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Tyler Zombro

Rangers To Sign Tyler Zombro To Minor League Deal

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The Rangers are signing 28-year-old right hander Tyler Zombro to a minor league deal, reports Jeff Passan of ESPN. It’s less than two years since Zombro was hit in the head by a 104 mph line drive while pitching for the Rays’ Triple-A affiliate, which caused him to have a seizure on the mound and fractured his skull.

He did make a brief return to the mound last year at Triple-A Durham, pitching in two games before requiring thoracic outlet syndrome surgery. He was released by the Rays organization in March. Any comeback at all was a remarkable achievement for Zombro, who spent five days in the intensive care unit of Duke University Hospital undergoing brain surgery in June, 2021.

He never has made it to the big leagues, but has shown some promise as a relief pitcher in the minors. He owns a 1.87 ERA across 57 2/3 innings at Double-A, and has worked to a 5.30 ERA in a smaller sample of 18 2/3 innings in Triple-A. Triple-A is where he’ll report to for the Rangers, where he’ll look to provide the team with some bullpen depth.

 

Rays Notes: Zombro, Yarbrough, Stadium

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Right-hander Tyler Zombro made his return to the mound last night with the Rays’ Triple-A affiliate — the first time he pitched in a regular-season game since last season’s horrifying injury. Zombro, struck in the head by a 104 mph comeback liner early last June, underwent emergency brain surgery and had his skull stabilized with 16 plates and 36 screws, as detailed by MLB.com’s Adam Berry. That Zombro fully recovered is a triumph in and of itself, but returning to the mound in less than a year’s time seems nearly impossible to fathom. Last night’s return came on the road against the Norfolk Tides (the Orioles’ Triple-A affiliate), and in a particularly classy scene, the entire Tides dugout emptied to laud Zombro with a standing ovation as he took the mound (video link). Zombro’s teammates and many of the fans in attendance followed suit. “That’s been one of the moments that certainly hit me the hardest,” Zombro tells Berry. “…I think it all came kind of full circle there and definitely was a symbol of me ‘completing the journey’ to be back to performing in Triple-A.”

More on the Rays…

  • Lefty Ryan Yarbrough made a rehab outing yesterday in hopes of a quick return to the roster, but he retired just one batter, walked four hitters and threw only 10 of his 27 pitches for strikes. Yarbrough, on the shelf since April 8 due to a groin strain, has yet to pitch in a big league game for Tampa Bay so far in 2022. The 30-year-old southpaw is hoping to bounce back from a career-worst year in 2021, when he logged a 5.11 ERA in a career-high 155 frames. He pitched well this spring (one run in 8 1/3 official frames), but it’s not yet clear when he’ll return to the club. Tampa Bay has been (quite successfully) using setup man J.P. Feyereisen as a an opener with Yarbrough, Luis Patino, Shane Baz, Yonny Chirinos, Tyler Glasnow and Brendan McKay all on the injured list. The team hasn’t made any kind of formal announcement regarding Yarbrough’s status, but given the short nature of that outing and the ugly results, it’d be a bit of a surprise to see him activated without another rehab appearance.
  • Major League Baseball nixed the Rays’ convoluted split-city plan with Montreal back in January, and St. Petersburg mayor Ken Welch now tells John Romano of the Tampa Bay Times that he believes there’s a path forward for the Rays right at home in St. Petersburg. While Romano notes that a move to Tampa is the team’s preferred option, they’ve been unable to work out the necessary funding to facilitate such a move (hence the outside-the-box Montreal plan). Welch notes that the city of St. Petersburg has hired new financial consultants to explore whether the possibility of a mixed-use development similar to the Braves’ Battery development surrounding Truist Park could be plausible. Major funding from Pinellas County’s tourist tax would still be required, but Welch struck an optimistic tone that the team and the city could eventually figure out a workable plan. Of course, there’s been no shortage of optimism regarding various stadium plans in recent years, and the team has nevertheless continually found itself back at square one after each has fallen through. The Rays’ current lease at Tropicana Field runs through 2027.

Quick Hits: Free Agents, Goodrum, Zombro

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We have continued to see minor league signings even with the lockout still limiting most offseason business, though The Athletic’s Eno Sarris and Brittany Ghiroli note that the total number of minors contracts signed this winter is naturally much lower than usual compared to past offseasons.  While the lockout extends to MLBPA members, players on MLB contracts, and players on 40-man rosters, some players within these parameters are stuck in a strange middle ground, like Sam McWilliams.  Since the righty signed a Major League contract with the Mets last winter but hasn’t actually appeared in a big league game in his pro career, he is both locked out and not an official union member.

