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Tom Gorzelanny

Mets, Tom Gorzelanny Agree To Minor League Deal

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The Mets have agreed to a minor league contract with veteran left-hander Tom Gorzelanny, reports Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports (Twitter links). Gorzelanny, who will be invited to Major League Spring Training, would earn $1MM upon making the roster and has another $1.8MM available via incentives, Heyman adds. The ISE client also has a March 24 opt-out date in his contract.

Gorzelanny, 34, split the 2016 season between the Orioles and Indians organizations, pitching to a combined 3.65 ERA in 24 2/3 Triple-A innings. Gorzelanny appeared in seven games with the big league club in Cleveland as well, though he was hit hard and ultimately allowed seven runs in just three innings of work.

Gorzelanny has struggled in two straight seasons, but from 2012-14 was a quality bullpen piece. In 178 1/3 innings between the Nationals and Brewers in that time, Gorzelanny logged a 3.13 ERA with 8.5 K/9, 3.5 BB/9 and a 43.5 percent ground-ball rate. Though he’s not an overpowering arm against left-handed hitters, Gorzelanny has nonetheless held same-handed opponents to a .229/.302/.356 batting line in parts of 12 seasons at the Major League level.

The Mets have been seeking left-handed relief help for much of the offseason, and while they’re rumored to have interest in a reunion with Jerry Blevins, there could be financial constraints preventing that from happening. Josh Edgin, Josh Smoker and Sean Gilmartin represent left-handed options that are already on the 40-man roster, while Adam Wilk has also inked a minor league contract and will be in Major League camp as a non-roster invite.

Minor MLB Transactions: 8/7/16

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Here are today’s minor moves from around the game:

  • The Orioles have released left-hander Tom Gorzelanny, according to Rich Dubroff of CSN Mid-Atlantic (on Twitter). Gorzelanny’s tenure with Baltimore, which signed him to a minor league deal on July 24, was a short one. The 34-year-old worked six innings for their Triple-A affiliate in Norfolk and allowed seven earned runs on 11 hits and five walks. Gorzelanny, who spent some time with Cleveland this year before it designated him for assignment in June, tossed 39 1/3  frames of 5.95 ERA ball last season in Detroit.

Earlier updates:

  • The Twins will select the contract of lefty Ryan O’Rourke, 1500ESPN’s Darren Wolfson tweets. The 28-year-old O’Rourke has reestablished himself nicely since being outrighted in May, posting a 1.93 ERA, 9.3 K/9 and 1.9 BB/9 in 28 innings for Triple-A Rochester. As Seth Stohs of TwinsDaily.com points out (on Twitter), O’Rourke has been brilliant since the beginning of July, allowing just one walk and no runs over that time frame. The Twins cleared space for O’Rourke yesterday when they designated fellow southpaw Andrew Albers for assignment.
  • The Padres have selected the contract of hard-throwing righty Brandon Morrow, tweets Dennis Lin of the San Diego Union-Tribune. To clear space, they’ve optioned lefty Buddy Baumann to Triple-A El Paso and placed infielder Cory Spangenberg (quadriceps) on the 60-day DL. The 32-year-old Morrow has pitched more than 80% of his 768 2/3 career big-league innings as a starter, but he’s set to relieve for the Padres after being out of the big leagues for over a year due to shoulder trouble. He had a 6.43 ERA, 9.0 K/9 and 3.9 BB/9 in 21 innings for El Paso, although he fared significantly better than that in five starts in the big leagues last season.

Minor MLB Transactions: 7/24/16

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Sunday’s minor transactions from around baseball:

