimore Sun was among those to tweet.

FRIDAY, 3:33pm: Bleier may need surgery and is likely to miss the remainder of the season, MLB.com’s Britt Ghiroli is among those to report on Twitter.

2:19pm: The Orioles have announced a host of roster moves today. Southpaw Richard Bleier is heading to the DL with what has been diagnosed as a lat strain. He’ll be replaced in the pen by southpaw Tanner Scott.

Infielder Corban Joseph has been selected and added to the active roster as well. To create the needed roster space, righty Yefry Ramirez was optioned and lefty D.J. Snelten was designated for assignment.

The news on Bleier was fully expected at this point, as Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com wrote earlier today. Bleier is said to be seeking a second opinion after already undergoing an MRI. It’s still unclear just how bleak the outlook is, but Kubatko suggests the internal belief is it’s a serious injury.

While Bleier, 31, is hardly a household name, perhaps he should be. The former Yankees southpaw is in his third big league season and currently is sporting the third sub-2.00 ERA of his career. Bleier has a 1.97 ERA in 119 innings, which is the sixth-lowest mark (min. 100 innings) in MLB history. He’s tied with Craig Kimbrel for the best ERA- (46) in MLB history (again, min. 100 innings; and a tip of the cap to ESPN’s Sam Miller for shining a light on Bleier’s curious dominance earlier this season).

Bleier has averaged just 4.1 K/9 in his career, but his 21.2 percent hard-contact rate in 2018 is outstanding. He’s allowed only two barreled balls this season (as defined by Statcast), and he leads the Majors in barrels per batted ball (1.8 percent of balls in play against him). Bleier may be an anomaly, but he’s been an important piece to the Baltimore bullpen who now looks headed for an absence of potential significance.

Orioles Outright Richard Rodriguez, Select Tanner Scott

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1:13pm: Rodriguez has cleared waivers and been outrighted to Norfolk, per an announcement from Baltimore.

10:22am: The Orioles announced that they’ve designated right-hander Richard Rodriguez for assignment. The team selected left-hander Tanner Scott from Double-A Bowie in a corresponding move.

The 27-year-old Rodriguez, who’s in his third season with the Baltimore organization, got his first taste of major league action in 2017. It didn’t go well, as Rodriguez allowed nine earned runs on 12 hits and three walks, with three strikeouts, over 5 2/3 innings. He was far better across 70 2/3 frames this year at Triple-A Norfolk, where he pitched to a sparkling 2.42 ERA and logged 10.19 K/9 against 2.29 BB/9. Rodriguez was similarly effective at the Triple-A level in each of the previous two seasons.

A sixth-round pick in 2014, the hard-throwing Scott has developed into one of the Orioles’ top prospects. MLB.com ranks the 23-year-old sixth among Baltimore’s farmhands and suggests that he has the potential to become an excellent major league reliever. Scott worked out of the rotation with Bowie this season, but with just 69 innings in 24 starts, he averaged fewer than three frames per appearance. Along the way, Scott overcame a bloated walk rate (6.00 BB/9) with an 11.17 K/9, to go with a 52.1 percent groundball rate, en route to a 2.22 ERA.

Orioles Rumors: Deadline, Schoop, Prospects

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Earlier this week, Orioles general manager Dan Duquette seemed poised to market some of his veterans in advance of the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline, but that no longer looks like the case. Even though the Orioles are 46-50 and 4.5 games out of a wild-card spot, Duquette told reporters Saturday that they’re planning to approach the deadline as buyers. “Whatever we do [at the trade deadline], we are going to try to help the club,” he said (via Brittany Ghiroli of MLB.com, on Twitter). “I still like a lot of our core players. I don’t believe all the stuff that says we have half the club on the market, because we have a lot of baseball left to be played.” Specifically, the Orioles will attempt to upgrade a rotation that entered Saturday ranked in the majors’ bottom three in ERA (5.93) and fWAR (2.0). Duquette noted that “if we can get a little bit better starting pitching or add to the pitching we can make a run at this.”

A couple more notes from Baltimore:

  • One of the few positives for the Orioles this year has been second baseman Jonathan Schoop, who has flashed improved plate discipline and slashed an excellent .303/.351/547 with 20 home runs in 388 PAs. The Orioles had interest in keeping him around for the long haul even before the season, as Duquette revealed that he discussed an extension with Schoop over the winter (Twitter link via Ghiroli). Whatever the asking price was then, it has certainly gone up between the 25-year-old’s 2017 performance and his dwindling team control. Schoop, who’s on a $3.475MM salary this season, has two more arbitration-eligible years before free agency.
  • The Orioles may have a couple of trade chips in left-handers Alex Wells and Tanner Scott, both of whom have drawn interest, according to Duquette (Twitter link via Dan Connolly of BaltimoreBaseball.com). A team called Duquette on Friday about the 20-year-old Wells, who has logged a 2.56 ERA, 6.97 K/9 and .88 BB/9 in 102 Single-A innings this season. He ranks as the Orioles’ 28th-best prospect at MLB.com, which places Scott 10th. “Teams covet” Scott, notes Connolly; although the 23-year-old has walked 5.98 batters per nine in 52 2/3 Double-A frames this season, he has posted an 11.45 K/9 and managed a stingy 2.05 ERA.

Rosenthal’s Latest: CBA, Cardinals, Marlins, Torres, Orioles

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Here are highlights of the latest notes column from Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.