It isn’t known exactly how many players are in McWilliams’ status, which is part of the confusion shared over which players are exactly “covered” by the lockout regulations.  As a result, some offseason throwing showcases have had to stagger workout times (since MLB scouts aren’t permitted to even observe locked-out players) or even prevent some “covered” players from attending these showcases.  McWilliams and others might therefore have even more of an uphill battle in landing a contract during what is expected to be an absolute frenzy of transactions once the lockout is finally over.  [UPDATE: Ghiroli tweets that the MLBPA has adjusted its qualification standard for stipends to include McWilliams and other players in his situation]

More from around baseball…

  • Niko Goodrum is one of the many free agents still waiting to land his next contract, though the utilityman told The Detroit News’ Chris McCosky that he had plenty of interest prior to the lockout.  The Tigers outrighted Goodrum off their 40-man roster in mid-November and he chose to test the open market, saying “we had been in contact with 10 teams….Seven of them were looking to offer big-league deals.”  Goodrum’s multi-positional versatility would certainly make him a good fit on many rosters, even if his bat has fallen off over the last two seasons.  In 504 plate appearances in 2020-21, Goodrum hit only .203/.282/.350 — a significant dropoff from the .247/.319/.427 slash line he posted with Detroit over 964 PA in 2018-19.  Goodrum has no hard feelings towards the Tigers for parting ways, and is now just looking forward to his next big league opportunity.
  • Tyler Zombro is planning to attend the Rays’ minor league camp, and tells The Tampa Bay Times’ Marc Topkin that “within the next month to two months, I certainly will be 100 percent” recovered from a skull fracture.  In a horrific incident during a Triple-A game last June, Zombro was hit in the head with a line drive, suffering both the fracture and a seizure on the mound.  After emergency surgery and a long recovery process, however, Zombro was given medical clearance by MLB last month and got back onto a mound for the first time since the injury.

AL East Notes: Zombro, Choi, Kluber, Blue Jays, Ward

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Rays pitching prospect Tyler Zombro was struck in the head by a line drive last night during the eighth inning of Triple-A Durham’s game against Norfolk.  Zombro was taken off the field on a stretcher and taken to hospital, as the game was suspended and then later officially halted.

The Rays released a statement on Zombro’s condition earlier today: “As of this morning, Tyler remains under the care of the nurses and doctors at Duke University Hospital. The updates from overnight have been positive, and he remains in stable condition. We are overwhelmed by the support for Tyler and the wishes for his full and speedy recovery from fans and the baseball community alike. We will provide additional updates as he progresses.”

We at MLBTR add our voices to the chorus of support for Zombro, and we’re hoping for all the best in his recovery.

More from around the AL East…

  • Ji-Man Choi has been battling left groin tightness and might require a trip to the injured list.  Choi missed Thursday’s game with the Yankees due to the issue, and Rays manager Kevin Cash told reporters (including Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times) that “I don’t think that he necessarily felt that great today” even after Choi received treatment throughout the game.  Arthroscopic knee surgery in March delayed Choi’s season debut until May 16, and he has been making up for lost time with a scorching .304/.448/.522 slash line in his first 58 plate appearances.  [UPDATE: the Rays have placed Choi on the 10-day IL with a left groin strain.]
  • Corey Kluber’s recovery from a rotator cuff strain is still projected to keep the righty out of action until around the last week of July, but Yankees manager Aaron Boone did provide some positive news in an update with reporters (including Kristie Ackert of the New York Daily News).  After receiving second and third opinions from doctors, Kluber is expected to start throwing on flat ground within a few days’ time — his initial diagnosis would have kept him from throwing whatsoever for four weeks.
  • Pitching is the most obvious need for the Blue Jays at the trade deadline, yet Sportsnet’s Ben Nicholson-Smith suggests that the Jays should also look to add bench help.  As much as the returns of George Springer, Alejandro Kirk, and Cavan Biggio will help matters, adding another bat would guard against any future injuries.  Specifically, a left-handed bat would also balance out a Toronto lineup that leans heavily to the right.
  • Red Sox pitching prospect Thad Ward recently underwent Tommy John surgery, Alex Speier of The Boston Globe reports.  A fifth-round pick for the Sox in the 2018 draft, Ward posted some impressive numbers in his first two pro seasons before making his Double-A debut this season (posting a 5.63 ERA over eight innings).  Both MLB Pipeline and Baseball America ranked Ward as a top-ten prospect in Boston’s farm system, but the right-hander will now be on the shelf for the next 13-15 months, and his entire 2022 could be in jeopardy in the event of a rehab setback.
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