  • The Orioles have signed veteran left-hander Tom Gorzelanny to a minor league contract, according to David Hall of the Virginian-Pilot (Twitter link). Gorzelanny became a free agent earlier this month after rejecting an outright assignment to Triple-A from the Indians, who designated him for assignment July 4. The 34-year-old has a career 4.40 ERA, 7.3 K/9 and 3.9 BB/9 in parts of 12 seasons (883 2/3 innings) with six different teams. Gorzelanny tossed 39 1/3 of those frames last year in Detroit, where opposing hitters battered him to the tune of a 5.95 ERA.
  • The Blue Jays have signed right-hander Scott Copeland to a minor league deal, per a club announcement. Copeland, 28, was previously in the Toronto organization from 2012-15, mostly working in the minor leagues. He got his first taste of big league action last season and allowed 11 earned runs on 24 hits in 15 1/3 innings. Copeland only walked two hitters in that span, but struck out just six. The Blue Jays then sold Copeland to the LG Twins of the Korea Baseball Organization, where he struggled through 63 1/3 innings this year in the hitter-friendly league.
  • The Indians have announced the release of 26-year-old outfielder Bryson Myles, whom the Tribe selected in the sixth round of the 2011 draft. Myles never made it to the majors with the Indians, but he did climb his way to Triple-A Columbus this year. He hit a meek .234/.305/.330 in 105 plate appearances with the Clippers, however, thus leading to his departure from the organization. All told, Myles batted a solid .277/.356/.414 in 2,058 PAs with the Indians’ minor league affiliates.

Minor MLB Transactions: 7/9/16

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

  • Veteran lefty Tom Gorzelanny has declined his outright assignment with the Indians and is now a free agent, the team has announced. The Indians designated Gorzelanny for assignment on Monday after he allowed seven runs in three innings for them. Gorzelanny, who turns 34 this week, has a career 4.40 ERA, 7.3 K/9 and 3.9 BB/9 in parts of 12 seasons with the Pirates, Cubs, Nationals, Brewers and Tigers in addition to the Indians.
  • The Cardinals have announced that they’ve allowed outfielder Carlos Peguero to depart for the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles in Japan. They will receive cash considerations in return. The 29-year-old Peguero has played with the Mariners, Royals, Rangers and Red Sox in parts of five big-league seasons, but has never stuck, accumulating just 319 career plate appearances. He’s shown big power in the minors, though, with 95 home runs and a .277/.346/.520 in the equivalent of about three full seasons at Triple-A.
  • The Rays have signed reliever Casey Coleman to a minor league deal, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times tweets. Coleman opted out of his deal with the Mariners last week after posting a 2.08 ERA, 8.8 K/9 and 2.8 BB/9 in 39 strong innings with Triple-A Tacoma.
  • One of Coleman’s new Durham Bulls teammates is lefty Dana Eveland, who was designated for assignment this week. Via SB Nation’s Chris Cotillo (on Twitter), Eveland has accepted the Rays’ outright assignment. He posted an 8.55 ERA, 8.1 K/9 and 6.8 BB/9 in 20 innings of relief with the Rays this season.
  • The Pirates have outrighted catcher Jacob Stallings, as the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s Bill Brink tweets. The Bucs designated the defensive specialist for assignment last week. The 26-year-old has batted just .200/.235/.326 this season, but he received a brief callup because of a rash of injuries to Pirates catchers.

Indians Designate Joba Chamberlain, Tom Gorzelanny

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The Indians have announced a host of pitching moves, with the club clearing roster space by designating righty Joba Chamberlain and lefty Tom Gorzelanny. They’ll be replaced by southpaw T.J. House and righty Mike Clevinger.

[Related: Updated Indians Depth Chart]

Chamberlain, 30, had been generating results for Cleveland after signing a $1MM deal in the offseason. He owns a 2.25 ERA over twenty frames, with 8.1 K/9 against 5.0 BB/9 and a 52.9% groundball rate. The veteran is still working with an average fastball of over 93 mph, and ought to draw some interest — particularly given the cheap salary.

Things hadn’t gone quite as well for the 33-year-old Gorzelanny, who was tagged for seven earned runs in just three innings of work over seven appearances. He had been useful at the Triple-A level, though, putting up 18 2/3 innings of 3.38 ERA pitching with 9.2 K/9 against 5.3 BB/9.

Article XX(B) Free Agents Update: Tuesday

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Major League Baseball’s collective bargaining agreement contains a provision that allows certain free agents who are signed to minor league contracts to receive a $100K retention bonus if they are not on the team’s 25-man roster or the Major League disabled list five days prior to the season.

Free agents who qualify for this distinction are those who have at least six years of Major League service time and had a Major League contract expire at the end of the previous season, but signed a minor league deal ten or more days prior to Opening Day.