  • Some teams pursued free agents last winter with the idea that the new CBA would allow them to have 26-man rosters in 2017. That plan, along with a related move to reduce September roster expansion to 28 players, did not wind up in the CBA, but owners and the union are open-minded to the possibility of revising it next winter, although such a change to the current CBA would likely only take place along with the addition of pace-of-play rules.
  • It would make sense for the Cardinals to discuss a trade with the Marlins involving outfielder Marcell Ozuna, Rosenthal writes. The Cardinals would get a middle-of-the-order hitter who is controllable through 2019. The Marlins, meanwhile, want to add prospects and it’s doubtful they can extend Ozuna, who is represented by Scott Boras. (Rosenthal recently reported that the Marlins would consider trading Ozuna.) Rosenthal also argues that the Marlins’ best path forward right now is to rebuild. Past attempts to win now have resulted in the team giving up too many small pieces of their future (including players like Andrew Heaney and Josh Naylor) in recent trades.
  • Top Yankees infield prospect Gleyber Torres has limited experience in the high minors, but he might be promoted to replace Chase Headley (who’s batting just .228/.300/.348 over 203 plate appearances this season) at third base in the near future, since the first-place Yankees could see Torres as a better option than dealing prospects to acquire a veteran third baseman.
  • Outfielder Howie Kendrick and reliever Pat Neshek have performed well for the Phillies this season and could provide the team with good trade value, perhaps along with Joaquin Benoit, once Benoit returns from a DL stint caused by a knee strain.
  • A source tells Rosenthal the Orioles want lefty relief help, although he notes that Double-A lefty Tanner Scott could become an option at some point. Scott, a sixth-round pick in 2014, has a 1.64 ERA and 11.7 K/9 in 33 innings thus far this season, although he might need to work on his 6.0 BB/9 so far before making it to the Majors. The O’s currently have Donnie Hart and Richard Bleier pitching as lefties out of their bullpen; another lefty reliever, Zach Britton, is out for an extended period with a forearm strain, although he doesn’t pitch in a typical lefty role anyway.

AL East Notes: Orioles, Scott, Jays, Longoria, Yankees

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The Yankees are 5-3 since the All-Star break, which further complicates the question of whether or not the team should buy or sell at the deadline, NJ Advance Media’s Randy Miller writes.  “I don’t know how much the organization actually has publicly said (about the trade deadline),” said Andrew Miller, himself a regular candidate in trade speculation.  “I feel like it’s been rumor and things that kind of have been assumed, and in reality I think all we can do is focus on the game at hand.”  New York is 49-47 for the season and sits 4.5 games behind Toronto for the last AL wild card slot.  Here’s more from around the AL East…

  • The Orioles have been getting calls about Double-A southpaw Tanner Scott since the offseason, MASNsports.com’s Roch Kubatko reports.  It’s possible Scott could be one of the prospects desired by the Padres in the rumored Melvin Upton-for-Ubaldo Jimenez trade talks between the two clubs, though Kubatko feels the O’s should keep Scott.  A sixth-round pick from the 2014 draft, Scott has posted a 4.63 ERA and 6.6 BB/9 over 114 2/3 pro innings (mostly out of the bullpen), though he averages 11.5 K/9 and owns a 101-mph fastball.
  • The Blue Jays have been talking to multiple teams about both starters and relievers, FOX Sports’ Jon Morosi tweets.  Bullpen is the more pressing concern for Toronto, though if Aaron Sanchez is shifted to a setup role as planned, that leaves a big hole in the rotation (especially given Marcus Stroman’s inconsistency and Marco Estrada’s recurring back issues).  Then again, Sanchez has been so good this season that the Jays could reverse course and keep him as a starter, which would increase their need for relief help.
  • Though trading Evan Longoria makes some sense for the Rays, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times believes the club won’t and shouldn’t entertain the thought of dealing its longtime star.  Longoria has too much value as Tampa’s franchise player on and off the field, and moving him would only fit if the Rays were pursuing a total rebuild, which doesn’t appear to be the case.  There has been whispers that former Rays boss Andrew Friedman could be exploring a reunion with Longoria with the Dodgers, though the Rays are reportedly uninterested in Longoria trades now and perhaps whatsoever.
  • Alex Rodriguez had “a very positive conversation” with Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner prior to Friday’s game and the subject of releasing the veteran slugger didn’t come up, sources tell ESPN.com’s Wallace Matthews.  The meeting was initiated by Steinbrenner, though the reason isn’t known; it’s possible it could simply have been the owner touching base with A-Rod on any number of topics.  It has been rumored that the Yankees could cut ties with Rodriguez in order to create roster space for younger players, as A-Rod hasn’t hit well this year and can only handle a DH role at this stage of his career.
  • A Kyle Schwarber-for-Andrew Miller deal between the Cubs and Yankees has been one of the hottest rumors of this deadline season, though Chicago management has repeatedly said Schwarber isn’t on the market.  Fangraphs’ Dave Cameron takes an interesting look at Schwarber’s fuure value, arguing that there are signs he may not develop into the top-tier slugger the Cubs believe he can be (though Cameron’s Mike Napoli comp is still flattering).  While Schwarber has more value than Miller as a long-term piece, Cameron that a Yankees trade package of both Miller and Aroldis Chapman would justify the Cubs pulling the trigger on a deal.

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