The deadline for teams to decide on these players is today at 11am central time. By the deadline, teams with these players in camp need to decide whether to:

  • Add the player to their 25-man roster or Major League disabled list (or agree to do so in writing).
  • Grant the player his outright release from the minor league contract so that he may pursue opportunities with other teams.
  • Pay the player a $100K retention bonus to keep him in the organization beyond the deadline and send him to the minors.

Here’s the latest news from around the league on Article XX(B) signees and their roster statuses with their respective teams (newest updates on top):

  • Matt Thornton has been told that he’ll break camp with the Padres, according to Dennis Lin of the San Diego Union-Tribune (via Twitter). The veteran southpaw signed fairly late in camp after failing to find a big league deal, ultimately reaching a minor league pact that will pay him $1.6MM at the MLB level. He can also take home up to $1.9MM in incentives depending upon how many appearances he makes.

Earlier Updates

  • Outfielder Ryan Raburn will be added to the Rockies’ 40-man roster, Nick Groke of the Denver Post clarifies (Twitter links). He figures to play an important part-time role on the club, which features three left-handed outfielders in its regular lineup.
  • The Braves have announced that outfielder Jeff Francoeur has made the Opening Day roster, with the team purchasing his contract. He’ll play a reserve role in his return to Atlanta, where he once featured as one of the most exciting young players in baseball.
  • The Padres appear set to pay Brandon Morrow the $100K retention bonus to remain with the organization, Dennis Lin of the San Diego Union-Tribune tweets. Morrow, 31, still needs to stretch out after getting a late start this spring.
  • The Nationals have officially added righty Matt Belisle to the club’s 40-man roster and will be active on Opening Day, the team announced. He represents a somewhat surprising victor in the pen battle, and his addition seemingly leaves the organization with just one open job to give to minor league free agent lefty Sean Burnett or optionable righties Trevor Gott and Blake Treinen.
  • Veteran outfielder Matt Joyce has made the Pirates’ Opening Day roster and will be added to the 40-man, GM Neal Huntington told reporters including Bill Brink of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (via Twitter). He had a forgettable 2015, but put up strong numbers in camp.
  • Likewise, the Indians announced yesterday that southpaw Tom Gorzelanny will remain in the organization in the minor league system. He’ll be due a $100K bonus for the privilege.

This post originally incorrectly listed Alex Torres as an Article XX(B) free agent.

Indians Roster Notes: Thatcher, Gorzelanny, Joba, Urshela

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Here are a few quick notes on recent Indians roster decisions:

  • The Indians have told veteran lefty Joe Thatcher that he will not make the team, as MLB.com’s Jordan Bastian writes. Thatcher was an Article XX(B) free agent, so he will get a $100K retention bonus and a June 1 opt-out date if he accepts a minor-league assignment. He has until Tuesday to decide if he’ll do so. Thatcher allowed just one run in 6 2/3 innings in Spring Training and also got fairly good results in a partial season with the Astros last year, but that apparently wasn’t enough to earn a spot.
  • The Indians have also told one of Thatcher’s competitors for a bullpen job, Tom Gorzelanny, that he won’t make the team either, Bastian tweets. Gorzelanny, too, was an Article XX(B) free agent, but as the Akron Beacon Journal’s Ryan Lewis tweets, the Indians are hoping he winds up with them at Triple-A. The 33-year-old Gorzelanny was coming off a rough season in Detroit and struck out only three batters in 7 2/3 innings in Spring Training, during which he allowed three runs. If the Indians do carry a bullpen lefty, it appears it will be either Kyle Crockett or Ross Detwiler.
  • One veteran reliever who has made the team is righty Joba Chamberlain, Bastian tweets. The Indians signed Chamberlain to a minor-league deal in December after a mediocre 2015 season in which he posted a 4.88 ERA, 7.5 K/9 and 2.9 BB/9 in 27 2/3 innings with the Tigers and Royals. Chamberlain also walked five batters in eight Spring Training innings this season. At 30, though, he’s fairly young, and he’s demonstrated mid-90s velocity.
  • The team also optioned infielder Giovanny Urshela, pitcher Austin Adams, outfielder Joey Butler and infielder Erik Gonzalez. The most notable of those is Urshela, who played in 81 big-league games last season and hit well this Spring but didn’t figure to make the team thanks to the presence of Juan Uribe and Jose Ramirez.

Indians Sign Tom Gorzelanny To Minor League Deal

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The Indians announced that they have signed veteran left-hander Tom Gorzelanny to a minor league deal with an invitation to Major League Spring Training. Cleveland also confirmed its previously reported minor league deal with lefty Joe Thatcher. Gorzelanny is represented by Relativity Sports, while Thatcher is a client of Platinum Sports.

Gorzelanny, 33, spent the 2015 season in the Tigers’ bullpen but found himself unable to recreate the strong results had delivered from 2012-14 with the Nationals and Brewers (combined 3.13 ERA over 178 1/3 innings). With Detroit, Gorzelanny totaled 39 1/3 innings but struggled to a 5.95 ERA. While an elevated BABIP played some role in the struggles, Gorzelanny also saw his strikeout rate dip and, most troublesome of all, his walk rate soar to 5.3 per nine innings — far and away his worst mark since becoming a reliever. Bloated walk rate notwithstanding, Gorzelanny still held lefties in check for the most part, yielding a .219/.317/.347 batting line. However, right-handers clobbered Gorzelanny to the tune of a .349/.454/.610 slash line. Gorzelanny has long had a platoon split, but 2015 was easily the most notable it has ever been.

The pair of lefties will compete for spots in the Cleveland bullpen, where Kyle Crockett and Giovanni Soto are the current options for manager Terry Francona.

Minor MLB Transactions: 8/9/15

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The latest minor moves…

  • Prior to today’s game, the Tigers purchased the contract of lefty Tom Gorzelanny while optioning Shane Greene to Triple-A.  Gorzelanny pitched in today’s 7-2 Tigers loss to the Red Sox, allowing a run in a third of an inning.  The southpaw was designated for assignment then outrighted to Triple-A in July, and heading into today, Gorzelanny had posted a 6.38 ERA over 24 relief innings for Detroit.
  • The Mariners have traded Triple-A third baseman Carlos Rivero to the Red Sox for cash considerations, as Greg Johns of MLB.com tweets.  Rivero joined Seattle when he was claimed off waivers from the Red Sox in November of 2014.  In December, the M’s re-signed him to a minor league deal.  Rivero made his Major League debut last season, appearing in eight games with Boston.  In part of five Triple-A seasons, Rivero has slashed .274/.324/.388.
  • The Orioles announced that infielder Chris Parmelee has accepted his outright assignment to Triple-A Norfolk.  The O’s designated Parmelee for assignment when they acquired Gerardo Parra at the trade deadline and they outrighted him days later.  He has hit .216/.255/.433 in 102 plate appearances with Baltimore.

Outrighted To Triple-A: O’Sullivan, Wilson, Gorzelanny

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Here are today’s outright assignments from around the league…

  • The Phillies announced that right-hander Sean O’Sullivan has accepted an outright assignment to Triple-A Lehigh Valley. O’Sullivan was outrighted earlier this week after spending the bulk of the first half in the Phillies’s rotation. The 27-year-old has never enjoyed much success in the Majors, but he’s soaked up 302 1/3 innings with the Royals, Padres, Angels and Phillies from 2009-15, including 71 frames for the Phils in 2015. O’Sullivan worked to a 6.08 ERA this year. That number is clearly unappealing, but he did provide a serviceable 4.79 ERA through his first 10 starts before allowing six runs in each of his final three turns.
  • Infielder Josh Wilson accepted an outright assignment from the Tigers after being DFA earlier this week, writes MLive.com’s Chris Iott. The versatile veteran actually hit quite well in a small sample with Detroit this season but doesn’t have a track record of offensive success. Rather, he’s carved out a career through defensive versatility, as he’s logged significant innings at shortstop, second base and third base in addition to brief cameos in left field and at first base.

Earlier Updates

  • Left-hander Tom Gorzelanny has accepted an outright assignment from the Tigers after clearing waivers, tweets MLB.com’s Jason Beck. Gorzelanny was designated for assignment alongside Joba Chamberlain on Friday and had the right to elect free agency and retain what remained of his $1MM salary. Instead, he’ll work on a sidearm delivery at Triple-A Toledo, according to Beck. The veteran Gorzelanny posted a 6.38 ERA in 24 innings for Detroit this season.
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